and
nd
ISSN (print): 1835-7741
ISSN (electronic): 1925-6329
Library of Congress Control Number: 2008944256
©2012 by Asian Highlands Perspectives
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be
reproduced, translated, stored in a retrieval system, or
transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic,
mechanical, photocopy, recording, or otherwise, without
express written permission from the publisher.
Front Cover: Rgyas bzang (Jizong) Village, Kha mdo (Shuizi)
Township, Rong brag (Danba) County, Dkar mdzes (Ganzi)
Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, PR China
(photo by G.yu 'brug, 2010).
Back Cover: G.yu 'brug's father plows in a field near Rgyas
bzang Village (photo by G.yu 'brug, 2010).
Abstract: This study of Rgyas bzang (Jizong) Village
includes a brief summary of G.yu 'brug's life, local languages
and location, agriculture, sleeping, eating, childbirth and child
raising, stone houses, stone towers, taboos and customs, and
folktales, a short story, annual religious rituals, death rituals,
pilgrimage to Mount Dmu rdo, marriage, education, a glossary
of non-English terms, a Rgyas bzang Tibetan Dialect-English
word list, and an English-Rgyas bzang Tibetan Dialect word
list.
Citation: G.yu 'brug (Yongzhong
) and CK Stuart. 2012.
Rgyal rong Tibetan Village: Life, Language, and Folklore in
Rgyas bzang Village. Asian Highlands Perspectives 15.
CONTENTS
CONTENTS <3>
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS < 6>
PART ONE: THE LOCAL CONTEXT <8>
Consultants <9>
G.yu 'brug <10>
Photographs <12>
Village Introduction <54>
Language and Location <58>
Subsistence <71>
Sleeping <73>
Eating <76>
Childbirth and Child Raising <77>
Stone Houses <80>
Stone Towers <82>
Taboos and Customs <85>
PART TWO: FOLKTALES AND A SHORT STORY <89>
Introduction <90>
Sgang bzang stobs ldan (folktales) <90>
o Swapping Sheep and Goat Heads <90>
o The Origin of a Village Spring <92>
o A Monastery of Pebbles <92>
Nor bu bzang po (folktale) <93>
A Dog Saves Humanity from Starvation (folktale) <95>
The Three Brothers (folktale) <96>
Torn Between Two Lovers (short story) <98>
PART THREE: RELIGIOUS LIFE <107>
Introduction <108>
Daily Rituals: Morning Bsang and Daily Prayers <109>
Annual Rituals <109>
o Renewing La btsas <109>
o Sa bdag <111>
o 'Khyags 'grig <114>
o Ra mchod <117>
o Sgrub lha <119>
o Smyung gnas <120>
o 'Bum 'gyur ma Ni <122>
Death Rituals <124>
o Funerals <124>
o Bdun <130>
o Zhe dgu <131>
o 'Das mchod <131>
Pilgrimage to Mount Dmu rdo <132>
o Introduction <132>
o G.yu 'brug Visits Dmu rdo <132>
o Dmu rdo's Birth and Power <136>
PART FOUR: MARRIAGE <139>
Introduction <140>
Lha mo's Marriage <141>
Rgya mtsho's Two Marriages <146>
PART FIVE: EDUCATION <151>
Introduction <152>
G.yu 'brug's Experiences <155>
o Village Primary School <155>
o Learning Tibetan <162>
o Primary School Grade Two <162>
o Kha mdo Center Primary School <164>
o Older Brother's Accident <173>
o Rong brag Junior Middle School <176>
o Kangding Senior Middle School <182>
CONCLUSION <184>
NON-ENGLISH TERMS <185>
RGYAS BZANG TIBETAN DIALECT-ENGLISH WORD
LIST <206>
ENGLISH-RGYAS BZANG TIBETAN DIALECT WORD
LIST <222>
REFERENCES <238>
4
MAPS
Map One. Rong brag (Danba) County, Dkar mdzes (Ganzi)
Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan Province, PR
China. <7>
Map Two. Townships and Brag mgo Town in Rong brag
County (Chinese names). <55>
Map Three. Townships and Brag mgo Town in Rong brag
County (Tibetan and Chinese names). <56>
Map Four. Languages Spoken in Rong brag County. <59>
TABLES
Table One. Village population and names in Kha mdo
Township. <54>
Table Two. Names for residents and locations near Rgyas
bzang Village. <64>
Table Three. Comparison of selected Tibetan lexical items
in Stong dgu and Dge bshes rtsa townships. <65>
Table Four. Tibetan dialectical variants for selected lexical
items in Bon dga' yul, Stag mo, Sgang bzang, Rgyas bzang,
Khrims ra, and La rgyab villages. <65>
5
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
We gratefully thank the following people who helped make
this book possible:
A 'brug
唯 (Bangchu
'Bum mtsho
)
'Bum phrug
唯
Blo brtan rdo rje
Daniel Berounský
Dbang mchog 裸洛遥諭落養隆謡 (Wengque
)
Gerald Roche
Huadan Zhaxi (Dpal ldan bkra shis)
Kelly Elizabeth Ward
Marielle Prins
唯
Ngag dbang phun tshogs
(
Angwangpengcuo
)
Rdo rje don grub
Rgya mtsho lha mo
唯 (Jiangchulamu
)
Rin chen rdo rje
Skal bzang dbang 'dul
(Gerongwengdeng
)
Timothy Thurston
諭唯 (Zewengyongzhong
Tshe dbang g.yung drung
)
Tshe dbang rdo rje
(Caixiangduojie
6
)
Map One. Rong brag (Danba) County,
ty, Dkar mdzes (Ganzi)
Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Sic
Sichuan Province, PR
China.1
Sic
Sichuan
Pr
Province
Dkar mdzes (Ganzi)
Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Rong brag
(Danba) County
1
This is a modified version of the map
pb
by Croquant (2007) at
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Locatio
tion_of_Danba_within_
Sichuan_(China).png, accessed 2 July 20
2011.
7
PART ONE: THE LOCAL CONTEXT
CONSULTANTS
Skal bzang dbang 'dul (b. ~1955), G.yu 'brug's father, was
born in a sgom pa 2 lineage family in Khrims ra (Changna)
Village, Kha mdo (Shuizi) Township, Rong brag (Danba)
County, Dkar mdzes (Ganzi) Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture,
Sichuan Province, PR China. Skal bzang dbang 'dul's father
never returned home after being arrested and taken away when
Skal bzang dbang 'dul was three months old. Though he
attended school for only a year, Skal bzang dbang 'dul learned
Chinese well enough by himself to have acquired excellent
oral and written Chinese skills. He married 'Bum mtsho and
moved to her home in Rgyas bzang (Jizong) Village. He
understands about forty percent of what he hears from Tibetan
television announcers. He clarified the meaning of rituals and
explained how the village is rapidly changing.
'Bum mtsho (b. ~1965), G.yu 'brug's mother, was born and
lives in Rgyas bzang Village. She never attended school. She
is illiterate, speaks very little Chinese, and prefers her family
members to speak Tibetan at home. She sometimes attends
religious teachings in the village. She explained traditional
childbirth and child raising practices, and described her
religious fasting experiences.
Ngag dbang phun tshogs (b. ~1967) was born in a sgom pa
lineage family in Khrims ra Village. He is currently a lecturer
at the Academy of Culture, Yunnan Nationalities University,
and an officer of the Tibetan Research Institute at the same
university. He checked Tibetan place names and certain other
Tibetan entries.
2
This term refers locally to yogins, meditators, ascetics, and
practitioners of Tibetan religion who may marry and who
chant for local villagers. These were historically often lineage
positions. There were six sgom pa in Rgyas bzang Village in
2010. Three were Bon and three were Rnying ma practitioners.
By 'lineage family', we refer to the heriditary transmission of
this position (sgom pa).
9
G.YU 'BRUG
I was born in my mother's natal home in 1985 at about eleven
a.m. on the eighth day of the fourth lunar month, according to
the Chinese lunar calendar. A sgom pa gave me the name
ShAkya tshe ring and told my family members not to let me
kill sentient beings. After sgom pa finish certain rituals, they
may ask attendants to prostate to them, however, Mother told
me that sgom pa never asked me to prostrate when I was small.
Furthermore, I was not ordered to prostrate to bla ma when
they visited my home. This is because of what happened one
day when I was sitting on a wool carpet on the third floor of
my home.
My paternal grandmother stopped chanting as she held
a prayer wheel and a string of prayer beads, gazed at the
village gate, and saw a bla ma and a monk entering the village.
Grandmother embraced me and went down to the courtyard.
After a while, the bla ma and monk arrived at my family's
courtyard gate and were welcomed by my maternal
grandfather. The bla ma held a string of prayer beads in his
right hand and touched each of our heads as we bowed,
blessing us. When it was my turn, he slowly bent his noble
body, held my cheeks in his hands, and touched his forehead
to my forehead, murmuring all the while.
The bla ma was from Nyag rong County. Grandfather,
who can communicate in a variety of Tibetan dialects, learned
from this bla ma that I was the reincarnation of a bla ma
belonging to a Bon monastery in the Rong brag area. The bla
ma did not mention the precise monastery nor the bla ma
whose reincarnation I was.
My family members were shocked, for we are Rnying
ma followers, not Bon. However, they were pleased because
having a reincarnation lama in the family is an honor, and
considered to be the result of accumulation of merit from
previous generations. He then gave me the name that I use
today - G.yu 'brug. He told my family to send me to a local
Bon practitioner to study Tibetan and added that he would
10
return to see me soon. I kept the kha btags3 that the bla ma
gave me, but I never saw him again.
Grandfather sent me to a local sgom pa to study in
Sgang bzang (Gezong) Village when I was six. I stayed there
two days and then returned home because I was homesick. My
parents then enrolled me in the village school.
Because I was often ill, a sgom pa suggested that I
adopt surrogate parents as a cure. They gave me the name
Tshe ring rdo rje.
I did not formally study written Tibetan until 2007
when I enrolled in the English Training Program (ETP) at
Qinghai Normal University. While in ETP, I gained an
appreciation for the value of recording folk songs, folktales,
religious activities, dances, and wedding speeches. I have put
such materials on these websites:
http://www.oralliterature.org/collections/map.html
http://www.youtube.com/user/Danbaculture
http://www.archive.org/details/DanbaTibetanCulture
http://tibetanplateau.wikischolars.columbia.edu/Rong+bra
g+(Danba)+Tibetan+Culture
http://tibetanplateau.wikischolars.columbia.edu/Photograp
hs+in+Winter+2010\
http://tibetanplateau.wikischolars.columbia.edu/A+Mushro
om-Gathering+Song
http://www.flickr.com/photos/koknor/sets/7215762354410
9725/
3
Ceremonial scarf offered to show respect.
11
PHOTOGRAPHS4
Photograph Two. Dragons are carved between the wall and
ceiling in the shrine room.
Photograph Three. Bya khyung khyung.5
Photograph Four. Tsa ri spun gsum6 Mountain Deities.
Photograph Nine. The wall of the ma Ni pile and a prayer
wheel at the gate of Rgyas bzang Village.
Photograph Twelve. A conch and a container of wheat flour in
the wall under the bsang khang. Every morning a stick
is used to place a little wheat flour in the bsang khang
three times while offering bsang.7 A conch is blown on
special occasions.
Photograph Fourteen. Bon sgom pa chant during a wedding.
Photograph Fifteen. Bon sgom pa light butter lamps in front of
images made by bla ma and sgom pa.
Photograph Sixteen. G.yu 'brug's family members observe
G.yang skor.8 Bon sgom pa chant at this time to bring
wealth to the family.
Photograph Seventeen. Lamps are lit when Bon sgom pa chant.
Photograph Eighteen. G.yu 'brug's family members observe
G.yang 'bod, a ritual in which both sgom pa and a bla
ma chant to bring wealth to a family.
4
All photos by G.yu 'brug unless otherwise noted.
Locally understood to mean a deity bird, it is believed to eat
snakes. An image of bya khyung khyung may be placed above
the courtyard gate to repel evil. Bya rgyal khyung (khyung, the
king of all birds), khyung chen (great khyung), and khyung are
written forms of the local term.
6
Tsa ri spun gsum = Three Brother Mountain Deities.
7
Incense with juniper and wheat flour are the main ingredients
in bsang, which is burned every morning and also at other
times, e.g., when sgom pa are invited to a home to chant.
Bsang also suggests a fumigation/ purification ritual.
8
A ritual during which Bon sgom pa chant to bring wealth to a
family, whose members circle smoldering bsang and call "O
g.yang shog!" to bring wealth.
5
12
Photograph Nineteen. Mgo gsum has the heads of an ox, pig,
and dog, hence the name, which means 'Three Heads'.
Locals believe it to be the most powerful evil deity. Its
image is made by sgom pa when families have
unexpected troubles, such as sudden human and
livestock death and illness.
Photograph Twenty. A bla ma gives auspicious wishes to a
new couple during their wedding.
Photograph Twenty-one. A new couple receives auspicious
wishes from sgom pa and aged village men.
Photograph Twenty-two. Village women perform a song at a
wedding.
Photograph Twenty-three. Aged village women chant in front
of the village prayer wheel in the center of Rgyas
bzang Village.
Photograph Twenty-four. A couple in wedding dress.
Photograph Twenty-five. Village girls in clothing worn during
New Year.
Photograph Twenty-six. A Rgyas bzang Primary School
classroom in 2010.
Photograph Twenty-seven. Horses and mules are important
beasts of burden in Rgyas bzang Village.
Photograph Twenty-eight. A black-haired sheep gave birth to
two lambs, suggesting future prosperity for the sheep's
owner.
Photograph Twenty-nine. Turnips are cooked and fed to pigs.
Photograph Thirty. The bang ma is a room where such items
as meat, butter, and lard are stored.
Photograph Thirty-one. An 'o zom 'milk bucket'.
Photograph Thirty-three. A spal par 'pottery vessel' that is old
enough that no one knows when the family acquired it.
It holds about 0.75 kilograms of liquor. The spal par is
used to offer liquor to guests, especially during the
New Year period, marriage rituals, and dancing parties.
Photograph Thirty-four. Tibetans purchase televisions in Brag
mgo9 in 2010.
9
Brag mgo (Zhanggu) Town (zhen), the county seat.
13
Photograph Thirty-five. A crowd during the pre-New Year
period in Brag mgo in 2009.
Photograph Thirty-six. Tibetan shop in Brag mgo.
Photograph Thirty-seven. Tibetan traditional clothing shop in
Brag mgo.
Photograph Thirty-nine. Dmu rdo Mountain Deity (photo by
Peng Jianzhong).
14
Photograph One. Sacrifices are regularly made in the home's
shrine room to such deities as ShAkya thub pa and Pad+ma
'byung gnas.
15
16
17
18
Photograph Five. Mchod rten rang byon, a self-arisen stupa in
Dpa' bo Township, Rong brag County.
19
Photograph Six. Rgyas bzang mchod rten, a stupa that was
built in 2006 in the center of Rgyas bzang Village.
20
Photograph Seven. Village women light butter lamps and
chant oM ma Ni pad+me hU~M in the Rgyas bzang Village
prayer wheel room in the village center.
21
Photograph Eight. A stone tower in Po rtsa Hamlet, Rgyas
bzang Village, known as lha khang - a Bon practitioner's
shrine room.
22
23
Photograph Ten. Bon prayer wheel in Po rtsa Hamlet.
24
Photograph Eleven. A family bsang khang 'incense burner' on
the roof of a home.
25
26
Photograph Thirteen. Family la btsas with prayer flags on the
roof of G.yu 'brug's home.
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
43
44
45
46
47
48
49
50
51
Photograph Thirty-eight. Tibetan traditional arts shop in Brag mgo.
52
53
VILLAGE INTRODUCTION
Rgyas bzang Village is a Tibetan farming community and
home to fifty-five households (280 residents). It is located in
Kha mdo Township, which is composed of Brag tse (Shuizi yi
cun), Kha mdo (Shuizi er cun), Mo sdod (Shuizi san cun),10
Khrims ra (Changna), La rgyab (Najiao), Sgang bzang
(Gezong), Rgyas bzang, Kho lo (Keli), and Stag mo (Dama)
villages. The population of these villages is given below:
Table One. Village population and names in Kha mdo
Township.
Village Names
Population
Rgyas bzang
Tibetan
pinyin
2010
Tibetan Dialect
go zo
Sgang bzang Gezong
300
zo
Rgyas bzang Jizong
260
k a nt
Kha mdo
Shuizi er cun
420
k l
Kho lo
Keli
200
la nd
La rgyab
Najiao
700
tæ
Mo sdod
Shuizi san cun
300
t ma/ ma
Stag mo
Dama
700
t tsi
Brag tse
Shuizi yi cun
270
t
æ
Khrims ra
Changna
300
Rong brag County consists of Dgu rtsong (Gezong),
Kha mdo (Shuizi), Spro snang (Zhonglu), Stong dgu (Donggu),
Sog po (Suopo), Dge bshes rtsa (Geshizha), Bla ri (Bian'er),
Mda' mdo (Dandong), Dpa' bo (Bawang), Nyin dkar (Niega),
Brag steng (Badi), Mchod rten sgang (Taipingqiao),
Banshanmen, and Yuezha townships, and the county seat,
Brag mgo Town (Zhanggu zhen).
10
Yi = one, er = two, san = three, and cun = village.
54
Map Two. Townships and Brag mgo Town in Rong brag
County (Chinese names).
55
Map Three. Townships and Brag mgo Town in Rong brag
County (Tibetan and Chinese names).
56
Rong brag County is located in Dkar mdzes Tibetan
Autonomous Prefecture, which has seventeen other counties Sde dge (Dege), Nyag rong (Xinlong), Dar rtse mdo
(Kangding), Gser shul (Shiqu), Dpal yul (Baiyu), Dkar mdzes
(Ganzi), Brag 'go (Luhuo), Gser thar (Seda), Rta'u (Daofu),
Rong brag (Danba), Nyag chu kha (Yajiang), Li thang
(Litang), 'Ba' thang (Batang), 'Dab pa (Daocheng), Phyag
phreng (Xiangcheng), Sde rong (Derong), Brgyad zur
(Jiulong), and Lcags zam kha (Luding) in Sichuan Province.
The total population of Dkar mdzes Tibetan
Autonomous Prefecture in 2006 was 930,500 of which
Tibetans accounted for about seventy-nine percent and Han
Chinese eighteen percent.11
Villagers cultivate barley, potatoes, wheat, peas,
prickly ash (Sichuan pepper, numbing spice), apples, walnuts,
pears, turnips, and corn. They also own cows, sheep, goats,
swine, and horses. Prickly ash is an important source of
income, with village households earning on average 600 RMB
annually from its sale to Han and Tibetan buyers who come to
the village, the township town, and Brag mgo. Village men
doing road and construction work outside the village earn
twenty-five to thirty RMB per day. Annual cash income is
about 3,000 RMB per household. Villagers sell pigs when they
need money quickly to pay for medical and educational
expenses.
Villagers trek six kilometers (roundtrip) along a steep,
winding path to a forest to gather firewood. The path is
slippery when wet. Women and girls, whose cultural duty it is
to collect fuel, risk their lives navigating this narrow, steep
track. No families haul wood with livestock. Local
government policy designates only one month a year in winter
to cut firewood. Women and girls carry fifty to sixty
kilograms of firewood per load on their backs, which become
swollen and blistered. Painful feet cause some women to
require a walking stick while hauling wood. Children
frequently stop attending class to help cut wood.
11
http://www.gzz.gov.cn, accessed 13 September 2010.
57
The local government implemented a policy of
converting arable land to forest in 1999. Villagers were given
about 125 kilograms of rice per mu12 per year as compensation.
If villagers tell government workers they have plenty of rice,
they receive about 1,500 RMB a year in lieu of the rice.
Villagers are very pleased with this policy. Even old people
who do not know the Chinese language recall Zhu Rongji13
and say that he implemented this policy. After the policy was
implemented, villagers focused on planting wheat in chu zhing
'irrigated fields'. Fields were irrigated from two springs. One
spring is now completely dry, which villagers attribute to
deforestation in the village vicinity and the Wenchuan
earthquake of 2008. The surviving spring no longer adequately
meets village irrigation needs, resulting in village quarrels
when fields are irrigated.
LANGUAGE AND LOCATION
According to the Rong brag County Annals (1996; hereafter,
RCA),14 Tibetan spoken in the county includes Khams, A mdo,
Rgyal rong, and Ergong15 dialects and also reports that these
dialects are spoken in Btsan lha (Xiaojin), 'Bar khams
12
One mu = 0.0667 hectares.
Zhu Rongji (b. 1928) was the mayor and Communist Party
chief of Shanghai from 1987-1991, and Vice-Premier and
Premier of the People's Republic of China from 1998-2003.
14
RCA, published in 1996, includes sections on geography,
ethnicities, economy, political and military affairs, culture, and
historic characters.
15
Lewis (2009) gives Bawang, Bopa, Danba, Daofu, Daofuhua,
Dawu, Ergong, Gangli, Hor, Hórsók, Huo'er, Pawang, Rgu,
Stau, Western Gyarong, and Western Jiarong as alternative
names for Ergong, and also mentions such mutually
unintelligible dialects as Western (Daofu, Taofu, Western
Horpa, Western Ergong, Dawu), Eastern (Zhongzhai, Gangli,
Jinchuan, Lawurong), Northern (Shangzhai, Rangtang), and
Central (Danba, Geshiza, Geshitsa).
13
58
(Ma'erkang), Li rdzong (Lixian), and Khro chu (Heishui)
counties in Rnga ba Tibetan and Qiang 16 Autonomous
Prefecture. Other languages, according to the same source,
include Chinese and Qiang.
Map Four. Languages spoken in Rong brag County (according
to RCA, which does not specify languages spoken in Brag
mgo Town and Niega Township).
16
One of China's officially recognized fifty-six ethnic groups.
Certain locals consider Qiang to be Tibetan.
59
Skad cha signifies ’language’ in the Rgyas bzang dialect.
People are referred to by adding ba, red, and və nə 17 after the
location of the Tibetan area, e.g., A mdo ba, A mdo və nə , and
so on.
G.yu 'brug had a short conversation, summarized
below, in Chinese with a retiree from the Rong brag County
Religious Bureau at the Rong brag County Town bus station
in 2009:
G.yu ’brug: Uncle,18 which township are you from?
Rdo rje: I’m from Brag steng.
G.yu ’brug: Are you Tibetan?
Rdo rje: Of course. Ninety percent of the Brag steng
population is Tibetan.
G.yu ’brug: What do you call your language?
Rdo rje: Bod skad. Why are you asking such questions?
G.yu ’brug: Bod skad? What does that mean?
Rdo rje: Of course it means ’Tibetan language’. You didn’t
answer my question.
G.yu ’brug: Sorry. Some people say people from your place
speak Rgyal rong language. What do you think
about that?
Rdo rje: Come on! Even we don’t know what Rgyal rong
language is! That is what some people say - don’t
take it seriously. Just ignore it.
According to the RCA, Tibetans in Stong dgu, Dge
bshes rtsa, Bla ri, and Mda' mdo townships speak Ergong,
except for herdsmen, who speak A mdo. However, local
county farmers say they speak Bod skad 'Tibetan language',
while certain people from other townships say that people in
Stong dgu, Dge bshes rtsa, Bla ri, and Mda' mdo townships
speak Mi nyag.19
17
'və nə ' and 'ba' are nominalizers used after a location to
signify a person from that place.
18
A polite term of address.
19
Lewis (2009) gives Boba, Manyak, Menya, Minyag,
Minyak, Miyao, and Munya as alternative names for Mi nyag
60
RCA reports that pastoralists speak the A mdo dialect
of Tibetan. However, when G.yu 'brug spoke in Tibetan to a
painter from a pastoral area of Mda' mdo Township about his
dialect when he was painting furniture in Rgyas bzang Village
in 2010, he said:
We speak Bod skad. We pastoralists have herded on the
grasslands in many places since time immemorial. We never
had problems communicating with other herders in Tibetan
areas; we only have problems communicating with Tibetan
farmers.
Local Tibetan farmers say herders speak 'Brog skad 'nomad
language' and do not claim that they speak A mdo. People
from Stong dgu and Dge bshes rtsa townships sing the same
songs and dance the same dances as do Rgyas bzang villagers,
even though oral communication in Tibetan is often
challenging between different communities. Communication
within each of these community clusters (Stong dgu, Dge
bshes rtsa, Bla ri, and Mda' mdo townships) is easy to
moderately challenging; communication between clusters is
challenging.
RCA reports that in Dgu rtsong, Kha mdo, Spro snang,
Sog po, and Yuezha townships, and Brag mgo Town, Twentyfour Villages (RCA did not give these villages' names) Khams
Dialect 20 is spoken. Local Tibetans cannot completely
understand each other in these townships. Those who know
written Tibetan and those who have had experiences with
Tibetans outside Rong brag County find it easier to
communicate. A Dgu rtsong Township resident said:
and writes that the Eastern Muya and Western Muya dialects
are mutually unintelligible.
20
In this context, it refers to a Tibetan dialect spoken in Dkar
mdzes Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture with smaller groups of
speakers within Qinghai, Gansu, and Yunnan provinces, and
Tibet in China. For more on the 'Twenty-Four Villages'
Dialect, see Suzuki (2011).
61
I once went to Sde dge with some relatives from my village
to do construction work. We thought they could not
understand our dialect so we spoke Sichuan Chinese to
them. They understood Chinese, though not as well as I had
expected. They called us Rgya ngan ’Bad Han Chinese’. I
was very depressed when I heard them say I was Chinese
and wanted to fight them if it would stop them calling me that;
but how could I win by fighting local residents? I said in my
dialect, "You are a dead person!" to a man wearing a big
sheepskin robe and who was holding a string of prayer
beads when he called me Rgya ngan.
To my surprise, he laughed, stared at me, and said,
"Hey, friend, you are originally Tibetan. Come to my home
tonight and I’ll offer you butter tea and beef. You are far from
your home and lack good food after working hard!" and
pointed to a house nearby.
Gradually, local Tibetans there realized I was
speaking a Tibetan dialect that was different from theirs. If
we spoke slowly, we could understand about forty percent of
each other’s speech.
RCA reports that Tibetans in Brag steng, Mchod rten sgang,
and Banshanmen townships speak Rgyal rong Tibetan and that
some Tibetans in Btsan lha, 'Bar khams (Ma'erkang), Li
rdzong (Lixian), and Khro chu (Heishui) counties also speak
Rgyal rong Tibetan.
G.yu 'brug talked to some local Tibetans from Brag
steng Township who said, "We speak Bod skad." G.yu 'brug
asked, "What do you think when people say you speak Rgyal
rong?" Their answer was always the same:
We live in the Rgyal mo tsha ba rong21 Region, so outsiders
say we speak Rgyal rong Language, which is not considered
21
'Rgyal rong' is a contraction of 'Rgyal mo tsha ba rong'. For
an overview of related historical, linguistic, and geographical
features see http://places.thlib.org/features/23680/descriptions/
1288 and http://places.thlib.org/features/15376/descriptions/
1220, accessed 12 October 2011.
62
a Tibetan dialect. We are sure we speak Bod skad, but it is a
Tibetan dialect that is different fromyours.
Some Brag steng Township Tibetans once asked G.yu
'brug, "What do people in your village think about our
language?"
G.yu 'brug replied, "We say that people in Brag steng,
Mchod rten sgang, and Banshanmen townships speak Dwags
po."22
They said, "Our ancestors were Dwags po people.
They were strong soldiers, and defeated Tang Dynasty 23
soldiers."
Rgyas bzang Village is divided into Rgyas bzang and
Po rtsa hamlets located on Sgang bzang Mountain. At the foot
of these mountains is Yak River, which flows along Provincial
Road 303 running from Rta'u County to Brag mgo. Kha mdo
Township Town is located at the foot of Sgang bzang
Mountain. A steep path starts from Provincial Road 303 in the
township town and winds its way to Rgyas bzang and Sgang
bzang villages. It takes about two and a half hours to walk
from the township town to Rgyas bzang Village and about two
hours to walk to Sgang bzang Village.
Local Tibetans describe Rgyas bzang as the right wing
of a bya rgod 'vulture'. Sgang bzang Village is the left wing,
Po rtsa Hamlet is the body, Gnyan zhing Forest24 is the tail,
and Spang sgang25 is the head. Therefore, Sgang bzang rgyas
bzang suggests a place where cheerful birds perch and where
birds of wealth dwell.
22
See Upton (2000) for a discussion of Dwags po.
618-907 AD.
24
Cutting trees and other plants is forbidden in this sacred
forest.
25
Mountaintop meadow. The shape of the mountain resembles
a bird's head.
23
63
Table Two. Names for residents and locations near Rgyas
bzang Village.
Sgang bzang and Rgyas bzang villages are situated
about seven kilometers east of Brag mgo. From east to west
along Provincial Road 303 to Rta'u County are Bon dga' yul
Village,26 Stag mo Village,27 Khrims ra Village,28 Dge bshes
rtsa Township, 29 La rgyab Village, 30 and Stong dgu
Township. 31 All local Tibetans practice agriculture except
Stong dgu pastoralists. Tibetans speak at least three different
dialects in the places just mentioned, as discussed earlier.
26
Located east of Rgyas bzang Village and south of Danba
City, and a two hour walk from Kha mdo Township Town.
27
Located in the mountains at an elevation comparable to
Rgyas bzang Village, southeast of Provincial Road 303. Kha
mdo Township Town is about a two hour walk from Stag mo
Village.
28
This village is south of 312 National Highway. It takes one
hour to walk from this village to Rgyas bzang Village.
29
North of 312 National Highway and north of Rgyas bzang
Village. The township town is a ninety minute walk from
Rgyas bzang Village.
30
Located south of 312 National Highway between Kha mdo
and Donggu township towns. It is an hour walk from Rgyas
bzang Village.
31
This township is divided by 312 National Highway and Yak
River, and is located west of Rgyas bzang Village. A two-hour
walk from Rgyas bzang Village is needed to reach the
township town.
64
Dge bshes rtsa and Stong dgu tow
township residents speak
dialects that are mutually comprehen
hensible, despite some
differences, as indicated in Table Three.
e.
Table Three. Comparison of selected Tib
Tibetan lexical items in
Stong dgu and Dge bshes rtsa townships.
ips.
Location
Stong dgu
Tibetan
b h
Dge bshes rtsa
b
Lexical Item
people Tibetan
betan language
i
b
kah
i
b
ka
deity
h da
da
Residents of Rgyas bzang, La rg
rgyab, Khrims ra, Stag
mo, Bon dga' yul, and Sgang bzang v
villages speak dialects
with near complete mutual comprehensio
sion. There is, however,
variation, as evident in Table Four.
Table Four. Tibetan dialectical variant
iants for selected lexical
items in Bon dga' yul, Stag mo, Sgang
ng bzang, Rgyas bzang,
Khrims ra, and La rgyab villages.
ts o
of these villages is
Marriage between residents
common, except for Bon dga' yul Villa
illage, whose residents
experience the same difficulties gath
gathering firewood as
described earlier for Rgyas bzang Villa
illage, making Bon dga'
brides.
yul Village unattractive to prospective br
32
te th
three shops in the town,
Han Chinese families operate
hen shopping there. No
and customers must speak Chinese whe
32
se are from Sichuan and
Ninety percent of local Han Chinese
st ca
came to the area in the
are descendants of migrants who first
food and land when they
1930s. They asked local Tibetans for foo
ibetan in order to survive.
first arrived, and learned and spoke Tibe
65
Tibetan families live in the town who can speak Chinese to
help them when they make purchases. This makes older
people, especially women, reluctant to go to the township
town or to Brag mgo to make purchases. In 2009, there were
twenty women and seven men who had not been to the
township town since 1989; some had never been to Brag mgo.
They said, "We don't speak Chinese, so why should we go to
the city and town and be ridiculed?" A consultant confided:
I made a pilgrimage to Dmu rdo.33 On the way, I bought
candies for my family members as skor sbrang34 in Brag
mgo. I cannot speak Chinese and I pointed at the candies.
The shopkeeper smiled, gave me a bag of candies weighing
about one kilogram, and charged me twenty RMB. I also
bought a package of cigarettes for ten RMB. My remaining
money was enough to buy a bowl of noodles in a Chinese
restaurant with my friend, who also was on pilgrimage to
Dmu rdo. When I returned home, my grandson told me that I
was charged three times the real price of the candies and
twice the regular price for the cigarettes.
There were several monks sitting by Dmu rdo
Temple asking for donations for a monastery. My friend and I
made a contribution. When the monks asked us to sign our
names, we were unable to do so. The monks had to write
our names for us. I felt so outraged and defeated by being
unable to write my name in my own language! Then I
beseeched Dmu rdo Mountain Deity to give me power so
that I could learn the Tibetan written language. Through this
Their living conditions improved as their Tibetan language
skills improved. Certain Han practice Tibetan religious
activities and have married impoverished local Tibetans.
These are the people referred to as 'local Chinese'. 'Local
Chinese' who live in Rgyas bzang Village speak perfect
Tibetan whereas more than ninety percent of Han who lived in
the township town in 2010 were unable to speak Tibetan.
