Tai Phakeyals celebrate Water Festival

BY Our Staff Reporter

Guwahati, April 15: Clad in traditiol attire, the young and the old of Tai Phakey community celebrated Poi Sangken or Water Festival - the main festival of the community with religious fervor.

The revered Buddhist Mostery at m Phakey near harkatiya in Dibrugarh district wore a festive look since Wednesday when the three-day festival commenced on Sankranti day.

The Tai Phakeyals bring water from the nearby Buri Dihing river and splash it in the mostery to clean it as part of the 52-hour festival.

"With a population of around 3,000, the Tai Phakeyals are the world's smallest community. This m Phakey village is the only village inhabited exclusively by Tai Phakeyals. There are around 90 families in the village, with around 500 people. Those members who are staying elsewhere religiously come home during this time of the year to celebrate the festival. It is said that if one seeks blessings from elders and pays obeisance at temples on Sankranti day, it keeps them away from any harm or evil," says the Bhante of the mostery.

The mostery was established in 1850 and since then, the people of the community have been observing the festival every year.

The Tai Phakeyals had migrated from Yunn. They had first settled at the Mukong valley of Aruchal Pradesh and then at Jorhat before the Burmese invasions forced them to move to harkatiya.