Abstract

The Assamese people associate Bihu with their bones. Bihu is associated with the lives of the people of Assam. There are many songs and dances around Bihu. There are many different types of Bihu songs, including the soil, water, and wind of Assam. Bihu songs have survived among the agricultural society since ancient times. With the changes in society, Bihu songs have also changed.

The main objective of this paper is to study how Bihu songs reflected Assamese society and also to consider the relevance of these songs in the context of today’s changing society. This study also examines the problems of human relationships in society, the complexities of life, etc., and attempts to highlight the aspects required for a healthy society. The paper has been prepared in an analytical manner, and references have been made to various books and journals as required.

Introduction:

Bihu is the national festival of Assam. It is believed that Bihu originated with the involvement of the early Assamese society in agriculture. Bihu is an agricultural festival. Therefore, Bihu is closely associated with nature. Like the festivals associated with agriculture among different peoples of the world, the Assamese celebrated Bihu at the beginning of agriculture to wish fertility and prosperity of crops. Bihu is known to derive from the word equinox. Bihu was also celebrated with great pomp during the reign of the Ahom kings. Even Bihu was celebrated in the temple during this time.

Bihu was the contribution of the Mongolian people. However, after coming to Assam, the Aryans also celebrated Bihu together. However, at the beginning of the British rule in Assam, some Assamese people had a negative perception of Bihu. These upper class Assamese, suffering from a shame and inferiority complex, also called Bihu the shameless dance and song of others. (Haliram Dekial Phukan, Assam Buranji, p. 108, Barua 202-203) However, the Assamese gradually developed self-awareness and became aware of their culture. Therefore, Bihu is recognized among everyone and accepted as a national festival.

Bihu is associated with dance and song. It is no exaggeration to say that the old agricultural Assamese society was centered on Bihu. Bihu is mainly created for the purpose of increasing agricultural production and human fertility. There are many customs and traditions associated with Bihu. Apart from dances and songs, the Assamese people celebrate various rituals around Bihu. There are three Bihu in Assam, but the main Bihu is Rangali or Bohag Bihu. This Bihu is celebrated around the spring season. During this period, nature takes on a new form. The tree produces new flowers and leaves. Rainwater revitalizes crops and fields. New feelings also work in people’s minds. Bhupen Hazarika also called it the lifeline of Assam. Rangali Bihu is celebrated for seven days from the first day of the month of Bahag. This Bihu is celebrated with various rituals and customs to wish good health to the cows, the main agricultural implement of the Assamese people. On the day of Bihu, everyone wears new clothes and serves the elders of the family and receives blessings. The customs celebrated during this festival include singing Huchori and celebrating Bihu together or separately by young men and women in rural areas of Assam. All the men, including the elders of the village, perform special Bihu names, songs, and dances to wish the New Year with Huchori in the courtyard of the householders. The hosts also donated Bittle nut, Leaf, money, clothes, etc. and received blessings from the singers. The village girls also celebrate Bihu together in the open fields. Bihu songs belong to the Assamese folk songs, i.e., these songs are created by someone and become the common property of everyone over time. Therefore, the name of the composer of the Bihu song is not available. There are many changes in Bihu songs over time. Bihu songs are still composed today, but not as spontaneously as they used to be. Nowadays, Bihu songs are recorded on cassettes or CDs and become modern and artificial away from nature.

Analysis and Result:

 Bihu has been the national festival of Assam for not long. Especially at the beginning of British rule in Assam, the elite Assamese did not have a good idea about Bihu. There are many people who have expressed negative views about Bihu, including Haliram Dhekial Pukan, Anandaram Dhekial Phukan, Gunabhiram Baruah, Ratneshwar Mohanta, Hemchandra Goswami, Kamalakantha Bhattacharya, and others. (Sharma, p.328) However, Bihu was the main festival of the agricultural people of that time. Therefore, later on, Laxminath Bezbaruah, Gyanadabiram Baruah, Rajnikant Bardoloi, Surya Kumar Bhuyan, Nakul Chandra Bhuyan, Dimbeswar Neog, Atul Chandra Hazarika, etc. made everyone aware of Bihu through widespread publicity in the mass media of Assam at that time.

From 1921 onwards, Bihu moved towards urbanization and staging. This year, Bihu was held on three stages in Nagaon, Jorhat, and Jamuguri regions. (Sharma, p. 334) Since then, Bihu has been celebrated on stages in various parts of Assam, especially in urban areas. Bihu spread from rural to urban areas of Assam, and its popularity increased with it. Thus, the secular aspect of Bihu, which is relevant among all ethnic groups, made Bihu the national festival of Assam. Everyone will be unanimously positive about the mass appeal and acceptability of Bihu.

