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Rituals of Farming in Ladakh

Agriculture is crucial to life in Ladakh, and there is a deep-rooted respect for the land that brings forth the food that the people have depended on for centuries. This film explores that reverence for the land with respect to the various agricultural practices carried out during the farming seasons in the Leh district of Ladakh. It focuses primarily on rituals practised by the Buddhist community of Ladakh while farming. The farming season starts by observing ‘saka’, the first rites of ploughing. These are re-enacted in Leh, at the site of the main field that once belonged to the royal family of the Namgyal dynasty, this is currently located at the end of the main Leh bazaar road. At this time, representational rituals are performed by the residents of Leh Phumdo. Around the same time, at the festivals of Shey Dullo and Trsubla held in the villages of Shey and Takmachik, respectively, the oracle is invoked to bless the fields and ensuing crops they will give forth. The film focuses on the various phases of farming, along with activities around them, from sowing of the fields to ploughing, watering and harvesting. Irrigation of the fields is an extremely complex task and is assigned to a churpons (‘water guard’ or ‘water lord’) in every village to look after the water distribution system and see that all the fields get an equal share. After harvesting, the crop is carried home, where each family turns it into the staple barley flour consumed by Ladakhis as a large part of their diet. The film also addresses the rapid changes in agricultural practices and activities, such as the use of time-saving harvesting machines by a majority of the farmers instead of the traditional harvesting methods. As practices change, farmers fear that the rituals around them would also be affected, and that, in the long run, many of them may no longer be remembered by future generations of Ladakhis.