UNFATHOMED ARUNACHAL

                                              Living  Boasimla-Part 2

                                                      Visiting Tamen

                                   

 The festival had come to an end and it was time for me now to explore the nearby villages of Boasimla. So I decided on visiting Tamen which was situated in the Kamporijo Circle of the lower subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh. Without mincing one's words, there would be nothing exciting about this village through a touristic point of view yet I would request you to read the post to know about the actual life of a Arunachali .I happened to Visit it because I love meeting people from different cultures. It was about 2 km's from BoaSimla.So Robinson took me on a ride to this place by borrowing his Brother's bike.
         

crossing the river Subansiri

a fence made of bamboo as well

traditional bamboo house

SERENITY

                           Finally, we reached Kamporijo Circle.Now we had to walk down the hill and climb up again to reach Tamen.Distance from Kamporijo Circle to Tamen by walk would be about another one and a half km's.

we have to walk through a bridge to reach Tamen.

subansiri river flows alongside Kamporijo

The only boon for the arunachalis is the Subansiri river which passes alongside their villages making their life a little better.

houses atop different hills in Tamen

Jhuming

Tamen was a village situated up above one of the mountains in the lower Subansiri District.Hence, It was indeed very difficult for the villagers to get any sort of amenity.The lower Subansiri people practice JUMING,i.e, Shifting Cultivation for their survival. They grow rice mainly.They eat rice along with boiled wild meat with a little pinch of salt and arunachali mirchi.It was a hike moreover than a normal walk. It took us about half an hour Kamporijo circle to reach the Tamen Village where Robinson's Cousin stayed.While I walked towards the Village, million mind-boggling thoughts passed through my head. I could not Imagine myself living a life of these people. It was a distressing and dreadful sight.A country like India which seems so developed from outside still has so many places hidden beneath it which need to literally be given thought to.After talking to Robinson's brother, I come to know that how deprived they are of even little significant little things we just don't care to respect.Most of the Villagers do not have the facility of electricity because their living condition is very bad and hence they cannot afford to get one.They are literally outcasted from the basic necessities of life.During the times of heavy rainfall, they can't really go out of the Village because of the tormenting landslides and there would be power cut for days together.Life gets tedious and saddening out here most of the times.As most of the houses are a mile or two away from each other, It even gets difficult for them to help someone during the time of emergencies.
                       

kids playing inside the old, ruined building.

moments when you feel happy clicking innocent smiles

   We then passed through the Kamporijo School which looked carbuncle and ruined.The school was shut down and no Government body bothers about it. School Facility wasn't easily available to the kids out here.It was disheartening to see such a sight.We passed through narrow slippery muddy paths, I wondered to myself how they carried any sort of provision to their home.

                             
 And after a lot of walking and talking, we finally arrived Tamen.Tamen was situated atop a hill.
I could see a lot of things happening around me, Kids were playing around and when they saw me, they posed for pictures.They seemed content and happy with their living.We then walked towards Robinson's brothers house.

Expressions!!

So many stories inside one picture!

While her mom withdraws herself from getting clicked,She happily poses for a picture.

Robinson's brothers house

Kids playing alongside the throw ballcourt

Robinson's brother

store room for the Apung

bathroom

common room

common room

common room

changing room for the women of the house

verandah

when all kids seem to disappear leaving behind an eerie feeling in the court

It was a traditional bamboo house and he told me that a bamboo house has survivability period of about 25-30 years. Due to heavy rains, they get damaged easily so they need to get it fixed every now and then.His house had a changing room,store room and bathroom was in the backside of the house,a common room where they slept in the night and even cooked their food and a verandah outside. It was a very simple home yet very beautiful because of the warmth with which these beautiful people welcomed us.While I sipped the tea served by him, I was wondering how one can still seem so happy without having any materialistic pleasures.I could not possibly imagine living such a life and that was when It hit me and I realized We don't need all these manmade things for our survival because Nature has bestowed us with everything for surviving and living a happy life.It's true that I strongly agree with the fact that people living in villages of this sort should be given the basic amenities for a better standard of living.But it's also true that they feel they are actually living a buoyant and a radiant life.
They have learnt to Acknowledge life and accepted things for the way it is and havent given up on it. They seem happy only because they have accepted they are the children of nature and Nature would take care of them. They completely live on their instincts and thats why they are so joyous and warm-hearted.They treat everybody the same,the entire village as a family.Everybody knows everyone and they consider them as their family.They have learnt to see hardships together and they fight it together.They love their lives just like the way we love our lives. They make the best use of it and they dont take qualms to their heart and that is the secret on living a happy,beautiful and worthful life.  After a heartful conversation with him and his wife, We decided to leave.And that is how my journey of Boasimla ended .

