The name of Namtso Lake means
Heavenly Lake, or Gods' Lake or Lake of Immortals. As a famous Holy Land of
Tibetan Buddhism, it is located 190 kilometers between Dangxiong County of Lhasa
and Bange County of Naqu Region in the Tibet Autonomous Region. The lake is
4,718 meters above sea level and covers an area of more than 1,900 square
kilometers. The Namtso Lake is the second largest saltwater lake in China as
well as the highest saltwater lake in the world. The lake depends on melting ice
and snow from Danggula Mountains for water supply, with afflux of a number of
streams along it.
To the southeast of the Namtso Lake is the
main peak of snow-covered Danggula Mountains, and continuous highlands and hills
stand on the north side of the lake. Surrounded by vast grassland, the lake
looks like a huge mirror. With the clear blue sky over the dark blue lake, white
snow, green grass, colorful wild flowers and herdsman's ox-hair tents make a
beautiful and appealing natural landscape. The Namtso Lake is abundant in
precious medicinal materials such as Chinese caterpillar fungus, fritillaria,
and snow-lotus and as well as various fish species such as highland thin-scale
fish and no-scale fish. The lake is also a habitat of various wild animals such
as black bear, wild ox, wild donkey, blue sheep and marmot, etc.
Mani stone mounds can be found everywhere
along the Namtso Lake. Every Tibetan Buddhist throws a stone on every mound he
or she comes across. To throw a stone represents to recite the scriptures once.
Hanging on the Mani stone mound are pieces of cloth in five different colors,
blue, white, red, green and yellow. The cloth waves in the wind and one wave
means sending the scriptures to the Heaven once. With the elapse of time,
separate stone mounds have joined together to form a grand sight of Mani wall,
which is over one hundred meters long and about one meter high. Regarded as a
holy lake by pious Buddhists, the lake attracts pilgrims from as far as India
and Nepal.