Maibaron

Maibaron, also spelled Maibarol, is the traditional Meitei term for the art and science of therapeutic practice in the historic Manipur region, encompassing spiritual ritual, herbal medicine, pulse diagnosis, and occasional surgical intervention. Its practitioners were called Maiba, for men, and Maibi, for women, earlier known as Ametpa, literally masseur but understood as therapist, and their work was organized under a formal institution called Ametpa Loishang, traced by tradition to King Nongda Lairen Pakhangba in 33 CE and formally established around 1570 CE as the kingdom's medical and administrative authority over healing practice. Early treatment relied on hymns, charms, and spells resembling exorcism, and the system later incorporated herbal remedies, natural preparations, and basic surgical techniques, including pulse-based diagnosis and documented follow-up monitoring of patients. Historical records describe Meitei practitioners treating patients beyond Manipur, including physician Langoijamba Hema Singh's six-month treatment of an Ahom king of Assam in 1848, and an earlier visit by a Shan state king who came to Manipur for treatment and rewarded the Meitei ruler with gold and silver on recovery. Though supplanted by modern medicine, Maibaron remains a respected part of Meitei cultural identity and history.