The Secret Tibet (The Forbidden world)

Thursday, 15 November 2007, 12:43 p.m.

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By Thubten Samphel

 

Starting from 6 November, about 400 Buddhists from Mongolia and Russia flocked to Dharamsala to receive teachings from His Holiness the Dalai Lama. They also came to offer him a long-life prayer ceremony and to proudly display their traditional cultures. The President of Kalmykia was in town to launch this big cultural effort. So were dignitaries of Burytia, Mongolia and Tuva, including a representative of the Russian Orthodox Church. This joint cultural effort by the Mongols and people of the three republics within the Russian Federation was made to affirm their cultural ties with Tibet. This is the first such joint effort and because of this, historic.

(From left) Kalon Tripa Samdhong Rinpoche, Speaker Karma Chophel, two justice commissioners, Thupten Tashi Anyetsang and Ngawang Phegyal and spiritual leader of Kalmykia, Telo Rinpoche at the inauguration of an exhibition at Tibet Museum on 6 November, to mark the five-day Russian and Mongolian Buddhists festival held in Dharamshala (Photo: Sangjey Kep)

This unprecedented event is indicative of the scale of the Buddhist revival that is taking place in these three Russian republics and Mongolia. The event also clearly reflects the need of the Mongols of this vast region to re-connect with the source of their traditional culture, albeit in exile.

The force behind this cultural event in Dharamsala is Telo Rinpoche Rinpoche is just 35 years. He is the elected spiritual head of Kalmykia. In an interview squeezed between his hectic schedule, he said," We - people of Burytia, Tuva, Kalmkyia and Mongolia - share a similar language and our religion is the same. But because we are known as Buriats, Tuva, Kalmyks and Mongols and we live like that, it kind of pulls us away from each other. So it has always been my dream to bring these people together in the presence of our spiritual leader, His Holiness the Dalai Lama. It initially started off as a simple long-life prayer ceremony to His Holiness. I was quite taken aback by how much people supported this idea and how enthusiastic the people were. They wanted to travel a long way just to be here. So I thought, so many people willing to travel a great distance, spending so much money, taking time away from their families and work, it didn’t make sense to come to Dharamsala for just four or five hours for a ceremony. So we came up with the idea to organize an exhibition and a cultural performance."

So for a week the Tibetan public and students were treated to some dazzling performances at Gopalpur TCV, the main TCV school and TIPA. The public response was so overwhelming that many had to be turned away from TIPA for lack of space. The grand finale was performed before His Holiness the Dalai Lama on 10 November. That day, the hot topic, other than how impressive the performances were, was how big the crowd was.

Kalmykia dance troupes presenting dazzling cultural performance

The Mongols’ need to connect with Tibet’s cultural heritage is in a sense due to the same degree of suppression that befell them.

But some history first, to make sense of this sudden outburst of cultural enthusiasm. The Kalmyks say they as a people were Buddhists since the time of Genghis Khan. They say Kublai Khan, Genghis Khan’s grandson, declared Buddhism the state religion in his imperial domain. Later, Altan Khan invited Sonam Gyatso to Mongolia and conferred on him the title of the Dalai Lama.

The Kalmyks are the descendants of the Oyrat Mongols who operated in Dzungaria in present-day Xinjiang of the People’s Republic of China. Because of un-ending tribal warfare, the Oyrat Mongols pushed into Russia at the end of the 16th and beginning of the 17th centuries, taking with them their Tibetan cultural heritage. They pushed beyond the Caspian Sea. At the banks of the Volga, they were stopped by the Tsar of the day and ordered not to cross the Volga. So they settled in Kalmykia. The Kalmyks, as they came to be known, is a Turkish word. It means the "remains," the remains of the Oyrats who moved from Dzungaria and the remains of those who fought through all the Muslim nations that lay across their path.

In their new land, the Kalmyks set out to establish their cultural heritage. Under the guidance of famous scholars like Zaya Pandita, the Kalmyks built monasteries, temples and educational centres for monks to study. By the beginning of the 20th century, there were 92 monasteries and temples scattered across the Volga and the Caspian Sea with a monk population of 2070.

