What etiquette should we pay attention to when dealing with Tibetans?

It is a devout worship ceremony for believers and believers in areas where Tibetan Buddhism is prevalent.

On the road to Lhasa, from time to time, people see believers starting from their distant hometown, wearing protective gear and knee pads, with a leather coat hanging on their forequarters and dust on their faces, marching along the road without fear of hardships until they worship Buddha in Lhasa.

A kowtowing believer will never be lazy to reduce fatigue. If you cross a car or stop kowtowing for some reason, you will draw lines or accumulate stones as your ambition. In this way, they will unswervingly, step by step, with firm belief, move towards the holy city of Lhasa.

When the believers kowtow on the way, they follow this procedure: first, they stand at attention and mumble something, mostly reciting the six-character mantra, which is read as "Ah Bami", which is the "true treasure" of Indian Buddhism tantra. Quot (Like "There is no Amitabha in the South" often recited by Buddhists in the Han Dynasty. While reading the six-character mantra, put your hands together, hold your head high, and take another step; Keep your hands crossed, move to the front and take another step; Put your hands together on your chest. In the third step, your hands leave your chest, parallel to the ground, palms down, knees down first, then your whole body down, and your forehead taps on the ground. Stand up again and start over. In this process, the mouth and hands are used together, and the sound of reciting the six-character mantra is continuous.

Another way is to kowtow in situ. In or around the temple, believers spread blankets in front of them and kowtowed in situ, but they couldn't. The rest are the same as kowtowing forward, or praying or praying, hoping to avoid disaster because of different psychological wishes. Christians believe that in practice, one should knock at least ten thousand times. To kowtow barefoot to show piety.

There is also a kowtow around the temple, starting from the main entrance of the temple clockwise and facing the temple sideways, which is also a three-step walk around the temple; Or lean to the temple and knock forward, which is also a three-step knock and recite the six-character mantra.

Present Hada

Offering "Hada" is the most common etiquette of Tibetan people. In Tibet, there are customs of offering Hada at weddings, funerals, seeing off, visiting elders, seeing Buddha statues and seeing off on a long trip. Offering "Hada" is to show purity, sincerity, loyalty and respect for each other. It is said that when Tibetans enter the temple gate, they first offer Hada, then pay homage to the Buddha statue and visit the temple. When they left, they put a hada behind the seat where they used to sit, indicating that although I left, my heart stayed here.

Hada is a kind of raw silk fabric, which is loosely spun into a net and also made of silk. Top grade Hada weaves various hidden flower patterns, such as lotus, Aquarius, umbrella cover, conch, etc., which indicates good luck. Hada's material varies with different economic conditions, but people don't care about the quality of the material, as long as they can express their master's good wishes. Hada varies in length, ranging from 1 to 2 feet for the elderly to 3 to 5 feet for the short. Tibetans believe that white symbolizes purity and good luck. So, Hada is white. In addition, there are colorful Hada, the colors are blue, white, yellow, green and red. Blue means blue sky, white is white clouds, green is rivers, red is the protector of space, and yellow symbolizes the earth. Multicolored Hada is the most precious gift for making colorful arrows for bodhisattvas and their loved ones. Buddhist teachings explain that colorful hada is the costume of bodhisattva. Therefore, multicolored hada is only used under certain circumstances.

The action of offering Hada varies from person to person. Generally speaking, you should hold Hada with both hands, lift it to shoulder height, then stretch forward and bend down to give it to the other party. At this time, Hada is flush with the top of his head, showing respect for each other and the greatest blessing-good luck. The other party greeted him respectfully with both hands. When offering Hada to venerable persons and elders, raise your hands above your head, lean forward slightly, and hold Hada in front of your seat or at your feet; For colleagues or subordinates, it can be tied around the neck.

Offering Hada is very common in Tibet. Even when people communicate with each other, they will attach a small Hada to the envelope to show their blessings and greetings. What is particularly interesting is that Tibetans will take a few Hadas when they go out, in case they meet long-lost relatives and friends on the way.

Hada stands for different meanings on different occasions. On the day of the festival, people presented Hada to each other to congratulate them on a pleasant journey and a happy life; Offering Hada at the wedding means wishing the newlyweds a mountain of love and a long life together; When welcoming guests, offer Hada to show piety and pray for the blessing of Bodhisattva; Hada was presented at the funeral to express condolences to the deceased and comfort to the family of the deceased.

