Pema Tamang Here is a website created by Pema Tamang introducing the contemporary Tibetan female artist Pekar Monsal, one of the few established female figures of modern Tibetan art. Pekar Monsal advocates for gender equity and the empowerment of Tibetan women. Through numerous examples of Pekar Monsal’s artworks, the author analyses her artistic reflections on specific … [Read more...]
The Science of Tibet in Pema Tseden’s Films
Siqi Deng Introduction For Tibet scholars and film enthusiasts, Tibetan director Pema Tseden’s name will not be unfamiliar. Internationally recognized as the father of contemporary Tibetan Cinema, Pema Tseden’s film depicts the dynamics of contemporary Tibetan life from an inside point of view, presenting to international audiences a Tibetan society that is vivacious and … [Read more...]
The Lives and Liberation of Princess Mandarava
Bsam gtan gling pa (b.1655). The Lives and Liberation of Princess Mandarava the Indian consort of Padmasambhava, Lama Chonam and Sangye Kandro (trans). Boston, Mass: Wisdom Publications, 1998. Summary by Jeffrey Khau Abstract The Lives and Liberation of Princess Mandarava recounts the different manifestations of Pandaravasini with a focus on the life of Mandarava, a … [Read more...]
Delog: Journey to Realms beyond Death.
Delog: Journey to Realms beyond Death. Composed by Delog Dawa Drolma and Translated by Richard Barron (2002 [1995]). Summary by Gaskin Karlton Abstract In Delog: Journey to Realms Beyond Death, Dawa Drolma provides her account of her journey through the various realms that exist after death. Born in the early 20th century, Dawa Drolma lived most of her life in … [Read more...]
Geographies of Tibetan Sacred Space
Reading Buddhist Monasteries Against Their Landscapes Rose Kuo | December 20, 2020 | Website: ArcGIS StoryMaps Sacred Space This project is inspired by the study of environmental perception advanced by scholars such as Belden C. Lane and Tim Ingold, cited by Federica Venturi in her work on sacred spaces and the Monastery of Sakya (Lane 2001, Ingold 1993, Venturi 2013). … [Read more...]
My Youth In Tibet
Abstract and Review of My Youth In Tibet: Recollections of a Tibetan Woman Sevahn Vorperian Abstract My Youth in Tibet is a two-part narrative written by Tseyang Sadutshang, the niece of the 5th Reting Rinpoche (Thupten Jampel Yishey Gyantsen; Tupten Jampel Yeshe Gyentsen) during the first half of the 20th century. Part 1 is Tseyang’s autobiography of her childhood in … [Read more...]
The Lives and Liberation of Princess Mandarava
Natasha Sim Za-hor rgyal poʼi sras mo Lha-lcam Man-dha-ra-waʼi rnam par thar pa. The Lives and Liberation of Princess Mandarava : the Indian consort of Padmasambhava / translated by Lama Chonam and Sangye Khandro ; introduction by Janet Gyatso. (Wisdom Press: 1998) Abstract: This text is perhaps best summed up by Janet Gyatso, in her introduction to this translation, when she … [Read more...]
Gendered Change: The Rise in Status of Female Monastics in the 1980s & 1990s
The sharp increase in opportunities in female monastics to earn higher Buddhist degrees after the Cultural Revolution reveals the reframing of Tibetan modernity through Buddhist morals: Larung Gar, Kala Rongo, Yarchen Gar, and Jangchub Choeling monasteries provide female monastics with the means to obtain Khenmo degrees, signaling a shift in Tibetan Buddhists. Elena Salzmann … [Read more...]
TIBET 101
A Brief Introduction to the Historic Region of Tibet and Tibet's Rich Culture Rachel Bleau A website introducing Tibet to those interested with no prior knowledge, through the tool of a quiz. For those more advanced, an advanced quiz is available too! … [Read more...]
Mapping Women in Tibetan Buddhism
An online map resource by Julia Zeh. Excerpt: In addition to the Maps link which has posts related to the spaces occupied by Tibetan Buddhist women, this page is intended to give a little bit more information about the specific role women have played in Tibetan Buddhism. I found it very difficult to study women in Tibet, primarily because Tibetan written history often does … [Read more...]
