The Newar form of Buddhism that is practised in the Kathmandu Valley constitutes an intricate pluralistic religious system. If we consider the situation today, it combines old forms of Mahāyāna and Vajrayāna Buddhism which rely on Sanskrit texts and recently adopted Theravāda beliefs and practices based on Pali texts. The first of these two schools of Buddhism has been strongly influenced by the caste system over the course of time, whereas Theravāda lays emphasis on renunciation. The paper sets out to show the centrality of the gift in all religious contexts and its role in establishing lasting social ties between the laity and religious specialists. Two different gift-giving ceremonies are discussed: (1) the Mahāyāna/Vajrayāna Pañca Dāna, a regular annual ritual event and (2) the Theravāda Kathina Dāna, which is more of an occasional event.
In both cases, donations of rice, money, etc.—more specifically a monastic robe at Kathina Dāna—are offered with much pomp and circumstance to religious specialists and/or the monastic community. During Pañca Dāna, this abundance of gifts goes to the traditional Newar samgha, i.e. Vajrayāna married priests (Vajrāchārya) and the heirs of a formerly monastic tradition (Shākya). During Kathina Dāna, they are offered to Theravāda monks. In both cases, the emphasis is on generosity; the gifts/offerings go to recipients of high socio-religious status and express the superiority of transcendental values over secular values. However, there is one notable difference. Contrary to Kathina, which has a more individualistic optional orientation, Pañca Dāna is shaped more by caste social rules.
My findings, which are drawn from a South Asian society, are a far cry from Marcel Mauss's definition of the gift as reciprocal, as discussed in his notorious essay. In the Newar community, Buddhists offer gifts with no guarantee of their being reciprocated and do not expect to receive a counter-gift. The gifts analysed here do contribute to the cohesion of society, however, by reproducing hierarchical links and maintaining the identity of the religious specialists on the one hand, and of the laity on the other. By and large, they reinforce the bonds between people.