There are many theories about the origin of Hada. There is a saying that in the Han Dynasty, Zhang Qian sent an envoy to the Western Regions to pass through Tibet and presented silk to local tribal leaders. In ancient times, the Han people regarded silk as a symbol of pure friendship. In this way, Tibetan tribes think that this is a kind of etiquette to express friendship and blessings, and the moon is a great etiquette from the prosperous times of the Central Plains, so it has been used ever since. There is also a saying that Basiba, the French king of ancient Tibet, brought it back to Tibet after meeting Kublai Khan of Yuan Shizu. There was a design of the Great Wall of Wan Li on the silk at that time? Quot good luck. " Later, people made some religious explanations about the origin of Hada, saying that it is a ribbon on the fairy, and white symbolizes holiness and supremacy.

Toast tea

Tibetans are very hospitable. When entertaining guests with highland barley wine, first fill the glass with wine and serve it to the guests. At this time, the guest should hold the glass with both hands, then raise the glass with his left hand, dip the ring finger of his right hand in the glass and play it in the air to show respect for the gods. Next, they will come again for the second time and the third time to respect the ground and the Buddha respectively. This traditional habit is to remind people that the origin of highland barley wine can not be separated from the generosity of heaven and earth Buddha, so we should worship the gods before enjoying the wine. When drinking, the custom agreed by the Tibetan people is: take a sip first, and the owner will immediately fill the glass with wine, then take the second sip, then fill it up, then take the third sip and then fill it up. In the future, you have to drink a full glass of wine at one go. In this way, the host will feel that the guests respect him very much, and the more the guests drink, the happier the host will be. It shows that the master's wine is well brewed. When Tibetans toast, male guests use large cups or bowls, while female guests use small cups or bowls. When drinking tea, guests must wait for the host to bring the tea to them before reaching for it, otherwise it will be considered impolite.

Honorifics and appellations

Tibetans attach great importance to the use of honorifics, and Lhasa people pay more attention to this style. In Lhasa and even Tibet as a whole, there are three ways to say every sentence, one is Mandarin, the other is honorific, and the other is the most honorific. This is true of nouns, verbs and adjectives. People with the same status use honorifics for each other, while people with low status also use honorifics for people with high status. People with different status use honorifics the most. People who don't know honorifics will be considered ill-bred, and the wrong use of honorifics will make jokes. Tibetans attach great importance to appellation, which is inaccurate and often considered impolite. Add one after the other person's name? Quot "pull" means respect. For example, Ge Sang is called Gesangla and Tashi is called Tashila. The teacher's name is "Guerra", the chef's name is "Ma Qingla" and so on.

Tibetan oath

It is a Tibetan tradition to swear again. The Biography of Tu Shan in Old Tang Dynasty records Tu Shan Zapp's oath: "Instead of making a small alliance with his soldiers and crabs, punish sheep, dogs and monkeys, first chop off their feet and kill them, then cut their intestines, and then slaughter them, so that the wizard can tell the gods of heaven and earth, mountains and rivers, the sun and the moon, and the stars:" If your heart changes, you will be raped repeatedly, and God will follow it. Quot Today, Tibetans still attach great importance to vows, and all forms have changed. Oath is divided into oral oath and hand oath. Oral oaths are expressed in words, while hand oaths are assisted by gestures or instruments. In Tibet, people who make friends, prove their innocence, are determined to keep secrets, to keep their promises, to mediate disputes and to express their loyalty to a certain belief are often expressed by swearing. Tibetans generally swear: "Gongjiaosong"-swear to the three treasures; Qiao Ri Lun Bu-swear by Bian Shi Muny; "Potala official Zezuo"-ask Potala to testify; "Dan Mazezo"-Please witness the protector. In addition, there are others who swear by the land god and the god of estimation; Some swear by their mothers, glands and children. The latter kind of oath is very heavy, because it is to put your loved ones on the oath. If you break the oath, it is equivalent to hurting your closest relatives. Gestures are complicated, and they are often realized through religious ceremonies, such as putting scriptures on your head and taking an oath, kneeling in front of bodhisattvas, gods or living buddhas.