Published Paper Details:

Bihu, the triadic festival complex of Assam comprising Bohag, Kati, and Magh Bihu, is conventionally understood as a seasonal agrarian celebration. This paper argues that Bihu constitutes a highly sophisticated cultural system that structurally integrates traditional ecological knowledge, inter-community solidarity, and folk aesthetic philosophy. Drawing on historical texts, extensive ethnographic fieldwork conducted across five districts of Assam during 2024- 2025, and semi-structured interviews with 30 key practitioners, this study conceptualizes three distinct dimensions of harmony embedded in Bihu praxis. First, ecological harmony is enacted through cattle veneration, phototactic pest management rituals, and post-harvest pyro-offerings that collectively encode indigenous environmental management. Second, social and religious harmony is performed via egalitarian Husori processions and multi-ethnic participation that actively transcend rigid caste and creed boundaries. Third, aesthetic harmony is articulated through a precise kinetic dance grammar, natural acoustic instrumentation, and symbolic textile traditions that unify the somatic body, community, and the landscape. While rapid urbanization, climate change, and digital mediation have shifted Bihu from rural courtyards to institutionalized stages and digital screens, emergent practices such as "Green Bihu" initiatives and digital diaspora performances highlight the festival's adaptive resilience. Ultimately, the paper demonstrates that Bihu offers an invaluable, living model of sustainable pluralism relevant to contemporary Northeast India, concluding with concrete policy recommendations to safeguard this intangible cultural heritage while supporting its organic adaptation.