Original subtitles

If anyone does not know this place:

It is the Kingdom of Ling,

the centre of the world.

If anyone does not know me:

I am Ma Nene Karmo.

I live in the blue turquoise palace

in the divine paradise.

You appeared in this world

where there is so much sorrow and hate.

The people hunt the animals.

They kill and eat them.

The people catch the fish

with iron hooks.

When you destroy your enemies,

the gods and Padmasambhava

take them to the Kingdom of Heaven.

I, Ma Nene Karmo,

always feel

compassion for living creatures

and never hate for them.

Brahma also always feels

compassion for living creatures

and never hate for them.

You have to subjugate the 18 kingdoms

of the demons and all their other domains

Collect the treasures for Ling

and spread the teachings of Buddha.

You must go to the underworld.

When you get there,

beware of the boar-headed

and the dog-headed spirits.

Furthermore, you will also find

the cold hell and the hot hell there.

There, too, is a bottomless river.

Only you and your horse

can cross this river.

Midshung, Drugmo and Pekar Lhatse

are personifications of the goddess Tara.

They appear in the world

to save the living creatures.

I, Ma Nene Karmo, work

in the upper world of the gods,

in the middle world of Ngen,

in the lower world of the water spirits.

I work for them all

and do not remain idle.

You, too, must be active.

Do not stay here long.

Go to the underworld

to save the living creatures.

You must pass judgement

on what is good and what is bad.

Follow the white light

and go to the underworld.

OM MANI PADME HUM.

In this way Ma Nene Karmo sang about

the work of Drugmo in the world,

about King Gesar's descent into hell

and about his horse.

From the victorious golden throne

King Gesar,

the heavenly ruler,

the earth's tree of life,

looked upon the assembly with loving

and watchful eyes.

All the fathers and mothers,

sons and daughters of Ling

offered their adoration and

good wishes to the King.

They joyfully sang old songs

and performed propitious dances.

They drank tea and barley beer

in a festive mood.

OM MANI PADME HUM.

Is the 24th a Friday?

It is a Friday!

All right then.

On that day we bring burnt offerings.

Yes, burnt offerings and prayers.

Margen, is Monday your neutral day?

Yes.

Is Monday a good day?

Yes, it is a lucky

as well as a neutral day.

Then let's set out on Monday!

It's the right time

if it's a neutral day.

A neutral day is good!

Yes, it is.

Leave on Monday and celebrate

the preparation feast on Friday?

Yes, dear, that's what we'll do.

Friday is Margen's most favourable day.

And the element water

is available twice over.

It is an excellent day

for the preparation.

Yes, my dear.

Let us also play equestrian games,

so that all the lucky signs agree.

Zopon's horse will have to

show what it can do.

That remains to be seen!

Kiang or these two horses

will win!

Kiang must do his best;

if he loses,

he's lost his chance!

If he loses, he is finished.

But we are betting on him.

...Next year at this same time, may we

all be joyfully reunited.

May there be peace in the world.

May all beings know of Buddha's teachings.

May all the tutelary gods

protect us.

May H.H. The Dalai Lama live long

and may we soon meet him...

This is our salt.

That's what our 4 men are going to bring

from Lake Tsentso this year.

I don't know if we'll find salt there.

They say there are many salt lakes.

Lorries collect the salt

mostly from other lakes,

but yak caravans go to Lake Tsentso.

Whoever has been to Lake Tsentso

will go there again.

We exchange salt for grain.

This year the price of salt is very low.

So we have to keep it for the time being.

If the price goes up, it's good for us.

If it stays low, we can't do anything.

It isn't easy to keep yaks.

Fetching salt with yaks is hard work,

and then the price for the salt in no way pays us for our effort.

When the salt was worth more, we would exchange it for barley.

But nowadays the value has gone down.

So we have to sell our yaks to get barley.

Without salt we nomads

have no barley either.

Is the Gomshe family sending four yaks?

No, three yaks.

Then we have a total of 160 yaks,

40 yaks per man?

- Three from you? - Yes, three.

And 21, that makes 160 yaks altogether!

Who is the sheep from?

It's from Margen.

Margen - The Old Mother

I have a lot of experience because I've

been fetching salt for many years.

So I can show the others the way

and explain to them how it's done.

