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CHARLES WILLIAM WASON
COLLECTION
CHINA AND THE CHINESE
THE GIFT OF
CHARLES WILLTAM WASON
CLASS OF 1876
1918
DATE DUE
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There are no known copyright restrictions in
the United States on the use of the text.
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4
n
THREE YEARS IN TIB^T.
AUTHOR IN 1909.
Three Years
IN
Tibet
with the original Japanese illustrations
BY
THE SHRAMANA EKAI KAWAQUCHI
Late Recto)' of Gohyakurakan Monastery, Japan.
PUBLISHED BY
THE THEOSOPHIST OFFICE, ADYAR, MADRAS.
THEOSOPHICAL PUBLISHING SOCIETY, BENARES AND LONDON.
1909.
(Registered Copyright.)
PRINTED BY ANNtE BES^NT AT ,THE VASANTA PRESS, ADYAR, MADRAfe, S. INDIA.
PREFACE.
I was Icitely reading the Holy Text of the Sa(/f//iaj-m((-
Pundartka (the Aphorisms of the White Lotus of the
Wonderful or True Law) in a Samskrt manuscript under
a Bodhi-tree neav Mrga-Dava (Saranath), Benares. Here
our Blessed Lord Buddha Shakya-Muni taught His Holy
Jpharma just after the accomplishment of His Buddha-
hood at Buddhagaya. Whilst doing so, I was reminded
of the time, eighteen years ago, when I had read the same
text in Chinese at a great Monastery named Ohbakusang
at Kyoto in Japan, a reading which determined me to
undertake a visit to Tibet.
It was in March, 1891, that I gave up the Rectorship of
the Monastery of Grohyakurakan in Tokyo, and left for
Kyoto, where I remained living as a hermit for about three
years, totally absorbed in the study of a large collection of
Buddhist books in the Chinese language. My object
in doing so was to fulfil a long-felt desire to translate the
texts into Japanese in an easy style from the difficult and
unintelligible Chinese.
But I afterwards found that it was not a wise thing
to rely upon the Chinese texts alone, without comparing
them with Tibetan translations as well as with the original
Samskrt texts which are contained in Mahayana Buddhism.
The Buddlhist Samskrt texts were to be found in Tibet
and Nepal. Of course, many of them had been discovei'ed
by European Orientalists in Nepal and a few in other
parts of India and Japan. But those texts had not yet
been found which ijicluded the most important manu-
scripts of ^hich Buejdhist scholars were in great want.
Then' again, the Tibetan texts were famous for being
vi PEEi'ACB.
more accurate translations than the Chinese. Now
I do not say that the Tibetan translations are superior
to the Chinese. As literal translations^ I think that
they are superior; but, for their general meaning, the
Chinese are far better than the Tibetan. Anyhow, it
was my idea that I should study the Tibetan language and
Tibetan Buddhism, and should try to discover Samskrt
manuscripts in Tibet, if any were there available.
With these objects in view, I made up. my mind to go to
Tibet, though the country was closed not only by the Local
Grovernment but also by the surrounding lofty mountains.
After making my preparations for some time, I left Japan
for Tibet in June, 1897, and returned to my country in
May, 1903. Then in October, 1904, I again left Japan for
India and Nepal, with the object of studying Samskrt,
hoping, if possible, again to penetrate into Tibet, in search
of more manuscripts.
On my return to Japan, my countiymen received me
with great enthusiasm, as the first explorer of Tibet from
Japan. The Jiji, a daily newspaper in Tokyo, the most
well-known, influential and widely read paper in Japan, and
also a famous paper in Osaka, called the Maimirhi, publish-
ed my articles every day during 156 issues. After this, I
collected all these articles and gave them for publication in
two volumes to Hakubunkwan, a famous publisher in
Tokyo. Afterwards some well-known gentlemen in Japan,
Mr. Sntejiro Fukuzawa, Mr. Sensuke Hayakawa and
Mr. Eiji Asabuki, proposed to me to get them translated
into English. They also helped me substantially in this
translation, and I take this opportunity of expressing my
grateful thanks to them for the favor thus conferred
upon me.
•When my translation- was finished, the British expedi-
tion to Tibet had been successful, and reports regarding it
were soon afterwards published, l^therefore stopped the
PEEP ACE. Vll
publication of my 'English translation, for I thought that
my book would not be of any use to the English-reading
public.
Recently, the President of the Tlieosophical Society, my
esteemed friend Mrs. Annie Besant, asked me to show her
the translation. On reading it she advised me to publish
it quickly. I then told her that it would be useless for
me to publish such a book, as there were already Govern-
ment reports of the Tibetan expedition, and as Dr. Sven
Hedin of Sweden would soon publish an excellent book of
his travels in Tibet. But she was of opinion that such
books would treat of the country from a western point of
view, whilst my book would prove interesting to the
reader from the point of view of an Asiatic, intimately
acquainted with the manners, the customs, and the inner
life of the people. She also pointed out to me that the
book would prove attractive to the general reader for its
stirring incidents and adventures, and the dangers I had
had to pass through during my travels.
Thus then . I lay this book before the English-knowing
public. I take this opportunity of expressing my grateful
thanks to Mrs. Besant for her continued kindness to me
in looking over the translation, and for rendering me help
in the publication. "Were it not for her, this book would
not have sein the light of day.
Here also I must not fail to express my sincere thanks
to my intimate friend Professor Jamshedji N. Unwalla, m.a.,
of the Central Hindu College, Benares ; for he composed
all the verses of the book from my free English prose
translation, and looked over all the proof-sheets carefully
with me with heartiest kindness.
I must equally thank those people who helped me in
my travels in a substantial manner, as well as those who
rendered me useful assistance in my studies ; naj^, even
those wlio threw obstacles in my way, for they, after all,
Yiii PREFACE.
unconsciously rewarded me with the gift of the power to
accomplish the objects I had in view, by surmounting all
the difficulties I had to go through during my travels.
With reference to this publication, whilst reading the
Aphorisms of the White Lotus of the Wonderful Law
this day, I cannot but feel extremely sorry in my heart
when I am reminded of those people who suffered a great
deal for my sake, some being even imprisoned for their
connexion with me when I was in Tibet. But on the
other hand, it is really gratifying to me, as well as
to them, to know that, after all, their sufferings for
my sake will be amply compensated by the good
karma they have certainly acquired for themselves
through their acts of charity and benevolence, that
have enabled me to read and carefully study with greater
knowledge, accuracy and enthusiasm, the most sacred
texis of our Holy Religion, than was possible for me
before my travels in Tibet. I assert this with implicit
faith in the fact that good deeds, according to the Sacred
Canon, have indu^bitably the power to purify Humanity,
sunk ,in the illusions of this world, often compared in our
Holy Scriptures to a muddy and dirty pond; at the same
time I believe that that power to purify rests with the
Glorious Lotus of the Awe-inspiring Law, suffusing all
with its brilliant effulgence; and with sweet*odor, itself,
amidst its muddy surroundings, remaining for ever
stainless and unsullied.
EKAI KAWAGUCHI,
Central Hindu College,
Staff Quarters,
Benares City, 1909.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTUB |.,\(iK
I. Novel farewell Presents. 1
II. A Year in Darjeeling. II
III. A foretaste of Tibetan barbarism. 15
IV. Laying a false scent. 21
V. Journey to Nepal. 25
VI. I befriend Beggars. 35
VII. The Sublime Himalaya. 40
VIII. Dangei's ahead. 44
IX. Beau.tiful Tsarang and 1 )irty Tsarangese. 51
X. Fame and Temptation. 60
XI. Tibet at Last. 69
XII. The World of Snow. 77
XIII. A kind old Dame. Hi
XIV. A holy Cave-Dweller. 86
XV In helpless Plight. 90
XVI. A Foretaste of distressing PJxperiences. 96
XVII. A Beautiful Eescuer. 99
XVIII. The Lighter Side of the Experiences. 104
XIX. The largest River of Tibet. 108
XX. Dangers begin in Earnest. 112
XXI. Overtaken by a Sand-Storm. 116
XXII. 22,650 Feet above Sea-level. 123
XXIII. I survive a Sleep in the Snow. 127
XXIV. ' Bon' and ' Kyang'. 131
XXV. The Power of Buddhism. 135
XXVI. Sacred Manasarovara and its Legends. 139
XXVII. Bartering in Tibet. " 144
XXVIII. A Himalayan Romance. 150
XXIX. On the Road to Nature's Grand Mandala. 162
XXX. Wonders of Nature's Mandala. 167
XXXI. An Ominous Outlook. 178
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER
XXXII.
XXXIII.
XXXIV.
XXXV.
XXXVI.
XXXVII.
XXXVIII.
XXXIX.
XL.
XLI.
XLII.
XLIII.
XLIV.
XLV.
XL VI.
XL VII.
XLVIII.
XLIX.
L.
LI.
LII.
LIII.
LIV.
LV.
LVI.
LVII.
LVIII.
LIX.
LX.
LXI.
LXII.
LXIII.
LXIV.
LXV.
LXVI.
PAGE
A Cheerless Prospect. 187
At Death's Door. 191
The Saint of the White Cave revisited. 204
Some easier Days. 211
War Against Suspicion. 218
Across the Steppes. 227
Holy Texts in a Slaughter-house. 233
The Third Metropolis of Tibet. 236
The Sakya Monastery. 241
Shigatze. 249
A Supposed Miracle. 257
Manners and Customs. 264 ^
On to Lhasa. 280
Arn'val in Lhasa. 285
The Warrior-Priests of Sera. 291
Tibet and North China. 297
Admission into Sera College., 304
Meeting with the Incarnate Bodhisattva. 311
Life in the Sera Monastery. 323
My Tibetan Eriends and Benefactors. 329
Japan in Lhasa. 335
Scholastic Aspirants. 345
Tibetan Weddings and Wedded Life. 351
Wedding Ceremonies. 362
Tibetan Punishments. 374 -^
A grim Funeral and grimmer Medicine. 388
Foreign Explorers and the Policy of
Seclusion. .397
A Metropolis of Filth. 407 -^
Lamaism. 410
The Tibetan Hierarchy. 417
The Government. 428
Education and Castes. 435
Tibetan Trade and Industiy. 447
Currency and Printing-blocks. 461
The Festival of Lights. 467 ^
CONTENl'S.
xi
CHAPTER
I'AGB
LXVII.
Tibetan Women.
472
LXVIII.
Tibetan Boys and Girls.
479
LXIX.
The Care of the Sick.
484
LXX.
Outdoor Amusements.
489 --"
LXXI.
Russia's Tibetan Policy.
493 ~
LXXII.
Tibet and British India.
509
LXXIII.
China, Nepal and Tibet.
519
LXXIV.
The Future of Tibetan Diplomacy.
526
LXXV.
The " Monlam " Festival.
531
LXXVI.
The Tibetan Soldiery.
549--
LXXVII.
Tibetan Finance.
554'-
LXXVIII.
Future of the Tibetan Religions.
561
LXXIX.
The Beginning of the Disclosure of the
!
Secret.
566
LXXX.
The Secret Leaks Out.
574
LXXXI.
My Benefactor's Noble Offer.
584
LXXXII.
Preparations for Departure.
590
LXXXIII.
A Tearful Departure from Lhasa.
599
LXXXIV.
Five Grates to Pass.
618
LXXXV.
The First Challenge G-ate.
623
LXXXVI.
The Second aiid Third Challenge Gates
636
LXXXVII.
The Foni'th and Fifth Challenge Gates.
642
LXXXVIII.
The Final Gate passed.
647
LXXXIX.
Good-bye, Tibet !
652
XO.
The Labohe Tribe.
660
XCI.
Visit to my Old Teachei'.
667
XCII.
My Tibetan Friends in Trouble.
671
XOIII.
Among Friends.
677
XCIV.
The Two Kings of Nepal.
682
xcv.
Audience of the Two Kings.
685
XCVI.
Second Audience.
688
XCVII.
Once more in Katmandu.
692
XCVIII.
Interview with the Acting Prime
Minister.
697
XCIX.
Painful News from Lhasa
700
c.
The King betrays his Buspicion.
703
CONTJSNTS.
CHAPTEU PAGE
CI. Third Audience. 709
CII. Farewell to Nepal and its Good Kings. 714
cm. All's well tliat ends well., 718
Illustrations in the Text.
PAGE
1. Autlior's departure from Japan. 6
'2. The Lama's execution. 18
3. On the banks of the Bichagori rivei'. 32
4. A horse in difficulties. 49
■5. Tsarangese village girls. 57
6. Entering Tibet from Nepal. 75
7. To a tent of nomad Tibetans. 79
8. A night in the open and a snbw-leopard. 92
9. Attacked by dogs and saved by a lady. 100
10. Nearly dying of thirst. 114
11. A sand-storm. 117
12. Struggle in the river. 121
13. Meditating in the face of death. 125
14. A ludicrous race. 132
15. Lake Manasarovara. 140
16. Religion v. Love. 161
17. Near Mount Kailasa. 169
18. Quarrel between brothei's. 181
19. Attacked by robbers. 192
20. The cold moon reflected on the iee. 202
21. Fallen into a muddy swamp. 210
22. Meeting a furious wild yak. 229
23. Outline- of the monastery of Tashi Lhunpo. 249
24. Reading the Texts. 266
25. Priqst.-fighting' with hail. 274
26. Outline of the residence of the Dalai Lama. 287
27. A vehement philosophical discussion. 306
28. An audience wj.th the Dalai Lama. 316
29. Inner room of the Dalai Lama's coUi}.try house. 320
30. Room in the .finance secretai'y's house. 335
31. Unexpected mieetirtg with friends. '' 341
xiv ILLUSTRATIONS IN THE TEXT.
PAGli
32. Gii-1 weeping at being suddenly commanded to
naarry. """
33. At the bridegroom's gate. Throwing an imitation
sword at the bride. 366, 367
34. The wife of an Ex-Minister punished in
public. 378, 379
35. Funeral ceremonies : cutting up the dead
body. 390, 391
36. Lobon Padma Chungne. 411
37. Je Tsong-kha-pa. 414
38. A soothsayer under mediumistic influence
falling senseless. 426
39. Flogging as a means of education. 443
40. Priest-traders loading their yaks. 459
41. New year's reading of the Texts for the
Japanese Emperor's welfare. 465
42. Naming ceremony of a baby. 480
43. A picnic party in summei'. 491
44. Prime Minister. 502
45. A coi'rupt Chief Justice of the monks. 534
46. The final ceremony of the Monlam. 538
47. A scene fi'om the Monlam. festival. 541
48. Procession of the Panchen or Tashi Lama in
Lhasa. 568
49. Critical meeting with Tsa Rong-ba and his
wife. 580
50. Revealing the secret to the Ex-Minister. 585
51. A mysterious voice in the garden of Sera. 596
52. A distant view of Lhasa. , 605
53. Farewell to Lhasa from the top of G-enpala. 606
54. Crossing a mountain at midnight. 610
55. Night scene on the Chomo-Lhari and Lham Tso. 616
56. Beautiful scenery in the Tibetan Himalttyag. 634
57. The fortressi of Nyatong. 649
58. 0n the way to thesnowy Jela-peak. '- 654
59. Accidental meeting with a friend and compatriot. 679
IIiLUSTEA.TIONS IN THE TEXT. XV
PAGE
60. Struggle with a Nepale.se soldier. 690
61. Meeting again with an old friend, Lama Buddha
Vajra. 695
62. The author and his friend Budldha Vajra enjoy-
ing the brilliant snow at Katmandu. 704
63. Nagarjuna's cave of meditation in Nepal. 716
Photogravures.
TO PACE
PAGE
Frontispit
see.
1
11
15
[•ee.
25
1. The Author in 1909.
2. The Author just before leaving Japan.
3. Rai Bahadur Sarat Chandra Das.
4. Lama Sengchen Dorjechan.
5. The Author -meditating under the Bodhi-tree.
6. • Passport in Tibetan for the Author's return to
Tibet in the future. 645
7. The Author as a Tibetan Lama at Darjeeling
on his return. 667
8. The Author performing ceremonies in Tibetan
costume. 669
9. The Prime Minister of Nepal, H. H. Chandra
Shamsir. 685
10. The Commander-in-Chief of Nepal, H. E. Bhim
Shamsir. 697
11. Mount Gaurishankara, the highest peak in the world.
(At the end of the volume).
Sketch=map.
Chart of the Route followed by the Author. (At the
end of the volume.)
THE AUTHOR JUST BEFORE LEAVING JAPAN.
CHAPTER I.
Novel farewell pre^fents.
In the montli of May, 1897, I was ready to embark
on my journey, which promised nought but danger and
uncertainty. I went about taking leave of my friends
and relatives in Tokyo. Endless were the kind and
heartfelt words poured on me, and many were the presents
offered me to wish me farewell ; but the latter I
uniformly declined to accept, save in the form of
sincerely given pledges. From those noted for excessive
use of intoxicants, I exacted a promise of absolute absti-
nence from " the maddening water ; " and from immoderate
smokers I asked the immediate discontinuance of the
habit that would end in nicotine poisoning. About forty
persons willingly granted my appeal for this somewhat
novel kind of farewell presents. Many of these are
still remaining true to the word then given me, and
others have apparently forgotten them since. At all
events, I valued these " presents" most exceedingly. In
Osaka, whither I went after leaving Tokyo, I also
succeeded in securing a large number of them. Three
of them I particularly prized, and should not fail to
mention them here ; for, as I think of them now, I cannot
help fancying that they had transformed themselves
into unseen powers that saved me from the otherwise
certain death.
While still in Tokyo I called on Mr. Takabe Tona, a
well-known manufacturer of asphalt. Mr. Takabe had
been a born fisher, especially skilled in the use of the
" shot^net," and to catch fish had been the joy and
pleasure of his life. On the occasion of the leave-taking
2 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
visit which I paid him, I found him in a very despondent
mood. He volunteered to' tell me that he had just lost
a three-year old child of his, and the loss had left his
wife the most distracted woman in the world, while he
himself could not.: recover the peace of his mind, even
fishing having become devoid of its former charms for
him. I said to my host, who had always been a very
intimate friend of mine and a member of my former
flock : " Do you really find it so hard to bear th3 death
of your child ? What would you think of a person who
dared to bind up and kill a beloved child of yours,
and roast and eat its flesh ? " " Oh ! devilish ! The
devil only could do that ; no man could," answered he.
I quickly rejoined : " You are a fiend then, at least, to
the fishes of the deep". Strong wei'e the words I
used then, but it was in the fulness of my heart that
I spoke them, and Mr. Takabe finally yielded and
promised me to fish no more. He was very obdurate
at first ; but when I pointed out to him that it was at
the risk of my life that I was going to Tibet, and
that for the sake of my religion, which was also his, he
stood up with a look of determination. He excused
himself from my presence for awhile, and then returned
with some fishing-nets, which he forthwith handed over
to me, saying that those were the weapons of murder
with which he had caused the death of innumerable
denizens of the brine, and that I might do with them
as I liked, for he had no longer any use for them. I
thereupon asked a daughter of the host's to build a fire
for me in the yard ; and, when it was ready, I consigned
the nets to flames in the presence of all— there were
^11 the members of the family and some visitors,
besides, to witness the scene. Among the visitors was
Mr. Ogawa Katsutaro, a relative^ of the family. This
gentleman had also been an excellent sportsman, witji
NOVEL FAREWELL PEESENTS. 6
both gun and nets. He had seen the dramatic scene
before him and heard me pray for my host. As the
nets went up in smoke, Mr. Ogawa rose and said
impressively : " Let me too wish that you fare well in Tibet,
by making to you the gift of a pledge : I pledge myself
that I will never more take the lives of other creatures for
amusement ; should I prove false to these words let ' Fudo
Myo-oh ' visit me with death." I had never before felt
so honored and gratified as I felt when I heard this
declaration. Then in Sakai, while taking leave of Mr. Ito
Ichiro, an old and lifelong friend of mine, who, also,
counted net-fishing among his favorite sports, I
told him all about the burning of Mr. Takabe's nets ;
and he, too, did me the favor of following the example
set by my Tokyo friends. Then I called on Mr.
Watanabe Ichibei at Osaka. He is, as he has always
been, a very wealthy man, now dealing chiefly in stocks
and trade with Korea. His former business was that
of a poultry-man, not in the sense of one who raises
fowls, etc., but of one who keeps an establishment where
people go to have a poulti-y dinner. His business throve
wonderfully ; but I knew that his circumstances were
such that he could well afford to forego such a sinful busi-
ness as one which involved the lives of hundreds of fowls
every day, especially as he had been a zealous believer of
our religion. Several times previously I had written him,
beseeching him to give up his brutal business, and I repeat-
ed the appeal on the occasion of my last visit to him before
my departure for Tibet, when he promised, to my great
gratification, that, as speedily as possible, he would change
his business, though to do so immediately was impractic-
able. I was still more gratified when I learned that
be had proved the genuineness of his promise about
a year and a half after my departure. Ordinarily
' considered, my conduct in exacting these pledges might
4 THEKE YKAES IN TIBKT.
appear somewhat presumptuous ; but it ought to be
remembered that the sick always need a medicine too
strong for a person in normal health, and the two classes
of people must always be treated differently in spiritual
ministration as in corporeal pathology. Be that as it may,
I cannot help thinking of these gifts of effective promises,
as often as I recall my adventures in the Himalayas
and in Tibet, which often brought me to death's door.
I know that the great love of the merciful Buddha
has always protected me in my dangers ; yet, who knows
but that the saving of the lives of hundreds and thousands
of finny and feathered creatures, as the result of these
promises, contributed largely toward my miraculous
escapes.
Farewell visits over, I was ready to start, but for
some money. I had had a small sum of one hundred
yen of my own savings; but this amount was swelled
to 530 yen, by the generosity of Messrs. Watanabe,
Harukawa, and Kitamura of Osaka, Hige, Ito, Noda, and
Yamanaka of Sakai, and others. Of this total, I spent
about one hundred in fitting myself out for a peculiarly
problematical journey, and the very modest . sum of half
a thousand was all I had with me on my departure.
It is curious how little people believe your words,
until you actually begin to carry them out, especially
when your attempt is a venturesome one, and how
they protest, expostulate, and even ridicule you, often
predicting failure behind your back, when they see that
you are not to be dissuaded. And I had the pleasure
of going through these curious experiences ; for many
indeed were those who came to me almost at the last
moment to advise, to ask, to beg me to change my
mind and give up my Tibetan trip, and I could see
that they were all in earnest. For instance, on the very
■ve of my departure, while spending my last night at
NOVEL FAREWELL PKESENTS. 5
Mr. Maki's in Osaka, a certain judge of the Local Court
of Wakayama came on purpose to tell me that I was
bound to end my venture in making myself a laughing-
stock of the world .by meeting death out of fool-hardi-
ness, and that I would do far better by staying at
home and engaging in my ecclesiastical work, a work
which, he sa,id, I had full well qualified myself to
undertake ; to do the latter was especially advisable
for me, because the Buddhist circle of Japan was in
great need of earnest and capable men, and so on.
Seeing that I was not to be moved in my determi-
nation, the judge said : " Suppose you lose your life in
the attempt ? you will not be able to accomplish any-
thing." "But it is just as uncertain whether I die, or
I survive my venture. If I die, well and good; it
will be like the soldier's death in a battle-field, and I
should be gratified to think that I fell in the cause of
my religion," I answered. Then the judge gave me up for
incorrigible and went away, after wishing me farewell
in a substantial manner. That was on the night of
June 24th, 1897. Early on the following morning
I left Osaka, and on the next day I embarked on the
Idzumi-maru at Kobe, seen off by my friends and well-
wishers already mentioned. Among them was Mr. Noda
Giichiro, who told me that he was very glad as well as very
sorry for this departure of mine, and that his words could
not give adequate expression to the feelings uppermost in
his heart. I thought these touching words expressed the
feelings shared by my other friends also.
Hats and handkerchiefs grew smaller and fainter
until they went out of sight, as the good ship Idzumi
steaiped westward. Past Wada promontory, my old
acquaintances, the peaks of Kongo, Shigi and Ikoma,
in turn, disappeared in the rounding sea. In due titoe
Moji was reached and then, out of the Strait of Genkai,
THREE YEABS IN TIBET.
AUTHOR'S DEPARTURE FROM JAPAN.
NOVEL FAEBWELL PBESKNTS. 7
our ship headed direct for Hongkong. At Hongkong,
Mr. Thompson, an Englishman, boarded our ship, and
his advent proved to be a welcome change in the monotony
of the voyage. He said he had lived eighteen years in
Japan, and he spoke Japanese exceedingly well. I found
in him an earnest and enthusiastic Christian ; and, as
ma}' be imagined, he and I came to spend much of our
time in religious controversies, which, as they were carried
on, it may be needless to add, in a most friendly way,
became a source of much pleasure and information, not
only to ourselves, but also to all on board. Another
interesting experience which I went through during the
voyage was when I preached — and I preached quite a
number of times — before the officers and men of the
ship, who proved the most willing and interested audience
I had ever come across.
On the 12th of July, the Idzumi entered the port of
Singapore, and I put up at the Fusokwan Hotel there. On
the 15th, I called at the Japanese Consulate in the port,
and saw Mr. Fujita Toshiro, our then Consul there.
Mr. Fujita had heard of me from the Idzumi's captain,
and he said to me : " I hear you are going to Tibet.
I do not know how you have got your venture mapped
out, but I know it is a very difficult thing to reach
and enter that country. Even Col. Fukushima (now
Lieutenant-General, of trans-Siberian fame) made a halt
at Darjeeling, and had to retrace his steps thence,
, acknowledging practically the impossibility of a Tibetan
exploration, and I cannot see how you can fare better.
But if you must, I think there are only two ways of
■ accomplishing your purpose: namely, to force your way
by the sheer force of arms at the head of an expedition,
for one; and to go as a beggar, for the other. May I ask
you about your programme?" I answered Mr. Fujita to the
effect that being a Buddhist priest, as I was, the first
THEBE YEAKS IN TIBET.
of the methods he had mentioned was out of the
question for me, and that my idea at the time was
to follow the second course ; although I was far from
having anything like a definite programme of my
journey. I told him, further, that I intended to wander on
as the course of events might lead me. I left the
Consul in a very meditative mood.
I stayed a week in Pusokwan, and it was on the
last day but one before leaving it that I narrowly
escaped a serious, even mortal, accident. As a priest,
I made it, as I make it now, my practice to do preaching
whenever and wherever an opportunity presented itself,
and my rigid adherence to this practice greatly pleased the
proprietor of that Singapore establishment. In consequence
of this, I was treated with special regard while there,
and every day, when the bath was ready, I was the first
to be asked to have the warm water ablution, which is
always so welcome to a Japanese. On the 18th, the usual
invitation was extended to me, but I was just at that
moment engaged in reading the Text, and could not
comply with it at once. The invitation was repeated
a second time, but, somehow or other, I was not ready
to take my bath, and remained in my room. Meanwhile, I
heard a great noise, with a thud that shook the whole
building. A few moments later, I ascertained that the
sound and quaking were caused by the collapse and
fall of the bath-room from the second floor, where it
had been situated, to the ground below, with its bath
basin, and all the other contents, among which the
most important and unfortunate was a Japanese lady,
who, as I had been neglectful in accepting the invitation,
was asked to have her bath first. The lady was, as
I afterward learned, very dangerously hurt, buried, as
she was, under debris of falling stones, bricks and
timber, and she was taken to a local hospital, where she
NOVEL FAREWELL PRESENTS. '9
lay with very little hope of recovery. I often shudder
to think of what would have become of me and of my
Tibetan adventure^ had I been more prompt, as I had
always been till then, in responding to all invitations,
of the kind. I felt exceedingly sorry for the lady, who
met the awful accident practically in my stead ; withal
I look back to the incident as one that augured well for
my Tibetan undertaking, which, indeed, ended in success.
The day after the accident, on the 19th of July, I
took passage on an English steamer, the Lightning, which,
after calling at Penang, brought me to Calcutta on the
25th of the month. Placing myself under the care of the
Mahabodhi Society of Calcutta, I spent several days in that
city, in the course of which I learned from Mr. Chandra
Bose, a Secretary of the Society, that I could not do better
for my purpose than to go to Darjeeling, and make myself
a pupil of Rai Bahadur Sarat Chandra Das, who, as I was
told, had some time before ^pent several months in Tibet,
and was then compiling a Tibetan-English dictionary at his
country house in Darjeeling. Mr. Chandra Bose was good
enough to write a letter of introduction to the scholar at
Darjeeling in my favor, and, with it and also with kind
parting wishes of my countrymen in the city and others,
I left Calcutta on August 2nd, by rail. Heading north, the
train in almost no time brought its passengers to the
river Ganga. We crossed the mighty stream in a steamer,
and then boarded another train on the other side.
Heading north still, the train now passed through cocoa-
nut groves and green paddy-fields, over which, as night
came on, giant fire-flies, the like of which in size are not
to be found in Japan, flew about in immense swarms.
The sight was especially interesting after the moon had
disappeared. The following morning, that is, on the 3rd
of August, the train pulled up at Siligree Station, and
there its passengers, including myself, were transferred to
2
10 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
a train of small mountaineering oars, which, faring ever
northward, forthwith began its tortuous ascent of the
Himalayas, or rather, of the outer skirt of the mighty range.
With its bends and turns and climbings, as the train labored
onward and upward through the famous " dalai-jungle,"
it looked like some amphibian monster on its war
path, as I fancied, while the grind of the car wheels,
with its sound echoed and re-echoed, seemed to spread
quaking terror over peaks and dales. By 3 p. m., the
train had made a climb of fifty miles and then landed us
at Darjeeling, which place is 380 miles distant from
Calcutta. At the station I hired a danlee, which is a sort
of mountaineering palanquin, and, borne in it, I soon after-
ward arrived at Rai Sarat's retreat, Lhasa Villa, which I
found to be a magnificent mansion.
RAI BAHADUR SARAT CHANDRA DAS, C I.E.
CHAPTER II.
A year in Darjeeljng.
It was just after the great earthquake m AssatUj India,
that I arrived in Darjeeling, and, as I could see from a
large number of entirely collapsed and partly destroyed
houses, this latter place also had had its share of the
seismic disturbances. As for the Sarat Villa, it too had
sufEered more or less, and repair was already in progress.
For all that, I was received there with a whole-hearted
welfcome. An evening's talk was sufficient, however, to
make my intentions clear to my kind host, and, as my time
was precious, Rai Sarat took me out, the very next day
after my arrival, to a temple called Ghoompahl, where I was
introduced to an aged Mongolian priest, who lived there
and was renowned for his scholarly attainments and also
as a teacher of the Tibetan language. The priest was then
seventy-eight years of age, and his name, which was Serab
Gryaratso (Ocean of Knowledge), happened by a curious co-
incidence to mean in the Tibetan tongue the same thing as
my own name Bkai meant. This discovery, at our first
meeting, greatly pleased my Tibetan tutor, as the old priest
was thenceforth to be. Our talk naturally devolved upon
Buddhism, but the conversation proved to be a rather awk-
ward affair, for though Rai Sarat kindly acted the part of an
interpreter for us, it had to be carried on, on my part, in
very rudimentary English. As it was, the first day of my
tutelage ended in my making the acquaintance of the Tibetan
alphabet, and from that time onward, I became a regular
attendant at the temple, daily walking three miles from
and back to the Sarat mansion. One day, about a month
after this, Rai Sarat had me in his room and spoke to me
thus : " Well, Mr. Kawaguchi, I would advise you to give
12 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
up your intention of going to Tibet. It is a very risky
undertaking, which it would be worth risking if there
were any chance of accomplishing it; but chances are
almost entirely against you. You can acquire all the
knowledge of the Tibetan language you want, here, and
you can go back to Japan, where you will be respected as
a Tibetan scholar." I told my host that my purpose was
not only to learn the Tibetan language, but that it was to
complete my studies in Buddhism. " That may be," said
my host, " and a very important thing it no doubt is
with you; but what is the use of attempting a thing
when there is no hope of accomplishing it ? If you
go into Tibet, the only thing you can count upon is
that you will be killed !" I retorted : "Have you not been
there yourself ? I do not see why I cannot do the same
thing." Rai Sarat's rejoinder was : " Ah ! That is just
where j'ou are mistaken ; you must know that the times
are diiferent, Mr. Kawaguchi. The ' closed door' policy
is in full operation, and is being carried out with the
most jealous strictness in Tibet to-day, and I know that
I will never be able again to undertake another trip
into that country. Besides, when I made my trip, I
had with me an excellent pass, which I was fortunate
to secure through certain means, but there is no means,
nor even hope, any longer of procuring such a pass.
Under the circumstances I should think it is to your own
interest to go home from here, after you have completed
the study of the Tibetan language." I knew that my
good host meant all that he said ; but I could not allow
myself to be prevailed upon. Instead, I utilised the
occasion in telling him that further tutelage under Lama
Serab was not to my mind, because the aged priest
was more anxious to teach me the Tibetan Buddhism
than the Tibetan language. I asked Rai Sarat to kindly
devise for me some way, by which I might acquire
A YEAE IN DARJEELING. 13
the vernacular Tibetan language. Finding me resolute in
my purpose, Rai Sarat, with his unswerving kindness,
cheerfully agreed to my request, and arranged for
me that I should have a new private teacher, besides
a regular schooling. It was in this way. Just below
Rai Sarat's mansion was a residence which consisted
of two small but pretty buildings. The residence be-
longed to a Lama called Shabdung, who just then
happened not to live there, but in a house in the
business quarters of Darjeeling. Rai Sarat sent for this
I jama and asked him to teach the " Japan Lama" the
Tibetan language, the Lama returning to his residence
just mentioned with his entire household. Lama Shabdung
was only too pleased to do as was requested, and I was
forthwith installed a member of his household, that
I might have ample opportunity of learning the popular
Tibetan language. On the other hand, I at the
same time matriculated into the Government School
of Darjeeling, and was there given systematic lessons
in the same language by Prof. Tumi Onden, the Head
Teacher of the language department of Tibetans in that
School. I should not forget to mention here that, while I
paid out of my own pocket all the tuition fees and school
expenses, as it was quite proper that I should, I was made
a beneficiary of my friend Rai Sarat so far as my board
was concerned, that good in an insisting that to do a little
kindness in favor of such a " pure and noble-hearted man
as you are" — as he said — was to increase his own
happiness. Not too well slocked with the wherewithal
as I was, I gratefully allowed myself to be prevailed upon
to accept his generosity. Indeed, I had only three hundred
yen with me when I arrived at Darjeeling; but, as it was,
that amount supported me for the seventeen months of my
stay there. Had I had to pay my own board, I would have
had to cut down my stay there to half the length of time.
14 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
At Lama Sliabdung's I lived as though back in my boy-
hood, attending the school in the morning, and doing my
lessons at home in the company of the children of the
family in the afternoon. It is a well known thing that the
best way to learn a foreign language is to live among the
people who speak it, but a discovery — as it was to me — that
I made while at Shabdung'a was that the best teachers of
everyday language are children. As a foreigner you ask
them to teach you their language; and you find that, led
on by their instinctive curiosity and kindness, not unming-
lud with a sense of pride, they are always the most anxious
and untiring teachers, and also that in their innocence they
are the most exacting and intolerant teachers, as they
will brook no mis-pronunciation or mis-accent, even
the slightest errors. Next to children, women are, I think,
the best language teachers. At least such are the con-
clusions I arrived at from the experiences of my ' school-
ing days ' in Darjeeling. For in six or seven months
after my instalment in the Shabdung household, I had
.become able to carry on all ordinary conversation in
the Tibetan tongue, with more ease than in my English of
two years' hard learning, and I regard Tibetan as a
more difficult language than English. True, I made
myself a most willing and zealous pupil all through the
tutelage ; withal, I consider the progress I made in
that short space of time as quite remarkable, and that
progress was the gift of my female and juvenile teachers in
the Shabdung family. The more progress I made in my
linguistic acquirement, the more eager student I became
in things Tibetan, and I found in my host a truly
charming conversationalist, himself fond of talking.
Evening after evening I sat, an absorbed listener to Lama
Shabdung's flowing and inexhaustible store of narratives
about Tibet.
LAMA SENGCHEN DORJECHAN.
CHAPTER III.
A foretaste of Tibetan barbarism.
To give one of Lama Sliabdung's favourite recitals
about Tibet : my host, while there^ studied Buddhism
under a high Lama of great virtues and the most pro-
found learning, called Sengchen Dorjechan (Great-Lion
Diamond-Treasury), who had been the tutor of the
Secondary or Deputy Pope, so to say, of Tibet. No man in
Tibet was held in higher esteem and deeper reverence
than this holy man. It was this holy man himself who
taught my friend and benefactor Rai Sarat, when he was
in Tibet. Though Eai Sarat's pupilage under the high
Lama lasted O' ly for a short time, it had the most tragical
consequences. For, after his return to India, the Tibetan
Government discovered to its own mortification that Rai
Sarat was an emissary of the British Government, and
the parties who had become in any way connected with
his visit, more particularly the man who had secretly
furnished him with a pass, another in whose house he
had lodged and boarded, and the high Lama, were all
thrown into prison, the last named having afterward
had to pay with his life for his innocent crime.
Many are the reminiscences of this holy Lama, which
show that he was indeed a person very firm and
enlightened in the Buddhist faith, and to that degree
was the most lovable and adorable of men. But
more especially affecting, even sublimely beautiful, are
the episodes immediately preceding and surrounding his
death, for the truth of which I depend not on the nar-
rative of Lama Shabdung alone, but largely also upon
what I was able to learn from persons of unquestionable
reliability, during my disguised stay in the capital of
16 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
Tibet. To mention a few of these : when an unpleasant
rumor had just begun to be circulated, soon after
Rai . Sarat's departure from Tibet, about his secret
mission, the high Lama Sengchen knew at once that
death was at his door, but was not afraid. For, when it
was hinted at by his friends that- he would become in-
volved in a serious predicament, owing to his acquaintance
with Rai Sarat, he replied that he had always consider-
ed it his heaven-ordained work to try to propagate and
to perpetuate Buddhism, not among his own countrymen
only, but among the whole human race ; that whether
or not Sarat Chandra Das was a man who had entered
Tibet with the object of " stealing away Buddhism," or
to play the part of a spy, was not his concern — the
question had in any case never occurred to him — and
that if he were to suffer death for having done what he
had regarded it as his duty to do, he could not help it.
That this holy Lama was an advocate of active propa-
gandism may be gathered from the fact that, besides
sending various Buddhistic images and ritualistic uten-
sils to India,, he had caused several persons to go out
there as missionaries, my teacher, the Manchurian Lama
Serab Gyamtso, in the Ghoompahl Temple of Darjeeling,
being one of these. Unfortunately, this undertaking did
not prove a success, but none the less it shows the lofty
aspirations which actuated the high Lama, who, as I was
told, had deeply lamented the decadence, or rather the
almost entire disappearance, of Buddhism in the land of
its origin, and was sincerely anxious to revive it there.
It is nothing uncommon in Japan to meet with Buddhist
priests interested in the work or idea of foreign propa-
gandism ; but a person so minded is an extreme rarity in
that hermit-country Tibet, and that Lama Sengchen was
such a one indicates the greatness of his character, and
that he was a man above sectarian differences and inter-
A FORETASTE OP TIBETAN BARBARISM. 17
national prejudices, solely given to the noble idea, of.
universal brotherhood under Buddhism. Being the man
he was, he had many enemies among the high officials of
the hierarchical Government, who were in constant
watch for an opportunity to bring about his downfall.
To these, his enemies, the rumor about Prof. Sarat was
a welcome one, which they lost no time in turning to
account. In all haste they despatched men to Darjeelirig,
and ascertained that, in truth, Rai Sarat had smuggled
himself into and out of Tibet, and that, as the fact
was, he had done so at the request of the British
Government of India. Then followed the incarceration,
already mentioned, of all those who had had anything to
do with Rai Sarat, the final upshot of which was
sentence of death upon the high Lama Sengchen Dorjechan;
on the ground that the latter had harbored in his
temple, and divulged national secrets to, a foreign
emissary. The holy man's execution was carried out
on a certain day of June, 1887, and took the form of
sinking him till he became drowned in the river
Konbo, which is a local name given to the great
Brahmaputra. As I recall the scene of that occasion, as
I heard it described, I see before my eyes the tear-
drenched face of my friend Lama Shabdung, who,
struggling with emotion, would often tell me what he
witnessed on that day. Surrounded by an immense
crowd of sympathising and sobbing people, the noble
Lama was found seated, and reading the sacred Text,
on a large piece of rock overhanging a side of the
river, as the hour of his execution approached. He
was clothed in a coarse white fabric, and looked
serenely calm and perfectly composed, as he gave an
order to his executioners in these words: "When, in
a little while, I have finished reading the holy Text,
I will shake this my finger three times thus, and that
3
18
THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
^\
NAv\
THE LAMA'S EXECUTION.
A FORETASTE OF TIBETAN BAEBAKISM. 19
will be the signal for you to sink me in the river."
The instruction was in response to a question, if .the
high Lama wanted to say or have done anything ere
his execution, asked by one of the executioners, who
was already tying around the holy man's body one
end of a thick rope, with which he was to be lowered
under the water. In the meantime, the suspense grew
intense and the great multitude that had gathered
around had become blind to everything but the mighty,
cruel waters of the Brahmaputra, the executioners,
and the holy priest, and deaf to all but their own
sobbings and wailings. They saw before them a man
of their hearts, of national esteem, profound in learning
and saintly in behavior, who, as a priest of the
highest order, should wear three layers of red and yellow
silk, but who was wrapped in an unclean prison-suit of
white, and was now to die a victim to his enemies'
malice. They knew all was not right, but they knew
not how to undo the wrong, and they appealed to their
own tears. As it happened, the day had been cloudy,
and rain had even begun to come down in drops as
the high Lama raised one of his hands, the purpose
of which act was all too evident, and lamentation
became loud and universal. Once, twice, and three
times the noble prisoner had shaken his finger, but
none of the executioners dared . to come forward —
they were in tears themselves. Then the high Lama
said : " My time is come : what are ye doing ? Speed
me under water." Thereupon, with heavy hands and
heavier hearts the executioners, after having weighted
the high Lama's loins with a large stone, slowly
lowered the whole burden into the rushing waters of
the Brahmaputra. After a while they pulled up what
they expected to have become the remains of the saintly
man, but finding that life had not yet departed, they
2G THKEE YEARS IN TIBET.
again went through the drowning process. "When for
a second time they raised the body, they found life
still lingering in it. The multitude, which saw how
things went, became clamorous in their demand that
the holy man be now saved ; while the executioners
themselves seemed unnerved and unable to go to their
cruel duty a third time. As the moments of indecision
sped by, the high Lama, most wonderful to tell,
recovered sufficient strength to speak, and say : " Lament
ye not my death. For my phase of activity having
come to an end, I now depart with gratification, and that
means that my evil past ceases, so that my good future
may begin — it is not ye that kill me. All that I wish
for, after my death, is a greater and ever-growing
prosperity for Buddhism in Tibet. Now make ye haste,
and sink me under the water." Thus urged, the
executioners, sorrow-ridden, obeyed the order, and they
saw that life, in sooth, had departed at the third raising
of the body. Then, as the custom is in Tibet, they
severed all the limbs from the high Lama's remains,
and threw the different parts separately into the stream
thus ending the grim business of execution. It will
be admitted by all, especially by all Buddhists, that
there was something loftily admirable in the personality
of a man who had done and given his all for his faith
and religion, and yet uttered not a word of complaint
against Providence or man, but, in serene, noble
meekness, met his most unmerited and most agonising
death. As for me, besides finding it most affecting,
I felt a peculiarly direct interest in the story of
this high Lama's execution, from the moment when
I was told of it for the first time. For, was I not on
my way to Tibet? Should I succeed in my purpose?
Who could tell but that there might be a repetition
of that sad and cruel scene ?
CHAPTER IV.
Laying a false scent.
I rose early on the New Year's day of 1898, and
spent the greater part of the morning, as was usual
with me, in reading the sacred Text in honor of the
day, and also in praying for the health and long life
of their Majesties the Emperor and the Empress, and
his Highness, the Crown Prince, and for the prosperity
of Japan. The New Year's uta''- which I composed on
the occasion wa;s as follows :
In glory yonder, lo ! the New Year's Sun,
His coruscating grateful beams forthslioots,
Diffusing lucid roses on the snows
That flash in dazzling spangles bright and clear j
That Sua, the symbol on the Japan-flag
My fancy lights with patriotic thrills.
I spent the twelve months following in closely
devoting myself to the study, and in efforts at the practical
mastery, of the Tibetan tongue, with the result that,
toward the close of the year, I had become fairly
confident of my own proficiency in the use of the'
language both in its literary and vernacular forms ;
and I made up my mind to start for my destination
with the coming of the year 1899. Then, it became a
momentous question for me to decide upon the route
to take in entering Tibet.
Besides the secret path, the Khambu-Eong, i. e.,
' Peach Valley ' pass, there are three highways which one
may choose in reaching Tibet from Darjeeling. These
are : first, the main road, which turns north-east
directly after leaving Darjeeling and runs through
Nyatong ; second, that which traverses the western
1 The word uta in Japanese means a short epigrammatic poem, ex-
pressed tersely, and inspired .by some special occasion.
22 THKEE YEAKS IN TIBET.
slope of Kanchenjunga, the second highest snow-capped
peaks in the Range and brings the traveller to Warong, a
village on the frontier of Tibet; and the third, which takes
one direct from Sikkim through Khainpa- Jong to Lhasa.
As, however, each of these roads is jealously guarded either
with a fortified gate or some. sentinels, at its Tibetan
terminus, it is a matter of practical impossibility for a
foreigner to gain admittance into the hermit-country by
going along any of them. Rai Sarat was of opinion that,
if I were to present myself at the Nyatong gate, tell
the guards there that I was a Japanese priest who wished
to visit their country for the sole purpose of studying
Buddhism, I might possibly be allowed to pass in, provid-
ed that I was courteously persistent in my solicitations ;
but I had reasons for thinking little of this suggestion. At
all events, what I had learned from my Tibetan tutors did
not sustain my friend's view ; instead, however, my own
information led me to a belief that a road to suit my
purpose could be found by proceeding through either
the Kingdom of Bhiitan or of Nepal. It appeared to
me, further, that the route most advantageous to me
would be by way of Nepal ; for Bhiitan had never been
visited by the Buddha, and there was there little to
learn for me in that connexion, though that country
had at one time or another been travelled over by
Tibetan priests of great renown; but the latter fact
had nothing of importance for me. I had been told,
however, that Nepal abounded in the Buddha's foot-
steps, and that there was in existence there complete
sets of the Buddhist Texts in Samskrt. These were
inducements which I could turn to account, in the case of
failure to enter Tibet. Moreover, no Japanese had
ever been in Nepal before me, though it had been visited
by some Europeans and Americans. So I decided on a
route viil Nepal.
LAYING A FALSE SCENT. 23
The decision made, it would have been all I could
wish for, if it were possible for me to journey to Nepal
direct from Darjeeling ; there was on the way grand
and picturesque scenery incidentally to enjoy, besides
places sacred to Buddhist pilgrims. But to do so was
not possible for me, or at least implied serious dangers.
For most of the Tibetans living in Darjeeling — and
there were quite a number of them there — knew that
I was learning their language with the intention of
some day visiting their country; and it was perfectly
manifest that the moment I left that town with my
face towards Tibet, they, or some of them at the least,
would come after me as far as some point where they
might make short work of me, or follow me into
Tibet and there betray me to the authorities, for they
would be richly rewarded for so doing. To meet the
necessity of the case, I gave it out that, owing to an
unexpected occurrence, I was obliged to go home at
once, and I left Darjeeling for Calcutta, which place I
reached on the 5th of January, 1899. I, of course, let
Rai Sarat into my secret, and he alone knew that
the day I left Darjeeling I started on my Tibetan journey
in real earnest, though back to Calcutta I took fare in
sooth. On leaving Darjeeling, my good host Rai Sarat
Chandra earnestly wished me complete success in my
travels to Tibet, and gave vent to his hearty and sincere
pleasure in finding in me one, who, as bold and adventurous
as himself, was starting on a perilous but interesting
expedition to that hitherto unknown country. Previous
to my departure from Darjeeling, I received there 630
Riipees, which had been collected and forwarded to me
through the kind and never-failing efforts of my friends at
home, Messrs. Hige, Ito, Watanabe and others.
24 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
Now over trackless snowy range I wend
My lonely way to ' Bhota,' ' elsewhere named
Tibet, where Dharma's glorious Sun pours forth
His Light and melts the cheerless snows of Doubt
And Pain and Sorrow, vexing mortal men.
1 Bhota is the name by which Tibet is known In Samskri.
(#r
/ T,
y.^mm!^M'..j.''i
— !c*sjaf^?j-EL.^ _^,
THE AUTHOR MEDITATING UNDER THE BODHI-TREE.
CHAPTER V-
Journey to Nepal.
During my second and short stay in Calcutta I had
the good luck of being introduced to a Nepalese named
Jibbahadur, who was then a Secretary of the Nepal Govern-
ment, but who is now the Minister Resident of that
country in Tibet. He was kind enough to write two
letters introducing me to a certain gentleman of influence
in Nepal.
On the 20th of January, 1899, I came to the famous
Buddhagaya, sacred to Holy Shakyamuni Buddha, and
there met Mr. Dharmapala of Ceylon, who happened to be
there on a visit. I had a very interesting conversation
with him. On learning that I was on my way to Tibet,
he asked ine to do him the favor of taking some presents
for him to the Dalai Lama. The presents consisted of a
small relic of the Buddha, enclosed in a silver casket
whidh was in the form of a miniature pagoda, and a,
volume of the sacred Text written on palm leaves.
I, of course, willingly complied with the request of the
Sinhalese gentleman, who expressed hiriiself as being very
anxious to visit Tibet, but thought it useless to attempt a-
trip thither, unless he were invited to do so. The night of
that day I spent meditating on the ' Diamond Seat' under
the Bodhi-tree — the very tree under which, and the very
gtoiie on which, about two thousand five hundred years ago,'
the holy Buddha sat and reached Buddhahood. The feeling.
I then experienced is indescribable : all I can say is that I sat
the night out in the most serene and peaceful extasy. I saw
the tell-tale moon lodged, as it were, among the brianche's
of the Bodhi-tree, shedding its pale light on the ' Diamond'
26 THEEB YEARS IN TIBET.
Seat/ and the scene was superbly picturesque, and also
hallowing, when I thought of the days and nights the
Buddha spent in holy meditation, at that very spot.
Whilst seated on the Diamond Seat, absorbed
In thoughtful meditation full and deep
The lunar orb, suspended o'er the tree —
The Sacred Bodhi tree — shines in the sky.
I wait with longing for the morning star
To rise, the witness of that moment high
When His Illumination gained the Lord
The Perfect Buddha, Perfect Teacher Great.
After a few days; stay in Buddhagaya, I took the railway-
train for Nepal, and a ride of a day and a night brought
me to Sagauli, on the morning of January 23. Sagauli is
a station at a distance of two days' journey from the
Nepfilese border. Here one boundary of the linguistic terri-
tory of English was reached, and beyond neither that
language nor the Tibetan tongue was of any use —
one had to speak either Hindustani or Nepalese to
be understood, and I knew neither. So it became a
necessary part of my Tibetan adventure to stop a
while at Sagauli, and make myself master of working
Nepalese. . It was like forging the chain after catching
a ci'iminal. But up to then, my time had been
all taken up in learning Tibetan, and I had had no
moment to spare for anything else. By good fortune,
however, my stay there was not to be a long one. I
found the postmaster of Sagauli, a Bengali, to be proficient
both in English and Nepalese. As the thing had to
be done in the most expeditious way possible, I started
my work by noting down every Nepalese word the .
postmaster would teach me. The next day after my
arrival at Sagauli, while I was out on a walk near the
station with my note-book in hand, I noticed, among
those who got off a train, a company of three men,
one of whom was a gentleman, apparently of forty
JOURNEY TO NfiPAL. 2^
years of age and dressed in a Tibetan costume, another
a priest about fifty years old, and the third unmistakably
their servant. Thereupon a thought flashed on me
that it would be a good thing for me if I could travel
with these Tibetans, as I took them to bo, and I
immediately made bold to go up to them and ask
whither they were going. I was told that their
destination was Nepal ; that they had not just then come
from Tibet, but that one of them was a Tibetan.
It tken became their turn to question me, their opening
enquiry being as to what country I belonged. I
replied that I was a Chinese. " Which direction did
you come from then ? — did you travel by land or by sea ? "
was the rejoinder sharply put to me next. That
was a question I had to answer with caution. For the
rule then in force in Tibet was to admit into that country
no Chinaman coming by the sea. So I answered :
" By land." As we conversed, so we walked, and
presently we came in front of where I was lodging.
In that part of the world there is no such smart thing as
a hotel or an inn ; all the accommodation one can get in
this respect is a shanty of a rather primitive type,
with bambo.o posts and a straw roof. There are a number
of these siinple structures there, standing on the roadside
and intended only for travellers, who have, however,
nothing to pay for lodging in them — they only pay the
price of eatables and fuel, should they procure any. It
was in one of these shanties that I was stopping, and
when I excused myself from the company of my newly
made acquaintances, the latter betook themselves into
another on the opposite side of the street. After a while
the gentleman and the priest came out of their shanty
and called on me, evidently bent on finding out who, or
rather what, I was. For the first question with which they
challenged me was, to what part of China I belonged.
28 Three years lir tiBeT.
" To Fooshee," I replied, realising full well that I was
to go through the ordeal of an inquisition. "You speak
Chinese, of course 1" then asked the gentleman. My
reply in the affirmative caused him at once to talk to me
in - quite fluent Chinese, which put me in no little
consternation in secret. Compelled by necessity, I
ventured calmly : "You must be talkinginthe official Peking
dialect, while I can talk only in the common Fooshee tongue,
and I do not understand you at all." He was not to let
me off yet. Says he next : " You can write in Chinese,
T suppose." Yes, I could, and I wrote. Some of my
characters were intelligible enough to my guests, and
some not, and after all it was agreed that it was best
to confine ourselves to Tibetan. As our conversation
progressed, my principal guest came to the crucial part
of the inquisition and asked :, " You say you have come
from the landward side : well, from what part of Tibet have
you come ? " " In sooth, from Lhasa, sir ; I have been on
a pilgrimage through Darjeeling to Buddhagaya, and from
thence here," I replied. I was requested to say, then,
in what part of the city of Lhasa I lived. Being in-
formed that I was in the grand Sera monastery, he
wanted to know if I was acquainted with an old priest
who was the Tatsang Kenpo (grand teacher) of that
institution. I was bold enough to say that I was not a
perfect stranger to the priest in question, and made a
right good use of what I had learned from Lama Shab-
dung at Darjeeling. So far I managed to keep up my
disguise, but each moment that passed only added to my
fear of being trapped, and compelled to give myself away.
To avoid this danger, I felt it important to head off
my inquisitorial visitors by dispelling their suspicion, if
they entertained any, about me. I was remarkably
successful in this, the information obtained from Lama
Shabdung again doing me excellent service. For, when
JOURNEY TO NEPAL. 29
I told my guestSj in a most knowing way, all about Shabbe
Shata's intrigue against the Tangye-lingj which was
designed to increase his own power, and the secret of
which affair was not then generally kriown, the recital
seemed to make a great impression on them, and to have
had the effect of convincing them tha.t I was the person
I pretended to be. So my ordeal was at an "end; but
there was yet in store for me the most unexpected
discovery I was to make about these men.
No longer curious as to my antecedents, my gentleman
guest now asked me : " You say you are going to Nepal:
may I ask you who is the person you are directed to,
and if you have ever been in that country ?" I had never
been there before, but I had a letter of introduction with
me. From whom, to whom, could that be ? The letters, I
said — for I had had two given me — -were written in favor
of me by Mr. Jibbahadur, an official of the Nepalese
Government, then residing in Calcutta, and addressed to
the Lama of the Great Tower of Mahabodha in Nepal,
whose name, though I just happened to forget it, was on
the letters. This piece of information seemed greatly to
interest the gentleman, who could not help saying : " Why^
that is strange ! Mr. Jibbahadur is a friend of mine^
I wonder who can be the person to whom the letters are
addressed; will you permit me to look at them ? " And the
climax came when I, in all willingness, took out the letters
and showed them to my guest, for he ejaculated : " Well,
whoever would have thought it ? These are for me ! "
I may here observe that in Nepal, as I found out
afterwards, the word fi-iend conveys, a much deeper
meaning, probably, than in any- other country. To be a
friend there means practically the same thing as being
a brother, and the natives have a curious custom of
observing a special ceremony when any two of them tie
the knot of friendship between them. The ceremony
30 THEEB YEARS IN TIBET.
resembles very much that of marriage, and its celebra-
tion is made an occasion for a great festival, in
which the relatives and connexions of the parties
concerned take part. To be brief, the ceremony generally
takes the form of exchanging glasses of the native drink
between the mutually chosen two, and they each have to
extend their liberalities even to their servants in honor
of the occasion. It is only after the observance of these
formalities — which signify a great deal to the natives —
that any two Nepalese may each call themselves the
friend of the other.
It so happened that my erstwhile inquisitor proved to
be the official owner and Lama-Superior of the Great
Tower above mentioned, who stood in the relationship of
a ' friend ' to Mr. Jibbahadur. It was most unexpected,
but the discovery was none the less welcome to me, and I
besought him to take me, henceforth, under his care and
protection. Thus I came to be no longer a stranger and a
solitary pilgrim, but a guest, a companion, to a high
personage of Nepal. My newly acquired friend, as I
should call the Lama in our language, proposed that we
should start for Nepal the next morning. This proposal was
agreeable to me, as was another that we should go
afoot instead of on horse-back, so that we might the
better enjoy each other's company, and perchance, also,
the grand scenery on the way. I say that all this was
agreeable to me, because, in addition to the obvious benefit
I was sure to derive from being in the company of these
men, I entertained a secret hope that I might learn a
great deal, which would help me in executing the main
part of my adventures, yet to come.
While our talk was progressing in this fashion, two
servants of the Lama's came in, running and all pale,
with the unwelcome piece of news that a thief had
broken into their shed. This caused my callers to take
JOUENEY TO NEPAL. 31
precipitate leave of me. I afterwards learned that
the Lamas had had three hundred and fifty rupees in
cash, and some books and clothes, stolen between them.
I was in luck on that occasion, for the owner of my
shed told me subsequently that the thief, who caused
such a loss to the Lamas, had been on the look-out for a
chance to loot my lodging, and, as it happened, he finally
made my newly made friends suffer for me ; I felt
exceedingly sorry for them.
In the meantime I learned that the gentleman Lama's
name was Buddha Vajra (Enlightened Diamond), and that
the old priest, whose name was Mayar, and who was full
of jokes, was a Doctor of Divinity of the Debon monastery
in Lhasa.
Early on the 25th of January we started on our journey,
and proceeded due north across the plain in which Sagauli
stands. The next day we arrived at a place called
Beelganji, where stood the first guarded gate of the
Nepalese frontier. There I was given a pass, as for a
Chinaman living in Tibet. We passed the night of the
following day in a village situated a little way this
side of the famous Dalai Jungle, which may be regarded
as an entrance to the great Himalayas. On the 28th we
proceeded past Simla, a village at the outer edge of the
great jungle, and thence, straight across the jungle itself,
which has a width of full eight miles, until we came to a
village on the bank of a mountain stream called Bichagori,
where we took up our lodgings for the night. About
ten o'clock that night, while writing up my diary, I hap-
pened to look out of the window of my shanty. The moon
in her pale splendor was shining brightly over the great
jungle, and there was something indescribably weird in
the scene, whose silence was broken only by a rushing
stream. Suddenly I then heard a detonation, tremendous
in its volume and depth, which, as I felt, almost shook
32
THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
ON THE BANKS OF THE BICHAGORI RIVER.
JOURNEY TO NEPAL. 33
the ground. In reply to my query, I was told by our
innkeeper that the sound came from a tiger, which
evidently had just finished a fine repast on its victim,
and, having come to have a draught of river-water, could
not help giving vent to its sense of enjoyment. So an
uta came to me :
The night sleeps still and calm,
the moon shines bright,
What ho ! — so loud a roar
the stillness breaks.
Vibrating — ah ! It is a tiger fierce !
In ripples rough his roar terrific throws
The surface even of the mountain stream.
For two days more the road lay now through a dale
on the bank of a river, then across a deep forest, and
over a mountain, until we reached a stage station called
Binbit. So far the road was up a slow, gradual incline,
and horse-carriages and bullock-carts could be driven over
itj but now the ascent became so steep that it could be
made only on foot, or in a mountain-palanquin. We went
on foot, commencing our climb as early as four o'clock in
the morning. After an ascent of something more than
three and a half miles, we came to a guarded gate named
Tispance. Here was a custom-house and a fortress,
garrisoned by quite a number of soldiers, and we had to
go through an examination. Thence we climbed a peak
called Tisgari, from the top of which I, for the first time,
beheld with wonder the sublime sight of the mighty
Himalayas, shining majestically with their snow of ages.
The grandeur of the scene was so utterly beyond
imagination, that the memory of what I had seen at
Darjeeling and Tiger Hill came back to me only as a faint
vision. Down Tisgari we came to Marku station, where
we took lodging for the night.
Early on the 1st of February, we climbed up the peak
Chandra Giri, or Moon Peak, whose sides are covered
5
34 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
with the flowers of the rhododendron^ the chief charac-
teristic of the Himalayan Range. Thence I saw again
the snow-covered range of Himalaya, ever grand and
majestic Just a little way down from the top of the p6ak,
I saw, spread before me like a picture, Katmandu the
capital of Nepal and the country around. I saw also in that
panorama two gilded towers rising conspicuously against
the sky, and Lama Buddha Yajra told me that one of
them was the tomb of Kasyapa Buddha, and the other that
of Sikhi Buddha. On coining down the steep slope of the
hill, we were met bj' four or five men with two horses.
'J'hey were men sent thither in advance to wait for the
return of Buddha Vajra, and I was given one of the
horses, while my host took the other. We were met
by about thirty more men on entering a village, not
faf from the foot of the hill. The distance from Sagauli
railway station to this spot is roughly one hundred and
twenty-five miles.
CHAPTEE VI.
1 befriend Beggars.
The village that surrounds the great Kasyapa tower
is generally known by the name of Boddha. Lama Buddha
Vajr'a, I found, was the Headman of that village as
well as the Superior of that mausoleum tower, which in
Tibetan is called Yambu Qhorten Chenpo. Yamhu is
the general name by which Katmandu is known in Tibet;
and Chorten Chenpo means great tower. The real name
of the tower in full is, however, Ja Rung Kashol Cliorten
Chenpo,, which may be translated into: " Have finished
giving order to proceed with." The tower has an
interesting history of its own, which explains this strange
name. It is said in this history that Kasyapa was a Buddha
that lived a long time before Shakyamuni Buddha. After
Kasyapa Buddha's demise, a certain old woman, with
her four sons, interred this great sage's remains at the
spot over which the great mound now stands, the latter
having been built by the woman herself. Before starting
on the ,work of construction, she petitioned the King of the
time, and obtained permission to " proceed with" building
a tower. By the time that, as the result of great sacrifices
on the part of the woman and her four sons, the ground-
work of the structure had been finished, those who saw
it were astonished at the greatness . of the scale on, which
it \yas undertaken. Especially was this the , case with
the high officials of the govei-nment and the. rich
men of the country, who all said that if such a poor
old dame were to be allowed to complete building
such a stupendous tower, they themselves would have
to dedicate a temple as great as a mountain, and so they
decided to ask the King to .disallow the further progress
36 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
of the work. When the King was approached on the
matter his Majesty replied : "I have finished giving the
order to the woman to proceed with the work. Kings
mast not eat their words, and I cannot undo my orders
now." So the tower was allowed to be finished, and
hence its unique name, " Ja Rung Kashol Chorten
Chenpo." I rather think, however, that the tower must
have been built after the days of Shakyamuni Buddha,
for the above description from Tibetan books is different
from the records in Samskrt, which are more reliable than
the Tibetan.
Every year, between the middle of September and the
middle of the following February of the lunar calendar,
crowds of visitors from Tibet, Mongolia, China and Nepal
come to this place to pay their respects to the great temple.
The reason why they choose the most apparently unfavor-
able season for their travel thither is because they are
liable to catch malarial fever if they come through the
Himalayan passes during the summer months. By far
the greatest number of the visitors are Tibetans, of
whom, however, only a few are nobles and grandees, the
majority being impecunious pilgrims and beggars, who
eke out their existence by a sort of nomadic life, passing
their winter in the neighborhood of the tower and going
back to Tibet in summer.
In Nepal I had now arrived, and the reason of my
presence there was, of course, to choose a route for my
purpose, for there are many highways and pathways
running between that country and Tibet. My purpose
was such that I could take nobody there into my
confidence, not even my kind and obliging host. For,
to Lama Buddha Yajra I was a well-qualified Chinaman,
who was to go back to Lhasa by openly taking one of the
pubhc roads, and go on thence to China. Besides, I knew
that the Lama was a Tibetan interpreter to His Highness
I BEFRIEND BEGGARS. 37
the King of Nepal, and that were I to divulge to him
my secret, he was in duty bound to tell it to his royal
master, who, it was plain, would not only not lend
himself to my venture, but would at once put an end
to the further progress of my journey. I may note here
that the Nepalese fondly call Lama Buddha Vajra,
Gya Lama, which means " Chinese Lama," for he was
a son born to a Chinese priest who married a Nepalese
lady, after having become the Superior of the tower.
My host's father belonged to the old school, and
enjoyed the privilege of marriage. It was thus that
Lama Buddha Yajra came to take a fancy, and show special
favors, to me, considering me as a countryman of his. Be
that as it may,, there remained for me the necessity of
discovering a secret path to Tibet. I was in luck again.
It occurred to me that the begging Tibetans, who go on
pilgrimage in and out of their country, could not be in
possession of the pass that gave them open passage through
the numerous frontier ga.tes. I remembered also that
no unprivileged person — even the natives — could obtain
permission to pass through these gates, either way, unless
he would bribe the guards heavily, and it was plain
that these homeless wanderers could not do this. En-
couraged by these considerations, I took to befriending
the Tibetan mendicants, of whom there was then a large
number hanging about the Kasyapa Buddha tower, and
my liberality to them soon made me very popular
among them. Demurring at first, they became quite
communicative afterwards, when they had found out, as
I presume, that there was nothing to dread, in me. I
learned of many secret passages, but none which I
could consider safe for me. For instance, they spoke
of the Nyallam bye-path. By taking this clandestine route
one may avoid the Kirong gate, but one is in danger of
being challenged at a gate further in the interior. The
'38 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
Sharkongpo path, on the other hand, brings the traveller
to the Tenri gate. So on with other paths, and it appeared
an impossibility to discover a route which would enable a
person to reach the capital of Tibet from that of Nepal, with-
out having to pass through some challenge gate. The pass
and bribery being beyond them, the native beggars and pil-
grims have one more resource left to them, and that is
imploring a passage, with prayer and supplication,
when they come upon a challenge post, and they generally
succeed at the interior gates, I was told. It would
be different with me : there was every danger of my
disguise being detected while pleading with the guards.
My persistent efforts finally brought me, however,, their
reward. I ascertained that by taking a somewhat round-
about way 1 might reach Lhasa without encountering
the perils of these challenge gates. Ordinarily, one should
take a north-east course after leaving the Nepalese capital,
in order to make a direct journey to Lhasa ; but the one
I have just referred to lay in the opposite direction of north-
west, through Lo, a border province of Nepal, thence
across Jangtang, the north plain (but really the west plain)
of Tibet, and finally around the lake Manasarovara. This
bye-route I made up my mind to take.
So far so good. But it would be courting suspicion
to say that I chose this particularly circuitous and
dangerous route with no obvious reason for it. Fortunately
a' good pretext was at hand for me. For I happened
to think of the identity of the lake Manasarovara with the
Anavatapta Lake that often occurs in the Buddhist Texts.
However' divided the scholastic views are about this identity,
it is popularly accepted, and that was enough for my purpose.
The identity granted, it could be argued that Mount Kail-
asa, by the side of the lake, was nature's Mandala, sacr-ed
to the menlory of the Buddha, which formed an important
station for Buddhist pilgrims. So one day I said to my
I BEFRIEND BEGGARS. 39
Host : " Having come thus far, I should always regret a rare
opportunity lost, were I to make a stork's journey from here
to Lhasa, and thence to China. The Chinese Text speaks of
Mount Kailasa (Tib. Kang Rinpo Che) rising high on the
shore of lake Manasaro vara ■ (Tib. Maphamyumtsho) . I
want to visit that sacred mountain on my way home. So I
should be very much obliged to you if you would kindly get
men to carry iny luggage for me." The answer I got in
reply was not encouraging, though sympathetic. Gya Lama,
in short, bade me give up my purpose, because, as he said,
the north-west plain was pathless and full of marauding rob-
bers ; it had been his long-entertained desire to visit the
sacred mountain hiniself, but the difficulties mentioned had,
so far, prevented him from carrying it out, and he would
strongly advise me against my rash decision ; to venture a
trip through that region, with only one or two servants, was
like seeking death. My retort was that, it being one of
Buddha's teachings that "born into life, thou art destined
to die," I was not afraid of death ; in fact, death might
overtake me at any time, even while living comfortably
under the Lama's care; so that I should consider myself
well repaid if I met death while on a pilgrimage to a holy
place. Finding dissuasion useless with me, my host com-
plimented me on the firmness of my resolution, and took it
upon himself to secure for me reliable carriers. Then, after
careful enquiries, he hired for me a pilgrim party, consist-
ing of two men and an old woman, the latter of whom, in
spite of her sixty years of age, was strong enough to brave
the hardships of an exceptionally difficult road. These peo-
ple were from Kham, a country noted for its robbers, but I
was assured of the perfect honesty and good intentions of
the particular three I was to engage. As a mark of his
special kindness, Gya Lama promised to let ^ trustworthy
riian under him accompany me as far as a place called Tukje,
to see that my two pilgrim servants served me faithfully.
CHAPTER VII.
The Sublime Himalaya.
It was in the beginning of the month of March, 1899,
that, followed by a retinue of three men and one old dame,
I bade farewell to my kind host and, seated on a snow-white
pony, given me by my fatherly friend, left the Kasyapa
Buddha tower. I was not in good health that day, on
account of fever and weakness, but I was obliged to start
from Katmandu, for it was very dangerous for me to stay
there any longer, as I was quite a stranger to the Nepalese,
and they might find out my nationality, and stop me from
proceeding further. So I took the assistance of the horse;
and the good animal proved to be a splendid mountaineer,
and carried me up steep ascents and down abrupt descents
in perfect safety. We directed our course towards the
north-west, through the British Residency, the most
beautiful and clean quarter in Katmandu, and through
Nagar-yon, a hill famous for a cave where Nagarjuna, a
great Bodhi-Sattva, used to meditate. We arrived at a
village called Jittle-Pedee in the evening, and passed the
night under the eaves of a shop-keeper's house.
The present Ruler of Nepal is a Hindu, and keeps the
caste system as rigidly as it is kept in India, where the
people belonging to that religion do not allow a foreigner
to enter their rooms, or to eat with them. Therefore we
were obliged to pass the night outside a house, or under
a rock, or in the forests. Here I must not omit some
interesting things about my travels among the Himalayan
mountains from Katmandu to the lake Manasarovara
through Nepal. The country being extra-territorial, I
believe no bold European or American had trodden this
precipitous path before me ; hence I would like to mention
THE SUBLIME HIMALAYA. 41
everything connected therewith, but as my object is Tibet,
I cannot spend much space on the inner Himalayas of
Nepal. I shall only mention briefly what will be consi-
dered interesting by my readers in general.
On the third day of our departure from Katmandu,
we travelled for more than forty miles, and arrived at a
small trading town called Chunge, situated on the west
bank of the Kirong river (Tirsuli G-andak). Just north
of the town, on the bank of that river there is a pretty
forest in which we slept well through the night, in a lonely
spot, lulled by the rolling sounds of the mountain-rivers'
grand music. Early on the following morning we started
on the north-western path leading to Pokhra, although
there is a short way, only five days' journey from the
place to Kirong in Tibet ; but there the officers of the
frontier guard the passes against all. strangers. In three
days' journey after this we made about forty miles, passed
the villages Bareng-Bareng and Sareng, and, crossing
the river Agu, we arrived at a famous town, Algata. I
have not met with any maps which mention this name.
The town is situated on the west bank of the river
which the natives called Buri-Ganga (Buria G-andak);
this river is crossed bj^ an iron hanging bridge. The town
itself is important on account of its trade with Tibet;
I saw more than fifty people from Tibet and from Nishang —
a northern frontier province of Nepal. During the nine
days after leaving Algata we passed many valleys,
rocky mountains, streams, hill pastures, forests full of
rhododendrons, and deep forests of firj oak and pine,
with the peaks of the snowy range in view. Wo also
passed several villages — Nimareshi, Daramhaje, Rutel,
Manicheka and Satmuni.
We made a distance of something less than one hundred
miles, and then reached a town called Pokhra. Pokhra
looked like a town of villas at home, the site being chosen
6
42 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
for the beauty of its natural scenery. Bamboo-
covered ravines, flower-roofed heights, rich in green
foliage, picturesque because of a rushing and winding
stream, itself set in the midst of high mountains — such
were the characteristic features of Pokhra. The stream
I speak of has its source in the Machipusa (fish-tail)
peak, and its waters are milky white, probably on account
of their carrying in them particles of mountain clay. In all
my travels in the Himalayas I saw no scenery so enchanting
as that which enraptured me at Pokhra. Another thing
notable about that place was that it was the cheapest spot
in Xepal for all kinds of commodities. Twenty-five sens
bought, for instance, four nho of rice there; while, in other
places, that amount would buy only two sho and a half at
the most. At Pokhra I made a rather long stay of six days,
as I had to have a tent made before I proceeded further,
and twenty-five rupees bought for me one made to order,
and large enough for cooking inside also.
After leaving Pokhra we turned due north, and the
ascent became very steep, so steep at places that I had
to get off my horse, send the animal by a round-about
way through the valleys, and myself go afoot for
half-a-day. On one occasion I was proceeding on
horseback on a narrow path that ran along a very high
precipice, when, deeply engrossed as I was in thought
about the near future, I found myself all of a sudden
thrown down to the ground, before I had had time to free
myself from a branch of a tree, which had caught me
by the neck and caused the disaster, assisted by the
horse's movement onward. Very fortunately my horse
came to a halt just then, and as I never let go my hold of
the bridle, I narrowly escaped from rolling a thousand
fathoms down a craggy precipice, to reach the bottom a
mangled carcass ! Realising the danger I was in, I hastily
tried to pick myself up, but in vain ; for evidently I had
THE SUBLIME HIMALAYA. 43
struck my hip very hard in my fall^ and could not raise my-
self up. Consequently I had to requisition the backs of my
two servants in turn, thus making an ascent of about a mile
to the top of the mountains we were crossing over. On
reaching the top, I found the pain too great to permit the
continuance of my journeyj and I camped there for two
daySj during which time my diligent application of some
camphor tincture, which I had with me, to the injured
parts, gradually relieved me of my suifering. On resuming
our journey, now down the mountain, I could not help
being profoundly impressed with the power of impene-
trable solitude, for the path lay through a valley where
nature, in her wildest seclusion, reigned supreme. My
sense of loneliness was heightened by the note of the
cuckoo, which now and then broke the oppressive silence,
and an uta then came to me thus :
In tortuous paths my lonely way now lies '
Among rough mountain tracks and scenes all wild ;
The rooks and giant trees in silence stand,
With naught to break the silent depths around
Except the solitary cuckoo's notes,
That makes the awful silence more profound.
CHAPTER VIII.
Dangers Ahead.
So the days passed and "vvitli these days I came to know
more or less of the different characteristics of my two
servants ; I found one to be a rather impatient fellow, but
prompt of decision, and the other a quiet man with some
education, of which he was not a little proud. The latter
seemed occasionally to hurt the feelings of the impatient one,
and more than once collisions had already occurred between
the two. As for the old woman pilgrim, she was a
good honest soul, and that was all there was about her,
except that she seemed to know all about the two men.
I took pains to be strictly impartial in all my dealings
with the three, though her age entitled the old dame
to special consideration on my part, and she had it in
full when I thought fit. It came to pass that,
apparently because of this treatment, the old woman came
to think a great deal of me. I had noticed in her
manner something indicating that she wished to speak
to me, but was afraid to do so in the presence of her
two companions; so one morning I caused her to
go a considerable way ahead of us, and I started with
my servants afterwards. Burdened with my luggage
as the men were, and riding on a horse as I was, it was
only natural that I should soon leave them lagging far
behind, and overtake the old woman. The good soul turn-
ed furtively back, and asked if the two men were a long
distance behind. I told her that they must be at least
five miles behind. Then she made a revelation to me,
and it was not of a very reassuring kind ; for according
to her I was doomed to be killed. In short she told
me that the impatient fellow was a robber and murderer,
DANGEES AHEAD. 45
having committed many crimes while at home in Kham,
and that, though the quiet one was not so bad a man,
he had yet killed a fellow-creature in a quarrel. At
all events neither would think twice before taking a
man's life. The old dame thought it certain that they,
or at least the impatient one, would pounce upon me
as soon as we reached the north-west plains of Tibet,
and rob me of all my money and effects, as well as
of my life ! Thereupon I said : " That could not be ; for
they are both men of great honesty and uprightness." She
retui-ned; "Konjogsum (Holy Trinity) ! send to me death,
if I tell a lie ! " These are words of adjuration to which
Tibetans attach great importance, and I could not persuade
myself to regard my informant's warning as a mere string
of falsehoods. So another trouble ahead was added to
my burdened mind.
After travelling twelve days more and only making a dis-
tance of about one hundred miles, we reached a Himalayan
village called Tukje, where then lived the local Governor,
named Harkaman Suppa. Through Gya Lama's introduc-
tion I enjoyed the privilege of being received as a guest by
this Governor. Two days after my arrival there the special
man whom Gya Lama through his thoughtful kindness,
as already told, had sent to accompany me so far, took
leave of me, apparently well satisfied that my two
servants were and would be all right. But they were
far from being all right, and I felt that I would never
be able to accomplish my journey unless I got rid of
them. While I was worrying myself with these thoughts,
I came across information about the route that lay
before me that proved to me another source of
discouragement. In effect, it was that three months
before the Tibetan Government had detailed five soldiers to
guard, against all foreigners and any strange person,
the road in my route which lay through the State of
46 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
Lo ; the same precaution had been taken on all the other
bye-ways and pathways leading into Tibet, however
secluded and narrow, even though narrow enough for just
one person to pass. And I had reason to believe that this
information was well founded ; so that it became inevitable
that I should give up my idea of entering Tibet by
smuggling myself into its north-western plain. But there
is ebb and flow even in troubles.
One evening, while still staying at the G-overnor's, my
servants, having regaled themselves with the local drinks
even to boisterousness, began a- quarrelling, which largely
consisted of exposing each other. In brief, each accused
the other of a somewhat cheerless intention of making
short work of me when opportunity should arrive, with
the upshot that they both came to me, each with a
demand that he would like to be discharged if the other
were to continue in my service. I could not have had
a better opportunity, and I there and then dismissed
both of them, after having paid them oif rather liberally.
I also gave some money with some little present in kind to
the old woman, and bade her go with the men. And thus
I got rid of an imminent danger to my life. But there
remained the greater problem of what to do next,
to retrace my steps back to Katmandu being out of
the question, while the route I had chosen for myself
had become unavailable.
It happened that, enjoying the Governor's hospitality
like myself, was a Mongolian scholar named Serab Gyal-
tsan, who was acting as a doctor of medicine, besides
giving lessons in religious Texts to the local priests. I
had not been long at Governor Harkaman's before I
became acquainted with this person, and soon found him
to be a man possessed of profound knowledge of not
only Buddhism but also of literary subjects. Whatever
were the reasons on my part, he and I after a while
DANGEES AHEAD. 47
came to an agreement for the exchange of knowledgSj
he instructing me in Tibetan Buddhism and literature
and I teaching him Chinese Buddhism. This under-
standing arrived at, we took leave of Tukje and set out
for Tsarang in the province of Lo, where the Mongolian
scholar had his home. On our way thither, we visited the
famous Chumik Gyatsa. Chumik Gyatsa means a hundred
fountains, and is the ]\Iukutinath of Samskrt, which Hindus
as well as Buddhists regard as a place of great sanctity.
The place apparently obtained the name it bears from
the numberless springs abounding thereabout, and a
spot of particular fame there was called Sala Mebar,
Chula Mebar, Dola Mebar, which means burning in
earth, burning in water, burning in rock. On seeing the
spot I found this mystery to be nothing more than the fancy
of the ignorant natives, who saw a burning jet of natural
gas escaping from a crevice in a slab of rock, that formed
a lid, so to say, over and close to the surface of a beautiful
crystal-like fountain, which was about one by two feet
in size, so that its prolonged flame looked, at the first
glance, as if it were crawling over the water. I noticed,
however, that the mountains round about bore, ample
evidences of old volcanic eruptions, at one time or another,
an extinct crater now changed to a pond, lava-rocks,
and so on, being all present. We passed a night encamped
on the bank of the river Kaliganga, that flows at the
foot of the mountain which we had just descended,
after leaving the ' hundred fountains ' behind us. The
following morning we had a disastrous time for three
hours in trying to cross a stream. In the first place
I made a blunder in attempting to wade across the stream
on my horse, which, with my weight on his back
and treacherous mud-beds under his feet, found him-
self in a perilous condition as soon as he had
walked a few steps into the stream. I, of course, got
48 THREE YEAHS IN TIBET.
off him at once and climbed upon the bank behind
me. I then set about throwing into the river, near where
the horse was, stones, rocks, and broken branches of
trees that I found lying about, in order to improvise there
a passable footway for myself as well as for the Mongolian
scholar and his animal. Stones flying and muddy water
splashing around him scared my horse, and, with a wild
effort, he struggled out and landed himself on the
opposite bank; but my friend's pony remained immovable
till we had managed to build a way across for ourselves
and pulled him after us. That day we stopped in a
village called Samar (red clay). On the next we again
climbed half-way up a mountain, and proceeded due
north along a path that lay midway between the top and
bottom of its slope, that is to say, toward the north of
Dhavalagiri.
In the mountains below Tukje I found common pines
and cedars growing in fair abundance, but now these
became very rare, the obtusa species of pine taking
their place, and even these attaining a height of not more
than twenty feet at the most, the ground being otherwise
covered with shrubby growths. Riding on the snow,
which was still on the mountain, we had made a distance
of about fifteen miles before we reached a hamlet named
Kirung, where I found willow trees growing luxuriantly.
The inhabitants hereabout were all Tibetans, and I saw
fluttering on every house-top a white flag with certain
religious texts printed on it. These flags are to be seen
everywhere in the interior of Tibet, as I afterwards found,
and that even where the people are living in tents.
Leaving the village, we rode on northwards, over snow,
through an obtusa-pine forest, till the night fell and the
moon rose, when I again heard a cuckoo. Then I had
an uta ;
DANGERS AHEAD.
49
A HORSE IN DIFFICULTIES.
50 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
While marching onwards now the night o'ertakes
The pilgrim bold, the snowy floor his bed ;
The moon-lit sky his- canopy will be,
His lullaby, the cuckoo's notes.
That night we put up in an inn in a hamlet called
Kimiyi (fountain of fortune), that nestles in the snow-
covered mountains. Ten miles on the following day brought
us within sight of Tsarang, which, on reaching, I found
to be a little town built on a plain which was about
eleven miles from east to west, and three miles or more
from north to south, enclosed by walls of snow-covered
mountains. More accurately, the plain has to its west a
snow-capped mountain, whence it extends in a very slow
incline towards the east, until it breaks off into a valley.
From Tsarang to the north-west plain of Tibet is a day's
trip, and the physical features of these regions are
practically of the same character, devoid of large trees
and desolate in the extreme. It was in the middle of
May that I arrived in Tsarang, and I was told that
the farmers had just finished soiling wheat. Skirting the
town of Tsarang runs a stream, which has its rise in the
mountain that forms the western wall of the plain, and on
an elevated part of the town stands a castled palace, in
which lives the King of the Lo State. Before the Gurkha
tribe bad subjugated Nepal, Lo was an independent State.
At a little distance, opposite to the royal castle, is a
temple of considerable size, belonging to the Kargyu-pa
sect of the old school of Tibetan Buddhism. The temple is
a square structure of Tibetan style, built of stone and
painted red, and adjoining it is a stone building painted
white, which forms a dormitory for the priests of the
temple. On a piece of level land to the west of the palace
and the temple a group of about sixty large and small
houses constitutes the town of Tsarang.
CHAPTER IX.
Beautiful Tsarang and Dirty Tsarangese.
At the foot of the mountain out of which we had
emerged, and where the plain began, we came upon a
stone-turreted gate about twenty-four feet in height.
Standing by itself and entirely unprotected, the gate was
not intended, as I was told, for any military purpose ;
but it was used for housing Buddhas and other deities
that would keep guard against the invasion of the locality
by evil genii. About a mile and a half to the rear of the
gate stood the town of Tsarang, at the entrance of which
we were met by fourteen or fifteen men, who, as it appear-
ed, anticipated our arrival. Serab Gyaltsan led me to
the house of the Chief of the town, which was of con-
siderable size. As in Tibet so in Tsarang, all well-to-do
people generally have a separate chapel in their
residence. When they have a visitor of rank and social
position, they, out of respect, put him up in their chapel, and
a person entitled to such distinction in these localities is
generally a Lama. So i^ was that, as a Chinese Lama, I
was given that privilege in the Chief's chapel, which
I found to be a typical one of its kind, with its image-
crowned altar, a special depository for religious Texts,
etc., and altogether much superior in its general finish
and furnishings to the family dwelling. I may remai-k
that these folk generally keep a good store of the Texts,
not because they make use of them themselves, but more
as a matter of form, the form showing their deep reverence
for their religion; but it is apparently beyond their ken
that volumes of Texts are but so many sheets of waste
paper, if their possessors do not understand and live by
them.
52 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
By the side of the chapel in which I was installed
there was another small building, in which lived Serab
Gyaltsan. My host was a widower, quiet and amiable,
and living with two grown-up daughters, about twenty-
three and eighteen years of age respectively, who be-
tween them managed the household and the family business,
employing under them a number of servants,farm-hands and
cattlemen. I could not but admire the two young women
for the creditable manner in which they attended to their
business. I also observed that the chief amusement of
all the villagers consisted in spending evenings in
dances and comic songs, except when they went
to a sort of semi-religious meeting presided over by
a Lama Mapi, who would narrate the stories of ancient
priests of great renown, or the biographies of the more
famous monarchs of Buddhist States, to the great delight
of his audience.
The days I spent in Tsarang were, in a sense, the days
of my tutelage in the art of living amidst filth and
filthy habits. In point of uncleanliness, Tibetans stand
very high among the inhabitants of the earth, but I
think the natives of Tsarang go still higher in this
respect. In Tibet people wash themselves occasionally,
but they almost never do so in Tsarang. In the course
of the twelve months that 1 lived there, I only twice saw a
person wash himself, the washing being confined even then
to the face and neck. Such being the case, the native's
skin all over the body has on it a peculiarly repulsive shine
of polished dirt, so to say. I often noticed women, whose
complexion would have appeared quite fair if only an occa-
sional scrubbing were administered to the skin ; but what
can they do when it is a custom, as it is among them, to
laugh at persons who wash their faces nice and clean, and
to deride them as being very dirty in their habits ? Not only
in their appearance, but in all that they do, the natives
BEAUTIFUL TSAEANG AND DIETY TSAEANGESE. 53
seem to have absolutely no idea of cleanliness. To say
that they think nothing of making a cup of tea for you
with the same fingei's with which they have just blown
their nose, is to give only a very mild instance of their
filthiness ; and I have no courage to dwell here on their
many other doings, which are altogether beyond imagin-
ation for those who have not seen them done, and are
too loathsome, even unto sickening, to recall to mind. As
it was, my life among these slovenly people did one good
thing for me, in that it thoroughly prepared me for
what I had to endure in Tibet.
My work with Serab Gyaltsan consisted in this : a
lecture on Buddhism for three solid hours in the morning,
which required much preparation, and exercises in
Tibetan rhetoric and penmanship for another three hours
in the afternoon, which was, however, of a very easy nature,
and gave me occasion to engage in discussions with my
teacher.
There is in existence to this day in Tibet a sect of
Buddhists which believes in a teaching originated by, a
priest whose name may be translated into " born of the
lotus flower " (Padma Sambhava) or Padma Chungne in
Tibetari, and whom they regard as their savior and as Bud-
dha incarnate. His teaching is a sort of parody on Bud-
dhism proper, and an attempt to sanctify the sexual relations
of humankind, explaining and interprfeting all the import-
ant passages and tenets in the sacred Text from a sensual
standpoint. Indeed, Padma's own life was simply his teach-
ing^ translated into actual practice, for he lived with eight
women whom he called his wives, drank intoxicants to his
heart's content, and fed freely on animal food. Now in the
Tibetan rhetoric in which I took lessons under Serab
Gyaltsan I found this lewd and detestable teaching
largely incorporated, and it was on this account that hot
disputes not unfrequently arose between my instructor
64 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
and myself. At times I felt sorry, as I feel sorry now,
for my Serab, because, from what I was able to
gather, he is one of those on whom (as the result of
twenty years' study, maintainmg well the while his
undefiled priesthood) was conferred the title of Doctor
by the great monastery of Sera, but who, because of
having afterwards yielded to feminine temptation, lost
his qualification to go back to Mongolia as a respectable
Lama, while out of shame it became impossible for him
to continue to live in Lhasa, so that he was compelled
to pass his life in obscure seclusion. I felt sorry for
him all the more, because I found him to be a profound
and widely-read scholar, who could have risen in life
but for his carnal weakness. Another thing I noticed
about him to my pain was that he very easily became
angry, like all the Mongols I came across, but, like them
also, he was very quick in becoming reconciled.
I said I had disputes with my Serab. It was on
one of these occasions that I differed from him with regard
to the real merits of a certain Buddhist saint. There-
upon, flying into a terrible rage, he caught hold of
my clothes near my throat with one hand, and, with the
other picking up a bar belonging to a table that stood
between us, was about to visit me with a blow. The
situation was very humorous, and I broke out into loud
laughter, saying the next moment that I had always
thought a little better of him than to suppose that he
was capable of such an exhibition as he was thus making
of himself, in defiance of the teachings of the sain^ he
revered so much. This took him aback, but he did
not let go his grasp. I saw him grind his teeth, and
fire glared in his eyes; he then removed his grasp and
withdrew as if too wroth to be near me. But reconciliation
followed. So time passed on, I spending seven to nine
hours a day in preparation, besides the six hours of
BEAUTIFUL TSAKANG AND DIETY TSARANGESE. 55
the regular daily lessons. Out of the twenty-four hours,
thirteen to fifteen were thus taken up for purposes of
study every day, with the exception of Sundays, my
other occupation being to take one meal a day with
some tea, and to go out for a walk. Sundays I invariably
spent in mountaineering of a somewhat unusual
character. I had an idea that I should never be able to
compass the arduous journey before me, toiling on
in a rare atmosphere through trackless wildernesses at great
heights while burdened with heavy luggage on my back,
unless I had a thorough training beforehand for the
purpose. Guided by these thoughts, I made a point of
carrying on my back a heavy load of stones when
making my Sunday climb, and of making the ascents
with all possible speed. I was in excellent health then,
and I felt that the mountaineering made it still better,
especially with regard to my lungs. Such was the life
I led for awhile, and I shortly became quite a famous man
in the locality. It was in this way.
The natives hereabouts are merely, it may be said,
creatures of animal instincts. True, they engage in
agricultural work to some extent, which keeps them
occupied during the summer months, but at the other
seasons they think of nothing but eating, drinking and
sleeping, their minds being otherwise filled with thoughts
pertaining to sensual love. They occasionally spend their
evening in listening to a Lama Mani preaching or
lecturing, but only occasionally. They change their cloth-
ing but once a year, casting off the old for the new ;
but if any of them is brave enough to wear the same
suit for two years, that person is made an object of high
praise. And as they never wash their wearing apparel,
it is always shining with grease and dirt. Indifferent
as they are to their appearance, they are very painstaking
in preparing food, as also in making their sleep comfortable.
56 THREE YEAKS IN TIBET.
But their ruling passion is that of carnal love, and
that applies to all ages, from the young to the very old.
But as human beings they are subject to illness, and
like all uncivilised people they are intensely superstitious.
To them a Lama is omnipotent, for they believe that he
can cure diseases and divine all future events. So it came
to pass that the Chinese Lama — I myself — became an
object of great esteem and reverence among them. For
it was not long before my presence in Tsarang became
known among the inhabitants, and my doings in the moun-
tain on Sundays began to attract their attention. Especially
my altercations with Serab Gyaltsan, which were often
loud enough to be heard outside, furnished them with no
end of material for gossip, while the fact that the medicines
I gave away at their pressing request occasionally proved
of good effect contributed greatly to my fame. I knew
not of these things myself at first, but heard of them
from my host's daughters, who frequently called to favor
me with tea and sweets, when they would inform me of
what people were saying of me. The most ridiculous
of all was their interpretation of the quarrels between
Serab and myself ; they made out that these disputes
originated in Serab's objecting to my giving away, to
the poor, things sent to me as presents, instead of giving
them to him, or to my giving some cash to beggars!
Idle tales as these were, they seemed to find ready ears
among the natives, who looked on me as a being of a
higher order.
While treating of Tsarang, I may dwell a little on
the natural beauties of that place. Tsarang has but two
seasons, namely, summer and winter, and many are the
natives that do not know even the names of the other
seasons. In summer, simple as is the contrast between
the verdant fields of luxuriant wheat, interspersed with
patches of white and pink buck-wheat, and the majestic
BEAUTIFUL TSAEANG AND DIRTY TSAEANGESE.
57
TSARANGESE VILLAGE GIRLS.
58 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
peaks that keep guard over the plain and look ever
grand in their pure white robes of perennial snow, the
combination makes a striking picture. Throw into the
picture a buoyant army of butterflies, that flutter up and
down, keeping time, as it were, to the stirring melody
of sky-lai'ks, which is now and then softened by the clear
notes of a cuckoo, while the fields below are resonant with
the rustic melodies of joyous damsels, and the toid ensemble
beporaes at once as enchanting as it is archaic; and this is
the ^picture of Tsarang in summer, when the day is bright
and warm. But more sublimely spectacular is the view on
its winter's eve. The moment the sun begins to descend
behind the snow-covered mountains that rise about ten
miles to the west of the town, the equally snow-robed
peaks that tower above the eastern range become lumin-
ous masses of coral-red, as the last rays of the sinking
sun strike them. The ruby color gradually changes into
a golden-yellow, but that only for a moment, and it fades
away to reveal huge pillars of silver- white, -shining
out majestically against the cloudless clear blue sky. The
scene once more changes as the dusk deepens, burj-ing
the peaks in faint uncertainty, and the moon in her
glory rises slowly from behind them, to spread again
an indescribable lustre of cold — if coldness has a color of its
own — over the mountain tops, which now look like a vision
of celestial seas hung in mid-air.
But Tsarang has its horrors as well as its charms, as
when a snow storm rages. The wind is often so strong
that it blows away the tilled surface of a farm, and in
time changes it into a barren field of sand, while the snow
comes down in such abundance that it drifts itself into
huge mountains here and there on the plain. The cold is, of
course, intense on such occasions and nobody dares to
go out. But the scene on a moonlight night after a
blizzard is worth seeing. The sky is filled with clouda of
IJEAUTIPUL TSAKAiTG AND DifeTi' TSAEAljGESE. ^9
dusty particles of snow, moving ever onward like phantom
armies, now thickening into ominous darkness and then
thinning into vapory transparency, through which one
sees sti'uggling, the lustre of the grey steely moon. No
scene so weirdly harrowing can be seen anywhere else.
CHAPTBE X.
Fame and Temptation.
Since I had arrived in Tsarang early in May, 1899, nearly
eight months had sped by, and 1 found myself on the
threshold of a New Year, whose advent I observed with my
usual ceremony of reading the Sacred Text, and praying for
the health and prosperity of my Sovereign and his family,
and the glory of Japan. The first day of the year 1900
filled me with more than usual emotion. For was I not
then thousands of miles away from home, and was it not
the second New Year's Day which I had spent on the
heights of the Himalayas ? Yet I was hale and hearty,
both in mind and body, and ready to resume my journey,
the end of which the future alone could reveal.
In order to give vent to my feelings of gratitude, not
unmixed with hope and fear, all deeply impressive, I
ended the day by entertaining the villagers of Tsarang,
having previously provided for them a full and liberal
store of such viands and delicacies as were considered to
be most rare and sumptuous. I have already described
how I had been gaining fame and popularity among the
villagers, my ascetic conduct in the midst of unbridled
licentiousness causing them to respect me, and my
generosity in the matter of medicines, of which I still
had a fairly large stock with me, making me much sought
after by them ; and now, through my New Year's treat, I
seemed to have reached a pinnacle of glory. For from that
time onward I gradually perceived that traps were being
set for me, so that I might be tied down to Tsarang for life.
The arch-spirit in this conspiracy was my own instructor
Serab, who insisted that I should marry the youngest of
my host's daughters, or rather who brought all his
FAME AND TEMPTATION. 61
ingenuity to bear upon assisting her to make a captive of
my heart and person. Fortunately my faith proved
stronger than temptations, and enabled me to remain true
to the teachings of the Blessed One. Had I yielded then,
Tsarang would have had to-day one more dirt-covered and
grease-shining priest among its apathetic inhabitants, and
that would have been all.
But, things having come to the pass which I have describ-
ed, it became urgent that I should make haste in discovering
some secret passage into Tibet. But it was as dangerous
for me in Tsarang as it had been in Kiitmandu to disclose
my real intentions, and whatever discovery I might make
for my own purposes, I had to make it in some indirect
and roundabout way. After having onge more racked
my brains, I finally hit upon the plan of working upon the
weaknesses of the local people. The Tibetan Government
had began to levy customs duties even on personal valuables.
It was a most outrageous act ; supposing one wanted to
do trade with the inhabitants of the north-west plain of
Tibet, and to take thither a stock of coral ornaments,
or some useful knick-knacks imported from Europe, how
could one avoid being unjustly set upon and robbed of the
best part of one's would-be profit, on first setting foot upon
Tibetan soil ? Ah ! there must be ways and bye-ways by
which to accomplish this, and to. be absolutely safe from
guards and sentinels ! Surely the plains might be reached,
if one did not mind three days of hard trudging over the
trackless snow of the Himalayan Range, to the north of
the Dhavalagiri peak, and thence to Thorpo ? Having once
got the villagers into the right humor, in some such way,
it was not necessarily a very haprdous job to keep on
tapping them for information. On the other side of that
mountain yonder, they would volunteer to tell me, there
was a river which might be forded at such and such a point,
but which was dangerously treacherous at others ; or, that
62 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
if not very cautious, one might die a victim to the snow-
leopard, while crossing over this or that mountain. All
these bits of information, ' and hosts of others, were
carefully noted down, and a synthetic study of these
scraps finally convinced me that the route I should choose
was the one via Thorpo ; and so I decided. This meant that
I had to retrace ray steps almost as far back as Tukje, or
more accurately to Malba, a village in the immediate
neighborhood of Tukje. Nor Was this retreat without
some advantages in itself, for it would have only been to
court suspicion and to run unnecessary risks for me to strike
off into pathless wilds in full view of the Tsarang villagers,
who were sure to come out in hordes to see me oif on my
departure, not only out of respect for my person, but also
from curiosity to know whither I was bound after my
lengthened stay amongst them. The route decided upon,
I could not however yet start on my journey, because the
season was then against me, the peaks and deiiles on my
way being passable only during the months of June, July
and August. The mountains were not, of course, entirely
free from snow even during those three months, but for
those thirteen weeks or so the traverser would, as I was
told, be secure as a rule from being frozen to death. And
therefore I bided my time.
To go back a little in my story, there came to Tsarang
one Adam Naring, the Chief of the village of Malba,
whither I had to retrace my footsteps. That was in
October, 1899. Naring owned a yak ranch on the north-
west plains of Tibet, and he was' openly privileged to have
free access thereto over the "King's highway". It was
on his way back from one of his periodic visits thither
that he stopped at Tsarang, and, as he put up at my host's,
I was introduced to him. He had in his chapel, as he told
me then, a set of Buddhist Texts which he had brought
home from Tibet, and he was very anxious that I should
FAME AND TEMPTATION. 63
go with him to his house and read them over for the
benefit of himself and his family. The invitation was as
unexpected as it was opportune, and I accepted it. That
was in October, 1899, as I have just said, and if my
acceptance of Naring's invitation had no definite motive at
the time, it stood me in good stead afterwards. In the
meantime, however, Naring had gone to India on bttsiness,
and it was not till March, 1900, that I had tidings of his
return to Malba. On the 10th of that month I bade good-
bye to Tsarang and its simple inhabitants.
My stay in Tsarang was not entirely devoid of results ;
for while there I succeeded in persuading about fifteen
persons to give up the use of intoxicants, and some thirty
others to abandon the habit of chewing tobacco. These
were all persons who had at one time or another
received medical treatment from me, and whom I persuad-
ed to give pledges of abstinence as the price they were to
pay for my medicine.
Nearly a year's stay in Tsarang had made me acquainted
practically with its entire population, and, on my departure,
all these people favored me with farewell pi-esents of
buckwheat flour, bread, maru, butter, fried peaches — all
in various quantities— while some gave me kata and silver
coins. At three in the afternoon of that 10th of March I
left my residence on horse-back, with my volumes of
Buddhist Texts and other baggage loaded on two pack-
ponies. The books I have just referred to were given to me
by one Nyendak, Lama-Superior of the principal Buddhist
temple of Tsarang, in exchange for my white horse, which
had proved such a faithful animal on my journey from
Nepal, and to which the priest had taken a great fancy.
The books were chiefly in manuscript, penned by a. Sakya
Pandit, and altogether were Worth at least 600 rupees.
On reaching the outskirts of the village, I found about
oiie hundred persons waiting for me, and to each of these
64 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
I gave the 'double-handed blessing'. The parting was
not easy, and time sped on. It was now five o'clock, and
I left my well-wishers in tears behind me. Reaching the
village gate, by which I had come in some eleven months
before, I turned round to take a last look at Tsarang, and
prayed in silence for the safety of the villagers and their
ever-inCreasing faith in Buddhism. Before the darkness
set in I arrived at Kimiyi, and there put up for the night.
The next day's journey brought me back to Tsuk, a
village on the Kallganga, where I spent the evening in
preaching at the request of the inhabitants. At my
departure the following morning about twenty people
came forward and asked me to give them the ' hand-
blessing,' which they obtained with perfect willingness on
my part. My instructor, Serab Gyaltsan, had left Tsarang
a little time previous to my departure, but I had the good
fortune to come upon him at Tsuk, and to have an oppor-
tunity of thanking him for what I owed him as a pupil of
nearly a year's standing before I bade him a most heart-
felt farewell.
The close of the third day after leaving Tsarang brought
me to the mountain-village of Malba and to the residence
of Adam Naring, who happened, however, to be away from
his home just then. But the village Chief's father, So-
nam Norbu by name, who probably had heard of me from
his son, was there to welcome me, and I was given the
freedom of the family chapel, which consisted of two
neatly furnished apartments, the innermost of which con-
tained a fine set of Buddha images, as well as the Tibetan
edition of the Sacred Text and other volumes of ecclesiasti-
cal writings, while the windows of the front room com-
manded a charming view of a peach orchard. I may note
here that the altitude of Malba being much lower than
that of Tsarang, the soil in the former place yields two
difEerent crops in the year, wheat coming first and then
FAME AND TEMPTATION. 65
buckwheat. Adam Naving owned a fine tract of land
for these crops. Five or six hundred yards beyond his
residence was the Kaliganga river, gliding serenely along
with a fresh green wall of small pine-trees to set off its
waters. Towering behind and above the emerald grove
stood a range of snow-capped peaks, the tout en.semble
making a view delightful for its primitive joys and natural
beauty.
My old friend expressed his desire that I should
make my stay indefinitely long, so that he might have
the benefit of my reading for him the whole of
the Sacred Texts ; bait I could only encourage him
with an ambiguous reply, as I had come to Malba
only to wait for the time when the snow-covered
mountains should become passable. In the meantime
I spent my days in reading, and making extracts from
the Sacred Texts, and in so doing I could not help often
recalling, with a deep sense of gratitude, the six hours
a day which for nearly one year I had devotee? to my
study of Tibetan, under the rigid instruction of Serab
Gryaltsan at Tsarang.
About a fortnight after my arrival in Malba I received
a letter from Rai Sarat Chandra Das, through a trader of
Tukje, with whom I had become acquainted while in
Tsarang, and to whom I had entrusted a letter to my
friend at Darjeeling, as well as others to my folks at home,
on the occasion of his going down to Calcutta on business.
Along with his letter Sarat Chandra Das sent me a
number of the Mahabodhi Society's journal, which
contained an account of an unsuccessful attempt by a
Buddhist of my nationality to enter Tibet, and a well-
meant note of his in pencil to the effect that I must not
lose my life by exposing myself to too much danger. So
far so good ; biit next something which was not so good
happened. The Tukje ipan, my whiloin messenger, had
9
66 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
apparently formed an opinion of his own about my
personality, and set the quiet village of Malba astir with
rumors about myself. Chandra Das was an official of the
English Government, with a salary of 600 rupees a
month, and, as such, a very rare personage among
Bengalis; and it was with this person that I corresponded;
ergo, the Chinese Lama (myself) must be a British agent
in disguise, with some secret mission to execute. So
went the rumor, and the public opinion of Malba had
almost come to the conclusion that it was undesirable to
permit such a suspicious stranger in the village, when
Adam Naring, who by that time had come home, sought
to speak to me in secret, with indescribable fear written
on his face. Poor honest soul ! What he said to me,
when by ourselves, was of course to the effect that if
there were any truth in the rumor, he and his folks would
be visited with what punishment heaven only knew. I
had expected this for some time past, and had made up
my mind how to act as soon as Naring approached me
on the subject. I turned round and, looking him
squarely in the face, said : " If you promise me, under
oath, that you will not divulge for three full years to
come what I may tell you, I will let you into my secret ;
but if you do not care to do so, we can only let the
rumor take care of itself, and wait for the l^epal
Government to take any steps it may deem fit to take.'.'
I knew Adam Naring was a man of conscience, who could
be trusted with a secret : he signified his willingness to
take an oath, and I placed before him a copy of the sacred
Scripture and obtained from him the needed promise.
Producing next my passport, given me by the Foreign
Office in Japan, which had on it an English as well as
other translations of the Japanese text, I showed it to
my host, who understood just enough English to follow
out the spelling of some words in that language, and
li'AME AND TEMPTATION. 67
explained to him the real object of my journey into
Tibet. I did more. I said to him that now that he
possessed my secret, he was welcome to make of it what
use he liked ; but that I believed him to be a true and
devoted Buddhist, and that it behoved him well to assist
me in my enterprise by keeping silence, for by so acting
he would be promoting the cause of his own religion. In
all this, I told my host nothing but truth, and truth
triumphed ; for he believed every word I said and
. approved of my adventure. Then we talked over the route
I was to take, and it was arranged at the same time that
I should restart on my journey in June or July.
This taking of my host into my confidence seemed
to have greatly appeased his mind ; withal, I did not
think it right for me to tax his hospitality by prolonging
my stay at his residence, and immediately after the above
incident I moved into the temple of the village, where,
nevertheless, I remained the object of his unswerving
friendship, in that he provided for me, while there, all
travelling requisites, from wearing apparel to provisions,
which altogether made luggage weighing about seventy-
five pounds. At my request he also secured for me a guide
and carrier, who was to convey my packages as far as
Khambuthang, or the 'land of Genii,' in the valley of
Dhavalagiri, while my part of the load was to consist
only of my collection of religious works. Thus equipped,
I left Malba on June 12th, 1900. By taking the direct
route, tlie North-west Steppe of Tibet may be reached
from Malba in ten days, but as I was to take in my way
places sacred to Buddhist pilgrims, besides making other
observations, I set aside twenty-three days for the journey,
which I began by traversing trackless wilds for three days.
At my departure I made an uta :
My roof will be the sky ; my bed, the earth j
The grass my downy .pillow soft at night ;
68 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
Thus like the hovering clouds and wandering streams,
These lonely wilds alone I must traverse.
Once on the road, I found, however, that the sentiment
of this effusion applied more to what I had come through
than to what followed, for there was for days nothing but
snow for my bed and rock for my pillow.
CHAPTER XI.
Tibet at Last.
After leaving Malba my route lay north-west, up a
gradual ascent along the banks of the river Kaliganga.
We walked, however, only two and a half miles on the day
of our departure, the rain preventing our further progress.
Starting at about seven o'clock on the following morning, we
made a climb of about five miles up a narrow path, the
bed of which consisted of pointed stones and rocks of
various degrees of sharpness, and then refreshed ourselves
with a light repast. On resuming our ascent the incline
became very steep and, the atmosphere growing rarer and
rarer, we could proceed no more than six miles or so
before fatigue overcame us, and at three in the afternoon
we put up in a village called Dankar, where I was obliged
to stay and recuperate myself during the whole of the
next day. On the 15th we faced due north, and five miles
of a sharp ascent brought us to a glacier valley which we
crossed, and continued a climb of still steeper incline for
about four miles, after which we emerged on a somewhat
wide foot-path. At 11 A. m. we stopped for a rest. Not
a drop of water was obtainable thereabouts, but espying
some herbs growing from under a light layer of snow in
a crevice of a rock, I pulled them up by the root, and,
on chewing them, found that the root tasted quite sour.
With the help of this herb-root we made a little lunch of
buckwheat biscuits.
It was all ascent in the afternoon, and a very tortuous
task it was ; now picking our foot-hold from rock to rock
up a craggy precipice — Mukhala Climb, where it made my
head swim to look down into the canon a thousand feet
below^— now trusting my dear life to my staff, when caught
70 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
in a sand avalanche, if I may be allowed that expression for
the places where the thaw had caused the snow and rock
to slide down, leaving bare a loose sandy surface, which gave
way under one's foot. As for my guide-carrier, he hopped,
and skipped, and balanced, and leaped, with the agility and
sureness of a monkey, his staff playing for him the part of
a boat-hook in a most skilful hand, and, in spite of his
seventy-five pounds' burden, he was so much at home on the
difficult ascent, that he was ever and anon at my side
to help me out of dangerous plights into which I would
frequently fall, with my staff stuck fast between two rocks,
or while I involuntarily acted the role of a ball-dancer on
a loosened boulder. To add to the misery, with each step
upward the air grew rarer and my breath shorter,
making me feel a scorching sensation in the brain,
while burning thirst was fast overcoming me — a morsel of
snow, now and then taken, being utterly insufficient to
quench it. Many a time I had almost fallen into a faint,
and then my chronic tormentor, rheumatism, began to assert
itself. I could go no further; I wanted to lie down on the
snow and sleep for a long rest. But as often as I wished
to do so, I had a warning from my guide that a rest then
would be sure death for me, because, as he said, the air
thereabouts was charged with a poisonous gas, and I
would soon succumb to its effect ; he was innocent of the
knowledge of atmospheric rarity. I knew full well
the weight of this warning, and I struggled on with
what was to me at that time a superhuman effort. By the
time we had finished wading across the sharp slope of
the treacherous sand, and landed upon a rock-paved flat,
even that effort failed me ; I came to a halt in spite of
myself, and also of the guide, who said that water was
obtainable a little distance below. Finding me really help-
less, the man went down and fetched me some water;
which I took with a restorative drug. In a little while I
TIBET AT LAST. 71
felt better, and during the rest thus obtained I liberally
applied camphor-tincture oyer the smarting parts of my
hands, which had more or less suffered from the rigorous
exercise they had had in the use of the mountaineering
staff. In the meantime night fell and, picking our way
b)' the uncertain star-light and the reflexion from the
snow, we made a sharp descent of some four miles, at the
bottom of which we came upon Sanda, a hamlet of about
ten cottages, in one of which we lodged for the night.
Sanda is a literally snow-bound little yillage, open to
communication from the rest of the world only during the
three summer months, and that through the precarious
mountain path I had come over. I was profoundly
astonished to find any people making p. permanent abode
of such a lonely secluded place, where the' vegetation is so
poor that the inhabitants liaveno staple food but tahu, which
is a cereal somewhat akin to buckwheat, but much inferior
in its dietetic qualities. Nevertheless I must not omit to
pay a tribute to the grandeur of the natural scenery, the
ever present snow-clad peaks, the gigantic heaps upon
heaps of rugged rocks, the serene quietude, all inspiring
the mind with awe and soul-lifting thoughts.
My exhaustion had been so great, that I was not able
to resume the journey until the 18th, on which day we had
again to wade over a treacherous slope, which yearly
claimed, as 1 was told, a pilgrim or two as victims to its
' sand avalanche'. We headed north-west, and after
passing by a grand ancient forest of fir-trees, and then
descending along the bnnk of a shooting mountain
stream, we reached Tashithang (dale of brilliant illumi-
nation) at about 11 a. m. In the afternoon we proceeded
in the same direction along a path which overlooked now
a dangerously abrupt precipice of great depth, then a
beautiful valley overgrown with flowering plants and
stately trees, the home of ferocious wild animals, the least
72 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
pugnacious of which are the musk-deer. We passed that
night under an overhanging piece of rock. Throughout
the 19th we kept on facing north-west, proceeding through
many similar scenes of nature, which grew, however, more
fascinating in their picturesque grandeur as we came nearer
to the great peak of Dhavalagiri. We had just reached the
head of a slope of the great snow-clad mountain called
Tashila, when— not only affected by the cold atmosphere,
but as the result of general exhaustion — I became so weak
that only by transferring my share of the luggage to the
shoulders of my guide-carrier, in addition to his own, was
I able to proceed slowly. I was thoroughly fatigued, but
the sublime beauty of the scenery was so inspiring that I
could not help standing still, lost in extatic admiration, and
fancying that I saw in the variously shaped elevations the
forms of giant deities of the Buddhist mythology, sitting in
solemn mid-air conclave. I was only aroused from my
reverie by the warning of my guide that any further delay
would kill me — because of the atmospheric conditions —
and, allowing him to help me on by taking hold of one of
my hands, we thence made a descent of about ten miles,
and once more spent the night under a sheltering rock.
On the 20th of June we began our journey with a climb
up another steep mountain, and in the valleys below I saw
a species of deer, locally called nah, ruminating in herds of
two or three hundred. Further up the mountain I came upon
a number of wild yaks at short distances, while on the far-off
mountain sides I occasionally discerned animals which, my
guide tpld me, were snow-leopards, or changku (mountain
dogs), both ferocious beasts that feed on their fellow-
creatures, including man. Scattered here and there on
our way I frequently noticed whitened bones of animals,
most likely victims of these brutes. At some places the
thawing snow revealed the bleached remains of human
beings, probably frozen to death, The curious thing
TIBET AT LAST. 73
was that the skull and the leg-bones were missing from
every one of the skeletons I came across. It was explained
to me that the Tibetans manufactured certain utensils, used
for ritualistic purposes, from these portions of human bones;
and that it was their practice to appropriate them whenever
they came upon the remains of luckless wanderers ! The
sight and the information could not but fill me with
an extremely uncomfortable feeling, mixed with one. of
profound sympathy, and many a time I prayed in silence
for the repose of the souls of the poor neglected brethren,
as We went 'along our way.
In due course we arrived at a village called Thorpo,
situated on the other side of the mountain we had crossed.
Another name of the village is Tsaka, and its
inhabitants are believers in Bon, the ancient religion of
Tibet. Thence we travelled on until July 1st, making
an occasional stop of one or two days for recuperating
purposes. On the way we passed thr(5Tigh much the
same sort of scenery, abounding in picturesque views as
well as in various interesting plants and animals.
We had now come to the outer edge of the skirts of
Mount Dhavalagiri. My luggage had become considerably
lessened in weight, owing teethe absence of what we had
consumed on our way, and I now felt equal to taking over
the burdens on to my own back. I turned to my guide, and
told him that he could now go back, as I intended to make
a lonely pilgrimage to Khambuthang— the Sacred Peach
Valley-^by myself. Nothing could have given him more
astonishment than this intimation, for he had all along
been under the impression that he was to accompany me
back to Malba. He stoutly opposed my venturing on such
a perilous expedition, which nobody, he said, but a
living Buddha, or Bodhisattva, would dare to undertake.
Prom the most ancient time, he continued, there had been
only one or two persons who had ever come out of the
10
74 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
valley alive, and it was absolutely certain that I should be
torn to pieces and devoured by the dreadful monsters that
guarded its entrance and exit. But I was not to be moved,
and the man went back, with hot tears of farewell, thinking
no doubt that he had seen the last of me. A solitary
traveller, in one of the untrodden depths of the Himalayas,
and loaded with a dead weight of about sixty-five pounds,
my progress thenceforward was a succession of incidents and
accidents of the most dangerous nature, made doubly
trying by innumerable hardships and privations.
On that first day of July, 1900, early in the morning,-
after watching the form of my faithful guide on his
return journey until he had disappeared behind a
projecting rock, I then turned round and proceeded due
north. To my joy I found the pathway not so difiicult
as I had expected, owing to the entire absence of rugged
rocks. Still, there was always enough to weigh me down
with anxiety, as I had to push my way over the trackless
field of deep snow, with a solitary compass and a mountain
peak as my only guides. One night I slept on the snow
under the sky, and another I passed in the hollow of a
clifE ; three days' jogging, after parting with my carrier,
brought me across to the other side of the northern peak
of the Dhavalagiri. It is here tha,t the dominion of Nepal
ends and
The Frontier op Tibet Begins.
As I stood on that high point, which commanded on
the south the snow-capped heads of the Dhavalagiri
family, and on the north the undulating stretch of the
North-east Steppes of Tibet, interspersed here and there
with shining streams of water, which appeared to flow
out of and then disappear into the clouds, I felt as if
my whole being had turned into a fountain of welling
emotions. Toward the south, far, far away, beyond
the sky-reaching Dhavalagiri, I imagined that I saw
TIBET AT LAST.
7o
^^*^'^^J^
ENTERING TIBET FROM NEPAL.
76 'J'HKEE YEAXiS IN TIBET.
Buddhagaya, sacred to our beloved Lord Buddha, where
I had vowed my vow, and prayed for protection and
imercy. That reminded me of the parting words I left
ibehind me, when bidding adieu to my folks and friends
at home. I had then said that in three years I would be
jable to enter Tibet. That was on the 26th of June, 1897,
'and here I was stepping on the soil of Tibet on the 4th of
July, 1900.
How could I prevent myself from being transported with
mingled feelings of joy, gratitude and hope ? But I was
tired and hungry. I took my luggage from my back and
gently set it on a piece of rock, after brushing off the
snow, and then, taking out my store of provisions,' made
some dough out of baked flour, snow and butter. Morsel
after morsel, the mixture, with a sprinkle of powdered
jpepper and salt, went down my throat with unearthly
^sweetness, and I fancied that the Gods in Paradise could
not feast on dishe§ more exquisitely palatable. I made
away with two bowlfuls of the preparation with the
greatest relish ; that ended my meal for the day.
I I should observe here that I have always adheredj.^s I
!adhere now, to the rule of one full meal a day, besides
itaking some dried fruits or something of th'at kind fqr
jbreakfast. I may also state thatthe boM'I^tof which I speajc
■here was of a fairly large size, and two of^them constituteji
ia full good repast, especially as the wheat pro^ticed in colji
jlatitudes seems to be richer in -jnatrltion thaii^''r'that qjf
jwai'mer countries. . - . '■'
j Well, I had dined grandly. The ocean of snow
'stretched around me and below me, far away. I was sti|l
in an extatic mood and all was interestinar. But in which
direction was I to proceed in resuming mj journey-?
CHAPTER XII.
The World of Snow.
According to the stock of information I had gathered,
I was always to head north until I came to Lake
Manasarovara, and the point 1 had now to decide was how
I might make the shortest cut to that body of fresh water.
There was nothing to guide me but my compass and a
survey I took of the vast expanse of snow to a great
distance before me. The best I could do was guess-work.
Following the impulses of instinct more than anything else,
except the general direction indicated by the compass, I
decided on taking a north-westei-ly course in making the
descent. So I restarted, with the luggage on my back.
So far my route had lain principally on the sunny side
of the mountains and the snow, at the most, had not been
more than five or six inches deep ; but from now onward I
had to proceed along the reverse side, covered over with
an abundance of the crystal layers, the unguessable
thickness of which furnished me with a constant source of
anxiety. In some places my feet sank fourteen or fifteen
inches in the snow, and in others they did not go down mare
than seven or eight inches. This wading in the snow was
more fatiguing than I had imagined at first, and the staff
again rendered me great service ; once or twice I found it a
difficult job to extricate myself, when my foot, after
stamping through the layers of snow, wedged itself tightly
between two large pieces of hard stone. This sort of
trudging lasted for nearly three miles down a gradual
descent, at the end of which I emerged on a snowless beach
of loose pebbles and stones of different sizes. By that
time my Tibetan boots had become so far worn out, that
at places my feet came into direct contact with the hard
78 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
gi'avel, which tore the skin and caused blood to flow,
leaving the crimson marks of my footsteps behind.
During the descent I felt little of my luggage, but now it
began to tell on me, as the foot-hold under me consisted of
loose round pebbles, when it was not sharp angular slabs of
broken rock. Five miles onward, I came upon a pair of
ponds formed of melting snow, and respectively about five
miles and two and a half miles in circumference. Both
the ponds were thick with immense flocks of wild
ducks of different sizes, brownish or reddish in
color, or spotted black on a white ground. Otherwise the
waters of the ponds were as clear as could be, and the
scenery around was picturesque in the extreme, so much so
that, though with lacerated feet and stark-stiff about my
waist with rheumatic pains, I almost forgot all that discom-
fort as 1 stood gazing around. The prestige of the ponds,
if they had any, was of. little matter to me then, but, as I
happened to chance upon them all by myself, I was destined
to introduce them to the world; and I christened the larger
pond, which was rectangular in shape, ' Ekai,' after my
own name, and the smaller, which described nearly a
perfect circle, 'Jinkow,' a name which I sometimes use
for myself. A little conceit you may call it if you like, but
it was only for memory's sake that I did these things; and
when a little way down I came upon a gourd-shaped pond,
about a mile and a quarter in circumference, I gave it the
name of ' Hisago Ike '—calabash pond. Still holding
to my north-westerly direction, after having gone some
distance I saw, to the north-west of a snow-clad mountain
that rose far in front of me, two or three tents pitched
on the ground. The sight aroused in me a sense of intense
curiosity mingled with anxiety. Suppose I went to them;
what would their occupants think of a stranger, suddenly
emerging upon them from pathless wilds? Once their
suspicion was roused, I might in vain hope to allay it;
THE WORLD OP SNOW.
