Bayanacharya Shri Ghanakanta Bora Muktiyar

Performing Traditions of Assam and The Role of Sattras
Anwesa Mahanta

Assam, often described as a paradise for linguists and anthropologists, is a land replete with richness of ethnic diversity, as well as racial, socio-economic, religious, and artistic manifestations. With its proverbial plurality at all levels of human existence, this land, situated in the northeastern part of India, has contributed immensely towards the treasure and panoramic beauty of Indian Arts. Ranging from literary, plastic as well as performing, the heritage of Arts in Assam taking both synchronic and diachronic views encompasses an amorphous structure of cultural scenario. And hence a conceptual model to perceive and encapsulate these manifold realities of human aesthetic response becomes difficult.
Transcending temporal conditions, several art forms have survived and continue to influence human existence in a socio-cultural atmosphere. Assam, being a land of diverse cultures comprising both tribal and non tribal communities, has grown over the centuries of political and social upheavals in which various artistic tendencies have evolved responding to experiences of life. Leaving aside the myth of Usha-Chitalekha the exquisite artists and a popular aphorism– “gite vadye cha nipuna sa kamarupa kamini”, we get an idea of the prevalence of diverse traditions of paintings, dance and music in the earlier centuries of Christian era. The inscriptional evidences including the extant literary material help us in reconstructing the history or continuity of the performing arts in Pragjyotisha, the puranic name of Assam. The Natyashastra, the earliest available treatise on music, dance and drama, describes four systems (pravritti) of dance and drama prevailing in those days of the 2nd century AD – Dakshinatya, Avanti, Panchala – Madhyana or Panchali and Odramagadhi, among which the Odramagadhi school includes the Pragjyotisha traditions. It amply illustrates the prevalence of a rich variety of dance and drama including music in those early years.

The account of the Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang mentions about the entertainment by the Kamarupa King Bhaskaravarmana (7th century) with music and dance. The Dubi and Nidhanpur inscriptions of Bhaskaravarmana also describe the king as cognoscenti of music and dance. Some later kings of Kamarupa in the 9th to 11th centuries have been referred to in the various inscriptions as connoisseurs of various arts. Again, as historians have surmised, the Brahmaputra valley of Assam since early years of civilizations have been a convenient passage of human migration with the movement of scores of various social groups belonging to both Aryan and Mongoloid stock. Assam became thereby a settling ground for many tribes and castes of diverse ethnic stock in different periods of time. These inhabitants belonging to both tribes and castes have various forms of artistic expressions, many of which are essentially connected with religious rituals and festivities, agricultural cycle and societal behaviours. The Tibeto Burmese group, from which there is a gradual emergence of the Bodo and the Mising tribe, is one of the best instances in this regard. Earning their livelihood through agriculture, the tribes are endowed with their traditions of dance and music, handloom and handicrafts.
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With the geophysical realities ranging from east to west there has been diverse and at times contiguous similar responses to ecological situations. These get reflected in sound patterns which can be traced back to the physical environment. Again responding to the surrounding nature, there evolves distinctiveness in costuming, dress and decor. Coming across the “geophysical” and “ecological” realities, we have cases of co-mingling of races. The migration patterns and gradual assimilation of certain races into others, the connections of some of these with places both within and outside India have influenced varied artistic expressions. The tea garden community coming from various parts of the country and settling down in Assam and the linkage of South Asian countries with the Ahom Kingdom in Assam are exemplary instances in this regard. Again the social structures of various societies undoubtedly create an impact leading to a general identifying classification of them as “tribal”, “rural” and “urban”. (Dr Kapila Vatsyayan, A Study of Some Traditions of Performing Arts in Eastern India: Margi and Desi Polarities).

