I read an article about this last week, and it has been brought to my attention on multiple occasions since then. This is big, and has a lot to do with my project.
Recently, Indian police found an equivalent of around $1 million in the Karmapa Lama's monastery. Much of this money was in Chinese currency which has caused a lot of suspicious from Indian officials and media. Many are accusing the Karmapa Lama of being a Chinese spy. He claims that the money has come in donations from all over the world including Buddhists in China. It is still an ongoing event as police try to acquire more evidence. There is more I could summarize, but I'd better just give a link: http://www.minnpost.com/worldcsm/2011/02/15/25813/tibets_karmapa_lama_fueling_china_and_india_border_tensions (and if anyone is interested in seeing more links, I have more.)
Unless things are very quickly and neatly cleaned up, this event will most likely have a large significance for my project when we get to Mcleod Ganj in May. Even if the conflict is "resolved", the event has already caused many Indians to worry about their Tibetan neighbors and suspect them of having secret ties to China. However it turns out, relations between the two communities may take a while to mend simply because of the doubts that have been raised. It may also turn out to be a doorway to further conflicts and suspicions between Tibetans and Indians.
I plan on keeping a close eye on this as well as working it into my project and my story.
Update:
I just read another article, looking at the Hamachel Pradesh's chief minister's point of view on the event. He says that it is under investigation by the central government and that his state government has nothing to comment or add. If the central government finds no fault, than he has no reason to look further. From what I read, he seems to counter the media, or at least try to calm people down about the issue.
He reminds the people: "Karmapa's name in any way is not involved in a any land related cases. Neither there are any cases against some particular monastery person. Under the general policy of Himachal Pradesh, if there has been any illegal land dealing then it would be investigated. If there would be any case against Tibetans or any other person, then law would treat every one equally and would proceed accordingly."
Tuesday, February 15, 2011
Friday, February 11, 2011
Method's Assignment #2
I never got my first method's assignment done, so for my second one I chose to do an interview. But not just any interview!
The interviews that I conduct in the field will be filmed, so I filmed my interview today. I have been learning and practicing a lot with filmed interviews lately in my work and my documentary class. In my work, I am filming a series of interviews about people who have had to be caregivers to someone in their family. In these interviews however, I am simply filming while someone else gives the questions. This makes my job a little easier because I can focus more on the camera angles and sound. This seems to be a preferred way of doing it, but I realize that in the field, unless I can find somebody who can work the camera or conduct the interviews for me, I will most likely be doing both jobs simultaneously. This can be difficult because it's hard to work the camera and be sincerely attentive to the interviewee at the same time. This is something we've discussed in my documentary class that I think comes from the idea that "I'm recording this so I can pay more attention to it when I watch it later."
So today for the interview, I first prepared a set of questions, then, after setting up, I made sure to sit just a little to the side of the camera where I could still adjust it if I needed to, but I wouldn't be so close that it would distract me too much from the interview.
For the interview itself, I interviewed Scot, who works in the Y-serve office. My project is going to be about the ways and reasons Tibetans and Indians serve each other, so I interviewed Scott about why he does service, how he got involved, how his faith and beliefs influence the service he gives, and what are some of the blessings that have come from serving others. It was a very good interview and I feel like I did a good job at communicating with him and making him feel comfortable. One thing I wish I would have done was actually to adjust the camera at least once or twice in between questions to get a slightly different shot.
The nice thing about filming is that I don't have to take notes during the interview. I can review the tape later and do that.
And now it's time for class!
The interviews that I conduct in the field will be filmed, so I filmed my interview today. I have been learning and practicing a lot with filmed interviews lately in my work and my documentary class. In my work, I am filming a series of interviews about people who have had to be caregivers to someone in their family. In these interviews however, I am simply filming while someone else gives the questions. This makes my job a little easier because I can focus more on the camera angles and sound. This seems to be a preferred way of doing it, but I realize that in the field, unless I can find somebody who can work the camera or conduct the interviews for me, I will most likely be doing both jobs simultaneously. This can be difficult because it's hard to work the camera and be sincerely attentive to the interviewee at the same time. This is something we've discussed in my documentary class that I think comes from the idea that "I'm recording this so I can pay more attention to it when I watch it later."
So today for the interview, I first prepared a set of questions, then, after setting up, I made sure to sit just a little to the side of the camera where I could still adjust it if I needed to, but I wouldn't be so close that it would distract me too much from the interview.
For the interview itself, I interviewed Scot, who works in the Y-serve office. My project is going to be about the ways and reasons Tibetans and Indians serve each other, so I interviewed Scott about why he does service, how he got involved, how his faith and beliefs influence the service he gives, and what are some of the blessings that have come from serving others. It was a very good interview and I feel like I did a good job at communicating with him and making him feel comfortable. One thing I wish I would have done was actually to adjust the camera at least once or twice in between questions to get a slightly different shot.
The nice thing about filming is that I don't have to take notes during the interview. I can review the tape later and do that.
And now it's time for class!
Wednesday, February 9, 2011
India's Caste System
India's caste system is a rather complicated organization of its people. There are two different castes or organizations that are used: Varna and Jatis. Varna is a simpler, but less recognized system which consists of four main groups based on occupation: Teachers/priests, warriors/administrators, agriculturists/merchants, and artisans/service providers. Jatis on the other hand has many more groups which people fit under and considers more than just occupation. These groups consider things like wealth, where you live, if you are Hindu or not, if you have committed any crimes, or if you are sick.
One of the groups I found most interesting was the Untouchable group. Called "children of God" by Gandhi, but called "depressed" by themselves. These are the people who are seen as thieves, diseased, or have converted from Hinduism to another religion. I read somewhere that it was now illegal to have this as a caste, or for people who would fall into this caste to be treated as they used to be, but there is still a lot of discrimination against these people. They are looked down on and given the more degrading jobs.
