India - Moidams – the Mound-Burial system of the Ahom Dynasty

The Tai-Ahom clan upon their migration from China established their capital in different parts of the Brahmaputra River Valleybetween 12th to 18th CE. Usurping the Barahi tribe, Chau-lung Siu-ka-pha established the first capital of the Ahoms at the foothill of Patkai hills and named it Che-rai-doi or Che-tam-doi, meaning “a dazzling city above the mountain” in their language and consecrated site with a ritual. While the clan moved from city to city, the landscape of Che-Rai-Doi or Choraideo continued to retain its position as most sacred where the departed soul of the Royals could transcend into the after-life. Their unique system of vaulted mounds continued for 600 years, till many Tai-Ahoms converted to Buddhism while others adopted the Hindu system of cremation.