Assamese Historical Literature

Dr. Khagesh Sen Deka

It is often said that the Indians did not have historical works to their credit and they had little
taste for history. However, the list of teachers in different Vedic texts, the genealogies in the
Mah bh rata and in the Pur as had proved that the same is not true. The Indians had a taste of
history even from the Vedic period. Though history was mixed with mythical elements, the Pur as
preserve many valuable traditions of history [Winternitz 1985 : 88-89].

In India, at least two provinces can boast of having the tradition of keeping records of past
events from the earliest possible time; one is Kashmir and the other is Assam. The jatarangin of
Kalhana is the example of such tradition in Kashmir. However, the Assamese tradition of keeping
records is found to be more reliable and authentic than that of Kashmir. One can easily use these
records, as the sources for successful depiction of the history of Assam, more particularly the
history of the medieval period when the hom’s ruled this region for not less than six hundred
years. It is also to be noted that, these records have immense literary values. Assamese people are
very much proud of their unique and unparallel historical literature.

The historical literature of Assam is the gift of the hom rulers. They had introduced
historiography into Assam. The hom’s termed it as Burañj . In 1228 the homs, an offshoot of the
Shan or T is or Th is migrated from the upstream of Burma (now called Myanmar) and founded a
very powerful kingdom in the eastern part of the Brahmaputra valley by conquering the local tribes
of the region. They ruled this region for not less than six hundred years till the British rulers
conquered them in 1826. During the period from sixteenth to seventeenth century they became the
supreme power of this part and extended the border of their kingdom to Karatoy Gang of far west
of Assam province. The Th i race not only had their own tradition of keeping records from the early
days of their establishment but also had endowment of historical faculty of a very high order. Even
before establishing a kingdom in the Brahmaputra valley, the homs have Burañj or historical
records in their possession, and they updated it periodically. They had brought this tradition along
with their other cultural traits to Assam at the time of their arrival to this new land. During their
reign in this region the priests (Deodh is), the diplomats (K kat s) and the leading noble persons of
royal court took special care to record all the events faithfully and they updated these records
periodically [Gait 1905 : ix]. The royal administration kept all such records or Burañj s in a
storehouse called Gandh Bhãr l under the management and supervision of Gandh Phukan, an
officer of hom royal court. This department of historiography was entrusted with Bargohaiñ’s
direct supervision. So, Burañj s and the homs are considered as the two faces of the same coin.

The Burañj s were compiled under royal orders of the kings and of the decrees of the high
dignitaries of the state, for they alone could grant access to state documents on which the same had
invariably to be based. These documents were principally the periodic reports transmitted to the

1
royal court by military commanders and governors or the viceroys like Barphukan or Barbaru etc.,
diplomatic envoys sent to and received from foreign rulers and allies, judicial and revenue papers
submitted to the kings and to his ministers for their final orders, and day to day proceedings of the
court which incorporated all the transactions done, important speeches uttered, and significant
occurrences reported by reliable eye-witnesses [Bhuyan 1945 : xii]. The noble persons by virtue of
their portfolio borrowed the Burañj s from the royal archives, copied or transcribed it by appointing
scribes and preserved it in their own libraries. J. N. Sarkar has rightly observed, “…the Burañj s
have conserved the language, customs, institutes, official and judicial procedures, social and
religious usages and intricate details of the state machinery” [1992 : 2].

In modern Assamese, the words ‘History’, ‘Itih s’ and ‘Burañj ’ are used as synonyms.
Nevertheless, all these three words construe their own identity and own meaning. The Indians as
well as the Assamese acquired the concept of the word ‘History’ from the west. History is such a
discipline, where realistic approach or objective description of the origin and development of
different human races of the world is depicted. Archaeological evidences, copper plates, rock
inscriptions, coins, architecture, sculpture etc. are the primary sources of writing History. Reveal of
relation between cause and effect is the main target of all the historical works. On the other hand,
the word ‘Itih s’ comes down to Assamese from its Sanskrit origin ‘Itih sa. Instead of realistic or in
other words scientific approach the stories narrated in it are based on myths and legends. In English,
the meaning or the equivalent word for ‘Itih sa’ stands as ‘Legendary tales’ [Neog 1996 : 1]. The
great epic ‘Mah bh rata’ can be cited as an example of the ‘Itih sa’.

‘Burañj ’ is one of the few Assamese words derived from hom origin. The literal meaning of the
word is ‘a granary or a store-house of knowledge that teaches the ignorant’; i.e. Bu ignorant, ran
teach and a store or a granary [Sarma 1989 : 744]. Keeping records of all the events took place
inside or outside the hom royal court in a chronological order was the notable feature of the Burañj s.
Therefore, instead of saying history, Burañj s are rightly termed as ‘chronicles’ or ‘annals’.

