An Identity Born Out of Shared Grief: The Account of Rambuai in the Contemporary Mizo Literary Texts

Anthony David Stephen Smith’s definition of nationalism as a feeling of “intense bond of solidarity”, when applied to contemporary Mizo nationalist consciousness, is a bond born not out of pre-historic kinship but of shared grief and a spiritual anchor in Christianity. The MNF movement for self-determination, which began with half-hearted support from the people spiraled off into the most violent and darkest period in Mizo history known as Rambuai (1966-1986) which, when translated into English, means ‘troubled land’. The human experience of this period has been a subject of Mizo literature. Three works of fiction— Nunna Kawngthuam Puiah (1989), Silaimu Ngaihawm (2012) and Zorami: A Redemption Song (2015) are among the best literary representations of human suffering in the troubled land. These works will be used as textual bases upon which the role of religion and spirituality in bringing about a reconciliation and healing can be studied. The paper examines how the rambuai memories construct the Mizo identity that relies on forging connections between religion and a heroic cultural past.