Tripura, the land of fourteen gods and million statues

Tripura, the land of History and Legends

Tripuri	Tripura	Jamatia	Reang
Koloi	Murasing	Rupinis	Halams

JAMATIA CLAN TIRPURA CLAN

Origin Culture Religious Belief Hoda

Jamatia clan is the third largest sub-tribe of among indigenous Tripuris, after the Tripur (Debbarma), and the Riang sub-tribe in Tripura. The origin of the word Jamatia, in one opinion had derived from the word 'Jamat', which means 'collection or union of peoples'. This later on turned to Jamatia. It is to be noted that the people of this clan live in unity and concentrated in any particular place even today.
According to other opinion Jamatia is conjugation of two Kokborok words, 'Jama,' means tax and 'twiya' means no need to pay any tax. It is fact that the men of this clan were used to engaged in Tripura royal force as soldier by the kings of Tripura during the rule of Manikya Dynasty. So the peoples of Jamatia clan were exempted to pay any tax by the king for their loyalty, service and sacrifice for the royal regime. Later on the people of this clan had been known as Jamatia. The Jamatias are physically very strong, stout, and courageous, muscular as a whole. This fact had led to induct them to royal force during kings' regime. It was evidently proved by the mighty rebel leader like Porikshit Jamatia who fought against the unjust oppression by king's corrupt officials.

ECONOMY

The economic condition and financial condition of Jamatia clan is better than rest of the indigenous Tripuris. It is the Jamatia clan who had first discarded the shifting cultivation called 'huk chamani' and opted for modern way of agriculture and farming in plain land. The other clan followed them later on gradually. That is why they are in possession of more plain land than any other indigenous Tripuri. They are economically more sound and self sufficient than rest of fellow clans. Now a day many youths are getting education and employed in various state and central government office. Many people of this race are doing business in Tripura and many are settled out side of Tripura as success full business man as far as up to Shillong, Guwahati, and Mumbai, Delhi etc.

RELIGIOUS BELIEF

The Jamatia are also follower of traditional Tripuri religion like rest of the clans of Tripura. They worship the 'Goria mutai' the most, which is worshipped by all other clans. The Jamatias Goria celebration needs special mention and shall be dealt separately. Besides this, they worship the Mahadev or Mutai Kotor, Tripura sundori, twima, and other god of fourteen gods. The Jamatias were annoyed and agitated after the armed rebellion under the leadership of Porkshit Jamatia was brutally curved out. The Jamatias decided to leave the state en-mass and migrate to neighboring state. The king Beer Chandra pacified the agitated Jamatia clan by placing them as higher class than rest of the Tripuris. They were motivated to convert to Vaishnavism, since then, they had feeling of superiority and did not allow other clans to enter to their kitchen. They had stopped drinking wine, eating various meats, raring various live stocks like pigs, goats, hens, and etc altogether. The Jamatia men started wearing holy thread 'puida' and applying 'chandan' tilak at fore head. But recently the Jamatias had discarded this tradition and started consuming meat and other things and such discrimination has abolished today.