33
Dmu rdo is an important deity for local people, the name of
the mountain where the deity resides, and a cultural hero.
34
Candies pilgrims bring home to give family members.
66
experience, I was motivated to send my grandson to study
Tibetan at the Provincial Tibetan School in Dar rtse mdo. In
2008, my grandson was a Tibetan-Chinese translator
working at the Judicial Department in Gser thar County.
Meanwhile, I studied written Tibetan with a local sgom pa
and now I can write and chant for villagers.
About ten percent of Kha mdo Township men born in the
1950s have learned enough written Tibetan to write and chant
for villagers. Some have become sgom pa and chant scripture
when villagers ask. No village women read or write Tibetan.
There is no Tibetan language school in the village. When
villagers receive teachings from a bla ma, they require a
translator who knows both literary Tibetan and the local
dialect.
G.yu 'brug chatted with an older lady (Lha mo) in his
village about language obstacles:
G.yu ’brug: Aunt, have you been to Brag mgo?
Lha mo: Yes, I’ve been there twice.
G.yu ’brug: I know some of your friends have never been to
Brag mgo because they don’t know Chinese and are
afraid they’ll be cheated by Chinese businessmen.
How do you feel about that?
Lha mo: I’m OK with the situation. My grandson studies in
Rong brag Middle School and lives with his uncle
there, and one of my sons has a job in Brag mgo.
They take me around, and I can see many new
things that I cannot see in the village. It is also very
easy to see doctors when my rheumatism flares up,
unlike in the village where there is no medical care. I
can also buy whatever I want with my son and
grandson’s help and won’t get cheated by
shopkeepers. They both have perfect Chinese
language skills. It’s no problem for me to stay there
and I want to visit Brag mgo again this summer. I’m
also very happy to stay in the village with family
members and my old friends, with whom I enjoy
chanting at the village prayer wheel.
67
G.yu ’brug: How many Tibetan dialects do you speak?
Lha mo: I speak two different Tibetan dialects - Rong skad
and Mi nyag, which is why I’m not bored when I am
in Brag mgo. Many elders there speak Mi nyag.
Some are retirees from government offices and
some are from remote places and live with their
children who work in Brag mgo. I can talk to these
old people. We share our experiences.
G.yu ’brug: How did you learn Mi nyag?
Lha mo: Boy, that is a long story, but I’ll make it short: I
learned Mi nyag from my mother who was from Dge
bshes rtsa Township. She married my father and
moved to his home in Rgyas bzang Village. He
speaks fluent Mi nyag because Mother taught him.
She also taught me Mi nyag and I could speak fluent
Mi nyag by the time I was nine.
G.yu ’brug: What was it like to speak two different dialects?
Lha mo: There were several advantages for me and the
villagers. I could communicate with my maternal
relatives and other Mi nyag speakers. It was also
important for the community. I helped settle conflicts
between our village with Stag gsum Village (in Dge
bshes rtsa Township) over water and forest issues. I
also translated orations at several weddings
between Dge bshes rtsa people and my villagers. As
you know, people treated me very respectfully and
kindly because of my efforts and my status in the
village was the same as a village leader when I was
in my thirties, even though I’m a woman.
Village children have been interested in
other languages since about 2004. Certain children
cannot express themselves in their mother tongue
alone; they must use some Chinese in order to
express themselves.
Televisions, VCDs, and DVDs are increasingly popular in the
villages. Many children and adults born after 1975 are
television addicts. Their daily conversation includes
discussion of Chinese television sitcoms, series, and movies;
68
which characters are bad and good, and what the characters
did. Some dedicated viewers imitate the way characters speak
and act. Village children like to watch cartoons and argue with
family members who prefer to view other programs. When
children are together, they often play games drawn from
movies or TV, and speak in Chinese, imitating the actors,
acting out stories related to what they see on TV and do not
play traditional games nor reenact stories related to how King
Ge sar 35 and local hero, Dmu rdo, defeated demons and
invaders as children did before.
Villagers can receive Tibetan language programs
broadcast from Qinghai and Lha sa but have great difficulty in
understanding the broadcast dialects. Consequently, villagers
generally watch Chinese-language programs, except during
the New Year. At this time, villagers avidly watch the New
Year programs that feature Tibetan music, dances, orations,
auspicious speeches, songs, and so on. Though it is very hard
for villagers to understand what performers say and sing, they
feel satisfied with what they identify as Tibetan content.
Villagers attach status to fluency in Chinese, which is a
direct threat to the local dialect and culture. In response, sgom
pa, bla ma, and elders encourage younger people to speak
Tibetan. Some elders even use their walking sticks to beat
their grandchildren when they speak too much Chinese as in
the case of Bkra shis's grandmother, Lha mo, who beat him
after Bkra shis spoke Chinese to one of his friends in their
home:
Bkra shis: Grandmother, do you think a walking stick has the
same power as putting scriptures on the head?36
35
A Tibetan hero who ruled the legendary Kingdom of Gling.
She had knocked his head with her walking stick. Touching
the head with sacred scriptures is believed to bring good
fortune, drive away illness, and protect against evil. This
conversation was created by G.yu 'brug based on various
stories he heard in the village to illustrate differences in
attitudes toward language use between generations.
36
69
Lha mo: Scriptures drive away evil and hopefully, my walking
stick will stop you speaking Chinese in my home.
Bkra shis: Is there anything wrong with speaking Chinese?
Lha mo: Are you going to become Han Chinese? Remember
that you are a Tibetan!
Bkra shis: I know I’m Tibetan but I don’t want to be like you,
isolated and afraid of going to Brag mgo because
you can’t speak Chinese! I want to empower myself.
Lha mo: Don’t you feel ashamed when you speak Chinese to
your friends at home in front of your family members?
Bkra shis: I’m sorry Grandmother, but I don’t feel ashamed.
Instead, I think I’m doing the right thing. I have two
brothers. Our family’s limited land cannot support
three families. This is one reason that pushes me to
learn fluent Chinese. I don’t want to be cheated by
Chinese. Therefore, Grandmother, please don’t try
to stop me from speaking Chinese.
Lha mo: Boy! How pitiful not to know who you are when you
grow up! Yes, I know you can have a better life if you
have good Chinese language skills. But when you
have children, will you make them speak Chinese
and make them use Chinese to pray to our mountain
deities and Buddha? If your children speak Tibetan,
it will depend on your oral Tibetan ability. Look at the
Han Chinese families who moved to our village
several generations ago. They practice Tibetan
religion and speak fluent Tibetan. Some of them
cannot speak Chinese. Some Tibetans say they are
not Tibetan and Han people say they aren’t Chinese.
They are treated as though they have no nationality.
They sadly scold their ancestors for not staying
where they belonged. I don’t want you and your
ensuing generations to condemn your family
members and me. Remember, if you lose your
mother tongue, you will lose yourself!
Bkra shis: I speak Tibetan. My oral Tibetan isn’t an issue.
Lha mo: What you know is the simplest oral Tibetan. You
cannot speak perfect Tibetan. You are so arrogant.
Don’t say you have no issues with oral Tibetan.
70
Even some people in their thirties and forties who tell
folktales cannot use excellent language. Use of
Tibetan language is decreasing at an incredible rate
because of the incursion of Chinese culture and
villagers’ interest in new things.
Bkra shis: Sorry Grandmother, I’ll speak Tibetan at home
from now on.
Previously, villagers tried to learn Chinese, especially children.
Certain families used Chinese at home but, after 2008,
villagers agreed not to speak Chinese in the village except
when necessary. When G.yu 'brug recorded traditional dances
and folk songs in the village, made DVDs, and returned them
to villagers, people were very encouraged and some restarted
telling folktales, singing folk songs, and performing traditional
dances.
SUBSISTENCE
Rgyas bzang villagers cultivate barley, potatoes, wheat, peas,
prickly ash (Sichuan pepper), apples, walnuts, pears, turnips,
and corn. Three men from three families go to mountains to
herd cows, mdzo, 37 and pigs about three to four kilometers
away from the village from April to October. They live in a
tsha gdan 38 tent near big caves. They milk cows and make
butter, cheese, and yogurt. They make a small pool by some
trees, creating a cool, humid environment to store butter. They
also dry cheese and feed pigs. One of these men brings a bull
loaded with butter back to the village every week and takes it
to the three families. Some of the butter is sold in Brag mgo.
When he returns to the herding area, he takes rtsam pa, 39
37
A mdzo is a yak-cow hybrid. The father is a yak and the
mother is a cow. Villagers only use it to plow fields.
38
Fabric woven from goat hair.
39
Roasted barley or wheat flour.
71
potatoes, brick tea, and skyur skam. 40 The men never kill
domesticated pigs in the mountains, but do hunt wild pigs.
Villagers raise cows, sheep, goats, and horses, and take
them to the mountains about one kilometer from the village
every morning and herd them back to the village every night.
Villagers never sell or kill bulls and steers used to plow fields
because they are considered helpers. Villagers sell goats and
sheep when lacking the labor required to herd them. They
sometimes also sell pigs, as mentioned earlier, when they need
money for medical and educational expenses.
Villagers dig manure from the livestock quarters and
put it in the pigsty for about ten days to ferment before
plowing fields in the first lunar month. About 250 kilograms
of manure is put on each mu of field. Women form two groups
- one group from the upper part of the village and one group
from the lower part of the village - and each group helps their
members for one day to carry the manure to the fields. Women
scatter manure over the fields before plowing.
Chu zhing and skam zhing 41 'dry fields' refer to
different types of fields. Holes about twelve centimeters deep
with a diameter of about ten centimeters are made about four
centimeters apart in skam zhing after breaking clods, which is
done after plowing. A small whole potato, or a potato cut in
pieces, is placed in each hole and covered with soil.
After breaking clods, certain families sow barley seed
before the plowman arrives because they consider it bad luck
if barley seed touch a man's body. Soil is also put around the
rdo dkar (a white stone as big as ten fists placed in the middle
of fields) 42 to show respect to the Sa bdag 'Land Deity'.
Villagers harvest barley for about ten days in the eighth lunar
month and do not plow until the next year. Villagers plant
40
Pickled turnip leaves are put in hot water. The water is then
removed and the leaves are formed into round cakes. This is
done in winter, as freezing is believed to improve the taste.
Villagers cut the cake into pieces, boil for about three minutes,
and then add noodles and condiments.
41
Rain-fed fields where barley and potatoes are grown.
42
This stone is more respectfully called zhing dkyil rtsa dkar.
72
corn, potatoes, wheat, buckwheat, beans, carrots, radishes, and
turnips in chu zhing. They also have a small plot where
cabbages, green onions, chilies, tomatoes, and lettuce are
cultivated.
Villagers used chemical fertilizer on chu zhing in the
1990s. While it is easy to fertilize in this way, locals
concluded that chemical fertilizer made the soil hard, changed
the taste of food, made plowing more difficult, and increased
the number of insects. Chemical pesticides were also used to
control insects at that time, rather than ash, the traditional
pesticide. However, villagers felt eating such vegetables made
them sick with frequent abdominal complaints. Villagers
stopped using chemical fertilizer and commercial pesticides in
2001.
As
mentioned
earlier,
irrigation
engenders
disagreements due to the limited supply of water at the small
pool where it accumulates from the spring. Each household
has two days to irrigate their fields from the pool in turn.
Before irrigating, water is allowed to accumulate in the pool at
night. The designated family waters their seedlings during the
day. Two or three families may water their fields secretly
without permission from the family whose turn it is to irrigate
the next day. The next morning, the designated family
discovers water was stolen from the pool and easily
determines the culprit by tracing the water flow. Quarreling
ensues.
Villagers begin harvesting wheat in the middle of the
sixth lunar month. Corn and turnips are planted in the middle
of the seventh lunar month and are primarily fed to livestock
and swine. Turnip leaves are eaten by villagers.
SLEEPING
Each family home has a 'grul khang,43 gor khang,44 and rogs
nyal khang. 45 There are also designated places for family
43
The first floor of this small, attached two-floor building is
used as a stable for sheep and goats. The second floor has a
73
members to sleep together around the thab rdo 'hearth stone',
which consists of three stones. All the stones are shaped like
an upside-down capital J with the hook facing the fire. A pot is
placed at the convergence of the three ʔ dza bʉ 46 and above the
fire. The thab kha is a small shelf on the upward side. The
thab kha is about two and a half centimeters long and about
three centimeters wide. Food is offered here for the deities.
Grandparents sleep behind the head ʔ dza bʉ , perhaps with
grandchildren. Women sleep on the left side of the thab rdo
and men sleep on the right side. When relatives visit and
spend the night in a home, they sleep with family members
around the thab rdo while visiting non-relatives sleep in the
'grul khang. The gor khang, with the thab rdo in the center, is
the main room and is where the family cooks, eats, sits, and
sleeps.
Twelve people slept around the thab rdo in winter in
G.yu 'brug's home when he was a child. Every night after
dinner, the young people helped G.yu 'brug's grandfather make
a bed behind the head ʔ dza bʉ . They put tsha gdan on the floor,
made clothes into pillows, and prepared tsha gdan to use as
quilts. When elders finished summing up a day's work or
telling stories, the mother of the home or her daughter made
beds for other members.
A consultant said:
I never removed my pants when I slept with my family until
we built a new house. My wife and I moved to our new house
guestroom. There are three enclosures in the first floor of the
main house. Goats and sheep are kept together, piglets are put
in another enclosure, and larger swine are kept in a third
enclosure.
44
The main room for villagers. The thab rdo 'hearth stone' is
in the center. Families cook, eat, sit, and sleep in this room.
45
A room for the newlyweds. When their youngest child is
three years old, they leave this room for their children, and
then sleep in the gor khang.
46
The thab rdo is comprised of three ʔ dza bʉ .
74
with my mother, and we slept separately. I then removed my
clothes when I went to bed.
Winter was very hard for the families who lacked
enough tsha gdan to share. They huddled together when
sleeping. In summer, older boys and young men sleep on
the third floor where dry grass is kept, because they feel hot
in the gor khang and want to remove their clothes.
When a new couple sleeps in the rogs nyal khang
during the first year of marriage, no family member visits the
room until the bride gives birth because villagers consider it
bad luck to accidentally see a new couple in an intimate
encounter. A consultant said:
By the time I was twenty-three, I had two sons and a
daughter. I moved from the rogs nyal khang to the gor khang
to sleep around the thab rdo when my oldest son was ten. I
really wanted to embrace my wife after one month of
sleeping away from her. One night after I found my family
members deeply asleep, I put on my robe, quietly went to my
wife, pulled her leg, and woke her. Instead of getting up, she
turned to my daughter to hold her. I tried to lie by her but,
following a cough, Father turned to face my young son. I
shyly tried again. My wife turned and was about to ask me
something. My gesture stopped her. I gave a signal and she
followed me to the third floor. We had a nice sleep that night
wrapped in my robe on the dry grass. After that, we slept
together on the third floor several times a month.
The 'grul khang is offered to guests. Family members never
sleep in this room without a guest - this is a rule.
It has become increasingly common for family
members to have their own rooms. Children were no longer
afraid to stay in rooms alone in the dark after electricity came
to the village. Additionally, most villagers moved the thab rdo
from the gor khang to a kitchen, and made the gor khang into
a guest room with a TV and VCD/ DVD player. Only a few
families kept the thab rdo in the gor khang and slept in this
room in 2010.
75
EATING
Women get up at around six-thirty, make a fire to boil tea and,
after finishing milking about thirty minutes later, they make
tea. Other family members wake up to have tea at about seven.
Elders sit in bed and chant for about thirty minutes until rtsam
pa, butter, cheese, and tea are ready. Elders offer three drops
of tea (to the ancestors, the Three Jewels, 47 and the Hearth
Deity) and then family members begin eating and drinking for
about twenty minutes. During this time, elders make a plan for
the day, including a schedule for the morning work, e.g., who
will take cows, sheep, and goats to the mountains; who will
clean the rooms; and so on. Women have no time to eat rtsam
pa after putting rtsam pa in family members' bowls, for they
are busy cooking for the family and feeding pigs, cattle, and
lambs.
Women often cook bread, pork, and nyog nyog48 for
breakfast. The family has breakfast around the thab rdo at
about eight a.m. They put pork or nyog nyog in bowls for
family members. Women pass bread around. Elders sit behind
the head ʔ dza bʉ and put a breadcrumb on the thab kha as an
offering to the Zas lha 'Food Deity'. Women offer tea at least
three times during the meal. Family members start work after
breakfast and generally work together.
At about twelve, women make tea for family members
who spend about twenty to thirty minutes having tea and
rtsam pa or bread in the fields when they are weeding,
harvesting, and so on. Women begin cooking lunch at about
one p.m. Bread is commonly prepared and, much less often,
rice. Dishes such as pork with cabbage and potato, and green
chili with turnip leaves are frequently prepared. At about twothirty, lunch is eaten around the thab rdo or in the fields. Food
47
The Three Jewels are the Buddha, the teachings of the
Buddha, and the community of practicing Buddhists. 'The
Three Jewels' is often said as an affirmation of truth.
48
Villagers melt a piece of pork fat; add pickled turnip leaf
liquid, salt, and Sichuan pepper; wait until it boils; and then
serve in bowls. Bread is dipped in this and eaten.
76
from each dish is put by the white stone in the field center.
Tea is sometimes drunk at about five p.m. when working in
the fields.
Noodles are a common supper item and are generally
made by women, although men may help pull the noodles if
long noodles are made. Bits of dough are also chopped off
blocks of dough to make noodles. In contrast to many A mdo
farming communities, short pieces of dough are not pulled off
longer pieces of dough with the thumb and forefinger and then
squeezed to produce short, flat noodles. Chopped turnip leaves
are boiled with water and lard and then homemade noodles are
added. Family members sit around the thab rdo and are served
by the women.
CHILDBIRTH AND CHILD RAISING
Pregnant women work right up until they give birth. Some
women give birth prematurely and some infants die. A
consultant said:
My husband was outside the village doing seasonal labor
when I was pregnant. I had to cut firewood and left my
three year old son with a relative during the short
firewood cutting season. In the course of doing strenuous
woodcutting, I gave birth to a stillborn child and nearly
died. People visited me but, according to village custom,
there were no gifts. Villagers consider giving gifts an
insult if a woman gives birth to a dead infant.
After giving birth at home, the woman's mother or her
mother-in-law takes the placenta to the pig sty, digs a deep
hole, and buries it. The placenta is not a concern if the mother
gives birth in a hospital.
Women stay at home for about a month after giving
birth. Only the woman's mother or her mother-in-law stays in
the rogs nyal khang to assist during birth. The husband cannot
enter this room during the birth and for three days after the
birth. Only the woman's mother may sleep with the new
77
mother and infant to help when the woman gives birth the first
time. For subsequent births, the mother may have less need for
a helper. On the third day after birth, sgom pa perform bsang
skor49 around the rogs nyal khang to protect the infant from
attacks by evil spirits. The husband may now sleep with the
baby and his wife in the rogs nyal khang. New mothers eat in
bed. When they need to go to the toilet, they go from the
mdzod sgo50 down to the first floor where pigs are kept. They
do not leave the family gor khang for nine days following the
birth.
On the sixth day after birth, sgom pa perform a second
bsang skor in the rogs nyal khang and family members may
see the baby. If the baby often cries and sleeps fretfully, the
family asks sgom pa to chant. Sgom pa give the third bsang
skor for the baby on the ninth day, and relatives then visit the
baby in the rogs nyal khang. After fifteen days, the new
mother's friends visit without bringing gifts. On the thirtieth
day, about a hundred relatives, friends, and villagers come
with pork, pig legs, eggs, mutton, butter, chicken, beef, and
noodles. The mother brings her baby to show visitors in the
gor khang, and resumes working.
Mothers sing this lullaby when babies cry and at
bedtime:51
ーa kə ーa kə mə ŋ t!i ŋt ŋt jə ̃ la mə ŋ t! ̄
ーmŋ gi boŋ loŋ
t 『ə t! m gi
t aŋ lə ŋ ーdza saŋ ーja gə dz u t t 『ə ーja
ーa kə ーa kə mə ŋ t!i ŋt ŋt jə ̃ la mə ŋ t! ̄
ーmŋ gi æ lə ŋ t 『ə t! m gi
49
A bla ma, monk, or sgom pa chants bsang scriptures and
burns juniper needles to purify rooms, clothing, prayer wheels,
and prayer wheel flags.
50
Mdzod sgo refers to a wood cover that is one and a half
meters long, one meter wide, and three centimeters thick over
a hole in the floor by the wall in the gor khang near the rogs
nyal khang entrance.
51
Texts here and elsewhere in IPA are so given because we
are unsure of the meaning of certain lexical items.
78
w dz æ la s na
kah̚ ma ji m t 『a
ーa kə ーa kə mə ŋ t!i ーa kə ーa kə mə ŋ t!i
Mothers do not give babies milk made from milk
powder. If a new mother lacks breastmilk, the family asks a
woman who recently gave birth to nurse the infant. The wet
nurse comes to the new mother's home to nurse the baby at
least four times daily for three to four months. The infant's
mother also gives the infant a little cow milk boiled with water
and melted butter. Mothers usually stop breastfeeding after
seven months. From the fourth month after a birth, the mother
begins giving the infant melted butter, with a little corn meal
in warm water.
When the baby is one year old, the father takes it to a
sgom pa and asks him to give it a name, which is based on the
baby's father's religion, the time the baby was born, and the
day the family asks for the name. If a baby is frequently ill, the
mother asks a high bla ma or a sgom pa to give a different
name. Villagers believe a baby will no longer suffer from
illness if it changes its name.
Grandparents might give a male name if they dream
about Tsa ri spun gsum, regardless of the baby's gender, and
the baby cannot have other names in the future for the baby is
considered to be a gift from Tsa ri spun gsum, who are male
deities. The baby's name is thus a male name that shows
respect to them.
A family may also ask a couple with the same 'byung
ba 'element'52 to allow the baby to formally acknowledge them
as surrogate parents, and give a name to the baby as
mentioned earlier. This name is only used by elders. The baby
is taken to visit the surrogate parents with gifts of pork and a
bottle of liquor at some point between the first and twelfth
days of the New Year. Such visits continue until the child is
twelve years old, at which point they stop.
52
Earth, metal, water, fire, and wood.
79
STONE HOUSES
In the early 1980s, ninety percent of village families lived in
five-floored ma khyim 'mother houses' made of stone. A few
families had six-story houses. Several families had g.yung
drung.53 Bon followers put Ston pa gshen rab's54 image in the
g.yung drung shrine room to prevent evil spirits from entering.
According to local accounts, Ston pa gshen rab's efforts to
propagate Bon were obstructed by the demon, Khyab pa lag
ring, who had come from far away and was the worst demon
on earth. Ston pa gshen rab asked Khyab pa lag ring to leave
and become a good creature. Khyab pa lag ring only wished to
destroy Ston pa gshen rab's religious work and defeat him but,
eventually, the demon was converted and became Ston pa
gshen rab's disciple. Locals carefully decorate the g.yung
drung shrine room by drawing Bon deity images and symbols
on the walls.
Several families have a 'grul khang - the small, twofloored building mentioned above - attached to the ma khyim.
The first floor of the ma khyim is for sheep and goats, and has
two rooms, the phyi ra 'outer sty', and the nang ra 'inner sty'.
The inside room is a pigsty and the outside room is for both
swine and calves.
The second floor is a guest-room that has the gor
khang, rogs nyal khang, mkhar bang, 55 and skas rtsa.56 The
53
Some Bon families added a three-floor extension (another
building but joined to the main house) to their home. The first
of these floors was used for storage, the second was a shrine,
and the third floor was for the family la btsas. After the
addition of the extensions, the houses were thought to
resemble a Bon swastika, hence the name. The Bon swastika
turns counterclockwise, in contrast to the Buddhist
swastika
that turns clockwise. The Bon swastika is used
similarly to a vajra in Buddhism.
54
Ston pa gshen rab, the founder of Bon.
55
Directly across from the skas rtsa is the mkhar bang, a room
where potatoes and turnips are stored.
80
gor khang has four same-sized square windows. A large stone
reservoir in the wall is just by the entrance to the gor khang.
Two wood poles - the ltag shing - support firewood just above
the entrance door. A column by the stone reservoir is the
tshogs shing ka ba. After making butter, the mother puts some
on this column. The thab rdo is located in the middle of the
gor khang. The rogs nyal khang has a bed for the new couple
and a window.
Ladders or stairs lead to the third floor. To the right
side is the east-facing mar 'khor.57 It has no door. It is about
three meters wide, four meters long, and two meters high.
Grain and other items are stored here.
On the left side of the entry to the third floor is the
byang 'khor, an open north-facing room about the size of the
mar 'khor. A door to the left leads to the bang ma, a storeroom
for meat, butter, and jewelry. A nor lha58 image is also kept
here.
The khang che is between the mar 'khor and byang
'khor on the third floor. To make this floor, about fifty poles
(each about six meters long with a five centimeter diameter)
are placed across twenty to twenty-five 'dung phra (wood
poles about ten centimeters in diameter), which in turn, rest
across three or four nt!『ə kə ̃ 'crossbeams' (about six meters
long with a diameter of twenty centimeters).
Each floor is made up of thousands of glang ma shing
'willow sticks', each of which is about three meters long and
has a diameter of about two centimeters. Dried grass is used to
fill the spaces between the sticks. Black mud is put atop this
and then covered with red mud to create the surface. The
khang che slopes to the east side of the khang 'dabs (the edges
56
The skas rtsa is a room where tools are kept. To the right of
the skas rtsa is the gor khang.
57
A storage room for corn, dry grass, barley, wheat, and tools.
58
A syncretic figure combining elements of the Indian deity of
wealth, Dzam bha la, and native wealth-bestowing zoomorphic spirits; a wealth deity dwelling on a lotus who
accumulates jewels (www.tibetarchaeology.com/newsletter_
nov09.htm, accessed 16 September 2010).
81
of the khang che) to allow rainwater to flow through the 'do
thos 'drain' (a piece of slotted wood one meter long leading
rainwater khang phyi 'outside the house'). The 'do thos is
placed under 'tsham lhig 'shingle stones' that are around the
khang phyi to protect the 'dung phra and the nt!『ə kə ̃ from
rainwater that induces rot.
A ladder leads to the fourth floor where there are two
open areas (without walls or roofs) and the lha mkhar, a small
room where grain that has been dried in the open is stored. A
la btsas is atop the house in the location where bsang is
offered every morning.
STONE TOWERS
Despite chaotic social events in the mid to late twentieth
century, three stone towers still stand in the village, testimony
to an ancient past. A sgom pa said:
There were ten towers in the village before the 1970s.
Except for the eight-sided tower59 in the center of our village
fields, the others were all four-sided towers. The eight-faced
tower was rounded, and used to launch bombs.60 Only mthu
sgrub mi61 could send bombs to the places where the tribal
chief directed. Actually, many people have asked me and
other elders how we know the eight-faced tower was used to
launch bombs. My answer is that this is what people told me.
Our ancestors used it to attack other tribes who wanted to
pillage our land. Bombs were in the tower all the time and
when villagers received information of an imminent attack,
59
Today, only ruins remain of this tower. In 1988, two
families found eight-faced tower foundations, arrowheads, and
broken swords when they built houses.
60
The local pronunciation is dzʰ aɦ ɔ . Sgom pa described it as
being similar to a bomb (dzwa).
61
In the local context, mthu sgrub mi are meditators who live
in caves or hermitages. Two mthu sgrub mi were said to live in
Rong brag County in 2010.
82
they asked mthu sgrub mi to chant and immediately launch
bombs at the enemy in a preemptive strike. Launching a
bomb required huge force, so our ancestors made the eightfaced stone houses round. My grandfather told me that a
thirteen-faced tower in the village was the most powerful
tower in this region for launching bombs and was shared by
two tribes. Because of the many wars between tribes,
conflicts with invaders, and the stress and strain of launching
bombs, the thirteen-faced tower nearly collapsed.
The following account further attests to the antiquity of
the towers and how extensively their power was appreciated:
Once Lha sa ba ’Lha sa people’ were defeated and asked
our ancestors for help. Because Lha sa’s enemies were far
away and beyond the range of bombs, our ancestors went to
Gong bo rong62 and built two four-sided towers that faced
each other. A year later they helped the Lha sa ba repel their
enemies with bombs. The Lha sa ba chief then asked two
mthu sgrub mi to stay in Gong bo rong in the event the
enemy forces staged a counteroffensive. All but five of our
ancestors died from disease on their return home.
In the 1960s, officials ordered locals to demolish the
thirteen-faced tower to build a shechang 'community square', a
large two-floored Chinese style building in Rgyas bzang
Village. In 1984, the shechang was sold to a family who
wanted to build a house with its stones. During the same
period, the Shuizi Commune leader forced locals to take
stones from the four-faced towers to build a cangku
'committee storehouse'.63 Subsequently, one of the four towers
was destroyed. Villagers built a ma Ni 'khor khang 'prayer
room' in the village center in 1999 where the former cangku
62
Locals use the term 'Gong bo rong' to refer collectively to
Nying khri, Kong po rgya mda', and Sman gling.
63
After some years, this building was sold to a village family
who used the stone to build a new stone house.
83
was located. Three four-faced towers stood in the village in
2010.
Only Sgom pa Blo bzang (1927-2008), a Bon
practitioner, could efficaciously chant to ensure the safety of a
family who took stones from a stone tower to build stone
houses. Several sgom pa chanted for such families, but were
deemed inept because those families later had accidents when
they were building stone houses. People gradually realized
that only Blo bzang's chanting ensured safety when taking
stones from the stone towers. Afterwards, nearly all families
asked him to chant when needed.
Blo bzang's background is worth describing in some
detail: At the age of twenty, he became a student of the 'Bru
smad 64 Reincarnation Bla ma at 'Bru smad Monastery and
stayed there until forced to leave in the 1960s. He then worked
in a collective in the Rgyal rong region. During this time, he
met Brag steng sgom pa, who was considered the most
knowledgeable and adept mthu sgrub mi in the Rgyal rong
region. Blo bzang subsequently became Brag steng sgom pa's
student for five years.
Blo bzang studied Buddhism in Gser thar Monastery
from 1979 to 1981, and later served as a sgom pa for Rgyas
bzang, Sgang bzang, and La rgyab villages. Few monks could
match him in debating skills. However, when he was returning
home, he met his match in a herdsman, which led him to say,
"Don't be proud. You may think you are the best in one area,
but when you leave that place, you will learn that you are very
ordinary."
When bla ma visited and were welcomed by the
villagers, Blo bzang asked them to sit higher than him to show
his respect for them. After some time of debate, however,
most bla ma asked him to take their seats.
64
There is a monastery in 'Bru smad Village, Stong dgu
Township that Rgyas bzang villagers often refer to as 'Bru
smad Monastery. The reincarnation bla ma of this monastery
is called 'Bru smad Reincarnation Bla ma.
84
Sa skya, Bka' brgyud, and Rnying ma sgom pa
periodically challenged him, but were always defeated. For
example:
Once during a terrible drought, sgom pa gathered and
chanted for rain, except for Blo bzang, because he was
chanting in a nearby village. They chanted for two days but
no rain fell. When Blo bzang returned home on the third day,
villagers took him to chant with the other sgom pa. There
was light rain that evening. Villagers thought this was
because of Blo bzang. A Rnying ma sgom pa said to the
villagers, "There is no connection between rain and Blo
bzang’s chanting. Our (Bka’ brgyud and Rnying ma sgom pa)
chanting has brought rain."
Blo bzang said nothing and had noodles with the
other sgom pa. That night, only sgom pa were in the tent.
The other sgom pa asked Blo bzang to demonstrate his
power to convince them that he could do magic. A Rnying
ma sgom pa said that if Blo bzang could convincingly show
his ability, then he would do the same, thinking this was an
excellent opportunity to humiliate Blo bzang.
Sgom pa Blo bzang chanted for about twenty
minutes and then the sound of wind was heard and his long
hair fluttered in the wind. The other sgom pa could not feel
the wind. Afterwards, Sgom pa Blo bzang was respected by
other sgom pa, who viewed him as a teacher.
Sgom pa Blo bzang disliked the reincarnation of his
teacher, who drank, played cards, could make a basketball
stick to a backboard for about five minutes, and who could
twist a glass liquor bottle into a round shape with his hands.
TABOOS AND CUSTOMS
The following taboos and customs are observed in Rgyas
bzang Village.
Horses, dogs, cats, eagles, sparrows, donkeys, frogs, fish,
85
and snakes cannot be eaten.
Death and dreams cannot be mentioned in the morning.
Offering cracked or chipped bowls to guests shows great
disrespect, and is especially inauspicious when family
members start a long trip or leave the village.
Removing garbage and sweeping the floor after someone
leaves the home courtyard in the morning is taboo.
Hosts offer tea, liquor, and food to elders and guests with
both hands and receivers use both hands to accept, in order
to show respect to the host.
To avoid angering the Door Deity and bringing misfortune
to a family, the threshold is not stepped on, nor is the top
of the doorframe touched.
Men sit to the left of the thab rdo and women sit to the
right. Elders are asked to sit in the gor stod (upper place on
the second floor of the home) to show them respect.
Slightly lowering the head when talking to elders also
shows respect.
