A History of Assam c11.10

c11.10

Lengdon’s son again and again changed the direction of his aim, but was always met by entreaties to discharge his fiery missile at some other part of the gourd. At last the old man Thāolipling, who was sitting at the point where the flower had died off from the gourd, offered to sacrifice himself for the men if they would undertake to give him a feast and to worship him ever afterwards. The men promised to do so, and Āiphālān thereupon discharged his lightning at the part of the gourd on which the old man was seated. Thāolipling was killed, but the gourd was split open, and everything inside it escaped. Āiphālān then taught the men different occupations; he also showed the birds how to build their nests, and the other animals how to support themselves. Thāolipling is still worshipped by the Ahom Deodhāis and Bāilongs, the tribal priests and astrologers, who alone of all the Ahoms still retain any recollection of their ancient beliefs. He receives from them periodic offerings of sweets, grain and other edibles. Lengdon is their main and supreme god, but this, they say, does not prevent them from doing homage to the man, but for whose act of self-abnegation the gourd might have remained unbroken until the present day.