) * Nongthang Lairembi ( omp, Nongthang Lailempi) * Nongthang Lairemma ( omp, Nongthang Lailemma) * Langmai Sana Chingjaroibi ( omp, Langmai Sana Chingchaloipi) , hiro = , Old_Norse = , script_name = , script = , affiliation =

Meitei mythology Meitei mythology or Manipuri mythology ( mni, Meitei Mi Lai Tingi Wari) is a collection of myths, belonging to the religious and cultural traditions of the Meitei people, the predominant ethnic group of Manipur. It is associated with tradi ...

(

Manipuri mythology Meitei mythology or Manipuri mythology ( mni, Meitei Mi Lai Tingi Wari) is a collection of myths, belonging to the religious and cultural traditions of the Meitei people, the predominant ethnic group of Manipur. It is associated with tradi ...

) and

Meitei religion () , native_name_lang = mni , image = The Symbol of Sanamahi.svg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = The Symbol of Sanamahism (Source: Wakoklon Heelel Thilen Salai Amailon Pukok Puya) , ...

(

Sanamahism () , native_name_lang = mni , image = The Symbol of Sanamahi.svg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = The Symbol of Sanamahism (Source: Wakoklon Heelel Thilen Salai Amailon Pukok Puya) , ...

) , cult_center = , abode =

Heaven Heaven or the heavens, is a common religious cosmological or transcendent supernatural place where beings such as deities, angels, souls, saints, or venerated ancestors are said to originate, be enthroned, or reside. According to the belie ...

, planet = , weapon = , battles = , artifacts = , animals = , symbols = thunder and lightning , adherents = , height = , age = , tree = , day = , color = , number = , consorts =

Sanamahi Laininthou Sanamahee (Meetei: ꯂꯥꯏꯅꯤꯡꯊꯧ ꯁꯥꯅꯥꯃꯍꯤ) is the Supreme Guardian God of mankind and the supreme deity of the household in Meetei religion and mythology. He originated from the ancient kingdom of Kangleipak ...

and

Pakhangba Pakhangba ( mni, , omp, ) is a primordial deity, often represented in the form of a dragon, in Meitei mythology and religion. He is depicted in the heraldry of Manipur kingdom, which originated in ''paphal'' ( mni, ), the mythical illu ...

, father = Salailen (or Atingkok) , siblings =

and

, offspring = Laisang Khekwaiba (with

) , predecessor = , successor = , army = , mount = , texts = Leithak Leikharol , gender = Female , Greek_equivalent =

Astrape and Bronte Astrape and Bronte (Ancient Greek: Astrapē", lit. "Lightning" Brontē", lit. "Thunder" are, in Greek mythology, the goddesses of lightning and thunder. As members of Zeus' entourage, they were his shield bearers, given the task of carrying his ...

, Roman_equivalent =

Fulgora :''This article refers to the insect genus; for the Roman mythological figure, see Fulgora (mythology)'' The fulgorid genus ''Fulgora'' contains several large Central and South American planthoppers known by a large variety of common names inclu ...

, Etruscan_equivalent = , Christian_equivalent = , Slavic_equivalent = , Hinduism_equivalent = , Canaanite_equivalent = , equivalent1_type = , equivalent1 = , equivalent2_type = , equivalent2 = , region = Ancient Kangleipak (

Antique Manipur An antique ( la, antiquus; 'old', 'ancient') is an item perceived as having value because of its aesthetic or historical significance, and often defined as at least 100 years old (or some other limit), although the term is often used loosely ...

) , ethnic_group =

Meitei ethnicity The Meitei people, also known as the Manipuri people,P.20: "historically, academically and conventionally Manipuri prominently refers to the Meetei people."P.24: "For the Meeteis, Manipuris comprise Meeteis, Lois, Kukis, Nagas and Pangal." is ...

, festivals =

Lai Haraoba Lai Haraoba is a festival associated with the Meitei people celebrated to please the Umang Lai, the traditional Deity, deities of Sanamahism. Translated, Lai Haraoba means ''merry making of the Gods'' in Meitei language, Meiteilon. In this festi ...

