Dob-dob
Sign in to savethumb|right|Two dob-dobs at Tibetan New Year|Lhasa's New Year celebration (Losar), 1938 A dob-dob ( or in some sources ldab ldob) is a member of a type of Tibetan Buddhist monk fraternity that existed in Gelug monasteries in Tibet such as Sera Monastery and are reported to still exist in Gelug monasteries today, although possibly in a somewhat altered form. The status of dob-dobs tended to be somewhat ambiguous and they were generally the less academic monks who had an interest in sports, fighting and other "worldly" matters.
~5 min read
Article
6 sectionsContents
- Disruptive influences or peacemakers?
- Life as a dob-dob
- Monastery laborers
- Dob-dobs and "bookmen"
- References
- External links
thumb|right|Two dob-dobs at Tibetan New Year|Lhasa's New Year celebration (Losar), 1938 A dob-dob ( or in some sources ldab ldob) is a member of a type of Tibetan Buddhist monk fraternity that existed in Gelug monasteries in Tibet such as Sera Monastery and are reported to still exist in Gelug monasteries today, although possibly in a somewhat altered form. The status of dob-dobs tended to be somewhat ambiguous and they were generally the less academic monks who had an interest in sports, fighting and other "worldly" matters.
==Disruptive influences or peacemakers?== Dob-dobs sometimes acted as self-appointed policemen in the monasteries. Geshe Lama Konchog, for example, recalled being beaten by his dob-dob uncle in Sera for being over-eager to study and take Tantric initiations. Dob-dobs were often seen as potential trouble-makers, with Sir Charles Alfred Bell describing in his portrait of the Thirteenth Dalai Lama how dob-dobs were foremost amongst monks at large religious ceremonies who were "bursting with superfluous energy, and spoiling for a fight".