INTRODUCTION
From a research methodology perspective, this short essay shows how narrative can illuminate a particular form of Mongolian women’s contribution to revitalising their spiritual traditions and practices. A framework for mapping these contributions appears at the end of the article. The pseudonyms originally assigned to participants have been retained, and the women’s own words appear in italics.
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THE KITCHEN-HOUSE
Yesterday evening I was in Narantsetseg’s house. We were having fun there! Narantseteg’s kitchen-house at the monastery is the central hub of activity for all her women friends as well as the lams and anyone else who comes to the monastery for other reasons. This is everyone’s first point of call, the place where someone should go for help, advice, or information.
Whilst so many others do come and go, this remains the primary venue for the ‘women’s circle’ where, whilst vegetables (mainly onions, potatoes, cabbage and carrots) are endlessly chopped, conversations about anything and everything and everyone continue unabated, except of course when the Abbot or another senior visiting prelate happens to pop in.
Whilst Jijig emee (Mong. for ‘little lady’) was doing her prostrations, she remembered one old story and started telling us, “In the early days there was one man who, whilst prostrating to his protector, got the idea to slaughter his big, red bull.” Then Narantsetseg laughed at her and said, ‘You are not prostrating properly anymore either are you?’ We all laughed.
Over many years, I have come to understand that Jijig emee is an absolutely devout practitioner of her faith. She also becomes somewhat eccentric, deviating from conventional behaviour, frequently and particularly when in the company of these, her female friends. Now well into her 80s, the stories she tells are always colourful and require a closer reading after the telling due to their content. These are not an old woman’s ramblings. Her mind remains as sharp as a tack!
I do not claim to understand all of jijig emee’s own stories. However, what I can say is that she takes great delight in telling these. Some are incredibly long. Others are quick plays that extend and bend conventional Buddhist practices and take the listener, through the use of unexpected imagery, to unexpected places, and at times even unexpected insights into the human condition. She told us another story, about one man who took a 100 tugrik bill and put it in his mouth and held it there with his lips whilst he continued to do hundreds of prostrations.
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What do you think is the mode of contribution described in this short essay?
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Source: Edited extract from Pleteshner, C. (2011). Nomadic Temple: Daughters of Tsongkhapa in Mongolia (Unpublished manuscript). The Zava Damdin Sutra and Scripture Institute Library Archive in the Manjushri Temple, Soyombot Oron, Mongolia), pp167-168.
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Acknowledgements
During my post-graduate studies at Victoria University in Melbourne I was introduced to the strategy of writing short stories as a way of presenting ethnographic qualitative research data by Dr Mark Stevenson. This article is an example of such an approach.
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FURTHER READING
Landscape 09: Modes of Contribution
Vignette 06: What’s in a Name?
Letters from Mongolia: an overview
end of transcript.
Please refer to the INDEX for other articles that may be of interest.
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© 2013-2025. CP in Mongolia. “Letter from Mongolia 02: the Kitchen-house” is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. Documents linked from this page may be subject to other restrictions. Posted: 15 April 2024. Last updated: 15 August 2026. |