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The Division of Heaven and Earth: On Tibet's Peaceful Revolution
This is a translation of one of the most influential and important books from Tibet in the modern era, a passionate indictment of Chinese policies and an eloquent analysis of protests that swept Tibet from March, 2008 - the 'Earth Rat' year according to the Tibetan calendar - as a re-awakening of Tibetan national consciousness and solidarity.
The Division of Heaven and Earth was banned by the Chinese government on publication, and led to Shokdung being "disappeared" and imprisoned for nearly six months. This English translation is being made available for the first time since copies began to circulate underground in Tibet.
The author, Tagyal -- who uses the pen name Shokdung, meaning "morning conch"-- one of Tibet's leading intellectuals, wrote his book in response to an unprecedented wave of bold demonstrations and expressions of Tibetan solidarity and national identity.
In his foreword Matthew Akester, a Tibet specialist who translated this book into English, offers an account of the significance of these developments, which transformed the political landscape across the plateau and led to a sustained and violent crackdown by the Chinese authorities that continues to this day.
Shokdung's book is regarded as the most daring and wide-ranging critique of China's policies in Tibet since the 10th Panchen
The Division of Heaven and Earth was banned by the Chinese government on publication, and led to Shokdung being "disappeared" and imprisoned for nearly six months. This English translation is being made available for the first time since copies began to circulate underground in Tibet.
The author, Tagyal -- who uses the pen name Shokdung, meaning "morning conch"-- one of Tibet's leading intellectuals, wrote his book in response to an unprecedented wave of bold demonstrations and expressions of Tibetan solidarity and national identity.
In his foreword Matthew Akester, a Tibet specialist who translated this book into English, offers an account of the significance of these developments, which transformed the political landscape across the plateau and led to a sustained and violent crackdown by the Chinese authorities that continues to this day.
Shokdung's book is regarded as the most daring and wide-ranging critique of China's policies in Tibet since the 10th Panchen
176 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2017
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
July 14, 2019
To an average person, the word 'Tibet' immediately brings to mind monks clad in deep red, such is the perceived association of the Buddhist religion with the region. A reading of 'The Division of Heaven and Earth' only confirms this perception.
Shokdung has written a brave book and he is self aware to this extent: 'I may lose my head because of my mouth'. To criticize and critique not only the Chinese state and its atrocities through the ages but also the very basis of Tibetan identity deserves applause. He describes in grotesque detail the condition of Tibetan protestors in the past at the hands of the Chinese and their near total domination of mind and body in the present. These details seem no less horrid than the Holocaust, their inability to land as a commonplace example of totalitarianism is perhaps only due to the opaque nature of the state.
Shokdung believes that the spiritualism ingrained in the society has made the Tibetan population passive and is responsible for its political backwardness:
'...most people don't even know whether secular values like 'freedom', 'equality', 'rights' and 'democracy' were things to be eaten or drunk'
'Tibet appeared to stand for nothing and noone in particular... a country of nobodies'.
He has little hope from the west who would only come to the rescue of his cause if 'minable resources' were to be found in their grounds.
But the 2008 'peaceful revolution' has made him optimistic, and he considers a non violent Gandhian revolution, the philosophy of which he explains through half the book, as the only possible means of success in their cause.
The book is written to educate and encourage the population of Tibet, and to that cause I would regard it as fairly well crafted. As a translation to the rest of the world, however, it offers little more than what could have been said in a 30 page essay. It makes for a fairly difficult read, even at its concise best, with frequent requirement to consult the index and long winding sentences.
What is not lost in translation though is the understated importance of nature in Tibetan life, for most idioms and imagery involves the natural life:
'is like long cherished hope falling from the sky like a comet, or a dammed spring bursting its banks.'
This is a book that definitely needed to be written, a story waiting to be told, a people desperate to be heard, if only it was done better.
Shokdung has written a brave book and he is self aware to this extent: 'I may lose my head because of my mouth'. To criticize and critique not only the Chinese state and its atrocities through the ages but also the very basis of Tibetan identity deserves applause. He describes in grotesque detail the condition of Tibetan protestors in the past at the hands of the Chinese and their near total domination of mind and body in the present. These details seem no less horrid than the Holocaust, their inability to land as a commonplace example of totalitarianism is perhaps only due to the opaque nature of the state.
Shokdung believes that the spiritualism ingrained in the society has made the Tibetan population passive and is responsible for its political backwardness:
'...most people don't even know whether secular values like 'freedom', 'equality', 'rights' and 'democracy' were things to be eaten or drunk'
'Tibet appeared to stand for nothing and noone in particular... a country of nobodies'.
He has little hope from the west who would only come to the rescue of his cause if 'minable resources' were to be found in their grounds.
But the 2008 'peaceful revolution' has made him optimistic, and he considers a non violent Gandhian revolution, the philosophy of which he explains through half the book, as the only possible means of success in their cause.
The book is written to educate and encourage the population of Tibet, and to that cause I would regard it as fairly well crafted. As a translation to the rest of the world, however, it offers little more than what could have been said in a 30 page essay. It makes for a fairly difficult read, even at its concise best, with frequent requirement to consult the index and long winding sentences.
What is not lost in translation though is the understated importance of nature in Tibetan life, for most idioms and imagery involves the natural life:
'is like long cherished hope falling from the sky like a comet, or a dammed spring bursting its banks.'
This is a book that definitely needed to be written, a story waiting to be told, a people desperate to be heard, if only it was done better.
August 13, 2020
He has some thoughts on Gandhi, "Western values", and Tibetan Buddhism that made me raise my eyebrows, but ultimately - as with all critical books written in contemporary Tibet - I appreciate this one for what it does to bring indigenous commentaries on Tibet into consciousness.
May 6, 2026
This is an important polemic that was written just after the 2008 uprising in Lhasa. The author discusses his dislike of Buddhism in Tibetan history for preventing people from organizing politically for their individual and collective rights. He also goes on to advocate civil disobedience and quotes Gandhi. The Gandhi section is awkward because I think he's wrong about the history around Gandhi and his movement in India, which doesn't compare much to Tibet. But he was working off less resources than I have access to. He was imprisoned for this book and released years later. I'm not sure if he's currently alive or dead.
March 22, 2017
It is a good book to me. It may take you a bit of time to get used to the writing style. I've always been interested in Tibetan culture and their r/s with CCP. I wonder how will the opinions unfold if I can read in source language i.e. Tibetan language. I guess there will be differences between the original and translated copy.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews