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After the Earthquakes: Damaged Ancient Heritage Sites in Mustang Challenges for Renovation, Restoration and Reconstruction
Susanne von der Heide, HimalAsia Foundation
So violently have the earthquakes hit Nepal in April and May 2015 that even remotest areas have
been effected badly. 39 districts in the Western and Central regions, out of 75 districts have been
affected; nine of them, - from Rasuwa to Solukhumbu (the Mount Everest region), including the
three districts of the Kathmandu Valley, - have borne the brunt of the impact. Traditional mud
and mortar houses have been demolished on a very large scale in a much wider area, including
Gorkha, Lamjung, Manang and Mustang. Even in Tibet, along the Nepalese border the impact of
the quakes has been huge. Besides the dreadful loss of so many lives, the earthquakes have
destroyed much of the cultural heritage of the country. According to the Department of
Archaeology (DOA), a total of 750 historical, cultural, and religious monuments in 20 districts
were damaged by the earthquakes and the aftershocks. Especially in the Kathmandu Valley
important religious and historic buildings have been completely destroyed.
But badly hit where also world famous heritage places in Mustang, where one of the oldest
trading and pilgrimage paths leads through the Himalayas, - an ancient passage linking the
Buddhist sites around Lumbini and Bodh Gaya with Western Tibet and the Silk Road. The whole
area of Mustang is dotted with early Buddhist cave temples as well as century old fortresses.
Some of the best preserved ancient monasteries in the Himalaya are found there, which formed
an extraordinary Buddhist cultural landscape over the centuries, thus becoming one of the last
areas in the world where a specific Buddhist culture is preserved up to the present day. The
earthquakes left some of these sites in ruins.
In the immediate aftermath of the earthquakes the author together with the representative of
Mustang in the Parliament had carried out an assessment of the affected buildings, monuments
and rock cave temples. Besides, they distributed tents ordered from Lhasa and aluminium sheets
as well as provisions, - rice, dhal, tea, sugar and oil, to cover the immediate needs of so many
people who lost their homes in Mustang. Right after the first quake on the 25t of April the office
of the CDO of Mustang already had conducted an overall assessment but after the second quake
of May 12th many more buildings where unfortunately afflicted.
Damages in Lo Manthang, a Tentative UNESCO World Heritage Site
Many of the ruined buildings in Nepal, including the vernacular heritage, are UNESCO World
Heritage sites, as the famous Durbar Squares and Stupas in the Kathmandu Valley. Other
afflicted monuments had been included on the Tentative UNESCO List for World Heritage
designation, as f.e. in 2008 the medieval city of Lo Manthang, the ancient capital of the former
kingdom of Mustang. Lo is famous for its 6-metre high-rammed earth wall, surrounding the
densely inhabited place and the three magnificent Buddhist monasteries. These Gompas date
from the 15th and the 18th centuries and are housing amazing statues and wall paintings, as well
great collections of ancient texts. Fortunately, only minor damages occurred at the medieval
wall; and the monasteries of Jhampa Lhakhang and Thubchen Lhakhang, which were recently
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restored by the Himalayan Foundation, both temple-sites constructed in the 15th century, are
intact, no damages occurred at the architectural structures. Whereas the 18th century Choede
Monastery, which was not restored, sustained severe destruction, especially in the first floor of
the main monastic building, where cracks and fissures are all over, wooden beams and plaster are
falling off the walls and from the ceilings.
Moreover, the Mahakala Goenkhang, containing statues and
thangkas of the protecting deities, is completely destroyed, and
all artefacts were moved to other rooms in the monastic
complex and need to be documented now. The Gonkhang needs
to be reconstructed, since the damages cannot be repaired. The
abott of the monastery and his monks wants to rebuild the
temple in the traditional rammed earth technique. Furthermore,
the small museum building inside the monastic complex, with a
precious collection of thangkas, sculptures and ancient
textbooks, gathered from cavetemple sites around Lo, sustained
partial damage. Since there are several cracks in the building,
the museum will need to be repaired. At the old hostel of
Choede Monastery huge cracks occur nearly in all rooms.
Fig. 0: The Mahakala Goenkhang at Choede Monastery after
the earthquake
Very sadly, the main icon and largest
structure of Lo Manthang, the 5-storyed
medieval 15th century old Tashi Gephel
Palace, the first building to be constructed
in the city, is about to collapse.
Its traditional rammed earth walls are full
of structural damages, with huge
horizontal and vertical cracks.
