A CULTURAL HERITAGE OF THE BODOS
AN INTRODUCTION TO THE TRADITIONAL PRACTICES OF THE BODOS

The Generic Connotation
  
The Bodos are a race of the Mongolia people who are described as the inhabitants of a country north of the Himalayas and West of China. This is known as Bod. The word Bod is supposed to mean a homeland. It is also said that there were many parts of the country known as Hor Bod, Kur Bod, etc.
The inhabitants of Bod country are known as the Bodo - Ficha or Bodocha or Bodosa (Bodo means land and Ficha or Cha means children, hence children of the Bod country). In course of time they come to be known as simply Boddo - Bodo - Boro.
  
According to R.N. Nath, when Buddhism spread into Bod countries, specially the Southern part, inhabited by the Buddhist Lamas, was known as Bsti (Lamas), Bod and later on it transformed into Bsti. Bod - Tibod - Tibet. ( R.N. Nath: The Background of Assamese Culture 1948, p-15.]
Linguistically the Bodos include a large group of people who are the speaker of the Tibeto-Burman speeches of the North and East Bengal, Assam and Burma. They are the Bodos or Boros of the Brahmaputra valley. Meches of lower Assam and West Bengal, Rabhas, Garos, Dimasas and Kacharis of Cachar district, Tiparas, Lalung, Sonowals, Hajangs, Deuris, Chutias, etc.
Hence, by the term Bodo in general which is a gereric name of the people; it means all the Tibeto-Burman (Bodo) speaking group of Sino-Tibeto origin.

  
Specific Cannotation
  
(i) The Kacharis: The Eastern Bodos of Cachar (or Kachar) district, (specially North Cachar) call themselves Kacharis. According to S.K. Chatterjee, this group of Bodos assumed their name from the district of Kachar. The meaning of Kachar is lowlands or border lands, and is originated from Sanskrit Kaksavata - Kachada - Kachar.(S.K.Chatterjee - Kirata-Jana-Kriti, 1974, p-123)
  
They are simply known as Dimasa (Dima = big water, i.e., Brahmaputra, Sa or Cha=Son or children, hence, Dimasa = Sons or Children of the big water, Brahmaputra). The Kacharis are divided into several groups. They are Sonowal Kacharis, (also known as Thengal Kacharis), Dimasa Kacharis, Lalung Kacharis and even the Rabhas.
  
On the other hand, the Bodos or Boros of the Brahmaputra valley, particularly of some districts like Kamrup, Sonitpur, Mongoldoi, Barpeta and Jalpaiguri of West Bengal are known as Bodo-Kacharis or Boro-Kacharis, although all of them now are popularly known as Bodos.
(ii) The Mech or Meche: The Bodos of the North Bengal and Jalpaiguri districts of West Bengal and Goalpara district of Assam are known as Mech of Meche, besides they also call themselves as Bodo and popularly known to their non-Bodo neighbours as Bodo. "They call themselves Mech because they settled in the banks of the river Mecqu." (C.C.Sanyal - The Mechs and The Totos -The University of North Bengal, 1973)

  
LANGUAGE
  
As Dr. P.C. Bhattacharya has observed that the Boro (Bodo) language belongs to the branch of Barish section under Baric division of the Sino-Tibetan family, as per the classification given by Robert Shafer. The Linguistic Survey of India describes the Boro or the Boro-Kachari as a member of the Bodo (Bodo) sub-section under the Assam-Burma group of the Tibeto-Burman branch of the Sino-Tibeto-Chinese speech family.
  
The Bodo speaking areas of Assam at present are stretching from Dhubri in the West to Sadiya in the East. In Tripura and Nagaland also we have small number of the Boros or Boro-Kacharis. In Jalpaiguri and other adjacent districts of Bengal, the Boros are known as Mech. The Boro language of Assam has at least four clear cut dialect areas with a sufficient number of dialectal variations, these may be called north eastern, south-western, north-central and southern dialect areas with phonological, morpeological and glossarial differences.
  
The language is said to have no inherited script at present. Sri Bishnu Prasad Rabha, the famous artiste of Assam told me that in ancient time there were a kind of Deodhai scripts among the Kacharis(Boro and Dimasas). Sri Rabha gathered a few specimen of Deodhai alphabet from an informant of Dimapur area which was noted for the Kachari reign and remains representing the art and architecture The Boro literature consists of the vast amount of oral literature including folksongs, folktales, ballads and proverbs and of considerable amount of written and published literature in Assamese and Roman scripts. The published literature comprises of books relating to prayers and songs, poems, stories on the one hand and journals on the other hand. There are unpublished novels and dramas too so far my knpwledge goes. Dimasa, the people of the great river, a separate language of the Bodo group, certainly differs from Bodo far than does Garo, which is universally admitted to the status of an independent language.