A glimpse of the urban scenario is already penned in the earlier part. Forms developed within a framework of agricultural and other functions and particular social organizations are carried forward and taken over in a different milieu. Here they are characterized by a certain amount of dissociation of the agricultural attributes or the interrelation of art and social structure. The prevalent form is “instilled, added, admixed, superimposed, resulting in a “new self conscious awareness”. (Dr Kapila Vatsyayan, A Study of Some Traditions of Performing Arts in Eastern India: Margi and Desi Polarities). However, within these broad categories, of tribal, rural and urban, there are many sub – classifications based on agriculture and economy. According to conventional anthropological terms, the pastoral herdsmen, the nomad might be considered under the first level, the shifting cultivator and the settled cultivator through plough and tools might be the second while the tradesman and organized economy of consumer and producer society, the third. And in turn we get distinct patterns of music, dance, design and crafts. Let us take an example of the tribal community of Dimasa women , who love to ornament themselves with Poal (necklace made of silver coins), Chandrawal (necklace made of silver)etc and express their humanistic expressions in rhythmic beats with the help of Khram (drum), Muriwaitha (bugle like flute), Suphin (flute) etc. It is seen that the artistic expression is dependent on both verbal and nonverbal system of communication While there may be free individual expression, but generally participative activity in weaving, wood carving, or in dance and music is the common phenomenon. Similarly the Rabha tribes render emotions through various dance forms. The Hamjhar dance, the Bahurangi dance, the Sathar dance, the Fakranti dances are some of the artistic renditions of the Rabha communities performed at different periods of a particular year. Again in shift cultivators there appears a variety of fertility rites quite common to the first level, but here immediacy of the life experience is recalled in sound, movement and dance. Dramatic action and spoken words and gestures appear at regular intervals within which the fertility rites connected with sun, earth, moon play important part. The ceremony of Nyada by the Rengma Nagas , a Naga Tribe migrated to the Karbi Anglong District of Assam, proves an evidence in this case.

Moreover, the village or the cluster of them organized by the Vedic concept of Grama also persists with heritage of arts, including the performing ones. Some art forms woven with agricultural functions like the Bihu have been integrated into the life and agricultural cycles of the peasants. Co-existent with these manifestations, are certain artistic tendencies based on epics of The Ramayana, The Mahabharata and other Puranas of Hindu origin. Ojapali is such a tradition. It is however referred to two distinct traditions bearing the stamp of the religious associations to a certain extent - The Byah Gowa variety from the Ojapali and the Devadasi which presumably flourished from late twelve and thirteenth centuries. Between these, the Byah Gowa Ojapali which has been enduring for over seven centuries with its concentrated habitat in the Darrang District of North- Western Assam, is a major performing art tradition of the state combining music, dance and drama. Parallel to this Vaisnavite stream, is another variety centering round the Sakti cult where propitiation of the serpent – goddess i.e Manasa is the mainstay. Like the Byah Gowa, the Sukanani tradition of the Ojapali is also rich in histrionic art and music as well, having elaborate use of hand-gestures, intricate foot-works and facial expositions which are distinctive of the individuality of Assam. Both these traditions remind us of the presence of the great Indian traditions. The Devadasi is another form of dance prevailing in early years mainly in the Siva temples of Assam, parallel to the Devadasi tradition prevalent in Orissa and some temples in Southern India. The Devadasis being the servants to the deity, used to dance to the pleasure of the Lord during various prayer services or worship sessions. Although the dance forms prevailing in Orissa and other parts of the country could be retrieved after the Devadasi tradition was prohibited during the British rule, and reconstructed with the efforts of connoisseurs and scholars, the Assamese Devadasi tradition of dance is virtually extinct bearing the brunt of social curse and stigma. However a little amount of the dance sequences of this form could be documented from the last exponent before his death and is now in practice among the dance lovers describing the rhythmic movement of a Devadasi taking bath before worship. Thus a rich and ancient tradition was given to die in starvation.

Thus there has been a working of a multi-layered game, observed in each region of the state. As a result of the settling down of various groups in Assam, there was growth of diverse cultural patterns born of their lifestyles. There was also constant interaction and intermixing due to social tensions, internecine rivalry and warfare, social camaraderie etc which too led to the evolution of common features in culture components among these groups retaining at the same time their distinctive ethno- religious, ritualistic, linguistic as well as performative traits. Essentially folk and tribal in nature and form, the entire range of performative expressions of art belonging to these myriad groups were mostly related to their religious rituals, social festivities, agricultural cycle and other societal behaviours.

