Dr Rabin Man Shakya
Portland, Nov 4 (Nepal Oregon News): The Newar jewelry market has been dominated over the last centuries by members of castes self-identifying as Buddhists, which means that Buddhists or not, Newars have to deal with Buddhists, when they deal with jewels, said Dr Christoph Emmrich during a presentation on "Jewelry in Nepalese Buddhist Culture" organized at Nritya Mandala Mahavihara in Portland on Saturday, Nov, 2019.
Further, those Buddhists understand themselves as being in charge of the Newar jewelry business, just as they take pride in being the largest manufacturers and exporters of religious artifacts in Nepal, Dr Emmrich went on saying.
Dr Emmrich said:"These Buddhist Newar groups are well aware of the significance of jewels for caste and class differences and of the influence of Buddhist material culture on Nepalese society."
It hence behooves us to trace jewels into territory that may not be specifically Buddhist, but allows for the Buddhist and non-Buddhist to illuminate each other to help us understand how jewels work, Dr Emmrich added.
During his brilliant presentation, Dr Emmrich explored the artisanal fashioning as well as poetic evocation of precious gems and jewelry in the world of Nepalese Buddhists of the Kathmandu Valley.
Dr Emmrich also analyzed the contrast and balance between house holder and monastic, possessor and renunciate, and also offered a reflection on the nuances of gender, languages and the material in Nepalese Buddhist literature and culture.
Acquiring of jewels is celebrated as much as rejected, and the way in which the two are balanced or made to remain at odds is something Buddhist communities have articulated throughout history, particularly in songs and storytelling. Dr Emmrich also threw light on mentioning of jewelry in Newah songs. Payo, Tayo and Bijakani are mentioned in the historical Newah song "Rajamati", he said.
Dr Christoph Emmrich is an associate professor of Buddhist Studies at the University of Toronto, where he has taught Newar, Burmese, Pali, Buddhist and Jain studies since 2006. His latest monograph "Writing Rites for Newar Girls: Marriage, Mimesis & Memory in the Kathmandu Valley" is forthcoming from Brill.
Replying to a question of a journalist from the Nepal Oregon News, Dr Emmrich said just like jewelry in Nepalese Buddhist culture, Western Christian culture and civilization have also been deeply influenced by the symbolic power and impact of jewelry.
Similarly, another presentation on "Dharani Recitation in Nepalese Buddhist Community" was made by Dr Miroj Shakya.
The ancient roots of Dharani are still obscure, their emergence may partly be connected to indigenous mantric lore that found its way first to Atharvaved and then to both early Bramhanic and Buddhist spell literatures, Dr Shakya said.
Dharani literature has existed for over two millennia in the Mahayana Buddhist tradition. Typically used to prevent misfortune, remove obstacles, heal and protect, Dharani are also used in life cycle rituals and other practices, Dr Shakya added.
Dr Shakya also discussed origin and evolution of Dharanis in India and Nepal and their widespread use by Nepalese Buddhist practitioners.
Dr Miroj Shakya is an associate professor and co-chair of the Department of Religious Studies at the University of Religious Studies at the University of the West in Rosemead, California. He is part of the Rare Buddhist Sanskrit Manuscript Preservation Project and the Sanskrit Language Working Group, and editor of the "Catalog of Digitized Rare Sanskrit Buddhist Manuscripts."
Answering to a query by Nepal Oregon News, Dr Shakya said "Yes, Dharani recitation is on the verge of extinction." That is why, information and study of Dharani should be included in schools and colleges, locals of the Kathmandu valley should preserve it and publicize the importance of Dharani literature for its revival, Dr Shakya replied.
Meanwhile, speaking on the occasion, Prajwal Vajracharya of the Nritya Mandala Mahavihara informed the audience that with the objective of publicizing the importance of Dharani, the Mahavihara is soon planning to organize a week-long workshop on Dharani recitation. Prior to the presentations, Prajwal also gave brief introduction of Dr Emmrich and Dr Shakya to the audience.
Dr Emmrich and Dr Shakya also replied to some questions asked by the audience at the program which was followed by a potluck dinner.
At the end of the program, which was attended by about 60 Nepalese and American guests, including representatives of Nepali Association of Oregon (NAO), Nepaa Chhen, NRNA - USA - Oregon Chapter, Nepal Oregon News, Daya Shakya, vice president of World Newah Organization (WNO), presented WNO publications to both the scholars.
(Rabin Man Shakya is a Nepali journalist in USA)
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