Tibetan Buddhism, Bon, and Animism

Abstract

People in the Monpa area have followed the Bon religion for many centuries. The Nyingma [rnying ma] sect of Tibetan Buddhism has existed in that area since the eighth century; the Gelug [dge lugs] sect arose in the fifteenth century. Tawang Monastery has long been the central institution of Tibetan Buddhism in the Monpa area. Elements of Tibetan Buddhism and Bon were combined to create a synthesized faith, which has exerted a strong impact on the cultures and societies of that region. In Bon religion, spirits and deities of the mountains have been worshipped as mountain gods for ages. Mountain gods are particular to each area and local people pray and give ritual offerings to their mountain gods in ceremonies. In the Monpa area, Tantric (Esoteric) Buddhism has also been a major influence. The focus of this chapter is on the current relationship between the inhabitants in the Monpa area and their faith. This chapter also examines the daily lives of people engaged in various religious practices.

Nuns pounding grain in Singsur Buddhist nunnery [sing zur a ne dgon pa], Tawang: they live with teachers, who are also nuns, in a dormitory known as a shak [shag] and study at a local village school.

Appendices

Column 1

4.1.1 Development of Arunachal Pradesh and Effects of the Chinese Military Action in 1962

Arunachal Pradesh acquired an identity of its own for the first time as part of the North-East Frontier Tract organized by the British administration in 1914. It was renamed the North-East Frontier Agency (NEFA) by the government of India in 1946. It became the Union Territory of Arunachal Pradesh in 1972. It was ruled directly under the Ministry of Home Affairs of the central government. The central government restructured the political status of the region, and it became the 24th fully fledged state in the Union of India in 1987. However, the area was considered largely valueless and left derelict until 1990s. Historically, in 1914, during the negotiations to manage the conflict between Tibet and China, Sir Henry McMahon of the British administration persuaded Tibet to accept the border between Tibet and the Assam region of India, which was included in the Simla Accord (a treaty concerning the status of Tibet negotiated by representatives of the China, Tibet and the British India in Simla in 1913 and 1914). The McMahon Line (a line agreed to by Britain and Tibet as part of the Simla Accord, a treaty signed in 1914, and the effective boundary between China and India) then came into existence. It was drawn on the northern side of the Himalayan ridgeline in an area where the Tibetan population was distributed, but China did not recognize this boundary (Mehra 1971, 1972, 1974; Lamb 1966). The boundary dispute between China and India became a longstanding issue between the two countries. In 1962, the Chinese military launched a sudden attack in the border conflicts between China and India, and India suffered a crushing defeat. The Indian government then expanded paved roads to remote parts of Arunachal Pradesh and garrisoned military units to further enhance its effective control of the area.

Most major roads in this region are under control of the military, but they are open to inhabitants for daily use (Fig. 4.48). When constructing such roads in residential areas, the military relocated inhabitants to new settlements and paid them substantial indemnities via the state government. In nonresidential areas, the military simply grabbed up the necessary land. Stone material for road construction was bought up from clans and villages by the military. The military maintains and controls the roads and blocks them when strategically necessary. For the construction of less important state roads, the Arunachal Pradesh state government did not purchase the necessary land from clans and villages but hired locals to undertake the labor. Though existing settlements were relocated to permit the building of military roads, the state roads were designed and carefully constructed so that no relocation was required.

Fig. 4.48

For strategic reasons, most major roads in the state of Arunachal Pradesh are maintained by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO) of the central government of India

Major roads and strategically important roads in the Monpa area are built and maintained by the Border Roads Organisation (BRO), which is responsible for road development in India’s border areas. The BRO cooperates with the General Reserve Engineer Force (GREF) and the Indian Army’s corps of engineers. The Public Work Department (PWD) of the central government of India and the state government of Arunachal Pradesh are responsible for the construction of roads within towns or a district. Besides the above organizations like BRO, GREF and PWD, Pradhan Mantri Gram Sadak Yojana (PMGSY) is also involved in the constructions and maintenances of the road. PMGSY is a public project that is being undertaken by the Ministry of Rural Development of the Indian central government to connect villages in Arunachal Pradesh. The BRO is actively constructing roads in the Monpa area because this is a very important border region for India. The purpose of these roads is to promptly transport self-propelled artillery and tanks to every part of the national border in response to a possible Chinese military action.

