A Journey to Lhasa and Central Tibet/Chapter 11

by Sarat Chandra Das

CHAPTER XI.

SOCIAL DIVISIONS—MARRIAGE—FUNERALS—MEDICINE—FESTIVALS.

In Tibet there are three distinct classes among the people, lay and clerical, which are determined by birth and social position, and each of these has three sub-divisions.^[1] They are as follows:—

First, or highest class, Rab:—

1.—Rab-kyi rab. The king, members of the royal family, and incarnate lamas who have appeared many times on earth.

2.—Rab-kyi ding. The Desi, or regent, ordinary incarnate lamas, ministers and councillors of state, learned lamas, or abbots, professors at important monasteries.

3.—Rab-kyi tama. Secretaries to the Government, Dahpon, Djongpon, and inferior lamas, or abbots.

Middle classes, Ding:—

1.—Ding-kyi rab, or "upper middle class," including families who have for generations possessed great wealth, landlords who do not claim descent from illustrious ministers or warriors; Dungkhor, old families and men who have personally contributed in a marked degree to the welfare of the country; and lastly, the Don-nyer.

2.—Ding-kyi ding. This class includes the Dung-yig, or clerks, stewards, chamberlains, head grooms, head cooks, and other petty officers.

3.—Ding-kyi tama. Soldiers and subjects.^[2]

Lowest class, Tama:—

1.—Tamai rab. Grooms, menials engaged in domestic service, and other hired servants.

2.—Tamai ding. Those who have no fixed homes, men who keep concubines, but no wives, loose women, professional beggars, vagabonds, and paupers.

3.—Tamai tama. The lowest of the low are butchers, scavengers, disposers of dead bodies, blacksmiths, and goldsmiths.

In Tibet there are no caste restrictions with regard to marriage as in India. The rich may bestow their daughters on the poor, the daughter of a poor man may become the bride of the proudest noble of the country. But the girls of the royal family and those of high rank are not generally bestowed on the low classes; but in the event of their not finding a suitable match, they are sent to convents. The daughters of commoners do, however, occasionally become the wives of nobles.

The nuptial ceremonies are alike for all classes, the only difference being in the amount of money expended in the festivities. In the first place, the friends of the bridegroom employ a go-between to make the first overtures to the parents or guardians of the girl. Should the latter entertain the proposal, the parents of the would-be bridegroom either take or send presents to them, consisting of khatag and wine (called long chang, "proposal wine"), and formally make an offer of marriage. The girl's parents make excuses, saying that she is neither handsome nor accomplished, and will be of no service to the suitor. The go-betweens thereupon more and more earnestly press their suit. After these conventional phrases have been exchanged, the girl's parents say, "If you are really in earnest, and believe that she will be of service to you, we shall consult with our friends and relatives, and let you know our decision."

A few days later their consent to the union is formally conveyed to the suitor’s parents, when the latter, taking with them twenty or thirty gallons of wine, proceed to the home of the bride, where they entertain not only all her relatives, but also the servants and neighbours, and present each with a scarf. The purchase-money (rin) is then paid, which, for the middle classes is usually five or six doche (625 to 750 rupees), and about fifty gallons of wine. Another scarf is then presented to each of the elder members of the bride’s family, and also to prominent persons among her friends and neighbours.

After an auspicious day has been fixed for the wedding, the parties make the arrangements necessary for the occasion. On the appointed day the bridegroom’s parents depute some seven or eight respectable men to go as their representatives to bring home the bride. They remain at her father’s house three days, during which they are engaged in making negotiations and in assuring their hosts, by whom they are provided during this period with all necessaries, that their daughter will be happy in her new home. At the end of the three days the bride is told by her parents to go to the bridegroom’s house. They give her a good milch-cow or yak, a pony, four or five oxen, two suits of summer and winter dress, a complete set of jewellery according to the custom of the country, a piece of stuffed carpet and a small dining-table, cups, plates, cooking vessels, and other articles for domestic use, fifty ounces of silver, and a female attendant. All those who have received scarves now come to present her in return with a scarf and a piece of money. The nearest relatives and friends of the parents, the chief of the country, and other people of position, present her with scarves, clothes, blankets, etc., and silver coins.

Presently about twenty of the bridegroom’s friends arrive to conduct the bride to her new home. For the first half of the journey the arrangements are made and expenses defrayed by the bride’s parents; for the second half by those of the bridegroom, and it is made on horseback, the bride riding in the middle of the party. Arriving at their destination, the bride is seated on a cushion placed on a raised stand by the side of her husband in the middle of the bridal party. At an auspicious hour a short religious service is performed by the village lama, and the parents or sponsors of the parties offer prayers for the happiness of the union.^[3] The bridegroom’s parents then beseech the gods to witness the ceremony of their son’s marriage, and declare that henceforth the bride will be owned by the bridegroom and his brothers alone. For three days the festivities continue, during which time as much as fifty chupan of wine, three oxen, and three pigs are sometimes consumed. The notables among the bridegroom’s friends arrive with presents of scarves, and are entertained by his father.

