Renewing brotherhood bonds‘Silent’ Makhel stone ‘has spoken’

By Our Staff Reporter
IMPHAL, Dec 4 : The “silent Makhel Stone has spoken” bringing the different communities of Manipur closer and renewing their bonds as brothers, said villagers of Makhel.
Makhel village is about 90 kilometers from Imphal and it sits in Tadubi sub-division of Senapati district. It has about 300 Mao households.
The Makhel village holds a sacred place in the history of Manipur and it has a tale that tells the story of origin of different communities in the State and beyond.
Dr Puni Losii Mao, who has a doctorate degree for his thesis on the topic “Origin Culture And Political Development of Mao in Manipur”, has this tale to tell as he was told by elders of Makhel.
Makhel was once lived by brothers.
One went to Assam and was named Ahom. Another went to reside in the valley and was called Meitei. One stayed behind at Makhel and was called Mao. Like this, all the brothers, Tangkhul, Maram, Poumai went in different directions.
Before bidding goodbyes to each other and going their separate ways, they all had one last feast together at Makhel.
For the feast, Meitei produced one fish. Ahom brought a rooster and Mao and others produced one Mithun (Sandang). They all had their last feast together and went different directions, Dr Puni said.
Ahom, when he left Makhel, fell a large Uyok tree and carried with him the base part of the trunk.
Meitei, when he left Makhel for the valley, crossed the Barak river. He rested on the bank of the river and had a meal. He then erected a stone on the bank of the river. The stone still exists today.
Meitei then traversed through the Koubru Mountain and climbed down at Khonghampat. He then laid out some Paan (Taro) on the ground and it sprouted new leaves. An egg he brought from Makhel also hatched and grew into a big rooster. As such, he got the idea that the area was favourable for settlement. Thus, people began to settle in the valley.
Before they went different directions, at Makhel, they had also inscribed writings on a large stone [Makhel Stone] they erected. With age and the inscriptions fading away, no one is able to read it.
Beside this, Ahom wrote some inscriptions on leaves and the hill communities on skin of animals, said Dr Puni.
The stone, the brothers of Manipur had erected at Makhel was silent for a long time. But, now it has spoken, bringing the different communities closer, Makhel villagers said.
They appreciated the present Government for its initiatives to revive the cultural heritage at Makhel.
The villagers have been guarding the stone with care and concern that time may break it. With a heritage site developed, the culture and history it has will be preserved for generations to come. This sacred site has now brought the communities closer, they said.
The villagers hoped that the Government would continue to look after the site and take up all efforts to restore the past glory.
When The Sangai Express spoke to a Government official, he said the site and the Makhel stone was under preservation since the last one year. To protect the stone from rains and weather, a roof has been constructed.
Beside preserving the Makhel stone, a replica was also made and installed at a bigger site in the village and was inaugurated as “Manipur Heritage Site Makhel” by Chief Minister N Biren Singh on November 26, he said.
Notably, the heritage site was inaugurated as part of the just concluded Manipur Sangai Festival 2022.
The open air heritage site has two wings with a total seating capacity of 800. The “theatre” [site] can host a number of cultural events. It has a museum, a conference hall, cafeteria, and two cottages for tourists.
Although, the road leading to the site has not been blacktopped yet. The heritage site was developed with the aim to preserve the cultural and historical values and also promote tourism, he added.