Documenting the Past: A Study of the Oral Historical Traditions in the Teok Revenue Circle, Jorhat District,Assam.(2021)

The principal aim in our research project was to reconstruct the past by sourcing and documenting the oral traditions of the area, wherein a lot of data can remain stored, yet undetected, for researchers , to process and build up their frameworks. The area of study were the Bamunpukhuri, Ouguri and Chintamonigarh regions of Teok Revenue Circle .We also tried to look into the influence of globalization in the development of the area and the interplay and juxtaposition of memories within  the rural –urban divide. So, what we aimed in our study was basically to reconstruct the history of the region through the analysis of the oral testimonies. There are specific features of the area under study and one of the important distinctive features is that the extant literature on the history of the Teok Revenue Circle is scanty and most information lies scattered merely as passing references in established literature. Another important distinctive feature is that the Teok Revenue Circle lies almost equidistant from the major Ahom power centres like Garhgaon, Rangpur and Jorhat and which was a node in their supply and communications network. What we gathered information from our study is significant in terms of the peculiarities of the oral traditions and other social distinctions which has made the study area more interesting .The  research project helps us to bring into light some important aspects of level of  literacy and how through the better educational facilities in a specific region could enlighten the people in a much better way about their historical relevance of their place of living. One of the major findings of the work is that a significant number of respondents , cutting across all age groups , have discounted the blind belief in myths due to the advent of modern education, technology and exposure to the wider world .The project work has helped us to know that while the historical ruins of the Bamunpukhuri area are preserved in a better way , those in the Ouguri and the Chintamonigarj have suffered the most due to very poor connectivity until recently.There is another finding is that among all the three regions , the Ouguri region has a rampant prevalence of alcoholism among the youth . The age –old traditions like Bhangmuwa Naam, Barxik Naam, Mohor-Gowalor Xokaam, Ai Xobha, Na Khowa, Navagraha Puja , Sraddha ceremonies ,etc. are still observed in the villages of all the three regions.Another major feature of those regions is that the general abstinence from pork and poultry among the population of these areas. The mythical beliefs of the people have been continuous relevance among the older groups of people who are not educated  and poor in material conditions also but the educated representatives of those villages in a certain way has sought to question the rationality of those myth which is one of the big contribution brought by the modern education system to build up a scientific –modern knowledge based society.The oral tradition and their different forms have always been related with their mode of living and mode of production relation in the particular stage of their development of their social system.