Tibet Tourism 6 - Records of Zhaji Monastery, Barkhor Street and Jokhang Temple

On the morning of October 9th, there were a lot of sightseeing targets today, all in Lhasa, and the tour guide was changed to a woman.

The tour guide first took us to Zhaji Temple. Zhaji Temple is located on Zhaji Road in the northern suburbs of Lhasa. It is the only temple of wealth in Tibet. Although the temple is small, it is very popular. Zhaji Temple is a branch of the Sera Temple of the Gelug Sect of Tibetan Buddhism. It is also a temple that can be visited for free.

In Tibetan, "Zhaba" means monk or monk, and "Ji" is the Tibetan diacritical sound of the number "4". Zhaji Temple means "a temple with four monks". This is because the original Zhaji The temple is only managed by four monks sent from Sera Temple.

The "God of Wealth" of Zhaji Temple is called "Zhaji Ram" in Tibetan. It is said that this is the earthly incarnation of the "Auspicious Heavenly Mother", the protector of Lhasa City. She originally lived in Han Dynasty, and later came to Lhasa with a master of Sera Monastery who went to Han Dynasty (it is also said that she entered Tibet with Princess Wencheng), and was later Enshrined in Zaki Temple. Zhaji Temple is recognized as the only temple of wealth in Tibet.

There is basically no written information about Zhaji Temple. Local Tibetan compatriots say: Zhaji Temple is dedicated to the God of Wealth, and it is particularly efficacious. But in fact, this temple was not prosperous at first because of seeking wealth and incense. It is said that this temple was originally set up specifically for outsiders to seek peace, but most of the outsiders were businessmen. As a result, this place gradually became what everyone calls the Temple of Wealth. The goddess Zhaji enshrined in the side hall of the temple is said to be from the mainland and is said to be very efficacious. Therefore, unlike other temples in Tibet, this temple is worshiped by many believers from the mainland or Han nationality.

According to Tibetan compatriots, worship the God of Wealth every Monday, Wednesday for peace, and Friday for health. The God of Wealth in Zhaji Temple is particularly addicted to alcohol. When worshiping, you can buy a bottle of liquor and several bundles of mugwort and pine leaves in the small shop at the entrance of the temple. If convenient, bring your own hada and ghee (bring a small spoon), and change them. Good change goes into worshiping.

The above is the background information. I learned about it before coming here. Now let’s talk about the specific experience.

After the minibus tour bus drove into the temple, I paid attention to the door. There was a blue door plaque. In front of the door were two stone lions common in the Central Plains. The lions were holding colorful ribbons for prayer flags. It was easy to see from the layout in front of the door. Zhaji Temple is a combined Chinese and Tibetan temple.

Sure enough, after entering the gate of Zhaji Temple, you are faced with a large incense burner. Many Han people are holding high-quality incense used in mainland temples and worshiping devoutly. The courtyard of the temple is as big as a basketball court and the incense is very strong.

After the incense burner is the main hall of the temple. On the west side of the main hall is a shop where tourists can buy khatas, wine and other offerings. Further to the west is the side hall. In front of the door, there are many Tibetans kowtowing devoutly. The east and west wing rooms and the south room of the courtyard where Zhaji Temple is located are two stories high and should be the living quarters of the monks.

Except for photography in the courtyard, photography is not allowed in any room around the courtyard. So I can only describe what I saw and heard in words.

I followed a group of pilgrims into the main hall. There were four or five elderly Tibetan women sitting at the door begging for alms. After entering the main hall, I found that there were more people inside, including Chinese and Tibetan people. People were walking around the main hall, surrounded by various unknown Buddha statues. Many people threw banknotes into the merit box in front of the Buddha statue every few steps. , and in the center of the main hall, there are many monks sitting around. The monk at the door is responsible for recording the merits of pilgrims who have donated relatively large amounts. Then there are seven or eight monks chanting sutras, because they are chanting sutras in Tibetan, and they are not chanting in unison. , so I couldn’t understand anything but seemed a little noisy. Behind the chanting monks is a few meters of open space. There is a pile of money nearly half a meter high on the ground, with various denominations ranging from 1 dime to 100 yuan. These are just thrown by individual tourists, and they were just opened at around 9 am. It’s really worthy of the name. It’s a prosperous Temple of Wealth! The video circulating on the Internet of a group of monks counting money pales in comparison to the mountains of money seen here. It is not a sin for a monk to donate money, and it is also necessary to make offerings to the Three Jewels. The key depends on how and where the money is used. I once heard from a tour guide that temples usually use their money to help the poor or support students and other good deeds. If this is true, how lucky it is!