The homs considered this particular domain as sacred and mysterious one. It was assumed to
be the sources of all kinds of knowledge and was considered as a part education for the princes and
progenies of other dignitaries of the royal court [Neog 1962 : 189]. Every hom family of high
distinction arranged to possess a Burañj as their own for enlightenment and edification. Moreover,
they found the accounts of the deeds of their own ancestors. Among the hom community,
knowledge of Burañji was more or less an obligatory part of their education and culture. It was
orally transmitted to their offspring. Sometimes chapters from the written versions were also read
out among a group of people. Until date, recital of the Burañj is considered as a sacred part of the
ceremony of an hom marriage. Sir G.A. Griersen rightly observed, “The Assamese people are
justly proud of their national literature. In no department have they been more successful than in a
branch of study in which India, as a rule is curiously deficient… The historical works or Buranjis
are numerous and voluminous. Knowledge of the Buranjis was an indispensable qualification to an
Assamese gentleman” [1903 : 156]. Anandaram Dhekial Phukan also observed that “In no
department of literature do the Assamese appear to have been more successful than in history.
2
Remnants of historical works that treat of the times of Bhagadatta, a contemporary of Raja
Yudhisthira, are still in existence. The chain of historical events, however, since the last 600 years,
has been carefully preserved, and their authenticity can be relied upon… According to the custom of
the country, a knowledge of the Buranjis was an indispensible qualification of an Assamese
gentleman, and every family of distinction, and specially the government and public officers, kept
the most minute records of historical events, prepared by the learned Pundits of the country” [1955 :
45]. It may be mentioned that the hom dignitaries were limited in number and all the high offices
were entrusted to them. Therefore, every noble hom person was referred in the Burañj s.
Therefore, it was assumed that the knowledge of the achievements of the ancestors would encourage
the coming generation.
The B hgar Buhr goh iñr Burañj reveals the beginning of compiling records or writing
Burañj s by the homs in the following way: The first hom king or conqueror Cuk (1228-
1268) during his victorious progress from Mungrimungr m of upper Burma to the Brahmaputra
valley by crossing i range of the border area halted at Kh mj ng. There he counted his
followers and found that six of his followers died and other seven persons lost somewhere.
(According to ar Asam Burañj the number of followers was four hundred eighty. Among them
two hundred thirty were his relatives. A group of ten to twenty persons had their meal in one pot at a
time. After crossing the river mkio (Iravat ) all of them arrived at Kh mj ng. Here Cuk
counted his followers and found that during the journey from Mungrimungr m to Kh mj ng sixty
persons died and another seven persons lost somewhere). Then he ordered his scholars or the noble
persons accompanied him to “write down all particulars, whenever an incident takes place, when a
follower dies, when we acquire new followers” [Bhuyan 1932 : 98, 1974 : 3]. Keeping Kankhramung
Baru at Kh mj ng he again started his journey towards the Brahmaputra valley. On the way, many
local people of Cut , Mar n, Bar tribes accompanied him. The particular order of Cuk
mentioned above was the base of the tradition of writing Burañj s in Assam. Nevertheless, the hom
is the only race of the world that has a tradition of compiling chronicle of high order. The Burañj s
primarily deal with the reigns of the hom dynasty in Assam. But it also carries some glimpses of
Shan rulers and the princes prior to their advent to Assam [Bhuyan 1945 : xi].

From the beginning of their reign to the end of sixteenth century, the homs compiled the
Burañj s in their mother tongue, i.e. in hom language, a particular branch of Sino-Tibetan
language family. However, from the beginning of the seventeenth century when hom language
became practically obsolete, its knowledge confined to a handful of hom priests and astrologers
the Deodh is and the B ilungs, they switch over the vehicle of expression from hom to Assamese.
The homs are among the notable races of the world who instead of promoting their own language
and culture, adopted and promoted other language and culture, i.e. Assamese. They gradually
absorbed and adopted Assamese ideals and customs as their own. It was also necessary for the
newly recruited Assamese officers for the transactions of the business of the court, to transmit to
them the knowledge of the past events of the kingdom for taking decisions in respect of day-to-day
administration. Due to such obligation, they changed the medium of expression and began to write

3
their Burañj s in Assamese language. It is worth mentioning that there was no woman in the group
of Th i people headed by Cuk who entered Assam in the early part of thirteenth century by
overcoming all the obstacles faced by him. In due course of time, during the period of their reign in
this region, they married the local girls and adopted Assamese language and culture for their own
benefit. During British rule in Assam, the knowledge of hom language was confined to a few old
men of priestly class, i.e. the Deodh is and the B ilungs. Sir Edward Gait [1905 : xi] during his
officiating in Assam found some manuscripts written in antiquated Ahom language. He found none
who can read the same except a few priests of Ahom reign. Then he selected Golap Chandra
Baruah, an educated young Assamese person and conferred him the responsibility of acquiring
knowledge of hom language and thus to assist him in translating the said manuscripts from hom
to Assamese language. He also constituted a committee consisting five persons of Deodh i class to
teach Mr. Baruah the discarded hom Language. In1894 an almost complete and comprehensive
hom Burañj from earliest time to the end of Ahom rule written in oblong s nci bark strips was
obtained from one Deodh i Pandit of Sibsagar district. This Burañj was written in T i- hom script.
It has two parts. The first part, i.e. Deo- Burañj contains the history of heavenly bodies, creation of
Khunlung and Khunl i; and the second part, i.e. Din Burañj consists of the history of earth,
migration of Cuk from upper Burma to Assam, rise and fall of hom kingdom, foreign relations
of the homs with the neighboring states, hom-Mughal conflict etc. This Burañj was edited and
published by Sir Edward Gait with parallel translation by G. C. Barua in 1930 [Sarkar 1994 : 4].
During six hundred years of their reign, the hom priests and noble persons wrote numerous
Burañj s both in hom and Assamese language. But, till date only a few numbers are coming to
light. Major parts of these vast historical writings are yet to be traced out. A large number of
Burañj s are lost due to war, flood, fire and other natural calamities. K rti Chandra Barbaru an
official of hom court also burnt down some of those remarkable works. In the later part of their
reign, the homs created Assamese versions of the earlier Burañj s by translating those from its
hom origin. In view of effective and correct translational works, they even felt it necessary to
compile Amras (lexicon, word stock) also. During the reign of hom king Gaurin th Singha (1780-
1794) two numbers of such lexicons with Ahom-Assamese and Assamese-Ahom vocabularies were
complied: one is Bar Amra by Teng i Pandit and the other is Lati Amra by Ram K nta Baru . In
both the Amras equivalent words of hom and Assamese language were entered. Probably these
two lexicons helped the writers in translating the Burañj s from hom to Assamese language.

It is to be noted that the American Missionaries who came to Assam in 1836 with the aim to
promulgate Christianity in this region tried to collect some of the old manuscripts of the Burañj s.
They founded a camp beside the river Dikhow in Sibsagar and published a monthly magazine
Arunodoi in the year 1846 by establishing a printing press. In this magazine, they published some of
the Burañj s part by part.