79
what was I to do then ? I espied a declivity below me,
which extended north-west in a gradual descent, far out
of sight of the tents, and I saw that unless I
took it, I should either come on those tents or have
my progress barred by a succession of high mountains.
With nothing else to help me to arrive at a decision,
I then entered on what is termed ' Danjikwan sanmai '
TO A TENT OF NOMAD TIBETANS.
in Japanese-Buddhist terminology, a meditative process
of making up one's mind, when neither logic
nor accurate knowledge is present to draw upon for
arriving at a conclusion. The process is, in short, one of
abnegating self and then forming a judgment, a method
which borders on divination, or an assertion of instinctive
powers. The result was that I decided to take the
80 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
route that lay toward the tents, and by night-
fall I came within hailing distance of them, when a
pack of five or six ferocious-looking dogs caught sight
of me and began barking furiously. They were
formidable animals with long shaggy fur and very
cruel looks. I had before then been told that when
attacked by dogs of this kind I must not strike them, but
■that r should, only ward them off, quietly waving a stick
in front of their muzzles, and on this occasion I religiously
^followed that instruction, and found to my entire satisfaction
that the dogs did not try to snap at me. Proceeding
thus, and coming outside one of the tents, I called
out to its occupants.
CHAPTER XIII.
A kind old Dame.
My call was responded to by an old woman who, coming
out of the tent and finding a tattered and tired wayfarer,
said more to herself than to me ; " Why, it is a pilgrim,
poor, poor." Seeing no reason to suppose that I appeared
an object of suspicion to her, I ventured to inform her
that I was from the direction of Lhasa, bound for Kang
Rinpoche, Mount Kailfisa, and besought her to give
me a night's lodging in her tent, as it was unbearably
cold to sleep in the open air. My request was cheer-
fully complied with and, inside the tent, the old dame
expressed her curiosity to know how I happened to
be there, as the locality was not one generally visited
by pilgrims. She easily believed my explanation to
the effect that I had lost my way while heading for the
abode of Gelong Rinpoche, and then gave me a cup
of tea out of a kettle that stood boiling over the fire ;
accepting it with thanks, I declined the baked flour
offered immediately after. I may observe here that
the tea offered me was not brewed in the same way as
we take it in Japan, but it was more of the nature
of a soup, the ingredients of which were powdered tea-
leaves, butter and salt, forbiddingly offensive in smell,
until one gets accustomed to it, when it is found to
constitute a very agreeable beverage. The Tibetan custom
is to serve a guest with a cup of this kind of tea
first, and then to regale him with some baked flour.
I excused myself for declining the hospitality of my
kind hostess by informing her that I adhered strictly
to the Buddhist rule of fasting hours, which piece of
information produced a very favorable impression on her
IX
82 THKBE YBAES IN TIBET.
as to my personality, as she seemed to respect me all the
more for it. Then, leading in the conversation that followed,
she told me that Gelong Rinpoche's abode was at a day's
distance, and that this Lama was the holiest of all the
priests to be found throughout the whole Jangthang fjang-
thang, as I explained, literally means 'northern plain,' but
in Tibet itself the appellation is applied to its western
steppes). Contiiming, the old hostess said that a visit to
the holy man always resulted in great spiritual benefit, and
urged me by all means to call on him. There was a river,
she said, in my way, the waters of which were too cold to
be forded, and she offered me the use of one of her yaks.
Her son was away just then, but she expected him back
in the evening, and he cou^ld accompany me in the morning,
as she wanted him too to pay a visit to the holy man. All
this was very acceptable to me, but one thing that troubled
me was the sorry condition to which my boots had
become reduced ; and I asked the dame if I could not mend
them. Mending in this case meant, as I was told, patching
the worn-out places with j-ak's hide, which required,
however, two days' soaking in water before it became
soft enough to be sewn. My hostess said that they — ■
she and her son — were to stay only one more day in that
particular spot where I had chanced upon them, and
suggested that I might make a stay of two or three days
at Gelong Rinpoche's, so as to give myself the time
to do some mending. She offered that I should, on
the morrow, put on her son's spare pair of boots and
proceed to the holy Lama's in them, saying that I might
give them back to her son after reaching my destination.
In the night, just as I was going to sleep, the son turned
up, and more conversation ensued amongst us, chiefly
concerning the saintly man, of whom the mother and the
son knew no end of Avonderful things, altogether super-
human in chai-acter,
A KIND OLD DAME. 83
Early the next morning, by order of tlie good old
dame, the son busied himself in getting a yak ready for
me. The yak is a bovine somewhat larger than our bull,
though a little lower in height. Its hide is covered all
over very thickly with long shaggy hair, and its tail
terminates in a bushy tuft. The female yak is called hii in
Tibetan. Its face looks very much like that of common
cattle, but it has a pair of piercing eyes, which give you a
rather uncomfortable feeling' when turned full on you,
while its horns are dangerously pointed and threateningly
shaped. A better acquaintance, however, shows the animal
to be a quiet and tractable one, even much more so than
our cattle. I may yet have occasion to tell what an
invaluable beast of burden the yak is for the Tibetan. My
hostess' son brought out three yaks, one for me to ride,
another for himself, and the third to carrj' his presents,
consisting of dried milk, butter and other things, to the
holy man. As for the good old dame, she proved to be the
very essence of kindness, and on mj^ parting from her she
loaded ine with large quantities of baked wheat-flour, dried
milk, and butter, besides a farewell cup of tea, a treatment
which is considered great hospitality in Jangthang.
So equipped, w^' started on our trip in quest of the holy
man of the plain. After a ride of about two and a half
miles, involving ascent and descent of equal length towards
the north-west, we were overtaken by a hail-storm, and had
to make a halt of two hours until it had blown over.
During the halt, we took down our luggage from the backs
of the j^aks, so that it might not get wet, and I utilised that
interval quite profitably to myself by pumping the young-
man for information regarding the routes and geography of
the regions I was to go through before I could reach my
final destination. Resuming our ride, we soon came to a
river which was sixty yards wide, and easy to ford for
men riding on yaks, as we were. Crossing two more
84 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
rivers of the like width, and making an ascent of
a little over six miles, we came in sight of a large
white cliff, which, as my companion informed me,
was the dwelling place of Gelong Rinpoche. Continuing
the ascent and approaching nearer, I found out
that what had appeared like a huge and solid piece
of rock was really a hollow cliff forming a large cave,
and that there was another concave cliff in front of it,
which was not white bi!it greyish in color, and was
inhabited by one of Gelong Rinpoche's disciples, as I
came to discover afterwards. It was about three o'clock in
the afternoon that we arrived at the entrance of the front
cave, where my companion asked if he could see Gelong
Rinpoche, tho;igh he knew that he was considerably
behind the regular hour, setting forth the hail incident as
an excuse for his delay. The answer he received was
absolutely in the negative ; so he took down the presents
and entrusted them to the disciple, to be sent up to Gelong
Rinpoche as from Pasang (his mother's name), saying that
he could not wait till the next day to see the Lama, as he
was going to strike his tent and move away there and then.
Left alone with the occupant of the grey cliff, I found
him to be an ordinary Lama of rather good parts. In
the cave, put away in proper places, were articles of
daily use for devotional practices, bedding, the kitchen
utensils, etc. Having obtained the Lama's permission to
make a few days' stay, I commenced my mending work
by soaking in water a piece of yak's hide which the kind
dame Pasang had given me on parting. On my asking
for information as to how I could reach Kang Rinpoche,
the answer I got was very discouraging. It was to the
effect that two or three days' journey, after leaving the
cave, would bring me to a region inhabited by nomads ; for
another two or three days I should be in the same region,
and then, for the next fifteen or sixteen days, I should
A KIND OLD DAME. 85
have to go through a wilderness entirely destitute of human
kind. I was very fortunate, said my host, in that I had
chanced upon that ' kind old dame,' who was noted for
her charity ; otherwise I should have had little possibility of
obtaining even lodging accommodation, still less of securing
a companion to the cliff ; and it was out of the question for
me to secure anything like a guide for my onward journey;
human beings were too scarce in those parts for such a
luxury. Furthermore he assured me that I should be
pounced upon by robbers as soon as I should reach the in-
habited parts, as I seemed to be loaded with luggage worth
taking. I had nothing to fear on that score, I told my
host, because all I should do would be to hand over all
I had. My host then told me that he had been to Kang
Rinpoche two or three times himself, and gave me a
minute description of the route I was to take for that
destination. After a meditation exercise, in which my
host joined, we both went to sleep at about midnight.
When I re-opened my eyes, I saw the Lama already
making a fire outside the cave. It should be remembered
that I passed myself off as a pilgrim from Lhasaj here
as elsewhere, and I had to be 'Lhasan' in all 1 did.
That morning, therefore, I got up and set about reading the
Sacred Text without rinsing my mouth. How foul I felt
in the mouth then ! but then it was ' Lhasan,' you see !
When the usual tea, butter, and salt soup was ready, my
host gave me a bowlful of it, and then we break-
fasted on the regulation diet of baked flour, salt and
pepper, all with uncleansed mouths ! After that, we whiled
away the morning in religious talk until eleven o'clock,
when the hour for being presented to Gelong Rinpoche
had arrived.
CHAPTER XIV.
A holy Cave=DweJIer.
" Gelong lobmng gonpo la kyahx mt chio." This is, as I was
told and as I observed myself, what the followers of the
dweller in the white cave — and that included natives living
within a hundred-mile radius of the cliff — said three times,
accompanied by as many bowings in the direction of the
cave, every night before going to bed, and it means : " I
take my refuge in the Gelong, named noble-minded Savior."
This shows in what high esteem the holy man to whom I was
about to be introduced was held by the local people. There
had now gathered about twenty people in front of the grey
cave, waiting to be taken to the white one. During my stay I
noticed that a similar scene took place every morning, the
visitors passing the night before in their tents, pitched at the
foot of the mountain, on the top of which the caves are
situated. Outside the hours I mentioned before, the Lama
was under no circumstance whatever to be seen.
Shortly before noon I walked up to the white cave,
together with the waiting crowd. I found the en-
trance to the cave barred by a fence and a closed gate.
Soon after, a grey-haired old priest, of seventy years of
age, made his appearance, and, unlocking the gate, walked
out to where were the expectant devotees, each of whom
gave an offering or offerings, either of money or in kind, as
his or her turn came to receive mani. The mani is a
formula pronounced by the aged Lama, who spoke the
sacred words : " Om mani padme hum," the recipient
repeating them. The mani came after a brief sermon.
Then followed the imparting by the Lama of various
instructive precepts to the audience ; but just previous to
that, each person individually went up to a table, on the
A HOLY CAVE-DWELLEE. 87
other side of which sat their venerable teacher. After three
boiSvs, they proceeded with bent body and the tongue stuck
out — the mark of profound obeisance — and, stopping in
front of the table, held their heads close to the Lama. The
latter, with the palm of his right hand, gently touched their
heads by way of blessing, in acknowledgment of their
courtesy. In the case of an individual of social position, the
Lama used both hands in administering the blessing. I may
explain here the Tibetan mode of blessing. Tibetan
Lamas use four kinds of blessing, according to the rank of
the person to whom it is administered. These orders
of blessing, which are at the same time those of greeting,
which they cslW chahwaiig in Tibet, are first the 'head
to head blessing,' which consists in touching the other's
head with one's own forehead ; second the ' double-handed
blessing;' third, the 'single-handed blessing;' both of
which are self-explanatory. The fourth is resorted to by
a Lama of the highest order toward his inferiors and
laymen, and consists in tou.ching the head of the recipient
with the tufted end of a stick, which constitutes a special
article used in Buddhist ritual. This last ceremony is
performed only by the Dalai Lama in Lhasa, and Pan-
chen Rinpoche in Shigatse. Gelong Rinpoche received
me with the double-handed blessing. I found in him a
stoutly built, strikingly-featured, grey-haired old man
of noble bearing, who, because of his well-preserved
physique, did not at first glance look like a person
who had passed the best ■ part of his life in religious
meditation. But closer observation of what he did and
said convinced me that he was a man of true charity,
dearly loving his fellow-creatures, and I approached
him with a feeling of profound respect. The first thing
he said to me was that I was not a man to wander about
in a dreary wilderness, and he asked me what had
brought me to him. The dialogue that then followed
88 THEBE YEAES IN TIBET.
between Gelong Rinpoche and myself was substantially
as below:
" I am a travelling priest making a pilgrimage through
different countries in quest of Buddhist truths. I have
heard of your fame, and have come to be taught one thing."
" What can that be, friend ?"
" You are saving the souls of the multitude, and I wish to
learn the grand secret which serves so well foryour purpose."
" Friend, you know that well enough yourself. All Buddh-
ism is in you, and you have nothing to learn from me."
" True, all Buddhism is in the Self, but in ancient days
Jenzai Doji travelled far and wide in search of fifty-three
wise men, and we, the Buddhists, are all taught to derive
lessons from the great hardships then undergone by him.
I am far from being a Jenzai Doji, and yet I am privileged
to imitate him : it is thus that I have called on you."
" Good ! 1 have but one means to guide me in saving
souls, and the ' Grand Gospel of Salvation ' is that guide
of mine."
" May I have the pleasure of seeing that Gospel ? "
" Most certainly." The Lama here went into his cave,
and, fetching out a volume, kindly lent it to me. On
asking what was the gist of the Gospel of Salvation, I
was told that it resolved itself into teaching that the three
ydnas (vehicles) were but one ycina. I then withdrew and
went back to the grey cave, taking with me the borrowed
volume, and I spent the rest of the day in reading through
the Gospel, which I found to be a compilation, resembling
in its tenets the Hoke-hyo — the Sutra SaddJiarma Pnn-
darlka — and in some places it even read like extracts
from the last mentioned Gospel. The. next day I turned
cobbler, and mended my boots. On the morning follow-
ing, I revisited Gelong Rinpoche and returned the
Gospel. In so doing, the Lama and I had quite an
argument, which, in short, was an exchange of views, based
A HOLY CAVE-DWELLEE. 89
on tlie Tibetan school of Buddhism on the part of the
Lama, and on Japanese and Chinese schools on mine.
On the 7th of July I made a parting call on the holy
dweller of the white cliff, when the good man presented
me with considerable quantities of baked flour, butter,
and raisins, saying that without a full and good supply of
them I might die on the journey. This was all very nice,
but it increased my load by twenty pounds, an addition
which always counts a great deal to a solitary peddler,
going a long distance over difiicult roads, as I was to do.
Back in the grey cave, I once more set myself to repairing
my boots, but the work was new to me, and I was more
successful in sticking the needle into my finger than in pro-
gressing with the job. The upshot was that the occupant
of the cave, taking pity on me, kindly did the greater part
of the work for me. Early on the 8th I bade good-bye to the
kind-hearted disciple of Trelong Einpoche, and relaunched
myself on my journey, with eighty-five solid pounds on
my back, which in no time began to ache under the weight.
12
CHAPTER XV.
In helpless Plight.
Some hours after leaving the grey clii? I reached a
river about 180 yards wide. Before plunging into it to
wade across, I took my noon-meal of baked flour : it was
then about eleven o'clock. The river was the one of which I
had been informed, and I knew it could be forded. After
the repast I took off my boots and trousers, and having also
tucked up the other portions of my dress, went down into
the river. Oh! that plunge! it nearly killed me; the water
was bitingly cold, and I saw at once that I could never
survive the crossing of it. I at once turned round and
crawled up the bank, but the contact with the water had
already chilled me, and produced in me a sort of convulsion.
What was to be done ? I happened to think of ointment
as a remedy, as well as a preventive, under the circum-
stances. I took out a bottle of clove oil I had with me, and
smeared it in abundance all over my body. What with
the sun shining and my giving mj'self a good rubbing all
over, I felt better. Then, equipped as before, I made a
second plunge. The water was cold, indeed cold enough
to make my feet quite insensible before I had gone half-way
across, and the rest of the fording I managed simply by
the help of my two staves. The river was about hip-deep
and the stream quite rapid, and when I reached the
opposite bank 1 found myself almost a frigid body, stiff
and numb in every part.
The next thing to be done was, of course, to recover the
circulation of blood in the almost frozen limbs ; but I
discovered this to be no easy task, for my hands were too
stiff to do anything, and it took full two hours to put
m^'self in shape to resume the journey. As it was, when I
In helpless plight. 91
started out at about two o'clock, my legs were so Habby that
I felt as if they were going to drop oif . And my increased
luggage weighed so heavily on my back, that I was now
compelled to take it down and devise some new way of
carrying it. This I did by dividing the baggage into two
equal parts and, tying one to each end of my two staves
(which I had tied together), I slung them across my
shoulder. But two rough round sticks grinding against the
untrained flesh of the shoulder, with eighty pounds of pres-
sure, were not much of relief for a novice at this method of
carrying burdens, and at every hundred or two hundred
yards of my progress, which was tardy enough, I had to
alter my mode of conveyance. In the two hours which
followed, I made an ascent of half a mile and then a
descent of about a mile, and when I had arrived at the
bank of a river at about four o'clock, exhaustion made
further progress impossible for me for the day.
Settled down for a bivouac, I set about making a fire to get
tea ready. In Tibetan wilds the only kind of fuel accessible
to travellers (except of course dead leaves of trees for
kindling purposes) is the dry dung of the yak (these animals
being set loose to graze for themselves) and the kyang, a
species of native wild horse. I gathered some of these
lumps, and built them up into a sort of partially hollow
cone, with a broad base and low elevation, and then three
pieces of nearly equal size placed tripod-like around this cone
completed my arrangement for putting my tea-pot over the
fire. But the fire was still to be made, and I may say that
making a fire of this description is not a very easy per-
formance until one acquires the knack of the thing;
even a pair of hand-bellows is of little help', especially
when the fuel is not sufficiently dry. Matches being un-
known in those regions, I had to resort to the old-
fashioned method of obtainiiig sparks of fire by striking a
stone against a piece of iron, and it is again a matter of
1*2
THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
A NIGHT IN THE OPEN AND A SNOW-LEOPARD.
In helpless plight. 93
art to make those sparks kindle the tinder. The tea-pot I
carried with me then was one large enough to hold a quart
and a half of water. In those high regions water boils
very quickly, owing to the diminished atmospheric
pressure, and as soon as it began to boil I would throw into
it a handful of Chinese brick tea ; but I had to let the
mixture stand boiling for at least two hours before I could
obtain a liquor of the right color and flavor. I should add
that it is the usual practice with Tibetans, which I followed,
to put some natural soda (which is found in Tibet)
into the water when the tea is thrown in. When enough
boiling had been done, I would put in some butter and
salt, and after a little stirring all was ready to be served.
It was this tedious process that I went through on that
river bank. After that, I went about gathering all the
dung I could find, and then, returning, piled it up all over
the fire to make it last the whole night — a precaution
which was necessary to keep off snow-leopards, which often
prove to be dangerous nocturnal enemies of man in
these parts.
To keep a fire burning brightly through the night was,
however, to court a still greater danger, for it might attract
marauding robbers, on the look out from far-off hill and
mountain tops. Of the two dangers, that of robbers was
the worst, for whereas a snow-leopard will sometimes
leave a sleeping man alone, even with no fire, robbers will
never leave him alone. Under these circumstances I left
my fire smouldering, with a well-pressed layer of sandy soil
over it, so that it would last till the morning, giving me
at the same time enough warmth to keep me alive. When
the moon rose that night I saw it was nearly full. Its pale
light silvered the waters of the river before me. All was
quiet, save for the occasional roars of wild animals. With
all its dreary wildness, the scenery around was not without
its charms that appealed to the soul.
§4 THEEE YEAES llf TIBET.
Wheu rising slow among the mountain heights ,
The moon I see in those Tibetan wilds,
My fancy views that orb as Sovereign Lord
Of that Celestial Laud, my country dear,
Those islands smiling in the far-off Bast.
The night was extremely cold, and I could not sleep. I sat
up and fell to meditation; and while I was wandering over
the borderland, half-awake and half-asleep, the morning
came. With a start I got up, and on going to the river's
edge I found its waters frozen. I then stirred up the fire,
and after due preparations made a hearty breakfast.
When ready to start on the day's journey, I could not recall
the instruction given me before — whether to follow the river
up its course, which would lead up to a high peak, or to
proceed down stream. Here was a dilemma ! but I felt sure
of one thing, and that was that, weak and exhausted, I
could not survive the ascent of the steep peak. By neces-
sity, then, I proceeded down the stream, but I failed to
come upon a rock upon which, as I had been informed, I
should find an image of Buddha carved. No wonder ! for
I took the wrong direction, as I afterwards found out.
Proceeding above five miles, I emerged upon an extensive
plain, which I judged must be seventeen or eighteen
miles by eight or nine, with the river flowing through it.
On consulting the compass I found that, in order to
proceed towards the north-west, I should have to cross the
river, a prospect particularly unpleasant just then, as I
thought of the chilling effects of the icy waters. As I
stood taking a survey of the river in an undecided frame
of mind, I noticed a bonze wading aci'oss the stream
towards me. As he landed on the bank, I hailed him, and
eventually found him to be a pilgrim from Kham, bound
for Gelong Rinpoche's cave. Then I negotiated with him
to assist me across the river, after having astonished him
with my generosity in giving him a comparatively largu
quantity of dried peaches and flour, articles particularly
IN HELPLESS PLIGHT. 95
precious for a lonely traveller through those regions. I
made him understand that I was ill and weak, and not
equal to the task of crossing the river, heavily burdened
with luggage as I was. Whatever was the effect of this
piece of information, my liberality soon won him over to
my help, and, taking all my luggage on his back and
leading me by the hand, he assisted me to ford the stream.
Having landed me and my luggage safely on the other
side, and having also told me that, following the course
he pointed out, I should come to an inhabited place after
two days' joui-ney, he bade me good-bye and once more
crossed the river. I, for my part, started forthwith,
heading in the direction prescribed for me.
CHAPTER XVI.
A Foretaste of distressing Experiences.
After parting with the Kham bonze, I had not proceeded
far before I began to feel a shortness of breath which
increased in intensity as I went along, and was follow-
ed by nausea of an acute type. I made a halt, took
down my luggage (which, by the way, had by this time
produced very painful bruises on my back) and then took
a dose of hotan — a soothing restorative. The result was
that I brought up a good mouthful of blood. Not being
subject to heart disease, I concluded that I had been affected
by the rarily of the atmosphere. I think, as I thought then,
that our lung-capacity is only about one-half of that of the
native Tibetan. Be this as it may, I felt considerable
alarm at this, my first experience of internal hemorrhage,
and thought it would be ill-advised to continue my journey
that day. I had made only eight miles, five up and three
down, over undulating land ; but I was so greatly fatigued
that, without courage enough to go and search for yak-
dung, I fell fast asleep the moment I laid me down for a
rest. I do not know how long I had slept, when some-
thing pattering on my face awoke me. As soon as I
realised that I was lying under a heavy shower of large-
sized hail-stones, I tried to rise, but I could not ; for
my body literally cracked and ached all over, as if
I had been prostrated with a severe attack of rheumatism.
With a great effort I raised niyself to a sitting posture
and endeavored to calm myself. After a while my
pulse became nearly normal and my breathing easier,
and I knew that I was not yet to die. But the general
aching of the body did not abate at all, and it was out
of the question for me to resume the journey then, or to
A POEETASTE OF DISTRESSING EXPEEIENCES. 97
go dung-gathering. Appai-eutly there were some Lours of
night yet left, so I went into tho ' meditation exercise/
sitting upon a piece of sheep's hide and wrapped up in
the tuh-tulc, a sort of native bed-quilt weighing about
twenty-five pounds, and made of thick sail-cloth lined with
sheep's wool. Sleep was no more possible. As 1 looked up
and around, I saw the bright moon high above me, the un-
certain shapes of distant lofty peaks forming a most weird
back-ground against the vast sea of undulating plain. Alone
upon one of the highest places in the world, surrounded by
mysterious uncertainty, made doubly so by the paleness of
the moonlight, both the scene and the situation would have
furnished me with enough matter for my soul's mvisings,
but, alas ! for my bodily pains. Yet the wild weirdness of
the view was not altogether lost on- me, and I was
gradually entering into the state of spiritvial conquest over
bodily ailment, when I recalled the celebrated uta of that
ancient divine of Japan, Daito Kokushi :
On Shijyo Gojyo Bridge, a thoroughfare,
I sit ill silence holy iindisturbed.
The passing crowds of men and damsels fair,
I look upon as waving sylvan trees.
In reply to this I composed the following:
On grass among those lofty plains on earth,
I enter meditation deep and wide,
I choose, nor such secluded mountain-trees.
Nor passing crowds of men and damsels fair.
I was almost in an extatic state, forgetful of all my
pain, when another uta I'ose to m)- mind :
O Mind! By Dharma's genial light and warmth
The pain -inflicting" snows are melted fast.
And flow in rushing streams that swee]! away
Delusive Ego and Non-Ego both.
Thus in meditation I sat out the night, aiid when the
morning came I breakfasted on some dried grapes. I felt
much refreshed both in mind and body, and made good
progress on my journey that morning.
13
98 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
Coming to a small clear stream, I went through the
process of fire-making and tea-preparing, and then took a
meal of baked flour. Crossing the stream and then
mounting an elevation, I saw far in front of me one white
and several black tents pitched in the plain. The sight
of a white tent puzzled me a good deal. Tibetan tent-
cloth is almost always dark in color, the natives weaving
the stufE with yak's hair, which they first take between
their teeth, di-aw out and twist into a yarn between their
fingers, putting it on to the loom when a sufficient
quantity of coarse thread has thus been obtained. I could
not solve the mystery ; but it mattered little after all to
me then ; I only wanted to reach the tents as quickly as
possible, and to be allowed a few days' rest there. I had
walked about five miles, and the last mile or so brought
back on me the now chronic trouble, the pain of fatigue
and shortness of breath. When, somehow, I had managed
to drag myself along to the threshold of the largest of the
tents, the welcome I received was in the shape of five or
six ferocious-looking native dogs, and it was a right hot
reception, to appreciate which I had to put all my
remaining energy into the gentle warning of my staff.
CHAPTER XVII.
A Beautiful Rescuer.
While I was engaged in the pleasant work of warding
off the dogs, a woman, apparently roused by the loud
barking of the animals, put her head out of the tent.
Hers was a beautiful face, so beautiful that I was surprised
to see it in such a wilderness. For a while the woman
stood staring at me, and then, coming out of the tent, she
scolded the dogs. One word from her was enough, and
the beasts all ran away crest-fallen and with tails down,
so that I could not help smiling at them. And, smiling,
I asked the beauty of the wilderness for a night's lodging.
Her answer was that she must first obtain the permission
of " her Lama," and, so saying, she disappeared within
the tent. At her second appearance I was admitted into
the tent, and a very hospitable man " her Lama " proved
to be. It was a great relief to me. That afternoon and
evening I spent in pleasant conversation with my host
and his wife. For two days more I was allowed to
recuperate myself in their tent, and in the interval I
learned a good deal about my future route. Among other
things I was told that at half a day's ^distance on horse-
back there was a river called Kyang-chu (wild horse river),
a large tributary of the Brahmaputra, which I had to cross,
but that it admitted of fording only by those well acquaint-
ed with its shallows. The necessity which thus arose of
having a qualified companion compelled me to prolong
my stay with my kind host till the 13th of July. It was
on the night of the 12th that, at the invitation of my host,
the occupants of the other tents, numbering about thirty
men and women, came to his tent to hear my preaching, as
they had been told by my host that I was a holy priest.
100
THEEE YEAES IN' TIBET.
ATTACKED BY DOGS AND SAVED BY A LADY.
A BEAUTIFUL EESCUBR. 101
My sermon to the assembly procured for me various
offerings in kind. Among the audience was a young girl
who insisted on my accepting from her a neck ornament,
consisting of seven coral beads and a gem. I took it from
her hand for a moment, but with sincere thanks I returned
it her, as I really had no use for it. But she, with the
support of her companions, insisted on my accepting it, and
I was finally persuaded to take the gem alone, which
even now I keep, valuing it as a memento of a dear little
girl of the Tibetan wilds. The next day the owner of
the white tent came to my host and gave him some
raisins, dried peaches and dates, taking in exchange
sheep's wool, butter and other local products. This man
proved to be a trader from Ladak and spoke but little
Tibetan. Apparently a devoted Buddhist, he asked me a
great many things about ray religion, and seemed to be
highly pleased with all my replies ; so much so that he
begged me to come to his tent and dine with him. So
at noon I went to his tent, where he regaled me with
delicacies considered to be costly in those parts. It
was this Ladak trader who was to start on the day
following, and to be my guide in crossing the Kyang-chu.
As for my host the Lama, I learned that he was really a
man of the order belonging to the new sect of Tibetan
Buddhism, which by the way strictly enjoins celibacy
and abstinence on all its priests, so I was considerably
perplexed at seeing him living with a wife. He called
himself Alchu Tulku, which means ' incarnation of Alchu '
— the name of a place on the plateau. His wife was
exceedingly beautiful, as I have already hinted. But it
was none of my business to pry into the matter any
further. It was enough for me that, after all my dis-
tressing experiences, he received me with open arms,
treated me with the utmost kindness, and behaved in a
manner bespeaking a large heart and deeply charitable
102 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
mind. I noticed that he owned about sixty yaks in
addition to two hundred sheep^ and that he was very well
circumstanced, though he might not perhaps be called a
very rich man. Besides, his charming wife appeared to be
thoroughly devoted to him, and he seemed in every respect
the master of a very happy home. What more could I
wish for them?
But I was much surprised at a discovery which I made
on coming back to them from a visit to the white tent.
When in the evening I approached the Lama's tent, I
heard noises inside which suggested a fearful quarrel at its
height. On entering, I saw that a wonderful metamorphosis
had come over the erstwhile beauty. Her face was burning
red and undergoing the most disagreeable contortions I
had ever seen, as she went on calling her husband names
and otherwise insulting him in the vilest language imagina-
ble. It was all about " another woman " and also about
the husband's partiality for his own relatives. A man of
quiet disposition as the Lama was, he heroically maintained
his self-composure and silence until she dared to call him
" beast," when he rose and feigned to beat her. He prob-
ably did so because he was irritated at my appearance on
the scene just at that juncture. But that was a blundering
move on his part, for the moment he raised his fist, the
now thoroughly maddened termagant threw herself at his
feet, and, with eyes shut, shouted, shrieked and howled,
daring him to kill and eat her ! What could I do ? I
played the part of a peace-maker, and it was lucky that
I succeeded in the office. I got the woman to go to bed
on the one hand, and persuaded the Lama to spend the
night with the Ladak trader, to whose tent I accompanied
him. And so the last night I spent with my kind host
brought me a rude awakening, which caused me to shed
tears of deep sympathy, not necessarily for Alchu Tulku
only, but for all my brethren of the Order, whose moral
A BEAUTIFUL EESCUEE. 103
weakness had betrayed them into breaking their vows of
celibacy, and who in consequence were forced to go
through scenes such as I have described.
CHAPTER XVIII.
The Lighter Side of the Experiences.
On the 14th of July I bade adieu to Alchu Lama, and,
riding on a horse he lent to me and in the company of
the Ladak trader, I resumed my journey, now heading
due north. My luggage was taken care of by my compan-
ion, who had six men under him and some ponies. First,
we went through an undulating land where snow remained
here and there, and grasses were struggling to grow.
A ride of about fourteen miles brought us to the river
Kyang-chu, whence, about fifty miles to the north-west,
I saw a great snow-covered mountain. It was in that
mountain that the river had its rise, and, following its
course with my eye, I saw it flow into and disappear in the
upper part of another elevation on the south-east. The
Kyang-chu was about four hundred and fifty yards wide at
places, while it narrowed to sixty yards or so at others, where
its waters shot between walls of huge rocks. Before crossing
the river we took our noon-meal. I was now a guest of
my companion, and the latter's men went about gathering
fuel and getting things ready, while I sat down and
read the Scriptures, and I had altogether an easy time
of it. Before our parting, Alchu Lama had given me about
five go, or about the fiftieth part of a peck of rice. 1 had
this cooked, and invited my companion and all his men to
partake of it. It was a grand treat ; I had not tasted rice
for a long time. Eice, by the way, comes to these regions
from Nepal, and costs about seventy sen per sho,
or ten go.
The river had a sandy bed of considerable depth, and it
was judged dangerous to make the ponies wade across it
laden, All the baggage was therefore taken from their
THE LIGHTER SIDE 01' THE EXPEKIENCES. 105
backs, and carried across the stream piece by piece by the
men, who had stripped themselves naked. My companion
and I also divested ourselves of all our clothing, and began
to cross the icy stream. Where we forded it, the breadth-
must have been more than four hundred yards.' The '
depth of the water was from three to four feet, and
another danger was from the blocks of ice 'floating
down from the upper reaches, which we had to take
good care to escape, for fear of receiving serious cuts.
After hard efforts we reached the opposite shore, where,
in the warm sun, I had time enough to recover myself
from the effects of the cold water while the men
repacked the baggage on the ponies.
Once more in the saddle, we turned north-west along
the river, and after a jog of about fifteen miles we came
upon a nomad station, where seven or eight tents were
visible. We were lodged in the largest tent, the owner of
which was an elderly man named Karma. The intimation
that I had come from Alchu Lama at once secured me
most hospitable treatment from Karma. In the Karma
family I observed a very singular type of married life,
almost unique even in the wondrous land of Tibet, where
(as I will tell more in detail later on) nothing is more com-
mon than three or five brothers with one commanal wife.
In Ka^rma^s case it was quite the opposite, for he was
about fifty yea,rs old and had three wives, all living.
The eldest Mrs. Karma was about forty-seven years
of age, and blind ; the next about thirty-five, and the
third about twenty-five. Mr. Karma had a single child'
by his youngest wife. Polygamy is only very rarely
practised in Tibet, though tliere are instances of two or-
three sisters taking, or marrying, one common husband
for economy's sake. Karma's was the only instance I
came across in Tibet in which one man deliberately in-
dulged in the luxury of three wives.
14
106 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
Mr. Karma asked me to read the Sacred Books for his
family, and I readily consented, for a couple of days' rest
was not disagreeable to me. While staying with him I
bought an extra pair of boots, a precaution which I had
foolishly omitted to take before, to my great inconvenience.
I also purchased a sheep, to make it a beast of burden
for me.
On July 18th I left Karma's, with about fifty pounds of
luggage on my back and twenty-five more on that of the
sheef>. T led the sheep with a yak's tail rope tied to its
neck. The animal proved docile enough for a couple of
hundred yards, but not further. It wanted to go home,
and tried to assert its right to do so with tremendous
force. For my part, I stood on my own right, and there
ensued a tug of war between the sheep and its master,
and a very lively one it was. I argued with the animal,
adducing various proofs of my determination, among
which I may mention a rather free use of one of
my staves. But the sheep showed that he had a stronger
determination than mine, and I began to be dragged
backward. My severe exertions even threatened to cause
me some serious injury, and I finally gave in and
allowed myself to be led back to Karma's, as I had a mind
to find out the best way of managing the animal. On
my second call on him. Karma expressed his opinion
that my sheep was not yet broken sufficiently for travel-
ling purposes, and that the purchase of a better- trained
one as its companion might induce the refractory animal
to obey my will. I followed the suggestion and paid
one yen twenty-five sen for an additional sheep ; seventy
sen would have bought me a younger one, but I wanted
a fully grown and fully broken one, and I was oblige'd
to stay there that night, for all his sheep had gone to the
plains. On that very e^'ening I bought another, and tried
putting on his back one half of my share of the burden
THE Lighter side oii' THE Expeeiences. 1o7
of the morning ; this one proved to be a very good
companion to my first sheep, and things went splendidly
on the trial.
CHAPTER XIX.
The largest River of Tibet.
On the day 1 left Karma's, about three o'clock in the
afternoon 1 was overtaken by a party of men, the
leader of whom happened to be, as I afterwards found,
the chief of the district of Hor-tosho, through which
I was then travelling. They accosted me. I saw in
the glint of the chief's ej^es something that told me
that he had half a mind to suspect me. I perceived
at once the danger I might be in, and managed to
bring the conversaticjn round to the subject of Gelong Rinpo-
elie. As good luck would have it, the chief happened to
be a gieat believer in Grelong Rinpoche. Had I met the
holy man 'i Yes ! And more — I had been taught to study
the mysteries of Bodhi-iiattva and Maha-sattva, besides
having been given many valuable presents by the saintly
Teacher. All these incidents, of which I gave full particu-
lars, had the effect of completely melting away the
.-.uspicion which had almost formed in the chief's mind.
He then invited me to come to his house-tent the next
day and read the Sacred Books for him. His name was
Wangdak.
On the following day Wangdak lent me a horse and
canscd his men to look after my luggage. A ride of some-
tliing over ten miles brought me to the chief's habitation,
w licrc r found his worldly possessions quite equal to the
weighty position he held as a district chief. All went well.
The next day Wangdak caused one of his men and a horse
to accompany me for a distance of about six miles, at the
end of which the servant with the horse took leave of me,
after informing me that one night's bivouac and some
walking on a comparati\-ely easy road would bring me to
another nomad station.
I'HE LAKGEST KIVEE 01' TIBEl'. l09
In due time I reached tins station, where I found
four tents, on approaching which I was, as usual, met by a
welcome-party of dogs. I shall say no more of the canine
welcome, which is an invariable thing on arriving at a
nomad's tent. At one day's distance from the station I
was to come to Tamchok Khanbab, which forms the upper
course of the Brahmaputra, and is the greatest of Tibetan
rivers, and I needed a guide, without whom I could not
think of any attempt to cross it. Unfortunately I found
no one willing to become my guide, although I made
liberal offers of money and other things of value. I was
almost on the verge of despair, when a sickly looking
old woman came to me. She said that she was very
ill and begged me to examine her, and to tell her
when she would die ; a pleasant request, indeed ! But I
took pity on her, for I .could see that hers was a case of
consumption in its advanced stage. I granted her request,
to please her, and also gave her soine harmless medicine to
ease her mind, besides telling her how to take care of her-
self, and other things such as a good doctor would say when
he knows his patient to be in a hopeless condition, but not
likely to die immediately. The old dame was gratified be-
yond measure, and wished to give me something in return,
and she implored me to say what that something should be.
Here was my chance. I told her the plight I was in, and
asked her to secure, if possible, a C(mple of men and some
horses — say three — to take me to, and help me to cross, the
river on the morrow. Nothing could be easier ; she was
only too glad to be able to oblige so holy a Lama. When
the morrow came all was done as I had requested. It is a
general thing for a Tibetan pack-horse to carry on its back
its driver and thirty pounds more or less of baggage. In
my case the horses had an easier time of it, because my
luggage was distributed on three of them. We started at
five o'clock in the morning, and having covered about
1 10 THREE YEARS IN TlBEl'.
seventeen miles by eleven o'clock, we arrived on the
banks of the Tamchok Khanbab. Here I prepared my
noon-meal in the usual manner, and took it before crossing
the river.
This river was a mountain stream of considerable breadth,
with extensive sand-beaches on either side. The width of
the beach alone on the eastern side was about two and a
half milesj and that on the opposite side about half as
much ; the width of the stream itself, when I crossed it,
was not more than a little over a mile. It was at the
water's edge that we took oar meal. When all was ready
for crossing, I once more felt the necessity of anointing
my body, but at the same time I also felt the un desirability
of letting my guides see what I was doing. Under a
certain f)retext, therefore, I walked away from thein, and
when out of their sight I quickly finished the operation.
Then we plunged into the water. The condition of the
stream with its cuttingly cold water was much the same
as that of the Kyang-chu (except for the greater width
to be forded) and the water in some places was not more
than seven or eight inches deep ; but the sand was so
treacherous that we often sank in it right up to our hips.
In this case, as in the other, my guides took my luggage
on their backs, leaving the horses behind, and also
helped my sheep to cross. Upon ti-rra firma on the other
side, my men pointed to a gorge between two mountains
rising to the north-west, and told me that I was to go
through the gorge, and thence to Lake Manasarovara,
after traversing an uninhabited region for fifteen ov
sixteen days ; the road would take me to Manasarovara
first and then to Kang Rinpoche. I thanked my guides
for their trouble and information, and gave them each a
Rata. A kata is a small piece of thin white silk, which
Tibetans present as a compliment. It generally acciimi)anies
a present, but is also given away by itself. The men, after
THE LARGEST EIVEK OF TIBET. Ill
advising me to recite the Sacred Text from time to time, in
order that I might not be set upon and devoured by snow-
leopards, bowed their farewell and were gone, recrossing
the river.
CHAPTER XX.
Dangers begin in Earnest.
After leaving the sandy beach of the Brahmaputra
behind, about a quarter of a mile's trudging brought me
to the outer edge of another expanse of undulating plain,
the elevations here and there assuming the height of hills.
Following the ujjper course of the river to the north-west,
I saw the titanic heights of the Himalayas, rising one
above another. Here I had to pasture my sheep, and,
while taking a rest myself, I drank deep and full of the
grandeur of the scenery. The sight hei-e obtainable of
the mighty peaks covered with glittering snow from the
top to the bottom was sublime in the extreme, incompar-
ably more so than what one sees from Darjeeling or Ne-
pal. As for the Brahmaputra, it looked like a shining
streamer hung out from the bosom of a great mountain,
and waving down and across an immense, plain, till
the eyes could follow it no more. The sight gave me
an uta :
The distant clouds abont the snowy range
Pour forth the mighty Brahmaputra stream,
That darts into the farthest skies which meet
The far horizon of the distant lands.
The river in its pride majestic seems
The waving standard of the Buddha, named
Vairochana, all Nature's Brilliant Lord.
Like all the others of my production, this maj- not be
worth the name of uta. Call it a silly conceit of imagination,
if you like ; but when I made these lines, I was feel-
ing so jubilant that I could not help giving vent to my
emotion ; for, conceit or no conceit, the imagination would
have been impossible to me, had I not succeeded in pene-
trating into the untrodden wilderness of Tibet.
DANGERS BEGIN IN EARNEST. 113
The sheep had iiow finished grazing, and dividing the
burden of my luggage among the three — iriyself and the
two sheep — I started making easy jDrogress onward. I
found the country around full of pools of water, varying
in size all the way from a hundred yards to a mile or so in
circumference, and I gave it the name of Chi-ike-ga Hara —
Plain of a thousand Ponds. About four o'clock in the after-
noon I finished the day's journey by encamping near a
good-sized pond. I then went about to collect the usual
fuel, but found none, except the du^ng of tlie wild horse,
and I concluded that the neighborhood was never visited
even by yaks. The night was extremely cold, so much so
that I could not sleep at all, and the following is an uta
that occurred to me in the midst of shivering :
On these high plateaux here no sound is heard
Of man or beast, no crickets sing tlieir tunes,
The moon above, and I, her friend, below.
The following day I made about twelve miles before
noon, over a country much the same in topography.
Proceeding north-west in the afternoon, I came to the base
of a huge mountain of snow, which I could not think
of crossing. For a while I went into meditation, and
then wended my way in a direction which fortunately
proved to be the right one for my purpose, as I found out
afterwards. Right in the direction, but all wrong in other
respects, as what I have to tell will show.
As I pushed onwards, I soon came upon a region
which was quite the opposite of the country I had
traversed in its entire absence of water supply ; neither
a pool nor a brook was to be seen within the eye's range.
I continued my progress until about seven o'clock in
the evening — I had walked about twenty-seven miles, all
told, that day — but not a drop of water could I find, and
I felt as withered up as could be. As for my sheep,
there was some green grass growing for them to graze on.
15
114
THEKE YEAES IN TIBET.
NEARLY DYING OF THIRST.
I had 110 tea — in fact could not liave anj- — that evening
before I went to sleep. It is wonderful how one gets
accusLonied even to hardships ; I slept well that night.
Before sunrise the next morning, on resuming my
journey, I thought I espied a stream of water coursing
through a sandy country at a distance which I judged to
be about seven miles in the direction of my progress.
Not having had a drop of water, or anything whatever
in liquid form, since the afternoon of the previous day,
I was of course thirsty ; but novf 1 had a prospect at least
of obtaining some quenching draught, and allaying the
thirst with a pinch of liotan, now and then, I made good
headway. On reaching the supposed rivor, what was my
disappointment and dismay ! Instead of a stream of
DANGERS BEGIN IN EAENEST. 115
water, I found there the dry bed of a river, strewn with
white pebbles glittering in the sun ! Then I could not
help imagining myself to be a mere shadow, wandering
in mad quest of a soothing draught in the hot region of
the nether world, where all water turned into fire when
brought to the mouth. Once more I stood me up to my
full length, and looked round for water ; but none could
be seen, nothing but some blades of grass growing here and
there to the height of about five or six inches. I could
do nothing but endure the thirst, and wend my way on in
the direction I had chosen — north-west. After proceeding
for some distance, I once more thought that I perceived
a body of water in the midst of another desert of sand,
but on coming to the spot the glittering specks of sand once
more disillusioned me only to intensify my thirst.
CHAPTER XXI.
Overtaken by a Sand=Storm.
The tormenting thirst which I experienced after my
second disappointment simply beggars description. To
say that I felt as if my entire internal system were be-
coming parched is only to put it mildly. But, how-
ever excruciating the torture might be^ there was no help
for it after all but to move on in the hope of finding some
water ; even the hope itself was now almost deserting
me. I really felt that I should die of thirst if I should
fail to get some moisture during the rest of the day, and
were to pass another night waterless. I had been con-
stantly taking some hotan; but even that cooling fragrance
seemed to increase the distressing dryness. Thank heaven !
about eleven o'clock I came within sight of a declivity,
and somehow I felt sure that I should find some water at
its bottom. Buddha be praised ! I was right : there was
some waiter. But alas ! such water ! To take the luggage
off my back, get out a wooden bowl, and run down into
the hollow was the work of an instant. But when I
fetched out a bowlful of the vv^ater, lo and behold ! it
was vermilion red, thick and (what was worse) alive with
myriads of little creatures ! In short, it was a stagnant
pool of water, which for all I knew might have been
becoming putrid for years. Imagine how I then felt!
I was dying witli thirst, but the very look of the water
was forbidding. Then my religious scruples disallowed
my swallowing any water with living things in it. It
was not long, however, before I remembered a teaching of
the Blessed Buddha, in which the Lord telleth that when
water which is to be drunk contains living things, it
should be strained through a piece of woven stuff. I went
OVEKTAKEN BY A SAND-STOKM.
117
A SAND-STORM,
118 'I'HEBE Years in tibet.
through the process ; but the water remained red. There
were no more moving things in it, however, "and I took a
good long draught of the vermilion liquid. That quenching
draught, how delicious it was ! I imagine Grod's nectar
could not be sweeter. But a second bewlful — no, I could
not take it. In the usual manner, then, I built a fire
and went about boiling the filtered water. It was well-
nigh twelve o'clock, however, before the kettle began to
boil, and it being against my rule, as already told, to take
any meal after noon, I prepared baked flour with the red
lukewarm water. And the lunch I then took was one of
the most enjoyable I ever had in Tibet.
I had proceeded over the sandy desert for about two and
a half miles, after that memoi'able lunch, and it was now
jDast three o'clock in the afternoon, when a terrific sand-
storm arose. A sand-storm is something which one can
never experience, or form any idea of, in Japan. As
strong gust after gust of wind arose, the loose sand actually
surged into big billows, tossing, dashing, tumbling, and
sweejDing, like the angry waves of the mightj^ ocean. The
wind burrowed deep into the ground here and built high
hills of sand there, filling the air with blinding pa.rticles,
which rested in heaps on the luggage, penetrated down the
neck, and made impossible any progress forward, while to
stand still was to risk being buried alive. Not knowing
what else to do, I kept moving just to shake off the
sand, and to avoid being inhumed, while reciting in silence
some passages of the Holy Text.
Fortunately the storm lasted for only about an hour,
and it subsided with the same suddenness with which it
aiose. Then I resumed' my advance, and by about five
o'clock I reached a place grown over with creeping grass,
and low thorny bush, the leaves of which wev(^ not green
but dark to almost blackness, owing probably to the cold
climate. There I bivouacked for the night, and I had ai>
OVERTAKEN BY A SAND-STORM. 119
abundance of fuel with which to make a. fire, and after-
wai'ds thoroughl_y enjoyed my sleep, as I had not done foi-
many a night.
The next morning, after tra\-ev,sing the bush-land, I came
to the foot of a mountain which I had to climb. When
half way up the slope I saw a mountain stream flowing
across my road, and it presented a rather curious sight.
For the river, at a very short distance, broadened into a
lake, and almost described a right angle when flowing out
of this and into another basin. Afterwards I ascertained the
name of this river to be Chema-yungdung-gi-chu, 5,nd that
its waters flowed into the Brahmaputra. I shuddered at
the thought of having once more to cross an icy mountain
stream, but there was no help.
It was only nine o'clock in the morning when I reached
the Chema-yungdung-gi-chu, and I found ice quite thick
still along its banks. I waited till the ice began to melt,
and I finished the noon-meal before making a plunge into
the water, not forgetting of course the anointing process.
My intention was to make my sheep carry their shares of the
luggage across the river ; but to this proposal they
strenuously objected, probably knowing instinctively the
depth of the water. In the end I gave in, relieved the
animals of their burden, iind, leaving the luggage behind, I
led them into the water by their ropes. I tucked up my
clothes high, but the water proved to be much deeper than I
had judged ; it came up to my shoulders, and all the clothing
I had on became wet through. The sheep proved good
swimmers, and we managed to get to the other side without
any accident ; of course they might have been washed down
and drowned, but for the assistance I gave them by means
of the ropes. Once on the bank, I tied one end of the ropes
to a large boulder, and after taking off all my clothing to
get dry I, stark naked, made a second plunge and returned
for my luggage. The second crossing was comparatively
120 THEBE YEARS IN TIBET.
easy. After a rest of about half an hour, and a thorough
anointing for the second time, I made, all my baggage into
one bundle to be balanced on my head. With that acro-
batic equipment, I entered the stream for a third time. All
went well, until, in mid-stream, I lost my foothold, treading
on a slippery stone in the bottom, and, what with the
weight of the luggage on my head, and more or less ex-
haustion after the repeated wadings, I fell down into the
water, while the bundle slid off my head. I had no time
even to bring my staff into service ; all I could do was to
take firm hold of my luggage, and try to swim with one
hand ; for I was being fast carried down into deep waters.
The thought then occurred to me that, if I tried to
save my luggage, I might lose my life. But a second
thought made it plain to me that to lose my luggage
would mean surer death, because my route lay for ten
days, at least, over an uninhabited tract of wilderness,
and thus it was wiser to cling to it while life lasted.
And cling to my luggage I did, but I was rapidly losing
the power of moving my free swimming arm, and, in only
one hundred yards down the swift stream, I should be
washed into one of the lakes, whence I might never be able
to get to dry land. I should have said that the river, at
the point where I was crossing it, was a hundred and eighty
yards wide, more or less. I had now had quite a course of
ice and water — all involuntarily certainly — and a feeling
of numbness was quickly coming over me. I began to think
that it might be just as well to be drowned then as to die
of starvation afterwards. In fact, I had.si3oken my last
desire : " 0 ye ! All the Buddhas of the ten quarters, as
well as the highest Teacher of this world, Buddha Shakya-
muni! lam notable to accomplish my desires and to
return the kindness of my parents, friends, followers and
specially the favors of all the Buddhas, in this life; but I
desire that I be born again, in order to requite the favors
OVRETAKEN BY A SAKB-STOKM.
121
STRUGGLE IN THE RIVER.
which I have already received from all." At that moment,
with a thrill, I felt that the end of one of my staves had
touched something hard. In an instant courage returned to
me, and on trying to stand ujj I found that the water
was only up to my breast. I was at that time about forty
yards from the bank 1 had started for. Feeble as I was, with
recovered strength I finally managed to reach the " shore
of salvation". As for the luggage, heavy with the soaking
water, it was impossible for me to rebalance it on mj head,
and I pulled it along after me in the water ; but when
I at last got upon the bank, it taxed all my remaining
energy to drag it out after me. Arrived on the bank, I
found that I had been carried more than two hundred
and fifty yards down the stream from the point whence I
started to cross it, and I saw my sheep leisurely grazing,
perfectly unconscious of their master's sad plight. I had
no strength, then, even to crawl up to where my sheep were.
My fingers were stifP and immovaljje, and I rqbbed the
16
122 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
regions over my heart and lungs with closed fists. After
an hour's exercise of this kind; 1 more or less recovered the
circulation of blood in my limbs, and I was just able
partially to undo my baggage and to take out hotan — hotan,
my life-saving hotan, which Mrs. Ichibei Watanabe of
Osaka gave me, when bidding me farewell. A dose of
hotan sent me into a fit of convulsions, which lasted for
nearly three hours. It was now past five o'clock, and the
sun was going down. The convulsions had almost left me.
I then made two bundles of my luggage, and in two
crawling trips I carried them to where I had left my sheep
grazing. It was then that I thought of an ancient
ipethod of torture, called Oi-ishi, which consisted in
making a suspect cany on his back an extremely heavy
load — so rackingl)' heavy I then felt to be the weight of
my divided luggage. That evening I had neither courage
nor energy to make any fire, and I passed the night
wrapped up in my half-wet tuk-titk. The luggagt.
having been done up in hides and skins, the water had not
penetrated much into it, and I was thus able to go to
sleep dressed, and protected in partially dry apparel.
CHAPTER XXII.
22,650 Feet above Sea=level.
The sun shone out brightly the next morning, and I
dried my clothing and the collection I then had of the
sacred Scriptures. The latter I still have in my possession,
and every time I take them out, I cannot help wondering
how my life was spared when those things got wet. By
one o'clock in the afternoon I was ready to proceed, al-
though I had not half recovered from the effect of my ex-
perience of the day before, and my things were far from
being dry. Consequently even my own share of the lug-
gage proved heavier than before, while circumstances com-
pelled me to relieve my sheep of a part of theirs. To make
things worse, I had managed to get a painful cut on one of
my feet during my last effort to cross the Chema-yungdung-
gi-chu, and altogether it was an inauspicious start which
I made on that afternoon. After all, however, a step for-
ward meant a step nearer to my destination^ and with that
philosophical reasoning I dragged myself onward. In
that way I hud proceeded for aV)out five miles, when, to
increase my difficulties, snow began to fall thick and fast.
When I had arrived near a small pond and stopped to
bivouac for the night, fire and tea were entirely out of
the question, for the elements were now engaged in a fear-
ful strife — the dazzling lightning, the deafening thunder,
the shrieking wind and the blinding blizzard were at war
all at once. That which I had managed to dry tolerably
the day before became thoroughly wet again,, and the
whole of the following morning was spent in repeating
the process of the preceding mornin§^. No fire was
obtainable even then, and consequently no tea ; so I allayed
my hunger with some raisins before resuming my journey
124 THREE YEARS IN TIBE'i'.
shortly after noon. And little I dreamt of the danger
that was in store for me that afternoon and the day
following.
I was still heading for the north-west, and in order to
adhere to that course I must now climb a snow-clad
peak towering into the sky ; I saw no way of a^'oiding the
task, and encouraged by an uncertain hope — still a hope —
of emerging upon or near Kang Rinpoche, or in the neigh-
borhood of Mount Kailiisa, I, began the ascent of that great
hill, which I afterward ascertained to be a peak called Kon
G-yu-i Kangri, that I'ises twenty -two thousand six hundred
and fifty feet above sea-level. JBy five o'clock in the after-
noon I had made an ascent of about ten miles, and then it
began to snow and to blow a gale. I thought it dangerous
to continue ni}- ascent under these conditions, and turning
first north and then east, I essayed to make a rapid
descent. The sun had now gone down, and snow was
falling faster than ever. But I had not yet found a shelter
and so continued my descent, having made up my mind to go
on until I found a hospitable shelving cliff, or some such
haven. It was, however, nothing but snow, snow, every-
where and all around — and presently there were twelve
inches on the ground. B)- and by ni}- sheep refused
to proceed further, whether owing to hunger or not I
could not tell, though it was plain that they had not fed
the whole afternoon, because of the snow. At first I
succeeded in getting them to move on a little as the
result of some physical reasoning, but presently even that
process of pleading failed. But the prospect of being
frozen to death prevented me from yielding to their not
unreasonable obstinacy ; and put-ting all my strength into
the rope's I dragged them onward. 'J'he poor animnls
reluctsnitly obeyed me nnd walked on for about a hundred
yards, at the enfl of which, liowever, they came to a dead
stop and bfgan to breathe heavily, Tbereujion J felt
22,6o0 FEET ABOVE SEA-LEVEL.
125
MEDITATING IN FACE OF DEATH.
126 thKee yeaks in tiBbi'.
no little alarnij thinking that the animals might die that
night. But what could I do ? I knew that I was manj^ a
days' journey at least from the nearest human habitation.
A few more miles either way would not make much
difference: so let fate decide. Once in that frame of mind,
I took out my night-coverings and wrapped myself up
and, protecting my head with a water-proof coat, I sat
myself down between my two sheep, with the determina-'^
tion to pass the night in religious meditation.
My poor sheep ! They crept close to me and lay there
in the snow, emitting occasionally their gentle cry, which
I thought had never sounded sadder. Nor had I ever felt
so lonely as I did then. "Wrapj)ed up in the clumsy
manner that I have described, I still managed to smear
over my body the clove-oil, which seemed to prevent to
some extent the radiation of . the heat of the body, and I
began to feel considerably warmer than I had been before.
For all that, the cold increased in intensity after mid-
night, and I began to feel that my power of sensation
was gradually deserting me. I seemed to be in a trance,
and vaguely thought that that must be the feeling of a
man on the point of death.
CHAPTER XXIII.
I survive a Sleep in the Snow.
I was now wandering in a dream-land, if I may so
describe the mental condition of a man half-way on the
road of being frozen to death. Regret, resignation, and
the hope of re-birth took turns in my mind, and then all
became a blank. During that blankness I no doubt
looked exactly like a dead person. Suddenly I awoke,
fancying that somebody, something, was stirring about
me or near me. I opened my eyes, and saw the two sheep
shaking themselves ; thej- were shaking snow off their
bodies. That was strange, I di'eamily thought. I saw
the sheep finish shaking off the snow, and I wanted to
shake it off too. But I could not. I was rigid all over.
Mechanically I next endeavored to recover the use of my
]imbs. Presently I became more myself mentally, and I
saw the skies still presenting a dismal and threatening
appearance, the immense patches of black, black cloud
still fleeing ov pursuing, and the sun struggling to force
his life-giving rays between the intervals of the hurry-
ing vapors. On taking out my watch I found that it
was then half past ten — of what morning I could not
tell. Had I slept only one night, or two in the snow ?
The question was more than I could just then solve. Nor
did I feel that there was any necessity for its instant
solution. My immediate desire was for nourishment, and
I took some baked flour, helping it down with snow. I
gave some also to my sheep, which, by that time, had
learnt to feed themselves on flour when green grass was
lacking.
I felt that the condition of my health was not equal to
the task of making a second attempt to climb over the
128 THREB YBAES IN TIBET.
Kon Gju-i Kangri, and I continued the descent when 1
resumed iny journey, with the intention of taking a long
rest at the foot of the mountain. After poing down more
tha,!! Hv-e miles I came to another mountain stream, and
at the same time down again came the snow. I almost
trembled at a prospect of spending another perilous
night in the snow. Just at that juncture I heard
some clear, ringing sounds, as of a bird's cry. Turning
round, I saw seven or eight cranes stalking along
majestically in the shallow part of the river. Never
before had I seen a sight so poetically picturesque, so
representative of antique serenity. Some little time after-
wards I composed an utn in memory of that enchanting
scene :
Like feathers white the snows fall down and lie
There on the monntain-river's sandj banks ;
Ko-kow, Ko-kow ! sounds strange — a melody
I hear — I search around for this strange cry.
In quiet majesty those moimtain cranes
I find, are proudly strutting — singing thus.
The river was about one hu.ndred and twenty yards wide,
and crossing it, I still proceeded down the incline. I had
now come to the bottom of a valley, and I saw at a distance
what I took for a herd of yaks. But I had before been
deceived quite often by exposed boulders and rocks which
I had taken for yaks, and I was doubtful of my vision on
that occasion. But presently I saw the dark objects
moving about, and I was sure that they were yaks. The
discovery, wholly unexpected as it was, was delightful, for
their presence implied that of some fellow-creatures in
the neighborhood. Coming up to the spot, I found that the
herd consisted of about sixty yaks, atteiided by some
herdsmen. On my questioning the men, they informed me
that they had arrived at the spot the evening before, and
that a little further on I should come upon a little camp
of four tents. .Towards these I forthwith directed my steps.
I SURVIVE A KLEEF IN THE SNOW. 129
My arrival in front of one of the tents was^ as usual,
hailed by a pack of barking dogs. I begged the occupants
of the first tent for a night's K)dging, but met with a flat
refusal. Probably my ajjpearance was against me : 1
had not shaved for two montlis, and my unkempt hair and
beard no doubt made me look wild, while under-feeding
and general exhaustion cannot have improved my features.
Still I pleaded for charity, but in vain. Dejectedly I
moved to a second tent, but there too I received no better
treatment. In fact the treatment was worse : for my
urgent pleading, with a detailed account of my sufferings
during the previous eight days or so, only seemed to
make the master of the tent turn colder, even to the
extent of finally charging me with an intention to rob
him. That was enough. I turned away, and a great
sadness came over me as I stood in the snow. My
sheep bleated pitifully, and I felt like crying myself. A
third tent stood near, but I could not muster courage enough
to repeat my request there. The sight of my sheep was
melancholy in the extreme, and with an effort I made an
appeal at the fourth and last tent. To my great joj^, I
met a ready welcome. I was utterly tired out, but a quiet
rest near a comfortable fire made me imagine the joys of
paradise, and this I was allowed to enjoy all that evening
and through the next day. During that stay I occupied
my time in writing down the twenty-.six desires which I
had formulated, with the hope of their accomplishment
proving helpful to the^ spiritual need of others as well as
myself.
At five o'clock on the second morning I thanked my
host for his hospitality and left him. I now proceeded due
north and, after trudging over snow for nearly ten miles, I
came out upon a more or less grass-covered plain. By
noon I had arrived near a pond, and there took my mid-
day meal. A survey from that point showed me that I had
17
130 THEKE YEARS IN TIBET.
to cross a sandy desert, wliich appeared to be larger hi
extent than the one I had traversed after crossing the
Chema Yungdung. The thought of another sand-stor»
gave me new enwgy, born of fear, and I made no halt until
I had walked quite out of the desert.
CHAPTER XXIV.
' Bon ' and ' Kyang.'
I walked about five miles over the sand and then reached
a piece of grass-land. Beyond this I came to a plain of
stones of curious shapes, in the centre of whicli a solitary
mountain rose to a considerable height. I subsequent!}'
learned that the mountain was the sacred abode of the
deities of the Bon religion. Bonism is an ancient religion
of Tibet, which commanded considerable influence before
the introduction of Buddhism into that country. It has
still some adherents, but it continues to exist only for
its name's sake. Originally Bonism very much resembled
Hinduism ; but now, in theory, it is almost Buddhism. This
similarity is e-\plaiiied in this way. When it was superseded
by Buddhism, a certain Bon priest recast his religion after
the pattern of Buddhism, and called the revised product
the New Bonism. Without attempting to give any special"
particulars of its doctrines, I may say that the New
Bonism, when shorn of its sacrifices, its toleration of marri-
age and of the use of intoxicants, is only Buddhism
under another name. The Bon deities have no shrines
or temples dedicated to them, and are believed to inhabit
some particular mountain, or snowy peak, or pond, or lake.
And it was upon one of these divine abodes that I had
chanced, but lacking at the time all knowledge of Bonism,
my attention was soon diverted by coming in sight of a
couple of kyangn.
As I have already said, kyang is the name given by the
Tibetans to the wild horse of their northern steppes.
More accurately it is a species of ass, quite as large in size
as a large Japanese horse. In color it is reddish brown,
Avith black hair on the ridge of the back and black mane
132
THKEE VlSAliS IN 'rjJiKf.
A LUDICROUS RACE,
'bon' and 'kyang.' 133
and with the belly white. To all ai^pearance it is an
ordiuaiy horse, except for its tufted tail. It is a powerful
animal, and is extraordinarily fleet. It is never seen
singly, but always in twos or threes, if not in a herd of
sixty or seventy. Its scientific name is Equns hemioni.s,
but it is for the most part called by its Tibetan name,
which is usually spelt kyang in English. It has a curious
habit of turning round and round, when it comes within
seeing distance of a man. Even a mile and a quarter
away,it will commence this turning round at every short stage
of its approach, ixnd after each turn it will stop for a while,
to look at the man over its own back, like a fox.
Ultimately it comes up quite close. When quite near it
will look scared, and at the slightest thing will wheel round
and dash away, but only to stop and look back. When
one thinks that it has run far away, it will be found that
it has circled back quite near, to take, as it were, a silent
survey of the stranger from behind. Altogether it is an
animal of very queer habits.
But to come back to my story : my two sheep, apparent-
ly frightened by the approach of the rotating horses, made
a dash for freedom with such suddenness and simultaneity
that I lost my hold of the two ropes ; I then proceeded
to run a race with them, in a frantic effort to recapture
them. And a ludicrous race it was, in which I finally
fell panting and giddy. While it lasted the horses seemed
thoroughly to enjoy it, and getting into the spirit of the
thing they galloped with me, but only to chase my sheep
further away from me. When I lay prostrate, the
sheep stopped running and began quietly to graze. The
horses also stopped, and appeared quite astonished
at the whole performance. I then perceived my
blunder. On rising, I (juietly walked up to my sheep, and
without a movement they allowed me to regain their
ropes.
134 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
All is well that ends well. But on that occasion one
thing was not quite satisfactory, for I soon discovered that
one of my sheep had lost a part of my luggage from its
back, no doubt during that memorable race. I then set
out to hunt after the lost bundle; but it was all useless,
for we had not run the race over any regular course, and
it was impossible to follow our footsteps. One may as
well look for a parcel lost in the sea, as try to hunt up a
small bundle, lying hidden under grass and leaves, some-
where in an immense plain. Besides, I argued with
mj'self thus : the missing bundle contained some fifty
rupees in cash, my watch and compass, and an assortment
of western trinkets ; it would have been better not
to lose the money, certainly, but it was, after all, a
small portion of what I had with me, and I could do well
without it. It was hard to part with the watch arid the
compass, and the trinkets would have been of service in
making friends with the simple natives ; but, looked at from
another point of view, the possession of these things might
arouse the suspicion of the more intelligent Tibetans, and
it was most likely that the Lord Buddha, in His wisdom
and mercy, had caused me to be rid of them. Arriving at
this conclusion, I gave up my search in a spirit of meek
resignation.
CHAPTER XXV.
The Power of Buddhism.
I had now walked about six miles to the north-west
after the singular proceedings which I described in the last
chapter, and I emerged upon a well-trodden road, which
on consulting' my store of information I was able to
identify as the path that, deviating from the Tibetan
national high-way, led to lake Manasaxovara. The dis-
covery was as unexpected as it was pleasing, for I was
now within a pilgrim-frequented zone. A few more steps,
indeed, brought me in sight of a dark tent, standing on
the banks of a large river, named Ganga by the Tibetans,
where my appeal for a night's lodging was cheerfully
granted. I found the occupants of the tent to consist
of three men and two women, the men being brothers,
one of the women the wife of the eldest brother, and
the other a daughter of another of the brothers. My
first inclination on being received into the tent was to
feel easy in mind, for I had been told that parties com-
prising women, even in Tibetan wilds, seldom commit
murder. But when I was informed that these people were
from Dam Grya-sho, I thought I was rather hasty in feeling
so secure, for that country, like the neighboring one of
Kham, is noted for its production of professional robbers
and murderers. I had heard before that they had even
such a saying in that country as : "No murder, no food;
no pilgrimage, no absolution. On ! onward on your
pilgrimage, killing men and visiting temples, killing men
and visiting temples ! " Even women of that country, I had
been told, think no more of committing homicide than
of killing a sheep. These reflexions did not bring much
cheer to my heart ; but what could I do, since I was now
136 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
in their hands ? I could only bide my time. Fortunately,
they did not butcher me that night.
Early on Augast 3rd, that is to say, on the morning of
the following day, I proceeded in a north-westerly
direction along the great stream, with my newly-made
companions, for such had the occupants of the tent become,
as they were heading for the same temporary destination
as myself. This river, I ascertained, had its rise in one
of the snowy peaks that I saw to- the south-east, and
emptied its waters into Lake Manasarovara. I judged it
to be about two hundred and fifty yards wide and fairly
deep. Following the stream for about three and three-
quarters miles and then making an ascent, we came to a
clear, babbling spring, which went by the name of Chumik
Ganga or the source of the G-ahga, and we drank deep of the
sacred water. Then we continued our climb, now facing
north, and arrived at another spring, which was welling
up in a most picturesque way from under an immense
slab of white marble. The natives call it Chumik thong-ga
Rangchung, or the fountain of joy, and it really made one's
heart glad to look at the crystal-like water gushing vip in
all its purity. Both these springs are regarded by the
Hindus, as by the Tibetans, as forming the sources of the
sacred Ganga, and are both looked up to with religious
reverence.
After leaving the springs, we proceeded north-west again,
and came once more to the river Ganga, which we forded at
the point where it was at its broadest in that vicinity,
and passed the night on its banks. We had travelled only
about nine miles that day. From the place of our bivouac
I saw to the north-west a great snow-clad mountain : it
was the Kang Rinpoche of Tibet, the Mount Kailasa of
the Hindu. Its ancient name was Kang Tise. As far as my
knowledge goes, it is the most ideal of the snow-peaks of
all the Himalayas. It inspired me with the profoundest
THE POWER OF BUDDHISM. 137
feelings of pure reverence, and I looked up to it as a
' natural mandala/ the mansion of a Buddha and
Bodhisattvas. Filled with soul-stirring thoughts and
fancies I addressed myself to this sacred pillar of nature,
confessed my sins, and performed to it the obeisance of
one hundred and eight bows. I also took out the
manuscript of my ' twenty-six desires,'' and pledged their
accomplishment to the Buddha. I then considered myself
the luckiest of men, to have thus been enabled to worship
such a holy emblen\ of Buddha's power, and to vow such
vows in its sacred presence, and I mused :
Wliate'er my sufferings here and dangers dire,
Whate'er befalls me on my onward march,
All, all, I feel, is for the common good
For others treading on Salvation's path.
The sight of my performance of these devotional
practices must have been a matter of wonder and mystery
to my companions. They had been watching me like
gaping and astonished children, and were all intensely
curious to know why I had bowed so manj^ times, and
read out such strange Chinese sentences. I was glad to
explain to them the general meaning of my conduct
and thej' seemed to be deeply struck with its signi-
ficance. They said that they had never known that
the Chinese Lamas were men of such Bodhisattvic
mind ! The upshot was that they asked me to preach
to them that night, a request to which I was very
glad to accede. The preaching which followed, which
I purposely made as simple and as appealing to the
heart as possible, seeined to alfect them profoundly, and to
make the best possible impression on them ; so much so that
they even shed tears of joy. The preaching over, they said
in all sincerity that they were glad of my companionship, and
even offered to regard me as their guest during the two
months which they intended to spend in pilgrimage to and
round the Kang Rinpoche. They thought that their
18
138 THREE YEAKS IIST TIBET.
pilgrimage over such holy ground, while Serving such a
holy man as I now was to them, would absolve them
completely from their sins. Imagine the state of my mind
then ! These were of the people who took other men's lives
with the same equanimity with which they cut their
vegetables ; yet, touched now by the light of Buddhism,
their minds had softened. I blessed the power of Buddh-
ism more tliau ever, and could not hold back my tears as
my companions shed theirs.
CHAPTER XXVI.
Sacred Manasarovara and its Legends.
It was now August 4th. After proceeding about ten
miles over an undulating range of mountains we came
in sight of Man-ri, a peak of perpetual snow, which
has an altitude of 2-5,600 feet above the sea-level. 'J'he
view of Man-ri, rising majestically high above the sur-
rounding mountains (themselves of great elevation) was
sublimely grand. While standing absorbed in the
severe magnificence of the scenery, I was treated to
another experience, which was as soul-stirring as any
earthly phenomenon could be. A magical change in the
weather was heralded by a sudden Hash of light-
ning, followed by anothei-, yet another and another,
now accompanied by rolling thunder. Heavy pelting
hail-stones then joined in the war of elements, which
literally shook the rnighty mountains to their very founda-
tions, and filled the air with the utmost confusion of
terrific noises and lurid tongues of fire. Standing almost
alone upon a great height, I saw black clouds with fearful
suddenness envelope the world of vision in frightful
darkness, made doubly dark by the contrasts produced by
the momentary glare of pale, penetrating lightning, which,
in the same instant, revealed the glittering snow on the
grand peaks of the Hi}nalaj'as, and the deepest chasms,
thousands of fathoms below !
The awe-inspiring scene lasted for about an hour, and then,
with equally wondrous suddenness, the sky became blue and
the sun shone forth, serene and calm, with not a whisjser of
wind to remind one of the mighty commotions of the moment
before. We did but little walking after this wonderful sight,
and, coming to the edge of a marsh-like j^ond, we pitched
140
THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
our tent there for the night. I was now the guest of my
companions, and I was not sorry that I had nothing to do
with gathering the yak dung, or fetching water, and
building the fire. 1 was given the seat of honor in the tent,
and nothing was exacted of me but to sit down like a good
priest, read the Sacred Text and then preach in the evening.
^^^^-^ J^^ ^^^
LAKE MANASAROVARA.
On the 6th of August we had to go up a great slope
of extremely sharp inclination, and I was offered a ride on
one of my companions' yaks, an offer which I readily
accepted with entire satisfaction. Furthermore, all my
share of the luggage, as well as part of the burdens of my
sheep, was transferred to the back of one of my fellow-
pilgrims, and both myself and my original companions had
altogether an easy time of it, as was the case through the
weeks that followed.
About thirteen miles onwards a view opened before us
which I shall never forget, so exquisitely grand was the
scenery. In short, we were now in the presence of the
SACRED MAnASAROVAEA AND ITS LEGENDS. l4l
sacred Lake Manasai'ovara. A huge octagon in shape,
with marvellously symmetrical indentations, Lake Milnasa-
rovara, with its clear placid waters, and the mighty
Mount Kailasa guarding its north-western corner, form
a picture which is at once unique and sublime, and well
worthy of its dignified surroundings — calm, dustless and
rugged. Mount Kailasa itself towers so majestically
above the peaks around, that I fancied I saw in it the
image of our mighty Lord Buddha, calmly addressing His
five hundred disciples. Verily, verily, it was a natural
mandala. The hunger and thirst, the perils, of dashing
stream and>freezing blizzard, the pain of writhing under
heavy burdens, the anxiety of wandering over trackless
wilds, the exhaustion and the lacerations, all the troubles
and sufferings I had just come through, seemed
like dust, which was washed away and purified by the
spiritual waters of the lake ; and thus I attained to the
spiritual plane of Non-Ego, together with this scenery
showing Its-own-Reality.
Lake Manasarovara is generally recognised as the high-
est body of fresh water in the world, its elevation above the
sea-level being something over fifteen thousand five
hundred feet. In Tibetan it is called Mapham Yum-tso.
It is the Anavatapta of Samskrt (the lake without heat
or trouble) and in it centre many of the Buddhistic
legends. It is this Anavatapta which forms the subject
of the famous poetical passage in the Gospel of Kegon,
named in Japanese and in Samskrt Arija-Buddha-Aratan-
saka-ndma Mahdvaipidya-Sf'trn. The passage gives the
name of South Zenbu to a certain continent of the world.
Zenhu is a deflection of jamh, a phonetic translation of
the sound produced by anything of weight falling into
placid water. Now the legend has it that in the centre
of the Anavatapta is a tree which bears fruits that ai'e
omnipotent in healing all human ills, and are conse-
142 THREE VBAES IN TIBB'l'.
quently much sought after both by Gods and men. When
one of these fruits falls into the pond it produces the sound
jamb. Further, it is said that the lake has four outlets for
its waters, which are respectively called Mabcha Khanbab
(flowing out of a peacock's mouth), Langchen Khanbab
(flowing out of a bull's mouth), Tamohok Khanbab (flowing
out of a horse's mouth), and Senge Khanbab (flowing out of a
lion's mouth), which respectively form the sources of
the four sacred rivers of India. It is from these notions
that the sacredness of the Anavatapta is evolved, the name of
Zenbu derived, and the religious relations between Tibet
and India established. As regards these four rivers, the
legend says : "The sands of silver are in the south river;
the sands of gold are in the west river ; the sands of diamond
are in the north river, and the sands of emerald are in
the east river." These rivers are further said each to
circle seven times round the lake and then to take the
several directions indicated. It is said also that giant
lotus flowers bloom in the lake, the size of which is as large
as those of the paradise of the Buddlia Amitabha, and the
Buddha and Bodhisattvas are seen there sitting on those
flowers, while in the surrounding mountains are found
the ' hundred herbs,' and also the birds of paradise singing
their celestial melodies. In short, Anavatapta is described
to be the only real paradise on earth, with a living Buddha
and five hundred saints inhabiting Mount Kailasa on
its north-west, and five hundred immortals making their
home on Man-ri, that rises on its southern shore, all
enjoying eternal beatitude.
Reading that magnificent description, I believe that
anybody would desire to see the spot; but the things
mentioned in the Scriptures cannot be seen with our
mortal eyes. The real thing is the region in its wonder-
fully inspiring character, and an unutterably holy
elevation is to be felt there. On that night the brilliant
SACRED MANASAROVAKA AND ITS LEGENDS. 143
moon was shining in the sky and was reflected on the
lake, and Mount Kailasa appeared dimly on the opposite
bank. These impelled me to compose an uta :
Among- these mountains high here sleeps the lake
Serene — " Devoid of seething cares " — so named
By native bards ; its broad expanse appears
Like the octagonal mirror oi: Japan.
The grand Kailas' majestic capped with snow,
The JVIoon o'erhanging from the skies above,
Bestow their grateful shadows on the lake.
Its watery brilliant sheen illumines me ;
All pangs of pain and sorrow washed away.
With these my mind besoothed now wanders far
E'en to Akashi in Japan, my home,
A seashore known for moonlight splendors fair.
CHAPTER XXVII.
Bartering in Tibet.
The origin of the four rivers is given in the story just at
I have related it ; but in realitj' there is not one of them
that actually flows directly out of the Lake. They have
their sources in the mountains which surround it, and the
stories about the so-called ' Horse's ' and ' Lion's ' mouths
are only legends, incapable of verification. The head-waters
of the Langohen Khanbab flow in a westerly direction;
those of the Mabcha Khanbab to the south ; the sources of
the Senge Khanbab may be ascertained with tolerable
accuracy ; but those of the Tamchok Khanbab have hitherto
defied investigation. In India, the river that flows from the
Lake in an easterly direction is known as the Brahma-
putra, while the one that issues towards the south is the
Ganga. The Sitlej flows away to the west, and the Sita,
or Indus, towards the north. It is, of course, possible that
actual surveys of Lake Manasarovara have been made by
European travellers, but in all the maps that I have seen
it is represented as being far smaller than it actually is.
It is, in truth, a very large body of fresh water, and has a
circumference of some eighty ri, or about two hundred
miles. The shape of the lake also, as it appears in the
maps, is misleading. It is in reality a fairlj- regular octa-
gon with various indentations, very much resembling a
lotus-flower in shape. All the western maps, as far as
I know, give the student an idea of the Lake which is in
many respects misleading.
I arrived that night at a Buddhist Temple known as
Tse-ko-lo, on the shores of Lake Manasarovara, and
in the evening heard from my host, the superior of the
BARTERING IN TIBET. 145
Temple, a story which surprised me greatly. This Lama,
I should say, was a man of about fifty-five years of ao-e ;
he was extremely ignorant, but did not seem to be a man
who would lie for the mere pleasure of lying. He was very
anxious to hear about the state of Buddhism in China (the
reader will remember that I was supposed to be a Chinese,
Lama) and the readiness with which I answered his
questions warmed his heart and encouraged him to treat
me to the following story. He did not know, he said,
how it might be with the priests in China, but for himself
he could not help feeling at times thoroughly disgusted
with his brethren in Tibet. In the immediate vicinity, for
instance, an ordinary priest might, he said, indulge himself
in all manner of excesses with impunity, and without
attracting much attention, and from time to time cases
would arise of extreme depravity in a Lama. For instance,
there was the case of Alchu Tulku, a Lama supposed to
be an incarnation of Alchu, who had at one time been in
charge of a well-known temple in the vicinity of Lake
Manasarovara. This Lama became so infatuated with a
beautiful woman whom he took to himself as his wife
that he was betrayed into transferring the greater part of
the temple property as a gift to her father; and not
content with that crime he afterwards absconded from the
temple, taking with him his wife, and everything that he
could cai'ry away that was left of value in the temple. He
had heard rumors that this recreant priest was living
openly with his wife at Hor-tosho, and he asked me if I had
not heard anything about him when I was passing through
the place.
The reader will be able to appreciate my astonishment
when I tell him that this absconding, dishonest priest was
none other than he who had induced the belle of
the place to treat me with so much kindness ! Truly men
are not always what they seem to be.
19
146 THEEB YBAES IN TIBET.
I did not conceal my astonishment from my host, but
related to him all the circumstances that had brought
me v/ithin the reach of their kind hospitalities, but he only
smiled at what I told him.
" Ah ! to be sure," he said, "that's just like the man;
gentle and lovable in outM^ard demeanor, but at heart
an arch-sinner, a very devil incarnate, destroyer of the
faith."
It was a sad revelation to me. I had had every reason
to be grateful to the man and his wife for their hospitalities
and I could have wept to think that hypocrites of so black
a dye should be found amongst the followers of Buddha.
It was at least a comfort to think that things in Japan were
brighter than this.
The next morning I took a walk along the Lake, lost in
admiration of the magnificent mountain scenery that
surrounded me on all sides, and presently came across
some Hindus and Nepalese, apparently Brahmana devotees,
who had plunged into the Lake — it was about ten o'clock —
and were engaged in the performance of their religious
ceremonies. To the followers of the Hindu religion. Lake
Manasarovara is a sacred sheet of water, and they worship
Mount Kailasa, which rises sky-high above the lake, as
being a material manifestation of the sacred Body of Maha-
Shiva, one of the deities of the Indian Ti'inity. When they
saw me, they considered me to be a holy Buddhist Lama,
and pressed me to accept from them presents consisting
of manj' kinds of dried fruits.
I spent the next night at the same temple, and on the
following morning made my way to the range of mountains
that stands like a great wall to the north-west of the Lake.
A zigzag climb of ten miles or so brought me within view of
Lake Lakgal-tso, in Tibetfjn, or, as it is more commonly
called, Rakas-tal. It is in shape something like a long
cahibash, and in area smaller than Manasarovara. Awither
JSAETERlNG IN TIBET. 14V
seven and a half miles brought me to a spot whence I
could see the whole of its surface, and here I made a further
disco ver)'. A mountain^ some two and a half miles round
at the base, stands like a wall of partition between tlie
two lakes, and where this mountain slopes into a ravine
it looks, for all the world, as though there were a channel
of communication for the water from one lake to the
other. I found, however, that there was actually no
such channel, but I discovered that the level of Lake
Lakgal is higher than that of Manasarovara, and I was
subsequently told that, on rare occasions, every ten or
fifteen years, after phenomenally heavy rains, the waters
of the two lakes do actually become c(ninected, and that at
such times Lake Lakgal flows into Manasarovara. Hence
arises the Tibetan legend that every fifteen years or so
Lakgal, the bridegroom, goes to visit Manasarovara, the
bride. This will account for the statements of the guide-
books to Kang Tise and Mount Kailasa that the relations
between the two lakes are those of husband and wife.
Keeping Lake Lakgal in view, I now proceeded easily
down hill for some thirteen miles or so, until I arrived at a
plain through which I found a large river flowing. The
I'iver was over sixty feet wide, and was known as the
Mabcha Khanbab, one of the tributary sources of the
G-anga. It is this river that, further south, flows through
the city of Purang on the borders of India and Tibet, and
then, after winding through many a defile and cafion of
the Himsllayas, eventually joins the main stream of the
G-anga flowing from Haldahal. Modern Hindiis revere the
Haldahal branch as being the main stream of their sacred
River, but in ancient times it was mostly this Mabcha
Khanbab that was considered t(j be the principal source.
On the banks of this river we pitched our tent for the
night. In the neighborhood I f(jund four or five similar
encampments, occupied by traders from Purang. Great
148 THEEE YEARS IN TlBEl'.
numbers of nomads and pilgrims come to this place in July
and August of every year, and at these times, a very brisk
trade takes place which presents many curious and
interesting features.
Tibet is still in the barter stage, and very little money
: is used in trade. The people from the interior bring butter,
marsh-salt, wool, sheep, goats, and yaks' tails, which they
exchange for corn, cotton, sugar and cloth, which are im-
ported from India by Nepalese and Tibetans, living in the
region of perennial snow on the Indian frontier. But some-
times, especially in selling wool and butter, they will take
money, generally Indian currency, the reckoning of which is
a great mystery to them. Ignorant of arithmetic andpossess-
ing no abacus to count with, they have to do all their reckon-
ing with the beads of a rosary. In order to add five and two,
they count first five and then two beads on the string,
and then count the whole number thus produced to make
sure that the total is really seven. It is a very tedious
process, but they are incapable of anything better. They
cannot do calculations without their beads, and they seem
to be too dense to grasp the simplest sum in arithmetic.
Thus business is always slow : when it comes to larger deals,
involving several kinds of goods and varying prices, it is
almost distractingly complicated.
For such calculations they ann themselves with all sorts
of aids, black pebbles, white pebbles, bamboo sticks, and
white shells. Each white pebble represents a unit of one ;
when they have counted ten of these they take them away,
and substitute a black pebble, which means ten. Ten
black pebbles are equivalent to one bamboo stick) ten
bamboo sticks to one shell, ten shells to the Tibetan silver
coin. But there is no nuiltiplication or division; everything
is done by the extremely slow jirocess of adding one at a
time, so that it will take a Tibetan three days to do what a
Japanese could do in half an hour. This is no exaggera-
BAKTEKING IW TIBET. 149
tion. I stayed on the banks of this river for three whole
days and watched the traders doing their business, and I
saw the whole painful tediousness of the transaction.
These three days were memorable for another reason.
The pilgrims who had come with me became such warm
admirers of my supposed virtues and sang my praises with
so much fervor that a pilgrim girl fell in love with me.
CHAPTER XXVIII.
A Himalayan Romance.
I was still ill the company of the party of pilgrims I have
already referred to. It appeared that some of the party
had come to form a rather high opinion of me as a person
of reverend qualities. Among them was a young damsel
who, it was not difficult to perceive, had conceived a
passion for me. The moment the thought dawned on me,
I said to myself : " It may be ; it is nothing uncommon,
rather is it quite usual for women to cherish vain thoughts.
She must have heard her elders talking well of me, and
have taken a fancy to me." I at once set about raising, a
barrier between us, which was lione other than the teach-
ing of our common Buddhism. When occasion allowed, I
explained to her all about the vows with which all true
priests bind themselves and why they do so. I depicted to
her the horrors of hell that sinners create for themselves
even in this world, and which follow them into eternity as
the price they pay for momentary pleasures. These things
I taught, not only to the girl but to the whole party. For
all that, I could not help pitying the little innocent thing. A
maiden of nineteen, with few or no restraints on her
romantic fancies, she must have thought it a grand thing to
be able to go back to her folk with a bride-groom of whom
all spoke so well. She was not beautiful, and yet not
ugly : a comely little thing was she. But I, though not old,
had had my own experiences in these matters in my
younger days, and I was able to conquer temptations.
Here I may stop to observe that the country through
which we were travelling is called Ngari hi Tibetan and
Ari in Chinese. The region is an extensive one, and
includes Ladak and Khunu.
A ITIMALAYAN ROMANCE.
151
RELIGION V. LOVE.
Purang, of Avhich mentio]i has been made more than once,
is its central mart and enjoys great prosjDCi-ity, though hicated
rather to the south. Purang also forms a mid-Himalayan
post of great religious importance as a sacred spot for
Buddhist pilgrims. The town boasts, or rather boasted, of
its possession of three Buddhist images of great renown
— those of the Bodhisattva Mahasattvas Manjushri,
Avalokiteshvara and Yajrapani. According to tradition
these were brought thither from Ceylon in olden times.
Unfortunately about six months prior to my arrival in
N'gari a big fire broke out and destroyed two of
these idols, the image of Manjushri alone being saved.
Mvich as I wished to visit Purang, I was apprehensive
of many dangers to my impersonation if I went thither,
]52 THKKK YiSARS IN TIBJCT;
as the Tibetan Grovernment maintains there a chal-
lenge gate. My companions went there, however, leaving
me behind, and I spent the days of their absence in
religious meditation. Joining them again on their return,
I continued my travels westwards, coming out in due
time to the north of Lake Lakgal. We next took our
way along the lake towards the north-west. Facing
west and looking over the lake, I saw islands spread
out on its surface like the legs of a gotoku, or tripod. So
I gave them the name of G-otoku jimu, or Tripod islands.
Several days afterwards we arrived at a barter port called
Gya-nima ; it was the 17th of August, 1900.
At G-ya-nima barter is carried on only for two months
in the year, that is to say from the 15th of July to the loth
of September. The traders chiefly come from the Indian
part of the Himalaya mountains and meet their Tibetan
customers there. I was just in good time to see brisk
transactions going on. I saw no less than one hundred
and fifty white tents covering the otherwise barren
wilderness, and some five or six hundred people rushing
about to sell and buy in their own fashion.
The Tibetan articles offered for sale here were wool,
butter, yaks' tails, and the like, while the purchases consist-
ed of about the same category of goods as I gave when
speaking of the Mabcha Khanbab mart. I stayed over night
and spent the whole of the next day at the fair, making a
few small purchases. On the day following we went back
to Grya-karko, another barter port. Grya-nima was the most
north-western point I reached in my Tibetan journey.
So far as reaching my destination was concerned, I had
hitherto been proceeding in an exactly opposite direction
to it, steadily going north-west instead of towards Lhasa,
the capital of Tibet. But from that point — G-ya-nima —
onwards, each step I walked brought me nearer to the
main road into Tibet, as also to its capital. In Grya-karkg
A HIMALAYAN ROMANCE. 153
I stayed for three or four days. Here there were about
one hundred and fifty tents, trade being carried on
even more \'igorou8ly than at Gya-ninia. Gya-karko is a
trading port for people coming from the north-west plains
of Tibet on the one hand and the Hindus inhabiting the
Indian Himalayas on the other, who are allowed by the
Tibetan Government to come as far as this place.
Here I saw many merchants from the towns and villages
of the Himalayas. Among them was one from Milum, who
spoke English. This man invited me to dinner on the quiet,
so to say. I accepted his invitation, but the moment I had
entered his tent I at once saw that he took me for an English
emissary. When left to ourselves he immediately addressed
me thus : "As I live under the government of your country,
I shall never make myself inconvenient to you. In return I
wish you would do what you can to help my business when
you go back to India." I thought that these were very
strange words to speak to' me. On interrogating him, I
found out that he had conjectured that I \vas engaged in
exploring Tibet at the behest of the British Government.
When I told him that I was a Chinaman, he said : " If you
are Chinese, you can no doubt speak Chinese ? " I answered
him boldly in the affirmative. Then he brought in a man
who claimed to understand Chinese. I was not ' a little
embarrassed at this turn of affairs, but as I had had a
similar experience with Gya Lama in Nepal it took me no
time to recover sufficient equanimity to answer him, and I
felt much re-assured when I found that he could not speak
Chinese so well as I had anticipated. Then I wrote a number
of Chinese characters and wanted him to say if he knew
them. The man looked at me and seemed .to say :
"There you have me." Finally he broke into laughter
and said: "I give up; let us talk in Tibetan." Then my host
was greatly astonished and said : " Then you are indeed a
Chinaman ! What can be better ? China is a vast country.
SO
154 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
*
My father, who is now living in my native oountryj was
once in China. If there is any business to be done with
China I wish you would kindly put me on the track ; " and
he gave me his address written in English. His manner
showed that he was in earnest, and that he was a man to be
trusted. So seeing that this man was going back to India,
I thought it would be a good idea to ask him to take with
him my letters and deliver them for me in India. It would
have been imprudent for me to write things in detail, but
I scribbled just a few lines to my friend and teacher, Rai
Sarat Chandra JDas, inforiuing liim that I had pejietrated
the interior of Tibet as far as G-ya-karko, besides asking
him to post some letters for Japan which I enclosed,
addressed to Mr. Hige Tokujuso and Ito Ichiso of Sakai.
A few coins put into the hand of the Milum man secured
a ready response to my request. The man proved the
honest fellow I took him for ; for after my return to Japan
I found that my letters had been duly received by both
Mr. Hige and Mr. Ito.
To return to my romance. We were still staying at
Grya-karko, and I was much embarrassed to find that little
Dawa — for that was my little maiden's name — had by no
means given up her affection for me. Dawa, I may
perhaps' mention here, though I shall have occasion to
refer to the matter at greater length in another chapter, is
a Tibetan name meaning moon, given to persons born on a
Monday; those born on a Friday being named Pasang,
and those on a Sunday, Nyima.
Well, my little Dawa proved herself to be an adept
in the art of love-making. It is wonderful how a little
spark of .passion, when once kindled, burns up and fashions
daring schemes and alluring pictures. The maiden was
always at my side, and spoke only of the good things she
would make mine, if I would only accompany her to
her native country. She said her mother was a lady
A IliMALAYAN KOMANCE. lo5
of an exceedingly kind hctU't ; that her father owned about
one hundred and sixty yaks and four hundred sheep ; that
therefore her family was very rich and their life one
perpetual charhamj pfiitmd or round of pleasures. She
added that she was their only daughter, and that she had not
yet come across a man to her heart, save one. 1 may per-
haps explain that chachang pemma means drinking tea and
intoxicants alternately, and that in Tibet one is considered
to have attained the highest pinnacle of happiness when he
is able to indulge in a perpetual symposium — drinking, in
turns, tea with butter in it and then a spirit brewed from
wheat. Only rich persons can enjoy" the luxury : but the
mass of Tibetans consider this to be the main object of life.
Consequently chachang pemma is generally used in the sense
of earthly beatitude. By the way, the method of manu-
facturing the butter-tea is very curious : butter, boiled
juice of tea and salt are first thrown together into a
nearl}' cylindrical tub of three feet in height; then a
piston, if I may so call it, with a disc large enough
to fit the cask exactly, is worked up and down, to obtain
a thorough mixing of the ingredients. This pump-like
action of the piston is carried on by sheer force of hands
and arms, and, as may be imagined, requires a large
amount of strength. The motion of the piston trans-
forms the mixture into a new beverage which the Tibetans
call solclia. It is said that these people can tell whether
the solcha, or butter-tea, will prove good or bad by
listening to the sound produced by the piston as it
works up and down.
But to return to my story : Dawa never tired of telling
me that her family vras pros])erous ; that even Lamas were
allowed to marry in her country ; that it was really an ex-
cellent thing for every Lama to live happily.witli a wife in
this world ; that it would be ^^■ise for me to do so, and se on.
Seeing that all her words were on])- wasted on nie, she
156 THBEJE YEAKS 151 I'lBEl'.
seemed to imply that I was an incorrigible fool. Wiles
of temptation now came thick and fast upon me : but in
such moments I happily remembered the triumph of
our Lord Shakyamuni at Buddhagaya. The wise One
was about to attain to the state of Absolute Perfection.
The king of all that is evil was very much afraid of this,
and sent his three daughters to tempt him. The women
tried all manner of allurements to secure the fall of the
Enlightened One, but in vain. When all had failed
the daughtei'S of the King of Devils sang thus :
How like a tender graceful flower am I,
With all the lovely fragrance of my mouth,
And its melodious music soft and sweet !
Am I not mistress of all mirth and joys ?
Even Heav'nly bliss is naught to him who lives
In amorous dalliance, dearly loved, with me.
If thou rejectest me, there's none so dull
And stupid in the world compared with thee.
So sang the Sirens, but even they were powerless to
conquer the Lord. My Dawa could not of course approach
the charms of the arch-devil's daughters, but her
plaintive pleadings were there. And I — a common
mortal struggling on, but far from the gate of emancipation
— I could not but pity the poor little creature, though I
strengthened myself by saying : " Let it be so — a fool let
me be." I composed an uta then :
You call me stupid ; that am I, I grant ;
But yet in love-affairs being wiser grown,
'Tis safe for me to be more stupid still.
It is true that women never let their mouths be the
doors to their mind ; but they know a language unspoken^
which is far more telling, appealing and enticing, than
that which mere sound and articulation can convey. And
my Dawa had nevei' yet said in so many words what
she yearned to say. It happened, however, that Dawa's
father and brothers were out shopping one day, and that
the girl and I remained alone in the tent. She thought
A HIMALAYAN ROMANCE. IS?
probably that she could not get a better opportunity for
her purposes and she tried to make the most of it. Just
then I was mending my boots, and she almost frightened
me with her boldness. I am neither a block of wood, nor
a piece of stone, and I .should have been supernatural if I
had not felt the power of temptation. But to yield to such
a folly would be against my own profession. Moreover I
remembered with awe the omnipresence of our Lord
Buddha, and was thus enabled to keep my heart under
control. I said to the maiden : " I have no doubt that all
is excellent at your home ; but do you know whether your
mother is still living or dead ? " The question was un-
expected and almost stunned her, put as it was at a moment
when she had allowed her mind to wander so far away from
her dear mother. She was just able to say : "1 do not
know whether my mother is living or dead. I have been
on a pilgrimage with my father for one year and perhaps
more. My mother is a weak woman, and I parted with her
in tears, asking her to take the best care of herself, so that
she might be preserved. I do not know how she is faring
now." Here was my chance — a chance of diverting the
girl's attention from me. " H'm ! you 3on't know
that ?" said I ; " only now you were telling me of
the bliss of your home, and yet you don't know how
your mother is faring now ? " Poor little maiden, her
mind became disturbed. I almost scolded her, pleaded with
her, warned her. She, who claimed to be a good daughter,
to be so intent in the pursuit after ephemeral pleasures as
to let her thoughts wander away from her dear, goodmother;
covild it be possible ? This somewhat highly colored state-
ment of mine seemed to cool down her passion and change
it into fear and apprehension. Nor was it e.xtraordinary
that she should have become so affected. For in Tibet
nothing is suppos^ed to be too great for the Lama; he
possesses superhuman powers and can work miracles.
158 THBBK YEABS IN TIBEl*.
Instead of an object of love, I had now become an awe-
inspiring Lama to my little Dawa. As such, I counselled
her with a good deal of earnestness, and finally succeeded
in subduing her passion and conquering the temptation.
We prolonged our stay at Gya-karko for several days
more, and on the 26th of August I started again with the
pilgrims. As we travelled on in a north-easterly direction
we came to a marshy plain interspersed with pools of water.
Farther on the marsh became deeper. I tried to probe
its depth with my stick, but the solid bottom was beyond
mv reach. Knowing then that the marsh could not be
forded, we retraced our steps for about three miles and
proceeded thence due east. Further on we found that the
waters flowing out of the marsh formed themselves into
three streams. We waded across them, and about ten
miles further on the marsh came to an end and we found
ourselves among mountains, and encamped for the night.
Here there were many merchants on their way to Gya-
nima and Gya-karko, and many were the tents thej' had
pitched all round. While there I went on a begging tour
amongst the tent occupants — a practice which I put into
execution whenever possible, in pursuance of the Buddha's
teaching. A day's round, besides, generally earned me
enough to carry me through the next day. I may add
that the evening, whether after a day of journeying
or of begging, I used to spend in preaching among my
travelling companions. I had my own reasons for being
painstaking in these preachings. I knew that religious
talks always softened the heai'ts of my companions,
and this was very necessary, as I might otherwise
have been killed by them. I do not mean to say
that my life was in any immediate danger then, for there
were numbers of people always about, and besides, the
region we were going through was a" country sacred to
Buddhism, and, once within the holy zone, even the most
A HIMALAYAN ROMANCE. 159
wicked would not dare to commit either robbery or murder.
But it was necessar}' for me to take precautions in anti-
cipation of dangers that might befall me as soon as I
should be out of this sacred region. Such were the reasons
why I did so much preachings and fortunately my sermons
were well received by my companions.
On the 28th of August we travelled about twenty miles
over an undulating country. Throughout that distance we
could not get a drop of water, and I had nothing to drink
except a cup of tea which I took in the morning just before
starting. We were of course all terribly thirsty ; yet to me
the suffering was not half so great as that I had felt
during the former distressing experiences already narrated.
Towards the evening we came upon the upper course of
the Langchen Khanbab. This is the river called Sutlej in
English. It is the head-water of a river which flows
westward into India, and, after meeting with the Sita,
forms the great Indus that emjaties itself into the Arabian
Sea. My companions volunteered to tell me that this river
started from Lake Manasarovara. When I pointed out
to them that the Lake Manasarovara was surrounded by
mountains on all sides and had no outlet, they replied :
"True, but the river has its source in a spring to be found
under a great rock, east of the monastery named Chugo
Gonpa (the monastery of the source of the river j, in
a gorge on the north-western side of Mount Kailasa.
That spring is fed by the waters of Lake Manasarovara that
travel thither underground. Hence it may be said with
equal truth that the river flows out of the lake. " This was
indeed an ingenious way of accounting for the popular
belief. But judging from the position of the river, it seemed
•to me that it must take its origin on a higher level than that
of Lake Manasarovara and I was not (nor am 1 now) ready
to admit the correctness of the native contention. On
arriving at the bank of the river we pitched our tents as
160 THESE YEAES IN TIBET.
usual and passed the night. On the following day, we
visited a sacred place of great fame in that neighborhood,
called Reta-puri in Tibetan pronunciation, but originally
in Samskrt Pretapuri. Having left our baggage, tents
and other things with two men to take care of them, I went
on the journey thither with Dawa, her father and
another woman, four of us in all. As we proceeded westwards
along the Langchen Khanbab, we saw large boulders of rock
making a walled avenue for a distance of about 400 yards.
Out of the rock region, we came upon a river flowing
down from the north to the Langchen Khanbab. There were
two others running parallel and at a short distance from
one another. They are called Tokp)0 Rabsum, which in
Tibetan means three friendly streams. We forded one of
them and went up a hill for about a hundred and twenty
yards, when an extensive plain lay spread before our view.
I noticed that the plain was thickly covered with low bush-
growths of some thorny family, and the sight reminded me
of our tea-plantations of Uji. About a mile and a quarter
further on we came to another stream, the name of which is
identical with that of the one we had already crossed. Both
these rivers were loin-deep and exceedingly cold, with
small ice-blocks floating in them. In fording the river
I was much benumbed, and on reaching the opposite
banks I found that I had almost lost my power of
locomotion. So I told my companions to go on while I
rested a few minutes, and applied burning moxa to my
benumbed limbs in order to recover their use. Off they
went, after telling me that nothing could go wrong with
me if I would only take the road in the direction they
pointed out to me. Tibetans are strong and healthy, and
extremely swift- footed into the bargain. I was no match.
for them in this respect, especially with half-frozen feet and
that was why I told them not to wait for me. The smould-
ering moxa had it§ effect on my legs. I felt then more
A HIMALAYAN BOMANCE. 161
alive, and after an hour's rest I proceeded westwards for five
miles to a place where the plain came to an end. Thence I
walked down stream along a river until the temple for
which I was heading rose into view. The sight was a
grand one, with its maai-steps of stone which looked, at a
distance, lilce a long train of railway cars. Nor was this
the oidy place where the mani steps could be found-
Many of them are to be seen in the Himtilayas. I should
add that in that mighty range of sky-reaching mountains
there lives a species of strange birds, whose note is exactly
like the whistle of a railway engine. The mani-steps
looking like a train before me made nie think of the whistle
of those birds, and I felt as if I had arrived once more in a
civilised countrj^ !
2-1
CHAPTEE XXIX.
On the Road to Nature's Grand Mandala.
Apart from these fancies, I really felt as if I had entered
a civilised region, for beyond I espied a main building
and priests' cjuarters, and also what looked like a stone
tower.
The whole sight was really impressive. The presence
of stone buildings especially attracted my attention, for
stones are very rare and costly on a Tibetan steppe.
The place, was the town just mentioned, called Reta-puri
(town of hungry devils), a name which Paldan Atisha gave
to the place when he ai'rived here from India on the work
of evangelisation. The name is not inapplicable to the
Tibetans.
The Tibetans may indeed be regarded as devils that live
on dung, being themost filthy race of all the people I have
ever seen or heard of.
'Jliey must have presented a simihirly filthy appearance
at the time of the visit of Atisha, who therefore gave to
the place the not inapprojjriate title of Preta-jDuri. The
Tibetans, thanks to theii- ignorance of Saniskrt, are rather
proud of the name, being undei' the belief that it has some
holy meaning. After Atisha had founded a temple,
several high Lamas resided in this place, and a Lama
called G-yalwa Gottsang Pa, of the Dugpa sect, founded a
most imposing Lamaserai, which stands to this daj'.
It is, as I said, a \'ery magnificent establishment, contain-
ing four or five priests' residential (piarters, in one of which
I passed a night.
My companion took lea,ve of nie after having completed
his visit to the holy places. I took a frugal lunch in my
lodging and then, under the guidance of one of the priests
ON THE ROAD TO NATDRe's GJ.'ANU MANDALA. t6o
of the temple, sallied out to visit all the holy objects on
the premises. The main bviildiug was of stous and mea-
sured about eight yards by ten. It was of one storey, and
was in this unlike most other Tibetan Laniaserais, which
are generally two or three storied. The most sacred relics
in the temple were the images of Sludcj-amuni and Lobon
Rinpoche (Padma Gliungne), founder of the Old Sect of
Tibet. To this Lobon are attached many strange legends
and traditions, such as would startle e\'en the most
degenerate of Japanese priests; but I cannot here relate all
those revolting stories. I already knew the strange history
of the founder of this Tibetan sect, and so, when I noticed
the two images worshipped side by side, a sensation of
nausea came over me. It was really blasphemy against
Buddha, for Lobon was in practice a devil in the disguise
of a priest, and behaved as if he had been born for the
very purpose of corrupting and preventing the spread of
the holy doctrines of Buddha.
A curtain was hanging in front of the high altar, and
one tanka, about sixpence, was the fee for the privilege of
looking at the relic behind it. I paid the fee and found
that the relic was nothing else than the image engraved on
stone of that abominable Lobon. Tradition says that
Lobon's image was naturally inscribed on the rock when
he came here and stood before it, and this fantastic story
is fully believed in by the simple-minded folk of Tibet.
They would not dare to look straight at the image, for
fear that their eyes might become blind. I had no such
superstition to deter me, and so J gazed with careful
scrutiny at the engraved image, and convinced myself
that some crafty priests must have drawn on a piece of
rock a picture of some priest and that the picture must
have been afterwards tricked oat with suitable pigments.
The engraving too was a clumsy piece of workmanship
destitute of any merit whatever, and without even the
l64 'rHMli: YEARS IN I'IBET.
slightest technical charm, such as might persuade the credu-
lous to regard the image as a natural impression on a rock.
I felt sorry for the sake of the Tibetan religion that
such wicked impositions should be suffered to prevail,
though the Tibetan priests may on their part reply that
Japan is not much better in this respect than Tibet, and
that such frauds are riot unknown in Japan.
Of whatever impious deeds the Lamas may be guilty,
the whole neighborhood was such as to inspire one with
chaste thoughts and holy ideas. This seems to be
widely accepted in Tibet, for the Tibetans have a saying
to this effect : " Not to visit Reta-puri is not to visit the
snow-ca.pped Kang Rinpoclie ; not to go ai-ound Lake
Kholgyal is not to perform the sacred circuit around Lake
Mapham-yumtso."
This saying means that the visit to Kang Rinpoche only
completes one-half of the holy journey unless Reta-puri
is visited at the same time, and that the visit to Lake
Mapham-yumtso (Manasarovara) will avail nothing
unless Kholgyal is visited at the same time.
The place indeed deserves this high honor, and un-
doubtedly it constitutes one of nature's best, essays in
landscape. Let me describe here a little of this enchanting
sight. First there was the river Langchen Khanbab,
flowing towards the west, with the opposite bank steep
and precipitous, and with rocks piled up here and there,
some yellow, some crimson, others blue, still others green,
and some others purple. The chequered coloring was
beautiful, and looked like a rainbow or a tinted fog, if such
a thing could exist. It was a splendid sight. And the rocks
were highly fantastic, for some were sharp and angular,
and others protruded over the river. The nearer
bank was equally abrupt and was full of queerly
shaped rocks, and each of those rocks bore a name given to
it by the priests of the temple. There was a rock which
165
was knovfn by the name of tlie " Devil Surrender Rock;"
another was called the "'J\vin Images of the saintly Prince
and his Lady;" a third bore the name of "Tise Rock;"
a fourth " G-oddess of Mercy Rock;" and a fifth "Kasyapa
Buddha Tower." All these rocks were objects of venera-
tion to the common people.
I should have been deepl)' impressed by this unique
grandeur of nature, had it not been that I was scandalised
by the sight of the misguided veneration, if not worse,
paid to the memory of Lobon Rinpoche. As it was, even
the kind explanations of my cicerone jarred on my oars.
About two hundred and fifty yards down the bank, from
a cavern known as the Divine Glrotto, several hot springs
were gushing out from between the rocks. Three of them
were rather large, while the other three were smaller. Tiie
water of all the springs was warm, indeed some was so hot
that I could hardly dip the tip of my finger into it. The
temperature of that particular spring must have far ex-
ceeded 100° Fahrenheit. The water of the springs was quite
transparent, aiid all about them there were many hard
incrustations, some white, others red, still others green or
blue. The visitors to the place are said to carry away
pieces of this incrustation, which are believed to possess
a high medicinal value, and so they must have, if properly
used.
After having visited all the places of interest, I returned
to my quarters and passed the night in meditation. The
next morning I left the place, and resumed my journey
toward the tent.
Somehow I lost my way in the plain, and when I
had already walked five hours I had not reached the
river which I ought to have reached in about three
hours. I looked round and noticed to my surprise that
I had been travelling toward^. the north, instead of
towards the north-east.
166 TII&EE YEAES IN TIBET.
Proceeding briskly onward in the right direction I at
last reached a river, which I crossed. By that time the
sun had begun to decline, and I had had nothing to eat
all that day. I afterwards heard that the people of the
tent began to be alarmed at my non-appearance, and feared
that I must have been carried away by the river and
drowned. When I arrived at the tent, wear}^ with the
walk and with hunger, I saw the daughter of the family
coming out of the tent with some sheep. She was highly
delighted to see me, and I was told that she was about
to go out in search for me.
On the following day we proceeded eastward and
arrived at the steppe lying to the north-east of Lake
Rakgal and north-west of Lake Manasarovara. It was a
slope formed by the gradual descent of the spurs of Tise
toward Manasarovara. That night we pitched our tent on
that plain, and then our journey towards the sacred
mountains began.
CHAPTER XXX.
Wonders of Nature's MandaJa.
That evening it transpired that the pilgpims could not
perforin the pilgrimage in companyj for every one of them
declared his or her intention of performing as many
circuits as possible during a stay of four or five days. Now
the ordinary circuit — for there were three different routes — •
measures about fifty miles, which was more than I could
perform in a day, even if I had wished to do as my com-
panions had resolved, and they intended to undertake
three circuits during the short staj^; even the women
wished to go round twice.
The pilgrims had to get up at midnight and to return
to the tent at about eight in the evening, after hav-
ing performed the arduous journey. I myself made
rather elaborate preparations, and started on the holy
journey carrying four or five days' food on my back.
The route I ^elected for my circuit was what was called
the outermost circuit, and led me round a snowy peak
resembling in shape a human image, believed here to be
that of Shakyamuni, and around the lesser elevations rising
about that peak. Those elevations were compared to the
principal disciples of the Pounder of -Buddhism. The route
was indicated by a narrow track, but it was really a break-
neck journey, for in several places the track went up to the
summit of the central peak or to those of some of the
elevations round it.
The middle route is more difiicult of accomplishment, and
the innermost route considerably more so. The last is there-
fore regai'ded as fit only for supernatural beings, and
he who accomplishes twenty-one circuits round the outer-
most route obtains permission from the Lamas of the four
168 THKEB YEARS IN TIBET.
temples, to go round the middle route. Tliis circuit is to
a large extent indicated by a more or less beaten track, but
is so steep and dangej-ous that ordinary persons hardly ever
dare to try it. Not unfrequeiitly pilgrims who boldly
attempt this most perilous journey are killed by snow-slips,
while huge boulders obstruct their j^assage in several places.
Since therefore this route is veiy rarely attempted by pil-
grims, quite marvellous tales are told about it.
The outermost route, round which I undertook my
circuit, has at each of its four quarters a temple. These
four temples are called the "Four temples of KangRinpo-
che ". I first visited Nyenbo Rizon, which is the name of
the temple standing at the western corner. The temple is
dedicated to the Buddha Amitabha and I heard that it is
a very good investment in a worldly sense, the donations
from pious folk amounting to as much as ten thousand yen
during the three months of the summer season. This
coincidence between Japan and Tibet, concerning the
receipts of temples, is exceedingly interesting, for even in
Japan temples dedicated to the Buddha Amitabha are the
most popular and enjoy the largest share of <lonations. At
any rate such an income must be regarded as extraordinary
for a temple situated in a remote part of Tibet. The income,
I was told, all goes to the Treasury of the Court of Bhutan,
in whose jurisdiction are placed all the religious establish-
ments at Tise. This anomaly seems to have originated
from the fact that the priests of the Dugpa sect of Bhutan
formerly reigned supreme at this seat of religion.
The image of the Buddha. Amitabha, as enshrined in the
temple, is made of a white lustrous stone, and it struck
me as a work of high technical merit for Tibet. The
features are of the Tibetan type, and looked mild and
affable, awaking in me pious thoughts.
In front of the image are erected two ivory tusks
about five feet high and very thick, and behind them I saw
WONDERS OP NATURE S MANDALA.
169
NEAR MOUNT KAILASA.
83
170 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
a hundred volumes of Tibetan Bncldliist works arranged on
shelves. Those books were not there for reading, but in
order to receive as sacred objects the offering of the burning
lamp.
This use of Buddhist books is peculiar, though it is
preferable to the outrageous treatment to which these
books are sometimes subjected bj^ impious priests, who
do not scruple to tear out leaves and use them for various
improper purjDOses.
After worship, I took from the pile a bonk that related
to the Buddlia Amitabha, read it, and then left the temple.
Then began ni)- journe_y through Nature's Tabernacles,
the first object in which was the ' Gulden Valley'.
The adjective 'golden' should not be taken in a literal
sense, for gold is not found near this jDlace. Rhetoric-
ally, however, the valley deserves this distinction, the
scenery all round being really magnificent. There arc
several fantastic rocks of great size towering far into
the sky, while beyond them peeps the snow-clad summit
of the peak of Tise. And from the crevices and
narrov/ grooves between those towering rocks shoot down
several cascades as much as a thousand feet in height.
There are quite a number of them, but only seven
are really lerge. Those seven waterfalls have each a
distinct individuality. So)ne shoot down \\itli great force
and look not unlike the fabulous dragon descending
the rock, while others look inilder and may be
compared to a vv'hite sheet su.spended over the rock. I
sat down in rapture at the siglit, and felt as if I had been
transported to some lieavenly place. There ai'e to the
left several falls and. also a range of snow-capped peaks,
but they are not to be compared in grandeur with those
on the right, at which I had been gazing with extasy.
This one sight alone, I thought, well repaid the labor of
the jonnu'y. I wished to embody my sentiments in a few
WONUliKS 01' NATUIIe's MANHALA. 17l
verses, but the iuspivatioii would not come, and so I in-oceed-
ed on iny way, and soon emerged on the northern section
of the Tise group. There I found another Lama monas-
tery, which bore the quaint name of ' Ri Ra Pari ' (meaning,
'The place of the female yak's horn ' ). It originated in a
ti-adition that once, in ancient times, Gyrva (Jottsang Pa,
from Bhutan, went round this natural Mandala in order to
find his way in the wilderness. Whilst he was going to
the mountain, he found a female yak which proceeded before
him and led him on an untrodden path over the snows.
After finishing his route round the Hoi}' Place, he
arrived at this spot; the female yak concealed herself in a
cavern, now in the temple, and accidentally one of her
horns stru.ck against a rock. It -was believed by the
Lama that the female yak was a disguised form of the
mother of the Buddha named Vajra.
This ' Yak's Horn Temple ' ranks next to the first
temple in respect to pecuniary income. It contains,
however, a lai'ger number of priests than the other,
there being about fifteen, while the latter has on^.y
four.
It was towards dusk that I reached this temple, and I
was allowed to lodge there for the night. The priest who
appeared to be the senior man in the place was very kind
to me and offered his own chamber for mj' use. It faced
towards Mount Kailasa. Mj' host told me that the view
of the moon from this chamber was quite enchanting. He
brought me a cup of tea with plenty of butter in it, for I
had told him that I made it a rule to dispense with the
evening meal. I spent a few pleasant hours with my host,
who pointed out to me, on tlie south from the temple,
the high majestic snow-covered peak of Mount Tise,
representing the Buddha Shakyanmui; the three small
snowy peaks before the mountain, he snid, were the
Bodhisattvas Manjushri, Avalokiteshvara and \'ajrapani-; he
172 THkEE YEAKS IN TIBEl'.
then gave me a description in detail of other peaks, but I
need not narrate here what he exjilained to me, for the
account of the range is given in most works treating of
Tibet and its geography.
That night I had one of the pleasantest experiences I
remember during my expedition to Tibet : it was a pleasure
of an elevating kind. My mind was subdued and captivat-
ed as I looked, in that still night and in that remote and
far-off place, at the soft rays of the moon reflected on the
crystal-like current that was flowing with a pleasant mur-
mur. Just as, in the holy Texts, the soft breeze stirring
the branches of trees in paradise is said to produce a
pleasant note, that sounds to the ears of the happy deni-
zens of that blissful abode like the voice of some one
reading the Scriptures, so that sweet murmur of the moon-
reflecting stream deluded my enchanted ears into believing
that they were listening to the divine music of Buddhism
Staying in that sacred place, and surrounded by such soul-
subduing phenomena, my mind soared higher and higher,
till it flew up to the eternal region beyond this world of woe
and care. The holy Founder tells us that the most sacred
region lies in one's own pare mind, but I, sinful mortal
as I was, felt elevated and chastened when I found myself
in such an environment.
The next day I stayed at the temple and spent the time
with great enjoyment. The following day I left the hospi-
table monastery and resumed my journey, which included
the surmounting of a steep hill, known under the name of
the 'Hill of Salvation'. My host seemed to have had
some spiritual affinity with me in a past life, so consider-
ate was he in his behavior to me. For instance, he lent
me a yak to curry me over the hill, and moreover gave me
some articles of food and various delicacies. I took
friendly leave of him, and tlnen started on my journey
on the back of the yak, which was led by a guide.
WoNbEks OF nature's mandala. 173
On the hill I came across many Tibetan pilgrims intent
on displaying their religious zeal and piety, and their
behavior more than e\a'v convinced me that a strong fanat-
icism characterises the people of that land. Climbing-
alone was no easy task, and was one that strained
even the sturdiest of legs, and yet I noticed several young
pilgrims of both sexes performing the journey according
to the ' one-step-one-bow ' method, commonly adopted
as a penance. As for me I felt greatly fatigued, though I
was riding on the yak, for the atmosphere in that elevated
region is very rare and was highly tr^-ing to my lungs.
When I had ascended the hill for about five miles
my respiration became very rapid and I was much
exhausted. I therefore rested for awhi'e, and refreshed
myself by taking some medicine. It was while I was
taking rest that I noticed a burly fellow frantically
confessing to and woi-shipping the snowy Tise.
j\Iy guide informed me that that man was a native of
Kham, a place notorious as being a haunt of brigands and
highwaymen. He really looked like a typical highwayman,
with ferocious features and fierce eyes, and was performing
his penance in a loud voice. He must have been a
notorious figure even in that land of universal crime.
I was highly amused to find that this fellow was doing-
penance not for his past offences alone, but also to obtain
immunity for any crimes he might commit in future.
His extraordinary confession was something in this way:
" 0 Saint Kang Einpoche ! 0 great Shakyamuni ! O
all Buddhas and Bodhisattvas in the ten quarters of
the world and in the time past, present and future ! I have
been wicked in the past. I have murdered a number of
men. I have taken a great deal that did nut belong to me.
I have robbed husbands of their wives. I have quarrelled
ever so many times, and I have also thrashed people. Of
all those great sins I rei)ent, and so I solemnly perform my
174 THE-EE YEAES IN TIBE'I'.
penance here on this hill for them. I believe that by this
act of confession and repentance, I have been absolved
from those sins. I also perform here penance for my pro-
spective sins, for I may in futnre repeat them, ma)' rob
people of their goods and wives, or thrash and beat them."
This fellow, I thought, was decidedly original in his
conception of penance, 'and surpassed other sinners by
performing a prospective repentance instead of, as in the
ordinary method, confining himself to penitence for his
past sins. Yet I was told that this convenient mode of
repentance was universal in the robber district of Kham.
