'Totem Shooting' an old custom that extinct
Keeping one's own custom for peace, love unity and prosperity is important

Daniel Kameih *

Totem shooting during Chagah Festival : Annual festival of Liangmai community :: pix - Popcha Yambem

"Totem shooting", commonly known as "chuangkepmei" and as performed by forefathers to overcome their bad dreams and for purification of their sin was performed during the "Chaga/RihNgai" festival which falls in the month of February.

Totem was made by softwood like human image as their enemy. However, this event has seldom performed in the present contemporary era with the adoption of Christianity. This particular event was performed by male folk without the involvement of female.

Athui Kamei of Namkaoluang village said that the significant of performing the "Totem shooting" was that one should performed it along with prayer and fasting with clean body and mind.

The forefathers were not allowed to perform it if their wife is pregnant or neither have they allow to sleep with their wife during Chaga festival. The forefathers followed the odds and restrictions of their custom very strictly. No one is dare look up and spokes to the older person or never say no to what the older person say.

However, such person were allowed to performed it separately not in public and the totem was to be made with banana stem, Athui stated.

Totem shooting was also performed to see their luck. It has parts excluding head and neck and each part is separated by small line. Just below neck there is "Rihbei" (of war) followed by "Napbei" (of paddy), "Tunabei" (of lady), "Suhbei" (of bore/ jungle pig), "Liuchibei" (of widow), "Karapeibei" (of grandmother) and the last part is "Bajui" which mean incomplete or unsuccessful.

So in order to see a person luck for future preceded year, a person shoot and aim for the best. The forefather believed that if they spears on the "Napbei" (of paddy) marked they will get more paddy in that year. Likewise if a person desirous of getting a new wife he should try his luck to get caught in the "Tunabei" (of lady) part.

According to Zeliangrongpui Customary Research Society Tamenglong, there are certain odds/restrictions and norms practiced by forefathers while death occurred naturally or unnatural and observation of any function at the village to live in peace, unity, prosperities, love and harmony in the society. The forefathers believed that all these culture and customary legendaries were given by God who created heaven and earth.

These odds and restriction persist till today. However, with the adoption of Christianity, people take as granted and all the odds and restrictions were over ruled by the new laws.

According to Ngamthuiyang Pamei, Chairman of Zeliangrongpui Customary Research Society Tamenglong, after adoption of Christian Religion for about 80/ 90 years ago, Zeliangrong Inpui custom and culture influence seem to be declined which is ruining our identity.

However, we should be united and revive by educating to our youngster, Ngamthuiyang Pamei stated.

In the olden times, there was no fighting bloodshed among brothers and they had sufficient food grains. "If we follow the old customs of odds and restrictions there will be peace and will receive God's blessing because God has given us our customs with the creation of human by God", Ngamthuiyang stated.

As people became Christianity, old customs which lay down some certain odds and restrictions were all lost. Zeliangrongpui Customary Research Society Tamenglong is trying to preserve and correct the people to obey and follow the odds and restriction.

In the times of distress or happiness, Christianity open the bible read about the history of Jews, Hebrews or Israelites, recounted that never talk about the odds and customs.

Giving fine to the wrong doing is another way to forgive and forget, added Ngamthuiyang Pamei.