Mr. William Rockhill’s account of his travels from Peking to Tibet was a personal account of life along the main lines of the silk road from China to the West. His travels took him from the cities of Eastern China, through rural villages and mountain paths of Western China and Mongolia following the Yellow River, and southward into Tibet, meeting and speaking with the locals as he made his way to the residents of the Lamas.
The Silk Road was almost addressed on a regular basis within the text. Mr. Rockhill made sure to layout his travel is VERY specific detail, naming just about every city, town, and village he either saw or visited. Along with a basic description of the town he also mentioned the people he saw and the items he purchased.
The travel begins near Peking, and for a good part of the journey he follows the Yellow River West, meeting mostly native Hans on his way. Common items he found were of course tea and silk products, but a good part of the trading occurred in the produce area. The Silk Road did not exist purely for the transportation of tea and silk, but in fact the food was the real reason for the exchanges. Tea and silk just followed along in the route as common people delivered foods and herbs to outlining villages that were between regions, where people in the more arid regions could trade their goods for cabbage and wheat in exchange for their dried fruits and beans.
As Rockhill traveled near the Mongolian border the mixture of people really changed. Chinese villages and towns were occupied by Chinese and Mongolian peasants, as well as Mongolian and Tibetan merchants. Fruits and wheat took on a greater role, while silk and tea were still sold, though in modest amounts. Its destination usually traveled south to Tibet where it was in demand by the Lamas, and farther West to the Russian forts. One item that was found to be in high demand to the Mongolians was medicine. Prices were modest to high, while quantity was plenty. The Mongolians had for some reason a real desire to try out new medicines for any type of illness. By the time Mr. Rockhill came to lower Mongolia/Upper Tibet, the hot item was Elephant’s milk.
Other groups of people were also a common sight. Missionaries from the West, merchants from western Central Asia, and even a Nepal tribute mission had been spotted returning home from a visit to Peking.
In Tibet, food still remained the main staple of the Silk Road’s trade, and for good reason. The Tibetan highlands were often in need of surplus agriculture from outside regions to supply the many lamaseries in the region.
The people of Tibet were of an even greater mixture than found in Western China. It was almost impossible to distinguish native Tibetans from Mongol migrants. Sometimes clothing was the only way to tell. The Mar Sok were Eastern Mongols and lived in the area around Shang. Shang is actually a fief of Tale Lama, given to him by Mongol chieftains. It was such a blending of two cultures that Rockhill often just called most people Tibetan unless he saw something that proved they were Mongol or Chinese.
Mr. Rockhill brought up a number of historical references, which was rather surprising considering it was the later 1800’s. One wouldn’t have thought a westerner’s knowledge of Asia would have been so complete and accurate. Yet, Rockhill was able to provide a decent description of the Great Wall and the importance of many of the local towns and villages and their overall value to the region. Rockhill was also able to distinguish the two different walls. He mentions the lower dirt wall, which would probably be the one Chin Shui-hangdi built during his early reign using the older technique of pounding dirt into a solid wall and creating the limited size that it is.
Other historical features include knowledge of Chin’s great tomb, which I thought wasn’t discovered until much later. Yet, he knew of the tomb’s existence, location, and even about its construction and the river of mercury supposedly placed inside. Rockhill also wrote about the formation of Tibet and the migrations of the various people within the regions, including the mass movement of Mongolians.
As the title of the book suggests, a big part of Mr. Rockhill’s time was spent examining the Lamas themselves. Tibet was in everyway the true land of the lamas, for as Rockhill explained, in a 600-mile stretch between Jyekundo and Ta-Chien-lu, there were over 40 lamaseries with at least 100 monks living in each one. The first real introduction of the lamas was the Black Lamas and their attacking of unapproved Western influence in the shape of a Punch and Judy show being held near a temple. The Black Lamas came out and started to whip people silly. At this point the tone of the lamas is set. While he does address a number of them as friends, the lamas prove to be quite a dangerous group.
Indeed, Rockhill made suggestions that the lamas were the equivalent of the Templars in their fanatical beliefs and tendency to protect their lands and fight “non-believers”. The most serious issue raised was the great mistreatment of Christian missionaries. In fact, a general uprising occurred in 1887 against Christians, with evidence pointing to the instigators being Lamas.
Besides their rather violent tendencies, other aspects were introduced, including their beautiful temples and odd rituals performed in them. Rockhill also makes mention of the types of Lamas and their organization. There were 5 types, the red being found closer to Derge, and the majority in the rest of the country, especially the East, being Yellow. The greater lamas were rewarded for their services, not-surprisingly, by grants of land rather than by some type of coinage, which was the way it was in many other Asian countries at the time, including the late Tokugawa Japan.
As stated earlier, the Lamas were quite fond of tea as well as rich silk garments. Other items were transported along the Silk Road that the Lamas requested were beads and of course food. While the Lamas often did have agriculture, it usually wasn’t enough to sustain a population of preaching monks. Other important items were metals. Gold was necessary for the creation of statues, and silver was by far the most important luxury item to own. Silver quickly became almost a currency within Tibet and the Lamas greatly desired it.
*Rockhill, William W. 1891. The Land of the Lamas. Logmans, Green, And Co., London.