LANGUAGE IN INDIA

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Volume 24:3 March 2024
ISSN 1930-2940

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The Language of Spells: A Study in the Rituals of Thanga

Naorem Brindebala Devi, Ph.D.

Abstract

The paper discusses the language usage in the spells of some of the rituals used in Thanga. Thanga is an island village in the Loktak lake in Manipur, India. In this study village, people still believe in spells, chants, and incantations often attributed with supernatural elements. So, rituals are performed whenever there is illness or some kind of mental or spiritual imbalance. The language used in spells is precise and mostly in verse form. The use of honorific words is found less but the concerned deities are praised and acknowledged recurrently. The language used in the spells appears to be a direct conversation between the practitioner and the invisible spirit/ the concerned deity, so use of vocative words, second person reference terms and second person pronominal markers are found. It is believed that any illness or such imbalance is occurred due to the ill will of the concerned deity or the spirit, so it has to be driven out with some sort of induced command of the Almighty. It starts with a hyperbole and usually ends with harsh instruction to get the desired result and concludes mostly with some magic words.

Keywords: Manipur, Loktak Lake Island, Thanga, Ritual, Spell, Deity, Spirit, Language usage

Introduction

Thanga, a small hilly island village, comprises a group of hills. It is located in the Loktak lake in Bishnupur district of Manipur, in north-east India. It has a population of 14, 316 (according to 2011 census of India) at a distance of about 53 km from Imphal, the state capital. Their main occupation is fishing. The people of this study village were once segregated from the mainland Meeteis. Since they are inhabited in the middle of the lake, segregated in the hilly island, their belief in gods and goddesses, deities, spirits and supernatural elements were very high. Still today, with the development and advancement of science and technology, communication and medical sciences, the belief in traditions, rituals, prayers, etc. are deeply rooted in their cultural heritage and people’s mindset (folk belief).

In Oxford Learner’s Dictionary it is stated that ritual is a series of actions that are always performed in the same way, especially as part of a religious ceremony. Martha C. Sims and Martine Stephens also comment,

Rrituals are repeated, habitual actions, but they are more purposeful than custom; rituals are frequently highly organized and controlled, often meant to indicate or announce membership in a group. Most rituals bring together many types of folklore: verbal, such as chants, recitations, poems or songs; customary, such as gestures, dance or movements, and material, such as food, books, awards, clothing and costumes (2005: 95).

Ritual is believed to be incomplete without incantation. Incantations and spells take a major part in performing a ritual. Here, we are going to analyze the language of spells associated with Meetei rituals. To study the language used in spells, some spells are collected. The spells include (i) healing spells like in stone case, blindness, dental problem, sticking fish bones, enhancing breast milk, nose bleeding, fungal acne, skin lump (epidermoid cyst), cyst, headache, tonsillitis, to expand lifespan of teeth, stomach upset, etc.; (ii) spells to protect from evil spirits; (iii) to woo a woman; (iv) to get attention or attraction; etc.

This is only the beginning part of the article. PLEASE CLICK HERE TO READ THE ENTIRE ARTICLE IN PRINTER-FRIENDLY VERSION.

NaoremBrindebala Devi, Ph.D.
Department of Linguistics
Manipur University
An ICSSR Post-Doctoral Fellow
Email: brindebalanaorem@gmail.com
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