It is yet to be ascertained which one the first Assamese Burañj is. Maheswar Neog [1962 :
190] assumes that Purani Asam Burañj and or hgar Buhr goh iñr Burañj may be the oldest
Assamese Burañj among all the Burañj s that are found till date.

4
 On the basis of the classification made by Surya Kumar Bhuyan [1985 : 26], an eminent
historian of Assam, Assamese historical literature or the chronicles may be classified into the
following broad categories:

(1) General Burañj s of hom kingdom,

(2) Burañj s of neighboring states having diplomatic relation with the hom
royal court.
(3) Technical Burañj s, and

(4) Other Burañj s.

The historical literature under category (1) may be classified into two sub-categories: (a)
Desultory Burañj s of the Hindu kings of ancient mar pa, from Bhagadatta to the beginning of
hom rule in 1228 A.D. and (b) The Burañj s of the hom monarchs of Assam from 1228 to the
end of their rule in 1826, continued up to 1838 A.D. or even later.

The Burañj s fall under sub category (a) is based on traditions and legends. Most of the facts
narrated in these Burañj s, the rulers, and the dynasties, were orally transmitted from one generation
to the other as myth and legend. S. K. Bhuyan rightly observed that “History and tradition are
interwovwn in the texture of these chronicles, and none of them gives an axhaustive survey of the
rulers, though attempts are made to indicate the chronology by the mention of succeeding dynasties
with the names of their prominent representatives” [1985 : 26]. However, names of some rulers
occurring here are to be found in the inscriptions of ancient mar pa. The writers have done
painstaking hard work to remake the ancient history of this region by using the myths, legends and
narration prevailed in the inscriptions. Satyendranath Sarma’s comment in this regard is as follows:
“Though the account in these chronicles are not as much reliable as the inscriptions, yet they may be
profitably used, sometimes as corroborative and some times as supplementary evidences to the
inscriptional accounts” [1989 : 745]. The mr par Burañj is an excellent example of such kind of
Burañj . S. K. Bhuyan compiled and edited this Burañj by using several original sources with a
view to bring all available materials relating to the subject under one cover. The printed version of
this Burañj has twelve independent chapters with three appendixes. In the first chapter, the writer
sincerely describes the ancient kings of mr pa kingdom of pre- hom period based on proverbs
and legends. Other chapters of the book are the descriptions of Koc kings of western Assam and the
different war with the Mughals including the famous ar igh t battle where the hom soldiers
fought with bravery under the leadership of their general L cit Barphukan. In this battle, the Ahoms
defeated the Mughal general R msingha, the king of Ambar. Folkloristic elements occurred within
the texts of this Burañj conferred literary beauties.

The Burañj s fall in the sub-category (b) i.e. the Burañj s of hom kingdom are numerous in
number and are more authentic and reliable than the Burañj s of the previous category. These can
easily be used as source material for writing medieval history of Assam. The authors were the noble
courtiers of the kingdom and they wrote these Burañj s under the direct surveillance of government
officials. The king’s office supplied them all kinds of papers and other necessary documents. They
5
never manipulated any truth occurred inside or outside the palace or the court. Even disreputable
incidents happened within the period were authentically narrated without any hesitation. Description
of the ancestors of the hom monarchs is a special characteristic of these Burañj s. The writers
never forgot to include the story of Khunglung and Khunl i, the ancestors of hom community who
believed to be come down from heaven to earth by climbing a lather made of gold and established
their capital in Mungrimungr m.
The Purani Asam Burañj or the Burañj (ed. by H.C. Goswami) has all the records of the
hom kingdom from Cuk to Gad dhar Singha. Vivid and systematic description of the
Muhammadan wars in Assam, the role of trade and commerce as one of the factors in hom-
Mughal conflict etc. are some of the unique features of this Burañj [Sarkar 1992 : 4]. The Asam
Burañj (ed. by S.K.Bhuyan) is another such chronicle where the writer narrated all the events from
the beginning of hom dynasty to Swargadew Gad dhar Singha.. This chronicle was obtained from
the family of Sukumar Mahanta of North Guwahati. The printed version of this book consists of
thirteen chapters. Lucid prose style is the main characteristic of this Burañj . The author vividly
described the incidents took place in connection with Su uddhi or Garam Kuwar , daughter of
Gaura chief, who was married to the King of Kamata. Garam subsequently became the consort of
Kach ri King and then Ahom monarch Cuhungmung or Dihing R . The first Muslim attack on
the eastern part of Ahom kingdom by Turbak is also vividly narrated in colourfull language. In this
battle Mul G bharu the wife of K ku Buhragohain took part in the battle with some of her
followers. They fought with bravery but all of them were killed. Mul G bharu was unable to
furnish her husband with the Kabac-Kapor (talisman cloth) and he was killed by Turbak. So she
took part in the battle with some other noble ladies. This Buranji also reveals the diplomatic bluffs
used by the officers of hom King to demoralize the enemy. During the reign of Dihing R
hom commander Cankham Ghar-Sandikai reached the bank of the Karatoy river with his force.
There the local people of Gaura have made an enquiry of their coming. An officer of hom King at
once replied, “The God of heaven King Indra has established his sovereignty in the east and his two
sons accompanied by four hundred thousand soldiers have subjugated the territories lying on the
north and south bank. We are here to subdue the chiefs of Hindustan and to wash our swords in the
Karatoy river and to make friendship with Gaura chief.” In this way the Gaura chief was frightened
and he expressed his willingness to establish a friendly relationship with hom Government. There
is another Asam Burañj (ed. by Sarat Kumar Dutta) contains the period from Jayadhwaj Singha
(1648-1663) to Gad dhar Singha (1681-1696). In Barp hi Burañj Ahom king Lakshmi Singha’s
(1769-1780) reign was described. In this way, several Burañj s were composed to mark the reign of
different hom rulers.
The ar Asam Burañj is a compilation of as many as seven short Burañj s. In the first
Burañj the period from Khunlung and Khunl i to Sujinf or Sarujan Dhing R is narrated.
The second is the compilation of the period from Swargan yan to Cuhungmung or Oparjan
Dihing R . The third one is the description of the reign of Dihing R to Pramatta Singha.
The fourth one speaks the time of Dihing R to Gaurin th Singha. The fith Burañj is the

