Cvbrarjo of Cheolojical ^emmarjp PRINCETON • NEW JERSEY PRESENTED BY Delavan L. Pierson L^785 .M57 f cy. 5»-“, . » * r\^^' I'^K ■ - . . va THE GREAT CLOSED LAND. (y^ . XtL ^y\v^,* S.CL'W -^VK P C,)7v. *vtA/^ y c t \ \ •■, C' t Q X Q i . ^ L W fk -P r' f ~_ Oi r*^ ✓ / < <- 1 ? t t } f p r THE GREAT CLOSED LAND. A PLEA FOR TIBET. BY ANNIE W. KiARSTON, AUTHOR OF “THE CHILDREN OF CHINA;” “ WANTED-CROWN ADVOCATES; “JOINED TO THE LORD;” ETC. WITH PREFACE BY REV. B. LA TROBE, Secretary of the Moravian Missionary Society. “ I will go before thee, and will open the two-leaved gates, and the gates shall not be shut, LONDON S. W. PARTRIDGE & CO. 8 & 9 PATERNOSTER ROW. Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2016 https://archive.org/details/greatclosedlandOOmars PREFACE. “ Give to Thy people open doors to preach the Gospel, And set them to Thy praise on earth/’ OW often as I pray this petition in the Litany appointed for use in the Moravian churches on Sunday mornings do I think of a land in the heart of darkest Asia — a lofty plateau, begirt with mighty mountains, forming a natural barrier which renders easy the exclusion of all foreigners in accordance with the rigid policy of its rulers — a vast, unevangelised country, over which the shadow of death still broods. I think, too, of its people ; a nation sitting in darkness, held captive by the hoary heathenism of Buddhism, which gives all power to its priests or lamas, which teaches salvation, not from sin, but from the evil of being or existing, by vain repetitions of meaningless prayers and mechanical devices for “ making religion,” and which presents “ Nirvana,” or nothingness, as the highest hope it can hold out to its adherents. There are, to-day, no land and no people which stand in sorer need of Christian effort and intercession than Tibet and the Tibetans. Here, then, is a timely plea on behalf of “ The Great Closed Land.” It is because I am a member of the Moravian Church that I have been vii Preface. viii honoured b}’ the request to write a Preface to this book, which makes frequent and generous mention of her Missionaries. For forty years they have been laying siege, in the name of Christ, to this ancient stronghold of Buddhism. But the Moravians are now by no means alone in the attack. A cordon of missionary posts is being drawn around Tibet. Already it extends westward from Kashmir along the northern frontier of India and Burmah, and reaches up to the north of China. True, it is thin and weak as yet, and there are long gaps in the ranks. Yet, if the missionaries be “ few and far between,” each occupies his post in the name and at the bidding of an omnipotent Prince and Saviour, with whom there is no restraint to save by many or by few. It is a far cry — more than 2000 miles — from the Moravian stations among the Tibetan Buddhists of Ladak to the places on the Chinese frontier whence agents of the China Inland Mission are seeking to touch and bless the Eastern Tibetans. A heart-stirring narrative of pioneer toils and trials will be found on pages 84 to 98, and Miss Annie Marston has scarcely given space enough to the noble work done by Mr. Cameron, and by her own sister and her brother-in-law. To Mr. and Mrs. Cecil Polhill-Turner it has been given in behalf of Christ, not only to believe on Him (and to speak of that saving faith to the Tibetans in their own language), but also to suffer for His sake. Between these extreme posts of the cordon, other Christian missionaries are to be found at points along the borders of Tibet. While serving among the natives of North India, the Agents of the London Missionary Society at Almora, and of the Church of Scotland at Darjiling, have endeavoured to reach the Tibetans by work among the border tribes. This book is published at a time when three new bands have joined these Preface. IX heralds at the gates of Tibet. Two have gone out from America ; the third, and most numerous, is known as the Tibetan Pioneer Mission. It is under the leadership of Miss Annie Taylor, whose devoted labours for Tibet, and adventurous journey to within a few days’ journey of Lh’asa, its capital, have greatly aroused the interest of English Christians for that country. These new allies are girding on their armour, by learning the difficult language, with the help of grammar, dictionary, and Tibetan Scriptures prepared by those who have had long experience of the work. That is the front rank, some forty men and women, sent out by half-a- dozen Societies. But they do not stand alone in the attack on this, humanly speaking, impregnable fortress of heathenism. The cordon around Tibet has a rear rank, and it consists of faithful men and women, on whose hearts God has laid, as a sacred burden, the sad destitution and urgent needs of a people absolutely without the Saving and Sanctifying Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. God only knows how many thus take part in the warfare, and by constant supplication uphold and strengthen the hands of their brethren and sisters in the front rank. Several missionary cycles of prayer, which form bases of agreement for numbers of God’s people, remind them of Tibet as an unevan- gelised region. From many stated gatherings for intercession the cry frequently ascends to God, that He will open a way for His Gospel into this Closed Land. There are Prayer Unions, in which its sore need of the Gospel is a regular subject of intercession and, at any rate, two distinctively on behalf of Tibet. One of these Tibet Prayer Unions was founded in 1890, and each member undertakes ; — (i.) To pray definitely and at stated times for the success and exten- sion of missions in Central Asia. B X Preface. (2.) To read regularly what is published about this field as material for supplication and thanksgiving. (3.) To plead for the opening of the door into Chinese Tibet, the great stronghold of Buddhism, and one of the few countries still closed to the Gospel. All this bears out what is said by one of the workers in the field : “ Certainly many eyes are looking towards the great Closed Land, and many hearts are making supplication for the Tibetans.” “ Many ; ” but how few in view of the vast and urgent needs of land and people ! We want more ; — far more workers and intercessors on behalf of a nation that has strayed far from God, and is to-day lost in the mazes of Buddhist Atheism. For the Tibetans also Christ has died. May the Holy Spirit put into the hearts of many more in Christendom a deep desire that they shall know of His atonement, and avail themselves of His Great Salvation ! Most heartily, therefore, do I bid God-speed to this book, whose purpose is to stir up effort and multiply intercessors on behalf of Tibet. Herewith I hand on to its readers, with special reference to this last “ Great Closed Land ” of earth, the petition which I quoted at the commencement of this Preface ; “ Give to Thy people open doors to preach the Gospel, And set them to Thy praise on earth.” Through 160 years of missionary endeavour, these desires have been addressed by the members of the Moravian Church to “ Him that hath the keys,” and He has answered them by opening many doors to His service in lands utterly destitute of that Gospel. Surely her long experience of His Preface. XI unfailing faithfulness, His unerring wisdom, and His firm purpose that all men should be saved and come to the knowledge of the Truth, may encourage others who share her desire, that the natives of Tibet shall, in His own due time, be a blessed people that know the joyful sound. B. LA TROBE. 7 Furnival’s Inn, London, E.C. AUTHOR^S NOTE. FEEL that some explanation is due from me of the fact that a greater space has been devoted in this book to the account of the four years’ work of my sister and her husband among the Tibetans, than to the forty years’ of patient persevering toil spent among them by the noble band of Moravian Missionaries. Three reasons may be given for this apparent inconsistency — the first, that owing to the presence of Mr. and Mrs. Polhill-Turner in England, I was able to get much more detailed information of their experi- ences than of those who are still working in their mountain enclosure ; the second, that no account of work among the Tibetans on the Chinese border has yet been published ; and the third, that I found in reading the journals, so many illustrations of facts mentioned concerning the Tibetans in the former pages of this book, that I did not feel justified in condensing them more than I have already done, from any feelings of personal delicacy. A fuller account of the work of the Moravian Mission in Tibet will be found in the publication of the Mission, “ Working and Waiting for Tibet,” published by Morgan & Scott. xiii CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. ATTEMPTS TO ENTER THE LAND. PAGE Chinese and Tibetan Exclusiveness — Explorers — Van de Putte — Warren Hastings’ Efforts— Bogle and Turner — -Manning — Prejevalski — Gill — Sarat Chandra Das — Rockhill — Bonvalot — Bower, 21 CHAPTER II. THE LAND. Its Mountain Enclosure — Its Altitude — Minerals — Area — Barrenness — Productions — Villages — Political Divisions — Physical Divisions — Climate — Animal Life — The Yak — Population, 26 CHAPTER III. ITS GOVERNMENT. Once Independent — Chinese Supremacy — The Council of Lamas — King of Tibet — Dalai Lama — Chiefs — Viceroys — Taxes, 32 CHAPTER IV. THE TIBETANS. Appearance — Dress — Food— Character — Manners — Houses — Tents, . XV 37 XVI Contents. CHAPTER V. THE TIBETANS — Continued. PAGE Occupation — Trade — Tea — Family Life — Marriage — Position of Women — Poly- andry — Polygamy — Literature — Education, . 45 CHAPTER VL PHILOSOPHICAL BUDDHISM. Buddhism at Home and Abroad — History of Buddhism — Its Moral Teaching — Transmigration — Intermediate State — Nirvana — Boddhisattwas — Tsong-Khapa — Gedun-Tubpa, 50 CHAPTER VII. POPULAR BUDDHISM. The Bon Religion — Buddhism in Tibet — Religiousness of Tibetans — Obos — Mani Walls — Om Mani Pad-me Hum — Prayer Mills and Wheels — Domestic Religion — Sickness and Death — Chod-tens — Religious Games — New Year, ■ • • 55 CHAPTER YHI. LAMAISM. Lh’asa — The Dalai Lama — Pan-chen Rinpoche — The Tarantha Lama — Sub- ordinate Lamas — Sects among Lamas — Power of Lamas — Lamasaries — Kum- bum — The Feast of Flowers — Decline of Buddhism, ...... 65 CHAPTER IX. HERALDS AT THE G.ATES. The IMoravians — London Missionary Society — Scandinavian Alliance Mission — Church of Scotland Mission — International Missionary Alliance — Aliss Annie Taylor — China Inland Mission, .......... 74 Contents. CHAPTER X. HELPS AND HINDRANCES. Chinese and Priestly Jealousy— Popular Indifference — Impossibility of Sustained Work — Loneliness of Workers — Arduous Journeys — Low Spiritual Life of First Converts— Little Popular Opposition — Veneration for Books — Equality of Sexes — Altered Attitude of People in Little Tibet, CHAPTER XL CONCLUSION, OR INTRODUCTION ? . APPENDIX, . xvii PAGE lOO 107 112 2.1 LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS. PAGE MAP OF TIBET, ........ Frontispiece. TIBET.A.N OF SUNG-PAN, . . . . . . . .21 PRINTED PRAYER SHEET (WHITE CHARACTER), . . . . .26 TIBETANS LOADING A YAK, ....... 29 PORTION OF WRITTEN PRAYER SHEET, WITH FIGURE OF BUDDH.-\, . . 32 A TIBETAN HOUSE, . . . . . . . -37 TIBETAN TENTS IN CAMP, ....... 43 TIBETAN WOMAN AND CHILD, ....... 45 INTERIOR OF A TIBETAN TENT, ...... 48 YELLOW HAT WORN BY LAMAS IN CHURCH CEREMONIES, . . . 50 MAGIC FORMULA CARVED ON STONE, . . . . . -55 COPPER AND SILVER PRAYER-WHEELS, ...... 58 CHOD-TEN, OR TOMB OF A SAINT, . . . . .61 HOLY WATER VASE, ........ 65 MON.ASTERY AT SO, . . . . . . . .69 PORTION OF WRITTEN PRAYER-SHEET, . . . . . . 7I ROPE BRIDGE ON THE ROAD TO SUNG-PAN, ..... 74 GEKOR AND BLACK LAMAS IN THE KUMBUM FAIR, . . .86 TIBETAN WITH PRAYER-WHEEL, . . .89 VIEW OF SUNG-P.VN, ....... 95 CHOD-TEN, OR TOMB OF A SAINT, . . . . . lOO CROSSING A RIVER BY A ROPE BRIDGE, ..... 102 NOOSE AND BAMBOOS FOR ROPE BRIDGE, . . . . .102 SILVER CHARM-BOX, . . . . . . . . I07 INTERIOR OF TIBET.AN PR.AYER-WHEEL, . . . . . .Ill X).\ A TIBETAN OF SUNG-PAN. CHAPTER I. ATTEMPTS TO ENTER THE LAND. “A man’s heart deviseth his way, but the Lord directeth his steps.” “ He shutteth and no man openeth.” OT only on account of its mighty natural ramparts of mountains, but also in view of the difficulties raised by man to prevent strangers from effecting an entrance, has Tibet vindicated its right to be known as “The Closed Land.” Very few Europeans have ever succeeded in penetrating it. Occasionally an adventurous huntsman or explorer has been able to travel for a short time within its border, and still more rarely has the Christian missionary gained access to its unevangelised villages and wander- ing tribes. But neither the huntsman, nor the explorer, nor the missionary has been allowed to stay, however many may have been the obstacles sur- mounted by him in seeking to obtain an entrance ; nor has he even been 21 22 The Great Closed Land. allowed to travel by the route he would have chosen for himself. Against all alike the policy of exclusion has been promptly and rigidly enforced. The instigators of this line of action have been the civil authorities of China on the one hand, and the ecclesiastical authorities of Tibet itself on the other, the former from political, the latter from religious motives, both from the fear of losing their own power over the country and its people. The Tibetans lay the blame on the Chinese ; the Chinese, in their turn refer it back to the Tibetans. Though there is the same feeling against the admission of all Europeans, it is specially strong in the case of the English. There is a saying among the Tibetans, how far inspired by the Chinese it is impossible to say, “ Wherever Englishmen come, they soon possess the country ; if once we let Englishmen into ours, we shall lose it.” The southern frontier is strongly fortified, and communication is forbidden with the states between India and Tibet.* The same strictness is observed on the Chinese side. Apart from their objection to foreigners, it may well be that their knowledge of the mineral wealth of the country is one reason of their dread lest the people of another nationality should discover it and covet it for themselves. Formerly, this exclusiveness was manifested only by the Chinese, the Tibetans themselves appearing rather pleased than otherwise to entertain strangers in their countrj’ ; but the jealousy of the lamas has been aroused by the various attempts of Christian missionaries to carry the light of the Gospel of Christ into the dense darkness of Tibetan Buddhism. It is known now in Tibet that there are missionaries on both the Indian and Chinese border, waiting for an opportunity of entering Tibet ; they are the only foreigners known to many of the Tibetans, and their presence causes the Lamas to fear for the supremacy in the future of their creed and of their office. Therefore it is no wonder that, with these apprehensions taken advantage of and wrought upon by the Chinese, they should do all in their power to keep the door fast closed against Christian teachers, and to send back at the earliest opportunity those who appear within their domain. The attempts of Missionaries to reach Tibet will be dwelt upon in a later * Since these pages were written, the following telegram, dated Calcutta, 5th Februarj’, 1894, has been published in the daily papers : — “ Sikkim-Tibet Convention has fixed the trade mart, where the Indian and Tibetan traders can meet, at Vatong, on the Tibetan side of the frontier. From 1st May British subjects will be free to reside at this place.” Attempts to Enter the Lmid. 23 chapter. We will only notice now some of the journeys made for purposes of exploration by different travellers of various nationalities. In the 1 8th century, Van de Putte, entering from India, travelled through Tibet to China, visiting Lh’asa on the way. He is the only European who has succeeded in accomplishing this feat — of traversing the country from India to China — though many have attempted it. Unfortunately, he desired in his will that all his papers should be burnt, as they were in an imperfect condition, and he feared that erroneous accounts of the country might be circulated in his name after his death. During the period of Warren Hastings’ rule in India, he had always a great desire to open up regular commercial relations between India and Tibet, and in this he was to a great extent successful. His first envoy, sent in 1774, was George Bogle,* who came to be on very intimate terms with the Pan-chen Rinpoche of Trashilunpo,-f- though he never got near Lh’asa, and in 1783 Captain Turner was sent on a second mission. Two years later, Warren Hastings was recalled from India, by which time there was a diplomatic agent of the British Indian Government resident at the Tibetan court.j After the departure of Warren Hastings from India, matters were allowed to drift back to their former condition, and the Chinese Government closed all the passes into Tibet from India. In spite of this, however. Manning, in 1811, succeeded in making his way, by India, not only into Tibet, but even to Lh’asa itself, and that not as a politician, but merely as an adventurer. He even contrived to secure an inter- view with the Dalai Lama, then “ a merry boy of seven years old,” who was greatly delighted with some bright new dollars which Manning gave him ; his gifts also included some tea, a silk scarf, and some lavender water, which last, however, never reached its final destination, as the servants broke the bottle before the presentation was made. Manning obtained a good deal of renown * “ Narratives of the Mission of George Bogle to Tibet, and of Thomas Manning to Lh’asa,” by C. N. Markham. Triibner. + See p. 67. J The state of feeling in England with regard to missionary effort at this time may be gathered from the words of Bogle to the Pan-chen Rinpoche, when questioned upon the subject : — “ I have heard of the priests who have been at Lh’asa ; they were not of my country ; they spoke another language ; their religion differed from nriine. The clergy of the Church of England remain at home, and do not travel into other countries. We allow every one to worship God in his own way, and esteem a good and pious man of whatever religion he is. ” 24 The Great Closed Land. among the Tibetans by acting as an amateur doctor, but before very long he heard reports that he was suspected of being a spy, and would certainly lose his life. He therefore judged it prudent to make his way out of the country as quickly as possible. He is the only Etiglishman who has ever visited Lh’asa, or seen the Dalai Lama. In 1871 Prejevalski, a Russian traveller, entered Tibet from Kan-su, but was sent back when within 500 miles of Lh’asa; he tried again in 1879, got to within 170 miles of the sacred city, but was again expelled.* * * § In 1877-78, Captain Gill travelled from Chentu, via Ta-chien-lu, Litang, Batang, and Ta-li-fu, to Bhamo. The lamas at Batang, fearing he might attempt an entrance into Tibet, succeeded in getting a large body of men despatched to guard the frontier, and prevented his further progress.-f- A few years later, a Bengali official of the Indian Government, Sarat Chandra Das, was sent to Tibet for the purpose of making explorations and investigations with regard to the condition of the country. He started from Darjiling, disguised as a Tibetan lama, lived for three months in the monastery of Trashilunpo, from which he went to the Sanding monastery, which is one of the wonders of Tibet, being a convent of males governed by a woman, who is said to be an incarnation of the goddess Dorge Pagmo, and is the only woman in Tibet who is allowed to ride in a sedan chair. From this monastery Chandra Das went to Lh’asa, where he was received without suspicion. He visited the cathedral where all deities and deified heroes of Tibetan Buddhism, over four hundred in number, are represented. There he saw thousands of people performing circuits round the effigies. He was invited to visit the Dalai Lama, a child of eight, who gave him his blessing, accepting in return a small ingot of pure gold. Chandra Das returned successfully from his journey of exploration, bringing with him much valuable information as to the country and its inhabitants.* In 1888, Rockhill, the Secretary of the U.S. Legation at Pekin, entered Tibet from Sining, and travelled westward through Koko-Nor and southward to Jyekundo, where he was compelled by the chief to hasten his return to China, which he accomplished by way of Range, Ta-chien-lu, and Ch’ung-king.§ * “Mongolia,” by Lieut. -Colonel N. Prejevalsky. Sampson Low. t “ The River of Golden Sand,” by Capt. William Gill, R.E. John Murray. “ Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society.” § “ The Land of the Lamas,” by William Woodville Rockhill. Longmans, Green & Co. Attempts to Enter the Land. 25 In 1892 Rockhill took a second journey into Tibet, passing through Koko-Nor and Tsaidam, over the Chumar River and the Koko-shili and Dungbure Mountains, southward as far as Namru, where again he turned to the east and went to Ta-chien-lu by way of Nagghuka, Chiamdo, Batang, and Litang. During this second journey, Rockhill was told by some Mongols whom he met returning from Lh’asa, that they had been searched and cross-questioned by officials and soldiers as to whether they had any foreign goods with them, as not only foreigners, but everything from their land, was now excluded from Tibet. In 1889, a French traveller, Bonvalot, accompanied by Prince Henry of Orleans, worked his way through to Tibet by following the track of a caravan which had returned from Lh’asa to Mongolia ; he got as far as Dam, beyond Namtso, which was nearer to Lh’asa than any European, approaching it from the north, had been able to get. But he was in a sorry condition. Two of his servants had died, his horses were dead, his camels dying, his party worn out ; and at Dam they were stopped by a deputation from Lh’asa, who refused to let them go farther in that direction, but gave them a guide to escort them to Batang, and provision for their journey there After much altercation and hesitation, Bonvalot was compelled at last to yield to them, and return dis- appointed to China.* In 1891 Captain Bower attempted to enter Tibet from Leh, armed with a Chinese passport, but he was not allowed to go to Lh’asa ; officials from that city met him on the way, who had orders to take no notice of his passport, but to send him back.-|- To these and other travellers, and to the different missionaries who have worked, or sought to work, among the Tibetans, we are indebted for all we know of the country and people. The information given in this book is derived entirely from the accounts given by them of their journeyings and sojournings in and around Tibet. * “ Across Tibet,” by Gabriel Bonvalot. Cassell & Co. t The Geographical Journal, May, 1893. C A PRINTED PRAYER-SHEET (WHITE CHARACTER). CHAPTER II. THE LAND. sendeth forth His ice like morsels ; who can stand before His cold?” “ I will make all My mountains a way.” GLANCE at the map is sufficient to show us how truly, from a geographical point of view, Tibet is a “ Closed Land.” On every side we see it bounded by long ranges of snowy mount- ains ; on the south by the Himalayas and the transverse ranges of Upper Yunnan ; on the east by the Yun-ling mountains of China and the western mountainous borderland of the Chinese provinces of Yunnan, Szch’uan, and Kansu ; on the north by the Kuen-lun mountains; and in the west, where it narrows to a breadth of only 150 miles, by the junction of the Karakorum mountains with the Himalayas. The space thus enclosed is the largest mass of rock in the world ; three times the size of France, having an area of nearly 700,000 square miles, almost as cold as Siberia, though Lh’asa is in the same latitude as Cairo, and the greater part of it higher than Mount Blanc, the altitude of its tablelands ranging from 10,000 to 17,600 feet, and that of its mountains from 20,000 to 28,250 feet above the level of the sea. The length, from east to west, is over 1600 miles ; the breadth, from north to south, varying from a maximum of 700 miles in the east to a minimum of 150 in the west. On this plateau and its continuations the great rivers of Hindustan, including the Ganges, the Indus, and the Brahmaputra, and even those of further India, take their rise, as well as the Yellow river and the Yang-tse-Kiang of China. 