{highslide}films/Chaksampa---The-Yogi-who-Built-Iron-Bridges-3.jpg{/highslide} {highslide}films/Chaksampa---The-Yogi-who-Built-Iron-Bridges-2.jpg{/highslide}

(2004, 45 mins, DV-Cam)

 

Language:	Tibetan / English
Subtitle:	English
Camera:	Tsering Rhitar Sherpa
	Bhaskar Chalise
Sound:	Rajan Rajbhandary
Edited & Directed by:	Tsering Rhitar Sherpa

A Mila Productions film produced
for
The Tibet Fund, New York

Tibetan Lhamo Association of Kathmandu, Nepal has been performing a number of Lhamo/operas introduced by Dupthop Thantong Gyalpo. Like all other performing art groups, the Tibetan Lhamo Association of Kathmandu concentrated in preserving the existing traditions until some years back when His Holiness advised the Lhamo Associations participating at the Shoton in Dharamsala to further enrich this tradition by introducing new operas. In response to this advice, Tibetan Lhamo Association of Kathmandu attempted to create a new opera, most aptly, based on the life story of the Great Thangtong Gyalpo, who was the founder of Tibetan Lhamo/Opera.

The founder of this operatic tradition was equally well known for his initiative in building permanent bridges and ferries across many rivers in Tibet. After attaining great scholarship in Buddhism from Jangdhing Bu monastery, Thangtong Gyalpo undertook a pilgrimage to Lhasa; he came across many rivers en route and experienced the difficulties of crossing these huge rivers and saw that many human and animal lives are taken away by these rivers in the absence any bridges. He thus pledged to himself to build suspension bridges across these huge and often wild rivers. He found rich patrons for the initial some of the earlier bridges, but slowly he experienced shortage of financial resources for this venture. He concluded that he must device a means of a voluntary contribution from the public at large which would not only raise the necessary resources for this monumental tasks, but would also become a medium of spreading the dharma through a medium of entertainment. He thus conceived and introduced the Lhamo culture in Tibet. Lhamo is an Opera where two to three dozen artists take part. Legend has it that Thangtong Gyalpo trained seven sisters who excelled in the arts of singing and dancing and who performed under his leadership to raise fund for building the bridges. Thus the name Lhamo, meaning heavenly dancing goddesses. Lhamo performances in pre-1959 Tibet was the most popular form of public entertainment. So much so that by the 19^th century "Lhamo" opera was found throughout Tibet with each major areas having permanent regional troupe, performing for the local populace and participating in the "Shoton" Opera Festival, literally meaning the Yogurt Festival, in the gardens of the Norbu Lingka Palace in Lhasa whose audience included a personage as high as His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

This film profiles Tibetan Lhamo Association of Kathmandu and their experience in creating the opera based on the life of Thangtong Gyalpo. and then practicing and finally performing in in the Shoton Opera Festival in Dharamsala in front of His Holiness the Dalai Lama.

Festivals & Screenings

2006 – Tibetan Film Festival, Dharamsala, India

2007 – Emory University, Atlanta Georgia, USA