Men sit cross-legged, particularly in the gor khang because
stretching the legs forward with the soles of the feet facing
the hearthstone is a grave insult to the host and angers the
Hearth Deity. The offender is suspected of doing it
purposefully and is likely asked to stop.
The one addressed should not answer directly when called
from outside the house gate at night, but instead steps out
of the house, listens, tries to identify the caller, and then
replies, or otherwise risks losing their soul. They might
also pause, spit, and then answer.
A woman cannot let her hair down until after sunset,
86
otherwise she might become a bsen mo.65
A man may respond violently to anyone who touches his
head other than high bla ma, sgom pa, parents, and
grandparents. It is very inauspicious for a woman to touch
a man's head.
Villagers never sit on a bed in the place where the sleeper
puts their head because doing so suggests a deliberate
insult.
Men who see women urinating on the side of a road or in
fields will have three years of bad luck.
The Hearth Deity punishes those who eat a meal before
offering food on the head ʔ dza bʉ by ensuring they later
lack food.
Disrespectful language includes calling elders' names and
saying 'you' to elders. Language with sexual innuendo,
including love songs, must not be spoken or performed in
front of relatives and elders. People stand when an elder
enters a room and do not walk upright past a sitting elder.
A person meeting a bla ma should stand in a place lower
than the bla ma's, remove their hat, put their palms
together under their chin, bend toward the bla ma, and
allow him to place his hand on their head.
Locals never whistle when passing the gate of a home or
entering a village, as this is thought to summon ghosts.
Whistling is generally only done in herding areas.
Women never participate in la btsas renewal and never
65
A living woman who becomes a bsen mo might be seen in
the village, though she is sleeping at home. Neither she nor her
family members are aware of her nocturnal activity outside her
home.
87
enter a home shrine room or visit monasteries when
menstruating.
The deceased's clothing may be put in a cave in a
mountain near the village or it might be washed and kept
at home but it cannot be discarded for a year after death,
otherwise the deceased's soul may return looking for the
clothing.
Livestock must not be beaten with metal in fear that this
will cause the beater to not be reincarnated and suffer in
the netherworld.
Crying at the gate of a home brings misfortune to the
family.
88
PART TWO: FOLKTALES AND A SHORT STORY
INTRODUCTION
The folktales presented are retold from what G.yu 'brug
collected and remembers hearing while living in the village.
G.yu 'brug also wrote a fictional story - Torn Between Two
Lovers - to better illustrate villagers' lives and experiences.
SGANG BZANG STOBS LDAN
Sgang bzang stobs ldan is known as Stobs ldan by locals in
Rong brag County who consider him to be a reincarnation bla
ma originally from Sgang bzang Village. Swapping Sheep and
Goat Heads, The Origin of a Village Spring, and A Monastery
of Pebbles are local Stobs ldan stories.
Swapping Sheep and Goat Heads
The sun rose and villagers finished their breakfast. Each
household waited for Stobs ldan’s call to release their sheep
and goats from enclosures so he could take them to the
mountains to graze. As Stobs ldan grew up, herding for
villagers became his job and was the only way for him to
support his mother and himself.
One day, Stobs ldan was bored with doing the same
thing all the time and switched the sheep and goats’ heads
for fun. When he was about to replace their heads, a big
storm blew up and the sheep and goats fled back to the
village. When he reached the village, it was already evening
and villagers were complaining that they could not identify
their sheep and goats. They asked Stobs ldan to separate
them according to household ownership. Stobs ldan knew
that he should not reveal what he had done to the sheep and
goats. He told villagers that it was dark and that they should
keep whatever animals were in their enclosures until the next
day when he would separate them.
The next morning after Stobs ldan set off for the
day’s herding, some villagers began talking about how the
90
animals’ heads had been exchanged. Other villagers said
they were crazy and were sure this would be proved true
when Stobs ldan returned from herding that evening.
When Stobs ldan reached the mountains, he saw
how much the animals were enjoying eating grass and
decided to wait some time before switching their heads again.
A monk from outside the local area happened to pass near
Stobs ldan, who was sleeping on the back of a tiger. Next to
him, a large snake was using its head to shade Stobs ldan’s
face from the hot sun. The monk sat there, closed his eyes,
and quietly chanted. About an hour later, the monk was
interrupted by Stobs ldan asking why he was sitting in the
middle of the path, chanting. The monk immediately bowed
to Stobs ldan, and asked him for a blessing. Stobs ldan
asked how a herder could bless a monk, and then walked to
the sheep and goats. Stobs ldan was sure that he had just
slept on a rock under a small tree.
The monk reported what he had seen to the locals
and told them to take good care of Stobs ldan and send him
to a monastery to study. Locals considered this to be a joke
but said nothing because of the monk’s respected status.
Stobs ldan exchanged the sheep and goats heads
by holding a sheep’s head and a goat’s head, and calling,
"All sheep heads replace goat heads!" Several villagers
wanted to know what had happened to their sheep and goats
and came, waiting for Stobs ldan halfway from the mountains.
Stobs ldan understood the villagers’ motivation when
he later met them on his way back to the village. He then
tossed a handful of soil at the herd, which separated into
small groups according to family household ownership. It
was clear to the villagers there was nothing wrong with their
sheep and goats, because the herd moved in groups with
some distance between the sheep and goats. Villagers were
amazed by Stobs ldan’s power, and said nothing about the
monk’s suggestion because they did not want Stobs ldan to
stop herding and study in a monastery.
91
The Origin of a Village Spring
One day, a large bird flew from the mountains to the village.
The villagers had never seen such a bird before. The bird
flew around the roof of Stobs ldan’s home. Stobs ldan tried to
catch it but failed. The bird flew to the village fields and
Stobs ldan followed. He was tired, picked up a stone, put it
into his robe pouch for two seconds, and then threw it at the
bird. The bird fell to the ground not far from him. When he
walked over to take a look, the bird had vanished. In its place
was a bowl of melted butter. Without thinking, he picked up
the bowl, drank all the butter, and urinated on the spot. Later,
a small spring appeared where he had urinated. Locals
currently use this spring as a source of drinking water.
A Monastery of Pebbles
Stobs ldan was asked to study with a local sgom pa, who
was in seclusion in a stone tower by a mountain. The sgom
pa asked him to fetch water from the spring where he had
urinated, but Stobs ldan did not go to the spring. Instead, he
used pebbles to make a miniature Bon monastery. One of
the sgom pa's students discovered this when he went
looking for Stobs ldan after a long while had passed without
Stobs ldan returning.
The sgom pa heard a drum beat at midnight, went to
the top of the stone tower to see what was happening, saw lit
lamps where Stobs ldan had made a miniature Bon
monastery of pebbles, and realized that Stobs ldan was so
powerful that he could not teach him. He sent Stobs ldan
back to the village the next day with one of his students, and
told villagers to send him elsewhere to study.
The villagers then sent Stobs ldan to Tibet to study.
Many years later, his deeds came to be told by ensuing
generations in the local area.
92
NOR BU BZANG PO66
Nor bu bzang po was a well-known merchant in Tibetan,
Mongolian, and Chinese areas. His wealth was equal to that
of local kings. His workers were treated as well as if they
were of noble birth. He was also considered to be
compassionate because he helped people without thought of
reward and, regardless of the supplicant’s status, he tried his
best to assist them. He was known as Tshong dpon Nor bu
bzang po. His parents, sister (Rgya dkar),67 and locals were
greatly concerned about his safety when he went out trading
gold, silver, and turquoise with his mastiff, pack mule, and a
horse. He never lost in his transactions.
Leaves began falling, again attiring the earth. After
recovering from an illness for about two years, Nor bu bzang
po was busy making plans to trade. His sister suggested
there was little business during that time of year and, trying
to convince him not to go, said, "Our parents are getting
older and I’m just a woman. Father is like the sun at the
mountaintop, Mother is like a bridge over the river, and I am
just like dew on the grass. How can you possibly leave us
behind?"
Nor bu bzang po vividly described business
opportunities, said he would return soon, and then set off
with a servant named A cog, a pack mule, horse, and his
mastiff. He headed down the track he had walked many
times before and sang many folksongs on the way.
Everything around him was idyllic - birds sang, beasts ran,
and people were relaxed. Then harsh weather interrupted his
enjoyment of the beautiful scenery.
At home, Nor bu bzang po’s sister and parents
impatiently waited for his return. Rgya dkar guessed
something was wrong because she felt A cog coveted her
66
Nor bzang is a well known figure in Tibetan narrations in
many Tibetan cultural areas.
67
She assumes various names in differing versions of the story,
e.g., Sog po 'Mongol', suggesting she spoke fluent Mongolian,
and other names to suggest that she spoke fluent Chinese.
93
family’s property. The family waited anxiously and his sister
frequently stood on the rooftop looking into the distance,
hoping to see her brother on his way home.
A cog put poison in Nor bu bzang po’s bowl on the
way back home, hoping to kill him, but he failed because Nor
bu bzang po used ivory chopsticks to test all the food, tea,
and soup he was offered. The chopsticks turned dark when
poison touched them. A cog finally put poison on the tail of a
fox skin hat when Nor bu bzang po was washing his face.
Later, he told Nor bu bzang po to hold the fox’s tail, put it
close to his mouth, breathe deeply, and exhale. He said he
would feel warmer after doing this. Nor bu bzang po did so
and died.
A cog donned Nor bu bzang po’s clothing and
impersonated the man he had murdered. He returned and
became the house master, forcibly taking the family’s
property. Nor bu bzang po’s sister knew he was not her
brother, which was confirmed by the mastiff, who told her
that his master had died while returning home. 68 She
decided to search for her brother, even though she knew she
might only locate his bones, and told her parents that she
would visit a distant relative for several days. She then set
off with the mastiff. One evening, she saw two blind ghosts
eating each other’s flesh and then using a container to rub
each other’s body where flesh had been cut off. The flesh
then regrew immediately. Rgya dkar slowly approached,
quietly took the container as they were passing it back and
forth, and fled.
The mastiff led Nor bu bzang po’s sister to a
complete human skeleton that lay in the snow. The mastiff
began howling pitifully and told her that this was her brother.
The sister held the container, lay on the skeleton, and cried.
After a little while, the mastiff began barking in a happy way
and put its head under her armpit. She raised her head and
saw that flesh had grown on the skeleton. She then rubbed
the container everywhere on the skeleton. When she
68
The story suggests the mastiff could talk to Rgya dkar in her
own language.
94
finished, her brother was restored to life and spoke to her.
Brother and sister wept and then returned home.
A cog was enjoying a comfortable life but, when he
saw Nor bu bzang po, Nor bu bzang po’s sister, and the
mastiff returning, he was so terrified that he jumped off the
roof and died. Nor bu bzang po stopped going out to trade
and helped local people with the magic container, and the
family then lived a happy life.
A DOG SAVES HUMANITY FROM STARVATION
Long ago with the blessings of the Buddha and local deities,
people lived a happy, peaceful life in Rgyal mo tsha ba rong.
People respected the Buddha and local deities. When they
ate something, they offered a bit of it to the Buddha and local
deities while giving a short offering speech.
They had very good harvests every year. Nine
heads of barley, which they called 'bru, grew on each stalk.
Later, misfortune struck and they began to call barley khyi
mchod ’offering to the dog’, because only one head of barley
grew on each barley stalk. This story is about how that
happened.
Long ago, people ground barley with a water mill
and baked and steamed bread made of barley flour. With
plenty of food, locals became wasteful and gradually forgot
to offer food to the Buddha and local deities. They threw
away bread if it was even slightly burned. Buddha and local
deities noticed this but compassionately forgave them.
Later, locals became so wealthy that they even
began using the outer part of steamed bread to clean babies’
dirty bottoms when they defecated. Local deities were so
upset by this that they stopped barley from growing in the
fields. People soon began to die from starvation.
An elderly couple had an old dog that they treated as
their child. They also could not escape hunger and almost
died from starvation, too. One day, the dog went to the
couple’s field, sat by the white stone in the middle of the field,
and started howling. After nine days of howling, local deities
95
came and asked the dog why he was howling by the white
stone.
The old dog said that people were suffering from
starvation and his masters were dying. He asked the deities
to show compassion and let the barley grow again. Finally,
they decided to allow barley to grow again but with only one
head per stalk.
Satisfied, the old dog returned to the old couple and
communicated this information. The old couple then told
other locals that their dog had begged the deities to allow
barley to grow again. Locals doubted the old couple. Some
said that if their barley really was growing the next morning,
they would provide the old couple with food afterwards.
Locals discovered that barley was growing and that
the old dog had disappeared early the next morning. The old
couple explained that that their dog had an agreement with
the deities that it would become a deity if local deities kept
their promise.
Locals sincerely respected the old couple, kept their
promise, and took good care of them. Importantly, they
appreciated the dog’s dedication and began calling barley
khyi mchod. Whenever they made offerings to deities, they
mentioned the dog.69
THE THREE BROTHERS
Long ago, a Han Chinese family with the surname Ha moved
to Kha mdo Valley. There were five people in the family - the
parents and three sons. The family had a good relationship
with local Tibetans, and were ambitious. Sadly, however, this
led to a family tragedy.
Men in Kha mdo Valley must have skills to support a
family in order to marry. Without such skills as metal smithing,
carpentry, and painting, no woman would marry them. The
father held a family meeting, and said he wanted his sons to
find local Tibetan women to marry for this would empower
69
Villages did not mention this dog when making offerings to
deities in 2010.
96
the family and strengthen their position in the local
community. He told his sons that they must leave the home
and learn skills.
The three brothers could not understand Tibetan, so
they set off to a Chinese area to learn skills. One day, the
three brothers came to a valley where there were three roads
leading in three different directions. Each chose a different
road.
Gunfire sounded when the oldest brother was
drinking at a spring. He went in that direction and found a
middle-aged hunter sitting by a fire, roasting and eating meat
with great gusto. The oldest brother asked for some meat
from the hunter, chatted with him, relished the meat, and
decided to become a hunter. He asked the hunter to teach
him how to hunt. The lonely hunter agreed. Quickly, the
oldest brother became a good marksman and was ready to
return home.
The second brother met a blacksmith and became
his apprentice. He had learned most of his teacher’s skills
after a few months and left.
The youngest brother encountered a funeral. A
woman very emotionally called, "My dear son..." He thought
this was very interesting and decided to learn how to lament.
After several months his lamentation skills were such that
everyone who heard him was deeply touched.
The three brothers returned home at the same time.
The father invited several Tibetans to their home for a meal
to welcome his sons’ return. The three brothers were drunk
by the time their father asked them to demonstrate their
newly-acquired skills. The oldest brother took out his gun
and shot his father in the forehead. As the father fell, he
pointed at the second son, who thought his father was
asking him to demonstrate his skill. He then took his smithing
tools and used a piece of silver to plug the bullet hole in his
father’s forehead.
The shocked mother looked at her youngest son,
who stood up, held his father, and began lamenting, "My
dear son…"
97
TORN BETWEEN TWO LOVERS (a short story)
I travelled to Dar rtse mdo and met my old friend, Rdo rje,
quite by accident in a cheap restaurant. He was eating alone
so I sat down. After we had drunk about three bottles of beer
each, he told me this story.
I was terribly sleepy on the way to Kunming, but the bumpy
track the bus was on shook me from left to right, banging my
head against the window whenever I dozed off, making my
sleep very fitful.
A man dressed fashionably with a refined expression
sat by me. He offered me a brown-paper cigarette and asked if
I was a Kunming native.
I said, "I'm from Dkar mdzes County, and I'm going to
Kunming to care for my ailing sister in the hospital. She's a
student there," and politely returned the cigarette because I do
not smoke. We chatted, and he invited me to have lunch with
him when the bus reached the usual lunch stop.
I learned that he was a government official in Kunming,
his name was Nibushigu, and that he was of the Yi nationality.
He gave me his phone number and encouraged me to call him
if I needed help. I saw a very nice car pick him up at the bus
station after we reached our destination.
I reached the hospital where my seventeen-year-old
sister was recovering from an appendectomy. The hospital fee
was high and, in a few days, the 3,000 RMB I had brought
from home was gone. The doctor said that I should prepare
another 2,000 RMB because Sister needed to stay in the
hospital at least two additional weeks. I did not tell Sister
about this because I did not want her to worry. I also did not
inform my family. I knew there was no more money to send
unless they borrowed from relatives and villagers.
I mustered my courage and phoned Nibushigu. He said
he was very busy and asked me to call him later. I dejectedly
returned to the hospital, thinking that he had just made an
excuse because we did not know each other well. "Why
should he help me - a stranger?" I thought.
98
Sister noticed my depression when I returned and
asked me what had happened.
I said I was only concerned about her studies, told her
to read her books, and said that once she was discharged from
the hospital she should catch up with her classmates.
The next day I reluctantly called Nibushigu again. He
said he was pleased that I had called and gave me the name of
a restaurant where he said we would meet. I happily went
there and found a group of people sitting at a table in a posh
restaurant. Nibushigu was sitting at the center of the table in
the seat of honor. The waiter told me to join them.
Nibushigu stood as I approached. They all shook hands
with me as Nibushigu introduced me.
As I ate with them, they offered me a mug of beer. I
said that I did not drink and thanked them profusely. Then
they urged me to sing. I sang one song. A pretty young woman
asked me if I was a professional singer. I was embarrassed by
her interest and said that I liked singing but had no singing job.
I accompanied Nibushigu to the toilet a bit later. He
handed me 2,500 RMB and told me to keep it as a friend's gift.
Astonished, I stood in front of the toilet mirror. I had asked
him to lend me 2,500 RMB but, instead, he had given me that
sum as an outright gift. I wondered why he gave the money
rather than lending it. I worried that he wanted something
from me. I returned to the table and continued dinner, my
mind full of questions.
"Hi, Rdo rje. My name is Bamo. How's your sister?"
asked the woman who had commented on my singing.
"She's fine and will soon return to school," I said.
"You said you're from Dkar mdzes. That's a very nice
place, a natural oxygen bar. I was there once. What's your job,
or are you still in school?" asked Bamo.
"I'm a social investigator! When I find a job that pays
enough, I'll take it, but that hasn't happened yet," I said,
laughing at my own joke.
"Are you looking for a job?" asked Bamo.
"Yes, but after my sister gets well," I said.
"What's your phone number? I'll call you later, and we
can talk about a job," said Bamo.
99
"I don't have a cell phone. Please give me your phone
number and I'll call you," I said in embarrassment. I could tell
she was a bit surprised, but did her best to conceal it.
"How did you become Uncle's friend?" she asked.
I had guessed Nibushigu was her uncle. What a pretty
girl! Sharp nose, snow-white teeth, sparkling eyes, and
dimples surrounding floating lips. An irrepressible emotion
rose within me. I pretended that I had not heard what she said,
leaned near her, and asked, "What did you ask?"
"How did you become Uncle's friend? Do you have
any relatives working here?" she said.
"Who's your uncle? I don't have any relatives working
here," I said, my face turning red.
She explained that Nibushigu was her uncle, he was a
city leader, his wife was Tibetan, and that they had lost their
only son the year before in a traffic accident. Bamo was living
with them and doing restaurant, night-club, and clothing shop
business. I learned she was twenty years old, which was older
than I was at the time.
A tall man reeking of alcohol interrupted our chat, held
Bamo's hand, and said, "This is my girlfriend. I work in the
City Planning Bureau. You can call me Brother Wang." He
added that if I had any trouble in the city, I should call him
and ask for help.
I thanked him and moved away from Bamo and headed
to the toilet again. When I reached the toilet, Bamo was
standing outside. She gave me a piece of paper with her phone
number on it and told me to call her the next day. Then she left
without her boyfriend. I thanked Nibushigu, who told me to
stay in touch.
I then left, went to another restaurant, got some beef
and soup to take to Sister, and bought a T-shirt for her in a
small shop. When I returned to the hospital and entered her
room, I found she was reading a book. She got up and told me
that the doctor had asked her to pay the hospital charges.
Sister and I took our usual walk after she ate the soup
and beef. I asked Sister how much she needed to return to
school. She told me about 1,500 RMB.
100
I said, "I'm going to find a short-term job. This will let
me look after you and earn some money."
I paid the hospital charges and called Bamo, who
asked me to meet her at the gate of the city zoo. When I got
there, she said, "Rdo rje, do you like this city? What are your
plans after your sister returns to school?"
"I like this place as much as my home place. People
here are very nice. It all gives me a feeling that I'm in my
village. I want to find a short-term job while looking after
Sister," I said.
"I have a present for you," said Bamo. She took out a
small box from her handbag, and gave it to me. It was a cell
phone with a phone card already installed.
"Why should you give me such a present? It must have
cost a lot," I said, trying to return it to her, but she was very
insistent. I thanked her and invited her to have lunch.
She said, "This is my home place so I'll treat you.
When I'm in your place you treat me."
During lunch, she asked me to go to her nightclub and
sing. She said she would pay me 2,300 RMB a month.
I was very happy but told her I had little confidence
singing in front of an audience.
"There's no problem with your voice. Practice more
and be self-confident," she said.
She then said that she wanted to see Sister and bought
some fruit and other food for her. Sister was puzzled at her
obvious interest in me. After Bamo left, Sister told me to be
careful as we took our usual walk.
The night club was open from nine p.m. to midnight.
The six male and six female dancers, and five singers (they
were all Yi except me) practiced in the daytime. Their average
salary was about 2,000 RMB per month, and the club provided
room and board. I usually reached the club at seven p.m. to
practice, but several times I arrived earlier because of Adu, a
very talented, kind dancer whose slender figure was admired
by all. She was invariably asked to dance solo by the audience.
Adu asked me to help her prepare her solo performance.
I told her that I had no idea about dances, especially
modern ones. However, I joined her, and we became good
101
friends. One day, only Adu and I were in the practice room.
As her snaky waist moved at top speed, she suddenly fell. I
jumped to the stage, held the back of her neck, and asked her
if she was injured.
She laughed and said she was fine. I tried to get up, but
her left hand was already on the back of my neck.
•••
"I'm sorry, I was overly excited. Are you all right?" I asked.
"I'm fine. We should throw your jacket away. See? It's
got my blood on it," said Adu, picking at my jacket with a pale
face. As Adu busily untangled her hair, I rolled up my jacket,
worried somebody might see the blood. I was surprised at our
carelessness. We had not even closed the door. She took my
jacket, went out, and returned twenty minutes later with a new
one.
I asked why she chose me and not somebody else.
She said, "Every man who approached me wanted a
nice time with me, but you just ignored me."
I am still confused by that attitude.
•••
"Bamo, I'm afraid I'll forget the lyrics on stage," I whined
before it was my turn to sing. As I peeked at the audience, I
saw many people sitting, watching the dancing, drinking beer,
smoking, pointing at the dancers, and laughing. Some were
kissing in the corners.
Bamo said, "Rdo rje, come on! You can do it
perfectly," and kissed my cheek in encouragement.
I blushed and gripped the microphone tightly.
"Welcome our young Tibetan singer - Rdo rje! He's a
club member and is going to be here for some months. Let's
enjoy his song - The Beautiful Red Plateau!"
The music started and I walked onto the stage. As I
sang, people came up and offered me beer, wine, and
unknown alcohol. I was drunk by the time I finished. Bamo
102
was waiting for me behind the stage. She was very happy with
my performance and gave me a big hug.
I learned that people in that club offered alcohol to
show respect and admiration. Those who frequented the club
generously tipped the waitresses and waiters.
"What happened?" asked Adu in the changing room
when the evening performances were over.
"What do you mean?" I said, changing my clothes.
"Bamo hugged you. Some say she kissed you. Why?"
said Adu.
"She did it very suddenly. I didn't expect that would
happen," I said. Adu was about to cry. I did not know why.
My guess was that she thought I was her boyfriend.
"Rdo rje, what are you doing?" Bamo asked, outside
the club changing room.
"I'm changing clothes. I'm just about to leave. Please
wait for me at the club gate," I said.
"What will you do with our boss? Are you dating her?"
Adu asked in a trembling voice.
"I have no special relationship with her. Don't be
suspicious. She's just very kind to me," I explained.
"Nothing? Then why does she come to you after work
is over?" Adu asked, hugging me.
I told Adu that Bamo often drove me back to the
hospital after the club closed, not mentioning that Bamo had
given me a phone. When I told Adu I would not be her
boyfriend, she insisted that she would not let me not be her
boyfriend.
"You took a long time to change clothes. Are you still
drunk?" asked Bamo when I got in her car.
I smiled and said nothing. She tried to kiss me as usual
when she drove to the hospital gate, and I reacted as usual,
touching my forehead to hers and said goodbye, then got out
of the car.
The next morning Sister said, "I'll be at school next
week. What are your plans?"
"I must stay here at least twenty days. I promised
Bamo I would stay here at least a month," I said and brought
breakfast to Sister.
103
A couple of hours later my phone rang as I was about
to sleep, exhausted from the night's activities. It was Bamo.
"Rdo rje, please come to the hospital gate," she said.
"Why? I want to sleep." I said impatiently.
"I need your help," said Bamo and hung up.
"Get in. Uncle is inviting you to have a meal at his
home," said Bamo when I reached her car.
"Nibushigu has helped me a lot. There's no reason for
him to invite me to lunch. Instead, I should invite him to have
a meal to thank him for his help," I thought.
When we reached Nibushigu's home, he and his wife
warmly welcomed me. During lunch, Nibushigu said that
Bamo often talked about me and said I was a very nice young
man. He also added that he had felt very happy helping me
when I first arrived in Kunming.
After lunch, Nibushigu and his wife said goodbye and
went to their home place to visit relatives. I was drunk. I tried
to get up and return to the hospital, but I could not. I woke up
about an hour later and found I was still on the sofa. Bamo had
disappeared. I wanted to leave but not without saying goodbye.
"Where have you been?" I asked when Bamo
eventually returned.
"I went to the hospital to take food to your sister. How
are you?" said Bamo.
"I'm good. Thanks for caring about my sister," I said.
As I stood up she started to cry. I was confused and asked,
"What's happening, Bamo?"
"I broke up with my boyfriend because of you!" Bamo
sobbed.
"What? Did I tell you to break up with your
boyfriend?" I asked.
"No, but I like you. I love you. I want to be with you.
That's why I broke up with my boyfriend," she wept.
"I'm sorry I disappointed you. My parents won't allow
me to have a girlfriend who isn't Tibetan," I said.
"Do you look down on me?" questioned Bamo.
"No, this is the custom in my home area," I said and
then explained how negatively villagers treat cross-ethnic
marriage in my village. Though I was trying to persuade her
104
not to not have a crush on me, we started working on each
other's clothes as soon as her lips touched my ear.
After I had worked for about two weeks at the club,
Sister was ready to return to school. I asked for half of my
salary, gave the money to Sister, and started staying at the
club's dormitory while maintaining a relationship with both
Bamo and Adu.
The nightclub business was good. One day, Bamo
invited all the performers to lunch. Adu sat by me. I was
getting drunk. Adu stopped me from drinking more and asked
me to return to the dormitory room. Bamo stopped her and
said that she had a relationship with me.
"Rdo rje, you can't have two girls at the same time.
You must choose between Bamo and me," said Adu angrily.
"Rdo rje, you have no choice - maybe I'll be a mother
after a few months," said Bamo approaching me.
My friend stopped Bamo and signaled for me to leave.
I regretted everything and planned to leave the city. I went to
see my sister the day after this unpleasant event and told her I
would leave and send her the money she needed after I got
home. I then went to her head teacher and asked for help with
Sister's fees. The teacher said he would help.
I told Bamo I was leaving because one of my uncles
was very sick, and that I had to return to care for him since he
had no children. She was very upset but decided to pay me a
month's wage because of the club's excellent earnings.
The club members had a banquet for my departure, but
I only drank a little beer. I knew both Bamo and Adu would
try to talk to me after dinner. I said goodbye to the group and
Adu followed me to the bus station hotel. She was very quiet
that evening. We went to bed and got up at nine p.m., because
she had to return to the club. She said she would not enjoy life
without me.
Bamo came to see me at eleven p.m. that night. We
chatted and held each other until I had to go catch the bus the
next morning at six a.m.
Nibushigu had reached Chengdu before I left Kunming.
I phoned him on the way back home. He said that he would
like to visit my home some day and told me to keep in touch.
105
•••
This story had taken about an hour, and we had drunk
another couple of bottles of beer apiece. My phone rang. It
was my older brother. He said his wife had just given birth. I
was glad to have a new nephew and told him I would be
home soon. I said goodbye to Rdo rje. As I left, he ordered
another two bottles of beer.
106
PART THREE: RELIGIOUS LIFE
INTRODUCTION
Thousands of years have passed and now we are losing
many aspects of our culture. Ritual activities are being
simplified each year as elders pass away.70
Rgyas bzang villagers are culturally and historically followers
of both Tibetan Buddhism and Bon. For example, if a high bla
ma visits the village, all the villagers welcome him and ask
him for a blessing regardless of his religious affiliation.
Twenty-five village households profess faith in Bon,
fifteen follow the Rnying ma Sect, and eight follow the Sa
skya Sect. There is no serious conflict between the sects and
villagers invite sgom pa, regardless of their Bon, Rnying ma,
or Sa skya affiliation to their homes to chant.
Bon provides practical solutions to such problems as
drought and illness caused by evil spirits. Bon sgom pa chant
during droughts, and rain comes within about one and half
days. Unfortunately, with the passing of the old Bon sgom pa,
no one can do this as successfully as in the past. Nowadays, it
is said that only a few Bon sgom pa can perform religious
rituals as well as old sgom pa did in the past.
Each family has a mchod khang, which is a room on the
third floor where religious images, implements, deity images,
and photographs of locally important religious personalities
are kept. Every morning, seven copper containers of purified
water are offered here, along with three lit sticks of incense in
front of the religious images.71 A Dmu rdo image is also kept
in the shrine. A butter lamp is lit every night, and prostrations
are made in the hope that all will go well. Menstruating
women may not enter the mchod khang.
The village monastery was destroyed in the 1960s. In
1982, Bon devotees put Buddhist and Bon images, and
scriptures in an ancient stone tower in the village. These
sacred articles were taken from mountain caves where they
70
A village elder.
Grandparents in a home most commonly make these
offerings.
71
108
had been hidden by villagers who risked their lives to protect
them from destruction during the period of great social turmoil
beginning in the 1950s. The stone tower then became a Bon
shrine room that is both object and place of worship.
DAILY RITUALS: MORNING BSANG AND
DAILY PRAYERS
Every morning before villagers have tea, a family member
washes their face, takes coals in a pot to the family bsang
khang, puts coals in the bsang khang, adds juniper leaves, dips
a juniper twig three times in sacred water from a copper
container, and uses a wood stick to dip wheat flour three times
from a wood container and sprinkle the flour onto the juniper
leaves in the bsang khang as an offering to such local
mountain deities as Dmu rdo and Tsa ri spun gsum in the hope
that they will protect their family and livestock.
Elders sit in bed chanting until tea is served. They
afterwards bring wheat flour, sacred water, and prayer wheels
to the village prayer room to chant and offer bsang. They
leave the prayer room for breakfast at their homes at about
nine a.m. Those aged above thirty chant for about thirty
minutes before they go to bed.
ANNUAL RITUALS
Renewing La btsas
On the thirteenth day of the first lunar month, Rdo rgyag72 La
btsas is renewed by boys and men from each household
according to a local monk's instruction. About thirty boys and
men go to the la btsas with bags containing block-printed
scriptures, conches, drums, wheat liquor, wheat flour, incense,
72
A mountain northeast of Rgyas bzang Village.
109
auspicious wheat seed,73 and wind horses. Before setting off at
about eight a.m., they wait for everyone who will go to the la
btsas - usually at least one representative from each family and then ask a monk or a sgom pa to perform bsang skor to
purify their bags. Pork, candy, dumplings, and sausage are
taken to eat. Bsang is offered at a stupa near the village to
inform Rdo rgyag La btsas that they are coming. They then
walk about four hours to the la btsas.
Buddhist participants chant oM ma Ni pad+me hU~M
while Bon participants chant oM ma tri mu ye sa le 'du 74
enroute to the la btsas, and do not rest while enroute. Upon
arrival, ash from the bsang khang is removed, a big bsang is
offered, and then participants rest while elders plan the
renewal of the la btsas.
A monk or sgom pa chants for about an hour, and then
the la btsas renewal begins. Old rlung rta 75 from the old
prayer flags are burned in the bsang khang, and then new
rlung rta are attached to the prayer flags. The prayer flags are
replaced once every three years. Another big bsang is offered
and conches are blown notifying villagers, who then burn
bsang in their bsang khang to welcome the mountain deity. If
a household does not offer bsang, those at the la btsas refuse
to return. Every household offers bsang when the conches
blare and those at the la btsas then circumambulate, scatter
wheat seed and wind horses, and chant.
All the food is put together and eaten as lunch after
circumambulating. People sit in a circle. After lunch, much
alcohol is drunk, songs are sung, and then the group returns
73
Wheat seed that have been put in the presence of a lama or
sgom pa while they chant are considered auspicious.
74
A Bon mantra.
75
Rlung rta 'wind horses' refers to square pieces of paper
about six centimeters square imprinted with a horse in the
center bearing a wish-fulfilling gem and a tiger, lion, garuda,
and dragon in the four corners. These images may also be
printed on pieces of white, green, and red cloth (about twenty
centimeters long and twelve centimeters wide) (Don 'grub
dbang 'dul 2001).