  
AGRICULTURAL PRACTICES
  
Section and classification of the plot of land:
For the cultivation of the paddy crops the Bodos select the plot of land taking some conditions in view. The land where the plant called 'dingdinga' grows abundantly is called the 'Khandina ha', which is regarded as the most temporary land for the paddy cultivation. This type of land is generally not selected by the Bodos for cultivation.
  
The plot of land which is situated by the bank of a river or stream is called 'hashrao- ha'. This type of land is also regarded to be not suitable for the paddy cultivation. The reason is that the plot of land cannot contain water for a long time, for the water flows down to the river or the stream. It is belived that if a Bodo family selects such a plot of land for the cultivation of crops, specially paddy cultivation, then the family has to suffer from poverty day by day.
  
The irrigation facility is regarded as the best criteria for the classification of land. The plot of where the cultivation of paddy is done with the help of the rain water then the plot of land is called 'Sharab daria ha'. This type of land is regarded as medium standard for the paddy cultivation.
  
The next standard type of land is called the 'Jamphai daria ha'. This type of land is selected by the Bodos to be suitable for the paddy cultivation. There is the proper irrigation facility with the help of canals which are called 'jamphai' by the Bodos. The canals are constructed by themselves. They also construct 'bandw' or embankment to preserve water for the use in cultivation and divert the water through the canals to the plots of land where the paddy is planted.
  

The major part of the cultivated land of the village is devoted to growing rice, which is the staple food of both the Bodos and non-Bodo people of the State. Even to-day, rice is the chief means of barter in the villages. Rice falls under three main heads Maisali, Bawa and Ashu. The Maisali (or Sali, in Assamese), is transplanted as winter rice, in low lying land. The long baw or bawa is the stemmed rice sown broadcast mainly in marshes with deep water. Ashu or ahu also is sown in the spring time and is grown in high lands. Among the three varieties of rice the maisali or sali is preferred more by the Bodo people. The maisali rice has many varieties. Out of numerous varieties one large variety and another small variety, which are called maima and maisa respectively. These two varieties are equally cultivated by them. The small varieties of paddy are generally meant for the economy purpose. Because, their main economic source is the paddy. A variety of rice called maibra mai in most favourite for them, specially it is essential during the festival, Domasi (Bhogali bihu, in Assamese).
  
Beside rice growing, the cultivation of jute (pathw), mustard seeds (besar) and various kinds of pulses is done side by side. The jute and mustard seeds also bring economy to them. Another important fruite tree which bring more economy to them is the areca tree (goi biphang). The areca nuts are essential for them in every walk of life. Without areca nuts and betel leaves no social function or ritual can be performed in their society. Besides social necessity, the areca nuts are most important for the economy of the Bodos. It is found that every family of a village has possessed areca nut trees more or less.
The Endi and Muga rearing is another traditional culture of the Bodos. This culture is closely associated with the Assamese people in general. The Assamese women as well as the Bodo women are expert weavers. They produce Endi, Muga and Silk of high standard.

  
FOOD HABITS
  
Rice is the staple diet, but this is supplemented by a plentiful supply of vegetables, sometime procured from the neighbouring forests, and it is seldom that they do not manage to procure some kind of animal food, flesh or fish, of which later they are very fond, when untainted by Hinduism, they were at liberty to eat almost every kind of flesh (e.g. pork) with the one exception of the domestic cow. The most highly prized article of diet is pig, and numbers of these animals may be seen in all kachary villages. The favourite beverage is a kind of rice-beer known as jau prepared by steeping rice in water for two or three days. Another liquor phitika prepared from jau by distillation is of a less innocent character. It is perfectly colourless and has a strong pungent taste, redolent of smoke and has something is common with very strong whisky. This, if taken in any quantity affects the brain very rapidly and injuriously.
There is a myth about the creation of the jau or jumai (rice-beer) among the Bodos. The rice-beer has a great importance in the Bodo society. Besides its use in the social functions, it is also offered to the Bathou bwrai (the chief god) and other minor gods and goddesses. The jumai or jau is prepared with a traditional system.
  