Travelwanderexplore:)

I have a Question to whosoever read this post and I want you to think about it?
                                                         WHENEVER YOU SAY LIFE IS HORRIBLE OR SAD OR YOUR UNLUCKY? Remember THIS
                         We are all equipped with all the materialistic pleasures of this world and we are LUCKY truly. Because when I visited this Village I Understood How life can be raucous and Cacophonous to some people and on the other hand extremely confounding and beautiful to the others.I want you all to look closely these pictures so one knows how some are so unprivileged to get the tiny pleasures in life which we receive just like that.I want you guys to understand the value of your life and respect it and be grateful to the almighty and the Universe.Travelling does make one generous,a better human and makes one understand himself or herself.And journies like these equip you with the knowledge on life. They tell you why sometimes things are the way they are in your life only because you need to outgrow from it to become a better person.Not many get to acknowledge life like the way we are able to.Most of them end up living a life meaninglessly and fade away into dust.We are one among the exceptions, so make use of it.Live life truly,madly and wildly.
Respect other beings,dont think low about others,acknowledge them instead and help them.Living a life truly means doing the best we can in respect to every matter of life.
                                                                         This post is mainly for all those brave arunachalis who continue to live a happy life even after all the sufferings. Respect to that. I really hope the government of Arunachal does some justice to them.I hope you guys liked this post and soon Ill post about my journey from Bosimla to Tawang .


                                                                         
                                                           

                         
                       

UNFATHOMED ARUNACHAL

                                     Living In Boasimla -Part 1

                                                                       
                                                                   NYOKUM FESTIVAL

       ON the 23rd of February,2015

meat stalls in Ziro

      As you all remember, Robinson had called and after a quick conversation with him. I come to know that the sumo is leaving in 10 minutes and so when I called up Otem to tell this, he seemed unhappy with my decision of leaving as he felt it was not safe but when I told him "you will trust Robinson after you meet him" he agreed to let me go
                           So within a span of 10 minutes, I pack up my bag and leave to boaSimla finally.

finally, my dream comes true and I sit on top of a sumo which is not allowed to women because of safety issues.



a small village in Arunachal while we were on the way to Boasimla.


rambling curvy roads of Arunachal

                                                               I was captured with the ironic silence of this place while the sumo passed its way towards the destination. Arunachal is less explored and underdeveloped only because we tend to forget it. It is like any other beautiful place but sadly forgotten.


The beauty of life secretly shines on us through the beautiful and amazing sky, its intrigued us by its exquisite details and it can only be appreciated when observed closely. As I cloud myself with these delightful thoughts about how this world is, a cold breeze sweeps me off with the smell of earth and enchants me again. After about an hour or so we reach BOASIMLA finally.
                                         
                                         BoaSimla is a village in Arunachal Pradesh which is mainly habituated by the nyishi tribal people. Nyishi tribe is one of the principle inhabitants of Arunachal Pradesh. "NYI" refers to a man and "SHI" refers to being, collectively it means a civilised human being. Nyokum festival is the most prominent festival of Arunachal Pradesh. It is celebrated by the NYISHI tribe. It's a very colorful and vibrant festival which reflects the zeal and spirit of the nyishi tribe.
"NYO" refers to "EARTH" and "KUM" refers to "COLLECTIVENES.It is celebrated on the 26th of February every year reflecting the ethnicity, unity, and spirituality of the people of the nyishi tribe.
                                       
                                  

                                          By the time we reached BoaSimla, the cold air from the east swept by and formed a beautiful mist all around the place. Quickly I got down from the sumo and rushed to Robinson's sisters house. Polygyny is widely practiced in the Nyishi tribe and hence Robinson had two mothers and two fathers. It signifies one's social status and economic stability and also comes very handy during hard times like clan wars or other social activities. Robinson's dad has 2 wives among which one's age is 15 years. It was shocking to know that child marriage is widely accepted in this part of the country. After I Freshened up, I moved towards the kitchen. Here, the kitchen is usually placed outside the house usually in the backyard. It is similar to a room but the setup is different where there is a wooden stove at the middle and people sit by the 4 sides around it.

