Highlighting Unity: Two Approaches to Non-Sectarianism in Twentieth Century

Adam Pearcey

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries there were attempts – apparently connected with the so-called “Ris med Movement” – to strengthen the scholastic traditions of non- dGe lugs schools in Eastern Tibet. These efforts included the establishment of dozens of scriptural colleges (bshad grwa) throughout the region, and the printing and dissemination of works by the Sa skya scholar, Go rams pa bSod nams seng ge (1429– 1489) and the polymath, ’Ju Mi pham (1846–1912). The texts of these two influential philosophers, complete with their notorious criticisms of mainstream dGe lugs pa thought, came to represent the orthodox viewpoint for followers of their respective traditions within many newly founded scriptural colleges. These developments were not without controversy, however, and inspired much debate and polemical exchange. In commenting upon this period and its key figures, some modern scholars have questioned how the strengthening and promotion of individual philosophical traditions could be regarded as non-sectarian. Yet, in spite of this, there is no question that ’Ju Mi pham and the publishers of Go rams pa’s writings continue to be associated with the Ris med ideal. In this paper I will explore the views of two writers who took a different approach to inter-sectarian (and intra-sectarian) discourse during this same period of history and who both lived in the mGo log region of Eastern Tibet. These authors aimed less at differentiating and strengthening rival doctrines, and more at highlighting their underlying unity or compatibility. The Third rDo grub chen, ’Jigs med bstan pa'i nyi ma (1865–1926), is known for his comparative writings on elements of gSar ma and rNying ma , in the course of which he repeatedly asserts the correspondence of the subtle mind of clear light (’od gsal; prabhāsvara) described in Highest Tantra and the pure awareness (rig pa) of rDzogs chen. Unlike Mi pham and his followers, ’Jigs med bstan pa'i nyi ma claimed that the principal difference between rDzogs chen and gSar ma tantra lies in the methods they employ, rather than their respective views. And although encouraged by Mi pham to promote the rNying ma school, he neither made use of Mi pham’s distinctive terminology nor echoed his key assertions. While ’Jigs med bstan pa’i nyi ma maintains the superiority of Atiyoga and thus proposes an inclusivist, hierarchical model of the various vehicles, his rDzogs chen writings are notable for their emphasis on commonality as well as difference. mDo sngags chos kyi rgya mtsho (1903–1957) was a dGe lugs pa from dPal sNyan mo Monastery in mGo log, who drew inspiration from ’Jigs med bstan pa’i nyi ma and his immediate disciples. In his writings he explicitly sought to heal sectarian division by uniting rNying ma views on rDzogs chen, especially those expressed in the works of Klong chen rab ’byams (1308–1364) and Rong zom Chos kyi bzang po (1012–1088), with the views on Highest Yoga tantra set out by Tsong kha pa Blo bzang grags pa (1357–1419). These syncretistic appeals to unity are in marked contrast not only to the distinguishing approach taken by the likes of ’Ju Mi pham and Bod pa sprul sku bsTan pa’i nyi ma (1898–1959), but also to the more exclusivist tendencies prevalent within the dGe lugs pa school – as witnessed, for example, in the infamous letters of Pha bong kha pa bDe chen snying po (1878–1941 Through this brief examination, I will suggest that the approach of strengthening scholastic traditions and highlighting their uniqueness may have actually served to increase intersectarian rivalry and conflict. Although the more ecumenical approaches discussed in the paper had only limited influence, they represent significant ideological opposition to dominant trends, especially as rival claimants to the loaded term “non-sectarian” (ris med). While Tibetan has tended in recent years towards sectarian differentiation, with religious leaders concentrating their efforts on preserving and re-establishing their own traditions in exile, the Fourteenth has often attempted to highlight the underlying unity of the major schools. And, in so doing, he has drawn upon the very writings discussed in this paper. In conclusion, then, I will suggest that there is a broader significance to this 20th century debate. It certainty represents an intriguing case of ‘intra-religious dialogue’, but it also raises perennial questions, both for Tibet and more generally, such as: What does it mean to be truly non-sectarian?

Legal ideology in medieval Tibet

Fernanda Pirie

This presentation traces the account given by medieval Tibetan historians about the introduction of law into Tibet, that is, accounts found in histories written between the end of the empire and the beginning of the Ganden Podrang government. A relatively consistent story emerged concerning the introduction of the ‘king’s law’ (rgyal khrims) by the early emperors (Songtsan Gampo or Tri Song Detsen), which can be traced back to the Chronicle. However, the nature of that law and its relations with the ‘religious law’ (chos khrims) were not always presented in the same way. This paper will describe and analyse the way in which the presentation changed during the period. It will ask whether any of the changes can be attributed to contemporary political or religious events, and whether we can see the development of a more Buddhist account, from which references to the death penalty were, for example, excised. It will also explore the possible influence of this ideology on legal practices and writing during the period.

A Feast for the Learned: The Power of Genre and Genres of Power in Research Collaborations Among Scholars of

Annabella Pitkin

Academic research on Tibetan Buddhist topics often involves collaboration between researchers trained in non-Buddhist academic settings and Tibetan Buddhist intellectuals trained in Buddhist educational institutions. Especially where academic research involves oral history, shared study, joint translation efforts, and other collaborative research with living Tibetan religious scholars and experts, urgent issues of power, mutual intelligibility, and representation come into play. Based on an ongoing research project involving scholars and religious intellectuals from multiple backgrounds and intellectual formations, this paper argues for discussing genre (of written and spoken work) as a key location for exploring collaboration and difference in scholarly projects, for asking how different styles of intervention are received, and for illuminating questions of power and authority. I explore here possible "principles and conditions required" for scholarly conversations that include Tibetan religious intellectuals, secular intellectuals, and scholars trained in contemporary international forms of academic study, in a context of mutuality and collaboration. This kind of scholarly engagement offers an alternative to approaching traditional holders of Tibetan Buddhist expertise (including monastics, lay teachers, retreat meditators, yogic practitioners, authors of Tibetan commentarial and interpretive works, etc.) as "informants,” rather than experts trained in distinctive intellectual traditions. Collaborative scholarly conversation and mutual engagement emerge amidst multiple factors. Some considerations are structural: who has funding, and of what kind; what kinds of publications or other research outcomes scholars with different social locations want, or need; which languages are used for research and publication, etc. Other considerations are philosophical, with political and ethical implications. Whose work, and what genres of work in particular, are framed as scholarly interventions, rather than other kinds of cultural products? What assumptions about authority and expertise are at play in these questions of genre? I examine several modes of scholarly conversation, from a variety of institutional settings and genres of written or orally presented work, including models drawn from Tibetan systems of formation and training; models drawn from the natural sciences; and models of scholarly interaction rooted in artistic practice.

Wildlife Conservation in the Himalyan Borderlands: An investigation of the Shagya Agreement

Nadine Plachta

In this presentation, I examine how the Tsumpa, a community in ’s northern borderlands, perceive, narrate, and interact with the natural environment, in particular with livestock and non-domesticated animals. In April 2012, the Nepalese Prime Minister Baburam Bhattarai visited the region to take part in a “Tsum Valley Cultural Shagya Festival.” The main purpose of the three-day event was to spread the Buddhist moral precept of non-violence by revitalizing an agreement dating back to the Bhutanese Drukpa Ngawang Palsang, who is known for highlighting the nature of human-animal relationships. Formulated by Drakar Taso Tenzin Norbu, the Shagya Agreement since 1939 has been prohibiting the killing of any animal in Tsum, a regulation that is more precisely defined to include any form of slaughter, hunting, poaching, and even trading animals to a place beyond the region where they would face certain death. The initial text has undergone several amendments, with the most recent changes taking place in 2012, an event reported by national broadcast and print media. In combining oral historical narratives with a study of the existing Shagya documents, I accentuate the factors which helped in shaping the agreements in their Tibetan and Nepali versions. These include, for example, the Khampa guerillas' presence in Tsum and later the establishment of a police post in the valley.

