Lasa

The head of the Buddhist religion for the Mongols is Dalai Lama who dwells in Lasa, Tibet. They believe that whatever comes from Tibet is holy and the Tibetan priests take full advantage of this faith of the Mongol people to enrich themselves. The Mongols in great caravans make pilgrimages to this holy city, Lasa, though they must pass through deserts with drifting sands and through rivers and over mountains and are plundered by robbers, and many fall by the way.

Lhasa (Lasa) is Tibet's capital and largest town, with a population of close to 140,000 in 1977. It lies north of the Brahmaputra River near the eastern end of the valley region. The city is dominated by the Potala, a monumental structure that was the spiritual and temporal center of traditional Tibet. Shigatse (Rikazi), to the west of Lhasa, is a second major town, with a population of about 40,000.

In the Qaidam Basin, a 1,100-kilometer pipeline is being completed to Lhasa (Lasa), clearly for military use. This one line alone represents 19 percent of China’s total oil pipeline kilometerage and 16 percent of its total oil and gas pipelines (Table 5.5).