Rendition of group song performance by cultural troupes from Mongolia at TIPA

Soon the temple became the centre of the cultural and spiritual life of the Kalmkys. All the important family events, the birth of a child, the selection of a name, selection of a bride, wedding ceremony, the call for military service and the rest, were centred around the temple. Children attended temple schools and studied Oyriat and Tibetan languages. Those who decided to continue their studies became monks. The brightest students were sent to Tibet and Mongolia to pursue further studies.

All this spiritual renaissance stopped in the wake of the Russian Revolution of 1917. Temples were closed and the Buddhist church in Kalmykia was suppressed. Even then some brave and hardy souls like Geshe Wangyal continued to make the trek to Tibet to study. When communism caught up with him in Tibet in the form of the People’s Liberation Army, Geshe Wangyal crossed over to India and sailed to America. There he taught Buddhism at Columbia University and set up one of the first Tibetan Buddhist centres in the new world.

Then another disaster called Stalin struck the people of Kalmykia. Stalin shipped off the Kalmyks, with other minorities, to Siberia. "Our people lived in small camps for 13 years in Siberia," said Telo Rinpoche. "After 13 years, we were given permission to return. When we returned to Kalmykia, there was nothing. No buildings, no monasteries, no temples, no monks."

Tuvanian dance troupes presenting cultural performance at (TIPA)

Meanwhile, Telo Rinpoche’s parents migrated to America after the World War II. Telo Rinpoche was born in Philadelphia in 1972. His name then was Erdni Basan Ombadykov. "I came from a very big family," he said. "I have five brothers and three sisters. I am the youngest. At a very young age, I had a very strong interest in becoming a monk, which was unusual for a child in the USA at the time. I always bothered my parents that I wanted to become a monk at a monastery. In 1979 His Holiness visited America. During this visit we had the opportunity to have a private audience with His Holiness. With us at the audience was a Mongolian monk who immigrated to the States in the mid-1970’s. My parents and the monk explained that I wanted to become a monk. His Holiness said that I should be sent to India. I joined Drepung Monastery at the Gomang Khamtsen, where by tradition and history most Mongols had studied." He spent 13 years of study in South India.

Later, he was recognized as the reincarnation of Telo Rinpoche. Telo Rinpoches are recognized as the reincarnation of Tilopa, the teacher of Naropa, who in turn was the teacher of Marpa, who taught Mila, and started the Kyagu tradition of Tibetan Buddhism.

"The previous Telo Rinpoche was born in Mongolia," said the present Telo Rinpoche to explain this cross-over from the Kagyu to the Gelug lineage. "Since about 90 percent of Mongols belong to the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism he decided to become a Gelug."

Singers from Buriyatia presenting cultural song at (TIPA)

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, His Holiness the Dalai Lama visited Kalmykia in 1991. Telo Rinpoche accompanied His Holiness. His second visit was in 1992. His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s third visit took place in the winter of 2004. Before this visit, Telo Rinpoche told his people, "The most important thing for believers is not only to see His Holiness as a living deity but to take everything that he says to heart. I am sure that this visit will bring a great deal of benefit to everybody. The first two visits of His Holiness resulted in positive changes in the development of Buddhism in Kalmykia and society in general. And when His Holiness visits our republic again, I am sure our life will change for the better."

During his 2004 visit to Kalmykia His Holiness had this to say to the people: "When I was here last, more than 10 years ago, there wasn’t any temple here. Now looking at the temple and buildings around here, I see how much you have done, what progress you have made. However, the Buddha’s teachings are not mere buildings. Milarepa is remembered not for the construction of monasteries but for practicing the teachings."

At the end of the visit, His Holiness said, "I am amazed by the way people have kept their traditional values and Buddhist culture in particular. Why is it important today in the 21st century to keep traditional values and Buddhist culture in particular? Because Buddhism like any other religion teaches kindheartedness. That is why Buddhist culture is the culture of peace, non-violence and compassion that is what the modern world is striving for."