The translation of the Rgyud bzhi analysed from a historical point of view

Florian Ploberger

The Rgyud bzhi is considered the most important text of Tibetan Medicine. Since the 13th century the Rgyud bzhi, also known as the “Four ”, has been the basic traditional text and it continues to be learned by heart by aspiring Tibetan physicians. According to Tibetan tradition the current version of this text is attributed to G.yu thog gsar ma Yon tan mgon po (twelfth century). The German translation is based on a copy of a wooden print block of the Rgyud bzhi, which originates from 1892 and is known under the name of “Lcags ri (Iron Hill) wooden print”. In analysing and translating the Rgyud bzhi certain aspects have emerged with potential importance for the future development of Tibetan Medicine in the 21st century. Analysis and correct translation of the Rgyud bzhi is only possible by using the commentaries which have been created during the last centuries. It is noticeable that the authors of various commentaries of the Rgyud bzhi have interpreted and thus also commented in a different way in some cases. This illustrates how the understanding of the “Four Tantras” has been influenced in history. Commentaries used for analysis mainly are the following: (1) „Blue Beryl“ of the Regent of the 5th Dalai Lama, important politician, historian and medical writer Desi Sangye Gyatso (1653-1705) (Gso ba rig pa'i bstan bcos sman bla'i dgongs rgyan rgyud bzhi'i gsal byed baidur sngon po'i malli ka), (2) the commentary by Kyempa Tsewang (skyem pa tshe dbang) (written 1479): mkhas dbang skyem pa tshe dbang mchog gis mdzad pa'i rgyud bzhi'i 'grel pa and (3) the most important Rgyud bzhi commentary of the last century, the “Oral Instructions of the Sages” by Khenpo Troru Tsenam (1928- 2004) (Gso rig rgyud bzhi'i 'grel chen drang srong zhal lung). A second aspect to be considered is the terminology used in the Rgyud bzhi.To begin with, many Tibetan medical terms in available literature, like various pulse qualities, syndromes and anatomical terms, have not been translated consistently and are interpreted differently in different commentaries. Terms in the 1st, 2nd and 4th Tantra of the Rgyud bzhi are described differently in some cases, for example dbugs mi bde ba (“asthma”) and srin (“tiny organism”). In particular the analysis of these seemingly less important terms provides a deeper understanding of the as well as broadening knowledge about translations of Tibetan medical texts. Western, biomedical terms were not used in the German translation. Instead, such terms were translated literally or in an explanatory way. Tibetan diseases are precisely described by relevant causes, diagnostic methods including urine and pulse diagnoses, symptoms, even subgroups in many cases, etc. The fact that there are correlations with Western medical syndromes in some parts does not mean that they are identical. The translation would be highly simplified and would not live up to both systems if obvious but not accurate translations are used. Another challenge of translating Tibetan medical terms is the fact that the Rgyud bzhi is written originally in verse form. Due to its verse form, various text parts are missing grammatically important syllables or parts of sentences which are needed for translating and expounding the meaning accurately. This makes translation difficult and requires additional commentaries. Furthermore, many old Tibetan terms from the 13th century are included in the Rgyud bzhi, which are no longer used in the language spoken today and are not found in modern dictionaries. Finally, while Tibetan Medicine is already increasingly popular outside Asia, the analysis of the translation of the Rgyud bzhi shows the importance of engaging experts in international as well as interdisciplinary dialogue, to prepare Tibetan Medicine for meeting the challenges of the next centuries. Like Traditional Chinese Medicine, Tibetan Medicine may benefit from reliable translations into foreign languages and the development of a unified nomenclature of Tibetan Medicine. Thorough interdisciplinary studies of Tibetan Medicine, defining unified English and German translations of the numerous medical terms could enable a standard dictionary to be published. A consistent translation would open this treasure to a wider audience.

The Life of the Buddha on the door of the Alchi Dukhang – iconography and art- historical considerations

Heinrich Poell

After Second Diffusion and throughout the mediaeval period, Ladakhi artists have depicted the Buddha’s life story in murals and woodcarving. One of the earliest extant examples for this can be found on the ca. late 12th c. portal of the Dukhang in Alchi. The woodcarvings of the Dukhang doorframe in Alchi depict the life of the Buddha in 28 scenes, from the sojourn in the Tushita heaven to the ; this life cycle is comprised in a complex composition of Jinas, , sacrificial goddesses and Buddhas in various , presided over by . The doorframe itself is integrated into the wood architecture of the temple façade (now only partially preserved), and reflects and contributes to the overall iconographic programme of Dukhang. On the basis of a comprehensive photographic documentation, the paper will analyse the iconography of the life cycle, and the stylistic influences that can be identified in the various scenes. It will be shown that the Buddha life on the Dukhang door has drawn on artistic conventions, iconographic models and textual sources from the Indian plains art and Buddhist traditions. Individual scenes of the life cycle show Indian material culture (a.o. in Shakyamuni’s wedding ceremony), the dynamism of (post-)Gupta sculptural styles, Kushan iconographic conventions (such as raised arms to indicate grief), and “Greek” decorative patterns that might have been taken from . However, Indian art never produced a complete depiction of the Buddha life that could have been used as a model for the carvings on the Dukhang door. At the time of the creation of the Dukhang portal, Eastern Indian art used the astha-maha- pratiharya iconography, which abbreviated the life story to the four cardinal events of Birth, Enlightenment, First Sermon and Parinirvana, plus four miracle scenes. These artworks were certainly known to from pilgrimage to the holy sites of Buddhism in Bihar, but Ladakhi artists never followed this iconography. By contrast, the Dukhang life story emphasizes the ‘human’ life of Shakyamuni, showing numerous pre-Enlightenment scenes, while omitting the ‘superhuman’ miracles (such as the Miracle of Twins and the Descent from Heaven) at Sankara. Depictions of the Buddha's biography in must therefore be seen as an artistic innovation that emerged in the Western Tibetan area from the 10th c. onwards. This is reflected in numerous details of the Dukhang carvings for which no Indian models exist.

The Bumthang web: migrations, alliances, economy and religion.

Françoise Pommaret

The importance and beauty of the Bumthang region in is acknowleged by all the Bhutanese as well as in Tibetan historiography. This article would like to go beyond that accepted knowledge and explore how the Bumthang region is at the centre of a web which was constructed, consciously or unconsciously, at least since the 15th century and encompassed most of Bhutan except the western region. This reach and influence of the Bumthang region was achieved through migrations, either temporary or permanent to other regions, religious lineages, economic complementarity and alliances within the elite families of religious descent. The regions encompassed in this sphere of influence go from eastern Bhutan to central and south central Bhutan, as far west as the Black Mountains, the historical border between west and east Bhutan. Through written sources, fieldwork data, oral information and genealogies, we will be able to draw a map showing the extension of this web and really articulate why the Bumthang region played a central role in the cultural as well as socio-economic history of Bhutan.

The Seventeenth and Bhikshuni Ordination

Darcie Price-Wallace

The issue of nuns’ ordination within the Tibetan Buddhist tradition recently has been reconsidered by the Seventeenth Karmapa, Orgyen Thinley Dorje. This paper will question the contemporary aspects of this issue of ordination as it pertains to the Seventeenth Karmapa’s recent decision to initiate the process towards full ordination for nuns and the potential historical questions his involvement raises for both narrating the past and the future of Tibetan nuns. According to the Seventeenth Karmapa, one of his predecessors, the Eighth Karmapa, Karma Mikyö Dorje (1507-1554), fully ordained bhikshunis. On January 8, 2015 at the Arya Kshema Winter Gathering in , the Seventeenth Karmapa noted that in Eighth Karmapa’s collection of rituals it states that the bhikshu is able to confer bhikshuni vows; he further states, “When we look at the activity of this previous Karmapa, he also put a lot of effort into supporting and reviving the nuns’ communities in general.” The Seventeenth Karmapa asserts that it was potentially only the Eighth Karmapa who made such alterations for bhikshuni ordination. His poignant statements are significant for several reasons. Firstly, it further challenges the grand narrative of a broken lineage of fully ordained nuns in Tibet (Dan Martin, 2005: 72). Secondly, it further situates him as the emerging leader for the exile community. Thirdly, it suggests that bhikshus could potentially confer full ordination in way that is not inconsistent with previous religious leaders within the Tibetan tradition. Additional references for figures providing ordination to women solely via the bhikshu sangha include figures such as Bodong Chogle Namgyal and Shakya Chogden (Diemberger, 2007: 133-134). Tashi Tsering references both the Uttaragrantha and the Vinayasūtra in which the bhikshuni ordination is conferred via the bhikshu rite; however, it is noted that those who perform ordination in this manner will incur infractions (Tashi Tsering, 2010: 171, 178). Thus, this method is not only somewhat controversial, but also previously attempted by other figures in addition to the Eighth Karmapa. This paper also aims to historicize and contextualize the Seventeenth Karmapa’s comments through understanding how the Eighth Karmapa was influenced by Bodong Chogle Namgyal (1376-1451), in particular in light of the fact that he conferred full ordination to Chokyi Dronma; and, determining if there is a correlation between her ordination and Shakya Chogden’s (1428-1507) ordaining women. Additionally, this paper will contextualize the relevance of the Seventeenth Karmapa’s recent assertion that the Eighth Karmapa ordained women. What, if any, is the correlation between the changing dynamics of the relationship between the Bodongpa and Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso, the Fifth Dalai Lama (1617-1682) and hegemony of Gelugpa school in the fifteenth century and Fifth Dalai Lama’s stance on ordination? For instance, his biography frequently references conferring novice vows to nuns; yet other sources suggest that he was against ordination all together (Tashi Tsering and Philippa Russell, 1986: 29). What were the political and social contexts for such changes? How are these continuing into present day in light of the Seventeenth Karmapa’s stance and movement forward on the issue of full ordination for nuns? The Seventeenth Karmapa will be potentially conferring this initial ordination in January 2016. Whether this historical event manifests and how it comes to fruition is in motion and will be carefully regarded by bhikshunis. The working thesis that this paper aims to put forth is that by asserting an affiliation between the Eighth Karmapa and his role in potentially fully ordaining nuns not only legitimates the Karmapa’s place in further doing so, but also his suggestion regarding dual ordination could be a potential political move to ameliorate and strengthen the dynamics with the PRC in years to come. Does he aim to conduct the dual ordination with a nunnery in ? By using the rite of ordination he reverses the potential moves of the Fifth Dalai Lama who perhaps demoted ordination as means for unification and the Seventeenth Karmapa may insist on dual ordination not only to concretize an unbroken lineage for fully ordained Tibetan nuns, but also as a strategic political move. Therefore, while this rite may confer certain legitimacy for nuns, it may also be a move to cut across nationalist platforms that the Dalai Lama has been unable to address due to his desires to maintain the infrastructure of the exile community. While the Seventeenth Karmapa references the Eighth Karmapa’s revision of the vinaya in which only bhikshus ordain bhikshunis, he then also proposes a dual ordination with nuns from the Dharmagupta lineage. Thus, what are the ramifications for either choice? What is the necessity for an unbroken lineage and what purpose does it serve politically and socially? What potential will this ordination create for nuns living in exile as compared to nuns living in the Tibetan Autonomous Region?

