—An Introduction to China's Tibetan Culture
CONTENTS
1.
The Origins and Significance of the Epic
2. Plot Briefs
3. Collection of and Research on
the Epic
4. The Fruit and Wisdom of Folk
Artists
5. Influence Spreads to Foreign
Countries
The Life of King Gesar is a heroic epic collectively created by China's Tibetans. Originating in the folk oral traditions passed down among Tibetan generations for some 1,000 years, it has been collected as a work composed of 120-odd volumes, with more than 1 million verses, totalling over 20 million words. It is the longest epic known to the world, and has been called the Orient's Homeric Epic.
I. The Origins and Significance of the Epic
The immortal epic evolved during the transition period between the 3rd and 6th centuries as the Tibetan clan society gave way to the emerging slavery society. The diverse elements of the epic were consolidated after the establishment of the Tubo Kingdom (early 7th-9th centuries). It was further refined and gained wide fame during the shift from a slave society to a feudal society in Tibet from the 10th century to the early 12th century.
With resurgence of Buddhism in Tibet around the 11th century, Tibetan monks began participating in efforts to compile and popularize The Life of King Gesar. The basic structure of the epic took shape and the earliest transcripts emerged. The work of consolidating the epic was mainly undertaken by monks of the Nyingma (Red) Sect.
Based on such folk literature as fairy tales, legends, poems and proverbs passed on by the Tibetan people, The Life of King Gesar came into being and further developed, representing the leading achievement of ancient Tibetan culture. The epic relates the heroic achievements of Gesar, who lived without fear of his rather formidable enemies, subdued monsters, helped the poor and controlled the strong, and brought benefits to the common people.
The epic warmly praises the truth that justice and brightness will be victorious over evil and darkness. It also reflects the important historic stages of national development and basic social structure in Tibet, conveying the good wishes and lofty ideals of the masses and depicting the complicated relationships between China's ethnic groups and the process of final unification. The Life of King Gesar is a great work featuring the study of ancient Tibetan social history, class relations, exchanges between ethnic groups, moral concepts, folk customs, traditions, and culture. Thought of the Oriental Homeric Epic, it is of high academic value.
China is home to many nationalities. History has closely united the peoples of the Han and various ethnic groups. Therefore, The Life of King Gesar embodies the great spirit of the Chinese people and their lofty ideal of pursuing justice and a happy life. The evolution and development of the epic are a cultural phenomenon not often seen in Tibetan history, or in histories of China or the rest of the world for that matter.
The evolution of the epic spanned a long historical period, encompassing several stages of Tibetan history, including the late primitive society, the dictatorship of the slave owners, the slave society, and the feudal society. The epic continues to meet with widespread fame in the society of today's Qinghai-Tibet Plateau.
These important periods in Tibetan social development have greatly influenced the popularization and development of the epic and are reflected directly or indirectly through its words. At the same time, The Life of King Gesar had tremendous effect on Tibetan culture during different periods, resulting in its important position in Tibetan cultural history. No other work comes close to the epic in its ability to reflect the history and cultural development of the ancient Tibetan society. Nor has any other work been able to so thoroughly influence the cultural development of the Tibetans. In this sense, the Life of King Gesar can be thought of as a work of social and literary power.
The story was set far in the distant past, when the common people of the Tibetan plateau were subjected to natural disasters and calamities across their lands. Demons and spirits run wild. The Goddess of Mercy, in the hope of helping the people, asked the Amitabha Buddha to send the son of the God of Heaven to the world to defeat the evil demons.
Toiba Gawa, who later came to be known by the name Gesar, descended to the earth and became the king of the Tibetan people. Able to defeat the demons, aid the poor and benefit the common people, Gesar is portrayed as a combination of god, dragon and a fierce spirit known as nyan in Tibetan primitive religion. He was endowed with special characteristics and marvelous powers and abilities. Gesar suffered several trials. However, his invincible power and the protection of the God of Heaven allowed him to survived and eventually defeat the evil demons.
