Holy water of Haflong
Maboram Village, 10 kilometres from Haflong, the headquarter town of Dima Hasao district in Assam is the place where Biblical prophecy seems to have come true.
“Jesus predicted in Jerusalem that a source of holy water will spring out from the height of a mountain and we believe that this is the Holy Water, we think that God has his own way to shower His blessings up on the believers, we have come to collect this water which has a curing effect,” said Reverend R.D. Haichang president of Northeast Baptist church, after offering a silent prayer near the blessed pool. He come all the way from Jaluki in Nagaland to collect the blessed water from Maboram village.
The village has become the centre of attraction for thousands of Christian believers who come here every day to collect this water for its miraculous effect. Common men and women mixed with clergies are thronging the village from nearby villages and from distant places like Karbi Anglong district of Assam, Nagaland, Mizoram and Manipur. From quite a distance, one can see people rushing to the village to collect water in bottles, cans and containers of every shape and size.
A long queue of men and women coiling up the high ridge by a steep hill is inching forward near the water source, and that has become a common sight in Maboram village now.
“We heard that Bodoruddin Azmal of Hojai gives blessed water to the needy and the water of Garampani guesser located in Karbi Anglong Golaghat border has therapeutic effect, but this is completely different from all those. I have never seen people from Karbi Anglong rushing to a village of Dima Hasao with a gallon container to collect water, this is incredible,” said Sanju Bora eminent journalist of Diphu who was present their to cover the occurrence.
At the last tip of the village near a steep edge, water is trickling inside a crumple of rock from various directions. The pool of water is approximately 4 by 3 feet, secured on every side with barbed wire and water is drawn out with a pipe.
A signboard has been put up where it is simply written ‘HOLY WATER.’
“If one has a bath with this water surely he will be cured from any skin infection or any other untreatable disease,” Sema Zemi the village headman ( gaon bura) claimed.
The whole matter came to light during a meeting of the village women on 13th February this year. In the meeting, a village woman revealed that after bathing with the water of the pool located near the Jhum (terrace cultivation) field she was cured from a very old infirmity.
“Since the woman’s testimony, many people started to collect water from the pool and used it to cure incurable illness, even the blind have got back their sight,” Sema Zemi informed.
Whether someone believes or not, thousands of people including the clergy from Nagaland and simple village dwellers like Nune Rankhel, who has walked 20 miles from his village to collect the holy water with great expectation, believe in the mercy of God which can also flow from a pool of water.
We returned back from Maboram village with a heart full of celestial feelings.
