TR Zeliang and Kipili Sangtam try their hands at the log-drum at Chuchuyimlang during Moatsu celebrations, Friday. (Morung Photo)
Chuchuyimlang | May 2 : Songs and cries of warriors reverberated in the hills and mountains of Mokokchung district on Friday as every hamlet in the district celebrated Moatsü, the premier festival of the Ao Nagas. Attired in traditional finery and costumes, villagers took a break from their agriculture routine and other activities to immerse themselves fully in celebration of the spring festival with songs, dance and feasting.
At the famed tourist village Chuchuyimlamg, some 28km away from Mokokchung town, hundreds of villagers, tourists and guests from outside the state converged at the main courtyard of the village to relive and experience the splendor and spirit of a Naga festival.
Various cultural troupes entertained the gathering with music and dance. Besides the host villages, Phom and Chang troupes also performed traditional dances, while students of RELIET, Gandhi Ashram, performed a ‘mixed culture’ dance.
Minister for Planning & Coordination, TR Zeliang, the chief guest of the celebration, said the one lesson Nagas should learn from their forefathers is that festivals are not occasions for self-gratification but to share good and food with the rest of society, especially the poor.
This great facet of Naga society is ‘somewhat diminishing’, he said, with people becoming more individualistic and in the process, greedier and more selfish. “It is necessary for the Naga people to see how we can preserve our rich culture of community life. This is indeed the richest social capital and wealth of the Naga people,” the minister said.
Mokokchung reverberates with Moatsu Stating that the essence of all festivals of the Naga tribes is to seek for God’s blessings in different working seasons, Zeliang said Nagas in the past observed festivals with purity and dignity as their lives depended on the framing process. “We, the present generation also need to adopt the same attitude of our forefathers to bring purity and worship into our work,” he added.
The process of modernization and change, he said, many of which are foreign in nature, have gripped the Naga society, creating more confusion. “It is at times like this, when we try to recapture the glory of our past that we need to dedicate ourselves to change and restructure our lives and be able to cope with the present day problems based on our rich culture and tradition,” the minister said.
Zeliang congratulated the people of Chuchuyimlang for taking initiative in making the village into a tourist destination and said their efforts had paid off as Moatsü celebration in Chuchuyimlang was now becoming well-known not only in Nagaland but also outside the state.
A host of other guests including legislator Nuklotoshi, Principal Advisor of the Planning Commission Firoza Mehrotra, Secretary to Government of India of Youth Affairs Jayati Chandra and Additional Chief Secretary & Development Commissioner Alemtemshi Jamir, also addressed the festive gathering.
Legislator Kipili Sangtam, advisor to the Planning Commission Bhramo Choudhury and chairman of the North-East Regional Council, India Chambers of Commerce, Mahesh K Saharia, also joined in the celebration.
At the famed tourist village Chuchuyimlamg, some 28km away from Mokokchung town, hundreds of villagers, tourists and guests from outside the state converged at the main courtyard of the village to relive and experience the splendor and spirit of a Naga festival.
Various cultural troupes entertained the gathering with music and dance. Besides the host villages, Phom and Chang troupes also performed traditional dances, while students of RELIET, Gandhi Ashram, performed a ‘mixed culture’ dance.
Minister for Planning & Coordination, TR Zeliang, the chief guest of the celebration, said the one lesson Nagas should learn from their forefathers is that festivals are not occasions for self-gratification but to share good and food with the rest of society, especially the poor.
This great facet of Naga society is ‘somewhat diminishing’, he said, with people becoming more individualistic and in the process, greedier and more selfish. “It is necessary for the Naga people to see how we can preserve our rich culture of community life. This is indeed the richest social capital and wealth of the Naga people,” the minister said.
Mokokchung reverberates with Moatsu Stating that the essence of all festivals of the Naga tribes is to seek for God’s blessings in different working seasons, Zeliang said Nagas in the past observed festivals with purity and dignity as their lives depended on the framing process. “We, the present generation also need to adopt the same attitude of our forefathers to bring purity and worship into our work,” he added.
The process of modernization and change, he said, many of which are foreign in nature, have gripped the Naga society, creating more confusion. “It is at times like this, when we try to recapture the glory of our past that we need to dedicate ourselves to change and restructure our lives and be able to cope with the present day problems based on our rich culture and tradition,” the minister said.
Zeliang congratulated the people of Chuchuyimlang for taking initiative in making the village into a tourist destination and said their efforts had paid off as Moatsü celebration in Chuchuyimlang was now becoming well-known not only in Nagaland but also outside the state.
A host of other guests including legislator Nuklotoshi, Principal Advisor of the Planning Commission Firoza Mehrotra, Secretary to Government of India of Youth Affairs Jayati Chandra and Additional Chief Secretary & Development Commissioner Alemtemshi Jamir, also addressed the festive gathering.
Legislator Kipili Sangtam, advisor to the Planning Commission Bhramo Choudhury and chairman of the North-East Regional Council, India Chambers of Commerce, Mahesh K Saharia, also joined in the celebration.