In Mawlynnong, nature is a way of life. In Riwai, life is a way of nature. Together, they probably create one of the most outstanding examples of living in harmony with nature, says Apratim Kundu
In recent times, eco-tourism or sustainable tourism has been catching up in the Indian Himalayas. Sikkim, with its array of home-stays has led the way so far. In a number of other States in the Indian Himalayas too this trend has been picking up. One such instance is the Mawlynnong village and the living root bridge in the nearby Riwai village in Meghalaya. However, like many other States in the Indian Himalayas, these two villages in Meghalaya form a unique blend of tourism that goes beyond sustainable tourism and instead provides glimpses into a life that has been truly blended into nature.
Till pretty recently, Mawlynnong did not find a mention in the tourist maps of Northeast India. Even in the State’s capital Shillong, the mention of the name only evoked curious faces and quizzical looks. And so I found out about the place not through some enquiry in the tourism departments, but through as internet search about “Himalayan Wonders” on a lazy corporate afternoon with nothing in particular to do. I found an entry in BBC’s Human Planet by their photojournalist Timothy Allen. He was one of the first people to have “discovered” the place and write about it. One thing led to another and I soon found myself backpacking to one of the eastern most corners of the Indian Himalayas.
The journey started on a bright October morning from Guwahati in Assam. After driving at a pace which was bordering tentatively between relaxed and lazy and managing to get lost twice, I reached Mawlynnong under the cover of a looming Himalayan evening. Henry, the friendly guide cum village administrator cum tourism help-desk from Mawlynnong led the way with a torch and lodged us upon a tree house for the night. After some delicious local dishes, some unwinding and some planning for the next day it was time to call it a day. I soon fell asleep, listening to the constant throbbing sound of crickets along with the nimble sound of a waterfall running about a hundred feet below sliced through the pitch dark mountains.
A Himalayan hamlet
Mawlynnong uses a rather unusual USP for tourism. It is known as “Asia’s cleanest village.” The reason for that nomenclature became clear the next morning when sunlight slanted into the village through the dense green canopy above. The village was immaculately clean, to the extent that one could literally eat off the road here. At the entry of every lane there was a bamboo basket tied to the thicket that made for the garbage bins. I learnt that every morning, smiling villagers sweep all the crisscrossing lanes of the village and collect whatever little dust is there into the baskets. A little later these baskets are emptied outside.
Besides being the cleanest, Mawlynnnong could also claim to be one of the most meticulously planned villages anywhere in the world. The entire village is like a rectangle through which various lanes run to the end of its boundaries. Each lane bifurcate the other in smooth zigzags that ran through the village and connect each house with the other. The lanes in turn run through a multicolored garden cultivated from various plant species from the nearby forests.
Everything was fresh. Birds chirped, some mountainous species of spiders weaved their ways upwards, the school near the church ground was getting ready for the day, some of the villagers had started playing football in the ground beside the church. The beautiful smell of fresh tress and blooming flowers under a clear, azure Himalayan sky added further to the beauty and serenity of the place.
A bridge that is ‘living’
About a couple of kilometres away from Mawlynnong was the living root bridge. Any internet search will tell you that this bridge is in Mawlynnong village, but it is not. It is located in the Riwai village. A flight of ancient stony stairs descended down from the top towards the bank of the Wahthyllong river. After about half a kilometer, the stairs suddenly ended, just before the living root bridge. A tall and slightly triangular banyan tree spread its roots across the river’s width. Across the river, on the other bank, the roots met with the roots of another tall and ancient banyan tree. It was a startling sight, with a story behind it that was probably even more startling.
During monsoon in particular, flash floods lash many parts of Meghalaya. For centuries, these floods had been wiping out everything in their way. According to local legends, the Riwai village was no exception till about a century and a half ago. Then someone in the village came up with the idea to create a bridge across the river that would withstand the ferocious flash floods. To do this they planted two banyan trees at each bank of the river. As the trees grew, their roots started to spread out and after a while the villagers tied the roots together with vines. A bamboo was planked in the middle. Over the years the roots superseded the plank and intertwined with the vines, they created a structure that was porous and yet strong enough to withstand the ferocity of the floods. The engineering genius lies in the fact that because of those pores, the water could not hit the bridge with its full force and instead got broken up into numerous smaller streams that went through the bridge.
As time passed on, unlike any other bridge, the “living” bridge continued to grow. The network of roots and wild vines became more complex and intricate. With time the original bamboo plank was overlaid with stones, upper soil and leaves that fell on the bridge from the surrounding forests for centuries. The roots and vines grew even further and created supports on both the sides of the bridge. It still continues to grow, serving villagers and tourists every day.
In Mawlynnong nature is a way of life. In Riwai, life is a way of nature. Together, they probably create one of the most outstanding examples of living in harmony with nature.