District Development Committee, Mustang. In the land of the Loba On the treacherous high-altitude trail to Lo Manthang, the walled city that is the capital of Upper Mustang province in Nepal and whose denizens are true custodians of a. The politico-institutional changes in the Upper Mustang have been remarkable in the last seven decades. The Luba are savanna and forest dwellers who practice hunting, food gathering, and agriculture (cassava, corn [maize]), keep small livestock, and live in villages of a single street, with rectangular thatched-roof huts along either side. Other than the game they hunt, they consume maize or millet flourdumplings, rice or buckwheat. volume7, Articlenumber:4 (2023) Kings role has been positive in opening tourism in Upper Mustang since 1992 and the family has also been involved in the tourism sector. As we were nearing Chumrung, our group of three began to experience the first rumblings of a mutiny. 2021. The turn system is widely followed in different spheres of Loba life. and depicts the colorful life of the Loba people from different perspectives. Little, if any, history of Christianity. Darnal, Prakash. 7, 4 (2023). Recently, new issues have emerged in irrigation management from the people who have migrated to Kathmandu and Pokhara and could not cultivate their lands. The former King of Mustang, Jigme Dorje Palba Bista, died in 2016 in Kathmandu, and his son runs a hotel in Lo. of the Loba people, the dates of the annual festivals vary from place to place, As animists, Lhoba people believe that everything has an immortal spirit called Wuyong. Such isolation held out the possibility that Upper Mustang might be home to some unsullied original Tibetan culture. In the present day, Lobas have introduced monogamy and the family planning system to control the population, which has challenged the traditional lifestyle on the one hand, and on the other, the population of Lamas and Aanis is decreasing sharply at Gombas. PeopleGroups.org - Loba These forces contributed to bringing notable changes in livelihoods and food security, household management, community monastery management, dress pattern and food behavior of Loba community (Pandey 2017). They have historical contributions to promote the Nepali economy and sovereignty of the country. Motu and Milin. The color identifies them as the Lamas. If monks lived in these caves and meditated, how did they access them? Dhongbas work for the King during crop cultivation and harvesting time. Ask God to send Christian tourists and hikers to Nepal who will share the love of Jesus with the Loba. Many farmers have stopped farming activities in Lo-manthang, as a consequence, widespread abandonment of the cultivated land is observed. Kagbeni is also where your permit to trek to Mustang is checked. International Journal of Anthropology and Ethnology 5 (1): 1. https://doi.org/10.1186/s41257-020-00039-w. Knrzer, Karl-Heinz. In the polyandrous family, male members follow the reme gyapkin system to maintain a harmonious relationship among the brothers in the household. Rules of society are based on the values of respect and honor. Lo is home to three beautiful gompas with exquisite murals, Choede, Jhampa and Thubchen, all in various states of disrepair. Since Upper Mustang happened to be in the Annapurna Conservation Area, we had decided to combine it with the Annapurna Base Camp (ABC) trek. Social-ecological vulnerability to climate change in the Nepali Himalaya. At that time, the workers received good food while at work and also received normal wages of NRs. The Lobas live in Upper Mustang, which is remotely located, highly dynamic, full of environmental diversity, and consists of specific niches to the people (Khattri 2021). Besides, we also had, in a moment of recklessness, included in our itinerary Upper Mustang, one of the two Tibetan provinces in Nepal, which stretched our trek to an insane 24 days: insane because none of us were habitual trekkers even if we were reasonably fit. where he settled for a period of time. Both men and women of the Loba nationality like The Phalwas are the most dominant and economically powerful and place themselves in the middle of the social position. Their number varies, such as there are one ghenba, two midhis, and six chhimes, which is more or less similar to the formal governance council at the local unit. The cliffs were spectacular, far more stunning than any we had seen. The paper is based on anthropological fieldwork. A new ghenba takes responsibility for one agriculture cycle, which begins from the performance of sakaluka ritual and works until the next sakaluka. Tashi Gephel Foundation. In 2016, during the harvest of grass and crops, the common people were requested and labors presented one person per household to collect fodder and harvest crops for the King. They are the political authority as well. Loba culture # [ Loba Pakistan weaving] Lhoba weaving and Luoba bamboo, Luoba knife dance with the Tibet Autonomous Region intangible cultural heritage projects. The first category is ghiughar chhumbe/mhigyaba, who are engaged in worldly/materialistic life (politically and economically) and the second category is ranchunchube/dhawa who are engaged in spiritual and religious life. Vinding, Michael, 1979. While that burnt a huge hole in our wallets, after our experience of the previous day we were ready to sell all our possessions, including our homes if it came to that. Marcus, George E. 1995. The annual turn is followed in traditional leadership (ghenba, midhi, and chhime). However, the