What constitutes an image? What does it convey? Images are ubiquitous; encompassing our day-to-day mundane lives to special occasions (Pink, 1997a:3), intertwined with our lived experiences, narratives, and identities, amalgamated with our histories spatiotemporally (Pink, 2013:17). These images are ascribed particular meanings as they symbolize the knowledge that is collectively shared and communicated by the members of a community. The meanings deciphered from the images are heavily embedded in the psyche of the members of the community and it survives through generations via memories and word of mouth.
When an ethnographer introduces the camera to document and observe a ritual, the image is captured outside of the mental repository. This image can be subjected to multiple interpretations creating different versions of meanings depending on the viewer. Even though the photographs and videos are supposedly captured as they are, the context is open to discussion. Why was that image captured in a particular way, who is photographed, who is behind the camera, and who is the audience, these issues surface. The image captured, is it different from the picture one has in one’s mind when one tries to remember from their memories? What makes the image hold importance? What makes it sacred or mundane? Does the image do justice to the beliefs of the people or does it portray a different meaning?
This paper attempts to investigate the patterns and meanings generated through the images in the Santhal community. The study centres around religion and further seeks to understand, from an anthropological perspective, how images captured through a camera project more than just sensory viewpoint but have deeper connotations. The image photographed by a lens versus the image existing as a collective consciousness.
