Role of Tibetan Women in the Preservation and Perpetuation of the Tibetan Culture in Exile
By Lobsang Choezom
Upper TCV
(Following is a translation of the original text in Tibetan.
Attempts have been made to maintain originality and structure of
the language. However, complex sentences with varying ideas have
been broken into simpler sentences for clarity. )
Religion, culture and language are the identity of a race and country. They are an essential component of race. For Tibet in this desperate time, our religion, culture and language are more important than our soul.
Yes, we are children of the land of the snow,
We are the lord of the land of the snow,
Love for the race,
Patriotism toward the country is burning in our heart,
Women, mother of the land of the snow,
We were born in the roof of the world,
We must continue its legacy.
In the words of scholar Gedun Choephel, "It is good to know other languages, but it would be shameful to forget your own language." In exile, Tibetan youngsters are ashamed if they do not know a foreign language, and at the same time ashamed to speak the language of our precious land. It is sad that this trait is prevalent among Tibetan youngsters, particularly young females.
Tibetan women often imitate females from highly developed Western countries and Asian countries like Japan and Taiwan. They wear fashionable modern dresses. As the Tibetan saying goes, 'If a dog mimics a person, then the dog burns its tail'. Like this saying, pointless imitation will not benefit anyone. Rather, if Tibetan women wear traditional dress, then their body will feel more comfortable and it will look better as well. Additionally, this will help preserve our culture.
Most women will eventually become mothers, which means she will become the child's first teacher in life in many respects. It will be very difficult for the child to receive proper guidance if the mother has no interest in Tibetan culture, language and religion. Therefore it is imperative that women pay attention to culture as they can have a great impact on the survival of the culture.
The preservation of Tibetan culture is the purpose of our struggle for freedom. Tibetan women should keep in mind that one day they are going to be the mother of Tibet's future generation. With that in mind, women should practice Tibetan religion, language and good nature in their daily lives. Further, women should study Tibetan language and grammar, the essence of Tibetan culture, and gradually study the rest of Tibetan culture. They can then pass this knowledge onto the next generation.
A Tibetan child's knowledge and understanding of Tibetan culture and language depends on his or her mother. If Tibetan language is spoken to the child, if the child is sent to a Tibetan school, and if the child is taught of the good Tibetan ways, then the child will naturally understand and adopt the Tibetan ways. If all Tibetan mothers could teach their child the Tibetan way, then the future generation of Tibet will be able to preserve and advance Tibetan culture.
In short, one can say that Tibetan culture is born from Tibetan women. As long as Tibetan women assume this duty in a responsible manner, by taking interest in Tibetan religion and culture, then each woman can raise the future Tibetan generation in a proper way. Each woman will be able to impart the knowledge of Tibetan culture and encourage development. Women, in essence, are the root source of a race and its survival depends on women.