Himalayan Society and Culture of Nepal

(Based on the lectures of Professor Dr. Ramesh Kunwar)

The anthropological studies consists the himalayan society as the settlements in between 7000 feet to 17000 feet above the sea level. There are 1310 identified himalayan peaks in Nepal and 340 of them are opened for outsiders for trekking and climbing. Anthropologically, the length of the himalayas is 800 kilometers whereas politically it is said to be 850 km. It starts from the Byash Rishi Himal in western Darchula and extends up to Kyanchengjunga in Eastern Taplejung. 

Himalayan region is characterized by:

-Low oxygen pressure

-Low humidity of air

-Low temperature

-High radiation values

The geographical features consists of:

-   steep mountains

Georges

Irregular mountain shape

poorly developed soil

isolated settlements/remote regions

single cropping pattern

-  geomorphological hazards/fragile ecology

 These features have not only influenced the lifestyle of the people living their but has even played a vital role in shaping the culture of the people in the region. Every year more than 200 thousand tourists from the west come to see these himalayan cultures because Nepal is the only country where people have been able to adapt and permanently settled in the altitude as high as 17000 feet. Different ethnic groups have settled in the region which are:

All above mentioned groups belong to Tibeto-mongoloid group racially, follow Tibetan Buddhism, and they have a culture similar to Tibetans.

Patterns of Settlement:

The mountainous region consists of steep mountains and there is no arable land. The settlement in the mountains (10000-17000ft) has been divided into two groups.

Yarsha (Summer settlement)

Ghunsa (Winter Settlement)

Below 10000 feet there are permanent settlements due to the presence of comparatively arable and gentle sloppy land.

4 types of settlements can be found in the mountains.

Beehive block types village: Houses over the houses, When a male member of the family marries he makes his house on the top of his parental house.

Clustered villages (30-100 households)

Dispersed villages : These types of villages are commonly found in 7000-10000 ft. high.

Hamlet:  3-4 houses built on rocks which may consist of 2-6 households.

Transhumance system: 

It is said to be the most important characteristic of himalayan region which people living between 10000-13000 ft follow. In this system, a group of households will drive their cattle to the high pastures after the celebration of Lhosar (New year) basically in the month of March. They setup their camp at 12000 ft altitude at a pasture for about a month. In this period they graze animals and cultivate potatoes or buckwheat alongside. After a month they move to higher pasture and follow the same activities. They reach the altitude of 16000 feet by September. September is considered as the transition of weather. Now they return following the same root harvesting potatoes and come back to the original place by the end of november. 

Trans himalayan trade and Cis himalayan trade:

The trade with Tibet across the himalayas is known as trans himalayan trade. People who live in Tibetan border go to Tibet for three months for trading purposes. Before they go they need to know the progress of the weather. It starts from the beginning of July or end of June because of monsoon. During the monsoon there is no snow and they can easily travel along the Passes which they need in order to reach Tibet at the altitude of 18000 to 22000 feet. It takes almost 6 months to and from. They carry sweets, rice grains, salt sugar and paintings to Tibet and bring back Tibetan tea, butter, statue, tibetan salt, dry meat of mountain goat. These goods are partly consumed by themselves and remaining is traded again in the low altitude which is called cis himalayan trade. 

In these trades, people get food to eat but cannot save it (Subsistence).

SOCIAL INSTITUTIONS 

As far as social structure of himalayan society is concerned the social structures are:

1. Marriage

2. Funeral system

3. Life-cycle rituals

4. Family

5. Ceremonies

6. Religious life

While generalizing social structure of himalayan society, it is found that people of himalayan region have nuclear family. Every community has its own social system. Accordingly, himalayan communities have also developed their own social system or practices. According to their social rules, the eldest son basically one year after his marriage will leave his parental home. No communities like the individual husband who stays at his home along with his parents for a long time. Socially, he is ignored and culturally disliked. Therefore from both cultural and economic perspective, the eldest son is bound to leave his parental home one year after marriage no matter he will go to any place for his better fortune along with his wife probably. The middle son is sent to the monastery to be the monk. Sending middle son to the monastery is considered as the virtuous act either to get religious merit or to get social prestige in the community. The youngest son, no matter he is married or not will stay with his parents forever. The eldest daughter will be sent to the nunnery to be the nun. Both husband and wife share equal status. However, husband will have the property. Basically husband will not refuse the wife's proposal. In some cases, husbands are predominated by their wives but it does not mean that they have matrilocal and matrilineal society. Esteem family is also found staying separately. 

