Tibetans in exile offer special prayers for victims of Tibet earthquake

Tibetan monks and nuns led the special prayers in the main Tibetan temple Tsuglagkhang in the North Indian hill town Dharamshala here.

The leading four Tibetan NGOs including the Tibetan Youth Congress, the Tibetan Women's Association, the Student for Free Tibet and the National Democratic Party of Tibet, had jointly organised the special prayer service here on Wednesday night.

Dechen Phakdon, a Tibetan activist, told ANI, "We heard about the 7.1 magnitude earthquake in Dingri county in Tibet. We are sad and devastated that we have lost more than 128 lives of our Tibetan brothers and sisters. We are in solidarity with them and for twelve hours, we are doing prayers for them in the main temple. It's home to so many Tibetan people in exile, especially where his holiness the Dalai Lama resides."

Phakdon added, "It's an overnight prayer. In our tradition and culture, we believe that if you pray for those who have lost their lives or for the families of the victims of the earthquake then it will enlighten their next path..."

Tenzin Lekdhen, an activist from Students for Free Tibet, told ANI, "We are here praying for the souls that have been departed and for those who are injured in the 7.1 magnitude earthquake that happened in Dingri county in Tibet. We are here in solidarity with those who have passed away, so we will be doing this prayer session for the whole night and it is special because we are doing it here in the Dalai Lama Temple, the seat of the exile government here in Dharamshala and here we have exile Tibetans from all different ages. We are doing it from 7:00 pm to 7:00 am..."

Notably, an earthquake jolted a remote region of Tibet on January 7, killing at least 126 people and injuring over 100 others, with tremors felt in Nepal, Bhutan and parts of northern India, Al Jazeera reported. The earthquake was followed by 49 aftershocks.

Over 1000 houses were destroyed in the earthquake that struck Tibet on January 7, Al Jazeera reported, citing Xinhua News Agency. The epicentre of the quake was Shigatse, one of the holiest cities of Tibet, as per Al Jazeera. The United States Geological Survey said the earthquake measured 7.1 on the Richter scale, while the China Earthquake Networks Center (CENC) recorded a magnitude of 6.8. (ANI)