Our path next lay over a hill known as the hill of
the Dolma-la, meaning the Pass of the Mother of
the Savior. On ascending the hill one sees to the
right a snowy range of the northern pai'ts of Mount
Kailasa, named in Tibetan Gyalpo Norjingi Phoprang,
which means the "residence of King Kuvera", the
God of Wealth. The spot is very famous to Indians also;
even in early times in India the great jDoet Kalidasa
described this magnificent mansion with its immense
views in his masterpiece of the Meyhatfuta — The cloud-
messenger. Seeing it, I said in my fancy: "Is it not really
the mansion of the God of Wealth — that crystal abode
shining in the emerald sky ? " I nmsed furthermore that
a mammon-worshipper will certainly one day explore that
shining region, expecting to find a diamond mine. On
the crest of Dolma-la stands a natural stone image of the
Mother of the Savior. On the north-east of it a number
of queer-shaped rocks and fantastic stones are to be
seen, their points all looking like images. These were
explained by my guide as twenty-one images of the Mother
of the Savior. This crest of the hill is very high, and
indeed dues not appear lower in height than the top of
Tise itself, the height of which is about 22,300 feet above
sea-level. The air is therefore verv rarefied and the
WONDEKS OF NATURE'S MANDALA. 175
temperature rery low. lllven when I remained quiet I felt
the effect of the high altitude, fi.ir m)^ heart beat rapidly and
I suffered much pain. I thought that I should hardly have
been able toperform the journey on foot, and that therefore
I was deeply indebted to my host for lending me a yak to
carry me over the series of hills. The Tibetan pilgrims did
not seem to suffer to an^- jDarticnlar extent from the effects
of the rarefied atmosphere. They possess capacious
lungs and can therefore climb any elevated hill without
fatigue. Of course ordinary people, who do not possess
lungs half as large as those of the Tibetans, can hardly ex-
pect to undertake this journey with so much ease. As it
was, I felt very much exhausted, even though I did not
walk on foot but rode on the yak. Near the foot of the
hill I found a large pond which was entirely frozen over
— a pond associated with an interesting legend. In
ancient times, says that legend, the Grod of Wealth and his
family used the water of this pond to wash their hands,
for in those days it was not frozen in summer. After-
wards a woman pilgrim carrying a baby on her back
came to the pond. As she bent over to wash her hands,
the baby slipped off her back into the water and was
drowned. The guardian deities of the place then consulted
how to provide against such accidents, and they decided
that the pond should be frozen over all the year around.
The descent is rather sharp, and it was uncomfortable
sitting on the yak's back, so I dismounted and trotted
down after the animal.
At last we reached the eastern jiart of Tise and arrived
at the Zun-tul phuk, which means the cave of miracles,
founded by the hermit Jetsun Milaraspa, one of
the most venerated saints in the Tibetan hagiology.
Various interesting traditions are told about this saint,
but these I need not give here, as they are too technical.
I may say, however, that Milaraspa is said to have led a
176 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
highly austere life, and that he did much to diffuse the
true tenets of Buddhism. He was also a great poet, the
only poet who figures in the long hi.story of Tibet. His
biography therefore reads like a romance or a great epic,
full of sublime conceptions. Milaraspa being such a
unique personality in the history of Tibet, his name has
attracted the attention of western explorers, and extracts
from his poems have been translated. After returning
to Darjeeling I explained his poems to a certain Russian
traveller and writer, who translated them into his national
tongue. He was much delighted with the information which
I gave him, and told me that my translation enabled him to
interpret something of the spirit of the great Tibetan epic.
We stayed one night at that temple, and on the follow-
ing day proceeded along the banks of the river Ham-huug-
gi-ohu (shoe-dropping river) and reached a place which
contained a temple called Gyang-tak-gonpa. This temple
is dedicated to Dorje Karmo, the Goddess named White
Vajra. The place is situated about one mile off the road
and near by is a postal station named Darchen Tazam.
This station contains about thirty houses built of stone,
besides about a dozen tents pitched here and there. It
is a business as well as a revenue centre for the whole
district. I lodged at one of the houses, and here the guide
took leave of me. That night I performed my usual
religious meditation, and on the morning of the following
day my pilgrim companions rejoined me.
The station lies on a steppe between the north-western
corner of Lake Manasarovara and the north-eastern
corner of Lake Lakgal. On the following day our party
left the station, and proceeded in a south-easterly direc-
tion, to the west of Manasarovara. We advanced in the
same direction the next day, till we reached the foot of a
snowy peak named Bon-Ei. This is, as I have mentioned
tefore, a place sacred to the Bon, or ancient religion of
WONDERS OF NATUEb's MANDALA. 177
Tibet. I saw a big temple iu the place, which I found to
be not a temple belonging to that old religion, as I had
expected, but one belonging to the New Sect. It looked a
magnificent e.stabli,shment as seen from a distance, but we
did not go near it. This neighborhood produced various
kinds of mushrooms, and some which were growing in damp
places were gathered by the women of the party. They
collected large quantities of the fungus, which was fried
with butter and eaten with salt. I tasted it and found
it delicious. By that time we had left the limits of the sacred
region, and my male companions no longer considered them-
selves as pilgrims, but as men who had to face the stern reali-
ties of the material world. They declared that they must
resume their worldly business, and projaosed to start by
shooting deer. It seemed to me that their shooting not
infrequently included extraordinary kinds of game, and
I suspected, on good grounds, that the three brothers had
now and then turned highwaymen and either robbed or
murdered travellers. I therefore began to be afraid of
them, and thought that I had better separate myself
from them on some plau^sible pretext, and without
awakening their suspicion.
On the following day we reached the brow of a hill, and
there one of the brothers in my presence shot an animal
called in Tibet ehangku. The shooting was done merely for
pleasure and not with the object of eating its flesh or using
its skin. The changku, or wolf, resembles a large species
of dog with rather thin fur, which in summer turns a fine
brownish color. In winter the color is said to be a whitish
grey. The ears are erect and the face appears ferocious.
It is said that this wild animal will attack solitary travellers
and even kill them. When the brothers brought down the
animal their eyes gleamed with delight, and I secretly
thought that their eyes would show that same cruel gleam
wlien they murdered a wealthy traveller.
g3
CHAPTER XXXI.
An Ominous Outlook.
The next day, Septembei' 14tli, snow again fell, and so
we had to stay in the same place. The hunting-dogs went
out of their own accord on a rabbit-hunting expedition, and
came back with their mouths stained with blood. They
must have hunted down some rabbits and made a meal of
them. The snow ceased, and we left the place on the
following day. Proceeding eastwards, we now came to a
long undulating hill, and soon reached its summit. Here
the head of the family said that our pilgrimage must end
at this spot, and when asked why at this particular place,
he pointed to Lake Manasarovara, situated to the west,
and also to the snow-capped peak of Manri that stood due
south from the middle of the Lake, and told me that we
should here bid farewell and express our good wishes
to the sacred region, for this was the last point
where we could have a full view of the Holy Place,
and that we should express in our prayers an earnest
desire to visit this sacred region again in the future.
Saying this, he bowed down and I and all the rest
followed hi.s example.
When I thought that I (the first Japanese who had ever
come to visit this district from a remote country thousands
of miles away) was now about to take leave of
Lake Manasarovara after having been in its neigh-
borhood for several days, a peculiar sensation came
over me, and I stood gazing at the lake for some
time. As we were going down the hill, my host told
me that as they had already departed from the Holy
Place they should 'now earnestly engage themselves in
their worldly pursuits; therefore they thought it time
AN OMINOUS OaTLOOK. 179
that I should leave tliein. We soon reached a little
encampment of some twelve or- thirteen tents, and
thither I wended my way to observe the condition of
the small connnnnity.
Mendicancy was well suited for satisfying my curiosity,
and as a mendicant I entered the encampment. My
companions remained in the same place that day and the
next, the brothers occupied in shooting. On the latter day
I was reading a Chinese Budclliist Text, and the two women
were outside engaged in some earnest talk. At first I did
not pay any attention to what they were saying, but when
my ears caught the word 'Lama' pronounced several
times my curiosity was awakened. Dawa was saying
that she had heard the Lama, that is myself, say that her
mother was j)robably dead. She wished, she continued,
to ascertain this of the Lama, and so she had been
pressing him for some definite information. Her aunt
received this remark with a laugh. He must have seen,
she said, that Dawa was in love with him, and had there-
fore told her this fib in joke. She must not mind what
the Lama told her. However, the aunt continued, her
husband had been telling her that he must make the Lama
mai-ry Dawa, and that should he refuse, her husband
would kill him. It was evident that this last portion of
the conversation was intended for my ears, for the aunt
spoke in a loud voice.
When I heard that intimidatory warning I at first felt
alarmed, but the next moment I recovered my tranquillity.
I thought that if I should suffer death for having
resisted a temptation, my death would be highly approved
by the holy Founder. He would be displeased if I should
disobey my conscience for the mere fear of death. Internally
praying for strength of mind to resist the temptation,
even at the risk of my life, I resumed my reading.
However nothing occurred to me that day, nor the next^
180 THREE YEAKS IN TIBET. ■
when we struck our tent and proceeded for about five miles
close to the brow of a. hill, from which I saw at a short
distance what appeared to be houses, and I was told that
this was another postal station called Tokchen Tazam.
Again I visited the place in the disguise of a mendicant
priest. I soon returned and found Dawa alone in the
tent ; the rest were all gone out hunting, so she told me.
I at once saw that the consjDiracy was developing, and that
matters were growing quite critical.
I concluded that I must do my best to dissuade]] the girl
fi'om pursuing the object of her misplaced affection. Some
sjjiritual affinity must have brought me into the company of
this girl, so it seemed to me that I was bound to ad-
minister an earnest expostulation, so that she might recover
from her erring fancy. So thinking, I took my seat
in the tent. As soon as I did so, she brought me some
mushrooms she had collected for me in the morning, for
she said : " You seemed to be very fond of them." I
thanked her for her kindness, took all the mushrooms and
a cup of baked flour, and then set myself to read my
books. The girl stopped me, saying that she had some-
thing which she must tell me, for she had heard something
which filled her with fear. Then she narrated what one
of her uncles, that is one of my male companions, had said
about his intention to force me to marry his niece. When
she had concluded her story, 1 told her with the greatest
composure that I should be rather glad than afraid to be
killed by the brothers of her father. I had finished my
pilgrimage, I added; I had nothing to desire in this
world, and I was not in the least afraid to die. Moreover,
I continued, I would not harbor any ill-will, even if 1 should
be killed now by her father and uncles. 1 .should rather
thank them for hastening my de])arture to the plane of
Bodhisattvas ; so I would pray for them when 1 was enabled
to reach that Happy Abode. I would tlierefore ask to be
AK OMINOUS OUTLOOK.
181
killed that very evfuing. Tlie girl seemed surprised to
find her revelation producing an effect quite the reverse of
what she had expected. She tried to remonstrate with me
on what she considered a foolish resolution, and spoke some
commonplaces about death and the pleasures of life.
Of course I easily refuted them, and at last she gave up
the evidently useless task of persuading me.
QUARREL BETWEEN BROTHERS.
About four o'clock that afternoon the four returned.
They must have listened for some time to the conversation
between Dawa and myself, for as soon as they entered the
tent, the most wicked of the three brothers severely
•scolded Dawa for flirting with a man. Upon this, the
girl's father at oirce took her side, and snappishly told
his brother that his Dawa had a father to protect her,
and therefore wanted nobody to meddle with her, much
less an uncle who had never given her even so much
as one bowl of Hour since she was born.
l8^ TiiEiiE YEARS IN I'lB^l'.
The quarrel waxed hotter and fiercer, and the brothers
began to abuse each other and to divulge each other's
crimes. One accused the other of being a robber, and of
having murdered men at such and such places, and was
met with the recriminating acciisation of having attempted
to rob the Grovernment and of having fled for fear of arrest.
The wordy warfare at last developed into actual blows,
and the brothers exchanged fisticuifs, and even began to
hurl stones at each other. I thought I must interfere, and
so I jumped up and attempted to hold back the youngest
brother as he was about to spring at Dawa's father.
The fellow struck my cheek with his bony knuckles
with such force that I fell, and my whole frame shook
with pain. TJiie confusion i-n the tent had reached its
climax, and Dawa was beginning to cry and .so was also
her aunt. I remained a passive spectator of the rest of this
terrible scene, for I had to lie prostrate from the pain.
Presently the sun set and the quarrel too spent itself and
the night passed without any further outbreak.
The next morning the party broke up, for each brother
wanted to go his way, the eldest with his wife, the
second with his daughter, and the third alone, as
was also the case with me ; so we had to disperse, each for
his own destination. One thing that troubled me was the
lack of sheep to carry my effects. At last I purchased
two at six tanka each, and separating myself from the rest
proceeded in the south-easterly direction. One of the
brothers started for the north, while I could see the others
were retracing the road we had come along.
I had heard before that I must push on rapidly, but
I purposely took the south-easterly direction, in order to
throw off the scent any of the brothers who might come
after me to rob me, or even worse. And so 1 2)r<iceeded in
this direction, and by about sunset I reached the brow of a
hillj where I was obliged to bivouac in the open, and on
AN OMINOUS OUTLOOK. 183
a snow-covered plain. The change was too sudden after
having lived for so long in the tent, and I could not
snatch even one wink of sleep during the night. On the
following day, still continuing in the same direction, I
reached a small monastery of the name of Sha Chen
Khangba, where I remained that day and the next. For
the first time since [ parted with the brothers and the
troublesome woxnen, I felt safe, for I concluded that I was no
longer in danger of being pursued by one of the murder-
ous gang. I saw only two priests in the temple, and I spent
most of my time in stitching my worn-out boots and clothes.
While I was staying in the monastery one of my sheep
suddenly fell ill and died. I felt sorely grieved at his
death, and read a suitable service for him. The other
sheep I had to sell, at half the price I had paid for him,
to one of four traders who arrived at the monastery soon
after I had reached it, for I could hardly manage him now,
as he was so -peevish and disconsolate at the loss of his
partner. To the four men I also gave the flesh of the
dead sheep, and they accepted it with thanks. It happened
that the party was travelUng in the same direction as
myself, and they proposed that I should go with them.
This was quite a welcome suggestion, especially as the men
were kind enough to offer their services to carry my
effects, for thej^ had with them a number of j-aks.
So once more I had travelling companions, and I left the
inonastery with a far more cheerful heart than I had when
I reached it. We proceeded in a south-easterly direction,
and soon came to a small round pond, a little over half a
mile in circumference. Proceeding along the right side
■ of the pond, we next came to a lake which is very
long from north-west to south-east, but very narrow.
The whole circumference is said to be about forty
miles. This lake is bounded by rocky hills on all
sides, and the blackish rocks scattered here and there
184 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
were partially covered, especially in the crevices and
sheltered spots between the adjoining rocks, with a thin
layer of snow, so that they jjresented quite a pretty sight. I
ascended a small elevation close by the lake, and looked
down on it and also on the small pond. From that height
the serpentine lake looked jast like the fabulous dragon in
the act of clutching a round gem, the pond corresponding to
the gem. The snow-streaked rocks were not unlike a
white fleece of cloud. This lake is known by the name
of Kong-gyu-i Tso, as I heard from my fellow travellers.
After proceeding about seventeen miles south-eaistwards,
with the lake on. our left, we reached its extremitj'. Here
we were to bivouac, as we had no tent, but I could not
sleep on the snow-covered plain. I therefore passed the
night in my usual style, that is to say, in religious medi-
tation, the best expedient. for a sleepless night.
Our road laj' next day over a steep hill, and it was
indeed such a break-back ascent that it seemed to be
trying even to the sturdy legs and lungs of my Tibetan
companions. As for myself, I was lucky enough to get
permission to ride on a yak's back, and so I could negotiate
the ascent with no great difflculty. Descending the opposite
slope of the hill we soon reached a plain which, together
with all the adjoining country, was situated in the Kong-
gyu district. On this plain I noticed a white spot, not unlike
a lake at a distance. My companions informed me that the
white thing was puto, and that the white spot indicated the
site of a lake which produced natural soda.
When we reached the lake my companions eagerly
collected the deposit, put it in skin-bags and fastened it to
the back of the yaks. They told me that the soda was to '
be mixed with tea.
We then went on over several low undulating hills, and
finally reached the lower course of tlic river Chema Yung-
dung, where I had narrowly escaped drowning a short tinie
AN OMINOUS OUTLOOK. IBS
before. As the seation was now well advanced, the rivef
was much shallower and we were able to cross it with
comparative ease. I indeed could do so with perfect
security, for I was carried on a yak's back.
We were travelling all these days at the rate of about
twenty-five miles a day, and I should hardly have been
able to make such good progress had it not been for the
fact that I could ride every now and then on a yak.
What distressed me most was bivouacking in the open,
where sleep was out of the question in the cold
autumn nights and on ground covered with snow. After
proceeding some twenty-five miles to the south-east, on
the following day, we reached the Brahmaputra, known in
this region as Martsan-gi-chu or Kobei-chu, according to
the districts which it traversed. The lordly river was quite
shallow and could be crossed without trouble, and I did so
as before on the yak's back. We found some tents by the
bank of the river where we were allowed to pass a night —
quite a cheering change after so many nights of bivouack-
ing.
It was a moonless night, but the sky was full of stars,
which threw their twinkling rays on the water of the river.
The vast range of the Himalayas was clearly silhouetted,
so as to make its sharp outline perceptible. The majestic
scene inspired me with poetic fervor:
Like to the Milky Way in Heaven at night,
With stars begemmed in countless numbers decked,
The Brahmajiutra flashes on the sight,
His banks, fit haunt for Gods, appear
In gorgeous splendors from the snowy height.
The following day I had to part from my companions,
who were going to a destination different from mine, and
so I was again thrown on my own wits and my own legs
for continuing my journey. After having travelled for so
many days with the help of other people, 1 now had to travel
24
186 THKEE YEARS IN TIBET.
alone with nothing but my back on which to carry my
effects, and my journey on the following day was a cheerless
and fatiguing one. The load weighed heavilj'' on my back,
and the time I occupied in taking rest was perhaps longer
than that spent in actual progi-ess. At last I was so
much exhausted that I could hardly move my limbs.
CHAPTER XXXIT.
A Cheerless Prospect.
While I was taking rest in that helpless condition,
I was fortunate enough to see a Tibetan coming along my
way leading a yak. When he came to where I was
sitting I greeted him, and asked him to carry my luggage
as far as he could without compromising his own con-
venience, and promised him suitable pay for his trouble. He
willingly consented, and relieved my aching back of its load.
After travelling about three miles, I observed three men
coming towards us on horseback. They were fully armed,
each with a gun, a lance and a sword, and as they approach-
ed they looked like burly men, wearing Tibetan hunting-
caps. I at once concluded that they must be highwaymen,
for evidently they were not pilgrims, the latter generally
travelling with a pack-horse or a yak to carry their neces-
saries ; nor could they be merchants, for they would travel
in a caravan, according to the fashion of the country. My
companion came to the same conclusion and began to show
signs of fear. To encounter highwaymen is not quite
agreeable under any circumstances, so I was not cheered at
the thought of meeting those three fellows, but I was
not at all afraid, for I made up my mind to surrender
whatever things they wished to have out of my effects. I
simply wished to keep niy life, and for this the highway-
men could have no use. With that idea I boldly advanced
and soon came face to face with the three cavaliers. They
asked me whence I came, and when 1 replied that I was
returning from a visit tc Mount Kailasa they further asked
me if I had not seen some traders on my way. The traders
were their friends, they continued, and they were search-
ing for them.
l88 THEEB YJSAES IN TIBE'l).
When I replied that I had not met with any such per-
sons, the men then said that I must be a Lama-priest, and
as such they wished me to perform some divination ior
them, to find out the whereabouts of their friends. Now
the meaning of their request was quite clear ; they wished
to find the traders in order to assault and despoil
them. For my own part I was rather relieved when the
three fellows disclosed their intention, for I knew that high-
waymen who were after traders with rich goods would
scorn the idea of robbing a poor Lama-priest such as they
took me to be. On the contrary they might olfer some
donation to such a priest, if they asked him to undertake
divination for their sake. Highwaymen who do business
on a large scale often prove a source of substantial profit
to Lama-priests, if a donation coming from such quarters
can be regarded as a legitimate profit.
Well, placed under such peculiar circumstances, I was
obliged to give them a 'direction,' and of course the direc-
tion I gave them was the one which I judged least likely
to be frequented by traders. The highwaymen were high-
ly pleased at my divination, thanked me, and then galloped
off in the direction I indicated. They did not offer me any
donation, however, for they said they had nothing to
present to me now.
My companion had remained at a distance all the while
as a terrified spectator of this strange transaction between
the highwaymen and mjself. When they had galloped
away he emerged from his hiding-place, and asked me what
I was talking about with those dreadful men. I told him
in detail what had passed between the highwaymen and
myself, and relieved his anxiety by assuring him that my
divination was a mere sham, and was really intended to
mislead them instead of giving them any probable" direction.
After having walked along a river bank for about eight
miles we came to a tent which belonged to my companion.
A CHEBBLESS PEOSPECT. l89
and there were two or three others besides. That night I
slept in the tent of my guide^ and I also stayed there
during the following day in order to give rest to my
fatigued limbs. On the following morning (that is^ on
September 26th) I purchased a goat according to the
advice of my host, and packing my effects on the animal's
back I left the place.
I was soon after overtaken by a fearful snowstorm,
which obstructed my sight and blocked my progress. My
Tibetan garment i\as completely drenched, and I was wet
to the skin. I could not determine in which direction 1
should proceed, for the storm blinded my eyes and I had
lost my compass ; but though I could not be certain of the
right direction I had to move on as best I could, for to
stand still was out of the question. My situation was
growing more and more desjx^rate, and I was at my wit's
end, not knowing what to do. As luck would have it, just
at that moment I met with a horseman. He at once
noticed the plight I was in and kindly offered me the
hospitality of his tent. It was a little detour, he said, for
one going to Lhasa to go with him to his tent, but it
would be dangerous (though not probably fatal, as- the
season was not yet far advanced) to pass that snowy night
in the open ; the cold was too severe to expose oneself to
it with safety at night. I gratefully accepted the
hospitable offer, transferred, as he bade me, a part of my
goat's load on to the back of his horse, and then, leading
the goat, followed the horseman and soon reached his tent.
The following morning my host left quite earlj^, and the
people of the tenf , and of four or five others, broke up their
camii and moved on in the direction in whicli 1 also was to
proceed for my journey towards Lhasa. So I followed
them, and trudged along the snow-covered ground in a
south-easterly direction for about fifteen miles. 1 had not
yet had occasion to talk with any of them, but I felt sure
190 THEEE YBAliS lU TIBET.
that they would again extend to me theii' hospitality, and at
least allow me to share theii* tent at night, for they must
see, I thought, that it was impossible for me to sleep out-
side among the snow-covered hills. In time the party
made a halt, selected a suitable site for pitching their camp,
scraped off the snow, and set up their tents. All that
while I was watching the people at work, or gazing at the
surrounding scenery. When the tent-pitching was finished,
I asked the people of the tent in which I had slept the
preceding night for permission to enjoy a similar favor
again. I was astonished to receive from them a blunt
refusal. Then I tried another tent, but with no better
success, and my earnest requests at the five or six other tents
were all in vain. I at last came to the only remaining tent,
and I thought that as this was my last chance I must
somehow or other persuade the inmates to admit me,
whether they were willing to receive me or not; so I
begged them — they were an old dame aud her daughter —
for permission to sleejD in their tent, on the ground
that I should probably be frozen to death if I were
to stay outside in the snow on that cold night, and
urged that they should take compassion on me. I
added that 1 might repay their kindness with a suitable
present of money. The old woman was not softened at all
by my appeal. On the contrary she was angry with me,
saying that I was insulting her by trying to force hospitali-
ty from her. Why had I not tried other tents inhabited
by men, and why should I be so importunate with
her alone ? I was insulting her because she was a woman,
she added, and she insisted on my leaving her tent. When
I tried to protest against this merciless treatment she stood
up in an awful passion, and raising aloft the Tibetan
tongs, with which she was scraping together the kindled
yak's dung, she made as though she would strike me.
CHAPTER XXXIII.
At Death's Door.
No one would take me into liis tent, and I was thus
quite at my wit's end. I retired to a distance of some
dozen yards and, looking at the four or five tents which
appeared to be warm and cozy, remembered Buddha's
words : " For him who has no relationship to me, it is
very difficult to receive salvation from me. " These
people were perfect strangers to me, and therefore slept
comfortably in their tents, while I had to lie down on
the cold ground, exposed to the severe winds. But, 1
thought, the fact that I had asked them for a lodging might
have ci'eated a certain relationship, by means of which
they might yet be saved, and that it would not be quite
in vain if I read the Holy Texts for their salvation. Of
course this was merely my duty as a follower of Buddha,
whose love is universal. So I sat down on the ground and
recited the Buddhist Text, with the kindest intentions.
After a while the girl whom I had lately asked for a lodg-
ing peeped from her tent and stared at me, then hastily
withdrew. Presently she appeared a second time and,
approaching me, said that she sujDposed I was conjuring
evil spirits to punish her and her mother for their
refusal to lodge me. This must not be done, said she.
She and her mother had now agreed that they should
entertain ine in their tent, and she had been sent for
me. There was something comical in the fact that my
kind intentions should be taken for revengeful motives,
and that those motives should be rewarded with kindness.
But I attributed all to the benevolence of Buddha, and
thankfully accepted the gii-l's invitation. A Buddhist
service was held that evening.
192
THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
I
.4 \^ ,^j
/
ATTACKED BY ROBBERS,
AT death's book, 193
The following morning I left the tent very early, and
walked south-east for two miles and a half in a hilly dis-
trict. Quite unexpectedly, two men rushed out from
behind a rock and stopped me. As they did not seem like
robbers, though they were armed, I was simple enough to
think that they were natives of the place making a trip.
They approached close to me and asked me what I had.
I replied, "I had Buddhism". Thej^ did not understand
what I said and exclaimed:
"What is that you have on your back?"
"That is my food."
"What is that sticking out on your breast ?"
"That is my silver."
No sooner had the last answer been given, than the men
seized my sticks, and I understood at once that they were
robbers. Promptly making up my mind what to do, I
said :
"You want something of me?"
"Of course !" one of them said, showing his teeth.
"Well, then, there is no use in hurrying. I will give
you all you want. Be calm, and say what you want. "
"Produce your silver first. "
I gave them my purse.
"You seem to have- some valuables on your back. Let
us see. " *
I obeyed. They also demanded to see my bag, which
was being carried on the goat, and, after ransacking it,
returned me the Scriptures, the bed-clothes that were
heavy, and a few other things that were useless to them.
They took, however, all my food, saying that they needed
it, although neither could I do without food.
It is a rule among the robbers of Tibet that,
having taken all they want, they should give their
victim enough food for some three days, provided that the
latter read the Texts and ask for food. I thought I would
?5
194 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
follow this custom, and I .said that I pos.sessed in my breast-
cloth a silver pagoda, containing relics of Buddha, which
Mr. Dhammapiila of India had a.sked me to present to
the Dalai Lama, and which I did not wish to lose. The high-
waymen at once wanted to know if I could not give it to
them, and I replied that if they wanted it I would give it,
but that as a layman could not keep it j)roperly, they must
expect some misfortune as a punishment for their sacrilege.
So saying, I produced the pagoda and invited them to
open it. This was probably more than they expected. They
would not even touch it, but asked me to place it upon their
heads with my benediction. I held the pagoda over their
heads and, reciting the three Ref ages and Five Command-
ments of Buddha, prayed that their sins might be
extinguished by the merit of Dharma.
Then I stood up, and was going to ask of them a few days'
rations, when two itien on horseback put in an appearance far
ahead, and before I could look round, the robbers had
gathered together all that they had seized, and made off
in the opposite direction. They ran over the mountains like
hares, and it was quite out of the question for me to give
them chase. I thought, therefore, to ask the horsemen
for provisions. But for some reason or other they
climbed a mountain ahead of me, and did not come as far
as where I was. I called out tc^them and made signs by
turning my right hand inwards, according to the Tibetan
custom. Perhaps my voice did not reach them, or they
had some business demanding urgent attendance, for they
paid no attention to me. Still I had left eight Indian gold
coins which I had kept close to my skin. My baggage
having been greatly diminished, I placed it all on my
goat, and went on with iny journey. It was a steep
mountain pass, and before I had travelled eight miles it
became dark. The night was spent as usual in bivouack-
ing in a creyice between tlu' rocks,
AT death's dook. 19o
The following morning I wished to take a north-
easterly direction, so as to reach a certain post-town; but
having no compasSj.I could not ascertain my bearings,
and seem to have strayed off to the south-east and event-
nslly due south, instead of north-east, as I should have done.
The snow began to fall at three o'clock in the after-
noon, and I walked and walked until the evening,
but met not a single human being. I was exceedingly
hungry, and so thirsty that I ate the snow. One
meal a day would have been sufficient for me, but the
absolute fasting gave me no small pain.
Darkness and hunger compelled nie to stoja, and I select-
ed a hollow in the ground as my bed, clearing it of snow.
As there is always a danger of being frozen dead when one
is beset by a snow-storm in a vast plain, I took the
precaution to hold my breath, so as to minimise the
communication with the outside air, according to the
methods learned during my Buddhist training. This, I
think, is the best method for bivouacking in the snow, and
I soon fell asleep in the hollow.
On waking early next morning i saw the snow had
fallen to a great depth, but the weather was hue ;
and when I looked around, I thought the mountains
ahead resembled the hilly district called Nahru-ye,
where I had once been in the company of some herdsmen.
Proceeding further, I found the familiar Kyang-chu river,
which I was delighted to see. Sustained by the hojje
of finding some old acquaintances at Nahru-ye, I walked
some five miles in that direction. But nowhere was
there any human being to be seen; there was nothing
but the snow. I was almost despairing, owing to my
extreme hunger and thirst, for I was entirely exhausted,
though I had no heavy baggage to carry. But I had to
Avalk on and on, eating a little snow from time to time to
allay my hunger:
196 TiiEEE YEAJBS IN TIBEi.
I thought that by travelling farther across the Kyang-
chu river, I should reach the place where Alchu Lama
lived. He never wandered far aw&y from that place,
and I might find him there ; so I decided upon travelling
in that direction. I crossed the river about nine miles
above the place where I had crossed it on the previous
occasion. The water had decreased to about one-fifth of
its usual amount, and it was just freezing. I broke
the ice with my sticks and crossed the river. If the
ice had been thick, the crossing of the river would have
been a very easy task, but the thin ice entailed the danger
to the traveller of being thrown into the deep current, and
injured by the ice-blocks After many difficulties I reached
the opposite bank, and walked due south.
Then the baggage which was being carried by the goat
got lost. It contained what the robbers had left — a
carpet made of sheep-skin, shoes, drugs, and such things.
I searched everywhere, but in vain. I had to give up my
search and proceed further, for I wished to reach a tent
before night, as sleeping amid the snow on the open field for
several nights consecutively would mean the end of my life;
so I pushed on until eight o'clock and had covered twenty
miles, when another trouble cropped up in the shape of
terrible pain in the eyes, the result of the strong glare of
the sun on the snow. My eyes felt as if they would burst,
and I could not remain quiet. MoreoA^er the snow recom-
menced falling in the evening, and the cold was extreme,
and when I lay down I felt the biting coldness of the snow
on my head. T pressed the snow on my eyes, but it did not
lessen the pain in the least. A cold sweat broke out all over
me from the pain and cold, and, in trying to calm myself, I
found fha^^ my body was becoming benumbed by the frost.
I tried keeping my eyes shut, and anointed them
abundantly with the oil of cloves. But slrmber Avas far
from me. I rivetted my thoughts on Buddhism, and was
AT death's dooe. 197
doing iny best to keep down the pain, when, quite un-
expectedly, I was inspired with an uta, which runs :
Upon these plains of snow, my bed is snow,
My pillow, snow ; my food also the same;
And this my snowy journey, full of pain.
The effusion soothed iny heart, and 1 felt more than
ever thankful for the beauty of the Japanese language.
The next day, October 1, 1900, at about six in the morn-
ing I decided to proceed on my journey. The snow had
ceased, and the sun was shining brightly, to the increased
pain of my eyes. I could not walk with my eyes shut; and
yet the pain of keeping them open, however slightly, was
more than I could bear. I was so overcome by it that
I would from time to time fall down, wherever I inight
be. I had had no food for nearly four days, and was so
weak that the smallest stone lying in the snow would
bring me down. Fortunately I sustained no injury, owing
to the softness of the snow and the lightness of my
body. There was a time, however, when I got quite
exasperated by hunger, the pain in my eyes, and the
weakness of my legs, and sat down in the snow, feeling
that I was fated to die. Intellectually, however, death
was far from my thoughts. Were there only some means
of getting rid of my bodily pains, I thought I could walk
on and on, and at last reach safety.
At this juncture a horseman put in an appearance
far ahead. I strained vny eyes, though with terrible
pain, and thus made out that it was a horseman. I stood
up at once and signalled him to approach. I wished
to shout but could not; the eifort seemed to choke
me, and it was only after enormous exertion that
I squeezed out two feeble shouts and wildly gesticulated.
The horseman, having apparently observed me, galloped
towards me, to my great joy. Soon he was beside me,
asking me what I was doing in such a desei't of snow, and I
told him with uncommon difficulty that I had been robbed
198 I'HEEE YEARS IN TIJBET.
of most of my baggage, had lost what remained to m«
en route, and had had nothing to eat for over three or four
days. He was a young man, full of sympathy. Though
he was provided with extra provisions, he said, he would
give me only some sweetmeats, made of cream and brown
sugar, a food which is esteemed as a rare delicacy in the
northern steppes of Tibet. 1 swallowed down the food
which he gave me so hurriedly that I did not even taste it.
I then enquired of him if I could not find a lodging here-
abouts. His reply was that he was a pilgrim, and that his
parents and others were staying beside the mountain ahead
of us, and that I should be able to obtain some accommoda-
tion there. He therefore advised me to come to his tent, and,
saying that he was in hurry, galloped away in that direc-
tion.
The distance was only a little above two miles, but I
do not remember how often I stumbled and fell down, and
rested, and ate snow, before I reached the tent. More thaii
three hours were occupied on the journey, and I did not
reach the tent till past eleven o'clock, when the young man
came out to welcome me. His parents congratulated me on
my narrow escape from death, and entertained me with the
best sort of Tibetan food, which consisted of boiled rice
covered with butter, and accompanied by sugar and raisins.
I did not take much of the food, for fear that the sudden
repletion might injure me, but I took a little milk after a
very modest repast. The pain in my eyes was no better.
There was no medicine, and the best I could do was to cool
them with snow. In spite of the fine bed with which I
was accommodated I could not sleep that night, owing
to the pain 1 felt in my eyes.
These peoj)le, being pilgrims, were intending to move on
day by day. The next morning, therefore, I also had to
proceed on my journey. But it was some time before they
could start, for they had to pull down the tents and pack
AT death's door. 199
them on the yaks. I finished my tea therefore, and went
out of doors, while they* were busily engaged in packing
their effects. I had walked to the further end of a row of
four or five tents, when seven or eight ferocious Tibetan
dogs attacked me, barking loudly. ' Handicapped as I was
with the pain in my eyes, I could not deal with these dogs
so deftly as at other times. At first, I kept my eyes open
and brandished my two sticks, driving back the animals,
which attacked me from all sides. But once I was obliged
to close my eyes, and immediately a dog behind me seized
one of my sticks. The next moment another dog fastened
his teeth on my right leg, and threw me down.
I uttered a feeble cry for help, which brought several men
on the scene, and they drove away the dogs with stones.
But the blood flowed out abundantly from the wound,
which I held fast with my hands, and I lay motionless until
an aged dame brought me some medicine, which she said
was a marvellous cure for such wounds. I dressed the
wound with the medicine and bandaged it, and attempted
to rise, but in vain. It was impossible for me to stand up.
But as it was equally impossible that I should lie down
there for ever, I asked the people what they would advise
me to do, and if they did not know the whereabouts of
Alchu Lama, whom I thought to be in that vicinity. They
asked me if I was acquainted with Alchu Lama, and, on
being answered in the affirmative, one of them volunteered
to carry me on his horse to the tent of Alchu Lama, who
he said, being a physician, would be able to cure me alike
of the wound and of the eye-disease. I rose with the
support of the sticks, one of which broke under me and
had to be thrown away, and mounted on the horse.
Arriving at a place where there stood two tents,
1 perceived that these tents were smaller than those of
Alchu Lama. Though wondering at heart, I alighted
from the horse, and enquired at one of the tents for
200 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
the Lamaj and I was inforiTied that thi.s was not the
Lama's tent, but that of his wife's father. I wanted
to reach the Lama's tents somehow, and was speaking
to that effect, when the wife, hearing my voice, said that
I was the revered Lama who had made a pilgrimage,
to the snowy peak of Tise, and came out to see me.
" Where is your Lama ? " I asked.
" He lives about two miles east of this place."
" I wish to find him. Have you no one to take me to him?"
" I have nothing to do with the Lama any more, nor can
I take you. But if you want to go there, I will direct the
man who has brought you here to accompany you."
"But why do you not yourself return to your own home?"
" Oh, there is no man so wicked as he ; I intend to
leave him."
" That is not good," said I.
Then we had a long talk, and after I had been given
a repast, I rode to the Lama's tent.
The Lama being out, I was received by his domestics.
When he returned home in the evening, I related my
adventures to him and asked him for some medicine. He
kindly dressed my wound with excellent drugs, and gave
me purgatives, saying that it was necessary for me to
purge my body in order to prevent the diffusion throughout
my system of poison which some of the dogs injected by
their bites. He also said that I should stay with him for
at least a week, in order to recuperate. Thanks to his
directions, which I obeyed, 1 was in a few days greatly
relieved of the suffering both in my leg and eyes.
I had experienced enough of hardship, and had very jjoor
prospects of an easy life in the future. But still there was
a genuine pleasure in pushing on tlu^ough hardships.
About that time I composed a poem :
All bitter hardships in this world of woo,
Have I thus tasted now diiriiif>- this life ;
Ifone will be left for me to suffer more.
AT death's door. 201
One day I asked the Lama why he had sent his wife to
her parents, whereupon he explained the shortcomings of
his wife. Both had their reasons, and I could not say which
was wrong. But, I said, the man ought to have magnani-
mity and to console his wife, so that it was advisable for the
Lama to send for his wife to come back. I supported my
advice by the doctrines of Buddhism, and made him yield to
my proposal. He sent two of his men for his wife, who,
after making some fuss, returned to his tent the same
evening.
The following day, when I referred to the Discourse
on the Five Vices, which is included in the Gospel of the
Buddha Life Eternal (one of the three books of the Jodo
Sect, but not found in the Tibetan Canon) the Lama
expressed his desire to hear a lecture on it. I consented
to the request and expounded the discourse un the
days following. The sermon in question treats of all
imaginable vices and sins devised by mankind, arrang-
ing them into five classes and explaining them in the most
appropriate manner. During my lecture on this discourse
the couple were so deeply moved to repentance for
their sins that they wept and at times asked me to
suspend the lecture. As their repentance was sincere,
I congratulated theln on their progress in virtue. I stayed
with them for some ten days, and my bodily troubles
were so much relieved that I was able to regale my
eyes with the magnificent view of the snow and ice, lit
up by the serene moon-light. lliis lovely scenery of
nature caused me to think of my country, and I had
occasion to compose many utas, two of which were as
follows :
The spotless sky is bathed hi light serene
By that cold moon with lier all-tninquil ray ;
This pleasant scene lires nae with memories sweet
Of that dear mother-laud now far away.
36
202
THKEK YEARS IN TIBET,
THE COLD MOON REFLECTED ON THE ICE
At death's dooe. 2&A
Hero on these lonely steppes the grass is dry,
No reeds, no aatiunn flowers show their smiles ;
On high the moon shines on these wilds alone.
Enhancing thus the loneliness pi'ofound.
CHAPTER XXXIV.
The Saint of the White Cave revisited.
I spent some pleasant days here and was perfectly
cured of my illness. At the instance of Alchu Lama I
decided to pay another visit to Gelong Rinpoche. Our
party, including the Lama, his wife, myself and three
domestics, all on horseback, and a horse which carried my
baggage and our presents to the holy man of the White
Cave, rode south at full speed, covering a distance
of thirteen miles in a short time. It was before
eleven when we reached the cave, and we were ordered
to wait for a time before we could see the priest.
At eleven those who had assembled at the cave,
about thirty in all, held a service, the illustrious priest
officiating, answering questions, and receiving offerings.
When all were about to withdraw, the Lama detained
me, saying he had something to talk to me about.
Alchu Lama and his wife thereupon bade me farewell,
saying that I should take the road to Lhasa, and we
parted, I thanking them for their kindness.
I sat in front of the Lama, who was engaged in deep
meditation, the subject of which was not difficult to guess,
for when I was at the tent of Alchu Lama I had heard it
stated that rumors were persistently disseminated to the
effect that the Lama who had made a pilgrimage to the
snowy peak of Tise (this referred to me) was not a China-
man, though he pretended to be one, but an Englishman,
who was investigating the situation of affairs in Tibet.
Alchu Lama added that the ignorance of the masses,
who would take such a true lover of Buddhism as
myself for a spy, was incorrigible. Such being the
situation, I thought the rumor must have reached the
THE SAINT OF THE WHITE CAVE EEVISITED. 205
ears of the good man^ who was in consequence going to toll
me something in reference to it. Presently the priest
asked me a most matter-of-fact question : what was my
object in proceeding to Lhasa, in spite of the overwii aiming
hardships Avhich beset me ? I answered that I had no
other object than to save all beings by prosecuting my
studies in Buddhism. Thus I tried to parry his matter-of-
fact question with a metaphysical answer. The Lama at
once said :
" Why do you want to save all beings ? "
" Only because they are suffering from all sorts of pains."
" Then you have all beings in view ? "
I retorted with an equally idealistic answer : " Having no
Ego, how can I have all beings in view ? "
The priest smiled, and, changing the subject of the
conversation, asked me if I had ever been troubled with love
affairs. In repl}' I said that though I had once greatly
suffered in that connexion, I was at present free from that
torture, and hoped to remain so. Then he at once turned to
my adventure with the robbers, asking me whether I had
hated those robbers during the time I was with them, and
whether I had not cursed them after our parting, for the
purpose of revenging myself on them. I replied that there
was no use in hating them, as they had robbed me because
I deserved to be robbed. I myself rather was hateful, who
had committed the sins which made me deserve the
misfortune, and I was glad that I could pay my debts.
Such being my thoughts, there was no use in invoking
evil on their heads. On the contrary, I had prayed
that on account of their having come across me, tliey
might become true men, or saints, in the next life
if not in this. The Lama then said :
"All your words are rightly said. But you will probably
meet with many such robbers on your way to Lhasa.
They may even kill you. Then you will not be able to
206 THREE YEAES lit TIBET.
accomplish your object of saving all beings. You had
better give up your intention of proceeding to Lhasa, and
betake yourself back to Nepal. There is a good road
from Lo to Nepal. You must go at once to Lo. If, on
the contrary, you go to Lhasa, I believe you will certain-
ly be killed on the way."
This he said suggestively, and continued in a solemn
tone : " In order to attain your object, you may take any
means. Your journey to Lhasa is not your only object. If
you are sincere in saying that you want to save all beings,
you must leave for Nepal ! "
I replied : "I cannot commit myself to such an equivocal
argument, and I fail to concur in your opinion that any
means is justifiable by its end. The Grospel of the Buddha,
Mighty 8ttn, has it that the means is the object, meaning that
the practice of honest means is identical with the attainment
of an object. The fact that I enter Pai'adise is no more the
attainment of the object of my life, than is my arrival at
Lhasa. The practice of honest means being the object
itself, I believe that at the moment when I adopt honest
means, I have attained my object."
" Then what route will you take in youv journey and
whither will you go ? "
" As a matter of fact, I shall take the momatain pass,
and steer my way to the capital of Tibet."
" That is curious, that you should take the road
exposed to fatal risks. Better return to Nepjil. You say
rash things. I know your future fate, and know that if
you go on your way, you will die ! "
His words were intimidating, but I replied ,: "Really?
But I do not know my death, much less my birth. What
I know is only to do what is honest."
The Lama medituted for a while in deep silence,
and then suddenly changed the conversation, referring
to the Mani, or the sealed book of Tibet. I omit here
THE SAINT OF THE WHITE CAVE REVISITED. 207
our dialogue on this subject, as it is too technical for
general readers. We wei'e so taken up with our religious
talk that we were unconscious of the approach of the
evening.
The Lama's suspicions were largely allayed, and he said
that he wondered how the people of the neighborhood were
able to invent such rumors, and that I was a true seeker
after Buddhism. He was sincerely delighted with me and,
saying that money and provisions were my first necessaries,
gave me twenty tankas of Tibetan silver, a lump of tea, a big
bag of baked iiour, a copper pan, and other articles
required by travellers. The whole of the presents were
valued at perhaps sixty tankas, or fifteen yen in Japanese
currency. I asked him to reduce the amount of the
presents, for I could not easily carry so much. He said
there was no need for my being troubled about that ; for
all along my way farther on I should everywhere find his
disciples, who when the}' saw the travelling bag, would
remember their master and carry the baggage for me. So
I accepted the presents and retired, but not before he had
promised to invest me the next morning with the mysterious
power of the Maiil, for which I thanked him sincerely.
During that night, I decided to take the highway to
Lhasa, for, I thought the mountain pass was full of the
Lama's disciples, who, in spite of their master, would cast
suspicious eyes on me, and I concluded, that if the high-
way was a little longer than the bye-way, it was much
safer.
The following morning I was initiated in the mysteries
of Mani, and about noon the following day I left the Lama
Grelong's cave. For about five miles I descended the hill,
carrying my baggage on my back, and it was pretty
heavy. Then I proceeded north, with the object of reaching
the highway and not as directed by the Lama, and when I
had walked another five miles, I saw two tents and a man.
208 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
apparently a wealthy grazier, coming out from one of them
and cordially greeting me. I was rather surprised, for I
knew I had no acquaintances in that neighborhood and I did
not know his face. I felt a little embarrassed, but I followed
him into his tent, where I was met by Alchu Lama. He
had stayed the previous evening at the tent, and had told
the man of our blessed religious talk of the other night.
The man, in consequence, had wished to receive my benedic-
tion. Being informed of these facts, I did as he wished.
Soon after I left the place, accompanied by a man
and two horses carrying my things. I travelled eight miles
east along the bank of the Ngar Tsang-gi-chu, which I had
crossed once on my way from the cave of the White Cliff to
the snowy peak of Tise. The same evening I arrived in a
place on the riverside, where the naan who had accompanied
me put down my baggage and took his leave. . During the
evening, I enquired about the best way to reach the high-
road, and was informed that I had to cross the Brahmaputra
for a second time, and that I needed a guide and a carrier
in order to cross it. So I engaged the men required.
The next morning I walked eastwards ten miles through
a swampy plain, and over a hilly pass which was five miles
long, and then crossed the Brahmaputra. On the farther
bank of the river I found a tent of miserable appearance,
kept by an old woman and her daughter, whose business it
was to watch yaks straying about. I spent the following-
day in patching up my shirts.
On October 16, I again walked over the swampy plain
in an easterly direction. The swampy plain in Tibet is
dotted about with pools of various depths in which grass
is growing. Walking through tJie damp place for
about ten miles, I reached the Na-u Tsangbo, a large river
flowing from the northern steppe^ of Tibet and into the
Brahmaputra. I had previously been informed of the place
.where I could cross the river, but the water reached
THE SAINT OF THE WHITE CAVE REVISITED, 209
my breast, and the current was rapid, so that, as I was carry-
ing the heavy baggage on my back, there were times when
I thought I should be swept away by the river. More-
over the sandy mud which formed the river-bed. sucked
my feet deep down, and made walking very difficult.
Happily, however, I reached the opposite bank in
safety. Proceeding a little farther, I found a big
tent, where I was lodged that night. My invariable
question was about the way to the high-road. The people
there informed me that ten or twelve miles further to the
north-east there was a post-town called Toksum Tazam,
which stood on the high-road. The Tibetan high-road over
the steppes has post-towns at intervals of four or five days'
journey from each other. On this side of Toksum Tazam,
on the side nearer to the snowy peak of Tise, there
is a post-town called Satsan Tazam. From this place I
was to travel along the highway, and I should be able to
locate my whereabouts exactly.
The following day I steered my way due east, and not in
the north-easterly direction, which would have led me to
Toksum Tazam, for this route was, I thought, rather a
round-about way to reach the high-road. The next day,
the 19th October, 1909, I again proceeded due east; but I
met with a serious accident, which I must now describe.
27
t2]0
THKEi; YEARfS IN TIBET.
FALLEN INTO A MUDDY SWAMP
CHAPTER XXXV.
Some easier days.
The plain was nothing but a swamp, and I was obliged to
wade across shallow streams alternating with mud
flats. At one ])lace I came to a bog which, when I tried
it with my stick, appeared to be veiy deep, so that my
only course was to select what seeinsd tu bs tli'3 narrowest
part, and to cross it as besfc I could. The bog at this place
was not more than four j-ardi in width , and did not look
as if it could be deep, as it was co\'ered with fine
sand at the bottom of .some shallow water, so I begaii at
once to cross it by making a bold plunge.
But alas ! before I had gone two steps I had sunk deep
into it, and, though I tried to save myself by means of
my sticks, I found myself momentarily sinking further and
further into the mire. I then took the bundles I was
carrying one by one off my shoulders, and threw them on to
the other side ; then I stripped off my clothes and threw
them likewise, leaving myself exposed to the icy wind.
Then I commenced with the aid of my sticks to balance
myself across the bog with as much care and as gingerly
as though I had been balancing myself on a tight rope in
my j'ounger days. As soon as I got my body back into a
vertical position (for I had fallen almost flat upon my
face), I laid the shorter of my sticks horizontally across
the mud so as to give a resting place for my feet, and then
with the aid of the longer stick raised myself slowly until
I got both my feet upon it. Then I slowly moved my feet
along the top of the horizontal stick, and thus, thanks to
the bghtness of my body, which had been freed from all
encLiuibrancos, I managed in a few minute.s to reach tei-ra
firma.
212 THBBB YbIbs in TIBBI'.
I was shivering with cold when I got there, but I was
exceedingly jDroud of my acrobatic feat, and, wringing out
my wet clothes as best I could, put them on again and
made my way to a tent which I saw near the high-road,
where. I fortunately found some pilgrims who gave me
hospitality for the night.
The word " high-road " suggests to the mind the idea of
a macadamised thoroughfare, but that is not what the
traveller finds in Tibet. The high-road was nothing more
than a beaten track, along which men and beasts trod their
way as best they could. In fact anything is called a
high-way in Tibet, if it is frequented by travellers, free
from grass, and not too stony. In desert places, where
there is no grass to be worn off, there are no high-roads,
except in the immediate environs of Lhasa. It would be a
mistake to suppose that carriages could be used on the
high-road ; there is no road in Tibet capable of being used
by either carriage or jinriksha. When some years ago the
Raja of Nepal presented the Dalai Lama with a carriage
of European make, to be drawn by four horses, many of
the Dalai Lama's advisers recommended him to return
the gift, as one which could not possibly be used in Tibet.
Another opinion, however, prevailed : it was urged that
the carriage had been brought from a great distance and
could not well be returned without impoliteness, and it
was therefore placed as a curiosity in the Palace at
Lhasa, where it can be seen to this day. This was about
four years ago.
Bad roads are universal in Tibet, except around Lhasa
and Shigatze, the most advanced cities in the countrj'. fetill,
bad as it was, I was glad to be once more on the high-road,
where there were no fcjrtresses for the molestation of travel-
lers, and by which I might reasonably hope to reach Lhasa in
due time. One day, after a long stretch of desert travel-
ling, I reached a tent which was also a grog-shop — a
SOMK EASIEE iiAYS.
213
somewhat strange oasis in the midst of a desert. But it
became intelligible when I found that a large fair of salt,
wool, and cattle had recently been held in this locality and
that the grog-shop had been opened in connexion with the
fair by a man from Mondan in the province of Lo. The
liquor sold was a - kind of beer made from barley, and the
grog-shop was to remain here for about another month.
I reached the tent about dusk, and was delighted to find
myself amongst friends, for I had made the acquaintance of
the landlady sometime before at Tsarang. The old dame
Avas delighted to see me. She had been wondering what
had become of me and was very glad that fortune had
guided my steps to her tent. tShe was anxious to know if
I were going to return to Tsarang, to which I gave an
evasive answer, and she gave me such a kind reception
that I should have hesitated to accept it from any but
herself.
The next day I travelled over twelve miles to the south-
east, with one of the old lady's servants to guide me
and a yak to carry my luggage. At the end of the journey
we reached the house of a man named Gyal Bum, to whom
the dame introduced me as a venerable Lama, desirous of
hospitality. Gyal Bum is the second man in the province of
Bomba, and possesses two thousand j'aks, five thousand
sheep, and an enormous amount of wealth. One of his tents
was ninety yards square and had a stone chapel annexed.
There were two other tents, one of ordinary size, the other
veiy small and fitted up like a tea-house. The bottom edge
of tlie canvas of the large tent was turned inwards, and on
it were placed large quantities of goods, which served as
weights to secure the tent. The goods were all concealed
under Tibetan blankets, and were mostly butter, barley,
wheat, wool, and the like. It was in this tent that I stayed.
G-yal Bum was about seveuty-five years old, and his wife
over eighty and blind. They had no children, and the
214 THKE\ YEARS IN TIBET.
Tibetan law does not permit the adoption of a child from
another family. Should a man die without children, his
nearest relative, as a general but not universal rule, becomes
his heir. The old couple asked me many questions about
Buddhism, which I answered as kindly as I could. They
thought the teaching was excellent, and as they had now no
hopes except in a future life, they asked me to conduct
a benedictory service for them during their life-time — a
request to which I gave consent the more readily, because I
was much fatigued and wished to recuperate. The old
gentleman pressed me, indeed, to make a long stay of a
year or more with him, but this I declined, as I feared
running any risks in view of the many wild rumors about
me that were being circulated throughout the Lo province.
Furthermore I was afraid that, however warmly I might
be clad, I should be unable to endure the severe rigors of a
winter in those regions, for I had already been obliged
to borrow two fur coats from my host, and still felt so
cold that I was sure I could not winter in the tent. I
was obliged therefore to resist his importunities.
One incident will show that my anxieties about my
health were not groundless. One day while walking I felt a
lump in my throat, which I brought up and found to be a
clot of blood, and the bleeding, having once begun, went
on with such persistence that I began to fear consumption.
I was much alarmed, as may be imagined, but the
excellent precepts of my religion enabled me to keep calm,
and the more keenly I felt the pain of the bleeding, the
more I kept myself under control. I sat down on the
grass and stopped my respiration, as though for a
meditation, and was glad to find that the bleeding soon
ceased, though not before I had brought up quite a pool
of blood. When I got home, my pale face quite alarmed my
host, and when I told him what had happened, he said
that the rarity of the atmosphere (he did not call it
SOME EASIER DAYS. 215
'rarity/ for of that he knew nothing) often had a
similar effect upon Chinese visitors. He fortunately
knew of a very good remedy^ which he applied with great
success, and thus relieved me of my feai's of a supposed
consumption. Three days later I again brought up blood,
though in a decreased quantity, and the old gentleman
told me that after two such vomitings I should never be
similarly troubled again. He was quite right; henceforth I
was free from these attacks, even at Lhasa. The place Bomba
is 15,000 feet above the sea-level; Lhasa is only 12,000,
and no one spits blood on account of the rarity of the
atmosphere at this latter place. My host kindly fed me
up with milk and other nourishing food, and when, a week
later, I took my departure, he presented me with the fur
of an animal called yi, which he said was the only thing
that would do me any good. The yi is a sort of cat that
lives in the snow. It is somewhat larger than an ordinar)'
cat, and its fur is much valued in Tibet. My host's
present was a tipjDet of yi fur, covering the shoulders, and
I learned afterwards that SLich a tippet would cost twenty-
five yen when new, and ten yen for an old one. He
also gave me a quantity of butter and ten tankas of coin,
and sent his servant with a horse to put me well on my
journey. Thus I travelled some ten Japanese miles and
reached the house of one Ajo-pu, a village headman,
where I lodged. I was very thankful that I had stayed
with G-yal Bum, for had I spat blood on the journey
I should have died.
I left Ajo-pu's house on the 29th October, 1900, and
after going ten ri to the south-east, down a descent,
reached the banks of the Brahmaputra, which was already
covered with ice and glittering in the dazzling sun. I
had not originally intended to go by this way, but by the
high-road, which vfould have taken me more to the east
but Ajo-pu'had told me thata.t this season I should find no
216 THEEE YBAKS IN TIBET.
herdsmen along the high-road until I reached Tadun-Tazam,
while by the other road I should come across them fre-
quently. Sure enoughj I found a tent on the banks of the
Brahmaputra, and was hospitably received by its kind
owner, a man of the name of G-yal-po. He told me that he
was starting the next day along the same route that 1
was taking, and offered to take my baggage on one of his
yaks. I was glad to be thus relieved of my burden, and the
next morning we all set off towards the south-east along
the river.
It was a sandy swampy country, and after some four rl
(ten miles) we came to a plain of soft white sand which
was very tiring to the feet, so that I thankfully accepted
Gyal-po's offer of a bare-backed horse. I am not a good
horseman, but I trotted on bravely for a while, till the
pain in my hip-bone became unbearable. Then 1 changed
my position and rode sideways, like a lady, but then my
legs began to hart me, so I jumped off at last and resumed
my journey on foot. It was very hard walking, but I
consoled myself with thinking that, at any rate, I had no
luggage to carry, and so after a weary walk of five miles
I came to a narrow canon through which the river flowed.
Through this defile we went, threading our way among
the numerous rocks, until at last we came to a place where
three great rocks, in shape like a man's clenched fist, block-
ed the valley. Here the river made a sharp turn to the
south, while our road lay through a valle}' to the south-
east ; so we bid adieu to the Brahmaputra. Presently we
crossed a big mountain and came out on an cx*-ensive plain.
We had travelled nearly twenty miles that day, and near the
close of it I separated from G-yal-po's party. I was told
that evening that there was another river for me to cross
before I got to Tadun-Tazam, and that as it was full of
perils I must hire a guide. This I did, and the next
day, after walking for fifteen miles towards the south-east.
SOME EASIER DAYS. 217
arrived about ten o'clock at a river a hundred and twenty
yards wide, which was still covered with ice. The guide
was afraid that the ice, which was not thick enough to bear
us, would cut our legs if we attempted to wade through it,
and on his advice we waited for the sun to melt it a little.
We therefore took our lunch, and at last about noon broke
the ice and began to wade across. The ice cut our legs
in several places, and our feet were quite benjjmbed
with cold by the time we had got across ; but we walked
on for another eighteen miles, and then stopped for the
night in a little tent.
The next day, November 1, I started at nine o'clock and
walked till a little past noon, when we crossed another icy
rivulet. Twelve miles more brought us to Tadun, the most
famous temple in northern Tibet. Tadun means the
' seven hairs,' and the tradition is that the hair of seven
Buddhas are interred here. The temple stands on the
summit of a hill, and in its enclosure is a revenue
office. It is iu fact not a temple but a town (Tazam),
one of the most populous and wealthy in northern Tibet.
?8
CHAPTER XXXVI.
War Against Suspicion.
I spent the whole of November 2nd, 1900, at the temple
seeing its treasures and images. The place was just sixty
miles north of Tsarang in the province of Lo in the Himala-
yas, and was frequented by merchants from the latter.
i did not know this fact, and after I had seen the treasures
I was walking round the temple, when to my astonishment
I was accosted by an old acquaintance. He was a
notorious di-unkard and gambler, feared even by the
natives of the Himalayas. While I was in Lo he used
to accuse me of being a British spy. When, however,
a member of his family became sick I gave him medicines,
and this act of kindness of mine softened down his bitterness
against me, though it was evident that he intended to take
the first opportunity to quarrel with me. On the present
occasion it was clear that should I take no notice of him.
he would denounce me to the Tibetan Government and
obstruct the execution of my object ; so I decided upon a
plan of campaign. Approaching him with a smile, I said
I was delighted to see an old acquaintance. I was myself
a teetotaller, I added, but I had heard it stated that the
place had very good liquor. I would treat him to the best
to be obtained in the place if he did not object to coming
to my room. He accepted my invitation at once.
Ordering my landlord to bring a large quantity of the
best liquor I plied him with drink until four in the morning,
t'did not take anything myself, but made believe to be
drunk. After many glasses I got him dead drunk, and he
fell asleep. I also pretended to sleep. But as soon as the
landlord awoke at about half pa.st five, I also rose andtoldhim
that the man lying there was a dear friend of mine, and that
WAR AdAIUST SUSHCION. '219
I would have bim treated with the best liquor whenever
he awoke, and that he was never to let him go out of the
house. If he should ask for ni}- whereabouts, he was to
be told that I had gone towards Tsarang. "With these
orders I paid my bills, tijapcd the landlord liberally, and
set out on my journey at six o'clock.
I did not of course go towards Tsar an g, but took the
highway running to Lhasa. Yet my fears were not quite
pacified, for the man I had to deal with was noted for his
shrewdness even among the Himfdayans. He would not
only doubt the words of the landlord, but would suspect
my reasons for phing him with liquor, and woidd inform
the Tibetan revenue officials of my escape towards Lhasa.
In the event of the mounted officials giving chase
to me, it would be all in vain for me to walk as I was
doing. What I wished with all my heart, even at the cost
of all my money, was to get a horse or to hire a man
to carry my luggage. But the plain being absolutely
deserted, my desire was in vain. I was hastening along
the highway to the south-east, when a large body of
horsemen came galloping up from behind.
It was a caravan of eighty or ninety horses and sixteen
men. I stopped one of them, and asked him to tie my
luggage on to one of the horses, for which trouble I would
pay, and to allow me to run behind them. The man was a
servant, and could not give me any definite answer. I
approached another man, who seemed to be the master and
brought up the rear, with a similar petition. He said that
he was not able to comply with my request for the present.
But as the party was stopping that night in a valley
between the two hills which were vi.sible ahead, he advised
me to push on, hard though the work might be, and
wait there till some arrangements could be made. I took
his advice and summoned up all my courage to reach those
hills. At eight o'clock I reached the moantain slope anp
220 THREE YEARS iN TIBE'f.
found two big white tents. The chief and second
chief of the caravan seemed to be Lamas, the caravan
itself having a religious appearance. They offered me
tea and meat, but I said 1 did not eat any meat and gave
my reasons for not doing so. The Lama was apparently
interested by my explanation, and asked me where I had
come from. I said I was a Chinese priest. The Lam^-
thereupon spoke to me in Chinese, which he seemed to
understand a little. I told him that his Chinese was the
Pekin dialect, which I could not understand, and so our
conversation was held in Tibetan. He then produced some
Chinese characters and made me read and explain them,
and until I had satisfied him in this connexion he did not
believe in my being a Chinaman.
I learned then that he was the Lama of a temple called
Lhuntubu-choe-ten in the province of Luto on the north-
western frontier of Tibet, near to Ladak on the eastern
border of Kashmir. The first Lama was named Lobsang
Gendun, and the second Lobsang Yanbel. The man who
advised me to go there was the Tsonghcm, or chief of the
caravan, and acted as the business manager for these
Lamas. The rest of the party were either monks or
servants. They carried dried pears, raisins, silk, woollen
goods and other products of Kashmir to Lhasa, whence
they brought home tea, Buddhist pictures and images.
They were a very good company, and a very convenient
one for me, if I could get them to carry my luggage
through this vast pastoral plain of Jangthang ; but I
djd not wish them to accompany me as far as Lhasa.
The Lama interrogated me as to the kind of Buddhism
I had learned and the things I knew, and put before me
many questions about Tibetan Buddhism. Happilj-, as I
have already stated, I had been fully instructed in Tibetan
Buddhism while at Tsarang by Dr. GyHltsan, and had
studied the grammar with special care; so that not only was I
War AGAiisisT SUSPICION. 22l
able to answer the questions quite easily, but I could
explain many tilings on the subject that these Lamas did
not know. He was greatly surprised, and asked me
hundreds of questions in grammar, which he seemed
to have been studying, though without any insight.
Without the help of scientific analysis, which seems im-
possible for persons in these couiitries, one cannot fully
understand the grammar. A.s I proceeded with the
explanation of the subject, he proposed that I should
accompany the party, and said that they rode until two
o'clock in the afternoon ever}- day, but that after that hour
they always had plenty of leisure, during which he wished
to learn grammar. Moreover, he oif ered to pay me suitable
fees and give me food during the journey, if I would
consent to his request. This was just what I was longing
for ; even if he paid me no fee, I should have been glad to
comijly with his wish.
When I awoke at four the next morning the party were
making tea on a fire of dry yak dung. Presently' every-
body was up, and seven or eight men went out to collect
the mules and horses, which had been left during the
night to find pasture for themselves. These animals often
wander over the mountains, and it will take at least one
hour to bring them back, and at times three hours. But
these horses did not try to get away from the men who
went to fetch them, for they knew that they would be well
fed with beans as soon as they reached the tents and before
beins: loaded. The meal served to the caravan consisted
chiefly of the flesh of sheep, yaks and goats, and occasion-
ally pork. The grooms had thus to catch and feed the horses,
strike the tents, load them on tlie horses, harness the
horses for their own use, and drivi- up their own especial
charges. My companions were sixteen in number, fifteen of
whom. rode, and one walked. The latter was going to
Lhasa for the purpose of prosecuting his studies, and was in
222 THEEB YEARS IN TIBET.
company with the caravan simply for the reason that they
came from the same province. He aud I, being pedestrians,
took tea before the caravan packed its effects, and left the
place in a south-easterly direction.
My walking companion was a pedantic scholar. He
had a very high opinion of himself, but he knew
nothing of the essential jDrinciples of Buddhism, nor
did he recognise the existence of any sectional differ-
ences. It seemed as if he had only a vague notion
of the doctrines. I was glad to have his company, such
as it was, but he vexed me greatly hy his evident animosity
towards me, which unfortunately grew more violent
as time progressed. The cause of this animosity was,
as I learned afterwards, the fact that I had explained on a
previous evening the Tibetan grammar, which, scholar
though he was, was all untrodden ground to him. He was
of opinion that the knowledge of grammar, unaccom-
panied by that of true Buddhism, was a worthless acquisi-
tion, which only fools would take the trouble to make. As
his manner disclosed his jealousj', I treated him with
circumspection.
On that day we passed over a large hill and spent
the night at a swampy place, after having walked nearly
twenty miles in all. A lecture on grammar was again
given, by request. On the 5th, I again walked in company
with the pedantic monk. After we had arrived at Lhasa
he fell into- a destitute condition, and I, being then in
happier circumstances, did all I could to help him. But
this occurred long afterwards. Dui-ing the journey, after
some interesting conversation was held in connexion with
religious questions, thv monk applied himself to the work
of systematicidly investigating my personality. Apparent-
ly he suspected that I was an Englishman, or at least a
European, on account of my complexion, and his suspicion
speedily grew into conviction. But as his questions did
WAK AGAINST SUSPICION. 223
not soar above wTiat I had expected, I was able to reply in
a manner which dissipated his doubts. After we had
traversed the desert for five miles, we again reached the
Brahmaputra, and a thaw having set in at that time, we
found the water was flowing on smoothly. The clashing
sound of the blocks of ice was inspiriting, and the sun was
beautifully reflected on the surface of the river. We walked
eastward along the bank for about seven miles, and then,
leaving the river, walked in a north-easterly direction by an
up-hill road along the Brahmaputra for another seven miles.
Then we crossed the river on horseback. A post-town
called Niuk-Tazam stood a little to the north on the river
bank, but we did not visit it. We travelled two miles and
a half in an easterly direction and encamped on the slope of
a hill. That day I walked about twenty three miles. Until
we had come to the neighborhood of a town called Lharohe
the caravan which I accompanied avoided stopping in
towns, for the grass on which their horses fed was not to
be found abundantly in such places.
That night I felt for the first time safe from the man
whom I had left behind at Tadun, which was now sixty-
five miles off. I felt that it had been most f orttinate that he
had not awaked from his drunken sleep until it was too late
for him to inform the au.thorities of my presence, for if
he had had the least suspicion of my escape, he would not
have missed the opportunity for making money, enough to
enable him to indulge himself in a good bout of drinking.
The usual lessons in the Tibetan granmiar and Buddhism
over, the suspicious monk, who posed for a learned scholar,
suddenly addressed me, saying that having been in India,
I must have seen Sarat Chandra Das, who explored Tibet.
I replied that I did not know him, even by name. There
were three hundred millions of people in India, and how-
ever famous a man might be, he must always be unknown
to some, There was a great diiference between India and
224 THEKE TEAKS IN TIBET.
Tibet, and I asked to hear something about the man the
monk referred to. The monk then narrated how Sarat
Chandra Das, twenty-three j^earsago, had cheated the Tibet-
an authorities with a passport; how he had robbed Tibet of
her Buddhism, with which he had returned to India; how
on the discovery of the affair, the greatest scholar and
sage in Tibet, Sengchen Dorjechan, had been executed,
not to mention many other priests and laymen who were put
to death and many others whose property was confiscated.
After this the monk added that as Sarat Cliandra Das was
a renowned personage in India, it was impossible for ine
not to be acquainted with him. Probably I pretended
not to know him. These words were spoken in a most
unpleasant manner, but I put him off with a smile, saying
that I had never seen the face of the Qaeen of England,
who was so renowned, and that such a big country as
India made such investigations hopeless. The stories
about Sarat Chandra Das are quite well known in Tibet,
even children being familiar with them ; but there are few
who know him by his real name, for he goes by the
appellation of the ' school babu' (school-master) . The story
of the Tibetans who smuggled a foreigner into Tibet and
were killed, and of those who concealed the fact from the
Grovernment and forfeited their property, are tales that
Tibetan parents everywhere tell to their children.
Owing to the discovery of the adventures of Sarat
Chandra Das, all the Tibetans have become as suspicious as
detectives, and exercise the greatest vigilance towards
foreigners. I was fully acquainted with these facts, so
that I too exercised great caution oven in dropping a
single word, however innocent and empty that word might
be. But the Tibetans were very cunning questioners ;
and the monk was one of the most cunning. When
I tried to laiigh away his questions, he put other queries
on eyery imaginuble point. Other Tibetans who were
WAR AGAINST SUSPICION. 225
equally suspicious joined him in harassing me. I felt for
the moment just as though I were besieged by an over-
whelming force of the enemy. I thought myself in danger,
and with the view of changing the subjectof the conversation
I turned the tables on them by asking them which they
revered more, the Buddha or Lobon Rinpoche, the
founder of the old religion of Tibet. There is a saying in
Tibet : " Padma Chungne is superior to Buddha/' Padma
Chungne meaning " born from the Lotus/' the founder
of Lamaism. This question is an old one, and one
about which Tibetans are never tired of disputing, so
when this subject was inti'oduced a most violent debate
was started, and no one questioned me any more about my
personality.
But the incideiit was sufficient to put me on my guard.
The Mongols have a raying "Semnak Poepa," mean-
ing "black-hearted Tibetans." Tibetans are extremely
inquisitive, and one of their characteristics is to conceal their
anger behind a smile, and to bide their time for vengeance.
The word, ' Poepa ' means Tibetans, and they call their own
country ' Poe'. They do not know that their country is
called Tibet. 'Poe' means in Tibetan 'to summon'. The
founders of that countrj^, according to the tradition, were a
man of the name of Te-u Tonmar (red-faced monkey) and
a woman named Tak Shimmo (stone she-devil). The for-
mer was the incarnate God of Mercy, and the latter the in-
carnate Yogini, who induced Te-u Tonmar to be her husband.
To them were born six sons, whom they summoned into
being, respectively, from the six quarters of the universe :
namely: Hell, Hunger, Animalism, Asura (fighting demon),
Humanity and Heaven. Thus the Tibetans called their
country ' the summoned ' or ' Poe'. This tradition was
perhaps fabricated by some inventive Lama, for the
purpose of connecting Tibetan religion with Buddhism.
But it is a tradition which is believed by the natives, The
226 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
Hindus do not call tlii.s country by the name of Tibet.
They call it Bodha, one of the meanings of which is
' knowing' oi' ' idea'. It is not known how they came
to call Tibet Bodha, but according to their scholars
Poe is a contraction of Bodha. The Hindus have another
name for Tibet, namely, the, country of 'Hungry Devils'.
This is clear even from the fact that Paldan Atisha
invented, as I have already mentioned, the name of Preta-
puri (town of hungry devils). Tibet has many other names
which deserve study, but which are too peculiar to be
expounded. At all events the 'pa' of Poepa means
men, so that Pdepa means the Tibetans.
CHAPTER XXXVII.
Across the Steppes.
On November 6tlij 1900, we took our way to tlie south-
east, and marched up and down several rolling hills, till
after walking more than twenty miles we reached the
foot of a great snow-covered peak and lodged t'lere. On
the 7th we again climbed up and down the spurs of the
Himalayas for a distance of over five miles, and arrived at
the Chaksam Tsangbo (river of the iron bridge). It was
no fine suspension bridge, but an iron rope, fastened to the
rocks on either side, by which travellers crossed the river
hand over hand, and which gave the rfver its name. For I
heard that there is in the vicinity of Lhasa another iron
bridge, which consists of two iron chains, by means of
which one can very comfortably pass over the river. The
bridge over the Chaksam does not now exist ; but
the name of the river of the iron bridge seems to have been
derived from the fact that it was crossed by one of these
iron ropes, though which kind it was is more than I can
say. The river had a tremendously rapid current, thickly
strewn with blocks of ice ; but I easily crossed it on my
horse. Then we had to tra^'el through a plain between the
hills, which were generally bare and devoid of vegetation
except when there was a swamp where grasses were seen
growing. The scene was exceedingly dismal, and there
was nothing to relieve the eye. We went on for some
four miles, and came to a rivulet, and at the end of another
four miles arrived at a castle called Sakka Zong. We
lodged beside a swamp on the west of the castle, which
stands upon the summit of a hill. The style of its architec-
ture differs not much from that of a temple, though it
presents a certain martial aspect. There were no regular
228 I'HEEE YEARS IN Tlfe^T.
troops stationed there. When needed the people in that
vicinity, some two hundred in number, take up arms. I
was told that the year before last a tribe on the northern
plain had made an attack on this locality, with the result
that the latter lost twenty or thirty men and about two
thousand yaks. The trouble' was still pending as a subject
of litigation. Thus the castle seems to be a fortification
against the attacks of roaming tribes, though it also has
a revenue office in it. That day we travelled some fifteen
miles, and the evening was spent in my lecture on gram-
mar, as were many succeeding evenings.
The following day, after we had travelled eight miles,
wci passed the southern fort, on a snow-clad mountain
called Chomo-Lhari. Then we travelled five miles more
in a south-easterly "direction, and encamped for the night.
Nothing occurred worthy of mention.
On the 9th we travelled for seventeen miles along the
same lonely mountain-pass leading to the south-east, and
reached a valley in which we observed an exceedingly
large animal ahead of us. This strange beast resembled a
yak, tliough there was no doubt that it was not an ordinary
yak. On asking its name, I was informed that it was what
the Tibetans called a dongyak (wild yak). Its size was
twice or three times that of the domesticated animal, and
it stood about seven feet high. It was smaller than the
elephant, but its eyes looked dangerous. Its horns meas-
ured twenty-five inches in circumference and five feet in
length. Tliese measurements Mere taken afterwards at
Lhasa, where I saw the horns of a wild yak. It is describ-
ed as graminivorous; when it becomes angry it will attack
men or animals with its horns, often inflicting fatal injuries.
Its tongue is extremely rough and anything licked by the
animal would be torn to pieces. Once I ^-aw the dried
and very large tongue of a young dongyak, which was
being used as a brush for horses.
ACROSS The steppes.
229
MEETING A FURIOUS WILD YAK.
An honest fellow in the party asked me to. prophesy^
by my art of divination, whether that night was to be
passed in safety or not. I thought he was afraid of the
dongyak, but the truth was not so. He pointed to a place
a little below the slope, and said that in the preceding
year six merchants had been killed by robbers there.
He was therefore going to keep watch that night, and
wished to know whether robbers were coming. In order
to pacify him, I said that nothing of the kind was going
to take place that night. But the features of the place
were anything but agreable, as may be guessed from the
fact that the dongyak was quite at home there. Tlie night
was, however, spent without any accident. The following
day we travelled over the steppes for a distance of fifteen
miles, and again lodged near a swamp ; we always prefer-
red swampy places for lodging, on account of the aliundant
grass.
230 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
On the 11th we travelled again for fifteen miles, and
on the 12th crossed a steep pass called Kur La,, seven
miles in length, and walked seventeen miles eastwards,
lodging again beside a swamp. It was about that time
that a change for tlie better came over the relations
between the pedantic monk and myself. Proud as he
was, he seems to have thought that hostility could not
be maintained without serious loss to himself, as the majority
of the party had come to entertain a sincere love for and
confidence in me. He approached me with a kindlj' face,
which could not be repelled ; whatever his motives may
have been, it would have been very ill-advised for me to
quarrel with him, so I reciprocated his kindness, with the
result that our relations became perfectly smooth, and
I was glad to get rid of the fear that he might inform
the Tibetan authoi'ities of his suspicions about me.
The following day, November 18th, we passed over two
long slopes, and the night was spent at the foot of a
.steep and rugged mountain. On the morrow we proceeded
about seven and a half miles in a south-easterly direction,
along a river flowing between rocks. A gentle slope of
about twelve miles was then accomplished, and the night
was spent on the bank of the river. On the 15th we
proceeded further to the south-east along the river-side
route. When five miles were covered, we came out upon
a plain, which we crossed in an easterly direction. A
journey of about seven and a half miles oyer the plain
brought us to a post-town called Gryato Tazam, where I
found a far greater number of stone buildings than at any
other post-town I had visited en route. I was informed that
the inhabitants of the town numbered about four hundred,
representing sixty families. The people differed much from
the nomadic population found in the Jangthang which we
had visited before, something of urbanity being visible in
their manners. While the nomads are so rude and vulgar
ACROSS THE STEPP15S. 231
that, whenever they speak, they speak bluntly, without any
regard to the persons addressed, the inhabitants of Gya-
to Tazam have a more refined tone in their language,
though it is of course modified by the local dialect.
After making some purchases in the town, we resumed, our
journey. Wending oar way about five miles into a
mountain region, we reached the bank of a stream, where
we decided to pass the night.
Being the middle of November it was pretty cold, but
fortunately my companions proved themselves so obliging
that, on our arrival there, they went to the trouble of
gathering a great mass of yak-dung, which was burnt
within the tent throughout the night. As I gave them
lectures on Tibetan grammar, the head priest of the party
and a junior Lama were very hospitable towards me and
provided me with bedding, so that I felt no cold at all.
The following day, after proceeding a little less than
fifteen miles over two long steep slopes, we found our-
selves on the edge of a plain. We went about four miles
further, and found in the centre of the plain a temple
standing upon two large pillar-like rocks, which stood
together and towered high into the sky. As these rocks
alone are 360 yards high, the entire height may well be
imagined, 'ihe temple is called the Sesum Gompa, and
belongs to one of the old schools of Lamaism. Passing
under the temple, we proceeded further and reached a
marsh lying to the east, where we stopped for the night.
The following day we made a journey of about twenty
miles through a mountain district situated to the south-
east, at the end of which journey we found ourselves at a
post-town called Sang Sang Tazam. We did not take lodg-
ing in the town, but encamped iipon a plain in the eastern
suburb, where we made as big a fire as we could, and yet
felt pretty cold, especially late at night. We awoke in
the morning to find ourselves completely frost-bound;
232 THESE YEARS IN TIBET.
indeed I wondered, at first sight, if it had not snowed
during the night. Thereupon I produced a short ida,
which may be rendered into English thus:
How beautiful
It is to see gTass dead, but blooming- yet
With frost, upon a high plateau.
CHAPTER XXXVIII.
Holy Texts in a Slaughter-liouse.
Heading in a south-easterly direction as before, we
proceeded about four miles, now over hills and then across
moorland, and arrived at the base of a mountain, where
there stood three buildings. A strange sensation came
over me when I saw dozens of sheep's hides dangling from
the eaves of these buildings. Nor was that all. They
were also in the habit, so I was told, of butchering yaks
on the premises. It is the custom of the Tibetans, I was
told, to butcher cattle towards the latter part of autumn,
and diy the meat for preservation, there being no fear of
decomposition, owing to the cold climate of the country.
The Tibetans esteem this dried meat as quite a luxurj', and
claim that it is the best food in the world. Not in-
frequently I heard people speak anxiously about their
stocks of preserved meat in summer. I was told that
autumn was the best time for killing cattle, because they
yielded excellent meat after their feast upon the rich sum-
mer grass. Tibetans, however, dare not slaughter
animals in their own villages, or near their tents, and the
three buildings in question are used as a common
slaughter-house by neighboring inhabitants. Generally
the slaughter is not carried out on behalf of a single
individual or family, but of the whole village. The beasts
butchered on the day we visited the place included two
hundred and fifty sheep and goats, and thirty-five yaks. Of
the latter, fifteen were despatched after our arrival there.
They told me that theories of the yak were very strange,
and invited me to witness the scene of the slaughter. What
cruelty ! how could I bear to see it ? Desirous, however, of
knowing something about the operations, I stood and
30
234 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
watched tlie spectacle. Sadly and slowly a yak was
conducted into the yard, two men pushing the animal on
from behind. As soon as the proper point was reached,
the legs of the poor creature were tied, and tears were
seen standing in its eyesj as if it were conscious of its
impending death as soon as it found itself in the pool of
blood left by its companions. The scene was indeed
unbearable. I wished I had money enough to redeem
their lives, but I could see no help for it. Just then
a priest came in, Holy Texts in hand, and read them
for the doomed animal, on whose head the book and a
rosary were placed. The natives believe that this religi-
ous proceeding will enable the poor yak to enter into a new
state of existence and also absolve the doer of the cruel
deed from the evil consequences which might otherwise
follow. I hoped so, too, but even the Holy Texts read by
the priest were now too much for my endurance. A flood
of tears came into my eyes, and I could no longer stand
the ghastly spectacle, but ran indoors. Presently, thump !
something fell outside the doors ; alas ! the poor creature
was beheaded. The natives handle a sharp knife so
dexterously, that a single blow with it is said to be suffi-
cient to finish the deadly work.
The blood gushing forth from the body of the dead
beast was received in a pail, and afterwards boiled down
into a kind of food said to be very delicious. When
desirous to obtain this food, the Tibetans often draw
blood even from the bodies of living yaks; this is done
by means of a gash made in the neck of the poor beast,
wide enough to cause a flow of the blood, but not to kill
it. The blood taken in this way is said to yield much
less delicious food than that obtained from the slaughtered
animal. I then thought that the scene was the very
extreme of cruelty, but afterwards found that I had been
miserably mistaken, for I observed during my subsequent
HOLY TEXTS IN A SLAUGHTER-HOUSE. 235
residence at Lhasa that more than fifty thousand sheep,
goats and yalcs were slaughtered tliere during the three
months ending in December every year.
But to return to my itinerary. Leaving the scene of this
tragedy, we had to proceed up a very steep slope about
nine miles long, and then down another, seven and a half
miles long. At the end of the latter distance we found a
river, on the banks of which we passed the night. The
next day, November 19th, we skirted the base of a
mountain (upon which there stood a big temple of the Old
School, called the Tasang Gompa) until we reach.ed the
bank of a river where we -encamped for the night. On the
20th we made a journey of five miles, again in a mountain
region, at the end of which we found ourselves at a village
called Larung, which was situated on the western shore oE
a lake bearing the name of Manuyui Tso. It was about
twelve miles . in circumference, and appeared to be very
deep. For the first time during my journey, I observed
in this village patches of wheat-fields, dotted with cottages.
CHAPTER XXXIX.
The Third Metropolis of Tibet.
Owing to the cold season I could not observe the condi-
tion of the wheat actually growing in the fields, but I
learned at the above village that in that locality the wheat
crop was considered ordinary when it was at the rate of
two bushels from two pecks of seeds, and unusually abund-
ant when the rate reached three bushels. In the neigh-
borhood of Lhasa four or five bushels are obtained from
two pecks of seeds, if the weather proves favorable, but
three bushels are passed as fair.
This testifies to the primitiveness of the methods of
farming obtaining in Tibet. One cannot but be surprised at
the ill-kept condition of the fields which, with their ' rich '
deposits of pebbles, cannot be termed cultivated land in
the proper sense of the word. I do not mean to speak ill
of the Tibetans, but this curious neglect of cleaning the
land is a fact; indeed, it is a universal feature of the coun-
try. I once suggested to a native farmer the advisability
of removing the pebbles, but the reply was simply
that such practices were not endorsed by tradition.
Tradition is to the Tibetans a heavenly dictate, and con-
trols all social arrangements. Those residing in more
civilised parts of the country, however, entertain some-
what more progressive ideas, and have learned to utilise
the products of modern ingenuity from the West. The
case is quite different with the mass of the people, who are
still laboring under n thousand and one forms of conserva-
tism. A very curious story, in a way substantiating the
foregoing statement, was told me by a village pandit whom
I could hardly credit, because of the apparent absurdity
of his narrative. The story, which is given below, was
I'HK THIfiD MJSTROPOLIS OF TIBET. 237
subsequently confirmed, quite to my surprise, by more
than one citizen of Lhasa.
In Tibet, as in other countries, taxes are assessed on
cultivated fields, but, as the Tibetans are practically
strangers to mathematics, as stated in a preceding chapter,
a very curious and primitive method is adopted with regard
to the land-measuring which forms the, basis of the
assessment.
The method consists in setting two yaks, drawing a
plough, to work upon a given area, the assessment being
made according to the time taken in the tillage. In other
words, the different plots of cultivated lands are classified
as lands of half a day's tillage, or a day's tillage, and so
on, as the case may be, and assessed accordingly.
After being entertained by the aforesaid scholar with
many other intei-esting stories concerning the manners and
customs of Tibet, as well as the conduct of native priests
we left the village and, proceeding for twelve miles along
the edge of the lake mentioned above, reached a spot where
we passed the night. On November 21st we struggled on
our way through a gorge extending over a distance of five
miles, till we found ourselves again on the edge of a big lake,
called Nam Tso Groga. It measured about twelve miles in
circumference, and its water was very pure. Proceeding
along the northern bank of the lake, we passed into a valley
commonly called the Senge Rung, or Lions' Vale. This
name must have been derived from the surrounding rocks,
which somewhat resemble the figure of the king of beasts.
After a journey of sfeven and a half miles through the vale,
we arrived at a village bearing the same name, and then at
another, where we took lodgings. We covered more than
twenty-five miles that day, this forced journey being due
to the necessity of altei'ing our travelling arrangements.
The fact -was that, while our previous journey was
through Jangthang, so that it was necessary for us to stop
238 THKBB YEARS IN TIBM.
early and graze our horses sufficiently^ we had now entered
into a more peopled and cultivated part of the country,
where pastures were few, so that we could not stop until we
reached a village where we could secure sufficient fodder
for our animals. The fodder, which in Tibet usually con-
sists of wheat and barley stalks and the stems of bean
plants, is generally purchased from inn-keepers. The latter,
however, extort such high prices, that fodder enough to
feed a horse during a night often costs the traveller full
thirty sen, though in some cases half that sum will be suffi-
cient. In addition, beans and a solution of butter are
sometimes given to horses, so that the caravan trade in the
interior of Tibet is at once ti-ying and expensive.
On November 22nd we proceeded about twelve miles over
a steep slope and across plains, and arrived again on
the northern bank of the Brilhmaputra. At this place
the river was not quite as it was when we crossed it on cm-
way. It now appeared quite fathomless, with its waters
azure-blue, though it was only about two hundred yards
wide. There was no hope of negotiating the stream on
horseback, and we were told that the river-bed would be-
come much wider in summer. There was, however, a
ferry-boat service, a rectangular flat-bottomed boat, re-
sembling those we see used for the purpose in India.
The boat had in the middle of her stern a figure represent-
ing the head of a serpent, and had capacity enough to
accommodate thirty or forty persons and twenty horses.
When we landed on the opposite bank of the river, we
found ourselves in the outskii-ts of Lharche, the city
which is the third in importance in Tibet. Once there,
we could fairly claim that we had gone far into the interior
of the forbidden country, for it is only five days' journey
thence to Shigatze, the second Tibetan cit}-.
Looking southward, we could see a caravanserai erected
by the Chinese. It is sjiaeious but unfurnished, no one
THE THIRD METEOPOLIS 01' TIBET. 239
being in charge of it. It serves the double purpose of
aecOramo dating the Chinese itinerant traders and the
native soldiers on mai-ch. We betook ourselves to the
building for the night, which proved a jolly as well as a
noisy one. It was thought very fortunate for us to have
escaped from the dangers of robbers and wild beasts
which infested the north-Avestern regions, and my
companions decided to celebrate the successful journey to
their hearts' content.
Throughout the night they indulged themselves in a
carouse, which was enlivened by the attendance of several
girls. Dui'ing the next day, November 23rd, I was still
staying with the rest of our party at the caravanserai, but
as I was to part company with them on the 24th I read the
gospel of Tloliehyo, as a mark of appreciation of the kindness
accorded to me hy them throughout my journey with them.
When the date of my departure came, the head Lama gave
me ten tankas as a reward for my lectures on Tibetan
grammar, while the rest of the party also collected among
themselves a certain sum of money which they presented to
me. A few of the party were to accompany me, for the Lama,
with the junior Lama and a servant, decided to go with me,
so that I was not alone on my road. We then set out,
taking the road leading to the grand Sakya monastery.
As for the men of the caravan, they were to proceed to
Shigatze through Puntso-ling by the highway. Besides
kindly carrying my personal effects together with their
own, the senior Lama and party Offered me the use of one
of their horses, so that my trip with them was a very com-
fortable one.
We proceeded in a southerly direction, and for a distance
of five miles our way passed through wheat-fields, the soil
of which appeared to be very rich. Of all the districts
in Tibet, Lharohe can supply barley, wheat, beans, and
butter at the lowest possible prices, which testified to the
240 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
position held by it with regard to agricultural products.
We then ascended a rapid slope for another five miles,
again traversed cultivated fields for about eleven miles,
going in a south-easterly direction, and reached a hamlet
called Rendah. The next day, after we had proceeded along
a river for some eighteen miles, we saw before us the
imposing monastery of Sakya, which was surrounded by
high stone walls of about two hundred and twenty yards
square, twenty feet high and six feet thick. All the
structures were of stone, painted white, and the main
edifice alone measured sixty feet in height, two hundred
feet from east to west, and two hundred and forty feet
from south to north. Over the walls, which were bow-
shaped, rose a dark-colored castle, crowned with Sai-iho-
doban (the victorious Standard of Buddhism), and rodai
(the disc for the dew of nectar) of dazzling gold. The
spectacle was sublime and impressive, at least so far as
outward appearances were concerned.
CHAPTBE XL.
The Sakya Monastery.
We lodged at a iieighboriag inn which placed a cicerone
at our service, and proceeded to pay a visit to the
celebrated monastery. Groing through the front gate and
past several smaller buildings, we arrived in front of
the main edifice. At first sight the interior of the
latter appeared to be completely enclosed, but a closer
examination showed that light was let in through a
courtyard. Entering the front hall, seventy-eight feet
by forty-two, we saw standing on both sides statues
of Vajrapani, each about twenty-five feet high, one
painted blue and the other red, such as are seen on
each side of the gate of every great -Japanese Temple.
Bach image has its right leg a little bent and the left
one put forward, while the right hand is raised towards
the sky and the left one vigorously stretched downward.
The workmanship seemed even to my lay eyes representa-
tive of Tibetan art, the muscles, for instance, being very
excellently moulded. There are also images of the
four heavenly kings, .each thirty feet high, standing on
the right side. Again, looking to the left, we saw on
the wall (which, was of stone over-laid with mud and then
\vith some lime-like substance) beautiful pictures of deities
and saints, which covered a space twenty-four feet by
twenty one. There is no fissure visible in the pictured area,
in spite of its dimensions. The structure as a whole
is in good repair. The front hall opens to an inner
courtyard, paved with stone, thirty-six feet by thirty,
where the priests of the inferior orders gather to dine
and to read the scriptures, while the higher Lamas have
the privilege of living inside the building. Passing this
31
242 THREE TEAES IN TIBET.
courtyard we entered the main cliamber (which faces
west) where the images of Buddhist deities are placed.
There are two entrances to this chamber^ the southern
one being open to the priests and the northern one to the
visitors. Once inside, we were lost in a sea of dazzling
gold J the splendor was simply beyond description. 'Ihe
ceilings and pillars are all covered with gold brocade,
and the images, more than three hundred in number,
are emblazoned with very iine gold. In the centre of
the room there stands a statue of Shakyamuni Buddha,
thirty-five feet high, which, we were told, is made of
mud covered with gold. In front of this image are
placed seven water-trays, some candle-sticks and a table
for oblations, all of pare gold, with the exception of
a few articles made of silver.
The disorderly manner in which the images are arrang-
ed, however, greatly detracts from the impression
produced by their intrinsic merits. The spectacle is a
grand exhibition of Buddhist fine arts, but put together
without much order. In short, the chief feature of the
chamber consists in its splendor, but its effect is greatly
impaired by the tasteless and excessive decorations.
At the rear of this chamber there is another, sixty
feet high and two hundred and forty feet wide, which is
full of valuable collections of ancient Buddhist manuscripts,
some written in gilded letters on dark blue-colored paper
and others in Sainskrt on the leaves of the fan palm
tree (Borassus flahellifurmis) . Many of these scriptures
were brought all the way from India by the founder
of the temple, Sakya Pandit, and his successors, who
sent their priests to that country for the purpose.
With regard to the scriptures in the 'I'ibetan language,.
I was told that they liad a great number of them there,
and that they were all written, not printed. We left this
chamber, and while wo were again looking round the
The sakya monasteey. 243
main chamber I was struck with a strong and oiien,si\-e
smell which, as my subsequent experiences taught me,
is a curious feature of every monastery in Tibet. 1
wondered how I had been insensible to such a stench up
to that time. Where did it come from ? you may ask.
Well ! in Tibetan temples clarified butter is used in lighting
the lamps offered to Buddha, and the priests are so careless
as to throw away upon the floor the residue of tea and
butter, which not only keeps the floor always wet but
also putrefies. This is why the chamber is filled
with such a sickening odor. Strangely enough, Tibetans
regard this smell as a sweet one, but I declare myself
emphatically to the contrary. On both sides of the main
chamber we foand two more chambers where diiferent
figures were also kept. Of these images, the one which
especially attracted my attention was that of Padma
Chungne, the founder of the old school of Lamaism, for it is
made entirely of precious stones. The surrounding walls
and the floor are also inlaid with gems, which are amazingly
beautiful.
Outside the main edifice^there are several dormitories
where some five hundred men of the order live. Then
standing to the south is the stately residence of the
'great instructor' of the temple, Chamba Pasang Tinle,
who looks after the spiritual education of five hundred souls.
We had an interview ^vith this spiritual superior, who
looked very saint-like, seated on a dais covered with
two mats in one of the upper rooms. I wanted to ask
him a few questions with regard to the diiference between
the Sakya doctrines and those of the other sects of
Lamaism, -but he told me that he was busy then and
asked me to come again the next day. We then retired
and left the temple grounds.
I noticed several palatial buildings rising above
a far-ofl: willow plantation. My companions told me
244 THREE YBAES IN TIBE-f.
that these buildings were the residence of the Abbot
of the temple, Sakya Koma Rinpoche, and we
proceeded to pay our respects to him. Koma Rinpo-
che means the ' highest treasure ' and is used only in
addressing • the Chinese Emperor and the Abbot of
the Sakya Monastery, whom Tibetans esteem as
one of the two sacred beings of the world. This being so,
the natives who are honored with an audience by
the Abbot pay special respect to him, and when he
gives them his blessing in return it is not infrequently
accompanied by some presents. But in reality the Abbot
is a laymauj tlie essential point of his excellence being
that he is the descendant of Sakya Pandit himself.
He is married, takes meat for dinner, and even drinks
wine, as do all the secular people. In spite of these facts,
not only the public at large but also priests salute him with
the rite of 'three bows' which as laid down by Buddha
is a mark of reverence due only to high priests and
not to laymen.
When we were received by the Abbot, I therefore paid
him only such respect as would be due to a personage of
his rank. He has, however, a verj^ dignified mien, which
bespeaks his noble descent.
While we were returning to our lodgings, 1 was blamed
by my companions for my failure to give the Abbot the
'three bows,' and when I told them the reason of the
omission they were astonished at my rigid observance of
the Buddha's teachings. The next day, when I called
upon the ' great teacher ' at the appointed hour, I found
him playing with a hoy who was behaving toward him in a
very familar way, as if he were his son. I could not think
that such a man, who was a genuine priest, was married,
and yet I very much suspected some such relation — a
suspicion which was afterwards confirmed during my
sojourn at Lhasa.
THS SAKYA MONASTERY. 245
At first I had intended to stay and study at the temple for
at least two weeks, but after this discovery I was now loath
to remain with such a degenerate priest. T left the town the
next day, and as 1 was now separated from my companions
I had to carry my effects myself. For a distance of two and
half miles the road gradually ascended along a mountain
rivulet in a south-easterly direction and then, turning east-
wards, became a steep descent of five miles. Proceeding
ten miles further in a south-easterly direction and along
the stream I found two dwellings, in one of which I lodged
for the night. The next day I again ascended a steep
slope, two and a half miles long, and climbed down another
twice that length. As the day was snowy and my
baggage got wet, I was obliged to take lodgings at the first
house I could find. The next day, November 30th, I
fortunately met seven or eight men who seemed to be
transport agents, and were driving forty or fifty asses,
and I was glad to place my things in their charge. Thus
freed from encumbrances, I, with the party, descended
the Tharu river for five miles. It then turned to the south-
east, and after proceeding fifteen miles further along the
riverside, we found a village where we stopped.
The drivers, however, encamped in a neighboring
meadov/, where they unburdened their animals and sur-
rounded themselves on all sides except one with the goods
thus unloaded. As was customary with them, the men
improvised a kind of fire-place. On the first of December
we proceeded along the river for about ten miles and then
left it ; again for ten miles, we ascended the eastern moun-
tain called Rangla with its perpendicular peaks of red
ropk. We lodged under the rock and on the following
day we ascended Rangla for five miles and marched more
than another five miles on tlie mountainous plains; we
reached a big monastery named Kang-chen and passed
that night in a field south of the monastery. At first, when
246 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
I saw my drivers recklessly making their way through the
cultivated fields, I expressed my fear to them that we
might be caught by the farmers. " No, " was their reply,
" you need not bather yourself on that score. " They
explained to me that these fields were fallow ones,
"which were enjoying their holidays" for this year, so
that any person might choose them as roads. It was a
custom in this locality to raise the wheat-crop every other
year, leaving the fields unemployed for the intervening year
— a custom which did not obtain in Lhasa and the neighbor-
hood. Moreover, I was told, it was winter, when the
privilege held good in anj' year, and no one need enter-
tain any fear of intruding. At night I preached to
my drivers, and the next day we set out together, taking
an easterly direction. We proceeded seven and a half
miles, when we found I'ising among the mountains a
magnificent temple, still under construction. On making
enquiries I learned that the work had been undertaken
by the Tibetan Government, which is acting under the
advice of a soothsayer.
The latter had, 1 was told, declared that there exists
a spring just beneath the site of the building, that it is
the mouth of a monstrous dragon, and that unless a temple
be erected over it, it will ultimately burst out and
deluge the whole country. Unfortunately this idea is
supported by a book of prophecies brought from China
which is apparently the work of some priest with hidden
motives. I read the book and found it to be full of
awe-inspiring predictions. It states, for instance, that as
wickedness obtains on the earth, a flood of water will
be brought upon it and everything on the face of it
destroyed; that fatal calamities, sucli as a great famine
or war, will break out as a prelude to such a flood.
In addition, it is stated that the book had been sent
from heaven, and that therefore any one whp is
THE SAKYA MONASTERY. 247
SO careless as to doubt its truth will be punished with
immediate death. I declared that these prophecies were
all false, but of course nothing extraordinary happened to
me. The book may be well meant, but it is full
of nonsensical sayings. But Tibetans believe in it so
firmly that translated copies are being circulated all over
the country. It is most surprising that sucli superstitions
should have led the Government to begin a foolish under-
taking at a great cost. But indeed, oracle-mongers ai'e
held in high esteem, not only by the Grovernment but also
by the. general mass of the people, who consult them
whenever thej^ are at fault.
Passing under the above-mentioned temple we proceeded
further, and before we had gone far, we found some five
vultures (known among the natives by the name of
Oha-goppo) perched on a hill-side. On questioning my com-
panions, I was told that there exists in Tibet a very
curious and unpleasant custom of offering the corpses of
dead men to vultures as a part of the funeral ceremony;
that as in this locality the people do not bring enough
carrion to these birds, the latter are always liungryj and
that therefore they are granted an allowance of meat
from the kitchen of a temple called the Tashi Lhunpo.
How they are fed on human flesh at a funeral ceremony I
shall relate later in my account of Lhasa.
After some further journeying we arrived at an " ab-
stinence house" (Nyun ne Lhakhang in Tibetan), in the
neighborhood of which there stood a temple callpd the
Nartang. Wanting to make some enquiries, I decided to
stay at this house, so that I parted company with my
carriers, who proceeded towards Shigatze. This house is
used both by priests and laymen for observing the ' Eight
rules of abstinence ' enjoined by the Buddha, or other
forms of religious self-denial, such as silence or abstinence
from meat. Abstinence from flesh is considered an
248
THEEB YEAES IN TIBET.
austerity by Tibetan priests, because they eat meat, contrary
to the ordinary usages of Buddhist monks.
The next day I visited the Nartan^ Temple, where I
inspected the most valuable of its treasures, which are
immense heaps of wooden printing-blocks, comprising the
collection of all the Buddhist writings in Tibet, divided
into two departments — Buddha's own preachings and
the works of the saints. In addition, they have an
equally large number of printing-blocks for the commen-
taries prepared by the native Lamas. These blocks are
kept in two large buildings, one of which measures about
180 feet by sixty. This temple is the sole publisher of
the ' collection of all the Buddhist- writings, ' the three
hundred priests who live there being printers. I called
upon the head priest of the temple, who had been specially
sent from the Tashi Lhunpo Temple, and found him very
clever in conversation. The interview was at once very
instructive and agreeable to me, for the priest not only
gave me valuable information on Buddhism but also
accorded me cordial treatment.
CHAPTBE XLI.
Shigatze.
The next clay, December 5th, I iDroceeded for about
eight miles across a plain in a south-easterly direction,
when the gold-colored roof of a palatial building, with
many whit6,painted dormitories for priests close by,
presented itself before my view. In addition, temple-
like buildings in red paint were seen rising amidst
these structures, making in all a grand and beautiful
OUTLINE OF THE MONASTERY OF TASHI LHUNPO.
spectacle. The town before me was Sliigatze, the second
capital of Tibet, and the palatial building was the
Tashi Lhunpo Teinple. The name means 'a gloi-ious
mass ' or ' Mount Sumeru,' a legendary mountain mentioned
in Buddhist Scriptures. The monastery owes its name
to its founder, Gendun Tub, who thought that^ the
mountain at the rear of the temple resembled Sumeru.
32
250 THREE YEARS IS TIBET.
There were altogether three thousand three hundred
priests in the temple, but sometimes the number increases
to over five "thousand ; and though it is but the second
temple in the country it maintains the same dignity as
the papal see. The secular j)art of the city lay beyond
the temple and consisted of some three thousand five
hundred dwellings. The number of the inhabitants was
stated by the natives to be over thirty thousand, but this
calculation cannot be much trusted, as the science of
statistics is utterly unknown in Tibet. I visited the temple,
where I asked for the dormitory called Peetuk Kham-
tsan, which is allotted to the Lamaist monks from the north-
eastern plateau, since I had feigned myself to be one of
these. At length I found it and settled myself in it, for I
intended to stay there for some time and ' to pick up any
knowledge I could from those with whom I might come
into contact.
The Lama Superior of this temple is regarded as the
second Grand Lama of Tibet, for, though he does not
possess any political influence, yet with reigard to the rank
bestowed hj the Chinese Emjoeror he is superior even
to the Dalai Lama himself. .Sometimes a kind of regency
under this ' second Grand Lama ' takes place during the
interval between the Dalai Lama's death and the enthrone-
ment of "jvh^-t in Tibet is believed to be his re-incarnated
self.
This second Grand Lama is commonly called Panchen
Rinpoche, but his real title is Kijah-hon Chen-ho, meaning
' Great Protector,' while his name is Lob sang Choe-ki
Nima, the ' noble-minded religious sun '. I was told
he was eighteen years old, having been born in the year
of " sheep," and was believed to be an incarnation of
Amida-nyorai. At the time of my visit he was away at
a distant palace, so that I could not see him. During
my stay in the town my only biisiness was to visit various
SHIGATZE. 251
Lamas and scholars, with whom I discussed the teachings
of Buddha.
One day I called upon the tutor of the second Grand
Lama, Tsan Chenba, a venerable priest, seventy-four
years of age, wlio was very kind to me. As he was
reputed to be the highest authority on Tibetan grammar
and rhetoric among the three thousand priests in the
temple, I asked him several grammatical questions, and in
doing so 1 took care to select such questions as were
familiar to me, for I wanted to know in what way my
host would try to explain them. I was, however, dis-
appointed, as he confessed that he could give no answer
and said that he could only refer me to a learned
physician living at Engon on the road to Lhasa, who, he
was inclined to believe, could give me a satisfactory
answer. I was, therefore, glad to take leave of him.
E71 pasb-ant it may be stated that five branches of science —
phonetics, medicine, logic, engineering and religious
science and philosophy — ^were centuries ago introduced into
Tibet from India, but now-a-days very few — I will
almost say no — Tibetans are proficient in them, or
even in one of them. Under present circumstances, those
who take to the study of grammar belong to very
limited classes, the majority of them consisting of the men
in the Government service who learn just the elementary
rules of grammar, in order to be able to prepare official
documents. It is not .wonderful therefore that there
should be scholars who, in spite of their zeal in the
investigation and exposition of Buddha's doctrines, are
absolute strangers to history and other branches of science.
After a stay of several days at the temple, I was one
day thinking of leaving the town, when I was informed
that the Grand Lama was expected home presently,
so I went out to witness his procession. It must be
noted that owing to the absence of roads in Tibet the
252 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
procession passed through the more beaten parts of the
country, which served as roads. On both sides of the
route there stood cylindrical posts upon which incense
was burnt by the waiting crowds, both sacerdotal and
secular, most of whom prostrated themselves on the
advent of the cortege. The second Grand Lama was borne
in a palanquin decorated with gold brocades and gorgeous
kinds of silk, and was accompanied by about three hundred
mounted attendants who, instead of being armed, carried
Buddhist utensils. The procession was heralded by the
native band, using some kind of wind instruments and
drums. The spectacle was so splendid that I congratulated
myself on my good fortune in having witnessed it.
During that night, in compliance with the request of
the priests in my dormitory, I delivered a sermon on the
ten Buddhist virtues, which seemed to please them
greatly. They confessed to me that, priests as they were,
they found no interest in the theoretical and diy expos-
itions of Buddha's teachings to which they had been used
to listen, but that my delivery was so easy and pleasing
that it aroused in them a real zest for Buddhism. This
fact is a sad commentary on the ignorance of the average
Tibetan priests.
I learned subsequently, however, that the priests in this
temple were very rigid in their conduct, except in the
habit of drinking. With regard to this latter an amusing
story is told. One day the Dalai Lama of Lhasa met with
the Grand Lama of the Tashi Lhunpo monastery. In the
course of conversation, the former said he was very sorry
that his priests were addicted to the use of tobacco. Pan-
chen Rinpoche sympathised, but stated that he was no
less sorry that his own priests were exceedingly partial
to alcoholic drinks. They then discussed which of the two
luxuries was the more sinful, and also whether or not
some effective measures could be taken to prevent these
SHIGATZB. 253
vicious habits. But even their great influence could do
nothing, and the vicious practices were open secrets. A
curious rule was however enacted in order to prevent the
habit of drinking. Every priest returning from the
street was bound to present himself before the priestly
guard at the gate of the temple, who examined his breath,
any disclosure of his drunkenness being followed by an
immediate punishment. Some impudent priests often
attempted to conceal their inebriation by eating a good
deal of garlic, the strong smell of which impregnated
their breath and thus might prevent detection.
Leaving, the temple at ten on the morning of December
15th, I proceeded about two miles across the city of
Shigatze, when I reached the Tsanchu river. The great
bridge erected over it is called the Samba Shar, which
means eastern bridge. It measures about three hundred
and sixty yards in length and eight yards in breadth.
It is unlike our own bridges, for it consists of slabs of
stones covered with earth, which are in turn placed
upon rows of long wooden boards spanning stone
structures erected in the water at equal distances of
about ten yards. The bridge has parapets made of
stone. Passing over the bridge, I proceeded four miles
to the north, till I found myself on the bank of the
Brahmaputra. The road now turned to the east along
that river, and a further journe)^ of about twelve miles
brought me to a village called IV, where I lodged at a
poor farmer's. There I noticed with curiosity that turf
instead of the usual yak-duug was heaped besides the fire-
place. I was told that in that locality the dried roots of
grasses were used as fuel; hence the heaps of turf.
I also found a boy of about twelve 3'ears old sitting
beside the fire-place and learning to write. He had a
bamboo stick for his pen, and was writing with it upon
white powder sprinkled over a small piece of wood-
254 I'HEEE YEAES IIST TIBEl'.
Every now and then he presented his work to his father
and had its ill-done portions corrected by hinij this process
being repeated over and over again. I wondered at the
care with which the child was taught to practise penman-
shipj in spite of the poor condition of the family, but I
soon learned the secret. Agriculture was the sole industry
in this locality, and if the tenant did not know how to
write and count, he would possibly be imposed upon by his
landlord in the payment of his rent. As to the art of
counting, it was taught in a very primitive way, stones,
sticks or rosaries being used for the purpose. With
respect to writing and counting the poorer classes of this
locality were far above those in Lhasa, who were totally
ignorant.
At night I preached to the members of the family, and
the next day I proceeded about five miles along the river
already mentioned. The road, which sloped eastward,
now became very narrow, with the river on the left and
a very steep and rugged mountain on the right. I strug-
gled on for about four miles further, and then came out
upon a wide space. Looking to the right, I saw two large
buildings standing , on the summit of a mountain. These
buildings constitute the Engon temp)le where, as the old
priest of the Tashi Lhunpo temple had kindly informed
me, lives the celebrated grammarian. I climbed the moun-
tain, and reached the temple aftei' an arduous ascent of
more than two miles. There I learned that the larger of
the two edifices accommodates two hundred and thirty
male priests, while the other, situated a little lower, is a
nunnery where live seventy-two nuns. The history of
this temple is verj^ interesting, but I need not dwell on
it here in detail. I stayed at the temple for the night,
and the next day I had an interview with its principal
priest. The latter, however, talked only something of
Buddhism, being ignorant of grammar and rhetoric, but
SHIGATZE. 255
was kind enough to refer me to the physician, Amdo
Ka-sang, of whom the old priest of the Tashi Lhunpo
had such a high opinion.
I then called upon this physician and grammarian, to
whom I gave some presents in token of my respect. After
the usual greetings had been exchanged, the host questioned
me how long I had been studying the Tibetan language.
" Three years, " I replied. My host declared that the
study of grammar and rhetoric greatly depended upon
the method used and that, if the method were a poor one,
the period of three years would prove too short to
accomplish anything. He then asked me a few questions
on grammar, which, as they were very simple, I answered
quickly. I asked him to put to me some more difficult ques-
tions on rhetoric, but, to my great disappointment, he con-
fessed that he had no knowledge of rhetoric. I next asked
him which of the Tibetan grammarians he thought the best,
to which question he answered that he preferred Ngul-
chu Lama's grammar (Ngul-chu being the name of
a temple) which, in reality, is very imperfect. I al-
most doubted his sincerity, so that I again asked him why
he did not follow the views taken by Situ Lama, who is
well-known as the highest authority on Tibetan grammar.
To my great surprise, my host had never read Situ's
works, though he had heard something of the grammarian.
I then turned my questions to the number of vowels in the
Tibetan alphabet, about which there are two different
opinions among grammarians. This question, simple as it
may appear, has been the subject of much discussion, so
that the study of the Tibetan language must be started
with this theme. My question on this subject seemed to
embarrass my host who,, after some pondering, said that
there were sixteen vowels in the Tibetan alphabet, and
began to enumerate them. Curiously enough, all the
vowels mentioned by him were those of the Samskrt
1256 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
alphabet, so I asked him what he thought of the opinioM.
that the number of the Tibetan vowels was five.
The doctor seemed abashed. He apologised for his
mistake in having mentioned the Samskrt vowels, and
admitted that the Tibetan vowels numbered only five.
(This five- vowel opinion is erroneous, though several
western scholars maintain it in their works. It
must be noted that the Tibetan characters were invented
by Thumi Sambhota, who tells us in his work that there
were only four vowels in his language. ) In short, the
interview proved a disappointment. The doctor possessed
very limited knowledge, being a great grammariaii and
rhetorician only in the eyes of ignorant native priests.
I returned to my room, where I was asked by a priest on
what subject I had talked with the ' learned ' doctor.
When I answered him that I had discussed some
grammatical questions with the doctor, the priest said
with an air of importance that the doctor was the highest
authority on grammar and rhetoric throughout the
province of Tsan, that one or two interviews ■with him
would be insufficient to secure any benefit, and that 1 should
stay with him for at least two or three years if I really
wished to study grammar. In addition, the priest confessed
that, long as he had had the fortune to listen to the doctor's
lectures, he was still a total stranger to grammar. I was
so much tickled by these remarks that I burst out laughing,
which seemed somewhat to embarrass the priest.
The next day, December 18th, I proceeded about five
miles over an undulating country, going in a south-easterly
direction, when I again reached the Brahmaputra river.
Crossing a vast plain which stretched along the river, I
made my way eastward, and was within some two miles and
a half of the Pombo Ri-o-che, a temple belonging to an
older sect of Lamaism, and situated upon a towering peak,
when I was unexpectedly called and stopped by someone
CHAPTER XLII.
A Supposed Miracle.
Turning about to see what it could be, I caught sight of
two stout fellows armed with Tibetan swords. On their
approach, I asked them what they wanted. Abruptly
picking up a stone, the younger of them threatened me
and said : " What do you mean ?"
" Run off," he menaced, " or you shall die."
Then I took my seat on a stone by the roadside and
gave myself up for lost. The men strode toward me, and
violently seized my stick.
"Tell us what you have and where you come from,"
they said.
"I am a pilgrim," I answered, " and I come from Tise."
" You have money ?"
" I have a little," I said, " not worth taking, as I was
robbed at Jangthang."
" What have you on your back ?"
" Some food and the Scriptures."
" Unpack it and let us see; you may have much money
there."
" No, the money is in my pocket,'' I said " and not in the
baggage. Being a priest, I never tell a lie. You may
have either the money or the baggage, if you wish."
I was just going to give them money when three
hoi'semen appeared riding towards us, and at sight of them
the highwaymen took to their heels, leaving the stick and
everything else. Thus I was saved.
" Who are they ? " asked the horsemen, and on my
answering that they had demanded of me my money and
baggage, they expressed their disgust.
33
258 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
"Go to yonder temple/' tliey added after a little
pause, " and you will find a village. Be quick and we
will .see you safe there."
I thanked them and walked on toward the village, and
the horsemen went awa)' westward after a little while.
Instead of stopping there for the night, I proceeded east-
wards as far as Nya-mo-Hotta, a little village about seven
miles off, where I lodged. The following day I took
lunch at Teshok, and stopped at Tak-tsu-kha in the evening.
On December 20th at dawn, I went south-east through
the deep snow, it having snowed very hard the night
before. While going along the river Brahmaputra, I saw
some cranes walking in the snow, and was so delighted
that I forgot that I was in so cold a climate.
Then I amused my.self with composing Utas, of which
the following in one :
With crystals of the snow, how white tlie sand
AH spotted gleams upon the river banks !
The flocks of cranes to me appear to sing
The changeless glories of the Path of Ti-uth
In their melodious joyful bursts of song :
On those bejewelled banks they tread in pride ;
"With gait majestic slow they strut about.
Amid such beautiful scenes I went down along the
southern banlc of the river, and after about eight miles'
walk I came to Kurum Namse, where I took lunch. I
proceeded still further east along the sa,me stream for
about five miles, and found the river running north-east,
while my road lay south-east into the mountain. I went
up the hill about four miles, and stopped at Shab-Tontub.
On the following morning I went eastwards again along
a clear stream, and after about four miles I could see
from its banks a rocky mountain, at the foot of which
there was a temple called Cham Chen G-ompa (meaning
'the monastery of the great image of Charity', i.e., the
Bodhisattva of that name), where there was an image of
A SUPPOSED MiKACLli). 259
the Buddha Maitreya about thirty-five feet high. Bodhi-
sattva Maitreya (which name means ' Charity ') is honored
as next to Buddha in rank^ but in Tibet he is worshipped
as a Buddha who will hereafter appear aaain on earth.
I worshipped at this temple, and then at the shrine of the
divinities, and of Shakyamuni Buddha beside the temple.
Then I entered a lamasery. This temple, which is the
largest between Lhasa and Shigatze, has two hundred
dormitories, with three hundred priests. The chief priest
of the house where I stopped was in great distress
on account of some bad dreams which he had had on
several successive nights. He had dreamed that he
was dying, and this troubled him much, for he had
immense wealth. So he asked me to read the Script-
ures to him, so that he might be free from the supposed
evil. I knew of no gospel specially suitable for such
purposes, but I thought that the reading of the Buddhist
canon might do him good, so I told him that I would do
as he wished, and from the following day began reading
The Aphorisms of the White Lotus of the Wonderful Law
and other Scriptures in Tibetan.
It was on the 28th of December, as I remember, that a
priest was going to Katnumdu in Nepal, and I seized the
occasion to send a letter home by him, addressed to my
bosom friend Tokujuro Hige. I paid him a compara-
tively large sum of money and asked him to send it
registered from the post office of Nepal. The man was
reputed so hone.st that he had never been known to tell a
lie, but strangely enough the letter failed to reach its
address, as I have since discovered.
During the afternoon of the 31st I was sped on my way
by the head priest, who lent me a horse. I got on the horse,
loaded it with my baggage, and going east for about three
miles, came to Ta-mi-la, where I was a.sked to read the
Scriptures. While riding to the village, I lifted up my
260 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
thanks to Buddha for the grace by which I had been
saved through so many cahimities and afflictions during
the year, it being the last day of the 33rd year of Meiji
according to the Jajoanese mode of reckoning (A.D. 1900).
I did not know Vhat adversities were yet in store for me,
but I could not but think that I might be kept safe to do
all I could for the cause of Buddhism.
The New Year's Day dawned, but I met with nothing
special to mark the day, as the Tibetans use the old calen-
dar. Still I got up early at three o'clock in the morning,
and turning east, as I had done every New Year's Day, I
began the New Year's reading of the Scriptures. For, as
Buddhism teaches us, it is our duty to pray for the health
of the sovereign, and every Buddhist reads the Scriptures
on New Year's Day, in however remote a place he may
happen to be, and prays for the welfare of the Imperial
Family. I read the Scriptures at the village till the oth,
and on the following day I proceeded seven miles to Omi,
where I stopped for the night. In a temple of this village
there was an image called in Tibetan Sung Chung Dolma
(the Mother of Salvation who utters a command) which
was about three feet high, and so beautiful that it seemed
as if it might even speak. The Tibetans told me that the
image at one time actually spoke. I read the Scriptures
there for two days, and received many gifts. I had met
the highwaymen, and had been robbed of my money, but
money was constantly given to me, and my reading the
Scriptures earned me so many gifts, that I had now laid by
a considerable sum -of money, and I was living on the food
given to me by others.
On the 12th of January, at 5 o'clock in the morning, I
set out on my journey with a coolie, who carried my baggage.
We went on south-east along the bank of a stream flowing
through the mountains. Here we found the snow turned into
ice, and so slippery was the ground that we had to take great
A SUPPOSED MIBACLE. 261
care, lest we should fall. Groing on for about twelve miles
we found ourselves at Choe Ten, where there were many
hot springs, three of them wamn enough to bathe in. I do
not know for what disease they might be really efficacious,
though they seemed to me to be good for rheumatism. I
saw several places in the stream where steaming springs
could be seen boiling up. We took our lunch and again
went on eastward for about nine miles, till we came in
sight of a temple called Mani liha-khang, in a willow plan-
tation along the river. This temple was so called, be-
cause it enshrined a large bronze cylinder holding many
pieces of paper each bearing the spell mam, consisting of
the following six sounds ' Om-ma-ni-pad-me-hum ' and
meaning " all will be as we will." The tube was beautifully
wrapped in copper foil, and ornamented with gold and
silver. It had an iron axle through it and was so formed
that it would revolve from left to right. This temple is
among the most famous in Tibet. The founder of the
temple was Je Tsong-kha-pa, who started a new sect.
His memory is held in great esteem in the country, and
especially in this temple, mostly because he was the
inventor of the " prayer-cylinder "
I stopped at this temple, the keeper of which was very
rude ; without any scruple he asked me to read his face
for him, for he said I looked out of the common. I had
never studied physiognomy, but I thought that I might
thus teach a lesson to the Tibetans, who are very supersti-
tious. So I told him that I was very sorry for him, for
he seemed to be a man who, though often given money
and other things, would sustain much loss through other
men, and for whom the future would have nothing but
debt. Singularly enough, this exactly told his past life,
and he was so surprised at my words, that he told all
about me to his richest neighbor, called Dorje Gyalpo
(Prince Diamond). That very evening a fine lady, who
262 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
I was told was the wife of the rich man, came to me with
a child, and asked me to tell its fortune. This troubled
me not a little. But when I saw the sickly and feeble
state of the child I could easily guess what would happen,
so I ventured to tell her that I was very sorry, for the
child seemed likely not to live long, and I also told her
about the philosophy of retribution. She asked me if
there was no way of saving its life. I thought how glad
I should be if I could have an opportunity of. reading the
'complete Text,' as I knew that I should have very little
chance of doing so after reaching Lhasa. 1 said therefore
that a long reading of the Scriptures might do some good.