Fig.1: Tashi Gephel Palace during Tiji Festival
Fig. 2: Deep cracks occur on the walls of the Palace
Inside the building wooden beams are jutting out of the ceiling,
and the whole roof is in need of a complete renovation. The altar
area, partially with life-sized statues, other valuable
paraphernalia, as well as the library, containing precious
Prajnaparamita texts, and the Kanjur and Tenjur, had to be
vacated; the objects are in urgent need of documentation.
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Fig.3: The vacated library
The huge structure of the Palace in the
middle of the city, larger than the
surrounding monasteries, is reminding
of the importance that has been given
to the Lopa Rajas in the past. After the
catastrophe, the family of the former
king of Mustang is living in tents now
outside of the walled city. Since many
years the Raja had been requested by
different restoration organisations to
get his Durbar Palace restored,
However, he always gave preference to the temples and chorten of Lo, since, as he argued, ‘they
belong to the Lopa people and need to be taken care of first’.
Besides, out of 153 Households in Lo, 10 of them have sustained serious damages, many others
are suffering from cracks in the rammed earthern walls and are instable. Fortunately, the recently
restored places in Lo, including the huge Chorten inside and outside of Lo, are relatively
unharmed.
Damages at other Ancient Sites
It is hardly known to the outside world, since fortunately no human losses had to be mourned,
that in Mustang some major heritage sites and two whole villages, Ghelling and Tetang, were
totally destroyed. Besides, many traditional buildings, as well as nine schools at different places
all over the district suffer from considerable damage. Several of the old Buddhist monasteries
and rock cave temples, for which Mustang is so famous, dzongs and ancient palaces have been
badly damaged or cracked:
The Summer Palace of the former Raja, build at the end of the 18 th century, located in Thingkar
in the north of Lo, is completely ruined now, and it will be difficult to get support for the
restoration of this ancient building.
Also the Namgyal Gompa, half an hour away
from Lo, - a Sakya Ngor Monastery, which
was originally constructed by the famous
Buddhist scholar Ngorchen Kunga Zangpo in
the 15th century, altered several times in the
following centuries, - suffered severe damages
at the main Lhakhang.
Fig 4. Namgyal Gompa after the earthquakes
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Shortly before the earthquake, the abbot of the monastery and the monks living there had decided
to rebuild their main Lhakhang in the traditional rammed earth technique because they are in
need of a bigger building and have limited space. They had discussed this matter before in detail
with different restoration organisations including HimalAsia. Since after the earthquake the main
monastic complex is laying in ruins, they are discussing now to reconstruct the Lhakhang with
the help of compressed brick machines, producing bricks by mixing local material with five
percent of cement to get a stronger, resistant structure. This technique has been already
successfully implemented for the construction of houses in Ladakh, since more precipitation in
the last few years made it necessary to introduce other building techniques. Same climate
conditions appear in Mustang.
Shortly before the first earthquake hit Nepal so badly, a workshop for participants from Mustang,
including some monks from Namgyal and Choede Monastery, was conducted by HimalAsia in
Bhaktapur with the financial support of OCHSPA, discussing, besides other topics, alternative
building technologies for Mustang. A compressed brick machine, sent by UN Habitat, was
introduced to the participants at that time, and a great demand for this technology arose between
the monks.
Very badly hit was, moreover, the Thubten Shedrup Dhargyeling Monastery in Tsarang, also a
so-called Ngor Sakya Gompa, which was built in the 16 th century under the patronage of King
Samdrup Dorje. Here the first and second floor sustained considerable damage, many rooms
need to be rebuild, since cracks in the walls
and ceilings are found all over. The roof has to
be completely renewed. The adjacent service
buildings, which include the dormitory rooms
of the monks and novices, as well as the
kitchen, sustained partial damage, therefore
the walls and ceilings need to be renovated.
Fig.5: Inhabitants of Tsarang praying for
protection outside of their destroyed Gompa
Sadly, the old Samdup Gephel Palace of Tsarang, built
even before the Darbar in Lo Manthang in the 14 th
century, - which has been already in a very bad shape,
suffered most. Sections of the building are about to fall
apart. The ancient altar room and library have suffered
enduring damage, and the treasured Kanjur and the
Prajnaparamita text collections, as well as the marvelously
rendered metal, clay and wooden statues, have been partly
shifted to the monasteries in Lo Manthang.
Fig. 6: The Samdup Gephel Palace in Tsarang was badly
damaged
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The two massive earthquakes had also severely hit the whole village of Ghelling, including the
monastery. Around 350 people live in this village, and there is not a building left that was not
badly affected by the quakes. Since all
constructions are done in rammed earth
technique, most of the houses have to be
completely torn down in order to rebuild them
properly.
