Gonpo

Biodata

History

Sheltering Zhuoma and Aji

Gonpo was present when Zhou Yang awakened in Aji’s body. He rejoiced at Aji’s recovery, but quickly noticed that the young man regarded both him and Zhuoma as strangers. During the subsequent plundering of the family workshop, Gonpo hid in the loft: a high-status visitor’s encounter with an allegedly inauspicious corpse dissector could bring punishment upon the siblings 96.

After learning that they would soon lose their home, Gonpo gave them a room in his settlement near Narong Charnel Ground. Aji’s unexpected recognition of his Gangba Aga tsa-tsa convinced him that the boy had esoteric aptitude. He initially recommended sending Aji to a temple, then apologized when Zhuoma explained that gifted black-bone children could be killed for their bones 98.

To help the siblings meet their living expenses and corvée obligations, Gonpo offered to train Aji as a corpse carrier and eventually a corpse dissector. Zhou Yang formally accepted him as master. Delighted to have a disciple, Gonpo promised to pass on all the rites he had learned and gave him his Gangba Aga tsa-tsa 99.

Little Zhuoma’s Sky Burial

Their first assignment together involved a skinned girl named Zhuoma, distinct from Aji’s elder sister. Gonpo objected that a skinless corpse could not be offered to the dakinis, but Deqin invoked the authority of the lama Jiawang Riba and forced him to proceed. Gonpo tried to spare his new apprentice by fetching Jiekan as carrier; Deqin instead ordered Aji to carry the body 100.

On Narong Mountain, Gonpo summoned vultures with his shinbone flute. When the girl emerged as a Shapeshifting Tsen, he begged Aji to flee. Aji refused, and Gonpo stayed rather than abandon the apprentice he had brought up the mountain 103 104.

After Zhuoma killed Deqin, Naren, and Quzeng, Gonpo recited prayers at Zhou Yang’s request while Zhou Yang called her back to her corpse. Gonpo then prepared to dismember the body and continued teaching his disciple. Following her transformation into a dakini incarnation, he gave Zhou Yang the vow-power-filled bone she had left behind and explained how to enshrine it in a clay figure 105 107.

Fearing a temple investigation, Gonpo followed Zhou Yang’s plan to remain at home and prepare an account of the incident. He identified Aji’s apparent madness and newfound knowledge as Lung Madness Disease, eventually accepting the rehearsed explanation as true 108 109.

Zeweng’s Possession and the Monk’s Visit

When the neighboring sky burial master Zeweng became disturbed, Gonpo brought Aji to examine him and publicly introduced his apprentice’s unusual perceptive abilities. He also advertised Zhuoma’s metalworking skills to the gathered residents 112.

During the investigation, Gonpo taught Zhou Yang the Fire Ash Offering. Initially jealous of Gemei’s interest in his disciple, he ultimately arranged for Gemei to become Aji’s second master, giving Aji access to another ritual inheritance 115 116.

Gonpo offered to accompany Aji into the dream connected to the Sangsang River, but remained outside with Gemei and the others, ready to interrupt the Hallucination Offering if necessary. The two masters called for Aji as the dream collapsed 119 123.

After Aji’s later three-day unconsciousness, Gonpo reported that Deqin’s family had searched for the missing men without finding their bodies. He had told them that Deqin and the Naren Brothers descended by a different path. He also announced an impending visit from Queji Jiacuo, a student monk of Zongcha Gompa, whose arrival renewed his anxiety about the mountain incident 134 135.

Appearance

• Build: Short, thin, and elderly 101 105 112.
• Complexion: Dark and sallow, with deep facial wrinkles 96.
• Distinguishing features: Yellow teeth and a beard 101 107.

Personality

Gonpo is generous despite his limited means. He houses the displaced siblings, offers Aji a livelihood, and takes pride in his apprentice’s consideration for Zhuoma. His protectiveness persists even when he is terrified: he refuses to leave Aji alone with the Shapeshifting Tsen, explaining that he could not face the boy’s sister if he returned without him 98 99 104.

He is deeply fearful of temple authority and the dangers of his profession. His caution comes from experience with violent-death corpses, mental breakdowns among corpse workers, and the powerlessness of black bones. He openly admits that the rituals available to ordinary practitioners do not always work 98 100 101 109.

