Tibet

This. Is no fairy land from some far-off legend, with its snow-capped, mountain shimmering, in an ocean of cloud, this. Is one of the world's very special, places the. Tibetan, Plateau. Millions. Of years ago this was the floor of an ocean until. The colossal, forces of continental drift thrusted. Up some 4,000, metres above sea level to become the largest and highest plateau, on earth the. Roof of the world. The. Highest point on the plateau is the highest point on the surface of the earth itself, the, world's premier mountain, Chomolungma. Or Mount Everest. Forming. Part of the backbone of the Himalayas Mount, Everest is pristine. Magnificent. And awe-inspiring, in. Legend, a goddess in, fact her Tibetan name Chomolungma, means the eternal, goddess, but. The goddess is still in her first youth but, at 8800, metres tall she's still growing. Of. The 14 mountains in the world over 8,000, metres high ten, are found here and, the other four aren't very far away. Chomolungma. The mysterious mountain is, compared, by explorers, to the North and South Poles, they even call her the Earth's third, Pole. As. The goddess thrusts, inexorably, upwards, and the snows accumulate, on her flanks, glaciers. Are formed which, gouge and whined ever downwards, for thousands, of meters. In, Sapporo, Japan and, in, Harbin, China's, snow city there, are many famous ice sculptures. But, they're all man-made and. None can compare with the ice pinnacles, in the middle reaches of the wrong book Glacia. This. Magnificent. Scenery is the work of the Sun which. Of the right temperature, melts, the ice to, create its artistry. Wherever. You look the, ice pinnacles, are there each, one unique. There. Are ice corridors, ice. Crevasses, ice, palaces, even, huge ice mushrooms. Each, looking, like the work of some supernatural, craftsman. This, is said to be the Crystal Palace the, playroom of the goddess and her sisters. To. The eastern side of Everest 1.2. Million square kilometres is, Tibetan territory, an, area densely, scattered with Lakes and tans but. It's altitude makes, the air so thin that the people from the plains find it very difficult to adapt, to life here. Tibet. Is vast but sparsely, populated it. Makes up one-eighth of China's area but has less than one 500th, of its population, not, 2 million people but. People with their own distinctive, culture, language. And a vast number of legends. Getting. To Tibet is a long and difficult journey, surrounded. As it is by the Himalayas, the, Kunlun mountains, the, Karakoram, range and the Tangela mountains. Before. The 1950s, Tibet, was a society, without wheels and transport. Depended upon horses, mules, and yaks, in the, mid 1950s, though the authorities, started constructing, proper sealed roads. Traveling. One of these roads into Tibet will take you across a dozen high passes and glaciers, at, its quite some journey. One. Of the main problems, is the lack of oxygen which, can affect even the strongest of outsiders. The. Second problem is the bitter cold because. Even at the height of summer a blizzard, can strike with incredible, speed and violence. Autumn. And winter make travel, a virtual impossibility. The. Locals say that at any time there are four seasons in these mountains and a, different sky every, ten kilometres over. The. Hill is southeastern, Tibet with its completely different scenery and flowers, everywhere down. From the mountains Tibet, is a different, world. As. You approach loss or a new face of the plateau emerges. These, people, are Tibetan, tribesmen, from the Chinese provinces, of Sichuan, Ching, hai and Gansu they. Haven't come here by plane by car, by, horse or even, on foot. They've. Come here by performing, can chat literally. Measuring, out their journey with their own bodies to show their devotion to the Lord Buddha a. Prayer. A body, length another. Prayer another, body length they've been traveling like this for many months and their, ultimate destination. Lhasa. The capital city, of Tibet. The. Name Lhasa means the happy holy lamp and, the city is the center of buddhist lama ism you. Seem to feel religion, with every breath you take in lhasa and, religious, statues, and quotations, from the scriptures or sutras, are everywhere.

