Glimpses of Culture

A kaleidoscope of glimpses into various cultures within Asia. Each tribe, each ethnicity expresses its identity in various ways – music, dance, textiles, costumes, food, language, life format etc.

It is impossible for an individual to capture the complete essence of any tribe – either one’s own or another’s – but it is possible to experience the diversity and be nothing less than awestruck by the beauty of human society.

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Sometimes the customs and traditions are so different from the ones I have been exposed to until now, that it is hard not to be alarmed and to remain unjudgemental. But the only way to view any custom is to see it as a part of the complete picture, within the paradigm that has given birth to the custom. It is only then that the view is fair.

Every society has its reasons for doing what they do. The set of rules that have evolved have withstood the test of inter-generational transmission. Therefore they are always internally consistent within the system and provide answers to all of the issues faced by that particular society. When viewed from outside, a traveller usually only gets a limited view and she sees a single custom / tradition without seeing all the evolutionary factors and the paradigm within which this is perfectly valid.  Given that this  is merely a slice of the whole life model, which is  quite likely to be different from her own, this view is likely to cause the viewer some dissonance and sometimes result in an imbalanced judgement.

Of course it is not only the limitedness of the view that causes this bias. Sometimes the close-mindedness of the viewer also contributes to this.

It has taken me many journeys into the lives and minds of others to realise that unless the context is known and empathised with, the judgement is unfair and therefore invalid.

I try to make a deliberate effort to ‘understand’ and ‘empathise’ instead of judging.

It is in that spirit that I have written my articles. My respect for their lives is total (and unconditional) even though my information about their paradigm is not.

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The posts have been listed below in order of posting.  You could either choose to scroll down all the way and read all  or click on the titles that interest you.

Return to Ladakh

Anachronism – Mumbai the Mega city & Elephanta the ancient caves

The Ladies Compartment in Mumbai Local trains

Kalinga Diaries

The stylish priests of Jagannath Puri

Journey to the Past – the Science of Epigraphy

In the Presence of the Past

The Magnificent Stone artefacts of Odisha

Camels go on a Pilgrimage

A Rabari Gypsy Tribal Wedding Ritual

A walk through a Rabari Tribal Village

The Stunning tribes of Sarawak, Borneo

A Cultural Stay at Kuching

Bidayuh Tribal Longhouse in Borneo

Puppets & Puppeteers of Rajasthan

The Batak Calendar  of Sumatra, Indonesia

A Python for Dinner

A Dog’s Sixth Sense

Loss of Cultural Diversity

Colors of Mewar,  Rajasthan

Turban Art – The Crowning Glory of Indian Men

The Gangaur Festival – praying for Marital Bliss

The Classic Indian Village fair – Gogunda Mela

Alternate Sexuality Traditions 4 – The Garasia Tribe

The Blacksmith Gadalia Community of Rajasthan

Music of the Manganiyar Tribe

Folk Dances of Rajasthan

Women of India – the Weaker sex

The Holi Bonfire – Past & Present

Mizo Mosaic

The Chapchar Kut Harvest Festival of Mizoram

Alternate Sexuality Traditions 3 – The Lushai Custom

Bnei Menashe – The Lost Tribe of Israel in Mizoram

The Siddi Tribe of Gujarat India of African origin

The Komusa Wandering Monks & their Shakuhachi flute

My talk at Asian Civilisations Museum

Intense Spirituality – Body piercing at the Thaipusam festival

Back to the Future – Tribal Life in Arunachal Pradesh

Arunachal Hilltribe Lifestyle 1: Glimpses of a contented People

Arunachal Hilltribe Lifestyle 2 : Hunter-Gatherer-Weavers

Arunachal Hilltribe Lifestyle 3 : Innovative housing

Arunachal Hilltribe Lifestyle 4 : A chance encounter with a Shaman Priest during a sacrifice ritual

Arunachal Hilltribe Lifestyle 5: The Gaanv Boodhas or Village Headmen of Arunachal Pradesh

Tribal signatures – Face Tattoos of the Apatanis

Fierce Nocte Headhunters

Head Hunting Trophies

Arunachal Pradesh Lifestyle – Innovative Housing

Traditional Sports – Kabutar Baazi or Pigeon Gaming

Ram Leela at Dassera in Mumbai

Traditional Sports of Ladakh – Archery

Traditional Sports of Ladakh – Polo

Mountain Adventures 18000ft above sea level – a landslide at the Khardungla Pass!

