New Address for World Wide Wanders: The Caravan Has Moved On.

Mongolia | Life of Dambijantsan | Among the Dörvöds

Mongolia | False Lama of Mongolia: The Life and Death of Dambijantsan 1

Who was Dambijantsan?

A Buddhist monk; a freedom fighter for Mongolian independence; the descendant of Amursanaa (1723–1757), the Western Mongol who led the last great uprising against the Qing Dynasty of China; the incarnation of Mahakala, the Buddhist god of war; bandit, torturer, murderer, or evil incarnate? During his lifetime no one was sure who he really was, and even today the controversy about his life continues.

Born in what is now the Republic of Kalmykia, part of the Russian Federation, Dambijantsen traveled throughout Tibet, India, and China before arriving in Mongolia in 1890 where he tossed gold coins to bystanders and announced to one and all that he had come to free Mongolia from the yoke of the Qing Dynasty of China. After disappearing almost twenty years he returned to lead the attack on Khovd City, the last Chinese outpost in Mongolia. Honored by the Eighth Bogd Gegeen, the theocratic leader of Mongolia, for his efforts in achieving Mongolian independence, he went on to establish his own mini-state in western Mongolia, which he hoped to use as a base for establishing a Mongol-led Buddhist khanate in Inner Asia. His dictatorial nature and unbridled sadism soon came to the fore and he was finally arrested and imprisoned in Russia. After the Russian Revolution he returned to Mongolia, gathered new followers around him, and established a stronghold at the nexus of old caravan routes in Gansu Province, China. He robbed caravans, grew opium, and once again dreamed of creating a new Mongolian khanate in Inner Asia. Finally the new Bolshevik government in Mongolia, fearful of his rising power, issued orders for his assassination. Dambijantsan died in 1922, but in Mongolia legends persist to this day that his spirit still rides on the wind of the Gobi and continues to haunt his former lairs.

For more on Dambijantsan see False Lama of Mongolia: The Life and Death of Dambijantsan. 

Mongolia | USA | Gunj and Friends

Just had an interesting video chat with International Adventuress Gunj and her friend Denise Zabalaga, a photo-journalist who has Worked in Afghanistan and many other places. They were in Gunj’s luxurious penthouse apartment near Union Square in downtown Manhattan, just a stone’s throw from the Strand Bookstore, and I was in my hovel in Zaisan Tolgoi. Talk about inequality! Anyhow, Denise related how she had been searching on the internet for information about Central Asia and came across my blog, which she had never seen before. Checking a few posts she was flabbergasted to see a photo of her friend, who we know of as Gunj, but who she knows of under a different alias. She contacted Gunj and confirmed that it was indeed her in the photos on my blog.  Now Denise was staying in Gunj’s apartment during a whirlwind visit to NYC and I was able to link up with both of them via video-chat. Small world! 

Gunj and Denise via Video-Chat

Tibet | Mindroling | Dorje Drak

Wandered down to Tibet and visited Mindroling, the monastery which had been heavily damaged by the Zungarian Mongols who invaded Tibet in 1718 under the leadership of Tseveen Ravdan, the nephew of Galdan Bolshigt, who in the 1680s had led the Zungarian Mongols against the Khalkh Mongols, at that time headed by Zanabazar, the First Bogd Gegen of Mongolia, who was the great grandson of Avtai, the founder of Erdene Zuu. The Zungarians were hacked off that the Khoshot Mongol Khan Lhazang had effectively removed the 6th Dalai Lama from power and replaced him with what many Tibetans felt was a pretender 6th Dalai Lama. The Zungarians invaded Tibet with the idea of removing the pretender and installing Kalsang Gyatso, then a boy monk at Kumbum Monastery near current day Xining in Qinghai Province, China, as the Seventh Dalai Lama. As staunch supporters of the Dalai Lama’s Gelug sect they had a particular beef with the Nyingma sect and set about trashing and looting Nyingma monasteries. Thus Mindroling, a Nyingma stronghold, was heavily damaged. It was later rebuilt or at least refurbished using the distinctive local stone. Mindroling escaped destruction by the Red Guards during the Cultural Revolution of the 1960s and thus survives as an unusual example of the fine stone work used in early Tibetan monasteries.

Building at Mindroling showing distinctive stonework From Mindroling we took the ferry across the Tsangpo (Brahmaputra) River.
Ferry across the TsangpoPassengers on the ferryOn the north side of the river we visited the tomb of Yeshe Tsogyel, the consort of Padmasambhava, who in the eight century had founded Samye Monastery.
Stupa of Yeshe Tsogyel

Then we continued on to the village of Dratang, where we spent New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day at the Dratang Guest House, locally famous for its excellent dumpling soup.

Dratang Guest HouseThen back across the Tsangpo by ferry and down the valley to yet another ferry across the Tsangpo to Dorje Drak Monastery.
Ferry to Dorje DrakDorje DrakLike Mindroling, Dorje Drak was a Nyingma Monastery and was almost totally destroyed by the Zungarian Mongols in 1718. It was rebuilt, only to be destroyed again during the Cultural Revolution. It has now been rebuilt yet again.
Dorje Drak

We arrived just in time to see the completion of a sand mandala dedicated to Yama, the Lord of Death.

Sand MandalaThe monks conducted ceremonies connected with the mandala from about five to ten o’clock in the in the morning, then in the late afternoon they did a ceremonial dance in the courtyard, and then more chanting from about seven to ten in the evening.
Ceremonial DanceWe stayed in a guest room at the monastery and were very well treated by the monks, who plied us continually with butter tea.

