Sources for the History of Bhutan [Englisch] [Gebundene Ausgabe]

The following review refers to a previous edition: Arbeitskreis für Tibetische und Buddhistische Studien, Universitat Wien, 1986. Tibetan text is given in Wylie-transcription on the even-numbered pages.

I. "The Lamp which Illuminates the Origins of Royal Families" (rGyal-rigs 'byung-khrungs gsal-ba'i sgron-me, pp. 12-85) compiled by Ngag-dbang (Wa-gindra) of the Byar clan in 1728. "The work is uniquely important for its treatment of the ancient ruling class and families of central and eastern Bhutan, particularly those clans which claimed descent from Prince gTsang-ma [a brother of the Tibetan emperor/king Ral-pa-can's],...those families known as the gDung which still survive in the Bum-thang region today [whose ancestor is said to have been one lHa-dbang Grags-pa from the Yar-lung valley in 10th century Tibet]" (p. 5). A third genealogy is traced back to three vajra brothers (rdo-rje spun) of lHa-lung dPal-gyi rDo-rje, himself being known for murdering the apostate sovereign Glang-dar-ma in 842, namely sTobs-ldan La-ba, mGar-ba Khye'u and g.Yang-rtsal sPre'u.

II. "The Clear Mirror (containing) the Story of How the 'Brug-pa Order...by Its Divine Lineage Came and Spread in the Eastern Province of the Sun within the 'Southern Mon of Four Approaches'" ('Brug-par...lha'i gdung-brgyud-kyis bstan-pa'i ring-lugs/ Lho-Mon Kha-Bzhi-las nyi-ma shar phyogs-su byung-zhing rgyas-pa'i lo-rgyus gsal-ba'i me-long, pp. 88-120). "While the rGyal-rigs [Text I] is a glorification of the ancient order in eastern Bhutan, this work is an enthusiastic narrative account of its destruction by a military campaign organized for the new 'Brug-pa ['Thunder-Dragon', pronounced 'drukpa'] government in the 1650's by Krong-sar dPon-slob [Tongsa governor] Mi-'gyur brTan-pa. How the two works could have issued from the same pen remains something of an enigma...[Text II, Lo-rgyus: 'History'] is of great value, based as it is on a number of eye-witness reports and written in a most refreshing style..." (p. 6). Among other things and key historical figures at the time, it also relates the massive Tibeto-Mongol onslaught in 1657 (the third of its kind under the 5th Dalai lama), of which only the eastern column was able to achieve temporary success due, in part, to "the support of the Mon-pa people of Kameng [today Arunachal Pradesh in NE India] who were already Dge-lugs-pa subjects...[W]arfare was still largely a seasonal business, and in the hot Bhutanese summer the invaders generally seem to have returned to the Tibetan plateau. This left the undefeated Bhutanese with a strong bargaining position in any subsequent peace negotiations" (M. Aris, 1979: p. 247; see the title of this source at the end of the review).

III. "The Legal Decree...(entitled) the Discourse Victorious in All Directions" (...bKa'-khrims phyogs thams-cad-la rnam-par rgyal-ba'i gtam, pp. 122-68) composed by bsTan-'dzin Chos-rgyal for and on behalf of the 10th 'Brug sDe-srid (Deb Rájá or 'secular ruler/regent'), Mi-pham dBang-po. This piece elaborates on the duties and jurisdiction of government officials (for instance, the maintenance of forts and weaponry, levying various taxes in consultation with village headmen, etc.), as well as on the abuse of power to be refrained from when deliberating in legal cases, conscripting for corvée, demanding lodging and transport, and the likes.

"Detailed accounts must (be rendered) to the ruler (in compliance with) proclamations that are issued annually regarding (the revenue to be derived in terms of) grain, goods and wealth; (these accounts are to be drawn up) in respect of each district under the administration of a rdzong, whether great or small, on the basis of the appointment and dismissal of old and new servants, the specific measure of grain obtained from the 'patrons' and the entertainment allowances (reckoned) in accordance with the number of servants" (p. 149).

Folio 110a: rdzong-kha che phra so-sor lto-gzan gsar rnying 'jug bton-gyi-skor dang chos-gzhis-nas 'bru 'di thon dang/ sbyin-bdag-nas khral dang dbang-yon 'di yong lto-gzan grangs-dang bstun-pa'i mgron-'thud-kyi steng(-)nas/ lo-star-gyi 'bru dang zong nor bka'-rgya re bcug-pa'i gsal-cha gong-sar dgos-rgyu/ (my hyphenation)

IV. Translated excerpt (courtesy of Thomas Earle, Oxford) from the Portuguese Jesuit Estevao Cacella's "Report" (fols. 6-15, pp. 170-86), dated 4th October 1627, who - in the company of fellow brethren Joao Cabral - stayed for eight months in fledgling Bhutan prior to entering Tibet. He shares his general impressions, relates his encounter with Ngag-dbang rNam-rgyal (1594-?1651), founder of the theocratic state (1616-1907), and divulges his misguided views on Vajrayána Buddhism.

Glossary (pp. 187-99), bibliography (pp. 200-203)

Although each text is followed by explanatory endnotes, to put these historical documents in their proper context the inquisitive reader is hereby encouraged to consult the relevant chapters in the translator's seminal study, "Bhutan. The Early History of a Himalayan Kingdom," Warminster: Aris & Phillips Ltd., 1979.