Harsh climatic conditions, a way of life that has not changed for many centuries, and Buddhist ethics determined the character traits of these short, wiry highlanders. Their unhurriedness is combined with explosive energy. Restraint and seeming phlegmaticness instantly turn into a determination to help, even at the cost of your own life. They are always ready to share their shelter with the weary traveler on the mountain roads. They are Sherpas, which means "people from the east" in Tibetan.
MOVING
It is believed that the first migration of this people took place 500-600 years ago - from Eastern Tibet. Guided by their religious books, the Sherpas crossed the Himalayan ridge in search of the wonderful land of Beyul, where people live happily and for a long time, and snow leopards live peacefully with yaks. The second - forced - wave of resettlement took place in the 17th century: one of the Tibetan sub-ethnic groups, the warlike Khampa tribes, ousted from the former habitats of the Sherpas. Then they settled in the mountain valleys of Nepal. However, it is possible that the "move" happened much earlier: and the Sherpas came to the lands where the state of Nepal subsequently arose, of their own free will - in search of fertile pastures for livestock. However, they ended up settling in the Khumbu area, near Everest. And Everest changed their lives.
INFRASTRUCTURE AT THE TOP OF THE WORLD
In 1950, Nepal opened its borders. The country was flooded with seekers of exotic and adventure, Eastern religions and mystics, and, of course, climbers. After all, no man has ever set foot on Everest, the highest peak in the world. And the "people from the east" have become indispensable as guides and porters on the Himalayan roads. On May 29, 1953, New Zealander Edmund Hillary and Sherpa Tenzing Norgay climbed to the summit of Everest. And to the question: "Who was the first to climb the top of the mountain?" - Hillary answered evasively: "We walked together." And Tenzing recognized the leadership of Edmund Hillary. Although it can be assumed that the Sherpa simply ceded to the New Zealander the right to be the first to step on the highest point of our planet.
A lot of time has passed since that glorious day: the Himalayan glaciers melted thoroughly, and the ascent of Everest - alas - turned into a business. First of all - for the Sherpas themselves. They have hereditary altitude adaptation, which makes it easier for them to tolerate oxygen deprivation. Their blood runs faster than other people, but their heart rate and pressure remain normal. Once upon a time there were legends about the exploits of "people from the east", their endurance and selflessness. But time changes everything. Today, to climb Everest, you just have to fork out: $ 50,000 - and you are on top. The same Sherpas will take you there. They have it all. Along the entire route - almost from the base camp to the peak - they stretched the so-called fixed ropes. We have set up intermediate camps, where they bring in the necessary provisions. In a word,created the necessary infrastructure for the alpine industry. Therefore, now there are few real climbers on Everest, mostly tourists: each of them climbs in the company of at least two Sherpas and several … oxygen tanks.
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Norbu Sherpa, the son of that same Tenzing Norgay, says that it's all about money. Tourists visiting Nepal are a constant challenge to the cultural traditions of the Himalayan region. Previously, the Sherpas did not even think to climb Everest, and even to other peaks. For them, the snowy peaks, directed to the heavens, were shrouded in legends: the gods lived there. But Sherpas need to build houses. To feed their families, raise their children. Most of them have no education and cannot find another job. The centuries-old culture, language and religion are being destroyed. The mentality is changing. But this is a reality of today. And there is no getting away from this.
FIGHT AT THE "ZONE OF DEATH"
But real climbers also go to Everest. They are paving new challenging routes, making outstanding ascents, doing without oxygen tanks and without Sherpas. And the latter do not like it - because in this way they lose their earnings. As for the climbers, they have their own claims to the "people from the east": they say, they "privatized the mountain." Be that as it may, but for the time being it was possible to avoid open confrontation. But in the spring of 2013, growing contradictions broke out. The stars of world mountaineering - Ueli Steck, Simone Moreau and John Griffith - were preparing their original route to Everest. And at the same time, Sherpas were fastening ropes for commercial groups nearby. A verbal skirmish ensued between the climbers and the Sherpas, which turned into a fight. The Sherpas surrounded Steck, Moreau and Griffith, and, threatening with knives, promised to kill them. And only the intervention of the neutral side - other guides, tourists and climbers - helped to avoid fatal consequences. All this happened a kilometer below the so-called "death zone" - a mark of 7000 meters, where no living creature can stay for a long time. Nobody pleaded guilty - each of the conflicting parties adhered to its own version of what was happening. However, Nepalese authorities investigated the incident and suspended several Sherpas from work on the mountain. Of course, this only added tension to the relations between professional climbers of the peaks and "people from the east."Nobody pleaded guilty - each of the conflicting parties adhered to its own version of what was happening. However, Nepalese authorities investigated the incident and suspended several Sherpas from work on the mountain. Of course, this only added tension to the relations between professional climbers of the peaks and "people from the east."Nobody pleaded guilty - each of the conflicting parties adhered to its own version of what was happening. However, Nepalese authorities investigated the incident and suspended several Sherpas from work on the mountain. Of course, this only added tension to the relations between professional climbers of the peaks and "people from the east."
YOU LIKE A BROTHER
And yet, much more often Sherpas show themselves from a completely different side. While traveling in the Himalayas, I often found myself on the same path with them. I walked with them up the serpentine mountain roads. As a rule, they always carry incredible loads on themselves - the tonnage of some expedition or provisions to their native village. Luggage is carried in cone-shaped baskets. Instead of shoulder straps, there is a wide headband holding the basket, inside of which are cans of kerosene, and bags of rice or salt, and all the essentials. And on top, tied with straps, is a thundering metal dish. It is loaded, as they say, “above the roof”. Sometimes the porter is not visible either. Only muscular calves and slippers flash. They walk slowly, without sudden movements, without raising their legs high: with their sole, like a mine detector, feeling for a suitable support. Even young people work as mountain porters,and old, there are also women. They rest, puffing on cheap Nepalese cigarettes, placing baskets on stone benches in the resting places. They carry 40-50 kg. There are many more. They are paid per kilos. They pay with diseases of the legs and spine. Once I unsuccessfully chose the path along the icy slope. He slipped and began to slide down, not finding anything to catch on. The Sherpa walking beside me instantly threw off his backpack, deftly crept up to me and held out his hand. If not for him, I don't know - would I have remained intact?not finding anything to catch on. The Sherpa walking beside me instantly threw off his backpack, deftly crept up to me and held out his hand. If not for him, I do not know - would I have remained intact?not finding anything to catch on. The Sherpa walking beside me instantly threw off his backpack, deftly crept up to me and held out his hand. If not for him, I do not know - would I have remained intact?
And in 2010, in the village of Langtang, I could not find where to stay for the night: sometimes there are no places, then the prices are too high. One Sherpa, seeing my ordeal, came up and offered to go to him. When asked about the price, he replied: “Accommodation is free, but for dinner and breakfast - how much you give. You are like a brother to me. I warmed myself by the stove, on which the Sherpa cooked my supper: I baked Tibetan bread and cooked tukpu, a soup with long noodles. His grimy smiling children, boy and girl, did not take their eyes off me. And I looked at the picture that hung in front of the stove: in front of me was the Beyul mountain valley, where people live happily ever after.
Oleg POGASIY