Fashion, Culture and Tibetan Buddhism - Research Paper Example

? Fashion, Culture and Tibetan Buddhism Introduction “I speak through my clothes” — Umberto Eco (quoted in, Hebidge, 100) Within current prevailing socio-cultural and religious norms, fashion largely reflects an individual’s identity, attitude and beliefs, while acting a mode to communicate non-verbally. Fashion has varied purposes, wherein the wearer primarily uses it to cover the body, while at the same time, also uses it for satisfying “human needs and desires…[and fashion] may [also] function as a means of protection” (Buckley and Roach, 95). Culture and religion tend to have a strong relationship with fashion, and various researches have revealed the nature of their control, where the two factors often dictate (at both conscious and sub-conscious levels) type of clothes and accessories to be worn by members of the society (Ritzer, 25-43). In this context, the essay will study the relationship that exists between Tibetan Buddhism (its culture and religion) and fashion, while comparing it with Islam and its influence on fashion. Discussion Fashion, social identity and culture In the context of fashion and social identity, observations revealed that an individual interacts with fashion in a same manner he/she interacts with other people, thus using fashion to reveal what he/she wants to personify (Adelman, 735 – 739). The direct contact between the wearer and various fashion elements (such as, clothes and other accessories) help to establish a personal identity (Gronow, 89-100). Since fashion tends to portray the link between physical materials (such as, clothes and jewelry) and the wearer’s personal values, there is also a close connection between fashion and one’s self-perception. Fashion affects the wearer’s self-perception, thus acting like a filter, positioning itself between society and the wearer. Observations revealed that generally, physical bodies are viewed as social symbols, where female bodies form an important mechanism for preserving social and cultural traditions; wherein majority of the conservative religions tend to dictate stringent norms for female fashion (Fisher and Loren, 225 – 230). While establishing personal identities, fashion also helps in constructing social status and position, where it is presumed that fashion is a true reflection of the wearer’s self and lifestyle (Gibson, 39-50). The strict sociocultural rules governing fashions are often visible as laws of the land that force people (primarily women) to follow rigid social standards in the context of clothing, and often giving rise to a social tension between conformists and dissidents (Voss, 405-407). In such instances, it is evident that culture plays a dominating role and fashion becomes a strong tool in hands of the conservatives, which is used for gender subjugation and social control, a condition prevalent in the Islamic countries. On the other hand, social dissidents also use fashion to symbolize their breakaway from rigid socio-cultural and religious norms. Therefore, fashion is closely related to different aspects of the culture and society from which it originates and subsequently represents. Tibetan history, culture and fashion Tibetan culture has evolved through the influence of various external factors. Tibet had established trade connections with India and China from the ancient times, and these two countries have produced a significant effect on its cultural development. Tibet’s inaccessibility, owing to its remote location, has however helped to preserve certain local influences that make it stand apart from both India and China. In terms of religion, Buddhism has a strong influence on the socio-cultural aspects of Tibet, since its introduction in the country as early as the seventh century. Music, literature, art, clothing and almost all aspects of the Tibetan life strongly reflect presence of Buddhist values and beliefs. In Tibet, Buddhism has developed its own unique form, which adopted the Bon cultural tradition, interspersed with various local beliefs. According to historical records, Guru Rinpoche introduced the tradition of Bon within Tibetan Buddhism (Tenzin, 33). Owing to China’s forceful occupation of Tibet and the subsequent fleeing of many Tibetans, their worldwide dispersal has helped in spread of the Tibetan form of Buddhism to the developed nations, where it has gained wide scale popularity (PewResearch, 2013). The 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet currently heads the Tibetan Buddhism and the number of followers are estimated around 350 million (Buddhist Studies, 2008). Following the norms as prescribed in the religious scriptures, the Tibetans tend to be conservative in their fashion. While the young have recently started wearing western wear, traditional clothes remain widely in fashion. Andre Migot in the book Tibetan Marches gives a very detailed account of the traditional clothes of the Tibetans. “Except for the lamas…who shave their heads, the Tibetans wear their hair either long or in a braid wound around their heads and embellished with a complicated pattern of lesser braids which make the whole thing look like some sort of crown. They often wear a huge conical felt hat, whose shape varies according to the district they come from…In their left ear they wear a heavy silver ring decorated with a huge ornament of either coral or turquoise…Their costume is not elaborate. It normally consists only of a chuba, a long capacious robe with wide, elongated sleeves, which hang almost to the ground. A woolen girdle catches this up at the waist, so that its skirts reach only to the knees and its upper folds form an enormous circular pocket round its wearer's chest. This is called the ampa…Many chubas are made of wool, either the plain grey wool they spin… or the splendid, warm, soft stuff from Lhasa, dyed a rich dark red. The nomads, on the other hand, generally wear a sheepskin chuba, hand-sewn and crudely tanned in butter, with the fleece on the inside. The town-dwelling Tibetans, prosperous merchants for the most part, supplement