On the third day the bride exchanges the clothes and jewellery she wore on her arrival, for others supplied by the bridegroom. After a short prayer to the gods the pair are left together, for the first time, and on the following morning the bride begins to apply herself to her household duties. Her brothers and relatives who have accompanied her, return home at the expiration of seven days.

Some three months after the wedding her parents, accompanied
SPURS OF SIMVU AND KANGCHENJUNGA FROM THE MORAINE OF THE ZENU GLACIER. by the chief men among their friends and by servants, arrive with presents of food, and request that their daughter may pay them a visit. After being entertained for ten or twelve days, they return home, and are followed some weeks later by the young couple, who are accompanied by a number of female servants bearing presents of scarves, provisions, wine, etc. They remain a month, and on their departure the bride receives from her father a new costume and jewellery, and the husband a complete suit of clothes and the inevitable scarf.

Among the very poor the proceedings are much simplified, the negotiations being conducted by the parents in person.

There is no fixed limit of marriageable age in Tibet. The average age, however, for both sexes, is from fifteen to twenty-five, and frequently the bride is older than the bridegroom.

When parties are desirous of dissolving the marriage bond, the reason for so doing must first be investigated. If the husband be found entirely blameless and willing to live with his wife, but she be resolved to divorce him, she is required to pay double the rin, or price paid for her, as a fine for the dissolution of the marriage contract, called borche and den yo, that is, "divorce fine" and "innocence fine."^[4] In the absence of a marriage contract, the divorce fine fixed by law for the wife to pay amounts to eighteen gold sho, equal to 135 rupees; and for the husband three gold srang, equal to 180 rupees. If the husband’s innocence be doubtful, but the wife’s charges remain unproved, the wife is required to pay as divorce fine a complete suit of clothes, a pair of shoes, a bed-carpet, bed-rug, and a wrapper, and the husband must present to his wife a second scarf and a third article of any kind.

On the other hand, if a wife be found perfectly innocent, and willing to live with her husband, but the husband be resolved to divorce her for no fault of hers, he is required to pay to her twelve gold sho, equal to ninety rupees, as divorce fine, and also yog la, "service wage," amounting to six pounds of barley for every day and six for every night which she has spent with him from the day of marriage to the date of separation. The husband is also required to return the price of all the clothes and other gifts made to the wife by her friends since the time of their marriage. The divorced woman also takes away with her all jewellery given her by her relatives, but not that given to her by her husband. The wife cannot demand the "innocence fine." If there be children at the time of separation, the father takes the boys, and the mother the girls. If the husband be a man of property, the court may order him to give the divorced wife a certain share of his possessions for the maintenance of the girls. On the other hand, if the wife be possessed of property, she may be required to give something for the maintenance of her sons.

Again, when a marriage is contracted between a man of noble blood and a woman of humble rank, or vice versâ, with the definite understanding that they shall share each other’s good and adverse fortune, their property in case of divorce is to be divided between them according to their faithfulness or guilt, and their amount of mutual presents at the time of union. In cases of divorce between parties who were united at their own wish for the enjoyment of pleasure or merriment, the court should, without regard to the nature of their guilt, divide their property equally between them.^[5] In cases of marriage between slaves or serfs, the owner decides their separation or continued union. A man of this class is, for instance, married to a woman who, the owner thinks, might be of some service to him. When the woman is found useless, she is dismissed, being given one-sixth of her husband’s belongings, and her place is supplied by a new wife chosen by the owner.

In Tibet members of the same family are forbidden by law to contract matrimonial alliances with their kindred within seven degrees. This rule is, however, nowadays disregarded by the people, who are known to make alliances with their kinsmen who are distant only three or four degrees of consanguinity. Among the Pobos and Khamba marriage is promiscuously contracted, the brother marrying his sister, the nephew his aunt.^[6] Among the common Tibetans, so long as the parties do not claim a common father, there is no objection to the marriage; the uterine brother and sister may be united, and a man may marry his stepmother or aunts.

The custom of several brothers making one woman their common wife, to keep the ancestral property entire and undivided, is said to have had its origin in Khams, where it is at this day extensively practised. The Tibetans of U and Tsang have borrowed it from their cousins of Khams, but it is not universal with them.^[7] The wife is claimed by the younger brothers as their wife only so long as they continue to live with the eldest one. When they separate from their eldest brother, they cannot ask him to pay compensation for their share in the wife, and she remains the lawful wife of the eldest brother. It is not unusual for a father or uncle to live with his son's or nephew's wife, and even in high life a father makes himself a partner in the marital rights over his son's wife.^[8]

The cessation of the pulse and the suspension of breathing are not considered tests of the extinction of vitality. The Tibetans consider that the spirit (nam she) usually lingers in the mortal frame for not less than three days, though the spirits of those who have attained to some stage of holiness quit the body immediately after the last breath has been drawn, for communion with the dwellers in Paradise, called Gadan or Tushita; but instances of such saintly personages are of very rare occurrence. It is consequently considered a very sinful action to move or dispose of the corpse immediately after death. Nowadays in Tibet and Mongolia the dead bodies of all classes of men are carefully kept within doors for three days, during which time their friends and relations attend on them and make prayers for their future well-being. On the morning of the fourth day the horoscope of the deceased, and that of the man who is selected to be the first to touch the corpse for removal, are consulted. A lama is employed to perform certain funeral ceremonies, with a view to cause the spirit of the deceased to pass out through a certain slit in the skull.^[9] If this ceremony is omitted the soul will make its exit by some other passage and go to a state of damnation. The lama remains alone with the corpse, all the doors and windows being closed, and no one is allowed to enter until he declares by what passage the soul has fled. In return for this important service he receives a cow, yak, sheep, or goat, or a sum of money, according to the means of the deceased.

