| caption: |
Chapter Twenty-seven. Return to Nagaland |
| caption: |
maintenance and decay of morungs |
| text: |
In Wakching too the morung had all been maintained, and two which had been destroyed in a recent fire had been rebuilt according to the old pattern. But there the carvings of men, animals, and various symbols on posts and cross-beams were inferior to those which had perished. As it can hardly be assumed that the incidence of artistic talent had suddenly diminished, one can only conclude that less effort is being spent on the decoration of houses than a generation ago. This reflects the decrease in the social importance of the Konyak morung Previously the village was the most important political unit, and within the village the men's houses were the focal points of social and ritual activities. In 1970 the morung were still the principal exogamous units and their members co-operated in some economic activities, but the political structure of a village based on the close interaction of the morung had largely been replaced by different and wider alignments. |
