Witness to a Tibetan Sky Burial

On the steps in front of Drigung Monastery, a dozen monks recite. Before them on the patio flagstones mendacity a body, wrapped in fair cloth, which was passed in on a stretcher an hour ago. The monks are praying for a strength that once organize here, but now is emancipated from its previous home. It is the third such visitor nowadays, for Drigung Gonpa has a profitable but shocking specialty: disposal of the numb.

Sky Burial

At the top of the ridge, on a platform of stones encircled by prayer flags, the tomden, o yogin-butcher, unwraps the body and slices it from head to toe, exposing the underlying flesh and bones. Drawn by the smoke from the juniper fire and the smell of fresh meat, huge vultures begin to gather on the surrounding rocks. His soul already transferred to celestial space, the dead man's body is used to benefit other living beings. The majestic vultures, thought by Tibetans to be manifestations of flesh-eating dakinis, glide down from the high ridges and surrounding rocks and dance restlessly around the tomden and the unveiled corpse. "Shey, shey," (Eat, eat"), shouts the tomden. The birds descend, enveloping the dead man's body in a frenzy of dark shifting wings.

'The dead man's body is used to benefit other living beings'

Like a bodhisattva shaman, the tomden goes back in among the vultures and begins to dismember the skeleton, throwing arm and leg bones to the ravenous birds. Then, with a stone mallet, he pulverises the remaining bones. Reciting mantras, he takes the skull and crushes it with a large rock. He mixes the brain and powdered bones with tsampa flour and again invites the birds to feast. Soon there is nothing left: only wisps of smoke from the juniper fire drifting across the barren stones. The birds fly heavily to the crest of the ridge to digest; then, slowly, they soar off into the heavens - black shapes fading against a pale, unending sky.

Tibetan Opera

The Tibetan people call their folk opera "Lhamo," worth "Sister Fairy." It employs singing and dancing to tell stories.

Tibetan opera dates back about 1,400 time. Compared with the few other folk operas of Chinese ethnic minorities, it has the longest memoirs. According to Tibetan historical records, King Songtsan Gambo intensely admired the costumes, tune and dancing of the Tang Dynasty introduced to Tibet by Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty when she married the Tibetan ruler. He arranged for the teaching of 16 lovely girls in an united art form of the Tang-method and Tibetan folk music and dancing to entertain the princess. Later, this entertainment urban into a more plainly distinct form of dancing, singing and facting.

In the eighth century, King Khrisong Detsan became a follower of Buddhism under the pressure of his mother, Princess Jincheng. He invited the Lotus-Born Monk from India to coverage Buddhism in Tibet and built the Samye Monastery. At the inauguration ceremony, a pantomimic dancing show based on the goddess worship ritual of the Bon creed (a native religioin of Tibet) and Tibetan folk dances was thespian.

Why Tibetans don’t accept coins

Most Tibetan houses are sheltered with iron pane, instead of tiles. Even some walls are also made of iron leaf, but most of them are temporary habitants. Most of all, iron pane is stingy and affordable in Tibet, and it is painless to get.

In the precedent, it is strenuous to transport building resources into Tibet because of the needy transportation. And tile –making is not realistic as the findings of the dry climate and technology insufficiency. So Tibetans could not form their houses like Han people – the deadline of the task will be delayed endlessly if it were to be built in the communal way as Han people. At the same time, the value will be low. So iron area came out as a best solution to these troubles.

At that time, iron pane is the most accessible building matter, and it advances the completion deadline, and the house is steady enough to resist the airstream. Besides, iron sheet can be recycled, so it could prevent money.

Why Tibetans don’t accept coins

Many Tibetans won’t accept coins and there are different opinions about this phenomenon, chiefly as follow:

A) Coins do not circulate in Tibet because there are no Tibetan patois on coins. As a subject of actuality, Tibetan language can be found on all paper money, even on the 10-cent comments in China, but not on coins. However, Others quarrel that this does not warehouse water, because not many Tibetans know the printed language.

B) Public transportation is not advanced in Tibet, so coins cannot be worn for its most accepted intent as a receipt replacement as in other cities in China.

C) Coins are not calm to clutch around. The large pinch of the Tibetan robe is too big to store small matter such as coins.

Traditional Tibetan Wedding Traditions

Weddings or other dealings Tibetan people will draw a point means or “万” Fabricate in front of the house also sling the Sutra banner on the roof.