Before the dead body is removed from the house, an astrologer notes the dates of birth of the friends and relations present. If any among them were born under the same constellation and planet as
SINIOLCHUM OR D². the dead person, they are said to incur the risk of being ridden by his ghost, and are consequently not allowed to attend the funeral. The astrologer also receives his reward in money or kind. Then the corpse, tightly wrapped in clothes, is placed on a stretcher facing the direction which has been declared auspicious by the astrologer, and is placed in a corner of the house. Five butter lamps are lighted near the head, and a screen is drawn round it, within which his usual food and drink, together with a lamp, are placed. Early on the morning of the day appointed for the disposal of the body, it is carried to the nearest cemetery. At the time of its removal the relations make profound salutations to it. Two men carrying wine or tea, together with a dishful of tsamba, follow the bier. The family priest, or lama, of the deceased throws a khatag on the litter and walks behind at a slow pace, holding a corner of another scarf tied to it. As he proceeds he mutters funeral mantra, turning a hand-drum (damaru) with his right hand, and with his left ringing a bell. It is inauspicious to place the litter on the ground before its arrival at the cemetery. If by accident this should happen, the body must be disposed of at that spot, instead of in the cemetery. In the neighbourhood of Lhasa there are two sacred cemeteries, Phabongka and Serashar. Those who dispose of dead bodies at the former pay two or three tanka for tea to the monks of Phabongka monastery; and at the latter they pay one tanka to the cemetery keeper, who also gets the bedding and clothes of corpses.

In every cemetery there is a large slab of stone, on which the corpse, stripped of its coverings, is placed face downwards. The officiating lama then crosses it with lines, and while repeating mantras, cuts it in pieces. The first pieces are flung towards the biggest and oldest vulture of the flock, called tankar, and the remainder to the rest. They are so tame that they come one by one at the call of the priest. Last of all the head of the corpse is crushed, and the bones pounded together are mixed with the brain and distributed among the vultures.^[10] Then a new and unused earthen bowl, filled with fire of argol (dried cowdung), with some butter and barley flour burnt in it as incense, is presented to the departed by being placed in the quarter towards which he is supposed to have gone. The funeral attendants now wash their hands, and retiring to a short distance from the cemetery, breakfast, and at about midday return home. During forty-nine days after the drawing of the last breath, food and drink are offered to the departed in his favourite dish; and incense, consisting of barley, butter, and juniper spines, is burnt.

During this period of bardo, as the interval between death and regeneration is called, the departed spirit is believed to wander, and in order to prevent its being subject to misery, on the forty-ninth day some of the clothes, shoes, head-dress, coins, etc., which belonged to the deceased, after being washed and sprinkled with saffron-water, are presented to some incarnate lama for his blessing. The last service is conducted by a Tantrik lama, with a view to expelling all the evil spirits and hungry ghosts which haunt the house of the departed.

On the seventh day after death, prayers are moreover offered for the deceased's well-being, and alms in coin, food, tea, gold, and silver are distributed among religious men. This is repeated on every consecutive seventh day until the forty-ninth day, when a grand feast is given to the congregation of lamas. Nowadays, however, the rich people of Lhasa generally distribute alms, at the rate of one tanka each to the monks of Sera, Dabung, and Gadan, dispensing with the other costly ceremonies. They also present the clothes belonging to the deceased to the professors and heads of those monasteries. Some bequeath the whole of their property to these monastic institutions or to Lamas of great repute.

The practice of making wills has been followed by the Tibetans from very remote times. Every man of property leaves a will bequeathing his movable property to his children or friends, and leaving instructions for the performance of his funeral obsequies and other pious works.

The cutting up and distributing of a corpse is a practical illustration of the Tibetan belief that charity is the highest of all the moral virtues. That man is said to be most virtuous whose funeral is attended by the largest number of vultures, while if his corpse attracts but a small company, the very dogs not deigning to touch his defiled remains, he is judged to have led a sinful life.

The dead bodies of pregnant and barren women, and also of lepers, are packed in leather bags and thrown into the waters of the great Tsang-po. A Tibetan proverb says, "She whose son dies after birth is white barren (rab-cha karpo); she whose daughter dies after birth is partly barren (rab-cha tavo); she who has borne no children is black barren (rab-cha nagpo)." The corpses of such and of lepers are considered particularly unclean, and should not be kept within the limits of the country, but must either be thrown beyond nine hills and dales, or packed in horse's or ox's skins and thrown into the river.