When we were almost at the door, there were monks touching the tops of the pilgrims' heads. Regardless of whether you donated money or not, as long as we lowered our heads, the monks would tap some kind of magic weapon wrapped in cloth on the top of our heads. This should be a blessing and blessing. the meaning of. But the next monk who hands out glutinous rice cakes is different. After the pilgrims donate money, he will hand out a glutinous rice cake the size of a broad bean to you, but if you don't throw the money in front of him, even if you ask for the glutinous rice cake, it will be useless. This is different from giving alms in inland temples. I don’t know what the explanation is, but it feels quite mysterious anyway.

Zhaji Temple is not big and can be visited in forty minutes. Lao Liu does not seek to get rich, he is satisfied with enough food and clothing, so he does not throw away money to ask for help from the gods. Lao Liu has always believed that whether a person has wealth depends on one's innate blessings and one's hard work; the same goes for health, one depends on one's innate genetic quality, and two depends on acquired maintenance and exercise. Asking gods for help always seems quite mysterious. , no matter how much RMB I throw away, Master Zakiram can’t spend it. He still has to help so many pilgrims get rich and keep healthy every day. He is busy enough, so I won’t cause trouble for her old man.

In front of the Zhaji Temple, there is a stone lion unique to China, but the stone lion is covered with Tibetan prayer flags and ribbons, just like a mighty general wearing floral clothes, which looks very funny.

The plaque has gold characters on a blue background, written in both Chinese and Tibetan languages. The color has a Chinese royal style, but the font and font are obviously from the Tibetan system. The Chinese characters are not only thin, but also much smaller than Tibetan. I secretly guess that if it was not the result of compromise, then the person who designed the plaque must be a Tibetan.

After entering the courtyard, it is completely in traditional Tibetan style. Directly opposite the door is the main hall.

Above the main hall, two sacred sheep face an eight-spoke golden wheel, which is a unique temple symbol in Tibet.

The prayer wheel on the top of the temple is magnificent and shines in the sun.

The incense here is very strong, and there is an endless stream of devotees seeking wealth, health and peace.

This is the entrance to the main hall. There are several elderly Tibetan women asking for money. Is this considered begging?

There is a shop on the west side of the main hall, where you can buy various items needed to worship the gods.

Further west of the store is a side hall, and the door is full of Tibetans kowtow.

The mezzanine and curtains above the side hall

At the entrance of the side hall, there were seven or eight Tibetans kowtowing devoutly.

When prostrating, clasping the hands together indicates that one has understood the Buddha's will and teachings. Touching the forehead, mouth, and chest indicates that the body, speech, and mind are integrated with the Buddha. Believers believe that in a lifetime of practice, they must kowtow at least 100,000 times and barefoot when kowtowing, in order to be considered pious.

Kowtow to the long head means the head is as long as the body, the five bodies are thrown to the ground and the hands are extended straight in front of the body, and so on again and again. From the time I came here to the day I left, they kept kowtowing. For Tibetans, it is common for Tibetans to kowtow thousands of times a day.

There is a two-story building on the west side of the side hall, which should be the monk's office.

The carved beams and paintings upstairs are colorful and beautiful.

The east side hall of Zhaji Temple is not open to the public. It looks like a high-end dormitory area and storage area

At the junction of the east hall and the main hall, it is easy to see that the Tibetan temple style is rich and colorful, which is very different from the simple and solemn style of mainland temples.

