Meetei Mayek Science and cosmology
Letters as a Protection of the Human Body—Another Cosmology
The mystic traditions surrounding Thang-ta are completely hidden
from non-practioners. The following is an excerpt from an interview with
an elder of the community.
“The body of the warrior is protected by the letters of the alphabet
during a combat. Apart from the above, thoughts there is another aspect
of the Meieei mayek. Each of the letters represents a deity and resides in
a part of the human body. And, they are in charge of protecting that part
of the body. The list of letters is as follows:
1. Atiya Sidaba (remain/protects in the front) = “kok”
2. Thongarel (remain/protects the back) = “thou”
3. Koubru (remain/protects the right side) = “atingaa”
4. Nongpok achiba, an incarnation of Sanamahi (remain/protects
the left side) = “pa”
5. Soraren (remain/protects the top) = “til”
6. Lainingthou Sanamahi (remain/protects the forehead) = “lai”
7. Pakhangba (remain/protects the breast) = “kok”
This is one of the most profound bodies of knowledge of the Meetei
community. Our great warrior heroes practiced the worship of these
forces so that during a war their bodies could be protected..."
Anthropological Quarterly, Vol. 82, No. 1, pp. 129–154, ISSN 0003-549. © 2009 by the Institute for Ethnographic Research (IFER) a part of the George Washington University.
