DOCSLIB.ORG

Sichuan's Tibetan Corner, Outside of Time

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
Sichuan's Tibetan Corner, Outside of Time C M Y K Sxxx,2012-12-30,TR,004,Bs-4C,E1 4 TR THE NEW YORK TIMES, SUNDAY, DECEMBER 30, 2012 JOURNEYS Sichuan’s Tibetan Corner, Outside of Time By KIT GILLET IGH on the Tibetan plateau, a few dozen red-robed monks of the Lhagang Monastery sat facing one H another, rocking back and forth as they chanted with faces turned upward, to the heavens. In the flickering candlelight of the monastery’s dim main chamber, they then built small pyramids of incense to place throughout the building, adorned with golden Buddhas, and at the center of Tagong. Outside, under the harsh noon sun, the monks mingled with the mainly Buddhist and ethnically Tibetan resi- dents of the frontierlike town, popula- tion 8,000, which despite its makeup is in Sichuan Province, China. “We are all Tibetan,” said Ba Ding, a local shopkeeper. “We do get a few Han Chinese tourists passing through, and we are friendly enough with them,” he added unconvincingly. I had been in Tagong just an hour, af- ter arriving in a small, dusty van that had bounced along rutted roads for the three-hour journey from the nearby city of Kangding, its engine whining as we ascended and descended steep moun- tain passes. After checking into one of the colorful guesthouses across the central square from the monastery, I had simply fol- lowed the brightly dressed monks into the main hall to witness one of their sev- eral daily worship sessions. Tagong, whose altitude of about 12,000 feet makes it one of the highest towns in the world, offers an unfettered window onto the Tibetan people and culture. The region was part of Tibet un- til 1955, and its remoteness — to get PHOTOGRAPHS BY JEFFREY LAU FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES there, you must take a single winding road several hours from the bustling provincial capital, Chengdu — has insu- lated it against significant change. The place has a closed-off feel, with a slow- placed existence that revolves around the major Tibetan monastery and its 60 Tagong, serene and remote, with monks and prayer flags. or so resident monks. And it was easier than traveling to the Tibet Autonomous Region, which in addition to the visa and passport required to visit China, also requires a special entry permit that doesn’t promise unrestricted travel. That sort of unfettered access was my reason for going, and two hours into my stay it was clear that Tibetan culture and Buddhism remain at the heart of life in Tagong, albeit with slight tweaks to accommodate the few thousand for- eign visitors who make the journey each year: a few guesthouses, yak- cheese pizza and arranged horse-trek- king trips into the plains outside of town. Tagong itself is just a blip on the map: a stretch of ornate buildings leading to CLOCKWISE FROM TOP Novice the gates of the monastery, all sur- monks at the Lhagang Monastery rounded by endless peaks and plains. A playing a version of basketball be- few minivans leave or arrive through- tween classes; traditional Tibetan out the day, offering seats to destina- architecture in Tagong; Dhondoup, tions as far away as Chengdu for about one of the monks; preparing a sim- 120 renminbi ($19.50 at 6 renminbi to the ple meal after worship; a common dollar), but the rest of the time a horse sight on Tagong streets. being ridden up the main street is as likely a sight as a passing car. Once in the recesses of Lhagang Mon- astery you can see monks devoting newness of the physical structure studies. of the room was taken up by the statues themselves to their faith with a calm as- Chengdu seemed immaterial. This visit was more Class was in session for an even and Tibetan texts, with a small cur- surance; across a wide river that runs Tagong about the monks than the monastery. younger group of devotees in the main tained-off area for him to sleep in. Back alongside the town young apprentice SICHUAN Though all Tibetan Buddhists, they hall of the Sakya Monastic School, a in town, the streets were emptying as monks study Buddhism at a monastic were a varied group. In one of the side smaller version of the main monastery, the evening drew near; soon the monks school; and up on a nearby hill, a hand- reliquaries off the main hall, an aged where boys sat crossed-legged on long — who must rise for 6 a.m. prayers — Kangding monk smiled as I entered, and led me rows of dark-red cushions, each facing and locals had gone