She went home early that evening.
Very strange indeed ! the child fell so ill the following
morning that the whole family was struck with my chance
prediction, and I was asked to come to the house to read the
Scriptures, even though it might take several days to do so.
1 said I would, but as they had no copy of the ' complete
Scriptures ■" I asked for a man to be sent to Rong Langba,
a little further up the hill, to borrow a copy. In the
meanwhile I sat in the usual religious meditation,
when suddenly my ears caught the sound of weeping
and crying women in the kitchen. What could
all that mean ? Something serious must have happened
in the house. Still I kept quiet, as it was none of my
business ' to go and see. Soon, however, the mistress of
the house came to tell me that the child had died as
predicted, and she asked me to save it. I was also surprised
to learn how my words had come true, and hurried into
the room, only to lind the child quite senseless and cold.
I felt the child's pulse, which was beating faintly, though
his body was not warm and his neck was nearly stiff. 1
thought the disease might be congestion of the brain, as
I had read a few books on medicine. So 1 called for
some cold water, and put on to his head a piece of wet
A SUPPOSED MIRACLE. 263
cloth, while, at the same time, I rubbed his neck and
head vigorously for twenty minutes. It was only a short
faint, and the child began to come to his senses. You can
easily imagine how glad was his grandmother, who was
almost beside herself with joy to see restored to
life the child whom they had supposed to be dead. I told
her to keep quiet and to continue rubbing till the
child was perfectly well. This won for me no small
respect from all present, and I was asked to stay for a
long time to read the Scriptures. I, too, was glad to
stay there over two months during the cold season,
enjoying my reading. Besides reading the Scriptures, I
often took walks among the hills and valleys and on these
occasion many children, with the one I had saved,
followed me in my walks quite as if they were my own
children. I loved the children so much, or rather was
so loved by them, that my only business besides my reading-
was to take them for walks.
CHAPTER XLIII.
Manners and Customs.
The Tibetans are revy foul in their habits, some of
which I may mention here. In the house in which I stayed
there were some twentj- servants, and they brought me a
cup of tea every morning. They never washed the cup
which I used, but brought tea in it every day, and they
would say that it was quite clean, for I had tlsed it
only the night before, though it was as dirty as it
could be. They think cups are unclean if they have been
used by their inferiors, but they never wash those used by
themselves or their equals, for these are clean in
their eyes, though it is disgusting even to look at them.
If I asked a servant to wash my cup, it was wiped
with his sleeve, which might be quite wet and dirty
from being used as a handkerchief. Then he said
it was clean, and poured tea into it. Just think of it ! It is
impossible to drink out of such a cup, but still one must
do so, for it would only arouse their suspicions to be
too strict about such matters. It seems to be nothing
compared with his other unclean habits that the Tibetan
does not wash his plates and dishes. He does not even
wash or wipe himself after the calls of nature, but behaves
like the lower animals in this respect. To this there is no
single exception, from the high priest down to the shep-
herd j every one does the sagne. I was, therefore, much
laughed at and suspected when I followed the Japanese
custom in this particular, and even the children would laugh
at me. I was much troubled at this ; still I could not do
otherwise. This was a still greater trouble in the tents,
for in Jangthang I used to have four or five dogs beside
me whenever I retired for private purposes. You can well
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. 265
imagine how terrified I was at first, tliough I soon got
accustomed to them. And no sooner had I gone away
than the dogs devoured the excrement. For this reason
there is little or no filth lying about in Jangthang.
Nor are these the Tibetan's only unclean habits. He
never washes his body ; many have never been washed
since their birth. One would scarcely believe that
they boast in the country, if not in towns or cities, of
never having been washed. It calls forth laughter from
others to wash even the hands and face, and so the only
clean part about them are the palms of the hands and eyes,
all other parts being jet-black. The country gentlemen
and the priests, however, have partially cleaned faces,
mouths and hands, though the other parts of their
bodies are just as black as can be. They are quite as
black on their necks and backs as the African negroes. ,
Why then are their hands so white ? It is because they
make dough with their own hands with flour in a '
bowl, and the dirt of their hands is mixed with the
dough. So Tibetan dishes are made of dirt and flour,
and- the Tibetans eat with their teeth black with
sordes. It is a sickening sight ! Why do tliey not wash
their bodies ? Because they have a superstitious belief
that it wipes off happiness to wash the body. This belief
is not quite so prevalent among the inhabitants of Central
Tibet as among those of the remote provinces north of the
Himiilayas.
It is necessary at betrothal to show not only the coun-
tenance of the girl, but also to show how black she is
with filth. If she is all black except her eyes, and her
dress is bright with dirt and butter, she is regarded as
blessed. If she has a white face and clean hands she
will be less fortunate, for she is said to have washed away
her luck. Girls are equally superstitious about this, for
they too attach much importance in courting to the black-
34
266
THREE YEAES IN TIBET,
READING THE TEXTS.
MaNnHes and customs. 269
ness of the boys. I know it is diiRcult to credit what I
have just stated ; even I myself could not beliete it until
I had visited several places and seen Tibetan habits for
myself. People below the middle class have no change
of clothes, but generally dress themselves in torn and
filthy rags. They blow their noses into their clothes in
the presence of others. Their dress is often as hard as
hide with dried dirt. It is as it were a concrete of butter,
filth and mucus. But people above the middle class are a
little less untidy. The priesthood especially are instructed
to wash their hands and faces and keep their clothes clean.
They are somewhat cleaner, therefore, but only in compari-
son with their people. It was often very difficult for me to
accept invitations to dinner and tea amid these foul habits.
While at Tsarang I tried very hard to get accustomed to
them, but it is difficult to overcome physical revolt.
Still, amid these disagreeable things, the natural beauty
of the country often much comforted me. Once before the
Tibetan New Year I was reading as usual at my
desk, while the people were busy preparing for the New
Year. I looked out of my window to see the snow. Oh the
splendor of the sight ! You can little imagine how much
I was delighted when a ci'ane appeared, strolling along in
the snow, and filling me with sentimental and poetical
reminiscences of my native land. In this wise I was
comforted, amid the unpleasant habits of the people, by
the beautiful charms of nature, as well as by some interest-
ing thing's which I noticed among the ceremonies of the
New Year.
The Tibetans use neither the Indian calendar, nor the
Chinese, but the Turkistan, which resembles the Chinese in
that it has one leap year in every four, but it is always One
year behind the latter. We find many strange things in its
way of counting days. There are often given, say, two
seventh davs, or we sometimes find the eleventh day
268 ■ THREE YEAKS IN TiJjET.
after the nintli but without the tenth. I could not quite
make out what all these meant. Upon inquiring from an
astrologer, I was told that it was sometimes necessary to
add one day, or to leave one out, because they were lucky
or unlucky, and a lucky day was dujjlicated, while an
unlucky one must bo omitted. In this convenient way is
constructed the calendar as generally used in Tibet, though
some disagreements are found between the calendars used
in different parts of the country, as for instance in
fixing the New Year or other great days. But this is a
matter that should cause little wonder. The Tibetan
calendar is computed by four officials appointed by
the Government, who count days with black and white
stones or shells. When their calendars differ, the
best ones are chosen, and an oracle is consulted to decide
which is the proper one to be adopted. The New Year's
ceremony is generally lield on the day given in the
Government calendar, but it is very rarely that the New
Year's Day of the Tibetan calendar falls on the same day
as that of the Chinese, there being generally a difference
of one, two, or even three days between them.
On New Year's morning a piece of fire-colored silk, or
handkerchiefs sewn together in the shape of a flag, is put
over a heap of baked flour, on which are strewn some dried
grapes, dried peaches and small black persimmons. The
head of the house first picks up some of the fruits with his
right hand, tosses them up three times, and eats them.
Then his wife, guests and servants follow his exnmple one
after another. Next comes Tibetan tea, with fried cakes
of wheat flour for each. Tliese are brought in on a tray,
something in the shape of a copper plate, gilded and white
at the centre. 'J'hey drink the tea and eat the cakes, but,
unlike the Japanese, exchange no words of congratulation,
and seem mostly to enjoy the eating. They take meat dried,
raw, and boiled, but roast meat is regarded as uncerfemonial.
manneks and customs. 260
Tibet produces fresh-water fisli, but the Tibetans do not
usually eat it; they subsist chiefly on the meat of
the yak, goat, and sheep, for they consider it sinful
to kill fish. Pork is eaten, but only by the Tibetans
who have dealings with the Chinese. After the morning
ceremony, they again meet at about ten o^clock to
drink tea or wine, and eat cake or fruits. At two in the
afternoon they have dinner, at which they eat, if rich, a
sort of macaroni mixed with eggs. The soup has mutton
or something else dipped in it. At nine or ten o'clock in
the evening they make a sort of meat gruel, commonly
composed of wheat flour, wheat dumplings, meat, radishes,
and cheese. But the course of dishes mentioned above is
not settled, for they sonietimes eat the gruel in the morning,
though generally in the evening. The above are the dishes
taken by the Tibetans of the higher circles.
The lowest class find it hard to get cheese and meat for
their gruel, and put fat in their stead. Nor is it less
difificult for them to get radishes. If they put wheat
dumplings in the gruel, which they make on special occa-
sions, it is reckoned among their best dishes ; their usual
gruel is made very thick with baked flour with some herbs
and flowers put in it. In the winter, when they have no
fresh herbs or flowers, they use what they have stored and
laid by during the summer. The radish is however much
grown in some parts of Tibet, where it is largely used.
The Tibetan is fonder of baked flour than of rice, all classes
generally living on the former. The Tibetans at
Darjeeling live on baked flour from Tibet, for they fall
ill if they live on rice. Baked flour can of course be
had in India, but the Tibetan seems much superior to
the Indian, for they send orders to Tibet for their native
productions.
In this way I passed the festive New Year season, and,
while reading my Scriptures amid these charming scenes,
270 THbEE tBABS IN TIJ3ET.
learned much about Tibetan customs and homes, and found
good material for my study.
A little white and black bird like a- crow, called
Kyaka in Tibetan, used to come to my window. It
was a knowing bird, and could tell one man from another,
and was very regular in its ways. One day while I was
looking out of my window I saw one of a flock,
seemingly their head, pecking another to death, as if
angry with the latter because it had quarrelled with the
other members of the flock. I was surprised and told my
landlord about it, when he told me that birds were more
regular than men, and related several stories which showed
how strict the birds were. It is a common saying, he added,
that one might deviate from humaix laws by the breadth
of a log, before a hair-breadth's deviation from bird's
law would be tolerated. — [Cha tim ta nga tsam shikna
mi tim nya tshing tsam shik go.)
Having stayed in this place a long time in order to read
the Scriptures, I was determined to leave on the 14th
March, as it was getting warmer. In the morning the
family asked me to recite to them the Three Refuges, and
the Five Commands or moral precepts of Buddhism,
which I did with pleasure. After dinner as I was
leaving the house I was presented with some money and
a priest's robe, red in color and made of wool, which must
have cost some thirty-five yen. I departed accompanied
by a servant, who carried my luggage, for they told me
they could not send me off on horseback, much though
they desired to do so, for all their horses were awa}' on
trading journeys.
Up the Yak-Chn river I went for about ten miles east-
wards, tiU I came to a post village called Che-sum, where
I stopped for the night. I stai-ted at six o'clock the next
morning, and went on along the river for another seven
miles. It was a narrow pass, walled up between high
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. 271
mountains ; tlie snow lay deep in the valleys and the water
of the streams was frozen. At the end of about seven
miles I came to a little opening and, looking up to the
top of a mountain on the left, I noticed a white building
which looked neither like a temple nor like the dwelling
of a priest. What could it be ? Upon inquiring of my
companion I was told it was a hail-proof temple.
I had never heard of such a temple, and was surprised
at seeing one. When I heard the name for the
first time I could not believe my own ears, but when I
asked more particularly about it at Lhasa, I found that
what had been told me was true. I will now relate the
strange method which the Tibetans have for keeping off
hailstones, which they dread exceedingly, especially in
summer, for then the crops of wheat and barley, which
they can reap only once in a 3'ear or two, may be entirely
destroyed.* So thej' naturally try to find some means to
keep off the hailstones, and the method they have discovered
is certainly curious enough.
The nation is so credulous in the matter of religion that
they indiscriminately believe whatever is told to them by
their religious teachers, the lamas. Thus for instance they
believe that there are eight kinds of evil spirits which
delight in afflicting people and send hail to hurt the
crops. Some priests therefore maintain that they must
fight against and destroy these evil demons in order
to keep them off, and the old school profess that in order
to combat these spirits effectually they must know when
the demons are preparing the hail. During the winter
when there is much snow, these spirits, according to the
priests, gather themselves at a certain place, where they
make large quantities of hail out of snow. They then store
the hail somewhere in heaven, and go to rest, until in the
summer when the crops are nearly ripe they throw down
the hail from the air- Hence the Tibetans must make
272 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
sharp weapons to keep off the hail, and consequently,
while the spirits are preparing their hail, the Tibetans
hold a secret meeting in some ravine where they prepare
'hail-proof shells,' which are pieces of mud about
the size of a sparrow's egg. These are made by a priest,
who works with a servant or two in some lonely ravine,
where by some seci-et method he makes many shells,
chanting words of incantation the while, whereby belays a
spell on each shell he makes. These pellets are afterwards
used as missiles when hail falls in the summer, and are
supposed to drive it back. None but priests of good family
may devote themselves to this work. Every village has
at least one priest called Ngak-pa (the chanters of in-
cantations of the old school) and during the winter these
Ngak-pas offer prayers, perform charms, or pray for
blessings for others. But the Tibetans have a general
belief that the Ngak-pas sometimes curse othets. I was
often told that such and such person had offended a
Ngak-pa and was cursed to death.
Having spent the winter in this way, the Ngak-pas during
the summer prepare to fight against the devils. Let me
remark, in passing, that Tibet has not four seasons, as we
have, but the year is divided into summer and winter.
The four seasons are indeed mentioned in Tibetan
books, but there are in reality only two.
The summer there is from about the 15th of March
to the 15th of September and all the rest of the year is
winter. As early as March or April the ploughing of the
fields and sowing of wheat begins, and then the Ngak-pa
proceeds to the Hail-Subduing-Temple, erected on the
top of one of the high mountains. This kind of temple is
always built on the most elevated place in the whole
district, for the reason that the greatest advantage is thus
obtained for ascertaining the direction from which the
clouds containing hail issue forth, rrom the time that
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. 273
the ears of the wheat begin to shoot, the priest continues
to reside in the temple, though from time to time, it is said,
he visits his own house, as he has not very much to do4n the
earlier part of his service. About June, however, when
the wheat has grown larger, the protection of the crop
from injury by hail becomes more urgent, so that the
priest never leaves the temple, and his time is fully taken
up with making oiferings and sending up prayers, for
protection to various deities. The service is gone through
three times each day and night, and numberless incantations
are pronounced. What is more strange is that the great
hail storms generally occur when the larger part of the
crops are becoming i-ipe, and then it is the time for the
priest on service to bend his whole energies to the work of
preventing the attack of hail.
When it happens that big masses of clouds are
gathering overhead, the ISTgak-pa first assumes a solemn
and stern aspect, drawing himself up on the brink of
the precipice as firm as the rock itself, and then pronoun-
ces an enchantment with many flourishes of his rosary
much in the same manner as our warrior of old did with
his baton. In a wild attempt to drive away the hail
clouds, he fights against the mountain, but it often
happens that the overwhelming host comes gloomily upon
him with thunders roaring and flashes of lightning that
seem to shake the ground under him and rend the sky
above, and the volleys of big hailstones follow, pouring
down thick and fast, like arrows flying in the thick of
battle. The priest then, all in a frenzy, dances in fight
against the air, displaying a fury quite like a madman in
a rage. With charms uttered at the top of his voice
he cuts the air right and left, up and down, with
his fist clenched and finger pointed. If in spite of all
his efforts, the volleys of hail thicken and strike the
fields beneath, the priest grows madder in his wrath,
35
27-i
TIIRBB YJ5ARS ]N TiliKT,
PRIEST FIGHTING WITH HAIL.
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. 275
quickly HuatcLes liandfuls of the bullets aforementioned
which he cavi-ies about him, and throws them violently
against the clouds as if to strike them. If all this avail
nothing, he rends his ga,rment to pieces, and throws the
rags up in the air, so perfectly mad is he in his attempt
to put a stop to the falling hailstones. When, as
sometimes happens, the hail goes drifting away and
leaves the place unharmed, the priest is puffed up with
pride at the victory he has gained, and the people come to
congratulate him with a great show of gratitude. But
when, unluckily for him, the hail falls so heavily as to do
much harm to the crops, his reverence has to be punished
with a fine, apportioned to the amount of injury done
by the hail, as provided by the law of the land.
To make up for the loss the Ngak-pa thus sustains,
he is entitled at other times, when the year passes with
little or no hail, to obtain an income under the name of
"hail-prevention- tax;" a strange kind of impost, is it not ?
The " hail-prevention-tax" is levied in kind, rated at
about two sho of wheat per tan of land, which is to be paid to
the Ngak-pa. In a plentiful year this rate may be
increased to two and a half fiJio. This is, indeed a
heavy tax for the farmers in Tibet, for it is an extra, in
addition to the regular amount which they have to pay to
their Government.
There is another custom even more singular than that.
The power of jurisdiction over the district resides
in the person of the Ngak-pa, this being founded on
the belief that the pleiititude or deficiency of the crops
•each summer is dependent entirely on his power. The
Ngak-pa being thus the administrator of justice re-
ceives a large salary in that capacity in addition to his
income as preventer of hail. It might therefore be
supposed that this class of priests is quite wealthy, but
the Tibetan Ngak-pas are most of them singularly poor.
SVd THREE YEAKW IN TIBEO'.
Their gainSj coming from deception founded upon'
the superstition of the people, are soon dissipated,
for what is ill-got is ill-spent, as the saying is.
But the influence they exercise over the people is
very strong. For instance, when a poor-looking Ngak-pa,
attired like a beggar, meets with a fine gentleman on the
road, the latter is sure to stick out his tongue and to
bow down in profound respect. So these Ngak-pas gain
much in peaceful days, though they are at the same time
subject to a heavy penalty when the hail season sets in.
Occasionally too, some of them are flogged on their naked
bodies. The Tibetans are very strict in this respect, and
no nobleman who has committed wrong is spared a
flogging because of his caste. So far about the hail tax.
From this temple I went eastwards for about seven
miles, when I came to a village called Yase. From the
mountains east of this village flows a river called Yakchu,
which, running north-west, empties itself into the Brahma-
putra. Some European maps incorrectly give the Yakchu
as having its source in lake Yanido. Going on some
two miles, I found one of the strangest lakes in the world.
It is called lake Yamdo-Tso in Tibetan, but some foreign
maps call it lake Palti. Palti however is not the name of
the lake, but of the village on the western side. The lake is
about one hundred and eighty miles in circumference, and
has an island with a mountain range in its centre. Many
lakes have small islands in them, but authoritative geo-
graphers state that none has so large a mountain as this. I
must, however, here sa)' that the land in the lake is connect-
ed with the main land at two points on the south, so that
it is not actually an island. No words can describe the
beautiful scenery here. The lofty peaks of the Himalayas
stand high in a line from the south-east to the south-west
of the lake, and add to its magnificence, and the tempest
often lashes it into high waves, which dash roaring
MANNEKS AND CUSTOMS. 277
upon the shore. Standing on a high rook by the shore,
i marvelled to see the terrible scene of the angry-
hike waves, with the jDeaks of the Himalayan mountains
amidst the clouds, looking like a superhuman being.
I proceeded for about four miles to the east, and then
the road turned to the north-east. On the left stood a
wall of high mountains, while on the right I could see the
peaks of mountains in the lake. 1 went east and then north
along a rather wide path by the lake for about six miles
till I came to Palti. There is a castle on a hill in this
village, and very beautiful the lake looks when the castle
throws its shadow on the water.
I lodged at a house at the foot of this castle. I had
walked twenty-five miles that day, but the invigorating
mountain scenery dispelled my fatigue, though I had
been very tired. On the following day, March 16th, I start-
ed at four o'clock, in the snow aiid ice, and went
north-east along the lake, ^.''here were mountains on the
left and the lake on the right, as before. The path went
pretty nearly north, but straight up and down in a zig-zag
along the mountain. Often I slipped on the ice, or
went deep into the snow, and I encountered much
trouble, which was, however, almost nothing when compared
with those which I had met in passing over the Himalayas.
At dawn I climbed up the mountain in deej) snow,
and looked down upon the surface of the lake. I
could see among the shadows of the mountains the
crescent moon beautifully reflected dimly and faintly on
the water. The bi'ight day was soon coming, the moon began
already to lose its dim light, and the morning star twinkled
on the surface of the water. Amid the charms of nature I
lost all my fatigue and weariness, and I stood quite entranc-
ed. Soon the water-fowl were heard on the sands along
the lake, and some mandarin ducks were amusing them-
selves in the water, while cranes were wildly flying about
278 tHbee years in tibeT.
with noisy cries. What a contrast it was with the scene
of the day before ! No pk^asure on a journey can be
greater than travelling in this way at dawn. I still
went on for about twelve miles along the lake and came
to a little stream in the mountains at about nine o'clock.
It is here that travellers make tea, and bake their wheat
for eating. The lake is full of water, but it is poisonous.
A strange story is told about how it turned poison-
ous. About twenty years ago, as the Tibetans tell,
the famous Sarat Chandra Das, an Indian by birth,
who passed for an Englishman, came from India
and pronounced a spell upon the lake ; the water
at once turned as red as blood. A lama, they say,
came along and turned the water back to its original
color, but it still remained poisonous. One cannot believe
anything that the Tibetans say, but the water seems to have
really turned red. Sarat Chandra Das cannot have done
that, but, unfortunately for him, it was just after his re-
turn from Tibet that the water thus changed. Sarat
Chandra Das, as every one knows, is an Indian, but Ti-
betans, with few exceptions, think him to be an English-
man. Any way the water of the lake must have been
poisonous for a long time, for the water is stagnant,
there being no current, and there are divers poisonous
elements near the lake.
There also seem to be places where I think there must
be coal ; I saw several kinds of strange ores and many
kinds of herbs which I think may have dissolved in the
water and have colored it. I have seen some foreign
maps in which the water of this lake is made to flow into
the Brahmaputra, which is quite false.
I found several persons taking lunch as we did amid
this beautiful scenery. This being the way that runs
between Lhasa and Shigatze there were travellers on
it, among whom was a soldier from Nepal. He was
MANNERS AND CUSTOMS. 279
one of the most humorous fellows I evei- saw^ and was
very good company for me.
CHAPTER XLIV.
On to Lhasa.
The soldier, whose company proved not altogether
unwelcome in a travel like mine, happened to be one of
the Legation Guards of the Minister of Nepal at Lhasa.
His love of his mother had tempted him from his duty, but
at Shigatze on his way to Nepal his thought turned to his
love of a woman at Lha.sa and this was so much greater than
his love for his mother that he suddenly changed his
mind and determined to go back to Lhasa. Among
other things I asked him how many soldiers the Nepal
Grovernment kept stationed at Lhasa, and he answered
that it was but a few years ago that his Government first
sent a guard to the Tibetan capital. He told me that
a great calamity befell the capital over ten years ago.
It seems that there were about three hundred merchants
of the Palpo tribe of Nepal at Lhasa. They are the most
active and alert of the Nepalese tribes, with regard to
trading, and follow Indian, not Tibetan Buddhism. They
engage in trade at Lhasa in woollen cloth, cotton, silk,
coral, jewels, dry goods, rice, beans and corn.
Some thirteen years ago, a Palpo merchant at Lhasa
searched a Lhasa woman on the charge that she had stolen
a piece of coral from his shop. When the coral was not
found he became so angry that, in spite of her protesting
tears, he took her by force into his house. When she was
allowed to go out again, she told the people all that had
happened. The ' warrior-priest.'? ' of the Sera monastery
heard of the affair and became so irritated about the ill-
treatment of the woman that- some of them came to enquire
into the matter, and having ascertained what they wanted
ON TO LHASA. 281
went back to Sera and told their chief, who at once called
out the warrior-priests.
These warrior-priests are under, one chief, at whose
summons they gather themselves together. Many of
them wei'e not in residence at that time, but about
one thousand assembled. These were preparing to march
on Lhasa to wreck vengeance on all the Palpo
merchants, when the latter got wind of the matter,
Sera being only about four miles from the capital.
So they had fled from the city before the bellicose
priests entered Lhasa, each armed with sword or a
large iron hook. These men broke into the deserted houses
of the merchants, and carried off what they found. Among
the raiders there were, besides the priests, vagabonds
of the city, who dispersed with their spoil the next
morning at daybreak. Presently the merchants returned
to their houses, and were much distressed to find their
merchandise gone — their only property, as they owned
no land. Their loss was estimated at something under
230,000 yen.
This affair became a diplomatic question, and it took
over five years to settle it. The Tibetan Government
had to compensate the merchants and a party of
twenty-five Nepaleso soldiers came to be stationed at Lhasa.
The chief diplomatist in this affair on the Nepal side was
Jibbahadur, whose name has already been mentioned;
he was the Clerk of the Nepalese Government, and is the
present ISTepalese Minister to Tibet.
As we walked on we found ourselves at the foot of a steep
hill called Genpala, which has an incline of about two and
a half miles to its top, from which I obtained my first
view of Lhasa. From the summit I could see, to the
north-east, the Brahmaputra running south-east. There is
a large tributary called Kichu running from the north-east
that flows into this river. It runs through a large
282 THREE TEARS IN TIBET.
plain, in tlie middle of which is a mountain with a
high building; and this T. saw showing beautifully in
the golden sunshine. 1'his was the residence of the Dalai
Lama of Lhasa, and is called Tse Potala. Beyond thfe
castle fire to be seen roofs torrering high in the air, which
look like those of a toM'n. These ai-e the streets of Lhasa,
which look very small, when seen so far off. I rested for a
while, and then gradually went down a great slope for
about seven miles till I came to Pache, where I stopped
for the night. Having walked all day in the snow and ice
I was very foot-sore and fatigued, as well I might bo, for I
had made tweiity-iive miles on foot that day.
The following day, the 17th of March, I descend-
ed for another two miles and a half and found my-
self on the banks of the Brahmaputra. I walked somie
six. miles along the southern bank of the river before I
came to the ferry of Chaksam, where I had to cross the
river. Formerly there was an iron bridge at this place, the
remaining chains of which may still be seen a little lower
down the stream. The ferry boats are rectangular in
shape like Indian boats. But it is only in the winter
that these boats are used, for in the summer large
vessels cannot pass across. I^he Tibetans then use instead
the yak-hide canoe. They sew together the hides of
three yaks, and the seams are painted over with a
'sort of lacquer, to make them waterproof. These hide
canoes float on the water, and are used as ferry-
boats even in the winter when there are not many
passengers. Li Tibetan the word Koira (meaning 'hide')
also signifies a boat. The hide boat naturally absorbs
much water and soon gets too soft and heavy for
use, and the Tibetan therefore dries his hide boat in the
sun after he has used it f(jr half a day in the water. It
is so light that a man can easily lift it, and" the ra)etan
*ill carry it on his back to the higher part of a
ON TO LHASA. 288
stream, and will float it down for a day or two loaded
with goods or men. When the boat is unloaded, it is again
carried up the stream. But our party being too many
for a hide canoe I was ferried over the river in one of
the regular wooden boat.s.
Walking for about three miles on the dry sandy bed
of the 'river, I came to a beautiful place where I saw
rocks and high trees casting their shadows on the water.
The ground about Lake Yanido, of which I have
spoken elsewhere, is so ele\-ated that it looks as much
as 18,500 feet above sea level, but here it is only
11,500 feet high. Here, in sunny places beside the water,
the buds of the willows were already out. After seeing
only bald mountains and dead leaves for a long time, the
green leaves were a delightful sight. Though my coolie
carried my baggage, and I was not much ti-oubled
on that score, the old wounds on inv feet bewail
to smart again, and I could hardly walk. In the
midst of niy trouble there came along a horseman,
to whom I gave a little money to carry me on horseback.
About two miles and a half further on we came to a
town called Chu-shur, a rather bustling place, situated in the
delta formed by the rivers Kichu and Brahmaputra, the
former running from the north-east and the latter from
the north-west.
I hardly know any town on the way to Lhasa worse
and more wicked than this. The people of the town are
indifferent, even unkind, to strangers, and are much skill-
ed in robbing them of their luggage. They will steal
both luggage and goods in transjiort in such a skilful man-
ner that they can hardly be detected. It is widely known
in Tibet that no place is richer in thieves than Chu-shur and
I had often been warned to be on my guard against them.
There being so many skilful thieves and the jjlace being
so much frequented by travellers, there is consequently a
284 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
good circulation of money, and one would suppose that
Chu-shur had many rich men ; but strange to say, I was told
upon enquiry that there were more poor men in that town
than in most of the other towns and villages of Tibet.
After dining there, I started towards the north-east (on
foot, as I could procure no horse) along the stream of the
Kichu river and walked on until I felt so much pain in
my feet that I could proceed no further. I had laid
myself down on the grass to rest when, to my boundless joy,
a donkey-driver came along and I was given a lift on the
back of his animal for some ten miles, till I arrived at
Jang. At Jang something happened that prevented my
coolie from following me any further, and he deserted me.
My feet were aching worse than ever, for I had travelled
about twenty-five miles that day by the help of the
donkey ; but what to do on the following day I
was at a loss to conceive. Happily I was told of some
men who were going with tax-meat to the Government
at L'hasa, and I asked them to take me on one of their
horses. They were going to pay the tax to the Govern-
ment, yet they did not take their horses from their own
village, but hired them elsewhere. Thej' did not travel
more than eight or nine miles a day, and I, too, hired a
horse for myself, placed my luggage in their charge, and
started together with them. We halted at a little village
named Nam to take rest, and here stopped for the night.
On the following day we went about six miles along a
narrow rocky mountain path, which ran north-east along
the Kichu river, till we came to Nethang.
CHAPTEE XLY.
Arrival in Lhasa.
At Xetliang there is a temple of the Mothers of Salva-
tion, who are most devotitly-svorshippedin Tibet, anditissaid
that it \vas founded by anindian hermit, Shrl Atisha byname,
who organised a new sect in Tibet. I went there to worship
the twenty-one ilothers of Salvation (Dolma Xishu tsa
chik in Tibetan) whose imag-es I found very well made.
On the following day, the 20tli, I again went on towards
the north-east, along the river, over a plain of about five
miles, till I came to a large bridge which I crossed, went
on north-east for another four miles, and came to a village
called Sing Zonkha, where I stopped for the night. I was to
ai'rive at Lhasa, the capital of the country, on the following
day, March ■21st.
I hired a horse at the village, and asked my companions
to take care of my baggage while I rode on amid the
beautiful scenes of the place. After about two miles,
I saw on the left a splendid monasterj', which at first sight
looked more like a large village, though it was in reality
the Eebung monastery, the laro-est of the kind in the vicinity
of Lhasa. It is indeed the largest monastery in the ecclesi-
astical district under the Dalai Lama, and has an army of
priests who number some 7,700 as a general rule, though
sometimes their number rises as high as nine thousand.
During tlie summer, when the priests go out into the coun-
try on pilgrimage, there remain some six thousand only.
This is one centre of Tibetan learning, and has a college.
I saw in all three colleges in Central Tibet, the other two
beinff the Sera college in Lhasa and that at G-anden.
The former has •'),500 students, and the latter 3,800.
But these numbers are only nominal, and the colleges
286 THREE YEAKS IN TIBET.
can, like the Rebung monasteiy, take in either more or
fewer students than their fixed number. At the .side
of the road below this nionastery is a place where 3'aks,
sliee]), and goats are killed f(jr the table of the Dalai
Lama,, and the Tibetans have so superstitious a regard
for the sheep (se'\'en in number) the meat of which
is offered to the Dalai Lama daily, that they ask for
such things as the wool and other pai'ts of the animal as
keepsakes. Besides sheejo, the Dalai Lama eats other
kinds of meat, -which is also sent from the same place.
It is not very sensible of the Pontiff to get his meat
from such a distant place, while he lives in the city
of Lhasa ; but he takes another view. Lhasa is too
near to his palace for the slaughter of animals, and
he does not want to have it thouglit that the animals are
killed for him. He desires to get his meat without being
responsible for giving the order to kill the animals. This
looks verj- good, but since it is settled that the meat
served to him shall be taken from this jilace, special care
is taken in selecting the animals for slaughter, and at
bottom, therefore, it makes no difference whether his
meat is bought at Lhasa or at that particular place.
I went on for another five miles, and came to the foot of
the hill on A-.'hich stood the palace of the Grand Lama, the
jilace wdiich I had seen from Genpala.
The palace is so splendid that even its picture looks
beautiful. I am not going to describe it in detail, but
there is a quaint little story about it which shows
the impression it creates at first sight. A certain country-
man once drove to Lhasa some asses heavily loaded with
butter. He saw the magnificent palace, and was so struck
with its beauty that he stood gazing at it, thinking that
it must be a palace of the Gods. When he recovered
himself, he was mortified to find that his asses had strayed
away. When he had gathered them, he found that there
ARRIVAL JN l.HASA.
287
OUTLINE OF THE RESIDENCE OF THE DALAI LAMA.
were nine instead of ten, and looked about anxiously to
find the lost one. When asked what he was looking for,
he answered that some one must have stolen his ass
while he was looking at the palace, for he had come thither
'with ten asses. It was some time before he found that
he had not counted the ass on which he was riding. This
shows how the magnificence of the palace had affected him.
I went half a mile along a wide road, south-east of the palace
hill, and came to a bridge called Yuthok Samba, a hundred
and twenty feet by fifteen, over which is built a roof in tlie
Chinese style. I crossed the bridge and went on another
hundred and twenty yards before I found myself at the
western gate of Lhasa, constructed somewhat after the
•Chinese fashion. I passed through the gate and rode on
some two hundred and fifty yards, when I came to a sort
of large open court. Here I had to alight, for I was
before the large temple of Buddha. I enquired how
the image of Buddha came to be placed in the temple. It
was before king Srong-tsan Grambo (who later introduced
288 THKEE YEAES IN TIBET.
Buddhism into the country) was won to the religion, and
when he was engaged to Princess Un-ching, a daughter
of the Chinese Emperor Ta-sung of the Thang dynasty.
She demanded a promise from his father that Buddhism
should be widely preached in Tibet, and required at the
same time that she might be permitted to take with her
an image of Buddha, which had just been brought from
India. The request being granted, the Princess took it
to the city of Lhasa, where it has remained ever since.
The image was thus brought into the country by the
Princess at the same time as Buddhism itself. It was soon
found necessary to preach a new form of Buddhism and to
invent new characters in which to write its teachings. So
learned men, sixteen in number, were sent to India to
study Buddhism, and to invent new characters. Conse-
quently, new Tibetan letters were formed, and Buddhist
doctrines were translated into Tibetan. Buddhism was
thus taught for over thirteen centuries, to the great
advantage both of Tibet and of Buddhism. This image
of Buddha was not originally carved in China, but
was made by a Buddhist sculptor, Vishvakarma by name,
in India, whence it was introduced into Tibet through
China. When I lifted up my thanks before this image
of Buddha for my safe arrival in Tibet, I could not help
shedding tears over the goodness of Buddha, which enabled
me to see His image at this temple as well as at Budclha-
gaya in India. I need not say, for the whole story shows
it, how great is my faith in Buddha. I do not mean that
I do not respect other Buddhist deities; still Buddha
claims the greatest worship from me, and I have entirely
given myself up to Him and His religion.
There are many cheap inns and hotels in Lhasa, but
as I had been informed that they were not respectable^
I desired to stay with a friend, a son of the premier of
Tibet. While at Darjeeling I had become acquainted with
AEEIVAI, IN LHASA. 289
this young noble, and he had offered me a lodging during
ray stay in Lhasa. I liked him, and did many things for him,
and now, though I did not mean to demand a return for
what I had done for him, I had no alternative but to go to
him. So I called at his house. It was known as Bandesha—
a magnificent mansion on a plot of about three hundred and
sixty feet square. I entered the house and asked if he was
in, but heard that my friend had become a lunatic. They told
me that he had gone out of his mind two years before, and
that he went mad at regular periods. I learned that
he was staying at his brother's villa at Narasailing, and
was obliged to go there for him, but there also I could not
find him, and was told the same thing. I waited there
for over two hours, as I was told he might come, and then
I reflected that it would be of no use for me to see a mad-
man, on whom I could not depend, so I made up my mind
to direct my steps to the Sera monastery, for I thought
it would be better for me to be temporarily admitted in
the college, and then to pass the regular entrance
examinations. So I at once hired a coolie to carry my
baggage, and started for the monastery.
Like the Rebung monastery, it was built on the
slope of a hill, and when seen from a distance looked
like a village. Guided by the coolie, I arrived at the
monastery at four o'clock and at once called at the
dormitory of Pituk Khamtsan, giving myself out as
a Tibetan, as I came from Jangthang. Hitherto I
had passed for a Chinaman, but as such I should
have had to go to Pate Khamtsan, where I feared I
might be detected. I had not trimmed my hair nor
shaved my face,. nor bathed for a long time, and I cannot
have been much cleaner than a Tibetan, so I made up
my mind to pass for one and to live among them.
The examinations for a Tibetan might be too difficult for
me; still I could command the Tibetan language almost as
37
200 THREE YEAES IN TIJiET.
well as a native, and I was often treated as one. I thought,
therefore, that I could pass without detection, and so for
my own safety I entered the monastery in this guise. The
dormitory is occupied by several priests, who in turn, by
the year, take the charge of the house. The then head of
the dormitory was a very kind and simple old man, called
La-toe-pa, and when I told him about my desire to obtain
temporary admission, he gave me ever}' ])articular as to
what to do.
Before I go any further in my narrative, I must say
something brieHy about the Sera college. It is divided into
three departments — Je-Ta-tsang, Maye Ta-tsang, and
Xgakpa Ta-tsang. The first department contains 3,800
priests, the second 2,500 and the third five hundred. The
former two departments have eighteen dormitories, named
Khamtsan. They differ in size, lor the small ones have about
fifty priests in them, while there are over a thousand priests
in the largest ones. There were two hundred priests
in the house at which I stayed. Each Khamtsan has its own
property, and all the Khamtsans as a whole are called Sera.
These are the largest divisions of the monastery, but I will
not enter into the sub -divisions.
CHAPTER XLVI.
The Warrior=Priests of Sera.
lu Tibet tliei-e are two classes of priests, scholar-pviests
and warrior-priests, who in Tibetan are called Lob-nyer
and Thab-to respectivelj^. The former cIf.ss of priests come
to Sera, as their name shows, wifli the purpose of study,
at an expense of three yen or, if they take the regular
course, of eight yen a month. The\' graduate from the
college after a study of twenty yeai-s, during which time
their special study is the Buddhist Catechism and
philosophy, the principal course of the Sera college. As
they come to the college after they have finished the study
of the regular courses, most of them are from thirty to
thirty-five or thii-ty-six j'ears of age when they graduiite,
though a few clever jiriests receive the decree of doctor
at the age of twenty-eight years.
The warrior-priests have no money to ])civ for a course
of study in the college. They earn their way by gathering
yak-dung from the fields or by carrying from the
bank of the i-iver Kichu to the monastery wood which has
been bi-ought in boats from Sam-ya-e or Kongbo. Then
they serve the scholar-priests as their servants. It is also
among their daily tasks to play fiutes, lyres, harps, flageo-
lets, to beat drums, and to prepare offerings for the
deities. The above tasks may not be too humble
for a low class of jiriests, but the warrior-priests
have another strange daily task to do by which they
deserve their strange name. Every day they repair
to certain hills and practise throwing large stones at
a target, and thus test their muscles. They jump,
run up mounifiiii'--, or lenp down from high rocks.
Atintei\al& Ih'"^ 'ing liovmlnr son g.^ as loudly as they
292 THREE YEARS IN TIBET,
can, for they are proud of their good voices. Then they
practise fighting with clubs. When they have no fixed
task in the temple, they are seen going by threes or fives
to their respective places of practice. The leader may
wonder of what use these priests are in Tibet,
and will perhaps be surprised to know that' th«y
are of great use. When, for instance, the higher class
Lamas travel in the northern plains or in some
remote district, they take these priests as their body
guar.lii. They are very daring. Having no wives to look
after, they meet death calmly. So invincible and implaca-
ble are these fighting priests that they are the most feared
of any in Tibet. Tliey are very quarrelsome, too, though
they rarely fall out with one another without some
serious provocation. They scarcely ever fight for a
pecuniary matter, but the beauty of young boys presents
an exciting cause, and the theft of a boy will often lead
to a duel. Once challenged, no priest can honorably
avoid the duel, for to shun it would instantly excom-
municate him from among his fellow-priests and he would
be driven out of the temple. There are chiefs among
the warrior-priests, anJ. they have rules of their own,
with officers tu see them well carried out. This is an
open secret, and the warrior-priests are therefore allowed
sometimes to do things quite unbecoming to priests
or anybody else. When any grave matter occurs, the
chiefs are often ordered to attend to it with the other
warrior-priests .
A duel being agreed upon, both the fighters go to the
appointed place, mostly in the evening. They fight each
other with swords while the umpires judge their way
of fighting. If either of the combatants does anything
cowardly or mean, the umpire leaves the fighters to them-
selves, till one or the other is killed. If both fight bravely
till they are wounded, the umpire bids them stop fighting.
THE WAERIOR-PRIESTS OP SEEA. 293
He tells them to make peace, and takes them to Lhasa,
where they make friends over a cup of chang (beer or
wine). The use of all intoxicants being strictly prohibited
in the Sera monastery, many warrior-priests, when they
go to Lhasa, take the opportunitj' of drinking much of
them, and under that influence they do many rude things.
One day, someone accidentally discove ed that I was a
doctor, and from that time I came to be paid undeserved
respect by these priests. When uliey were wounded in
their feet or hands during their practice they came to me
for cure, and I was strangely successful with them. I
think that half-civilised people are more easily cured of
wounds than civilised people. A sprained arm was so
easily set rigli:, tliat the warrior-priests began to
consider me to be a doctor indispensable among them.
Besides, I scarcely ever took fees from tliem for their recov-
ery, and I gave them medicine gra:is, except when they
offered me something in return and compelled me to accept
it. This kindness won me their hearts. Tlic-y saw that it
often made them worse to go to a native doctor when
they were woj.iJed in a duel, while I treated their wounds,
or set their bones, gratis and far better than their native
doctors did. This pleased them so much that I became a
great favorite among them. Everywhere I was greeted
with the protruded tongue of salutation.
Besides, I was helped and guarded by them in many
respects. They are very true to their duties and obliga-
tion.s. They may look a little rough, but they are
much more truthful than the nobles and other priests of
the land, who, though kind and truthful at first sight, are
deceitful and crafty in seeking their own benefit and happi-
ness. The warrior-priests are as a rule not deceitful and
cunning at heart, and I have found in them many other
points that claim my respect and liking. On the other
hand, I was often troubled in my intercourse with the
294 THKEE YEAHS IN TIBET.
r;tiinas, who hide a mean and crafty behavior under their
warm garments of wool. So far for the two classes of
priests.
I had trimmed and shaved neither hair nor beard in my
]\)urney of over ten months, so that they had grown very
long. On the day after my arrival, therefore, when I got a
jiriest to shave my head, I asked him to shave off my beard
also. He wondered why I wanted to have it shaved off,
and told me that it would be veiy unwise of me to do so
when it had grown so beautiful. He seemed to think that
I was joking, and I was obliged to. let it grow. A beard is
much valued by the Tibetans, because they generally have
none, though the inhabitants of Kham and other remote
jirovinces grow beards. They are so eager to have a beard,
that after I was known to be a doctor I was often asked to
give medicine to make the beard grow. They would say
that I must have used some medicine to make my beard
grow so long.
As my object was to be a student priest I bought a hat, a
pair of shoes, and a rosary, according to the regulations of
the monastery. I did not Iniy a priest's robe, as I could in
time use the <nie which had been given to me. So I went to
Je T'a-tsang, chief professor of the department which I was
to enter, for him to question me before 1 was admitted as a
probationary student; but I found that no examinations
were to be given. I called on the professor with a present
of the best tea to be procured in Tibet. His first question
was : " Where are you from ? \'ou look like a Mongolian;
are you not one?" Being answered in the negative, he asked
me several geographical questions, for he was well acquaint-
ed with the geography of the country. But 1 answered well,
as I had trMvelled through the provinces on my own feet. It
was thus settled that I might be admitted on probation. So I
saluted the Lama with mv tongue out, and he put his right
hand on my head, as usual, and put a red cloth about two
THE WAREIOR-PRIESTS OT SERA. 295
feet long round my neck as the sign of my admission.
The reader must know that (jne has to put such a piece of
cloth round the neck in the presence of all noble Jjamas
in Tibet. I had then to appear before the priest who sees
that the laws are carried out, and to get his permission,
and I found that as I had a permit from the professor T
could easily get the sanction of the priest, and thus I
was admitted into the college. I had then to prepare
myself for the regular entrance examination of the depart-
ment of logic.
On the following day 1 found a teacher to help me in my
preparation. Finding however that one teacher was not
sufficient for the many subjects I had to study, I engaged a
second, and I was thus soon busy preparing myself. There
was a Lama living in the dormitory opposite to mine, a stout
priest who seemed to be very learned. One day I was called
to his room to see him, and among other questions I was
asked if I had not come with a caravan of Ruto from
Jangthang to the Sakya temple. I was told that among
the disciples of the Lama there was oneTobten, a nice gentle
Tibetan, and this person happened to be the one who
had treated me very kindly during my journey with the
caravan. It Avas this man who had asked me if I would
take meat, and whom I had told that I did not take it.
I had hitherto been supposed to have come fi'om
Jangthang, but now I was entirely unmasked.
" Then you are not from Jangthang," said the Lama, and
then he told me that he had heard 1 was a Chinaman and
good at writing Chinese characters. On my confessing
that 1 was not a Tibetan 'he was grieved, because he feared
that my deceit might being trouble upon the dormitory, for
a Chinaman must go to Pate Khamtsan. He then asked
me why i had violated the regulations of the place, and I
replied that I had been robbed, as he might have heard
from his disciple, at Jangthang, and thatl had not money
296 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
enough to enter into the Pate Khamtsan as a Chinaman.
Besides, I said, I should have to pay something for service
every year, if I went to the Chinese house. Having told
him all these secrets, I then asked him to help me to stay
with him, as I could not go to the other house. The Ijama
said that his disciple had told him of the robbery, and that
he was very sorry for me, adding that he would leave the
matter till objection should be made. So I was left there
without further trouble, and I passed for a man from
Jangthang. In this way I kept on studying day and
night, till I had a great swelling in my shoulders. I was
obliged to draw some blood from the shoulders by a device
of my own, and then I went to a druggist in the city
to buy some medicine, which soon cured the swelling, t
CHAPTER XLVII.
Tibet and North China.
On the 7tli of April I went to see a great service of
prayer for the Chinese Emperor in connexion with the
" Boxer " war. It was held not only at Sera, but at every
temple in Tibet. At the monaster)^ where I lived they
held a seci-et meeting for seven days, during which time
special priests offered secret prayers. They were then to
perform something secret for the victory of China. On
'enquiry I was told that Peking was invaded by the troops
of several foreign countries, and that the Chinese seemed
to have been beaten. They might be too late, they said,
but they prayed for the .safety of the Emperor of China.
I was quite anxious to know more particulars, but they
were all kept secret, and no one would tell me any more.
The prayer service was held in the Tsochen Hall at Sera,
and commenced with a long warlike procession. First
came the players on lyres, flageolets, drums, and large
flutes, followed by men carrying incense-burners. Then
came ten nice looking Tibetan boys, still in their teens, all
dressed in fine Buddhist robes ornamented with colored-
Chinese crape, and each burning incense. Next followed
fifty spear-like objects on each side of the road, each
surmounted with a movable blade like that of a Chinese
spear. These blades had hilt guards, under which hung
gold brocade or fine colored Chinese crape, sixteen feet
long, thus making the spear twenty-five feet long alto-
gether. The spear, the handle of which was either of
gold or gilt, seemed rather heavy, for two strong warrior-
priests carried each of them. Then came a triangular board
about six feet high, with various figures made of butter
on it, and after it another triangular board, four feet high,
38
298 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
with some red figure made of a mixture of baked flour,
butter and honey. These boards were borne by seven or
eight men. After them came some two hundred priests,
dressed in handsome robes and scarfs quite dazzling to the
eye. Half of these beat drums, while the other half carried
cymbals. After these priests cams the chief Lama, who
was to offer the secret prayer. He had dressed himself
in the splendid robes of his high rank. Last of all his
disciples followed.
Thus the procession presented a grand sight, and the
people of Lhasa came out in great crowds to see it.
It marched out about two hundred yards from the
great hall to an open yard outside the stone fence,
where the view opened as far as Lha^a. Another two
hundred yards further, the procession came before a
grass-roofed shed, built of bamboo, wood and straw.
There the chief Lama recited something in front of
of the triangular figures of butter and of baked wheat, and
of the spear-shaped objects, while the two hundred priests
around him chanted verses from the Buddhist Scriptures,
and beat drums and cymbals. A priest with a pair of
cymbals walked through the lines of the priests ; he seemed
to be a sort of band-master, for he marched through their
ranks beating time. His steps and gait were very odd and
different from any dancings that I had- ever seen. Soon
the chief Lama was seen, pretending to throw away his
rosary, at which signal the spear-bearers threw their spears
at the shed and then the triangular board of baked flour
was thrown at it also. They then set fire to the shed,
at the burning of which the priests as well as the
spectators clapped their hands, crying out " Lha-kyallo !
Lha-hijcdlo ! " This is a Tibetan word, meaning " surely the
Gods will triumph." Thus was the ceremony over, one of
the most splendid I had ever seen in Buddhism. On the
following day all the priests of the monastery were invited
I'lUKT ANU tJOKTH CHINA. 299
to Lhasa to attend the Cho-eii Joe service, which lasted a
month, to pray that the Dalai Lama of Tibet might be
kept from all evil during the year. This was a celebration
said to be only second in importance to the other. I also
went to Lhasa, and took lodging in the house of a Palpo
merchant.
In the capital I got more definite information about the
Boxer trouble. Perhaps some merchants who had returned
from China, or some who had came from Nepal or some who
had been to India, might have brought the news ; but it
was all very laughable and unreliable. Some would say the
Emperor of China had bequeathed his throne to the Crown
Prince and absconded, while others told me that the
Emperor was defeated and was then in Sin-an. The trouble
was brought about, some said, by a wicked minister, who
married an English lady to the Emperor, while others
asserted that there was a country called Japan, which was
so strong that her troops took possession of Peking. Another
said that a famine prevailed in China and people were all
famished ; indeed, every sort of rumor was abroad in the
Tibetan capital.
I was^ especially pleased to hear something about Japan,
even the very name of which had not yet been heard in
Tibet, and some merchants told me that Japan was so
powerful and so chivalrous that even when, her army
had taken possession of Peking, she had sent shiploads of
rice, wheat and clothing to the Chinese capital to relieve
tens of thousands of natives who were suffering fi-om
famine. Hut others would say against Japan that she
could not be such a friendly country, but must have
done what she had done merely out of her crafty
" land-grabbing diplomacy, " as the British nation did.
Rumor after rumor was making its way through Tibet,
and I did not know what to believe. Only I was
pretty sure that a war had broken out between China and
300 THBEE YEAKS IN TIBET.
other Powers. In the meantime the Palpo merchant with
whom I was staying was going to Nepal. I utilised the occa-
sion and through his kindness sent two letters^ one to Rai
Sarat Chandra Das in India, and the other to Mr. I. Hige of
my native province. I was glad to find afterwards that they
reached their destination, but it was very difficult to send a
letter in that way ; one must first see that the man by whom
it is to be sent is honest and not likely to betray one's secret,
and one cannot easily trust a Tibetan. But my Tibetan had
more than once been shown to be true to his trust.
The Gho-en Joe was a meeting of a kind I had never
seen before. In the first place there was a Sakya temple
over two hundred and forty yards square, with another
and central 8akya temple, one hundred and twenty yards
square. A wide pavement ran along inside the walls, where
the ordinary priests sat. The same kind of pavement was
found on the second and third floors. No priest was
admitted into the Sakya temple but the Dalai Lama or the
"greater" professors, though they did not always attend
the meetings. Some twenty thousand priests attended
that celebration, while over twenty-five thousand assembled
on the occasion of the festival held at Lhasa for the safety
of the Emperor of China. About five in the morning the
sound of flutes called all the priests in Lhasa to the place
of meeting. They chanted the Scriptures and were given
butter and tea, as usual, three times, at intervals of thirty
minutes. Of the twenty thousand very few were
regular priests, the rest being either warrior-priests or
loafers, who came only with the mean object of filling their
stomachs. Instead of reciting from the Scriptm-es, there-
fore, they were openly doing all sorts of things during
the meeting, such as singing profane songs, or pushing
each other about. One could see the rowdiness of these
wari-ior-priests, who sat there making obscene jokes, and
often quarrelling with. one another.
TIBET AND NORTH CHINA. 301
The warrior-priests being so lawless, some guard-priests
are detailed to keep order among them. The guard-priest
does not judge between the quarrelling priests, but strikes
them any time he sees them quarrelling. So he is much
feared by the other priests, who take to their huts at the
iirst sign of his presence. Still he often takes them
by surprise, and thrashes them most mercilessly on
head, limbs or body, so that occasionally they even
die from the effects of his rough treatment. This is not,
however, considered to be murder, the perpetrator of the
deed is not punished, and the body of his victim is simply
thrown away for the birds to devour.
Warrior-priests train themselves for two hours in
the morning. They take baked flour in tea during that
time, and at the end thev are given some gruel. Usually
the gruel is made of rice, with much meat in it, and
is given gi-atis. Each priest brings a bowl which
holds a pint or more, and he takes a bowlful of gruel
and three cups of tea. On their way back to their
respective lodgings, they receive ge, which in Tibetan
means ' alms,' from the officers. It is said that some
believers give as much as twenty-five sen or fifty
sen per head to each of the priests. In this respect
some Tibetan merchants, landowners and high oflacers
are very generous, for they are sometimes known to
give eight or nine thousand yen in alms to these
priests. There are many who give that sum in that way,
and much money is known to be sent for that object
from Mongolia.
There once was among these priests a Russian spy
from Mongolia. He had the degree of doctor, and held
the office of Tsan-ni Kenbo. He often made such
donations, and his fame had spread far and wide. Such
alms-giving, without religious faith, did not improve
his spiritual condition in the least ; but so many merchants
302 THREE YKAKS IN TIBET.
give money for the sake of their business, that this
doctor was content to think his alms had also promoted
his virtue. In these ways the priests get much money,
and the festival season is the best time of the year for
them. Sufficiency begets bad conduct, and it is during
such times that the priests are most contentious and
vindictive, and that duels are most frequent. A duel
is not generally fought in Lhasa itself; as a rule
they only appoint the place and time for it and
fight it after they get back to their own dormitories,
because while they are in Lhasa they are under the
authority of the magistrate priest of the Rebung temple,
and not of their own temples. This magistrate is known
to be so severe, strict and exacting, that they are afraid to
fight a duel before him, and they patiently wait till they
retarn to their own temples.
On the day that the great celebration was over, I saw a
festival procession. First came groups dressed as the
four divine kings, followed by the eight devil kings, each
with a special mark. Each group was followed by three
or five hundred priests, differently dressed. Unlike a
religious procession in Japan, which is as a rule very solemn,
the Tibetan procession marched in a sportive manner, for the
persons in it played with one auother while moving.
They would even joke with the spectators. They carried
in the procession various treasures and musical instruments,
such as drums, lyres, pipes, fiageolets and Indian flutes,
the most attractive objects being some imitations
of dragons. Inhere were many strange figures formed,
as they told me, after the model of the treasures of the
submarine dragon^s palace. Imitations were there of every
instrument, treasure, or dress found in Tibet, and of the
old costumes that are found in Tibetan history ; and
several Indian tribes were to be seen in the long pro-
cession of over two and a half miles. It is impossible to
TIBET AND NOETH CHINA. 303
enter into details, as I saw it only once ; my memory does
not serve me for other particulars.
This procession had one of the strangest of origins. It
is said that Ngak Wang G-yamtso, the fifth Pontiff of the
New Sect, devised the procession after one which he saw
in a dream in the Buddhist Paradise, and it seemed quite
fitting that such a curious procession should have so
vague an origin.
CHAPTER XLVIII.
Admission into Sera College.
I did not see as much of the festival as I might have done,
because I had to go through my formal entrance examina-
tions before the festival was entirely over, and I devoted all
spare moments to preparation. Once more I overworked
myself, but I bought some more medicine, and was soon
well again. This caused no little wonder among my
neighbors^ and I was often asked if I had studied
medicine. I must have studied it, they would say,
because I could cure mj^ own illness, and I was obliged to
tell them that I had read a few books on medicine. This
led me to practise it among them afterwards.
Before the celebrations were over, I went back to my
own monastery for my examination. It was on April 18th
that I presented myself with forty other candidates. I
was given both written and oral examinations, besides the
recitation of a passage from the Scriptures. The
examinations were such as are generally given to those who
have finished the common course in Tibetan schools. Tbey
were not so difficult for me as I had expected, and I was
admitted to the college, though all were not equally fortun-
ate, for only seven out of the forty passed. Among the
successful members were a few warrior-priests also. They
had run into debt, and had since studied hard to be
admitted. But, let rae say, their object was something
more than mere study. Scholarships were awarded, from
fifty sen to one yen and sometimes two yen a month per
scholar-priest. The amount was not fixed, but it general-
ly came to some ten yen a j'ear. It was on account of
that sum of money that many warrior-priests tried to pass
the examination. I was admitted as a student of tlie
ADMISSION INTO SBEA COLLEUK. 305
m
first class, in which priest-students varying from boys
their teens to men in the forties and fifties were study-
ing the Buddhist catechism, according to the Tibetan
fashion. Their way of studying was so interesting and
active, and they were so earnest an-d fervent, that one
would have thought they were quarrelling with one another
while discussing.
The catechism is a very pleasant performance, and the
ways of questioning, emphasis, and intonation are quite
interesting. The catechised sits in a certain attitude, and
the questioner stands up with a rosary in his left hand,
and walks towards him. He stretches out his hands with the
palm of the left hand downwards and that of the right
hand upwards and claps them together, uttering the words,
Chi ! chi tawa choe chan. Here ' Chi ' means the heart of
the Bodhisattva Manjushri and its utterance is supposed
to make the questioner one with Him, whose real body is
knowledge. The rest of the utterance literally means,
" in that nature of the truth." The sense of the whole is
" We shall begin the discussion following the nature of
Truth as it is manifested in the Universe." Then the
discussion begins in earnest according the rules of
the logic of Nyaya. The first question, for in-
stance, may be whether Buddha was human or not.
Whether the answer is in the atfirniative or the negative,
the questioner goes on to ask ; " But he was not above
mortality, was he ? " If he be answered in the affirmative,
he will say that it could not be so, for Buddha was
no more than mortal. The answerer, if bright enough,
will then reply that Buddha, though himself above
death, submitted himself to it in his incarnated body. He
must say also that Buddha had three bodies, called in
Samskrt Dharmakaya, Sambhogakaya and Nirmanakaya,
and in Tibetan, Choeku, Lonjoeku and Tulku. These terms
mean : ' The all pervading body consisting of the purest
39
306
THRKE YEARS IN TIBET,
A VEHEMENT PHILOSOPHICAL DISCUSSION.
AJJMISSION INTO SEKA OOLLEUB. 307
virtue of Truth in liim', ' the body derived from his count-
less virtues, eujcj^iug complete happiness with the light of
Truth,' and ' the body derived from his boundless mercy
and transcendental knowledge for the good of all beings.'
If the catechised shows any weak point in his
answers, the questioner never fails to take advantage
of the opportunity, and drives him on, saying for exam-
ple that Buddha was a real man born in India. Whether
the answer be in the affirmative or negative, he will go on
asking many questions in succession, and that with so much
animation that, when he utters the words of a question, -he
beats time with hands and feet. The teacher always teaches
the oatechists that the foot must come down so strongly
that the door of hell may be broken open, and that the hands
must make so great a noise that the voice of knowledge
may frighten the devils all over the world, by a fearless
heart and a brave attitude. The object of the questions
and answers is to free the mind from all worldliness, and
to get into the very bottom of Truth, giving no power to
the devils of hell in the mind.
To show how excitedly the catechism is carried on, it
is said that a countryman once came to see the scene. The
question happened to be about physiognomy (kan-sa), which
in Tibetan is synonymous with a tobacco-pipe. The coun-
tryman thought that they were disputing over a tobacco-
pipe, and was very much surprised that a pipe should be
the matter of the quarrel, for the priests were seemingly
very much provoked and railed at each other and exchang-
ed blows ! Three years later, the same countryman
came to worship at the temple of Sera, and again happened
to see the priests disputing hotly about what he thought
to be a pipe. He saw them strike each other at
the end of the dispute, and felt very sorry for them.
So he thought he would settle the dispute by arbitration.
He then walked among the priests, holding out his pipe,
308 'ii-iKjla YUARS In TibEi'.
wliicli he meant to give them. Though it was none of his
business to coine among the priests, he offered the pipe
and begged them to settle the dispute, thereby causing
great laughter among them. It is with such excitement
and with hardly any formality that the questions are
asked and answered. Still it must not be supposed that
one could answer these questions without a knowledge of
Buddhism. One has to read many texts and reference
books before one can go through these questions. It takes
the natives twenty years of hard and unceasing study,
with examinations every year, to obtain the degree of a
doctor.
The catechism forms the chief part of the education of
Tibetan priests. This method seems to excite so great an
interest among jariest-students that there are alwaj^s many
Mongolians in Tibet, who come so far and through so much
hardship with the sole object of receiving education there.
There are three hundred Mongolians at the 8era college,
and hardly fewei' at other large temples, such as that of
Tashi Lhunpo. The New Sect of Buddhism owes a great
deal of its fine prospects to its catechism, while the Old
Sect has already lost popularity and is now tottering. It is
by this spirited Catechism that the naturally dull and lazy
Tibetans are goaded on to understand Buddhism, and are
very rich, for a half-civilised nation, in logical ideas. But
let me add, it is only the learned that are rich in logical
ideas ; the people at large, who have received little educa-
tion, are far from being intelligent.
The Catechism is generally held at some beautiful
place, where there are many fine trees, such as
elms, willows, nuts, peaches and various others which
are not found in Japan, though on the whole Tibet
does not possess a large variety of trees. The ground
under the trees is covered with beautiful white sand.
When the first Catechism is over, the priests have what is
Admission into sekA collegk. 309
termed the G-arden of Truth, at some e(|aany well-wooded
place, where there ai-e varieties of flowers. The ground
there is also covered with white sand, and enclosed by stone
walls five or six feet high with a gateway constructed in
Chinese fashion. The priests gather themselves there to
read from the Scriptures, and after the reading, they begin
questioning one another. Here they make no difference of
classes, but ask one another concerning their text books
and everything else. This helps them a great deal to
improve their knowledge and wisdom.
At the other place, there may be no more than one
questioner and one answerer, the rest keeping silence,
whether the class consist of fifty or a hundi-ed priests.
The questioner and the answerer might change, but
they could be taken only from that one class. In the
garden, however, there are no such limitations, there
is no diiference of classes, and young and old priests are
seen cpestioning each other. So one may easily fancy how
noisy and excited they are. While I was having a Cate-
chism among them under a jjeach-forest in blossom, snow-
flakes began to fall on us. I stopped questioning and,
struck with the beautiful scene around me, I wi'ote two
Japanese poems which served to give my friends at home
some idea of my thoughts.
In spring the blooming flowers of the peach
Are fully blown in " Dharnia-garden" there,
Greeting with welcome glee the friendly snows.
Under their shades the wrangling priests discuss,
With their vehement, uncouth gestures strange,
Their doubts to melt, like to the melting snows
Beneath these trees emitting odours sweet.
Day and night I studied in this way. But finding soon
that it left me too many precious hours to have only one
teacher, I now found another priest to teach me. I
went to them to receive their instruction, while they
too sometimes came to teach me. I thus made consider-
able progress in my learning.
310 'i'UKEE YJEAKS in TiteT.
There is a strange custom which a new college
student has to observe as a sign of his admittance. I had
to go to Lhasa and to travel^ as a sign of my admittance^
for two days to beg for fuel. But one day a young
priest next door quarrelled with another young priest
and hit him with a stone, which dislocated the
bone of his upper arm. The wounded lad was a
sj^ecial favorite of his instructor, who feared very much
that he might be deformed. Bone-setting is quite unknown
to the Tibetans, and their doctors, who have no knowledge
of how to set a dislocated bone, apply heated iron, or
give some inedioine to drink or use. I was on my walk
and happened to hear the pitiful cries of the wounded boy,
and was told, when I asked why they did not send for a
doctor, that it was far better not to do so, as it would oidy
be a heavy expense for nothing. They were not going to
have one. When I asked if no doctor in Tibet could set a
dislocated bone, they seemed to be much surprised at my
improbable question. It was with some difficulty that I
made them believe that a dislocated bone can be easily set.
So going to the wounded boy, I easily set his bone, while a
Tibetan held his head and left hand. Then I acupunctured
that part where the muscle was a little swollen, and
the boy was soon cured.
CHAPTER XLIX.
Meeting- with the Incarnate Bodhisattva.
This healing made me an object of much talk, and 1
soon found myself surrounded by manjr patients. I now
began to fear that I should thus be prevented from study-
ing, and so fail to accomplish my chief end. So I tried
every means to keep the patients from me, but the more
I declined, the more patients I found brought to me, and
I was at last obliged to get some medicines from Thien-ho-
thang (a Chinese druggist) in Lhasa. I gave the medicines
to these patients, most of whom recovered either throvigh
their faith in me or through the efncacy of the drugs ;
for I had studied the rudiments of medical science (of the
old school, it is true) and this enabled me to use the
medicines. There is one disease which is most feared as
fatal by the Tibetans. It is dropsy, little, if at all different
from beri-heri. No one in the neighborhood of Lhasa
seemed to know how to cure the disease. I prepared for it
a medicine of which I had been told by a Tibetan hermit,
and gave it to some patients suffering from dropsy. I
am glad to say that this medicine cured six or seven
patients out of every ten, though T could not heal cases
that were far gone.
This made me quite famous and my name, known only
in my own monastery at first, began to be known in the
whole city of Lhasa and in the country as far as Shigatze.
Often two horses were sent on for me from places of three
days' journey distant to take me to patients. I took no
reward from the poor, but gave them medicine gratis.
This may have had a great deal to do with my popularity,
and I came to be regarded as a God of medicine,
312 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
There are many cases of consumption in Tibet.
I gave my medicine to those patients who were in
the first stages of the disease, but chronic cases I left
without any medicine, to meditation or religious services
that they might gain salvation, and die at ease. This,
I was told, made some patients fear to come to me, for it was
said that those to whom medicine was given recovered,
while the others, whom I taught about death and the
future, without giving them any medicine, were sure
to die. Some did not like to be told that death
was near them, and women especially were frightened to
come before me. The Tibetans have a strange habit.
When they fall ill, before any doctor is sent for, a sorcerer
is asked to see which doctor is best and what kind of
medicine is good. Some doctors, therefore, are so
wicked as to bribe the sorcerer to recommend them
to the patients. The sorcerer, too, being pleased enough
to see the patients cured by the doctor whom he
suggested, began to recommend mp to his patients
when he saw my name was making so great a stir in
Tibet. He would tell his patients to be sure to come
to me. I never asked him to mention me, nor even
saw him in person ; nor is it probable that he ever
saw me. His recommendation must have come out of his
love of fame. When, therefore, a high officer or priest
fell ill and was told by his sorcerer to see me, I was
sure to be sent for. A horse was sent to bring me,
generally with a letter of introduction. Often I received
a letter politely requesting me to come, and wherever
I went, therefore, I was very kindly received, for the
life of the patient was supposed to depend entirely on me.
Fame travels surprisingly fast, and at last mine reached
the Royal Court, so that I was one day called there. The
Dalai Lama was not in reality ill, but desired to
see what I looked like, In Tibet it is no easy matter
MEETING WITH THE INCARNATE BODHISATTVA. 313
to see His Holiness. He may be seen while passing, but no
ordinary priests or even high priests can have the privilege
of talking to him. This was, therefore a great honor to
me, and I took the liberty of riding the horse sent to take
me to the Royal palace. The Grand Lama was not then at
Potala, but at his counti-y palace called Nolpu Lingka, in a
forest along the Kichu, south-west of Potala. This palace
is much newer than the other, and the Pope enjoys the
coolness there in summer.
I rode along a wide road in the forest for about three
hundred and fifty yards, till I came to a high stone wall
over twenty feet high and three hundred and fifty 3'ai'ds
square. I went west through the large gate in the wall,
and found on both sides of the road inside the gate many
whiie boxes in the shape of post pillai's about six yards
apart. In them incense is burned when the Dalai
Lama goes along the road. Lofty trees are grown
in the courtyard on both sides of the road, though there
is a very wide lawn within the court. After about a
hundred yards, I came to a square j)iece of ground en-
closed by stone fences about one hundred and fifty yards
square, along which were seen manj beautiful stone
houses for the priest ofHcials to live in. These houses
have each a flower garden which is beautifully decorated
with as many trees and plants as can be found in Tibet.
What is stranger still, at the four corners as well as some
other parts of the stone fences are found little kennels, in
which two or three score strong Tibetan dogs are chained.
They bark terribly from their high pens. The Dalai Lama
is said to be so fond of dogs that whoever brings him a strong
hound is treated very kindly and receives great rewards.
Hence many dogs are brought from great distances. None
of his predecessors, however, have had such a liking for
dogs. The gates to the Papal palace are at the east
and west corners of the walls and face south. About thirty
40
314 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
yards from the gate was a large house into which my horse
was led. Then I was taken to the house of the Court
Physician.
This residence of the Court Physician has four
large rooms^ parlor, study, servants' room and kitchen.
The house is approached through a garden full of
beautiful flowers, and one then comes to a curtain of
white linen. Going under the curtain, one enters another
garden, at one side of which is the entrance to the parlor.
The parlor has Chinese sliding doors in white, with panes
of glass. In the room were two images, one of Buddha and
the other of Tsong-kha-pa, the founder of the New Sect, set
on a gilt stand, with pictures of dragons, peacocks, and
flowers. Such images are found in most shrines of the
New Sect. Before the images were Tibetan candlesticks
of silver, with three butter-candles that were left burning
both day and night. The Physician was sitting on a
Tibetan carpet with painted flowers, and there were two
beautiful high desks before him, in front of which there
was a fur cushion for the guest to sit upon. I was told
to sit on this fur cushion, and very soon a servant priest
brought in the very best tea, which he poured into the
physician's cup and then into mine on the desk. The
physician was said to be very kind and gentle, and his
face resembled mine so much that we might be taken
for brothers.
The physician told me that the Dalai Lama was not seri-
ously ill and that it was because I had healed so many
patients that he wished to see me. But, he added, as he
was very busy, I must not talk long with him. He said
that the Dalai Lama might have something that the
physician must consult me about.
After this talk with the physician, I was led by him to
the Palace, and we went north towards the gate mentioned
above. There was a guard-priest at the gate, who was
MEETING WITH THl! INCAKNATS BODHISATTVA. 815
dressed in a tight-sleeved priestly cloak, which no common
priests are allowed to put on. He keeps guard with a
club. Inside the gate there was a stone pavement some
twenty yards square, siirrounded by covered ways, where
there were some things in the shape of stools. There
was another gate about nine yards wide in front of this-
The inner gate was guarded by four priests, each with
a short club instead of a long one. Walking about ten
yards from the inner gate iiito the inner court, I found
on both walls a picture of a fierce looking Mongolian
leading a tiger by a rein ; and the walls, which wore roofed
over, had a court between them. Instead of going
straight through the court, I went left along the covered
way till I came to the end of the western wall, when
the Dalai Lama appeared from his inner chamber.
He was preceded by Dunnyel Chenmo the Lord Chamber-
lain, and Ghoe Bon Kenbo the Papal Chaplain. After His
Holiness came Yongjin Rinpoche the Papal Tutor. The
Dalai Lama took his seat on the light hand chair in front,
and the two former attendants stood on each side, while the
Tutor sat on the chair a little below them. Seven or eight
high priests sat before His Holiness. The Court Physician
leading me a little to one side, in front of the Dalai
Lama, saluted him. I saluted him three times, and
taking my robe off one of my shoulders I stepped before
him, when His Holiness stretched out his right hand to put
it on iny head. Then I withdrew about four yards and
stood beside the physician.
The Dalai Lama then began by praising me for having
healed many poor pi-iests at Sera. He told me to stay
long at Sera and to do as I had done, and I answered that
I would do with pleasure as he wished me. I had been told
that the Pope was well versed in Chinese, and I feared that
he might speak in Chinese, for then my imposture would
be discovered. I had made up mj' mind, therefore, that I
316
THEEB YEAKS IN TIBET.
AN AUDIENCE WITH THE DALAI LAMA.
MEBTINGt WITH THE INCAliNATli; BOfiHlSATTVA. 317
would in that case frankly tell him to what nationality I
belonged, that I might be worthy of a Japanese, for I
deemed it to be a great honor to be granted an interview
with him.
Luckily, however, he did not talk Chinese, but instead
inquii-ed in Tibetan about Buddhism and Buddhists in
China, which I answered to his satisfaction. He was
pleased to tell me that he was thinking of appointing me
to some high office. After the talk I was honored by a
cup of tea in the presence of the Dalai Lama and drank it
with much ceremony, though he retired to his chamber
before I had finished drinking.
The Dalai Lama was dressed in a cloak different from
that of ii common priest. He had on a silk hood and
a great robe called sanghati and under it a fine induk of
Tibetan wool about his waist. His under dress was what is
called Lema woven of the best Chinese sheep wool. He wore
a fine Papal crown on his head though he is said to be
often bare-headed, with no crown at all. He held a
rosary in his left hand. He was then aged twenty six. He
is about five feet eight inches high, a moderate height in
Tibet.
The Dalai Lama looks very brave. His eye-brows are
very high, and he is very keen-eyed. Once a Chinese
phrenologist remarked that the Tibetan Pope would
bring about war one day, to the great disturbance
of the country, for though brave-looking, he had an
unlucky face. Whether the prophesy comes true
or not, he reallj'' looks the very man of whose face a
phrenologist would be sure to say something. He has
a very sharp and oonnuanding voice, so that one could not
but pay reverence in his presence. From my long
acquaintance with the Dalai Lama, during which I heard
and saw much of him and had frequent interviews with
him, I judge that he is richer in thoughts political thai:)
318 THKEE YEAES IN 'I'JJiB'J'.
religious. He wa.s bred in Buddhism, and in it lie has
great faith, and he is very anxious to clear away all
corruption from the Buddhism and Buddhists in
Tibet.
But political thoughts are working most busily in his mind.
He seems to fear the British most, and is always thinking
how to keep them from Tibet. He seems to give full scope
to all designs calculated to check the encroaching force of
the British. I could plainly see this while remaining near
him. Had he not been on his guard, however, which
he always is, he must have been poisoned by his retainers.
He has often been on the point of being poisoned, and
each time his caution has detected the conspiracy and
the intriguers were put to death.
None of the five Dalai Lamas from the fourth to the
ninth in Tibet reached their twenty fifth year; all were
poisoned when eighteen or twenty-two years old. This is
almost an open secret in Tibet, and the reason is that, if
a wise Dalai Lama is on the throne, his courtiers cannot
gratify their selfish desires. Some of these seem to have
been wise Dalai Lamas, for thej^ received special education
until they were twenty-two or three years old. History
proves that they have written books to instruct the people.
I could not help shedding teai's Avhen the ex-Papal
Minister of Finance, at whose house I was staying at
one time, told me about the fate of the predecessors of
the present Dalai Lama. The Papal Court is a den of
disloyal thieves who go ]iy the name of courtiers, and
they do all they can to neutralise the force of the few loyal
courtiers, who are too weak to do anything against them.
The ex-Minister for Finance was among the ill-fated party
driven out of the court by these toadies, who pretended to
pay great reverence to the sacred Monarch before the
people, simply because they could not otherwise stay in
their offices. When anything haippened against their iri-
MEETING WITH THE tNCAENATE BODHISATTVA. 319
terests, they conspired to communicate with one another
and to accuse falsely the loyal courtiers. They would
often go so far as to slander them shamelesslj^, and say
that such and such a person had been guilty of a dis-
respectful act against the Dalai Lama.
In this subtle way some wicked courtiers turned honest
scholars or priests out of the court, and the Dalai Lama
is surrounded by these pretended loyalist devils. Hence
he is so dangerovisly situated, that he is obliged to pay
the greatest attention to what is offered him to eat, lest
some poison should have been piit in it. 1 could not
but shed tears for him, when I thought that there could
be no court on earth so full of wicked courtiers. But
the present Dalai Lama is so prudent and particular that
these evil doers can get no chance of doing anything
against him. Still, he is really in great danger. He
is wise for his age, for, J'oung as he is, he seems to have
great sympathy with the afflicted, and is much respected,
and indeed almost worshipped, by his people, though
much disliked by the evil local governors, whom he ha.s
been known to punish, to deprive of their estates, and
to imprison for their evil deeds.
I often had occasion to see the inner chamber of the
palace and found that it was magnificent. It is built
in the Indian, Chinese and Tibetan styles. The garden
has an artificial hill in it after the Chinese fashion,
while, as is seen in a Indian garden, it has a lawn outside
with some charming flowers. The place seems very good
for walks. The inside of the palace is bu.ilt after the
Tibetan style, while a part of the roof is Chinese and
the rest purely Indian. The royal garden has various
rocks and has here and there such trees as willows,
peaches, elms and many other strange trees found only in
Tibet. In Tibet only few flowers bloom in summer^ though
there are many in winter. A variety of flowers^ such
320
THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
nn ggg
on DO
iinDmDiiiinnMuL--—
INNER ROOM OF "JHE DALAI LAMA'S COUNTRY HOUSE.
as chrysanthemums, poppies, magnolias, tulips, and others
are planted in front of the palace veranda. The pavement
is decorated here and there with glittering jewels, and the
walls are painted by the best painters in Tibet. The papal
throne stands on two Tibetan mats at the farther
side of the room, and beside the throne is spread a
thick Tibetan carpet, over which is a Chinese carpet
of wool. A table of costly wood is set on the carpets.
There is a tea-bureau, over which hangs a picture of Je
Rinpoche, painted on a gold-dusted canvas. There are
many such rooms, besides, which I was not allowed to enter,
but which looked very beautiful from the outside. I was
often invited to the chief physician's to talk about
medicine with him. He taught me several things about
medicine that I did not know, though the medical know-
ledge which I had gained from my own books enabled me to
keep up with him in the talk. This must have done a great
deal to make the chief physician welcome me so much.
MEETING "WITH THE INCARNATE BODHISATTVA. 321
He even said lie would be most glad to recommend me as a
Court Physician.
He said that he would do his best to that end, telling
me at the same time to see the premier and some other
Ministers of State. My answer was however that I could
not very well stay long in Lhasa, for I was most earnest to
study Buddhism. I told him also that I intended to go to
India to study Samskrt, and at this he felt very sorry, for
when I left there would be no good doctor in the city.
When I said that my object was not medicine, but to study
Buddhism, the physician very plausibly argued that as it
was the ultimate object of Buddhism to save men, I might
as well stay in the city as a doctor to practise medicine.
The doctor, 1 said, only relieved men of earthly pains,
but could hardly do anything toward the salvation
of souls. What doctor, however skilful, could save a
dying patient ? Besides, I feared I might do them more
harm than good, for I had only a smattering of medicine
after all. I might heal them of their diseases, but I could
not give peace to their souls, while a priest could free them
from the most painful and durable of all diseases. It was
more urgeiit to study how to heal this. _ Buddha was the
greatest doctor, who had given eighty-four thousand
religious medicines to eighty-four thousand mental diseases,
and we, as His disciples, I said, must study His ways of
healing. On these grounds I declined his offer. Finding
me so firm in my resolution, the physician went on to say
that, if I ever tried to leave the city for India, or some other
far-off country, the Dalai Lama would give orders to
keep me in the country, and that my only happiness lay
in staying to work among the priests. When I heard this
I began to repent that I had been telling him my secrets
rather too plainly. I feared it would put me to some
inconvenience to insist on going to India, and soon
changed the subject of our talk. So far about my
41
322 THEEB YEAES IN TIBET.
medical practice; but nowj something took place of which
I had never dreamed.
CHAPTER L.
Life in the Sera Monastery.
What happened was this. It becamo a matter of hot
discussion among- the priests of our dormitory PitukKhamtsan
whether they should leave me to stay there or not, because
I was being received by the Grand Lama, the noblemen and
the Ministers, as a great doctor. After a long discussion,
the priests came to an agreement that they should make a
special rule on my account, and put me in one of the best
rooms. I was, of course, pleased to be removed from
my strangely smelling, dark and dirty room to a free,
clean apartment. I saw the Dalai Lama on July 21st, and
was removed into the good room toward the end of the
same month. It is one of the regulations of the college
that no new-comer shall have a separate room for
himself, but that he shall live with some one else in a
room, though occasionally a rich student may enjoy the
possession of a dirty room for himself on admission.
Though not among the poor, I was not eligible to have
a room, even a dirty one, all to myself. A priest must
reside there some ten years before he is allowed to live in a
room of the fourth class ; after three years more he may be
removed to a study room of the third class. But it must be
remembered that everything depends on money. When he
receives the degree of a doctor, he is given a second-class
room. The rooms of the first class are used only by
incarnate Lamas, who come to study. As things were I was
given a second-class study. It was a cosy structure of
two storeys with a kitchen and a closet. Some studies
have thii'd floors, but my new quarters were only two-storied.
The room upstairs was the best. I'o live in such a, houses
however, one must have . ai'ticles of furniture as well as
324 THKKE YEAES IN TIBET.
some servant-priests. I was now like a poor boy, who had
grown up all of a sudden and had been given a house to
keep. I was obliged to procure many articles needed for my
new condition, all of which I had fortunately money enough
to buy.
The priests, though diverse in studies, may be
classified into three large divisions, higher, middle, and
lower. By the middle class of priests, I mean those who
spend about seven yen a month for their keep. They do not
pay for their dwellings, which are provided by their
temple, though some Khamfcsans, which are in debt, take
rents from their priests for their studying-rooms. When
a Khamtsan is too full of priests, some of them go to seek
rooms for themselves in some other, in which case they pay
from one to three yen a month, or twenty-five sen for a dirty
room.
A suit of clothing as used by student-priests consists of a
hood of common wool cloth, a shirt, and a priest's robe,
besides a pair of shoes. It costs twenty yen to pro-
vide all these articles. At breakfast they take butter-tea
and baked flour. Rich priests make tea for themselves
every morning, though three large bowlfuls are given in
the hall of the monastery. In the afternoon they drink
tea again, this time with some meat, chiefly dried, though
at times raw. In the evening they take some gruel
of baked flour, cooked with cheese, radishes and fat.
Butter-tea is always found in a bowl on the table. The
Tibetan in general drinks much tea, because very few
vegetables are eaten as compared with the amount of meat.
A tea-cup is covered with a silver lid. When it gets cool, it
is drunk and new tea is poured in again and left some twenty
minutes to cool, though iii winter no more than five or six
minutes are needed, during which time those at table will
talk to one another, or read from the Scriptures or do some
private business. Such are the meals of a middle-class
tll'B IN THE SEKA MONASTERY. 325
priest. Most priests have some landed property, and some
of them breed yaks, horses, sheep and goats in the provin-
ces, though it would be rare for one of the middle-class to
have more than some fifty yaks and ten horses. These
animals are also employed in ploughing the fields, but no
more than ten lots of land may be ploughed by two
yaks in a day. The priests can hardly lead a well-
to-do life without such property or some private business,
for what they are given from their temples and by the
believers is not sufficient for them.
Few priests are without some private business or other — in-
deed, most of them are engaged in trade. Agriculture comes
next to trade, and then cattle-breeding. Manufacturers of
Buddhist articles, painters of Buddhist pictures, tailors,
carpenters, masons, shoemakers and stone-layers are
found among the priests; there is hardly any kind
of business in Tibet, but some of the priests are engaged in
it. There are, besides, many kinds of business in which
none but priests engage. The lower class of priests as
well as the middle-class engage in trade, but some rich
priests have as many as from five hundred to four thou-
sand yaks and from one to six hundred horses. They
have from one to six hundred lots of land, each lot
being as large as will take two yaks to cultivate in a day.
But there are not more than three or four of the priests
who have started in trade Avith a capital of five hundred
thousand yen. They live very luxuriously, wear priestly
cloaks of the best woollen texture produced in Tibet, and
use very thick butter-tea every morning, which is consider-
ed a great delicacy.
To make the b^est butter-tea, the tea is first boiled for
half a day, till it gets dark brown. After being
skimmed, it is shaken several times in the cylinder
with some fresh yak butter and salt. This makes the
best tea, and a tea-pot full of such tea costs thirty-
326 THKBE YUAES IN TIBET.
eight sen to make. Tea-pots^ or jars, are made of
clay in the shape of ordinary Japanese tea pots. I could
not at first drink the tea, when I saw that it looked
like thick oil. Still, it is one of the best drinks among
the best circles in Tibet, who drink it every morning.
It is usually taken mixed with what is called tnt and
baked flour. The tsu is a hardened mixture of cheese,
butter and white sugar. The Tibetan puts this
substance into his tea. He eats meat dried, raw or cooked,
even at breakfast. At dinner the priests eat rice imported
from Nepal, the price of which is about fifty sen per sho.
They do not however eat boiled rice by itself, but a bowlful
of it mixed with grapes and sugar and butter. After the
rice, baked flour or egg macaroni is sometimes eaten. In
the evening wheat dumplings with gruel are served at
table; what they call gruel has in it some meat, radishes,
cheese and butter. The above is the usual course of dishes
at the tables of the highest circles. They cannot \\xe a day
without meat, and if on some occasion they are kept from
it, they are sure to say they are getting thinner.
The priests of the higher class live very comfortably,
for they build their own villas, or have their own temples;
besides, they have always the best dwellings of the temples
to which they belong. They are supported by their
estates, as I said, and they keep, each one of them, from
five or six to seventy or eighty servants in their houses.
From among these servants are often selected treasurers
and stewards. The lower class of priests, on the contrary,
live pitifully. No words can half describe their poor
condition. The warrior-priests, though among the poorest,
are still able to keep the wolf from their doors, for they are
employed as farmers or as guards, or in some other
private, business, so that they earn money with which
they live from hand to mouth. There is another and
far poorer class of priests — the scholar-priests who
LIFE IN THE SERA MONASTERY. 327
have to support themselves in their studies, but
who must earn their living as well as their expenses
as students. They are too busy with their study
to go oyit to make any money. What they receive as offer-
ings from the believers and as salary from their temples,
does not together amount to a little more than two or three
yen a month, and it is insufficient to support them. They
can drink tea gratis every morning at the temple, but
they cannot get anj' baked flour, which makes the chief
pai't of a meal. Baked flour costs at least one and a half
yen a month. During the catechisms they go to Ta-tsang
where they are given three cups of tea for dinner. But
it takes them a month to review what they study
in a month in catechisms. During the period of review
they must get some one to help them, and they have to
pay some fifty sen a month in return. Then they
must have some fire to keep them warm in the
evening besides something to refresh them. For refresh-
ments they get tea-leaves with which the richer priests
have made their tea. Then they must get fuel to make tea
out of these leaves. The fuel is generally yak-dung,
which costs thirty-five sen a bag of two and a half
bushels. A priest will burn three or four bagfuls a month
if he is not particular and careful, while a poor priest may
have to manage with a bagful a year.
The poorest priest has in his room a sheep's fur, a
wooden bowl, a rosary and a dirty cushion, which makes
a bed at night. In a corner are found a stove, an earthen
pan, and a pot or jar, which all belong to the room. A
bag hanging in one corner contains the baked flour which
supports his life ; but it is very rarely full. The most
precious items of their property are the text books of the
catechism. There are no priests, however poor, but have
five or six copies of the catechism. These books, however,
are not their permanent property, for they will sell them as
328 THEEB YEARS IN TIBET.
eoon as their examinations are over. At night their bed
consists of their hood^ an underdress and a bed coveringj
besides an old blanket, which, however, is in the possession
of only a limited number. He who has a room of his own
is among the best of this poor class of priests. In most
rooms of nine feet square, three or four priests often have
a pan in common. I felt so sorry sometimes when I was
called to see a patient among them that I not only gave
medicine for nothing, but sometimes gave him some money.
Such is the condition of the poorest priests, and I was told
that they often passed a couple of days without eating,
when they were given little in the way of help. When
they receive a little money they will hurry to Lhasa,
over three miles off, to buy some baked flour. Some of
them do not come home directly from the city, for hunger
ofteh takes them to some little restaurant, where they eat
some macaroni. The consequence is that they spend their
money and are plunged again into such poverty that
they must live another couple of days without anything to
eat. I hardly ever passed them without giving them some-
thing, so that they at last came to pay so much respect to
me that they would stop when they saw me, and wait in
reverence while I passed.
CHAPTER LI.
My Tibetan Friends and Benefactors.
To go back a little in my story, my prosperity as a doctor
obliged me to buy much medicine, and T often went to
Thien-ho-tliangj a drug store which was kept by Li
Tsu-shu, a Chinese from Yunnang. In China they make
decoctions of their medicines, but the Tibetans take every
medicine in powdered form. Every medical herb and root
is pulverised, as well as some kinds of horns and stones.
To get some of these medicines I was often obliged to
stop a couple of days in his house; and as I bought great
quantities of medicine, I came to be treated very civilly as
a good customer. He lent me a book on medicine, the
reading of which added not a little to my smallknowledge,
and I boldly undertook every kind of patient. I know
I made a very dangerous doctor, but I was obliged to go
on as a pedant domineering over a societj' of ignoramuses.
Stillj I admit I possessed more knowledge of physiology
than most of the doctors in Lhasa, and I was in
consequence more trusted than they.
I frequently went to this druggist, who owned the largest
of the three Chinese drug stores in Lhasa. Li Tsu-shu was
about thirty years old and had a very fine house. He
lived with his wife, a son and a daughter, a mother-in-law
and three maids. They treated me as if I were a member
of the family, probably because I was kind to them and
gave them all sorts of things that I received from my
friends and clients. When, for instance, somebody gave me
too much cake, sugar, milk or grapes, for my own use, I used
to take them to the druggist to give them to the children,
who were consequently quite impatient to see me. If I
happened not to visit the house for a couple of days, they be-
43
330 THKEE YEAES IN TIBET.
came anxious about me. I was soon so much beloved by
the children that we seemed to have been friends for over
ten years, and I was sometimes asked if I had known them
in China. This acquaintance with the children helped me
very much afterwards, when I was leaving Tibet.
This Gijami Menkhang or Chinese druggist had his house
in the street of Wan-dzAi Shing-khang, in Lhasa. Among
those who used to come to his store was Ma Tseng,
Secretary to the Chinese Amban. He was a great scholar
and a man of worldly knowledge. He had a Tibetan
mother and was born in Tibet. He spoke Tibetan without
a shade of Chinese accent, Avhile he spoke and read
Chinese quite as well. He had read much in Chinese, and
had been twice in Peking. Three times he had gone to
India, visited Calcutta and Bombay as a peddlei", and
come back with a great store of knowledge about foreign
affairs. His office hours being very short, he had much time
to spare, and as he was a great friend of the
druggist's, he came to him very often. This led me
to get acquainted with him, and I found him very amusing.
He told me many Tibetan secrets and many of their
habits and customs both good and bad. I soon found
that what was told by him was al ways true. J3eing the
Secretary of the Chinese Amban, he was also acquainted
with the secret relations of the Tibetan a.nd Chinese
Governments. He was so talkative, that he would tell
me anything before I asked. His acquaintance pleased
me so much that when I was tired of reading I would
take a walk to the druggist's, with no other object than
to talk with this Secretarj^
Once while standing at the door of the druggist's, I
saw a man apparently of quality come towards me with
his servant. The store stands at the corner where the
streets leading to Panang-sho and Kache-hakhang meet,
and this man came along Ani-sakan street toward Panang-
My T1B3STAN Ji'KlENDS AND BENEl'ACTOKM. ool
sho. He passed a few steps by rae, when lie turned and
looked at me. Then I heard his servant say that I must be
the man. Walking to me the nobleman said " Is it you ? "
I looked at him and found him, though much thinner than
before, to be the son of Para the Premier, whom I had
met at Darjeeling. He did not look like a man out of his
senses, as I had been told. He said that he was much
pleased that I had come to his country. He was on some
important business, but went with me into the house of
the druggist. The wife of the druggist, who knew him,
gave him a chair, and the young noble seemed to be
desirous to talk with me. I hinted that it was not
good for us to let it be known that we had seen each
other at Darjeeling, and began our talk bj'' saying that it
was about half a year since we had met each other at
Gyangtze. He also was aware that his staying at Darjeel-
ing should be kept a secret, and carefully avoided talking
about our having met in that town.
From what he said and did there, I could not find any-
thing in him that showed him to be an idiot ; on the con-
trary, he was evidently a man of much sense. Among
other things he told me that three months before, one of
his servants committed theft and, when reproved severely,
had pierced him through the side with a sword with the re-
sult that a part of his intestines could be seen. This, he
added, made him so haggard. When, after a long talk, he
went on his way, the wife of the druggist told me that the
young man had hoodwinked me about the wounds, which
really were given him for wrong-doing on his side. She
told me that everything concerning his family was known
to her, for she had before been wifp to his brother, who,
not being allowed to live long with her, simply because she
was of birth too humble for his family, divorced her and
was now adopted at Namsailing. The young man, she told
me, was very prodigal, £tnd deeply in debt, on account of
332 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
which he was wounded. To my question whether he was
then beside himselfj she answered that he was mad or
otherwise as it suited him, and not a man to be easily trust-
ed, for he was very good at taking money from others.
In Tibet, when people go out to enjoy the flowers (for the
flower-season is very short there) they pitch tents in the
wheat-fields or in a forest, and have every sort of
merriment. This is called a picnic of lingka, or forest party,
and forms one of the merriest amusements in Tibet. I
was invited once to one of these villas in the wheat-fields.
I found there an old nun of about sixty years of age,
with seven or eight nun-attendants beside her. Hers
was not a tent, but a splendid house of wood, the walls
of which were covered over inside with painted cloth
and outside with white cloth. Though temporary, the
building was well furnished. This old lady had been ill for
over fifteen years, and was aware that she was sinking.
She said she knew that her disease was incurable, but
nevertheless desired to have such a famous doctor as my-
self to feel her pulse, and would be satisfied if I could only
relieve her a little of her pain. I examined her and found
that her trouble was rheumatism, so I gave her a little
tincture of camphor, besides some medicine for her stomach,
which was a little out of order. Faith works wonders. My
medicine told well and, her pain of fifteen years gradually
abating, she was soon able to enjoy sound sleep, which had
long been desired by her. Finally she became so well that
she could walk a little. Her raptures can be imagined,
and she at once reported the condition of her health to her
family. It seems that she was married, though not legally,
to the Bx-Minister of Finance, who was also a priest of the
New Sect. Shame on Buddhism therefore that he was living
with the nun. Priest nobles are generally supposed to
have wives, though not legally married to them ; most of
them keep such women somewhere, and the nuns are the
MY TIBETAN FKIENDS AND BEIJIFACTORS. 333
best class of women to be their wives — at least so had
thought the Bx-Minister of Finance. This particular nun
was old now and bent with age, though she was stoutly
built.
Wlieu one of the man servants in the residence of the
Minister of Finance fell ill, I was sure to be summoned, for
they put great faith in me and I could not but believe that
the Lord Buddha was working through ine to cause me to
succeed so wondrously among them. In this wise I became
acquainted with the Ex-Minister of Finance, who was a
deeply leai-ned scholar, as well as an experienced diplo-
matist. Aged sixty-two, he was about seven feet six inches
in height — taller than any other Tibetan I saw.
His dress took twice as much cloth as that of an ordi-
nary person. He knew men well, and was shrewd in
business, exceedingly kind and faithful and never deceit-
ful. His only fault was his living with the nun.
While talking with me, they often repented with tears
of the folly they had committed with each other
when young. He was not bad at heart, but his passionate
behavior soiled what should have been his stainless purity,
and also he was much influenced by worldly thoughts.
He had great sympathy with my condition, and often said
that he was very sorry for me to have to see a patient, who
had been sent to me from Lhasa, when the f)atients in Sera
were keeping me so busy. Besides being sorry for
my lack of time for study, he warned me to be on my
guard. Upon my asking him what he meant, he dis-
closed his fear that I might be poisoned like many other
envied persons, for I had already robbed many doctors of
their business. When I expressed my concern, he asked
me if I should be contented with a moderate living. Being
assured thsjt I should be quite satisfied if I could only obtain
a mere living, he said that he would support me, and offered
me a dwelling in his residence. It was not pretty, he said,
334 THItEB YEAKS IN TIBET.
but quiet and comfortable. It was situated out of
the way, so that few patients, except those who were very
dangerously ill, would be likely to trouble nie, and I could
then study more devotedly. Not only, he said, could I give
more time to study, but I should also be on better terms with
the city physicians, if at the cost of some inconvenience on
the part of general patients. I was very glad to accept
this kind offer, for I had been much regretting the little
time and opportunity I had to study Buddhism, which was
the sole object of my coining to Lhasa through so many
hardships.
CHAPTER LII.
Japan in Lhasa.
Evei-ything went well with me, for I had earned much
money, and besides everything needed for my livelihood
was to be given to me by the Bx-Minister. So at last, leaving
a young lad in charge of my quarters at Sera, I removed to
the residence of the Ex-Minister with my furniture. I told
the lad never to let it out of his mouth that I was with
the Bx-Minister, and to try to send most patients to some
other doctor in the city. I provided for him some way of
living and study. Still, I went to Sera occasional!)- to
have my catechism. My new dwelling was six yards by four.
It was divided in the middle into two rooms, and
being the dwelling of a noble, the walls were bi-ightly
colored green with various pictures. The thick carpet
ROOM IN THE FINANCE SECRETARY'S HOUSE-
336 THEBE YEARS IN TIBET.
had flowers of gold woven in it in the Tibetan style. There
was a desk of ebony, as well as a little Buddhist shrine.
The accommodation was very complete, and everything
was clean. Beside this residence there was another, that
of the present Minister of Finance. It was three storied, the.
Bx-Minister Cham-ba Choe-sang's being a two-storied house.
It was quiet there and my priest friends no more troubled
me in my study by their calls, but it was a little too far
for me to go to my teacher's.
Now it happened that I found a very good tutor. The
Ex-Minister had a natural half-brother, Ti Rinpoche (the
present ruler of Tibet) by title, whose father was a China-
man. He was of Sera extraction, and had been made a
priest when seven years old, and was then sixty-seven years
of age. The previous year he was created the highest
priest in all Tibet. The title of his priestly rank is Ti
Rinpoche of Ganden. There is, in the temple of Ganden,
a priestly seat on which Je Tsong-kha-pa, the Pounder of
the New Sect, had sat, and on which none may sit but the
Dalai Lama and this highest priest. The former, however,
cannot always seat himself on it, while the latter, living at
Ganden, can sit on it any time. The Grand Lama had the
right to sit on it by birth, while Ti Rinpoche had had to
have a secret training of thirty long years after he had
received the degree of doctor in Buddhism, before he was
given the privilege. When this training of long years had
made him a priest perfectly learned and virtuous, he was
elected the highest priest in Tibet and given the privilege
to sit on the seat. Any person or pi'iest who has attained
moral and intellectual perfection after a study and training
of some fifty or sixty years may use this seat, except sons
of butchers, blacksmiths, hunters, and men of the lowest
ca.ste.
Hence in reality, the highest priest must be more
learned and virtuous than the Grand Lama. I was very
JAPAN IN LHASA. 337
fortunate to have as my tutor such a high personage.
This is a privilege denied to most people in Tibet,
where the distinction of castes is given so much import-
ance, that it is among the most difficult things for
any one to have an interview with such a great
man. In this way, I succeeded in learning much about
the secrets of Tibetan Buddhism. The highest priest at
the first glance at me seemed to know what kind of a man
I am, and treated me as what I suppose he thought me
to be. He hinted, if indirectly, that he felt some fear for
me, and I, too, began to fear him. Still, he must have
found faithfulness in me, for he taught me Buddhism
in its true form, and I felt correspondingly grateful to him,
for none of the many doctors, learned scholars, religionists,
and hermits with whom I studied Buddhism influenced
me half so much as this highest priest. It must have been
this virtuous Buddhist, I believe, who influenced the
Ex-Minister, his brother, when fallen into so great a folly,
to repent of his sin and to live a peaceful life. And the
nun-wife of the Ex-Minister, let me add, was of hardly
less active temper, though she had not so many ideas as
her husband.
This nun- wife had made a pilgrimage of repentance about
twenty years before to Katmandu in Nepal. I was
much delighted to hear the story of this pilgrimage
and its hardships, the more so as I had been in Nepal
myself. I could not but be moved by the charitable deeds
of both the Ex-Minister and the nun, and instead of blaming
them for their bad behavior, which brought shame on
Buddhism, I rather sympathised with them for it, as they
had so many things in common. They taught me how
great was the power of charming love, and warned me
against it. The more acquainted I became with this family,
the more fully I began to know about it. I came to under-
stand the state T)f the family, the conditions of the servants,
43
333 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
and every particular of the house. On the other hand, I had
little opportunity to talk with the present Minister of
Finance, who lived next to my house, for he was too busy to
receive guests. His name was Ten-Jin Choe Gyal ; he was
quiet and very strong-willed, but when he talked to me
l>e smiled and made me feel quite at home with him. He
put off all the dignity of a Minister, mainly because, I
believe, I was being treated by the Bx-Minister and his
nun-wife as if I were their son. Being in the Ministerial
chair, he was often able to disclose to me some important
secrets of the Grovernment, and we talked quite confidentially
with each other. If any grave subject presented itself
at the court, he usually gave no opinion of his own
there, but would consult with the Ex-Minister, whom,
he regarded as his superior, and the Ex-Minister then
gave him his opinions about the subject, discussing it
from various points of view. The Ex-Minister would have
been by that time promoted to the position of the highest
priest had it not been for his ill-famed deeds of love, which.
■\vere a cause of impeachment against him. Had this
strong man been appointed Premier under the present able
Grand Lama, we might have expected much wiser govern-
ment in Tibet. I was often present at the meetings of the
tyfo Ministers, and was requested to give my humble opinions
about the. subjects discussed- This gave me a good oppor-
tunity of studying Tibetan politics. While in the monastery,
where was discussed only the philosophy of Budclhism,
I could hear little or nothing about the Government of the
Grand Lama, which was general!}' supposed to be good,
The priests know qnly how reverently to bend their heads
before the Dalai Lama, but are entirely ignorant of the
secrpts of their Government, or I should say the secrets are
kept from the priests; but now I succeeded in hearing many
pf the diplomatic secrets about the relations of the Govern-
ment with China, Britain, Russia and Nepal.
JAPAN IN LHASA. 839
I have already told how I met the Prince of Para at
the druggist's; now I met no less unexpectedly a merchant
of Darjeeling, Tsa Rong-ba by name, who also proved after-
wards a great help to me at the time of my departure from
Tibet. I think before I go on further I shall do well to
narrate how I happened to meet him. Once I was walking
along Parkor, the ' Middle path for the circumambulation
of the holy temple of the Buddha ' and the busiest street in
Lhasa. At the sides of the street are many shops, not very
different from those in most other countries. Many port-
able shops or stalls may also be seen in the street, in -vt'hich
daily necessaries are sold, and articles of food, clothing and
furniture. Most of these things are of course made in
Tibet, though some are imports from Calcutta and Bombay
as also from China. But the thing that attracted my eye
most was a box of Japanese matches. Japanese matches,
manufactured by Doi of Osaka, are imported into the capi-
tal of Tibet, besides some other kinds without the names
of the manufacturers on them. There were to be seen^
among others, those which have the trade mark of two
elephants and of one, as well as the wax candles with the
trade mark of an elephant coming out of a house. The
paper was red with a white picture on it. Some matches of
Swedish make were also imported, but they are now ousted
by the Japanese. Some Japanese bamboo blinds with
pictures of women may also be seen in Tibet. Some
hiUani porcelain is seen in the high circles, but rarely
in stores or shops. Japanese scroll pictures too are
often found hanging in the houses of rich families.
These inanimate Japanese articles are more daring than
the people who made them !
Wishing that these articles, an outcome of Japanese
civilisation, might be conducive to light in dark Tibet,
I walked along the street, till I came to a shop where I saw
a cake of soap. It looked as good aS sny that
340 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
could be found in the Tibetan capital. I walked into
tbe shop and asked how much it cost, and I
noticed the master staring at me. He looked very much
like a merchant with whom I became acquainted in Darjeel-
ing but I could not believe that he could be settled there,
and wondered if he were a kinsman of that merchant. No,
it was, as I found afterwards, the man himself, whose
name was Tsa Rong-ba. But I had then so different an
appearance myself that he too could not easily recognise
me. For while in Darjeeliag I had usually dressed my-
self in JajDanese dress and scarcely went out in a Tibetan
costume, though I often put it on indoors. After my arrival
in Tibet, I clothed myself entirely as a Tibetan. More-
over I now had my beard growing long, which I had not
at Darjeeling. The man told me that the soap was too
dear, and showed uie another cheap and good kind, but I
liked the dearer one better and bought two cakes of it.
When I came home and showed them to the Minister of
Finance, he was so pleased with them for their good smell
that he asked me to let him have one cake, so I gave
him both.
A couple of days afterwards I again went to Tsa
Rong-ba's to buy a few cakes of the same soap, a;S J feared
it might soon be out of stock. Instead of selling me the
soap, the master stared me in the face. When I tried to
pay the. price, he began asking me if I knew him. The
sound of his voice plainly told me his identity and I
laughed as I replied that I knew him. He looked much
surprised and told me to come into his house. Telling his
servants to close the doors of the shop, for it was now
getting dark, he led me into his house, which was small in
size but neat and clean. I was led into his parlor upstairs,
and found his wife who came with him from Darjeeling.
I recognised her at once, but she seemed to have quite
forgotten me. Even when her husband said she must
JAPAN IN LHASA.
341
UNEXPECTED MEETING OF FRIENDS,
342 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
know me, as she had received much kind treatment
from me, she could not recollect me, until he told her how
she had received medicine from me when ill at Darjeel-
ing. She then expressed her joy at seeing me in such a
strange place and so unexpectedly.
Then the husband and wife expressed their great
wonder that I, a stranger, had succeeded in entering
Tibet, when it was exceedingly difficult for even a Tibetan
to come or go to the capital. They did not
believe me when I ■• told them that I had come by
the way of Jangthang; for they said there were soldiers
placed on guard all along the road. I said I had come
through pathless wilds, but they refused to believe me. But
now I thought myself to be within a hair's breadth of the
danger of detection, which would bring everj'thing in my
plan to naught. Were I known to be a Japanese, some
evil or other would certainly befall me, and all the kind-
ness of- the Ministers and the priests at Sera to me would
end in air-bubbles. I feared this merchant might betray
me to the G-overnment for his own benefit. I must
get the better of him, I thought, and I tried to do so.
Assuming a serious attitude, speaking in a determined
tone of voice, and looking the man and the woman straight
in their eyes, I said : " Here is a fine job for you ; you can
give me up to the authorities; tell them that I am a
' Japan Lama ' in disguise, who smuggled himself into the
country against its laws. By so doing you may
serve a double purpose, for I have been thinking
that sooner or later I shall have to do the same
thing myself, only I was afraid that they might not believe
me. But if you do it for me you will save me the
trouble, while the authorities will believe ; besides, you may
come into a nice bit of fortune ; for they will reward you
for your information with a large sum of money. I have
long made up my mind."
JAPAN IN LHASA. 343
I Tipticed a change come pver the looks of the woman first :
she turned pale and even began to tremble ; but the man
spoke first, and, in a tone of both appeal and reproach,
earnestly protested that he had no such intention as that of
which I seemed to suspect him. Indeed he went the length
— quite voluntarily — -of swearing by "Cho-o Rinpoche "
that he would never betray me, lest he should die. Still I
urged them both. He once more gave his pledge, in
which the woman joined in the most fear-stricken
manner, both raising their hands, with which they pointed
in the direction of the ' Buddha temple ' of Lhasa. I knew
what the latter act with the words of the oath meant. I
became convinced of their sincerity, and saw that I was
safe in their hands. For Cho-o Rinpoche means "Holiness
of the Savior " and forms in Tibet the most solemn words
of swearing which, when uttered in the manner described,
furnish the strongest possible proof of sincerity. It is
true that Tibetans are much given to swearing, and
possess a great variety of expressions for the purpose, there
being forty-five of them to my own knowledge. Those
most commonly in use are " Konjogsum" (Holy three
treasures) and " Ama tang te ! " (separate me from my
mother) . The natives are in the habit of using these oaths
as words of interjection. But when, in all seriousness,
they subject themselves to the form observed by my host
and his wife, they may safely be depended upon for their
absolute sincerity. As it was, I pressed them no further,
and they seemed to be well pleased at the final dispelling
of all my suspicion against them.
Before I took leave of them they asked me about my
lodging, and finding out I was the '"' Serai amchi," the
doctor of Sera, they were most astonished and pleased —
pleased to know that they had as acquaintance a man of so
great renown as I was then in Lhasa. From that time
onward I was a frequent visitor and trusted friend at Tsa
344 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
Rong-ba's, with always something to give the good couple^
as was the case with me at Gyami menkhang's, the Chinese
druggist.
CHAPTER LIII.
Scholastic Aspirants.
First, to speak of the nationalities of the aspirants ; the
students in the three great colleges are not solely natives
of Tibet ; they comprise Mongols proper, and also Khams,
who belong to a somewhat different race. In fact it is
customary to place Mongols first in point of numbers,
then Tibetans, and last of all Khams. These three groups
of students are as distinct in their characteristics as they
are in their nationalities. Tibetans, gei\erally speaking,
are a very quiet, courteous, and intelligent set of students,
but are not at all inclined to be diligent — indeed they are as
a rule as lazy as they can be. The fact that they are
very dirty in their habits seems to come from this their
national weakness of being extremely and eternally idle.
During winter days, for instance, a Tibetan bonze who
possesses the ordinary means of living will simply do no
work, beyond attending to the routine of chanting the
sacred text in the service-hall, and making trips to the
monastery kitchen for his ration of tea. When the weather
is fine he spends all his leisure hours basking in the
warm sun and squatting naked in front of his cell.
Nothing can be more significant of his instinctive
indolence than the sight of him as he sits dozing there
the whole day long, putting on his head to dry a
waste scrap of some woollen stuff, with which he oc-
casionally blows his nose. Such behavior, excusable
only in an old or decrepit person, is nothing unusual in
many of the young Tibetan priests. How lazy and slug-
gish the average Tibetans ai'e, it is almost beyond the power
of Westerners to imagine,
44 i^'
346 THREE YEARS IN .TIBET.
Not SO witli the Mongols : one never sees them
enjoying themselves in sucli an indolent fashion. They
stud}' very liard and alwaj's take a very active part in
the catechetical exercises, principally because they
are alive to the purpose for which they have come so far
from their liome and country. Fovir hundred out of the
five hundred Mongols are generally fine students ; while
the ratio has to be inverted in the case of Tibetans, four
hundred and fifty out of five hundred of whom are but
trash. In consequence of this, the bulk of the " students
militant" or warrior-priests of whom I have already spoken
are Tibetans, Khams and Mongols being seldom found
among them. Mongols are studious and progressive, but
one common fauJt with them is that they are very quick-
tempered, so that the slightest thing causes them to flare
up in tremendous rage. Being always conscious of the
fact that they are the mo.st assiduous of the students, and
that the largest number of the winners of the doctor's
degree always come from amongst them, they are very
proud and uppish. This Mongoliaji pride makes most
Mongols, even those that try to be calm and well-
balanced, to be pitied for their narrow-mindedness and
petulance, in spite of all their other numerous good
qualities. A Mongol has it in him to become a great
leader like Genghis Khan ; but the career of that great
conqueror was but a meteoric burst of short-lived splendor,
and, like him, the Mongols as a nation seem to be incapa-
ble of consolidating their national greatness on anything
like a permanent basis, or of carrying out. any schemes
calculated to secure the permanent progress and improve-
ment of their country.
The Khams, on the other hand, are infinitely superior
in this respect both to the Mongols and the Tibetans, and
this in spite of the fact that their country is generally
supposed to be no better than a den of thieves and
SCHOLASTIC ASPIEAKTS. 347
robbers. A Kham is excitable, but he does not lose his
temper like a Mongol ; indeed, he can be admirably patient
and persevering when he wills. In point of physique,
too, he is far ahead as a rule of both the others. The
Khams are chivalrous men, blunt and outspoken, and
averse to flattery. My observations among the students
of Sera lead me to infer that more open-hearted, unaffected
students are to be found among the Khams than among
any other of the nationalities represented there. Mongols
will occasionally demean themselves Ijy fawning upon
others in order lo gain some object dear to their hearts,
but the worst sinners in this respect are the Tibetans — so
much so that the Khams, unless they are thoroaghlj'
Tibetanised Khams, are unwilling to enter into friend-
ship with them. It is said to the honor of the Khams
that even their robbers are honorable and will often
give a helping hand to the poor and weak, and rescue
those who stand in imminent peril. The Kham women
and children, as a rule, share in the apathetic appearance
of the men. They are often very unbecomingly dressed
and have none of the attractiveness of the Tibetan women,
who, like their husbands, fathers, and brothers, are gener-
ally well-spoken and affable in outward demeanor, however
full of thorns and brambles their innermost hearts may be.
I have been able to give here only a brief and cursory
notice of some of the characteristic features of the princi-
pal tribes that inhabit these unfrequented regiops of Cen-
tral Asia, with a few of the most essential of the points of
difference between them. I might carry my subdivision
much further, and speak of the Khams as Maukhams,
Bas, Tsarongs, etc., but that would involve a very long
and not very profitable discourse, and I therefore pass
on to topics of greater interest.
To interpret correctly the aspirations of Tibetan Lamas,
their ideals, or the final goal which they strive to
348 TI^REE YEARS IN TIBET.
attain, it iimj safely be said that tlieir main purpose
in entering tlie priesthood is only to procure the
largest possible amount of fortune, as well as the
highest possible fame in that entirely secluded world
of theirs. To seek religious truth and to practise religious
austerities with a view to acquiring knowledge and
character sufficient to carry out the noble work of deliver-
ing men and leading them to salvation, is not at all what
they wish to do. If they study, they do so as a means of
gaining repu.tation, of extending their influence, and
mainly of accumulating wealth. Thej- simjjlv desire to
escape from the painful struggle of life in the world of
competition, and to enjoy lazy and comfortable days on
earth as well as in heaven. Nine hundred and ninety-nine
out of a thousand seem to have no conception of the
problems of the future life, and there is nothing deep in
their religious life. " It is more blessed to receive than to
give " is their motto, and hence the monastic life,
stady and service, in its fullest sense, goes in their
eyes for nothing. The reason why these priests an.l
scholars, who oughtr to be the noblest and most un-
selfish of all men, have been brought to this state
of apostasy, seems to be this.
In 'I''ibet, the social estimation of priest and scholars is
made, not according to their learning or virtue, nor yet ac-
cording to the amount of good they have done for their
fellow-men, but entirely according to the amount of property
which they possess. Thus, a priest who owns an estate of a
thousand dollars, however mean and ignorant he may be,
is much more influential and far more highly esteemed in
society than a learned and virtuous priest who lives on a
small income. They believe in the almighty dollar, and
twist S. Paul's saying : "Though I have the gift of prophecy,
and understand all mysteries and all knowledge ; and
though I have all faith, so that I can remove mountains, and
SCHOLASTIC ASPIRANTS. 349
have not" monej^, "I am nothing." They are earnest there-
fore in making' money, in whatever way they find profitable.
Someof them, as I havesaid,.are engaged in trade or indust-
rial enterprises, and others in agriculture or stock-farming.
Besides, it is their custom to appropriate to themselves
the remuneration which they receive when they visit
laymen's houses for the purpose of chanting the Sacred
Text for them, in accordance with their priestly duty.
It is pitiful to contemplate the condition of the students
who, without scholarship or support, are preparing in
the colleges for their degrees. They live hard struggling
lives of study in the midst of want, and yet the only
stimulus that encourages them is the expectation that they
will be able to enjoy the comfortable life of high priests,
when they have got through the prescribed course of study
and have achieved the Doctorate. They do really suffer,
but their sufferings are not, so far as I know, those of the
man of self-denial who strives hard and struggles against
difficulties for the noble ambition of winning souls to
salvation, or for some humanitarian purpose ; they are ex-
ceedingly patient in suffering, simjjly with the hope of
reaping ease and comfort in the latter part of their lives.
After a hard monastic life of some twenty years when
they have completed the whole course of study, these
poor students will have the honor of getting the
Doctor's degree, a title implying the highest learning, but
in undue proportion costly ; for besides spending nearly
half their lives in toils and struggles to get it, they have to
give a grand feast to all their schoolmasters to celebrate
their graduation. It is true, the feast consists only of meat
gruel, a sort of porridge of meat mixed with rice, but
the quantity given is enormous, as there are many capa-
cious stomachs to be filled.
To give a feast of this sort requires some five hundred
yen at the very least, each bowlful costing over
350 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
twenty-five sen. Of course, the poverty-stricken priests
cannot possibly provide the money themselves, but fortu-
nately the diploma has its use this time ; their credit has so
much improved that the wealthy priests who turned up
their noses at needy students are very willing now to
supply them with the necessary money, simply because
they have the degree and chance to pay interest. By
the means of this convenient credit transaction they can
procure the means of giving the necessary banquet and
the wealthy priests get not only credit for their generosity,
but also interest for their money. But nothing is more
disappointing than the future life of those poor priests, who
will probably never succeed in paying oif the burden of
debt, or, if exceptionally fortunate, they may succeed in
doing so only after long and hard struggles. It is a sad
thing to contemplate, but such is the hard lot of most
Tibetan priests,
CHAPTER LIV.
Tibetan Weddings and Wedded Life.
As I was lodging at the house of the Minister of
Finance, I had the good fortune to become acquainted with
and occasionally to call on the other Ministers of State,
among whom was one of the Prime-Ministers, of the name of
Sho Khangwa. (In Tibet, there are four Prime-Ministers
and three Ministers of Finance; the senior Minister, in either
case, taking the actual business and standing responsible
for the conduct of aifairs, while the others hold onlj-
nominal portfolios, assisting in the work of the Depart-
ment as vice-Ministers. Sho Khangwa was the second
Prime-Minister) . During my stay in Lhasa, his daughter
married the son of a noble called the Prince of Yutok. I
was invited to the wedding, a ceremony most solemnly
performed, which I attended with curiosity and interest.
Before proceeding to relate what I saw on that occasion,
I may make a few observations on Tibetan marriages in
general. No general statement can be made however
with regard to marriage-customs, as they vary vastly
according to the different localities. There are several
books containing descriptions of Tibetan marriages, but
these are from the pens of European travellers, who may
perhaps have been in Chinese Tibet, or on the northern
frontier of Tibet proper, but were surely not permitted to
visit Lhasa. So although their descriptions may be correct,
so far as they go, yet no detailed account of a marriage in
Lhasa is, so far as I know, to be found in any of these
books. It is next to impossible for a passing visitor, especi-
ally in such a country as Tibet, where marriage-customs
and manners differ so much with the widely separated
tribes, to give any really trustworthy descriptions ; still,
352 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
as circumstances have given me special opportunities of
observing minutely the people's life, social and domestic,
in Lhasa, and even of attending several wedding cere-
monies of the natives, it is not only proper, but may also
possibly be of some value, to relate my observations and
experiences during my stay in the city.
It is generally known that a peculiar system of
marriage prevails in Tibet — a plurality not of wives
\ but of husbands. The cases of polyandry are ; first,
when several brothers take the same woman as their
wife at the same time ; second, when two or more men
not brothers, marry the same woman by mutual agree-
ment ; and thirdly, when a woman, already married
to one man, gains influence over her husband, and, with
his consent, marries another in addition. In case the
mother of a family dies, either the father or the son takes
a new spouse, who becomes at the same time the wife of
the other male members of the family without infringing
the law of the country. They are quite insensible to the
shame of this dissolute condition of matrimonial relations,
which can scarcely be even imagined by people with a
civilised moral sense ; and yet there do exist some res-
trictions : liiarriage of brothers with sisters, or between
cousins, is not only censured by the public as immoral,
but also prohibited by the law as criminal.
The wife's authority over her husbands is something
surprising. All the money which the husbands have earned
has to be handed over to their wife, and if one of the
hu.sbands is found less clever or less successful in making-
money than the others, she will give him a severe scolding.
When a husband needs money, he has to beg his wife to
give him so much for such and such a purpose, just as a
child does to its mother. If she happens to find any of
her husbands keeping back his earnings, she will break
out in anger, and give him slaps instead of caresses, In
TIBETAN WEDDINGS AND WEDDED LIFE. 353
shortj a wife generally exercises a commanding authority
over her husbands.
She will order them to go out shopping and to do this
or thatj and husbands are quite obedient to the wife, too,
and quite ready to do everything that is required, or that
they find suitable to soothe her. When two or more men
have anj'thing to agree upon among them, they do not
decide for tbemselves, but run home and ask their wife's
opinion before coming to a final decision, and, if she has
110 objection, they will meet again and settle the matter.
Though polj^andry is the prevailing system of marriage in
Tibet, there are a few exceptional cases of monogamistic
couples, generally in cases where the husband is in a com-
paratively influential position.
•Another peculiarity in connexion with marriage is that
an agreement, to the effect that either husband or wife
may divorce the other whenever he or she has become
averse to continuing as the other's partner, is ac-
knowledged as a legitimate condition of a matrimonial
contract.
I come now to a description of the marriage cere-
mony as observed in Lhasa. The Tibetans, whether men
or women, marry generally between the twentieth and
twenty-fifth years of age.
