Kevisemeü Chase
Researcher
An agricultural field is never just a field; for generations, among the Angami Nagas, it has been a place where cultivation, community, belief and tradition come together. The sowing of seeds and the gathering of harvest have been accompanied by rituals, practices, prayers, and chants passed down through generations. Yet, as time changes, younger generations grow increasingly distant from these traditions, many of which are slowly fading from everyday memory.
Rüsoma is an Angami Naga village situated in the northern region of Kohima district, Nagaland, approximately ten to twelve kilometres from the state capital. Today, the village is famously known among the Nagas for its agricultural heritage, particularly orange cultivation, and its annual orange festival locally known as Shühuo Nyi, which was first organised in 2020 to celebrate the village’s agricultural heritage, promote orange cultivation, and also to encourage rural entrepreneurship. It is also associated with the legendary Naga folktale of Sopfünuo, which forms part of its rich cultural and oral tradition. The information presented in this article is sourced from my interviews with respondents from the village and reflects the knowledge and practices shared by the individuals, the community members revealed a cultural heritage that still survives in memory, even as some practices have become less familiar to younger generations.
Traditional agricultural knowledge was not limited to rituals performed during festivals; it was woven into the entire cycle of cultivation, from selection of land and interpretation of dreams to the preparation of fields, sowing till harvesting. It was a way of life shaped by dreams, omens, seasons and the wisdom of elders, a tradition of believing that every sign carried meaning. According to a respondent, Jhum cultivation in the village is practised through two types of land, known as Thephie lie and Liekhrü lie. These lands are distinguished by their soil and cultivation period; traditionally, the selection of land was also guided by dreams. Thephie lie is characterised by yellowish or red kind of soil, cultivated for up to two consecutive years; Liekhrü lie refers to black soil, contains more stones, cultivated for only one year. After the cultivation cycle, the land is left fallow for approximately fifteen to twenty years to recover before being used again. Following the selection, the cultivators return to their homes and await favourable dreams before proceeding with the next stages of cultivation. Once a favourable dream is received, they begin the slash-and-burn process to prepare the land for sowing. Before sowing, a Pepuoma or the Tsakrau (an elderly man from the Thevoma clan) takes a small quantity of wheat outside the village gate and covers it with a stone, symbolically seeking protection for the crops from insects and animals. On this day, the entire village observes Penna, during which certain activities are restricted; only after this ritual has been completed, the people are permitted to go to the fields and begin sowing. To anyone who starts sowing before the ritual is performed, the village elders impose another Penna; this serves as a ritual for atonement, seeking forgiveness from the Gods and protection for the village from pests, misfortune or any harm. Similar practise is also performed during paddy cultivation that begins in the month of May, and by October and November the harvesting season begins. Back the olden times, for harvesting, an elderly woman known as the Liedepfü performs the first harvest; on this day the entire village observes a Penna, even if other crops are fully ripe, no one begins harvesting until she completes the ritual. A similar penalty from the sowing ritual falls upon the individual who begins harvesting before the ritual is performed.
Terhase is a ritual which is performed when the wheat crops have begun to ripen slightly, before they reach full maturity. A carefully selected mature rooster is used for the ritual; for example, its feathers must be entirely black, its toes must have no broken nails, and its comb must be straight. The rooster is taken alive to the field by the couple and prepared in a small temporary house also known as pru; during the ritual, prayers are offered for healthy crops, an abundant harvest and granaries filled with produce. After the meal is prepared, it is taken to a designated place outside the village gate (Kharu), where the family gathers and shares the meal. If the individuals could not finish the ritual meal, its leftovers must be buried, as taking it inside the village is considered a bad omen.
Turning to the observance of festivals, in present times, particularly among the younger generation, Sekrenyi is widely known as the main festival, while in the earlier times, several festivals closely connected with agriculture were also celebrated, such as Terhünyi.
