About Arampur 

Homes of the Mughalpura muhalla in Arampur, many of which house animals as well as families.

Arampur is a unique place, like each of India's 587,000 villages. It stands in the Bhabua district (previously part of Rohtas district) of Bihar state, about a five hour bus ride from Banaras. Larger than most villages, it is comprised of agricultural fields surrounding a core of dozens of neighborhoods, each of which have their own character. Made up of homes housing extended families, these neighborhoods, or muhallas, most commonly vary according to caste. Together with the fields in which many of its residents labor, they form a village which we will call "Arampur" in order to protect the identity and privacy of its residents. Despite the diversity in the population of this village, most of the people who live there identify themselves with their village, often in proud ways expressed through narratives. As a large village, Arampur acts as the nucleus for a constellation of villages which will be refered to as "the Arampur nexus." Many of the men and some of the women from these villages regularly frequent Arampur's goods shops, grain dealers, religious sites, various healers, and tea stalls as well as the homes of family members. The center for many of these activities is the main bazaar which straddles the village's main road. This road not only allows farm tractors, jeeps, cars, rickshaws, bicycles, and pedestrians access to the center of Arampur, but also leads to the main bus stop poised at a crossroads outside the village. Arampur acts not only as the portal through which nexus residents reach the rest of Bihar and India but also as a destination for many pilgrims intending to frequent the village's many places of worship. Where the road terminates at one end of the main bazaar looms the remains of a fortress. A slight road arcs along the gentle slope of this mound and leads past a series of shops to the temple of Shastri Brahm. Most Arampur residents quickly tell the visitor about a brahmin who, when maltreated by his patron, a raja, fasted to death and became a ghost who brought ruin upon the raja and became the object of worship in the temple atop the raja's defunct fort. Although some residents disbelieve this story, no one doubts that the temple of Shastri Brahm brings pilgrims from throughout Bihar and neighboring Uttar Pradesh. Pilgrims and those suffering medical and psychological maladies also frequent the tomb shrines of two Sufis in Arampur. Arampur exists in a complex web of interrelations which connect its residents to one another, their natural environment, the region, their nation, and socio-economic forces across the globe.