Thanks to all who attended the聽Kayden Translation Symposium on "Buddhist Women and the Literary in Tibet" on Friday, October 22 at the Koenig Alumni Center.
It was a beautiful autumn聽day to sit together as Tibetan Studies faculty, visiting scholars, graduate students, and area translators聽to discuss translations of Tibetan literary works by, about, and for Buddhist women. The day involved two main parts: the symposium, which ran for two and a half hours over lunch, and聽planning sessions with a smaller group before and afterwards聽for the next Lotsawa Translation Workshop, to be held at Northwestern University in October 2022. The first Lotsawa Translation Workshop was held at CU Boulder in October 2018.
The symposium featured readings of Tibetan literature聽by the female visionaries Sera Khandro (1892鈥�1940) and Khandro Tare Lhamo (1938鈥�2002), contemporary nuns Dechen Yangkyi and Kalzang Tsomo, the fiction writer Tashi Dr枚nma, and a letter of Buddhist counsel by Terdak Lingpa 聽(1646鈥�1714) to his sister after the loss of a child. The afternoon聽included brief presentations and readings by Sarah Jacoby, Padma 鈥檛sho, Holly Gayley, and Dominique Townsend, followed by a discussion comparing the literary merits and gendered dimensions of select passages in the Tibetan original and English translation. See details below.
Abecedarian Advice from Sera Khandro - Sarah Jacoby, Northwestern University
Examining abecedarian verses by the Tibetan female author, Sera Khandro, considering questions of authorship and audience, as well as the challenges of translating Tibetan meter and acrostic form into English.
Writings by Contemporary Tibetan Nuns - Padma 鈥檛sho, Southwest Nationalities University
Exploring nun鈥檚 writings on women鈥檚 equality and education from the journal聽Gangkar Lhamo through paragraph-long essays 鈥淥ur Rare Times鈥� (嘟⑧緳嘟亨綉嗉嬥綉嘟�嘟犩紜嘟栢綘嘟侧紜嘟勦紜嘟氞郊嘟犩讲嗉嬥綉嘟脆溅嗉嬥綒嘟监綉嗉�) and 鈥淲omen Raised in the Land of Snow Mountains鈥� (嘟佮紜嘟栢紜嘟傕絼嘟︵紜嘟呧綋嗉嬥剑嗑椸郊嘟勦溅嗉嬥綋嘟︵紜嘟犩綒嘟⑧紜嘟｀郊嘟勦溅嗉嬥綎嗑编酱嘟勦紜嘟栢綘嘟侧紜嘟栢酱嘟戉紜嘟樴胶嘟戉紜嘟氞郊嗉�).
On Tantra and Sexuality: Literary Highlights and Lowlights - Holly Gayley, CU Boulder
Reading short passages from the love letters of Khandro T膩re Lhamo and the fictional account 鈥淪ister Dechen Tsomo鈥� by Tashi Dr枚nma, contrasting euphoric and dysphoric depictions of tantra and sexuality by contemporary Tibetan women.
Terdak Lingpa鈥檚 Letter to a Mourning Mother - Dominque Townsend, Bard College
Reading the poetic and musical verses Terdak Lingpa wrote for his sister after the death of her beloved son, reflecting on how the Tibetan mgur form allows for the expression of grief and consolation in balance with the determination to uproot attachment.
We鈥檙e hoping to host a complementary symposium this spring with Tibetan women writers. Stay tuned!
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This symposium is courtesy of the 2021 Kayden Translation Award for Inseparable Across Lifetimes: The Lives and Love Letters of the Visionary Couple Namtrul Rinpoche and Khandro T膩re Lhamo, translated by Holly Gayley. Co-sponsored by the Tibet Himalaya Initiative and with special thanks to the UVA Tibet Center.