Threads that Hold a Civilization: GI Tagged Textiles of Manipur #bharatkisoch

Added: 2026-05-31

[00:00:00]The traditional weaving traditions of Manipur among the Mati community >> into the binary of the craft and knowledge in Manipur. The weaving itself is not an occupational skill when it comes to Manipur. Oral knowledge but it is also a codified knowledge among the matees. The element of matrinal inheritance and the haptic wisdom attached to weaving taught from the mother to the daughter. So the home has become the pedagogical site. Moang fi where the only floating leg in the world which is called lo it is very famous for its border which we call it fizzin our first king we believe that he can even shape shift so he is half the dragon hat and the serpent body because it's a meat so the symbol of this border is teeth of the ibu pakama something like code where we can scan and which not only gives the product detail but also also gives the voice of the real weaver, the actual weaver.

[00:01:03]>> Namaskar viewers and her heartiest welcome to this podcast segment of Bharat Kiso. Bharat Kiso is a think tank inspired by ancient Indian wisdom. We believe that there is a vast mine of information and knowledge contained in our ancient Indian scriptures that can be explored and utilized to build a resilient and progressive bhat that can contribute significantly and substantially towards our goal of Vix Bhat by 2047. There are six verticals or research areas along which we are doing work at present. These are governance, environment and sustainability, economy, commerce and finance, agriculture and food security, nutrition, health and well-being and national security. Today we are joined by Dr. Sophia Lissam. Dr. Lissam is a doctorate in sociology from the nation's prestigious and premier university.

[00:01:58]I welcome Dr. Lissam to the today's podcast segment.

[00:02:02]>> Thank you Dr. Dr. Anan and it is truly a pleasure to be here today and to have the opportunity to reflect on my work.

[00:02:08]Thank you so much.

[00:02:10]>> Dr. Lisa, you have written a powerful and evocative article titled Threats That Hold the Civilization. The title itself is quite catchy and intriguing.

[00:02:19]So please help us our viewers unpack these layered meanings and how how do we look at the traditional weaving traditions of Manipur among the Mati community to which you also belong and please throw some light on the GI tag textiles of Manipur that mentioned in your article.

[00:02:36]>> Uh thank you Dr. Anan. To understand the loom in Manipur, one have to begin by stepping into the binary of the craft and knowledge in Manipur. Because the weaving itself is not an occupational skill when it comes to Manipur. It is an ontological act and it is also a participation into the cosmological order and you will understand why I have mentioned the cosmological order. So let me begin from the mate belief because gite textile of Manipur. We have currently three uh textile which belong to the mate community and which which was recognized in 2014. And I hope the textile traditional textile of other communities which are on the pipeline should also become uh recognized very soon. So in the mate belief uh we have the uh supreme goddess uh leel sidabi.

[00:03:27]So we believe that the art of weaving was introduced by the goddess herself to the humanity. So uh the epistemology and the cosmology has been attached to this belief. And in order to understand uh this cosmological order we have uh the ancient manuscript which is called puya.

[00:03:48]Puyas are the ancient manuscript of manipur which is written in the mate script. So uh one of the uh revert puya which is known as the lenum lol puya. In this puya it has been mentioned that the discovery of uh the sacred thread which is cotton and uh the knowledge of weaving has been mentioned in this pua.

[00:04:07]So it is uh not only u oral knowledge but it is also a codified knowledge among the matees. What makes this epistemology particularly remarkable in Manipur is uh the element of matrinal inheritance and the haptic wisdom attached to weaving because uh the weaving itself in Manipur has a matrinal lineage because it is taught from the mother to the daughter. So the home has become the pedagogical site among the mates when it comes to the loom.

[00:04:42]>> Wow. Interesting. So uh now when we come to the uh 3GC textile the first textile let us discuss from the semiotic field because it is very reads in nature and we will discuss the motive the design and the type of thread that that has been chosen for this traditional textile. So so let me start with the first gi textile which is uh in our indigenous term we call it safi lani and also known as manafi. So let me come to the literal meaning of this uh textile safi because sa is animal um in manipuri. So it's uh the cloth with animal motive and lani lan is war. So it is um a symbol of the victorious warrior. So it is believed that this cloth safani has been bestowed by the king to the warrior. The victorious warrior. So again why it is also called manafi is mana is uh the reward. So fee is cloth. So safi lani itself is a cloth which is attached to the symbol of the victory. So >> this is the first gi textile of manipur. The second GI textile is known as um Moang Fee. And I think most of the viewers would also have uh been heard about the Moang which is uh where the only floating lect in the world which is called Lak is located in the Moang and in Moang they have their own uh like epic which is known as Ka toy.