Ritual paraphernalia used by pawo and neyjorma spirit mediums in rural western Bhutan

Johanna Prien

This paper is based upon field research conducted from January to June 2015 and January to March 2016, during which time I stayed with a group of four female neyjorma and one male pawo spirit mediums in the rural area of Gaselo, western Bhutan. During my fieldwork, I was able to gain a holistic overview of the lives and practices of these ritual specialists, who serve not only individual clients and households, but also entire village communities. Ritual specialists who operate oustside of institutional contexts (e.g. Buddhism) are often classified according to the rites they perform and the terms used to desginate them. However, the paraphernalia they employ are often neglected in attempts to classify and understand them. Concerning the neyjorma and pawo of my research area, certain garments and ritual objects are needed to perform their rituals. Accoutrements such as drums and bells are one part of this. Often it is important to wear new or expensive clothes. Additionally, an altar is prepared with offerings which can be made out of consumable ingredients, including rice, alcohol, butter and pork. All aspects of the paraphernalia have to be regarded within the overall cosmology contextualising these ritual specialists and their practices and how this is articulated in the local research context. This has to include investigation of ontological status of persons, animals and deities or spirits involved, notions of causality, expressions of states we analytically term ‘possession’ and/ or ‘embodiment’, qualities and rankings of substances, symbolic values, and so on. Within a research focus on local ritual specialists across the wider Tibetan Cultural Area, the literature available for Bhutan is very scarce and often superficial for such a complex ethno-linguistic environment. Thus, my contribution presents data on ritual paraphernalia together with general information on the work and life of ritual specialists in western Bhutan, and comparisons with the material culture of ritual from elsewhere in the Tibetan Cultural Area.

Allagories of Kingship: Animal motifs in banquet ware of the

David Pritzker

Despite the strong commitment in Tibetan toreutics to animal imagery over that of figural or textual scenes (as was common in Sasanian art), there is an enormous amount of allegorical narrative imbued within the animal and floral motifs which have been freely adapted to meet the tastes of the royal Tibetan patrons. The animal figures not only work in concert with each other: interacting, playing, dancing, chasing each other, and so forth, but are also individually filled with emotive meanings, the combination of which can often result in significant allegorical narratives. As in the art of the Sasanian Empire, where the pictorial display of kingship through hunts, banquets and investiture scenes is filled with motifs and topoi central to the culture’s ideas of power and divinity, so does the animal imagery in Tibetan toreutics convey relevant information as to the social, cultural, and historical significance of the objects. Defining the early toreutic art of Imperial Tibet is not a clear-cut task. Due to the paucity of textual material, little is known of the social atmosphere, or rather the social life of the object. Through a close study of form, function, technical execution, iconography, and patterns of décor, particular trends in the visual language become clearer and seemingly disparate objects may then begin to take on more precise attributions with regard to craftsmanship, origin, patronage, iconography, and relative dating. In order to push the field forward it seems worthwhile, therefore, to expand the tools of deduction and allow for a new hypotheses to be tested against the whole. It is in this spirit that this preliminary theory on the allegories found in Old Tibetan silver and gold will be presented, with the hope to provoke further conversations on the rich material culture of the Royal Court of Tibet.

Barley-and-butter goats for the mountain gods: rejection and adaptation of red offerings in eastern

Valentina Punzi

This paper explores the now dismissed practice of animal sacrifices (dmar mchod) dedicated to mountain gods in the Amdo region. Based on extracts from local written sources and oral accounts that bear witness to this tradition in Reb-gong and rTse-khog Counties, I will first elucidate how and why until the recent past libations of alive and dead animals, meat and blood were offered and burnt on various occasions by different parties, showing the intertwinement of religious and social purposes in the community life. Previous studies mentioning animal sacrifices mainly refer to those performed during the Klu-rol festival in Reb-gong and provide different dates for their interruption, ranging between the 1980s (mKhar-rtse-rgyal 2008:284-9 and 416; Nagano 2000:584) and the early 1990s (Buffetrille 2008:41). However, Epstein and Peng maintained that animal sacrifices were already halted by Rdzong-dkar sprul-sku of Rong-bo monastery in the mid-1940s (1998: 184). However, we can further predate the discussion about limiting animal sacrifices in Amdoto the nineteenth century. Drawing on textual sources, I will discuss the early condemnation of animal sacrifices in the text in Zhabs-dkar-pa’s (1781-1851) autobiographic text Chos bshad gzhan phan nyi ma and in the text Dmar mchod kyi nyes dmigs, authored by Rig dzin gar gyi dbang phyug (1858-1930). Nowadays, following the abandonment of this traditional ritual , Buddhist lay and cleric discourses label animal sacrifices as an inappropriate and cruel pre-Buddhist practice and consider it nothing but a reflection of the darkness and barbarianism of , thus reinforcing negative demonizing stereotypes about Bon in general. By examining this ritual practice in historical perspective, as included in but not limited to Klu-rol, this paper will further introduce oral accounts about animal sacrifices that were commonly performed for mountain gods in areas where Klu-rol was never celebrated. By tracing back the relatively recent decay of this practice, I will reflect on the contemporary persistence of animal sacrifices in revisited forms. Red offerings indeed shifted to the imitative level of barley-dough made figures of sheep and goats that continue to be a constituent part of offerings to mountain gods. In addiction, the original offering of animal killing has been in some cases substituted by animal freeing, following the consolidated Buddhist practice of tshe-thar. In particular, I will present examples of real size barley-dough sheep from the contemporary performance of Klu-rol in Sgo- dmar village (Reb-gong County); gtor-ma with impressed animal figures made for the mountain god A-myes Brag-dkar in Rtse-khog; alive chickens freed on the top of A-myes Bar-dbon mountain. Frontier and Monastic Networks in the Himalayan Borderlands

Andrew Quintman

This paper considers how a leading institution of the Himalayan borderlands—Brag dkar rta so Monastery, situated along the Mang yul Gung thang corridor—became the site of significant religious preservation, innovation, and transmission, and thereby exercised a widespread and enduring influence on the region’s religious traditions. The paper contends that it did so not despite its location at the outer limits of authority, but precisely due to its presence in a frontier zone of contact with Nepal. Following Richard Sullivan’s notion of “monk as frontiersman,” the paper explores the role of Brag dkar rta so’s abbots, many of whom were also members of the so-called Brag dkar sprul sku lineage, as agents capable of creating a new institutional identity on the margins of state control while forming institutional links across and beyond those margins. The paper draws mainly on the text A History of Drakar Taso and its Abbatial Lineage (Brag dkar rta so’i gnas dang gdan rabs bla ma brgyud pa’i lo rgyus) written by the institution’s leader Chos kyi dbang phyug (1775-1837) in 1817. Through a careful reading of this work, Brag dkar rta appears as a monastery self-consciously set on the edge of the Tibetan cultural world, yet one that assumed a central position within a broad trans-Himalayan network of religious activity.

ས་རབས་ ༡༣ པའི་ནང་གི་བོད་ད་་བའི་་གར་བ། Two Tibetan Speaking Indians in the 13th Century

Gedun Rabsal

Dānaśīla (Tib. Sbyin pa tshul khrims), a scholar from the Jagaddala monastery (located in modern-day Bangladesh), came to Tibet along with the Kashmiri Paṇḍita Śākyaśrībhadra in 1204 and later passed away there. He authored 25 works of which most are credited as his own translations. Another Paṇḍita is Vibhuticandra (Tib. Rnal ‘byor zla ba) who also came to Tibet and composed his own Tibetan translations. Dānaśīla’s translation of the Ārya Mañjuśrīsādhanā (Tib. ’Phags pa ‘jam dpal gyi sgrub pa’i thabs) consists of only two pages in the Bstan ’gyur, and includes a colophon which reads: “Dānaśīla, the mahāpaṇḍita from Jagaddala in Eastern India, translated this faultlessly into Tibetan from the divine language at Mount Drang srong srin po in Dbus, in Tibet” (rgya gar shar phyogs dza ga tA la'i paN+Di ta chen po dA na shI las bod yul gyi dbus drang srong srin po'i rir lha'i skad las bod kyi brdar 'khrul pa med par bsgyur ba'o//). Vibhūticandra’s translation of the Manjuvajrapujavidhi (Tib. ’Jam dpal rdo rje mchod pa’i cho ga consists of three pages in Bstan ’gyur. Its colophon reads: This was translated by the mahāpaṇḍita Vibhūticandra himself after bhikṣu Blo gros seng ge had revised it”( dge slong blo gros seng ges zhu chen byas nas paN+Di ta chen po bi b+hU ti tsan+d+ras rang 'gyur du mdzad pa'o//). In this paper, I will explore the lives of these two paṇḍita focusing on their journey to Tibet and their contributions to Tibetan translation work in the 13th century.

The Impact of Urbanization on Women’s Status: Interrogating Hegemonic Discourses

Hamsa Rajan

Scholars and commentators have oft noted that the People’s Republic of China is urbanising at a dizzying pace. Tibetan areas, moreover, have by no means been exempt from this trend. This talk will look into how the ongoing urbanization of one area of Amdo has affected women’s status, utilising data from a fifteen-month period of fieldwork conducted in 2012 and 2013. Fieldwork involved participant observation in cities, towns, and villages, as well as 100 interviews with married women and men holding a wide range of social status and positions. In particular, the overwhelmingly prevalent discourse among Tibetans in the study region is that urbanization and economic development have improved women’s status, a claim that is itself affected by state media and propaganda. This claim will be interrogated, with cause and effect explored so as to speculate as to how urbanization may be affecting women’s social status. The talk will begin with an overview of how various aspects of social life provide insight into the arenas within which women may be restricted or empowered, and how such restriction or empowerment can occur. These arenas include, but are not restricted to, the gender division of labour, ritual practices, and norms of behaviour. Norms of behaviour, moreover, are underscored by proverbs, common sayings, popular songs, and popular literature, and these pieces of evidence will be referenced in the talk. Secondly, we will move to the main body of the talk. This part of the talk will explore the ways in which urbanization and economic development may be affecting the arenas of social status listed above. Thus, for example, questions of women’s mobility, perceptions of women’s competence in undertaking various kinds of endeavours, son preference, violence against women, gendered norms of behaviour, and opportunities for women’s independent economic standing will all be explored. Urbanization and economic development are prime drivers of the rapid social changes Tibetan areas have been undergoing in contemporary times. Importantly, urbanization should not be seen independently of Sinicization, as the two often go hand in hand. Sinicization, moreover, can bring relatively new cultural norms into Tibetan areas that affect gender relations and behaviour. This talk will therefore look at norms around female chastity, the influx of tourists into Tibetan areas, women’s participation in seasonal labour for pay, and trends towards more nuclear family structures, all of which have been catalysed by urbanization, economic development, and Sinicization. What all of this means for women’s standing in society will be discussed. Importantly, the data will be contextualised by looking at literature from other similar developing country contexts.

