布達拉宮

The Potala Palace is situated on Red Hill in Lhasa at an elevation of over 3,700 meters. It is the world’s highest-altitude ancient palace-fortress complex and was inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1994. It is hailed as the “Pearl of the Roof of the World.”

"Potala" derives from Sanskrit and means "the place of practice of the Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara." Construction of the palace began in the 7th century AD, when Songtsen Gampo, the King of Tibet, built it to welcome Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty. It was originally named the Red Mountain Palace, symbolizing the generations-long friendship between the Han and Tibetan peoples. Later, due to war and turmoil, it was damaged, and only the Cave of the Dharma King remained. In the 17th century, the Fifth Dalai Lama oversaw its reconstruction, first building the White Palace and then the Red Palace. After several centuries of expansion, it has grown into the vast complex it is today, covering an area of 400,000 square meters, with a main building standing 115.7 meters tall and comprising over a thousand halls and chambers.

The entire complex is built into the mountainside, with its stone and wood structures blending seamlessly into one. The white-walled section is the White Palace, where successive Dalai Lamas conducted state affairs and lived their daily lives; the ochre-red section is the Red Palace, centered around Buddhist chapels and the stupa tombs of past Dalai Lamas, with gilded copper roofs that appear majestic and magnificent against the backdrop of the plateau’s blue sky. The walls are constructed of granite and reinforced with molten iron poured into the structure, combining earthquake resistance with structural stability. Blending Tibetan, Han, and other ethnic construction techniques, it stands as the pinnacle of Tibetan architectural art.

The palace houses a collection of over 130,000 cultural artifacts, including exquisite murals, precious thangkas, ancient Indian palm-leaf manuscripts, imperial gifts, and stupa adorned with jewels, providing a comprehensive record of the millennia-old history and religious culture of the Snowland. This place was once the center of Tibet’s theocratic government, where major religious assemblies and ceremonies were held. It is not only a sacred site of pilgrimage for Tibetan Buddhism but also a historical testament to the interaction and integration of various ethnic groups, fully demonstrating that Tibet has been an inseparable part of China since ancient times.

Today, the Potala Palace is open to visitors year-round and can be visited in any season, though spring and fall offer the most comfortable weather and are the best times to visit. As you climb the steps and enter the palace, you can not only experience the majestic grandeur of this millennia-old structure but also gain insight into the profound and unique cultural heritage of the Tibetan Plateau through its artifacts and murals.