19/09/2012
Malana is an ancient Indian village in the state of Himachal Pradesh. This solitary village in the MALANA NALA, a side valley of the Parvati Valley to the north-east of Kullu, is isolated from the rest of the world. The majestic peaks of Chandrakhani and deotibba shadow the village. It is situated on a remote plateau by the side of the torrential Malana river, at a height of 3,029 metres (9,938 ft) above sea level. Unaffected by modern civilisation, Malana has its own lifestyle and social structure. People are strict in following their customs.
Malana has a history and it goes back to JAMLU RISHI(sage) who inhabited this place and made rules and regulations. It is one of the oldest democracies of the world with a well organized parliamentary system. All of this is guided by the their devta (deity) Jamlu rishi. Although Jamlu is currently identified with a sage from the Puranas, this is a relatively recent development. Jamlu is believed to have been worshipped in pre-Aryan times. Penelope Chetwood recounts a tale about an orthodox Brahmin priest, who visited Malana, and tried to educate the locals about the pedigree of their god, and what subsequently befell the hapless priest.It is said that :
Jamdangni Rishi in the days of yore worshipped Brahma, Vishnu and Mahesha. After his intense prayers, Shiva appeared before him and told him to ask for a boon. Jamdagani Rishi asked for a place, secluded and full of nature's bounty. Shiva told him to go to Malana. The Rishi's two brothers followed him. In order to avoid them he created mist in the valley and told his brothers that the place was not good and further said that if they want to stay they could. His brothers lift his company and one of them went to Lahoul and the other to the Banjar valley. Malana was already in the control of a big Rakshasa when Rishi reached there the Rakshasa retaliated, which resulted in a fight between the two.
The conflict between Jamdagni Rishi and Banasura ended with the understanding on the following terms :-
Administration and justice were to be handled separately
The members of the executive were to be selected in consultation with Banasura.
Justice was kept under the preview of Jamdagni Rishi.
In case of a dispute in the administration it was to be sorted out by the judiciary.
The Kanashi language was made mandatory for those living in Malana, and also the customs and traditions prevalent there.
During festivals, the first sacrifice was to be made to Banasura the Rakshasha. With the passage of time, Jamdagini Rishi gained superiority over Banasura, but the village retained its traditions which are still followed there.
Malana is considered to be one of the first democracies in the world.According to tradition, the residents of Malana are the descendant of Aryans, and they acquired their independence during the Mughal reign when the Emperor Akbar walked to the village in order to cure an ailment that he was afflicted with; after having been successfully cured he put out an edict stating that all the inhabitants of the valley would never be required to pay tax.
An alternative tradition suggests that Malana was founded by remnants of Alexander The Great's Army.It is said that after Alaxander The great came to India to conqour India , he fell sick and most of his army also died of many illness and crossing the terrains . So most of his army got setteled here in Malana and the Malanian are their successors .
One called Badoh mela is celebrated in August and the other called Fagdi mela in February. On these festive occasions people from nearby villages come to this place. Holy relics of Jamdagni Rishi in the form of instruments, jewellery, garments are kept on display. Men and women dance in their traditional attire consisting of Chola, kalgi (round cap) and tight pajams, to the beats of the Nagara, Shanani, Karnali and Narsingha. Marriage is a simple affair without any priest or ritual. The locals call it the Rakshasi marriage. The bride goes after the groom to his house. In case of divorce, the boy has to arrange a separate house, food etc. for the girl. Divorced women and widows can remarry. Polygamy is allowed for men. Similarly, there are not elaborate last rites. The dead are cremated and the rituals last three days.
The residents of Malana speak KANASHI/Raksh (supposedly the dialect of devils residing there long ago), which is understood only by the villagers. "Kanashi, the language of Malana, does not resemble any of the dialects spoken in its neighbourhood but seems to be a mixture of Sanskrit and several Tibetan dialects." Ethnologue, citing a reference from 2002, classifies Malana as a Tibetan-Burmese language, rather than as a member of the Indo-European languages,and notes that Kanashi has "no intelligibility with any Tibeto-Burman languages of Lahul-Spiti and Kinnaur" and that Malana is surrounded by Indo-Aryan language speaking populations.
The Hydro Malana Project has also ruined the beauty of the valley . Malana Hydro Project is divided into two parts I & II . Combining both they generate 89 Mw of electricity .
People in Malana consider all non-Malani to be inferior and consequently untouchable. Visitors to Malana town must pay particular attention to stick to the prescribed paths and not to touch any of the walls, houses or people there. If this does occur, visitors are expected to pay a forfeit sum, that will cover the sacrificial slaughter of a lamb in order purify the object that has been made impure. Malani people may touch impure people or houses as long as they follow the prescribed purification ritual before they enter their house or before they eat. Malanis may never accept food cooked by a non-Malani person, unless they are out of the valley (in which case their Devta can't see them). Malanis may offer visitors food but all utensils will have to undergo a strict purification ritual before they can be used again. This is also seen as a technique used by the people of Malana to protect their vested interest in the Hashish manufacture . Cannabis is the staple crop cultivated over there . All the people over there cultivate Ma*****na trees for living . There you can find the best Charas of the whole world popularly known as Malana Cream . It is actually like cream with loads of oil , sticky and smells awesome .
There was a time when people were not even allowed to enter the village . Even today they dont touch you . If you are crossing their streets they will get aside , take kids away . There are many restrictions in the village . It is not allowed to even touch many places , not allowed to go on some places . Those are the places of their deity (devta ). On every 15 august there is a big festival in Malana . It is said that they present all their wealth and cultivated goods to their devta and the devta takes many important decisions of the village .
In 2004 there was a huge fire in the village . The temple and many other houses were burt as ol of them were built of wood . It was a massive disaster but Malanians came out of it very soon as they have been very rich selling off Hashish on a large scale .