Throughout his life as a human, he worked to rid the common people of the scourges of their existence. At the age of five, he moved with his mother to the banks of the Yellow River. When he was eight, they were joined by the members of the Ling tribe. Winning a horse race against the finest warriors of the tribe at the tender age of 12, he was recognized as the chief of the tribe. He married Sengjam Zholmo. Gesar then led expeditions against the enemies of his tribal kingdom. He defeated the northern demons who had invaded the lands of the Ling Kingdom. In successive campaigns, he defeated King Gurdkar of the Hor Kingdom, King Sadam of the Jang Kingdom, King Shingkhri of Monyul, King Nor of Tangzig, King Chidan of Khachevigyu, King Toigui of the Zugu Kingdom and scores of small tribes and minor kingdoms known as zongs in ancient Tibet. After completing his sacred mission, he returned to heaven together with his mother and wife, bringing to a dramatic close the grand epic of his life.
The story's structure touches upon two important periods in Tibetan social development and includes depictions of almost 100 tribes, kingdoms and regions. The epic is generally divided into three parts: the birth of Gesar; the expeditions against the enemies; and his return to heaven. Of the three parts, the depictions of his battles and exploits are the most detailed and contain the most enlightening materials in relation to Tibetan history and culture. The second part includes four parts—Defeating Demons in the North, Battles Between Hor and Ling, Defend the Salt Sea, and Battles Between Mon and Ling--as well as battles to conquer 54 zongs.
The Life of King Gesar is recognized as a literary treasure and a heritage of Tibetan art and beauty. Based on the society that gave it birth, the epic sums up important stages in the development of Tibetan history and expresses the lives of the ordinary Tibetan people as well as hundreds of figures. Whether heroes or tyrants, men or women, young or old, the figures make deep impressions with their clearly defined characters and striking images. The heroic figures, led by King Gesar, provide immortal examples of valiant sacrifices.
The portrayal of characters through dialogue, actions, and plot twists is characteristic of the epic. No two figures are identical. For instance, among the heroic figures, King Gesar is portrayed as a leader with a broad and long-term view and a boldness of vision. Manager King is described as a resourceful and kind man. Gyaica is shown through his words and deeds to be a brave man of strong character, while Dainma is described as both intelligent and courageous. The female figures are portrayed more elegantly, with vivid and lively characteristics. For instance, according to Battles Between Hor and Ling, three kings of Hor send armed forces to seize Zholmo, wife of King Gesar. He did so because, when the wife of Hor's King Gurdkar had died, the four birds from Hor who were ordered to find the most beautiful woman in the world, had a cow to bring back the following message:
The beautiful girl is in Ling Kingdom,
Queen Zholmo is resplendent and bright.
Her step forward is worth 100 strong horses,
Her step backward is worth 100 thriving sheep.
She is warmer than the sun in winter,
And cooler than the moon in summer.
She is more fragrant than flowers in bloom,
Surrounded by bees in adulation.
There are many beauties in this world,
But only she is a true match for the king.
King Gesar has gone to the north,
His queen is alone and unprotected.
The Life of King Gesar originated from the ordinary society of Tibet and was solidly based on ancient Tibetan literature, especially ancient folk stories. Before the epic was consolidated, Tibetan literature boasted a variety of works, especially folk stories, fairy tales, legends, traditional stories and poems. These were numerous and richly woven. The Life of King Gesar drew much from these previous literary works and carried forward the tradition of outstanding literatures through its plot development, evolution, materials, and forms of expression, as well as in ideology, religion, and customs. Rhetorically, it borrowed a number of Tibetan proverbs, cited in the original or adapted in the epic after polished. For instance:
If seeds are not sown in spring,
No corn will be harvested in autumn
If cows are not fed in winter,
There will be no milk in the spring.
If fine horses are not well bred,
They will not gallop into the face of your enemies.
A white-lip wild horse won't eat chaff,
Even if he is hungry, that is his character.
A wild ox won't drink drainage water,
Even if he is thirsty, that is his character.
A man won't shed tears,
Even if he leads a bitter life, that is his character.
The Life of King Gesar has also preserved various traditional words of praise, such as the Ode to Wine, Ode to the Mountains, Ode to Tea, Ode to Horses, Ode to Swords and Knives, Ode to Dress, and Ode to Armor. The famous Ode to Wine speaks of one of the simpler pleasures of life:
The bowl of wine in my hand has a long history.
The sky is blue like jade.
The blue-jade dragon roars in the sky.
The lightning flashes red,
And drizzle falls like sweet dew.
By using the clean sweet dew,
Heavenly nectar can be brewed in the human world.
Crops should be grown first for making wine.
The earth is like a golden basin,
Opening its bounty to the grain.