At the junction of the west hall and the main hall, the color and architectural style have changed significantly.

The main style of the west hall is yellow, which should be the office space of the monks.

The entire row in the south room is the dormitories for monks.

There is a large prayer wheel on each side of the gate of Zhaji Temple.

There is a Tibetan woman in the shadow at the entrance of Zhaji Temple, asking every tourist who comes out for money. I wonder if the God of Wealth will bless her if I give her money?

This is the great god Zakiram enshrined in Zaki Temple. If it is a full-length statue, you can still see her chicken claw-like hands. Photography is not allowed inside the palace, so I found the pictures online.

After leaving Zhaji Temple, the next destination is Jokhang Temple. The original route did not include the Jokhang Temple, but the Jokhang Temple is so famous that all tourists agreed to organize a group visit at their own expense. If you want to go to the Jokhang Temple, you must pass through Barkhor Street, because the Jokhang Temple is surrounded by Barkhor Street.

The circle surrounding the Sakyamuni Buddha Hall in the center of the Jokhang Temple is called "Nangkuo", the circle surrounding the outer wall of Jokhang Temple is called "Bakuo", and the streets radiating out from the Jokhang Temple are called "Bakuo Street", that is, Bajiao Street. . With the Jokhang Temple as the center and including the Potala Palace, Yaowang Mountain and Ramoche Temple, the large circle is called "Lin Kuo". These three rings from the inside to the outside are the routes used by Tibetans to perform prayer rituals.

Barkhor Street, also known as Bajiao Street, is located in the old city of Lhasa. It is a famous turning road and commercial center in Lhasa. It has relatively completely preserved the traditional appearance and living style of the ancient city. The original street of Barkhor Street was just a single prayer path around the Jokhang Temple, which Tibetans called the "holy road". Over the years, it gradually expanded into a large area of ​​old-style neighborhoods surrounding the Jokhang Temple.

There is no shopping spot designated by travel agencies here. The tour guide advised us not to buy anything here, saying that the shops here are all opened by outsiders, and there are people chasing you to sell things. In addition, many of the products are the personal belongings of people after burials in the sky. They are sold here. , in short, when buying things here, you need to be cautious. I don’t know why the businesses here offended the travel agency so hard.

Because the Jokhang Temple attractions were temporarily added, Barkhor Street had no choice but to take a quick tour. Originally, I wanted to see the place where the 6th Dalai Lama and his lover Magyami had a tryst, and experience the kind of spiritual practice and love of Tsangyang Gyatso. The complex and contradictory feelings that are difficult to choose, and the poignant love story between him and his lover. Unfortunately, time does not allow, so I have to use one of his poems to commemorate this only poet in Tibetan history and a very influential poet. Dalai Lama.

Live in the Potala Palace,

I am the biggest king.

Wandering on the streets of Lhasa,

I am the most beautiful lover in the world.

I am afraid that being sentimental will harm my holy life,

When entering the mountains, I am afraid of falling into the city by mistake.

The world is safe and secure,

If you don’t live up to the Tathagata, you won’t live up to your Majesty. ''

"Maji Ami" of "Barkhor Street" continues to enrich romantic and touching stories with the passage of historical years. It will leave beautiful scenery and dreams in the minds of more and more people! ''

Come out of Zhaji Temple and walk into Barkhor Street

The branch streets are half narrower than the pedestrian streets in Xuanhua, but cars are allowed to enter, so they are more crowded.

There are various shops on the roadside

This is the outskirts of the Jokhang Temple. People all turn clockwise in one direction, and few people turn in the opposite direction.

To enter the main entrance of Jokhang Temple, you must go through security check

Tibetan old man resting after being tired from praying on the street

There were many people holding prayer wheels on the street, but I didn’t see anyone kowtow.

woman in national costume

Women begging with children on their backs on Barkhor Street

After passing through the security checkpoint in the middle of Barkhor Street, we arrived in front of the Jokhang Temple. The temple was originally called "Jhasa", and later "Jhasa" became the name of the city and evolved into the current "Lhasa". After the completion of the Jokhang Temple, it was repeatedly modified and expanded in the Yuan, Ming and Qing dynasties, forming a huge building complex with a construction area of ​​more than 25,000 square meters. The main Buddhist halls in the temple include the Sakyamuni Hall, Tsongkhapa Hall, Songtsen Gampo Hall, Bandan Lhamo Hall (the protector of the Gelug Sect), God Sheep Remujem Hall, Tibetan King Hall, etc. .

