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Creating New Discursive Terrain for the Custodians of the Tibetan Spiritscape:
A Bio-cultural audit of Sacred Natural Sites in NW Yunnan with special
reference to the Yubeng Valley

John Studley

Abstract
For hundreds of years numinous spiritscapes, presided over by place gods or gzhi bdag, have
been a defining cultural feature of Tibetan lay society, as well as being exemplars of explicit nature
conservation. The animistic beliefs that support Tibetan spiritscapes have had to be discursively
recalibrated repeatedly in the face of Tibetan Buddhism, the Cultural Revolution, and currently by
modernity, tourism and formal education.
Little is known about the recovery of Tibetan spiritscapes since the Cultural Revolution, the revival
of traditional religious practices (1984) and the felling ban (1998), so a bio-cultural audit
1
was
conducted in 12 selected sites in Deqin Prefecture in Sept/Oct 2013 to assess their current bio-
cultural status and importance as exemplars of explicit nature conservation.
The audit was predicated on a literature review, participatory field methods and GIS technologies,
and was informed by the authors research in the region.
Most villages surveyed in Deqin Prefecture have on average 700ha of gzhi bdag spiritscape spread
over 3 sites comprising up to 60% of village land, although 25% is more typical.
Most respondents can describe the rituals for honouring a gzhi bdag, the taboos and forms of
retribution and restitution, the current status of biodiversity in the spiritscape and name unique
flora and fauna.
Whatever metrics are used there is greater biodiversity in sacred sites than in pilot plots and
these findings are supported by 83% of respondents. Although many respondents stated that gzhi
bdag spiritscapes had recovered from felling it was evident that there was much greater
biodiversity prior to 1950.
The preservation of gzhi bdag spiritscapes is contingent upon the protection of indigenous culture
and its intergenerational transmission. The greatest threats to gzhi bdag spiritscapes are posed by
the formal education and tourism.
Although Tibetan spiritscapes are exemplars of biodiversity and may constitute 25% of the land
mass of Cultural Tibet they have been discursively excluded from official narratives. Consequently
they are not recognized or protected internationally as unique phenomenon in their own right.
This chapter concludes by elaborating the challenges posed by the audit and provides some
recommendations for those interested in enhancing and protecting the bio-cultural diversity of the
Tibetan spiritscapes of Southwest China.
Key words: spiritscape, numina, Tibetan, gzhi bdag, animism, place gods, discursive terrain




1
The author is indebted for all the help and support provided for this research by China Exploration and Research Society

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Introduction
The sacred natural sites (SNS) of indigenous societies are mostly supported by a worldview
predicated on animism and numinous spiritscapes
2
. This paradigm is characterized by strong
psycho-spiritual values
3
, eco-spiritual auditing
4
, topocosmic reciprocity
5
and explicit nature
conservation within the domains of numina
6
. In spite of this, numinous landscapes are more
vulnerable and threatened than SNS associated with mainstream faiths
7
.
1.1 Tibetan Spiritscapes
The spiritscape paradigm is a defining characteristic of Tibetan lay society and is exemplified in
territorial cults
8
and cadastral spirits
9
. These beliefs, however, have been subsumed by Tibetan
Buddhism (TB) and an environmental paradigm exemplified by holy mountains
10
and the
mandalization of landscape
11
. As a result Tibetan Spiritscapes are often discursively excluded as a
discrete phenomenon in their own right.
Historically the cultural identity of Tibetan nomads and farmers was predicated on the honouring of
mundane numina (known collectively as yul lha
12
and locally as gzhi bdag
13
) under the aegis of
what are commonly described as mountain cults
14
, territorial cults or the cult of height
15
.
Most mountains in the Tibetan world are owned and inhabited by a gzhi bdag
16
associated with
specific communities and territories. They are part of an animistic and shamanistic tradition
concerned with the immediate world, involving various ceremonies and rituals that take place in

2
Spiritscape describes an animistic phenomenon where landscape features (mountains, hills, knolls) or bodies of water
(lakes, ponds, mires) are inhabited by a divinity or numina See Byrne 1999
3
Studley 2005
4
Hollan 1996, Reichel 1992
5
Posey 1999, Reichel 1992, Sahlins 2004
6
Bayo 2012, Verschuuren et al 2010
7
Wild et al 2008
8
Huber 2004, 2006
9
Mus 1975
10
gnas ri
11
McKay 1998
12
Tibetan landscape is populated by a myriad of deities known as yul lha, who act both as protectors and wrathful gods,
depending on the ability of the local community to please them. They are grouped under the aegis of jig rten pai lha, or
mundane deities, and classified into the following categories: klu (naga spirits dwelling in the water), gnyan (kind of
spirit usually dwelling in trees and rocks), btsan (kind on spirit), sa bdag and gzhi bdag (protective spirits of the ground),
gdon (kind of demon), dre (kind of demon), sri (kind of demon), srung ma (protectors) and dgra lha (war gods) See
Punzi 2013
13
Often yul lha and gzhi bdag are used together i.e. yul lha gzhi bdag in a general sense for any places gods, including
gods of land, mountains, stone, water, etc (Zhang Zhongyun p.c. 20/11/2013)
14
Blondeau & Steinkellner 1998
15
Karmay 1998
16
Zhang Zhongyun p.c. 11/3/13

