By Willie Gordon Suting
All oral traditions have unique origin stories. The Khasi Hills is rich in various myths and legends much of which remains undocumented till today. Shillong-based writer Avner Pariat in his exhibition ‘Cults of the Khla (tiger)’ undertook a pioneering initiative to find the cogency in the decades-old folklore.
The photographs, videos, attire, books and audio recordings exhibited were a result of a year-long research project. Pariat travelled to different hamlets to interview clan elders on how Khasis appropriated “animal identity” or the khla (tiger) into their cultural forms. The exhibition was held recently at NEHU and Lawei: House of Art.
The photographs displayed had long captions describing interviews with clan elders Lamdang Khonglah, Byllinbon Laitmiet, Kynsai Manik Wankhar and Roselda Margaret Makdoh.
The mythical tale of the Khonglah clan has a touch of compassion. Rynjang who was the last surviving member of the clan, escaped from the clutches of Kyrdep Tarang clan. It was a tiger, whom she had helped, that saved her life. Hiding inside the trunk of the dymbui tree, Rynjang was able to run away when the coast was clear.
The Khonglahs hence feel it is taboo and cannibalism to eat tiger meat, and are prohibited from using the wood of the dymbui tree.
The Laitmiet clan of Kunongrim village traces their origin from an ancestress who was imprisoned on a ledge located on the side of a cliff. The woman’s cries for help in the darkness of the night were answered with a rope lowered down to her. Safely out, she discovered the rope was the tail of a tiger. The big cat saved her life.
The ancestress sworn that her progeny would never eat tiger meat and took the name “Laitmiet” meaning “freed at night”, a reminder to her clan of the incident.
The Makdoh clan whenever in a situation of crisis can invoke ban nam, and a tiger spirit would come to their rescue. This tiger-god named Lathari would follow them everywhere from the fields to the marketplace, keeping an eye on them while hiding on the background. When any clan member died, Lathari would be seen around the pyre mourning.
Many areas in Meghalaya’s northern Ri Bhoi and Jaintia Hills districts have stories about people who acquire the ability to inhabit the body of tigers and leopards. Most never shape-shift into these cats but are reportedly able to link their souls or spirits with the animal.
Should the animal die or is killed, they also suffer the same fate. A German publication in the nineties had done a report on late Dising Maring who was famously called “tiger-man”.
The Chad Khla/Rongkhli festival held at Nongtalang and Bataw villages in Jaintia Hills in the past usually involved community hunting of a wild tiger. Great care was paid by the elders to ensure certain religious conditions were met before the hunt commenced.
When finally managing to subdue the beast, the men would parade joyfully with the carcass around the village borders. The animal would be cleaned, cooked and eaten at a designated site outside the village. The tiger meat was believed to have a protective effect on the body of the hunters for about a year.
These origin, clan and festival stories were presented by Pariat in long descriptive captions with each photograph displayed. Rather than pen a book, Pariat felt “an exhibition is more accessible to the major non-reading public”.
Pariat’s set objectives were accepted in 2016 by Bengaluru-based India Foundation for The Arts. With adequate funding from the organisation, he managed to complete the project last year. “I’m very glad that right from the proposal, everything was accepted. The process of on-field research was tough but somehow I finished in time,” he says.
Pariat first did primary research from books and internet and then enquired about people and places. He says the work involved detailed investigations. “But the villagers I interviewed were full of warmth. They were open to sharing stories.”
With the Roman script introduced in the 1840s, written literature has not been able to document myths and legends of all clans. Pariat explained that his exhibition is not a complete presentation on the topic. “There are still some clan stories and festivals which I am not aware of. The displays, in this sense, are a humble effort,” he says.
“What is sad today though is that most of the clans have lost and forgotten their origin stories. Jaintia Hills has also not been researched by scholars,” he says.
Pariat, who appreciated the footfall, says the government should organise research-based artistic events.