When people reach at the age of 40 will be considered as full adult or so called elderly. When they reach age of 50 it is said that the individuals can't see the universe. Reaching 50 starts spending seclusion or both male and female spending secluded life. It is that life in which the individuals directly attach with the transcendental world which means everyone will make efforts getting religious merit with their regular praying the prayers or the religious formulas.  This is how family has been structured in the mountain. It does not mean that there is harmony in the family. Conflicts are found created by some actors because they are alcoholic drinkers. Due to alcoholic indulgent some misunderstandings are created. They do not like quarrels between husband and wife rather they hit the opposite sexes. The significance of such dispute is who can hit first. In the same way alcohol consumption create harmony between them.

Marriage: 

People of himalayan region follow several types of marriages among which monandry or monandrous marriage is very popular. It is that marriage in which one man gets married with one woman. Besides following meandrous marriage so many people of himalayan region follow polyandrous marriage. One woman marries with more than two brothers including friends. Evidences suggest that girls are married even with husband's servant. Besides following polyandrous marriage, levirate marriage is followed. Another is sororate. Divorce is very common, elopement is not considered as illegal. 

Levirate marriage is that marriage in which widow marries deceased husband's unmarried younger brother. Sororate marriage is such marriage in which the widow marries his deceased wife unmarried younger sister.

Polyandry is popular in northern Humla, northern Dolpo, upper Gorkha, north eastern Sankhuwasabha, northern Mustang. Until before 1971 the sherpas of khumbu also practiced this type of marriage. but due to the impact of education and tourism they left this tradition forever. Low economy is said to be the main reason for such marriage:

In case of polyandrous marriage, the eldest husband stays with his wife immediate after marriage for 3 months. During that time, the second husband goes to pasture to graze animals, third husband for trans-himalayan trade to Tibet. The youngest brother may live with his brother in the home. There will be no discrimination between the eldest and youngest husband. 3 months after the second husband will come back home and eldest husband will go to the pasture. If servant is also married the progeny from servant will not have right to parental property. 

Regarding kinship, first and foremost when the wife gets pregnant, it is informed only to the concerned husband. When the child is born the husbands will address the child with common terminology. This common terminology unites the family. Not all house holders follow polyandry. Only economically downtrodden families follow it. 

Levirate marriage was completely abandoned by Magar in the Rana regime. Levirate is common in himalayan region. Sororate is still practiced all over Nepal. 

Divorce is very common in the Himalayas but the system is different village to village. the dowry is kept recorded, if split the wife will carry all her belongings. Elopement is also common. When a girl elopes with a mate, the marriage ritual is performed after 6 to 12 years and she will be recognized as legal wife.

Funeral practice: 

Life for today is death for tomorrow. The ultimate aim of a buddhist is to get liberation whereas the himalayan people expect to go to buddhist paradise immediate after death. Basically, it is said the individual's soul is sent to buddhist paradise. The way of sending deceased soul is different from eastern to western region. Western himalayan region represents Manang, Mustang, Dolpo etc. The western himalayan region culture is influenced by arid which is called arid bound culture whereas in eastern part snow bound culture dominates. When people die in western himalayan region, the dead body will not be cremated rather they follow sky burial system. The dead body is kept inside the alter for 2-8 days (in winter the dead body is kept inside the house for 4-8 days in summer they keep it for 2 days). in this period they perform several rituals and lama will decide the final date of ritual. The dead body is taken to high altitude zone isolated area along with mourners, choppers, and lamas. When they reach there the monks will recite hymns, the particular lama will perform ritual in which he invites birds and chopper will chop the body. Two-three hours after vultures come down and the flesh will be distributed to the vultures. The lama will even decide which type of vulture to be invited. According to their belief, vulture is a sacred bird because it borns and dies in the sky. Their belief is if flesh is feed to the vulture it will carry the soul to the paradise. 

