By HH Mohrmen
The report in the press about the Daloi of eleka Jowai, Puramon Kynjing handing over a fistful of soil and a small amount of water to a functionary of the RSS in Jowai has caused quite a stir both in the virtual and the real world. The element which was taken from the section of river Myntdu which is known as Syntu Ksiar is to be used in the foundation of the Ram temple which will be laid in the presence of PM Narendra Modi. Similarly some soil and water is to be handed over to the organiser from the Daloi of eleka Nartiang, Hed Singh Dhar sources informed. The incident may be symbolic but has raised many serious questions.
The first question is: how much influence does Hinduism have on the indigenous Niamtre religion? This writer has done a study on this subject and it was found that Hinduism’s influence on the Niamtre religion in both the Jaintia and War Jaintia region is of a dual nature. Subtle influences can be observed in the different segments of the indigenous faith and this varies from one raid to another and second aspect of the influence is in the case of Nartiang which even celebrates Puja and worships Devi and Shiva.
On a closer study one can see that elements of Hindu worship and deities are found in worship and tradition of the indigenous people. For example Ram, Lakhon, Durka and Kongka are traditional names given whenever parents give birth to twin sons or daughters. Shib Thakur is one important deity not only in the Niamtynrai of Nongtalang but even in other raids to. Pastieh Kopati of the eleka Raliang which is also known as puja kopati has some similarities with Hindu tradition. It is a taboo in all traditional religions irrespective of the raids to consume beef. This is another possible influence of Hindu traditions on a tribal religion. These are only some examples of the influences of Hindu practices in the Pnar indigenous religion, the study has one full chapter on this subject alone.
Nartiang is not the only place where there are two Hindu temples one dedicated to Durga and another to Shiva but it is believed to be one of the fifty one shakti peeth (power centre) found in the entire subcontinent. In Nartiang Hinduism blends with traditional Niamtre religion and people worship both tribal deities as well celebrate Durga puja and worship Shiva. One may ask how these influences happened. It is has to do with the history of the kingdom when the Hima Sutnga extended its Kingdom to the plains and shifted the capital to Jaintiapur. The kingdom was then known as Jaintia kingdom and at some point of time the royal family entered into matrimonies with other Hindu royal families in the region. The king adopted Saivite sect as well as keeping the Pnar culture and tradition because the kings also kept Nartiang as their summer capital and paid regular visits to the place. Hence certain sects of Hinduism blended with Niamtre in Nartiang.
Jaintiapur was not only the seat of the Jaintia kings but in the past it is also one of the major trade centres. The Pnar and the War Jaintia still have folk stories which are evidence of the flourishing trade between the highlanders and the plains people. The next question and the most important question that is being asked is the link between the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangha and Niamtre. What does the RSS have to do with the Niamtre religion is another popular question? But the most intelligent question was by a friend on a certain Facebook page and I quote him, ‘I am rather intrigued with one thing. While the Hinduism practiced by either the Jaintia kings or even some Jaintias themselves and even some Khasis from Shella, is a form of Shaktism, and associated with the worship of Durga or Kali, which again is part of the Saivite (worshipers of Shiva) sect, how does this have any connection with Ram. Ram is considered to be the incarnation of Vishnu and these two sects differ vastly in their beliefs, views and ideas and they don’t see eye to eye with each other.’
It must be clear that it is only in the Niamtre in Nartiang that the worship of Devi and Shiva is practiced and there are also two temples dedicated to the two deities. Although there is a temple in ruins in Syndai; another in Muktapur on the India-Bangladesh border and the third one in Borkhat, the Niamtre in other raids do not have the concept of having a common place of worship. Rather the ancestral home of the family ‘ïung blai/kmai ïung’ is considered to be sacred space where all the rites and passages of the members of the family are performed. They also worship tribal deities and follow tribal culture and traditions. Niamtre and Niamtynrai continue with their indigenous practices and with very little influence of the plain people’s culture, traditions and religion.
The Niamtre RSS bonhomie is not so much about the belief system. In fact, except for the Niamtre in Nartiang, the indigenous religion in other raids has very little or nothing in common with Hinduism. It is even doubtful if they care about the difference between the various Hindu sects. But Niamtre and RSS have one common ground where the two organisations are in agreement and that is the fight against conversion of its members to different Christian denominations.
The answer is in the national census register. After every ten years the population of the adherents of Niamtre or even Seng Khasi in the state dwindles rapidly. This does not come as a surprise if one considers the fact that the main goal of all Christian denominations is to convert the unbelievers to their fold. Almost all churches set up their missions or send missionaries/evangelists to the villages where there is still a large population of people who still follow the indigenous religion to convert them. This is the story of the indigenous religion except in some places where they still have a strong influence. The sad state of affairs was aptly described by Albert Thyrniang in the article in the Shillong Times titled, ‘Is it possible to turn back the clock’ (ST July 4, 2020). In the write up, the writer reminisces about his childhood in the village where he grew up, while also gave us the some idea how demography of a village changes as a result of conversion.
He said in the article that till late 1970s and early 90s, there were still about 20 percent of population in the village who still follow the Niam Tynrai faith and he recalled that they used to celebrate a festival they called ‘ka shad riew pyrthei’ or the dance of the people of the world. It was so called because the followers of the indigenous religion call themselves ‘riew pyrthei’. Now the residents in the entire village have converted to Christianity and Thyrniang made another very important and heart-rending observation in the article which should put us all in shame. As the indigenous religion disappeared from the village, not only the festivals vanished, but the significance of the drums and traditional instruments is lost and even the monoliths were removed from the entire village.
Thyrniang also stated that now the population of the followers of indigenous faith in the state is about 8.70 percent only. The question is whether ‘ka Jaidbynriew’ (the indigenous people) are going to lose anything if the indigenous faith disappears from the face of the earth? Albert Thyrniang in the same article revealed the truth that if indigenous faith disappears then not only will our traditional festivals disappear, but the traditions, the stories and even the monoliths which are the symbols of our culture will also vanish. One wonders how many such festivals, traditions and monoliths have met with such a fate.
The answer to the many questions asked after the news about soil and water was collected from Jowai and sent to Ayodhya is simple. It is because of our own attitude towards the religion of our ancestors. Conversion carries on unabatedly while more than 75 percent of the state remains silent spectators and the only support the followers of Niamtre get is from the RSS. It is therefore not surprising that the Niamtre has developed greater affinity with RSS. We were made to look down on our traditional religion and to brand the practitioners as pagans and non-believers instead of trying to value the wisdom of our ancestors and to understand that we are what we are today because of them. This is what makes adherents of indigenous faith look for support from outside and they found one in the RSS.