First of all, I need to dwell for a while on the historical background, in order to elaborate on a feature of Lhasa which makes it so different from other cities in China. This feature enabled many Western explorers to write a large number of books, and more books have been written by later generations about those books themselves.

Only a little over 20 years ago, in the l970s, Tibet was still regarded as a place of mystery. This was the result of poor communications and few exchanges between Tibet and the outside world. But since China adopted the policy of reform and opening to the outside world in the late l970s, and particularly with the development of tourism, this situation has changed drastically. Tibet is no longer a "land of mystery." The reason Lhasa became so famous throughout the world (primarily in the West) was, apart from the initial enthusiasm for a region unknown, that the door to Lhasa was closed. The more Tibet wanted to shut strangers out, the more they wanted to get in. The more the risks and failures, the more the stimulation and challenges. Such a mentality is ingrained in the composition of Westerners, ancient and modem. The tightly shut door itself was a focus of excitement. What was hidden behind the door? This further aroused their curiosity. The mystery was further spread and exaggerated. No matter from which direction they came, all the explorers who came by crossing the Himalayas in the south, the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau in the north, or rivers and mountains in the east were without exception stopped by the c1osed door of the sacred city. This made those explorers' curiosity all the more intense, and made Tibet and Lhasa even more intriguing.

Lhasa was quite willing to open to the outside world in the early days. Up until the 19th century, Lhasa welcomed foreigners, including Muslim and Christian missionaries. The first Muslim known to have reached Lhasa came from Kashmir, during the reign of the fifth Dalai Lama, some 400 years ago. He often prayed at the foot of Mount Ganpe in the northwestern suburbs of the city. The fifth Dalai Lama admired his devotion, and gave him a piece of land in the western suburbs so that he could have a better place to practice his religion, and he was exempted from all taxes and corvee labor. Such hospitality attracted more Muslims to Lhasa. Soon, a mosque and a cemetery were constructed, which attracted even more Muslims from Kashmir, Ladakh, Nepal and Sikkim to do business in Lhasa. Many Muslims, including some from the Central Plains, settled down there. They were disciplined, kept a low profile and had good relations with the local Tibetans. They never advocated their religion outside their own community. Most of them engaged in service work, and gradually they merged into the life of Lhasa. Politically, Islam had little influence in Tibet. However, its culture took root in Lhasa. Two mosques, one large and one small, stand side by side today in Barkor Street.

Several groups of Christian missionaries reached Lhasa during the Middle Ages. Some of them lived in Lhasa for scores of years. Like the Muslims, they were welcomed at first. The  seventh Dalai Lama and two regents before and after him, respectively, became very interested in Christianity. They were allowed to build churches and proselytize. Pholhanas, who was in charge of the political affairs of Tibet, ordered that Christian churches be protected and exempted the priests from certain taxes and corvee labor. But as the influence of Christianity spread, and the number of converts increased, a clash with the established Buddhist faith became inevitable. Fina1ly, waves of persecution, involving the demolition of churches and the expulsion of foreign missionaries, exterminated Christianity in Tibet.

This left an indelible impression on the Tibetan people. Religious differences have long been more important to them than racial ones. After that, Tibetans, the monks in particular, mistrusted Westerners. Events in modern and contemporary history have proved that the Westerners truly had ulterior motives.

This episode also indicated that entry into Tibet was conditional. The very first condition was that the principle of the religious life of the Tibetan people must not be interfered with.

Tibet is said to have been turned into a forbidden zone after Qing troops had defeated a Nepalese invasion in the late l8th century. The victory strengthened the control of the Central Government in the hinterland over Tibet. Because of the rise of the Western powers, which
threatened China's local interests, the Qing court decided to close Tibet to foreigners. This was in compliance with the basic closed-door policy of the late Qing Dynasty. This decision was naturally hailed by the Tibetan government. With natural barriers and the determination to block the infiltration of Westerners, Tibet seemed to feel secure in an absolutely isolated environment.

However, the door of Tibet was forced open by a British army officer named Francis Younghusband, who led an armed expedition into Tibet in 1904. A Western reporter exulted, "Today is probably the first time in world history that Lhasa has been mentioned as the place of release of a piece of news." It was a moment of indig-nation, disgrace, disappointment and despair for Lhasa, Tibet and China.

Before that, the Tibetan government and Buddhist monks had put up a heroic fight against the invaders. However, there were people who hampered their efforts. One of them was the Qing CoUrt's High Commissioner (Amban) You Tai, who disgracefully forced the Tibetan government to sign an agreement with the aggressors....

Later on, the door of Tibet was closed to the Han Chinese for a period of seven or eight years, during which time there were two mass expulsions of the latter from Tibet. Much of this period is covered in this book. This is called by some Westerners a period of "de facto independence of Tibet." But what actually happened was very complicated. In the historical circumstances of the time, no one in the Central Government knew who was who in Tibetan Gaxag government. Instigated by the imperialist powers headed by Britain, a few people tried hard to seek independent status. But, no matter whether from the point of view of historical relations, feelings between nationalities, geopolitics or international standards, how could Tibet be severed from China? The so-called internationalization of the "Tibet issue" originated in that period. Some people regarded the loss of the "kingdom of the monks" as a loss akin to that of the Garden of Eden. This, unfortunately, has inevitably given a strong political tinge to this book about Old Lhasa.