Chapter - 08 Bon Po Religion - Jain Library

Shri Ashtapad Maha Tirth - II
In ancient times the Tibetans believed that by intervening in nature and altering the original
harmony man could disturb the energies or 'deities' tied to various environments and that the
ensuing disharmony could provoke a decline in his health and prosperity. The Bon Po's were
special ists in identifying the causes of the disturbances, through divination, astrology etc.
and in prescribing suitable remedies which in most cases consisted in rites, according to this
tradition the main means of restoring cosmic and individual harmony. Understanding in our
own time the value and significance of these rites means opening a door onto the immense
panorama of the primordial experiences and knowledge of man because, as the great scholar
Mircea Eliade suggested at the conclusion of his study of Australian religions “The ultimate
goal of the historian of religions is not to point out that there exist a certain number of types
or patterns of religious behaviour, with their specific symbologies and theologies, but rather
to understand their meanings.”
In our era we have witnessed the disappearance of values and tradi tions based on civilizations
thousands of years old, and nowadays man seems to have forgotten that part of himself which
formed the essential nucleus of the myths and rites of ancient peoples. For this reason the
danger of extinction of a culture tied to ancient traditions, as the Tibetan tradition is, means
the loss of a knowledge that belongs to all of human ity, as it is part of that original wisdom
or global vision that we find in various forms in all the religious cultures of the world.
In my translation of the original Tibetan and in my edition and annotation I have enjoyed
the generous collaboration of the author, who was my Professor of Tibetan at the Istituto
Universitario Orientale in the University of Naples, where he currently holds the chair in Tibetan
and Mongolian Studies. With unsparing patience he went over the whole translation and helped
me resolve several doubts and difficulties, particu larly in the interpretation of passages from
ancient ritual texts which frequently contained terms and expressions that have disappeared
from modern Tibetan and are not to be found in the Tibetan dictionaries currently available.
Heartfelt thanks are also due to Lobpon (slob dpori) Tenzin Namdak (bsTan 'dzin rnam dag), a leading
exponent of Bon from Menri (sMan ri) Monastery in central Tibet, who during his stay in Italy
in August 1989 clarified aspects and characteristics of the ancient ritual traditions for me.
Finally I wish to thank Geshe (dge bshes) Tenzin Wangyal (bsTan 'dzin dbang rgyal), a young Bon Po
scholar currently living in the west, who helped me resolve certain doubts in the translation.
Adriano Clemente.
May 1991
Drung, Deu and Bon
388