Interviews | Hyolmo Heritage Project

Interview with Chatral Rinpoche’s daughter, Semo Saraswati

“I would like to say: just saying “Kyabsuchi! Kyabsuchi!” to the Rinpoche is not enough, we have to practice what he taught us as well. Only then can we say, that we are his followers. He left his physical body, but his blessings are always with us.”

Gore Ngawang on nomadic life in Helambu

“My father would be busy in managing food for all of us. He would go to sell the mar (butter), the churpi (dry cheese). The children would look after the cattle early in the morning and after milking is finished at noon, they would take the herd back again to the jungle for feeding.”

Chenga Lama on the Kangso ritual

“When a new year begins, we do kangso puja wishing, that nothing bad happens and hoping, that good things will come to our whole family and relatives. All the obstacles will be cleared away by doing kangso puja. It is beneficial, if we do the kangso of Konjo Chethen (T. dKon mchog spyi ‘dus).”

Bonpo Pasang

“Yes, they still organize them. Every year there is a jatra to Mahadev. Uncountable people come to Mahadev every year. In this coming fullmoon, jatra is organized in Gyang. People dance on the ground of Gyang where a drupchu is beneath the ground. On the next fullmoon day, they set out to Mahadev.”

Karma Sherpa, the mask maker

“There should be a teacher for anything to learn, it is better that way. I didn’t have to go far to finding someone to teach me. I was lucky, because my neighbours are artists, one is a thangka painter, another a carpenter and there is a wood artist as well.”

Singi Sherpa, the matchmaker

“During my father’s time there was no mikten in our village, and they had to find one when they needed a bride for their son. Later, when the committees were formed, they requested three-four of us to become miktens. I was 27 years old, when I started…”

Ebi Karmu on life in the past

“My mother passed away at the age of sixty, my father used to be an umze (master of ritual in the temple). He continued to work for the village as long as he could, and then passed away. Since he didn’t have any sons, he gave away his pechas (religious books) to his uncle’s children.”

Kheba Dorje

“I should start with my teacher Uncle Jimmy. I started learning from him in 2031 BS and compled the classes in 2032 BS. We did not go through extensive thigpe classes, considering that it would have taken 5-6 years; we learnt simple thigpe of the Buddha and various techniques of coloring.”