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| All the photos are from my last Kati Bihu @ home, 2014 |
তুলসীৰ তলে মৃগ পহু চৰে
তাকে দেখি ৰামচন্দ্ৰই শৰধনু ধৰে...
Today was Kati Bihu back home in Asm! Naturally, I am homesick
and nostalgic thinking about all past Kati Bihus I got to celebrate at home! I
probably took most of these opportunities for granted. Starting from Ganesh
Chaturthi or Viswakarma around August and September, these ongoing 2-3 months, Indians
celebrate a lot of festivities. I am an Assamese-Indian and for the community I
grew up in, it was Viswakarma in Mid-September, followed by Durga Puja (that
happens anywhere in September or October or even in November), then Lakshmi
Puja right after, which is then followed by Kati Bihu. All these festivals impressively
lead to Diwali couple of days later.
My parents did a great job in making us culturally aware.
But back in those days, I used to not appreciate the cultural and social
importance of each of this myriad of festivities. They all kind of seemed more religious
than cultural to my young mind. There was also the fatigue from celebrating so
many festivals back to back! At that age, I was very lazy regarding household
chores and if I am being brutally honest, these festivals always seemed to add extra
work to my list of chores! Also, there were some rituals or steps that just did
not make any sense to me! My mom, always insisted on taking a bath right before we would start lighting lamps for these festivals – typically in the evenings! Even though,
I might have already taken a bath that day. Because, you see, bathing means you
are “pure” (as if you can wash away your sins or wrong-doings) and you can only
do God’s work when you are clean and pure! The same reason is why it is against
custom to partake in religious activities when you are on your “periods”; you
are viewed as unholy (/not sacred) for those few days! Recently, I have been
having some discussion with my friends and sister on this topic. My scientific,
engineering brain knows that this attitude is discriminatory towards women and
as a modern woman, I should be brave enough not to abide by these traditional, unreasoned
customs! But being raised in a conservative set-up, it is still possible for me
to feel a certain unease, may be even guilt when I come across a religious/cultural
type of event in those days. I hesitate to participate, and immediately I am questioning
my educated, progressive mind! Even in my own house, when I am on my periods, I
cannot bring myself to light up my evening lamp in the thapona (prayer table)
that I typically light every day. It is very strange and confusing to me! I get
torn between being a modern woman and being someone who tries to love and
embrace my tradition & culture, at-least the part that seems justifiable.
But coming back to my previous grief about bathing twice, I used to have
serious fights with my mom – “why I need to take another bath when I am already
clean and have already taken a bath earlier in the day, God (or any higher power) will value a clean
heart or is he going to fuss over my bath right before lighting the lamps”. All
these relatively smaller ritualistic addendums that always seems to attack and
demean women, really bugged me! So much so that I could lose the sight of the cultural
significance behind these festivities!
Life has completely changed now! I have grown a lot! I live alone
so I am responsible for all my chores! 😊 Hence, there is absolutely no point in dreading
additional chores! Also, living here in USA for the last couple of years I have
had more first-hand exposure to different culture across the globe. This made
me understand and realize at a deeper level how deep and rich my culture really is! In India,
religion is intertwined with culture and sometimes, some religious nonsensical
customs make my blood boil!!!! But, almost all these festivals have a deep and
practical value & reason behind it. As I grow older, I am finding more meaning
in these festivities! I am finding more appreciation for being from where I am!
From where I am makes who I am!
Anyway, this tangential prelude was to say that I miss home
and these few months are specifically harder because of these non-stop celebrations!
Kati Bihu, however, does stand apart among all these celebrations! Like the other two Bihus (Bohag Bihu and Kati Bihu) we celebrate, this Bihu is also associated with different distinguished phases of the agricultural calendar.
But unlike the other two Bihus (or any typical festivities), this is not at all
flamboyant! In fact, it is celebrated in a restraint and somber manner. It is
observed when the harvest saplings are planted in the field around the month of
October! The granaries in an ordinary home of an ordinary farmer is empty at
this time and hence there is a somberness in the environment. It is why this
bihu is also known as Kangali (Poor) Bihu.
The rituals associated with this bihu is also very
minimalistic in nature. The main custom we follow is to light up a main lamp
underneath a Tulsi (Basil) plant in the courtyard of a typical Assamese home!
Tulsi is considered as an auspicious plant in Indian culture and for this Bihu,
we either plant a new plant or clean up to add a new coat of clay foundation
for an existing plant. With this lamp and some food offering to God we
pray for happier and healthier crops. Traditionally, there will be a few other
lamps near the granary or gohali (stable for cows) at home! In the paddy fields
in villages, these lamps are installed on bamboo sticks at a higher elevation
than the corps. These are called “Akash Banti (Sky Lamps)". I lived in the city
and we did not have any paddy fields of our own. Also because this was a
short holiday, we never managed to visit my grandparents’ home to actually
witness Akash Banti! When we started to live in the second floor of our house, my
mom had additional Tulsi plant in ceramic pots (in addition of the main plant
we have in the courtyard). We would light up these lamps for the entire month,
and often the responsibility will be shared by me and my sister!
For me, this festival is about resilience and about being
cautiously optimistic! As a farmer (that too in a challenging economic
environment of a developing country), there is a lot of impediments that one needs
to fight off to guarantee good harvest at the end of the season. So, with this
Bihu, as a community we try and start with some prayer & positive vibe to gear up for the upcoming months of labor in the fields.
Because it is autumn, it gets dark soon and there is a
certain nip in the air! There is a lovely smell of Xewali Phool (Night Jasmine
flower) that just adds another layer to the overall solemnness in the
atmosphere! And then you light these lamps underneath the plants which makes
the plants look so magical; immediately your heart is filled with gratitude and hope
for the future! I do miss all of it!
Happy Kati Bihu!
Love,
~Arrru
