Christmas in Mezoma Village

It is not enough for a people to merely make high proclamations about themselves. They have to be worthy of what they claim they are or intend to become.

Zapuvisie Lhousa (Strange country: My experience in Naga Nationalism)

In 1921 the colonial administrator-anthropologist J H Hutton in his classic monograph on the Angami Nagas lamented in exasperation that Naga customs and traditions were fast disappearing under the new forces of change. He did not shy away from directly accusing the Christian missions as the major cause for it. It was an opinion shared by many of his contemporaries. J P Mills, who also wrote some of the most well known works on the Nagas, was equally vociferous in his scathing attacks on what he perceived to be the negative impact of the new Christian religion which was fast gaining popularity among the Nagas. Christianity, according to the colonial anthropologists, was sounding the death bell of Naga culture and they found the essence of Naga culture in everything Christianity attacked. The colonial administrators were early on convinced of the incompatibility between Naga culture and Christianity. This conviction grew from the experience of numerous court cases which were recorded as “Christians Vs Ancients” in every village where Christianity gained converts. Christianity radically changed the cultural landscape of the Nagas. For better or worse it may be debated. There is no doubt the colonial anthropologists opted the later. They believed that the antagonism between Christianity and Naga culture would ultimately result in the complete obliteration of one. And when we see the magnificent churches which dominate towns and villages and the extravagant Christian festivals and Christian weddings in Nagaland today, we may be tempted to think that the anthropologists were right after all — Christianity has obliterated Naga culture. If Christianity has radically altered Naga society and culture, how do we reconcile with the claim of cultural uniqueness which is so central to the Naga cause? An observer may dismiss this claim to be mere rhetoric, a means to gain political leverage, for many have asked what is so unique about Naga culture when all they see today is Nagaland struggling to live a western lifestyle. They may well say, “Perhaps the Nagas were culturally unique then. Naga culture described in the colonial ethnography could definitely qualify as unique but are they accurate descriptions of the present Naga society? Have not Naga society changed completely?” Sadly, against such charges most Nagas only seems to be capable of pitching the classic response — that of the outsider and insider divide. Its basic premise is that only a Naga can understand Naga society. This attitude has been so abused, to the extent where it is used against any criticism (often very valid criticism) which is leveled against the Nagas. The last Christmas celebration in my village provided an opportunity to revisit some of the claims of colonial anthropology. It also brought home a powerful reminder why Nagas still stubbornly hold on to their claims of cultural uniqueness. 2017 Christmas celebration in Mezoma village was special in more than one sense. A prominent Mezomian T. Husie Lhousa and his family hosted the entire village for the Christmas feast which brought together all the three denominational churches (Baptist, Catholic and the Christian Revival) and the three khels (Phetsuma, Vihutsuma and Nyisenoma) in the village. Had Hutton (who was no stranger to the Mezoma inter khel disputes during his day) been alive, surely he would have a second thought before accusing Christianity of bringing the ‘sword of dissension’. Nagas had a rich tradition of renowned families arranging feast for the entire village — what the anthropologists called the ‘feast of merit’ — which was described in all details of fascination in the colonial anthropological literature. I have only read about it in books and heard stories of it from my father. Of course, the Christmas feast was very different from the feast of merit I read in the books or the stories I heard. It had none of the rituals or the peculiar customs which supposedly attended the feast in much fanfare. Yet the spirit of the feast was only accentuated, rather than diminished, in the light of the Christmas message. The feast of merit was once the highest marker of social status within the village. The beauty of the feast lie in the belief that it is in giving that we receive. A person received social renown by giving away what he had. The Christmas feast set the principle higher — that seeking God’s blessing is more important than social recognition. This was aptly summed up by the host T. Husie in his address, “What I offer today is the blessings of God and my parents. I have nothing of myself to boast”. A Mezomian cannot fail to detect the element of humility, so central to the traditional value of ‘kethezie’, which has been even more beautified in the Christian context. Rev Visakuolie Chüsi delivering his Christmas message for the feast spoke from Romans 12:21, “overcome evil with good”. The object of the feast was then to bring about something good for the glory of God. If the feast of merit once brought social renown to the hosting family, the gospel message placed it on a higher platform — that of glorifying God. Equally exciting was the day following Christmas when the entire village went for the traditional ‘tirhüthe’ (a tradition of men and women forming a procession into the jungle to collect wild plants and leaves for a sort of picnic). Even Mezomians, like most Nagas, believe that a festival worth celebrating cannot be concluded in one single day. You have to be a Mezomian to fully understand the significance of the three churches and the three khels of Mezoma village forming a single line for the procession. The idea was the entire village coming together to form one line, a sign of togetherness. Men and women, boy and girl were ornamented with a piece of traditional attire on this day and a procession of mezomia ‘herei’ (shawl specific to Mezoma village) along serpentine turns through the jungle paths is worth a photographer’s attention. This day also present many interesting anecdotes. Men wear the traditional ‘lophie’ (a necklace made from white threads rolled tightly together with a green thread circulating towards the end) and other ornaments which are presented to them by their ladyfriends. In turn, the men who are lucky to be the recipient of such gifts share their best piece of meat (often chicken legs and wings) with the lady. These gestures may appear quaint and old fashioned to a modern observer but the subtlety of it all is worth appreciating. In Mezoma village, Christmas has overshadowed all other traditional festivals. This would be a classic case of Christianity undermining tradition in the discourse of colonial ethnography. But experiences reveal that many finer elements of tradition continue to thrive. At least in Mezoma, Christmas was not a case of Christianity undermining tradition; rather it is tradition receiving a higher calling. Mezomians have learnt to preserve their tradition for the service of Christianity. Herein also lay the justifiable claim of cultural uniqueness. The fact so easily hidden to an outsider is this; the depth of the Nagas claim of cultural uniqueness starts from the village up. For the people of Mezoma, they are not only culturally unique as Nagas, they are also culturally unique as Mezomians (this stems from the Angami ‘mhosho’ and this feeling is more or less common to all Angami villages). That is why Christmas celebration in Mezoma village is distinctly Mezomian in character. There is no doubt that modernity has established its undeniable mark among the Nagas. Some of the older traditions have been abandoned for good because everything that is old is not gold, while much that is good in the older tradition has been forgotten. Like most Nagas, Mezomians are also facing the challenge of negotiating the balance between tradition and modernity. It seems to me that Christianity can serve as an effective measure. Christianity is at once a reminder of the old things that need to be discarded and yet a hopeful platform where the best in our tradition can still be preserved.

Thejalhoukho Casavi