Some socially inferior Brahmins in Bihar are connected with the actual ritual of temple worship and include miscellaneous groups such as the pujari who performs the pujas in shrines and temples, the Ojhas of occultist propensities who exorcise demons and evil spirits, the Jyotishis or astrologers who caste horoscopes and determine auspicious occasions, the Pandas who act as guides at pilgrim centres and Mahapatras who conduct ceremonies connected with the funeral rites of the upper castes. The village priests (pujaris) among the masses are usually uneducated. There is a large proportion of hereditary priests. Many of the Brahmin pujaris are men from good families. The average priest knows little beyond reading the Karmakanda and he is often shaky at that. From the point of view of morality, certain priests as a rule lead pure and austere lives. There are also a few Brahmin pandits who devote themselves to teaching. Making gifts of land and cows to Brahmins was at one time considered very meritorious by the Puranas. Brahmins are generally strict about personal cleanliness and begin their private devotions well before sunrise, repeat them at moon and again just before sunset.

The Brahmins of Maithila are divided into five hypergamous groups -Shrotriyas, Yogyas, Panjibadhs, Nagars and Jaiwars. The religion of the average Brahmin is a curious mixture of Hinduism and Animism, in which belief in both evil spirits and godlings is the principal element. Most of the Brahmins have their idols to which they make simple offerings in the open air. A few of the Maithil Brahmins are Shaivites who believe in the unity and immanence of god and have a deep consciousness of personal sin.

Among the Brahmins in Bihar there are hundreds of Agradanis or Kantahas who conduct ceremonies when Hindus are burned and who receive the offerings made on the eleventh day after a person's death. Bihar is also the ancient place of settlement of the Sakaldwipi Brahmins and they continue to be one of the most numerous classes of this order. Some of these Sakaldwipis act as a purohits for people and explain to them the decree of fate with the help of an almanac. Many of them are of the Shakta sect and are guided by the tantras. Among the Brahmins of Kanoj greater part live by acting as purohits. Many are in service and some live by trade, the greatest part have lands which they cultivate by the help of servants, but they do not work with their own hand. They are mostly of the sect of Rama, a few worship Krishna or the Shaktis. The worshippers of Rama have no objection to repeat the ceremonies used in the adoration of Shiva or of any other god. Some of Saraswat Brahmins were formerly land lords. Now some of them are merchants while others are priests. The Kanyakubjas act as teachers, priests, cultivators, soldiers, messengers, clerks and accountants, traders or cooks.

Muslims

The Muslims in Bihar are commonly seen in Purnia, Darbhanga, Muzaffarpur and Champaran districts. In the Purnia districts Hindus and Muslims live together and has imbibed each others religious beliefs. Many of the Hindu and Muslim festivals are celebrated with equal zeal. The Muharram ' Tazias' are usually borne on the shoulders by the Hindus and the Durga puja ' Akharas' are filled up by the Muslims.

Caste system was foreign to Islam, it appears to have entered the Muslim social system as a result of the contact with the Hindus. The Muslims are divided into two main classes, the Ashroff and Ajlaf. The Syeds, who belong to the first category claim descent from the prophet himself, others in this category are Mughals, Iranis, Afghans, Pathans etc. The Momins, Kunjras and the Muslim castes-Julaha, Dhunia, Dhobe, Kulal, Chik, Lalbegi and others belong to the second group. The Mulick of Shahabad are all Ashroff and live by reciting poetry describing the love of Radha and Govindha; they worship certain saints and make offering at tombs and dargahs. In pre-Mughal Bihar, all the Ulema, Mullas and Sufis were Sunni Muslims, there were no sectarian differences between Shias and Sunnis.

Christians

The Christians are commonly seen in Ranchi district, Singhbhum district and in the district of the Santhal parganas. Their missions, which are found throughout the state not only engage themselves in evangelistic work but also maintain schools and colleges, manage several well equipped hospitals and have many orphanages at Patna and else where. At Patna alone, the Roman catholic Mission has five boarding schools, two for boys and three for girls, and a woman's college. The first Jesuit priest to have come to Patna was father Simon Figuieredo. The Capuchins followed early in the eighteenth century and succeeded in establishing stations in Bengal and Bihar. The most fruitful field for missionary activities has not been the plains of Bihar but the hilly region of Chotanagpur-especially in Ranchi. The aboriginal races of Chotanagpur, especially in Ranchi have shown greater sensitiveness to Christian influences.