home. Viewed from ful of hermit monks live in silent wor- 50 MILES ship. around the small, candlelit room where another student. They debated Bud- this town perched on the roof of the “We have over a hundred young nov- he has lived for the last three years, dhist texts, gesturing to make their world, with little in the way of light pol- ices studying Buddhism who will even- sleeping on a small cot. Stopping at one points. Dhondoup had explained to me lution save from a few guesthouse win- tually join us in becoming monks,” CHINANA BeBeijiningingg point, he showed me a picture of himself that the novices study the finer points of dows, the stars that glittered above the Dhondoup, a fresh-faced 25-year-old next to the Dalai Lama. “We are all Buddhist logic, philosophy and dis- monastery were nothing short of majes- monk said to me in English as we stood SICHSICHUANAN Buddhist and he is our leader,” he said course in the hillside school for seven tic. ShaShhanghnghaigh on a shaded platform overlooking the TIBET to me in Chinese. years before being allowed to join their That evening I dwelled on the seem- Lhasa courtyard of the monastery after the Areareaa of ddetaill Later in the afternoon I spotted a brethren in Lhagang. ingly simple lives of the monks: their noon service. group of young monks playing basket- Sometime during the debates, I faith, their warmth and their absence of In front of us, part of the monastery ball using a hoopless telephone pylon as sneaked out of a side door and headed 21st-century distractions. It may be was undergoing construction to house 500 MILES a net on a grassy field across the town’s up a small path through a forest of mul- facile to assume that they had found ful- these new recruits; a new two-story THE NEW YORK TIMES river, their robes billowing around ticolored prayer flags to the simple hill- fillment, but it was hard to shake the im- dormitory was being added. Bags of ce- them. There was no bridge in sight, but side homes of several hermit monks. pression that I’d met a group of people ment lay within the grounds, and amid and a half the monastery rose and fell in I removed my shoes to cross the ice- From their dwellings the town below who, having long ago discovered a few the debris were dented 10-foot-high importance, changing allegiance sev- cold, knee-deep water. On the other appeared even smaller, dwarfed by vast of the secrets to a content life, existed prayer wheels, their Tibetan text cov- eral times to different Buddhist sects bank I was quickly invited to join the snowy peaks in the distance. In the fore- outside of time. ered in dust. before its destruction during the Cultur- game. ground there was little but wide ex- The following morning, as I rode in a There has been a monastery in al Revolution (1966-76). In the 1980s “We try to play basketball every day panses of pastureland and other small different but equally dusty van out of Tagong since A.D. 652, when the Tibet- work began on rebuilding the monas- before our 6 p.m. studies,” said Laozang hills adorned with colorful Buddhist town, the driver stopped at the highest an king Songtsen Gampo built the last tery, and today’s temple is slowly re- Tsere, a gregarious 18-year-old novice prayer flags, placed there over the pass, removed a stack of papers from of a series of 108 monasteries he had or- turning to some of its former glory and born in a nearby village. years by the monks and townspeople. his glove compartment and threw them dered constructed across his kingdom. size. A few minutes after I joined the As I arrived outside of one door, a into the air, letting them flutter away as (It is said to be where his Chinese bride As I wandered the halls and cham- game, a bell sounded. The novices hermit beckoned me in, and, without ut- he muttered a Buddhist prayer. Some had stopped on her way to their wed- bers, staring up at the many gold Bud- quickly checked that their robes were tering a word showed me around his drifted back down the mountain toward ding in 640.) Over the next millennium dha statues surrounding the wall, the on straight before heading back to their small home, filled with Buddhas. Most Tagong. And with that we drove on. Æ minutes north of San Francisco, aims to attoir, a 20,000-square-foot state-of-the- prime cuts on the menu — “we can sell Bites change that. art facility designed according to the them easily in the butcher case,” she ex- One half of the large space contains a principles of the activist Temple Gran- plained — there is steak.
