Civilizational and Cultural Traditions of
Northeast India: Exploring the Links
18th & 19th
April 2018
Organized by:
Department of English
Assam University, Diphu Campus
P.O. Diphu, Karbi Anglong, Assam-782462
P.O. Diphu, Karbi Anglong, Assam-782462
In Collaboration with
Maulana Abul
Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies (MAKAIAS)
(An Aotonomoues Body under the Ministry of Culture)
Government of
India
IB 166, Sector III, Salt Lake
Kolkata 700106
Kolkata 700106
About
the Seminar
Northeast
India has its own history, cultures, legends and myths and in spite of
geographically located at the remotest corner of so-called mainland India, its
presence in India’s history, mythologies and literatures is very powerful. Many
places of Northeast India find mentions in ancient Indian texts and
particularly in the Mahabharata. The
tales of Rukhmini, Usha, Bhagadutta, Hidimba, Chitrangada, Ulupi, Ghatotkacha,
Babrubahan, Iraban etc. have been passed down through generations in the form
of popular folklores in Northeast India. The anthropologists are of the view
that the region was primarily inhabited by mongoloids and pre mongoloids
settlers before the times of the Vedas and they were referred to as Kiratas in Yajurveda, Atharvaveda and the Mahabharata.
Again,
there are also a group of historians and anthropologists who consider that it
is purely by an accident in history that Northeast formed a part of India. The
social formation in the so-called mainland India and Northeast India is far
from being homogenous and it is a forceful effort to link up with one another
culturally and politically.
In
the literature of the Karbis, one is primarily reminded of their oral
literature as Karbi literature did not have a written form till the 19th
century, all elements of folklore, like social rituals, legends, historical
tales, ballads of love and separation, folksongs of Ram-Ravan (Sabin Alun), fables etc. prove the
linkage with the cultural tradition of India.
The
same cultural linkage is found in the case of Dimasa, an indigenous community
of people inhabiting Assam and Nagaland states in Northeast India. Dimasa
mythology says that they are the children of Bangla Raja (Earthquake God) and
the great divine bird Arikhidima. Ancient Dimasa tradition maintains that sixty
thousand Moon months (Lunar months) ago, they left their ancestral land when it
suffered a severe drought. According to a legend, the royal family descends
from Ghatotkacha, the son of Bhima of the Mahabharata
fame, and Hidimbi, a princess of the Dimasa people. According to Hindu
mythology, Dimapur is said to have been named after Hidimba. Dimapur is a
corruption of Hidimbapur, meaning the city of Hidimba of Mahabharata, who is believed to be the progenitor of the Dimasas.
Although
for the last one hundred years most of the Mizo people are practicing
Christians, but in the Pre-colonialist Mizos were ‘animists’ in the language of
the colonial historians. Today, approximately 90% of Mizo are Christian, and
only 10% are ‘animist’ in that they worship nature (e.g., the sun, the moon,
rivers, and mountains) and their religious cosmology is consisting of a high
God called Pathian
who rules the macrocosm or the world beyond the community, and a microcosm
consisting of the numerous spirits, both good and bad. Just like Shiva in Saivism or Bishnu
in Vaisnavism, Pathian
in pre-colonial Mizo religion
“absorb the nature and functions of the rest and the other Gods become
different manifestations of one supreme deity known by other different names in
different aspects”.
The oral narratives of Zeme Naga
speak of the Myth of “Tingwang”, the supreme God who created the heavenly
bodies and the son “Banglawang” who was the first ruler of the world links the
ancient Indian myth of creation. The tribes of Arunachal Pradesh such as Galos,
Adis, Apatanis, Nishis, Hill Miris, and Mishings follow the religion of Donyi-Polo
which focuses on the worship of the sun and moon, considered the eternal watch
deities of the supreme gods, Bo and Bomong. “A follower of Donyi-Polo believes
in the oneness of all living creatures, from the tiniest of organisms to the
mightiest of animals, and that every living creature has a role to play in his
or her life. They believe that a spirit (or soul) resides within all men,
plants, animals, and the land that nourishes them, having a strong connection
with humans.” (Naina) Similar
myths are also found among the other communities of Northeast India which
establishes the fact that the region was never delinked from the civilizational
and cultural tradition of the so-called mainland India.
So,
Northeast India as wrongfully projected is not culturally delinked from the
so-called mainland India in spite of having heterogeneous cultural traits. The
colonial authorities adopted a policy of segregating the hills and plains
people which has been continued by the wrong policies of governments after the
independence of India. The oral narratives of these communities of Northeast
India are great treasure houses that can challenge this hegemonic concept of
unbridgeable heterogeneity and can establish linkages with the similar types of
narratives, both oral and written, in other parts of India.
It
is in this context the
proposed seminar is envisioned to generate a constructive debate around the
above theme and also the following sub-themes.
Sub-themes:
- Cultural History of Northeast India and its connection with the so-called Mainland
- Myths and Legends and their interconnections
- Religious practices and exploring their roots with Ancient India
- Shared values of different ethnic communities of Northeast India and exploring the connections with the rest of India
- Indigenous cultural practices existing parallel to accepted modern religions/lifestyle.