26 The Land. 27 The name Tibet is unknown in the country itself, having been given to it by the Turks and Persians; its true name is Bod or Bodyul — i.e., Bodland, the original name of the inhabitants being Bodpa. Tibet is rich in minerals. Gold is found in the river beds, and the rocks indicate its presence in great abundance below the surface. There are also great quantities of turquoi.se. Mining, however, is not allowed, owing to a superstition, carefully fostered by the lamas, that if nuggets of gold were removed from the earth, no more gold dust would be found in the gravel of the river beds, the nuggets being the roots or plants, and the gold dust the fruit or flowers. The greater part of the area of Tibet is taken up by bleak stretches of tableland, bare, stony, and unsheltered in winter, destitute of verdure, but in some districts covered in the summer months with grass or barley, the only growths of which the land is capable. In the northern and central parts there is hardly a tree, or even a shrub, to be seen, except occasionally in the neighbourhood of villages ; but in some of the southern districts there are extensive forests, especially of apricot trees, the small dried fruit of which forms the staple winter food of the inhabitants, and also a profitable article of commerce. Strangers are allowed to help themselves freely, on condition that they return the stones to the proprietor. The most valuable product of the tree is its oil, which is clear, white and fragrant, and highly illuminating. It is used for cooking as well as lighting, and children are rubbed with it daily as a substitute for washing ; when weaned, at the age of four or five, they are fed for some time with barley meal made into a paste with the oil. In the mountain regions both hills and valleys are frequently formed of bare gravel, in which case the only land capable of cultivation is an occasional fertile patch in the recesses of the mountains. The most fertile valleys produce wheat, barley, and peas ; the peas are only used for cattle. The main product of the country is Nas, or black barley, of which tsamba is made.* In the north much of the soil is of clay mixed with gravel, devoid of vegetation, except in the neighbourhood of lakes, rivers, or springs. In the elevated regions, with the approach of winter the grass becomes as hard as See p. 39. 28 The Great Closed Land. wire, and so parched with the bleak winds that it crackles like straw and falls to powder. The villages are usually built on rocky ledges, high above streams, where they will not encroach on any of the rare ground which is available for cultivation. In Ladak the villages sometimes extend continuously for several miles ; the summer crops in that district are very luxuriant. The country is divided into Great Tibet, Tibet Proper, and Little Tibet. Great Tibet is the eastern part, bordering on China, comprising the Province of Amdo, which is within the Kansu border but inhabited by Tibetans, and Kam. Tibet Proper occupies the centre, and consists of the two Provinces, U or Anterior Tibet and Tsang or Ulterior Tibet, Lh’asa being the capital of U, and Shigatze of Tsang. “ The Kingdom of Lh’asa ” consists of the city and the surrounding district. Little Tibet, to the west of Tibet proper, consists of Lahoul and Spiti, which belong to England, Zanskar, Ladak, and Rupchu, which are under the dominion of Kashmir. Tibet has also been divided into three longitudinal zones — a South Zone, containing the centres of the settled and agricultural population ; a Middle Zone, comprising the pasture lands of the nomads ; a North Zone, for the most part abandoned to wild animals, but also partly occupied by nomads. The eastern part of Tibet is subdivided into eighteen states, of which the most important are Derge, the Horba States, Litang, Batang, Chala, and Min Nya. Derge is the richest agricultural and manufacturing district in Eastern Tibet. The climate necessarily differs greatly in different parts, and in different seasons ; generally speaking, it may be said to be more or less Arctic, owing to the great height of the table-lands. Erost may be said to be permanent almost everywhere from October to April. In the mountains there are wonderful variations in the course of a few hours ; the temperature being sometimes between 120° and 130° in the day-time, and at night falling below freezing-point. In the Province of Koko-Nor, north-east of Tibet, snow falls almost throughout the year, and its lake of salt water, 230 miles in circum- ference, and 10,500 feet above the sea-level, is frozen through the winter. Down to 8000 feet all lakes and rivers freeze in winter ; at 1 5,000 the thermometer falls below freezing-point every night ; at 20,000 there is perpetual frost in the shade. The height of Leh, the capital of Ladak, and a station of the Moravian Mission, is 11,540 feet. In the Northern Zone the The La7id. 29 winter is bitterly cold ; in spring and summer there are heavy hail-storms. Only in the autumn, when it is clear and still and comparatively warm, is the desolation relieved by any sign of human life and activity ; then the caravans TIBETANS LOADING A YAK. of pilgrims cross the country on their way from Koko-Nor to Lh’asa, the sacred city of Buddhism. Some idea of the intense cold may be gathered from the experiences of 30 The Great Closed Land. the French missionaries, Hue and Gabet,* who tell us that every morning, before starting on their journey, they made two or three balls of tsamba with hot tea, and, after wrapping them in pieces of heated linen, deposited them in their breasts, under a lambskin jacket, a thick robe of sheepskin, a foxskin cloak, and a great woollen over-all, yet every evening when they stopped and proceeded to get their food, they found that the balls were frozen into ice, and could with difficulty be eaten. More than forty men in their caravan perished with cold. The uninhabited wastes, however, abound with animal life — antelopes, wild asses, bears, foxes and hares, roaming the desolate deserts, besides herds of the most renowned animal of Tibet, the Yak, which only really flourishes at a height of over 12,000 feet, and is never thoroughly tamed, its temper being so uncertain that, even after being domesticated for generations, it can only be controlled by means of a hook passed through its nose. In spite, however, of this disadvantage, the Yak is an invaluable possession to the Tibetans ; its milk is as rich as cream, and makes good butter ; its long hair yields fine wool, and its huge white bushy tail, are profitable articles of commerce ; it is a most sure-footed beast of burden, carrying loads of two hundredweight up the most dangerous paths and over lofty, precipitous mountains, and climbing ledges of rock where a goat or a wild sheep could hardly keep its footing. Its height is about that of an English shorthorn ; it has short legs, thick curved horns, wild eyes and a fine nose. In colour it is generally black or tawny, though its tail is often white. Huge herds roam in the wild state over the plains, and large caravans of them go annually from Koko-Xor to Lh’asa. The population of Tibet has been very variously estimated, and any attempt to determine it, can be at best but guess work. A great portion of the country is destitute of settled inhabitants, being occupied only by wild animals and wandering tribes. Sarat Chandra Das during his journeyings in Tibet passed over 240 miles of a plateau, without seeing so much as one solitary tent, but only an occasional shrine. He passed five men whom he supposed to be robbers, and one caravan passing from Mongolia to Lh’asa, but that was all ; the country was left in undisputed possession of wild animals. Recent writers have given the population as from four to six * See p. 74. The Land. 31 millions, but Rockhill, who is considered to be one of the best authorities considers that this figure is probably greatly in excess of the reality. The latest census, taken in 1737, gives it at 1,168,362, and there was a large nomadic population of 50,000 or so, not reckoned then. This would bring up the population of Tibet Proper to something like a million and a-half, at which figure Rockhill would still place it, as, owing to the prevalence of polyandry and the increase in the number of celibate lamas, there can have been little, if any, growth, while in many districts there is known to have been great decrease, notably owing to the great mortality from small-pox, and emigration to China. On this computation, the total population of Tibet, including Koko-Nor, which is inhabited by Mongolians and Tibetans in about equal proportions, besides a few Chinese, would be about three and a-half millions, of whom about two millions are to be found in the kingdom of Lh’asa. In Eastern Tibet, the most populous district is Derge, where the population is estimated at 42,000, including 10,000 lamas, and after Derge the Horba States. Apart from the nomadic tribes, a large portion of the inhabitants of Tibet live in tents, and are called Drupa. Their organisation is not tribal, but partakes of the character of that part of the country which they inhabit. The Drupa are strictly pastoral, having herds of yak and horses, and flocks of sheep and goats. The Tibetans on the Kansu border are divided into two classes, the agricultural and the nomadic, the first being called Tu-fan, the second Fan- tzu. The Tu-fan are of mixed origin ; the Fan-tzu are pure Tibetan and call themselves Bodpa ; the Mongols call them Tangutu, or Black Tibetans. ir ■ ti^farcu4Gc^i70q{ p ■ F . '' ' ‘ { Cliff Z- <' ^i^^nuwjj fmW - \ ■ av^f^u I nvp' v^-K^uil ,.A <_ PORTION OF WRITTEN PRAYER-SHEET. WITH FIGURE OF BUDDHA (BLACK CHARACTER). CHAPTER III. IT.S GOVERNMENT. “ God is the King of all the earth, He putteth down one and setteth up another.’’ IBET was at one time an independent kingdom, ruled by a succession of hereditary kings. In 1717, the ministers of the crown joined in a conspiracy to kill the king and take the government of the country into their own hands. They succeeded in their object, but one of the king’s officials escaped, and fled in the direction of Ladak. Having secured the interest and assistance of the neighbouring chiefs, he returned in 1720 with a powerful army, and having conquered his opponents, put himself under 32 Its Govev 7 une 7 it. 33 the protection of China, promising in return that he would hold his dominion as a dependency of the Chinese Emperor. At the same time two Chinese Ministers of State, called Ambans, were permanently established in Tibet, the one at Lh’asa the other at Shigatse. A later Emperor committed the nominal government of the countr\’ to the Dalai Lama, the head of the Buddhist religion, and therefore in a spiritual sense of the Emperors of China themselves, who profess that faith as well as others. In 1751, the actual government was put into the hands of a council of lamas, over which one lama presided, who was popularly known as “ King of Tibet,” and was chosen in turn from one of the three great monasteries of Drebung, Galdan, and Sera. To prevent any interruption in the succession, tzvo lamas were chosen, the one to be the actual viceroy of the Dalai Lama, the other to live with royal pomp in a cloister to await the death of the viceroy and to succeed him immediately. This custom is still observed. The “King of Tibet” and his council were only supposed to act for the Dalai Lama during his minority, but the Chinese Government find it convenient to arrange that the Dalai Lama shall never be anything else than a minor. Even in his head-quarters, however, the Dalai Lama and his spiritual regents have been compelled by the Chinese Government practically to abdicate all the secular authority, and theoretically to share it with the Chinese officials. The Court of Pekin also, as a matter of fact, though not of profession, elects the succession of Dalai Lamas, whose temporal and spiritual power at present greatly resembles that of the Pope of Rome. At the time of Rockhill’s first journey, he was told that the Dalai Lama was then thirteen years of age. The Dalai Lama has his palace at Lh’asa, which is also the residence of the principal Tibetan magistrates, and of several Chinese officials. The greater part of the country is governed by chiefs under the supremacy of China ; some states being directly subject to the Emperor, others indirectly, being primarily under other chiefs, who in their turn are ruled by China. Some of the chiefs in Eastern Tibet are independent both of China and Lh’asa, though the latter kingdom is constantly seeking to annex them. There are fourteen large lamasaries in Eastern Tibet, whose abbots are appointed by Lh’asa ; the largest of these monasteries are practically fortified camps. Others of the eastern states submit to the supremacy of China, and are 34 The Great Closed Land. invested by the Emperor ; while others again nominally recognise the supremacy of China in order to secure privileges for trade. The pastoral tribes are ruled by chiefs called Deba, with other officials under them. They have very little authority. In times of inter-tribal war they lead their men ; in peace they see that their pasture lands are not encroached upon, and they are held responsible for the taxes of their respective tribes. In the principality of Porno, near Sungp’an, the government is in the hands of a woman. In some of the northern provinces there are also female chieftains. In general, the chieftainship passes to the eldest surviving son, provided he is not a lama. In cases where there is no son, a brother or nephew is adopted. Under the chiefs are district magistrates, each of whom is responsible for from ten to fifteen village.s, the term of office being three years. There are many other subordinate officers. In the territory under British influence the natives are naturally better off ; but even there they are oppressed by the officials, who are seldom Europeans. In Ladak the chiefs and other rulers are Hindus and Brahminists, and try to force Brahminism on the Tibetans, with its attendant system of caste and veneration for cattle. Sometimes a Tibetan has had his hands and nose cut off for killing an ox. The Chinese Government does not allow women to go from China to Tibet, therefore all Chinese living in Tibet and wishing to marry must take Tibetan wives. Many Chinamen prefer the Tibetan women to the Chinese, and remain in Tibet out of devotion to their wives, as they cannot take them to China, fearing the ridicule which their large feet would provoke. There is no written code of laws in Tibet ; tradition is the only standard. The usual penalties are confiscation and fines. In the Horba states the fine for the murder of a man of the upper class is a hundred and twenty bricks of tea ; for one of the middle class it is reduced to eighty ; for a woman, to forty ; for a beggar or a “ wandering foreigner,” to three or four ; while, for a lama, it is two or three hundred. The Colonial Office at Pekin has the general superintendence of Tibetan affairs ; but the Chinese official who is directly responsible for the govern- ment of Tibet is the Viceroy of Szch’uan. The “ King of Tibet” is called in Chinese official documents, “ The Minister of Foreign Affairs,” to which title Its Government. 35 is sometimes added that of “The President of the Treasury.” Since 1793 the Ambans have taken an active part in the administration of Tibetan affairs, being themselves accountable to the Viceroy of Szch’uan, to whom they report their action, apply for instructions, and send copies of all de- spatches which they forward to Pekin. In dealings with foreign nations, the Dalai Lama can do nothing without the sanction of the Amban, nor can even the chief ecclesiastical appointments be made without consulting him. In north-east Tibet the Viceroy of Szch’uan is replaced by the Viceroy of Koko-Nor. The province of Amdo is governed by native officers under this Viceroy, who usually resides at Sining. Tribute is sent to Pekin twice a-year from Koko-Nor. West of Amdo, round about the Koko-Nor Lake, live other tribes called Panaka, who are more independent. They have two chiefs, one living north of the lake, the other south ; the one to the north is nominally under the Amban, the one to the south is independent. Up to 1697 the Prince of Koko-Nor was simply a vassal of the Dalai Lama, whom the Koko-Nor Tibetans still regard as their lawful ruler. Since 1720 taxes have been paid to China by Tibet, either in money or in the produce of the country, or in labour. The annual revenue of Tibet, exclusive of this payment, is ,£'35,560. The social and political position of the poorer classes is very low. Not only have the taxes demanded by the Chinese Government, which in them- selves are not large, to be paid, but the officials who collect them have to be supported by the people, and do not scruple to make large profits for them- selves. One result of this, in Little Tibet, is that the whole population of a village often leave their homes and remove to British territory, leaving their property behind. The travelling expenses of all Chinese officials, and even of ordinary travellers, in Tibet, have to be defrayed by the people, and, as they frequently travel with large cavalcades of merchandise, the Tibetans have to furnish all the animals and drivers required, as well as provisions and all other demands of all the parties. They are seldom allowed the option of doing this in kind, or even to give their personal services by way of contribution. Instead of this, all gifts and service are commuted for a money payment greatly in excess of their value, which is again increased by the collectors for their own benefit ; so that in the end the amount exacted is four or five times that of the actual outlay of the travellers. This tax, which is called Ula, is exacted in all parts of the country through which, or near to 36 The Great Closed Land. which, a road passes, irrespective of whether travellers have used it or not. One reason why European travellers have found it so difficult to get their wants supplied, when travelling in Tibet, is that the people take for granted they will act in the same way as the Chinese, and take all for nothing. In one village in Eastern Tibet, when the inhabitants resisted the excessive taxation, the governor had instructions to put them all to death. One after another they were thrown on the ground and beaten with two thousand blows. Three died, others were seriously injured, the rest fled for a time. Occurrences of this kind are said to be common in Tibet Proper. The supremacy of China over Tibet is one of tacit consent, rather than of actual conquest, as it has never been formally conceded ; and, though the Tibetans are naturally a peaceable people, the arrogance and oppression of the Chinese officials is, in the opinion of many, calculated to exasperate them. The Chinese always endeavour to compass the death of the Dalai Lama before he attains to manhood, knowing that an able sovereign, regarded with abject devotion, not only by the inhabitants of Tibet, but by the whole surrounding population of Buddhists, might easily shake off the yoke of China. A TIBETAN HOUSE (PRAYER FLAGS ON ROOF). CHAPTER IV. THE TIBETANS. “ He made of one every nation of men for to dwell on all the face of the earth, having determined their appointed seasons, and the bounds of their habitation.” HE people of Tibet belong to the Mongolian family ; they are as a rule more civilised than the Mongols, but less so than the Chinese. In figure they are generally short, a man being seldom more than five feet four inches in height, a woman rarely more than five feet ; in the North-east there are more exceptions to this rule than in other parts. They are long-lived, strong, vigorous, lithe, and active, even the women being able to carry burdens of sixty pounds over the mountain passes. They have round faces, prominent cheek bones, flat noses, wide mouths, thin lips and black eyes, larger and less slanting than is 37 38 The Great Closed Land. usual with their race. Their skin is of a brownish yellow tint, at least so it appears to be, but, as the children are never washed, and adults only once a year, and in some places not at all, it is not easy to say what their natural complexion really is. Hue says the skin of the upper class of Tibetans is as white as that of Europeans. Boyle tells how a lama used to bring him every morning his meal of rice and tea, and that he came one day when he was shaving, and Mr. Boyle took the opportunity of trying to persuade the lama to scrub his face with soap and water. In this he was successful, and the lama was greatly pleased with his subsequent appearance in the looking-glass, but on emerging once more into public life, he was so ridiculed by his companions and neighbours on account of his remarkable appearance, that he never had courage to repeat the experiment.. If a Tibetan wishes to express pleasure, he shoots out his tongue ; for a salutation, he holds out both hands horizontally with the palms turned upward, and stoops a little, with the words, “ Aka demo” — How do you do ? In central Tibet the mode of salutation is to stick out the tongue, pull the right ear, and rub the left hip, making a slight bow at the same time. Throughout Tibet, in order to express the opinion that a thing is very good, it is usual to hold up the thumb, and keep the fingers closed ; to indicate that a thing is second best, the first finger is held up, and so on to the little finger, which means that a thing is as bad as it can be. The Tibetan dress is generally dark, except on the Kashmir border, where the men dress in white, the women in black. There is little difference in style between the dress of men and women, who are distinguished chiefly by the manner of dressing the hair, which varies in different districts, the men usually wearing pigtails, the women letting theirs hang loose, or in an immense number of plaits, which are re-arranged about once a month. The very poor wear only a sheepskin, the woolly side next to the body ; when the weather gets too warm for this to be comfortable, they change to a summer costume by pulling out the arms, and letting the garment hang by a girdle round the waist. Often this is the only garment possessed. Those who can afford a second, have it of woollen cloth for warmer weather, of a natural colour, yellowish white, and those who are better off still, have another of dark blue cotton. In winter, a short cloak of sheepskin is often worn over the other garments. The upper classes and the lamas wear pulu, which varies in texture from a material resembling rough flannel to a kind of merino, trimmed The Tibetans. 