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Album: By Country | By Date Tibet | July 2001 < Prev: Linghor Kora | Next: Chengdu >
Travelogue: By Country | By Date Tibet | July 2001  

July 2001 - Around Lhasa and a Visit to Sera Monastery

Prayer wheel repairmen and debating monks

Building a big road through the north side of old Lhasa, and right in front of our hotel In front of an internet place. Notice the sign is written mainly in Chinese with Tibetan in the small letters on top. In the Chinese part of town, there is often no Tibetan at all. Potala Palace. Man with a triple-decker prayer wheel
Tote with a winter monk's robe. (He's got it on inside out.) A prayer wheel repair shop. Back in the main market. Old eggs Tofu etc.
Tote with a muslim hat Two girls. The girl on the right has a clother covering for her sleeve. This is a common protection for sleeves among the butchers and street workers. Smiling girl Tote and an embarassed girl
At Sera monastery, founded in 1419. This is a statute (we think) of the Fifth Dalai lama. Statues like these are the most obvious feature of the chapels in monasterys. They may be of famous lamas, gods or goddesses, and now and then a very famous human. Commonly called the Great Fifth. He established, with the military assistance of the Mongols, the supremacy of the Galugpa sect (the "Yellow Hats") over rival orders for the temporal rule of Tibet. He also built the Potala. Goddess holding up one of the 8 religious symbols of Tibetan Buddhism. This is the banner (it looks like an umbrella) of Victory. It heralds the triumph of Buddhist wisdom over ignorance. Another goddess Colorful decorations
We don't know what this but thought the fish were cool The wheel of dharma and deer, supposedly commemorate Buddha's preaching in a deer park. Decorations on top of monastery Cool decorations
Design for Mark's new office door These decorations, for an altar, are made from tsampa (ground barley and water), the national dish, and yak butter. This monk is making decorations Colorful rafters
Mark and Maggie following the monks. They had just gotten out of class and were headed to their living quarters. Old monk
Waiting for the rest of the monks to come in the debating courtyard Drawing a picture for us Debaters Maggie and Mark drawing
Debates underway. The fellow in the middle of the photo is getting ready to slap his hand. The guy on the left has finished. Debating monks Debating monks Prayer beads. There's 108 on a string. That's a holy number and, as the kids pointed out, the number of bridges constructed by a famous Tibetan architect
Monica and monks More drawing More drawing More debating
Puzzled monk Maggie talking with the monks