- British policy of ‘excluded areas’ or ‘partially excluded areas’ and its impact in fracturing of the Northeast
- Role of Festivals and other cultural conglomerations in bridging the fracture
- Common historic Past – trade, people and culture
- Cultural connections in oral traditions
About MAKAIAS:
The Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian studies is a
centre for research and learning with focus on social cultural, economic and
political / administrative developments in Asia from the middle of the 19th
Century onwards with special emphasis on their links with India, and on the
life and works of Maulana Abul Kalam Azad. Till date, the emphasis had been on
specialising on modern and contemporary affairs in South Asia, central Asia and
West Asia, and carrying on area studies on the five Central Asia Republics of
the former Soviet Union (Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Tajikistan, Kazakhstan and
Kyrgyzstan), Turkey, Iran Afghanistan and Bangladesh. The Institute now looks
forward to widening its area of study to the Northeast region of India,
Southeast Asia and China.
About the Department of English, AUDC:
About the Department of English, AUDC:
The Department of English at Diphu Campus of Assam
University had its inception in 2007 and it offers Post Graduate Course in
English as well as M.Phil and Ph.D programmes by Course Work. The MA syllabus
(CBCS) in addition to basic courses put special focus on contemporary
theoretical development, Indian writing in English, American Literature,
Postcolonial Studies and English Language Teaching. The research scholars who are
pursuing Ph.D and M.Phil are working on multiple areas of research viz.
Northeast Literature, Contemporary Black British Literature, Postcolonial
Literature, Feminist literature, American Literature, Indian writings in
English, Literatures from the Sub-continent, Drama Studies etc.
How to Reach Diphu Town:
Diphu town is well connected by road, train and by air.
Diphu town is connected with two airports. The nearest airport is Dimapur
(Nagaland) located about 50 kilometers and Guwahati International airport which
is located about 250 kilometers from Diphu town. Train connectivity is
available from Guwahati and Dimapur to Diphu. Direct train services are also
available from all the major cities of the country.
Guidelines for Abstract and Full Paper:
Research Papers are invited from the
teachers of colleges, universities, research institutes, professionals, academicians,
research scholars from Northeast and other parts of India on the above mentioned themes. The
research papers based on field study will be preferred for presentation in the
seminar. The abstract and full text of the paper should be sent to the Seminar
Coordinator, Dr. Anup Kumar Dey, Department of English, Assam University
(A Central University), Diphu Campus, Diphu, Karbi Anglong (Dist), Assam-782462.
The guidelines for submission of abstracts and full papers are as follows.
Abstract
- The abstract should not exceed 250 words.
- It should include title of the abstract the author’s name, designation, institutional affiliation, contact address, contact number, E-mail ID.
- Authors are requested to send the abstract through E-mail to the ID: deyanup1@gmail.com latest by April 10, 2018.
Full Paper
- The length of full paper including tables, diagrams, illustrations, references, etc. should be between to 6000 to 8000 words.
- The full paper should be in English and typed in MS-Word in Times New Roman with font size 12 and 1.5 spaced.
- References/Notes should be given at the end of the text.
- The selected full version of papers should be submitted in soft copy latest through E-mail to the ID: deyanup1@gmail.com latest by April 15, 2018.
A Committee will review the abstracts and full papers and
information regarding acceptance, modification, rejection and presentation
shall be communicated to the authors subsequently. A limited number of selected
papers presented in the seminar will be published in a reputed international
publication.
Registration Fees details:
Faculty, Professionals,
Academicians: Rs.1000/
Research
Scholars: Rs. 500/
Important Dates:
Abstract
Submission: Latest by April 10, 2018
Full Paper
Submission: Latest by April 15,
2018
Seminar
Presentation: 18-19 April, 2018
Venue: Department of English, Assam University, Diphu Campus
Accommodation:
Accommodation will be provided on behalf of the organizer to all the selected participants if the confirmation of participation is communicated by April 13, 2018.
Venue: Department of English, Assam University, Diphu Campus
Accommodation:
Accommodation will be provided on behalf of the organizer to all the selected participants if the confirmation of participation is communicated by April 13, 2018.
Organizing Committee:
Chairperson: Professor Sivasish Biswas, Pro Vice
Chancellor, Assam University, Diphu Campus
Coordinator: Dr. Anup Kumar Dey, Associate Professor & Head i/c, Department of
English, Assam University, Diphu Campus
Members:
Dr. B. C.
Dash, Associate Professor, Department of English, Assam University, Diphu
Campus
Dr. Indu
Swami, Assistant Professor, Department of English, Assam University, Diphu
Campus
Sri
Amlanjyoti Sengupta, Department of English, Assam University, Diphu Campus
Dr.
Shreyashi Mukherjee, Department of English, Assam University, Diphu Campus
Dr. Sumi Daadhora, Teaching Assistant,
Department of English, Assam University, Diphu Campus