Bhutan: The Unremembered Nation - Vols.1&2

Description

The process of modernization has brought discontinuities in collective memory. The books provide an act of collective remembrance, knitting together many voices and stories. They show the readers a world of the past before modernization began in the 1960s. Volume 1 unfolds accounts of births and rebirths in the household, making of houses and matrimony, rearing of children and livestock in a village, and husbandry of lands and forests. After sketching these fundamental aspects of existence, it details seasonable migration, backpack and caravan trade, and travel over different climatic and linguistic areas. Colours, sounds, and other sensory experiences of ordinary people are described before ending with the rhythm of the farming of major crops such as millet, rice, and wheat. Volume 2 covers the monumental architecture of dzongs (castles) and administration of the country, authority and power, cosmological concepts and beliefs, religions and rites, visualization and meditation, visual arts, and folk drama that affected the daily life of the people. Some chapters also dwell on monastic life and monkhood, and Guru Rinpoche's imprints on the land and its people.

About the author:

Karma Ura is the president of the Centre for Bhutan Studies (CBS) and GNH Research. He completed his MA in Politics, Philosophy, and Economics at Magdalen College, University of Oxford; an M.Phil. in Economics at the University of Edinburgh; and a Ph.D. at Nagoya University, Japan. An eminent scholar, he has held many international roles, in the Global Council of World Happiness, Earth Justice Working Group, and International Buddhist Federation.

Reviews

The Unremembered Nation has an encyclopaedic sweep which brings to life the Bhutan of yesteryear in all its myriad dimensions. The author’s deep affinity and love for his remarkable country shine through its pages. This will long be the definitive reference work on Bhutan and its people.

Shyam Saran (Padma Bushan), Diplomat, Senior Fellow at CPR, Delhi, and Author of How India Sees the World.    

While most studies of Himalayan countries focus on their official history and their famous figures, the special charm of this study lies in the fact that it puts human life at the centre. With the two volumes, Dasho Karma Ura has delivered a rich and masterful panorama of Bhutan, its people, their ways of life, and their traditions.

Ulrike Roesler, Professor of Himalayan Studies, University of Oxford

A monumental new study of rural culture and social history of Bhutan written by the acknowledged expert in this field, Dasho Karma Ura

John A. Ardussi PhD,  Senior Research Fellow, University of Virginia Tibet Center

A major new work by this Renaissance man of Bhutan, who has combined an important career as economist, politician, theoretician of Gross National Happiness, and Centre of Bhutan and GNH Studies with an equally remarkable artistic career in literature, choreography and the visual arts.

Geoffrey Samuel, Professor of Anthropology, New Castle University, Australia, and Author of Mind, Body and Culture (1990) and Civilized Shamans: Buddhism in Tibetan Societies (1993)

Dasho Karma Ura has brought together resplendent shards of memory and a disciplined citation of lives and behaviour of our forebears of another time, on the cusp of all-embracing and unreversible changes styled "modernisation".

Dr Brian Shaw, Honorary Research Fellow, Centre of Asian Studies, The University of Hong Kong

The ultimate strength of the manuscript lies in its simple yet enlightening prose, by which the author is able to capture the imagination of the reader…. The Unremembered Nation can be Bhutan’s humble counterpart to E.P. Thompson’s ground breaking volume on social history of the British working class titled Customs in Common – Studies in Traditional Popular Culture.

The curiosity piqued by each profound and provocative vista means the reader almost forgets these subjects are rarely housed between the covers of one book. Truly, it is a work to be savoured.

Sabina Alkire, Director of OPHI, University of Oxford

In this momentous work on Bhutan the author has conducted extensive research, collecting and collating material from an amazing variety of sources. He has then used his sharp analytical skills to tell a story which is breathtaking in its range and complexity. As a raconteur of his country’s history, Dasho Karma Ura is beyond compare.

Shyam Saran (Padma Bushan), Diplomat, Senior Fellow at CPR, Delhi, and Author of How India Sees the World.   