USA | Dalai Lama

It turns out that the Dalai Lama was not summoned to the White House to make a Solomonic judgment about the Paternity of Conan O’Brien’s Baby, as I previously believed. For an intriguing account of what did go down see How to Greet the Dalai Lama.

Dalai Lama leaving the White House. It’s a shame the White House doesn’t have a better garbage collection service.

Mongolia | Non-Human Origins of Dambijantsan

Who was Dambijantsan?

A Buddhist monk; a freedom fighter for Mongolian independence; the descendant of Amursanaa (1723–1757), the Western Mongol who led the last great uprising against the Qing Dynasty of China; the incarnation of Mahakala, the Buddhist god of war; bandit, torturer, murderer, or evil incarnate? During his lifetime no one was sure who he really was, and even today the controversy about his life continues.

Born in what is now the Republic of Kalmykia, part of the Russian Federation, Dambijantsen traveled throughout Tibet, India, and China before arriving in Mongolia in 1890 where he tossed gold coins to bystanders and announced to one and all that he had come to free Mongolia from the yoke of the Qing Dynasty of China. After disappearing almost twenty years he returned to lead the attack on Khovd City, the last Chinese outpost in Mongolia. Honored by the Eighth Bogd Gegeen, the theocratic leader of Mongolia, for his efforts in achieving Mongolian independence, he went on to establish his own mini-state in western Mongolia, which he hoped to use as a base for establishing a Mongol-led Buddhist khanate in Inner Asia. His dictatorial nature and unbridled sadism soon came to the fore and he was finally arrested and imprisoned in Russia. After the Russian Revolution he returned to Mongolia, gathered new followers around him, and established a stronghold at the nexus of old caravan routes in Gansu Province, China. He robbed caravans, grew opium, and once again dreamed of creating a new Mongolian khanate in Inner Asia. Finally the new Bolshevik government in Mongolia, fearful of his rising power, issued orders for his assassination. Dambijantsan died in 1922, but in Mongolia legends persist to this day that his spirit still rides on the wind of the Gobi and continues to haunt his former lairs.

For more on Dambijantsan see False Lama of Mongolia: The Life and Death of Dambijantsan. 

Mongolia | Zaisan Tolgoi | Ninth of the Nine Nines | Ерийн дулаан болно

The ninth and last of the Nine-Nines—nine periods of nine days each, each period marked by some description of winter weather—began on March 3. This last Nine is Ерийн дулаан болно: the time when warm weather starts, signaling the end of winter. We did have a warm spell, with temperatures up in the mid 20sºF / –6ºC in the afternoon, but this morning it was back down to Minus 30ºF / –34ºC and more cold weather is expected over the weekend. But in the afternoons my finely tuned olfactory organs detect a whiff of spring in the air, so we can start looking forward to the next big event in Zaisan Tolgoi, the Appearance of the First Wild Flower. 

And speaking of big events, in case you have not noticed the Earth Has Been Rocked Off Its Axis by the earthquake in Chile. This happens to coincide with the book I am now reading:

It cannot be said we are not living in exciting times!

Mongolia | More UFO News

Now an Alleged UFO Base has been spotted in Mongolia! Maybe we should also be taking a Closer Look at the Former Hideouts of Dambijantsan.

Mongolia | UFO Crash Lands

A UFO has Crashed near Ulaan Baatar:

Two objects reportedly crashed to the ground near Ulaan Baatar, the capital of Mongolia on Feb. 19, 2010. The first object, according to the report on the Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) Witness Database, weighed 10 kg, while the second larger object weighed approximately 2 tons. Other than that, there's not a lot of information available about the objects. But of course, UFOers are having a field day, calling the image, above, that accompanied the report a "leaked UFO crash" picture. But the object looks suspiciously like a rocket or jet engine, or perhaps a rocket nose cone. Objects that crash to Earth likely have a very terrestrial origin.  

Alien spaceship
or Mongolian “Balloon Boy” stunt gone awry?

One thing for sure: if this object, whatever its origins, had pancaked a ger or plowed into the side of an apartment building the results would not have been pretty. Keep in mind, too, that Unidentified Flying Objects are just that: objects moving through space which cannot readily be identified. That  does not necessarily mean that they are extraterrestrial.

USA | Latest News

I have a hard time following the news coming out of the States. I don’t watch television, so I have to rely totally on the internet. I don’t actually click on most of the stories, but just from the headlines I gather there have been a lot of problems recently. It seems that Tiger Woods and Conan O’Brien crashed a party at the White House and after a night together in the Lincoln Bedroom Conan O’Brien ended up pregnant. Then John Edwards came forward and claimed that he was actually the father of Conan O’Brien’s baby.  But then Jay Leno announced that he was in fact the father of Conan O’Brien’s baby and that they intended to get married and have a talk show together. And now Lady Gaga has come forth and proclaimed that the baby is a result of a threesome between herself, Tiger Woods, and Conan O’Brien but that she is the father of the baby, Woods having teed up at the wrong hole. The latest news is that Obama invited the Dalai Lama, the current incarnation of King Solomon, to the White House and asked him to make a judgment as to who is actually the father of the baby.  At least this is what I gather from the headlines. What a mess! I’m glad I live in Mongolia. The only problem here is that 2,000,000 Head of Livestock have died over the winter and thousands of families have been left destitute.

