Majuli

Originally, the island was a narrow and long piece of land called Majoli (land in the middle of two parallel rivers) that had Brahmaputra flowing in the north and the Burhidihing flowing in the south, till they met at Lakhu. Frequent earthquakes in the period 1661–1696 set the stage for a catastrophic flood in 1750 that continued for 15 days, which is mentioned in historical texts and reflected in folklore. As a result of this flood, the Brahmaputra split into two anabranches—one flowing along the original channel and the other flowing along the Burhidihing channel and the Mājuli island was formed. The Burhidihing's point of confluence moved 190 km east and the southern channel which was the Burhidihing became the Burhi Xuti. The northern channel, which was previously the Brahmaputra, became the Luit Xuti. In due course, the flow in the Luit Xuti decreased, and it came to be known as the Kherkutia Xuti; and the Burhi Xuti expanded via erosion to become the main Brahmaputra river.

Krishna, the popular Hindu god is supposed to have played here with his friends. While this is speculative, the locals speak in the Assamese language. However, what is certain is Mājuli has been the cultural capital of Assamese civilisation since the 16th century; based on written records describing the visit of Srimanta Sankardeva — a 16th-century social reformer. Sankardeva, a pioneer of the medieval-age neo-vaishnavite movement, preached a monotheist form of Hinduism called as Vaishnavism and established monasteries and hermitages known as satras on the islet.

The island soon became the leading center of Vaishavinism with the establishment of these satras. After the arrival of the British, the island was under the rule of the British until India gained independence in 1947.

Majuli, the largest riverine island in the world, nestles in the lap of the mightly Brahmaputra. This is where the 15th century saint and fountain head of Assamese culture, Sankardeva, first established a Satra or neo-Vaishnavite monastery, born of insightful discourses with his spiritual successor, Madhabdeva.

Today, Majuli is the principal seat of Vaishnavite faith, culture and practice. The treasures of Majuli are undoubtedly it's Satras. The first satra, set up by Sankardeva and Madhabdeva together, was Manikanchan Sanjog, now no longer extant. Subsequently, Majuli became the centre of 65 such satras. Of these, there are only 22 satras in Majuli today. Due to the annual floods and constant land erosion, Majuli today is only a fraction of it's original size of 1256 sq. km. recorded by the Imperial Gazetteer in 1901. This has forced many of the sattras to shift base to Assam's mainland.

Among those the main existing satras are Dakhinpat Satra, Garamurh Satra, Auniati Satra, Kamalabari Satra, Benegenaati Satra and Samaguri Satra. These Satras are the treasure houses of the songs and dances initiated by Shri. Sankardeva like "Bongeet" Matiakhara, Jumora dance, Chali dance, Motua dance, Nande Bringee, Sutradhar, Ozapali, Apsara dance, Satria Krishna dance, Dasavater dance etc.

A walk through the villages of Majuli is highly recommended to savour the warmth of the people and their simple way of life. Most of them practice agriculture, fishing and weaving. Boat making, dairy farming, pottery and handloom are other important activities. The weaving is particularly exquisite, making use of a whole range of colours in cotton and silk, found only in Assam.

Majuli also has an exciting bio diversity. If the visit is timed right, one can spot many rare and endangered avifauna species here, such as the greater adjutant stork, pelican and the whistling teal.

Majuli produces about a hundred different varieties of rice without a drop of pesticides or artificial fertilisers. Among the fascinating arrays gorwn is Komal Saul, a unique kind of rice that becomes edible after just 15 minutes of soaking in warm water. It is usually eaten as a breakfast cereal. Bao Dhan grows under water and is harvested after ten months while Bora Saul is a sticky brown rice, used to make pitha, the traditional Assamese rice cake.

The government has initiated the efforts to save Majuli from the ravages of the Brahmaputra. Majuli is currently in the Tentative list of UNESCO World Cultural Heritage Sites and is undergoing scrunity as a World Cultural Heritage Site.

Tourist interests

Majuli is situated at a distance of 20 km from Jorhat. One can take the bus or a hired taxi to the Nimati Steamer Ghat from where ferry services ply. The distance takes over three hours to cover, with three bus rides and two ferry rides.

On the north-bank is the river Subansiri and on the South bank, the mighty Brahmaputra has excided the island from the main land. North Lakhimpur town is to the North and Golaghat is to its southwest. The town of Sibsagar is on the southeast and Jorhat is to the south. On the extreme east is Dibrugarh District.

• The Vaishnava Satras founded by Sankardeva
• The colourful culture of the tribes
• Migratory birds
• The Ali-ai-ligang festival in Feb-March
• Pottery making
• Mask making
• Paal Namm festival in the end of winter
• The sunset in winter
• Exotic homespun masks crafts

Bird Watching

Majuli is an Island,it is always wet place.The southern part of the Island is worlds largest riverine Island so it is bird lovers paradise,Between November and March is the best time to visit this place.

There are 3 locals for bird watching:

• The southeast of majuli Island
• The southwest of majuli Island
• The northern part of majuli Island