Telo Rinpoche is happy with the pace of Buddhist revival in Kalmykia. "I truly believe that His Holiness has foreseen the future of the Kalmyk people, has foreseen the revival of Buddhism and has seen the need for help and as far as I am concerned we have done a very good job."

*An occasional contribution

 

(Views in this occasional diary are those of the writer, not necessarily those of the Central Tibetan Administration. The writer can be reached at tsamphel@gov.tibet.net)

Phayul[Wednesday, September 12, 2007 04:40] Barcelona, 11 September - His Holiness the Dalai Lama today inaugurated the new Tibet House Foundation building in Barcelona. He cut the ribbon and cast flower petals at entrance of the new building as large number of Tibetans and their supporters looked on. His Holiness later blessed the opening of the building and performed prayer with monks from Sera and other monasteries before having a private talk session with members and sponsors of Tibet House Foundation, which was followed by another talk to members of Tibetan Community of Spain. In his talk he said the house should be used as academic center where people can learn about Buddhism, academicians like scientists and Buddhist philosophers can interact with each other. Later in the day His Holiness met with the archbishop of Barcelona, Lluís Martinez Sistachs at the Episcopal Palace of Barcelona. They discussed "matters relating to spiritualism and the need for interfaith dialogue, as well as collaboration between Catholics and Buddhists," Martinez Sistachs is learned to have said. His Holiness will be leaving for Lisbon, Portugal on Wednesday.

September 04, 2007

 

All kinds of cultures are exchanging and melting. Why can't Tibetan people enjoy modern civilization?

Some people enjoy the modern civilization including a higher living standard and various technological progresses themselves, but hope other people always live in closed and primitive status. They themselves sit in comfortable cars while hoping others still to ride donkeys; they live in modern houses but hope others to live in caves. This kind of psychology is not normal, nor healthy. Deng Xiaogang, Vice Chairman of the Tibet Autonomous Region made these arguments during a recent press conference on relations between Qinghai-Tibet Railway and the protection of Tibetan traditional culture.

Naqu Cargo Transportation Center will be built with an investment of 1.5 billion yuan (about 750 million US dollars). The project will be completed by October 2008. With a covering area of 8000 mu or 533 hectares, the center will include five functional areas including processing area, oil loading and unloading area and large amount raw material area.
Upon one year operation of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway, Deng Xiaogang said the operation of the Railway has greatly improved the transport condition in Tibet and decreased cost, increased the capacity of goods supply and broken the bottleneck of transport which restricted the development in Tibet.

The goods transportation from and to Tibet has greatly increased and provided solid support for the fast development of Tibet.

It also provided a more secure and stable basis for sustainable development in Tibet. Since the beginning of the operation of the railway last July, a total of 2.6 million people and 13 million tons of goods have been transported and 660 thousand tons of goods have been transported into and out of Tibet, about 94 percent of it is into Tibet.


Being the largest operating geothermal power plant in China, Yangbajing geothermal power plant is situated in Dangxiong county, 90 kilometers northwestern Lhasa, capital of Tibet Autonomous Region. With an altitude of 4300 meters above sea level and an area of geothermal area of 17 square kilometers, the plant is the largest geothermal steam field in China. Since the operation of the railway, tourists to visit the power plant increased by 60% from last year.
Deng Xiaogang said the operation of the Qinghai-Tibet Railway has accelerated the resource development and special industry's development in Tibet. It marks that Tibet has entered the era of "railway economy".

More people came to invest in Tibet and large number of people came to visit Tibet as tourists. From January to July this year, there have been 1.71 million tourists in Tibet, 74% more than the same period last year. Among them, about 94, 000 tourists are from abroad. The revenue from tourism has increased 78.1% from last year.

Deng Xiaogang said the operation of the railway also greatly promoted the opening up level in Tibet. A new pattern of opening up is being formed. The railway has strengthened the contacts between Tibet and surrounding countries and regions so that Tibet has become a front line of reform and opening up in southwestern China. During the first half of this year, the region's foreign trade volume increased by 60.4% from the same period of last year.