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the home and mountain locales. The gzhi bdag
17
and other 'gods of the past', theoretically 'tamed'
by Buddhism
18
are closer to Tibetan nomads and farmers in both geography, identity and in sensed
presence. In the world of the lay Tibetan, many landscape features point back to the worship of
ancient gods. They are not only conscious of the constant scrutiny of gzhi bdag when they go
hunting, but engage in rituals and place demands on them for protection and health, and success,
in hunting, trading, travel, farming etc.

Participation in territorial cults is still an essential element of rural Tibetan life and identity and is
expressed in cultural, economic, eco-spiritual and political behaviour. It is part of an ongoing
process of folk practice recovery
19
and a contemporary means of expressing Tibetanness
20
.

1.2 Explicit Nature Conservation
Territorial cults are characterized by explicit nature conservation and ritual protection within the
domain of the gzhi bdag which is encompassed by the territory they preside over
21
.

1.3 Monocultural myopia
The unique animistic spiritual ecologies of the Tibetan laity, which support these biodiversity
hotspots appear to have been discursively excluded
22
from official narratives. Elite interests have
attempted to:- assimilate spiritual ecologies, bureaucratise them
23
, decertify/diminish them
24
or
ignore them as a result of secondary ethnocentrism or monocultural myopia
25
. Even the IUCN
literature on the Asian Philosophy of Protected Areas appears to conflate mainstream beliefs and

17
a place god or territorial numina i.e a spirit or deity that presides over or inhabits a place or landscape feature
18
When they theoretically became Dharma protectors (or srung ma)
19
Huber 2002
20
Kolas 2004
21
Studley 2010
22
Weinblum and Iglesias 2013
23
Karlsson 2003 Laungaramsri 2003
24
Guha 1997
25
Hwa Yol Jung 2002 Page 3

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animism and to state disparagingly using a thin description
26
that SNS are supposed to contain
numina!
27

Within the last ten years there has been a discursive recalibration
28
of the cultural and spiritual
values of biodiversity
29
and the promotion of sacred natural sites as a means of conserving nature
and culture
30
. This was spearheaded by NGOs, regarded as panaceas in solving the conservation
crisis predicated on community-based conservation
31
. They are led and discursively directed
32
by
an elite cartel of conservation NGOs under the aegis of the New World Order
33
. The resulting
conservation hegemony
34
, however, has often excluded the spiritual ecologies of animism
35
the
most common belief system of the worlds indigenous people
36
or attempted to integrate,
regulate
37
, commodify
38
or resourcify
39
elements of their topocosm on the basis of western
bureaucratic discourses and most recently under the aegis of national accounting
40
.
Concurrently, however, there is a counter-discourse
41
which recognises the web of inter-
dependence
42
between indigenous peoples and their SNS and is redefining western terminology
43

on the basis of indigenous meaning (semantic and contextual).
44

It is impossible for the web of interdependence and the indigenous belief system that
encompasses SNS to be protected if it is de-contextualised
45
, de-souled or elements of it isolated in
archives (or databases), frozen in time and space, in knowledge centres privileged on scientism
46
and

26
Anagnost 1994
27
Hamzah et al 2013
28
Ferrera 2007, Page 13
29
Posey 1999
30
Wild et al 2008
31
Basurto 2008, Novellino and Dressler 2010 (Page 166), Nygren 2000 (Page 818)
32
Luke 2003
33
Abraham and Sanders 1994 Earle 2002 Holmes 2011
34
Holmes 2011
35
Sponsel 2012
36
Harvey 2008
37
Frank 2007
38
Sinclair 2003
39
Luke 2003
40
as defined in the Aichi Biodiversity Targets http://www.cbd.int/sp/targets/
41
Karlsson 2003
42
Maffi and Woodley 2012 Page 4
43
Cheyfitz 2014 personal communication
44
"indigenous governance" (Horsley 2011), "natural laws of independence" (Cajete 2000), "native science" (Cajete
2000) Earth "jurisprudence" (Berry 2003) "indigenous politics" (Hoskins 2010), Gaia Theory (Lovelock 1973), "natural
democracy" (Cajete 2000), endogenous "co-governance"(Reichel-Dolmatoff 2014 personal communication)
45
Banuri and Marglin 1993
46
Sponsel et al 1997

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bureaucratic procedure and strangled by exogenous control through governance , national
accounting and management
47
.
It has been estimated
48
that 25%
49
of Cultural Tibet is comprised of Sacred Lands dedicated to
and inhabited to gzhi bdag.
The purpose of this study is to redress the monocultural myopia
50
of the transnational
conservation elite
51
by attempting: -
1) To ground truth the realities and extents of selected SNS, under the aegis of a divinity known as
a gzhi bdag predicated on a bio-cultural audit.

