Tashi Delek!
Kamzang Journeys travels often to Tibet, and I’d love to help bring Lhasa to life for fellow travelers with a bit of ‘insider’ information on Lhasa. Tour with your guide (make sure you have a Tibetan guide, not a Chinese guide), but do get away and wander the back streets by yourself, have a Tibetan Phrasebook in hand (I like Lonely Planet, but don’t get a kickback if you shop, sadly), drop into a Tibetan teahouse and point, look around, use sign language to order some of the delicious food that the Tibetan pilgrims are enjoying. Wander the Lhasa koras with thousands of other Tibetan pilgrims from around Tibet, dressed in their beautiful traditional clothes. Engage, don’t be shy or put off by the Chinese cameras that watch your every step. Shop at local Tibetan stores, and don’t by ‘dzi’ stones, carpets or other ‘Tibetan’ souvenirs from the Chinese shops. And read the history of Tibet before you come for an understanding of the situation in Tibet now. Peel away the layers, it’s a complicated story …
I’ve listed the icon sights of Lhasa, and below that a few recommendations to (I hope) enrich your time in Tibet. (Excuse the excerpts from Wikipedia)
We start all of our journeys though Tibet in Lhasa …
“Check in to our Tibetan-owned Yak Hotel, situated near the Jokhang Temple and Barkhor Square, where the character of the old city is still quite Tibetan. Welcome to Lhasa, the ‘City of the Gods’ (or ‘Sunlight City’ due to the 3000 hours of sunshine yearly)!
In the evening, have a walk to the Jokhang Temple and Barkhor Kora, do some koras with the Tibetan pilgrims from around Tibet as well as local Lhasa-pa in the intense late afternoon light, endlessly photogenic and always a very powerful experience. Another atmospheric time of day to walk the Barkhor Kora is before breakfast, with the chill still in the air and juniper incense from the burners wafting up into the clear, Tibetan air. There has been a lot of change in ‘old Lhasa’ in the past 20 years, including the removal of the Tibetan vendors that used to line the Barkhor Square Kora, security gates to enter the Jokhang Barkhor region, the installation of ‘modern’ (Chinese) old style street lamps, Chinese shops and pseudo-Tibetan shops run by Chinese, but this part of Lhasa still retains some of its old world, Central Asian charm. Afternoons are free to wander the endlessly fascinating bazaars of old Lhasa, walk koras around the Potala Palace with the myriad Tibetan pilgrims, or sit in front the Jokhang in the intense afternoon light, immersing yourself in the exoticism of Lhasa.”
Jokhang Temple + Barkhor Square Kora
The holiest gompa (temple) in Tibet, revered by Tibetans of all sects though officially Gelugpa, shelters the sacred Jowo Sakyamuni statue and was recently partially destroyed by a massive fire (2018), though rebuilt. Jokhang’s architectural style is a mixture of Indian vihara, Tibetan and Nepalese design. Shuffle among the pilgrims, butter lamps permeating the air, and find gruesome Gods in hidden annexes. There is always a procession of devout Tibetans through the complex. After walking the holy inner circle, complete a circuit (kora) of the Barkhor, the market surrounding the Jokhang, for good karma. It is the best market to shop for all things Tibetan, and just about anything else you ever wanted.
“The Jokhang was founded during the reign of King Songtsen Gampo. According to tradition, the temple was built for the king’s two brides: Princess Wencheng of the Chinese Tang dynasty and Princess Bhrikuti of Nepal. Both are said to have brought important Buddhist statues and images from China and Nepal to Tibet, which were housed here, as part of their dowries. The oldest part of the temple was built in 652. Over the next 900 years, the temple was enlarged several times with the last renovation done in 1610 by the Fifth Dalai Lama. Following the death of Gampo, the image in Ramcho Lake temple was moved to the Jokhang temple for security reasons. When King Tresang Detsen ruled from 755 to 797, the Buddha image of the Jokhang temple was hidden, as the king’s minister was hostile to the spread of Buddhism in Tibet. During the late ninth and early tenth centuries, the Jokhang and Ramoche temples were said to have been used as stables. In 1049 Atisha, a renowned teacher of Buddhism from Bengal taught in Jokhang.
