-: Nagaland Art & Culture :-

About Nagaland:-

Sharing borderlines with Myanmar in the east ,Assam in its western and northern periphery, the Tirap district of NEFA in Arunachal pradesh in the northeast and Manipur in the south, Nagaland's blue -hued mountains and emerald expanses comprise an intriguing as the state of Nagaland in 1963, the 16th state of the Indian Union.

Tiger,Leopard,Elephant,sambar,Wild Buffalo and bear people its deep jungles while its vast expanses of paddy fields,fed by an elaborate indigenous irrigation system, are a veritable feast for the eyes.Known for its salubrious climate, Nagaland has considerable rainfall during the monsoons that run from june to september.

Spread over an area of 16,527 sq km,its population resides mainly in the rural area.Kohima,its capital,Dimapur and Mokokchung are its most important towns.Nagas have evolved into a generic term for many tribal communities in the North East.Of the 32 such tribes, 16 major and numerous sub-tribes spread over Nagaland's seven districts; primary amongst them are the Angamis, the Sema, Konyak,Aos and Renmas,each with their own distinct culture and lifestyle

Culture

Morung Traditions

The Pride of the village, the Morung is embellished with hunting trophies and fine wood carving in its doorway. This all-male dormitory, where a young lad of 6 enters and leaves when he weds, is where the village's sacred hunting trophies, daos, spears and shields of the village are kept for safe keeping. It is in the Morung is not common to all tribes. You will not find it amongst the angamis, but it is central to all villages of the Ao, Lotha, Konyak and phom. Some tribes also have an exclusive dormitory for girls where they too imbibe the tribe's cultural traditions.

Of central importance in village ceremonies too are the log drums made from hollowed tree trunks with a carved mithun head, positioned close to the Morung. Amongst some tribals, it is regarded as a deity.

Feasts Of Merit

The Feasts of Merit are important features of Naga society. The performance of a series of these feasts (genna), one more costly than the last, distinguish the host's positions in society. Every feast given entitled the host to progressively improve his standing and position in the village. It won him the right to wear special garments and ornaments and he also decorated his home in a special way to mark his status in society, distinguishing him from others in the village.

The dragging of a huge monolith from a distance ceremony is the special privilege of those who have performed a series of feasts. Stone pulling entails the erection of a stone at the location of the feast to commemorate it. It is an occasion of great festivity.

Woven Dreams Naga shawls are not a mere wrap against the cold they are highly symbolic. Each tribe has its own special patterns and motifs and even certain ceremonies are indicated in the weaving of these beautiful wraps. The weave and patternisation of a shawl identify tribes and also indicate the social status of a man .

Among the Angami tribals, the most common patterns in these social shawls is lohe, red and yellow bands on black cloth. The Lotha tribal shawls are woven into a graded patterns - a series of shawls indicating the gennas he has performed. A Naga who has performed the stone dragging ceremony wears the Lungpensu - five stripes of light blue on dark blue cloth.The Ao warrior shawl is embellished with the deeply symbolic mithun, tiger or elephant motif .

Getting There

By Air

Nearest Airport :-

Dimapur (74 km from kohima)
Taxi
The Dimapur-Kohima taxi takes about 2 hours

By Road

Kohima can be reached by bus from Dimapur on NH 39. Buses leave from Dimapur (Trans Bus Stand) for kohima every hour from 5.30 am. One can also go to Kohima from Imphal (145 km)

Road Distances

Kohima to Guwahati : 390 km
Kohima to Kolkata : 1516 km