Re: [Assam] Kharkhowa and Competition

[mc mahant]

<Let us know how we can help you from here.>

Away from the pointless noisy traffic in the web: THINK, RETHINK, and ONCE AGAIN.

 Each visualize on  a clean slate.WHEN-HOW to start:

• Shedding all the burden of History, banning CULTURE,keeping everyone productive.
• And not trying to justify anything to riff-raff and barking dogs.
• India can stagger along supplying all housekeepers to the world.
• Oxom busy only on  SAAH,BAANH,MAAH,GHAANH-energy only to supplement these.
• Produce all the best organic foods for the rich of the world and sail/fly Jumboloads daily.
• Only guided by Science(Real ones) . Knowing that our one and only friend is the SUN.

So Visualize- that will be best Help.

You have seen it all. NO OTHER WAY!

MM

 

 

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From:  Dilip/Dil Deka <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To:  mc mahant <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>, [EMAIL PROTECTED]
CC:  assam@assamnet.org
Subject:  Kharkhowa and Competition
Date:  Sun, 17 Sep 2006 19:28:10 -0700 (PDT)

Mukulda,

  

Mediocrity has pervaded Assam for years because there was no competition. You saw it and we saw it in our generation. It looks like nothing has changed.

  

 

  

Separation from India and competition in the international arena are what you have in mind but the spirit of competition will not suddenly come one fine morning. It has to start now and has to be practised in the cut throat competition with the other Indians. :-) Without the spirt of competition and the desire to excel, independent Assam will not last even a decade.

  

 

  

Whatever else Indian government has done to Assam, it has never stopped Assam from competing. The art of competing and excelling requires knowing the rules. I found many years ago that my environment in Assam failed me here and I had to learn them personally with my own effort. I am sure most of the netters will agree with me on this point.

  

 

  

Can

you please use your clout to channel the energy of the youth to imbibe competition

  

and form the character that you have in mind? Let us know how we can help you from here.

  

Dilip

  

mc mahant <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:

  

  

  

Somebody said     "I have no respect for mediocrity"

  

mm

  

  

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  From: Chan Mahanta <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To: assam@assamnet.org
Subject: [Assam] More on Xo,So, and Confusion of Kharkhowa Intellects
Date: Sun, 17 Sep 2006 14:12:58 -0500

  

    

This is from today's Sentinel. I just read a couple of lines,. So I have no comments on the substance of the article, if there is any. But look at the thoroughly confused state of transliteration:

  

  

Mahapurusia Xatras  --- HUH?

  

  

Mahapurusa Srimanta Sankaradeva

  

  

Eka Sarana Nama Dharma  (What language is this? Certainly not Sanskrit, is it?)

  

  

Xatradhikar ( why not Satradhikara?)

  

  

Patbausi

  

  

Asomiya

  

  

Kirtanghosa, Namghosa ( Why not Kirtanaghosa and Mamaghosa?)

  

  

So on and so forth.

  

  

(Highlighting mine)

  

_____________________________________________________________________________

  

 Ensure Security & Development of the 'Mahapurusia Xatras'
JP Rajkhowa

  

The institution of Xatra, established by Mahapurusa Srimanta Sankaradeva, was responsible for stabilizing and spreading the new faith - Eka Sarana Nama Dharma or neo-Vaisnavism, which evolved democratic practices, in running its affairs and was totally devoid of any caste or class distinctions. Sankaradeva set up the first Xatra (called Sthan or Than) near his ancestral village at Bardowa, about 1494 AD. Later, Xatras grew up at all places, where Sankaradeva stayed, during his movements from Bardowa to Gangmou and thence to Dhuyahati in Majuli, and thereafter to Barpeta and thence to Patbausi. The Xatras were started as centres of learning and education, besides symbolizing, as the guardians of religion and morality. The Xatradhikar must be a man of intellectual and

spiritual enlightenment, and it became a custom with every Xatradhikar to perform a play (Bhawna) composed by him, on his accession to superior-ship. The bhaktas or devotees lived under the guidance of the Xatradhikar, and the celibates were properly trained or educated for a monastic life. Regular nama-prasanga, recitation from religious texts, learned discourses, performance of drama or Ankia nat on religious theme, classical dance and music (Xatria nritya and Bargeet) and skill in some technical arts made the monastic life an ideal way of living. The Xatra also played the role of a Panchayat, where cases relating to social matters were tried and justice dispensed on religious and social controversies.

  

 The word Xatra has its origin from the words - 'Xat+Tra', meaning one's elevation, from the mundane to the holy sphere, or providing salvation to the noble souls. Baikunthanath Bhattadeva or Bhattadeva, the first prose-writer in Asomiya, defines it as

follows. "Xatra is the place where devotional prayers are offered to the Supreme God, by the gods and Vaisnavas. It is the place where, the devoted Bhaktas offer various kinds of service, for the satisfaction of God and the nine kinds of Bhakti (though Sankaradeva primarily emphasized three- sravana, kirtana and smarana, with dasya or total surrender to God) are pursued every day. It is the place where residing the Vaisnavas engaged in the Nama-kirtana of Hari or Krisna. This holy place is called Xatra."

