The word Tribalism is like a taboo-word. Or it is hastily flung at any utterance, accusing that of tribalism. I have noticed you cannot say anything about any tribe lest you should offend the other tribe or worse, lest they should have no sense of humor at all and misunderstand you. The other tribe who is supposed to be a Naga too is nothing less but a stranger to you.
Can we exist in that surrealistic bubble? In one corner we assume we are all one (1.‘Nagas are Christians’, 2.‘Nagas have inhabited these hills since time immemorial’), and in the other we are divided by prejudice. We may be divided by language, attires, physiognomy and so on, but more importantly our prejudice, suspicion or narrow-mindedness is what really divides us. When will that superficial bubble finally burst? Come on, let us all admit we have prejudices against one another within the framework and design of that Naga identity.
It’s funny, isn’t it? You should ask: why do we stay together anyway?
Researching about head-hunting I’m slowly uncovering, understanding the complex relationship-systems between tribes and also village-village relationships which are equally important. Because we practiced head-hunting, we did not identify ourselves as one tribe but rather from the village we hailed from. Every village was an independent unit by itself and neighboring villages of the same tribe fought, hunted for one another’s heads too. When ‘outsiders’ (inverted commas because the exact definition of an outsider seems hard to characterize through the eyes of a Naga) like the Meiteis, Ahoms or even the British entered our lands each one of us resisted and retaliated against the ‘foreign’ element although we ourselves were enemies! I believe it somewhat explains the territorial jealousy with which a tribal or in this matter, a Naga, protects his land from foreign invasion.
The word Naga is not a word coined by the indigenous people. Its etymology probably comes from an outside source like our Assamese neighbors or from the Burmese side. The word tribe was first introduced by the British administrators and anthropologists just like the Latin word ‘caste’ which was used to interpret the jaati and varna system of social division in Hindu society. Anthropologists and administrators (sometimes they were both) divided/differentiated the Nagas as ‘kilted’ and ‘non-kilted’ tribes, along linguistic differences, attires, physiognomy et cetera, et cetera. This was a similar pattern they had done in India along religious, linguistic differences, Muslim-Hindu divide, caste-differentiation in order for better administration and order, they said. But it provoked a lot of strife within the said communities by accentuating their differences and provoking more tensions. A major contributor of the Hindu-Muslim divide, the outcome of the Partition and communalism is also the colonizer’s fault.
We were an isolated group of tribes and people. No trade-route went through our lands because the terrain was not friendly and its people less friendlier to outsiders. So within that cocoon we established our own system of governance, developed a democratic and socialistic view which although primitive was undiluted and functioned in our perimeters. Head-hunting is also an indirect cause for allowing the system to work very well. There were instances of tribes, villages becoming tyrannical. There are also derogative slurs within communities about other tribes (actually I should not say tribes because the idea of tribe did not exist we just spoke different language, attires etc.). But whatever the case, Nagas existed first from their village, then only they associated to a language similarity or tribe. They did not associate unity or cohesion on the structure of similar culture, similar language, attire etc. and that is a very peculiar characteristic about the Nagas. In Khonoma village itself, Angamis, there was even khel-khel animosity within the village! But another interesting fact is how we collectively fought against Ahom, Meitei and even British invasion as though we had tacitly agreed this was our land and they the outsiders.
My father said something very profound, I thought. He said we are all Nagas irrespective of tribes and languages and we should intermarry, live together to expel our differences. On the other hand, we Nagas are a conglomerate of different tribes, different migration routes, languages, physiognomies etc. etc. coming under one roof. This is also a profound message to the world or even our neighbor India. It enhances the voice of the ethnic people, that each has a right to be heard too. My other question that really confounds me is can one tribe survive all by them self? If they can ward off India, Burma or even the neighboring North-east states in the same breath that’s wonderful for them, God speed. If, however, they cannot then why can’t we amicably co-exist together? Are we not realistic enough? Or is there a diabolically innate need in us to self-destruct every step of the way?
Our history tells us that we have co-existed with one another since ‘time immemorial’ regardless of a name, not as tribes either. This modern way of asserting tribe-identity first is actually not consistent with its past. Some people have reproached the uprising saying it is bringing back our savage, wild head-hunting days back. That as civilized, educated, modern people we ought to steer away from such behaviors. But actually I want some introspection from all these recent incidents. It has a deeper reflection of our prejudice, hurt, enmity or suspicion towards one another. We also need to learn from what has happened because some real answers lie in the roots of our head-hunting past too. If we superimpose all our judgments with a western mind we may never find the real answer and if we do not understand in our real element we will never learn otherwise. So, if up-front confrontations or violence is a way to vent out those emotions, if it helps……well, alright then. Our head-hunting past makes us hot-headed and reckless too. But these exertions need to have some positive outcome so we can learn to co-exist. Learn to tolerate one another. Learn to understand one another. To be honest, I’m glad that we have finally confronted one another without anymore pretensions. Now, I am seriously looking forward to seeing better relationships between Sumis and Angamis. If, however, that doesn’t happen maybe Angamis can migrate further south, somewhere in Manipur, and Sumis can migrate to Jorhat….