Bactrian Camels of the Central Asian Silk Route – Ladakh

A night-out with the Nomads of Changthang

Mastering the Mind & Body – the Monk Warriors of Shaolin

The Ambubasi Tantric Festival

Church of Saint Francis Xavier of Assisi, Old Goa

Terracotta Warriors, Xi’an – a photo gallery of exhibits at Asian Civilisations Museum

Viva San Jao 2011

Invitation to a Lambani Gypsy Tribal Wedding

Exquisite Vintage Kebayas – costumes of the Pernakan Culture

Sikkim Diaries

Chanting Ceremony at Lingdum Monastery, Sikkim

Losar Celebrations – Bonfire at Kagyud Monastery, Sikkim

Procession at the Enchey Monastery, Sikkim

Little Lamas, Sikkim

Lama Dances at Thongsa Monastery, Kalimpong

Dancing with the Nuns at Phendzong Nunnery

Cross border handshake at Nathu-la Pass on the Silk Route

Yak Horn textile adornments, Sikkim

Street Shrines of India

The Hornbill Festival, Nagaland

Naga Lifestyle

Tribal Dances of Nagaland

Traditional Naga Bamboo Climbing & Fire Making

Tribal Textile and Bead Art of Nagaland

Sacrificial Lamb at Kamakhya Temple, Guwahati

Train Ride across rural Assam – Guwahati to Dimapur

Sumazau Dance of Sabah, Borneo

Journey of a Lifetime – Tibet

The Narakasur Festival

Lifestyle of the Qashqai Tribe, South West Persia

Nomads of Mongolia

Driving to Sindhudurg Sea Fort and back

The Eunuch Community of Bombay

The Dhunuchi Dance at Durga Puja

Thumbuakar Tribals of Borneo

Lucknow – Capital of Awadh & city of Nawabs

The Dragon Dance

The Magnificent Lion Dance

Janamashtami Festival

A cup of tea with nomads and gypsies of the Kutch

Alternate Sexuality Traditions 2 – The Tibetans

Textile Symbolism 1 : Hilltribes of Northern Thailand

Alternate Sexuality Traditions 1 – The Khmers

The children of Angkor Wat, Cambodia

Time Travel Tour Operators

Kissing a Bengal Tiger

Common Memes between Tribes

Into the Arabian Sea at Mumbai

Through Rural Gujarat

Life in an Ashram

Goan Village House

Monsoon at Miramar, Goa

Dances from another place

The Fishing Nets of Cochin

The Lambani Gypsy Tribe

Lifestyle of the Hilltribes of Northern Thailand

Travelling Godmen

Colors of San Jao festival, Goa

Rajasthan Folk Art

Mountain flight to Mount Everest

Pashupatinath – celebration and sorrow

New posts are constantly being added to this list and will appear at the top.

jm

Return to Ladakh

There is a ‘magnetic’ mountain on the road between Leh and Alchi. The magnetism is strong enough to pull parked cars upwards.

It is probably this magnetism that took me back to the Himalayan region of Ladakh in March 2013.

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Through my travels up until now, I have concluded that the sweetest, nicest, warmest people in the world are the Buddhists living in the heart of the Himalayas : Tibet, Sikkim & Ladakh. (I have not been to Bhutan but have heard similar things about Bhutanese).

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On this trip I had the good fortune to live with a wonderful Ladakhi family whose hospitality and warmth touched me to the core and left me in tears when I left.