Fig. 7: Family in Ghelling in front of their
destroyed house and the heavily damaged
Tashi Choeling Monastery. The inhabitants of
Ghelling are staying in tents now, having been
distributed by HimalAsia
The Pal Sa-Ngor Tashi Choeling Monastery in Ghelling,
founded by the local great scholar Lowo Khenchen Sonam
Lhundup in the second half of the 15 th century, had as well
suffered from severe damages. This place had become
especially renowned when the late Tharig Rinpoche, after
escaping from Tibet in 1959, took his residence here. In the
main Gompa, especially in the first floor, cracks are occurring
nearly everywhere, wooden beams are protruding from
ceilings and floors and the roof has to be completely renewed.
Fig. 8: Huge cracks at first floor of Ghelling Gompa
The Gonkhang in particular, the shrine of the protecting
deities next to the main Gompa, sustained bad damages, so
that the rammed earth walls need to be demolished and newly
erected. Besides, the service building next to the Lhakhang
has to be renovated completely. Also the massive Chorten
around the Gompa are in need of urgent repair.
Furthermore, in the area of Chukksang, the ancient village
temple, Chuk Braga Mani Lhakhang, as well as the Gompa
Khang complex, a Nyingma pa monastery, originally build in
the 15th century for nuns, suffered major damages.
Fig. 9: The village temple of Chhuksang suffered
considerable damage
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At both sites the roof-areas are in desperate need of repair and parts of the buildings are
completely instable and about to collapse.
In the adjacent village of Tetang unfortunately all 46 houses are in ruins now. This place,
established centuries ago, appears from a distance like an ancient fortress, since all buildings
here are interlinked with each other and look rather like an ancient Pueblo settlement.
Unfortunately it will not be possible to safeguard this site, as it seems in the moment. After
several meetings with the villagers, the author was requested, in the presence of the
representative of Mustang in the Parliament, if HimalAsia could help the community to resettle
the whole village.
Fig.10: Villagers of
Tetang in front of
the remains of their
house, with food
provisions,
distributed by
HimalAsia
Fig 11: The whole village of Tetang
needs to be rebuilt
Fig.12: Tetang is completely in ruins
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Damages at Buddhist Cave Sites
The beautifully Tashi Kabum rock cave, adorned with
marvelous rendered mural paintings on the Chorten and
surrounding walls from the 14 th century, suffered
substantially as well. In the middle of the cavesite the
dome of the Chorten, the so called anda, symbolizing the
element of water, is heavily damaged.
The murals around the wall are interlaced with cracks and
fissures, in particular the striking image of Avalokiteshvara
is full of them, and plaster is falling off from the image.
Moreover, the rocky path leading up to the Kabum has
been destroyed and is no longer passable; one has to climb
to the cave now, which is quite dangerous without
mountain equipment. Since this has always been a site, far
away from villages or other settlements, it is doubtful if
any restoration will be carried out here in the future.
Fig. 13: The Tashi Kabum cavesite suffered major damages
The same fate will happen to the earlier established Dagrangjung Kabum/Chorten with
extraordinary wall paintings dating from the early 13 th century, showing Pala influences. It was
discovered that this cavesite had also sadly suffered great internal damage. The dome of that
Stupa has been always invisible, but now, only the upper portion of the Chorten, the chattra and
the ketu, is left to view, as a result of collapse.
Unfortunately, the exceptional murals, a frieze
with originally twelve medallions, are
completely fragmented now, the plaster has
entirely fallen off and disintegrated. The very
rare depictions showed representations of
Hindu goddesses presenting offerings for the
Buddha, and two rosettes with the Hindu
deities Brahma and Indra, both reverently
facing the Stupa, which represents the Buddha.
Fig.14: Extraordinary wall paintings,
depicting Hindu deities at Dagrangjung
The whole cult room is filled up with rubble, and it is extremely difficult to reach this site now.
The early Buddhist iconography recurringly shows paintings of the Buddha frequently
accompanied by Brahma and Indra. According to Buddhist narratives, it is said that the first
teaching of Buddha was given at the request of Brahma and Indra. It is therefore extremely sad,
that the paintings at Dagrangjung are so badly damaged now, since they are important evidences
of this early Buddhist period in the Himalayas.
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Always threatened by decay, but still reachable was/is
another cave complex at Choezong, next to the Tibetan
border. This comprises a Lakhang and a particularly
interesting protective deity- and initiation temple
(shrungma) with paintings of meditative deities from the
Mahayoga Tantra, most probably from the 14 th century.