To this polyphony of artistic expressions of performance traditions came another stream of sacred arts born of the Bhakti Movement in Assam during the 15th-16th centuries with Srimanta Sankaradeva (1449-1568), saint and preacher, poet and playwright, philosopher and reformer, artist and composer “all rolled into one” to quote Dr Vasudev Saran Agarwal, the doyen of Indologists, as its fountain - head. Although it was a part of the pan- Indian Bhakti Movement, traveling far from the Deccan lands through the Gangetic plains, centering round the ideal of intense and single - minded devotion to Lord Vishnu or Krishna as enshrined in the Bhagavatapurana and other similar Bhakti treatises, it took roots in Assam and went far beyond the portals of a religious movement, giving it the dimensions of a great cultural resurgence. The Bhakti Movement in Assam also “brought about new and comprehensive outlook on life, a distinctly healthy tone to social behaviour with an all pervasive organizational set up and accelerated the pace of literature and other arts” both plastic and performing, to quote Dr Maheswar Neog, the eminent scholar. Ankiya Bhaona, the distinctive theatre form of Assam, is a hallmark of the saint’s genius. Although conceived as a medium of propagating the faith and reaching out to people, the plays of Sankaradeva and Madhavadeva and other apostles together have become a highly stylized and popular theatre form combining music, dance and drama. The Ankiya Nat and its performance, known as Bhaona present a vast expanse of creativity, flourishing within the religious space. And Sankaradeva dexterously used every opportunity within the given space and time to demonstrate his innovative imagination and artistic brilliance. While the ideal of classical Sanskrit drama was one of the models that was in view of the classicist composer, the idea of reaching out to the vast multitude of unlettered audience, which was the prime target for communicating the message of Bhakti, was also of principal concern for the saint preacher. Thus he had to build a bridge between the two without shadowing the aesthetic appeal of the art form. And Sankaradeva achieved this tri-dimensional goal and established the Ankiya Nat being a “lyrico-dramatic spectacle as a high paradigm of regional theatre, a powerful medium of healthy entertainment and spiritual pursuit”. It is worthwhile to mention that Sankaradeva was perhaps inspired by the sanctifying prescription of singing, dancing and playing by the Natyashastra and also the Bhagavatapurana extolling Abhinaya or playing of the deeds of Lord Krishna as one of the principal paths of devotion of the Lord.
Upagayan grinan se nrtyam
Karmanai abhinayan mama
Matkatham sravayan srnvan
Muhurtam ksaniko bhawa
The Bhakti Movement - like literature, drama and theatre - brought about a new trend in music and dance also. While with the Bargit, the distinct set of doxology by both the saint composers Sankaradeva and Madhavadeva, emerged a new melodic and rhythmic structure, with the Kirtana ghosa and the Nam ghosa they devised another set of congregational chantings comparatively simpler and more popular, which like the margi-desi continuum combined high sense of Bhakti as well as shastric elements with popular melodies of the land. The Carya songs (mystic compositions of Buddhist siddhas set to ragas of classical descent accompanied by veena, venu and mrdangai) occurred and flourished during the 10th-12th centuries as a distinct style of music compositions by a number of Buddhist monks and composers. The influences of these compositions on the Bargit cannot be ruled out. It would not be perhaps out of place to believe that Sankaradeva with his versatile imagination recreated the existing traditions in music and dance and paved the path of creating a and new era in the field of Assamese shastric dance and music. And the new trends became so much popular that numerous devotional songs, lyrics were written and newer formats were devised not only by the contemporary maestros but also later composers. Again, the pursuit of dance formed to be a major component in the resurgent cultural milieu of the Sankaradeva movement. As mentioned earlier, the Ankiya nat introduced by Sankaradeva was an ingenious combination of music, dance and drama. Dances constituted an integral part of various characters and personages including the purvaranga orchestra called gayan bayan. Apart from the Cihnayatra, his other six plays and the playlets of Madhavadeva together, built up a large reservoir of dance numbers characterized by masculine vigour and feminine grace and endowed with subtle embellishment and histrionic artistry, Madhavadeva, the versatile composer, introduced a new number called cali, independent of the dramatic frame, thus opening up the possibility of new choreography outside the drama. He also worked out elegant choreographic work in respect of certain dance numbers of his plays. Thus dance found for itself a wider avenue within the sacred space of religion and even centuries after the movement the verve and vigour of those compositions and forms have not died down. Here the role of the Sattras, envisaged as an institution for the sustenance of the Bhagavata religion together with diverse traditions of fine arts and classical learning to posterity becomes of great significance.