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Two Dard families (people of Aryan descent) also welcomed me into their hearts and their homes and hopefully this year that friendship will grow.

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And finally I worked on the Blue Veil Project!

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I used to think that there is not enough time in one lifetime to re-visit any single place as there are too many places that need to be seen and experienced. But Ladakh is proving me wrong.  I hope to succumb to the attraction of the magnetic mountain again in 2013. And again. And again.

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Detailed  accounts of my recent experiences to be shared over the next few weeks.

The fantastic experiences of my first trip to Leh, Nubra, Hunder, Nyoma & Puga in 2011  are available here.

jm

March 2013

 

Fierce Nocte Headhunters

Portrait-collage of the Nocte Tribe, Khonsa, Arunachal Pradesh, a friendly happy yet fierce tribe with headhunting ancestry.

Hi res images available on http://www.jainamishra.com

My other related articles

Headhunting Tropies

Back to the Future – Tribal Life in Arunachal Pradesh

The Tribal Hornbill Festival, Nagaland

jm

January 2012

The Gaanv Boodhas or Village Headmen of Arunachal Pradesh

Am stating the obvious – that every journey results in not only a fresh view of old things, but also views of things never seen before by the beholder.

Having travelled considerably in rural India, the attitude of ‘been-there-done-that’ was slowly coloring my vision and I’d begun to become a bit of the Ms. Know-it-all.  Since most of my conversations are conducted with myself in my mind, the ‘listener’ parts of me were beginning to find the ‘speaker’ parts of me, a bit obnoxious.

And so it was good to find completely unknown concepts that even Ms. Know-it-all was stumped by!In the vegetable market in Ziro one morning, I came across a man dressed in a red overcoat and ceremonial sash.

At the vegetable market

But I was busy sitting on my haunches and chatting with the local vegetable vending women, so after a moment of being distracted by the red, I went back to the chit chat.

Within a few moments another man arrived strolling in a leisurely manner and I had to to make way for him on the narrow market path for which I stood up.  Lo and behold – this was another man in a red coat looking all distinguished compared to the general laity floating around.

Another red jacket in the vegetable market

These were no ordinary men walking the streets of Ziro.

The sight of the first red man had aroused my curiosity but that thought train was cut short by my previous engagements.

But the second sighting seized my attention and made me ask the Hindi speaking shopkeeper what these red coats were and who these men were.

Here is what I learnt:

These red jacketed men are “Gaanv Boodhas” which literally means “Village Elder”. 

While there can be many elders or seniors, this title is usually held by the oldest man in the village. His deeds of valour and goodness are also factored in to the selection process because it is important that the entire village respects the headman. Economic standing plays absolutely not role in the respect a man enjoys.

He is the official village headman.The government administration involves him in the decision making process and in the information dissemination process. There is also a formal association of Gaanv Boodhas that includes all the appointed headmen. And he wears a distinguishing uniform consisting of the striking red jacket, a sash that is decorated with the trophies of his hunts, a name tag and his special weapons.

A few images of the many headmen I had the privilege to meet on this journey.

Portrait of a respected Gaanv Boodha

Portrait

With his traditional backpack

A weapon that is always carried on his person - the 'Dho'

The Gaanv Boodha with his grandson at his home

The Name plate announcing his position and office

Traditional beads

The respected Gaanv Boodha in normal home clothes

The Gaanv Boodha in the full splendour of his uniform

The decorated hat contained eagle claws, porcupine quills and feathers

Detail of another sash with the jaw

Detail of bearskin sash and staff

And so, my personal discovery of the concept of GBs that I was ignorant about until now, helped to wash off the saprophytic attitude of smugness that had begun growing like a fungus on my decaying vision. I now stand humbly corrected and reminded that I do not know it all and I hope that this episode will arrest this decay!

