1hEpybB

The Two Conquests of Zhang zhung and the Many Lig-Kings of Bon 29
somehow, could have influenced an account included in ZZNG traditions,
which, emically viewed, belong to culturally and geographically
rather diametrically opposed areas. But then, one probably should
never underestimate religious creativity and the need and appetite for
alternative and deviating narratives among the subaltern.
3. Or is it the erudite Yongs ’dzin Rin po che and his environment who
are sovereignly right after all, and were there in fact two consecutive
conquests, and were the later kings of Zhang zhung all styled Lig myi
rhya, King of Men (which would be another point, in fact) We know
from other sources that the Zhang zhung area may have remained restive
long after its submission(s) 26 and when additionally weighing the
(un)likelihood of the aforementioned points, this scenario is certainly
not unthinkable. With Yongs ’dzin Rin po che it also carries considerable
weight of authority. But in view of the great similarities of the
PT1287 and ZZNG Ma nub narratives on the demise of Zhang zhung
and the rather reactive, late-looking and also remarkably thick and selfconscious
polemical outlook of the Bon narrative, I cannot help but
find this option rather unlikely. As we shall see, the structure of the
Bon narrative moreover forcefully argues against a sufficiently early
date.
4. And one should of course not forget the default option: there is no relation
between the two at all. This may in fact turn out to be the most
likely state of affairs.
Several questions need to be answered first:
1. Where does the Ma nub come from
2. Which sources informed this text
3. Approximately how old is it
4. When and under which circumstances was it included in the ZZNG
collection (the reason why should be abundantly clear, but its sources
are not)
5. Is this historical narrative of specifically ‘Bon’ and/or ZZNG origin, or
is it perhaps (based on) some unrelated historical tradition, similar to,
for example, the Dunhuang chronicles or annals genres
Presently, my educated guess (read: working hypothesis) is that the main
story-line of royal family intrigue, betrayal, and the demise of Zhang zhung
in the Ma nub derives from the Dunhuang narrative paradigm, or another
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26
A revolt in Zhang zhung was repressed in 677 AD; see transliteration IOL750:19, n.
17 above; see also Tucci (1956:105f.). Cf. Beckwith (1987:43).