The. Pilgrims believed that simply by touching a carved sutra they formed a link with buddha. Their. Worship has become mechanized too and, one turn of the prayer wheel equals, one page of holy texts recited. Prayer. Wheels come in many sizes from. Tiny ones like toys to, giants as big as houses but, the size is immaterial, it's the faith that counts. Another. Way of worshipping, Buddha is to offer him scented, herbs and some purr or roasted, barley and, then. There are the prayer flags with, Buddhist sutras, printed, on them symbolic. Of ceaseless, prayer. First. Lay down over, thousand, years ago this is the oldest, street in Lhasa it's. Called the park hole and, it's very famous a must, for every pilgrim visitor, or tourist to Lhasa so. Much so that they say you haven't seen Lhasa till you've seen the park or. But. There are special traffic regulations, in force along, the park or it's. A circular, route and every, pilgrim must go clockwise along, it past, its eight corners. This. Tradition, is as old as the street itself and even, non pilgrims, observe it. In. The olden days this street used to be the commercial center of Lhasa and today it is still the city's biggest marketplace, but. It's been completely given over to the trade in religious, objects, there's, hardly a religious artifact, or offering that you won't find for sale here somewhere. Beauty. Another. Must in Lhasa is a visit, to the jokhang temple also, called, by Tibetans, the temple, of temples. Its, Tibet's oldest and most famous temple built, some 1300. Years ago at the time when the Chinese princess wen Cheng of the tang married. The Tibetan King Songtan gamble. This. Marriage stimulated, a great influx of Tang art and culture into Tibet, Buddhism. Flourished and many, temples, were built. Many. Of the pilgrims here are making special supplications. Praying. Fervently at, the same time counting, out their genuflect and, prostrations. Several. Hundred I thought almost, nothing. With. Sony people all wanting to make their devotions, there's a remarkable, atmosphere, of order and discipline. This. Pilgrims, broken into a song of thanks, to Buddha the. Words roughly, mean we, are happy that we've had another good harvest, thank, you Lord Buddha. The. Jokhang is called the temple of temples because it enshrines the sacred, Joe the. Statue of the historic, Buddha Sakyamuni, called. By the Tibetans, jawar, important, it's. The most precious item from princess when Chang's. It's. Said to represent Buddha. At twelve years of age and, the legend says that it was created, during Buddha's lifetime, out of gold silver, iron copper. And zinc by. Visvakarma. The, creative, spirit of the universe some. 2,500. Years ago. Another. Legend says that where import, now sits there, was a clay buddha who refused, to move when rinpoche arrived, and who's still there to this day. This, tablet tells the story.

Another. Gift the princess brought to Tibet with her was the superb craftsmanship, of, the artists, who came with him and some. Of the ja Kyung is built in tang style, although, this carving is distinctly Tibet a. Hundred. And seven lions and one Sphinx decorate, these beans. The. Roof of the Jockin is covered, with gilded, bronze and so it's called the golden, peak the name which matches its air of holiness, and nobility. Since. Olden times Tibet has also been called little, heaven and throughout. The country there are countless sacred, Buddhist, spots. This. Mountains, called Kamryn bachi or the paradise, of the Gods it's. Also called simply holy mountain, and it's said to be where the gods live. Pilgrims. Come to it from far and wide. These. Pilgrims, have come here all the way from Nepal to pray to the Buddha. These. Are representatives, of an Indian Buddhist organization. The. Restrict rules for worshipping of the holy mountain, and rewards. For the efforts one. Circuit of the mountain cleanses, one sins, ten. Circuits, excuses, you from a visits to hell before reincarnation. And a hundred circuits will send you to heaven and the attainment of Nirvana. On. The southeastern, side of the mountain is a lake called map am yonko meaning, the eternal, lake or in the old scriptures the, king of holy lakes. In. The ancient story The Journey to the West the, monk Tang called, it the heavenly, lake where, the lady won from heaven lives, it's. All a land, of holiness. All, that matters here is faith offerings. Aren't important, but, according to the scriptures under, this lake is a palace world worldly wealth accumulates. Even. A single pebble is a treasure from the gods which taken home will bring prosperity and. Paper. Money washed, in the holy water will, ensure good fortune, for the rest of your days. The. Holy water of the lake is the main attraction because, people believe it can cleanse their bodies and their souls and, bring them a long life. It's. Icy, cold coming, as it does straight from the snows of the mountains just, one or two degrees Celsius, but. It is the holy water from Buddha and, it purifies the mind and brings, relief to the spirit. Most. Pilgrims will take Sun back for their friends and relatives and if it's mixed with ordinary water well. It makes that water holy to. The. Last write of this pilgrimage is a circuit, of the lake laying votive, stones on the Marnie walls or cans each. Stone with a prayer carved on it will continue to say that prayer for you after you've gone, the.