6
description of Jayadhwaj Singha and Cakradhwaj Singha. In the sixth Burañj description of the
period from Kamaleswar Singha to the resumption of the territories of Purandar Singha by East
India Company is depicted. The seventh Burañj deals with the political affairs of the homs. It
gives an account of the insignias and distinctions of the officers and other personalities of hom
court. It is to be noted that the fifth Burañj briefly accounted Mir Jumla’s invasion, occupation of
Garg o and the subsequent treaty. Imprisonment of Said Sana and Said Firoz at Itakhuli Koth after
the famous battle of ar igh t fought between hom and Mughal is vividly described here. This
particular historic event is not found in other Burañj s.

Sometimes dynastical Burañj s were also compiled with same care and authenticity. One of
such chronicles is Tungkhung Buranj . Compilers if chronicles in Assam preferred anonymity.
However, in this particular Burañj the name of the writer is referred as Srin nth Duw Barbaru ,
a distinguished member of the hom Rang cil Duw family. According to S.K. Bhuyan, the
editor of this Burañj “The founder of the family possessed a red dog with which he had once
accompanied King Cur mph Bhag Raj , 1641- 44, on a hunting excursion. The dog running with
the swiftness of a kite, fell at a deer and bit and seized the prey for which the King gave the dog the
name Rang -Cil , or the Red Kite. The name was subsequently transferred to the proud possessor of
the hound, and the family was thenceforth known by that tite” [1832 : ix]. Srin th Duw took the
responsibility of the Barbaru portfolio, the head of the judiciary as well as the head of the executive
of hom kingdom during the period from 1800 to 1817. The Tungkhung dynasty ruled Assam
for about 145 years (1681-1826). The reign of this dynasty was begun with Swargadew Gad dhar
Singha and ends with Swargadew Candrak nta Singha (1810-1818). During the period of
Chandrak nta Singha’s reign the M n (Burmese) invaded and conquered Assam. After that the
British rulers defeated the M n and took over the rule of Assam through the famous historical treaty
of Y nd bu happened in the 24th February, 1826 between the British and the M n. The original text
of this particular chronicle represents only the events occurred during the period from 1751-1806,
i.e from R jeswar Singha to Kamaleswar Singha. As the writer was the eyewitness of all the events
happened in this period the description can be accepted more or less as authentic. However, the
writer said nothing about the revolution occurred during the period from the death of Cakradhwaj
Singha to the beginning of Gad dhar Singha’s reign. Within this period, several Kings were killed.
The administration of the state was virtually collapsed. L luksol Barphukan the elder brother of the
great general L cit Barrphukan killed hgar Buhr goh iñ through a conspiracy and captured
King Cudaif . Then he placed a fourteen years old boy in the throne and virtually became the
sovereign leader of the Ahom government. At last, he was killed by a person known as Bhot i Dek
who was chosen for human sacrifice in the K ikhait Gos temple situated in diy . The editor
of the printed version however, complied all the relevant incidents with the help of other Burañj s
including the period from Gad dhar Singha to Pramatta Singha in a nut sell [Bhuyan 1932 : 15-16
(footnote)]. The printed book has all the records of Tungkhung dynasty. At the very beginning of
this Burañj , the writer insisted upon the secrecy of the content of this chronicle. The writer
appealed the reader in this way : “Salutation to Srikrishna ! Salutation to Ganesa ! Salutation to the
Goddess Parvati ! This is the Buranji caused to be written in saka 1775 by the Duara Barbarua.
7
Keep it secretly. Do not give it even to your son if you have no confidence on him. Show it to one
who is unhostile and wel-disposed to you. Pandits have prohibited betrayal of princes; and if trust is
violated it amounts to an insult shown to one’s mother. So keep it in confidence; more specially, it is
an unfathomable stra (sacred book); who ever finds its bottom ? Even great sages become victims
of confusion in such matters, which I have handled with whatever judgement I can command. So
pandits should not at random find fault with the book. If one is bent upon detecting blemishes he
will find many. This is the Vamsavali or history of the Swargadeos or ings of the Tunkkhungia
Dynasty. This history is caused to be written on Thursday, the twenty second of phalgun, on the
pancomi tithi” [Bhuyan 1932 : ]. In the same manner, tan Buhr goh iñ also requested his readers
to treat his Burañj as a very sacred document, and asked to unfold it only to those who are
unhostile and friendly. The writer of Tungkhung Buranj vividly narrated the cause and effect of
famous historical event of Mow mar or mar revolt took place during the reign of this
particular dynasty. He also depicted the untoward actions of his relatives without any biasness.
Moreover, glimpses of the relations of the Ahom Government with Manipur, Kachar, Jayantiya,
Bhutan, and the chiefs of neighboring races.

