Folk Tales In Meghalaya

Meghalaya, commonly referred to as the “wettest place”, as well as the “abode of clouds” is home to three distinct tribes, namely the Khasis, the Jaintias, and the Garos. I will further limit my concern here to the folk tales which have emerged from the Khasi tribe. Folk tales are a large part of the community, with themes ranging from origin and evolution to the conservation of forests. Folklore of the Khasis has largely been an expression of clan, ethnic and religious identities and of the sanctity of the matrilineal order, social organization, and political system. The people believe in the narratives’ authenticity in describing their ancestry and identity, the religious and ethnic juxtaposed.

Folklore serves as a reflection of a group’s practices or beliefs, one such example is found in the Khasi folk tale, ‘U Kwai, Ka Tympew bad U Shun’ which translated means the story of Beetlenut, Pan and Chuna. According to this lore, there once were two friends who were very fond of each other. One belonged to a wealthier family, and because of his work as a merchant he had to move out of the village. However, the two remained close and their bond only strengthened with time. There came a day, where the wealthier friend told his friend that he would be visiting the village the next day and requested that his friend ask his wife to cook him a delicious meal. Eager and excited, the friend rushed to inform his wife that they were expecting company. Unfortunately the couple discovered