And besides, I'm the oldest.

If we're in a hurry, I quickly make

some simple tea. But if we have time,

I make real strong butter tea

and we have a rest. That's Margen's work.

I was Margen for many years,

and they all want me as Margen again.

Margen wishes you all good luck!

Thank you for your wishes, all the best!

Pargen - The Old Father

Is it already 4 o'clock?

If it's already four,

we can gradually start the horse racing.

Yes, we'll soon go outside.

Pargen's best wishes for all of you!

We thank you

for your wishes. Good luck!

Bopsa is the favourite son

of the salt men, so they say anyway.

Ah yes.

The favourite son?!

O yes, each one of us has a position.

Yes, you each have your position.

One is the Old Mother,

one the Old Father

and one is Lord of the Animals

and one the novice!

Zopon - The Lord of the Animals

The Lord of the Animals wishes good luck!

Thank you.

Long life and success!

Dear Bopsa, have another!

You're like our only son.

Bopsa - The Novice

Bopsa wishes you all good luck!

Yes, thank you!

Bopsa's nose quivers when he drinks!

They say that

in the olden days a woman once

went to the salt lake to get salt.

She was so greedy

that she took an awful lot of salt

and stuffed it all into her trousers.

That upset the salt lake and made it angry.

Since then women are no longer

allowed to go to the salt lake.

That's what people say.

There is a salt language.

But the salt men say

that they aren't allowed to use

this language in the presence of women.

Women don't go to the salt lake,

they aren't allowed to.

I don't know why.

In all my more than 70 years I have

never heard of a woman fetching salt.

There must be some reason for it.

Women don't even turn their faces

in that direction.

When my son goes to the salt lake

as Lord of the Animals I worry a bit

about him catching a cold

and about other small things.

Otherwise I'm not worried

because he really is strong enough and can go on the journey.

People say

if a woman goes to the salt lake

the salt disappears,

women don't get it.

The reason for this may be

because women are different from birth,

they are different from men.

The first time I was Bopsa

it wasn't very difficult

because I had an older man

at my side.

That time we went to Lake Biru.

Later on we nearly always

went to Tsentso, where my grandson

goes now. But there we usually had

trouble because of the mud.

With the heavy salt sacks

on our backs we often sank deep into

the muddy ground.

It was hard work.

I and Derma,

we fight as equals

for the Kingdom Ling.

This has been

determined by the gods.

We must ride toJang

and take possession of

the twelve precious salt lakes.

It is time now

to conquer the eighty demonic warriors

ofJang.

Margen means

that I prepare tea and other things

for all of us,

as a mother does for her family.

Pargen stands for father.

Pargen and Margen take on

the roles of father and mother.

Pargen's jobs are to make burnt

offerings, to distribute the meat,

to prepare the dumpling soup,

and if something has to be discussed,

to go to other tents.

There is an old story

about the different kinds of wood:

One day the woods spoke to each other

about having to go into

the fire of the salt men the next day.

All the woods said:

I don't want to go,

I don't want to,

I don't want to go!

But then one wood called Wodu

came forward and said:

I shall go

by hiding myself under the ground.

Wodu wood is yellowish

and only grows under the ground.

When it rains it is difficult

to find dung to make a fire with.

But luckily it hardly ever rains

at this time of the year.

The journey to Tsentso

takes a month

and a day or two more.

If we walk fast,

it takes just a month.

In the past we used to meet

other people almost every day,

but nowadays far fewer

people live here.

Many days

we don't meet even a single soul.

There used to be many tents

and many herds.

We even had the problem

of the animals

getting mixed up,

so that we kept having

to look for them.

Once we get beyond

the 'stone goat' behind the pass,

we have to start

following the rules.

They must be obeyed as from this point.

Even when we are sitting in the tent,

each one of us

has to take up the right position.

And we are by no means allowed

to use bad words.

After passing the "stone goat" we also

speak the salt language.

Whatever we do now,

we must obey the rules.

It's the first time for Bopsa.

He's a novice here

and is initiated into it like a monk

who is entering a monastery.

That's why he also brings us

butter and tea as presents.

Everything is new to Bopsa,

so we older ones have to show him

everything for him to learn.

Today is the day that he

is admitted to our community.

As from the Bopsa ceremony he will

really belong to the salt men.