2) To bring phenomenological recognition and understanding of the gzhi bdag phenomenon to local
and global audiences.

3) To begin to secure, with others, international recognition and protection for 500,000 km
2
of
Tibetan Spiritscape and the cultures (in toto) that support them


2 The Study Area
The Yubeng Valley
The Yubeng Valley, comprising 8899ha
52
, lies at the heart of the Khawakarpo mountain range in
Deqin Prefecture, NW Yunnan and straddles the inner kora pilgrim route
53
. It encompasses nine
groups of peaks which circumscribe the abodes
54
of the gzhi bdag
55
, including three forested peaks
which are also sealed
56
. It is only accessible on foot and is an important trekking and pilgrimage
centre. Its Tibetan inhabitants mostly live in Upper Yubeng
57
or Lower Yubeng
58
and speak a dialect

47
Agrawal 1995
48
Buckley 2007, Shen et al 2012
49
567,000km
2

50
Hwa Yol Jung 2002 Page 3
51
Holmes 2011
52
GIS estimate
53
http://caindoherty.wordpress.com/2012/11/04/the-inner-kora-of-kawakarpo/
54
Known as palaces or citadels or or pho brang in Tibetan
55
Pronounced reda in much of Deqin TAP this should not be confused with rida.
56
Known in Tibetan as or ri rgya bsdam
57
3350m
58
3250m

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of Kham. It is a constituent part of one of the properties within the Three Parallel Rivers World
Heritage Site because of its biodiversity, its sacred peaks and its ritual sites
59
.

3 Survey Methods
The survey methods were predicated on:-
a literature review of sacred sites in NW Yunnan
contact with sacred site researchers who have studied NW Yunnan
the preparation of GIS data sets of Deqin, Zhongdian and Khawakarpo
a bio-cultural audit of the Yubeng Valley and selected villages in Zhongdian County
60



3.1 Site Selection
The Yubeng Valley was selected as the principal research site because it was known as an important
Tibetan Buddhist site, its mountains are inhabited by gzhi bdag and several of them are also
sealed
61
. In additional 11 sites were selected in Zhongdian County
62
to assess the distribution across
the Prefecture.

59
which include a sacred waterfall, a mystic temple, a conic megalith and a sacred cave complex
60
Also known as Shangri-la County
61
Known in Tibetan as ri rgya bsdam
62
Also known as Shangri-la County

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Figure 1 Research sites (including Yunnan insert)

Page 8
4 Results
4.1 The gzhi bdag survey

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6 How many gzhi bdag
1 1 8.33%
2 5 41.67%
3 4 33.33%
5 1 8.33%
9 1 8.33%
Total 12
Mean 3.08
Standard Dev. 2.11
Variance 4.45
Response 12 100.00%
5 are there any gzhi bdag here
yes 12 100.00%
no 0 0.00%
Total 12
Mean 1.00
Standard Dev. 0.00
Variance 0.00
Response 12 100.00%
8 is there a known liminal boundary
yes 12 100.00%
no 0 0.00%
Total 12
Mean 1.00
Standard Dev. 0.00
Variance 0.00
Response 12 100.00%
Data analysis and graphics fromwww.questionpro.com
7 what is the size of the total gzhi bdag
domains in the village (mu)?
(how long does it take to walk around)
15 mu = 1 ha
Data Set:
350, 450, 500, 1212, 2000, 2500, 4401, 4500,
4500, 9000, 85320 ha
Descriptive Statistics: Minimum: 350
Maximum
:
85320
Range: 84970
Count: 11
Sum: 114733 7648.86
Mean: 10430 695.33
Median: 2500
Mode: 4500
Standard
Deviation:
24970
Variance: 623600000