The dead bodies of incarnate lamas are occasionally burnt, and their ashes and bones deposited in chorten. The remains of saintly personages, such as pretend to have emanated from Bodhisattvas and Buddhas, are preserved like the Egyptian mummies, being embalmed or salted and placed within gold, silver, or copper chorten, where they are seated in a meditative posture, like the conventional image of Buddha. These incarnate lamas, at the time of death, mention the time when and the place and the family where their souls will subsequently find re-embodiment, and also the name and race of the family, and instruct their friends to perform rites and ceremonies for their well-being after death.

On the demise of the Dalai and Tashi lamas, the work in all the public and private offices, all business, and market gatherings are suspended for seven days. For thirty days women are forbidden to put on their jewellery, and men or women may not wear new apparel. Lamas and monks must, on such occasions, mourn for ten days, during which they must not shave their heads, or wear their church head-dresses during services, All classes of people refrain from amusements and festivities, and from going into groves for pleasure, sports, or love-making. It is only in honour of the death of these two great hierarchs of Tibet that the whole country goes into mourning. The mourning for abbots of other monasteries and heads of families is confined to the friends and monks who are near to them. Rich and respectable men do not, within a year after the death of their parents, take part in marriage ceremonies and festivities; and do not undertake journeys to a distance.

Among the Sikkim Buddhists, dead bodies are burnt. On the fourth day after cremation, a lama performs the tusol, or washing ceremony, which consists in removing the relics, ashes, etc., and washing the place of burning with water. The relics are placed in an urn and deposited in a chorten. The ashes are thrown into a mountain stream, such as the Tista or Rungit.^[11] The relics of lamas and important men, after being pulverized, are mixed with clay and cast in moulds into miniature chorten. These relic chorten are deposited in sacred places, such as monasteries, temples, caverns, etc. On the seventh day the funeral ceremony, called Ten-zung, is performed. All relations and neighbours are invited to this funeral feast. At dusk all the evil spirits which are believed to have been invited to the departure of the deceased, are expelled by a Tantrik priest, assisted by the deafening yells of the guests.^[12]

The physicians of High Asia have, I am told, discovered such remarkable properties of vegetable drugs, and of the flesh and bile of certain animals, and of some sorts of excrements in healing different kinds of sores, that if the statements of my informant be true, the surgeons of civilized countries would be struck with wonder at their marvellous performances. For this remarkable success, the Tibetans do not appear to be indebted to their Chinese or Indian neighbours.^[13] Their medicines are mostly indigenous, and their discoveries in surgery have resulted from their own experience. They supply the greater number of physicians and surgeons to the Mongols and other neighbouring peoples.

The treatment of small-pox is very little understood by Tibetan doctors. Inoculation is, however, resorted to, and a new method of performing this operation has been discovered by the Northern Chinese physicians. It consists in selecting the best lymph from the light white pox pustules of a healthy child, which, mixed with camphor powder, is blown with a pipe into the nostril of the person to be inoculated.14 Great care and experience are required in selecting the lymph, on which alone depends the safety of the patients. Chicken-pox occurs only in a mild form, and is generally left to take its course.

Hydrophobia is very prevalent in Tibet, Mongolia, and China, and its effects are considered to manifest themselves, according to the colour of the dog, at periods varying from seven days to eighteen months, and also according to the time of day at which the bite was received. The remedies are, however, sufficiently practical. As soon as possible tie a ligature four fingers above the wound; draw out the poison by means of the sucking apparatus, called rnyabs-ras, similar to the cupping-glasses of the Indians, and then bleed the wounded part. If the patient presents himself to the physician a day after having been bitten, the latter should only cauterize the wound, and then apply an ointment made of butter, turmeric, a poisonous bulb called bon-nya, and musk.

In Lower Kongbo, Pobo, Pemakyod, and other mountainous districts of Southern Tibet, and in Nepal, Sikkim, and Bhutan on this side of the Himalayas, goitre is the most prevalent disease. It owes its origin to the calcareous nature of the water drunk by the natives. Six varieties of goitre are recognized by Tibetan physicians, which are variously treated by cauterization, bleeding the jugular vein behind the ear, and also the swollen muscle of the goitre, and the administration of nostrums composed of the dried gullet of the yak or sheep, dried fish, different kinds of salts, Piper longum and pepper, and powdered conch-shell, burnt in a hermetically closed vessel.

Snake-bite is of rare occurrence in Higher Tibet, but in the lower valley of the great Tsang-po, great numbers of snakes are found, and also on the western frontier of China bordering Tibet.^[14] Snake-bites are treated like hydrophobia, by tying a ligature above the part bitten and cupping. The wound is then washed with curd or milk, camel’s milk being the most efficacious.^[15] It is believed in High Asia that if a snake bite a camel, the snake dies immediately without injuring the camel. If there be no burning heat as a consequence of the bite, the wound should be cauterized. Internal remedies are also taken, consisting of cardamom, musk, pepper, and other native drugs. The Glak-los (wild people) of Pemakyod^[16] immediately cut off the bitten portion, or the bitten limb, if possible, after which they apply musk and bear’s bile (gall?) to the wound and bind it up. The Lalos eat snakes, of which, however, they reject the head and tail as injurious.

