May 25, 2015
Degé (Tibetan, Latin script, Tibetan and Himalayan Library (THL) Simplified Tibetan transcription) Parkhang. The Parkhang is located in Gengqing Temple – Sakya school (ref. THL)
Translation by Yang Bhum Tserling from Tibetan to Mandarin.
Mandarin to English by Wuerxiya and Yu Quin
Field Notes by Doug Blandy and Laurie Hicks
The Tibetans treat the Degé Parkhang as a sacred place. In fact, we observed pilgrims circulating clockwise, the perimeter of the building with many carrying prayer wheels and chanting mantras as they would while circumambulating a temple or monastery.
More than 200,000 printing blocks, made from cured birch, are housed in the Parkhang. The curing process includes smoke and yak dung. Thirteen different steps are involved in the treatment. Every two years blocks are rubbed with several layers of Yak butter and placed in the sun to dry. The area in which the blocks are stored smelled wonderfully of the yak butter.
No modern technologies are used in printing. This includes no use of heat, air conditioning or lighting. The Degé Parkhang is only lit with natural light coming through windows and skylights.
The Parkhang was build between 1687 and 1738 and was designed for environmental control
Catalog system:
Name of book and content by chapter/ number of blocks per chapter
Tibetan alphabet used to keep blocks in order
Shelved by 10 block increments
Every shelf has a number
Blocks are placed backwards to indicate the end of a book.
It is an honor for workers and visitors to experience the Derge Parkhang and breathe in the atmosphere
I witnessed a block carver chanting, and beating a drum at his worktable
Printing room:
One person inks the block with a rectangular wooden brush using either the black or red ink. The red ink, made from cinnabar or natural vermilion (red mercuric sulfide) (The Handbook of Tibetan Buddhist Symbols, Robert Beer, 2003, p. 24) contains mercury and is toxic.
Second person lays paper on block and uses a wooden handled roller to apply paper to block
Block is on an inclined board
Buddha’s words are in red ink
Ink is made from mineral pigment and is made on site
Printing begins at 8:30 AM and ends at 4 PM
At 5:30 preparations are made for the next day
Paper is made on site. 8 steps in the preparation of paper
5000 sutras are printed at each printing stations
10 printing stations with two men at each station
A third man is in charge of providing the blocks to be printed
Process is to print five on one side and reprint on other side. Pages in process are laid across the leg of the man with the roller
When both sides printed pages are placed on an inclined board to the left of the printers
Two different kinds of paper are used.
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LH: I’m finding this confusing. We were told that the papers include one made from the roots of Stellera Chamaejasme, one made from Euphorbia and one from rice. I found an image of women pounding the roots of the stellera chamaejasme plants supposedly at the Degé Parkhang.
I also found indications in different texts that paper made from stellera chamaejasme is considered to be of highest quality and that it is only used for specific printing such as for the sacred texts and paper money. The Degé Parkhang website indicates that it is used to make the printing paper.
But when I looked into Euphorbia – I found evidence that it is also used at the Degé Parkhang. Our guide said something about “wolf drug” that was translated as Euphorbia. When I looked further, I found a poorly translated text that said:
“Euphorbia paper Wolf also called Gelsemium elegans poisonous weeds, open red or yellow flowers, the roots are poisonous. Tsering, a deal was often poisonous weeds and the Wolf. Tsering Tibetan family is now the only paper making family, poisonous weeds will be taken to the wolf to Wolf also called Gelsemium elegans poisonous weeds, open red or yellow flowers, the roots are poisonous.
Tsering, a deal was often poisonous weeds and the Wolf.
Tsering Tibetan family is now the only paper making family, poisonous weeds will be taken to the wolf to its Mosaic stems, whichever is the root of the raw material.”
I looked into Tsering and came up with: http://www.vtibet.com/en/calture/popular/201312/t20131231_167309.html
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It is an honor to be a printer. It is a job in which several generations of family have participated.
Low salary but honorable practice of Buddhism
They bow three times before each print is made.
Printers’ day begins with scripture recitation
On the floor above are cords strung between pillars over which the printed pages are hung to dry
Degé ParkHang seems to have four floors and an accessible roof – lobby, block shelving, printing room and block shelving, drying space, roof
Roof has two gilded peacocks granted by Kublai Khan. Only one of three places with such sculptures. Another in Degé and a third in Lhasa
Degé Parkhang cannot keep up with the demand for its printed sutras. Three- year waiting list.
Printing takes place between April and November
Third man in the printing room checks for quality of prints and discards those that are inferior. Each print goes to a third location for checking of completeness and print quality.
The Degé Parkhang is one of the three significant traditional printing houses in Tibet.
LH: when I looked into this I found different names for the other two:
From the Degé Parkhang website: Lhasa Sutra-printing House in Tibet and the Lhapuleng House in Gansu
From the Tibetan Connections (a Tibetan run tour group) website: Nedong Parkhang and the Joni Parkhang
I’m trying to see if these are different names for the same places or different places.
Little electricity in facility to protect against fire. Parts of exterior building are insulated using carbonized rhododendron with yak wool
Location of Degé Parkhang is auspicious. Surrounded by mountains. To the North a mountain resembling the head of a dragon, to the south elephant with trunk, to west bird spreading its wings, and to east snow covered peaks
Location chosen by local headman after seeing three boys building from the shit of a horse along with hearing children reading books. Books stand for wisdom.
Another version is that a printer came to the area and became frightened causing his scriptures to be scattered to the wind. The living Buddha told the headman to build here.
There is a temple to the 21 Tara on the roof
At Degé Parkhang images are also printed on paper, cotton, and silk. One – two person job.
Similar process to sutra block printing
Paper is made of wolf drug flower or euphorbia
Standards for printing at Degé Parkhang – effort, neatness, and depth. Originally workers were paid in gold that block could hold. Workers carved very deep in an effort to create a block that would hold more gold.
Three headsmen responsible for Degé Parkhang. They did not care about personal wealth. They cared for Buddhism
Women were not originally allowed in Degé Parkhang. A Green Tara Thangka protects the academy. When painter only had the eyes left to paint, the eyes came alive and Green Tara said that the academy was unfair. An offering of butter was brought and the Green Tara spoke again about the unfairness on not allowing women. Since then women have been allowed in. The Green Tara’s eyes still move as if alive.
Some blocks have images and text.
Some blocks have Sanskrit, Old Tibetan, and modern Tibetan
Washing area:
Workers wearing masks clean blocks using water and a brush
Washing water is collected and sold as Tibetan medicine