Lakes About 120, kilometers, in circumference, and the journey round it is about three days long. The. Potala palace is, perhaps the greatest symbol, of the spiritual, life of Tibet and the Tibetans, standing. Atop the Marberry the Red Hill seeming, almost part of it the Potala is unlike any other building on earth, when. King son Sam Campo United, Tibet and founded the Torah farm dynasty, some 1300, years ago he, ordered a citadel built which would impress the world in this. He succeeded, so, much so that the original building was called one of the seven wonders of the world but. Then a thousand, years later the, fifth Dalai Lama repaired, it and greatly extended, it to give us the Potala of today the. White palace housed the lay workers of the Tibetan government the. Red Palace with, its many chapels and 13 stories, house the Dalai Lama and the tombs of eight of his predecessors. The. Red walls are made with willow branches, and represent. Authority, only. The three Buddha's Hall and very senior, officials quarters are made this color. The. Potala was always the seat of Tibetan government that has such forbidden, to outsiders but. Now it's a museum open, to all. Getting. To the guitar is hard work for those not used to it it. Stands. 3600, meters above sea level and. All those steps make great demands on an acclimatized lungs. Zigzagging. Helps though and, so does going slowly. The. Structure, of the Potala is enormous ly imposing. Stone. Walls five, or six meters thick were reinforced. And welded, together by, having melted, brass poured, between their layers. Nanyang. Courtyard, leads into the inner palace. The, handprints, of the fifth Dalai Lama were etched into the rock left. There as his holy mark during his reconstruction. In the 17th, century. The. Wedding chamber is the earliest building, and it's where princess wen Cheng and Kings onsen, Gumpel spent their wedding night. This. Is the king. This. Is the princess. And. This. Is another of his wives a princess, from Nepal. Princess. When Chang's personal, stove is some 1,300, years old. These, three statues, are said to have grown naturally from, a sandalwood, tree. In. The Chapel of the long living Buddha there, are more than 1,000, Buddha images, all of which blessed the faithful, with long life. This. Was the private apartment, of the Dalai Lama. The. Western chapel was built in memory of the fifth Dalai Lama who went to Beijing, in the ching dynasty and, was honored with this plot by the emperor chen lung. The. Fifth Dalai Lama also paid tribute to the Emperor Xiang Zi and this was noted as a major event in sino-tibetan, relations. He, was honoured and made governor of Tibet for the chings from. Then on successive. Dalai Lama's paired regular homage to this plaque an expression of their loyalty to the Ching Emperor. Upon, his death, each Dalai Lama was embalmed and, his body covered, in gold leaf was, placed in a shortened, like this one in which the 13th Dalai Lama reposes. Each. Chorten has three parts its lavishly, decorated top. The. Center containing, the unbound remains, and the. Base with, all its precious funeral, objects, and offerings. The. Fifth dalai lama's chorten is particularly, impressive gilded. As it is with nearly three tons of gold and studied. With countless precious, and semi-precious stones. As. Well as the Chatham's themselves, their, roofs are also gilded, and together, they contribute, much to the splendor, of the Potala. Buddhism. First came to Tibet some 1700. Years ago and these temples are 1300. Years old. Buddhism. In today's Tibet, is divided into four sects the, yellow the white the, red and the gray each of whom observe a whole host of religious, festivals. One. Of the most important, of these is the festival of the birth enlightenment. And attainment of Nirvana by, the Buddha and it's celebrated by all the sects the. Lamas dress up as Guardians and drive, the Devils away with dances, like this one the cham dance. Finally. The goddess of fortune arrives on her hobby horse with her promise of happiness for all. At. Different places and in different festivals there are different Guardians all of whom are protectors, of Buddha's power but. What is interesting about them is that they're all evil, spirits absorbed. From other religions, who've been enlightened, by Buddha and who have become his loyal followers. Some. Of the Guardians are shown in pictures, or statues in, frankly, sexual, positions, like, this tantric, statue for instance.