Bihu is the life force of Assam. Bihu is very popular among Assamese. Bihu songs have been composed spontaneously since ancient times. Herein lies the mind of the Assamese. There are many different types of Bihu songs, ranging from nature, love, relationships, and separations to all aspects of society. Bihu songs range from personal feelings to collective awakening. The range of Bihu songs is so wide that the literary characteristics, metaphors, ornaments, etc. as well as the sweetness of the melody create a unique feeling in the minds of the singers and listeners. This feeling is not easy to describe. This is a very relevant quote from Hemang Biswas about Bihu songs: what is not in Assam is not in Bihu songs. Bihu is the perfect mirror of Assam and the Assamese people. There are mountains, wolves, birds, rivers, lakes, fields, fruits, flowers, colours, and smells of Assam in Bihu, and such a panorama of men and women working in it is rare in Indian folk music. Bihu is free from the influence of religion, worldliness, and immense compassion for working life—this is the philosophy of Bihu.” (Hemanga Biswas, Folk Music Review of Assam and Bengal, p. 194)

Bihu is very close to Assamese. When we talk about Bihu, the minds of Assamese come to mind with enthusiasm and inspiration. It cannot be compared to any wealth or anything else. This is reflected in the Bihu songs.

I planted Chinese Mallow among the mustard greens, which the chickens scratch and eat. Very cute Bohagu Bihuti, no one can keep it even if they pay for it)

When Bihu comes, the Assamese lose their deliverance. There is so much excitement in Bihu that no one can wait at home to hear the sound of the Bihu drums. Everyone’s minds rush to Bihu.

(Today is Bihu, Tomorrow is Also Bihu,/ The season of the flowers of the palm tree/ Hearing the sound of the drums at PhulpaniSiga,/ I stumble and break the yarn.)

The song also reflects the work of Assamese women. In the old society, women wore their own clothes. There was no need to purchase costumes from the market like today. They spun yarn on spinning wheels and made clothes. The song also expresses how the sound of the Bihu drums ignores the often busy spinning wheels and pushes the mind to Bihu.

(You will continue to sow and harvest/I’ll go by the plow/you will weave the Bihu gomosa/I’ll set up the weaving machine)

The Assamese society is agricultural. They lived on agriculture and became self-reliant. At that time, Assamese did not have to think about jobs or businesses. Men and women worked in agriculture equally, and women wove clothes with the help of men. But nowadays society has changed. As in the Bihu song, the Assamese are no longer interested in agriculture or weaving.

(Oh dear, I don’t need a job in the tea garden; I don’t need salary money. You will reap, and I will plough; that would be the treasure of life.)

There was no unemployment problem like today. After the arrival of the British, tea plantations were opened in Assam. The tea industry initiated changes in the economy of rural farmers. Some people also achieved financial prosperity by working in tea plantations. The financial prosperity of those who worked attracted other commoners. It made many people interested in the job. But this song is about a young man who does not have a job in the garden. Instead, he tells his girlfriend that they can build a happy family by farming. Agriculture will make their lives valuable.

(Don’t look up, don’t look down.) There is a fire in the fields. I don’t have the golden earth today/I’m feeding people.)

Bihu songs also depict famine, poverty, exploitation, etc. This song says that it is as if there is a field fire all around. The once vibrant and lush fields have disappeared. Now, besides farming on people’s land, most of the production has to be given to others. Therefore, the expression of the poor’s frustration, sighing, etc. seems to be symbolic of most of the poor in society. The picture of the plight of the farmers is very vivid in the Bihu songs.

(When I look at you, I jumped to the gate/pierced a pointed thorn. If you will, I will too/then what the Kalita caste will do.)

There were caste differences in Assamese society, but marriages were also performed between young men and women of different castes if they agreed. There was a class division in conservative society, which is much looser nowadays, but in the old days, young men and women showed a progressive mind by bridging the caste gap.

Often it is not easy to break through social bonds or conservatism. Although there was harmony between different ethnic groups in the society of the time, marriage was forbidden. Society prevented young men and women of different communities from falling in love. Removing this social barrier was not easy for everyone. This Bihu song uses metaphors to talk about the bonds or conservatism of society. The Dhansiri Bridge was closed with iron bars. The society also prevented the love affair between two young men and women. The couple, who were bound by a close relationship, had to accept separation due to social obstacles.

(Crows are the enemies of the muga-silk worm guards/they don’t let it fall on the branches; Mom and Dad are our enemies; they are not allowed to walk in the village.)

