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New energy lit whole Tibet

Tibetan academician Dorje appreciates new energy widely used in Tibet with the support of central government.

Dorje, borned in a poor family of Gyacha County in 1953, is the first academician of Tibetan academy of engineering. In 1974, he passed the national college entrance examination for Chengdu university of technology. After graduation, he devoted to the exploration and development of Tibet’s geothermal energy and then was sent to Italy and the United States for further study.

He has made remarkable achievements in exploration of Yangbajain geothermal energy, guiding local people to use the new renewable resource instead of burning wood and cow dung in daily life. Dorje said: “Using this new renewable resource is beneficial to protect the fragile ecological environment of Tibet Autonomous region. “From Tibet Xizang

Tibetan students love peace

Tibetan students in the Central University for Nationalities expressed their love for peace when the journalist currently visited them.

“We believe Beijing Olympics will be successful with our support,” Phuntsok, a senior student from Lhasa said, “Rioters should be condemned for they hurt local people so much. ”

Another Tibetan student named Tsering said:” What we need is peace and stability.”

Kelzang, a Tibetan student from the a pastoral area in Qinghai Province, told the reporter that he would like to be a volunteer to work for western areas.

Soinam, who is to graduate this year, said, “We are proud of being students in this era and we would work hard for our country.”

Tibet-An Inseparable part of China-1

From the 7th to the 10th century
In the Tang Dynasty: Close Relations between Tibet(Tibet Xizang) and Central China
The friendly relations between the Tibetan nationality and the Han nationality of the main areas of China can be traced to ancient times.

The friendly relations between the Tibetan nationality and the Han nationality of the main areas of China can be traced to ancient times, as is proved by archaeological findings and historical documents in Tibetan and Chinese. In the seventh century the Tibetan King Songtsen Gampo unified the tribes on the Qinghai-Tibet plateau and established the Tubo Dynasty. King Songtsen Gampo married Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty in 641, after which the Tang emperor conferred on him the titles of “Imperial Son-in-Law Governor”, “West Sea Prince”, and “Treasured Prince.” 　　　　

King Songtsen Gampo, the founder of the Tubo Dynasty, sent envoys to the Tang capital city of Chang’an to seek marriage relations. In 641, Princess Wencheng went westward as a bride to Tubo. From then on, close relations were formed between the Tang Dynasty and Tubo. The Audience, a picture done by painter Yan Liben of the Tang Dynasty shows the Tang Emperor Tai Zong giving an audience to Gar Tongtsen, an envoy sent by King Songtsen Gampo to ask for the hand of a Tang princess in marriage.

 

The picture is reproduced from the Tibetan history book “The Records of the Tibetan Royal Lineage”. It shows the Tang Emperor Tai Zong giving an image of Shakyamuni, jewelry, Buddhist scriptures, bookcases, classic works in 360 volumes to Princess Wencheng as her dowry. After marrying Princess Wencheng, King Songtsen Gampo sent groups of Tubo youths from noble families to Chang’an, capital of the Tang Dynasty, to study Chinese culture.

The Tang Princess Jincheng went as a bride to Tubo in 710. She did her best to introduce the Tang culture to Tubo. According to New History of the Tang Dynasty: “The Tubo King sent envoys to welcome Princess Jincheng. The Emperor bestowed upon the Princess Jincheng tens of thousands of bolts of silk and cloth, musicians, acrobats, all kinds of artisans, and a band of Qiuci musicians.”

According to the Old History of the Tang Dynasty, “Having gone to Tibet, Princess Jincheng dispatched special envoys to the Tang court for a copy of each of the following books: the Books of Poetry (Mao Heng’s version), Book of Rites. Zuo Zhuan(the famous commentary by Zuo Qiuming on The Spring and Autumn Annals), and Selected Works(a well-known selection noted for essays of elegant style dating from early centuries A.D.).

Tshatsha: An Exotic Flower of Tibetan Buddhist Art

Tshatsha: An Exotic Flower of Tibetan Buddhist Art

 