39 with fur in cold weather, the men wearing chiefly red or dark green, the women green, with spots of a different colour. Both sexes wear trousers and long mantles, with a girdle round the waist. In the Horba states the men wear gowns of violet pulu, and often loose trousers of the same falling over their boots, and long pigtails, mostly of silk, which they twist round the head, seldom letting them hang down. The Horba women also wear gowns of pulu, woven in stripes of different colours, and ornaments of gold and silver. Married women wear on the front of the head a large embossed plate of gold or silver, in which is set a coral bead ; women married to Chinamen wear this plate on the back of the head. In other parts of the country necklaces of amber and silver are worn, and large earrings to the number of five or six are fastened in the upper part of the ear. In the country round Lh’asa, the women smear their faces with thick black paste ; they say this is done to protect the skin from the dry wind, which would chap them and make them rough. The lamas, however, say that a great saint. Demo Rinpoche, instituted this custom, ordering the women to observe it whenever they appeared in public, because of the disorders which the sight of their natural beauty wrought among the monks. The Tibetans show the same disregard of cleanliness in their apparel as in their persons, the poorer classes not thinking it necessary to change their garments till they drop off, the cleansing of them being an event of very rare occurrence. The most common articles of diet in Tibet are tsamba and brick tea. Tsamba is baked barley flour made into a paste, with tea and butter; brick tea consists of fresh leaves of tea pressed into a solid cake ; a piece of this is broken off and boiled with salt and butter, or even with mutton fat, till the compound resembles broth rather than tea. In many homes there are no regular meals, each one eating when he is hungry. In such cases the pot of tea is kept boiling all day, and when food is wanted, tea is ladled out of the pot into either a churn or an earthenware jug, and the butter and salt are added to it. If a churn is used, it is worked in the same manner as for making butter ; if a jug, a small piece of wood is twirled about in it till the mixture is of the proper consistency. Mrs. Bishop, who travelled on the western border of Tibet, gives the following receipt for making buttered tea, sufficient for six persons : — “ Boil a teacupful of tea in three pints of water for ten minutes, with a dessert-spoonful 40 The Great Closed Land. of soda ; put this in the churn with i lb. of butter and a small table-spoonful of salt ; churn it until it is as thick as cream.” A still more ordinary way of taking tea and tsamba is to drink first as much buttered tea as is desired, in the case of guests the host constantly refilling the cups without waiting till they are emptied, and when the thirst is satisfied, putting meal into the cup with the remains of the buttered tea, and stirring it with the finger — for no artificial aids to eating are used by the Tibetans — till it is thick enough for the taste of the eater, and then continuing to add tea or meal as required, till the appetite is satisfied. Tsamba is made of all degrees of consistency, from a stiff paste, which can be eaten like cake, to a mixture almost thin enough to drink. An invariable accompaniment of every Tibetan is his pu-ku, or wooden cup for tea or tsamba, which he carries in the bosom of his garment, to be always available when required. When he has finished his meal, he licks out his cup and replaces it, and dries his greasy hands on his face or boots. When mutton is eaten, it is boiled in the tea-kettle, each one picking out a piece and eating it. Both Tibetans and Mongols are careful to remove all the meat from bones ; they have a saying, that you can tell how a man will manage a business transaction by seeing how he picks a bone. Butter is always used rancid ; its value is supposed to increase with its age ; skins of it are kept for forty, fifty, and sixty years, and are only opened at family festivals, funerals, or for visitors to whom it is wished to render special honour. In some parts of the country flour is made into dough, and baked with oil. Bread is also made into rolls with butter. Other articles of food are rice, boiled mutton, and yak’s flesh, broth, sweetmeats, and fruit from Kashmir and China. Very little beef is eaten in Tibet, as it is considered wasteful to kill cattle for the sake of eating them. All Tibetans drink to excess when possible. Every tribe has some kind of intoxicant : the favourite is chang, a dirty-looking beer, made of barley. The Tibetans are practically free from the habit of opium-smoking, but are greatly given to the use of tobacco and snuff, the snuff-box being almost as inseparable a companion as the pu-ku. The lamas take great quantities of snuff, but do not smoke. In character, the Tibetans compare very favourably with most heathen nations. They are truthful, good-natured, cheerful, friendly, industrious, The Tibetans. 41 honest, enduring, seldom angry, and soon ready to make up quarrels. On more than one occasion, Nomads, who were not Christians, have borrowed money from the Moravian missionaries in Ladak, with which to pay their tribute, and have returned to repay it with much gratitude, before the time had expired for which it was lent. Their great national failings are immorality, avarice, and want of cleanli- ness and perseverance. Naturally they are not suspicious, and, except among the Mohammedans, do not show any hostility to missionaries or other foreigners, unless they are Incited to it by the lamas or by foreign influence, when they are cruel and treacherous. Bogle says that during his visit to Tibet they always gave him the best of everything — the best room, the best food, the best attendance. On one occasion he offered some coral beads to some of the female relatives of the Pan-ch’en Rinpoche, but had great difficulty in persuading them to accept them. They said: “You have come from a far country ; it is our business to make your stay agreeable ; why should you make us presents ? ” Though in the higher ranks of the people there is great politeness, they never mix flattery with their conversation. They are very superstitious. When small-pox is prevalent, the people in the villages in which it has not yet broken out try to stay its progress by putting thorns on the bridges and at the boundaries to terrify the evil spirits who are supposed to carry it. Those who die of the disease are thrown into the rivers ; isolated cases are taken to the top of the nearest mountain and left there to die or recover as the case may be. If any one, after leaving his home, meets another carrying an empty pail or bowl, he will turn back again, considering it a bad sign ; if, on the other hand, he meets one who has his bowl or bucket full, he interprets it as a good omen, and will often give the bearer a present. When offering a gift of a vase, bowl, pitcher, or any such utensil, it is customary always to put something in it, and “ unlucky ” to give it empty. A prominent feature in Tibetan etiquette is the presentation of scarfs, small pieces of silk, nearly as thin as gauze, of a pale blue colour, the length about three times the breadth, the two ends generally frayed out. They are of all sizes and all prices ; no one travels about without providing himself with a supply of them. When paying a visit, either to a god or a man, or when asking or acknowledging a favour, every one begins by taking a “ Khata” and offering it. If two friends meet after a long absence, their first D 42 The Great Closed Land. action is to exchange khatas, which is as much a matter of course as shaking hands in Europe. If they are writing, they enclose a khata in the letter ; the most gracious bow or the grandest present counts for nothing if unaccom- panied by a khata. The houses differ in different districts. Some are built of brick without mortar, others of stone, whitewashed or painted, sometimes interspersed with large beams, and with a small court-yard. Usually they are two-storeyed with flat slate roofs, though in some villages the roofs are made of branches resting on narrow beams, and covered with earth well stamped down. The stairs are sometimes of stone, sometimes only rough ladders, and may be either outside or inside the house. The ground floor is used for cattle or sheep, the people living upstairs. There are few attempts at chimneys or windows, the smoke generally escaping, and the light, rain, and snow entering through a hole in the roof, which is sometimes closed with a stone in time of rain ; when this is not done, a kind of well is dug in the floor, below the hole in the roof, to carry off the rain or snow. The rooms are just high enough for a man to stand in them. The furniture generally consists of a few portable cooking stoves of stone or clay, these latter being literally basins to be filled with fuel, and one or two chests, which may also be used for seats. On the Kashmir side the houses are made of mud, with flat roofs ; the roofs, however, are often dispensed with in summer, as the branches which support the mud are gradually consumed during the winter for fuel, the little firewood which is available being sold at a very high price ; the ordinary fuel used throughout Tibet is the dung of horses, oxen, sheep, and other animals. A narrow, steep mud staircase leads to the family rooms, but in winter these are usually deserted, the family sharing the ground floor with the animals for the sake of warmth, while in the hottest weather they build booths of poplar branches on the roof, or pitch a tent adjoining the house, if they do not migrate altogether from the villages and live among the hills for the summer months. In Lh’asa the houses are built of stone, or brick, or mud, but all covered with lime-wash ; they are several storeys high, terminating in a terrace, which is slightly sloped, in order to carry off the water. The white-wash is relieved by borders of red or yellow round the windows and doors. The painting and white-washing are renewed every New Year, which gives them an outward appearance of freshness and cleanliness ; inside, however, as everywhere in The Tibetans. 43 Tibet, the houses are dirty, smoky, and untidy. In one suburb of Lh’asa they are built of the horns of sheep and oxen, the former being black, the latter white ; these are the only houses which are not white-washed. The greater part of the population of Tibet do not, however, live in houses, but in tents. These are rectangular and flat-roofed, the length varying from TIBETAN CAMP NEAR THE BAGA-.NOR. ten to fifty feet. In the centre of the top of the tent, the cloth is lifted up to allow for the exit of smoke and the entrance of light. Under this is a ridge- pole, supported at each end by a vertical post ; these three are the only posts used inside. The roof is stretched by cords fastened outside to the sides and corners of the tent, which passing over short poles some distance from the tent, are pegged to the ground, giving to the whole, as seen from the outside. 44 The Great Closed Land. very much the appearance of a huge spider.* The lower edge of the tent is held down by iron or wooden pins. Sometimes, in order to preserve the inmates from the wind and snow, a low wall of mud or stones or dry dung is built round the tent outside, or even inside, if the dimensions will allow of it ; a shallow trench is also frequently dug round the tent to serve as a drain. In the centre of the tent is a long narrow stove of mud and stones, with a fire- place at one end and a flue passing along the whole stove, so that several pots can be kept boiling at one time. Round the sides of the tent are hung bags of skin for food, saddles, etc. The remaining furniture consists of a small stone mortar for pounding brick tea, a hand-mill for grinding grain, a few copper kettles, and a brass ladle. The family sleep on beds of felt laid on the ground, and either wear the same clothes as in the day-time, or sleep naked and use the clothes as a covering. In spring-time the new-born lambs and kids are hobbled to long ropes on one side of the tent. Hanging from one tent-rope to another is almost invariably seen waving in the wind a festoon of small pieces of cotton, called lung-ta or wind horses ; these are stamped with images of the gods, prayers, incantations, or mystic sentences ; they are made and sold by the lamas, and are in constant use throughout Tibet and Mongolia. * Hue. CHAPTER V. THE TIBETANS — continued. “Who made thee to differ?'’ “What shall I render to the Lord for all His benefits toward me?” “ 1 will take ... I will pay.” r HE chief wealth of the Tibetans is in flocks and herds ; their main occupations are the raising of cattle, and especially of sheep and goats, and, in the more fertile districts, the cultivation of barley, wheat, rape, buckwheat, and peas. Nearly all Tibetans are farmers, but betake themselves to trade in August and September, when they gather together at fairs in the large villages and towns, the chief articles of barter being wood, rice, corn, spices, sugar, salt, goats’ and yaks’ hair, borax, etc., each trader giving what he has in exchange for what he wants : nearly all the money in the country is in the hands of the lamas. The Tibetans do not ordinarily conduct their bargaining by conversation, but by means of a sign language, practised with the fingers. The Eastern Tibetans are good potters, using the Chinese potter’s wheel ; they make two kinds of ware, one a light glossy black, the other a heavier red earthenware, but the Tibetans are not at all a manufacturing people. A considerable foreign trade is carried on through Tibet, the products of the various neighbouring countries being exchanged for each other. The 45 TIBEIAN WOMAN AND CHILD. 46 The Great Closed La)id. exports of native goods are gold, musk, yaks’ tails, wool, and on the Kashmir border, apricots ; the imports are — from China, tea, flowered and brocaded satins, handkerchiefs, silk thread, furs, porcelain, glass, snuff-boxes, knives and tobacco ; from Siberia, furs, cows’ tails, pearls, and silver ; from Kashmir, sugar and dried fruits ; from Assam, spices, timber, and manufactures of silk and linen ; from Nepaul, iron and rice; from Bengal, broadcloth, otter skins, pearls, coral, amber, spices, tobacco, sugar, satin, and coarse cloth. The tea sent to Tibet from China, for home consumption, is very poor, consisting chiefly of the sweepings which would otherwise be thrown awaj', mixed with bits of the wood of the tea-shrub, pressed into cakes weighing five and a-half pounds, four of these bricks making a pao or bundle The average load for a man is nine of these bundles, which he carries packed in a framework on his back, often projecting over his head ; he also carries with him a kind of short crutch, on which he rests the load when neces.sary. He is paid about seven shillings for 150 miles in a very mountainous country, the journey occupying twenty days. These coolies, however, are all Chinese, Tibetans nev'er being employed for the purpose.. At Ta-chien-lu, which is the great centre of the tea trade between China and Tibet, the tea is made into bricks weighing about two and a half pounds, these bricks are used as current money by traders, a “ packet ” of tea contain- ing four bricks. There are four other qualities of tea in the Ta-chien-lu market, all the bricks weighing about five pounds, but this is the quality generally used by the Tibetans ; the poorest quality has no leaves at all, but is made exclusively of wood ; the best is that sent from the Emperor of China to the Dalai Lama, but this quality is not an article of trade. From ten to thirteen million pounds of tea is brought to Ta-chien-lu annually for Tibet. In Koko-Nor and the adjoining province of Tsaidam, boots are a regular medium of currency, articles being valued at so many pairs of boots. In Tsaidam a pair of boots will purchase a yak hide, two sheep, four wild asses’ skins, or eight pecks of barley. Turquoise beads are also used for money in these and other parts. Tibetan families are generally small. One or more of the younger sons in every family is a lama, sometimes entering a monastery as an acolyte as soon as he is weaned. At the age of thirteen those who hope to attain the highest authority as lamas go to Lh’asa for five or seven years’ study. The The Tibetans — co7itimied. 47 eldest son is not allowed to be a lama, but is responsible for managing the family affairs. Parental affection is very strong, and children are very obedient to their parents. Many children die in infancy from the severe climate, and the want of cleanliness and medical attention ; but there is no female infanticide, except in cases where Tibetan women have married Chinamen. The Tibetans’ old people are little respected. When the father and mother become too old to be of use, they are often turned out of the family home into a smaller house, and the eldest son assumes the reins of govern- ment ; in some parts the sons even kill their fathers when they become a burden. Girls are mostly married before the age of eighteen, and are always purchased from their parents. If a woman does not marry she becomes a nun or a beggar. In the matter of giving in marriage, the eldest brother has more authority than the parents. On the occasion of the marriage, the bride receives presents of money from the men and women of her village. She does not spend it, but hires a field, the produce of which is her own. This she accumulates year after year, so that she may not be destitute in the event of leaving her husband. Temporary marriages are frequently contracted for a fixed period, a month, six months, one, two, or three years, or for longer periods, so that a man who is often absent from home may have a wife in every place to which he goes for any length of time. The position of women in Tibet is one of honour and responsibility, as well as of hard work. As soon as a bride enters her husband’s home, she assumes the control of nearly all his affairs. No buying or selling is done without her leave. When Rockhill was travelling on the S.E. border, he saw a man herding horses, and asked if he would sell him one ; the man replied, that so far as he was concerned, he was quite willing, but his wife was not at home, and he could not possibly accept any offer, however advantageous, during her absence and without her sanction ; yet this was in a district where the men are with difficulty induced to submit to the authority of the chiefs. In the mountainous districts, it is usual for women to have several husbands ; the eldest son brings home his bride to his father’s house, and she accepts all his brothers as subordinate husband.s, all her children being the property of the eldest brother, who is addressed by them as “ Big Father,’’ 48 The Great Closed Land. the younger brothers being saluted as “ Little Father.” The women, far from objecting to this custom, cling to it tenaciously, boasting of the advantage they have over the women of other nations, in that they have three or four men to help them instead of one. One of them said to Mrs. Bishop, “ If I had only one husband and he died, I should be a widow ; if I have three or four, I am never a widow.” The Tibetans also argue in favour INTERIOR OK A TIBETAN TENT. of polyandry, that it keeps the ancestral estate intact, when otherwise it would be divided up among the sons, and saves the women from loneliness and danger, in a country where more than half of every man’s time is spent away from home. Among the nomadic population, who do not practise polyandry, their possessions are constantly increasing ; also there is more occupation for women, and therefore a greater demand for them, in the valleys than in the uplands. The Tibetans — continued. 49 Polygamy is only practised in the valleys and among the wealthy ; it was introduced into Tibet from India and China. In Koko-Nor polygamy is very rare, but the men have a custom of stealing their neighbours’ wives, with the consent of the husbands, to whom payment is made. In this pro- vince a man has to pay as much as three hundred sheep, ten yak, and ten horses for a good-looking wife. Among the tent population a man on marrying leaves his father’s tent and sets up for himself Tibet possesses a vast literature — religious, historical, medical, philosophi- cal, and biographical, and the store is still being added to by the lamas. For many centuries the art of printing has been practised from wooden blocks. Education is for the most part restricted to the lamas, who try to keep the common people in ignorance. In parts of Eastern Tibet many of the people can read, and a few besides the lamas can write. At Ta-chien-lu both girls and boys go to school, and learn reading and writing. Every monastery has its supply of books ; they are frequently covered with silk cloth, and numbered in gold figures, and kept piled up along the walls of the chief idol temple ; the religious lamas sit cross-legged on the little platforms which serve them as beds, and read day after day, sometimes for whole days together, not for pleasure or instruction, but in order to “gain merit.” CHAPTER VI. PHILOSOPHICAL BUDDHISM. T hough Tibet is the sacred land of Buddhism, the Buddhism of Tibet, even as known by those most at home in its mysteries, is very different from the poetical Buddhism described in the theosophical writ- ings of the present day ; and the Buddha of European and American latter-day theology is not at all the same as the Buddha of the Buddhist religion at home, and of the ancient Buddhist classics, the translations made into modern languages from the San- skrit having had introduced into them a high and ideal meaning which they never had in the original, besides being interpreted by the nineteenth century knowledge of the English reader, which receives from them very different impressions from those conveyed to the mind of the Eastern idolater or philo- sopher. Buddha Gautama, the founder of Bud- dhism, lived about 350 B.C., but always maintained that the religion revealed to him was only new as regarded the age then present, immeasurable YELLOW HAT WORN BY LAMAS IN CHURCH CEREMONIES. “ Can any by searching find out God?” “ The world by wisdom knew not God.” “Without God and without Hope.” Philosophical Buddhism. 51 other ages having preceded that ; that in each of the preceding six ages a different Buddha had appeared teaching the same truth ; thus he was the seventh earthly Buddha. In the time of early manhood he gave himself up to a life of worldly pleasure, but every now and then had serious thoughts on the misery of human life. At length an old Brahmin began to teach him about the illusiveness of all around him, and of the part which he himself was called to perform in human affairs. Finally Gautama resolved to leave home and friends, and devote himself to the search after truth. He spent years in solitary wandering and meditation, and at last said he had arrived at the full knowledge of the truth, had lost all desire for existence, and had become practically fitted for absorption into the Divine. Then he began to preach, his teaching being chiefly anecdotes of former Buddhas, with inculcations of his own thoughts and doctrines. Very few, however, of the sayings attributed to Gautama are really his, later writers having constantly added remarks and comments of their own under his name. In his last days he retired to Assam, where he died of spinal disease. Buddhism is not of such antiquity as some of its votaries would have us believe ; many of its doctrines are merely borrowed from Brahminism, while Buddhism as developed in the sacred writings is comparatively modern. It abounds in moral precepts, of which the following are examples : — “ Never in this world does hatred cease by hatred ; hatred ceases by love.” “ Not where others fail, or do, or leave undone ; the wise should notice what himself has done or left undone.” “ One may conquer a thousand men in battle, but he who conquers him- self alone is the greatest victor.” “ Let a man overcome anger by kindness, evil by good ; let him conquer the stingy by a gift, the liar by truth ; let him speak the truth ; let him not yield to anger ; let him give when asked, even from the little he has.” All is change in Buddhism, and the highest possibility for this life or the next is absolute negation. Heaven and earth are always changing, gods becoming men again, and men becoming beasts, or birds, or reptiles, or other men in an endless chain of transmigration. Certain gods have the power of changing the condition into which living beings are to be re-born, in answer to their prayers. Fear of what his future life is to be exercises a certain control over the Buddhist, as it is taught that it will be strictly according to his conduct during this present life. There are six classes of beings into 52 The Great Closed Land. which souls can be re-born — i. Petty gods ; 2. Those higher than men, but lower than gods ; 3. Human beings ; 4. Beasts, birds, and other lower animals ; 5. Gigantic beings between earth and hell ; 6. Inhabitants of hell who can never regain a higher class. A Kushog, or saint, is one who was a man in his last previous stage of existence, w’hen his merit was so great that he was allowed to be born as a man a second time ; Kushogs are credited with miraculous powers. The doctrine of transmigration is a Brahminist doctrine, which was borrowed by the Buddhists. Between death and re-incarnation a certain period elapses, during which the spirit is in an intermediate state called Bardo, which corresponds to the purgatory of Roman Catholicism. Unspeakable horrors are suffered there ; to be quickly delivered from Bardo is the great hope of every Buddhist. P'orty-nine days is usually considered the shortest time that can be spent there, and it varies from this to several months. Even the spirit which animates the Dalai Lama endures the torments of Bardo between the successive incarnations. This doctrine was not taught as part of Buddhism before the eleventh century A.D., therefore it is impossible that Roman Catholicism could have borrowed it from Buddhism, as is sometimes suggested, though it is quite possible that Buddhism may have derived it from Roman Catholicism. There is also a paradise in Buddhism, from which, however, men may be sent back to earth after a time, to begin a new round of transmigrations. There are no women in Paradise ; they must be born again as men before they can be admitted. The highest hope of the Buddhist is to be divested of all corporeality and identity and become nothing ; in other words to attain Nirvana. Perfect holiness consists in knowing nothing, caring for nothing, and thinking of nothing, and that is Nirvana. If a man can continue in that state of negation, he is a perfect man. The mystery of Nirvana is explained by an illustration. If there is no oil in a lamp, the flame will go out as soon as the oil in the wick is consumed ; no new flame can be lighted there. So, when a man is free from sin, all his powers and all himself will be dissolved, and no new being can be born from him. His body may for a little while be seen living and moving, though his soul has ceased to act, as the wick of a lamp burns when but little oil is left in it, but it will soon decay and pass away, and where once was life, there will be nothing ; therefore death is not Nirvana, but Nirvana will soon Philosophical Buddhism. 