Nov. 1849. DECORATIONS OF ORATORY. 195 



jecting end of every beam ;* and the Chinese " clond 

 messenger," or winged dragon, floated in azure and 

 gold along the capitals and beams, amongst scrolls and 

 groups of flowers. At one end was a sitting figure of 

 Gorucknath in Lama robes, surrounded by a glory, with 



CLASP OF A WOMAN S CLOAK. 



mitre and beads ; the right hand holding the Dorje, and 

 the forefinger raised in prayer. Around was a good 

 library of books. More presents were brought here, and 

 tea served. 



The route to Chola pass, which crosses the range of that 

 name south of the Chola peak (17,320 feet) at the head of 

 this valley, is across the Ryott, and then eastwards along a 



" A mythical animal with a dog's head and blood-red spot over the forehead 

 was not uncommon in this chapel, and is also seen in the Sikkim temples and 

 throughout Tibet. Ermann, in his Siberian Travels, mentions it as occurring in the 

 Khampa Lama's temple at Maimao chin ; he conjectures it to have been the Cyclops 

 of the Greeks, which according to the Homeric myth had a mark on the forehead, 

 instead of an eye. The glory surrounding the heads of Tibetan deities is also 

 alluded to by Ermann, who recognises in it the Nimbus of the ancients, used to 

 protect the heads of statues from the weather, and from being soiled by birds ; 

 and adds that the glory of the ancient masters in painting was no doubt 

 introduced into the Byzantine school from the Boodhists. 



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