Mongolia | Zaisan Tolgoi | Seventh of the Nine-Nines | Doviin Tolgoi Borlono

The seventh of the so-called Nine-Nines—nine periods of nine days each, each period marked by some description of winter weather—began on February 14, which coincidentally was the first day of the Male Iron Tiger Year here in Mongolia. The actual moment of the New Moon was 10:52 a.m. on the 14th, so according to some interpretations the New Year began then. The Seventh of the Nine-Nines is Doviin Tolgoi  Borlono, the “time when the tops of the hills become brown.” Around the beginning of the year it was still going down to the Minus 20sºF / –28sºC at night.  It has warmed up a bit since then but I have not actually seen any brown hilltops yet. Yesterday it got up to 18ºF / –7º C in the afternoon and I did see some puddles of water along the road where the sun was hitting hard—a precursor of the eighth of the Nine-Nines—the “time when puddles appear on the ground”—which begins on February 23. Expect some real changes in the weather around the Full Moon on March 1.

This should provide a bit of relief from the disastrous winter experienced in some parts of Mongolia. According to Some Accounts more than two million head of livestock have died already. The only good news is that some parts of the country seem to have escaped the worst of the winter onslaught. Recent visitors to Khamariin Khiid in Dornogov Aimag and Sukhebaatar Aimag report that livestock losses in those areas have been no worse than usual.

Mongolia | Sixth Nine-Nine | Zuraasan Zam Garna

The sixth of the so-called Nine-Nines—nine periods of nine days each, each period marked by some description of winter weather—began on February 5th. This is Zuraasan Zam Garnai, the Time When the Trail of the Road Appears. This description would seem to indicate a slight warming from the previous Nine-Nines, a time when well-traveled trails become free from ice and snow. Indeed, on the night before the first day of this Nine-Nine, the temperature did not get below 0ºF / –18ºC for probably the first time this year. We did, however, get three or more inches of snow here in Zaisan Tolgoi that night, along with extreme winds. Three of the windows in my hovel blew open during the night and the next morning I had little inch-high snow drifts on my wool carpets. Over 400 People Were Lost or Trapped in the snow storm. Since then temperatures have plunged, going down into the Minus 30sºF every night. So the trails have definitely not reappeared. And the Forecast for Tsagaan Sar, the Lunar New Year, on the 14th, is not much warmer. This has been a gruesome winter. Reportedly 1.8 million head of livestock have died so far, and the number is expected to rise significantly. Figures of 20 million have been tossed around, more than half of all livestock in Mongolia, but if this happens it might as well be the Apocalypse for Mongolia. As mentioned before, I am unable to leave Zaisan Tolgoi at the moment so I cannot report on what is going on in the countryside. There is a YouTube Video: Nomads Face Hunger Crisis.

Mongolia | Life of Ja Lama | Chapter 4 | Early Life

Who was Dambijantsan?

A Buddhist monk; a freedom fighter for Mongolian independence; the descendant of Amursanaa (1723–1757), the Western Mongol who led the last great uprising against the Qing Dynasty of China; the incarnation of Mahakala, the Buddhist god of war; bandit, torturer, murderer, or evil incarnate? During his lifetime no one was sure who he really was, and even today the controversy about his life continues.

Born in what is now the Republic of Kalmykia, part of the Russian Federation, Dambijantsen traveled throughout Tibet, India, and China before arriving in Mongolia in 1890 where he tossed gold coins to bystanders and announced to one and all that he had come to free Mongolia from the yoke of the Qing Dynasty of China. After disappearing almost twenty years he returned to lead the attack on Khovd City, the last Chinese outpost in Mongolia. Honored by the Eighth Bogd Gegeen, the theocratic leader of Mongolia, for his efforts in achieving Mongolian independence, he went on to establish his own mini-state in western Mongolia, which he hoped to use as a base for establishing a Mongol-led Buddhist khanate in Inner Asia. His dictatorial nature and unbridled sadism soon came to the fore and he was finally arrested and imprisoned in Russia. After the Russian Revolution he returned to Mongolia, gathered new followers around him, and established a stronghold at the nexus of old caravan routes in Gansu Province, China. He robbed caravans, grew opium, and once again dreamed of creating a new Mongolian khanate in Inner Asia. Finally the new Bolshevik government in Mongolia, fearful of his rising power, issued orders for his assassination. Dambijantsan died in 1922, but in Mongolia legends persist to this day that his spirit still rides on the wind of the Gobi and continues to haunt his former lairs.

For more on Dambijantsan see False Lama of Mongolia: The Life and Death of Dambijantsan. 

Mongolia | Ulaan Baatar | Lam Rim Temple

Wandered up to Lam Rim Monastery, on Zanabazar Street just below Gandan Monastery in Ulaan Baatar. I have gone here many times over the years but I never really knew the story behind the founding of this monastery. The other day I dropped to see Bayantsagaan, the director of the monastery, and by chance his daughter Erdenetsetseg was there. She lived in Malaysia for several years and speaks near perfect English, so with her help I was able to get some background information.

Erdenetsetseg

Lam Rim Monastery

Bayantsagaan

Lam Rim Monastery was founded in 1990 by Erdenetsetseg’s father S. Bayantsagaan. Originally from Khovd Aimag in western Mongolia, Bayantsagaan studied the Lam Rim Teaching and Buddhist philosophy at the Mongolian Academy of Sciences and the Zanabazar Institute in Ulaan Baatar. He has a Geshé degree from the Zanabazar Institute and is fluent in Tibetan. In the early 1990s he played an active role the democratic movement in Mongolia and for much of the 1990s he worked as the director of the Mongolian Believers Association. During this period about seventy monasteries and temples were activated under his leadership. He has also initiated and strengthened communications between Mongolia and Tibet and in recent years has organized visits of the Dalai Lama to Mongolia.