The Sattra institution as prevailed in Sankaradeva’s life time appears to have combined the concept of an assembly (sattresu samajesu) with a discussion session on the Brahman or Paramatman (brahma sattra) or a congregation with singing of prayer. A very relevant point to be noted here is that the discourses on the life of Lord Krishna and the discussions thereupon were conducted not in Sanskrit, but in the vernacular Assamese which might have led Sankaradeva to feel the practical need at the very initial stage of his missionary life, of composing poetry in Assamese so that the common man can very well imbibe the spiritual learning. Thus the idea of Sattra and the Vaisnavite literary tradition are essentially linked with each other. Such sittings were held wherever Sankaradeva and Madhavadeva went and camped. And in course of time all the places, hallowed with the memories of the great masters were considered sacred places. Such places like Bardowa, Barpeta, Belaguri, Patbausi, Sundaridiya, Koc Behar are made permanent institutions of worship and congregational prayers and are called as Sattras or Than Sattras by the apostles and devotees. In addition to pursuing these traditions ritualistically, they are handed down to generations through systematic training given to the youngsters. A definite grammatical structure, extension of rhythmic varieties (tala- structure), together with numerous dance choreographies were developed by the Sattra exponents. With the extensive experimentations with the given tala –system and the experimentative permutations and combinations of basic talas introduced by Sankaradeva, undertaken through the centuries resulted in the evolution of a large corpus of talas. The number of talas in use in the field of dance and music varies from Sattra to Sattra. , Again, in dance, its large repertory and other paraphernalia like oral grammar, sinuous texture, intricate foot-works, stylization in expressional aspects like facial and hand gestures, the Sattra dances had taken an independent form and character and became a hallowed tradition pursued, preserved and nourished by the Sattra circle and hence it was nomenclatured as Sattriya Dance.

Again some celibate Sattra exponents of various art forms bring up young artists and impart exhaustive training under their personal care. Thus there is a gradual handing down of creative outputs to generations that contributed to the emergence of refined traditions of arts, particularly the miniature painting, wood carving, highly stylized traditions of drama and theatre, music and dance, the great body of Vaisnava literature including the development of the Assamese literary prose and the biographical narratives (caritas) etc, which are exclusively the contributions of the Sattras. The Sattra institution like the south Indian temples also served as the centres where classical learning was pursued and patronized. The Sattras provided the institutional support to the renaissance spirit to be percolated to the common man. As the Bhagavata reading or chanting of prayers from the Bhagavata related scriptures was made a part of the daily services, it opened up the possibilities of a tremendous intellectual awakening among the common people. The unlettered village man and woman also had the privilege of learning the Bhagavata by attending to the sessions of its recitals or congregational prayers in the Sattras (or village namghars). On the other hand the Vaisnava creed enjoined upon the placing of a religious manuscript on an altar (thapana) whether for congregational prayer in a Sattra or family adoration in a domestic sanctum. This resulted in a great awareness in the Sattras and villages to make transcripts of the original manuscripts. In many Sattras the original Sanskrit Bhagavata- purana is also recited by the bhagavati or the sattradhikara which is followed by recital of the vernacular rendering. Thus the Sattra institution released a second wave of awakening by bringing the Bhagavata to the doorstep of every Assamese and at the same time brought the Sanskrit learning to the popular level. And so an unlettered Assamese could recite the Bhagavata, could sing the devotional songs of Sankaradeva, Madhavadeva and other apostles, could memorize sections of the Kirtana ghosa and the Namghosa, could enact roles in the bhaona even though there was no institution or centre of today’s model for formal education of the villagers except a handful of Sanskrit tols all over the state. This strange phenomenon of the Assamese life is rightly described by Dr. S.K Bhuyan as ‘illiterate literacy’ (S.K Bhuyan, Studies in the Literature of Assam) which is undoubtedly a gift of the Sattra and the village namghar. In this way the Sattra and namghar till today are serving as centres of non -formal education in Assam’s villages.