Gan rgya or gan rkyal? Legal and mechanical understandings of the binding power of oaths

Charles Ramble

A passage in the early Bonpo collection of funerary works entitled Mu cho khrom ’dur explains the purpose of the bden pa bdar/brdar (“invocation of truth”) ritual: it should be performed when demons refuse to respond appropriately to rituals intended to overcome or banish them, and witnesses must be summoned to certify that proper procedure was indeed followed. The implication is that the process of ritual coercion operates not by the application of irresistible natural laws, but by the enaction of a jural process. Demons that are so defeated are at liberty to reject the outcome of the ritual, but they must face the consequences. The element of choice is evident in another text, when gShen rab warns an adversary he has just overcome “not to renege on your oath, eating it as you would food”. Like other contributions to the panel, this paper will explore the grey zone between two conceptualisations of the oath: an inexorable bond on the one hand, and, on the other, a contract that offers the possibilities of loopholes. The sources for the investigation will include legal and ritual texts and ethnographic observation, with reference to the use of oaths in contemporary political practice.

At the origins of the 17-point agreement

Alex Raymond

In a previous article (submitted to the 13th Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies) we were able to demonstrate that during the summer 1949, Mao and the leaders of the CCP decided to occupy militarily Tibet as soon as possible. But the huge difficulties have been badly estimated and the offensive was to be postponed several times, until October 1950. Logistical and food problems not been resolved, it was impossible for the PLA to move forward into the Tibetan territory before spring 1951. Because of this delay, the only solution was to pursue a policy of negotiation with the Tibetan government. In this paper, we will see that after the Battle of (October 1950), one of the main objectives of the leaders of the PRC during the period from November 1950 to April 1951 will be to try to persuade the Tibetan government to send as soon as possible delegates to Beijing to start “negotiations “and at the same time, to do everything to prevent a departure outside Tibet of the Dalai Lama. If the process of the “negotiations" in Beijing have already been described by several authors, the genesis during the previous months of what will become the "17-point agreement" is very little known, and many original Chinese documents not used until now offers a new version of the process that led to these "negotiations", often contradicting other versions given before. We will also analyze some original documents of the Tibetan government which have been lost but have been translated into Chinese and preserved. Without addressing in detail all the international issues that are not part of this study, we will see how the leaders of the PRC, either by promises, or by not disguised threats, or even by bluff, will be able to reach their goals. We will for example discover how the PRC government will skillfully take advantage of existing divisions not only between the two "Tibetan governments" at that time – the one of (the two sitsab's one) and the one of Yatung, but also even inside the government of Yatung. How the leaders of the PRC will manage to prevent that “negotiation” to take place not only in Chamdo but also in Lhasa, while letting people believe that the decision came from the Tibetan government. How the government of the PRC will succeed in making pressure on the Indian government to prevent the Dalai Lama from leaving. And how the PRC government will successfully lead the Tibetan government and international opinion to believe that military forces of the PLA were coming from Xinjiang, crossing the Ngari and threatening Lhasa, which will become one of the main reasons to persuade the Tibetan government to send a delegation to Beijing, whereas this army was in fact at that time purely non-existent! The Battle of Chamdo had been won "in extremis". Aware after this battle of the coming difficulties, and despite the fact that much of the had been eliminated at that time, leaders of the PRC were particularly concerned with the idea that there could be still a local resistance that might delay further the progression of the PLA. The new offensive, originally planned for the spring, had in fact been postponed to the summer of 1951, with the hope to avoid a new military campaign by persuading the Tibetan government to voluntarily accept what was so difficult to obtain on the ground: it was the principle of the so-called "peaceful liberation". In addition, a departure at this date of the Dalai Lama with the possibility of a Tibetan government in exile was of course a particularly alarming perspective for the leaders of the young PRC. In spite of these handicaps, six months after the battle of Chamdo, a Tibetan delegation was present in Beijing to start “negotiations” where Tibetan government should imagine the results in advance. Retrospectively, one can only admire the skill of the leaders of the PRC who knew so well how to use the weaknesses, divisions and particularly amazing credulities of the Tibetans elites and the divisions and indecisions of the leaders of the “imperialists countries”…

The Se Lineage Between Labrang and Rongwo Monasteries

Rinchen Dorje (Renqingduojie)

This paper discusses lives of the Se reincarnation line and how this major lineage played a major role in the political and religious relationships between Amdo's two major monasteries - Labrang and Rongwo. As widely known, the First Se Ngawang Tashi became the leading figure in the political and religious lives of after the passing of the First Jamyang Shapa Ngagwang Tsondru. Controversy surrounding the succession of the latter has been frequently cited as a major cause of division between the larger Geluk community in Amdo, and especially the departure of the Se lineage from Labrang and subsequent permanent residence at the nearby Terlung Monastery with close association with Rongwo Monastery. It is also widely believed that another outcome of this conflict was that Tso Monastery - another major regional monastery - increasingly distanced itself from Labrang and formed a close relationship with Labrang's major rival, Rongwo Monastery, over the course of time. This paper redresses the above reincarnation controversy and rethinks a number of issues factoring into the division within the larger Amdo Geluk community. In previous scholarship, the first sign of conflict at Labrang was said to be a "dispute" between the first Se Ngawang Tashi and the first Detri Lozang Dondrup over choosing different candidates after the death of the First Jamyang Shadpa. It is claimed that Ngawang Tashi, the then abbot and leading scholar at Labrang, was more powerful than Lozang Dondrup, then monastery's treasurer, hence the former's assumption of the abbatial seat for 29 years until his death and delay in the enthronement of Lozang Dondrup's chosen candidate for the deceased First Jamyang Shapa. This may seem accurate and reasonable at first, however, what actually unfolded after the death of the First Jamyang Shadpa and the enthronement of the second Jamyang Shadpa was not so straightforward and neat a story, given the intervening period involving major secular figures in the inner politics of Labrang. Previous literature has only narrowly mentioned the presence of such secular power with the conflict within the inner circle of Labrang treated as almost the single reason for the conflict at Labrang and in larger Amdo society. It is important to conceptualize the conflict at Labrang in relation to the religious and political forces embedded in larger Amdo society, which had hugely implicated the conflict at Labrang. Another contribution of this paper is showing how this conflict at Labrang evolved during the succession of the Se lineage and what was at stake for the respective religious communities. This will also allow us to see how the conflict shifted the religious and political terrain of Amdo society. The second Se Ngawang Jamyang Tashi had to leave after a temporary stint at the office of the abbot of Labrang Monastery. He then became abbot of Rongwo Monastery with a permanent residence at Terlung Monastery. It is important to unravel the complexity of conflict at Labrang and in the larger Amdo Geluk community by examining the religious legacy of the first Se and evolution of factionalism during the life of the second Se. The discussion will then segue into accounting for closer relationships between Rongwo and the Se lineage such that the second through fifth Se reincarnations became the abbots of Rongwo Monastery. Currently, the sixth Se reincarnation serves as the tutor to the current Shar, the main reincarnation lineage at Rongwo Monastery. In Tibetan studies scholarship on religious history in general, religious authority of monastic centers and political influence of the courts are deemed the two most powerful forces at play as religion and politics intersect throughout Tibetan society. However, in Amdo society, particularly the case in question involving Labrang, Rongwo, Tso, Terlung, and other regional monasteries need more explanation than a simple linking of monasteries and courts. The local Tibetan tribal system is a significant force to be reckoned with in the religious and political landscape of Amdo. Mushrooming of new Geluk monasteries and searching for communities pledging support to them entails challenging, negotiation, and a reorganization of Amdo society and territory. Rongwo Monastery rose to prominence much earlier than Labrang as a center of focus for local tribes in the region, which existed as an integrated larger tribal confederation. The later founding of Labrang and its exponential growth and the favor it courted with the powerful Mongol ruler, Henan Qingwang, and others have encroached on the religious territory of Rongwo Monastery and other regional monasteries. Nevertheless, the existing tribal system obstructs expansion of religious jurisdiction by these monastic centers that are latecomers to the Amdo religious landscape. However, one should note that lay communities that pledge support to the monastic centers don't have exclusive allegiance to a particular monastery. This network of patron and priest is ever changing and unstable due to the priority of their respective interests and agendas under varying circumstances.

What is a vow? Doctrinal and cultural concepts of sdom pa and dam bca’

Jim Rheingans

Oaths and vows permeate the secular and religious life on the . Tibetan scholars have further given extensive thought about how to conceptualize a vow and elaborated the respective terminologies. In the Vinaya and literature as well as in other canonical works inherited from India and commented on in Tibet, we find various descriptions of sdom pa, how it functions, and what it entails. Tibetan texts about the “three vows” (sdom gsum) discuss the implications of upholding all three levels of vows (cf. for example Sobisch 2002). Countless ritual prescriptions as well as conferrals of oaths and vows employ dam bca’ and connected terms. This paper attempts to present a preliminary examination of how (religious) vows are defined and function, taking as point of departure the prātimokṣa vow and associated in Abhidharma literature and related text types. It sets out to outline doctrinal ideas and their development through employing selected passages of Tibetan Abhidharmakośa- commentaries, among others the voluminous masterpiece of Chims ’Jam dpal dbyangs (13th century) and Zhwa dmar Chos kyi dbang phyug’s (1584–1630) mNgon pa mdzod kyi spyi don. After discussing these ‘abhidharmic’ terms and definitions of what a vow is and how it functions (noting, of course, both the Indian contexts and the specific Tibetan reception), I will focus on the performative process of giving/taking a vow. The paper will try to place such formulations in the wider Tibetan discourses and practices of vows, such as, for example, uses in their ritual conferral. This raises the question of if and how such doctrinal issues were accounted for in certain practices. And it will be especially interesting to note these points in the context of the different papers presented in this panel.

