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Manipur trying to revive traditional martial arts
by LCK
Singh
Imphal:
Indigenous games and martial art forms are an
integral part of Manipur's culture that is well known
through out the northeastern region. Some of the oldest
art forms are still popular. Among them is Cheibi,
an ancient martial art. Recently, the All Manipur
Cheibi Association of Manipur organized the 9th State
Level Cheibi Championship 2008 at the Khuman Lampak
Main indoor stadium of Imphal. The championship, which
was organized to further popularize and promote the
martial art, had about 180 participants from 21 clubs
of Manipur. Cheiba is one of Manipur's ancient martial
art forms. Earlier, it used to be practiced with a
sword and a shield, which has now been replaced by
a stick encased in soft leather and a shield made
of leather. The contestants duel and the one who scores
the maximum points is declared the winner. "Cheibi
is a game that we look up to in Manipur. There is
a lot of discipline involved in the game. It has now
been organized at the national level and I believe
that once it reaches the international level, Cheibi
will take Manipur forward," said Kamalkumar Singh,
a Cheibi player of Manipur. Daina Devi, another Cheibi
player, said, "Cheibi is an indigenous game that was
played by our forefathers. We play it as we like it
and playing the game that our forefathers played motivates
us. So we are participating in the Cheibi competition."
The popularity of Cheibi got a boost when the All
Manipur Cheibi Association was founded in 1998. The
association will now be organizing the first national
level Cheibi competition in December. The event will
witness the participation of contestants from all
over the country. Manipuris believe that promoting
Cheibi will not only give a boost to the martial art
but also help in keeping the legacy of their forefathers
alive.
-
Oct 20, 2008
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