53 lead to a death where all is Buddha and Buddha is nothing. Nirvana is only granted to those who seek after the highest knowledge, and practise the greatest virtue. The Tibetan word for Nirvana is Myang-dai, which means deliver- ance from affliction ; for, as their sacred writings say, all sorrow and pain are the result of existence ; all existence is the result of desire — therefore if all desire is annihilated in the soul, sorrow and pain will no longer survive. This is the popular conception of Nirvana in Tibet, the philosophical meaning of it being unknown to the laity and to many of the lamas. The means prescribed for attaining it are charity, morality, patience, stead- fastness, and meditation, of which the most important is meditation. Those seeking to become absorbed in meditation as a means to abstraction and Nirvana are recommended to place a small image of Buddha, or a relic of a saint, or the last letter of the Tibetan alphabet, before them, and gaze at it fixedly till every other idea is lost ; the acquiring of this condition is much more important than the observance of the moral law. Dr. Pentecost once asked a Buddhist devotee, who was vigorously turning his prayer-wheel, to whom he was praying. His answer was : “To nobody.” He then asked him for what he was praying, to which he replied, “ Nothing.” “ If,” adds the Doctor, “ worshipping an idol of an extinct man and making millions of prayers to nobody for nothing can constitute a religion, then Buddhism in its popular form is very religious.” An “ incarnate Buddha,” or Boddhisattwa, is one who, by the holiness of his life, has attained Nirvana and become absorbed in the divinity, but who, from love to mankind has elected to become detached from the divinity and to return to earth to teach men the road to perfection. The particular Boddhisattwa who has taken Tibet under his patronage is known colloquially as Chenraisi ; he becomes incarnate in each successive Dalai Lama; he has a hundred and eight names and a thousand arms, and is frequently represented with eleven faces. There are thirty-three principal gods in Buddhism, besides a great number of petty gods called Lha, but a god is a being far inferior to a Buddha, and may again become a man. In the fourteenth century a reforming lama arose in Tibet, who is known as Tsong-Khapa or Je Rinpoche ii.e., the precious one), an incarnation of a former Buddha. He was born near the Koko-Nor Lake, within the Kansu border, in the district which bears the name of Amdo, and which since this event has been considered specially holy ground. 54 The Great Closed Land. He built the Galdan Monastery, near Lh’asa, where his body still lies, and lived there as abbot. It was probably to Tsong-Khapa that Captain Yule, travelling in Tibet between 1316 and 1330 referred, when he said of Lh’asa that no one there dared to shed the blood of man or beast, and “ there dwells the Abassi, which in their tongue signifies Pope.” He forbade marriage and necromancy among the lamas, which had both been frequently practised by them, and instituted various other reforms, but this action led to a schism, and from this time there were two sects amongf Tibetan lamas ; the one resisted all change and wore their old dress, and are called Shemmars, Dukpas, or Red Caps ; they retain the ascendency in Nepaul and Bhutan. The reformers adopted a yellow dress, and are called Yellow Caps or Gelupas, that is, the virtuous school. They soon became the predominant sect in most parts of the country, and are so to-day. Another reformer, a little later than Tsong-Khapa, was Gedun-tubpa, who built and presided over the monastery of Trashilunpo in 1445, and was the first of the line of perpetual incarnations. On his death he relinquished the repose of Nirvana, in order that he might be born, again and again, for the benefit of mankind. His successors are discovered by the possession of certain Divine marks. The abbot of the Trashilunpo monastery was, however, soon eclipsed by that of Galdan. The incarnation of Gedun-tubpa made himself master of Tibet, and founded the successions of the Dalai Lamas and the Je Rinpoche of Trashilunpo, as they now exist. He rebuilt the palace and monastery of Potala, at Lh’asa, in 1643, and in 1650 visited the Chinese Emperor, and accepted the title of Dalai (or Ocean) Lama. After death, he reappeared in two infants, or even some say in three, and was the first Dalai Lama, but the sixth Je Rinpoche. Both belong to the yellow sect. Since this time there have been always the two incarnations of equal rank, the Dalai Lama, at Potala, and the Je Rinpoche of Trashilunpo, and Lh’asa has been to Buddhism what Rome is to Roman Catholicism. CHAPTER VII. POPULAR BUDDHISM. “ They think that they shall be heard for their much speaking.” “ I bear them record that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge.” HE religion of the ancient Tibetans, which is still followed in some parts of Eastern Tibet, was not the same as Buddhism. It is known by the name of the Bon religion, and seems to have been a worship of the powers of nature, combined with a creed some- what resembling Taoism, though not, as some have supposed, identical with it. Those who profess it are called Bonbo ; they still have gods of hills, trees, valleys, and lakes, and sacrifice living animals, especially fowls, which is considered an abomination by Buddhists. Buddhism, however, has modified the Bon religion to such an extent, that the Tibetans believe the only difference between the two is, that in making the circuit of holy places, a Bonbo always keeps the building on 55 56 The Great Closed Land. his left hand, but the Buddhist on his right. The Bonbo are noted for their proficiency in juggling and magic. Buddhism began to find its way into Tibet in the seventh century A.D., from both India and China, but only a portion of the doctrine was received. The central article of the Tibetan belief is that of a succession of incarnate Buddhas. The Tibetan name of Buddha Gautama is Buddha Shakya-t’ubpa ; the term Buddha, however, is scarcely known in Tibet, the titles substituted being Sang-gye, or Chomdende, or Chomoo Rinpoche, Rinpoche signifying the Precious One. The Buddha who is yet to come is known in Tibet as “ the Loving One.” It is said that a native king established the seat of his government at Lh’asa, about 617 A.D., and having married a Chinese Buddhist, sent his minister to India for the Buddhist sacred writings. After the minister’s return with the books, there was a long struggle between the old faith and the new, the former being represented by the nobility, the latter by the monks ; the monks finally gained the ascendency. Buddhism, as known by the masses in Tibet, is not the profound system usually understood as Buddhism, but a development of it suited to the illiterate. The Tibetans are essentially a religious people, forming in this a striking contrast to their neighbours the Chinese. To quote Dr. Pentecost again,* “ The Buddhist is the most praying man alive. The Mohammedan is not in it with the Buddhist. He prays with his lips, he prays with wheels turned by hand, by machinery’, by water, or by smoke, with flapping yards of calico upon which thousands of prayers are printed, and attached to tall poles, that by the action of the wind these prayers may be wafted to the extinct Buddha, who is not, in the eternal fiozuhere.” A religious atmosphere pervades the country, and on every hand are to be seen tokens of the extent to which the religious element holds sway over the population. At all the cross roads and mountain passes stand rough pyramids of loose stones called Obos, surmounted by dry branches of trees, horns, sticks, spears, and other miscellaneous articles, to which are attached strips of cotton or cloth, on which are inscribed the perpetually recurring motto, Oni inani pad-me hum. Ever}' traveller who has safely crossed a pass, every passer-by. See the Christian, 9th Xovember, 1893. Popular Buddhism. 57 as he starts on a journey or returns from one, adds his contribution of stick or stone, or flag or horn, either as a thank-offering for the safety accorded to him, or as a prayer for success in his enterprise. At the entrance of every village are to be seen mani walls, varying from six to sixteen feet in width, and from twenty feet to a quarter of a mile in length, roofed with stones inscribed with the same magic words. These stones are made and sold by the lamas, and bought by men and women, who place them upon the walls in the hope of gaining merit, or the fulfilment of a wish, or they may also be deposited as a thank-offering for a safe journey ; or any other special blessing received. They are continually offered in the streets by beggars, who receive in return for them a little tsamba or tea. Any passer-by is expected to buy all that are offered to him, and to place them along the wall of his own house, or on the nearest mani wall. Mani strings, too, may often be seen stretched across valleys, with hundreds of little bits of rag tied to them, on each of which is written, Om mani pad- me hum. Every Tibetan man or woman wears a charm-box containing a small image of Buddha and a slip of paper on which the same words are written. This formula, Om mani pad-me hum, is to the great majority of Tibetans and Mongols their only prayer. Every child learns to lisp it as soon as it can speak at all, and it is uttered with the last breath of the dying. Travellers mutter it incessantly as they walk along the plains or over the mountains ; the shepherds repeat it as they watch their flocks, the women as they go about their household duties, every man and woman carrying the string of beads, which they continually pass one by one between the finger and thumb, ever repeating the same six syllables, or even contenting them- selves with the constant repetition of Mani, Mani, Mani. It is seen written on rocks, trees, flags, monuments, strips of paper, in every place where it could be written. Yet the great majority of those who so indefatigably repeat it, have no conception as to its meaning. Even the most learned lamas can give but little explanation of it. It is supposed to be a prayer addressed to Buddha Chenraisi, the special divine guardian of Tibet. The words are Sanscrit, and literally translated are O-God the-jewel lotus-in, amen — i.e., O God, the jewel in the lotus flower, alluding to the fabulous story of the re-incarnation of Buddha Chenraisi from a lotus flower, for the good of mankind. Certain rich and zealous Buddhists in Tibet maintain companies of lama sculptors, whose business it is to diffuse the Mani by travelling, chisel in hand, through the E 58 The Great Closed Land. country, over mountain, valley, and desert, engraving the words upon rocks and stones. Colossal figures of Buddha or of the Dalai Lama are also frequently to be seen near the villages carved on the face of the rock, stretched on plates, or moulded in stone or copper ; he is usually represented seated on a lotus flower. All over the country, too, may be seen mechanical contrivances for prayer, in the forms of mills and wheels, the former being fixtures, turned by wind, water, or ropes, the latter small cylinders turned by the hand, which may either be fastened to a building or carried by the pedestrian. Both alike con- tain rolls of paper, sometimes of every conceivable colour, on which is written time after time the invariable six-syllabled phrase — Om mani pad-me hum. COI'l’EK AND SILVER I'RAYER-WHEELS. every revolution of mill or wheel causing all the prayers inscribed on the roll to rise to heaven and to accumulate merit, either for the builder or for the person who sets it in motion. One or more of these cylinders are to be seen at the entrance of every monastery, and in some parts of Tibet at every house, and any member of the family, or any friend, entering or passing, will give it a turn for the benefit of the inmates. Sometimes as many as 150 may be seen in one continuous row. By every rivulet stands a mill turned by the stream, and in every temple are numbers of mills and wheels for the use of worshippers. In one temple there is a prayer-mill worked by a perennial stream, which is said to contain 20,000 repetitions of the Mani. In a monastery at Doton, between Popular Buddhism. 59 Lh’asa and Batang, under a gallery running round the building, are ov^er a lOO wheels, each containing 10,000 Manis, all the wheels being set in motion by the devotee as he makes the tour of the building. And this is all a Tibetan knows of pouring out his heart before God, and making his requests known to Him. Circumambulation is an essential feature of Tibetan religion. Whether the object of veneration be a hill or a temple or an image, it has to be travelled round a specific number of times before any benefit can accrue to the worshipper, and the more the required number is exceeded, the greater will be the amount of merit set down to his account. Whole villages turn out in a body to circumambulate a mountain, spending perhaps a week in the undertaking, camping out during the nights. In houses where there is not a temple on the roof, the best room is set apart for the gods or for religious purposes. The very poorest house has its shelf of gods and its table of offerings, while from every roof and every tent is to be seen waving a flag or a festoon of many pieces of cloth, on each of which the Mani is written, the constant movement of the words by the wind gaining merit for the inhabitants. It is a universal custom before eating or drinking anything to dip the forefinger of the right hand in it and scatter a little towards the four points of the compass. This and the perpetual mumbling or exhibiting of the Mani constitute the practical religious life of the common people, who are taught by the priests that they cannot understand the sacred mysteries, but have only to do as they are told and leave the rest to them, who alone can under- stand. True, popular Buddhism demands an immense amount of reading from the sacred books, but this is the business of the lamas. Listeners are no essential part of the service, and, even if present, are not expected to understand. All except the very poor have readings in their homes at certain times of the year, but they need not even be present so long as they provide entertainment for the officiating lamas. In sickness the great panacea is butter, which is supposed to cure every curable disease ; there is also a general partiality for plasters. If these do not prove efficacious, the lamas are applied to ; they know something theoreti- cally about sicknesses and their treatment, and, if a patient can correctly diagnose his disease, they often are able to treat him successfully. Their chief remedy is musk, but they are also acquainted with the curative proper- 6o The Great Closed Land. ties of a few vegetable extracts. If these fail, the patient is ordered to swallow paper balls on which Buddhist prayers are written. The lamas also understand bleeding, and are able to cauterise wounds with a hot iron. In cases of dangerous illness, when all remedies have failed, the lamas are called in to exercise their spiritual functions. Their first act usually is to make a dummy to represent the sick person, which they proceed to adorn with his earrings and trinkets. By ceremonies and prayers the sicknes? is laid upon the dummy, with a great deal of shouting, and drumming, and whistling, after which the dummy is taken out of the house and burned, the ornaments being appropriated by the lamas. The ways of disposing of the dead are very various, the three most in vogue being by water, or air, or fire ; the first and second are customary with the poorer classes, the third with the rich. Nearly all Tibetans have a lock of hair at the back of the head by which the lama is supposed to liberate the soul if it is still clinging to the dead body. In a water funeral the body is simply thrown into the nearest stream. For an air funeral it is laid out on the hills to be devoured by dogs or birds, being fastened to a stake with a rope to prevent its being dragged about. In case of burial by fire, the lamas assemble at the dead man’s house ; the senior lama lifts the lock and touches the region of the heart with a dagger. Then the chief part of the clothing is removed, and amid a great beating of drums the corpse is covered with a white sheet and a coloured one, and carried out of the house to be worshipped by the relations, who walk round it seven times. The chief lama recites prayers, after which the relations retire, and the corpse is carried to the burn- ing-ground by men brought for the purpose, the lamas meanwhile saying prayers for the repose of the soul, which is supposed to be hovering about wishing to return to the body. The attendant friends, each carrying a piece of wood, arrange the fuel with butter. The corpse is then laid on, wrapped with the white sheet, and the fire is applied. During the burning the lamas read, and drums are beaten by blacksmiths. After this, the lamas retire, and the blacksmiths, after worshipping the ashes, shout, “ Have nothing to do with us now! ’’and run away. Next day a man, who is set apart for the business, searches among the ashes for the footprints of animals, and from these it is augured what the next birth will be. In the case of a great man or a saint, some of the ashes are taken to a monastery, where the lamas mix them with clay and put them into moulds stamped with the image of Popiilm- Buddhisni. 6i Buddha. These moulds are sometimes preserved in the house of the nearest relative, or, in the case of saints in a monastery, where portions of them are even sold to devout men. Usually, however, they are put into chod-tens, stone pyramids or monuments of different forms, from twenty to a hundred feet high, which are set up in prominent places in the neighbourhood of towns or villages. Other sacred objects, besides the remains of the dead, are placed in them, such as pictures of dead lamas, or torn books, which, though they can no longer be used, are too sacred to be destroyed. CHOD-TEN, OR TOMB OF A SAINT. Ashes that are not thus treasured up are left on the ground. It is believed that the soul hovers about in a state of unrest until the fourth day after death ; then a piece of paper is inscribed with prayers and requests to the soul to be quiet and not to trouble the survivors, and is burned by the lamas with other ceremonies ; after this follow prayers that the soul may get a good “ path ” for its new birth. Every year the lamas sell by auction the clothing and ornaments of the dead, which are their perquisites. Rockhill was told that only water funerals 62 The Great Closed Land. are allowed to take place before the crops are gathered in. Bodies which are to be cremated or placed on the hills are put in wicker baskets, well salfed, and kept till the harvest is over. The most esteemed form of obsequies, however, is that known as Celestial interment, which is supposed to shorten the interval between death and regeneration, which by some is held to take place immediately on the complete dissolution of the body. In this case, the funeral procession goes to the top of a hill, the lamas strip the flesh off the body, and hold pieces of it at arm’s length, which the vultures snatch from their hands. Then the bones are pounded into a pulp, which is mixed with tsamba, and given to the birds, the presiding lama eating the last ball himself. The body of a late living Buddha at Litang was disposed of in this way. Birds are considered the most desirable devourers, dogs next, and fishes last. In the case of the Dalai Lama, his body is mummified, wrapped in silks and satins, and placed in a monument. Other lamas are frequently burnt with sandal wood. In some parts the bodies of dead children are placed in an urn or bowl, covered with salt and put in a niche of the well of the cowshed. Adults, when still warm, are bent as much as possible like a ball, or if cold and stiff, are beaten out with hammers to get them into shape, and fastened up with cords to keep them from rising up to trouble the inmates of the house. After being tied up, the body is thrown into a river or burnt, or exposed on the hill side, as the lamas may direct. On the seventh day after, there is a gathering of lamas, who read for the benefit of the departed soul ; the lamas divide up between them the leaves of the books to be read, and read all together, and in this way soon get through a large book. The reading is followed by a feast to all the inhabitants of the village, at the expense of the bereaved family. The rich often celebrate the anniversaries of the death of their relatives with public feasts, in order to improve the condition of the departed. Those who die of small-pox are buried under ground to smother the infection. In some of the large towns and villages through which he passed, Rock- hill found that public evening prayer was the regular custom. As darkness fell lamps were lighted in the temples, and a short service was chanted, while a few lamas seated in the porch played a hymn on horns. At this signal the female heads of households lighted bundles of aromatic juniper boughs Popular Buddhism. 