Load more

Recommended publications
  • An Adventure in Tibet 18 April to May 2 , 2015
    TIBETAN VILLAGE PROJECT AUSTRALIA INC. ABN: 98 504 209 907 PO BOX 417 BLACK ROCK VICTORIA, 3193 AUSTRALIA www.tvpaustralia.org.au An Adventure in Tibet 18 th April to May 2 nd , 2015. This itinerary is correct at the time of publishing, however, there are some situations that may change and we cannot guarantee that the itinerary as set out below. What we do promise, is an adventure that you will not forget. We do have a “Plan B” in case we cannot get to Lhasa, however, we work on the premise that we will get our permits for Lhasa. You will be meeting some lovely people, you will be made welcome in people’s homes and you will be travelling to remote places where few westerners have seen before. Saturday 18 th , April Arrive in Chengdu . You will be met by Don, the group leader, and transferred to the Traffic Inn which is our accommodation in Chengdu. Sunday 19 th , April After breakfast, we will visit the world famous Giant Panda Breeding Centre in Chengdu. The pandas are most active in the morning so you will have plenty of photo opportunities!! In the afternoon you may like to rest at the hotel or do a couple of hours of supply shopping. The hostel at the back of the Traffic Hotel has a small internet café if you wish to catch up 1 on some emails. We will have our trip orientation and welcome dinner tonight at a well-known Tibetan restaurant. Monday 20 th , April Today we fly from Chengdu to Kangding (flight is approximately 2 hrs duration) and then drive to Tagong .
    [Show full text]
  • On the Road in Shangri-La
    DRIVING IN CHINA On the road in Shangri-La AUTHOR PETER SCHINDLER AND A RELUCTANT, AGEING HIRE CAR HE NAMES ‘NOT IN YOUR DREAMS’ VENTURE INTO UNCHARTED TERRITORY; THE TIMELESS, MAGICAL CHINESE PROVINCES OF SICHUAN AND YUNNAN, HOME OF THE FABLED SHANGRI-LA > often look north and have long been wondering what might be the summer and discovered that they, too, loved driving. So we hastily possible. Hong Kong has been my home for many years. Despite it no agreed to set off on a 2,000-plus-mile (3,220km) drive in Sichuan and longer justifying the name ‘The Pearl of the Orient’, it is a place I Yunnan, two of China’s provinces that border Tibet and are the home love – a vibrant city full of can-do people who have managed to of the fabled Shangri-La. Ipreserve three-quarters of their mountainous territory as country parks The entire journey was magical, so let me relive just one of the nine that are lush blue and green. But there is one way in which Hong Kong days. We had it all worked out. We would spend that morning not and I are completely incompatible: it is one of the world’s worst places driving, but hiking, from Kangding (a city 200 miles (322km) west of for anyone who loves driving on an open road. Hong Kong’s roads are Chengdu, the capital of Sichuan) up to a pasture from which we would short or congested or both. enjoy a clear view of Sichuan’s highest mountain, the Gonggashan.
    [Show full text]
  • 03 Warner Offprint
    03 Warner_Inner Asia 13/2 30/01/2012 09:49 Page 239 A Miscarriage of History: Wencheng Gongzhu and Sino- Tibetan Historiography CAMerOn DAviD WArner Aarhus University, Denmark [email protected] AbSTrACT in this article, i examine how Wencheng Gonghzu, the Chinese consort to the first Tibetan emperor Songtsen Gampo, served as a contentious rhetorical site for Tibetan and Chinese historiographers for over 1,000 years. i argue present exile Tibetan and Chinese propaganda on such topics as Tibetan political, cultural, and hereditary independence from China is at least analogous and possibly influ - enced by historiographic traditions found in texts such as the Tang Annals and post- imperial Tibetan buddhist works like the Vase- shaped Pillar Testament . However, as Central Tibetan and Chinese historians used Wencheng to index the complex relationship between Tibet and China, eastern Tibetan historians pre - served lesser- known, potentially subversive narratives of Wencheng’s travels, especially regarding her possible love- affair with the Tibetan minister Gar Tongtsen and their illegitimate child. After briefly reviewing Central Tibetan and Chinese metanarratives, i focus on eastern Tibetan narratives, including the apparently lost Secret Autobiography of Wencheng Gongzhu , which i argue point to the former political autonomy and cultural hybridity of areas of eastern Tibet, especially Minyak and Powo. My investigation into Wencheng narratives from eastern Tibet demonstrates that her journey from China to Tibet should not be thought of as a mere liminal period of her life, but rather central to debates among Tibetans and Chinese regarding the politics of national unity ( minzu tuanjie ) and constructions of pan- Tibetan identity.
