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ARTISTIC CONTRIBUTIONS > Photos >Kiran Ambwani > Tibet


Photos by Kiran Ambwani

Dans l'ombre du Tibet: Un culture en exil | In the Shadow of Tibet: A Culture in Exile

Since the invasion in 1949 by the Chinese, Tibet has become a country in peril. Its people have been persecuted, its land desecrated and its religious traditions all but annihilated. Yet the Tibetan culture has proved extraordinarily resilient and inspirational, steeped as it is in a Buddhist philosophy emphasizing compassion and forgiveness above all else.

In Tibet, spiritual training and practice, and even learning the Tibetan language, are severely restricted by the Chinese. Much of Tibetan culture has now had to take refuge outside its homeland. In their refugee settlements in India, they have established Tibetan-language schools and cultural institutions, reconstructed several monasteries, and established large monastic universities to help preserve their cultural identity. For Tibetans, Buddhism permeates through everyday life and participating in sacred activities like praying, reciting scriptures, making mandalas and hanging prayer flags is believed to create a positive collective karma which overcomes epidemics, hunger, war and other negative effects hindering peace and harmony in the world.

My first awareness of the plight of the Tibetan people came from a fellow Tibetan student in India, a refugee. It was then that I realized the strength of the Tibetan people. I am inspired by their perseverance to safeguard their cultural heritage in exile. Through this photo reportage, I would like to highlight the resilience of the Tibetan culture despite the cultural genocide it faces. In my ongoing odyssey to capture the spirit of the Tibetan people, I have travelled to Tibetan settlements, children's villages and monasteries in Dharamsala, Bylakuppe, Ladakh and Nepal and hope to travel one day to a Free Tibet.

 
Breakfast Prayer - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 

Monestery Keys - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 

Leh Prayer Flags - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 

Lunch Hall
 
Mandala - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 
Mani wheel and Prayer Beads - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 
Monk Mandala - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 
Monks Enjoy Watermelon - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 

Monk with Gun - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 
Morning Light - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 

Nuns Sculpture - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 
Old Nun Spins Prayer Wheel - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 

Serajhe - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 
Seramey - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 

Thiksay Buddha - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 
Young Nuns - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 

Young Nun with dalailama pendant - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 
Young Nun with Scriptures - Photo by Kiran Ambwani
 
 
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