Gonpo is openly proud—and sometimes possessive—of his disciple. He beams when neighbors recognize Aji’s abilities and initially treats Gemei’s interest as an attempt to steal him. Nevertheless, he agrees to share the apprenticeship so Aji can inherit more knowledge. He is also susceptible to accepting Aji’s explanations; Zhou Yang considers him poorly suited to lying or concealing information under pressure 108 113 115 116.

Abilities & Skills

Sky Burial Practice

Gonpo prepares and dismembers corpses for sky burial, teaching the work as both a trade and a form of visualization practice 99 105.

• Examines the deceased and identifies dangerous categories of corpses that should ordinarily be refused 99 100.
• Interprets sang smoke to determine where dismemberment should begin; a single rising column alarms him as a sign that the deceased wishes to remain whole 101.
• Observes the sky, wind, and smoke to decide whether a Five Senses Offering is needed for approaching ghosts and gods 107.
• Warns that corpse workers require rest to avoid hallucinations and madness 98.

Offerings and Mani Piles

Gonpo knows several inherited offering practices and teaches their preparation to his apprentice 107.

• Fire Ash Offering: Draws out a hidden Tsen Demon and reveals its footprints in wood ash, allowing it to be tracked 115 116.
• Mani-pile practice: Teaches Aji to carve mantra stones, build a mani pile, and tend it daily 109 125.
• Protective clay figures: Explains how to enclose a vow-filled bone in clay, fire the figure, and place it in a mani pile to protect a household or carry it for protection while traveling 107 109.

Mantra Knowledge and Limitations

Gonpo learned the Soul-Summoning and Life-Delivering Mantra from an Eba, along with rites intended to summon souls and quell calamities 96 98.

• Regularly recites prayers for the departed and the Six-Syllable Mantra 101 103 105.
• Cannot independently empower his recited mantras. His soul-summoning mantra is genuine, but without the proper ritual it did not cause Aji’s apparent revival; Zhou Yang’s arrival merely coincided with it 103.
• His spontaneous chanting has no effect when confronted by the Tsen Demon possessing Zeweng 117.

Equipment & Items

• Shinbone flute: Made from the leg bone of a thirteen-year-old boy whom Gonpo once hoped to accept as a disciple. After the boy died of an infectious disease, Gonpo honored his request for sky burial and retained the bone with his permission. The flute contains the boy’s sincere protective wish rather than hatred and can summon exceptionally large flocks of vultures, identified as dakini manifestations 103.
• Gangba Aga tsa-tsa: A black, molded clay figure of the lay mantra master. Gonpo gives it to Aji as an apprenticeship gift and tells him to keep it safe for protection; it feels warm against Zhou Yang’s chest 98 99 101.
• Dismemberment tools: Knives and axes used in sky burial, cleaned and wrapped in coarse cloth after use 107.

Relationships

• Aji / Zhou Yang — His disciple and eventual “First Master” relationship. Gonpo believes he is teaching Aji and attributes the young man’s extraordinary knowledge to aptitude and Lung Madness Disease 99 108 116.
• Zhuoma, Aji’s elder sister — Calls him “Uncle Gonpo.” He shelters her and Aji, considers their livelihood, and promotes her repair work among the neighbors 96 98 112.
• Gemei — Fellow sky burial master and neighbor. Their rivalry over Aji becomes a shared apprenticeship, although Gonpo remains sensitive about his standing as first master 115 116 134.
• Jiekan — Corpse carrier whom Gonpo regularly employs. Gonpo scolds his tactless behavior but continues to work with him 98 112.
• Zeweng — Neighboring sky burial master whose apparent madness prompts Gonpo to seek Aji’s help 112.
• Little Zhuoma — The murdered child whose forced sky burial endangers Gonpo and Aji. Gonpo helps complete her burial and preserves the protective bone she leaves for his disciple 100 105 107.
• Deqin — Tantric practitioner who coerces Gonpo into accepting Little Zhuoma’s corpse. His death leaves Gonpo fearing punishment from the temple 100 107.
• Queji Jiacuo — Student monk who approaches Gonpo about visiting Aji in connection with Lung Disease 135.

Notable Quotes

“Little people like us are all feeling our way from stone to stone in the dark, unlike the great lamas in the monastery.” 101

“We're corpse dismemberers. We look dirty, smelly, and frightening, but life and death don't pass through our hands. We're only the people who guide others to their respective destinations after they die. We have no sins.” 102