year 2011

এসো, এসো, এসো হে বৈশাখ।
তাপসনিশ্বাসবায়ে মুমূর্ষুরে দাও উড়ায়ে,
বৎসরের আবর্জনা দূর হয়ে যাক।।
যাক পুরাতন স্মৃতি, যাক ভুলে-যাওয়া গীতি,
অশ্রুবাষ্প সুদূরে মিলাক।।
মুছে যাক গ্লানি, ঘুচে যাক জরা,
অগ্নিস্নানে শুচি হোক ধরা।
রসের আবেশরাশি শুষ্ক করি দাও আসি,
আনো আনো আনো তব প্রলয়ের শাঁখ।
মায়ার কুজ্ঝটিজাল যাক দূরে যাক।।

-রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর

an Amazing Museum on Boat

Viking Ship Museum of Roskilde, Danmark is a museum of traditional boats.

please go through: http://vikingeskibsmuseet.dk/index.php?id=1246&L=1 

Boat Makers of Balagarh - a report_xvid.avi

need suggestion

We need a Noukoghar  

(Boat Museum)

 
Open Air 

Living 

Eco-Museum

 ***

মুক্তাঙ্গনে

জীবন্ত

প্রাকৃতিক জাদুঘর 

হউক

'নৌকোঘর' 

মতামত প্রত্যাশী  

Bengal Rafts (Bhaela)

Makeshift raft is quite common in rural Bengal.
Lets look into the type/variety-
Plantain raft / Kalar Bhaela: widely used in rural areas. Lifespan: few days. Mainly used at the time of flood.
Sholar Bhaela (Pith Raft): Sholar Bahela is not so common but used in Jhargram area of West Medinipur district. Used mainly in fishing. Longevity is two to four years. Shola (scientific name: Aeschymene aspera)
Kharer Bhaela: Temporary raft last for only few hours made of bundle of straw. Mainly used in fishing.
Gharar Bhaela: Widely used in East Medinipur and Howrah district to collect Lotus flower and water chestnut (Panifal)
Dhap: Layers of Kachuripana (hyacinth), a kind of aquatic flora, keeping one above other formed a kind of raft termed as Dhap.

Bengal Boats in a period between 1760 and 1824 through Etchings by François Balthazar Solvyns

Please visit Plate No 229 to 264 (either Click here or in the photograph to visit the site)

Name of Boat in Bengal

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I have seen these boats in Bengal and I have gone through its detail and documented these over a period of 10 years. So these are the ‘real boat’ (not mentioned in epic, novel… or not taken from epic, novel...)

In Bengali boats are popularly termed as Nouko/Nouka.

Smaller variety of Nouka/Nouko is Dingi.

So Dingi is the daughter (not son. because boat is always a feminine) of Nouka/Nouko used in household purposes. Where as Nouko generally used to carry passenger, goods (i.e. who has muscle power).

Fishing boats are sometimes fall into Dingi category and sometimes under Nouko/Nouka.

Now lets look into some name. 
These are not the personal name. 
These are the names of a typological variety.
So with these names boat makers and boat users can easily visualize their structural speciality.

For general awareness I am sighting some names (many more keeping undisclosed):

1. Patia- At present it is exclusively a fishing boat. But in 12th century it might be used a cargo ship. 
2. Bachhari- A long and narrow Boat. It has various variation and termed differently like Kaile Bachhari, Kolige bachhari, Chhande Bachhari, Malo a fishing community used a kind of Bachhari for fishing. General folk used to coin their boat as Malo Bachhari or Jele Bachhari.
3. Pansi- Confusing name mainly cargo carrier.
4. Chhip- Long and narrow boat used for swift movement.
5. Bhanr- Very few still exist but lost their job. Used to carry salt.
6. Khorio Kisti- a huge cargo carry straw.
7. Sultani- A boat which can go against the wind and can carry all most all things. But not used in fishing.
8. Pauka- a flat bottomed boat both used as cargo and fishing.
9. Dholai- A cargo carrier.
10. Merhli- A Cargo.
11. Ghasi- A cargo.
12. Chhot- A fishing as well as cargo.
13. Salti- A cargo
14. Chhot Salti- A fishing boat.
15. Bhedi- Cargo carrier
16. Goluiya- A cargo carrier
17. Salonga/Saronga- Fishing boat 
18. Kosha- A flat bottomed boat used both in fishing as well as transportation.

