Cultural Astronomy with Reference to the Mishing Community of Assam

Abstract

For humans, the sky has always been enigmatic and embedded with riddles. Cultural Astronomy offers an interdisciplinary approach which facilitates the understanding of the beliefs and practices concerning the sky and the celestial bodies and the way people use their understanding of the sky. This paper presents the folk expressions, narratives and oral traditions of the Mishing community of Assam which suggest that this community believes the celestial bodies, mainly the Sun and the Moon, have immense importance in their social and religious life and perceptions of the cosmos.