TRAVELS IN TIBET
Tibet has a romantic allure and aura to many people, myself included, so I was
delighted and excited to have a chance to visit it myself last year, after a week’s stay
in China proper. It gave me the opportunity to think myself away and escape from
my mental illness, or at least attempt to do so for a short period.
On arrival in Tibet, we were met by our friendly Tibetan guide, Tashi, who
presented us each with a khata, or ceremonial silk scarf, and driven to our first
overnight stay in Tsetang, an ugly town but situated in an area redolent of Tibetan
history.
We travelled the next morning to Samye, crossing the Brahmaputra on a flatbottomed wooden boat in the process. Samye, Tibet’s first monastery, was destroyed
during the Cultural Revolution but was subsequently rebuilt. It was originally built in
the 8th century, when Buddhism became the state religion, with 108 buildings shaped
as a mandala, with golden-topped Utse representing the heart and centre of the
universe, on three floors, Chinese, Tibetan and Indian respectively.
Following this we were driven to the Yumbulagang, the first palace of the
Yarlung kings and a palace-fortress-monastery on the crest of Mt. Tashitsering.
Reputedly the oldest building in Tibet, it was sadly destroyed in part and not rebuilt
until 1982. Although the mythical King Nyatri Tsenpo is supposed to have come
down here from heaven, building it in 127 B.C., the Buddhist texts are said to have
magically falled down from the skies later in this area, it is more likely to date from
King Songtsen Gampo’s time (7th century).
There was no way I felt up to climbing up to Yumbulagang so it was decided I
could avail myself of a yak to carry me up while my brother, Tim, strode fearlessly on
uphill. I hope the poor beast didn’t suffer too much for I have myself suffered the
side effects of Zyprexa!
The following day, after a 10 hour journey and a puncture in one of the mountain
passes, we arrived at Gyantse to sleep it off before visiting the phantasmagoric
Kumbum, a highlight for me as I have read a lot about this place. The Kumbum is a
15th century pyramid-shaped chörten-stupa, with 70 odd chapels, luckily not much
affected by the Cultural Revolution, with haunting statuary and artwork. Beside this,
there is a monastery housing a huge image of Maitreya, the Buddha of the Future.
We travelled through beautiful, if barren, countryside observing many traditional
stone houses with typical flat roofs bearing prayer-flags en route to Shigatse. From
there it was a short distance to Tashilhunpo, the seat of the Panchen Lamas and
formerly a monastic city. There are 2 Panchen Lamas now; one recognised by the
Dalai Lama and one by the Chinese government.
The current Chinese policy of recognition and restriction is in the earlier imperial
tradition; the Karmapa’s endorsement by the Chinese government, before his flight to
the west, is another example. The whereabouts of the Dalai Lama’s nominee as
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Panchen Lama are unknown but he is presumed to be under house-arrest somewhere,
whereas the Chinese government’s choice must be undergoing spiritual and political
training before being allowed to take up his residence at Tashilhunpo. A huge 26metre statue of Jampa (Maitreya) is displayed in the original building – the largest
gilded statue in the world.
On the way to Lhasa, we witnessed a “sky burial” and a Bon monastery in the
distance. The Bon religion is highly developed and sophisticated indigenous religion,
contrary to popular belief. After a horrendous and troublesome 11-hour journey, we
arrived at Lhasa “the home of the gods”.
We visited the stunning Potala palace, a monumental showpiece of Tibetan
architecture, with 13 storeys and a thousand rooms, the building of which started in
the 7th century for Songtsen Gampo. The name derived from the sacred mountain
abode in South India of Avalokitesvara (of whom the Dalai and Karmapa Lamas are
incarnations) and the Hindu god Shiva. We were mesmerised by the incredible
richness, value and beauty of the artefacts here, but nowadays it is more of a museum
than a palace-monastery.
Sera Monastery, one of the Gelugpa’s 6 institutions and one of the 3 great
monasteries around Lhasa was the next visit. Although in earlier days the number of
its monks reached over 5000, now it houses only about 800 monks but is still quite
well-preserved. As Tim was by now very much Buddha’d out, I viewed the next item
on the agenda, the Norbulingka, the summer palace of the Dalai Lamas on my own.
The whole area is a delightful mix of trees, gardens, ponds, palaces and Chinese-style
pavilions and was the official summer residence of the Dalai Lamas from the middle
of the 18th century.
On our last full day in Tibet, we walked to the Jokhang, the “cathedral” of Lhasa,
built in the 7th century, where much genuine religious devotion was evident. Not only
the earliest temple in Tibet, it is undoubtedly the most sacred, housing the “holy of
holies”, the Jowo, an image of the historical Buddha brought to Tibet by Wen Cheng,
Songtsen Gampo’s Chinese princess-wife as dowry. It depicts Sakyamuni at the age
of 12 and pilgrims queue up to touch the knees of the statue with their heads or drape
white khatas (scarves) around its neck. We ascended to the golden roof-tops which
are beautifully adorned with mythological birds and animals and from where there is a
grand view of Lhasa, including the Potala.
After a wild night out at the Crazy Yak restaurant, eating yakburgers washed
down with yak-butter tea, Tibetan barley beer and assorted tidbits, we drove to Lhasa
airport, catching the plane to Chengdu, where we changed planes for our trip back to
Beijing.
In Chengdu, we were bumped off the plane and had to spend an awful day and
night in a trashy hotel with noisy shouting inmates and staff. Every word they uttered
I construed as an abusive malicious comment about me. Earlier, in Tibet, one day I
saw the ceiling of my hotel room turn into a vivid series of visions. I could see
myself travelling into the snowy mountains with nomads, yaks and scenery in full
detail, a constantly moving record of events in Tibet.
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On another occasion in China, I listened to the Chinese radio, trying to recognise
words in the language I had studied at university. Instead I interpreted everything I
heard to be about me. “Who is this fat foreigner and why was he allowed to come to
China?” They were talking about my family background and medical history and Dr.
Ledger was involved in top-level talks with the Chinese government – everything
confirmed my suspicions. “He thinks he is an incarnation of the Jebtsundamba
Khutuktu, the Dalai Lama’s Mongolian counterpart, and is seeking recognition in
Lhasa. It must be a plot by the ‘splittist’ Dalai Lama to recover genuine autonomy
and religious freedom for the Tibetan people. He must be stopped, helicoptered out”.
Whilst I don’t deny that I have on occasions looked to the Jebtsundamba as a spiritual
ancestor, I have never shared my ancestry with the Chinese authorities. Was this a
resurgence of my illness, brought on by the strain of travel? Or can this experience be
attributed to the paranoia-inducing atmosphere which still pervades this authoritarian
land? Enthusiasts for Tibetan “minority” and their “superstitious” religious beliefs are
said to be especially prone!
For the illustrated version see
http://members.aol.com/xuanick/mongolia/mongolian_rulers.htm
or contact xuanick@aol.com for these and other articles by Philip Nugent
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