Malana — Shangrila in the misty mountains

Is Malana really the world’s oldest republic? Is this cluster of 12 villages in Kullu valley of Himachal Pradesh (India), among the first democracies of the world? Are the inhabitants of this sleepy village really the descendents of the Greeks?
A university in Sweden has given a proposal to Himachal University’s Institute of Tribal Studies to start a project to unravel the secrets associated with the Malana people, their lifestyle and history and especially their language, which is not understood by anyone except the Malanians. The proposal has come from University of Uppsala, one of the oldest institutions of learning founded by Nordic countries in 1477. It is known for preserving many antique items and symbols.
People of the village boast of Greek lineage. It is said they are the descendents of the soldiers who came with Alexander the Great in 326 BC, but could not go back with him as they were extremely tired or wounded. Alexander defeated Indian king Porus, ruler of Panjab.,
Director of the Institute of Tribal Studies Mr. P.K. Vaid says, “The dialect of the people is not mentioned even in the records related to the lineage or ‘Vanshavallis’ of the Kings of Kullu. It’s entirely different from the language of the region. The facial features of the inhabitants resemble more with the Romans than those of the Kullu residents.” In other words they have managed to keep their originality intact even after such a long period of time.
Mr, Vivek Mohan, who spent four years studying these tribals and produced a national award winning documentary named ‘Malana’, says although, they are still an enigma for him, but they have nothing to do with the Greek invador.
This solitary village is on a remote plateau by the side of Malana River at an altitude of 3029 m. Untouched by the modern civilisation; it has its own lifestyle and social norms.
Jamlu is the extremely powerful devta (presiding deity) of the village and commands unchallenged sway over its devotees. Malanians claim he is rishi (sage) Jamdagni, father of Parashuram of Hindu mythology. They say he stayed here and framed rules and regulations, which nobody dares to break.
According to a story Jamdagni’s intense prayers (tapasyaa) pleased Lord Shiva who appeared before him. Rishi demanded a secluded place with nature's bounty all over to live. Shiva asked him to go to Malana, which was already under the control of a Rakshasa (demon) Banasura who resisted the rishi. This resulted in a major conflict between the two. Finally both agreed on a peace treaty, which provided for separate handling of administration and justice in the area. While the administration was given to Banasura, justice came to Jamdagni. Any dispute arising in the administration was to be handled by the judiciary. Kanashi language was made compulsory for all. Initially the practice was to make first sacrifice to Banasura in case of festivities, but with the passage of time Jamdagni gained superiority. The shrine of Renuka Devi, wife of the rishi, is situated in lower Malana.
Language is one of the greatest secrets of the village and outsiders are not allowed to use it for communication. Even the Julaha (Weaver) and Lohar (iron smith) families who are staying there for the last sixty years are not allowed to speak Kanashi.
All non-Malanians are considered inferior; therefore they are untouchables. Outsiders, however, are not prohibited from visiting but they are expected to pay special attention to the do's and don'ts and should not touch any wall, house or people. If there is any violation then the visitor is liable to pay a particular sum to cover the expenses of sacrificial slaughter of a lamb in order to purify the object that has been desecrated.
Malana is said to be the oldest democracies in the world with a well organized parliamentary system, working for centuries under the guidance of the deity Jamlu. It controls the entire administration through an elected village council called Hakima having lower and higher courts. The decisions taken by Jamlu are final. Goor is the person who is believed to be possessed by the spirit of Jamlu. Since devta himself chooses his goor therefore any one from the village can be a goor. When possessed, goor listens to the problems of the villagers and tells them about the remedies. No outside interfence is tolerated. If any villager insists on taking police help he can do so by paying a fine of Rs. 1000 to the village council.
In most of the cases punishment is usually restricted to fine. Anyone found guilty of defying village council is shunted out of the valley, but in extreme cases of theft or misuse of devta’s treasure punishment can be extremely harsh and could be fatal also — a heavy stone is tied to the culprit and he is pushed down the mountain slope.
It is said it was the Mughal Emperor, Akbar the Great, who bestowed independence upon the villagers after being cured off the disease he was afflicted with. He put out an edict proclaiming that village inhabitants would never be asked to pay taxes.
Malana has its name on international scene too. Till couple of years back it was also famous for producing world’s best quality hashish (cannabis resin), known as "Malana Cream" and “Malana Tea” in the peddlers and user’s circuit. Many smugglers and users of different nationalities use to frequent the village. Some of them had clandestinely made their homes in the surroundings. Few years back Himachal Pradesh government along with the narcotics bureau people took action and burnt all hashish producing shrubs.
Malanians are extremely conscious of their ecological heritage too. They have framed strict rules prohibiting fire burning in the forests and even fixing nails on tree trunks. Only dry wood can be collected from the forests. Hunting is allowed only with the permission of the village council. Depending on farming and cattle rearing for livelihood collection of herbs from the mountains is another economic activity of the people.