Buddist | Blue Lapis Road

DAY 2 (4/6): JOKHANG MONASTERY (ཇོ་ཁང། / 大昭寺), Lhasa (拉薩), Tibet (西藏), 2017.09.17

Maggie and I arrived at the Trichang Labrang Hotel at around 2pm, and were delighted to find Angela feeling much better after a good rest. We decided to head out together for a decent Tibetan meal. Recommended by Pazu, the owner of Spinn Cafe in Lhasa who also helped us to arrange a 4 wheel drive for our 6-day excursion, we decided to go to a nearby restaurant called “Our Tibetan Restaurant” (咱們的藏餐館). We walked east from our hotel towards the Muslim neighborhood, searched for a while until finally arrived at the old courtyard compound called Bangdacang Compound (邦達倉大院) where the restaurant was located in the courtyard. “Our Tibetan Restaurant” (咱們的藏餐館) offered many options of Tibetan and Chinese dishes and we had a delightful late lunch under a parasol and atmospheric Tibetan flags.

At 3:30pm, we finished our meal and walked out to the Barkhor Street towards Jokhang Monastery (ཇོ་ཁང། / 大昭寺). At the heart of Barkhor old city, the Jokhang is often considered to be the most sacred destination in the entire Tibet. Despite not all chapels were opened in the afternoon, we still wanted to visit the Jokhang before it closed for the day. We entered the monastery through its side door next to the ticket office. Immediately we arrived at a series of courtyards. We followed a designated route around the perimeter of the central courtyard to reach the entrance of the main hall. Similar to prayer halls at other Tibetan monasteries, rows of monk seats occupied the centre of the hall. Small chapels with religious statues flanked three sides of the hall. The main chapel at the centre housed a small statue of the Buddha called Jowo Shakyamuni.

Considered as the most sacred Buddhist image in Tibet, the statue was brought to Tibet from China by Wencheng Princess (文成公主) during the Tang Dynasty in the 7th century. She came to Tibet to marry Songtsen Gampo, the King of Tibet. To consolidate the foundation of Buddhism in Tibet, Songtsen erected a monastery to house the Jowo Shakyamuni. Known as the Jokhang, the monastery soon became the primary pilgrimage spot for all Tibetan Buddhists. The oldest part of the Jokhang dates back to 652. Since then, the monastery had gone through up and down times, depending on the popularity of Buddhism and political situations. The monastery was damaged in the 1960s during the Cultural Revolutuon, and took eight years to restore during the 1970s. In 2000, Jokhang was inscribed in the World Heritage list as an extension to the Potala.

After the main hall, we walked one level up to the roof terrace, where we could admire the golden ornaments of the architecture. Unfortunately the roof terrace where visitors could enjoy the view of the Potala was closed for renovation. We could only wander around the roof for a little bit before heading back down. Our tour of the monastery was brief but it offered us a decent introduction to Lhasa’s history and Tibetan Buddhism.

Bangdacang Compound (邦達倉大院) was only a few minute walk from our hotel.

“Our Tibetan Restaurant” (咱們的藏餐館) is located in the courtyard of the Bangdacang Compound (邦達倉大院).

We ordered yak meat and pancake.

The mushroom momos (Tibetan dumplings) were good and deserved a longer waiting time.

The forecourt of Jokhang is always busy with pilrims.

Inside Jokhang, the first courtyard beyond the ticket entrance was rather peaceful.

We walked around the inner perimeter of the central courtyard to admire the wall paintings.

It was late in the afternoon with few tourists.

Looking up, we could see parts of the golden ornament on the roof of Jokhang.

At one side of the courtyard, there was a seat reserved for the Dalai Lama.

Beautiful decorations could be seen everywhere in the building.

We walked around the central courtyard to check out the wall paintings.

The wall paintings had undergone extensive restorations in recent years.

Beyond the main hall were living quarters for monks.

After walking around the courtyard, we entered the main prayer hall through its old entrance door. Unfortunate photography was not allowed in the interior.