The other day, I encountered some Gita-thumping Hare Rama Hare Krishna acolytes. With missionary zeal, they pounced on me, thrusting a large bundle of books in my hands. I protested that I didn't want them. They replied with condescending, saintly smiles: "Please read them, sister. They are free and could give you some much-needed wisdom!" Of course, I had to then make a donation. Later, when I flipped through the books, I wondered if most of the people on whom they forced their books, even turned a few pages. If the aim was to bring more followers into the fold, asking them to read books seemed to be a particularly inefficient way of doing so.
I couldn't help but compare them to the Bhuchens in Spiti - wandering lamas who travel from village to village preaching religious, social and ecological morals to the locals through a set of riveting theatric performances. Through the long, snow-bound winter in Spiti, Bhuchens travel from village to village, ensuring the continued hold of Buddhism in the region. This unique sect of Tibetan Buddhists follows the teachings of Tholdan Gyalpo, an early 11th century teacher, who devised these performances afraid that modernity and exposure to other cultures were fast eroding Buddhism. Over the centuries, the Bhuchens disappeared from Tibet and Ladakh but a handful continue to survive in Pin Valley in Spiti.
When we went to Pin Valley one sunny October morning, we had no clue what to expect from the Bhuchens. A large crowd was gathered outside the village, scores of children with chapped cheeks and runny noses were playing beside them. In the middle of the crowd was an old, ash-covered lama rocking on the soles of his feet, singing. Our guide Chhering translated the scene. "In the 14th century in Tibet, some villagers were trying to build a bridge. Every night, however, the fruit of their hard work was destroyed by evil spirits! Then a learned lama held a special Bhuchen ritual near the bridge," narrated Chhering, as we watched the Bhuchen sing and dance in front of his audience. "The lama imprisoned all the evil spirits in a large boulder, and asked his acolytes to place the boulder on his belly and smash it to smithereens. With the smashing of the boulder, the evil spirits were dispelled and the bridge was completed without any further hitch."
As the music and dancing picked up tempo, the ash-covered Bhuchen was replaced by a taller lama wielding swords in either hand. Holding a prayer wheel and chanting magical prayers, he whirled round and round. Suddenly, the lama pierced his cheeks with a long needle. The audience gasped pleasurably but he did not miss a note or spill a drop of blood. Soon the ash-covered lama returned. The chanting and prayer was now directed towards a large slab of stone. The lamas went from person to person, calling all evil spirits presumably within us, to come to the stone. The lama lay down with the stone on his belly. Once the stone shattered, the lamas declared that we were now free from evil spirits.
I was struck not only by the naive wisdom of the Bhuchen performance but also by their audience that stayed fervently glued to every performance although everyone knew all the punchlines. My neighbour explained: "We believe that watching the Bhuchens keeps us in good physical and spiritual health. And their performances are so thrilling, we're happy watching them over and over again!!"
How I wish I could say the same about the pile of books gathering dust at home!
Disclaimer: These are personal views of the writer. They do not necessarily reflect the opinion of www.business-standard.com or the Business Standard newspaper
