Pride, Prejudice and Intrigue,
Dor
Bahadur Bista
I first came across the author Dor Bahadur Bista while trying to
untangle my understanding of the ethnic groups of Nepal when I first arrived in
the country. If Harka Gurung has the reputation of being the father and first Nepali
national to complete writings on the history, development and the academics of
Nepali life then Dor Bahadur Bista has to be the pioneering father of Indigenous
Anthropological studies in Nepal.Dor Bahadur Bista was born in 1926 in Jaruwarasu, a small village not far from Patan in the Kathmandu Valley. In 1952 he went into the teaching profession. Eventually he was presented with an opportunity he could not resist.
In 1957 Professor Christoph von Fürer-Haimendor from the University of London, (South- Asian Studies) wanted a combined assistant and informant to help him with his studies of the Sherpa people of Solu Khumbu. Dor Bista accompanied Haimendor literally keeping notes on everything he saw during his travels, he watched Haimendor and copied and learnt from his methodology for recording data and anthropological research. By the end of his role as an assistant Dor Bista was committed to the study of anthropology. He was invited to London to help Haimendor with the translation of his Nepali notes made during their Sherpa research. This ultimately led to Dor Bistna going onto study anthropology at the universities of London, Wisconsin and Columbia intermittently during the next three decades.
In the preface to the first edition to his book
published in 1967, ‘People of Nepal’ Dor Bista acknowledged that Nepal was a
Himalayan Kingdom of great diversity, ethnic and cultural charm and
geographical beauty. With its previously closed borders it was a tantalizing
destination for travelers, scholars and mountaineers; explorers from many
different genre. Up until 1950 not only was Nepal closed to the outside world
but there was no incentive for the Nepali people themselves to travel within
their own country. With difficult terrain
in the hill and mountain regions, deadly malaria in the Terai and a complete
absence of any form of transport or communication system the people within the
different parts of Nepal had little incentive to broaden their knowledge of
either their country of fellow country-men.
Dor Bista gained extensive field experience as an anthropologist and
this exposure together with his visits abroad and work with INGOs in Nepal gave
him the confidence he needed to take up, in 1978, the post of Executive
Director of the new Centre for Nepal and Asian Studies at Tribhuvan University
(TU). He was then established as the Professor and Head of the TU Central
Department of Humanities and Social Sciences 1982 - 1989. It was mostly for his
work at the TU that he proudly gained the title of ‘Father of Nepalese
Anthropology’. During this time Dor Bista began writing his most well known but
controversial book, Fatalism and Development: Nepal’s Struggle for
Modernization (1991).
‘Fatalism and Development’ looked mainly at
the socio-cultural aspects and value system of Nepali society and the effect
they have, even today, on Nepal’s development. Dor Bista accused the Ranas of
fostering policies of nepotism and isolationism which ultimately resulted in
social stagnation, but at the same time the strengthening of their grip on the
control of Nepal and its wealth. He goes on to comment on the fact that the
benefits of economic change since 1950 have, in the main been directed to the
privileged classes. Through ‘Fatalism and Development’ Dor Bista tries to
identify key factors of Nepali society that are preventing the development of
Nepal. The fact that certain ethnic groups are regarded as being capable of
only certain skills, for example, as merchants and craftsmen excludes them from
mainstream society, policy making and are endangered as other cultures become
more powerful.
In Nepal the concept of fatalism not only devalues the concept of
productivity it works diagonally opposed to it. Most development and
progression has been as a result of external aid, however, the beneficiaries
have not always been those at the forefront of growth and production. This
should not be viewed as ‘ethnic conflict’ this, by and large, is not an issue
in Nepal. The real issue, Dor Bista goes on to explain, is the inherent
conflict in Nepali society, social tension within the social structure of the
class and caste system. While some groups of a Bahun background are trying to fight the elitism others from a non-Bahun background are said to be
pushing the archaic ideology forward to further strengthen their own class and
caste status.
The most important outcome of all of this is the absolute belief in
fatalism, life is in the hands of the Gods and no one has any control over
one’s own path through life, what will be will be. To this end there is still,
to a larger extent, the development of chakari,
or sycophancy tendencies. Through this practice and across several generations
it has been possible for some families to raise their class or caste status.
There are similarities with the fatalistic and sycophantic attitude towards
foreign aid of today’s situation in Nepal. In this context aid becomes
something that is ‘justly due’ to Nepal and not a resource that is meant to be
considered seriously and used productively. This concept Dor Bista discussed 25
years ago and yet today there is still a lively debate as to the real value of
foreign aid and who the actual beneficiaries are. I suspect that in some
political-social circles this may well be a root cause for the delay in passing
the Constitution, if Nepal becomes too well structured then foreign aid might
be reduced.
