REPORT ON THE MAGAHI LANGUAGE GROUP
BY NEW LIFE FELLOWSHIP, BIHAR and JHARKHAND

The Magahi language speaking area consists of eight districts in the state of Bihar viz., Gaya, Aurangabad, Jehanabad, Nalanda, Nawada, Chatra, Giridih and Munger. These districts fall within the two regions of Magadh and Patna where approximately 12 to 15 million people speak the Magahi language.

[Magahi is the language and people, whilst Magadh, anciently Magadha, is the area]

Literacy rate
The literacy rate in this area is about 30% . Most of the literate are men because ladies are not allowed to move out of the village for schooling. There are also very few schools in this area.

Religion
Though the Buddhist and Jain religions have their early roots in the Magadh region, they had no significant effect on Magahi people. The Muslim Moghul Empire also ruled Bihar for sometime, but approximately 99% of Magahi speaking people are Hindu by religion. At present even communism has spread quite widely in this area.

Social scenario
The people of this area have been divided into the caste system and tension is mounting between the higher class and lower class people. Most of the lower class and the middle class  are the supporters of communism.

Work of New Life Fellowship
The New Life Fellowship is involved in evangelism, church planting and translation of the Bible in Magahi language.  . There are several needs for evangelisation like literature printing, financial support for the workers, training programmes, social upliftment work etc.

Over the past 10 years there are about 500 people who are believers in Jesus. Since Christian literature is  not available in Magahi language, the Evangel Bible Translators along with the New Life Fellowship  translated the Gospel of Luke, the Acts of the Apostles, the Gospel of John (which has been recently published) and the Gospel of Mark which is about to be published. The translation of the remaining of the New Testament in Magahi language is in process.  The recently published gospels in a are well accepted among the Maghi people.

OUTREACH MAGADH
VISION OF NEW LIFE FELLOWSHIP, BIHAR
As the work is growing needs in different areas are arising :

1. Needs for the Training Centre
Since there are very few Christians from Magahi-speaking people so there are great needs for the leadership training who could lead the work among their people because leaders from outside are not well accepted because of the language problem, culture problem and for them it is difficult in communication so we feel the need to train the Magahi speaking people to lead the work in Magadh Therefore, we feel the need to have a training centre where we can bring people for short time and hold a short term training programme. They may not be pastors but to make them strong Christians who may be evangelising their own family and own village. So, we are praying for a place for our own where we can have this training programme.

2. Cost for the Training Centre
Cost for the Training Centre including land and building with minimum facilities which will cost approximately Rs. 10 lakhs. (about GBP13,600  USD20,400) (GBP = pounds sterling; USD = US dollars)

3. Evangelism among the Magahi
Among the 14 million Magahi speaking people there are still only about 500 hundred that are Christians. Still there are thousands of villages which need to be reached. Our vision is to have two evangelistic teams consisting of 4 persons each which will go to every village and preach the gospel on their own languages. Also we want to start at least one worship centre for 5 villages. At present we have started 5 worship centres among Magahi speaking people in Magadh region and also 3 worship centre in different parts of Bihar where Magahi people are living. We have work among Santhali people also. These people are mainly animists - that is they worship spirits in trees, rocks, rivers, etc.

In order to have the outreach team there are two important needs we have:

a) Financial support  for the team for the each person of the team Rs. 3000/- (3000x8 = 24000/- pm) That is about GBP325 USD490  per month in total
b) Financial support for the person who will lead the worship centre at Rs. 3500/- each person. At present we have got 5 worship centres. (about GBP48  USD72 per month each)
c) Need for a multipurpose Jeep to take the team one place to another place it is impossible to do it without having our own vehicle because there are hardly any transport in that area so we need to have a multipurpose Jeep (Mahindra) which is good for rough mud road.  Cost for the Jeep is Rs. 6 lakhs approximately. (about GBP8,150 USD12,225)

4. Translation of  New Testament
Although the literacy rate is very low among the Magahi speaking people still if one person can read and write, he reads the gospel for whole family. At present we have the Gospels of Luke, John, and the Book of Acts and also some other literature in Magahi language which is being used for the evangelism. . We are planning to finish the New Testament translation in the next six years time.

Need for the translation work
a) More persons to be involved in translation work
b) Financial support for the translators and printing

5. In order to have more people read the gospel we need to teach more people read and write. So we want to start primary school in different villages. Some places evening schools. At present we have two evening school and two day primary school going on. Most of the school run in the people houses.

Needs for running the schools
a) Financial support for a teacher Rs. 2000/- pm. (GBP27 USD42)
b) Stationary for the school children Rs. 500/- pm. (GBP7 USD10.5 per class)

 
According to the ancient Vedic Bhartiya Chronology, the Magadh Dynasties began in 3139BC - that is at almost exactly the same time as the unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the First Dynasty. But Magahda under nine local dynasties continued until 83BC,  by which time Egypt had long been ruled by foreign pharoahs.

The most famous dignitary of those 3 millennia was Siddhrtha Gautama - far better known simply as the Buddha. He claimed to have reached “Enlightenment” at Bodh Gaya within the Magahd kingdom in the 5th Century BC although he had come from Nepal.

About the same time the Jainist religion was re-established and codified in the same area..

It appears that it was the perceived folly of undertaking an invasion of the Magadh territory defended by the most formidable  forces  in all India, that led to Alexander the Great’s army in 326BC to refuse to march any further from their Greek homelands. Instead he made his famous journey down the Indus river.

Magadha greatest extent and power was under the Maurya dynasty which was founded only five years later by Chandragupta Maurya. “During his time, most of the subcontinent was united under a single government for the first time. (The first Indian “Raj”) Capitalising on the destabilization of northern India by the Persian and Greek incursions, the Mauryan empire under Chandragupta would not only conquer most of the Indian subcontinent, but also push its boundaries into Persia and Central Asia, conquering the Gandhara region. Chandragupta was succeeded by his son Bindusara, who expanded the kingdom over most of present day India, barring the extreme south and east.”

“The kingdom was inherited by his son Ashoka The Great who initially sought to expand his kingdom. In the aftermath of the carnage caused in the invasion of Kalinga, he renounced bloodshed and pursued a policy of non-violence or ahimsa after converting to Buddhism. The Edicts of Ashoka are the oldest preserved historical documents of India, and from Ashoka's time, approximate dating of dynasties becomes possible. The Mauryan dynasty under Ashoka was responsible for the proliferation of Buddhist ideals across the whole of East Asia and South-East Asia, fundamentally altering the history and development of Asia as a whole. Ashoka the Great has been described as one of the greatest rulers the world has seen.” (quotes from Wikipedia)

It seems astonishing - and very sad - that a people with such a long and noble history has never had a translation of the Christian Scriptures - the Holy Bible - and have had so few preachers of the Gospel.of Jesus Christ.

Azad and his fellow believers are working to fill this great void; with prayer and financial support, you can stand alongside them.

6. As the most of the Maghi people are very poor  they cannot afford  to go to the Doctor when they are sick because the fee of the Doctor and cost of the medicine is very high. So we feel there is a great need in this area to extend the love of God through helping them in this matter. We have started one health clinic where free medicines and treatments are provided for poor people. This is one way we giving the gospel to them also At present we have one health clinic running. We want to start more clinics to meet the needs.

Needs for the running of Clinic
a) Cost of the Medicines Rs. 1000/- pm (GBP13.50 USD20)
b) For the Helpers Rs. 1000/-
c) Doctors fee who will come twice a week in the area Rs. 2000/-

Total Rs. 4000 pm (GBP 54 USD 80)

Please pray for these needs.

Please give generously to help us