The Brokpa community, settled in villages along the banks of the Indus River in Ladakh, India, is regarded as one of the earliest settler groups in the region. Chamba Gyaltsan, now 97 years old and a resident of Dah village, is one of the oldest members of the Brokpa community. He recalls the legend of his ancestors—three brothers named Galo, Melo, and Dulo—who migrated from Gilgit centuries ago. They first settled in Dah and later expanded to Hanu, Garkhon, Darchik, and neighboring villages.
The author met him in Baldes, a small hamlet of Dah. Reflecting on his disciplined youth, Chamba credits his health to a life centered around farming and family responsibilities. During his youth each day began around 4 a.m., feeding their horses, donkeys, and goats before starting fieldwork without breakfast. Time was marked by the sun’s position rather than clocks; as it rose above the mountains, they knew it was time to head home for their first meal. Food was seasonal: in autumn and winter, they ate paaba made from chaa (sorghum) for warmth, while in summer, barley was used to make kholak and paaba.
When Chamba was a young man, many from the Brokpa villages, including Chamba's father, journeyed to the salt markets in the Sakti and Chemrey villages, where they traded their barley and phating (dried apricots) for salt with Changpa traders. In these markets, only the leader of the Changpa group handled negotiations. Salt was traded in solid natural blocks known as Tsa dok-dok, rather than in powder form. The typical exchange rate was three battis (about 2 kg) of salt for one batti of phating, with separate rates set for wool (bal) and sheep. If needed, Changpa traders used a traditional scale called nyaga, calibrated with a stone known as pordo, to measure goods.
After returning from the Sakti-Chemrey market, Chamba's father and fellow villagers traveled over a week from Dah to reach Skardu and Shigar in Baltistan, where they traded salt for additional phating (dried apricots). It was customary for family members to escort relatives till Olding and Morol in Baltistan, where they crossed rivers in a ritual known as chu phingey phiya, or “crossing the water.” At 18, shortly after his marriage, Chamba joined this journey himself, traveling from Dah through Gurgurdo, Phuru, and Dansar to reach Morol—a three-day trek.
According to Chamba, the route to Skardo was known to involve crossing three major rivers. While Chamba could only identify the Leh-Chu (Indus) and Kusting Chu (Shyok), maps suggest that the third river might have been the Drass River, which travelers likely crossed to reach Olding before crossing the Indus again to arrive in Morol. This remains a hypothesis and could be refined with new information. At Morol, Chamba observed how the Brokpas relied on native Baltis to help them cross the rivers, using inflated buffalo skins called Jaks. The Baltis would place a Spangleb—a wooden slab—on two Jaks and secure it with ropes, creating a sturdy boat called a Thorow, capable of carrying both people and animals. Chamba saw that while men, donkeys, and cattle sailed on the Thorow, the horses would literally swim across the rivers. After ensuring his father’s safe crossing, Chamba returned to Dah.
The annual visits that the Brokpa traders made to the Sakti-Chemrey salt markets were primarily for trading salt in Baltistan. However, for personal use, the Brokpas in Dah mainly relied on Shamma traders, who traveled directly to villages in winter to sell salt and wool. These Shamma traders came from neighbouring villages of Saspol, Skurbuchan, and Temisgang, often braving heavy snowfall in the 11th and 12th months of the Ladakhi calendar. The annual visits of the Shamma traders and their trade involving tsa (salt) and bal (wool) were known as Tsatob Baltob by the Brokpas. The sturdy Shamma traders would camp in open fields, brewing tea, even during snow in harsh winter conditions. They borrowed shovels from villagers to clear the snow and covered their donkeys with thick covers for warmth. The Brokpas would offer them supplies of kornak or patchaa—the remains of apricot kernels after oil extraction—as feed for their donkeys and dried turnips and chuli (apricots) in exchange of salt.