During the months of January and February, when the great mon-lam (or prayer-meeting) fair takes place at Lhasa, the city is occasionally visited by a highly infectious disease which causes great havoc among the people when the crowd is great. When the disease is not properly treated the patient generally dies before the tenth day, but those cases which have passed the thirteenth day are considered hopeful. Tibetan physicians, by watching this disease in its different phases, have achieved remarkable success in treating it with their indigenous drugs.

In Lhasa, Shigatse, and other towns and monasteries of Tibet, the principal disease from which people suffer and die is paralysis.^[17] Five different kinds of this disease are recognized by Tibetan physicians, who also profess to have observed that the first symptoms generally show themselves on the 4th, 8th, 11th, 15th, 18th, 22nd, 25th, or 29th day of the lunar month. Persons who have passed their sixtieth year seldom survive a paralytic stroke of any kind. All other cases in their milder forms are curable by proper and regular medical treatment.

Leprosy is prevalent in most of the countries of High Asia. It is variously called glud-nad, "the nag's (serpent's) disease," and mje-nad,^[18] the “corroding malady,” and is believed to originate from various causes, fanciful and real. By digging in pestilential soil where snakes live, turning up stones under which these reptiles lurk, felling poisonous trees, throwing tea, water, or cooked food and other refuse on the blazing hearth, men are said to excite the wrath of the Nagas and mischievous spirits of the upper and nether worlds, who delight in working the ruin of the human race. They spread this hateful malady by the exhalation of their breath, by their poisonous touch or malignant glance, or even by the power of their malignant wish. The "charmed banner"^[19] is a great preventive of these evils. The people of High Asia generally fix banners with printed charms thereon near to or on their houses, as they are believed to prevent the Nagas entering them. Leprosy is likewise assumed to be the consequence of the sins of former lives.^[20] It also originates from disorders produced by irregularity and intemperance in food and habits, whereby the black and yellow fluids of the body are increased, and give rise to this distressing malady. Eighteen different kinds of leprosy are recognized. The chanting of charms and mantras of Vajrapani Buddha by the patient or the physician is resorted to, that wrathful deity being a mighty subduer of all malevolent demons and Nagas, and various native drugs are also administered in the form of pills.

Dropsy, though rare in High Asia, prevails in the southern and eastern districts in Tibet, and is caused by drinking much water after exercise, lying down in damp places, taking cold, or by light unsubstantial food, by which the digestive powers are deranged. Twelve varieties of this disease are recognized, which are divided into two main groups, characterized as "the hot" and "the cold fluid" respectively. Bone-ash is believed to be the best remedy; but other medicines, consisting of grapes, cinnamon, oxide of iron, pomegranate (rind?), lime, and other ingredients, are also prescribed.^[21]

Dyspepsia (pad-kau) is one of the commonest diseases in Tibet, and forty-three different varieties of this malady have been observed by native physicians.

Toothache is also a very general complaint of the people of Tibet, due to the extreme rigour of the climate and the coldness of the water. The inhabitants of the remote province of Chang-tang usually lose their teeth before reaching the age of thirty.

Among the games played by the Tibetans, there are some such as mig-mang, or "many eyes," resembling chess; srid-pai khorlo, or "the circle of life,"^[22] and dice, which even the clergy are permitted to amuse themselves with. Others, as, for instance, wrestling, archery, polo, foot and pony races, are confined to the people; nor are the lamas allowed to amuse themselves with singing and dancing except at stated times, as, for example, during the New Year holidays.

At midsummer the people and nobility dress tents, and for several days amuse themselves under them, picnicking, dancing, and singing.

In the 8th moon the jon-gyu festival takes place, lasting for seven or fourteen or even twenty-one days. On this occasion the lamas and people amuse themselves with sports, games, dancing, and feasting. This festival is observed in all northern Buddhist countries.^[23]

Again, in the latter part of the 12th moon, there is a lama dance in every monastery, after which the evil spirits are exorcised.^[24] Sometimes the 4th of the 6th and the 22nd of the 9th moons are observed as feast days; the latter as the anniversary of the Buddha’s descent from the Tushita heaven.^[25]

In the summer, commencing with the full moon in July and lasting for a period of forty-five days, all lamas make a retreat in their monasteries, during which time they are not allowed to go without the lamasery walls, or take part in any amusement. This is known as the yar-nas.^[26]

The birthdays of the Dalai and Tashi lamas are also kept as holidays, and on their reaching the age of three, twenty-five, forty-nine, sixty-one, seventy-three, or eighty-five, there are also great festivities.

When eclipses of the sun or moon occur, the Tibetans hold religious ceremonies similar to those of the Hindus.

Of all feasts, that of the New Year is probably the most popular. At Lhasa the State makes arrangements for the celebrations, beginning them about a month beforehand.

