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

came quickly, holding a broken brick in his right h<strong>and</strong>.
"Kondro, who beat you? By the Three Jewels, I will beat them
to death," he said. Meanwhile, Tashi Dondrub <strong>and</strong> his two
friends had run like mice who see a cat approaching once
Brother appeared.
Brother told me to report it to my class's head teacher
<strong>and</strong> I did. The teacher was not partial to the others, said I was
doing well, said I should not fight in the following days to take
revenge, <strong>and</strong> also convinced Brother not to take revenge. That
afternoon, Teacher beat Tashi Dondrub <strong>and</strong> his friends terribly
<strong>and</strong> did not allow them to join the afternoon classes. They stood
in front of the teachers' quarters the whole afternoon. Though
they deserved it, I felt sorry for them, because I once thought
they were my friends.
During class time that afternoon, some of Tashi
Dondrub's other friends called me 'Coward Boy'. They thought I
had lost <strong>and</strong> lacked the courage to take revenge <strong>and</strong> instead, had
told the teacher to punish the boys. I did not try to explain. They
were happy calling me this name. Only our head teacher,
Brother, Dorji, <strong>and</strong> I knew the reason for my not taking
revenge. It was not a matter of being brave or a coward. I liked
this nickname, for it reminded me of the progress I had made in
arithmetic <strong>and</strong> helped me obtain a real friend. Ultimately, I got
higher scores than those students on my final examination that
year <strong>and</strong> in the following years.
I told Mother about my beating that day <strong>and</strong> she said
kindly, "Good boy! Fighting isn't the only way to show courage.
Patience <strong>and</strong> endurance are courage," <strong>and</strong> then she hugged <strong>and</strong>
kissed me warmly. She continued, "Don't do anything bad in
your present life, or you will suffer the same in your next life.
There is a big thangka in our local monastery temple illustrating
what happens in your next life if you gawk at people - your eyes
will be gouged out - <strong>and</strong> if you curse other people, your tongue
will be cut out. There is nothing wrong with being a good boy."
I learned how to be a morally upright person from
Mother, who became the one I thought I could not live without.
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