Tibetan Women on Tibetan screen: (Imagi)Nation and Gender in Tibet

Françoise Robin

Ever since his debuts in 2004, Padma tshe brtan (b. 1969) has confirmed his position as the leader of the emerging films produced and made in the People’s Republic of China. With five feature films to date, some of them having secured international prizes in world cinema festivals, Padma Tshe brtan’s role as one of the most visible and potent brokers of the filmic representation of Tibet in Tibet, China and beyond, cannot be underrated. Moreover, Padma Tshe brtan has often repeated that his films aimed, among others, at altering a so far distorted representation of Tibet on screen, whether in Chinese or Western movies. In this paper, I will analyse how Padma Tshe brtan chooses to represent gender, focusing on women characters’ visual representation, roles, lines, and locus of discussion by male characters within the films. I will draw a comparison with representations of women in China-made Tibet-related “ethnic minority films” (shaoshu minzu dianying) on the one hand, and with Padma tshe brtan’s literary treatment of women in his own short stories on the other. I will also scrutinize whether and how Padma tshe brtan’s representation of women characters has evolved over the last decade. My reflection will be based on Nathalie Heinich’s Etats de femmes, a seminal study of women characters in 19th c. French novels, as well as on several analyses on women’s image on screen in India, Iran, and Turkey.

How Many Minor Languages do Tibetans in China Speak?

Gerald Roche

Tibetans are not a linguistically homogenous people. In addition to speaking various Tibetic languages, Tibetans in China also speak several ‘minor,’ non-Tibetic languages. These languages are ‘minor’ not only in the literal sense of being spoken by few people, but more importantly also in the sense of being excluded, marginalized, and low- prestige speech forms in relation to more dominant languages: both Standard Modern Chinese and the diglossic complex of literary Tibetan and its spoken forms. Tibetological research has long acknowledged the presence of these languages and their speakers: the Rgyal rong ba, Mi nyag pa, Prinmi, Dor rdo, and so on. However, we have no clear idea how extensive this phenomenon is. How many minor languages do Tibetans in China speak? What proportion of the total Tibetan population speaks such languages? What parameters would inform such counts? This presentation wrestles with the pitfalls and potential of trying to enumerate the minor languages spoken by Tibetans in China. Based on an extensive review of linguistic literature, I provide several estimates of how many minor languages are spoken by Tibetans in China, and discuss what each estimate tells us how linguistic diversity among Tibetans is represented by different authors to different audiences in different contexts.

Between Scriptures and Commentaries: the Bon Vinaya and its Exegesis

Ulrike Roesler

This paper will address questions related to the development of the Vinaya of the Bon tradition by comparing the canonical texts of the ‘Dul ba rgyud drug with two early commentaries, that of Me ston Shes rab ‘od zer (1058-1132) and Mnyam med Shes rab rgyal mtshan (1356-1415). The monastic literature of the Bonpos has so far been largely neglected in academic studies, in spite of the fact that it provides unique insights into a relatively early period of monasticism on the Tibetan plateau. My paper attempts to highlight the significance of the literature of the Bonpos for our understanding of monasticism in general. Following on from an article I wrote in 2015, it will investigate the stylistic and conceptual differences between the canonical scriptures on the ‘dul ba, which give the impression of a fairly ‘archaic’ literature, and the early commentaries that seem to reflect a higher degree of an awareness of the ‘dul ba of the Buddhists. It is hoped that this investigation will provide insights not only into the early Bon literature on monasticism, but also into the relationship between Bonpos and Buddhists during what was a highly dynamic formative period for both traditions.

Identifying the magical intrigues of the Lords of the World: The oneiromancy of the gSal byed byang bu.

Donatella Rossi

The gSal byed Byang bu (Decoding Guide) is a short text contained in Volume 514 and marked as text no. 44 of the Giuseppe Tucci Tibetan Fund (see E. De Rossi Filibeck, Catalogue of the Tucci Tibetan Fund in the Library of IsIAO, Rome, Istituto Italiano per l'Africa e l'Oriente, 2003, vol. II, p. 291, gSal byed byang bu zhes bya ba). The volume in question features a total of forty-six works, mostly dealing with prophecies, visions, dreams and their interpretation. The Byang bu is written in dbu med and consists of 3 folia (1a-2a) with eight lines per page and seven-syllables sentences; it has no title page and no colophon. It presents a list of dreams - characterized by specific symbolic components, animals or colors, and circumstances - that may be experienced by monks and lay people and elucidates their meaning, that is to say, which kind of class of deities or entities is responsible for their occurrence. The text makes reference to twelve different classes, such as dMu, Ma mo, The'u rang, and so on, and it ends with the injunction that people should be aware of the relevance of the issues at stake, especially future generations, to whom the work is dedicated. The text will be analytically deconstructed in order to provide a critical appreciation with regard to the semantic fields involved and their phenomenological coherence within the wide-ranging framework of divination, whose tangible applications and intangible significance participate throughout history in defining the cultural facets of Tibet.

Transforming Lhasa

Will Rourk

Co-written paper by David Germano, Kurtis Schaeffer, Guoping Huang, Steve Weinberger, Zihao Zhang, and Will Rourk: Building the New Lhasa The sixty-four year process (1642-1705) of the founding of the Ganden Palace state involved dramatic military conflicts and new political-religious alliances, but also involved a complex building and rerouting agenda in the Lhasa valley intertwined with a symbolic agenda manifesting in literature, buildings, pagentry, art, and ritual. Internally, the key was establishing a new symbolic order that legitimated and authorized other new offices and procedures, and which was intrinsically Buddhist in character. At the core was the identification of the Fifth Dalai Lama himself as the earthly incarnation of Avalokiteshvara, the embodiment of compassion, and the mytho-historical progenitor of the . Buddhism has a central notion of “pure lands”, celestial realms understood to be created by Buddhas as optimal destinations for devotees, which was linked but in this form or as to the esoteric , both of which were also explicitly used to model historical polities. Avalokiteshvara’s pure land was called “Potala”, and the building of the dramatic Potala palace in the 17th century was rooted in the attempt to bring about the terrestrial and celestial convergence of Lhasa as a geographic site and Avalokiteshva’s heaven. The Dalai Lama situated Potala Palace on the famed Tibetan imperial site of Marpori Mountain, for the Tibetan emperors were held to be, like the Dalai Lama, incarnations of Avalokiteshvara. In locating the new governmental center on a site already suffused with historic and symbolic meaning, he integrated the glory of the past and the promise of the future within a single space, a “pure land” which symbolically transcends time even as it lays claim to present-day Tibet. Around this new center the Dalai Lama created new institutions, such as the medical college complex on the adjacent Chakpori Mountain, and significantly developed the existing urban landscape Lhasa, including a major expansion of the Jokang temple complex and surrounding Barkor complex of temples and aristocratic residences. He also expanded the nearby Drepung and Sera monastic residences, setting the stage for them to become major seats of integrated religious and political force in their own right. Recentering the New Lhasa This explosion of building and architectural innovation was accompanied by the articulation of a new historical set of narratives about Avalokiteshvara’s intervention with Tibetans over time, and the convergence of Avalokiteshvara with the Dalai Lamas’ historical agency. In addition, there were explicit efforts to shift the foot traffic of humans through this landscape as new sacred circumambulation routes were systematically specified, advocated, and facilitated. In essence a new virtual Lhasa - as both a Buddhist pure land and a beneficent Tibetan state - were created with buildings, sacred traffic networks, literary narratives, and artistic representations that centered around a god and his human incarnation.

The Workplan: Our project aims to use virtual world technologies to document Lhasa in 1642 and in 1705 in order to comparatively assess the difference between Lhasa’s built and natural environments during this time, as well as the human pathways through which the inhabitants and multitude of pilgrims would encounter those environments. Between these dates the largest inhabited building the world had known was created as part of a mammoth revisioning of the city of Lhasa and Tibetan Buddhism itself. Visitors to the new Lhasa at the end of this period would be coming before an unprecedented architectural presence, a presence emotionally charged by the most potent symbols and stories of Buddhism. The reconstruction of the valley at these two temporal junctures will enable us to finally deliver a missing piece of the 17th century puzzle to the scholarly record by enabling allowing us to analyze the transformation put into place by the architectural and traffic shifts sponsored by the Ganden government. Current work is focused on producing a comprehensive reconstruction of the Lhasa-Kyichu Valley initially utilizing early 20th century / late 19th century maps and resources. This effort is mapping the structural and environmental fabric of the early 20th century Kyichu Valley as a starting point to work backwards to the 17th century condition. A 2 dimensional GIS model is being developed geo-database with different types of geometries is developed in ArcGIS which is converted to a 3D environment model in ESRI City Engine. The GIS maps spatial geometries being produced are directly linked to the Tibetan and Himalayan Library at the University of Virginia to provide scholarly context. The 3D model is then transformed into an interactive virtual environment using the Unity 3D game engine. This effort is being executed by a multi-disciplinary team at the University of Virginia that includes Tibetan Studies, Urban Planning, Landscape Architecture and the University Library.