Crops spring from the golden basin,
And are harvested by the sickle in autumn.
Pien Nieu stand side by side ready to thresh grain,
Farming tools whisper through the air.
Shovels of white poplar winnow the harvest.
Chaff blows on the wind.
The winnowed kernels wait in the silo.
Barns and depots overflow with highland barley.
Everyone rejoices in the highland brew.
Colorful kitchen ranges appear,
Good bronze pots with auspicious knobs stand ready.
White towels clean the sweat from the pot.
Highland barley simmers in clear water
Over a roaring fire.
Spreading highland barley on the felt,
Mixing with essential distiller's yeast.
Four seasons are needed to make the wine for the New Year's Day.
Which is called Sweet Dew.
Wine made in one month is called Cold Sweet Dew.
Wine made in one day is called Whirling Sweet Dew).
......
Officials who drink it,
Will be more broad-minded than the sky.
The timid will become brave
After but one cup.
......
There are many advantages to drinking this wine,
Which our homeland is short of.
It is the imperial wine for kings;
It calms worried souls;
It brings happiness and dancing to common people.
......
In addition, The Life of King Gesar is considered a flower basket of folk literature, having drawn many elements from folk songs, fairy tales and stories. On the other hand, it also provided a wealth of material for the later creation of literature and art. Some tunes of folk songs and dances are drawn from The Life of King Gesar, and some songs herald praise for the Gesar couple. In addition, some fairy tales and folk stories have drawn material from The Life of King Gesar, such as The Story of Seven Brothers, which combines the interesting source material about the seven brothers building houses for people with elements from The Life of King Gesar. Numerous unique frescos and sculptures are also based on the plots found in The Life of King Gesar and there are statues enshrined in temples with an image of King Gesar serving as the guardian.
The Life of King Gesar combines the styles of prose and verse. Its poetry joins the ancient past with the modern age of Tibetan literary development. It reflects the importance of ideological and rhetorical methods, especially in its poetic rules and forms. For instance:
A fierce tiger with bright stripes
Wandering in the forest shows its power.
But what use are the stripes if no one sees them?
A wild yak relishes its youth,
Climbing Black Rock Mountain, dancing with its horns.
But what use is youth if you fail to dance?
A wild stallion with white lips,
Intending to gallop across the grasslands.
But what use is the white lip if he fails to
gallop?
Tangze, a hero of the Hor Kingdom displays his might.
Facing Ling on the battlefields.
But what use is he if he fails to defeat the dragon?
Poems of this style are common in The Life of King Gesar. Not only do they follow a multiple paragraph pattern and a circular style evident in the Tubo period, but also create a new style that uses eight-word stanzas, instead of the former six-word stanzas (in the original Tibetan language). The rules and forms were basically shaped and fixed by the 11th century and have remained unchanged. This form is widely used in Tibetan folk songs, narrative poems, poems in lyrical stories, and Tibetan dramas, as well as in the works of scholars and poets. They have become the most influential and important rules and forms in Tibetan poetry.
By using verse, proses, lyrics and narration, the epic combines real stories, myths, poems, fables, proverbs and mottos, making it a collection of Tibetan folk culture.
III. Collection of and Research on the Epic
With collaboration and collection, The Life of King Gesar has become truly of epic proportion. The entire work is longer and has a greater number of verses than the world's other five great epics combined. The other five epics are the ancient Babylonian Gilgamesh, the Greek Iliad and Odyssey, and the Indian Ramayana and Mahabharata. The Babylonian epic Gilgamesh is regarded as the world's oldest epic, having been written some 3,000 years before the Christian Era. It has some 3,000 verses. The Iliad is made up of 24 volumes with over 15,000 verses. The Odyssey is also made up of 24 volumes and has some 12,000 verses. The Indian classic Ramayana is divided into seven volumes, totalling 18,000 odes with two verses each. Mahabharata is divided into 18 volumes, totalling more than 100,000 odes comprising over 200,000 verses.
The study of The Life of King Gesar is of great significance to an understanding of Chinese cultural history and fills a gap in China's multi-ethnic literary history. With vivid facts, it demonstrates that epics existed not only in the West and in ancient India, but in China as well, overturning the long-held academic belief that Chinese writers have never created a Chinese epic. In fact, China boasts the longest epic in the world. Along with the Babylonian, Greek and Indian epics, The Life of King Gesar is of significant value as part of the world's cultural treasure-house, making important contributions to human civilization.
