In this year 2010, the Year of the Tiger, the Global Tiger Initiative launched with a conference including the 13 countries that govern tiger habitat. The conference was in Kathmandu... (neutral ground? Or where the best facilitators are?) in late October. During the four days, aims and objectives were established to protect tiger habitat which has reached 10% of the historical range, and make efforts for valuing live tigers rather than dead ones.
This HT article talks about Nepal's initiative to count their tigers starting next week. Only full grown tigers will be counted. Estimates were at 121 tigers in Nepal two years ago.
World Bank is involved: this is their tiger website.
Youtube has a page for GTI.
(read some of the reports on the gti website to see if any are appropriate for the Chitwan reader... final report summary? other academic papers? how can we link this in with lectures the students will hear? ask anil and watch youtube pieces to see if any are appropriate for viewing with the students)
Showing posts with label animals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label animals. Show all posts
Wednesday, January 13, 2010
Friday, December 18, 2009
Elephants, I like Elephants.
Maizie's fave.
Write songs like this.
"gotta like frogs! (yeah! yeah!) Running through a maze for some cheese."
What is special about it?
simple, clever, cheeky concept.
fingerpicking guitar - clever "b" and "c" sections with simple 5th modulation structure leading in to a "d" section reminiscent of "a".
repetitive.
kids like animals.
Wednesday, November 25, 2009
Death of Innocents?
The Festival of Gadhimai happens every five years here in Kathmandu. It's happening today, this morning, actually. Thousands of animals are sacrificed to the Hindu god Gadhimai many in thanks for emergence from difficult times. Your son was sick for a long time, you prayed a lot at the temple for him to get better - making wishes that if he gets better, you'll make a sacrifice to the goddess. Now, he's just gotten better, you offer the goddess the blood of a waterbuffalo. You were drowning in debt, and prayed a lot at the temple for good fortune to smile upon you, a family member helps you out, you offer a chicken to Gadhimai in thanks for her help with your problem. This article talks about the fury and violence with which the animals are killed, and how one killer thinks about the offerings.
There's a vegetarian version of this festival called "Chhath" which happens once a year - images here. The setting sun and the rising sun are greeted with offerings of coconuts, fruit, tikka, incense, and fire. The coconut is the offering that simulates the act of killing - the coconut is smashed and the milk represents blood offered to the god/goddess. Then, the coconut meat is given back to the offerer as prashad (or blessing from the god).
As we see with Hinduism, it's not what you believe, but what you do that is important to the pantheon of unlimitless gods and goddesses. Animal sacrifice is particularly common to godesses like Kali and Durga, powerful females who, it may seem have an insatiable bloodlust (vampires??), but maybe a more subtle explanation could be that when you take the life of another being in the name of these goddesses, you really mean it.
Animal rights activists in other countries are pissed. This year, the festival has drawn a lot of attention, especially by Ram Bahadur Bomjon, who it is rumored wanted to stop the sacrifices.
None of the program staff offered up sacrifices this year. They and their families are all doing just fine. In fact, one of the staff told me that he has never made such a promise to the goddess (That he will sacrifice the life of another being if he could just _______ (fill in the blank)), though he did say that his aunt and uncle had offered many times for his success or his health.
There's a vegetarian version of this festival called "Chhath" which happens once a year - images here. The setting sun and the rising sun are greeted with offerings of coconuts, fruit, tikka, incense, and fire. The coconut is the offering that simulates the act of killing - the coconut is smashed and the milk represents blood offered to the god/goddess. Then, the coconut meat is given back to the offerer as prashad (or blessing from the god).
As we see with Hinduism, it's not what you believe, but what you do that is important to the pantheon of unlimitless gods and goddesses. Animal sacrifice is particularly common to godesses like Kali and Durga, powerful females who, it may seem have an insatiable bloodlust (vampires??), but maybe a more subtle explanation could be that when you take the life of another being in the name of these goddesses, you really mean it.
Animal rights activists in other countries are pissed. This year, the festival has drawn a lot of attention, especially by Ram Bahadur Bomjon, who it is rumored wanted to stop the sacrifices.
None of the program staff offered up sacrifices this year. They and their families are all doing just fine. In fact, one of the staff told me that he has never made such a promise to the goddess (That he will sacrifice the life of another being if he could just _______ (fill in the blank)), though he did say that his aunt and uncle had offered many times for his success or his health.
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