A Comparative Analysis of Eleven Themes of rDzogs chen

Aleš Rýznar

I intend to present a comparative analysis of three texts of rDzogs chen. These works are associated with two traditions of rDzogs chen, which is found in Bon and the rNying ma school of Buddhism. The first text dGos ’dod gsal byed bshad gzhi (Basics which explain all what is needed and desire) is attributed to the eighth century master Dran pa Nam mkha’. This work is nowadays included in the major collection of Bon know as Ye khri mtha’ sel (Clearing Extremes from Primordial Mind). The other two texts are associated with the rNying ma school of Buddhism. They are rDzogs pa chen po tshig don bcu gcig pa (The Eleven Themes of rDzogs chen) written by Nyi ma ’Bum (1158-1213) and Tshig don bcu gcig pa (The Eleven Themes) attributed to Klong chen Rab ’byams (1308-1364). Tshig don bcu gcig pa is included in the collection Bi ma snying thig (The Essence of Vimalamitra), which was discovered by Zhang ston bKra shis rDor rje (1097-1167), the father of Nyi ma ’Bum who is mentioned above. All three texts present philosophy and meditation of the rDzogs chen vehicle arranged into eleven themes. The eleven themes in all three writings are unusually similar and many of their sections are also identical. Their similarity and uniformity appear in spite of traditional claims that all three texts are attributed to different authors, who wrote the texts in the eighth, twelfth, and fourteenth century. In addition, the writings are associated with two different traditions, Bon and Buddhism and yet they are almost identical. I plan to show to what extend these texts relate to each other. The analysis will contain comparison of structure of the three works and their interaction showing parts of texts, which are identical, similar, or different. The findings will be arranged in tables clearly demonstrating the textual relations (See below). I will also analyze and compare their terminology and references to textual authorities. This analysis will aim to find evidence that would indicate the source text(s) and consequently also the chronology in which these works were composed. Additionally, the analysis will aim to indicate the level of interaction and textual borrowing between the texts. Fnally, I will analyze further the textual authorities quoted by each text and shortly examine their tradition specific terminology. On basis of these findings, I will establish the level of interaction and the most probable order in which sections migrated between the texts. This may help us to identify the sourse text of the eleven themes of rDzogs chen as well understand interactions between the Bon and rNying ma traditions. The analysis will also demonstrate how texts of one tradition could be used as a basis for another. And how such texts were adapted, changed, and developed according to particular tradition, its specific terminology, concepts, and authority. An example of the analysis: Table: Identical part in the First Theme of rDzogs chen in the GSZ and DTC texts TCC Tshig don bcu gcig pa GSZ dGos ’dod gsal byed bshad gzhi DTC rDzogs chen tshig don bcu gcig pa 315-316 lhun grub tu ... lung rigs kyi don/ 17 lhun grub tu ... lung rigs kyi don de/ 316 de ni de ltar mi ’dod ... nges par ’dod pa ni/ 17-18 de ni de ltar mi ’dod ... nges par ’dod pa ni/ 316-317 nges par ’dod pa ... khyed par mi snyed do/ 18-19 nges par ’dod pa ... khyed par mi snyed do/ Table 10: The three lines demonstrate examples of views of rDzogs chen literally identical in the GSZ and the DTC, and absent from the TCC. In the first row is a section about the first view of rDzogs chen, asserting that the basis is spontaneously present. The second row contains a section about the second view that asserts that the basis is indeterminate. The third row demonstrates a part of the third view asserting that the basis is the definitive and determinate foundation.

Towards Solving an Unsolved Mystery Found in the Last Chapter of Śāntideva’s sPyod ’jug or Bodhi(sattva)caryāvatāra

Akira Saito

As was identified by myself, Śāntideva’s sPyod ’jug has been transmitted at least in two considerably different versions. While the current and later version is extant in , Tibetan, Chinese and Mongolian, the earlier one is, as far as our present knowledge goes, only accessible in the Tibetan manuscripts from Dūn-huáng. One of the unsolved mystery regarding the earlier version is that unlike the other chapters 1 to 9 in all of which the early version is shorter than the current one, the last chapter titled “Transfer of Merits” is exceptionally otherwise, viz., it contains 66 verses which surpasses the number of verses 58 composing the same chapter of the current version. In this regard, the present paper aims at solving the above question with a comparative inquiry into the necessary materials including the earlier version of the sPyod ’jug preserved in the Tibetan manuscripts from Dūn-huáng, an anonymous commentary on it, the current – as a whole – enlarged version of the same text and several commentaries on it.

The interplay of religious and empirical aspects of Tibetan healing

Geoffrey Samuel

Janet Gyatso’s work in recent years, from her 2004 ‘Authority of Empiricism’ article to her new book Being Human in a Buddhist World (2015), has provided an incisive and revealing perspective on the dialogue between Buddhist and Tantric theory and medical empiricism in the history of the Tibetan medical (gso ba rig pa) tradition. In recuperating the strong empiricist strand present within gso ba rig pa as in other Asian medical traditions, Gyatso has provided an important counter to the tendency of naïve Westerners to view Tibetan medicine as an intrinsically Buddhist and spiritual pursuit, a tendency which is reinforced on the Tibetan side by the construction of medicine in the Rgyud bzhi and elsewhere as Buddha-word or Tantric revelation. Yet the question remains open of just how religious and empirical aspects of healing interact in practice. If the classical Rdzogs chen tradition of the G.yu thog snying thig was seen for many centuries as an important part of medical training, and as a complement to the textual learning of the Rgyud bzhi and other medical commentaries and treatises, why was this? How were ritual processes such as sman sgrub and tshe sgrub understood in relation to pharmacology and the role of the nyes pa (‘humours’)? Ethnographic research on contemporary Tibetan medicine provides some answers, while ongoing critiques of Western biomedicine from anthropology, medical social science and critical neuroscience suggest that the ‘religious’ aspects of Tibetan healing may indeed have something important to contribute to global medicine in the 21st century.

Tibetan Kinship and Descent: Towards a Diachronic Picture?

Jonathan Samuels

The metonyms of “bone” (rus-pa), for the father’s line, and “flesh” (sha), for the mother’s line, are commonly cited as foundational concepts of Tibetan descent. It is also presumed that kinship reckoning, rooted in this distinction, was intimately linked to a clan-based system that once prevailed amongst the Tibetan people. Evidence from anthropological studies, however, seems somewhat ambiguous. Strict adherence to the unilineal descent model of clan-based systems seems to be confined to the Tibetan borderlands. In Tibet (specifically the TAR), the predominant descent model is bilateral, and kinship terminology does not always support the centrality of the rus-sha divide in the reckoning of kinship. What are we to conclude from these apparent inconsistencies? More importantly, is there any chance of developing a diachronic perspective on Tibetan kinship systems and models of descent that might go at least some way to explaining regional variations? The exploration of these questions not only requires an examination of the available anthropological studies, but also thorough research of Tibetan historical sources from the pre-modern era. But given the extreme religious bias of , how informative and indeed reliable is it with regards to reporting matters connected to kinship, descent, and social organisation? The nature of the evidence in Tibetan writings and the attitudes of largely religious authors to a kinship- based order are not straightforward. In this paper I shall present the initial findings of my project which involves a wide-ranging analysis of literary sources and a comparison with anthropological studies. I shall discuss the presence and representation of kinship systems in Tibetan literature, and the challenges of interpreting the literary sources. I shall then make some preliminary observations regarding historical and regional variation in kinship terminology in Tibet, and what these might indicate with relation to the issue of unilineal and bilateral descent.

The Magical Rope: A Study of ‘PHrul Gyi THe Gu brGu bsKor, a Medical Handbook from the Wartime

Tsering Samdrup (Cairang Sanzhou)

There has been a general consensus amongst scholars of Traditional Tibetan Medicine that it came into being as a result of the combination or blending of Indian, Chinese, Greek, Persian, and indigenous medical practices (Fenner, 1996. Yang Ga, 2010. Beckwith,1979). With this framework in mind, this article studies a recently discovered rare manuscript (presumably from as early as the Tibetan Empire era) entitled ‘PHrul Gyi THe Gu brGu bsKor, written by an anonymous writer. The article starts out with a literature review on the specific texts and works related to this text, including western scholarship and the medical history accounts (KHog ‘Bubs) by Tibetan scholars from the past. Secondly, due to the fact that copy the author acquired is a digital copy, there is no way to see the actual size of the text. However, the article introduces the text as a physical object and describes its characteristics; for example, the text has 19 folios (the 16th folio is missing) and is written in a particular style of dbu med, or headless script. Interestingly, it is numbered with Tibetan consonants from Ka to Tha instead of numerical symbols. This article analyzes the content of the text in details in following order. Firstly, the organization of the text will be closely examined. In terms of organization, it is not written in a Tibetan formal literary framework (the formal framework consists of mchod par brjod pa, rtsom par dam bca’ ba, dngos po nges bstan, and a colophon at the end of text). It is, rather, written in a relatively free and straight to the point style. Secondly, the text covers around 21 topics begin with an account of the origin of the content, diagnosis and treatment of specific wounds, including particular amputation techniques. Thirdly, the text will be analyzed for the marks of Indian Ayurvedic, Greek, and Chinese influences. For instance, Greek medicine can be taken into account while examining the text, especially the Galenic element, which can be found in this text in diagnosis through urine, a visible feature of Galenic influence. Additionally, moxibustion is possibly borrowed from Chinese medicine. To see the the foreign influences in this text more clearly, it will be compared with some well-known medical texts considered to be from Tibetan Empire era, Bi Ji’i Po Ti KHa Ser (The Yellow Covered Book of Biji), Byang KHog dMar Byang gSal Bai’ sGron Me, and sMan dPyad Zla Ba’i rGyal Po (also known as So Ma Ra Ja or The King of the Moon), especially the chapters on the treatment of wounds in these texts. To further understand this text and its appropriate position in Traditional Tibetan Medicine, it can be compared to the wound-treatement parts in the classical Four Tantras, or rGyud bZhi. Furthermore, this text is going to be compared with Dunhuang manuscripts on Tibetan medicine, namely the three manuscripts (P. tib.127, P. tib. 1044, P. tib. 1058) on moxibustion and manuscripts number P. tib. 1057, IOL Tib J 1246 (formerly labeled: I.O. 56,57) and IOL Tib J 756 to situate this text in the appropriate time or confirm the approximate date of the text. To do this, the author consulted Sam van Schaik’s work on paleographical methods with Tibetan manuscripts (van Schaik, 2012 and 2013). Lastly, this article is going to deal with some key terminologies (both medical and non-medical) in this text, including ku ma ya/ku ya, rma mkhan, sman bon, and don snying rnam pa lnga etc,. These terms seem ordinary, however, with the identifiable scripts of this text, these can be an important indicator of the date of the text. In conclusion, this text is a representation of pre-rgyud bzhi, possibly pre-Dunhuang text of original medical writings in Tibetan. The historical era of this text can be identified by the indelible marks in grammar features, terminological usage, and content.

