Ram Bahadur Bomjon

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Ram Bahadur Bomjon

Ram Bahadur Bomjon (born c. 9 April 1990, sometimes Bomjan, Banjan, or Bamjan), also known as Palden Dorje (his official Buddhist name), is from Ratanapuri village, Bara district, Nepal and is believed to be the reincarnation of Buddha by his supporters.

He drew thousands of visitors and media attention for spending months in meditation. Nicknamed the Buddha Boy, he began his meditation on 16 May 2005, allegedy disappeared from his hometown on 11 March 2006, and reappeared elsewhere in Nepal on 26 December 2006 only to leave again on 8 March 2007. On 26 March 2007, inspectors from the Area Police Post Nijgadh in Ratanpuri found Bomjon meditating inside a bunker-like square ditch of seven feet.

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[edit] Wandering to Bara district

After about ten months of meditation, Bomjon went missing on 11 March 2006. Due to his lack of explanation, some believed he was abducted. His followers theorized that he went deeper into the woods to look for a quieter place to meditate.[1] Police abandoned a search for him after the possibility of foul play was eliminated. Suspecting money laundering, the authorities froze the bank account of the local committee managing the crowds, which had gathered more than Rs. 600,000, but they failed to find evidence.[2]

On 19 March a group of Bomjon's followers met with him about 2 miles (3 kilometers) southwest of his meditation site. They say they spoke to him for thirty minutes, during which Bomjan said "there is no peace here" and that he would return in six years, or roughly 2011 or 2012. He left a message for his parents telling them not to worry.[3][4]

On 25 December 2006, villagers in Bara district spotted Bomjon meditating. He was carrying a sword for protection in the jungle, reminding reporters that "Even Gautama Buddha had to protect himself," and claimed to have eaten nothing but herbs in the interim.[5] He reiterated his commitment to Buddhist devotion for six years and said he would allow people to come observe him as long as they remained at some distance and didn't bother him. When a reporter pointed out that pilgrims to his meditation site would be making donations in his name, he asked for the donations to not be abused or used for commercial purposes.[6] A new wave of visitors came to see him and pray at his new meditation spot.[7][8] On 8 March 2007 he left Bara district to again find a quieter place to meditate.[9]

[edit] Meditating in pit

On 26 March 2007 Inspector Rameshwor Yadav of the Area Police Post Nijgadh found Bomjon inside a bunker-like ditch seven feet square. A police team, under the command of Yadav, had gone to the place after word had spread through the area of Romjon meditating underground. "His face was clean and hair was combed well," Yadav said. According to him, the bunker had been cemented from all sides and outfitted with a tiled roof. Indra Lama, a local deployed as Bomjon's caretaker since the beginning of his intensive meditation, said the bunker was prepared per Bomjon's request. "After granting audience a week ago, he expressed his desire to meditate inside the ground; so we built it," he said. [10]

[edit] Preaching in Hallori jungle

On 2 August 2007 Bomjon addressed a large crowd in Hallori jungle in Bara district of southern Nepal. The Namo Buddha Tapoban Committee, which is devoted to looking after Bomjon, assembled the meeting. A notice about the boy's first-ever preaching was broadcast by a local FM radio station, and the committee also invited people by telephone. Around three thousand people gathered to listen to Bomjon's address. A video of the event has also surfaced.[11] According to Upendra Lamichhane, a blogger who wrote an article and took pictures of the meeting, Bomjon's message was "The only way we can save this nation is through spirituality".[12] His speech was as follows:[13]

Murder, violence, greed, anger and temptation have made the human world a desperate place. A terrible storm has descended upon the human world, and this is carrying the world towards destruction. There is only one way to save the world and that is through dharma. When one doesn't walk the righteous path of spiritual practice, this desperate world will surely be destroyed. Therefore, follow the path of spirituality and spread this message to your fellows. Never put obstacles, anger and disbelief in the way of my meditation's mission. I am only showing you the way; you must seek it on your own. What I will be, what I will do, the coming days will reveal. Human salvation, the salvation of all living beings, and peace in the world are my goal and my path. "Namo Buddha sangaya, Namo Buddha sangaya, namo sangaya." I am contemplating on the release of this chaotic world from the ocean of emotion, on our detachment from anger and temptation, without straying from the path for even a moment, I am renouncing my own attachment to my life and my home forever, I am working to save all living beings. But in this undisciplined world, my life's practice is reduced to mere entertainment.

