Les rituels collectifs au Nepal central sont etroitement lies aux structures politiques. L'ar... more Les rituels collectifs au Nepal central sont etroitement lies aux structures politiques. L'article s'attache a decrire comment ils sont mis en adequation avec les reformes, tout en assurant un role conservateur contraire a celles-ci, en renforcant l'exclusion des femmes et des groupes impurs au moment meme ou ceux-ci entrent pleinement dans la politique. Ces instrumentalisations montrent clairement les strategies operees par le lignage fondateur du chef et l'etroite imbrication de trois niveaux de realite que le rituel vient lier. Les rituels du maitre de maison reproduisent en miniature le culte villageois qui lui-meme s'avere etre une replique du modele royal local, de telle facon que l'ensemble fait penser a une structure fractale.
Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Asian History, 2016
Within the study of the modern period of Nepali history, history is considered here both as a nar... more Within the study of the modern period of Nepali history, history is considered here both as a narrative with its internal logic, notably the periodization of history produced by Nepali historians, as well as a series of statements, events, regulations, etc., which are incorporated in this narrative. Periodization of history in Nepal establishes a direct and necessary link between modern Nepal and its national territory. Indeed, the beginning of the modern era is determined by the “unification” of the fifty independent kingdoms and tribal territories that gave birth to the anational territory of Nepal during the second half of the 18th century. Such a correspondence makes modernity and the unified territory of Nepal coincide in a single space time. Yet, a closer examination of the logic behind periodization sheds light on its Kathmandu-centric, and dynastic perspective. This resulted in the formation of a hybrid conception of the national territory and of its center of power. From be...
The fact that prisoners are absentees in the few studies devoted to the prison life in Nepal (and... more The fact that prisoners are absentees in the few studies devoted to the prison life in Nepal (and to a lesser extent in India) 1 is no doubt related to the difficulty of conducting inquiries in such a context, which strongly limits our understanding of prisons. This article seeks to portray the functioning of prisons in Nepal from the inside, through the inmates' narratives. It addresses the prison's inner organisation and the role of 'convict officers'. It is based on a study conducted in 2012 and 2013 with convicted male and female inmates belonging to different castes as well as the discussions with the staff of the prison administration, the prison directors and the police.
The fi xed fi gures of kingship expressed in the rituals, and the fl exible event-and actor-base... more The fi xed fi gures of kingship expressed in the rituals, and the fl exible event-and actor-based depictions presented in the " royal " narratives off er two contrasting portrayals of kingship in Nepal. We aim at outlining their internal dynamics, starting with the centralisation of the state (late-18th–mid-19th centuries), through the examination of the major royal ritual and the analysis of a royal chronicle. At the centre of these two realities of the kingdom stands the person of the king. In each confi guration, his puzzling position at the crossroads of several identities raises questions about the agency of this polymorphous personage in the functioning of the kingdom. This exploration will lead us to fi nally address the gradual simplifi cation of the fi gure of the king over time, which culminated in the straightforward and opposite statements foreshadowing his end, as either an incarnation of Vishnu or as an anachronistic authoritarian and demonic being.
The relationship between a bard and his patron in western Nepal links individuals situated at opp... more The relationship between a bard and his patron in western Nepal links individuals situated at opposite extremes of the social hierarchy within the caste organization. At first sight their relationship is totally foreign to those in modern Western societies as described by Pierre Bourdieu. For Bourdieu, authoritative speech emanates from persons in a higher social position, which is bestowed to them by the tacit mandate of a group for which they serve as the mouthpiece. 1 To summarize, verbal communication directly reflects and reproduces the sociopolitical order. In the Himalayan bard/patron relationship, on the other hand, we are confronted with a paradoxical situation wherein the superior delegates the authority to speak in public to an inferior. This reverse transmission of the authority to speak, as puzzling as it may appear, was not uncommon in Medieval Europe, for instance, between the king and his jester. Openly contrary to the established order, the relationships involved in these cases are necessarily ritualized and highly regulated. They therefore call for a contextual approach in order to examine them and the rules that condition them, and make them acceptable. Yet studies dealing with comparable, yet defunct practices often lack the information necessary to undertake a detailed contextual approach and easily reconcile their paradoxical or contradictory elements, such as the two opposite depictions of the ancient Greek bard, as a prestigious poet on the one hand, and as a poor wanderer on the other. The perpetuation of a fully oral bardic tradition, as well as its specific social setting in western Nepal, thus presents a rare opportunity to examine in all its complexity one such " reverse " relationship of authority within its context of enunciation and its wider social context. Such a configuration makes possible an ethnography of the conditions framing ritualized speech, 2 which obeys a greater variety of rules than the ordinary communication Bourdieu describes. In particular, it sheds light on the ambiguity of the role and position of oral poetry with regard to the sociopolitical order, an ambiguity that is widely attested in through time periods and across geopolitical boundaries, starting with Plato rejecting Homer from the ideal city. Oral Tradition, 30/2 (2016):211-242 1 See, in particular, " Le langage autorisé " (Bourdieu 1975). 2 Though the gods are invited by the bard to attend the epic performance, the latter is not a religious ritual, and it is even said that it should not be performed in the vicinity of a temple, hence my use of " ritualized speech " instead of " ritual speech. "
Les rituels collectifs au Nepal central sont etroitement lies aux structures politiques. L'ar... more Les rituels collectifs au Nepal central sont etroitement lies aux structures politiques. L'article s'attache a decrire comment ils sont mis en adequation avec les reformes, tout en assurant un role conservateur contraire a celles-ci, en renforcant l'exclusion des femmes et des groupes impurs au moment meme ou ceux-ci entrent pleinement dans la politique. Ces instrumentalisations montrent clairement les strategies operees par le lignage fondateur du chef et l'etroite imbrication de trois niveaux de realite que le rituel vient lier. Les rituels du maitre de maison reproduisent en miniature le culte villageois qui lui-meme s'avere etre une replique du modele royal local, de telle facon que l'ensemble fait penser a une structure fractale.
Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Asian History, 2016
Within the study of the modern period of Nepali history, history is considered here both as a nar... more Within the study of the modern period of Nepali history, history is considered here both as a narrative with its internal logic, notably the periodization of history produced by Nepali historians, as well as a series of statements, events, regulations, etc., which are incorporated in this narrative. Periodization of history in Nepal establishes a direct and necessary link between modern Nepal and its national territory. Indeed, the beginning of the modern era is determined by the “unification” of the fifty independent kingdoms and tribal territories that gave birth to the anational territory of Nepal during the second half of the 18th century. Such a correspondence makes modernity and the unified territory of Nepal coincide in a single space time. Yet, a closer examination of the logic behind periodization sheds light on its Kathmandu-centric, and dynastic perspective. This resulted in the formation of a hybrid conception of the national territory and of its center of power. From be...
The fact that prisoners are absentees in the few studies devoted to the prison life in Nepal (and... more The fact that prisoners are absentees in the few studies devoted to the prison life in Nepal (and to a lesser extent in India) 1 is no doubt related to the difficulty of conducting inquiries in such a context, which strongly limits our understanding of prisons. This article seeks to portray the functioning of prisons in Nepal from the inside, through the inmates' narratives. It addresses the prison's inner organisation and the role of 'convict officers'. It is based on a study conducted in 2012 and 2013 with convicted male and female inmates belonging to different castes as well as the discussions with the staff of the prison administration, the prison directors and the police.
The fi xed fi gures of kingship expressed in the rituals, and the fl exible event-and actor-base... more The fi xed fi gures of kingship expressed in the rituals, and the fl exible event-and actor-based depictions presented in the " royal " narratives off er two contrasting portrayals of kingship in Nepal. We aim at outlining their internal dynamics, starting with the centralisation of the state (late-18th–mid-19th centuries), through the examination of the major royal ritual and the analysis of a royal chronicle. At the centre of these two realities of the kingdom stands the person of the king. In each confi guration, his puzzling position at the crossroads of several identities raises questions about the agency of this polymorphous personage in the functioning of the kingdom. This exploration will lead us to fi nally address the gradual simplifi cation of the fi gure of the king over time, which culminated in the straightforward and opposite statements foreshadowing his end, as either an incarnation of Vishnu or as an anachronistic authoritarian and demonic being.
The relationship between a bard and his patron in western Nepal links individuals situated at opp... more The relationship between a bard and his patron in western Nepal links individuals situated at opposite extremes of the social hierarchy within the caste organization. At first sight their relationship is totally foreign to those in modern Western societies as described by Pierre Bourdieu. For Bourdieu, authoritative speech emanates from persons in a higher social position, which is bestowed to them by the tacit mandate of a group for which they serve as the mouthpiece. 1 To summarize, verbal communication directly reflects and reproduces the sociopolitical order. In the Himalayan bard/patron relationship, on the other hand, we are confronted with a paradoxical situation wherein the superior delegates the authority to speak in public to an inferior. This reverse transmission of the authority to speak, as puzzling as it may appear, was not uncommon in Medieval Europe, for instance, between the king and his jester. Openly contrary to the established order, the relationships involved in these cases are necessarily ritualized and highly regulated. They therefore call for a contextual approach in order to examine them and the rules that condition them, and make them acceptable. Yet studies dealing with comparable, yet defunct practices often lack the information necessary to undertake a detailed contextual approach and easily reconcile their paradoxical or contradictory elements, such as the two opposite depictions of the ancient Greek bard, as a prestigious poet on the one hand, and as a poor wanderer on the other. The perpetuation of a fully oral bardic tradition, as well as its specific social setting in western Nepal, thus presents a rare opportunity to examine in all its complexity one such " reverse " relationship of authority within its context of enunciation and its wider social context. Such a configuration makes possible an ethnography of the conditions framing ritualized speech, 2 which obeys a greater variety of rules than the ordinary communication Bourdieu describes. In particular, it sheds light on the ambiguity of the role and position of oral poetry with regard to the sociopolitical order, an ambiguity that is widely attested in through time periods and across geopolitical boundaries, starting with Plato rejecting Homer from the ideal city. Oral Tradition, 30/2 (2016):211-242 1 See, in particular, " Le langage autorisé " (Bourdieu 1975). 2 Though the gods are invited by the bard to attend the epic performance, the latter is not a religious ritual, and it is even said that it should not be performed in the vicinity of a temple, hence my use of " ritualized speech " instead of " ritual speech. "
Paper presented at the Deleuze and Guattari International Conference: "Contemporary Communication... more Paper presented at the Deleuze and Guattari International Conference: "Contemporary Communication Cultures, Controls and Becomings", University of Madras, Chennai, India, 14-17 February 2018.
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