Overview

This narrative of subsistence on the Tibetan plateau describes the life-worlds of people in a region traditionally known as Kham who move with their yaks from pasture to pasture, depending on the milk production of their herd for sustenance. Gillian Tan's story, based on her own experience of living through seasonal cycles with the people of Dora Karmo between 2006 and 2013, examines the community's powerful relationship with a Buddhist lama and their interactions with external agents of change. In showing how they perceive their environment and dwell in their world, Tan conveys a spare beauty that honors the stillness and rhythms of nomadic life.

Full Product Details

9780295999487

Table of Contents

Reviews

Tan's curiosity about pastoral culture and language is obvious in her reported observations and experiences. . . . The author's use of detail could not have been imagined, but only have come from lived experience. . . . I thoroughly enjoyed reading In the Circle of White Stones and its depiction of the reality of a Tibetan herding way of life. -- Konchok Gelek * Asian Highlands Perspectives * This charming book chronicles daily life among nomadic pastoralists in eastern Tibet, in China’s Sichuan Province. . . . Tan describes pastoralist life from the perspective of the women who inhabit one of the Tibetans’ tents, with whom she built up close relations. . . . [and] provides valuable insight into a threatened way of life. * Journal of Asian Studies *

Tan's curiosity about pastoral culture and language is obvious in her reported observations and experiences. . . . The author's use of detail could not have been imagined, but only have come from lived experience. . . . I thoroughly enjoyed reading In the Circle of White Stones and its depiction of the reality of a Tibetan herding way of life. -- Konchok Gelek * Asian Highlands Perspectives *

This charming book chronicles daily life among nomadic pastoralists in eastern Tibet, in China's Sichuan Province. . . . Tan describes pastoralist life from the perspective of the women who inhabit one of the Tibetans' tents, with whom she built up close relations. . . . [and] provides valuable insight into a threatened way of life. * Journal of Asian Studies * Tan's curiosity about pastoral culture and language is obvious in her reported observations and experiences. . . . The author's use of detail could not have been imagined, but only have come from lived experience. . . . I thoroughly enjoyed reading In the Circle of White Stones and its depiction of the reality of a Tibetan herding way of life. -- Konchok Gelek * Asian Highlands Perspectives *

Author Information

Gillian G. Tan is assistant professor of anthropology at Deakin University in Victoria, Australia.

Tab Content 6

Customer Reviews

Recent Reviews

Countries Available