Tapaswi Palden Dorje (Ram Bahadur Bomjan Tamang): Born in Chaitra Purnima in 2046 B.S. (9 April, 1990 A.D.). Tapaswi Palden Dorje or Tamang Tulku Rimpoche (religious names conferred by Buddhist lamas in the area) has sat for kachhen duba ("severe meditation") without water since the 2nd of Jestha 2062 B.S. (16 May, 2005 A.D.) (paldendorje.com).
In the Bara district of southern Nepal, pilgrims are heading into the jungle to pay homage to a teenage boy who is being hailed as the new Buddha. The boy, Ram Bahadur Bomjon, has apparently been sitting in the shade of a pipal or Bodhi tree (ficus religiosa) and meditating for the months. During this time he has had neither food nor water.
The boy’s fame has grown rapidly, drawing increasing numbers of devotees. After visitors started prodding the boy, a fence was built around the pipal tree. Then a second and third fence were planned by the committee responsible for dealing with the growing number of pilgrims. And there are plans to build a bus parking lot in the jungle.
Local doctors have been called in to lend scientific credibility to this marvel, although they were not permitted to come any closer than fifteen feet from the boy, since they might disturb his meditation. To top it all, Ram Bomjon was reportedly bitten by a snake, but he refused all medical treatment saying that he could be cured by meditation alone.
Meanwhile, this remote piece of Nepalese jungle is rapidly turning into a spiritual marketplace. If devotees want a memento of their visit, five rupees will buy them a picture of Ram Bomjon with light emanating from his forehead. A little more will buy them a sacred amulet. As the stalls and sideshows proliferate, the jungle is slowly collecting mounds of litter.
Some are sceptical about this kind of spiritual circus. Committee, a committee? The historical Buddha, Siddhartha Gautama, managed without a committee. Leaving aside the dubious nature of claims being made concerning Ram Bomjon’s abstinence from food and water – what about the financial aspects of this latest marvel? Somebody somewhere is surely making money out of Ram Bomjon.
Parking lots, after all, do not come cheap. Local businessman Prakash Lamsal, soberly refusing to get caught up in the frenzy, told the press: “These lamas are going to build mansions out of this. If I wasn’t a bit embarrassed, I’d take a van down there and set up a stall.”
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