Saudi Journal of Humanities and Social Sciences ISSN 2415-6256 (Print) Scholars Middle East Publishers ISSN 2415-6248 (Online) Dubai, United Arab Emirates Website: http://scholarsmepub.com/ The Tibetan Buddhist Tradition of Sacrifice and Religious Ritual Using Instrument Made of Animal and Human Body Parts Among the Memba Tribe of Arunachal Pradesh Dr. Chera Tamak Department of History, Faculty of Social Science, Rajiv Gandhi University, Rono Hills, Doimukh, Arunachal Pradesh, 79112, India Abstract: This article explores the Tibetan Buddhist tradition of sacrifice and *Corresponding author religious ritual using instrument made of animal and human body parts among the Dr. Chera Tamak Memba tribe of Menchuka Valley. The Memba is a name given to a collection of group of Buddhist people who migrated from various parts of Bhutan, present Article History Tawang district and Tibet (China) respectively and settled in Menchuka Circle of Received: 08.10.2017 West Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh, India during the early 17th Century A.D. Accepted: 13.10.2017 The paper tries to present the ritual tradition of Memba tribe of Menchuka who Published: 30.10.2017 follow Tibetan form of Buddhism and belong to Nying-ma-pa sect. It is interesting to know that Memba are still following and preserving most of the age-old ritualistic DOI: tradition of their ancestor. They followed extensive tantric ritual and comes under 10.21276/sjhss.2017.2.10.5 third vessel Vajrayana form of Buddhism introduced by Guru Padmasambhava in Eight century A.D. in Tibet. The article tries to provide brief information regarding the types of sacrificial ritual and use of animal and human body parts that are still prevalent among the Memba tribe. The paper also traces the belief and myth associate with it. In order to do so, varieties of sources in the form of secondary, primary, field study and folk narration are briefly examined to provide glimpse of their ritualistic practice. Keywords: Sacrifice, Instrument, ritual, Gomp (Monastery), Chorten (Stupa), Neh (Pilgrimage place), Lama (Monk), Kapali INTRODUCTION The Memba ethnic group is one of the various tribes of Arunachal Pradesh who inhabits in the Menchuka Circle of Menchuka Sub-division in the northern part of West Siang district of Arunachal Pradesh, India. Menchuka has international boundary facing China towards north, Upper Subansiri district on the west, Upper Siang district on the east and Upper Subansiri district and Yomcha Sub-division on the south. As per 2011 census, the population of Memba was 4,395 [1]. The Memba is a nomenclature given to a collection of group of people who had migrated from various parts of Bhutan, present Tawang district and Tibet (China) respectively and settled in Menchuka. According to their vernacular literature Cheik it was Fig-1: Statue of Guru padmasambhava during the Seventeenth Century A.D under the guidance of Lama Lorde Gyatso they moved towards Menchuka. Historically, the Tibetans and the western Cheik is a vernacular text dealing with rules and people know Menchuka by the name Pachakshiri regulation to be followed by Lamas and contain some (Baechakshiri) and its resident as Pachakshrisba. detail account of their early history. The original copy Politically before 1947, Menchuka (Baechakshiri) was a of Cheik was confiscated by Chinese army during Indo- private estate of Tibetan aristocratic family called China war of 1962 [2]. Lhalu. Lhalu family considered to be one of the most powerful, respected and come under Yabshi group in Tibet [3]. Yabshi are those families and their 886 Chera Tamak.; Saudi J. Humanities Soc. Sci.; Vol-2, Iss-10A (Oct, 2017):886-891 descendants into which Dalai Lamas have been born. The Memba rituals include offerings of Linguistically Memba belong to Bodic group of Tibeto- symbolic offering of blood, using effigy representative Burman linguistic group [4]. They follow Tibetan form of an objects, food, water, chang, butter lamp, incense of Buddhism and belong to Nying-ma-pa sect [5]. It is and redeeming animals from slaughter. They use effigy interesting to know that Memba people still follow and made of dough from millet called torma to use as a preserves most of the age-old ritualistic tradition of source where a person’s sins are to be transferred. This their ancestor. They follow extensive tantric ritual and effigy is stumped in dough with the help of wooden come under third vessel Vajrayana form of Buddhism carved effigy. This effigy represents human figure, introduced by Guru Padmasambhava in the eight deity, spirit and animal, stuffed with reproductive organ century A.D. in Tibet [6]. and red juice to symbolise blood. The red juice is prepared from mixing red colour with melted butter. The purpose of this paper is to highlight their The torma is considered incomplete until their religious tradition by tracing their link between their consecration