Magh Bihu

Uruka or Bihu Eve (Beginning)

The first day of Magh Bihu is known as Uruka or the Bihu Eve. The word Uruka is originally derived from the Deori-Chutia word Urukuwa which means "to end", signifying the end of the harvesting season as well the Pausha month. On this day, women folk get ready for the next day with food items like- Chira, Pitha, Laru, Curd. A feast is organised at night known as Bhuj. Various indigenous communities prepare rice beer, which is usually not distilled. This is known as Chuji by the Chutias, Nam-Lao by Tai-Ahom, Zou by Bodos, and Aapong by the Mising. Uruka feasting may be a family affair or communal. After the feasting, the Uruka is over. Hut-like structures called Bhelaghar are also built in the fields where people stay during the night. More often village youth pass the night in the Bhelaghars warming themselves by the fire and making use of the vegetables that they steal from the backyards of villagers which is considered a tradition.

Day of Magh Bihu (celebration)

The day of the Bihu starts early dawn by a post-harvesting ceremony called "Meji". In this, bonfires are burned in the fields, and people pray to their ancestral gods for blessings.

There are two views regarding the origin of the word Meji. Some scholars believe that it is derived from the Proto-Sino-tibetan word for “Fire”, Meij(མེ in Tibetan, မီး in Burmese). The Tibetan expression mei shing (མེ་ཤིང་) means "firewood", combining mei (“fire”) with shing (“wood”). The latter is comparable with Proto-Tibeto-Burman *si(ŋ/k), reconstructed with the meanings “tree, wood, firewood”.. Others believe that the root of the word is the Deori-Chutia word Midi-ye-ji where "Midi" denotes "Ancestral gods", "Ye" means "Fire” and "Ji" means "Fly away" (signifying the worship of ancestral spirits which fly away with the fire).

A Deori legend concerning the origin of the Meji is recorded by Saranan Deori. According to the tradition, at the beginning of creation, Kundimama, described as the primordial father and mother, wished to expand the created world and summoned the deities who had originated from their divine power. At the auspicious dawn of the sun's northward journey, the primordial father instructed the deities to bathe in a river together with Prakriti. While they were bathing, they saw a corpse floating down the river. The deities withdrew in fear, but Prakriti embraced the body and brought it ashore. They were then told that the body was that of the primordial father, who had sacrificed himself for the welfare of the world. The deities constructed a funeral pyre and cremated him, after which they bathed again and returned home after anointing themselves with the ashes of the pyre. Within this tradition, the Meji is regarded as the funeral fire of the primordial father and as a commemoration of the beginning of creation. The account specifically distinguishes the rite from fire worship, and associates the annual burning of the Meji with the time of the sun's northward journey.

The bonfires are usually made with firewood, green bamboo, hay and dried Banana leaves. People take a bath before setting up the bonfire, as a tradition. The ritual of Meji Jwaluwa (Firing the Meji) is very enjoyable. Worshipping the Bhoral and Meji is done by offering Rice cakes, Rice beers, Chira, Pitha, Akhoi, Horoom, Curd, and other eatables. At the end, the Bhelaghar is also burned, and people consume a special preparation known as Mah-Karai, which is a roasted mixture of rice and black gram. In the breakfast and lunch, people consume various traditional dishes like various Fish, Duck, Chicken and Mutton curries along with rice, ‘tenga’, ‘aloo pitika’ and ‘doi sira’. The ashes of the bonfire Meji and Bhelaghar are used in the trees and crops to increase the fertility of the gardens or fields. On the seventh day of Magh Bihu, Bodos clean utensils and sacrifice fowls to Bathou, their God and go out carol singing, collecting food. They set up Bhelaghars and burn them in the morning.

Related Festivals

Many related festivals can be seen Assam and Arunachal. In the Full moon day of Magh month, the Khamti people observe a similar Bonfire tradition related to Buddha. Given the fact that no other Tai group follows such ritual, it can be concluded that the Khamtis merely adopted the ritual from the locals in the 18th century which was later developed into a Buddhist rite, similar to the Kechai-khati worship organised on the same day.