Questions-Answers on Dawa in Tang (Chapter-9)

I do not know if this is kind of cheating or not, but I simply can’t help reproducing some of the answers from the pages of Damcho Tshering, a student’s notebook. We did all this before taking up one of my most favourite poems called “The Highwayman” by Alfred Noyes.

1.       What do you think would have happened if Dawa did not have the ability to understand human language?

Ans:  If Dawa did not have the ability to understand human language then he might not be alive right now as he learnt about the cave from the elderly couple talking about Gelong Ma Pemo and how she got cured of leprosy. Another thing is that he would not be educated, in terms of pure Dzongkha and the honorific terms that he had learnt about from Dampa. And his life would not be satisfactory like it is now and he could not have broadened his horizon visiting places, meeting dogs and so on.

2.       When Dawa had gone near the chorten, he saw dogs gathered along with the people. He saw people coming from all directions towards the meeting place (Kizom Bridge). Some of them were carrying babies on their backs, some walking along with their toddlers while all of them were carrying bags and baskets filled with the necessary edibles that they were asked to bring including ara. When all the people gathered together, children started playing and laughing, while the adults were having fun at each other’s expense. But after some time, the laughter became less frequent due to the hot summer day and all kept staring at the road hoping for Dasho’s vehicle to come. After a long wait, they saw a motorbike heading towards them and they thought that it might be the official. So they all stood up to greet him, but it was the Deputy who came. He directly went on to inform the gathering, without any apologies, that the meeting had been postponed due to the failure of a machine. Then there was an uneasy noise among the people and a young woman with a baby voiced a question which annoyed the official and he replied back quite rudely. They rushed back to their homes to have the meals and then off to the fields to protect their crops from the wild animals.

3.       What do you know about the meeting in Tang? Were they useful?

Ans:  The meetings in Tang were mostly about development in the field of electricity and other basic amenities. People from all the households in the villages attended the meeting with various edible items for the government officials and for themselves as well.

I think the meetings were quite useful as they were for the benefit of the villagers as everybody wants to live an advanced life, where there is no smoke and ample light. If the officials are serious about their promises, Tang was bound to develop very rapidly.

That took nearly one period. In the next class, we discussed seven more questions. The questions having been written on the board, they were to answer them in pairs. The questions were:

1.       Give two reasons why Dawa kept a safe distance from the two women?

Because of his previous experience of being rapped on the head with a stick by another elderly lady who thought she did not have enough strength left in her and apologized profusely to Dawa when he found it very painful.

2.       Why could not the second woman be sure if the message of the first woman was heard by the villagers or not?

She could not be sure as the water of the lake crashing against the Rimochen Cliff produced a loud sound making it impossible for her therefore, to hear the response of the villagers.

3.       How did Dawa obtain information about the cave?

Dawa met a big dog on the way, which was trotting behind a sheepherder driving his sheep back home. He cleverly introduced himself as a pilgrim and asked about the way to the cave. It was from this big dog that Dawa finally obtained information about the cave in Thowadrak, not very far from there.

4.       What announcements were made by the messenger woman?

Standing dangerously on the mound and cupping her mouth with her hands the woman announced about the Question- Answer-Meeting which was to be held the next day near the Kizom Bridge. The woman then proceeded to distinctly state the edible things that they were supposed to bring for the meetings. They included eggs, butter, cheese and chilli. The meeting was to be conducted by some Dashes, high-ranked government officials.

5.       Write about the people of Tang as depicted in the chapter.

Despite various natural and man-made hazards, the people of Tang are very resourceful and hardy. They believe in leading an uncomplicated life as evident from the way they behaved uncomplainingly and put up a cheerful appearance when the meeting was called off. They are also very loving and caring people.

6.       Do you think Dawa is a clever dog? Give two examples from the chapter in support of your answer.

Dawa, in my opinion, is definitely a very clever dog. There are numerous examples throughout the text to support my opinion. This is clear from the way he followed the two women without them being aware of his presence till he let out the bark regarding the confirmation of the announcement. The way he obtained information about the cave in Thowadrak also speaks volumes about his cleverness.

CHAPTER - 9.