Work to preserve The Life of King Gesar has involved several aspects, myriad subjects and various departments. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China in 1949, much importance has been attached to the work of preserving The Life of King Gesar. In the 1950s, efforts were devoted to its collection. On March 23, 1959, a special White Paper on preservation of The Life of King Gesar was authorized for dispatch by the Propaganda Department of the Central Committee, in celebration of the 10th anniversary of the National Day. Thanks to joint efforts by the folk artists of all ethnic groups, noticeable progress has been recorded.
Since the late 1970s, when China entered a new historic stage, preservation work has been once again stressed. Since 1983, the collection of and research on the epic has been listed as a national key project three times in succession. In 1984, concerned organizations were established by the State Ethnic Affairs Commission, the Ministry of Culture, the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and the China Folk Artists' Association, as well as related departments in Qinghai, Sichuan, Gansu, and Yunnan provinces and the Tibet, Inner Mongolia, and Xinjiang Uygur autonomous regions, in a bid to complete the massive but far-reaching cultural cause.
A contingent of hundreds of experts and technicians have spent scores of years conducting academic investigations and scientific research in many parts of China. Their work has been a heroic undertaking in Tibetan cultural history, and the scale of efforts is rare among the developmental programs in Chinese multi-ethnic literature and art.
After scores of years of painstaking effort, especially during the past decade, this work has formed a scientific research contingent made up of senior, veteran, and young experts from several ethnic groups specializing in performance, collection, translation, publication and academic research. A number of academic works and investigative reports have been published, and many valuable materials and documents have been collected, providing a solid foundation for further study.
Based on these achievements, academic activities have increased, with a variety of artistic performances and academic symposiums, as well as four international academic seminars. Many foreign academics believe the undertakings concerning The Life of King Gesar have made rapid progress, making this discipline a dynamic academic field of Chinese Tibetology and Mongolian studies, as well as Chinese folk literature circle. The study of this epic has become a system of academic courses. Continuing to develop, the field offers tremendous advantages and rich cultural connotations. In June 1995, the epic, for the first time, was discussed as a special item at the 7th International Tibetan Studies Seminar held in Austria. With unique national flavor and colorful content, the ancient heroic epic The Life of King Gesar fully displays the bright color and tremendous artistic value of Tibetan literature and has won China a fresh reputation among international academic circles.
Up to date, almost 300 Tibetan manuscripts and wooden engravings have been collected, including 200 copies in various other language. More than 70 Tibetan editions have been published, with a total number of copies topping 3 million. This means that the number of copies published roughly equals the adult population of Tibet. In addition, some 20 Chinese-language editions have been published. This is viewed as an unprecedentedly great achievement in the history of Tibetan publication.
IV. The Fruit and Wisdom of Folk Artists
The popularity and immortality of The Life of King Gesar should be credited to the direct creators, inheritors, popularists and outstanding folk artists responsible for the work. They are real artists and outstanding poets of the masses. During the long days of their lives, generations of folk artists have been busy creating China's great epic through their painstaking efforts. Their works embody the great intelligence and spirit of initiation of the masses. With marvelous wisdom and artistic talent, they have made meritorious contributions to inheriting and developing Tibetan cultural undertakings, which should be remembered and respected by people of the present age and our descendants.
During the process of large-scale preservation, almost 100 folk artists are discovered to be active in rural and pastoral areas. Of these, more than 10 are popular among the people. Before presenting performances, they usually hold various forms of ceremonies, such as burning incense and worshiping gods or singing in front of a mirror. They always wear hats with all kinds of bird's feathers as a costume and carry musical instruments made of ox horn or ring tambourines. In August 1984, during the Shoton (Sour Milk Drinking) Festival, Lhasa hosted Gesar artists from seven provinces and municipalities, with 40-odd performers participating in the performances, including noted bard Zhagba and the female bard Yumei.
The Tibetan folk bard Zhagba has devoted his entire life to the preservation and performance of The Life of King Gesar. Several hours before he passed away in November 1986, he still assiduously presented songs from The Life of King Gesar. With his passing, the masses inherited a precious piece of cultural heritage. He performed 25 versions of The Life of King Gesar, with a total of 600,000 verses, or 6 million words, in his life time. The figure is equal to 25 Homeric Epics or 15 Ramayanas or three Mahabharatas. It is by far the longest and the most complete set of versions in the world. These versions embody the wisdom and artistic talent of Zhagba and represent an important fruit of the preservation work in the new age.
