A Proposal for Tokens of Appreciation for the Master Kamis

Howard Wallace

Howard Wallace

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Bill has explained some of the ramifications of the caste system, and the kamis' outlook on life, in the thread at http://www.bladeforums.com/ubb/Forum26/HTML/000345.html .

I would like to acknowledge some of these untouchable masters. Bill's father-in-law, Kami Sherpa, is coming to the USA later this year. I spoke privately with Bill some time ago about the possibility of sending some tokens of appreciation back to Nepal with Kami Sherpa, for the makers who created a special blade for me.

It just occurred to me that some of the other regular customers might have a similar feeling. Would anyone else be interested in a coordinated effort to honor these masters? I do not think a gift would have to be terribly expensive to be significant.

I thought even something like a swiss army knife, or a photonlight, for each master kami might be something these individuals might cherish. It's been many years since I was in Nepal, so I'm not sure what things are easily available now, and what things are especially valued. I bet between us, with Bill and Yangdu's advice, we could come up with something valued for Kami Sherpa to take back to the kamis.

Please let me know what you think of this idea.
 
Excellant idea! I'm in. Seems to me that the kamis hold wrist watches in pretty high esteem. What do you think Uncle Bill?

Mike
 
Howard that is a very kind and thoughtful idea and I can tell you the kamis will be overwhelmed by any gift you might want to send. And you can depend absolutely on Kami Sherpa to get the gifts distributed equitably.

I have a small collection of gifts already started which I had planned to send back with Kami when he returns. I have a couple of SAKs and a couple of other small knives, a Buddha, pens and pencils, leather coat, knife sharpener, and other like odds and ends. I will simply add to it whatever might be sent. If you want to tag your gift with your name and address there is an outside chance you may receive a thank you note but don't count on it -- a lot of kamis can't read or write. Don't send money.

In thinking about gifts, small and light is better and anything Americana (example -- keychain with US flag)is much valued whether it is worth anything or not.

Howard and others this helps keep the karma cops away from the door! Great and generous idea! I love to see stuff like this.

Uncle Bill
 
Mike, I was posting the same time you were. A wristwatch is a great gift. As both Sonam and I pointed out it is a real status symbol for a kami to own a watch and I can guarantee you he would treasure it. But don't go overboard. A kami would not know what to do with a Rolex. To him a cheap Timex that works and looks okay is just as good.

Uncle Bill
 
Howard,

Count me in! It's time to return something back for what they've given us, namely a deep appreciation for their work and sweat.

Take care,
John Johnson
 
Bill,

Can you give us the employment numbers, by shop and employee category, for the two shops? Be sure to break out the master kamis separately.

If you wish to give out this information you can either post it here or e-mail it to me.

Thanks.

[This message has been edited by Howard Wallace (edited 22 July 1999).]
 
I do not know Nepal but a gift can be problematic.They either owe you,which no one likes,or they must return in kind, which is embarassing because they cannot do it.Either way, you have made an enemy.They also cannot refuse politely.I`m just an old Asia hand.This may be a Pandora`s box better left closed.

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Uncle Bill and ghost, We receive with these khukri's a "gift" of the kami spirit and blessing. If these items of thank you were presented as a return of good faith would that be a problem? Kind of like the penny.

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Greg


 
Some of the kamis know me and they all know the boss, Kami Sherpa. These gifts will not go as gifts per se but as "bonuses" for work well done and appreciated. There will be no problem here. I can well understand what ghostsix is saying and agree with him but this is a different ballgame. The kamis will not lose face with a bonus.

Based on last information I got here are some numbers:

shop 2 has 2 masters
2 intermediate
2 apprentices
these numbers will probably increase over the next couple of weeks if Gelbu's recruiting effort is successful. He hired a couple of master kamis from the village. Now we have to wait and see if they show up for work at shop 2.

shop 1 has 5 or 6 master kamis who work on and off
about 4 or 5 intermediate kamis
Maybe 7 to 10 apprentices

I sent some cash over a couple of years ago to buy alcohol for the kamis of shop 1 to drink during Dasein. My letter made it but the cash disappeared somewhere along the way.
Don't send cash!