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10 can you describe the gzhi bdag rituals
household devotions 10 27.03%
men/monks offer bsang at la btsas 8 21.62%
community and ad hoc 9 24.32%
all offer bsang at bsang thab 10 27.03%
Total 37
Mean 2.51
Standard Dev. 1.17
Variance 1.37
Response 10 83.33%
Data analysis and graphics from www.questionpro.com
9 Is the domain sealed (ri rgya)?
Yes 1 8.33%
No 0 0.00%
I have never heard of sealing 11 91.67%
Total 12
Mean 2.83
Standard Dev. 0.58
Variance 0.33
Response 12 100.00%
11 what activities are sanctioned in gzhi bdag
domain
limited cutting 1 6.25%
collecting herbs 1 6.25%
collect grass 1 6.25%
collect dry firewood 1 6.25%
grazing 5 31.25%
male access 1 6.25%
protect trees 3 18.75%
protect animals 2 12.50%
special access for women 1 6.25%
Total 16
Mean 5.44
Standard Dev. 2.22
Variance 4.93
Response 12 100.00%



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13 can you name the types of retribution
for upsetting a gzhi bdag
human illness 4 23.53%
cancer 1 5.88%
human death 2 11.76%
animal illness 2 11.76%
animal death 2 11.76%
hail and storms 1 5.88%
avalanches 1 5.88%
glaciers recede 1 5.88%
madness or craziness 1 5.88%
dreams and nightmares 1 5.88%
bad things happen 1 5.88%
Total 17
Mean 4.94
Standard Dev. 3.60
Variance 12.93
Response 6 50%
14 What are the means of restitution
offer bsang 7 43.75%
chanting 1 6.25%
prayer flags 2 12.50%
pray for all villagers 1 6.25%
white scarf 1 6.25%
plant trees 3 18.75%
release animals 1 6.25%
Total 16
Mean 3.06
Standard Dev. 2.26
Variance 5.13
Response 9 75%
Data analysis and graphics from www.questionpro.com
12 what activities are not sanctioned in gzhi bdag
domain
no tree cutting 2 10.00%
no litter dropping 1 5.00%
improper dress 2 10.00%
no hunting 4 20.00%
no burning 1 5.00%
no access to snow peaks 1 5.00%
no access for women 3 15.00%
no firewood collection 4 20.00%
no herb collecting 1 5.00%
no urinating or defecating on glaciers 1 5.00%
Total 20
Mean 5.45
Standard Dev. 2.70
Variance 7.31
Response 9 75.00%



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15 who assists you when you make
restitution
a lama 3 60.00%
a cangba 1 20.00%
a lha pa 0 0.00%
a sngags pa 0 0.00%
a divination master or mo pa 1 20.00%
an amchi / Tibetan doctor 0 0.00%
nobody 0 0.00%
Total 5
Mean 2.00
Standard Dev. 1.73
Variance 3.00
Response 3 25.00%
16 who is responsible for cultural
reproduction (of gzhi bdag cult)
Village elders 2 50.00%
Parents 2 50.00%
Lamas 0 0.00%
Cangba 0 0.00%
Total 4
Mean 1.50
Standard Dev. 0.58
Variance 0.33
Response 2 8.16%
17 Is biodiversity greater in the gzhi bdag
domain?
Yes 10 83.33%
No 2 16.67%
Total 12
Mean 1.17
Standard Dev. 0.39
Variance 0.15
Response 12 100.00%
Data analysis and graphics from www.questionpro.com



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18 Can you name any unique
flora or fauna in the gzhi bdag domain
nabi 1 3.45%
pheasants 4 13.79%
small panda 3 10.34%
wolves 2 6.90%
bears 1 3.45%
leopards 3 10.34%
tigers 2 6.90%
musk deer 2 6.90%
many bamboo species 2 6.90%
rare plants 3 10.34%
rare animals 1 3.45%
monkeys 2 6.90%
108 plant/tree species 2 6.90%
other 1 3.45%
Total 29
Mean 7.00
Standard Dev. 4.00
Variance 16.00
Other Option [Other]
serow
Response 8 66.66%
19 What are the greatest threats to gzhi
bdag sites
Tourism 1 5.56%
Formal Education (in boarding schools) 1 5.56%
Economic development 1 5.56%
Logging 3 16.67%
Mining 0 0.00%
Globalisation 0 0.00%
External philosophic values 6 33.33%
External cultural values 6 33.33%
Total 18
Mean 6.00
Standard Dev. 2.33
Variance 5.41
Response 6 50%
Data analysis and graphics from www.questionpro.com
Q15, 16 and 19 were based on volunteered information
4.2 The GIS Survey


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5 Discussion
5.1 gzhi bdag Sites
gzhi bdag sites are a common phenomenon throughout the Tibetan world
63
and may comprise up
to
64
25% of the land area of the Qinghai-Tibetan Plateau
65
. On the basis of the gzhi bdag survey
(section 4) respondents
66
were familiar with gzhi bdag (100%), the number of sites per village
(100%)
67
and their approximate size (91.66%)
68
.
There are nine gzhi bdag locales in the Yubeng Valley, and six of them are snow mountain groups,
and three are forested mountains. The gzhi bdag mountains comprise in total an area of 5278 ha
or 60 % of the Yubeng catchment.