Around the 14th century, the temple was associated with the Vajrasana in India. In the 18th century the Qianlong Emperor of the Qing dynasty, following the Gorkha-Tibetan war in 1792, did not allow the Nepalese to visit this temple and it became an exclusive place of worship for the Tibetans. During the Chinese development of Lhasa, the Barkhor Square in front of the temple was encroached. During the Cultural Revolution, Red Guards attacked the Jokhang temple in 1966 and for a decade there was no worship. Renovation of the Jokhang took place from 1972 to 1980. In 2000, the Jokhang became a UNESCO World Heritage Site as an extension of the Potala Palace (a World Heritage Site since 1994). Many Nepalese artists have worked on the temple’s design and construction.” – Wikipedia
Drepung, Nechung + Sera Monasteries
Sera is one of the best preserved monasteries in Tibet, renown for its lively debating sessions in the courtyard each afternoon. Within its whitewashed walls and golden roofs, several hundred monks live and study. Drepung was founded in the 14th century and was once the largest gompa in the world with a population of around 10,000 monks. These days the figure has been reduced to several hundred, but there is still much of interest to see here, as the structure escaped relatively unscathed during the Cultural Revolution. Just below Drepung is the tantric monastery of Nechung, referred to as ‘ the Demon Fortress of the Oracle King’. This interesting monastery was the seat of the State Oracle until the Dalai Lama fled Tibet in 1959. The oracle became possessed by the protector deity Pehar and acted as a mouthpiece for the deity, often not having knowledge of what he said. The position of oracle came from the older Bon tradition.
Potala Palace
The magnificent white, black, red and gold Potala Palace dominates the skyline of Lhasa. It was the winter quarters of the Dalai Lama, housing jewel-encrusted gold and silver stupas of previous Dalai Lamas, numerous grand state rooms and many important chapels. There has been a palace on this site since the 5th or 6th century, but the present palace was constructed in the 17th century.
“The residence of the Dalai Lama until the 14th Dalai Lama fled to India during the 1959 Tibetan uprising. It is now a museum and World Heritage Site. The palace is named after Mount Potalaka, the mythical abode of the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara. The 5th Dalai Lama started its construction in 1645 after one of his spiritual advisers, Konchog Chophel, pointed out that the site was ideal as a seat of government, situated as it is between Drepung and Sera monasteries and the old city of Lhasa. It may overlay the remains of an earlier fortress called the White or Red Palace on the site, built by Songtsen Gampo in 637. (The substantial structure has) copper poured into the foundations to help proof it against earthquakes. Thirteen storys of buildings, containing over 1000 rooms, 10,000 shrines and about 200,000 statues, soars 117m on top of Marpo Ri, the “Red Hill …). Tradition has it that the three main hills of Lhasa represent the “Three Protectors of Tibet”. Chokpori, just to the south of the Potala, is the soul-mountain of Vajrapani, Pongwari that of Manjusri, and Marpori, the hill on which the Potala stands, represents Avalokiteśvara.” – Wikipedia
Don’t miss the daily Tibetan dancing at the far side of the kora …
Ramoche Gompa
Just north of the Barkhor, at the end of the road to the right of Dunya Restaurant and the Yak Hotel on the left of the busy shopping road.
“Ramoche is considered the sister temple of the Jokhang, completed about the same time. Tradition says that it was built originally to house the much revered Jowo Rinpoche statue, carried to Lhasa via Lhagang in a wooden cart, brought to Tibet when Princess Wencheng came to Lhasa. Unlike the Jokhang, Ramoche was originally built in Chinese style. During Mangsong Mangtsen’s reign (7th c), because of a threat that the Tang Chinese might invade, Princess Wencheng is said to have had the statue of Jowo Rinpoche hidden in a secret chamber in the Jokhang. Princess Jincheng, sometime after 710, had it placed in the central chapel of the Jokhang. It was replaced at Ramoche by a statue of Jowo Mikyo Dorje, a small bronze statue of the Buddha when he was eight years old, crafted by Vishvakarman, and brought to Lhasa by the Nepalese queen, Bhrikuti. It is said to have been badly damaged by the Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution.