Sacred Space
Online essay by Alex Whitman, Sacred Space. Tibet’s srin mo legend has been invoked at key moments of political flux, offering actors new modes of relating to–and benefiting from–a common imperial past. The fight against the demoness is continuously played out in sacred spaces, where institutional duty and virtue are intimately tied to the fulfillment of the imperial … [Read more...]
Tibetan Medicine
A blog by Michael Argenziano, Tibetan Medicine: Past, Present, Future An excerpt: Ancient Tibetan Medicine: From Bön to Buddhism Medicine has been believed to be an integral part of Tibetan culture as early as the inception of the Bön tradition, centuries before the introduction of Buddhism to Tibet. According to several Bön texts, the founder of the Bön religion, … [Read more...]
Machik Weekend
A Prezi-format presentation on Machik Weekend, a Tibetan Ideas Festival in New York City, by Constantine Lignos. [Prezi here] … [Read more...]
“A Trip to Labrang” by B. B. Baradiin, translated by Vahe Galstyan
From the summary at the book's beginning: "The report made in 1908 at the Geographic society by B. B. Baradiin on the results of his trip to Tibet from 1905-1907 is of great interest not only because of the details it provides about the realities of the daily life in the monastery - center of the Buddhist teachings in Labrang, but also because of the structure of his … [Read more...]
Fazun’s Politico-Religious History of Tibet 西藏民族政教史 translated by Yang Qu
The Political and Religious History of Tibet was written by Fazun, a Buddhist monk and researcher of modern times (English translation by Yang Qu). The author was the deputy dean of the Chinese-Tibetan Buddhist Teaching College and this book was one of his teaching materials, which was written based on the Tibetan historical data – mainly, The Blue Annals. The book was first … [Read more...]
Lepcha: A Case Study of Tibetanization in the Borderlands
Alex Whitman HSEA4812 S17 Dr. Tuttle Final Paper Lepcha: A Case Study of Tibetanization in the Borderlands Abstract The Lepcha people (self-referentially the Rong) are commonly recognized as the first inhabitants of Sikkim. The Lepcha claim to indigeneity lies closely in the historical linkage between Mount Khangchendzonga and Lepcha religious tradition, which … [Read more...]
Himalayan Hermitess
Annie Huntoon Using Himalayan Hermitess as a Text for Ninth Graders This past week I returned to Phillips Academy for a second interview with my former colleagues in the history department. While there, many questions came my way regarding further inclusion of China into the curriculum. As it stands now, the ninth graders spend about a week or two studying China as it … [Read more...]
Ruling Inner Asia from Beijing: Lamas and Emperors
A WIKISCHOLARS WEBSITE Late imperial China was marked by a multi-ethnic tradition of rulership that built on the foundations of the so-called “conquest dynasties.” This site will survey the central people, places, art and institutions that made Tibetan Buddhism as a religious ideology central to late imperial efforts at making China a multi-ethnic state. This … [Read more...]
Discourse on the Demoness: A Look at Tibetan Geomancy and Landscape
Object biography by Ivy Chen, view HERE. Introduction: "Maps tell a story, not solely the story crafted by the cartographers and explorers who ventured to these previously unknown realms, but also the history of a civilization. While not one of the most traditional genres of art history analysis, reliving a space from the perspective of both those who occupied it as well as … [Read more...]
Chronology of Travel in Asia & Tibet – Adventures of a Lady
The Adventures of a Lady in Tartary, Thibet, China & Kashmir by Mrs. Hervey Abstract: The Adventures of a Lady in Tartary, Thibet, China & Kashmir is a three-volume collection made up mostly of Mrs. Hervey’s journal, written during her journey through the Himalayas from March, 1850 to October, 1851. After traveling through India in the spring of 1852 (and writing … [Read more...]
The Headdress: Women’s Status Symbol
by Alexandra Cassutt for INTRO EAST ASIAN CIV: TIBET V2365- 001 While from the outset hundreds of years back Tibet's economy was run by and largely for patriarchal interests, there continues to this day a tradition of female adornment which expresses, through the use of a multitude of precious stones, a woman's status and that of her family. The women of the … [Read more...]
Tiny House Hunting
by Sara Novak Lerner View project in Mediathread My chosen object for this project, the Black Tent is unique because it's been photographed in its natural environment, which gives me the opportunity to discuss its surroundings as well. I also want to take this opportunity to do a bit of research on the Tibetan nomads, who comprise more than three-quarters of the … [Read more...]