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0097 The Pulse of Asia : vol.1
The Pulse of Asia : vol.1 / Page 97 (Color Image)

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doi: 10.20676/00000233
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by the terraces which occupy the bottom; and at the lower
end a deep, impassable gorge. Sometimes there is no rela-
tively habitable middle part of a valley; and a U-shaped
glacial trough gives place abruptly to a V-shaped canyon.
Nevertheless, the threefold division and its appropriate
response in the habits of organic beings give the essential
features of the geography of Ladakh.

Arid, inhospitable, and rugged as Ladakh may be, its
clear air, bracing climate, and splendid scenery make the
traveler long to return to it. The stony villages and ugly
people have a peculiar charm. After leaving the Moham-
medan villages in the vicinity of Zoji La and Kurgil, we
had our first glimpse of the genuine Buddhist Ladakh
at the hamlet of Maulbeck. A winding climb of several
hundred feet up a massive tooth of limestone brought us
to a lamasery, two whitewashed buildings with bands of
red around the top, prominent landmarks, perched on a
lofty pinnacle above the broadened upper part of a bleak
open valley, surrounded by snowy mountains. Two of the
lamas, or monks, clothed in the regulation gowns, caps, and
boots, all of purplish red, received us. One, a young man
of twenty, led us into the dark room which served as a
temple. The other, the head lama, a little, beardless old
man, with a most bland and innocent expression, showed us
his own small room, which appeared to be the real sanc-
tuary. Our guide from the village, a young man wearing a
greasy pig-tail and a long gray gown of wool, prostrated
himself on his knees before the door, and touched his fore-
head to the ground repeatedly. We were not invited to
enter. As we gazed in through the door, the room appeared