Dawa realized that his talkative friend was right about Tang – It was indeed backward compared to Choekor. But the people were resourceful and managed to move on without some basic amenities like electricity and telephones. They could even communicate without telephones!

He crossed over many gorges and ridges. While passing through a village, he noticed two elderly women and decided to follow them from a distance. Soon one of them was standing on a mound dangerously as the other one, leaning on a stick, tried to keep her from falling down by lending her a hand.

Cupping her mouth with her hand, the first lady screamed out an announcement in a distinct and clear manner about the upcoming meeting on the next day to be conducted by a Dasho and the things like cheese, butter, eggs etc that they were supposed to bring along. Though she forgot to mention rice and salt, she knew that the villagers would not forget to bring them due to the frequent meetings being held. Both the women then went to a sunny spot near a chorten and tried to relax their weary limbs. Dawa observed them from a distance due to his earlier pathetic experience of being rapped on the head.

They talked and joked about the meetings and the questions the officials asked in the meetings. In this connection the more hopeful of the two women thought that most probably the next meeting would bring them electricity or a bridge. The announcer woman wondered then if her message was heard by the villagers or not. She even asked her companion who wasn’t sure because of the river water making a loud noise crashing against the cliff. Dawa who had heard the confirmation, got up and let out a bark trying to assure them that the message was clearly heard. The women noticed Dawa then and remarked how development was benefitting even the dogs.

Dawa thought it best to get away from them at the way they laughed and slapped each other on their backs quite hard. As he walked up the valley he realized that there was no need for the women to be worried as their message was being conveyed across the river, in the fields and even in the meadows on the slopes. Someone while passing the message not only reminded about the rice and salt but also added a bottle or ara to be taken to the meeting.

He soon ran into a big dog trotting behind a sheepherder driving his sheep back home. Very cleverly he obtained information about the cave from him. The cave located in Thowadrak, could even be seen as a white spec at a distance.

Dawa decided not to leave the next morning. Being curious by nature, he wanted to find out more about human meeting and how they were different from dog meetings in Thimphu. Next morning as he sat near the chorten, he could see many dogs there. Nothing surprising about that. There were people coming from every direction. Some were carrying bags and baskets containing all those food items. The very thought of them made his mouth salivate. Some were carrying babies on their backs, while the toddlers trudged along with them. They all were in a cheerful mood, teasing one another.

As the day wore on, their spirit dipped as the wait for the Dasho proved long and tedious. At midday a deputy came along riding on a bike and without any greetings or apologies, informed them that the meeting had been called off. When a lady asked him if the meeting was to be held the next day and they had to come back again. the infuriated official informed her that if any household failed to send a member, it would be levied the usual fines.

But true to Bhutanese character, they could yet,  on the way home, laugh about their poor plight and the need to get home early for dinner inorder to protect their fields from the wild animals. Dawa, helpful as always, was thinking of being a watch dog to help protect the poor villagers their fields, only after he was cured of his mange.

CHAPTER -8.

When Dawa reached a small settlement in a meadow, on the way to Bumthang, he found a grey do g lying all curled up against the wall of one of the houses. The dog seemed to know about his mange.  On a closer look, Dawa was appalled by the tale-tell signs of mange of the dog like the crusted, raw skin, the pus-filled lesions and spots with blood oozing out, which looked like ripe strawberries. He stepped back in repulsion. The mangy dog commented, quite rudely, that Dawa would also have the same fate in due course of time.

Dawa was crestfallen and his whole body shook as if he was being electrocuted. Throughout the journey, he had mostly tried not to think of the disease. No other dog seemed to have noticed it. Nor did they comment on it as they thought that that was what Dawa looked like. Of course he had to scratch some parts of his body when they became itchy. He even had to bite those parts when the itching became unbearable, thereby causing himself painful and long-lasting wounds. Now to be reminded so cruelly was a hard blow for him and he asked the reason for the grey dog’s shocking behaviour. The dog then broke down while talking about his miserable life. Humans called him all sorts of ugly names. They inflicted more pains on his painful body and chased him away. Even the dogs were no better as they had ostracized him.

