Strolling out in the afternoon I saw a dance of
Lamas; they were disfigured with black paint, and
covered with rags, feathers, and scarlet cloth, and they
carried long poles with bells and banners; thus
equipped, they marched through the village, every now
and then halting, when they danced and gesticulated
to the rude music of cymbals and horns, the bystanders
applauding with shouts, crackers, and alms.
I walked up to the convents, which were long ugly
buildings, built of wood, and daubed with red and grey
paint. The priests were nowhere to be found, and an
old withered nun whom I disturbed husking millet
in a large wooden mortar, fled at my approach. The
adjacent temple had a broad low architrave : its
walls sloped inwards, as did the lintels ; the doors
were black, and almost covered with a gigantic and
disproportioned painting of a head, with bloody cheeks
and huge te e th ; it was surrounded by myriads of
goggle eyes, which seemed to follow one about; and
though in every respect rude, the effect was somewhat
imposing. The similarly proportioned gloomy portals
of Egyptian fanes naturally invite comparison; but
the Tibetan temples lack the sublimity of those ; and
the uncomfortable creeping sensation produced by the
many sleepless eyes of Boodh’s numerous incarnations
is very different from the awe with which we contemplate
the outspread wings of the Egyptian symbol, and feel
as in the presence of him who says, “ I am Osiris the
Gre at: no man hath dared to lift my veil.”
I had ascended behind the village, but returned
down the “ via sacra,” a steep paved path flanked by
mendongs or low stone dykes, into which were let rows
of stone slabs, inscribed with the sacred “ Om Mani
Padmi om,”—“ Hail to him of the Lotus and Jewel
an invocation of Sakkya, who is usually represented
holding a lotus flower with a jewel in it.
On the following morning, a scanty supply of very
dirty rice was produced, at a very high price. I had,
however, so divided my party as not to require a large
amount of food, intending to send most of the people
back by the Tambur to Dorjiling. I retained nineteen
persons in all, selecting the most willing, as it was
evident the journey would be one of great hardship; and
we took seven days’ food, which was as much as they
could carry. At noon, I left Wallanchoon, and mustered
my party at the junction of the Tambur and Yangma,
whence I dismissed those who were to return to Doiji-
ling, with my collections of plants, minerals, &c., and
proceeded with the chosen ones to ascend the Yangma
river. The scenery was wild and very grand, our route
lying through a narrow gorge, choked with pine trees,
down which the river roared in a furious torrent; while
the mountains on each side were crested with castellated
masses of rock, and sprinkled with snow. The path
was very bad, often up ladders, and along planks lashed
to the faces of precipices, and over-hanging the torrent,
which it crossed several times by plank bridges. By
dark we arrived at Yangma Guola, a collection of empty
wooden huts buried in the rocky forest-clad valley, and
took possession of a couple. They were well built,
raised onposts, with a stage and ladder at the gable
end, and each consisted of one good-sized apartment.