Although there are some exceptions (especially in the
case of couples married late in life, where the husband's
age much exceeds that of his wife) usually both bride and
groom are of about equal age. If a woman who has five
brothers as her husbands gives birth to a child, the eldest
of the brothers is called the father of the child and the
rest the uncles. One European writer says that in Tibet
the eldest of the brothers, who have the same woman as
their wife, is called the great father of her children, and
the younger brothers their small fathers ; but this I have
not been able to verify.
45
-364 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
There is almost no such tbing, so far as my experience of
the Tibetans has gone, as a woman choosing her own
husbands. The choice of husbands and all decision
connected therewith are made by the parents only,
and the daughter herself wlio is going to be married is
never permitted to make any choice of her partner, nor
even to take any part in the consultation regarding her
own marriage. Slie is compelled to marry whomsoever her
parents decide upon iov her husband. Not only so; but
parents never tell their daughter at all that a propos3,l has
been made, or that they are going to give hei" in marriage,
'until the very day of the wedding. These compulsory
marriages, therefore, frequently end in divorce. However,
in the remote country or even m the city, sometimes a girl
selects her partner and obtains permission from her parents
to marry the man of her choice. Such cases, however
Jire very exceptional.
It is the universal usage throughout the country for the
parents of a young man of marriageable age to make
enquiries for a suitable bride among families equal in
lineage, fortune and rank with their own. When such
a girl is found, they at once communicate through a
middleman with the girl's parents, asking whether
she may be given as wife to their sons. If the
finswer is a simple negative, the middleman understands
that the case is an entirely hopeless one ; but if they say;
" We will see about it " oi- something to that effect, he
will call on them several times and talk of all the
good qualities of the young man, his parents and every-
thing about him. Then the girl's parents, after giving a
conditional consent to the proposal, go to a fortune-teller
or a high priest to ask his judgment and advice in this im-
portant matter, or they will go to a sorcerer who is believed
to be able to give information about the future, and then
only will they give a definite answer to the middleman.
TIBETAN WEDDINGS AND WEDDED LIFE. o-)')
The parents on each side keej) the whole thing a
secret from their son or daughter, even after the betrothal
has been decided upon. Thus both bride and groom go to
the very day of their wedding, without knowing anything
of their own marriage — neither the preliminary consulta-
tions nor the name of the bride or groom ; they are brought
face to face for the first time on the wedding day. There
is no custom of exchanging presents between bride and
bridegroom, or of the bride's bringing a dowry to her
husband as in Japan, and no consaltation or arrangement
is made, or anything like a marriage-contract regarding the
property of the parties concerned ; only the bride's parents,
to keep up the honor of the family, have to furnish their
daughter with all things needed for her marriage, suitable
to their* social standing; else they would be disgraced
in the public eye. On the groom's side also his
parents send a present of some money to the bride's
mother as 'breast money' or nurse expense, remunera-
tion for her marriage and care in bringing up the
girl. Then, again, the parents on both sides go and
enquire of a fortune-teller or sorcerer, before fixing upon
the day of the wedding or of beginning to make the neces-
sary preparations.
On the morning of the wedding, the girl's parents, who
have already been informed of the time when the middle-
man is to come from the groom's house, casually tell the
girl that the weather being very fine they intend going to
the Temple, and that she had better go with them, and that
as they are going to have a " lingka feast " she had better
have her hair done, or words to that effect. The girl is
generally much delighted at hearing this, and starts at once
to dress herself quite unconscious of the stratagem.
But sometimes a clever girl sees through the artifice and
breaks into tears of sorrow at her unexpected de])arture
from her old home.
S56
THESE YEAES in TIBET.
GIRL WEEPING AT BEING SUDDENLY COMMANDED TO MARRY.
TIBETAN WEDDINGS AND WEDDED LIFE. 357
A girl who is unaware of this artifice will wash and
scrub her face and body as her parents bid her, and make
herself as smart as they please. It is to be noted that, as a
general custom in Tibet, ordinary people never wash their
faces or bodies at all, though the nobles do so every morn-
ing just after leaving their beds. The manner in which they
wash their faces is almost more like a joke. When a
nobleman gets up in the morning, a maid or attendant will
bring him a ladlef ul of warm water which he first takes in
the palms of his hands and then puts into his mouth.
After holding it in there for a while he .spits it back into his
palms little by little and then washes his face with it.
When the water in the mouth is all gone, he will spit
several times on to his palms and again rub his
face. It is true that basins are used by some Tibetans :
the above is however the normal way.
To return, the girl, knowing nothing about the trick in
store for her and expecting to go out for amusement,
is cheerful and gay, busily engaged in her toilet, and
adorning her hair with her old comb and pins, when her
parents come to her with a new comb, pins and other
toilet articles (all of which have been secretly presented by
the groom's parents through the middleman) and say to
her : " Your pins and comb are too old, my dear, we have
some new ones for you; here they are; and a good
bottle of. hair-oil too. You must dress yourself up as
nicely as possible," and so on. Then when at last the toilet
is complete, the parents tell her for the first time that an
engagement has already been made with so and so, whom
she has to marry that day. This is the general custom
not only in Lhasa, but also in Shigatze and other towns.
But, as I have already said, a sagacious girl who can
see through her parents' artifices is not generally willing
to dress herself up for the occasion, but will be found
weeping a,t her unforeseen calamities and sets herself to
358 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
complaining in this strain " Oh ! dear me ! I don't want to
leave my home. It is not fair of father and mother
to marry me off to a person whom I shall probably not like.
How can I get out of it ?" And then she becomes
very depressed, and devotes absolutely no attention to her
hair-dressing. In this case, however, the girl's friends,
who are there to help in the preparations for her
wedding, try to cheer her up and encourage her to obey
her parents, and even help her to adorn and dress
herself.
After all these preparations are over, the bride's parents
have to give a series of farewell banquets for their
daughter, which will last two weeks, or even more
sometimes, if their family is rich or high in social rank,
but two or three days only in the case of the poor. During
these festivities, the relatives and acquaintances of her
parents visit the family with presents of monej^, food, or
clothes, to congratulate them on their daughter's happy
wedding, the value of the presents differing according
to the visitor's wealth as well as their intimacy with the
family. These visitors are cordially entertained with
Tibetan tea and cold spirits, which they drink to excess,
visitors and host alike enjoying the good things provided,
and having a regular good time or what they call a
chachang pemma, the happiest state in the world-
While drinking, they eat nothing at all ; but at the
afternoon meal they take some meat and wheat-cakes.
The meat they eat is generally the flesh of the yak,
or that of goats or sheep ; pork is sometimes used in Lhasa,
but beef is very rare throughout the country, and is
especially rare in the case of wedding feasts. Their cook-
ing and bill of fare are very simple : three dishes of meat,
raw, dried and boiled (roast meat is never seen at a
wedding) . The boiled meat is cooked in oil and salt, or
sometimes in salt and water and is brought in first,
TIBETAN WEDDINGS AND WEDDED LIFE. 359
together with tsu, a concoction of cheese, butter and
sugar. When these are all gone, a big dish of boiled rice
mixed with butter, sugar, raisins and Chinese persimmons
is served. In the evening, again, the guests are enter-
tained to a dinner in which a sort of vermicelli,
made 6i wheat-Hour and eggs, or pure Chinese cookery
is set before the guests. In this manner they have
three or four meals a day ; and besides these, tea
and intoxicants are constantly served during the intervals
between the meals. While eating and drinking the
guests are regaled with pleasant talk, and when the
feasts begin to flag they revive the fun by singing and
dancing. It is very interesting to see men and women
like the moving beads of a rosary, dancing and jumping
promiscuously round and round the circles. They dance in a
regular and systematic manner, each keeping step with
the music as carefully as if he were a soldier at drill,
and yet the regularity and solemnity of the dance does
not in least interfere with the keenness and zest of their
enjoyment. The instrument used in their dance music
is called damnyan, and is often used in accompanying sing-
ing as well as dancing.
Towards the close of the festive time (I may observe
that it is only the poorest folk that dispense with the pre-
nuptial feasts), usually on the eve of the wedding, the
parents of the bridegroom send their representative and
the middleman, with a number of attendants, to the bride's
home to receive the bride. They bring with them a
present of some money as nnrin or 'breast money' for
the bride's parents, who are obliged to seem a little back-
ward about taking it, etiquette demanding that they should
require a good deal of coaxing before accepting such a
present. The nurin may vary in amount from a couple
of dollars to two hundred or even five hundred dollars.
Some parents (not many) refuse it absolutely, saying
360 THEBE YEARS IN TIBET.
that the girl being their beloved daughter, it is not their
expectation or their desire to receive any nurin, but that
they " only hope heartily that their daughter will be loved
by and enjoy a hapjjy life among the family to which
she is given in marriage. "
Then the middleman gives the bride the dress, belt,
Chinese shoes and all other articles necessary for a
bride during the wedding ceremony, these too being
presented by the groom's parents, and these the bride
cannot refuse ; she must wear them even though they
do not suit her. In addition to these gifts the bride
generally receives a precious gem, such as is usually
worn by a woman of Lhasa on the middle of her
forehead. This gem is said to be a sign of a woman's
being married, though in Lhasa there seems to exist no
strict discrimination in the matter, for unmarried women
in that city often wear it as a mere ornament. In Shigatze
and the neighboring provinces, however, the use of the
gem is strictly restricted, as a matter of fact, exclusively
to married women, who wear it high up at the back of
the head, so that they can be easily distinguished from
single females. In the case of a divorce, a husband has
simply to pluck off the gem from his wife's head without
the trouble of going to court, or asking the authorities to
alter the census. This single act on the part of the
husband properly and perfectly certifies and legalises the
divorce.
Besides the things necessary for a bride to wear during
the ceremony which the bridegroom's parents have to
provide, many valuable ornaments, a fringe, neck-rings, ear-
rings, finger-rings, ornamented armlets and breast-jewels,
are given by the bride's own parents, for what the
groom's parents send the bride-elect is confined to the
dress, belt, under-wear and shoes, to be worn on the
occasion of the wedding ceremony.
TIBETAN WEDDINGS AND WEDDED LIFE. 361
Then, those who come to receive the bride stay at the
bride's house that night, and eujojr a few pleasant hours
drinking with the family.
An interesting feature of this drinking- feast is that the
middleman and the representatives of the bridegroom's
family have to be very careful not to drink too much that
night, because it is the custom for the friends and relatives
of the bi-ide's family to try to steal something from them
if the drink should happen to make them drowsy. If they
succeed, they show what they have stolen before all the
guests assembled the next morning, and boast of the
success of their trick, and their victims have to pay them
some twenty tanka of Tibetan silver, or two dollars and a
half in Amei-ican gold, as a penalty for their carelessness.
So the middleman and the others do all they can not to be
tempted to drink, while the bride's friends and relatives
ply their guests with liquor and will take no refusal. The
reader can imagine the noise and uproar that sometimes
ensue. But in urging their guests to drink, the friends of
the bride must strictly obserAe the old ancestral customs,
or else the middleman and the representatives of the
groom's family will ridicule them for their ignoi'ance, and
thus everlasting shame will come upon the bride's family.
The others, in their turn, have to arm themselves with suit-
able reasons for abstinence. They have to say that chang
is the worst of all sorts of poison, that it is a maker of
quarrels or a robber of wisdom. The refusal to drink
must always be clothed in some proverbial expression of
this kind, according .to the old time-honored customs,
and the ordinary Tibetan would be very much disappointed
and almost feel that he had not been to a proper wedding,
if it was not accompanied with their friendly wranglings
over the cups.
46
CHAPTER LV.
Wedding Ceremonies.
Early in the morning of the nuptial day the father and
mother give a farewell banquet in the house of the bride.
At the same time the priests of the Old School, generally
known as the ' Scarlet-Hoods ' or Eed-Caps, are asked by
the family to hold a festal service in honor of the village
and family Gods. The object of the festival is to
inform the Gods of the daughter's bsing engaged and to
take leave of them, and further to pray the Gods not to do
any injury to their family because of their daughter's
leaving them for ever, as in return they promise to make
offerings to them and recite the Sacred Text for their pleas-
ure. Such ceremonies in general are held at the temple
to which the ' Scarlet-Hoods ' belong. Simultaneously with
the above another festival is held in the house of the bride
by the priest of the Bon religion (pronounced Pon, but
written Bon), the old religion of Tibet, to propitiate the
God Lu-i Gyalpo, or King-Dragon, who according to the
Tibetan mythology is the protector of the fortunes of
each individual family. It is a constant fear with
Tibetans that if it should ever happen that a man
should provoke this God's anger by any means whatever,
the consequence will be the entire destruction of his for-
tune. Therefore lest the God should leave the family
and follow the daughter to whom he is affectionately
attached, and thus abandon the family to utter poverty,
no efforts whatsoever are spared by the family to keep
him away from the daughter. The passages from the Bon
scripture which are read on the occasion of the ceremony
are very interesting. In most of the case.s the sentences
are the same, and, in the main, are to the effect that the
WEDDING CEEEMONIES. 363
family to which the daughter has been engaged is not en-
joying such happiness as the maiden's own family enjoys ;
and again that it is not dignified for the King-Drao-on to
go to another house in pursuit of a girl : it is advisable
for the God to stay with the present family and look after
its interests, as before ; for boundless will be the happiness
that he shall enjoy in case he stays with the present
family as hitherto. After all, this is not a matter of mere
traditional formality, for among the people of Tibet the
superstition is common that if the King-Uragon should
leave a family for ever to follow a daughter on her marriage,
the family will be reduced to utter poverty ; hence these
customs are universally observed by the people.
The banquet over, there enters the preacher who is to
exhort the bride. He stands in front of the bride, and
instructs her by means of a collection of maxims which he
has well committed to memory previous to the ceremony.
The preacher is a kind personage, selected from people
who are accomplished in such things. In almost all
cases the words of exhortation are about the same, and
they are composed of very easy expressions, so that any-
body can understand them. The sentences say that when
the bride goes to the house of her husband, she must
behave with uniform kindness ; that, as it is the duty of a
woman to be obedient to her superiors, once she goes to her
husband's she must not only be obedient to her parents-in-
law, but must also wait upon her husband and his brothers
and sisters with equal kindness, and more especially must
she love her husband's younger brothers and sisters with
the same kindness that she has for her true brothers or
sisters ; she must treat her servants as if they were her
own children, and the like. Here and there in the
intervals of the exhortations is inserted a story, which is
told by the preacher with such skil-1 that the bride is
generally deeply impressed. When the exhortation is
364 THItEE YEARS IN TIHET.
over, tlie father and mother of the bride sit before her, and
with tears repeat exhortations similar to those previoilsly
recited by the regular preacher. Then also come the
relatives and friends of the bride, who, bursting into tears,
and taking the bride by the hand, make their exhortations
most tenderly and in a most caressing manner. After
these ceremonies, the bride has at last to leave her old
home. There is no fixed standard as to the property which
a bride takes with her to her husband's on the occasion of
her marriage. 8ome are rich enough to take a piece of
land as a dowry, but some can afford only to take a few
clothes.
When she leaves her house, the bride weeps bitterly,
and all efforts to get her on horseback are in vain ; she
prostrates herself on the ground and lies there obstinately
helpless. Her features become those of one whose heart is
too heavy to part with her parents and her home. In
such a case, the bride is lifted up and placed by friends on
horseback. She does not ride in the same manner as
western-s^ do, but astride, after the Japanese ■ fashion.
Women in Tibet are very good riders ; thej' do not ride
with long stirrups, but with legs bent back, as if they
were astride on a verj' low bench, and use an extremely
short stirrup leather. There is no difference between men
and women in the manner of riding. While in Tibet I used
to ride in the same manner, and during the first part of my
experiences I had a hard time of it, more especially in the
case of a long ride, after which I often felt much pain
about my legs.
Now the bride, thus placed on horseback, makes her
way to the house of the bridegroom. She is dressed in
the wedding garment which has been presented to her by
the bridegroom, and also wears the ornaments for head
and arms which have been presented to her by her own
parents, and her head and face are covered with rin-
WEDDING CEREMONIES. 365
chen na-nga, the precious cloths woven from sheep's wool, in
stripes of yellow, green, red, white and black. On account
of the cloth, no glimpse of her face can be caught. The
back of her neck is also covered with a small banner,
called the 'banner of good omen'. This 'banner of good
omen ' is made of a fine silk stuff dj^ed in five different
colors, and is some fourteen inches or so in length ; it is
inscribed with good wishes for her future.
The people who have come to see the bride off and
those who have come to receive her all go oil horseback,
and on their way to the bridegroom's house six banquets
altogether are given by the relatives of the bride and of
the bridegroom. Those who have coine to see the bride
off give three banquets at three different points on
the road, and those who have come to welcome her
give three similar banquets. Sometimes the banquets
are given at places two miles apart, and sometimes three,
as the case may be, and after the sixth banquet has duly
taken place, the gate of the bridegroom's house is at last
reached by the wedding procession. In these banquets,
however nobody drinks anything to excess, because every
one is impressed with the fact that lie has been entrusted
with the very important duty of taking the bride in safety
to the house of the bridegroom, and so the others, recognis-
ing the situation, never press any one to drink to excess.
As a rule, it is customary in Tibet to press one's guests
to eat the dainties which have been set before them, while
for the guests it is considered very impolite to taste such
dainties immediately ; to do so without a great deal of
pressure is to be as vulgar as a Chinaman. The banquets
are given by the friends of the bride and bridegroom
at the houses of their friends or at their own, but on
the whole it is more usual to have tents erected at
convenient places in fields on the way to the bridegroom's
house, and to entertain the wedding procession there.
366
THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
AT THE BRIDEGROOM'S GATE.
■WEDDING CEREMONIES.
367
<S-
A
THROWING AN IMITATION SWORD AT THE BRIDE.
368 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
Thus the gate of the bridegroom's house is reached.
It would not occur to anybody that there should be any
question as to whether the bride could at once be admitted
to the house of the bridegroom or n8t, as those who had come
to receive the bride on the way were the relatives of the
bi-idegroom. However, the fact is quite the reverse. This
is where the Tibetan custom appear so strange in the eyes of
a foreigner. When the bride reaches the gate, she finds it
locked, bolted, and barred against her ingress. In the
crowd gathered in front of the gate of the bridegroom's
house, there is a man whose duty it is to drive away the
evil spirits, or epidemic diseases, which, it is believed by
the people, may have followed the bride on her way to the
bridegroom's. Hidden under his right hand, the man has
a sword which is called the Torma, or the sword of the
secret charm, with which he tears such evil spirits or
epidemic diseases to pieces. The sword is made of a
mixture of baked flour, butter and water, fried hard and
colored with the red juice of a plant. Its shape is long
and triangular, like a bayonet ; it looks like a sword, and
is said to have some secret charm, pronounced by a priest,
concealed in it. The spectators do not know which one
in the crowd has the sword, but some one must have it,
and as soon as the bride arrives the man, taking advantage
of any opportunity that may ofEer, throws it in the face of
the bride, and runs inside the gate, the door of which
opens to receive him as he discharges this duty. No sooner
has the man fled inside the gate, than the door is again
closed, and the bride is left standing outside, all covered
with the red fragments of the stuff that has been thrown
at her. One may wonder what can be the origin of such
a custom, and one is told that the bride, on taking leave of
her family, has lost the protection of the Gods of the
village and of the house in which she has been a resident,
and the people are afraid that, for want of the divine protec-
WEDDING CBKEMONIES. 369
tion, the bride must have met with a crowd of evil spirits, or
epidemic diseases, on her way to the bridegroom's house,
and that these might cause some injury to the new couple ;
hence the use of the Torma to conqiier such evil spirits, or
epidemic diseases.
Then one wants to know why the man fled inside the
gate, and caused the door to be closed after him, imme-
diately after throwing the sword in the face of the bride.
There is a jjeculiar sort of custom prevalent at weddings,
by which everj^ one caught by the bride's friends is bound
to pay them a penalty of twenty tanka, and therefore the
man flies inside the gate lest he should be caught by
the people who have come to see the bride off. By this
time the people inside the gate, who have been waiting
for the arrival of the wedding procession, demand that
the bride's party give shp'ppa (explanation) at the
gate, or else the bride cannot be admitted. The sheppa
consists of manj'' beautiful words and fine phrases, indi-
cating wishes for good luck and happiness. In response
to their demands, the man in the wedding procession
whose duty it is to say the 'explanation' has
to say : " We want to say sheppa, but for lack of
the kata we cannot do so." On hearing this the
man inside the gate shows a tiny piece of kata through a
chink in the gate and says : " Here is the kata," but no
sooner has he done so than he promptly pulls it back
again. One may wonder why the people should pull the
cloth in so quickly, and one is told that it is in considera-
tion of a peculiar custom, that the man must pay twenty
tanka as penalty to any of the bride's friends that can
catch hold of the cloth ; naturallj^ therefore, it is quickly
pulled away. On seeing the kata, the man in the wed-
ding procession whose duty it is to say sheppa solemnly
says as follows : " This is the gate which leads to the
store-house where many precious and valuable things are
47
370 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
kept ; the pillars are built of gold and the do^- of silver
and inside the gate there is a hall of worship which is
made of natural cloisonne ; there is also a palace, the
inmates of which are as virtuous and beautiful as angels
and Grods."
Words similar to these are said, and at the termination
of the sheppa the gate is open.
I must here not omit to say that on her way to the bride-
groom's, as she is riding past a certain village, the bride is
sometimes caught hold of and carried off by the people of
the village, on the pretext that her coming will cause some
injury to them, as it is believed by them also that the
bride has lost the protection of the Gods of her native
place, and that during her journey many evil spirits and
epidemic diseases must have taken hold of her, and that
these, on arriving at the village, will do great damage to
its farms and cause much injury to the inhabitants. So
the people of the village carry off the bride as a compens-
ation for such prospective damage, and in order to get a
safe passage through the village the attendants of the
bride mast pay ransom. I may say that this is a very rare
occurrence in a town, but in lonely parts of the country it
will sometimes take place. It must be understood that it
is generally in the case of a family which is not popular
with its neigbors that the bride receives such treatment.
Upon the gate being opened, the mother of the
bridegroom comes out with some sour milk and
chema in her hands. Chema is a mixture of baked
flour, butter, sugar and taro-root. Taro-root is a kind
of potato, produced in 'L'ibet, as large as a man's little
linger, and very nice to eat. Chema and sour milk are
used only when ther? is a celebration of some extraordinary
occasion. A little of this is distributed to each jjerson in
the procession, who receives it on his palm and eats it.
This ceremony over, tlie mother leads the party into her
WEDDING CEREMONIES. 371
house and gives a banquet in honor of the bride, when the
priest of the " Old School" is called upon to inform the Gods
of the village and of the house that an addi'ion has been
made to the members of the family b}' the arrival of the
bride, and that, therefore, the Gods are prayed to extend
their arms to the bride, and to be her protectors hence-
forward.
These prayers over, the father and mother of the bride-
groom give a piece of kata to the couple, and to all the
other people who have come to see the bride off or to
receive her. Such is the ceremony that makes the happy
couple husband and wife. Before the feasting has begun
to flag the newly married couple are removed to an ad-
jacent room. The people who have come either to see the
bride off or to receive her, stay in the house of the
bridegroom, and attend the banquets which are given
daily, and during this time the friends and relatives come
to join the banquet, every one bringing with him a reason-
able amount of presents. The feasting lasts for two or
three days at least, and for a month at most. Tibetans
are very fond of meat, and most of their food is more
fatty even than Chinese cookery. They give long banquets
richly furnished with such food, and the reader can well
imagine how foolishly idle are the people of Tibet in their
habits. The feasting over, the people who have come to
see the bride off, or to receive her, say good-bye to the
house, but still, for several days following, the friends and
servants of the bride remain in the house with the
bride, this being the custom. If the bride is from a
well-to-do family, she takes with her a servant from her
fathei''s house, and make her stay with her in the new
family to serve her as long as she lives. In this way the
wedding ceremonies come to an end. In one month
or one year after the marriage the bride, together
with the bridegroom, comes to her old home, and
372 THREE TEARS IN TIBET.
they stay there as long as she likes, sometimes foi-
one month and sometimes for three. When making
the first visit to her father's house, the bride takes with her
not more than two or three persons. Her husband stays
with her for several days, and then returns to his house,
but when the day comes on which the bride has promised
her husband to return to his house, the husband comes for
her and takes her home again.
In case the bridegroom has a brother, the bride must
marry him also in six or twelve months after marrying the
eldest brother. The wedding ceremony in such a case is
carried on privately at the house of the bridegroom, the
mother of the bridegroom acting as the middleman. In
this case the eldest brother, to whom the bride was first
married, takes himself off from the house on business, or
for pleasure, so as to let the bride and his younger brother
marry during his absence. - It makes no difference
if the bridegroom has three or more brothers; the
bride has to marry each one of them separately, and in the
same manner. Sometimes the bride and her brothers-in-
law live together at their pleasure, without having any
formal ceremonies to celebrate their weddings.
Such is the polyandry practised by the people of Tibet,
and called the sa-simii. In a family where the bride
has more than one bridegroom, it is very seldom that we
find the brothers living together. If one of the brothers
is at home the other absents himself, either on business, if
he is a merchant, or on official duties. In this way all possi-
ble means are taken to keep only one of the brothers
at home, each in his turn.
Polyandry flourishes in Tibet even at the present time,
and it is considered by the general public to be the right
thing to follow and, in consequence, if ever a merchant
(having been out of tlie country and seen much of the
putside world and observed how shameful his habits
WEDDING CEREMONIES. 373
at home have been) should protest against this sort of
wedlock, he is shunned by his fellow-men as a crank, and
his protest brushed away with " Luk-su-mindu," which
means "there is no such a custom (in Tibet)." This
peculiar and ridiculous wedlock, as well as this unreason-
able relationship between a husband and wife, has its
origin in the Bon religion, and in spite of the introduc-
tion of true Buddhism into Tibet the habit has come
down to the present time and remains flourishing.
The fact is that among the Buddhist believers there has
scarcely been any one who has ever given any thought
to social problems, and moreover, as the priests of ancient
times were generally recluses, who paid no attention what-
ever to the application of their religion to the needs of
the practical world, or to making the principles of true
Buddhism as distinct as possible, the natural outcome has
been that this shameful custom, altogether contradictory
to the principles of Buddhism, has remained in this part
of the world. The blame lies entirely with the priests ;
it must not be laid at the door of Buddhism.
CHAPTER LVI.
Tibetan Punishments.
One day early in October I left my residence in Lhasa and
strolled toward the Parkor. Parkor is the name of one of
the principal streets in that cityj as I have already mention-
ed, and is the place where criminals are exposed
to public disgrace. Pillory in Tibet takes various
forms, the criminal being exposed sometimes with
only handouffsj or fetters alone, and at others with
both. On that particular occasion I saw as many as twen-
ty ci'iminals undergoing punishment, some of them tied
to posts, while others were left fettered at one of the street
crossings. They were all well-dressed, and had their
necks fixed in a frame of thick wooden boards about
1^ inches thick, and three feet square. The frame had in
the centre a hole just large enough for the neck and was
composed of two wooden boards fastened together by
means of ridges, and a lock. From this frame was sus-
pended a piece of paper informing the public of the
nature of the crime committed by the exposed person, and
of the judgment passed upon him, sentencing him to the
pillory for a certain number of days and to exile or Hogging
afterwards. The flogging generally ranges from three
hundred to seven hundred lashes. As so many criminals
were pilloried on that particular occasion, I could not read
all the sentences, even though my curiosity was stronger
than the sense of pity that naturally rose in my bosom
when I beheld the miserable spectacle. I confess that I read
one or two of them, and found that the criminals were men
connected with the Tangye-ling monastery, the Lama
superior of which is qualified to succeed to the supreme
power of the pontificate in case, for one reason or
TIBETAN PUNISHMENTS. 375
another, the post of the Dalai Laina should happen to fall
vacant. The monastery is therefore one of the most in-
fluential institutions in the Tibetan Hierarchy and generally
contains a large number of inmates, both priests and lay-
men.
Shortly before my arrival in Lhasa this high post
was occupied by a distinguished jariest named Temo
Einpoche. His steward went under the name of Norpu
Che-ring, and this man was charged with the heinous
crjme of having secretly made an attempt on the life
of the Dalai Lama by invoking the aid of evil deities.
Norpu Che-ring's conjuration was conducted not ac-
cording to the Buddhist formula, but according to that
of the Bon religion. A piece of paper containing the
dangerous incantation was secreted in the soles of the
beautiful foot-gear worn by the Dalai Lama, which was then
presented to his Holiness. The incantation must have
possessed an extraordinary potency, for it was said that the
Grand Lama invariably fell ill one way or another ^vhenever
he put on these accursed objects. The cause of his illness
was at last traced to the foot-gear with its invocation paper
by the wise men in attendance on the Grand Lama.
This amazing revelation led to the wholesale arrest
of all the persons suspected of being privy to the crime,
the venerable Temo Rinpoche among the rest. Some people
even regarded the latter as the ring-leader in this plot and
denounced him as having conspired against the life of the
Grand Lama in order to create for himself a chance of
wielding the supreme authority. At any rate Temo Rinpo-
che occupied the pontifical seat as Regent before the present
Grand Lama was installed on his throne. Norpu Che-ring
was the Prime-Minister to the Regent, and conducted
the affairs of state in a high-handed manner. Things
were even worse than this, for it is a fact, admitting
of no dispute, that Norpu was oppressive, and mer-
376 THREE YBAES IN TIBET.
cilessly put to death a large number of innocent
persons. He was therefore a persona ingrata with at least
a section of the public, and some of his enemies lost no
time in giving a detailed denunciation of the despotic rule
of the Regent and his Prime-Minister as soon as the present
Grand Lama was safely enthroned. Naturally therefore
the former Regent and his Lieutenant were not regarded
with favor by the Grand Lama, and such being the case,
the terrible revelation about the shoes was at once followed
by their arrest, and they were thrown into prison.
All this had occurred before my arrival. When I came
to Lhasa Temo Rinpoche had been dead for some time^ but
Norpu Che-ring was still lingering in a stone dungeon which
was guarded with special severity, because of the grave
nature of his crime. The dungeon had only one narrow
hole in the top, through which food was doled out to
the prisoner, or he himself was dragged out whenever
he had to undergo his examinations, which were always
accompanied with torture. Hope of escape was out of the
question, and the only opportunity oifered him of seeing
the sunshine was by no means a source of relief, for it
was invariably associated with the infliction of tortures of
a terribly excruciating character. The mere description
of it chilled my blood. The torture, as inflicted on Norpu
Ohe-ring, was devised with diabolical ingenuity, for it
consisted in driving a sharpened bamboo stick into the
sensitive part of the finger directly underneath the nail.
After the nail had been sufficiently abused as a means of
torture, it was torn off, and the stick was next drilled in
between the flesh and the skin. As even criminals possess
no more than ten fingers on both hands the inquisitor had
to make chary use of this stock of torture, and took
only one finger at a time, till the whole number was dis-
posed of. Such was the treatment the ex-Prime-Minister
received at his hands.
TIBETAN PUNISHMENTS. 377
Norpu Che-ring bore this torture with admirable forti-
tude ; he persisted that the whole plot originated in him
alone and was put in execution by his own hands only.
His master had nothing to do with it. The inquisitors'
object in subjecting their former superior and colleague to
this infernal torture was to extort from him a confession
implicating Temo Rinpoche, but they were denied this satis-
faction by the unflinching courage of their victim. It is sai d
that this suffering of Norpu Che-ring had so far awakened
the sympathy of Temo Rinpoche himself that the latter tried,
like the priest of noble heart that he was, to take the whole
responsibility of the plot upon his own shoulders, declaring
that'Norpu was merely'" a tool who carried out his orders,
and that therefore the latter was entirely innocent of the
crime. Temo even advised his steward, whenever the two
happened to be together at the inquisition, to confess, as
he, that is Temo, had done.
The steward, on his part, would reply that his master
must have made that baseless confession from the benevolent
motive of saving his, the steward's life, but that he was
not so mean and depraved as to seek an unmerited
deliverance at the cost of his venerable master's life.
And so he preferred to suffer pain rather than to be releas-
ed, and baffled all the attempts of the torturers. By the time
I reached Lhasa Norpu had already endured this painful
existence for two years, and during that long period not
one word even in the faintest way implicating his master
ha'd passed his lips. From this it may be concluded that
Temo had really no hand in the plot. At the same time it
must be remembered that Temo was an elder brother of
Norpu, and the fraternal affection which the latter enter-
tained towards the other might therefore have been too
strong to allow of his implicating Temo, even supposing
that the late Regent was really privy to the plot.
Be the real circumstances what they might, when
48
378
THEKE YKABS IN TIBET.
THE WIFE OF AN EX-MINISTER.
TIBETAN PUNISHMENTS.
379
I heard all these painful particulars, my sympathy
was powerfully aroused for Norpu, whatever hard words
others might utter against him ; for the mere fact that ho
submitted so long to such revolting punishments with
such persevering fortitude and with such faithful
constancy to his master and brother, appealed strongl}' to
my heart.
The pilloried criminals whom I saw on that occasion
were all subordinates of Norpu Che-ring. Besides
these, sixteen Bon priests had been executed as accom-
plices, while the number of laymen and priests who had
been exiled on the same charge must have been largo,
though the exact number was unknown to outsiders. The
pilloried criminals were apparently minor oifenders, for
half of them were sentenced to exile and the remaining half
to floggings of from three hundred to five hundred lashes.
The pillory was to last in each case for three to seven
PUNISHED IN PUBLIC.
days. Looking at these pitiable creatures I felt as if I
were witnessing a sight such as might exist in the Nether
World. My heart truly bled for the poor, helpless fellows.
380 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
Heavy with this sad reflexion I i3roceeded further on, and
soon arrived at a place to the south of a Buddhist edifice ;
and there, near the western corner of the building, flooded
by sunshine, I beheld another heart-rending sight. It,
was a beautiful lady in the pillory. Her neck was secured
in the regulation frame, just as was that of a rougher
criminal, and the ponderous piece of wood was weighing
heavily upon her frail shoulders. A piece of red cloth
made of Bhutan silk was upon her head, which hung very
low, for the frame around her neck did not allow her to
move it freely. Her eyes were closed. Three men,
apparently police constables, were near by as guards. A
vessel containing baked flour was lying there, and also
some small delicacies that must have been sent b}' relatives
or friends. All this food she had to take fi'om the bands
of one or other of the three rough attendants, for her own
hands were manacled. She was none other than the wife
of Norpu Che-ring, whose miserable story I have already
told, and was a daughter of the house of Do-ring, one of
the oldest and most respected families in the whole of the
Tibetan aristocracy.
When her husband was arrested, he was at first confined
in a cell less terrible than the stone dungeon to which he
was afterwards transferred. But this early and apparently
more considerate treatment only jjlunged his family into
greater misery. His wife was told that the jailer
of the prison in which her husband was incarcerated was
not overstriot and that he was open to corruption,
and what faithful wife, even though Tibetan, would
resist the temptation placed before her under such
circumstances, of trying to .seek some means of
gaining admission to the lonely cell where her
dear lord was confined ? And so it came to pass that
Madame Norpn bribed the jailei-, and with his connivance
was often at her husband's sidej but somehow her
TIBETAN PUMISHMENTS. 381
transgression reached the ears of the governmentj and she
also was thrown into prison.
On the very morning of the day on which I came upon
this piteous sight of the pillory, she was led out of the
prison, as I heard afterwards, not however for liberation,
but first to suffer at the gate of the prison a flogging of
three hundred lashes, and then to be conducted to a busy
thoroughfare to bo pilloried for public disgrace.
Poor woman ! she seemed to be almost insensible when
I saw her, and the mere sight of her emaciated form and
death-pale face aroused ray strongest sympathy. The
sentiment of pity was intensified when I saw a group of
idle spectators, tiinong whom I even notic'ed some aristo-
cratic-looking persons, gazing at the pillory with callous in-
difference. They were heartless enough to ajjproach her
place of torture and read the judgment paper. The sen-
tence, as I heard it read aloud by these fellows, condemn-
ed her to so many whippings, then to seven days pillory,
and lastly to exile at such-and-such a place, there to
remain imprisoned, fettered and manacled. The spectators
not only read out the sentence with an air of perfect in-
difference, but some of them even betrayed their depravity
by reviling and jeering at the lady : " Serve her right,"
I heard them say ; " their hard treatment of others has
brought them to this. Serve them right. " These aris-
tocrats were giving sardonic smiles, as if gloating over
the misery of the house of Norpu Cheering.
B.eally the heartless depravity of these ])eople was beyond
description, and J could not help feeling angry witli them.
These same people, I thought, who seemed to take so much
delight in the calamity of the family of Norpu Che-ring,
must have vied with each other in courting his favor while
he was in power and prosperity. Even if it were beyond the
comprehension of these brutes to appreciate the meaning
of that merciful principle which bids us " hate the offence
382 THEEB YEAES IN TIBET.
but pity the offender, " one would, have expected them to be
humane enough to show some sympathy towards this woman
who was paying so dearly for her excusable indiscretion.
But they seemed to be utterly impervious to such
sentiments, and so behaved themselves in that shameful
manner. I, who knew that political rivalry in Tibet was
allowed to run to such an extreme as to involve even inno-
cent women in painful punishment, felt sincerely sorry for
the Lady Norpu, and returned to my residence with a heavy
heart. My sentiment on that particular occasion is partially
embodied in this uta that occurred to me as I retraced my
heavy steps :
You, evercliaug'ing foolish herds of men,
As fiokle as the clew upon t)if trees,
To blooming flowers your smiling welcome give ;
Why should your tears of pity cease to flow
When blooms or withering flowers pass away f
On my return, when I saw my host, the former Minister of
Finance, I related to him what I had seen in the street,
and asked him to tell me all he knew about the affair.
He fully shared my sympathy for the unfortunate woman.
While Norpu Che-ring was in power, my host told me,
he was held in high respect. Nobody dared to whisper
one word of blame about him and his wife. Now
they were fallen, and he felt really sorry for them. It
was true, he continued, that some people used to find
fault with the private conduct of Norpu Che-ring, and the
former Minister could not deny that there was some reason
for that. But Temo Rinpoche was a venerable man,
pure in life, pious and benevolent, and had met with such
a sad endsolelj' in consequence of the wicked intrigues of
his followers. My host was perfectly certain that Temo
Rinpoche had absolutely no hand in the plot. He said
that he could not talk thus to others; he could be con-
fidential to me alone.
Tortures are carried to the' extreme of diabolical ingen-
uity. They are such as one might expect in hell. One
TIBETAN PUNISHMENTS. 383
method consists in drilling a sharpened bamboo stick
into the tender part of the tip of the fingers, as already
described. Another consists in placing ' stone-bonnets ' on
the head of the victim. Each ' bonnet ' weighs about eight
pounds, and one after another is heaped on as the torture
proceeds. The weight at first forces tears out of the eyes
of the victim, but afterward, as the weight is increased,
the very eye-balls are forced from their sockets. Then
flogging, though far milder in itself, is a painful punish-
ment, as it is done with a heavy rod, cut fresh from a
willow tree, the criminal receiving it on the bared small of
his back. The part is soon torn open by the lashing, and
the blood that oozes out is scattered right and left as the
beater continues his brutal task, until the prescribed
number, three hundred or five hundred blows as the
case may be, are given. Very often, and perhaps
with the object of prolonging the torture, the flog-
ging is suspended, and the poor victim receives a cup
of water, after which the painful process is resumed.
In nine cases out of ten the victims of this corporeal
punishment fall ill, and while at Ijhasa I more than
once prescribed for persons who, as the result of
flogging, were bleeding internally. The wounds caused
by the flogging are shocking to see, as I know from my
personal observations.
A prison-house is in any case an awful place, but more
especially so in Tibet, for even the best of them has nothing
but mud walls and a planked floor, and is very dark in the
interior, even in broad day. This absence of sunlight is
itself a serious punishment in such a cold country.
As for food, prisoners are fed only once a day with a
couple of handfuls of baked flour. This is hardly sufficient
to ■ keep body and soul together, so that a prisoner is
generally obliged to ask his friends to send him some food.
Nothing, however, sent in from outside reaches the
384 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
prisoners entire, for the gao;ers subtract for their own
moutlis more than half of it, and only a small portion of the
whole quantity gets into the prisoners' hands.
The most lenient form of punishment is a fine ; then
comes flogging, to be followed, at a great distance, by the
extraction of the eye-balls ; then the amputation of the
hands. The amputation is not done all at once, but only
after the hands have been firmly tied for about twelve hours,
till they become completely paralysed. The criminals who
are about to suffer amputation are generally suspended by
the wrists from some elevated object with stout cord, and
naughty street urchins are allowed to pull the cord up and
down at their pleasure. After this treatment the hands
are chopped off at the wrists in public. This panishment
is generally inflicted on thieves and robbers after their
fifth or sixth offence. Lhasa abounds in handless beggars
and in beggars minus their eye-balls ; and perhaps the
proportion of eyeless beggars is larger than that of the
handless ones.
Then there are other forms of mutilation also inflicted
as ]3unishment, and of these ear-cutting and nose-slitting
are the most painful. Both parties in a case of adultery
are visited with this physical deformation. These forms of
punishment are inflicted by the authorities upon the
accusation of the aggrieved party, the right of lodging the
complaint being limited, however, to the husband ; in fact
he himself may with impunity cut off the ears or slit the
noses of the criminal parties, . when taken in flagrante
delicto. He has simply to report the matter afterwards to
the authorities.
With regard to exile there are two different kinds, one
leaving a criminal to live at large in the exiled place, and
the other, which is heavier, confining him in a local prison.
Capital punishment is carried out solely by immersion
in water, There are two modes of this execution : one by
TIBETAN PUNISHMENTS. 385
putting- a criminal into a bag made of hides and throwing
the bag with its live contents into the water ; and the
other by tying the criminal's hands and feet and throwing
him into a river with a heavy stone tied to his body.
The executioners lift him out after about ten minutes, and
if he is judged to be still alive, down they plunge him
again, and this lifting up and down is repeated till the
criminal expires. The lifeless body is then cut to pieces,
the head alone being kept, and all the rest of the severed
members are thrown into the river. The head is deposit-
ed in a head vase, either at once, or after it has been
exposed in public for three or seven days, and the vase is
cari'ied to a building established for this sole purpose,
which bears a horrible name signifying " Perpetual
Damnation. " This practice comes from a superstition
of the people that those whose heads are kept in that
edifice will forever be precluded from being reborn in
this world.
All these punishments struck me as entirely out of
place for a' country in which Buddhist doctrines
are held in such high respect. Especially did I think
the idea of eternal damnation irreconcilable with the
principles of mercy and justice, for I should say that
execution ought to absolve criminals of their offences.
Several other barbarous forms of punishment are in vogue,
but these I may omit here, for what I have stated
in the preceding paragraphs is enough to convey some idea
of criminal procedure as it exists in the Forbidden Land.
I stayed in Lhasa till about the middle of October 1901,
when i decided to return to Sera. My host kindly placed
at my disposal one of his horses and on this I jogged
towards my destina,tion. The snow had been falling since
the previous evening, and already the road was covered
with a thick layer of its crystal carpet. It was the first
snow of the season. On the road from Lhasa to Sera,
49
386 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
by Shom-khe-Lamkha (priest's road), there is a river about
half a mile on this side of Sera. This river dries up in win-
ter, and on the day I am speaking of its bed was covered
with snow. There I noticed a party of five or six young
priestlings of Sera, absorbed in the innocent sport
of snowballing. This highly amused me, calling
forth in my mind's eye the sights 1 had frequently
coine across at home, and reminding me, that human
nature is, after all, very much alike the world
over. And so these little fellows were pelting each other
with soft missiles, running and pursuing, shouting and
laughing, forgetting for once the stern reprimanding voices
of their exacting masters, and I amused myself with
composing an uta, as follows.
On yonder fields of snow the cliildren play,
And fix''' with snow-balls in great glee.
They throw and scatter these amongst themselves,
And in these heated contests melts the snow.
While I was watching tlie snow-fight, a burly fellow
coming from the direction of Lhasa overtook me and
began to stare at me. I at once recognised in him
one of my old acquaintances, the youngest of the
three brothers whom I accompanied on the pilgrimage
round. Lake Man asaro vara, who gave my face a sharp
parting smack, as already told. He seemed to be
quite astonished, even frightened, when he saw me, his
whilom companion of humble attire, now transformed into an
aristocratic-looking personage, such as I must have appear-
ed to him. At any rate he avoided my eyes, and was about
to walk off with hurried steps, when I bade him stop, and
asked him if he had forgotten my face. The man could
not but confess that he had not, and told me that he was
going to Sera. I made him come along with me, and
treated him quite hospitably at my quarters in the
monastery, besides giving him a farewell present on parting.
When I thanked him for all the trouble he had taken for
TIBETAN PUNISHMENTS. 387
me during our pilgrimage, the man bowed his head as if
in repentance, and even shed tears, no doubt of remorse.
Before taking his departure he told me that his brothers
were living together at their native place, and that they
were all doing well.
CHAPTER LVII.
A grim Funeral and grimmer Medicine.
It was just previous to the grand monthly catechising
contest that I returned to the Sera monastery. While I
was busy with preparation, and in eager expectation of
taking part in this important function, one of my
acquaintances died and I had to attend his funeral.
Incidentally therefore I took part in a ceremony which is
perhaps unique in the world. I may observe here that in
Tibetan funerals neither a coffin nor urn is used
in which to deposit the corpse. It is simply laid
on a frame made of two wooden poles, with a proper
space between and two cross pieces tied to them.
The rectangular space thus described is filled in with a
rough sort of network of rcpes, and over the netting is
spread a sheet of cloth for the reception of the corpse.
Another piece of cloth, pure white in color, is thrown over
the corpse, and that completes the arrangement. The whole
burden is then carried on the shoulders of two men, who
insert their heads between the projecting ends of the two
longer poles.
Generally a funeral is performed on the third or fourth
day after death, the interval being spent in observances
peculiar to Tibet. First of all a properly qualified Lama
is consulted as to the ffuspicious day for j)erforming the
ceremony; then as to the special mode of funeral and the
final disposal of the corpse. The Lama consulted
gi,ves his instructions on all these points after referring to
his books, and bids the relatives of the deceased read such
and such passages in the Sacred Texts, conduct the
funeral ceremony on such and such day, and take the
bier from the house at such and such an hour of the day.
A GRIM FUNERAL ANB GRIMMER MEDICINE. 389
The _ priest also advises on the mode of burial, of which
there are four in vogue ; the four modes being distinguish-
able from each other by the agencies to be brought into
service, namely : vs^ater, flame, earth, and birds of the air.
This last corresponds to the "air-burial" of Buddhism.
Of the four kinds of burial, or more properly modes of
disposing of corpses, the one generally regarded as the
bpst is to leave the corpse to the vultures, known under
the name of Cha-goppo in Tibet ; then comes cremation ;
then water-burial, and last land-burial. This last method
of interment is never adopted except when a person dies
from small-pox. In this particular case alone the Tibetans
observe some sanitary principles, though probablj' by
mere accident and not from any conviction, for they
think that this dreadful epidemic is likely to spread
if the corpse of a person stricken down by small-
pox is left for birds or consigned to a river. Though
cremation is considered as a superior way of disposing
of dead bodies, the process is by no means easy in a
country where faggots are scarce, for the dried dung
of the yak is hardly thought proper for the purpose.
Hence cremation is confined to the wealthier class only.
Water-burial generally takes place near a large stream ;
but, in consigning a dead body to the water, it is first
thoroughly dismemberedj and thrown into the water piece
by piece. This troublesome course is adopted from the
idea that a dead body thrown in whole will not speedily
disappear from sight.
These four processes of disposing of corpses originate
from Hindu philosophj', according to which human
bodies are believed to consist of four elements,
earth, water, fire and air, and it is thought that on death
they should return to these original elements. Land-
burial corresponds to the returning to earth, cremation
to fire, water-burial to water, and the bird-devouring
390 THREE YEAKS IN TIBET.
to the air, of which birds are the denizens. The bodies
of Lamas are mostly disposed of by this last process, while
those of a few privileged persons only, such as the Dalai
Lama, sub-Dalai Lama and other venerable Lamas, believed
to be incarnations of Bodhisattvas, are given a special mode
of burial.
' Air-burial ' was chosen for the friend whose funeral I
attended, and I shall briefly describe how this 'burial' was
performed. Leaving the college at Sera, the cortege pro-
ceeded eastward till it reached thebankof a river near which,
in a small valley formed between two contiguous hills, stood
a big boulder about twelve yards high. The top of this
stone was level and measured about fifteen feet .square. This
was the 'burial-ground' for this particular kind of inter-
ment. On the summits of the surrounding hills, and even
on the inaccessible parts of the rock itself, were perched a
large number of vultures, with their eyes glistening with
greed. They are always waiting there for 'burials'. When
the bier was placed upon this rock, the white sheet was
taken off, and the priest who had come, with the rest of
the mourners and sympathisers, began to chant their texts
to the accompaniment of drums and cymbals. At the same
time one man approached the 'corpse with ft broadsword,
with which to ' dress ' it. In ' dressing ' the abdomen
was first cut open and the entrails removed. Next all
the various members of the .u>
body were severed, after which t- Ll.-ii— '-'^
some other men, including a .~^^^i^SISl
few priests, undertook the '' '^__;j--^.
finishing work of final ' dress- ^ '"" 'i
ing', which consisted in separating the flesh and bones,
just as butchers do with slaughtered cattle. By this
•time the vultures had gathered in a flock round
the place, and big pieces, such as the flesh of the
thighs, were thrown to them and most voraciously
A. GRIM FUNERAL AND GRIMMER MEDICINE. 391
FUNERAL CEREMONIES: CUTTING UP THE DEAD iBODY.
392 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
did they devour them. Then the bones had to be disposed
of, and this was done by first throwing them into one of
the ten cavities on the rock, and pounding the heap with
big stones. When the bones had been fairly well pulveris-
ed a quantity of baked flour was added to the mass, and
this dainty mixture was also given to the birds. The on]y
thing that remained of the dead body was the hair.
The Tibetans may practically be considered as a kind of
cannibals. I was struck with this notion while witnessing the
burial ceremony. A.11 the cloths used in the burial go as a
matter of course to the grave-diggers, though they hardly
deserve this name, as their duty consists not in digging
the grave but in chopping the flesh of the corpse and
pounding the bones. Even priests give them help, for
the pounding bu.siness is necessarily tedious and tiresome.
Meanwhile the pounders have to take refreshment,
and tea is drtirik almost incessantly, for Tibetans
are great tea-drinkfirs. The grave-diggers, or priests,
prepare tea, or help themselves to baked flour, with
their hands splashed over with a mash of human flesh and
bones, for they never wash their hands before they prepare
tea or take food, the most they do being to olap their
hands, so as to get rid of ^he Coarser fragments. And
thus they take a good deal of minced human flesh, bones
or brain, mixed with their tea Or floiir. They do so with
perfect nonchalance ; in fact, they have no idea whatever
how really abominable and horrible their practice is, for
they are accustomed to it. When I suggested that they
might wash their hands before taking refreshment, they
looked at me with an air of surprise. They scoffed at my
suggestion, and even observed that eating with un-
washed hands really added relish to food ; besides, the
spirit of the dead man would be satisfied when he saw
them take fragments of his mortal remains with theh*
food without aversion, It has been stated that the Tibetans
A GEIM FUNERAL AND GEIMMEE MEDICINE. 393
are descendants of the Rakshasa tribe — a tribe of fiendish
cannibals who used to feed on human flesh; and what I
witnessed at the burial convinced me that, even at the
present day, they retained the horrible habit of their
ancestors.
While the burial ceremony is going on, a religious service
is also conducted at the house of the deceased, and when
the ceremony is over, those who have attended it
call at the house of the bereaved family, where they
are feasted by its members. I noticed that at this
entertainment intoxicants are served only to the laity.
This discrimination is not observed, however, in the
country districts.
I shall next describe the mode of burying a Dalai Lama
or a high-priest.
When a person of high distinction dies, his body is
put in a big box and marsh salt is copiously
sprinkled over it till it is thoroughly imbedded in
this alkaline padding. All this while, religious
chanting goes on, accompanied by the music of flutes,
pipes and other instruments. The box is then kept in a
temple for about three months, during which time offerings
are made regularly, as when the deceased was yet alive,
and his disciples keep vigil over it by turns. Before
the cofKn lights are kept burning in several golden burners
containing melted butter, while holy water is offered in seven
silver vessels. Flowers of the season are also ofl^ered
with other things. Every one allowed to worship near the
remains is expected to make some offering in kind, accom-
panied by a small sum of money. By the time the three
months have elapsed, all the watery portion of the corpse
has been absorbed by the salt, and it has become hard and
dry. It seems to me (though I am not quite sure) that the
Tibetan salt contains a large percentage of soda or other
alkalies ; at any rate it is somewhat diiferent from the
§0
394 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
salt found in Japan. Perhaps some special ingredients
are mixed in the salt, when it is used for packing a corpse.
Be that as it may, when it is taken out of the coffin the
corpse is thoroughly hardened, and has all its parts shrunk
up, owing to the loss of all fluid elements, and the eyes are
sunk in their sockets. Then follows the process of ' dress-
ing' the hardened corpse. The ' dressing' in this case is
made with a compound of a certain kind of clay and
pulverised particles of wliite sandalwood, and also probably
certain drugs of foreign production. This compound is
carefully spread over all parts of the body. It is Anally
gilded, and a ' natural ' image is the result. This image
is put in a tabernacle enclosed in a small outer structure,
which is highly decorated, and the whole thing, image
and all, is kept in a shrine. Such shrines are found in
many parts of Tibet; in the premises of the Tashi Lhunjjo
monastery at Shigatze five such edifices are found, their
roofs resplendent with gold. In construction these roofs
very much resemble the double roof of a palace or
similar building in Cbina, and of course the decoration
and size of the edifice and tabernacle are different accord-
ing to the rank of the canonised Lamas, some of these
structures being inlaid with gold and others with
silver.
At any rate, these imiges are objects of veneration to
the Tibetans ; both priests and ordinary people visit and
worship them. This peculiar mode of embalming high
Lamas has been wittily commented upon by a certain
Chinaman, who remarks that the practice is inconsistent
with the strong prejudice which Tibetans possess against
earth-burial, as this m->de of burial, according to their
superstition, sends the dead person to hell. For the treat-
ment accorded to the dead body of a G-rand Lama, or other
distinguished priest, is in fact a soi-t of earth-burial, in that
the corpse is not given to birds or consigned to rivers or
A GEIM PUNEEiX AMD GRIMMER MEDICINE. S^O
flames, but is preserved in clay after it has been salted
and hardened.
Now I come to the most wonderful medicines in the
world. The first is the salt used in packing corpses. This
salt is considered as an article of great virtue, and access-
ible only to a limited number of the privileged class
It is distributed only among ai-istoci-atic people, and
among priests of distinction.
Only the wealthy merchants and great patrons of
temples may hope, through some powerful influence, to
obtain a small quantity of this precious dirt. The salt is a
panacea for the Tibetan, who swallows a small dose either
by itself or dissolved in water for all kinds of ills that flesh
is heir to — from a slight attack of cold to a serious case
of fatal disease. Whatever medical quality this loathsome
compound possesses, one thing is certain — that it exercises
a powerful influence upon the untutored minds of the
ignorant Tibetans, and so excellently serves the purpose of
"mental cure". The salt medicine reminds me of the
existence in Tibet (and happily nowhere else) of another
sort of panacea equally abominable. The mere mention
of the real nature of this second series of so-called
medicines, would, instead of curing the peop'e of other
countries, infallibly make them sick, as the essential
ingredients are nothing less than the excreta, both
liquid and solid, of the Grand Lama or other high priests.
These are mixed with other substances and are made
into pills, which are gilded over and sometimes colored red.
These pills, known under the name of T«a Chen-norjnv
(precious balls) are not on sale, they being accessible to
ordinary people only through some powerful influence, and
even then only by paying for them a large sum of money.
The Tibetan is glad, however, to procure these pills at any
cost, for he is under a fond .delusion that they possess a
most effective curative power. They are kept as something
3&6 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
like a family treasure, and are used as the last resort, when
all other means of treatment have failed. When, by some
accident, a patient despaired of by doctors recovers after
he has been dosed with a few of the ' precious pills,' the
people of course extol their merit to the skies ; while if he
dies, his case is regarded as having been beyond cure, and
the pills remain therefore the object of undiminished
faith. To do justice to this superstition, I ought to add
that the common Tibetans are kept entirely in the dark as
to the ingredients of the pills ; they are taken as medicines
prepared by the Grand Lama himself according to a
certain secret formula, and the shocking secret is known
only to a select few, who are entitled to attend the Dalai
Lama's court.
CHAPTER LVIII.
Foreign Explorers and the Policy of
Seclusion.
During the first decade of November^ 1901, I returned
to Lhasa to enjoy as before the hospitality of the ex-
Minister. At that time the Finance Minister of the day
was somewhat less occupied, and being, as I stated before,
a nephew of the nun who was mistress of the house where
I was a guest, and a gentleman of refined and affable man-
ners, he used often to call on and be invited to sit with the
ex-Minister, the nun and myself, and to take part in
our chats. Sometimes I called upon the Minister of the
day in his apartments to talk with him. On one occasion
our conversation touched on the subject of a British
female missionary, who attempted to visit Lhasa.
" I wonder why British people are so desirous to come
to our country, " observed the Minister in the course of
our talk. " I camiot at all understand their motive.
For instance, a British woman arrived some eight or
nine years ago at a place called Nakchukha on the
boundary between Tibet and China. She came there with
two servants determined to enter Tibet."
It at once occurred to me that the Minister was referring
to the case of one Miss Annie R. Taylor, a missionary, who
attempted to travel from northern China to Darjeeling
via Lhasa. My host did not know, or could not remem-
ber, her name, but I knew it very well, having been told
of her bold venture while I was staying at Darjeeling,
where I accidentally met with one of the guides who had
accompanied her. But I prudently kept what I knew to
myself, and listened to the Minister as one eager to hear
a strange and interesting storj^. The Minister went
on to tell me how the lady was stopped by the natives of
398 'JIIEEE YKARS IN TJliK'J'.
the place from proceeding further. It was very fortunate
that the chieftain of the local tribe was a ma.n of a merci-
ful turn of mind, as otherwise she would have been
murdered there and then. A report on the matter was
soon forwarded to Lhasa by the magistrate of the district,
and my host was then ordered by his Government to
hasten to the spot, and deal with the foreign adventuress
in a suitable manner. In other words his commission was
to cause the lady at once to quit Tibetan soil. The Minis-
ter took with him two of his servants, besides a number of
coolies, the party altogether numbering about thirty.
Arrived at Nakchukha, he at once caused the lady to be
brought to him ; but when he saw her, he at first could not
understand what she was saying, for although she spoke
Tibetan, it was in a dialect differing from that in vogue at
Lhasa. At last he succeeded in gathering the drift of what
she had to say, which was to this effect. She had come to
Tibet in ordei- to acquaint herself with the sacred teachings
of Tibetan Buddhism. With that object she wanted to make
a pilgi-image to Lhasa and to return home by way of Dar-
jeeling. She then showed to the Minister a passport she
had obtained from the Emperor of China. The Minister
told her that personally he highly appreciated the lady's
purpose, but he was under strict orders fi-om the Grrand
Lama's Government to forbid the entrance of the lady and
of any other foreigner within his dominions. Should she, in
disregard of this intimation, dare to push her way into the
interior, she would be sure to meet with some terrible
mishap, perhaps death, for the Grand Lama's Government
could not extend its protection to a foreigner wlio, in
defiance of its well-meant warning, should attempt a
journey through the wild districts of Tibet. His
Government did not like the idea of being entangled need-
lessly in trouble with another country, and therefore
absolutely demanded the withdrawal of the lady from
FOREIGN EXPLOBEES AND THE POLICY OF SECLUSION. 399
Tibet. As a messenger of the Grand Lama's Governrnentj
especially despatched for this purpose, he must ask the lady
to retrace her steps. The Minister dwelt on this point
courteously but firmly.
The lady on her part equally remained unyielding in her
original declaration, and persisted on repeating her re-
quest, not for one or two days only, but even foi' four or
five daj-s in succession. When the Minister pointed out
how foolhardy she was in her desire, and why she should
rather return the way she had come under the protection
of the Grand Lama's Government, which would, in that case,
escoi't her back as far as some safe place, the lady demand-
ed an explanation as to why a person, possessing a pass-
port obtained from the Emperor of China, could not travel
through Tibet, which was a protectorate under that Emperor.
The Minister admitted the suzerainty of the Chinese
Emperor, but said that, at the same time, they were not
obliged to obey the Emperor's will in everything, and that
especially in the matter of seclusion they were determined
to oppose even the Emperor, should he try by force to
set aside this traditional jjolicy. He further added, as he
told me, that if the lady should still persist in her intention,
he would be constrained to put her two Tibetan guides under
arrest, and punish them according to the laws of the land.
This punishment would be waived, however, if the lady
desisted from her purpose and withdrew from Tibet.
After all these protracted negotiations, the lady was at
last induced to give up her point, and in about half a day's
time after their last meeting she came to acquaint him with
the change in her resolution. As it was ascertained that the
lady and her guides were subject to much discomfort,
having suffered robbery on the way, the Minister kindly
gave her some necessaries before she left Tibet for China.
After having narrated all these things the Minister once
more gave vent to his feeling of wonder at the inexplic-
400 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
able eagerness which foreio-ners weve wont to show in their
desire to visit his country. I for my part replied discreet-
ly that neither did I know why they should wish to enter
it, but that I had heard that such attempts on the part of
foreigners were not a novelty. The Minister himself knew
that cases of strangers making attempts similar to that
of the British lady were not rare, and our conversation next
turned to this part of Tibetan history.
The first authentic story of the arrival of a foreigner in
Tibet is recorded in the year 1328, when a priest of
Pordenone, named Friar Odoric, entered Tibet as a propa-
gandist of the Roman Catholic Church. His attempt failed,
chiefly because the Tibetans of the time had nothing in
particular to learn from Odoric, for Tibet possessed many
priests of its own, who were able to perform many things
differing little from those recorded of Jesus Christ in their
miraculous character. Indeed Odoric himself seems to
have profited by what he saw in Tibet, instead of
imparting anything new to the natives. He took notes of
many wonderful things performed by Tibetan priests, and
took them home, but he burnt most of those notes, for
fear that their publication might compromise the interests
of his own religion. So only a^ fragment of the account of
his travels was preserved.
Some persons attribute this desti-uction of his own notes
by Odoric to the inaccuracies which he had subsequently
discovered, and claim that he destroyed them in order
not to mislead future generations. This explanation
has generally been accepted in preference to the other
— that the Tibetan Buddhism of the fourteenth century
possessed a larger number of miracles than those of
Christianity. That the latter was the more correct ex-
planation of the two may be inferred, however, from the
fact that ,the Roman Catholic Church, while devoting
great energy to propagating its doctrine^ in China, kept
FOREIGN EXPLORERS AND THE POLICY OP SECLUSION. 401
itself aloof from Tibet, having come to the coaclusion
that that coimtrj^ was beyond its evangelising- power.
In 1661 two brothers named Grrueber and D'OrvUle,
probably Frenchmen, entered Tibet, ft is doubtful whether
they proceeded as far as Lhasa, though it is stated that
they went from Pekin to Lhasa and thence through
Nepal to India. When Warren Hastings was the Viceroy
of India, he conceived the idea of establishing a regular
trade connexion between India and Tibet, and dispatched
a commissioner, named George Bogle, to the latter country
in the year 1774. Bogle was accompanied by his wife.
He failed to reach Lhasa, but remained at Shigatze, and
his account of the journey is still extant in print. In 1781
Hastings again dispatched a commissioner, this time under
Captain Turner, who stayed in Tibet for two years. Only
one English explorer reached Lhasa from India. That
man was Thomas Manning, and it was in 1811.
About that time trade between India and Tibet had
grown active, but with the termination of Hasting's viceroy-
alty and his return to England the trade began to flag
for lack of encouragement, till it ceased altogether. All
channels of communications have since that time become
almost closed between the two countries. Meanwhile other
Christian missionaries had begun pushing on their work
with great activity, even up to Lhasa, which they entered
freely, and also to other places, some of them not far from
that city, and this movement on the part of foreign propa-
gandists put the Grand Lama's Government on its guard.
Coming down as late as 1871, a Russian Colonel named Pre-
jevalsky entered Tibet across its eastern border through
Kham, and reached a place about five hundred miles from
Lhasa. But he was compelled to return thence homeward,
at the bidding of Tibet's hierarchical Government. Ap-
parently he at first passed through the Chinese region of
Tibet, but was stopped as soon as he had set his feet in the
51
402 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
Dalai Lama's dominions. This Russian officer, undaunted
by his first failure, next tried to enter Tibet from
the north, and this time he reached a place about
one hundred and seventy miles from Lhasa on the
boundary line between the Chinese and the Tibetan
territories, but was again obliged to withdraw.
In 1879 an Englishman named Captain Hill entered Tibet
from the direction of Ta-chien-lu, but he also had to with-
draw f lom Ba-lithang on the boundary between the Chinese
and Tibetan dominions. It was at this place also that the
Japanese priests, Messrs. Nomi and Teramoto, were
driven back. My host the Minister once incidental-
ly referred to Mr. Nomi's attempt, and said that two priests
from a country named Japan reached Ba-lithang some years
ago, but they were ordered to withdraw, as it was not
sufficiently clear whether they were really Buddhist
priests or persons of other callings.
The last exploration I would mention here is that
undertaken in 1881 and 1882 by Sarat Chandra Das,
my own teacher, of whom mention has been made
several times already. This Hindu had obtained in
a very ingenious way a pass from the Tibetan Govern-
ment, and, armed with it, he first proceeded as far
as Shigatze, where he remained for two months ; after
awhile he returned to India. That was in 1881. The result
of his exploration was reported to the British Government,
and he was for a second time asked to undertake another
trip into Tibet in the following year, having secured as
before a Tibetan passport. On his second visit he first
reached Shigatze and afterward entered Lhasa. As I
heard from a Tibetan, he conducted his mission with extreme
caution, seldom venturing abroad in the daytime, and when
obliged to do so he took every care to avoid attracting
the attention of the natives. He spent most of his time
in a room of a temple, and there secretly carried
I'OREIGN EXl'LOEIiBS AKl) THE POLICY OE SECLUSION. 403
out his investigations. In this way he stayed in Lhtisa
for twenty days; then he went back to his sphere of
work in other parts of Tibet and at last returned
to Darjeeling after an absence of less than a year.
I have mentioned, in a preceding chapter that when
the real nature of the mission of Sarat Chandra Das had
become known to the Tibetan Grovernment, it caused
extraordinary distui-bance, involving all the officials
who had been on duty at the barrier-gates through which
the Hindu had passed, as well as all the persons who had
extended any sort of hospitality to him during his stay in
the country. All these persons were thrown into prison
and their property was confiscated. A number of those
whose complicity, unwitting though it was, was judged
more serious than that of the others were condemned to
death and executed. After this memorable occurrence,
Tibet resolved more than ever to enforce strictly the policy
of exclusion against all foreigners.
In 1886 a Secretary of the American Legation at Peking,
Mr. Rockhill, tried to enter Tibet, only to repeat the
failure of others, and all other Christian missionaries who
made similar attempts about that time were also un-
successful. The number of abortive Tibetan explorers
must be quite large; I myself heard of some twenty-five
or twenty-six. I should not wonder if the number would
reach forty or even fifty, when all the would-be exploiers
are taken into account. 1 have frequently seen in our
Japanese magazines and newspapers articles about Tibet,
which are highly misleading and often fictitious. The fact
must be that those articles are written on the incorrect
information found in nu>st works on Tibet, and that the
inaccuracy is further aggravated by the inventive
brains of the writers of the articles. One of the
most conspicuous instances of this kind is furnished
in the case of A. Csoma de Koros, a Hungarian, who first
404 thkee years in tibet.
compiled a Tibetan-English dictionary, having learned
the language from a Lama in Ladak, a district on
the south-western boundary of Tibet, next to British India,
where the compiler resided for more than three years. The
author wanted to study the Tibetan language on its
native- soil and for that reason attempted to enter Tibet.
He found it impossible to carry out his plan from Ladak,
as the Tibetan frontier guards there forbade the entry into
their country of a stranger. Then it occurred to him that
he might succeed in his project if he started from Darjeel-
ing, and thither he went. Unfortunately, he caught
jungle-fever while travelling in the neighborhood of
Darjeeling and died there, never having put his foot on
Tibetan soil. His tomb even now- stands at a place
near Barjeeling, probably at the place where he fell ill.
Writers on Tibet, both Japanese and Western, mostly
represent this Osoma as having spent many years in
Lhasa, and that is where the fiction comes in. Another
lexicographer, Jaeschke, compiled a Tibetan dictionary
based on, but much better than Csoma's. Jaeschke never
entered Tibet, and yet he is generally credited with
having successfully crossed the border and reached Lhasa,
and lived there for a considerable period. All such
errors being made by Western writers as well as by the
Japanese, I do not of course mean to blame the latter
alone.
Besides the attempts at Tibetan exploration already
referred to, there have from time to time been a number of
missionaries or spies despatched by either Russia or
England, M'ho have frequently appeared at Tibetan fron-
tier stations only to arouse the suspicions of the Grrand
Lama's Government, until the latter has become irrevocably
committed to the policy of absolute seclusion. To do
justice to the Tibetans, they were originally a people highly
hospitable to strangers. This sentiment was superseded
i'OEEIGN EXPLOHEES AND THE POLICY OP SECLUSION. 405
by one of fear and even of antipathy, as the result of an
insidious piece of advice which, probably prompted by
some policy of its ovs^n^ the Government of China gave to
Tibet ; it was to the effect that if the latter allowed
the free entrance of foreigners into her territories, they
would destroy her Buddhism, and replace it with Christian-
ity. The simple-minded Tibetan became dreadfully
alarmed at this warning; but even then he did not all
at once put the policy of exclusion into full force. The
absolute exclusion dates from the discovery of Sarat
Chandra Das' mission. Since then, the enforcement of
the exclusion policy has become so strict that it now seems
as though Tibet has been converted into a nation of detec-
tives and constables.
Especially for European people, with such visible marks
of racial distinction on the surface and also because they
are accustomed to make their attempts on a large scale,
it has become morally impossible to enter Tibet. Di-.
Sven Hedin, for example, tried to enter repeatedly
from the north, while I was staying at Lhasa, but each
time the renowned explorer was baffled in his attempt, and
he finally gave it up altogethei*'. In view of such repeated
attempts on the part of foreigners, both the Lamas
and ordinary people could not but suspect the motive
of these adventurers, and they have therefore naturally
come to the conclusion that all those foreigners must
be entertaining some sinister designs on Tibet. The
popular idea about the supposed designs of England
is interesting, for the natives attribute it to the desire
on • the part of English people to take possession of
gold mines which are plentifully found in their country.
This is of course a very superficial view, so far as the
interest England seems to feel toward Tibet is concerned ;
for the Tibetan policy of that country, in my own humble
1 Dr. Sven Hedin succeeded in entering Tibet from Kashmir in 190ti.
406 THKEE i'EAltS IN TIBET.
opinion, comes from the desire to prevent Russia from
bringing Tibet under her sway and from using that high-
land as a base of operations in carrying out her ambitious
projects on India, for it is evident that, with Russia
securely established up there, England would hardly be
able to feel secure about the safety of India.
The Tibetan Minister of the Treasury once said to me
that it would indeed be a great humiliation to Tibet if ever
she were reduced to being a tributarj- of another country,
but that there might be another calamity far more dis-
astrous and unbearable in its effect, and that was the danger
of her national religion being superseded by a strange faith.
Therefore, the Minister continued, Tibet must oppose, at
all costs, any plans made by foreigners against her, and
consequently the latter should be prevented from hearing
of the existence of factious rivalries in the Hierarchy,
for should they get an inkling of this state of affairs, it
would not take them long to turn this internal dissension
to serve their own mischievous ends. Hence it was
absolutely necessary for Tibet that she should forbid the
entry of all foreigners and keep them in the dark as to the
real condition of the country. It will thus be seen that
the seclusion policy, which primarily oiiginated in religious
motives, has since acquired a greater force from political
considerations, and it is not strange that no foreigners
have been allowed to enter Tibet since the revelation of
the secret mission of Sarat Chandra J3as. That incident,
the then Minister of Finance told me in referring to it,
impressed the Tibetans more strongly than ever with the
necessity of locking their door against the intrusion
of all foreigners.
CHAPTER LIX.
A Metropolis of Filth.
Shortly after I had the conversation recorded in the last
chapter with the Finance Minister, I went out with the
ex-Minister and his attendants for a walk round the
Ungkor (circuit) of Lhasa, this being the outermost, circuit
surrounding the city, and measuring about six miles. The
journey round this circuit is considered as a highly j^ious
act by Tibetans, who believe that it amounts to visiting
every temple and sacred stone house contained within the
circuit. There are several modes of pei'forming this
journey — walking steadily along, making a bow at each
step, or making one at every three steps. Our
journey on that occasion had no such religious meaning ;
it was merely a walk. The walk, however, was rather try-
ing to me, for my host was very tall and had very long-
legs, so that I had to hurry to keep pace even with his
leisurely steps.
By the side of this circuit and to the east of Lhasa stood
a queerly shaped high fence, made of countless yak's
horns. The fence measures irom one hundred and
twenty to two hundred and forty j^ards in length and as it
is entirely composed of the horns, it is hardly possible to
form an idea even in imagination of how many horns weut
to the construction of the fence. The enclosure is used as a
slaughtering place for yak. It was not the first time that
I had seen that fence, but on that particular day I was able
to observe it with greater care than ever before. When I
remarked to the ex-Minister how immense must be the
number of the beasts that had been slaughtered in the
enclosure, my host replied that he felt pity for the beasts.
We soon arrived at an opening in the fence and, peeping
408 THREE TEAKS IN TIBET.
in, I saw some thii-ty yaks brought there for slaughter.
The work was done in a manner quite improper for such a
Buddhist country as Tibet, for no pious ceremony was
performed, such as the touching of the head of a beast
about to be slaughtered with a Buddhist Text. It was
butchered quite unceremoniously, in a thoroughly business-
like manner. I subsequently learned that the slaughter of
animals i.s undertaken in Lhasa exclusively by Chinese
Muhamm^edans, who are of course not expected to care
much about such ceremonies. As it was, I saw a slaughter-
man chop off the head of a yak in a very impious manner,
and in the presence of the other poor beasts, which were
staring with tearful eyes at the butchery of their comrades.
I really felt pity for the beasts.
The ex-Minister was apparently impressed with a similar
sentiment, for he told me that he felt as though he could
hardly swallow a morsel of meat after he had witnessed
such a horrible scene j yet such is human depravity, he
continued, that people soon forget this tender feeling of
compassion when they return home, and are displeased if
no meat is served to them at table. He could not but
conclude therefore that the Tibetans must be the descend-
ants of Rakshasas or devils, and that the blood of those
impious savages must be still running in their veins.
The circuit is kept in excellent repair (comparatively
speaking, that is to say) for the Hierarchy maintains a
regular staff of road-commissioners who are charged with
the duty of keeping the circuit in good condition for the
benefit of the pilgrims, who not unf requently have to kneel
on the ground for their devotions.
The contrast which the condition of the circuit makes
with that of ordinary thoroughfares is beyond descrip-
tion. It is. not merely that the other i-oads are full of
holes, but also that they have in their midst open cesspools,
specially constructed and openly frequented by both men and
A METROPOLIS OF FILTH. 409
women. The filth, the stench, the utter abomination of the
streets are extremely loathsome, especially after rains
in Slimmer, for though there are plenty of dogs feeding
about in the streets they are not enough for the supply.
Then remember that the Lhasa people drink water from
the shallow wells standing amidst such abominable sur-
roundings. The meaning of the word Lhasa itself is
indeed absolutely inappi'opriate ; it signifies the ' ground
of deities,' and therefore supposedly a place of purity.
As Panden Atisha remarked, a place in Tibet is really a city
of devils, who subsist on vile substances. I have often heard
of the filthy condition of the streets in Chinese cities, but I
hardly believe they can be as filthy as the streets in
Lhasa, where the people live in utter defiance of all rules
of hygiene and even decency. The wonder is how they
can escape being exterminated by pestilence, which would
be sure to visit most other places that neglected, even in a
far lesser degree, the laws of sanitation ; and yet, from
what I observed during my residence in Lhasa, the people
did not seem to suffer to any perceptible extent from such
unhygienic surroundings. My own theory is that this
immunity from epidemic must be due to the extremely
healthy climate of Lhasa. The winter there is sufl&ciently
cold, but is less uncomfortable than in our Hokkaido, for
though at night the mercury falls below freezing point, it
rises to forty or fifty degree.?' Fahrenheit in the daytime.
In summer, too, the thermometer rarely rises much above
eighty. Indeed of all the places I have travelled in or
heard of, Lhasa seems to come first in point of a healthy
climate. It is owing to this precious gift of nature that
the people of Lhasa can live with impunity amidst filth
and general contaminations.
All these thoughts occurred to me while I walked round
the circuit with the ex-Minister, and also whenever I
took a walk in the city.
52
CHAPTER LX.
Lamaism.
I must here give a brief description of the Tibetan
religion, for without it any intelligent explanation of the
political system is impossible, while some notice, however
cursory, of the administrative organisation must precede
an account of Tibetan diplomacy, upon which I also wish
to touch briefly.
In describing the Tibetan national religion, I must
confine myself only to a popular exposition of the subject,
and must leave out of consideration as much as possible
other matters that are ulterior and technical.
With that premise I must first of all state that Lamaism
is divided into two main branches, one oUer and the
other more modern, the former being popularly known as
the 'Red Cap Sect' and the latter as the ' Yellow Cap.'
The older Sect is subdivided into a large number of
sub-sects, such as Sakya, Karmapa, Dukpa, Zokchenpa,
and others, but they all agree upon cardinal points and in
the formula for attaining perfection.
The founder of the Old Sect was a Tantric priest named
Lobon Padma Ohungne in Tibetan. That name was derived
from a popular tradition that he was born into this world
out of a lotus flower in the Pond of Danakosha, in a Eoyal
garden of the Kingdom of Urken, now in Cabul. His career
is full of myths far more fantastic than any of those in the
Japanese mythology, and there is very little that is tangi-
ble and rational about it. One thing seems to be certain
— that, although a priest, he strictly enjoined on his
disciples the practices of flesh-eating, marriage and drink-
ing. He ingeniously grafted carnal practices on to
Buddhist doctrines, and declared that the only secret of
LAMAISM.
411
LOBON PADMA CHUNGNE.
perfection for priests consisted in leading a jovial life, and
that by this means alone a man born into this world of 'live
impurities ' can hope to attain quickly to Buddhahood and
salvation.
The doctrine that it is necessary to satisfy carnal desires
is based on the theory that great desires partake of the
nature of Mahabodhi ; that as the greatest of human desires
is sensuality, therefore hian can attain Mahabodhi bj^
indulging this passion, for by it he can best realise the
first essential of the reality of Atman, that is oblivion
412 THREE YEAKS IN TIBET.
of self. The eating of animal flesh, another ci'aving of men,
conforms to the principle of mercy, because the soul of the
animal can be brought under the beneficial influence of the
Bodhi in the eater, and is thus enabled indirectly to attain
tliis supreme state. Liquors give pleasure to men, so that
to enjoy ourselves by drinking them and to live a pleasant
life is an ideal state obtained by an intelligent act. In short,
according to the doctrines of the Old Sect, men can attain
Buddhahood by holy contemplation accompanied by drink-
ing liquors, eating flesh, and indulgence in carnal desires.
Such are, in the main, the fundamental tenets of this
pcirticular Sect, the details of which I could not give here
even if I had ample space at my disposal, for they are too
full of obscenity. I may say, however, that this Sect tries
to justify the indulgence of human desires under the sanc-
tion of Buddhism.
In JajDan also there once existed the Tatekawa school
of the Sliingon Sect, which did much to corrupt social
order and morals by preaching similar pernicious theories,
though it is not possible to speak authoritatively on this
subject, as very few fragments of the texts and canonical
writings of that suppressed school are now extant. How-
ever, the scope and plan of that quasi-religion must have
been extremely limited.
'J.^he Old Sect of Tibet is, on the other hand, on a large
scale and its doctrine has obtained a wide credence through-
out the country.
The texts of this sect are still extant in Tibet and
the Samskrt texts prepared in India with Tibetan
translations are fairly numerous. The Old Sect has under-
gone considerable modifications since its introduction into
Tibet, for the Lama priests have freely modified the
original according to their own views and opinions. In
fact the Tibetan texts of this particular Sect are far from
preserving the original forms of teaching and expression.
LAMAI«M. 413
I have brought home, among other Lamaistic writings,
quite a large number of volumes treating on the esoteric
side of the doctrines of the Old Sect, which are credit-
ed as being most authentic, but 1 have to keep them in a
closed box, for they are too full of obscene passages to
allow of their being read by the manj-.
These degenerate doctrines were widely spread tlirough-
out Tibet until, about five hundred years ago, the)- proved
to be too pernicious even for such a corrupt country
as Tibet. A reaction arose against the Old Sect, which
took the shape of the so-called New Sect.
This was founded by Paldau Atisha, a priest from India,
in the eleventh century a. d., and was after three cen-
turies further perfected by Je Tsong-kha-pa, who was
born in a house "amidst onion plots" in Amdo, a Chinese part
of Tibet, situated to the north of Tibet proper. This priest,
perceiving the fearful state of corruption into which the
Tibetan religion had fallen, assigned to himself the
Herculean task of purging that Augean stable.
He took his ground on the fundamental proposition that
priesthood must stand on asceticism, that priesthood devoid
of asceticism was also void, and that of all the conditions of
asceticism abstinence from carnal desires was the most
important, for a priest indulging in these had nothing to dis-
tinguish him from a layman. Je Tsong-kha-pa set an exam-
ple of following his own precepts, but first he declared for the
necessity of enforcing rules of moral discipline for jjriests.
But there were not a sufficient number of priests qualified
to receive ordination. At last a number of his first con-
vents and of the supporters of his precepts weie collected
to form the nucleus of the ne^v movement, and they raised
the standard of a spiritual campaign at Ganden, ^ place
about forty niiles from Lhasa.
But the New Sect, in stiperseding the degenerated
national religion, had to conform itself to the national
4U
THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
^fe^^3w/(^^^^^^^
JE TSONG-KHA-PA.
LAMAISM. 415
partiality for esoterism^ wliich is more or less present
in every form of religion or cult prevailing in Tibet,
and it therefore included in its S3^stem cei'tain esoteric
forms as distinct from the esoterism of the Old Sect. The
New Sect did not denounce the images worshipped by the
followers of the Old Sect, although they all consisted of
dual figures of men and women, often represented in
offensive postui'es; it had, however, to give to them a new
interpretation of an abstract nature. Thus men were ex-
plained as representing ' proper means ' and women as re-
presenting 'transcendental knowledge,' and it was said
that the proper combination of the two elements gave
birth to Buddhas. Therefore the birth of Buddhas,
according to this interpretation, did not come from carnal
indulgence. Animal flesh, again, was interpreted as
representing mercy, and therefore not intended for
eating, while liquors were considered as embodying human
intelligence, and as giving an object-lesson to teach men
how to exercise their inborn intelligence.
In that sj'mbolic way the New Sect explained the
precef)ts inculcated by its older rival. The images that
had been used by the latter were also adopted, only with
a new interpretation, so that externally the two sects do
not differ much from each other. Strange as it may appear,
it is highly probable that worldly circumstances obliged
the New Sect to assume this anomalous position. I have to
stop here in my description of the doctrinal side of the
Tibetan religion, for to go further would lead me into
technical and abstruse points.
I shall describe next that peculiar practice or belief of
the Tibetan religion which is called incarnation.
The idea embodied in the doctrine of incarnation is that
the Buddhas, or saints whose bodies are invisible to man, are
reincarnated in the shape of priests of pious virtue for the
salvation of the people. The scope of this incarnation is
416 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
rather comprehensive in Tibet, for almost every lama
with any pretensions above the common level believes
that he is destined to be reborn into the world to work
for salvation. This idea seems to have undergone
considerable modifications since it was first conceived, so
that such incarnations as are accepted to-day appear quite
different from those of older days, as I shall describe
fui-ther on.
CHAPTER LXI.
The Tibetan Hierarchy.
More tlian iouv centuries ago there lived a priest
named Gendun Tub who was a disciple of the founder
of the New Sect. It was this priest who first originated
the practice of invocation of oracles which was sub-
sequently elaborated into a peculiar habit of selecting
incarnations. It happened in this way. When Gendun
Tub was about to expire, he left word that he would
be reborn at such and such a place. Enquiry was made,
and the birth of a boy was ascertained to have taken
place at the specified place. This would not be particular-
ly marvellous were it not for the fact, as recorded in
tradition, that, as soon as he could articulate, the boy de-
clared his wish to return to his temple, the name of which he
declared to be Tashi Lhunpo, the very temple where the
venerable Gendun Tub had died. There was no longer
any doubt in the minds of his faithful disciples and
followers that their master had been reborn in that
boy. The boy was conveyed to the temple, was there
brought up, and was finally installed as the second
Grand Lama, called Gendun Gyamtso.
Nothing particular occurred in this matter of incarna-
tions during the periods of his third and fourth successors,
but they grew quite popular afterwards, especially in the
days of the fifth and the sixth Grand Lamas, till at last the
whole system of the consultation of divine oracles assum-
ed the shape in which it is found to-day. The fifth Grand
Lama was a great promoter of the oracle system. His name
was Ngakwang Gyamtso, and though the head of the New
Sect, he investigated the texts and all matters of the Old
Sect and introduced into his own sect many things pertain-
83
418 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
ing to the Old. Oracle-invocation was extensively practised
in his time, and the privilege of undertaking this solemn
work was entrusted to four temples, or rather the deities
presiding over them, namely Nechung, Samye, Lamo and
G-atons'. ¥rom the fifth Grand Lamja also dates another
innovation of far greater importance, that is to say, the
establishment of Hierarchical G-overnment.
Before his time, the Grand Lamas held only spiritual
power, and had nothing to do with temporal or adminis-
trative affairs, for the G-rand Lamas had no territories to
administer except a small glebe.
About that time a powerful Mongolian chieftain named
Shri Gaumi Tenjin Choe Gyal invaded Tibet and subdued
all the petty tribes that had hitherto existed there. These
numbered thirteen, each counting according to tradition
ten thousand families. Tibet may thus be considered to
have contained one hundred and thirty thousand families,
and, strange to say, this is also believed to be the present
number of the population, according to popular accounts.
The Mongolian conqueror disposed of the districts he
had subdued in a very interesting manner, for instead of
bringing them under his direct control he presented the
whole region to the Grand Lama of the day. Thus origi-
nated the system of the Hierarchy, which therefore dates
only about three centuries back. But to return to the
subject of oracle-consultation.
By this time the process of consultation had to undergo
considerable modifications, owing to the fact that the high
Lamas who were to be reborn not unfrequently omitted
the trouble of enlightening others about the places of their
re-appearance on the earth. These places had to be dis-
covered therefore, for the Tibetans firmly held, as they do
even to-day, that high Lamas who die are sure
to re-incarnate somewhere after the lapse of forty-
nine days from the day of death. Hence arose the
THE TIBETAN HIEEAECHY. 4l9
necessity to determine the place of such re-incarnation,
and this task devolved on the oracle-invokers of one of the
four particular temples mentioned before.
The process as it is in ^'og■ue at present is essentially
identical with that prevailing in former times, and is ex-
ceedingly strange, to say the least of it. The mediums or
invokers who perform this holy business behave them-
selves in such an extravagant way that the uninitiated
would consider them to be stark mad.
The consultation of the oracle is performed by a number
of priests, one of whom is a medium, the rest being assist-
ants. These beat drums and strike cymbals, whilst others
chant the Texts. The medium is attired in a gorgeous
fashion. He wears a big head-cloth with silk pendants of
five hues hanging from behind. Sometimes strips of glitter-
ing brocade are used instead. The garment is not unlike
that worn by Japanese priests, and is of yellow or red satin,
decorated with figures of flowers. From the knot of the
sash hang long strips of cloth. Thus attired, the medium
waits for response from the deities, remaining with closed
eyes in a half sitting posture, while all the time the discord-
ant sounds made by the orchestra are kept up. After a
while he begins to tremble and shake, this movement
gathering force, till all of sudden he either falls on his
back or jumps up, according to the nature of the deity who
responds to the invocation, and has now descended in-
to the body of the medium. He will then say, still contin-
uing to shudder, that the particular Lama has re-appeared
at such and such a place, and in such and such a house
which faces in a certain direction; that the family consists
of a certain number of members; that a baby born on
a certain day is a re-incarnation of the dead Lama, and so on.
An enquiry is then made according to the direction and
of course the pronouncement of the oracle is confirmed, and
a baby corresponding to the description given is found in
420 THEEl? YEAES in TIBEl'.
the house. The boy is left under the care of his mother
till he can be weaned, and then he is brought to the specified
temple where he is educated. In education special care is
taken to inspire in him the strong self-confidence that he is
a holy re-incarnation.
At any rate the practice of invoking divine oracles ex-
tensively came into vogue from the time of the fifth Grand
Lama, and is used for all matters great or small, from
vexed international problems to trifling questions that easily
admit of solution.
The oracle-giving deities, as I mentioned before, are four,
and they are regarded as the guardian togels of the Lama
Hierarchy. Of the four Nechung is the most powerful.
Suppose a Grrand Lama dies, and a necessity arises to
determine the place of his re-incarnation. The four
temples dedicated to the four deities are ordered by the
authorities to undertake the mysterious business of identi-
fication, this order being generally issued about a year
after the death of the august Lama. All .the priests of the
four temples are summoned on that occasion, and they
separately consult their own respective oracles. Their
deities are, however, not infallible, and often prove just as
divided in their judgment as ordinary mortals are, for
very rarely do the four oracles coincide, and usually those
oracles produce three different candidates. The choice
has therefore to be made from among the three.
The three or four boy-candidates (as the case may be)
are brought to Lhasa, when they have reached the age of
five years. The ceremony of selection is next performed.
This is of course conducted with great pomp and solemnity.
The dignitaries who are privileged to take part in it are
the Chinese Commissioner residing in Lhasa and the
Regent Lama; also the Prime Ministers and all the Ministers,
Vice-Ministers and a number of high Lamas are
allowed to be present. First the names of the boy-candi-
THE TIBETAN HIEEARCHV. 42l
dates (three or four in number, as the case may be) are
written on so many pieces of paper, and put in a golden
urn which is then sealed. For the period of a week a
kind of high mass is performed in the ceremony-hall, in
order to entreat the divine intercession for the selection
of the real re-incarnation. When this period expires all
the dignitaries before-mentioned are once more assembled
around the sealed urn. This is carefully inspected and the
seal is then taken off. The Chinese Commissioner then takes
a pair of tiny iyovj sticks something like ordinary chop-
sticks in shape and size and, with his eyes shut, puts
them into the urn a:fd solemnly picks out one of the
papers. The name written on that paper is read, and the
bearer of that name is acknowledged as Grand Lama-elect.
Prom what I have described, there is apparently little
room, if any, for trickery, but I have heard from the Secre-
tary of the Chinese Commissioner that dishonest practices
are in reality not infrequent. Indeed the tempta-
tions are too strong for greedy and dishonest minds to
resist, owing to the keen rivalry among the parents of the
boy-candidates to have their own boys selected. Strong
interest urges them on in this rivalry, for the parents of
the Lama-elect are not only entitled to receive the title of
Duke from the Chinese Government, but also enjoy many
other advantages, above all the acquisition of a
large fortune. Under these circumstances the parents and
relatives of eligible boys are said to oifer large bribes to
the Chinese Amban, and to others who are connected with
the ceremony of selection. I do not affirm the fact of
bribes, but at least I have heard that cases of such under-
hand influence have occurred not unfrequently.
The selection of the Grand Lama is thus made by an
elaborate process, in which the influence of the oracle-in-
vokers plays an important part. The priests who have
charge of this business are in most cases men who make
422 THEEE YEARS IN 'TIBET.
it their business to blackmail every applicant. Most of
the oracle-priests are therefore extremely wealthy.
The Nechung who are under the direct patronage of the
Hierarchy are generally millionaires^ as millionaires go in
Tibet. This, taken in conjunction with another fact,
that the re-incarnations of higher Lamas are generally
sons of wealthy aristocrats, or merchants, and that it
is only very rarely that they are discovered among the
lowly, must be considered as suggesting the working of
some such practices. I have even heard that some
unscrupulous people corrupt the oracle-priests for the
benefit of their unborn children, sa as to have their boys
accepted as Lamas incarnate when Born. From a worldly
point of view the expense incurred on this account not un-
frequently proves a good ' investment,' if I may use the
profane expression, for the boys who are the objects of the
oracles have a good chance of being installed in the temples
where their spiritual antecedents presided, which are
sure to possess large property. This property goes, it
need hardly be added, to the boys, after they have been
duly installed. Whatever may have been the practical
eifect of incarnation in former times, it is, as matters stand
at present, an incarnation of all vices and corruptions,
instead of the souls of departed Lamas.
I once remarked to certain Tibetans that the present
mode of incarnation was a glaring humbug, and that it
was nothing less than an embodiment of bribery.
To do justice to the incarnations themselves, they grow
up, in eight cases out of ten, to be Lamas of more than
average ability, perhaps because they are brought up
with special care. Their teachers and guardians treat
their wards with kindness and never use rough language
to them even when they behave as they ought not to
behave. In such case the teachers and guardians appeal
to their sense of honor and great responsibility.
THE TIBETAN HIERARCHY. 423
This reminds me of the necessity of treating children
with consideration, and that to abuse them as blooliheads or
fools, when they err in their conduct or over their lessons,
deprives them of the sense of self-confidence, and hence
prevents its natural development. They must be educated
in such a way as to allow full play to their sense of
self-respect.
The Tibetans have not adopted this particular mode of
education for their boy-incarnations from any deep
conviction as to educational policy; they are doing so out
of their respect towards their boy-masters.
I should add, also, that the general mass of the people
are left in complete ignorance of all the tricks and
intrigues that are concocted and extensively carried on in
the higher circles. With guileless innocence the ordinary
people swallow all the fabulous tales that are circulated
about the alleged evidences fabricated for establishing the
re-incarnation of 'Lamas. Those only who are acquainted
with what is going on behind the scenes at Lhasa and
Shigatze treat those "^evidences' with scorn, and denounce
the re-incarnation affair as downright imposture and a
mischievous farce. To them the re-incarnation is an
embodiment of bribery, nothing more nor less. At best
it is a fraud committed by oracle-priests at the instance
of aristocrats who are very often their patrons and
protectors.
Oracles are not confined in their operation to matters of
incarnation; they are consulted for many other purposes.
A Cabinet Minister who has committed some error will
hasten to those priests, especially to the Nechung, to
prevent his being punished, or to have the punishment
modified. In such a case a Minister has to pay to the priests
a sum varying from the minimum of one thousand yen to
ten or twenty times that amount, according to the gravity
of the offence, When ju time that olfence comes to the
424 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
ears of the Government, and the question of punishing the
offender is brought on the tapis, the latter can sit silent
without much perturbation, secure in the thought that he
has forestalled the Grovernment and has secretly
'purchased' a favorable understanding with the consulters
of the oracles. For to these consulters the matter is sure
to be brought, sooner or later, for their decision, or tnore
properly for the decision of their deity. The priests will
then consult the oracles, but with a foregone conclusion as
to the nature of the response, being bound by the accused
party with fetters of gold. The oracles will say: "Don't
punish the man, for to do so will be to invite calamity on
the country. Only reprimand is enough, for the man is at
heart well-meaning. His fault came from inadvertence."
And so the Minister is absolved from the charge, or is
sentenced merely to a nominal punishment.
On the other hand, a Minister or any other high
personage who is a persona ingrata to the 'Nechung priests
is in danger of bringing down on his head an oracle of
terrible nature at any moment, and in the presence of the
Grand Lama himself. The unscrupulous priests will even
turn the virtues of their unfortunate victim into a means
of denouncing him. The power which those oracle-priests
wield in the official circles of the Grand Lama's Govern-
ment is therefore a formidable one, and the officials hold
them in even greater awe than they do their supreme
chief. The Nechung priests may be even regarded as
wielding the real power in the Hierarchical administration.
It is true that the present Grand Lama, being a man of
great force of mind, does not blindly adopt in all cases the
insidious advice of the priests; still in the great majority
of cases he has to follow it, for to reject the Nechung's
words is contrary to the traditions of the country.
The Nechung, who exercise such power even in small
affairs, very often prove to be broken reeds when they are
THB TIBETAN HIEEAECHY. 425
confronted with grave national questions. Suppose, for
instance, they are asked to consult the oracles about a
diplomatic trouble, in the presence of the Dalai Lama
and other great dignitaries. The priests proceed to do so
with pomp and solemnity, attired in gorgeous dress be-
fitting the occasion. In time the deity responds to the
invocation, and is consulted about the policy which the
G-overnment has to adopt, say, about the trouble which is
supposed to have appeared between it and England. The
medium will remain silent, and simply continue to tremble
for some time. Ho will next make one high jump, and
then drop dov.m apparently unconscious. The attendants
of the medium are then thrown into consternation, all
whispering to each other which significant nods and head-
shakes that the deity must have been offended at the
impious question put to him, and must have therefore gone
off in holj'^ wrath. And so for a grave question, for which
the aid of the oracle is most needed, the Hierarchical
Government is left in the lurch and is compejled to give
decision according to its own mother-wit, Such is the
farce of the oracle-system.
Men of learning and priests of sincere piety and
honest conviction are therefore bitterly (though not
openly) opposed to the doings of those 0];'aple-priests,
whom they denounce as Ministers of ^eyilSj and as the
worst enemies of religion. Fortunately, however, the
two Lamaist chiefs are not installed only by thp agency
of the Nechungs, as above mentioned.
I may, for instance, refer in passing to the Supposed
parentage of the present Tashi Lama, the second* Grand
Lama, of Tashi Lhunpo. He is said to have been born of a
dumb woman by some unknown father. Spme say that his
father was a hermit, while others are of opinion that he
was a priest, but the most probable account is the one
which I heard from a certain authority, who inforiped me
54
426
THREE YEARS IN TIBET,
A SOOTHSAYER UNDER MEDIUMISTIC INFLUENCE FALLING SENSELESS.
THE TIBETAN Hierarchy. 42'7
tliat a learned doctor, one Meto-ke-sang (chrysaiithemuin-
flower) of the ^monastery of Sera, was the real father of
the present head of the Tashi Lhunpo. This doctor became
a monomaniac after having studied the literature of the
Old Sect, roamed about the country, and at last cohabited
with a dumb woman. The result was the birth of the boy
on whom fell the great honor. The Lama is therefore,
said to bear a great personal resemblance to that mad
doctor. Though this opinion was held by a reliable
authority of the Sera monastery with whom I was acquaint-
ed, of course I cannot vouch for the authenticity of his
explanation.
CHAPTEE LXII.
The Qovernment.
I shall next describe the system of the Hierarchical
Grovernmentj and other matters relative to it based on the
information I incidentally obtained on those subjects
during my stay in Lhasa. The information is far from
being complete, for besides the fact that the subjects
were entirely foreign to the primary objects of my Tibetan
expedition, and therefore I was not impelled to make
any systematic inquiries, I could not without inviting
strong suspicion put an^' questions to my friends
in Lhasa about matters of Tibetan politics. Whatever
knowledge I could gather on the subject was derived
incidentally in the course of conversations with my
distinguished host and some others, and as the result
of enquiries made in a highly guarded and roundabout
way. Hence |;here still remain many points in the Govern-
ment system of which I myself am ignorant.
With this reserve, I may state first of all that the
Hierarchy is composed of both clerical and lay departments,
each consisting of an equal number of men. The priests of
higher rank who attend to the affairs of State bear the
title of "Tse Dung" and they number one hundred and sixty-
five, and there are lay officials of corresponding rank
and number known under the title of " Dung Khor ". The
priestly functionaries of higher rank are subject to the
control of four Grand Secretaries, bearing the title of
" Tung yk chen mo " but the real power is vested in the
senior priest. Similarly four " Shabpe " (Premiers) are
appointed over the head of the higher lay officials. Of
these four " Shabpe " the one enjoying precedence in
TflE dOVBENMENf. 429
appointment holds the real powei-j the other three being
his councillors aiid advisers.
The Cabinet is composed of four Prime-MinisterSj three
Ministers of Finance, two Ministers of War, a Minister of
the Household, a Minister of Religion, a Minister of Justice,
and four Gtrand Secretaries belonging to the Order.
All these higher posts, both of priests and laymen, are
in most cases filled only by men belonging to the privileg-
ed classes ; very rarely do they fall to the Ngak-pa, Bon-bo
and Shal-ngo castes.
The Tibetan administration is of an anomalous descrip-
tion— a hybrid partaking of feudalism on the one hand and
of the modern system of Local Government on the other.
The relation between Peers and commoners apparently
resembles feudalism. The first recipient of the title was
granted a certain, tract of land in recognition of his service,
and there at once sprung up between this lord of the
manor, as it were, and the inhabitants of that particular
place a relationship akin to that between sovereign and
subject. This lord is an absolute master of his people,
both in regard to their rights and even their lives.
The lord levies a j^oU-tax on the inhabitants, and even
the poorest are not exempted from this obligation. The
levy varies considerably according to the means of
the payer, from say one tanka paid by a poor inhabitant
to even a hundred paid by a wealthier member of
the community. Besides, every freeholder must pay land
tax, the land held by him being understood theoretically
to belong to the lord. However heavy the burden of the
poll-tax may be, each person is obliged to pay it, for if he
neglects to do so he is liable to be punished with flogging
and the confiscation pf his property to boot. The only
means of escape from this obligation consists in becoming
a monk, and there must be in the Tibetan priesthood a
large number of men who have turned priests solely with
430 THREE Years in viUM'.
this object of avoiding the payment of taxes. The witty
remark once made to me by my teacher, Ti Rinpoche,
on this subject may illustrate the state of affairs in the
Tibetan priesthood. He said : " I do not know whether to
rejoice at or to regret the presence of so many priests
in Tibet. Some seem to take this as a sign of the flourish-
ing condition of the national religion and on that ground
seem to be satisfied with it. I cannot quite agree with
this argument ; on the contrary I rather hold that it
is better to have even two or three precious diamonds
than a heap of stones and broken tiles. " The motives
that lead people to become priests lying in that region, it
is not strange that the Tibetan priesthood should contain
plenty of rubbish with very few diamonds among them.
However, when it is remembered how heavy are the
burdens imposed on the shoulders of the people, it is not
strange that they should try to evade them by entering the
Order. The condition of even the poorest priest presents
a great contrast to that of other poor people, for the priest
is at least sure to obtain every month a regular allowance,
small as it is, from the Hierarchical Government, while he
can expect inore or less of extra allowances in the shape of
occasional presents from charitable people. But a poor
layman cannot expect any help from, those quarters,
and he has to support his family with his own labor and
to pay the poll-tax besides. Very often therefore he
is hardly able to drive the wolf of hunger from his door,
and in such case his only hope of succor lies in a loan from
his landlord, or the lord of the manor wherein he resides.
But hope of repayment there is' none, and so the poor
farmer gets that loan under a sti-ange contract, that is to
say, by binding himself to offer his son or daughter as a
servant to the creditor when he or she attains a
certain age. And so his child when Ije has reach-
ed the age of (say) ten years is surrendered to th^
THE GOVERNMENT. 431
creditor, who is entitled to employ him as a servant
for fifteen or twenty years, and for a loan which does not
generally exceed ten yen. The lives of the children
of poor people may therefore be considered as being
foreclosed by their parents. Those pitiable children grow
up to be practically slaves of the Peers.
The relationship existing between the Peers and the
people residing on their estates, therefore, partakes of the
nature of feudalism in some essential respects, but it
cannot be said that feudalism reigns alone in Tibet to the
exclusion of other systems of Government. On the
contrary a centralised form of G-overnment prevails more
or less at the same time. The Peers, it must be remembered,
do not generally reside on their own estates; they reside
in Lhasa and leave their estates in charge of their stewards.
And they are not unfrequently appointed by the Central
Government as Governors of certain districts.
Consequently the Tibetans may be said to be divided
into two classes of people, one being subject to the control
of the lords of the manors and other to that of the Central
Government. Not unfrequently the two overlap, and the
same people are obliged to pay poll-tax to their lords and
other taxes to the Central Government.
The work of revenue collection is entrusted to two or
three Commissioners appointed from among the clerical or
lay officials of higher rank, and these, invested with
judicial and executive powers, are despatched every year
to the provinces to collect revenue, consisting of taxes,
imposts and import duties, these being paid either in
money or kind.
The demands on revenue are many and various, and
among the items of ordinary expenditure may be mentioned
first of all the sums required for supporting, either wholly
or partially, a large number of priests residing both in
Lhasa and in the provinces, the former alone numbering
432 THREE YBAES, IN TTBET.
about twenty-five thousand. The outlay on account of
building temples and religious ceremonies is not small, but
that on account of salaries paid to the officials of the Cen-
tral Goyernment appears to be less. A Premier draws the
yearly salary of about six hundred hohiC or four thousand
bushels of wheat, the stipend being generally paid in this
grain. The first Lord of the Treasury draws three hcin-
dred and sixty koku. What is very interesting about
these salaries is that the State functionaries very often
relinquish the right of reoaivitig tliair salaries, and leave
them unclaimed. My host, who continued to hold for ten
years the po.^t of the Minister of Finance, had persistently
refrained during that long period from claiming what was
his due. When I marvelled at this straage act of diain-
terestedness on his part, he replied that his own estate
supplied what he wanted and so he did not wish to give
trouble to the Grand Lama's Bxciiequer. And he further
informed me that most of his colleagues who were men of
means generally omitted to claim their salaries wholly
or in part, though there were some who punctually receiv-
ed the money to which they were entitled by right. Not
that even those who showed themselves so disinterested
in the matter of official stipends are above corruption, for
I heard that some of the Ministers who declined their
salaries did not scruple to receive or even to exact bribes,
In justice to them I may add that bribery is a universal
vice in Tibet, and is not regarded in so serious a light there
as in more enlightened countries. My host was a gentle-
man of strict integrity and morals, but he used to accept
presents offered out of respect to him.
The clerical and lay high functionaries, each numbering
one hundred and sixty-five, attend to the various affairs of
State. They are sometimes appointed as Governors of
provinces, while at other times they are sent on judicia)
business, In such cases appointments are never given to
THE GOVERNMENT. 433
clerical or lay officials only, but both are invariablj^ ap-
pointed as associates, and in equal number, one each or two,
or sometimes four. The Judicial Commissioners were
formerly often guilty of injustice and open to the charge of
judging cases, not according to their real deserts, but accord-
ing to the amount of bribes offered. They are no longer so
now, thanks to the vigilance and energy of the present
Dalai Lama who, whenever such a case of wrong-doing
comes to his ears, does not hesitate to confiscate the
property of the offending parties and to deprive thein of
their rank. Sometimes when a case of grave moment
occurs it is submitted to the personal judgment of the
Grand Lama himself.
The Grand Lama is therefore placed in a highly anomal-
ous position, for while he is the dispenser of benevolence
■ and the supreme head of a religion preaching mercy
and forbearance, he is obliged to pass judgment and to
sentence persons to exile or even to capital punishment.
As head of a religion he is positively forbidden by its teach-
ings to pass a decree of that nature, whether that decree is
justifiable in the worldly sense or not. But the Grand Lama
does issue decrees of this irreligious description. He is not,
however, a political chief, inasmuch as he faithfully adheres
to the rules of mortification enforced by his religion ; he
has no wife, for instance, nor does he drink intoxicating
liquor. His position is really highly anomalous.
And yet all the priests in Tibet take from the Grand
Lama the holy vow of discipline ; I myself was advised by
my Tibetan friends to pass that ceremony, but my religious
scruples stood in the way, so I did not follow the advice.
However I was initiated by the Grand Lama in the
' Hidden Teaching,' for this ceremony had nothing to do
with my religious convictions.
The Grand Lama himself being placed in this false
position, all the priests under him are naturally open
55
434 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
to a similar charge. They are partly priests and partly
men of the world, and sometimes it is hardly possible to
distinguish them from ordinary laymen. For instance,
the Tibetan priests, as I have mentioned elsewhere, under-
take farming or business, while the young rowdies among
them attend to the work of ordinary soldiers. The only
things that distinctl^y distinguish the priests from laymen
are that the former shave their hair and wear priestly
robes, and the latter do not ; that is all. I am compelled
to say that Lamaism has fallen, and that it has assumed a
form quite contrary to that to which its great reformer
Je Tsong-kha-pa elevated it, and I am sincerely sorry for
this degeneration. I shall next describe the education and
the caste system in Tibet.
CHAPTER LXIII.
Education and Castes.
Education is not widely diffused in Tibet. In the neigh-
borhood of Shigatze children are taught comparatively
well the three subjects of writing, arithmetic and
reading, but in other places no provision exists for teaching
children, except at monasteries, so that the boys and girls
of ordinary people are generally left uneducated, especially
the latter.
As might naturally be expected, educational establish-
ments are few and far between. The only institutions worthy
of the name are found on the premises of the Palace at
Lhasa, and of the Tashi Lhunpo monasteries in Shigatze ;
all the rest are only ' family schools '.
From the important position which priests command in
Tibet, the system of training them is pretty well developed,
and it is only at religious schools that one can obtain even
a comparatively advanced education. Sons of ordinary
people can enjoy the benefit of that education only by
joining the order, for otherwise they are refused admission
to Government schools.
The doors of those schools are, of course, shut against
boys of humble origin. In Tibet there exists one class
which is the lowest in the scale of social gradation. This
lowest grade is subdivided into fishermen, ferry-men,
smiths, and butchers. Smiths are relegated to this grade
in Tibet just as in India, and for the same reason — -that they
pursue an objectionable occupation in making edged tools
used for slaughtering living things, the most sinful occupa-
tion of all. People of this lowest grade are even prohibited
from becoming priests, and if ever they enter the privileged
order it is by some surreptitious means and by concealing
436 THEBB YEARS IN TIBB'l'.
their real rank. In this way some men of the lowest
origin have become priests at places remote from their
native villages. Compared with these despised classes,
the ordinary people may be said to enjoy a great advantage.
The classes who are entitled to enter the Grovernment
institutions are only four :
1. Ger-pa, Peers ; 2. Ngah-pa, the mantra clan, 3. Bon-ho,
the Old Sect clan ; 4. Shal-ngo, families of former chieftains.
The Peers consist of the descendants of former ministers
and generals, and contain the supreme class called Yabshi
which is composed of families of the thirteen Grand Lamas,
past and present, and also of the descendants of the first
King of Tibet, called Tichen Lha-kyari. They all hold the
rank of Duke. The descendants in the direct line
of that King still exist to this day, and their head
is entitled to occupy the same rank as the Grand
Lama, only he does not possess any power in public
affairs. The highest posts in the Tibeban Hierarchy
are within the easy reach of the Yabshi men, who can
become Prime Ministers or other great dignitaries of state
provided they are judged to possess qualifications for
undertaking those high functions. Even when they do not
occupy such elevated positions, they at least hold posts
that are of next in importance. All the remarks about
the Yabshi apply to the families of the Dalai Lamas,
installed at Lhasa, for though the other Patriarchs at
Tashi Lhunpo also possess Yabshi of their own, they do
not enjoy the same privileges as the others. The descend-
ants of the Dalai Lama's relatives, and those of the former
King, may therefore be considered as forming in practice
the royal families of Tibet. These should, for convenience,
be set apart as a distinct class, though there are other
families that do not differ much from them in orisrin and
privilege. Of these, one called De-pon Gheha (families of
generals) represents the descendants of the generals and
tetoUCATIOlJ AUt) CASTES. 43'7
captains who rendei^ed distinguished services when Tibet
engaged in war. The merits of those warriors, long since
dead, obtain for their descendants great respect from the
public and they enjoy great privileges.
The next grade of the Peerage, but considerably below
these, consists of the descendants of families of great historic
renown, or of ministers of distinguished service. Though
occupying the lowest grade in the herald-book of the
Peerage, even the portfolio of the Premier is accessible to
these Peers, provided that they are men of ability.
In general, honor and ability seldom go together in
Tibet, for official posts are freely sold and purchased,
though buyers are limited. High officials of real ability
are even regarded as a nuisance by their colleagues, and
are liable to be dismissed through their intrigues. Such
being the case, by far the greater majority of high official
posts are held by men who have obtained them in exchange
for money.
The class that ranks next to Peers is that of the Ngak-pas
or miracle workers, who are the descendants of Lamas who
worked miracles, not the least of them being their
marriage in violation of the rules of Lama priesthood.
Those Lamas transmitted their 'hidden arts' exclusively
to this social grade, which thus possesses hereditary
secrets. The Ngak-pas play an important part in the social
organism of Tibet. For instance they are entitled,
as already mentioned, to levy the ' hail-tax ' in sunmiei',
and therefore to assume the function of administrators.
They are also held in great awe by provincials and
townsmen, as being magicians of power. The simple-
minded folk believe that if once they incur the displeasure
of a Ngak-pa they may be cursed by him, and therefore
may bring upon themselves some calamity. As I
mentioned before, the Ngak-pa people occupy the advan-
tageous position of being able to procure money in the
438 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
shape of proceeds of the ' hail-tax/ and of presents coming
from all classes of people. Strange as it may appear, the
Ngak-pa men, while commanding such advantages, are
notoriously poor ; they even stand as synonyms for poverty.
Their sole consolation is that they are conscious of the
great power they hold over all classes of people ; and even
Peers are often seen to dismount from horseback and give
a courteous salute when they happen to meet a beggarly
Ngak-pa in the street.
The third caste is the Bon-bo the name of an old religion
which prevailed in Tibet long before the introduction of
Buddhism. The priests of this practically extinct religion
were allowed to marry, and have left behind them the class
of people who represent this old social institution in Tibet.
The Bon-bo people have to play a certain distinct role
in public affairs. This is more of a ceremonial than of a
religious nature. It consists in worshipping local deities,
and undertaking ceremonies intended to secui'e their
favor. When people marry, they ask a Bon-bo man to
pray for them to their local deity. Sometimes he under-
takes other kinds of prayer or even performs symbohc
rites with a benevolent or malevolent aim, according to
circumstances. Families of this particular class are found
almost everywhere throughout the country, though in
limited nmnbers. In some remote villages, as Tsar-ka in the
Himalayas, all the villagers are said to belong to this class,
but in most cases only one or two families are found in one
village or in one district. In such cases the Bon-bo are
objects of great respect, and they sometimes act as local
magistrates or administrators. Even when they pursue
any other kind of business, they still command gi-eat
respect from their neighbors as descendants of ancient
families.
Though the Bon-bo are descendants of an old religious
order, their present representatives are no longer priests,
EDUCATION AND CASTES. 439
for they do not preach their tenets to others, nor try to
persuade them to become converts. They are simply con-
tent to hand down their ancestral teachings and traditions
to their children and so maintain their distinct position in
society. Not unfrequently the young Bon-bo enter the
priesthood, and these take precedence over all the other
Bon-bo. Strictly speaking the respect which the people
belonging to this particular class enjoy over others at
present is due to their honorable lineage.
The fourth class is " Shal-ngo " and is composed
of the descend'ants of ancient families who acquired
power in the locality on account of their wealth
in either money or land. The Tibetans are in general
a highly conservative race, and thbrefore they succeed in
most cases in keeping intact their hereditary property.
Their polyandrous custom too must be conducive to that
result, preventing as it does the splitting up of family
property among brothers.' By far the great majority of
the Shal-ngo people possess therefore more or less property;
and even a poor Shal-ngo commands the same respect from
the public as his richer confrere.
Common people are divided into two grades, one called
tong-ba and the other tong-du. The former is superior, and
includes all those common people who possess some means
and have not fallen into an ignoble state of slavery.
Tong-du means etymologically "petty people," and their
rank being one grade lower than that of others, the people
of this . class are engaged in menial service. Still they are
not strictly speaking slaves ; they should more properly
be considered as poor tenant-farmers, for formerly these
people used to stand in the relation of tenant-farmers to
land-owners, though such relation no longer exists.
Some tong-ba are reduced to more straitened circumstances
than the tong-du, but, generally considered, the tong-ba are
distinguished froni the others by the possession of property,
440 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
greater or less as the case may be, while poverty is a
special feature of the tong-du.
However low the tong-ba may fall in the worldly sense
of the word, and, on the other hand, however thriving
the tong-da may become, a strict line of demarcation still
continues to separate the two classes. Society continues
to treat them as before, and as if nothing had happened
in their relative fortunes. No ordinary people deign to
eat with one belonging to the tong-du class, nor do they
ever intermarry with them.
This strict rule of social etiquette is in force even among
the four divisons of the lowest class, that is to say, ferry-
men, fishermen, smiths and butchers. Of the four, the
first two rank higher than the other two. Thus, though
smiths and butchers are not permitted to eat in the same
room with common people, the other two classes are
allowed to do so, only they may not sit at table with a
privileged plebeian, but must eat or drink from their own
vessels.
It is hardly necessary to add that a strong ban-ier is set
up between these four kinds of social outcasts and the
ordinary common people, to prevent their intermarriage ;
a man or woman belonging to the latter class, who is so in-
discreet as to obey the bidding of his or her heart and to
marry one of the despised race, is socially tabooed from
his or her own kith and kin. This punishment is perma-
nent, and even when the bond of this mesalliance has been
dissolved by divorce, or any other cause, the fallen man or
woman can never hope to regain the caste which he or she
has forfeited. The mark of social infamy will follow him
or her to the grave.
It is curious, however, that the issues of these mes-
alliances form a social class of their own. They are called
tak ta ril, which means a ' mixed race produced by black and
white twisted together'. They occupy a position even
EDUCATION AND CASTBS. 441
lower than that of the four despised classes mentioned abovej
and are in fact the lowest caste in Tibet.
There is one interesting feature in regard to this rigid
canon of social caste, and that is the presence of gentlemen-
smiths, who, being men of a mechanical turn of mind, have
become smiths from preference. These gentlemen -
smiths do not forfeit their birth and rank on this
account.
Both by law and custom the higher classes enjoy special
privileges, and these go a long way. The children of
aristocrats, for instance, are entitled to exact from their
humbler playmates great respect and courtesy. When the
latter so forget themselves in their disputes and quarrels
with their noble associates as to use rough language, they
are at once punished, even when they are in the right. It is
evident therefore from what has been stated that a
plebeian, no matter how wealthy, is obliged to behave
respectfully under all circumstances to a man belonging to
the Ngak-pa or Bon-bo, even though the latter may be as
poor as a church mouse. As each social class forms
practically one distinct community with its own particular
etiquette, customs and so forth, ranks are more plainly
visible on the surface in Tibet than in most other countries.
The Tibetan proverb corresponding to the western saying
that " blood will out " gains a special significance when
applied to the state of affairs prevailing in that semi-
civilised country.
The aristocrats of Tibet are distinguished by noble
mien and refined manners. Conscious of their elevated
position, they possess on the whole a high sense of honor.
The other privileged castes occupying a lower plane, such
as the men of the Ngak-pa and Bon-bo races and the
descendants of ancient grandees, still bear the marks of
their respectable birth and can easily be distinguished
even by strangers from the common people.
442 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
The common people are plebeian in tlieir general
bearing and appearance, but one thing to their credit is
that they are known for strict honesty, and even extreme
poverty seldom tempts them into committing arts of
larceny. On the other hand, the lower classes or social
outcasts are notorious for their criminal propensities to
robbery and murder. In practice they are characteris-
ed by crime and wretchedness ; they are criminals and
beggars. Beggars in fact form a community of their own,
the profession being hereditary. These classes are deserv-
edly held in contempt by the public, and their faces
even seem to justify such treatment, for they are remark-
able for ferocity, depravity and vileness.
As I have mentioned before, lads belonging to the
higher ranks are entitled to enter G-overnment schools, but
the subjects taught there are at best imperfect. The
lessons consist only of learning by memory, penmanship
and counting. The first subject is the most important,
next comes penmanship, the latter receiving even a larger
allotment of hours than the other. Counting is a primitive
affair, being taught by means of pebbles, pieces of wood,
or shells. The subject matters of learning by memory are
Buddhist Texts, the elements of grammar, and lastly
rhetoric. This last is a subject of great ambition for
Tibetan scholars, who are just like Chinese in their fond-
ness for grandiloquent expressions. Documents to be
presented to the Dalai Lama and other high person-
ages bristle with high-flown phraseology and with
characters rarely used in ordinary writing, and not
found even in Buddhist Texts. The fact is that Tibetan
scholars at present hold strange ideas about writing, being
of opinion that they should aim at composing in a style
unintelligible to ordinary persons. The more characters
they can use which cannot easily be understood by others,
the better proof, they think, have they given of the
EDUCATION AND CASTES.
443
profundity of their scholarship. The most scholarly-
compositions are practically hierographic so far as their
incomprehensibility is concerned.
The birch-rod is considered to be the most useful imple-
ment in teaching; not exactly a birch-rod, however, but
a flat piece of bamboo. The cramming of difficult passages
of rhetoric being the principal mode of learning imposed
on pupils, their masters are invariably of opinion that they
must make free use of the rod in order to quicken their pupils
FLOGGING AS A MEANS OF EDUCATION
444 THREE YBAES IN TIBET.
progress. The relation between masters and pupils does
not differ much from that between gaolers and convicts.
The latter, poor fellows, hold their masters in such dread
that they find it exceedingly trying, at the sight of them
and their formidable pedagogic weapons, to compose their
minds and to go on unfalteringly with their lessons. They
cower with fear, and are filled with the perturbing
thought that the rod is sure to descend upon them for the
slightest stumble they make in the path of learning. The
ordinary way of using the rod is to give thirty blows with
it on the left palm of the pupil. Prudence counsels the
pupil to stretch out his hand with alacrity at the
bidding of his hard master, for in case he hesitates to do so
the penalty is generally doubled, and sixty blows instead
of thirty are given. It is a cruel sight to see a little pupil
holding out his open hand and submitting to the punish-
ment with tearful eyes. Surely this is not education but
mere cruelty.