Some. People regard these works as being educational, while. To others they simply represent, a state of mind and attitude towards, life. This. Figure has nine, heads representing. The nine curses, to control the king of hell his. Three eyes mean, that he's all-seeing. While. His upstanding. Hair shows, that his heart has turned towards, Buddha. 34. Hands plus his body mouth, and mind give, him 37 routes, to Nirvana, while. His fifty human heads signify. That he possesses all the foundations, of the Buddhist scriptures. The. Sexual embrace symbolizes, the union of yin and yang for, the achievement, of enlightenment, and. The. Lotus shows, his freedom from the wheel of reincarnation. Bodhi. Pagoda, in PAL choroid, a monastery, is a distillation, of the Arts of Tibet China, Nepal. India. And Kashmir. And it's, a place where all the sect's come together. Showing. The tanker, is an important, right at this temple. This. Huge, painting, of Buddha is a priceless, treasure and, one, that actually answers. Prayers or so the faithful believe because. Today they were praying for rain and what. Happened it, rained. Large. Monasteries, like this one Tashi LUN PO the largest, in western Tibet each, used to be home to several thousand, Lamas but, today the numbers are greatly reduced only, about a thousand, all together. Before. Buddhism, came to the country the religion of Tibet was a type of animistic, belief, called, bun. Vestiges. Of this still remain today assimilated. Into the much broader base of Tibetan, Buddhism or, Lamaism. There, are four classes of llama the workers, the, craftsmen the scholars and the priests. The. Workers carry out the general jobs so, for instance the world's largest bronze, Maitreya. Buddha is under their care. Pilgrims. Worship, Buddha in a whole host of ways and for a whole host of reasons for. Instance praying, to the Horsehead, Guardian, is supposed to cure the illness of the rich a very, odd disease in which a rich man starts, to feel ill no. Ordinary doctor can cure him only, prayers to the Horsehead guardian can possibly, help. Any. Really, important, festival involves, all Lamas, Gundam. None chose in mourning for tsongkhapa. The man who reformed, Lamaism by founding, the galue cooper's the yellow sect. Central. To the Tibetan view of the universe is the philosophy, of reincarnation, and, the idea that a good life lived this time round will, guarantee a better incarnation. The next time and bring. The soul one step nearer to the ultimate, release of Nirvana. No. One wants to go to hell. As. Part of this belief the Tibetans practice what they call the heavenly, burial, the feeding of their dead to the vultures, and what they fear is an enactment of Buddha's own sacrificing. Spirit. These. Two men have walked for five days and nights to bring their dead relative, to an especially sacred, place for his heavenly, burial. It's. A wild, desolate, place but. They've made the journey secure, in the belief that they are doing the best thing possible for their loved ones soul. The. Body is first vent into the fetal position to symbolize its rebirth and then placed in a sack. The. Whole process is very solemn, and dignified with, many prayers from the. Specialized. Funerals. At. Last everything is ready not, least the major participants. In the ritual the, vultures. It. All begins with eight symbolic, cuts into the courts to represent, the giving of the body to the eight corners of the earth. After. This the flesh is divided, up and distributed, so, that the vultures, may do their work. Although. The heavenly burial evolved, with the advent of Buddhism, in Tibet it's, by no means the only way of disposing of the dead true. Qu or living Buddha's used, to be buried in chortens, or pagodas, while, high priests, and other important, personages, were and sometimes still are cremated. Beggars. And other non entities, were simply thrown into rivers while the real outcasts, the thieves, murderers, and, victims, of. Violin. The ground, the. Worst curse in Tibet is to wish someone a burial, in the ground. For. The