About this Course

In June 2011, seven SNC students and two faculty members will travel with the Truckee, CA-based Bodhi Tree Foundation to deliver pre/postnatal vitamins and medical supplies to the women of Humla, the most remote region of Nepal, deep in the western Himalayas. This trip will be the center of two courses each student will complete; the students will gain traditional academic and real-world knowledge of Service Learning as well as Nepali art and culture. In addition to our service, we will visit many significant cultural and religious monuments for both Buddhists and Hindus. Join us as we prepare for this adventure of a lifetime.

Reading Lists, Links, and Movies

Links lead to Amazon.com unless otherwise noted:

Sociology, Ethnography, and Health Issues (suggested by Bodhi Tree Foundation)


Bennet, Lynn. Dangerous Wives and Sacred Sisters: Social and Symbolic Roles of Women in Nepal. 
                           click here to read excerpts online.
Bishop, Barry C. Karnali Under Stress: Livelihood Strategies and Seasonal Rhythms in a Changing Nepal Himalaya.
Goldstein, Melvyn. "Pahari and Tibetan Polyandry Revisited," Ethnology, July 1978.
Levine, Nancy. The Dynamics of Polyandry. Kinship, Domesticity, and Population on the Tibetan Border.
McKay, Kimber Haddix. Health needs in two ethnic communities of Humla District, Nepal.



 Tibetan (Vajrayana) Buddhism
Powers, John. A Concise Introduction to Tibetan Buddhism.
Ray, Reginald. Indestructible Truth. 
Church, Mimi and Mariette Wiebenga. A four-fold Vairocana in the Rinchen Zangpo tradition at Halji in Nepal. Click to read online. 
Bidari, Keshav. Halji Monastery- A Hidden Heritage in North-west Nepal.Click to read online. 
Shakya, Min Bahadur.The Iconography of Nepalese Buddhism.Click to read online.
--more to come--


Hinduism and Tantrism
Eck, Diana. Darshan.

--more to come--

Movies
The Buddha (can be watched in full at pbs.org)
Seven Years in Tibet
Little Buddha
Paradise Lost
Cry of the Snow Lion
Kundun
Unmistaken Child

Websites for art and cultural research
Himalayan Art Resources http://www.himalayanart.org/.
The Rubin Museum of (Himalayan) Art http://www.rmanyc.org/%20
The Kailash Zone http://www.kailashzone.org/index.php
Namkyung Monastery in Yalbang (we will visit) http://www.namkhyung.org/?id=15
Buddhist Symbols: Mt. Kailash http://buddhistsymbols.info/kailash/
Buddhanet.net, esp. their links for Tibetan Buddhism

Other Articles:
Nepali Times article about Yalbang Monastery: http://www.nepalitimes.com/issue/2010/10/25/LifeTimes/17562
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