Lam Rim Monastery was founded to promote the Lam Rim Teaching of Tsongkhapa (Mongolian=Bogd Zonkhov), who in the fifteen-century founded the Gelug Sect in Tibet.

Bogd Zhonkov

Bogd Zhonkov is author of one of the primary Lam Rim texts, The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path of Enlightenment. Bayantsagaan would like to emphasize that the Lam Rim, or Graduated Path, is not just for monks, but for all practitioners who wish to proceed on the path to Enlightenment. The three main Protectors of the monastery are Gombo, Namsrai, and Choijoo, three deities who have promised to protect Bogd Zonkhov’s teaching wherever it may be.

Interior of Lam Rim Temple

Interior of Lam Rim Temple

Ninety-six year old monk, the oldest at Lam Rim Monastery

Lama Gombo, a mere stripling at ninety-five years old

New Generation of monks at Lam Rim

Monks giving blessings

Lam Rim Monastery also specializes in the Kalachakra (Mongolian = Duinkhor) Teaching believed to have come from the Kingdom of Shambhala. Kalachakra ceremonies are performed here on the 10th and 25th day of the Lunar Month. One of the goals of the monastery is to prepare people for the eventually arrival of the 25th Kalkin King of Shambhala under whose reign Buddhism will flourish throughout the entire world.

Kingdom of Shambhala depicted on Thangka at Lam Rim Temple

One of the Thirty-Two Kings of Shambhala on display at Lam Rim Temple
Get your Free Lam Rim Temple Brochure Here.

Mongolia | Zaisan Tolgoi | Wolf Moon

The Wolf Moon of Mid-Winter will be Supersized Tonight:

The 2010 Wolf Moon will appear 30 percent brighter and 14 percent larger than any other full moon this year, because our cosmic neighbor will actually be closer to Earth than usual. The moon will be at its closest perigee—the nearest it gets to our planet during its egg-shaped orbit—for 2010 at 4:04 a.m. ET Saturday, reaching a distance of 221,577 miles (356,593 kilometers) from Earth.

 

Wolf Moon Tonight! Beware of Earthquakes!

And as if that were not enough Mars will be Right Next to the Wolf Moon:

Look into the eastern sky about 7 p.m. Friday or 8 p.m. Saturday and you may ask, “What’s that bright, red star next to the full moon?” That’s no star, it’s the planet Mars, and it happens to be a mere 61.7 million miles from Earth, according to Jon U. Bell, director of the Hallstrom Planetarium at Indian River State College in Fort Pierce.  “That’s actually pretty close for Mars,” Bell said.

 Photo Courtesy of Sky&Telescope

I will be observing the Wolf Moon from Zaisan Tolgoi.

 

Zaisan Tolgoi. If you hear someone howling at the Moon it will probably be me.

Mongolia | Zavkhan Aimag | Vansemberuu Song

Here is a transliteration and translation of the Vansemberuu song by widely acclaimed translator, meditation teacher, and man-about-town Batbold.

Batbold

Torgo shig zoolon delbeetei
Togos udmiin Vansemberuu tsetsegiig
Uchirch haraad monhron gesen
Uridiin ug unen bolovuuu

Tegvel bi ter saikhan Vansemberuu tsetsgiig
Tertee uuliin oroid baival eejiigee
Bi uureed
Enehen nasandaa ochih bailaa

Tegvel bi ter saikhan Vansemberuu tsetsgiig
Tertee uuliin oroid baival eejiigee
Bi uureed
Enehen nasandaa ochih bailaa

Tuulvul bie chatsuu
Toolbol nas chatsuu
Hosoor urgadag Vansemberuu
Uud hoimriin zaitai urgajee

Ilbiin yum shig hosgui saikhan
Iher botgo shig horvood hongor
Seruun khangai hos tsetseg
Setgel bahdam goyomsog urgajee

Uranhan ter turuund ni hureed uzvel
Unaganii uruul shig zoolhon bailaa
Hurenhen ter dund ni hureed uzvel
Huugiin mini zulai shig zoolhon bailaa

Ilbiin yum shig hosgui saikhan
Iher botgo shig horvood hongor
Seruun khangai hos tsetseg
Setgel bahdam goyomsog urgajee

Tegvel bi ter saikhan Vansemberuu tsetsgiig
Tertee uuliin oroid baival eejiigee
Bi uureed
Enehen nasandaa ochih bailaa

Rough English Translation:

With petals tender like a silk
Of peafowl lineage, Vansemberuu
If stumbled upon, it gives eternity
Are the ancient words true

If so, if this beautiful flower called Vansemberuu
Lives on the faraway mountain, I'd
Carry my old mother on my back to it
In this lifetime

If so, if this beautiful flower called Vansemberuu
Lives on the faraway mountain, I'd
Carry my old mother on my back to it
In this lifetime

If measured, equal heights
If counted, ages same
Grows paired, Vansemberuu
With a distance of a ger's length

Unparalleled beauty like magic
Endearing like twin camel babies
The pair of cool Khangai
Are enrapturingly grown

(Voice)
I touched the fine corolla
Felt soft like a foal's lip
I stroked the inner side
Felt soft like my son's forehead

Unparalleled beauty like magic
Endearing like twin camel babies
The pair of cool Khangai
Are enrapturingly grown

If so, if this beautiful flower called Vansemberuu
Lives on the faraway mountain, I'd
Carry my old mother on my back to it
In this my life time

Mongolia | Life and Death of the Ja Lama | Chapter 9

Who was Dambijantsan?