In the eastern part, they cremate the dead body performing the similar rituals before cremation. They cremate at an altitude of 13000 ft on the top of the mountain. They believe heavy wind will push the smoke to the buddhist paradise in that altitude. Wind and smoke will play the role of vehicle to carry the soul to the buddhist paradise.

Religious life: 

There are more than 300 definitions of religion out of which we will follow one definition of religion that has been defined by Emile Durkheim. He defined religion in 1912.  "Religion is a system of belief and practices which adhere to them in terms of sacred including gods and goddess or divinities excluding profane". Sacred, that will unite into the single morale community.  There are certain elements which should be respected. 

People of himalayan region are Tibetan buddhist by religion. In this regard, we should know Buddhism from one general perspective and Tibetan Buddhism from another. Buddhism is a religion of renunciation, peace and non-violence which came out from four noble truths proclaimed by lord Buddha. 

Buddha said life in this world is full of suffering. 

There is a cause of suffering. 

It is possible to stop suffering. 

There is a path which leads to the cessation of suffering. 

This ideology migrated towards north in 8th Century AD from India to Nepal to Tibet. Until before 8th Century AD Tibetans were followers of their own original religion which is known as Bonpo which is a kind of animism or spiritism or Shamanism. In 8th century AD a new migrant religion dominated the pre-Buddhist Tibetans. Now Nepal has protected this religion. From 8th century onward the migrant religion deeply rooted in the Tibetan soil and came back to Nepal from Tibet in different periods. 

Tibetan Buddhism is a mixture of religion or mixture of Buddhism and Bonpoism in which Buddhist monks are considered as an integral part of himalayan community whereas they will simultaneously consult the Shaman for the purpose of solving immediate problems. Buddhism has been divided into three major sects.

Hinayana or Theravada (Lesser vehicle)

Mahayana (Greater Vehicle)

Vayrayana (Diamond Vehicle)

Tibetan Buddhism was divided into 4 different sects from 2nd AD to 15th century AD.

Tibetan Buddhism in the mountain is characterized by many tangible religious heritage which are also known as religious attitudes. In mountains we can see the monasteries, one built outside the village and one inside the village. The monastery which is built outside the village is a theological institution and monastery inside the village is like a temple where annual dance, rituals, ceremonies, etc. are performed. The monastery outside the village can be divided into two. Monastery should be understood as a spiritual heaven for withdrawal from sensual values or materialistic world. It is simultaneously a religious instrument for bringing Buddhist ideas and values to the lay people of this very temporal world. Monks in monasteries and nuns in nunneries are considered as integral part of tibetan buddhism. Reincarnation in Tibetan Buddhist communities is considered as one of the most important institutions. Lama who has spent more than 40 years in a monastery is believed to be reincarnated after 2 or three years of his demise. 

In the mountains there will be a entrance gate in a village but not in all villages. But this should be historically oldest village in the area. The purpose of gate is the strangers will drive off evil spirits which they carry before entering the gate. Once entered into the village we encounter with long free standing stone wall with Tibetan Inscriptions. These walls should be kept in the right side. These types of walls will be built in the trails, between villages , etc. Whenever we encounter bridges, almost the bridges will comprise the colorful flags hanging across the river. People offer this flags for two purposes for the safety of their cattle and their own safety. In many places people will erect white plain flags which purpose is to follow prelemedian treatment.

Piling pebbles for longevity and constructing Stupa for religious merit are common. Colorful flag to please the mountain goddess before stepping in the mountain. Every houses will have bunch of flags on the roof tops for the purpose of bringing auspicious mark to their family. In Manang, people erect plain white flag on the top of the roof according to the number of households. One flag equals one family. After 50, no individual will be counted as working person. They live their life in seclusion and are economically and socially retired with prayer beads in their hands for religious merit to attain emancipation. 

Festivals in Himalayan Region:

There are a number of festivals celebrated in the himalayan region.  Dumje festival is considered to be most important because the monks perform to bring peace in their society. Religion plays important role in bringing peace. 

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