Published Paper Details:

The customary practices of oaths and ordeals constituted the supreme guiding principles of justice within the Tagin community prior to the advent of the modern legal system. Rooted in Pwrw-Vba, the uncodified Tagin constitution, these mechanisms functioned as primary sources of customary law and moral order. Justice was administered through ritualized trials such as Senyu-Paatv Nyudung Gamnam, Riokdar Taja Gaknam, Sidung Taja Inam, Sebi Dumpo Topnam, Yalwng Tasing Topnam, Raaji Raayo Tonam etc which were regarded as divinely sanctioned and socially binding. While these practices ensured accountability and legitimacy, they were inherently perilous, involving physical and spiritual risks. Although largely discontinued today, residual beliefs persist, with occasional attempts to invoke them in serious disputes. This study employs descriptive and analytical methods, using purposive sampling and unstructured interviews, to critically examine these traditions as instruments of justice, their cultural foundation and their continuing symbolic relevance in contemporary Tagin society.