REFERENCES ON TIBETAN MUSLIMS IN BOOKS
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- REFERENCES ON TIBETAN MUSLIMS IN BOOKS
Charles Bell
- Zorawar Singh prisoners (Ladakhis) settled in Tibet.
- On their return from Calcutta they brought news that Germany was....
- Prosperous, unaggressive traders
- Dress they were Tibetan
- Married Tibetan women
- Our entry into the holy city—all and sundry came several miles outside to meet us. Representatives from Nepal, Bhutan and from Kashmir—the last indeed ride 42 miles outside Lhasa to greet us.
- TMs invited—like in this annual reception by the DL—behind us were the envoys from Ladakh, in Kashmir.
Dawa Norbu:
- Muslims in Tibet achieved a working spiritual consensus with...
- In Sakya trading community, Kashmiri Muslims- richest and most progressive
- Judges, law did not apply to TMs.
- Close association with the aristocracy.
- Khache mosque built right inside the Buddhist consecrated areas of Lhasa
- Some of them married Tibetans, all of them at one point of the other.
Ekai Kawaguchi:
- Descendants of immigrants from Kashmir.
- Cling pertinacious to their doctrines
- Mohammadan religion existing within a very small sphere of influence has shown a gradual approach to Buddhism, though unnoticed by themselves.
Tibetan Review- Feb 1988:
- The settlements of Muslims tin Tibet can be traced back to the 12th century.
- Three types- Zaidah, Hopolings, Gharibs.
Tibetan Review- May 1976:
- TMs, as a merchant class, played a greater role in the pre-1959 Tibetan society.
- They were the symbols of urbanity and social sophistication.
- While staunchly Islam in their faith, were thoroughly Tibetan in every other aspect.
- Language- While Tibetan refugees tend to delight in speaking in broken Hindi or Nepali, the Khaches proudly speak in their inimitable Lhasan accent.
- In Kashmir who are trying to build a home in their “ancestral land” that has now become alien to them.
- Origin: 14th century trickled into Tibet- at first sin small numbers. It was through social interaction and inter-marriage that numbers gained in strength.
- Present: unstable, uneconomic,
- In Tibet- free from political strife, rich in resources, secular, the 5th DL.
- 1959-61: extortion. Terror. Boycott. Cruelty. Rebels- 5 leaders imprisoned- the Khache pompo died in prison.
- TMs, fundamentally differed with other religions by not preaching and proselytising. Whatever conversion – due to marriage.
- Trade: their trade organisation relied heavily on family ties. Lhasa- Kalimpong. Since organised trade was almost non-existent before the coming of Muslims, they soon prospered and formed a rich merchant class.
David MacDonald:
- Forefathers have been trading in Tibet for hundreds of years and for the past two centuries they have had a permanent settlement in Lhasa.
- Ghulam Mohd, title of “Khan Sahib” for the services rendered from time to time- GoI.
- Faizullah, a friend of mine.
- Assisted by British Trade Agents on many accounts.
- Formerly elected, but recently selected and appointed by the Tibetan Govt
W.M McGovern:
- Mosque- Flourishing condition, but also scanty attention to Islamic rules. Koran in Arabic, unintelligible to most of the audience.
Francis Younghusband:
- Bogle had conversations with the Kashmiri traders--- sent by Tashi Lama to him.
- If Tibetan merchants afraid to go to Bengal, they the Kashmiri would supply them with what they wanted.
Ippolito Desideri (1712-1727): Fillipo De Fillippi:
- Lhasa- populated also by Cascimir as merchants and who have made large fortunes.
Guideppe Tucci:
- Tsetang- like in Lhasa and Shigatse, some Kache families i.e. naturalised Kashmiri Muslims lived there too.
- Trade- retail trade and tailors.
Sarat Chandra Das:
- Origin- The arrival of the Kashmir envoy every 3 years
- Origin of this tribute since 1840-41 Zorawar Singh. Dogra-Tibet war.
- A small saffron plant, seed from Kashmir.
- Law governing a kashmiri merchant: If he is a subject of some foreign govt, such as Kashmir, such fine.. Seized, packed.. to his own govt with a complain.
- A Khache family in Tsetang: S C Das lodged in his house.
