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More than 6,000 monasteries were completely destroyed mostly during Cultural Revolution.. decimating the cultural, religious and educational infrastructure of Tibet. The tiny remaining fraction of Tibetan monks and nuns are only allowed only under Beijing’s tight control as they continue to eradicate Tibet’s identity. (I wonder if they left a few behind so tourists would have something to look at….?)

Over the course of 4 days, we visited 4 different monasteries in Lhasa, Gyanstze and Sigatse. Each monastery was unique with a different focus so the visits did not feel repetitive in any way.

Sera Monastery: Dating back to 1419, the Sera Monastery was created as a monastic university for completing geshe and tantric studies. The highlights of the site included the training in creation of sand mandalas and the monk debate. In the monk debate, a standing monk questions another who is sitting in front of him. If the questioner does not like the respondent’s answer, he smacks his hands in a certain way to chase away the ignorance of the respondent and to bring enlightenment.

Jokhang Temple: Jokhang is in Lhasa and is considered to be the most sacred temple in Tibet. It was built in 652 CE when the king, Songsten Gampo, married princesses from China and Nepal and received 2 golden Buddha statues as part of their dowries. Pilgrims flock to see the temple – some can take several years to arrive from their remote villages, prostrating themselves along the entire route. The Jokhang Temple was devastated during the cultural revolution with innumberable works of art and literature being destroyed.