Uncle Bill

[This message has been edited by Bill Martino (edited 23 July 1999).]
 
I can see it all now, ghost. Kamis beating each other with hammers, throwing flaming coals at one another, trying to stab with partially finished khukuris, swearing.

Problem: Who gets the ballpoint pen that says Reno Hilton on it!

Just kidding. It'll never happen. Take it from one whose been there.

Uncle Bill
 
I`ll take your word for it Uncle.I`ve just seen well meaning intermeddlers muck it up.FUBAR comes to mind.

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Ghost,

Thank you for sharing your intuition and concern. It is valued. I will attempt to maintain an awareness of the issues you have raised. I suspect the others will as well.

Yvsa, Sonam, Jaeger, John Powell, John Johnson, and of course Bill,

As I read the above posts, you are the ones interested in this project.

If anyone is reluctant to post in the forum, but would like to participate in this, please drop me an e-mail.

I see several options open

Tokens for the masters.
1. We could purchase a number of identical tokens. For instance several Timex watches of the same model.
2. We could clean out our drawers of our old SAK’s, watches, photonlights, etc., and send the miscellany to Bill. This would certainly mean less expenditure of liquid (potentially khukuri) capital for each of us, as it would be stuff we have already.

I’m not sure which of the above options would be preferable. What are your ideas? Bill and Sonam can perhaps provide insight on how the two options might be received differently.

I suspect that Kami may have some “trouble” with customs that may need to be solved with some of the tokens also, so we may want to have a few extra. Of course, things may be different these days.

It might also be nice if something could be done for the entire shop in conjunction with the tokens for the masters. That way everyone could have a good time and not feel left out, but the esteem in which the masters are held would be evident. The local equivalent of a keg of beer would be great, but it sounds as if Bill has already tried something like that and run into problems. A larger animal for one of the Kali Puja/Barbeques might work also, and provide a little more fun than the whole shop sharing a chicken! Bill, you must transfer funds between the different parts of the business. Is there a way to use the infrastructure of the business to transfer some party funds?

Now that the interested people have identified each other, does it make more sense to continue our discussions via e-mail? If so, I can put together a list from your listed e-mail addresses and send you a note. Then we can use the “reply to all” features of our e-mail readers to discuss amongst the group. Or, if you wish we can continue discussing preparations in this forum.

 
No,it makes more sense to discuss it on the forum.Craftsmen are craftsmen.They get what the market will bear and make a wage.We won`t do them any favors by enriching them beyond their neighbors.I have seen the deleterious results of Americans with too much money ruining societies that ran fine before they came.There are ramifications here that I do not think that Uncle even understands.Because of my experiance,I may be overly concerned.Some of you have seen the chain of events.The price goes up and the quality deteriorates.These rich yankees will buy anything.

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Ghost,

Craftsmen may be, as you say, craftsmen. But can it not be that men are also men?

These men have labored long and hard, and developed considerable skill. Yet they are not like the craftsmen that you and I probably know. These men can not even conceive that others may respect them. They have grown up as untouchables. This is a thing that is hard for us to understand.

I sat and drank rakshi with men like these, or perhaps their fathers. I do not think their hearts are very different from ours.

You may be right about the economics. I do not think the intent here is to raise their standard of living. Rather, it is to communicate a respect across cultures. A SAK will not significantly affect the standard of living of a man who could duplicate any of its tools in his forge. But it may be something he will look at in wonder in the evening. He will try to understand why someone from far away, whose name he does not know, whose only connection is a khukuri that this kami made, whose accounts are settled and whose tool is paid for already, would send something to him. And I believe he will understand.

Respect could be communicated in many other ways. For instance by accepting some offered hospitality. By entering his house and drinking his chang as a guest.

We are handicapped by distance. We cannot look each other in the eye, and so we must use cruder forms of communication. It may be that our communication will be misinterpreted as “These rich Yankees will buy anything.”

But in my heart I don’t think so.


[This message has been edited by Howard Wallace (edited 25 July 1999).]
 
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