The railway has also promoted the exchange and melting between traditional Tibetan culture and other cultures as well as modern cultures so that Tibetan people have broaden their outlook and renewed their views. There are great changes in Tibet.


An actress with Niangre Folk Art Troupe, a self-organized non-professional art troupe performs. Its 66 artists are all herdsmen in the local area. With more and more tourists coming to Tibet after the railway's operation, the troupe has signed a lot of contracts of performance for various hotels, restaurants, recreational centers and tourist spots in Lhasa. They have performed 1200 times, twice as much as last year. In Tibet, there are 18 such kind of art troupes and 500 spare time performance teams and 160 Tibetan Opera Troupe.
From the present operation of the economy in Tibet, it has become obvious that the operation of the railway has promoted the sustained economic growth in Tibet. During the first half of this year, the total GDP growth reached 14.7%, 2.2% more than that of last year, 3.2 percentage point higher than the national average.
This also marks the highest growth over the past ten years. The past year experience proved that the railway line is the line of economy, unity, happiness and ecology for Tibetan people.

Tibet: Arrest of a Tibetan over political demonstration outrages local Tibetans

Phayul[Thursday, August 02, 2007 16:19] By Phurbu Thinley For a week every August, the Lithang Horse Festival displays Tibetan culture through spectacular horse races and mesmerizing traditional dances of the region. Lithang is in Kham province (Sichuan) of Tibet. Dharamsala, July 22: A Tibetan nomad from Lithang was arrested in Tibet yesterday for staging political demonstration during an official function according to Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD). According to confirmed information received by TCHRD, Ronggay A'drak, a Tibetan nomad from Lithang was arrested for staging political demonstration during the official function for the 80th Founding Anniversary of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) organised by the Lithang County Government on Wednesday (August 1, 2007). A large number of people from Lithang area were reported to have come to witness the official function and the famous annual horse race festival popular in the area. Just before the start of the official function at around 11:00am, when the Chief guest, other officials and the general public were present, Ronggay A'drak, a 52-year-old Tibetan nomad from Youru Village, Lithang County, Kardze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture(TAP), went up to the stage to offer a traditional Tibetan scarf to Lithang Kyabgyon- the Chief Lama of Lithang Monastery. Ronggay A'drak then seized the microphone and, before a large gathering, shouted slogans like; "The Dalai Lama should return to Tibet", "Release Panchen Lama", "Tibet wants Independence". He then insisted on Tibetan people to stop fighting among themselves on the land, water dispute and on the collection of Yartsa Gunbu, a caterpillar fungus [Tib: Yartsa Gunbu, Botanical name: cordyceps sinensis]. Last month, the Associated Press reported that a gun battle between Tibetan groups feuding over access to the lucrative wild caterpillar fungus left up to people six dead and more than 110 injured in a Tibetan area of Sichuan Province. The fighting is said to have broke out after County officials made no move to intervene, despite knowledge of the conflicting tension in the area over the land demarcation. Later, Ronggay A'drak climbed down from the stage and in the presence of the Officials and whole crowd, went straight to Naglu Tenzin, a monk who is said to be actively involved in the Chinese "Patriotic education campaign" and told him to denounce his double standard in dealing with the religious affairs of the monastery. A’drak then climbed back to the stage and continued shouting slogans which made the general public to join him in unison. He was finally arrested by Kardze local police and was taken away to an unknown place. According to TCHRD’s press statement, sensing fear for the safety of Ronggay A'drak, scores of people from Lithang Yonru Village went to Lithang County Office to demand his immediate release and to ascertain his whereabouts and condition. They even demonstrated inside the compound of the County office calling for his immediate release and respect of Tibetan people's right to freedom of expression and opinion. According to the centre’s statement, quoting reliable sources, few people even broke into the County Office to demand for his immediate release. Sensing further escalation of tension, the police officer even threatened the villagers by firing pistol into the air. The Tibetan people, unmoved by the threats, weathered incessant rain on that day to proceed forward with their demand. It was learnt that the villagers finally returned to their place only after the officials agreed to release Ronggay A'drak the next day at 2:00pm. Like this one in Amdo, annual horse racing festivals are popular in the Kham and Amdo regions of Tibet. Hundreds of Tibetans will flock together at a camping site to witness and participate in days of colourful traditional dances and horse races. Quoting another source, TCHRD’s press release states, "While returning to their place, the villagers called for Tibetans, followers of the Dalai Lama and pro-independence to join them. And they even told that if the authorities did not release Ronggay A'drak today by 2:00pm they will organize a mass demonstration in front of the detention centre “no matter how much restriction officials put on them." The situation in Lithang County is known to be very tense. Strangely, this time the local officials’ compliance with the demands of local Tibetans was unprecedented. However, it is difficult to predict the future course of the case. TCHRD has expressed its deepest concern at the arrest of Ronggay A'drak for exercising his political rights and has demanded his immediate release. “The People's Republic of China (PRC) should abide by the rights guaranteed in the constitution and other major international covenants and treaties which she is party to” TCHRD’s press release urges. Stating, “Freedom of expression is a fundamental human right which is a prerequisite to the enjoyment of all human rights,” in its statement, TCHRD has called upon the support of human rights groups and the international community in securing A’drak’s release. The Centre deems the case as an outright clampdown on the freedom of opinion and expression and says that it will continue to monitor the situation and would update on the issue as and when further information surfaces. The Tibetan Centre for Human Rights and Democracy (TCHRD) is the first Tibetan non-governmental organization (NGO) to be formed with the mission "to highlight the human rights situation in Tibet and to promote principles of democracy in the Tibetan community." TCHRD is independent of the Tibetan Government-in-Exile, and is based in Dharamsala, India. For further information visit: www.tchrd.org or write to dsala@tchrd.org