The practice and devotion of many Buddhas is directed at the world's betterment and happiness. It is essential but very difficult to understand that practice and devotion. But though it is easy to lead this ignorant existence, human beings don't understand that one day we must leave this uncertain world and go with the Lord of Death. Our long attachments with friends and family will dissolve into nothingness. We have to leave behind the wealth and property we have accumulated. What's the use of my happiness, when those who have loved me from the beginning, my mother, father, brothers, relatives are all unhappy. Therefore, to rescue all sentient beings, I have to be Buddha-mind, and emerge from my underground cave to do vajra meditation. To do this I have to realize the right path and knowledge, so do not disturb my practice. My practice detaches me from my body, my soul and this existence. In this situation there will be 72 goddess Kalis. Different gods will be present, along with the sounds of thunder and of "tangur", and all the celestial gods and goddesses will be doing puja (worship). So until I have sent a message, do not come here, and please explain this to others. Spread spiritual knowledge and spiritual messages throughout the world. Spread the message of world peace to all. Seek a righteous path and wisdom will be yours.

[edit] Buddhist background

Bomjon is a member of the Tamang community, of which a majority is Buddhist.[14]

Bomjon's story gained popularity because it resembled a Buddhist legend from the Jataka Nidanakatha about Gautama Buddha's enlightenment, so much so that some devotees claimed Ram was the reincarnation of a Buddha. However, on 8 November 2005 Dorje arose and said to the public, "Tell the people not to call me a Buddha. I don't have the Buddha's energy. I am at the level of a rimpoche." A rimpoche is the level of a teacher, which indicates he believes he has achieved a significant amount. He said that he will need six more years of meditation before he may become a Buddha.

According to his followers, Bomjon may have reached the stage of a bodhisattva[citation needed], a person on the path to attaining full enlightenment of buddhahood for the benefit of all sentient beings. According to the historical Buddha, Gautama Buddha, there were innumberable Buddhas before him and infinite Buddhas to come in future. Proponents also claim that Bomjon might also be the emanation of Maitreya Bodhisattva, the predicted successor to the historical Buddha.

Criticisms on calling him the "reincarnation of Buddha" have emerged since according to Buddhist scripture Gautama Buddha taught that after nirvana there is no more rebirth, therefore it is impossible to be a "reincarnation of Buddha", since after parinirvana The Buddha cannot take birth again. It is possible to be another Buddha, another one who has attained enlightenment.

It is reported that his mother fainted when she found out that her son meditated for an undefined period of time. His mother's name is Maya Devi Tamang, the same first name as Buddha's mother.

[edit] Theravada perspective

As mentioned above, he disavowed any claim to be a reincarnation of the Buddha. This accords with the beliefs of Theravada Buddhism, which holds that Buddhahood implies the end of the cycle of rebirth.

Mahiswor Raj Bajracharya, president of the Nepal Buddhist Council has said that "We do not believe he is Buddha. He does not have Buddha's qualities".[15]. Scholars doubt the claims of his supporters.[15]

[edit] Feats of Inedia

An average human being who stops drinking will die of dehydration in three to four days. According to the Guinness Book of Records the longest time a human has survived without water is 18 days. Bomjon, on the other hand, does not appear to break his meditation to eat or drink.

Bomjon was observed not to leave the tree at least during the daytime, but nobody was allowed to approach him too closely. Between 5:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. nobody was allowed to see him, and a screen was erected for that purpose. Many people speculated that he ate and drank water during that time.

Some supporters believe that discussions of inedia are irrelevant, and that the ability to sit nearly motionless in the same position day after day, with no regard for extremes of weather including a cold winter and a monsoon season, is notable. For example, American writer George Saunders visited Bomjon and observed him for a single night, and was impressed by Bomjon's perfectly still stature even during an evening climate that seemed unbearably cold to the much more fully clothed journalist.[16]

In December 2005, a nine-member government committee led by Gunjaman Lama watched Bomjon carefully for 48 hours and observed him not to take any food or water during that time. A video recording was also made of this test. However, they were unable to approach closer than 3 meters or take readings of his vital signs.[17]. The Nepalese government planned a more careful scientific study, but this plan was later scrapped.