A highway is currently being constructed from Tawang to Pasighat in Arunachal Pradesh, and it is necessary for both socioeconomic and strategic reasons. Whereas current roads pass through a wildlife sanctuary in Arunachal Pradesh, the new roads avoid such areas.

Women by the roadside crushing rocks with hammers to make pebbles are a common sight in Arunachal Pradesh (Fig. 4.49). The pebbles are used as construction material for roads and bridges. A 50-kg bag of pebbles can be sold for about 30–200 rupees. Since the Indian government actively undertakes development in this state, the pebbles are in high demand, and the production of pebbles is a popular source of employment for local women. It is also notable that many migrating Nepalese workers have arrived in the state for road construction work.

Fig. 4.49

Women crush rocks with a hammer to make pebbles by the roadside. The pebbles are used as construction material for roads and bridges

Column 2

4.2.1 Land Ownership and Living Expenses

Most of the land in the Monpa region belongs to clans, especially in the Dirang area, or it is owned by the villages in the Tawang and Kalaktang areas. The urban areas in Itanagar, the state capital, and Bomdila, the district capital, are owned by the state, and residents are required to pay rent to the government. By contrast, urban areas in the Dirang and Tawang areas are owned privately.

Local people pay the government for electricity and water. For example, in the village of Lhou (Fig. 2.5) in the Tawang area, the electricity bill for an ordinary household is fixed at 150 rupees per month. A few households share a faucet connecting them to the public water supply system and collectively pay 50 rupees per month for the service. Households that use local water but not the public system do not have to pay a water bill. In towns, the electricity bill is determined by meters, which indicate actual consumption. The normal range of a monthly electricity bill is 190–400 rupees. In the village of Sanglem (Fig. 2.5) in the Kalaktang area, electricity is charged according to the number of sockets. This suits the way in which electricity is used in this remote village where electricity appliances are not abundant. The electricity bill is set to two levels: above poverty line (APL) and below poverty line (BPL; see Sect. 7.4). The monthly bill for one light bulb socket at the APL level is 80 rupees, whereas at the BPL level it is 45 rupees.

In a town, a license has to be paid to operate a business, and it must be renewed every year; however, the charge is small. Tax is mainly collected in the form of a consumption tax. The rate of consumption tax varies depending on the purchased goods. It is kept low for vital goods and daily commodities.

Wages paid to workers involved in development projects and salaries for military personnel are higher than in other states of India. Military personnel based in Arunachal Pradesh are paid by the state government in Assam, but they also receive a salary supplement from the central Indian government.

The state government of Arunachal Pradesh only owns some parcels of urban land. In the Dirang area, land belongs to the clans with a few privately owned exceptions. This means that the state government needs to acquire the rights to use land from the clans when constructing schools or public facilities.

Any matter related to a clan is determined by the clan’s committee. Its conference members consist of tsanpa (btsan pa): btsan means a “clan,” and pa is “person.” The membership of tsanpa ranges from elders to educated young people. In the case of the Sharchokpa clan, the number of members is about 150, of whom 70–80 are tsanpa. No decision is made unless all the members present agree and put their signature to the decision. Once the document relating to the decision has been signed, no complaint can be made. This is the standard decision-making process of clans in the state.

The Indian central government proposed the building a hydroelectric power plant in the Dirang area in the 2007–2008. During our September 2010 field observations, we observed how some of the negotiations went through between the concerned parties. The government negotiated with clans in the two villages. We had the chance to witness the ongoing talks between tsanpa from the four local clans and officials in a governmental office. It came to light that the funding for the plan has been provided by the World Bank, a semi-private agency has been placed in charge of its management, and private companies were to have actual construction work. The power station was to be built in the Boot Monpa area, and the construction of a tunnel between the villages of Thembang and Namshu was planned to transport water for power generation. However, due to stiff opposition from the Chinese government, the World Bank has declined to fund and now it is expected that Indian government itself will meet the plan in the region.

The borders of pieces of land are normally streams and valleys. Such borders are called tsampa or satsam [mtshams pa or sa mtshams] in the Dirang area. When natural features are not available, a stone pillar—tsampa lung [mtshams pa lung] or satsam doring [sa mtshams rdo ring] in Tibetan—is erected and used as a landmark. Borders between the plots of land owned by clans are normally marked by these stone pillars in the Monpa area.