In preparation of jumai, a medicine which is called amaw is essential. The amao is made of uncooked rice, twelve pieces of mokhna flowers, (a kind of wild plants); some leave of kanthals (jack frute tree), some leaves of anaros (pineapple tree), roots of agarcitha, (a kind of small plant), and the top leaves of thalit(banana tree). All these things are ground together and the dust of the things in mixed with water and then it is transformed in to cake form. On the cakes (the newly prepared raw amao) dusts of two old amao are applied. The two old amao are called amaw mwkhang in Bodo. The amao mwkhang is essential for making the amao. After three or four days the raw cakes become full-fledged amao and ready for the use.
  
The rice is cooked and placed on a songrai (winnowing-fan), where the dust of the medicine emao is placed and mixed with the cooked rice and keep for one or two days. Then it is stored in an earthen pitcher which is called Maldang in Bodo. After three or four days the cooked rice which is kept in an earthen pot (maldang) becomes jau or jumai and it can be conjumed as rice-beer (jau). The rice-beer (jau) of a maldang or jonga can be used keeping for seven or nine days.The jumai prepared from the maibra mairong(bora chawl in assamese) can be preserved for two to three months, and the taste is very sweet as honey.
  

The use of rice beer (jumai) in the Bodo society is justified in the following reasons:

The Bodos are very fond of meat and fish. They dry the meat of deer, pork and preserve for a long period and use it as food when they are busy with their agriculture works. This sort of dried meat and dried fish are called bedor gwran and Na gwran respectively. They also dry small fishes in the sun light or on the fire, apply some quantity of stems of arum, then grind them together, store it in a owa hashung (bamboo tube) and cover the mouth of the tube with the leaves of the plantain (thalir bilai). This is called napham (sandal, in Assamese) and it can be preserved for two to three years.
  
They are accustomed of collecting the wild vegetables from the forests they produce at home. The wild vegetables are of different tastes. Some vegetables are used as medicines also. It is probable that the villagers of the remote places donot use any modern type medicines as they use the wild vegetables as medicines while they suffer from any disease and get relieved. Among the favourite wild vegetables, the most common are sibru (a kind of thorny plants used as vegetables), doushrem (a kind of small creeper of sour taste), lapha saikho (a plant of sour taste), jwglauri (a scented plant ) ungkham gwjang (a creeper of sour taste), nakhi (a plant of bitter taste), buri thokon (a small plant), khungkha (a plant of bitter taste), ganga mala (a small plant) and raidwng (cane tree). Another favourite wild vegetables is anthai bajab (a small plant with scent). This vegetables is used in the fish curry.specially with the kushia na (fish) and meat of goat. Every member of a Bodo family is fond of the ondla khari, prepared with the dust of rice, chicken and the shoot of the bamboo (owa mewai).
  
Meat is the essential item for the guests in the Bodo society. So, to meet the immediate necessity as food when any guest visit ones house and to some extent for the purpose of economy they keep fowls, ducks, pigs and goats at homes. They generally eat the poks (oma bedor), meat of ducks (hangshw bedor), pigeons (pharow bedor), deer (mwi bedor); turtle (khasew bedor); hare (sesa bedor). They have the custom of community hunting and fishing for food.
  
As their neighboring non-Bodo societies like caste Hindus, the Bodo-Kacharis are also very fond of the locally prepared alkali potash which they call kharoi and in Assamese it is called khar.
  

4. Smoking: Smokers are not rare among the Bodos. There is no restriction specially in the village. The elders and the young stars smoke together. The elderly women also smoke. The remote villagers, a short of earthen or wooden hongkha is used. The hongkha has two parts; the lower part can be separated when not in use. The top portion is called silim (an earthen small smoking vessel) which can be used either along or along with the hongkha. The phuski is popular and constant companion. It is pipe with wide upper end for the tobacco and narrow end for the mouth. Raw tobacco leaf after curing in shade in open air is cut in to small bits and placed on the top receptacle. Set fire to it, suck the smoke from the narrow side. It is like cigar used by the Europeans. Now, bidies and cigarettes have nearly replaced the old fashioned.
  
5. Dress and ornaments: In their mode of dress the Bodo Kacharis do not differ materially from their Hindu neighbours; but they show certain fondness for coloured garments, and are acquainted with the art of dyeing, the metarials for preparing the dyeings (usually blue and various shades of red) being supplied generally from the leaves or roots of trees.
  
The male persons, both young and old put on gamcha, woven at home, which hangs down to the knees from the lion. During winter they use to wrap the body with a wrapper of cotton or Endi spun and woven at home. This wrapper is called Jwmgra or mwdwmni gamcha. They also use a banian a sort of coat of cotton or Endi. Such dresses of the Bodo male persons are now found rare, except the villagers of the interior places, the modern dresses of the present days are used by them.
  
