121 © The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2024 D. Mishra, J. D Long (eds.), A Pragmatic Approach to Religion And Sustainability, New Approaches to the Scientific Study of Religion 15, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-67360-3_11 Indigenous Beliefs and Practices for Sustainability Among the Mao Nagas Benjamin Kodai Kaje and Kennedy Andrew Thomas Introduction The Mao Nagas, like many tribes in North East India, were caught off-guard between trends of modernity and the pride of belonging to a rich cultural past. They are torn between clinging to the past and conveniently embracing a contemporary lifestyle. Modern education has brought about tremendous development in the rural areas of the tribals in different parts of India. The time has come to pause and pon- der to critically evaluate the changes effected by modern education in society. Jawaharlal Nehru stated that the tribals should be helped to ‘grow according to their own genius and tradition’ (Elwin 2014). They never exploited the land and the for- est for greed and selfishness. Forest and natural products were utilized only to meet their required needs and not beyond. William Blake wrote, ‘Great things are done when Men and Mountains meet; this is not done by Jostling in the Street.’ Most tribal people lack the written records needed to transfer information through secret scrolls or books. The belief system and ideals are upheld with fervent solidar- ity, and society does not readily accept any deviant behaviour (Ariina 2019). According to the Mao tradition, there is no personal love between God and people; rather, there is awe, astonishment, and dread of the cosmic energy (Daniel 2021). The triangular relationship of God, man, and nature are inexplicably linked and interconnected. The spiritual realm of the indigenous people plays a huge part in their lives. B. K. Kaje (*) School of Education, Christ (Deemed to be University), Bangalore, India e-mail: benjamin.kaje@res.christuniversity.in K. A. Thomas Centre for Education Beyond Curriculum, Christ (Deemed to be University), Bangalore, India e-mail: kennedy.andrew@christuniversity.in