Deity Men: Reb gong Tibetan Trance Mediums in Transition

This is a comprehensive and extremely informed study of the changing social context and religious lives of lha pa, 'deity or god men,' in Qinghai Province, China. Snying bo rgyal and Rino's account of these Tibetan trance mediums who become possessed by mountain deities succeeds in both honoring the past through a detailed description of their practice while acknowledging the increasing challenges to these traditions. Dr. Mark Turin, Director, Digital Himalaya Project, University of Cambridge, UK