SACRED LANDSCAPE AND PILGRIMAGE IN TIBET
IN SEARCH OF LOST KINGDOM OF BON


PHOTOGRAPHY BY THOMAS L. KELLY
TEXT BY GESHE GELEK JINPA, CHARLES RAMBLE, AND CARROLL DUNHAM.


GESHE GELEK JINPA, a monk of the little known Bon faith, takes us on a fascinating pilgrimage, visually and spiritually, through the spectacular landscape of western Tibet in search of lost, sacred Bon homeland of Zhangzhung. This spiritual adventure is the first book to document the living traditions of Bon, whose origins predate Buddhism in Tibet by hundreds, if not thousands, of years. What makes this narrative so compelling is that it features the voiced and perspective of the monk Gelek, giving it and intimacy and knowledge of Bon not found in religious texts.

According to the Tibetan calendar, 2002 was a holy year for pilgrimages, and in the holiest month of that year, Gelek, set out from his monastery in Nepal with eleven hardy companions and photographer Thomas Kelly to travel to Kailash, a scared mountain in western Tibet. Gelek was also on a personal mission to seek out the long vanished kingdom of Zhangzhung. At the end of the journey, Gelek finds little that resembles that Bon Kingdom. He comes upon crumbling ruins that have all but reverted to their native dust and earth. From this experience Gelek understands that the essence of this faith is not built on theses shifting sands but on the bedrock of the changeless Bon teachings.

Gelek’s journal of this arduous trek and spiritual quests is portrayed with 160 stunningly beautiful color photographs of the snow-capped Himalayan peaks and sweeping valleys, pilgrims, nomads and local people, and religious objects. In addition, Tibetan authority Charles Ramble Bon in the 21st Century, and two Bon officials contribute forewords.

Included with this book is a fascinating DVD, which allows us to experience this exotic pilgrimage through one of the most remote places on earth.

This book is available at Thomas Kelly’s office @ Kathmandu, Nepal, at USD 65
Place your order at:
tkelly@photo.wlink.com.np
TeleFax# 977-01-443-8883,
# 977-01-4431-954
Moblie # 977-98510-26738
P.O.B: 1406
Kathmandu, Nepal.

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