The Bhakti Movement which swept north India, sowed seeds of democracy as it asserted the dignity of the human soul, raised the socially underprivileged to give them equal share of the religious activities. But the Sankaradeva Movement in this respect went a little further so as to raise the people from the lower strata of the caste hierarchy to the position of apostolate or pontifical order. And in the caritas we have several examples how Sankaradeva and Madhavadeva, Aniruddhadeva, Srirama Ata brought up devotees from among the tribes who were considered even outside the traditional caste hierarchy and raised them to the stature of chief apostles. Thus we have Govinda of the Garos, Paramananda of the Miris (Misings), Narottam of the Noctes, Chandsai and Dhyanpati of the Muslims and all of them were endearingly called as atas. Again there were disciples of Gopaladeva who was authorized to establish Sattras for proselytizing people in upper Assam embracing the Misings, The Sonowals, the Barahis, the Marans and the Deuris. Thus Sattras like Gojala, Ceca, Budbari, Dihing etc. have large number of Misings, Sonowals and Deuris as their laity. Simultaneously the Chaliha Bareghar Sattra of Nazira of this sect went to the hills in today’s Arunachal Pradesh to proselytize the Noctes and King Lakha Khunbao of the Noctes became one of the principal devotees of the Sattra. In the same way, Aniruddha, one of the principal apostles of Gopaladeva proselytized mostly among the Marans, the Barahis, the Chutiyas etc and brought into fold one Muslim tailor Dheli. The descendents of this devotee belonging to the Dheli Gaon are still among the prominent disciples of the Mayamara Dinjaya Sattra of Chabua. The Nikamul Sattra of Purussamhati and the Gharamara Sattra of the Brahmasamhati sects also proselyised among the Akas, Dafalas and Hill Miris of the Arunachal Pradesh.
“Performance”, to quote Richard Schechner, “is an illusion of an illusion, and as such, might be considered more ‘truthful’ more ‘real’ than ordinary experience”. Thus the performative texts and the performance situations in which the varied artistic expressions are represented are also trustful representations of social realities and mental horizons of the individual as well as social psyche. They also present a world view of a society to which the performance situations belong. Performance is also the most important and illustrious for that matter, part of these traditions as they communicate a distinct cultural mode, lead the audience and the cognoscenti to a world of joyful experiences and invite their own interpretations. The emergence of Vaisnava Movement in Assam with its idealistic visions brought a new resurgence of humanistic zeal, and it was percolated down to people irrespective of caste hierarchy and social strata. The unity amidst diversity was sought out and the gradual dissemination of Bhakti through dance, music, drama and other fine arts was experimented. It is noteworthy that performance has remained a major interactive medium during the Sankaradeva Movement. The mode of performance was used to unite people from diverse hues under a common shed i.e. Bhagavata religion. Thus, be it theatre, music or dance or even the oral narrations of the Bhagavata, individual expressions imbued with Bhakti came to the fore in their performance. Moreover, there was a gradual convergence of the individual as well as the social self, in its process. The resultant factor was a new awakening in the history of Assamese society and introduction of a new chapter in the field of its cultural history.
PHOTOGRAPH BY AVINASH PASRICHA

It is observed that, with the evolution of Sattras, there has been a constant interaction of these art forms with the other existing traditions of arts. While on the one hand the folk traditions tend to look at their own soil, they also often look up to the great traditions. The constant penetration of ‘Great Art’ into popular levels and the tribal and other folk forms also influenced the form of ‘High Art’. These cultural interactions and mutual exchanges occur at various levels based on surrounding changes and the development of new trends. Moreover, the cultural exchange helped in extending the roots of the Vaisnava ideals of peace and harmony, beliefs of Bhagavata, to various ethnic groups, both tribal and non-tribal.. Today, namghar has become a common ground, a secular platform for various social activities apart from serving as sacred temple. Social structure of Sonowal Kachari includes Bayan, who imparts training in the art of Gayan bayan (a religious dance sequence of Sattriya art). The namghar is a social platform for them, where village disputes are solved and discussions on various affairs are forwarded. Even in the contemporary context, the social life comprising the various tribes together with non tribal communities reflect the greatness of the Sankaradeva Movement, succeeded by the functionaries of various Sattras preserving the ideals of the Mahapurushas, in making of the Assamese life.