Land of the Dawn-lit Mountains

by Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent

  1. Mist, mountains and a river purling below – a typical view in Arunachal Pradesh. This was taken in the Upper Siang region.

  2. Three Idu Mishmi igu, or shamans, chant at reh festival in the Dibang Valley.

  3. Kormu and Mishing, the lovely Idu Mishmi couple I stayed with near the Dibang Valley’s border with Tibet, plus their fat cat and foxy dog.

  4. The charred skulls of sacrificed mithun hang on the bamboo walls of a Miju Mishmi house in Anjaw district.

  5. Sipa Melo, the Idu Mishmi shaman. Note the leopard’s jawbone around his neck.

  6. Kabsang, one of my guides in Pemako, and a deaf (but exceedingly cheerful) villager in Tashigong.

  7. The fog-wreathed gompa at Yoldong in Pemako.

  8. Kabsang, Dorje (the King!) and I take a rest outside the main door of Devakotta Monastery in Pemako.

  9. The view from Tashigong. Paradise on earth.

  10. Adi men fixing a hanging bridge over the Siang River outside Tuting. Not a job for anyone suffering from vertigo!

  11. The sun sets over the rice fields of the Apatani Valley in Lower Subansiri district – such a different landscape to anywhere else in the state.

  12. An old Apatani lady who had recently converted to Christianity.

  13. Ursula Graham Bower (left) with two Naga, taken during her wartime stint in the Naga Hills in the early forties. What a lady she was.

  14. My tent in the Nyishi longhouse at Karoi: a source of great entertainment for all the family.

  15. Freddie ‘Buzz Boy Pete’ Raubinger, a 21-year-old pilot – one of the US airmen killed near Karoi in 1945.

  16. Me, my ebullient guide, Tapir (left), and a local Nyishi man, with one of the C-46’s radial engines at the crash site near Karoi.

  17. Nuns at school in Tawang. On the left is Phurpa, one of my lovely hosts.

  18. Riding towards the snow-bound Sela Pass near Tawang.

  19. Me with my Hero, looking jubilant at the top of the 4,175-metre Sela Pass.

  20. With my Indian fairy godfathers, Abhra (left) and Manash, at the end in Guwahati.

  ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

  I never understand how some authors’ acknowledgements contain just a brief thanks to their other half, editor and cat. So many people have been involved in this journey, and have shown so much kindness and generosity, that I’m afraid mine are going to be more like a Kate Winslet Oscar acceptance speech.

  Without a doubt the person who has played the biggest part in this journey is Marley, my amazing boyfriend, who has encouraged and supported me every step of the way – from those dark months of panic attacks to the writerly angst of completing this book. He told me I could do it when I didn’t believe I could, put up with my long absence, talked through chapter plans, proofread my manuscript and generally showed boundless love and patience: I couldn’t have done it without him.

  Huge thanks go to the stellar team behind this book – my brilliant agent Imogen Pelham, my excellent editor Kerri Sharp and Simon & Schuster UK’s Editorial Director, the lovely Claudia Connal. Thanks also to Jack Smyth from Simon & Schuster’s design department for designing such an excellent cover, to Jo Whitford for her production wizardry and Sue Stephens for her stellar work on press and PR. All of them have been an utter delight to work with and I feel extremely lucky to be working with such a superb and talented team. I must also thank the late, great Gillon Aitken for the role he played in accepting me into the illustrious bosom of Aitken Alexander Associates, and to Ted Simon, for the introduction. I must also thank Ted for his useful comments on the manuscript and for having me to stay while I wrote some of the book.

  The idea for this book began with meeting Abhra Bhattacharya in Delhi in late 2013. And what a fateful meeting that was. Abhra played an absolutely pivotal role in my journey, and somehow – in between the dozens of television projects he was handling – found time to handle my permits, help me with contacts and give me endless advice. By the time this book is published, Abhra and I will have worked together again – this time on an ITV series about India. In Abhra’s absence, Manash Das, his business partner in the Northeast, was unfailingly brilliant and resourceful. Between the two of them they were my Indian fairy godfathers. I can’t thank them enough.

  Thank you to my family, Fiona, Noel and Zara Bolingbroke-Kent, and my stepfather Mark Wrigley, for putting up with my lengthy travels. Sorry for any sleepless nights . . .