The temple was badly damaged during the Mongol invasions and there is no certainty that the statue that remained in 1959 was the original one. The original temple was destroyed by fire, and the present three-storied building was constructed in 1474. Soon after it became the Assembly Hall of the Gyuto Tratsang, or Upper Tantric College of Lhasa and was home to 500 monks. There was a close connection with Yerpa which provided summer quarters for the monks.” – Wikipedia
Norbulingka Summer Palace
Norbulingka is the summer palace of the Dalai Lama, set in a quiet and relaxing garden which used to house the Dalai Lama’s pets. One particularly interesting mural inside depicts the history of Tibet and all the Dalai Lamas.
Ani Tsarkhung (Canggu) Nunnery
This lovely nunnery is tucked away between the Muslim Great Mosque and vegetable corner of the old city, on the furthest kora around the the Barkor. The yellow ani gompa, with an open courtyard, houses about 100 nuns. The Ani Tsarkhung Nunnery (tshamkhang means place for spiritual retreat) was built in the 7th c by Songsten Gampo, who used its meditation chamber, a spot which is now a sacred spot behind the nunnery. Since the 12th c, the monastery has been used mainly by Buddhist nuns, who support themselves through alms and manufacturing items such as clothing and printed texts. Its main assembly hall contains a beautiful image of Chenrezi, the multi-armed bodhisattva of Compassion.
“As a public nunnery, Canggu Nunnery focuses on passing on and promoting ceremonies and rituals of believing Goddess of Mercy and Buddha Tara. All the nuns are chanting by sutra recitation hall at 8:00 every morning. Then a professional ceremony lasts until about 4 pm … In addition to its unique religious dedication, Canggu Nunnery is popular among local residents also because it manages to raise funds by itself … The nunnery (also) runs a clinic. It employs experienced medical professionals as doctors and some of its nuns who know some medical knowledge as assistants. For years the clinic served the local residents, and because of their kindness, patience and consideration for the people, they are much trusted by the locals. In addition, the nunnery runs a small shop selling petty commodities that are both trustworthy quality and price.
The nunnery also runs a tea house looking on the street, and a small tea garden hiding inside. Everyday, many travelers who come to Barkhor Street to pray, burn joss sticks and stroll around would take a rest under the big umbrellas at the tea house, and have a taste of “Qia A Mao”, a sweet tea made of milk, sugar and black tea, Tibetan noodles or steamed stuffed buns made by the nuns.” – China Highlights
Phabonkha Monastery
About 10 km out of Lhasa, this 1300 year old monastery is one of the Lhasa region’s first buildings, and was founded by Songsten Gampo in the 7thc. “Although originally the site of his castle or fort, the Tibetan Annals have revealed that Pabonka was converted into a monastery, possibly under the reign of the second great Buddhist king of Tibet Trisong Detsen. Trisong Detsen, along with Guru Rinpoche and the first seven monks of the new Tibetan Empire, used to meditate at the hermitage and it became one of Tibet’s very earliest Buddhist monasteries, possibly even pre-dating Jokhang. The original nine-storied monastery was partially destroyed by King Langdharma in 841 during his campaign to destroy monastic Buddhism. It was rebuilt in the 11th century as a two-storied structure that housed 200 monks.” – Wikipedia
Muru Sarpa (New) Gompa
This smaller monastery is related to Maru Nyimpa Gompa, and is locate across the street from Gyan Gyen Hotel, with a printing press. There is anothermonastery just past this one called Gyume Gompa
Along + Inside the Barkor Kora …
Jampa (Maitreya) Monastery
A small atmospheric gompa in the middle of the Barkhor kora, access from the eastern side of the kora. There is a protector deities shrine where barley beer and chang are offered to the protector deities. Pilgrims circle the large prayer wheel just in front, and you may hear pilgrims chanting inside the prayer wheel room. The gompa is a bright yellow building just in back of the prayer wheel, with Muru Ngingpa Gompa just behind.