One way that the Indian government is trying to improve the caste system (or give greater opportunity to people in lower castes) is through positive discrimination. This means that they are given benefits because of their lack of wealth. For example, schools are required to accept a certain percentage of students from each caste so that they do not allow only the more wealthy students to enter. This is helping the lower castes to improve, get better jobs, and gain more wealth for themselves.
I imagine that the caste system functions slightly different depending on where you are in India and it will be interesting to see it in action in Dharamsala as well as any other places we may go on our mid-semester retreat. Because in the past, people have been penalized or looked down upon for changing religions from Hindu to some other, I wonder if there is any prejudice of Hindus living in Dharamsala towards the Buddhist Tibetans. Of course, Tibetans did not change from Hindu to Buddhist, but I imagine that there still may exist some conflict or social differences because of their different religions. If there is a prejudice, this could greatly effect my project; not necessarily for bad or good, but it would play a large role in how Indians see and treat Tibetans.
1. Srinivas, M. N. "Caste in Modern India". The Journal of Asian Studies, Aug., 1957, Vol. 16(4), p.529 - 548.
2. "Caste System in Modern India". Web. Feb 8, 2011. <http://adaniel.tripod.com/modernindia.htm>
3. Wikipedia: Caste. Web. Feb 9, 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caste#India>.
One of the groups I found most interesting was the Untouchable group. Called "children of God" by Gandhi, but called "depressed" by themselves. These are the people who are seen as thieves, diseased, or have converted from Hinduism to another religion. I read somewhere that it was now illegal to have this as a caste, or for people who would fall into this caste to be treated as they used to be, but there is still a lot of discrimination against these people. They are looked down on and given the more degrading jobs.
One way that the Indian government is trying to improve the caste system (or give greater opportunity to people in lower castes) is through positive discrimination. This means that they are given benefits because of their lack of wealth. For example, schools are required to accept a certain percentage of students from each caste so that they do not allow only the more wealthy students to enter. This is helping the lower castes to improve, get better jobs, and gain more wealth for themselves.
I imagine that the caste system functions slightly different depending on where you are in India and it will be interesting to see it in action in Dharamsala as well as any other places we may go on our mid-semester retreat. Because in the past, people have been penalized or looked down upon for changing religions from Hindu to some other, I wonder if there is any prejudice of Hindus living in Dharamsala towards the Buddhist Tibetans. Of course, Tibetans did not change from Hindu to Buddhist, but I imagine that there still may exist some conflict or social differences because of their different religions. If there is a prejudice, this could greatly effect my project; not necessarily for bad or good, but it would play a large role in how Indians see and treat Tibetans.
1. Srinivas, M. N. "Caste in Modern India". The Journal of Asian Studies, Aug., 1957, Vol. 16(4), p.529 - 548.
2. "Caste System in Modern India". Web. Feb 8, 2011. <http://adaniel.tripod.com/modernindia.htm>
3. Wikipedia: Caste. Web. Feb 9, 2011. <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caste#India>.
Monday, February 7, 2011
Getting into Service
Because of busy-ness, I often feel like I don't have time to go out and do "service". I try to serve Julia as best I can at home, but this semester I have made it a goal to actually get out and do more service. This goal doubles as a way for me to prepare for my project because my project is all about service. I'm looking at how Tibetans and Indians have served one another and how their religious and/or personal beliefs may influence these actions. My church promotes service and I believe that doing service for others is a good thing, but if I don't do it myself, it seems hypocritical of me to make a film about a service oriented people. I hope that if I do service here in Provo before I go to India, I will be more inclined to give service while in India, and more likely to find and identify with Tibetans and Indians who are devoted to service.
I work for BYU's Y-serve program, so I know about plenty of service opportunities. The only problem is that when I go to any service activities, I am usually filming and getting paid for it. This weekend, however, I had the chance to go to a program called "BYU Experience" where mentally disabled adults come and hang out with BYU students on campus and participate in a variety of activities. I told myself going into it, that I would try not just to work, but to participate and even take a break from the camera to interact with the people. We had already acquired a decent amount of footage from this event in the past, so I didn't even pull out the camera for the first half of the activity. It was good to just help out and see people through my own eyes instead of through a camera lens. I hope that throughout the rest of the semester I will be able to continue to do this with my job, as well as look for other opportunities to give service outside of my job.
I work for BYU's Y-serve program, so I know about plenty of service opportunities. The only problem is that when I go to any service activities, I am usually filming and getting paid for it. This weekend, however, I had the chance to go to a program called "BYU Experience" where mentally disabled adults come and hang out with BYU students on campus and participate in a variety of activities. I told myself going into it, that I would try not just to work, but to participate and even take a break from the camera to interact with the people. We had already acquired a decent amount of footage from this event in the past, so I didn't even pull out the camera for the first half of the activity. It was good to just help out and see people through my own eyes instead of through a camera lens. I hope that throughout the rest of the semester I will be able to continue to do this with my job, as well as look for other opportunities to give service outside of my job.
Friday, February 4, 2011
Thesis
In our big group class the other day we were talking about writing 5 paragraph essays and the way they should be structured. As I was taking notes, I wrote down what I thought the thesis of my project would be, and for some reason, it kind of surprised me. To this point we've done a lot of work with asking questions, but I had never tried to state exactly what I thought or hoped the answer or outcome would be.
I wrote this as my thesis in my notes: "A shared belief in charity and compassion has the power to bring two different people/cultures together."
(I will finish this later.)
I wrote this as my thesis in my notes: "A shared belief in charity and compassion has the power to bring two different people/cultures together."
(I will finish this later.)
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