Фестиваль Биху: Культурное наследие Ассама

Cultural festival of Assam

Bihu is of three types and it is an important cultural festival unique to the Indian state of Assam – 'Rongali' or 'Bohag Bihu' observed in April, 'Kongali' or 'Kati Bihu' observed in October or November, and 'Bhogali' or 'Magh Bihu' observed in January. The festivals present an admixture of Tibeto Barman, Austroasiatic and Indo Aryan traditions entwined so intricately that it is impossible to separate them—festivals which are uniquely Assamese to which all communities of Assam had contributed elements. The Rongali Bihu is the most important of the three, celebrating spring festival. The Bhogali Bihu or the Magh Bihu is a harvest festival, with community feasts. The Kongali Bihu or the Kati Bihu is the sombre, thrifty one reflecting a season of short supplies and is an animistic festival. The Rongali Bihu 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. elders in family, fertility and mother goddess, but the celebrations and rituals reflect influences from Southeast Asia and Sino Tibetan 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.

Although the modern form of Bihu is a synthesis of varied cultural elements from diverse ethnic groups like Tibeto Burman and Tai, it has deep roots in the indigenous culture.

Ahoms used to celebrate their own spring festival Chyeng Ken; the rituals of Chyeng Ken are described in Khyek Lai Bet manuscript. But later on they adopted Bihu as their spring festival. 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 later followed by his successors.

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 coincidence of the Bohag Bihu with other springtime festivals observed elsewhere in India on this day and adopted the festival of the natives.

Bohag Bihu (mid April, also called Rongali Bihu), the most popular Bihu celebrates the onset of the Assamese New Year (around 14–15 April) and the coming of Spring. This marks the first day of the Hindu solar calendar and is also observed in Bengal, Manipur, Mithila, Nepal, Orissa, Punjab, Kerala and Tamil Nadu though called by different names. It's a time of merriment and feasting and continues, in general, for seven days. The farmers prepare the fields for cultivation of paddy and there is a feeling of joy around. The women make pitha, laroos (traditional food made of rice, coconut) various drinks by local tribes such as Chuje by Deoris, Nam Lao by Tai Ahom, Aapong by Mising tribe and Jolpan which gives the real essence of the season. The first day of the bihu is called goru bihu or cow bihu, where the cows are washed and worshipped, which falls on the last day of the previous year, usually on 14 April. This is followed by manuh (human) bihu on 15 April, the New Year Day. This is the day of getting cleaned up, wearing new cloths and celebrating and getting ready for the new year with fresh vigor. The third day is Gosai (Gods) bihu; statues of Gods, worshiped in all households are cleaned and worshiped asking for a smooth new year. The folk songs associated with the Bohag Bihu are called Bihugeets or Bihu songs. The form of celebration and rites vary among different demographic groups.

Bohag Bihu or Rongali Bihu festival continues for seven days and called as Haat Bihu. The seven days are known as Chot Bihu, Goru Bihu, Manuh Bihu, Kutum Bihu, Senehi Bihu, Mela Bihu and Chera Bihu. Goru Bihu: The goru bihu or cattle worship rites are observed on the last day of the year. The cattle are washed, smeared with ground turmeric and other pastes, struck with sprigs of dighalati and makhiyati and endeared to be healthy and productive (lao kha, bengena kha, bosore bosore barhi ja / maar xoru, baper xoru, toi hobi bor bor goru—eat gourd, eat brinjal, grow from year to year / your mother is small, your father is small, but you be a large one). The old cattle ropes are cast away through the legs and new ropes are tied to them, and they are allowed to roam anywhere they wished for the entire day. Manuh Bihu: The New Year Day, the day after the goru bihu, is called the manuh bihu. Elders are shown respect, with gifts of bihuwan (a gamosa), a hachoti (kerchief), a cheleng etc., and their blessings are sought. Children are given new clothes, and Husori singing begins on this day, and people visit their relatives and friends. Husori: Village elders move from household to households singing carols, also in the style of bihu geets, called husoris. It possibly derives from the Dimasa Kachari word formation ha (land) and char (move over): hachari. Villages could have more than one Husori band, and they would visit households in a village non contiguous to itself, first singing carols at the Naamghar. The husari singers then visit individual households, by first announcing their arrival at the gate (podulimukh) with drum beats. The singers are traditionally welcomed into the courtyard where they sing the husori songs and perform a ring dance. At the end of the performance they are thanked with an offering dakshina of paan (betel leaf) tamul (areka nut) in a xorai (brass dish with stand), whereupon the singers bless the household for the coming year. If there is a bereavement in the family, or the family does not invite the husori singers due to an illness, the husori band offers blessings from podulimukh and move on. Generally the singers are all male. Faat Bihu: This is a very old form of Bihu, characterized by spontaneity, popular in the Lakhimpur area of Assam. Mukoli Bihu: Young unmarried men and women attired in traditional golden silk muga dance the bihu and sing bihu songs in the open fields. The songs have themes of romance and sexual love, requited or unrequited. Sometimes the songs describe tragic events too but treated very lightly. The dance celebrates female sexuality. Jeng Bihu: This is Bihu dance and song performed and watched only by women. The name "jeng" comes from the fact that in earlier days women in the villages used to surround the place of their performance with sticks dug into the ground called jeng in Assamese. It is also called gos tolor bihu (Bihu beneath the tree). Baisago: The Bodo Kachari people celebrate for seven days—the first day for cattle (Magou), the second day for man (Mansoi) and ancestor worship, feasting, singing and merriment. Songs follow the same themes as the Bihu songs. Bihutoli Bihu: The rural festival made its transition to urban life when it was first time brought to the stage in Lataxil field in Guwahati by the Guwahati Bihu Sanmilani in 1962, promoted by leading citizens like Radha Govinda Baruah and others. Bihu to a great extent has been popularized by the Bihu 'Samrat'( king ), of Assam, Khagen Mahanta. Unlike the rural version, the dancers danced on a makeshift elevated stage in an open area that came to be known as a Bihutoli. Many such Bihutolis have sprouted since then in Guwahati and other urban areas. The performances are not confined to the Bihu dance form but may incorporate all forms of theatrical performances to keep the audience enthralled well into the early hours. Performances could include standup comedy, to concerts by solo singers. The stage form of Bihu has become so popular, that organizers have begun extending the celebrations to bohagi bidai, or farewell to the Bohag month, which is similar performances held a month later. Saat Bihu: Rongali Bihu also called saat Bihu (seven Bihus). It celebrates seven days, it's called so. On the other hand, Rangali Bihu is constitute of seven different types of Bihu Goru Bihu (Cow Bihu), Manuh Bihu, Xat Bihu, Senehi Bihu, Maiki Bihu, Rongali Bihu, and Sera Bihu. Actually, the first day to pay respect to cows and other days for social activities.