    [Show full text]
  • Studies on Ethnic Groups in China
    Kolas&Thowsen, Margins 1/4/05 4:10 PM Page i studies on ethnic groups in china Stevan Harrell, Editor Kolas&Thowsen, Margins 1/4/05 4:10 PM Page ii studies on ethnic groups in china Cultural Encounters on China’s Ethnic Frontiers Edited by Stevan Harrell Guest People: Hakka Identity in China and Abroad Edited by Nicole Constable Familiar Strangers: A History of Muslims in Northwest China Jonathan N. Lipman Lessons in Being Chinese: Minority Education and Ethnic Identity in Southwest China Mette Halskov Hansen Manchus and Han: Ethnic Relations and Political Power in Late Qing and Early Republican China, 1861–1928 Edward J. M. Rhoads Ways of Being Ethnic in Southwest China Stevan Harrell Governing China’s Multiethnic Frontiers Edited by Morris Rossabi On the Margins of Tibet: Cultural Survival on the Sino-Tibetan Frontier Åshild Kolås and Monika P. Thowsen Kolas&Thowsen, Margins 1/4/05 4:10 PM Page iii ON THE MARGINS OF TIBET Cultural Survival on the Sino-Tibetan Frontier Åshild Kolås and Monika P. Thowsen UNIVERSITY OF WASHINGTON PRESS Seattle and London Kolas&Thowsen, Margins 1/7/05 12:47 PM Page iv this publication was supported in part by the donald r. ellegood international publications endowment. Copyright © 2005 by the University of Washington Press Printed in United States of America Designed by Pamela Canell 12 11 10 09 08 07 06 05 5 4 3 2 1 All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be repro- duced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopy, recording, or any infor- mation storage or retrieval system, without permission in writ- ing from the publisher.
    [Show full text]
  • Explore the Tibetan Culture
    TanSuo Cultural Travel Explore the Mystery of Tibetan Culture Festival by Festival Engage with authentic Tibetan culture and take part in dazzling traditional festivals on this once- in-a-lifetime trip From lively competitions to vibrant performances of folk song and dance, festivals provide a unique window into the culture and history of the local people. Taking part in a festival is like wandering through a living museum, where you get to engage directly with authentic local culture and savor moments that will stay with you for the rest of your life. During this unforgettable tour, we’ll have the opportunity to take part in the June Festival, the Yushu Horse Racing Festival, the Mask Dance Festival, and the Litang Horse Racing Festival. Along the way, we’ll visit historic Tibetan monasteries, wander along the banks of sacred lakes, marvel at panoramic views of holy mountains, and climb to altitudes of over 4,000 metres. We’ll even have the chance to meet China’s national animal, the giant panda, so that we end the tour on the happiest note possible! 2 TanSuo Cultural Travel Our epic Tibetan Festival tour will be concentrated on the ancient regions of Amdo and Kham, which were once part of the Tibetan Kingdom and are now located in the modern-day provinces of Qinghai and Sichuan. Traditional Tibetan culture still forms the lifeblood of villages and settlements throughout these regions, which have remained in the shadow of the Tibet Autonomous Region and are thus far less popular with tourists. For this reason, the cultural customs of Kham and Amdo have not been altered by tourist demand or preference, so you will have an unprecedented opportunity to witness the local culture at its most authentic.
