Tag: King Gesar

Sershul (Shiqu)

Shiqu Town (石渠), also known as Sershul (སེར་ཤུལ།), Serxu, Dzachuka, or Shiquis, is a town in Shiqu County in the Garze Autonomous Prefecture in the northern part of the Chinese Sichuan Province. Shiqu County is spread over 25,000 square kilometers and lies approximately 4,200 meters above sea level on average. Mostly covered by green pastures and grazing yaks, Shiqu is home to a majority of ethnic Tibetans with most of them being nomadic herdsmen.
Shiqu has become an important center for trade for nomads who regularly arrive in town to buy and sell goods. The town now also has restaurants serving local food and decent hotels for visitors.

Sershul Tekchen Dargyeling Monastery

The Sershul Monastery is large monastery in Shiqu which belongs to the Gelukpa sect of Tibetan Buddism. The monastery, housing the Buddhist Monastic University, has authorization to teach the highest Tibetan Buddhist Geshe Degree. The monastery consists of six main temples, several halls and a residential building housing hundreds of monks. Two huge chanting halls with artifacts dedicated to the founder, Je Tsongkhapa, are present in the largest temple. There are also other rare and sacred Buddhist pieces in the monastery, some of which date back to 2,000 years. Every year, a Molam Festival or Prayer Festival is held in the monastery in October which is heavily attended by nomads from Dege, Yushu and Nagchu.

Shiqu Horse Festival

Every summer in July, a Horse Festival is held in Shiqu where nomads from across the region gather to show their sportsmanship and engage in several different sporting events. The Shiqu Horse Festival creates a festive atmosphere for Tibetans who dance, drink and enjoy horse races. During the festival, Tibetan women are seen wearing colorful robes and decorative waist bands, huge necklaces, amber hair decorations and fancy embroidered hats.

Shiqu statue showing King Gesar.

The Legend of Sershul

According to legend, when King Gesar defeated one of King Hal’s brothers i.e. the King of Yellow Tent, he let some of his previous followers stay in the region. Although they lived peacefully, they felt the need of a place of worship. A man named Sershul suggested them to build a monastery after seeking permission from the descendant of King Gesar, the Derge King. The former followers of Hal Kingdom sent Kagyu Lohrong Dondeng to convince the King of Derge to allow a religious site to be set up. The local people named the monastery as Sershul Monastery once it was built to laud the person who proposed this idea.

May 25, 2016
Mt. Yala

Geography

Located near the border of Daofu County, Danba County, and Kangding County, of Ganzi Autonomous Prefecture, Yala Mountain (བཞག་བྲ།)is one of the most popular mountain treks in the Sichuan region. With snow covered peaks year round, Mt. Yala has an elevation of 5,820 meters and offers several trek options for mountain enthusiasts. The area around the border of Kangding that includes the mountain range is also a nature preserve.

History

Aside from being a large attraction for visitors to the area, it is also one of four holy mountains worshiped by the local Tibetans. It is mentioned in the Epic of King Gesar in this way and held highly by the locals in this regard. In ancient Tibetan texts, the mountain is referred to as “Shambhala the Second” and also “Oriental White Yak” and contains many religious and prayer flags hung all around the mountain. Its name in Chinese is Yala Xueshan. Tibetans have been coming to Mt. Yala for centuries to hang their prayer flags in honor of the mountain spirits.

Beautiful contrast with the grasslands and snow capped foothills. (As seen from Tagong)

Scenery

Surrounding Yala Mountain to the north and northwest are the Tagong (Lhagong) Grasslands, creating a stunning contrast between the snowy mountain side and the grasslands below. Nearby villages can also be reached, including Danba, one of the most beautiful valleys in the region. It is popular to begin a few days trek to the mountain starting at Kangding or an even closer point around Zhonglu village, to have the best experience.

Trekking route on the East (Back) side of Yala Mt

Trekking around or across Mt. Yala can take days and properly preparing should be a priority. Zhonggu sits at an altitude of around 3,000 meters and is a great location to ascend Mt. Yale’s eastern pass, which roughly sits around 4,216 meters. The trek is not steep and can be climbed with not too much difficulty. This can also make the change in elevation easier for those not used to such high altitudes. As Sichuan’s second highest mountain range, on a clear day you can see for miles, making this scenic trek very worthwhile indeed. Off in the distance, you may even be able to spot the peaks of Minya Konka, covered in snow.

Yala Mt offers both great trekking and backcountry cycling options

Planning a Trip to Mt. Yala

If you plan on making the long trek and camping out in the area, there are a few things you should prepare for. The temperatures can drop well below 0 degrees at night, so a good four season tent is recommended, as well as sleeping bags that can handle these sub-zero temperatures. Plenty of layers of clothing to adapt to the changing temperatures throughout the day is also critical. Talk to Zhilam Hostel in Kangding if you’re looking to hire a local guide on location in Kangding, or contact Extravagant Yak for a quote on an all inclusive package tour from Chengdu.

May 25, 2016
Axu

Axu (ཨ་ཕྱུག)Town and Axu Grasslands are situated in Dege County in the Garze Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture of Sichuan, China. It is an isolated region in eastern Tibet that includes green pastures dotted with sturdy yaks, snowy, lofty and rugged mountains and crystal clear lakes. The small Axu Town and its surrounding grasslands are inhabited by nomadic herdsmen and their grazing yaks.
Axu Grasslands

Axu Grasslands are located about 230 kilometers northeast of Dege Town. Axu Grasslands cover an area of 800 sq. kilometers, and have the Yalong River flowing through it. These grasslands not only provide picturesque sceneries, but are also known for their harsh climatic conditions. The Chinese government plans to initiate projects of large-scale farming of wheat and barley, and gas exploration in Axu Grasslands. Since the grasslands are at an altitude of over 4,500 meters, they thus remain frozen for six to nine months a year. Nonetheless, this harsh and inhospitable area is believed to be the hometown of the famous Tibetan, King Gesar.

The Legendary King Gesar

A famous hero and warrior, King Gesar is said to have been born in the Axu Grasslands and was the ruler of Ling Kingdom in east Tibet during the 11^th century. He is considered to be a fearless leader who waged war against all the enemies of the kingdom and protected the poor. Different versions of King Gesar and his life exist across Tibet and Central Asia including a number of Tibetan versions, a Mongolian version, a Buryat version, a Lower Ladakhi version, a Salar version, and a Bhutan version.

The Famous Temple

The temple of King Gesar was constructed in the Axu Grasslands in 1970 by Ling Cong and was later renamed Memorial Hall of King Gesar. An enormous statue of King Gesar riding a horse stands in the main hall of the temple. The heroic tales of King Gesar are widely told by the inhabitants of Axu Grasslands in the form of stories, songs and dances. The ‘Epic of King Gesar’, the greatest literature work on the life of King Gesar, is popular in Tibet, Sichuan, Inner Mongol, Gansu, Qinghai and other places. In the Axu Grasslands, celebrations to honor the legendary warrior take place often.

The Epic of King Gesar

Similar to Iliad of Greeks and King Arthur of medieval Europeans, Tibetans have the Epic of King Gesar. Rooted deep into folklore, stories of King Gesar had been passed down generations orally while its written beginnings are found back in 1716 when it was, upon Qing Emperor’s order, translated from Tibetan. This Oriental Iliad covers important reigns of Tibetan social development and also descriptions of countless tribes and regions. The Epic of King Gesar is the longest work of literature in the world with over 120 volumes and 20 million words in more than 1 million verses.

May 25, 2016