My friend Kelnam arranged for me to photograph and interview
several young monks and nuns. When I returned from lunch to our
office, down below in the courtyard there they were, a group of
monks and nuns in their maroon and orange robes, waiting to meet
me. There was one monk who really stood out, standing tall with
prominent features, named Wasur Rinpoche. I feel that the portrait
here hints at that presence. The following is his story. (I must thank
Diki-la, a fellow staff and friend at the DIIR, who interpreted for this
interview.)
Wasur Rinpoche is from Markon, in Kham, the eastern part of Tibet.
Many people in his village town said that he was a rinpoche (one
that takes rebirth to continue guiding other to enlightenment). He
told me that he had been officially recognized and confirmed as a
rinpoche by the Dalai Lama after Wasur’s escape to India. Wasur
Rinpoche had felt for a long time that strong feeling that Tibetans
should rise up and fight to free Tibet from the occupation by China.
After meeting Wasur Rinpoche, you can only feel that he stands for
this with all of his heart.
I asked Wasur what he thought that freedom meant. He said,
‘freedom to become happy.’ For him, happiness meant that one’s
mind should be at peace from worrying about tomorrow. In his view,
he thought that conditions for Tibetans should be just as good as
the conditions that the Chinese in Tibet live in. The fact is that they
are not the same. He felt that it is clear that the Chinese people
disrespect the Tibetan people and that Tibetans continue to be
discriminated against in their own land.
When he first entered a monastery as a child, the Chinese
authorities did not allow him or others to read pecha (Buddhist
religious scriptures). He remembers that whatever the monks tried
to do involving religious practice or study, the Chinese consistently
objected. At this point in the interview, Wasur Rinpoche mentioned
that when he was in prison later, he was beaten up so much with a
belt on the head and the side, that he still has some defects and
has lost some long term memory. But he remembers back then,
around 1969, that whenever they started reading religious texts, the
Chinese would take the books and scriptures away to burn them. As
young monks, it is traditionally required to shout to help them
memorize the scriptures. But the loud chanting caused the Chinese
to come and take all the religious texts from this monastery. It was
around 1969 or 1970 that this happened, that they came and took
away all the scriptures, he said.
He left his hometown to go study in Lhasa with the aim of entering a
monastery there, and to engage in studies under good masters. At
the age of nineteen he entered Sera monastery.
Once in Sera monastery, Wasur Rinpoche found that the Sera
monks were afraid to open up the scriptures. This was in the 1980’s
and even after the Cultural Revolution. At this time, the Chinese no
longer said directly not to read the texts but indirectly they made it
understood. They had armed military always outside the monastery
and the officials constantly held so many meetings.
Wasur Rinpoche said that he felt personally that it should be the
monks right to have proper facilities to engage and pursue their
studies. Being a monk attending a monastery meant that he and the
other monks should be accommodated and allowed to practice their
religion. But this was not to be. This caused him to question why it is
that as a human being he is not allowed to enjoy the same
conditions that others are allowed to enjoy.
He said that if the Chinese people want to travel or move to Tibet,
they can do so, just as they wish. But Tibetans were restricted and
could not move or travel as they pleased. They often had to
difficulties in getting permits. In his case, it was even worse because
as the Chinese understood he was a rinpoche, travel permits were
much more difficult to receive. In Tibetan culture, he said that
rinpoches are greatly respected but under Chinese rule, it is exactly
the opposite and they take measures to make life much harder. He
applied for a pass to travel to Lhasa in 1982 but did not receive a
permit until 1988. Wasur Rinpoche told of how he had to hide in
places on his way to Lhasa in 1985, because he wasn’t given the
permission to go by the authorities. When the Chinese want to stay
in Lhasa, they immediately get a pass. This was one of the things
that opened his eyes to the reality of the situation. He wondered
why the Chinese could get a pass but why he couldn’t get one. “So
this I hope explains about how there is no freedom of movement for
Tibetans in Tibet. This (freedom of movement) is one liberty I did
not have – one given to the Chinese but not to the Tibetans.”
If one traveled in monk’s robes even to visit a library, one would
face many obstacles. On April 18, 1989, he was with another monk
on their way to downtown Lhasa. Immediately Chinese guards
apprehended them and brought them back to Sera monastery for
not having a pass.
On June 10, 1990, Wasur Rinpoche went to bring a care package of
tsampa, butter, meat, etc. for some friends who were in jail. But the
Chinese soldiers did not allow him to meet them nor to give them the
food.
Wood is exported to China from Lhasa but the monks are not
allowed to purchase firewood in Lhasa, he said. To cook or to keep
warm, the monks had to use cow dung for fuel. Wasur Rinpoche
went on to say, “However if you are employed by the Chinese
government, you will be allowed to use a heater for your room, as
well as an electric heater. In the monastery, we are only allowed
lights. Nothing to keep warm – but we learned to get used to it.”