Part of a traveling exhibit that interprets the Dalai Lama—at the Rubin Museum of Art and the School of Visual Arts—the plain shoes, the photo, and the cheeky response sum up this grab-bag collection from over 80 contributors: a mix of wit, wacky reverence, and that unaffected style of the man himself. Take Chuck Close's photograph, for example. Shot in a hotel room, and flattened by a short focus and a muted palette, the portrait is as spare and direct as a monk—but playful. Filling the frame, the Dalai Lama stares out with tinted glasses, shrewd eyes, and a knowing grin. Sure, he's a spiritual leader, Tibet's exiled head of state, a winner of the Nobel Peace Prize, and a reincarnation—but if not for the red robe, he's a character actor in a head shot, advertising a comedian's sensibility. Buddhism has probably never had a more appealing front man.

Which could explain why a number of the artists followed Pop Art urges. In a 20-panel cartoon that might have come from Mad Magazine's Don Martin, painter Guy Buffet depicts the Dalai Lama (the likeness is poor, but no matter) frantically swatting at a troublesome bee before finally turning it into a lotus blossom. In the Rubin's lobby, Lewis deSoto's 25-foot-long blow-up Buddha achieves nirvana from an air compressor, like a solemn street-fair balloon promoting enlightenment. Over at SVA, there's a refined, urban version of upstate chainsaw sculpture: Long-Bin Chen has expressed Oneness by carving the head of Buddha, an animal, and a knobby-nosed human from a spiraling stack of Manhattan phone books. Native Iranian Seyed Alavi captures other beliefs in the style of black-on-yellow road signs, cleverly manipulating the familiar figures into contemplative moments; two lean toward each other and share a circular head, for example, while another gains its inner self from falling rain.

The exhibit's more pensive works can sometimes appear too devout, like fawning, overzealous groupies. Dario Campanile paints wonderfully in the Renaissance style, but his symbolism on Tibetan independence—a dove breaking free of a chain—is heavy-handed. Likewise, Bill Viola, who once studied with a Zen master, goes starry-eyed in videos that show a man and woman getting their chakras slowly probed by bright lights; the Haight- Ashbury pipe dream feels a little dated.