Numal Bargoh iñ, a minister of hom royal court during the reign of Swargadew R jeswar
Singha compiled Cakarif Burañj (Cobra chronicle) which created sensation for its
uncomplimentary statements in respect of the origin and ancestry of K rtichandra Barbaru , the
powerful executive of the age. The name Cakarif Burañj is given for its unsparing remarks. It is
to be noted that K rtichandra primarily was a ik. He became Barbru , a high official of hom
court by his sincere and loyal affords towards the royal administration [Goswami 1972 : 225]. To
remove his original status mentioned in the Burañj s he managed to bring the matter into the notice
of the king and other noble officers of the court about the possibility of similar inclusions in respect
of the ancestors of kings as well. K rtichandra’s followers collected all the Burañj s available and
closely scrutinized them. The objectionable one was burnt down and innocent one was returned to
its owner. In those Burañj s where objections were few, the passages with objection were erased and
the manuscripts were returned [Bhuyan 1945 : xviii]. In the history of Assam, this incident is known
as Burañj h janja (sacrificial burning of Burañj ) of K rtichandra. This officer of hom court
was not ready to accept his past and thought that there may be some exaggerations, which will
defame his image and loyalty to the royal court.
King Siva Singha (1714-1744), ordered Manohar B ilung Phukan that the histories of his
predecessors should be written and the same should only contain the names and achievements of the
hom rulers. Under the patronage of hom king Purandar Singha (1818-1819 and 1832-1838) of
later part, several Burañj s were compiled. Among this Burañj s Asam Burañj Puthi written in
prose form was authored by K th Dwija T mul Phukan and was revised by R dh th
Barbaru . Other two were composed in metrical form. One is known as Kali Bh rat Burañj by
Dutir m Swarnak r H jarik and the other is Belim rar Burañj by Bisheswar Baidyadhip. Both the
Buranjis has covered the period from 1679 to1858. These two Burañj s provide internal conflict of
the hom rulers and foreign invasions at the closing time of hom monarchy. It is to be noted that

8
Purandar Singha was an independent king of hom kingdom during the time of Burmese invasions
and a tributary prince under the East India Company from 1833 to 1838.
The famous Deodh i Asam Burañj is a combination of four short chronicles: Deodh i Asam
Burañj , hgar Buhr goh iñr Burañj , D tiyal Burañj and Bibidh Khanda Burañj . The
Deodh i Asam Burañj is the translated version of original hom text. The American Baptist
Missionaries of Assam first collected this Burañj . Anandir m Gogoi of North Guwahati was also
the owner of another text of this important historical treatise. At the beginning of this chronicle, the
author first narrated the origin of the hom dynasty and then gave an account of the period of hom
rule from its first king Cuk to Cyutingf or Nar R (Ailing king). hgar Buhr goh iñr
Burañj is one of such brief chronicle included in this collection. This short chronicle was caused to
be written by tan Buhr goh iñ, the notable Prime Minister of hom kingdom from 1662 to 1679
who together with L cit Barphukan, the legendary general of Assam fought against the mighty
Mughals during famous ar igh t war. Here the period from the beginning of hom Kingdom to
Cuhungmung or Dihingiy Raj is incorporated. The relationship between hom king and other
neighboring states, i.e. Kac ri, Jayant , Mikir, Neli, Gobh , Kh higar etc. is marked in the
tiyal Burañj . It is to be noted that authors of such chronicles not only confined themselves in
describing what they have seen, but also they have unfolded valuable observations in respect of
social and religious conditions of those frontier states [Sarma 1989 : 745]. The original text of this
chronicle was collected from Mohan Sing Deka of Nagaon and Bhumidhar Kakati of Kaligaon.
Bibidh Khanda Burañj may be considered as the cultural descriptions of the homs. Purani Asam
Burañj (ed. by Hemchandra Goswami for Kamrup Anusandhan Samiti) or Swargan yan R r
khy n is also another famous chronicle of hom monarchy.
There are several Burañj s under category (2). Those may be referred as the h Burañj ,
the Kach ri Burañj , the Jayant Burañj , the Tripur Burañj etc. The historical sense of the
Assamese people led them to through light in the events not only of their own country, but also of
the neighboring countries. So, the relations of the hom kings with their counterpart of the
neighboring states are vividly accounted in these Burañj s. The writers have gathered sufficient
knowledge in respect of socio-cultural, political and geographical situations of these states. The
Kach ri Burañj is the successive account of the Kachari Kings ruled from the earliest time to the
reign of king T mradhwaj N ya a. The author narrated here the diplomatic and political relations
between hom government and the kings of Cachar. This Burañj is divided into twelve chapters
including four appendixes on the basis of corresponding hom kings only. The incomplete
manuscript of this Burañj was recovered from the family of Pandit Hemchandra Goswami.

Tripur Burañj or Tripur De ar Kath r Lekh was authored in 1724 by Ratna Kandali Sarma
Kataki and Arjun Das Bairagi Kataki the two envoys of the hom King Rudra Singha (1696-
1714) who have visited the royal court of Tripura on three different occasions between the years
1709 and 1715. After succeeding the throne Swargadew Rudra Singha made a plan to invade Bengal
from where successive invasions on Ahom territory were took place. However, without the help and
support of the neighboring states it was an impossible task to overcome the mighty Mughals.
9
Therefore, to give a strong foothold to his plan he tried to make friendship with the leathers of
neighboring states by using his officer not less the rank of Barbruw . Rudra Singha got positive
response from his counterparts of nearby states. After that, one Anandir m Medhi, a Bengali
Musician informed him that King Ratna M inkya (1698-1712) of Tripura is a great king. Rudra
Singha offered valuable presents to Medhi and asked him to create a situation so that king of
Tripura seeks hom government’s friendship and alliance. Anandir m Medhi did so and on the
requests of Tripura king Ratna M nikya, Rudra Singha sent Ratna Kandali and Arjun D s to Tripura
as envoys in the name of Barbaru . They carried some diplomatic messages of the hom king in
respect of joint fight to avenge the humiliation caused by the Mughals in many occasions. During
their stay in Tripura, they have observed everything of that country. They presented in forty
chapters what they have seen and observed the history, topography, resources and customs of
Tripura and even the revolution of dethroning king Ratna M nikya caused by his step brother
Ghan m Barth kur who later became the king of Tripura and named himself as Mahendra
nikya. This Buranji is also termed as Kataki Burañj (Envoy’s chronicle). Among all the
Burañj s of other states, this Burañj is marked as the best in view of its stylistic presentation. The
handwriting of it is beautiful and legible, word gap is properly maintained, and the divisions are
well marked in comparison to other manuscripts. Moreover, it contains explanatory sub-headings,
which provide great help to its reader.

