the principal inhabitants of this valley. Their history is characterized not
only by interclan and intertribal warfare and conflicts with Myanmar, As-
sam, and other neighboring kingdoms but also by long periods of stable
government. Thang-ta, with its long and energetic practice sessions, al-
lowed Meitei warriors to hone their combat skills in times of peace as well
as war.
The story of the origins of thang-ta is embedded in the religious
mythology of the Meitei community. In the mythology of the Meitei, the
limbs and bones of the community’s progenitor, Tin sidaba (also called
Pakhangba), are said to have turned into various swords and tools, some
of which are used in thang-ta; others are used in certain rites. Tin sidaba’s
ribs turned into the thangjao (broad sword) for instance, while one of his
fingers became the heijrang (kitchen knife). Even today, each of the seven
clans of the Meitei owns a distinctively shaped traditional sword that must
be laid out during any event of ancestor worship. Leishemlon, the story of
creation in Meitei mythology, records Pakhangba as the originator of
thang-ta.
During the reign of King Khagemba between the late fifteenth and
early sixteenth centuries A.D., thang-ta reached its zenith. Chainarol,a
manuscript written in the sixteenth to seventeenth centuries that contains
glimpses of the prevailing war customs, suggests that warriors were ex-
pected to adhere to a strict code of conduct. For instance, when an un-
armed man was challenged, he had the right to fetch weapons and to fix
the date for the fight. During the fight, when blood oozed from a scratch
or wound on any part of a combatant’s body, that combatant was declared
the loser. Afterward, the combatants shared food and wine supplied by
their wives. Then, the victor cut off the loser’s head and, if the loser had re-
quested this service, cremated the loser’s body. Heads usually were pre-
served by victors as trophies of prowess.
Manipur, after losing the Anglo-Manipuri War, was annexed to the
British Empire in 1891. In recognition of the heroism and skill of the Ma-
nipuri army, which was ably led by Major General Paona Brjabasi, the
British immediately made it illegal for a citizen of Manipur to possess a
weapon and outlawed the martial arts of Manipur, including thang-ta.
Thang-ta went underground and was kept alive by only a few expert practi-
tioners. After India gained independence in 1947 (Manipur became a terri-
tory of the Indian Union in 1949 and a constituent state in 1972), thang-ta
slowly reemerged. Considerable controversy surrounds modern differences
in thang-ta techniques taught by the various gurus (teachers); these differ-
ences may be attributable to the long suppression of this martial art by the
British colonial power.
Today, thang-ta is popular in Manipur both as a martial art form and638 Thang-Ta