Lake Manasarovar

Lake Manasarovar

Lake Manasarovar is 35 kilometers east of Pulan County in Ali Prefecture, Tibet, and to the south of Gangrenboqi peak. The natural scenery around it is very beautiful. Since ancient times, Buddhist believers have regarded it as the "World Center" of the holy land. It is the second largest natural freshwater lake in China with the largest water storage capacity, the freshwater lake with the largest water transparency, and one of the three "sacred lakes" in Tibet. It is also the birthplace of four major rivers in Asia.

"The source of the four rivers" recorded in the ancient Xiangxiong Buddhist dharma Yongzhong's "Xiangxiong Tripitaka, jushe Lun" refers to mapang yongcuo, the mother of the holy lake. Maquan River in the East, Peacock River in the south, Xiangquan River in the West and Shiquan River in the north. "Mapang yongcuo" - the invincible lake of Jasper. "Mapang" in Tibetan means invincible.

The earliest name of mapang yongcuo is "mathi", or "mathico", which is the name of Guangcai Dragon King in Yongzhong. Buddhist scriptures say that there are four Dragon Kings in the four sacred lakes. At first, they always make trouble and harm the people. In the Tang Dynasty, when the Tibetan king chisongdezan was in power, lianhuasheng accepted the four Dragon Kings, converted them to Buddhism, and gradually became the four Dharma protectors of Tibetan Buddhism. From then on, "matricuo" also changed its name to "mapanyongcuo". Sometimes it was written as "mafamucuo", which means "eternal jade lake" in Tibetan.

It is said that mapanyongcuo is the most holy lake and the nectar given by Shengle. Holy water can clean the troubles and evils in people's mind. She is the oldest and most sacred place among all the holy places of yongzhongben religion, Indian Buddhism and Hinduism. She is the perfect Lake in her heart. She is the real heaven in the universe, the Shangri La of the gods and the paradise of all things

. Hinduism says it is the residence of Shiva.

geographical environment

It is the most transparent freshwater lake and the second largest natural freshwater lake in China. Tibetan means "invincible, victory", known as "Shenhu". It is located between Gangrenboqi peak, the main peak of the Gangdise mountains, and namunani peak of the Himalayas, in Pulan County, Tibet Autonomous Region. Mapanyongcuo, also known as mafamucuo, was once known as mathico. It was once connected with Laangcuo, and then evolved into an internal flow lake from pluvial and ice water deposits. The lake is pear shaped, wide in the north and narrow in the south, with a long axis of 26 km and a short axis of 21 km. The lake is 4588 meters above sea level. The average water depth is 46 meters, the maximum water depth is 81.8 meters, and the area is 412 square kilometers. The lake is clear and transparent, with a transparency of 14 meters. The salinity of the lake is 400 mg / L. it is a freshwater lake and contains trace elements such as boron, lithium and fluorine. It is mainly supplied by glacier melt water and rain water, and also by some springs. The lake has a straight coastline with a circumference of 83 km and a coastline development coefficient of 1.15. Terraces developed in the East and South East bank. There are many hot springs around the lake. On the alluvial plain and piedmont alluvial fan, the desert steppe is dominated by Stipa arenacea and mixed with Stipa pinnatifida and Stipa purpurea; on the lakeside terrace, the marsh vegetation swamp meadow is developed, which is composed of Pennisetum chinense, Polygonum sibiricum, Artemisia ordosica and Carex Qingzang. The lake area is dominated by animal husbandry, and there are marfamujiri and naked carp in the lake.

Mapang yongcuo is called "holy lake" in Buddhism. Every summer and autumn, Buddhists support the old and bring the young here to "pilgrimage", and "bathe and purify" in "holy water" to "prolong life".

Mapanyongcuo, known as "the mother of rivers in the world", is the place where Xuanzang, an eminent monk of the Tang Dynasty, called "the West heaven yaochi" in the records of the western regions of the Tang Dynasty.

Mapanyongcuo is the most transparent lake in China. There are eight temples around mapang yongcuo, which are just distributed in all directions of the lake. There are sevalong Temple of Zhigong sect in the East, nieguo Temple of Sakya sect in the southeast, chugu Temple of Gelug Sect in the south, Guozu Temple of karju sect in Bhutan in the southwest, Jiaji Temple based on 500 Arhats in the northwest, Qiwu temple in the west, Langna Temple of karju sect in Bhutan in the north and benri Temple of Gelug Sect in the northeast.

There is a saltwater lake beside mapanyongcuo, which is called "Laangcuo" in Tibetan, meaning "poisonous Black Lake". Mapanyongcuo is a freshwater lake, while Laangcuo is a saline lake.

legend

In the doctrine of yongzhongben religion, mapanyongcuo is said to be the palace of the Dragon God. The "dragon" in this religion is the Chinese translation of Tibetan klu, which is different from the concept of "dragon" in Chinese culture. The "dragon" in the Han nationality is often a specific animal with scales, horns and feet, which can walk, fly and swim. The "dragon" in this religion is not based on a certain animal, but can be transformed into a personality God of many different animals. It can be a fish or a snake. It is described as human body snake head, human body horse head, human body lion head, human body bear head, etc. In many murals, Thangka, it is often the image of a mermaid, head snake tail or head fish tail, very beautiful.

