illustrates Rodrigo Didier
Edition Felipe van Deursen
1 – The White Palace has 698 murals and 10,000 scrolls
2 – The Potala Palace has 2,000 steps, 10,000 shrines and altars and 1,000 rooms
Cold and isolated, Lhasa is the administrative capital of Tibet, an autonomous area north of the Himalayan Mountains in China. Birthplace of Tibetan Buddhism, it is, historically, the city of the Dalai Lama, the political and religious leader of this disputed territory. Its name means “sacred land”. At an altitude of 3,650 m, the citadel nestled between 5,500 m mountains was built in the 7th century and, until the mid-20th century, was considered a “forbidden city”. A prohibition more in practice than in law, as it was formerly too isolated and inhospitable for foreigners to get there. After the Chinese invasion in 1950, which in the following years would expel and kill thousands of Tibetans and destroy many historic buildings, the city gradually opened up to outsiders. At the traditional Shoton Festival in June 2014 alone, Lhasa attracted 1.5 million visitors.
winter house
Built in the 7th century and rebuilt in the 17th, the Potala Palace epitomizes Tibetan Buddhism. It was the Dalai Lama’s winter castle, located on Red Mountain. The Potala is actually a complex made up of two palaces, White and Red.
political building
The White Palace houses treasures, private rooms, an assembly hall and a sacred room with the Dalai Lama’s throne, as well as various sculptures and porcelain, silver and gold.
religious building
The Red Palace has chapels and libraries for Buddhist scriptures. In addition, there are several halls dedicated to Buddha, sutras (canonical scriptures) and funerary stupas (small temples dedicated to previous Dalai Lamas)
OTHER TREASURES OF THE CITY
Tibet’s capital still holds other great temples
Jokhang Temple
Built in the 7th century, in the old city center. The building, made of stone and wood, is considered a masterpiece of Tibetan Buddhist architecture. The temple contains manuscripts, treasures and illustrations of Buddha and other deities
norbulingka temple
Founded in the 18th century, it is the former summer home of the Dalai Lama. It is 2 km from the Potala Palace. The temple is formed by beautiful gardens, with four castles and a monastery. It was also an important political and religious point for Tibetans.
SEE TOO
– What was Machu Picchu?
– What was the Acropolis of Athens?
It was Mao!
Lhasa has been invaded several times. In the 7th century, the Chinese burned many sacred buildings, including the Potala Palace. Around 1240, the Mongols invaded Tibet and China. In the 17th century, the Dalai Lama Lobsang Gyatso (1617-1682) took the capital back to Lhasa. In 1720, the Tibetans asked the Chinese for help in getting rid of the Mongols and, with that, China came to control the region. In the 20th century, Tibet tried to seek international recognition, but in 1950 the Chinese communists, led by Mao Zedong (1893-1976), invaded the region and annexed it as a province. Many important places were destroyed by the revolutionaries, who nailed a portrait of Mao to the doors of the Potala Palace. In 1959, after several conflicts and demonstrations by monks against the Chinese military, an uprising was violently suppressed by the communist regime. Tenzin Gyatso, the Dalai Lama, fled on foot, heading for northern India. He is currently considered the official leader of the Tibetan government in exile.
SOURCES BookLhasa: Streets with Memoriesby Robert Barnett, documentary Inside TibetFree Tibet and Unesco sites and film Seven Years in Tibetinspired by the book by Heinrich Harrer