We call him Bopsa because there are

many things he still can't do.

Whatever he does, he lacks experience.

Nothing works without experience,

like this he won't achieve anything.

At the salt lake he has to learn

how to extract salt,

how deep you're allowed to scrape,

how to handle the tools,

all kinds of tricks.

And how to carry the sacks,

but here it depends on whether he

is strong enough.

May the gods be with us on the way

there and receive us on the way back.

Hail to the gods and the water spirits.

Protect us from all evil!

The Lamas, meditation gods,

sacrificial goddesses, tutelary gods,

enemy vanquishers, local gods,

the lord of the area

and all his servants,

may they all come

and accept the burnt offerings

and ablutions.

The gods of wisdom,

the gods of activity,

the gods of magic power,

the Lamas and Tantrics,

the earthly tutelary deities,

the wish-fulfilling

gods of the treasure,

Jambhala with all his servants,

may they all accept the offering

and make riches

fall upon us like rain.

Wherever you gods appear,

may my wishes be fulfilled,

obstacles be overcome,

illnesses be cured

and all negative influences be

kept away from me.

May the banners of bliss rise

in all ten directions.

May the lords of the areas,

the water spirits, the Ngen,

the gods of the country,

the local gods with their servants,

who live in all worlds and

in this place, appear

and accept the offering.

May the Lamas of the three bodies,

the Lamas of the three traditions,

the peaceful and wrathful deities,

the three jewels,

the sacrificial goddesses,

the gods and guardians of the treasure

and all higher creatures

accept the pure

alcohol offering and

fulfil my wishes.

The Earth,

the flowers and plants on it,

the four continents

and Mount Meru,

adorned with the sun and the moon,

I shall take them to Buddha

as an offering.

May all living creatures

be reincarnated

in the perfect world.

Good fortune and blessing!

May all you do

be successful!

With other salt men

we speak only the salt language.

If e.g. At the salt lake

someone from our tent meets someone

from the neighbouring tent,

they speak the salt language.

Anyone who can't speak the salt language

isn't respected, especially

if it is an older man.

One thinks badly of someone like that.

The salt language is

the salt men's secret language.

When we meet non-nomads

we don't use a single word of it.

And especially when women are there

we keep the salt language

absolutely secret.

We've got that from our forefathers.

That's all I know.

The caravan consists of two parts.

We call the front one Bobyak.

It goes on ahead with the luggage

and takes it to the next camp.

The remaining yaks

are led by the Lord of the Animals

to good pastures

where he lets them graze in peace.

Where there isn't good grass,

he makes them walk faster.

The Bobyak has to be

exchanged every day

because some of these yaks

get weak from carrying loads.

That's why we exchange them

and let the others do the carrying.

Where there is good grass

I let the animals walk slowly,

and where there is little grass

I drive them a bit.

While the other men

go on ahead to the next camp,

I look after the animals.

I make myself some tea, that's all.

In the evening I try

to reach the camp with the animals.

At the salt lake, when the others have

finished preparing the salt,

they send me a message

to bring the yaks.

As soon as I get there

I check the saddles and yak carpets.

That's my job as Zopon,

as Lord of the Animals.

Do you live down there?

Yes, I live down there.

Down there?

Yes, there.

- You're called Kunga? - Yes.

- Would you like some snuff? - No.

Was there a lot of snow here this year?

Not so much, just a little.

But it snowed more back there?

Yes, there was more snow there.

Was there less here than last year?

Yes. Normally we have to move...

Do you?

...so the animals can survive.

In that case the grass must be

better than last year?

Yes, there's more grass here this year.

So that's why you didn't move!

This yak has been ill since last night.

It has a twisting of the intestines.

It hasn't been well for a few days.

We need somebody who knows

something about this illness.

I don't know how to go about it.

When there isn't enough grass,

the animals eat sand.

That's why this has happened.

There's no good grass here.

The other three have gone to look for

the yak herd.

But they still aren't back yet,

they've been a long time.

We have to find somebody

who can help us with the yak!

I'm afraid it will die.

It has to have an operation!

If we have it operated on,

I hope it will survive!

What are we to do

with this poor little yak?

- How are you? - Fine.

So we meet after all.

Pardon?

I thought you wouldn't go

to Lake Tsentso this year.

