Islam in Tibet: Including Islam in the Tibetan Cultural Sphere; Buddhist and Islamic Viewpoints of Ultimate Reality; and The Illustrated Narrative: Tibetan Caravans

This book is a collection of three essays that are about Islam in the Tibetan sphere (including Ladakh, Baltistan, and Tibet proper). The story of Islam in Tibet is a much more fascinating and ancient one than commonly thought. It's rarely mentioned in most texts about the religious culture of Tibet which is a great shame considering how rather Tibetan this minority faith has become. Anyway, here is a brief outline of the book which contains:1. Islam in the Tibetan Cultural Sphere: This is a brief overview of the history of Islam in and around Tibet.2. The Differing Viewpoints of Buddhism and Other World Religions Regarding Ultimate Reality: A comparative view of major religions and their philosophy and views about reality and truth.3. Tibetan Caravans: A narrative from a Ladakhi Muslim who had travelled throughout Himalayan trade routes in the mid-20th century.Overall the essays are excellent and informative but the first by Jose Cabezon is probably the worst yet best one of the trio. It's informative but it has faults. This includes the author's use of dated and biased works to pin his "facts" about Himalayan Islam. He seems to suggest that the Balti (a formerly Buddhist and Bon population) were forcefully converted (because of nearby military activity on the part of the Chagatai Mongols and Kashmiris). The conversion of the Balti occured during a time of local changes (14th-17th centuries). Kashmiri and Persian missionaries and their preaching of Noorbakshia Sufism led to a slow, peaceful, and intimate conversion to Islam. Later, Shia and Sunni missionaries (foreign and local) further diversified Islam in these regions. Although pro-Buddhist and Christian missionary scholars alike have tried to claim otherwise or begrudgingly admit, it has been shown that the Balti converted voluntarily and peacefully. Another incorrect statement was that the Mughals forced bDe legs rnam rgyal (a Ladakhi king from the 17th century) to convert to Islam for Mughal aid against the Mongols. Truth is that the Ladakhi king willingly called for help from the Mughals. He then voluntarily accepted the conditions and converted. No force here. Cabezon mainly uses 19th century writings. Not only are these sources outdated by much more objective and accurate works, many of these old sources were written by Christian missionaries. They clearly had a bias.Forgive me for the rant but I had to share what I thought was wrong with the essay. Anyway, other than my personal view on the first essay, I would say that this a superb and enlightening book that finally attempts to give coverage to the other religious traditions that reside in Tibet. Anyone interested in Tibet or its religious landscape would learn much from reading this book.

The title of this book is deceptive. It comes off as a heavy academic treatment of the historical presence of Islam in Tibet, which is presented in a couple of short opening essays. They are good essays, sufficiently anecdotal and eye-opening, dismissing the popular notion of Tibetan culture as homogenous. They concentrate on the early acceptance and even promotion of Islam in Tibet, a testimony to the religious tolerance espoused by Tibetan Buddhism.All this is, however, just window dressing. The segment that gets last billing in the title, "The Illustrated Narrative, Tibetan Caravans," is in essence the entire book. It's a lively first hand account of the last caravans to travel over the Himalayas, from Leh, the capital of the primarily Buddhist area of Ladakh in NW India, to Lhasa. It's a great historical adventure tale, expanded from the memoirs of the last old man to lead the excursion across the Himalayas (actually the grandfather of a friend of mine, which is how the book found its way to me). One purpose of this caravan was to take tribute to the Dalai Lama, which was somewhat problematic since the route was operated primarily by Moslems. The caravan, three months on the road to Lhasa, was the only contact with the outside world that many of the small villages on the route had. Then, three months in Lhasa before the return trip home. On the way they encounter bandits, war lords, hospitable villages, disease, hardship, and joy. It is revealing because it shows not only the positive aspects of Tibetan society that are exalted through the culture in exile, but its warts as well. If you want an entertaining, realistic historical account of life in the Himalayas, this is a good read.