110
home with birch branches from the la btsas, yelling "O g.yang
shog! Oh! Let good fortune come!" Failure to arrive before
sunset angers the deity of Rdo rgyag.
A birch branch is put on the pillar in the gor khang
where butter is smeared when a family has a new calf, and
then they go to the roof where each home has four la btsas,
each of which features one birch branch and one prayer flag.
Those who have returned drink wheat liquor and eat
leftovers from the la btsas meal with their family members.
Villagers do not visit each other that night, believing that
doing so results in the loss of the auspiciousness acquired
from the day's ritual.
Sa bdag76
Every household holds Sa bdag during the third lunar month
and, consequently, sgom pa are busy. There is no specific time
for sgom pa to go to a particular home to chant. The schedule
depends on the order in which the families ask.77
Families prepare for chanting before sgom pa arrive by
cutting about thirty birch sticks in the mountains and bringing
them home. They also collect seven small walnut branches,
seven prickly ash tree sticks, seven apple branches, seven pear
tree sticks, and use fifty kilograms of clean soil to make a
symbolic lha shing. 78 The sticks represent sacred trees. A
spang rdog, which is put on rooftops to the left of the bsang
khang, is made using about seven kilograms of dug-up sod and
thirteen eye-sized white stones. Twelve black stones the same
size as the white stones are collected and taken to the third
floor where sgom pa hold the ritual.
Sgom pa arrive with scriptures, religious implements,
and request rtsam pa, corn flour, and sacred water. They use
76
Locally, this refers to local earth-owner spirits as well as the
ritual held for these spirits.
77
The male family head generally extends the invitation.
78
A sacred wood where the Buddha, Bon deities, and local
deities are believed to dwell.
111
rtsam pa with water to make mchod pa 79 'offerings' to the
Buddha and local deities who they ask to protect the family.
Corn flour with water and twelve black stones are used to
make other mchod pa, which are an offering to evil spirits
thought to appease them and discourage them from troubling
the family's livestock.
Sgom pa print images of the Sgo lha 'Door Deity' and
klu 'naga' on pieces of paper using woodblocks, and paste
three rectangular-shaped pieces of paper on every door of the
home. Each of the three papers is a different color - white,
green, or red. The paste is made by mixing wheat flour with
hot water. G.yu 'brug's home has thirteen doors and, when the
sgom pa finish chanting, these papers are pasted on all the
doors about one and a half meters from the floor or ground.
Finally, a klu image is made out of rtsam pa and butter
and put in with lha shing and spang rdog in a line. After the
sgom pa finish chanting, it is placed in the village drinking
water pool with water mixed with milk and cooked barley.
This delights naga, thus avoiding drought.
Females in a home cook pork, rtsam pa dumplings,
and a pig's head because eating the best food is thought to help
bring a good harvest. The family holding this ritual invites
close relatives for the meal.
At about five p.m., family members go to the third
floor and sit in a semicircle around the lha shing, spang rdog,
and gtor ma. Family members follow as a sgom pa gestures.
Each member puts their palm up to touch the bottom of the
copper plates on which the offerings rest. If the sgom pa
comes with mchod pa that will be sent to evil spirits, then the
79
Images made by bla ma and sgom pa when they chant.
Mchod pa made with rtsam pa, wheat flour, corn flour,
buckwheat, or mud may be used to make stupa-shaped statues.
Generally, mchod pa made with corn meal or buckwheat flour
are only offered to malevolent spirits. Mchod pa made of
rtsam pa and wheat flour with pieces of butter on top are
burned in the family bsang khang. Mchod pa made of mud
may be placed by the family bsang khang or offered to evil
spirits. Mchod pa are one type of gtor ma.
112
palm is put atop it. Villagers turn the gtor ma so that it faces
south or southwest when making offerings to evil beings. Next,
sgom pa position gtor ma on the third floor so that it faces
south. About thirty minutes later, a sgom pa hangs a 1.3 meter
long black string around the gtor ma neck and then tells family
members to put beans, buckwheat, corn, and pieces of cloth
cut from their clothing into the box where the gtor ma is
placed. These seed must not be scattered out of the box,
otherwise evil spirits will be angered because it suggests the
family does not want to make offerings to them.
Family members stand in a line from young to old
irrespective of gender, and lower their heads. The sgom pa
puts sacred water80 on their heads. The sacred water that drops
from their heads into the box is thought to wash away illness.
The sgom pa holds the end of the black string in his right hand
and a knife in his left hand. Family members in turn fully
extend their right arms in a downward direction, holding the
string in the right hand. The hand clasps the string so that the
thumb is down and the fingers are up. The head is bent slightly
forward and the person holding the string looks at their hand
holding the string. The person holding the string must not look
up and must not change the position of the hand. Holding the
string in this position prevents evil spirits from entering the
home. In contrast, holding the clasped hand so that the thumb
is in an upward position invites evil spirits into the home.
When the family finishes the black string ritual, the
sgom pa cuts the black string into pieces that are put in the box
where the gtor ma are placed. A family member takes the gtor
ma behind the village, positions it so that it faces southwest,
and then burns it.
Before sunset, the sgom pa inserts seven lha shing in
the spang rdog, puts it on the fourth floor, and offers bsang. A
male household member puts cooked wheat, water mixed with
milk in a bucket, seven small walnut branches, seven prickly
ash tree sticks, seven apple branches, and seven pear tree
sticks in the village water pool. Other members take a lha
80
Water purified by a high bla ma or sgom pa who blows on it
while chanting.
113
shing with a little water mixed with milk and place it in the
middle of the field where the zhing dkyil rtsa dkar is located.
A family generally has fields in four different locations around
the village.
The sgom pa and a family's older members put a lha
shing with each of the family's four la btsas.
'Khyags 'grig
On the eleventh day of the second lunar month, young people
aged seven to sixteen called 'khyags 'grig 'du mi participate in
the 'Khyags 'grig ritual, which welcomes the arrival of spring.
This is a time when snow begins melting from mountains,
willows begin germinating, peach blossoms bloom, and
offerings are made to Tsa ri spun gsum Mountain Deities.
Unmarried youths bring auspiciousness because Tsa ri
spun gsum Mountain Deities are very fond of children and this
ritual pleases them. The deities had a very brief childhood that
was brought to an end by their parents' death. Afterwards, they
separated to seek their fortunes. Three centuries later, they met
on a mountain and decided to always stay together, while
recalling their short, wonderful childhood. They see and relive
their childhood in village children's happiness. Children's
happiness thus delights local mountain deities, who also miss
their parents very much; they consequently punish villagers
who treat old people badly.
Fifty percent of 'khyags 'grig 'du mi are primary and
junior middle school students, who find any excuse to be
absent from school on the afternoon of the eleventh day of the
second lunar month, return home, and prepare for 'Khyags
'grig. They buy candy in the township town. Other 'khyags
'grig du mi who stay in the village, will marry, and take care
of their families without attending school, or who are only
allowed to attend primary school, collect about five kilograms
of peach blossoms in the morning when they take livestock to
the mountains.
The 'khyags 'grig 'du mi gather in the prayer wheel
room in the village center. Elders discuss which family should
114
cook dinner. 'Khyags 'grig 'du mi traditionally choose to cook
dinner in a household with a young couple. Married couples
who have not had a baby after about three years of marriage
are considered ideal choices.
The 'Khyags 'grig auspicious speech is considered
more efficacious than such other speeches as wedding
speeches. Villagers believe the family will have a good
harvest and the new couple will have a baby if they have not
had a child when the 'khyags 'grig 'du mi cook, stay in their
home, and the 'Khyags 'grig speech is given.
About forty 'khyags 'grig 'du mi participate in 'Khyags
'grig. After elders select the family to cook dinner, three or
four 'khyags 'grig 'du mi go to the designated home and tell
them to prepare three butter lamps, a goat skin, and a conch.
At about six p.m., the 'khyags 'grig 'du mi gather seven leather
bags to hold offerings from households. Everyone holds
branches with peach blossoms. The youngest holds three
incense sticks and is the leader. The seven oldest children
carry leather bags. The 'khyags 'grig 'du mi begin the
auspicious speech offering. There are about four 'Khyags 'grig
songs, and participants sing them from home to home, give
auspicious speeches in every household, and put peach
blossoms in each home's drinking water bucket and on the
thab rdo. A part of a 'Khyags 'grig ritual song, sung by all the
'khyags 'grig 'du mi follows:
ta ・iə ŋiæ la, ーoj t 『a ŋt! ̃ tə h̚
dza ゛ə t ə t i dz maŋ, ーo j jə hə ŋ ーla
ーla h ka mpə mpə tu , ーo j jə ŋgə ーla
k sə h̚ t ə ・ə , ーo j jə ŋa ーla
・a dzi tsə w , ーo j jə loŋ ーla
ts『ə ・ə p『a ・ə , ーo j jə ŋhæ ーla
A part of a 'Khyags 'grig speech follows:
ーa ni l h̚ l h̚ r ki ts tə ŋ mə h̚ kə koŋ
ts ・au ts『u kə koŋ
ーla h tə t ə ja, boŋ h zə t ə ja
boŋ ka loŋ lu ka gə koŋ
115
boŋ ŋj loŋ lu ŋj gə koŋ
ŋt!ə ŋt!ə p『 ・oŋ ŋt!
su maŋ tah̚ iŋ ŋt!
t nə də t!a ・ə bæŋ saŋ k t!a ゛ə jə
The 'khyags 'grig 'du mi give a slightly different 'Khyags 'grig
speech at each home. For example, if a family has an old man
who will soon pass away, the speech extends the wish that he
will have good health and longevity.
When 'khyags 'grig 'du mi finish giving auspicious
speeches in a home, the family gives them butter, wheat flour,
pork, rtsam pa, walnuts, and buckwheat. 'Khyags 'grig 'du mi
visit every household and families offer the same gifts.
Next, the 'khyags 'grig 'du mi return to the designated
household to cook dinner. When dinner is ready, each 'khyags
'grig 'du mi gives an auspicious speech to the family that
cooked the meal and then offer food to the thab rdo from
dishes, while offering an auspicious speech on their own
behalf. Afterwards, the 'khyags 'grig 'du mi go to the third
floor, put three butter lamps on the goat skin, light three
incense sticks and put them in the center of the third floor,
shout "O g.yang shog!" while facing each of the four
directions in turn, and then prostrate to Rdo rgyag La btsas
three times. The youngest holds the conch. Three boys and
three girls take three butter lamps and a goatskin with tea to
the altar, which is a big rock about nine meters high, where
Rgyas bzang villagers kill a goat as an offering to Tsa ri spun
gsum Mountain Deities. The youngest blows the conch three
times to Tsa ri spun gsum Mountain Deities. Three girls and
boys begin singing a 'Khyags 'grig song, put the goat skin on
the rock, light three butter lamps on the skin, and offer tea
around the butter lamps.
'Khyags 'grig 'du mi shout "O g.yang shog!" for about
ten minutes. If there is a person from the family where the
'khyags 'grig 'du mi cook, they approach the altar with a rifle
and shoot it into the air, while 'khyags 'grig 'du mi give a
speech, asking Tsa ri spun gsum Mountain Deities to give a
son to the family, indicating the family has no son. If a rifle is
not fired, it indicates the family wants a daughter.
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A person from the family that cooked goes to the altar
and brings the goatskin home about three o'clock the next
morning. They make a shirt with the goat skin that day if the
family has a childless young couple. It is believed that this
brings luck and has power to give the new couple a baby.
If Tsa ri spun gsum Mountain Deities are unhappy with
the 'khyags 'grig 'du mi's speech or the family has a bad
reputation, the deities are said to take away the goatskin and
hence deny the family a child.
Ra mchod
On the thirteenth day of the seventh lunar month, Rnying ma
and Bon sgom pa jointly hold Ra mchod in the prayer wheel
room in the village center. Three households form a group and
are responsible for village rituals each year in turn. On the
twelfth day of the seventh lunar month, the three designated
families collect rtsam pa, wheat flour, pork, beef, and cash to
buy candy that is given to children and old people in each
village household.
On the morning of the thirteenth day of the seventh
lunar month, the three families welcome the local sgom pa
before the sun shines on the mountain.
Villagers believe that making elders happy is important,
because local mountain deities punish those who do not take
good care of elders in daily life. When elders die, villagers do
not leave the village to earn money for at least a week while
close relatives of the deceased customarily stay in the village
for forty-nine days. If someone leaves the village, it is thought
that the local mountain deities will punish them and they will
have accidents with knives, terrible dreams, or their livestock
will die without apparent cause.
The three designated families must welcome the local
sgom pa before the sun shines on Tsa ri spun gsum Mountain
on the morning of the thirteenth day of the seventh lunar
month. While a designated male from each household takes
the goat to the altar, village elders from each household are
invited to the prayer wheel room to chant.
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There is no certain time for Rnying ma sgom pa to
chant on the thirteenth day of the seventh lunar month. They
generally come to the prayer wheel room to chant at about ten
a.m. Rnying ma and Bon sgom pa never sit together when
chanting. Instead, they use a large piece of plastic held up with
a string to partition the prayer wheel room.
Bon devotees think Buddhism is an alien culture, while
Rnying ma sgom pa assert that Bon sgom pa use magic and
cause unnatural events to occur, as indicated by the following
account:
Once, Rnying ma and Bon sgom pa disagreed about the
time to kill a goat. The Rnying ma sgom pa wanted to
change the time of killing the goat from the traditional time of
nine a.m., and then wanted the three families to go to Tsa ri
spun gsum Mountain Deities to offer bsang and the goat skin
on the fourteenth day of the seventh lunar month.
Bon devotees believed changing the time to kill the
goat would anger Tsa ri spun gsum Mountain Deities, and
bring disaster to the village. In 1981, the Rnying ma ignored
Bon devotees, killed the goat on the altar at one p.m., went
to Tsa ri spun gsum Mountain Deities on the fifteenth day of
the seventh lunar month, and did not offer the goat skin.
Those who went to Tsa ri spun gsum Mountain Deities were
struck by a hailstorm while returning to the village.
Rnying ma sgom pa had broken traditional village
rules. In that year, the villagers lost their wheat harvest from
hailstorms; a flood killed a hundred goats, fifty sheep, and
several cows; and drought resulted in stunted corn. Villagers
asked Rnying ma sgom pa to chant for rain. They did, but to
no avail. Later, villagers asked Bon sgom pa to chant for rain.
The Bon sgom pa first offered bsang to Tsa ri spun gsum
Mountain Deities, and then chanted. Early the next morning,
rain fell, and villagers did not lose their only remaining crop corn. In this case, Bon was seen as stronger than Rnying ma.
118
Nevertheless, they eat together, chat, and offer candy to old
people and children from their chanting table as tshogs.81
Bon sgom pa chant about thirty minutes and then go to
the altar, offer bsang, and put sacred water on the goat. A man
from the three designated families slits the goat's throat and
places the goat skin, feet, and head in front of the table where
Bon sgom pa and Rnying ma sgom pa chant. Other parts of the
goat are boiled. The soup is fed to livestock, and the three
families eat the meat. When sgom pa finish chanting, villagers
perform an offering dance while singing a dance song to Tsa ri
spun gsum Mountain Deities while elders teach children how
to chant oM ma Ni pad+me hU~M and oM ma tri mu ye sa le
'du.
Sgrub lha
Every household observes Sgrub lha for male family members
who leave the village to earn extra cash income. Men's
chanting brings power and good fortune, and makes it difficult
for evil to attack them. This ritual is only held for males.
There is no certain time to hold this ritual but it cannot be held
between the ninth lunar month and the first day of the first
lunar month. The best times for the ritual are when the earth
becomes green because it is thought that the nor lha will then
provide what people ask for that year.
Men working outside the village lose some of their bla
'spirit' and may be punished by local deities when they dig
caterpillar fungus, assist in building hydroelectric projects,
urinate in water sources, or cut sacred wood. While not
necessarily done intentionally, these actions anger deities.
Villagers ask sgom pa to chant to call back the man's spirit.
81
Bon and Rnying ma practitioners put candy, sacred water,
walnuts, apples, pears, wheat liquor, and eyeball-sized balls of
rtsam pa mixed with sugar and water in a plate on a table
when they chant in the belief that chanting empowers these
foods and eating them prevents illness.
119
When a family has several men working outside the
village to earn money, Sgrub lha is held for the oldest one
because elders are respected. Every household holds this ritual
once a year on the zodiac day of the oldest man of the home,
i.e., if he was born in a Tiger Year they hold the ritual on a
Tiger Day. Family members may participate in the ritual but if
they have other urgent matters, they leave home. However, the
man who was born on a Tiger Day must stay at home, sit by
the sgom pa, and follow their instructions.
Sgom pa come to the home at about nine a.m.; make
three butter lamps, mchod pa, and tshogs; chant for about an
hour; offer bsang; and then tell the man who will leave the
village to prostrate to the butter lamps and pray for himself,
and then place a butter lamp in the bsang khang.
Sgom pa use chalk to make a circle on the third floor at
about three p.m. The man stands inside the circle. Sgom pa
chant and blow a conch. According to the sgom pa's
instruction, he turns to face the four directions and
periodically shouts "O g.yang shog!" for about thirteen
minutes. Next, a second butter lamp is put in the bsang khang,
while the man prays that all will be well for family members.
The third lamp and a mchod pa are taken to the mchod
khang 'family shrine room' and offered to deity images by the
man. This ritual should be completed before sunset.
Smyung gnas
Older village women practice Smyung gnas, a three-day
fasting ritual that begins on the first day of each lunar month.
Each household with elder women takes responsibility for
organizing the ceremony in turn.
The fasting practitioners gather in the host family's
home at about six p.m. Each participant brings a handheld
prayer wheel, a bowl of melted butter, a copper spoon, and a
string of prayer beads. The host family prepares beds on the
second floor, puts deity images on the wall in front of the beds,
and places candy and rtsam pa on the table. Participants rinse
their mouths at about eight p.m. with sacred water the host
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family brought earlier from a mountain stream flowing from a
spring in Po rtsa Hamlet. Speaking, eating, and drinking are
forbidden until the next morning at seven a.m. They light
butter lamps, sit on the beds, and chant until about ten when
they go to bed.
The next morning at seven a.m., the host family offers
the fasting practitioners sacred water to rinse their mouths and,
afterwards, they have butter tea and rtsam pa. The host family
must offer tea on time or be considered disrespectful and to
have sinned. Participants chat, rinse their mouths with sacred
water, light butter lamps, begin chanting, and do not speak
anything other than mantras. Bon participants chant oM ma tri
mu ye sa le 'du while Buddhists chant oM ma Ni pad+me
hU~M . At twelve p.m., the family brings sacred water, asks
the practitioners to rinse their mouths, and then offers tea and
rtsam pa. They go to the prayer wheel room after lunch where
they light butter lamps, chant, and pray. At six p.m., they have
tea and chat, and then wash their mouths at seven p.m., begin
chanting, and do not speak anything other than mantras until
seven the next morning.
A bla ma or sgom pa sometimes teaches Buddhism
during the fasting period. If a bla ma has time to teach
Buddhism, aged men join the fasting gathering, listen to
teachings about how to obtain inner peace, the evil inherent in
killing, and how to peacefully coexist with all living beings.
Elders are particularly fascinated by these teachings and repeat
what they have heard to their families.
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'Bum 'gyur ma Ni82
Villagers hold 'Bum 'gyur ma Ni in the village prayer room
during the twelfth lunar month. Three households form a
group and are responsible for the ritual each year. On the
eleventh day of the twelfth lunar month at about five p.m.,
males from the three designated families collect rtsam pa,
butter, wheat flour, pork, beef, and corn flour from each
household. Villagers are happy to offer these things, believing
that they took much from the earth and if they offer rtsam pa
and butter in the form of mchod pa and butter lamps, this
thanks the earth for giving them water, trees, land, plants, and
animals. The Buddha and local mountain deities receive the
most generous offering from villagers.
Sgom pa come to the prayer room at about seven p.m.
Bon and Rnying ma sgom pa jointly make mchod pa and 108
butter lamps, which are kept burning for four days. They sit
and chant when they finish preparations for chanting.
Three male mchod g.yog 'assistants' from the three
designated families stay with sgom pa in the prayer room.
They help sgom pa offer mchod pa in the bsang khang;
arrange offerings of auspicious seed, butter lamps, and sacred
water; and give bsang when sgom pa need it. Sgom pa start
chanting at about six p.m. and the three families offer them
dinner about two hours later. They do not get up when they eat.
They chant a food offering before they eat, which villagers
also commonly chant before meals.
There is a short debate between the two religious
points of view after the meal as each sgom pa extols his own
religion. They are aware, however, that they co-habit a small
area and conclude by agreeing that Bon is the original
indigenous religion. The day's ritual is thus concluded and the
82
The twelfth lunar month is considered the best time to chant
oM ma Ni pad+me hUM and scriptures. Chanting once during
the first fifteen days of this month is thought to be equivalent
to chanting oM ma Ni pad+me hUM 100,000 times during
other months. This explains why the twelfth lunar month is
called 'bum 'gyur ('bum =100,000; 'gyur = become).
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next day at around eight a.m., about sixty village elders come
to the prayer room and sit on the ground in front of the prayer
room to chant. As mentioned earlier, participants who identify
as Buddhist chant oM ma Ni pad+me hU~M, while Bon
participants chant oM ma tri mu ye sa le 'du. Participants hold
prayer wheels in their right hands, count prayer beads in their
left hands, and insist on chanting for four days despite harsh
winter weather. The three designated families offer food and
prepare tents for them if there is snow and rain.
The sgom pa finish four days of chanting at about
seven p.m. on the eleventh day of the twelfth lunar month.
About sixty percent of all villagers dressed in warm clothing
assemble in front of the prayer room. Some hold flashlights.
Sgom pa face east and blow rgya gling 'shawms' and order the
three mchod g.yog to give all attendees auspicious seed to
scatter to the east while the villagers shout "O g.yang shog!"
Those aged sixty and above return to their homes. About 160
people accompany the sgom pa on their journey to visit graves.
Those in this group are called ma skor po and walk while
chanting through Rgyas bzang and Sgang bzang villages. Ma
skor po proceed in a clockwise direction and all chant oM ma
Ni pad+me hU~M one year. Participants proceed in a
counterclockwise direction the next year while chanting oM
ma tri mu ye sa le 'du. The eldest son in a family makes a fire
in front of graves and welcomes this group. Sgom pa sit by the
graves and chant. Villagers also sit around the graves and
chant in concern that the deceased cannot find the way to the
next life - perhaps evil spirits stopped them and forced them to
go to Dmyal ba 'Purgatory'. However, if ma skor po chant for
the dead, then they will find the way to the next life. The fire
in front of the grave is a signal to show ma skor po that
families want them to chant by the grave. Ma skor po chant for
about fifteen minutes at each grave and are offered liquor by
the oldest son of the relevant family. The ma skor po spend
about twenty minutes chanting in front of graves of the ashes
of those cremated within the last two years. Most who die at
an advanced age choose their own gravesites.
Ma skor po visit at least 120 graves during the six
kilometer journey and return to the village prayer room at
about five a.m.
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Village women aged forty to fifty hope to live in the
village during their next life and, consequently, hold phyag
'tshal 'prostration' every year. About thirty women gather in
the village prayer room on the third day of the twelfth lunar
month at about six a.m., chant, and offer a big bsang by the
prayer room. They start off to Rwa rste Temple in the
township town at about six-thirty a.m. They chant on the way
and do not otherwise speak until they reach Rwa rtse Temple.
When they arrive, they signal a sgom pa or a monk to give
sacred water to rinse their mouths so that they can speak, then
they circumambulate Rwa rtse Temple for half an hour while
walking, circumambulate the temple while prostrating three
times, and next begin prostrating back to the village prayer
room.
About halfway back to the village, village children
bring rtsam pa and tea. Participants rinse their mouths and do
not speak. They do not respond if spoken to. They must reach
the prayer room before sunset, otherwise the journey is
considered meaningless.
DEATH RITUALS
Funerals
Rgyas bzang villagers believe existence is endless because
they are eternally reborn if they have a good guide after death,
but the quality of the rebirth depends on having a good heart.
Villagers are thus mindful of treating each other kindly. A
funeral should include abundant food for the bla ma, sgom pa,
and other guests.
When people are very sick, relatives and elders visit.
Elders are experienced in predicting the time of death for an ill
person. If they think death will come in about seven days, they
suggest that the family make a coffin 83 and summon the
83
A simple, long rectangular wooden box that is unpainted
and undecorated.
124
concerned sons, daughters, sisters, and brothers who must visit
the dying person. Not doing so incurs public condemnation.
The dying person is not lonely because relatives and
elders stay with them, hold their hands if they are conscious,
and express auspicious wishes for their next life. The dying
person may apologize to the Buddha, mountain deities, and
villagers for bad things they have done.
Relatives and elders put the deceased's bed on the
fourth floor. The family washes the bedding seven days after
the death and, after a bla ma or sgom pa offers bsang skor,
everyone weeps. Neighbors come to console the family and
also weep. Elders arrange the funeral.
Villagers use hearth ash to make three lines in front of
their home gate when they learn of a death. Every line is about
one and a half meters long, twenty centimeters wide, and the
distance between the lines is about fifty centimeters. Charcoal
is used to draw straight lines on the surface of two pieces of
wood, each of which is about one meter long, about seven
centimeters wide, and three to four centimeters thick. One
wood piece is put on either side of the gate to the home. They
also put a bucket of water to the right of the gate to prevent
byad 84 from attacking the family and livestock. People
attacked by byad may die immediately but, if they merely
become ill, family members ask bla ma or sgom pa to chant
and beat them with their strings of prayer beads. Livestock are
given sacred water if they are afflicted by byad.
Men aged forty to sixty years of age wash the corpse
with warm water, cut the fingernails and toenails, put the
corpse on a clean blanket, and smear the orifices with butter.
The corpse is then put in a fetal position and placed in the
coffin. A relative of the deceased asks a sgom pa when and
where they should burn the corpse. The sgom pa makes his
divination on a mountainside because divining for the dead in
the home brings a family bad luck. The sgom pa questions the
person asking help, "When was the deceased born?" "What
84
Villagers believe a dead person's evil forces leave the corpse
and enter the village. Byad refers to the dangerous soul of a
dead person that leaves the corpse and visits the village.
125
time did they die?" The sgom pa divines and in about ten
minutes, stipulates a certain time for the coffin to be taken out
of the home and a particular place where the coffin should be
burned.
The sgom pa and bla ma are invited to chant for the
deceased on the third floor of the home where the coffin has
been placed. Villagers light 108 butter lamps in front of the
coffin every day before the coffin is taken to the field to be
cremated. Wealthy families sometimes invite high bla ma
from other places to chant. Approximately thirty elders chant
oM ma Ni pad+me hU~M and oM ma tri mu ye sa le 'du on
the fourth floor.
About twenty young people go to the mountains to cut
dar shing 85 and gdugs, 86 which they carry back on their
shoulders. They do not remove the bark in fear the deceased's
soul will wander in the mountains looking for bark for his ma
Ni flags. Young people must return to the village before sunset.
When they reach the deceased's home, a waiting guide tells
them to put dar shing and gdugs in the field where the grave
will be.
About twenty people go to the mountain to cut tsan
87
dan, which is challenging because the best tsan dan grow in
precipitous gorges. They are expected to collect the best tsan
85
More than thirty straight juniper poles (two meters long,
with a diameter of five to six centimeters), cut for ma Ni flags
are placed around the grave. The juniper ma Ni flags are
burned three years later in front of the grave.
86
Gdugs refers to a juniper pole about three meters tall, with a
diameter of about seven centimeters, and several leaves on top,
which is put behind the grave to the right. White, blue, and red
cloths are tied in the tree. The IPA for this term as locally
pronounced is dʊ .
87
A conifer with a low burning point is used for cremation
fires, and is also used when offering bsang. A piece of tsan
dan is placed in charcoal in the dining room every morning as
an offering. At least one hundred kilograms of tsan dan, cut by
about twenty people, are needed for a cremation.
126
dan for the deceased and are expected to return to the village
before sunset.
About ten villagers go to Brag mgo to buy cloth that is
sixty centimeters wide, one hundred meters long, and printed
with Buddhist or Bon mantras depending on the deceased's
beliefs; twenty-five kilograms of liquor; a hundred kilograms
of brick tea; thirty-six kilograms of rape seed oil; a hundred
kilograms of rice; twenty-five kilograms of vegetables; and
twenty cartons of cigarettes. The total cost of these items was
about 2,600 RMB in 2010.
The deceased's family mourns for the next forty-nine
days. During this time, they do not eat meat, women remove
their spa ras88 to show respect for the deceased, and men stop
smoking. An important maternal relative of the deceased
organizes villagers to help do housework for the deceased's
family; women neighbors care for their livestock for a week.
Sgom pa usually suggest cremating the corpse between
seven p.m. and six a.m., but may advise cremating the corpse
later in the daytime if they think the deceased might bring
trouble to villagers. Before the coffin is put in a field
designated by the sgom pa, each household wraps their family
bsang khang in a robe to avoid contact with smoke from the
burning corpse, which is believed to bring bad luck. A mchod
g.yog gives each household a small piece of paper that is about
five centimeters long and 1.5 centimeters wide inscribed with
two lines of scriptures written by sgom pa. The oldest son of a
family puts it on his home courtyard gate to repel evil.
The deceased's family and close relatives prostrate to
the coffin on the third floor. This is the last moment for the
deceased in the home. Everyone understands that one of the
deceased's relatives will take the coffin away. Family
members wail and utter such lamentations as, "Please go
slowly." "We will ask bla ma, sgom pa, and monks to chant
for you." "Why did you leave us behind?" It is difficult for
villagers to console them. Sgom pa and the bla ma tell them
88
Thick, embroidered pieces of cloth used to cover women's
heads.
127
not to wail because this makes it difficult for the deceased to
return to their next life and be with them.
The deceased's son aged seventeen or older carries the
coffin on his back to the field. Men walk alongside and help
carry the coffin if needed. After the coffin is placed on the
tsan dan, one or two persons escort the son home so that he
does not witness the cremation. The sgom pa chooses a man
who is the deceased's closest male relative to carry the coffin
if there is no suitably aged son. The deceased's other family
members stay in a room to avoid seeing the coffin leave.
Furthermore, those of the same zodiac sign and other zodiac
signs determined by a bla ma or sgom pa avoid the corpse.
About sixty males sit around the coffin in the field
chanting and holding their hats in their hands to show respect
for the deceased. Meanwhile, women and children wail at
home. The corpse cannot be burned if women are near the
coffin for this is believed to bring bad luck to locals. Sgom pa
and bla ma sit near the coffin and chant for about thirty
minutes. Two elders set fire to the coffin. The deceased's
closest relatives cry silently because the sgom pa say that they
cannot concentrate on preparing the soul to come to the next
life if they cry loudly.
About three hours is needed to burn a corpse. If a
corpse is particularly hard to burn, it is believed that the
deceased may have taken a great deal of modern medicine
while alive and/ or eaten food that contained chemicals, such
as vegetables and fruits cultivated with commercial fertilizers
and pesticides. It is also thought that the deceased may be
trying to become a ghost. A bla ma brings sacred water to
pour on the coffin or adds butter to the coffin to assist the
cremation. If the deceased was male and the corpse is hard to
burn, it is additionally thought that the deceased might have
been a hunter and hunted mountain deities' mounts. The sgom
pa has foreknowledge of this from his divinations, and has
made an image of the mountain deity's mount that the
deceased hunted in the mountain when they were alive. He
chants for a while, which returns the mount to the mountain
deities and asks them to not trouble the deceased.
128
Most people return to their homes after the corpse is
burned. The closest relatives, bla ma, and sgom pa go to the
deceased's home, but someone stays at the cremation site until
daybreak. The next day, under the direction of the sgom pa,
the closest male relatives collect what remains of the
deceased's bones and puts them in a white bag. At the
deceased's home, the sgom pa determines if the deceased's
bones should be put in a grave or in Yak River.
When a grave is required, villagers help dig a square
about twenty centimeters deep and ten centimeters wide in the
earth to make the grave where the deceased was burned,
ensuring there are no footprints inside the hole before they
place stones in the hole. Soil from the cremation area is used
to make a small structure resembling a stupa consisting of four
parts. The base is thirty centimeters tall and about thirty
centimeters wide. The deceased's bones in a white bag are put
in the center of the square. Atop this is a cylinder made of the
same soil mixed with water and topped by a round stone. This
cylinder is about twenty centimeters tall and about fifteen
centimeters in diameter. The upper part is joined to the
cylinder top by soil and smaller white stones. Dar shing and
gdugs are placed around the grave. Those who prepared the
grave return to the deceased's home to wash their hands with
water, and ask sgom pa or bla ma for sacred water to drink to
guard against such evil.
Visitors bring a small amount of money (at least five
RMB) or a piece of pork and bread to the deceased's home on
the third day after the death. Such people ('gro lta pa) have a
meal at the deceased's home of dishes and rice cooked by ten
to thirteen other villagers who generally assume the role of
cooks at village weddings and funerals. The deceased's closest
relatives89 offer alcohol and cigarettes.
