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Ram Bahadur Bomjon
Palden Dorje in
meditation. Ram Bahadur Bomjon (born May 9,
1989, sometimes
Bomjan or Banjan), also known as Palden Dorje (his official Buddhist
name), is a young Buddhist monk from Ratanapuri village, Bara
district, Nepal
who drew thousands of visitors and media attention for spending months in meditation,
allegedly without
food or water, although this claim is widely contested. Nicknamed the Buddha
Boy, he began his meditation on May 16, 2005, and went
missing on March
11, 2006. His
present whereabouts are unknown. He was accepted into the
priesthood by Sombahadur Lama of Suhdha, Ward 8 of Chhatiwan Village
Development Committee. He hesitated to shave his head as is typical for a
Buddhist priest; photos show him with a full head of hair. At the end of his
training his class went to Lumbini, birthplace of Gautama Buddha, but instead of
returning directly home with the rest of his class he continued on to Dehradun to
receive additional teaching. Returning home from Dehradun,
he became ill for some time, and when he recovered he walked with a limp. On May 16, 2005, he admonished
his family to not kill animals or drink alcohol, then left home while they
slept. A search was conducted and he was found meditating under a nearby pipal
tree. He told his family to go home and not worry. When his mother continued
to despair, he plucked six leaves from the tree and gave them to her, saying,
"Take these leaves home and keep them in a safe condition. If you lose
these leaves, you will not be able to find me. If you keep them safe, I will
remain with you forever." On July 24, 2005, he opened his
eyes to tell his brother to call him "Om Namo Buddha Gyani"
("salute to the wise Buddha". The phrase Buddha Gyani might not
mean wise Buddha as much "one who has knowledge (gyan) of Buddha"). Bomjon's story gained
popularity because it resembled a Buddhist legend from the Jataka Nidanakatha about Gautama
Buddha's enlightenment,
so much so that some devotees claimed Ram was the reincarnation of the Buddha. However,
on November
8, 2005 Dorje
arose and said to the public, "Tell the people not to call me a Buddha.
I don't have the Buddha's energy. I am at the level of rinpoche."
He said that he will need six more years of meditation before he may become
one. The boy's hometown filled with tourists from throughout Nepal, and
international visitors, every day. According to his followers,
Bomjon could be a Bodhisattva, a person on the path to attaining full
enlightenment. According to the historical Buddha, Gautama
Buddha, there were twenty seven forms of Buddha before him. Proponents
claim that Bomjon could also be the incarnation of Maitreya Bodhisattva,
the predicted successor to Sakyamuni. It is reported that his
mother fainted when she found out that her son meditated for an undefined
period of time. His mother's name is Maya Devi Tamang, the same first name as
Buddha's
mother. Prayer
flags have been raised throughout the pipal grove. Bomjon
is visible right under the Pipal tree. An average human being who
stops drinking will die of dehydration in three to four days. According to the Guinness Book of Records the longest
time a human has survived without water is 18 days. The boy's followers
claimed the boy went for several months without drinking any water.[1]
Skeptics considered Bomjon's purported ability to survive without food or
water an elaborate hoax,[2]
while Nepalese security sources claimed that the money collected from
tourists went to Maoist rebels. The boy's
handlers denied such charges.[3] Bomjon was observed not to
leave the tree at least during the daytime, but nobody was allowed to
approach him too closely. Between 5:00 p.m. and 5:00 a.m. nobody was allowed
to see him, and a screen was erected for that purpose. Many people speculated
that he ate and drank during that time. Some supporters believed
that, even if Ram did eat and drink at nighttime, the ability to sit nearly
motionless in the same position day after day, with no regard for extremes of
weather including a cold winter and a monsoon season, is notable. Bomjon's
local supporters claimed that the money donated by visitors is used to
provide security and assert that he meditates all night, although these claims
are highly suspect due to the opportunities for financial gain. In addition
to an entrance fee, books, pamphlets, and cassettes have all been sold
promoting Ram as a new Buddha.[4] In December 2005, a
nine-member government committee led by Gunjaman Lama watched Bomjon
carefully for 48 hours and observed him not to take any food or water during
that time. A video recording was also made of this test. However, they were
unable to approach closer than 3 meters or take readings of his vital signs.
A group of rationalist physicians tried to conduct an independent study but
were prevented from doing so by the screen erected at night.[5] The
Nepalese government planned a more careful scientific study but this plan was
later scrapped. Bomjon, after about ten
months of meditation, went missing on March 11, 2006. It is unclear
whether or not he voluntarily left for the local jungles or was abducted.
Some believe he ventured farther into the jungle to seek a more serene place
for intensive meditation. There is an ongoing investigation.[6] Police
abandoned the search after the possibility of foul play was eliminated.
Interestingly, the authorities froze the bank account of the local committee
managing the crowds, which had now gathered more than Rs. 600,000.[7] On March 19, the Chairman of
the Om Namo Buddha Tapaswi Sewa Samiti (ONBTSS), Bed Bahadur Lama, and his
colleagues allegedly met with Bomjan about 2 miles (3 kilometers) south-west
of his meditation site. They say they spoke to him for thirty-minutes, during
which Bomjan said "there is no peace here" and that he would return
in six years, or roughly 2011 or 2012. He left a message for his parents telling them not to
worry. He has not been seen nor heard from since.[8][9] |
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