Prayer flags catching the wind is the sound of McLeod Ganj.
I knew nothing--less than nothing about Tibet. So even just a week in McLeod Ganj, immersed in the culture of Tibetans, forced to relocate by the danger that's swallowing their homes, was a real eye opener.
After making a new friend at the Dalai Lama's appearance at Tsuglagkhang temple, and chatting over lunch, I learned how criminally so many Tibetans have been treated. And that although the Tibetan community in McLeod Ganj is warm and ostensibly happy, its filled with homesickness and endless protest.
I asked my friend why his journey to Dharamsala (next town to McLeod Ganj) took so long, and before I finished posing the question, I realized the obvious answer.
"I came on foot."
Passed borders, military, and over the Himalayas that have claimed the limbs of so many Tibetans.
I casually asked him if he liked Dharamsala without first realizing that the question had far more nuances.
He quickly turned a sad, pensive face into a forced smile: "I have to."
What disturbs me most about the Chinese occupation of Tibet is not only the attempt to eradicate its people, but the complete destruction of its culture and religion. During the sieges of the 1950s, Chinese troops used holy Tibetan scriptures as shoe soles, and the present is no different as the Chinese military will continue to trample on Tibetan culture until it ceases to exist.
And if we allow it, are we not guilty bystanders?
I knew nothing--less than nothing about Tibet. So even just a week in McLeod Ganj, immersed in the culture of Tibetans, forced to relocate by the danger that's swallowing their homes, was a real eye opener.
I asked my friend why his journey to Dharamsala (next town to McLeod Ganj) took so long, and before I finished posing the question, I realized the obvious answer.
"I came on foot."
Passed borders, military, and over the Himalayas that have claimed the limbs of so many Tibetans.
I casually asked him if he liked Dharamsala without first realizing that the question had far more nuances.
He quickly turned a sad, pensive face into a forced smile: "I have to."
What disturbs me most about the Chinese occupation of Tibet is not only the attempt to eradicate its people, but the complete destruction of its culture and religion. During the sieges of the 1950s, Chinese troops used holy Tibetan scriptures as shoe soles, and the present is no different as the Chinese military will continue to trample on Tibetan culture until it ceases to exist.
And if we allow it, are we not guilty bystanders?
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