Abstract
The Naga Tribal Communities of India are integral part of the Indo-Myanmar Biodiversity Hotspot and their hilly habitats situate in the confluence of the Himalayan and Indo- Myanmar Biodiversity Hotspots. The sixteen recognized Naga tribes who live in Nagaland are very healthy and chivalric race of people who since time immemorial till the 19th century were living in this corner of India as hunter-gatherers. The present paper explores the ethno-medical practices of the Naga tribes which enlightens us about their ethno-medicine and the medicinal values of the herbs we come across everyday in these hills and other ethno-medical therapies like herbal, mechanical, magico-religious therapies which are practiced to treat all different kinds of diseases. It is also believed that some diseases like cancer, chicken pox, cholera, epilepsy, fever, goitre, heart disorders, leucoderma, measles, migraine, mumps and sore eyes are caused due to wrath of God, evil spirit, evil eye and wrath of ancestral spirits. Different medicinal herbs or magico-religious therapies are used for treatment of so many different diseases in Naga villages. Even during modern times such practices have not been completely abandoned. The present study examines major sources of ethno-medicine like fruits, seeds, roots, shoots, tubers, fungi, bark, flowers, stem, leaves and the like available in Naga Hills and used by different tribes for different medical treatments and other different kinds of healing practices. The study reflects on the contemporary significance of Naga ethno-medicine.
Details
Presentation Type
Paper Presentation in a Themed Session
Theme
KEYWORDS
ETHNO-MEDICINE, HERBAL THERAPY, MAGICO-RELIGIOUS THERAPY, HEALING PRACTICES
