NEPAL, Nov. 18 -- As people move out of Nepal's trans-Himalayan districts, their faiths migrate with them to the cities and all over the world.

The ancient animist faith of Bon Po predates the advent of Buddhism in Tibet, and its last remaining priests and devotees are found in villages like Lubra in Mustang and Samling in Dolpo. But as those villages empty out, Bon centres can now be found as far afield as Kathmandu, New York and Tokyo.

The first Triten Norbutse Monastery was founded in Tibet in the 14th century by the Bon Master Shen Nyima Gyaltsen. Its monastery in Nepal is below the forested hills of Ichangu on the western outskirts of Kathmandu.

Many are surprised to hear that there is a Bon centre in Kathmandu, and that it is lo...