A Buddhist monk; a freedom fighter for Mongolian independence; the descendant of Amursanaa (1723–1757), the Western Mongol who led the last great uprising against the Qing Dynasty of China; the incarnation of Mahakala, the Buddhist god of war; bandit, torturer, murderer, or evil incarnate? During his lifetime no one was sure who he really was, and even today the controversy about his life continues.

Born in what is now the Republic of Kalmykia, part of the Russian Federation, Dambijantsen traveled throughout Tibet, India, and China before arriving in Mongolia in 1890 where he tossed gold coins to bystanders and announced to one and all that he had come to free Mongolia from the yoke of the Qing Dynasty of China. After disappearing almost twenty years he returned to lead the attack on Khovd City, the last Chinese outpost in Mongolia. Honored by the Eighth Bogd Gegeen, the theocratic leader of Mongolia, for his efforts in achieving Mongolian independence, he went on to establish his own mini-state in western Mongolia, which he hoped to use as a base for establishing a Mongol-led Buddhist khanate in Inner Asia. His dictatorial nature and unbridled sadism soon came to the fore and he was finally arrested and imprisoned in Russia. After the Russian Revolution he returned to Mongolia, gathered new followers around him, and established a stronghold at the nexus of old caravan routes in Gansu Province, China. He robbed caravans, grew opium, and once again dreamed of creating a new Mongolian khanate in Inner Asia. Finally the new Bolshevik government in Mongolia, fearful of his rising power, issued orders for his assassination. Dambijantsan died in 1922, but in Mongolia legends persist to this day that his spirit still rides on the wind of the Gobi and continues to haunt his former lairs.

For more on Dambijantsan see False Lama of Mongolia: The Life and Death of Dambijantsan. 

Mongolia | Zavkhan Aimag | Vansemberuu

During a trip to Otgon Tenger Uul in Zavkhan Aimag I encountered the legendary plant known as Vansemberuu. The lore about this plant seems almost endless, and I am still in the process of collecting information.

Vansemberuu

Vansemberuu

World | iPad

Even in the Howling Wilderness of Zaisan Tolgoi we cannot escape the iPad News. First there was the Breathless, Minute-to-Minute Account of the Announcement.  Then the NYT Review by In-House Computer Guru David Pogue. Also see Three Reasons the iPad WON’T Kill Amazon’s Kindle. And finally some women are apparently upset by the name: Apple's iPad Name Not the First Choice for Women. Period:

Of all the names that Apple had reportedly secured--Apple Tablet, iTablet, Magic Slate, iSlate--I think it's safe to say that no one truly believed that Apple would name their newest product the iPad. Especially women.

The one-liners came fast and furious:

"So will the 64GB one be called the Maxi-Pad?"

"I'm holding out for the iRag.”

 

"Will the next version have wings?"

But infatuation trumps Feminine Hygiene.  See I Love the iPad.

Mongolia | Fifth Nine-Nine | Tavisan Budaa Khöldökhgui

The Fifth of the Nine-Nines—nine periods of nine days each, each period marked by some description of winter weather—begins today. This is Tavisan Budaa Khöldökhgui, the time when “Cooked Rice Cannot Be Frozen.” I must admit I really don’t understand the definition of this period. It seems to me that cooked rice would be frozen at any temperature below freezing, and we can certainly expect colder temperatures than that during the last week of January and beginning of February. Anyhow, the Fourth of the Nine-Nines was supposed to be coldest of the Nine-Nines, and the rest of the country is still reeling from the cold snap:  Extreme Weather Threatens Mongolians with Hunger and Poverty. Over one million head of livestock have reportedly died. Even wildlife has been affected: Mongolian Antelope Invasion Causes Alarm in Russia. True, it was up to 14ºF / Minus 10ºC yesterday afternoon, but Tsagaan Sar is coming up on the 14th of February and we often have really frigid weather for that. So there may be little if any relief in store for the countryside any time soon. I wish I could get out and see for myself what is happening, but unfortunately I am unable to travel at the moment. Maybe I will have some updates from the countryside around Tsagaan Sar.

Mongolia | Life of Zanabazar | Second Trip to Tibet

Most traditional accounts do not mention Zanabazar’s trip to Inner Mongolia to met the Dalai Lama in early 1655. Skipping over this episode, they relate instead  that in the summer of 1655 Zanabazar decided to make another trip to Tibet: “. . . I should like to accomplish my pious desire of again making obeisance to the Dalai Lama,” Zanabazar announced, “and especially to the Holy Panchen Vajradhara Lama [Panchen Lama] and hear the initiations and empowerments and so on which I meditated on before.” In preparation for the journey he decided to go into meditation for several months at his newly established retreat of Tövkhon near Erdene Zuu. In the autumn of 1655 he left for Tibet. See Zanabazar’s Second Trip to Tibet.

 Portrait of Zanabazar at Amarbayasgalant Monastery

Also see:


See also Kindle Version

Mongolia | Ja Lama

Who was Dambijantsan?