ordinary mortal the most dignified way, to go is by heavenly, burial it's. Very clean and it's very thorough with even the bones being crushed so that the vultures can eat them. Some. Samples, sprinkled onto the remains to encourage the birds so, that nothing of the dead person remains, on this earth, this. Way his soul will be set completely, free so, that it can go to heaven. No. Longer. Do you know. Towards. The end the priest will pray again for the soul of the departed and he'll. Bless the vultures, who've played their part so well. Then. Finally, all, is finished. The. Northern part of the Tibetan Plateau seems, to be without end, it's, called Chang time that occupies some two-thirds of the country the. Chang town district, is bitterly cold with, an almost continuous biting.

Wind And hardly, a living thing manages, to survive there. In. The heart of this bleak and desolate land, in the nari district, is a ruin city all, that remains of the last go gay empire. At. 4,500. Meters above sea level this is called the city at the roof of the roof of the world but. The people who built it prospered, for seven centuries and, then suddenly collapsed, leaving, behind them some 300, caves about. The same number of houses, and further. Down the mountain various. Chortens. Fortifications. And battlements. The, rise and fall of the GU game fire hazard its center a conflict, of religion. After. King song sin Campo died his, descendants, outlawed Buddhism, and thus, triggered a civil war which lasted well into the 10th century when a buddhist prince built the city as a bastion for his faith and that of his followers. It. Was a hard and violent life but, the GU gay Empire survived, for 28 generations, only, going into decline in the 17th, century. The. Reason for its demise is said to be that in, 1624. Some, Portuguese missionaries arrived, and were well received by the King this. Greatly displeased, the lamas who overthrew the King and drove, the missionaries, out, another. Version has it that the Kashmir is invaded, the territory and laid, siege to the city for two years without success. Finally. They, started killing people from outside the city the, king surrendered and, he was put to death. The. Design of the fortress makes it virtually impregnable, from, outside, so, that to get to the peak for instance means going through a tunnel in the rock. This. Is where the royal family, and top officials lived the Summer Palace. There's. Also an underground, cavern, in the peak called the Winter Palace just. A little less cold in the winter months than the rest of the city door and used, as the Royal winter, quarters. The. Gauguin power was the center of Buddhism, in the west of Tibet and was very prosperous, among. Its ruins are many rich and beautifully, preserved temples, shrines, and works, of art. As its. Name suggests nothing. Can escape the, all-seeing, gaze of the thousand, died buddha. The. Statues and the paintings, all suggest a very strong, lama influence. This, picture, of hell for instance is a common Lamia Steef. The, latter-day battle, comes to life in this war painting. The. Gogol Empire collapse, suddenly about 300, years ago so, suddenly that in its ruins it's still possible to find armor, and weapons left behind by the Warriors. In. Those days even stones, were important, weapons of war and. So. Were bows and arrows and. These. Grim reminders, tell us that this is where prisoners, of war were incarcerated, and executed. But. All that's left of the googa empires triumphs, and defeats lie, in ruins, scattered. By the winds of time. In. The frigid wilds, of the Tibetan Plateau there, are reminders of the colossal, forces that are still at work deep in the earth. These. Are the hot springs of Tibet most, of them well over 80 degrees Celsius and some, of them hot enough to cook food. This. Fountain is unique in all China as it erupts into boiling water and steam every, few minutes. As, well as their beauty there's a practical, use for these hot springs as, some of them are now being harnessed as sources of geothermal energy.

