Bhote Budha

He is Bhote Budha of 35 years from Jumla district, VDC Sija. He is neither educated nor employed but he is married with very beautiful girl in the local VDC (he shared with smiles) with two daughters and one son. One daughter is around thirteen years old & other is around ten years old whereas he can’t remember the age of his son.

He travelled around 630 kms and reached in birganj for some kind of business. He called it as selling of antique pieces which he was carrying with his bag. I asked how he came to birganj he told he kept changing many buses, many tractors, trucks and then arrived to birganj (mostly he tried his best travel in free of cost). He further added he kept moving district-to-district for selling of the materials which were filled in bag. I again add a question where he slept he smiled and said he meets people wherever he visits, especially them who do small fast-food business (nasta pasal “nepali word”) and sleep with them in no-charge.

He is not able to earn money in his home-town so he travels district-to-district and earns, expenses in very needy situation otherwise back to home once in every year during dashain festival to celebrate it with his family with saved earned-money. His wife earns some money from daily wages, doing work in other’s field that she expenses in family nutrition and his kids are getting primary education in local school. He expressed with painful voice; he couldn’t able to establish any kind of business due to which he compelled to away from his family because he is not educated and in reason he told his guardians were not educated and could not understand the importance of it.

He expressed about dream to give upto higher level education to his kids so that his kids won’t face the situation as him and his wife. He smiled and told he was missing his family (could see few tears in his eyes). He is waiting for the time when again he can meet them and most probably in this coming dashain festival, he will go to them. What he is doing, he is feeling happy now because he is doing for his family.

This is very small story about Bhote Budha which is not ending here. There might be lots of people like Bhote Budha who are not educated, not employed, not getting the basic needs etc. And the very basic need can be found is he is not educated nor his guardians were. So, how we conclude his story, how the tradition of non-educated people can be end and when? How we can provide the provision of basic needs to everyone not in here but everywhere?

(I met bhote budha in maisthan’s temple area, birganj and discussed with some snacks, whatever experiences are shared here based on the conversation).