Religion in Arunachal Pradesh

Religious beliefs in Arunachal Pradesh (India)

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Religion in Arunachal Pradesh (2011)[1][2]

1. Christianity (30.26%)
2. Hinduism (29.04%)
3. Donyi-Polo (26.2%)
4. Buddhism (11.76%)
5. Islam (1.9%)
6. Other (0.84%)

Owing to its ethnic and cultural diversity, religion in Arunachal Pradesh has been a spot for the syncretism of different traditional religions. Much of the native Tani populations follow an indigenous belief which has been systematised under the banner "Donyi-Polo" (Sun-Moon) since the spread of Christianity in the region by Christian missionaries in the second half of the 20th century. The province is also home to a substantial Tibetan Buddhist population in the north and northwest who follow Tibetan Buddhism, of ethnic groups who subscribe to Hinduism,[3] and other religious populations. Christianity is followed by over 30.26% of the population, mostly by natives.

## Statistics

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Religious Statistics of Arunachal Pradesh  Religion | 1971[4] | 1981[4] | 1991[5] | 2001[6] | 2011[7]

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Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | % | Pop. | %
Buddhism | 61,400 | 13.13 | 86,483 | 13.69 | 111,372 | 12.88 | 143,028 | 13.03 | 162815 | 11.77
Christianity | 3,684 | 0.79 | 27,306 | 4.32 | 89,013 | 10.30 | 205,548 | 18.72 | 418,732 | 30.26
Hinduism | 102,832 | 22.00 | 184,732 | 29.24 | 320,212 | 37.04 | 379,935 | 34.6 | 401,876 | 29.04
Islam | 842 | 0.18 | 5,073 | 0.80 | 11,922 | 1.38 | 20,675 | 1.88 | 27,045 | 1.95
Jainism | 39 | 0.01 | 42 | 0.01 | 64 | 0.01 | 216 | 0.02 | 771 | 0.06
Sikhism | 1,255 | 0.27 | 1,231 | 0.19 | 1205 | 0.14 | 1,865 | 0.17 | 3,287 | 0.24
ORP | 296,674 | 63.46 | 326,000 | 51.6 | 313,118 | 36.22 | 337,399 | 30.73 | 362,553 | 26.2
Not stated | 785 | 0.17 | 972 | 0.15 | 17,652 | 2.04 | 9,302 | 0.85 | 6,648 | 0.48
Total | 467,511 | 100 | 631,839 | 100 | 864,558 | 100 | 1,097,968 | 100 | 1,383,727 | 100

## Hindu influence on Donyi Poloism

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Ever since the founding of the Donyi Polo religion by Daadi Botté Talom Rukbo, the indigenous religious movement has been heavily influenced by Hinduism.[8][9] Donyi Poloism, along with other ancient religions, such as Hinduism, share a common belief on nature and the philosophy of maintaining the balance of nature. There was a fear among the followers in the early days of the movement that the religion would be incorporated into Hinduism as a result. This was refuted by Daadi Botté Talom Rukbo himself in a religious conference [10] when he established similarities between Donyi Polo and Bön, ancient Maya religion, Egyptian Ra Sun Worship, Tengri Worship & Japanese Shinto religion; and as such, all the world’s ancient religions share a singular philosophy and are a part of a world community of nature worshippers and thus, asserted the need for a more independent approach.[11] A prominent Donyi Polo worship place in Aalo town is reminiscent of a Hindu temple. External influence upon the local indigenous religious traditions has been met with increasing opposition and severity among the Tani intellectuals.[8]

However a large number of the Donyi Polo followers still identify themselves as Hindu in the Census because the poll does not recognise the indigenous religion and thus, avoid selecting the "others" option.[9]

## Buddhism

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Buddhism arrived in Arunachal Pradesh in 8th century CE from Tibet.[12]

## Christianity

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Main article: Christianity in Arunachal Pradesh

Christians comprise about one-third of the total population of Arunachal Pradesh.[1] Most of these are Roman Catholics, while some are Baptists. There has been a rise in the Christian population of the state. Some say that this is due to conversions, while experts attribute this to the effect of migration on the small population of the state.[13]

## Islam

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History of the muslims in Arunachal Pradesh is related to the arrival of muslims from neighbouring state of Assam, constituting both Assamese, Bengali people, and some small number of local converts.[14][15] Currently there are 1.95% muslims reside in Arunachal Pradesh according to the latest 2011 population census.[16][17] Recently there is a self dissolution of All Arunachal Pradesh Tribal Muslim Youth's Forum because of sharp unacceptence about indigenous muslim community which has resulted a big criticism from others.[14]

## See also

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* Demographics of Arunachal Pradesh

* Golden Pagoda, Namsai
* Tawang Monastery
* Si-Donyi Festival
* Rangfrah, revivalist movement of Tangsa traditional spirituality
* Buddhism in Himachal Pradesh

## References

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1. ^ a b "Population by religious community - 2011". 2011 Census of India. Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner. Archived from the original on 25 August 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
2. ^ "Arunachal Pradesh Hindu Muslim Population". www.census2011.co.in. Retrieved 22 March 2025.
3. ^ Katiyar, Prerna. "How churches in Arunachal Pradesh are facing resistance over conversion of tribals". The Economic Times.
4. ^ a b "Household Population by Religion of Head of Household, Series-1, Paper 3 of 1984, India - Census 1981" (PDF). Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India.
5. ^ "C-9 Religion , INDIA - 1991". Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India.
6. ^ "C-01: Population by religious community, Arunachal Pradesh - 2001". Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India.
7. ^ "Indian Census 2011". Census Department, Government of India. Archived from the original on 13 September 2015. Retrieved 25 August 2015.
8. ^ a b Sethi, Nitin (1 May 2014). "RSS turns Arunachal tribals towards Hinduism". Business Standard. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
9. ^ a b "Target northeast: How RSS plans to make region saffron". hindustantimes.com/. 13 December 2014. Retrieved 13 November 2017.
10. ^ Kumar, Dr N. Dilip (20 March 2014). On Top of the Old Tak. Dorrance Publishing. ISBN 9781480906518.
11. ^ "Donyi-Poloism taking roots in Arunachal Pradesh | Arunachal Observer". Arunachal Observer. 19 June 2017. Retrieved 13 November 2017.
12. ^ "Theravada Buddhist Monasteries of Arunachal Pradesh: A Study of Art and Visual Culture".
13. ^ "Christian population on the rise in Arunachal Pradesh". Hindustan Times. 8 March 2017. Retrieved 9 February 2019.
14. ^ a b "Org expresses concern over tribal Muslim youth forum - The Arunachal Times". 25 August 2024. Archived from the original on 25 August 2024.
15. ^ "Religion Data of Census 2011: XXXII Arunachal Pradesh ST". Retrieved 23 March 2025.
16. ^ "Arunachal Pradesh Hindu Muslim Population". 25 August 2024. Archived from the original on 25 August 2024.
17. ^ "Muslims in Arunachal Pradesh disband 'Tribal Muslim Youth Forum' - The Kashmir Times". 25 August 2024. Archived from the original on 25 August 2024.

*[ORP]: Other Religions and Persuasions