    [Show full text]
  • An Excerpt from Wilson's China: a Century On
    An Excerpt From Wilson’s China: A Century On Mark Flanagan and Tony Kirkham Editor’s Note: Ernest Henry Wilson was one of the most intrepid and productive plant hunters of his era—the beginning of the twentieth century. His collecting trips to China—first for Veitch Nurseries in England and then on behalf of the Arnold Arboretum—resulted in an extraordinary stream of new plants to the West. Arboretum director Charles Sprague Sargent instructed Wilson to thoroughly document his 1907–1908 and 1910 expeditions with photo- graphs; these striking images still reside in the Arboretum’s archives. Mark Flanagan, Keeper of the Gardens at Windsor Great Park, and Tony Kirkham, Head of the Arboretum at Kew, are modern-day plant hunters, having traveled and collected exten- sively in eastern Asia. Admirers of Wilson, they plotted a journey to retrace his footsteps in Sichuan, China. Using Wilson’s expedition photographs as a guide, they were able to capture views of some of the very same locations and even plants that Wilson saw a century ago. Their book pays homage to Wilson and provides a fascinating “then-and-now” glimpse of China’s landscape. The following is an excerpt from Chapter 3, “Mystery Towers of Danba.” Tatien-lu is a small and filthy dirty place, it boasts a large mixed population of Chinese and Tibetans. Being on the highway from Pekin to Lhasa, officials are constantly passing and re-passing. This makes it a highly important place, both politically and commercially. Although Batang, 18 days journey to the west, is the actual frontier town, Tatien-lu is really the gate of Tibet.1 ilson’s accurate but rather unflattering description of Kangding was penned at the conclusion of his first visit to the town in 1903.
    [Show full text]
  • 21 Days Tibet Kham Culture and Nature Overland Travel From
    [email protected] +86-28-85593923 21 days Tibet Kham culture and nature overland travel from Chengdu to Lhasa https://windhorsetour.com/sichuan-yunnan-tibet-tour/sichuan-northern-route-tibet-southern-route-tour Chengdu Kangding Ganzi Dege Yading Mount Meili Markham Pomi Bayi Lhasa Have an in-depth exploration of the culture and religious sites in Sichuan Kham before heading to Yading Nature Reserve and Mount Meili, the rest days will be continued along the famous National Road G318 to Lhasa with breathtaking landscapes. Type Private Duration 21 days Theme Culture and Heritage, Natural scenery, Overland, Photography Trip code WT-408 Price From ¥ 19,900 per person Itinerary This tour will lead you to have an in-depth exploration of the rich Tibetan Khampa culture, custom and traditions in Western part of Sichuan province (Ganzi Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture), where you will visit the famous Tibetan Printing Press in Dege and the Yarchen Gar in Pelyul, one of the two main Tibetan Buddhist Institutions in Kham area (the other one is Serta Larung, and it is currently closed to foreign tourists). Afterwards heading to visit Yading Nature Reserve, one of the most beautiful places on Tibetan Plateau called 'Last Shangri-la' accodring to the book of 'Lost Horizon', here you will see the three snow-capped peaks sitting in a triangle formation with forested valleys, clear rivers, glacier-fed lakes and abundant wildlife between them. Then continue the overland travel by crossing Jinsha River to Mount Meili, one of the holy mountains in Tibetan Buddhism. Finally driving a bit north along the National Road G214 up to Markham, the junction city of G214 and G318, where you will have your adventure overland travel to Tibet Lhasa along the famous National Road G318 (Sichuan-Tibet South Highway) with breathtaking views.