As the holiest temple of Tibetan Buddhism, the Jokhang Temple does not belong to any sect. In the past, the summoning ceremony was held here every year, and the ordination ceremonies of the Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama were held here. In Lhasa, Tibetans call the Barkhor Street area centered on the Jokhang Temple "Lhasa", which means "Buddha Land" in Tibetan. The Jokhang Temple is the center of Lhasa people's life, and everything they do revolves around it. This shows the importance of the Jokhang Temple in the daily life of the Lhasa people. In addition, the Jokhang Temple is also a holy place for all Buddhist believers. Tibetan Buddhism They don't have to visit it, after all, it's just a branch of Buddhism, but Jokhang Temple must be a pilgrimage because there is a twelve-year-old life-size statue of the Buddha. During his travels in Tibet, Lao Liu met several mainland layman tour groups and several mainland Zen monks. They told me that the main purpose of coming to Tibet was to make a pilgrimage to the Jokhang Temple. In the hearts of Buddhist believers, the Jokhang Temple's status is just like Mecca's status among Islamic believers. It is a sacred place that they yearn for throughout their lives. Therefore, the Jokhang Temple is not only the center of Tibetan Buddhism, but also a holy place for Buddhist disciples around the world.

Since the status of the Jokhang Temple is so important, it is very necessary for us to understand its development process in detail. After Lao Liu compiled the information these days, combined with the stories and legends he learned when he came to Tibet, he introduced it in the form of boiled vernacular for the convenience of everyone. It is easy to understand and will also help Lao Liu remember in his old age.

The reason why Jokhang Temple is so famous is because there is a life-size statue of Sakyamuni at the age of twelve. So what is a life-size statue? It is said that more than two thousand years ago, after Sakyamuni became the Buddha, he had many disciples. Before the Buddha passed away, the Buddha's disciples asked, "What do we want you to do after you leave?" There were no cameras at that time, and it was not easy to preserve the paintings on paper, so Gautama Buddha made three life-size statues of himself at the three ages before he became a Buddha according to his own appearance. , a twelve-year-old statue, a twenty-five-year-old statue. This was made by the Buddha himself, and it is a statue of himself. It is extremely special and even more precious than the Buddha's relics. It can be called the supreme and holy treasure in the Buddhist world.

In the subsequent historical development, due to exchanges between the religious community and the country, the eight-year-old statue was given to Nepal, the twelve-year-old statue was given to Tang Dynasty, and the twenty-five-year-old statue remained in India. Until India became a British colony, the British devils wanted to take this treasure to their own country. As a result, it was unknown whether the Buddha appeared or someone deliberately destroyed it on the way. In the end, the twenty-five-year-old statue, including the man and the boat, sank forever. Indian Ocean.

So, why did the two life-size statues in Nepal and Tang Dynasty end up in Tubo? This starts with Princess Wencheng’s marriage. Before Princess Wencheng set out for Tubo, she proposed to Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty that she would bring a twelve-year-old life-size statue to Tubo as a dowry. At that time, Li Shimin was very unhappy. You know, this Buddha statue is a national treasure. Owning the Buddha statue is equivalent to owning it. Gathering the popularity of all Buddhist scholars, but I can't stand it. Princess Chizun of Nepal, with her eight-year-old life-size statue, was married to Tibet three years earlier than Princess Wencheng. If the dowry of our Princess of the Tang Dynasty is too shabby and people look down upon it, why not? Compared with the small barbarian country of Nepal, coupled with the political purpose of this marriage, Li Shimin finally bit his teeth and stamped his feet, take it away! Just like that, the only two life-size statues of Buddha left in the world arrived in Tubo. Songtsen Gampo was so beautiful that he not only brought home beautiful princesses from great countries, but also obtained two supreme and holy treasures in the Buddhist world.