Another creditable chronicle of this category is the h Burañj (ed. by Hemchandra

Goswami for Kamrup Anusandhan Samiti). Here the history of Mughal dynasty of seventeeth
century is unfolded. It was caused to be compiled in the later part of seventeenth century. During
this period Mughal invasions were more frequent than before. The author wonderfully narrated
Mahammadam traditions and customs in this chronicle. Proper use of Parso-Arabic words transmit
Mughal atmosphere to this particular chronicle. S. K. Bhuyan feels that “… if workers in the field of
Muhammadan history had access to the virgin materials embodied in the Assamese h Burañj ,
they could much appreciate them. They were written from a detached quarter with the help of
materials which may now be lost” [1985 : 45]. Pandit Hemchandra Goswami recovered a chronicle
of Burdwan written in Assamese script. He placed this Burañj in the exhibition of ‘Banga Sahitya
Sammelan’, a literary conference held in Gauripur on the requests of the then king of Gauripur. But
somebody has stolen it away from the stall and never returned again [Goswami 1972 : 157].
The Burañj s of category (3) is called ng Rung Phukanar Burañj . It is a different kind of
Burañj in comparison to other categories. It has technical values, and so it may be termed as
technical Burañj . All the records in respect of constructions of royal houses, graves, bridges, drains
etc. during hom rule, especially the records of concrete works made with the help of brick, stone,
adhesive etc. were posted in these Burañj s . In hom language C ng means expert and Ren means
house. C ng Rung is the corrupt form of C ng Ren and it means expert in building houses. In the
course of the time, meaning of C ng Rung was expanded and was used to mean an expert in all type
of constructions. C ng Rung Phukan was the chief architect engineer of hom kingdom. This officer
was responsible for all kinds of architectural design and construction. He made all the constructions

10
under his direct supervision, kept all the records of such constructions in written form, and
deposited the same to royal archives (Gandhi Bhar l). In these Burañj not only accounts of all
necessary objects like breaks, flat stones, boulders, adhesive substances or mortars needed for
constructions were described in detail but the accurate measurement of length, breath and height etc.
were also given. Moreover, the compiler also narrated the period required for every construction
from digging up the soil to the completion of it. Presently, two numbers of Burañj of this category
have come into light. One is edited by Bhubanchandra Handique and the other is edited by
Bhimkanta Baruah. The original manuscript of the later, which was written in the bulk of S ci tree,
was found in the house of M duri L ithepan Bargoh in family of Sibsagar. The department of
Assamese, Dibrugarh University, published it. The following lines quoted from the ng Rung
Phukanar Buranji edited by Bhimkanta Baruah [1992 : 18, 14, 7] in connection with the
construction of a bridge in Rangpur city (now known as Sibsagar) will help to know the
characteristics of the ng Rung Phukanar Burañj : “The length of the Bottom is 4 beño (sixteen
yards), its breath is two beño 2 h t (9 yrads),… height is 12 beño (48 yard)”.… In the maid m
(grave) of Sargadew Rudrasingha “Broken stone 4620, bolder 200015 numbers were needed. In the
lig t (main hole) of this grave broken stones 3000, bolders 10000, good breaks 569340, broken
breaks 18290 dhols (drums) were used… mortars needed as many as 84 holes. In the process of
preparation of mortars unrefined sugar 2440 kam (a measuring unit), m h (a kind f pulse) For 230
dhol, san (thatching grass) 230 dhol, lime dust 5420 dhol, lime stone 5320 kam, fish 226 d ng (a
load carried on the shoulders), oil 22 dhols, dhun (paste of a kind of resin= Artimisia indica) 252
ser (an unit of measure in weight= approximate 900 grams.) were needed.” During hom rule the
units used for measurement, weight etc. were beño, h t, muthi, beget, ngul, kam, dhol, kalah,
gand etc. Generally, bricks were made by burning good quality soil. But occasionally in some
special constructions those were fried in oil also.

With the influence of Buranjis, jvam val s (dynastic chronicles of the royal families) and
Satra Buranjis (chronicles of Vaisnavite monastic institutions) were also written. These books
may also be covered in the discussion of historical literature of Assam. The Vam val s or the
dynastic chronicles caused to be written by royal families or other noble families along with
biographical notes are the reach store-house of information which are not available in the Buranjis.

With the influence of hom Buranji, the Koch kings of western Assam also encouraged their
pandits to make similar records of their rules. The writers chronologically narrated the important
events of the successive rulers. One of such chronicles of Koch kingdom is Darrang jvam val
composed by Baladev Suryakhari Daibajna. In this dynastic chronicle the author gives an account of
Koch kings from beginning to the Mughal conquest of K mrup and the flight of Koch king Bali
yan to hom kingdom. This Vam val was composed in about 1791-1806 under the patronage
of Darangi king Samudra Narayan. Detail account of the division of Koch kingdom leading to the
establishment of Koch-Hajo and Darangi state, analysis of Mughal intervention in the political
affairs of Koch kingdom etc. are some of the valuable features of this Vam val . It needs special

11
mention that the presentation and treatment of this chronicle is quite different from that of hom
Buranjis. The author presented it in verse form in the line of other vaishnavite poetic literature.
Another Koch chronicle, the R jop khy n was composed in 19th century by Jadu N th Ghosh,
an official of Koch Beh r under the king Harendra N yan. According to J. N. Sarkar [1992 : 9] as
the author derived the source materials “from the works of the pandits under Nar N yan and Pr n
yan, he tends to exaggerate or omit facts.”
There are several individual Vamsavalis like Khargan yan Vam val aru Gandharvan ya
Vam val . The N ga-Majumd r Baru ’s Vam val is appended to Asam Buranji authored by
Harkanta Baru Sadar min. the story of B ra Bhuyans of Assam is depicted in Bhuñar Puthi.

