The ancient legend of ''Kadeng Thangjahanba and Tonu Laijinglembi'' () is an epic cycle of incarnations of

Meitei mythology Meitei mythology (or Manipuri mythology) () is a collection of myths, belonging to the religious and cultural traditions of the Meitei people, the predominant ethnic group of Manipur. It is associated with traditional Meitei religion of Sanam ...

and

folklore Folklore is the body of expressive culture shared by a particular group of people, culture or subculture. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, myths, legends, proverbs, Poetry, poems, jokes, and other oral traditions. This also ...

from

Moirang Moirang () is a town in the Indian state of Manipur, best known for the tentatively listed UNESCO World Heritage Sites of the Keibul Lamjao Conservation Area (KLCA), covering Keibul Lamjao National Park (KLNP), the world's only floating nation ...

kingdom of

Ancient Kangleipak Kangleipak was an ancient, lesser known civilisation, consisting of the modern day Manipur, Manipur, India which is still known to some residents as Kangleipak, and other neighbouring regions. The Kangla served as the foremost capital city of th ...

(early

Manipur Manipur () is a state in northeastern India with Imphal as its capital. It borders the Indian states of Assam to the west, Mizoram to the south, and Nagaland to the north and shares the international border with Myanmar, specifically t ...

). It concerns the fateful love of Kadeng Thangjahanba, a skilled

blacksmith A blacksmith is a metalsmith who creates objects primarily from wrought iron or steel, but sometimes from #Other metals, other metals, by forging the metal, using tools to hammer, bend, and cut (cf. tinsmith). Blacksmiths produce objects such ...

, for the beautiful Tonu Laijinglembi.

Characters

Tonu Laijinglembi and Kadeng Thangjahanba are real historical figures who lived in the 12th century during the reign of

Moilang Moilang ( Modern Meitei: Moirang) is a group of people, which is recognized as one of the seven Yek Salai clans of the composite Meitei confederacy. Moirang consists of many several Yumnaks which are native peoples of ancient Kangleipak (no ...

king Iwang Puriklai Laijing Punsiba (1138–1210). In

, God

Thangching Thangching or Thangjing is a primordial deity in Sanamahism, the indigenous religion of Manipur. He is the ruling deity of the Moirang dynasty. He rules supreme on the banks of the landlocked sea, Loktak lake. He is one of the four cardinal ...

(or 'Thangjing') blessed Henjunaha and Lairoulembi to be reborn as Kadeng Thangjahanba and Tonu Laijinglembi. Writers and ballad singers of olden times interwove the two stories, creating a "cycle of regeneration and rebirth". Kadeng Thangjahanba () was a highly talented and skillful royal chief

metalsmith A metalsmith or simply smith is a craftsperson fashioning useful items (for example, tools, kitchenware, tableware, jewelry, armor and weapons) out of various metals. Smithing is one of the oldest list of metalworking occupations, metalworking o ...

appointed by King Laijing Ningthou Punsiba () of Moirang. Tonu Laijinglembi () was the only daughter of Laijing Lakpa (), a favourite

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

of the King of Moirang.

Plot

Kadeng Thangjahanba is matchless in the art of blacksmithing, and thus earns the favour of King Laijing Ningthou Punsiba of the

kingdom and is appointed as the royal chief blacksmith. At the same time, Kadeng is having a

romantic affair An affair is a relationship typically between two people, one or both of whom are either married or in a long-term monogamous or emotionally-exclusive relationship with someone else. The affair can be solely sexual, solely physical or solely em ...

with the lady Tonu Laijinglembi. As per the ancient traditional customs of Moirang, Kadeng is given the duty of going on a hunting expedition to gather wild animals for an annual festival; he leaves for many months. Meanwhile, King Laijing Ningthou Punsiba, having no son to succeed him, is very upset. The king consults the royal high priest, who suggests that a male heir can be achieved only if the king marries a lady of the King's

namesake A namesake is a person, place, or thing bearing the name of another. Most commonly, it refers to an individual who is purposely named after another (e.g. John F. Kennedy Jr would be the namesake of John F. Kennedy). In common parlance, it may ...

. Immediately, the king sends his men to find women in his kingdom with a name similar to his; they find only lady Tonu Laijinglembi. (Tonu Laijinglembi's name contains the word "Laijing", which is similar to the "Laijing" in King Laijing Ningthou Punsiba.) Tonu is reluctant, but cannot deny the royal proposal for the wedding. And so, during Kadeng's absence, Tonu and the king get married. Kadeng returns from his hunting expedition, and is shocked and saddened to hear the news of his lover getting married. Kadeng crafts two beautiful swords: on the side of one sword, he engraves the images of Tonu and himself; on the other side of the sword, he engraves the images of the king and Tonu as the young queen. Kadeng presents the swords to the king as gifts. Initially, King Laijing Ningthou Punsiba does not understand the meaning of the coded images. Kadeng becomes extremely careless of his health, thereby falling seriously ill. The king is deeply concerned about Kadeng's deteriorating health conditions. But among everyone, Tonu is the most in grief. Seeing this, the king realises the meaning of the images engraved in the swords. Without hesitation, King Laijing Ningthou Punsiba sends Tonu Laijinglembi to the house of Kadeng Thangjahanba. Defying all the odds, the two lovers finally unite and live happily ever after. However, Tonu secretly carries in her womb the king's child, who is to become Ura Naha Khongjomba.

Sangai deer

During his hunting expedition, Kadeng Thangjahanba captured a

Sangai The ''sangai'' ( Meitei pronunciation: /sə.ŋai/) (''Rucervus eldii eldii'') is an endemic and endangered subspecies of Eld's deer found only in Manipur, India. It is also the state animal of Manipur. Its common English name is Manipur brow-antl ...

deer from a place called "Torbung Lamjao" to present as a token of love to his lover, Lady Tonu Laijinglembi. However, when he learns that his beloved lady has married King Laijing Ningthou Punsiba, his hopes are dashed. In sorrow, he releases the deer into the wild of Keibul Lamjao (present day

Keibul Lamjao National Park The Keibul Lamjao National Park () is a national park in the Bishnupur district of the state of Manipur in Northeast India. It is in area, the only floating national park in the world, and an integral part of Loktak Lake. It is currently und ...

area). According to folklore, these deer have lived in the Keibul Lamjao region since then.

In contemporary art and culture

Tonu Laijinglembi (2014) – a drama written by Sarangthem Bormani and directed by B Jugolchandra, shown on 22 March 2014; organised by the Manipur Dramatic Union. Tonu Laijinglembi Seitharol (28 April 2018) – the

Meitei Mayek The Meitei script (), also known as the Kanglei script () or the Kok Sam Lai script (), after its first three letters is an abugida in the Brahmic scripts family used to write the Meitei language, the official language of Manipur, Assam an ...

edition of the book "Tonu Laijinglembi Seitharol" written by Hijam Guno. Tonu Laijinglembi (2018) – a drama based on the character of the same name, directed by L Bikram of the "Aryan Theatre, Imphal", was released on 30 March 2018 during the 6th All Manipur Folk Drama Festival in

Imphal Imphal (; , ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Manipur. The metropolitan centre of the city contains the ruins of Kangla Palace (officially known as Kangla Fort), the royal seat of the former Kingdom of Manipur, surrounded by a ...

Notes

References

{{Authority control Epic cycles of incarnations Love stories Marriage and religion Meitei folklore Meitei mythology