My other articles on Arunachal Pradesh

Glimpses of a contented People

Hunter-Gatherer-Weavers

 Innovative housing

 A chance encounter with a Shaman Priest during a sacrifice ritual

Tribal signatures – Face Tattoos of the Apatanis

Fierce Nocte Headhunters

Head Hunting Trophies

jm

Jan 2012

Glimpses of a contented People – the Arunachalis

Images of interesting elements of Arunachali lifestyle have been put together as a general kaleidoscope.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

For separate articles on the specific topics, click on the links below:

Hunter-Gatherer-Weavers

 Innovative housing

 A chance encounter with a Shaman Priest during a sacrifice ritual

The Gaanv Boodhas or Village Headmen of Arunachal Pradesh

Tribal signatures – Face Tattoos of the Apatanis

Fierce Nocte Headhunters

Head Hunting Trophies

jm

January 2012

Hi resolution lifescape images will be available on jainamishra.com soon

The Arunachali – the Hunter-Gatherer-Weaver

A handsome hunter

Tiny hamlets dot the Himalayan foothills of Arunachal Pradesh. Some lie along the winding roads while a large number are accessible only by foot paths taking as long as 3-5 days to reach.

These hamlets are few and far between and the percentage of land occupied by all the villages cumulatively will probably not cover more than 5% of the land available. The rest is covered by thick forests. Forests that sustain the small population.

The life philosophy of the people therefore, integrates their own lives with their surroundings and their model for life sustenance reflects their philosophy.

They conduct ‘jhoom’ farming to grow some of their grain, they hunt for food, they cut deadwood for fuel and housing and they weave what the clothing they need.

They are hunters, gatherers, weavers, farmers.

On the drive from Khonsa to Pasighat to Along to Daporijo to Ziro, in the afternoons, as I crossed hamlets, I’d come across women sitting in their porches and weaving on back-strap looms.

In the evenings as I’d approach a village I’d see men and women returning from the forest, their rattan head-strap back-baskets filled with millet or logs or other products from the forest.

And all through the day but more so after dark, I’d see solo men and solo women with rifles going out to acquire the next meal for their families.

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The new world is changing lives everywhere but it is refreshing to see a world that is moving at a leisurely pace and is in no hurry to catch up with anyone else.

Other articles on Arunachal Pradesh have been linked below:

Glimpses of a contented People

 Innovative housing

 A chance encounter with a Shaman Priest during a sacrifice ritual

The Gaanv Boodhas or Village Headmen of Arunachal Pradesh

Tribal signatures – Face Tattoos of the Apatanis

Fierce Nocte Headhunters

Head Hunting Trophies

 

Am Apatani shawl acquired directly from the weaver has been added to the wovensouls collection. Please click here to view it.

jm

Jan 2012

Tribal Signatures – Face Tattoos of the Apatani tribe

The lifestyle of Apatani hilltribe of Arunachal Pradesh fascinates a cultural traveller on several aspects. But the one that hit me with the greatest intensity are the 2 tribal signatures of the tribe : face tattoos & nose plugs.

Getting a first glimpse of these on the internet created a desire to go and see them in person.  And so I set out on this logistically challenging trip in December to satisfy the frenzy created in my head with all the readings.

I expected that seeing them and experiencing a spectrum of their lifestyle would quench my curiosity. But instead, it fuelled it. The reason for this unexpected reaction is the stark truth that was revealed as I spoke with the Apatanis – that their unique traditions are breathing their last breath.

Legend has it that the women of this tribe used to be kidnapped by neighbouring tribes because of their beauty. To prevent this the tribe began to tattoo the faces of the girls and put on nose plugs – either to repel or to brand their own young girls.

This practice was abolished after soon after India’s independence when the government provided security against kidnappings. As a result, no more faces have tattooed for the past 30 – 35 years.The youngest tattooed face I saw was about 45.

The next generation of the world, therefore, will see a rainbow of human diversity that will be missing one color – a very unique and intense color.

And the only glimpses available to the future will be through the few photographs taken since the camera was invented!