The best of the serious art follows Buddhism's tenet of stripping away the extraneous. In stark black-and-white photographs by Tri Huu Luu, the backs of nuns' and monks' shaven heads become pristine, silvery orbs—visions of mysticism. Kisho Mukaiyama achieves a similar beauty of reduction with his exquisite mandalas, painted in diffuse shades of color on blocks of wax. And refreshing the conceptualism of the ubiquitous debris pile, Dove Bradshaw (a John Cage devotee) has hung a slowly dripping glass funnel filled with water over a cone of Himalayan salt. An elegant visual balance and a concise metaphor for time, death, man vs. nature, or just about anything else, it works as a kind of universal mantra.

Not all is so calm, though. The team of Robert and Shana ParkeHarrison, known for their tableaux vivants, have photographed an invented ritual about earthly connections—a man's hand, wearing a contraption that draws his blood into a stylus, traces a coagulating red line across snow. At SVA, Ryuichi Sakamoto's composition for piano and singing bowls plays through speakers that vibrate sand into patterns (mimicking a Tibetan tradition). Described as peaceful, the music happily isn't, sounding more like the ominous soundtrack from a Tarkovsky flick; it lends a mood of strangeness to everything here.

At the Rubin, where a central stairwell projects noises from below, other works that rely on sound don't fare as well. Even though Laurie Anderson's "fake hologram" is visually arresting—small clay models seem to move from the scene projected onto them—it's almost impossible to hear her story about turkey vultures, and to know why it matters. You have to concentrate pretty hard, too, to detect the intended waterfall effect in Marina Abramovic's Hollywood Squares–like grid of chanting monks.

A show this size can't avoid a few duds—non-starters of corporate blandness or half-baked wonder—but it's a pleasure to see the normally staid Rubin bust out, if only for a while, with some lively contemporary work. Get your karma while it's hot.

 

Throne awaiting Dalai Lama's return. Summer residence of 13th Dalai Lama, Nechung, Tibet.

Parting the Curtain: Asian Art Revealed at BAM/PFA

Avalokitesvara with a Thousand Arms and Thousand Faces (Tibet, 19th century); mineral and vegetable pigments on cotton; Bernard-Murray Collection.

BERKELEY, CA.-The University of California, Berkeley Art Museum and Pacific Film Archive (BAM/PFA) presents Parting the Curtain: Asian Art Revealed, an exhibition of treasures from the museum's diverse collection of historical Asian art, as well as exceptional works on generous long-term loan from the collections of Louise Gund and Warren King. The more than fifty works in the exhibition represent a wide geographical range -- India, Tibet, China, and Japan -- and span 10,000 B.C. through the 20th century. These works include a collection of rare Tibetan religious statues and meditative paintings, or thangkas, on public display for the first time ever in the Bay Area. The ongoing exhibition is now open.

Because the exhibition covers such broad geographical and chronological territory, Parting the Curtain is subdivided into thematic sections.

Buddhist Imagery of India and Tibet presents exquisite bronze statuary and other objects that trace the formation of Buddhist religious art from 3rd-century India through much later manifestations in the Himalayas. Buddhism's supreme values of wisdom and compassion are evident in the works, including Bhaishajyaguru or Medicine Buddha, a mesmerizing 15th-century gilt bronze Buddha from Tibet, and Portrait of the Fifth Dalai Lama (Tibet-China, 17th century), a rare thangka with an embroidered image made of silk and gold thread. All of the paintings, embroidery, and sculpture in the section are shown together for the first time, and are on long-term loan from museum patron Louise Gund.

Tibetan and Buddhist Ritual Arts: The Bernard-Murray Tibetan Collection continues the exploration of Tibet, with two more typical thangkas made of pigments painted on cloth, rare 1930s film footage of Tibetan ritual dance, and a beautiful horse saddle from the Gund collection covered in gold, silver, and silk brocade. The other works are part of the Bernard-Murray Tibetan Collection, a major collection of Tibetan art and artifacts given to the university in 2004, and now housed at BAM/PFA and other locations on the UC Berkeley campus. In 1939, American scholar and explorer Theos Bernard (1908 - 1947) journeyed to Tibet, where he participated in religious activities and studied Tantric Buddhism. The art and artifacts Bernard collected on his travels, now awaiting conservation, provide a unique record of the art and culture of traditional Tibet prior to Chinese incursion.

