ME AND MUSEUM

This article explores the science of Meitei belief system culminating with traditional pre-vaishnavite form of religion. Worship of Pakhangba and beliefs and practices associated with Paphal cult are instrumental in the cultural and social integration of the people of Manipur. The abode of Paphal in sacred places, groves, lakes, mountains, river, caves and forests are merely not a matter of its cultural existence but also prove its biological concern by taking a decisive role in conserving nature.   Paphal representing Ningthouja (royal) clan Religion plays an important role in the growth of human civilization and every society are religious in expressing culturally laid resolution of social and psychological problems. Every society, be it ancient or modern, passes through naturalism and animism. The animistic and naturalistic faiths, those of which are deeply rooted in the beliefs and practices of a society, remain to exist in some forms even if it has undergone c...

Rushem: a traditional wind instrument Rushem being an important accompaniment of song and dance is played in every festive and ceremonial ocassions among the Kom people and other Kuki-Chin tribal groups of Manipur. It is a wind instrument prepared by master craftsman in a local fashion by using locally available materials like bamboo, dry gourd, bee-wax, powder of conch-shell and feather of Cock. Bitter-gourd ready to harvest for preparing shell  of Rushem Scrapping the upper layer (skin) of the newly harvested gourd Keeping dry-gourd above the hearth for fumigation Process of seasoning bamboo pipes by placing on the hanging platform above the fire place to achieve constant fumigation Segmented and complete view of Rushem November and December is the right time to collect fine props of bamboo to be used as wind pipes of different sizes to be passed inside the body of a gourd from six different holes to produce different tunes in a defined note and scale...

Man used to record the repeated phenomenon of the sun, moon and stars to know the time. The behavior and locations of these heavenly bodies based on their daily, monthly or yearly cycles has been the earliest marker to tell about time in many of the civilizations. Even in the contemporary society, the effects of these astronomical signs and their relations are widely used to predict the future. Manipur, once a princely state had experienced the glorious past of using their own time keeping devices. The people of this land had the knowledge of as many as 27 stars that had been named according to their locations and behavior and used as the important element in knowing the time. There is a belief that the people of this land had known the use of time in an appropriate manner since Nongta Lairen Pakhangba - the ruling deity and the first king of the Meitei Kingdom. It is also said that his predecessor God Pakhangba Leinung Lonja Ariba and goddess Leima Leioi Nurabi first sought the ab...

THE MORANS AND THEIR TRADITIONAL HOUSE - N.Shakmacha Singh The Morans are mostly found in the Dibrugarh and Tinsukia Districts of Assam. Larger concentration of this population exists in the eastern extremity of the Tinisukia district, and those inhibiting in this region are traditionally known as Morans of the Samarpith. We often find that Moran-Matak as a single nomenclature is simultaneously used and sometimes they are also called the Mayamaria or Moamaria. This creates a some kind of confusion to the people who visit them. It seems sometimes that Moran and Mottok are synonymous to one another. This juxtaposition, however, is confusing, but provides some interesting aspects of their socio-cultural and historical blending of their ancestral past. Prior to 1251 A.D., the region between the Brahmaputra and the Burhi Dihing in Dibrugarh district, was called Matak country and was ruled by Bor Senapati. (Sipra Sen 1999:154). Matak is a politically organised, greater community formed by s...

A mong the Kuki tribe, water operated husking lever is called Tui-Changshu or Tui-shum. In the past decades husking lever of this kind were extensively used by the tribal villages in many of the hill districts of Manipur. This unique form of husking lever is still found operated in Haipi village. The village is situated in the foothill of the Sadar Hills about 6 Kms west from Kangpokpi Sub-Division in Senapati District of Manipur. The most fascinating aspect of the village is that almost every household possesses Tui-Changsu as one of their important household. Water from the fast flowing streams of the hills are diverted to the center of the village and manage to pass every settlement areas for the used of this kind of lever by every household and further allows the water pass their paddy field for irrigation through a small canal. Tui Shum is about 12 feet long heavey wooden lever dug out at one end like a laddle/spoon. The laddle or spoon shaped structure serves...

SANCHIPAT LEKHAN An ancient technique of writing Manuscript    Sachipat does not mean the leaf of a Sachi tree. In Assamese the leaf of a tree is referred to as Pat from the ancestral past and it became synonymous to the use of barks which appears as much as thin like a leaf. As morapat is referred to the bark extracted from Mora plant in Assamese the writing material prepared from the bark of sacred Sashi tree is call ed Sachipat. The tree of age more than 50 years of growth is preferred appropriate for the extraction of Sachipat. The cut-off portion of Sachi tree is filled up with fresh cow dung so that it could be filled up within a period of 5-6 months. Traditionally, the Satra has to maintain sanctity and purity for collecting Sachi pat. The persons assigned for the collection of Sachipat has to undergo certain cultural practices according to the Vaishnav tradition. In the early morning, before visiting the site of collection, the collector has to take ceremonial...