Central Tibetan Administration Museum: The Memorykeeper of Tibet That Once Was
Dharamshala is home to the Central Tibetan Administration’s official museum. The museum, right in front of the Tibetan National Martyrs Memorial, was set up in 1998 with the goal of recording and preserving the cultural aspects of Tibet and informing Tibetans and non-Tibetans alike on Tibet’s rich heritage and history. It is also engaged in spreading awareness about the situation in Tibet.
Tashi Phuntsok, the museum’s director, said that despite all the restrictions on the practice of their religion and culture in Tibet under the Chinese rule and the movement of people in and out of there, they have managed to build a sanctuary of Tibetan culture in Dharamshala by managing to secure books and artefacts out of there.
About the situation in Tibet, he said, “People would send their kids as young as four and five on arduous journeys out of Tibet. Our mothers who sent us here are under severe surveillance.”
When asked about what is the most important asset away from home, Tibetans at the museum said in consensus that it is education that is most important.
“Education is most important as it helps us in not just preserving but also in establishing our Tibetan identity here in India and abroad,” one of the employees at the museum said who did not wish to be named out of fear that his parents in Tibet under the Chinese rule may face repercussions because of his statement to the press.
About the situation in Tibet, the director said, “Once they send their children to India, parents don’t come to know of their whereabouts for years, and sometimes for decades. They cannot communicate with them because of surveillance and restrictions on communication and movement.”
The museum not only preserves manuscripts, books, and artifacts from Tibet, but also Tibet’s memory. One of the museum’s galleries is devoted to the Dalai Lama’s escape from Tibet to India and to the time when Tibet was attacked by the newly formed People’s Republic of China.
As some visitors went through photos of those who have self-immolated themselves in protest against the Chinese state, one of them asked, “Why do you follow self immolation? Why don’t you burn those who made you flew from your hometown?”
The curator replied, “ We Tibetans believe in ahimsa. That’s our only weapon. We don’t inflict pain on others but tolerate pain to make this world smile.”
One of the curators was seen guiding a bunch of visitors through the gallery with photographs of yesteryears’ Tibet. She told visitors, “The crossing of the narrow Rohtang Pass was very strenuous with many losing their lives while trying to escape.”
About their struggle, Tashi Phuntsok said, “We don’t care how strong or big our enemy is. We know we will be in our land one day.”
Kumar Gandharv is a journalist student at the Indian Institute of Mass Communication, New Delhi, and a history graduate from the Delhi University. He tweets @KumarGandharv15.
This is part of our dispatches on Tibet from Dharamshala. Follow the ‘Culture’ space on The Indian Dispatch for more dispatches.