In Tibetan areas, released love is generally in many juvenile men and women, their parents and relatives will not interfere in. As for courtship, or bare, or vague, fluctuate by different people from place to place. Some sing the lyric songs mutually; some chairs girls are robbed of the hat, rings, scarves and other items (if the girls do not want to be their lover, they can both precisely or ask somebody else to get them returned. Or, if trust in silence or maxim out a year, they are willing to make links too.) Once get promised by the lass, the boys can time in the girl’s department. With the visit appointments, the feelings of both extend, they may give presents to one another and show their parents that they want to get together, after their parents arranged, they will launch to fire betrothal gift, and converse the wedding schedule.

In some agricultural and pastoral areas, nuptials for childish men and women, it will universal be followed as "parents’ will and tally-maker’s introduction." When juvenile men take a swanky to the female, they tempt a game-maker taking the amethyst hada and any other stuff to the lady’s house. If the female’s family decided to the nuptials, the will cocktail the mauve and accept other presents, then the match-maker will come again to confer more niceties about the wedding such as the gift, dowry quantity varies, but generally not too much to dodge the neighbors contacts and relatives’ gossip; otherwise, the marriage chop through. Also it is prevalent in some areas that the men and women agreed in secret, receiving away from home, but it gradually cheap in latest existence.

The day before the wedding, the spruce will transmit the wedding escorts together with the match-maker convey violet, Hatta and other objects to the bride's home preparing the wedding. This night, the bride-to-be will be in the baptism and dress up. The next day, the bride-to-be will worship the family gods, ancestors and parents, bridesmaids will command along the bride, the bride in tears, accompanied with bridesmaids and then with friends, matchmaker and marriage escorts so that such allow together. Before the arrival, the bridegroom’ family will stop and set a wedding toast not far from the house.

When the bride came to the door, the comb will lay the new woolen carpet scattered with highland barley before the charger the bride outing, send hada or toast for the matchmaker, the wedding escorts.

Women will help the bride to get off the mare, bathe the bride’s face with milk, and play charcoal vinegar to virtuous the body with the omission of good opulence. After record the house, the parson will recite prayers, the bride and clean pray the heaven and the earth, the family god and parents. Then the bride and the prime will input their nuptial chamber. The guests will be seated in the dinner. Some will be sited in the sheep pen in the eastern agricultural matter; people are sited on the ground drinking milk tea, intake oiled fruit. In some areas, the guests will be served the noodles for ridiculing the guests, as it is the custom, the guests do not demur it. After dinner, thanks to the matchmaker, the mother-in-law will be untaken "jiu mao jiula" (hand-stitching filament negligee).

Finally the hoard and the guests slurp, sing, and dance, laughing and chatting gladly through day and night. From the next day, the spruce’s family will take the outing to feast the guests, presenting the gifts, which will last to three or four living.

The origin of Tibetan Buddhism and its development

Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist holy doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, counting northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India (Arunachal Pradesh, Ladakh and Sikkim). It is also skillful in Mongolia and parts of [[Russia](Kalmykia, Buryatia, and Tuva) and Northeast China. Tibetan Buddhism composes many definite schools, but is primarily divided into four central traditions: Nyingma, Kagyu, Gelug, and Sakya. All schools are said to compose the teachings of the three vehicles of Buddhism: the Foundational Vehicle, Mahayana, and Vajrayana, though some schools, the Gelug for example, ponder Vajrayana a part of Mahayana.

Formation of Tibetan Buddhism

Books on the memoirs of Tibetan Buddhism document the next legend of how Buddhism division to Tibet: On one particular day in the 5th century, Lhathothori Nyantzan, forefather of the Tubo Kingdom, was resting on the crest of Yungbolhakang. He suddenly found some Buddhist materials falling from the sky. While the Tubo King had no idea what they were for, a mysterious enunciate from the sky educated him that the 6th Tsampo (sovereign) of the Tubo Kingdom would know the use of the matter.

According to historical papers, these assets were brought to Tibet by Indians Buddhists. On because Tibetans had no idea of their significance, the Indian monks had no span but to private them in a reliable place and return to india. The verity vestiges that Buddhism did hang into Tibet during the reign of Tubo King Songtsan Gambo in the 7th century.

Songtsan Gambo did his best to prove affable ties with neighboring countries to strengthen fiscal and cultural exchanges and learn from the vanguard cultures of many races. In the course he married with Princess Khridzun of Nepal and Princess Wencheng of China's Tang Dynasty (618-907). Each princess journeyed to Tibet with a figurine of Buddha, and once there set about edifice the Jokhang and Ramoge monasteries in Lhasa. Artisans accompanying the princess were intricate in the construction of monasteries, and Buddhist monks in their tourages began translating Buddhist scriptures. Buddhism hence smeared to Tibet from Nepal and Han areas.