In 2007, the Discovery Channel produced a documentary titled The Boy With Divine Powers.[18] On their first, four-day attempt, the film crew was required to stay outside a guarded barbed-wire fence, and their camera's infrared capabilities did not pick up evidence of a body at the base of the tree where Bomjon sat during their non-stop recording. On a second attempt a few weeks later, however, the film crew was able to film Ram continuously for 96 hours, day and night, during which time he did not drink any fluids or eat any food. According to scientists on the documentary, an average person would be expected to die from kidney failure after four days without drinking any fluids. The boy showed no signs of classical physical deterioration caused by dehydration. A close inspection conducted by the film crew of the area around the tree where Ram was sitting, no hidden food or water pipes were found.

[edit] Reappearance in Ratanpuri jungle

On 10 November 2008 Bomjon reappeared and spoke to a mass of devotees in the remote jungle of Ratanpuri, 150 km (95 miles) southeast of Kathmandu, Prakash Sen, near Nijgadh. With shoulder-length hair and his body wrapped in a white cloth, his devotees believe he attained enlightenment at Bodh Gaya in Bihar, which borders Nepal – the same place where Siddartha Gautama attained enlightenment.[19][20] Min Bahadur Shakya of the Nagarjuna Institute of Exact Methods in Katmandu stated that Buddhist priests have yet to investigate the boy, who in 2005 lived in a forest for 10 months.[21]


[edit] See also

[edit] References

  1. ^ Bhagirath Yogi (11 March 2006). "Nepal's 'Buddha' boy goes missing". BBC. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4797064.stm. 
  2. ^ "Nepal freezes missing 'Buddha Boy' committee bank account". newkerala.com. 14 March 2006. http://www.newkerala.com/news2.php?action=fullnews&id=25558. 
  3. ^ "Nepalese Buddha Boy 'reappears'". BBC. 20 March 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/4824530.stm. 
  4. ^ UPIN (20 March 2006). "'Buddha Boy' emerges, then vanishes again idiot". United Press International. http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061225/od_uk_nm/oukoe_uk_nepal_boy. 
  5. ^ [[Daily Telegraph, Buddha Boy found after retreating into jungle. 27 December 2006
  6. ^ eKantipur.com. 'Buddha Boy' Bomjon found in Bara jungle. 25 December 2006.
  7. ^ Gopal Sharma. "Nepal's mystery "Buddha boy" reappears". Reuters. http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20061225/wl_nm/nepal_boy_dc_1. 
  8. ^ "Nepal Buddha Boy 'sighted again'". BBC. 26 December 2006. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/6209613.stm. 
  9. ^ Nepal's 'Buddha Boy' does second vanishing act. 8 March 2007
  10. ^ Buddha Boy Update: Ram Bahadur Bomjon Now Meditating in Pit. 28 March 2007
  11. ^ [1]
  12. ^ Ram Bahadur Bomjom, the Buddha Boy, Starts Preaching: Arrival of a Meditation Guru or a Religious Zealot?. 3 August 2007
  13. ^ Official Site of Ram Bahadur Bomjan
  14. ^ Adhikary, Dhruba; McDermid, Charles (November 15, 2008). "A Buddhist messiah in Maoist Nepal?". Asia Times Online (Asia Times Online (Holdings), Ltd.). http://www.atimes.com/atimes/South_Asia/JK15Df04.html. Retrieved on 25 November 2008. 
  15. ^ a b Nepal 'Buddha Boy' returns to jungle
  16. ^ GQ. The Incredible Buddha Boy
  17. ^ Nepalnews.com. The "Little Buddha" goes missing. 12 March 2006.
  18. ^ "The boy with Divine Powers". Discovery Channel. http://www.discoverychannel.com.au/ontv/boy_with_divine_powers/index.shtml. 
  19. ^ Reuters. Thousands flock to see Nepal's mystery "Buddha" boy. http://www.reuters.com/article/worldNews/idUSTRE4AA0XP20081111 Accessed 26 November 2008
  20. ^ gulfnews.com Thousands flock to see Nepal's 'Buddha' boy. http://www.gulfnews.com/world/Nepal/10258766.html Accessed 26 November 2008]
  21. ^ gmanews.tv/story, Buddha boy in Nepal re-emerges after a year

[edit] External links

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[edit] Articles on his disappearance

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