'Gro lta pa give money or a piece of pork and bread to
two of the closest relatives on the third floor who sit by a table
registering names in a book. Another relative has a bag on a
strap around his neck that holds the cash that is given. Some
89
Such relatives are called khur tshe, and does not include
relatives outside the village. They also help at weddings.
129
'gro lta pa talk to the deceased's family members, express
concern, and say good things about the deceased.
'Gro lta pa visit the grave and chant for about fifteen
minutes. The closest relatives give every 'gro lta pa a piece of
brick tea, and a piece of pork while they chant. Some 'gro lta
pa weep when they chant and say good things about the
deceased to each other. They all wish the deceased to be
reborn into the village.
Sgom pa and bla ma chant for one week in the
deceased's home where they light 108 butter lamps on the
third floor each day. The closest relatives help with housework.
Every evening, family members, close relatives, and villagers
light butter lamps at the grave, give spos me mchod,90 chant,
and weep.
Bdun
Bdun 'seven' refers to a ritual held every seventh day after death
for a forty-nine day period by the deceased's family and close
relatives. Village elders come and help make butter lamps.
The family prepares dishes for sgom pa and bla ma. The
presence of sgom pa and bla ma reassures family members,
for they release the deceased's bla from Dmyal ba so that they
may be reborn. At about one p.m., a sgom pa with a family
member goes to the grave to swab the grave with white soil
mixed with water in a clean bucket. Clean pieces of cloth are
used to swab the grave. A butter lamp is lit and placed inside
the grave when they finish. When sgom pa and bla ma finish
chanting at about five p.m., a family member gives each ten
RMB per day.
90
A family burns juniper needles, wheat flour, several drops
of liquor, nuts, sliced apples, sliced pears, candies, and a piece
of brick tea in front of the grave in the morning and evening.
130
Zhe dgu
The deceased's family holds Zhe dgu on the forty-ninth day
after death. About thirty villagers come to help. Sgom pa and
bla ma come at approximately seven a.m. and begin chanting.
About thirty elders arrive with their prayer wheels and beads
at nine a.m., sit on the third floor, and chant. Several others
assist the family to light the 108 butter lamps. Helpers offer
noodles to sgom pa, bla ma, and elders on the third floor at
noon.
About one hundred 'gro lta pa visit the deceased's
family with bread at around two p.m. and usually give five
RMB each. The specific amount, however, depends on how
much the deceased's family previously gave at a particular
funeral. If, for example, the family of the deceased gave five
RMB and bread to another family, that family will repay six
RMB and bread, or five RMB and two pieces of bread.
Visitors eat in the deceased's home.
Elders go to the grave at about four p.m. after the meal,
light a butter lamp, and chant. Elders return to their own
homes after the butter lamp burns out.
'Das mchod91
'Das mchod is held three years after a person's death. It is
identical to Bdun and Zhe dgu, except no family members
weep. Sgom pa and bla ma explain that the deceased's soul is
searching for a next life and the family's sadness might
prevent the deceased from having a next incarnation.
91
Offering to the deceased.
131
PILGRIMAGE TO MOUNT DMU RDO92
Introduction
Many boys beg their parents for candy, new clothes, and toys,
but Rgyas bzang children want to grow up quickly and visit
Dmu rdo Mountain to see the hero described in stories told by
village elders. When boys are disobedient, parents say, "Don't
be naughty, or we won't take you to Dmu rdo Mountain."
Villagers believe seven year old boys should
circumambulate Dmu rdo Mountain on the tenth day of the
seventh lunar month - Dmu rdo's birthday. Dmu rdo gives
power that makes boys brave, honest, and good men. Evil
avoids those who have visited Dmu rdo Mountain.
G.yu 'brug Visits Dmu rdo
On Dmu rdo’s birthday, my parents, eighteen other villagers,
and I made a pilgrimage to Dmu rdo Mountain. We left home
at seven a.m. Father dressed me in an unusual way - I had a
red tassel about two centimeters wide and thirty centimeters
long around my head. Though the weather was already hot, I
wore a winter robe. A Tibetan knife with a pair of ivory
chopsticks encased in a sheath hung from my sash. Tibetan
boots made me hotter. I found other boys dressed like me
when my parents and I met village pilgrims just before setting
off.
I wondered why we were walking to Dmu rdo
Temple when many cars passed by. Father held my hand
tightly, because he was worried I would be struck by a car.
Villagers never waved to the cars to stop them. Father said
we should walk when on pilgrimage and added that if we
took a car our journey would be meaningless because the
Buddha and the mountain deity would think we were
insincere and would not grant our wishes. Those in cars
92
See G.yung 'brug and Rin chen rdo rje (2011) for a longer
version of this section.
132
were city dwellers and Han. People who lived in the
mountains walked to Dmu rdo Temple and then climbed
Dmu rdo Mountain.
We reached Dmu rdo Temple at about noon to find it
thronged with countless people. It was the first time I had
seen such a big crowd. I ran toward the crowd but Father
caught me and said that some children had gotten lost in this
festival in the last three years and he did not want to lose his
son. Our group wanted to prostrate to the Dmu rdo image
but we were unable to move forward. Finally we gave up
because our destination was still far away. Father and two
men from our group hung rlung rta on the la btsas by Dmu
rdo Temple.
Our group went on and came to a village where an
old man offered us tea and candy when he learned we were
going to Dmu rdo Mountain. He gave Father a bag of wheat
flour and asked him to offer it to Dmu rdo. There were two
groups on pilgrimage to Dmu rdo Mountain in front of us and
another close behind.
We met about 200 people who had visited Dmu rdo
Mountain and were returning home. Father said about 6,000
people visit Dmu rdo Mountain every year. There was a
different route to Dmu rdo Mountain for Bon adherents. We
later saw them from atop Dmu rdo Mountain. I then realized
why some of our group members seemed to have
disappeared.
It was already dark when our group reached Nor bu
phug, the halfway point to Dmu rdo Mountain, where there
are several large caves about one hundred square meters in
area. These caves are considered Bai ro tsa na’s
(Vairotsana)93 meditation places. According to local accounts,
he came to Rgyal mo tsha ba rong for about sixteen years to
meditate and spent much of this time in the vicinity of Dmu
rdo Mountain.
93
See Schaeffer (2000) for a detailed treatment of this
important Tibetan translator who lived during King Khri srong
lde btsan's reign (755-797) and who was Pad+ma 'byung
gnas's student.
133
We luckily found a vacant cave. Father told us to
rest and then he went with another man to fetch water from a
spring. The women made beds with our cloth bags and outer
clothes. We had brought butter tea, rtsam pa, bread, pork,
and wheat liquor. We had a nice meal. I wore my winter robe
when it was time to sleep. Boys slept without blankets at the
front of the cave with the men. We boys made a big fire, sat
around it, and then slept.
The next day we reached a grassland where many
stupas lined the road. Father said Bai ro tsa na made 108
stupas there in one night. We scattered auspicious wheat
grains to the stupas as an offering. After we passed the
stupas, Father and elders prostrated to a la btsas where
many people were burning bsang, circumambulating, and
hanging wind horses on the prayer flags. Our group chanted
Skyabs ’gro:94
Bla ma la skyabs su mchi’o
Sangs rgyas la skyabs su mchi’o
Chos la skyabs su mchi’o
Dge ’dun la skyabs su mchi ’o
and then asked the boys to prostrate to Dmu rdo Mountain.
We followed, chanting, prostrating, and praying to Dmu rdo
La btsas as we passed along a narrow rocky path. I was told
bad people fell into the valley as they walked along this path.
Father handed me auspicious wheat grains, which I
scattered to Dmu rdo La btsas, which more than one
hundred people were circumambulating. Money, clothes,
candy, and wind horses were inside the la btsas. Mothers
gave boys kha btags to offer Dmu rdo La btsas. I offered
mine and prayed that I would become powerful in the future.
Later, from atop Dmu rdo Mountain, we saw a lake
changing from green to blue and back to green near Dmu
94
Take refuge (in the bla ma, Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha),
a short scripture Tibetans chant before reciting Buddhist
prayers and scriptures.
134
rdo La btsas. I was told that those who circumambulate the
lake once would be reborn as a human in their next life.
Several herding families lived near the lake. It was
the first time I saw yaks.
One of our group members felt dizzy so we did not
visit the lake but returned home. On the way back, we visited
a stupa that had arisen in a place where Dmu rdo had rested.
I tried to understand Dmu rdo’s magic power but failed,
because my little brain could not figure it out.
•••
By 2010, I had visited Dmu rdo Temple five times on Dmu
rdo’s birthday. A recent visit was with Younger Brother on the
seventh day of the first lunar month in 2009. We left home at
eight a.m. and walked to Kha mdo Township Town, which we
reached at about nine-thirty a.m. We then hired a taxi to
Dmu rdo Temple for fifteen RMB (one way) and reached the
temple at around ten a.m. Younger Brother offered bsang at
the la btsas by the temple and hung wind horses on the
prayer flags. A few people were circumambulating the temple.
A monk was chanting beside the la btsas as people offered
bsang. Visitors asked the monk to give them srung mdud95
and asked such questions as "Where should I go to earn
money?" "When will my son get a job?" or "What’s the best
time to hold a wedding?"
The monk used his thumb to quickly move beads on
this string of prayer beads, closed his eyes, and gave an
answer a couple of minutes later. Once satisfied with the
monk’s response, they put a few RMB in a box by his side.
My younger brother and I asked the monk for about twenty
srung mdud for our family and relatives, put a total of ten
RMB in his box, and thanked him when he gave themto us.
95
A red or yellow string about twenty centimeters long. A bla
ma, monk, or sgom pa uses a conifer twig to flick sacred water
on such strings and blows on them while chanting. Such
strings are worn around the neck to bring good luck and
prevent sickness. The strings may or may not feature knots.
135
After an hour of circumambulating the temple and
prostrating to the Dmu rdo image inside, we left in a taxi. On
the way back to the township town, I asked Younger Brother
what he had prayed for. He said he had asked for power,
and help in passing exams to get a government job (which
he later got). Dmu rdo really can empower people to achieve
their goals.
•••
I liked listening to elders tell stories when I was a child.
Villagers finished dinner then often visited homes with good
storytellers. Children particularly loved to hear stories at night,
and dared not go outside to the toilet when elders told ghost
stories. People sat around the thab rdo and listened to the
storyteller, who sat on a cow or sheep skin near the head of
the thab rdo with a bottle of liquor, made three offerings of
liquor before beginning, held a tobacco pipe, and when he
told the climactic part of the story, frequently stopped and
puffed, heightening interest and causing children to
impatiently beg him to continue. If the storyteller was female,
she held prayer beads and counted the beads while telling
the stories.
Several people often came to my home to listen to
stories, and brought candy for Grandmother. We offered tea
to the audience when Grandmother finished. Listeners drank
liquor and commented on the story by criticizing characters.
However, when television came to the village in the early
twenty-first century, people lost interest in stories.
Villagers in Rong brag County tell different versions
of Dmu rdo stories. I learned this Dmu rdo story from my
paternal grandmother, A rtse (1940-1993).
Dmu rdo's Birth and Power
Several centuries ago, under the deities’ protection, all was
well in the mystical, auspicious place known as Rgyal mo
tsha ba rong, where the teachings of the Buddha were
136
strictly observed by local Tibetans. There were many ancient,
multi-faced stone towers. Some had four, others had eight,
and still others had thirteen faces. This famous place of local
kings and heroes was also known as ’the Earth’s flower’.
One day, a Tibetan woman went into the forest to
cut firewood. Feeling more tired than usual, she lay down on
a bright green rock under a towering tree, fell asleep, and
dreamed of a dark sky full of black clouds from which
emerged a dragon that glanced at her. She awoke full of fear.
Thus it was that she became pregnant and later gave birth to
a son, Dmu rdo.
When Dmu rdo grew up, his mother could not satisfy
his voracious appetite, which exceeded that of eight people.
She then sent him to a primeval forest on Dmu rdo Mountain
where he gained immense power. Thanks to the deities’
teachings, he became very strong and clever. Hunters in the
forest saw him run faster than the wild animals he hunted some said he could run as fast as the wind.
In time the villagers were threatened by ghosts and
demons. The tribal chief sent boys and girls every day to be
eaten by demons and ghosts. All the local people felt they
were in terrible danger and began to discuss Dmu rdo’s
supernatural abilities. Certain villagers finally suggested to
the tribal chief that they ask Dmu rdo to deal with the
demons and ghosts. The chief then asked Dmu rdo’s mother
to invite her son back to the village.
Dmu rdo’s mother took eighteen pig ears, ten pig
legs, eight pig tails, and rtsam pa to the forest. Standing on
the bright green rock where she had given birth to her son,
she called, "Dmu rdo!"
There was no reply. All she could see were piles of
animal bones. Then she sang the lullaby she had sung to
Dmu rdo when he was a little child. Suddenly, a man flew to
her from a mountain peak and acknowledged her as his
mother. She embraced him, wept, and related all that had
happened in the village.
Dmu rdo told her to tell the chief to prepare plenty of
food for his arrival three days later. His mother returned to
the village and, three days later, Dmu rdo appeared atop the
137
highest stone tower in the village. He shouted three times
and the clouds in the sky vanished. He then flew into the
chief’s home, ate the prepared food, and told the villagers
that they should no longer fear demons and ghosts.
After he finished eating, he gathered his bow and
arrows, flew to the demons and ghosts’ lair, and fought with
’Dre mo spun bdun, the leader of the ghosts, for one whole
night before finally killing her. The other ghosts then fled.
Thereafter, the village resumed its normal life. Villagers were
grateful to Dmu rdo and sincerely wanted him to live in the
village with them, but he had to return to Dmu rdo Mountain.
However, Dmu rdo agreed to spend the New Year holidays
with the villagers each year. Afterwards, villagers painted the
outside of their houses with white soil before the New Year
to signal that it was time for Dmu rdo to visit. This is why
every household in the Rgal mo tsha ba rong area
whitewashes the outside of their houses with paint made
from white soil.
138
PART FOUR: MARRIAGE
INTRODUCTION
A groom moves into a bride's home only when the girl's
family has no son. The oldest son or daughter usually stays in
the home to care for their parents, while other daughters and
sons marry and leave the home.
When proposing marriage, a matchmaker explains how
many people will be in the household, if the family will build
a house for the new couple, the situation of fields and crop
production, and identifies the oldest son and daughter in the
family that has dispatched him. Engagement and marriage is
easily made for oldest sons and daughters. Engagement is
more challenging for other children because families must
build new houses, make or purchase new furniture, and can
only give the new couple a relatively small amount of land.
As mentioned earlier, deforestation has led to streams
drying up and the watermill stopping. Villagers must now go
to Kha mdo Town to mill wheat, barley, and corn. Villagers
must also now go far from the village to cut firewood. This is
all women's work and, after 2003, it became increasingly
difficult for village boys to find wives outside the village
because few women wished to live such a hard life.
When arranging marriages, wealth, reputation, and
absence of diseases thought to be inherited such as leprosy are
considered. A family's reputation is of central concern. A
family with a good reputation is characterized by, for example,
a lack of conflict within the home and with other families,
being mild-tempered, showing respect for others regardless of
their financial condition, and a lack of alcoholism. These
characteristics are all thought to be inherited. Bad body odor
was a concern historically but as of 2010, it was unimportant
in marriage considerations.
140
LHA MO'S MARRIAGE
Lha mo and her father attended a relative’s wedding in her
Aunt Dkar mo’s village, where a Tibetan dialect different from
Lha mo’s is spoken. It was Lha mo’s first time to visit such a
village and hear such a dialect. Villagers herd and farm and
the village is easily accessible by vehicle. Lha mo was
twenty-one years old at the time of the visit, and her beauty
attracted the local boys’ attention. Lha mo is a gifted dancer,
sings well, and represented her village during the party by
performing a dance and a song, further attracting the local
boys, who decided among themselves to pursue her. They
invited her to join them in modern dances but she politely
refused. Rdo rje, who later became her husband, said to Lha
mo and her father, "You are welcome to visit our village
again!" when they were leaving for home.
Rdo rje was not very handsome but he was honest.
He lived with his three younger sisters and parents in the
village center. He stayed at home to support his three sisters’
schooling. His mother could not do heavy work because of
chronic illness. His father was a local sgom pa and was often
away from home chanting for villagers. Rdo rje did both male
and female work tasks.
Aunt Dkar mo visited Lha mo’s home a month after
the wedding party. That night, Lha mo’s parents suggested
she go to bed early. When the family had tea the next
morning, Aunt Dkar mo asked Lha mo if she liked her (Aunt
Dkar mo’s) village.
Lha mo said, "It would be very nice to live in your
village." Aunt Dkar mo was delighted with this answer and
returned to her husband’s village.
Lha mo’s mother told her, "Rdo rje wants to marry
you. His parents asked your aunt to arrange the marriage."
Lha mo’s parents knew that there was no heavy work to do
in Rdo rje’s village, certainly less work than in their own
village, and encouraged Lha mo to marry Rdo rje. Lha mo
was saddened by the thought of being unable to care for her
parents if she married and lived outside her village. However,
141
following her relatives and parents’ advice, she finally
consented to the marriage.
Two of Rdo rje’s uncles, an aged aunt, and a boy
brought a box of liquor and two cartons of cigarettes to Lha
mo’s home before sunset one day soon after Dkar mo’s visit.
While in her home, ten of Lha mo’s aged relatives gathered
and welcomed Rdo rje’s relatives. To bring auspiciousness
to the proceedings, one of Rdo rje’s uncles put a white stone
as big as an eyeball on the right side of the family gate
where the family’s sgo dar96 stand as they entered Lha mo’s
home.
Lha mo went to her best friend’s home to spend the
night. Her friend’s brother told her that Rdo rje was nice and
responsible. He said they were friends and had collected
caterpillar fungus in the mountains together.
Several new carpets were put around the family
hearth on the second floor of Lha mo’s home prior to Rdo
rje’s relatives’ visit. Her grandfather sat in front of the head
thab rdo holding a pipe in his right hand, smoke incessantly
wafting from his mouth. From his body language, Lha mo’s
relatives knew that he was waiting for one of Rdo rje’s uncles
to speak.
Village custom dictates that when people visit a
home to propose marriage engagement, the relatives
enthusiastically welcome them, but never mention marriage they wait for the visitors to do so. If the visitors do not
mention marriage within about an hour after dinner, the
host’s relatives return to their homes, thinking the visitors do
not understand local convention.
Rdo rje’s relatives were prepared. One of his uncles
began to talk about the purpose of their visit about twenty
minutes after dinner. He took a spal par97 from his robe,
96
Poles three to four meters long with two meter lengths of
cloth that feature scriptures. Sgo dar are inserted into the stone
base on either side of the gate to the home.
97
This particular spal par is made of pottery and old enough
that no one knows when the family came to have it. It holds
142
wrapped a kha btags round its neck, removed a piece of
plastic from the bottle mouth, put a ten centimeter long
hollow wheat stalk inside the spal par, offered it to Lha mo’s
Grandfather, and said, "Wise grandfather, please taste this
auspicious liquor."
Lha mo’s Grandfather slowly placed his pipe by the
head thab rdo, took the spal par from Rdo rje’s uncle, offered
three drops of liquor on the head ʔ dza bʉ , looked around the
hearth, gave a short auspicious speech, drank a mouthful of
liquor, and then passed the spal par around.
One of Rdo rje’s uncles explained the purpose of
their visit after everyone had sipped the liquor, "My nephew,
Rdo rje, likes Lha mo very much, and will care for her. He is
responsible. Please give your beloved daughter to our
virtuous nephew, Rdo rje. We’ll ensure Lha mo has a good
life in our village." Next, he introduced Rdo rje’s family
members, relatives in the village, how many mu of fields Rdo
rje’s family had, how it was easy to collect firewood and tend
livestock in Rdo rje’s home, how villagers helped each other
when they needed assistance, how kind Rdo rje’s parents
and sisters were, and he also mentioned that if any of the
sisters got official jobs, they would help Lha mo and Rdo rje.
Lha mo’s grandfather responded, "As you know, Lha
mo is nice, hard-working, and a real beauty. Several boys
from our village are pursuing her and several families have
requested marriage, but she has refused. Rdo rje is lucky
that Lha mo has agreed to this marriage. Rdo rje and his
relatives must take good care of her."
Rdo rje’s aunt said, "We want Lha mo to go with us
to visit Rdo rje’s home tomorrow. When Lha mo sees Rdo
rje’s home, she won’t regret her decision," and went on to
proudly describe the house in great detail.
Lha mo’s grandfather slowly exhaled smoke,
shaking his head, saying nothing.
One of Lha mo’s aunts impatiently said, "Our Lha mo
won’t marry a man who has relatives who only think about
about two liters of liquor. The spal par is used during Lo sar,
marriage rituals, and dancing parties.
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property. One rich family wanted to marry our Lha mo, but
because that family thought they were rich and could easily
marry our Lha mo, she refused. If Rdo rje’s family also think
their wealth entitles Rdo rje to marry our Lha mo, please give
up this marriage, and take away what you’ve brought."
Rdo rje’s uncles were very embarrassed by their
sister’s mistake. The spokesman said, "My sister spoke
unthinkingly after she had a drink. Please ignore her." Then
he said to his sister, "Where can our Rdo rje find a girl as
capable as Lha mo?"
Rdo rje’s aunt remained silent.
Lha mo’s grandfather was satisfied and said, "We
are happy to hear Lha mo will have a good life in Rdo rje’s
village. I would like to visit Rdo rje’s home when they marry."
Lha mo’s parents, aunts, and uncles talked to Rdo
rje’s aunt and uncles, and made the necessary
arrangements. They decided to hold the wedding during the
seventh lunar month of 2000.
On the day before the wedding, eight bride-takers
from Rdo rje’s home reached Lha mo’s home at about eleven
a.m. Their spokesman held a mda' dar ’talisman’98 in his right
hand. Two elders from Lha mo’s village welcomed them
when they entered Lha mo’s village gate. One elder held a
spal par and offered auspicious liquor to the bride-takers.
The two elders then offered a kha btags and hung it around
the mda' dar. Firecrackers were lit by villagers when the
bride-takers reached Lha mo’s family’s gate. Inside the yard,
three of Lha mo’s uncles welcomed the bride-takers. One
held a plastic container holding five liters of liquor and one
held a china bowl. Each bride-taker was offered a small bowl
of liquor and cigarettes. The bride-takers were each required
to drink one bowl of liquor. To not do so would have shown
disrespect to Lha mo’s family.
The bride-takers were escorted to the third floor
where much fruit was on the tables. About 160 guests from
three different villages attended celebrations in Lha mo’s
home. Each visitor gave a gift of twenty to one hundred RMB.
98
An arrow with a kha btags tied to it.
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Lha mo’s family and villagers prepared pork, beef, and so on
for the visitors and bride-takers. After expenses, Lha mo’s
family was left with about 900 RMB, which was given to Lha
mo.
At about seven p.m., Lha mo’s girlfriends came to
see her with gifts of five to ten RMB each. Some of her
friends cried when Lha mo wept. Relatives asked her
girlfriends to have a meal. At about nine p.m., Lha mo and
one of her friends whom sgom pa designated as Lha mo’s
companion, were asked to go to the third floor to receive
elders who would each give auspicious speeches and offer
auspicious kha btags.
On the third floor, sgom pa, six elders, and three of
Rdo rje’s uncles sat on the phra.99 A bed was made for Lha
mo and her companion in the center of the third floor. They
were under the quilt with only their hair visible. Villagers
came from each household to offer auspicious kha btags and
came to hear the wedding speeches that they would
remember in order to be able to recite such when they
themselves were older and asked to give speeches.
Sgom pa chanted for about half an hour and then
offered a wedding speech and an auspicious kha btags. Next,
others in succession offered wedding speeches and
auspicious kha btags. After two hours of wedding speeches,
Lha mo went to her companion’s home to spend the night.
Villagers danced traditional dances on the second floor with
Rdo rje’s uncles.
The next morning at about six a.m., Lha mo was
dressed in valuable Tibetan jewelry provided by her family.100
The bride had to enter Rdo rje’s home at a designated time
time, therefore the bridetakers urged her to hurry. After
breakfast, four uncles, two aunts, three cousins, and two
99
There are five wood boxes of the same size. Each box is for
a particular grain - wheat, rice, corn, barley, and buckwheat.
Beans are placed in the buckwheat box. These boxes are
placed side by side and people sit and sleep on them.
100
She was allowed to take ownership of the jewelry when her
first baby was one year old.
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younger brothers prepared to escort her and her companion
with the bridetakers to Rdo rje’s home. Lha mo held her
parents’ hands and wept. Her parents could hardly control
their tears. Her friends came to see her and said goodbye in
tears.
When this group stepped out of the Rgyas bzang
Village gate, several aged women stood by a carpet. A spal
par was on a table. A woman passed the spal par around
and urged everyone to drink. Next, one of Rdo rje’s uncles
put fifty RMB with a kha btags on the table to thank the
villagers for helping with the marriage. Lha mo wept again.
Women consoled that she would have a good life in Rdo rje’s
home, and promised to help her parents if they needed it.
They then started to sing escort songs as the group began to
leave Lha mo’s village.
About two hours later, the bride and her entourage
reached the foot of Sgang bzang Mountain where Rdo rje’s
family had arranged ten taxis to transport the group. Ten
minutes later, Lha mo’s group reached Rdo rje’s home.
Sgom pa and Rdo rje’s grandfather came and asked Lha mo
to go with Rdo rje to the shrine room on the fourth floor and
prostrate to the nor lha. Rdo rje’s parents came to see Lha
mo. Rdo rje’s mother gave Lha mo the key to the family’s
storeroom. Lha mo bowed and took the key, indicating she
was now part of Rdo rje’s family.
RGYA MTSHO'S TWO MARRIAGES
Rgya mtsho was delighted with his marriage, because it was
very difficult for most village males aged twenty-five to thirty
to find a wife. Additionally, one of his legs had limited
mobility. When villagers heard about Rgya mtsho’s marriage,
they could not believe it. Mtsho mo was beautiful, capable,
and concerned about her family. Many wondered how
handicapped Rgya mtsho could marry her, while so many
other young village men had pursued her without success.
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Villagers only believed the planned marriage was real when
Rgya mtsho and Mtsho mo’s relatives reached an agreement.
Rgya mtsho and Mtsho mo’s families’ friendship
spanned several generations, thus the two families knew
each other very well. When doing farm work together, Mtsho
mo’s mother mentioned to Rgya mtsho’s mother, "If Rgya
mtsho and Mtsho mo marry, our families’ relationship will be
stronger. You also need a girl to help you. Your life would
then be easier, otherwise hard work will make your sickness
reappear."
Rgya mtsho’s mother’s eyes brimmed with tears.
She had never dared mention marriage to Mtsho mo’s
mother, because of her son’s handicap.
When Rgya mtsho’s mother told her husband what
Mtsho mo’s mother had said, he reacted strongly, saying, "It
must be a joke! There are plenty of young men in our village
with better prospects. Why would she choose our son?"
Mtsho mo’s grandfather, who helped Rgya mtsho’s
family by herding sheep and goats in the mountains,
returned with the animals and came to visit Rgya mtsho’s
home as he usually did at about seven p.m. Rgya mtsho’s
mother asked him if Rgya mtsho and Mtsho mo might
become engaged. Mtsho mo’s grandfather said that he was
very glad about the prospect of such a marriage.
Rgya mtsho and Mtsho mo were engaged and a
formal wedding was held in 2002. After they received a
marriage certificate, Rgya mtsho’s mother asked Mtsho mo
to stay in their home, but Mtsho mo found many excuses.
Every day she came to Rgya mtsho’s home at about eight
a.m., and helped with housework, and then returned to her
natal home after supper. Rgya mtsho’s father’s business
failed in 2003, and one of his younger brothers then dropped
out of school because the family could not pay tuition for two
students. Mtsho mo’s mother suggested to Rgya mtsho’s
mother that if Rgya mtsho and his younger brother, who had
just dropped out of school, stayed at home, Mtsho mo would
come live with both of them, and be a wife to both brothers.
Rgya mtsho angrily said nothing. Mtsho mo’s family
then sent her to Brag mgo to work in a restaurant for about a
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year without asking her husband’s permission. Much gossip
about Mtsho mo spread in the village during this year.
Finally, Rgya mtsho went to Brag mgo with the
intention of telling his wife to return home. When he found
her, she was with a group of hooligans in a shop that sold
televisions. When she saw Rgya mtsho coming, she left the
shop, went with Rgya mtsho to a restaurant, and told him
she wanted a divorce. She said that her family had forced
her to marry him, living in the city had changed her, and she
now wanted to choose her own husband. She added that if
he came again, she would ask her friends to beat him, and
then she hurriedly left.
Later, Rgya mtsho received a court order to appear
for divorce proceedings that included a demand for 5,000
RMB from his wife. Rgya mtsho was surprised, sad, and
angry. His family had given her 3,000 RMB and valuable
Tibetan traditional clothes.
Rgya mtsho’s younger brother bought some books
about marriage law. When Rgya mtsho went to court, the
judge, Ms. Huang, said the courtroom was being used and
told Rgya mtsho and his wife to go to her office. She said
she would give the judgment with her secretary in her office.
When Rgya mtsho’s younger brother was stopped by Ms.
Huang from entering her office, he asked, "Why should I not
enter your office to hear your judgment? Did Mtsho mo ask
you to keep witnesses away?"
Ms. Huang said, "Yes."
When he asked to see the letter that Mtsho mo had
submitted with her application asking for no witnesses, Ms.
Huang said there was no application from Mtsho mo, and
that this was her provisional decision. Without such written
application, the younger brother was finally allowed to enter
Ms. Huang’s office.
Ms. Huang asked no questions and ordered Rgya
mtsho to pay Mtsho mo 2,000 RMB within a month. When
Rgya mtsho asked why, Ms. Huang said that Mtsho mo had
worked in his home and he should compensate her.
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Rgya mtsho’s brother asked Ms. Huang to show the
relevant law stipulating Rgya mtsho should pay wages to his
wife.
Ms. Huang replied that the law was in her marriage
book, but she could not prove exactly which law stipulated
this, and added, "I am a judge and, as a citizen of the
People’s Republic of China, you should obey and respect an
official’s decision or you will be punished. I hope you will pay
before our bailiff takes legal action to force the payment."
The younger brother insisted Ms. Huang could not
make such a judgment and said that if she made such a
decision that was not based on law, he would appeal to a
higher-level court. Finally, Ms. Huang made no judgment and
asked Rgya mtsho and his wife to return home and use
traditional law to find a solution.
Village elders advised against divorce, stressing that
though Rgya mtsho was handicapped, he was a good man.
The couple nevertheless divorced, and Mtsho mo’s family
returned 2,000 RMB and the Tibetan traditional clothing to
Rgya mtsho’s family.
In 2008, one of Rgya mtsho’s friends from another
township town said, "My wife’s sister, G.yang mtsho, is single.
I would like to introduce her to you."
Rgya mtsho gladly agreed. His friend then arranged
a time and Rgya mtsho went to Brag mgo to meet G.yang
mtsho. They had a meal together and chatted for about five
hours.
G.yang mtsho did not think his handicap would
shame her and felt he was honest when he candidly told her
about his former wife. Her sister and brother-in-law had
described his personality and, in the end, she decided to
marry Rgya mtsho.
G.yang mtsho’s family, however, did not agree
because Rgya mtsho was handicapped. G.yang mtsho was
kept at home for ten days when her family discovered she
wanted to go to Rgya mtsho’s home. G.yang mtsho was
worried about Rgya mtsho because they had agreed to meet
in Brag mgo five days after their first conversation.
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Rgya mtsho waited for G.yang mtsho for two days in
Brag mgo. She did not come and he was worried. On the
eleventh day after they met, G.yang mtsho pretended that
she was going to her aunt’s home to help haul manure to the
fields. With none of her family watching her, she went directly
to Brag mgo, called Rgya mtsho, and asked him to come
and take her to his home. She explained what had happened
in her home, and apologized for not meeting him. Rgya
mtsho rushed to Brag mgo without having lunch upon
receiving G.yang mtsho’s phone call.
Rgya mtsho and G.yang mtsho then went to Rgya
mtsho’s home. On the way, they discussed what they would
do when G.yang mtsho’s family members came to take her
back to her home. They decided to sleep together and then
her family would be unable to separate them. That night,
Rgya mtsho violated village rules that stipulate when a new
bride comes to the village, the groom must invite elders to
his home to see the bride and give an auspicious speech.
Traditionally, the new couple can only sleep together three
days after these proceedings.
Five of G.yang mtsho’s relatives came to Rgya
mtsho’s home three days later and asked the family to return
her. They said that Rgya mtsho had kidnapped her and
threatened to beat him. G.yang mtsho wept, told her
relatives that she had become Rgya mtsho’s wife, and
entreated her relatives to allow her to live with Rgya mtsho.
She knelt pitifully before one of her uncles. Village elders
came and asked G.yang mtsho’s relatives to permit them to
become a couple. G.yang mtsho’s sister also came and
asked her uncle to agree to the marriage, and added that
she wanted to have a relative from her home place in the
village. G.yang mtsho’s relatives finally consented.
