{"id":{"repo_id":"cambridge","oai_identifier":"oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/374146"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/cambridge/oai:www.repository.cam.ac.uk:1810/374146","repository":{"repo_id":"cambridge","name":"Cambridge University","base_url":"https://api.repository.cam.ac.uk/server/oai/request"},"display":{"title":"The coming of 'kawa nyampa': Climate change, temporality and prophecies of decline in Himalayan Nepal","abstract":"This thesis examines cultural constructions of climate and temporality in eastern Nepal, focusing on Walung, a village in Taplejung District. Although the residents of Walung have long noticed manifestations of global climatic change, such observations were primarily attributed to a change in time (Tib. *dus*) rather than climate (Tib. *gnam gshis*). This interpretation often drew upon Buddhist prophetic narratives which foretell an imminent era of decline, termed '*kawa nyampa*' - a vision of degeneration attributed to Guru Rinpoche (Skt. Padmasambhava). In Walung, moral, meteorological, and temporal realms were deeply intertwined, with both climatic disruptions and perceived temporal changes attributed to the wider decay of human morality. The onset of '*kawa nyampa*' was traced to an evening in 1963 when flooding, unleashed by a semi-spiritual entity called the '*khangba*' (snow frog), devastated the village. The flood represented a temporal rupture, marking the end of a period of prosperity (*kawa sangbo*), and was interpreted as a collective punishment for spiritual transgressions. However, the temporal shifts that Walung residents have detected extend beyond climate-related phenomena. They also encompassed broader socioeconomic and political changes, including shifts in local diets and perceptions of declining life expectancy. The central claim of the thesis is that disruptions in climate are predominantly experienced as disruptions to *time* in upper Taplejung. Moreover, the Walung vision of a degenerate time (*kawa nyampa*) is rooted to far vaster landscape of changes than simply meteorology. In the words of one resident: “the change in time means a change in everything” – so too has the change in ‘everything’ produced a change in time. Building on ethnographic fieldwork in Taplejung District (November 2021-May 2022) and complemented by secondary field visits to Sikkim and Kathmandu, what begins as a study of climate change unfolds into an analysis of a far deeper sense of temporal disjunction. The thesis deciphers local observations of the stars, migratory birds, and cosmological narratives of deity movements as localised systems of time-reckoning. It also considers the embodied rhythms of life and death within aspects of Himalayan time perception. Against the backdrop of anthropogenic climate change and geopolitical ruptures at the Sino-Nepali border, however, these complex synchronicities are becoming destabilised, and time itself is unpicked at its seams. As environmental, geopolitical, and temporal fractures become more pronounced, Walung residents fear the fulfilment of prophetic visions of degeneration.","abstract_html":"This thesis examines cultural constructions of climate and temporality in eastern Nepal, focusing on Walung, a village in Taplejung District. Although the residents of Walung have long noticed manifestations of global climatic change, such observations were primarily attributed to a change in time (Tib. *dus*) rather than climate (Tib. *gnam gshis*). This interpretation often drew upon Buddhist prophetic narratives which foretell an imminent era of decline, termed '*kawa nyampa*' - a vision of degeneration attributed to Guru Rinpoche (Skt. Padmasambhava). In Walung, moral, meteorological, and temporal realms were deeply intertwined, with both climatic disruptions and perceived temporal changes attributed to the wider decay of human morality. The onset of '*kawa nyampa*' was traced to an evening in 1963 when flooding, unleashed by a semi-spiritual entity called the '*khangba*' (snow frog), devastated the village. The flood represented a temporal rupture, marking the end of a period of prosperity (*kawa sangbo*), and was interpreted as a collective punishment for spiritual transgressions. However, the temporal shifts that Walung residents have detected extend beyond climate-related phenomena. They also encompassed broader socioeconomic and political changes, including shifts in local diets and perceptions of declining life expectancy. The central claim of the thesis is that disruptions in climate are predominantly experienced as disruptions to *time* in upper Taplejung. Moreover, the Walung vision of a degenerate time (*kawa nyampa*) is rooted to far vaster landscape of changes than simply meteorology. In the words of one resident: “the change in time means a change in everything” – so too has the change in ‘everything’ produced a change in time. Building on ethnographic fieldwork in Taplejung District (November 2021-May 2022) and complemented by secondary field visits to Sikkim and Kathmandu, what begins as a study of climate change unfolds into an analysis of a far deeper sense of temporal disjunction. The thesis deciphers local