SATRA, LAND AND SOCIETY: THE ECONOMIC FOUNDATIONS OF NEO-VAISHNAVISM IN MEDIEVAL ASSAM

The Neo-Vaishnavite movement associated with SrimantaSankardeva and his successors represents one of the most significant religious and socio-cultural developments in medieval Assam. Histories of the movement have often concentrated on its devotional philosophy, literary achievements, social reform and contribution to Assamese cultural identity. Comparatively less attention has been given to the material foundations that enabled the movement to institutionalise itself over several centuries. This paper examines the Satra as an economic as well as religious institution, focusing particularly on land, labour, agricultural production, royal patronage and relations with surrounding communities. It argues that the expansion of Neo-Vaishnavism cannot be adequately understood without examining the economic organisation of the Satra institution. Land grants by Ahom rulers provided several Satras with a stable resource base, while agricultural cultivation, rents, donations and religious contributions supported their activities. At the same time, the accumulation of land and institutional wealth created new forms of hierarchy and authority within Satra society. The paper therefore moves beyond the conventional image of the Satra as simply a centre of devotion and proposes that it functioned as a complex socio-economic institution linking religion, land, labour, culture and political authority.