THE FORBIDDEN LAND.

Otago Witness, Issue 2914, 19 January 1910, Page 86

THE FORBIDDEN LAND.

DR REIMS'S TRAVELS IN TIBET. Travellers’ tales may not bo quite so wonderful as oi yore, but they are very much longer. In order to follow the travels of Dr He din in the spirit, as set out in the two volumes published by Macmillan a.nd Co., entitled, “TransHimalaya: Discoveries and Adventures in Tibet,”' it would be necessary to live with him for the best part of a week. Unable to gain any approach to the forbidden land by what may be called the front door, Dr Hedin fell back on stratagem and something more. Wiring to the Swedish Ambassador to obtain from him a Chinese passport to travel into Eastern Turkestan, he set off for the North-West Passage. At Srinagar lie got together the first elements of his expedition, and with them pushed on to Leh, where he completed the caravan. As soon as Leh was fairly left behind the pretext of Turkestan was thrown aside and the marching orders were eastward towards Tibet. Mounting the Himalayas where the Indus is separated from its tributary, the Suyok, the expedition -came to the top of the pass, 17,585 ft above &ea-leye], surrounded by stone heaps and poles with streamers, the ragged remnants -of Tibetan prayers. The cold al- ; ready made itself fait, but the caravan, was well found. The village of Mu glib consists of three ; ' wretched huts, and its 12 inhabitants cul- | ; tivate barley and peas. The barley bar- i vest was expected in 10 days, but the peas were -still in full blossom, and would not be ripe before the frosts set in. They i are then used as horse fodder while they are still soft and green. I asked some iMuiglib men what they did in winter. , “Sleep and freeze,” they answered. j Next morning the sun had not risen when a shouting and jingling, loud voices, and the stamping a.nd neighing of horses woke me out of sleep—the- heavy cavalry w-as marching off under the command of Mohammed Isa. Then the puppies dis- | covered that my bed was a grand play- i ground, and left mis no more peace, j •Manners fire in „ the kitchen began to ; crackle, and a fragrant steam gave novice that there were mutton cutlets for breakfast. I was accustomed to camp life, but I had never been so comfortable before, and had never had so large and perfect a caravan. Things were not so pleasant, however, for the animals, and presently it became a question whether the expedition could push its way forward sufficiently to fall in with the nomads of Northern Tibet, ; Snow began to fall, much to the astonishment of Manuel,' who had never seen it before, and thought it a new sort of dew ; much to the dissatisfaction also of three puppies which had been picked up at Leli, and which showed their displeasure at the ; occurrence by barking at the snow. Up - and down over passes, camping at heights more than a thousand feet above Mont , Blanc, losing horses and mules day by i day, the expedition pushed on until it I topped the crest of the Karakorum inoun- | tains. Here was a level plateau—in fact, | a prairie on the roof of the world, al- ; though vegetation was much interfered with by the mice, who had honeycombed j the ground until it resembled a. worm- | eaten board. At this point the hirelings determined to -return, carrying with them messages to- India and to Europe, whilst the remainder of the expedition set out to march towards unknown lands. They f had brought with them a collapsible boat for the purpose of exploring the salt water lakes of this region, and Dr Hedin gives a very graphic account of several dangerous experiences which befell them in this part of their undertaking. Here is one of his word-pictures:— f ] “The dost -clouds have disappeared, and I the western horizon is dimly perceptible. - | The sun sinks to its rest, a ball of liquid . | gold, and a weird, mysterious gleam | j spreads over the whole country. Every- | I thing is coloured red except the darkj blue white-edged lake. The night rises j out of the east, dark purple shades leng- >. then out behind the mountains, but the most -easterly pinnacles and the summit T, |. rising above all others with its glitter- ; iug snow holds, stand out fiery red against the dark background like volcanic cones o-f glass lighted within by glowing streams of lava; a couple of riven clouds rush j •eastwards, their -crimson colour vying in beauty with the snowfielck and glaciers below them. All shades of rose-colour . play on the sail, and a purple foam ; quivers on tbs crests of the waves as 1 though we were being driven over a sea, of blood.” j Another time the voyagers were placed in a dilemma between shipwreck or -offering themselves to two great wolves who followed their movement from the shore with clos-e interest. They were still on the track of explorers who had been before them, and presently reached Deasy’s and Eawling’s (camp. The- continued march and difficulties of fora.g-c began to tell severely -on the equipage. The horses were found to be eating each other’s tails and biting the harness in their hunger, and it was With much satisfaction that on-s day the expedition came to the remains of a- camp fire, where they found an [ iron ladle used by the Tibetans for cast- } ing bullets. The omen was not docep- ! tive. A little later, and they came up with the camp of .some Tibetans from, i Gerlee. in the south-west. Friendly relationships were established with "these nomads, who informed them that it would be possible to reach Shigatse in 'four or five days, and supplied the expedition with much-needed sheep and yaks. Dr Hedin gives an interesting account of the life of these nomads—tracking yaks, waiting behind a wall with angelic patience for a i £534.’“