Princess Wencheng and her wedding team traveled for more than two years. After arriving in Tubo, one day when they were approaching the Potala Palace, the wheels of the carriage carrying the Buddha statue got stuck in the ground and could not be come out. Princess Wencheng was well versed in the Five Elements and Bagua and Yin Yang Yili found that this was an excellent place to build a temple, so he told Songtsen Gampo that the Buddha appeared and asked me to build a temple there. Songtsen Gampo immediately agreed. When Princess Chizun heard this, she said, "I want it too, I want it too!" At that time, in the Tubo Dynasty, Princess Chizun and Princess Wencheng had equal status in name, so Songtsen Gampo said, OK, OK, everything will be built, everything will be built. establish! So the princesses of the two countries each directed their own craftsmen to select sites to build temples. The King of Tibet, Songtsen Gampo, was not idle either. He evened out a bowl of water, and both parties tried their best to help. After all, the temple still belonged to him in Tubo after it was built.

The construction of the Ramoche Temple went smoothly, but the construction of the Jokhang Temple encountered incredible difficulties. It was built during the day and collapsed at night. This happened for several days in a row. Princess Chizun was depressed and wanted to ask Princess Wencheng for advice, but she couldn't bear to face it. After all, she was married three years ago and she wanted to be her sister. So Princess Chizun sent her personal maid to bring gifts to ask Princess Wencheng for advice. Princess Wencheng didn't care, and led the Tang Dynasty's Yin and Yang Feng Shui masters to come to check. After many days of inspection, they found that the terrain of snowy Lhasa was like a "Rakshasa Witch" lying facing the sky. The location of the Jokhang Temple is right at the heart of the witch, and the witch must be restrained by a method specific to the Central Plains. It turns out that the location of the Jokhang Temple was originally a natural lake named Wotang Lake. Princess Wencheng discovered based on the "Eighty Observation Methods of Five Elements Calculation" of the Tang Dynasty that the heart of the "Rakshasa Girl" is exactly the Wotang Lake. The lake water seems to be the blood surging in the heart of the Rakshasa Girl. If you want to completely frighten the witch, you need to hit it directly. heart. In order to change the feng shui, Wotang Lake must be filled up before a Buddhist temple can be built to nourish all living beings in the snowy land. The King of Tibet trusted Princess Wencheng very much and constructed the temple in full compliance with Princess Wencheng's requirements. The first step was to fill the pit with soil. The King of Tibet recruited thousands of sheep to carry the soil and filled it. Finally, the sheep were exhausted to death before filling the hole. The last two sheep that survived were given god-level treatment by the King of Zabet and were worshiped in the temple. , called the sacred sheep. From then on, there were two sheep kneeling symmetrically on both sides of the sacred wheel on the top of Tubo temples, which became the symbol of Tubo architecture and continues to this day.

After the soil was filled, the King of Tibet organized manpower to arrange the eight stone pillars in the Bagua pattern and nail them to the heart of the witch. This is the foundation of the Jokhang Temple and the origin of Barkhor Street. Later, the King of Tibet ordered the construction of twelve temples for suppressing demons on the main joints of the Rakshasa women's left and right hands and other limbs. He also built pagodas, stone lions, and great freedoms in other places with bad feng shui. The sky statue, the roc bird, the white snail, etc., completely suppressed the witch, and from then on Tibet became a geomantic treasure land.

The Ramoche Temple was built in the middle of the 7th century in 641, and the Jokhang Temple was finally built in the 21st year of Zhenguan in the Tang Dynasty (647). The Ramoche Temple was completed six years earlier than the Jokhang Temple. The two temples are inseparable. Far away, the distance is only 500 meters. This is the origin of Xiaozhao Temple. Therefore, the Jokhang Temple was built by Tibetan King Songtsen Gampo for Princess Chizun to enter Tibet. Therefore, the gate of Jokhang Temple opens to the west, facing the direction of Nepal; while the Ramoche Temple was built for Princess Wencheng, and its gate opens towards the direction of Nepal. The one that opens east is towards Chang'an of the Tang Dynasty.