I once made an earnest remonstrance on this subject
with the Minister of Finance who, in common with the rest,
used to teach his boys with a liberal application of
the rod. To do justice to the Minister, his method of
teaching was much more con.siderate than that of most of
his countrymen, and he very seldom resorted to rough
handling, such as binding pupils with cords over-night or
compelling them to go without dinner or supper. When
however I remonstrated with him on the ground that the
infliction of corporal punishment was entirely opposed to
all sound priuciples of education, he at first defended the
Tibetan system with great earnestness. We had a some-
what animated though courteous dispute on the subject ;
but at length, being a man of great candor of mind,
he seemed to perceive the merit of my position. At
any rate he ceased to use the rod as he did before, and
generally confined himself to giving a reprimand when
EDUCATION AND CASTES. 445
any of his boys went astray with his learning. The Min-
ister afterward informed me that his boys seemed to make
better progress when they were spared the rod.
Abuse is also considered as an efHcient means of edu-
cating boys. " Beast," " beggar/' " devil," " ass," " eater
of parents' Hesh," are epithets applied to backward boys by
their teachers, and this custom of using fotil language is
naturally handed on from teachers to pupils, who when they
grow up are sure to pass on those slanderous appellations to
the next generation.
While the education of the sons of laymen is conducted
with such severity, that of boy disciples by Lama priests
is extremely lenient, and is quite in contrast to that of the
others. The disciples are not even reprimanded, much
less chastised, when they neglect their work. The priests
generally leave them to do as they like, much as uxorious
husbands do towards their wilful wives, so that it is no
wonder that the disciples of Lamas very seldom make any
good progress in learning. They are spoiled by the
excessive indulgence of their masters. Some of these
masters own the evil of their way of education, and are
careful not to spoil the youthful pupils placed under their
care, and it is precisely from among these latter disciples
that priests of learning and ability may be expected.
The memorising part of the Tibetan system of education,
as mentioned above, is a heavy burden on the pupils. To
give some idea of what an important part this work
occupies in their system, I may note that a young acolyte,
who has grown to fifteen or sixteen years old, has to
commit to memory, from the oral instruction of his teachers,
from three hundred to five hundred pages of Buddhist
texts in the course of a year. He has then to undergo an
examination on what he has learned. Even for a lad of
weak memory, the number of pages is not less than one
hundred in a year. For those who have grown older, that
446 THBEE YEARS IN TIBET.
is for those whose age ranges between eighteen and thirty,
the task imposed is still more formidable, being five to eight
hundred and even one thousand pages. I was amazed at
this mental feat of the Tibetan priests, for I could barely
learn fifty sheets in six months, that being the minimum
limit allotted for aspirants of poor memory.
CHAPTER LXIV.
Tibetan Trade and Industry.
I shall now describe the trade of Tibet, though my
account must necessarily be imperfect for obvious reasons.
I shall begin with an interesting incident that occurred
to me in November, 1901, when I was enabled to send
home letters for the first time after my arrival in the
country. That was on the 18th of the month, and
through the agency of Tsa Rong-ba, a Tibetan trader with
whom 1 had become acquainted at Darjeeling. This man
started for Calcutta on Government business to buy iron, and
as I knew him to be trustworthy I entrusted him with a
letter addressed tQ Sarat Chandra Das, in which were
enclosed several others addressed to my friends and
relatives in Japan.
The iron which he was commissioned to procure was for the
purpose of manufacturing small arms at an arsenal sit-
uated at Dib near Che-Cho-ling, on the bank of the river
Kichu, which flows to the south of Lhasa.
This industry was an innovation in Tibet, and in fact had
begun only about eight years before that time. It was in-
troduced by a Tibetan named Lha Tse-ring who had lived
for a long time at Darjeeling and, at the request of
his Government, brought back with him about ten gun-
smiths, mostly Hindii and Cashmere Mohamedans. Only
two of these smiths remained in Tibet at the time I
reached Lhasa, the rest having returned home or died;
but as several of the Tibetan smiths had acquired the art
from them, no inconvenience was experienced in continu-
ing the industry. This was a great improvement on
the old state of affairs, for Tibet had formerly possessed
only flint-lock muskets, and even these could not easily be
448 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
introduced from India. The manufacture of improved
firearms was therefore a great boon to the country,
and the Government did not spare expense and trouble
to encourage the development of the art. Hence it came
about that my acquaintance was authorised by the Govern-
ment to pi'oceed to Calcutta and procure a supply of iron.
It ought to be mentioned that about this time the
departure of Tibetan merchants to foreign countries for
the transaction of business had become quite frequent.
They proceeded first of all to British India, next to
China, and lastly to the Russian territories. The trade
with the last was, however, quite insignificant as yet, and
whatever relations Tibet may have with Russia are in most
cases political and very rarely commercial.
I shall first describe the Tibetan trade with British
India and Nepal. ' '.
Of Tibetan products exported to India wool is the most
important, and next musk and the tails of yaks, fars
and leathers. Buddhist images and books, being liable to
confiscation when discovered, seldom go abroad, though
they are more or less in demand in India. Other goods
exported to India are insignificant. Formerly more or less
Chinese tea for consumption by the Tibetans residing at
Darjeeling used to go to India, but this is no longer
the case.
The quantity' of wool sent abroad is quite large. From
five thousand to six thousand mule-packs go to Darjeeling,
about one thousand five hundred to Bhutan, about two
thousand five hundred to Nepal and about three thousand
to Ladak. These figures are of course far from precise,
for (reliable official returns being wanting) I based my
estimates on information obtained from the traders. Besides
the figures given above, there are quantities, greater or less,
sent to China and also westward to Manasarovara, but as I
did not visit either district, and moreover had no means
TIBETAN TEADE AND INDUSTRY. 449
of making an estimate about them, 1 have nothing to say
on the sabject.
Musk is obtained in Tibet, but from a certain species of
deer and not from civet-cats. The musk-deer is found
almost everywhere in that countr)-. It is of about two
and a half times or three times the size of an ordinary
cat, and though resembling the Japanese deer in shape, it
is not so tall as the other. The musk-deer subsists on
herbage, and is covered with light and soft fur of a deep
grey color. It has an exceedingly amiable face indica-
tive of its mild nature. One characteristic feature is that
it has two small but pretty tusks somewhat curved project-
ing from the upper jaws. The musk is found only in
the male, and is contained in a little pouch attached
to the hinder part. A strange fact is that the pouch
is said to grow gradually in size from the beginning to the
middle of each lunar month and then gradually to be
reduced again until the end of the month, this periodic
change appearing with great regularitj^. The musk-deer
is therefore shot about the middle of the month, generally
between the 13th and 15th.
The musk-deer is shot with a gun, but in preserved
forests such as are found round about Lhasa and other
Buddhist headquarters, where shooting and hunting are
strictly forbidden on pain of severe penalties, hunters catch
the animal, clandestinely of course, by means of traps.
Though the deer is found almost everywhere in Tibet,
its principal habitation is in such remote districts as
Kong-bo, Tsai'i and Lo. Musk is very cheap in all those
districts, costing about one-tenth of the price given m
Japan. The musk produced there is also purer than that
produced in more prosperous places, for the people being
simple-minded do not tamper with it nor adulterate it with
other substances. The musk coming from Lo, for instance,
is especially reputed for purity and cheapness. The
57
450 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
district is inhabited by half-naked aborigines, who resemble
in outward appearance both Tibetans and Hindus, though
ethnologically they are more akin to the former than to
the latter.
The musk produced by these savages is bartered
against articles either of ornament or domestic utility,
such as mirrors, glass beads, iron pans, sickles, knives,
flour, confectionery and foreign trinkets.
Though the musk is obtainable at a very reasonable
price in these districts, the risks and dangers from high-
waymen which traders encounter on the road are so great
that only those who are uncommonly adventurous proceed
thither to get a supply from the natives.
The Tibetan musk is sent in larger quantities to China
than to India, notwithstanding the fact that transport to
the latter is easier. Almost all goods from Tibet to China
travel through Ta-chien-lu. However, even at present, more
or less is sent to Yunnan, whence Japan has been used to
obtain its supply. The so-called ' Yunnan -musk ' so much
prized in Japan therefore comes originally from Tibet.
The ' Blood-horn ' of the ' Precious deer 'is the most
valuable item among the commodities on the export list
to China. This horn makes a medicine highly valued by
Chinese physicians, being considered to possess the power
of invigorating the body, prolonging life and giving
lustre to the face. It is in fact used as an elixir by the
Chinese. The horn therefore commands a high price, and
even in Tibet a Chinese merchant will give as much as
five hundred yen in Japanese currency for a pair of good
horns. The inferior horns, however, can be bought at
even two or three yen a piece, these being used not for
medicine but only for ornament. Sharp, experienced eyes
are required to distinguish a good and valuable horn from
an inferior one, and even in Tibet there are not many such
experts.
TIBETAN TRADE AND INDUSTRY. 45 1
This special kind of deer is found in the wild districts
of the south-eastern and north-western parts of Tibet^
especially in the former. It is a large animal, larger than
an average horse, but in shape it resembles an ordinary
deer, only that it is plumper. As a rule it is covered with
greyish hair, though some are covered with fur of other
hues.
The horns are renewed every year, the growth beginning
from about January of the lunar calendar. The new horns
are covered with a hairy epidermis and consist of no-
thing but thickened blood. They continue to grow, and
about March or April produce one ramification. At
the same time the base becomes hard and bony,
whilst the upper parts remain of the same consistency as
before. They are further ramified and elongated
with the lapse of time, and the growth reaches its climax
by about September, after which the counter process
of decay commences and the horns, now grown quite long,
drop off about the middle of December. The largest
specimens I saw measured thirteen inches in length with
the main stem of about 1^ inches in girth, and even such
horns are completely covered with hairy integument.
The best season for the horns, that is when they are
medically most efficacious, is believed to be April or May,
and it is then that the natives go out to hunt the animal.
The shooting should be done with accurate aim so as to
drop the animal at once, and the hunters therefore gener-
ally aim at the forehead. This is owing to the fact that
when the animal is only wounded, instead of being
brought down by a single shot, he invariably knocks his
head against rocks or trees and breaks the precious horns
to pieces. About the month of April or Maj', the animal,
probabljr from the necessity of protecting his horns,
sojourns in less remote and rocky places, and this habit
makes him fall an easy prey to the hunter,
452 THREE YEARS IN TXBET.
I may mention that I brought home a fine specimen of
these horns which I bought at Lhasa. They are genuine,
for I had them judged by a competent expert.
The exports to Nepal comprise wool, yak-tails, salt,
saltpetre, woollen goods and a few other ai'ticles. To the
districts lying to the north-east of Tibet, that is to the
north-western parts of China and Mongolia, go various
kinds of woollen goods; Buddhist books also go largely to
Mongolia, as do also Buddhist images, pictures and various
paraphernalia. These, considered as objects of art, are
worthless, though formerly Tibet produced images and
pictures of high artistic standard. The contrast between
old and new images and pictures, both of which are to be
seen in most temples in Tibet, is sufficiently glaring, for
the latter are as a rule clumsy performances, offensive to
the taste and also to the sense of decency, being invaria-
bly bi-sexual representations of men and women with one
common body. I was once struck with the notion that the
Tibetans are characterised by four serious defects, these
being : filthiness, superstition, unnatural customs (such as
polyandry), and unnatural art. I should be sorely
perplexed if I were asked to name their redeeming points ;
but if I had to do so, I should mention first of all the fine
climate in the vicinity of Lhasa and Shigatze, their sonor-
ous and refreshing voices in reading the Text, the animat-
ed style of their catechisms, and their ancient art. But
to cut short my digression, and to resume the description
of Tibetan trade, I must next give an account of the import
business.
Of the imported goods, those coming from India are
mostly in evidence. Among them may be mentioned
woollen cloth for decorating the rooms of temples and for
other uses, silk handkerchiefs, Burma crepes, Benares
brocades, silk tissues, and cotton fabrics. White cotton
piece-goods are mostly in demand, next piece-goods of
TIBETAN TRADE AND INDUSTEY. 453
light blue and of russet color. Figured chintzes of various
patterns are also imported more or less.
Imports from China comprise first of all silk fabrics of
sundry kinds, as brocades, tussore silk, crepes and satins
of various kinds. Silver bullion and drugs are also
imported, but in respect of value tea stands first on the
list of Chinese imports. From what I have roughly
estimated, the quantity of tea arriving at Lhasa alone will
cost not less than six hundred and fifty thousand yen a year
approximately, while the import to Eastern Tibet, which
is more thickly inhabited than the other half of the coun-
try, must of course reach a larger figure, for the Tibetans
are great tea-drinkers and both high and low imbibe a
large quantity of the beverage all through the year. The
poorest people, who cannot afford , to buy, are satisfied
with a thin decoction obtained from the refuse of the tea-
pots of wealthier people. Tea is rather costly, for one brick
of inferior quality measuring about one foot long, '6^
inches wide and three inches thick costs two i/en seventy-
five sen at Lhasa; a brick consisting of only leaves with-
out any mixture of twigs cannot be obtained at less than
five yen. The prices rise as we go westward, owing to the
cost of transportation, and for a brick costing two yew
seventy-five sen at Lhasa as much as three yev twenty-five
sen has to be paid in Western Tibet.
The imports from Bhutan or Sikkim comprise tussore-silk
goods, woollen fabrics, and cotton goods.
Then from India, Kashmir, or Nepal are imported copper
utensils, grains, dried grapes, dried peaches, dates, medical
drugs, and precious stones of various kinds, as diamonds, ru-
bies, agates, turquoises and corals. Of these turquoises
and corals are the most important, being widely used by
the Tibetans as a hair decoration. 'For this purpose the best
quality of turquoises are even more prized than diamonds,
and a good turquoise of the size of the tip of the small
454 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
finger fetches as much as one thousand two hundred yen.
Coral without spots is rather rare^ and most of those seen
on the heads of the Tibetan women are spotted more or less.
The Tibetans are fond of the reddish or deep reddish variety,
which are not popular, among the Japanese. Superior
kinds come from China, and one good coral ball from China
commands from one hundred and twenty to two hundred and
thirty yen. Indian specimens are usually inferior in quality.
Coral-beads are also imported from that country. Glass
beads do duty for corals for poorer folk, and imitation corals
made in Japan are sold also. These were formerly
passed off as genuine by dishonest merchants, and were
sold at comparatively speaking fabulous prices. They are
now taken at their proper value. Cheap foreign fancy
goods and Japanese matches also find their way to Tibet
through India.
Several queer customs prevail in Tibet concerning
business transactions. The mode of selling woollen and
cotton piece-goods is particularly singular. The standard
of measurement is the length of the two outstretched
hands, while another measurement based on the length
from the elbow to the tip of the fingers is also used. This
measurement is determined by the buyers, so that a large
person enjoys the advantage of getting a longer measure,
while the merchant is subjected to so much disadvantage.
However, this primitive mode of measurement is generally
applied to the native products only, as for foreign cloth
the unit of measurement is a square, each side of which is
equal to the breadth of the cloth to be sold. This is called a
kha, and akhavaries with the breadth of each piece of cloth.
Very seldom are native merchants honest in their deal-
ings; even the most trustworthy ask a price ten to twenty
per cent higher than is reasonable, and the price asked by
the more dishonest is really monstrous, being double or
even as much as five or six times the real rate.
TIBETAN TRADE AND INDUSTRY. 455
Another interesting feature in Tibetan transaction.? is the
blessing- which the merchants bestow on anything which
people buy from them. The most common formula of bless-
ing is to this effect : " May the goods you have bought from
me avert from you disease or any other suffering ; may your
purchase bring good luck and prosperity, so that you may
grow richer, build storehouses, and buy more and more
goods from us ! "
The blessing accompanying the parting with sacred
books is more ceremonious. The merchant reverentially
lifts the book over his head in both hands, and then hands
it over to the purchaser (a priest in most cases) with this
blessing :
" May your reverence not only seek the true light from
this sacred work, but may you conduct yourself according
to that light, so that you may attain better intelligence,
wisdom and morals, and fit yourself for the holy work of
salvation, for the good of all beings ! "
The purchaser has also a ceremony to perform in this
transaction, and I must confess that his performance is
more obviously selfish, outwardly at least ; for in handing
the price he just touches the dirty coin with his tongue,
then wipes it on the neck of his "garment, and finally hands
it to the merchant after having cast upon it one lingering
glance indicative of his reluctance to part with it. This
act of licking and wiping signifies that the purchaser has
licked off and wiped away for his own benefit all the good
luck that was contained in that piece. The coin that goes
to the merchant is therefore considered as a mere empty
thing, so far as the virtue that was originally contained
in it is concerned.
Though these tedious processes are omitted by big
merchants, such as those engaged in dealing in tea, all
the others faithfully observe them, especially those in the
country.
456 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
It may be supposed that with so little to export and so
much to import, the country would be impoverished. This,
however, is not the case, as I shall explain. Tibet has been
used to obtain a large amount of gold from Mongolia — more
as donations to Tibetan Lamas than as the price paid for
Tibetan goods. This influx of gold from Mongolia has
done much thus far in enabling the country to keep the
balance of her trade. She therefore cannot adopt an
exclusion policy economically, even though she may without
much inconvenience to do so politically. In fact the
enforcement of economic exclusion would be followed by
serious internal trouble, simply because it would put a stop
to the inflow of gold from Mongolia.
However, so far as this Mongolian gold is concerned, it
seems as if circumstances were about to bring Tibet to a
result tantamount to the enforcement of economic exclusion,
for since the war between Japan and China and especially
since the Boxer trouble the inflow of Mongolian gold to
Tibet has virtually ceased, so much so that the Mongol-
ian priests who are staying in Tibet for the prosecution
of their studies are sorely embarrassed owing to the
non-arrival of their remittances from home. Some of them
have even been obliged to suspend regular attendance
at lectures, and to seek some means of earning their liveli-
hood, just as the poorer native Buddhist students are
accustomed to do.
Another thing that adds to the economic diiSculties of
the Tibetans is their tiendency to grow more and more
luxurious in their style of living, a tendency that began to
be particularly noticeable from about twenty years ago.
This has been inevitably brought about by the foreign trade
of Tibet and the arrival of goods of foreign origin. All
these circumstances have impressed the Tibetans with the
necessity of extending their sphere of trade with foreign
countries instead of confining their commercial operations
TIBETAN TKADE AND INDUSTRY. 457
within the narrov/' bounds of their own country. The con-
sequence is that a larger nuinber of the inliabitants have
begun to proceed eveiy year to China, India, and Nepal on
commercial enterprises.
Now suppose that Tibet should prohibit her people em-
barking in this foreign trade, what would be the conse-
quence ? In the first place she would be unable to
get any supply of goods from India, China and other
countries, goods which are now articles of daily necessity
for her people. This, though sufficiently hard, might
be endured ; but what would be unendurable would
be the closing of Indian markets to the wool of Tibet, India
being the most important consumer of this staple produce
of the country. More wool being produced than can
be reasonably consumed at home, the close of foreign
markets is certain to bring down prices, and therefore to
rob the sheep-fai-mers, or more properly the nomadic people
of that country, of the greater part of the income they are
at present enabled to get from their wool. The supply for
food is, on the other hand, less than the demand, and as
the prices of this essential of life cannot be e.xjDected to go
down in proportion to those of wool, the sheep-farmers
who constitute the greater part of the whole population
would be threatened with starvation.
The incoming of gold from Mongolia being suspended,
Tibet cannot, even if she would, out off her commercial
relations with the outside world.
Urged by necessity, trade is advancing with great
strides, judging at least from the larger number of
people engaged in it, for as matters stand at present the
Forbidden Land may without exaggeration be considered
as a "nation of shop-keepers".
In fact all the people, with the exception of those
who are disqualified through physical defects and age,
are engaged in business of one kind or tvnother, Eveij
68
458 THBIE YEARS IN TIBET.
ffii-mers are partly traders. In winter when farm-work is
slack they proceed to northern Tibet to lay in their stock
of salt, obtained from the salt lakes that are found there.
Then these men start for Bhutan, Nepal or Sikkim, to sell
their goods in those places.
Priests are not too proud to deal with secular dollars and
cents, and monasteries often trade on a large scale.
The G-overnment itself is a trader, not directly, but
through its regular agents, who in virtue of the important
trust reposed in them enjoy various privileges, such as
the liberty to requisition horses for carrying their goods or
to take lodgment gratis.
Peers are also traders, mostly by proxy, though some of
them refrain from making investments and are content to
subsist on the income derived from their land. None the
less the business spirit permeates the whole Peerage, and
even these non-trading Peers are ready to make small
bargains now and then. Suppose a visitor to a Peer's house
takes a fancy to some of the furniture or hall decoration in
it. In such a case it is not considered impolite for the
visitor to ask the host the price of that particular article,
and to ask him, if the price is considered reasonable, to
sell it to him. Nor is it thought derogatory for the host
to sell his belongings, and so the bargain is struck when
both parties can come to terms. The whole proceed-
ing is conducted with the shrewdness and vigilant
attention to details which characterise regular business-
men.
It is interesting to note that even boy-disciples in
monasteries are traders in their own way, and do not
hesitate to invest their money whenever they happen to
notice in the shops or other places articles that appeal to
their fancy. These they bring home and either sell,
(generally at a large profit) to other boys, or exchange for
other objects.
TIBETAN TRADE AND INDUSTRY.
469
PRIEST TRADERS LOADING THEIR YAKS.
460 THEEE YBAES lU TIBET.
One great evil attends this propensity, and that is the
danger of stimulating cunning practices, each party trying
to impose upon the other in all those dealings.
CHAPTER LXV.
Currency and Printing blocl<s.
Commodities are either bartered or bought with regular
coins. I should more strictly say the coin, there
being only one kind of coin, and that is a twenty-four
sen silver piece. That is the only legal tender cur-
rent. Transactions have to be conducted therefore in a
rather complicated manner, inasmuch as that coin admits
of being divided in two ways only. In the first place it
may be cut into two, thereby producing two twelve-«ew
pieces ; or it may be divided into a f piece and a J piece, the
former passing at sixteen sen and the latter at eight. The
cutting is far from being exact, and cut pieces are in most
cases perforated iu the centre or worn down at the edges.
These however are passed and received without complaint.
In Lhasa and other prosperous places the unit of
transactions is four sen, but there being no four-sen piece
one must take with him in making a purchase of four sen
one I piece valued- at sixteen sen, and receive in return
for it one | piece valued at twelve sen. When the seller
happens not to possess this one-half piece, the buyer
then produces one ^ piece and one § piece, and receives in
return for the two one whole piece called a tanka which is
valued at twenty-four sen. For a purchase of eight sen a
buyer produces one tanka and receives a |- piece in change.
The unit of transaction being four sen there are six grada-
tions of value between this minimum and a tanka, each
possessing a distinct denomination. Thus four sen is called
a khaltang, eight sen a karma, twelve sen a chyekka, sixteen
sen a shohang, twenty sen a kahchi and twenty-four sen a
tanka.
462 THREE YBAES IN TIBET.
In less prosperous places, and indeed everywhere except
in Lhasa and Shigatze, it is impossible to make a purchase
of less than one tanka, owing to be the absence of divided
pieces of smaller value.
In some places are found silver pieces which are locally
circulated, as in the north-western steppes which form the
boundary line between Tibet and India. These pieces are
serai-circular in shape, but are not accepted in the G-rand
Lama's dominions.
Here I should like to recount what occurred to me in
my monetary dealings. It was not an ordinary transaction,
but a sort of blackmail carried out at my expense.
I have spoken before of the prodigal son of the house of
Para. One day this man sent his servant to me with a
letter and asked for a loan of money, rather a large sum for
Tibet. Of course he had no idea of repaying me, and his
loan was really blackmail. I sent back the servant with
half of what he had asked, together with a letter. I was
told that he was highly enraged at what I had done,
exclaiming that I had insulted him, and that he had not
asked for the sum for charity, and so on. At any rate he
sent back the money to me, probably expecting that I
would then send him the whole sum asked for. But I did
not oblige him as he had expected, and took no notice of
his threat. A few days after another letter reached me
from that young man, again asking for the sum as at first.
I decided to save myself from further annoyance and so I
sent the sum. Like master, like servant; the latter, having
heard most probably from his spendthrift master that I
was a Japanese, came to me for a loan or blackmail of fifty
yen. I gave that sum too, for I knew that they could not
annoy me repeatedly with impunity.
About that time I chiefly devoted my leisure to collect-
ing Buddhist books, for I had a fairly large amount of
money. I must] remark here that Buddhist works not in
CURRENCY AND PRINTING BLOCKS. 463
ordinary use are not sold by booksellers in Tibet ; tliey
are kept in the form of blocks at one monaster}- or anotlujr,
and any person who wishes to get a copy of any of such
works must obtain from the owner of the copyright
permission to get an impression of it. In return for
this permission an applicant has to forward some fee and
some donation to the monastery which owns and keeps the
particular set of blocks from which he wishes to get an im-
pression or impressions, this donation generally consisting of
a quantity of tussore silk. The fee, more or less differing in
rate according to monasteries and kind of blocks, ranges
from about twenty-five sen to about one yen twenty sen
per hundred sheets. The permission obtained, the appli-
cant next engages either three or six printers, two printers
and one assorter forming a special printing party, so to
say. Wages for the men are generally fifty sen a day
without board, and as they work in a very dilatory manner,
the cost of printing is rather heavy. The paper used in
printing is of native origin, made of a certain plant, the
leaves and roots of which are poisonous. The roots are
white and produce excellent tough fibres. The Tibetan
paper is therefore sufficiently strong and durable, but is
not white, owing to bad bleaching.
Booksellers in Tibet, at least so far as I observed at
Lhasa, do not sell their books at their own houses, but
at open stalls in the courtyard in front of the western door of
the great temple-shrine of the Budcjha Shakyamuni, called
Oho Khang. I saw ten such bookstalls in Lhasa and two
or three at the bazaar in Shigatze, and those stallkeepers
arranged their stock in trade in heaps instead of leaving
their books open to invite inspection, as booksellers of
other countries do. .
The books which I collected either through purchase, or
by getting special impressions from the original blocks,
were at first kept in my room at the Sera monastery, and
464 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
my collection was a subject of wonder and curiosity to the
priests who were quartered in the rooms not far from my
own. The collectioUj they were heard saying to each
other, contained three times as many books as even a
learned doctor possessed in Tibet, and they could not but
wonder how I, a student from a remote country, could
carry home so many books. I therefore kej^t all my
subsequent purchases in my room at the house of my host,
in order to avoid suspicion.
Meanwhile the end of the month of December drew
near and at last the New Year's eve arrived. I made an
arrangement to keep the day according to the Japanese
custom. Accordingly I sent my boy to the Sakya Temple
in the city with clarified butter to make an offering of
light to the Buddha enshrined in the edifice. This is
done by putting clarified butter into the gold lamps placed
before the tabernacle. Any one who wishes to make this
offering has simply to. pay in the usual charge of two tanka
to the keepers of the edifice, and on that particular
occasion I therefore sent my boy with two tanka pieces.
1 arranged my own room in a manner suitable to the
occasion. I hung a roll on which was painted an image of
Buddha, set in front of it a tiny sacred tabernacle, then
three stands of silver lamps, and lastly various offerings.
After the preliminary service had been concluded,
I .began, after the hour of midnight, a regular service
and kept it up till four in the morning of the New Year's
Day. Then I performed a ceremony in order to pray for
the prosperity of their Imperial Majesties the Emperor and
Empress, H. I. H. the Crown Prince, and also for the
greater prosperity and glory of the Empire of Japan. I
thought that during the three thousand years that had
elapsed since the founding of the Empire this must be the
first time that one of its own subjects had offered such a
prayer in that city of the Forbidden Land ; then a strange
CUEEBNCY AND PETNTING BLOCKS.
465
sensation came over me, and somehow I felt grateful tears
rising in my eyes.
As I turned my eyes outward, while continuing the
service, I noticed the New Year's sun beginning to ascend
in the eastern sky, reflecting its golden rays on the snow
that covered the surrounding hills and plains. Nearer
before my eyes and in the spacious court of the monastery,
several snow-white cranes were stalking at leisure, now
and then uttering their peculiar cry. The whole scene
NEW YEAR'S READING Of THE Tf^CTS FOP THE JAPANESE EMPEROR'S WELFARE.
59
466 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
was exquisite and quite captivating ; how I should have
liked to invite my own countrymen to come and share this
pleasure witli me ! The service, the thought about my
dear home, th<^ snow-scbne, the cranes, and the New Year's
Day — these roused in me a chain of peculiar sentiments at
once delightful and sad, and this strange association of
thoughts I embodied on that occasion in a couple of awk-
ward utas freely rendered into prose thus : —
" Here on this Roof of the World and amidst the
ascending dawn heralded by the cry of the cranes, I
glorify the long and prosperous reign of our sovereign
liege who reigns over his realm in the Par East.
"I hear in the garden of the holy seat the voice of the
pure-white cranes, glorifying the triumph of the Holy
Religion. "
CHAPTER LXVI.
The Festival of Lights.
On January 4th, 1902, that is to say, on November 25th
of the lunar calendar, the festival of Sang-joe commenced,
this being the anniversary day of the death of Je Tsong-
kha-pa the great Lamaist reformer. This may be called the
"Festival of Lights," every roof in Lhasa and in all
the adjoining villages blazing with lights set burning
in honor of the occasion. Hundreds, even thousands of
such butter-fed lights were burning on the roofs of
monasteries, and presented a unique sight, such as is
rarely seen in other parts of the world.
The Sang-joe is one of the most popular festivals,
and lasts for two weeks. It is the season when the
Tibetans, priests and laymen, give themselves up to great
rejoicing, when dancing, singing and feasting are the
order of the day, and when people put on their gala
dresses.
The arrival of the season is announced by an interesting
custom, a sort of religious blackmail, enforced at the
expense of people of position from about the second
decade of the month of November according to the lunar
calendar. According to this custom every person enjoys
the privilege, for the sake of the coming festival, of
begging a present of money from any superior in rank or
position who may visit his house. Even people of good
position and means do not think it beneath them to
exercise this privilege of begging. I myself felt the eifect
of this custom and was obliged to present here a tanka
and there two tanka. In this way I spent about five yen
in Japanese money during this season of public begging.
I did not doubt it when I was told by some acquaintance
468 thkee yeaes in tibet.
that my Sang-joe item next year would be threefold
what it was in the present year, owing to the enlargement
of the circle of my acquaintances.
The religious side of Sang-joe is a sort of vigil, performed
every night from about midnight to early dawn, the
service consisting of the reading in company of holy
Texts. This midnight ceremony is a solemn aifair which
every person in the monastery is obliged to attend.
As I attended this ceremony in the Sera monastery I
was highly impressed with the solemnity of the function,
and felt that the peculiarly subdued tones of the chanting
exerted upon my mind a powerful effect. It seemed to
me as if angels were conducting the service.
The whole surroundings were in keeping with the
solemnity of the occasion. The lofty hall was hung with
tapestries of glittering brocade and satin ; the pillars were
wound with red woollen cloth with floral designs in blue
and white ; while on the walls and from the upper parts of
the pillars were hung religious pictures regarded as
masterpieces in Tibet. All these were lighted up by
several thousand lamps containing melted butter, the
lamps shining bright and clear with pure-white rays, not
unlike those of gas-burners.
Sitting in the hall amidst such sacred surroundings,
and listening to the chanting of the holy Texts, thoughts
of profound piety took possession of ray mind, and I felt
as if I were transported to the region of IBuddha.
The Sang-joe is also a great occasion of alms and charity,
and the priests, especially the acolytes and disciples, go
round at dawn to collect alms in the temple when the
service is concluded. The people being more generously
disposed at this season than at other times give quite
liberally. I am sorry to say that this pious inclination
'on the part of the people is often abused by mis-
chievous priests, who do not scruple to go, in violation of
THE FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS. 469
the rules, on a second or even third or fourth round of
begging at one time. I was astonished to hear that the
priests who are on duty to prevent such irregular practices
are in many cases the very instigators, abetting the
younger disciples in committing them. The ill-gotten
proceeds go into the pockets of those unscrupulous ' in-
spectors'' who, urged on by greed, even go to the extreme
of thrashing the young disciples when they refuse to go
on fraudulent errands of this particular description. Now
and then the erratic doings of these lads come to the
ears of the higher authorities, who summon them and
inflict upon them a severe reprimand, together with the
more smarting punishment of a flogging. The incorrigible
disciples are not disconcerted in the least, being conscious
that they have their protectors in the official inspectors,
and of course they are immune from expulsion from the
monastery.
These mischievous young people are in most cases war-
rior-priests. These warrior-priests, of whom an account
has already been given, are easily distinguished from the
rest by their peculiar appearance and especially by their
way of dressing the hair. Sometimes their heads are shaved
bald, but more often they leave ringlets at each temple,
and consider that these locks of four or five inches long
give them a sinai-t appearance. This manner of hair-
dreSsing is not approved by the Lama authorities, and
when they take notice of the locks they ruthlessly pull
them off, leaving the temples swollen and bloody. Pain-
ful as this treatment is, the warriors rather glory in it, and
swagger about the streets to display the marks of their
courage. They are, however, cautious to conceal their
' smart ' hair-dressing from the notice of the authori-
ties, so that when they present themselves in the monas-
tery they either tuck their ringlets behind the ears or
besmear their faces with lamp-black compounded with
470 THREE YEABS IN TIBET.
butter. When at first I saw such blackened faces I
wondered what the blackening meant, but afterwards I
was informed of the reason of the strange phenomenon
and my wonder disappeared as I became accustomed to
the sight.
I am sorry to say that the warrior-priests are not merely
offensive in appearance ; they are generally also guilty
of far more grave offences, and the nights of the holy
service are abused as occasions for indulging in fear-
ful malpractices. They really seem to be the descendants
of the men of Sodom and Gomorrah mentioned in the
bible.
They are often quite particular in small affairs. They
are afraid of killing tiny insects, are strict in not step-
ping over broken tiles of a monastery when they find
them on the road, but walk round them to the right, and
never to the left. And yet they, and even their superiors,
commit grave sin without much remorse. Really they
are straining at gnats and swallowing camels.
There lived once in Tibet a humorous priest named Duk
Nyon, a Tibetan Rabelais, who was celebrated for his
amusing though none the less sensible way of teaching..
This priest met on the road a priest of the New Sect, and
it may be imagined that sharp repartees must have been
exchanged between the two. On the road Duk Nyon
noticed a small stone, which he carefully avoided
and instead of walking over it walked round it.
Next they came to a big rock, which hardly admitted
of walking over. The humorist stooped low to give
momentum to his body and the next instant he jumped
over it. His companion marvelled at this strange
behavior of Duk Nyon ; he could not understand why he
should have avoided a small stone and then should jump
over a large one. So the New Sect priest bantered Duk
Nyon on what he considered a silly proceeding, but Duk
THE FESTIVAL OF LIGHTS. 471
Nyon replied that he had been merely giving an object-
lesson to the New Sect folk, who were meticulously exact
about small things, but were wont to leap over grave sins
without remorse. The story goes that his companion was
much abashed at this home-thrust of the humorist. This
witty remark of the old priest may be said to hold true
even at the present time, for though the Sang-joe presents
a solemn and impressive front outwardlj^^ it is full of
abominable sights behind the scenes. It is merely a season
of criminal indulgence for the warrior-priests and other
undesirable classes.
CHAPTER LXVII.
Tibetan Women.
Aa the position of women bears a vital relation to the
prosperity and greatness of a country, I shall devote a
chapter to this subject. Of the women of Tibet those
residing in Lhasa are regarded as models of Tibetan
womanhood, and they therefore demand most attention.
First let me describe the Lhasa ladies, beginning with
their mode of dress.
It is interesting to note that the women's garments 'do
not differ much in appearance from those of men ; both
are cut in the same way, and the only perceptible difference
in appearance, if difference it be, is that women are
attired with more taste and elegance than men. Another
distinguishing mark in Tibetan attire is a sash, a narrow
band about an inch and a half wide and eight feet long,
terminating at one end in a fringe. The sash is not tied,
as in Japan, but is merely wound round the body with the
end tucked in. Some persons wear a belt made of a piece
of silk cloth, passing it three times round the body.
The ladies of Lhasa dress their hair somewhat like their
sisters of Mongolia, though this fashion is not followed by
those in Bhigatze and other parts of Tibet. They use a
large quantity of false hair, imported from China, their
natural supply being rather scanty. The hair is divided
into two equal parts down the middle, and each half is
plaited into a braid and left flowing behind. The ends of
the braids are tied with red or green cords with f ringed
knots, and these two cords are connected by other
beaded cords, the cords consisting usually of seven or eight
threads on which pearls are strung as beads with a larger
pearl or turquoise in the middle,'
TIBETAN WOMEN.
473
They also wear a head-ornament made of turquoises
or corals, with one large piece surmounting the rest ; and
they put on the middle of the head a cap made of small
pearls. Then there are usually golden ear-rings and a
breast ornament (which may cost as much as three or four
thousand yen), besides a necklace of precious stones.
The pendant is generally a miniature golden tabernacle
which may cost from two hundred to three hundred, yen.
The arms are decorated with bracelets, the right one made
of pretty shells and the left one of engraved silver. I
must not omit to mention that all the Lhasan women, both rich
and poor, use an apron, which in the case of the ladies is
made of the best Tibetan wool woven in variegated hues.
Finger-rings are comparatively plain, being generally of
silver, excepting those worn by ladies of the highest class.
Shoes are also pretty, and are made of red and green
woollen fabrics.
With all their splendid attire, the Lhasan ladies follow
a strange custom in their toilet, for they often paint their
faces, not with white powder as their sisters of other coun-
tries do, but with a reddish-black substance. The Tibetans
think that th» natural color of the flesh peeping from
underneath the soot adds ver'y much to the charm of the
appearance.
The complexion of the Lhasan women is not quite fair,
but very much resembles that of their Japanese sisters.
In general appearance too the two cannot be easily disting-
uished, but the women of Lhasa, and indeed of all Tibet,
are taller in stature and stronger in constitution than the
women of Japan. Indeed one hardly ever finds in Tibet
women who are so short and frail as are the average
Japanese ladies. The Tibetan ladies being moreover
attired in loose and capacious garments look very imposing.
The ladies of the higher classes have fair complexions
and are as pretty as their sisters of Japan.
6Q
474 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
The women of Kham and the surrounding districts are
especially fair-complexioned, but they generally lack
attractiveness, and look cold and repellent. Their way of
speaking also strikes one as inelegant and uninviting.
In contrast to them, their sisters of Lhasa are charming
to look at, and full of attraction. Their only defect is that
they lack weight and dignity, such as commands respect
from others, and their daily conduct is not quite edifying.
For instance, they do not mind eating while walking in
the streets. They are also excitable^ or pretend to be
excited by trifling circumstances, are prone to flirt and to
be flippant, and seldom possess such nobleness as befits
women of rank. If one criticises them severely, one
would say that they are more like ballet-girls than ladies
of high station. They are therefore objects more to be
loved and pitied, than to be respected and adored.
Altogether they lack character. Probably this singular
defect may have been brought about by the polyandrous
custom of the country.
There are manj' things which I might cite to the discredit
of the fair sex of Tibet, but of these I will single out only
two, their -love of liquor and their uncleanly habits. Un-
cleanliness is, it is true, universal in Tibet^ but it naturally
stands out more conspicuously in contrast to the general
habits of women in other countries, especially in Japan.
Most of the Tibetan women are content with simply washing
their faces and hands, but this washing is seldom extended
to other parts of the body; the ladies of the higher classes
however, are less open to this charge; having no parti-
cular business, they have plenty of time to devote to their
toilet.
That which is particularly noteworthy about the women
of Tibet, and probably constitutes their chief merit, is
their great activity, both in the matter of business and
also in other respects. The women of the middle and
TIBETAN WOMEN. 47^
lower classes, for instance, regard trade as their own
proper sphere of activity, and they are therefore very
shrewd in business of every description. They even choose
their husbands from a business point of view.
As ladies are not required to engage in such kind of
work, their activity is more shown in the form of counsels
to their husbands, whether invited or not. It seems that
the Tibetan ladies enjoy great influence over their hus-
bands, for not only are they allowed to have a voice in the
affairs of men, but are often taken into confid'ence by them
about matters of importance.
The ladies, perhaps, command even more leisure than
their sisters in other countries. They have practically no
special and public duties, while their domestic cares are
also very light, as they do not undertake sewing. Sewing
is considered in Tibet as men's work, and even for a little
stitching they rely on the tailor. Nor do the ladies of
Tibet care much about weaving and spinning, though some
women of the lower classes pursue either one or both as
their regular profession. Spinning is done with primitive
distaffs, and is a tedious and awkward process, incapable
of producing yarn of an even and fine size. Yarns such as
are produced by spinning jennies are never obtained from
native distalfs.
The condition of Tibetan women with regard to men,
especially in the provinces, may be considered as surpassing
the ideal of western women, so far as the theory of equality
of rights between the sexes is concerned. For their stout
sisters of Tibet enjoy from the public almost equal treat-
ment with men. They receive, for instance, equal wages
with men, and indeed there is nothing wonderful in this
when it is remembered that the women of Tibet, being
strongly built and sturdy, can work just as well as the
rougher sex, and therefore are perfectly entitled to receive
the same remuneration. These women, though looking
476 THEEE YEARS IN TlhET.
modest and lovely, are nevertheless very courageous at
heart, so that when they fall into a passion their husbands
are hardly able to keep them under control. They rage
like beings possessed, and no soothing words or apologies
can pacifj' them. Cases in which husbands were apologis-
ing on bent knees to wives furious with passion often
came to my notice while I was staying in Tibet. They are
demure as cats when they are at peace, but when their
passion is roused they are dreadful as tigers. They are
very selfish and really rule the roost. What is worse, they
are not always faithful to their husbands, but regard acts
of inconstancy as something of quite ordinary nature ; and
they are often audacious enough to lay the blame on the
shoulders of their poor hen-pecked husbands, alleging their
inability to support their own wives !
The whole attention of the Tibetan women is concentrated
on their own selfish interests, and they do not care a straw
for the good of their husbands so long as they are satisfied.
The shrewdness they exercise in promoting their own
selfish aims is something remarkable. From the highest to
the lowest, they are allowed to have their own savings,
more or less, according to their position and circumstances,
and fortified with that source of strength they receive a
decree of divorce from their husbands without any sense of
regret. They will, in that case, pack up their belongings
and leave their husbands' doors with alacrity.
On the other hand, Tibetan women are extremely
affectionate and considerate to the men of their own
liking, as if to make amends for their lack of virtue to-
wards the husbands they do not love. They lavish their
love upon them, devote their whole attention to pleasing
them, and spare neither pains nor money to anticipate their
wishes and so to give them satisfaction. In short, the
women of Tibet seem to possess two antagonistic qualities,
and are disposed to run to extremes.
TIBETAN WOMEIil. 4'77
Perhaps this apparent anomaly comes from their immoral
habitSj and also from the fact that the sensfe of chastity in
women must have been seriously affected by the polyand-
reus custom of the country. Though sufficiently shrewd
to.protect their own interests, they are never self-dependent;
they invariably lean on the help of one man or anothei",
even when they have sufHoient means at their disposal to
support themselves and their children. If a husband dies
and leaves his widow and children enough to live on, very
rarely does the bereaved woman remain faithfn.1 to the
memory of her departed husband. Only very ugly or old
women remain widows ; all the rest marry again with
indecent haste. Indeed the idea of fidelity to the husband
of her first love never seems to enter the mind of even a
well-educated woman, for such stories of faithfulness as
are common in other countries are conspicuous by their
absence in Tibet.
I shall touch only briefly on the occupations of Tibetan
women of the middle and lower classes. The women in
the provinces attend to farming and rear cattle, sheep or
yaks. But the commonest business for them is the making
of butter and other substances obtained from milk, the
process being in this wise: first the milk is. subjected to
heat, and then left to cool till a coating of cream appears on
the surface. This cream is skimmed off, and to the re-
mainder a quantity of sour milk is added and the mixture
left for about a day in a covered vessel. The mixture becomes
curdled, and this curdled milk is transferred to a narrow
deep vessel and a small quantity of lukewarm water is
added to it. A piece of wood of the same shape as, and in
size slightly smaller than, the vessel is put into it, and is
moved up and down by a handle. When the curdled mass
is sufficiently churned in this way, the fat begins to
separate from the watery portion. According to the
condition of that separation, more or less lukewarm water
478 tHKee yi)abs jiJ tiUet?.
is added and the stirring is resumed, till the butter-fat
and water are completely separated. The butter is
then strained, and the remainder is boiled till coagulated
clots appear, easily separable from the sour watery portion.
These clots are known as chttra, and they are very nice .to
eat. The water or whey, though sour, is not unpalatable,
and is especially good for quenching thirst. The chura
is used either fresh or in a dried form, the latter corres-
ponding to the cheese used by western people.
CHAPTER LXVIII.
Tibetan Boys and Qirls.
Boys enjoy better treatment in Tibet than their sisters,
this discrimination beginning soon after their birth. Thus
the naming ceremony is almost always performed for boys
and very seldom for girls. Though differing more or less
according to localities, this naming ceremony is generally
performed after the lapse of three days from the time of
birth. One strange custom about the birth is that a baby
is never washed, nor is there a regular midwife. The only
thing done to the new-born baby is the anointing of its
body (especially the head) with butter, this being carried
out twice a day. As this anointing is rather copiously
applied, the Tibetan baby may perhaps be described as
being subjected to butter-washing.
On the naming-day, a priest is asked to perform the
ceremony. The process commences with the sprinkling of
holy water on the baby's head. The water is first blessed
by the priest, and a quantity of yellow powder made of
the saffron flower is then added to it.
The name is generally determined according to the day
of the birth, and especially according to the nomenclature
of the days of the week. For instance a boy or a girl who
is born on Sunday is named Nyima, this meaning
Sun in Tibetan. The babies born on Monday bear
the common name of Dawa ; those on Saturday Penba ;
those on Friday Pasang ; and so on. This general use of
the same names giving rise to confusion, a specific individual
surname has to be given to each baby. The individual
appellation either precedes or follows the common desig-
nation. One baby bears the name of Nyima-Chering
480
THREE YEAES IN TIUK'l".
\\ /^^-.M ^ -^"-^
NAMING CEREMONY OF A BABY.
TIBETAN BOYS AND GIELS. 481
meaning " Sun longevity," another Dawa-pun-tsuok,
meaning " Moon-all-perfection."
The choice of such individual names is usually made by
the Lama who attends the ceremony, or is determined by
an oracle-consultor, and only rarely by the- father of the
baby.
Sometimes the week nomenclature is disregarded and
names of abstract meaning are given to the babies ; some-
times also names of animals are used. On the whole the
surnames are of an abstract nature as in the case of
Japanese names. I may add that the boys take a religious
name when they enter the priesthood.
On the naming-day of boys a great feast is held in
honor of the occasion, and the relatives and friends of the
family are invited to it. These of course bring with them
suitable presents, such as casks of liquor, rolls of cloth, or
money. The ceremony and the banquet that accompanies
it are chiefly observed by people residing in or near a city,
for in the provinces only wealthy people can afford to
follow this custom.
When the naming ceremony is concluded, the officiating
priest reads a service, in order to inform the patron deity
of the place or of the family of the birth of a baby, and of
the fact that that baby has received such and such a name,
and praying that the baby shall be taken under the
protection of that patron deity. This service may be
undertaken by a priest of either the New or Old Sect or
by an oracle-consulter. The last named functionary per-
forms with his own hand all the ceremony of name-giving,
when a baby is born to him, and does not entrust this
business to another priest.
The beginning of school-attendance is another great
occasion for boys, and it arrives when the boy attains the
age of eight or nine. This day also is celebrated with a
feast, to which the relatives and friends of the house are
61
482 THBEE YEARS IN TIBET?.
invited, and these present to the boy a kata, which the
boy hangs around his neck with the two ends suspended
over his breast. If the boy is sent to a teacher residing
at some distance from his home, he leaves his paternal roof
and lives under that of his master ; but when his master
lives in the neighborhood he daily attends his lessons from
home.
The other great occasions for boys are at the end of
school life, and the admission to official service, the latter
requiring a ceremony of far greater importance and a more
splendid banquet than the other.
The ceremonies performed for tlie benefit of female child-
ven are fewer in number than those for their brothers.
Generally only one ceremony is performed, this being
a festival for celebrating the advent of girlhood, and
consists of dressin'g her hair for the first time since
her birth. The dressing is done in a simple style. The
hair is tied and made to hang down behind in four
braids, surmounted with a pretty hair ornament made
of red coral and turquoises. On this occasion a large
number of people are invited to a feast, and these
bring to the house various kinds of presents.
Boys' amusements are much like those in Japan. In
winter, for instance, they play at snow-balling, and in
summer their favorite sport is wrestling. Throwing stones
to a distance, pitching at a target with a stone, skipping,
either singly or in company, hitting from a distance a
small piece of hardened clay with another piece, or the
striking out from a circle marked on the ground a silver
piece placed in its ventre by means of a stone or any other
hard object — these are some of the popular games of boys.
Sometimes both boys and girls join in theatricals. Ball-
games are now and then seen, but not often. Horse-riding
too is a great amusement for boys, but only the sons of
rich families can indulge in this. Poorer boys have to con-
TIBETAN BOYS AND GlBLS. 48^^
tent themselves with mounting on improvised horseSj such
as rocks or logs of wood.
The Tibetan girls do not differ much from those of
other countries in preferring quiet and refined games to
the rough sports of their brothers. Dolls are a favorite
amusementj and then singing, which is either theatrical
(Aje-lhamo) or religious (Lama-mani). The latter is
associated with an interesting custom, and is an imitation
of " Lama-mani," who go about the country singing
or reciting in quaint plaintive tones the famous deeds
of the Buddha, or high priests, or even great warriors.
These Lama-manis do not use instruments, but possess
pictures illustrating the popular historical accounts of
those mighty persons. The Tibetan girls sing those
pieces, in imitation of the recitation of the minstrels, one
girl acting as conductor and the rest of the juvenile
company reciting in chorus, with now and then a
religious chant interposed.
I may mention here that Lama-manis are quite
numerous in Tibet. In winter and when the field work is
suspended, they go on tour in the provinces, but about
the month of May, when the field-work is resumed and
the provincials are busy with it, the minstrels return to
Lhasa and. ply their trade there. Their arrival at the
capital generally coincides with the appearance of the red
dragon-flies, so these flies are popularly known by the
rather respectable name of ' Lama-mani.'
CHAPTER LXIX.
The Care of the Sick.
The tending of sick persons is a task assigned to women
in Tibet, and the peculiar notions prevailing about the
treatment of patients makes this task doubly onerous.
Tibetan doctors strictly forbid their patients to sleep in the
day-time, and so those who tend th^m have to follow this
injunction of the doctors and keep the unfortunate patients
awake. The patients are not allowed to lie in bed but are
made to remain leaning upon some supports specially
prepared for them. One or more nurses sit by their sides
to give them any help they need, and above all to
prevent them from going to sleep. These nurses cannot
long stand the strain of constant watching, and therefore
they are relieved in turn, to resume the task after they
have taken more or less rest. The nurses faithfully attend
to their duty, are very quiet so as not to annoy the patients,
wakeful as they are, and above all to satisfy any of their
wants, to comfort and humor thena, and also to keep the
rooms clean. This cleaning must be judged strictly by a
Tibetan standard, for viewed from the Japanese standpoint
it hardly deserves the name. The patients are also kept
comparatively clean, considering the general filthy habits
of the Tibetans. The eif ect of this insanitary condition at
once makes itself felt to the olfactory sense of a foreigner
who is accustomed to more perfect arrangements at home,
for as soon as he enters the room a peculiar offensive smell
greets his nose.
But the. most important and tiresome part of the nursing
duty is to keep the patient awake, aud sometimes nurses
are specially appointed to attend to this work. These
nurses keep beside them a bowl containing cold water and
THE CAEE OF THE SICK. 485
one or two wooden sprinklers. When the patient is about
to fall asleep, a nurse sprinkles water on his face^ and this
has the effect of preventing sleep. When this water-
sprinkling fails, the nurse embraces the patient from
behind and slightly presses him forward. Sometimes
they call the patient by name and cause him to recover
consciousness. The patient is thankful for the trouble
taken by the nurses, being well aware that they do it in
obedience to the doctor's orders, and from their wish to
ensure his recovery.
The idea that a patient must not be allowed to sleep in
the day-time is strongly impressed on the minds of
Tibetans, both professional and non-pi-ofessional. The
doctors enjoin both on him and on the nurses to observe this
point strictly as the first essential for his recovery, and any
person who comes to visit him first of all gives a similar
warning. " Don't allow' him to fall asleep, " repeats the
visitor to the nurses, and reminds them that they are
principally responsible for carrying out faithfully this
cardinal necessity in the treatment of the patient.
When a patient dies, the neighbors suspect that his
nurses may not have been strict enough, and must have
suffered him to fall asleep !
I tried to find out the reasons that have brought about
this strange medical custom, and it was easy for me to
make enquiries, having been obliged to play the part of a
quack doctor through the earnest importunities of the
simple-minded Tibetans. So far as I could ascertain from
those enquii'ies, the idea seems to be that patients suffering
from some diseases are. liable to develop more fever when
they sleep in the da;y-time, while patients suffering from a
local disease, resembling dropsy, not unfrequently die while
asleep or while in a state of coma. It seems to have been
derived from some cases that occurred some time in the
past, the unscientific doctors of Tibet having jumped to a
486 THBEE YEAES IN TIBET.
general conclusion from certain specific occurrences. I
need hardly add that this non-sleep prescription is
efficacious (if ever it is efficacious at all) for the Tibetans
only. When at times I suffered from disease while in
Lhasa I slept as freely as I wished, and of course I found
myself feeling all the better for it.
The fact is that, in Tibet, superstition plays a far more
important part than medicine in the treatment of diseases.
People believe that a disease is the work of an evil
spirit which enters the body of a person, and therefore
they conclude that that spirit must first be exorcised
before a patient may be entrusted to the care of a doctor.
There being various kinds of evil spirits, some high
Lama must be consulted in order to determine which
particular one has possessed a given patient. A priest
before whom the matter is brought consults books on
demonology, then pronounces that the disease is the work
of such and such an evil spirit, and that for exorcising
him such and such a service must be performed.
The consulting priest may specify the name of a Lama
when the service to be read is one of importance, but when
it is an ordinary one it may be performed by any Lama.
At the same time the consulting priest issues directions
about medical treatment — that a doctor should be called
in after the service has been performed for so many days,
or that such and such a doctor should be invited
simultaneously with the religious performance, or that
medical aid may be dispensed with altogether.
These directions are given orally when the Lama who
issues them is one of secondary position, but when he is
one of exalted rank the directions are written by one of
his attendants and the sheet is authenticated by the mark
of his own seal.
The Tibetans put implicit faith in the directions issued
by such high Lamas, and follow them literally. For
THE CARE OF THE SICK. 487
instance, when the Lama directfs them not to seek the aid
of medicine, say for the first five days, and orders the
patient only to perform the rites of exorcism during that
period, they are sure to do so. A patient, who might have
recovered had the aid of medicine been at once iiivoked,
may then die, but his family will never blame the Lama
for it. They will rather hold him in greater respect than
before, attributing to him an extraordiuaiy power of
foresight. They will say that he had foreseen the
hopelessness of th^e patient's case, and therefore told them
not to take the unnecessary trouble of calling in the aid of
a doctor until after the lapse of five days. The reverend
priest knew, they think, that the patient would die by that
time. Anybody who should dare to hold the Lama
responsible for the death of the patient would run a
serious risk of being denounced by the faithful believers
as a heretic and as a person of depraved mind. Even
those who at heart condemn the mischievous and fatal
meddling of the priests in the case of diseases prudently
keep silence, for fear of calling down upon themselves the
wrath of the fanatical populace.
To speak the truth, the Tibetan doctors hardly deserve
to be trusted. The word ' doctor ' as applied to them is
a gross outrage on the noble science, for they possess
merely the knowledge (and this too of a very shallow kind)
of the primitive medicine of ancient India. As even that
knowledge is the result of oral instruction transmitted
from father to son for many generations, and not acquired
from studying medical works or from investigation, the
Tibetan ' doctors ' are utterly incompetent for the important
function assigned to them.
The doctors practically possess only one stock medi-
cine, which is the root of a certain poisonous herb called
tsa-tuk in Tibet. Being a strong stimulant it is a fatal
in a large dose, and even a limited quantity causes a
488 THREE TEAES IN TIBET.
temporary paralysis of the different parts of the body and
sometimes violent diarrhoea. A change of any kind is
likely to be taken as a hopeful sign by patients^ and so the
Tibetan doctors always use more or less of this drug for
all kinds of illness, just as the Japanese doctors were
accustomed to use liquorice-root in olden days.
Knowing as I do how untrustworthy and even danger-
ous the prescriptions of Tibetan doctors are, I some-
times thought that if the choice between the two evils had
to be made I should rather recommend to -sick people an ex-
clusive reliance on prayers and faith-cure instead of on the
risky medicines prepared by these quacks.
CHAPTER LXX.
Outdoor Amusements.
There are various methods of feasting in Tibet, but the
one which appeals most strongly to the fancy of the people
and is, I think, the most refined, is the Lingka. This is a
sort of garden party held in woody places situated in the
outskirts of the city of Lhasa.
The Tl.'ibetans seldom behave respectably and with
courtesy when they meet in a social reunion j too frequently
on such, occasions disputes or even quarrels are liable to
occur. But in a Lingka party all those who participate in
it behave with decorum, and even people who are generally
regarded as quarrelsome characters appear genteel and
affable in deference to the best tradition of the country.
A Lingka carried out by a party of warrior-priests is suffi-
ciently animated, but very seldom do they mar the occasion
with unseemly quarrels.
The places where this refined amusement is held are, as
before mentioned, situated very close to the city, and are
found in all directions except the south, where flows a
river. In the remainder of the circuit woods and groves
are scattered here and there, and also patches of velvety
lawns. Some of the groves are enclosed and are attached
to the private villas of wealthy people, but there are plenty
of groves and lawns which are left open to the public.
These lawns and groves present a charming appearance
in spring, and the people of Lhasa, after having been
chained to the town through the desolate and dreary scenes
of winter, feel themselves inspired with a new life when
they meet again on turf which is resuming its vigor and
putting on a new coat of velvet. There are peach-trees
with their buds about to burst open, while by the' streams
(58
490 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
may be seen willow-trees with their elegant pendant twigs
covered with fresh green leaves.
The whole city of Lhasa finds its heart beating with a new
life, as it were, in agreeable harmony with the fascinating
surroundings of nature. The season of pure and innocent
amusements has arrived, and the people, urged on by the
natural cravings of their hearts, sally forth to the fields in
small parties or large, and enjoy themselves with picnics.
The picnic outfit comprises baked flour, fried vegetables
or meats, cheese, raisins, dried peaches, dried animal flesh,
sacks of liquor and tea-sets. There are two kinds of native
liquors, one being made of barley or wheat and the other of
rice. Of the two the foi'mer is used to a greater extent than
the latter. The barley liquor is brewed in a very simple way,
A certain quantity of barley, generally at the rate of one
sho of the grain to five sho of the liquor, is roasted, then
left to cool, and while it is being cooled a quantity of malt
is added, and the mixture is put in a jug and kept in a
warm place. In three days the mixture is converted into
yeast, and to it water is added and thoroughly stirred.
The liquor is then ready, and it is ladled out as occasion
requires, or the whole watery portion is strained and put
in another vessel. In brewing a superior kind of the
liquor, only about two sho of water is added to one sho of
the grain and the strained liquid is left to ripen for some
weeks. This superior liquor is used only by wealthy
people.
The ordinary barley liquor is very weak and does not in-
toxicate unless a large quantity is drunk. The climate too
being comparatively cool and the atmosphere very dry, the
fumes of the liquor soon disappear even when a man has
imbibed a large quantity.
So, prepared with all those provisions, the parties spread
their mats on the turf, and enjoy themselves to their hearts'
contents from nine in the morning to six in the afternoon.
. OUTDOOK AMUSEkEiSTTS.
491
i^^^'^%\\\\\V\^^-
A PICNIC PARTY IN SUMMER.
■ Let US suppose that a carpet is laid on the velvety
lawn in a wood, and that there are liquors and delicacies
to which the party will help themselves. There will also
be singing and dancing. Dancing is generally accom-
panied by vocal music, and it occupies in the eyes of
Tibetan people a very important place on the programme
of a public function of this kind. Everybody appears to
think that there is nothing more enjoyable in life than the
art of cadenced steps and graceful postures. Even the
country people who from lack of opportunities cannot
learn the art, appreciate and enjoy it just as well as the
inhabitants of cities. Strangers like myself do not see any
great merit in tlie Tibetan dancing, but to their eyes it is
certainly amusing. In short, the picnic is a source of
most refined relaxation to the Tibetans, for on such
occasions they sing and dance, they drink the best of
liquors and eat the best of delicacies, their enjoyment
very much enhanced by the exquisite environment. Here
492 theee ykabs in tibit.
flows a limpid current drawn from the river Kicliu and on
its banks are gambolling and running children and adults.
There stand majestic snow-capped peaks with their slopes
covered with verdant forests. Lhasa indeed seems to
justify at such time its classic name of the 'Ground of
Deities '.
The above description applies to a picnic given by people
of the higher classes, but their inferiors also have picnics
of their own.
The picnics got up by people of the lower classes are of
course less refined, and the amusements include the
drinking of liquors, gambolling, and maybe wrestling.
Tibetan wrestling possesses a peculiarity of its own, quite
distinct from that prevailing in Japan. The wrestlers
generally keep apart from their antagonists and do not
tug and close in as do their confreres of Japan. Very
seldom does a Tibetan wrestler aim at throwing down his
antagonist, the contest consisting in the use of the arms.
The picnickers also amuse themselves with competitions of
stone-flinging, which is a favorite game of the warrior-
priests, and sometimes they try a foot-race. Dancing is
a favorite item of amusement in the picnics of the vulgar
folks also, and it does not differ much in form from that
of people of the higher circles, though it somewhat lacks
elegance and at times it even strikes one as scandalous.
Still, one beautiful point about the picnics even of the
lower people is that very seldom does a quarrel or any
such unseemly incident mar the sweet pleasure of the
occasion, and it is evident that the changsn of the lingka
exerts upon them a high moral influence and indirectlj-
leads them to good. Whether for people of the higher
circles or for their inferiors, among the changsas the lingka
is the purest and most refined of their amusements and
is the one most conducive to fraternal feeling and good
fellowship.
CHAPTBK LXXI.
Russia's Tibetan Policy.
Before proceeding to give an account, necessarily imper-
fect, of Tibetan diplomacy, I must explain what is the
public opinion of the country as to patriotism. I am sorry
to say that the attitude of the people in this respect by no
means does them credit. So far as my limited observation
goes, the Tibetans, who are suilioiently shrewd in attending
to their own interest, are not so sensitive to matters of
national importance. It seems as if they were destitute of
the sense of patriotism, as the term is understood by
ordinary people. Not that they are totally ignorant of
the meaning of " fatherland," but they are rather inclined
to turn that meaning to their own advantage in jareference
to the interest of their country. Such seems, in short, the
general idea of the politicians of to-day.
The Tibetans are more jealous with regard to their
religion. A few of them, a very limited few it is true,
seem to be prepared to defend and promote it at the expense
of their private interest, though even in this respect the
majority are so far unscrupulous as to abuse their religion
for their own ends. In the eyes of the common people,
religion is the most important product of the country, and
they think therefore that they must preserve it at any
cost. Their ignorance necessarily makes them fanatics
and they believe that any one who works any injury to their
religion deserves death. The Hierarchical Government
makes a great deal of capital out of this fanatical tendency
of the masses. The holy religion is its justification when
it persecutes persons obnoxious to it, and when it has
committed any wrong it seeks refuge under the same holy
name. The Government too often works mischief in the
494 TaBEE YEAKS IN TIUDT.
name of religioiij but the masses do not of course suspect
any such thing — or even if they do now and then harbor
a suspicion, they are deterred from givipg vent to their
sentiments, for to speak ill of the religion is a heinous
crime in Tibet.
I have already stated how in general the Tibetan
women are highly selfish and but poorly developed in the
sense of public duty. One might naturally suppose that
the children born of such mothers must be similarly
deficient in this important point. I thought at first that
the Tibetan men were less open to this charge than their
wives and sisters, but I soon found this to be a mistake.
I found the men not much better than the women, and
equally absorbed in their selfish desires while totally
neglecting the interests of the State. A foreign country
knowing this weak point, and wishing to push its interests
in the Forbidden Land, has only to form its diplomatic
procedure accordingly. In other words, it has merely to
captivate the hearts of- the rulers of Tibet, for once the
influential Cabinet Ministers of the Hierarchical Government
are won over, the next step will be an easy matter. The
greedy Ministers will be ready to listen to any insidious
advice coming from ou.tside, provided that the advice
carries with it literally the proper weight of gold. They
will not care a straw about the welfare of the State or the
interest of the general public, if only they themselves
are satisfied.
However, foreign diplomatists desii'ing to succeed in
their policy of gaining influence over Tibet must not
think that they have an easy task before them. Gold is
most acceptable to all Tibetan statesmen, but at times
gold alone may not carry the point. The fact is that
Tibet has no diplomatic policy in any dignified sense of
the word. Its foreign doings are determined by sentiment,
which is necessarily destitute of any solid foundation, but
Russia's tibetan policy. 495
is susceptible to change from a trivial cause. A foreign
country which has given a large bribe to the principal
statesmen of Tibet may find afterwards that its enormous
disbursements on this account have been a mere waste of
money, and that the recipients who were believed to have
been secured with golden chains have broken loose from
them, for some mere triviality. It is impossible to rely
on the faith of the Tibetan statesmen, for they are entirely
led by sentiment and never by rational conviction.
The Muscovites seem to conduct their Tibetan policy
with consummate dexterity. Their manoeuvres date from a
long time (at least thirty years) back, when Russia's activity
towards Tibet began to attract the public attention of
the Powers concerned. Russia has selected a highly
effective instrument in promoting her interest over Tibet.
There was a Mongolian tribe called the Buriats, which
peopled a district far away to the north-east of Tibet towards
Mongolia. The tribe was originally feudatory to China,
but it passed some time ago under the control of Russia.
The astute Muscovites have taken great pains to insinuate
themselves into the grateful regard of this tribe. Contrary
to their vaunted policy at home, they have never
attempted to convert the Mongolians into believers of the
Greek Church, but have treated their religion with a
strange toleration. The Muscovites oven went farther and
actually rendered help in promoting the interests of the
Lamaist faith, by granting its monasteries more or less
pecuniary aid. It was evident that this policy of Russia
originated from the deep-laid plan of captivating the
hearts of the priests, whose influence was, as it still is,
immense over the people. From this tribe quite a large
number of young priests are sent to Tibet to prosecute their
studies at the principal seats of Lamaist learning. These
young Mongolians are found at the religious centres of
Ganden, Rebon, Sera, Taslii Lhunpo and at other places.
496 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
There must be altogether two hundred such students at
those seats of learning ; several able priests have appeared
from among them, one of whom, Dorje by name, became a
high tutor to the present Dalai Lama while he was a
minor.
This great priest obtained from the Hierarchical Govern-
ment some twenty years ago the honorable title of " Tsan-
ni Kenbo, " which means an " instructor in the Lamaist
Catechism." There were besides him three other instruc-
tors ; but he is said to have virtually monopolised the confid-
ence of the young Lama Chief. Nor was this confidence
misplaced, so far as tbe relation of teaching and learning
was concerned. For the Mongolian priest surpassed his
three colleagues both in ability and in learning, and as he
omitted no pains to win the heart of. his little pupil, the
latter was naturally led to hold him in the greatest estima-
tion and affection.
The Tsan-ni Kenbo returned home when, on his pupil's
attaining majority, his services as tutor were no longer
required. It is quite likely that he described minutely the
results of his work in Tibet to the Russian Government,
for it is conceivable that he may have been entrusted by it
with some important business during his stay at Lhasa.
Soon the Tsan-ni Kenbo re-visited Lhasa, and this time
as a priest of great wealth, instead of as a poor student, as he
was at first. He brought with him a large amount of gold,
also boxes of curios made in Russia. The money and
t'.i.e curios must have come to him from the Russian
(jovernment. The Dalai Lama and his Ministers were the
recipients of the gold and curios, and among the Ministers a
young man named Shata appears to have been honored
with the largest share. The name of the Tsan-ni Kenbo
had been remembered with respect since his departure
from Lhasa, and his re-appearance as a liberal distributor
of gifts completed his triumph.
Russia's tibetan policy. 497
The Dalai Lama was now ready to lend a willing ear to
anything his former tutor represented to him^ while the
friendship between him and the young Premier grew so
fraternal that they are said to ha.ve vowed to stand
by each other as brothers born. The astute Tsan-ni did not
of course confine his crafty endeavors to the higher circles
alone; the priest classes received from him a large
share of attention^ due to the mighty influence which they
wield over the masses. Liberal donations were therefore
more than once presented to all the important monasteries of
Tibet, with which of coarse the priests of these monas-
teries were delighted. In their ej^es the Tsan-ni was a
Mongolian priest of immense wealth and pious heart,
and the idea of suspecting how he came to be possessed
of such wealth never entered their unsophisticated minds.
So they had nothing but unqualified praise for him.
When at rare intervals some inquisitive priests asked the
Government officers about the origin of the Tsan-ni's
fortune, the latter would inform them with a knowing
look that the Mongolian Lama was regarded with some-
thing like regal respect by his countrymen, who vied with
each other in presenting gold and other precious things
to that venerable priest. There was nothing strange
about his acquisition of wealth. And so the Government
and priesthood placed themselves at the feet of the Tsan-
ni and adored him as their benefactor.
The Zaune's programme of ' conquest ' was really
comprehensive and included a general plan intended for
the masses. It was based on an old tradition of Tibet and
involved no extra disbursements on his part. It must
be remembered that a work written in former times by some
Lama of the New Sect contained a prophetic pronounce-
ment— a pronouncement which was supported by some
others — that some centuries hence a mighty prince would
make his appearance somewhere to the north of Kashmir,
63
498 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
and would bring the whole world under his sway, and under
the domination of the Buddhist faith. Now KashmJr and
the places near it are districts of great natural beauty
and delightful situation, and Buddhism once attained a
high prosperity in them, before they were subdued by the
Muhammadan conquerors. This would-be " prophet " must
have concluded a priori that as the faith had once prevail-
ed there, therefore it must one day recover its original
prosperity. Starting from this peculiar surmise the prophet
jumped to the conclusion that the place, from its advan-
tageous natural position, must in some remote future make
its power felt through the world, and that this would be
achieved by some powerful prince.
This announcement alone was not sufficiently attrac-
tive to awake the interest of the Tibetans, and so
the imborn prince was represented as a holy incarna-
tion of the founder of the national religion of Tibet,
Tsong-kha-pa, and his Ministers were to he incarna-
tions of his principal disciples, as Jam yan Choeje,
Chamba Choeje and Gendun Tub. The prophet went into
further details and gave the name of the future great
country as "Chang Shambhala;" Chang denoting "north-
ward" and "Shambhala" the name of a certain city or
place, if I remember rightly, to tlie north of Kashmir.
With a precision worthy of Swift's pen, the prophet
located the new Buddhist empire of the future at a distance
some three thousand miles north-west of Buddhagaya in
Hindustan, and he even described at some length the route
to be taken in reaching the imaginary country. This
Utopian account has obtained belief from a section of the
Tibetan priest-class, and some of them are said to have
undertaken a quest for this future empire, so that they
might at least have the satisfaction of inspecting its cradle.
Now the Tibetan prophet bequeathed us this important
forecast with the idea that when the Tibetan religion
Russia's tibetan policy. 499
degt'iieratedj it would be saved from extinction by the
appearance of tbat mighty Buddhist prince^ who would
extend his benevolent influence over the whole world.
I should state that this announcejnent is Avidely acoejited
as truth by the common people of Tibet.
The Tsan-ni Kenbo was perfectly familiar with the
existence of this marvellous tradition, and he was not slow
to utilise it for promoting his own ambitious schemes.
He wrote a pamphlet with the special object of demons-
trating that "Chang Shambhala" means Russia, and that
the Tsar in the incarnation of Je Tsong-kha-pa. The Tsar,
this Russian emissary wrote, is a worthy reincarnation
of that venerable founder, being benevolent to his people,
courteous in his relations to neighboring countries, and
above all endowed with a virtuous mind. This fact and
the existence of several points of coincidence between
Russia and the country indicated in the sacred prophecy
indisputably proved that Russia must be that country,
that anybodjr who doubted it was an enemy of Buddhism
and of the august will of the Founder of the New Sect,
and that in short all the faithful believers in Buddhism must
pay respect to the Tsar as a Chang-chub Semba Semba
Chenbo, which in Tibetan indicates one next to Buddha,
or as a new embodiment of the Founder, and must obey
him.
Such is said to be the tenor of that particular writing of
the Tsan-ni Kenbo. It seems to exist in three different
versions, Tibetan, Mongolian and Russian. I have not
been -able to see a copy, but it was from the lips of a trust-
worthy person that I gathered the drift of the
exposition given in the pamphlet. Indeed the Tsan-
ni^s pamphlet was preserved with jealous care by
all who had copies of it, such care as is bestowed by
a pious bibliographer on a rare text of Buddhist writing.
I knew several priests who undoubtedly possessed copies of
500 THREE YEAfiS IN TIBET.
the pamphlet, but I could not ask permission to inspect
them, for fear that such a request might awake their
suspicion. The one from whom I confidentially obtained
the drift of the writing told me that he found in it
some unknown letters. I concluded that the letters must
be Russian.
Tsan-ni Kenbo's artful scheme has been crowned with
great success, for to-day almost every Tibetan blindly be-
lieves in the ingenious story concocted by the Mongolian
priest, and holds that the Tsar will sooner or later subdue
the whole world and found a gigantic Buddhist empire.
So the Tibetans may be regarded as extreme Russophiles,
thanks to the machination of the Tsan-ni Kenbo.
There is another minor reason which has very much
raised the credit of Russia in the eyes of the Tibetans ; I
mean the arrival of costly fancy goods from that country.
Now, the fancy goods coming from British India are all
clieap things which are hardly fit for the uses for which
they are intended. The reason is obvious; as the Tibetans
cannot afford to buy goods of superior quality, the mer-
chants who forward these to Tibet must necessarily select
only those articles that are readily marketable. The goods
coming from Russia, on the other hand, are not intended
for sale ; they are exclusively for presents. Naturally
therefore the goods coming from Russia are of superior
quality and can well stand the wear and tear of use. The
ignorant Tibetans do not of course exercise any great
discernment, and seeing that the goods from England and
Russia make such a striking contrast with each other they
naturally jump to the conclusion that the English goods
are trash, and that the people who produce such things
must be an inferior and unreliable race.
I hfeard during my stay in Tibet a strange story the
authenticity of which admitted of no doubt. It was kept
iis a great secret and occurred about two years ago. At
Russia's tibetan policy. 501
that time the Dalai Lama received as a present a suit of
Episcopal robes from the Tsar, a present forwarded through
the hands of the Tsar's emissary. It was a splendid garment
glittering with gold and was accepted, I was told, with
gratitude by the Grand Lama. The Tsar's act in giving
such a present to hiui is open to a serious charge. If the
Tsar presented the suit as a specimen of an embroidered
fabric, then that act amounted to sacrilege, for the Bishop's
ceremonial robe is a sign of a high religious function, and
when a person receives it from the superior Head of the
holy church it means that that person has been installed
in* the seat of a Bishop. On the other hand if the Tsar
presented the suit from religious considerations his act is
equally inexplicable and deserves condemnation, for he
must have been perfectly aware that Lamaism is an entirely
distinct religion from the State religion of Russia, and
that the chief of the Tibetan religion therefore htm nothing
to' do with such an official garment. It was really a
strange transaction. On the part of the recipient there
were extenuating circumstances. The fact is, he must
have been entirely ignorant as to the real nature of the
present. He must have accepted it merely as a costly
garment with no special meaning attached to it. I am
certain he would have rejected the offer at once had he had
even a faint inkling of its nature^ He was therefore a
victim of ignorance and perhaps of imposition, for the Tsan-
ni Kenbo, who knew all about this present, must have
made some plausible explanations to the Dalai Lama when
the latter asked him about it. Shata, the Premier and
bosom friend of the Tsan-ni, probably played some part in
the imposture.
Who is Shata ? Shata, whose name I have before
mentioned, is the eldest of the Premiers, and comes from one
of the most illustrious families of Tibet. His house stood
in hereditary feud with the great monastery Tangye-ling
502
THBEE YEARS IN TJBET.
whose headj Lama Temo Rinpoche, acted as Regent before
the present Dalai Lama had been installed. At that time
the star of Shata was in the decline. He could not even
live in Tibet with safety^ and had to leave the country as a
voluntary exile. As a wanderer he lived sometimes at
Darjeeling and at other times in Sikkim. It was during this
period of his wandering existence that he observed the
PRIME MINISTER.
administration of India by England, and heard much about
how India came to be subjugated by that Power. Shata
therefore is the best authority in Tibet about England's
Indian policy. His mind was filled with the dread of
EnglsCnd. He was overawed by her power and must have
trembled at the mere idea of the possibility of her crossing
the Himalayas and entering Tibet, which could hardly
RUSSIA'S TIBETAN POLJCY. 503
hope to resist the northward march of England^ when
once the latter made up her mind to invade the land. He
must have thought during his exile that Tibet would have
to choose between Russia and China in seeking foreign
help against the possible aggression of England. Evident-
ly therefore he carried home some such idea as to Tibetan
policy when affairs allowed him to return home with safety,
that is to say, when his enemy had resigned ohe Regency
and surrendered the supreme power to the Dalai Lama.
Shata was soon nominated a Premier, and the power he
then acquired was first of all employed and abused in
destroying his old enemy and his followers. The mal-
administration and unjust practices of which those followers
had been guilty during the ascendancy of their master
furnished a sufficient cause for bringing a serious charge
against the latter. The poor Temo Rinpoche was arrested
for a crime of which he was innocent, and died a victim
to his enemy, as already told.
Shata is an unscrupulous man and is resourceful in
intrigues. But he is nevertheless a man of vigorous mind
and does not hesitate about the means, when once he makes
up his mind to compass anything.
He is the best informed man in Tibet, comparatively
speaking, in diplomatic affairs, and so he must possess a
certain definite view about the foreign policy of Tibet,
and his pro-Russian tendency must have come from his
strong conviction, though this conviction rested on a
slender base. This tendency was of course stimulated and
encouraged by the Tsan-ni Kenbo, who did not neglect to
work upon the other's inclination when he saw that it was
highly favorable to him. Shata on his part must have
rendered help to his Mongolian friend when the latter
wished to offer the strange present to the Dalai Lama. I
do not say that the other Ministers approved of Shata's
acts in this significant transaction, or even of his pro-
504 THREE YEAKS IN TIBET.
Russian policy. On the contraiy some of them may have
deprecated both as being opposed to the interests of Tibet.
But they could hardly speak out their minds, and even if
they did they could not restrain Shata, for the simple
reason that the executive authority practically rests in
the hands of the Senior Premier. He very seldom consulted
his colleagues, still less was he inclined to accept advice
coming from them. Under the circumstances they must
have connived at the acceptance of the bishop's apparel,
even if they knew about it.
China's loss of prestige in Tibet since the Japano-Chinese
war owing to her inability to assert her power over the
vassal state has much to do with this pro-Russian leaning.
China is no longer respected, much less feared by the
Tibetans. Previous to that war and before China's
internal incompetence had been laid bare by Japan, rela-
tions like those between master and vassal bound Tibet to
China. The latter interfered with the intei'nal affairs of
Tibet and meted out punishments freely to the Tibetan
dignitaries and even to the Grand Lama. Now she is
entirely helpless. She could not even demand explana-
tions from Tibet when that country was thrown into an
unusual agitation about the Temo Rinpoche's affair. The
Tibetans are now conducting themselves in utter disre-
gard or even in defiance of the wishes of China, for
they are aware of the powerlessness of China to take any
active steps against them. They know that their former
suzerain is fallen and is therefore no longer to be depended
upon. They are prejudiced against England on account
of her subjugation of India, and so they have naturally
concluded that they should establish friendly relations with
Russia, which they knew was England's bitter foe.
It is evident that the Dalai Lama himself favors this
view, and it may safely be presumed that unless he was
favorably disposed towards Russia he 'syould never have
Russia's tibetan policy. 505
accepted the bishop's garment from the Tsar. He is too
intelligent a man to accept any present from a foreign
sovereign as a mere compliment.
The Dalai Lama's friendly inclination was clearly estab-
lished when in December, 1900, he sent to Russia his
grand Chamberlain as envoy with three followers. Leaving
Lhasa on that date the party first proceeded towards the
Tsan-ni Kenbo's native place, whence they were taken by
the Siberian railway, and in time reached S. Petersburg.
The party was received with warm welcome by that
court, to which it offered presents brought from Tibet.
It is said that on that occasion a secret understanding-
was reached between the two Grovernments.
It was about December of 1901 or January of the follow-
ing year that the party returned home. By that time I
had already been residing in Lhasa for some time. About
two months after the return of the party I went out on a
short trip on horseback to a place about fifty miles north-
east of Lhasa. While I was there I saw two hundred
camels fully loaded arrive from the north-east. The load
consisted of small boxes, two packed oh each camel.
Every load was covered with skin, and so I could not
even guess what it contained. The smallness of the boxes
however arrested my attention, and I came to the conclusion
that some Mongolians must have been bringing ingots of
silver as a present: to the Dalai Lama. I asked some of the
drivers about the contents of the boxes, but they could not
tell me anything. They were hired at some intermediate
station, and so knew nothing about the contents. However
they believed that the boxes contained silver, but they
knew for certain that these boxes did not come from China.
They had been informed by somebody that they came from
some unknown place.
When I returned to the house of my host, the Minister of
Finance came in and informed him that on that day a
64
506 THEEE TEARS IN TIBET.
heavy load had arrived from Russia. On my host inquiring
what were the contents of the load^ the Minister replied
that this was a secret. I took a hint from, this talk
of the Minister and left the room. I had however by good
chance discovered that the load came from Russia, and
though I could not as yet form any idea about the contents,
I tried to get some reliable information.
Now I knew one Government officer who was one of the
worst repositories imaginable for any secret ; he was such
a gossip that it was easy to worm out anything from him.
One day I met him and gradually the trend of our conver-
sation was turned to the last' caravan. I found him quite
communicative as usual, .and so I asked him about the
contents of the load. The gentleman was so far obliging,
that he told me (confidentially, he said) that another caravan
of three hundred camels had arrived some time before, and
that the load brought by so many camels consisted of small
fire-arms, bullets, and other interesting objects. He was
quite elated with the weapons, saying that now for the
first time Tibet was sufficiently armed to resist any attack
which England' might undertake against her, and could
defiantly reject any improper request which that aggressive
power,, as the Tibetans believe her to be, might make to her.
I had the opportunity to inspect one of the guns sent by
Russia. It was apparently one of modern pattern, but it
did not impress me as possessing any long range nor seem
to be quite fit for active service. The stock bore an in-
scription attesting that it was made in the United States
of America. The Tibetans being ignorant of Roman letters
and English firmly believed that all the weapons were made
in Russia. It seems that about one-half of the load of
the five hundred camels consisted of small arms and
ammunition.
The Chinese Grovernment appears mortified to see Tibet
endeavoring to break off her traditional relation with
Russia's tibetan policy. 607
Cliina, and to attach herself to Russia. The Chinese Amban
once tried to interfere with the Tsan-ni Kenbo's dealings
in Lhasa, and even intended to arrest him. But it was of
no avail, as the Tibetan Grovernment extended protection to
the man and defeated the purposes of the Amban. On
one occasion the Tsan-ni was secretly sent to Darjeeling
and on another occasion to Nepal, and the Amban could
never catch hold of him. It appears that the British Gov-
ernment watched the movements of the Tsan-ni, and this
suspicion of England against him appears to have been
shared by the Nepal Grovernment.
Apparently therefore the Russian manoeuvres in Tibet
have succeeded, and the question that naturally arises is this :
" Is Russia's footing in Tibet so firmly established as to
enable her to make with any hope of 'success an attempt on
India with Tibet as her base ? " I cannot answer this
question affirmatively, for Russia's influence in Tibet has
not yet taken a deep root. She can count only on the
.Dalai Lama and his Senior Premier as her most reliable
friends, and the support of the rest who are simply blind
followers of those two cannot be counted upon. Of course
those blind followers would remain pro-Russian, if Russia
should persist in actively pushing on her policy of fascina-
tion ; but as their attitude does not rest on a solid found-
ation they may abandon it any time when affairs take a
turn unfavorable for Russia. For it must be remembered
that by no means the whole of the higher classes of Tibet
are even passive supporters of the policy marked
out by the Dalai Lama and his trusted lieutenants. On
the contrary, there are some few who are secretly sus-
picious of the motives of Russia. The Tsar, they think,
may be the sovereign who is the incarnate Founder, but
his very munificence towards Tibet may have some deep
meaning at bottom. That munificence may not be for
nothing ; if it is, then Russia must be regarded as" a country
&
508 THKEE YEARS IN TIBET.
composed of people who are quite godly — a very rare thing
in this -world of give and take, where selfishness is a
guiding motive. Is it not more reasonable and safer to
interpret those repeated acts of outward friendship as
coming from her ambitious design to place a snare before
Tibet and finally to absorb the country ? Such ideas are,
I say, confined to only a very limited section, and are
exchanged in whispers between confidential friends. They
do not seem to have reached the ears of the Dalai Lama
and the Senior Premier. But those ideas already contain
in them a germ of a dangerous nature, which at some
favorable opportunity may develop into a powerful anti-
Russian movement. Russia therefore will experience
a keen disappointment if she considers her footing in Tibet
firmly planted beyond any fear of shaking, and neglects
to keep watch over the state of affairs in that country. If
she neglects this, all the gold she has disbursed in the
shape of presents and bribes will prove so much mere
waste.
CHAPTER LXXII.
Tibet and British India.
The Tibetans are on the whole a hospitable people, and
the unfavorable discrimination made against England is
mainly attributable to mutual misunderstanding. On the
part of England that misunderstanding led to the adoption
of a rough and ready method instead of one of ingratiation,
and so England is singled out as an object of abhorrence
by Tibet. England had opportunities to score a greater
success in Tibet than that achieved by Russia, and had she
followed the Russian method her influence would now have
extended far beyond the Himalayas. Instead, she tried to
coerce Tibet, and so she failed. It is like crying
over spilt milk to speak of this failure at present, but I
cannot help regretting it for the sake of England. She
would have saved much of the trouble and money she has
subsequently been obliged to give in consequence of her too
hasty policy, occasioned by her ignorance of the temper
of the Tibetans and the general state of affairs in their
country. As it was, since England sent her abortive ex-
pedition of force, the attitude of Tibet towards that Power
has become one of pronounced hostility. The revelation of
the secret mission of Sarat Chandra Das and the serious
agitation that occurred in Tibet, including the execution of
several noted men, such as the virtuous Sengchen Dorje-
chan and others, has completely estranged the Tibetan
Government from England. That revelation has had a
far-reaching effect that has involved the interests of
other countries, for it confirmed the Tibetan Government
in its prejudice in favor of a exclusory policy. Tibet has
been closed up entirely since that time, not only against
British India, but even^ against Russia and Persia. The
510 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
Lama believers of India even are prohibited from entering
the country. Such, being the case, should England ever
wish to transact any business with Tibet she would be
obliged to do so by force.
Not that England neglects to take measures calculated
to win the favorable opinion of the Tibetans. The Indian
Viceroy is, for instance, endeavoring to convey friendly
impressions to such of the Tibetans as may happen to come
to frontier places, such as Darjeeling or Sikkim. Thus
the children of those Tibetans are at liberty to enter any
Grovernment schools without paying fees, while boys of
a hopeful nature are patronised by the Government and are
sent at Government expense to higher institutions. At
present there are quite a number of 'I'ibetan lads who,
after graduation from their respective courses, are employed
by the Indian Government as surveyors, Post Office clerks
or teachers. Then the privilege of carrying on the busi-
ness of palanquin-bearers, quite a lucrative occupation, is
practically reserved for the Tibetans, at least at Darjeeling.
Not even natives of India, still less people of other countries,
are easily allowed to start this business. The Indian
Police officers too are quite indulgent towards the Tibetans,
and never deal with them so strictly as with the Indian
natives.
The Tibetans residing at Darjeeling are therefore quite
satisfied with their lot. Most of them feel sincerely grate-
ful towards the British Government and are ready to
repay it with friendly service. The longer they remain
under the British protection, the stronger grows this
sentiment. They are impressed with the treatment of the
British Government, its straightforwardness, veracity
and benevolence, in contrast to the merciless dealings of
the Government at home, which inflicts shocking punish-
ments for even minor offences. They are well aware that
the Lama's Government cuts off a man's arms or extracts
TIBET AND BRITISH INDIA. 511
his eye-balls for larceny, or similar minor crimes, while in
India capital punishment is very seldom inflicted even on
olienders of a grave character; the humane treatment of
criminals by the British Government is a thing that can
hardly be dreamed of by the people of Tibet. The roads in
India are an object, of marvel to the Tibetans who arrive
there for the first time. The presence of free hospitals, of
free asylums, of educational institutions, the railways, tele-
graphs and telephones — all these are objects of wonder and
marvel to those Tibetans, and it is not strange that most of
them become the more disinclined to return home the
longer they live in India. In the presence of these evi-
dences of material greatness, the Tibetans naturally come
to the conclusion that a Government which can afford to
establish and maintain such splendid structures must be
immensely rich, and they , therefore begin to nurture the
hope of having such a wealthy and" great Government
over them, and of sharing in its prosperity. This sentiment
seems to be especially strong among those of the higher
classes, who have seen India, and it is shared by their in-
feriors who know that greatness only from hearsay.
The policy of indirectly winning the goodwill of the
Tibetans, so far pursued by the Indian Government, has
failed, however, to produce any percejjtible effect on the
Government circles of Tibet. They are too far engrossed
with personal interests to be open to any great extent
to indirect suasion of a moral nature. They are far more
inclined to gain advantage for themselves directly from
offers of bribes than to profit by an exemplary model of
administration. The main reason why they are favorably
disposed towards Russia is because they have received
gold from that country ; it was never by the effect of any
display of good administrative method that Russia has
succeeded so well. In short, these greedy Tibetan officials
offer their friendship to the highest bidders, and they do
512 THEBE YEARS IN TIBET.
not care at all whence the gold comes so long as they
grasp a large sum. The policy of the British Grovernment
therefore rests on a pedestal set a little too high to be
understood and appreciated by the majority of the official
circles of Tibet.
The attitude of the priesthood towards England is a
puzzled one. They are puzzled to determine whether they
should denounce the English as devils incarnate, or re-
spect them as the incarnations of saints. The benevolent
arrangements made by them, such as establishing
philanthropic institutions, laying of railroads and such like,
lead the sceptical Lamas to think that Englishmeii must
understand the ways of Buddhism and be a godly race.
But when they think that these same Englishmen did not
scruple to annex other people's land to their own
dominions, their favorable impression about Englishmen
receives a sudden and complete check. These two conflict-
ing notions seem to have taken a deep hold on their minds,
and they try to solve the puzzle without compromising
their two convictions. They explain that there must be
two distinct kinds of Englishmen in India, one benevolent
and godly and the other infernal and quite wicked. Other-
wise, they think, such a marvellous phenomenon as that
witnessed in India could hardly have been possible.
The same priests held a strange notion about the late
Queen. They believed her to be an incarnation of the patron
Goddess of the Cho-khang temple in Lhasa, and therefore
endowed with a supernatural power of subjugating and
governing the whole world. Because of this occult affinity
the Queen entertained, they believed, a fraternal feeling
towards Tibet, but some of the courtiers about her were
wicked and obstructed her benevolent intentions, just as
the great Buddha himself had among His disciples some
wicked and incorrigible characters. The Tibetans, they
said, must get rid of those pernicious persons for the Queen.
TIBET AND BRITISH INDIA. 513
When the news of the death of the Queen reached
Tibet^ the people, while mourning for her, at the same
time rejoiced, for they thought that their Panden
Lhamo, the Goddess in question, was once more restored
to them.
I may add that I was frequentljr asked by the literates
and other men of learning of my own impression about
British India, for they knew that I had visited Buddhagaya
and other places in India. On such occasions I merely
confined myself as much as possible to general remarks,
for I feared that any accurate explanation might awake
their suspicions about my supposed personality.
The existence of the Siberian railway can hardly be
expected to give any great help to Russia, if ever the
latter should be obliged from one reason or another to
send a warlike expedition to Lhasa. The distance from
the nearest station to Lhasa is prohibitive of any such
undertaking, for the march, even if nothing happens on
the road, must require five or six months and is through
districts abounding in deserts and hills. The presence of
wild natives in Amdo and Kham is also a discouraging
factor, for they are people who are perfectly uncontrollable,
given up to plunder and murder, and of course thoroughly
at home in their own haunts. Even discipline and superior
weapons would not balance the natural advantages which
these dreadful people enjoy over intruders, however well
informed the latter may be about the topography of the
districts. Russia can hardly expect to subdue Tibet
by force of arms. It was in consideration of this
fact that the Tsan-ni Kenbo has been endeavoring to
impose upon the Tibetans that audacious fiction about
the identity of the Tsar's person with that of the long-
dead Founder of the New Sect, so that his master might
accomplish by peaceful means what he could hardly efi^ect
by force.
65
514 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
However, even the Tsan-ni^s painstaking efforts appear
to have fallen short of his expectations, and there is a
danger of a reaction setting in against him.
It must be remembered that the sentiment of the
common people towards China still retains its old force,
even though they know that the power of their old patron
has considerably declined lately. They are well aware
that Tibet has been placed from time immemorial in a
state of vassalage to China, that Prince Srong-tsan Gambo
who first inti'oduced Buddhism into Tibet had as his wife
a daughter of the then Emperor of China, while the
Tibetans believe that the present Emperor of China is an
incarnation of a Buddhist deity (the Chang-chub Semba
Tambe yang in Tibetan) worshipped on Mount Utai,
China. And so both from tradition and prejudice and
from present superstition, the mass of the people, who are
conservative, cannot but regard China with a lingering
sentiment of respect and attachment, and the position
which China still occupies in the niches of their hearts can
hardly be supplanted by Russia, even when the Tsan-ni
Kenbo ingeniously represents her as the country indicated
in the Tibetan Book of Proj>hecy.
As I have mentioned before, some few of the influential
Government officials do not seem to approve of the Tsan-
ni's movement. They even suspect that Russia might
have some sinister object in view when she presented gold
and other valuable things to the Dalai Lama and others.
Tibet has no newspapers, but even without that organ
of public opinion the public become acquainted sooner
or later with most important occurrences, and so it
stands to reason that the nnfarorable view which is
secretly entertained by a limited number of thoughtful
men must have leaked out one way or other to at least a
section of the public. The result is that not a, small number
of priests have begun to side, though not as an organised
TIBET AND BRITISH INDIA 515
movement, with these prudent thmkers, and therefore
to rebel against Shata and his faction. The priests of
the colleges and the warrior-priests seem to be particularly
conspicuous in this reactionary movement. Indeed the
fact is that Shata has never been a permnia grata with those
young men since the tragedy of Temo Rinpoclie, and so they
were inclined to view anything done by the crafty author
of that tragedy Avith suspicious eyes. Then again the
thoughtful portion of the college-priests never tolerated
the Nechung oracles. They despised the oracle-priests
as not much better than men of unsound mind, as drunk-
ards, and corrupters of national interests. The very fact
that Shata patronised this vile set further estranged him
from the college-priests.
Under the circumstances, something like a reaction
seems already to have set in against the pro-Russian
agitation ingeniously planned by the Tsan-ni Kenbo.
It remains to be seen what steps Russia will take towards
Tibet to prevent the Lama's country from slipping away
from her grasp.
In reviewing the relations that formerly existed between
British India and Tibet, it must be stated first of all that
British India was closely connected with Tibet many jears
ago. At least Tibet's attitude toward the Indian Govern-
ment was not embittered by any hostile sentiment. In the
eighteenth century, during the Grovernor-Geueralship of
Warren Hastings, he sent George Bogle to make commer-
cial arrangements between the two countries. This gentle-
man resided a few years at Shigatze. Then Captain Turner
also lived at the same place as a commercial agent for some
time. After that time India did not send any more
such commissioners, but till about twenty-four years ago the
Indian natives were permitted to enter Tibet unmolested-
They were generally pilgrims or priests bent on visiting
the sacred places. Quite a large number of such Indians
S16 TRteEl! YEARS IN TIBET.
must have entered Tibet. Prior to the exploration of
Sarat Chandra Das it was not an uncommon sight, I
have heexi told, to see a party of naked priests, each
carrying a water-vessel made of gourd, and iron tongs,
and with faces smeared with ashes, proceeding towards
Tibet. Though official relations had ceased between Tibet
and India, their people therefore were bound together by
some friendly connexions till quite recently. It is not
unlikely that if the Indian Grovernment had made at that
time some advances acceptable to Tibet, it would have
succeeded in establishing cordial relations with the latter.
The exploration of Sarat Chandra Das disguised as an
ordinary Sikkimese priest, and the frontier trouble that
followed it, completely changed the attitude of Tibet to-
wards India and the outer world and made it adopt a
strict policy of exclusion. The publication of the re-
sults of that exploration directed the attention of the
Indian Government to the question of delimiting the
boundary between Sikkim, its protectorate, and Tibet. It
was at that time that the Tibetan Government adopted most
indiscreet measures at the instance of a fanatical Neehung,
and proceeded to build a fort at a frontier place which
distinctly belonged to Sikkim. The Tibetan Government
is said to have at first hesitated to follow that insidious
advice, but the Neehung was clamorous and declared
that his presence in the fort would disarm any troops
which the Indian Government might send against it. Tibet
therefore, continued the fanatic, need not be afraid of the
Indian Government and must proceed to construct a fort
with all promptitude. He argued that the presence of a
fort would go far towards promoting Tibet's cause in
settling the boundary dispute and the fort would become
the permament boundary mark.
Accordingly the fort was built at a place that was beyond
the legitimate boundary line of Tibet. Soon the Indian
TIBET AND BRITISH INDIA. 517
troops arrived and, ' infidels ' as they were, they made short
work of it, in utter defiance of the terrible anathema hurled
by the indomitable Neohung against them. The stronghold
was carried by assault by the invaders. The crumbled stone
walls standing on a hill at a place about twenty miles on
this side of Nyatong, which marks the boundary between
Sikkim and Tibet, indicate the site of this short-lived
stronghold built by the Tibetan Government. Now in
building a fort in a place which the Tibetans themselves
knew to belong to Sikkim, they may have reasoned with
self-complacency that as Sikkim formerly belonged to
Tibet, therefore they might not improperly revive their
original claim on, at least, a portion of that district now
under the jurisdiction of England. Of course England could
never concur in such an arrangement, and the trouble
between her and Tibet at last culminated in war. This
was about sixteen years ago. The issue of that war was
from the first a foregone conclusion, and the troops sent by
the Indian Government easily jDut to rout the fighting men
of Tibet. The latter held better positions, btit they lacked
discipline, training and good weapons, while they had
the further disadvantage of being commanded by would-
be genei'als and captains who did not care to lead their
men in person, but contented themselves with issuing
orders and leaving them to be carried out anyhow. Need-
less to add that the orders could never be carried out, but
were invariably frustrated by the invaders. The Tibetan
generals and captains escaped unhurt, for the simple
reason that they had never exposed themselves to danger.
After issuing orders, they always remained in the
camp and spent their time in gambling, leaving their
soldiers to be killed or wounded on the field. Thus
the war ended with some heavy casualty returns on
the Tibetan side, and far shorter returns on the part of
the invaders.
518 THREE YEAKS IN TIBET.
As the result of this war the frontier line was drawn
through Nyatong, and though the Indian Government
would have been justified in extending it further down to
Chumbi Samba, it did not push its claim so far.
Apparently the action of the Indian \^iceroy of that time
was crowned with success, but when this complication is
viewed with an eye to a longer and more permanent end,
I cannot ajjprove of the measures adopted by him. He
should I think, have adopted a course of leniency instead of
one of stern punishment, and should have endeavored by
some clever manoeuvres, not excluding a rather liberal dis-
bursement of secret service funds, to win the good-will of
the ruling circles of Tibet. I think the result would have
been far more advantageous for the future success of
England than recovering at the point of the bayonet a
barren tract covering only thirty miles in area. Who
knows but that the influence of England might have been
firmly established in Tibet by this time if that patronising
policy had been adopted then, and that Engiishnien might
not be free to come and reside in and about Lhasa to enjoy
the pure atmosphere and cool and healthy climate of that
district ?
CHAPTER LXXIII.
China, Nepal and Tibet.
It requires the erudition and investigations of experts
to write with any -adequacy about the earlier relations
between China and Tibet. I must therefore confine myself
here only to the existing state of those relations.
Tibet is nominally a protectorate of Ohinaj and as stich
she is bound to pay a tribute to the Suzerain State. In
days gone by^ Tibet used to forward this tribute to China,
but subsequently the pajanent was commuted against
expenses which China had to allow Tibet, on account of
the Grand Prayer which is performed every year at Lhasa
for the prosperity of the Chinese Emperor. As a result of
this arrangement, Tibet ceased to send the tribute and
China to send the prayer fund.
The loss of Chinese prestige in Tibet has been truly
extraordinary since the Japano- Chinese War. Previous to
that disastrous event, China used to treat Tibet in a high-
handed way, while the latter, overawed by the display of
force of the Suzerain, tamely submitted. All is now
changed, and instead of that subservient attitude Tibet
regards China with scorn. The Tibetans have come to
the conclusion that their masters are no longer able to
protect and help them, and therefore do not deserve to be
feared and respected any more. It can easily be under-
stood how the Chinese are mortified at this sudden down-
fall of their prestige in Tibet. They have tried to recover
their old position, but all their endeavors have as yet been
of no avail. The Tibetans listen to Chinese advice when
it is acceptable, but any order that is distasteful to them is
utterly disregarded,
520 THEEE TEARS IN TIBET.
While I was staying in Lhasa a yellow paper^ containing
the Chinese Emperor's decree issued at the termination of
the Boxer trouble, was hung up in the square of that city.
The decree was addressed to all the eighteen provinces of
China and all her protectorates. It warned the people un-
der fjain of severe penalty against molesting and persecut-
ing foreigners, as they, the people, were too frequently
liable to do from their ignorance of the state of affairs
abroad and their misunderstanding of the motives of the
foreigners who came to their respective districts. These
foreigners, the decree continued, have really come to engage
in industrial pursuits or in diffusing religion, and for other
purposes beneficial alike to the people and themselves.
In order to promote these aims of mutual benefit, the
middle kingdom has been opened so as to allow foreigners
■freedom of travelling to any place they wish, and so,
concluded the decree, this policy of welcome and hospitality
should be adopted in all the provinces and protectorates.
Two other decrees of like import arrived afterwards and
were similarly posted up, and I thought at that time that
the allies must have entered Peking, and that this decree
nmst have been issued as a result of the conclusion of peace
between the Powers and China.
The decree, however, failed to produce any particular
impression on the Tibetans. I asked a high Grovernment
official what Tibet was going to do with the order set forth
in the decree, and whether the Tibetan Government, in
the face of that injunction, could refuse, for instance, to
allow Englishmen to enter the country. The official
scornfully replied that his Government was not obliged to
obey an order which the Chinese Emperor issued at his own
pleasure. And besides it was highly doubtful whether
the Emperor, who was an incarnation of a high saint, could
have issued a decree of that nature, which he must have
known to be utterly opposed to the interests and traditional
CHINA, NEPAL AND TIBET.
521
policy of Tibet. It was more probably clandestinely
issued by some wicked men near the Emperor's person, as
a result of bribes received from foreigners. It did not
deserve to be trusted, much less to be obeyed, declared
my Tibetan friend.
Whatever be the motive, therefore, the Tibetans are
utterly indifferent to most of the decrees coming from
China, and treat them like so many gamblers' oaths, neither
more nor less.
Whether it be from polygamous customs or from
other causes, the fact remains, though* it is not pos-
sible to prove it by accurate statistical returns, that
the population of Nepal is rapidly increasing. It
must be remembered that the Government takes great
pains to increase its population, in order to expand its in-
terests both at home and abroad, and, probably under the
impression that polygamy is conducive to that end, it is
encouraging this questionable practice. In Nepal there-
fore even a man who can hardly support his family has
two or three wives, and one who is better oif has many
more. Apparently this policy is attended with success, so
far as the main object aimed at is concerned, for I have
never seen so many children anywhere as I saw in Nepal,
where every family consisted of a large number of boys
and girls.
Be the cause what it may, the beneficial effect of this
steady advance of population is plainly visible in that coun-
try, where almost every nook and coimer of available land is
brought under tillage, where woods are tended with
extreme care, and even the remote forests inhabited by
wild beasts are made to contribute their share to the stock
of lumber, of which a large portion is annually exported to
lower India. Already the population of Nepiil appears to
be too large for the limited area of the country, and so a
considerable emigration is taking place. Thus we find the
66
522 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
Nepalese serving in the army of the Indian Governpient, or
pursuing trade or opening up wild lands in Sikkim or at
Darjeeling. Above all the Nepalese seem to cast their
longing glances towards Tibet as the best field for their
superfluous population; for Tibet, while possessing an area
about twelve-fold that of Nepal, is far more thinly
populated. They even seem to be prepared to go through
the ordeal of war, if necessary, to secure that best
outlet for their needy population, which cannot find
sufficient elbowroom at liome. Perhaps the Nepal
Government has that contingency in view in maintaining,
as it does, a standing army which is evidently far above
its home requirements in numerical strength.
In Nepal the military department receives appropria-
tions which are quite out of proportion to those set apart
for peaceful matters, as education, justice and philanthropy.
Indeed the Nepal troops, the famous Gurkhas, may even
rival regular British troops in discipline and effectiveness ;
they may perhaps even surpass the others in mountain
warfare, such as would take place in their own country.
Certainly in their capacity of enduring hardships and in
running up and down hills, bearing heavy knapsacks, they
are superior to the British soldiers. They very much resem-
ble the Japanese soldiers in stature and general appearance,
and also in temperament. The one might easily be mistaken
for the other, so close is the resemblance between the two.
In short, as fighters in mountainous places the Gurkhas
form ideal soldiers ; and it seems as though circumstances
will sooner or later compel Nepal to employ for her self-
defence this highly effective force. Russia is at the bottom
of the impending trouble, while Tibet supplies the imme-
diate cause.
The Russianising tendency of Tibet has recently put
Nepal on her guard, and when intelligence reached Nepal
that Tibet had concluded a secret treaty with Russia, that
CHINA, NEPAL AND TIBET. 523
the Dalai Lama had received a bishop's robe from the
Tsar, and that a large quantity of arms and ammunition
had reached Lhasa from S. Petersburg, Nepal became
considerably alarmed, and with good reason. For with
Russia established in Tibet, Nepal must necessarily feel
uneasy, as it would be exposed to the danger of absorption.
The very presence of a powerful neighbor must subject
Nepal to a great strain which can hardly be borne for long.
It is not surprising to hear that Nepal is said to have
communicated in an informal manner with Tibet and to
have demanded an explanation of the rumors concerning
the conclusion of a secret treaty between her and Russia,
adding that if that were really the case then Nepal, from
considerations of self-defence, must oppose that arrange-
ment even if the opposition entailed an appeal to arms.
What reply Tibet has made to this communication is not
accurately known, but that Nepal sent an informal
message to this effect admits of no doubt.
Nepal may be driven to declare war on Tibet should the
latter, persist in pursuing her pro-Russian policy, and allow
Russia to establish herself in that country ; and it is quite
likely that England may be pleased to see Nepal adopt that
resolute attitude. She may even extend a helping hand,
for instance by supplying part of the war expense, and thus
enabling Nepal to prosecute that movement. The reason
is obvious, for England has nothing to lose but everything
to gain from trouble between Nepal and Tibet, in which the
former may certainly be expected to win. But even if Nepal
is victorious her victory will bring her only a, sjnall benefit,
and the lion's share will go to England; Nepill therefore
would be placed in the rather foolish position of having
taken the chestnuts from the fire for the British lion to eat.
The present Ruler of Nepal is too intelligent a statesman
not to perceive tlmt — judging at least from my personal
observations, when I was allowed to see the Ruler, the
5^4 THRiiE YEARS IN TIBET.
Cabinet Minister. He knows that it would be far better for
his countrymen to content himself with the reality of
benefit rather than with the glory of a successful but necess-
arily costly war. He should confine himself to mak-
ing some arrangements with Tibet by which the Nepalese
may be enabled to enter, or settle in Tibet, and to carry
on profitable undertakings there. If once his country-
men establish their influence in Tibet by virtue of economic
undertakings, then they may regard with comparative
complacency any advance of Eussian influence in Tibet, for
Nepal would be in a position to counteract that influence
by peaceful means or even by war if necessary.
Thus, it is hardly likely that Nepal will go to extreme
measures towards Tibet, even if England should cleverly
encourage her.
It must be remembered that the relations between the
two countries are not yet strained. The Tibetans do not
seem to harbor any ill-feeling towards their neighbors
beyond the mountains, nor do they regard them as a whole
with fear, though they do fear the Gurkhas on account of
their valor and discipline. The Tibetan G-overnment also
seems to be desirous of maintaining a friendly relation with
Nepal. For instance, when on one occasion the Ruler of
Nepal sent his messenger to Tibet to procure a set of Tibetan
sutras, the Dalai Lama, who heard of that errand, caused a
set to be sent to Nepal as a present from himself, which
is now kept in the Royal Library of Nepal.
The Nepal Government, on its part, appears to be doing
its, best to create a favorable impression on the Tibetans.
The Ruler, it must be remembered, is not a Buddhist but a
Brahniana; still,, he pursues the policy of toleration towards
all faiths; and is especially kindly to Buddhists. The
Buddhists' from Tibet who are staying in Nepal enjoy
protection from the Government, and the Ruler not unfre-
quently makes grants of money or timber when Buddhist
CHINA, NEPAL AND TIBET. 525
temples are to be built in his dominion. The care bestow-
ed by the Ruler on the Buddhists is highly appreciated by
their friends at home, and Nepal is therefore favorably
situated for winning the hearts of the Tibetan people. It
is easily conceivable that with a judicious use of secret
service funds Nepal might easily establish her influence in
Tibet. This, however, cannot be readily expected from
that country, as internal conditions now are, for order is
far from being firmly established in that little kingdom,
and domestic troubles and administrative changes occur
too frequently. Even the Prime Minister, who wields the
real power, has been assassinated more than once, while
changes have very frequently taken place in the incum-
bency of that post. Nepal is at present too deeply absorbed
in her internal affairs, and cannot spare either energy or
money for pursuing any consistent policy towards Tibet.
Thus, though the military service of Nepal is sufficiently
creditable, her diplomacy leaves much to be desired.
CHAPTBE LXXIV.
The Future of Tibetan Diplomacy.
Tibet may be said to be menaced by three countries —
England, Russia and Nepal, for China is at present a
negligible quantity as a factor in determining its future.
The question is which of the three is most likely to become
master of that table-land. It is evident that the three can
never come to terms in regard to this question ; at best
England and Nepal may combine for attaining their
common object, but the combination of Russia with either
of them is out of the question. Russia's ambition in
bringing Tibet under her control is too obviously at vari-
ance with the interest of the other two to admit of their
coming to terms with her, for Russia's occupation would be
merely preparatory to the far greater end of making a
descent on the fertile plains on the south side of the Hima-
layas by using I'ibet as a base of operation. As circum-
stances stand, Nepal has to confine her ambition to pushing
her interests in Tibet by peaceful means. This is evidently
the safest and most prudent plan for that country, seeing
that when once that object has been attained her interest
would remain unimpaired whether Tibet should fall into
the hands of England or into those of Russia. After all,
therefore, the future of Tibet is a problem to be solved
between those two Powers. At present Russia has the ears
of an important section of the ruling circles of Tibet, while
on the other hand England has the mass of the Tibetan
people on her side. The Russian policy, depending as it
does on clever manoeuvres and a free use of gold, is in
danger of being upset by any sudden turn of affairs in
Tibet, while the procedure of England being moderate and
matter-of-fact is more lasting in its effect. Which policy
THE FUTURE OP TIBETAN DIPLOMACY. 527
is more likely to prevail cannot easily be determined, for
though moderation and practical method will win in the
long run, diplomacy is a ticklish affair and must take many
other factors into consideration. At any rate England is
warned to be on the alert, for otherwise Russia -may steal
a march upon her and upon Lhasa.
If the Russian troops should ever succeed in reaching
Lhasa, that would open up a new era for Tibet, for the
country would passively submit to the Russian rule. The
Tibetans, it must be remembered, are thoroughly imbued
with the spirit of negative fatalism, and the arrival of
Russian troops in Lhasa would therefore be regarded as
the inevitable effect of a predetermined causation, and
therefore' as an event .that must be submitted to without
resistance. The entry of those troops would never rouse
the patriotic sentiment of the people. But the effect of
this imaginary entry would constitute a serious menace to
India. In fact, with Russia established in the natural
strongholds of Tibet, India, it may be said, would be
placed at the 'mercy of Russia, which could send her troops
at any moment down to the fertile plains below. Thus
would the dream of Peter the Great be realised, and of
course the British supremacy on the sea would avail nothing
against this overland descent across the Himalayas.
Some may think that what I have stated is too extravagant,
and is utterly beyond the sphere of possibility. I reply
that any such thought comes from ignorance of the
natural position of Tibet. Any person who has ever
personally observed the immense strength which Tibet
naturally commands must agree with me that its occupation
by Russia would be followed sooner or later by that of
India by the same agressive power.
The question naturally arises : " Will Tibet then eease
to be an independent country ? " It is of course impossible
to come to any positive conclusion about it, but from what
528 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
I have observed and studied I cannot give a reassuring
answer. The spirit of dependence on the strong is too
deeply implanted in the hearts of the Tibetan people to be
superseded now by the spirit of self-assertion and inde-
pendence. During the long period of more than a thou-
sand years, the Tibetan people has always maintained the
idea of relying upon one or another great power, placing
itself under the protection of one suzerain State or another,
first India and then China. How far the Tibetans lack the
manly spirit of independence may easily be judged
from the following story about the Dalai Lama,
who is unquestionably a man of character, gifted
with energy and power of decision, who would be
well qualified to lead his country to progress and
prosperity did he possess modern knowledge and were
he well informed of the general trend of aifairs abroad.
He is thoroughly familiar with the condition of his own
people, and has done much towards satisfying popular
wishes, redressing grievances and discouraging corrupt
practices. If ever there were a man in Tibet whose heart
was set on maintaining the independence of the country,
it must be the Dalai Lama. So I had thought, but my
fond hope was rudely shaken, and I was left in despair
about the future of Tibet.
This supreme chief of the Lama Hierarchy has recently
undergone a complete change in his attitude towards
England. Fbrmerly whenever England opened some
negotiation with Tibet, the Dalai Lama was overcome by
great perturbation, while any display of force on the part
of England invariably plunged him into the deepest
anxiety. He was often seen on such occasions to shut
himself up in a room and, refusing food or rest, to be
absorbed in painful reflexions. Now all is changed, and
the same Dalai Lama regards all threats or even encroach-
ments with indifference or even defiance, For instance,
THE FUTURE OP TIBETAN DIPLOMACY. 529
when England, chiefly to feel the attitude of Tibet and not
from any object of encroachment, included, when fixing the
boundary, a small piece of land that had formerly belonged
to Tibet, the Dalai Lama was not at all perturbed. Instead
of that he is said to have talked big and breathed defiance,
saying that he would make England rue this sooner
or later. His subjects, it is reported, were highly impressed
on this occasion and they began to regard him as a great hero.
For my part this sudden change in the behavior of the
supreme Lama only caused me to heave a heavy sigh for
the future of Tibet.- It cruelly disillusioned me of the
great hopes I had reposed in his character for the welfare
of his country. The reason why the Grand Lama, who
was at first as timid as a hare towards England, should
become suddenly as bold as a lion, is not far to seek. The
conclusion of a secret treaty with Russia was at the bottom
of the strange phenomenon. Strong in the id-ea that
Russia, as she had promised the Dalai Lama, would extend
help whenever his country was threatened by England, he
who had formerly trembled at the mere thought of the
possibility of England's encroachment began now to hurl
defiance at her. He may even have thought that the
arrival of a large number of arms from Russia would
enable Tibet to resist England single-handed. In short,
the Dalai Lama believed that Russia being the only
country in the world strong enough to thwart England,
therefom he need no longer be harassed by anj' fear of the
latter country.
With the Dalai Lama — perhaps one of the greatest Lama
pontiffs that has ever sat on the throne — given up shame-
lessly, and even with exultation, to that servile thought of
subserviency, and with no great men prepared to uphold
the independence of the country, Tibet must be looked
upon as doomed. All things considered therefore, unless
some miracle should happen, she is sure to be absorbed by
67
530 THREE YEAE8 IN TIBET,
some strong Power sooner or later^ and there is no
hope that she will continue to exist as an independent
country.
CHAPTER LXXV.
The " Monlam" Festival.
Moulam literally means .supplication, but in practice it
is the name of the great Tibetan festival performed for
the benefit of the reigning Emperor of China, the offering
of prayers to the deities for his prosperity and long life.
The festival commences either on the 3rd or 4th of January,
according to the lunar calendar, and closes on the 25th
of the month. The three days beginning on New Year's
Day and ending with the 3rd are given up to the New
Year's Festival, and from the following day the great
Monlam season sets in.
In order to make arrangements for the coming festival,
the priests are given holiday from the 20th of December.
Holiday however is a gross misnomer, for the days are
spent in profane pleasures and in all sorts of sinful
amusements. The temples are no longer sacred places ;
they are more like gambling-houses — places where
the priests make themselves merry by holding revels
far into the night. Now is the time when the Tibetan
priesthood bids good-bye for a while to all moral and
social restraints, when young and old indulge themselves
freely to. their heart's content, and when those who remain
aloof from this universal practice are laughed at as old
fogeys. I had been regularly employing one little boy to
run errands and to do all sorts of work. In order to
allow him to enjoy the season, I engaged another boy on
this occasion. I might have dispensed with this additional
boy altogether, for as the two boys never remained at
home, and even stayed away at night, it was just as if I
had had no boy at all. And so for days and days religion
532 I'HBEE YBAKS IN I'lBEl'.
and piety were suspended and in their places profanity and
vice were allowed to reign supreme.
The wild season being over— it lasts about twelve days —
the Monlam festival commences. This is preceded by the
arrival of priests at Lhasa from all parts of Tibet. From
the monasteries of Sera, Rebon, Ganden and other large.
and small temples, situated at a greater or less distance,
arrive the contingents of the priestly hosts. These must
number about twenty-five thousand, sometimes more and
sometimes less, according to the year. They take ap their
quarters in ordinary houses, for the citizens are under
obligation to offer one or two rooms for the use of the
priests during this season, just as people of other countries
are obliged to do for soldiers when they carry out
manoeuvres in their neighborhood. And as in the case
when soldiers are billeted, so the priests who come from
the countiy are crowded in their temporary abodes. Some
of them are even obliged to sleep outside, owing to lack of
accommodation, but they do not seem to mind the
discomfort much, so long as snow does not fall. Besides
the priests, the city receives at the same time an equally
numerous host of lay visitors from the country, so that the
population of Lhasa during this festival season is swollen to
twice its regular number, or even more. In ordinary days
Lhasa contains about fifty thousand inhabitants,. but there
must be at least a hundred thousand on this special
occasion. I ought to state that formerly, and before the
time of the present Dalai Lama, the arrival of the Monlam
festival was signalised not by the inflow of people from the
country but by the contrary movement, the temporary
exodus of the citizens to the provinces. Since the accession
of the present Grand Lama the direction of the temporary
movement has been reversed, and the festival has begun
to be celebrated amidst a vast concourse of the people
instead of amidst a desolate scene. This apparent anomaly
THE "monlam" festival. 533
was due to the extortion which the Festival Commissioners
practised on the citizens.
This function is undertaken by two of the higher priests
of the Rebon Monastery, the largest of the three important
establishments, who take charge of the judicial affairs of
the temple during the term of one yeai', and are known
by the title of Shal-ngo. The appointment to the post of
Shal-ngo was and still is an expensive affair for its holder,
for he must present to the officials who determine the
nomination bribes amounting to perhaps five thousand yen.
As soon as the post has been secured at such a cost the
Shal-ngo loses no time in employing it as a means of recover-
ing that sum, with heavy interest, during his short tenure
of office and especially during the two festival seasons of
Monlam and Sang-joe, over which the two Commissioners
exercise absolute control. They set themselves to collect
enough to enable them to live in competence and luxury
during the rest of their lives. Driven by this inordinate
greed, the dealings of the Commissioners are excessively
strict during those days. Fines are imposed for every
trivial offence; the citizens are frequently fined as much
as two hundred yen, in Japanese currency, on the pretext
of the imperfect cleansing of the doorways or of the
streets in front of their houses. The parties engaged in a
quarrel are ordered to pay a similarly heavy fine, and with-
out any discrimination as to the relative justice of their
causes. Then too the festival seasons are a dreadful time
for those who have debts not yet redeemed, for then the
creditors can easily recover the sum through the help of
the Colnmissioners, provided they are prepared to give to
them one-half the sum thus recovered. On receipt of a
petition from a creditor, the greedy officials at once order
the debtors and their friends to pay the money on pain
of having their property confiscated. The whole proceedings
of the Festival Commissioners, therefore, are not much
534
'i'HEEB YEAKS IN TIBET.
better than the villainous practices of brigands and high-
waymen. It is not to be wondered at that at the approach
of the festivals the citizens began in a hurry to lock away
their valuable property in the secret depths of their
houses, and then leaving one or two men to take charge
during their absence, left the city for the country,
the houses being given over as lodgings for the
A CORRUPT CHIEF JUSTICE OF THE MONKS.
