text: Kirati Rai worship as ancestral god and goddess to Sumnima and Paruhang. Sumnima also known as 'Hengkhamma' the Mother Earth and Paruhang also known as 'Ninamma' Father the Sky god. The Sumnima is the supreme female God, wife of the Paruhang She represents the earth and ancestral mother. Paruhang is the supreme male God, husband of the Sumnima, lords of flowers.  Sumnima-Paruhang are the deities of creator, preserver and sustainer god and goddess of the Rai. Hence it is not appropriate to equate these venerated god and goddess with the Shiva(a destroyer god of Hinduism) and Parvati(consort of Shiva), as it is often equated in Rai literature these days this is simply Hinduisation of the lesser-known Rai believe System.
  Rai shamanism
  Rai shamanism comprises a plurality of shamanic traditions, varied but closely related, like the Rai groups themselves. The Rai in East Nepal consist of numerous subtribes, and even though they speak different languages and have their own distinct traditions, they all share a common linguistic and cultural heritage. Together with Limbu (the language of a related group residing farther to the east, also in Sikkim and Darjeeling), the Kirati Rai languages belong to the Kiranti family, which is a subgroup of Tibeto-Burman. Culturally the Rai have been influenced by both Hinduism and Tibetan Buddhism, but these influences have only marginally affected their ancestral traditions, in which shamanic features still figure prominently.