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HODA OF JAMATIA

The Jamatia Hoda is very strong Social Body, established more than 400 years ago. The Hoda runs a school GARIA ACADEMY, under the aegis of BABA GARIA MISSION for the past 7 years. The Jamatia clan had three tier social structures for smooth inter action and social order. These are HODA, MOYAL and LUKU. 'Hoda' means the apex body of the Jamatia society. It is headed by the 'Okra' who is the supreme of the clan. The whole of the Jamatia population is divided in to sixteen regions called 'Moyals'. The head of the moyal is known as 'panchai'. The 'luku' is the village whose chief is called 'chokdiri'. The Moyal is consisted by five to thirty-two villages, where two panchais are selected in each moyal by the regions Chokdiri and prominent persons of the village for the period of five years.
The village head or the 'chokdiri' is selected unanimously by the head of each family of the village once in every five year.Similarly the head of the hoda, which is the 'hoda okra', is selected unanimously by the village chokdiris and moyal panchais at the annual conference for five years. There are two hoda okras at the apex body at present.
The supreme authority to govern the society is vested collectively with the two 'HODA OKRAS'. They are assisted by an Advisory Board consisting of four members, possessing sound knowledge and experience of traditional religion, cultural affairs, administrative rule, and Jamatia customary law.
There are ten priests appointed by Hoda Okras and accountable to Okras. There is also a Hoda Working Committee consisting of 33 members which function under the direct supervision of Hoda Okras. One third of the board members have to be women folk. Hoda have an audit board comprising of five members, who are selected by the hoda members for three years. All the income and expenditure are audited by this board once in every year, to maintain the financial regularity of the hoda. The hoda has 321 villages which are governed by the above social system. The hoda is very strong and influential among the Joamatia clan, and that is why the traditional social life and the customary laws are still strictly practiced by the Jamatia clan of indigenous Tripuri.

DUTIES OF HODA OKRAS

1) The twin Hoda Okras shall not do or follow opposite or contradictory policy. 2) They should ensure that the Hoda rules and regulation are adhered in performing social occasions and worshiping different gods. 3) The first and the foremost duty of the Okras are to implement the resolutions and decisions of the Hoda. 4) The hoda Okras should protect any person who is assaulted while protecting the society's rules and regulation. 5) Whenever there is disputes or conflicts among the members of the clan the Okras shall do the conciliation independently and impartially. 6) The okras should hold the responsibility for five years. But if they indulge in any unfair and corrupt practice, they may be removed before the expiry of the terms. Such expulsion from the post can be done only by 2/3rd majority of the advisory board and 2/3rd majority of the Hoda working committee. There should be a majority support for the removal by the moyal Panchais also. 7) The Okras can resign from the post by giving appropriate reasons. They should do so jointly as they were elected. 8) If any okra dies or any of their wives dies the two okras shall resign from the post and the emergency meeting of the Hoda shall be convened and new Okras selected unanimously.

DUTIES AND POWER OF PANCHAI

1) The prime and primary function of the pachais is to peace and discipline of the Moyal. 2) They shall solve all the disputes among the members by the help of working committee. 3) They should implement the programs of the Okras. 4) They shall keep contact with the Okras to maintain peace and tranquility at the region. 5) They should tale any such step to maintain the harmony and discipline of the society with the approval of Okras. 6) They should collect he subscription for the welfare of the society. 7) They should preside over any working committee of the moyal. 8) They can do arbitration in any problems related to women, theft, dacoity, burglar etc. and punish the accused accordingly.

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TRIPURA CLAN

Tripura clan is one of the important community of 'Pancha Tripura'. It is said that one of the Tripura are the clan last entrant in the Tripuri race, who are known as Noatia, most of whom are settling in Sonamura subdivision of Tripura state. The Tripura are also a hybrid race like the Jamatia and Riang. There are divided into eleven sub-clans, and these are, Aslong, Murasing, Keowa, Gorjon, Khalicha, Tongbai, Laitong, Deindak, Anaokia, Khaklo, and Totaram. Out of these only first six clans are living in Tripura, remaining five are living in neighbouring country of Bangladesh at Chitagong hill tract area.

Culture & Customs

The Tripura were in practice Huk cultivation in the past, that is jhum cultivation like most of the Tripuri people of Tripura. But ploughing cultivation and agriculture in conventional method are the practice of the present day. The educated are employed in the government job, doing business, in politics and occupying the ministerial post in the state.

Traditionally they are more or less similar to the Tripur clan, excepting certain deviation with regard to the disposal of corpse were they follow the Reang customs. The worship and the festivals of Tripura's are in close resemblance to those of other clans of Tripuri people. They also believe one supreme god Mutai kotor, the creator of the world, who in course if time has been identified as Subrai. They believe that there exists an invisible relationship between the deities and the living creature. Besides Subrai, the Tripura recognise a good number of nature deities, spirits like other Tripuri people.