A Buddhist monk; a freedom fighter for Mongolian independence; the descendant of Amursanaa (1723–1757), the Western Mongol who led the last great uprising against the Qing Dynasty of China; the incarnation of Mahakala, the Buddhist god of war; bandit, torturer, murderer, or evil incarnate? During his lifetime no one was sure who he really was, and even today the controversy about his life continues.

Born in what is now the Republic of Kalmykia, part of the Russian Federation, Dambijantsen traveled throughout Tibet, India, and China before arriving in Mongolia in 1890 where he tossed gold coins to bystanders and announced to one and all that he had come to free Mongolia from the yoke of the Qing Dynasty of China. After disappearing almost twenty years he returned to lead the attack on Khovd City, the last Chinese outpost in Mongolia. Honored by the Eighth Bogd Gegeen, the theocratic leader of Mongolia, for his efforts in achieving Mongolian independence, he went on to establish his own mini-state in western Mongolia, which he hoped to use as a base for establishing a Mongol-led Buddhist khanate in Inner Asia. His dictatorial nature and unbridled sadism soon came to the fore and he was finally arrested and imprisoned in Russia. After the Russian Revolution he returned to Mongolia, gathered new followers around him, and established a stronghold at the nexus of old caravan routes in Gansu Province, China. He robbed caravans, grew opium, and once again dreamed of creating a new Mongolian khanate in Inner Asia. Finally the new Bolshevik government in Mongolia, fearful of his rising power, issued orders for his assassination. Dambijantsan died in 1922, but in Mongolia legends persist to this day that his spirit still rides on the wind of the Gobi and continues to haunt his former lairs.

For more on Dambijantsan see False Lama of Mongolia: The Life and Death of Dambijantsan. 

Mongolia | Life of Dambijantsan

Who was Dambijantsan?

A Buddhist monk; a freedom fighter for Mongolian independence; the descendant of Amursanaa (1723–1757), the Western Mongol who led the last great uprising against the Qing Dynasty of China; the incarnation of Mahakala, the Buddhist god of war; bandit, torturer, murderer, or evil incarnate? During his lifetime no one was sure who he really was, and even today the controversy about his life continues.

Born in what is now the Republic of Kalmykia, part of the Russian Federation, Dambijantsen traveled throughout Tibet, India, and China before arriving in Mongolia in 1890 where he tossed gold coins to bystanders and announced to one and all that he had come to free Mongolia from the yoke of the Qing Dynasty of China. After disappearing almost twenty years he returned to lead the attack on Khovd City, the last Chinese outpost in Mongolia. Honored by the Eighth Bogd Gegeen, the theocratic leader of Mongolia, for his efforts in achieving Mongolian independence, he went on to establish his own mini-state in western Mongolia, which he hoped to use as a base for establishing a Mongol-led Buddhist khanate in Inner Asia. His dictatorial nature and unbridled sadism soon came to the fore and he was finally arrested and imprisoned in Russia. After the Russian Revolution he returned to Mongolia, gathered new followers around him, and established a stronghold at the nexus of old caravan routes in Gansu Province, China. He robbed caravans, grew opium, and once again dreamed of creating a new Mongolian khanate in Inner Asia. Finally the new Bolshevik government in Mongolia, fearful of his rising power, issued orders for his assassination. Dambijantsan died in 1922, but in Mongolia legends persist to this day that his spirit still rides on the wind of the Gobi and continues to haunt his former lairs.

For more on Dambijantsan see False Lama of Mongolia: The Life and Death of Dambijantsan. 

Mongolia | Dönön Ükhiin Ever Khöldöne | Killer Winter

The Fourth of the Nine-Nines, known as Dönön Ükhiin Ever Khöldöne—Time When Four Year-Old Cows’ Horns Freeze—began on Monday, January 18. This is supposed to be the coldest of the Nine-Nines, periods of nine days each, each period marked by some description of winter weather. On Monday, however, it was an incredibly balmy 14ºF / Minus 10ºC at three in the afternoon, probably the highest temperature of 2010. This morning things are back to normal:  Minus 33°F / -36 °C at 6:00 a.m.

This is turning out to be a Killer Winter. The UB Post:

Official figures indicate that approximately 90 percent of the country is suffering from zud  conditions, with snowfall reaching between 20-120 centimeters. The average temperature in northern Mongolia has dropped to -35 degrees Celsius, with temperatures in the rest of country ranging between-17 to -22 degrees Celsius. So far, the coldest temperature of -47 degrees was recorded in Uvs Province. As of 16 January 2010, a total of 198 sums in 19 provinces are suffering from severe weather.

According to estimates by the Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), a total of 786,639 heads of livestock have perished, 89 percent of which belong to the ten worst affected provinces. The total loss of livestock is approximately 17 per cent of the estimated 43.6 million heads of livestock in the country. Some five people died during a recent snowstorm.

Xinjiang Province of China, just south of western Mongolia, has also been hammered, According to the NYT:

Closed roads and delayed flights left thousands of travelers stranded Tuesday following blizzards and extreme cold that killed four people and affected 1.6 million others in northwestern China, a government spokesman said. Snowstorms delayed 122 flights in Urumqi, capital of Xinjiang region, on Monday, leaving more than 4,000 passengers stranded, and blocked roads from nine avalanches stranded more than 1,000 passengers in the region, according to a Urumqi government spokesman surnamed Wang. Like many Chinese officials he declined to give his full name. Four people had died because of the bad weather, Wang said Tuesday. He did not give details.Rescue workers were evacuating thousands of rural residents to safer ground at lower altitudes because of the latest storm front, expected to last through Wednesday and plunge temperatures to minus 45 degrees (minus 43 Celsius), Wang said.