Here I present a few:

Face tattoo of an Apatani tribal woman from Arunachal Pradesh

Nose plugs of the Apatani Tribe – one more tribal signature

A village headman with a tattoo on his chin

The elegant and gorgeous Apatani woman with her signature beads

A photo-lifescape of the Apatani tribe will follow soon…

The images above are a small preview of the Hi-res full size images available on my photography website www.JainaMishra.com.

My other articles on Arunachal Pradesh are linked below:

Glimpses of a contented People

Hunter-Gatherer-Weavers

 Innovative housing

 A chance encounter with a Shaman Priest during a sacrifice ritual

The Gaanv Boodhas or Village Headmen of Arunachal Pradesh

Fierce Nocte Headhunters

Head Hunting Trophies

jm

Jan 2012

Arunachal Hilltribe Lifestyle 2 : Innovative housing

Arunachal Pradesh landscapes comprise the foothills of the Himalayas and is inhabited mainly by tribes.The hills are dotted with tribal villages all across its 85000 sq km expanse.

Hills and Tribal Villages

The village structures  are constructed from forest output and they merge in seamlessly with their surroundings.

Innovative Bamboo Plumbing is used to harness the waters from the many streams. My driver takes a wash.

Houses

All houses are on stilts and have thatched roofs. There is one large hall at the center of which is the 3-tier hearth. This hall is the main room and is used for cooking, eating and spending family time. Women do their weaving here in their free time. One or two rooms may surround the hall.

A community structure that may be used by all villagers to sell their goods such as fruit & weavings

A large terrace being used to sun dry rice.

The area beneath the structure - where the stilts are- is used to house farm animals

Barricades to restrict their movement

The pigs make their way out anyway ...

Features of the House Structure

Bamboo Stilts

The hearth used exclusively for cooking the Village Headman's food

The staircase - carved out of a single log of wood

Detail of each step of the staircase

The floor made using Bainth - that is imilar to Rattan

The ceiling

The interior of the Headman's home

The headman in his home

Cow dung caked onto the cane structure as wall plaster

The balcony

An elderly couple in their balcony

The outdoor wash room

The Washroom - 2

Unique Elements of  Arunachal Tribal Living – The Morung:

The Morung or village community hall

The youth dorm or the “Morung” is an interesting social concept that is an integral part of the lifestyle of many hilltribes, not only in Arunachal Pradesh but also the general geographical region.

 A Morung is a community hall where the young – post puberty – spend the night, after living and working with their parental families throughout the day. Young boys and girls mingle and learn social norms and spend time pursuing life skills training together. Understanding develops between boys and girls and courtship followed by marriage is the result. The Morung , also called the Longshim is often located near the chief’s house.

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Unique Elements of  Arunachal Tribal Living – The Boys Room:

                                               The Room for adolescent boys outside the main house

Another interesting feature seen is the outdoor room for young adolescent boys. This is a stand-alone room just a few metres away from the family house. This affords young boys the privacy they need at this age.

Boy's room - 2

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Unique Elements of  Arunachal Tribal Living – The Granary Complex:

The Granary complex

The family homes made of cane and other highly inflammable materials are at the risk of major fires that burn down the entire house – especially with the fire based cooking that takes place on the floor of the house. I was told that every year at least one house burns down in every village.  To minimise the loss of wealth – which is held mainly as food stores harvested fro the year – the family constructs a granary in a separate part of the village. The paddy harvest and other valuables are stocked there. Each family has their own granary unit.

Given the materials being used for construction, a sealed unit is not possible. As stored paddy attracts rats that could consume the entire stock in no time, innovative methods were required to prevent their access to the grain.

Stilts are no deterrents to rats who can race up vertical bamboos with ease.

 

Granary on stilts

And so they came up with a device that is fitted at the top of the stilts – a disc that is concave.

