A debate has been raging recently (over the last year or so) in the T blogosphere* about the recently re-visited Dge bcu 'Ten Virtues.' It's an interesting debate with origins that may lie in the theoretical or dogmatic realms, but that has real world consequences and deserves attention from Western China watchers (meaning both Westerners who watch China, and watchers of Western China)It is also a situation whose gravity deserves something more serious than my usual sarcastic levity. Firstly, the ten virtues as originally formulated:
The Ten Virtues Until recently, the term Dge ba bcu, referred to the Ten virtues of traditional Buddhist philosophy, which are themselves each the opposite of a separate list of ten non-virtues. The ten virtues are: 1) Not to take a life 2)Not to take what is not given 3)Avoid sexual misconduct 4)Not to deceive 5)Avoid slander of others 6)Avoid harsh words 7)Avoid empty speech 8)Avoid greedy thoughts 9)Do not be malicious 10)Avoid the wrong view These 10 are then divided into three groups: based on body (1-3), speech (4-7), and mind (8-10). One might tentatively suggest that these are akin to a Buddhist version of the ten commandments. Of course, it would be foolish to assume that people actually followed each of these to the letter in the daily lives, especially given all that is known about life on the plateau (I feel fairly confident that just about every one of these ten is broken on a regular basis). But, to borrow a turn of phrase from Pirates of the Caribbean, "they're more like guidelines than rules." The New Ten Virtues In response to new conditions of life on the Tbtn plateau, a bla ma based out of Gser rta (Ch: seda 色达) monastery in a county of the same name modernized the original ten to fit with modern-day life. Among these, the 1, 2, and 4 parallel the first three of the original ten. The others, however, go further afield. Let's take a look at the new (and possibly improved) ten virtues: 1) do not butcher and sell meat 2) do not steal and rob 3) do not fight with weapons 4) do not prostitute one’s body 5) do not sell guns and opium 6) do not smoke opium or cigarettes 7) do not drink alcohol 8) do not gamble 9) do not hunt, and 10) do not wear skins and the fur of animals. It's not that there's anything wrong with these ten. Some Tbtn bloggers/public intellectuals do take issue with these, but perhaps the focus is more a result of a tension caused by a tradition of rhetorical excess in written and spoken Tbtn debates, and fundamentalism among a number of lower-level clerics who take the terms of these debates quite literally. Zealots sometimes take these new ten virtues so literally, that they refuse to perform rites for people who have done something as (relatively) trivial as selling meat to be butchered. The Debate In Tbt's current moral, socio-cultural climate, these ten new virtues have, for a number of the more zealous religious figures been taken literally. The debate, which has been raging for the last year, centers on the notion of whether or not some of these are actually good for people on the plateau, and centers primarily on the first of these: the blogger 'Jam dbyangs skyid, writing under the sobriquet of Min drug, is perhaps most outspoken in directing her opprobrium against the new ten virtues.** Few public intellectuals would disagree with 2-6 or 8-10. Drinking remains widespread, but the intellectual circle seems willing to recognize that excessive drinking is detrimental to the development of the Tbtn ethnic group. Nonetheless, it seems that people have difficult accepting the notion that herders should not butcher or sell animals for their meat. The high plateau's pastoralist populations make their living off of animals. It seems a bit rich to ask them not to sell the meat but live entirely off of by-products. Public intellectual outrage primarily seems to be directed at how this one issue is interpreted, with people being ostracized, and denied ritual services due to their sale of animals for livestock. Min drug in particular has been very outspoken on this topic, and found much criticism directed her way as a result. Time will only tell where this debate will lead, but it's an interesting keep your eyes on. If I find the time, i'll report more about this still-unfolding debate. I'm still learning about it myself, but I thought it would be good to put this out there while I have a spare moment. Now it's back to the "real" work. If you have any questions or thoughts about this, you can feel free to leave a comment to this post, or contact me directly. *I'm blogging about blogs. It's so "meta-" **If you wish to find an English translation of Min drug's most recent post on the topic, check out this link
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About TimAs you can see elsewhere on this webpage, I conduct research on ethnic minorities in western China. This blog offers semi-academic musings on the minutiae of daily life out here--the sort of information otherwise destined for footnotes. Categories |