BAM/PFA holds one of the top collections of historical Chinese painting in the country. The Literati Tradition: Scholarly Pursuits in China and Japan presents several landscape works from the collection by Chinese literati, along with related works by Japanese Nanga painters. The Chinese literati painting tradition blossomed thanks to a hierarchal Confucian society that emphasized a highly educated elite class, and placed higher value on individual expression over exactitude or realism. The Zhiping Temple (1516) by Ming dynasty painter Wen Zhengming (1470 - 1559), one of the leading innovators of Chinese painting, is a superb example of work from the tradition. Japanese Nanga painters later adopted the styles and practices of the Chinese literati in their paintings, as exemplified by paintings in the exhibition by Chikutö Nakabayashi (1776 - 1853) and Baiitsu Yamamoto (1783 - 1856).

Ideals of Beauty in India presents a selection of sculptures demonstrating Indian ideals of feminine beauty: large breasts, ample hips, and thin waists. These voluptuous ideals appear repeatedly in Indian poetry, paintings, and sculpture, such as River Goddess (India, Uttar Pradesh, 8th - 9th century), a curvaceous stone figure that once flanked a temple sanctum, blessing and purifying visitors.

The exhibition is capped by Art for the Afterlife: Chinese Tomb Culture, a collection of glazed earthenware storage jars from Chinese tombs of the Neolithic period (10,000 - 2,100 B.C.), and additional glazed ceramic figurative pieces from the Han (206 B.C. - 220 A.D.) and Tang (618 - 907) dynasties. Although made for the grave and not intended to be seen except in the realm of the afterlife, the objects describe important aspects of the material culture of their day.

Parting the Curtain: Asian Art Revealed is curated by Julia M. White, senior curator of Asian art. BAM/PFA is a vital center of contemporary and historical Asian art in the Bay Area, and in the United States. The museum's Asian collections contain a wealth of fine works reflecting the broad scope of Asian art, culture, and civilizations.

Amalia Rubin has never visited the Asian country, but her music is a hit in oppressed nation

By PAUL NELSON, Staff writer Click byline for more stories by writer. First published: Wednesday, July 11, 2007

NISKAYUNA -- Amalia Rubin is big in Tibet. The 20-year-old college junior from Niskayuna captured Best International Artist for Tibet at the Tibetan Music Awards in India for her independently released debut album of Tibetan folk songs.

The CD, entitled "Mountain and Deserts," is a cover of indigenous classical and folk music.

"A lot of it is political, and I love Tibetan culture, and Tibetan culture is under such a threat," said Rubin, an Asian studies major at the University at Buffalo.

Rubin has never visited Tibet, but she's planning a trip there this winter. The closest she has gotten is a Tibetan refugee camp in northern India.

Rubin is eager to visit the mountainous region, even though she expects her socially conscious music might ruffle feathers.

Between selling her music at her performances and Tibetan-themed events, Rubin managed to sell about 200 CDs and turned a profit.

Rubin plays the dranyen, a small stringed instrument that resembles a lute. She became interested in all things Tibetan through one of her neighbors who ran a local Buddhist temple.

What began as a hobby triggered serious political passion for drawing attention to the plight of the Tibetan people, who want independence from Chinese occupation.

Her favorite song from the first CD is "The White Crane."

She said the 300-year-old lyrics are a prophecy from the sixth Dalai Lama about his reincarnation before he was assassinated. According to the English translation, the Dalai Lama's reincarnation was found in Tibet's Lithang region.

The lyrics read in part:

"White Crane, lend me the strength of your wings, I will not fly far. I will go to Lithang and from there I shall return."

In June, she released a second CD titled "Leaving Home" in Nepal and India.