There's. Very little agriculture. In Tibet because, of the soil and the climate but. Herdsmen, play a vital role in the country's economy. The. Herdsmen are nomads, following, their animals across the steppe each. Family lives in one tent and forms, one production, unit. Their. Diet consists, almost entirely, of beef and mutton yak, butter tea and sample. Yak. Butter tea is made by churning, tea with yak butter or mutton fat adding. Salt and boiling, it. Yak. Butter tea is a vital, element in the Tibetan way of life not, only is it warming, in the bitter cold and helps prevent the lips from cracking it's, rich and nourishing, and an important, source of vitamins. Tompa, is a coarse flour ground, from roasted, barley and it's often eaten moistened, with yak butter tea and kneaded, into a sort of cake. The. People of the steppe have to produce virtually all their daily necessities, themselves. Their. Very lives depend, on their animals their sheep and yaks in. The, spring the animals can be milked two or three times a day and the surplus stored for later in the year. The. Milk is preserved by making it into butter a job, which needs at least five thousand, strokes in the churn. The. Songs are not just to help pass the time they, also help the dairymaids, keep count. Sewn. Into a sheep stomach the, finished butter will keep for up to two years. Summer. And sheep shearing time has a happy time for everyone but the air is full of song the. Words of this song say, little, sheep you're my precious you, give me food you, give me clothes you. And I shall never part. The. Freshly gathered wool still has a long way to go before it becomes cloth, first. It has to be carded. Then. It's carefully spun, into thread and, dyed, with natural, dyes. The. Dyed wool and the natural black yak hair yarn are woven into beautiful hard-wearing materials, for clothes and tents. Life. Of these nomads, is a hard one and I must do everything for themselves. An. Essential job is collecting, yak dung. This. Is because the steppe provides almost nothing, that can be burned for fuel but. Yak dung contains, large amounts of undigested, fiber so, that when it's been dried it makes a fine fuel. Another. Important, task is supervising, the breeding of the livestock to maintain, and improve the, quality of the herds. When. They take some time off the, women love to dress themselves in their finest clothes and wear all their jewelry made of semi-precious, stones, hair. Styling is important too and a hundred and eight Platts are said to bring good luck. For. The men snuff, is a favorite indulgence. The. Nomads days starts, early and ends, early. In. The evening there's a time of togetherness, as the whole family, gathers in the tent and. As the old folks pray for the God's blessings, they, all talk of the day's work and have their evening meal. The. Interior of the tent may be simple, but no expense is spared on, maintaining the family shrine. For. The nomads the equivalent of the city dwellers car is the horse and just. As in the city a bride rides to her wedding in a limousine here. She arrives at her husband's house on horseback. As. She dismounts, she steps down onto a white sheepskin, a symbol, of future happiness. The. Wedding ceremony itself is very simple but quite moving it's, held inside, the tent and starts, with a speech from the host in honor of the young couple. Then. The friends and relatives each give the newlyweds a kata a white, scarf which, is always given to show respect and honor. After. The wedding there's a general celebration, not, just an excuse to wear their best clothes but, because they get together so rarely, an excellent. Opportunity to catch up on the latest news and gossip a, wedding. Is a major event for the whole community. The. Nomads lives are dictated, by the seasons and, as the grazing runs short in one area so they pack their tents and move their herds to a new part of the steppe to start all over again the. Moves. To successive, grazing grounds follow, an age-old, cycle, forming. A pattern that ensures a steady supply of food for all. In. An average year they may move three or four times. On. The face of it the nomadic life may seem a monotonous one but, the nomads themselves, will say they have their independence, their, freedom and their self-sufficiency, who, in an industrialized, society can, say the same. Running. Through the highest mountains, in the world is the highest river in the world. The. Yarlung Tsangpo is, the biggest river in tibet its, source meltwater. From the glaciers thousands. Of metres above the. River. Runs from west to east through Tibet southern, region.