Figure 2. The protected and sealed gzhi bdag domains of the Yubeng Valley

63
Huber 1999a+b, Zhang Zhongyun p.c. 11/3/13
64
with gnas or monastery land
65
Buckley 2007
66
Q5-7
67
An average of 3.08 sites per village
68
An average of 10,430 mu or 700ha this was estimated in several cases from the time it took to walk around the
domain

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5.2 Ritual Protection and Sealing
The protection of gzhi bdag sites is not merely a cultural or spiritual phenomenon. It is considered
a human right that has been identified and protected by international law
69
. On the basis of the
survey 100% of respondents knew the liminal boundary
70
of the gzhi bdag sites (Q8) and were able
to describe their geospatial extent and behavioural expectations. Only 8.33% of respondents were
familiar with sealing (Q9) which ensures double protection of gzhi bdag sites.
gzhi bdag site sealing is not a universal practice in every Tibetan community but it is quite
widespread
71
. Mountain domains are sealed to protect flora and fauna owned by gzhi bdag and to
prevent any disturbance within the domain of the gzhi bdag. Eleven villages
72
out of fifty, in the
Khawakarpo Mountains have sealed off their numinous gzhi bdag lands from domesticated
settlements by establishing liminal lines above their villages.
Three forested mountains
73
in the Yubeng Valley have been ritually sealed in a ceremony involving
the hereditary headmen of Yubeng and a Lama from Hong Po Monastery, Deqin
74
.
5.3 Maintaining Topocosmic Equilibrium
The economies, kinship ties, and well-being of most indigenous societies are perpetuated on the
basis of topocosmic reciprocity
75
predicated on epistemologies characterized by ceremony and
ritual
76
. Ceremony is both a context for transferring knowledge and a way to maintain and restore
balance, renewal, relationship and creative participation with nature
77
. Indigenous epistemologies

69
Article 25 of the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples states that Indigenous peoples have the right to
maintain and strengthen their distinctive spiritual relationship with their traditionally owned or otherwise occupied and
used lands, territories, waters and coastal seas and other resources and to uphold their responsibilities to future
generations in this regard.
70
A threshold to a liminal zone (See Durkheim 1995, Robertson 2006)
71
See Huber 2004
72
Lanier 2005
73
tso da, ben de ru and bon bo ru
74
Upon the request of the local people, the Lama is invited to check the "feng-shui" (geomancy) of the gzhi bdag
mountain first. They will decide the direction of the boundary line after they have surveyed the landscape, forest, as well
as the places that are likely to be frequented with mudslides and landslides. They will set the line according to the sun-
dial, and then set up mani stone piles intermittently, or bury a treasure vase containing 25 kinds of medicinal herbs, five
kinds of silk and satin, five sorts of gold, silver and gem stones and five kinds of grain. Afterwards, they will recite the
Buddhist manuscripts for seven to 21 days. When all these have been completed, the grass above the divide line cannot
be collected, the trees cannot be felled and stones cannot be quarried. Each year, the local community will send for the
Lama to preside over the ceremonies and recite the Buddhist manuscripts (Guo Jing 2000)
75
Bird-David 1992, Gaster 1961
76
LaChapelle 1984
77
Cajete 2000

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are manifest through behavioural expectations, customs, rituals, and values which are articulated
and transmitted in stories, histories and lessons.
Equilibrium is maintained in Deqin by securing the patronage
78
of a gzhi bdag and by protecting
their domain (and its flora and fauna), and by honouring and thanking them when necessary and by
making restitution when required
Behavioural Expectations in gzhi bdag domains
Culturally defined expectations exist in most cultures which determine human behaviour.
Behaviour in a SNS inhabited by a gzhi bdag is not determined by governance but on annual
ceremonies
79
and daily rituals
80
that maintain relational harmony with the gzhi bdag.
On the basis of the survey 100% of respondents knew what behaviour was allowed in a gzhi bdag
domain (Q11), namely grazing (31.25%), protecting trees (18.75%), protecting animals (12.50%),
limited cutting (6.25%), collecting herbs (6.25%), collecting grass (6.25%), collecting dry firewood
(6.25%), male access (6.25%), special access for women (6.25%)
81
.
75% of respondents knew what behaviour was not allowed (Q12) namely no hunting (20.00%), no
firewood collection (20.00%), no access for women (15.00%), no tree cutting (10.00%), improper
dress (10.00%), no litter dropping (5.00%), no burning (5.00%), no access to snow peaks (5.00%),
no herb collection (5.00%), no urinating or defecating on glaciers (5.00%)
41.66% of respondents volunteered that behaviour (spyod pa) in gzhi bdag domains is self-
regulated through self-appraisal (rang tshod) and discernment (shes pa) of topocosmic

