The Role of Faith and the Nechung Oracle in Tibetan Culture :: Religion

The Role of Faith and the Nechung Oracle in Tibetan nicetyIn the United States, we pride ourselves on our objectiveness, our ability not to come out caught up in religious fervor. We often think that people who imagine deeply in their religion and involve it in all aspects of their lives ar fanaticsthat they are somehow beneath us, less deserving of our respect. We are taught near from birth that the scientific method is the only way to look at the world. We learn the steps of the scientific method (observation, hypothesis, test, and theory) in elementary school. This philosophy then colors how we think of everything after that. Faith is seen as an unenviable quality and has no place in our culture. Nothing is real unless it trick be proven. In Tibet, on the other hand, the Tibetan people beat a profound respect for their religion. Buddhism permeates every aspect of their lives. As Harrer says in Seven Years in Tibet, The daily life of Tibetans is ordered by religious belief . Pious texts are constantly on their lips prayer wheels deviate without ceasing prayer flags wave on the roofs of houses and the summits of mountain passes the rain, the win, all the phenomena of nature, the l nonpareilly peaks of the snowy mountains bear witness to the universal presence of the gods whose anger is manifested by the hailstorm, and whose unselfishness is displayed by the fruitfulness and fertility of the land. (Harrer, 1953 p 187)Religion had a routine in everything from politics to when they were allowed to change clothing for the season.One twenty-four hour period the pass season was officially declared to have begun, and summer clothes magnate be worn. One had no right to leave off ones furs when one wanted to. Every year, after considerations of the omens, a day was fixed on which the nobles and monks put on summer dresssummertime dress must be worn from that date only. (Harrer, 1953 p182)Because relig ion is much(prenominal) an integral part of their lives, Buddhism unites the Tibetan people. I propose that the State