This. Is an agricultural, region although, the altitude, and the climate limits the variety of crops that can be grown to the most Hardy mainly. Barley, wheat and beans, even. Though these are quick to grow there's, still only one crop, a year. There. Are herdsmen in this part of Tibet - and even one or two light industries. At. The end of the summer before the harvest there's an annual celebration the. Encore, festival, when everybody, has to dress in traditional, costume. Encore. In Tibetan means circling, the field a symbolic, reenactment. Of the cycle of the seasons and our fertility in, the, olden times that's just what it was but, nowadays it's become a general celebration, with all kinds, of events and entertainments. Archery. On horseback is by no means easy. This. Requires tremendous skill, and marksmanship -. This. Man is not a special, performer, he's just an ordinary Tibetan, most, of whom are highly accomplished, horseman not, just skillful but very strong too. This. Is yak racing perhaps, not quite as fast as the average horse race but, capable of generating just, as much excitement here as any other kind of race elsewhere, in the world. Too. Many the high spot of the encore festival, is the Tibetan Opera very, rarely seen on film before, the. Performers, are all farmers who do everything themselves from, the acting to the backstage work. The. Opera follows its own special, rather flexible, schedule, first. There's the prologue, then, the main story which someone usually spells, out to the audience first before, the actors come on to play their parts the. Result is that the same opera can take from a few hours to, several days and nights to perform. After. The main opera comes the descent, of the god a comic. Romp in which a God who wanted to go to Lhasa found. Himself in this village instead. Suddenly. He decided that he'd like a cup of wine. After. Few cups of wine he's beginning to feel the effects rather, flushed and a little unsteady. Another. One disappears, down the hatch. After. A few more drinks he becomes very easy to please and, very eager to please in return asked, him for rain and he'll give you all you want in, fact he'll give you just about anything at all you want. He's. A God who's very happy and so is his audience. After. All the fun of the festival, the harvest gets underway the, job which involves, every able-bodied member, of the community. The. Farmlands are divided, up but, this production team here elected to stay together because, this way they have had good harvests, for several years now, at. The end of the harvest they, share out the crops between them, each. Has its own private plot - for spare time farming. After. The harvest its threshing time and the horses and yaks are drafted, in to help. Wynter. Father is scarce so, the straw is carefully, kept to feed the animals through the lean months. The. Last task is to winnow the grain using the wind to blow away the chaff and dust, many. Teams now have their own hydroelectric. Generators, which help greatly to increase productivity, and cut, down on the drudgery. This. Caravans been on the trail now for over two months, it's, a journey they make every year and the round trip takes them well over six months. This. Caravan like many others trades, with the herdsman to the north for, things like furs, wool, and butter or salt, from the salt lake in. Return, the herdsmen get the foodstuffs, they can't produce themselves grain. Beans, and so on. It's. A very ancient trade, and no, money changes, hands in it it's all done by barter, between, regular, business partners. The. Rate of exchange is, set by representatives. From each side it's, based on availability, and demand. This. Year both sides did well and, in this deal the rate was fixed at one peck of salt for every 12 kilograms, of food, 50%. Beans 50%. Barley. One. Kilogram of wool fetched, four kilograms, of barley. Butter. Was more than double the price of wool nine, kilograms of barley per kilogram. Adamski. It's. A fair deal and both sides are satisfied. One. Of the regular chores on the farm is, cleaning yak skins but when they're finished these skins will not be used for making shoes or clothes they'll, go to make a boat.