With the two volumes, Dasho Karma Ura has delivered a rich and masterful panorama of Bhutan, its people, their ways of life, and their traditions. While most studies of Himalayan countries focus on their official history and their famous figures, the special charm of this study lies in the fact that it puts human life at the centre. The two volumes begin with the nucleus of society: the house and family, and gradually zoom out to look at the village and the landscape around it, travel and trade (vol. I), and finally the macro level of government and politics, as well as art, religion, and monastic culture (vol. II). The books close with a chapter dedicated to the legacy of Guru Padmasambhava.

Produced by a scholar with a profound understanding of Bhutan’s development, these two volumes will be a treasure-trove of knowledge for academic scholars, for Bhutan lovers, and most importantly, for the Bhutanese people.

Ulrike Roesler, Professor of Himalayan Studies, University of Oxford

Livelihood is the first volume in a monumental new study of rural culture and social history of Bhutan written by the acknowledged expert in this field, Dasho Karma Ura, Director of the Centre for Bhutan Studies. In this volume Dasho Karma offers detailed insight into a vast landscape of traditional Bhutanese patterns of life, from earliest times up through the pre-modern era. Agriculture, village dynamics, courtship and marriage customs, the indigenous logic that underlay the layout of villages, the construction of homes, the incorporation of religion and folk drama into daily life, economic change, and much more, are all covered with attention to detail and often with humour. This book and its companion volume “Art and Ideals” will become must-read works for students of Bhutan.

John A. Ardussi PhD – Sr. Research Fellow, University of Virginia Tibet Center

Anyone familiar with the career of Dasho Karma Ura will expect something special from a major new work by this Renaissance man of Bhutan, who has combined an important career as economist, politician, theoretician of Gross National Happiness, and Centre of Bhutan and GNH Studies with an equally remarkable artistic career in literature, choreography and the visual arts. They will not be disappointed. This first of two volumes focusses on the pre-modern village community and its economy, including detailed accounts of many important, often little-known, aspects of Bhutanese culture and society.

Geoffrey Samuel, Professor of Anthropology, New Castle University, Australia, and Author of Mind, Body and Culture (1990) and Civilized Shamans: Buddhism in Tibetan Societies (1993),

In this erudite, encyclopaedic, at times critical, collection of thematic essays, Dasho Karma Ura has brought together resplendent shards of memory and a disciplined citation of lives and behaviour of our forebears of another time, on the cusp of all-embracing and unreversible changes styled "modernisation". These shards may draw both respect and sadness: respect at the well-roundedness of ordinary people's lives in harsh circumstances, and sadness at the discomforts and demands that most had to endure.

Dr Brian Shaw, Honorary Research Fellow, Centre of Asian Studies, The University of Hong Kong

As the author states, the main objective of this work is to remember the past of Bhutan as it is seen to be hurtling towards a modern future, which is mired in uncertainty. What is fascinating is that this ‘remembering’ of the past is done from the perspective of the lives led by ordinary people.  Thus, the leading protagonists of both volumes are the common people. This is highly interesting and truly the greatest contribution from this work as much of the writings on Bhutan, including of the larger Himalayan region are not written from the lens of the ordinary.

The presence of the ‘songs of the common’ are truly a strength of the scholarship. Whether it is the songs sung by the participants while constructing houses or by the farmers who serenaded their animals during ploughing, these songs provide a wonderful description of the daily lives of the people.

 The Unremembered Nation draws reader into an effortless narrative that treks from mothers’ homes to field, theory of colour to spiritual arts, romance and family to war and crime, architecture to folksong. Readers pass through mountain passes and squint at cattle herds before encountering to Bhutan’s legal and administration systems, its plural and profound traditions, and its monarchy. They come to rest in the unfailing support of Guru Padmasambhava. The curiosity piqued by each profound and provocative vista means the reader almost forgets these subjects are rarely housed between the covers of one book. Truly, is a work of genius to be savoured.