This musical offering features more modern and some original compositions plus a couple of Jewish tunes for good measure, she said.

Paul Nelson can be reached at 454-5347 or by e-mail at pnelson@timesunion.com.

Friday, 6 July 2007
Strict Chinese control could not deter Tibetans inside Tibet from Celebrating the Dalai Lama’s Birthday

According to reliable sources, on the early morning of June 19 this year, dressed in their best traditional attires, Tibetans of all age carried out a Sangsol (offering of incense) ceremony and put up green prayer flags in accordance with His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s element of birth (as per Tibetan astronomy), in the Bharkhor, Lhasa.

Similarly, on that very day, incidences of celebration were also reported in many Tibetan cultural areas, including areas outside TAR, such as Nagchu, Nyenchen Thangla, Kardze, Palbar, Chamdo, Dege, Kyegudo, Golog, Ngaba, Labrang, Bayan, Tawu and other areas reflecting a great sense of joy.

A section of Tibetans believed that this event was held to celebrate the presentation of the Congressional Gold Medal by the United States Congress to His Holiness the Dalai Lama. Others contemplated the mass event as part of the Buddhist ritual to rid of obstructions and difficulties during His Holiness’ 73rd year, which is one of the “obstacle years”.

Tibetans believe that at an interval of every twelve years in an individual's life, one is likely to experience loss, difficulty and suffering. Accordingly, each twelfth year is termed an ‘obstacle year’.

Regardless of these different explanations, the extent to which the rituals were carried out and Tibetan across Tibet rejoiced transcending the three traditional provincial regions of Tibet; it seemed as if Losar (Tibetan New Year) was being celebrated. However, owing to highly restrictive atmosphere inside Tibet under the Communist Chinese rule, it proved difficult to reason out the precise nature of the mass celebration.

Recently, in mid May this year, coinciding with the Buddhist holy month of Saka Dawa, a convoy of Chinese People's Armed Police (PAP) forcibly demolished a nearly completed huge gold and copper plated statue of Guru Padmasambhava, popularly known as Guru Rinpoche at the Samye Monastery Dranang County, Lhoka Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region 'TAR' . Again earlier on March 3, which is a day of offerings [Tib: Choe-nga Choe-pa] for Tibetan Buddhists, the authorities placed high restriction prohibiting Tibetans from participating in mass Sangsol offerings.

Reports also indicated of highly restrictive situation inside Tibet earlier during the full moon day of the Buddhist holy month (on May 31).

June 19 is, however, customarily not an auspicious or a special day to the Tibetans. The unexpected sudden excitement in which Tibetans observed the day took the Chinese authorities by surprise.

Lacking clear information about the incident and hence left with no option, the Chinese army stopped Tibetans heading for Bhumpa- Ri for Sangsol, at Kuru Bridge at around 5 or 6 in the morning. Elsewhere, the police guards at offices and schools ensured that Sangsol was not offered in respective inner-quads and that all staff were present in their quarters. Furthermore, additional guards were stationed at the gates of some offices and care was taken on placing constraints that no staff would take part in the episode.

However, notwithstanding the restriction and pressure, Tibetans in Tibet, like in the on-going endeavour to fight the Chinese oppression; continue to use their intelligence and courage to formulate new methods against restraints placed on them, especially on special occasions like HH’s birthday.

Recently, when the Tibetan Government-in-Exile and Tibetan communities in exile made large-scale long-life offerings [Tib: Tenshug] to His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Tibetans in Tibet again made efforts to offer Sangsol despite immense pressure from the Chinese government.

Reflecting on the incident, it can be understood today that June 19 2007, coincides to be the 5th day of the 5th Tibetan Lunar month, which is believed, according to Tibetan customs, to be the actual day on which His Holiness the Dalai Lama was born in 1935.

It can be understood that Tibetans in Tibet adopted a unique way of celebrating their exiled leader’s auspicious birthday without being disrupted by the local authorities. Elsewhere in exile, Tibetans celebrated His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s birthday today, 6th of July.