Once he reaches the top of the stilt, the rat has no choice but to traverse the concave disc whose outer edges are lower than the inner edges. In doing so, the rat must hang upside down, and the angle of the concavity makes it worse. He falls. Every single time. And is unable to reach the grain stored in the room above these discs.

No need for poisons or any other forms of rat deterrents. Just a simple structural device – no repeated costs and no damage to nature.

Innovation at its best!

Further these stores of wealth are completely unguarded …. this is unimaginable and completely impossible in my urban context. This again goes to prove that these tribes are way more evolved in their living than any other group of people I have met in.

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Unique Elements of  Arunachal Tribal Living – The unique 3 – tiered kitchen hearth:

As temperatures in the hills are low, it is important to utilise every little bit of heat that is available. The fire that is used to cook the food also gives off heat in other directions that is generally un-used and wasted. But in the tribal homes, the kitchen structure is designed to use as much as possible.

Woven Bainth mats are hung above the fireplace in 2 additional layers. The heat from the fire and the pots rises up to heat and dry grain and smoke meats to preserve them for long term use. Tribes all across – Galo, Apatani and others all have this innovation in their kitchens that adds to the energy efficiency.

The 3 tiered Kitchen hearth

The bottom level of the 3-tiered hearth where the main cooking takes place

The middle tier of the hearth

The top tier of the hearth – usually millet is spread on a mat on that level to dry it completely

Smoking Meat - the meat is hung vertically on one side of the hearth

Other Elements of the home:

A 1 sq foot hole in the cane floor serves as a spot to wash hands and drain the water

A stag head trophy in the headman's home

Bison head trophies at the entrance of the home

Boar Tusks - still a part of the skull - used as wall hangers

Bird house

Chicken Coups for the night

A device for yarn spinning

Net used for fishing in the village ponds

Large mortar-pestle used for Paddy husk removal

Baskets of varying weaves for different purposes

Ladles for serving Millet based alcohol

Made from a hollow plant

Trophies

Bison Horn trophy

Millet

Building a House

To build a house, one needs land, raw materials, equipment and labour.

The land is community land alloted to the village and no one needs to buy a piece of land. It may be used as long as one is living. The raw materials come from the forest. The only equipment they use is the Dho – the mulitpurpose weapon. And the labour is themselves and their community.

The financial cost is rupees is Zero.

The Raw Material : Bamboo

Flattening the Bamboo with a dho

Community working together

People cooperate and collaborate with others and build villages together – literally.

SUMMARY

The people live in harmony with nature and with each other. So many examples of creative and innovative solutions to solve their problems are seen in their lifestyles – not only in their housing. A very poignant example of creativity – is the custom in Apatani tribe : to prevent their beautiful women from getting kidnapped by the neighbouring tribe – they tattooed the faces of the women! This radically creative solution is covered in the article on Apatani face tattoos linked below:

Glimpses of a contented People

Hunter-Gatherer-Weavers

 A chance encounter with a Shaman Priest during a sacrifice ritual

The Gaanv Boodhas or Village Headmen of Arunachal Pradesh

Tribal signatures – Face Tattoos of the Apatanis

Fierce Nocte Headhunters

Head Hunting Trophies

jm

December 2011

Ladakh Diaries

“LADAKH – THE HERMIT KINGDOM”  PROVIDES AN INTRODUCTION TO LADAKH AND IS A PREFACE TO A SERIES OF SUBJECT SPECIFIC ARTICLES ON LADAKH.

In the olden days, in the Hindu way of life, the final stage after the stage of ‘student’ and ‘householder’ is the stage of ‘vaanprasth’ in which the elderly give up their worldly life and retreat to the mountains or the forest to live the ascetic life of a hermit.

I have no doubt that if someday I take up vaanprasth, then it is to the Himalayas in Ladakh that I will retreat to.

