The people of Mustang are some of the last custodians of the Tibetan spiritual identity.
Upper Mustang, in Nepal(***)s Himalayas, is one of the most remote places on earth [Al Jazeera]
Published On 12 Oct 201112 Oct 2011
It is also one of the last places with a pure Tibetan Buddhist culture, a culture virtually unchanged since the 14th century [Al Jazeera]
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Until 1992 the kingdom was, apart from a few exceptions, closed to foreigners [Al Jazeera]
The terrain is harsh, almost everything has to be carried by foot or on horseback – along treacherous paths carved by hand into sheer cliffs [Al Jazeera]
But the people of Mustang are facing a collossal change as the modern world starts to creep in [Al Jazeera]
China(***)s influence is growing and Nepalese security forces are about to flood Mustang(***)s border with Tibet in order to prevent Tibetans from fleeing Chinese rule [Al Jazeera]
Concerned at the slow strangulation of Tibetan Buddhism within China(***)s borders, the Dalai Lama has called on Mustang to preserve the religion and its traditions [Al Jazeera]
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But in Lo Gekhar, the oldest monastery in Tibetan Buddhism, Kunsang Wangchuk, whose family have been guardians of the monastery for 15 generations, is fighting that battle almost by himself [Al Jazeera]
Numbers of monks are declining and practising Tibetan Buddhism has become increasingly difficult. "We used to be able to go on pilgrimages to the holy places in Tibet. But now it(***)s difficult to do it," Kunsang Wangchuk says [Al Jazeera]
He is worried about the future of the monastry and Tibetan Buddhism: "If it continues like this, there will be fewer monks and fewer Lamas in the monastery. The conditions are getting worse. It will be dangerous" [Al Jazeera]
The annual Tigi festival is one of the most important Buddhist ceremonies of the year. People from villages across the region come to Lo Manthang(***)s Chode monastery to attend [Al Jazeera]
The festival commemorates Padmasambhava, the man who brought Buddhism to Tibet in the 8th century - and his triumph over evil [Al Jazeera]
"If you have belief in Buddhism, if you have an interest in the culture, you get a blessing from that. If you don(***)t believe in Buddhism, it(***)s like a dance, like a Michael Jackson dance," the monastery(***)s principal says [Al Jazeera]
The festival coincides with the end of the dry season [Al Jazeera]
Mustang is a high altitude desert, with temperatures rising up to five times faster than the world average [Al Jazeera]
Due to the effects of climate change the village of Samdzong has become the poorest village in Lo. After more than 1,000 years the village is basically dead [Al Jazeera]
"In the early days - the river that brings the water - came from thick ice. The snow and ice would melt in the summer, creating enough water for village. Now, all the ice is gone," one farmer says [Al Jazeera]
Many people in the village will have to leave: "We(***)re just worried about our children. Just like days and years pass, so will we soon. We just wish our children could have a better future," another farmer says [Al Jazeera]
Every year, as the drought gets worse, the ritual at the festival, where the monks re-enact an ancient story of how Mustang was saved from drought and destruction, becomes more important to the people of Lo [Al Jazeera]
While people increasingly feel the effects of climate change, there are even more immediate threats to Upper Mustang(***)s ancient culture [Al Jazeera]
A road is being built across the Chinese border connecting Lhasa and Kathmandu, cutting its way through Lo Manthang, the capital of the former kingdom [Al Jazeera]
It will not just open the doors to the outside world, it will turn Mustang into a part of a major trade route from Tibet through Nepal to India [Al Jazeera]
Chinese goods are already flowing in, but with the road coming, that trickle will become a flood, threatening to destabilise Mustang(***)s economic structure [Al Jazeera]
The region has been self-supporting for centuries with wheat being the main staple. Now huge quantities of cheap Chinese rice is being brought in and Chinese wheat is coming into the market at prices that undercut the locally grown grain [Al Jazeera]
"Are we rice eating people? Like do we need rice to survive? The answer is no. At the Himalayan we don(***)t grow rice. So when it comes to a country like China providing us rice, is there a power trying to change the diet of the place?" says Tashi Bista, Steve Chao(***)s guide [EPA]
The arrival of the road from China to Lo Manthang has meant that the Lo Manthang Youth Group has to keep a close watch on China(***)s activities in Mustang [Al Jazeera]
The youth say there are spies in Upper Mustang, reporting back to China, and while they were barred from crossing to Tibet themselves, Chinese officials would often come across the border without permission [Al Jazeera]
Sixty members strong, the group was founded to preserve Upper Mustang(***)s ancient culture and traditions, and ensure their voices are heard by Nepal(***)s government [Al Jazeera]
Every year, more and more young people leave to look for work in Kathmandu or abroad. If they stay in Mustang, most of them can expect to spend their lives tending livestock and farming [Al Jazeera]
While being closed off has meant the culture has survived, it has also meant that life is hard. Most people here do not live to see their 60th birthday [Al Jazeera]
There is no hospital in Lo Manthang and despite millions of dollars in tourist revenue, people in Mustang have no access to health services [Al Jazeera]
Security at the Chinese-Nepalese border has increasingly become tighter, with new checkpoints being set up on the Nepalese side and an army base on the Chinese side [Al Jazeera]
Over the next year, there is going to be 10,000 Nepalese border guards dispatched all along the Himalayan range. They are partially trained and partially funded by the Chinese government [Al Jazeera]
Its obsession with controlling its borders has led China to pour millions of dollars into Nepal(***)s armed police force, who are being trained in the Kathmandu valley, because 20,000 of them are to be deployed to the border areas – including Mustang [Al Jazeera]
Tibetans living in Nepal are worried about China(***)s growing influence [Al Jazeera]
Activists in Kathmandu have to meet in secret. Any gathering of Tibetans without government approval is now illegal [AL Jazeera]
"Tibet is a huge land, it was connected with the south Asian borders. That is why they captured Tibet, not only for its natural resources. It is very easy to conquer Asia, we can see the Chinese influence in Pakistan, in Nepal now, Burma/Myanmar," says Punk, a Tibetan activist [Al Jazeera]
There has probably never been a more dangerous time to be a Tibetan in Nepal [Al Jazeera]
The new road will open the former kingdom of Mustang to an increased outside influence, which will most likely change the people(***)s traditions and ancient way of living forever [Al Jazeera]
"I am sure the road will bring a negative impact on the rich culture and tradition of Mustang. But the people of Lo need the road. Now is not the time to point out the good and the bad. We shall see in time," says the last king of Mustang [Al Jazeera]
By strange twists in history, geography and fate, the people of Mustang have found themselves as some of the last custodians of an important spiritual identity - but in life nothing lasts forever [Al Jazeera]