  

 Over the past centuries, all these ancient Xatras have been functioning as major cultural centres as well, promoting devotional classical forms of song, music, dance and drama together with, folk music or light music. The bargeets, Kirtanghosa, Namghosa fall in the category of classical music, whereas songs used in the plays and other festive occasions, fall in the later category. A good number of musical instruments are used in the Xatras, which were

developed by local talents, initially starting with the khol designed by Sankaradeva for the Cihna Yatra play in 1468 AD. Some of the famous such instruments, which are still in use, are Kali, Sarenda, Rabab, Daba, Kanh, Negera, Sankha or conch, Singa, Dundubhi, Bheri, Gomukh, Tal or cymbal of different types, namely, Bhor Tal or Bar Tal, Khuti Tal, Gayan Gowa Tal, Manjira or Mandira, Kar Tal, Kai Tal, Ram Tal etc. The different Xatria dance forms are Cali, Jhumura, Oja-pali, Sutradhara, Gosain Prabesar nach, Bir Prabesar nach, Jamanar nach, Ghetamara, Chatimara, Dutar-bhangi, Bahuar-bhangi etc., which are mainly used in the staging of Ankas or Nats, known as Bhaona. For staging of the Ankas, the Xatras developed a large number of other items, like costume designing and making, jewellery, architectural pieces, mukha or musks of different types and sizes, artificial weapons for war scenes bows and arrows, spears, swords, gada or mace, shields; make-up items like hengul,

haital, neel, engar, gerua-mati etc. For the purpose of conducting Nama Kirtana and also for running the affairs of a Xatra, handicraft items were extensively developed and made, namely, guru asana, mayur asana, garudasana, thaga, sarai of different designs, ural, ural-mari, khundana, gacha, chatra or umbrella, chaki or earthen/brass lamps of different sizes, salita or banti, dunari, needles, pachi, kharahi, chalani, dala, kula, kath or mat, bisani or hand fans, tema, japa, sanfura, pera or wooden chests and crates, bar-pira, tamuli-pira, dola-khatola or palanquin, bar-japi, dolls, sachi pat or hand-made paper, tula pat or cotton-made paper, khel nao or sports boat, statues, pictures, paintings and handloom products like chadar, gamocha, dhoti etc., sericultural items muga, pat and eri chadar etc. and so forth. Most of these traditions are still maintained in majority of the Xatras, which have continued to enrich the ever-expanding Asomiya culture.

  

 From

the above presentation, it would be abundantly clear to any one that, the integrated Asomiya culture would not continue to grow and shine, without protection, preservation and development of the Xatriya culture and the hubs called Xatras. It is in this backdrop, great concerns are being raised by the conscientious and culture loving people, for providing proper protection and security to the ancient Xatras, which have been facing the ravages and onslaughts from looters, encroachers and other criminal elements. It is a known fact, that, the State machineries have not been paying due attention to this critical area, due to short-sightedness and narrow 'vote bank' politics, of the parties in power. As per recent media reports, the Asom Xatra Mahasabha, the apex body of the Mahapurusia Xatras, has made an appeal to the Indian Army to take up schemes for their protection from encroachment, as well as development. Bhadra Kanta Goswami, president of the Mahasabha has reportedly

named 14 Xatras, which are in urgent need for protection from encroachment and preservation as cultural sites. All these institutions are centuries old and were set up by either Sankaradeva, or his disciples. The troubled Xatras, which need immediate protection from the authorities include Ramrai Kuti Xatra along the Asom-Bangladesh border in Dhubri district, Adi Alengi and Bar Alengi Xatras in Bihpuria area of Lakhimpur district, Patekibari Xatra (birth place of Sankaradeva, popularly known as Alipukhuri) in Morigaon district; Kobaikata Xatra (birth place of Harideva) and Bardowa Xatra (set up by Sankaradeva) in Nagaon district; Kaljhar Xatra (set up by Gopal Ata); Natun Bhawanipur Xatra and Bahari Xatra in Barpeta district; Camaria Xatra (near Boko) in Kamrup district; Kakatkuta Xatra (set up by Sankaradeva), Madhupur Xatra (set up at the wish of Sankaradeva, where he was cremated also in 1568 AD); Haripur Xatra and Bhella Xatra (where Mahapurus Madhabdeva passed away) -