- Knew Englishman, Queen of England etc—exposure due to trade.
- Tsetan: 10 Kashmiri shops.
Turnbull/Norbu:
- Origin: They had for a long time been Muslims in Lhasa. During Ngawang Gyatso- a very renowned holy Muslim cam. This holy man and Gyalwa Rinpoche—long talks—bow and arrow—Gyandag Lingka.
- Costume: costume worn during Tibetan festivals- indicate long contact with Muslims from the West.
Rinchen Dolma Taring:
- Origin- more than a thousand TMs who originally came from Kashmir
- Marriage- their wives were mostly Tibetans, converted to Islam and there was no objection to these conversions because Tibetans respected all religions equally and made no effort to convert.
- Music- My father and brother playing music ( damyen, piwang, lingbu, and Chinese yangjin) in Tsarong Hose, overlooking the Barkhor. One particular TM, son of a famous flute player- often paused to shed tears.
- Food- often our Muslim friends gave us delicious curry and rice, which i loved.
Prince Peter:
- 1959- China to TMs- should no longer look upon themselves as a minority, but rather as one of the major ethnic groups of the motherland. But TMs would rather quit, loyalty to culture.
- Population- 350 Khache in Lhasa; 150 in Shigatse and 20 in Tsetang.
- Composition- Hopaling, Ldakpa, Singpa, Kashmiris.
- Each had a pompo.
- Hopalinga Pompo appointed by Department of Agriculture- they were prisoners of Tibet-China war- handed over to Agriculture department as agricultural labourers.
- Khache Pompo- appointed by Department of Finance- Traders
- Architecture of mosque- Hopalilng- Chinese. Khache- Tibetan- no minarets.
- Mosque-Prayers- Lhasa Imam- Habibullah, 80 year old.
- Attached is madrasa/maktabs
- Koran in Arabic, commentaries in Urdu, interpreted to children in Tibetan as they are too to the people in the mosques- after prayers for Tibetan is the language of the Muslims of Tibet and very few of them can speak crude Urdu or Persian. Only the Imam knew some Arabic, just sufficient to read the Koran.
- Waqf: work Indian rupee 25,000- 5 members- presided by Pompo.
- Calendar: followed normally in Tibetan. Religious schedule in Islamic
- Occupation- trade- many as agents abroad of large commercial concerns. Haji Ghulam Mohd until recently Khache Pompo was for a long time representative of the notorious Radeng (Reting) Gompa in China.
- Tailor- garment- hats, apron, brocade corners, chuba
- Music- cinema hall- the only one in Lhasa.
- Importing tea from china and ladies cosmetics for Tibetan aristocracy from USA and Europe.
- Dress: usually identical with those of other Tibetans. On trek, indistinguishable from the picturesquely attired professional khampa muleteers.
- Caps- Kashmiri “ sozeni”- white embroidered cap. Functions- don turbans and kashmiri shawls.
- Women- dressed exactly like Buddhist women- a black or dark coloured hood over the head, hangings down behind their back but not cover the face.
- Freedom that of a Tibetan sister.
- Strong say in commercial matters.
- Food: same as Tibetans- tsampa, butter tea, meat dried. No alcohol- smoke cigarettes, pipes, never hookas.
- Marriage: women invariably within the community.
- Men- however, may take wives from the Buddhists, provided converted.
- Tax: unfairly taxed. Child tax- ten Tibetan tankhas (approzx 3 india annas) to Tsi-kang La-kung
- Haj: Lhasa-khache delegation in Bombay. At Mecca they are treated as Indian Muslims.
- Lop-Chaks: Tribute- from Kashmir, every 3 years- Treaty of Tinmogang, 1647 between tibeto-Mongol and King of Ladakh- Abdullah Shah- aksakal/
- History: Research in Lhasa would no doubt yield better results.
- Origins:
- 1. 5th Dalai Lama- Mughal king for advisors.
- 2. 5th DL- Universal appeal
- 3. Trade purpose- Bihar, Ladakh, Kashmir
- 4. Prisoners of Zorawar Singh- 1841-42
- 5. Saif Khan, subedar of Kashmir- Aurangzeb.
- 6. Timur- 15th century- chang thang- dam- snow storm- panoplies- Monlan festival- British Museum- ancient uniform.