Bön: Mustang to Menri

Per Kværne reviews Bön: Mustang to Menri, directed by Ted Fetttig (2011, 52 minutes)

If you say “Tibet,” the next word that comes to mind will probably be “Buddhism.” This is all the more likely as by far the most famous Tibetan is the Dalai Lama, the charismatic Nobel Peace Prize laureate (1989) who for decades has traveled all over the world to spread his message of compassion and individual responsibility to statesmen as well as countless ordinary men and women.

Yet – and this may come as a surprise to many – not all Tibetans are Buddhist, even aside from the tiny Muslim and Christian minorities inside Tibet. Many Tibetans are followers of a religious tradition known by its Tibetan name “Bön,” which is found especially in the eastern and northeastern parts of Tibet, i. e. in areas lying outside the so-called Tibet Autonomous Region, but within the historical and cultural borders of the Tibetan nation.

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