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In my 14 days in Ladakh, driving through the  rough and harsh greater Himalayas, driving over its great passes, dipping my feet in its majestic chill rivers and flying over its peaks and sighting the many many glaciers that began as rivers but gave up under the wrath of the cold – it is impossible not be magnetised by the Himalayas. I am not a fan of nature. But the ruthless landscapes cast a spell and I know that I will keep returning again and again and again.

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Ladakh in the 1st century AD was a part of the Kushan empire, and in the 10th century a member of the Tibetan royal family established a kingdom here.The influence of Buddhism grew, until the 13th century when Kashmir and central Asia came under the influence of Islam. It remained independent under many Ladakhi rulers until 1846 when it was annexed and became a part of Jammu and Kashmir.

Interestingly, it has never been under the British rule like the rest of India has!

Today it is one of the provinces of the state of Jammu and Kashmir in India.

It is a high altitude desert – a cold desert – and lies on the edge of the Tibetan plateau or Changthang, nestled between the Karakoram mountain range and the Zanskaar range.

Trade routes in the medieval times connecting Central Asia to south -west Asia passed through Ladakh.  Ladakh shares boundaries with Pakistan, China and Tibet.

Settlements are seen along the valleys created by the two main rivers : Indus and Zanskaar.

Three basic ethnic groups live in Ladakh – the Dards – the Aryans, the Chang-Pas or the nomads and the Mons – the Indo-Iranians. These are further subdivided based on religion and where they eventually settled.

Culturally each group is distinct from the next, but together as Ladakhis they are similar to each other and completely different psycographically from the Kashmiri. This difference is an important one and will be discussed later.

In the Himalayan belt, a common flavor of Buddhism developed – that which is seen as Tibetan – in Tibet, in Arunachal Pradesh and in Ladakh. Turquoise and mountain coral are treasured by all. Goncha robes and the typical tigma and nambu work of tie and dyed crosses are common.

Of all these regions, Tibet is considered the main cultural center with the other regions being periphereal.

I have been to Tibet – Lhasa, and remote towns of Gyantse, Shigatse and Everest Base camp. And I have been to Ladakh – Leh, and remote villages of Puga in Changthang and Hunder in Nubra.

If Tibet is 10 on a scale of 10 on the parameter of Tibetanness, Ladakh is probably 20.

Because Tibet has been invaded. By commerce. By tourists. By Chinese cybercafes as large as high school auditoriums. An infusion of  global culture that has led to at least a little homogenisation with the rest of the world.

While Ladakh is still pure. It retains its Tibetanness or Ladakhiness in the many flavors of its daily life. Common men and women are seen wearing their traditional dress in the streets of its main cities. On a  5 minute walk in any street, at least a dozen spinning prayer wheels will be seen in the hands of people. Women still wear their hair in 2 plaits, which join into one at the end. Buddhism is still a very integral and important aspect of the lives of its people.

Secondly, the Ladakhi cultural flavor in my opinion is richer, sharper, stronger and much more enhanced than the culture in any other Himalayan region, including Tibet. The visuals and the sounds and the aura leave a much deeper impact on the senses, than any other Himalayan culture I have seen.

It is the endeavour of the photo-essays that follow to prove this point that if there must be a hierarchy in the cultural scores of a place – Ladakh would score higher than Tibet.

Click on the Photo-essay links below:

A night-out with the Nomads of Changthang

Traditional Sports of Ladakh – Archery

Traditional Sports of Ladakh – Polo

Bactrian Camels of the Central Asian trade route

The Chamms Masked Dances of Buddhist Monks

Ancient Murals of Alchi monastery – an art collector’s delight

Mountain Adventures 18000ft above sea level – a landslide at the Khardungla Pass!

Costumes – textiles and jewelry of Ladakh (on Jozan.net)

Flying over Himalyan peaks – the most spectacular flight ever! (under construction)

Golden Ladakhi Landscapes (under construction)

Return to Ladakh (2013)

jm

Sept 2011

Costumes of Ladakh – the Hidden Kingdom

This article was written for publication on Jozan.net.

and can be found here

jaina mishra

November 2011