Childs, Geoff

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Himalaya, the Journal of theAssociation for Nepal andHimalayan StudiesVolume 25Number 1 Himalaya No. 1 & 2 Article 232005A Rejoinder to Mills "Culture Change in the Nameof Cultural Preservation"Geoff ChildsWashington University in St. Louis, gchilds@wustl.eduFollow this and additional works at: http://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/himalayaThis Research Article is brought to you for free and open access by theDigitalCommons@Macalester College at DigitalCommons@MacalesterCollege. It has been accepted for inclusion in Himalaya, the Journal of theAssociation for Nepal and Himalayan Studies by an authorizedadministrator of DigitalCommons@Macalester College. For moreinformation, please contact scholarpub@macalester.edu.Recommended CitationChilds, Geoff (2005) "A Rejoinder to Mills "Culture Change in the Name of Cultural Preservation"," Himalaya, the Journal of theAssociation for Nepal and Himalayan Studies: Vol. 25: No. 1, Article 23.Available at: http://digitalcommons.macalester.edu/himalaya/vol25/iss1/23BOOKS, REVIEWS, REJOINDERSA Rejoinder to Mills"CULTURE CHANGE IN THE NAME OF CULTURALPRESERVATION"Martin Mills raises some important issues in response to myexploratory essay "Culture Change in the Name of CulturalPreservation" (Childs 2004a). I will take this opportunity torespond and clarify my own stances on certain points.My first hypothesis of the essay was, "The recent prolif-eration of exile monasteries, supported in part by foreignpatrons, has increased the demand for monks. The rapidfertility decline among Tibetan exiles has stimulated the in-tensilication of recruitment elTorts in Nepal's Buddhist high-lands, resulting in an unprecedented level of out-migration ofyoung males." As pointed out by Wim van Spengen (2004) Istand guilty of epistemological laxity by virt ue of the fact thatthis is more of an inductively derived supposition than a hy-pothesis formulated with the intent of being tested throughthe rigorous collection of data. Be that as it may, in the essayI argued that such recruitment efforts are resulting in theformation of new relationships bet ween Tibetan monast ic in-stitutions and villages in the highlands of Nepal. In responseMills observes that "clerical infusions" are far from unprec-edented in the Himalayan region. He argues, "What we arewitnessing now is therefore less a radical break with a sell ledreligious past than one more wave in the continuous ebb andOow of Tibetan monasticism's shifting power bases."Although I agree with Mill's premise, I would argue thatthe current and unprecedented demographic context entailsthat today's "wave" has the potential to make previous onesappear like mere ripples. The above hypothesis derives froman understanding of the demographic transition that is nowoccurring in South Asia, in particular with respect to thepopulations of indigenous and exile Tibetans. A demographictransition represents a sOC1etal-levelchange from initial con-ditions of high fertilit y and mortality to completed conditionsof low fertility and mortality. In pre-transitional societies thehigh levels of fertility and mortality more or less cancel eachother so that population growth is minimal. In a transitionalsociety mortality typically begins to decline more rapidlythan fertility so that a widening gap develops between deathrates and birth rates. This intermediate phase of demograph-ic transition is therefore characterized by rapid populationgrowth. Fertility eventually begins to decline more quicklythereby diminishing the gap between birth and death ratesand decreasing the rate of population growth Once bothrates stabilize at low levels the demographic transit ion iscomplete. Like pre-tranSitional societ ies, post-transitionalones are typified by little or no natural increase or in somecases population decline.Nepal is currently in the middle phase of a demographictransition (Retherford and Thapa 1998). Since the 1970sNepal has cxpnienced rapid plllHtlat ion growt h, perhapsmore rapid than at any time in history (we lack the empiricalevidence to confirm or reject this assumption, but it is a logi-cal conclusion based on our understanding of demographictransitions). Similar to demographic processes in other coun-tries, Nepal's transition is not uniform but varies accordingto place of residence, educational levels, and a host of othervariables. For example, by 200 I there were Significant ICrti1-ity difl"erentials between urban and rural dwellers (21 ver-sus 4.4 births per woman), between "IIil\" and "Mountain"ecological zones (4.0 versus 4.H births per woman), and be-tween highly educated and uneducated women (2.1 versus4.8 births per woman) (Ministry of Health et. al. 2002). Inevery demographic transition there are sub-populat ions whoare forerunners with respect to fertility declines. Ilistoryhas shown us that these include urban dwellers, wealthierclasses, and even certain ethnic groups. [n the case of Ne-pal's demographic tran~ition forerunners include the urbandwelling and relatively alfluent Tibetan exiles, whereas thosewho lag behind include inhabitants of the ethnically Tibetanborderlands of Nepal. Why