    [Show full text]
  • Visiting Lhungtse Copy
    BOULDER-LHASA SISTER CITY PROJECT www.boulder-tibet.org 776 Cottage Lane, Boulder, Colorado 80304-0758 U.S.A. 303-443-9863 [email protected] Visiting Lhungtse 30 April-5 May 2015 Lhungtse is a teen-age Tibetan girl who lives in Kham on the Tibetan Plateau (Yajiang County in western Sichuan Province of China) with her mother and brother. Because her father passed away in 2004, her mother has been working for eleven years as a farmer to support her family of three. Around 2007, Lhungtse began losing her vision in both eyes and also started suffering from headaches and seizures. In 2010, Dr. Li Tiaoying, Sichuan Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (SCDC), Chengdu, Sichuan, diagnosed Lhungtse to have a serious case of neurocysticercosis (NCC). This disease results from fecal-oral contamination from human carriers of another very serious preventable parasitic disease called taeniasis. The risk factors for taeniasis include eating undercooked pork, the use of free-ranging pigs, lack of latrine facilities, lack of meat inspection, poor hygiene, and a poor economy. NCC caused many cysts deep in Lhungtse’s brain. The cysts caused Lhungtse in 2010 in her home village with Dr. Li hydrocephalus, for which there is an abnormal Tiaoying (right) and a village leader (left) accumulation of cerebrospinal fluid (CSF) in the ventricles of the brain. The hydrocephalus caused increased intracranial pressure inside Lhungtse’s skull. This increased intracranial pressure caused Lhungtse’s headaches and damaged her optic nerves. This damage caused Lhungtse’s total blindness. 2013 - Lhungtse’s Brain Surgery Thanks to generous donations from many of you and others, Lhungtse received ventriculoperitoneal (VP) shunt brain surgery on 5 September 2013 at Sichuan Provincial People's Hospital in Chengdu.
    [Show full text]
  • Special Topic Paper: Tibet 2008-2009
    Congressional-Executive Commission on China Special Topic Paper: Tibet 2008-2009 October 22, 2009 This Commission topic paper adds to and further develops information and analysis provided in Section V—Tibet of the Commission’s 2009 Annual Report, and incorporates the information and analysis contained therein. Congressional-Executive Commission on China Senator Byron L. Dorgan, Chairman Representative Sander M. Levin, Cochairman 243 Ford House Office Building | Washington, DC 20515 | 202-226-3766 | 202-226-3804 (FAX) www.cecc.gov Congressional-Executive Commission on China Special Topic Paper: Tibet 2008-2009 Table of Contents Findings ........................................................................................................................................................................1 Introduction: Tibetans Persist With Protest, Government Strengthens Unpopular Policies ...............................3 Government Shifts Toward More Aggressive International Policy on Tibet Issue ...............................................5 Beijing Think Tank Finds Chinese Government Policy Principally Responsible for the “3.14 Incident” ...................................................8 Status of Negotiations Between the Chinese Government and the Dalai Lama or His Representatives............13 The China-Dalai Lama Dialogue Stalls ..............................................................................................................................................................14 The Eighth Round of Dialogue, Handing Over
    [Show full text]
  • Overland Routes from Sichuan
    © Lonely Planet Publications 267 Overland Routes from Sichuan Wild, mountainous and deliciously remote, the Tibetan areas of western Sichuan are a cultural and geographical extension of the Tibetan plateau in all but name. The area was once part OVERLAND ROUTES FROM of the eastern Tibetan region of Kham, before it became part of Sichuan province. It has long been the meeting point of the Chinese and Tibetan worlds and it was this region that first experienced the Chinese invasion and provided the stiffest resistance to it. SICHUAN It is an irony that because it is part of Sichuan, Tibetan culture is in many ways better preserved here than in the Tibetan Autonomous Region (TAR) and subject to fewer religious restrictions. You’ll see photos of the Dalai Lama freely displayed. Free of the regulations that dog travel in the TAR, travellers are here able to explore to their heart’s content. This chapter details overland routes through western Sichuan to the borders of Tibet. (For other land routes to Tibet, see p335 .) The northern and southern roads offer the main sights, including the big monasteries of Ganzi, Derge and Litang. Off the main roads are several spectacularly situated and rarely visited monasteries. Hikers can find bliss in the sublime scenery of Yading Nature Reserve or on horseback in the lovely valleys around Derge. Western Sichuan sees few visitors, partly because travel is still rough and time-consuming, but there are some real Tibetan cultural jewels here. And if you have the permits to continue over the high passes and deep gorges into remote eastern Tibet, you deserve to feel a little smug in the knowledge that you have completed one of the world’s great road trips.
