Mehouviu and Morusa: A Naga Folktale

 Omugha

 Oishe! Oghoshi, Oloshi

Tishe tiye shie.

Nono muzu aye,

Olomino sakiche ju aloino alo.

Nono tughu aye, Olomino pite

Chejupuqho, chejupiqhi tsala phi wolo.

Tinhe mugha ye ghochile nicheke,

Timi xuye pechile mulae.

Hino omugha ye,

Omulo, muku haye lo.

Atsala phiwo chaye

            Lojilimi nono,

            Kulapu-u lumo.

            Lumo aye-uno

            Aghino woye,

            Aghi kuwo sheye

            Oishe tiye shekhanike kumoe.

            Oishe! Timi,

            Osaluni kemi,

            Aqhi phi,

            Atsala phiwo chaye.

            Oishe! Akithi no kulu,

            kulu, phewo chaye

            Oishe! Akini no axe,

            Axe shiwo chaye.

            Oishe! Ongu

            saluni aye,

            Atsala hinoye,

            Atsala phiwo chaye

Ghokile (Song of Ghokimi village)

 Lyrics of song 

Holo hovaye, Ishe henilo,Sülo Shenilo

Ishe kucho vekhomla, ishe kucho vexamla 

Lojiliu nono külaku-u lumoniye aghi kuo sheye 

Nono sheye shekhamla aye

Süphano pu akinino axishiwo cheye

Akithino kulukiphe aunhe shiwo cheya.

Lojiliu onguno osaluni aye

Oxeuno sasü atsala phi aghulo phiwocheya. 

                                Lojiliu noye atsamügha shikutunu aye

                                                        Holo hovaya, Ishehenilo, sülo

Meaning

Hola hovaye, ishe henilo, sulo shenilo

Sadly but truly no one can come in between us, no one can separate us.

My lover, to avoid marriage you are waiting for paddy to bloom.

You are trying your best to avoid.

Cotton plants are blooming, perilla plants are setting seeds.

Job'stear plants are about to bloom.

My lover, your to be father- in- law is coming soon to take you.

Your to be husband and to be father-in-law are counting the days to come and take you. 

My lover, you must complete all your garments to go.

Hola hovaye,ishe henilo, sulo shenilo.

Baghile 

        Oho ishe kuchou aghauno thosu

        Lojilimi sasu akelo kichelu shi aye.

        Timi kuxu khiuno hilenoxu

        Ipu iza ghoshi khe lumoye.

        Akithi kumo dolo kughuna nikeno

        Cheju-puqho cheju-piqhi

        Aghomi alomi kilo wonithono

        Holo hova ishe henilo, sulo shenilo

Meaning of the song in English:

Oh! Even the birds are with its lover

With my lover, I  will sit on top of the tree.

How can humanely lovers agree to the proposal of their parents?

Parents' choice cannot be fulfilled always rather choose partners for ourselves.

Till the death do us apart we will live together

Studying every detail of my love

And marry the best one.

Momola: An offering to the river

 According to a Chang (Naga) legend, there once lived a girl by the name, Momola. One day, her mother took her fishing. Both tried their best but could not catch even a single fish. The frustrated mother at last made a promise: if the river blesses her with fish, she would offer Momola to the river. As soon as she uttered that word, they were blessed with abundant fish. But the mother did not keep her promise. So, the water level rose to an unmeasured height and flooded the world with a roaring sound like ‘Mo Mo Mo’ (meaning to call Momola). 

The world then grumbled to Momola's mother that one should keep one's word. At last, Momola was given to the river, and the water level normalized. It was believed that when the water rose to its height, all the living creatures gathered at Mount Ngakushon, Mount Yengni and Mount Longshon respectively. 

After the water normalized, Momola's mother went in search of her daughter. She came across two big fish, and to her surprise, one appeared to be half fish and half woman. It happened to be Momola transformed into "Mermaid." 

