PERILS OF HARBOURING ANTIQUES

 

Ap Phala (name changed) boasted of his aristocratic roots. He had every reason to do so, for his ancestors were not only landlords but also powerful warlords during the feudal system. As invited, one afternoon, I sat with him and his family over lunch. Right after the meal, he ushered me into his barka, a room next to his massive altar. There he showed me several antiques. Of all the items, a patah bèn (a Bhutanese sword) stood out. It caught my interest instantly. Not that it was an antique but because the host shelved it high and secure. 

When I paused to gaze unexpectedly longer, he said: "This sword went for a tour and came back only a year later". 

"How?" I asked, curiously. 

"Well, it was once stolen and returned to my house only a year later, by itself," he explained. 

"Really?"

He suspected one of his distant nephews but never could he produce enough evidence to charge him. Also, on second thought, if it was his kin, he did not want to embarrass him anyway. Eventually he gave up looking for it. 

Over a year passed and one night, in his wife's dream, a tall dark man dressed in black appeared. That man brought back the lost sword with a piece of advice: "Take care of your patah. I cannot look after it all the time." Before the daybreak, she narrated the dream to her husband. However, he didn't pay much heed.

Surprisingly and perhaps coincidentally, at dawn, he saw the lost sword lying on the threshold wrapped in clothes. 

"How is that possible?" The story goes like this. 

Months after his sword was lost, his primary suspect began to act weird. He was also seen going to hospital multiple times and later diagnosed with a psychological issue. In his house, rituals had to be performed every now and then. His nephew told his friends that he could barely sleep haunted by nightmares—dreams of bloody sword fights and getting himself injured. A couple of astrologers warned his family of a foreign antique that needed to be relinquished. However, they couldn't identify any object.

Since the day Ap Phala found his sword back, he had observed dramatic improvement in the suspect's health. He became psychologically stable and found indulging with his friends normally. There was peace.

One day Ap Phala deliberately asked the suspect if he needed a sword for the upcoming archery match 'chogda'. It is customary in Shaa region to wear patah during archery tournaments. 

He said his nephew refused immediately saying he didn't want his demon possessed antiques. 

Message: Ap Phala cautioned that people needed to be extra-careful while dealing with antiques, especially relics and religious instruments, even if they are legally inherited. Antiques, according to him, have shadow owners. They are possessed by the deities of a particular house and trading antiques off for money or misplacing the items could bring mishaps, illnesses and misfortunes to both buyers and sellers alike. Borrowers ought to return promptly.  

(A story from Shaa valley)

Pictures: Sword and scabbard, Heavenly Bhutan Travels; antiques, BBS; and war scene, Bhutan Heritage Tour.