Further, in front of the paintings, clay figures from
Caturbujha Mahakala and his retinue can be found. This
incredible site is fortunately still intact; but the cavesite
above, a small initiation temple carved into a rockcliff,
with exceptional wall paintings is badly destroyed now
and can’t be reached anymore.
Fig. 15: Amitabha and his entourage at the Choedzong
cavetemple
Here, images of the meditative Buddhas Vairocana and
Amithaba and their entourages, as well as Hevajra in Yab
Yum, with his female partner, have been identified by
the author years ago. This initiation temple presumedly dates from the end of the 12 th century
and was rendered partly in Pala style.
It is very sad to state that it will be extremely difficult to find any support for the restoration or
reconstruction of these three cavesites with their historical important wallpaintings, unique in
Nepal, since the places are far away from any settlement and only occasionally visited by
villagers, so that no proper maintenance can be carried out at all. Only if a tourism scheme
would be developed to highlight these sites, there might be a slight chance to get financial
support for the restoration of these caves.
Reconstruction, Preservation, Documentation and Practical Training
Aside from the three cavesites, that unfortunately cannot be saved, the above mentioned ancient
monuments and valuable traditional buildings are in need to be restored or renovated now, only
if they are not demolished and rebuild, or as in the case of Tetang village, being resettled and
reconstructed in an adjacent area.
HimalAsia assisted the local communities to salvage fragments of damaged temples, stabilize
vulnerable structures and secure artefacts at temporary storages. Further, it was discussed how
important the reuse of the remaining architecturel elements is, f.e., carved struts and beams,
retrieved from the ruins, that will be utilized for restoration and reconstruction of their heritage
buildings. Especially in the community of Lo Manthang, being a tentative UNESCO World
Heritage Site, it was discussed, moreover, how important it is to apply traditional materials for
the renovation and reconstruction of buildings and to sustain the local workmanship in regard of
the site’s authenticity. If, for technical reasons, modern materials need to be used, they should be
durable and preferably equivalent to traditional materials. Further, it has to be taken into account
that the overall integrity of the heritage site should not be disturbed.
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Unfortunately, there are a few examples in Lo already, including the newly build Shedra for
monks at the Choede Monastery, where modern material like cement is employed. After the
earthquakes, in all of Nepal the demand for using cement for constructions will rise, due to the
fact that people unfortunately think it is safer than other materials.
Also in this context, it is interesting to note that those heritage sites, restored or renovated
recently or some decades ago in Mustang in the traditional way are all unharmed.
Whereas destroyed houses in the Kathmandu Valley and surrounding areas can partly be repaired
by using various techniques of retrofitting, this is not so easy in the case of the vernacular
architecture of the traditional buildings in Mustang, using timber, stones and rammed earth
technique. If once a building, constructed in rammed earth-technique, sustaines major structural
damage, mostly the whole house needs to be rebuild, depending on the cracks in the walls, as in
the case of the village of Ghelling. It is a very costly task and villagers should be financially
supported in this regard.
Since their ancient settlement cannot be renovated and repaired any more, the community of the
village of Tetang requested HimalAsia to support them to resettle their entire village and
introduce alternative building techniques to them. There are sustainable housing models,
introduced by UN Habitat and other organisations, using local materials that are adapted to the
setting and climate. These housing models are taking into account the need for modernization
due to changes in lifestyle; in this context, an applicable technique might be the use of
compressed bricks for rebuilding the destroyed houses of Tetang.
Besides, HimalAsia has begun to carry out practical training workshops in Bhaktapur for
carpenters from different areas in Mustang, in order to help them to achieve and improve
construction and building techniques. These training sessions should be continued during
wintertime when many of the Lopa people are descending down from Mustang to stay during the
cold season in places like Boudha or Swayambhu in the Kathmandu Valley.
Moreover, HimalAsia intends to conduct more practical training workshops to introduce
documentation concepts, the handling of objects and different preservation techniques, to
safeguard objects and heritage fragments, since this has been requested from monks and involved
families from Mustang. Another aim of these workshops is to increase capacity building and to
help to develop a strong sense for the cultural significance of the area of Mustang.
Based on the above information, there is a clear need for protecting the heritage and livelihood of
the Mustang people. Mustang is not only a very important historical and cultural heritage site,
but also one of the most sacred landscapes in the Himalayan area. The devastating earthquakes
have ruined and damaged many of the famous heritage places of Mustang, which is also a
significant tourist destination. Besides, the out-migration of the Lopa people to the south and to
other countries will increase, if this area is not supported. Substantial financial backing and skill
based training is therefore imperative for future restoration and reconstruction projects for this
region.
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