78
success (in hunting, trading, travel, farming, forestry), protection, blessing, glory, honour, fame, prosperity, progeny
and power for the people and their political and religious leadership
79
The gzhi bdag is worshipped in annual mountain-side ceremonies as an ancestral and territorial divinity to ensure
personal protection, the security of territory and abundance of resources. Typically the gzhi bdag are honoured and
appeased through the building of wooden or stone cairns which are annually constructed according to the lunar calendar.
The rituals indude fumigation offerings, the scattering of wind horses, the planting of prayer flags or arrows and prayer to
the gzhi bdag. Through invocation, geospatially discrete territory is evoked by the geographically ordered naming of land deities
and `renuminised' (Martins 2002, 99) linking sacred and political territory with physical correlates (Bauer 2009). The aim of
the ritual is to restore the relationship between the community and the gzhi bdag and consists of both offerings and requests.
The worshippers call on the gzhi bdag for personal protection, the realisation of ambitions and fortune, the subduing of
enemies, success in hunting and forgiveness for environmental degradation (Gross 1997). They regard the gzhi bdag as a
provider of blessing, glory, honour, fame, prosperity, progeny and power for the people and their political and religious
leadership. During the year the gzhi bdag circumnavigates the territory defining the community's boundaries and resources.
Participation in such a ritual implies total integration into the community, which in turn implies inherited social and
political obligations, moral and individual responsibility, and an affirmation of communal solidarity in the face of
external aggression.
80
Known in Tibetan as (cho ga)
81
On specific sites

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equilibrium. It is guided by fear of offending (phog thug) the gzhi bdag, fear of retribution (chags
sgo), an obligation to show respect, honour, devotion (dad pa) and gratitude and a means of
securing blessing and protection (rang srung).
Honouring and thanking the gzhi bdag
gzhi bdag sites are inscribed in the landscape and in local consciousness through folklore and
through a cycle of daily, monthly, seasonal and annual ritual devotions. For each gzhi bdag there
are specific prayers for specific occasions, many of which have been preserved in ritual texts
82
.
On the basis of the survey (Q10) 83.3% of respondents were aware of the gzhi bdag rituals
including; household devotions (27.03%) the offering of bsang
83
for all at a bsang thab
84
(27.03%),
community and ad hoc offerings (24.32%), offerings by monks and/or men at mountain la btsas
85

(21.62%).
Retribution
gzhi bdag are capricious and easily offended
86
especially if they are not honoured and thanked and
humankind disturbs them, their domain, or the flora and fauna they own. If they are angered they
will take retribution
87
on the people they are responsible for, or their stock, or their crops.
On the basis of the survey (Q13) only 50% of respondents were aware of the types of retribution
that would result from upsetting or disturbing a gzhi bdag. These included human illness (23.53%),
human death (11.76%), animal illness (11.76%), animal death (11.76%), cancer (5.88%), hail and
storms (5.88%), avalanches (5.88%), glacial retreat (5.88%), madness (5.88%), nightmares (5.88%),
bad things happening (5.88%).


82
known in Tibetan as (bsang yig)
83
incense
84
incense altar
85
mountain altar
86
The Tibetan word for this is (or phog thug gtong) to be offended
87
The Tibetan word for this is (or las bras)

Page 18

Figure 3 An altar on the roof of a house in Upper Yubeng for honouring and appeasing the gzhi bdag of snow peak min tso mo
and forested peak of ben de ru

Making restitution with the gzhi bdag
When a gzhi bdag is offended this not only results in retribution but it has an impact on topocosmic
equilibrium. As a result restitution is required between the transgressor and the gzhi bdag and the
transgressor and the community.
On the basis of the survey (Q14) 75% of respondents were aware of the measures required to make
restitution with a gzhi bdag. Typically the measures included offering bsang
88
(43.75%), planting
trees (18.75%), erecting prayer flags (12.50%), chanting (6.25%), praying for the village (6.25%),
offering a white scarf (6.25%), and releasing animals into the wild
89
(6.25%)


88
incense
89
known as tshe thar gtong in Tibetan. The release of animals is a pre-Buddhist custom, for averting danger,
regaining bla (soul) and health, and the annulment of misdeeds (sdig pa sel ba). It is a common practice among nomads
and the Tibetan diaspora (See Bauer 2013, Gerke 2012, Rosing and Spurkhapa 2006, Tucci 1988)

