Lhasa

Situated 3,683m above sea level has long been the political and spiritual capital of Tibet, the heart and soul of The Roof of the World, centuries - long abode of the Dalai Lamas and devout pilgrimage, is still a city of the greatest wonders on earth.

In the 7th century Lhasa rose to prominence as an important center of administration, when Songsten Gampo (618-649 AD), a local ruler in the Yarlung valley, continued the task initiated by his father of unifying Tibet in concert with local chieftains. Songsten Gampo moved his capital to Lhasa and built a palace on the site that is now occupied by the Potala. At this time the temples of Ramoche and the Jokhang were also established to house Buddha statues brought as the dowries of Songsten Gampo's Chinese and Nepalese wives. The rule of Yarlung kings from their new capital lasted some 250 years. In those days, according to the Chinese records from Dunhuang, Lhasa was a walled city with flat-roofed houses and refers to "the kings and his nobles" as living in "felt tents".

In the Sakya Monastery with Mongol support in the 13th century emerged a large-scale Tibetan regime and the capital of Tibet was moved subsequently to Nedong and later to Shigatse. In the 17th century the fifth Dalai Lama defeated the Shigatase Tsang kings and moved his capital to Lhasa, where on the site of ruins of the Songsten Gampo's 7th century palace, built his palace, The Potala.

Lhasa has remained Tibet's capital since 1642, and most of the city's historical sights date from this second stage of city development. Very little remains of Lhasa's 7th century origin. Photographs of the city prior to 1951 revel a small town nestled at the foot of the Potala and linked by an avenue to another cluster of residences in the area of Jokhang temple. The population of the city prior to Chinese takeover is thought to have been between 20,000 and 30,000.

Today Lhasa has a population of over 150,000 and it is likely, that the Chinese outnumber the Tibetans. Modern Lhasa in many ways provides the visitor with both - the best and the worst of contemporary Tibet. After all, despite the city's rich associations and colourful Tibetan population, it is here that Chinese control is at its most trigger-happy, and much of the city's charm has fallen prey to Chinese "modernization". The area in front of the Potala has been made into Tiananmen-style public square und Gumolingka Island, once a traditional picnic spot for Tibetans, has been renamed "Dream Island" and replaced by a Chinese-style shopping and karaoke complex. The Tibetan quarter is now an isolated enclave in the eastern end of town, comprising only around 4% of the total area of contemporary Lhasa.

The main attraction of Lhasa, and one of the architectural wonders of the world, is the Potala Palace, built in the 17th century by the fifth Dalai Lama as the center of the Tibetan government and the winter residence for the Dalai Lama. It stands at the site of older structures, dating back another thousand years. It perches on a lofty cliff of the Red Mountain, is 13-stories-high, with a 1,000 rooms, countless chapels and tombs of eight Dalai Lamas. The latter is currently transformed into a huge but sadly lifeless museum that constantly reminds visitors about the great history of powerful Tibet and the Dalai Lama who was forced to take his government elsewhere. For many people the first sight of the Potala Palace is a magical moment, that one will remember for long time.

Another important sight of Lhasa is the Jokhang temple, one of the holiest Tibetan shrines. It was build some 1,300 years ago in celebration of the marriage of the Tang princess Wen Cheng and King Songsten Gampo. It houses a golden statue of the Buddha Sakyiamuni and it's believed that Buddha himself made the statue. Unlike the Potala Palace, the Jokhang temple hums with activity, is bustling with worshippers and redolent with mystery. Together with Barkhor, the Lhasa pilgrimage circuit is overcrowded with worshipers. Based in a quadrangle of streets with old buildings and is a fascinating combination of deep religiosity and push-and-shove market economics, the Jokhang temple is an unrivalled Tibetan experience.

Not far away from Lhasa are also located three of the four Tibetan monasteries: Drepung, Sera and Ganden.

Drepung Monastery one of the biggest in the world was built in 1416 and traditionally had some 8,500 monks, although this has diminished to only 600. It was from here that the early Dalai Lamas exercised their control over central Tibet, until the fifth Dalai Lama built the Potala. The second, third and fourth Dalai Lamas are all entombed there. The word "Drepung" literally means a "rice heap", a reference to the huge numbers of white monastic buildings that once pilled up on the hillside. It has suffered through ages with assaults by the kings of Tsang and the Mongols, but it was left relatively unscathed by the Cultural Revolution.

Sera Monastery, around 4 km north of central Lhasa, was, along with the Drepung Monastery, one of Lhasa's two great Gelupa monasteries. Founded in 1419 by a disciple of Tsong Khapa it had once a huge monastic population of 5,000 monks, although this is now reduced to several hundred. This monastery is famous for the monks' debate, which is held every day at noon, at the monastery's debating courtyard.

Farther away, 45 km east of Lhasa and 4,500 m above sea level lies Ganden monastery, the first Gelugpa monastery, which has remained the main seat of the major Buddhist order ever since. Ganden means "joyous" in Tibetan the name for western "paradise" and is home to Maitreya (Tibetan:Jampa), the Future Buddha. Unfortunately, and ironically this monastery suffered most at the hands of the Red Guards, mostly because of its political influence.