By Barnes Mawrie
One year has passed since the death of Fr. (Dr) Sylvanus Sngi Lyngdoh, an eminent Khasi scholar, writer and a luminary of Meghalaya. He passed away last year on May 28. His funeral was by far the most solemn and well attended event in the history of Shillong. Recently, on may 19, 2017, his mortal remains were transferred from Laitumkhrah Catholic Cemetery to Sacred Heart College campus in Mawlai. A beautiful mausoleum has been constructed for the purpose. He is still being fondly remembered and continues to attract a lot of people. On May 28, 2017 his first death anniversary, a large crowd of people is expected to turn up to pay homage at his mausoleum. Fr. Sngi will live on as a legend about whom generations will never cease to talk. He was a multifaceted personality who had a midas touch in everything he did. We can speak endlessly about him and his achievements however, I would like to focus on one quality of his, namely, his vision for the Khasi people.
Fr. Sngi was truly a visionary and he could read into the future of the Khasi society and this prompted him to act vigorously on behalf of the people in order to shape for them a brighter future. From a literary sense, he has given the Khasi Christians two precious dictionaries: Hebrew-Khasi-Aramaic and the Greek-Khasi. Apart from these he has published Khasi Bible Commentaries called Ki Pynshai shynna on the different books of the Bible. One may ask, why all these works? One who understands his vision would know that it was his desire that the Khasi Christians should have access to the hidden treasures of the Bible. Thus by having commentaries in our own language and the dictionaries of Biblical languages (Hebrew, Aramaic & Greek) in Khasi language, the Khasi people are so privileged to have the possibility of delving into the depth of the Holy Scriptures. There are very few groups of people in the world who have such a possibility. As a person who appreciated and promoted indigenous talents, Fr Sngi has immortalized the name of Jespil Syiem a naturally gifted poet of Ri Bhoi by putting in black and white the phawar (poetry) in four big volumes each running into hundreds of pages. It was his conviction that such hidden talents should not be lost or wasted. He has also preserved for posterity the Land System of Ri Bhoi and the Pomblang Syiem of Nongkrem in his two booklets which are of immense value.
It is interesting how Fr. Sngi would speak endlessly about the mythological Dorbar-blei (Divine assemblies) which numbers four of them. He has written extensively on these in almost every book and article of his. Even in his talks and lectures he would never fail to speak about them. He seemed passionate about this idea. We may ask, why speak about such mythological events and what relevance do they have? Today we understand his visionary insight in doing this. Through these Dorbar-blei he was trying to demonstrate the divine origin of the Khasi people and the God-given purpose they have in their earthly existence. The relevance of such an idea cannot be underscored. Every group of people has some kind of mythology which recounts their origin as connected to some supernatural elements. This is what gives the people a sense of pride about their identity and purpose in life. By knowing about our origin through the Dorbar-blei and the task assigned to us by God therein, the Khasi people should feel proud about their identity and integrity as a people. This should convince us that in spite of our small number, we are not second to anybody, that we are great in our own way and that we can achieve glory like any other group of people in the world.
Another vision of Fr. Sngi was to promote and enrich the Khasi language. He had an idea of amalgamating the different dialects into the one Khasi language. For this reason he made great effort in incorporating many words from the different dialects especially of Ri Bhoi, into the official Khasi language. In this manner, he not only enriched the Khasi vocabulary but he also contributed towards a greater unification of the Khasi race. Everyone knows that “language unites” and in doing this he had a vision of a unified and strong Khasi tribe. In an era where there is so much intra-ethnic feeling even within the Khasi tribe itself (eg. the Pnar ethnic feeling), such an effort is worth emulating.
It was Fr. Sngi’s conviction that “number is strength” and “number ensures survival.” He had a vision of a Khasi people reaching a secure population of 3 million. He used to say that “once we reach the 3 million population mark, our race would never disappear from the face of the earth.” For this reason, he would emphasize on having a big family. When we consider the fact that the Khasis are only a minority group in India’s vast population, it is reasonable to advocate a large family, or else we will be decimated and disappear. Let us not forget that four million Jews died in the WW II holocaust, but they are still a strong race today. This is because they have a large population. Had it been any of our North-Eastern tribes, we would have been exterminated. Unfortunately, there are some tribal communities in Tripura who advocate nuclear families and today they are on the verge of extinction. Fr. Sngi went further in strengthening the Khasi race by advocating the traditional Tangkur ceremony wherein new Khasi clans are created through non-Khasi ancestresses. In his life time he has created as many as twelve new clans.
We could discuss more on this topic but as of now, I conclude by saying that Fr. Sngi’s vision for the Khasi people should not be lost sight of. He was a true son of the soil who loved his people and his culture and tradition and wanted others to do the same. He would burn the midnight oil and outrun the dawn to work tirelessly on his computer producing volumes of valuable Khasi literature. He was truly a man with a clear vision and a great sense of mission. His legacy will live on among the Khasis and he will continue to be an inspiration for generations to come.