Some aspects of Tai Ahom community and its contribution to Assamese culture
India as well as North-East area is rich in culture. So many different types of communities are all together like as a garland of north east area. But the first question comes in mind that what is Community? In biological terms, a community is a group of interacting organisms(or different species) sharing an environment .In human communities intent, belief, resources, preferences, needs risks and a number of other conditions may be present and common, affecting the identity of the participants and their degree of cohesiveness.
The Tai-Ahom communities are the major communities and a great contribution to the Assamese culture, if anybody ask about the Assamese culture just at first click in mind about these community and their cultural views.
The Tai Ahoms entered the Brahmaputra valley from the east in the early part of the thirteenth century and carved out a small kingdom in its easternmost corner after having conquered the Morans and Borahis, the two small Mongoloid tribes. By the first half of the sixteenth century, this kingdom grew in size and population after the conquest of the Chutiya Kingdom on the North-East, that of the Kacharis in the south-west and the Bhuyan chiefs in the west and the North West. During the seventeenth century, the kingdom was further enlarged by the annexation of Kamrupa. By the 1682, the repeated Mughal invasions were wiped out for good and since then the western limit of the Tai-Ahom Kingdom had been the river Manaha on the north and Nagarbera hills on the south of the Brahmaputra which remained in tact till the British annexation of the kingdom.
Scholars now generally agree to the fact that the Tais lived in the south of the Yang- tse-kiang river and that Southern-China was their early homeland where from they might have spread out to different parts of South-East and South-West Asia, in time and space continuum. There is now positive evidence that the Tai peoples of North-East India, particularly the Tai-Ahoms, and the earliest migrants had their original homeland at Mong Mao inDehong Prefecture, in Yunnan province of Southern China.
The Tai Ahom brought with their specific system of social, political, economy and religious institutions, beliefs and customs, languages and scripts. Because of the gradual political consolidarations over the new land, population was neccessary to modify some of their systems to adjust with those of the local settled systems. So complete administrative system of Tai-Ahom was not to be seen throughout the kingdom.
Tai-Ahoms of Assam are generally described as the Taior Shan race and the names Tai, Thai and Shan are most often used interchangeably.
The name Tai refers to all the groups and sub- groups of a people who usually call themselves as Tai and are the speakers of the languages classified under the family all over Thailand and Laos, Northern Vietnam and the five southern provinces of China namely, Yunnan, Kwangsi, Kwangtung, Kuechu and Zechuan and are known under a variety of national, regional and local appellations.
Thai is generally used for the Tai people of Thailand and they pronounce the word “Tai” as “Thai” to distinguish themselves from the other Tai groups. Some scholars use the term “Thai”to include all the groups of Tai people under the whole Tai race. Earlier known as the Siamese.
Shan is the Burmese name for the Tais of Burma. The Morans, whose territory was conquered and occupied by Siu- Ka- Pha were perhaps a section of Kachins and as such, they might have known to the Tais as Assameven before their migration to the eastern part of the Brahmaputra valley in the 13th century. Thus when the Tai group under Siu-Ka-Pha landed themselves in the territory of the Morans they might have called them by their earlier name of Assam, a term appers to have been used by the authors of the Assamese language chronicles. The Tais of Burma who are known as “Shans” however prefer to be called themselves as “Tai”.
The ahoms call themselves as “Tai” in their language and this name alone appears in all their works in cludingthe chronicals written in Tai-Ahom language.
Tai Architecture
The Tai Architecture were mainly executed by the first group of Tai people who came to inhabit in the upper valley of the Brahmaputra river in 1228A.D. They have later named as Ahom by the local population. Another group which contributed to the development of Tai-Architecture was known as the Tai-Khamties, Phakes, turungs and Aitonaians and KhamYangs. The came to inhabit this part of 18th and the first part of the 19th centuries. they had a long rule of six hundred and ten years up during to 1838. During this period they built the largest numbers of shrines and Royal Palaces in the plains of North-east India. The Sibsagar District where the Ahoms had their capital, still encapsulates the Tai- architectural heritage. The existing Royal Palaces like the TalatalGhar, RongGhar, KarengGhar, and the Royal Pavilion RongGhar bear ample testimony to this fact. besides, there are many shrines known as Dol in various parts of Assam.
The styles of Tai architectural may be sub divided into three categories like- secular buildings and royal palaces made of bricks, another that tupe of buildings and palaces made of wood and shrines, rods, tunnels, bridges, moidams, burial tombs tanks and common pattern of houses made of wood and bamboos.
The Tai architecture of the later migrants can also divided into three categories like-Kiong Phras (the Buddha Vihars), stupas and general Tai Houses.General people used Saang ghar till the king Swargadew Gadadhar Sigha , they used “Kareng”9palace) made of bamboo and wood. Some Parsi and Mughal syle of art appeares in the doors and winodws of some palaces like Rangghar, Karengghar and Talatalghar. But they were made by Local people of Assamof that period.