63 on their roofs, and as the smoke went up sang a hymn in which the male members of the family sometimes joined. In the morning there was the same burning of juniper, but no singing. Instead of this, offerings of bowls of water, wine, or milk, or lumps of butter, were placed before the household gods. Religious games are also a frequent event, the actors being lamas disguised as boars, dragons, kings, hobgoblins, etc. These shows are accom- panied by music and dancing, in which the spectators join amid wild excite- ment ; they are considered an act of worship. The chief religious season of the Tibetans is New Year, when all the gods and goddesses are supposed to be present, and crowds gather to do homage to them. At midnight on the last day of the Old Year the young men of the villages march out into the fields beating drums and waving torches ; then for three days all remain indoors eating and drinking, but in great quietness, as every noise is said to disturb the spirits, of whom the Tibetans have a great terror. In Lh’asa the government is, for the first month of the year, practically given into the hands of a lama who bears the name of the Jalno, whose business it is to inquire into the manner of life of the citizens during the past year, and to punish their sins. The penalties are inflicted in fines, which are levied unmercifully, the Jalno keeping the proceeds for himself. At the end of the month a strange ceremony is observed. The Jalno elects a man, usually of a low class, to play dice with him. If the man wins, it is looked upon as an omen of terrible evil for the coming year. If the Jalno wins, there is great rejoicing, as it means that the defeated man has been accepted to bear the sins of the people of Lh’asa. Then his face is painted, one side black, the other side white ; he is clad in a goat’s skin with a strange hat, and is led out of the city by the lamas, the crowd following, hooting and jeering, and is driven down to the river, where the sin of the whole people is ceremo- niously laid on his head. After this he is sent to a distant monastery, where the proper thing for him to do is to die within the year, this being an auspicious sign ; if, however, he does not do this, he is allowed to try again the next year. After this ceremony, the citizens are supposed to be pure in spirit and body ; their houses, too, are all whitewashed for the occasion. Before harvest the lamas in the different districts assemble on the hills near the villages and blow trumpets as a tribute of thanksgiving; then at the 64 The Great Closed Land. ringing of a bell, offerings of first-fruits are brought to them, and the work of ingathering begins. There are also frequent festivals of the gods, when all the sacred images of the district are collected in one village. A procession is formed, headed by a band ; the bearers stand in two rows facing each other, moving backwards and forwards to the music, their movements growing always quicker and quicker ; when the two ranks meet, the images are made to bow to each other, while all the people present lay their right hands on their foreheads and bow. The materials of which Tibetan idols are made are wood, clay, and bronze. How long shall it be before the day comes when the story of “ the Lamb of God who beareth away the sin of the world,” shall be proclaimed over the mountains and valleys of Tibet ? What have we done to hasten that day ? I I CHAPTER VIII. LAMAISM. “They be blind leaders of the blind ; but if the blind lead the blind, shall they not both fall into the ditch ? ” “ Ignorant of God’s righteousness, and going about to establish their own righteousness.” a wall of are wide, H’ASA, the sacred city of Buddhism, is of necessity but little known to Europeans. The circumference of the town is about six miles. There is no surrounding wall of stone, but a belt of large trees forms • verdure. The principal streets and to the outward eye fairly clean, owing to the renovating process which is performed upon them every new year ; but the suburbs are filthy, and so are the interiors of the houses. In the Cathedral are represented all the Boddhi- sattwas, deities, and deified heroes of Buddhism, over four hundred in number ; it contains ten thousand lamps, which are lighted on festival days, when thousands of pilgrims make the circuit of the effigies, most frequently on their knees. HOLY WATER VASE. {IVith cffver of yollo7v, red^ and blue silk.) \ 6s 66 The Great Closed Land. The centre of religious interest is a cluster of temples, monasteries, and other religious edifices at Potala, a suburb of Lh’asa, and the residence of the Dalai Lama — the Vatican of Buddhism. It is always filled with a moving crowd of lamas and pilgrims, who have come to do homage to the head of their religion, and to gain merit by so doing. Potala stands on a height surmounted with five golden cupolas, which are seen for miles around glittering in the sunlight. There are many remarkable idols at Lh’asa ; one is an image of the god Jamba, of such a huge size that, though he is seated on a platform on the ground floor, his body passes up through two floors, and terminates on the third storey in a monstrous head, jewelled and capped. The whole figure is about seventy feet in height, and is made of clay overlaid with gold. In making the circuit of it, pilgrims are required to make three series of circumambula- tions, one round the legs, another round the chest, and a third round the head. There are more than 32,000 lamas in the district of Lh’asa alone, living in thirty monasteries, the largest of which has 5000 lamas. About 1 1,000 is expended annually on the religious services at Lh’asa, in food and presents for the officiating lamas, besides nearly another ;^5ooo in feeding the lamas residing at Potala, and providing presents to be given in return for those offered by visitors to the Dalai Lama. The acknowledged political and spiritual head of the whole religious system of Tibetan and Mongol Buddhism, and the nominal ruler of Tibet, is the Dalai Lama, “ the incarnation of the Supreme Being.” He is recognised as a never-dying Buddha ; when, in common parlance, he “ dies,” his soul, “ the soul of the Universe,” is said to pass into the body of a little child, who is sought for over the whole country, and is selected by the lamas of the court of Potala, by a process of divination. Usually, however, there is more than one selected candidate for the office, and the names are presented for approval to the Emperor of China, this being an Imperial device to prevent the office falling into the hands of a powerful family. The Dalai Lama may be of any rank, and is frequently of the peasant class. He is ordained when he reaches the age of fifteen. When, after his series of re-incarnations, he has freed mankind from all its sorrows, he will finally enter Nirvana and be absorbed into Buddha. The chief duty of the Dalai Lama is to sit cross-legged in the temple, and hold out his hand in the attitude of benediction. He is supposed to be always Lainaism. 67 in a state of abstract meditation for the good of mankind. No one is ever allowed to be put to death under the jurisdiction of the Dalai Lama ; great criminals are shut up without food until death supervenes. On an equality with the Dalai Lama in rank, sanctity, and spiritual dignity is the Pan-chen Rinpoche {i.e., most excellent jewel) of Trashilumpo, south- west of Lh’asa, who, like the Dalai Lama is a re-incarnation of Tsong-Khapa in a child, and acts as viceroy of the Dalai Lama in the southern part of the country. It is part of his office to ordain the Dalai Lama when he becomes of age, and the highest honour any Buddhist priest can aspire to, is to receive ordination at his hands ; having secured this, he is sure of popularity and advancement. People come in great numbers to the Pan-chen Rinpoche to seek his blessing, all bringing offerings with them. Laymen of high rank are blessed by the direct imposition of hands ; nuns and inferior laymen have a cloth interposed between their heads and the sacred hand ; a still lower class are touched as they pass with a tassel which he holds in his hand. Boys and girls of seven and eight years of age are brought to him to be devoted to the monastic order, which he does by cutting off a lock of hair from the crown of the head with a knife. As many as three thousand people are admitted for blessing at one time. The palace appropriated to the use of the Pan-chen Rinpoche and his officers is a dark-coloured brick building with a roof of copper gilt. There are four temples, with an abundance of gold decoration. The remainder of the town is inhabited exclusively by lamas to the number of about 4000, and nothing is to be heard all day but the chanting of prayers, and the sounding of cymbals and other instruments of music. No women are admitted into the palace of the Dalai Lama or of the Pan-chen Rinpoche, with the exception of the nuns mentioned above. A third incarnate Buddha, called the Taranatha Lama, lives at Urga Kuren in Mongolia, whose influence extends over that country. Under the two Grand Lamas are the Khutukhtus, whose position corres- ponds to that of cardinals in the Romish Church ; the best known among them are the two patriarchs of Mongolia, and the representative lama at the court of Pekin. After these again are the higher clergy and chief order of lamas, incarnations of subordinate deities or former saints ; these are the “ living Buddhas,” wffio are divided into three classes, according to their degree of holiness — (i) Kushogs ; (2) Alaksan ; (3) Tru-ku. They do not take part 68 The Great Closed Land. in the administration of the monastery in which they live, nor in many of its ceremonies, but are supposed to spend their time in praying for the welfare of the locality ; they are frequently consulted by the laity as to the success of any undertaking in which they purpose to embark. Another rank of lamas are the Draba, who simply shave their heads, take upon themselves minor vows, wear the sacerdotal dress, and live in the monasteries. They do all such work as printing, tending cattle, cooking, sweeping, trimming lamps, etc. In the eastern parts of Tibet, the Draba are allowed to have wives, but they may not bring them into the monasteries. At certain times of the year they can leave their monastery and visit their family. Those who have studied the sacred books, taken the vows of chastity, poverty, abstinence from tobacco, liquor, gaming, etc., are called Gelong. All officiating lamas are chosen from this class. As there is no caste in Buddhism, except in the lands bordering on India, any unmarried man can become a lama. Married men can also be received in monasteries if they hand over their money to the abbot, their position afterwards depending on the amount paid ; ever}' lama knows he will be pro- vided for for the rest of his life. The chief sects among the lamas are the red, yellow, black, and white ; of these the first two are the most numerous and influential, the red being in the majority in Derge, Sikkim, Bhutan, and Ladak, the yellow in the rest of the country. Each sect worships different gods, otherwise there is now little real difference between them. The laity care nothing for these distinctions, but engage the services of the lamas of all sects indiscriminately. The chief monastery of the red lamas is at Sakya, lOO miles west of Shigatse, where resides the re-incarnation of Ujyenpame, the reputed founder of the sect, who is considered by them the most saintly person in Tibet. As Buddhism sways the whole life, religious, political, and social, the lamas may be said to be in a ver}' real sense the rulers of the land, no act being performed without their advice and sanction. They profess to be able to discover springs, to produce rain, to drive away demons, and trace thieves. Sometimes they are intelligent and well instructed, but the great majority are mere formalists, and quite indifferent to the religion to which they profess to have devoted themselves. There is gross ignorance amongst them too, as well as terrible sin, even the walls of temples being often covered with obscene words and pictures. Lamaism. 69 The lamas are to a great extent in league with the Chinese authorities to keep the people in idolatry, and therefore in subjection. In places where Christianity appears to be regarded with any measure of favour, the lamas try to dovetail it into Buddhism, as forming part of it, ranking Jesus as a Boddhisattwa. Lamas and lamasaries are frequently rich, and their wealth is constantly on the increase, both from the legacies they are continually receiving and the profit they make by lending money on usury, the usual rate of interest being two and a-half per cent, per month. Reading sacred books for laymen or MONASTERY OF SO. wealthy lamas who prefer to escape the trouble of doing it for themselves is a fruitful source of income, as is also the renting of parts of their houses in the precincts of the monasteries to visitors. Many monasteries have a Government grant, and all their lands are free from taxation. When those who have borrowed from the lamas are unable to pay their interest, they surrender their land, and even their persons as serfs attached to it, receiving only sufficient pay to keep them from starvation ; many lamasaries have acquired thousands of slaves by this means. Occasionally there are insurrections against the lamas, of the people, who 70 The Great Closed La 7 id. naturally object to the easy life led by the lamas at their expense. In 1872 there was a great rebellion, but the lamas finally triumphed, though many fell in the contest ; cruel vengeance was taken on the defeated. There are an amazing number of monasteries in Tibet, a large proportion of the population being lamas. At Litang, with a population of 1000 families, there is a monastery containing 3000 lamas, and another just outside the town has nearly as many. At Batang, where there are only 300 families, there are 1300 lamas in the monastery.* All the ne’er-do-wells in the different families are sent to monasteries to become lamas, and debtors who wish to avoid their creditors, idlers who want a comfortable living with little labour, criminals seeking to escape punishment, all take refuge in monasteries. When Chinese soldiers return to their own country, leaving their wives and children behind them, the children are usually sent to the monasteries to be trained as lamas ; there are also nunneries, but they are very few compared with the lamasaries. Monasteries usually occupy a commanding position on a lofty rock or a mountain spur, and are reached by rude staircases cut in the rock, with temples, domes and spires gleaming with gold. The outer walls are white- washed, frequently with broad bands of red and blue. Prayer-mills and wheels, yaks’ tails and flags on poles, all turning or waving in the wind, give an appearance of colour and life, while far and near are to be heard the ring- ing of bells, the clanging of cymbals, the beating of drums and gongs or the sounding of silver horns. Every monastery has its temple, with its supply of idols and of sacred books ; one idol being nearly always Buddha with a skull in his hand, the emblem of intellectual power. The larger monasteries have several temples, in which different gods are worshipped. A lamp is perpetually burning in every monastery, fed in some parts with apricot oil, in others with butter. Services are held in the monasteries morning and evening, open to any lay- men who like to attend. The prayers are all sung by the lamas, but as each one sings a different line, and all at the same time, a great many are got through in a comparatively short time. The rules in the larger monasteries are very strict, and the discipline severe. Rich lamas, however, are able to make their lives much easier by * Batang is governed by a native chief under the superintendence of China. Lamaism. 71 means of money payments instead of punishments ; the poorer men are whipped, kept in solitary confinement, or even expelled for breaches of monastic order. The ecclesiastical authorities have the power of life and death, even within the limits of the civil authority of China their jurisdiction never being interfered with. Every monastery is superintended by an abbot, under whom are magis- trates, censors — whose business is to discover and punish the refractory — the overseers of temporal affairs, and the masters of ceremonies. There is some- times, in addition to these, a civil officer appointed by the Amban, whose real business is to keep the Amban informed of the state of feeling in the monastery towards the Chinese Government. There are one hundred and eight sacred volumes in the Tibetan canon. 72 The Great Closed Land. When these are to be read, the forty thousand loose leaves into which they are divided, are distributed among the lamas of the monastery, who are seated at tables or on carpets on the floor, and all proceed to chant or read them as fast as possible, stopping now and then to drink tea. Each lama reads about forty leaves in a day. All the idols, as well as the sacred books, have their garments in which they are clothed when not in use. When Rockhill visited the monastery of Serkok, near Sining, he told the lamas of the recent development of Buddhism in England and America, and that its promoters claimed to have derived it from Tibet. The lamas were greatly amused, and looked upon the innovation as a rank heresy, and an imposition upon the credulity of English-speaking people. The district of Amdo, in Kansu, is considered peculiarly sacred from having been the birth-place of Tsong-Khapa. There are from twenty-five to thirty thousand lamas in the monasteries of Amdo, nearly all belonging to the yellow school, though all but the very richest lamas wear red clothes, for the prosaic reason that yellow garments soil more quickly than red. Of these, one of the most renowned, indeed one of the most sacred in the empire, is that of Kumbum, containing 3000 lamas. A “miraculous tree” is shown there, which is said to have grown from Tsong-Khapa’s hair, on the spot where his head was shorn when he became a lama. Till quite recently it was said that on every leaf of the tree was to be plainly seen a letter of the Tibetan alphabet ; of late, however, this has been changed, and it is now said that there is an image of Tsong-Khapa on every leaf. The lamas proclaim that this is part of the natural growth of the tree ; the real explanation of the phenomenon is not known. In 1708, the Dalai Lama stayed at Kumbum while the Chinese army put down a rebellion in Tibet, after which he was taken back to Lh’asa. Pilgrims come to visit Kumbum from all parts of Mongolia and Tibet. Four great festivals are held there during the year, when immense crowds assemble. The chief of these is called the Feast of Flowers, and takes place on the fifteenth day of the first Chinese month ; it is nowhere celebrated with such pomp as at Kumbum. Figures are made of representativ^es of all Asiatic nations, with their distinctive physiognomies, costumes, and surroundings, the persons, places, costumes, and decorations, animals, flowers, views of lamasaries, battles, scenes in hunting and nomadic life, being all modelled in butter, in the form of bas-reliefs, beautifully coloured, and true to life. Three Lamaism. 71 months are occupied in the preparations. The crowds who cannot be accommodated in the buildings are camped in tents on the slopes of the hills. On the fourteenth and fifteenth days of the month, great numbers of pilgrims make the circuit of the monastery. When the festival is over, the butter- works are thrown down a ravine for the benefit of the crows. Every year the decorations are on a new plan. Some of the bas-reliefs are twenty feet by ten feet, hundreds of figures in them, ranging from eight inches to three feet. The lamasary at Kumbum is used as a university for the instruction of lamas, the curriculum comprising the Life of Contemplation, Religious Cere- monies, Medicine and Prayer. In order to obtain a degree in the Faculty of prayer, the student has to recite, without stopping, the books he has been directed to study. Presents are not without their effect in the results of an examination. The lamas at Kumbum have various ways of making money for themselves. Some keep cows, and sell milk and butter to the rest ; others are tailors, dyers, boot-makers, hatters, etc., for the establishment ; a few have shops, where they sell at enormous profits goods which they get from Sining or Tankar. In nearly every large monastery there are a certain number of incarnations of former saints, who by their presence add to the fame of the establishment, and thus to its receipts. There is a wide-spread belief in Tibet, among both lamas and laity, that the days of Buddhism are numbered. Many of the people are beginning to suspect that the whole system is a fraud. Those lamas who admit that it is on the decline, try to account for it by saying that the merits accumulated by former Buddhas are gradually diminishing, and that they will soon be powerless to benefit others, while laymen say that the fault is not with the Buddhas only, but with the whole system of Lamaism. F CHAPTER IX. HERALDS AT THE GATES. “ My word . . . shall not return unto Me void.” *• In due season we shall reap.” ROPE BRIDGE 0.\ THE ROAD TO SUNG-PAN, T’ ’HE Romish Church was the first to attempt to enter Tibet for mis- sionary purposes. It is not certainly known at what date her representatives first gained a footing in the land. In 1330, Oderic Forojuliensis, who has been called “ The Apostle of Tartary,” travelled in Tibet, and found missionaries already working at Lhasa, who are supposed to have gone there early in the preceding century. From 1715 to 1729 a Jesuit named Desideri lived at Lh’asa ; some Capuchin Friars were there at the same time, and stayed for a quarter of a century. In 1845, Gabet and Hue entered Tibet from the north, disguised as lamas, say- ing they had come from the far west to inquire into the doctrine of Tibet. After an arduous journey they succeeded at length in reaching Lh’asa, “ with 74 Heralds at the Gates. 75 lively hopes,” we are informed in the preface to M. Hue’s subsequent history of their travels, “ of converting the Dalai Lama into a branch Pope.” They were well received by the Tibetan authorities, but were arrested by the Chinese and sent to Canton. In 1852, Abbe Krick went in from Assam. At various stages of his journey he was warned not to proceed, and on one occasion was shown a place where two Asiatics, trying to enter Tibet, were murdered, and was told the same fate would be his. Having arrived in Tibet, the people received him kindly, and a Tibetan family took him into their home to live with them. But the local authorities told him he must go, as an insurrection was imminent ; they, however, gave him leave to return later. He retired over the border for two years and then returned, but was murdered by a Tibetan chief in a Tibetan village. In 1854, the Romish missionaries obtained a perpetual lease of premises at Bonga in the Tsarong, a rich and populous country, from which, notwithstand- ing the agreement, they were ejected in 1858. They were reinstated in 1862 under the presidency of Abbe Desgodins, but the inhabitants again rose against them and destroyed the mission premises. Upon this the mission was transferred to Yerkalo, close to the Chinese border, where several buildings were erected, but in 1887 the lamas instigated an uprising, burnt down the station, and drove the priests from the place, as well as from every station they occupied on Tibetan soil ; the pretext for driving them from Batang was, that they had been the cause of the drying up of a mountain lake which waters the neighbouring fields. There are now no Roman Catholic missionaries in Tibet, though they have stations at Ta-chien-lu, the residence of the Roman Catholic Bishop of Tibet, Ta-li-fu, and other places on the Chinese border, as well as one recently opened at Leh in Ladak. The honour of being the first Protestant missionaries to the Tibetans, belongs to The Moravians, who, in so many other instances, have been the first to set up the standard of the Lord Jesus before the enemy’s walls. In 1853, two men, Edward Pagell, a Pomeranian, and Augustus William Heyde, a Silesian, both laymen, were chosen by the Moravian Mission Board at Herrnhut, to open a mission in Mongolia, for which country they 76 T]ie Great Closed Laiid. started, intending to reach it by Russia and Siberia. But their Lord had other plans for them, and on the necessary passes being refused them, they were obliged to try another route, by England and India. They reached Simla in 1854, thinking they would be able to travel through Tibet to Mongolia. They passed through the provinces of Kullu, Lahoul, and Ladak, which they found peopled with Buddhist Tibetans, but all attempts to secure a footing in Tibet proper were effectually opposed by the Chinese officials. After repeated vain efforts, finding it impossible to enter Tibet, much less Mongolia, it was decided that they should stay outside the closed door, and work and pray and wait until it opened. So in 1856 they opened the first station at Kyelang in Lahoul, and in 1865 a second at Poo in Kunawur, both being intended as starting points for evangelistic tours into the surround- ing country. ^Meantime, a valuable reinforcement had arrived, in the person of Jaeschke, a man with an extraordinarj’ talent for languages. After many difficulties in obtaining a teacher, he, by dint of living alone in the midst of a purely Tibetan-speaking population, succeeded in mastering their language, and translated school-books, catechisms, liturgies, hymns, tracts, Bible histories, and a Tibetan grammar and dictionary’ for the use of future missionaries, all the while seeking so to perfect his knowledge of Tibetan idioms and of the language of the common people, as to be able to translate the Bible into simple, clear, and popular language. By’ 1868 he had finished the New Testament and begun the old. Then his health broke down, and he was obliged to return to Germany’. He was succeeded by’’ Redslob, who com- pleted the New Testament in 1884, the proofs being corrected at Berlin by Jaeschke, till his strength became insufficient even for this. In 1887 the Psalms were published, having been translated by Redslob and Heyde, and these were followed in 1889 by’ the books of Moses and Isaiah. In January’, 1883, Paged and his wife both died at Poo, within twelve days of each other, after thirty’ years of incessant toil. They’ had taken evange- listic tours, which, owing to the state (or absence) of roads in the mountains were both difficult and costly’, provisions and books having to be carried over the mountains, as well as a tent and any’ furniture required. The people came to the tent at every’ hour of the day’, to get books and ask questions. The missionaries visited the monasteries at the times of festivals, when they found the lamas congregated in large numbers. Sometimes they were Heralds at the Gates. 