I'm away a lot these days.

Yes.

Yes, then...

You look younger every year.

- Really!? - Yes, you do.

My yaks called Drawu, Rokpu,

Jawu, Zagur, Bandung...

I have lost them all

and still haven't found them.

They disappeared in December,

still no trace of them.

If there really is salt in Lake Tsentso,

that's good for us.

That's good for you people.

But we can't fetch the salt

like the lorries do.

And who knows how deep the mud is?

It's better than it used to be.

I hope so.

What am I to do?

I think it's better

if the yak has an operation

now that we're here at the doctor's.

And then we also need time

for the preparations and rituals.

It goes nyok-nyok!

It has already burst.

Already burst!?

Really!?

Come here and listen!

Why cause even more suffering?

An operation is useless

and nothing but unnecessary pain.

Come here, come here.

Burst!

Nothing more can be done.

Why kill, when it isn't necessary?

We people of the land of Dharma don't

kill any animals if it isn't necessary.

The animal will die anyway,

why cause it additional suffering?

I promised the salt men that if

the yak dies, I'll pay them 200 yuan.

The meat will be eaten.

We shall use it,

we don't throw it away.

For me and my people,

salt is our life.

Like this time, those people

who sent their animals along with us,

they also expect

us to bring salt back with us

when we return.

Therefore we have to do our best.

It's just as the proverb says:

Until victory is won,

you have to strive for it.

We have to fight

until we've reached our goal.

Isn't that so?

That's one thing.

And it would also be unthinkable

to come home without salt.

That's how it is,

we have to do our best.

Pushuk, pushuk,

what an awful wind!

We, the warlords Shenpa,

Bernag, Mishang and Ngebum

must lead the army againstJang

and conquer the precious salt lakes.

My warriors from Hor will

set up their camp with three

different-coloured tents:

Tents as white as the snow mountains,

tents as black as the night,

tents as red as blood.

Our people say that Lake Tsentso is

the heart of His Holiness Karmapa.

After the death of the former Karmapa

it was a problem for six years

to find salt in this lake.

So many salt people went the long way

to Lake Yaggen, others to Angtang,

to Chuwo or to Lake Biru.

Since Karmapa has been reincarnated there is again salt in Lake Tsentso.

And from year to year

it seems to get better.

This salt lake is the heart of Karmapa!

That's what one used to say,

but it really is so!

This is the quality of the salt.

Is this here good?

No difference, almost as good.

This is from here,

and this from over there.

This one looks a bit better.

Which one?

It's almost the same.

If I scrape the salt together

with my golden tool,

it makes itself into a heap.

The little heaps look like

halo-flowers.

There are salt flowers

as far as the eye can see.

If you don't know where there is salt,

there is salt under my scraper!

If you don't know where the scraper is,

the scraper is under the handle.

Grainy,

the salt is grainy.

It doesn't depend on

efficiency in this work.

It depends on the karma!

And when fetching salt,

on the favour of the goddess.

Matsenten Gyalmo is the mistress of the

lake, they say. I don't know much more.

Matsenten Gyalmo - if I imagine her

as a human being, she is a woman.

We salt men call her mother.

She is also a goddess

who keeps us from starving.

We are deeply grateful to Matsenten

Gyalmo for helping us to live.

When you think of the mother at home,

then work fast.

When you think of the mother of the salt lake,

then work slowly.

When there is no salt in the salt lake

it comes from not obeying the rules.

If you pollute the lake,

kill here or aren't friendly with each other,

the lake doesn't like it,

then it isn't willing to give the salt.

I once had to wait a whole month

and then I was only able to

load half the yaks,

there wasn't enough salt.

The reason was

that we were here in people's communes

and the leader of our commune

had slept with women on the way,

and this disturbed the salt lake.

You had to wait,

and at times it looked as if there was

going to be salt -

but when you went there,

there was again no salt.

More water came

and flushed the salt away.

So much salt is in the carrying skin,

it is heavy and full to the brim.

The salt is plentiful!

The carrying skin,

lift it to the right, tip it to the left.

That's how we throw the salt on the heap.

You, nomad from Changtang,

don't remain idle,

come and work with the salt!

I don't feel lonely.

Since I was 13 to 14 years old

I've always been herding animals.

