Lai Haraoba fest at Bhopal
Source: The Sangai Express / Manipur Info Centre
New Delhi, January 03 2015 :
The Indira Gandhi Rashtriya Manav Sangrahalaya Bhopal is organizing 'Lai Haraoba'- a Manipuri festival celebrated to please traditional deities - at its premises from January 1 to 5, 2015 .
The Meitei community of Manipur celebrates 'Lai Haraoba' in honour of Umang Lai (forest deities worshipped in sacred groves).
Sacred groves are patches of natural or near-natural vegetation, dedicated by local communities of Manipur to their ancestral spirits or deities.
Religion and cultural practices are closely linked with forests, and this helps in conservation.
Some patches of forest are left untouched because of social fencing by local people.
These types of forest are regarded as "sacred groves" .
From time immemorial, in India, as well as in parts of Asia and Africa, care and respect for nature has been influenced by religious belief and indigenous practices.
The inextricable link between culture and biodiversity has been found in sacred groves.
India has abundance of sacred groves and known by several names such as Kavu in Kerala, Devaravana or Devarakadu etc in Karnataka, Sarana or Jaherthan in Jharkhand, Dev Van in Himachal Pradesh, Devrai or Devgudi in Maharashtra, Ki Law Lyngdoh or Ki Law Kyntang etc in Meghalaya, Vanis or Kenkris etc in Rajasthan, Kovilkadu in Tamil Nadu, and Umanglai in Manipur.
The way of conservation varies in different states according to their nature, distribution and local beliefs.
Divakar Mukherjee, an official in IGRMS stated, " Thirty people from Manipur are performing their traditional rituals during the festival." The festival is a part of IGRMS's initiative to spread awareness on the cultural and ecological importance of sacred groves.
Entry is free and timing is 10 am to 6 pm at IGRMS Shamla Hills, Bhopal.