Some are disappeard under ravages of historical and natural forces and the weather and climate of assam and the neglegence of ppeople also.
Sculpture
Some salient features are seen during this Ahom period. Gupta sculptures are also seen in the pre Ahom Sculpture.Sculpyures are made of brick, stone, wood and metal also. Sculptures of Ahom period are e somewhere rough than Pre-Ahom period. Human figures are also seen in some portion of Joydol.
Terracotta work is also a important work of art in that period. some flower imprisoned bricks are used in Ragghar and Talatalghar.The Natigusai dol is the best example of terracotta work.
Literature– Buranji
Buranji is the most precious gift, a sacred wealth and a legacy which are left by Tai-Ahom peoples forefathers like Vedas for Hindus.
The word Bu-Ran-ji appears to be of Tai Chinese origin. From the immemoral time the Tais werewell known for their educatioanal, intelectual activities. Earlier to the birth of Jesus Christ the Tais were used to raed and write using pappers produced from the pulps of bamboo leaves and barks of mulberry tree.
The word Buranji is a word purely of tai-Ahom language. The word carried different meanings at different times depending upon its tonal use.
The English translation of the word Bu-ran-ji as a “store house of knowledge for fools” or a “a store that teaches the ignorant” might lack imagination in bringing out the true meaning and sense of the term.
They are very rich in literature also. They possess a vast treasure of Tai literature. These includes astrology, divination, omens and remedies, cosmology invocation and prayers and sacrifice manuals, religious scriptures, criminal codes and ethics, marriage manuals, legends and traditions, almanac and calendars. Buranjis in Tai-Ahom language are usually the recordsof Tai0ahomrule covering the period up to 1838 A.D.
The Ahom Religion
It is very difficult to explain exactly as to which religion the Ahoms belonged or what religious system they had when they first landed in upper Assam. They were partly Buddhist, partly animist, partlyTantrik Buddhist. They followed ancestor worship with other gods and spirits.
A blend of Taoism, Confucianism, Buddhism and even Hinduism had come influence over tai language over tai religious culture in South-east Asia before the advent of the Ahoms to Assam.. That the Ahoms were at a cross-road of religious culture when they first landed in Upper Assam.
A scion of the Tai race, they were well-known for their assimilative capacity and they were given new names as “Ahom” by the local population. This new name carried a wider dimension with a deep socio- political significance.
The Ahoms used a dragon like figure of a winged lion as their royal insignia. It was the religious and state symbol. The Copper plates, sculptures, coins, apintings and even handicrafts of the Ahom age profusely bear this royal insignia or symbol. At present it happens to be the significant mark used with enthusiasm and reverence for the socio-cultural identity of the Tai-Ahom people.
The Ahoms occupy such a remarkable position among the Tai- speaking peoples, that any study throwing light upon aspects of Ahom culture is relevant to the study of Tai people in general. The first description of Ahom language in1837 by the Reverend N. Brown was accompanied by a lithograph of twelve lines of Ahom text, which when translated was discovered to be the myth of origin.
In the conclusion we can say that Assamese culture, architecture after the present name of Assam has been specially constituted with large share and contribution of Tai-Ahom Architectural patterns and examples.
We can not misled with the term of Assamese which is used to explain the different groups of people including TAi-Khamti, TaiPhake, Tai-Aiton, Tai-Khamyang,Tai- AHom who live under the present boundary of Assam ith an inbuilt cultural assimilation with the other ethnic groups inhabitiing Assam at present.
The Ahoms carried with them variouscultural elements which synthesized with indigenous culture of tribes of this Eastern Indian Area and formed the vast Assamese Culture.
Culture or Community is not bounded only in Museum of course Museum has its great role to preservation, conservation, collection, documentation, restoration etc. Through the SAntiago Round Table in 1972, organised buy ICOM , the revolutionary approach that was something different than the traditional concept of Museum, then new museology concept was growing and defined as inextricably linked with an area and its population also.
The development of new museology has adopted different models like neibourhood museums, community museums, living history museums, Eco museums etc. which tend to pursue new values and combinations of functions. The concept of folk culture is very vital to museum activities in the form of community museum. Like wise Eco- museum being a tool of consciousness in the hands of he community to discover its own identity and to plan its own socio-economic, cultural and even political development has earned world over popularity and recognition.
Developing nations like India and states like Assam has many major problems such as a growing population, ignorance, epidemics and poverty and one of these is the ignorance of the people and their lack of awarness.
So if we the people can take part of it, to grow awarness and interest among all peoples of Assam with north-east about our rich culture, communities, major monuments,forts, palaces etc. than it will beneficial to conserve it through Government and different types of N.G.O s also.
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