Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
Documentation of Oral Histories of Elderly Tibetans living in the Bylakuppe Tibetan Settlement
His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama has consistently emphasized the importance of documenting and preserving the experiential accounts of the elder generation. In pursuit of His far-sighted vision and guidance, a dedicated Oral History Department was created in 1976 within the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives. Since then, persistent efforts have been made to locate, record, study, and document oral histories of various elderly individuals on multiple subjects by the department. The recordings include invaluable oral narratives of both lay and ordained senior residents of Tibetan refugee communities across India, Nepal, and Bhutan. These rich collections of otherwise undocumented resources would have been irrecoverably lost had they not been recorded, documented, and published. So far, the department has brought out 55 publications covering various topics, all of which have been well received by the public.
Last time, with a generous grant from The Tibet Fund, a team of staff comprising an assistant editor, interviewers, a videographer, photographer, and technicians spent over three months locating, interviewing and recording the oral histories of more than eighty elderly individuals, including monastics and laypeople from the Mundgod Tibetan Settlement. Likewise, this year, the same team is being sent to the Bylakuppe Tibetan Settlement, which holds the largest Tibetan population in exile, to continue this important endeavor. Therefore, your support and assistance would be highly appreciated in realizing this important task.
THANK YOU
