[Buddha-l] More for the sacred void on this list

[JKirkpatrick]

Looks like it needs straightening out the monks, who insist on
fresh tree poles.
 
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/8250310.stm
 

The Bhutanese government has warned its citizens not to cut down
thousands of young trees every year to make poles for hoisting
Buddhist prayer flags. 

It said that the felling of trees is a threat to the tiny
kingdom's beauty and undermines the government's duty to promote
"Gross National Happiness". 

The flags are flown by Himalayan Buddhists to help the dead find
the right path in their next life. 

They believe that the more flag poles put up for the departed the
better. 

Buddhist monks say fresh poles must be used each time. 

Government figures show that between June 2007 to June 2008,
60,178 trees - about 165 every day - were felled to meet the
demand for poles. 

About 550 trees were felled daily for other uses. 

'Merit earned'

"There's an immense pressure on the forest," forestry department
spokesman Gopal Mahat told the Kuensel newspaper. 

  
The government has a constitutional duty to protect forestry
	

"We can't stop granting permits, especially for important
religious rites because it involves sentiments," he said. "The
demand is for straight, young trees, which have the potential of
becoming crop trees." [Oh yes? and why not?]

Many Bhutanese Buddhists believe that the ideal number of prayer
flags for deceased people is 108, preferably made from freshly
cut trees. [good grief!]

"If you reuse an old flag pole, you aren't putting in enough
effort, which means the merit earned is compromised," Buddhist
monk Gyem Tshering told Kuensel. "Ideally, you should hoist 108
flags, but if you can afford more, it'll help the dead find the
right path." [Better move to plastic or faux wood poles that can
be refurbished and re-used. Bamboo sounds do-able.]

Officials warn that this approach means that most of Bhutan's
forest will be gone within the next 20 years and that trees are
already being cut down deeper and deeper within forests. 

The problem has become so serious that forestry officers in the
capital Thimpu have restricted the number of prayer flags posts
to 29. 

Plans are also afoot to persuade people to switch to bamboo for
prayer flags, but a similar initiative recently launched to
encourage people to use steel was unsuccessful. 

Bhutan's constitution, which emphasises the importance of Gross
National Happiness over Gross Domestic Product, stipulates the
country must have at least 60% forest cover.