As our days in India came to a close, we got a second permit for Arunachal Pradesh to see the other side. Our trip to Ziro, Daporijo, and Along brought us to villages of Apatani, Nyshi, Tagin, Miri, and Adi people, all of whom are traditionally Sun Worshippers. Due the activities of Christian missionaries, there has been a movement to formalize the traditional religion, giving it the name Donyi-Polo, which means Sun Moon. Along with our trip to Tawang, Bomdilla and Dirang, Arunachal Pradesh is by far my favorite state we visited in India.
Old town Ziro
Stone workers in Ziro
Rice Feild/Fish Farm
Mithun (Arunchali Buffalo) Skulls. These animals are commonly sacrificed during ceremonies.
Hong Village in the morning
The road through rice fields outside Hong Village
The star is a symbol for Christian families in these villages. The Sun is representative of the traditional religion, and is often placed with a moon.
Babo Pole. See this website for some great info on it. http://savetanii.blogspot.com/2007/11/babo-in-tanii-apatani-culture.html Thanks to AG for the link.
Apatani wood worker
Ceremonial Apatani Platform
When we asked our friend what these were, he responded, "This...is our god." Most houses feature one or more of these, often with sacrificed eggs skewered through the reeds.
New friends, Ziro
The hills above Ziro
1 comment:
The photo captioned Donyi-Polo (Sun-Moon) is actually of Babo which is erected during the Apatani Myoko Festival and not of Donyi-Polo.
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