Since the Jokhang Temple was built for Princess Chizun, why is it now enshrining the twelve-year-old life-size statue brought by Princess Wencheng? But Ramoche Temple houses the eight-year-old life-size statue brought by Princess Chizun? In other words, why were the two life-size statues interchanged later? There is another story here.

After Songtsen Gampo's death, because Princess Wencheng had no children, she was not as lucky as Wang Zhaojun. Princess Wencheng was unable to participate in the national power, which fell into the hands of Prime Minister Lu Dongzan. Lu Dongzan pursued an expansion policy, so the Tang Dynasty and Tubo The war was rekindled and lasted until Mangsong Mangzan was in power. The Tang Dynasty entered the era of Empress Wu Zetian. Wu Zetian was as talented as Li Shimin. Since Tubo is disobedient, let me get the treasure back. So they sent troops deep into Tubo territory to retrieve the life-size statue. This made Tubo so nervous that some eminent monks and devout nobles secretly hid the 12-year-old life-size Buddha statue of Ramoche Temple in the secret room of the south chamber of Jokhang Temple. At the same time, all monks living in Ramoche Temple were expelled.

It was not until more than a hundred years later that Emperor Zhongzong of the Tang Dynasty married Princess Jincheng to the King of Tibet during the 36th generation of King Tride Songtsan of Tibet. Tubo once again set off a cultural craze for Buddhism. After Princess Jincheng inquired about the whereabouts of the 12-year-old life-size Buddha statue, she took the statue out of the secret wall and enshrined it in the Jokhang Temple. They also took the eight-year-old statue of Sakyamuni carried by Princess Chizun and enshrined it in Ramoche Temple, and arranged for Han monks to manage all religious ceremonies. Therefore, the two Buddha statues were moved to the temple. Since then, the Jokhang Temple has enshrined a life-size statue of Sakyamuni at the age of twelve for more than a thousand years until today.

The terrain of snowy Lhasa is like a "Rakshasa witch" lying facing the sky. The heart of "Rakshasa Girl" is exactly the Wotang Lake. The water in the lake seems to be the blood surging in the heart of Rakshasa Girl. After the lake was filled up, the Jokhang Temple was built.

Later, the King of Tibet ordered the construction of twelve temples for suppressing demons on the main joints of the Rakshasa women's left and right hands and other limbs. He also built pagodas, stone lions, and great freedoms in other places with bad feng shui. The sky statue, the roc bird, the white snail, etc. finally suppressed the witch completely.

On the mountain far to the right of Jokhang Temple is the Potala Palace...

The willow tree nearby is the "Princess Willow"... According to legend, it was planted by Princess Wencheng.

The eight-year-old life-size statue of Gautama Buddha was brought from Nepal by Princess Chizun.

A life-size statue of Sakyamuni at the age of twelve, brought from the Tang Dynasty by Princess Wencheng

Every year, a large number of believers apply to have the Buddha statues gilded. I paid attention to the price. It cost more than 800 yuan to paint the face and more than 10,000 yuan to paint the whole body.

Princess Wencheng enters Tibetan Thangka

Princess Jincheng enters Tibet thangka

The eight-year-old life-size statue was sawed in half by Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution. No one mentions the Cultural Revolution now, but it was that period that resulted in countless unjust, false and wrongful cases, the destruction of a large number of historical relics, and even this national treasure suffered catastrophe.

Later, the Panchen Lama found the sawed-off upper body from Beijing, repaired it, and put it back in Ramoche Temple.

Statue of Tibetan King Songtsen Gampo in Jokhang Temple

On the statue of Princess Wencheng, Lao Liu noticed that Princess Wencheng was on the left side of the King of Tibet. The left has always been the most respected person in China. This shows that Princess Wencheng’s actual status is higher than that of Princess Chizun.