 Assamese people raise muga-silk worms. They cut yarn from muga worms and weave clothes. Assamese muga-silk fabrics are rare in the world. Farmers work hard to raise muga-silk worms. They take care of it. The muga-silk worm has to be protected from birds and other animals day and night. Crows are also the enemies of the farmers. This is because crows also take worms and eat them as food. In this Bihu song, the anonymous author uses this aspect of muga-silk farming as a metaphor to consider a daughter’s parents as enemies, just as the muga-silk wormkeeper does not allow the crows to fall on the branch. This is because the main goal for parents is their daughter’s safety or a perfect future. Therefore, the parents are preventing her from moving around the village freely. Therefore, Bihu songs reflect all aspects of a society in a beautiful manner, which is rare in other songs.

(The birds discussed/wanted to eat the seeds of the tree. The mother and father held the discussion (want to sell me.)

The rule in society was that parents married their sons and daughters at an early age. Parents want to marry their daughters as soon as possible and be free. Naturally, parents want to marry their daughter to a suitable boy. In this case, money or wealth is considered the criterion of eligibility. Most girls do not want to accept such a marriage without taking their minds into account. Girls also begin to see their parents as enemies in this regard. The girl begins to think that her parents have sold such a relationship based on wealth. The song portrays the psychology of a girl. Nowadays, this situation has changed a lot, society has changed. Nowadays, the opinions of children are given great importance in marriage. There is a lot of insight into the present Assamese society in these words of Bhubanmohan Das: “Now the situation has changed. The girl’s marriage age increased. Girls do not want to get married before receiving proper education. Parents also want their daughters to be well educated. The spread of women’s education, women’s participation in various activities, women’s new position in society, etc. have had an important impact on this issue. ” (Das, p.12)

(The Nagas played the pipe in the change/ The Defalas caught the bamboo clapper/Boys, old men, and daughters are crazy about joy/ the young man of Bohag Bihu.)

Bihu brings harmony among people. The seven states of the present North East, excluding Sikkim, were formerly part of the state of Assam, known as Greater Assam. There was unity among all the tribes living in this region. This is reflected in the Bihu songs. The song says that the Nagas of Nagaland play the papa (a sushir instrument made of the buffalo horn) during Bihu. The Daflas of Arunachal Pradesh play the taka (a bamboo stick split in two parts in the middle). Boys, old men, daughters, young men, etc. are mad with the joy of Bohag Bihu. Therefore, this song shows the harmony of society.

(Bangal Bangal what Bangal /the Bangals were watching. / made one kingdom by killing seven kingdoms/ took a place in Jorhat.)

There are many historical narratives in Bihu songs. The song is about how the British came to Assam and slowly occupied the state. The English or British are called Bengalis. They watched everything at first and gradually conquered the kingdoms and eventually conquered the whole kingdom. Therefore, there are many sources of historical information in Bihu songs. Nothing is missing from the vision of the folk poet. There are many historical events in Bihu songs, ranging from British ships and trains to the present. For example, there was a period of widespread student movement in Assam in 1979–83. The protesters faced many tortures by the military administration. Many people were maimed and many died in the atrocities of the police and CRPF. One of the incidents associated with this movement was the mineral oil blockade. In Duliajan, southern Assam, protesters were beaten up by police for preventing oil industry workers from joining work. This is reflected in the Bihu songs as follows:

Bihu songs have been composed throughout the ages.As mentioned earlier; Bihu is a festival of an agricultural society. But now society is changing very fast. Agriculture is decreasing, agricultural fields are shrinking. In contrast, urbanization or industrialization has increased significantly. Therefore, the nature of Bihu has changed with the change of society. There is a decline in interest in Bihu as before.Bihu is celebrated everywhere in Assam during the month of Bahag, but this Bihu is slowly moving away from nature and taking on an artificial form. Bihu is gaining commercial importance. These days, with the change of time, Bihu dance and song competitions are held under the name of Bihu Sanmilan. The competition has brought about a lot of changes in the dance and song of Bihu.In the past, cows were raised in every household in the villages of Assam. The first day of Bihu was celebrated as a Garu (cow) Bihu. At present; cows have been replaced by modern agricultural implements such as tractors, power tillers in Assam. In the earlier agricultural society, songs were spontaneously composed about Bihu. How can Assamese who are away from agriculture compose Bihu songs? Even if he composes it, he will be largely artificial. Therefore, Bihu songs have now taken on a modern form. There is no clear and unadulterated expression of society in the Bihu songs of today as in the past.

Conclusion:

Bihu is still the popular festival of Assam. The nature of Bihu has changed over time. The earlier Bihu songs reflected the life of Assam, starting from nature in a beautiful way. Bihu songs have changed with the change of society, but they reflect all aspects of the folk poet’s observation, creativity, folk psychology, etc. Bihu songs capture the rich society of Assam. Many songs have disappeared as times have changed. Therefore, despite the extensive studies on this subject, the study is still of great importance. In fact, Bihu songs will inspire the Assamese people in the society of Assam, which is losing its identity, and will also play a special role in determining the future of the society.