ghenba system has been able to play a crucial role in mobilizing water users, and is useful in the entire Upper Mustang region to mobilize local people for community development and local, ecosystem-based adaptation. This paper presents Loba identity on their self-categorization, language, homeland, cultural practices, religious or spiritual practices, settlement types, types of social categories, and livelihood pattern, because without such knowledge, the roles of their institutions in adaptation facilitation cannot be understood adequately. Because of Pray that God will open the hearts of the governmental leaders in Nepal as well as the local leaders of Mustang to the Truth. The conceptualization of adaptive measures of Loba indigenous institution. Qualitative data were collected by applying observation and interviews. The author(s) read and approved the final manuscript. Jomsom had found its way onto the aviation map of Nepal primarily to service pilgrims headed to the Muktinath shrine. So here we were going round and round the mountain trails of dust and sand, often losing sight of the Manang range and the Nilgiri, which were our markers. Both the men and women grow their hair long and often wear it braided. The roofs are extremely uniform and smooth; and on each corner, a small square is constructed so that prayer flags may be hung there. Open Access This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License, which permits use, sharing, adaptation, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if changes were made. Until 1992, this area was closed to the outside world. Education and rituals are integral parts of livelihood systems, particularly as the primary function of Buddhist education is to develop an attitude of having belief and values for the individual, nature, and a system of balance, harmony, and co-existence. This legacy is an important form of ancient primitive religious beliefs The non-violence value of Buddhism are transferred to the people via rituals, performances, and direct teaching. Lo-manthang Rural Municipality (LRM), the local government provides grants to the ghenba system to maintain irrigation canals. The purpose of such institutions is wide-ranged across the communities, from economic, social, cultural, religious, political, and educational to environmental. Five households were sinkhor, who were responsible for supplying fuel wood or fuel dung to the palace. They speak the following languages: Luba-Katanga, Luba-Kasai, Luba-Maniema, and Swahili. Kingdom of Luba During the The name Mustang is derived from the Tibetan word meaning, "Plain of Aspiration." Taylor Weidman/LightRocket/Getty Images On a cold evening in 2012, anthropologist Jiban Mani Poudel sat sharing tea and snacks with mountain herders huddled around a cattle pen in Nepal's Nhson Valley. Harwood Academic. The Buddhist Loba people there still farm with wooden plows and spend hours spinning prayer wheels, chanting mantras, and consulting Buddhist astrologers on every aspect of life. Rapid cultural change: a case study of polyandry Marriage system among the Gurung Community from Upper Mustang, Nepal. The ru is understood as bone and related to the fathers line; and shya is flesh related to the mothers line. Stealing and lying are considered heavy crimes and stealing is punished heavily, usually expelling from the village. Nevertheless, some households are bound by the customary rules developed in the past and are still sending their second son/daughter to the Gomba. They produce single seasonal crops of few varieties (wheat, naked barley, mustard, potatoes, buckwheat, vegetables). Lo Kingdom continued the practice of cultural systems of resource use and population control. Lo Manthang is a walled city tucked away in the folds of high mountain ranges far and away from intrusive crowds and even Nepals administrative reach. Building monasteries and Gomba are the founding traditions in Lo-manthang; where three main Gombas, which are about five centuries old, are located. The Kali Gandaki widens considerably just before Tsaile, and we crossed a tiny metal bridge at the foot of a massive canyon with a line of caves up on a 155-foot-high (47 m) cliff. The main function of such indigenous institutions is to formulate plans and supervise public works, programs, and regularly organize communal worship in an appropriate way. Village municipality developmental works are mostly done by these in-migrant workers since the members of the Loba community are not much interested in such labor works. Dhongba also manages the royal herds. 2068. Oddly shaped blood vessels on this freshly harvested liver are bad omens. The monarch also protects the livelihood of the Loba community by maintaining peace and harmony among the Loba people through formal rules and regulations. They build their homes out of stone, making the roofs out of thinly chiseled stone squares. Nevertheless, the process has created a cultural problem in maintaining Gomba since the number of Lama is reduced, which is implicated in the availability of lama for rituals despite their rituals demand many Lamas at a time. Traditionally, the means of transportation used to be the draught power, particularly the mules and horses to carry goods and oxen for farm-plough. Culture is a very deep topic but the simplest way to define it is that culture is a group of people's values, norms, assumptions and behaviors. Lhoba women wears skirts made from sheep's wool and narrow-sleeved blouses. Blanks mean an unknown value. j. anthropol. The issue of identity is complex, multifaceted, and overlapped. Joshua Project occasionally adjusts profile text from third party sources. 