Kongali Bihu (mid October, also called Kati Bihu) has a different flavor as there is less merriment and the atmosphere has a sense of constraining and solemnity. During this time of the year, the paddy in the fields are in the growing stage and the granaries of the farmers are almost empty. On this day, earthen lamps (saki) are lit at the foot of the household tulsi plant, the granary, the garden (bari) and the paddy fields. In ancient times, earthen lamps were lit all around the paddy fields to attract the insects, thus acting as a natural insecticide. To protect the maturing paddy, cultivators whirl a piece of bamboo and recite rowa khowa chants and spells to ward off pests and the evil eye. During the evening, cattle are fed specially made rice items called pitha. Kati Bihu is known as Kati Gasa by the Bodo people and Gathi Sainjora by the Dimasa people. The Bodo people light lamps at the foot of the siju (Euphorbia neriifolia) tree. This Bihu is also associated with the lighting of akaxi gonga or akaxbonti, lamps at the tip of a tall bamboo pole, to show the souls of the dead the way to heaven, a practice that is common to many communities in India, as well as Asia and Europe. Kati bihu is generally celebrated around 19 October, as it is almost mid October.

Bhogali Bihu (mid January, also called Magh Bihu) comes from the word Bhog that is eating and enjoyment. It is a harvest festival and marks the end of harvesting season. Since the granaries are full, there is a lot of feasting and eating during this period. On the eve of the day called uruka, i. e., the last day of pausa, menfolk, more particularly young men go to the field, preferably near a river, build a makeshift cottage called Bhelaghar with the hay of the harvest fields and the bonfire or Meji, the most important thing for the night. During the night, they prepare food and there is community feasting everywhere. There is also the exchange of sweets and greetings at this time. The entire night (called Uruka) is spent around a Meji with people singing bihu songs, beating Dhol, a typical kind of drums or playing games. Boys roam about in the dark stealing firewood and vegetables for fun. The next morning they take a bath and burn the main Meji. People gather around the Meji and throw Pithas (rice cakes) and betel nuts to it while burning it at the same time. They offer their prayers to the god of Fire and mark the end of the harvesting year. Thereafter they come back home carrying pieces of half burnt firewood for being thrown among fruit trees for favorable results. All the trees in the compound are tied to bamboo strips or paddy stems. Different types of sports like Buffalo fight, Egg fight, Cock fight, Nightingale fight etc. are held throughout the day. There are other conventional festivals observed by various ethnic cultural groups. Me dam me phi, Ali aye ligang, Porag, Garja, Hapsa Hatarnai, Kherai are few among them. The koch celebrates this bihu as pushna.

Bihu is also seen to be celebrated abroad. Many Bihu associations/committees exist elsewhere where this festival is celebrated with enthusiasm. The London Bihu Committee (LBC), UK is one of them among others.