Ladakhi
Ladakhi Women Help their Communities
The Ama Tsogspa, the Ladakhi term for groups of local women, have been tackling such community problems as the ever-increasing trash in some towns and helping to solve them. A news story in the Indian publication Business Standard last week translated “Ama Tsogspa” as “Mothers’ Alliances.” The report on the Ama Tsogspa opened with the […]
The Future of Ladakh
The Dalai Lama recently said in a speech, “Here in Ladakh, I am happy to see that Buddhists and Muslims have good relations and live together in peace.” He added, “This is something very precious about Ladakh that you must preserve. It’s a treasure that others in India and the world at large may admire.” […]
Young Ladakhis Try to Modernize [journal article review]
Ladakhi adolescents are often left in limbo between desires for modernity and tensions about their traditional moral values. Many desire sexual freedom but they are also torn by loyalty to their society and their culture. A journal article by Jennifer Aengst explores the tensions handled by young Ladakhis as they seek to modernize in a […]
A University for Ladakh
Sonam Wangchuk, a visionary Ladakhi engineer, won a prestigious international prize for his ice stupa design in mid-November and announced two weeks later that the money would help fund a new university. His intention is that Ladakhis, at the first university to be built in their section of India, should themselves develop innovative solutions to […]
The Dogs of Ladakh Are Not Necessarily Peaceful
A report in an Indian daily newspaper last week paid tribute to the storied peacefulness of Ladakh—and proceeded to castigate the local dogs for destroying it. The journalist, Ayesha Singh, wrote in the New Indian Express that “one of the most peaceful lands in the world” is marred by the barking of dogs and, worse, […]
Will Violence in Kashmir Threaten the Peace in Ladakh?
“Over the past few weeks, six people have died, with hundreds injured, during the worst sectarian rioting in the Indian state of Jammu and Kashmir in decades.” That news report opening sentence, written eight years ago about strife in Kashmir, could be repeated today except that the numbers of casualties are higher this time. And […]
Naropa Festival 2016 at Hemis
Every 12 years, the most important pilgrimage of the entire Himalayan region is held at the Hemis Monastery in Ladakh to celebrate the life of the 11th century Buddhist sage Naropa. The Naropa Festival, which will take place during the entire month of July this year, brings tourists from around the world to the monastery […]
Is Modernization Beneficial for Ladakhis? [journal article review]
Helena Norberg-Hodge, who has criticized modernization in Ladakh for many years, has termed the changes taking place there as a “development hoax.” Author of the influential book Ancient Futures, Norberg-Hodge argues that, although traditionally Ladakh has had a healthy social and cultural environment lacking in crime and poverty, the Ladakhi people are turning their backs […]
Ladakhi Opposition to Interfaith Marriages [journal article review]
When Sara Smith did her fieldwork in Ladakh, she frequently encountered interfaith couples who were being pressured to break up their marriages and return to their respective Buddhist or Muslim communities. However, the region was not always divided so rigidly between the different faiths. In a recent journal article, Smith provides background for the religious […]
Boycott in Ladakh
Three years ago, in September 2012, two dozen Ladakhi Buddhists decided to convert to Islam, and the social relations in the area, which had been harmonious for centuries, took a severe nosedive.
