The repair work removed the hidden threats to the safety of the holy pagoda for the Fifth Dalai Lama, a splendid architecture which is "worth half of the world" in the eyes of common Tibetans, said Chen Jin, head of the Tibet Autonomous Regional Construction Bureau and deputy head in charge of the repair work of sites of historical interest, including the Potala Palace, in Tibet.

Historians said that the Fifth Dalai Lama, who lived in the 17th century, was the first to establish a regime combing political and religious power in Tibet and ordered the rebuilding of the Potala Palace destroyed in a war around the eighth century. More importantly, the Fifth Dalai Lama presented himself before Emperor Shunzhi of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911) in 1652 and requested a title. In 1653, the emperor formally entitled him "Dalai Lama."

This formally established a system under which the title of Dalai Lama is conferred by the central authorities.

Today, a fresco depicting the Fifth Dalai Lama's audience with Emperor Shunzhi can be seen in the West Hall of the Potala Palace. The Fifth Dalai Lama was addressed respectably by common Tibetans as the "Great Fifth."

Chen Jin said the crossbeams of the big hall, inside which the pagoda of the Fifth Dalai Lama is enshrined, were found to be crooked seriously early this year and several crossbeams had fallen down to a very low level, putting the 310-year-old pagoda in imminent danger.

Chen said repair work of the pagoda began in May and was completed recently. The repair work included removing approximately 70-cm-thick "Agatu", a kind of sticky soil used to build the roof, walls and floor of Tibetan-style buildings, the weight of which is blamed for the curving crossbeams, from the roof of the hall. The falling beams were also restored to their original location.

Chang Xingzhao, a research fellow with the State Cultural Heritage Administration, said that the layer of "Agatu" on the top of the hall roof reduced to about 12 cm from the former 80 cm and its weight dropped to 50 tons from former 80 tons.

To restore the original look of the hall, monks of the Potala Palace were invited to supervise the repair work and some of them participated in the repair work.

Legxe, a 65-year-old monk at the Potala Palace, is one of those who were invited to monitor the repairs and who saw the danger with his own eyes.

"The beams curved like a bow, and it was very dangerous for the pagodas and other relics in the hall once there is an earthquake,” said Legxe, "I feel great relief that the government repaired the hall so quickly."

He said the repair work was done strictly in accordance with religious routines and everything inside the hall was well-protected."

Qamba Losang, head of the Potala Palace management office, said that it had been a routine move to use "Agatu" to repair the roof of the hall in case it rained. As time passed, the layer of "Agatu" became thicker and heavier, Qamba said.

As traditional Tibetan monasteries are usually decorated with cotton curtains and religious flags, it is not easy to find the problem with the roof of the hall, said Qamba.

The Potala Palace houses the holy pagodas for eight Dalai Lamas starting from the Fifth Dalai Lama. Due to his special contributions, the pagoda for the Fifth Dalai Lama, was built with the highest standard among the eight ones. The pagoda is 12.6 meters high and was built with 3,721 kilograms of gold.

The pagoda is dotted with more than 18,000 gem stones and houses the sarira, the remains from the cremation of Sakyamuni's body.

"The fine tradition of the Fifth Dalai Lama's patriotism, devotion to religious affairs and bringing benefits to the masses is worth being carried forward by Tibetan religious circles," said Liu Yandong, vice-chairman of the National Committee of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and head of the United Front Work Department of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China.

Basang Wangdui, secretary general of the Tibet branch of the Buddhist Association of China, said that the holy pagodas of the Dalai Lamas occupy a very special position in the religious circles and the heart of local religious believers in Tibet.

The central government did a great charitable deed to repair the holy pagodas of the Dalai Lamas with a huge investment, Basang said.

The Chinese government began the second repair work of the Potala Palace in 2002 with an investment of 180 million yuan (US$22.19 million). Repair of the holy pagoda of the Fifth Dalai Lama is part of the repair work of the Potala Palace, which is scheduled to be completed in five years.

The Chinese government spent over 55 million yuan (US$6.78 million) to repair the Potala Palace from 1989 to 1994. Repair work was done on the holy pagodas of the Eighth and Ninth Dalai Lamas last year.

The Potala Palace, located in the northwestern corner of Lhasa, was first built by Tibetan King Songtsa Gambo in the 7th century in the Tang Dynasty (618-907), and expanded during the 17th century. It features the essence of ancient Tibetan architectural art.

(Xinhua News Agency August 30, 2005)