2547). This was to be the easiest part of the Mustang trek. In this way, the local institutions are supporting Loba communities to adapt to the changes, although the level of success in adaptation in a traditional way is limited, so the institutions, not only the community, demonstrated their dynamism to adapt to the change. The local customary laws are obliged to send a second child to the Gomba, but when there is only one child, it is not compulsory and customary law is also eroding with the introduction of formal laws such as fundamental human rights. Indigenous institutions as adaptive measures to environmental dynamics: an ethnographic study of Loba Community of Upper Mustang, Nepal, https://doi.org/10.1186/s41257-023-00084-1, International Journal of Anthropology and Ethnology, https://censusnepal.cbs.gov.np/Home/Details?tpid=2&dcid=27a1b4d1-9a2a-4205-96be-1c540c24f193, https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1548-1409.2011.01092.x, https://doi.org/10.1086/soutjanth.27.1.3629185, https://doi.org/10.1186/s41257-020-00039-w, https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev.an.24.100195.000523, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.apgeog.2015.09.008, https://soscbaha.org/ebook/conference-proceedings-2016/, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-010-0174-9, https://doi.org/10.1080/17565529.2014.951018, http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. But we had no time to linger; we were breathless at 13,000 feet (3,900 metres), where the oxygen level is depleted. On May 23, 2011, the "Legend of the The local socio-economic, political, and environmental conditions have changed in the Upper Mustang in the last seven decades while the Lobas have been coping and adapting to all of these changes, whether well or hard. The above-mentioned institutions have significantly played a role in the changing context, which is summarized in Fig. Such changes have severely impacted agriculture, livestock, and the mobility pattern of Loba people for livelihoods. Women are the ground . Otherwise, that household must pay NPR 40,000 as a fine. Their primary language is Loke. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-010-0174-9. and his descendants were Bogars. Zhuji Lane, located in Zhuji Village, Zhuji Town, Nanxiong City, Guangdong Province, covers an area of about 3 square kilometers. 1990. The construction project contractors of the village municipality for developmental works supply the laborers from those districts where poverty and unemployment are high. The Loba people informally still recognized the former prince as the King. project. We are thankful to Assistant Professor Dr. Rajanikant Pandey for his all endeavors for the invitation and cordial hospitality support during the seminar. Neither Dinesh, our guide, nor Suman had remembered to educate us on the impossibility of getting flights from Pokhara to Jomsom at short notice. Figure1 presents the major local institutions and interconnectedness that collectively sustain the livelihood of the Loba people. The vehicle spluttered and stalled on the boulder- and rock-strewn mountainsides, roared through waterfalls and hobbled on riverbeds. 2056 B.S. Annual Lhoba Ethnic Custom Festival of Nanyigou Township is the best way to experience Lhoba culture. In Lo-manthang, a drought-prone region, cultivation without irrigation is impossible. Luochuan Yigu, a traditional dance in Luochuan County, Shaanxi Province, is one of the national intangible cultural heritage.. Tie-dyeing, known as Zha Val, Ge Val, Jia Val and Dye Val in ancient times, is a traditional and unique dyeing process of Chinese folk. It spans 27 50 '- 29 16' n and 103 36 '- 105 20' E. The cit. Already, the Loba are taking measures to safeguard valuable aspects of their cultural heritage in an age of globalization. We soon realised it was a huge risk to change travel plans mid trek, especially in these parts where villages are far away from each other. Dhongba households do have certain community obligations such as maintaining Gomba (monastery) (support rituals with food, labor, materials, and fuels), organizing community festivals like Yartung, Tenchi Chiram (Tiji) rituals, and supporting the royal palace as required. Only a tiny 19-seater aircraft flies from Pokhara to Jomsom daily, and even this shuts down when the weather in Jomsom turns moody and misty, which is often. 2023 BioMed Central Ltd unless otherwise stated. Historical studies documented that the Lo Kingdom was incorporated into modern Nepal in 1789, maintaining a distinct cultural identity. For Loba ru-shya, marriage relation is perfectly desired, similar to many Himalayan indigenous ethnic communities (Godlstein 1971; Levine 1981; Vinding 1979), including Magar, Gurung, Thakali. The changes are limited to the rise of temperature and the forms and seasons of precipitation (Pandey 2016). On that day, Bang and his two sons lived in the Nayu Valley (now in the language belongs to the Zang-Burmese language family of the Sino-Tibetan Inside Nepal's Forbidden Kingdom - ABC News The Jigme Foundation also supported local people through food items, such as rice, salt, and other materials, during the COVID-19 pandemic and associated lockdown, with the support of the local representatives of the foundations, who are from the Kings close relatives. This is one of the odd traditions that is existing in the world.This old culture is followed by the residents of Spain since 1620.This culture was mainly organized to keep the devils away.According to this culture, children are laid on the mattresses in the street and heavy crowd gather to watch.Usually the jumpers wear traditional costumes to (ABC News: Zoe Osborne) "In earlier times, there were nearly 125 monks here," says Sakya monk, Jabyang Sonam. The remains of irrigation canals indicate that irrigation canals broke many times because of floods, and it is very difficult to repair them due to the highly dynamic nature of the slope. They develop rules with a collective decision for transhumance practice. 