Bodo Traditional Motifs and Designs

Being born in a village, I've been well acquainted with the Bodo art of weaving since quite a young age. I've been witnessing my grandmother, mother, and aunts weaving on our family loom for almost two decades now. But it was during Corona Iockdown that I developed a keen interest in Bodo traditional motifs and textiles, and it grew more and more as the years passed by. My late grandmother's wardrobe, which contains Bodo traditional attire from more than 60 years ago, is now my treasured possession. The memory of my grandmother teaching me how to make a shaft bar for a loom by wrapping small threads around a pipe still makes me nostalgic. I was in class 3 or 4 at that time, and the process was quite difficult for me to comprehend

Bodo women can weave fairy tales on their looms. They are famous for their expertise in weaving intricate motifs and patterns. The traditional attire of Bodo women is called Dokhona. Dokhona is a one-piece cloth that covers from the chest down to the knee. There are two kinds of Dokhona: Langa Dokhona of Western Bodos (Swnabari) and Ogrong Dokhona of Eastern Bodos (Sanzari). Bodo women use a long scarf to cover the upper part of their bodies, known as Jwmgra, Fasra, or Fali. The scarf of men is called Aronai. Bodo women decorate these clothes with multicolor motifs and patterns inspired by nature. Bodo name for motif is Agor.

My late grandmother Damayanti Ramchiary' s Bodo scarf 

                      रुंसार फिसाजो Rungsar Fisajw

                          An Ode to Bodo weavers 

Though weaving is deemed a feminine activity in Bodo society, there were many Bodo men who equally excelled in weaving. Bandhuram Agor, the most popular Bodo motif at present, is named after its creator, Bandhuram Kachari, an expert male weaver.

 

“De hai lwgw bima burwini 

 Danai lunai agor ernaikhwu swlwngdini.

 Sikhiri bidwi swbnai hai lwgw,

 Okhrangao dao birnai.

 Agor erwi erwi boinibw sigangao

 Khinthani lwgw khinthani.”

In English-

"Come, dear friend,

Let’s learn the art of weaving from our old mother.

Butterfly nectaring the flowers,

Birds flying in the sky.

By weaving motifs 

Let's make ourselves known, dear friend."

There are many old Bodo folk song that reflect the weaving tradition of Bodos. These songs were sung by weavers while working in their looms. These songs inspire young girls to learn the art of weaving. Earlier in Bodo society, the girls who couldn't weave were deemed ineligible for marriage.

Painting of Eastern Bodo (Sanzari) weavers
in Assam State Museum

Eastern Bodo (Sanzari) Ogrong Dokhona
for ritual dance

In the last four years, I've collected a bunch of pictures of Bodo traditional clothes and motifs. Some I took from my family clothes, some from online platforms, and many from traditional cloth exhibitions. There are, or were, hundreds of traditional Bodo motifs and patterns. Many have been lost with the wave of time. I've not been able to collect all of them. Today I'm sharing a few motifs from my collection that I personally adore.

Hajw Agor : As a tribe that loves dwelling in the plain valley of Brahmaputra and the foothill areas, the Bodos enjoy a majestic view of the mountains that surround them, such as the mighty Himalaya and Patkai. Hajw agor represents these hills and decorates the edge of Bodo clothes. This is the most popular and trendy motif of Bodo weavers to date. The use of Hajw Agor dates back to the Kamrupa period. The Hajw Agor motif was used to decorate the walls of temples and other monuments in Kamrupa. 

Ruin of Kamakhya temple

Khamar or Muju Agor : It's a motif expressed with a bunch of geometric patterns, consisting of square, rectangular, triangular, angular, and horizontal and vertical lines, which ultimately give shape to a beautiful pattern. This pattern is used in the bottom part of Ogrong Dokhona and Jwmgra Fali.

My mother clad in grandma's
Ogrong Dokhona and Fali

My visit to a traditional Bodo cloth exhibition

Bodo clothes with Khamar Agor collected by Reverend S. Endle, 1909

Gorai agor : Gorai agor is an Eastern Bodo (Sanzari) motif that depicts a horse often carrying a groom or a king smoking hookah on its back. This motif is used on the top of the Khamar agor in Ogrong Dokhona and Fali.

Dola Agor : Dola means palanquin in Bodo. Dola agor depicts two person carrying a bride or a queen on palanquin.

Dola from Tezpur District Museum 

Mokhordoma Agor : Mokhordoma means taking legal action under a court law. This motif is considered lucky by Bodos in judicial or legal matters. Mokhordoma is a bit identical to Khamar Agor, which consists of several geometric shapes. Over the years, it also blended with Khamar Agor and formed a unique pattern. 

Thaigir Bibar Agor : Thaigir is the Bodo name for elephant apple and Bibar means Flower. This particular motif depicts the flower of the  Thaigir plant. Thaigir makes mouth-watering Bodo cuisine.

Gisib Agor : Gisib means hand fan in Bodo language. This agor is inspired by a particular embroidery design made by Bodo women in hand fans made of thread.

Hand fan made by my grandmother with
Wool thread 

Khaseo Bikha Agor : Khaseo Bikha means chest of a tortoise in Bodo. This motif is inspired from the shape of a tortoise's chest.

Jab Agor : This motif is inspired from book.

Photo source : Aagor.in

Bodo sculptor Janak Jhankar Narzary and singer Pratima Pandey Baruah 

Aronai from Jyoti Prasad Agarwala's wardrobe

Khaseo Megon Agor : This motif depicts the eye of a tortoise.

Mwider Agor : Mwider means elephant in Bodo. Elephants are abundant in Bodo forests. Bodos revere elephants as sacred animal.

Phareo Megon Agor : Phareo Megon Agor is a diamond-shaped motif that depicts the eyes of pigeons.

Bodo girl in Langa Dokhona,1948

Bodo girls performing a ritual dance
Offering to war goddess : Ranchandi 

 Daorai Mwkhreb : This motif depicts the winking of a peacock’s eye.

Urajahaj Agor : This motif was developed in the mid-20th century, after the 2nd world war, when fighting jets and aeroplane started appearing in the sky of Assam. Bodo weavers took inspiration from these flying vehicle to weave exquisite motifs.

Photo Source : Aagor.in

Bwigri Bibar Agor : This agor is inspired from the flower of Jujube berries.

Hathorkhi/Olombar Agor : This agor depicts the celestial stars

Daorai agor : This motif depicts the peacock bird.

Swima Agor : This motif depicts the dog.

Mwi Agor : This agor depicts the deer.

Bandhuram Agor : This motif is named after the man who created it. At present, this is the most popular motif among Bodo weavers.

Dingkhia Agor : This motif depicts the leaf of fern.

Fakhri Bilai Agor : This motif depicts the leaf of Banyan tree 

Maoji Apha Agor : This motif is inspired from the claw of a cat

Fami Bibar Agor : This motif depicts the Lotus flower

Mondir Agor : This motif depicts a temple with an idol.

Dongfang/Bifang Agor : This motif depicts the flower tree

Songkho Agor : This Agor depicts the Conch shell.

 

Through weaving, Bodos have been preserving the heritage and tradition of Bodo culture through the ages. Bodo motifs tell the stories of Bodo people. In a world full of rapid change, our culture and heritage are also going through rapid transformation. We must go hand in hand to keep our culture and heritage thriving.