Tripura couple with Goria Deity

• Mutai kotor : Supreme supernatural creator of the world, Sibrai that is the Lord Siva.

• Mutai kotorma : The Consort of Mutai kotor, that is Goddess Parvati or Durga.

• Bikhitra : The god of sky, that is god Indra.

• Sangrongma : The god of earth, that is the Mother Goddess.

• Mailuma : The goddess of rice, that is Laxmi.

• Twima : The goddess of water, that is Goddess Ganga.

• Akhatra : The god of sea.

• Khuluma : The goddess of cotton equalized with Goddess Saraswati.

Other than nature Gods

• Goria : the god of war, fertility, and wealth.

• Kalia : the spirit of ancestor.

• Noksumutai : the spirit of the Family.

• Haichukma : the spirit of hill and mountain, that is Parvati.

• Sirijumdu : the spirit of bareness of woman.

• Thumnairoko : the spirit of death.

• Burasa : the spirit of disease.

These Gods and Goddess are same to all the sub clans of Tripuris. The Tripuras have deep rooted belief in the power of nature, spirit, and ancestors. They believe that disease, famine, scarcity, low fertility of soil and human, low production of crops, and human beings, high incidence of death etc. are happen when the nature deities and the spirits are not properly worshipped and sacrifices are not made in due course.

Lampra Puja:
The purpose of Lampra puja of Tripuras is analogues to the other Tripuri people of Tripura. Akhatra and the Bikhitra, the benevolent deities are worshiped regularly by all the family of Tripura. Lampra puja is worshipped on occasion of marriage, ker puja, beginning of all social and religious ceremonies.

Twima Puja:
The nature deity as twima as the goddess of water is worshipped who looks after the welfare of the members within certain individual household and community also. It is said when offerings and sacrifices are not made to the goddess twima, she her role and brings diseases, death, failure of crops, accident and such other calamities or the family or the villages. It is celebrated once a year and the villagers of Tripura community arrange this expensive puja by raising fund from the individual hose hold. Twima puja is arranged by the river or a stream near to the village. The symbolic representation of the deity is made with the aid of the green bamboo poles. A platform raised up on the water level, on the middle of the platform a wathop is prepared. Chanting the mantra Ochai, the priest scarifies he-goat, pigeon, and eggs, and puja is rounded of with feast in which the village takes active part.

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Ker Puja:
The sacred and the most important Ker puja is celebrated during the months of February March by the Tripuras in every year for the welfare of the villagers. The deity of the ker puja is performed on the symbolic wathop constructed green bamboo poles and panted in the ground by Ochai.

When ker puja is performed for the material success in the collective life of the villagers. Series of taboos follows this puja. The rules and regulation is the most strict and difficult to follow. All the pregnant women are kept out side, the diseased, dying peoples are removed from the village, no one is allowed to come in side the village and no one is allowed to move out from the village till the ritual is over.

Goria Puja:
The Tripura pay reverence to the lord Goria on the last day of the chaitra, which lasts for seven days. Like other clan of Tripuri people Tripura maintain a common code of the deity with the aid of green bamboo pole tied with a white thread of cotton with flowers and a Risa around it. As usual ochai conducts the rituals and sacrifices he-goat, cock and eggs to the deity. The other ingredients of the Lord Goria consist of the fruits, wine and rice near.

Around 3:30 pm the symbolic representation of the deity is carried to the selected houses scheduled village. The companions of the Goria are received by the head of the family earnestly. They move from house to house with symbol of the deity while the drum is beaten rhythmically along with the song and dance of young boys and girls. For the happy ness of the family in the following next year, the householder pays offerings of chicken, eggs, or fowls etc. to the group visiting the house. This type of the joyful rituals continues for seven days. On the last day of the festival the holy symbolic bamboo deity is immersed in the near by river or stream.

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