For many expatriates who settle in China, paying a visit to areas where Tibetan people live, to enjoy the local cultural flavour, has become a "must" for the summer vacation.

Shouldering large backpacks or pedalling their bikes, these brave adventurers brace themselves for thin air, bumpy roads and the unexpected on their trips.

To help them in their travels, the Beijing-based Foreign Languages Press has recently published a book titled "Monasteries of Tibetan Buddhism in China."

"My friends and I really benefited from a publication that is, in my eyes, a high-quality guide book," said David Weller, an American tourist.

Actually, such a comment may even understate the point. The book actually contains a great deal more content than the average tourist guide book.

"It is essentially a concise and clear introduction to the long-time evolution of Tibetan Buddhism. And I think this helps draw a clear line between the book itself and too many other commonplace guide books for general readership," said Kentaro Suzuki, a Japanese scholar researching Tibetan Buddhism.

Tibetan Buddhism is one of the three main branches of Chinese Buddhism. With its heartland on the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau, it has a history dating back more than a thousand years. Tibetan Buddhism belongs to the Mahayana, or Greater Vehicle, tradition of Buddhism. Its unique feature is a system of reincarnation of holy men.

The monasteries integrate Tibetan Buddhism's three treasures - the Buddha, law and community of believers -- into one. The monasteries are the special venues for the study, translation and dissemination of Buddhist scriptures.

It is estimated that there are more than 2,800 monasteries of various sects of Tibetan Buddhism in Tibet Autonomous Region and Tibetan-inhabited areas in Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan and Yunnan provinces.

At present, about 1,460 monasteries belong to the Gelug Sect of Tibetan Buddhism.

Gelug means a "virtuous, good disciple" and the largest sect stresses full respect for monastic discipline and adheres to a systematic study of Buddhist tenets.

As its founder Tsongkhapa wore a yellow hat and his followers kept such a fashion, the Gelug Sect is also known as the Yellow Sect.

As the second largest Tibetan Buddhist sect, the Nyingma Sect mainly follows the tradition of Esoteric Buddhism. Nyingma means "ancient."

As its monks wore red hats and robes, the sect is also known as the Red Sect. The Nyingma Sect has now more than 750 monasteries.

The Kagyu is the third largest sect. In Tibetan language, Kagyu means "carrying forward or teaching the Buddha's doctrine." One of the important features of the sect is that its tenets are transmitted orally.

It is said that the founding master of the sect usually wore a white robe so the sect is known as the White Sect. There are now around 360 monasteries belonging to the Kagyu Sect.

As the fourth largest sect, Sakya means "grey-white earth" in Tibetan language and implies good luck. The sect was founded on the basis of the Exoteric and Esoteric Buddhist doctrines - the teachings that describe the stages along the path to enlightenment.

It is known as the Striped Sect because of the red, white and black stripes painted on the walls of the major monasteries of the sect. Nowadays, there are over 140 such monasteries.

After presenting the readers with some general knowledge, the author of the picture album, Cheng Weidong, goes on to describe the beauty and grandeur of about 20 of the most important monasteries in Tibetan-inhabited areas - all illustrated with exquisite photographs.

In addition, there are introductory details about some lamaseries that are located outside the Tibetan-inhabited areas.

"We can not forget those lama temples outside the Tibetan-inhabited regions because the influence of Tibetan Buddhism spread into Qinghai, Sichuan, Gansu, Yunnan provinces and Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in ancient times. Only in this way can we well preserve a complete image of Tibetan Buddhism," Cheng said.

Language: English. Price: 99 yuan (US$12.20).

(China Daily 08/04/2005 page17)