first assemble before circumambulating the mountain,
tbe journey being across the wilderness of bog, morass
and sand hummocks, while we seemed to be perpetually
fording streams. The fact is that the whole of this land
as far as the foot of the Kangri or Kailas range of
mountains must at one time have been a lake and part
of the Rakas Tal, for the ground is very little higher than
the level of that lake, and in times of much rain becomes
absolutely waterlogged and very difficult to traverse.
There are also other marks to lead to 1 his conclusion.
Here in the very midst of Tibetan territory we found
an administration ruled by the Ruler of Bhutan, independent
of the Gartok viceroys and of Lhasa itself.
Apparently the whole is in the nature of a religious
endowment, in which the Bhutan représentât ves
will not now tolerate any interference, and so far have
matters gone in the past that the retainers of the
Darchan ruler have met those of the Garphans and blows
have been exchanged, even fire-arms being brought into
use. During the last three years the appointed officer,
who bears the title of Dashok, has been absent from
Darchan without intermission, and his faithful servant
has done the work in the ordinary course of events as
prevailing in Tibet, until now, finally, his master has
been reported to be dead, and as no one has come
to replace him he has become the virtual ruler. When
we reached Darchan the whole establishment, great
and small, was drunk ; but by the evening we were able
to effect communications with a few of the less inebriated,
and in the morning we were on the best of
terms with the master, who was extremely grieved that
owing to severe indisposition he had been unable to
see us on the preceding evening. His post is an important
one, as he is the head administrator of Darchan ;
of two monasteries, Nendiphu and Zutulphu (Jam-
dulphu of the maps), which are situated on the holy
way round Kailas; of the Jaikep (Jenkhab) gompa on
Lake Mansarowar; of the very important place Kho-
jarnath; of Rungung and Do on the upper Karnali
river; of Gazon near Gartok; and four monasteries Iti,
Mount Kailas
This woman’s hair goes
down to her feet
MILKING SHEEP AND GOATS AT BARKHA
Gonphu, Gesur and Samur in the Daba Jongpen’s
territory.
The actual circuit round the holy mountain of Kailas,
the Heaven of Shiva, and one of the most sacred places
in the Hindu religion, occupies on an average three
days, the distance being about twenty-five miles.
The path is not good, walking is absolutely obligatory,
and the track rises in one place to a very great height,
namely, to the Gauri-Kund, which is a lake that remains
frozen at all times of the year, even in the hottest