Imphal Times Supplementary issue 2 Editorial The Cave Born Tribes of Manipur and Tangkhul Literature O, tui hi lânijilo Reached the Manipur valley groups left some signs for the next By: Dr. H. Shimreingam Imphal, Tuesday, December 22, 2015 Lâ hi tuinijilo, O opened the packed rice (and shared) group/s, but many went to some other Asst. Professor, Dept. of English Âyârningkathemvayo! O shouted at Shokvao direction and the groups could not William Pettigrew College, Ukhrul O, sâkazaklo, O cross the ocean my son Ashang come together in one place. So the Itholipeidaphokrâlo O distributed fire at Meizailung phrase ‘Dardouy Lam-mong’ Poireiton journeyed along the Selection blues (C. Chiphang) O HunphunPatriach (Dardouy losing track), the first southern Tangkhul, Maring and Anal The process of selecting the best for a particular task has Free Translation in English O you LongpiKajui and Ronra… known track of the Dardouy was areas as they were his kinsmen.)The O, say word is song, O Marem and Kalhang (villages) reaching Burma and came to people who moved out of this place been an inherent process of nature itself, from which man, O say song is word (History), O reaching ThisomTusomrara. KulkungKuirel and Inching valley lovingly murmured Leishi, Leishi with the passage of time polished and refined it to become O Western educated girl! From the above Tangkhul folksong (Ningthi river) then reached (meaning love in Tangkhul), so the what is known as a formal selection process. At present, the O, sing merrily, when the Tangkhuls passed through Angkoching and then reached Samsok, village was called Leishi. They process has been divided into stages in order to test and Continue to sing till the end of the the Manipur valley, they did not come then crossing Kontang country and reclaimed the Nambashi hill ranges evaluate every aspect of a candidate, the objective being to world. across any human settlement in it. The from here to Mongsa valley and then which they marked during their choose the best available person who can handle a particular The Tangkhuls live mainly in Ukhrul migration wave theory according to M. finally came to Phungrei hills, journey from Samsok up to the task. The process therefore has become a universally adopted district. They also scatter in the K. Shimray (1967:6-8), Shokvao- Manipur. Crossing the Tuyungbi river Imphal valley by crossing the method of separating those with potentials from the rest – neighbouring districts like Senapati, Hungphun-Meizailung Group (trans. and Taretlok the Dardouy chief buried Tuyungbiriver. Today old Maring the wheat from the chaff. Right from the time a child is sought Thoubal,Chandel in Manipur and mine) “… reached Marem, but as land an axe on the ‘Hailokthiil’ the crossing folk songs which they themselves admission in a school to those instances when only the Somra tract in Myanmar. was too small for the large group, some road of the present Khunthak village could not understand the meaning are Geographical area of Ukhrul district group went towards the south and and Tarong village as his boundary and clearly understood by the Nambashi extraordinary minds and skills are sought for extraordinary is about 4544 sq.km. which is passed through Luithar and assembled moved towards the north to see if they people.The Meitei king called the tasks, various methods are being applied as per the level of bounded by Myanmar on the east, at Khambiching. Again since land was could find a better place, and reached Dardouy people as Leimashel but expertise required. The result, as expected, is one which gives Nagaland on the north and Chandel too limited for the big populace, the Imphal valley. Here is a tale which when the British camped at the best possible candidate or candidates. However, selection district of Manipur on the south. chief of the group called the clansmen claims that the Nambashi people were Leimashel village, the name of the processes in Manipur for various posts and positions has According to T. Luikham (1961, and told them that they had to search once living at KomKeithel near the village was changed to Nambashi always been mired in controversies. There have been reprint 2013: 41-42), the Tangkhuls for more lands. Those who excelled in present Nungou thong village.The Inpuicommunity of uncountable unfortunate incidents, perhaps more than anyone were originally living in Mongolia and arrow shooting went towards the south (Samumakhong, the king and the Zeliangrong group and the Nambashi would care to remember, where such selection processes, migrated to Hsawnghsup (now and those went towards the south were elephant’s statue), they erected a stone village of Ukhrul District have close instead of providing opportunities to deserving candidates, Thaungdut) or Samsok and came to the Marings and Anals. It is said that there (they claim the stone on