Dawa felt deeply sorry for the grey dog and invited him to join him (Dawa) on the journey to Bumthang. The poor dog told him that it was too late as he was feeble and meek. He might die if he had to cross over the pass. He’d rather die where he was. Dawa had witnessed death years ago, but he had never heard a grown-up talk about death before and was touched by the dog’s calm acceptance of death. The mangy dog also advised him to go to Tang fast for the cure and not to make the mistake that he had made.

As the night wore on, Dawa, undeterred, went closer to the dog and tried to make him comfortable with the heat from his own body. The grey dog soon fell asleep. Dawa though did not sleep peacefully and could catch some sleep towards the early hours of the morning. He woke up with a jolt and found the grey dog lying all stretched out, stiff and cold. There was a peaceful look on his face. While he was bidding his final farewell, he heard some voices in the distance talking about the dead dog and the ways to dispose of the body.

Dawa hurried off and was nearing the top of the Thrumshingla pass, when he ran into a yellow youngster. He was surprised at the human way the dog asked obvious questions. The dog asked Dawa to accompany him to Choekor town, giving him the reasons why he should go there first.  Realizing the talkative nature of the other dog, Dawa agreed to follow him. On reaching near the Chamkhar Bridge, the yellow dog asked Dawa whether he would like to go up to the monastery first or head towards the town. While they were walking along the street with shops and houses on either side that made up the town, Dawa felt uneasy under the watchful scrutiny of a host of dogs. He was much relieved when he got to the other end of the street and for the loss of his friend.

Once he reached near the hill atop which stood the majestic Jakar dzong, he decided to climb up using the concrete steps. Every now and then he looked back and down at the beautiful valley. Finally he was on the step that met the motor able road. Instead of going to the dzong, he thought of going to the village. He  was in for a scene and had barely entered when a pack of dogs came running towards him. Some of them due to plain curiosity, others due to animosity. Dawa understood their feeling. When anonymity was the name of the game in places like Thimphu; in a small village, where everybody knew everything about everyone else, any stranger posed a serious threat. They snarled and gnarled and put their heads over Dawa’s neck in dominance. But soon they realized that Dawa was no threat and left him.

Dawa stood where he was, confused. He had barely time to breathe when he was greeted with the next show. This time it was the duo of a black bull being chased by a white fluffy dog at his heels, barking and bawling all the way through. Just behind them was an enormously overweight but handsome dog. They kept on chasing the bull till he shamefully crashed into the wormwood plants growing abundantly into the hillside.

On the way back, the white ball of energy still savouring his great achievement, noticed Dawa and started yelping instantaneously, not knowing whether to greet him or hit him. Dawa found the fluffy dog hugely entertaining.

Only when he was face to face with the big black dog, Dawa felt that the dog had the gentlest, kindest pair of eyes. Emboldened by his kind face, Dawa dared to ask him the reason for him being so fat. Egged on by the fluffy dog, the black dog called Tangpa then told Dawa about his castration. Dawa felt sorry for being so insensitive and the great loss to ‘the line of a perfect pedigree’ as a result of human blunders.

The fluffy dog tried breaking the awkward silence between the two by talking about their owners being vegetarians and the diet of the dogs consisting mostly of some low quality Indian rice and smelly dried fish cooked into a messy lump. Tangpa thought Zarro; the fluffy dog was being ungrateful to their masters. Zarro took offence at Dawa’s remark regarding what he considered to be a ridiculous name and tried to defend his name by saying that it is a foreign hero’s name. Zarro also asked Dawa for his name in return and did not find it uncommon or interesting. In this connection he told Dawa about the ordeal he had with an ordinary looking bitch called Tommy, mainly because of her owner. He also went on to tell Dawa, despite lack of interest on his part or on the part of the yawning Tangpa, that when Tommy was in the crucial stage of her reproduction cycle, her owner had her locked up in a room with Zarro for mating. He even spent the night there in the hope of something happening but nothing happened as both the dogs were incompatible.

Meanwhile both Tangpa and Zarro were called into the house by a large woman, who, having remembered that the dogs were carnivores, offered them some hard, brown squares of  biscuits made in India. Once the owner was inside, both the dogs dropped ‘the tooth breakers’ in the grass and offered Dawa to have them if he so desired. Dawa found them tasty and wanted to know if they really contained some meat, but during his stay of three days, the dogs were not offered the biscuits any more.