THE " MONLAM " FESTIVAL. 535
priests. During the Monlam season, therefore, there did
not remain in the city even one-tenth of its ordinary popu-
lation.
The shark-like practices of the Shal-ngos are not confined
to the festival seasons or to the citizens ; on the contrary,
they prey even on their brother-priests for the purpose of
satisfying their voracious greed, and extort money from
them. The Shal-ngos are like wolves in a fold of sheep, or
like robbers living with impunity amidst ordinary law
of a abiding people. That such gross abuses and injustice
ngos' should have been allowed within the sacred precincts
monastery is really marvellous, but it is a fact. The Shal-
ngos' extortions from the citizens were checked when the
present Dalai Lama ascended the throne, and the citizens
were thus enabled to live in peace and to participate in the
festival during the Monlam season, but the sinful practices
of the Legal Commissioners in other quarters are still
left uncurtailed.
An interesting story is told which shows how the
Shal-ngos are abhorred and detested by the Tibetans. A cer-
tain Lama, superstitiously believed to possess a supernatural
power of visiting any place in this world or the next and of
visiting Paradise or Hell, was once asked by a merchant of
Lhasa to tell him with what he, the Lama, had been most
impressed during his visits to Hell. The Lama replied that
he was surprised to see so many priests suifering tortures
at the hands of the guardians of Hell. However he
continued with an air of veracity, the tortures to which
ordinary priests werebeing subjected were not very extreme,
and they were therefore allowed to live in their new abode
with less suffering. But the tortures inilicted on the
Shal-ngos of Eebon monastery were horrible; they were such
that the mere recollection of them caused his hair to stand
on end. Such is the story told at the expense of these
Lama sharks, and indeed from the way in which they act
536 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
during their short tenure of the office, Hell, and the lowest
circle in it, seems to be the only place for which they are
fit.
Lhasa puts on her cleanest and finest appearance with
the advent of this season. The filth and garbage that
have been left accumulating during the preceding months
are carried away, the gutters are cleaned, and the public
are no longer allowed to drop dirt about or in any way
to pollute the streets.
The grand service is performed at the magnificent
three-storied edifice which is so conspicuous in Lhasa,
namely the Cho Khang, the celebrated Buddha's Hall.
During the service this hall is packed to overflowing with
priests and pious believers, and there is not space left to
move one's elbows. Not infrequently, therefore, casualties
are said to happen.
The service is performed three times a day, first from five
to seven in the morning, then from ten to a little before one
and lastly from three to about half past four in the afternoon.
The second service is the most important one for the priests
who attend the ceremony, as it is accompanied by monetary
gifts. The gifts come either from philanthropic folk or
from the Government, and range on each occasion from
twenty-four sew (Japanese) to seventy-two sen. The gifts
generally amount during the period of the Festival to
about ten yeii for ordinary priests. This sum is consider-
ably larger on a special occasion, as when a Dalai Lama is
enthroned or dies, when it may increase to about twenty yen.
The receipts of the higher Lamas during this season
are far greater — often one thousand, two thousand or even
as much five thousand yen.
On the other hand all the priests who arrive in Lhasa
to attend the ceremony are required to pay their own
lodging expenses, at the rate of twenty-five to fifty .ten
a day. For a room or set of rooms better furnished than
THE "MONLAM FESTIVAI,.
537
usual the charge may be three to five yen, and of course
only aristocratic priests can afford to hire such rooms.
The lodging of the priests is somewhat exclusivej and
they are forbidden to stay at houses selling liquors, or
containing many females.
During this season, besides the Festival Commissioners
who are the Lama sharks of the year, a special office for
supervising priests, called Khamtsan-gi Giken, is created,
commissioned with the duty of controlling the conduct
of the priests. Quarrels are, however, very rare during
the season, though from the ordinary behavior of priests
they might naturally be expected to occasion such troubles.
At any rate the priests maintain decorum externally.
They are expected to attend the three services perform-
ed each day, and they are not allowed to attend the
ceremony at their own temples, even when those temples
are situated near the city. They must live in the 'city,
and remain there, unless under exceptional circumstances,
such as illness. The attendance at the three services is
not compulsory, yet it is very rarely neglected, for a distri-
bution of gifts is very often made at each service.
On January j5th, accoi-ding to the lunar calendar, the
most magnificent ceremony is carried out at night. The
offerings are arranged around the Buddha's Hall, and the
most conspicuous object among them is a triangular
wooden frame with sharp apex, the structure measuring
about forty feet high and thirty feet long at the base.
Two dragons in an ascending position are fixed to the
two sides, while about the middle of the frame the
"Enchanted Garden " is represented, peopled either with
figures of the Buddha leaching human beings or of Princes
and other important dignitaries. These figures are all
made of butter. Besides human figures there are figures
of several of the alleged birds of paradise, such as are
mentioned in Buddhist books. All these are of Tibetan
68
538
XHEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
THE FINAL CEREMONY OF THE MONLAM.
THE "moNLAM'* festival. 539
workmanship, and creditably executed, probably as a
result of long experience. I should add that the butter
figures ai-e all finely painted and even gilded, and as the
butter takes color easily the effect produced is very
splendid, when those highly decorated and painted figures
are seen by the light of butter-lamps or torches that are
burning at a .'suitable distance from the figures. There
must be as many as a hundred and tAventy such ornament-
al structures around the Hall, while the lamps and torch-
es that are burning are quite countless. Indeed, it seemed
to me as if some gorgeous scene such as we imagine to
exist only in Heaven had been transplanted to earth on
that particnlair occasion. To the Tibetans the scene as
exhibited on this particular night marks the high- water
level of all that is splendid in this world, and it is there-
fore quoted as an ideal standard in speaking of anything
that is uncommonly magnificent.
This offering ceremony concludes at about two o'clock
the following morning, and two houi*s later the decorated
figures are removed, for they are in danger of being
melted when exposed to the raj^s of the sun. The cere-
mony, it must be remembered, is attended only by a limited
number of priests, probably three hundred at the utmost
out of the twenty-five thousand who are present in the city
to attend the Monlam festival. The privilege of inspecting
this yearly show is therefore regarded as a great honor by
the Tibetan priests.
The reason why this magnificent display is denied to the
inpection of the majority of priests and to the whole of the
populace is because formerly, when it was open to universal
inspection, uncontrollable commotion attended by casualties
used to mar the function. And so the authorities decided about
thirty years ago to perform it in this semi-private manner.
The ceremony begins at about eight in the evening and
closes, as before mentioned^ at about four the following
540 THKEK YBAKS t^ TIBET.
morning. The function is sometimes inspected by the Dalai
Lama, while at other times he does not come, as was the
case when I had the good fortune to witness it in the company
of the ex-Finance Minister. The Amban however does
not omit to attend the ceremony. He was attired in the
gorgeous official garments of China, and sat in a carriage
lit up inside with twenty-four tussore silk lanterns in which
were burning foreign-made candles. On his head he wore
the official cap befitting his rank. The procession was
preceded by a cavalcade of Chinese, officers also in their
gala dresses, and behind the carriage followed another
train of mounted guards. It was really a fine .scene,
this procession of the Chinese Amban as it passed through
the streets lit up with tens of thousands of butter-lamps ;
only I thought that the sight was too shcfwy and that it
lacked the element of solemnity.
After the procession of the Amban followed the trains
of the high priests, then high lay officials and last of all
the Premiers. On that occasion onl}'- two of the four
Premiers attended, the other two being unable to be
present.
The Premiers come to the function in order to inspect
the offerings, which are contributed by the Peers and the
wealthy as a sort of obligation. Butter decorations are
expensive things, costing from three hundred to two
thousand yen in Japanese currency, according to their
magnitude and the finish of the workmanship ; and here
were over one hundred and twenty such costly decorations
arranged as offerings, and that only for one evening. I
believe no such costly butter decorations are to be seen
anywhere else in the world.
During the festival I remained as before under the
hospitable roof of the ex-Miniater, and though through the
favor of my host I inspected the offering ceremony, I did
not attend the prayer services. The former I saw from
THE "mONLAm" festival.
641
A SCENE FROM THE MONLAM FESTIVAL.
542 THREE YEAES IN TiBEt.
mere curiosity and as an outsider. The scene on the
occasion was sufficiently enjoyable ; I went first to the
quarters assigned to the warrior-priests and observed
that these young men were spending their time in their
own customary way even during the time of the
service, singing songs, trying feats of arms, or engaged
in hot disputes or even open quai-rels. All at once the
clamor ceased and order was restored as if by magic, and
the young priests were seen demurely reciting the service;
they had noticed some subordinates of the Festival
Commissioners coming towards them in order to maintain
order. Those subordinates were armed with willow sticks
about four feet long and fairly thick — sticks which were
green and supple and well suited for inflicting stinging
blows.
Then I moved on to the quarters where the learned priests
were intently engaged in carrying out the examination
held for the aspirants to the highest degrees obtainable in
Tibet. The examination was oral and in the form of
interrogations put to the candidates by the examination
committee, the lattec being composed of the most celebrated
theologians in the three colleges. The candidates too were
not unworthy to be examined by such divines, for those
only are qualified to apply for permission to undergo the
examination who have studied hard for twenty years, and
have acquired a thorough knowledge of all the abstruse
points in Buddhist theology and have made themselves
masters of the art of question and answer. The learned
discourses delivered by examiners and examinees awoke
in me high admiration. The forensic skill of the two
parties was such as I had rarely seen anywhere else. The
examiners put most tortuous questions to entice the
candidates into the snare of sophistry, while the latter met
them with replies similarly searching and intended to upset
the whole stratagem of the querents. So forcible and
THE "monlam" festival. 543
exciting were the arguments offered by both parties that
they might be comparedj I thought^ to a fierce contest
such as might take place between a lion and a tiger.
The examination was indeed an exhibition of a truly
intellectual nature, and was attended not only by the
committee and candidates but by almost all the learned
theologians and their disciples. These strangers were
sitting round the examination tables and freely criticised the
questions put and replies made. They even raised shouts
of applause or of laughter, whenever either convincingly
refuted his antagonist or was worsted in the argument.
I observed the laughter to be especially contagious and
the merry sound raised by two or three men in the
strangers^ quarters would spread to all the others in the
hall, till the walls resounded with the loud " ha, ha, ha "
coming from several thousand throats.
Every year during the Monlam season sixteen candidates
selected from the three colleges are given the degree of
Lha Eainha, meaning ' Special Doctor,' and this degree is
the most honorable one open to Tibetan divines. Only
those of exceptional acquirements can hope for it.
On the occasion of the Ghoen joe festival also, sixteen
candidates of the secondary grade are sent from the
universities to pass the examination for the Tso Bamba
degree. Then there are inferior degrees, which are
granted by the monasteries to the young priests studying
there. There are two such degrees, one called Do Ramha
and the other Rim-shi. Sometimes divines of great erudi-
tion are found among the holders of the Do Ramba degree,
men even more learned than the 'Special Doctors.' The fact
is that the examination for the highest degree is expensive,
when one wishes to procure that title at one jump and
without previously obtaining the intermediary Do Ramba.
It is not rare, therefore to find among the Do Ramba
men theologians whose learning can even outshine that
544 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
of the proud holders of the highest degree, for there are
often men who from pecuniary considerations only are
withheld from attempting the examination. The holders
of the Do Ramba degree therefore differ considerably in
learning, but this cannot be said of those holding the other
title of Rim-shi, the latter being in nine cases out of ten of
mediocre learning. This degree is easily ]3rocurable for a
certain sum of money when one has studied five or six
years at the monasteries of Rebon and Granden, and so the
young priests from the country generally avail themselves
of this convenient transaction and return home as proud
holders of the Doctor's title, and as objects of respect and
wonder for their learning among the local folk. In Tibet
therefore, as in other parts of the world, cheap Doctors flaunt
their learning, and pass for prodigies among the simple-
minded people of the country.
The Doctors of the highest grade are unquestionably
theologians of great erudition, for knowledge of the
ordinary Buddhist text-books is not enough for the
aspirants to that title; they must study and make them-
selves at home in the complete cycle of Buddhist works.
Perhaps the Tibetan first class Doctors possess a better
knowledge of Buddhist theology and are more at home
in all its ramifications than are the Japanese Buddhist
divines; for though there are quite a large number of
theologians in Japan who are thoroughly versed in the
philosophy and doctrine of their own particular sects it
cannot boast so many divines whose knowledge completely
covers the whole field of Buddhist philosophy.
During the festival I frequently went to the Hall to see
the function as a curious observer, but for the rest I devoted
my time to prosecuting my studies under a Lhakhamba
Doctor and the learned Mae Kenbo of the Sera monastery.
Thus while the other priests were attending to their worldly
business of making money, I detached myself from society
THE "itONLAM" FESTIVAL. 545
and was absorbed in study. I had the more reason to
devote myself to this self-imposed task, for the time I had
fixed for my departure fi-om Tibet was drawing nearer.
Not that I had hitherto neglected the main object which
prompted me to undertake this self-assigned expedition to
Lhasa; on the contrary, even when I w'as obliged, from
unavoidable circumstances, to act the part of an amateur
doctor and prescribe treatment to Tibetan patients, 1 never
suspended my study; I either read Burjclhist works or
attended lectures.
On March 4th of the solar calendar (January
24th of the, Tibetan almanac) the sword festival
was celebrated at Lhasa. I had the good fortune to
witness this performance also, though the function is
not open to general inspection. I observed it from the
window of a certain Peer, an acquaintance of mine, whose
house fronted the Buddha's Hall.
I may call the Sword Fe&tival a sort of Tibetan military
review. At any rate the regulars in and about Lhasa
participated in it, and also the special soldiers temporarily
organised for the occasion. They were all mounted, and
numbered altogether perhaps two thousand five hundred
men. They were quaintly accoutred, and seemed to be
divided according to the colors of the pieces of cloth
attached to the back of their helmets and hanging down
behind. I saw a party of about five hundred troopers
distinguished by white cloths, then another with purple
cloths, while there was a third which ased cloths of
variegated dyes. But irrespective of the different colors,
they were all clad in a sort of armor and carried small
flags also of different colors. Some were armed with bows
and arrows and others with guns, and the procession of
the gaily attired soldiery was not unlike the rows of
decorated May dolls arranged for sale in Tokyo on the eve
of the Boys ' Festival in Japan.
69
546 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
The proceedings began with a signal gun. As the
booming sound subsided the procession of soldiery made
its appearance and each division went past the Grand
Lama's seat constructed on an elevated stand to iihe west
of the Hall. With the termination of this march-past a
party of about three hundred priests, carrying a flat drum
each with a long handle and with the figure of a dragon in-
scribed upon its face, came out of the main edifice. Each
of them carried in his right hand a crooked drum-stick.
This party took its stand in a circle in front of the Hall.
Next marched oiit the second party of priests all gorge-
ously attired in glittering coats and brocade tunics, each
carrying a metallic bowl used in religious services. I
must mention that the function demands of the soldiery
and priests the washing of their bodies with warm water
on the preceding evening, and so on that particular
occasion those Tibetans, careless and negligent of bodily
cleanliness at other times, are for the first time in the year
almost decently clean.
'fhe metallic-bowl party was arranged in a row around
the drum party, and soon the signal for the service was
given by one of the bowl-men who was apparently a leader.
It was a peculiar signal, and consisted in striking on the
bowl and starting a strange dancing movement. On this
the two parties beat their drums and bowls in some sort
of tune. After this had gone on for some time the whole
party burst out into a chorus of ominous howls, not unlike
the roar of the tiger. As the thousand priests composing
the two par-ties all howled to the fullest extent of their
throats, the noise made was sufiiciently loud.
After the howling parties had coinpleted their part in
this ceremony, out marched a party of Nechung priests,
those oracle-mongers of Tibet to whom reference has
been made more than once already. The oracle-mongers'
party was heralded by a number of sacred-sword-bearers
The "monlam" jPestival. 547
in two rows, about a dozen iia each. The sword carried
measured about four feet in length and was set off with
pieces of silk cloth of five different colors. The sword-
bearers were followed by the bearers of golden censers
and other sacred caskets or vessels. Then followed the
oracle-inonger, dressed cap-h-pie in all the glittering-
fashion which Tibetan ingenuity alone could devise.
He was clad in gold brocade and wore head-gear of
the same cloth. He behaved like a man stricken with palsy,
was supported right and left by an assistant, and his
eyes were shut; Gasping like a fish out of water and walking
with a tottering gait not unlike that of a man who
has lost his power of locomotion through too much liquor,
the Nechung slowly emerged from the Hall. By the
ignorant populace he was greeted as an object of venera-
tion, but there were seen not a small number of priests and
laymen who looked upon this peculiar appearance of
the Nechung with eyes of undisguised disgust.
The part assigned to this Lama fanatic is one of
semi-divine character, he being required to act as a guard-
ian angel, to prevent any mishaps occurring during
the ceremony of the ' Sword Festival '.
Last of all slowly marched forth the procession of the
Ganden Ti Rinpoche. I saw him under a capacious and
highly decorated awning which is the same sort of
umbrella as that of the Grand Lama. He was attired in the
ceremonial robe befitting his rank of Ti Rinpoche. His
appearance was highly impressive and even those priests
who had viewed the oracle-mongers with well-deserved
scorn were seen in attitudes of sincere respect. That was
also my sentiment as my eyes met him ; for he truly im-
pressed me as a living Buddha. To the Ti Rinpoche was
entrusted the most important function in this ceremony,
the hurling of the sacred sword in order to avert any evil
spirits that may obstruct the prosperous reign of the
048 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
Chinese Emperor. With this sword-hurling the ceremony
was brought to a close.
Though in principle this ceremony concludes the
Monlam, in practice it comes to an end only on the
following morning and with a custom of practical utility —
that of carrying stones to the banks of the river Kichu
which flows by Lhasa, and is often liable to overflow and
flood the city. The stones required for this purpose
are brought by the country people, and are sold at ten or
twenty sen a piece, and each priest or citizen who attends
the ceremony buys one or two such stones and conveys
them to the banks either on his own back or by hired
carriers. The stones thus conveyed to the banks are
supposed to possess the effect of atoning for their sins.
The banks must acquire great strength in consequence of
this stone-piling.
CHAPTER LXXVI.
The Tibetan Soldiery.
The standing army of Tibet is said to consist of five
thousand me^ but from my own observation I think this
number somewhat exaggerated, iin any case, it is hardly
sufficient to jjrotect a country containing six millions of in-
habitants against foreign invasion and civil commotion.
However, in Tibet social order is not kept by soldiers, nor
by the despotic power of the ruler. Religion is the force
that keeps the country in good order. The mass of the
people would never take arms against the Pope whom they
believe to be a living Buddha. This idea is so thoroughly
infused into them that there have been really very few
cases of rebellion in Tibet, hence there is no necessity for a
great number of soldiers) The history of the country testi-
fies that civil commotions take place only when the chief
Lama has died, and the new master is too young to take
up the Government for himself, and so leaves the entire
business to the Agent and Ministers, who abuse their jjower,
or when the regent tyrannises over and offends the people.
But when the master is old enough to manage the affairs of the
country he is revered as a living Buddha, against whom no
one protests. /Minor difficulties may arise, but they are easily
settled without recourse to arms. The real causes that
have made Tibet feel the necessity of having a standing
army have been her two quarrels with Nepal and one with
British India. Since then Tibet has ever had a regular army,
distributed as follows ; at Lhasa one thousand men, at
Shigatze two thousand, at Tingri, an important fort on the
Nepal frontier, nominally five hundred but possibly only
three hundred (there are several hundred Chinese soldiers
here), five hundred at Gyantze, five hundred at Dam, and
650 THEBE YEABS In TlhEi.
another five hundred at Mankham, making five thousand in
all.) The Chinese soldiers stationed in the country number
two thousand altogether^ and are distributed equally at
the four places — Lhasa, Tingri, Shigatze, and Tomo. (Every
five hundred Tibetan soldiers are under a chief called De
Bon. The lower officers are one for every two hundred and
fifty, one for every twenty-five and one for every fiva/
The Tibetan soldiers receive only one bushel of barley a
month as salary. They have no regular. barracks to live in
together, but live in ordinary residences which, however,
are built at the cost of the citizens. They are scattered
throughout the city, and keep stores or carry on any kind
of trade, as do the common people. They are obliged to
do some kind of work, for they cannot keep their wives
and children on the one bushel of barley a month. But
they are free from house-rent,) and I have often heard the
citizens complain of the burden of building houses for the
soldiers. The Chinese soldiers also live in ordinary houses
like the Tibetans, and are exempt from rent.
In return for his paltry remuneration, the Tibetan soldier
has to be drilled four or five times a month, and to be pre-
sent at the great manoeuvres once a year. The manoeu-
vres are held in the vicinity of a little village called Dabchi,
which lies about two miles north of Lhasa on the road
leading to the Sera monastery) In the village there is a
shrine of Kwanti (a Chinese war-G-od) whom the Tibetans
call G-esei-gi Gryalpo (saffron king), and who is much revered
as a G-od for driving away evil spirits, though the Chinese
settlers form the greater proportion of his actual worship-
pers. Close by there is another temple called by the name
of the village, in which live priests who take the ser-
vices at the Kwanti shrine. Many objects of interest are
kept in the shrine, but the most curious things are the
images of blue demois, red demons, and other inhabitants
of hell, all arranged as if they were retainers of Kwanti.
THE TIBETAN SOLDIERY. 551
North of this shi'ine there is a high mound about one fur-
long square, with an arsenal standing in the centre. Thence
spreads a vast plain five miles to the north, half a mile to
the west and five miles to the east. This is the scene of
the great parade. Soldiers are summoned from all parts of
the country to attend the parade, which is usually held to-
wards the end of September or the beginning of October,
when the barley harvest is over, and the crops safely out of
harm's way") The first twd^ays are reserved for the
Chinese soldiers and the following two for the Tibetan.
(J'he review is honored by the presence of the Amban and
of the higher Tibetan officers, who give prizes in money
ranging from fifty cents to five dollars, or silver medals, to
any soldiers who have displayed notable ability. In Tibet
archery is still considered an essential art of warriors, yet
artillery has recently been introduced, and is taught by
Chinese officers or by Tibetans who have been educated
in India. The Tibetan artillery does not amount to
muchN
My own observations lead me to suspect the valor of the
Chinese and Tibetan soldiers, and I doubt whether they can
claim to have any more strength than the ordinary citizens.
Among the Chinese soldiers pale countenances are very
common, and though the Tibetan soldiers look stouter, in
courage I can see no difference. The cause of their insig-
nificance is to be traced to the difficulty they have in living
upon their small pay. The warrior-priests are far more
soldier-like than the regular soldiers; they have no wives nor
children to take care of, and have therefore nothing to
fear. They are indeed far more estimable than the
professional soldiers, whose . first business in time of war is
to plunder the natives instead of serving the country.
This is all because the soldiers have families, a fact wliich
in my opinion is the greatest hindrance to warlike purposes.
The Tibetans are emotional by nature, and out of such
552 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
people, especially when they also have to support families,
it is no easy task to make a brave army.
One exception must be made — the people of Kham. Out-
wardly wild, they are natural soldiers. In this district all
the inhabitants, not excluding the women, may be called
fighters. Their usual vocations are trading, farming, and
cattle-raising, but their favorite profession is robbery.
This is the business most admired by all; they deem it a great
honor to defeat other tribes and kill as many foes as they
can. In Kham they have robber-songs as we have war-
songs: songs in which the people take much delight, even
the children singing the lively airs to which they are fitted ;
and as there are no war-songs in Tibet the robber-songs of
Kham are substituted for them. Here is one :
1. Upon those boundless plateaux, green with grass ;
Along those sloping tortuous pathless paths ;
Amidst those pointed hornlike rocky steeps
My charger iron-hoofed I bestride
With daring valor to attack my foes.
2. When hail-storms rage their fiercest round my head,
With all their stones like bullets pelting me,
And when tempestuous snow-drifts roll in rage,
Like mighty greedy waves engulfing me,
I fear not — nay these perils great I like
To brave ; for, clad in iron boots my feet,
I headlong rush, stout-hearted as I am,
Unwed, assured of final victory.
3. My wife, my children and my parents dear
Are not my refuge here ; I trust not them ;
My refuge only is my spirit brave
Adventurous, that can resist and stand
Against misfortunes and e'en dangers dire.
These songs all begin with A, la, la, la ; la, la, la, mo
and end with la, la, mo, la; la, la, la, mo. Once when
I met a Tibetan soldier of my acquaintance, I asked why
they used robber-songs instead of having war-songs of their
own. He was a talkative kind of man and proceeded to
explain in an oratorical tone,
THE TIBETAN SOLDIERY. 553
" As you well know, the meaning of the songs is very good
and noble ; it is the courage praised in songs like these that
strengthens a country. But even good songs, when used
for robbery, are indeed wicked weapons, and the singers
thereof great sinners. They are the same songs, but how
great is the difference in their results ! In one case they
promote, and in th« other they destroy, humanity and
righteousness."
CHAPTER LXXVII.
Tibetan Finance.
I shall next briefly describe the finance of the Tibetan
Government. It must be remembered, however, that this
subject is extremely complicated' and hardly admits of
accurate explanation even by financial experts, for
nobody except the Revenue Officials can form an approxi-
mate idea of the revenue and expenditure of the Govern-
ment. All that I could get from the Minister of Finance
was that a considerable margin of difference existed accord-
ing to the year. This must partly come from the fact that
taxes are paid in kind, and as the market is necessarily
subject to fluctuation even in such an exclusive place
as Tibet, the Government cannot always realise
the same amount of money from the sale of grain and
other commodities collected by the Revenue authorities.
Of course anything like statistical returns are unknown
in Tibet, and my task being hampered by such serious
drawbacks, I can only give here a short account of how
the taxes are collected, how they are paid and by what
portion of the people, and how the revenue thus coUept-
ed is disbursed, and such matters, which lie on the
surface so that I could easily observe and investigate them.
The Treasury Department of the Papal Government is
called Lahrang Chenho, which means the large Kitchen of
the Lama. It is so-called, because various kinds of staples
are carried in there as duty from the land under his
direct jurisdiction, and from landlords holding under a
sort of feudal tenure. As there are no such conveniences
as drafts or money orders, these staples have to be trans-
ported directly from each district to the central treasury,
whatever the distance. But the taxpaj-er has one solace;
TIBETAN PiNANCE. 5^5
he can easily obtain, on his way to the treasury, the
service of post-horses, such service on such occasions being
compulsorj'. The articles thus collected consist of barley,
■wheat, benns, buck-wheat, meal and butter. But from
districts in which custom-house.s are established vai'ious
other things, such as coral gems, cotton, woollen and
silk goods, raisins and peaches are accepted. Other
districts paj^ animal-skins, and thus the large Kitchen
is an ' omniuni gatherum.' Truly a strange method of
collecting taxes !
One peculiaritj' in Tibet is the use of an abundant
variety of weights and measures ; there are twenty scales
for weighing meal, and thirty-two boxes for measuring
grain. Bo-chik is the name given to a box of the average
sisse, and it measures about half a bushel. But tax-col-
lectors use, when necessity arises, measures half as large
or half as small as these, so that the largest measure
holds three quarters of a bushel, while the smallest holds
a quarter. The small ones are generally used to measure
the staples from provinces such as the native place of
the Dalai Lama, or such as have personal relations to some
high officials of the Government. Thus, though a favored
district is" supposed to pay the same number of bushels as
the others, it pays in reality only one-half of what the
most unfortunate district has to pay. Nor is the measure
used for one district a fixed one; it may change from yeav
to year. Suppose one of the most favored districts has
produced a great rascal, or rebel, or has done anything
that displeases the G-overnment. The whole people of
that district are responsible for it; they are obliged to pay
by the largest measure, that is, twice as much as they did
in the preceding year. Thus the various kinds of offences
make it necessary to have thirty-two varieties of measures
and twenty of weight. It is to be noted however that
when the Government has to dispose of those stuffs, it never
556 THKEE YJiAES llSf TlBEl'.
uses the larger measures, thoiigli if too small ones are used, it
certainly causes complaints on the part of the buyers; hence
the middle-sized ones are mostly used. All expenses of
Government, such as salaries for priests and officers and
wages fqr mechanics and tradesmen in its service are paid
with an average measure.
The chief expense of the Government is, as I have stated
before, that for the service of the Buddha Shakyamuni. The
money used for the repairing of temples and towers, and
for the purchase of stone lanterns and other furniture
amounts to a large sum ; but by far the greater proportion
is spent for butter, which is used instead of oil for the
myriads of lights which are kept burning day and night.
The stands arranged in rows in the temple of the Buddha
in Lhasa alone number no less than two thousand five
hundred and in some special cases ten thousand or even
a hundred thousand lamps are lighted, all of them burn-
ing butter of a high price. In Tibet the substitution of
vegetable oil for mal is considered, not exactly sin, but
at least a pollution and desecration of Buddha ; not a few
Lamas leave a clause in their wills that rapeseed oil should
not be offered for their souls after death. In front of the
image of the Buddha in Lhasa are placed twenty-four
large light-stands of pure gold. These and some others
have big oil-holders, large enough to hold five gallons
of mal. A^lmost all the mal used for the service of the
Buddha is furnished by the Treasury of the G-overnment,
though a small part of it is offered by religious people.
Costly mal used, in former times, to be offered by Mongol-
ians, to the great relief of the Papal Treasury, but the
offering has recently been stopped entirely. The burdens
of the Tibetan people themselves have been proportion-
ately increased, but as the fixed rate of the tax can-
not be increased the bigger measures are used more
frequently.
TlBE'rAN I'INANCE. 557
In eacli province there are two places where the collection
of taxes is made for the Government, one of which is the
temple, and the other the Local Government office ; for the
people are divided into two classes : (1) those who are
governed by the temple and (2) those who are governed
by the Local Government. They pay their taxes to the
Central Government through their respective Governors.
In each local district, there is what is called a Zong. This
was originally a castle built for warlike purposes, bat in
time of peace it serves as a Government office, where all
the functions of Government are carried on, so taxes are
also collected there. The Zong is almost always found
standing on the top of a hillock of about three hundred
feet and a Zongpon (chief of the castle), generally a lay-
man, lives in it. He is the chief Governor of the district
and collects taxes and sends the things or money he has
gathered to the Central Government. The Zongpon is not
paid by the Central Government directly, but subtracts
the equivalent ef his pay from the taxes he has collected.
The Central Government does not send goods or money to
the Local Government except on such few occasions as need
special help from the national Treasury. The people
under the direct jurisdiction of the Central Government
are sometimes made to pay a poll-tax. The people who
belong to the nobility and the higher class of priests are of
course assessed by their landowners, but there is no definite
regulation as to their payment to the Central Government ;
the people of some districts pay, while others are exempt.
Part of the work done by the Tibetan Minister of the
Treasury is the management of the subscriptions of the
people. Everything offered to the Buddhist Temple
and given to the priests at the time of the Great
Assembly is at once paid into the Treasury, to be
given out only by the order of the Minister of that
department. Another business taken by the Minister
558 THREE YEAES IN TlBST.
is the household expenses of the Pope. These expenses
are not iixed, and the Pope can draw out as much as he
pleases within the limit of usage, and his own moderation.
It is said that since the accession of the present Pope
both the expenditure and the revenue have been greatly
increased. The Minister of the Treasury has also to pay
all the salaries of officials and pi'iests in the service of the
Papal Grovernment. These expenses for salaries are very
small, as compared with those of other countries, but the
officials and priests derive an additional income from the
land in their own possession.
Officers and priests in Tibet can each borrow fifteen
hundred dollars from the Government at an interest of
live per cent a year and they can lend it again at
fifteen per cent, which is the current rate of interest
in Tibet, though usurers sometimes charge over thirty
per cent. Thus any officer can make at least ten
per cent on fifteen hundred dollars without ruiming
much risk. If an officer or priest "fails to repay
the loan tlie amount is not subtracted from his next
year's loan. Compound interest is unknown in Tibet how-
ever long the debtor may prolong his payment ; it is for-
bidden by the law. Another subsidy given by the
Government is six dollars extra pay per annum to each
priest of the Three Great Temples. In this connexion it
must also be stated that the Three Great Temples just men-
tioned receive a vast amount of mal from the Government.
The supplementary resources of the Pope's revenue are
subscriptions from the members and laymen, the leases
from meadow-lands in his personal possession, and profits
acquired by his own trading, which is carried on by his
own caravans. The Pope's caravans must be distinguished
from those of the Treasury Department.
The Treasury of the Grand Lama is called Che Labrang,
which means the Lama's kitchen on the hill, because the
TIBETAN FINANCE. 559
•
Lama's palace is located on a hill. It is called Potala and
the place is a castle, a temple, and a palace at once. As a
castle it has no equal in Tibet, in view of the strength of its
fortifications ; as a temple, it can look down upon all other
lamaseries of the country for elegance and gaudiness. As
a palace, of course there is no building that surpasses
it. But in spite of all this, there is a deplorable defect
in its water supply. Within the high walls that
defend the dwellers from the attacks of an enemy
there is no well or spring whatever. The people
have to go far away to get a bucket of water from
a well which can only be reached by descending a
hundred and fifty feet of stone steps and crossing
another hundred and fifty feet of level ground. To reach the
top of the hill one has to climb another three hundred feet,
making the journey three quarters of a mile altogether.
It is of course no easy work for the residents to carry
water so far, and there are therefore many workers who
make it their business to do this for them, charging about
twelve cents per man a month. The aristocratic priests, who
bear the title of Namgyal Tatsang, live in one part of the
castle and number one hundred and sixty-five. They
represent the highest type of the Tibetan priesthood and
are all selected with great care, even physique and
physiognomy being taken into consideration. They live
in good style at the Pope's personal cost.
The property of the G-rand Lama, after his death, is
divided in the following way : One-half of the property
(in fact a little more than half) has to be divided among
his relatives in his native place, and the remaining half is
distributed as gifts among the priests of the Great Temples
and those of the New Sect. In the case of an ordinary
priest, if he leaves property worth five thousand dollars
about four thousand is used in gifts to the priests and
for the expense of lights, and almost all the remaining
560 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
thousand is used for his funeral expenses, leaving perhaps
three hundred to his disciples. In cases when a priest
leaves very little money, his disciples are obliged to
borrow money to supply the want of gifts and money for
lights in his honor — a custom entirely foreign to the
laity.
CHAPTER LXXVIII.
Future of the Tibetan Religions.
The Tibetans are essentially a religious people. Foreign-
ers call them superstitious, and indeed my own observa-
tion also testifies that their faith is veritably a mass of
superstition. Yet it would be inaccurate to say that there is
no truth in their religion. A small but precious jewel is
often found among useless rubbish ; wise men will not
throw away the jewel along with the rubbish, even though
it may not be found at the first glance. I can find at least
two precious things in the creed of the Tibetans. One of
them is that they recognise the existence of a superhuman
being who protects us. They are also sure of the possibi-
lity of communication with this being by dint of religious
faith. It is true that they have several unreasonable rites
of worship, which may be compared to the rubbish round
the jewel, but in the midst of them they know that Buddha
is all love, that He removes calamities from us, and makes
us happy at length. They also recognise the existence of
deities subject to the emotions of anger, and ready to
punish those that offend them; but even ignorant Tibetans
know the difference between the Gods and the Buddha, the
former to be feared, and the latter simply an object of
gratitude.
The other precious thing I can point out is their belief
in the law of cause and effect. According to this law, each
deed is rewarded according to its deserts ; whatever vices
one commits will be followed by suffering ; on the other
hand, every man shall enjoy the result of the good that he
has done. They also believe that the law of cause and
effect is everlasting, the seed making the fruit, and the
fruit the seed, and so on for ever. In the same way, they
71
562 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
think, our mind is imperishable, and often reproduced in
the world. Thus far their faith is worthy enough, but the
doctrine of transmigration, of which they have a too firm con-
viction, is apt to lead to superstition. The Tibetans often
really think such and such Lamas have been born again
in such and such places. But the precious Buddhist creed
that one's mind and body are everlastingly in accordance
with the law of cause and effect and self-compensation is
so thoroughly taught to every Tibetan from his childhood
by his mother, that the home lessons of the Tibetan child-
ren almost always take the form of sermons on their myth-
ology and miscellaneous stories connected with Buddhism.
In sooth. Buddhism is so deeply ingrained in the country
that no other religion can exist in Tibet, unless it be ex-
plained by the light of Buddhism. Thus, the Old Bon
religion has been greatly modified and has indeed entirely-
lost its original form and been replaced by the New Bonism,
which resembles the Ryobu Shinto of Japan, in which the
Sun God is interpreted as the incarnation of Buddha ; but
the Tibetan goes further than the Ryobu Shintoist did. By
Bon is meant Shinnyo or Truth, or rather the incarnation
of Shinnyo, and it is considered to be one branch of
Buddhism.
One of the thing.s which most struck me was that
Muhammadanism is found in Tibet, mostly among the
Chinese and the descendants of the immigrants from
Kashmir. They number about three hundred in Lhasa
and Shigatze, cling pertinaciously to their doctrines, and
have two temples in the suburbs of Lhasa, with two
cemeteries on the side of a distant mountain. One of the
temples is for the Musulmans from Kashmir, and the
other for the Chinese. It is rather strange to see the
calm existence of Muhatnmadani.sm in a country where
Buddhism is so predominant. One thing that the Musul-
nifitis in Tibet say is very striking. They declare that
FUTURE OP THE TIBETAN RELIGIONS. 563
according to their religion there exist previous and future
worlds, but that man is reborn as man, never as a lower
animal, as Buddhism says, and that the final destiny of
the human soul is the Kingdom of Heaven or Hell. I once
argued with some of the Muliammadans that no such
doctrine as transmigration is to be found in the Koran, in
which mention is made of the future world, but none about
the past. Then I suspected that it might have been
adopted from the Christian religion, for in the bible the
subject is just touched on. But I doubted whether any
doctrine of that sort had ever been pronounced upon by
the Muhammadan Kalifate. When they heard me speak
thus they simply said : " There is, there really is, the
doctrine of future and previous worlds in the Muhammadan
religion," and they said it with a straight face. They really
seemed to think so, but I think it a modification derived
from Buddhism.
Of late Christian missionaries have been trying to intro-
duce their religion into Tibet, and I can but admire their
undaunted spirit. But the country does not admit any
foreigners, so their utmost efforts have no effect on the
interior. They attempt therefore to convert the Tibetans
who come to Darjeeling, or those who live about Sikkim.
For these purposes hundreds of thousands of dollars have
already been spent, and the bible and many other reli-
gious books have been translated into the Tibetan language.
There are also many books written in Tibetan against
Buddhism. As soon as Darjeeling was opened to foreigners,
the first pioneers to the town were the Christian mission-
aries, and ever since they have been preaching their
religion with utmost zeal.
Notwithstanding all their endeavors. Christian missions
have been so far a failure. The so-called members are
false members, and the more earnest are not genuine
Tibetans, but Sikkimese who pretend to be Tibetans.
564 THREE YEAKS IN TIBET.
It can truly be said that there is not a single Tibetan
from the interior of the country who really believes in
Christianity, though there are a few who declare them-
selves Christian because they can thus get a living. Go
to the house of a reputed Christian and you will always
find in some inner room of his house the image of Buddha,
before which butter-lamps are burned in secret day and
night. When he goes out he pretends to be a Christian, and
on Sunday he carries his bible and goes to church ! Such a
Christian of course quickly turns his back upon
Christ when his pocket "is full, or he is not likely
to receive any more. The missionaries make a mistake
if they think that they can easily convert a Buddhist
into a Christian; for the reverse is the case. Let
me state some fundamental differences between Christi-
anity and Buddhism. By the ' Enlightenment' of
Buddhism one obtains absolute freedom; the » greatest
spiritual freedom is to be attained by one's self, while in
Christianity there is an infinite power called Cod who
prevents one from attaining absolute freedom. Again the
nature of cause and effect is not clear in the Christian
religion. I read in the bible " A good tree will bear good
fruits and a bad tree will bear bad fruits." Therefore I
cannot say that the doctrine of cause and effect is not
alluded to at all in this religion, but its scope is limited.
If they would extend the text and make it applicable to
previous and future lives, then I think they might open
the way for Christiaiuty to reach the Tibetans. Further-
more the sentence " Thy faith has saved thee " of
Christ means exactly what Bu^ddha meant : " Of one's own
deeds, one's own reward." But it seems to me that the
true meaning of the words of Christ is not fully developed
and that its application is far too narrow. I think this is
one cause of the unpopularity of Christianity among the
Tibetans, who have a very deep belief in the theory of
rUTUKE OP THE TIBETAN RELIGIONS. 565
"receiving according to one's own deeds." These are the
chief reasons, I believe, whj' Christianity obtains so few fol-
lowers among the Tibetans after so many years of hard
work by scores of missionaries at the cost' of millions of
dollars.
To sum up what we have seen : The predominant
religion at j^resent is Buddhism, and the others are
the Bon, the Muhammadan and the Christian. We have
seon how the old pre-Bucldhist Bon religion has been
transformed into the New Bon, which is now looked upon
as a sect of Buddhism, and how the Muhammadan religion
existing within a very small sphere of influence has shown
a gradual approach to Buddhism, though unnoticed by
themselves. As to the Christianity of Tibet, it does not
seem probable that it can flourish in this land unless the
present sectarian prejudices of the Churches are entirely
removed and a new form and attitude be given it, so as
to adapt it to the Tibetan people. The present Tibetan
Buddhism is corrupt and on the road to decay ; still it has
some jewels in it, and is almost naturally inherent in every
Tibetan, and it is probable that it will continue to be
predominant in the country by its own vis inertiae until a
great man comes to the front to undertake the work of
religious reformation and to restate the truths of the Great
Freedom of Buddha.
CHAPTER LXXIX.
The Beginning of the Disclosure of the
Secret.
On the 30tli of April 1901, Tsa Rong-ba, who had left for
India in the preceding year, came back. He was a
Tibetan merchant, to whom I had entrusted the letters to
my teacher Sarat Chandra Das at Darjeeling and to a
Lama called Shabdung of the same town. He had
also been trusted with the business of posting a letter to
my native country. As soon as he arrived he at once sent
for me, but his messenger could not find me at Sera, for
I was at the treasury-minister's on that day, and it was
rather late when I heard of his return. So early the next
morning I started for his house, expecting to receive
answers from my old acquaintances in Darjeeling. After
exchanging a few happy words he said to me : " At the
time when I reached Darjeeling, both your teacher and
the Lama were away. So I had to carry the letters with
me all the way to Calcutta. On my way home, when I
came back to Darjeeling I found both of them at home,
and handed them the letters. Sarat told me to call on him
again two days after to receive his answer. But I could
not see him again, because I. had bought a large quantity
of iron by the secret order of the Government, and if the
fact had become known to the Indian Government I
should have been arrested. Therefore I could not stay
long at Darjeeling and determined to start the next day
without securing an answer from Sarat. But here is the
answer from Lama Shabdung, who wrote it on the same
day." Saying this he handed me a letter. In the
letter, it was stated that the letter to my teacher had
been handed to him and another to my home had been
registered. He also thanked me for my present to him.
THE BEGINNING OF THE DISCLOSURE OF THE SECRET. 567
(In Tibet it is cnstomary to annex some present to a letter,
and if nothing suitable can be found, they enclose a piece
of thin silk cloth, a ' Kata,' and as I had acted in accord-
ance with this custom when I sent my letter to him, he
thanked me for that, and as a return present sent me some
European sugar and a few other things). As we talked I
heard of the Transvaal war and various other items of
news from Darjeeling.
The 13th of May (the 4th of April by the Tibetan
calendar) was a grand day for Lhasa, for on that day the
Grand Lama Panchen Rinpoche, or the second Pope of
Tashi Lhunpo in the city of Shigatze in the Tsan Province
was to come up to Lhasa. He had completed his twentieth
year and was qualified to receive what in Tibetan is called
the Nyen-zok, which means investiture or ' the deliverance
of the Commands'. He was now coming to the capital
to receive the ceremony from the Pope Tubten Gryam Tso in
Lhasa. The ceremony is regarded as one of great impor-
tance, in nowise second to the " Nyen-zok " day of the in-
vestiture or 'the Deliverance of the Commands of the Order'
of the Pope himself. The citizens, men and women, young and
old, all went out to welcome the young prelate to Lhasa and
I was also present in the crowd, accompanied by Li Tsu-shu,
a Chinese apothecary, and his children. The procession of
the day was magnificent and as splendid as was expected, but
was not much different from that which I saw at Shigatze.
On our way back I met Tsa Rong-ba, who invited me to tea
at his house. I accepted, and was sitting comfortably in his
house, when a Tibetan gentleman came in. The man was
introduced to me as the Chief of the Pope's caravan, by
the name of Takbo Tunbai Choen Joe. He also worked
(as I learned afterward) as an agent of the Government for
buying iron and other articles as Tsa Rong-ba did, and they
were old acquaintances. As soon as he entered the house
he stared at me with his sharp eyes for a long time. As
568
THEBE TEAES IN TIBET.
PROCESSION OF THE PANCHEN OR TASHI iUAMA IN LHASA,
THE BEGINNING OF THE DISCLOSURE OP THE SECRET. 569
I looked at him I judged him to be a black-hearted man^
but at the same time I recognised the presence of great
smartness.
Presently he came close to me. In the room were Tsa
Eong-ba and his wife, and I saw that the greatest danger was
brewing. But here I must diverge to tell a long story. Tsa
Rong-ba had looked upon me with great hope, as my influ-
ence increased, because he thought if I became a family doc-
tor of the Pope he would derive therefrom great benefit and
profit, and when he returned from India he found ray fame
as a doctor greatly increased. Some people had exaggerated
my reputation; if I cured only three patients they would
call it fifty, and went even so far as to say that none could
compete with me in the art of medicine. Besides, he knew
that I lodged with the Minister of the treasury, and that I
had also several friends among the higher officials and
priests. These considerations made him think me quite
reliable. While he was in Calcutta he heard much of the
just and brave actions of the Japanese, also that in the
war between Japan and China, the Japanese wer,^ not self-
ish, but had in view the benefit of China ; at least I heard
him often say so. Thus his confidence in the Japanese in
general aad in myself had been still more increased.
Next, to speak of the intrader Takbo Tunbai Choen
Joe, he was the clerk of a great merchant named Takbo
Tunba, and had often been to Peking, sometimes inchai-ge
of the Pope's caravan. At the time of the Boxer Trouble
he was in China and once unfortunately all his goods had
been captured by some Japanese soldiers. He explained
to them that the goods captured did not belong to the
Chinese Government — on which suspicion they had been
seized-^and begged to have them returned, but all in vain.
They were going to carry everything away. Then he
hastened to the Japanese general at headquarters, and
complained that he was a Tibetan and the goods had
73
570 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
neither been brought for, nor were being carried for
the Chinese Government, and besought the general that
they should be given back. The general, seeing that he
was a Tibetan, immediately wrote a note in Chinese and in
some peculiar characters (undoubtedly Japanese) signed
his name and handed it to him telling him to take it to
the soldiers. He did as he was told, and the goods which
had been seized were returned with no loss whatever.
This event and other experiences made him think that
the Japanese were in the habit of acting justly and
righteously. At any rate he had spoken highly of the
Japanese when he told the above story to Tsa Rong-ba.
When Tsa Eong-ba heard the story and knew that the
Choen Joe was an admirer of the Japanese as he himself
was, he thought it might do no harm to discover to him
the person of the Japanese Lama ; he even thought it
would be profitable for himself to do so, but I never
dreamed that such a fancy had taken possession of his
mind.
The Choen Joe, who was keenly gazing at me, suddenly
cried out: " You are very strange," to which I did not reply
a word. Then he continued : " At first I thought you were
a Mongolian, but I found my judgment mistaken. Nor
are you to be taken for a Chinaman. Of coiirse, you are
not a European. Of what nationality in the world are you
then ? " I was about to reply to this impertinent
question, when I was interrupted by Tsa Rong-ba who spoke
in a knowing way : " This gentleman is a Japanese." Just
a few words, and all was over. It w^as the first time my
nationality had been mentioned in Lhasa. A very
annoying truth had been uttered, but I could not deny
the impeachment, so continued silently looking into the
chiefs face, and wondering what would be the next word I
should hear from him. Then with a look as if relieved
from some uneasiness he turned to the host and said ;
THE J3EGINNING OF THE DISCLOSURE 01' THK SECRET. 57 1
"T see, I see, I tliouglit lie must be a Japanese, but
then I thought it was impossible for a Japanese to penetrate
into this country, and I hesitated to say so. Now that I
hear you say so, I doubt it not, for I have seen many
Japanese at Peking."
The sentence was given by these judges before the
defendant coald speak a word, and thus the secret which
had been kept for so long was brought to light in a
moment. The Choen Joe now turned to me and said :
" This is very good news for me. I once thought that if I
went to Japan and brought strange goods to Lhasa I
could make a great deal of money. But I have heard
that the Chinese language, which is the only foreign
language I can speak, is not used in Japan except among
a few Chinamen at the seaport towns. Besides, I know that
foreign travellers are liable to be deceived by bad people,
who abound everywhere, and Japan, I suppose, is not an
exception. So I have abandoned my intention. But I am
glad to find here such a good Japanese as you. I have heard
of the fame of the Serai Amchi (doctor of Sera) and am very
satisfied to find the noted doctor in this house. Js s \ou are
so good a man -will you not take me with you to Japan ? "
The prospect was not so bad as I had expected.
I told him that as 1 intended to go back to Japan once
more, I would take him, and spoke many things about
Japan. The caravan chief talked of his hard experiences
in China, of the recovery of his goods by the favor of the
general, and of the superiority of the Japanese soldiers in
valor to those of the West. He spoke very highly of Japan,
but did not seem to mean to flatter me; it was most likely that
the words came from his real heart. Then I said :
" You and Tsa Eong-ba are the only men that know that
lam a Japanese, but if you tell it to anyone else, I am
afraid it may cause yon both some trouble. So you must
be very careful about it."
572 THKEE YKAltS IN TIBET.
"I appreciate your advice," said the Choen Joe, "I will not
tell it to anyone. If I do, it will be only when it is
positively to your benefit, but not till then. When I
disclose it you may be sure that you will have a great name
in Tibet." With such pleasant talkings we closed the day.
I took my leave and lodged at the druggist's for that night.
On the following day, (May 4th) my friend the
Secretary of the Chinese Minister stepped into my room
as usual. While we were talking together there was some-
thing in his manner that put me on the alert. He said ;
" You say you are from Foochee in China. Of course I
don't doubt it. But I see a great difference in your
chai-acter from that of the ordinary people of China. It
may sound strange, but did not your ancestors come from a
foreign country ? "
I replied that I had no definite knowledge about my an-
cester's original home, and asked him what had made
him think that my character did not resemble that of the
Chinese. Upon this he said, :
" The Japanese are very smart by nature and push on
with great patience, while most Chinese lack in quickness,
of course with a few exceptions like yourself. Moreover
the Chinese have in general the characteristic of sedate-
ness which you see in me, but which I cannot see in you.
Instead of being calm, you are always hustling and active.
It is too delicate a distinction for words, but I am sure you
have something in you which I cannot trace to the
Chinese. But from whom are you descended?"
From this way of talking I could understand that he was
closely examini ng me, and trying to find out my secret by iny
countenance and expression. It seemed probable that he
already knew that 1 was not a Chinaman but a Japanese.
But I did not give him any definite answei', and he Igft me.
8ome while later on during the same day I had another
startling story told me by the wife of the apothecary. She
THE bf:g]nning of the disclosure of the secret. 573
began with: "Say, Kusho-la (your lordship). Don't you
think the most awful thing in the world is a madman ?"
I asked hev reason, and she said: "Why, that mad son
of Para has been telling a strange story. It is a story
told by a madman, so of course I think it cannot be
depended upon ; but he said that though it was a great
secret, he knew of a horrible affair that was to take place
in this country. When I asked what it was, he "whispered to
me: 'There is a priest from Japan in this town. He
calls himself a priest, but he is surely a great officer of the
Japanese Government, who has been sent for the
investigation of the country. It is no less a personage than
the Serai Amchi. I met and talked with him once when I
went to Darjeeling, and I found him a great man.' This is
what he tells me. Is it not strange? Nobody knows he has
ever been to Darjeeling, but what do you think
about it?"
I thought the madman was not mad if he had spoken
that way, but answered her : " The story of a madman
must be only taken as such."
The lady continued, " xlnyhow my husband and many
others seem to believe it. I have told this to you as I
heard it, and hope you will not mind."
This conversation occurred on the 14th of May. That
night I returned to the mansion of the Minister of the
Treasury, and on the next day I came to the monastery at
Sera. At night when all were fast asleep, I took out
some paper and began to write a letter to the Pope. I did
this as a preparation against the day when my secret
should be disclosed.
CHAPTER LXXX.
The Secret Leaks Out.
Why did I write the appeal ? you may ask. At that time
I could not tell how the matter would turn out, and unless
some measures were taken beforehand, incurable evil might
be the outcome. So I must at any rate make it clear to
all that I had come to this country for the study and
cultivation of Buddhism and with no other intentions.
Fur that purpose I thought it well to write the letter,
which I have still by me. I Hatter myself that it was
written very nicely. I have written many compositions,
both prose and poetry, in the Tibetan language, but
I never wrote one that pleased me better. It took me three
nights to complete it. I may summarise its contents as
follows. As is considered proper in Tibetan the letter begins
with respectful words to the master of the beautiful country
which is purified with white snow. Then I say : " My
original intention in coming to this country was to glorify
Bucldliism and thus to find the way of saving the people
of the world from spiritual pain. Among the several
countries where Buddhism prevails, the only places where
the true features of the Great Vehicle are preserved as the
essence of Buddhism are Japan and Tibet. The time has
already come when the seed of pure Buddhism must be
sown in every country of the world, for the people of the
world are tired of bodily pleasures which can never
satisfy, and are earnestly seeking for spiritual satis-
faction. This demand can only be supplied from the
fountain of genuine Buddhism. It is our duty as well as
our honor to do this. Impelled by this motive, I have come
to this country to investigate whether Tibetan Buddhism
THE SECEET LEAKS OITT. 575
agrees Avith that of Japan. Thanks be to the Buddha the new
Buddhism in Tibet quite agrees with the real Shingon
sect of Japan, both having their founder in the person of the
Bodhisattva Nagarjuna. Therefore these two countries must
work together towards the propagation of the true Bud-
dhism. This was the cause that has brought me to this
country so far away and over mountains and rivers. Mj-
faithful spirit has certainly wrought on the heart of
Buddha, and I was admitted to the country which is
closed from the world, to drink fi*om the fountain of
Truth ; the Gods must therefore have accepted my ardent
desire. If that be true, why should your Holiness not
protect me who have already been protected by the
Buddha and other Gods ; and why not co-operate with me
in glorifying the world with the light of true Buddhism ? "
In conclusion I added that I had been asked by Dhamma-
pala of Ceylon to present the Pope with a relic of Shakya
Buddha and a silver reliquary, and begged his acceptance
of the gift. When the letter was finished I was in so
much haste to copy it on good paper that I did not think
anything of the consequence if it were presented — that
my letter would disclose my person and that I should be
put to death accordingly.
On the 20th of May I returned to Lhasa and lodged at
the Minister's. That day I went with the ex-Treasury
Minister to the garden-party held at the forest of Tse-
moe Lingka. This was* my last good time in Tibet. At
the pai-ty there were many old friends of mine present,
and many country-gentlemen, who were still staying in
Lhasa for the ceremony. I talked freely with them and
spent the whole day in the most pleasant, conversation on
the subject of the lives of the ancient saints of Tibet and
on various other topics. While I was thus passing a
pleasant day, a very serious thing in regard to my person
was occurring at the other end of the city of Lhasa,
576 THKEE YEARS IN TIBET.
On this same day, the caravan chief called on Yabsi
Sarba (the house of the father of the new Grand Lama). The
present Pope had lost both his parents, and his elder
brother was looked upon as his father-in-law. He was
dignified by the Groverninent of China with the title of
Prince, and lived in magnificence in the southern part
of Lhasa. While they were talking together over their
glasses of wine, the caravan chief found what he called
a good opportunity to disclose my person. As I learned it
from Tsa Rong-ba, the dialogue between them ran asfoUows:
" Has your Highness heard that there is a stranger in
this country, who is neither Chinese nor Mongolian ? "
" Tell me what he is," said the Pope's brother.
" He is a true Laina from Japan. The Japanese Lama
resembles a Chinese Hoshang, but is far more praiseworthy.
He takes only two meals a day and after midday nothing
touches his mouth. He eats no meat and drinks no wine."
" Where is he living?" asked the brother of the Pope.
" If I mention his name you must know where he is
living. His name is Serai Amchi ; the famous Serai Amohi
is a Japanese."
After a pause for consideration the Pope's brother
replied : "I have heard of Serai Amchi. He must be an
expert physician to be sent for by the Pope, the nobility
and the clergy. One who masters the art of medicine so
thoroughly as to gain such a great reputation in so short
a space of time cannot be a Chinese. I once suspected
that he might be a European. But now that I hear this
from you, my doubts about him have been removed. Yes,
the Japanese can do quite as great things as the Europeans.
But " (shaking his head) " this is news that troubles me not
a little."
" What troubles Your Highness ? "
"If I am not wrongly informed, Japan is on very
friendly terms with England. ^¥ben I consider this
THE SECRET LEAKS OUT. 577
I cannot but suspect her. Besides, Japan is so strong
a country that she can bully China. Such a country is
very likely to think it easy to subdue a small country
like our own. Moreover the religion of Japan is the
same as that of Tibet ; is that not a fact which might
easily awaken the ambition for subjugation ? Therefore
I cannot take him for anything but a spy sent by the
Japanese Government to investigate the state of things
in Tibet for a sinister pufJ)ose. Will not the nobility
who are connected with Serai Amchi suffer as did
those who were connected with Sarat Chandra Das
when he entered the country ? Will not the Sera monas-
tery be closed again ? The matter cannot be overlooked.
Some measures must be taken about it."
This conclusion was an unexpected one for the
caravan chief, for he had thought the story would please
His Highness. His disappointment was immediately
followed by the feeling of fear, and with an intention to
defend me he said :
" He cannot possibly be taken for a spy. He lives
in Lhasa, where meat is considered necessary food,
and he often goes to the temple of Sera where meat
and meat gruel are freely given as alms to the priests,
but he never touches them, and feeds only on scorched
barley. Sach a man is surely a Lama of Japan."
This strong argument was at once denied by the Pope's
brother, who said :
" You consider so, for you are short of wisdom. There
are devils that resemble Buddha in this world ; indeed,
the greatest devil is the one that can make himself
most resemble a Buddha. For example, take the case
of saint Upagupta. He was the iifth saint from Shakya
Buddha. He was born after the death of the Buddha, and
thought how he might see the real Buddha, who is said to
have been perfect in physique and physiognomy. He heard
73
578 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
that the devil-king of the sixth heaven had often seen
the Buddha while the latter was passing through His
woi-ldly life. So he thought he would go and ask the
devil-king whether he would, by his miraculous power,
give him a glimpse of the real Buddha. He did so,
and his request was granted at once. The devil-king
immediately put on the appearance of Buddha and
sat on the ' Diamond-Seat.' He looked so Buddha-
like that the saint could but "prostrate himself before the
image. In a similar manner Serai Amchi, who really is a
spy, may have taken the form of a Lama to deceive us.
No, he cannot be trusted. The very fact that he could
enter this country, so strictly closed from the rest of the
world, tells that he is by no means an ordinary person.
Did he alight from heaven ? He must have had super-
human power to perform such a miracle. Therefore he
must not be treated carelessly. At any rate this is a
difficult problem to solve. " This argument was strong
enough to make Choen Joe sober and pale.
That day (20th of May) towards evening Takbo Tanbai
Choen Joe called on Tsa Rong-ba, as I learnt afterwards,
with a rather melancholy face. He had determined not to say
anything about his conversation with the Pope's brother.
But it was supper-time when he came in, and the host
persuaded him to share with him a few glasses of drink,
as is customary in Tibet. Pretty soon the host perceived
that the caravan chief was drinking with unusual haste and
a sad look. Being intimate friends, Tsa Rong-ba asked
the reason, saying:
"You must be uneasy in your mind to drink in such a
way. I wish you would tell me what is the matter
with you."
The caravan chief said that nothing annoyed him. But
in the meanwhile, the drink had had its effect, and made
the man who was resolved to say nothing speak out the
THE SECRIiT LEAKS buf. 57S)
details of the whole thing as has just been stated. When
the story was over it was midnight, and Choen Joe left the
house, leaving the host and hostess in so much anxiety
that they could not sleep at all. The next morning (May
21st) Tsa Rong-ba sent me a messenger accompanied by a
horse to Sera, to take me back directly to his house. But
I was not in the monastery, and this messenger could not
find me at the Treasury Minister's either, for on that day I
did not go there. The anxiety of Tsa Rong-ba increased
when I was not to be found. The special reason of his
ainxiety was this ; I possessed a letter from Darjeeling which
had reached me through the hand of Tsa Rong-ba, and
if I were to be captured the letter would be confiscated,
and it was evident that he would also be put in prison.
" Evil might come to him as well as to myself. No wonder
he hunted for me everywhere, all over the city of Lhasa,
Tired with hunting for me, he had almost given up his
attempt, thinking that I must already have been captured,
when towards evening T called at his door. His surprise
was great, and he came to me almost trembling and with
tears too, and said : " How lucky we are to have you here !
Buddha must have led you."
I comprehended that something unusual had happened,
but telling them to be quiet, I took my seat, and was ready
to listen. Then they told me the whole story, one supply-
ing what the other omitted. When they had _ finished,
Tsa Rong-ba asked me :
" What do you intend to do ? At any rate, I hope you
will burn the letter I brought from Darjeeling. But, what
are you going to do ?"
I replied : " For myself, my course is already determined
I have written an appeal to the Pope. Whatever may be-
fall me I have made up my mind. "
"Do you know all about it then ? " said he with a sur-
prised look.
580
THUBE YeAeS in TIBET.
CRITICAL MEETING WITH TSA RONG-BA AND HIS WIFE.
THE SECRET LEAKS OUT. 581
" Yes, I know," said I, "I could see such a thing."
" That is why I looked upon you with respectful awe, "
he answered. " I heard that the Pope's brother said you
have superhuman power, and I believe his saying is true."
" No, " I returned " I have no superhuman power.
Only I inferred that such a thing must happen. So I have
made what I thought preparation against it. "
Tsa Rong-ba, who followed a peculiar kind of reasoning,
protested ; " No, do not say so ; I know you heard the
conversation between the caravan chief and the Pope's
brother by some mysterious means. Otherwise how
would you come down to our house on such an occasion as
this ? But then why have you not been kind enough to
call on us a little earlier ? We could not sleep at all last
night. But are you really going to present to the Pope
tlie letter you have written to him ? In doing so, you little
think of what will become of us. I doubt not you are a
venerable Lama, but the Pope's brother is by no means a
good-natured man. We cannot tell what he is going to say
to the Pope, and if the Pope listens to him who can tell the
result ? But I feel sure we must suffer, don't you think so ? "
" I cannot tell," said I, " what I shall do until I try
saniadhi (go into abstract contemplation) . For the present
1 can only tell you that there are four things to be consi-
dered in the 'silent contemplation'. They are as follows :
(1) If the presentation of my letter to the Pope does not
do any harm to you, the Minister of the Treasury, and the
Sera monastery, I will present the letter though I should
suffer from doing so, for I am the only Japanese who has
visited this country, and I think it would be very sad to
leave this country without telling the people who I am,
and what I have come for.
(2) If the presentation of my letter causes any harm to
any of you, I will not present it, though I myself am
free from danger.
582 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
(3) If I. can go to India without giving notice to the
Pope, and it does not cause any harm to any of my
acquaintances, I will go to India directly.
(4) If the presentation of my letter would cause
any harm to them after my departure, I will stay
here and present the letter, because if it is the cause
of evil whether I stay here or not, it is my duty to
stay here and share the evil with my acquaintances to
whom I have caused it. I will never be the only one
to escape from danger. If I come to the conclusion
by the contemplation that there will be no evil caused
after my departure, I will leave this country. But as I am
not fully contented with my own decision on my own
account, I will go to my teacher Ganden Ti Rinpoche
and consult with him. Of course I shall not say that I am
a Japanese, nor that I am going back for that reason,
but I will say that I must go on a pilgrimage and ask him
his judgment whether my departure is advantageous for
many people who are suffering ; and if his judgment agrees
with mine I will adopt it, and if not, I will go and ask the
same of the Lama of Tse-Moeling, and if the la.tter's judg-
ment be the same as my teacher's I will follow it, but if it
agrees with mine, I shall follow that."
The husband and wife, who were listening to me
attentively, interrupted me here and told me that I needed
not to ask another's opinion ; my own judgment would be
good enough to be acted upon.
"No," said I, "that will not do. The thing is too
serious to be determined by myself ; for it concerns others
as well."
They agreed with me and we parted. That night I was
seated all alone in my room at the Treasury Minister's and
quietly entered into the silent contemplation and tried to
find the best course to be taken. After some time I
reached the ' world of non-Ego,' and the judgment was :
THE SECEET LEAKS OUT. 583
" If I stay in this country it will be harmful to the people,
whether I present the appeal or not ; and on the other
hand if I leave the country, it is no great loss to theee
people." Thus I came to the conclusion to leave the
country, though it was not quite decided whether or not I
should present the letter to the Pope before leaving.
Early on the next morning (27th of May) I called, on
Ganden Ti Rinpoche, and asked him to give me his
judgment, simply stating that I was going on a pilgrimage.
The master with a smiling face judged for me and said :
"The sick people who (you say) are suffering, will get
better by your going on a pilgrimage. But by the sick
people you do not mean the bodily patients, do you ? It
may mean that if you stay here, other doctors in Lhasa
cannot live, and so you are going to save them by your
departure ? "
He gave his judgment half in joke, but I thought the
teacher was intelligent enough to perceive that I was
leaving the country never to come back. I heard there
were many great Lamas in Tibet, but he was surely the
most respectable priest of all with whom I became
acquainted. This was the last time I saw this venerable
teacher.
CHAPTER LXXXI.
My Benefactor's Noble Offer.
That day I returned to the Treasury Minister's with a
determination to tell the secret to him. But it was the
22nd of May and the Pope was to come back to Lhasa from
his country-seat at Norbu Ling. The ex-Minister had
gone' out to see the Pope return, and I was also obliged to
go, though I had many things to do for myself. The
procession of the day was magnificent. The four Prime
Ministers and the Ministers of several departments and
other dignitaries were present, all dressed in new suits of
clothes. But before the Pope arrived in Lhasa it had begun
to rain heavily. Still no one but the servants and coachmen
wei'e allowed to wear anything to protect themseh-es
against the rain. It was a pitiful sight to see the dignitaries
dressed in silk on horse-back in the rain, getting wet
through. But when the procession marched along the
streets of Lhasa and the Pope entered his temple, the
storm had passed, and it was fine again. When we got
home I asked the ex-Minister and the nun to stay at
home that evening, for I was going to tell them a secret
which must not be spoken in the presence of others. The
nun had treated me with motherly tenderness, and though
we had been friends only for one year, yet our acquaintance
seemed age-long, and I felt I ought to tell my secret to
her and the ex-Minister, to whom I owed so much. It was
certain that I must leave Lhasa, but how could I leave
them without telling them all ?
When night came, I called on them at the appointed
time and told them that I was not a Chinese but a Japanese.
Thinking, however, that they would not believe me I set
before them the passport which I had taken with me. As
MY BBNEFACTOE S NOBLE OFPEE.
585.
REVEALING THE SECRET TO THE EX-MINISTER.
the ex-Minister had learned to read Chinese characters a
little, he could read that part of the paper signed " Depart-
ment for Foreign Affairs of the Japanese Empire" in
Chinese characters. Assuring himself that I had told the
truth, he said :
"At first I thought you were a Chinese as you said,
but later I became very doubtful, because among the
many Chinese I have met, there is none who equals you
in earnestness of devotion to Buddhism, I have also
V4
,58(3 THREE YEARS IK TIBET.
often thought that most of the Chinese priests are
ignorant of the Buddhist religion, and that even
the so-called learned and famous priests do not amount
to muchj but that the district of Foochee, from which
you said you came, might be an exception, and
that Buddhism might be studied there with much zeal.
Anj'how I thought it strange, but now my doubts have
been removed.
" But I heard," he continiied after a pause, " that the
Japanese iire of the same race as the Europeans. Is it
really so ? "
I- explained that they were entirely different races and
that the Japanese belong to the same stock of races as the
Tibetan, which is called the Mongolian. I also told him that
the religion of the two countries is the same. It seemed he
knew such things as these without waiting my explanation.
After a few such questions and answers he said, "Is
thiat all that you call your secret ? Is there anything else
to tell me?"
, I answered : " There is another thing. I think I must
tell the Papal Grovernment that I am a Japanese."
When he heard me say this he frowned a little, and
said, " Why must you talk ? Is there any necessity for
doing so ? "
I replied that there was, and told him how my secret
had been betrayed by Tsa Rong-ba, and how it had been told
to the Pope's brother, and so forth. But I did not say any-
thing about the silent contemplation, because if I told it
they would possibly have thought that I was anxious to
leave for India without caring for their future, though
my judgment said that my departure would cause no great
harm to them.
He considered in silence for some time after I had
finished my story, and then he said : " What are you
going to do next ? "
MY BENEFACTOk's NOBLE OFlPEfi. 587
"As I have come to this coantry," said I, "gifterso
much trouble, I wish to inform the Pope that I am a
Japanese, and here is the letter to the Pope written for
that purpose."
I took out the letter from my pocket and handed it to
the ex-Minister, and continued :
" It is no difficult thing to present it to the Pope, but
in doin .>■ so I must consider whether you might suffer from
it, for you have been my friends and patrons for a long
time. Therefore please bind me with a rope, take me to
the court and tell the officers that you have found out
that I am a foreigner. If you do so, you are surely
free from trouble. As to myself, I will explain to
the Government the causes of my intrusion into this
country."
While I was speaking thus, the frowns on his face had
increased, and when I concluded he interrupted :
"That will not do, my Japanese friend. If you take
such a measure you will certainly be taken to prison,
where you will die of hunger and cold, and if you don't
die of such causes you will be killed. Of course the
Grovernment will not sentence a foreigner to death, but
then they can procure the same effect by using poison in
secret. You have no need to hasten your destruction.
What is the use of killing yourself ? "
I was somewhat surprised to hear of such awful means
to be used in the Tibetan jail, but I replied :
" It is of no use for me to succeed if my success is
gained by the loss of others ; it is far better to die and do
others no harm. I shall not fly from danger and allow my
benefactors to suffer, who have shown me as much kindness
as par-ents show to their children."
The affectionate old woman, who was listening to me
with a sorrowful face and trembling limbs, could not bear
any more, and threw herself down and wept bitterly.
588 I'HfeEE YEAE!^ IN TIBEt.
Then the ex-Minisfcer spoke to me in a determined
tone : " It will never d o to allow such a noble mind to die
in order that we who are not far from the grave should
survive. Though humble, I believe truly in the Buddha,
and cannot do such an action as to sacrifice a man to save
myself. I know you too well to take you for a spy, or for
a thief of the national religion. I know it from my long
intercourse with you. Even I were to be killed for it, I
could not I'id myself of danger by persecuting a man who
came here to study Buddhism. How could I do such a thing ?
But now, in the present state of things in Tibet, it is not a
good opportunity to disclose your nationality. Therefore
return home for this time, and wait till the time will come. 1
am a brother and disciple of Grandeii Ti Rinpoche, from
whom I received the lesson of the ' Great Benevolence.'
I cannot expose you to death while I myself escape from
CB.lamity. If we are to suffer after your departure, we must
take it as due to a cause existing in a previous life, and
resign ourselves. "
Saying this, he turned to the old nun and said :
" Don't you think so too, my beloved Ningje Ise (mercy
and wisdom) ?"
The nun raised her face and said in a pleasant voice :
"You have said the truth. How glad I am to hoar it !"
Then turning to me she said :
" As you are in danger, leave this country as quickly as
you can. We can find some means of protecting ourselves;
therefore it is better for you to cease thinking of us, and
to start directly. Now is the best time to steal out of
the city, for the visit of the second Pope will kepp the city
busy for this whole month, and no one will notice your
departure. No better opportunity can be found. If it
were on an ordinary day, you could not run away even
though you were free from suspicion, for Lamenba— the
chief physician to the Pope — wishes to keep you long in
MY benefactor's noble offer. 589
this country, and has already spoken to the Pope about it.
Lose no time in preparing for the journey. This is my
sincere advice."
As she spbke thus I observed tears in lier eyes.
CHAPTER LXXXII.
Preparations for Departure.
When I heard them speak so kindly I was heartily
pleased, and so touched that I could not restrain my tears.
Though their advice was so reasonable and pleasing I was
not inclined to take it immediately, and begged them
earnestly to deliver me over to the Government so that no
evil might befall them. They would not listen to me.
At length the nun said : " As it is of no use to argue
here, is it not better to leave the matter to the judgment
of Ti Rinpoche ? and if according to his judgment there is
no evil to be feared for you and for us, then you can
present the letter as you wish. We are arguing in vain
unless we can foretell the result of the matter. "
I was then obliged to tell them all about the 'silent
contemplation' and its agreement with the judgment
of Ti Rinpoche. When I told this their faces cleared and
the ex-Minister said with a smile :
" If this is the case, our anxiety and argument are useless.
The only course to be taken now is to leave this country im-
mediately. It is of course of no use to speak of binding
you with a rope. You have spoken such things because
you thought of us, but it is all in vain. If Ti Rinpoche
said your departure was better for yourself and ourselves,
it is a sure thing, and if his judgment agrees with yours it
is then the will of the Buddha, the breach of which will
cause you certain evil. Therefore proceed at once. Though
we cannot protect you on your way, if it becomes public
and some one pursues you, we will try to find some means
for your escape."
Their unselfish kindness toward me I shall ever remem-
ber. I retired with tears back to my room, and then I
PEEPAEATIONS FOE DBPAETUEE. 591
packed all my sacred books and other writings which I had
gathered and took them to the apothecary's and said to
him :
" I intend to go to Calcutta on a certain mission. I also
want to make some purchases there. If I can obtain suffi-
cient money from home to buy the books I want, I will
soon be back. But if I cannot get the money at
Calcutta I must return home and get it, and will come back
next year or the year after next. I cannot say when I can
come back, but at any rate I must start immediately. But
the thing that troubles me most is the despatch of my
baggage. I wish to carry these books home and show
them to my fellow-countrymen. If I take all of them
they must be packed and sent on a horse, or by some other
means. Can you find any good way of doing this for
me?"
Apothecary Li Tsu-shu was a man who believed in me so
much that he would do anything for my sake. If I had
not had such a friend, my case would have been un-
doubtedly hopeless. He was faithful to the end ; if his
confidence in me had not been so strong, he would not have
done anything for me, or he might even have betrayed me
to my undoing. He seemed to know that I was a Japanese,
for, once when he came to my room, he saw some of the
Japanese books in my library, and after that he seemed
partly convinced that I was not a Chinese. It was when
people began to talk much about my nationality that I saw
him and told him that I was going home. He knew it was
dangerous to have anything to do with me, but he willing-
ly agreed to my request, and told me that he knew a
Chinese merchant who was from the same town as himself,
and a good friend of his ; that I might go with him, for he
was leaving for Calcutta on business in four days, and that
as he had probably a few horses without freight he could
take my things at a smaller charge than anyone else. The
592 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
apothecary was also kind enough to promise me that he
would go to see the merchant and talk over the matter. As
we were talking thus, the apothecary saw a man entering
his house. He ran to him and said :
" We have just been talking of you. Lucky to see you
here ! Could you not take about two horses' load to Darjeel-
ing for this gentleman ? "
As I saw the man I found that he was an old aquaint-
ance of mine; I had often bought musk and other things
from him and made him some medicine to sell in his store.
He knew well that I was honest in transactions, and would
have acceded to my request with pleasure. But he said
that he could not take charge of my luggage, for he had no
extra horses, but that he knew a man who was going to
Calcutta in four or five days, and who would arrive at the
city earlier than himself, and that as this man was carrying
the salary of soldiers to the Castle of Tomo by the order of
the Chinese Amban his horses were not loaded and might
take ray baggage, but that probably I must pay him more
money. I said that I would willinglj' pay extra money if the
baggage would arrive earlier, and asked him to go to that
man to get the business settled. I was very glad to have
everything thus arranged.
It was about the evening when we parted, and
I returned to the monastery at Sera. The next thing
to be done was to pack up my religious books
and bring them to Lhasa. That night I was so busy
packing up the books that I had no time for sleep, and the
next day before noon I was able to send away all the
packages to the druggist's in Lhasa. This twenty-fifth day
was fortunately the best for such a purpose. On any
ordinary day there were always six or seven thousand
priests in the temple, and if I were engaged in packing my
things, it would have attracted their attention, and caused
many enquiries. But on that day there were only two or
PREPARATIONS FOE DEPARTURE. 593
three men in each boarding-house. Therefore though I
was busy all the night in packing and the next morning in
sending the things to Lhasa, it caused no suspicion. But
there was Chamba-ise, a little fellow who had served me
for a long time. I could not leave him without doing some-
thing for him. I used to send him to a tutor for study
while I was absent, and he would come back when I return-
ed and draw water, make tea and do various other services
for me. Now that I was leaving the Lamasery I could
not leave him without notice. In the first place I must
dismiss him, otherwise he would certainly think it strange
to see me taking out my books. So I told this boy and a
few others that I must go on a pilgrimage to Tsa-ri, as a
younger brother of the ex-Minister lived there and had
invited me. Tsa-ri is called the second Sacred Place in
Tibet. In Tibet there are the three Sacred Places ; the first
is Kang Rinpoche or Mount Kailasa in the north-western
plain ; the second is Tsa-ri, a peak in the Himalayas in the
south-east which forms the frontier of Assam ; the third
is the highest mountain in the world, the famous
Gaurishankara or Chomo Lhari, often called Mount
Everest. As to the boy, I told him that it would probably
take me four months to go there and come baok, and
that I would leave him money for four mouths' tuition
and board. But I was afraid a little boy like him
would use the money all at once if it were handed
him directly. So I took the money and deposited it
with his teacher. To a man who had been my security
since I entered the Sera seminary I sent a suit of priestly
garments and some money ; my tutor whose lectures
I attended and many others were all presented with
some money or things as souvenirs. When all these
preparations were finished, it was past four o'clock in the
afternoon. Then I went to the Great Hall of Je Tatsang
to which I belonged, lighted butter-lamps, made some
75
594 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
offeringSj and in front of the Image of the Shakya
Buddha I read my prayer of farewell, which ran as follows:
" Here in the Great Hall of Je Tatsang of the Sera
Temple, Tibet, I, Bkai Jinko, prostrate myself before the
Buddha our benevolent Master and pray. It is with
great sorrow and regret that I see that the different deeds
of human beings have caused the diiierent existences of
Buddha among the believers : for the way to Buddha is
originally open to all and accessible to everyone. I, Bkai
Jinko, bound by the chain of deeds done in the previous
world, have not been able to accomplish the union and
conformity of the Japanese and Tibetan Buddhists, and
now am obliged to leave the country. May the good
cause of the jDresent day be the beginning of success, and
of the union of the Japanese and the Tibetan Buddhists
at some future time, and also of illuminating the whole
world with the light of Buddhism." And calling upon
the name of Buddha ten times together with an equal
number of salutations I left the temple.
Coming down the steps of the Hall and passing the
paved yard to the left, there is a descent of long and steep
stone steps which leads to the front of the beautiful gate
of Choe-ra (a Dharma garden) where the student
priests are catechised. The premises of the Choe-ra,
which are enclosed by white low walls, are very spacious.
Here and there elms and willow-trees are planted
tastefully, and magnolia flowers perfume the air in
their season. A clear stream, which comes down
from the rocky hill on the other side of" the build-
ings, runs through the premises, and thus adds much to the
beauty of the place, especially when the setting sun
shines upon the stream, as it was then doing. This was
the seat I loved best in Lhasa, and I could not leave it
without paying a visit to this favorite resort of mine.
When I came here it was late in the afternoon, and all
PEIPAEATIONS FOE DEPAETUEE . 595
was quiet while I roamed about the place. Here my
heart began to hesitate again. Though I had already
bidden farewell to the Buddha, thinking I should leave
this country, yet I confess my determination was not
strong enough. ,
"Must I now leave," thought 1, "this quiet land of Buddha
to which I have become attached ; must I steal out of this
beautiful country without telling who I am, just as a
spy would do ? Are there no means to say that I am a
Japanese, without causing harm to others ? Death comes to
all sooner or later. Why should I not run the risk of death,
presenting the letter to the Pope ? When I have made such a
good composition, how sorry I am not to show it to him ! "
While I was thus confused in my mind, suddenly a
voice ' Giokpo peb ' (go back quickly) was heard from some-
where about the Choe-ra. I wondered who spoke those
words, and to whom, and looked round, but nothing could
be seen but the green leaves of the trees shining in the
rays of the setting sun. Certainly, it could not be a bird's
voice, and I thought it must be only my fancy. When
I went on only two or three steps, the same " Giokpo peb "
but in a louder and clearer tone reached my ear. Think-
ing somebody was talking to me, I cried out to ask who
it was, looked about, and went round and behind the
Ohoe-ra whence I thought the voice came, but no one was to
be found. Struck with a strange feeling I was going in
the direction of my boarding-place when I heard the
same strange voice again and again. This strange voice
had much to do with my final determination to go back
quickly ; and when I was fully resolved the voice was
heard no more. I hastened to my room and fetched a
few things left there, and went and lodged at the drug-
gist's in Lhasa.
The next day was spent in collecting the books which I
had asked many booksellers to secure for me, and for some
596
THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
of -whicli I had paid in advance. By the evening I had
obtained a large number. The following day (May 26th)
was employed in the same business as the day before. In
the afternoon, Li Tsu-shu made some boxes for me to put
my things in. He was also kind enough to get me three
sheets of yak-hide in which to wrap my boxes. In Lhasa
many yaks are killed for food after two o'clock in the
afternoon every day. The pelt fresh from the butchery
is much used for packing and shipping goods. Things
are wrapped in it while it is yet soft with the fur inside
A MYSTERIOUS VOICE IN THE GARDEN OF SERA.
PKEPARATIONS FOR DEPAETURE. 597
and the still bloody and greasy side out, and then stitched.
When it gets dry it is hard and strong, and well serves
to protect the contents.
When all was ready it was the 27th of May. As the
next day was the appointed day on which I could hire
a horse from the Chinese merchant and start with him, I
went to take my leave of the ex-Minister. I thanked him
for the great favors I had for so long received from him,
and he gave me several hints and suggestions for my
journey. I borrowed a suit of priestly garments from him,
for all my suits were packed up together with other
things. He also gave me a hundred rupees, telling me
to accept it as an acknowledgement of the favors I had
done him. Though I thought the thank-ofEering ought
to have been from my side, I was in much need of money,
and so I accepted his present with many thanks and
returned to the apothecary's.
As I came back I learned from him that the merchant
who was to go with me on the following day would not
accompany me. I must tell how this unexpected hindrance
came about on the eve of my departure. The Secretary
of the Amban, of whom I spoke before, was a great friend
of the merchant whom I expected to accompany. Now
the Secretary, who was already suspecting me, told the
merchant that I was not a Chinese, but must be a Japanese;
that though he could not find the exact reason why I
came to Tibet, it might be possible that I was spying in
the service of the British Government, for now-a-days
nobody would be so much devoted to Buddhism as to
come to Tibet as I declared I had done, and that if his
suspicion proved to be true after my departure with the
merchant the latter would have his head cut off. The
merchant was surprised at hearing such a story from a
man who was regardedas the most learned and experienced
atnong the Chinese in Tibet, and of course believed it, so
598 THEBl! YEARS IN TIBET.
it was not possible in any way whatever to persuade him
to take charge of my baggage.
But after telling this story, Li Tsu-shu told me that he
might probably find some means to send off my baggage
if I did not mind more expense, by making a special appli-
cation to the servants of the Chinese Legation and calling
the goods his drugs. I asked him to do so, and as to my
own journey, as I needed a coolie to carry my personal
luggage day and night, I asked him to hire one for me.
The druggist went oif directly to negotiate with them,
but came back disappointed saying that the men whom
he intended to see were not to be found.
Early the next morning (the 28th) the druggist
went out to see his country-men who were going to the
place called Tomo or Chumbi in Tibetan and Sui-shi in
Chinese, and arranged with them to carry my goods to the
place. I paid them the very high fare for the transporta-
tion in advance. He sent my luggage to the Chinese
Legation that night. As for my coolie, Mrs. Li Tsu-shu
secured a man called Tenba after trying her best. So I
made all preparations for my departure for India by their
kindness. I could feel certain of starting from Lhasa on the
very next day, the 29th of May (the 20th of April accord-
ing to the Tibetan calendar).
CHAPTER LXXXIII.
A Tearful Departure from Lhasa.
Lhasa was at that time in a state of such intense
excitement over the festivities that the people hardly
seemed to know what they were doing. The police force
of the city is not large : it consists of thirty constables
(Kochakpa) and thirty policemen (Ragyabpa)^ and the whole
energies of the force were devoted to the duty of guarding
the persons of the Grand Lama and his Co-adjutor.
Every official and priest was busily engaged in the duties
of his office ; none could spare even a thought for any-
thing outside his immediate sphere of occupation — in short
the time could not possibly have been more favorable for
my plan of escaping from the city. Still it was necessary
to take precautions, for there were many priests from Sera
in the town, and I therefore determined to divert attention
by wearing, instead of travelling clothes, a suit of ordinary
ecclesiastical garments which I had borrowed from the
Minister a few days before.
At eleven o'clock, on the day of my departure, my kind,
host and hostess of the Thien-ho-thang prepared for me a
farewell dinner of vegetables only. It was a very sad meal,
and the two children, a boy of five and a girl of eleven
years old, were almost inconsolable at the thought of my
departure. Poor things, they did their best to retain me
and I must confess that I never before felt so strongly the
force of childish affection.
Some of the members of the family were very anxious
to testify their respect by accompanying me for a mile or
two on my journey, but as it would have been hard to
escape observation had we left the house in a large party,
we agreed to go out one by one, and meet again in the grove
600 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
in front of the Rebon Temple outside the capital. So, with
a coolie to carry my baggage, I started off by myself
through the crowded streets, and when right in front of the
Great Temple was accosted by a policeman. I felt sure that
something had been detected, and gave myself up for lost.
He looked me straight in the face, and said " I congratu-
late you," and when he found I did not reply he
repeated his congratulations. I did not know what he
was congratulating me about, but at least it did not look
as if he were going to arrest me, and I continued my
silence, but he made three low bows as signs of his
congratulations, and made as though I would pass
on. Suddenly it occurred to me that I was wearing
a suit of ecclesiastical garments borrowed from the
Minister, and that doubtless the policeman had jump-
ed to the conclusion that as I was wearing such
dignified robes I had been appointed physician to His
Holiness (as indeed it was rumored), and that he expected a
reward of money for his well-meant felicitations. So I
gave him a ' single-handed blessing,' and a tanka of
money, which made him stick out his tongue in gratitude,
and so went on my way. I reckoned it as a thing most
auspicious that I should have met the man in front of the
Temple, and thus have commenced my journey with words
of felicitation.
There are some points about the Tibetan police which I
must not omit to mention. They receive no salaries, and
live on the alms of the community, though their methods
of solicitation differ materially from those of ordinary
beggars. At stated periods they go, usually in companies
of three, through the streets, and standing at the gates of
private houses cry out as follows :
" We have come to receive alms from the wealthy, and
you are so wealthy that you can easily relieve our distress.
We therefore pray you, the sayior of the poor and the
A TEABPUL DEPABTUEB PBOM LHASA. 601
friend of the needy, to give thirty pieces of gold to thirty
poor men who with their wives live in miserable huts,
and the gift you give us this day shall be brought home
to our women and make them happy. We shall fill our
broken cups with fragrant liquor and let them lie down this
evening in a state of blissful intoxication. Lha-kyallo}"
They will go on repeating these dirge-like petitions at
the gate until at last some one comes out and gives them a
few silver coins and some parched wheat-flour in a tin pan
covered with a small kata. There is no fixed amount to be
given, but if a rich man does not give them what they
think they have a right to expect, they will let him know
what they think. They are not supposed to beg at Temples,
but as a matter of fact every Temple gives them something
for the sake of its own credit, and for peace and quiet.
All the money that is thus collected is handed over to
one of the Kochakpa, who distributes it in regular monthly
instalments to the members of the Force. But the Lhasa
police have also further sources of income. When a
wealthy pilgrim from the country arrives in the city they
ask for a donation from him, and if they do not get at
least one tanka they will set the worthless people of the
city on to attack him and not stir a finger for his
protection. Every countryman therefore finds it to his
interest to pay this blackmail to the police, and when I
was in Lhasa as a layman I had paid my tanka like the
others. But since I had assumed the priest's robe they
had not been able to demand anything from me, and there-
fore I suppose that my friend thought the opportunity of
getting a present in return for his congratulations was too
good to be lost.
If a policeman goes on a journey, say to arrest a thief,
he takes nothing with him for the expenses of his journey.
He goes to any house he chooses and takes what they give
^ The words " Lha-lcyallo mean : the virtuous God will be victorious.
76
602 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
him to eat and drink, and if he is going on to a place where
there is no entertainment to be had he just orders the
people of the house to provide him with whatever he
requires. The Kochakpa however are far superior to
the ordinary policemen. They have a regular salary
from the Government, an^ so do not live on blackmail.
Having got rid of my policeman friend, I turned to the
Temple for a final act of worship, and then passing under
the Palace of the Grand Lama and over the bridge, came
out upon the vast plain, where, by the small grove in front
of the Rebon Temple, I found the clerk of the drug-store
and a few friends waiting to take their leave of me. I had
had my dinner, and I never drink wine : there was nothing
left for me to do but to change my dress and commence
my journey, which I did, requesting my friends to return
my clerical clothes to the Minister of Finance. But my
friends had brought some wine with them, and insisted on
drinking to me before I went, repeatedly expressing
their great sorrow at my departure and urging me to take
great care of my health in the trying climate of India.
They were also very anxious to know whether, after once
returning to India, I should ever revisit Tibet again,
and they several times expressed their great indebtedness
to me. As for myself, I cannot say that I was very sorry
to be leaving Lhasa, but the sight of their sorrow made
me sad as I passed out of the grove of the Rebon Temple
in the direction of Shingzonka, where I stopped for the
night.
On the 30th of May, I hired post-horses and left Shing-
zonka. Here I had been obliged to find serious fault with
my luggage-carrier, Tenba. Tibetans, as ray readers must
by this time be well aware, are prone to lies, and will gross-
ly exaggerate the most trivial and insignificant matters.
I had often spoken to Tenba about this, but in spite of
my frequent admonitions, he had told the master of the
A 1'BAKPUL DEPARTURE PEOM LHASA. 603
house where we lodged at Shingzonka that I was an in-
carnation of a Lama. Of course the innkeeper at once
was all full of smiles and politeness^ put me into a better
room and did all he could for my comfort, and as far as that
was concerned I had no reason for complaint. But I was
afraid that by and by trouble might come to me by reason
of that lie, and I spoke to him in severe terms not only
about the wickedness but also about the inconvenience of
uttering falsehoods.
"I only said ' yes/" urged the mail in his own justifica-
tion, "when he asked me if you were not an incarnation.
If you go round as an incarnation, you are respected and
honored, and can make lots of money. There is no profit
in going about just as you are."
" But, you miserable man," I returned angrily, " I am
not here for the purpose of making money. It is un-
utterably bad to make money by deceiving others. "
"But," he grumbled, "everybody wants to make money".
Nevertheless he promised to be more careful with his
tongue in the future.
That day we had dinner at Ne-thang, and going six miles
further on arrived at the village of Nam. When my
teacher, Rai Sarat Chandra Das Bahadur, visited Nam some
twenty years ago, it was a village of some thirty houses.
It seems almost incredible that we stayed in the single
house now standing in the place. The fact is that some
six years after the Rai Bahadur's departure from Tibet, some
sixteen years ago, the whole village was swept awaj^ by
a flood of the river Kichu. The villagers then removed
their dwellings to a plateau between the ravines where
they would be safe from future inundations, erecting just
one house on the oldsite for the benefit of travellers.
So, to return to my story, I passed through Nam and
reached the" village of Jangtoe, where lived a priest whose
acquaintance I had made at Sera,
604 THREE YEARS m TIBET.
" Where are you going ?" he asked, as he served me
with tea.
" On a pilgrimage to India, " was my politic reply,
which was received with great joy, and made my host
most sympathetic and helpful. He insisted on lending
me a horse the next morning, and I was thus enabled to
make a rapid journey to Ohaksam, where I found several
boats, some of hides and some of wood. I embarked on
one of these latter, crossed to the other side and arrived at
the station of Pashe, under the high and steep mountain
of Grenpala. At Pashe I hired another horse, (for I had
sent back the priest's horse from the river), and the next
morning, 1st June, at four o'clock, started again on my
journey. Half-way up tlie hill I found a Chinaman who
had left Lhasa a day before myself. He was feeding his
horse by the roadside, and drinking tea, and when I
asked him about his luggage, he said that it was being
sent after him.
On reaching the top of the mountain and looking back, I
was able, in the clear air, to see not only Lhasa far away
on the north-eastern horizon, but even the Grand Lama's
palace above it, a dim vision of heavenly beauty. Both in
coming and in going I enjoyed this beautiful sight, and
saluted the Lama's Palace in the distance. Genpala rises
fourteen thousand nine hundred feet above the sea, while
Lhasa is twelve thousand, so that the mountain is nearly
three thousand feet higher than the city. The distance, as
a bird flies, between them is thirty-five miles, and though
some Tibetan travellers deny the fact, I can vouch for it fi-om
experiencie that the Grand Lama's Palace can be distinctly
seen from a point of vantage on the summit of the moun-
tain, though the slightest change in position causes
the palace to disappear.
■While speaking of Genpala I recollect an amusing
story which I will here relate. There is in the house of a
A TEAEFUL DEPAKT0EE FKOM LHASA
^^j^^-^r ^y^^^^Ofr "^ ^"y^
A DISTANT VIEW OF LHASA.
rich man in Nepal a Tibetan servant of the name of Penba-
pun-tso, who accompanied his master on one occasion on
a pilgrimage io Lhasa. There were several other Tibetans
in the company, Now, whereas in Nepal food is cheap and
plentiful and every one gets enough, that is not the case
in Lhasa. There, the Lama gets a good meal with meats
of various kinds, vermicelli, and eggs ; but the ordinary
layman has to be contented with parched barley flour — not
unmixed with sand and grit — put in a bowl with tea and
eaten. And often there is not enough even of that.
The pilgrims cannot always get all they require, and many
lose strength, while all lose flesh.
At last the pilgrimage was over, all the noteworthy
Lamas had been visited, and the party of Nepalese, on
their way home, reached the summit of Mount Grenpala.
With one accord, they all turned rouiKl to take a last fare-
well of the Holy City. " We are indeed fortunate,^' they
606
THEEB YEARS IN TIBET.
murmured, " to have been allowed to accomplish this
pilgrimage, and we pray (here they shed tears of pious
fervor) that we may deserve to be re-born in the Holy
Land of Buddha."
FAREWELL TO UHASA FROM THE TOP OF GENPALA,
A TEAEFUL DBPAETUEE FEOM LHASA. 607
But Penba-pun-tso refused to join them in their
prayers. He deliberately turned his back on the Holy
City, and took no pains to conceal his disgust at the behav-
ior of his companions.
" How joyful it is, brethren, " he replied to their re-
monstrances, " to have left behind Lhasa, the hateful abode
of hungry demons and evil spirits. My prayer is that I
may never have occasion to see the place again. "
"You are very hard on Lhasa, " they said.
" Not a bit of it, " was the reply. " I am only honest ;
that's all. In my master's house in Nepal I get plenty of
food — good rice, with no sand in it. Why should I call
Lhasa the Holy City — a place where the greedy Lamas
are the only men who get enough to eat ? "
Penba's pious companions were much shocked. at his out-
spoken heresies. But Penba did not mind their threats.
" I may be punished for what I have said, " he calmly
remarked ; " but all the same I am glad not to have been
born in Lhasa. The devils of the Holy City may punish
me if they like."
There is a great deal of truth in what the man said.
Lha,sa swarms with beggars and paupers, and may truly
be called the City of hungry devils.
There are even to be found in Lhasa professional men-
dicants who are also usurious money-lenders. These men
as a rule starve themselves in order to save a little money,
which they conceal in some secret place underground and
then lend out at exorbitant rates of interest. When they
die, their secret hoard is lost, until some one some day digs
it up by chance, when it is presented as treasure-trove to the
priests of Sera or to those of the Ganden or Rebon Temples.
Can these men, who starve themselves in order to make a
little additional gain, be called anything but hungry devils ?
Truly, I can witness that Lhasa is the abode of these hung-
ry spirits, and that the Lamas are flesh-eating ogres,
THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
Penba-pun-tsOj whoise story thus amused me as I
climbed over the steeps of G-enpala, is still living at
Nyallam on the borders of Nepal and Tibet. I cannot say
that I fully share his feelings against Lhasa, which I know
as well probably as he does; but it is indeed a city in
which wheat and tares grow together, a very few noble
Bodhisattvas dwelling in the midst of many extortionate
demons. It is my earnest desire to return some day to the
Holy City and there work for the important object of
bringing together into living unity the Buddhism of Japan
and Tibet.
On our way down from the summit of Mount Genpala
we diverted our steps a little in the direction of the village
of Ta ma lung, a change of route necessitated by the desire
to dine and to change horses, before proceeding to the
post-station of Palte.
Palte is, as I have mentioned before, a very picturesque
town on the shores of Lake Yamdo. "We arrived towards
nightfall after a long journey southward through beauti-
ful winding roads, arid here I fancy that my luggage
coolie Tenba, who preceded me by a few minutes,
must have announced me as a physician from Sera, for
soon after my arrival the headman brought me a sick man
for examination. I declined to prescribe for the man at
first, but the more I drew back the more did the headman
urge his suit, until I was at last reluctantly compelled to
give him some medicine. I was surprised to find with
what great reverence the people of the place treated
"a physician from Sera".
It was almost as if he had been a G-od of medicine, so
great was the honor they paid him.
The next day, June 6th, I left Palte on horseback at
two in the morning, and about eight o'clock reached
the eastern extremity of Yase through beautiful scenery,
which I need not however describe again. Some two
A TEARFUL DEPARTUEE FROM! LHASA. 609
miles to the east of Yase there is a river which empties
itself into the narrow arm of a lake, and is crossed hj a
-stone bridge which leads the traveller towards the south.
As far as this bridge my route had been the same as on
my former journey through this country : but after crossing
the bridge, I diverged in a south-easterly direction along
the lake shore, and then turned to the south (still along the
lake) for five miles, where I struck off and reached Nan-
kartse in time for dinner. Here my servant, who was very
tired, expected to stop, but I pushed on westward, until
we came out on an immense plain where we beheld out-
spread before us the snow-clad mountains of the Bhutan
frontier. As we pushed on the scenery became more
and more beautiful, and the mountains closed in on both
sides of us. At last, in the heart of a narrow ravine, we
came to a*solitary house beside a river. We should have
had to go another five ri before reaching another house, so
we determined to stop here.
The next morning, soon after midnight, I got up and
aroused my servant. He did not want to leave his bed
and grumbled about its being midnight and a long way to
dawn, but we had before made up our minds for an early
start so as to get ahead of possible pursuers, and so I kept
to my purpose. It was a very lonely ascent through deep
snow, and my servant was so scared by the darkness and
the fear of pursuers that he did not dare to wallc behind
me, and when I made him go in front, he would often stop
for me to reconnoitre some suspicious object ahead. For
the road, he said, was full of malicious demons, and there
was no knowing what harm they might not do to one.
I did my best to re-assure him by the fact of my presence
and the example of my courage, and so, with slow and
faltering steps we climbed up the five ri of steep mountain
ascent and at daybreak reached the small village of Za-ra,
when we had breakfast and succeeded in hiring horses,
V7
610
THREE YEARS IN TIBET,
CROSSING A MOUNTAIN AT MIDNIGHT.
At these mountain-stations it is almost impossible to hire
an animal, lor there are none kept there, and the traveller
has to depend on pack-horses and travelling horses that
may happen to pass by that way. What few post-horses
there are, are all taken up by the Government, and never
come into the hands of ordinary travellers. And yet it
was very important for us to obtain animals, for we had to
pass along the snowy peak of Nechen Kangsang, and
though there are several places in the ascent as well as in
^he descent where riding. is out of the question, over the
A TEARFUL DSPAETUkE I'EOM LHASA. ' 61 1
steep and ill-kept roads, there are also places in the higher
plateau of the mountains where the rarefied atmosphere
makes rapid travelling -on foot a sheer impossibility.
Thanks, however, to our good fortune in procuring horses
at Za-ra, \v^ were able to push on towards the majestic
mountain peaks as far as to Ralung, where we rested till
midnight. We then arose, mounted our steeds, and
following a stream for some ten and a half miles arrived at
Tsanang. In Tibet there is no beautiful scenery except
that of snowy mountains. When the snow-peaks dis-
appear from sight, everything becomes monotonous and
lonely.
The next day we rode into the post-town of G-yangtze, the
third city of Tibet. The city contains a large Buddhist
Temple, Pankhor Choeten, inhabited by fifteen hundred
priests, and in it was living the chief financial agent of the
Lama Government, who was married to the niece of the old
nun who once lived with me in the Minister's residence.
As he was an old and intimate friend of mine, I ventured
to call upon him and was received with great joy. His
residence, Serchok, was a large building on the outskirts of
the grounds of the great Temple, and my friend
was very urgent that I should spend some ten or twenty
days with him. This I declined, on the ground that I
was going on a pilgrimage ; but as I was anxious to see the
Temple, and as moreover it was absolutely necessary to
provide oneself with all necessaries of life before attempt-
ing the trip across the mountains, I determined to stay for
one or two days at least.
The temple is very large, and the tower is the largest
in Tibet. The number of priests is comparatively small,
but the monastery is about one-half the size of the Sera
convent. Priests of the New Sect predominate, but those of
the Old Sect are allowed to reside there, as-are also the
Sak-ya and Karma priests. I was shown a great number
612 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
of sacred articles preserved in the Temple, and then re-
turned to my friend's residence.
Gryangtze is a good emporium for trade. A large market
is held every morning outside the gate of the great
temple, and people flock in from the whole neighbor,
hood to buy and sell. There are many shops, stalls, and
booths in which goods of all kinds are exposed for sale —
vegetables, meat, flower, milk, butter, cotton and articles
to tempt the fancy of the buyers. Also wool and yak's
tails, on their road from the table-lands of the north-west
to India, are brought here in transit, and are distributed
among the merchants who come so far to obtain them.
After stopping one night in the temple, we started on
June 1st, 1902, at five o'clock. By the kindness of my
host, a horse was lent to me for five days, and so
I passed through the town of Gryangtze, crossed the river
Tsangchu, and gradually proceeded southward to the
place where the nunnery of Nening stands. I was told
that in this nunnery there was a living goddess called
Dolma in Tibetan, only seven years of age. I did not how-
ever see her. After taking dinner at the house opposite
the temple, we hurried on for about twenty-five ifiiles, and
came to the native village of my luggage-carrier Tenba.
That night we lodged in a small temple where his brother
was living, and my man and he had a' good carouse that
night.
" Your master's complexion is unusually fair," said his
brother, "and differs little from that of Mongolians. Is he
not a European ? "
" No, no," said my servant, eagerly trying to dispel his
brother's suspicion, "he is an honorable physician in
Sera."
" I know the physician in Sera," answered his brother,
entirely forgetting that I was in the next room ; " but he is
a doubtful sort of man, one that brings the dead back to
A TEARFUL DEPAMUEE I-ROM LHASA. 6 13
life. No man can do such things unless he is a European.
Be carefulj my good brother, that you come to no harm."
"That is not so/' pleaded the other emphatically, relating
what he had heard from the owner of Thien-ho-thang,
" he is a* Chinaman, an intimate friend of the owner of
Thien-ho-thang."
1 pretended not to have heard the last night's talk be-
tween the brothers, and early the next morning I left the
house, and as we were at the point of departure the brother
whispered something in my man's ear. Walking toward
the mountain south of us for about seven miles, we came
to the post-station of Kangma. While we were resting,
twelve or thirteen pack-horses led by a Chinaman, two of
them with my baggage, came towards us in great haste. It
seemed to me that the Chinese did not know the baggage
was mine, and I was glad to see that it was on the way
to Darjeeling.
The sight of my baggage may have increased Tenba's
suspicion. When it was first packed in Thien-ho-thang, he
thought it was going to be left in the care of the drug-store,
but now, to his surprise, he found it was going off some-
where. He shut his mouth, hung his head thoughtfully,
and followed after me for a long while, till at last he sud-
denly broke the silence.
"As we are still some five or six days' journey
from the Phari Challenge Gate," he suggested eagerly,
yet with some hesitation, "would it not be better
for us to take the other road? "They are so very strict with
their enquiries at the gate that it will be hard for you to
get a proper passport, without a witness who can prove
that you are only going on a short trip to India and that
you will soon be back. Such a witness must be taken from
the village itself, and it requires, quite a lot of money to
get one. You will also have to do some bribing to get a
passport, and I very much doubt whether you have money
614 'J:»MS YEARS IN ■MfiET.
enough for the purpose. There is another way where I
can get you through for about half the money required at
Pharij and if you will entrust the matter to me I will take
you to it. We must go by the secret path to Khamburong,
from which point it will be easy to get into India ; but it
is a difficult road, and not altogether free from wild
animals. If you are afraid of it, there is another route,
through Bhiitan, though, to be sure, it is infested with
highwaymen. Still, I dare say you will get through unmo-
lested, if you conceal your luggage and wear old clothes.
It is for you to choose.
" Do you mean to tell me," I replied, " that I had better
take some other route than that of Phari on the ground of
expense ? "
" Yes, sir," replied Tenba ; " it is nonsense to throw
away money like that. "
"I don't know how much money it will require," I replied
deliberately, "but it is folly to risk one's life unnecess-
arily. If we go by the secret path or through Bhutan the
chances are nine to one that we lose our lives. It is better
to lose money than one's life. So don't di-eam of going
by a dangerous road, for there is no need for it. I am not
without money ; how much do you want ? I promised to
give you seven yen fifty sen monthly, and I intend to give
you a handsome present as well for the work you undertake
to do for me, but I shall not give you anything unless j'ou
stick to your bargain."
The whole of this suggestion originated, I am sure, from
his brother's parting whisper, and I was glad to be able to
dispel his suspicions, at least in some degree. Had I act-
ed upon his suggestions, and given him the money he asked
for to take me round by the secret path, his suspicions as
to the shadiness of my character would have been confirm-
ed, and he would only have waited for me to fall asleep to
steal my luggage. It is impossible to trust oneself entirely
A TEAKPUL DEPAKTURE EEOM LHASA. 615
to TibetanSj for honesty is observed only among people
wlio are well-known to one another, and only so long as
actions are done before the public gaze. Social restraints
are no sooner removed than the Tibetan is ready for any
crime or enormity. One has to keep one's eyes constantly
open in travelling with such people.
After a pleasant walk of about five miles along the
mountain ridge, we arrived at the village of Salu, whei-e
we stopped. We left at one o'clock the next morning
(June 8th), much to the disgust of Tenba, who was again
horribly afraid of the journey through the dark, and
proceeded southward towards the mountains. More
accurately, we were going to the south-west, and
after proceeding for some seven and a half miles, reached
a high plain. Eleven miles further, we came to a small
lake with a river flowing to it. We kept along the east
bank of the river for another three and a half miles,
which brought us to Lake Lham tso, a sheet of water
connected with the lower lake by the river. We could
reach Phari by going round the lake on either side ; but
we chose to go along the left or eastern side.
From this point the snowy peaks of the Himalayas look
like a row of beautiful maidens sitting in a line on a
bench, and wearing snow-white bonnets. They are not
very high, but there are great numbers of peaks, the
lower slopes of which are covered in summer with grass,
which would I believe make excellent pasture, especially
along the borders of the lake where grass is profuse.
We skirted the shores of the lake for about twenty miles
and at, last reached the village of Lham-maye, on a
beautiful summer evening with the crescent moon shining
faintly above us. It reminded me of home.
We stopped for the night in a large stone house, from
which we had a view towards the south over a great
mountain knowii in Tibetan as Chomo-Lhari (the mountain
616
THKEB YEABS lU TIBET,
NIGHT SCENE ON THE CHOMOLHARI AND LHAM TSO.
A TEARFUL DEPARTUEE PROM LHASA. 617
of the Mother Goddess). There are many mountains of
this name in Tibet^ where nearly every snowy, peak is
accounted sacred to the deity and is called by her name.
Some say that there are twenty-one Chomo-Lhari in Tibet,
some give the number as thirty-two ; but as nearly every
large mountain goes by that name, the number must be
far greater. This particular Ohomo-Lhari sits, like the
Buddhist deity Vairochana, with an air of great solemnity
in one corner of the plain, with its head in the clouds ;
while the snowy peaks which range themselves on either
side of it, embracing the lake as it were with their gigantic
masses, look like the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara (re-
presentative of the great Mercy of Buddha) and Bodhi-
sattva Manjushri (representative of the great knowledge
of Buddha) offering before the great Buddha Vairochana
a sacrifice of silent praise. The whole scene seemed to
me like a picture of the Buddhist Heaven.
On this plateau, as on the great north-western plain of
Tibet, neither wheat nor barley will grow, and the district
is fit only for pasturage, and that only during the summer
months. Lake Lham tso abounds in fish of all kinds,
from seven to twelve inches in length, and it is much
frequented during the summer by fishermen who catch
and dry the fish for winter consumption. During the
winter, when fishing is impossible, they take to begging,
and so the population around the Lake consists mainly
of people who are half fishermen and half beggars.
78
CHAPTER LXXXIV.
Five Gates to Pass.
On June 9th we were as usual early on horseback, and on
our road towards the south. Tenba seemed to fall back
into his old suspicious mood. We were due to reach the
first Challenge Gate on the following morning, and he
possibly feared that if anything leaked out he would be
arrested and put into jail. So he began his attacks on nie
again.
" The other day, " he said, " you said that there was no
need for us to take the secret path, but there you were
wrong. It is not nearly such difficult travelling as you
suppose. I have been over it twice myself, and the wild
beasts can always be scared away by lighting fires. The
officers at Phari are, as I have told you, both strict and
extortionate. Fourteen or fifteen yen ought to be enough,
but you may have to pay thirty or even fifty. You will be
detained for three or four days at the very least, possibly
for a week. If you are anxious to get on quickly you
had better take the secret path. Why waste money and
time ? "
" Well, " I replied, " if the ofiicials want to bleed me, I
suppose they must. I have no objection to being bled.
It will be one way of making an offering to the Dalai
Lama. "
Again my feigned nonchalance cleared his mind of
doubt, though it surprised him not a little. But a short
time later a most strange and weird thing took place.
We had gone some five miles further, when suddenly a
band of ill-favored savage-looking men, four in number,
stood in my path, made a profound bow, and begged me to
do them a favor,
FIVE GATES TO PASS. 619
"We are on our way from the north , " they said in
excited tones, " and we were taking salt to sell at Phari.
Last night, while our watchmen were dozing, some robbers
came up and drove oil forty-five of our yaks. We do not
know whether they were Tibetans or Bhutanese, but we
intend to pursue them whoever they are, and we desire
you to find out by divination which way they have gone."
They had mistaken me for a soothsaying Tibetan priest,
and there was nothing for me but to act up to the rnle.
So I struck an attitude such as I had seen the native
diviners assume, and said solemnly and with decision :
" Go towards the north, as quickly as you can : it may
be that you will catch them before evening."
So they hurried off with great joy, leaving us to
proceed on our journey to the village of Lham tso
on the slope of Mount Chomo-Lhari. It is a poor
village, the soil of which is said to produce nothing
that is eatable, and the inhabitants are generally unable
to pay taxes.
Bhutan is an independent country under the nominal
rule of a King, whose power, however, does not go far
over the various tribes within his Kingdom. Each
tribe pays a tribute to Tibet, directly, and not through
the King's Grovernment, and in return for the tribute
receives a present from the Tibetan authorities, so that
it is really an exchange of presents rather than a pay-
ment of tribute.
W^e were now not very far from the first Challenge
Gate. I had had to tell Tenba repeatedly to stick to
the public road, but I was obliged to have recourse to
religious meditation before I could get him to act in
accordance with my wishes.
Fortunately for my authority the men who had lost the
yaks on the previous day came up to us. They had re-
covered every one of their lost animals, and had come to
620 THEEE YEARS IN 'X'lBET.
express their gratitude and to make me a present of two
tankas and a kata. This incident impressed my servant
tremendously. He was now quite sure that I was a man
gifted with extraordinary powers, and was more willing to
acquiesce in my decision. That evening I recited the Holy
Texts until all had fallen asleep. I myself went into a
religious meditation-trance, by the light of which I decided
to go by the public road.
Travellers taking this road are subjected to a first and
very strict examination at the first gate-house at Phari.
The first requisite is a witness, who for a consideration
swears that the traveller is going into India on business
for a short time, intending to come back. Then a little
palm-oil procures the passport, armed with which he goes on
to the second gate at Chumbi Samba. Here he produces
the passport and goes on to the third gate at Pimbithang,
where he is examined carefully by Chinese oflicials. The
fourth gate is at Tomo Rinchen-gang at which the traveller
receives a written certificate, which he has to show on
reaching the great gate of Nyatong Castle . Here he has to
do much bribery, and is strictly cross-examined. If he
comes through the ordeal, he receives another paper which
he has to take back to the fourth gate to be countersigned
and vised. At the fourth gate he gets some more papers
which he has to take to the Chinese officer at Pimbithang,
from whom he receives another document written in
Chinese, which, together with the document received at
the fourth gate, must be taken once more to the gate
house at Nyatong Castle. At length, on the production of
all these documents, he is allowed to pass through the
castle gate into the village of Nyatong. Here he crosses a
small bridge on the other side of which are some Chinese
sentinels, the commander of these Chinese troops receiving
from him the certificate which he has received at the third
gate. The document from the fourth ^ate he takes with
riVE GATES TO PASS. 621
him to his destination : its production on his return
journey will enable him once more to be admitted to the
sacred soil of Tibet.
Between Phari and Nyatong I came across a great
number of friends and acquaintances — some of them were
chance acquaintances, others who had known me at
Darjeeling. There was a lady missionary, Miss Annie R.
Taylor, who was living with her servants near the Nyatong
Gate, and there were some ill-natured Tibetans who knew
me so well that I was obliged to keep my. eye constantly
open. I might, I felt, have the good fortune to get into
the gate-house, but whether I would come out again
was a more difficult problem. I could hardly expect to
get through without meeting any of my friends. If I
were detained for any length of time .at Phari, there was
the danger that I might be arrested by messengers from
Lhasa, though I knew that ten days must elapse before
my absence from that city would be detected. The period
from April 20 to April 30 (Tibetan** style) is a period of
confusion and bustle in Lhasa, and during that period it was
almost impossible that I should be missed. The conclusion
of the Panchen Lama's rites would leave the officials with
leisure on their hands : then my absence would be noted,
and in the end they would send messengers after me.
The day on wMch I held my meditation was May 3,
accordinig to the Tibetan calendar, and I concluded there-
fore that two or three days more must elapse before my
pursuers could reach me. But a delay of four or five days
at Phari might be a very critical question for me, and it
was just possible that while we were kept cooling our
heels in the last of the gate-houses, the Grovernment
messengers might arrive, and all our labour be lost. Yet it
was very strange that, in spite of all the difficulties of the
way, it had been revealed to me in my meditation that
the public road was the one I ought to take.
622 THBEE YBAES IN TIBET.
I had thought that the danger of the two roads was
about equal; but I thought that I would rather be arrested
on the public road, and possibly be treated with violence,
than fall among wild beasts or robbers on the secret path.
I had moreover on several occasions tried the method of
religious meditation, and always "with success. I deter-
mined therefore to follow the path that had been
revealed to me.
That night, I slept but very little, in a sitting position,
and early the next mwrning I started off on horseback
towards the great snowy peak of Chomo-Lhari. By going
round the side of the mountain, and gradually proceeding
south, after leaving lake Lham tso, we at last saw far to
the east and south, the great peak towering up above the
clouds almost like a snowy image of sitting Dharma. It
was summer ; yet the weather was so exceedingly cold
that no plants could grow there, except lichens of flattened
kinds. By dint of whipping my horse all the time, I tried
very hard to reach Phari on that day ; but as my servant
walked on foot and could not keep up with me, it was
quite dark when we came to the village of Chu-kya. It is
on a very high plateau, and the climate is exceedingly
cold. The land here is not only, high, but large snow moun-
tains stand round it on both sides in one continuous row
and it has been said to be the bleakest and most barren
wilderness in the Tsang district. At night unless dried yak
dung can be collected, piled up and burned continually, the
cold is almost intolerable. Notwithstanding that it was
early summer, it was colder than our most rigorous winter
in Japan : indeed it is the coldest, wildest, most barren
place between Lhasa and Darjeeling. The next morning,
June lltti, we took tea and started at four o'clock, going
about five miles south along the river flowing through the
wilderness. I came to the Phari Zong just at sunrise.
CHAPTER LXXXV.
The First Challenge Gate.
Phari is a large castle standing on a hill, in form
like the Dalai Lama's palace in Lhasa, but not so elegant.
All the houses standing at the foot of it looked somewhat
black. Phari is more or less of a prosperous town, situated
on the plain between the snow-mountains ; and as all the
commodities impprted from Darjeeling and Calcutta or
Bombay come to this town, there is a custom-house
for levying taxes. The customs duties for imported
goods amount to one-tenth, two-tenths, sometimes
even four-tenths of the original cost according to their
nature. Most of the duties are paid in kind ; but in cases
where this is impossible, they are paid in money after the
value has been reduced to the corresponding silver coins.
As we went through the town we saw by the side of it a
large pond. On the road between the pond and the castle
there were watchmen, who asked me where I was going
to lodge. As I did not know where to stop, I requested
them to find me a very good house, and when they saw
my dress (which was suitable for af man of high position)
they mistook me for a priest belonging to the nobility, and
led me to a very good lodging-house.
There are no real inns or hotels in Tibet ; what they call
inns or hotels being no better than our Japanese Kichin-
yado.
"Where are you going. Sir?" asked the inn-keeper
respectfully, thinking that I was a high priest.
" I am going to Calcutta," replied I ; " and if circum-
stance allow me to worship at Buddhagaya, I will do so ;
but as I have some pressing business, I am not sure
whether I can or not,"
624 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
" What is your service, Sir ?" he asked again.
" My service," said 1 : "I have no need to tell it."
" Where do you come from, my noble priest ?" said he,
intending from my reply to conjecture my station in life.
" From Lhasa," replied I.
" Which part of Lhasa, Sir ?"
" From the Sera temple."
" I see, " said he, with sparkling eyes, believing that he
had found out my secret ; " you are an incarnation of the
Lama."
Before I could say " no, " my servant, who was sitting
near me, spoke to him instantly : " The Dalai Lama's "
but before he could say more I stopped him with angry
looks : " You must not talk nonsense ; for it is no use."
" Then, what is your station in life. Sir," he asked me
again, thinking that it is very strange that I should conceal
my social position, " are you His Holiness's chaplain ?"
"No" said I, "I am simply living in Sera and nothing else."
The more he wanted to know about me, the more I
tried to keep him in the dark, and I told him I could not
comply with his desire.
" No, that is not good," said the inn-keeper. " This is a
very troublesome place ; your condition must be thoroughly
investigated, your dwelling and what position you hold,
and all doubtful points must be verified. You must also
produce a witness that though you are going to India you
are sure to return here again. To get a witness is not an
easy task; and to do this, I must first hear everything
about you."
" If that is so," said I, " I shall make myself clear. I
am a common priest from Sera studying dialects in the
university department."
" Your looks belie you," said he. " From your circum-
stance and clothes, I conjecture that you are either a high
clergyman, or an incarnation of the Lama."
THE EIKST CHALLENGE GATE. 625
" You may take me f oi^uch, " said I, " entirely at your
own convenience ; but I am not what you think, The
truth of what I say will be plain if you enquire about me
at my convent."
"Really?" said the inn-keeper, and withdrew, followed
by the servant ; the house was small, and their conversa-
tion in the room opposite could be distinctly heard.
" Your master has told me this and that," said the inn-
keeper, " yet I want to know his true status, otherwise it
will be impossible for him to get out of this place for ten or
twenty days."
" But, " replied the servant, " I cannot tell you without
making him angry."
" In that case I shall do nothing more," said the inn-
keeper, "for a month. "
" He is in great haste," replied the servant, " and he
seems to have some pressing business. We have travelled
the whole night through."
"Is it not strange," said the inn-keeper, talking very
quickly, "that he should travel the whole night through?
I don't know what kind of business he has j but at any rate
he is not a common priest; who is he ?"
" Well then, I will tell you," replied the servant, " if
you will keep the secret, and not say you have heard it
from me. He is, in truth, the physician of Sera."
"Indeed;" said the host, "is he the physician who
restores the dead to life ?"
"Yes, he is," replied the servant. "I am not quite
certain, but according to the popular rumoi-, he went to
the Grand Lama, and has been, I believe, appointed Court
Physician. Properly speaking, I am not the servant that
always attends on him. To confess the truth, as I came
into his service only a little while before our departure,
through the introduction of a drug-store keeper with
whom I am acquainted. I don't know my master very
79
626 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
well; but at any rate, his influence as a physician in
Lhasa is immense."
" Well then," said the inn-keeper, " by as quick pro-
cesses as possible, I must get him a passport within four
or five days. "
" It will be most embarrassing, if you cannot," replied my
servant.
" By the way," said the inn-keeper, with great earnest-
ness, " talking about the physician, I recall that, among
my relatives, there is a most distressing case. Would it
not be possible for him to examine the patient ? "
Said my servant, with an air of disgust, " He never
treats a patient. He is obstinate and stiff-necked. On our
way here if he had treated patients he would easily have
made money, but notwithstanding my urgency, he always
refused to do so.
