One A Day Is Enough For Me

After a half day of school, I rushed to the college to meet Scott for Sherubtse’s rimdro. I got there just in time for lunch. In the morning, I had heard from the primary school’s field the sounds of horns and drums and cymbals – typical sounds of a puja in session.

In the past couple of years, the college has experienced some misfortunes – deaths, a stabbing. When Je Khempo was in Kanglung a couple weeks ago, he had advised the college that they should perform a rimdro at the school, the kind of rimdro that’s very grand, both in size and expense. This particular rimdro would rid the school of all it’s bad spirits and demons, to properly cleanse the school, the staff, and the student body. Days before the actual ceremony, college students visited staff members and students and solicitated donations for the rimdro. Apparently 60,000 ngultrums was needed, the equivalent of roughly USD$1,350. Some of this goes to the monks for the rimdro preparations. I imagine some goes towards food and refreshments for rimdro participants and the monks, and some goes towards buying offerings. And there are likely a number of other rimdro expenses that I don’t know about.

After eating lunch, Scott and I met up with another lecturer, Sonam Tashi, and we all went into the college’s multi-purpose hall where the rimdro was taking place. The very large space was elaborately decorated with a stage and set up for many visitors.

There were rugs and mats laid out around the circumference of the room. Most of the lecturers and staff sat in one area together and the college students filled in the rest of the space. I saw and admired intricately woven rachus on the females. The males used their white kabneys to cover their legs and the open space in between that’s created by sitting Indian-style.

Unfortunately, Scott didn’t have a kadney, so the open space between his legs was uncomfortably exposed. In fact, sitting Indian-style for Scott is excrutiating. Scott is a fabulous athlete, but he has almost zero flexibility.

I ended up only staying for a short bit, seeing a small portion of the rituals involved with such a puja. The monks had made a male figure and a female figure. Students, staff members, and visitors of the puja were supposed to offer things to the figures – old ghos, kiras, rachus, other pieces of clothing, or else money. Supposedly, offering these figures takes the place of the actual people attending the rimdro. I’m not entirely sure what that means.

Notice the piles of clothing and bags besides the figures.

The table of offerings.


At some point, Sonam and Scott needed to stretch their legs outside, and that’s when I left. There was still hours of the puja to go. The thing that I’ve come to realize about pujas is they’re really spiritual for people who believe in them. For people who don’t believe or – more to fact – don’t understand (i.e. me), pujas can be somewhat boring, mainly because you can end up sitting in the same position for hours. I know that sounds pretty insensitive and culturally disrespectful, but it’s how I feel. Don’t get me wrong, I still feel awe, but awe only lasts for so long at any given time. What compounds the boredom is the fact that the not understanding or the not believing makes me feel inadequate, makes me feel small. To be in a room full of those who have so much faith and devotion, for hours on end, and to not feel an inkling of it.

I left the college and went to lower market to do a little shopping. I ended up running into my principal who was buying a boxful of offerings for another puja. This one was taking place at the public temple. There was a brief announcement at school about attending this puja, but I had assumed that he was talking about the college one. When he asked if I was going, I told him no. One puja in a day was enough for me.