Min tibetanska barndom i Zorgay - Life and Culture on the Tibetan ...

sticks touched, he should draw a mark on what the sticks
touched. Another man held a large hammer <strong>and</strong> a sword to
frighten the ghosts. It was difficult for them because they had
to do a lot of running.
The lama chanted inside the house with an angry
expression. He told them to run everywhere the ghosts were
hiding. Once again, without anyone telling the lama, he told
them which family's house to run to. For example, he said
what kind of dog that family had, the number <strong>and</strong> color of their
livestock, <strong>and</strong> so on. He was always right. Other villagers
stayed in the house <strong>and</strong> whistled as loudly as their skill
allowed, luring the ghosts into that house, creating a ghost
hall.
The ghosts were captured in the big leather bag.
When the runners returned to the lama, they opened the bag
for the lama to inspect, but we were blind to whatever he saw.
Inside the bag were pieces of wood with black lines drawn on
them. The lama chanted over those pieces every time the men
ran out <strong>and</strong> came back. They ran back <strong>and</strong> forth like this for
quite some time.
Many women shouted frantically, pulled their hair,
became hysterical, <strong>and</strong> were so strong that young villagers
could not hold them down. When they were pulled to the lama,
he hit their back once with his fist, <strong>and</strong> then they calmed down.
How incredible he was! At last, the lama said, "Well done! All
the devils have been captured." Only then could he <strong>and</strong> the
runners rest. Then we all returned to our homes, which were
disordered from people running around inside.
The lama said he could bury the captured ghosts in a
hole, but that this was not ideal, because after many years
passed, we would hear the ghosts moan. Therefore, he
burned the pieces of wood from inside the bag. Afterward, no
one saw a ghost. There was not even a single rumor about a
ghost. We were grateful to the lama for helping us. We
students then went to <strong>and</strong> from school without fear.
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