observations of the stars, migratory birds, and cosmological narratives of deity movements as localised systems of time-reckoning. It also considers the embodied rhythms of life and death within aspects of Himalayan time perception. Against the backdrop of anthropogenic climate change and geopolitical ruptures at the Sino-Nepali border, however, these complex synchronicities are becoming destabilised, and time itself is unpicked at its seams. As environmental, geopolitical, and temporal fractures become more pronounced, Walung residents fear the fulfilment of prophetic visions of degeneration.","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Millington, Alice"],"institution":"University of Cambridge","degree_name":"Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)","degree_level":"Doctoral","degree_discipline":null,"degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":[],"advisors":["Vira, Bhaskar","Diemberger, Hildegard"],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2024,"date_issued":"2024-03-28","date_published":"2024-03-28","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:23:54Z","subjects":["Climate change","Eastern Nepal","Himalayas","Prophecy","Temporality"],"languages":["eng"],"rights":[],"rights_urls":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/013130b6-d84a-48ad-a5de-b757b839522a/download","http://purl.org/NET/rdflicense/allrightsreserved"],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.112321","outbound_label":"DOI","outbound_source":"dc:identifier.doi"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor.advisor","label":"Advisor","values":["Vira, Bhaskar","Diemberger, Hildegard"]},{"key":"dc:contributor.sponsor","label":"Sponsor","values":["ESRC DTP Interdisciplinary Studentship University Fieldwork Fund Frederick Williamson Memorial Fund"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Millington, Alice"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date.issued","label":"Date","values":["2024-03-28"]},{"key":"dc:publisher.institution","label":"Dc Publisher Institution","values":["University of Cambridge"]},{"key":"dc:relation.isreferencedby.uri","label":"Dc Relation Isreferencedby URI","values":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/374146"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"dc:type.qualificationlevel","label":"Dc Type Qualificationlevel","values":["Doctoral"]},{"key":"dc:type.qualificationname","label":"Dc Type Qualificationname","values":["Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Climate change","Eastern Nepal","Himalayas","Prophecy","Temporality"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["eng"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/013130b6-d84a-48ad-a5de-b757b839522a/download","http://purl.org/NET/rdflicense/allrightsreserved"]},{"key":"dc:rights.embargodate","label":"Dc Rights Embargodate","values":["2030-10-01"]},{"key":"dc:rights.embargotype","label":"Dc Rights Embargotype","values":["embargo"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier.doi","label":"DOI","values":["https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.112321"]},{"key":"dc:identifier.uri","label":"Identifier URI","values":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/39280094-4f70-410b-9dc5-4b44eaac5277/download"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description.abstract","label":"Abstract","values":["This thesis examines cultural constructions of climate and temporality in eastern Nepal, focusing on Walung, a village in Taplejung District. Although the residents of Walung have long noticed manifestations of global climatic change, such observations were primarily attributed to a change in time (Tib. *dus*) rather than climate (Tib. *gnam gshis*). This interpretation often drew upon Buddhist prophetic narratives which foretell an imminent era of decline, termed '*kawa nyampa*' - a vision of degeneration attributed to Guru Rinpoche (Skt. Padmasambhava). In Walung, moral, meteorological, and temporal realms were deeply intertwined, with both climatic disruptions and perceived temporal changes attributed to the wider decay of human morality. The onset of '*kawa nyampa*' was traced to an evening in 1963 when flooding, unleashed by a semi-spiritual entity called the '*khangba*' (snow frog), devastated the village. The flood represented a temporal rupture, marking the end of a period of prosperity (*kawa sangbo*), and was interpreted as a collective punishment for spiritual transgressions. However, the temporal shifts that Walung residents have detected extend beyond climate-related phenomena. They also encompassed broader socioeconomic and political changes, including shifts in local diets and perceptions of declining life expectancy. The central claim of the thesis is that disruptions in climate are predominantly experienced as disruptions to *time* in upper Taplejung. Moreover, the Walung vision of a degenerate time (*kawa nyampa*) is rooted to far vaster landscape of changes than simply meteorology. In the words of one resident: “the change in time means a change in everything” – so too has the change in ‘everything’ produced a change in time. Building on ethnographic fieldwork in