There was no wedding ritual. The couple went to the
Civil Bureau Registry and received a marriage certificate.
Rgya mtsho regretted breaking village marriage rules.
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PART FIVE: EDUCATION
INTRODUCTION
Rgyas bzang Village Primary School was established in Po
rtsa Hamlet in 1972. Villagers are uncomfortable with the fact
that the school was built on the site where Rgyas bzang
Monastery once stood. The monastery monks were forced to
become laymen, the villagers had nowhere to circumambulate,
and villagers could no longer listen to reincarnation bla ma's
teachings.
Most villagers born before 1987 are illiterate. In 2009,
there were twenty village students, including two university
students (one boy studied at Xichang University in Xichang
City, Sichuan and another studied at Yan'an Medical College),
three senior middle school students (one boy, two girls) at
Rong brag Middle School, five junior middle school students
(one girl, four boys), and ten primary school students (seven
boys and three girls) at Kha mdo Center Primary School.
Eleven village children in 2009 had not continued their
education beyond the village primary school, which offered
grades one to six until 1982, when the government stopped
teaching Tibetan and reduced the number of grades to three.
Children in grades four to six then had to attend Kha mdo
Center Primary School to continue their education. Most
students, however, stopped attending school because teachers
in Kha mdo Center Primary School only taught in Chinese.
Additionally, teachers harshly punished students, especially
those from rural areas, as illustrated by a consultant's (b. 1969)
account:
I had two teachers. Mgon po was a local Tibetan with a twoyear college degree. He lived in Brag mgo and rode a bicycle
to school. He taught Chinese language and often told stories
about his college experiences in class. Zhang Mingxiang
was a Han Chinese from Dujiangyan, 101 had a two-year
college degree, and taught mathematics. He said Tibetans
were dirty, lazy, and impertinent. He was very kind to Han
101
A county level city within the administrative district of
Chengdu City, Sichuan Province.
152
students, especially those whose parents had official jobs or
were rich.
I never did homework for Teacher Zhang’s class
because he never checked it. I often fought with Han
students in school. I did not wash and lice were often on my
jacket and in my hair. Zhang Mingxiang took a louse from my
hair one day when I was in his class, showed it to my
classmates, and said that I was just like an animal, terribly
insulting me in front of the class. My ears and face blushed
and I plotted revenge. I finished class at five-thirty and then
went behind the teachers’ quarters stealthily, picked up a
stone, and threw it at a third floor window in the room where
Teacher Zhang lived. I then happily left school.
Teacher Zhang announced the next day in class that
someone had broken his window, and said he knew who it
was. I panicked. That afternoon he asked me to stay after
class and asked, “Why did you break my window?”
“I didn’t. You are my teacher,” I responded
“If you study in my class you should tell the truth,
otherwise you must leave,” he said.
“I want to continue in your class and I’ll study hard,” I
answered. I was delighted that he did not know I had broken
his window. He had only wanted to bully me into confessing.
He then asked me to bring my homework to him.
"The Three Jewels! What’s happening?" I asked myself,
because Teacher Zhang had never checked my homework
before. I took out the previous week’s assignment from my
jacket pocket and handed it to him.
"Animal! I asked you for yesterday’s homework!" he
yelled, hitting my face with a notebook. "Silly boy! OK, I’ll let
you see the result of your actions," he continued and ordered
me to do the previous day’s homework. He said he would
return in an hour to check and then he locked the door
behind him.
I had no idea about anything related to math, and so
put my head on the desk, and slept. It was dark outside.
When he returned, he told me to go home and finish my
homework by the next day.
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I left the classroom, began running, and then
stopped. I could not see the road. Realizing that the moon
would emerge, I sat near the school and waited. I was afraid
as I recalled some of Grandfather’s ghost stories. I took out
my amulet and put it on my forehead because Mother said,
"Buddhas and images of high bla ma protect against
dangers." I closed my eyes and prayed to the Three Jewels.
I did not know how much time passed, but when I opened
my eyes, I saw the road, and began to run with my shadow
under the moonlight.
My family did not know what had happened. Father
asked my classmates where I was. They said they had not
seen me after class. They knew what had happened, but
were worried the teacher would make trouble if he learned
they had informed my parents that he had kept me after
class. My family then stopped my schooling.
In 1997, the local government decreed that boys could
not become monks and thus they lost the opportunity to
receive bla ma's teachings and learn Tibetan.
In 2004, the government punished several families
whose children had not finished nine years of compulsory
education. Some families each paid 500 RMB over a threeyear period and their children were ordered back to school.
One father said his son was married and had a child,
nevertheless, he had to attend primary school to comply with
the government's compulsory education requirement.
On average, one child per two families attended school
in 2010. Certain families thought education wasted money and
time because several local villagers with two-year college
degrees returned to the village, and had no official jobs, or else
worked in restaurants.
Girls are often not sent to school in the belief they
should stay at home to fetch water and fuel, do housework,
and help with farm work.
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G.YU 'BRUG'S EXPERIENCES
Village Primary School
One sunny morning in 1992 Mother said, "A rje,102 get up,
your father is ready to go." She removed my quilt and put
new clothing near me. I sleepily got up, dressed, and went
near the stove where I ate breakfast without washing my
hands.
"A rje, will you go with me or should I ask a teacher
to come here and invite you to attend school?" Father asked.
Children were very scared of the Han teacher at school. I
quickly picked up my Tibetan jacket and caught up with
Father, who was already walking to school.
"Father, does the school have Tibetan teachers?" I
asked hopefully.
"The school doesn’t have Tibetan teachers," Father
responded.
When I heard this, I almost stopped, because I could
not speak Chinese. Father held my hand as we entered the
school gate, and approached a crowd where two teachers
were sitting at a desk. One was writing in a notebook. The
other one was counting money. Father spoke Chinese to the
two teachers. We finished registering and found my
classroom.
I shook like a leaf the next day as I walked into the
classroom. It seemed hundreds of mice were scratching at
my heart. I took a plastic gun from my jacket pocket, held it,
and swaggered into the classroom. I saw an empty seat and
walked toward it. On my way, a boy stuck out his foot,
sending me sprawling to the floor, breaking my gun in the
process. The students laughed. I slowly got up, laughed, and
walked to the boy who had put out his foot. I thought, "You
stupid boy, you’ll pay for this," and then I beat his head with
my broken gun until red appeared in his sooty hair, and then
I vanished out of the classroom an instant later.
102
My nickname.
155
I returned home and played with Younger Brother.
"What are you doing here? Did you go to school?" Mother
asked, coming in with a bucket of water from a spring-fed
pool near the village. She looked at my schoolbag and asked,
"What’s happening? Your father said that you would get
books today but your bag seems empty. What’s the matter?"
and then she entered the kitchen with the water.
Mother soon returned, picked up my schoolbag, held
my left hand, and we left. "Mother, where will we go?" I
asked, struggling.
She held my hand tightly and asked, "Did you go to
school with your older brother this morning? Did you find
your classroom?"
I was worried the injured boy’s father would beat me.
I saw a hatchet near a handful of nails in a field, asked
Mother to pick it up, and said, "We can use it to protect
ourselves if anyone attacks us."
Mother ignored me.
When we reached the school gate, I saw teachers
and the injured boy, whose head was wrapped in a bandage.
Mother instantly knew what had happened. She touched the
injured boy’s head and asked, "Is it still painful?" Then she
said, "This dead boy! I’ll teach you a lesson," and beat my
bottom with her palm.
I did not cry. The two teachers pointed at me and
said something and then Mother and the teachers went into
a room.
The two-floored school building was made of stone,
mud, and wood. The first floor had three classrooms. Each
classroom had a window, nine desks, nine stools, and a
blackboard. The second floor had two classrooms and a
teachers’ living quarter. There was no electricity and no
running water. The schoolyard was a small rectangle with a
basketball backboard made of a single piece of wood. The
school had no toilet. We went behind the school to urinate
and defecated in pigsties of nearby homes.
We spent much time sweeping the classrooms and
schoolyard every morning. A path ran through the
schoolyard. Chickens, pigs, cattle, and sheep often got into
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the classrooms, turning the schoolyard into a livestock pen at
night.
Water dripped into the classroom from the second
floor when it rained. The teachers said they could not be
responsible for students under such conditions, and then
they dismissed classes. A piece of plastic on the rooftop
prevented water dripping into the teacher’s living quarter. In
winter, teachers were afraid the roof would collapse from
heavy snow and dismissed classes.
Wu Xiaodong was a Han Chinese math teacher
without a college degree. He lived in the school and never
cooked because he visited different homes, talked about
study, and enjoyed local hospitality that dictated offering
good food to visitors and inviting them to spend the night in
their homes. He spent almost no money on food. I heard that
Teacher Wu had been unable to teach grade three math and
that was why he taught grade one.
Wang Hua was Han, taught Chinese, had a two-year
college degree, came from Chengdu, and lived with his
friend in the village. Every weekend he went to Brag mgo
and bought goods for himself and his friend. He was an
expert basketball player and taught students to play
basketball, which made students closer to him.
There were about four hours of classes each day,
but no certain time for classes. The teachers liked to play
cards, and often did not come to class on time. When
villagers came to play basketball, the teachers sometimes
played with them, even during class times.
Teachers were greatly respected and villagers did
not criticize them when classes were cancelled. Every
student’s family invited teachers to their homes during the
first and second lunar months when pigs are butchered and
meat is cooked and served to guests at meals.
Every day, I sat with Rgya mtsho, a girl with messy
hair, untidy clothing, and who never had a pencil box in three
years. We had endless arguments during class. One day,
Teacher Wu entered the classroom with a stick and a math
book, which he placed on the teacher’s desk. He said
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something and then looked at us. The class was very quiet.
Slowly, his face turned dark.
After a bit, two boys who were repeating grade one
stood and said something. He brightened and replied with a
smile. I watched Teacher Wu, afraid that he would beat me
with the stick. Upper level students told us he liked to beat
pupils’ palms with that stick. The two students translated
what Teacher Wu had said, "When the teacher enters the
classroom, students should stand and greet him."
"Laoshi hao!" Teacher Wu said, an abbreviated from
of "Good morning, Teacher."
"Laosi hao," the class repeated, unable to
pronounce laoshi ’teacher’.
"Bao gao?" Teacher Wu said, meaning "May I enter
the classroom?"
"Be ge?" the students repeated, unable to correctly
pronounce what he said.
Some days later, Rgya mtsho kicked my left calf
when I was using a pencil to draw lines in my math book. I
wanted to kick back but felt my hand go numb as Teacher
Wu’s stick struck. I rubbed my hands between my legs, and
dared not raise my head. I stood and tried to leave the
classroom, but Teacher Wu stopped me. I was very unhappy
and wanted to never return. I noticed the floor under Rgya
mtsho was wet when she went out so I thought she had
spilled some water. I also saw our bench was wet. I then
followed her to see what had happened and realized her
trousers were wet. She did not return to class that day. She
had urinated. She later explained that she did not know how
to ask Teacher Wu in Chinese for permission to leave the
classroom to relieve herself.
I then put a plastic bottle in my school bag, thinking I
could use it during classes if I had to urinate, but I never did.
Two months later, Teacher Wu wrote 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 on
the blackboard and asked the class to say the numbers
when he pointed to them. Only the two boys who were
repeating grade one could do this. Teacher Wu then put his
book and papers in his bag and left class.
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One day, Teacher Wang came with a diagram of the
mouth, put it on the blackboard, and tried to teach us how to
pronounce Chinese pinyin. None of us understood what he
was teaching. I was happy Teacher Wang never beat
students when they could not understand what he said or
when students played together.
Teacher Wang held my right hand and helped me
write pinyin. I followed his model and, when he was satisfied,
he nodded his head and went to help another student.
Teacher Wang was very patient. He spent two days teaching
how to write Chinese pinyin, because students never
practiced after class. During class, we watched as Teacher
Wang tried to teach or we played together with nearby
students.
As I was sleeping at my desk one day, Teacher Wu
pulled my left ear and made me stand up. He said something
and I nodded. His voice became louder, and he pulled my
ear again. I did not understand and said, "Yin ’OK’," when he
said something I did not understand. I yelled in pain when he
twisted my ear, then stared at him and said in Tibetan,
"Please stop!" He became angrier and twisted my ear even
harder. Tears trickled into my mouth and I clutched my pencil.
Later that day, I sat at my desk and stared out the
window. My classmates had gone for lunch. I was very
hungry. Teacher Wu sat in a chair in the courtyard,
munching an apple. He had made me stay in the classroom
and write the numbers one to five as punishment, not
because I could not write the numbers but because he saw
that I had held a pencil tightly and looked at him angrily.
A villager told me that afternoon after he had played
basketball with Teacher Wu, "A rje, you are so disobedient.
Your teacher said you slept during class."
"I did. Grandfather finished telling stories late last
night," I said.
"Why did you grip your pencil so tightly when
Teacher Wu pulled your ear?" he asked.
"My Lama! It was very painful. Teacher Wu has
boney fingers," I replied.
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"Teacher Wu said that you scolded him and wanted
to stab him with your pencil," the villager said.
"I would never do that. My parents would disown me
if I did," I said.
I thought I was very lucky, however, when I saw
Teacher Wu punish Rdo gor when he could not write the
Chinese character
’three’ on the blackboard. Instead, he
wrote
’five’. Teacher Wu then took three benches,
stacked them up, and made Rdo gor stand on them. Rdo gor
shook and sobbed. His eyes were closed. I stared at Rdo gor,
worried that he would fall.
•••
I walked to school, carrying my schoolbag as birds sang
along the road. "A rje, where are you going?" Aunt A mo
asked in a joyful voice.
"I’m going to school," I responded. "Aunt A mo,
where are you going?"
"To Brag mgo. Don’t be naughty at school. Listen to
your teachers," she said.
A bomb seemed to have exploded in the schoolyard
when I arrived. It was deserted. I realized that morning
sweeping was over and that I was the last student to arrive. I
entered the classroom, said nothing to the teacher, and went
to take a seat. I became upset because I did not understand
what Teacher Wu was saying. Only the two students who
were repeating grade one could understand. When the first
class was finished, Teacher Wu took me to a corner of the
schoolyard, and spoke Chinese. I understood nothing, but
nodded in agreement. His voice became angrier and he
pointed his forefinger at my forehead. I continued to nod,
because I thought nodding showed respect or agreement.
This is a local custom when old people criticize young
people’s mistakes. After a while, he stamped his foot and
dragged me to my home. On the way, he continued talking.
Father was at home and they talked for a while. Teacher Wu
then shook his head and left.
After he left, Father laughed, held my hand, and
gently said, "Son, if you do not know Chinese, just keep quiet.
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Don’t worry about what will happen next." He explained that
teacher Wu had asked me, "Will you be late next time? Will
you miss morning sweeping again? Will you not apologize to
teachers when you are late?" My answers were affirmative
because I had nodded my head
We did what the two students who had not been
promoted told us in class and imitated their actions. Often
they did not translate what the teachers said. We had very
little homework. We waited for the bell to ring, swept the
classroom, and played. I searched for pictures to look at
when I was bored and sometimes I slept in the classroom
with my head on the desk.
•••
One day my best friend, Tshe ring bkra shis, and I got to
school at eighty-thirty. Most students had escaped from
morning cleaning, and were playing outside where they
could see the teachers approach. When a teacher was
spotted, the students ran to the classroom. This was the
usual ritual for grades two and three. Grade one students
had no chance to play before the morning sweeping because
the grade three monitor was responsible for supervising us.
We finished morning sweeping at nine a.m. Tshe
ring bkra shis and I went to Thug don’s desk to arm wrestle.
Students surrounded us, watching. Some moved their desks
away and played. Two students sat outside to watch for the
teachers. At nine-forty, the teachers were sighted and we
quickly moved the desks back to their places, took books
from our schoolbags, and pretended to read. Teacher Wu
had us play a game, and then he went to the grade two
classrooms.
Two teachers taught three classes. We often heard
the teachers playing cards in the teachers’ room with
villagers. Once a teacher left, students went home for lunch
if it was at least eleven a.m. If it was earlier and the teacher
was gone, students fought each other. The sounds of crying,
laughing, and yelling filled our classroom.
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Learning Tibetan
Villagers knew that their sons could not be monks and so
sent them to the homes of local sgom pa to study Tibetan
one summer holiday. There were about twenty students
when the classes started. The grade one class had only
three girls.
There were nine students in Sgom pa Tshe ring’s
home. We brought rtsam pa, milk tea, and bread from our
own homes and ate lunch in his home. The first few days we
learned Bon chants without a book. We listened to Sgom pa
Tshe ring carefully and repeated after he finished one line.
He said there was no mispronunciation. Everyone could
perfectly recite what he had taught when he tested us the
next morning. We sat in a row and listened as he taught how
to be a good person and how to treat sentient beings.
Several local officials came to Sgom pa Tshe ring’s
home a few days later, and asked him to show his teaching
materials, suggesting he needed official permission. There is
no traditional rule that a sgom pa should have a textbook to
teach students knowledge handed down from our ancestors.
The officials knew that Sgom pa Tshe ring had no official
book and ordered him to immediately cease teaching.
Likewise, the officials went to Sgom pa Tshe skya,
who was teaching eleven students in his home, and ordered
him to stop teaching Tibetan. Villagers then stopped sending
their children to the village school. They said they wanted
their children to study their own language. The officials
warned villagers to send their children to school to study
Chinese or they would be taken to the local government
office for patriotic instruction. Without a choice, we picked up
our schoolbags again. Such summer holiday instruction in
Tibetan was not attempted again.
Primary School Grade Two
I had more confidence when I was in grade two because
there was less tension in the classroom. We had learned to
162
send signals to the teachers; we had learned to look at the
teacher during class and regardless if we listened or
understood, we nodded and said, "Shi," the Chinese word for
’yes’. The teachers then concluded that the class was going
well. This was important for we had less trouble with the
teachers, who commented that we had made substantial
progress.
I could speak a little Chinese after the second term
of my first year. My older brother, who was attending grade
three, helped me with my homework during the summer
holiday. We secretly finished it in a half-day, because we
were afraid our parents would punish us if they learned he
had done it for me.
"A rje, you should study. You will be a grade two
student. Where are your books?" Father asked, as he left to
fetch water.
"What should I do?" I asked Older Brother and ran to
my classmate, Lha mo’s, home. "Lha mo are you there?" I
yelled.
"Hi, A rje! Come in and watch TV!" she shouted back.
At that time, Lha mo’s home was the only one in the village
that had a television.
"No, Lha mo, I dare not. I just want to borrow your
books. Father will check my study," I said.
"Where are your books?" she asked and gave me a
walnut. I picked up her books and ran back home without her
permission.
"A rje, are you studying?" Father asked, looking at
me a bit later.
"Yeah, I’m studying." I responded.
Fortunately, Father did not check my study. I then
stopped using book pages to make paper planes and
stopped giving Older Brother pages, which he used to roll
tobacco in and smoke.
•••
"Where were you yesterday?" Teacher Wu demanded,
holding my right ear, forcing me to stand.
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"Let me explain, please, Teacher Wu," I implored.
"My family held a harvest ritual." When harvest is finished,
villagers ask sgom pa to chant, thanking Buddha and the
local mountain deities for providing food and well-being.
Teacher Wu dropped his hand immediately. "Why
didn’t you tell me earlier?" he said and went to the teacher’s
platform. He said students should tell him when their families
held such rituals so he could visit and check. Other students,
however, told me Teacher Wu liked to visit homes at this
time because he knew he would be offered such tasty food
as pork, beef, and mutton. Teacher Wu talked about
children’s study until night came during such visits. Families
were used to Teacher Wu staying in their homes overnight.
After three years, I could count from one to one
hundred in Chinese, could understand about forty percent of
simple oral Chinese, and could write a few sentences in
Chinese, e. g., Who is my father? Where are you from? What
is your name?
Kha mdo Center Primary School
We had no exam during my first three years of schooling,
after which I attended Kha mdo Center Primary School,
which is about five kilometers from Rgyas bzang Village.
"Who will cook for us at the Center School?" I asked
Older Brother.
"Just bring bread. You’ll understand when you get
there," Older Brother said, picking up his schoolbag.
"A bzang, are you ready to go?" one of Older
Brother’s classmates yelled from outside.
"Yeah, wait a moment," Older Brother said, picking
up a flashlight. "My Lama! It’s already six o’clock. We must
arrive by eight," he said.
"OK, let’s go," I said.
Kha mdo Center Primary School is located between
Yak River and Provincial Road 303. Kha mdo Township
Town had twelve households, several shops, and a
monastery in 2000. Transportation and fetching water were
164
very convenient for both Kha mdo Center School and the few
families living in the township town.
Older Brother pointed to the gate, which was twice
the size of our home gate, and said, "This is the gate to
Center School." The big metal gate hung from adobe
gateposts with ’Rong brag County, Kha mdo Center Primary
School’ written in Chinese to the left of the gate.
"A rje, look around the school, I’ll come help you
register at ten o’clock," said Older Brother. Mother was sick
and Father had no time to help me register. Some of my
classmates’ older siblings were helping them, too.
"OK, I’ll wait for you at the flagpole by the gate," I
said.
Three buildings were positioned around a big
playground, marked off with white lines. I walked along the
lines trying to figure out what they meant, but found no
answer.
I wanted to urinate, but a small building with two
doors near the classroom building confused me. I read ’male’
and ’female’ on the doors. I saw people coming and going. I
thought this nice building could not be a toilet and pretended
to play. I took out my squirt gun and approached the door
marked ’male’. I detected the odor of urine, and then
watched a man go inside. A few seconds later, I heard urine
splattering on the ground and then I entered.
•••
"A rje, let’s go. You’ll be in Teacher Qin’s class. We need to
register," said Older Brother.
"Older Brother, is Teacher Qin kind to students?" I
asked.
"I don’t know. I heard he likes some students, but not
those from rural areas," he answered.
Older Brother led me to the three-floor classroom
building made of concrete and steel. Each floor had four
classrooms. Older Brother and I entered the first classroom
on the third floor, where several students were clustered
around the teacher’s desk. The classroom was tidy, bright,
and clean. Four fluorescent lamps hung from the ceiling.
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There was a map of China on the classroom’s back wall.
There were also several basins and a dustbin in the right
corner. A teacher’s desk stood in front of the classroom and
a teacher’s platform was nearby.
"Teacher Qin, please register my brother. May I pay
fifty RMB tomorrow?" Older Brother said.
"Yes, but you should ask your village mates to lend
you fifty RMB now. I must give the registration fee to the
headmaster. A rje won’t get new books today unless the fee
is paid," said Teacher Qin.
Older Brother went outside to find some friends to
borrow the tuition fee from and then returned after a bit with
fifty RMB in his hand and said, "Teacher Qin, I have the
money. May my brother have books?"
"Surely. Tomorrow you should bring a new basin,
and be on time," said Teacher Qin, pointing to me.
"The school fee had increased. Your total fee for this
year is 200 RMB. Last year I paid 150 RMB," Older Brother
said and gave me a piece of bread.
"Where did you get the money?" I asked in surprise.
I knew our village mates had little money.
"From Teacher A mo," said Older Brother.
"Does she trust you to return the money?" I asked.
"Yes. She is very kind to students. She said I can
return the money anytime," Older Brother said.
"My Lama! Teacher A mo is a good person.
Tomorrow we should bring her some fruit," I said
"Right, but Teacher A mo often rejects gifts," said
Older Brother.
"Why are there no notebooks? We paid fifty RMB to
the school," I said.
"I don’t know. Last year, the school gave them to
us," said Older Brother, and then we went to a shop to buy
notebooks.
It was easy to walk to school, but hard not to get sick
with a cold because it was frigid at the school in winter. We
ran to warm up and were soon covered in sweat. There was
no sun until eleven. Broken windows in the classroom were
166
never repaired and there was no heating. The sun radiated
little warmth.
"Older Brother, I want to go home," I whimpered when
he came to get me for lunch.
"This is you first day. What’s wrong with you?" he
asked in surprise.
"There are several boys stronger than me. They often
hit my desk with their fists. They have a relationship with
Teacher Qin, my math teacher," I said.
"Don’t worry, I’ll teach them a lesson," Older Brother
said.
I saw two groups of students sitting around two
buckets in the back of the classroom. I stopped, gripped
Older Brother’s hand tightly, and asked. "What are they
doing?" but he just walked ahead.
"Brother A bzang, come have lunch with us," Nyi ma,
one of Older Brother’s friends, said and stood up.
Two groups of students sat around two buckets of
tea. The school offered two buckets of tea for thirty-five
students from rural areas to share. Older Brother took out a
bowl and bread from home and gave them to me. I said
nothing and decided to return home.
"Mother, I don’t want go to school anymore," I said
tearfully when I got home.
"What’s the matter?" Mother said, feeding the pigs.
"Nobody cooks for us. We only have tea but it’s not
hot," I said.
"Son, you should be strong and learn how to face life
like your older brother. He never lets difficulties defeat him,"
she said.
I nodded my head and wanted to help Mother feed
the pigs, but she refused to let me near the dirty pigsty.
"My dear son, I hope you study hard and find a job in
the city. Don’t become a parent who has no choice but to
work in all kinds of weather. Difficulty can create success,"
she said.
"OK Mother, I’ll study hard," I said and went into the
kitchen to fetch another bucket of pig food.
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•••
A rainstorm struck Older Brother, some schoolmates, and
me a few days later when we were midway to school. Most
schoolmates ran to a big grotto by the path, not wanting to
walk on to school. Villagers said rainstorms could lead to
mud rushing down the mountains.
"What should we do?" I asked Older Brother.
"Just keep going, otherwise we’ll be late for class,"
Older Brother said, removing his jacket, putting it on me, and
then trotting ahead.
"Older Brother, are you OK? I yelled when I saw
him stumble. I held his arm.
He stood and said, "Don’t worry. It was just a little
accident. It won’t kill me." Blood dripped from under his chin.
"Please stop and tend your wound," I begged,
returning his jacket.
"Don’t worry, A rje. Accidents like this are common in
the rainy season," he said smiling. "If you are absent four
times, the school will expel you."
"Yes, that’s right. My brother, Pad ma, was expelled
from school because he was absent four times," Nyi ma said.
Classes had already started when we reached
school. I was afraid of Teacher Qin, who punished us by
beating our palms with a stick. He had also beaten Rdo
rje tshe ring’s back with his fist because he slept during class.
"May I come in?" I asked, standing by the door.
Teacher Qin opened the door and said, "Come in
and stand at the back of the classroom."
"I want to sit. I’m very cold," I pleaded.
"What did you say? Are you the teacher or am I?" he
said, walking over to me. "Why are you late? Don’t you know
when class begins?" he said, gripping my chin.
I told him why I was late.
"OK, you can sit but I’ll note that you were late for
class," he said
I wanted to leave immediately. I had never met such
an unhelpful person as Teacher Qin. If students asked
questions, he said, "I have no time. I already told you in class.
Where were you during class?"
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When we had lunch, I noticed Older Brother and Nyi
ma were wearing big jackets. I asked in surprised, "Whose
jackets are you wearing?"
"They are from Teacher A mo," said Nyi ma happily.
Teacher A mo was a local Tibetan who had married
a Han. She was the kindest person in the school and often
gave us hot tea and candy. She gave medicine to students
who had colds and diarrhea, or helped them see a doctor.
"Teacher A mo saw we were wet, stopped teaching,
and brought her husband’s jackets," said Older Brother.
"How nice your teacher is! I’m still cold," I said.
"Come. We will have lunch with Teacher A mo in her
home. She said to bring you, too," said Older Brother,
holding my hand.
"Is this your younger brother?" Teacher A mo asked,
offering us butter tea. "What would you like to be in the
future?" she asked, giving me a piece of pork.
"I want to be a teacher, but not like Teacher Qin," I
said shyly.
"Don’t be shy. I know the teachers. Some dislike
students from the countryside. Anyway, you should study as
hard as your brother," said Teacher A mo. She was very kind
to students, especially Older Brother, because he studied
hard and got the highest marks in class. He never made
excuses about being absent. Brother never backed down
and if students made trouble, he took revenge, making
serious trouble for them.
"If there are any issues with teachers or students
just remember what your goals are," Teacher A mo said
before we left her home.
"OK! Thanks for the meal," I said.
The Center School had about 320 students. Forty
percent were Tibetan. The schoolmaster was a middle-aged
man named Zhang Tao. He was very special. He never
thought of us as dirty, always treated students equally, often
held meetings for students and teachers, and said,
"Teachers are second parents. Children leave their homes
and come to school. We should treat students as our
children, like Teacher A mo does." Teacher Zhang checked
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the teachers to be sure they were not late or absent from
class. If he saw teachers beating students, pulling their hair,
or making students stand outside the classroom building in
winter, he punished them by reducing their monthly wage by
fifty RMB.
We had a twenty minute break after two classes,
and then had a ten minute exercise program broadcast over
the school loudspeakers. Blo bzang and I didn’t know how to
do the exercises and went to the river to play with our squirt
guns. However, Teacher Qin saw us when he came to fetch
water.
"What are you brats doing here?" he demanded.
"Why did you two escape?"
"We don’t know how to do the exercises," I said,
hiding my squirt gun.
"You troublemakers often make me lose face in front
of other teachers," Teacher Qin said, getting a switch.
It was true that teachers gossiped about teachers
whose students broke rules.
"Sorry, Teacher Qin. I’m embarrassed doing the
exercise when I make mistakes and others laugh at me," I
said.
"Is that a good reason to be absent? Give me your
squirt guns and raise your palms," he said and beat Blo
bzang’s palm.
"What are you doing Teacher Qin? Who said you
could beat students?" Teacher Zhang said, suddenly
appearing.
"These two students often escape from exercises,"
said Teacher Qin in shame.
"I told you that teachers cannot beat students, but
you did anyway. I will reduce your salary fifty RMB for this
month," said Teacher Zhang, who then left.
"You two remember today. One day you will know
what a teacher is," Teacher Qin said, leaving in anger.
I was very sorry we had made Teacher Qin lose fifty
RMB. I wondered if he would take revenge. "What should we
do? We will now get no peace in his class," Blo bzang said.
170
"Don’t worry. We will ask Teacher Zhang to change
the exercise program to our traditional dancing. We must
also apologize to Teacher Qin for our mistake," I said
"OK, but do you have the courage to ask Teacher
Zhang?" Blo bzang said.
"I’ll try," I said. I thought if my request was accepted
then I wanted to see how the students who often laughed at
us would dance.
I did ask Teacher Zhang and later, at a meeting, he
said, "We are living in a minority ethnic area and we should
have a minority character. From tomorrow, rather than
following the daily radio broadcast ten minute exercise
program, we will do traditional Tibetan dancing. Teacher A
mo will be responsible and the time for this program will be
twenty minutes. The teachers will also join the students in
the dance program."
I rapturously yelled, hugged Blo bzang, and said,
"We are adept at traditional dancing, and very soon our
relationship will change with Teacher Qin."
"Yes, we can teach Teacher Qin to dance, and he
won’t make trouble for us," said Blo bzang.
"Afterward, we will study hard and I won’t shame
Older Brother," I said and then happily returned home.
On the way, village students talked about the
meeting. Some students said, "We will show Han students
how great we are."
Older Brother said, "We have already learned the
daily radio broadcast exercise program. Now the exercise
has changed. It seems Teacher Zhang has mental problems
and made this decision even though he doesn’t understand
our culture."
When we met an old man and told him, he said,
"You students are very lucky! Recently nobody cares about
folk culture in the village schools. There are no classes in
which to learn our culture. Villagers are also losing their
language. But today, your teacher made a great decision to
give you children a chance to inherit your own culture."
I felt sad when the old man left.
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When the bell rang the next morning, I was happy
because we would have traditional dance during the exercise
period. Blo bzang and I stood close to students who often
laughed at us during exercise. We wanted to see their
mistakes when they danced. When we moved our left legs,
they moved their right legs, and so on. However, they were
not embarrassed nor did they escape from dance time.
Three weeks later, the Han students could dance as
well as we, although they could not sing the dance songs. I
realized that there was no need to be embarrassed if you did
not know something. After that, I began to talk to Han
students and made Han friends.
One winter morning when Older Brother and I were
preparing breakfast, Nyi ma yelled from outside the window,
"A bzang, today we should stay at home. Father said the
snow is twenty centimeters thick."
Older Brother said, "We must go. This is our last
year in primary school and we must pass the exam,
otherwise we cannot enroll in junior middle school. I don’t
know what Nyi ma is thinking. The snow won’t kill us."
I went outside to investigate. "My Lama, the snow is
over my calves. I think we should stay at home," I said.
Father came out to check the snow and said, "You
should stay at home, my sons. It’s still snowing. I think
nobody will go to school," and then he went back to bed.
"OK, you stay at home and I’ll ask the teachers to
excuse you," said Older Brother and left.
"No, Older Brother, I’ll go with you, otherwise you’ll
be alone," I said and dashed out. Actually, I was worried
about his health.
"Are you sure you’ll come? It’s not a game. When we
reach school, our shoes will be frozen," he said, taking a
stick to use as a walking stick.
"Don’t try to frighten me. I don’t believe our shoes
will be frozen," I said, walking behind Older Brother.
