Tashilhunpo Monastery

The previous day’s clear skies were noticeably absent but not missed as the clouds, scudding across the sky before a high wind, seemed to add another dimension to the snow-capped scenery. There would be a little less distance to cover and the road was soon to improve as we headed towards Shigatse, Tibet’s second city and the home of Tashilhunpo Monastery. We arrived in the early afternoon and had plenty of time to relax in our comparatively luxurious rooms before heading out to take a look around this impressive seat of the Panchen Lama – second only to the Dalai Lama in the Buddhist chain of command. The Manasarovar Hotel was the first taste of modern comfort we’d had since leaving Nepal and, while the bathroom could have done with retiling and the shower replacing, we had comfortable beds and hot running water to look forward to in the evening. We sauntered down the busy main street of the Chinese district (more hideous concrete monstrosities) to find Greasy Joe’s, where we were to discover the first decent food of our trip for a very satisfactory lunch. I managed a very palatable pork in black bean sauce and a couple of Lhasa Beer’s (shared with Annie, of course) before we headed back to the hotel to pick up Dorje for our tour round the monastery. The walk there passed through the more picturesque Tibetan quarter, with beautifully painted shopfronts and lively music blaring from one or two colourful-looking bars and we made a plan to stop for a beer or two on the way back to the hotel.
The Panchen Lama has been given special significance since the great fifth Dalai Lama proclaimed that his teacher (then abbot of Tashilhunpo) was an incarnation of Amithaba – a deification of Buddha’s faculty of perfect perception and cognition. Tibetan Buddhism has a great history of incarnate lamas – known as trulku – becoming the figurehead of the various monastic dynasties (including, most obviously, the Dalai Lama himself). After this endorsement from the fifth Dalai Lama (credited as the chief unifier and greatest leader of Tibet’s clerical governance) Tashilhunpo, under the Panchen Lama, became the second most powerful seat behind the Dalai Lama in Lhasa. Inevitably, over the centuries, there have been power struggles and political manoeuvrings between the two, influenced strongly by outside powers (such as the Mongols and the Chinese) wishing to gain a hand in Tibetan affairs. More recently, the 10th Panchen Lama was accused of being a puppet of the oppressive Chinese until he returned to Tibet and, seeing the appalling treatment of his countrymen at the hands of Mao’s henchman, turned against the authorities and called for a ‘Free Tibet’. Ever grateful for free speech and anti-establishment thinking, the Chinese promptly threw him in prison and spent 14 years abusing and torturing him, whilst aggressively assassinating his character to the outside world. After his release in 1978 he was less outspoken against the authorities but continued to raise Tibetan issues at the highest level in Chinese government and, by the time he died in 1989, he was considered to be a hero by the Tibetan people. There has been much controversy since his death surrounding the new incarnation of the Panchen Lama – hand-picked by the Chinese and kept under house-arrest in Beijing, away from the influence of senior Tibetan clerics. As we toured the magnificent grounds of the monastery, Dorje explained in whispered tones, that many Tibetans suspect the Chinese government poisoned the tenth Panchen Lama and that the eleventh is merely a puppet, who nobody has any respect for. This was clearly evident in the way that many of the local pilgrims pointed with their fingers at the photo of the current incumbent – something that we’d learnt (from observing our driver), was a sign of deep disrespect.
The altitude was still taking its toll on our group as we meandered slowly through the walled town of the monastery. The narrow alleys and cobbled pavements gave the place an air of undeniable antiquity and we learnt that some of the buildings, having survived the cultural revolution, had stood there since the 15th century. Most impressive were the chapel of Jampa, housing a 26metre golden image of Buddha, and the beautiful Kelsang Temple – the centrepiece of the monastery and focus for all religious and festival activities. Many of the rest of the buildings were built to house the tomb chortens of the previous incarnations of the Panchen Lama – although, only that of the fourth had survived destruction by the Chinese. We saw many red-robed monks going about there business and they seemed to lend the place and aura of authenticity and activity. However, once safely outside, Dorje informed us of the sham – and the reason for his earlier caution. Tashilhunpo – like most of the monasteries in Tibet, it would seem – is no longer allowed to function as a true place of monastic study and religious activity. Virtually all of the monks we had seen inside were paid actors, who would go home to a house in the city, once the monastery closed its gates at 5pm. It seems the Chinese have come to realise the tourist draw of Tibet’s great Buddhist heritage and, while they don’t want the clerical leaders to gather any kind of significant power-base, they are quite happy to allow foreign visitors to accept the façade of religious autonomy in Tibet. Many of these actors, according to Dorje, spy on tour guides and foreign tourists and report back to the local authorities if they observe any ‘reactionary’ behaviour – e.g. distribution of pictures of the current Dalai Lama. Dorje seemed genuinely fearful of being questioned if he was caught discussing these matters with us and I, for one, believe that China’s pretence at preserving human rights is only that.
We’d all been in awe at the grandeur and great antiquity of the monastery’s beautifully ornate buildings and were much saddened to hear of the losses sustained under the Chinese – not to mention the continued oppression of this peaceful nation’s beliefs. I found an even greater respect for Dorje, braving the threat of imprisonment to give us the truth of his country’s situation, and a growing admiration for the Tibetan people, clinging tenaciously, yet peacefully, to their beliefs – despite the poverty and oppression so many have become accustomed to under the Chinese.
We adjourned to a bar for a few beers to mull over these thoughts, before heading back to Greasy Joe’s for a tasty dinner (sweet and sour pork for me) and returning to the hotel to an early bedtime.