these last three in Kochbehar district of West Bengal. Xatra-wise details of land (within Asom) forcefully grabbed by violent encroachers, mostly Bangladeshi immigrants, are as follows:- (1) Ramrai Kuti - 245 bighas (2) Adi Alengi - 140 Bighas (3) Bar Alengi - 152 Bighas (4) Patekibari - 68 Bighas (5) Kabaikata - 34 Bighas and 3 kathas (6) Bardowa - 120 Bighas (7) Kaljhar - 92 Bighas (8) Camaria - 115 Bighas (9) Natun Bhawanipur - 22 Bighas (10) Bahari - 92 Bighas.
 In Kochbehar district of West Bengal, the position of encroachment stands as (1) Kakatkuta - 208 Bighas (2) Madhupur - 500 Bighas (3) Haripur -45 Bighas and (4) Bhella - 21 Bighas. These four Xatras, in Kochbehar, were granted land under devottar category, by the then Koch king Naranarayana, his brother Chilarai and King Lakhi Singha in the 16th century. But the encroachment, that has taken place, is of recent origin only, after tagging of Kochbehar with West Bengal, following partition of the country

in 1947 after nearly 400 years of 'land grants'. As per information received from authentic local sources, the lands of these four Xatras have been gradually encroached upon, in a planned manner, under sponsorship of the ruling Left front of the State.
 The appeal made to the Army authorities by the president of Axom Xatra Mahasabha, has raised many eyebrows, besides sending ripples to the political masters, as, to our knowledge, this is the first instance of its kind. The Chief Minister has not taken kindly to such as extraordinary step by the Xatra Mahasabha, as reported, since protection, preservation and development of this unique cultural institution, very much falls in the domain of the State Government. In the normal situation, the Army has got nothing to do for removal of encroachment and providing protection to the Xatra personnel and properties, though the Army has a scheme called Sadvawana under which, it can undertake steps to protect the 'heritage'

sites, like the Xatras, which have high tourism potential as well. If we read through the statements, given to the media, by Bhadrakanta Goswami, we find that, only out of sheer despair, due to inaction by the Government that, the Mahasabha has made the 'appeal' to the Army. In this context, he argues that, since 1985 the Mahasabha has been raising the issue for intervention by the Government, but without success. Only very recently, a police picket has been posted, in Adi Alengi Xatra in Bihpuria, Lakhimpur district, in view of serious threats to the lives of Xatra functionaries as well as continued attempts to encroach upon its lands. (The Assam Tribute, Sep.6, 2006).

  

 In this context, it is to be noted that, the Mahapurusia Vaisnavite Xatra Institution, has suffered numerous attacks during post-Independence period, by land hungry, intolerant, immigrant Muslims of Bangladesh origin, mainly in Goalpara, Dhubri, Barpeta, Kamrup and Nalbari. The attacks

that took place, together with forceful grabbing of Xatra lands in the Lakhimpur and Dhemaji districts are recent phenomena, which are indicative of growing fundamentalism, amongst the suspected Bangladeshi or Bangladesh-based Muslim immigrant population. No political party in power has done anything so far, to evict the encroachers or to give security to the sensitive Xatras, purely because of their scare to lose votes from the 'bank.' It is of least concern for them, whether Asomiya culture or the Vaisnavite cult of Hinduism, gets equal protection of the laws, like any other religion or culture, in the 'Secular' India. Hindu religion being the most tolerant and broad-based, as it is, there is not a single instance, to my knowledge, when any or more followers of the many 'cults' under it, had ever tried either individually or collectively, to attack non-Hindu institutions or encroach into their land or grab other properties. Again, we have not heard of even a single case

of the type, committed by the 'Asomiya Musolmans', in the districts or pockets, where they have sizable population.
 It is not that, Xatra lands are facing encroachment problems from immigrant Muslims only; there are some instances, where even non-Muslims also reportedly, attempted encroachment as in the case of Auniati Xatra, Majuli about three years back. I remember to have also taken up with the then Commissioner of Cultural Affairs, M K Barua for submission of a proposal to the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, for protection and development of Madhupur and some other Xatras. In line with the discussion, I had with the Secretary of the Ministry, I understand that, a proposal in respect of 20 very old Xatras, set up by Sankaradeva, Madhabdeva, Damodardeva, Harideva and other apostles of Sankaradeva has been forwarded to the Centre. As the Centre is duty bound to preserve, protect and develop the Asomiya culture by appropriate measures, under Clause 6 of

the Asom Accord, vigorous actions are required by the State Government, for covering all the ancient Xatras, under the Central Scheme in a time-bound manner. Meanwhile, clear-cut instructions need to be issued to the district and subdivisional authorities, to provide security coverage to all the sensitive Xatras, and evict all the encroachers from Xatra lands, irrespective of their hues and hand over the same back to the Xatras. Simultaneously, wherever the Xatra campus is not properly fenced or walled, the same may be done on priority basis. As fund appears to be a major constraint, lead may be taken by the Asom Xatra Mahasabha, in association with Srimanta Sankar Sangha, Srimanta Sankar-Kristi Bikash Samity, Srimanta Foundation and similar organizations at district/subdivisional levels to work out a joint strategy and a common forum for funding such Xatra protection/development schemes. So far as the 14 Xatras are concerned, the State Government should take immediate

action to free 10 of those, which are located in Asom, of encroachment, provide necessary security and also assist in their development under available schemes. In respect of the remaining four, the matter needs to be taken up vigorously, at the level of Chief Minister of West Bengal, as also with the Centre.
 

  

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