Tshatsha, a literal translation from a Sanskrit word which means “copy” in English, stands for small clay sculptures cut from a mold, including mini-statues of Buddha, stupas or Buddhist scriptures. Usually, they are put inside large stupas or special shrines (tsha-kang). They can also be found on top of Mani stones flanked by prayer flags along tracks, on the revered snow-peaks or in sacred caves. The Tibetans carry them in small amulet boxes to guard against evil. Tshatshas are believed to have come from India together with Buddhism. Although most tshatshas are made of clay, there are also wooden or stone ones. The former are used to fill the stupas, with some are placed on top of the Mani stones or in special shrines, while most of the latter are placed in Buddhist shrines or altars. Tshatshas, whether ancient or modern, generally fall into two categories in terms of their forms: relief sculptures, including high and low reliefs, made with a one-sided mold; and round sculptures that are made with a double- sided mold. To make a tshatsha, first a mold, an indispensable item known as tsha-shi-gong in Tibetan, has to be made. Most molds are made of bronze or brass, and those made of porcelain, paper, or wood are rare and hence especially precious. Once the mold is made, one can begin to make a clay tshatsha, a process that has been compared to working with the popular children’s toy of plasticene (named after the famous trademark). First step, a lump of clay is stuffed into the mold after being rolled into a clay pie. Then, a pit is made within which several grains of the highland barley (grown in Tibet and Qinghai in West China) are placed. The process, known as filling the scripture (Zhuangzang in Chinese), is believed to be able to give superhuman strength to the clay sculptures. Next, the clay is pressed so that its surface will be smooth and the design pattern clear. A pedestal is modeled by hand in the third step. When all the above is done, the moist clay tshatsha is taken out from the mold and placed in sunshine to dry off, completing the process. This is called the lost wax method, which was considered the most advanced technique more than a millennium ago. It is still in use today to make delicate modern sculptures and replicas of antiques. Since all the tshatshas are molded, they are not too large in size, hence their name “little statues of Buddha”. By far, the largest one of those excavated measures no more than an inch in both width and height and the smallest one is no larger than a thumbnail. In most cases, they are about 9 centimeters in width and 7 in height. Though small, tshatsha serves the same purposes as other Buddhist forms, such as the mural painting and thangka. Buddhists recognize them as symbols of Buddhist merits, and use them to express their adoration and reverence for the Buddha, and their explanation of and devotion to the Buddhist doctrines, as well as their aspiration for riches and honor. The tshatshas are colored with traditional Tibetan pigment, which is in fact a kind of mineral paint traditionally made by mixing different amounts of minerals so that they still retain their bright original colors after hundreds of years. Though made with the same techniques, tshatshas vary greatly from place to place. Tshatshas found in the stupas in Jiama County, dating back to over 600 years ago in the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368 AD), feature three-dimensional patterns in high relief; details like figures and background decorations are also emphasized. The most distinctive aspect of these tshatshas is their large size, as most of them are 10 cm high and 8 cm wide, with the largest reaching as much as 26 cm in height and 20 cm in width. These tshatshas are believed to be of great value for the research on the Tibetan Buddhist art in the Yuan Dynasty. Compared with tshatshas found in other places, those found in Xialu Temple are said to be unique and worthy of collection, as they have the largest variety in terms of the ages, the patterns and the styles as well as the colors. Tshatshas also abound in Sajia Temple, and are famed for their delicacy and exquisiteness. Most of them are burned into colors such as red, gray or black. There are also tshatshas with two colors, an uncommon feature. In the Northern Sajia Temple, tshatshas with typical Indian or Nepalese artistic features can be found, which were put in the stupas when the temple was built nearly a thousand years ago. Therefore, they are referred to as having matchless artistic and historical value. Due to its long history and unique artistic charm as well as the mysterious cultural implications, tshatsha has grown into a special category, arousing the interests of numerous experts, artists and collectors. Over the years, tshatshas, with its rich implications, various design patterns, long history and different artistic styles have become a treasured collectible item.

Cento:Tibet Xizang

Lhoka nature

 

 

About Tibetan clothes

Introduction of Tibetan clothes 
 
In the modern Tibet xizang, some people wear the Western dresses as Han people do. Some Tibetan cadets wear the standard Chinese cadet’s dresses. In the Tibet Autonomous Region, 95 percent of the populations are Tibetans, the rests are Hans, Moslems, Menbas, Lobas, Drungs, Xiaerbas and others. In this short article we will describe the traditional Tibetan dresses. There are five kinds of Tibetan clothes.　

A. Robe And Belt

A typical Tibetan clothes is made of sheepskin or wool. It is usually home-made by man. In the agriculture area the wool will be made ‘pulu’ first. Then the ‘pulu’ or sheepskin will be made into a gown with cloth or silk exterior cover called `qugba. In the grassland, sheepskin is common. A sheepskin will be sun baked and then cleaned. It will be soaked for a few days in the liquid of milk after butter is extracted. Then it is ready for men to tailor.

The Tibetan robes, which serve as blankets at night, are very long and are worn down to the knees with the extra length tucked and held up by a waistband or belt. The robe produces two large pockets, one in front and another at the back, for people to carry things, including baby. When it is hot in the daytime, Tibetans will undress the right arms to disperse heat. If it is even hotter, then one may undress both arms and tie the sleeves around the waist.