  More than any other journey, this was about people. Countless people gave me their kindness, their time, their knowledge, their stories, their laughter, their firesides, their spare beds: Mishmi, Khampa, Monpa, Adi, Nyishi, Apatani, Assamese and Bengali. I can’t name them all, but a few who really stand out are: Jibi Pulu, Phupla Singpho, Maini Mahanta and Bani Das, Apedo Rondo, Sipa Melo, Dorje Tenzing, Kabsang Jurmey, Phurpa Lamu and Tapir Darang. Others who were enormously helpful with fact-checking and information were: Sahil Nijhawan, Mirza Zulfiqur Rahman, Aparajita Datta, Catriona Child, Jay Vineyard, Gary Zaetz, Clayton Kuhles, Amy Johnson.

  The kindness didn’t end when my journey did. I wrote much of this book in a shepherd’s hut on a farm in Somerset’s Chew Valley. The owners, Simon and Barbara Banks, didn’t know me at all when a mutual friend asked if they might consider allowing me to use their hut to write in, but they gave me the key and said I could use it when I wanted. They, the hut and their dogs became an integral part of writing this book, and I have been bowled over by their saintly kindness towards me. Looking over the farm and the hills, with cows, dogs, buzzards, wrens, badgers and a green woodpecker for company, I couldn’t have wished for a more peaceful and idyllic place to write. Thank you.

  A big thank you to Liz Rigby – you always told me I could do it, even when things were at their worst.

  Thank you to my sponsors and supporters: Native Route, the Transglobe Expedition Trust, Sir David Tang, Sir Charles Blois Bt, Snugpak, Chris and Michele Kohler, Edge Expeditions, the Visa Machine, Stanfords, Water to Go. Without them I’d be poorer, colder and probably still at home.

  Thanks to Anna Bywater for her insightful comments on parts of my manuscript, to Ed and Lil for picking up the pieces in Thailand, to Olivia Donnelly for the support and wisdom, to fellow lady travellers Dervla Murphy, Lois Pryce and Joanna Lumley for the support and inspiration.

  And finally, a word for Seamus, the Buddhdog, who very sadly died a few weeks after I returned from India. He was the wisest, kindest old Labrador in the world and we miss his thumping tail and cheerfulness every day.

  Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent is an established travel writer and public speaker with a particular love of embarking on difficult journeys through remote regions. Her previous books, Tuk-Tuk to the Road and A Short Ride in the Jungle, were very well received, and she has appeared on numerous radio and television shows. She graduated from Edinburgh University with a first-class MA in Modern History and, when she’s not writing and travelling, works as a freelance television producer. She lives in Bristol with her boyfriend Marley.

  Visit her website, www.theitinerant.co.uk

  Also by Antonia Bolingbroke-Kent

  A Short Ride in the Jungle

  Tuk-Tuk to the Road

  GLOSSARY

  Adi: Tibeto-Burman tribe who live in the East Siang, Upper Siang, West Siang and Lower Dibang Valley districts of Arunachal Pradesh and also in Tibet. A sub-group of the Tani people, along with the Tagin, Galo, Nyishi, Hill Miri, Mising and Apatani. Formerly known as the Abor, which is now seen as an outdated, pejorative term.

  Ahom: A Shan people who ruled the Brahmaputra Valley for six centuries, from 1228 to the British annexation of the region in 1826.

  Amrahla: A bandolier of tigers’ teeth used by Idu Mishmi shamans, or igu. Believed to ward off evil spirits. Only about a dozen remain in existence.

  Ani: A Buddhist nun.

  Animist: Someone who believes in the existence of individual spirits that inhabit natural objects and phenomena.

  Apatani: Sino-Burman tribe who live in the Ziro
Valley, in the Lower Subansiri district of Arunachal Pradesh. A subgroup of the Tani people, along with the Adi, Tagin, Galo, Nyishi, Hill Miri and Mising.

  Apong: Adi rice beer. Delicious.

  Arag: A clear (and fairly lethal) Tibetan or Bhutanese rice wine. Often served hot with yak butter or yak fat. Not always delicious!

  Beyul: According to the Nyingma tradition of Buddhism these are hidden valleys in the Himalayas, created by the eighth-century mystic, Padmasambhava – otherwise known as Guru Rinpoche. They will provide refuge to believers in future times of war or trouble. Pemako is one of these beyuls.

  Brokpa: Nomadic Monpa yak herder.

