Vilas County news. [volume] (Eagle River, Vilas County, Wis.) 1896-1927, 1925-07-01

Prepared by the National Geographic So
clety, Washington y. O.
One of the worlds most picturesque
sDitaIs is the one last visited-Lhasa,
h. Forbidden City" of Tibet. Only
handful of white men have ever
apn this strange city, and most Of
nose made the journey in disguise
Lmsa means "the place of the
nds and II well deserves its name,
smythiug more beautiful can hardly
he imagined than the vision of the
rged city set against its magnificent
background Of snow-capped mountains.
The Potala is by far the finest, build
rg and rcipses all others in the beau
of its appearance The present
Pdaa was commenced in 1915 by the
Grand Lama Nag-wang Lob-sang-gya-
ga0. on the same site as a former
building The Potala dominates ev-
mthing in Lhasa. The enormous
mass Of buildings, partly monastery,
partly palace and partly fortress, is
built on a rocky ridge which stands
OUT in the center of the valley, COM
handing the town and dominating the
whole situation It's architecture is
nagnifcenty grand, bold in outline
and design; ii towers above every
thing with its gray white walls and
MttreSseS, its immense flights of
steps and terraces dotted with red
rObed monks ascending and descend
.rg from religious ceremonies; its dull
r0dder-red temple walls, with carved
and painted windows, showing behind
black brown yak's hair hangings, sur
mounted by its gilded roofs and set
n almost park-like surroundings of
trees and meadows, with snow-capped
mountains on all sides and the XVI
Chhu, the River of Delight, running
clear In many channels through
groves of willow or poplar.
Interior of Potala Is Gloomy.
Il Is indeed a fitting shrine for the
heart Of any religion, and with such
surroundings it is difficult to under
sand how the present form OF
Buddhism (Lamaism), as practiced in
Tibet, could ever have sunk to the
depths Of degradation it has reached.
But the interior of the Potala is
c0riousIy disappointing, as it consists
Principally Of mass Of dark passages
and cells, certain number of halls
and fights Of steps.
Among the larger halls are several
striking ones, especially that in which
was the gilt tomb Of Nag-wang-Lob
sang Gya-Sho; the dome of this hall
extends upward through several
stories ON the tomb there is a great
zeal of metal ornamentation and the
whole forms a fine piece Of work. on
each side Of the principal tomb are
similar ones Of smaller dimensions,
these Of Dalai Lamas less notable.
IN another room Of fairly large di-
MehSous the walls are lined with
shelves from floor to ceiling, each shelf
closely packed to its uttermost extent
WIN Images Of Buddha. There must
Oe thousands Of all metals-gold. sill
'er copper, brasS-and many are of
very beautiful workmanship. In an
V'aer chapel there are hundreds of
golden hutter lamps.
would be quite impossible to give
even semhlance Of a plan of this
instrumentation Of buildings, and it
"'N'a take weeks, perhaps months, to
''Sl every part of the enormous
structure. capable of holding thou
sands Of people.
FROM the fiat roofs of the Potala
''e whole valley lies mapped out be-
.o"--the town to the east, a mass Of
~" tWo-Storied. substantially built
V"uSrS nterspersed with temples; the
rN NNang, the most holy shrine in
lucy the Chagpori, or school of med
,C'A' the Turquoise bridge (Yutok
''"I'") so called on account of its
s'eeN'oiae tiled roof; the many chan
1e,S ot the River Of Delight (the xvi
'UuN)' beyond which lies the arsenal.
"'" 90 the north the monastery of
N''a under the hills. containing 5000
N0uNS Further on the Debung mon
"sefy with 1O700 inmates; the gild-
~ roofs Of the Na-chung-c hos-kyong:
S1u NE LingKor, the Sacred road.
'.'"s which all devout Buddhists
s ~, themselves in the hope that
49, .ut'r earthly sins may be forgiven,
could be seen in places.
City Full of Monks.
'Here are monks everywhere in or
og'' i.hasa. The three large mon
SS'e'IeS OF Sero. Debung and Gah-dan
~ a,Ne contain about 10000. and with
~ ne other temples and monasteries
eno, number cannot fall far short OF