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| Barkhor | |
|---|---|
| Name | Barkhor |
| Location | Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region, China |
| Coordinates | 29.6520°N 91.1322°E |
| Significance | Pilgrim circuit and historic neighborhood |
| Type | Religious promenade |
Barkhor
Barkhor is a historic circumambulatory street and public square encircling the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa, Tibet Autonomous Region. Situated near the Potala Palace and connected to the old Lhasa quarter, it forms a focal point for Tibetan pilgrimage, commerce, and cultural exchange, attracting visitors associated with Tibetan Buddhism, Chinese administration, and international tourism. The area interfaces with institutions such as the Jokhang Temple, Norbulingka Palace, and the Potala Palace, and has been affected by policies from the People's Republic of China and directives involving the Tibet Autonomous Region.
Barkhor serves as a circumambulation circuit around the Jokhang Temple and includes a concentric square used for prayer, social gathering, and marketplaces frequented by pilgrims from Amdo, Kham, Nepal, Bhutan, and India. The street links major sites such as the Potala Palace, Ramoche Temple, and the historic Lhasa Old Town, and hosts vendors selling items associated with Tibetan art, thangka painting, mala beads, and sandalwood. The area has been described in travel accounts from Marco Polo-era narratives to modern reports by journalists from outlets like BBC and The New York Times, and appears in scholarly work by authors affiliated with SOAS University of London, Harvard University, and Peking University.
Barkhor developed around the Jokhang after the 7th-century reign of Songtsen Gampo and the construction of the Jokhang Temple associated with Princess Wencheng and Princess Bhrikuti. Over centuries the circuit became integral to the urban fabric of the Lhasa quarter, interacting with trade routes connecting Silk Road corridors, merchants from Shigatse, and monasteries such as Sera Monastery, Drepung Monastery, and Ganden Monastery. During the 18th and 19th centuries it featured in accounts by explorers like Ferdinand von Richthofen and later observers including Edmund T. Coleman. In the 20th century Barkhor witnessed events linked to the 1949 Chinese invasion of Tibet, the 1959 Tibetan uprising, and administrative changes under the Central People's Government. Urban transformations accelerated following infrastructure projects tied to China National Highway 318 and policies enacted by the State Council of the People's Republic of China.
For followers of Tibetan Buddhism, devotional practices at the circuit involve prostrations, kora circumambulation, and offerings to deities such as Avalokiteśvara and local protector deities honored by monasteries like Jokhang and Ramoche. Barkhor is central to rituals associated with figures like the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama, and it accommodates reliquaries, prayer flags, and medicinal items from institutions such as Tibetan Medicine Hospital of Lhasa. The area is referenced in liturgies and pilgrimage narratives preserved in manuscripts housed at archives like the Library of Tibetan Works and Archives and has been the subject of ethnographic studies at Tibet University and research institutes connected to CNRS and the Max Planck Society.
The route encircles the Jokhang Temple and connects to access points including the east entrance facing Barkhor Square, the approach from Potala Palace Road, and alleys leading to bazaars near Old Lhasa Market. Key landmarks adjacent to the circuit include the Jokhang’s inner sanctum, the public prayer wheels lining the path, the historic houses of Lhasa nobility, and nearby institutions such as the Tibet Museum and the former residences now curated by the Lhasa Municipal Government. The circuit abuts sites of political demonstrations like those reported near Marpori Hill and areas where delegations from entities such as the United Nations and foreign embassies have visited.
Barkhor plays a prominent role during festivals such as Saga Dawa, Losar, and the Jokhang’s own anniversary observances, when pilgrims perform full kora, engage in ritual dances connected to Cham traditions, and priests from monasteries including Sera, Drepung, and Ganden conduct rites. Pilgrimage patterns draw devotees from towns like Nyingchi and Shannan as well as international Buddhist communities from Japan, South Korea, and Sri Lanka. The circuit is a focal point during ceremonial processions involving thangka displays like the Great Thangka and during state-observed dates involving delegations from the Tibet Autonomous Regional Party Committee.
Barkhor functions as a marketplace with vendors offering goods tied to Tibetan culture such as prayer wheels, thangkas, handwoven carpets, and traditional garments linked to regions like Kham and Amdo. The area’s commerce benefits hotels and tour operators registered with the China National Tourism Administration and international agencies like UNESCO that have listed adjacent sites for heritage consideration. Economic activity is influenced by visitor flows from airlines serving Lhasa Gonggar Airport, tour circuits from Beijing, Chengdu, and overland routes via Qinghai–Tibet Railway, with hospitality businesses operating under regulations enforced by the People's Government of Lhasa.
Conservation efforts around the circuit involve restoration projects coordinated by the State Administration of Cultural Heritage, local preservation teams at Tibet Cultural Relics Bureau, and academic support from institutions such as Tsinghua University and Tibet University. Urban development pressures include pedestrianization schemes, traffic management tied to China National Highway 109, and redevelopment initiatives approved by the Tibet Autonomous Region Government. Tensions between heritage preservation and modernization have prompted involvement from international bodies including ICOMOS and NGOs advocating for cultural safeguarding, while archaeological surveys by teams linked to Peking University and foreign scholars document stratigraphy and built heritage.
Category:Squares in Tibet Category:Lhasa