Kharamshing (ཁ་རམ་ཤིང་), literally the tree of slander, is a structure erected to ward off the negative affects of kharam (ཁ་རམ་) or slander and malicious gossip. Bhutanese believe that people’s words about someone, when spoken slanderously, have a negative impact on the person talked about. Even positive words, out of envy, are said to have an unpleasant outcome for the person talked about. The words and their results are called kharam, which literally means ‘ruin by words’, or mikha (མི་ཁ་), literally, ‘words of other people’. The kharamshing, erected to ward off such harm, consists of a phallus carved on wood and fixed on a pole. Many household items can also be attached to the structure.                         

Such structures are commonly hoisted in the front of a house and the associated ritual of kharam is performed in most parts of eastern Bhutan. The remedial ritual is also known as the ritual of mikha or mikha dradok (མི་ཁ་དགྲ་བཟློག་) or ‘averting the words of other people’. The ritual is performed to avert the negative energies of slander, malicious talk, curses, and backbiting. It is thought to be a pre-Buddhist Bon ritual that has survived with its associated beliefs and practices

The kharamshing structure has at its centre a pole of robtang shing (Anacardiaceous family) with a wooden phallus attached to it. Many household items including a bangchung (བང་ཅུང་) or bamboo basket, a bow, an arrow, and a piece of cloth containing drunagu (འབྲུ་སྣ་དགུ་) or nine varieties of grains are attached to the pole. A wooden ladle and a bamboo strainer are tied with nine different threads to the opening of the phallus. They represent the food and essential items to be given to the spirit of kharam or slander and malicious talk. A cup made of ash, which acts as a lid or antidote to the evil force, is put in a cloth along with an egg that represents the heart of the evil spirit and everything is placed in the middle of the structure. The structure is then encircled with nine varieties of threads in a cobweb shape. Finally, a garland of egg shells is hung on the wooden frame.

Kharamshing are usually placed outside the house at the entrance or near the fields. It faces towards the direction from where visitors would approach, since its function is to ward off any potential evil eye or malicious words coming out of other people. During the ritual, the practitioners begin by throwing grains at the kharamshing and chant the following words:

May the family be spared of the curses from the north,

May the family be spared of the curses from the south,

May the family be spared of the curses from the east,

May the family be spared of the curses from the west,

May the family be spared from bad people and jealousy,

May the family be spared from poisoned food and water,

May the house be spared from evil curses,

May the house be spared from curses,

May the cattle be spared from curses!

While chanting the words, the members of the house throw a mixture of nine different grains as a gesture of driving away evil spirits and negative energies. The priests hit the central egg with an arrow in order to symbolize the destruction of the curse. The ritual concludes with a good meal for the performing priest shared by the family and neighbours.

Sonam Chophel and Karma Phuntsho. Sonam Chophel was a researcher of Shejun Agency for Bhutan’s Cultural Documentation and Research and Karma Phuntsho is a social thinker and worker, the President of the Loden Foundation and the author of many books and articles including The History of Bhutan.