Kati Bihu: Know its significance and how Assam celebrate the festival

BY-Lipika Roy

GUWAHATI: Kati Bihu is also known as Kongali Bihu, the auspicious festival celebrated in the state Assam has marked today with the first day of the Assamese month Kati.

Kati Bihu is one of Assam's three Bihu celebrations, observed in the middle of October.

When compared to the other two Bihu festivals, Kati Bihu is quieter and less festive.

This Bihu is marked by a sense of solemnity, as the granaries are mostly empty at this time of year.

The word "kongali" signifies "poverty," implying that barns are empty and food is limited. Paddy is growing in the fields at this time of year, and farmers are praying to God for a bountiful harvest.

People light clay 'Diya (lamp) in front of the tulsi plant, the granary, the garden, and the rice fields on this Bihu.

Importance of Kati Bihu:

The Bihu signifies the relocation of the rice crop, which is an important stage in the paddy crop's life cycle.

To fight off evil spirits and pests, farmers burn candles at the foot of the Tulsi plant at home, whirl a piece of bamboo in the fields, and perform rowa-khowa chants.

This day is also considered auspicious since it is thought that the spirits of the ancestors will visit to bestow blessings, therefore Assamese peasants will burn Akaxbonti lamps on top of bamboo sticks to guide these spirits the way to heaven.

Although this festival is nowadays celebrated in a very different way than it was in the past, its essential ideals have not changed. Even though Kati Bihu is mainly about penance and worship, the Bihu dance is performed at all Bihu celebrations.

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Significance of Kati Bihu: 

Bihus, Assam's major festivals, are celebrated with great zeal and enthusiasm, and the people's spirits are at an all-time high, with the entire state joining together to celebrate. It is a unique celebration in that it surpasses caste, religion, and social class, bringing people from all walks of life together to celebrate this colourful occasion.

How Assam celebrates the festival with rituals and customs: 

Goddess Laxmi, who is worshipped as the distributer of wealth to mortal souls, is worshipped and welcomed into homes on the day of Kongali Bihu.

In the evening, sakis (earthen lamps) are lit at the foot of the Tulsi (basil) plant, which is revered and auspicious in Hindu religion and culture.

Offerings are made in every family, followed by the lighting of more earthen lanterns in the granaries, gardens, and paddy fields, as well as prayers for a bountiful harvest.

These lamps, paired with the whirling of bamboo sticks while reciting rowa khowa chants, are thought to keep pests and evil eyes away from the crops, resulting in a rich harvest.

The cattle are also fed Pitha (rice cakes) in the evening, and the Akaxbonti lamps (sky lamps) are lit at the tip of the bamboo pole.

This sacrificial practice is thought to pave the path for the souls of the dead to ascend to the skies.

People visit one other's homes after the ceremonial action of lighting these lamps and exchange greetings and sweets.

Assam is preparing to welcome the Kati Bihu, with throngs of people flocking to the daily markets to buy the Bihu's basics such as Diyas, coconut, tulsi plant, and other components for Prasad.

On this auspicious day state Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma took to Twitter and extending greetings to everyone wrote, "On this auspicious day of Kati Bihu, I pray to God for the well-being of the people and may the 'Diya' under the tulsi plant and the light of the 'Akaxbonti lamps' light up the storehouse of the people."

"কাতি বিহুৰ এই পৱিত্ৰ দিনটোত অসমবাসীৰ মংগল কামনাৰে ভগৱন্তৰ ওচৰত প্ৰাৰ্থনা জনাইছোঁ যাতে তুলসী তলৰ চাকিগছি আৰু আকাশবন্তিৰ আলোকে চহা ৰাইজৰ ভঁৰালঘৰ উজলাই তোলে, লখিমীৰে উপচি পৰে আমাৰ ভঁৰাল।," CM Sarma tweeted in Assamese.