In neighboring Mongolia, an official appealed for help from the international community as his country battles the most severe winter it has seen in three decades.

I have several friends in Urumqi but I have not heard from any of them for months, since internet access Remains Cut Off to Xinjiang following the Upheavals there last July. The last I heard all internet cafes were closed and all common email services like hotmail.com were blocked.

Mongolia | 3rd of the Nine Nines | Gurvan Ükhrii Ever Khöldönö | Earthquake

The Third of The Nine-Nines began on January 9. Gurvan Ükhrii Ever Khöldönö is the nine-day period of Winter when the horns of three year-old cows freeze. This period is supposed to be colder than the First of the Nine Nines and the Second of the Nine Nines. So far this has not been the case. A couple days ago it was Minus 20ºF / –28ºC at 7:00 a.m. and this morning  Minus 31°F / -35 °C at 7:00 a.m. On January 3rd, during the Second of the Nine Nines, temperatures fell to a marrow-chilling Minus 44ºF / –42ºC. But there is a New Moon in two days, on the 15th, so we can expect colder weather.

On the First Day of the 3rd of the Nine-Nines, January 9, there was  also an earthquake in Mongolia. In Dundgov Aimag the quake measured 5.6 on the Richter Scale. In Ulaan Baatar it measured 3.5. Most people I talked to in Ulaan Baatar itself claimed not to have felt it. In Zaisan Tolgoi I definitely felt it while sitting in my Scriptorium. It was not a sharp jolt-type quake but rather the shaking bowl-full-of-jello variety, lasting six or seven seconds. I was just about to bolt for the door when it finally stopped. A book or two may have wobbled on the shelves.

Earthquakes are not common in Mongolia—at least compared to places like Alaska, for instance, where bars serve a free round after every trembler—but when they do occur they tend to be monsters. The Gobi-Altai Quake, also known as the Ikh Bogd Uul Quake, of December 4, 1957,  was  “one of the world's largest recorded intracontinental earthquakes,”  according to the USGS.

When I visited Ikh Bogd Uul in 1998 I was told by local herdsmen that a day or two prior to the quake marmots which should have been soundly hibernating at that time of the year suddenly emerged from their holes and starting running around in a panic. Then the quake hit.

Ikh Bogd Uul (mountain) in Bayankhongor Aimag. An immense landslide caused by the quake can be seen just right of center. The sheared-off side of the mountain can be seen above the landslide.

Scarp just west of Ikh Bogd Uul created by the 1957 Quake

Mongolia | Turkey | Zaisan Tolgoi | Istanbul

Here’s a Shocker! Zaisan Tolgoi was not named by the New York Times as one of the  31 Places to Visit in 2010! But Istanbul was! Let’s look at the facts. Zaisan Tolgoi, in addition to being the terminus of bus routes #7, #33, and #12 and hosting a prison,  has a newly opened  restaurant, the Irish Palace (nothing  to do with Ireland; “Irish” is just synonymous with “restaurant” in Mongolia) with its own Coffee Corner and we now have a new mini-shop similar to a 7-11 except that is it only open twelve hours a day! So take that Istanbul, with all your ancient  Mosques and churches, Rococo Hotels, fancy Golden Horns, and whatnot. Don’t get me wrong, I love Istanbul—it is for sure on my list of 10 ten best places on the world—but let’s face it: it is not quite in the same league as Zaisan Tolgoi.

So here is what the ever-increasingly irrelevant and totally out-of-touch New York Times has to say about Istanbul:

19. Istanbul
The reputation of Istanbul’s contemporary art scene has been steadily growing in recent years, with the Web site ArtKnowledgeNews.com recently calling it “one of the most innovative in the world.” That reputation is bound to be burnished even more this year, now that Istanbul has been named the 2010 European Capital of Culture (a designation it shares with Essen, Germany, and Pecs, Hungary). There will be a series of events, gallery shows and stage performances throughout the city to mark the occasion. (A complete list of events can be found at en.istanbul2010.org/index.htm.) But one of the best ways to get a crash course in what Istanbul’s leading artists are up to right now is to spend some time wandering around the Misir Apartments (311/4 Istiklal Cadessi), right on the busy pedestrian thoroughfare that cuts through the trendy Beygolu neighborhood. Inside this elegant, early-20th-century building are some of the city’s most cutting-edge art venues, like Galerist (www.galerist.com.tr) and Gallerie Nev (www.galerinevistanbul.com) Afterward, head to the rooftop terrace and have a drink at 360 Istanbul, a stylish bar and restaurant that offers stunning views of the city’s skyline (360istanbul.com).

I was struck by the last line, because the Last Time I Was in Istanbul  my host Gunj and I did in fact pop by 360 Istanbul for a drink at the rooftop terrace (and when I say we had “a drink” I do not mean this as a euphemism for having twelve or fifteen drinks and then being shown the door by the bouncers; we had one drink each, OK?). In fact, the building is owned by the uncle of one of Gunj’s best friends, with whom we had dinner the night before. Small World! Amazingly enough, the NYT’s description is accurate; the rooftop terrace does indeed offer “stunning views of the city’s skyline.”

But since it mentioned the art scene in Istanbul why did the NYT leave out the Latest Show of Miniatures by Jahongir Ashurov? And why did the NYT fail to point out that George Gurdieff once Lived in An Apartment on Kumbaraci Sokak, not far from 360 Istanbul? Did I mention that the NYT is becoming increasingly irrelevant to say nothing of out-of touch?