“They have a sever© struggle for life in this unproductive corner of the world, which is called the C'ha-ng-tang, or the north plain, where it has been their fate to bo born. Amidst poverty and danger they Jiv© victorious in God’s free Nature ; the awful storms are their brothers, the lord-ship of the valleys they share with the wild beasts of the desert, and at night the everlasting stars twinkle over their black tents. If they were given comfortable huts down south in the shad® of walnut trees they would always be longing for the grand solitude of the mountains, for the icy cold, the drifting snow, and the moonlight of .the peaceful winter nights in Tibet. Then Death comes one day and looks in through the tent door; in vain is the constant prayer. “Om man! padme hum,” repeated; vain are all attempts to conjure or propitiate the evil powers that are inimical to the children of men. Bent, wrinkled, and -grey the old hunter finishes his course, and is boms on strong shoulders to some shallow cleft near the mountain crest, and there abandoned to the wolves and birds of prey.” iS'o, after many adventures, the expedition came at length to Shigatse, the beadquarters of the Tashi Lami-sts. Dr Hedin was at once visited by the Chinese agent, who insisted that he must at once return to India, but the explorer was equally firm in his declared intention -of visiting the Tashi Lama and witnessing the NewYear’s -ceremonies. He usually had his way in. the end, and so it was this time. From the full and .graphic account of the New Year festival we borrow the following extracts: “Suddenly from the uppermost platforms on the roofs v ring out deep, long-drawn-out blasts of horns over the country ; a couple of monks show themselves against the sky; they blow on singular sea shells, producing a penetrating sound, which is echoed back in shrill and yet heavy tones from the fissured rocks behind the convent; they summon the Gelu-gpa, the brotherhood of yellow monks, to- the festival. The murmuring voiceo are silent -and the chant swells up crescendo, and then falls again, and seems to die out in some distant under-world, as though the singers had reached the portals of Nirvana. Enthralling, mystical, full of yearning and hope is "this wonderfu l Lcsar hymn in Ta-shihmpo. Nothing of the kind I have heard—neither ihe chanting in the Isaac Cathedral in iSt. Petersburg nor that in the Uspenski Sobor, the cathedral of Moscow—has made a deeper impression on me.” “Again the curtain parts asunder, and preceded by two flutists Chojal Yum apat die -top of the steps, the impersonation of a female spirit, and with a indent in his hand performs a dance on the topmost step. Lastly, lamas dance in hideous masks with large evil eyes and Mephistophelan eyebrows, distorted features, and huge tusks ; others represent mythical wild beasts, all equally terrible. At every new number the tjhree high priests ring their bells, and the music continues without interruption, the discordant .noise awakening a thundering ecn-c-e irom the stone facades -of the narrow court. The drummers beat their instruments slowly and in strict time, accompanied by the dash, of the cymbals, the weird, prolonged blade oi the trumpets, and the more agreeable notes of the flutes. But now and then the time is accelerated, the beats of the drum follow one another more and more closely, and the daps of the clashing basins pass into one continuous resonance. TTie musicians seem to stimulate one another, and there is a great crescendo; there is more than enough noise to deafen one, so it is useless to attempt to speak to one’s neighbour. The dancing becomes more furious, and undoubtedly the fanatical spectacle makes a deep impression on the spectators. Now and then a fanatic is overpowered bv it, jumps up, and, turning towards the Tashi Lama, grabs at his head with hits baud,', falls forward wfth bis hands and forehead on the ground, and .repeats this obeisance thrice —he has deified man before him.” Besides the gorgeous and' exciting ritual the people are entertained on T;ese occossions by the more mundane delights of the racecourse. There is a description of clever feats in the way of horsemanship and marksman,ship, the experts urging their horses round the ring at full !' speed and firing at a target whilst on the gallop, first with bows and arrows and next with matchlocks. Strange-dances are executed by the Nepalese in grotesques which resemble those of the old i English mummers. Dr Hedin remained ! 47 days in Shigatse, the honoured guest j of the Tashi Lama, whom he visited I several times, and who accorded him free : permission to inspect and photograph the I monastic suburb of Tashi Lu.npo, and ! even underwent the ordeal of the camera. | himself. It cannot be said that tbs doctor shows the gratitude of in discriminating laudation. “Ijie honourable fat little Lama” may be a correct description of the Minister -of State, and so mav the vary unflattering inventory of the charms of the Duc-he-ss, whom he was called in to sketch, just as it is, no doubt, true that the monks “live in laziness at the expense of the credulous people” ; but was it for oils who had been so well treated by them to expose their shortcomings to the mock of civilisation? Of the Tashi Lama and his surroundings Dr Hadin gives an attractive account, however : | “There is not a single idol, no wall | painting or other mural decorations, no furniture except what has been already mentioned, nob a thread of carpet, only the bare floor—and through the window Ids melancholy and dreamy, but clear and open, glam os wander over the golden temple roofs, over the town below corn with its dirt and -sinfulness, over the dreary mountains which bound his earthly horizon, and away throivrh the azure-blue sky to a Nirvana invisible to us, where his spirit will one dav find rest. Now he descended from bis heaven and became a man for a moment. But -all the time i ha preserved a wonderful oalmmaaß. a

refined, .amiable politeness and dignity,, and spoke in a charmingly soft and subdued voice, modest, almost shy , ne spolce quickly and in short sentences, but in a verv low tone. What did we talk about. Why about all kinds of things in heaven and earth, beginning from his own religion. in the Pantheon of which he himself takes the highest rank among living prelates, down to the yaks that ream wild over Chang-tang. He displayed an aleit--11688. an interest in everything, and an intelligence that surprised me nya 1 i fret an. I have never been interviewed’ so thoroughly and with so much tact.' _ Many interesting glimpses arc given into the habits of the people, seldom pleasant ■according to European notions. An exception perhaps is the prevalence of teadrinkiim; “no rite is too holy to be interrupted for a cup of tea.” Was this the origin of the tea-parties which are so frequent an exercise, of our own religion. CC "lgfo(“L trade.* «-», «d t.hev sell even hay, firewood, and meat. They wear huge coils of hair witn inferior hS dais, U* .11 .w-ValrtS which contrast strongly with then faces smeared with black salve. If they ™ d dispense with this finery and pe themselves a good washing instead, some ot them would perhaps look quite Inman What was the original colour of tire clothes is hard to guess, for they are now caked with dust, soot, and dirt.