Once again, I’m writing about a place I revisited on my recent trip to Beijing. In this case, it was the Lama Temple, or Yonghegong (雍和宫). When I first visited the temple in July 2008, I’m not sure I even knew that it was a Tibetan Buddhist temple — much less one of the most important in the world. But on my return, I immediately saw the relationship between this temple and those I visited in Gansu and Qinghai last summer. (I still haven’t been to Tibet proper.) The fabric hangings in the Hall of the Wheel of the Law reminded me of those in the Rongwo Gonchen Gompa in Tongren, while the prayer wheels scattered around the complex evoked memories of walking the inner kora at the Labrang Monastery. And as I left the complex, I fell behind a group of pilgrims clad in the vast brown cloaks that are traditional Tibetan garb. These worshippers would have fit right in with the crowds I met in the Tongren monastery, where they sat patiently in the hot sun to hear a visiting lama speak.
This is the latest in a series of Friday “snapshots” featuring photos from my recent travels. If you enjoyed this post, please subscribe to my RSS feed to automatically receive my latest updates.
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{ 1 comment… read it below or add one }
Fascinating! (Seriously.) Thank you for sharing.