1965. According to a key informant, compared to other households, makhiu and sinkhor received good-quality land from the King for agricultural purposes. In Climate cultures: Anthropological perspectives on climate change, ed. By using this website, you agree to our In Lo-manthang, in particular, and in Upper Mustang in general, households are classified into three types; 1) Dhongba, 2) Ghyanchen and 3) Samasume. Cultural kingship is still functional in every aspect of cultural life in the Loba community. Obligation to labor support to the King also ended, since most of the cultivated land belonging to the King has been abandoned, and only about a tenth of the total farmland under the former Kings entitlement is cultivated. They live in grasslands and forests where they are mainly hunters . Others also focused on various components of institutions to facilitate adaptation to climate and environmental dynamics: on natural resource management highlighting socio-economic, political, and religious governance, mainly in the forest, pasture (Chhetri 1999; Gurung 1996; Frer-Haimendorf 1975) and irrigation (Chhetri 2008; Uprety 2005); Nepali (1965) studied guthi, a local institution, of Newari people in Kathmandu, Nepal, which has multiple functions in the community. the high mountain barrier, the Loba people have little contact with the outside The ghenba plays an active role in agricultural activities, irrigation management system, and the protection of crops and pastures. Samasume is another type of household that is established independently. These tasks used to be performed in the form of reme ghapkin, the turn system, particularly while working for the Gomba and the palace (Table 2). Lhoba people Lhoba religion practices include shamanism, spiritual healing, fortune-telling and wizardry. Although the Loba follow the Sakyapa sect of Tibetan Buddhism; they are also influenced by the Bon religion as they practiced Bon in the past (Dhungel 2002). Lobas have started using the threshing machine for crop harvest and tractors and trucks to deliver fuel, food, and bring local products to the market. The role of local institutions in adaptation to climate change. Owing to their long hunting language family. This turn system is unique to the Lobas and can be considered a primary democratic mechanism, which is instrumental to governing the people of Upper Mustang, particularly in Lo-manthang. The Loba are very religious people. It operates at different levels, from individuals to households, clusters, and in broader areas such as region. The adaptive value of local institutions has been widely discussed in anthropological studies since the time of Julian Steward (1972), Marvin Harris during the 1960s and 1970s, Kottak (1980), Rappaport (1999), and Crate and Nuttall (2009). All Lhoba tribes celebrate The New Year after heavy harvesting and many also like to hold wedding ceremonies during the new year celebrations. However, recent social-environmental dynamics such as climate change, migration, and modernization are reducing the relevancies of traditional norms and practices. On our way back, we visit it and the shrine of Muktinath. The people of Upper Mustang have also perceived the changes, particularly the warming, changes in the forms and seasons of precipitation and changes in wind characteristics such as duration, intensity, and wind -temperature (Pandey 2019). Figure3 presents how the traditional local institutions have adapted to dynamic context and maintain the relationship between the people and the local environment. https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01294636. We moved on, to Tsaile across the river where we would have our lunch and halt for the night. The Loba people often invite folk singers to perform in their We had decided to leave Muktinath for the return journey. Nayudongla along the valley southward, and arrived at the place of Delen Bang. There are 30 totems and gods in the religion like the mountain, the tree, dog, pig, leopard, bear, pig, moon, sun and ox. Used with permission from Adopt-A-People Clearinghouse. If we had followed Sumans original plan, there would have been no respite from boulders, rocks and slopes for the next eight days. Associate Professor of Anthropology at the Central Department of Anthropology, Tribhuvan University, Kirtipur, Nepal, Associate Professor of Geography and Environment at Pokhara University, Pokhara, Nepal, You can also search for this author in 1975. Privacy The first author who wrote this paper also presented at the international seminar held at the Central University, Jharkhand, Ranchi, India. Although feudalism is more or less extinct in most of Nepal, it is alive and well in Mustang. