A hermit has befriended a family of wild bears in the dense jungles of the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.

The animals are frequent visitors to the Rajmada Ramvan Ashram of Shahdol district, where they listen to the music of hermit Baba Sitaram, who lives there.

Sitaram, a resident of village Khora Barrack of Jaitpur Tehsil, built his ashram in this rugged forest in 2013 to pray and perform religious music.

He commented: "That day, I was lost in my songs playing my instrument. When I opened my eyes, I see these bears sitting in front of the ashram, absorbing my hymns,"

Reportedly the bears, one male and one female, never enter the ashram after the songs are over, allowing them to eat the 'prasad' or food offerings for the gods.

Sitaram added: "I've been here since 2013 and since then the wild bears have been coming to me whenever I sing the Ram Bhajans (devotional songs) with the Ektara and dumroo.

"They never attacked me nor have they ever scared anyone while patiently sitting outside the ashram when Bhajans are sung.

"Every morning and evening, they only leave the place after having the Prasad from my hands. The bear pair and their two cubs have become an inseparable part of my life.

I've even named the pair as Lali and Lalli and their offspring as Chunnu-Munnu, who always respond to my calls,"

Devotional hymns have brought animals and humans closer to each other in the dense jungles of the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.

The friendship between a pair of wild bears and a saffron-clad hermit took place in the Rajmada Ramvan Ashram of Shahdol district.

Situated at the end of Jaitpur tehsil of Shahdol district of Madhya Pradesh there is a forest of khadkhoh bordering the state of Chhattisgarh.

Through the inhospitable paths of the jungles, there is an ashram in the middle of the dense forest banked by a river.

According to forest officials, Sitaram Baba resides in the ashram hymns devotional songs and plays his instrument ektara while a pair of bears flock out of the jungle following the music.

They sit in front of him, drowned in the music.

The bonhomie between the hermit and the seemingly spiritually inclined bears is very much discussed in Madhya Pradesh as well as in Chhattisgarh.

Baba Sitaram, a resident of village Khora Barrack of Jaitpur tehsil of Shahdol district, built his ashram in this rugged forest in the year 2013 to indulge in happiness, peace, and devotion to God.

"That day, I was lost in my songs playing my instrument. When I opened my eyes, I see these bears sitting in front of the ashram, absorbing my hymns," he said.

The camaraderie has been going for the last eight years every morning and evening.

The bears never barge into the ashram after the songs are over. They feed on the prasad or the bits of food offered to god and leave the ashram.

Reportedly among the visitors, there is a male bear, a female one, and their offspring.

"I've been here since 2013 and since then the wild bears have been coming to me whenever I sing the Ram Bhajans (devotional songs) with the Ektara and dumroo. They never attacked me nor have they ever scared anyone while patiently sitting outside the ashram (hut) when Bhajans are sung. Every morning and evening, they only leave the place after having the Prasad (offering to God) from my hands. The bear pair and their two offsprings have become an inseparable part of my life. I've even named the pair as Lali and Lalli and their offsprings as Chunnu-Munnu, who always respond to my calls," Sitaram Baba told the media.

According to locals, not only the bears but also other carnivorous or herbivorous animals living in the jungle are also drawn towards the hermit's devotional hymns.