Thokchas of Early Tibet

Thokchas are copper alloy artifacts which have frequently been found at sacred sites in Tibet along side of petroglyphs or rock carvings. These small metal objects are believed to be as old as the pre-Buddhist period. They frequently are not well known by scholars. John Vincent Bellezza has done a great deal of exploration at old Bonpo sacred sites and caves and has written scholarly archaeological research articles about them.

Most of the specimens of thokchas and petroglyphs come from Töd and Changthang in northern or western Tibet. This area was formerly known as Zhang Zhung. Thokchas were used as amulets. The root of the word Thokcha is thog which can be translates are primordial, first, or thunderbolt and would translate as either thunderbold iron or first metal. According to mythology thokchas came into being when metal thunderbolts struck the ground. These talismans were highly valued religious objects.

To learn more about thokchas and to view some pictures of them do an internet search for John Vincent Bellezza.

Three Cups of Tea

I just finished reading a WONDERFUL book, about the adventures
on one man who climbed K2 in 1993 and got lost, disoriented and
sick on his descent. Greg Mortenson ended up being nursed back to
health in a small Pakistani village called Korpe. After he
was well he asked the village chief to take him to their
school. What he discovered were children, without a building
or teacher, sitting on a slope doing their multiplication
in the sand with sticks. He made a promise that day that
led to more than a decade of humanitarian work to bring schools,
particularly for girls to the small, poverty stricked villages
in both Pakistan and Afganistan.

The Taliban and Al Qaeda use the extremist madressas or schools
for boys to brainwash the youth who will be the leaders of the
future. This is where the earliest terrorists learn to
hate Americans. But Greg founded a non-profit named the
Central Asia Institute which has build over 50 schools in
the backwoods areas of Pakistan and Afganistan and which
INCLUDE the young girls! He fights terror with books and
there have been many successes - the girls touched me the
most! What a wonderful way to help the young people of these
countries to know that all Americans are not bad people.

If you would like to learn more read the book Three Cups of Tea.
Or you can get involved by contacting Greg's non-profit at:

Central Asia Institute
P.O. Box 7209
Bozeman, MT 59771
406-585-7841
http://www.ikat.org

Please tell them you heard about them on the Wisdom Loving
Mother blogsite!