Tibetan Portrait Project

Beginning in 1994 Phil Borges traveled to Tibet as well as northern India and Nepal to interview and photograph Tibetans and Tibetan refugees in an effort to understand what had happened to them, to their country and their culture. These are some of the people he met in this deeply spiritual culture—everyone from the nomads of the remote Himalayas to the Dalai Lama himself—each committed to their unique Tibetan culture and to the practice of compassion while coming to terms with the aggressive occupation of their homeland. In partnership with the Tibetan Rights Campaign and the International Campaign for Tibet they created the exhibition and book Tibet: The Power of Compassion.
Photos by Phil Borges of Phil Borges Productions

Jigme, 8; Sonam, 18 mo; Ladakh, India
Jigme and Sonam are sisters whose nomadic family had just come down from the Himalayan highlands to their 16,500 ft. winter camp on the Tibetan Plateau. When I gave Jigme a Polaroid of herself she looked at it, squealed and ran into her tent. I assumed that this was one of the only times she had seen herself since her family did not own a mirror.

Shelo, 20; Benba, 17; Nyalam, Tibet
Shelo and Benba, best friends since childhood, are currently working as hostel maids in Nyalam, an old Tibetan village that has recently become a stop over for climbers on their way to Mt. Everest. As Tibetans they are rapidly becoming an insignificant minority in their own country because of the massive influx of Chinese into Tibet.

Pemba, 4; Trak Tok, Ladakh
Pemba had come to the little village of Trak Tok with her mother and sister to see the highly elaborate and beautiful shum dance festival on this sunny but bitterly cold December day. She caught my eye in the crowd because of her look of fascination and total concentration on the dancers. She seemed to be transfixed during the entire ceremony in spite of the constant cold wind.

Ahida, 10 mo; Sonam; 21 mo; Lhasa, Tibet
Ahida and Sonam are Muslim children who live near their mosque in Lhasa , the capital city of Tibet. Sonam’s father indicated that the Muslims have peacefully lived alongside Tibetan Buddhists for centuries and that there are currently thousands of Muslims living in Tibet. He said their religious practices are strictly controlled by the Chinese Bureau of Religious Affairs.

Botok, 76; Tsangpa 78; Settlement Camp #1, Ladakh
Botok and Tsangpa were classified as wealthy by the Communist authorities in 1962 because they owned almost 1,000 sheep and goats. Threatened with imprisonment, they fled across the border into the Indian state of Ladakh with their three daughters and her other husband. They told me that it is not uncommon for Tibetan women to take more than one husband. 

Chamdu, 11; Tso Morari, Ladakh

Chamdu very hesitantly asked me if I had taken a photo of the Dalai Lama that she could have. She is the eldest of four children living in a yak hair tent with her family in this very remote and rugged area of the Changtang (Tibetan Plateau). Since there are no trees or bushes at this 16,500 ft altitude the only fuel they have is goat dung to get them through the long and bitter cold winter.

Dolkar, 5; Tashi, 6; Dharamsala, India
Dolkar and Tashi live in the Tibetan children’s village in upper Dharamsala along with 2,000 other Tibetan children that have been orphaned or sent out of Tibet by their parents. I was told that Dolkar was an extremely sensitive child but has adapted rather well since her arrival at the children’s village over a year ago. Tashi who was orphaned as a baby has come to be known as the joker of their class. 

Dolkar, 72; Youdoh, 74; Deckey 76; Dharamsala, India
These women are old friends who had fled Tibet with their families shortly after the Dalai Lama left in 1959. Dolkar’s husband was killed during the uprising leaving her with a family of six to raise. She said “although it was a very hard and sad time, having to leave and come to India brought these wonderful friends into my life.”

Dolma, 38; Changtang, Ladakh
Dolma had never seen a westerner up close before. She would reach out, touch my shoulder then quickly pull her arm back into her chuba and laugh. As a young girl she had escaped across the Tibet-India border with her family after word reached their remote nomad camp that they would be forced to live in a commune.