[00:06:16]So um the very uh textile which is known as moangi is dedicated to this epic called kayen toi and it is very famous for its border which we call it fizzin.

[00:06:29]Here also you can see the similar kind of border.

[00:06:32]>> So uh this symbolize the teeth of the first king of the mate. We are the matees are ancestor woripper and um our first king we believe that he can even shape shift. So he is half uh the dragon head and the serpent body because it's a meat and >> uh he can also become the human the king and he can also se shift to the serpent with dragon head. So the symbol of this border is the teeth of the ibudo pakamba.

[00:07:03]>> So this is again the moangi. And let me come to uh the third gite textile which is known as wankai. So Wankai is a cotton muslin u um dupata like the stole kind of thing and it is known for its uh subtlety and the grace and the elegance of the clo itself. So all this textile together is not just a product. It is a woven library among the matees.

[00:07:35]>> And um this is what I call the preodern intellectual system among the mates.

[00:07:41]>> Wow. Wonderful. I think our viewers might not be knowing so much about the uh weaving and cottage traditions of Manipur. So thank you so much Dr. ism for throwing such abundant light on the traditions on the weaving traditions and one particular aspect which has struck me and which has intrigued me that it's the knowledge is matineal.

[00:08:03]>> So I think that is something which is very unique to this particular heritage.

[00:08:08]So my next question stems from your uh your explanation. Then then what are the challenges uh in the preservation and conservation of this traditional heritage of weaving in encoded in how can we preserve and conserve it so that this tradition not only survives but thrive in the 21st century please share some insights on that.

[00:08:32]>> Thank you so much for the very pressing question Dr. Anan. We are at the crossroad today and uh the heritage um tradition uh either fossilize into nostalgia or evolve into agency. So survival it's not sufficient. We have to make all these heritage element the artifact even the textile all of this >> should make aspirational again. So in my way forward in my article I have written three way forward which is not sufficient but for the starting we can initiate with this and this is not only for the GIC textile of Manipur which we can apply for all the traditional textile exist in India today.

[00:09:16]>> So the first way forward which I have mentioned in my article is that uh we can make such kind of uh textile as brand of origin. Here we can bring into uh digital technology and the contemporary product together. We can breed them together. So imagine we can have uh for all these kind of products traditional products or textile. So we can have something like QR code where we can scan and which not only gives the product detail but also gives the voice of the real weaver, the actual weaver.

[00:09:53]then um the genealogology and the origin of that product the village from where this product has come. So the authenticity will never be separated when it comes to the commodification and commercialization because >> uh when it comes to the tradition authenticity is very important. So we shouldn't make any of the product abstract commodification. So this is the first way forward that I have mentioned.

[00:10:16]And let me come to the second way forward which I uh have mentioned in my article that um when we talked about the slow fision now the slow fision has come into the global discourse. So the sustainability narrative should also bring into light >> because the sustainability is already there when we are using uh the plant dye then uh the no electricity loom and many other sustainability which is very very close with the ecology.

[00:10:46]>> Therefore uh what we need today is the articulation uh in the global conversation regarding the ethical luxury because all this comes under luxury uh product but use with ethics.

[00:10:58]So this is my second uh way forward and let me come to the final uh way forward of my article. So uh all this the mathematics of design in textile traditional textile the motive the story of the motive the philosophy of motive and the u the chemistry of the dye which has been using in the traditional textile can come can enter into the curricula. Today when we talk about NEP 2020 the holistic model of study and to preserve the heritage skill so why not such kind of uh the textile science from the tradition uh should come in the curriculum today. So I think that will make a lot of difference to uh make such kind of product aspirational again to the youth of today. So the loom is not a relic but it is a portal. Thank you Dr. Wow, that was such a fascinating and engaging conversation. I'm sure that our readers must have learned so much. There must be so many takeaways from our conversation. Thank you so much Dr. Lissam for throwing light on the weaving traditions of Manipur. And this is so much in line with the spirit of Bhat Kiso wherein we are trying to rediscover and we are trying to protect the civilizational heritage of different pockets of Bhat. Manipur being one of them. As we come to the end of today's conversation, it becomes clear that our past is not only a story to be told and remembered, but a guide to be followed.

[00:12:28]Bharat's civilizational wisdom offers not only answers but also solutions. If you found this conversation meaningful, impactful, illuminating and insightful, please support Bhat Kisoj by subscribing to our channel. Do take good care of yourselves. Namaste.