The Places of Ku tu bzang mo (1464–1549)

Kurtis Schaeffer

The Places of Ku tu bzang mo (1464-1549) Tibetan life writing typically pays great attention to location, a single biography often citing hundreds of locations of various sorts and meticulously listing the subject’s travel between these locations. Where the biographical subject acted, and the fact that she acted there and not somewhere else, often takes priority over what she did, with whom she did it, or when she did it. And while a location named in life writing certainly refers readers to geographic site, it also can form a place, a porous entity that “provides the scene for action and thought, feeling and expression” (Casey, Getting Back Into Place, 2nd ed.: 341). More richly, the creative or even generic combination of location, person, and action conspires to evoke a sense of place. Places form nodes of community, hierarchy, and activity, and serve to structure chronology throughout a given biography. This paper uses the techniques of distant reading (maps, network visualizations, quantification, etc. after Moretti) and close reading (after Bachelard’s The Poetics of Space) to explore the workings of place in a single example of Tibetan life writing, the 1551 biography of Kun tu bzang mo (1464- 1549), religious leader along the Himalayan border of the Tibetan plateau, and partner of the famed writer Gtsang smyon Heruka (1452-1507). The paper describes the content, scope, and style of the work before analyzing the broad features of the hundreds of particular locations named in the work, networks between these locations as represented by Kun tu bzang mo’s travel from place to place, the communities she encountered in given places, and her actions in place. In doing so it suggests that within a spectrum of Tibetan literature treating persons, personhood, gender, buddhology, the nature of tradition, ethics, history, or soteriology (all of which Kun tu bzang mo’s Life treats), place and travel between places might usefully be considered constitutive features of life writing.

Of Brahmins, Elephants and Lotus Ponds – Two Short Works on the Examination of Dreams

Rolf Scheuermann

Techniques aimed at coping with the uncertainties of the future are found in both premodern and modern cultures, and can be regarded as a constant in the history of mankind. Following the European Enlightenment and the radical departure from the medieval world-view that it propagated, traditional forms of prognostication, particularly mantic practices, have been widely stigmatized as “superstition”. A quick glance at the Tibetan cultural context, where prior to the Chinese invasion of 1950 such a development had not taken place, reveals that divinatory practices played (and still play) an important role in the everyday lives of individuals. Widespread methods used to foresee the future range from different types of mo-divination, geomancy and astrology to oracles and prophecy. Yet another category of mantic techniques concern the observation of particular signs or omens, which, if interpreted correctly, offer information on what lies ahead. Predominant among these techniques is the “examination of dreams” (rmi lam brtag pa) or oneiromancy. Tibetan Buddhist religious writings often describe the Buddhist path as a process, which aims at awakening from the sleep of ignorance due to understanding that all phenomena resemble dream illusions, i.e., that one comes to see ultimate reality. Contrary to that, Tibetan Buddhist oneiromantic texts are associated with the level of apparent reality and its workings, where dream appearances can be understood as omens foreshadowing events or circumstances in this or future lifetimes. Yet, the examination of dreams is not confined to prognosticating the future, as it is also employed in order to assess the state of individual religious progress or for etiological inquiries in the field of Tibetan medicine. Appearances in dreams are regarded as signs that can hint at something good, bad, or indifferent, and may hold clues to better understand the past, present, or future. Omens are described in various genres, such as in medical texts, commentaries on meditation practices, as well as in a type of text that deals exclusively with dream interpretation. Furthermore, dreams and their interpretations constantly reoccur as a narrative device in Tibetan hagiographical literature. This paper focuses chiefly on two short, stand- alone oneiromantic texts preserved in the Bstan ’gyur, which present reference lists of omens along with guidelines for their interpretation: the Svapnekṣā (Rmi lam brtag pa, Tôh. no. 2100) attributed to Maitrīpāda (1007–1085), and the Svapnohana (Rmi lam brtag pa, Tôh. no. 1749) attributed to Vibhūticandra (12th–13th cent.) who is also identified in the colophon as its translator. Based on an analysis and comparison of their contents, an overview of the associations between signs and meanings is given and fundamental notions of individual fate are examined. In general terms, attention will be placed also on the relationship between omens and the Buddhist doctrine of dependent origination, which may be understood as the underlying rationality for most, if not all, divinatory practices prevalent in Tibet. Since some of the signs described in these two texts incorporate phenomena such as Brahmins, elephants, and lotus ponds that appear to be more relevant for an Indian than a Tibetan audience, a provisional examination of whether, or how, they have been adapted or dealt with in autochthonous Tibetan writings on the subject is offered. In order to answer this question, further excerpts from oneiromantic texts, commentaries on meditation practices, and Tibetan medical texts are to be included in this study as well. In this way, the paper may contribute to a better understanding of the cross-cultural dynamics involved in the formation of oneiromantic practices in Tibet.

བོད་ི་ིས་པི་རོམ་ིག་དང་། སོན་འོི་དེ་ན་ི་ཟབ་ོང་། Improving early childhood Tibetan education

Patricia Schiaffini and Tenzin Norbu Nangsal

TALI is a small all-volunteer non-profit organization based in the US devoted to teacher training and to the printing and distribution of Tibetan language materials for children, teachers, and parents in Tibetan-populated areas in China. TALI is credited with starting Montessori education training in Tibet, and with publishing some of the most creative children picture books in the Tibetan language. TALI's work, especially in early- childhood Montessori teacher training and in children books, have inspired many Tibetans to open kindergarten centers, to pursue specialized degrees in early-childhood education, and to write and illustrate books for children. Since its inception in the year 2006, and with a very limited annual budget (a yearly average of $20,000) TALI has provided annual training to hundreds of Tibetan teachers in the TAR and Amdo Tibet, has published a dozen children literature books and many educational materials for teachers, made short videos to teach Tibetan, sponsored one Tibetan-language children movie and supported several schools to develop their own small libraries, gyms, and customized on-site teacher training. TALI’s members often offer workshops inside and outside Tibet to train parents and teachers in the art of reading to children, and in the use of puppets to make stories become alive. This presentation shares how TALI has been able to do so much with so little by building up a solid base of creative and devoted volunteers, linking Tibet with the Montessori community in Taiwan and the US, and relying in local Tibetan NGOs, grass root organizers and teachers for logistical support and advice.

The Avalokiteśvara Temple on Mt. Yangri (Helambu, Nepal)

Alexander Schiller

Rig 'dzin Nyi ma seng ge (1687-1738), a native of Mang yul (South-western Tibet), came from a family who for generations served as custodian of the Byams sprin lha khang, one of the most ancient and important temples in his homeland. In Mang yul he received his religious education under the guidance of the 4th Yol mo sPrul sku Zil gnon dbang rgyal rdo rje. In the 1720’s Nyi ma seng ge was repeatedly summoned to the royal court in Kathmandu to ward off risks to the royal family and the city in his role as ritual priest. In 1723 he received a land grant from the royal court for expelling a plague which had spread throughout the Kathmandu valley. The estate was located in Upper Helambu where Nyi ma seng ge founded a settlement in the following years which is known today as Tarke Ghyang. Nearly two hundred years previously, the 1st Yol mo sPrul sku Śākya bzang po had built a small “monastery” in this region. Away from the main roads in the border region between Tibet and Nepal, the area was identified as the “hidden land” of Yol mo gangs kyi ra ba. On the top of Mt. Yangri, the dominant mountain in the region, Nyi ma seng ge built an Avalokiteśvara temple as a place of pilgrimage in the years from 1725 to 1726. The temple once formed the core of this sacred space until the building was destroyed by natural forces some twenty five years after its erection. Based on Tibetan hagiographical sources, I will describe the topography of the locus sanctus and the main features of its central temple. The presentation employs written primary sources to conduct historic building research. The main source is the biography of Nyi ma seng ge written in 1769 by his son, the 5th Yol mo sPrul sku Karma 'Phrin las bdud 'joms (1726-1789), entitled Gu ru sūrya seng ge'i rnam thar mdor bsdus nges shes 'dren pa'i shing rta (Ms., dbu can, 36 fols.). 'Phrin las bdud 'joms dedicated a considerable part of the biography to the main building projects that his father had carried out in Upper Helambu: first, the establishment of an Avalokiteśvara temple on Mt. Yangri, and a few years later the erection of a “monastery” for the lay community who had followed his father from Mang yul. 'Phrin las bdud 'joms provides essential information on the construction of the temple building, and describes its interior in detail including wall paintings and statues. From this report we also learn that the temple was mainly funded by Tibetan patrons from sKyid grong and gNya' nang. The shell and especially the carpentry were carried out by skilled Nepalese carpenters. However, for arts and crafts, Tibetan experts were summoned from the neighboring gNya' nang. As a place of pilgrimage, it is probable that the Avalokiteśvara temple on Mt. Yangri had primarily regional importance and may have been visited by the inhabitants of the surrounding villages and, more rarely, by foreign pilgrims. The particular significance of the temple to the history of Nyi ma seng ge’s religious tradition is only revealed through a deeper knowledge of the history of its origins. According to the biography of Nyi ma seng ge he employed a written instruction as guideline for the establishment of the temple. This text is part of the treasure literature dedicated to the opening of the “hidden land” of Yol mo and has been handed down in the Northern treasure text collection Byang gter lugs kyi rnam thar dang ma 'ongs lung bstan (edit. by Padma las 'brel rtsal, Gangtok, 1983) under the title Yol mo gangs kyi ra ba'i lung byang snying gi ṭi ka (Ms., dbu med, 10 fols.). According to tradition, the text was retrieved by the rNying ma gTer ston Rig 'dzin rGod ldem (1337-1409) from Mt. bKra bzang in La stod byang. Nyi ma seng ge obviously identified the region of his land grant in Helambu as the “hidden land” of Yol mo mentioned in the treasure text, and this provided the needed justification to put the instructions of the prophecy into reality when he established a “monastery” and retreat center next to Mt. Yangri. In my presentation, I will contrast the account of the treasure text and the biography regarding the concepts of spatial development, and I will try to evaluate the architecture and art historical significance of the building project executed by Nyi ma seng ge on Mt. Yangri.