Princess Chizun on the right side of Songtsen Gampo

The development history of the Jokhang Temple has finally been clarified. Let’s talk about the tour experience. When we visited the Jokhang Temple, the tour guide asked us to spend 30 yuan each to rent a pair of multiple headsets so that we could listen to her explanations at any time. Unexpectedly, we could no longer hear her voice soon after entering the main hall. It was scattered because there were too many people. If Zhaji Temple is like a stream of people entering, then the Jokhang Temple is just drifting with the tide. Once you enter the passage, there is no chance to look back. You are pushed forward by people. After passing a few forks, let alone people, just Even the sound was drowned out.

Then you have to visit it yourself. I mainly visited along the inner outline, that is, inside the octagonal columns. The main hall is three stories high, with side halls on both sides. The layout and structure reflect the fusion of Chinese, Tibetan, Nepalese and other styles. Walking in the corridor of the main hall, I looked at the Buddha statues one after another on the left and right, admired the exquisite murals and wood carvings from more than a thousand years ago, and watched all kinds of people throwing money at the merits everywhere. In the box or on the ground, the biggest feeling is that it is too crowded! First of all, the building is crowded. Whether it is the columns leading to the top or the structural layout of each floor, it is extremely compact and crowded. The corridor is only more than one meter wide. Everyone is crowded in the corridor, like a can of meat. As for each floor There is only enough room for two people to pass by each other up and down the stairs. Perhaps this is the architectural style after the integration at that time. At that time, Tubo was a vast land with few people, so the people at the time must have been shocked that it was a huge building. Perhaps it was also due to the cost. restrictions, they did not accept the grandeur of the Chinese royal buildings. I guess they could not have imagined that the Jokhang Temple now receives tens of thousands of people every day. The crowds are so crowded that it seriously affects the effect and interest of the visit, causing this and the management of the Jokhang Temple. This is because they did not impose ticket purchase restrictions like the Potala Palace did, and they did not divert traffic on time. Whoever wanted to enter could enter as much as they wanted, which was why it was so crowded.

There is another important reason, that is, there is a problem with the order management in front of the twelve-year-old statue of Gautama Buddha. Ninety-nine percent of people who come to the Jokhang Temple come for the life-size statue of the Buddha. Including me, I hope to see the face of the Buddha with my own eyes and to kowtow in front of the life-size statue. It was worthwhile to come here, but when I walked nearby, I realized that, let alone kowtow, even taking a closer look was a luxury. The life-size statue is placed in a cave-like house that is twenty to thirty meters deep. There is only room for two or three people to stand side by side on the more than a dozen steps that are more than one meter high. Rows on each floor, the inside is already full of people. They If you don't come out, no one outside can get in. However, the scriptures they recited could not be finished for a while, and people outside could only wait. I looked from a distance through the gap between the human head and saw that the upper body of the life-size statue was naked and not wearing cassocks. There was a monk next to him who was painting the life-size statue with gold. I observed the Buddha statue from a distance for a while. Perhaps because of the distance, I didn’t have much impression, but the scene around me was particularly memorable. There were many Tibetan monks around me who were reciting unintelligible scriptures loudly. There were two adults, probably parents, one meter away. They were trying hard to make the space between them wider. Only then did I realize that there was a gap between them. Under the protection, a child less than three years old knelt on the ground and kowtowed. The child kowtowed very seriously and meticulously. This kind of sacred piety from the child was particularly touching. My eyes immediately became moist. I gave it to a child at such a young age. Plant a seed of Buddha and let him be kind to others, willing to help others, believe in cause and effect, and have faith from an early age. It is really a great kindness.

In addition to the children, I also found an old man sitting in a wheelchair and being pushed by a young man. It was easy to tell from the clothes of the two that they were from the Mainland. The old man's clothes were thick and his legs were covered with a blanket, which showed that he was very weak. . When I came to Tibet alone when I was only fifty years old, some people gave me thumbs up and admired me. How much risk and difficulty did he have to go through to come to Tibet in a wheelchair, as an old man in his seventies or eighties? However, when he came to the coveted Buddha statue, he could not see anything. Even like me, he had no chance to stand on tiptoes and take a look, let alone kowtow. He could only return with disappointment. Maybe this was He came to Tibet for the last time in his life, and perhaps this was his biggest regret before he died.

