Literature and Arts

2004-03-01 18:00

The Epic Life of King Gesar The heroic tale of King Gesar, the Tibetan epic, was passed down through the generations in a combination of song and narration. 11 is the longest epic poem in this form known in the world today In Tibetan-inhabited areas Gesar has been known as the king of the ancient Tibetan kingdom of Ling. The great hero and his brave army are kept alive in the richly imaginative retelling of the epic. From early times the epic was passed on orally Today a small number of woodblocks preserving sections of the epic can be found in Lhasa, Xigaze and Dege County in Sichuan Province and some handwritten copies in the homes of families high and low.

Gesar's image and story are still reborn in carvings, paintings, murals, woodcuts, embroideries, songs, dances and plays. Tibet has a research institute specializing in the study of the epic Its research projects are listed as key state projects Since 1979, the institute has collected more than 180 different combined song and narration versions of the epic, 55 woodblock and mimeographed editions and recorded 70 performances of the epic, filling more than 3,000 recording tapes A number of sites associated with King Gesar in popular legend have been found and more than 30 folk tales concerning him collected.

It is estimated that when reduced this material will supply 80 volumes, approximately a million lines of poetry (or 15 million characters) More than 20 titles have already been published including Divination in the Celestial World and the Ling Kingdom Birth of the Hero Winning the Throne in a Horse Race, Battle Between the Meng and Ling Kingdoms Opening the Gold Cave in Ngari and Distributing Tazig's Wealth.

Tibetan Theatre Tibetan theatre, a story-telling art that combines literature with singing and dancing, is traditionally said to have been created by the monk Thangtong Gyaljpo. Later, under the auspices of the Fifth Dalai Lama a festival with theatrical performances began to be held at Drepung Monastery every year.

With the passage of time singing came to dominate the performance while remaining part of the overall integration of song, dance, music, acrobatics, and artistry. The performers wear white masks over their heads and traditional clothing in white.

In their right hands they hold dadax ( an arrow decorated with multicoloured silk ribbons) as a symbol of auspiciousness and purity Traditionally, there are eight major routines, Princess Wencheng, Prince Norsang, Drowa Sangmo, Sukyi Nyima, Nangsa Oinbum, Padma Obar, Donyo and Dondrup and Drimed Kundan, most of which are derived from historic events, lives of the great, folk tales and stories from the sutras.

Dancing and Singing The Tibetan people's skill as singers and dancers have gained their land a reputation as the "ocean of song and dance." Music and dance often become one The melodies beguile as the dancers move round the floor, sometimes lightly floating, other times boldly exuberant. This stylistically distinctive form is yet another beautiful flower plucked for China's folk art bouquet There is a great variety within the form There are ring dances where the dancers join arms and sing as they heat out the rhythm with their feet, a kind of tap dance where the beauty comes from the creation of varying rhythms with the footfalls, and courtly songs and dancing also known as "great songs" or "praise songs."

Others commonly performed include the smoothly circling, expansive "bowstring dance," the reba performed to the accompaniment of golden bells and a silver drum, the big drum dance in Posterior Tibet and the waist drum dance in Anterior Tibet.

Arts Through the ages Tibet's painters and sculptors have created an extraordinary body of work. Traditional Tibetan arts may be classified according to their forms and materials: Murals The murals covering the walls in monasteries and palaces depict a wide range of subject matter Buddhist images dominate, but there also can he found realistic scenes from daily life, pictures of production, building, battles, hunting, singing, dancing and musicmaking, sports and Buddhist ceremonies A freer imagination can be seen in the depiction of heavens, hells, deities and demons Sculpture.

Various forms of Buddha, the Dharma kings, tutelary deities, and the bodhisattvas including Tara, patron goddess of Tibet, are produced in materials ranging from precious metals to wood, clay and shells to zanba barley dough and butter --Thangkas. Thangkas are painted or embroidered images rendered on cloth, silk or paper that are mounted on a cloth backing and may he rolled up like a scroll when not hung.

A thangka composed of strung pearls is kept in Dradrug Monastery in Shannan Prefecture Carving. Engravings and reliefwork are found on clifffaces, stone printing blocks for sutras, stone tablets inscribed with the mantra om mani padme hum, on buildings, bonework, ironwork and ritual instruments These range from the comparatively reserved courtly work to the more uninhibited and roughly done work on the popular level.

Composition is usually determined by the shape of the material, the artist responding to the medium he is working in The cuts may he briskly vigorous or smoothly flowing Masks Masks depict the range of beings from deities to man and animals There are masks for characters in Tibetan theatre, qiangmu religious daces and folk tales Those depicting humans are carved to display a certain characteristic such as honesty, harshness, greed or humour Animals depicted are principally deer, yaks, sheep and birds Handicrafts The common people paint, carve or embroider their homes, clothing, jewelry, furniture, tools and other daily utensils with beautiful designs.

Aprons, carpets, tapestry, silver bowls, knife scabbards, wine pots and saddles are made brightly decorated works of art Butter Sculpture Most butter sculptures produced in Lhasa and elsewhere are made for the Lamp Festival on the fifteenth day of the first month of the Tibetan year Skilled practitioners of this art can be found in the monasteries and among the lay people alike.

The butter is first mixed with ice water, then mineral dyes mixed in Working on d wooden support, a world of flowers and grass and towers and buildings, populated with men and animals and bodhisattvas, is then created.