Divination in the Bon tradition: an introduction to the texts, practices, and origin narratives of a unique ritual system. Alexander K. Smith

As is well known, the term 'Bon' has historically been used to signify a number of different religious phenomena. In this paper, I will discuss Bon in its contemporary monastic form, which appears to have emerged in the tenth and eleventh centuries concomitant with the formation of major Tibetan Buddhist sects during the bstan pa phyi dar. Specifically, I will focus upon the roles played by divination in the Bon tradition, as well as the representation of divination practices in a variety discourses characteristic of the Bon literary milieu. Many forms of divination in the Bon tradition trace their origins back to the Buddha sTon pa gShen rab and, in several pervasive narratives, to his mythic codification of the phya gshen theg pa, the first section of the so-called nine 'ways' or nine 'vehicles' of Bon (theg pa rim pa dgu). As a consequence, many divination practices in the Bon tradition demonstrate a 'canonical' charter which, to my knowledge, is not found in the case of the major Tibetan Buddhist sects. My discussion will emphasize the divinatory materials catalogued in the Bon bka' brten; however, I will also survey a number of 'non-canonical' manuscripts. In particular, I will focus upon a series of 18th and 19th century commentaries on divination written by the ecumenicists and historians Kun grol grags pa (b. 1700) and 'Jam mgon 'ju mi pham (1846-1912), as well as the 19th century Bon scholar Nam mkha' rgyal mtshan, the 17th hierarch of sKyang tshang monastery.

At the Intersection of Tibetan Monastic Scholars and Applied Linguistics: Developing a Culturally Responsive Pedagogy for English Language Learning

Clea Schmidt

This paper examines how applied linguists can learn from the traditions of Tibetan monastic scholars to design and implement culturally responsive English language teaching in monastic settings. Arguments are premised on the understanding that the traditions of Tibetan monastic scholars and Western academics are not dichotomous. Rather, they are myriad, mutually informative, and interactive given Tibetan monks are increasingly called upon to teach, lead, and support various Buddhist activities among Westerners. Moreover, the sites for intellectual exchange and collaboration involve a variety of actual and virtual spaces around the world, furthering the reciprocal learning and engagement between various scholarly traditions. The research is grounded within a theory of critical pedagogy, defined broadly as a perspective toward education that prioritizes social justice, democracy, and ethical claims. Facilitating appropriate and culturally sensitive academic English and content-area instruction for Tibetan monastic scholars is part of an equity mandate to ensure the preservation and development of the linguistic, cultural, and religious interests of Tibetans as a time when Tibetan institutions are threatened by the Chinese occupation of Tibet and the cultural and linguistic genocide accompanying this colonialism. This research, which has informed the development and implementation of an ‘English for Monastic Purposes’ curriculum framework, also challenges the dominant commercial interests of many mainstream publishers of English Language Teaching (ELT) materials who tend to overlook the need for locally developed and culturally appropriate pedagogical materials. Data in this paper are drawn from critical action research conducted over a period of two years at a Tibetan Buddhist educational centre in Kathmandu, Nepal by a professor of second language education from a Canadian university, who was invited by the centre to develop and implement English language programming and document the impact. Several months of fieldwork was undertaken that involved conducting observations, interviews, and site visits; analyzing relevant policies including the education policy of the Tibetan government in exile emphasizing a hybrid of traditional Tibetan and international secular scholarly approaches; and keeping detailed field notes. Findings from the research have informed the development of beginner, intermediate, and advanced level English classes for monastic scholars; a curriculum framework for English language teaching; an assessment tool to place the monastic scholars in appropriate English classes; and content-based activities integrating Tibetan Buddhism and English language learning. In addition to presenting and analyzing key research findings, the proposed IATS presentation will also discuss the implications of the research, emphasizing that the grounding of ‘English for monastic purposes’ in appropriate scholarly traditions (both the traditions of Tibetan monks and perspectives from the field of applied linguistics) is sorely needed at a time when the plethora of available materials for English language teaching and learning are largely irrelevant and inappropriate for the needs of monastic scholars. Moreover, the reciprocal learning between Tibetan monastic scholars and applied linguists can meaningfully inform the development of culturally responsive English curriculum. English teaching for monastic scholars should not be undertaken by unqualified English-speaking tourists with little knowledge of Buddhist traditions, but rather by professional language educators who simultaneously demonstrate a respect for and interest in Tibetan Buddhism.

Theory into Practice: The Importance of Applying Multidisciplinary Research to Tibetan as a Second Language Education (TSL)

Dirk Schmidt

This paper aims to present research from multidisciplinary fields relevant to the pedagogy of Tibetan as a Second Language (TSL), and how those theories may be practically implemented in order to provide a comprehensive Tibetan-language education. Our focus herein is identifying those features of second language acquisition and linguistic theory that are salient to higher-level Tibetan language studies; we then discuss the practical application of those features as they relate to Tibetan language specifically, along with real-world, experiential insights from implementing TSL in an immersion learning environment (Esukhia Asia). We begin by giving an overview of the general principles of second language pedagogy within a historical context, focusing briefly on 18th century Grammar-Translation (as it remains a common standard for Tibetan language pedagogy in universities to this day), and ending with modern theories of language acquisition. Alongside, we discuss issues of ancient and modern reading (and their cultural contexts), while noting features such as the effects of interword spacing and vernacular literature on the rise of widespread literacy. We also delve briefly into issues of level assessment (CEFR) in modern second language pedagogical contexts. Here, we pay special attention to literacy and reading comprehension, as textual study is of primary concern to the field of Tibetan studies. Moving on, we draw from modern research in psycholinguistics and language acquisition, noting two important features of literary skills: (1) language, even when written, is primarily oral; and (2) language production and language comprehension are two sides of the same coin. Issues of building phonemic awareness and automaticity are discussed, along with vocabulary acquisition, reading comprehension, and the difference between extensive and intensive reading. We reason that producing language is a key component to comprehending language, and that building phonetically-charged lexicon, too, is integral to second language acquisition. Next, we introduce the concept of “diglossia” as a model for understanding the gap between spoken and literary registers of Tibetan: that is, the situation of having a large body of culturally significant literature contributing to “high” and “low” versions used within a single language community. Pertinent cross-linguistic examples are given, with an emphasis on Arabic specifically (due to parallels in both time-frame and issues of literacy for both L1 & L2 learners), while noting the advances of the field of teaching Arabic as a Foreign language (with an eye on their applicability to Tibetan). And, just as Arabic has moved away from “classical studies” toward a more integrated and holistic approach to language acquisition, we suggest the same for Tibetan. By tying together the theoretical lessons brought up thus far, we begin to point a way toward their practical applicability in building true reading comprehension for students of Tibetan as a Second Language: in brief, the Tibetan diglossia (the gap between literary and spoken registers) must be filled using principles of plain language and readability to ensure the student a graded pathway from low-level, vernacular literature to more and more sophisticated material. Tibetan classrooms would best serve their students by grounding them first in spoken language, while simultaneously building reading comprehension skills in a Tibetan-only environment. Finally, we discuss these matters from the ground-level based on our own, practical insights from 4 years of running a Tibetan-language immersion program: What works? What doesn't? What is left to be done? And how can we accomplish it? We specifically discuss TTSL (Teacher Training for Teaching Tibetan as a Second Language), materials development (creating Tibetan-only textbooks for TSL students), and the research needed for future educational projects (using corpus linguistics to inform material development, i.e., graded readers).

The female in contemporary Tibetan art: the artist Monsal Pekar (b. 1964)

Nicola Schneider

Like in many other professions, women only form a tiny minority among artists in Tibet. Monsal Pekar is one among a handful of them. She has not only reached fame in her own society, but also in Mainland China and international circles thanks to her travels and contacts. This talk will first deal with her life and training as presented by herself in conversations and in one of her books (Fading Dreams, co-edited with Tashi Tsering from Amnye Machen Institute, and published in 2002). It will then proceed by analyzing part of her artwork and especially those works, which can be considered as “feminist” or representing “feminist ideas”—“Fighting for women’s rights”, in her own words. I will try to trace the development and inspirations underlying these pieces by drawing on a small critical book she wrote on women in Tibet (Don’t Laugh at Women’s Hardships, published in 2004) and her more recent thoughts expressed in conversations. I will thus examine social commentary, critique and reflections in the artist’s work with a particular regard to women’s issues. We will also see that the latter are closely connected to ideas stemming up from Buddhism, which she knows well as a diligent student and practitioner. Last but not least, we will explore how the female artist feels responsibility for her own society.