Cute Mountain Sickness(AMS)

Cute Mountain Sickness(AMS) is mutual at high altitudes, and depends on the elevation, the toll of rise and individual susceptibility. Most visitors to Tibet will endure from at slightest some symptoms that will commonly disappear through acclimatization in numerous hours to numerous being.
Symptoms cultivate to be shoddier at night and contain headache, vertigo, lassitude, shortfall of passion, nausea, breathlessness and irritability. Difficulty sleeping is another communal symptom, and many travelers have hitch sleeping for the first few years after incoming in Lhasa.
To thwart acute mountain disease:

What is Cordyceps?

Cordyceps is a type of ascomycete fungi that includes about 400 described species. All Cordyceps species are sponging, generally on insects and other arthropods (they are thus entomopathogenic fungi); a few are parasitic on other fungi. The best known species of the group is Cordyceps sinensis which gives knoll to the vegetable caterpillar, a precious ingredient in Chinese traditional medicines.
If a Cordyceps toadstool attacks a mass, the mycelium invades and eventually replaces the hoard bandanna, while the elongated fruiting body (stroma) may be cylindrical, cleft, or of thorny smooth. The stroma bears many small, thermos-shaped perithecia that inhibit the asci. These in rotate suppress the thread-like ascospores, which usually unravel into fragments and are presumably infective.
Some Cordyceps species are able to imitate the conduct of their insect host; Cordyceps unilateralis for demand causes ants to climb the works and clip there before they die, assuring maximal distribution of the spores from the fruiting body that sprouts out of the down insect's body.

Tibetan Medicine

Tibetan medicine, an important part of the Chinese checkup tradition, has been evolving for almost 3,000 living. During the third century BC, an ancient checkup approach had existed on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, composing theories on daily life, food and tipple, and fitness mind. Although a fulfilled health scheme had not yet twisted, minimal therapies were worn such as blood-hire, massage, using butter to interrupt bleeding, and using distillers' grains from upland barley to handle wounds. They had also hypothesized that "toxins and medicines co-live."
During the 7th century, Tibetan King Songtsan Gambo united the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau and established the Tubo Kingdom. He invited health experts and translators from neighboring states, together with health experts of Tibet, to compile checkup classics such as A Complete Collection of Medical Works, Fearless Weapons, Medicine and Diagnosis of Moon King, and Four Medical Classics. He encouraged Tibetan remedial researchers to incorporate Indian and Han Chinese checkup principles into their work. These pains promoted the development of traditional Tibetan medicine and laid a reliable foundation in the fields of physiology, diagnosis, and healing.

Discover-The top ten mystery of Tibet

Wild Man of Mystery

Tibet "savages" of the mystery has always been heated discussions, is the "mystery of the world's four major" one. Back in 1784, the Tibetan wild man of literature has documented. In recent years, there have been witnessed in the Himalayan mountain activities and a woman Savage marry local men snatched a matter of having children. Several expeditions have been thoroughly investigated in eastern Tibet, but Savage is still a mystery.

The mystery of the red snow

Himalayas above the snow surface, 5,000 m, often dotted with blood red spots, seen from afar as the Hong-Due. These red spots are algae from the snow suits, snow brook osculate and raw fiber composed of algae and other algae. In permanent ice and snow, the highlands of algae widely distributed, high resistance to cold, minus 36? C will not have died. As it contains color pigment, so red.

Mystery Wizard

Low mortality rate in Tibet reveal the mystery of cancer patients

International Institute for Cancer Research Tibetan medicine experts found lagging behind in modern medicine in Tibet, the survival time of patients with malignant tumors is generally higher than other countries and regions. Epidemiological statistics show that special: the chest, abdomen, and five-year survival rate of cancer patients are the highest, why not? This has become in recent years, oncologists at home and abroad pay close attention to the strange phenomenon.

The survey found that the traditional Tibetan medicine in the comprehensive treatment of tumors which play an important role, there are several reasons:

Tibetan medicine cancer treatment generally accepted

Tibetan medicine theory is the crystallization of medical practice for thousands of years, the essence of a scientific nature.

