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'Bihu' denotes a set of three different largely secular festivals of Assam. Though they owe their origins to ancient rites and practices they have taken definite urban features and have become popular festivals in urban and commercialized milieus in the recent decades. ''Bihu'' is also used to imply Bihu dance and Bihu folk songs.
The word ''Bihu'' is derived from ''visuvan'' that describes a number of festivals in India that are associated with the March equinox.^[1] In Assam, the ''Rongali Bihu'' draws from many different traditions—Austro-Asiatic, Sino-Burmese and Indo-Aryan—and is celebrated with particular fervor. Celebrations begin in the middle of April and generally continue for a month. In addition there are two other Bihus: ''Kongali Bihu'' in October (associated with the September equinox) and ''Bhogali Bihu'' in January (associated with the January solstice).

Contents

Rongali Bihu

Kongali Bihu

Bhogali Bihu

Notes and references

Rongali Bihu

Rongali Bihu (mid-April, also called Bohag Bihu), the most popular Bihu celebrates the onset of the Assamese New Year (around April 15) and the coming of Spring. This marks the first day of the Hindu solar calendar and is also observed in Bengal, Kerala, Manipur, Nepal, Orissa, Punjab and Tamil Nadu though called by different names. It's a time of merriment and feasting and continues for several days. The farmers prepare the fields for cultivation of paddy and there is a feeling of joy around. The ladies make ''pithas'' and ''larus'' (traditional food made of rice and coconut) which gives the real essence of the season. The first day of the bihu is called ''goru'' bihu or cow bihu, where the cows are washed and worshipped, which falls on the last day of the previous year, usually on April 14. This is followed by ''manuh'' (human) bihu on April 15, the New Year Day. The folk songs associated with the Bohag Bihu are called Bihugeets or Bihu songs.
The form of celebration and rites vary among different demographic groups.
;'Goru Bihu': The ''goru bihu'' or cattle worship rites are observed on the last day of the year. The cattle are washed, smeared with ground turmeric and other pastes, struck with sprigs of ''dighalati'' and ''makhiyati'' and endeared to be healthy and productive (''lao kha, bengena kha, bosore bosore barhi ja/maar xoru, baper xoru, toi hobi bor bor goru''—eat gourd, eat brinjal, grow from year to year/your mother is small, your father is small, but you be a large one). The old cattle ropes are cast away through the legs and new ropes are tied to them, and they are allowed to roam anywhere they wished for the entire day.^[2]
;'Manuh Bihu': The New Year day, the day after the ''goru bihu'', is called the ''manuh bihu''. Elders are shown respect, with gifts of ''bihuwan'' (a gamosa), a ''hachoti'' (kerchief), a ''cheleng'' etc., and their blessings are sought. Children are given new clothes, and Husori singing begins on this day, and people visit their relatives and friends.^[3]
;'Husori': Village elders move from household to households singing carols, also in the style of ''bihu geets'', called ''husoris''. It possibly derives from the Dimasa Kachari word formation ''ha'' (land) and ''char'' (move over): ''hachari''.^[4] Villages could have more than one Husori band, and they would visit households in a village non-contiguous to itself, first singing carols at the ''Naamghar''. The husari singers then visit individual households, by first announcing their arrival at the gate (''podulimukh'') with drum beats. The singers are traditionally welcomed into the courtyard where they sing the husori songs and perform a ring dance. At the end of the performance they are thanked with an offering of ''tamul'' in a ''xorai'', whereupon the singers bless the household for the coming year. If there is a bereavement in the family, or the family does not invite the husori singers due to an illness, the husori band offers blessings from ''podulimukh'' and move on. Generally the singers are all male.^[5]
;'Pat Bihu': This is a very old form of Bihu, characterized by spontaneity, popular in the Lakhimpur area of Assam. According to legend, the first Ahom king, Sukaphaa, traveled to the region to watch it in the early 13th century.^[6]
;'Mukoli Bihu': Young unmarried men and women attired in traditional golden silk ''muga'' dance the bihu and sing bihu songs in the open fields. The songs have themes of romance and sexual love, requited or unrequited. Sometimes the songs describe tragic events too, but treated very lightly. The dance celebrates female sexuality.
;'Jeng Bihu': This is Bihu dance and song performed and watched only by women. The name "jeng" comes from the fact that in earlier days women in the villages used to surround the place of their performance with sticks dug into the ground called ''jeng'' in Assamese.
;'Baisago': The Bodo-Kachari people celebrate for seven days—the first day for cattle (''Magou''), the second day for man (''Mansoi'') and ancestor worship, feasting, singing and merriment. Songs follow the same themes as the Bihu songs.^[7]
;'Bihutoli Bihu': The rural festival made its transition to urban life when it was first time brought to the stage in Lataxil field in Guwahati by the Guwahati Bihu Sanmilani in 1962, promoted by leading citizens like Radha Govinda Baruah and others. Unlike the rural version, the dancers danced on a makeshift elevated stage in an open area that came to be known as a ''Bihutoli''. Many such Bihutolis have sprouted since then in Guwahati and other urban areas. The performances are not confined to the bihu dance form, but may incorporate all forms of theatrical performances to keep the audience enthralled well into the early hours. Performances could include standup comedy, to concerts by solo singers. The stage form of bihu has become so popular, that organizers have begun extending the celebrations to ''bohagi bidai'', or farewell to the ''Bohag'' month, which are similar performances held a month later.
Rongali Bihu is also a fertility festival, where the bihu dance with its sensous movements using the hips, arms, etc, by the young women call out to celebrate their fertility. In this aspect, the bihu dance can also be called a mating ritual by the young men and women.