For a good clothes, the collar and hem are made of special materials. For man, the collar is sometimes made of leopard belt, fox belt. For woman, the collar is made of red cloth or several strips of bright coloured cloths or corduroies. For hem, otter belt and silk will do.

It is necessary to have belt to tie up the Tibetan dress. Usually the belt is made of red, yellow or light green (young female may use pink) silk. The belt is well decorated. Man hangs flint box, needle box and Tibetan knife on it. Woman hangs copper or silver hook with butterfly and water lily designs.

The belt is usually around the waist twice and then is tied behind with a knot. For a person in mourning of the dear ones, the knot is tied in front.

B. Felt

It may snow in any day. To protect oneself, felt hat and felt clothes are necessary. The sleeves of felt clothes are longer than the finger tips which will allow a rider to grasp the whip warmly inside.

C. Hat

There are many different hats in Tibet. Traditionally, Tibetans have ‘golden flowered hat’, English felt hat, etc.. In the summer, people wear heavy woollen hat, in the spring, felt hat, in the winter, fox belt hat or kid belt hat. The noble women use to wear a headpieces called ‘bazhug’ which are decorated with pearl, coral and precious stones, and a chest ornament called ‘keu’. Now they are common.

D. Boot

There are many different styles of shoes, ’songba’, ‘jialou’ and ‘duozha’. The Tibetan shoes are open from rear and tied from rear. On the grassland, Tibetans like knee-high long boots. It is made of ox skin or ‘pulu’.

E. Apron

It is popular for Tibetan women to wear aprons. There are two kinds of aprons wide stripes ones and narrow stripes ones. The wide stripes one is with contrast, bright colours, as beautiful as rainbows. The narrow stripes one is with harmonic colours, elegant and graceful.

Tag:Tibetan clothes

Photo:

 

Men’s and women’s clothes and accessories

In the harsh conditions of the Tibetan high plateau it is important to have a dress protecting one against the adversities of weather - cold, wind, and strong solar radiation during the summer. The most important part of Tibetan clothing is therefore a warm and heavy coat or chupa, felt boots and various kinds of caps and hats, often made from precious materials such as brocade with rich embroidery and other ornaments. Men’s and women’s clothes are presented

on six dummies. The clothes differ according to area of origin. 

Important accessories are metal jewels made from silver, conch-shells, carved yak bones, and precious stones. There are also beads, necklaces, earrings, rings, hair-buckles and braces, charms, buckles, embellishing threads and hair-tassels, traditional metal buttons, twisted belts, and a man’s leather belt with pockets. The most favourite stones are turquoise and dzi, which are believed to bring good luck.

The different useful little things which Tibetans take with them on their travels are also very interesting. Examples of these are: a brass mirror melong, knives (different for men and women), leather and cloth embroidered purses (also different for men and women), a needle-case and thimble made from bone and leather marked out specially for men, flint-and-steels, silver cases for bamboo pens, bodkin with a case, mull and travel sewing utensils (again with

different designs for men and women), a travelling leather bag similar to the rucksack, and a small plaited bag, etc. 

From:Tibet Xizang

Four-armed Goddess

Gilt copper
Tibet, 14th - 15th century
H: 29 cm; L: 23 cm; W: 16 cm

Tibet Museum, Lhasa

Published: Precious Deposits, vol. 3, pp. 56-57, no. 24; E. F. Lo Bue, Tesori del Tibet: Oggetti d’arte dai Monasteri di Lhasa, pp. 116-118, no. 76; Ulrich von Schroeder, Buddhist Sculptures in Tibet xizang , vol. 2, p. 1040, pl. 260A.

Originally from the Red Palace inside the Potala, this unidentified goddess sits in meditation on a lotus throne placed on a lion pedestal. She has two pairs of hands. The bottom pair is held in the gesture of meditation. The top pair is in the gesture of preaching (dharmachakra mudra), while also holding two stalks of lotus blossoms, supporting a conch (left) and a vase of immortality (right) at shoulder level. The goddess is bedecked with jewels, mainly inlaid turquoise. Her head is enclosed within a cloverleaf halo and the wavy scarves behind her arms add a sense of movement.

In her elaborate ornament, jewel encrusted lower garment, and clover-shaped halo, this figure closely resembles a group of copper repoussé images from Densatil Monastery, a Kagyu establishment founded in the 12th century that was once located in central Tibet. During the 14th and 15th centuries, this region of Tibet xizang was ruled by the Lang family, who generously patronized Densatil.

‘Tibetan Youth Magazine’ published all around China

Tibet xizang Map

Tibet xizang Map