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I posted earlier on Soyolma’s Renderings of Tara at the Tsagaandarium Art Galler y . She also had on display what is apparently a variation of Narkhajid. Rendering of Narkhajid by Soyolma ( Enlargement ) Narkhajid ( Enlargement ) Detail of Narkhajid Painting ( Enlargement ) A more traditional rendering of Narkhajid at Amarbayasgalant Monastery .  Another traditional rendering of Narkhajid by Soyolma on display in the Studiolium of my hovel.    Soyolma

Wandered into the Tsagaadarium Art Gallery and Museum , located just a stone’s throw from my hovel in Zaisan Tolgoi. The art gallery was featuring a show by Well-known Ulaanbaatar Artist Soyolma . I have also mentioned her works on display at the Pearl Art Galley a few years ago, and I have visited her Studio on several occasions.  Soyolma  A new painting by Soyolma on display at the Tsagaandarium Detail of Painting. This would appear to be a stylistic rendering of Tara . The Third Eye in her forehead is indicative of White Tara. White Tara also has eyes in the palms of her hands; her palms are not on view here. Her jewelry is reminiscent of both Zanabazar’s White Tara on display at the Zanabazar Fine Arts Museum   and Green Tara.   Her breasts, however, more closely resemble those of Green Tara, who is usually displayed as a mature woman. White Tara is usually portrayed as an adolescent girl with small breasts. Bosoms aside, Tara is not usually portrayed in ...

See  Mongolia: Endangered Bear Struggles Against Climate Change . Although it does not say so in the article, the place described is Shar Khuls Oasis. I have visited Shar Khuls Oasis twice, and once had A Run-in With A Gobi Bear nearby.   Shar Khuls Oasis looking north (see  Enlargement ) Shar Khuls Oasis looking south (see Enlargement )  Footprints of Gobi Bear we met just south of Shar Khuls  Mojik and Uyanga fully recovered from their bear encounter

According to An Article in Time Magazine the World Health Organization claims that Ulaanbaatar is the second most polluted city in the world, behind only Ahwaz, Iran. I simply cannot believe this. I now live in Zalsan Tolgoi on the outskirts of the city where the air is famously fresh and clean but I did spend half a dozen winters living in the heart of the city, and although the air was bad I would not say it was world-class bad. Are you telling me that the air in Ulaanbaatar is worse than the air in, for instance, Hong Kong (or am I confusing heat and humidity with bad air)? Anyhow, chalk another one up for Ulaanbaatar. According to some sources it is also The Ugliest City in the World . But wait! Mongolia just got its First Cray Supercomputer ! Yak  checking out Cray Supercomputer

Who knew they Rapped in the Fertile Crescent ? Nobody ruled better, I’m Nebuchadnezzar, Me and my Chaldeans are sharper than cheddar. We’re so holy like Swiss cheese, One day my wife said, “Neb, I miss trees. This city life is too hard for me, All is see is brown, baby, I need garden-green.” So I built the Hanging Gardens of Babylon for my girl, It’s one of the seven wonders of the world . . .  Nebuchadnezzar (c 634–562 BC) knew how to get down.  Nebuchadnezzar (or Nebbie, as he was known to his friends) built the famous Gate of Ishtar , which can now be seen in Berlin , Germany. Gate of Ishtar, now in Berlin Thanks to the  Silk Road Gourmet for bringing the Rappin’ Chaldeans to my attention.

A few days after his Appearance In The Friday Mosque , Chingis visited another mosque outside the city walls. From the pulpit of this mosque he ordered that all the city’s wealthiest people be brought before him. Two hundred and eighty people were produced, 190 from the city itself and ninety merchants from other cities who happened to be in Bukhara at the time. He then harangued these assembled worthies:  O People know that you have committed great sins, and the great ones among you have committed these sins. If you ask me what proof I have for these words, I say it is because I am the punishment of God. If you had not committed great sins, God would not have sent a punishment like me upon you.  This is probably the source of the “I am the Scourge of God” declaration attributed to Chingis Khan which pops up in so many later accounts of the Mongol invasion of Mawarannahr. But did Chingis actually make this speech? Other contemporary sources, al-Athir for example, make no menti...

Eej Khairkhan Uul (Mother Dearest Mountain) Eej Khairkhan Uul (Mountain), one of the most revered sites in Gov-Altai Aimag, is steeped in legend. It seems that once, a long time ago, Eej Khairkhan was married to Aj Bogd Mountain far off to the southwest. But Aj Bogd was old, his head was topped with white year round, and his wife was not happy. Far off to the northeast she could see Burkhan Buudai Mountain . Burkhan Buudai was so handsome, standing tall and proud against the turquoise sky. Aj Bogd’s wife could not take her eyes off of him. With each passing day she liked Aj Bogd less and felt more and more desire for Burkhan Buudai. Finally she decided she must flee to Burkhan Buudai. But Aj Bogd became suspicious of his wife. Every night after she went to sleep he would hide her deel so she would have nothing to wear if she decided to run away. One night his wife woke and decided the time had come to run off to her heart’s desire. But she could not find her deel. In her haste she put ...

Just beefed up the Silk Road Section of my Scriptorium with two new cooking titles: the first is   Silk Road Cooking: A Vegetarian Journey . I am an omnivore but I do like vegetarian food and this coffee table-type book has some great recipes to say nothing of nice photos and interesting essays on various aspects of the Silk Road.  Then there’s The Silk Road Gourmet by renowned  Chef and Tethys Sea Expert Laura Kelly . I have read through both books and will have updates on the various recipes soon. In the meantime here is a  Good Kebab Recipe  from Sasha Martin at  Global Table Adventure . Mouth-wateringly delectable Kebabs  Sasha Martin Although I have had it in the Scriptorium for quite a while, perhaps now is the proper time to mention A Baghdad Cookery Book .  This book is not only of culinary but also of historical interest, since it dates to the thirteenth century, presumably before the arrival of Khülügu Khan in Baghdad in 1258...