Nongthang Leima ( mni, ꯅꯣꯡꯊꯥꯡ ꯂꯩꯃ) is the goddess of

seduction Seduction has multiple meanings. Platonically, it can mean "to persuade to disobedience or disloyalty", or "to lead astray, usually by persuasion or false promises". Strategies of seduction include conversation and sexual scripts, paralingual ...

thunder Thunder is the sound caused by lightning. Depending upon the distance from and nature of the lightning, it can range from a long, low rumble to a sudden, loud crack. The sudden increase in temperature and hence pressure caused by the lightning pr ...

and

lightning Lightning is a naturally occurring electrostatic discharge during which two electric charge, electrically charged regions, both in the atmosphere or with one on the land, ground, temporarily neutralize themselves, causing the instantaneous ...

and

religion Religion is usually defined as a social- cultural system of designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relates humanity to supernatural, ...

. She was created by Atingkok (or Salailen) to attract Haraba (Pakhangba). She mastered

and

in the

chaos Chaos or CHAOS may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional elements * Chaos (''Kinnikuman'') * Chaos (''Sailor Moon'') * Chaos (''Sesame Park'') * Chaos (''Warhammer'') * Chaos, in ''Fabula Nova Crystallis Final Fantasy'' * Cha ...

in the early world. She predicted the first

rain Rain is water droplets that have condensed from atmospheric water vapor and then fall under gravity. Rain is a major component of the water cycle and is responsible for depositing most of the fresh water on the Earth. It provides water f ...

. She limits the chaos and helps creation.

Etymology

The female first name "Nongthang Leima" (ꯅꯣꯡꯊꯥꯡ ꯂꯩꯃ) is made up of two

Meitei language Meitei (), also known as Manipuri (, ), is a Tibeto-Burman language of north-eastern India. It is spoken by around 1.8 million people, predominantly in the state of Manipur, but also by smaller communities in the rest of the country and in pa ...

words, "Nongthang" (ꯅꯣꯡꯊꯥꯡ, /noŋ.tʰáŋ/) and "Leima" (ꯂꯩꯃ, /lə́i.ma/). In

(

Manipuri language Meitei (), also known as Manipuri (, ), is a Tibeto-Burman language of north-eastern India. It is spoken by around 1.8 million people, predominantly in the state of Manipur, but also by smaller communities in the rest of the country and in pa ...

), "Nongthang" (ꯅꯣꯡꯊꯥꯡ, /noŋ.tʰáŋ/) means

. The word "Nongthang" (ꯅꯣꯡꯊꯥꯡ, /noŋ.tʰáŋ/) itself is also made up of two words, "Nong" (ꯅꯣꯡ, /noŋ/) and "Thāng" (ꯊꯥꯡ, /tʰáŋ/). "Nong" (ꯅꯣꯡ, /noŋ/) means

and "Thāng" (ꯊꯥꯡ, /tʰáŋ/) means

sword A sword is an edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter blade with a pointed ti ...

. In

(

), "Leima" (ꯂꯩꯃ, /lə́i.ma/) means

queen Queen or QUEEN may refer to: Monarchy * Queen regnant, a female monarch of a Kingdom ** List of queens regnant * Queen consort, the wife of a reigning king * Queen dowager, the widow of a king * Queen mother, a queen dowager who is the mother ...

. The word "Leima" (ꯂꯩꯃ, /lə́i.ma/) itself is made up of two words "Lei" (ꯂꯩ, /lə́i/) and "Ma" (ꯃ, /ma/). "Lei" (ꯂꯩ, /lə́i/) means

land Land, also known as dry land, ground, or earth, is the solid terrestrial surface of the planet Earth that is not submerged by the ocean or other bodies of water. It makes up 29% of Earth's surface and includes the continents and various islan ...

and "Ma" (ꯃ, /ma/) means

mother ] A mother is the female parent of a child. A woman may be considered a mother by virtue of having given childbirth, birth, by raising a child who may or may not be her biological offspring, or by supplying her ovum for fertilisation in the cas ...

Description

Nongthang Leima is a pre-historical

maibi Maibi are the priestess of Manipur Kingdom commonly known for performing religious rites. They are considered as shamans as well as midwives. They possess various skills of religious activities and ancient medicinal knowledge. See also Sanamahis ...

. She is the first goddess

to compose a dance form. Later, her dance form was repossessed by other goddesses.

Mythology

Birth

(Ashiba) was creating the earth. But he was frequently disturbed by his younger brother,

(Haraba). Unable to do any work, Sanamahi complained about the matter to their father, Salailen (or Atingkok according to different versions of stories). Salailen produced a divine feminine being. He released her into the great

space Space is the boundless three-dimensional extent in which objects and events have relative position and direction. In classical physics, physical space is often conceived in three linear dimensions, although modern physicists usually consider ...