Page 19
Mediation or Ritual Enquiry
Some form of mediation or ritual enquiry is often employed to establish which gzhi bdag is
offended, who the transgressor is, and the type of restitution required. Traditionally deity
mediums
90
were consulted but as many of them were persecuted during the Cultural Revolution
transgressors have had to rely on other cultural specialists
91
(i.e. blamas, cangba
92
, amchi
93
, or
mo pa
94
). In the case of a deity medium the gzhi bdag communicates verbally, but most other
cultural specialists have to rely on divination
95
through astrology or chance.
On the basis of the survey (Q15) 25% of respondents referred to ritual enquiry, namely blamas
(60%), canga (20%) and mo pa
96
(20%).
The gzhi bdag do sometimes warn transgressors through dreams, visions, omens
97
, theophanies
98

and even the abduction of relatives
99
. Omens and divination are important for maintaining
harmony with a gzhi bdag and the topocosm
100
.
Cultural reproduction (of the gzhi bdag cult)
In most indigenous societies cultural specialists are knowledgeable about wildlife and play an
important role in environmental storytelling and the transmission of culture and indigenous
knowledge ensuring harmony within the cosmos.
As a result of persecution the role of the cultural specialists in Deqin appears to be limited to
mediation
101
, and with the exception of one cultural specialist
102
elders and parents appear
103
to be
shouldering most of the responsibility for intergenerational enculturation
104
.

90
Often known as lha pa in Tibetan
91
Yang Fuquan 2002
92
The author was unable to establish if cangba were trance mediums or relied on dice divination.
93
Tibetan Doctor or
94
Divination master
95
mo in Tibetan
96
Divination masters
97
(rten brel) in Tibetan and pronounced tendrel.
98
The temporal and spatial manifestation of a divinity in some tangible form (e.g. human or animal)
99
Norbu 1997
100
Samuel 1993
101
On the basis of the gzhi bdag survey (Q15)
102
A monk in the chapel next to the padma cave complex in Yubeng
103
On the basis of the gzhi bdag survey (Q16)
104
Enculturation is the process by which people learn the requirements of their surrounding culture and acquire values
and behaviours appropriate or necessary in that culture.

As part of this process, the influences that limit, direct, or shape
the individual (whether deliberately or not) include parents, other adults, and peers. If successful, enculturation results in
competence in the language, values and rituals of the culture


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5.4 Biodiversity
Sacred land, especially ritually protected numinous enclosures such as gzhi bdag locales, are
typically characterised by explicit nature conservation and serve as exemplars or refugia
105
of
biodiversity.
In spite of the Cultural Revolution and Logging between 1950 and 1998 the survey revealed that
83.33% of respondents (Q18) believed that there was more biodiversity inside the gzhi bdag
domain than outside, although most of them recognized that there had been much greater
biodiversity prior to 1950. In addition 66.66% of respondents were able to name unique flora &
fauna (See Q19 for detail).
Biodiversity studies of Yubeng flora
106
suggest some significant differences based on sanctity.
These included differences in useful species, endemic species, tree size (DBH) and basal area
(m2/ha). The literature
107
suggests that the fauna found in the Yubeng Valley includes:- deer, blue
sheep, golden-haired monkey, monkey, tiger, panda, musk deer, pheasant, bear, rabbit, wolf, small
panda, snow leopards, Ja
108
,parakeets, golden eagles, bearded vultures, rose finches, yellow
throated buntings, Goulds sunbird and Lady Amhersts pheasant.
5.5 Threats to gzhi bdag locales and culture
The preservation of gzhi bdag sites and their biodiversity is contingent upon the protection of
indigenous culture and its intergenerational transmission. Threats to indigenous culture are
addressed elsewhere
109
and can only be summarised in this chapter.
The greatest bio-cultural threats, on the basis of the survey (Q19), include: - external philosophic
values (33.33%), external cultural values (33.33%), logging (16.67%), primary education in boarding
school (5.56%), tourism (5.56%) and economic development (5.56%)
In Yubeng the greatest threats are posed by: - formal education and tourism followed by the
expansion of transportation and communication links, mountaineering, and economic

105
An area where special environmental circumstances have enabled a species or a community of species to
survive after extinction in surrounding areas.
106
Anderson et al 2005, Salick et al 2007
107
Guo Jing 2000 Eckholm 2001, Holmes and Holmes 2011, Sonam Dorje p.c. 15/9/2013
108
Ja is believed to be gya in Tibetan or serowin Lepcha or Capricornis thar. In the Khawakarpo mountains they often
have a white mane.
109
Studley 2005

Page 21
development
110
. According to the Khawakarpo Culture Association if the local culture is degraded
by outside influences it will affect the religious culture and the conservation ethic
111
.
There is already evidence of alienation
112
in Tibetan secondary school children in Ganzi TAP
113

which may have spread to Tibetan primary school students in NW Yunnan
114
. Although the
headmaster still lives in Yubeng the Primary School was closed in 2012 and primary school children
currently attend boarding school in Deqin.
Tourism
115
and the market economy have been more destructive in Southwest China than the
Cultural Revolution, because it has resulted in a new generation who care little for religion and
culture.
The forced elimination of Tibetan Culture in one generation coupled with the effects of modernity
has significantly changed Tibetan culture in Yubeng
116
and as a result of tourism
117
the protected
areas in Yubeng are no longer safe, and beliefs in gzhi bdag are beginning to break down.

