Paper short abstract:

This presentation will look into the magical traditions of two indigenous communities of Northeast India, the Khasi and Karbi. Through material derived from fieldwork, I will describe, document, and try to make sense of the myntor/mintor magical practice and the instruments that are utilised.

Paper long abstract:

The Instruments of ‘Magic’: Perspectives from Indigenous Traditions in Northeast India

Located at the intersections of Khasi and Karbi Indigenous belief worlds, the practice of Ka Myntor/Mintor is so secret and taboo, that any discussions of it are prohibited in social or sacred spaces. The Khasi and Karbi are two disparate indigenous communities that reside in territories that are geographically contiguous. The practice of mintor among the Karbi indigenous community utilises the medium of speech forms that are never codified, but exist in variation each time it is practiced. The core of mintor practice is intent, sometimes, killing intent. The instruments of magic for myntor/mintor include undisclosed speech forms, ritual objects, and live animals like turtles, caterpillars, maggots, snakes, etc.Among Khasi on the other hand, myntor is a deity that can erase entire lineages of clans

While the practice of this magical tradition is contextual and vastly differing, one aspect is continual: the ascribed malignance of the practice. This talk has three intentions: first, it serves as a documentation of how myntor is demonised to the extent that it is never talked about (among Karbi). Among Khasi, the tradition is not known at all outside the circle of those who practice it. Second, I will show how the layers of secrecy and fear woven around the practice has unintendedly served to preserve the tradition (among Khasi), while the rhetoric of social exclusion has led to mob violence against and lynching of, people who are ascribed to practice it (among Karbi). Thirdly, the presence of secret magical practices like myntor (amongst others) among indigenous people have historically led to their being marginalised and demonised in the contexts they have existed in.