As time passed, Momola gave birth to a tiny fish, and one day, went to meet her families, keeping her little one in a manger. When she returned, her little one was gone, and she started to make inquiries. To her surprise, it so happened that her relatives, thinking that she brought the tiny fish as gift, ate her little one.   Momola, with much pain, began to worry about what explanation she would give to her sea fish partner. She then asked the relatives whether they had left even a bone. To her fortune, there was one. She then, transformed it into a tiny fish and went back. Momola's partner asked why their little one became weak and thin. Momola replied that it was because her uncle was hurt by her long disappearance.   The Chang believed that uncles are not to be hurt and must be kept happy. Otherwise, something bad happens to whoever hurts them. The Chang named that peculiar type of fish as "Mong", which is not consumed, as it was believed that it was transformed from human.

Mehouviu and Morusa: A Naga Folktale

Mehouviu and Morusa is a Naga folktale. The story is about a young girl, Mehouviu, and a young warrior, Morusa, who lived in different villages.

Long ago there was once a girl name Mehouviü. She was the wisest maiden of her village. Added to that blessing, she possessed a very pleasing personality. There were many young men in her village who courted her, but she felt that she was not ready to take any one of them as husband.  

Morusa was a famous warrior of Kidima. He was tall and strong and already had taken many heads. In the neighboring villages, there were few who had not heard of him. Mehouviü’s refusal of marriage to any man in her village could probably have been due to the fact that some of her friends had told her of the warrior, Morusa, who could possibly become a suitor.  

Morusa's uncle advised him to take a wife and when someone suggested the virtuous Mehouviü, the warrior agreed to the proposal.  

Morusa and Mehouviü lived in the age where honor and reputation were highly valued. The quest for honor drove man into the battlefield again and again. Warriors killed enemy warriors in order to take their heads as trophies. That was the life Morusa lived.  

Everything would have gone smoothly if the two had not lived in this age. It endangered his life to the extent that he could not indulge in the ordinary courtship of his betrothed. He could not visit her and indulge in the engaging, long talks that were the privilege of betrothed couples. So, he was preparing to marry a woman he had never seen though he had heard enough good reports.  

Meanwhile Mehouviü was happy. She feasted her female friends and waited for her wedding day. However, a few weeks before the wedding, she had the strangest dreams. She dreamed she was in Morusa's house with a heaped plate of rice and meat set before her. Her listeners thought it was simply a foretaste of things to come. When they were married, she would become a member of Morusa's rich household. She dreamt this dream repeatedly.  

With few days left before the wedding, Morusa became restless. He wanted to impress his bride by doing something of note and prove himself a worthy suitor.  

So, he set out on his quest, and on that day, he did not encounter any enemy warriors at all. He decided to travel further. As fate would have it, his steps led him to a village that was unknown to him, the village of his beloved Mehouviü.  

The village inhabitants were away in their fields so it was quite deserted. However, he spied a woman weaving at her porch. She had very long hair, was attractive and tall. The warrior hesitated a little to kill such a well-formed woman. Yet even as he wavered, he noticed her lustrous hair and thought how well it would look as an ornament of war. So, he swiftly stepped up to her, taking her by complete surprise. He slid her weaving loom off and drove his spear into her heart. Next, he took her head as a trophy and proudly bore it home.  

The two villages of the betrothed couple were some distance away from each other. Mehouviü's relatives were heartbroken to discover her killing just days before her wedding. They sent messenger to Morusa's village where the preparations were underway. The sad news of her death was brought to Morusa as well as the fact that she had been slain by a warrior. Morusa was grief-stricken.  

Later Morusa and his relatives pieced together the bits of information they had on the whereabouts of the two and they came to the sad realization that Morusa had unknowingly killed his own beloved. The shock and grief of both clans were unimaginable.  

The moral of the Naga folktale Mehouviu and Morusa is to discourage head-hunting. The story reflects the glory and tragic consequences of head-hunting in the olden days.