Description
Book SynopsisIn an era of environmental crisis, narratives of ‘hidden lands’ are resonant. Understood as sanctuaries in times of calamity, Himalayan hidden lands or sbas yul have shaped the lives of many peoples of the region. Sbas yul are described by visionary lamas called ‘treasure finders’ who located hidden lands and wrote guidebooks to them. Scholarly understandings of sbas yul as places for spiritual cultivation and refuge from war have been complicated recently. Research now explores such themes as the political and economic role of ‘treasure finders’, the impact of sbas yul on indigenous populations, and the use of sbas yul for environmental protection and tourism. This book showcases recent scholarship on sbas yul from historical and contemporary perspectives.
Table of ContentsPreface Geoffrey Samuel, Frances Garrett and Elizabeth McDougal Note on the Locations of the sbas yul Maps Part 1: Introducing the sbas yul Photo Essay: The Terrestrial Buddha Realm of sbas yul Padma bkod: A Visual Pilgrimage Ian Baker 1 Hidden Lands of Tibet in Myth and History Geoffrey Samuel Part 2: The sbas yul over Time: Historical Perspectives 2 Healing Mountains and Hidden Lands Frances Garrett 3 Did sbas yul Play a Part in the Development of Tibetan Book Culture? Hildegard Diemberger 4 Early Echoes of sbas yul Padma bkod in the Lifestory of Thang stong rgyal po Annie Heckman 5 Padma bkod through the Lens of Two Pilgrimage Guidebooks: Walking the Body of Rdo rje phag mo Barbara Hazelton 6 “A Great and Small Padma bkod”: Guidebooks and Individual Journeys Franz-Karl Ehrhard 7 Prophecy and Fantastical Reality in Sle lung Bzhad pa’i rdo rje’s Journey to Padma bkod Tom Greensmith 8 The Shapeshifting Goddess: The Consecration of Padma bkod’s Yang Sang Chu Region by the 20th-Century gter ston, Bdud ’joms drag sngags gling pa Elizabeth McDougal Part 3: The sbas yul in the Modern World: Ethnographic Perspectives 9 The Arising of Padma bkod in the Western World Samuel Thévoz 10 Voices from the Mountainside: Vernacular sbas yul in the Western Himalaya Callum Pearce 11 Pachakshiri: A Little-Known Hidden Land between Tsa ri and Padma bkod in the Eastern Himalaya Kerstin Grothmann 12 How Is This Sacred Place Arrayed? Pacification, Increase, Magnetism, and Wrath in the Establishment of an Eastern Himalayan sbas yul Amelia Hall Photo Essay: Glimpses of a Hidden Land: The sbas yul of Yol mo Jon Kwan with Khenpo Nyima Dondrup Part 4: Two Guidebooks to the Hidden Land of Padma Bkod ’Ja’ tshon snying po’s Guidebook to the Hidden Land of Padma bkod Translated by Barbara Hazelton Bdud ’joms gling pa’s Hidden Sacred Land of Padma bkod Translated by Barbara Hazelton Index
