Punjabi folk religion

Punjabi folk religion refers to the beliefs and practices strictly indigenous to the Punjabi people, of the Punjab region including ancestral worship, worship of indigenous gods, and local festivals. There are many shrines in Punjabi folk religion which represents the folk religion of the Punjab region which is a discourse between different organised religions. These shrines represent inter-communal dialogue and a distinct form of cultural practice of saint veneration.

Punjabis, irrespective of their organised religion, continue to practice Punjabi folk religion which at times runs independently of organised religion or derives beliefs from institutionalised religions which then form part of Punjabi folk religion.

In Punjabi folk cosmology, the universe is divided into three realms:

Devlok is the realm of the gods, saints and ancestors, existing in akash, the sky. Ancestors can become gods or saints.

A jathera is a shrine constructed to commemorate and show respect to the founding common ancestor of a surname and all subsequent common clan ancestors.

Whenever a founder of a village dies, a shrine is raised to him on the outskirts of the village and a jandi tree is planted there. A village may have many such shrines.

The jathera can be named after the founder of the surname or the village. However, many villages have unnamed jathera. In some families, the founder of the jathera is also a saint. In such instances, the founder has a dual role of being the head of a jathera (who is venerated by his descendants) and also of being a saint (such as Baba Jogi Pir; who can be worshiped by any one).

Punjabi people believe that members of a surname all hail from one common ancestor. A surname in Punjabi is called a gaut or gotra.

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