Moving from Ongen to Shiquanhe through vast expanse of deserts and grasslands, we found oursevelves in Northern Tibet. It joins northwestern Qamdo, Yushu and Golog of Qinghai, and Shiqu, Serda and Hongyuan in Aba of Garze Prefecture of Sichuan to form the largest nomadic herding culture on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
People living in this part of the world lived and multiplied here some 1,000 years ago. Throughout the ages, they have developed ways and means to cope with fierce weather here and learned to make butter, sour milk and wild bull horn milk kettle as well as yak hair cusions and tents. They were also good at making sheep wool or yak hair ribbons.
The Tibetans eat yak meat, drink yak milk, make yak hair tents, use yak hair ropes and yak hide bags, and even burn yak dungs. Yaks are so indispensable for them they call these animals Norbu or treasures in meaning.
Yaks also find their way into artworks, such as monastery murals and rock carvings. According to classics of the Bon religion, yaks came from the Heaven to the top of Gangdese Mountain. Of the Buddhist warriors, one has a yak head.
Once I traveled to/from Coqen to Gaize, covering a total distance of 650 km. It was a scarcely populated area. All along the way that stretches 650 km we met only two households. We paid them a visit in their tent houses and found the hosts sitting on yak hide cushions.
There were five major tribes in Gegyi, including Changdui, Lhoma and Baco. Each tribe had 70-100 households. In addition, there were some small tribes such as Sadegu. As their ancestors came from the Kham and Amdo areas, they were called Khamgegyi. After 1959, this area was renamed Chaka meaning an area by the Salt Lake while Lhoma was divided into two parts administratively, with one part falling under the jurisdiction of Yarang. Three other tribes met to become one district and three townships.
The Qoiling Monastery is the largest of its kind in the area. The abbot of the Garyu sect monastery was so famous that the locals gathered more than 120,000 Yuan for his soul boy and even one car when he passed away at the age of 80.
Some households in Sergo township of Gegyi allowed their sons to marry their daughters in the past. However, most do not do so. Marriage is at the will of the old and married couples do not live independent from their parents until one or two years later when they have one or two children. The youngest son of a family never leaves their parents.
During New Year Day, people in Chaka of Gegyi perform a recreational kind of dance called Chaka Zhogoshie: Zhogo means pastoral area or herders and Shie singing and dancing.
On the 15th day of the 8th Tibetan month each year, the locals gather for sacrifice-paying ritual called Desang in Tibetan.
In the morning, they, dressed in the holiday best, worship Buddha on the top of local mountains or in monasteries. Their sacrifices include aromatic grass, roasted highland barley called zanba and qingke barley wine. They pray for good harvest.
In the afternoon, they perform Zhogoshie dancing until it dawns the next morning. The dancers often number dozens to up to 100. Men lead the singing while others dance. This is followed by women signing and dancing. While doing so, they move in a crock-wise way. As they move at the fastest speed, the singing and dancing party reach its peak.
The herders love to raise sheep. Some love to raise horses also. There are families each raising more than 80 head of domestic animals including a dozen horses.
The herders raise horses not for economic purpose. In theirs eyes, horses are symbol of riches. Men would be deemed lowly without riding horses. During horse race, all the horses would be elegantly adorned.
The herders raise sheep for meat and wool. Before the peaceful liberation of Tibet in 1951, wool was brought to India and Nepal in return for cloth, rice, sugar, fruit and other daily necessities. After 1951, wool was purchased by the government departments concerned.
Gegyi herders hate to slaughter any sheep aged one to four years and they hate to slaughter sheep they raise themselves. When there is no one who could help with slaughtering, they would manage to kill it without using knife or club. Before using knife, they will chant the Six Syllable Prayer and use prayer tube to touch their foreheads. And they would try not to let their chests stained with the blood of the sheep they slaughter. Women will stay away while men do these generally on the 15th and 30th days of each month, except for October and November when they slaughter sheep one per week apiece so as to store enough meat for winter.
To store meat for winter consumption, they eat animal intestines first and freeze meat outside in open air before bringing them back home. Generally, they wrap frozen meat with animal hide. Animal chests are considered to be of the best quality and used to entertain guests or to be consumed mainly by the old and men in the family. Lungs are used to feed dogs only….
A Gau box is a Tibetan Buddhist amulet container or prayer box, usually made of metal and worn as jewelry. It is a religious ritual object, helping people achieve their goals. All faiths use prayer boxes to focus the mind on one’s prayerful thoughts or secret wishes by writing them down on a small piece of paper and placing them into the box.