Taplejung District (November 2021-May 2022) and complemented by secondary field visits to Sikkim and Kathmandu, what begins as a study of climate change unfolds into an analysis of a far deeper sense of temporal disjunction. The thesis deciphers local observations of the stars, migratory birds, and cosmological narratives of deity movements as localised systems of time-reckoning. It also considers the embodied rhythms of life and death within aspects of Himalayan time perception. Against the backdrop of anthropogenic climate change and geopolitical ruptures at the Sino-Nepali border, however, these complex synchronicities are becoming destabilised, and time itself is unpicked at its seams. As environmental, geopolitical, and temporal fractures become more pronounced, Walung residents fear the fulfilment of prophetic visions of degeneration."]},{"key":"dc:format.checksum.md5","label":"Dc Format Checksum Md5","values":["e1b491e016c2a048ff84126533ce75bb","87eda9de84448d1f82354d60eee3eb5f"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The coming of 'kawa nyampa': Climate change, temporality and prophecies of decline in Himalayan Nepal"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor.advisor":["Vira, Bhaskar","Diemberger, Hildegard"],"dc:contributor.sponsor":["ESRC DTP Interdisciplinary Studentship University Fieldwork Fund Frederick Williamson Memorial Fund"],"dc:creator":["Millington, Alice"],"dc:date.issued":["2024-03-28"],"dc:description.abstract":["This thesis examines cultural constructions of climate and temporality in eastern Nepal, focusing on Walung, a village in Taplejung District. Although the residents of Walung have long noticed manifestations of global climatic change, such observations were primarily attributed to a change in time (Tib. *dus*) rather than climate (Tib. *gnam gshis*). This interpretation often drew upon Buddhist prophetic narratives which foretell an imminent era of decline, termed '*kawa nyampa*' - a vision of degeneration attributed to Guru Rinpoche (Skt. Padmasambhava). In Walung, moral, meteorological, and temporal realms were deeply intertwined, with both climatic disruptions and perceived temporal changes attributed to the wider decay of human morality. The onset of '*kawa nyampa*' was traced to an evening in 1963 when flooding, unleashed by a semi-spiritual entity called the '*khangba*' (snow frog), devastated the village. The flood represented a temporal rupture, marking the end of a period of prosperity (*kawa sangbo*), and was interpreted as a collective punishment for spiritual transgressions. However, the temporal shifts that Walung residents have detected extend beyond climate-related phenomena. They also encompassed broader socioeconomic and political changes, including shifts in local diets and perceptions of declining life expectancy. The central claim of the thesis is that disruptions in climate are predominantly experienced as disruptions to *time* in upper Taplejung. Moreover, the Walung vision of a degenerate time (*kawa nyampa*) is rooted to far vaster landscape of changes than simply meteorology. In the words of one resident: “the change in time means a change in everything” – so too has the change in ‘everything’ produced a change in time. Building on ethnographic fieldwork in Taplejung District (November 2021-May 2022) and complemented by secondary field visits to Sikkim and Kathmandu, what begins as a study of climate change unfolds into an analysis of a far deeper sense of temporal disjunction. The thesis deciphers local observations of the stars, migratory birds, and cosmological narratives of deity movements as localised systems of time-reckoning. It also considers the embodied rhythms of life and death within aspects of Himalayan time perception. Against the backdrop of anthropogenic climate change and geopolitical ruptures at the Sino-Nepali border, however, these complex synchronicities are becoming destabilised, and time itself is unpicked at its seams. As environmental, geopolitical, and temporal fractures become more pronounced, Walung residents fear the fulfilment of prophetic visions of degeneration."],"dc:format.checksum.md5":["e1b491e016c2a048ff84126533ce75bb","87eda9de84448d1f82354d60eee3eb5f"],"dc:identifier.doi":["https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.112321"],"dc:identifier.uri":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/39280094-4f70-410b-9dc5-4b44eaac5277/download"],"dc:language":["eng"],"dc:publisher.institution":["University of Cambridge"],"dc:relation.isreferencedby.uri":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/handle/1810/374146"],"dc:rights":["https://www.repository.cam.ac.uk/bitstreams/013130b6-d84a-48ad-a5de-b757b839522a/download","http://purl.org/NET/rdflicense/allrightsreserved"],"dc:rights.embargodate":["2030-10-01"],"dc:rights.embargotype":["embargo"],"dc:subject":["Climate change","Eastern Nepal","Himalayas","Prophecy","Temporality"],"dc:title":["The coming of 'kawa nyampa': Climate change, temporality and prophecies of decline in Himalayan Nepal"],"dc:type":["Thesis"],"dc:type.qualificationlevel":["Doctoral"],"dc:type.qualificationname":["Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:23:54Z"}