| The gompa is a square, three-storied edifice, recently rebuilt for the second
time, having been destroyed in 1989 by an electrical fire. An earthquake
half a century before demolished the original building. The entrance opens
onto a courtyard paved with large, flat stones, overlooked by public balconies.
At its centre, attached to a long wooden pole, is a banner inscribed with
prayers to be carried on the mountain winds. Beside it is the altar, piled
high with sacred objects, amongst them a skull bowl with a silver base and
lid. Musicians occupy the south-facing balcony, and in the shadows to their
left sits the Guru Rinpoche. |
The joker