Tungbaong FAAT

With arms wide open
Under the sunlight
Welcome to this place
I'll show you everything
With arms wide open
With arms wide open
Well I don't know if I'm ready
To be the man I have to be
I'll take a breath, I'll take her by my side
We stand in awe, we've created life

Birth and TUNGBAONG FAAT

The arrival of a newborn in the family is always welcomed with joy and much happiness and it does not really matter whether it’s a boy or a girl. The very miracle of a new life is much celebrated and makes a Lepcha more grateful to the EETBU DEY BU RUM for the blessing showered upon the family. It is considered as a personal gift and the coming of the baby is said to herald prosperity in the family, PUTSO and the whole village. The entire village participates in the ceremony that is to follow. There are presents for the new born as well as the confined mother. The new father is congratulated amidst jibes of his fertility.

After three nights and four days of the birth a ceremony takes place in the house over which a BONGTHING or a wise elder of the same PUTSO as the family presides. This ceremony of naming the new born is called “TUNGBOANG FAAT”. The ceremony highlights the importance of the KINGCHUM CHU (mount Kanchendzonga) in a Lepcha’s everyday life. The Bongthing offers prayers to the mountain and the respective chu (peak) of the new born. The prayer involves incantations to the confluence of River Teesta and Rangeet, KATHAONG FEE and NANGLYEN NYU the guardian spirits of birth. This is followed by the announcement of the PUTSO, CHU, DA and LEP of the newborn.

If the newborn is a baby boy then he inherits his father’s PUTSO, DA,CHU and LEP. Similarly the girl child inherits her mother’s PUTSO,DA, CHU and LEP