Mayong (or Mayang) is a village in

Morigaon district Morigaon district is an administrative district in the state of Assam in India. The district headquarters is located at Morigaon. The ancient place of occult Mayong is located in this district as well as Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary. History ...

Assam Assam (, , ) is a state in Northeast India, northeastern India, south of the eastern Himalayas along the Brahmaputra Valley, Brahmaputra and Barak River valleys. Assam covers an area of . It is the second largest state in Northeast India, nor ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. It lies on the bank of the river

Brahmaputra The Brahmaputra is a trans-boundary river which flows through Southwestern China, Northeastern India, and Bangladesh. It is known as Brahmaputra or Luit in Assamese, Yarlung Tsangpo in Tibetan, the Siang/Dihang River in Arunachali, and ...

, approximately from the city of

Guwahati Guwahati () the largest city of the Indian state of Assam, and also the largest metropolis in northeastern India. Dispur, the capital of Assam, is in the circuit city region located within Guwahati and is the seat of the Government of Assam. Th ...

. Mayong is a tourist attraction because of its history.

Etymology

The origin of the name may be based in the Chutia/

Tiwa Tiwa and Tigua may refer to: * Tiwa Puebloans, an ethnic group of New Mexico, US * Tiwa (Lalung), an ethnic group of north-eastern India * Tiwa language (India), a Sino-Tibetan language of India * Tiwa languages, a group of Tanoan languages of the ...

/ Deori word ''Ma-yong'' which means ''mother'', the Kachari word for an elephant (''Miyong''), and ''ongo'' meaning ''part''. Some believe that Manipuris from the Moirang clan used to inhabit this area therefore; the name Moirang became Mayhong with time.

History

Mayong along with Pragjyotishpura (the ancient name of Assam) find place in many epics, including the

Mahabharata The ''Mahābhārata'' ( ; , , ) is one of the two major Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epics of ancient India revered as Smriti texts in Hinduism, the other being the ''Ramayana, Rāmāyaṇa''. It narrates the events and aftermath of the Kuru ...

. Chief Ghatotkacha of

Kachari Kingdom The Dimasa Kingdom also known as Kachari kingdom was a late medieval/early modern kingdom in Assam, Northeast India ruled by Dimasa kings. The Dimasa kingdom and others ( Kamata, Chutiya) that developed in the wake of the Kamarupa kingdom we ...

took part in The Great Battle of Mahabharata with his magical powers. It was also said about the Mayong that the Tantrik (one who knows tantra vidya) and the witches take shelter in mayong forest till now. Many tales of men disappearing into air, people being converted into animals, or beasts being magically tamed have been associated with Mayong. Sorcery and magic were traditionally practiced and passed down over generations. ''Narabali'' or

human sacrifice Human sacrifice is the act of killing one or more humans as part of a ritual, which is usually intended to please or appease deity, gods, a human ruler, public or jurisdictional demands for justice by capital punishment, an authoritative/prie ...

s were carried until the early modern period. Excavators had recently dug up swords and other sharp weapons that resembled tools used for human sacrifice in other parts of

, suggesting that human sacrifice may have occurred in the Ahom era in Mayong.

Tourism

Mayong is a tourist and archaeological location because of its rich

wildlife Wildlife refers to domestication, undomesticated animals and uncultivated plant species which can exist in their natural habitat, but has come to include all organisms that grow or live wilderness, wild in an area without being species, introdu ...

, archaeology pilgrimage, eco-tourism,

adventure tourism Adventure travel is a type of tourism, involving exploration or travel with a certain degree of risk (real or perceived), and which may require special skills and physical exertion. In the United States, adventure tourism has seen growth in l ...

cultural tourism Cultural tourism is a type of tourism in which the visitor's essential motivation is to learn, discover, experience and consume the cultural attractions and products offered by a tourist destination. These attractions and products relate to the ...

and river tourism. Mayong is also famous for its connection and past relationships with Black magic.

Mayong Central Museum and Emporium

There are numerous archaeological relics and artefacts, including books on Tantra Kriya and Ayurveda at the Mayong Central Museum and Emporium, which was opened in 2002. Very close to Mayong is the Pobitora Wildlife Sanctuary. This Sanctuary has the highest density of one horned rhinoceros in the world.

References

{{reflist Morigaon district Tourism in Assam Cities and towns in Morigaon district

Etymology

History

Tourism

Mayong Central Museum and Emporium

See also

References