Muru Nyingpa (Old) Gompa
Muru Nyingba Gompa was the Lhasa seat of the former State Oracle, who had his main residence at Nechung Monastery. It is said that Emperor Songtsen Gampo built the first building here, and it is where the great Tibetan scholar, Thonmi Sambhota completed his work developing the Tibetan alphabet in the first half of the 7th c. The present building, first constructed during the reign of King Ralpacan in the 9th century, is built like an Indian vihara around a courtyard, with the lhakang to the north and the monks quarters on the three other sides. The gompa was destroyed during the persecution of Buddhism under Langdarma in the 9th c, but rebuilt by Atisha (980-1054) and became Gelugpa under the Third Dalai Lama, Sonam Gyatso (1543–1589). It became the Lhasa residence of the Nechung Oracle in the 17th c, the oracle who was possessed by Pehar in his trances.
Barkhor + Old Lhasa Back Alleys Walk
From the alley just before Gyan Gyen Hotel, take a left towards the Jokhang Temple and pass House of Shambala, a boutique hotel with a great little downstairs bar and a craft shop, on the right. Continue past several shops selling baskets with leather trim, wooden butter containers, Buddhist statues and dyed textiles amongst the other mostly Chinese shops and teashops. If you head to the right, you will eventually reach Makye Ame restaurant on the Barkhor Kora. Take the left alley back out of the kora to reach Dropenling craft shop, and then the Muslim section of the old city, filled with vegetable and food vendors, homemade noodles, meat shops, and the Great Mosque of Tibet. Continue past the mosque, and take the alley to the left to reach the atmospheric Ani Tsarkhung (Canggu) Nunnery and the wonderful Tibetan Village Artisans craft shop.
Re-enter the Barkhor Kora and have a snack and a glass of sweet tea at the Guangming Kamqung Sweet Tea House, up a set of diagonal steps, just before making the last turn back to the Jokhang Temple. Spend the late afternoon watching the Tibetan pilgrims doing their devotional prostrations in front of Tibet’s most sacred temple.
Heading away from the Jokhang Temple, head back into the bustle of Tibetan pilgrims, pass the shops selling Buddhist goods, and visit the inner Jampa and Muru Temples, inside the kora just past the front of the Jokhang. As you leave the Barkhor kora heading back to the hotel, pass through the large covered market (meats, butter, vegetables and local goods), and continues past a street with several shops selling horse gear, including a Tibetan man with real antique tackle, blankets and woven bags.
Old Town Lhasa | Tibetan + Muslim Quarters
The small alleys in the old Tibetan Quarter of Lhasa are endlessly fascinating, with an incredible variety of delicious street food near the mosque, small gompas tucked away inside the alleyways yersa gumbu on sale in many shops, fruit and vegetable markets, local shops, some boutique hotels and local handicraft shops and great photography opportunities! Don’t miss having a bowl of laphing, the spicy bean noodles with soy sauce and green onions. Delicious!
Guangming Kamqung Sweet + Lark Tea Houses
Along the Barkor kora, enjoy a cup of sweet or salt-butter tea, a bowl of thukpa or steamed momos with local Lhasa-pa and Tibetan pilgrims. Guangming is reputedly the oldest teahouse in Lhasa, a coffee-shop atmosphere of passing the time playing dice, and catching up on the news. The Lark Tea House is our favorite, at the end of the kora, before turning the corner back to the Jokhang and up a set of steps, the teashop on the right.
Dropenling Handicraft Center
Authentic Tibetan handmade crafts, very good quality and designs, not inexpensive but worth what they charge.
https://www.asianart.com/articles/dropenling/index.htm
Tibetan Village Artisans
Great craft shop just past the Ani Gompa + Great Mosque, heading towards the Barkhor Kora.
