«»***; «e ^ 



bird's-eye view of the tempee oe the god oe war, behind the milestone hiee 



Two yellow pavilions stand outside of 

 the wall, in front of which is a granite 

 pillar about 20 feet high. It is said that 

 this pillar was built in order to pro- 

 tect the palace against attacks by evil 

 spirits. 



According to traditioa, the work of 

 this gigantic construction began about 

 1,200 years ago. The forts and garri- 

 sons were first built. Other parts of the 

 palace were later additions. It took 

 nearly ten centuries to complete this 

 Lama Vatican ; and it was not until 200 

 years ago that its present majestic ap- 

 pearance was finally attained. 



Dwelling in such a heavenly abode, the 

 Living Buddha cannot but look down 

 upon the world with pride and dignity. 



This magnificent mansion, with its 

 colors of white, crimson, red, and brown, 

 and its golden roofs, against the back- 

 ground of green grass and blue sky, 

 forms a picture of splendor and beauty 

 that can hardly be surpassed. It is not 

 strange that pilgrirns from all parts of 



the Buddhist world come to worship at 

 this Mount of Holiness. 



The Palace of Dalai Lama indeed 

 bears out the statement that at Lhasa are 

 to be found some of the noblest speci- 

 mens of architecture in central Asia. 



Noble and beautiful as the exterior of 

 the palace is, the interior is quite the op- 

 posite. Like most Lama temples, the 

 interior of the palace is dark and filthy. 

 The rooms occupied by Dalai are the 

 only clean portion of this much-revered 

 religious edifice. 



THE GREAT TEMPEE OE EHASA — CHO-KANG 



The Great Temple of Lhasa stands 

 conspicuous in the center of the city. 

 Though its external appearance is not 

 very attractive, the interior is fascinat- 

 ing in the highest degree (see page 969). 

 Towers, pavilions, and golden roofs 

 form the most beautiful exterior deco- 

 rations. 



Unlike niost monasteries in Tibet, 

 which are generally several stories high 



965 