Tibetans have long been worshiping the Dragon God. It is said that Zanpu was married to the Dragon girl before the year of tuotuori. The famous King Gesar was also the son born after the combination of God and dragon girl. It was after xinrao miwoche, the founder of the sect, had a daughter with Longnu that Longnu no longer harmed people. The most primitive classic of our religion, the black white flower hundred thousand dragon Sutra, says that there are five hundred Dragon King halls in the water. The Dragon gods living in them, like human beings, have children under the water, and live a rich and happy life guarding pearls, corals, nine eyes, loose earstones, etc. If people want to get rich, they have to worship the Dragon God.

In Tibet, the early Christians called it "mathico". It is said that there are many treasures at the bottom of the lake, so it was named "mathico" after the Dragon King. It means "eternal Lake" in Tibetan. This is how the formation of the lake was introduced in the book a survey of mapanyongcuo written by tranidoji: before the birth of mapanyongcuo, there was a king mubeng who was a kind-hearted Bodhisattva. On the way to the jungle, he saw the sufferings of the musicians, and asked his teacher: should these sufferings belong to a wise gentleman? Answer: should belong to all living beings. The king asked for relief. Answer: only giving. So the king built many houses and invited all the poor to provide them with food and clothing for 12 years. With more and more rice washing water for cooking, it has become a lake in 12 years.

Religious historical legends

Mapanyongcuo was named after a religious war on the lakeside in the 11th century. It means "invincible Lake" in Tibetan. There are many Buddhist temples built along the lake. There are eight existing temples.

The source of the four rivers recorded in Xiangxiong Dazangjing refers to mapanyongcuo, the mother of the holy lake. Maquan River in the East, Peacock River in the South and Xiangquan River in the West

In the north is Shiquan river. "Mapang yongcuo" - the invincible lake of Jasper. "Mapang" in Tibetan means invincible.

Gangrenboqifeng and mapang yongcuo lake are known as holy mountains and holy lakes. The sects include: ancient Xiangxiong Buddha, Fayong Zhongben religion, Indian Buddhism, Hinduism and Jainism.

According to some Tibetan historical materials, this lake is the Yao pool where the queen mother of China and the West lived according to the myth of the Han nationality. The lake water is "holy water", and the Buddhist scriptures call it "God of destruction and regeneration". Shiva and her wife snow mountain goddess often play in this lake. The lake is called manasarovo in Sanskrit. The Tourism Department of Ali Region has set up three camps to receive pilgrims and tourists around the holy lake.

It is said that there are four bathing doors on the four sides of the lake and the lotus door on the East. In the west is the gate of decontamination, in the north is the gate of faith, and in the south is the gate of sweetness. It is also said that there are many treasures at the bottom of the lake. If you can catch a fish, pick up a stone, or pick up a feather of a gull in the lake, you will live a happy life. In addition, people often take off their gold and silver jewelry and throw them into the lake to show their piety. In the 11th century A.D., the "mathico" Buddhism, which has been used for many centuries, was transformed into "mapanyongcuo", namely "the eternal jade lake". The lake water comes from the ice and snow of the Gangdise mountains. It is said that the water of the "holy lake" can wash away the "five poisons" (greed, anger, infatuation, laziness and jealousy) in people's mind. Bathing at the mouth of the lake, the soul can be baptized and the skin can be clean.

According to the ancient Indian and Buddhist cosmology, the four rivers flowing through the Indian continent originate from mapanyongcuo, namely Indus, Ganges, Sutlej and Brahmaputra. In fact, only Sutlej originates from mapanyongcuo, but the sources of other rivers are nearby.

Buddhists believe that mapanyongcuo is the most holy lake and the nectar given to the world by the Supreme Master of Shengle. Holy water can clean the troubles and evils in people's hearts. She is the oldest and most sacred place in all the holy places of Hinduism. She is the perfect Lake in her heart. She is the real heaven in the universe and the Shangri La of the gods. The paradise of all things.

In Indian mythology, mappenyongcuo was formed by Brahma, the great God, because his son needed a place to take a bath after his ascetic in the holy mountain. Therefore, Hindus usually take a bath in the lake on the way to the lake, while Tibetans usually just walk or kowtow for a long time without going into the water. As for travelers, although the lake water is very cold at the warmest time, and the wind is very strong by the lake, there are still many people who want to use it to clear their life's frost and inner uneasiness.

Many books and classics describe that the water of mappenyongcuo is "like a pearl", and after drinking it, it can wash off the "hundred"

Chinese PinYin : Ma Pang Yong Cuo