Bihu

The Rongali Bihu is the most important of them all, coincides with the Assamese New Year and as well as with other regions of Indian subcontinent, East Asia and South-East Asia, which follow the Hindu calendar and Buddhist calendar. The other two Bihu festivals every year are unique to Assamese people. Like some other Indian festivals, Bihu is associated with agriculture, and rice in particular. Bohag Bihu is a sowing festival, Kati Bihu is associated with crop protection and worship of plants and crops and is an animistic form of the festival, while Bhogali Bihu is a harvest festival. Assamese celebrate the Rongali Bihu with feasts, music and dancing. Some hang brass, copper or silver pots on poles in front of their house, while children wear flower garlands then greet the new year as they pass through the rural streets.

The three Bihu are Assamese festivals elders in family, fertility and mother goddess, but the celebrations and rituals reflect influences from Sino-Tibetan and Southeast Asia cultures. In contemporary times, the Bihus are celebrated by all Assamese people irrespective of religion, caste or creed. It is also celebrated overseas by the Assamese diaspora community living worldwide.

The term Bihu is also used to imply Bihu dance otherwise called Bihu Naas and Bihu folk songs also called Bihu Geet.

History

Indigenous origin

Etymology and regional traditions

The word Bihu is believed to have been originally derived from the Deori (a Boro-Garo language) word Bisu which means "excessive joy". A Chutia folk explanation also associates Bisu with the cultivation of ahu rice. According to Mahanta (2018), ahu paddy, in ancient times, occupied an important place in Chutia agriculture, and cultivators guarding the crop from wild animals during the day and night passed the time through singing, dancing and other forms of merriment. The annual rejoicing associated with the luxuriant growth of the ahu crop came, in this tradition, to be known as Bisu.

The original form of Bihu continues among the Chutias, Sonowal Kacharis and Deoris. These groups, known as Sadiyal Kacharis, were associated with the historical Kingdom of Sadiya. The other branches of Bodo-Kacharis, which include Boros, Dimasas, Rabhas, Tiwas, etc., have also been celebrating Bihu since ancient times. The Boros call it Baisagu, while the Dimasas, Tiwa and Rabha call it Bushu or Bushu Dima,Pisu, Dumsi respectively. Noting its regional prevalence, Haliram Dhekial Phukan, a pioneering Assamese scholar, historian, and judicial officer in early colonial Assam, wrote,”Bihu Kamrupe nai, Saumare adhik”, meaning Bihu is not found in Kamrup; it is more prevalent in Upper Assam.

Early historical references

The first reference of Bihu can be found in the copperplate inscription of the Chutia king Lakshminarayan. The inscription was found in Ghilamara region of Lakhimpur district in the year 1935 and it was issued in the year 1401 A.D. It states that the king Lakshminarayan had donated land grants to Brahmins to the west of Subansiri river on the auspicious occasion of Bihu. It reads,

“Etasmay Shashana prada Lakshminarayana Nripa
Utrijya Bisuye Punya Ravidev Dvijanme”

— Copper plate, Ghilamara (1401)

This means that on the pious occasion of Bihu, a Brahmin named Dvija Ravidev was granted land by the king. This indicates that Bihu played an important role in the social life of people of Assam at that period.

Yet another reference to Bihu can be found in the Deodhai Buranji which mentions that the capital of the Chutia kingdom, Sadiya, was suddenly attacked by the Ahom forces on the first day of Bihu/Bisu in 1524 (first Wednesday of Bohag/Vaisakha), when the people were busy celebrating Bihu. The Ahom general Phrasenmung Borgohain, upon the advice of a Chutia general (who sided with the enemies), played the Bihu Dhul (on Ujha Bisu day, i.e. 7th Bohag/Vaisakha) to trick the Chutias, which ultimately led to their defeat.

Religious traditions and myths

According to a tradition recorded in the Deo Buranji, Kechai-khati or Kolimoti, the goddess associated with Sadiya, the capital of the Chutia kingdom, was regarded as the originator of Bihu. Late historian Hem Buragohain states that the bloodthirsty Kolimoti—described in the tradition as Shiva's sister—was believed to have initiated Bihu. In Deori religious tradition, Gira-Girasi, also called Burha-Burhi, are regarded as the senior ancestral deities; Baliya Baba (Pisa Dema) and Kechai-khati (Pisasi Dema) are described as their son and daughter respectively.

In local folklore, it is said that Bordoisila (Bardai Sikhla in Bodo) (meaning north-westerly winds in Assamese) was the daughter of God Earth who married a bridegroom of some distant land. Bordoisila visits her mother's home once a year during springtime, which indicates the beginning of Bihu and leaves after a few days, which indicates the end of Bihu. Assam experience strong gale (wind) at that period, which marks the beginning of Bihu and another strong gale after her departure, which is devastating. The word Bordoisila is derived from the Bodo word Bordaisikhla, which means "girl of storm" (Sikhla meaning girl and Bardai meaning storm). There is even a dance with the same name performed among Boro people during Baisagu, which points to the origin of Bihu in the Bodo-Kachari groups.

