Note 20 — Chapter II · RESIDENCE AT TASHILHUNPO.

At noon there was a large crowd between Tashilhunpo and the Shigatse djong (fort)—men and women in holiday dress, monks from the lamaseries, and not a few Chinese, to witness the annual rope-dancing. A long rope was stretched from the top of the fort to the foot of the lower castle bridge, a distance of 300 feet or more. Then an athlete appeared, a white khatag tied around his neck, and took his place at the upper end of the rope. With his face turned upwards, he invoked the gods; then, looking downwards, he invoked the nagas of the nether world, raising his voice to its highest pitch, and at times shrieking in a terrific manner. Then he scattered flour on all sides, and sang a snatch of a song, to which some one in the crowd sang out a laughable reply. He then let himself slide down the rope, exchanging jokes thrice with the crowd on his way down, and finishing with a shriek.20