Class 12 English Chapter 15 Notes Magh Bihu or Maghar Domahi

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Class 12 English Chapter 15 Notes Magh Bihu or Maghar Domahi

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Magh Bihu or Maghar Domahi

VISTAS

TEXTUAL QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS

Reading with Insight

1. The Uruka happens to be an important aspect of Magh Bihu. Give an elaborate account of the celebrations associated with Uruka.

Ans. Uruka is the feasting and enjoyment on Magh Bihu eve. Preparations for the feasting and drinking begin a few days earlier. Fish is collected by fishing in the nearby rivers and ponds, meat is gathered and fuel is bought and kept. On the day of Uruka the women prepare pitha, laru, chira, curd etc. for the next day.

The youth participate in the preparations by helping the men- folk to construct Meji which are temple like structures, and Bhelaghar which are hut-like structures of fresh bamboo, dried banana leaves and hay. Often the young boys spend the night in the Bhelaghar feasting on vegetables that they have stolen from neighbouring gardens fro fun, and on other eatables. Families and communities feast together on Uruka night, spending the night singing Bihu songs.

2. People do not take the usual rice and curry on the Domahi or Sankranti day for their lunch. What are the different kinds of food items that people have for lunch on this particular day?

Ans. Rice and curry is set aside for lunch on Sankranti day, and instead people feast on laru, pitha, chira, curd, etc which the women have prepared on the previous day. There are some special preparations specific to this day. The first is mah-karai, which is a mixture of roasted rice, black gram, sesame and ginger pieces all of which are smeared with oil, and presented for eating. The second preparation is tekeli-pitha. It is made by steaming salted rice powder over the mouth of a small kettle. The third is sunga-pitha, which is made by putting moist rice powder mixed with either salt or jaggery in the cavity of a green bamboo and roasting the bamboo on fire.The preparation of these items varies slightly in Upper Assam. Sunga-saul is prepared there which consists of the sticky bora rice steamed in the bamboo tube, and then cut into pieces which are eaten with milk and jaggery. Fried pithas are also more common in Upper Assam.

3. Although the Kacharis, the most numerous tribe of Assam, have similar customs like the Magh Bihu, they differ in certain features. Describe the manner in which the Kacharis celebrate their festival during the time of Assamese Magh Bihu.

Ans. On the day before Sankranti, the Kacharis also construct the Bhelaghar, which they call bilagur, but making them and setting fire to them the next day, is the exclusive right of the cowherd boys. After Uruka night, on the next morning the Kachari people tie cords around the fruit-bearing trees. They make offerings to birds, fishes and to animals like dogs and pigs. They also make a paste of cowdung and water, and put a mark of it around their granary. They worship their God, Bathou, and on the seventh day of Magh Bihu they clean all their vessels and make an offering of fowls to their God. They also observe Magan, when they go out singing chants and begging for food. The bilagurs are burnt before dawn, and while burning them the main Kachari cowherd, starts a prayer. He is joined by the others. They pray for glory to their village, for disease to be kept at bay, for a rich harvest and for healthy cattle. They also ask for suffering for those who had beaten them even though they were not at fault.

S.L. No.	CONTENTS
	PROSE SECTION
1	The Last Lesson
2	Lost Spring
3	Deep Water
4	Indigo
5	Going Places
6	Memoirs Of A Chota Sahib
	POETRY SECTION
1	My Mother At Sixty-Six
2	Keeping Quiet
3	Notes A Thing Of Beauty
4	A Roadside Stand
	VISTAS
1	The Tiger King
2	The Enemy
3	On The Face Of It
4	Memories Of Childhood
5	Magh Bihu Or Maghar Domahi

4. Describe the different kinds of sports and martial games associated with Magh Bihu. How did the young people in earlier times prepare themselves for participating in the martial arts?

