by Introducing a reality such as Lahaul is not an easy task but here is Lama Yangjor narrating one dimension of it with much ease. Lama Yangjor is the head monk of Maning Gompa (Monastery) in Gondhla village of Tinan Valley in Lahaul. We are grateful to him for that early morning walk to Sila gompa and the cave. It was a delightful exchange of many interesting conversations and perspectives spanning from religious and spiritual status of Lahaul to the ongoing socio economic and cultural processes of change unfolding in the valley. He had many critical perspectives on the issue and in fact sees them as closely interlinked. Now when we reflect on our conversations, perhaps the ideas we exchanged were foundational to our interest in the idea of a sacred landscape and understanding this unique interplay of religion and environment in a geography like Lahaul. Maybe it helps us better in contextually situating the changing times.
Continue reading “Here we start”