He was brought up in a family of ten. The Chinese gave them two
120 kg sacks of wheat for the family per year to consume. They had
to be very cautious and consume it slowly since they had to
preserve it. Planning for tomorrow was always a big concern. The
Chinese would say, “Eat the porridge lightly and if there is any left
you must return this to the Chinese government.” The quantity was
not enough for us for one year. People were not allowed to go to
other sources for food, or if they did and were found out, they would
get punished, he said.
“One always had to worry about tomorrow,” said Wasur Rinpoche.
“Tomorrow, the Chinese will give some order to do something or
prevent us from something.” In his family, most of the members had
long hair (but not him). During the Cultural Revolution they made
the family members cut their hair short. At school, the Chinese
ordered that certain letters to be omitted from the Tibetan alphabet
and certain words forbidden in the Tibetan vocabulary. Later, even
teachers were not allowed to teach in Tibetan in the usual way. The
Chinese allowed them to teach it but they had to teach it the way the
Chinese wanted them to teach it. Many Tibetan people, Wasur
Rinpoche felt, later spoke Chinese better than they spoke Tibetan.
Wasur Rinpoche then reflected, “Still today it is difficult to get
admitted into a school. They do not have education there. The
Chinese want to destroy Tibetan culture. They even came and took
all the ornaments.”
He continued, “Chinese people say that Tibet is part of China. But
Tibetan people are not allowed to vote nor say their opinion.” He
said, “Maybe the Chinese people have doubts that Tibet is not
really under China. If Tibetans are allowed the right to vote, then
they will elect Tibetans.” He said that he thought that he could vote
on behalf of Sera Monastery in an election for Lhasa
representatives, but that they did not allow him to. “If China allows
Tibetans to vote,” he says, “then China will not be in control.”
Wasur Rinpoche told of an interesting incident that happened in
1988. The Chinese were giving the people of Lhasa the opportunity
to vote for their choices among representatives pre-chosen by the
ruling government. He said, “so the Chinese gave people their first
opportunity to vote that year but all the Tibetans voted for the Dalai
Lama!” Usually the ballot shows two candidates representing a
sectioned district of Lhasa – ‘shudechu’. After the end of the voting,
when the Chinese authorities opened the ballot boxes, they were
stunned and then began to hysterically request people to tell them
‘who was responsible’ for this.
During this hysteric search, Wasur Rinpoche had just gone out from
the area but was accosted by Chinese security officers. They were
suspecting people and asked him, “Did you vote for the Dalai
Lama? Did you write, ‘Tibet is Independent?” He remained silent but
then the officers yelled at him over and over, repeating “Tibet is
under China!” Finally he couldn’t tolerate them saying this, so he
claimed, “Tibet is independent!”
At 2 a.m. in the morning, guards knocked on the door at the
monastery and inquired if Wasur Rinpoche was there. He woke up
and saw a large army outside. This was in early March 1988, just
days before more demonstrations were to take place in the streets
(on the anniversary of the March 10, 1959 Tibetan uprising). When
they came to his room, they looked at all his things around the
room. There happened to be papers left on the floor about Tibetan
independence which had been used for handing out to foreigners.
The Chinese guards picked the papers up without seeing the
reverse printed side and through them back down. He said that
luckily, the blank side remained up. But still, there in Sera Gompa
(monastery), they handcuffed him with his hands behind his back
and took him to the police truck. There were a total of ten monks
apprehended and taken in the police truck. Some of them were:
Lobasang Gyamtso a seventeen year old from U-Tsang, who took
part in a demonstration, Lobsang Inge, twenty-two years old from
Medo, Lobsang Jamyang, twenty-three from Pembo, Tenzing,
twenty-five of Pembo. and the prominent monk, Gushu Ngari Tulku,
aged fifty-one, of Lokah-Sera. Ngari Tulku had raised the issue of
Tibetan freedom in Chamdo in November 1987 and the Chinese
were aware of him. He had been involved in meetings about
demonstrations and now they were to imprison him.
During this raid, soldiers and army trucks surrounded Sera
monastery. Sera Gompa is situated on the mountainside. He feels
sure there were a few thousand total, except for the hundred or so
that entered the building, the remainder waited outside in many
army trucks. Only two soldiers came in his room, but there were
about seven or eight police officers that came in. When he saw such
a large number of troops outside, the first thought he had was that
they came to destroy the monastery. In October 1987, Chinese
army officials said to the monastery staff that they were going to
destroy it because it is always the monks that participate in
demonstrations. So they had said this before. The elder monks had
replied to them, “Do whatever you want to do, you always make
threats and then you don’t do anything.” It was the elder monks who
spoke like this said Wasur Rinpoche.
