Admin: Starting first entry w/ refs...

2026-04-04T17:15:38Z

Starting first entry w/ refs...

New page

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2025}}
{{Use Indian English|date=December 2018}}
{{Infobox performing art
| name = Meitei Sankirtan
| image = Pung Cholom Manipur.jpg
| upright =
| caption =
| medium = Ritual singing, drumming and dancing
| types =
| ancestor =
| descendant =
| culture = [[Meitei culture|Meitei]]
| era = 18th century AD – present
}}
{{Infobox intangible heritage
|Name = Sankirtana, ritual singing, drumming and dancing of Manipur
|Country = India
|ID = 00843
|Region = APA
|Year = 2013
|Session = 8th
|List = Representative
}}
{{Contains special characters|Meitei}}

'''Meitei Sankirtan''' ({{langx|mni|Meitei Nat Sankirtan}}), also known as '''Meitei Sankirtana''' ({{langx|mni|Meitei Nat Sankirtana}}) or '''Manipuri Sankirtan''' ({{langx|mni|Nat Sonkirton}}) or '''Manipuri Sankirtana''' ({{langx|mni|Nat Sonkirton}}), is a [[Meitei intangible cultural heritage]], and a performing art form, involving ritual singing, [[drum]]ming and dancing performed in the temples and domestic spaces in [[Manipur]] in India. Through the performances which exhibit unparalleled religious devotion and energy, the performers narrate the many stories of [[Krishna]] often moving the spectators to tears.<ref>{{cite journal|last1=Staff Reporter|title=Manipuri Sankirtana inscribed on UNESCO's 'intangible heritage' list|journal=[[The Hindu]]|date=8 December 2013|url=http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/tp-newdelhi/manipuri-sankirtana-inscribed-on-unescos-intangible-heritage-list/article5435312.ece|accessdate=2 December 2016}}</ref> It is practiced primarily by the [[Meitei Hindus]] (primarily [[Vaishnava]]s) in Manipur and by the Vaishnava Manipuri population settled in the neighbouring States of [[Tripura]] and [[Assam]]. In December 2013, [[UNESCO]] inscribed "Sankirtana: Ritual singing, drumming and dancing of Manipur" in the [[UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists|Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity]].<ref name="UN1">{{cite web|title=Sankirtana, ritual singing, drumming and dancing of Manipur|url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/RL/sankirtana-ritual-singing-drumming-and-dancing-of-manipur-00843|website=www.unesco.org|publisher=[[UNESCO]]|accessdate=2 December 2016}}</ref>

Meitei Nat Sankirtana, along with the fusion of three other performing art forms, [[Huiyen Lallong]], [[Lai Haraoba]] and [[Raslila|Raaslila]], gave rise to the [[Sangeet Natak Akademi]]-recognised [[Indian classical dance]] form, popularly known as the ''"[[Manipuri dance]]"''.<ref>{{Cite web | first = Debanjali | last= Biswas |date=2020-06-02 |title=Hasta in Manipuri - Part 1 - Wednesday Wisdom |url=https://www.akademi.co.uk/hasta-in-manipuri/ |access-date=2025-03-02 |website=Akademi |language=en-GB |quote=The classical dance of Manipuri was born out of rituals that are danced by the Meitei community residing in Manipur, India. The style of Manipuri that we see on stage is a confluence of traditions that are associated with four rituals. These rituals are observed as devotional service, or rites of passage, or propitiation rites, or all. Dance is derived from each of these rituals – Lai Haraoba, Huyen Langlon, Nata Sankirtana and Raaslila. These dances are considered as genres of Manipuri dance, alongside being integral part of Meitei social fabric. However, the classical Manipuri tradition is often associated with only the Raaslila tradition, which is debated by different institutions.}}</ref>

==An outline of the performance==
[[File:ꯃꯩꯇꯩ ꯅꯠ ꯄꯂꯥ ꯑꯃꯁꯨꯡ ꯆꯣꯂꯣꯝ.jpg|thumb|upright|A depiction of ''Meitei Sankirtan'']]
The Nomination file for Inscription on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity prepared by [[Sangeet Natak Akademi]] describes this performing art thus: {{quote|"Starting with ritual observances which involve singing and dancing in the temples of Manipur, Sankirtana encompasses an array of arts performed also in the home and the street to mark occasions of religious import and stages in the life of the Vaishnava people inhabiting the Manipur plains. The theology and lore of Krishna is central to these performances, but they assimilate in their rendering formal features carried over from music and dance in Manipur’s pre-Vaishnavite past. The core of Sankirtana practice is to be found in the temple, where it narrates through song and dance the lives and deeds of the Lord. These are typically presented in the round, in a hall (Mandapa) attached to the temple before devotees. The main repertoire consists of Nata Pala, which is performed all over the Manipur valley. The Ariba Pala and Manohar Sai Pala, less often in evidence today, are also temple-centred. Outside the temple, Sankirtana assumes forms such as the Holi Pala celebrating the festival of colours in springtime or Shayan performed in the winter months. Khubak Eshei is celebrated within the temple during the rains, marking the chariot festival of the Lord. In the setting of the home, Sankirtana is offered as prayer at all life-cycle ceremonies, such as the ear-piercing ritual (for both males and females in childhood), the donning of the sacred thread (for adolescent males), marriage, and the rites of passage at death. Thus pervading the life of the Manipuri Vaishnava, Sankirtana is regarded as the visible manifestation of God."<ref>{{cite web|last1=Sangeet Nataka Akademi|title=Nomination File No. 00843|url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/doc/download.php?versionID=20734|publisher=[[UNESCO]]|accessdate=2 December 2016}}</ref>}}

==See also==
* [[Jagoi]], the arts of dance in Meitei culture

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*A video on Sankirtana, ritual singing, drumming and dancing of Manipur, prepared by [[Sangeet Natak Akademi]], India, and published by UNESCO (duration 9 minutes 57 seconds): [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TaIr4jvY9vE Sankirtana]

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Dances of Manipur]]
[[Category:Meitei performing arts]]
[[Category:Intangible Cultural Heritage of India]]

Meitei Sankirtana - Revision history

Admin: Starting first entry w/ refs...