this garment with cotton or woolen drawers and a cotton or silk undershirt with long sleeves…” (84-86). This traditional fashion is still popular, even in the current times (fig 5). Tibetan women wear dresses that comprise of dark wraps over a blouse, and married women wear colorful striped aprons, accompanied by heavy jewelry. Long sleeves remain in fashion throughout the year, even during summer. Goncha is the standard dress for both the genders, and it is derived from the chuba, designed to face the harsh winter months (figures 1-4). Besides these, another common form of clothes, widely prevalent amongst the Tibetans, are the yellow and red robes, worn by Buddhist monks (figures 6-7). While higher incomes and varying lifestyles have some degree of influence on Tibetan fashion, it remains limited to the nature of fabric and jewelry used by the wearer; Tibetan dresses are more fashioned for suiting their harsh and cold environment. Being predominantly Buddhists, the Tibetan society lacks class segmentation seen within Hinduism. Their class division is based primarily on economic conditions, hence the more uniformity in dresses than is observed amongst the Hindus. Islam, which has a strong influence on the clothes of its adherents, is also a conservative religion, and prescribes modesty. However, unlike Tibetan Buddhism, Islam prescribes complete covering of the women’s body to avoid male attention. The Quran states, “And say to the believing women that they should lower their gaze and guard their modesty; that they should not display their beauty and ornaments except what (must ordinarily) appear thereof; that they should draw their veils over their bosoms and not display their beauty except to their husbands, their fathers, their husbands' fathers, their sons, their husbands' sons...If the woman reaches the age of puberty, no part of her body should be seen” (Badawi, 4-5). Similar covering of the body is also prescribed for Muslim men, though there are no recommendations for hiding their faces with a veil. Tibetan fashion wear comprises of an array of colorful clothes (without any social or religious norms that ask women to be veiled), and heavy jewelry, often worn by both women and men, which is in direct contrast to Islamic fashion as dictated by the Quran. Fig 1 Fig 2 Fig 3 Fig 4 Fig 1-4: Traditional Tibetan clothing (Traditional costume of Tibet, 2012) Fig 5: Modern Tibetan fashion show which adheres to the traditional Tibetan Buddhist wear (The Tibet Post, 2010). Fig 6: yellow robes of Tibetan Buddhist monks (picture downloaded from the Internet) Fig 7: Red robes of the Buddhist monks (picture downloaded from internet) Conclusion Tibetan Buddhism has a strong influence on sociocultural aspects of the Tibetans, which in turn has shaped the community’s sense of fashion that tends to be conservative in nature, without being ultra-conservative as in Islam. While the young members have adopted modern western wear to some extent, traditional wear remains more popular amongst the Tibetan Buddhists even to this day. References Adelman, ?. “Reviews: Gender Matters: Malcolm Barnard, ed., Fashion Theory: A Reader.” International Sociology 23, 735 – 739, 2008. Print. Badawi, J. Women & Men Dress In Islam. 1976, Web. 25th November 2013, http://www.icmtn.org/forms/women_dress.pdf Buckley, H., and Roach, M. “Clothing as a Nonverbal Communicator of Social and Political Attitudes.” Family and Consumer Sciences Research Journal 3, 1974, 94-102. Print. Buddhist studies. Number of Buddhists worldwide. 2008. Web. 25th November 2013. http://www.buddhanet.net/e-learning/history/bud_statwrld.htm Gibson, P. Fashion and celebrity culture. London: Berg, 2012. Print. Gronow, J. “Taste and fashion: the social function of fashion and style.” Acta Sociologica 36, 89-100, 1993. Print. Hebdige, U. Subculture, the Meaning of Style. London: Taylor & Francis, 1979. Print. Heinrich, H. Seven Years in Tibet. Translated by Richard Graves. NY: First Impressions, 1997. Print. Fisher, G., and Loren, D. “Embodying Identity in Archaeology: Introduction.” Cambridge Archaeological Journal 13, 225 – 230, 2003. Print.  Migot, A.  Tibetan Marches (translated by Peter Fleming). NY: E. P. Dutton & Co., Inc., 1955. Print. PewResearch. Religious Landscape Survey- report. 2013, Web. 25th November 2013 http://religions.pewforum.org/reports Ritzer, G. Modern Sociological Theory (7th ed.). New York: McGraw–Hill, 2007. Print. Tenzin, R. Healing with Form, Energy, and Light. Ithaca, New York: Snow Lion Publications, 2002. Print. Voss, ?. “Poor People in Silk Shirts: Dress and Ethnogenesis in Spanish Colonial San Francisco.” Journal of Social Archaeology 8, 404 – 432, 2008. Print. pic 1-4: Traditional Tibetan clothing Traditional costume of Tibet, Local fashion, 2013, web, 25th November 2013 http://local-moda.blogspot.in/2012/10/traditional-costume-of-tibet.html pic 5: Modern Tibetan fashion show which adheres to the traditional Tibetan Buddhist wear The Tibet Post. Modern Tibetan Fashion Keeps Traditional Values. 2010 Web, 24th November 2013, http://www.thetibetpost.com/en/news/exile/1224-modern-tibetan-fashion-keeps-traditional-values Pic 6: Tibetan Buddhist monks in traditional yellow robes http://www.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://topnews.in/law/files/buddhist-monks_0.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.topnews.in/law/buddhist-monks-india-pray-quake-victims-255133&h=396&w=594&sz=77&tbnid=v35ylcMytda6DM:&tbnh=118&tbnw=177&zoom=1&usg=__WxMFk454cl5VW_-Np7Fw-LGl2aM=&docid=k-VhEawYh8fYKM&sa=X&ei=TuaVUoa_AYeLrQeVxICIDw&ved=0CFEQ9QEwCA Pic 7: Tibetan Buddhist monks in traditional red robes http://www.google.co.in/imgres?imgurl=http://www.buddhistedu.org/en/images/stories/buddhist%2520monk.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.buddhistedu.org/en/buddhist-study/questions-and-answers/5-questions-and-answers-about-the-shangha-buddhist-monks&h=357&w=500&sz=128&tbnid=3O_ZiyVsXSl8IM:&tbnh=133&tbnw=186&zoom=1&usg=__CtnUmOjZZ4N7qOZhf3FOsKX7ZhQ=&docid=K-yFOCnyxtNA9M&sa=X&ei=TuaVUoa_AYeLrQeVxICIDw&ved=0CE0Q9QEwBg Read More