docs the denlllgraph ic transit ionmake today's context of cult ure change more than Just an-other instance of the "ebb and Ilow of Tibetan mllnasticism'sshifting power bases")I speculate that the answer is rooted In a convergence ofdemographic and socio-economic factors. Rapid populationgrowth engendered by the middle phase of a demographiCtransition enlarged the number of potential recruits from thehighlands of Nepal at precisely the same time that increasesin foreign patronage led to an expansion of monasticism 111exile, and at precisely the same time that the urban dwellingTibetans (the initial recruiting grounds) were having fewerchildren. As Mills points out, borderland peoples of previouseras have sent community members to large monast ic ins! j( u-llons In llbet, so in this respect the oUl-lmgration of males todistant monastic centers ISnot a new phenomenon. IIowever,these days the opportumlles for young males to Join mon-asteries are less constrained by residence and concomitantSOClo-economlC mandates than they were in the past. Bearll1 mll1d Ihat lt1 pre-1950s Tibel many monks were obliga-IOrlly supplied by families who were subJects of monaster-Ies. Although inSllt Ullons lt1Tibet such as Dakar Taso (Bragdkar rta so) drew disciples fmm Nubri and other Himalayancommumtles, Ihe number of recruits was few and the costsll1curred by parents signtlical1l (Childs 2004b). Today, thefact Ihat monks are subsidized by patmns in the West (aswell as Taiwan, Smgapore, Malaysia, and elsewhere) makesIt easier for them to JOlt1and the fact that Nepal's highlandcommunities are In the middle phase of a demographiC tran-Sllion means that there are more of them who can enlist.Therefore, what IS unique about contemporary times is thescale at which thiS prucess is occurrlt1g. The out-migrationof Nubri's young males to reltgious institutllll1s is significantboth lt1 terms of sheer numbers and in terms of percentagesamong the younger cohorts. Nearly one third of young maleslt1some villages now reside lt1c!tstal1l monasteries. Allhoughother Ilunalayan commumties have experienced a substan-tial OUlflux of males, tor example Sherpa laborers to Darjeel-ll1g (Ortner 1(89), the phenomenon is new to NubriThe tact that we are now in uncharted demographiC watersdoes not address the core of Mills' crillque. I arguedlhat thelarge-scale removal of young males fmm rural Villages andthe InfUSion of a monaslic l)rlenlatilln into places like Nubriwill result in a transformation of religious practices and so-Cial st ruct ures. Mills responds by contendlt1g that membersof the monasllC sector are not necessarily at odds with theworship of local deities. Rather, they are more concernedWllh the "purtlicatilln of the morality of local m ual practices"(emphaSIS in lhe ollgll1al). I agree, and in fact made a sunilarPOint lt1 an earlier paper (Childs 1(97) by comparing threeexamples whereby lamas from Tibel initlated animal sacri-fice pruhlbillons m various Himalayan cnmmunilles. In eachcase the iniliator was affiliated wllh a monastic instilutionIn Tibet and had come to the hinterlands In pan to escapepollllcallt1stabililY lt1 their homeland. These examples of ex-ternally instigated culture change took place in the 1690s,the 1730s, and the 1960s, so we can be absolutely certainlhat the concern of today's monastic leaders for cleaning uppracllces such as blood sacrillce (mar mchod) is not a newphenomenonFurthermore, Mills is light on the mark when arguing lhatthe baseline for an analYSISof culture change in the llimala-yan region needs 10 be expanded beyond the recenl past, thetune after which religious connections were severed bet weenllbet and the ethnically Tibetan cnmmunities of Nepal. Byfocuslt1g exclusively on post-1960s Himalayan societies werisk makmg the untenable presumpnon that a place like Nu-1m dUring the 1990s (the time when 1did my fieldwork there)can somehow be equated with "traditional culture". I haveemphasized elsewhere (Childs 2004b) that a locale as seem-ingly remote as Nubri has never existed in a political, eco-nomic, or cultural vacuum, but has always been mfluencedby regional events. Nubri communilles do not, nor have theyever, existed as static cultural isolates. Nevertheless, thereare some important points of conllnuity to consider, onesthat may be transformed by the incursion of monasticism.Religious life in the Nyingmapa communilies of Nubri hasbeen dominated for centuries by householder lamas (sngagspa), but as mentioned in the essay a celibate monastery-onethat was funded in part by Western donations-has recentlybeen built in Nubri. Whether or not the recently constructedmonastery in Nubri remains umque or IS replicated remainsuncertain. If the model proves successful, scores of monksfrom Nubri are currently studying in exile monasteries. Theycould be easily be sent back to staff any new mstitution intheir homeland. Therefore, the demographic potential clearlyexists for this parllcular wave in the ebb and flow of monaSll-cism in the hinterlands to gmw exponentially. The questionremains, will such a process affect the long-standing relation-ships between ngagpas and surrounding communities?In my opmion Mills is correct that conflicts between