Tibetan Handicraft Workshop Tour
A wonderful craft tour of old Lhasa, created by the Lhasa Village Handicraft Development Center (1-2 hrs), led by Shilok. (2 km) (shilokdolma@yahoo.com)
House of Shambala
A wonderful boutique hotel where you can watch local handicrafts being produced by the artisans, enjoy a drink at the bar or a good meal at the restaurant.
Tromsikhang Market
Dried fruits and nuts, local food specialties and other shopping in a big warehouse, just off the Barkor kora.
Lhasa Pilgrim Koras …
Barkhor Kora
A cultural as well as religious kora around the Jokhang Temple, busy with Tibetan pilgrims with mani wheels and prayer beads at all times of the day. The Barkhor Kora is especially atmospheric during the misty mornings with incense burning in the massive incense burners, and in the evenings as the sun sets. You’ll walk with prostrating Tibetan pilgrims, collecting small donations from other Tibetans, and should stop into Meru Nyingpa Gompa at the center of the circuit. Plenty of shopping, cafes and restaurants around this fascinating kora, and Tibetans are generally dressed in their traditional chubas, striped aprons, adorned with turquoise, coral, amber, dzi beads and wearing their men’s and women’s Stetson hats. Endlessly photogenic. (20 min)
Potala Kora
This longer pilgrim’s kora does a look of the Potala palace, and was once, like the Barkhor Kora, lined with vendors selling handicrafts, snacks + other goods. The kora is busiest in the mornings, when you’ll often see Tibetans doing their dance exercises to music! The kora is filled with the same Tibetan pilgrims and Lhasa-pa in their traditional clothes and jewelry, and passes under the small lake at the north of the Potala where thousands of Ruddy Shelduck and Bar-necked Geese spend the winter. Why wouldn’t they with thousands of compassionate Tibetans them feeding them … (45 min)
Lingkhor Kora
The longest of the pilgrim’s koras follows a route through Lhasa, starting from Jiangsu Lu and heading to Chagpo Ri (the Iron Mountain) and the Potala Palace. Again best in the mornings with the Tibetan pilgrims, to really experience the kora’s atmosphere. (2 ½ hrs)
Shopping in Lhasa …
Barkor Supermarket
The collection of stalls once around Barkor Square, no antiques but worth a visit for some basic crafts.
Bǎiyì + Times Square Supermarkets
All-purpose supermarkets, from fruit, vegetables and foot to outdoor gear. Both on the Potala side of Beijing North Road, walkable from our hotel.
Lhasa Restaurants (Kamzang Picks!)
Tibetan Family Kitchen
Dunya
Snowland Restaurant
Lhasa Kitchen
Old Lap Rang Tibetan Family Restaurant (last quarter of kora, inside courtyard)
Namaste Restaurant
House of Shambala
Tashi 1
LhaSa ChuFang
Outside of Lhasa …
Ganden Gompa (Monastery) | Lhasa Day Trip
Set off early for the scenic 36-kilometer drive to the Gelugpa Ganden Monastery, on of the ‘three great’ Gelugpa monasteries in Tibet. Ganden is situated atop Wangbur Mountain in Tagtse County. Its full name is Ganden (meaning joyful, the Tibetan name for Tusita, the heaven where the bodhisattva Maitreya is said to reside) and Namgyal Ling (victorious temple). On the way back from Ganden we might have time to visit Dragyelpa Cave.
Ganden was founded by Je Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelugpa tradition, in 1409. It’s history is interesting so I will quote from Wikipedia: ‘The Ganden Tripa or ‘throne-holder of Ganden’ is the head of the Gelukpa school. Tsongkhapa’s preserved body was entombed there in a silver and gold encrusted tomb by his disciples in 1419. Being the farthest from Lhasa of the three university monasteries, Ganden traditionally had a smaller population with some 6,000 monks in the early 20th century (although Waddell reports an estimate of about 3,300 in the 1890s and there were, apparently only 2,000 in 1959. At this time there are about 170 monks.