  Carrom: A sort of finger billiards played on a square board, whereby players stand around the board and flick small, round wooden discs. Thought to originate in India, the game is hugely popular in Asia.

  Chang: Tibetan (and Nepalese) rice, barley or millet beer that can be drunk cold or hot. Delicious.

  Chulikata: Meaning ‘crop-haired’ – this was the name given to the Idu Mishmi by the British, on account of their unique fringed coiffures.

  Coolie: A nineteenth-century colonial term meaning an indentured labourer or servant.

  Curtis C-46 Commando: Transport plane widely used by the Allies to fly over ‘the Hump’ in the Second World War.

  Dafla: The old name for the Nyishi tribe of Lower Subansiri. Now seen as extremely insulting.

  Dakini: A female Buddhist deity.

  Dao: A single-bladed, square-ended, machete-type knife, probably originating in China. Used for slashing and chopping. Ubiquitous among the tribes of Northeast India. Usually about a foot long.

  Dhaba: Simple roadside eateries found all over India.

  Dhoti: A garment worn by male Hindus, consisting of a piece of material tied around the waist and extending to cover most of the legs.

  Donyi-Polo: Animistic, shamanic religion followed by certain Tibeto-Burman tribes in Arunachal Pradesh, such as the Apatani. Centred around the worship of donyi, the sun, and polo, the moon.

  Dorje: In Tibetan Buddhism this is a representation of a thunderbolt in the form of a short double trident or sceptre, symbolizing the male aspect of the spirit and held during invocations and prayers.

  Dorje Phagmo: Buddhist Tantric Goddess whose supine form is said to mirror Pemako. Also known as Vajira Yogini.

  Drilbu: Ritual Tibetan bell.

  Engoko: Idu Mishmi fireplace central to every Idu house. These are square hearths set into the floor, above which hang racks for storing firewood and drying meat.

  Etokojo: Traditional sleeveless jacket worn by Idu Mishmi men. Black with beautiful red, orange, yellow and gold horizontal strips of embroidery around the lower half. A similar garment, the etoma, has fewer strips of embroidery.

  Gambura: Village headman.

  Gamosa: Traditional Assamese white rectangular piece of cloth woven with red embroidery. Translated as ‘something to wipe the body with’, it is used variously around the neck, for worship, around the waist, around the head, on altars or as a welcome for guests.

  Ganesh: Hindu elephant god.

  Gompa: A Tibetan monastery or temple.

  Gret: Monpa word for the yeti, a large mythical creature that walks like a human but looks like a monkey.

  Gyaling: An oboe-like reed horn used in Tibetan ritual music.

  Hindutva: ‘Hinduness’ – the predominant form of Hindu nationalism in India. Hindutva is the official ideology of the ruling BJP.

  Idu Mishmi: Tibeto-Burman tribe who live in the Dibang Valley region of Arunachal Pradesh.

  Igu: Pronounced ‘eegoo’. Idu Mishmi shaman or priests. Central to Idu society, these men and women are powerful intermediaries between the worlds of the seen and the unseen.

  Jathaap: Khampa fireplace and oven made of dried and packed mud.

  Kachin: Northernmost state of Burma that borders eastern Arunachal Pradesh and China’s Yunnan. A multi-ethnic state riven by border disputes, smuggling, independence movements and civil war.

  Kalita: Non-hallucinogenic root used by Idu Mishmi shamans in their rituals. Looks very like ginger.

  Kani: Northeast Indian word for opium.

  Khampa: Buddhist tribe from the Kham region of southeastern Tibet and, more recently, the Upper Siang region of Arunachal Pradesh.

  Khata: Tibetan ceremonial silk scarf to represent purity and compassion. Usually white. Called a khadag in Mongolian Buddhism.

  Khepa: The Idu Mishmi name for the yeti, a ten-or twelve-foot-high gorilla-like creature which lives in the forests.

  Khinyu: Idu Mishmi word for spirits.

  Khundu: Idu Mishmi word for the area where the mithun are sacrificed at reh festival.

  Koonki: Domesticated elephant used in mela shikar, the capture of wild elephants.

  Kora: Tibetan Buddhist word for a clockwise circumambulation of a temple, religious structure or sacred site.

  Kundun: Tibetan term for His Holiness the Dalai Lama, meaning ‘the presence’.

  Lakh: Unit of Indian currency: 1 lakh rupees is 100,000 rupees, which (at the early 2016 exchange rate of £1 to 100 rupees) is around £1,000.

