Name of Tibetan (baseball-style) hat?

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climb-up
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Name of Tibetan (baseball-style) hat?

Post by climb-up »

Hello,

Does anyone know the name of a Tibetan hat that looks kind of like a baseball hat but with a straight bill?
And, if you do, do you know where one can be purchased (I'm sure it's easy to sew but that's beyond my capacity).

It's for Dzogchen practice, which is why I'm asking here, but I don't know if it specifically/only for practice, or if its just a normal style of Tibetan hat.

Thanks for any help or insight :anjali:
"Death's second name is 'omnipresent.' On the relative truth it seems we become separate. But on the absolute there is no separation." Lama Dawa
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climb-up
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Re: Name of Tibetan (baseball-style) hat?

Post by climb-up »

More or less like this.
(I don't know why there is a duplicate picture)

Image
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a-tibetan-buddhist-monk-in-red-robes-and-yellow-hat-visor-holding-FA5E67.jpg
a-tibetan-buddhist-monk-in-red-robes-and-yellow-hat-visor-holding-FA5E67.jpg (157.68 KiB) Viewed 879 times
"Death's second name is 'omnipresent.' On the relative truth it seems we become separate. But on the absolute there is no separation." Lama Dawa
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Pema Tingdron
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Re: Name of Tibetan (baseball-style) hat?

Post by Pema Tingdron »

I found a page in The Religions of Tibet (Giuseppe Tucci) that includes this hat. Here's a screenshot of the page:


The author says it is called nyi zhwa. Another name for it is sho khal. The THL Tibetan to English Translation Tool gives both words as simply meaning "sunhat".

Tucci describes it as a "sunhat, the head-covering worn according to tradition by the lotsava, the 'translators', when they travelled to India to learn Sanskrit, to translate the secret texts and bring them back to Tibet with them. (...) Nowadays hats of this kind are also worn by women."

I've seen several photos of individuals wearing this hat, and they always seem to be monastics (including one nun). In all those photos, the hat was made of red/maroon fabric. Your monk has a yellow hat, which makes me think he could be Gelugpa; if so, it's rather unlikely the hat is related to Dzogchen. "Sunhat for monastics" does appear to be the main function! But I can't say for sure. Tucci's book is the only place I've seen the hat even mentioned (yet).
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climb-up
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Re: Name of Tibetan (baseball-style) hat?

Post by climb-up »

Pema Tingdron wrote: Tue May 17, 2022 7:39 pm I found a page in The Religions of Tibet (Giuseppe Tucci) that includes this hat. Here's a screenshot of the page:


The author says it is called nyi zhwa. Another name for it is sho khal. The THL Tibetan to English Translation Tool gives both words as simply meaning "sunhat".

Tucci describes it as a "sunhat, the head-covering worn according to tradition by the lotsava, the 'translators', when they travelled to India to learn Sanskrit, to translate the secret texts and bring them back to Tibet with them. (...) Nowadays hats of this kind are also worn by women."

I've seen several photos of individuals wearing this hat, and they always seem to be monastics (including one nun). In all those photos, the hat was made of red/maroon fabric. Your monk has a yellow hat, which makes me think he could be Gelugpa; if so, it's rather unlikely the hat is related to Dzogchen. "Sunhat for monastics" does appear to be the main function! But I can't say for sure. Tucci's book is the only place I've seen the hat even mentioned (yet).
Awesome! I had given up on, and then forgotten about, this post completely but I really appreciate it!
Thanks :twothumbsup: :anjali:
"Death's second name is 'omnipresent.' On the relative truth it seems we become separate. But on the absolute there is no separation." Lama Dawa
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Pema Tingdron
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Re: Name of Tibetan (baseball-style) hat?

Post by Pema Tingdron »

climb-up wrote: Tue May 17, 2022 8:35 pm Awesome! I had given up on, and then forgotten about, this post completely but I really appreciate it!
Thanks :twothumbsup: :anjali:
You are most welcome! It was something I'd wondered for a while, so your post prodded me into looking it up.
And by the way, I love your profile pic. I'm fond of crows, too.
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climb-up
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Re: Name of Tibetan (baseball-style) hat?

Post by climb-up »

Pema Tingdron wrote: Thu May 26, 2022 6:41 pm
And by the way, I love your profile pic. I'm fond of crows, too.
Thanks :D
I really love crows a lt.

A few months ago I was walking to work one morning, a crow flew by a crow flew by and I thought "ah! mahakala!" (not entirely seriously, but not not-seriously as well) and when it cawed I thought "wow! the essence of prajnaparimta and guruyoga!"
Everytime I hear a crow now I think of, and do, guruyoga.
"Death's second name is 'omnipresent.' On the relative truth it seems we become separate. But on the absolute there is no separation." Lama Dawa
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