Unlike other Buranjis the Buranji of Satra institutions of Assam was written with religious
motives. It can hardly be called chronicle. However, the jvam val and Satriya Buranji both
have some historical values in restructuring medieval history of Assam.

The tradition of writing chronicle is seen in modern Assamese language also. During British
rule, several writers compiled Buranjis in the line of hom Buranjis chronicle in their individual
capacity. They are Harkanta Barua Sadaramin, Halir m Dhekialphukan, Padmanath Gohainbaruah
and Gunabhiram Barua etc. Haliram Dhekialphukan has complied his Asam Buranji in Bengali
language. Sadaramin’s Asam Buranji is the enlarged version of the chronicle compiled by Kashinath
Tamuli Phukan.
Several writers compiled different books based on Ahom chronicles in present time. Among
such writers, Surya Kumar Bhuyan may be called the pioneer. This scholar took special interest in
editing and publishing almost all the Buranjis of Ahom period recovered till date. He also compiled
several historical books like Kõwar Bidroh, Mirjuml r Asam kraman, tan Burh goh iñ and his
times, cit Barphukan and his times, Asam Buranjir Kath , Swargadew Rajeswar Simha etc.
Pandit Hemchandra Goswami, Rajmohan Nath and Benudhar Sarma also did extensive works on
Assamese historical literature. Their valuable writings are compiled in the volumes of their
complete works. Hiteswar Barbarua’s homr Din is another valuable book in regard of Assamese
historical literaturue. Sarbananda Rajkonwar’s Itih se sõwar Chay at Bachar is also based on
different hom chronicle.

Assamese visitors to Mughal India, and sometimes by home staying writers also compiled
some accounts in respect of Mughal emperor by gathering information from Mughal scholars
coming to Assam with the invaders. All these accounts carry the range of interest of the Assamese
people. Therefore, one will have to study the contemporary Persian chronicles to know the physical
and economic geography as well as the socio-cultural facts of this area. Some of such chronicles are
: Tabaqat-i n siri (1260-1261) of Minh juddin us Cir j, rikh-I Firoj C hi by Zi ud din Barani,
Tarikh-I Ferisht by Muhammad Q sim, Akbarn h of bul Fazal, Muntakhab ut Tawarikh of
bdul Q dir, Tabaqat-i- kbari by Khw Niz muddin hmad Bakh i, harist n-i-Gh ibi by
lauddin Isp , Tuzuk-i-J ngiri the autobiography of Emperor J ng r. These chronicles are
the important sources of different invasions in Assam caused by the Mughal Emperors or the

12
contemporary Sultans/ Governors appointed in Bengal. Moreover, the chronicles also contain some
accounts of Kamrupa and hom kingdom followed by political, administrative, military and social
history [Sarkar 1992 : 11].

The Burañjis in other words the chronicles of medieval Assam have immense literary value.
These may be termed as historical classics and at the same time literay masterpieces of high order.
No other states of India of pre-British period have such a discipline where literature and history are
mixed together and yet both have of them have their own identity. The authors narrated plenty of
stories based on superstitions and traditional beliefs in each chronicle. Some times these stories are
used as simile. The citation of the story of two peacocks described in Asam Buranji bears the
character of such simile. The story of P nmay Bhairav of Kamata depicted in Asam Burañji is , or
the story related with the ancestors of Tripura Kings described in Tripura Burañji is two examples
of superstitions and believes. Though, these stories have no historical significance, yet have much
importance from the literary point of view.

The Burañjis have dignified prose style based mainly on the dialect spoken by the people of
eastern Assam. There is no exaggeration in describing the facts. The writers used short and simple
sentences to express not his mind but the facts available to them. Burañjis written in verse form are
less in number. There are some words and grammatical forms found in these are still a living part of
the dialect spoken in the lower Assam region.
Suitable prose style and nature of presentation to express different situations and circumstances
are the main features of all the chronicles. The writers tried to avoid unnecessary ornamentation and
artificiality. S. K. Bhuyan, the eminent scholar of Assam, certifies the prose style of the Burañjis in
this way: “They are (the Burañjis”) written in Assamese prose of a very racy character, though
Buranjis written in the now practically obsolete Ahom language are also met with here and there.
The Vaisnava literature of Assam is artistic in its style and subject-matter, but it dose not throw
much light on the actual life of the people except in an indirect manner. The Buranjis have enriched
the sorrows and sufferings of the people, which, when widely read, will be a revelation. There are
amorous intrigues and courtly romances, idylls of pastoral life, outbursts of patriotism and valour,
critical analysis of complex political situations, and epic descriptions of war and triumph” [1985 :
39]. One can easily understand the characteristics of the environment in which each Burañji was
written from its own prose style. Burañjis, whether it relates to Assam province and the bordering
states or to the affairs of Mughal India has its own style according to the subject dealt with. For
example, the prose style of ng Rung Phukanar Burañji is very different from other Burañjis
because of its subject matter. Emotional effusion or adulation is totally absent in this Buranji.
Neverthless, in other Burañjis also emotional perception is more or less absent. The Burañjis were
primarily state documents compiled for specific purposes. These are therefore impersonal and
objective. As these are not the conscious literary product, the personality of author is not a factor
here. The writers were very much rigid in maintaining objectivity in describing all the events. They
even narrated the untoward action made by some of their relatives without any biasness. Srinath
Duw Barbaruw has shown such dedication in writing Tungkhung Burañji. As per hom

13
tradition writing of chronicle was believed as sacred one. Therefore, the king or the officials of royal
court never made any interference in preparation of a chronicle. The authors also tried to make a
compact relation between language and thought by avoiding flowery language. Nevertheless, it
cannot be said that they have maintained watertight compartment in the use of language. Rather, the
vehicle of expression is not at all dry and dull. One can notice multifarious use of tone as per
situation, context and person in all the Burañjis. For example, the diction and mode of expression
of Asam Burañji or tiyali Burañji is quite different from Tripura Burañji. This Burañji is an
eyewitness’s account of political envoys. Therefore, their observations in regard of the concerned
state are narrated with lucid, dignified and cultivated prose. On the contrary, the tiyali Burañji
have a mixture of Assamese and the dialects of frontier provinces adjoining to hom kingdom. The
h Burañji bears another form of language, which has a Parso-Arabic mixture with Assamese.

