Biodiversity Conservation Ethos in Naga Folklore and Folksongs

Nagaland, with its indigenous tribal population is par excellence an area of continuous interaction between the people and the nature with all its endowments. Even today Nagas are known for their intimate link with natural environment which forms an inalienable part of their life. Besides they have strong sense of physical and spiritual attachment with the nature, so much so that their socio cultural and economic life revolves around biodiversity of which they are an integral part. They have developed their culture and tradition, folklores and folksongs, taboos and myths in association with everything that surrounds them and have developed an intimate relationship and understanding of the complexities of their ecological system. Their Knowledge, techniques and practices have come through prolonged series of observation and experiences transmitted from generation to generation. Based on the field experiences with the communities, the proposed paper attempts to describe how Nagas perceive their nature and surroundings, beliefs, myths and taboos, folklore and folksongs governing their resource use. It elucidates their concept of biodiversity conservation embedded in their traditional customs and ethos.