77 warmly received, sometimes coldly, but wherever they went, they spoke of Jesus, and gave away tracts and portions of Scripture. They also opened a school, where in 1876 the number of pupils had reached one hundred. Besides this they worked in the printing-office and at gardening, and farming, both for their own support, and also to show the Tibetans how much more profitably they might cultivate the ground ; as a result, it was not long before their advice was sought and followed in preference to that of the lamas. They also gave free medical advice, and their remedies were soon regarded with more faith than the magic of the lamas, while they themselves were loved and trusted by the people as their true friends. After the death of Mr. and Mrs. Pagell, the head man of the village (Poo) summoned a representa- tive from each house, who together entered the missionary house, took pos- session of the cash box, counted the money, sealed the box, and gave it in charge of a trustworthy man. Then the house was sealed, and guarded by two men during the day and four during the night, the head man coming or sending every day to see that all was well, till Mr. Redslob arrived and relieved them of their charge. Almost from the beginning of their work on the Tibetan border, the Moravians had been longing to get a footing in Leh, the capital of Ladak, feeling that it would be the very best centre from which to reach the western Tibetans. It is the stopping-place for all traders from India, Kashmir and Afghanistan to Yarkand and Khotan, and there is a great trade in the town itself in ecclesiastical wares from Lh’asa. From having been conquered and possessed again and again by various nations professing different religions, it contains a great variety of races, with differing customs and creeds, and consequently there is much more religious toleration than in other towns in the country. But the jealousy of the Maharajah of Kashmir would not allow Christian missionaries to settle there, and frequent visits were impossible, as in order to reach it from Lahoul it is necessary to cross a mountain-pass 14,000 feet high, and several others higher still, and mountain passes are the only roads. Yet in spite of the opportunities of going there being so rare, there were many earnest inquirers at Leh, which deepened the desire of the workers to have a permanent station there. Bit by bit their desire was granted. First permission was given for them to spend the summer at Leh ; next, in 1864, they were authorised to travel in Ladak without getting a new passport every year, as had previously been 78 The Gi'eat Closed Lajid. required, and finally through the mediation of the Marquis of Ripon, they were allowed to take a house and build a church and school, both buildings and land being still the property of the Kashmir Government, which will not allow Europeans to be in permanent possession of any property in its dominions. Thus, after close on thirty years’ prayerful waiting, the Mission at Leh was opened by Redslob in 1885. A native dispensary was also placed at the disposal of the mission, with the promise that medicines and instru- ments should be supplied : Dr. Marx was the first medical missionary. A hospital was soon added to the other branches of work, and the medical mission became a great success, numbers of Tibetans coming for treatment, and to ask for medicine for those who could not come so far. A service was held every day for the patients, many others listening outside to hear what new doctrine this was which was being taught. Then a day-school was opened, and almost at the same time compulsory education was instituted by the Governor of Ladak, who, finding on inquiry that the education given in the Moravian school was the best obtainable, ordered that one child at least out of every family should attend there, and soon sixty children were to be found every morning hearing from the mis- sionaries the story of Jesus and of their own interest in His love and His life and His death, though the attendance at this service was left optional. When 1891 dawned, it rose upon a happy circle with bright prospects, the mission having been still further reinforced by the arrival of the Rev. F. Becker Shawe, the first Englishman to work in Little Tibet. But just when all seemed brightest, blow after blow fell upon the mission party. First Mr. Redslob broke down in health, but refused to leave his post till a successor should arrive. Then, in the spring an epidemic of influenza and fever visited Leh, and in May Dr. Marx was seized with it and it soon spread to the whole party. Dr. Marx was the first to be taken Home, his new-born baby being buried in the same coffin with him. Redslob was just able to conduct his funeral, Mr. Shawe being down with the fever, and a few days later, the veteran Redslob too passed away, leaving the young Englishman alone at the head of affairs, with no knowledge of the language, weakened by fever, and the two widowed missionaries dependent on him for help and sympathy. Yet even in this time of trial, the Lord had shown His tender compassion for His lonely servants, and had made special provision for them. One day, just when Dr. Marx was at the most critical point of his illness, and Mr. Shawe, Heralds at the Gates. 79 oppressed with the burden of care and responsibility which was resting upon him, had gone away alone that he might cast it afresh upon His Lord, it was suddenly recalled to his memory that when he was at the Post Office, he had seen a letter lying there addressed “ Thorold, Surgeon.” At the time it had made no impression upon him, but now in his sore need it occurred to him for the first time that it was an extraordinary thing that an English surgeon should be in that part of the world ; he at once endeavoured to find him, and in the evening the doctor, who had come up the Indus for shooting, was with him, and with the utmost tenderness ministered to the sick ones, cooking for them, reading to them, drawing on his own stores for suitable food, and in every way giving them reason to praise their heavenly Father for this manifest token of His care. He did not leave them till Mr. Shawe was able to be about again. The following testimony given by Mrs. Bishop to Mr. Redslob, after a journey over the mo.untains which she took in his company, may be in place here: — “Mr. Redslob loved, and therefore was loved. The Tibetans to him were not ‘ natives ’ but brothers. He drew the best out of them. Their superstitions and beliefs were not to him ‘ rubbish,’ but subjects for minute investigation and study. His courtesy to all was frank and dignified. In his dealings he was scrupulously just. He was intensely interested in their interests.” As a consequence of this, Mrs. Bishop tells us that wherever she went in his company, she found the people frank and friendly ; they said, “ We will trust anyone who comes with the missionary.” A lama named Gergan, who had assisted Mr. Redslob for two years with the translation of the New Testament, wept over the love and the sufferings of Jesus, and desired that his son should be brought up a Christian, but said that for him- self he could not break with custom and the creed of his ancestors. In August the Rev. J. and Mrs. Weber removed to Leh from Poo, where they had been since 1883, and where they were succeeded by Mr. and Mrs. Schreve, who had been working at Kyelang since 1887. At Leh the people listen to, and honour the teacher as well as the doctor, though the interest appears at present to be chiefly external. The population is from twenty-five to thirty thousand. The attendance at the IMedical Mission is about a hundred a month in winter, and fifty a day in summer. At present, however, there is no qualified medical missionary at Leh. Mr. and Mrs. Heyde are still carrying on the work at Kyelang, where 8o The Great Closed Land. they have been now for nearly forty years, and were joined in 1892 by Mr. and Mrs. Ribbach. There, where all the novelty of the Christian mission has worn off, and where the work has been carried on the longest, there is a sharp line of demarcation between the Christians and the heathen. The former are treated as outcasts, and no heathen will now come to the Christian services. At Poo, the reverse is the case, all the inhabitants are on friendly terms with the Christians and with the missionaries, and many heathen attend the preaching of the Gospel. Many pilgrims come to Kyelang from distant parts and receive gifts of books, which they take away with them ; that these are read is proved by the fact that orders for books come to Kyelang from distant provinces. The staff in Little Tibet consists of : — At Leh. — Rev. Julius and l\Irs. Weber, Rev. F. B. Shawe, and Miss Kant. At Kyelang. — Rev. A. W. and IMrs. Heyde, Rev. G. and Mrs. Ribbach. At Poo. — Rev. T. and Mrs. Schreve. This little band are remarkable, not only for their own work and surround- ings, but also on account of their missionary ancestry and family connection. Mrs. Heyde is the daughter of a Surinam missionary (Hartmann). His wife, after having buried him, carried on the work alone among the bush negroes, till she came down to the town to die. It is not surprising that such a mother should have given, not only a daughter to Tibet, but two sons to foreign missions, the one having been a Moravian Missionary in South Africa, the other working first among the Blackfellows of Australia and then among the Indians in Canada ; he was also one of the two Moravian pioneers among the Eskimos of Alaska. Mrs. Ribbach again, is the daughter of a pioneer missionary in Kaffraria, (Meyer), and the sister of another in Nyasaland ; while Mrs. Schreve’s parents (Larsen) are missionaries in the West Indies. Dr. Marx’s widow, is now the wife of Mr. Stahelin, the superintendent of the Surinam mission. Mrs. Redslob is still living at Herrnhut. The latest letters received from Leh and Poo, tell of the baptism of a Tibetan at each place. IMoving southwards from Poo, the next point we reach from which attempts are being made to reach the Tibetans is Almora, a station of the London IMissionary Society. In 1890, the Rev. G. 1 \I. Bullock, who was working there among the Heralds at the Gates. 8i natives of North India, began to itinerate among the Joharis, a tribe of Bhotiyas, a mixed race, partly Mongolian and partly Tibetan, trading betw'een Tibet and India. They are to some extent a nomadic tribe, moving their quarters three times a-year'; their three chief places of residence being Milam, at the foot of a mountain pass into Tibet, Munsiari, a wide fertile valley, thirty miles below, and the low-lying district of Tejam and Bageshwar ; the Joharis live at Milam in the summer rainy season, this being the only time it is habitable, and in the Tejam and Bageshwar district during the winter. Munsiari contains about a dozen villages, inhabited chiefly in spring and autumn. The more wealthy Bhotiyas have houses in all three districts. Milam, which is four days’ journey north of Munsiari is only one day’s journey from Tibet, and is visited annually by large numbers of Tibetans. The language of the Joharis is Pahari, a dialect of Hindi, but most of them can speak Tibetan and also Huniya, the language of Hundes, a neighbouring district also inhabited by a tribe of Tibetans. The Bhotiyas call themselves Hindus, but as they do not observe all the rules of caste, the other Hindus will not eat with them. In character they seem to be greatly superior to the Hindus ; their women are noted for strength and virtue. They possess a good deal of land between Almora and the Himalayas, and are agriculturists as well as traders. Some from amongst them have already been brought into the Kingdom of Christ through the agency of the Mission School at Almora. In the spring of 1893, a native Christian doctor and an English school- master, both belonging to the mission staff at Almora, went to stay at Munsiari to find out what opportunities there might be for missionary work among the people there ; they were accompanied by Mr. Agnew, a friend of the mission, and were well received by the Bhotiyas, the doctor (Tara Datt) being kept busy with dispensary work. In May they were followed by Mr. Oakley, one of the missionaries from Almora, who gathered the leading men of the different villages to discuss the question of establishing a school. The proposal was received with great favour, the leading men agreeing to leave their children at Munsiari during the winter, as well as the spring and autumn, taking them to Milam from June till October, if the mission agents could arrange to move in the same way. Milam contains over 3000 Bhotiyas at the season when they are in residence there, and there are several other villages in the near neighbourhood. Some of the Tibetans visiting Milam have urged Tara Datt to go and live in their country. 82 The Great Closed Land. The Society has not been able as yet to do more than spasmodic work for the Tibetans, but they have been encouraged to open a permanent mission at Munsiari and Milam, and hope to do this as soon as the necessary men and means are provided. Perhaps some friend of the Society, reading of this need, will come forward to supply it. The present pressing needs are a medical missionary— Tara Datt being physically unequal to the whole of the work, which in such an Arctic climate demands a good deal of force of endurance — and funds for the purchase of land and for building. Leaving Almora and following the course of the Himalaya range, we pass over many hundreds of miles before we arrive at the town of Darjiling on the Indian border of the province of Sikkim ; nine Swedish missionaries, three men and six women, are learning Tibetan at a station which they have established at Ghoom on the Jel Pass in this neighbourhood, hoping to come in contact with the Tibetan traders crossing the Pass from Sikkim to Lh’asa. These workers are members of the Scandinavian Alliance Mission, U.S.A., and went to Darjiling in 1892. On one occasion several of the party made an excursion as far as Guntok in Sikkim, which they found to be a much more advantageous post than Ghoom, both for hearing the language and coming in contact with the people ; but when they inquired as to the possi- bility of their settling here, they were told that one of the clauses of the treaty between England and Sikkim was, that no European should be allowed to settle in Sikkim State. While waiting at Ghoom for an open door into Tibet, these Scandinavian missionaries are working among the Bhutias of Bhutan, and Tibetans at Ghoom, and in the surrounding district. The Church of Scotland Mission at Darjiling is also working among the Tibetan traders who frequent that district, and sending into Tibet by their means, gospels and other Christian literature. The International Missionary Alliance of New York in 1892 sent three men to China, who all hoped ultimately to work in Tibet. Of these three, one has decided to remain in China, and work among the Chinese. The other two, IMessrs. Christie and Simpson, are in Pekin studying Tibetan, as it is found easier to meet with good Tibetan Heralds at the Gates. 83 teachers there than in the far West ; they hope, when their knowledge of Tibetan is sufficient to enable them to begin to work in it, to go to Kansu, and from there to reach North-eastern Tibet. It is hoped that four or five other members of the same mission may have left for Darjiling before this book is in the hands of the public, one of them being a medical missionary. If, when they have acquired the language, they find it impossible to enter Tibet from Darjiling, there is some thought of their seeking to effect an entrance through Upper Burmah. Miss Annie Taylor is another who has for some time been seeking admittance into the Closed Land. In 1887, as a member of the China Inland Mission, she was visiting at Sining in Kansu, and greatly longed to enter Tibet as a missionary. Being compelled to leave China on account of failing health, she went next year to Australia, and thence to England, after which, as her health had greatly improved, she went to a village near Darjiling, where she had friends, and stayed there for fifteen months studying Tibetan. In 1891, accompanied by a Tibetan servant, a man from Lh’asa named Pon-tso, she returned to Kansu, and worked for a year among the Tibetans at Tao-cheo-ting, one hour’s journey from the Tibetan border. From this place she attempted to reach Lh’asa, accompanied by Pon-tso and two Mohammedans.* They started on the 2nd of September, 1892, and on the 28th crossed the Yellow River. On the 14th of October they entered the Golok country, which is governed by a queen, the people living by brigandage on other tribes, though in their own country all is in perfect order. The queen came to Miss Taylor for medicine, gave her an escort of two Goloks, and ordered her people not to molest her. While here, one of the Mohammedans died from the effects of cold, and another Tibetan was engaged to take his place. When the journey to Lh’asa was half accomplished, the other Mohammedan repented of his * About one-fourth of the population of Kansu is Mohammedan. They are divided into two sects, the white-capped and the black-capped or Gala Mohammedans. The latter are more devout and fanatical than the former, who conform to some heathen customs. They also differ as to the hour of breaking the fast during Ramadan. The Gala are of Turkish e.xtraction, and have been in Kansu for four hundred years ; they still retain their original language. They are very ignorant of their own faith. They read the Koran in Chinese. A few recite daily prayers, and perform the orthodox ablutions, but these are considered very holy by their co-religionists, who content themselves with abstaining from pork, meat killed by unbelievers, and opium. 84 The Great Closed Land. promise to act as guide, fearing he should get into trouble for bringing a foreigner into Tibet. After various attempts at violence with Miss Taylor and Pon-tso, he went in advance of them and proclaimed Miss Taylor’s approach. On the 31st of December, she entered the Lh’asa district, and on the 3rd of January was met by soldiers who came in consequence of the infor- mation given by the Mohammedan. Two days later a military chief came to meet her, and on the 7th of January, a civil official forbade her proceeding any farther. She was therefore compelled to return to China instead of going to Lh’asa and out at Sikkim, as she had hoped to do. She was given an escort of ten men, a sheep-skin coat, some pea-flour, and a tent, as her own had been stolen ; the escort, however, only remained with her for six days, after which she met with much hostility, as, in the interval, the Mohammedan had circulated the report that she was a witch. After much suffering from cold, want of food, robbers, and other sources of danger, she, at length, reached Ta-chien-lu in April, 1893, after an absence from China of seven months. After this she came to England to seek to rouse further interest in Tibet, and to get, if possible, a dozen missionaries to go with her to Darjiling in 1894, to learn Tibetan, and to make another attempt to enter Tibet from the south. This mission is known as “The Tibetan Pioneer Mission,” and is independent of any other society. The first party of fifteen sailed in February, 1894, for India.* China Inland Mission. With the exception of the two members of the International Missionary Alliance, all the Protestant missionaries of whom we have spoken hitherto, have sought, or are seeking to enter Tibet from the West and South. We come now to look at the work that has been attempted on the Chinese border. In 1877, the late Dr. Cameron, a member of the China Inland Mission, went with a young lama to visit the Tibetans in Western Szch’uan. He visited many border towns and districts, including Litang, situated at a height of 12,500 feet, having only a hundred Chinese among the inhabitants, the remainder being Tibetans ; Ta-chien-lu, Ho-Keo, Batang, A-ten-tsi, the last Tibetan town in Yunnan, and Tali-fu. A Chinese official, he was told, might pass over the border at Ta-chien-lu, but not his wife. * For a fuller account of .Miss Taylor's travels in Tibet, see “The Origin of the Tibetan Pioneer Mission.’’ Morgan & Scott. 6d. Heralds at the Gates. 85 The inhabitants of Ta-chien-lu are Tibetans, and Dr. Cameron lodged in their houses with the families, and found them very hospitable, and pleased to try to teach him what they could of their language. At Batang, he visited the Chinese Mandarin, who told him he was sure the Tibetans would not allow him to go into their country. The lamas there are grossly immoral, and they dread foreigners from the West entering Tibet, lest they should teach the people a religion which would lead them to cease to pay them for their incantations and prayers. The lamasary at Batang, containing about 1500 lamas, is very exclusive; the Roman Catholic priest had never been allowed inside it, though at the time of Dr. Cameron’s visit, he had been there more than a year. Two days after leaving the town of Batang, Dr. Cameron heard that a large party of soldiers had been sent out from Tibet, to guard the road into that country, in case he should attempt to enter it ; however, as he had no knowledge of Tibetan, he had no intention of making such an attempt, but turned away from Tibet towards Yunnan, wondering as he did so, when the messengers of Jesus would have free access into the land. At A-ten-tsi, he was laid-up with fever for twelve or fourteen days, and then left in great weakness, and went on to Tsi-Ku, where he found there were two Roman Catholic priests working among the Tibetans and Chinese. Three days later, he found himself again among Roman Catholics, who treated him with great hospitality, refusing all offers of payment, and even a present of tea. There were no inns on his route after A-ten-tsi, all travellers being accommodated in private houses. At Wei-si, he found two Roman Catholic traders, who had been sent there by the Bishop of Tibet to work among the people, and prepare the way for the priests, who were unable to visit the city then, the feel- ing against them being so strong. However, after two years’ work, the traders had not been able to gain any ground. From Wei-si, Dr. Cameron proceeded to Tali-fu, and thence to Bhamo, returning to China by Rangoon and Singapore. In 1885, Mr. Parker, and in the following year, Mr. Laughton travelled in the direction of Koko-Nor, visiting Kumbum, and distributing portions of Scripture among Tibetans and others, both returning to China impressed with the religious zeal of the people, and the need of workers to tell them, in their own language, the story of the love of God in Christ Jesus. In July, 1888, Mr. and Mrs. Cecil Polhill-Turner left Tsinchau for Sining, immediately after their marriage. They had been working for three years in China, and had both been for nearly the whole of that time burdened with 86 The Great Closed Land. the spiritual needs of Tibet, and longing to be able to go to its people with the message of peace. Now, at last, the fulfilment of their hearts’ desire seemed to be near at hand. They travelled to Sining by way of Kwei-teh, through a num.ber of Tibetan villages, built of mud, in many of which they were readily provided with accommodation and food ; but in one, the inhabitants refused to receive them, lest they should bring with them a cattle disease which had done much damage in the district through which they had GEKOR AND BLACK LAMAS IN THE KU.MBLM FAIR. passed. They were therefore obliged to content themselves with the shelter afforded by trees, and spend the night on the bank of a stream of water. At Sining, a mission station of the C.I.M., they were occupied with the regular work of the mission among the Chinese, at the same time trying to pick up what they could of the Tibetan language, from an old IMongol, a Roman Catholic who had been with Hue and Gabet to Lh’asa, and who was Heralds at the Gates. 