Figure 4 Yubengs defunct primary school (CCTV)

110
Sonam Dorje p.c. 15/9/2013, Moseley et al 2003
111
Moseley et al 2003
112
From place and culture
113
Studley 2012
114
Recently the Deqin TAP government has established boarding schools in the main towns, for primary school students
from remote villages.
115
Ma Jianzhong in Lanier 2005
116
Lanier 2005
117
Tanga Lobsang p.c. 29/19/2013

Page 22
In marked contrast to Deqin TAP efforts are being made globally to bring indigenous language and
knowledge into school curriculum, and to move learning back into the community, thus reaffirming
the status of elders as knowledge holders
118
.
Although the Khawakarpo Cultural association and others
119
have created a bio-cultural archive of
the region there are no formal mechanisms to reproduce enculturation or to move learning back
into the community.
6. Conclusions
Sacred Natural Sites continue to play a major role in the lives and identity of the Tibetan
population of China, but for very different reasons. The gzhi bdag sites are the numinous abodes of
territorial divinities that protect and grant success to lay Tibetans and undergird their identity and
Tibetanness.
Ritually protected enclosures are common throughout the Tibetan world and the diaspora
120
and
may comprise up to 25% of the land mass of Cultural Tibet. In NW Yunnan most villages have three
gzhi bdag sites totalling approximately 700ha with well known and well defined geospatial extents
and greater biodiversity than adjacent areas.
The ritual protection of the flora and fauna within a gzhi bdag domain is currently conducted on the
basis of self-regulation in order to ensure topocosmic equilibrium. Although ritual protection is
being maintained it is coming under pressure as a result of timber requirements for tourism and
exogenous governance.
There is recognition that as the local culture is degraded by outside influences it will affect the
religious culture and the conservation ethic. Some steps have been taken both globally and locally
to strengthen ties between elders and youth in order to reinforce the transmission of indigenous
knowledge and culture, but more needs to be done.
Cultural specialists were heavily persecuted during the Cultural Revolution and in some locations
only a few remain today.

118
Arenas et al 2010, http://www.unesco.org/new/fileadmin/MULTIMEDIA/HQ/SC/pdf/sc_LINKS-poster%20revitalising.pdf
119
Greer 2002, Lanier 2005, Xiao Xiangyi 2012
120
Tibetan emigration has occurred in five waves, 1) during the reign of Langdharma (836-842AD), 2) during the Era of
Fragmentation (9
th
-11
th
century), 3) following the 1959 Tibetan uprising 80,000 Tibetans emigrated to India, 4)
following opening and reform (from 1987), 5)School children going to India for further education (from 2000).

Page 23
Given the paucity of cultural specialists elders and parents appear to be shouldering most of the
responsibility for intergenerational enculturation. It is questionable, however, if cultural
reproduction will continue automatically in much of Deqin TAP with primary school children
currently being sent to boarding school.
Currently there are two main international channels for recognizing and protecting unique areas of
bio-cultural diversity, namely via the IUCN
121
or ICCA
122
. Both of these avenues present problems
the cultures of minority indigenous peoples living in countries that have top-down hierarchical
political systems and are predicated on a very questionable agenda of governance. In the light of
these difficulties the current ICCA registration processes, form of governance, and GIS data
publication protocols are in urgent need of review.

7 Recommendations
Further field work is required to confirm the total area of spiritscapes in Cultural Tibet. This
information can also be used as base material for their protection.
Further research is required in order to audit gzhi bdag ritual activity.
Further research is required into the role of cangba and mo pa in Tibetan society and the viability of
increasing their numbers and distribution through training or mentoring.
Research is required into mechanisms for ensuring cultural reproduction.
There is an urgent need to identify international organisations and forums that can disseminate the
endangered status of Tibetan Spiritscapes and highlight the need to recognise them and secure
protection for them as discrete categories in their own right.
Representation need to be made to ICCA, WCMC
123
and IUCN to amend registration, governance
and GIS protocols so that Tibetan spiritscapes can be recognized and protected and the belief
systems that support them (in toto).

121
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Union_for_Conservation_of_Nature
122
http://www.iccaconsortium.org/
123
http://www.unep-wcmc.org/

Page 24
Lastly there is an urgent need for all to assist in the process of discursive recalibration of SNS to
ensure the bio-cultural diversity of the Tibetan Plateau and bring recognition to all the custodians
(human and non-human).
Acknowledgements
The author is indebted to the support provided for this research by China Exploration and Research
Society
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