Tibetan sky burial

Burial, the deceased's body is to feed the eagle. After eating eagle into the sky, heaven Tibetans think that the deceased well. Funeral held in the celestial burial ground, around a fixed location. After death, the mortuary for several days, please select day’s monks chanting mourners. Funeral general early, there is first hand the body sent to the celestial burial incense Gong Sheen, eagle see fireworks and gathered around the celestial burial ground. Celestial burial clothes and then stripped the body, mutilated bodies at a certain program, meaty bones stripped. Broken bones, stone and mixed with roasted barley, meat cut into small pieces aside. Eagle with a whistle to the last call, press the bone, were fed meat and sequence, until swallowed up twice. Tibetan sky burial is ancient and unique customs, but also most of the burial method used by Tibetans. Burial experienced a form of historical change, according to Tibetan historical records, in the ancient "seven-cheep" when kings died a "grip-day rope ascending to heaven," "loss, such as rainbow, without a corpse." This understanding was related with the Tibetans, when Tibetans believe that their ancestors came from heaven and die from death. Tibetan sky burial known as the "vertical Jive Du wow" means "off (dead) to the burial site"; also known as "just more" meaning "to feed the eagle." In this paper, "just" is a specialized eating dead meat vultures, that the "Ha Kwai."

Traditional Tibetan medical books

Tibetan medical theory of the system, complete, and many medical books. One of the most famous buildings in the 8th century AD off the cloud Dan Gongbu book "Four Medical Classics. "

The book is divided into four parts, the content of subjects from basic theory to clinical practice, including human anatomy, embryonic development, etiology, pathology, treatment principles, clinical subjects, prescription drugs, diagnostics and treatment equipment, etc., is extremely rich.

 

Later, through generation of Tibetan physicians amendments, additions, particularly off the premises by the 11th century descendants of the 14 world, Xinyu off Dan Gongbu the comprehensive revision of the cloud, as the current popular version.

Traditional Tibetan medical theory

The Tree

Traditional Tibetan medical theory holds that the body exists in the "Long " (gas) (tree shown in blue), "Red Bus"(Fire) (red tree), "Bacon"(soil and water) (tree diagram Yellow), three major factors; diet subtle, meat, blood, fat, bone, bone marrow, refined seven material basis; stool, urine, sweat three excreta.

Three major factors that govern the material basis of seven and three changes in the operation of waste. "Long” Lord of gas and blood, physical activity, five senses, food, transportation and reproductive functions such as decomposition; "Tripe’s germinal energy, mediation color temperature, digestion and hunger control, courage, wisdom, etc.; "Bacon" transport liquid, Mediation too fat, in charge of taste, such as sleep and personality.

Tibetan traditional medicine, believing that people are sick because of the environment, climate, and daily needs of three major factors of imbalance and in vivo. The diagnostic method is also used Wang smell it, especially the emphasis on the first morning urine and fur changes. Fever and the disease are divided into two major categories of poor blood circulation, and patients were divided into "long “type, "Tripartite and "bacon” type.

Tibetan oral drug treatment and external treatment of two points. Oral medication taken to "cool the heat”,” cold temperature of the person” principle. External treatment with moxibustion, bloodletting, cupping, heat butter to stop bleeding, highland barley wine and other bad patching traumatic lesion. A variety of drugs commonly used drug is prepared by the medicine, a total of over 1,400 specialty part for the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.

Diagnosis

Tibetan medicine and traditional Chinese medicine diagnosis methods have many similarities, but also has its own characteristics. TM’s look, smell, and asked, cutting, Tibetan medicine have. However, more emphasis on Tibetan urinary clinic, required to collect the morning to get up to do after the first specimen of urine, the urine to be placed in the mixing bowl, and then observe the color of urine, foam, odor, floating debris, sediment and other substances applied after Changes, to determine the disease.

Treatment

Tibetan medicine is also used in various forms of treatment, in addition to medication, there are points bleeding, puncture of ascites, air deposition needle pulling cataract, catheterization, fumigation treatment, oil therapy. These methods are still clinical value.

The origin of Tibetan medicine

Tibetan medicine has a long history. Back in ancient times, the residents living in the Tibetan plateau in the same struggle against nature, gradually recognized the performance of some plants for the treatment of the experience; in the hunting process, and gradually learned the pharmacological effects of some animals.

 According to legend, the third century BC, there is a "toxic there is medicine" argument. According to "properly Yu Chuan Yun Deng Gongbu" records, the first popular form of medicine in Tibet called the "doctor", was no systematic theory, three main therapies that bloodletting, fire treatments, therapies to friction coating treatment. 

Also with butter to stop bleeding, with barley wine and so the original simple treatment of traumaticApproach.The fourth century, the famous physician Tanah Qi Bi and Bi Lazi Tibet chess Ga, dissemination of the "Pulse", "drug by", "Zhishangling by the" other five medical books, on the "Medical" development played a positive role.Since the sixth century, came from the Mainland, medicine and astronomy and the calendar;Seventh century, Princess Wen Cheng Tibet has led to "four hundred and four kinds of sick side, five diagnostic method, the six medical devices" and four medical treatises such as "Introduction Qinmo door" (ie "medical Filmography"), etc.