The Ruins of Guge in Tibet

The Ruins of Guge Kingdom is located on a mountain in Zhabran Village,18km west of the county town of Zhada, 310km south of Shiquanhe Town.
The Guge Kingdom was founded in about the 10th century by a descendant of King Glang Darma, who fled from Lhasa after the collapse of the Tupo Kingdom. The kingdom played an important role in the second renascence in Tibet and survived for about 700 years before disappearing mysteriously in the 17th century.

"Guge" is a miracle. For years it strongly attracted numerous explorers, scholars, artists and journalists who traveled from afar to investigate and search for treasures. According to historical records, after the last king of the Tubo Dynasty, Lang Darma, died, the royal family began to fight for the throne. Gyide Nyimagun, Long Darma's descendent, lost the war and ran away to Ngari, where he established a small kingdom. Later, Gyide Nyimagun divided Ngari into three parts and gave them to his three sons. The Guge Kingdom was ruled by Dezogun, Gyide Nyimagun's third son. His regime ran for more than 700 years before being destroyed in a war. According to the Annals of Kings and Officials in Tibet, a total of 16 kings ruled the Guge Kingdom, and Guge Castle was accomplished through constant construction between the 10th and 16th century. Guge has a very significant position in the history of economic and cultural development of Tibet. Many significant Buddhist doctrines of ancient India were passed on to hinterland Tibet via Guge.Guge was also one of the important commercial ports linking ancient Tibet with the outside world.After the Tubo Dynasty died out,Tibet entered a 400-some year period of isolation. Guge was always a large and powerful kingdom. Even the dust of time cannot hide its prosperity and past glory.

The ruins lie at a hilltop near a river, covering 180,000 square meters. Houses, cave dwellings, monasteries and stupas are distributed on the hill and surrounding area. Palaces sat on the summit while monasteries on mountainside, cave dwellings for common people at the foot of the hill. The kingdom was enclosed in tunnels and walls with fortifications. Some structures survive time and remain in good condition in this untraversed region though many of them were reduced into dust. A 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) long water tunnel built with stones, in ruins, still dives from the summit into the river below, which used to be water supply of Guge people.