    [Show full text]
  • TIBET at a TURNING POINT the Spring Uprising and China’S New Crackdown
    TIBET AT A TURNING POINT The Spring Uprising and China’s New Crackdown A report by the International Campaign for Tibet Washington, DC l Amsterdam l Berlin l Brussels August 6, 2008 TIBET AT A TURNING POINT The Spring Uprising and China’s New Crackdown A report by the International Campaign for Tibet Washington, DC l Amsterdam l Berlin l Brussels www.savetibet.org CONTENTS Summary . 2 Tibet at a turning point . 5 Protests in Tibet since March 10, 2008 . 15 Peaceful protests and the riot of 3/14 in Lhasa . 41 An ‘arduous struggle’: Protests in Kardze since March 10 . 65 Ngaba protests: ‘I recognise the Party’s great kindness’ . 73 Machu: Major protest leads to crackdown in town and nomad areas beyond . 81 Labrang: ‘Like the setting sun over the peak of a mountain’ . 85 ‘Smashing the Splittist Clique’: An analysis of leadership involved in the crackdown . 93 Detentions and disappearances in Tibet since March 2008: A new list of political prisoners . 119 New official attack on Tibetan Buddhism and monks in Kham . 137 ICT recommendations on Tibet . 141 Poetry and song . 145 1 TIBET AT A TURNING POINT: THE SPRING UPRISING AND CHINA’S NEW CRACKDOWN SUMMARY ince March 10 , a tidal wave of mainly peaceful protests against the Chinese government has swept across Tibet. Tibetans have risked their lives to demon - Sstrate that their exiled leader the Dalai Lama represents their interests, and not the Chinese state. This uprising is a result of more than half a century of Communist Party misrule and reveals the breakdown of Beijing’s Tibet policy at a time when China seeks to convey an image of harmony in the buildup to the Olympics.
    [Show full text]
  • Travel and Leisure SE Asia (2019)
    Tibet’s little-known Kham is a river-bound region where everyday life takes on the air of mythology. Crisscrossing the grasslands and mountain ranges, Rachna Sachasinh finds nomadic traditions holding their own against the Plateauedinflow of modernity. PHOTOGRAPHED BY ARIEL EsTULIN A pilgrim performs koras at Dege Parkhang Sutra-Printing House. OPPOSITE: Columns of colorful prayer flags flutter above alpine grasslands in Kham. TRAVELANDLEISUREASIA.COM / NOVEMBER 2019 77 If you are wondering where Kham is, you are not alone. The answer depends on who you ask. A Han Chinese will tell you Kham is part of Sichuan Province in western China. In the 1950s, Mao Zedong’s armies invaded Tibet, claiming to take back land that rightfully belonged to China. As a result, Tibet—including the Tibet Autonomous Region, Amdo and Kham—are recognized as Chinese territories. Tibetans, however, think otherwise, and they’ll happily set the record straight. Kham, they’ll say, is the cultural heartland of the Tibetan Plateau. Straddled by Amdo to the east and the Lhasa region to the west, Kham’s lore is rooted in the former Kingdom of Dege, the most powerful and influential of Kham’s five independent chiefdoms. The Middle Kingdom’s sovereignty notwithstanding, the Khampa insist they are Tibetans not Chinese. I first heard of Kham from Jamin York whose company, Himalaya Journey, leads mountaineering and cultural trips in Tibet. At the time, my idea of a Tibetan journey was wrapped up in a movie montage: climbing the steps at Potala Palace, monk-watching in Lhasa’s Jokhang Square, going to Everest Base Camp, and of course completing a kora, or circumambulation, around Mount Kailash.
    [Show full text]