Sabina Alkire, Oxford Poverty & Human Development Initiative, University of Oxford.

In this erudite, encyclopaedic, at times critical, collection of thematic essays, Dasho Karma Ura has brought together resplendent shards of memory and a disciplined citation of lives and behaviour of our forebears of another time, on the cusp of all-embracing and unreversible changes styled "modernisation". These shards may draw both respect and sadness: respect at the well-roundedness of ordinary people's lives in harsh circumstances, and sadness at the discomforts and demands that most had to endure.

These essays may also stand as a mirror to contemporary disruptions and confusions, and a reminder that until very recently the character and loyalties of the "unremembered nation" was daily forged by intelligent and wise adaptation to the circumstances over which they had imperfect control or understanding.

Looking back to these earlier times, the author provides a cogent and detailed analysis of the major strengths of that community.  This book should be read by all who wish a deeper background to, and understanding of, rural Bhutan's present crises of change.

Dr Brian Shaw, Honorary Research Fellow, Centre of Asian Studies, The University of Hong Kong

Dedicated to HRH the Crown Prince Jigme Namgyel Wangchuck, the two richly illustrated volumes preserve an in-depth knowledge of Bhutan as it was only a few decades ago. In times of rapid change, such memories of the past become even more precious, as we can only move into the future in a meaningful way if we understand where we come from.

It is heartening to see such thorough scholarship, combined with such deep dedication to the subject. Produced by a scholar with a profound understanding of Bhutan’s development, these two volumes will be a treasure-trove of knowledge for academic scholars, for Bhutan lovers, and most importantly, for the Bhutanese people.

Ulrike Roesler, Professor of Himalayan Studies, University of Oxford

This is the second of two volumes of a major new work by Dasho Karma Ura. Together they constitute a very significant achievement by this leading Bhutanese scholar, artist and political figure, and essential reading for anyone who wishes an in-depth understanding of this Buddhist kingdom in the Himalayas. This volume includes important essays on architecture, art, and politics, along with reflections on Bhutanese history and on the timeless presence of Bhutan’s great saint, Guru Rinpoche.

Geoffrey Samuel, Professor of Anthropology, New Castle University, Australia, and Author of Mind, Body and Culture (1990) and Civilized Shamans: Buddhism in Tibetan Societies (1993)

This, the second volume of Dasho Karma Ura’s massive new study The Unremembered Nation – Bhutan, is equally as comprehensive as the first, Community and Livelihood.  Among its numerous topics, many covered here for the first time, the book is particularly strong in the area of religious culture and art, especially at the rural level. Systems of national, regional and local governance are treated with insight and personal experience, as well as being based on extensive field interviews among elderly citizens. As the author points out, Bhutan’s culture is rapidly changing under the impact of modernization. These two volumes will preserve for future generations a vast database of knowledge and shared wisdom about pre-modern Bhutan.

John A. Ardussi PhD – Sr. Research Fellow, University of Virginia Tibet Center

The Unremembered Nation (Volume 1 and 2) is a groundbreaking contribution to the growing scholarship on Himalayan history and more specifically the history of Bhutan. Written in a lucid style, filled with anecdotes derived from the lives of the common people of Bhutan, the author’s scholarship is excellent. There is extensive usage of local songs, ritual texts, written in the Wylie transliteration, followed by the translations, which are accurate. Thus these two volumes will offer every reader a better understanding of life in the Dragon Kingdom.

Seldom is such a span of human motifs treated with both affectionate familiarity and scholarly precision.  Dasho Karma Ura’s refreshing, creative and appreciative style pays equally studious attentiveness to a herder’s serenade as to a great saint’s legacy. It truly will re-member Bhutan in the minds of a generation that never knew it that way, or may be beginning to forget. To those who have travelled to Bhutan already it strikes in vivacious detail a vaguely familiar portrait. And it provides an evocative introduction to the Dragon Kingdom for those looking in for the first time.  May this patiently sketched history be harnessed, such that steps into the future reverberate with this rich memory.

