A big thing just happened over here. I have never seen the monks so angry. Some of them are threatening violence — or, I should say, threatening that others should do violence — while others are just shaking their heads in shame and sadness. Two of them are refusing to work with me any longer.

What happened?

A Tibetan scholar in the west who was once a Bönpo geshé published a book in English 30 years ago. This book questioned some of the basic beliefs of Bön, claiming that its founder was a normal guy who lived 1500 years ago instead of a divine figure who came to earth 18,000 years ago. It claimed that this normal guy couldn’t have written the canonical texts attributed to him. And so on.

This controversial book was recently translated into Tibetan and just arrived at the monastery. The monks had heard rumors about this book and this scholar but could never read his work for themselves. Now that they have, they feel the foundations of their tradition buckling and fear the polemical landslide from Buddhists and others who will say, “You see? Even your own Bönpo geshé is saying you’re phonies!”

I spoke to His Holiness about this and about these monks, and he pointed to his temple, shut his eyes tightly, and bellowed, “Orth-o-dox!”

There may be teachings about the danger of clinging to things — even or especially to the teachings themselves — but such an intellectual overlay has a hard time containing the emotional upwelling of a lifetime of faith and belief.

In any event, the scholar is set to arrive here the day after tomorrow to give a talk and answer questions. I hope he knows what he’s up against. I’m sure he does.