The kitchen of the Grand Lama is in a large yellow building called the Phodang serpo, or Jag-ming khang (ljags-ming khang), situated to the east of the palace. The cooking-stoves are ornamented with gold, silver, and precious stones, estimated to be worth Rs. 20,000, and all the cooking utensils are of solid gold. All the butter and milk used here is obtained from the herd of five hundred jomos (half-breed yaks) belonging to the Dalai lama, which herd the people salute as it passes, taking off their hats or kotowing to the animals. Twenty Tse-dung (lama officials) herd these cattle, milk them, and churn the butter.

Here, when New Year is approaching, five lamas prepare cakes and dainties for the Grand Lama, their mouths covered with eight thicknesses of silk, so that the food may not be polluted by their breath. In the village at the foot of Potala, called the Shedo khang, two or three hundred men make cakes and biscuits for the officials, lamas, and people; and every one, whether rich or poor, has some prepared for the festival.

On the 15th of the 12th moon two hundred workmen begin white-washing the walls of Potala, which work occupies them for three days; and then, but only then, people are at liberty to have the walls of their houses whitened, and there is no one so poor that he does not at this season renovate the exterior of his dwelling.

On the 18th all public offices are closed for fifty days. Booths are erected to supply the crowds which assemble for the mon-lam chenpo, or "grand prayer-meeting," which, beginning on New Year's day, lasts for a month, and many of the officials visit Tse-dung linga, a beautiful park to the south of the city, where there is a Chinese restaurant and singing and dancing girls, called Tung-shema, or "drinking ladies."

On the 22nd in all lamaseries and in many houses of the people torma offerings are made, to be offered the following day to the household gods. Then the people bathe and get themselves ready to make visits of congratulations, which they begin doing on the 27th. On the 29th each householder has a general house cleaning, and the dust and dirt is thrown in a cross-road, and thus all impending misfortunes are got rid of with the rubbish.

Early on the morning of the 29th large and gorgeously decorated tents are erected in the great courtyard of Potala and other temples, in each of which three or four hundred people can be seated. In the centre of each tent are estrades of carved and gilt sandal-wood (?), on which the abbots, head lamas, and guests of distinction take their seats, while on lower seats are the other guests. A number of lamas, with little tables of sandal-wood in front of them, on which different instruments of music, and implements used in church ceremonies, such as dorje, bells, damaru, etc., are placed, occupy another portion of each tent. When the preliminary service is over the grand "black hat" dance, of which I have previously made mention, begins.^[27]

The dancers are eighty in number, and their gowns are made of white, red, and green satin. Each one holds in his left hand a wooden skull, and in his right a short club, from which hang five silk scarfs of different colours. They prance about, wildly waving their arms, for half an hour or so, when suddenly there is heard wild shrieking, and a second set of dancers, or masks called Kambab, come in. They are dressed to represent the various gods, most of them extraordinarily hideous to look at. These continue the wild dance to the music of cymbals, drums, and flutes for a couple of hours.

When the Kambab have stopped, four skeleton-like figures appear: they are the Durdag, or "lords of cemeteries," and they dance in their turn. These are followed by sixteen figures representing Indian atsaras, who, by their dress and contortions, excite wild mirth among the people. A number of dancers wearing stag heads then appear, and finally the "black hat" dancers come out once more, each with a cymbal or a drum in his hand, and the dance comes to an end.

At the termination of the dance the lamas who performed the religious service earlier in the day form in a procession and proceed to throw away the torma offering.

Five hundred soldiers and twenty-four flag-bearers accompany the procession. Three lamas carry on an iron tripod the tsamba torma, which is of pyramidal shape, about ten feet high and painted red, with projecting edges to represent flames, and frequently surmounted by a skull moulded in tsamba. Three other lamas bear on a large iron tray supported by a tripod a skeleton also made of tsamba. The procession goes to about a mile from the temple to where a shed, or hom khang, of straw or brush has been made, in which the torma and the skeleton are placed and then set on fire.

When the flames break forth the flag-bearers lower their flags and run back to the lamasery with all speed, to escape the devil’s assaults, and the soldiers fire off their guns at the burning mass to prevent the evil spirits escaping from the fire in which they are now supposed to be roasting.^[28]

On the thirtieth day of the moon, New Year's eve, all house decorations and furniture are renewed or cleaned, and offerings and oblations made in every domestic chapel. The walls, pillars, posts, lintels, etc., are washed with whey. A lotus, finger-marks or marks of animals' claws are painted on the wooden floors of the rooms, or a sheep’s head is scorched, and its eyes, ears, and nose painted with the five colours mixed with butter: this is said to be a certain means of insuring good luck, and is believed to be a pre-Buddhist custom of the country.

In the evening the whole city is illuminated, and this is kept up for three successive nights.

