Sanamahism ,
also known as Meiteism , or Lainingthouism is an
ethnic religion
In religious studies, an ethnic religion or ethnoreligion is a religion or belief associated with notions of heredity and a particular ethnicity. Ethnic religions are often distinguished from universal religions, such as Christianity or Islam ...
of the
Meitei people
The Meitei people, also known as Meetei people,P.20: "historically, academically and conventionally Manipuri prominently refers to the Meetei people."P.24: "For the Meeteis, Manipuris comprise Meeteis, Lois, Kukis, Nagas and Pangal." are a Ti ...
of
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 ...
, in
Northeast India
Northeast India, officially the North Eastern Region (NER), is the easternmost region of India representing both a geographic and political Administrative divisions of India, administrative division of the country. It comprises eight States and ...
. It is a polytheistic religion and is named after
Lainingthou Sanamahi, one of the most important deities of the Meitei faith. Sanamahi is the eldest son of the supreme god
Sidaba Mapu and the supreme goddess
Leimarel Sidabi. Traditionally every Meitei household, irrespective of the religion, worships Sanamahi and Leimarel Sidabi. Sanamahism does not have a religious head but has a body, the Maru Loishang, that oversees the main religious activities and governs all affairs of the religion, including the conduct of priest and priestess.
The Maru Loishang also acts a court for religious disputes.
There are three main departments under the Manu Loishang, namely, the Amaiba Loishang, the Pena Asheiba Loishang, and the Amaibi Loishang.
These departments have existed since the reign of King
Meidingu Hongnemyoi Khunjao Naothingkhong of
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 ...
in 662 CE.
Deities
The deities in Sanamhism can be classified as principal deities, ancestral deities, or
apokpa, regional deities called Lam Lai or Umang Lai, and the ancestral deities worshipped by particular Meitei clans (Yek Lai) and families (Saghei Lai).
There are five main deities in Sanamahism:
*
Lainingthou Sanamahi, protector and guardian god of mankind.
*
Kuru,
creator of the universe.
*
Pakhangba, ruler of the universe and destroyer of evil.
*
Leimarel Sidabi, Earth goddess.
*
Imoinu Ahongbi, an incarnation of Leimarel, and a goddess of wealth and prosperity.
Other important gods and goddesses include
Panthoibi,
Lainingthou Nongpok Ningthou,
Lainingthou Koubru,
Ibudhou Marjing,
Thongalel,
Wangbren,
Eputhou Thangjing,
Kounu
Kounu is a goddess in Meitei mythology and Sanamahism, the indigenous religion of Manipur. She is a consort of the god Koupalu. She is the guardian of the northern direction. Kounu has two homes. Her main home is on Mount Kounu. Her other hom ...
,
Nongshaba,
Nongthang Leima, and
Irai Leima.
The Umang Lais are often regarded as aspects or incarnations of the main deities. The worship of Umang Lais and the ritual that this entails, referred to as the Umang Lai Haraoba, is one of the main religious festivals in Sanamahism. The Umang Lais are associated with
sacred groves, also called
Umang Lai. There are similarities between the Umang Lais and the
Nat deities of Myanmar.
All the deities are denoted by the universal term Lai which means "god" in Meithei. When referring to a male deity, the terms Lainingthou, Ebhudhou or Epa are used while the terms, Lairembi, Ebhendhou or Ema are used to refer to a female deity. Lairembi is mostly used for the Umang Lais.
Origin
The first mentions are found in the
Cheitharol Kumbaba, the Court Chronicles of the kings of
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 ...
, starting from the king
Nongda Lairen Pakhangba, who traditionally ruled for more than a century, from 33 to 154 CE, though modern scholarship, including
Sujit Mukherjee, give a range of 21 years, from 33 to 54 CE.
Revival
The collective effort of the revival of Sanamahism is often referred to as the Sanamahi movement. The earliest accounts can be traced back to the formation of the
Apokpa Marup by
Laininghal Naoriya Phulo in 1930 at Cachar (present day Assam, India).
The movement spread to the Manipur Valley by 1934. Although the movement did not gain momentum due to the
Japanese invasion in the Second world war, plans were initially made to intensify the movement under the leadership of Takhellambam Bokul (Sanamahi Bokul).
Phullo died in 1941.
Three years after the death of Phullo in 1944, the movement finally started gaining momentum in Manipur. Resolutions were made to denounce Hinduism and to revive Sanamahism in Manipur. Mass campaign were held to popularize Sanamahi religion at various places in Manipur. On 14 May 1945, the popular Meitei Marup was formed. This marked the beginning of the revival of Sanamahism and 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 ...