"If you slip, grab my back, otherwise, you might fall
into the canyon," said Older Brother.
"OK. You also be careful," I said. The snow fell
heavier.
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Older Brother's Accident
Older Brother slipped and fell into a stream when we were
halfway to school. He tried to stand but could not. "Older
Brother, are you OK? What about your leg?" I asked. When I
helped him stand, he yelled and fell.
"A rje, go home and ask Father for help. My right leg
hurts. I can’t move it. The snow will not stop soon. Go,
quickly!" he said, clutching his right leg.
"No, I’ll carry you back home. I can do it," I said and
put Older Brother on my back. After three or four steps, I
said, "Don’t worry, Older Brother, soon we’ll be back home."
After about ten minutes, I could not walk further.
"A rje, stop and go ask Father to come help," Brother
said, struggling off my back.
"What’s happening? Are you OK, my dear sons?"
Father said, suddenly appearing.
"Father, Older Brother is injured," I said, wanting to
cry. Father checked Brother’s leg. Brother yelled when he
touched certain areas.
"What should we do Father?" I sobbed.
"A rje, go home and tell your mother that your older
brother is injured, and ask your uncle to come to Rong brag
Hospital," Father said.
"OK, but do you have money to pay for the
hospital?" I asked, taking out five RMB that one of my uncles
had given me three weeks earlier and handing it to Father.
"That’s why you must ask your uncle to come," said
Father, taking the five RMB and putting it his pocket. At that
time, Uncle had no children attending school and was thus
relatively wealthy.
I was panting when I reached home. I wondered if I
should tell Mother first or Uncle. If I told Mother that Older
Brother was injured, I worried she would faint because of her
bad heart. I turned and went to Uncle’s home.
"Uncle, please open the door!" I yelled.
"Come in. You’re very early. Your uncle is still
sleeping," said Aunt.
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"Aunt, please call Uncle. I have something to tell
him," I said.
"A rje, you didn’t go to school?" Uncle asked with
inquiring eyes a bit later.
"Uncle, Older Brother is injured. Father asks you to
help," I said tears in my eyes
"Where are they?" Uncle asked, putting on his robe.
"Rong brag Hospital. Older Brother can’t move his
right leg," I said.
"I’ll come right now," Uncle said, taking his bankbook
and leaving without eating anything.
"Mother, I’m back. Did you have breakfast?" I asked,
entering the bedroom to change clothes.
"Where are your brother and father?" said Mother,
bringing hot, butter tea. Grandmother had worried about us
and asked Father to follow us.
"Mother, Older Brother has diarrhea, so Father took
him to Rong brag Hospital for medicine," I said.
"OK, let’s have breakfast. Please wake up your
younger brother," Mother said and went upstairs to call
Grandmother to breakfast.
"A rje, why did you make up a story and lie to
Mother?" I asked myself in a depressed mood as we had
breakfast.
Grandmother discovered something in my face and
said, "A rje, we have diarrhea medicine at home. Why would
your Father take your brother to hospital?"
"OK. Mother, don’t worry. Older Brother was hurt," I
said looking at Mother.
"My Lama! Which part of his body did he injure?"
Mother asked.
I told Mother and Grandmother what had happened
to Older Brother. Mother cried, I put my arms around her,
and said, "Mother, don’t worry, I’ll go with Grandfather and
ask the bla ma to chant for Older Brother."
Older Brother spent a month in the hospital. During
this time, a new schoolmaster came to our school. He was
about fifty years old and arrogant.
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I told Teacher A mo what had happened to Older
Brother. She said that Older Brother could stay at home
when he left the hospital. However, when Teacher Jining
became schoolmaster two weeks later, he said Older Brother
would be expelled according to the school rules.
I told Teacher A mo this, and asked her to persuade
Teacher Jining to allow Older Brother to resume his study.
"Teacher Jining, my student, A bzang, was injured.
Our previous schoolmaster gave permission for him to stay
at home," said Teacher A mo.
"Teacher A mo, you’re a good teacher, but nobody
informed me about A bzang. This is a school, not a game or
a party. We must comply with school rules," said Teacher
Jining.
"Teacher Jining, you should give A bzang a chance
to continue studying," Teacher A mo said.
"Are you going to teach me how to be a
schoolmaster? You should be careful with your language,"
responded Teacher Jining.
"OK, let me explain," said Teacher A mo, and then
related everything that had happened to Older Brother.
" I only know the school rules," said Teacher Jining.
"You don’t even believe me?" Teacher A mo said in
surprise.
"Teacher A mo, I won’t argue with you. Do what you
need to do," said Teacher Jining and left.
"A rje, don’t worry, I’ll talk to Teacher Jining again,"
said Teacher A mo.
I thanked Teacher A mo, went to my classroom, and
wept.
Older Brother was thus expelled when he was in
grade six. I then had to learn how to be independent and
concentrate on my study. During lunch and break times,
certain students pointed at me and said that I would not pass
the junior middle school entrance exam because my study
results were poor. I never gave up. I was confident my hard
work would enable me to overcome whatever obstacles
presented themselves.
175
Rong brag Junior Middle School
I passed the entrance examination and enrolled in Rong
brag Junior Middle School, the best school in Rong brag
County. It was located southeast of Kha mdo Township
Town, and consisted of four buildings in a quadrangle
creating a playground about 160 meters wide and 180
meters long. The two playgrounds had three ping-pong
tables. The six-floored, concrete and steel classroom
building had six classrooms per floor. A stairway was in the
center of the building and another was on the right side of
the building.
There was no difference between Kha mdo Center
Primary School’s classrooms and the junior middle school’s
classrooms, except that the desks were bigger. The four
buildings included two apartment buildings for teachers. A
student dormitory building was to the left of the classroom
building. The boys’ and girls’ dormitories were identical and
built around two small quadrangles. There was no dining
room. Local Han sold food to students, who took it to their
dormitory rooms to eat. The school did not provide boiled
drinking water.
There were 480 students in Rong brag Junior Middle
School of whom 360 boarded at the school. The others
rented rooms or slept at home. Most students were from Kha
mdo and Dgu rtsong townships. Younger Brother and I lived
in the kitchen of a monastery located near Kha mdo
Township Town. I cooked for Younger Brother, who was
attending Center Primary School.
I studied Chinese, Math, Chemistry, Chinese History,
Geography, and Biology. Students were divided into
advanced and ordinary classes in each grade. There was
only one advanced class each year. Entry into the advanced
class depended on your marks and relationship with the
schoolmaster. English was only taught to the advanced
classes, which I was never part of.
The school had forty-three teachers. Six were
Tibetans from Rong brag, and the others were Han Chinese,
176
mostly from Chengdu. The schoolmaster was a handsome,
middle-aged man.
I sat with a Han student, Chen Dengji, who was nice
and earnestly lent aid when others needed help. We never
argued as other students often did.
I had six teachers. They were Han except for Ga lo
and Rgya mtsho. Teacher Ga lo had a two-year college
degree and taught Biology. He had taught for twenty years in
Rong brag Junior Middle School, and never brought teaching
materials to class because he had memorized the textbook.
Students could pass his tests. Teacher Ga lo talked with
students during the break, and sometimes invited students
who lacked money to eat meals in his home.
I was friendly with my Chinese teacher, Rgya mtsho.
I got the highest mark on the first test in his class, and he
said that I should write essays and I did so. After he checked
them, the school announcer read them over the loudspeaker
at lunchtime. Every week I had an essay read, such as
’Spring Comes to the School’ and ’My Teacher’. Teacher
Rgya mtsho was very happy with my writing. I regret not
continuing to write regularly in Chinese after finishing junior
middle school.
•••
"Where is your math book?" Teacher Hu asked me angrily
one day.
"In my drawer," I responded, taking out my math
book and putting it on my desk.
"Which page are we discussing?" Teacher Hu asked,
looking at my notebook.
I could not find the page the class was discussing,
because I had not been paying attention. "This is math class,
not your writing class," said Teacher Hu and took my
notebook to his desk. "I don’t want to spend class time
talking about this. Come to my room during the break," he
said and continued class.
"You don’t like math class or you don’t like me?"
Teacher Hu asked when I got to his room.
177
"I had a headache last night. I didn’t feel well," I said.
"Is it still painful?" Teacher Hu asked in concern.
"No, I’m getting better. Sorry, Teacher Hu," I said
"I have no further questions. Think about how to
manage your time. I know your math is poor, but you need to
work harder at it. Come see me if you have questions and I’ll
help you," Teacher Hu said, returning my notebook.
I thanked him and left. Afterwards, I worked hard at
math, and Teacher Hu often helped me. Teacher Hu and I
became good friends, and he often visited me in the
monastery kitchen.
The school planned to hold a festival on Teacher’s
Day and our class was told to give a performance. We
discussed what to do. I said I would write an article to thank
the teachers for caring about us.
Teacher Rgya mtsho’s encouragement and help
resulted in much improvement in my Chinese reading and
writing skills. I received fifty RMB from the school as a prize
for the articles I contributed to the school broadcast station.
Because of Teacher Rgya mtsho’s intervention, I had time to
cook for Younger Brother instead of doing morning exercises
at school.
As time passed, I wanted to be class monitor and
speak in front of the class. I felt that I could do something
special and asked Teacher Rgya mtsho to appoint me class
monitor.
"G.yu ’brug, if the class wants to change monitors,
then the students should vote," said Teacher Rgya mtsho.
"The class told me that they want me to be the
monitor," I said.
"OK, we will discuss this during class, but the most
important thing is for you to study hard," said Teacher Rgya
mtsho.
"OK, I’ll study hard, and I’ll think about what you’ve
said," I replied. I wondered why Teacher Rgya mtsho said
studying hard was most important. My Chinese was the best
in the class. "Maybe Teacher Rgya mtsho thinks I am too
proud," I thought.
178
•••
Teacher Wang put the chemistry test mark list on the
teacher’s desk. He shook his head and shouted furiously,
"Idiots! What is this class doing? Why are you here?"
"Teacher Wang how was my test mark?" asked
Chen Dengji, who was excellent at chemistry.
"You are the only one who passed," said Teacher
Wang.
I sat silently at my desk and realized that Teacher
Rgya mtsho wanted me to study every subject, not only
Chinese.
I then understood why I needed to concentrate on
study. I needed time to cook and care for Younger Brother,
and also time to study. I had no time to manage a class, as
did monitors who lived at the school.
I liked political theory class. There was no need to
think. If you memorized the sections the teacher indicated in
the text, you scored ninety percent on the exams. Almost
everyone else disliked political theory class for precisely the
same reason that I liked it. Their study consisted of
memorizing sections of the text for an exam a week ahead of
an exam. I, on the other hand, often asked teachers
questions and sometimes we debated in class.
"Material wealth is easy to acquire but not spiritual
wealth," Teacher Gao said one day in class.
"Why?" I asked.
"Firstly, material wealth is food, a house, a car, and
so on. They are easy to get. Secondly, people are greedy,
and always want more. For example, if you have a bicycle,
you want a motorcycle, and then a car. People living in cities
have an insatiable appetite for wealth," said Teacher Gao.
"Spiritual and material wealth can’t be compared.
When people have material wealth, they obtain spiritual
wealth. The desire for material wealth is never satisfied if you
don’t understand spiritual wealth," I said
"Why do you think so?" Teacher Gao asked.
"Two old men often sit together in my village. One is
content with his life. The other is unhappy, because he thinks
179
his children should give him money to play mahjong with
others who retired from working in Brag mgo," I responded.
"OK, but anyway, we should learn from books, not
your village," said Teacher Gao.
"We should face society’s realities," I said, and thus
our debate ended. I appreciated the fact that he had given
me a chance to express my opinion.
My Chinese history teacher was a tall, strong man,
and loved basketball. People called him Three Points,
because he often helped the school win basketball
competitions. He was a local man whose parents were
classified as Han and Qiang.
"Please give your book to me. You and Chen Dengji
share," Teacher Luo said, taking my book from the desk. He
often did not bring his book, because he was busy playing
basketball.
"Sorry, Teacher, he didn’t bring his book," I said.
"Why are you here?" Teacher Luo asked Chen
Dengji.
"I left my book in my dorm room," Chen Dengji said.
"Stand at the back of the classroom. Next time,
remember to have your book in class," said Teacher Luo.
Students often found excuses to be absent from
Chinese history class. Upper grade students said that they
found the official view of Chinese history and local accounts
very different. I disagreed with the official depiction because
it cast China as innocent in every conflict. About one month
later, I went to sleep or did other work in Chinese history
class and I was pleased if Teacher Luo made me stand in
the back of the classroom.
I had only two geography classes because the
geography teacher was assigned to another school. The
school then gave exercise classes instead of geography
classes.
The third year of junior middle school was the time
for us to decide our future. My family wanted me to take the
exams for both senior middle school and vocational
180
school.103 Students who studied well generally only took the
middle school exam, because it was believed that we would
probably qualify for university and thus be better able to
acquire a lifetime government job.
•••
"A rje, you have a letter!" Uncle yelled from the gate.
"Come in, and have tea," I said, and went to open
the gate.
"Where did you get this letter?" I asked.
"Kha mdo Township Town. Where’s your mother?
Please call her to come here," Uncle said, putting the letter
back in his pocket.
I went to the fields and told Mother that Uncle had a
message. She asked fearfully, "What happened to your
uncle?"
"Nothing. He brought a letter for me and asked you
to come," I said.
On the way home, Mother worried that I was lying.
"What’s the letter about?" she asked.
"I don’t know, but Uncle is very happy," I said.
Mother doubted me and ran home, thinking
something was wrong that I did not know about. When I
arrived, Older Brother was reading the letter and translating.
Everyone seemed delighted.
"You have been accepted by the vocational school.
You didn’t disgrace us," Mother said happily.
I said nothing. I worried that I had not passed the
exam to senior middle school, and that my family lacked the
103
Vocational school generally refers to a three to four year
program in a school that awards degrees for such specialties as
medical practitioners, accountants, computer specialists, and
veterinarians. A job in the specialty is the goal of this
education. Senior middle school requires an additional three
years of study beyond junior middle school with the goal of
passing the university entrance examination.
181
3,040 RMB for the vocational school fee. Younger Brother’s
school fees also had to be paid.
Uncle knew what I was thinking and said, "Dear
Nephew, don’t worry about the fees. Prepare your
belongings. School starts in six days. I have money to pay
your fees."
"Thank you Uncle, but I want to wait another week," I
said.
Kangding Senior Middle School
I was also one of only two students from Kha mdo Township
accepted by Kangding Senior Middle School. I was glad
because it was cheaper than the vocational school. Because
Father had gone away to work, I took my acceptance letter
and visited Uncle to ask for help. I told him everything about
the tuition fee.
"I’ll pay your fee, so don’t worry," he said.
I thanked him and went home to prepare for school.
Mother cried, and said that all our money had been spent on
treating her illness. Older Brother and I consoled Mother and
said that only I from our village had passed the exam to
Kangding Senior Middle School. Mother’s heart disease was
triggered by sadness.
I carried thirty kilograms of dry mushrooms that
Older Brother and I had collected during the holiday to Brag
mgo and sold them for 200 RMB. I used part of the money to
buy a pair of shoes for Younger Brother.
I registered in Kangding Senior Middle School and
paid 1,000 RMB for tuition. I kept 1,000 RMB and said I
would pay 1,000 RMB more in a month. I thought if Father
did not return, then I would have to send money to Younger
Brother, because there was only 200 RMB at home after I
had taken a total of 2,300 RMB from our family funds.
We had military training the first week. I had no
plans to be a soldier and the training surprised me. I phoned
one of Younger Brother’s teachers, who told me Younger
Brother had not come to school.
182
We got new books the second week and also started
an English class. I was the only student in the class who
knew no English. The English teacher was very patient and
taught me the alphabet when she had time.
I made a second phone call to Younger Brother’s
teacher. On my tenth day at Kangding Senior Middle School,
he said that if Younger Brother would fail if he did not come
that week. I then went to the schoolmaster’s office and asked
him to return the money I had paid.
"G.yu ’brug, you are very young, why are you leaving
school? Many students want to join this school," said the
schoolmaster.
When I explained everything to the schoolmaster, he
said, "OK, we can return some money. Your books cost 200
RMB and the school’s administrative fee is 150 RMB, which
means we can only return 650 RMB."
I then returned home, and forced Younger Brother to
attend Rong brag Junior Middle School. I waited for Father’s
return for a month, and then I went to Brag mgo and worked
in a brick factory to earn money for Younger Brother. During
that time, I began studying Chinese law by myself after work.
183
CONCLUSION
This study of Rgyas bzang Village has been informed by G.yu
'brug's lifetime experiences as a native villager and local
accounts. The study includes local languages; subsistence
activities including farming, herding, and livestock raising;
where family members sleep in the home; where, when, and
what people eat; childbirth and child rearing; the construction
and architecture of stone houses; historical accounts related to
stone towers; taboos and customs; folktales; a short story;
daily religious rituals, annual religious rituals, death rituals,
pilgrimage to Mount Dmu rdo - including an account by G.yu
'brug of his own visits - and a remembered account of the
origins of Dmu rdo; marriage; education; a glossary of nonEnglish terms; a Rgyas bzang Tibetan Dialect-English word
list; and an English-Rgyas bzang Tibetan Dialect word list.
Villagers often mention their concern for future
generations. This is confusing. If they are concerned, why do
they destroy the environment to benefit themselves, ensuring
that following generations will have to search for hard-to-find
solutions? For example, from the early 1970s to 1988, Rgyas
bzang villagers cut ninety percent of trees around the village.
This has led today's youth to want to live outside the village
because obtaining firewood is increasingly dangerous and
difficult. There is presently no road to the village that a
vehicle can traverse, but this will certainly change, bringing
great convenience to local people but great loss to local
culture, a loss that is accelerating every year.
184
NON-ENGLISH TERMS
ʔ
ʔ dza bʉ the thab rdo 'hearth stones' or 'hearth' is made up of
three stones, each of which is a ʔ dza bʉ
A
A 'brug
person's name
A bzang 璃諭洛藍遥諭唯 person's name
A cog 璃諭陽隆謡 person's name
Adu
person's name
A mdo 璃諭落裸隆唯 one of the three traditional Tibetan areas
A mo 璃諭落隆唯 person's name
A rje
G.yu 'brug's nickname
A rtse
(1940-1993), G.yu 'brug's paternal grandmother
B
'Ba' thang 蘭洛蘭諭螺遥諭唯, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
'Bar khams 蘭洛利諭要落梨唯 County, Rnga ba Tibetan and Qiang
Autonomous Prefecture
'Brog skad
nomad language
'bru
grain; locally it often refers to barley
'Bru smad
place name
'Bum 'gyur ma Ni
ritual held in the twelfth
lunar month at what is considered to be the best time to
chant oM ma Ni pad+me hU~M and scriptures.
Chanting once during the first fifteen days of this
month is thought to be equivalent to chanting oM ma
Ni pad+me hU~M 100,000 times during other months,
explaining why the twelfth lunar month is called 'bum
'gyur ('bum = 100,000; 'gyur = become).
185
'Bum mtsho
'byung ba
ba
person's name
elements; metal, fire, water, wood, and earth
洛唯
people are referred to by adding ba after their home
location
Badi
Township, Rong brag County
Bai ro tsa na 洛粒諭利隆諭酪諭莱唯 (Vairotsana), an important student of
Padmasambhava and Tibetan translator who lived
during the reign (755-797) of King Khri srong lde
btsan
Baiyu
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
bang ma 洛遥諭落唯 room where meat, butter, lard, and so on are
stored
Banshanmen
Township, Rong brag County
bao gao
'May I enter the classroom?'
Batang
, 'Ba' thang 蘭洛蘭諭螺遥諭唯 County, Dkar mdzes
Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture
Bawang
Township, Rong brag County
Bdun
ritual held every seven days for forty-nine days
after a death
Beijing
China's capital city
Bian'er
Township, Rong brag County
Bka' brgyud
唯 a Tibetan Buddhist sect
Bkra shis
person's name
bla 唯 spirit, soul
Bla ri
Township, Rong brag County
Blo bzang
person's name
Bon dga' yul
Village, Brag mgo Township, Rong
brag County
Bod skad
Tibetan language
186
Brag 'go
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Brag mgo
Town, the county seat of Rong brag County
Brag steng
Township, Rong brag County
Brag steng sgom pa
唯 a sgom pa from Brag steng
Township, Rong brag County
Brag tse
唯 Shuizi yi cun (Shuizi Number One Village)
Brgyad zur
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan
Autonomous Prefecture
bsang 洛梨遥諭唯 incense with the main ingredients being juniper
and wheat flour that is burned every morning; a
fumigation/ purification ritual
bsang khang 洛梨遥諭要遥諭唯 place where bsang/ incense is burned
bsang skor
a bla ma, monk, or sgom pa chants bsang
scriptures and burns juniper needles to purify a room,
clothing, prayer wheels, and prayer flags
bsen mo 洛梨硫莱諭落隆唯 a living woman who becomes a bsen mo might
be seen in the village, though she is sleeping at home;
neither she nor her family members are aware of her
nocturnal activity outside the home
Btsan lha
County, Rnga ba Tibetan and Qiang
Autonomous Prefecture
bya khyung khyung
locally understood to mean
'deity bird', it is believed to eat snakes. An image of a
bya khyung khyung may be placed above the gate to
the home to repel evil.
bya rgod
vulture; large bird with keen eyesight that
catches and eats birds
byad
dangerous soul of a dead person that leaves the corpse
and visits the village
187
byang 'khor
'khor
唯
open room about the size of the mar
C
cangku
village storehouse
Changna
Village, Kha mdo Township
Chen Dengji
person's name
Chengdu
capital of Sichuan Province
chu zhing 諭濫葎遥諭唯 irrigated fields
cun
village
D
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
'Dab pa 蘭裸洛諭頼唯
Prefecture
'Das mchod 蘭裸梨諭落養隆裸唯 ritual held three years after a person's
death in the area of study; offering to the deceased
'do thos 蘭裸隆諭螺隆梨唯 a piece of slotted wood one meter long
leading rainwater khang phyi 'outside the house'
'Dre mo spun bdun
a female ghost leader
Dama
Village, Kha mdo Township
Danba
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Dandong
Township, Rong brag County
Daocheng
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Daofu
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Dar rtse mdo
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan
Autonomous Prefecture
dar shing 裸利諭履葎遥諭唯 straight juniper poles (two meters long, with
a diameter of five to six centimeters) with ma Ni flags
attached that are placed around a grave
188
dazhuan
two or three year college program leading to an
associate degree
Dege
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Derong
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Dge bshes rtsa
Township, Rong brag County
Dge lugs
a Tibetan religious sect (Yellow Sect)
Dgu rtsong
Township, Rong brag County
Dkar mdzes
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan
Autonomous Prefecture
Dkar mo 裸蓉利諭落隆唯 person's name
Dmyal ba
唯 Purgatory, Hell
Dmu rdo
local hero, deity, and mountain in Rgyal rong
Donggu
Township, Rong brag County
Dpa' bo 裸頼蘭諭洛隆唯 Township, Rong brag County
Dpal yul
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Dujiangyan
county level city within the
administrative district of Chengdu City, Sichuan
Province
Dwags po
ancient Tibetan army regiment; a language;
Baima
dzwa similar to a bomb
E
Ergong
a language that locals consider to be a Tibetan
dialect
G
'gro lta pa
visitors who bring a small amount of
money (five RMB minimum in 2010) or a piece of
189
pork and bread to the deceased's home on the third day
after the death
'grul khang
small, two-floored building attached to
the ma khyim
G.yang 'bod 謡覧遥諭蘭洛隆裸唯 a ritual in which both sgom pa and a
bla ma chant for families to bring wealth to the family
G.yang skor
ritual during which Bon sgom pa chant
to bring wealth to a family, whose members circle
smoldering bsang and call "O g.yang shog!" to bring
wealth
G.yang mtsho
person's name
G.yu 'brug
person's name; Yongzhong
g.yung drung
the Bon swastika; this term is used
locally for a home with a multi-floored extension made
to the main houses by Bon families. The structure,
after the addition, is thought to resemble a Bon
swastika.
Ga lo 謡諭吏隆唯 person's name
Ganzi
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Gao surname
gdung phra
a wood pole about thirty-five centimeters
in diameter
gdugs
juniper pole about three meters long, seven
centimeters in diameter, and with several twigs on top
that is set behind the grave to the right. White, blue,
and red cloths are tied to the pole. The IPA for this
term is dʊ .
Ge sar 謡硫諭梨利唯 a Tibetan hero who ruled the legendary
Kingdom of Gling
190
Geshizha
Township, Rong brag County
Gezong
Township, Rong brag County;
Village,
Kha mdo Township
glang ma shing
each floor of a home is made up of
thousands of glang ma shing 'willow sticks', each of
which is about three meters long and has a diameter of
about two centimeters. Dried grass is used to fill the
spaces between the sticks.
Gnyan zhing 謡欲莱諭濫葎遥諭唯 a sacred forest where cutting trees and
other plants is forbidden
Gong bo rong 謡隆遥諭洛隆諭利隆遥諭唯 location also known as Nyingchi;
locals use the term 'Gong bo rong' to refer collectively
to Nying khri, Kong po rgya mda', and Sman gling
gor khang 謡隆利諭要遥諭唯 the main room of a village home with the
thab rdo in the center where family members cook, eat,
sit, and sleep
gor stod 謡隆利諭
place in the gor khang usually reserved for
elders
Gser shul
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Gser thar 謡梨硫利諭螺利唯 County and Monastery, Dkar mdzes
Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture
gtor ma 謡羅隆利諭落唯 an offering to evil spirits
H
Han
Han Chinese
Heishui
County, Rnga ba Tibetan and Qiang
Autonomous Prefecture
Hu
surname
Huang
surname
191
J
Jinchuan
County, Rnga ba Tibetan and Qiang
Autonomous Prefecture
Jining
person's name
Jiulong
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Jizong
Village, Kha mdo Township
K
'Khyags 'grig
festival held on the eleventh day of
the second lunar month enjoyed by those aged about
seven to sixteen (known as 'khyags 'grig mi).
Unmarried youths bring auspiciousness because Tsa ri
spun gsum Mountain Deities are fond of children.
'khyags 'grig 'du mi
'Khyags 'grig ritual
participants
Kangding
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Keli
Village, Kha mdo Township
kha btags 要諭洛羅謡梨唯 ceremonial scarf offered to show respect
Kha mdo 要諭落裸隆唯 Township, Rong brag County; Shuizi er cun
(Shuizi Number Two Village)
Khams 要落梨唯 a Tibetan dialect spoken in Dkar mdzes Tibetan
Autonomous Prefecture with smaller groups of
speakers in Qinghai, Gansu and Yunnan provinces, and
the Tibet Autonomous Region
khang 'dabs 要遥諭蘭裸洛梨唯 the edges of the khang che
khang che 要遥諭養硫唯 floor between the mar 'khor and byang 'khor
khang phyi
outside the house
Kho lo 要隆諭吏隆唯 Village, Kha mdo Township
192
Khri srong lde btsan
唯 the second of the Three
Dharma Kings of Tibet who ruled 755 to
797 or 804 CE, and was instrumental in introducing
Buddhism to Tibet
Khrims ra
Village, Kha mdo Township
Khro chu
County, Rnga ba Tibetan and Qiang
Autonomous Prefecture
Khyab pa lag ring
according to local accounts,
Ston pa gshen rab's efforts to propagate Bon were
obstructed by the demon, Khyab pa lag ring, who had
come from another place and was the worst demon on
earth. Ston pa gshen rab asked Khyab pa lag ring to
leave and become a good creature. Khyab pa lag ring
only wished to destroy his religious work and defeat
him but, eventually, the demon was converted and
became Ston pa gshen rab's disciple.
khyi mchod
'offering to the dog' local term for barley
khur tshe
one's closest relatives within the village who
help during funerals and weddings
klu water deity, naga
Kong po rgya mda'
唯 location
Kunming
capital of Yunnan Province
L
la btsas 吏諭洛酪梨唯 local meanings include the family la btsas and
sacred mountain peaks
La rgyab
Village, Kha mdo Township
laoshi hao
a greeting students make to teachers that
literally means 'teacher good'
Lcags zam kha
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan
Autonomous Prefecture
193
lha khang
shrine room
lha mkhar
a small room on the fourth floor of a home
where villagers dry grain in the sun and then store it in
the same room
Lha mo
person's name
Lha sa
the capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region and
also used locally to refer metonymically to said region.
Lha sa ba
Lha sa people
lha shing
a sacred wood that is thought to be the
resting place of the Buddha, Bon deities, and local
deities
Li rdzong
諭唯 County, Rnga ba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous Prefecture
Li thang 吏葎諭螺遥諭唯 County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Liangshan Yi
Autonomous Prefecture, Sichuan
Province
Lixian
County, Rnga ba Tibetan and Qiang Autonomous
Prefecture
ltag shing
two wood poles that hold firewood above
the entrance to the gor khang, on the second floor of
the home
Luding
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Luhuo
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Luo
surname
M
mar 'khor 落利諭蘭要隆利唯 a room where corn, dry grass, barley,
wheat, and tools are stored
194
ma khyim
'mother house'; five-floored, stone house
ma Ni 'khor khang 落諭淀葎諭蘭要隆利諭要遥諭唯 prayer wheel room
ma skor po
people who accompany the sgom pa when
they visit graves on a specified date
Ma'erkang
County, Rnga ba Tibetan and Qiang
Autonomous Prefecture
mchod g.yog 落養隆裸諭謡覧隆謡 person who assists sgom pa
mchod khang 落養隆裸諭要遥諭唯 individual families have a mchod
khang in their homes, which is a separate room where
Buddha images are kept. Seven copper containers of
sacred water are offered here every morning, along
with three lit incense sticks in front of the religious
images. A butter lamp is also lit and prostrations are
made in the hope that all will go well. Menstruating
women never enter the mchod khang. An image of
Dmu rdo is kept in the shrine.
mchod pa 落養隆裸諭頼唯 images made by bla ma and sgom pa when
they chant. Mchod pa made with rtsam pa, wheat flour,
corn flour, buckwheat, or mud may be used to make
stupa-shaped statues. Generally, mchod pa made with
corn meal or buckwheat flour are only offered to evil
beings. Mchod pa made of rtsam pa and wheat flour
with pieces of butter on top are burned in the family
bsang khang. Mchod pa made of mud may be placed
by the family bsang khang or offered to evil spirits.
Mchod pa are a type of gtor ma.
Mchod rten rang byon
莱唯 self-arisen stupa in
Dpa' bo Township, Rong brag County
Mchod rten sgang
諭唯 Township, Rong brag County
mda' dar 落裸蘭諭裸利唯 talisman
195
Mda' mdo 落裸蘭諭落裸隆唯 Township, Rong brag County
mdzo
cross between a yak (mother) and bull
mdzod sgo
in the gor khang, there is a one and a half
meter long, one meter wide, and three centimeters
thick wood cover over a hole in the floor by the wall
near the rogs nyal khang entrance. Mdzod sgo refers to
the cover.
Mgo gsum
has the heads of an ox, pig, and wolf,
hence the name 'Three Heads'. Locals believe it to be
the most powerful evil deity. Its image is made by
sgom pa when families have unexpected troubles, such
as a sudden death and when livestock become sick.
Mgon po 落謡隆莱諭頼隆唯 person's name
Mi nyag 落葎諭欲謡 locals consider this language to be a Tibetan
dialect
mkhar bang 落要利諭洛遥諭唯 a room on the second floor; directly
across from the skas rtsa is the mkhar bang, a room
where potatoes and turnips are stored
Mkhas pa bkra shis 落要梨諭
person's name
Mo sdod
Shuizi san cun (Shuizi Number Three Village)
Mtsho mo
person's name
mthu sgrub mi
洛諭落葎唯 meditators who lived in caves or
stone towers
mtshams lhag
shingle stones put around khang 'dabs
to protect the 'dung phra and nt!『ə kə ̃ from rainwater
mu
one mu = 0.0667 hectares
N
Najiao
Village, Kha mdo Township
nang ra 莱遥諭利唯 inner stable on the first floor
Ngag dbang phun tshogs
person's name
196
Nibushigu
person's name
Niexia
Township, Rong brag County
Nor bu bzang po
person's name; well-known
figure in many Tibetan cultural areas
Nor lha
syncretic figure combining elements of the
Indian deity of wealth, Dzam bha la, and native
wealth-bestowing zoomorphic spirits; a deity of wealth
who dwells on a lotus and accumulates jewels
Nor bu phug
sacred site in Rong brag County
nt!『ə kə ̃ crossbeam about six meters long with a diameter of
twenty centimeters
Nyag chu kha
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture
Nyag rong 欲謡諭利隆遥諭唯 County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Nyi ma 欲葎諭落唯 person's name
Nyin dkar 欲葎莱諭裸蓉利唯 Township, Rong brag County
Nying khri
location
nyog nyog 欲隆謡諭欲隆謡 lard, liquid from boiling turnip leaves, salt,
chili powder, and prickly ash are mixed and put in a
bowl. Bread is dipped in this and eaten.