Chotor and Bohag Bihu cycle

As per traditions, Bohag Bihu celebrations formerly began during the month of Chot. The period preceding the principal Bohag festivities was known as Rati Bihu or Chotor Bihu, during which young men and women performed at night beneath large trees and at sacred places like the grounds of the Than (temple). It is believed that Bihu was brought down at night from the Tameswari shrine to a large tree, where young men and women perform beneath mango or aahat trees. Chot Bihu is also associated with the youthful aspect of the goddess Kolimati; the flowering of the tarua kadam is regarded as a sign of her attaining youth and heralding the beginning of the festival. Local Chutia forms of Chotor Rati Bihu are still recorded in places such as Barhola and Basa Daiyang in the Jorhat-Golaghat region, where young men and women traditionally perform at night beneath large mango or aahat trees. The repertoire includes jura naam and songs of love and separation, while competitions between pepa players are also recorded. A comparable Rati Bisu tradition is also preserved among the Deoris. The Deoris are recorded as celebrating a "night Bisu", with young people gathering during Phagun and Chaitra for communal Bisu rehearsals; during Bohagiyo Bisu, singing and dancing also continue through the night.

The last day of Chaitra or the first Tuesday of Bohag was when the Rati Bihu ended. This was known as the Uruka (derived from the Deori-Chutia Urukuwa meaning to end). The temple dancers Deodhani danced the entire night and were believed to be possessed by the goddess Kechai-khati (kolimoti), signalling that she had descended upon earth from heaven (Bihu nomai ona). This belief of the goddess arriving during the Bihu season each year can still be found in Bihu songs as,

"Kolimoti e bai ghuri Bohagoloi
Ahibi ne nai?
Ami thakim ami thakim
Baatoloi sai."

The day after Uruka, i.e. the first Wednesday, was celebrated as Goru Bihu. This tradition of cattle rites is the same as that followed by the Boros in Bwisagu, indicating the common roots of both the festivals. During the night of Goru Bihu, people danced Bihu in separate groups in the Thans where animal sacrifice took place. After the sacrifices to the goddess, the young folk visited the households of the village, which was the start of Husori. This old tradition of starting Husori from the temple is still followed by the Deoris, some Sonowals, Chutias and Morans as well as the people of Sadiya. In other communities, the temple has been replaced by the Namghar.

Some old Assamese Bihu folklore still hints at this tradition:

“Hasoti e chot Bisoti e chot.
Budhe Goru Bihu Mangale Uruka.
Bihu goi asili kot.”

“Boge dhari khale luitor hihu,
Mangal bare Uruka Budh bare Goru Bihu
Tar pasor dina Manisor Bihu.”

“Husori e chot asili kot.
Sadiyar ahotor tolot,
Husori e chot asili kot.
Ami je ulomu jot Dubori nogoje tot.”

“Kundilor agolit ukhokoi Himolu.
Tate loi kuruwai bah.
Sadiyar rajate sari haal goxani
Taloi namaskar koru.
Hunare jakhala Rupor hetamari
Ahe sari haali nami.”

The festivities of Bohag Bihu continued for a week and ended with the rite by which the goddess was bid farewell. In this rite, a boat was first prepared out of a banana stem and decorated with flowers and offerings. Then, it was carried to the banks of the river where a duck/chicken was put inside the boat and allowed to float as a symbol of sacrifice. After performing the rite, the people returned to their homes, singing along the way with the beats of the Dhul and the tunes of the Pepa.

This tradition of floating the boat can be heard in Bihu songs as:

"Loh lohori, pranor bhai,
Phulat bhor di nao meli jai.
Sohora lipiri hudhe aathu karhi,
Phulat bhor di nao meli jai.

Ki khai bulali, daate sorilore,
Phulat bhor di nao meli jai.

Sadiyar rajote holeng hate powa,
Phulat bhor di nao meli jai...
Rupar nao ekhoni, sonor bothadali,
Phulat bhor di nao meli jai.
Bhatiloi bhotiyai jai sorilore,
Phulat bhor di nao meli jai."

Hurai Rangali and Husori Tradition

A ritual tradition associates the ceremonial commencement of Bohag Bihu with the sacred saals of Sadiya, where a form known as Hurai Rangali is performed on the first Wednesday of Bohag. Hurai is explained as the ceremonial bringing down of Bihu from heaven to earth through the saal by the singing of religious songs. At the beginning of the performance, prayers are offered at the Kesaikhati and the other saals, and Ai Kolimati, regarded in the tradition as the goddess associated with Bihu, is believed to bring Bihu down to earth. The opening song of the Hurai asks where Bihu had been and answers that it was beneath the aahat tree at Sadiya.