  Lama: A lama is a Buddhist teacher (translation of the Sanskrit word ‘guru’) and a monk is a man who has renounced worldly life to (usually) live in a monastery and follow the monastic rules that were decided by the Buddha. Many lamas are monks, but there are many monks who are not lamas and there are lamas who are not monks.

  Mahout: Man (or occasionally a woman) who works with and rides elephants.

  Mekhela chadar: Traditional Assamese women’s dress.

  Mela shikar: Wild elephant hunt.

  Merum: Centrally located, square hearth and fireplace of Adi houses. Almost identical to the engoko of the Idu Mishmi.

  Mite and mura: The old Apatani social classes.

  Mithun: Or Bos frontalis, a large, semi-wild bovine indigenous to Northeast India, Yunnan, Burma and the Chittagong Hill Tracts of Bangladesh. Often sacrificed or used as dowry payments.

  Momo: Meat- or vegetable-filled dumpling popular among Tibetan peoples.

  Monpa: Buddhist tribe who live in the Tawang region of northwest Arunachal Pradesh. Largest Buddhist tribe in the state.

  Musth: The frenzied state of certain male animals, especially elephants or camels, that is associated with the rutting season. Not a good time for a cuddle.

  Navrati: Nine-day Hindu festival dedicated to the deity Durga, celebrated in the spring.

  NSCN: National Socialist Council of Nagaland. Naga nationalist insurgent group operating in Northeast India and parts of Burma.

  Nullah: Small stream.

  Nyibu: Apatani shaman.

  Nyingma: The oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism.

  Nyingmapa: Someone who follows the Nyingma school of Buddhism.

  Nyishi: Tibeto-Burman tribe who live in central Arunachal Pradesh. Part of the same group of Tani people that includes the Apatani, Galo, Tagin, Hill Miri, Mising and Adi. Formerly known as the Dafla.

  Paan: A mildly stimulating preparation combining betel leaf with areca nut and sometimes tobacco. Chewed all over India and other parts of Asia. Stains the teeth and lips red.

  Panda: Brahmin Hindu priest.

  Phalap: Singpho tea.

  Prasad: Food which has been blessed in a religious ceremony. Often prasad is made as a devotional offering to a god.

  Puja: Religious blessing or act of worship.

  Punkah wallah: A manual fan operator. The most desired were deaf because they were always within earshot of confidential conversations. A punkah is a type of ceiling fan used in the Indian subcontinent before the electric fan.

  Rupee: Indian currency. At the time of my journey £1 was equivalent to 100 rupees, hence £100 is 10,000 rupees, £1,000 is 100,000 rupees (or 1 lakh).

  Seven Sisters: The septet of states that make up India’s tribal Northeast: Assam, Arunachal Pradesh, Nagaland, Mizoram, Meghalaya, Tripura and Manipur.

  Shinka: Traditional
maroon and white striped dress worn by Monpa women. Made from heavy silk yarn or wool.

  Shiva: Hindu god.

  Singpho: Kachin tribe found in Arunachal Pradesh, Yunnan and Burma.

  Stupa: A Buddhist shrine.

  Sumo: 4WD vehicle used as a shared taxi all over Northeast India.

  Sutra: A Buddhist scripture. Often written on parchment and wrapped in silk.

  Tai: Ethnic group of people spread over southern China, Indochina and Northeast India. The Ahoms, who ruled the Brahmaputra Valley for six hundred years, were a Tai people.

  Tashi deleg: ‘Hello’ in Tibetan.

  Terton: A term within Tibetan Buddhism. It means a person who is a discoverer of ancient hidden texts or terma. Many tertons are considered to be incarnations of the twenty-five main disciples of Padmasambhava, otherwise known as Guru Rinpoche.

  Trakzen: Flat, round discs of Tibetan bread made from either millet or barley flour and water.

  Tsampa: Tibetan staple food made from roasted barley flour or occasionally wheat flour.

  Tshatsha: Devotional Tibetan icons moulded from mud.

  Tulku: A reincarnated lama.

  Tumo: A Tibetan form of meditation that raises your body temperature. Very useful for lamas and hermits who live in freezing conditions. Extremely difficult to learn.

  ULFA: United Liberation Front of Assam. Established in 1979 for the purpose of creating a ‘sovereign socialist Assam’.

  Vaishnavite: A follower of Lord Vishnu, one of the principal Hindu gods.