At this point in the interview, Wasur Rinpoche sketched a diagram
depicting a map of Sera Gompa showing where the long cue of
army trucks were lined up on the road coming in to Sera.
The police took the group in the back of a truck. On the way to the
prison, he was hit with belts, and kicked many times. The guards put
electric rods into the prisoners’ mouths, many times, which caused
intense pain inside the stomach and a burning sensation in the
arms. But the worst pain was in the stomach. Wasur Rinpoche said
that he didn’t faint or go unconscious. While they put the electric rod
inside the others’ mouths, some of them would kick because of the
pain. Inside the truck, he said, “the Chinese would kick us with their
heavy black boots and we bled out of our mouths. So when I was
kicked, I coughed out blood.” When they reached the first prison
where they stayed, Sonyee prison, the Chinese officers chained
their arms and legs. They were held one day at this first prison and
interrogated. He was asked, “Who are the names of your friends
who conspired with you? – give all the names and we will release
you.” They threatened him saying, “Otherwise you will be kept in
prison all your life.” Wasur Rinpoche said he replied that he ‘hasn’t
any friends’. He stated to the interrogator that he respects His
Holiness the Dalai Lama and trusts the decisions made by His
Holiness, even though he has never met His Holiness. The entire
day was spent in interrogation with only one light meal of low quality
food.
Then they moved him to Ortse Prison. When he reached that
prison, they took his monk robes from him and told him they would
be giving him other clothes to wear.—the same was said to ten
others (but not the same group as before). They were taken to the
cell and saw all the clothes they were supposed to wear left out on
the wet floor of the prison cell. There was nothing else, no mats --
nor quilts. Among the group, one of the men stood up and
requested clothing and mats. Just for asking for this he was beaten
up. They endured fifteen days in this cell until they were finally given
one quilt for three persons to share. After one month he said he
was shifted to Samye prison.
He spent ten months at Samye prison. For four months he was not
allowed to go outside and see sunlight. Back at Ortse prison they
had been allowed to go outside to relieve themselves. If someone
fell sick they could choose one medicine. If one had both a
headache and a stomachache for instance, still “you could only
choose one medicine,” he said. One of his friends there had said he
felt giddy so they gave him an injection. After the injection, his friend
passed out. They were beaten often and didn’t receive any medical
treatment at all.
At Samye prison where he spent ten months, he complained of pain
all over his body and was taken to the doctor at the clinic who took a
blood test. He took away one full bottle of blood, he said. Wasur
Rinpoche said that sometimes he lied that he was feeling sick
because he would get vitamins. These vitamins helped him sustain
his hunger. If he said he had headaches or stomachaches, they
wouldn’t take him though.
At first there were four members total in his cell but three were
released and he was all alone for a short time. Then not long before
he was released, he was put in a cell with another prisoner. This
person was Ulu Dawa Tsering Tulku, a sixty year old venerable
monk and teacher. He had been imprisoned because he had many
conversations with Italian foreigners. He was an abbot at Ganden
monastery, Wasur Rinpoche said. Dawa Tsering Tulku was a
lecturer in Tibetan higher studies. This man is still imprisoned with a
sentence of twenty years. He was also an expert in Tibetan law and
Chinese law. He said, whatever the Chinese asked him, he was able
to answer very intelligently.
Finally Wasur Rinpoche was released from prison around January
or February 1990. He said he went back to the monastery and did
some important work there. At the time, they were allowing the
monks to read the texts, so he was able to go through some of
them. In August 1990 he decided to escape to India.
While in prison, he states that he didn’t make any agreements that
they asked him to make. The Chinese asked him if he was
interested to work for Tibetans and he responded that he wasn’t.
Later before escaping to India he did not tell friends about what he
was going to do as there was some danger involved. He did not
meet anyone while traveling as he traveled at night and not during
the days. He disguised himself by wearing a wig and glasses, a
typical shirt and pants. If he told others about his plans someone
might inform to another who might report it to someone else. So he
felt best to take no unnecessary risks. He left Lhasa in August and
reached Kathmandu in October. He reached India in time for the
Kalachakra teachings in Saranath in December 1990.
Wasur Rinpoche witnessed first hand the nefarious actions of the
Chinese Cultural Revolution; he experienced first hand the
ubiquitous discrimination in Tibet; he experienced first hand what
happens when he voiced his opinion in public in a closed society;
and he experienced first hand the physical abuse and torture by the
hands of those carrying out the demands of a repressive,
authoritarian regime.
It is my hope that Wasur Rinpoche will one day see Tibet become a
place where people can live in dignity with the peace of mind
associated with not having to worry about tomorrow. He has surely
helped pave the road for such movement to take place through his
own honest example.
CYBEReTOWER™ LLC. All text and photographs above are copyrighted by the artist, David F
Shever, all rights reserved.
