This was also recently rebuilt. This was followed by our departure to Lhodrak, to visit Milarepa's Nine-Storey Tower for the second time. Little degradation of the wall paintings is apparent since two and a half years, but upon close examination, considerable weakness is visible on all floors, with severe cracking, peeling of paint and various kinds of surface damage. Since the Shalu Association does not have the full funding to gild the copper roof, it was decided that these funds should be sought by all three parties. This is important in order to complete the work by the end of 1999.
Scaffolding is an absolute necessity, in view of the height of the tower.
The gilding is a question of symbolic, esthetic, practical and economic importance. It would be great pity if this wonderful project could not be completed in time. The monks have been given a camera and 10 rolls of film to record all stages of the work. Prices have risen since 1996. After Sekhar Guthok we were invited to visit two new sites in Lhodrak, Khothing and Kharchu, further to the east, perched on a spectacular promontary above a precipitous gorge, enshrined in rainbows and misty rhododendron forests.