New Year's day is called Gyalpo lo sar, or "the King's new year," and the Grand Lama holds a levee on this occasion. The Donnyer chenpo, or Grand Chamberlain, opens the ceremony by wishing the lama all happiness ("tra-shi de leg phun-sum tsog"), and presenting him some wine and tsamba. The Grand Lama replies, "Tan-du de-wa tobpar shog" and dipping his finger in the wine, sprinkles a little about as an oblation, and then tastes the tsamba. Then the great trumpets sound, and the Dalai lama takes his seat on the throne in the great hall, and all the ministers and church dignitaries take their places according to precedence. Tea is then served, followed by toma, a kind of red potato of Tibet, cooked in butter and sugared.^[29] When they have finished eating, every one presents His Holiness with khatag about eighteen feet long, and he gives each one in return his blessing.

In the mean time "the good luck dance" (tra-shi-gi gar) is going on outside the hall, in which some twenty little boys, of eight years of age, take part, the lower officials, such as the Dungkhor, forming the audience.

In every house of any importance the master, his wife, and children are offered the compliments of the season by all their relatives, dependents, and friends, who, in their turn, are treated with wine by them. When the New Year’s wine has been drunk, the misser (serfs) sing some hymns or glees.

At the New Year the Tibetans watch out for omens for the forthcoming year, the best of which, if one is to start soon on a journey, is to see a young woman with a child in her arms. To see flags, banners, milking of cows, persons carrying vessels filled with water or any other liquid, or timber for house-building or firewood, is lucky, as is also the sight of a corpse on a bier. To meet well-dressed persons, to be greeted by friends, to hear a lucky name, are also held to be signs of good luck; but to see beggars, ragged persons, empty vessels, a person descending a hill, or carrying shoes in his hand, a saddled horse without a rider, to hear impolite or rough language, are portends of bad fortune.^[30]

On New Year’s day dancing beggars (or Dre-kar) make their appearance in the streets and houses. They wear masks, usually representing a black devil, with a shaggy, white beard, with cowries for eyebrows and encircling his face, and sometimes with a cowrie on either cheek. They dance and crack jokes to the delight of the guests assembled in each house for the New Year’s breakfast.^[31]

In the afternoon there is further feasting in most of the houses, and the guests, both male and female, frequently end the entertainment with a dance (shabdo); first, the women dance alone, then the men, and finally, both sexes together.^[32]

The New Year’s festivities terminate on the third day at noon, when the monks of the great lamaseries all meet in the Kyil khording (or Jo khang) to hear the Grand Lama expound the faith. On each succeeding day, till the 24th of the moon, they hold the great prayer-meeting, or monlam chenpo.^[33]

In the afternoon of the third, the Tsog-chen Shalnyo of Dabung assumes the government of Lhasa for the next month and a half, previously informing the police magistrates of the fact, and henceforth all authority, even that of the Kalon, as far as the city is concerned, is vested in him alone.^[34]

1. I think these "classes" are more theoretical than real, and that these remarks are probably borrowed from some work, based on Indian notions. The idea of caste is un-Tibetan as it is un-Chinese. Rab (rabs) means "family, race, social class." Rab-kyi rabs means "upper superior class;" Rab-kyi ding, "middle superior class;" Rab-kyi tama, "lowest superior;" Ding-kyi rab, "superior middle class," etc., etc.—(W. R.)
2. By "subjects" I fancy our author must mean serfs or tenants (misser).
3. Cf. Jour. Roy. Asiat. Soc., n.s. xxiii. pp. 228–230. See also Waddell, op. cit., 553.
4. The information contained in this section has been compiled, our author says, from "a legal work." I doubt if its rules are in practice. Borche appears to be hbor-wa chye (hyed), "to cast away, to abandon." Den yo is bden, "truth;" and perhaps gyogs (for yo), "covering of."—(W. R.)
5. This would appear to refer to temporary marriages.—(W. R.)
6. So far as the Khamba are concerned, I think our author is not correct in his statement. That it may have once been as he says is highly probable, but at present it is certainly not so; intercourse with the Chinese has, I believe, caused not only the people of Eastern Tibet, but of all Tibet to adopt to a great extent their ideas concerning marriages between near relations.—(W. R.)
7. Neither is it in Khamdo. See my 'Land of the Lamas,' p. 211 et sqq.—(W. R.)
8. I hardly imagine that our author intends to convey the idea that this is a custom of the Tibetans.—(W. R.)
9. See Waddell, op. cit., p. 88. He says the "soul-extracting lama" is called hpobo.
10. Cf. 'Land of the Lamas,' p. 287.—(W. R.)
11. The tuisol, or "cleansing ceremony" (bkrus, washed; gsol, to pray), is performed on numerous occasions and for various purposes. I suppose that by "relics," remains after cremation are here meant.—(W. R.)
12. Waddell, op. cit., 491, calls this sacrifice to the manes of the deceased ting-shag.
13. Our author is not quite right here, as the Tibetans have borrowed the major part of their pharmacopœia from China and India. Most of their medical works are purely Chinese or Indian, and I do not believe they have much more, if even so much, knowledge of surgery as the Chinese, who are terribly ignorant themselves in this art. Tibetan medicines are in high favour among the Chinese and Mongols.—(W. R.)
14. Our author was misinformed. Snakes are very rare along the western border of China, venomous ones especially.—(W. R.)
15. Camel’s milk must be as great a rarity in most parts of Tibet as is elephant’s milk, another remedy much prized in that country.—(W. R.)
16. Probably the same as the Lo Tawa, or "stripped Lhopas," mentioned by lama Serap-gyatso, 'Report on Explor. from 1856 to 1888,' p. 7. This explorer distinguishes three classes of Lhopas—Lho karpo, or "white Lhopas," who are somewhat civilized; Lho nagpo, or "black Lhopas," who are a little less civilized; and the Lho tawa (kra-pa), or uncivilized, literally "mottled" Lhopas. Cf. also, op. cit., pp. 16, 17, and Nain Singh’s remarks in Jour. Roy. Geog. Soc., vol. xlvii. p. 120.
17. Our author gives the name of this disease as gzah-nad. Jaeschke, 'Tib. engl. dict.,' translates this word by "apoplexy," adding that, in Western Tibet it seems to be used only for "epilepsy."—(W. R.)
18. Klu nad, or Klin gnod-nad, meaning that the Nagas brings about the disease. Mje nad is mdje nad.—(W. R.)
19. These charmed banners are the lung-ta, or "airy horses," of which mention is frequently made in this work.
20. This remark applies equally well to all diseases in Buddhist estimation.
21. Jaeschke, 'Tib. engl. dict.,' calls this disease pags chu, "skin water;" snying chu, "heart water;" dmu chu, "dropsy, especially in the chest and belly." On the medical knowledge of the Tibetans, see Journ. Bengal Asiat. Soc., iv. pp. 1 et sqq.—(W. R.)
22. In this game, which is an invention of one of the Panchen rinpoches, dice are thrown, by which the players get different positions in the various heavens or hells—(S. C. D.) Our author also mentions a game called te-pi, or rocket, but, unfortunately, does not give any idea of the game itself. See also 'Report U.S. National Museum,' 1893, p. 723.—(W. R.)
23. Chinese authors say that, "during the 7th and 8th moons they (the Tibetans) put up tents along the river banks, and men and women bathe together in the river, it being symbolical of the purification ceremonies of the 13th of the 3rd month (in China)," Jour. Roy. Asiat. Soc., No. xxiii., p. 213.—(W. R.)
24. On the 29th day of the moon.—(W. R.)
25. Our author mentions also the following festivals:—