, original script of the Manipuri Language among other things. The term Sanamahism and Meitei Marup are often used interchangeably. The Brahma Sabha strongly opposed the movement and formally outcast 38 members of the Meitei Marup.
By the 1970s and 1980s, the Sanamahi Movement attracted more activists. Massive drives were held reclaiming shrines of deiteis and adverting Hindu practices or worship to ancient old traditions of Sanamahism. Notable movement was the seize of the idols of Sanamahi and Leimarel Sidabi from Hindu Brahmins which are now presently installed in the temple at First Manipur Rifles Ground, Imphal. On 16 February 1974, mass convert to Sanamahism was held. The event is coined, ''Nongkhang Parei Hanba,'' symbolic to reversing the forced mass baptism into Hinduism in 1729, referred to as ''Nongkhang Iruppa''.
On 23 April 1992, the then Maharaja of Manipur,
Okendrajit Sana declared that "I open the Lubak Tabu and abandon Hinduism as state religion and recognition is hereby withdrawn by the Royal Customary Law of the Country, instead the Royal Customary Law revives the Lainingthouism as the state religion and do herby give recognition as state religion."
The
2011 census of India places the Sanamahi followers to be 8.19% of the total population of Manipur, India.
Official status
On 5 August 2022, the
Manipur State Legislative Assembly re-affirmed a resolution to record the Sanamahi religion in the census data with a separate unique code as an officially recognised minority religion of India. In the past, on 31 July 2002 and on 1 August 2003, the Manipur State Legislative Assembly had adopted similar resolutions to allot a unique code for the religion but did not get approved by the Central
Government of India
The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...
.
In the previous decades, many social, religious and political activists, associations and organisations struggled through violent agitations and protests to include the Sanamahi religion as an officially recognised minority religion of India.
Practices
Many Sanamahi practices are focused on food offerings to deities, combined with hymns, as well as
oracular ritual in which priestesses become possessed by a god or goddess. An offering formula to call up the gods, uttered by a priestess over a body of water during the
Lai Haraoba
Lai Haraoba (, ), also known as Umang Lai Haraoba, is a classical,———— ritualistic, theatrical dance and music festival, annually celebrated by the Meitei people, to please the Umang Lai deities of the traditional Meitei religion (San ...
festival, goes:
Some esoteric practices are also a part of Sanamahism, such as the use of mantras for various purposes. The mystical text ''Sanamahi Naiyom'' provides several formulas, such as a mantra that is believed to stop rain.
Religious festivals
*
Sanamahi Ahong Khong Chingba
*
Lai Haraoba
Lai Haraoba (, ), also known as Umang Lai Haraoba, is a classical,———— ritualistic, theatrical dance and music festival, annually celebrated by the Meitei people, to please the Umang Lai deities of the traditional Meitei religion (San ...
*
Mera Hou Chongba
*
Mera Chaorel Houba
*
Kwaak Taanba
*
Yaoshang
*
Panthoibi Iratpa
*
Imoinu Iratpa
*
Sajibu Cheiraoba
*
Heikru Hidongba
Demographics
According to the 2011 census of India, 222,422 people in India follow Sanamahism. The vast majority of them (222,315 people) are in the state of
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 ...
.
[C-01 Appendix: Details of religious community shown under 'Other religions and persuasions' in main table C01 - 2011]
Census of India, 2011.
Sanamahism followers make up 14.6 percent of all the
Meitei people
The Meitei people, also known as Meetei people,P.20: "historically, academically and conventionally Manipuri prominently refers to the Meetei people."P.24: "For the Meeteis, Manipuris comprise Meeteis, Lois, Kukis, Nagas and Pangal." are a Ti ...
. Others that profess to follow Hinduism, also follow many Sanamahi religious traditions and rituals. For example, they worship Sanamahi in the south-west corners of their homes.
Associations and organizations
*
International Sanamahism Students' Association
*
Lainingthou Sanamahi Sanapung
*
Lainingthou Sanamahi Temple Board
*
South East Asia Cultural Organisation
References
Sources
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{{Religion topics
Ancient culture
Animism
Ethnic religions in Asia
Folk culture of Asia
Folk religions
Indian religions
Meitei culture
Nature and religion
Panentheism
Pantheism
Polytheism
Religion in Assam
Religion in Manipur
Religion in Tripura
Shamanism