The Nagas

Hill Peoples of Northeast India

Project Introduction The Naga Database

manuscript - Christoph von Furer-Haimendorf notebook ten

caption: rice fetching rituals
medium: notes
ethnicgroup: Konyak
location: Hungphoi
date: 25.2.1937
production:
person: Furer-Haimendorf
date: 24.2.1937-11.4.1937
acquirer:
person: School of Oriental and African Studies Library, London
text: (8) Hungphoi 25/2/1937
text: On 27th February they will hold the Hashawanbu (rice bring). Every householder goes to his fields and brings a tiny rice plant from the Ghimdzong field. First the Ang enters the village bringing his rice. Then everybody ties the rice plants to the post near the hearth for rice cooking. The next five days are genna, no work on the fields must be done and no strangers are allowed to enter the village.
text: They have already built their field houses (cf. NB 8 p. 110) (9) and after building them they celebrated the O-ya-bu. Yesterday was the 4th day of the Oya-bu, Wenshaubu. According to custom the Hashaubu ought to be today but on account of my coming they have postponed it. At the A-shoi-bu the pigs may be killed by anybody, the owner or even a young man. Five pigs were killed in Hungphoi at this Oya-bu, "for they are not like Wakching men who sell their clothes and even their own wives to buy pigs". (10) On that day two bamboo poles are put up in the middle of the platform near the Ang's house. This platform was built in the morning by all the men together. The individual posts have no particular meaning as in Longkhai. The Gauwang dakba (bamboo post cut man) makes the ceremony at the post. The feeding of the post is done for the crops in honour of Hayang. He says the same words as the Ang men of Longkhai (NB 8 p. 193). The next day is Oyaya-sha. On this day the men and girls dance. There is no ceremony of any kind (?). (11) The next day is Oyayanu. Again men and girls dance but there is no ceremony except the feeding of enemies skulls. The Naba, a man of Nahim clan, feeds the skulls in the Ang morung: [konyak]. The next day is Wen-shau-bu. Men from Wangla and Lengnyu and Mon come and are entertained. (12) Now we are in the month Areng-let (Areng - Oyabu). Lenghalet is the next month. Lengha bu is a genna of one day. At night the girls and boys dance in the Ang's house in parallel lines
----------------girls
-----------------boys
----------------girls
-----------------boys
refnext: Next
refprev: Previous