DRESS China1 - RPCV Madison
we all dress
© 1987 Charles Eilers
China
Tibetan Woman
“Tashi delay, Tashi delay.” A young Tibetan woman calls greetings from her jewelry stall to potential customers on the Barkhor – the stone paved lane, both a market and a pilgrim path, that encircles the great 7th century Buddhist temple called the Jokhang. It is one of the few temples to survive destruction during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. It houses sacred images of the Buddha that attract worshippers from all parts of the Tibetan plateau. While spinning prayer wheels and reciting the mantra, “Om Mani padme hum,” pilgrims walk clockwise around the Jokhang many times in order to gain merit. The young jewelry vendor hopes to gain customers from the steady passing parade of pilgrims walking around the temple. Her own traditional ornaments of turquoise, coral, silver, and gold, similar to those that adorn the gilded images inside the Jokhang, provide a perfect display of her treasures. For Tibetan women, jewelry is their portable wealth. In recent years, the face of Lhasa has changed with the influx of Han Chinese immigrants. Traditional Lhasa has been surrounded by a sprawl of urban shops. Yet the Tibetans, like the young turquoise trader, still hold to their centuries-old culture. It takes only a few circuits of the Barkhor with the shoppers and pilgrims to feel and share their hopes for a free Tibet. --Charles Eilers, Peace Corps/Nigeria, 1966-67; Peace Corps/Ethiopia 1967-69 China (People’s Republic of China) Capital Beijing Population 1,338,612,968 (2009 est.) Life Expectancy 73.47 years Literacy 90.9% (age 15 and over can read and write) Languages Mandarin, Cantonese, Shanghainese, Fuzhou, others Religions (officially atheist), Taoist, Buddhist, Christian 3%-4%, Muslim 1%-2% Government Communist State Source: The World Factbook, 2009
This photo appears on the we all dress International Poster, produced by the RPCVs of Wisconsin-Madison, 2009. For more information and to order a complete set of full-size posters, see http://www.rpcvmadison.org/
© 1987 Charles Eilers
China
Tibetan Woman
“Tashi delay, Tashi delay.” A young Tibetan woman calls greetings from her jewelry stall to potential customers on the Barkhor – the stone paved lane, both a market and a pilgrim path, that encircles the great 7th century Buddhist temple called the Jokhang. It is one of the few temples to survive destruction during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. It houses sacred images of the Buddha that attract worshippers from all parts of the Tibetan plateau. While spinning prayer wheels and reciting the mantra, “Om Mani padme hum,” pilgrims walk clockwise around the Jokhang many times in order to gain merit. The young jewelry vendor hopes to gain customers from the steady passing parade of pilgrims walking around the temple. Her own traditional ornaments of turquoise, coral, silver, and gold, similar to those that adorn the gilded images inside the Jokhang, provide a perfect display of her treasures. For Tibetan women, jewelry is their portable wealth. In recent years, the face of Lhasa has changed with the influx of Han Chinese immigrants. Traditional Lhasa has been surrounded by a sprawl of urban shops. Yet the Tibetans, like the young turquoise trader, still hold to their centuries-old culture. It takes only a few circuits of the Barkhor with the shoppers and pilgrims to feel and share their hopes for a free Tibet. --Charles Eilers, Peace Corps/Nigeria, 1966-67; Peace Corps/Ethiopia 1967-69 China (People’s Republic of China) Capital Beijing Population 1,338,612,968 (2009 est.) Life Expectancy 73.47 years Literacy 90.9% (age 15 and over can read and write) Languages Mandarin, Cantonese, Shanghainese, Fuzhou, others Religions (officially atheist), Taoist, Buddhist, Christian 3%-4%, Muslim 1%-2% Government Communist State Source: The World Factbook, 2009
This photo appears on the we all dress International Poster, produced by the RPCVs of Wisconsin-Madison, 2009. For more information and to order a complete set of full-size posters, see http://www.rpcvmadison.org/
