La SFEMT a le plaisir d’annoncer la tenue, dans le cadre du Cycle de Conférences SFEMT 2025/2026, de la conférence suivante :
Biodegradable Blessings: replacing synthetic khatas and lungtas in the Himalaya
par Sherpa Pasang et Ang Dolma Sherpa
le jeudi 18 décembre 2025 à 18h00 via Zoom (shorturl.at/kmvO1)
Résumé :
Lungta (prayer flags) and khata (ritual scarves) materially embody the prayers and blessings that protect life across the Himalaya, and beyond. Important life events are marked with khatas, and ritually important times of the year with lungta. The omnipresence of these materials is possible because of the mass produced synthetic fabric containing chemical dyes that are readily available and affordable. The widespread use of synthetic lungtas and khatas have replaced the traditional practice of making them with locally-sourced ingredients such as grains, soil, and smoke. The loss of this practice also means the loss of ancestral knowledge of living with the ecological matters that make up the life of a spiritual merit-earning Himalayan person. This talk highlights the journey and insights gained from pursuing biodegradable blessings.
À propos des conférencières :
Ang Dolma Sherpa is a social entrepreneur who won the top “ideator ”award at Idea Studio Nepal 2019 for her concept of biodegradable khatak, ceremonial scarves. The platform led her to initiate Utpala Craft in 2020, creating a shift from synthetic prayer flags and khatak to biodegradable ones.
Pasang Yangjee Sherpa is a Sharwa anthropologist from Pharak (aka Mt. Everest region) in northeastern Nepal. She is an assistant professor of Lifeways in Indigenous Asia, jointly appointed in the Institute for Critical Indigenous Studies and the Department of Asian Studies at the University of British Columbia, Canada.