By Dr. Omarlin Kyndiah
In virtually all cultures the birth of a healthy child, a son in patrilineal, and a daughter in matrilineal society is a joyous occasion. No such unanimity, however, exists with regards to the birth of twins. Almost all early and primitive societies gave interpretation to twin births which vary from the most auspicious to the most sinister. In the ancient legends of Egypt, Greece, and Rome twins have figured prominently and are generally in a highly exalted status. They assume that they had supernatural power and qualities. Within the African communities, the belief system of twin birth varies. The Igbo speaking-people of southeast Nigeria, for example, feared the birth of twins. By contrast, in southwest Nigeria, their Yoruba neighbours praised the birth of twins. Igbo society views twins as a bad omen sent by the “Gods.” They considered twins as supernatural beings that could bring devastation to society. As a consequence, whenever twins were born, their parents had to leave them at the “Evil Forest” to die. Twins were put in earthenware pots and thrown in the forest. These cultures existed in the Iron Age. Such superstitions and traditions defy the dignity of human existence.
P.R.T. Gurdon in his book titled ‘The Khasis’ mentioned that the Khasis consider the twin birth a ‘sang’ or ‘taboo’. He wrote, “the Khasis argue that there is but one Ka Iawbei (first ancestress) and one U Thawlang (first ancestor), so one child, either male or female should be born at a time. Twin birth is accordingly regarded as a visitation from God for some ‘sang’ or transgression committed by some member of the clan”.
Every summer, on the first weekend in August, thousands of twins converge at Twinsburg, Ohio, a small town southeast of Cleveland named by identical twin brothers nearly two centuries ago. The three-day festival is known as the Twins Days Festival, where a three-day marathon of picnics, talent shows, and look-alike contests was organised. This festival has grown into one of the world’s largest gatherings of twins.
Doctors in India are wracking their brains to solve the riddle of 220 plus twins born to 2,000 families in the far-flung village of Kodinhi in Kerala. Experts are wondering about the uncommon phenomenon of twin births nearly six times more than the global average. This place is known as the Twin Town of India.
The Jaintias too have integrated a special belief system pertaining to twins in their traditional religion. The Jaintias saw twins as being of great importance. In the Pnar language, twins are called “Ki Kha Mynrap”. They are looked after and treated with honour. The birth of twins is celebrated because they are considered a sacred blessing and gift from God (U Tre Kirot). This belief system on twins’ birth is connected to the myth of the Niaw Wasa. In a Divine Dorbar, God told U Niaw Wasa that they would no longer be able to see Him since His task of creation is completed. God commands that each family make a hut called ‘Yung Blai’ and therein He would bless each family with deities. One such deity will emerge as twins, God commanded! These family deities represent the force of nature upon which the prosperity of the family depended and also play major roles in shaping human affairs in the myth of U Niaw Wasa.
Many attempts had been made by various scholars, authors, newspaper writers, and commentators to study the tradition connected to twins’ birth in the Niamtre family. Their conjecture is that the tradition is an influence of Hinduism. Considered a sacred blessing and gift from U Tre Kirot, the twins are given due honour, respect, and special status in the Jaintia family and society. Special rites and rituals are performed in the family to signify their cultural identity.
Religions and customs have strong influences on food habits through food laws such as taboos. Among the Niamtre community, twins and their mothers are tabooed to eat potatoes. The species which is prohibited is Solanum tuberosom Linn and not the red skin variety. The subject of the exact cause, dating, and the sequence of culture is a difficult one and outside my competence. From antiquity, there is a narrative among the Pnars that on a particular day twin brothers saw the ‘twin potato tubers’, and henceforth they vow not to partake of potato. However, it is imperative here to mention the cultures of the early Chimú or the Proto-Chimú. In the Chimú native folklore, ‘twin potato tubers’ are regarded as being endowed with special reproductive gifts. Human twins were likewise endowed with special powers. Interestingly, the Spanish chronicles too speak of the magic value of twin maize cobs.
Potatoes were first cultivated by man 8000 years ago in the Andes, South America. David Scott introduced potato (Solanum tuberosom Linn) in the Khasi Hills in the early part of the 19th century. Some presume that since the Jaintias fought a fierce battle with the British who attempted to suppress their traditions and religious beliefs, that could be the reason for twins being prohibited from eating the potato variety introduced by David Scott.
It is a common practice across the world, that twins are given a special name ranging from names that rhyme (Jayden and Caiden/ Akash and Prakash), to those that honour the ancestors such as Leila & Laura Hazel and Vivian, a name that starts with the same letter (Abhay and Ajay). The fraternal twins of an inter-racial marriage between Amanda Wanklin and Micheal Biggs in the USA were given intertwined names: Millie Marcia Madge Biggs and Marcia Millie Madge Briggs. The Jaintias name the twins U Ram and Lakhon for male and Ka Kongka and Durka for female twins. Hence, there is no uniformity and unanimity across cultures in naming twins after the names of gods and goddesses. For instance, when a couple gives birth again to twins for the second time or third time, they are given different names.
When the Sutnga Dynasty expanded into the plains division and established Jaintiapur as the capital of the Kingdom, they might have been indirectly influenced to some extent by Hindu epics like the Ramayana and Mahabharat. From these epics, they might have picked up names for twins. Though the Jaintias adopted the name of the Hindu gods in naming the twins, it cannot be construed as an influence of Hinduism, because the traditions and the belief system of the Jaintias on the twin’s birth are unique in their own way and different from Hindu practices.
This writer is struggling to find a Hindu family naming twin sons as Ram and Laxman and twin daughters as Ganga and Durga. Therefore, the claim that the traditions and the belief system of the Jaintias on twins are an influence of Hindu ideology is not a historical authenticity. This assumption needs careful attention and an in-depth understanding of Jaintia’s worldview and the belief system of the Niamtre. Hinduisation of the Jaintia Dynasty by the Kings when they invaded the plains is an attempt to legitimise or consolidate their power structure and to make the structure acceptable to the people of the plains division. However, the Jaintia Kings retained the social base such as the matrilineal law of succession. Hence, acceptance of new ideas that do not alter the basic ‘structure’ of traditions and belief systems is the characteristic of a progressive society.