Kyudog

Dawa-la's father returned late from cutting grass. He sang quietly because his voice was tired after the party on the plain.

He guessed that of his ten recorded songs, at least a couple were only known by him alone, and the others only by memers of his tiny village.

From the ages of 6 to 25, the old man had lived in Tingri, a couple of hours South East by car and picked up many songs from that region.

At the start of a sing song, he would always start with gzhas kyi sgo mo, or, 'the door to song'. This very special song opens a door through which one enters the world of song and gains access to thousands of verses.

Like all settlements in Porong, excluding Porong village, power comes from small portable solar panel kits. There is no school, health centre, or running water. Dawa-la's mother has given birth to 17 children. She showed us pictures of venerable lamas which she kept hidden in the back of her radio.