themonaSllC and local traditions are not inevitable: the waxingof the former does not inexorably result in the wanmg of thelatter. Moreover, Mills points out that monks have limitedauthomy when It comes to altering local religious practices,and that "the ritual relations that villagers have with localnumina and ritual practitioners are more often adopted orrejected through a calculation of ritual power and obligation,rather than a voluntaristic view of what is or is not 'properlyBuddhist'." According to this point of view the insertion ofmonastiCism in Nubri does not predestine the demise of cer-tain rituals or the occupations of their practitioners. However,interactions bel ween villagers and religious practitioners arebound to change due to shifting sOClo-economic relationships.I hereby speculate that the insertion of monastic centers intothe social fabric of Nubri communities will erode the influ-ence that ngagpas have held for centuries over the local laity.For one, it may reduce their economic clout: a monastery'sgain in disciples can result in a ngagpa's loss of the corvee eulag) that he gains through the initiation of his own disciples.Furthermore, an in-situ monastery can diminish the ritualaUlhority of ngagpas if there are overlaps in respective ritualfunctions (e.g., funeral rites). This may become especially ev-ident when economic factors enter the mix. Accordmg to lo-cals the recently constructed monastery in Nubri has alreadyacquired considerable land holdll1gs. The villagers who nowwork the monastery's fields are essentially share-croppers. Inaddition to providing corvee for the right to farm the landthey split their yields with the institution and thereby are insome ways analogous to monastic "tax payers" (khral pa) ofpre-1950s Tibet. The inauguration of monasticism m Nubnmay therefore represent the reemergence of a template for asocial hierarchy and institutional funding that no longer ex-ists in Tibet. More to the point, the monastery's control overa farmer's productive assets undeniably gives that institulillna degree of economic influence far greater than that garneredby a ngagpa through his right to a few days of corvee eachyear. Such control will no doubt enter into the "calculation ofritual power and obligation" that Mill's alludes to, and can tipa decision in favor of patronizing monastery's services overthose of over other local practitioners.The issues raised in my essay and in Mill's response canonly be resolved over the course of time and with concertedresearch efforts. For that reason I wrote the essay in an ex-ploratory frame of mind with the intent of stimulating debate.I would therefore like to thank Martin Mills for respondingto my article with his thoughtful, well-reasoned comments.Hopefully this brief dialogue will stimulate further debatesand encourage others to think more creatively about the im-pacts that transnational relationships and demographic pro-cesses have at the local level.Ge(1f ChildsDept. of AnthropologyWashington University in St. Louisgchilds@wusll.eduChilds, Geoff. 1997 Ilousehoider Lamas and the Persistence ofTradition: Animal Sacrifice in llimalayan Buddhist Communit icsIn Tibetan Studies, ed. Helmut Krasser, 14l-155. Wien: Verlag dcr(lsterreichischen Akademie der WissenschaftenChilds, Genff. 2004a. Culture Change III the Name of CulturalPreservation. Ilimalaya 24( 1-2):) 1-42. Spni.il Issuc--lilwtanPeoples and Landscapes.Childs, (;eoI1 2004b. Tibftall Diary: hOlIl Hi/III 10 lleall, alldBeyolld in a Himalayan Community of Nepal Berkeley: Uni\TrSIl yof California Press.Ministry of Health [NepalI. New ERA, and ORC Macro. 2t)()2.NepallknlOgmphic and Health Survey 2001. Cal\Trton, Md: FamilyHealth Division. Ministry of llealth; New ERA: and ()RC Macro.Ortner, Sherry. 1989. High llcligion. Princeton: Princeton Univnsit)'Press.Retherford, Robert D. and Shyam Thapa. 1998. Fertility Trends inNepal, 1977-1995. Contributions to Nepalese Studies 2'i(SpecialIssue: Fertility Transition in Nepal): 9-58.Van Spengen, Wim. 2lll14. Ways of Knowing T,hflan Peoples aIIIILandscapes. Himalaya 24(1-2):95-111Illustrated Atlasof the HimalayaDAVID ZURICK ~ ltrJ,~UN PAC:HECOILLUSTRATED ATlASOF THE HIMAlAYADavid Zurick and Julsun Pacheco"The authors have done a superb job of assembling a solid mixof data, maps, visuals, and analysis to shed light on the uniquefeatures and complex issues found in this mountainous region.As a result of their effort, Illustrated Atlas of the Himalaya is awelcome addition and indispensable reading, filling a significantvoid in the literature on this topic."-Sarah J. Halvorson'Will be greatly welcomed by South Asian scholars, administrators, and lay people for its robust cartographicand photographic portrayal of contemporary spatial phenomena and its lucid informed commentary. TheSouth Asian mountain rimland from Afghanistan to Assam has long been neglected as a uniform regionwith qualities shared in contiguous countries. Zurick and Pacheco's Atlas fills a void that has existed fordecades."-Nigel J.R. 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A Rejoinder to Mills Culture Change in the Name of Cultural Preservation

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