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Crested
in the bosom of the mighty Brahmaputra and fondly
tucked 
up by Lohit and Khabalu with loving care, the land
mass Majuli enjoys the privilege of being the largest
river island in the world. The inscap of its landscape
cannot escape from the imagination of anyone travelling
through it. Its individual distinctiveness is that
it is not uphill, down dale, snow capped mountains
or warbling mountain springs which put a tourist into
the thrall in Majub, but it is the freedom of the
wind, the freedom of the rivers, the vistas of freedom
opening up one after another, the freedom of the birds
and the pristine primitiveness, simplicity and innocence
of the people living for centuries at close proximity
of nature that sways, excites and thrifis the imagination
of the tourists. During the monsoon, the rivers swell
and vast tracts of land are submerged.
The old and the young,
and even children steer clear on their rowing boats
to safe destinations. No one seems scared of the swelling
torrents and no depths seem unchartered water for
them. The receding flood water leaves layers of white
and greyish silt over the land and in autumn the land
is a- fire with colour. Land is 'ploughed, plotted
and pieced" and crops sprout up luxuriantly.
The mustard seeds bloom into yellow gold, heave and
sway in sprightly dance and ask an onlooker to share
their joys.
At night wild geese and
ducks fly in flocks high above one's head to far-away
destinations. Wild birds of a thousand ldnds- local
as well as migratory swarm the heels and rivers in
Majuli.
Majuli is known the world
over in academic circles for the Xatras which have
preserved the Vaisnavite culture. Sankardeva gave
classical songs, dances and dramas and a philosophy
to the common people over five hundred years ago and
a visit to the Xatras, and especially, on festival
days like Janmastami or Rasa will inform any tourist
that Xatria culture is an inexhaustible source of
joy. The dances are colourful and spectacular and
they can be unfailing sources of joy as well as subjects
for research and investigation.
There are islands within
islands in Majuli and like a capricious woman quickly
changing her mood, the landmass keeps changing its
shape after every summer. Its beauty reminds a visitor
of the shifting reality of the rainbow.
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