Over the following years and up until Dor
Bista’s disappearance in 1995, he ran the Karnali Institute, an NGO that he
founded in Jumla District. Through this organisation Dor Bista and his
anthropologist son, Hikmat, conducted development work supported by various
sources, including international aid agencies and a study program that brought
foreign student volunteers to the Jumla District.
During his time in Jumla it is said that Dor Bista antagonised some
of the local elite through his efforts to empower the poor, by keeping the poor
poor and uneducated means the higher castes will remain in power virtually
unchallenged. Jumla was Dor Bista’s own purkha,
his ancestry; but more importantly his philosophy for being there was to apply
theories of development to help the Khas community improve their social and
economic status. Dor Bista’s efforts to develop self-esteem among the poorest
of the Khas had resulted in strong criticism from the privileged Jumlis. It
appeared to Dor Bista that to try and practice what he preached, annoyed the
political, economic and priestly forces that conspired to prevent empowerment
of the under privileged.
Royalists had been critical of Dor Bista over remarks attributed to
him about the relative ‘purity’ of the Thakuri caste lineage of the (then)
royal family. In a caste society, the bloodline (kinship) purity is a sensitive
issue. Dor Bista had speculated that somewhere, sometime in the past, the
king’s noble heritage may have included an ethnic Magar relationship. This was
not the first time this suggestion had been aired, but it opened up old wounds.
In 1995 while travelling in west Nepal, Dor Bista met with the young
son of a friend and they exchanged a short conversation before Dor Bista boarded
a bus in Nepalganj heading for Dhangarhi.
Dor Bista has never been seen since. Some people suggest fowl play
by the local Jumla people, some by the royalists, other suggest Dor Bista had
simply become tired and disillusioned or depressed and committed suicide, while
others suggested he simply slipped over the border into to Hardwar, the sacred
city in the Uttaranchal State, India and joined a commune.
There were, apparently, many reasons that could account for Dor
Bista’s disappearance; he had upset the Jumla elite and village elders, he
criticised the royal lineage, there was an alleged relationship with a young
student in Jumla and finally Dor Bista’s questioning of the ethical case for
the caste system in Nepal.
To bring the story up to date, Kesang Tseten has made a documentary film
(2015) ‘Castaway Man’ of the last few years of Dor Bista’s life. In the film
Basanta Thapa follows in Dor Bista’s footsteps across western Nepal and into
India meeting local people and trying to establish the reasons and causes for
Dor Bista’s disappearance.Books
1967 People of Nepal - Kathmandu: Department of
Publicity, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, His Majesty’s Government
of Nepal
1971 People of Nepal - (book) (with a new
chapter on Dhangar). Second edition. Kathmandu: Ratna Pustak Bhandar
1972 Sabai Jatko Fulbari - Kathmandu: Sajha Prakashan
1979 Report from Lhasa - Kathmandu: Sajha Prakashan
1988 Past, Present and Future of Nepal. Unpublished
manuscript
1991 Fatalism and Development: Nepal's Struggle for
Modernization. Calcutta: Orient Longman.
1996 People of Nepal (with a new chapter on Khasha) -
Sixth edition Kathmandu: Ratna Pustak Bhandar
2002 Sabai Jatko Fulbari - Kathmandu: Himal Books.
(Introduction By Harka Gurung)
Articles
1957 Ramailo Khumbu ra Kehi Sherpa Lok Git. Dafechari
6(5): 3‐14.
1958 Report of an Educational Fact Finding Excursion
to North East Nepal Educational Quarterly 2(4): 157‐163
1958 Jilla Parichaya‐ Solu Khumbu - Vikash 1(4):
28‐31.4
1960 Himalka Chaunrigoth ra Kehi Gothale Git. Sangam
1(3): 5‐8
1964 A Visit to Dang Deukhuri - In USAID/Nepal:
Community Development Division, Field Trip Report, pp. 1‐64
1965 A Brief Report on the Study of Jiri‐Sikri Area
and the Activities of Jiri Multipurpose Development Project - Unpublished
report, Tribhuvan University [co‐written with Hari Mohan Shrestha]
1966 Tengboje Gumba - Rup Rekha 6(12): 22‐24
1967 Dolpa Yatrako Dayaribata - Rup Rekha 8(4): 10‐14
1968 Des Vikashma Dharmik Biswasko Asar - Rup Rekha
8(9): 50‐56
1969 The Innovators of Upper Kali Gandak - Ramjham
5(3): 35‐42
1969 The Forgotten People of Dang Valley - Vasudha
11(10): 10‐14
1970. Cultural Change and Royal Wedding - Vasudha
13(4): 19‐24
1970 Hindu Kingdom and its Social Aspects - In Nepal:
A Profile. B.P. Shrestha, ed., pp. 53‐63. Kathmandu: Nepal Council of
Applied Economic Research
1970 Nepali Wedding Procedures - In Hamro Samskriti
(special issue). Krishna Prasad Adhikari, ed., pp. 130‐136. Kathmandu:
Department of Culture.