Kumbaraci Sokak today

And why, in the name of all that’s Holy, no mention of the Tekke of the Whirling Dervishes, just down the street from 360 Istanbul? The tekke, which is now closed for renovation, has long been Rumored to be a Portal to Shambhala.

The Whirling Dervishes Tekke is supposedly closed for renovation. Or is this just a clever ruse for hiding a Portal to Shambhala?

Mongolia | Madame Blavatsky | Voice for the 2010s?

Madame Blavatsky is Back in the News:

Fantasist, fabulist, spiritualist, Theosophist and all-round bullshit artist, Madame Blavatsky was as savvy as L. Ron Hubbard and as batty as Anne Heche, circa 2001 . . . The next time you are downward dogging, give a thought to that ballsy broad from the Ukraine. Give her spirit a shout out or two.

 Madame  Blavatsky

Dubai | Boom | Bust | Schadenfreude

Dubai now hosts the tallest building in the world, which may or may not signal the coming of the Apocalypse and the Mahdi. See Is the World's Tallest Building a Monument or a Tombstone for Dubai? Dubai has now also become the Poster Child for Wretched Excess and an object lesson in everything that is wrong, so wrong, with the global economy.

The Khalifa Tower, the Tallest Building in the World. Photo courtesy of the Anarchists at Coming Anarchy. See also The World's Top Photo Opportunity.

In Appetite for Destruction John Gravois offers a corrective to the “cheap metaphors, apocalyptic exaggeration, and schadenfreude that marks the Dubai backlash.” Excerpt:

Alas, singlemindedly obsessed with facades and underbellies, the backlash correspondents fell quickly into weird observational pathologies. Writers would lavish numerous punishing column-inches on The World, an unpopulated offshore development that few Dubai residents have ever laid eyes on, while insisting that Dubai’s ubiquitous manual labourers are somehow concealed from the public gaze. Meanwhile, the same writers actually did render invisible vast segments of the population: namely, pretty much anyone who is not a rich, boorish westerner, an Emirati, or an immiserated low-wage worker. Entirely missing from most accounts was the Dubai of Indian shopkeepers, Filipino professionals, Lebanese restaurateurs, Iranian artists, Keralite longshoremen, African gold traders, Palestinian bankers and Pakistani estate agents. Between the facade and the so-called underbelly, an entire city went missing.

On a recent Swing through the Mideast I had a ten-hour layover in Dubai. If you are in transit the mammoth Dubai airport has a cornucopia of coffee shops, cafes, up-scale restaurants, luxury goods outlets, etc, where you can while away your time, but once you pass through immigration the choices are a lot slimmer. I ended up sitting in a Burger King drinking coffee until the sun came up, whereupon I took a cab down the Perfume Souk to the old section of the city. Every time I pass through Dubai I make a point of stocking up on scents.

Water Taxi in Dubai

I arrived downtown at 7:30 a.m. only to discover that the stores in the Perfume Souk did not open until 9:00. I strolled over to the nearby Gold Souk. Here I took a seat on one of the benches in the covered-over passageway through the souk. Already a few shopkeepers were arriving for work, most of them carrying a small plastic cup of tea they had picked up on the way. Soon a short little guy dressed in patched shorts, strapped tee-shirt, and plastic flip-flops came and sat down beside me. He appeared to be his seventies. From the large plastic bag of detritus he had with him I assumed he was the local version of a street person. For fifteen minutes he just sat there. Then he turned to me and asked in passable English, “What country are you from?” I really did not want to talk to the guy—I assumed he would try to beg money—so I said “USA.” In this part of the world in years past if you said you were from the USA people would usually just get up and walk away. But we live in different times. Instead, this guy exclaimed “Obama!” I was tempted to point out that in some in circles Obama is Thought to Be the Mahdi, but it was too early in the morning for eschatological debates.

“Where are you from,” I asked. “Pakistan. In Dubai twenty-five years. Never go back to Pakistan. Good here. Lots of Pakistanis.” He pointed to three guys walking by, each holding a little plastic cup of tea: “Pakistanis. Shops on the Gold Souk. Pakistanis like gold!” A group of five guys slowly walked by, engaged in an animated discussion. “Pakistanis?” I wondered. “No!” he exclaimed, as if shocked by my ignorance. “Iranians!”

Then, unbidden, he called out the nationality of each man (there were no women) or group of men walking by. In addition to Pakistanis and Iranians here were Indians, Afghanis, Yemenis, Sudanese, Somalians, Syrians, Chinese, and a host of others. There seemed to be inordinate number of Chinese. All were people who worked in the Gold Souk and other nearby souks. “Where are the Dubai people?” I wonder. He did not seem to understand me. “People born here, the local people,” I explained. He shook his head. “No people from Dubai. They don’t work here.”

The merchants of the Gold Souk are people between the “facade and the so-called underbelly” mentioned above. As noted, these are the people you don’t hear much about, and who will no doubt remain in Dubai through its various booms and busts. Skyscapers may rise and fall but gold remains eternal. And oddly enough the old guy, despite all the information he imparted on me, never did ask for any money.

Gold necklaces in the Gold Souk — apparently just looted from the Tomb of Ur.

Nice solid gold necklace and earring set. Just the thing for Lady Ga Ga.

This little gold trinket cost 500,000 UAE dirhams — $136,147. Pick up a couple the  next time you swing by Dubai.