Mount Thangjing, which is a sacred site of Manipur’s Meitei community, was reportedly desecrated by erecting a cross. There are allegations accusing Kukis of desecrating the holy mount earlier this month.
Some netizens believe the act is deliberate and intended to provoke the Meiteis to react. One of the netizens said that the Kuki strategy was clearly to incite the Meiteis, anticipating that any Meitei response would be used as an opportunity to exploit religious and minority issues, portraying themselves as victims in the media’s eye.
A video of the incident was shared by Sanajaoba Angom on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter). The footage shows a cross atop Mount Thangjing who is a revered deity of Meities.
In the ancient mythology of the Meitei people (old Manipuri mythology), Thangching (also known as Thangjing in Modern Meitei) is among the Guardian deities safeguarding the ten directions. He holds a special place as the national deity of the ancient Moirang kingdom situated in Manipur’s southern Kangleipak. Thangching is credited with the important role of invoking the 7 divine incarnations of the God and Goddess of Love within the ancient Moirang kingdom. Furthermore, he stands out as one of the prominent deities known for appearing in people’s dreams to convey messages. Thangching resides atop Thangjing Hill (also known as Thangching Hill) in Moirang, Southern Manipur.
Erecting a cross despite knowing the significance of Thangjing to the Meitei people is certainly a devious plan to deliberately hurt the sentiments of the community and incite them to react. The Manipur administration needs to act swiftly and bring the culprits to justice.
(Featured Image Source: The North East Affairs)