1971 Chepang - The Nepal Digest 1(5): 94‐106.
1971 Administration of Development Programs in the
Himalayan Area - In Aspects of Development Administration - Prachanda Pradhan,
ed., pp. 57‐61.Kathmandu: Centre for Economic and Development
Administration (CEDA), Tribhuvan University
1971. Frustration in Nepali Bureaucracy - In Aspects
of Development Administration.
Prachanda Pradhan, ed., pp. 33‐39. Kathmandu:
CEDA, Tribhuvan University.5
1971 The Political Innovators of Upper Kali Gandaki -
Man 6(1): 52‐60.
1973 The People. In Nepal in Perspective - Pashupati
Shumshere J.B. Rana and Kamal P. Malla, eds., pp. 35‐46. Kathmandu: CEDA,
Tribhuvan University.
1975 Chepang Jatiko Samajik Arthik Sammunati
Sarbekchan (Pariyojana Pratibedan). Kathmandu: CEDA,Tribhuvan University
[co‐written with Navin Kumar Rai].
1976 Encounter with the Raute: The Last Hunting Nomads
of Nepal. Kailash: A Journal of Himalayan Studies 4(4): 317‐327.
1976 Padipur: A Central Terai Villag
1977
Patterns of Migration in Nepal - In Himalaya: Ecologie‐Ethnologie. CNRS, No.
268: 397‐399. Paris.
1977
Rastriye Ekata- Rup Rekha 18(8): 102‐114.
1978
Nepalese in Tibet - In Himalayan Anthropology: The Indo Tibetan Interface.
James F. Fisher, ed., pp. 187‐204. The Hague, Paris: Mouton.
1978Manavsastra/
Samajsastrama Anusandhan [Research in Anthropology / Sociology] - Tribhuvan
University Journal 10(1): 277‐284 [co‐written with Trilok S. Thapa and Dilli
Ram Dahal].
1980
Hindu Kingdom and its Social Aspect - In Nepal a Conspectus. Kamal P Malla,
ed., pp. 14‐23. Kathmandu: His Majesty’s Government Press.
1980
Prospects of Anthropology in Nepal - A paper presented at a seminar on social
sciences, Tribhuvan University.
1982
The Process of Nepalization - In Anthropological and Linguistic Studies of the
Gandaki Area in Nepal (Monumenta Serindica 10). Dor Bahadur Bista, et al.,
eds., pp. 1‐20. Tokyo: Institute for the Study of Languages and Cultures
of Asia and Africa.
1984
Aasamanjasyeta Ko Paristhiti Aaja Ko Hamro Yetharthata Ho -. In Byaktitwora
Bichar (Interview Given to Kishor Kunwar). Kathmandu: Shakti Printers.
1985
Ethnicity: Its Problems and Prospects, unpublished report submitted to Centre
for Nepal and Asian Studies.
1987
Nepal School of Sociology and Anthropology - Occasional Papers in Sociology and
Anthropology 1: 6‐10.
1989
Nepal in 1988: Many Losses, Some Gains. Asian Survey 29(2): 223‐228.
1989
The Structure of Nepali Society - In Nepal: Perspectives on Continuity and
Change. Kamal P. Malla, ed., pp. 169‐191. Kirtipur: Centre for Nepal and
Asian Studies.
1995
Khas of Chaudabisa - Himal 8(3): 45‐48.
1995
Nepalko Jatiye Bividhata: Samasyako Jaro Ki Sakaratmak Srot - Himal 5(2): 7‐12.
1995
Chaudabise ko Anuvab: Khasharuma Aatma‐ Pahichanko Sankat - Himal 5(4): 40‐43.
1996
An Interview with Dor Bahadur Bista - Current Anthropology 37(2): 349‐356.
(Interview
given to James F. Fisher) - Reprinted in Himalayan Research Bulletin 17(1):
25‐32.
1997
Comments on 'Sociological and Anthropological Research and Teaching in Nepal:
Western Adaptation versus Indigenization' - In Social Sciences in Nepal:
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