Sauria Pahariya constitute a tribal community that inhabits the hilly regions of Rajmahal, Pakur, and Godda in Bihar State. The members speak the language ‘Malatri’ and live on the top of hills inside the jungles. Main occupation of Sauria Pahariya is agriculture and they follow the shift agriculture system. Primarily superstitious, these tribes perform
puja of the guardian spirit of the land before the harvest, in order to ward off evil spirits. The village head of Sauria Pahariya is named as ‘Mukhia’ and he is the one who collects the revenue of the land from the villagers. These tribes believe in the ‘Gotra’ (clan) system and follow the rituals and traditions of the clan. They do not usually have a religious head. The eldest son is the legal heir of the paternal property. Divorces and re-marriages are very common. Some of their customs are same as those of the Hindu community. They prefer vegetarian food.
