This book presents the fascinating world of northeast Tibet's historical and cultural monuments. The author's original studies reveal that Tibetan culture is thriving. Tibetans have rebuilt their economy and revitalized their traditional way of life. East Tibet has not until now been thoroughly researched although it comprises about two-thirds of the Tibetan Plateau. This book provides comprehensive information on unknown sites in Amdo. The first volume starts with the famous Kumbum Monastery. Next, the major lamaseries of Tsongkha and the Yellow River bend are described with a historical outline of northeastern Tibet. Detailed descriptions of the major historic sites will help understand their development, as well as locating sites and understanding what can be seen there. Amdo includes densely populated Tsongkha with Muslim, Han-Chinese and Tibetan communities the realm of Ngolok?s sacred Amnye Machen mountain and the vast empty steppes and deserts of the central highland and Tsaidarn basin. The pastoral world of the formerly notorious Ngolok nomads and their religious realm are also described.
Volume 2 This book presents unknown Tibetan Buddhist art and hitherto overlooked Sino-Tibetan lamaseries on the Silk Road fringes. Labrang Monastery in the Tibeto-Chinese borderlands, for instance, highlights the nexus between Tibet, East and Central Asia. Gansu, in the Sichuan part of Amdo, contains a wealth of local Tibetan cultural centers. The Ngawa Gelugpa realm and the last Jonangpa communities in Dzamthang, that have been greatly underestimated for centuries, are given the prominence they deserve. This work helps to dispel uninformed views that have been spread in the West. Detailed descriptions of the major historic sites facilitate the understanding of their development, and provide further guidance to find the sites and understand what can be seen there. One can prepare a tour to this region by getting knowledgeable about the extraordinary cultural monuments presented here. Serta, the world's largest Buddhist academy, virtually unknown, has impressive architectural features such as the Jonangchbrten and temple towers seen nowhere else in Tibet. These add to the hidden treasures of Amdo's revitalized Buddhist tradition. The region presented in this book is one of diversity in a highland realm that for long was neglected in respect of its historic and cultural importance.