The language of Burañji is somewhat rough and straight forward in nature and it represents the
exact conversation of different persons in different situations. Such representation sometimes gives
a dramatic colour. The authors avoided long and complicated sentences and tried to develop a
certain thought with the help of short sentences. Frequent uses of irregular sentences sometimes
create a poetic beauty to its expression. Moreover, appropriate uses of witty remarks, wise sayings,
proverbs, homely conversations are also some of the remarkable features of its prose style.

The language of Burañjis is more or less based on the spoken dialect of eastern Assam, more
specifically to say the dialect of Sibsagar and its surrounding area. However, there are plenty of
phonetic variation, grammatical forms and vocabularies, which are still the living elements of the
dialect of western Assam, especially the Kamrupi dialect.

It is worth mentioning that Burañjis are not history. These are mere chronicles of the hom rule
in Assam. However, those who want to prepare a historical account of Assam will get all the
elements in these books. Moreover, the Burañjis contributed a special kind of strong, lucid and
incomparable literary prose to the Assamese literary history. It also preserved the cultural heritage
of the Assamese community as a whole. Different types of festival, special honour shown to a
corpse, funeral system, marriage ceremony etc. have also been preserved in the Burañjis. The
diplomatic letters exchanged between the hom kings and the leaders of other states have immense
value. Sanskrit words used in these letters gave it another dimension. One can also get the
knowledge of the protocols and other royal formalities of medieval Assam from these Burañjis.
The Burañjis were numerous in number, but as the writers were different, they differed from
each other in respect of their contents and style. Some Burañjis were compiled by single hand, while
some others appeared to be the compilation of several compilers. However, it seems that all the
Burañjis are supplementary to each other. Each Burañji is valuable as it is bound to contain fresh
inclusions. “No Buranji is therefore to be discarded as useless, because it may be that some historian
would be hunting for decades for the name, the date and the details. A true and a reliable history of
the Ahom period can be compiled only by one who has at his disposal all the Buranjis which can be
traced and recovered, not only for accomplishing the fullness of the details but also for the purpose
of verification, correction and corroboration” [Bhuyan 1945 : xv].
14
 In short, the historical literature of medieval Assam in one hand preserves the political history
of this region and on the other hand gives the readers lucid and unparallel specimens of prose. It is
worth mentioning that modern Assamese prose has its root in the prose of medieval Burañjis.

References
A Native (Anandaram Dhekial Phukan), 1955 : A Few Remarks on the Assamese Language and
Vernacular Education in Assam. Reprinted in Anandaram
Dhekiyal Phukan : Plea for Assam and Assamese by
Maheswar Neog, 1977. Asom Sahitya Sabha. Jorhat.

Baruah Birinchi Kumar, 1964 (1978) : History of Assamese Literature. Sahitya Akademy.
New Delhi.

---------------------, 1960 : Asmamiya Katha Sahitya. Lawyers Book Stall. Gauhati.

Bhuyan, S.K., 1945 (1988) : “Introduction”. Assam Buranji. Ed. by S.K.Bhuyan.

DHAS, Gauhati.
---------------------,1985 Studies in the Literature of Assam. Omsons Publications.
New Delhi, Gauhati.

Deka, Khagesh Sen, 2005 : “Ahom Jugar Sthapatya Aru Cangrung Phukanar
Buranji”. Asom Sahitya Sabha Patrika. Ed by D.P.Patgiri.
Asom Sahitya Sabha. Jorhat.

Gait, Sir Edward, 1905 : A History of Assam. Lawyers Book Stall. Guwahati.

Goswami, Hemchandra, 1972 : “Sahitya Sabhar Sabhapatir Abhibhasan”. Pandit

Hemchandra Goswami Racanavali. Ed. by Benudhar
Sarma. Asam Sahitya Sabha. Jorhat.

------------------------, 1972 : “Asam Buranjir Toka”. Pandit Hemchandra Goswami

Racanavali. Ed. by Benudhar Sarma. Asam Sahitya Sabha
Jorhat.
Griersen, Sir George Abraham, 2003 : Linguistic Survey of India, Vol-V (Part-I) Motilal Banarsi
Dass. New Delhi.

Neog Maheswar, 1996 : “Baijnanik Bhittit Sahityar Buranji”. Asamiya Bhasa

Sahitya Aru Sanskriti. Ed. by Sailen Bharili for Jana
Manas of the Deptt. of Assamese, G.U. Chandra Prakash.
Guwahati.

--------------------, 1962 (1989) : Asamiya Sahityar Ruprekha. Chandra Prakash. Guwahati.

15
Sarkar, J.N., 1994 :
Sarma, Satyendranath, 1989 (1996) :
Winternitz, Maurice, 1985 :
“Chapter I”. The Comprehensive History of Assam, Vol-
II. Ed. by H.K. Barpujari. Publication Board, Assam. 1-
34. 6 Vols.
“Assamese Chronicle”. Encyclopaedia of Indian
Literature, Vol-III. Ed. by Amaresh Datta. Sahitya
Akademy. New Delhi.
History of Indian Literature, Vol-III. Trananslated from
German into English by Subhadra Jha. Motilal
Banarsidass. Delhi et al. 3 Vols.
****
Dr. Khagesh Sen Deka
Associate Prof. & HoD
Department of Assamese
Pub Kamrup College
P.O.- Baihata Chariali, Assam-781381
16