ceremony to animate it with life is oral tradition and practice. Till now there are few performed. The theory behind the offering of torma as research work done on the Memba tribe but no attempt alternative to sacrificial ritual is to ransom it in place of has been made by any researcher to understand their a dying or ill person. The torma is supposedily tradition belief and practice. Thus the information considered superior to any human body. The torma is provided in the paper is first hand information gather by thrown away at the end of the ritual or at constant the correspondent through extensive field study and intervals. They also use sacred religious instrument of collection of oral narration gather during interaction bells, drum, trumpets, conch, Dorjee (vajra), Phurpa, with Memba people. rosary and weapons vigorously for successful performance of the ritual. They also perform ritual, Tradition of sacrifice which cannot be succeeded without having sacrifice. The Memba community practices and follows many rituals during their lifetime. They consider these The rituals take two days to three weeks to rituals as the only medium through which they can complete and require presence of more than three contact the spirit and deities living in this universe. It is Lamas for the practice. On the first day of the ritual, the a practice where religious actions are performed for assistant Lamas called Choi-pen prepare all the material their symbolic value. They believe that, they live in a required for the ritual like torma and butter lamp. After world tamed with malignant, aggressive and violent the materials required have been prepared, the senior spirits who if not dealt properly can cause great trouble, Lama consecrated the torma. With the consecration, for which they have to pacify it by countless offerings they start the rituals. During the rituals, the Lama and and perform various rituals to protect as well as avoid his assistant stay in the person house until the final individual or the community from wide range of completion of the ritual. They also perform various misfortune to befall. rituals for the construction of house, for departed member of the family, for wealth, harvest, passage of In early days before the introduction of lifecycles like birth and marriage. modern medicine, the Memba people did not believe in the perception that illness or accident has a natural cause. They measured it to the work of evil spirits or malevolent deities who wanted to exert control upon them. In order to ward away the evil spirit or deity one had to appease the malevolent deities through worship and ritual. In the Memba community the Lamas plays a vital role of a shaman. He acts as a medium through which the ritual could be successfully achieved. Only a Lama has the knowledge of communication with the spirits that share the natural surrounding with man and his environment. In case if a family member happens to fall ill or some unusual incident occurs, they consult the Lama to determine the cause of the misfortune. The Lama with the help of the sorcerers, oracle and astrology tries to locate the source of the trouble and then suggests remedies required. In order to avert trouble of any kind, a ritual is considered the most effective means of solving it. Fig-2: Statue of Aapo Dorjee Drakchen Available Online: http://scholarsmepub.com/sjhss/ 887 Chera Tamak.; Saudi J. Humanities Soc. Sci.; Vol-2, Iss-10A (Oct, 2017):886-891 The first reference of sacrificial ritual among of January month every year. The place contains the Memba is found in the form of ritual called Aapo numbers of holy sites called Sada Bumba Chorten built Dorjee Drakchen. This ritual is performed in favour of by Lama Lorde Gyatso, foot prints of Lama Lorde demon named Aapo Dorjee Drakchen. They perform it Gyatso and his horse, Ba-Chu Lansa, Shing-Yong once in every year in a place called Tsensi-gang in Masar and Dutse-Lansa. During pilgrimage, they Menchuka village. Every year a black coloured chicken perform sacrificial ritual by offering one hen in favour is sacrificed as offering to the deity. A chosen Lama of local deities named Dorjee Barwa Sungma, Lha-diu- performs the ritual. Earlier in Menchuka, a Lama named Chenm and Zingkyong-Yab-yung. The ritual is Lama Thupden performed it. After his death, the Head performed in the site where Sada Bumba chorten is Lama Dongse Thinley Narbu Naksang continued the located. If the sacrifice hen fall towards the stream it ritual until the reincarnation of Late Lama Thupden symbolizes deity accepted the offering and Menchuka named Lama Dorjee Phurpa Buru took charge. It is Valley will be prosperous in that year. On the other believed that if the sacrificial offering is not performed hand, if the sacrificed hen jumps towards the land it then the Memba people would have to face the wrath of symbolises that the deity is unhappy and will bring Aapo Dorjee Drakchen.