Original subtitles

Insight Asia

Asian Corridor in Heaven

< Guge, Mystery of the Lost Kingdom >

Western Tibet.

A series of mountains stretches far and wide.

This part of the Himalayas boasts

the greatest number of legends and myths.

People gather here in pursuit of the myths.

The main setting of the myth is Mount Kailash

Mt. Kailash

Mt. Kailash... For centuries, people have considered

this mountain to be the center of the universe.

For the Tibetans and Indians, Mt. Kailash is

a scared mountain, where one bows down to worship.

Buddhists believe that by stepping up the stairs in the middle of this mountain,

the palace where Buddha

Demchok dwells can be found.

For the Hindus, the pinnacle of this mountain is the palace of Shiva.

Lake Manasarowar is situated near Mt. Kailash.

This lake is also full of myths of the past.

All 4 major rivers that

flow in Asia stem from this river.

The Indus River and the Ganges, both flowing into India, start here.

This is why Indians believe that water from this lake is the water of life.

According to legend, Buddha's mother

washed herself in this lake and was able to give birth to

Buddha after cleansing her body.

Another 300 kilometers to the west of Lake Manasarowar

A vast space of grassless mountains can be found.

It's also known as the "palace of the moon."

It's been named this because when the moon comes out,

it will lead one to the palace of fantasy.

There's a beautiful place that people head to.

It's green there all year round. It's where birds chirp and flowers bloom.

There are no pains, troubles, or worries.

Its name is Shambhala, the heavens of the gods.

Shambhala isn't very far away.

It's where we come from.

Shambhala is

the mythical Utopia that people believe is located in the snowy Himalayan valley.

Can Shambhala really be found in the deep valleys?

In the early 1900s, a few English explorers

made a surprising discovery.

They found actual artefacts of the legendary kingdom.

The explorers that went into the palace

could hardly believe their eyes.

A mural that seemed as if

it had been drawn yesterday had awaited them.

But this wasn't the only thing that excited the explorers.

Surprisingly, many of the murals were painted with gold.

Who could've painted such brilliant murals in this part of the world?

Who had lived here and

where have they disappeared to?

Chinese archaeologists initiated

massive excavations here starting in the 1970s.

A great deal of artefacts were found over several excavations.

And these artefacts were immediately designated as national treasures

The kingdom was named "Guge"

which means "cave."

Archaeologists were puzzled over the murals

that had been preserved for hundreds of years.

These murals were very distinct, nothing like those found in China and Tibet.

Many types of war weapons were found among the remains.

Armour, swords, and knives...

Why were such weapons of war necessary?

There were so many arrows found,

amounting to over 100,000.

Was the Guge Kingdom destroyed due to warfare?

A clue to the Guge Kingdom's mystery

was found 400 kilometers away over the Himalayas.

Dharamsala, India

Dharamsala is located in Northern India.

It's where the exiled Tibetan government is located.

In 1997, an Italian scholar found a document that

illustrated the history of the Guge Kingdom and its genealogy

The Guge Kingdom was a great nation that ruled for 700 years

in a span of 16 kings.

In its prime, the kingdom ruled

not only Western Tibet, but Northern India and Kashmir.

Many scholars from India were invited and presented with jewels and gold.

In various parts of the document, the kingdom is described

as one full of gold and jewels.

When the monk Atisha came to Tibet,

the king presented him with a mandala embedded with 300 gold pieces.

In the 7th century, the famous Chinese Buddhist monk Xuanzang

wrote of a nation of gold in the snowy mountains during his excursion.

There are a surprising number of murals

that were painted with gold.

The face, body, and feet of this image of Buddha are painted with gold.

Even the broken bricks are painted in gold.

Many gold mines of the past were found

along the river

during our field research.

Holes were dug in the old gold mines.

The sand that had particles of gold

was transferred to the river to be sifted out.

This explains that digging for gold and

its production was an important economic activity

in the Guge Kingdom.

But this kingdom of gold had disappeared all of a sudden.

And it's been forgotten by the people for a very long period of time.

This is a village nearby called Saffaran.

The villagers here do not know of the lustrous history of Guge.

But just like their ancestors,

they try to make the most out of using the nature.

People still use the soil to build houses.

Not a single rock or wood

can be found nearby to build houses with.

A thousand years ago, the people

erected buildings out of soil on these mountains.

But a few buildings seem to be made of wood.

Where could they have gotten the wood

from when not a single tree can be found nearby?

A clue to this question lies in the murals.

This mural depicts

people and animals carrying lumber.