Boat of Bangladesh

On Padma

দাঁড়িয়ে আছ তুমি আমার গানের ও পারে–
আমার সুরগুলি পায় চরণ, আমি পাই নে তোমারে।।
বাতাস বহে মরি মরি, আর বেঁধে রেখো না তরী–
এসো এসো পার হয়ে মোর হৃদয়মাঝারে।।
তোমার সাথে গানের খেলা দূরের খেলা যে,
বেদনাতে বাঁশি বাজায় সকল বেলা যে।
কবে নিয়ে আমার বাঁশি বাজাবে গো আপনি আসি
আনন্দময় নীরব রাতের নিবিড় আঁধারে।।

-রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর

পূজা পর্যায়

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খেলার ছলে সাজিয়ে আমার গানের বাণী
দিনে দিনে ভাসাই দিনের তরীখানি।।
স্রোতের লীলায় ভেসে ভেসে সুদূরে কোন্‌ অচিন দেশে
কোনো ঘাটে ঠেকবে কিনা নাহি জানি।।
নাহয় ডুবে গেলই, নাহয় গেলই বা।
নাহয় তুলে লও গো, নাহয় ফেলোই বা।
হে অজানা, মরি মরি, উদ্দেশে এই খেলা করি,
এই খেলাতেই আপন-মনে ধন্য মানি।।

-রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর

পূজা পর্যায়

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আমি   মারের সাগর পাড়ি দেব বিষম ঝড়ের বায়ে
আমার  ভয়ভাঙা এই নায়ে।।
মাভৈঃবাণীর ভরসা নিয়ে  ছেঁড়া পালে বুক ফুলিয়ে
তোমার  ওই পারেতেই যাবে তরী ছায়াবটের ছায়ে।।
পথ আমারে সেই দেখাবে যে আমারে চায়–
আমি   অভয় মনে ছাড়ব তরী, এই শুধু মোর দায়।
দিন ফুরালে, জানি জানি,  পৌঁছে ঘাটে দেব আনি
আমার  দু:খদিনের রক্তকমল তোমার করুণ পায়।। 

-রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর
পূজা পর্যায়
 

Appeal to all

Noukoghar appeals to you to collect information (from book, newspaper, internet or oral or from any other source) on boat (stick to the traditional boat- not metal or fibreglass or plastic or rubber boat). Collect photographs. Gather songs, poems or novels on boat. 

These information can be an asset to our Noukoghar. 

Send photographs of boat and boat related activities taken by you or others. Please do not forget to mention the name of the photographer time and place. Noukoghar will portray your findings with utmost care and proper acknowledgment.

Communicate:

noukoghar@gmail.com

+91 9433900712

Boat Model of Kosha

Boat model made of Board and paper. 

Longevity: at least 50 years (you and your next generation can see it as it is)

Size: vary from 3 inches to 30 inches (as per your own requirements).

Boatlovers can keep a boat model on their desk and can use it as an invaluable item of gift. 

For procuring contact noukoghar@gmail.com or call at +91 9433900712 

 

"Chokh" oculus of Boat: Boat as a living entity.

Even though boat is nothing but a mere product of man’s handicraft which may always be connected in his collection of inanimate possessions, but in reality SHE means much more to her owner/boatmaker/boatman. Almost in all over the world a vessel is personified, which is very much understandable when it is seen that a Portuguese boat along with the boats and vessels cruising along the Indian Ocean have oculi i.e. the symbolic representation of eye. These types of symbols are usually used to give living characters to a nonliving material as these are very much allied to human (any animal) morphology. Considering the example of West Bengal nothing absolutely reverse, in the basic concept, is seen as the boat here is considered to be either a mother or a daughter that ultimately represents the feminine personality. Therefore most often, it is seen that boats are given names and are treated as human personalities. This curious relation is becoming less apparent day by day, but it is still there, even if it no longer exists on the surface of seaman’s mind. To understand the origin and development of this concept it is necessary to go into the past and probe deed down into the minds of the ancient boatmen.

Kobir er kathamato. "JALOJATRA"

Journey to 2010