藏学家Robert Barnett也转发了那张公安部文件图片。并写道：Jokhang fire
news: An Internal Public Security Bureau (PSB) notice about the fire has been
leaked (h/t @degewa)。自大昭寺发生火灾，Robert Barnett一直在推特上发布所汇集的各种讯息，广受媒体及藏学界关注。但公安部文件图片被质疑。有人以貌似内部人的口吻说“这个文件从行文到字体都不是政府的风格”。我只能说，行文还真的是中国政府的风格，字体是不是就不知道了。但以我个人在中国这样一种复杂环境中的生活经验而言，我不认为这是假文件。我试着想上公安部消防局官网，看看能不能找到消防局其他公开文件以做比较，但能找到网址却打不开。
还有一本图文书也很重要。是德国建筑师安德烈•亚历山大（André Alexander）著述及摄影的《The Temples of LHASA》。他最早来拉萨是1987年，对西藏建筑产生兴趣。1993年与朋友制作拉萨现存的有历史意义的建筑物名录，记录了超过400幢的老建筑。1996年与朋友创立“西藏文化发展公益基金会”（THF），工作重点“主要是研究和保护历史名城拉萨”。至2002年，被誉为“拉萨老城保护者”的他及THF在被当局驱逐出拉萨之前，拯救并修复了拉萨城内以及附近地区76座历史性的传统建筑，包括大昭寺。2007年我在北京见到他时，得到了他送的这本书。我也像朋友们一样，称他安追。
The Dalai Lama's dharma-throne—the Potala Palace. The date of this photograph is unknown, sometime between 1900–1940. During this period, there were Russians, British, Germans, Austrians, etc. who took photos in Lhasa.
[This poem is published on the occasion of the 60th anniversary of the Tibetan uprising, March 10, 1959.]
Among his paintings, one stood out: one of the last
paintings he completed just before his unfortunate death:
Layers of emerald green mountains, rolling
white clouds, a few houses that no longer survive,
and there, right in the center,
sat the completely empty dharma-throne,
richly decorated, the heart’s dream waiting
like a balloon floating through desire.
This is the Dalai Lama’s dharma-throne in the Norbulinka. Woeser took this photograph on July 6, 2018, the Dalai Lama’s 83rd birthday. In 1957, the most important organization of Tibetans rebelling against the Chinese Communist Party was a group of guerrilla fighters called the Chushi Gangdruk. To celebrate the Dalai Lama’s 23rd birthday, they called out for all the people to dedicate gold and jewels to His Holiness to make a golden dharma-throne. People from all over made offerings and the dharma-throne was completed in just over a month and demonstrates the unity and piety of the Tibetan people.
2. The Empty Room: Gzim Chung
Five lilies bloom in the middle of the night.
At this late hour, when one is able to witness
the most beautiful moments,
I want to make this offering:
lilies in a simple glass vase placed in front of a photograph.
There are some rooms, no, there are many rooms,
where even this photo is not allowed.
So strange.
In this world there are people who are afraid
of a photograph. What kind of people are they?
Aren’t the intrepid materialists fearless?
The blooming lilies brings comfort.
In their dense fragrance,
I prostrate myself in prayer.
At least this room is no longer empty.
I have seen many empty rooms
in the Jokhang, in the Norbulinka, in the Potala Palace.
The honorific word for one of these rooms is: Gzim Chung.[7]
One day, I encountered a monk I had known for many years.
He showed me a single key with a mark on it
attached to a large ring of keys.
Looking around and seeing no one,
we lowered our heads and entered a room
covered with yellow curtains.
The smell of incense was thick, as though covering up another fragrance.
I did my best to identify it, as if searching the past
for a silhouette of one who could not bear a heavy burden.
The silent monk pulled me back to reality, and with his eyes indicated
a wall painted with images of bodhisattvas and other beings.
“Under the sun, the child of yesterday leaps and frisks about.
He grinds groups of planets into pigment,
and uses the pigment to draw tomorrow—
he takes all of his problems and casts them to other people,
but the world is deaf and mute, it doesn’t make a sound…”
I think of a famous temple in the northern district of Kang.
If you open that door that is not known to others,
you will shed tears at everything you see:
on a beautifully carved sandalwood bench,
all kinds of offerings, each carefully selected.
And inside that room, in the warm light of a crystal lamp,
a pair of golden slippers in front of a pure white bathtub.
