Garu Nunnery
Garu Nunnery is a historical hermitage, belonging to Sera Monastery. It is located north of Lhasa, Lhasa Prefecture, in the Tibet region of China. The nunnery has an ancient history traced to Padmasambhava (Pha dam pa sangs rgyas), the Indian Buddhist preceptor, who visited this location. He not only named the place as "Garu" but also ordained that it shall be a "Nunnery" not a monastery of monks on the basis of prophetic visions he had during his visit to the place. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, some nuns from the monasteries have made publicized demonstrations for Tibetan independence. Many of the protesting nuns were arrested, incarcerated, brutally handled and released only after protracted detention. Etymology The name 'Gar' is derived from the word ‘gar’ in Tibetan language which means: “dance”. Padmasambhava, the Indian Buddhist Guru on a visit to this location saw Dakinis dancing here and therefore called the place as "Garu". Geography Garu Nunnery is at the western end of the Nyang bran valley. Garu gorge as such is in a remote location but scenic. The nunnery is below the rocky hills, close to a stream and the land below is a kind of meadow, which is used as pasture land for grazing the large herd of cattle (yaks) maintained by the nuns. From the location of the nunnery, which faces south, the Potala Palace and Lhasa (the capital of Tibet) provide a picturesque view. Traditionally, the nuns of the hermitage, habituated to identifying each place with some religious significance, had given names to the hills and peaks surrounding the nunnery; the peak to the north-west was called the Palace of Cakrasamvara (Bde mchog gi pho brang), three rock outcrops near the nunnery were identified as ‘Three Protectors’ (Rigs gsum mgon po); a cliff-face on a northwest hill was named the Mirror of Vajrabhairava (Jigs byed kyi me long) and a peak to the north-east was titled Soul-Mountain of Mañjuśrī (Jam dpal dbyangs kyi bla ri). Another version of the naming of the mountains, which is more elaborate than the version provided by the nuns, is a manifest of religious names given to the topographic setting of the nunnery and the perceived signals they emit. The mountain behind the nunnery is known as “the Soul-Mountain of Tara (Tārā’i bla ri), a right turning conch shape is identified on a rock face close to the nunnery, and the western hill is identified as “the Soul-Mountain of Manjusri” (’Jam dpal dbyangs kyi bla ri). A “storehouse of sindhura” that gives out sindhura (scented red ochre powder), particularly on holy days has been identified. The shape of a rock face is perceived as a self-risen Vajrabhairava. Blowing of a white conch shell is heard from a particular mountain on some days. Guhyasamaja is the name given to a particular grouping of mountain rock faces and meadows. The rock formations to the north-east are known as “the Soul-Mountain of the Arhats” (Gnas brtan bla ri). The hills on the east