" Would you not be so kind," said the inn-keeper,
requesting him eagerly, " as to intercede with him for
me?"
" As the inn-keeper," said the servant, coming into my
room somewhat perplexed, "was enquiring about your
person in various ways, I made a slip of the tongue, and
told him that you were a physician. Since I have been
told that there are many patients in this town, I request
you to examine them during our detention here for four or
five days."
" If I were to act as you ask me," answered I, with more
or less anger in my voice, " and examine patients, there would
be no end to it ; it is impossible for me to see patients, as it
would take too much time."
" As it is a means to deliver your person from death,"
said the servant, " I request you by all means to accept
the suggestion."
I ended by ' giving my consent, but with an air of great
reluctance, The inn-keeper was delighted and hurried away ;
THE PIEST CHALLENGE GATE. 627
in a short time lie returned with another man, who took me
to a black-looking house. All the houses here look black ;
the reason is that they are made of turf cut up, like bricks,
into sections of fourteen inches in length, seven inches in
breadth, and three inches in thickness, dried and con-
solidated. It is very durable though not as hard as brick,
and houses constructed of this material only are liable to
be blown down by the wind. In order to protect them from
falling, posts are inserted here and there. With the excep-
tion of one stone edifice, nearly all the buildings here are
made of this material. It seems to me that, as the
mountains are very far off and consequently great expense
is required for the transportation of stone, turf is selected
as the only material for the construction of houses. With
the exception of one or two houses, all are only one storey
high, quite the reverse of what I found at Lhasa. In the
case of a two-storied building, only the lower storey was
made of piled stones, and the upper one of turf : this is
owing to the danger of the second storey coming down.
I was conducted to such a two-storied house, where I only
felt the pulse of the patient, who after a little while felt
quite well again. The patient was the daughter of the
house, and her disease, as in the first stage of either
nervous trouble • or consumption, was a feeling of
melancholy, which kept her always in her room. Taking
out a little quantity of medicine I gave it to her
and also suggested to her to go to the temple to
worship the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara day and night,
and then went back to my lodging. After a little
while, the inn-keeper came to my room to express his
thanks for the trouble I had taken with the patient, who
had greatly improved.
"It is very hard here," said he in answering to my
request for a witness for the passport I wanted. " What
do you intend to do, Sir?"
628 THE£E YEAES IK tlBET.
" I am greatly perplexed about it ; " answered I, " but
anyhow I must get someone as my witness. I am ready
to pay a proper amount of remuneration for it."
"The Grovernment forbids us," he said, "to act as wit-
nesses for others, so I shall take you to a person who may
act as your witness, and tell him the circumstances. If he
consents you need have no fear of being made to pay an
improper amount of money."
He then took me to the house of a man who was ready
to become my witness. This man was, contrary to my
expectation, not a bad man ; but it is customary for a
Tibetan to extort money from anyone who wears good
clothes. Notwithstanding my forbidding my companions
to talk of my position and rank in Tibet, he told the other
person that I was the venerable physician of Sera, and the
Dalai Lama's physician. As soon as he heard this, he
instantly consented to become mj^ witness.
" No remuneration is required," said the man, " except
a rupee and a half, necessary for the process. It may not
be possible to get a passport at once. Whether the
conference can be held to-morrow or the day after to-
morrow, is not known ; yet, I shall request them to hold it
as quickly as possible. In that case, you may leave here
within four or five days ; but, as it will cause delay if a
written petition is not presented to-day, I shall take you
to the official at once."
The gate-house is constructed among the houses of the
common people at the foot of the castle. There was no
room in it for holding a conference. There were fourteen
or fifteen officials ; but I could not tell whether there were
any superior officials there or not. In Tibet, delay is the
rule, and even though all the officials are present they
never hold a conference, and sometimes will delay matters
for four, five or even ten days. This is done merely to
extort as much money as possible ; the passport is given
tWE I'lRSl CHAlLENGE GATE. 629
sooner or later according to the amount of the bribe. On
the advice of my witness, I handed in my written petition
to the most dignified-looking man among the officials.
" Of course to-day," said he, " no conference can be
held ; about the day after to-morrow we shall open the
conference ; and on that occasion I shall give you an
answer any way. You need not come here ; send the
inn-keeper to hear the result of our conference." The
meaning was that, if I should send the inn-keeper on the
appointed day, he would tell him that a passport could
not be given on that day, but that if I offered so much
money, it would be given within five days. Even this is
the result of much bribery, as it would otherwise take eight
or ten days to get it.
" As I have urgent business," said I, " will it not be
possible, by special permission, to obtain it to-day ? "
" I don't know," replied the official, " what kind of
business you have, but there is no precedent for giving a
passport on the day of arrival. We can't deliver one now;
you had better go home."
As the inn-keeper and the father of the daughter who
received my treatment were with me, they invited the
official apart and told him that I was the court-physician.
"On what business," said the official, coming to me
again, and with a great surprise, " are you going to India ? "
"On some urgent business," replied I. " Is it not
possible for you to have the conference to-morrow ? "
I could see that though I waited till the day after to-
morrow, it would be quite impossible to get the passport,
so I devised a scheme of my own to suit my purpose.
" If I wait till to-morrow," said I in great excitement,
" give ine a note mentioning that though I arrived here on
this date there was no time to open the conference^ and
you detained me here three days." <
" No such precedent," said the chief official.
630 THEBE YEARS lH TIBET.
"I am not at all concerned about that," said I; "I must
get a note anyhow showing the cause of my detention
here. If you want to know my position and my secret
business, you may find it out by proper processes from
the Commissioner of Foreign Affairs in Lhasa."
" What is the business in general ? " asked the chief
official.
" I may say this much. There is in Lhasa a patient of
great eminence ; I am hurrying on the road to get the
medicine for him. My going to Buddhagaya is only a
pretext ; really, I am in great haste to get to Calcutta,
and shall come back as soon as I get the medicine. If
I am detained here two or three days I cannot fulfil my
great responsibility ; and if I must stay here for several
days I must get a note to explain my detention as a proof
for a subsequent day. "
" Properly speaking, what is your profession ? " said the
official.
" At present, I cannot make it clear to you," said
I gravely, "but my going to India may reveal my
profession. Besides that, as I have very important busi-
ness, as I have told you again and again, I can hardly
stay here even one day. Please give me a note showing
that I arrived here, and handed in the written petition for
a passport, and mentioning my detention for some days."
" Dear me ! I never came across such a case," said the
chief official, greatly surprised, and turning pale. " Please
wait for awhile. Having heard that you "are a great
physician, I request you, while you are waiting, to treat
a patient here ; but as you are unable to stay here long, we
will not detain you longer. As for the passport, I can't
decide it myself, but we will consult together and as soon
as we decide the matter, we will let you know immediately."
While I was treating the patient at his request at
three o'clock I was called out and went there again.
THE PIEST CHALLENGE GATE. 631
" To-day, " said the chief official, " we have broken our
ordinary rule, and considering your private circumstances,
we held a special conference and decided to give you a
passport at four o'clock."
In a very short time, about four o'clock that day, I
received my passport. Even Government merchants who
have their passport already must go through various
consultations, for the examination of goods and other busi-
ness, and are detained here for at least two or three days.
To my great joy, I got a passport the same day that I
arrived. I might have left that night, but as there was no
house on the way I was obliged to stop till the next morning.
Departing early the next day, we gradually proceeded
among the south-western mountains. The snow-moun-
tains began to project here and there, leaving between them
only small portions of plateau. After going about three
miles, when we reached the top of the plateau, the Phari
Castle was no more to be seen. On descending we found
that last night's hail had moistened the ground very much,
the snow-mountains around wore white garments, and the
reflexion of the sun-light was so bright that it hurt my eyes.
The temperature was exceedingly cold, and the whole scen-
ery was lonesome and lifeless, only various kinds of short
grasses growing here and there near the flowing water.
The top of this plateau forms the watershed, dividing on
the one side the basins that drain on to the Tibetan plain,
and on the other to India.
Beyond the steep ascent, and across the slope of the
snow-mountain, there is a very large stream. Its water
was so clear and transparent that all the pebbles at the
bottom looked like white or black gems. I quenched my
thirst with a palm-full of it ; it was very cold and I felt
as if my hand were almost shrivelled up. As I had sent
the horse back from Phari Castle, I could not cross the
water on horseback. While I was hesitating about taking
632 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
off my shoes and crossing the cold water, my servant
carried the luggage to the other side and then took me
also. Although this stream did not differ in tempera-
ture from the neck-deep-stream I had often crossed in the
north-western plain, I had now become accustomed to the
easy and comfortable life in Lhasa, so that I felt the cold
almost unbearable. In times of distress and hardship, it is
not impossible to stand the severest pains and sufferings ; in
times of ease and comfort, even the slightest discomfort
seems almost intolerable.
After crossing the brook and descending about two
miles we came to the foot of a snow-mountain where,
among the scanty bushes, yellow, red, purple and light-
pink flowers of various kinds were growing close to-
gether almost like a spreading carpet. As I never
studied botany, I do not know the names of these
plants ; anyhow they were very beautiful. I was attracted
also by the surrounding scenery ; the incessant change of
the snow-mountains was almost as if a fairy riding on the
clouds were rambling about here and there. As I descended
step by step, the rain fell quietly ; and as the bodies of the
snow-mountains gradually disappeared, their snowy peaks
presented a still finer aspect. Here and there on both sides
of the mountain path the dewdrops on the fragrant red and
yellow azaleas and other flowers looked like mountain
gems arranged in rows.
Descending still lower along the mountain brook, the
bounding current dashed against the rock, and its spray
splashing on our feet was one of the most pleasurable sen-
sations I ever experienced. To the unrefined Tibetans such
a delightful prospect often becomes the cause of complaint.
My servant grumbled at the rainy weather, and told me that,
if the sun were there, he might have changed the weather
for us, so as to keep my luggage dry and make our lodging
easjr and comfortable, No doubt it was a great trouble for
THE PIRST CHALLENGE GATE. 633
him, but if he had had any love of nature, it would have
diminished his trouble. As most of the Tibetans are born
and die on the stony plains and bald mountains, they do not
understand the idea of beauty in the least. Even in pictures
they have none representing the scenery of their own coun-
try; or if they have, their pictures are imitations of the
Chinese style. For that reason my servant was quite in-
different as to whether he was amongst mountains of in-
comparable beauty, or on a barren wilderness with yak's
excrements scattered everywhere. I had entirely forgotten
the discomfort of the rainy weather and my wet clothes in
the pleasure of the scenery. If I could have taken a sketch
or a photograph of it foi- the entertainment of my country-
men, my gratification would have been almost infinite.
As I proceeded slowly, the picturesque view changed from
time to time, and the rhododendrons, the famous plants of the
Himalaya mountains, growing here and there among old
trees and rugged rocks, opened their bright flowers with
indescribable beauty. Rare flowers and curious plants were
bestrewn along both sides of the roaring brooks, the water
of which was perfectly transparent and as cold as snow.
" Shall I stay in this land and become a fairy in this fine
scenery ? If I could describe the unutterable beauty of this
fairy land, how much should I gratify my parents and coun-
trymen ! " was the hearty expression of the pleasure I felt,
while I was sitting on a rock and enjoying the whole scene
before me. Whenever I recollect the pleasure of that hour
I feel as if I had been free from the cares of the dusty world.
The rain was falling furiously, and there was no place
to get shelter or to cook our food. Having heard that a little
further on there was a cave near a brook, we hurried there,
and kindled a fire by collecting half-decayed branches of
trees soaked with rain. We made tea, and after finishing
our meal gradually descended, and came to the village of
Dakarpo (the village of the white rock). That day we
80
634
THREE TEARS IN TIBET,
*\ fl- .1'
'<»lU\\llll/'<//(.. ;/*,
BEAUTIFUL SCENERY IN THE TIBETAN HIMALAYAS
THE FIKST CHALLENGE GATE. 635
walked twenty miles. The place can hardly be called
a village. It is only a small barracks, with sixteen
soldiers, and one solitary house where a number of soldiers'
wives were living at the side of the barracks. A large
white rock sixty yards in height stands out prominently.
I did not determine its nature ; but it was an exceedingly
white rock partly covered with mosses and lichens.
That night I stopped in the barracks. The duty of
these soldiers did not oblige them to examine the pass-
ports of travellers.
CHAPTER LXXXVI.
The Second and Third Challenge Gates.
This station serves as a place for the transmission of let-
ters between Phari castle and the castle of Choeten Kai'po ;
that is, a station where the letters received from one place
can be handed over to the other. In Tibet, there is no
more perfect plan than this for the transmission of letters.
In other places, for example, by going twenty or thirty
miles letters can be handed in for transmission. Even this
is only for letters from the Grovernment to the local office,
and not for private correspondence. Consequently in the
case of the transmission of private letters, it must be done
either by some one in the, house or by some hired man.
That night I was allowed to sleep in a comfortable bed.
It was the first time since my departure from India that I
lay on a European bed. As it was in the rainy season, the
next day was also rainy ; but having no necessity to stay
there, in spite of my servant's murmurs, we started at five
o'clock in the morning. This time we got into a very
lonely forest, where numerous trees of enormous size, re-
quiring three or four men to embrace them, were stretch-
ing up so close together that the sun could not penetrate.
Although this is a part of the Tibetan dominion, yet they
could not get timber from here on account of the lack of
means of transportation. All the large rivers run towards
the south ; and in such a country as Tibet, where there is
no good means of transportation, it is natui-al to leave even
such splendid and exhaustless forests just as they are. In
this forest of about four miles in circumference, there is
level ground and a river flowing from a peak of the Phari
in Tibet. This river begins with a very narrow stream,
but after receiving several small brooks and rivulets it
THE SECOND AKl) THIRD CHALLEKGE GATES. QSl
becomes larger and wider as it goes lower and lower down
towards the plains. After walking aboiit six miles from
Dakarpo, we arrived at the castle of Choeten Karpo.
This Choeten Karpo is not mentioned in any of the works
of European authors that I have read. As this castle is of
very recent construction^ it ia possibly not known to foreign-
ers. It is occupied by two or three hundred Chinese Sol-
diers. It seemed that this place was not well-known to
the chief local official of Darjeeling ; for he enquired of
me particularly, when I arrived at Darjeeling, about the
castle, its condition and the number of soldiers stationed
there.
" It must be well-known to you," said I, " why should
you ask me questions like that ?"
" Our secret-service men cannot go there," replied he,
" it is utterly impossible for us to know anything about it."
I am not sui-e whether what he said was true or not ;
but it is a fact that even Tibetans living in Darjeeling seem
not to know of the existence of such a castle. The Tibetans
are shrewd in money-saving, but at the same time they are
so entirely careless that though they see the gate of a
castle, they never enquire how many soldiers are stationed
there, what they are doing, and for what purpose they have
been provided.
There is a passage right under the castle, which I enter-
ed without meeting with any rudeness. In it there are the
lodgings of the Chinese soldiers, three hundred in number.
Though the town is among the mountains it is very pros-
perous. Some of the soldiers are engaged in hair-dressing,
others are selling vermicelli and toilet articles, or making
tofit (a soft cream-like substance made from bean-curd).
Most of them have wives and children, and are engaged in
some suitable occupation. The barrack itself is the town
and the soldiers in it are moved here every half-year from
Shigatze or Gryangtze. They not only receive a salary
638 THEEE YEAKS IN TIBET.
from the Chinese G-overnment, but also a sum of money
from the Tibetan Government ; consequently they live fair-
ly well on their double income.
On ordering our dinner on our arrival at the barracks
in this soldier-towuj we were abundantly served with boiled
rice and various other foods cooked in Chinese style. As
the feast principally consisted of pork and yak flesh, my
servant ate with gusto. I did not eat the meat, and asked
for salted vegetables instead. This was the first time on
the journey that I enjoyed pickles such as I had had in
Japan.
The castle is strongly constructed, and there are two
gates at the centre of a large stone wall which extends to
the south along the side of the mountain. On the door of
the gate a notice is posted up announcing the daily open-
ing from six o'clock in the morning to the same time in
the afternoon. I heard from the neighboring people that
except when the gate is opened on the report of a soldier
for some urgent need, the notice is observed with strict
accuracy, since the people at night might be in danger of
their lives from the attacks of wild animals.
We then passed a small bridge, and after ascending
about half a mile, and also descending through a forest along
a river, we came out on a plain of half a mile in circum-
ference, where beautiful flowers carpeted the ground, and
many horses were grazing.
After leaving the plain and passing the bridge we went
about half a mile, and arrived at the bridge of Chunibi.
It is a large bridge twenty-five yards long and two yards
wide, having no railing. At the eastern end of it stands a
gate, in front of which there is a small house where a
number of soldiers keep watch. Passports have to be
handed to these soldiers, and if a man is considered by them
9. suspicious person, he is sure to be sent back ; also it is said
that without ofEering bribes one cannot pass through safely.
THE SECOND AND THIRD CHALLENGE GATES. 639
As soon as I reached the gate, the soldiers asked me
where I was going. As my servant had shown my passport
to the chief ofScial, he directed the inferior officials to ad-
mit me without any enquiry. This was owing to the fact
that it was said in the passport that no impolite treatment
was to be accorded to the bearer. I had now passed through
two guard-hoiises without the least hindrance, and must
proceed to try for the third. For the new trial I felt a great
confidence arising from my strong devotion, as I had pass-
ed my first trial with success according to the revelation
which I had received in religious meditation.
After descending along a river for two miles and a half
we arrived at the barracks of Pimbithang, the third guard-
house. This day the rain fell in abundance, and we were
so tired that we stopped in a building attached to the
barracks. As I heard that there was no necessity for me
to be examined here on the next day, I felt I must go to
Tomo-Einchen-gang, in order to obtain a note from the chief
official of the guard-house. The note from the last guard-
house being taken as a proof of our respectability, we were
allowed to pass through the gate of Nyatong castle guarded
by Chinese ; and after enquiring about and receiving a note
from the chief of the castle, the fifth guard-house, I was
- obliged to return to Pimbithang again. As I heard at
Pimbithang that a note can be given only between eleven and
half-past eleven o'clock, I had to go to Tomo-Rinchen-gang
early the next day ; but it seemed almost impossible to
finish the matter within one day ; it would certainly require
three or four days to do so.
If I did nothing at this crisis, I should not only be in
the ordinary danger of being overtaken by a pursuer, but
as the information to catch such and such a man comes
direct to Nyatong and may arrive there at all hours of the
night, it might easily be utterly impossible for me to ac-
complish my object ; so I tried to devise means "of escaping
640 THREE TEAES IN TIBET.
the impending danger and avoiding trouble. Just at that
time the wife of the chief of Pimbithang (a Chinese military
officer) came in to receive medical treatment from me.
Who brought her to me, and on account of what statement
she came to me, I do not know. She was a Tibetan
woman, long suffering from hysteria. She was a rare
beauty, and had almost unlimited influence over her hus-
band. Military officers are of course entrusted with power
to command soldiers ; yet in their families, the wives
are often the officers and their husbands are ready to obey
their command like private soldiers. So much I was told
by a soldier, who understood that his chief officer was a
greatly henpecked husband.
As she took the trouble to come to me, I examined
this patient as she desired. After describing the nature
of her disease and the care it needed, I gave her the medi-
cine which seemed most suitable. It gratified her so much
that she asked me to receive something as a token of
thanks for my having served her. Hearing that I had no
desire to take anything from her, she returned home and
then came back again bringing with her something wrap-
ped in paper, but this I refused to receive. I told her that
as I was to get a passport, I had to go to Nyatong first, to
get a certificate to be presented to the guard-house here.
Then I said to her :
" Will you be so kind as to secure the immediate issue
of a passport from the chief officer ? "
"That can be easily done," replied she; "though
my husband is strict, and never delivers a passport
even in case of his own men going out except from
eleven to half past eleven o'clock, I will be responsible
for it."
"That is my request," said I, returning the present in
spite of her strong objection to receive it; "and I shall see
you again when I return,"
THE SECOND AND THIED CHALLENGE GATES. 641
Thanking me again and again for ray medical treatment,
she returned home with great joy. On the morrow if
things in Pimbithang should come out as smoothly and favor-
ably as I wished, everything in Nyatong would be done
easily, for the arrangements for it were now made. But I
was very anxious about matters at Pimbithang, and when I
asked the soldier's wife where I stopped whether all things
would come out as I hoped, I was told that in spite of her
husband's refusal they certainly would, for she had almost
unlimited power over her husband.
The next day, June 14th, at three o'clock in the morning,
in spite of rain, I left and walked about two miles and
arrived at Tomo-Rinchen-gang. Even then day had not
dawned and no one was astir, and so I rested a while, the
door of every house being fast closed. Happily, the rain
presently stopped, and while I stood still near a closed
shop doors began to be opened here and there. I asked
the people where the guard-house was, and was told that it
stood at the end of the village.
The guard-house is a very poor one, having no gate, only
a small room in which to keep watch. I went there just
at the time when the keeper was getting out of bed.
Telling the keeper my present circumstances, I asked
for a note with which I could obtain a passport from the
other guard-house. The keeper grumbled out that there
had 'been no previous example of such a request. My
servant let slip that his master was a physician in Sera.
As soon as the keeper heard this, he asked the servant
whether his master was the famous physician of the Dalai
Lama or not. When I answered him vaguely and mysteri-
ously as most of the Tibetan gentlemen do, he believed me
immediately and gave me a note more readily than I
expected.
81
CHAPTER LXXXVII.
The Fourth and Fifth Challenge Gates.
Leaving the village and walking about a mile, I climbed
up step by step alongside a broad river among the
south-weatern mountains. There were no tall trees, only
here and there some small dwarf specimens and wheat
growing in poor soil. Going on about a mile farther there
is a castle which is the largest and last one of the three.
The number of soldiers stationed in this castle is two
hundred ; whereas in Pimbithang and Choeten Karpo the
number is respectively one hundred and two hundred,
altogether making five hundred in number. It is said
that about fifty soldiers are sometimes sent to Pimbithang.
In this soldier's town, as in the case of Choeten Karpo and
Pimbithang, many of the men are engaged in various trades.
Passing through the town, there is a very large gate by the
side of which two soldiers were watching. I showed the
note to them, and after fixing a seal on it, they readily
allowed me to pass through. Walking a little further
from the gate I saw the fifth guard-house where lay the
greatest danger to my undertaking.
The reason why it was specially dangerous to me was
the number of people who knew me. Of course there was
no man who would act as my enemy, but as most of the
Tibetans are shrewd money-savers, it was not certain that
those who knew me would not tell my nationality to the
Tibetan officials and thereby make a little money. There
had been two English people there ; one of whom was
Miss Taylor, a missionai'y, who, as I said before, tried to
get into Tibet from China. Proceeding as far- as Nakchukha
from which the distance to Lhasa is ten days' journey
by horse, and fifteen or twenty days' journey by
THK FOUKTH AND FII'TH CHALLENGE GATES. 643
walking, she was .not allowed to go any further. Every
one can go to Nakchukha, which forms the boundary
between China and Tibet, but it is hard to step into
the Dalai Lama's dominion. Miss Taylor returned with
the object of converting the Tibetan people, and now lives
at the town of Nyatong, which by some is called Yatung.
As it is th« boundary between British India and Tibet,
there are many Tibetans and Briti.sh officials there.
Among those I knew very well were the Englishmen and
their Secretaries hired by the Chinese Government to
examine both import and export goods ; besides there are
three or four Tibetans from Darjeeling. If I had been
detected by these men, there was no way of escape for me j
but committing myself to the will of Buddha, I proceeded
rapidly onwards with firm steps. There were about ten
houses ; the large and elegant ones were occupied by
officials, missionaries, or Chinese.
Opposite the house of the missionary stands the mansion
of a man known by the official name Chyi Kyab (Superior),
his personal name being Sardar Dargye. Sardar means
coolie-leader, Dargye his personal name. In Darjeeling there
are dandiwala or mountain palanquin carriers, so-called
from the rudest and simplest form of palanquin used in moun^
tain travel, which consists essentially of a basket carried by
means of a pole. This man was originally the chief of these
coolies, and the custom of this rascal was to deceive and
threaten men and extort money by violence. As I heard
that all in Darjeeling had suffered from his cruel treat-
ment and reproached him vigorously, he must be a very
bad man. Now I had to meet this man.
This upstart, who had been a coolie chief, being in Tibet
appointed to high rank by the Dalai Lama, is invested
with such great power and influence that he wears a hat
adorned with coral beads. Like all upstarts, his speech is
more arrogant than that of a Minister President in Lhasa,
644 THREE VEAftS IN TIBET.
and it was thought almost certain that if I should call at
his mansion to see him, I should be driven out from his
gate. Just in front of his house stood an elegant and well
arranged house containing various chambers of convenient
sizes, inhabited by Europeans. In it many servants were
busily engaged in working here and there. Notwithstand-
ing there were some among them who knew me, I passed
by without seeing them. We went to Dargye's mansion, but
we were not allowed to go in. However one man came
out, and looked at me awhile.
" Who is he ? " asked the man from my servant in a
whisper.
No sooner did the servant utter the words : " He is the
physician of Sera, " than " Oh ! " said the man, " is he the
famous physician of Sera ? Some say he is coming to this
place."
" There is an urgent call for my master," said the
servant, "we can't lose even a day's time. At Phari
Castle we received our passport on the day of our arrival ;
give us the note as quickly as possible."
As I was thinking that the servant for the most part
had done well, the man said " Step this way," and happily
we were received.
The supervisor has two wives : one he married when he
was coolie-chief, and the other after appointment as a
supervisor.
Telling him the various circumstances of my journey,
I requested him to give me a note allowing me to pass
out of the guard-house.
" Tell me the whole truth of your business," said the
supervisor gravely.
" I must go to Calcutta on secret business," said I
sternly, " concerning the inner chamber of the Dalai
Lama's palace. It is so urgent that if possible I wish to
return within twenty days; but if you compel me to
' ( — ^
PASSPORT IN TIBETAN FOR THE AUTHOR'S RETURN TO TEBET
IN THE FUTURE.
THE i'OnRl'H AND PIPTH CHALJ,ENGE GATES. 645
spend more time on the way, you must give me a certificate
verifying my excuse to show when I return to Lhasa."
" It is my duty," persisted he, " I must hear the nature
of the secret business."
" Have you the right to hear," said I gravely and with
dignity, " the secret of the Prime Minister ? Furthermore,
have you the right to hear the secret which no one knows
but the Dalai Lama ? If you compel^ me positively, I
shall tell you the secret of my business ; but you must give
me a certificate signed and sealed with the chief's stamp,
and assume the responsibility for my having told the
secret. If you do so and keep all men at a distance, I
shall lay open before you the whole of the Dalai Lama's
secret."
" If it be so," said he, giving me a note addressed to
Tomo-Rinchen-gang, " I shall not ask to hear it. As it is
a service of such gi-eat importance that it is impossible to
detain you even a day, I shall arrange to get the passport
as quickly as possible. I shall write a note which you may
send by your servant to Tomo-Rinchen-gang. You will
receive two copies of the note, which again must be taken
to the Chinese military officer at Pimbithang to get a copy
of the note there. By showing the one received from
Pimbithang, you may pass this guard-house without any
trouble."
As I previously said, one of the two copies of notes
obtained from Tomo-Rinchen-gang is written in Chinese,
and the other in Tibetan. The one written in Chinese
is to be taken to Pimbithang, the third guard-house, and
handed in as a certificate to the Chinese military officer
there ; while the other one, as shown in the picture, written
in Tibetan letters, is my return certificate which, when I
re-enter, must be handed to the supervisor of the fifth
guard-house, serving as a testimonial for the purpose of
receiving a new passport there. But as I went out of
646 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
Tibet and have not yet returned, this return certificate
remains in my hands as a memento.
To get a note from the supervisor Dargye was not an
easy task. This man has a bad reputation as a taker of
bribes. His personal appearance is disgusting. When I
told him that I had secret business from the Dalai Lama,
he instantly prostrated himself and bowed low again and
again. I was surprised at his entire change of manner ;
but as I believe that, in every country, those who are
haughty to their inferiors are also servile to their
superiors and are usually hateful knaves, my feeling was
only deepened by the sudden change.
CHAPTER LXXXVIII.
The Final Gate Passed.
I handed over to my servant the note received from the
supervisor of the fifth guard-house.
" Take the note to Tomo-Rinchen-gang/' said I to the
servant privately ; " you must get two notes there instead ;
but in Pimbithangj if it requires a long time to get one, go
to the wife of the Chinese military officer, and rely on
her; she will manage the matter exactly as we want."
" That he gave it so soon," said he, somewhat
surprised, " was almost like a dream. If you do not go
with me, I shall never get consent from Tomo-Rinchen-
gang."
"I thought so too," said I, "but when I told the
supervisor so, he told me that as everything is mentioned
in this note, it is certain that the Chief of Tomo-Rinchen-
gang will write a note to be sent to Pimbithang. He also
said that I need not go there but should send the servant
there, and myself wait here."
The servant then, after receiving from me a note
stamped with the seal of the supervisor, went baqk to
Tomo-Rinchen-gang as fast as he could. On arriving
there, he presented the note to the chief, and waited for a
while. As the special instruction from the supervisor was
mentioned on it, he at once made the two copies and gave
them to the servant, who took them, and again went back
two miles further to Pimbithang, to receive one written in
Chinese characters.
As the time was about half past one when the servant
arrived there, the keeper declined to give him a note.
Consequently, according to my instructions, he went to
the house of the Chinese military officer and requested his
648 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
wife to obtain the immediate delivery of the note he
needed. She^ without any hesitation, ran to the guard-
house to see her husband, and told him to give it at once.
When he told her that it was too late to give one and
that he must wait till the next day, she lost her temper
and exposed the true character of a Tibetan woman.
Whereupon, the henpecked husband yielded to her
demands and gave a note to the servant, who came back
with it about four o'clock in the afternoon.
Rain was falling that day, and though I had thought of
stopping a night there, it was better for us to depart if
possible. If we left there and walked about half a day
we should enter British India.
" To-day is rainy and walking is hard," said the
supervisor, "and furthermore, the distance from here to
Nakthang is somewhat great, there being no inn on the way.
But if you walk for about eight miles, there is one house ;
and it would be a good plan for you to stop there to-night.
By doing so, to-morrow you may easily go to Nakthang; but
if not, even if yoa start from here at three o'clock in the
morning, it would be impossible to get there ; I advise you
therefore, though it is troublesome, to start from here to-
day, since you have very important business to perform."
" t am very tired to-day," said I, " so I should like to
stop here to-night. • Is it possible for me to arrive at
Nakthang if I leave to-morrow ?"
" It is utterly impossible," replied the supervisor some-
what gravely.
" How about going there ? " asked I of the servant.
"It is almost impossible for me to walk," replied the
servant, who was weary and exhausted.
" As the servant of a master who has urgent business,"
said the supervisor, in a somewhat scolding tone of voice,
" it is extremely rude and impolite to say it is impossible to
go."
THE PINAL GATE PASSED.
649
" Pardon me^ " replied the servant shi'inking almost like
a rat among cats, " you are right, Sir. "
Fearing that to stay that night might perhaps become
the source of subsequent evils, I bade farewell to the
supervisor and departed.
Ifmi, ,
^.^^9ift.T^'-.t^
THE FORTRESS OF NYATONG.
The Nyatong castle, as shown in the picture, is strong
and solid in structure, yet also magnificent in appearance.
Leaving the post-town Nyatong and descending a little
there is a river across which is a bridge two yards in width.
After passing the small bridge and going on a little, there
is a solitary house near which are stationed a number of
82
650 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
Chinese soldiers. I handed over the passport written in
Chinese, which I had received at Pimbithang. One of the
soldiers examined it carefully and permitted us to pass
through. As w« gradually ascended the mountain, the
rain fell furiously and the ascent became very steep. The
road hereabouts is pretty good, though the place forms
the boundary of Tibet, and does not belong to the British
dominion. Most Jlaglishmen who are at present in
Nyatong live on land rented from Tibet.
Ascending about two miles ap the steep slope thickly
grown with trees, it became dark, and then the servant
commenced to complain.
" There are a great many lodging houses, " he grumbled
" besides the supervisor's. Can we not lodge somewhere to
get out of such rain ? I can't move a step on account of
the heavy luggage."
" I will carry half of your burden/' said I, somewhat
moved by his difficulties. I consoled him with great
trouble and made him move on till eight o'clock in the
evening," even then the distance to the solitary house was
two miles more and he told me that he was unable to
move even a step. Just at that point a small tent was
pitched, and someone had a fire inside. Around the tent
many mules were grazing, for mules are used by the people
of Tomo-Rinchen-gang to convey wool to Kalenpong. I step-
ped into the tent and asked the man inside to lodge us. He
declined ray request, saying that the five of his party could
hardly sleep in the small tent and no space was left for us
too. But as my servant sat down on the ground and would
not move, we at last succeeded in getting into the small tent.
It was so small in extent that we could not lie down
and I was obliged, to sit upright the whole night. While
thus meditating I was almost overwhelmed by my feelings.
To pass through that succession of five strict and
vigilant guard-houses in only three days must have been
THE FINAL GATE PASSi)i3. 651
miraculous. Even a Tibetan merchant accustomed to
travel through there many times is obliged to spend
at least seven or eight days in passing them. In spite of
the rain, too, to pass through them safely in three days and
come to that place — it seemed indeed miraculous. No chief
of any guard-house had had any suspicion about me ; even
that shrewd and penetrating supervisor who had lived in
India for twenty years of toil and hardship, not only did
not suspect my mind and motive, but refrained from
argument, bowed his head low, and sent me out the same
day I ai'rived. This must have been entirely owing to the
grace of the protection of our Holy Lord Buddha ; shedding
tears of gratitude on account of it, I read the sacred books
and passed the whole night without sleeping.
CHAPTER LXXXlX.
Qood=bye, Tibet!
The whole distance through which 1 had passed from
Darjeeling to Lhasa was about two thousand four hundred
and ninety miles. In the first place^ I started from Darjeeliiig
on the 5th of January, in the 32nd year of Meiji, and passing
through Calcutta by railway, came to Segauli ; hence also I
travelled on foot, and on the 5th of February
arrived at Katmandu. The distance between Segauli
and Katmandu was about a hundred and fifteen
miles. Leaving there on the 7th of March, on the
1 1th of the same mouth I came to Pokhra. I left there on
the 14th of the same month and on the 16th of April
reached Lo Tsarang at the distance of about eighteen miles
from the boundary of Tibet. From Katmandu to here,
I walked about two hundred and sixty miles. Staying a year
there, on the 6th of April of the next year, I left there and
for the convenience of entering Tibet, returning a little,
I came to a mountain village Malba, situated on the
eastern valley of Mount Dhavalagiri. I started from
this village on the 12th of June, and passing half
way up north of Mount Dhavalagiri at the height of
nineteen thousand feet, I proceeded to the north-western
plain ; and on July 4th I reached the mountain gorge of
the province of Hor-to-sho in the north-western plain of
Tibet. The distance from Tsarang to Malba is about seven-
ty miles, and that from Malba to the Province of Hor-to-
sho one hundred and fifty-five miles. In these places, as Iliad
to pass through thickets and i-ound gorges, I walked more
than the actual distance. On December 5th I came to the
temple of Tashi Lhunpo, and after staying there a few days,
departed. On the 21st of March, in the 34th year of
GOOD-BYEj TIBET ! 658
Meiji, just two years and three months after the departure
from Darjeeling, I arrived at the Temple of Sera in Lhasa.
As I took roundabout roads now and then from Hor-to-
sho to Lhasa I walked about one thousand two hundred and
fifty miles.
When I got up the next morning I found that some fuel
had been collected during the night, so I boiled water and
made some tea, and at the same time we ate parched wheat-
flour, and then departed. That day, as we thought it
might be impossible to get parched wheat-flour on the
way, we ate plenty of it before starting, and commenced
to climb up the mountain. The rain ceased, and the weath-
er was very fine ; we climbed up three miles and came to
a place covered with bushes of various kinds. Ascending
half a mile further, there was a lonely house. It is placed
there to detain men of suspicious character coming from
Darjeeling, while word is sent to the castle of Nyatong.
In that house there was a man and also an old woman.
I was told that he went backwards and forwards between
the place and Kalenpong on some sort of commercial
business. I drank tea there, and as after ascending the
high and steep mountain I was somewhat hungry, I ate
parched wheat-flour, and again resumed the climb. After
ascending about a mile among very short dwarf trees, the
path came out upoii a snow-mountain called by the name of
Jelep-la or Jela. Before advancing over the snow, looking
towards the north-eastern sky, across the wide, dark plain
appearing and disappearing in the clouds, where stands
Lhasa from which I had departed, I bade farewell to Tibet.
There is a lake there the water of which was completely
frozen over. While ascending, I looked down and saw an
immense volume of cloud rising from a vast wide plain mov-
ing to and fro in a wide forest, and it was indeed beautiful.
On the upper part of it, rhododendron flowers in full bloom
were to be seen. Walking for a mile Qver the snow, I reached
664
THREE YEARS IN TifiEi.
the summit whicli forms the real boundary of Tibet and
British India ; a step on the other side of the mountain,
the people are not gOYerned by Tibet9.n law.
ON THE WAY TO THE SNCWY JELAPEAK.
8ince I had reached the boundary of Tibet, or Tsarang,
in the Himalayan range, three years had elapsed, and at
last I had safely arrived in a country where free communica-
tions are possible. The feeling that my safe arrival in
this country is entirely owing to the protecting power of
the Lord Buddha was further deepened, and I worshipped
Him with zeal and earnestness. Then I composed utas, as
ollows :
O Shakyamuni, Thou, my refuge dear !
Till now Thy guardian shield has guarded me
GOGD-BYEj Tibet! •655
Through many devious daugerous paths and wilds
And snowy plateaux threatening instant deaths.
My grateful, fervent heart shall ever thrill
With deathless Dharma's virtues taught by Thee.
In all my wanderings o'er the Himalayan range,
On all my paths beset with perils great.
The path of Dharnia is the path for me.
Thus strengthened by the purest Dharma's strength
Traversed have I these unknown wilds, secure,
And holiest Saints and Sanghas have 1 met.
Pore'er in Thee alone, 0 Lord, I live.
At that time, at the summit of the mountain, I felt
extremely cold ; but that feeling of coldness was entirely
forgotten in the strong feeling of gratitude for the grace
of Buddha, in the joy felt for the safe passing of the mani-
fold guard-houses. When I came to myself, I was indeed
yery cold, but happily the day was bright and sunny, so
that I felt warmth more or less even arnong such snowy
mountains. Descending about a mile, I came upon a very
good road three feet in width and paved with stones.
It Avas indeed a contrast, for even the idea of such a one is
quite unknown in Tibet.
It was said that the year I came there especially large
hailstones fell. Hailstones are notable in these regions
of snow-mountains, and the hail I saw in Nepal was very
large. I dug out some imbedded in the snow, and found
manj^ as large as a pigeon's egg ; while it was said that at
the time of falling they must have been as large as a hen's
It is hardly credible that such large stones come down
like rain ; but I believe it to be true from actually seeing
some imbedded ones as large as pigeon's eggs. Many
people coming from Darjeeling and Tomo-Rinchen-
gang for trade declare that what I have said about
the size of a hailstone is true. It is not seldom here
that when hailstones fall in abundance, the passage is
stopped even for a month or more.
656 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
Now leaving the snowy part of the mountain and de-
scending two miles, we again walked up an ascent of
three miles; and descending still three miles more, we arrived
at the post-town of Naktang. There were about twenty
houses here, which, a long time ago, were constructed as
barracks for a soldier's station; the large ones are at present
used as store-houses for woollen goods. As it rained
that day, the road was very bad, and I lodged there
that night.
In spite of rain falling furiously, we started on Jane
16th at five o'clock, and descending through a luxuriant
forest for thirteen miles, we arrived at Lingtam and stopped
there. If the weather had been fine, we could have gone
further that day ; but it was rainy all the day, and
in addition to this, after leaving the Tibetan domain,
we had no necessity for being in a great hurry ; and
the consequence of slow and loitering steps was that
we were obliged to stop there. The next day we again
descended for about four miles and came to a place
where we felt extreme heat which by contrast was almost
unbearable. I took off my clothing and, giving it to
the servant, walked on only in an underdress ; still
abundant perspiration moistened my whole body.
Going up toward the south-west, we came to
Tsom-Takba and stopped there, as the weather was still
rainy. The next day, in spite of rain, we walked three
miles, and passing over a bridge, we went another three
miles, and stopped in the town of Boetong.
This town lies in the centre of a rich and fertile plain
among the Himalaya Mountains. Many people of Nepal
have immigrated to the neighborhood of this town, and
in addition to the old cultivated fields, thej- have added
many rice-fields here and there. Though it is under the
dominion of England, and taxes are paid to the Government
of British India, most of the people are Nepalese, besides a
GOOD-BYE, TIBET ! 657
small number of Sikkim people. Along the line of this road
the most delightful thing I saw was the planting
of rice-fields in the rain. Though most of the Indian
rice is inferior and consequently disagreeble to the
taste, yet that produced in this part of the Himalaya
Mountains is not different from our Japanese rice
either in quality or lustre. This Indian rice, when boiled,
gives a very agreeable smell and is very sweet to eat.
For the cultivation of it they were planting a rice-field that
rainy day.
In this town many Europeans are living, and most of
them are engaged in farming. It is a very flourishing post-
town containing a fine post-office, a Roman Catholic
Church, and a school for poor people connected with it. As
I walked through the town and came right under the
building of the post-office, a Tibetan gentleman, standing
on a veranda and looking at the people passing by, turned
his face and stared at me with great surprise.
" Come in. Sir," said he, calling out to me suddenly in a
loud voice.
" No, thank you," replied I, " I am too busy to enter. I
am searching for a house to stop in to-night. Will you be
so kind as to lodge me ? "
" Any thing will do," said he, " please come in. Sir."
" Though I go in," replied I, " I shall be in great trouble
if you do not lodge me ."
" Please come in, " said he, smilingly, " however it
may be."
Thinking it was sti'ange for him to treat me as his
intimate friend, I stepped in ; and as soon as he saw me,
" Do you forget me ? " said he, extending his hand, and
showing me in every way that he was indeed acquainted
with me.
While I was in Darjeeling, he was a teacher of the Tibetan
language in the Government High School there ; but he
83
658 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
was not my instructor. Though he was a teacher of the
second clasSj and not deep in learning, yet he was a man of
general knowledge having the power of quick understand-
ing. Of his change of position to be postmaster here
I was entirely ignorant. After exchanging our respective
accounts of events since we parted, he eagerly asked me
how I had come through those vigilant guard-houses with-
out endangering myself. My servant sitting near me,
hearing us talking in English, looked almost stupefied. I
at once perceived that our conversation would arouse the
suspicion of my servant again, and tried to talk in the
. dialect of Lhasa. As the postmaster knew the dialect
of Darjeeling very well, but did not know that of Lhasa, he
did not answer me in the latter but consequently talked
in English and Tibetan. This, just as I thought,
aroused the suspicion which had been happily sup-
pressed since our arrival at the first guard-house. The
servant instantly went to the wife of the postmaster
and asked her :
" Speaking truthfully, where is my master from ? "
said the servant.
" He is," replied the lady, " a Japanese Lama."
" Where is Japan ?" asked the servant eagerly, as he
heard me talking English, " is he not an Englishman ? "
" No, he is a Japanese," replied the lady, " Japan is, at
present, so strong and powerful that even England looks
at it with surprise. Her name, like the rising sun,
gleams even to the remotest part of the world. So says
my husband, who read it in a newspaper."
"That is a terrible matter," said the servant, being
frightened almost into taking flight, haggard and pale ;
"I shall be killed."
This accjaat ofhei" parsonal conference with my servant
was given to me by the lady afterwards. It seemed to me
that my servant almost trembled with fear, as though he
GOOD-BYE, TIBET ! 659
expected every moment to lose his life ; but I had no time
to explain his misunderstanding. I slept that night in
a clean and comfortable European bed.
CHAPTER XO.
The Labche Tribe.
The next day I arrived in the rain at Kalenpong, a
distance of fifteen miles. Kalenpong is a thriving town
situated some^ thirty miles east of Darjeeling, across a large
valley and on a little lower level. Though a cheap kind
of goods forms the greater proportion of its business, the
total amount of trade carried on there is said to exceed
that of Darjeeling, for the merchants from Tibet, Sikkim,
and Bhutan generally exchange their goods here. As in
Darjeeling, many foreigners live here ; l^betans, Hindus,
Sikkimese, Bhutanese, Nepalese, and Europeans may all
be found. I'here are also large protestant churches,
schools, hospitals, Buddhist temples, and smaller places of
worship of various other religions. In Kalenpong there
lives a Tibetan named Pu-chung, who moved here from
Shigatze, where he had been a priest ; but after his
removal to this town he became a merchant and is now
in good standing in his new way of living. It was to this man
that my baggage had been directed through the kindness
of the Chinese druggist Thien-ho-thang. As stated before,
it was put under the care of a Chinese officer who
was to carry it, together with the allowance to the
Chinese soldiers, as far as Tomo-Rinchen-gang, whence it
was to be trusted to some Chinese servants and to be
brought to Kalenpong. Therefore when I came to
Pu-chung I expected to receive it and start again directly,
but I found that it had not yet arrived, so I had to wait.
When I arrived at his house, the host took me for a
Tibetan and treated me as such, but after some time he
asked my servant who I was, and my servant said that he
knew nothing about me except that I was called " Japan
•the labche tribe. 661
Lama". Pu-chung came to me and told me what he heard
from the servant, and asked whether I was the Japanese
Lama who had been at Darjeeling, telling me at the same time
that there was no need of concealment now that I was at
Kalenpong. I answered that there was no concealment, for
it had already been discovered at the post-office of
Boeton, and I asked him what my servant was thinking
about me and himself. Pu-chung informed me how sur-
prised my servant was, and how pale he turned when the
host told him that the Japanese Lama must have been an
intruder into the Forbidden Land, and how he could not
even eat the whole day from fear of the punishment he
would receive when he got back for meddling with me. Poor
fellow ! I had to do something for him. If he was anxious
to return to his wife, who was pregnant at that time, and
to his childi'en (of whom he had two) he must be sent back ;
but if he was too much afraid of punishment to go home,
it might be better for him to stay and find some way of
living at Kalenpong or Darjeeling, and then his family
must be sent for ; I was willing to help him to do this.
Whichever he might choose he must settle it himself. So
I told Pu-chung to go and ask my servant which he would
prefer.
After a while my servant came to me accompanied
by the host, and requested me to divine for him by
the art of ' Eki' whether or not he should suffer if he
were to go back to Lhasa. This request I refused, because
of his connexion with me. Were he entirely a stranger to
me I might try 'Eki,' but he was my servant; if 'Eki^ were
in favor of his staying there, it might be suspected that I
kept him for my own advantage ; if on the contrary, my
'Eki' predicted that it was better to return home, he might
take me as anxious to get rid of him. So I told him plainly
what I thought, and advised him to go to some noted
Lama in the neighborhood and get his -advice on the
662 THREE YEAKS JN TIBET.
subject. He would not listen to me, and demanded my
judgment again and again. At last I firmly refused, saying
that as there was no necessity to depend on 'Bki' now that
I was out of Tibet, I should never do it again even if any
one else applied to me. Seeing my strong determination
he went out. After a while he came back and told me the
judgment of a Lama was in favor of his returning home.
Thereupon I gave him thirty-five rupees, some old clothes
and provisions enough to carry him over the barriers, and
so sent him away. He was to go by the short road of the
Peach Valley, and he seems to have returned home safely
and also to have escaped punishment, as I heard nothing
more, though I inquired after him afterwards while I was
in Nepal.
Pour or five days passed after his starting, yet the
Chinese to whom I had entrusted my baggage did not
come. I began to wonder about the cause of the delay;
even if he were stopped at a barrier, there could be no
arrest of the luggage. So it ought to be at Tomo at least,
but I heard nothiiig from Tomo for seven days. On the
eighth day, I met with a merchant from Tomo-Riuchen-gang
and was told that there had been two Chinese with several
Tibetan coolies and about twenty horses and mules coming
south, but the road being very bad owing to the recent rains,
three of the horses slipped into a river and were killed,
losing all the loads on their backs, Avhich consisted of
musk and silver coins. My anxiety still further increased
when I heard that the horses that dropped into the river
belonged to the bigger Chinese of the two, for I remem-
bered that the Chinese who took charge of my goods was
the bigger one. Ten days passed, but nothing but "similar
tidings were to be heard. At last I was almost in despair,
when on the morning of the eleventh day I heard of my goods,
and that night both the Chinese made their appearance
and to my great joy, I received my luggage at their hands,
THE LABCHE TEIBE. 663
I paid thirteen rupees as freight from Tomo to Kalen-
pong.
It was the first day of July when I received my baggage,
and on the next day I left Kalenpong. After about ten
miles descent I came to the river Tista, where an iron
bridge of European style a hundred and fifty feet long was
laid across. The bridge has no intermediate supports,
probably because the river is too rapid to allow of them.
From the Siliguri station by the river side, a bullock-cart
way runs by a very roundabout way to Kalenpong and
Boeton. It is chiefly used for freight.
The Tista river has a mythological history, which I
will mention here. Among the Himalayas there is a savage
tribe called Labche who live in a primitive state. The
tribe is subdivided into two classes, of which one is much
inferior to the other. The forefather of the advanced
race, accordingto their genealogy, was called Tikum Serrong,
and is said to have been born from the earth of the Hima-
layas, and his wife, whose name was Domi, from the water
of the Tista river ; they call the river Domi^s Rangni Unlam
Hoklam. The river Tista runs through a large valley
to the north-east of Darjeeling and joins the Ganga.
The inferior tribe of the two is supposed to be descended
from a large stone, which is still to be seen in a little
village called Dalamthang, which is situated on a hill in the
plain north-west of Darjeeling. Their kinsmen are also
scattered about Sikkim. The superior and inferior tribes,
though they have different supposed ancestors, are really of
the same race — the Labche, though the latter tribe is much
lower and as stupid as the stone their forefather. With a few
exceptions, the Labche (who have lived at Darjeeling long
enough to imitate in di'essthe Tibetan or the Nepalese style)
all cling to their original customsand manners. The covering
of the body is only a cloth wound crosswise around the waist.
The cloth, known by the name of Kusdom of Domi, is woven
664 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
from the fibres of a grass called Sache in Tibetan. Sewing
with needles is entirely unknown among them. The Labche
women have their chins tattooed in three straight stripes,
and those who cannot afford tattooing are content to dye
three stripes, in some vegetable juice.
Their food chiefly consists of grasses, seeds of grasses of wild
growth, and various kinds of mushrooms ; meat and fish are
very seldom eaten. They are practically vegetarians, and are
such good botanists that they can discriminate with wonderful
skill the poisonous vegetables from the edible; theyknowthat
such and such grasses are good against such and such diseases,
and in what season they are or are not good to eat, and
they know the names of all grasses. In this respect they
are far more intelligent than the Hindus, who know nothing
of the names of grasses, nor even those of flowers. The
bamboo is the plant most useful to the Labches. In the
first place a section of bamboo is used as a kettle, into
which are stuffed the roots of' grasses or fruits, and some-
times corn well seasoned with salt and honey. Then it is
fastened with a lid and put on the fire (for fuel they use
bamboo) until the outside of the bamboo kettle turns
black. When it is removed and the lid opened, the con-
tents are found well cooked and ready for the table. This
is the only way of cooking known to the Lapches in the
mountains. Earthen and stone kilns and metallic kettles
are not known at all. The bowls which they use at dinner
are also of bamboo, the bucket in which they carry water,
the basin in which they keep provisions and milk, are all
cylinders of bamboo. They also make bows and arrows
from the same useful plant, and are skilful archers with
bamboo bows and poisoned arrows.
Among the Labche tribe polygamy is sometimes, but very
rarely, to be found ; but polyandry is, in contrast to the
Tibetans, entirely forbidden. They are very timid by na-
ture and are extremely inactive, like other aboriginal races,
THE LABCHE TRIBE. 665
but instead of diminishing, like the American Indians or
the Ainos of Japan, their number increases as much as does
that of the Tibetans. I believe their being monogamic
counts for something in their favor. I cannot say
whether their ancestors originated in the Himalaya
mountains, but, judging simply from their language,
which seemingly has no relation either to Tibetan or to
Samskrt, I may safely say that they are descendants of
aboriginal people settled there in a very remote time.
Their faces are rather white and fine, and they are the best
looking among the Himalayan mountaineers. But they
have no courage or energy and look rather consumptive.
Though thieving is very common among this tribe, such
cruelty as manslaughter is utterly unknown. Most Lab-
ohes who come to Darjeeling now-a-days are of the superior
tribe of the two. Some people of the inferior tribe some-
times come up to the city, but they are too timid to mingle
with others, and unless the utmost care be taken they run
back to their old home. "But both of these tribes have
the finest countenance in the Himalayas, and, sad to say,
many of their women at Darjeeling are slaves of soldiers,
who are so numerous as to include many of the women
of the place in this infamous employment. In Sikkim there
are many immigrants both from Tibet and Bhutan, but
they mostly use the broken Tibetan language and can be
distinguished from the Labches, who diifer from them not
only in language, but in appearance, customs, manners and
everything. The Labches believe in Buddhism, but of a -^ery
simple kind. I think they are a people of the greates t
ethnological interest. If polygenists find here original
man, it would be of no small interest to investigate
how his lines of descent have branched off. Monogenists,
on the other hand, would have to explain what linguistic
and ethnological relations they bear to the neighboring
tribes. No careful study seems to have been made of
84
666 THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
them yet. 80 we must leave the thorough investigation to
the scientists.
THE AUTHOR AS A TIBETAN LAMAAT DARJEELING
ON HIS RETURN.
CHAPTER XCI.
Visit to my Old Teacher.
But I must continue my joui-ney. I crossed the iron
bridge over the Tista river, and found a good and wide
road on the other side. This time it was an ascent
of seventeen miles as far as Grhooin, where I expected
to arrive on that day. I quickened the pace of the horse
on Avhich I was riding, but owing to the recent rain the
two horses which were loaded with my baggage could not
go so fast, and I was obliged to stop at a village for the
night, after only seven miles' journey. The next day, I
arrived at Lhasa Villa, the country seat of Sarat Chandra
Pas of Darjeeling, my old teacher, through whom I first
became acquainted with the Tibetan language. When I
knocked at his door, one of his children opened it. He had
forgotten me and was asking my name, when Mrs. Chandra
Das made her appearance and asked me on what business
1 came.
I replied with a smile, " Have j^ou forgotten me ? Can
you not still remember me ? "
Then the Rai Bahadur, who had probably recognised my
voice, rushed out and said : " Is it you, Mr. Kawaguchi ?
You are welcome."
My baggage was immediately unloaded and carried in by
the servant, and I was shown in. Great was his
surprise and joy to see me again. He told me that he had
known of my whereabouts from my two. letters to him,
and with what joy he had heard of my well-being as a
doctor, but with what apprehension he had considered my
prospects of getting out of Tibet. He also explained to
me how Tsa Rong-ba came to him to hand him my lettei", but
as he ran away without calling at his house again as he
promised, he could not give me his answer, adding that
668 THREE YEAKS liJ TIBET.
ill liis answer he had intended to advise me to return
quickly, because on seeing my letter he had noticed there
was no further need for me to study the Tibetan language
and religion. He also told me that Dr. Bunyiu Nanjio of
Japan had been very anxious about me and asked him in
almost every letter to tell all he heard of me; and he said he
would write to the Doctor directly. I talked of my
experiences in Tibet and of the journey, and it was
midnight when we went to bed.
Next morning I had bad fever, and when the fever went
down it was followed by palsy ; my limbs began to lose
power and I felt as if the palsy was going to the heart. By
and by I was unable to move my hands or feet at all, and I
thought it must be a kind of heart attack of beri-beri from
which it is generally believed death is almost inevitable.
Rai Sarat was much concerned about me, and attended
me all the time of my sickness. Meanwhile a physician came in
and examined me. I learned afterwards that the physician
pronounced my disease to be a Tista fever, the most fright-
ful kind of malaria. I thought myself dying, and thought
how lucky it was to die here at Darjeeling, for then my
death could be announced to all my friends, whereas if it
had occurred in Tibet, no one would have heard of it. But
I thought that before I died I must make a will to the effect
that the books I brought from Tibet must be sent to Japan,
either to the Japanese Imperial University or to any other
great libraiy within easy reach of my fellow-countrymen.
Therefore though in an almost insensible state I told my
teacher to write a will for me, and began to talk in English
but with great difficulty. Rai Sarat told me it was need-
less, for he understood what I meant to say. The physician
also told me to keep quiet and spare both bodily and spiri-
tual exertion as much as possible.
That night I felt a little better, but the palsy of the limbs
remained just the same, and I entered into samadhi, trying thus
PERFORMING CEREMONIES IN TIBETAN COSTUME.
Visit to m^ old teaohek. 669
to remove the root of the malady. If any one had seen me in that
state, he would have thought that I was indeed beside mj-self .
After three days' suffering, thanks to the careful attendance of
Eai Sarat, I was a little better, and my limbs began to
have some feeling in them, and after that, though slowly, I
grew better and better, and on the eighth day I could move
my hand a little. I wished to telegraph home of my where-
abouts, but from Darjeeling to Japan the charge is
thirty-seven rupees for three words, and two rupees
was all the money I had left in my pocket now.
Nor was I bold enough to borrow the money from my
teacher, so after all, I did not telegraph home. But wish-
ing to notify my return, I did my best to use my hand and
wrote a letter addressed to Hige Tokujuro in my native
town, though I do not quite remember what I wrote in it.
I was gradually recovering, but for a whole month I was
unable to do anything, and became very thin and weak.
While in Tibet I had grown fat and healthy, and they had
often told me that I was another man after ten months'
stay in Lhasa, and I had felt so too ; but now I was again
quite lean. Happily, however, by the grace of Buddha I
survived, and before another month had passed I was able
to read and write. After that I had a great many visitors
with whom I had every kind of conversation, to relate
which would take another volume, but as they have no
direct connexion with the journey to Tibet they need not
be narrated here.
I was obliged to stay at Darjeeling for some time,
because after having been accustomed to the cold climate
of Tibet, I was afraid in my enfeebled state to undertake
a journey over the scorching plains of India. My doctor
also advised me to stay in Darjeeling for three months at
least, and I determined to do so. While I was thus waiting
for the recovery of my health, I heard nothing from Lhasa,
for in this season of the year the communication between
670 THEEB YEARS IN TIBET.
•
Phari and Darjeeling is almost entirely suspended from the
fear of attacks of fever on foreign travellers in the inter-
mediate region. The natives of Tomo-Rinchen-gang, who
are accustomed to the climate, do not catch it easily, but if
Tibetans were to pass through the district in the danger-
ous season they would surely be attacked by the malady.
When I left Tibet it was at the beginning of the season and
the caravan which I joined was the last but one. I knew
the danger very well, but I had no other choice ; the affair
which occurred in Lhasa drove me to come across the
dangerous path, and had caused my illness at Darjeeling.
In October the first caravan came from Tibet and brought
me some shocking news.
CHAPTER XCII.
My Tibetan Friends in Trouble.
I learned tliat a month had hardly passed after my
escape from Lhasa, when many of my acquaintances were
arrested and imprisoned. According to this information,
the ex-Minister of the Treasury with whom I lived, the old
nun living in his house, and one of his favorite servants,
were arrested and taken to prison ; the new Treasury -minis-
ter was set free, as he had not had much relation with mej
the Sera Seminary was closed, Tsa Rong-ba and his wife and
Takbo Tunbai Choen Joe were taken to jail and examined
with terrible tortures; every house which I had frequented
was closely observed by the detectives, and the people in
them were expecting every moment to be arrested ; there-
fore everybody who had had any connexion whatever with
me was endeavoring to conceal it, and consequently brib-
ery was prevalent in Lhasa. Such were the stories I
heard from the caravan, but the Tibetans are great story-
tellers in general, and are very fond of surprising people
by lies. So I thought they might be productions of their
imagination, derived from the rumor that I escaped from
Lhasa, and I did not give them much credit, and told them
they were absurd stories ; but still I had some doubts.
Some story of this kind reached the ear of the Magis-
trate of Darjeeling. One day he called me to his private
house and asked me several questions as to the number of the
priests, and the educational system, and the regulations of
the Sera Monastery, and whether there was any law by
which a school could be closed for such occurrences as had
happened and whether I believed the stories. To this last
question I answered negatively, because not only the
Tibetans, but even the Chinese in Tibet, are very often
672 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
fond of exaggerating truths and circulating rumors at
Darjeeling ; for instance, they say Russians have been seen
striding along the streets of Lhasa in broad daylight, while
in fact there are none, but only a Mongolian employed by the
Government of Russia.
The local English officers of these districts are very
desirous of knowing anything about Tibet, and they would
write down any tidings brought thence, not distinguishing
whether they are true or not. At Grhoom there is
an officer whose special business it is to enquire into
anything occurring in Tibet. If there is anyone newly
arrived from that country, he would see him, ask
various questions, and if he found any important news he
would take the man to the Governor's to enquire more mi-
nutely about the matter in his presence. The present Gover-
nor of Darjeeling can speak the Tibetan language to some
extent, but not with much ease ; so interpreters are hired in
most cases. But the British Indian Government greatly
encourages these Governors of the districts adjoining Tibet to
study the Tibetan language, and they can take an examina-
tion if they are able to speak colloquial Tibetan and ex-
plain easy composition ; and if they pass the examination
they can obtain a prize of a thousand rupees. Therefore
most of them study Tibetan. From these facts the reader
may infer with what caution the British Government is
trying to get insight into the Forbidden Land.
As I knew well that the Tibetans were liars, I did not
much mind their talk, but when another caravan which
came two weeks later brought similar rumors my uneasi-
ness was greatly increased. Some days after a merchant
of my acquaintance came to Darjeeling, so I went to see
him and asked him whether these rumored stories were
true.
" Not exactly," said he, " things are not so bad as that.
It is true that the ex-Minister of the Treasury was once
MY TIBETAN EEIENDS IN TROUBLE. 673
arrestedj but he was set free without being taken to prison.
However they say he will be again arrested in the near
future. When I started from Lhasa he dwelt in his residence,
not in prison ; but I cannot tell what may have happened
since. Among those who are sure victims are your tutor
and your security at the Sera Seminary, Tsa Rong-ba and his
wife, Takbo Tunbai Choen Joe. Their torture is terrible
indeed; they are to be flogged every day, receiving three
hundred blows daily with a willow stick. We wished to jiay
them a visit, and do something for them, but could not do
so ; for if we did, it would only arouse the suspicion of the
detectives, who were hunting after anything they could get
hold of ."
When I heard him I wondered what necessity there was
for such cruelty if it got out that I was a simple Japanese
priest, and asked the merchant whether he knew the cause
of the persecution. Then he said that they took me for an
English spy and not for a Japanese.
"Biit then, said I, "did any one tell them that I was an
Englishman ?"
" Yes, some one did," said he. " In an official report
Chyi Kyab, the chief Guard of Nyatong, has stated to the
Pope that the Lama who was rumored to be a Japanese was
in truth an Englishman, and brother to a high official of the
British Indian Grovernment, by whose request he entered
Tibet in the disguise of a Japanese or Chinese. He also
stated that the disguised English spy had, while in Tibet,
several communications from Darjeeling through Tsa
Bong-ba andTakbo. Furthermore, the report says you are by
no means an ordinary man and can work miracles. It says
you did not come through the barrier on the highway, and
that even the bye-ways were watched with equal care,
so that you could not have passed through. It is said
that you must have flown to this side of the mountains
when you came to the neighborhood of the barriers.
85
674 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
Since the report was read by the Pope, the persecution
of the prisoners is said to have been severe."
" By the way " he continued, " how did you come over
from Nyatong ? Did you not fly ?"
" As I am no bird, how could I do such a thing ? "
" But they say you can do such a thing," said he, " and I
am one of those who believe it, because for one who can
revive the dead, it must be an easy miracle to fly in the air
In Tibet they all believe what Chyi Kyab has reported to
the Pope. "
" Then," said I, " I will show you one thing that tells
more than my speech ; it is the passport given by the order
of Chyi Kyab himself."
The merchant seemed not to believe me yet, for by
this time even in Darjeeling the story that I could work
miracles became current aiid he had heard of it. I think
that this was caused by the fraudulent report of Chyi Kyab,
who was afraid of the punishment which was likely to be-
fall him if he made a true one. Sometime later when the
merchant came to my place, I showed him the passport and
he seemed to believe it. But a new suspicion arose that
I must have enchanted Chyi Kyab by magic and stolen the
passport. Ignorant people very often take a truth for a
miracle ; and many Tibetans are no exception.
I could not be calm now that I had heard such terrors
were raging in Tibet. In the first place, the ex-Treasury-
minister's fate caused nie much uneasiness. His acute and
strong character made him many enemies among his mean
fellow-countrymen, who might now find an opportunitj' of
revenging themselves upon him. Tsa Eong-ba and his
wife, my tutor at the Sera Seminary and my security, there
all of whom had shown me much favor and kindness, were
now suffering in chains; how could I sleep in peace ? How I
wished I had been able to fly as they said I could, and
go to Lhasa to their rescue ! Many considerations came to
MY TlBE'rAU - PIUENDS IN TKOUBLE. 675
my inind as to the way of delivering them ; but only two of
them seemed to be jjracticable. The one was to go to
Peking and to secure an order from the Chinese Govern-
ment to the Tibetan to suspend the hideous cruelty, and the
other was to go to Nepal and ask the help of the Nepalese
Government. It took me a long while to decide which
method I should choose, but at last I determined to
try the latter.
First, it was doubtful whether the Chinese Government
would admit any application, either from myself or through
the influence of the Japanese Government. In the second
place, China herself has ceased to have credit in Tibet.
In Tibet it is believed, even among the Government officers,
that the present Chinese Emperor has been married to an
Bnghsh lady, and that since then, as she is on good terms
with England, the country is always disturbed. Besides
they know that China has become so helpless that they
can disobey her without being chastised. Lastly, the
Tibetan Government does not like any diplomatic interfer-
ence from China, because China is a country that proclaims
herself as friendly with all foreign countries. On the other
hand, Nepal is much feared by the Tibetans, for the people
of Nepal are very strong, and their soldiers, disciplined in
the English style, prove themselves very brave in time of
war. So the Tibetans are trying not to offend her, and
her advice is heard with more attention than that of
China. What made me think of the greater probability of
success through applying to the Nepalese Government
was the fact that that country puts so much trust in
Japan that she sends many students to Japan for study.
Thus I was determined to go to Nepal.
To do this, however, some money was needed, of which I
had none at that time; indeed, I had even some small
debts. Thanks to heaven, help came in my need; my
acquaintances at my native town were so kiAd as to collect
676 THKEE YEAl-tS IN TIBET.
and send me three hundred yen, and with this mone}- I was
ready to start. But there was one thing that held me
back ; it was the compilation of a Tibetan grammar, which
i had sometime ago begun at the request of my teacher
Sarat Chandra pas, who needed a complete grammar of the
Tibetan language to append to his Tibetan-English diction-
ary. I began at once, and wrote some twenty pages, biit
the complete study of the grammar of a foreign language
is not to be compared to writing compositions for papers or
magazines ; books must be referred to and the opinions of
others must be consulted. And thus three months were
spent, but the completion of the grammar proceeded at a
yery sluggish pace and I felt that it would take a year
or more to finish it. But the present prison affair in
Lhasa required my immediate exertion, otherwise all hope
might be gone. So I told my teacher that I had to sus-
pend the work, and towards the end of November I left
Darjeeling and came to Calcutta.
CHAPTER XCIII.
Among Friends.
I arrived at Calcutta and lodged at the Mahabodhi
Society's rooms, where I found many priests from Ceylon
and Burma as my fellow-lodgers and conversational
companions. One or two days after my arrival, I called
on Mr. Kojun Omiya, one of my fellow-students in Japan,
who was now staying here for a long time for the study of
Samskrt. He had not the slightest notion of my being in
the same town, and I was dressed in Tibetan clothes
when I called on him. Being informed by his servant
that he was in the parlor, I entered the room without
being announced. Owing to the total disuse of Japanese
for many years, it was some while before I could utter a
single word in that language, so I simply bowed to him
a little and stared at him. My old friend, who was also
staring at me and undoubtedly feeling offended by the
intrusion of a strange man in a Tibetan dress, addressed me
in Hindustani : " Whence have you come ? "
I could not help laughing to hear him say this, but at
the same time the words in Japanese came back to me and
I said : " Are you not Omiya ? "
He did not yet recognise me, and asked in Japanese:
" You are a Japanese who knows me ? But who are you ? ''
I replied : " I am KawagucM."
He Was of course much surprised by so great a change
in me that I could easily have passed for a Tibetan.
I was soon shown to his room, which was kept very neat, and
we talked about our own country. Mr. Oiniya is a priest of
the Tendai Sect and, a very agreeable companion, and from
this time I shared his room. On the evening of December
Uth, Dr. E. Inouye, the president of the Tetsugakkwan
678 THEEE YEA14S IN TIJ3ET.
ill Tokyo (where we were instructed) came to Calcutta and
called on us. I need not describe here how delighted
our kind teacher was to see me back safe from the For-
bidden Land.
Next morningj about three o'clock, I waked up
Dr. Inouye, and guided him to the Tiger Hill near Darjeeling,
the best place from which to see the Himalayas ; for
though it was the best season of the year to see
the loftiest mountains in the world, it was generally
impossible to get a good view after nine or ten
o'clock in the morning. With the noblest work of
Nature before us, our poetical interest was aroused
and we made several poems. After short trips here and
there, on the 23rd of the month I returned to Calcutta
with Dr. Inouye, and on the same night we had to start on
a pilgi'image to Buddhagaya. Pilgrimage was not my sole
object in going to Buddhagaya; I wished to go to Delhi
to see Lieutenant-G-eneral Oku of Japan, who was to be
present at the Durbar in honor of the coronation of the
King of England and Emperor of India, and to apply to
him for a letter of introduction to the King of Nepal,
through whose influence I intended to make my appeal
to the Tibetan Pope. So I had first to go to Buddhagaya,
and then to the holy land of Benares, where I had to part
with Dr. Inouye, he going to Bombay and I to Delhi. We
got into a train and the next afternoon we arrived at
Bankipur. Here we had to stay some five hours to
change cars for Buddhagaya. Dr. Inouye went to send
a telegram and I remained at the station ; there was a
Hindu there also, who could speak English. He approach-
ed me and asked : " Are you a Tibetan ? "
" No, I am not."
" Are you a Nepalese then?"
" I am not that either?"
" Do you not come from Tibet ? "
AMONG FRIENDS.
679
" Yes, I did."
" Do you say you have come from Tibet, and yet are not
Tibetan ? "
" It does not necessarily follow that I am a Tibetan,
though I came from Tibet."
While I was thus talking, one man whose presence I
did not notice came running to me. Turning to the man,
I found my old acquaintance the Eev. Fujii Sensho.
Extending his hand to me, he expressed his joy at the
unexpected meeting, and congratulated me on my safe
return from Tibet.
ACCIDENTAL MEETING WITH A FRIEND AND COMPATRIOT.
680 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
" But what are you waiting for in such a place ? " said he.
" I am going to Buddhagaya with Dr. Inouye."
" Then our destination is the same. I am going to call
on the Rev. Otani Kozui, who is staying at Graya."
We despatched a telegram to Mr. Otani telling
him that we should arrive by the next train, and
we three then entered the train which took us to
Gaya, where we found a carriage sent by Count Otani
to meet us. When we arrived at the Dak bungalow, we
enjoyed a conversation with the Honorable Count Otani
and his suite. After various questions and ^.nswets, I?js
Highness asked me where I was going. I replied that I was
going to Nepal. Mr. Fujii, whom I had not had an
opportunity of telling my object, was much surprised to
hear it now, and asked me what I wanted there.
"I have two things to do there," said I; "one is to bring
back my books, which I left with a certain person in that
country. The other is more serious. Many of my acquaint-
ances and friends in Tibet are now suffering in prison for
having been friendly towards me. So though it is doubt-
ful whether I shall succeed, I am going to Nepal to get
help frqm its Grovernrnent to save them."
Mr. Fujii rebuked me, saying, " You are no more Kawa-
guchi of college life. Your fellow-countrymen are anxious
to see you come back and to hear of the strange land you
have visited. Therefore give up that idea of going to Nepal,
where you can expect nothing but attacks of fever or wild
beasts or robbery, of which you have already had plenty of
experienpe ; I tell yow you had better prepare to start home."
Dr. Inouye, from whou^ I had heard such advice very
often, but who found ipe unpersuadable, now said to
Mr. Otani : " What is the opinion of Your Highness about
the matter of Kawaguchi ?"
His Highness, who was listening to our discussion with
interest, spoke now ; " I can but praise your courage,
AMONG FRIENDS. 681
Mr. Kawaguchi ; with such courage only you could enter and
return from the closed country. But think of your personal '
position ; you must not expose yourself to useless danger."
I was again obliged to expound my motive and inten-
tion to go to Nepalj and said :
" All that has been said is very true. But if I follow
the advice of you all, where is ' the Japanese righteous-
ness ? ' I am a servant of Buddha, and my duty is to save
any one from misery, though he should have no personal
relations with me. But here are a great many men, to
whom I owe a debt of gratitude, by whose help I accom-
plished my escape. They are suffering in jail ; while I
am enjoying myself in a warm and comfortable room, what
pains are they suffering ? I can see them shivering with
cold in the unlighted prison of Lhasa. In the day-time
they are flogged, and the only food givign them is a
small quantity of parched barley onpe a day. Knowing
them to be in such a condition, how should I abandon
them, and start for home, even though my life is very
precious to me ?"
86
CHAPTER XCIV.
The Two Kings of Nepal.
Having made up my mind as to what I was going to do,
I took a train back to Calcutta a few nights after. Money
has its power in India, as elsewhere, and soon afterwards I
was once more on my way to Nepal.
By some means I was introduced to a Professor Kedarnath
Chatterji, an old Bengali gentleman who had once been
the Principal of the Municipal School of Katmandu, Nepal,
and was then living in Calcutta and known to be in the
good graces of the King of Nepal. He readily, even
cheerfully, complied with my request and gave me a letter
of introduction to the King of Nepal. I may observe that
the natives of Tibet, Bhiitan and Sikkim are allowed to
travel in Nepal, so long as they are in possession of a pass-
port issued by the Commander-in-Chief of Beelganji ; but
no other foreigners are admitted into that country unless
armed with the King's own pass. Hence my negotiations
with Professor Chatterji, to whom I presented myself as
one anxious to make a pilgrimage to all the holy Buddhist
stations in Nepal.
On January 10th, 1902, 1 left Calcutta by train and reach-
ed Raxaul, a station on the Nepalese border, at dusk of the
following day. It was about six o'clock then and, hiring
a coolie to carry my luggage, I crossed the Siman River
which separated India from Nepal. Landed on the other
side, I was refused further progress by the officers of a
police station there, on the ground that the King of Nepal
was soon coming home, and that, consequently, no one
from beyond the borders could be allowed entrance into the
country, until they had been subjected to thorough examin-
ation and found harmless. 1 noticed that the natives beg-
I'HE TWO Kings ol? nepal. 683
ged, begged, and were finally allowed to pass on. I
thought that here too bribery had its logic. But, no, I was a
foreigner and could under no circumstance be granted an
immediate passage. I finally produced Chatterji's letter
of introduction to the King of Nepal. The policeman on
attendance, who until then had refused even to let me in-
terview the chief of the station, now took me to that func-
tionary. The upshot was that the station chief caused my
letter of introduction, together with a very carefully pre-
pared description of my person, to be forwarded to Beelganji
and ordered me to wait for the result. At Beelganji was
the Commander-in-Chief, who was then acting there as
Regent in the absence of the King, and it was to this
authority that the documents were sent.
The distance between the Siman police station and
Beelganji is only about a mile. I had waited in vain till
eleven o'clock at night for the expected instruction, and I
had just set about making a hot cup of tea in order to keep
myself warm, when a policeman belonging to the Royal
Palace Force put in an appearance and ordered me to ac-
company him at once to Beelganji. At Beelganji I was
taken to a cottage in front of the Local Hospital to lodge
for the night. The next morning I presented myself at
the Regent's court and there had to wait till five in the
afternoon before I could have an interview with His Ex-
cellency, who informed me that the King was coming
home on the 14th "and that he would then endeavor to
secure for me an audience with his royal master.
I may here explain why I have given to the present
chapter the heading : " The Two Kings of Nepal." Nepal,
indeed, possesses two Kings, a King de jure and a King de
facto, in Nepalese respectively Panch Sarkar and Tin Sarkar.
The de facto King is the real Ruler of Nepal and
the dejure King is only the figure-head, maintaining his
court by means of a civil list, or rather a pension allowed
684 THREE YEAES IN TIBET.
by the former. In name the de facto King is the Prime
Minister of the country, but the actual sovereignty is in
his hands, and the nation knows only him as its King.
The existence of the King de jure is known, it may be said,
only by a circle of Government officials, the general mass
having but a very vague idea about it. It was of the re-
turn home of the de facto King that I was informed.
About sunset on the 14th, the Prime-Minister (the
King de facto) did, indeed, arrive in Beelganji, preceded
and followed by a cortege of great splendor, the most con-
spicuous feature of which was a train of enormous elephants,
on which were seated the Princes and Princesses of the
royal family. Nepal is a polygamous countrj^, and the
number of royal scions is consequently very large. The
entrance of the royal procession into Beelganji was an-
nounced with a salvo of thirteen guns. So the King return-
ed, but the Regent advised me to wait another day, promis-
ing me that he would manage to obtain an audience for me
at about ten o'clock the following morning, or more accur-
ately, he would arrange the matter for me if I should pre-
sent myself at the palace at about ten o'clock in the morn-
ing and patiently wait there till five o'clock in the after-
noon. This I did.
It appeared that no person, as a rule, is granted an audi-
ence in the palace on the occasion of a first presentation.
However I was taken into an inner court and was present-
ed to the King as he came out on his Qvening walk. Then
I had the singular satisfaction of his accepting from me a
certain object of Japanese fine art. The Prime-Minister
King seemed to be very well pleased with my present, and
even offered to pay me its price. Whatever the King's offer
meant, I insisted on its being a present on my part. Then
I was invited to go in with His Highness, who treated me
like a ten years' acquaintance.
THE PRIME MINISTER OF NEPAL,
H. H. CHANDRA SHAMSIR.
CHAPTER XCV.
Audience of the Two Kings,
Following the de facto King into a royal apartment; I
saw His Highness take his seat first, followed by another
who sat by him and whom I took for a Minister of State. I
subsequently found out that the second gentleman was no
less a personage than his Majesty the real King of Nepal.
The audience took the form of a catechism, which was in
substance as follows :
" I understand that you have been to Tibet : what made
you undertake the adventure ? "
" In order to complete my study of Buddhism, Your High-
ness, " replied I.
" I am told," said the Prime Minister, " that while in Tibet
you* were in friendly intercourse with the nobles and high
priests of that country : who is the most powerful person
in Tibet just now ? "
" As a Buddhist priest, " answered I, " I devoted all my
time to the study of Buddhism and had no opportunity to
make myself acquainted with the political condition of that
■country. "
" There is no occasion whatever for you to be reserved ;
Tibet and our country are on the most friendly terms with
each other, and your divulgence will do no harm. I want to
know these things only for my own information : besides, I
know that you are well posted on things Tibetan. "
" Your Highness, I am well aware of the amicable re-
lations existing between Nepal and Tibet ; I only wish to
speak of nothing of which I have no accurate information."
" I understand that, "said the Minister ; " I do not mean
to find fault with you : I shall only be pleased to hear your
opinion on the subject. "
- 686 THllEE YUAES in TlBEl'.
" May it please Your Highness, then, the most powerful
personage in Tibet at present is, I think, the Dalai Lama
himself, and the man of the greatest influence among his
subjects, Shata. "
" What do you think of the position of the Chinese re-
presentative in Tibet in relation to the Hierarchy ? "
" I think his influence is in decadence now. Your High-
ness."
"How do you account for that, Mr. Kawaguchi ? "
" I imagine it all comes from the impotency of the Pe-
king Government, on the one hand, and from the fact of His
Holiness being a man of great ability, decision and politic-
al acumen. "
" Do you know Tsan-ni Kenbo of Russia ? "
" No, Your Highness. He was not in Lhasa while I was
there. "
" But you must have heard something about him ? " .
" That I have, " I a;dmitted.
" Who among the Grovernment officials of Tibet is said
to be on the most friendly terms with him ? Do you think he
enjoys the confidence of the Dalai Lama, as well as that of
His Holiness's high officials ? "
" Shata alone, with the Dalai Lama, seems to place in-
finite confidence in Eussia ; but the latter is an object, as
far as I know, of much distrust and dislike to all others. "
Here the true King, sitting next to the Prime-Minister,
asked in Nepalese whether or not what I was saying
coincided with the stock of information in this latter's
possession. The reply was a full affirmative. Then the
catechism^ was resumed :
" Supposing," asked the Minister "that Tibet concludes
a secret treaty with Russia, do you think that our neigh-
bor will be able to give effect to such a treaty ? "
" In my humble opinion. Your Highness, there will be
nothing to prevent the two Governments concluding such
AUDIENCE OF THE TWO KINGS. 687
a treaty ; but the moment it is made public and an attempt
is made to put its stipulations into practice, one of two
things will happen — either the poisoning of the Dalai
Lama, or a popular uprising."
" What makes you hold such a view ? "
" Because/' replied I, " so far as I can see^ the majority
of the Government authorities and the people in general
are opposed to such a state of things, even though a few
persons may be in its favor."
The Prime-Minister-King asked me some other ques-
tions, but these I piay omit here, with the answers which
I made. The point he seemed to be most anxious to know
was the secret path I took in entering Tibet. For a mo-
ment I thought of satisfying his curiosity, but prudence
counselled forbearance, and I kept silence ; because I
thought that the divulgence on my part might involve
some of my erstwhile friends and acquaintances in serious
trouble. Consequently I excused myself on the ground
that my poor command of English was not equal to the
task of narrating so complicated a tale, and that I might
have an occasion, when in the Nepalese capital, of impart-
ing the whole story to some of his Highnesses trusted
officials who understood Tibetan,
The last question I was asked on the occasion ' was :
" What has transformed Japan into so great a power as
she is now ? " I, of course, answered that it was the
result of education and patriotism. I was then excused
from the royal presence with the instruction that I should
return there at two o'clock the following afternoon.
CHAPTER XCVI.
Second Audience.
At the appointed hour on the following day, I repaired
to the Government building, and the guards refused me
admittance until about' five o'clock. When finally I was
admitted to the royal presence, it was only to be told that
his Highness was extremely busy that day, and that he
would see and give me the necessary papers the following
day at the Lamban preserve.
When I came back to my lodging that evening my
servant expressed himself as quite sure that I was being
duped and that I would never be allowed to reach Lamban
on the morrow. That was bad. So I walked a distance
of about two and a half miles and back, in order to see
and be assured by the King's Lord Chamberlain that I
was only uselessly worrying myself.
On the 17th I hired an ekka (a single seat carriage) and
with my servant drove to the foot of a mountain called
Binbiti, going over a distance of about four days ' journey
on foot. On the way I went to the royal preserve of Lamban,
which is situated at the southern end of the Dalai Jungle.
The place presented a grand sight on this occasion,
for a hunt was being held in honor of the Corona-
tion of the Emperor of India. There must have been
fully five or six hundred tents pitched, covering an
immense tract of land and forming an entrance to the
famous Dalai Jungle. The royal tents sheltering the
Kings and their multiple consorts, the Princes and Princess-
es, were conspicuously beautiful to look at, while the sight
of those of the Ministers of State and others, variegated in
colors of red, white, blue and yellow, dotting the wood-
land, was both grand and picturesque. There were about
SECOND AUDIENCE. 689
two thousand soldiers present, all of the Royal Body-
guard. Their uniform was after the British pattern, and
they all looked men of splendid physique.
Being refused admittance, I hung about the royal
precincts for about four hours, all the time looking for an
opportunity to obtain an audience. Ultimately I got a
glimpse of the King, who was going out on a hunt
seated on a huge elephant. He recognised me, but
had just time enough to express his regret and tell me to
come to him in the morniiig ; and he was gone ! Then my
servant again tried to make light of my credulity ; but I
scolded him into silence,
At six o'clock on the morning of the 18th, I smuggled
myself into the royal enclosure, having chosen an un-
guarded spot for the purpose. There was such a great
number of tents that I in vain tried to locate that
intended for royalty. While wandering about I was
challenged by an officer. I explained the purpose of my
presence there, only to be told that the time for audience
had not yet arrived. Eventually the officer ordered a
private to see me out of the enclosure. I thought that,
once out of the enclosure, I might never have an oppor-
tunity of seeing the King, and feigning not to hear the
remonstrances of the private, I doggedly held my ground.
Finally a guard came and ordered me out. I said that I
was there by the order of the King. But my words were
only wasted on the sturdy soldier, who forthwith collared
me and with a push on my back, as I staggered up,
hurled me out of the enclosure, handling me altogether as
if I were a little child. Outside the fence I became an
object of the laughter of the soldiers and of jeering
remarks from the general spectators. Professor of
resignation and self-denial though I am, this treatment
could not but displease me. But on second thoughts I
awoke to the fact of my still lacking the spirit of patience
87
690
THEEE YEARS IN TIBET.
STRUGGLE WITH A NEPALESE SOLDIER.
and perseverance. Dead to my surroundings for the time
being, I sat in silence on the grass for hours, and in the
meanwhile I could not hold back my tears as I thought,
if it was hard for me to bear these insults, how great
must be the suffering of my Tibetan friends and benefactors,
who because of me were even then, as I imagined, under-
going dreadful tortures, having no one to vindicate their
innocence for them, and I composed an uta for my consola-
tion :
SECOND AUDIENCE. 691
My sufferiug surely I with ease must bear
Compared with all the tortures which my friends
Now undergo, for my sake prisoners made,
In distant regions far above the clouds.
At about eleven o'clock I noticed the Lord Chamberlain
passing by me, and I hastened to acquaint him with the
plight I was in. His Lordship greatly commiserated me
and at once gave orders that I should that minute be
taken to the tent of royal reception. After waiting another
two hours in the tent, the King was announced — the Prime-
Minister-King I should have said.
The King wanted to know what I wished to have from
him. The passport, I said. Then he said that that I should
certainly have, but that what he had meant was if I was
well provided with travelling funds. I replied that I had
then with me three hundred rupees. His Highness thought
that the amount was not enough for my purpose, and
ordered his attendants to give me two hundred rupees. I
refused to accept his generosity, saying that I had not
come to his country to make money. What was it then
that I wanted in reality? I was on the point of making a
direct reference to my petition ; but that spirit of caution
and forbearance which I have already mentioned counselled
me once more to bide my time on that score; and I disclosed
a part of my desire, that I wished to secure a complete
collection of the Samskrt text of the Buddhist Scriptures in
existence in Nepal, offering in return to forward the Japanese
edition of the same on my return home. That I should
have, he said, and ordered me to present a list of the texts
I wanted to the Regent at Katmandu, where His Highness
was to return in twenty-five days. Henceforward I became
a sort of special traveller under royal protection, for a
police official was detailed to escort me to Katmandu.
CHAPTER XCVII.
Once more in Katmandu.
After procuring my passport, escorted by the policeman,
I came back to a village called Simla where I had left my
carrier and carriage. I found that the carriage and its
driver had absconded in my absence : it had been paid for
in advance. The policeman wanted to beat my carrier
for allowing the driver to abscond ; but I interfered.
It was then after three in the afternoon, and my route
to Khatmandu lay for eight miles at least through the
jungle. I was warned about tigers ; but I knew the route,
as I was going over it for a second time, and forthwith I
set out on the road.
Every two miles, through the eight miles of the
jungle, is a large reservoir of drinking water, each reser-
voir being connected with the one next to it by means of
iron ducts. Originally not a drop of water was obtainable
in the jungle, and the ducts and reservoirs were built in
compliance with the dying wish of the late Queen of
Nepal, who in that way wanted to benefit the travelling
public. One reads the origin and history of this bene-
volent institution engraved on stone tablets, set up on the
roadside ; the language used on one being Nepalese, on
another Tibetan, on the third English, then Hindu and
Parsi.
Before night came on I arrived at Bichagori, where on
the occasion of my former visit I heard a tiger break the
midnight silence with his roars. I felt rather lonely
on account of the absence of his roaring now, and I
made an t(,ta :
The same as once before the moonlight sleeps
On Bichagori fair ; but whence is heard
Upon the stream the savage tiger's roar ?
ONCE MORE IN KATMANDU. 693
Crossing the Bichagori river, I travelled to Spalta,
from Spalta to Bahise, thence to Binbit and Tispani
during the next two days. Tispani is also known
by the alternative name of Tisgari, which, I think,
was the one I mentioned before. Between Simla
and Tispani I had my passport examined three times.
Tispani maintains a custom-house and all ordinary ingoing
travellers are detained here at least half a day. The case
was different with me : my stop here lasted no longer than
half an hour. My police-escort took leave of me here and
his place was taken by a soldier, who thenceforth accompa-
nied me to Katmandu.
As we reached the top of Tisgari, I once more stood
an all-absorbed admirer, struck by the wondrous grandeur
of the Himalayas, which, seen a second time, appeared to
increase instead of diminish in their fresh majesty and
charms.
To fitly paint the grandeur of the scenes
Words fail me quite ; what can I, helpless, do y
These scenic beauties on the Himal'yan range
E'en human eyesight fails to comprehend.
Thousands of years ago, Shakyamuni Buddha, our Lord,
spent six years in the jungles and mountains, and I
imagined that I was possibly treading in His holy footsteps.
I had spent the same number of years under the shadows
of the Himalayas, but neither had I attained Nirvana,
nor become a Bodhisattva !
Yuhi' yama-ni mutose heshi mino ikani-nhite
AkatsuM-no HosM-ni awade sugoseshi ?
Upon these plateaux six years have I passed
But yet Illumination's Morning Star
Have I not seen- — ^the Star that flashed so bright
At that Illumination of our Lord,
The Holy Saint under the Bodhi tree.*
We next made a sharp descent of about three miles
past the village of Kurikane and an iron bridge, and
* The Grb^el teaches that the Buddha attained His enlightenment as
He eat gazing up to IJie " Morning Star " on His la-st night of meditation
uider the sacred bodhi tree.
694 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
entered Marku, where we lodged for the night. Starting
at three o'clock on the 21st we calculated upon reaching
Katmandu by the evening. The weird serenity of the
great mountain pass under the starry heavens of the early
morning ; the bracing chill, the gradual revelation of the
scenery around under the rising sun, the famous rhododen-
dron flowers almost in bloom, the climb of Chandragiri,
the vast plain at the height of six thousand feet above the
sea level — all the sights and scenes, awe-inspiring, en-
trancing and interesting — ^were there as on the occasion
-of my former visit.
Arrived in Katmandu, I at once proceeded to the
official residence of the Local Commander-in-Chief and
Acting Prime Minister. His Excellency was too busy to
see me that evening, and sent me word asking to come
the next day. In the place of the one that had accom-
panied me to Katmandu two fresh bodyguards were then
given to me. Such being the case, my arrival in the town
had apparently become known to my old friend of four
years ago Lama Buddha Vajra ; for, as I came out
of the Commander-in-Chief's residence, I was met by
one of my friend's sons and some servants with a horse.
I at once rode to the Kasyapa Buddha Tower and
there renewed my friendship with its master, who, it will
be superfluous to say, received me with a right royal
welcome and placed me under fresh obliga^tions by his
great hospitality. I may add, however, that the Nepalese
custom is almost the reverse of that of Tibet, in that all
those who can afford to do so marry two, three, even five
wives. My frie;id, though a Lama, but belonging to the
Old School, has two wives and thirteen children.
I considered it a rare privilege to pass a night in a
place of such holiness, and availing myself of the opportun-
ity Tf spent the best part, of the night in lighting up the
butter-lamp and holdiiig a service in memory of my father
ONCE ' MORE IN KATMANDU.
695
MEETING AGAIN WITH AN OLD FRIEND LAMA BUDDHA VAJRA.
and friends, wlio had died at liome during my absence. The
next morning I saw the sun rising from the snows and felt
the emotions which are embodied in the following uta.
In Japan was I born, my native land
Of cherry flowers fair, the cheerful home
Of birds e'er singing their melodious songs.
It is for this am I inspired to sing
Of that bright light reflected from the snows ?
That afternoon at one o'clock, accompanied by my friend,
I called on His Excellency Bheem Shamsher, the Com-
mander-in-Chief of Nepal. We were shown into the recep-
tion hall in the second floor of the building, in which I found
fourteen or fifteen chairs of Western style, while the
696 THREE YBAES IN TIBET.
upper half of the floor was covered over witli a rectangular
piece of thick Nepalese carpet, with a layer of white cloth
over it. On the walls of the room I noticed a number of
pictures in occidental frames. Trifling as these details
may appear, I mention them here, because the use side by
side of native and western articles indicates the general
features of the national policy of Nepal.
THE COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF OF NEPAL,
H. E. BHIM SHAMSIR.
CHAPTER XOVIII.
Interview with tlie Acting Prime Minister.
In His Excellency Bheem Shamslier I found a perfect
gentleman^ easy of approach, but nevertheless of
commanding presence.
" How are you impressed with our country ?"said he.
" I am filled with a feeling of extreme pleasure," I
replied.
" How can that be ?"
" Because not only your natural scenery, trees and
plants, but even your people look very much like those of
my own country, and I cannot help feeling quite at home
here — a feeling which makes me forget the difficulties of
travel I have come through. "
His Excellency smiled a little. " That may be, because
we belong to the same race ; but are you quite sure about
our flora ? "
" Why, yes, Your Excellency, not only your mountains
and waters look like ours, but you have pines, cedars, oaks,
willows, keyaki fPlanetajaponicaJ, cherries, peaches, pears,
oranges, azaleas, elms, among trees, and field products,
such as rice, wheat, beans, millet, buck-wheat and corn
are as common with you as they are in Japan. I also
notice an equal similarity between the flowers and birds of
the countries. Above all I am profoundly impressed by
the bravery of your people and their kindness toward
strangers."
Quite pleased at what I said. His Excellency now
changed the course of conversation :
" I have been told that Tibet has concluded a treaty
with Russia : do you know of any evidence to prove this?"
88
THEEE TEAKS IN TIBET.
" I have not come across any definite proof/' I replied ;
" but judging from what Tsan-ni Kenbo has done and the
fact that the Dalai Lama has accepted a present of a
Bishop's robes from the Russian Government, one may think
that there must be some foundation for the rumor. Further-
morOj since the return of a Tibetan envoy from his mission
to the court of S. Petersburg, the Tibetan Grovemment has,
it is said, come to show great firmness, even to the extent
of expressing its determination to engage in war, if need
be, with any other country, and this fact may point to
the existence of a secret Russo-Tibetan treaty."
" I have no doubt of its existence," said my interlocutor;
" but what do you think has induced Tibet to conclude
it?"
" As a mere priest, I know nothing about politics and diplo-
macy, but I may venture to presume that it all came from
the unreliability of China, and the skilful manoeuvres of
Tsan-ni Kenbo, who worked on Tibetan sensitiveness as
regards its relationship with the Indo-British Govern-
ment."
" Why is the Tibetan Government hostilely disposed
toward England ? " asked the Commander-in-Chief.
The other questions which he put to me may be
gathered from the answers I gave, which were
to the effect, that Tibet believed that its intercourse
with Christian England would end in the destruction of
its Buddhism and nationality, while it rejoiced in the
delusion that Russia was a Buddhist Power, and that
the reason why it did not befriend Japan was because it
knew practically nothing about the existence of such a
country.
I next took my turn in leading the conversation, and as
a beginning I gave in detail the story of the causes which
had led to the incarceration and torture of my friends and
benefactors in Tibet, and appealed to His Excellency's
INTERVIEW WITH THE ACTING PRIME MINISTER. 699
generosity to take the trouble of fowarding my petition to
the Dalai Lama. In the second place I referred to the
Samskrt edition of the Buddhist Scriptures, promised me by
the Prime-Minister-King. Thereupon the Commander-in-
Chief cheerfully gave consent to both my requests. He
greatly pitied the ignorance of the Tibetan authorities,
and keenly sympathised with my position. He promised
me to do all in his power to have the petition forwarded,
but as the matter rested solely with the King de facto, he
advised me to wait for the latter's return, when he wouldput
in a good word for me. As for the Scriptures, he saw no
way of procuring for me the entire collection within the
period of time I intended to spend in Nepal. I then in-
formed him of my determination to revisit Nepal in two
years' time, and that I should be most pleased to receive the
remainder of the Scriptures on the occasion of that second
visit, I taking home for the time being such portions of
them as could be collected during my stay. All this was
agreeable to His Excellency, and before I took leave of him
he shook me warmly by the hand and flattered me by
saying that he was very glad to have met such an honored
Japanese.
CHAPTER XCTX.
Painful News from Lhasa.
A few days after my ai-rival at the Tower, I met many
Tibetans who had come to worship at the holy places in Nepal.
They told me positively that the ex-Minister of Finance
had been imprisoned on such and such a day and had been tor-
tured in the Court. I could not quite believe the news, but
I was very anxious to know the truth of the case. Fortun-
ately I saw a high Lama named Kusho Lokela from
Lhasa, who was on a pilgrimage in memory of his master
Temo Rinpoche, whom I have already mentioned. I
enquired of him whether the rumor about the imprison-
ment of the ex-Minister of Finance was true.
" I left Lhasa a month and a half ago, "he said, " and
then the ex-Minister was at home. After my departure
from Lhasa I heard of his arrest, on my way to Nepal.
But I cannot say whether it is a fact, for, as you
know, in , Tibet rumor often magnifies misfortune.
But there is really great misfortune for Tsa Eong-ba, who
was somehow connected with you. I saw him on the
veranda of the Court waiting for his trial. I wondered at
his bonds, and asked him about his imprisonment. He
told me with tears, that he did not commit a theft, nor
engage in any quarrel, but he was acquainted with and
asked medicine from a doctor of Sera, and that was the
cause of his arrest. But he did not know very much
about you personally. Hs was tortured every alternate
day, and he became so thin that his body was mere skin
and bone. My sympathy and pity became the greater
when I heard from him that he bore all his sufferings
patiently in the belief that his tortures were due to the
gins of his former lives."
fAINI'UL NEWS FROM LHASA. 70l
Kusho Lokela was a very honest gentleman, so I could
not but believe this. I was really very sorry to receive
from him this sad information, and I could not sleep
through the night thinking about these Tibetan friends of
mine who were imprisoned. I composed an iota about it,
which may be rendered in prose somewhat as follows :
" To hear about the misfortunes and sufferings of my
friends is to me painful; to speak of them is still more
painful and bitter ; but unbearable it is for me to write of
them. But now for the sake of reviving my recollection
of them in my memories in the future, I shall relate in
verse all the details.
" Six years ago, I remember, I determined to study
Buddhism, the wonderful Pure Law. I left my Mother-
land, and traversing the snowy range of the Himalayas I
entered Tibet, and again have I arrived here from my
travels. My heart bleeds to hear now that in that hermit
country those friends of mine, as a result of their friendly
services to me and for no other offence, have been arrested
and imprisoned ' in durance vile ' and confined within
stone walls.
" For these friends of mine I cannot but shed tears when
I know that it is for my sake that their sufferings are
acute, their bodies shivering within the stony walls of
their prison-house in the snowy capital city of Lhasa,
sitting disconsolate and wretched on the wooden floor
unenlivened by the light of the sun.
"Who will give them food ? As a rule in the jails of Tibet,
the prisoners get but one meal a day — a handful of barley
flour. If my friends are the victims of this rule they will
die of starvation, benumbed with the cold.
" Still worse misfortunes and excruciating sufferings they
are undergoing, I am sure, for the jailors, unfeeling and
cruel, not only starve them with insufficient food, but with
insults beat them and inflict bodily pain. My friends, I
702 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
fancy, now desire to extinguish themselves as a release
from their sufferings. These painful reflections on my part
drive me to the desire of extinguishing myself also in order
to put an end to all my own tortures.
" 0 how pitiful is my friends ' condition ! When I was
in Lhasa, you, my friends, never thought that you would
be treated as culprits for my sake ; your offence simply
was the help you rendered me during my sojourn in your
country. Now how can I leave you helpless without
saving you ?
"Judging of men as they naturally are, I should fancy that
you would feel disgust towards me and hate me. I thought
so, but I have since heard from the man who has met you
in the Court of Justice that you said this :
" ' I am not guilty of any theft or breach of the peace, but
was told by the Judge that 1 had acted against the law.
I was simply acquainted with a Japanese priest of whose
antecedents I knew scarcely anything. All these torments
which I am now suffering are, to my mind, but the results
of the evil deeds (Karmas) of my past lives. Therefore
it is I have to bear them in order to get rid of them as
such.'
" 0 my friends ! you may mitigate your misfortunes with
that kind of consolation ; but how is it possible for me
to bear the galling thought that I am the cause of all the
misfortunes you have suffered for my sake ? "
CHAPTER 0.
The King betrays his suspicion.
On Pebruaiy 9tli at two o'clock, accompanied again by
Buddha Vajra, I presented myself at the palatial resi-
dence of His Highness Chandra Shamsher, Prime Minister
or King de facto of Nepal. The residence with its grounds
must cover an area of at least three hundred and fifty yards
square, and it has a guarded gate, within which are
barracks, a small parade-ground, and a race-course.
Proceeding over a broad pavement for about seven
hundred yards, we came to the main entrance of the palace.
Inside the reception hall, into which we were taken, I
saw three chairs and a thick piece of white cloth carpet of
the Nepalese style at the upper end of the room, and a
teak-wood shelf of European design standing against a
wall, with a white statue of a Nepalese Goddess riding
on an elephant on its top. Other conspicuous objects
catching the eye at a glance were a pair each
of the carved heads of lions and deer, and a huge
pendulum clock. From where we were seated we saw to'
the south through the glass-paned windows a most
enchanting view of the "Moon Peak," the "Dragon Tree
Peak" and other great elevations.
In the reception hall were many officers of the army and
other dignitaries. The Secretary for Foreign Affairs
being one of the company, took me to task — all by pre-
arrangement as I suspect — and I replied to his questions
as well as I could.
"I believe more than twenty days have elapsed since your
arrival here," said he ;" how have you been employing
yourself in the interval ? "
704
THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
THE AUTHOR AND HIS FRIEND BUDDHA VAJRA ENJOYING THE BRILLIANT
SNOW AT KATMANDU.
" In religious meditation and in |composing poems," I
replied.
" What is your court rank and what office do you hold
in Japan ? " he asked.
" Nothing, " I answered.
THE KING BETEAYS HIS SUSPICION. 705
But he continued : " Don't try to make a secret of those
things; do you think we can form no idea of our own about
you ? It will be better for yoa to tell me all. "
"Sir^ I am a Buddhist priest, and I possess no rank,
nor order, nor any office under the Japanese or any other
Government for that matter."
" Oh ! come, Mr. Kawaguchi ; how do you happen to visit
Tibet and Nepal, in spite of the great expense involved? "
" I am absolutely free from all official connexions : I
went to Tibet and came to your country with the one sole
object of completing my Buddhist study."
Next he asked " What route did you take in entering
Tibet ?"
" By way of Milnasarovara," answered I.
At this he evinced signs of suppressed excitement,
and asked quickly : "And what was the route you took in
reaching Manasarovara?"
"Sir," I replied, "I cannot answer that question, except
in the presence of the King."
"Why?"
"Because I do not wish to bring trouble on innocent
parties."
The other officers then took turns in catechising me as to
the manners and customs, national characteristics, and
military organisation of Tibet and of Japan. I heard them
say in Nepalese that I must be an emissary of the Japanese
Government.
Presently we were told to proceed to the court of audience,
whither the rest of the assembly were now hurrying. I
proceeded as far as a portal, where I observed a large number
of the provincial dignitaries of Nepal (as I subsequently
found them to be) salaaming in the most respectful manner.
I also noticed one man in the crowd who appeared greatly
astonished to see me there : he was the chief of the district
of Tukje, in whose house I stayed when on my way to
89
706 THEEE YEAES IN TIBET.
Tibet, and when I went to him in no better capacity than
a begging Chinese Lama.
The Prime-Minister King had finished examining the
horses sent in as a tribute and sat down on a sofa, and I
advanced to his presence. He asked me :
" What can I do for you now ? "
" My first appeal to Your Highness is the forwarding of
my petition to the Dalai Lama of Tibet, and the second is
about Your Highness's promise as to the Samskrt text of
the Buddhist Scriptures."
" We will talk about those things afterwards," said he.
" I understand that you were in this country four years
ago ; is that true ? "
" Yes, your Highness, I was most certainly here four
years ago."
He straightened himself up and said in a changed
tone of voice — " Ha ! How was it that you did not tell me
so when you saw me at Beelganji ? Do you not think that
it was in the order of things that you should have told me
about your former visit to this country then ? "
" I do not deny that, your Highness; let me say, however,
that much as I wished to do so then, I abstained from
doing so owing to a certain fear I entertained.^'
" Might I know what you were afraid of ? "
. " Certainly, your Highness. In the first place I thought
then, that should I open my mouth carelessly, I might
invite your anger and consequent punishment on the
officers of your challenge gates and many other people of
this country. I should have felt unbearable sorrow of
mind, had my thoughtless divulgence of the fact at the
time involved my friends and acquaintances in Nepal in
the troubles and afflictions now being undergone by
those in Tibet. I most earnestly beseech Your Highness
that you will punish none of your subjects because of my
having passed through this country once before, or else I
I'Hll KING iBJilTIiAYS HIS SUSPICION. 707
pray your Highness to allow me to retract all that I have
said about my former visit."
" I grant your request ; you may rest assured that I
will not punish any of our people on your account."
" Your Highness has greatly relieved me ; I thank your
Highness for your magnanimity."
When truth speaks, it touches the heart ; and I was
gratified to notice that the King seemed to believe my
words. But when it came to the question of the motive of
my Tibetan and Nepal journey, it Avas another thing — as
the, King appeared to say, for he next asked me:
" Who sent you to our country and Tibet — was it your
Minister of Foreign Affairs, or your Chief Marshal ? Tell
me the truth."
I was thunder-struck — I could see that even the King
was laboring under the suspicion that I was a political
• emissary of Japan. Never did I feel more disgusted with
what they call politics and diplomacy than on that
occasion ; especially as I had always had a higher opinion
of Nepalese than of Tibetans. Absorbed in these
thoughts I kept silence for a while. The silence was
misunderstood, for the King said:
" So you cannot disclose your secret ? "
" Your Highness, there is no secret about me ! I will tell
your Highness all the truth there is : it was my own self
that sent me here."
The Minister laughed, and exclaimed :
"Good; but you must know that one cannot travel abroad
for six years, unless he is well provided with money ; and
then you have given to me, as well as to our Commander-in-
Chief, presents which must have cost you no small amount
of money. Altogether the amount of money involved
cannot be such as is likely to be found in the pocket of a
mere Buddhist priest with no worldly pdssessions. Then
you seem to be a man of scholarly attainments, besides
708 teliEB YEAiis m 'riBE*,
being well informed of the affairs of the world. You are
now before me, and there is no necessity for you to adhere
to your secret. If however, you must keep your secret, I
will grant you a special audience the day after to-morrow,
when you may see me alone and tell me all. Should you
still insist on being reserved, then, I may withdraw all my
promises to you ; nor will I grant you any protection."
''I have long since vowed my vow to our Lord Buddha,
and I tell no falsehood. If your Highness refuses to believe
me, I can only rest contented with the fact that I have
always adhered to the truth, and beyond that I shall have
no means, for the present at least, to prove the truth of
what I say. I can only hope that a day will come when
your Highness will be convinced of the truth of what 1
say."
" If you tell the truth," replied the Minister, " nobody
will suspect you. I shall grant you another interview at
half past ten on the morning of the day after to-morrow,
and I hope you will think well about telling the truth in
the meantime. I bid you good afternoon."
CHAPTER CI.
Third Audience.
It was on the 9th of February that I had had such an
unpleasant interview with the Nepalese Prime Minister,
and was told to wait on him again two days after. On the
way back to the Tower, deeply moved by what I had
heard, I saw the grand appearance of Gaurlshankara, the
highest peak in the world, now mottled by clouds, and
I gave vent to my feelings thus :
What gnawing torments do I suffer now 'i
Suspense, distrust and doubts o'erwhelm me.
These melt not or dissolve not from my heart
As yonder snows unmelted, hard to melt.
Those friends of mine, what fate attends them now ?
' Tis hard their painful destiny to guess ;
Incarcerated and in durance vile
In regions far beyond those snowpeak clouds ;
Communing with myself in dire suspense
I know not how to save them, in despair.
But again :
Should I such means adopt, perversely false.
Subversive of all Truth, dishonest, vile ?
To utter falsehoods base would choke my throat ;
But still to rescue them resolved am I
To seek for means, untainted by untruth ;
To truth, unvarnished, perfect, will I cling.
So on the 10th I spent much time in the company of my
host, who tried to persuade me into acting conventionally.
He himself believed, he said, that I was truly a Buddhist
priest and nothing more, but counselled that I might better
serve my purpose by acting on the King's suspicion
than by adhering to the truth. Had I not already had
occasion to have recourse to falsehood, when it suited
me, as for instance, in passing myself off for a Chinese
Lama ? Was not the most important thing in view the
710 ' THREE YEAES IN TIJ3ET.
rescuing of my Tibetan friends^ and did I not consider that
the prospect of enlisting the Nepalese King's assistance in
the matter was greater by passing myself for a Japanese
official than by trying to be strictly truthful ? That was
all sOj I replied ; but I dwelt on the points of difference
between Tibet and Nepal.
" Stratagems or temporary plans, " I said, " may be
used in war, or in circumstances like war, or among
rascals, in order to avoid difficulties for others as well as
for ourselves. Now the Nepalese are not like the Tibet-
ans, who do not allow a foreigner to enter into their
country. The civilisation of Nepal permits the people to
hear reason and truth. How could I insult the Grovernor
with falsehood ? If he will not believe me I shall be satis-
fied with my own truth, and I shall go to Peking and there
do my best for these Tibetan friends of mine."
My host finally acquiesced in the line of argument
I pursued, but nevertheless seemed quite concerned about
my future safety.
The 11th had come, and Buddha Vajra and I reported
ourselves at the palace at the appointed hour. In the
waiting-room I found a number of officers and officials as
before. A secretary came to me and took down carefully
in English what amounted to my curriculum vitie.
Presently, and quite suddenly too, another high official
who spoke English with great fluency wanted to know
from me if I had not drawn maps of Tibet and Nepal,
and if he could see them. I denied the charge. The
official insisting, however, on the correctness of his
suspicion, I told him that he was welcome to cherish his
own suspicion, as I for my part could rest contented on
the saying that detectives see thieves in most people. He
was saying that his suspicion was not his alone but was
shared by a large number of people, when we were
summoned to the royal presence.
THIED AUDIENCE. - 71 1
We were then shown into a fine room after going up four
flights of stairs. I saw the throne occupied by one whom
I had taken to be a junior member of the Cabinet at
Beelganji. The King de facto sat by the King dejure.
A few military officers and some Chamberlains remained
standing outside the room. I was told to sit before the
de facto King and I took my seat after Tibetan fashion,
sitting cross-legged on the floor. The de facto King opened
the conversation as follows :
" You are ready now to tell me your secret, I suppose ;
what is it you wish to tell me most V
"Ipossessno secret, Your Highness," I answered. " What
I most earnestly solicit is that Your Highness will be kind
enough to take the trouble of forwarding my petition to
the Dalai Lama of Tibet and also procuring for me the
Buddhist Scriptures in Samskrt."
The King appeared disappointed but not discomforted.
He next wanted to know the gist of my petition. I repli-
ed that I pointed out in it that I was in truth a Buddhist
priest of Japan, that my Tibetan friends and acquaintances
in trouble had associated with me without knowing my
nationality ; that I was the sole cause of all the trouble,
and that those Tibetans had committed no crime; that I
would come to Tibet in order to clear my friends and show
their innocence, if the Dalai Lama so willed ; that if my com-
ing into Tibet was not permissible, it was incumbent on His
Holiness to send to Japan a number of competent scholars
to ascertain the truth about me before he punished his
innocent subjects; that I was willing to find means to
bear the cost of the proceeding; and so on.
After attentively listening to my recital, the King, who
now seemed to have more or less banished his suspicion,
said :
"I see; I shall then want two copies of your petition,
one in Tibetan and the other in Nepalese; I will forward
712 THREE YEARS IN TIBET.
the one in Tibetan to His Holiness the Dalai Lama for
you, and shall keep for myself the Nepalese copy."
The order meant that I had not come to Nepal in vain,
and in secret I wept with joy, and I thanked His Highness
with all my heart. Being then asked if I had not really
disclosed my identity to any one before leaving Tibet, I
admitted that I had taken the ex-Minister of the Treasury
alone into my confidence.
I was not yet safely through my ordeal ; for the King
was very curious to know next how I had occupied my
time during the twenty days that had elapsed since my
arrival in Katmandu. He accepted my reply, which was to
the effect that I had spent my time chiefly in literary
efforts to take home in verse and prose descriptions of the
grandeur of the Himalayan scenery. I then submitted
to His Highness a list of the Scriptures in Samskrt that I
wished to procure. The King took the list from my hand
and gave instructions accordingly to one of his Chamberlains.
He said that I should have all that could be collected in
fifteen days.
On the way back to the Tower I again saw that highest
peak, G-aurishankara, but its splendor was now far greater
than it had been that other day. Moreover my desires
had been fulfilled by the grace of our Lord Buddha, and
I thanked Him with utas :
Till yesterday uncertain of their fate,
In doubts and painful anguish was I lost.
To-day means being found to rescue them
My doubts dissolve like snows upon the hills.
Of all expedients, honest Truth must be
The best ; no doubt, whatever be the fruit,
E'en if the object aimed at be not gained,
Biit honest Truth itself is th' object gained.
I find no place where Buddha not exists.
Non-space, non-Buddha-this my constant thought.
These brilliant snowy mountains in the sky
The Lord Supreme pervades — the Lord of all,
THIED AUDIENCE. 713
When I left Japan for Tibet, a friend of mine,
Mr. S. Shimamura, had sent in farewell a prophetic nta
which had been fulfilled, so 1 mention it hei-e with my
reply.
The path for you, you'll find as you proceed
Across the pathless mountain-passes drear ;
The Universal Leader, Buddha Great, your Guide
Shall be in all your rambles in Tibet,
Reply :
My heaped up sorrows and calamities
Now all are melted like th' eternal snows
With that unfailing Beacon-light, my Guide ;
The Universal Leader, Buddha Great, my Guide
Has been in all mv rambles in Tibet.
90
OHAPTEE CII.
Farewell to Nepal and its Good Kings.
I had asked my host Buddha Vajra to make a
translation of my petition to the Dalai Lama into Nepalese.
He had finished the tj;anslation, taken both copies to
the jialace and handed them to the King Chandra Sham-
shor. He had come home and was talking to me :
" Never before in my life," said he, " have I felt so
pleased as I did to-day ! "
" Pray, what happened ? "
" When I handed up the petition and its translation, the
King wanted to know who had composed your Tibetan
petition. I told His Highness that you were your own
author — which was nothing but truth — and he appeared
to be well pleased. I then said that His Highness might
judge the high merit of your composition by reading my
translation of it, which was but a poor effort. The King
took up my translation and began to read it. When he
had finished going over the concluding part, where you
said : ' The Dalai Lama of Tibet is the incarnation of the
God of Mercy and knoweth all. The fact that Ekai
Kawaguchi, a priest of Japan, was allowed personally to
wait on and be taught by Your Holiness who knoweth
all, proveth that our Lord Buddha willed that it should
be even so ; not only that, but the same fact proveth that
the Gods guarding the four points of Your Holiness'
palace all willed so. Twenty years have elapsed since
Your Holiness ' country adopted the policy of absolute
seckision, and no foreigner has been allowed to enter
it during that interval ; and the fact that I alone was suffer-
ed to visit it proveth that the Gods guarding the
frontiers of your country had permitted me to do so. Fur-
I'AKEWELL I'O Sepal and its oood kingw. 7 1 'J
thermore I discern something profoundly significant in the
combination of events which led Yoar Holiness that knowetli
all generously to overlook Ekai's entry *nto your land
and impart to him the graiid mysteries of your
religion. Your Holiness knoweth as well as I that the
only two countries in the world that maintain the Maha-
yana teaching of Buddhism are the Empire of Japan and
Tibet. There are others indeed^but they are insignificant and
ai'e in decadence now. The time is come when these two coun-
tries of Mahay ana Buddhism shall become acquainted
and open iiitercourse with ^ach other, and join in sending
forth to the world the light of true Buddhism. I think it
was the advent of this new epoch that paved the way for
my entrance into Tibet, and gave me an opportunity, njpst
difficult to obtain, of being initiated into the grand mys-
teries even by your Holiness.' The King was enraptured
with the f orfce and eloquence of your argument. "
I was well pleased that things were so, and I praised our
Lord Buddha, for by His protection and assistance my
purpose in coming to Nepal was accomplished.
I had to wait till about the 10th of March, in order to
secure the promised royal gift. I thought it unwise to
spend the interval in doing anything that would give an
appearance of my being engaged in secret observations ;
so openly obtaining permission, I made a trip to the famous
Nagar Zong peak, a place sacred to Buddhism.
On the 12th of March, a few days after my return from
the trip, 1 was once more and for the last time summoned
to the palace. I took with me then a red and a white
piece of crape, which had arrived in the meantime from
Japan, and presented them to the King, who accepted tbem
only after much protest. His Highness then caused the
Samskrt Texts to be brought in and gave them to me. He
at the same time signed to one of his English interpreters
and through him said in an authoritative tone of voice ;
716
'i'HKEE YEARS IN TIBET.
" Mr. Kawaguchi, these are rare volumes ; I have been
able to collect only forty-one parts of the ScrijDture. I
hope you wil^ accept them from me as a mark of my ap-
preciation of your presents to me."
I tendered to His Highness my most heartfelt thanks and
took leave of him after a most respectful farewell. The
volumes were forwarded for me to Buddha Vajra's
house, borne hy two men.
Everything was done to oblige me, even to passing all
my luggage — which had by that time become quite con-
siderable— through the customs-house in advance at Kat-
mandu instead of at Tispani or Chisapani, which is the
usual place where all outgoing freights are examined.
NAGARJUNA'S.CAVE OF MEDITATION IN NEPAL,
I'AEBWELL TO NEPAL ANB ItS GOOD KINGS. 717
On the 16th of March I left Katmandu, reached Raxaul
station m the night of the 21st, and on the following
night arrived at Calcutta, where I was met by my friend
Mr. Omiya, who scolded me for spending money recklessly.
I spent some days in Calcutta, doing a good deal of preach-
ing among my countrymen residing there. Thence 1
went to Bombay early in April, and there received a most
hearty welcome. There too I did some preaching and also
lecturing, on one occasion before an assembly of Japanese
gentlemen resident in the port and on another before the
members of the local branch of the Asiatic Society.
Contributions and gifts given me in money during my stay
there amounted to a considerable sum, and with that
money I purchased my passage home, besides paying back
the debts I owed to my friends in Calcutta. On the '24th
of April I embarked on the Bombay Maru and sailed for
home.
On May 19, 1902, the good ship passed Moji, and the
next day she came along side the Kobe pier, where from a
considerable distance I discerned the figures of my friends,
relatives and members of my former flock, with eyes that
grew dimmer and dimmer as the distance shortened.
CHAPTBB, cm.
All's well that ends well.
Something more than two years had elapsed since my
return to Japan, and in all that time the worry of my mind
had kept on increasing, instead of abating; in fact, every
day that passed seemed to add to the misery and to make
more vivid the picture of the dreadful fate of my friends
and benefactors in Tibet. The reader may well imagine,
therefore, with what kind of feeling I read the following-
letter (from which an extract only is given here) :
" Mr. Kawaguchi passed through Yatung (Tibet) on his
way to Darjeeling from Lhasa about June 1902. During
his brief stay at Yatung, he, to my personal knowledge, at-
tended or prescribed for the wife of the local Tibetan
official there, commonly known as Dhurkey Sirdar. Soon
after he had crossed the Jelap pass into Sikkim (British
protected territory) an order was sent from Lhasa
to the effect that he had been living at the Gompa of Sera,
Lhasa, for some fifteen months and had suddeidy disappear-
edj and was believed to be a foreigner. Therefore Dhurk-
ey Sirdar was instructed to compass his arrest. This in
itself would seem sufficient proof or corroboration of Kawa-
guchi's statements ; however, they need not rest on this
alone, for there is no Tibetan official or merchant whom I
have met who was not cognisant of Kawaguchi's lengthened
residence at Sera Grompa and his flight therefrom
" As I have already mentioned, 1 never yet met an offici-
al or merchant who did not know of Kawaguchi's length-
ened residence at Lhasa, but I have still to meet either
one or other who has ever heard of Landor of spiked-saddle
fame !
all's well that ends well. 719
" Please tell Kawaguchi that from enquiries I have as-
certained that his Teacher and the merchants who befriend-
ed him have been released. I am, however, instituting
fuller enquiries and will do all in my power for them and
let him know as soon as possible."
The letter is dated " c/o G-ratong P. 0., Tibet Frontier
Commission, Tuna, 17 March, 1904," and is from Captain
Randal Parr, British Tibet Frontier Commissioner, to whom
I previously had the pleasure of writing, through the
introduction of Miss B. R. Scidmore of Yokohama. It is
addressed to the lady just mentioned, who has kindly
placed at my disposal the contents thereof.
The present translation of my book on Tibet was near
its completion when I was allowed a perusal of the above,
and never before had I read any letter with so much
genuine and mingled feeling of the most profound joy and
gratitude as I felt on that occasion. A great tormenting
load was suddenly taken off my mind — it will not be necess-
ary to say why. I am glad further that I am able to
incorporate this piece of good tidings in, and make it the
concluding chapter of this translation of my book.
Peace to all Beings.
MOUNT GAURISHANKARA, THE HIGHEST PEAK IN THE WORLD.
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