All you need to know about Adi’s ‘Solung’ festival celebrated in Arunachal

Solung is a manifestation of the ‘Adi’ festival culture in Arunachal Pradesh. The Adi or ‘Bangni-Boker lhoba’ people are the major collective tribes living in the Himalayan hills of the ‘Nyingchi’ prefecture. Since they belonged to all agricultural communities, the ‘Solung’ festival is primarily connected with the agricultural activities of the people.

The ‘Solung’ of the Adi community can be compared with the three Bihus of the Assamese people, as they are also socio-religious, which has a close connection with agriculture. Prevalent among the Adi community are various myths, stories, faiths, and beliefs about the origin of the ‘Solung’ festival.

John Paling, an Adi youth while talking to India Today NE, said that Solung is celebrated to worship god for prosperity, good harvest, and good cultivation of rice and fruits. Adi community of Arunachal celebrates it with great enthusiasm, Solung is celebrated to protect the crop from insects, sufficient rains, and others.

Chairman of the Solung festival committee Er Nangkong Perme taking to India Today NE, briefed about Soling festival and said that its more than a harvest festival and it also deals with the genesis of the universe, the coming of human being & other living beings to this world. Solung also deals with the things that sustain life, also after civilization came to this world the fight between evil and good is also being dealt with here.

Solung is a festival of humanity, in the olden days it was connected with agricultural activities and now in the modern era, it is celebrated between 1 to 3 September.

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Generally, ‘Solung’ is celebrated in the mid-part of the year i.e. the months of August/September corresponding to the Adi months of ‘Tauno’ and ‘Yio’ respectively. However, ‘Solung’ is celebrated on different days of these months' rent villages. But, usually, the date is fixed by the “Kebang” or the village council depending upon the convenience of the village people. Sometimes, even the ‘Gam’ (headman) can also fix the date of this festival with the consent of other leaders of the village. Once the date of the festival is fixed, the villagers start preparing the ‘rice beer' or ‘Apong’. Plenty of fresh vegetables are also stored for the occasion.

The ‘Solung’ festival continues for seven days. On the very first day, the famous ‘Indian Bison’ or ‘Mithun’ along with pigs are slaughtered in the wee hours of the morning. In the village, a family can sacrifice both Mithun and pig or pig alone depending upon their financial capability. However, on a sacrificial day, no special dinner is offered but ‘Apong’ is prepared in plenty and made available and the meat of the slaughtered animals is preserved for the rest of the days of the festival.

The second day of the ‘Solung’ is generally known as ‘Yegling’. One-third of the preserved meat is distributed among relatives on this particular day. However, on this day a grand and special dinner is arranged especially for neighbours, women, and children. However, ‘Apong’ is prepared on all the days of the Solung festival. On the fourth day of this festival, one of the inmates of the family goes to the field and sacrifices a fowl especially for ‘Kine Nane’. Moreover, a woman or a girl generally offers ‘Etting’ and ‘Apong’ along with the sacrifice for ‘Kine Nane’. This particular day of the festival is called ‘Oinnyad’.

On the last and on seventh day of the Solung festival, men assemble at the village dormitory generally known as ‘Mosup’ to make bows and arrows, which are fastened on the doors of every house in the village. This is done to resist evil spirits from entering the houses. This day is known as ‘Ekob’. On the tenth day of the festival, villagers collectively uproot the weak, plants of paddy, which are being spoiled by worms and insects, and are thrown on a small platform, specially constructed for the purpose, just beside the main path of the village. This act is done to bring to the notice of ‘Kine Nane’ (the Goddess) that the worms and the insects are destroying their paddy crops with the hope that she will drive away the worms and insects out of the fields. This act or process is known as ‘Irni’.