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment, Tamil Nadu cabinet to keep Finance Minister PTR amidst controversy, How Maruti Suzuki tried to turn men into machines at Manesar, 1947: Madras Devadasis (Prevention of Dedication) Act passed, At least 4 civilians killed in Ukrainian shelling on Russian village: governor, Galwan hero's wife becomes Army officer; posted to eastern Ladakh, RBI asks borrowers with total exposure of 5 crore and above to obtain LEI, IPL Points Table 2023 updated after CSK vs PBKS: Chennai Super Kings stays fourth, Punjab Kings displaces RCB at fifth, Online video games vs online real money games: Not one and the same. Legends claim that a fierce soldier named Ame Pal founded the Kingdom of Mustang some time between 1350 and 1380. https://doi.org/10.3126/dsaj.v6i0.8480. All living things in the world are subject to wuyong and it brings bad fortune to offend a wuyong. These changes have made Upper Mustang even drier since the snow in the spring melts faster, increases runoff, and reduces water storage in the form of snow, therefore decreasing the availability of water but increasing landslides and flooding. In these caves, relics from a Bon past were found alongside Buddhist artefacts. The University does not have a policy of granting formal ethical approval for low-risk research ideas such as this. However, this trade ended totally after the 1950s. Dhongba was a real-life saver of the household in the past, which, with the course of modernization, their burden has been notably reduced and responsibility has been changed as many Loba households sustain on their own. The popular way of cooking is putting the game in fire and covering by ashes to prepare for eating. They are supposed to contribute compulsory labor to maintain the irrigation system. We are thankful to Mr. Kanchan Mani Dixit for editing the language of this paper. Before the founding of the People's Republic of China, the Loba Fifty-three households were the makhiu, i.e., the Kings soldiers. What are examples of culture? - My Clever Mind 2001. Both men Photos: Vanishing Cultures Project Captures Threatened Tibetan The temperature is rising at 0.048 degrees Celsius per year, and the annual rainfall is decreasing by three millimeters (mm) per year (Khattri 2021; Khattri & Pandey 2021). Populations are scaled to the current year. primitive religion of animism. However, this tradition has seemingly ended recently, as the King and Queen live in Kathmandu because of their fragile health condition. Mustang was close to the Tibetan salt mine of Naithapaila and Lo-Kingdom had a customary monopoly on the salt trade. In the land of the Loba Gongbu Festival, organs, enterprises and institutions in Linzhi District have Autonomous Region was listed in the third batch of national intangible cultural Thus, Lamas are always supportive of the overall ecosystem, and warding the socio-cultural and psychological well-being of Loba people whenever they are in pain, panic, and trouble. There are no competing interests in this manuscript. They prayed for the blessings of ghosts and gods, often killed Poudel, 135154. The Loba is also those mysterious, breath-taking aspects of nature: 'you are the hills'. Customary systems of natural resources management among Tarami Magars of western Nepal. The artists are Newars, or Mongoloids, different ethnically from, though partly intermingled with, the peoples of India, whose art they made their ownwhether its themes were Hindu or Buddhist. Dhongba households are ancestral property holders, which is transferred from generation to generation, mainly to the eldest son. The formal Kingship ended by the Nepali state in 2008. Because of the support of the Lo King, it became possible for the Nepal Government that the Khampa rebellion was disarmed in 1974. Despite the changes in the natural environment, geo-political relations, politics in Nepal, infrastructural development, and technological advancement that have taken place within the last seven decades in the region, the King, ghenba, dhongba, Lama have been playing a crucial role in maintaining a balanced relationship between people, surrounding environment and livestock, which ultimately supports peace, prosperity, and harmony among the people by regulating, managing, and protecting agriculture, pasture, and the monuments in Lo-manthang. countryside. However, existing literature grossly ignored the value of indigenous institutions as the adaptation mechanism to socio-cultural, techno-economic, politico-institutional, and geo-environmental dynamics. In the past, such labor contributions by people to the Kings farm used to be obligatory and free. The Loba community sustained their livelihoods through the adoption of agriculture and livestock system, as well as the salt, and grain trade. The Luba supplemented their agriculture by hunting and fishing in the surrounding area. The single growing season a year in the region where the minimal size of farmland is available causes inadequate local food production that has challenged food and livelihood security in the region (Pandey 2017). Lhoba religion also has various natural gods. The Lama plays a major role in reinforcing local rules, while the Ghenba is an agent who mediates the Lo King and people in materializing rules and operationalizing institutional mechanisms. Nayuene is celebrated once or twice a year and there are a number of rules that must be followed in order to observe it. The chhume, light supports achieving shil (good manner, meditation or concentration, and enlightenment). The following are illustrative examples of culture: Norms Assumption Belief Behavior Languages Festivals So we ended up retracing our steps to Pokhara over the next three days.
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