(

void Void may refer to: Science, engineering, and technology * Void (astronomy), the spaces between galaxy filaments that contain no galaxies * Void (composites), a pore that remains unoccupied in a composite material * Void, synonym for vacuum, a ...

) of the

universe The universe is all of space and time and their contents, including planets, stars, galaxies, and all other forms of matter and energy. The Big Bang theory is the prevailing cosmological description of the development of the universe. Acc ...

(

cosmos The cosmos (, ) is another name for the Universe. Using the word ''cosmos'' implies viewing the universe as a complex and orderly system or entity. The cosmos, and understandings of the reasons for its existence and significance, are studied in ...

). In the vast emptiness of the great space (void), the divine feminine being became a beautiful and radiant goddess. She was named "Nongthang Leima", the Queen of

Lightning Lightning is a naturally occurring electrostatic discharge during which two electric charge, electrically charged regions, both in the atmosphere or with one on the land, ground, temporarily neutralize themselves, causing the instantaneous ...

. In another version of the story, Sidaba ordered Sidabi to produce "Nongthang Leima", the divine female being to lure the destroyer from the cosmic creation.

Seduction (Attraction)

Nongthang Leima, the Queen of

, filled the empty

(void) with bright light. Seeing her,

(Haraba) fell in love with her. He forgot about bothering his elder brother in the creation of the earth. Haraba came to her in the great space. During that time,

(Ashiba) completed his creation of the

earth Earth is the third planet from the Sun and the only astronomical object known to harbor life. While large volumes of water can be found throughout the Solar System, only Earth sustains liquid surface water. About 71% of Earth's surfa ...

Family

When Ashiba (Sanamahi) saw Nongthang Leima, he wanted to marry her. Thus, they united. So, Nongthang Leima was the wife of both

(Ashiba) and

(Haraba). Nongthang Leima is also known as ''Langmai Sana Chingjaroibi'' ( omp, Langmai Sana Chingchaloipi). With the union of Chingjaroibi and Sanamahi, a son named Laisang Khekwaiba was born.

Two divine forms

According to "Politics, society, and cosmology in India's North East" written by N. Vijaylakshmi, the goddess Nongthang Leima (Nongthang Lairembi) took two divine forms after the completion of the creation of the earth. One form is

Panthoibi ) , deity_of = Goddess of civilization, courage, fertility, handicraft, love, victory, warfare and wisdom , member_of = Lairembis and Umang Lais , image = PANTHOIPI.jpg , alt = , caption = Goddess Panthoipi char ...

. This form lives in the home of gods. Another form is "Apanthoibi". This form lives among the living beings.

Music

Among the nine forms of musical rhythms (''Seisak''s) of

Pena (musical instrument) Pena is a mono string instrument falling in the lute category, slightly similar to some of the traditional Indian stringed musical instruments such as the ravanahatha, ''ubo'' or the ''kenda''. It is the traditional musical instrument of Manip ...

, Nongthang Leima Seisak is one. All these rhythms are categorised into three movements, slow rhythm, medium rhythm and fast rhythm. Nongthang Leima song belongs to the fast rhythm.

Festival

During the

festival, devotees dance to please various deities. Among them, male dancers act after the styles of Haraba (alias Pakhangba) and female dancers act after the styles of goddess Nongthang Leima. Goddess Nongthang Leima represents the lightning.

Identification with other deities

Goddess Nongthang Leima is often identified as

Leimarel Sidabi ) , deity_of = Goddess of earth, nature and household , member_of = Imung Lais , image = Relief art depicting Salailen (Salailel), the Supreme God, creating Leimalen (Leimalel), the first female being in the universe, according ...

. The former is considered as an incarnation of the latter.Kaushal, Molly; Arts, Indira Gandhi National Centre for the (2001). Chanted Narratives: The Living "katha-vachana" Tradition. Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts. p. 250. ISBN 978-81-246-0182-2.

References

External links

E-PAO, Nongthang Leima

INTERNET ARCHIVE, Nongthang Leima
{{Sanamahi1 Beauty goddesses Dance goddesses Fertility goddesses Leima Light goddesses Love and lust goddesses Magic goddesses Meitei gods and goddesses Music and singing goddesses Names of God in Sanamahism Nature goddesses Peace goddesses Savior goddesses Sky and weather goddesses Thunder goddesses Trickster goddesses