Zeliangrong Naga: History, pilgrimage, and amplifying difference at Bhuban Hill

This article investigates the importance of Bhuban Hill in the district of Cachar Hills in Assam and the larger issues surrounding pilgrimage. It argues against a normative reading of pilgrimage as communitas and suggests a more contested and rigorous description of the pilgrimage shaped by divergent histories and in particular rival claims over religious leadership. The article discusses two Zeliangrong Naga traditions – Heraka and Poupei Chapriak – and examines the landscape of Bhuban hill with its accretion of indigenous and pan-Hindu symbols that situate the genesis of the two traditions, claims over rival leadership, and the contested ideologies of contemporary pilgrims over sacrifice. The landscape of Bhuban provides a history of this sacred site, marked by divergent histories and amplified by differences.