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View from the Roof >
On a clear day, the view of the
valley and mountains is
unequ ailed, although the modern
parts of Lhasa are less impressive.
O POTALA Shangha;• EAST
~PA'ti>.CE, CHINA SEA
'"'" -":"~
.1~ '3:'" ~~ •Hong Kong
GAl Golden roofs
THE WHITE PALACE
GAl Western Hall The White Palace is seven stories high and was
used mainly for secular purposes. The top three
White Palace >
Maitreya East Sunshine The entrance to the levels were built around a large central skywell
Chapel Apartment
main part of the and contained accommodation and offices for
building has a triple- senior monks and officials, as well as kitchens
stairway-the middle and storage areas. The Dalai Lama occupied
one was reserved for
the sole use of the two rooms on the top floor called the East and
Dalai Lama. West Sunshine Apartments. Beneath the top
levels lies the Great East Hall, a vast 7,500-sq ft
Eastern Courtyard (700-sq m) assembly place for important political
Important religious celebrations ceremonies. The lower levels of the palace are
were held in this huge open space.
used for storage and provide a frame that
supports the main buildings. The first hallway,
after the entrance, has several large murals
depicting the building of the Potala Palace and
the arrival of Princess Wencheng.
THE RED PALACE
Atthe heart of the Potala complex, the Red
Palace was intended for spiritual concerns. It is
a complicated structure, with numerous halls
of worship as well as the remains of eight
School of Dalai Lamas inside magnificent stupas. Like the
Religious Chapel of the 13th Dalai Lama, the Chapel
Officials
of the 5th Dalai Lama holds an enormous
funerary stupa that rises up over 40ft (12 m)
Eastern Bastion It is made of sandalwood and reputed to be
This shows that the covered with nearly four tons of gold and almost
palace a I so served a
defensive function. 20,000 pearls and other gems. Other treasures
on display include rare handwritten Buddhist
sutras, and a great deal of statuary-one of the
best statues is the one of Maitreya in his own
chapel on the east side of the top floor.
SONGTSEN GAMPO
The warrior king and founder of the Tubo
GAl Heavenly
King Murals kingdom, Songtsen G ampo was born in AD 617
and built the original Pot ala Palace for his wife,
Princess Wencheng. Most of it has long since
PRINCESS WENCH ENG burned down-only the Dharma Cave and the
Saints' Chapel remain from the 7th century. They
In 641, a member of the imperial family in the
Thangka Storehouse are both in the northern part of the Red Palace.
Tang dynasty (618-907) was offered as a wife to
The Dharma Cave is said to be the place where
Songsten Gampo to broker peace between the
Tubo kingdom and the Tang. Princess Wench eng King Songtsen Gam po meditated. Inside, statues
is revered in Tibet because she is said to have of the king, his chief ministers, and Princess
converted the king, and thus Tibet, to Buddhism. Wencheng are venerated. In the Saints' Chapel
She also instigated the building of many of on the floor above, several important Buddhist
Tibet's finest temples. figures and the 7th, 8th, and 9th Dalai Lamas
are enshrined and worshiped.