However, there were times of salt scarcity and Chamba narrated a little known practice followed by the Brokpas in the past. During times of scarcity, the Brokpa community, including Chamba Gyalstan's family, practiced an ingenious tradition of gathering Pa-tsaa from nearby mountains. This whitish substance, which resembled soda found in Nubra, was collected from soil secretions in certain mountainous areas. Chamba explained that his parents would carry it as a mixture of soil and stones back home, where they would process it by mixing it with water in a doltok ( stone utensil). The water was then filtered and used as a substitute for salt, helping the community manage during shortages.
Before India's independence in 1947, Leh served as Ladakh's summer capital, while Skardu was the winter capital. Government business operated through a Darbar Shift, with officials moving between the two locations based on the season. Communication between Leh and Skardu was maintained through telegrams and mail. Once, while in Leh, Chamba recalls witnessing a strange machine on which a government employee was operating a handle at different frequencies. Curious about the device, he learned that the silver wires connecting Leh to Skardu enabled the machine, known as the telegraph, to transmit messages across the distance.
In the past, doltoks (stone utensils) were a significant trade item between the Brokpas and the Baltis of Baltistan. Chamba shared that these essential utensils were crafted by villagers from Kusting (the old name for Hassanabad), located along the Shyok River, now in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. The Brokpas would meet the Kusting villagers at Kusting La, the site for Doltoks making. Kusting la, a mountain pass accessible from Dah after crossing Nyerda, was an area known for its abundant stone resources ideal for making doltoks. This trade involved Brokpas from Dah and villagers from Khalste, who traveled specifically to acquire these utensils. A mutual understanding existed between the communities: Brokpas would leave any unattended doltoks untouched, while Kusting villagers refrained from disturbing the Brokpas' cattle grazing in the area. Due to limited income, Kusting villagers also traveled annually to Shimla in Himachal Pradesh for seasonal work. Chamba Gyaltsan recalls seeing them pass through Dah, often stopping to rest at the changra (a communal space for celebrations) along their journey.
Meeting with Chamba Gyaltsan was filled with many anecdotal discussions. The areas around the Brokpa villages of Ladakh are famous for their high concentration of petroglyphs. Chamba shared a mystical explanation for the petroglyphs found around Khalste and Brokpa villages in the Indus Valley. According to him, these engravings are not man-made but were created by tiny beings known as Ileyphru, who work only under the cover of darkness. So small that they could fit into a cap. He claims to have witnessed this phenomenon firsthand when, once overnight, a petroglyph appeared on a local boulder. Chamba notes that local folklore holds that if one encounters an Ileyphru, the creature may grant a wish.
The oppressive Res or Thal system required villagers to provide free labor to government officials as they traveled between Leh, Kargil, and neighboring villages. For Dah’s 35 families, this duty extended from Nyurla to Lamayuru. Chamba vividly remembers one particularly challenging Res duty: transporting large tires across the mountains, a task that left him with painful rashes on his back. In addition to Res, villagers faced Jinsi and Bhaps taxes, collected twice a year by the Goba (village head) and submitted at Lamayuru. Chamba also recalls a time when nearly everything in Ladakh was taxed, from horses to land.
Besides these obligations, the Ladakhis had to deal with a barrage of government officials making unreasonable demands. During Losar, the Kazdar would visit Dah, arriving with two horses and accompanied by the Shikardo, who enforced hunting restrictions. Villagers hosted these officials at the Goba’s residence, offering phukma (dry grass) for the horses and serving chang (local alcohol) and lavish food to the guests. During his stay, the Kazdar also resolved local disputes. These visits required the Brokpas to offer gifts, and doltoks were highly prized by the visiting officials. Years later, Chamba visited the family of a deceased Kazdar and recognized several doltoks he believed were forced gifts from his village.
Chamba holds deep respect for the 19th Ven. Bakula Rinpoche, whose efforts ultimately led to the abolition of these oppressive practices, freeing the people of Ladakh from the burdens of forced labor and excessive taxes.