O
'o zom 蘭隆諭藍隆落唯 milk bucket
o g.yang shog 璃隆諭謡覧遥諭履隆謡 a call made to bring prosperity
oM ma Ni pad+me hU~M
a common six
syllable mantra associated with Avalokiteshvara, the
Bodhisattva of Compassion
oM ma tri mu ye sa le 'du
Bon practitioners'
chant
197
P
Pad ma 頼裸諭落唯 person's name
Pad+ma 'byung gnas
唯 important figure in the
dissemination of Buddhism in Tibetan areas;
Padmasambhava
Panzhihua
prefecture-level city in Sichuan Province
Peng Jianzhong
person's name
phra
five same-sized wood boxes, each of which is for a
particular grain - wheat, rice, corn, barley, and
buckwheat. Beans are placed in the buckwheat box.
The boxes are linked together and people sit or sleep
on them.
phyag 'tshal
prostration
Phyag phreng
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture
phyi ra
sty
pinyin
Romanized Chinese writing system
Po rtsa
Hamlet, Rgyas bzang Village
Q
Qiang
an officially recognized ethnic group in China that
local Tibetans consider to be Tibetan
Qin
surname
Qing Dynasty (1644-1912)
Qinghai
Province
R
Ra mchod 利諭落養隆裸唯 a ritual during which a goat is slaughtered
rdo dkar
唯 a white stone as large as ten fists placed in
the center of each field as an offering to Sa bdag; an
honorific is zhing dkyil rtsa dkar
Rdo gor
person's name
198
Rdo rgyag
a mountain
Rdo rje
person's name
red 利硫裸唯 suffix added after a location indicating where a person
is from
rgya gling
horns
Rgya mtsho
person's name
Rgya mtsho lha mo
person's name
Rgya ngan
pejorative term for 'Han Chinese'
Rgyal mo tsha ba rong
'Rgyal rong' is a
contraction of 'Rgyal mo tsha ba rong'. For an
overview of related historical, linguistic, and
geographical features see http://places.thlib.org/
features/23680/descriptions/1288 and http://places.
thlib.org/features/15376/descriptions/ 1220.
Rgyal rong
short name for Rgyal mo tsha ba rong
Rgyas bzang
Village, Kha mdo Township
Rgyas bzang mchod rten
stupa in the center
of Rgyas bzang Village established in 2006
rlung rta
square pieces of paper about six centimeters
square imprinted with a horse in the center bearing a
wish-fulfilling gem and a tiger, lion, garuda, and
dragon in the four corners. In the local context, the
rlung rta refers to pieces of white, green, and red cloth
(about twenty centimeters long and twelve centimeters
wide) with images from wood blocks of a horse in the
center bearing a wish-fulfilling gem. Scriptures appear
around the horse.
RMB (Renminbi)
unit of Chinese currency
Rnying ma 遥諭落唯 Tibetan Buddhist sect also known as the
Red Hat Sect; the oldest sect
199
Rnying ma pa
落諭頼唯 Rnying ma follower
rogs nyal khang 利隆謡梨諭欲吏諭要遥諭唯 room for a newly married
couple. When their youngest child is three years old,
they leave this room for their children, and then sleep
in the gor khang.
Rong brag
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Rong skad
farmer's language
Rta'u
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
rtsam pa
roasted barley or roasted wheat flour
Rwa rtse
a temple
S
Sa bdag 梨諭洛裸謡 a ritual; Land Deity
Sa skya
唯 Tibetan Buddhist sect
Sde dge
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Sde rong
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Seda
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Sgang bzang
Village, Kha mdo Township
Sgang bzang rgyas bzang
name for Sgang
bzang and Rgyas bzang villages
Sgang bzang stobs ldan
唯 person's name
sgo dar
pole three to four meters long with a two meter
length of cloth that features scriptures that is inserted
in a hole about five centimeters in diameter in a stone
on either side of the gate to the home
Sgo lha
Door Deity
200
sgom pa
in the local context, this refers to a yogin,
meditator, ascetic, practitioner of Tibetan religion who
may marry and who chants for local villagers. In 2010,
there were six sgom pa in Rgyas bzang Village. Three
were Bon and three were Rnying ma sgom pa.
Historically, these were often lineage positions.
Sgom pa Blo bzang
locals put sgom pa before a
yogin, meditator, ascetic, practitioner's name to show
respect and, at times, to indicate the area the sgom pa
is from
Sgrub lha
a ritual
ShAkya tshe ring
person's name
Shanghai
City
shechang
community square
shi
yes
Shiqu
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Shuizi
Township, Rong brag County
Shuizi er cun
Shuizi Number Two Village
Shuizi san cun
Shuizi Number Three Village
Shuizi yi cun
Shuizi Number One Village
Sichuan
Province
skad
language, voice, sound
Skad cha
唯 language, dialect, words, conversation, talk
Skal bzang dbang 'dul
person's name
skam zhing
fields that are not irrigated
skas rtsa
a room where tools are kept directly in front
after entering the gate to the home compound. To the
left in this room are ladders or stairs leading to the
201
second floor. To the right of the skas rtsa is the gor
khang.
skor sbrang
candy brought from pilgrimage and given
to family members
Skyabs 'gro
taking refuge (in the Buddha, Dharma,
and Sangha); a short scripture often chanted before
starting longer periods of chanting Buddhist texts
skyabs su mchi'o
take refuge
skyur skam
唯 pickled turnip leaves are put in hot water,
the water is then removed, and the leaves are formed
into round cakes. This is done in winter. Freezing is
believed to improve the taste.
Sman gling
location
Smyung gnas 'dug
religious fasting ritual ('dug
is used in the local context)
Sog po 梨隆謡諭頼隆唯 Township, Rong brag County; Mongolian
spa ras
embroidered pieces of thick cloth women use to
cover their heads
spal par
pottery vessel that holds about .75 kg of liquor
and used during the New Year period, marriage rituals,
and dancing parties
spang rdog
made using about seven kilograms of dugup sod and thirteen eye-sized white stones; it is put on
rooftops to the left of the bsang khang
Spang sgang
唯 mountaintop meadow
spos me mchod
唯 burning juniper needles, wheat
flour, and a piece of brick tea in front of graves in the
morning and evening
Spro snang
Township, Rong brag County
202
srung mdud
strings that bla ma and sgom pa
empower and give those who ask to prevent sickness
Stag gsum
唯 Village, Dge bshes rtsa Township
Stag mo
Village, Kha mdo Township
Stobs ldan
唯 person's name
Ston pa gshen rab 諭頼諭謡履硫莱諭利洛唯 the founder of Bon
Stong dgu
Township, Rong brag County
Suopo
Township, Rong brag County
T
Taipingqiao
Township, Rong brag County
Tang Dynasty (618-907)
thab kha 螺洛諭要唯 place on the upper hearthstone for offering
food to the Hearth Deity
thab rdo
hearth stone
Thug don
唯 person's name
Tsa ri spun gsum
Three Brother Mountain
Deities
tsan dan 酪莱諭裸莱唯 a conifer with a low burning point used for
cremation fires
tsha gdan 乱諭謡裸莱唯 woven goat hair fabric
Tshe dbang g.yung drung
person's name
Tshe ring
person's name
Tshe ring bkra shis
person's name
Tshe ring rdo rje
person's name
tshogs
Bon and Rnying ma sgom pa put candy, pure water,
walnuts, apples, pears, wheat liquor, and eyeball-sized
balls of rtsam pa mixed with sugar and water in a plate
that is placed on a table when they chant to, it is believed,
help prevent illness
203
tshogs shing ka ba
a column by the stone water
reservoir on the second floor on which fresh butter is
smeared
Tshong dpon nor bu bzang po
唯 person's
name; see Nor bu bzang po
V
və nə (equivalent to ba 洛唯) people are referred to by adding
və nə after their home location
W
wa thog 欄諭螺隆謡 slotted wood used to drain water from the house
roof
Wang Hua
person's name
Wu Xiaodong
person's name
X
Xiangcheng
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Xiaojin
County, Rnga ba Tibetan and Qiang
Autonomous Prefecture
Xichang
capital city of Liangshan Yi Autonomous
Prefecture, Sichuan Province
Xinlong
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Y
Ya'an
a prefecture-level city in Sichuan Province
Yajiang
County, Dkar mdzes Tibetan Autonomous
Prefecture
Yi
officially recognized ethnic group in China
Yongzhong
person's name, G.yu 'brug
Yuezha
Township, Rong brag County
Yunnan
Province
204
Z
Zas lha 藍
Food Deity
Zhang Mingxiang
person's name
Zhang Tao
person's name
Zhanggu
Town, the seat of Rong brag County
Zhe dgu
a ritual held on the forty-ninth day after a
person's death
zhen
town
zhing dkyil rtsa dkar
white stone as big as ten
fists located in the center of the fields; an honorific
term for rdo dkar
Zhonglu
Township, Rong brag County
Zhu Rongji
(b. 1928) mayor and Communist Party
chief of Shanghai from 1987-1991, and Vice-Premier
and Premier of China from 1998-2003
205
RGYAS BZANG TIBETAN DIALECTENGLISH WORD LIST104
IPA
English
p
p
p .t
p .w
p .w p
pu.p
pu. i
p
p
p
p
p
a.bæ
a. ja
ai
.ts
i
ba.be
ba.be.ku
ba.la
b
b .bæ.m .si
b .m
b .ri
b .b
to hide it
stick of wood
bubble
to bubble
to breathe
sigh, to sigh
pa
brother (same father, different mothers)
after (time)
to fly
bottle
to push
b
skin
to peel
between
hair (of skin)
siblings
daughter, knee
man, male, son
shoulder
104
This glossary incorporates data elicited for the Nagano
rGyalrongic survey in 2009. The full survey data will be
published in 2012 as International Field Survey of the
rGyalrongic Languages supported by the JSPS Grant for
Overseas Field Research (2009-2012) #A-21251007 on a
website hosted by the National Museum of Ethnology in
Osaka. The Museum will also print an accompanying volume.
206
b .b h
b .to
bu.p
tã. i
tæ
tæ.ka .m .la
tah
tæ
tai.t i
ta
ta .sa
tau. .si
t
t
t .b h
t .b
t .bu
t .no
t .red.næ
t .t
t .w
t .w .t e
t a . g
t mi
t
t .b
t .lu
t .tu
t lu
t n
to
tu
tu
arm
calf (baby yak, cow, etc)
hole
t
today
because; seven; to show it
bad
to give, to hand
to fold
one
also
to speak
to be hurt
to tie it
he, him; that
smoke
hair (pubic, female)
penis; thumb; vagina
there
they, them (plural)
umbilical cord
belly
to get hungry
to meet
woman, female
short; to hit
empty
to dig (a hole)
heel (of the foot)
milk
nose
and; to untie it
thick (and flat)
narrow
207
tu .t u. æ
to kick
ta
ta
t æ. u- o
t au
t e.b h
t .w
t
t o .t o
tu
dã.ndzu
dã.nku
dah
da
d
d
d .g
d .lu
de.w
d a wah
d .
du
du .so
a
ah k
au
.l
.lo
.o
.t u
w
to live
but
to fight, to argue, to quarrel
rope
ashes
low; to drink, to suck
plain
high
d
end of a month
beginning of a month
to stop
grass; to meet, to crush; yet, still
arrow
to lick
stone
wheel
dust
month
face
blunt (not sharp)
yesterday
to have
summer
lard
to make
left
to stand up, to rise
to chase
soon
louse
208
o
æ.l
ka
kã.ma
ka.ma
ka.no
ka.pu
ka.si
ka.t
ka.t
ka.ts ue
kæ.p u.t
kai
kaka.t
ka
kau
kauh
k
k .b
k .dzi
k .p
k . au
k .t
k h
k k .i
k n ku
ko
ko .b
ko .ku
ko .sau
ku
k
kue.ma
.du
light
branch (of a tree)
k
voice
minute (time)
star
where
white
when
language
which
direction
uvula
to touch
some
to feel thirsty; to wither
to cover it (up)
to get tired
to carry on the back; to hold
thread; waist
clothing
leg
under
on
to steal
round
illness
full
to limp
toe
sole (bottom of the foot)
to carve
to bend it
Adam's apple
209
ku dzu
ku ma
kuh .t au
k
k
k
k
k
k
k
a.t
a.w
au
ax
t
.t .m .
.ng
gæ.x
ga
g
g h
g
g .b
g .dzau
g .dzau.s
g .ka
ge.t
g .t
go .dz
go .ku.nts .gi
gu
a. æ
a.t
a.t .mæsi
a.t i
a.t i
a.t i
a.wah
to run away
throat
back (behind)
ka
saliva
snow
needle
other
bitter (taste)
dumb (can't speak)
to take off
g
winter
to dry
to laugh
to like it
to walk
foot
outside
to get out
egg
back (of the body)
to rise
to fill
toenail
thin
sister
now
up to, till
sneeze
belch
to sneeze
father
210
a ma
ka
ka.bu.bi
ka. u
t .
tsa.t
tsæ
tsæ.l
tsau
ts
ts .ma
ts .t u
tso .ma
tso .ma .dz
tso .ma .z
tso .t
tsu
tsub
ts
ts
ts
ts
ts
ts
ts
ts
ts
ts
ts
ts
ts
ts
ah .t e
ai
e
.ke.t
. t e
.p e
h
i
i.t i
u
u.ts
mother
breast
chalk
can (metal container, e.g., can of food)
a minute ago
tsa
beak
phlegm (thick mucus)
calf (lower leg)
to sew
to split
rib; sand; body dirt (that builds up over time)
number
clean
to clean
to dust (to clean)
river
to cook by boiling
wall
ts
sweat
to stab
hot; salt
ripe
to open
color; late
half
evening
animal (livestock)
to wipe
wheat flour
fat (e.g., fat meat)
lake
wrist
211
ts æ.r
t a
t a .tsu
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
æ
æ
æ.to
ah
a
a .t
e
.ba
.bah
.b
.bu.t au
.ku
. t .j
. t .t h .ja
.t æ. æ
.t
.x
h
i
u
a.t a
a.t a .kei
æ.
ah .b
a
midnight
t
to tread on it
to build (a house)
t
urine
to clothe
to urinate
to cut
noise; to shout
roof
to grow up
to play
ten; you
to defecate
feces
hair (pubic, male)
meeting
mouth
how?
how many?
you (plural)
what?
shore
dog
cheese (dried cheese)
tongue
to vomit
t a
ice
to freeze
chest
rain
house
212
t
t
t
s
t . t i.dzau
t .be
t .b
t .k
t .ma .dzo
t .tu
t
u
t i.b
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
t
æ
ah
ai.si
au
e
.ku
.m
.su
.t a
.t u
i
i.ku
o
o .le
o .
o .t o
u.lo
u .ma ma
uh
can (able to)
water
watch (timepiece)
to swim
lips
moustache
yogurt
to spit
to get wet
wave (of water)
bird
ta
fat (e.g., fat man)
to feel itchy
shadow
six
afraid; strong
boat; glad; to ask; to wash (it)
to turn
elbow
cutting edge
to dance
knife
village
snake
forehead
to extinguish; to swell
right
fly (insect)
straight
to get angry
ant
warm (of weather)
213
t a
t a
t e
t
t .k i
t .tsau
t u
dza
dz .b
dzo
dzo .t ã
dzu
mæ
mæ b
mæ.k
mæ. i
mah .bæ
mah .bu
mah .tu
mai
mau. au
mb .lu
mb .ts i
m
m .d æ
m .la
m .la .m
me.la .m z
m .ng
me. t
m .æ
me.sauh
to find it
blood
to be born
child
vein (blood vein)
little; to scratch
dz
big
root
to throw
wide
to run
m
not
beard
jaw
chin
brother (same mother, different fathers)
red
naked
butter
dark (time)
worm
mosquito
husband
to shoot (a gun)
dream
to dream
to destroy it
to go down, to step down
spear
young
shallow
214
m .sau
m .t
me.t ai
m h
m
m .b
m .b h
m .l
m . e
m .tauh
m .t h
mi
mo
mo . .ma
mp h
mp
na.bu
na.l
na. u
na.ma
na. æ
na.t e
næma.kats
nah t u
nah .njo
na
na .t .ka
na .t .xa.h
na su
nau
nd
n
n .l .
soft (pliable)
to fall
weak
person, man in general
eye; name; to swallow (food or drink)
eyebrow
eyelid
to blink (the eye); blind
pupil (eye)
eyeball
tear (from crying)
fire
many, much
to be alive
to call
to fly
n
nostril
earlobe
eardrum
wife
deaf
ear wax
times
ear
moon
to be painful, to feel pain; sky
everyday
often
to cure
to sink
to sit, to stay
this
to tear
215
n .no
n .w
n h
ng
ngi
no .t
nt au
nt .be
nt e
nt a
ntse
nt u
ah .t h
a
a .
a . t
e
here
nipple (of a breast)
to cry, to weep
nine; to flow; to go
to move
guts, internal organs, viscera
to seek
foreskin
to float
to bite
to creep
thunder
e.bu
.k
.la
.ma
.ma
.
.su
i.b
æ.la
neck
fish; with
together
to fish
pus
good
two
black (color)
both
correct
day
sun
twenty
to rest
old
daytime
b .tu
dau.bau
dz
dz .w
flower
feather
heavy
flea
216
i
ah
ai
a
a . ka
da.k o
dza.ndz
dzah
dzau
dz
dze
dz .t
dzu.ma
dzu
dz e
.ma .bæ.t
.mbu
.m uh
.t ænæ
a a .y
au.
i
g .be
g .b
gu
g
tau.bau
t h
t
t
t u .si
te. i
heart
I, me
sweet
five; sky; to smell
always
bow (as in bow and arrow)
same
eight
to look at
rainbow
quick
semen
tail
swift
fast
to listen to
brother (same mother and father)
green
blue
we, us (plural)
to smell
snot
soft (to the touch)
scalp
hair (of the head)
door
skull
wing
to chew
to be cold
to seize
early
far
217
t
t a .b
t a .li
ta .
tse
ts
ts .ki
ts æ
ts æ.la
ts æ.to
to . æ
za.r .t au
zi
r x
ro .bu
au
.b
.lo
h
i
i
o
o . e
u .b
sa.b
sa.
sæ.m
sæ.t au.
sæ u
sah
sharp
hair (of the face)
earth (world)
cheek (of the face)
pretty, cute
slow
finger
fart
night
to fart
dirty; to dirty
afternoon
to fight
r
valley
anus
to burn
bone
forest
four
long
rotten
to come out
buttocks
oneself
to menstruate
s
new
flesh
claw; fingernail
to claw
cuticle
to kill
218
sah .b
sah .gæ
sah si
sa
sa .n .to
sa .t
sau
s
s h
s h .t
s bu
s h
s
s u
si.t ue
so
su
su .ma
susu
z
a
a
a .la
.b
e
.m
.nje
h.t
o
o .
u. u
u
bridge
seed
to mix it
three
to think
mind
cough; to cough; deep; thin (and flat)
earth (dirt); hard
to eat
food, food stuff
yellow
who?
to wait
bark (of a dog)
fruit
bright (e.g., bright light); light; pot
teeth (adult); tooth
stem
to wave
z
to repair
meat; to say
tasty
sword
tomorrow
to sleep; to die; to melt
strength
morning
cream
to chase
to hunt
to milk
to come
219
to forget
i .be
i .p o
to put it
bark (tree)
trunk
to release
x
xæ.lah
xæ.l
x .he
x .xi
previously
front
hiccup
yawn
e.bæ
blackboard
au
au.t u
u.be
.b .ts
to teach
pupil (young student)
testicle
to rub hands together
god
læ.t u
lælæ
lah .bæ
la
la .t
l
le.b
l .bu
l .k
le. xæ
l .p h
l
dumb (stupid)
to sing
fog
road; to take
all
mountain
hand
body
to work
palm (of the hand)
leaf
220
l n.mah
l .mah .
lo
lo .b h
lo .l g h
lo .n
lu
lue .mah
wind
to blow
in
smell
to enter
inside
year
lightning
w .tsi
w h
w
finger (little finger)
horn
221
ENGLISH-RGYAS BZANG TIBETAN
DIALECT WORD LIST
English
IPA
a
Adam's apple
after (time)
afternoon
to be alive
all
also
always
and
animal (livestock)
ant
anus
arm
arrow
ashes
to ask
kue.ma
p a. ja
za.r .t au
mo . .ma
la .t
ta
a . ka
to
ts .p e
t u .ma ma
ro .bu
b .b h
d
t .w
t
b
back (behind)
back (of the body)
bad
bark (of a dog)
bark (tree)
beak
beard
because; to show it; to fold; seven
beginning of a month
belch
belly
between
big
222
kuh .t au
ge.t
tæ.ka .m .la
s u
i .be
tsa.t
mæ b
tæ
dã.nku
a.t i
t .w
ba.la
dza
bird
to bite
bitter (taste)
black (color)
blackboard
to blink (the eye)
blood
to blow
blue
blunt (not sharp)
boat
body
body dirt (that builds up over time)
bone
to be born
both
bottle
bow (as in bow and arrow)
branch (of a tree)
breast
to breathe
bridge
brother (same father, different
mothers)
brother (same mother and father)
brother (same mother, different
fathers)
bubble
to bubble
to build (a house)
to burn
but
butter
buttocks
223
t i.b
nt a
k t
e.bu
e.bæ
m .l
t e
l .mah .
.m uh
du
t
l .bu
t .ma
.b
t
.k
p .ts
da.k o
æ.l
ka
pu.p
sah .b
p a.bæ
.ma .bæ.t
mah .bæ
p .w
p .w p
t a .tsu
au
t æ. u- o
mai
o
c
calf (baby yak, cow, etc)
calf (lower leg)
to call
can (able to)
can (metal container, e.g., can of food)
to carry on the back
to carve
chalk
to chase
cheek (of the face)
cheese (dried cheese)
chest
to chew
child
chin
claw
to claw
clean
to clean
to clothe
clothing
to be cold
color
to come
to come out
to cook by boiling
correct
cough
to cough
to cover it (up)
cream
to creep
to crush
224
b .to
tsæ.l
mp h
t
ka. u
k
ku
ka.bu.bi
.o
ta .
t
t æ.
t h
t .k i
mæ. i
sæ.m
sæ.t au.
tso /ma
tso .ma .dz
t æ
k .dzi
t
ts
u
i
tsu
.la
sau
sau
kau
h.t
ntse
da
to cry, to weep
to cure
to cut
cute
cuticle
cutting edge
n h
na su
t ah
tse
sæ u
t .su
d
to dance
dark (color)
dark (time)
daughter, knee
day
daytime
deaf
deep
to defecate
to destroy it
to dig (a hole)
direction
dirt (on the body that builds up over
time)
dirty
to dirty
dog
door
dream
to dream
to drink
to dry
dumb (can't speak)
dumb (stupid)
dust
to dust (to clean)
225
t .t a
.bu
mau. au
b .m
.ma
æ.la
na. æ
sau
t .ba
me.la .m z
t .lu
ka.ts ue
ts .ma
to . æ
to . æ
t h
gu
m .la
m .la .m
t
ga
k .t .m .
læ.t u
de.w
tso .ma .z
e
ear
ear wax
eardrum
earlobe
early
earth (dirt)
earth (world)
to eat
egg
eight
elbow
empty
end of a month
to enter
evening
everyday
to extinguish
eye
eyeball
eyebrow
eyelid
nah t u
na.t e
na. u
na.l
t u .si
s
t a .li
s h
g .ka
dzah
t .m
t .b
dã.ndzu
lo .l g h
ts . t e
na .t .ka
to
m
m .tauh
m .b
m .b h
f
face
to fall
far
fart
to fart
fast
fat (e.g., fat man)
fat (e.g., fat meat)
father
feather
feces
d .
m .t
te. i
ts æ
ts æ.to
dz e
tæ
ts i.t i
a.wah
dau.bau
t .bah
226
to feel itchy
finger
finger (little finger)
fingernail
to fight
to fight, to argue, quarrel
to fill
to find it
fire
to fish
five
flea
flesh
to float
to flow
flower
fly (insect)
fog
to fold
food, food stuff
foot
to freeze
forehead
foreskin
forest
to forget
four
front
fruit
full
t ah
ts .ki
w .tsi
sæ.m
zi
t au
go .dz
t a
mi
a . t
a
dz .w
sa.
nt e
ng
b .tu
to .
lah .bæ
tæ
s h .t
g .b
t a.t a .kei
t i.ku
nt .be
.lo
h
xæ.l
si.t ue
ko
g
to get angry
to get hungry
to get out
t u.lo
t .w .t e
g .dzau.s
227
to get tired
to get wet
to give, to hand
glad
to go
to go down, to step down
god
good (in a general sense)
green
to grow up
guts (internal organs)
kauh
t .tu
tah
t
ng
m .ng
.mbu
t e
no .t
h
hair (armpit)
hair (of skin)
hair (of the face)
hair (of the head)
hair (pubic, female)
hair (pubic, male)
half
hand
hard
to have
heavy
heel (of the foot)
here
hiccup
to hide it
high
to hit
to hold
hole
horn
house
how many?
æb
b
t a .b
g .b
t .b
t .b
ts .ke.t
le.b
s
a
dz
t .tu
n .no
x .he
p
tu
t
k
bu.p
w h
t a
t . t .t h .ja
228
how?
to hunt
to be hurt
husband
t . t .j
o .
tau. .si
m
i
I, me
ice
illness
in
ah
t a.t a
k n ku
lo
lo .n
inside
to bend
k
j
jaw
mæ.k
k
knife
t .t u
l
ts u
ka.t
au
ts
g
l .p h
.l
k .p
d
lue .mah
o
g h
ko .b
t .be
lake
language
lard
late
to laugh
leaf
left
leg
to lick
lightning
light (opposite of heavy)
to like it
to limp
lips
to listen to
little
to live
t u
ta
229
liver
long
to look at
louse
w
dzau
w
m
to make
man, male
many, much
meat, to say
to meet
meeting
to melt, to die
to menstruate
midnight
milk (from a mammal)
to milk
mind
minute (time)
a minute ago
month
to mix it
moon
morning
mosquito
mother
mountain
moustache
mouth
to move
b .ri
mo
a
t a . g
t .bu.t au
u .b
ts æ.r
t lu
u. u
sa .t
kã.ma
t .
d a wah
sah si
nah .njo
.nje
mb .ts i
a ma
l
t .b
t .ku
ngi
n
naked
name
narrow
neck
mah .tu
m
tu
ah .t h
230
needle
new
night
nine
nipple (of a breast)
nose
nostril
not
now
number
k au
sa.b
ts æ.la
ng
n .w
t n
na.bu
mæ
a.t
ts .t u
o
na .t .xa.h
i.b
k .t
tai.t i
o . e
ts
k ax
g .dzau
often
old
on
one
oneself
to open
other
outside
p
to be painful
palm (of the hand)
to peel
penis
person (man in general)
phlegm (thick mucus)
plain
to play
pot
pretty
previously
pupil (eye)
pupil (young student)
pus
na
le. xæ
ba.be.ku
t .bu
m h
tsæ
t o .t o
t
so
tse
xæ.lah
m . e
au.t u
e
231
to push
to put it
pi
q
quick
dze
r
rain
rainbow
red
to release
to repair
to rest
rib
right
ripe
to rise
river
road
roof
root
rope
rotten
round
to rub hands
to run
to run away
t ah .b
dz
mah .bu
z
.su
ts .ma
t o .le
ts e
g .t
tso .t
la
t a .t
dz .b
t e.b h
i
k k .i
.b .ts
dzu
ku dzu
s
k a.t
ts
dza.ndz
ts .ma
g .be
t u
sah .gæ
nt au
saliva
salt, hot
same
sand
scalp
to scratch
seed
to seek
232
to seize
semen
seven
to sew
shadow
shallow
sharp
to shoot (a gun)
shore
short
shoulder
to show it
siblings
sigh, to sigh
to sing
to sink
sister
six
skin
skull
sky
to sleep
slow
to smell
smoke
snake
sneeze
to sneeze
snot
snow
soft (pliable)
soft (to the touch)
sole (of the foot)
some
t
dz .t
tæ
tsau
t ai.si
me.sauh
t
m .d æ
t .x
t
b .b
tæ
b .bæ.m .si
pu. i
lælæ
nau
a. æ
t au
ba.be
g
na
e
ts
a
t .b h
ti
a.t i
a.t i
au.
k a .w
m .sau
i
ko .sau
kaka.t
233
son
soon
to speak
spear
to spit
to split
to stab
to stand up, to rise
star
to steal
stem
stick of wood
stone
to stop
straight
strength
strong; afraid
to suck, to drink; low
summer
sun
to swallow (food or drink)
sweat
sweet
to swell
swift
to swim
sword
b .i
.t u
ta .sa
me. t
t .ma .dzo
ts
ts ai
.lo
ka.ma
k h
su .ma
p .t
d .g
dah
t o /t o
.m
te
t
jah k
.ma
m
ts ah .t e
ai
to
dzu
t . t i.dzau
a .la
t
tail
to take
tasty
tear (from crying)
to tear
ten; you (singular)
dzu.ma
la
a
m .t h
n .l .
t
234
testicle
that, he, him
there
they, them (plural)
thick (and flat)
thin
thin (and flat)
to feel thirsty
this
thread
three
throat
thumb
thunder
times
today
toe
toenail
together
tomorrow
tongue
trunk
twenty
two
u.be
t
t .no
t .red.næ
tu
gu
sau
ka
n
k .b
sa
ku ma
t .bu
nt u
næma.kats
tã. i
ko .ku
go .ku.nts .gi
a ,
.b
t i
i .p o
.
u
umbilical cord
under
to untie it
up to, till
urinate
urine
us
uvula
t .t
k . au
to
a.t .mæsi
t æ.to
t æ
.t ænæ
kæ.p u.t .du
235
v
vagina
valley
vein (blood vein)
village
voice
to vomit
t .bu
r x
t .tsau
t
ka
t u
w
to wait
waist
to walk
wall
warm (of weather)
to wash (it)
watch (timepiece)
water
wave (of water)
to wave
we
weak
what
wheat flour
wheel
when
where
which
white
who?
wide
wife
wind
wing
winter
to wipe
s
k .b
g
tsub
t uh
t
t
s
t
t
u
susu
.t ænæ
me.t ai
t .t
ts i
d .lu
ka.si
ka.no
ka.t
ka.pu
s h
dzo .t ã
na.ma
l n.mah
tau.bau
gæ.x
ts h
236
with, fish
to wither
woman, female
to work
worm
wrist
a
ka
t mi
l .k
mb .lu
ts u.ts
y
yawn
year
yellow
yesterday
yet
yogurt
you (plural)
young
x .xi
lu
s bu
du .so
da
t .k
t .t æ. æ
m .æ
237
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ASIAN HIGHLANDS PERSPECTIVES
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1
2009 COLLECTED ESSAYS, CK Stuart, G Roche, and
Tshe dbang rdo rje (eds)
2A 2009 CHINA'S NA53 MZI53 TIBETANS: LIFE, LANGUAGE
AND FOLKLORE. VOLUME ONE, Libu Lahki with
Tsering Bum and CK Stuart
2B 2009 CHINA'S NA53 MZI53 TIBETANS: LIFE, LANGUAGE
AND FOLKLORE. VOLUME TWO, Libu Lahki with
Tsering Bum and CK Stuart
3
2008 DEITY MEN: REB GONG TIBETAN TRANCE
MEDIUMS IN TRANSITION, Snying bo rgyal and R
Solomon Rino
4
2009 NA53 MZI53 TIBETAN SONGS, ENGAGEMENT
CHANTS, AND FLUTE MUSIC by Libu Lahki with Qi
Huimin, CK Stuart, and G Roche
5
2009 A TIBETAN GIRL'S HAIRCHANGING RITUAL, Tshe
dpal rdo rje with Rin chen rdo rje, G Roche, and
CK Stuart
6
2010 COLLECTED ESSAYS, CK Stuart, G Roche, Tshe
dbang rdo rje, T Thurston, and Rin chen rdo rje
(eds)
7
8
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
2010 PASSIONS AND COLORED SLEEVES: A NOVEL,
Jugui and Limusishiden
2010 MONGGHUL MEMORIES AND LIVES, Limusishiden
with CK Stuart
2011 A NGAWA TIBETAN NOMAD CHILDHOOD, Rin
chen rdo rje
2011 COLLECTED ESSAYS, CK Stuart, G Roche, Tshe
dbang rdo rje, T Thurston, and Rin chen rdo rje
(eds)
2011 A MANG RDZONG TIBETAN LIFE, Snying lcags
rgyal
2012 SILENCE IN THE VALLEY OF SONGS: WORK SONGS
FROM THE SMAN SHOD VALLEY, Zla ba sgrol ma
2012 WARMING YOUR HANDS WITH MOONLIGHT:
LAVRUNG TIBETAN ORAL TRADITIONS AND
CULTURE, G.yu lha
2012 MAY ALL GOOD THINGS GATHER HERE: LIFE,
RELIGION, AND MARRIAGE IN A MI NYAG TIBETAN
VILLAGE, Bkra shis bzang po
2012 RGYAL RONG RGYAS BZANG TIBETAN VILLAGE:
LIFE, LANGUAGE, AND FOLKLORE, G.yu 'brug
with CK Stuart