Kongali Bihu

Kongali Bihu (mid-October, also called ''Kati-Bihu'') has a different flavour as there is less merriment and the atmosphere has a sense of constrain and solemnity. During this time of the year, the paddy in the fields are in the growing stage and the granaries of the farmers are almost empty. On this day, earthen lamps (''saki'') are lit at the foot of the household ''tulaxi'' plant, the granary, the garden (''bari'') and the paddy fields. To protect the maturing paddy, cultivators whirl a piece of bamboo and recite ''rowa-khowa'' chants and spells o ward off pests and the evil eye. The Bodo people light lamps at the foot of the ''siju'' (''Euphorbia'') tree. This Bihu is also assocaited with the lighting of ''akaxi gonga'', lamps at the tip of a tall bamboo pole, to show the souls of the dead the way to heaven, a practice that is common to many communities in Asia and Europe.^[8] There is also exchange of sweets and greetings at this time.

Bhogali Bihu

Bhogali Bihu (mid-January, also called Magh Bihu) marks the end of harvesting season and there is a lot of feasting and eating during this period. The granaries are full and thus the people come together and make a small hut type structures called ''mejis'' with the hay of the harvest fields and during the night, prepare food and there is community feasting everywhere. The entire night (called ''uruka'') is spent around a bonfire with people singing bihu songs, beating drums or playing games. The next morning, people gather around the ''mejis'' and throw ''pithas'' (rice cakes) and betel nuts to it while burning it at the same time. They offer their prayers to the fire god and mark the end of the harvesting year.

Notes and references

1. Goswami 1988, p5
2. Goswami 1988, p12-14
3. Goswami 1988, p14
4. Goswami 1988, p34.
5. Tamuli, Babul Huchori: A Must for the Masses, The Assam Tribune, 2002
6. Rahman, Daulat Assam initiates project to revive & popularise the festival’s oldest form, The Telegraph, June 23, 2007
7. Goswami 1988, pp26-27.
8. Goswami 1988, pp7-8


★ Das, Debendra Prasad ''Rongali Bihu through the ages'', The Assam Tribune, April 14, 2007.

★ Dowerah, Sawpon ''Rongali Bihu-the spring festival of Assam'', The Assam Tribune, April 14, 2007.

★ Goswami, Prafulladatta (1988) ''Bohag Bihu of Assam and Bihu songs'', Publication Board, Assam.