The only way to get wood is

to have them carried over from the Himalayas.

It's 300 kilometers from the Himalayas to the Guge Kingdom.

We can see people carrying wood

in the same manner as depicted in the murals.

In order to construct the Guge Kingdom,

a great deal of wood must've been carried

from India and Nepal.

It would've been a very difficult journey, having to climb numerous peaks

of the Himalayas amounting to over 5,000 meters.

This is a Nepalese village located under the Himalayas.

The villagers are busy trimming the wood.

Traces of cut wood can be seen in various parts of the Himalayan Mountains.

Wood is a very important resource of trade

that links Western Tibet to the Himalayas.

It's easy to regard the Himalayan Mountains as a natural barrier

between the Tibetan plateau and Nepal.

But there are roads that link the two spaces.

People of the two regions use narrow roads

like this one to barter their goods.

On this border of Tibet and Nepal,

markets are held all the time.

These people are the Nepalese merchants that have come over the Himalayas.

They eat and sleep here

until they have sold all that they've brought.

They've come to sell timber.

Yaks help carry the goods.

They buy salt from the Tibetans.

It's because salt is unavailable in the Himalayas.

It takes us 20 days to get here. And another 20 to go back home. 40 days in all.

We don't have passports.

Therefore, we must go back now.

They are on their way home.

They must travel another 20 days over the mountains.

It's quite a difficult journey.

This is a place called Puran,

which borders Tibet, India, and Nepal.

It used to belong to the Guge Kingdom at one point in history.

Caves made of rocks can be seen within the village.

That's where the Nepalese merchants stay.

The Nepalese merchants that travel over the Himalayas

stay in the caves along the way

for several months.

The locals call it the "Nepal Hotel."

The market on the border has been modernized.

The Nepalese or Indian merchants

come to sell watches, accessories, and spices.

In the summer, cashmere from India is popular.

Women wearing clothing

made of such textiles

can be seen on the murals of the Guge Kingdom.

In some caves of the Guge Kingdom, apricots

and raisins were found.

These fruits were not grown in the Guge Kingdom.

They must've made their way into Guge through means of trade and exchange.

The Guge Kingdom wasn't one of isolation,

but a nation that practised great cultural exchange and trade.

In the 8th century, the Tibetan Kingdom conquered

Western China with a very strong army.

In its prime, the kingdom ruled over the Tibetan plateau

as well as what is now Sichuan, Yunnan, and Qinghai Hu.

Even Tang's capital of Chang'an was in danger of being conquered.

The palace built at the Tibetan capital of Lhasa symbolizes

the strength of the Tibetan kingdom back then.

The king who had unified the western states

wanted to convert the kingdom to Buddhism.

Over a thousand temples and

30 Buddhist institutions were build.

Many children in the royal and aristocratic families joined the monastery

and offered much fortune to the Buddhist temples.

Perhaps it was too much.

As the entire kingdom became more infatuated with Buddhism,

the nation's economy weakened.

Eventually, internal strife arose within the monarchy

and many people were killed.

In 895, a murderer in the dark

shot an arrow to the king's heart.

The ancient Tibetan kingdom had come to an end.

The King's immediate family escaped Lhasa

and fled quickly.

The area is a plateau situated 4,000 meters above sea level.

With their belongings bound on yaks,

the royal family members walked along the bare road.

They travelled 1,500 kilometers west of Lhasa,

across the Tibetan plateau.

Finally, they reached the western end of Tibet.

Not a single strand of grass is visible here.

The royal family met with the barren fields of these mountains.

But the mountains resembled soldiers on guard.

Will they be able to protect the royal family, having escaped turmoil?

The royal family builds a new kingdom here.

It's the Guge Kingdom.

Palace Walls of the Guge Kingdom

Perhaps the king was afraid of his assassin.

The palace resembles a fortress.

The king's quarters are situated atop a cliff where the view

can be observed from all directions.

So how did people make it up to the very top?

Inside the palace, a secret passageway exists.

It's only through this passageway

that people can reach the king's quarters.

Surprisingly, the Guge Kingdom is ruled for 700 years.

That's 16 generations of kings.

The royal family seemed to have enjoyed an abundant life.

The aristocrats are dressed in fancy outfits.

The people of Guge lived in

caves below the royal palace.

Over 800 caves have been found.

This is where the kitchen used to be.

The soot on the walls is almost tangible.

But what did these people eat with the soil so barren?

The first thing that the king did was to utilized the waterway.

He brought water from Sutlej River.