Ganden Monastery consisted of two principal original colleges, Jangtse and Shartse, meaning North Peak and East Peak respectively. The three main sights in the Ganden Monastery are the Serdung, which contains the tomb of Tsongkhapa, the Tsokchen Assembly Hall and the Ngam Cho Khang the chapel where Tsongkhapa traditionally taught. The monastery houses artifacts which belonged to Tsongkhapa. It contained more than two dozen major chapels with large Buddha statues. The largest chapel was capable of seating 3,500 monks. Tenzin Gyatso, the present Dalai Lama (born 1935), took his final degree examination in Ganden in 1958 and he claims to feel a particularly close connection with Tsongkhapa.
Ganden was completely destroyed during the rebellion of 1959. In 1966 it was severely shelled by Red Guard artillery and monks then had to dismantle the remains. Most of Tsongkhapa’s mummified body was burned but his skull and some ashes were saved from the fire by Bomi Rinpoche, the monk who had been forced to carry the body to the fire. Re-building has been continuing since the 1980s and the “red-painted lhakang in the centre is the reconstruction of Ganden’s sanctum sanctorum containing Tsongkapa’s reliquary chorten called the Tongwa Donden, ‘Meaningful to Behold.’ – Wikipedia
The kora of Ganden, around the small Wangbur Mountain, takes about 45 minutes and is a great way to come into contact with Tibetan pilgrims, attired in their pilgrimage best. You might be lucky to witness a sky burial on a nearby hillside, a tradition rarely found anymore in Tibet; be respectful and keep a distance if you are fortunate enough to chance upon a sky burial.
Samye Gompa (Monastery) | Lhasa Overnight Trip
Samye Gompa is the oldest Buddhist monastery in Tibet, constructed in the late 8th century under the patronage of the great King Trisong Detsen, who sought to revitalize Buddhism after its decline from the time of King Songsten Gampo in the 7th century. The renown Guru Rimpoche (Padmasambhava) of the Nyingmapa school of Tibetan Buddhist was influential in the gompa’s construction but it was later taken over by the Sakya and Gelugpa schools. These days Tibetans of all traditions come to worship here.
Samye Gompa is famous for its sacred mandala design. The central temple symbolizes the legendary Mount Meru, the center of the universe, the physical location of which is believed to be Mount Kailash in Western Tibet. Samye is said to be modeled on Odantapuri monastery in Bihar, India, and has a strong connection to Lo Gekar in Mustang. The story of Lo Gekar: Samye Gompa, the oldest gompa in Tibet, was repeatedly destroyed by demons when it was being built. The head lama dreamed that Guru Rimpoche could help with the construction and invited him to the site. The great Guru Rimpoche found demons to be the problem, and suggested that they first build Lo Gekar. Guru Rimpoche killed the demons at the spot that Lo Gekar was soon to be constructed. The long mani wall just south of Dhakmar is said to have arisen from the intestines of the demon, and the red cliffs above Dhakmar the blood of the demon. After Lo Gekar was completed, Samye in eastern Tibet was also successfully built.
Yarlung + Chongye Valleys | Include with Samye Gompa
Spend the day exploring the Yarlung Valley, the cradle of Tibetan civilization from where Tibet was unified in the 7th century, and Chongye, the ancient burial grounds of Tibet’s ancient kings and its first capital. Yumbulagang, Tibet’s oldest building (perhaps 2000 years old) is known for its massive tower, but also houses an ancient chapel and is set in a lovely valley across from Tibet’s first cultivated fields. Tranduk Gompa, another one of Tibet’s most ancient, is on the way out to both of these sites. Spend the night in Tsetang as the hotels are nicer in this town than the guest houses in Samye.
Lhasa + Central Tibetan Monasteries Photos
Lhasa + Central Tibet Photos
Great Lhasa Kathmandu Bicycle Journey, Lhasa to Kathmandu Photos (June 2018)
Tibet + Lhasa Cycling Photos
Most importantly, wander the back alleys of Lhasa, get lost, ask questions + make new Tibetan friends!
