Aama in America : A Pilgrimage of the Heart by Broughton Coburn (Anchor Books)

Vishnu Maya Garung is an eighty-four-year-old Gurung woman from Nepal. Everyone in her village calls her “Aama” which is the Nepali word for “mother”. Author Broughton Coburn lived and worked in Nepal and the Himalayas for nearly twenty years. First as a Peace Corp volunteer teacher, then as an overseer for rural development and wildlife conservation projects for the United Nations and other agencies.

It was when Coburn lived in Nepal as a teacher that he met Vishnu Maya Garung (Aama). When he met her, Aama was a widow in her seventies. Coburn moved into a loft above a water buffalo shed that was owned by her. Aama became his landlady, and from these humble beginnings a friendship would form. Aama treated Coburn like her own son. Coburn says she saw him as a “dharma son, the male offspring she had never given birth to, sent from the heavens by the deities to be spiritually adopted”.  Coburn immediately felt a close bond to Aama as he had recently lost his own mother. 

He wrote a book about living with Aama and working and traveling with her throughout Nepal. The book was titled Nepali Aama : Portrait of a Nepalese Hill Woman, originally published by Moon Travel Handbooks in 1991. A new version was published in 2000 by Nirmal Kumar Khan with the subtitle being changed to Life Lessons of  a Himalayan Woman. 

While working in Nepal, Coburn met a woman from the U.S. who had also been working in the country for more than ten years before they met. They soon dated and became a couple. After living together for four years, they decided to travel the U.S. together to see if they were as compatible as they had been while living in Nepal. However, Coburn wanted to see one more person before leaving the country. 

It had been two years since Coburn visited Aama. He went to see her with his girlfriend Didi in tow. Didi was well aware of Coburn’s relationship with Aama and was looking forward to meeting Aama as well. Aama would be well into her mid-eighties by now. When Aama saw Did, she said to Broughton, “You’ve brought me a daughter-in-law”.

Relieved at finding Aama still alive and healthy, on an impulse, Broughton said, “Aama, how would you like to go to America with us?”. Aama’s only daughter, Sun Maya was the first to react. She looked at the two foreigners and just laughed, imagining her eighty-four year old mother in a land where she doesn’t know anybody or speak the language. Even Didi thought they should discuss it further.

Aama surprised all of them by answering, “Why wouldn’t I want to go? Why wouldn’t I want to see my dharma son’s and daughter-in-law’s home and meet their relatives?” And with those words, the preparation of taking Aama to the U.S. begins. 

Their travels throughout the U.S. resulted in Aama in America. The three unlikely travel companions spent time in Seattle, Washington - the start of their twenty-state tour of America. Aama is very spiritual and often questions why Americans don’t worship any deities or say prayers for their good fortune. 

Every natural wonder she sees - the redwood trees in California, the Pacific Ocean, the famous geyser, Old Faithful in Yellowstone National Park, she is awed by and makes a prayer for each place. Coburn and Didi also take her to the “World’s Most Happiest Place” - Disneyland. 

Every experience she has - the places she sees, the people she meets, things we take for granted, are all given special attention. At times humorous and at times a bit frustrating as Coburn and Didi are often scolded about their lack of spirituality. 

While mostly a travel journal of an extraordinary trip, Aama in America is also a very spiritual narrative. As the subtitle suggests, it really is A Pilgrimage of the Heart. However, this pilgrimage wasn’t only made by Aama, it was also a pilgrimage for the author himself who still had unresolved issues concerning his mother’s death, his relationship with Didi, and of course his bond with Aama. The trip may have been an unforgettable journey for Aama and is a story you will not likely forget as well. ~Ernie Hoyt

Ayo Gorkhali by Tim I. Gurung (Blacksmith Books)

There is no such word as Gurkha in Nepal. A corruption of Ghorka, coined by the British, it would never have come into existence were it not for England’s Great Game and the British East India Company’s desire to control trade routes into Tibet. The barrier to this goal was the Gorkhali Army of the powerful kingdom of Gorkha, a state that had conquered Sikkim, ruled over much of what is now Nepal, and controlled almost all of India’s northern regions.  

In the first battle between these two forces, 2,400 British soldiers were defeated by 1,400 Gorkhas. Over half of the British troops were killed by soldiers crying “Ayo Gorkhali” (“The Gorkhas are upon you!”), and brandishing their fearsome knives, the khukuri, (corrupted into kukri), with the aid of villagers who came armed with bows and arrows, nettles, and active hornet nests.  It took almost fifty years and an army of 50,000 for the British to finally defeat 14,000 Ghorka soldiers. 

Being no fools, the British Army was eager to bring fighters of this caliber into its ranks, “which took the sting out of the Gorkhali Army and made Nepal “a toothless tiger.” From that time on, “the youth and able men” of that country were served up to Great Britain, depleting the power of Nepal on many levels. 