When the construction was completed,

they were able to farm barley and raise cattle.

Thereafter, the population rose above 20,000

and the kingdom was able to prosper.

In 1042, a single event in the Guge Kingdom would change

history in the kingdom forever.

The famous monk from India has travelled

across the Himalayas into the Guge Kingdom.

Atisha... He was a prominent Buddhist leader in India.

And his reputation was well-known throughout the Tibetan plateau.

On atop the hill where Sutlej River flows,

the first temple in the Guge Kingdom was built.

The name of the temple was the Twrin Temple.

With the rise of this temple,

a total of 108 temples were built in Western Tibet.

This is about the same time that the legend of

the mystical Buddhist Kingdom, Shambhala came into being.

Atisha was greatly supported by the Guge King to rekindle

fire of Buddhism that was nearly extinct.

It was during this period that the text in Indian was translated into

Tibetan which proved to be an extensive project.

Most of the Buddhist text that is being used in Tibetan Buddhism

today was translated at this time.

Tibetan Buddhism was almost wiped out in the 9th century

because of the disunion within the royal courts.

Drepoong Temple at Lhasa, Tibet

Drepoong Temple.

It's the largest temple in Tibet.

Once a year,

a festival featuring a huge picture of Buddha is held.

People from all over Tibet gather to watch this extraordinary sight.

This picture is 50 meters long.

The monk from this temple is of the Gelug,

the largest tradition of Buddhism in Tibet for the last 600 years.

This sect was founded by Atisha's disciples,

honouring Atisha's achievements.

The Buddhist teachings of Atisha in the Guge Kingdom

has continued to the present.

India is where Buddhism first started.

Nalanda University, India

Nalanda University once housed

20,000 students in its dorms

in which Buddhism was studied.

Monks from all over the world studied here, even Haecho,

the monk from Shilla Dynasty.

Nalanda was the world's greatest university at the time.

But Buddhism had mysteriously disappeared

from India completely.

In the 10th century, Islam troops invaded India,

leaving no trace of Buddhism.

Buddhism had vanished from India and escaped to a new place of refuge.

It travelled past the Himalayan mountains.

Winter has come once again to the Himalayas

where snow never melts.

The people here live in a state of rugged nature.

Perhaps this is why people are even more religious.

Buddhism had disappeared from India,

only to be transferred wholly to the people living

in the deep valleys of the Himalayas.

The people here recite Buddhist text every day.

But they do this not for their own sake,

but to alleviate the pain of their neighbours

and to pray for the happiness for all.

When Buddhism was fading away in India,

Tibet was the only place that it was handed down to.

The Himalayas were not a blocking wall, but a passageway.

Not only the goods, but the culture and religions of India

were able to travel along this passageway into Tibet.

The Guge Kingdom was

situated hundreds of kilometers away from Northern India.

The spirit of India's Buddhism can be felt distinctly

through the murals of the Guge Kingdom.

If you look closely at the murals,

you will see many drawings where men and women are embracing.

This is also a characteristic of late-Indian Buddhism.

Deep wisdom and love for others joined in harmony.

Linchen Sanpo was highly influential in having such murals drawn.

He brought along many artists from India as well as the Buddhist text.

These artists drew beautiful murals on the walls

of the Guge palace

A unique style of the murals were created

as a result of combining Tibetan and Indian cultures.

This is the village of Jada, near the Guge palace.

Near the village, there are still

many unknown artefacts to be found.

The villagers often accidentally come across new discoveries.

In 1992, a shepherd found colourful murals in a cave

while sheltering himself from the rain

This is the Tongga cave.

New relics were found

in a place 2 kilometers away.

It's the Piang cave.

Piang cave

The cave was built by digging up the soft rock,

resembling a bee hive.

These relics are said to be located in a suburb of the Guge Kingdom.

There are 1, 150 caves in all.

And among them, there are 20 murals.

One can't help but be amazed upon viewing the murals.

This is the mandala, which represents enlightenment.

It was drawn with red paint from India

and blue powder.

The blue powder is made from lapis lazuli, which is found in Afghanistan.

The painting of a fairy flying in the sky

is also found in the center of the Silk Road.

The double lion is a Persian symbol that had been fashionable

in the European royal courts.

The shape of the ceiling was in the style that

was popular in Afghanistan

and the Korean Peninsula.

How could all types of patterns

and architectural styles that were from various parts

of Europe and Asia be featured in this remote region of Tibet?

Is this person with a big nose a European?

The answer to this question lies in a place

400 kilometers away from the Guge Kingdom.

