The ancient “Forbidden Kingdom” of Mustang, which was a lost kingdom of Tibet, is a remote and isolated region of the dramatic Himalayas in Nepal. It is a place shrouded in mystery and mysticism and home to the Loba people (or Lowa).
They practice an early form of Buddhism and are known for their flamboyant religious festivals. The Tiji Festival is a three-day festival consisting of rituals known as the “chasing of the demons”. Many of the Loba still believe the world is flat.
In Upper Mustang the Tibetan culture, religion, and traditions are believed to be at their purest, harking back to a Tibet before the Chinese occupation in 1951.
The Mustang region is made up of Upper Mustang and Lower Mustang, which occupies the far southern fringes of the Tibetan plateau and is more attached to Nepali tribes. Upper Mustang is populated by the Loba tribe, the ethnic Tibetans who still believe that the world is flat.
By the time the first Western explorers became interested in Upper Mustang, they could only gain a peek into the kingdom due to restrictions in the region (imposed by both the Chinese and the Mustang people themselves, the latter in an effort to protect their ancient way of life).
The first official tourist groups didn’t gain access to Upper Mustang until 1992, and there are continued restrictions today: the Nepalese government in Kathmandu offers a special 10-day permit and it is mandatory for explorers to travel in groups (two people or more) with a guide.
This allows for a tantalizing glimpse of Upper Mustang’s barren moonscape of eroded sandstone pillars and discontinuous moraine terraces, which together present a vibrant mosaic of earthen reds, yellows, and brown, as well as its fascinating people.
The richness of the kingdom dates back to the 15th century when the region was an important transit point on the salt trade route, between the dry saline lakes of Tibet and the large markets in the Indian subcontinent.
Mustang was once an independent kingdom in its own right, under the rule of Ame Pal, who founded the Kingdom of Lo in 1380. Its kingdom status ended, however, in 2008 following the end of its suzerain with the Kingdom of Nepal.
(The Kingdom of Lo became a dependency of Nepal in the 18th century but was allowed to keep its hereditary rulers as long as Nepal also remained a kingdom;
Nepal transitioned from a kingdom to a republic in 2008.) The ancient traditions and practices of Tibetan Buddhism also play an essential part in the daily existence of Upper Mustang’s people.
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