Kalsang, 25; Ngawang, 22; Dechen, 21; Dolma Ling Nunnery, India
These nuns had just arrived at the Dolma Ling nunnery in India after fleeing Tibet. In 1992 they were arrested, beaten, shocked with electric cattle prods and imprisoned two years for placing posters in Lhasa protesting the occupation of Tibet. Several times while talking, Dechen broke into tears, quietly excused herself and continued relating her story.

Karma, 63; Kathmandu, Nepal
Karma was one of several hundred nomads who fled Western Tibet in 1962 when her family got word the Chinese invaders were forcing nomads to live in communes. An older brother who stayed behind was one of thousands who starved to death the following winter when the dislocations resulted in an economic collapse. Today she is a carpet weaver living in Nepal.

Kunsang, 29; Dechen, 6 mo; Jawlakhel, Nepal
Kunsang walked 25 days, crossing the Himalayas with her baby boy on her back. She said “I want him to grow up in a Tibetan culture and get a proper education. At this time this is not possible for us Tibetans in our own country”. This photo was taken two weeks after they arrived in Nepal en route to India.

Lelung, 24; Dharamsala, India
Lelung Rinpoche is the reincarnation of a long line of high Tibetan lamas. Last year he was asked by the Dalai Lama to go to Tibet and rescue the written works of his previous incarnation the last Lelung Rinpoche. Although the monastery had been completely destroyed he was able to locate the writings and get them safely out of Tibet.

Lobsang, 67; Tensin, 13; Bodhnath, Nepal
Lobsang and 66 fellow monks were imprisoned in 1959. When released 21 years later, he was one of only three survivors. While in prison his best friend, a rinpoche, died in his arms. Tensin was later discovered to be the reincarnation of that friend. Lobsang said there are so many characteristics of his old friend in the young boy.

Namyang, 51; Tsutin, 56; Lhasa, Tibet
Namyang and Tsutin are farmers from Amdo province who had just arrived in Lhasa after completing a two-month pilgrimage to the Jokhang, the most sacred temple in Tibet. Tibetans from all over the country aspire to make this pilgrimage at least once during their lifetime.

Ngawang, 29; Dolma Ling Nunnery
Ngawang's lifelong desire was to become a nun but could not because of the restrictions set in Tibet. When she learned of the religious freedom and educational possibilities that were available in India she made the difficult decision to leave her family and home. She said "It is terrible, but I could not be a true Tibetan if I stayed in my own country".

Norzum, 44; Tso Morari, Ladakh
Norzum vividly remembers fleeing Tibet with his family as a boy. Walking at night and hiding during the day, it took over 20 days to cross the border into Ladakh. During the bitter cold journey, at altitudes above 16,000 feet, his younger brother died. He says that the area in which he is now forced to live is much harsher than his boyhood home.

Palden, 62; Dharamsala, India
Palden was arrested at his monastery in 1959 and spent 24 years in prison, where he was tortured frequently -- actually loosing 20 teeth in one beating. He managed to flee Tibet in 1987 and came to Dharamsala. He told me “ I no longer have anger for my captors. However, I feel it is my responsibility to let the outside world know what is happening in Tibet.”

Dawa, 15; Drigung Valley, Tibet
Dawa is a student and the eldest son of a barley farmer. Although responsible for his families herd of 400 goats, he spends most of his free time reading--especially anything written in Tibetan. He proudly showed me a well worn copy of an English--Tibetan phrase book that a western traveler had given him two years before.

Pusang, 64; Dundup, 31; Puga Valley, Ladakh
Pusang and Dundup are father and son. I arrived at their 17,000 ft. nomad camp early in December on a very cold windy day. They had just finished offering prayers prior to sacrificing two yaks for their winters food supply. Everything was so primal. It seemed like an imaginary scene from two hundred years ago on the North American plains. 