87 the only teacher they could find. As he could not read, he could only teach them a certain number of sentences, and acquaint them with the manners and ideas of the country. In November, they went accompanied by this old man, Chi,* to a great festival and fair at Kumbum. Here they lodged in the house of a relative of Chi’s, the room allotted to them being that containing the family idols ; but as the time of the festival drew nearer, and the number of visitors increased, this was exchanged for a smaller one consisting only of a k’ang (mud bed) with a small passage on one side. The visitors, some of whom were accommodated in houses and others in tents on the hill-side, were partly worshippers, partly traders, dealing in provisions, cloth, silk, brass and iron ware, cattle and horses, furs and medicines. The festival lasted five days. The worshippers, who were chiefly Tibetans, made the circuit of the temples, measuring their length in the dust, beginning each new prostration at the point reached by their fingers in the preceding one. Round the Temple of the Precious Buddha there is a verandah with a wooden floor ; for the whole length of the floor of that part of the verandah which lies at the front of the temple, there are grooves, along which the hands slide as the worshippers make their prostrations, which in this case they do in the same place time after time, standing in a long row before the temple, instead of going round it, the same man, or woman, sometimes prostrating himself again and again for several consecutive hours in the one spot ; these grooves have been worn by constant use. More women than men were making such prostrations on these festival days. One day Mr. and Mrs. Turner were requested by a young lama to follow him to the house of an older one, who received them affably ; when they showed him a Tibetan Gospel, he said he had already seen one. They proposed to the old lama that he should teach them Tibetan ; he readily agreed to do so on condition that they would teach him English. He invited them to come and stay at his monastery at Ma-ying-si, 200 li (70 miles) from Kumbum, saying he would provide them with board and lodging, teach them Tibetan, Astronomy, Physic, and whatever else they wanted to learn. He had been to Pekin and made the acquaintance of a Russian, who had taught him a little of his language and made him anxious to learn more, and to him English and R.ussian were quite the same thing ! Called Samda Chiemba by Hue, in his work “Travels in Tartary, Tibet, and China. 88 The Great Closed Land. One evening as the Turners were returning to their lodging, they met a nun, and invited her to come and see them, which she did ; Mrs. Turner then asked her if she would return with them to Sining, and teach her Tibetan. To this she agreed, but a few days after their return to Sining, the nun having accompanied them, she met a lama who told her it was very sinful of her to be staying with Christians, and the next day she left secretly and never returned. In April, 1889, another border tour was taken to Tankar, thirty-five miles west of Kumbum, where they found that reports both of themselves and of the truth they taught had preceded them, and so many came to see them — Tibetans, Mongols, Mohammedans and Chinese — that the only way to secure any quiet at all was to go for a walk into the country ; all the visitors came with the avowed object of “ hearing the book.” From early morning till late at night men came to buy books and listen to the Gospel ; there were women- visitors too, as well as invitations to go to the houses, but as the same people were seldom seen more than once, there was opportunity only for seed-sowing, not even to see the springing of the blade. From Tankar they proceeded to Shalakuto, twenty-five miles farther on. This village is a boundary of China Proper, beyond which there are only tents inhabited by the “black Tibetans,” who are also called by the Chinese, “brigand” or “wild” Tibetans. Their long, unkempt hair hangs over their foreheads and down their backs ; their clothing consists of one buckskin worn summer and winter (or not worn according to taste) and a sword stuck through their girdles in front. No Chinese are allowed to go beyond this border village, unless they have a written pass from the Governor of Koko-Nor. There are no inns in the village, therefore the travellers took a room in a private house, of which the chief defect was that it was minus a door, in consequence of which visitors came in and out freely at all hours. As at Tankar, there was no lack of interested hearers, both men and women. From Shalakuto, they returned to Sining by Tankar and Hsin-cheng, the result of the tour being the deep conviction that in order really to get in touch with the Tibetans and to learn their language, it would be necessary to leave Sining for some place less Chinese and therefore less civilised, but more among the people whom they were seeking to reach. In August the promised visit was paid to the old lama at Ma-ying. His monastery is a small one, containing only about forty lamas. The central. Heralds at the Gates. 89 the idol-temple, consists of one large hall, surrounded by small houses in which the lamas live, the interior of the temple being elaborately painted and gilded. When the Turners arrived, they found that special prayers were going on, during which no woman could be admitted within the monastery precincts ; so, for three weeks, which unfortunately were rainy ones, they took up their abode in a black tent provided for them by the lamas. Mr. Turner G TIBETAN WITH PRAYER-WHEEL. 90 The G)'eat Closed Land. took the chief meal of the day with the lamas, and carried Mrs. Turner’s to the tent ; when other food was needed, they lighted a fire and cooked tea, porridge, and on rare occasions meat, which was seldom obtainable. The fire, however, could only be lighted when it was not raining ; when it did rain, food had to be dispensed with, and everything in the tent as far as possible covered up. During the fine intervals, the wet clothes were spread outside to dry in the sun, and soiled ones washed in the river. After the three weeks of tent-life, three more were spent in the lamasary. The old lama gave much assistance in the study of the language, written and spoken, and treated his visitors with the greatest hospitality, refusing all offers of payment. He was a very gentlemanly, venerable old man, to the outward' eye living a blameless life. He was much interested in the Gospel, which he could read fluently in Tibetan and explain as well as an unconverted Englishman. He said one day to Mr. Turner, “How can I see your Jesus? I want to see Him.” Mr. Turner told him that the first step must be the giving up of sin, that until he gave up idolatry, he never could see Jesus. He listened often with great earnestness to what was said to him of Christ and His salvation, but had not the courage to renounce his own religion. The deciding time came when a “ living Buddha ” arrived to be his pupil. Mr. Turner told him plainly that if he wished to see Jesus, he must not treat this man as if he were a god. Then the old man said he must listen no more to the Gospel of Jesus. In May, 1890, the Turners left Sining, with their little boy of three months old, in search of a temporary home where they could make further progress with the language. They went first for a few days to Urkolung, the town of the young lama whom they had met at Kumbum in 1888, then on five miles to Hwa-Yuen-Si, where they had heard there was an inn belonging to a Tibetan woman, but managed by a Chinaman. After a fortnight there, the landlady suggested that, as they wished to be among Tibetans, they should go to a room in her brother’s house, which they gladly did, and remained there three months, the host and his wife doing all in their power to help them with the language, besides there being a constant succession of Tibetan visitors. On this as on all other Tibetan tours, they made a point of going without a servant, that they might in every respect, as far as possible, be on a level with the people with whose thoughts and lives, as well as with whose tongue, they wished to become conversant. One day, in response to an invitation they paid a visit to a Tibetan tent. It was made of woven yak’s Heralds at the Gates. 91 hair, with a mud wall round it about four feet high, the interior being as described in a former part of this book. For a bed, there was an enclosure formed of hurdles, strewn inside with brushwood, slightly raised from the ground, over which were spread felt rugs. On this the guests were seated, and bowls of buttered tea were handed round ; cheese also was part of the bill of fare, and when they had “ well drunk ” — tsamba. Shortly after the meal, an extra thick rug was spread, and a great lama entered and took his seat upon it. He had heard that there were foreigners in the neighbourhood and had expressed a wish to see them, which was the reason of the invitation. The story of Jesus was told, and then the messengers left, though not without being pressed to stay for another meal. They returned to Sining in September, as their presence was needed for the Chinese work there, which during their absence had been at a standstill. In November, they went to Kweiteh, specially claiming the promise of Exod. xxiii. 20. This is a town close to the Tibetan border, to reach which it was necessary to cross a snowy mountain range. On arriving at Kweiteh, they found there was an epidemic of influenza, which the inhabitants were disposing of summarily. The lamas and people escorted the God of Pestilence out of the city, and with guns, crackers, etc., sent the sickness itself into the Yellow River ! There at Kweiteh, our friends had the luxury of “ a three- roomed house,” in other words, of a single room divided by curtains into three — a kitchen, sitting-room, and bedroom. The furniture of the kitchen consisted of a mud cooking-range and two iron pots ; of the sitting-room — a k’ang ; of the bedroom, another k’ang, with a box without a lid stood on end, which did duty for a book-case, and two hold-alls nailed up to the wall. The “ china,” “silver,” etc., were two tin plates, two tin cups, chopsticks, one knife and two spoons. The residents of Kweiteh, however, are Chinese, so in January another move was made to a Tibetan village ten miles nearer the border, where there is a kind of small fort, inhabited by one or two Chinese soldiers and an officer, a Chinese pedlar, and an ironmonger, the rest of the villagers being Tibetans. There the missionaries succeeded in getting a house to themselves for the modest sum of 100 cash (about sixpence) a month, containing, however, only one habitable room. Beyond the village, to the west, there was nothing but tents inhabited by “ wild ” Tibetans. A few days after arriving, Mr. Turner went for a walk up a mountain close to the village, and on his return was told that the chief of the district had sent word that they 92 The Great Closed Land. must not stay, as it was evident that his object in coming was to search for precious stones. One of the soldiers, who had helped them to get their house, sent to the chief explaining the position of the foreigners, and a message was returned to the effect that they might stay if the Kweiteh official would permit it. They afterwards learned that this Kweiteh official had had his own private communication from the chief, the result of which was, that before long a messenger arrived from the civil magistrate at Kweiteh ordering them to return there at once ; but after some discussion it was agreed that they might stay where they were for a few months on condition that they would not go among the tents, which are outside China proper. The landlord and those who had helped in getting the house were hotly reproved for not having informed the officer of the arrival of foreigners. Every day there was a stream of Tibetan visitors, lamas, soothsayers and laymen ; hardly any could speak Chinese, but the Turners were delighted to find that they could now make themselves understood in Tibetan as they told the Gospel story to the people. They could never be sure of ten minutes alone from daybreak to dusk ; their one room was often invaded before they were up in the morning. When on one occasion they gave a general invitation to come to “ hear the Book ” and drink tea, nearly the whole village came, besides lamas from neighbouring monasteries. Difficulties, however, were of continual recurrence. First the landlord told them he did not wish them to stay, but afterwards consented to their remaining the “ few months ; ” then another order to leave came from the Tibetan chief, unless they could get a written permission from the Yamen; this permission was always promised, but never forthcoming ; then the supply of milk (a necessary article of diet where the household included a baby) was cut off, the vendor saying he had received orders to sell them no more. Then their stock of money came to an end, and a fresh supply, which was daily expected from Lanchou, was delayed so long in coming, owing to the difficulty of finding a bearer for it, that at last they were reduced to a very little flour, some hard peas, enough rice to feed the baby for a few days, and a little native barley meal. When things were at this pass, a lama came one day with a cock for which he hoped to find a purchaser. He was told that there was no money in the house. Looking round, he caught sight of a small sauce- pan in which the baby’s rice was being cooked, and requested that it might be sold to him ; this, however, could not be parted with. Then he began Heralds at the Gates. 93 asking questions about the manufacture and price of such utensils. An empty Cadbury’s cocoa tin was in the room, of which he inquired the price, and when Mrs. Turner suggested that he should take it in exchange for the cock, he agreed with delight, and thus they were provided with meat for several days. Another day a good supply of eggs were given in exchange for a few pen nibs, and by such means as these, and opportune presents from the people, who knew nothing of their need, of milk, peas, bread, etc., their provisions held out till the silver arrived, and the testimony given afterwards was : — “ This was one of the nicest times we had ; it was such a comfort to feel that we really were on a level with the people.” Mr. George Cadbury little thought when he sent his kind present of cocoa to all the members of the C.I.M., of the way in which one at any rate of the tins was to fulfil its mission. At length the Kweiteh magistrate i.ssued a proclamation to the Tibetan chief, telling him to take care of the foreigners, and though the landlord still wished them to leave, he did not insist upon it. By this time the first curiosity of the people had subsided, and the busy farming season had set in, so that the number of visitors decreased. In June, 1891, they returned to Sining, having been absent for seven months, during which time they had not seen a European. Before leaving the border, they were able to praise the Lord for a very friendly feeling among the people, and in some cases, an apparently real interest in the Gospel, though none had come to the point of making a decided stand. They felt, however, that though they had gained much in knowledge of the language and of the Tibetans, they had not yet found a suitable centre for permanent work, which needed to be in the midst of a more populous district, and as clear as possible of Chinese authorities. In July they went to Lanchou, where Mrs. Turner remained, while Mr. Turner went on another journey. After a few days at Kumbum, he went with a Mohammedan caravan to the celebrated shrines of Lhabrang, passing on the way the little town of Payen-rung, chiefly inhabited by Mohammedans, which is the market town for the villagers living on the north bank of the Yellow River, to the number of several thousands. After crossing the river the way lay through a grassy mountain district, frequented by robbers. Most of the party were armed with matchlocks, bows and arrows, etc., under the leadership of a bold and experienced follower of the Prophet. Two nights were passed in the open air, as for three days they travelled without passing 94 The Great Closed Land. a house. The first night was a rainy one, during which the partial protection of a rock was the only shelter ; the second night, some members of the party were robbed, but the thieves escaped too quietly for pursuit. Lhabrang is inhabited in the winter by Tibetans, who in the summer roam about the rich neighbouring pastures. It contains one of the largest Tibetan monasteries, accommodating about 4000 lamas, and said to rule over 108 smaller monas- teries, one of which contains i 500 lamas. The day after his arrival, which was the last day of a festival and its attendant fair, Mr. Turner went out to try to sell some books, and to speak for Christ in the streets which were crowded with buyers and sellers and lamas. He had hardly taken his stand in front of one of the temples, when the lamas began to jostle and push and make rude remarks. IMr. Turner then moved away to a quieter spot, where some followed him, who listened well to his message, and for the remaining days of his stay he was allowed to go about freely and speak where he would, always meeting with politeness and with willing listeners. Groups of lamas called at his lodging and bought up all the books he had ; indeed the people came in such numbers that his landlord in the room below feared that his ceiling would give way. The return journey was taken by way of Taocheo, a IMohammedan town, but a good centre from which to reach the Tibetans. Here Mr. Turner found Miss Annie Taylor, who had just arrived with her Tibetan servant. The following day Choni was reached, inhabited by a Tibetan tribe of the same name, and containing a monastery of 1 500 lamas ; the people of this tribe are said to be “ as many as the grains of linseed in a peck measure,” living in the district stretching south to within a couple of days of Sung-pan ; they have a peculiar patois, and are notorious robbers. Here Mr. Turner saw the last of the Tibetans, and returned direct to Lanchou, after an absence of about a month, having been everywhere well received, with the exception of the one episode at Lhabrang, by the Tibetans, both lamas and laymen, and having had many special opportunities of preaching the Gospel to them. In November of the same year he went to Sung-pan (9000 feet high), accompanied by a Chinese inquirer from Pao-ning to see whether this might not prove to be the “ centre ” so long sought and prayed for. They found it to be in many ways a suitable place for the purpose, and having engaged a house, ]\Ir. Turner left the Chinaman, M’ang, in charge, while he went to Tsinchau to fetch his wife and children. They lived at Sung-pan for two and a-half months, during which time they received many visitors, Chinese, VIEW OF SU.NG-PAN. (MAGISTRATES’ HALL ON THE LEFT OF HILL.) 95 Heralds at the Gates. 97 ^Mohammedan, and Tibetan, the Tibetans sometimes remaining the whole day. They were very friendly, treating Mr. Turner very much as one of their own lamas from foreign parts. Trade caravans, too, are constantly leaving Sung-pan for journeys to the tent Tibetans in every direction. Everything now looked auspicious, and as though regular work among this neglected people were at last to begin in earnest, when there came a sudden and violent attack from the enemy. There was a short but rather serious drought in the district, and the arrival of the foreigners was assigned as the cause, at first quietly, but more loudly as the days went on, many Chinese visitors coming to inquire the cause of the drought and the remedy for it. Mr. Turner’s reply was that they could do nothing, but that their God could, and that they must pray to Him ; but it was reported that he had been seen to go out of the city gate and wave a brush backwards and forwards against the sky, and that the present drought was the result of this action. Daily they prayed for rain, but no rain came. On 29th July, 1892, the storm broke. Early in the day parties of visitors came, all looking as though something unusual was going to take place. At last the yard was full. Mr. Turner, who had been sitting in the doorway, went into the house for a moment, and on his return was assailed with boards which were taken from the paling and thrown at him, after which the mob set upon him, and having bound his hands and feet, threw him down to scorch in the sun, while the crowd stood round and cursed. Mrs. Turner and the children had taken refuge in a loft, but they were pursued by the crowd, who bound and beat Mrs. Turner, the children being taken care of by friendly neighbours. The two Chinese servants, Wang, and another inquirer named Chang, were also bound and beaten ; after which all were led through the streets and out of the city gate. Then there was a division among the crowd, some saying “ Throw them into the river,” others “ Stone them,” and “ Tie them up in the sun till rain comes.” At this point a military official arrived, who said the mob had dealt too roughly with Mrs. Turner, and that the foreigners should be taken to the civil magistrate. After some altercation, this course was adopted, and they were driven up the hill to the yamen, followed by the crowd. There they were put into a small room and left for several hours listening to the mob raging outside, their arms still tightly bound with cords. Here the children were brought to them. At length the two men were called out and asked privately if they were willing to be 98 The Great Closed Land. beaten for their master and mistress, as in that case the crowd would disperse. The men consented, and were beaten with sticks till their flesh was raw, after which large wooden collars were put on them ; the crowd then dispersed, and a room was prepared for Mr. and Mrs. Turner and the children, which was shared by the two men at night. The next day they were left quiet, the magistrate requesting that they would leave on the morrow, saying that the Chinese were angry, and were urging the Tibetans to rise against them. It is impossible to say how far this was true ; no Tibetan took any part in the riot. The little party left Sung-pan the next day, under the escort of an officer and twenty soldiers, their house being first sealed up by the magistrate to secure its being left untouched. The thankfulness of the weary and saddened travellers can be to some extent imagined, when after five days’ journeying they met Dr. and Mrs. Parry, of the China Inland Mission, who, knowing nothing of what had taken place, were on their way to Sung-pan to visit them. They were lovingly cared for by these and other members of the Mission till they left Shanghai in November for England, for much needed rest and change. They are hoping to return shortly to Sung-pan, and are praying that it may not be alone, but in company with other servants of the Lord, whom He may call and enable for work among the Tibetans. Wang and Chang, the two faithful servants, returned to their respective homes at Paoning and Tsinchau. Both have since been received into the Christian Church by baptism. Wang says he is quite ready to go back to Sung-pan when he is wanted. Meantime the work in that place has not been allowed to stop, Mr. Horsburgh, of the Church Missionary Society, who was working in the same province, having kindly come forward to fill up the vacant post, by sending two members of his mission, Messrs. Knipe and Callum, to hold the fort during the absence of Mr. and Mrs. Turner, assisted during the first three months by Mr. Cormack, of the China Inland Mission. The accounts received from these two brethren are very encouraging. Though unable to speak Tibetan, they have been able by means of Chinese to carry on medical work, and report crowds of Tibetans coming to the house from 6 A.M. throughout the day, till at last, in order to secure any quiet time for study, they were obliged to announce that they could see no patients after I o’clock. Quantities of presents are sent in — salt, dates, butter, eggs, etc.. Heralds at the Gates. 