Later. The framework of sticks a yak skin boat can be made in a matter of hours. Like. Just about any other boat anywhere else a yak, skin vote has a launching ceremony. Build. A scatter Stamper, and drinks, chang barley, beer touching. The beer and tapping, the glass three times to symbolize heaven earth and, the people. Then. The day are swallowed, he's given a Carter. As. Well as being used as ferries yak skin boots are also used for fishing although, there's very little fishing, in Tibet because Tibetans, think that fish are water gods who should not be disturbed. So. Although most people won't eat fish there, are a few who do that, who have us their motto live, by the water eat, by the water. Their. Way of life has been handed down for generations and. It's, a rare one today. The. Yarlung Tsangpo is, one of the world's great rivers but, after passing through the cities of shigatse, Lhasa and Zi Tang she, carries on southeast, woods behind the Himalayas until. Suddenly she, plunges, south right through the mountains and on into, India whereas, the Brahmaputra, she eventually meets the mighty Ganges. It's. Been estimated that the rivers dramatic, journey through the Himalayas with, its gorges, and whitewater could, provide 5 million megawatts, of hydroelectricity. In. This area live one of China's smallest minorities, the, lobha who, live largely by hunting, with bows and arrows knives. And specially, trained hunting dogs. They're. A close-knit society. And any successful, hunter shares his catch with a whole village. The, 3000, or so lobha tribes people live in wooden houses that, are culturally, and linguistically quite. Different, from the Tibetans. Their. Country is very beautiful, and as it has more than ten times the rainfall, of the rest of Tibet there, are flowers everywhere. Polygamy. Is still quite common in some parts of the world but, polyandry, one, woman with several husbands has always been something of a rarity not. In Southeast to bed though where, for many centuries several, brothers would often marry the same wife so, as to avoid having to subdivide the family property. There. Are not many of these families left today but, this is one. The. Woman with the wine cap is the wife of all these men respected. For her ability to keep the home running smoothly. If. One of her husband's leaves his boots outside her bedroom door then, the others know not to come in. Tibetan. Medicine still runs along very traditional, lines that, many old methods, and treatments are used urine. Tasting, for instance. Although. Some of it is similar to Chinese medical, practice there are many unique Tibetan, techniques. Acupuncture. Is very like the Chinese variety. To. Cure a headache or, even, epilepsy, for instance a gold, needle, is put into the appropriate point. And herbs, burn tight. Bloodletting. Is another very old technique, said, to help arthritis, and other bone diseases. Where. The collecting, vessel is a goat's horn. The. Basic classical, medical, text is in four parts with, 80 illustrated. Charts, for. Instance the spine is likened to the beams of a house. With. A head as its upper structure. And. The ears as the eaves of the roof. The. Reproductive, organs are thought to be the most important, of all. While. The Orion Airy tract is compared, to the houses drains. Tibetans. Are very firm but loving parents. For. The first few months or so a baby, is bathed often, rubbed, with butter and put out into the Sun and fresh air to help develop the strength you'll need to survive on the high plateau. The, great occasion is the annual bathing, Festival which everybody, men, or women, young or old Dharma, or laymen joins, in. The. Tradition, is some 800 years old and it says that if on any night of the seventh month of the Tibetan, calendar a golden. Star can be seen from Lhasa then. The bathing festival has begun.

Sometimes. It lasts as long as a week. Not. Just people get bathed carpets. And clothes must be washed to. Even. Dogs. According. To traditional, belief the water of early autumn has eight special properties. It's. Sweet, it's. Cool its, soft, its, light it's. Clear, it, doesn't smell it, doesn't harm the throat but, it doesn't irritate the stomach. Although. The water of Tibet's rivers comes straight from the mountain snows Tibetans. Are so convinced, of its goodness that they love to bathe in it. Of. Course bathing, in this festival, has a ritual meaning to or just cleansing the body but, bringing the bather closer to the lord buddha and his blessings. Tibetans. Are great lovers of nature and the outdoors and. A favorite expedition, in the summer when the weather is warm is for, a picnic in the park. The. Harshness of their environment, their, religious and cultural heritage, and their ancient history have all combined, to, make the Tibetans, a unique people with, a unique way of life. If. The roof of the world with its magnificent. Heart-stopping. Scenery, is unforgettable, then, how much more so are those hardworking and hospitable, people who live there the. Tibetans.

2019-01-04 03:50

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