From the Sepoy Mutiny up through both World Wars and beyond, the Gorkhali became the legendary Gurkhas, brave, fierce, and, to the British, expendable. They led the other soldiers into battle, after being given lashings of rum by their commanders to boost their courage, and, with their kukris, were the ones sent to “clear the ground at the end” in hand-to-hand combat. Many among what was popularly known as the “Gurkha Legion” received Victoria Crosses for bravery, but when they were forced to retire at the age of 35, they were sent back to Nepal without military pensions, regardless of the injuries and honors they carried with them. 

“Each little Gurk might be worth his weight in gold,” General Ian Hamilton said during World War One, but his assessment wasn’t reflected in the way the Gurkhas were paid. Even in the 1960s, when the Gurkhas were stationed in Hong Kong, they received $42 dollars a month compared to the $450 paid to their British counterparts. They were cheap, dispensable, and handicapped by the virtues instilled in them by their culture. The Gurkhas were taught from birth that honor, respect, and loyalty were essential; their motto was “Better to die than be a coward.” And die they did. Over 60,000 Gurkhas were killed, wounded, or listed among the missing in action during the two World Wars.

The ones who were wounded placed a terrible burden upon the country of Nepal, both on social and economic grounds. Men who had been given two choices in life, to farm or to fight, came back to the farms broken by war. Gone by the age of 18, back at 35, generations of Gorkhali men became burdens, uncompensated in any way by the country that had exploited them.

It wasn’t until 1969 that private funds established the Gurkha Welfare Trust “to alleviate poverty and distress among Gurkha veterans and their families,” 154 years after the Gurkhas had been made part of the British Army. And only in 2009 did Great Britain allow the Gurkhas “right of abode.” Slowly and grudgingly the “debt of honor” owed to the Gurkhas is being repaid to a people who were “betrayed by their destiny.”

A former Gurkha himself, Gorkhali Tim Gurung presents an almost dauntingly detailed military history, a full and truthful picture that rewards persistent readers, leaving them to echo  his last words on the subject, “Jai Gurkhas!”~Janet Brown

Yak Butter Blues: A Tibetan Trek of Faith by Brandon Wilson (Pilgrim’s Tales)

Asia By the Book is delighted to be joined by reviewer and book omnivore, Ernie Hoyt, a bookseller for the past 21 years who continues to work in the industry in Tokyo. You can read more of Ernie's book reviews at Ern's Monthly Page Turners on his bilingual blog http://tokyoern.blogspot.com where he also shares his passion for eating in Tokyo and beyond

What's a couple to do after completing a journey from London to Cape Town during which they didn't end up killing each other in the process? To attempt what no other Western couple has done before. To walk the 1000-kilometer pilgrimage trail from Lhasa, Tibet to Katmandu, Nepal. However every travel agency they went to told them it was impossible, or out of the question, or that the Chinese government would never allow it. But those two words -– "can't" and "impossible"-- were just the catalysts needed for Wilson and his wife to make their trip a reality. This book recounts their odyssey.

After checking with a number of travel agencies and being told the same thing over and over again, "It can't be done", "That's impossible", they found a travel agent who was able to help them. Trekking in the Himalayas is no slice of cake, so they trained by climbing the mountains near Vail, Colorado. When all their necessary documents had been approved, they started their journey by flying to Lhasa. It was here where they got a firsthand look at the lives of the Tibetans and their struggle against oppression and prejudice. When the Wilsons discovered that walking this trail is forbidden to Tibetans, it only strengthened their resolve to accomplish their goal.

Their plan was to travel 35 kilometers a day and to reach Katmandu within a month. That plan was shattered after their first couple of days trekking. But instead of giving up or hiring transportation, the Wilsons went in search of buying a pack horse. It was as if they were given Herculean tasks that they would have to clear before reaching their next step. But with faith being their strongest bond, good fortune came upon them again. They found and bought a horse that was to be their companion. A Tibetan horse named Sadhu, which also happens to be the word for a "holy man". How is that for a good omen?

What started out as an adventure soon became a matter of survival. Armed with a dated and nearly useless map and their ever-present faith, they had to endure blizzards, sandstorms, high altitudes and being shot at by careless Chinese soldiers, who claimed they were shooting at birds -- for sport. They also had to worry about restocking provisions and feeding and resting their horse. The further they trekked from Lhasa, the villages became fewer and farther between and they found themselves having to rely on the kindness of strangers.

As they reached the border, they had only one concern -- would there be any trouble in taking their horse with them? Their dilemma was solved by not claiming anything when crossing the border and by not mentioning that they had a horse as a companion. As the border was quite crowded with a line of vehicles, the border guards virtually ignored them. They also unwittingly passed the Nepal Veterinary Checkpoint. Wilson and his wife might not be able to free Tibet from China, but they were able to free at least one Tibetan -- and that would be their constant companion, Sadhu.

This is an inspiring and unforgettable journey--you will be glad you made the trip.