We are all MAKERS
Of History
Of Legacy
Of our own stories.
Nothing can ever temper the human spirit that rouses our hearts to create magical things that outlive our lifetimes. We can never quiet our minds from the passion of making something worth preserving.
“Thaina Thaina Mamaangeidagi” (since time immemorial) , in Manipuri nuance is used to describe anything that is tradition.
In this land of fables, the concept of time itself is Ambiguous. Relative. Effervescent. And through this notion of time and narrative, generations have passed down stories of Makers, their gift of handcrafts.
Legend says that the Meetei goddess Panthoibi once stumbled upon a spider spinning fine threads making the most intricate cobweb. Awestruck by the beauty of the design, she decided to weave her own using silken threads. And that is how the women started weaving.
And since then our women have been weaving the stories of their lives on the fabric. And with each strand of thread, they pieced together the histories of all the men and women that were never spoken of or remembered in posterity. Only the heirlooms remain, which tells of their story with the moon and the sun and the living beings.
So whether they weaved a piece of cloth or a tapestry, in each of them they left a bit of themselves. A piece that answers to their calling of being a Maker, of being able to create something that exists beyond the realm of time and space.
The history of the land is interspersed with the real and the mythological like a multicultural potpourri of folklores and legends to tell of the origins of our art and our handcrafts.
And that is why it is but obvious that our most beautiful and most popular motif : the yairongphee (cloth with teeth border) known as moirangphee (Moirang cloth) was inspired by the teeth of Lord Pakhangba ( the mythical serpent God). So also is a vast array of motifs, derived from different aspects of Lord Pakhangba – the Ningkham, the Samjin, the Mayek Naibi, the Moirang, the Lamthang Khuthat or the Khamen Chatpa. Our tale of myths and fables fed our artisans with the inspiration of artistic creation.
Once upon a time during the reign of the land’s second king Meitengngu Khuiyoi Tompokta, his royal weaver Laikoksu wove the most beautiful silk cloth, as a royal gift. He called it the “Punting Wanphakphi”.
Laikoksu started weaving on an autumnal full moon night; a piece of silk that looked like the skin of a Chameleon. And on the 7th month, the weaving was finally complete.
The people of our land live in fables. Our memory and existence, made alive by the stories of our proud past. Of talented artisans and illustrious warriors. And inside each one of us, we carry our rituals and our beliefs. When we see women who sit on their Khwang Iyong/Pang Iyong (Throw shuttle loom), when they are spinning their spindles and dyeing their strands of silk Or men who carve their bamboo statues or shape their earthen bowls, it becomes evident that our collective histories are intertwined in this world of artistry.
That we are Makers of our origin story
Our tales of art and life and history.
All products have used at least one of more traditional or time tested craft.
Every MOROK product is a result of multiple artisans and their cumulative skill.
All products and their raw materials are locally sourced and produced.
