EMN
Dimapur, January 18
The Kuki community across the state of Nagaland celebrated the community’s post-harvest festival, the MimKut, on January 17.
The festival was celebrated by all irrespective of old or young in fan and fare manners in almost all the towns and villages inhabited by the community.
In Ahthibung town, under Peren district, the festival was celebrated in full pomp and glory by invoking God’s blessing for its bountiful products to its community,’ a press release from the community’s organizers said on Monday, January 18.
The chief guest for the event was KhaiminLun Tungnung, an advocate while the chief host for the festival was Lamjasei Singson, president of the ZKPO.
The chief host of the event was the extra additional commissioner of Athibung, Lithrila Sangtam. In the evening, the ‘festival musical night’ was attended by C Singson, “advisor to the collective leadership” of the underground group GPRN/NSCN.
In his address during the formal ceremony, KhaiminLun Tungnung talked to the members of the Kuki community, the old and the young alike, about the necessity to protect one’s identity and rights. The speaker also denounced sectarian elements and mindset which he said ‘has eaten away the spirit of our brotherhood in the state of Nagaland.’ He denounced ‘tribalism or clanism’ existing in every tribe ‘in this modern age thereby hampering our unity and growth.’
The speaker also put a challenge to the community to aspire for economic uplift and ‘thereby leading a way of progress and self-sustenance of the state which is still a dependent economy.’ He said that the Kuki community in Nagaland has also been “the architect of the present famous products produce in our state universally known like Nagaland special rice, Naga pineapple, Naga chilly (sic) which are still produce and grown in large scale in our areas.”
He called upon the people to ‘evolve’ a system of economic independent and self-employment in the area of food production ‘without depending much on government jobs as the only means of employment.’
The press release quoted the speaker as having stated: “The Kuki community even though it might be a minority tribe can lead by example of showing the essence of economic independent by virtue of its hard work and open social mindset to the rest of other tribes which can be the only solution to the evil of tribalism prevailing in the state of Nagaland.”
The organizers said that the festival began with much pomp and gaiety and culminated with an invocation to God for blessings ‘through prayers and that God would bless and protect the people and the land as always.’
About Mimkut
Mimkuut is the harvest festival of the Kuki community. The Kuki of Nagaland celebrate this festival on the 17th Kuki month of Tolbol (January) every year. The celebration lasts one week. Besides Mimkuut, Kukis celebrate Chapphou Kuut and Chavang Kuut as well as other smaller festivals.
It is believed that Mimkuut and other festivals came into being from the fact that, in order to appease Thilha (Demon) the people offered sacrifices and at the same time they also believed in the existence of a Supreme God whom they called “Chung Pathen” (Heavenly God).
To get the blessing of such gods, the village medicine man (Thempu) would sacrifice fowls to propitiate the spirit of the Demon god by performing a series of rituals and prayer. Tradition handed down orally from generation to generation says that the Kukis originated from subterranean underworld. They came out from this underworld in search of better land.
They brought with them a number of cereals such as miller, topiaca, beans, yam etc. After they came overground they found paddy and job’s tears together, which were brought across river called Twinanhem by a pair of wild rats on a bamboo sheath (Stipule) tucked in their mouths. Gradually they found Mithun from a place called Sisep, Pig from Bonnol and Fowl from Molkon which they domesticated. They would lavishly use these animals during such festivals. Thus the cultivation of job’s tears started.
They found that it was more productive and yielded a better harvest. The celebration of the completion of the year’s harvest is done with the instruction and guidance of the village Medicineman (Thempu). On that day, for the entire village, the Medicineman would chant incantations to the God for the rich harvest and invoke the spirit for more abundant harvests in the coming years. The Mimkuut is essentially a wrap-up of the year-long toils of the land. The celebration is marked by feasting and drinking of Madhu (rice-beer).
The youths engage themselves in various types of merrymaking and fetching of water and firewood. Traditional sports like wrestling and other games and different kinds of revelry continue throughout the day and night. The older people sit by the fire-side singing traditional songs and the more enthusiastic ones dance and crack jokes from time to time. (source: nic)
