Shillong, July 3: Thousands have participated in the four-day Behdienkhlam festival of the Jaintias (Pnar) which was concluded on Wednesday.
Chief Minister Conrad Sangma, who was present on the occasion in Jowai, said, “I take this opportunity to wish the people of the state a very happy Behdienkhlam festival. This is one of the important festivals of the state. This is my third time that I am here visiting and being part of this festival and everytime I come here it becomes more and more colourful and more and more beautiful and I love the way that people celebrate it with so much of passion and so much of involvement.”
Conrad said the government had spent Rs 6.5 crore for the development of the infrastructure at Aitnar , the main area of the celebration.
Behdienkhlam is celebrated in July every year after the sowing season
“Khlam” means ‘plague or pestilence’ and “Beh Dien” means to drive away the plague with sticks and religious fervour.
The main feature of the festival is the making of the “Dien Khlam ” and “Khnong ”, which are rounded, polished and straight tree trunks, felled from a forest. These trunks are brought to the Jowai town.
Earlier in the day, the ‘Symbud Khnong’ , a log of great length was brought which thousands of people thronging to touch it.
The belief is that touching the Khnong, will protect them from all sicknesses besides getting prosperity in their works and businesses.
Niamtre faithful believe that Behdienkhlam is not all about driving away sickness but to also drive away such social evils that are inflicting the society.
The youth from different localities of the town also try out their artistic skills by erecting different coloured “rots” -10-40 feet tall structures built of bamboo, coloured paper and tinsel.mp
The Behdienkhlam ‘rots’ are built on wide ranging social issues– politics, environment protection besides others.
The rots were on display on Wednesday at the Aitnar – a sacred pool.
The rots also carry strong message for preservation and protection of the environment and the mother earth besides the importance of combating social evils.
“Let’s take a pledge, to fight against corruption before it is too late”, “luck vs hard work, don’t rely on reservation” were some of the messages in the rots, which captivated the spectators.
The climax of the celebrations is the carrying of a large trunk known as ‘Khnong’ by the niamtre faithful to Aitnar.
People would run towards the Khnong to touch it as it is believed that by touching the Khnong it would bring them good health and prosper in their work and economic life.
Religious rites and sacrifices at the sacred pool preceded the immersion ceremony in the early hours of the day.
In the evening ‘datlawakor’, a football match with a rounded wooden ball, was played between two teams from the upper and lower valleys of the Myntdu river.
The side that wins is believed to be blessed with a good harvest of the year. The Daloi or the traditional chief acts as referee in the match.