Ladakh, India

Ladakh is located in Northern India.

The Ladakh Kingdom was where Buddhism in India had

flourished alongside the Guge Kingdom.

Many people and goods from Tibet still come through here.

One can easily see many Chinese goods in the market.

These goods have travelled over the Tibetan plateau

along the Himalayas.

Tea from China's Sichuan can be found here.

The tea has travelled from Sichuan to Tibet

over the Himalayas and then back here

to India once again over the Himalayas.

In the past, all the goods from Central Asia, Pakistan,

and Kashmir came together in Ladakh.

Yak cheese, wool, salt, and tea were exchanged from Tibet.

A fascinating bartering route existed between the Guge Kingdom and Ladakh.

The road stemming

from Guge linked Central Asia through this valley.

This is the border between India and Pakistan.

This place is a desert situated

at over 3,000 meters above sea level.

It's a sandy desert that is found under the snow-capped Himalayan mountains.

It's even more interesting to find wild camels living here.

Camels in the plateau?

Camels in Central Asia are known for

their twin humps on their backs.

The village of Hunder is nearby.

In this town of 100-some families,

most of the villagers are Buddhists.

But this home is different.

The star and moon, representing Islam, is drawn.

A few Muslims are holding a service here.

They are the descendants of Muslim merchants who had brought their camels

to do business here hundreds of years ago.

They are the living proof of the exchange that went on

between the Guge Kingdom and Central Asia a thousand years ago.

Salt from Tibet and jewels and cheese

from Afghanistan were exchanged.

The Muslim merchants came on camels, horses,

and mules.

Some of these animals weren't able to return home

because they had gotten weak.

That's why the merchants sold the horses and camels.

And the camels with two humps came to remain in the Nubra Valley.

Since long ago, the Muslim merchants

had crossed the Himalayas with goods on their camels.

It was through them that the legend of the Shambhala Kingdom

had spread to the West.

And this is why there were many Eurasian patterns

in the murals of the Guge Kingdom.

The Guge Kingdom was a crossroad where Eastern and Western civilizations met.

The roads of China's Yunnan and Sichuan

is connected to Tibet's Lhasa.

The roads do not end there.

They continue on through the Tibetan

plateau to India and Pakistan.

And at its end, it converges with the Silk Road.

And at the center was the Guge Kingdom.

In early 17th century, the once prosperous kingdom is met with trouble.

The once peaceful kingdom of Shambhala comes to a close.

But no one knows for sure what brought on

the demise of the Guge Kingdom.

Some people say that

the troops of Ladakh took over.

While others say that the kingdom was taken down

by Muslims who were desiring their gold and jewels.

Did the people of Guge sense their own demise?

This cave is full of

frightful gods.

The murals show that the king and monks of Guge

desperately wanted peace in the kingdom.

But their enemies started to

take over their suburbs one by one.

In the end, even monks had to

carry weapons and fight.

The last king of Guge tried to

fight off the enemies till the end.

But as his people were killed miserably,

he had to surrender.

700 years of Guge history had come to an end.

The end of the kingdom was as dramatic as it had been successful.

They say that the caves in front of the palace

were full of corpses without heads.

They must've been turned into mummies due to the dry climate.

In Western Tibet,

the Guge Kingdom that had established

such a rich culture had disappeared like a dream.

Where did the Guge people disappeared to?

Have they made their way into the mystical kingdom of

Shambhala, only seen when the moon is out?

In China's Yunnan, tea is being made.

This tea is as valuable as life for Tibetans.

The caravans make their way out to deliver life.

And that's how the Tea and Horse Caravan Road came about.

The caravan road was also called

the valley where only mice and birds could travel on.

The caravans make their way on this narrow road.

The caravan road is very important to

the people living in the valleys.

It is only through this road that they are able to survive.

We met many innocent souls

on the road stretching from Sichuan to Tibet.

As the mountains get steeper, religious faith deepens even more.

There are those that throw their bodies

to get close to Buddha.

They do not pray for their own self, but for the happiness of their neighbours.

The salt wells of the Tibetan valleys

are full of women's sweat and tears.

Perhaps their sweat and tears had evaporated

and became salt.

That is why a Tibetan woman comes to mind

when it comes to this salt.

The caravan road continues west

from China's Yunnan and Sichuan to Tibet.

The caravan carrying salt is travelling over the snow-capped Himalayas.

Those living on the other side of the mountains

need salt to live as well.

The 5,000 kilometers of the Tea

and Horse Caravan Road.

This great road continues to connect lives

with other lives.