Traditional knowledge system in hunting method among the Zeliangrong of Manipur
- Part 2 -

Budha Kamei *

A Scene from 'The Zeliangrongs' :: Provided by Director - Ronel Haobam

More primitive hunting missiles include the blowgun and the boomerang. The blowgun, still used by some Indian tribes of South America and Malaysia, is a long, hollow reed that holds a dart, often poisoned, at the muzzle. The hunter sends the dart into fowl at short range, by forcibly expelling it with his breath. Australian natives hunt with the boomerang, a club ranging in length from 6 to 48 inches. There are two types, both held vertically in one hand and hurled with a spinning motion.

The return type, which can be thrown so as to return near the hunter, has two symmetrical arms curved at an angle of at least 900 and a flat and a convex face; it is used to stun birds. The longer and heavier non-return type is used for game. Hurled with great speed, it can bounce from the ground and hit game with such force that the quarry is either knocked out or killed. However, such hunting technique and device is absent among the Zeliangrong of Manipur.

Apart from traditional methods of hunting, hunting with guns has now become common and popular among the tribal people of Manipur. Gun is of relatively recent origin; it is now used by them in hunting in agricultural fields, jungles where animals come to feed themselves in different seasons and places. Hunting with gun is carried out in places where animals come to drink in open well (Jei) during full moonnight (Bupukhou) or complete moonless night (Butheikho).

They also use gun in hunting on an open ground field in the plains of jungles and forest where animals often pass by for their regular diet on green leaves and plants. It is said that an Angami Naga hunter with gun "can move through jungle as silently as a leopard." Tracking involves the following of spoor, which consists of footprints or dug. This method is used for large beasts that herd together. A recent rain greatly aids tracking. Both elements help the hunter interpret the newness of spoor.

Trapping is also one of the oldest methods of hunting. There are different types of trap for animals such as Khunthuk-pha (pitfall trap), Keikang-bei (rack fall trap), Rhou-pha (guinea pig trap), Sang-pha (squirrel trap), Sak-pha (spear trap), Jou-pha (monkey trap), Kagang-pha (neck trap for deer), Joukong-pha (neck trap for porcupine), Jouki-pha (drop trap), Thingdang-pha (beam trap) etc. In addition, they use traps for birds like Tengka-pha (leg trap), Pha-sang (noose trap), Bourun-pha (nest trap), Tang-bei (bamboo clappingtrap) etc.

Pitfall trap is made by digging hole. For animals like bison, deer and serrow, large holes are dug from about six to sixteen feet deep with pointed sticks stuck all over the bottom of the holes. Then, it is covered with leaves, small branches and earth spread carefully over the top. The animal steps on a thin covering over the sunken area and falls into the trap.

Another type of trap, when a deer runs is found leading over some steep bank to a ravine. This bank is then strewed with dead leaves which offer no foothold, and are slippery. At the bottom of the shape are placed panjies at the angle of 450 with the ground. A deer or wild animal coming along the run slips at the bank and before it can be pull up it is pierced on the panjies. They also place panjis three or five as a rule, but not four, as this would be unsuccessful, in a path used by deer, where the deer has to jump over a fallen tree which hides the panjis, on to which the deer jumps and is pierced. The fall trap is used in the fields for monkeys and baited with a cucumber.

When the monkey pulls at this a bamboo shelf loaded with stones falls down and crushes him. Nowadays, such traps are not in use. Among the Lhotas, "Before the making of pitfalls was forbidden by the Government large number of elephants, deer and wild pig were killed by means of them. Elephant-pits were huge affairs, but the ordinary pitfall was about ten feet deep, with the bottom covered with big jagged rocks and panjis, so that any animal which fell in was likely both to have its legs broken and to be impaled."

Sak-pha is a type of transfixing trap. In this type of trap, an arrow is made to be released. The arrow thus released pierces the game. Sometimes human beings are also attacked by this type of trap. Such trap is not in use nowadays. Jou-pha is laid in numbers in a place where there is regular crossing of monkeys. The hunter fixed panjies in the ground below the branches of trees which the monkeys usually use in crossing their way. The branches are correctly cut deep so that when the monkey does jump from the branches to the other branches may break down under the weight of the monkey; whereby making them to fall over the panjies and get themselves impaled.

Kagang-pha is generally laid near a stream where animals like deer, mithun etc. are regularly either for drinking or crossing the stream. It catches the game by the neck. It consists of a rope made of fibre of a Thang tree. One end of the rope is tied to a log of wood with branches erected by the side of the passage at a height of about six feet whereas the other end of the rope is made into a noose. When the animal enters the loop, the loop automatically narrows its dimension to strangle the game. While using the trap, the height of the lower border of the loop varies according to the size of the animal which the hunter likes to trap.

Joukong-pha is a trap which strangles an animal by neck and is used generally for trapping small animals. This trap is more effective when the animal comes from the opposite site of the trap. Jouki-pha is a cage-type trap having two chambers and is made of wood to catch animals like wild cat and smaller animals. ( Jouki means a wild cat and Pha , trap).

A fowl is set free into the inner chamber to charm the animals. When the animal does pull the real bait, the trigger is unlocked and the door does fall with a thud. Phai-pha , feet trap is made by attaching a long rope of the fibres of the Thang tree to the end of a bent bough. This rope ends in a running noose behind which is a peg.

A hooped stick is stuck down into the ground in a hollowed place in a track used by deer and the top of the peg caught up underneath it. The rope is taken over the hoop and the noose spread. The peg is held in place by a short stick resting horizontally across the hoop against two vertical sticks. On the horizontal stick other sticks are rested at right angles to it and passing under the noose and raised from the earth at the other end by a bit of wood.

The whole is covered with dead leaves. If the deer steps in the circle formed by the noose he depresses the sticks which rest on the horizontal stick which holds the peg in place. This does release the peg and the bough springs back into position, suspending the deer by the noose, which has run tight about its leg.

Kaikang-pha is a trap working on the principle of lever release system. Kaikang means a plane rack of bamboo and woods usually placed above the Mhaimang , fireplace. The size and strength of the trap vary depending upon the targets to be killed. Thingdang-Pha is also a kind of trap, but it is not that sort of the trap used to catch an animal by leg or by the neck using noose.

Thingdang-pha means a log laid in wait to fall. Here, a heavy log is laid on the path of the prey to fall upon it. Sang-pha is a trap used to catch animals such as squirrel and rat.

Rou-pha is only used to trap a rodent, burrowing at the roots of the bamboos. Birds are caught in various ways. A very simple method is that they extract a kind of gum called Tajik from the trees and it is plastered on the branches of tree. By it, small insects, and ants are placed. When the birds sit on gum to eat the ants they are detained. This trap is called Tajik Pha .

But, in most cases, they use snares with various knots in birds catching and it is generally placed on the fruit plants. Pha-sang is usually laid on the tip of branches of trees bearing ripe fruits. It catches a number of birds by the neck at the time when they are trying to eat the fruits. Tang-bei is used to catch most at a time and it requires to reset if the manipulation wants to catch another bird.

Bourun-pha is also used to catch birds especially when they lay eggs. The trap is laid on the nest itself. When the bird enters into its nest, it is cornered, but not strangled. When it flies out, the noose does strangle it by the neck.

To be continued..