Editor,
The year 1873 is an eventful one for the indigenous tribes that inhabit the Khasi Jaintia hills. Two life changing events of that year have defined the philosophy of life of the tribe; one is the infamous 1873 Eastern Bengal Frontier Regulation Act, better known as the ILP and the other is the birth of the Khasi Poet Laureate, U Soso Tham, the inner voice of the Highlanders…the history keeper, the conscience of the society. Soso Tham has instilled in all of us a sense of pride, a sense of belonging to a people known for its native ingenuity, a tribal community that ingeniously designed a unique social system, a matriliny with its complex mechanisms of social order and control. The tribe’s social system arose from an orality that did not rely on a written script but evolved from a pragmatism that was a masterstroke in maintaining the equilibrium of the society. Till today this system has served us well, albeit the criticisms and social discourses akin to dismantling the entire social structure.
To this day, U Soso Tham is relevant and his writing is a source of sustenance…his poetry an inspiration to the young and old in the darkest hour. In one of his most profound lines “Jingshai ngi wad sawdong ka pyrthei/Jingshai ka Ri ngim tip ei ei”, he expresses the flawed thinking prevalent amongst the tribe during his time, of seeking knowledge from the world outside while neglecting the knowledge of the forefathers …forgetting to look within for answers…an intellectual bankruptcy that threatened our small tribe then and after 146 years is still an impending threat to the society.
How are these two life changing events relevant to the present social and political upheaval?
Our philosopher guide, U Soso Tham, has articulated that as a tribe we need to find our own answers. Like our forefathers, use our native ingenuity and evolve mechanisms to respond to the present socio-political disequilibrium. Although this time the disruption was not home grown but external and the strike was from the outside, unfortunately, we are not prepared for these socio political and economic disruptions that may be manipulated and imposed at the whims and fancy of the powers that be. The past and present regimes have done it. We are yet to discover and evolve our own mechanisms to counter the present imbroglio.
Our political ‘who’s who’, in an attempt at damage control, have sought refuge in an archaic law (ILP) that was ironically a colonial mechanism to protect the commercial interests of the British. It is my bad luck that I have to point this out but I have also seen native ingenuity in the socio political arena …the genesis of the ingenious coalition government, a mechanism in forming a Government from diverse backgrounds originated from these hills. Unlike the days of yore, the present time is about political incumbents who have a different agenda. They cannot be relied upon to come out with such ingenious methods because the rules of the game have changed. It’s a different ball game when social capital has been reduced to a numerical value and the electorate has been reduced to a commodity. So the social and political mechanisms do not matter anymore as the marketplace is but an apt connotation of the political arena.
In other words, the ecosystem is about buying and selling. An analogy borrowed from the educational system describes best this flaw… this intellectual bankruptcy: ” you cannot teach a fish to climb a tree,”
Our way of life finds genuine expression in Soso Tham’s profound narrative. However, this way of life, that has survived and adapted for centuries, is threatened and is repeatedly being assaulted by an overall lack of imagination…a self induced amnesia of our ingenious past.
Why resort to the ILP which is but a ‘band-aid’ in terms of addressing a much deeper malaise in bio-politics and falls short of a solution to the problem of illegal immigration.
We should be careful of the walls that we build around us… lest they imprison us for generations to come.
I would like to conclude with these few but profound lines from Soso Tham,
” La phi rit bor la phi tlot
Jar jar la phi dei ban iam
Ei ba ong ba phim lah kot
Sha ka kyrdan bad ka nam”
– Soso Tham
Yours etc.,
Ian Lyngdoh,
Via email
Why blame only BJP and not Churches too?
Editor,
With Christmas arriving people are talking about how BJP is against Christmas and also Christian celebration of Good Friday and Easter (Resurrection Day of Jesus Christ). They say that these important Christian observances have been disturbed since BJP came to power, since the government has initiated different programmes which interfere with such Christian events.
However, there are Churches in Shillong that have their own reasons for not observing such events. In the early sixties (60’s) a Canadian missionary along with his family came to Mawlai and started a Church in Mawlai Mot Syiar known as `Church of Christ’ which still exists till date. This church does not believe in using musical instruments in the Church and they believe in `Cessation theology’ – that God since the completion of the `Bible’s new Testament does not in answer to prayer heal the sick and perform miracles anymore. They also say that Christmas, Good Friday and Easter Sunday are pagan festivals.
Such dogmas are also held by two full Gospel Churches in Shillong. (1) The `New Life Triumphant Churches’ run by a husband and wife team who hold the same views as the above-mentioned `Church of Christ’ with regards to observance of Christian festivals. Now a number of key leaders have left this group on allegations of non-accountability and dictatorial nature of the husband- wife team. (2) There is the `Fellowship Church ‘ based in Mawlai Nongkwar, Shillong whose prominent members are Bankri Mylliempdah and Sunita Mawlong – both co-founders of this Church along with Sunita’s brother. Interestingly Bankri is the founder of a local Christian TV channel known as `Potter Net’, which has since stopped making special programmes specifically on those Christian festival days, but they will just show some kids sing songs or other programmes not on the same lines with Christmas, Good Friday and Easter Sunday.
Most of the groups in the last two centuries who toe the same line as the above have now turned into religious cults. They started by saying that they hold the truth and others are wrong. Gradually they became exclusive and have isolated themselves from other Christian Churches. Ultimately spiritual pride took over, and later on many unsavoury things happened. So, let us not blame only the BJP, but also take into account these Churches too that defy the general Christian principles.
Yours etc.,
P.L. Nonglait,
Shillong – 8