Central Repository of Umanglai Culture of Manipur

Title: Central Repository of Umanglai Culture of Manipur
Author: Thounaojam Ruhichand

ISBN:  978-93-86934-16-1

About the Author:
Dr. Thounaojam Ruhichand is currently working as Assitant Professor at Manipur University of Culture.

About the Book:

Umanglai Haraoba is a ritual and religious festival consisting of fertility rites and ancestors’ worship. It also reveals the Cosmogony-theory of the creation of the Universe then the Earth; Evolution theory of the living creatures especially human being, etc. But, still the Umanglai culture, cultural powerhouse with thousands of years of history, has not got the worldwide recognition. Even in Manipur, the Umanglai culture is losing its prominence. Among the various factors for this situation, a major reason is lack of sufficient research and proper information support system. Even the study and research activities taking place in the various parts of the state are not properly coordinated. They are carried out in isolation. Most of the traditional knowledge of Umanglai culture remained in oral form and are in danger of dying if they are not documented and preserve properly in a central repository for long term preservation, easy retrieval and global access.

Regarding the potential contribution to knowledge in the field of Social relevance or National Importance, the present study will contribute to knowledge in the field of Social Science with respect to the unique cultural heritage of Meitei and Worship of Umang Lai (Ancestral Deities); its documented information will be of great value for research scholars of south-East Asian Countries to explore the formation of cultural identities and cross-cultural relations in South-East Asian region. The present study aims to develop an effective central repository of traditional knowledge of Manipur with special reference to Umanglai culture.  The major objectives of the study include: (i) to study the rich cultural heritage/traditional knowledge of Manipur (ii) to examine traditional knowledge  development programmes/systems adopted by government agencies, NGOs, museums, private cultural centres of Manipur (iii) to study for digital documentation of Umanglai culture for wider access (iv) to analyze traditional knowledge centres in the state (v) to identify various information channels and sources (vi) to assess the problems encountered by the centres (vii) to develop a suitable and conceptual traditional knowledge support system and network for easy retrieval and accessibility, etc.