The book explores a unique collection of manuscripts of the Tibetan Bon religion. The loose-leaf and sewn books, cards and individual sheets of paper belong to the Drangsong family, the chaplains of the royal house of Mustang, once an autonomous Tibetan kingdom and now a district of Nepal. Most are ritual texts for propitiating war gods, acquiring prosperity, exorcising demons, and various kinds of destructive and preventative magic. Many of the texts are rare and some altogether unknown. Besides the textual content and social history, the book deals with the material sphere in which these manuscripts were produced, used and preserved.
Tibetan Manuscripts and Rituals of the Royal Bon Priests of Mustang, Nepal: A Codicological and Historical Study; Agnieszka Helman-Wazny, Charles Ramble, Naljor Tsering, and Nils Martin; Brill; Hardcover; $89.00
Agnieszka Helman-Wazny (Ph.D. 2007) is Professor of Book Studies at the University of Warsaw and University of Hamburg. Her publications include monographs and articles on the history of the regional production and usage of paper and books in Tibet and Central Asia.
Charles Ramble (D.Phil. 1985) is directeur d'etudes at the EPHE, PSL University, Paris, and a member of the East Asian Civilizations Research Centre. His publications include several volumes on the history and culture of Mustang, Nepal.
Naljor Tsering is a doctoral candidate at the EPHE, PSL University, Paris, and a member of the East Asian Civilizations Research Centre. The subject of his Ph.D. thesis is the Walchu (dbal chu) ritual of the Bon religion.
Nils Martin (Ph.D. 2022) is a postdoctoral researcher in the ERC-funded project van Manen at Leiden University. His publications include a dozen articles on the Buddhist art and historical inscriptions of Ladakh, India.
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