the cultural affinity. have turned out to be an act which have destroyed their carriers the present land. There are a number to mark that they reached the north southern side of the present Thereare tales which claim that the of folk songs relating the migration of and made U-turn they performed Johnstone Hr. Sec. School and in front early Tangkhuls came out of a cave. and futures. Legal wrangles, allegations of misdeeds by the Tangkhuls from Samsok to their Kapâkhayang ritual, observing the of the State Museum). When the king There was a tiger at the gate of the authorities, inexplicable delays in announcement of results present habitat. A folk song, Miwurla omens whether good or bad from the constructed the bridge, the god of the cave and killed every man who came and even cancellations of the entire selection processes has (song of Origin) runs thus: splits of bamboo and Harkhokhayang river asked for a Hungyo (Luwang in out. There was a brave man who killed been seen as an intrinsic part of the process and is becoming O khilitunglo…? observing the position of the feet a Meitei clan) man. The king invited the the tiger with his arrow. After the an increasingly frequent phenomena in the state. As a result, O Ava Samsoklitungthuiya cock or a hen, they performed the ritual Hungyo chief in the foundation laying tiger was killed all the people came numerous important and vital posts and positions in public O Makanganailiphungshok, on the left hand. ceremony and tricked him to retrieve out of the cave. In old books of the administration have been remaining vacant, some for almost O Makunganailipangthang, Another group who went towards the a smoking pipe from the pit which Tangkhuls other Naga tribes of a decade without the hope of having them filled by competent O Ngakanganasafasingmiya north reached Makhel, the Maos and was dug for the main pillar. When the Manipur which came out of cave individuals. Delays in dispensing of public work, unnecessary O mala mangmilaga Marams settled there but the innocent Hungyo chief tried to do as include: Maring, Kabui, Mao, Aimol, over looping of tasks and authorities, break in the chain of O ili rai phamiya Tangkhuls went towards the east and he was told, he was pushed inside the Anal, Chothe, Lamkang, Moyon, YaNgachangchihui settled at Phungcham and dispersed pit and became a sacrificial animal. Monsang, Tarao, Thangal, Maitei procedures and resulting repetition of frustrating procedures O rom ungaphei from there. The Kabuis were divided Then the wife of the Hungyo chief (originally the Tangkhuls called are some of the everyday hazards faced by the public when O Shokvaoliunghoyam into two: those who went towards the called her clansmen and people and Maitei for Meitei and Matei by dealing with any government department or agency. Such a O ungkanloinaoshang south were called Rongmei and towards told them that they could not any Hungdung village meaning ‘our custom have been so deeply ingrained in the workings of public O Meizailungli O meingayar the north Liangmei. And the Kabui longer live there as it was also infested people’), etc. According to Y.L. administration that it has come to be institutionalized in the O HunphunAvakhararwo who went towards the east with by mosquitoes and wild animals and Shimmi (2013:5), “Three Tangkhul system. And while the public, incidentally for whom these O LongpiKajuipavoRonravo… Tangkhuls were called Kambiron who pleaded that they should go up to the Naga villages namely, Khangkhui, selection processes are being carried out are left to fend for O Thisom (Tusom) raravapeiya once settled near the present hills. And one day the Nambashis went Raashoeram and Enouram, the last themselves against the onslaught of red-tapism and O MaremKalhang Sirârakhong village but after some years to the river for fishing, the wife who two, in Hungdung village tell the bureaucratic hurdles, there still is no sign of the government (Sung by C. Sareo, T. Luikham, they moved again to join their group lost her husband found a stone, legends of Mongsor cave and the waking up to the reality on the ground. Its’ handling of public R. Luikham and others) and settled near the Liangmeis in the Shumpan which can be used for Mangva cave... The Kathur Free Translation in English present Tamenglong area.” pounding rice. If a basket of paddy Tangkhuls have managed to identify agitations and protests regarding the issue over the years O where are you from In the tales and songs of the was pounded on the stone Shumpan, at least caveman called Mangsor. The have raised more questions than answers. What keeps the (originally)? Nambashivillage it is said that they the wife would get the wife would get legend runs that Mangsor lived on authorities conducting these selection tests from announcing O we originated from Burma Samsok were originally living in Mongolia.