    15th	of	1st	moon:	Buddha’s birthday.
    15th	of	3rd	,,	First preaching of the Kalachakra tantra.
    8th	of	4th	,,	Buddha became a mendicant.
    15th	of	4th	,,	Buddha’s nirvana.
    5th	of	5th	,,	Feast of god of medicine.
    4th	of	6th	,,	Buddha’s first sermon.
    10th	of	7th	,,	Birth of Padma chyung-nas (Padma Sambhava).
    15th	of	7th	,,	The snowy mountains are worshipped.
    25th	of	10th	,,	Birth of Tsongkhapa.

    Cf. Waddell, op. cit., 502 et sqq.

26. Known in southern Buddhist countries as varsha or Barsat. Yar is dbyar (usually pronounced chyar), "summer;" and nas (gnas), "abode." I do not believe the practice is generally observed. Cf. Waddell, op. cit., 224, and supra.—(W. R.)
27. See p. 114. On the New Year festivities, see Waddell, op. cit., 518.
28. I have witnessed a number of these kurim, or guilt-offering ceremonies, but none of such magnitude as the one held at Lhasa. See, for a picture of this procession at Lhasa, Georgi, 'Alph. Tibet,' p. 212.—(W. R.)
29. Toma is droma (or doma), the root of the potentilla anserina, and called chuoma in Eastern and North-eastern Tibet. It is mealy, and tastes like a bean rather than a potato. It is about 1 1/2 inches long.—(W. R.)
30. All these omens of good and bad luck are of equal importance at any time of the year.—(W. R.)
31. I have seen these mummers in North-eastern Tibet. See 'Land of the Lamas,' p. 246.—(W. R.)
32. On the second day of the new year, all the inhabitants gather together to witness a feat performed by two men, each of whom in turn mounts on a wooden saddle and slides down a strong rope fastened from the fort walls to a post buried about nine feet in the ground. 'Report on the Explorations of A. K.,' p. 33. Cf. Jour. Roy. Asiat. Soc., n.s., xxiii. p. 209, and 'Report on lama U. G.'s Exploration,' p. 32, where we learn that on the second day of the New Year the Nachung chos-gyong prophesies the events of the year beginning. See also Huc, 'Souvenirs d'un voyage,' ii. 375 et sqq.
33. The monlam chenpo was instituted by Tsongkhapa in 1407. Csoma, 'Tib. gram.,' 187.
34. Cf. lama Ugyen-gyatso's account of the Shalnyo's rule in 'Report on explor. from 1856 to 1888,' p. 32. Also A. K., op. cit., p. 33; and Huc, op. cit., ii. 380. He calls this rule of the Shalnyo, the "Lha-ssa Morou," but he says it only lasts six days; but all other authorities agree in saying that the rule of the city is turned over to the Dabung lama for a month.—(W. R.)

 

om ma ni Pa dme hûm.