Wangpulen is the god of water, rain, flood, disease and sickness in

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

Sanamahism Sanamahism , also known as Meiteism , or Lainingthouism is an ethnic religion of the Meitei people of Manipur, in Northeast India. It is a polytheistic religion and is named after Lainingthou Sanamahi, one of the most important deities of ...

. He is the ruler of the underwater world. He is the Lord of the rivers. The guardianship of the south eastern direction is alluded to Wangbren and the other directions to

Koupalu Koupalu is a primordial deity in Sanamahism. He is the protector of the Meiteis, guardian of the North West direction and the founder of Meitei civilization. He lives on the summit of Mount Koubru. Description Koupalu (or Koubru) is a pr ...

(north west),

Marjing Marjing () is the God of horses, polo, hockey, sports and war in Sanamahism, the indigenous religion of Manipur. The guardianship of the north eastern direction is alluded to Marjing and the other directions to Koupalu (north west), Thangchi ...

(north east) and

Thangjing 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 U ...

(south west). He is one of the

Umang Lai Umang Lai () refers to a group of ancient Meitei deities of the traditional Meitei religion (Sanamahism) who are worshipped as the local guardians of particular areas, especially sacred groves. These deities are worshipped annually. Their Sac ...

s. He has a strong connection with the Anāl Naga people for marrying a lady from Khullen village. Among the cult centres dedicated to him, the one at

Sugnu Sugnu (also spelt Sugnoo) is a municipality town at the southern tip of the Kakching district in Manipur, India. It is on the bank of the Manipur River, to the east of Churachandpur district, Chandel district to the east and Bishnupur district. ...

is the most significant in Meitei pantheon.

Description

In the Wakoklon Heelel Thilel Salai Amailon Pukok Puya, Wangbren is called Khana Chaopa Wangpulen. According to the text, He is one of the seven Laipungthous and one of the manifestations of the Supreme God, Ipung Loinapa Apakpa.

Mythology

Once Wangpulen went to the village of the Anāl people, disguising Himself as a human. He fell in love with a beautiful girl, Shangnu. The maiden was also attracted to helps good looks. The girl's affair with a stranger angered the community. The young men of the village challenged Wangbren to fight. There were competitions in race, stone throwing, and

archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a Bow and arrow, bow to shooting, shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting ...

. If he failed, he would be killed. But he won all the challenges, and he took Shangnu away to his divine abode.

Worship

Whenever anyone is drowned, Wangpulen is worshipped according to the traditional rites and rituals. They did so in a belief that there will be no further deaths in water. Whenever unusual flood water currents are seen, especially in rivers, He is worshipped by people to save them from drowning and other mishaps. If a drowned person's corpse is not recovered, then a portion of the trunk of

palash ''Butea monosperma'' is a species of '' Butea'' native to tropical and sub-tropical parts of South Asia and Southeast Asia. It is also known as flame of the forest, Bengal kino, dhak, palash, and bastard teak. Revered as sacred by Hindus, it is ...

tree is cremated. It is done in a belief that Wangpulen might have kept the corpse at a sacred place. Wangpulen is worshipped by offering fruits, flowers and

kabok Kabok or Kapok is a Meitei Manipuri ethnic food item, generally made up of puffed rice, roasted rice and molasses. It is available in many flavours, including honey flavor, sugarcane flavor and many others. It is a very popular snack in the Ind ...

. The rites and rituals are performed by the

maiba A Maiba or an Amaiba (literally, "priest") is a male religious leader authorised to perform the sacred rites and rituals of Sanamahism (Sanamahism, Meitei religion), especially as a mediatory agent between human beings and one or more deities. T ...

s. It is to ward off the diseases, illness or sickness caused by the water god. Examples include skin diseases, cold and

cough A cough is a sudden expulsion of air through the large breathing passages which can help clear them of fluids, irritants, foreign particles and Microorganism, microbes. As a protective reflex, coughing can be repetitive with the cough reflex fol ...

diarrhoea Diarrhea (American English), also spelled diarrhoea or diarrhœa (British English), is the condition of having at least three loose, liquid, or watery bowel movements in a day. It often lasts for a few days and can result in dehydration d ...

, etc.

Cults and Shrines

A sacred shrine dedicated to Wangpulen still exists today in the Sugnu village. Annually, the non-Christian Anal villagers give offerings to their priest. The priest took and offer the articles to the God in

. Inside the Kangla, the State

Government of Manipur The Government of Manipur (; /mə.ni.pur lə́i.ŋak/), also known as the State Government of Manipur, or locally as State Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Manipur and its 16 districts. It consists of an ex ...

is to renovate and reconstruct the holy altars dedicated to God Wangpulen and other deities. In 2010, a temple dedicated to God Wangpulen was constructed at

Wangoi Wangoi () is a town and a Municipal Council in Imphal West district in the Indian state of Manipur. Demographics As of the 2001 India census, Wangoi had a population of 7,872. Males constitute 50% of the population and females 50%. Wangoi has an ...

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 ...

. The temple building construction costs .

References

External links