Sabina Alkire, Oxford Poverty & Human Development Initiative, University of Oxford.

Dasho Karma Ura has brought to this momentous work on Bhutan his celebrated intellectual skills, combining the perspectives of anthropologist, historian, sociologist and political scientist. It has the infinite detail to delight a scholar and an overarching narrative that will appeal even to a general reader. Above all, it is a treasure house which generations of Bhutanese will turn to in order to understand the deepest wellsprings of their identity and their evolving culture.

It is heartening to see such thorough scholarship, combined with such deep dedication to the subject. Produced by a scholar with a profound understanding of Bhutan’s development, these two volumes will be a treasure-trove of knowledge for academic scholars, for Bhutan lovers, and most importantly, for the Bhutanese people.

Ulrike Roesler, Professor of Himalayan Studies, University of Oxford

In this knowledgeable, wide-ranging and at times critical collection of thematic essays, Dasho Karma Ura has brought together his own memories and those of others of the way of life in the recent past, when he himself was a boy and the country was on the cusp of all-embracing and irreversible changes.

Dr Brian Shaw, Honorary Research Fellow, Centre of Asian Studies, The University of Hong Kong

The author has conducted extensive research, collecting and collating material from an amazing variety of sources. He has then used his sharp analytical skills to tell a story which is breathtaking in its range and complexity. As a raconteur of his country’s history, Dasho Karma Ura is beyond compare.

Shyam Saran (Padma Bushan), Diplomat, Senior Fellow at CPR, Delhi, and Author of How India Sees the World.    

The two volumes include detailed accounts of many important, often little-known, aspects of Bhutanese culture and society, with reflections on Bhutanese history and on the timeless role of Guru Rinpoche in Bhutan. Dasho’s vision is as always personal, informed, and illuminating, and the illustrations add an important extra dimension. Nobody else could have written this book, and many people will be grateful that it is there, and will know Bhutan better through reading it.

Geoffrey Samuel, Professor of Anthropology, New Castle University, Australia, and Author of Mind, Body and Culture (1990) and Civilized Shamans: Buddhism in Tibetan Societies (1993),

This, the second volume of Dasho Karma Ura’s massive new study, treats systems of national, regional and local governance with insight and personal experience, as well as being based on extensive field interviews among elderly citizens. These two volumes will preserve for future generations a vast database of knowledge and shared wisdom about pre-modern Bhutan.

John A. Ardussi PhD, Senior Research Fellow, University of Virginia Tibet Center

The volumes are rich in ethnographic details and will be a treasure trove for a researcher planning to study Bhutan. They can also serve as ‘travel writing’ with tourism growing in Bhutan as the volume can provide a common tourist with an introduction to the land and its people.

Seldom is such a span of human motifs treated with both affectionate familiarity and scholarly precision.  The Unremembered Nation truly will re-member Bhutan in the minds of generations that never knew it that way, and may strike the imagination of those planning ahead.

Sabina Alkire, Director of OPHI, University of Oxford

Table of contents

•    Vol.1 (Community and Livelihood)

Chapter 1   Introduction

Chapter 2   Birth of Mothers' Houses

Chapter 3    Family and Village

Chapter 4   Perfect Cows and Skilled Herders

Chapter 5   Sounds and Colours of the Land

Chapter 6   Backpack Traders and Caravans

•    Vol.2 (Art and Ideals)

Chapter 1   Introduction

Chapter 2    Castles of Eternity

Chapter 3   Visual Arts and Visualisations

Chapter 4    Tapestry of Beliefs and Faith

Chapter 5    The Governance of NationChapter 6   Apex of Power

Chapter 7   Troops of Fierce Deities

Chapter 8   Monks and Monasteries

Chapter 9   The Timeless Guru