Hello Friends,
Now that we have all managed to confront this world wide Corona Virus pandemic ? It is to the credit of each of the National Governments tackling this hidden unknown flu with sufficient measures and skills.
In India the early lockdown has helped to contain the rapid transmission of this virus at a very efficient scale. Our region Ladakh too after becoming an Union Territory (U.T) was one of the first region in the country to take measures to contain this world wide virus by early lockdown !
However, as the region got open from both Baralacha and Zogila passess of the State and U.T of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir respectively. There has been a spurt in increase of covid cases?
Asking my father Sh. Tashi Rabgias, a reknown Buddhist scholar and historian aged 94 years about the Buddhist perspective with regrad to ‘Covid-19 Pandemic’ he said it could be due to human impact on the ‘Mamos’ (Maitriyas), the female invisible deities whose heads are ‘Jetsun Dolma’ (peace emitting foremost female Bodhisattva and wrathful women Bodhisattva diety like ‘Paldan Lhamo’ ( Maha Kali) and their retinues.
These ‘Mamos’ maintain the weather, environment and climate of a region were they exists. Presently, indiscriminate human actions in the world and loss of human moral, corruption in terms of mind and materials and many other abuses of humans such as greed and values are causing such situations?
On asking if there were any solution to this ? he said, ‘Lhamo’s Thooskang’ which the monks in the Tibetan Mahayana Buddhist tradition knows and have been performing over the years to appease these invisible beings which act as an antidote ! This completely bowl led me over !
I am sure many traditions in our society would have already done this ritual by now?
Today, there are about 406 covid active cases registered in Kargil district of Ladakh (U.T) and 66 cases in Leh district i.e 472 approximately in all of Ladakh U.T, highest ever ? The reason being arrival of families, students, labours, tourists (almost negligible) as the region opens for a very dismal new season?
Many Ladakhi families have invested in housing facilities in Jammu region and others have bought flats in places such as Chandigarh, Delhi, Noida and Gurgoan where they spend their winter 6 months.
As Ladakh’s severest cold season has gone by the locals are heading for home. Not only home in Leh but this year many have joined their guardians i.e grand-parents at their villages which never happened for a past decade or so and many had started living in Leh town due to economic and education needs of their children. So this was a real home coming and they contributed their labour in family managed micro agriculture and horticulture work !