The ruling class in old Tibet / 239 photos

refer to:
http://tibet.prm.ox.ac.uk/index.php
a site of Oxford University with 6,000 old photographs of Tibet!
*
Play List
http://www.youtube.com/view_play_list?p=DCD04906E7B4F597
*
The True Face Of The Dalai Lama
by Kalovski at 4-2-8
http://www.rense.com/general81/faeeof.htm
[Part.4]
The Three Masters




The Tibetan people called their rulers "the Three Great Masters" because the ruling class of
serf owners was organized into three institutions: the lama monasteries possessed 37 percent of
the cultivated land and pasture in old Tibet; the secular aristocracy 25 percent; and the
remaining 38 percent was in the hands of the government officials appointed by the Dalai Lama's advisors.
About 2 percent of Tibet's population was in this upper class, and an additional 3 percent were
their agents, overseers, stewards, managers of estates and private armies. The ger-ba, a tiny
elite of about 200 families, ruled at the top. Han Suyin writes: "Only 626 people held 93
percent of all land and wealth and 70 percent of all the yaks in Tibet. These 626 included 333
heads of monasteries and religious authorities, and 287 lay authorities (including the nobles of
the Tibetan army) and six cabinet ministers."
Merchants and handicraftsmen also belonged to a lord. A quarter of the population in the capital
city of Lhasa survived by begging from religious pilgrims. There was no modern industry or
working class. Even matches and nails had to be imported. Before the revolution, no one in Tibet
was ever paid wages for their work.
The heart of this system was exploitation. Serfs worked 16- or 18-hour days to enrich their
masters­keeping only about a quarter of the food they raised.
A. Tom Grunfeld writes: "These estates were extremely lucrative. One former aristocrat noted
that a 'small' estate would typically consist of a few thousand sheep, a thousand yaks, an
undetermined number of nomads and two hundred agricultural serfs. The yearly output would
consist of over 36,000 kg (80,000 lbs.) of grain, over 1,800 kg (4,000 lbs.) of wool and almost
500 kg (1,200 lbs.) of butter A government official had 'unlimited powers of extortion' and
could make a fortune from his powers to extract bribes not to imprison and punish people. There
was also the matter of extracting monies from the peasantry beyond the necessary taxes."
The ruling serf owners were parasites. One observer, Sir Charles Bell, described a typical
official who spent an hour a day at his official duties. Upper class parties lasted for days of
eating, gambling and lying around. The aristocratic lamas also never worked. They spent their
days chanting, memorizing religious dogma and doing nothing.
*
Originally from http://www.bestcyrano.org/cyrano/?p=507

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[zn4612]

如欲瞭解密教、喇嘛教，請線上搜尋《西藏文化談》，以當地、外國­學者的眼界來探尋。阿彌陀佛！

[mytime103]

the worse thing is you just know most of these ppl where in the million or more the chinese wiped out.quite sad.We know Tibet will always be Wchina now

[tseringdup]

rich Tibetan cultures!!! If history is to be judged now then all falls into same catagory!!! whether its Asia or europe or middle east. But if present is to be judged then Chinese are the most brutal and most horrifying human right abusers..........

[Vuongmusic]

藏独分子都是一帮反动派，想让西藏再次陷入黑暗。曾经苦难深重的­藏族农奴如今已翻身解放，西藏回到了祖国的怀抱，藏独分子休想乱­来！

[zn4612]

真正的大乘佛教不承認喇嘛教是佛教。請搜尋：藏傳佛教雙身法。喇­嘛教以佛教的名相包裹印度「坦特羅密教」（男女雙身邪淫法）。假­借佛教之名掩飾他們不守倫理道德、不知禮義廉恥的本質。根本上推­翻佛教解脫道、佛菩提道的修證。意識上自認為自己是佛。藉由種種­鬼神相應的咒語、儀式欺瞞世間盲目的信仰者。盲目的追隨者的下場­，下一世是墮入地獄、餓鬼、畜生道。智者應三思！阿彌陀佛！

[jayloganyt]

Thank you for sharing these beautiful pictures of old Tibet. Tibet will soon be free again from occupation.

[tmwc2003]

從這些圖片看，很難說舊西藏沒有封建地主、農奴主的一類剝削階級­…。顯然不是節日盛裝，穿著如此華麗，如何幹活。止是「毛共」更­加強調、更加渲染、更加擴大階級壓迫性。使「階級鬥爭不能調和」­，造成社會問題更加慘烈…。

[cinematographer]

lol free tibet... free the whole world!

[MissingVoices77]

Please Free Tibet.

Give Tibet back to the Tibetans.