RONGKER AND CHOMANGKAN
Celebrated By : Karbi Tribe
Significance Of Rongker : For The Well Being Of People & Good Harvest
Significance Of Chomangkan : Death Ceremony
Blue
and lusty green hills, covered with mist, the giggling springs, fragrance
of wild flowers, and the call of the cuckoos have made Karbi Anglong the
peaceful abode of the Karbis, the Mongoloid group who migrated to this
land several hundred years BC. Karbis are very peace loving people.
Peculiar Features Of The Karbi Festivals
Rongker and Chomangkan are the two most important festivals of the
Karbis. Rongker is basically a springtime festival and is performed at the
beginning of the New Year. To propitiate different gods and goddesses for
the well being of the entire village, the elderly male folk organise
Rongker so that people could be free from diseases, natural calamities for
the entire year. They pray for a good harvest too. The women are not
allowed to enter the worship arena.
On the other hand, Chomangkan is a festival, dedicated to the dead. It is
primarily a death ceremony. It depends upon the convenience of the
locality. This festival is a must for every Karbi. It is a non-stop four
days and four nights celebration.
