Behdienkhlam 2022: Date, history, significance and all you need to know about Meghalaya's harvest festival

Behdienkhlam 2022: Here's all you need to know about the date, history, significance and rituals of the Behdienkhlam festival celebrated in Meghalaya.

Behdienkhlam 2022: It is that time of the year again when the people of Meghalaya mark the festival of Behdienkhlam. It is the most celebrated harvest festival among the Pnars, the followers of the Niamtre tradition or the natives of Jowai. Behdienkhlam, which means chasing away the Demon of Cholera, is celebrated annually in July after the sowing period. People pray for a bumper harvest and seek blessings from their deities - U Mukhai, Mulong, Mooralong and Musniang. Behdienkhlam is also the most important dance festival of the Jaintia tribes, according to the Meghalaya government's official website. However, women do not participate in the dancing, as they offer sacrificial food to the spirits of their forefathers.

When is the Behdienkhlam festival?

This year, the festival will fall on July 14, Thursday. It will take place after three-day celebrations, which will be held from July 11 to 13, 2022. Additionally, the Behdienkhlam festival is native to Jowai, a plateau surrounded by the Jaintia Hills in Meghalaya.

Behdienkhlam 2022 Significance and History:

The ceremony and rituals of the Behdienkhlam festival are carried out for four days. During this festival, young men make a symbolic gesture of driving away the evil spirits, plague and disease by beating the roof of every house with bamboo poles. And on the last day, people dressed up in their best attires gather in a place called Aitnar, both young and old, to dance to the tunes of the pipes and drums.

Additionally, a game similar to football is also played by the people of Meghalaya. It involves a wooden ball and is called dad-lawakor. There is also a symbolic killing of demons in a ritual called 'Cher iung blai', where a thatched hut is made from grass and bamboo. Male members of the tribe come into the thatched hut with spears and symbolically kill the demons inside it. Later, in the evening, the communities partake in a lot of funfairs and merry-making.