Ans. During the festival of Magh Bihu many sporting events are also held. These include wrestling, racing, jumping, egg fighting, buffalo fighting, etc. In olden days some forms of martial arts were also included in the festivities. Sword play and javelin throwing were two common forms of martial arts, as they were arts that prepared the people to fight against any possible attackers. To participate in these martial arts, the youngsters made camps on the dry river banks and practiced the arts from weeks ahead.

5. Kati bihu, according to the author, cannot be called a festival as such. How is Kati Bihu celebrated in Assam?

Ans. Kati Bihu is held in autumn, and cannot be called a festival as it has no public importance. It is observed during autumn in the Assamese homes lighting an oil lamp before the Tulasi plant, with women and children singing a song to it. The farmers dig a small bamboo into the ground in the fields and light an earthen lamp at its foot. Whirling another piece of bamboo, they chant mantras for the protection of the crop. Sometimes a lamp is also hung from a tall bamboo, which is called a sky-lamp or the akash-banti. For the Kacharis the Siju cactus plant represents their God Bathou, and they place lamps near the plant, in the garden, in the field and in the granary.

ADDITIONAL QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS

1. Among Bohag Bihu and Magh Bihu, which is more prevalent in each region of Assam? What are the other terms for these festivals? Which term other than Bihu is used in Lower Assam and what does it mean? 

Ans. Bohag Bihu is more prevalent in Upper Assam, while Magh Bihu is more widely celebrated in Lower ASsam. Bohag Bihu is also known as Rongali Bihu or Cheering Bihu; and Magh Bihu is known as Bhogali Bihu or Bihu of Enjoyment. The more common term used for Bihu in Lower Assam is Domahi or Damhi, which means the point where two montris meet. Hence Magh Bihu is called Maghar Domahi.

2. Why cannot Uruka be called a one-day affair ?

Ans. Uruka cannot be said to be a one-day affair, because preparations for it have to begin a few daysarlier. It being a festival of feasting and enjoyment the fuel has to be gathered from before, the fish has to be got from the ponds and streams, and meat too has to be arranged for.

3. What do the young cowherds do in the Bhelaghar on Uruka night? 

Ans. On Uruka night the young cowherds pass the night inside the hut-like Bhelaghar. Since it is winter, they keep themselves warm by lighting a fire. They eat vegetables that they have stolen for fun from nearby gardens, and other eatables that they have brought with them.

4. Describe the rituals followed on Sankranti day of Magh Bihu.

Ans. Magh Bihu is the post harvest festival of feasting and enjoyment. On Sankranti or Domahi day, at the break of dawn a family member ties thin strips of bamboo, hay or jute, to fruit bearing trees. Women clean the house and the utensils. After a bath the men and children set the meji and bhelaghar on fire, after making food offerings to the fire God Agni. The ash is put on the forehead and the half-burnt sticks are scattered in the field to increase their fertility. All then sit around the fire, play kettledrums and cymbals and sing hymns. This ritual is called nam-prasanga.

5. Which ritual of Magh Bihu has a semblance to the European Lentern and Midsummer fire? 

Ans. The ritual of spreading the ash and half burnt sticks from the meji and bhelaghar, in the fields and near fruit bearing trees, has a semblance to the European Lentern and Midsummer fire. In these European customs too it was ‘believed that ashes and embers from the Lentern fire and the Midsummer fire brought fertility.

6. In which aspect of Magh Bihu festival can the effect of vaishnavism be seen?

Ans. In the ritual of hymn-singing or nam-prasanga following the burning of meji and bhelaghar, the effect of Vaishnavism is seen. In fact, the whole month of Magh is marked for religious purposes, which too is an effect of Vaishnavism.

7. What items are consumed in the evening meal of sankranti or Domahi.

Ans. The evening meal on Sankranti or Domahi day consists of rice, black gram curry, fried yam, etc. The rice may be of new harvest, if it was not first consumed in the month of Aghon.

8. Which Magh Bihu custom reminds of the tribal habit of drinking rice beer?

Ans. On Sankranti or Domahi day the left-over rice is soaked in water. The next day a little of this is consumed, with left-over dal. This custom reminds of the tribal habit of drinking rice beer.

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