Loktak goddess is often compared to a lady with heart that is pure and kind. It is said that whenever she passes by, the water birds praise her by singing and the deers bow their heads. She is benevolent to fishes.[13]
The Maibis (Meitei for 'priestesses') of traditional Meitei religion (Sanamahism) often sings of the grasslands, food and raw materials derived from the Loktak lake, which is believed to be the body of the Loktak Lairembi (Loktak goddess) herself. Loktak goddess is the symbol of the characters of independence and self-actualization of the women of Manipur.[14]
As a fish goddess
Loktak goddess is believed to be the one who is responsible for the replenishment of the fish population in the Loktak lake. According to traditional beliefs, there is no vanishing of the fish population no matter how much they catch fishes.[15][12]
The identity of Loktak goddess is also sometimes believed to be associated with Meitei goddess of water, Ereima.[15]
The Meiteis acknowledge full reliance on the Loktak lake for their traditional occupations.[16]
The Meitei people (living around the lake) consider the Loktak lake as their guardian. They believe the lake as their mother, as it is possible for them to depend upon the lake for their livelihoods, for their children and their family, only because of the grace bestowed upon them by the Mother Loktak.[18][19]
In literature
The Lore of Loktak
The Lore of Loktak In the shadows of your footsteps Many lives exist On your nature's bounty Many lives lean O, beloved mother Loktak O, beloved mother Loktak....
Mother Loktak Goddess / O the incarnation of Ireima / Peacefully blooming one / Led by Phouoibi / Of the seven divine ladies / The possessor of all the gems, / The lady who pulls inside the mountains / The waving lady who waves / The lady who is fish among the fishes / Virgin lady, Kolangnu / Toibi Kenminnabigi / Tracing the foot paths, / God Thangching Koirellai / KoupaluMarjingWangpulen're / Guarding you from four directions / Of the many incarnations / Those are sweet stories / Existing inside the underwater / O mother, your many names / Couldn't be sung completely ever.Loktak Sheitharol, page no. 1[21]
^Rajesh, Salam (2022-09-22). "Loktak Lake in Manipur: A Ramsar Site in danger of decline". frontline.thehindu.com. Retrieved 2023-03-20. Being central to Manipur, Loktak features prominently in folklore, oral literature, rituals, and songs. It is called Loktak Lairembee or Goddess Loktak. The people living on the shores believe in isha-mapal, or nine sources of the lake, that must always be kept clean for the continuing health of Loktak. There is wisdom in the old belief as the nine rivers that drain into Loktak are essential to the existence of the lake, its wetlands, and the human lives dependent on them.
^ ab"Iconic Loktak Lake In Manipur Will Now Be Protected". Retrieved 2023-03-20. Local legend has it that the lake was formed when the gods wooed the people of the valley, and, for Manipuris, it is a goddess, Loktak Lairembi. In the local Meitei belief system, the timeless romance of princess Thoibi and Khamba came to life on the lake's shores, and the mythical creature Poubi Lai resides at its heart. The lake itself is ema (mother) for the thousands of fishermen who earn their livelihood through her.
^McKechnie, Ben. "The world's only floating national park". www.bbc.com. Retrieved 2023-03-20. Just as India's Hindu community views the River Ganges as a living mother goddess, the Meitei see Loktak Lake as their 'mother' – a provider of life for all.
^Kulkarni, Ranjit (7 November 2022). "A Bend in the Road". Notion Press. pp. 85, 90, 91, 93, 95.
^ abcMohanty, Trishna (2020-02-08). "Manipur's Loktak lake chokes from a catastrophic project flagged off 50 years ago". The Hindu. ISSN0971-751X. Retrieved 2023-03-20. Loktak is not just a lake. For Manipuris she is Loktak Lairembi (Goddess Loktak), and for the several thousands of fishermen who depend on her for their livelihood, she is ema (mother). And although she is the fountainhead of Manipuri culture, her own identity has been in a state of flux for decades.
^Devi, Nunglekpam Premi (2018-05-25). Short Essays on Women and Society: Manipuri Women through the Century. p. 98. The Maibi is unique because, apart from being a religious functionary of the Meitei religion, she is also considering as a midwife, a healer, an herbalist, a clairvoyant, a spiritual leader and a dancer." The Maibi sings of the grasslands and all the food and raw materials derived from it and it is believed that the famous Loktak Lake in the region was the body of the goddess (Lairembi) herself, the independence and self-actualization characteristic of the women of Manipur. On another level, it brings out the wonderful harmony that co-exists between man and nature. In the attempt at understanding the lives of a group of priestesses. 'Sacred Space' opens by placing the Maibi in context of the Sanamahi religious beliefs or Sanamahism of the Meitei people of Manipur.