99 one man frequently bringing a load of firewood. There are many inquiries as to when their former friends will be back, and as all now goes on peaceably and without interference on the part of the Chinese, it is hoped that there will be no recurrence of the former disturbances. For the whole length of the Chinese border of Tibet, from Sining in the North to Batang in the South, there is only the one station at Sung-pan for work among the Tibetans, though the whole district is open to the missionary to-daj'. CHAPTER X. HELPS AND HINDRANCES. W E are prepared now to estimate the special difficulties attendant upon Tibetan work, and also the special reasons why the Church of God should give herself to more earnest prayer and effort on their behalf. Looking at the difficulties, we are met at once by the two great obstacles to mission- ary work, Chinese and Lamaistic jealousy. The Chinese look upon Tibet as a buffer state between themselves and India, and as we have seen, spare no pains to preserve it from the possibility of influence from foreign visitors, more especially English, whether missionary or otherwise. To insure this CHOD-TEN, OR TOMB OF A SAINT. poHcy of cxclusiou, they have not only practised it themselves, but use all their influence to transfer their own feeling on the subject to the Tibetans, or rather to the dominant class of the Tibetans, the lamas. These men are in their turn only too ready to be alarmed by the thought of any attack being made on their religion, and thereby on their official posi- “The Lord stood by me and strengthened me.” “Through God we shall do valiantly.” “ Behold, I give you power . . . over all the power of the enemy.” Helps and Hindrances. lOI tion, and wealth, and ease. Thus while the motive with the Chinese is anti-English, that of the lamas is anti-Christian, and both alike are anti- missionary. Turning from the ecclesiastical element to the popular, the great difficulty to be encountered is the universal thoughtlessness and indifference to heart religion. Not that there is any lack of religious feeling, for, as we have seen, the Tibetans are in all their instincts, and thoughts, and emotions, essentially a religious people, but their natural bent, and their instinctive sense of need have been misdirected by their spiritual leaders, many of whom have stifled their own religious convictions and only use their position for worldly ends. The people have been trained in the belief that, if they only observe a few outward rites, it is not necessary for them to think for themselves on any religious subject ; they may leave that to the lamas, who will think, and pray, and read, and understand for them ; and, as we know, a religion which teaches salvation by “merit” or justification by works is always more attractive to the natural man, than one which insists upon the necessity of a change of heart, and the impotence of good works apart from this. Another special difficulty is the comparative impossibility of doing anything like sustained work among the people, from the inability to enter their country, and the consequent limitation of work to those who come over the border, who, owing to their migratory habits, are seldom for long in the same place. In the border towns no Tibetans come to stay, but only to buy or sell, and go back to their district, tent, or village. It is true this fact is not an unmixed disadvantage, as, though one man or woman can learn but little, they have exceptional means of spreading that little, and of making it known in places which no missionary can enter. Still, under these circum- stances, work among the Tibetans may be said to be a work of faith and a sowing in hope, in a different sense and degree even from most missionary work ; it is so comparatively seldom that the one who sows the seed can watch the springing blade, much less gather in the ripened grain. Yet there have been cases where the result of work has been seen by the first worker, even “after many days.” Mr. Weber tells us how, during his journey from Poo to Leh, when his faith and patience were greatly tried by the apparent fruitlessness of his work at the former place, he found among the Christians at the American Presbyterian Mission in the province of Kullu, the family of a man who had been converted at Poo, but who had left the place. The 102 The Great Closed Land. man himself had been dead for three years, but two of his daughters were leading Christian lives and bringing up their children for God. If there are these powerful adverse factors to be reckoned with in the soil on which the missionary has to work, we must not overlook the depressing influences which have to be met by them as regards their personal life and circumstances. On the Kashmir side, where the Moravians have been at work for forty years, we hear of their having to wait three and four months together in their lonely stations, lo.ooo feet above the sea, with no news from any part of the outer world, though they have only a mountain range between themselves and the Punjaub, this barrier, however, being impass- able from snow and ice ; and of a three months’ journey over a mountain path on foot or on a yak being necessary even in summer in order to reach the nearest mission station to their own. Evangelistic journeys are taken over bleak plains, and passes higher than Mount Blanc, where the atmosphere is so rare that breathing becomes an extreme pain, and man and beast alike suffer agonies from the “ pass sickness,” or the traveller is overtaken by a thick mist, or an avalanche thunders down the mountain side, or masses of rock and earth rush so suddenly NOOSE AND BAMBOOS FOR ROPE BRIDGE. Helps and Hindrances. 103 down upon the path he is walking on, that to save his life he has to leap into the river below and hide behind a rock till the stormy torrent has rolled past him. Or a river has to be crossed which, in the absence of bridges and the presence of the fierce current, is accomplished by lying between the legs of a yak hide, which has been filled with air, the ferryman lying beneath the traveller, and steering the strange craft, partly with his feet, partly by means of a paddle which he holds in his hand. Or the river may be crossed by a bridge of wood, or of willow and birch twigs intertwined, which, though it is built into the mason work on each side, is left unrenewed till the twigs rot and finally give way under the foot of the pedestrian ; or, even if the bridge is fairly strong, it will be so high and so narrow, and so destitute of anything in the way of support, even for the hand, that only absolute necessity will supply the courage required to cross the rushing water on such a footway ; or, it may happen that the only way of crossing is by a hempen rope, to which a movable loop is attached, in which the traveller sits, and lets himself slip to the other side. On the Chinese side there is not the utter isolation experienced by the Moravian missionaries, as the nearest mission station, Chentu, can be reached in a fortnight from Sung-pan ; but the near neighbourhood of the Chinese, as will be readily understood, creates a special clement of difficulty. Every- where the missionary is jealously watched, and at any moment his work may be stopped by official interference or popular resistance. The difficulty of getting at the people, or of following up any impression made, is as great here as on the other side of the country, as is also the stunted spiritual life of the people, and the absence of any sense of personal responsibility. Here, too, there are all the difficulties attendant upon pioneer work, the paucity of workers, the absence of native Christians, and of the respect for Christianity and interest in it which results from the consistent Christian life lived year after year among the people, as well as the preparedness of heart which cannot but follow the prayers of those who for years have borne before the Lord the burden of the people for whom they have been living and working. Added to all this, there is the difficulty of getting teachers, and the fact that the people are utterly unaccustomed to hearing their language spoken by foreigners, and therefore are not able to make out for themselves what is brokenly or imperfectly expressed, as those are among whom foreigners have resided for many years. 104 The Great Closed Land. And lastly, whether on the eastern, or western, or southern border, there are the facts, admitted by all pioneer missionaries, that the earliest converts from a false religion are almost invariably very weak, from the effect of the blighting influence of their former habits of thought and life, and also that on every hand they are exposed to terrible trial and temptation, with nothing external to help them, except the atmosphere of the mission house, which at best they can breathe but seldom ; so that often the most hopeful converts fall back to some of their old heathen practices. We can understand just a little of the disappointment felt by the patient toilers at Poo, when in 1889, after twenty-two years of lonely, longing, prayerful labour, the only two Christian families in the village had to be excluded from the Christian church, though later, when their professed repentance had been proved, they were re- admitted. In Tibet, it has been pre-eminently a “sowing in tears;” surely the “ reaping in joy” cannot be far distant. Turning now to the circumstances favourable to work among the Tibetans we notice, first, the absence of any open opposition from the people. In Lahoul, the missionaries are treated with coolness, owing greatly to the prevalence of caste in that part of the country. In Ladak, the people are distinctly friendly, both from natural hospitality and also from their isolated position. Both here, and on the Chinese border, there is a general readiness to listen ; especially on the Chinese side the absence is notable of the contempt and suspicion with which foreigners are uniformly regarded by the Chinese. The Tibetans treat them with marked respect, and listen with attention and interest to all that is said to them ; this is often the case even with the lamas. Then their veneration for all religious books is a great help in dealing with the Tibetans. A Tibetan bows down before every book he sees, and lays it on his head, indicating his desire that its blessing may rest upon him. They are always ready to take Christian books in their own language, often eager to buy them, and having bought them, they keep them and read them, sometimes even saying spontaneously that the teaching in them is better than that in their own books. In cases of sickness they have been known to tear pages out of the Gospels, roll them into pills, and swallow them as charms. It is impossible to say how far the written Word of God may spread to the interior of the country, nor to what extent it may even now be preparing the Helps and Hindrances. 105 way for the entrance of those who will teach it. The whole New Testament, as well as several tracts, have been translated into Tibetan by the Moravians, and many have been sent into the country ; it is known that tracts and portions of Scripture have reached Lh’asa, and inquirers have come thousands of miles to the Moravian stations, saying they have read their books, and want to know more of the doctrines taught in them. Another great help to missionary work in Tibet is the equality of the sexes. It is not the case with the women in Tibet, as with those in China and India, that they can only be reached by women, and by personal visitation. There is no female degradation or seclusion, but a woman may take her place in the crowd in the open air, or with the men in the house, and listen to the preaching of the male missionary, as freely as a man ; though even this again is not to be classed wholly on the side of advantage, as the women are not only as free as the men, but also as busy, or even more so, and when they come into the towns, are so taken up with their business, their buying and selling and getting gain, that they can seldom find time to listen to those who would speak to them of heavenly treasure, contrasting strongly in this with their Chinese sisters, who from very lack of interest and occu- pation are always glad to receive a Christian visitor, and to listen to the story she has to tell. One of the greatest encouragements to those who have laboured longest among the Tibetans, that is, to those on the western border, is the altered attitude of the people towards Christianity and its teachers. When Mr. Paged first went to Poo, in 1865, the inhabitants recommended him, as a site for his house, a spot over which they knew that great quantities of stones and earth rolled down from the mountains every year, in the hope that, by the first such downpour, the building would be destroyed. Now the people are all well-disposed, and the Rajah of Kunawur was but speaking the truth when he said, “ It is true that the missionaries at Poo have not a great number of converts, but the people love them as if they were their father and mother.” There is a marked improvement too in the behaviour at the services. At first, the people used to interrupt constantly by talking and arguing with one another over anything with which they did not agree ; now, the older attendants put a stop at once to any such action on the part of new comers. In the early days of the mission, the congregation sat on carpets on the floor, H io6 The Great Closed Land. but when the converts heard that in other countries Christians sat on seats, they provided benches at their own expense. They have also greatly improved in the cleanliness of their persons, and dress, and houses, so that, in the Province of Kunawur it has been said by the Tibetans themselves, that it is easy to recognise a man belonging to Poo by his appearance. Then again the very loneliness and isolation have been a means of growth and blessing to the workers, and thus of strength to the work. This cannot be better illustrated than by a conversation held between Mrs. Bishop and some of the Moravian missionaries, whom she was visiting in their lonely station. Seeing how completely they were separated from the rest of the Christian world, she put to them the natural question : “ How is it that you are able to maintain so high a tone of spirituality, when you are so cut off from all Christian privileges, and so surrounded by heathenism ? ” The reply given was : “ We find it necessary to spend an unusual amount of time in the reading of God’s Word, and in prayer.” In answer to the next question : “ How can you be so cheerful and hopeful, shut up as you are, and seeing so little result of your work ? ” she was told : “ We are where the Lord has placed us, and it is all right, and that keeps us cheerful.” CHAPTER XL CONCLUSION, OR INTRODUCTION ? K' EADER ! It is for you to decide which it shall be. This book has been written in the hope that it may be wholly an Introduction for you, with no Conclu- sion, either in Time or in Eternity. If you have read it so far, it has taught you something, however little, of the condi- tion and the need of the Great Closed Land. To that at least it has introduced you, or even if much of the information contained in it is not fresh to you, it has been a reminder of what you already knew. Now, we have come to the end, or shall it be to a new beginning? Shall the Conclusion of the whole matter be that you will lay aside the book, and with it the responsi- bility of having read it? or will you as up the country and its people, with their let it be to you an Introduction to a life- interest and a life-service ? It has been sent out into the world with the prayer that it may be nothing less than this to every servant of God into whose hands it may come. Tibet is a Closed Land, closed not only to the messengers of the Lord, but to the Lord whose message they bear. It has to be opened, for never till this is done, can the parting command of Him whom we call Master and 107 SILVER CHARM-BOX (.MADE AT LH’ASA). you lay down the book, take need and their destitution, and io8 The Great Closed Land. Lord be obeyed. “All the world” includes Tibet, and “every creature” includes the Tibetans. Therefore the closed gates must be opened, the surrounding ramparts must be brought down. How shall it be accomplished ? The ardent curiosity of the explorer cannot force the position. The armies of earth are comparatively powerless against the mighty barrier with which Nature herself has fortified it. Even the zeal and love of the missionary can only take him to the border land, and keep him there in patience, working and waiting for the day which he knows, on His Lord’s authority, is coming, when over the mountains and plains of Tibet the Gospel shall be preached “ as a witness ” to this nation also. The omnipotence of the Almighty God is the only power that can open a way for His Word, and for Himself, and for His witnesses into this Closed Land. Do you ask. Why has He not done it ? Surely it is His own voice that speaks the answer — “ This kind can go forth by nothing but by prayer.” “ I will break in pieces the gates of brass and cut in sunder the bars of iron.” “ I will yet for this be enquired of.” “ Ye have not, because ye ask not.” “ Hitherto have ye asked nothing in My name: ask and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full.” “ They cried unto the Lord in their trouble. . . . He hath broken the gates of brass, and cut the bars of iron in sunder.” There was a closed prison-house in an Eastern city, closed by a mighty monarch, and closed with a definite intention ; it was “ kept ” by “ keepers before the door,” and the prisoner within was “ guarded ” by Roman soldiers. But he was the Lord’s prisoner, and his Master was caring for him ; at the touch of the hand of one of His angels, who “do His commandments, heark- ening unto the voice of His word,” the “chains” and the “ wards ” and the “ iron gates ” and the “ keepers ” and the “ intentions ” of the monarch, were all as wax melting before the fire ; the bands were loosed, and the prisoner was free. But what was the secret of that mighty deliverance, of that sudden putting forth of the Divine power ? There was a human agency at work, and the Divine was the response to the human. “ Peter was kept in prison, but prayer was made without ceasing of the Church unto God for him,” and Conclusion, or hitrodiiction ? 109 at the very hour when the messenger of the Lord opened the closed doors, “ many were gathered together praying.” “ Prayer moves the Hand that moves the worlds,” the Hand that breaks the gates of brass, and cuts the bars of iron in sunder, the Hand that openeth and no man shutteth. Are there no prison doors to-day fast-closed for lack of prayer? of your prayer and mine? Jericho was a city “straitly shut up,” into which the Lord purposed to give His people an abundant entrance. What did He wait for? Was it not for the patience and faith of the whole nation ? Before a single stone had fallen from the fortress “ walled up to Heaven,” the word went forth, “ The Lord hath given you the city yet it was “by faith” that “the walls of Jericho fell down.” It will be so with this fortress of the enemy. Instead of going up to it with a united front, with “all the men of war,” as Israel did to Jericho, the Church of God, you and I, my reader, included, have left it to a handful of soldiers to compass the city about. Is it any wonder that instead of falling in seven days, the walls are as firm to-day as ever they were? Tibet is waiting, the few scattered workers are waiting, the Lord of the Harvest is waiting for your faith and mine, for the united “compassing” and the united shout of expectancy, which shall bring down the proud walls that no other force can shake. Will you lend yourself for this journey of faith? Will you lend your voice to take part in this “ great shout ” ? In 1890 the Moravian Missionary Society started a Tibet Prayer Union, in response to an appeal of one of their own missionaries in that country. At present this Union numbers forty members, besides three branches of the Young People’s Society of Christian Endeavour, all having agreed to cry continually to God that He will open the way for His Gospel into this Closed Land. Already there are tokens of a rising interest in Tibet and its people. The Rev. G. M. Bullock of Almora wrote to Mr. Cecil Polhill-Turner in November, 1893: “The day does not seem distant now, when the glad sound shall reach the Tibetans’ ears ; certainly many eyes are looking that way, and many hearts are making supplication for the Tibetans.” Do the looking eyes and the supplicating hearts include yours ? Shall they from this day ? It has been felt by some upon whose hearts Tibet and its needs have long been pressing, that the day has come when this Prayer Union should be put 1 10 The Great Closed Land. upon a broader basis, an opinion in which the present Secretary of the Union, the Rev. B. La Trobe, heartily concurs, though, from the pressure of other work, he is unable himself to undertake the management of an enlarged Association. It may be that this book will fall into the hands of some God- chosen man or woman, who could undertake the Secretaryship of a freshly constituted Tibet Prayer Union in which the former Union would thenceforth be merged. Such a secretary would supply information to the members from time to time, as it comes to hand, from those who are working on the Eastern, Western, and Southern borders of Tibet. Until the new secretary is found Mr. La Trobe will continue to enrol members. He will gladly receive applications from any who may be led to offer to undertake the Secretaryship. Address — Moravian Missions, 7 Furnival’s Inn, E.C. And where are the warriors who, when the walls fall down, are to go in and “ take the city ” ? If the barriers were swept away to-morrow, how many could enter the open doors? Turn to the map and see how few and far between they are. What are they for such a country, for such a people ? As you cry to the Lord day by day that He will send His labourers into this closed part of His Harvest, will you wait at His feet and listen? There was a day in the earthly life of His only begotten Son, when, with the world’s need pressing upon Him, He exhorted His disciples to cry to His Father for labourers, and before many hours were over. He called to Him the twelve and “ sent them forth ” to be the first answer to their own prayer. As in obedience to your Lord’s command you too take up the same prayer, will you be prepared for the same sequel? As your cry goes up to Him, “Lord of the Harvest, send forth labourers into Thy Harvest,” it may well be that He who is looking on this closed field, with its few shut-out waiting workers, may answer, as He hears your prayer, “ Whom shall we send, and who will go for us?” If He asks that question of you, what shall the answer be ? If He wants you to have the honour of being one of the first to enter in, are you ready? If He asks you to send your son, your daughter, your brother, your sister, your dearest friend, your most valued helper, are you ready ? If He wants you to act as His steward, and to provide the means for another to go while you stay behind, are you ready ? “ Blessed is the man that heareth Me, watching daily at My gates, waiting at the posts of My doors.” Whatso- ever He saith unto jyou, do it, and do it now. Conclusion, or Introduction ? 1 1 1 In the Appendix will be found the names and of all the stations Protestant societies working among the Tibetans, with the addresses of the Secretaries, to whom offers of personal service or for the support of other workers may be made. “• Bear ye one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ!' “ Whosoever there is among you of all His people, his God be with him and let him go up .. . and build the house of the Lord. . . . And whosoever is left, in any place where he sojourneth, let the men of his place help him with silver and luith gold and with goods . . . beside the freewill offering for the house of God!' INTERIOR OF TIBETAN PRAYER-WHEEL. I 12 The Great Closed Land. APPENDIX. LIST OF PROTESTANT MISSIONARY SOCIETIES WORKING AMONG THE TIBETANS. Society. m^s^narieL Stations. Secretary's Address. Moravians, 4 Kyelang, . 7 Furni\al’s Inn, London, E.C. Do., 2 Poo, .... Do. Do., 4 Leh, .... Do. London Missionary Society, . .Almora, 14 Bloomfield Street, London, E.C. International Missionary Alliance, U.S.A., 7 D ar j i I i n g (learning language). 1528 Broadway, New York. ? Scandinavian .Alliance Mis- sion, U.S.A., 9 Near Jel Pass (learning language). 76 Point Street, Chicago. Miss Annie T.aylor (“ Tibetan Pioneer Mission ”), 15 Darjiling (learning language). W. Sharp, Esq., 13 Walbrook, London, E.C. China Inland Mission, . 2 Sung-pan, 2 Pyriand Road, Lon- don, N. LORIMEK AND GILLIES, PRINTERS, EDINBURGH. t', * I DS785 .M37 The great closed land