Robinson's family were very excited to meet me and he indeed had a huge family. I felt like I was at my own home with my people with the way they showered their love on me. After like a brief introduction, I had made two more new friends Yaka and Unali. Yaka was extremely beautiful who was to wed Robinson's brother in the month of January next year. Unali was doing her schooling still. 
                             People of nyishi tribe prefer eating half boiled vegetables or meat with rice with a pinch of salt and Arunachal chili. They do not like food with too many masalas and hence, they prepared special food for me from then on for the next 6 days I stayed with them. They do not have any idea about the way food over here is prepared so It wasn't that great but the part that they did for an unknown person is what makes us all realize "HUMANITY IS STILL THE SAME EVERYWHERE AND HENCE WE NEED TO LEARN TO CULTIVATE IT WITHIN US"
                             Travel is just not about experiencing new things it's also about accepting things for the way it is and learning from it. It is about making oneself realize the value of each and every precious life on this earth.It's about accepting different cultures, different types of people, different types of living and loving it for what it is and not judging it because that makes them happy like the way our culture makes us happy. It is about seeing beyond the physical appearances and accepting the person for the way he or she is. It's about loving unknown souls and not judging them. The most exciting part about travel is how
                       this universe has put forth and presented each and everything in front of us in a different way altogether and that always invokes a sense of excitement because we always get to see something new and amazing.
                                        
After a lot of talking, I finally bid a goodbye to everyone and went to bed.I woke up early the next day, It was 24th of February and to my surprize all were already at the communal ground cheering for their respective football teams.Two days to go for the big day,i.e, Nyokum festival. The people of nyishi tribe play cricket and football on the 2 days respectively where teams from different villages come by and participate in the game and the team which wins receives a hefty amount as a prize. And in the evenings, cultural competitions like singing, dancing, and fashion shows take place where the young girls and boys from different villages come and participate.

                             

                                          

After an amazing night of incredible and flabbergasting performances by these young lads, I finally leave to my room. The following day, the final match takes place and the winner is announced and followed by the match was the cultural competition for the next 'Miss Nyokum 2015'. It was a breathtaking

scenario to see the alluring and gorgeous beauties of the east ahead of me. It was a miraculous experience. And finally, the Big day arrives.

              It was 26th of February,2015

I woke up to find myself  with beautiful ladies around me dressed in traditional nyishi Tribal wear. Unali looked bewitching and posed for the picture along with her sister. 

Traditionally, Nyishi plait their hair and tie it neatly at the forehead with Tibetian thread. A brass skewer passes horizontally through the tied hair. Cane rings were worn around the waist, arms and legs. Men wore a cane helmet surmounted with the beak of great Indian Hornbill.

The men dress up in a cotton ERI robe draped from the shoulder which reaches till the thighs. From their neck hangs a variety of bead jewellery necklaces. Often semi precious stones like turquoise adorn these necklaces. The men's attire is topped by a bamboo woven cap which is decorated with feathers or furs of wild animals. The beak of the hornbill is a favourite ornament for the traditional cap. The women also dress in their finery of PAR EJ, a ribbon is tied at the waist. A girdle consisting of metal disks and cane garters is worn at the waist. Their hair is parted in the middle, plaited and tied onto a CHIGNON above the nape. Thier ornaments include multicolored bead necklaces,brass chains,metal belts,huge brass or silver earrings and heavy bracelets of various metals which depicts their status too in their tribe.

               

ladies weaving their basket.

women getting ready for the procession

nyishi tribal women dressed up in the traditional wear with the rice paste powder applied on the face.

  cute little nyishi girl

Nyishi women dancing

Nyishi women singing and dancing in the procession.

Finally, the women leave for the procession where in they worship the prayer structure made of bamboo called YUGANG.

There are singing and dancing done by the men and women of the nyishi tribe before the head priest comes to perform the ritual. Usually, the men and women do this procession by walking in the entire village before heading to the communal grounds where the prayer structure is placed.

 prayer structure made of bamboo called YUGANG.

Alongside YUGANG, the sacrificial animals are tethered. MITHUN was the animal which was sacrificed and beer is made from millets seeds called OPO which is served to the guests along with rice paste. With the procession, came the rain showering everybody with it. Hence, they were all drenched, yet they were all happy because

it was a symbol of good omen to them. Nyishi tribe have a close link with cultivation and hence they pray to NYOKUM goddess  who is invoked for blessings as she is the symbol of PROSPERITY.

 Entrance of the communal grounds

men dressed up in traditional nyishi attire.

Finally, the men and women reached the communal grounds and formed a circle by

holding each others hand. Once the circle was formed , they started performing their traditional dance by singing these lines ' NYOKUM BO TAPA DEBE'. And men danced mock fights with DAO(short sword) and shield made of animal hide.

 Finally, the procession ended with the nyuk um puja being performed where the Mithun was sacrificed. Once the sacrifice was made, the same Mithun was being cooked so as to be served to everyone.

While it was being prepared, everyone danced and played along with the no,i.e, mud in the communal grounds.

The food was served and everyone rushed to their homes so as to take some rest before the final event in the Night starts.

The prize distribution happened, Miss Nyokum was announced and finally, the Nyokum festival ended in the night with an after party for the OPO lovers where the young lads of the village participated.

That's how the festival ended and the next 2 days I explored Boasimla and

went to visit a nearby village called Tamen which can only be reached by means of walking and a small hike.To know more about it. Please wait for my next blog.