Samdi, 3; Lhasa, Tibet
Although just three, Samdi has the poise of someone much older. I’ll never forget the extraordinary mature look in her eyes. Her father said that she is already asking to become a nun. She was praying with her father at the Jokhang Temple when I first noticed her. 

Samdo, 50; Kunga, 18; Nam Tso, Tibet
Kunga was braiding her mother’s hair as I walked into their camp. It was mid morning and they were just about to cross the river to retrieve their goats for the morning milking. They motioned for me to join them as they waded across the ice-cold river. We each grabbed a goat by the horns and led/floated them back across to their camp. The rest of the herd followed.

Samdu, 11; Parka, Tibet
Samdu was stricken with a crippling malady known as “big bone disease” when she was five. Even though she does her best to help care for this rapeseed field she has to be carried everywhere by her friends. This arthritis like disease, which only afflicts the children, is virtually unknown outside her little village.

Sisi, 8; Norsum, 8; Parka, Tibet
Sisi and Norsum had just stayed up most of the night trying to save a premature baby goat. Unfortunately the goat died and they still had the early morning responsibility for the care and irrigation of this rapeseed field. Even with the extremely short season at an altitude of 12,500 ft their families are able to farm highland barley, beans, corn and rice.

Tamdin, 69; Dharamsala, India
Tamdin was imprisoned and tortured for taking part in a demonstration in Lhasa protesting the occupation of Tibet in 1987. Recently she escaped across the Himalayas, walking for 35 days to seek refuge and an audience with her spiritual leader the Dalai Lama. Still wearing her beat up tennis shoes, I took this photo three days after she had arrived in India.

Telang, 10; Tenzing, 12; Kathmandu, Nepal
Telang and Tenzing are brothers who live in a monastery very close to the stupa at Swayambunath in the Kathmandu valley. They were born in Nepal to parents who had fled Tibet as children during the uprising in 1959. Although there were a few Tibetans settled in Nepal for thousands of years most all of the 12,000 currently living there are refugees or descendants of refugees. 

Tseten, 81; Choglamsar, Ladakh
Tseten was almost 50 when he was forced to give up his large herd of goats and yaks and flee Tibet. He is now one of 2,000 Tibetans living in a refugee camp near Choglamsar, Ladakh where he has only one goat and a small plot of ground to grow some vegetables. He said ”because of my Buddhist training I am happy living anywhere”.

Tsezim, 78; Decky, 72; Dharamsala, India
Tsezim and Decky are old friends. They were among the 100,000 Tibetans who fled from Tibet in 1959, along with the Dalai Lama. Decky’s husband was killed during the uprising, but her five children escaped with her. She settled and raised her children in Dharamsala which is currently the home of the Dalai Lama and the Tibetan Government in Exile.

Yama, 8; Lhasa, Tibet
Yama came with her parents and three sisters on a 6 week pilgrimage to the Jokhang Temple in Lhasa from the province of Kham. “Yama helped carry our 10 month old daughter much of the way.” Her father said. “We noticed very early that she was born with the true spirit of wanting to help others.”

Yeshi, 13; Drigung Valley, Tibet
Yeshi was practicing her Tibetan script on a painted board in this small village school. I was amazed by the quality of her work. It was like some of the finest calligraphy I had seen. Her teacher was a Tibetan who had been educated in a Chinese run university. My interpreter told me that even though the Tibetan language was being taught the content of all their books on history and Tibetan culture were written from a Chinese perspective.

Tenzin Gyatso, Dalai Lama, 59; Dharamsala, India
Born to a peasant family, he was discovered to be the reincarnation of the Buddha of Compassion at the age of two. At four he was installed as the 14th Dalai Lama and then as a teenager he faced the invasion of his country. Eight years later he was forced to flee to neighboring India. For consistently advocating the policy of non-violence and compassion in response to the aggression that has befallen his country he was awarded the 1989 Nobel Peace Prize.