Maringa Paaryao Thillai Shangthil festival begins in Manipur

Our Correspondent

Imphal, May 9 (EMN): The ‘Maringa Paaryao Thillai Shangthil cum Lil-Thalung Bun’ festival of Manipur began on Tuesday at Lhikbung Machi in Manipur.

It is a cultural festival of showing the love for nature by praising the beauty of flowers which is translated as ‘lei hongba.’ The festival which has revived after nearly fifty years of gap is one of the biggest cultural festivals of the Maring Tribe.

The festival is associated with cleansing & decorating a house, making and erecting a flower vest, identifying a particular flower as Main flower for the festival are some of the main rituals of the festival.

Education, Labour, and Employment Minister Thokchom Radheshyam was invited as the chief guest. On second day of the event on Wednesday, he said, “Our custom, tradition and culture define our identity. Preserving and conserving the traditions, which are inherited from their forefathers, is the duty of every individual of the present generation.”

The Minister opined that there is a need to preserve the traditional dresses, instruments, and other artefacts of every community to make the future generations know about their culture and traditions.

Radheshyam asserted that there are three important things in life — law, religion, and old age —that are needed to be respected. He said that traditions are passed down to today’s generation from elders and that showing regards to the elders is the best way to achieve the custom, tradition, and culture. He further stressed that respect towards elders is also the best way of defining one’s identity.