Terhünyi: Among the community, Terhünyi is observed as the first agricultural festival, celebrated in November or December. During this festival, the wealthy families of the village host a community feast, families who rear cattle are also served generously with rice beers. After Terhünyi, the month of January is reserved as a period in which families carry out funeral related rites, such as relocating the remains of deceased family members, repairing or rebuilding graves and restoring damaged graveyards. If these duties are not completed in January, they are traditionally not permitted to do it during the rest of the year. Once Terhünyi and these customary obligations have been completed among the community, they celebrate their next festival Sekrenyi, also known as Phousanyi.
Sekrenyi: The respondent at Rusoma describes Sekrenyi as a festival accompanied by several important rituals, including Kizhie, Geizhie and Pruo. Kizhie is performed by women before the main celebration, using fresh green leaves and rice beer, accompanied by prayers for the protection of the household and the well-being of family members, prosperity of the household, crops, and animals they reared. Geizhie, on the other hand, is performed by men, each traditionally selecting a mature rooster with specific physical characteristics for the ritual. During the ceremony, several signs are carefully observed including the position of the rooster’s toes, talons and shanks, as well as the condition and appearance of its intestines, the examination of the intestines are known as Geizhie Mou, according to the respondent’s, these signs were traditionally interpreted as indication of what the coming year might hold for an individual, including personal achievements, good fortune, difficulties and possible obstacles. Women who perform Geizhie use a young hen as using a rooster for the women-centric ritual is considered a bad omen. These practices reflect traditional beliefs about seeking protection and understanding the uncertainties of the year ahead. The festival concludes with Pruo, the closing ritual, which marks the end of the restrictions associated with Sekrenyi and allows participants to return to their usual activities and celebrations. During Sekrenyi, participants are traditionally restricted from fetching water or visiting the well until the ritual is completed through Pruo. Geizhie food is also forbidden to those who did not participate and should not be shared outside the participating members of the family.
Ngonyi: This festival marks the beginning of the sowing season and is observed before seeds are sown in the fields.
Khushenyi: A festival observed in the month of May, celebrated during cultivation time, seeking blessings for a good harvest and abundant production of crops and food.
Chadanyi: Celebrated in the month of August, on this day, the villagers come together to clean the paths and roads that lead to their fields. This community activity marks another important part of the agricultural tradition.
Liedenyi: A traditional harvest festival, usually celebrated in September, depending on the seasonal harvesting period of the year. It involves a symbolic first harvest performed by an elderly woman known as Liedepfü. On the day of the ritual, she is accompanied to the field by a man, with whom she is not permitted to speak throughout the practice. After crossing the village, she plucks a single spike of ripe wheat, places it in her traditional bamboo basket, and carries it back to the village. On the day the elderly woman performs this ritual, the whole village observes a Penna for that day. Regardless of whether any crops have fully ripened, harvesting cannot begin until the Liedepfü has completed this customary ritual.
In earlier times, rituals were performed with deep faith and devotion by the community, believing that their prayers would bring protection and blessings to their lives and harvests, while mistakes or negligence could invite punishments from the divine being in the form of poor harvest or ill health. The practices discussed in this article do not represent the traditions of the entire Angami community; each community carries its own unique practices, beliefs and forms of knowledge which have been passed down through generations. What is presented here is only a glimpse into the traditions shared by the respondents from Rüsoma and should be understood within the context of their community and experiences. Preserving these traditions does not mean that we must return to practising every ritual of the past. With the advent of Christianity and modernisation, agricultural practices have continued and adapted in new ways, even as some traditional rituals and practices are no longer widely practised. Yet, many of these customs, stories and forms of knowledge are gradually fading, particularly among the younger generations. From my personal experience as an intern working on a project on the Indian Knowledge System (IKS), many similarities in agricultural customs and traditional beliefs across communities were observed. While each community carries its own unique practices and traditions, many such practices are slowly fading as well from everyday practice and memory.
If traditions remembered in small villages such as Rüsoma are becoming unfamiliar, it raises a larger question about how many other forms of indigenous knowledge may be quietly disappearing. Preservation is not about recreating the past, but about keeping its memories, voices and knowledge alive; we may not live as our forefathers did, but we can still carry their memories forward. For the younger generations, the responsibility is to listen, learn and preserve, so that the knowledge of those who came before us does not disappear with time, but remains available for future generations to learn, understand and remember.