This is a view of Lhamo Lhatso, the most sacred lake in Tibet. It is considered to be the soul lake of the goddess Palden Lhamo, the protectress of Tibet, Lhasa, and the Dalai Lama. This photo was taken by Wang Lixiong on December 2, 2005.
3. The Empty City: Lhasa
Stand right here.
Every time I stand here,
I am “surrounded by a strange fading landscape”[11]
in my innermost heart
there is a voice that refuses, that rebels.
If we are to achieve a reverse of course,
we must do it as soon as possible,
otherwise it will truly be too late.
I think of the deep autumn of that year.
Wait—no, it must have been early winter.
We carried a few strands of prayer flags,
a bag of powdered bsang to burn like incense,
some freshly ground barley, a bottle of barley wine.
We walk slowly along a ridge 4000 meters high,
our hearts beat faster and faster.
Before the Rinpoche left, he exhorted:
You must not talk, must not yell.
Sit down, pray that you may see the future.
To one side is the sunny slope, where sunlight bestows a little warmth;
the other slope is shady, covered with a shallow snow.
Lhamo Latso.[12] This holy lake is the crown of the Buddha,
a pure mirror held by this U-shaped valley.
Filled with power, it’s so vivid it seems unreal.
Not a soul around its edges. Only me and my lover.
First, I offer the bsang and barley wine to Palden Lhamo.[13]
Then I tie prayer flags between the stones
which convey our wishes and our prayers.
We sit down, separate from each other,
not interfering. I focus my mind and gaze at the lake:
[2] The Lhasa Zhol Pillar (ཞོལ་རྡོ་རིངས་ཕྱི་མ་) was erected in the late eighth century and describes deeds of the Tibetan Empire. It is also one of the oldest surviving examples of Tibetan script, a writing system attributed to Thonmi Sambhota, who was a minister to the founder of the Tibetan Empire Songtsen Gampo who is mentioned later in the poem (see note 6).
[3] The Shukti Linka was destroyed in 1965. The park and its wetlands were drained and filled, then covered with concrete and becoming what what was then known as the People’s Cultural Palace Square (人民文化宫广场). This square was subsequently renovated in 1999 and renamed as Potala Square. In 2002, it became the site of the monstrous Monument to the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet, a 37-meter high structure commemorating the PLA liberation of Tibet in 1951. And in 2005, it was once again renovated to its current state.
[4] Gyalwa Rinpoche is one of the honorific names of the Dalai Lama.
[5] Choenyi Jampel was a very promising young artist in Lhasa. He was tragically killed in a car accident on March 29, 2011. He was only 30 years old.
[6] Songtsen Gampo (སྲོང་བཙན་སྒམ་པོ) was an early 7th century king.He is credited with founding the Tibetan Empire and introducing Buddhism toTibet.
[8] In the past, the Dalai Lama would stay at the Jokhang during the Buddhist ceremonies celebrating the New Year. He had a special room, which was known as Gzim Chung. During the Cultural Revolution, this room was occupied by Red Guards, members of the Opposition Party, and the People’s Liberation Army. During this time, the murals in this room were scratched by bayonets, and these scars exist to this day.
[9] In 1911, the Tibetan government printed and distributed Kashag banknotes. They also minted gold, silver, and copper coins.
[10] The song is titled “Empty Room” and is sung by the Tibetan Patient Band (西藏病人乐队).
[11] This is a line from the poem “For the Egyptian Coin Today, Arden, Thank You" by Raymond Carver.
[12] Lhamo Latso (ལྷ་མོའི་བླ་མཚོ།) is the most sacred lake in Tibet. This is the lake where visions are sought for the reincarnation of the Dalai Lama and is presided over by the the Dalai Lama’s guardian goddess Palden Lhamo. It is located Gyaca County, Lhokha Province to the southeast of Lhasa.
[13] Palden Lhamo (དཔལ་ལྡན་ལྷ་མོ།) is the primary goddess of protection in the Tibetan Buddhist Pantheon and is the guardian god of Tibet, Lhasa, and the Dalai Lama.
[14]Srungma (སྲུང་མ། ) are protectors of the dharma, also known as dharmapālas.
[15]Chenrézik (སྤྱན་རས་གཟིགས།) is the Tibetan name for the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara.
Constellations of Humanity
Each luminous dot on this map represents one reader of this poem. As the number of readers increases, the stars begin to cluster and form an increasingly detailed constellation. My intent is to show how brightly a poem glows across our world. I welcome your light.
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