The women, formerly and even now, tie a cloth round the chest just below the armpit that hangs to the toe. It is called dokhna. If it is plain, it is called sala matha and if ornamented, it is called dokhna thawsi. The latter type of dokhna is essential during the marriage ceremony, when the bride (hinjao gwdan) and the two bwirathis are to wear compulsorily. In earlier days the Bodo women did not use any other body cover, while except a scarf called alowan, at present the women wear blouse as other Hindu women do any they use a small border decorated scarf called chadar or jwmgra. The Bodo women of Kamrup. Darrang and Nowgaon districts use 'Mekhela' and 'Sari' also. The Bodo women of the West Bengal state use Sari as their common garment equally with their Hindu neighbours. In advanced families the women wear Sari and body cover, blouse.
  
The popular designs of the ornamented dokhna are many. Among them the most common are daothu godo (designs of doves neck), phareo megon (designs of pigeons eye) pahar agor (designs of hills scenery) mwider agan (design of elephants foot print) etc. The organge, yellow and the sky colours are their favourite colours. The spinning is done with a spindle called tawkri and the pit loom is called eshan shali. The Bodo male members of the present society use the common dresses of the general societies. They use the long pant, half pant, shirt, coat, paijama, dhuti etc.
  
The women use very few ornaments made of silver and gold. The following ornaments are common:
  
1. For the ear: (i) Khera (ii) Japkhring (ear-ring) (iii) talinglura or dul, (iv) boula (for the upper ear) (v) puti (it is a small flower or aplung attached to the ear lobe).
  
2. For the nose: (i) Naphakhul (it is a small flower or a knob struct to the nostril or to the outer skin of the nose through a hole made earlier): (ii) Bulaki (Nose pendent)
  
3. For the Neck: (i) Chandra har (it is a heavy necklace of five layers hung on the chest from the neck), (ii) Bisahar (a necklace), (iii) Thanka-siri ( it is necklace worn round the neck) (iv) Jibou jinjiri (it is a necklace with a silver oval unornamented piece for the back of the neck from which hangs on two side two snake-like chains biting into two sides of another plain silver oval plate resting at the junction of the chest and the abdomen (Jibou-snake).
  
4. For the hand: (i) Mutha, (it is an ornamented bangle about 21/2 inch wide). It is also worn by the Rajbansis of North Bengal. (ii) Ashan suri (a small bangle). In Bodo any bangle is called ashan.
  

Social Structure of the Bodos:
  
The social structure of the Bodos is primarily patriarchal in character. In a patriarchal system father is the sole authority of the family. On the other hand, in a matriarchal system the authority rests with the mother. In the Bodo society father is the sole guardian of a family. After his death the eldest son inherits the rights exercised by him. Generally it is observed that the entire property of the family is distributed among the sons only. In the Bodo society daughter do not have the right to property when there are sons. It is some times observed that a portion of the property is given to the wife by her husband. After her death the property automatically goes to the possession of her sons.
  

The place of women in the Bodo society:
  
Although the social structure of the Bodos is based on the patriarchal system, the place of women in the Bodo society is high. If there is no male child in a family then the property is distributed among the daughters. They can enjoy such properties even after their marriage.
  
The female members are given the rights of pigs, fowls etc. They can sell them without prior permission of their guardians. It is also observed that even the father is to pay to his daughters for a pig or a cock owned by them. If there is a single female child in the family where there is no male child, then the entire property is owned by her after the death of the father. In such a case the bridegroom is kept in the house of the bride after marriage. This is an accepted of marriage in the Bodo society and is called Gwrjia lakhinai . After her death the property is inherited by her sons, and by daughters.
Although made in the context of the Kachari (i.e. Bodo) society of Darrang District, the following observations are applicable is respect of Bodo women in general.
  
'The Kacharis women command respect in their community, their position is never regarded inferior to that of a man. However, birth of a daughter is not favoured as much as that of a son. In cases of marital separation, the woman is denied of her rights to have a share of the property of her husband, although she is allowed to take her ornaments. During their maidenhood, they enjoy the liberty to participate in singing dancing and festivals, married women generally refrain from outdoor exhibition. The Boro women are exceedingly industrious and they spend much of their time in the fields working side by side with their sunburnt husbands. The Bodo women are expert weavers and can weave all their weaving apparels.