Another related tradition associates this temple-centred Bihu observance with the development of Husori. Mahanta (2018) records that in the Chutia kingdom, young men and women first performed Bihu before the Tamreswari Temple and thereafter carried the performance into the villages. Following the decline of the kingdom, the initial performance shifted to local thaans and subsequently to Namghars, from where Husori parties proceeded from house to house. Another account similarly records that after ritual observances and sacrifices at the than, the young people proceeded to the households of the village to begin Husori; variants of the practice of commencing Husori from a sacred place are recorded among the Chutias, Deoris, Sonowal Kacharis, Morans and in the Sadiya region.

A separate folktale, Deolara Manikonwar, provides another traditional explanation of courtyard Bihu and Husori. In the story, a king of the Kundil region, traditionally associated with the Chutia state, receives the divinely born Manikonwar, who learns and composes songs and dances and performs them in the courtyards of farming households. He blesses the inhabitants and is said to have brought happiness to them; the narrative explicitly associates these performances with the beginning of courtyard Bihu and the practice of singing Husori at night.

Phaat Bihu and development of modern dance

The Hurai Rangali tradition also survives outside Sadiya. At Harhi Devalaya, it is performed on the seventh day of Bohag, and the tradition associates the shrine with the transfer of the worship of Kecaikhati from Sadiya following the Ahom conquest of the Chutia kingdom in 1524. Upen Rabha Hakacham similarly traces the Faat Bihu tradition of Dhakuakhana to people displaced from Sadiya who eventually settled at Harhi and established a shrine there. The word Phaat as per traditions has different explanations. One tradition associates the name with the word Phaat ("separation"), denoting the migration and dispersal of communities from Sadiya and the transplantation of their Bihu tradition to Dhakuakhana. Another tradition records that the Bihu celebrations drew such a large crowd that the ground was said to develop Phaat ("cracks"), and that this was why it came to be called "Phaat Bihu".

Phaat Bihu has been associated by some writers with the development of the modern form of Bihu dance. It is also traditionally held that performers of Phaat Bihu were invited to perform at the royal establishment during the reign of the Ahom king Rudra Singha. Later, in the 19th century, this form of Bihu is said to have spread among other communities in the Dhakuakhana region and to have been performed at Mahghuli Sapori by Chutias, Sonowals, Deoris, Ahoms, Misings and others.

Stage performances

By the 19th and 20th centuries, Western-style stages had been constructed in various parts of Assam, and the practice of presenting cultural programmes before public audiences had also become established. In 1929, Bihu was performed on a stage for the first time at Betioni in Golaghat. In 1941, through the efforts of Maheswar Neog and others, a staged Bihu performance was organised in Sivasagar. In 1951, a Bihu sammilan was organised in Guwahati under the patronage of Radha Govinda Baruah. Thereafter, staged Bihu gained popularity throughout Assam. In staged Bihu, greater emphasis is placed on competitions than on the traditional performance itself, and the programmes are primarily intended to entertain an audience. Consequently, this form of Bihu is performed according to prescribed rules, conventions and a formalised structure. This transformed Bihu dance and music into a performing art. With the growing popularity of staged Bihu, the traditional and spontaneous gos-tolor Bihu—Bihu performed beneath trees—has become nearly extinct.

Indo-Aryan contribution

The Indo-Aryans, upon their arrival in Assam, helped in gradually sanskritisation of the native Bihu/Bisu to bring it to the present form. Being the pioneers of Astronomy, they further associated the term Bisu with the Visuvan day for the coincidence of the Bohag Bihu with other springtime festivals observed elsewhere in India on this day and adopted the festival of the natives.

Ahom contribution

Ahoms used to celebrate their own spring festival Chyeng-Ken (similar to the Thai word Songkran which is derived from the Sanskrit word for new year saṅkrānt (संक्रान्ति)); the rituals of Chyeng-Ken are described in Khyek-Lai-Bet manuscript. But later on they adopted Bihu as their spring festival. It is believed that Ahom King Rudra Singha gave patronage to Bihu and was also the first one to celebrate Bihu in the courtyard of Rang Ghar. This policy was also believed to be later followed by his successors. But this view has been refuted by many authors. According to Padmeswar Gogoi, there is not a single mention of Bihu being performed in Rang ghar in the Buranjis. The Satsari Buranji states that on the first floor of the Rangghar, the places of the kings were pre-defined. But, if one looks from the position of the king's chair, it is impossible to view the ground where the Bihu dance was supposed to be performed. He also added that the Rang ghar was mainly used for organising buffalo and cock fights or wrestling, and several positions were newly opened for these games. But, on the other hand, no such post was created for Bihu. These facts indicate that Bihu didn't receive much attention from the Ahom kings and remained a festival of the native people back then.