Unlike other folk artists, the bards don't pass down their legacy from master to apprentice, or from father to son. They believe the skill of performances depends on the inspiration of the gods, not by inheritance or study. They believe the emergence of generations of artists has to do with the reincarnation of a figure related to King Gesar. This is in line with the basic tenets of Buddhist reincarnation and the Lamaist Living Buddhas of the traditional Tibetan culture.
V. Influence Spreads to Foreign Countries
As long ago as the Tubo Kingdom, the epic was spread to neighboring countries and regions around the Himalayas. And after the 13th century, with the spread of Buddhism in Mongolian inhabited areas, a large number of Tibetan scriptures and literary works were translated into Mongolian. With this development, The Life of King Gesar was gradually handed down in Mongolian areas and evolved into its own system. During the second half of the 14th century, or the late Ming and early Qing dynasties, it was popularized within an even wider area. Meanwhile, it was handed down among other ethnic groups inhabiting neighboring areas, such as the Tu, Naxi and Yugu.
Some 200 years have witnessed the introduction of The Life of King Gesar to foreign lands. Some portions have been translated into English, Russian, German, and French. Still, foreign contact began with the Mongolian translations. In 1716, during the reign of Emperor Kangxi of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), the first Mongolian version was printed in Beijing, providing a chance for foreign academicians to study the work. In 1776, a Russian traveler Palas first recommended The Life of King Gesar in the Collection of Mongolian Historic Documents published in St. Petersburg, exposing the singing form of the epic and related scriptures and commenting on Gesar. In 1836, a Russian scholar by the name of Jakov published the epic in Mongolian and later translated the work into German and published it in St. Petersburg in 1939. These were the earliest foreign publications concerning The Life of King Gesar.
After it was translated into Russian and German, foreign scholars had access to the text and began to focus some attention of the work. Articles and studies on the epic began to appear. One Russian scholar used comparisons with the Life of King Gesar to illustrate a work on the Tartar Heroic Epic. In the late 19th century, the Mongolian edition began to receive a great deal of attention. Between 1879-1885, an Indian scholar visited Tibet twice, collecting a large number of materials about the epic. His articles soon began to appear in scholarly publications. The excavation of related Tibetan materials widened the scope for researchers overseas, hence Western and Eastern schools of thought emerged. The most outstanding representative of the Eastern school of thought is a scholar from the People's Republic of Mongolia. In a sense, his research can represent the level of the Eastern school of thought. His main representative work is An Illustration of the Origins of The Life of King Gesar.
Western scholars began serious study of the epic in the 1930s and their work entered into full bloom in the 1960s, later than in the East. Two French scholars, Alexander David Neel and R.A. Stein, are the major representatives of the Western school of thought. Neel visited China twice and stayed for several years in areas inhabited by ethnic Tibetans in Sichuan Province. With the help the Yunden Lama, he listened to folk artist presentations of the stories of Gesar and also collected several hand-written and wood-cut copies. After returning to France, he worked the materials into a series of stories he entitled The Exceptional Life of Gesar in Ling, which was published in French in Paris in 1931. This book was translated into English and published in London in 1933. These two publications aided the interested Westerners in understanding the contents of the epic The Life of King Gesar.
R.A. Stein, a reputed contemporary Tibetologist, has written many famous works. In 1958, he published Tibetan Painted Scrolls About Gesar's Life and in 1959 Tibetan Epic of King Gesar and Study of Bards, together completely and systemically illustrating the epic of The Life of King Gesar. These are regarded as the sum of Western study on Gesar.
In the past years, much headway has been recorded in such research both at home and abroad. The results of work by Chinese scholars have influenced the literary field and have been highly praised. The noted epic expert, Prof. Walther Heissig of Bonn University commented to colleagues at the First International Academic Seminar on The Life of King Gesar held in Chengdu, Sichuan Province, in November 1989. He said, "I envy you, as your government has attached such high importance to the collection of folk literature and this epic. There are no precedents in the history of world literature. You are quite lucky. Your work is of global significance. In Germany or some other nations, the collection of folk literature has relied on experts and scholars.''
The collection of and research on The Life of King Gesar, a cultural undertaking of the Tibetan people and the Chinese government, is being extensively and thoroughly developed.
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