My merit is that I can handle animals,

that I love them and care for them,

not that I'm good at business.

I can't do business

or convince others by talking.

I'm no good at smooth talking.

When I talk about responsibility -

this may sound like pride -

but it is so that the other three

have far fewer worries.

They do have to go to the salt lake,

extract the salt, carry it to the shore,

stuff it in sacks. But at night

they can sleep peacefully while I

always have to worry about the animals.

I do stuff the salt sack tightly,

stuff and stuff the lower part,

so the salt won't float away

on the way across the river.

I do stuff the salt sack tightly,

stuff and stuff the middle part,

so I can rest it

on my chest when loading.

I do stuff the salt sack tightly, stuff and stuff the top,

so the rain won't wash the salt away.

Hello, Pargen!

Hello!

- Is the salt soon ready? - Yes.

So soon? Quicker than last year!

Yes, this time it went well.

Was it hard work?

No, it was quite easy.

Then I'll slowly

bring the animals round to the salt lake.

Take some snuff!

Never in my life did it go as quickly

as this time, it's like a dream!

Even such things can happen.

An old proverb says: Stay at the salt

lake for eight days, leave on the 9th,

that's how it must be.

Yes, that's the most convenient time.

And that's just the case with us

this time. We really are lucky!

That all went so well this time...

That is pure luck!

...is thanks to

our local god Tanglha, the Lamas

or our own efforts.

The goddess accompanies the salt men

all the way right to their front door,

where the women and barking dogs

greet them.

Yes, that's what one used to say.

The goddess Matsenten Gyalmo

has shown us her great favour.

The soft snow this morning is like

a water offering for the goddess.

Are there many lorries at the salt lake?

At first only two, now there are more.

That's never been.

Only so few!?

Now the yaks, too, will be happy.

The older yaks, who have been

to the salt lake before, think:

We shall go hungry today, but tomorrow

we can return to the pastures.

The yaks who have never been here

wonder why they have to walk so far

and yet never get to the grass.

And they can't talk either!

Pull up with the left hand,

sew with the right hand,

whoever can't do that

may not belong to the salt men.

The sack has an opening of a "to".

Take needle and thread,

sew the sack up tightly.

The yak is wild.

At the opening of the sack

the thief lurks.

You'll regret not having sewn it well!

Her character is that of a rather

angry goddess who is very sensitive

to disturbances.

If the men here quarrel,

if they sleep with women

or break wind at the lake,

she reacts very strongly

and directly to these things.

Only Margen

enjoys a certain freedom here.

He doesn't have to be as careful as we.

The lake forgives him the most.

Bad deeds aren't allowed here,

otherwise there's no salt.

Negative actions have the same results.

Nowadays the goddess

has become more gentle,

that's what the older people say.

I myself haven't

so much experience here.

The good father is Amu Kangri.

The good mother is Matsenten Gyalmo.

The good sons are Gedun and Busum.

May we return to the salt lake

next spring with many yaks,

many Bopsas and in good company

and return safely back home again.

The Lamas, meditation gods,

sacrificial goddesses, tutelary gods...

May you,

Mother Matsenten Gyalmo, accept

with pleasure the sacrificial yak.

We, your good sons,

return home with joy.

You accept, Mother Gyalmo,

accept the offering with joy.

And now the goddess allows us

one last shovel of salt.

We, your good sons,

return home with joy.

The god of victory

in the body of man,

King Gesar,

looked at the warriors

with the eyes of the ruler

and the merciful.

And he gave them the initiation

of the ninefold Vajra and

the transformation of the soul.

Finally the great

King Gesar raised

his divine voice

and sang the song

of the conquest of the twelve salt lakes,

of the capture of Yulha

and of the subjugation ofJang.

OM MANI PADME HUM.

After a return journey of 45 days

the caravan came back to their families.

For one more year

the salt secured them their living.

The systematic modernization increases

the serious threat to the right

of existence of the Tibetan salt nomads

and so to the last feeling of freedom

in this country.

With the decline of the salt men's

tradition another part of cultural

identity of the Tibetans will be lost.

This film is dedicated to the salt men

and their families.

Our most sincere thanks go to Margen,

Pargen, the Lord of the Animals and Bopsa

for having allowed us to accompany them

on their extraordinary journey.