I don’t know why the Jokhang Temple is managed in this way. If it’s for safety, we can understand it, and we’ll accept it if we don’t allow photos to be taken. But it’s okay to give equal opportunities to view it, right? Even if there is no limit on the number of visitors, it still has to be placed in a deep small room. It wouldn't be difficult to put a few people at the door to maintain order, right? People watch in batches, everyone has the opportunity to worship, and everyone has a fixed time to stay. Is it really difficult to manage like this? The management staff of Jokhang Temple, as Buddhist disciples, should understand the principle of equality of all living beings, and should give Buddhist disciples in the mainland and even the world more opportunities to observe. Unfortunately, I did not see it here. I have to say that it is a great regret. . I will record my experience truthfully and hope that the management level and management awareness of Jokhang Temple can be improved in the future.

In the morning, I visited three scenic spots, Zhaji Temple, Barkhor Street and Jokhang Temple. I personally experienced the history and culture of Tibetan Buddhism and truthfully recorded my psychological feelings. I visited the Potala Palace in the afternoon. Due to limited space, today’s experience can only be divided into two parts.

If you want to know the details, please listen to the next chapter.

The pillar on the right in front of the Jokhang Temple. When a Tibetan girl reaches the age of fifteen, she will tie a cloth strip on this pillar to mark that she is an adult and can get married.

The pillar on the right side in front of the Jokhang Temple is used to pray for peace and blessings.

The layout and orientation of the Jokhang Temple is different from that of Han Buddhist temples. Its main hall faces east and west.

The roof of the main hall of Jokhang Temple. Overlooking the Jokhang Temple Square from the Golden Dome of the Jokhang Temple, the Potala Palace is on the mountain in the distance on the right, and the willow tree nearby is the "Princess Willow".

After entering the Jokhang Temple from the main entrance, walk clockwise into a wide open-air courtyard, which was once the venue for the grand Lhasa prayer ceremony "Molangqinmo".

The Jokhang Temple is the oldest existing civil structure in Tibet. It has a Tibetan Pingchuan style temple layout that combines Tibetan, Tang, Nepalese and Indian architectural styles. It is the most important temple in Tibet.

Golden dome and brackets. The Internet is full of Han Chinese style of spitting out a phoenix from the dragon's mouth. A phoenix spewed out of the dragon's mouth, and the phoenix was on top and the dragon was on the bottom. Even if I beat Old Liu to death, he wouldn't understand since when did China have this style? According to Chinese tradition, the phoenix can never be higher than the dragon. Isn't this treason? Lao Liu checked all kinds of information, but still couldn't find an explanation. I don’t know if any expert can answer my questions.

The corners of the eaves are carved with dragons and phoenixes, and are made of gold.

The 103 wood carvings of beasts and sphinxes arranged in rows under the eaves on the second and third floors of the main hall also present the artistic styles of Nepal and India.

Watchtowers and carved beams are Tibetan style

Corridor on the second floor terrace

The fifth Dalai Lama rebuilt the roof of the Jokhang Temple, which is said to be made of pure gold.

Almost all the eaves and corners have dragons spitting out phoenixes from their mouths. Old Liu couldn't figure out what they meant. I feel that Tibetan Buddhism is too mysterious and there seems to be no public information.

So Lao Liu secretly guessed that the Jokhang Temple was originally built for Princess Chizun. Songtsen Gampo and Princess Chizun knew that dragons and phoenixes were the royal symbols of China, but did not understand the specifics, so they created such a dragon mouth spitting out phoenixes. When things came, no one in the later generations dared to say anything, and it just continued like this. If Li Shimin saw it, his nose would definitely be crooked with anger.

This is the cloister on the first floor. The murals on the walls are more than a thousand years old.