User:Yang Yuqing

I'm vesy easygoing and like to help others. In my free time, I like reading, listening to music and traveling. I like cats and I have a cute British shorthair silver shaded cat. I hope during my graduate study, I can grow a lot in many aspects and become the dream version of myself.

My topic of the final paper is Tibetan Culture.

Tibetan Culture 1.Introduction 2.Language 3.Religion

 3.1 Bon
 3.2 Tibetan Buddhism

4.Art

 4.1 Painting
 4.2 Architecture 
 4.3 Music and dance

5.Folk customs

 5.1 Festivals
 5.2 Etiquette 
 5.3 Diet
 5.4 Costumes

6.References

1.Introduction

 The Tibetan nationality is the main ethnic group living on the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau. The influences of Bon and Tibetan Buddhism penetrate every aspect of social life, thus creating a unique and rich Tibetan culture. As a member of the big family of the Chinese nation, the Tibetan people have created and developed a distinctive and splendid culture during the long history of continuous exchanges and mutual absorption and promotion with other ethnic groups. Tibetan culture has been and remains a brilliant pearl in Chinese culture to this day. The following is a brief introduction to four aspects: language, religion, art and folk customs.

2.Language

 The Xizang Autonomous Region is a compact community for Tibetan people, where Tibetans account for more than 95% of the total population. The Tibetan language and characters are universally used in the region. As the core carrier of Tibetan culture’s inheritance, the Tibetan script was created in the 7th century AD. It consists of 30 consonant letters and 4 vowel letters, is syllable-based, written from left to right, and has two major types of writing styles: regular script and cursive script. The promotion and use of the Tibetan script have played an invaluable role in the recording, preservation and dissemination of Tibetan culture. The Tibetan script has not only translated a large number of Buddhist scriptures, forming classics such as the Kangyur, but also recorded various fields such as Tibetan history and medicine, and is still widely used today

3.Religion

 3.1 Bon
   Bon is the primitive religion of the Tibetan people. Primitive Bon (srid pa rgyud kyi bon) is polytheism, without a clear leader. Later it developed into Yungdrung Bon, which has systematic religious rules and theories. Yungdrung Bon (g.yung drung bon) was founded by Shenrab Miwo in Ali, Tibet in 1917 BCE, with a history of more than 3,800 years.
 3.2 Tibetan Buddhism 
   It’s also known as Lamaism. It was formed after Buddhism was introduced to Xizang autonomous region and integrated with the local culture. It has four major sects: the Gelug, Kagyu, Nyingma and Sakya. Tibetan Buddhism originated in the mid-7th century, and by the middle of the 8th century, it was directly introduced into the Xizang autonomous region from India. Tibetan Buddhism officially formed in the latter half of the 10th century. With the development of Buddhism in Xizang, high-ranking lamas gradually seized local political power, eventually forming the unique theocratic Tibetan Buddhism. Its most distinctive way of inheritance is the system of reincarnation of Living Buddhas.

4.Art

 4.1 Painting
   Its core forms are thangka and mural painting. The term "thangka" derives from Sanskrit, meaning "showing an infinite world within a limited space". Thangkas use bright colors to depict the sacred world, covering a wide range of themes. With a history of more than 1,300 years, thangka is not only a distinctive painting art form in Tibetan culture, but also a treasure of fine traditional Chinese culture. Known as the "encyclopedia of the Tibetan people", it is also a precious intangible cultural heritage. The themes of murals are more extensive than those of thangkas, including more narrative paintings about wars, labor, and temple restoration, as well as folk paintings.

 4.2 Architecture
   Tibetan architecture mostly uses local materials to adapt to the local climate and geographical environment to the greatest extent. In ancient times, rammed earth houses appeared first, followed by solid stone houses, and then defensive watchtowers. The Potala Palace is a masterpiece of Tibetan watchtower architecture. In places rich in forest resources, wooden architecture is another prominent architectural feature. Overall, Tibetan architecture gives people a simple sense of beauty, mystery, and rough. In terms of appearance, its most striking feature is the use of red and white to set off the overall layout.

 4.3 Music and Dance
   Tibetan music is known for its high-pitched and melodious tunes and free rhythms, with folk songs occupying an important position. Tibetan opera is a "world intangible cultural heritage", performed with masks, and its famous repertoire includes Princess Wencheng and so on. "Singing must be accompanied by dancing, and dancing must be accompanied by singing" is a unique folk song and dance art form for Tibetans to entertain themselves. Guozhuang Dance, which means "forming a circle to sing and dance" in Tibetan language, originally referred to dancing around a stone pot. It is one of the three major folk dances of the Tibetans, mainly relying on leg movements, with men and women forming a circle and moving clockwise.

5.Folk Customs

 5.1 Festivals
   Tibetan New Year (Losar) is the most ceremonious festival. Tibetan people make special purchases, do a thorough cleaning, have a family reunion dinner and pay a New Year call, which bears strong resemblance to the Lunar New Year. The Tibetan people also wear new Tibetan robes, make ginseng fruit rice, dance Guozhuang, drink butter tea and so on. Sho Dun Festival, which falls on the first day of the seventh month of the Tibetan calendar and means the festival of eating yogurt, mainly includes Tibetan opera performances, mass celebrations in parks, as well as yak racing and equestrian shows.

 5.2 Etiquette
   Full Prostration is a devout Buddha-worshipping ceremony practiced by Tibetan Buddhist believers to fulfill their faith and pray for blessings and ward off disasters. In the Jokhang Temple, the Potala Palace and other temples with religious activities, crowds of people kowtowing can often been seen. Presenting a hada is the most common etiquette among Tibetans, symbolizing purity, sincerity and loyalty towards others. Tibetans treat guests warmly with butter tea and highland barley wine.

 5.3 Diet
   Tsampa, butter tea, sweet tea, highland barley wine, milk dregs, beef and mutton have always been traditional foods of the Tibetan people. Butter tea is made by adding a little butter and salt to brewed tea water, churning it several times in a butter tea bucket until the water and oil blend, then pouring it into a pot to heat before drinking. Tibetan diet is characterized by high calories and high protein, adapting to the cold and dry environment of the plateau, and emphasizing natural ingredients and traditional cooking methods.

 5.4 Clothing
   Centered on the Tibetan robe, the clothing is loose in cut and warm in fabric, and the waistband can adjust the tightness. It protects against the sun during the day and keeps out the cold at night, perfectly adapting to the climate of the plateau with large difference in temperature  between day and night. The colors are bright and vivid, and the accessories are rich, carrying connotations of praying for blessings and symbolizing status. Clothing in agricultural areas is relatively simple and lightweight, while that in pastoral areas is thicker and looser.