“When the iron bird flies and horses run on wheels, the Tibetan people will be scattered like ants across the face of the earth, and Buddhist teachings will reach the land of the red man.” This 1200 year old prophecy was proven true in 1950 when the Chinese overran Tibet, eventually killing over 1.5 million Tibetans and destroying most of Tibet’s sacred monasteries.
Across Many Mountains is a fabulous read and inspiring testimony to the lives of Tibetan refugees. Initially, it introduces us to Kungsang Wangmo, a Tibetan nun in the Nyingma Buddhist tradition, who contrary to tradition, marries a Tibetan monk. With her young daughters, Kungsang escapes from the Chinese, crossing the high, frozen Himalayas on foot at night, in search of sanctuary in India. There, in a refugee camp, she raises Sonam, who later gives birth to Yangzom Brauen, the author, of this eloquent narrative of three generations of Tibetans.
This biography reads like a novel, yet is rich in the vivid details of Tibetan culture, the Chinese occupation, refugee life, and resettlement in the West. Seamlessly, Brauen interweaves history and culture with her plot and presentation of characters.
We learn of life in pre occupation Tibet – an insulated, illiterate, hierarchical society, lacking modern means of transportation, but where the people were united by unshakable faith in Buddhism and devotion to Buddhist ideals. We experience Kungsang’s life as a Tibetan nun – involving 100,000 prostrations, 100,000 recitations of a mantra, and 100,000 offerings of the universe mandala and also her unusual courtship by the Tibetan monk she eventually marries.
We witness the first years of Chinese occupation –destruction, sacrilege, violence, killing, and propaganda: “One after another the soldiers led them [the villagers] up onto the podium and ordered them to exercise ‘self criticism’. They were supposed to tell their life stories, describing the traditional Tibetan ways as feudal and backwards, and praising everything Chinese as correct, progressive, and promising a bright future.”
We travel with Kungsang and her young daughters on foot across the Himalayas, and live with them in a refugee camp, where they battle illness, living under open tarpaulin shelters in monsoon soon and enduring backbreaking work. But there they also re unite with friends from the past, and revered Tibetan lamas.
Author Yangzom Brauen is skilled in weaving the texture of Tibetan culture into her narrative – the practice of kora (walking around a sacred place absorbed in prayer), the chod ritual of “cutting through the ego,” sky burial rites, healing practices (“Carry our child four times around the holy lake Basum Tso and she will recover”), the eating of barley based tsampa, the celebration of Losar, the Tibetan New Year, and dedication to building “good karma” through selfless action.
In the second half of the narrative, when Sonam marries a young Swiss man who is a devoted student of Tibetan culture, we experience with her the difficult adaptation to an entirely new lifestyle , for in Switzerland people eat with utensils, buy processed food, wash frequently, and show little respect for the dignity of the dying. Each of the three women must find her own balance between her Tibetan heritage and western life. Finally, the author tells her own story as a Swiss American who becomes an actress and an activist in the Free Tibet movement, and who honors the lives of her mother and grandmother by writing this book.
Across Many Mountains is a treasure, a must read because its portrayal of Tibetan female refugees and Tibetan culture in the wake of Chinese occupation, and because of the literary skills with which Yangzom Braun narrates the lives of her family. I highly recommend it. Across Many Mountains: Three Daughters of Tibet This book tells the story of 3 generations of Tibetan women who ultimately find peace and security in Switzerland, and later in New York. As with a number of Tibetan autobiographies there is a detailed account of how, in this instance, the eldest and her young daughter escaped on foot from Tibet into northern India following the Chinese invasion and brutal occupation of 1959. After a number of years the daughter meets and, following a tortuous amount of legal wrangling, marries a Swiss national. After their move to Switzerland a daughter Yangzom is born, so the book is actually written by someone who has a strong Tibetan connection but has never actually lived in her 'homeland'. The fact that the author is in many ways a product of the west is what makes this book particularly interesting as she provides a real insight into how adaptable her mother and grandmother have had to be, and what a struggle that has sometimes been.
Make no mistake, the Tibetans are an incredibly tough nation and I have enormous respect for their ability to cope with whatever life throws at them.
The book is written in a very straightforward style although I'm not sure if this is due to the original text or its English translation and I recommend it to anyone who wants to get an understanding of the tragedies that have been heaped on Tibet and also an overview of a way of life that will soon be lost. Across Many Mountains: Three Daughters of Tibet For me, the novel was interesting in its Tibetanness, i.e. the first of the three generations, and somewhat less so with the second generation. By the time we meet the third, represented by the author, the narrative was too far removed from the reason why I would have read the book and concerned with the author's own life, even as it failed to relate to Tibet at all. In that sense, it's a touch egotistical and not of interest. If you are interested in Tibet, I would recommend Sky Burial and Freedom in Exile. The latter is also good for a summary of the political situation then and now. Across Many Mountains: Three Daughters of Tibet Excellent book Across Many Mountains: Three Daughters of Tibet What a great read! I've never had a good understanding of The Tibet Issue and found this book really helpful. It gave me that background I needed about Tibet and China, in a very enjoyable format. Reading the personal stories of those experiencing it is, for me, a good way to learn history. Of course I have to keep in mind that I am hearing only the perspective of these particular individuals. Three generations of Tibetan women tell their story and within this one family of course there are very different experiences. Thus we get both the beginning of the story as well as updates and current issues, from the Chinese invasion through the family fleeing to India, to intermarriage with other cultures and ethnic groups. We learn about not only what it is like to be a refugee, but what it is like to be the mother of a refugee.
I especially appreciated that the author addressed the problem of what to do TODAY, when many Chinese people have lived their whole lives in Tibet, as Tibet has been occupied 60 years. This is now their home also and they are not moving any than I, an American whose family came here in the 17th century, am moving back to Ireland/England/Scotland/France. The author does briefly talk about other ways that Tibetans can regain some autonomy, which I found hopeful.
I also found interesting some descriptions of how this family experienced Buddhism, which is very different from the Buddhism that I have seen practiced in the U.S. I find cultural effects on religion intriguing, and often annoying, so was glad to increase my understanding.
This book is rich in the details of daily life and experiences of refugees, as well as the adjustment to a new culture. Recommended to anyone interested in other cultures, the life experiences of women, or world history.
You WILL need to look elsewhere for a Chinese perspective, which I believe I will find in my next read [Waiting for the Dalai Lama]. Across Many Mountains: Three Daughters of Tibet
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Across Many Mountains Across Many Mountains: Three Daughters of Tibet
Wonderful read that describes early life in Tibet and the transitions of 3 generations of women to the present. Heartfelt challenges with the tradition of compassion. Across Many Mountains: Three Daughters of Tibet Amazing insight to a neglected culture Across Many Mountains: Three Daughters of Tibet Overall pleased with the book. The spine of the book was a bit broken than advertised, however. Across Many Mountains: Three Daughters of Tibet A great read telling the family history including great hardship and challenges written in such and engaging way that you really feel for the characters. There is no self pity and no melodramatics just strength and determination. Definitely recommended. Across Many Mountains: Three Daughters of Tibet My wife and I, who have been to Tibet, loved this book. It was a great insight into Tibetan Buddhism and to the sweet primitiveness of the Tibetan people. It is also softly told, fitting the subject. We wish the author had written twenty others. Across Many Mountains: Three Daughters of Tibet