For a long time, the region of Ladakh used to be called Little Tibet. The nomenclature was coined by the British imperialists. Actually they had not made comprehensive geographical survey of the region that lay north east of Tibet. Perhaps because the people of Ladakh hail from Mongoloid race or mixed Turko-Mongoloid race, the imperialists remained content with calling it Little Tibet. Thus an impression was created that Ladakh is part of Tibet. There were other factors also that unwittingly or by curious turn of events confirmed this wrong impression.
Ladakh was annexed by General Zorawar Singh, the Commander of Maharaja Ranjit Singh around 1835. The Ladakhis put up stiff resistance but were overpowered by the invader. Thereafter Ladakh became integral part of the State of Jammu and Kashmir. The exact nomenclature in Urdu of the State of Maharaja Ranbir Singh was “Riyasat-e Jammu wa Kashmir wa Ladakh wa Tibet ha” which when literally translated would be the State of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh and the Tibet(s). This is somewhat strange nomenclature and demonstrates that the boundaries and frontiers of the region remained un-demarcated and undesignated.
Most unfortunately the history of Ladakh prior to the annexation of the region by the Dogras has not come down to our hands. All that we know about the indigenous history of the region is through word of mouth and that too has faded away with the passage of time. In anthropological terms it is unacceptable to believe that a race that is anthropologically akin to a neighbouring race has been the vassal of that race or that it had no impendent personality of its own. It is very much true in the case of Ladakh. What lends credibility to our perception is the rich cultural heritage that has come down to the contemporary Ladakhis from their ancestors. The entire region of Ladakh including Kargil is exceptionally rich in cultural heritage with clear indications that the pre-historic period of Ladakh offers very valuable and fascinating material for study. Archaeologists have found pre-historic tools and artefacts at various places and more particularly by the sandy bank of Indus River which amply support the view that pre-historic culture was widely spread over the entire region.
These artefacts mostly belong to Palaeolithic and Neolithic periods. The religion that dominated the region prior to the advent of Buddhism is called Bon. The time period for Bon religion in Ladakh goes to 7th century B.C. and it is also known as pre-Buddhist era.
Buddhism came to Ladakh during the reign of King Ashoka in 300 BC. We do not have the details of how the Ladakhis embraced the religion of Buddha. Was it a peaceful conversion or was there some resistance. History tells us that Buddha’s religion being the message of peace and harmony; never did this religion enter into conflict with the locals or foreigners. But it has to be said that Ladakh contributed robustly to the spread of the faith of Lord Buddha among the masses of Ladakhi people. Buddhism came to Ladakh through the Kashmiri Buddhist monks who had converted to Buddhism under the rule of Ashoka. Kashmir history tells us that the two streams, Brahmanism and Buddhism existed side by side in Kashmir after the advent of latter through the missionaries (bhikshus) of Ashoka. The Kashmiri Buddhist missionaries of whom Kamalshri is in the front rank is reported to have travelled to Ladakh and then crossing the Karakorum entered Yarkand at Shadulla pass and then to Turkistan and eastward to Tibet. But in all probability he spent fairly long time in Ladakh carrying forward the mission of Buddha and then took with him some Ladakhi Buddhist monks to Turkestan and to Tibet where the religion of Buddha soon found many adherents. Indeed Buddhism flourished in the entire belt of Turko-Mongoloid ethnic groups from Tibet to Mongolia and from Sinkiang to China.
Ladakh has to be understood though it’s cultural wealth. It developed its language, script, folklore, architecture, coinage, dress, life style and social system. It is absolute misrepresentation to call it a vassal of Tibet. It was an independent kingdom and we have enough proofs to prove that theory. Ladakh, the roof of the world, is an exquisite plateau surrounded by naked ranges of Karakorum. It has lakes, glaciers, grazing fields and above all very beautiful and lovely people who have been born and brought up in the lap of the nature. This region is pollution free and has plenty of sunshine so that solar power generation is thought to be a profitable industry when developed. As a geographical entity of the State of Jammu and Kashmir, Ladakh has undergone sea change in all walks of life. However it is of utmost importance that pristine purity of the indigenous culture and traditions is maintained. Ladakh and Kargil regions are on the developmental map of the country. Great many changes are likely to happen. Zoji La will be pierced by two tunnels, and round the year traffic will connect the region with the rest of India. The proposal for taking railway line to Leh via Himachal is under consideration. We need a network of roads and connectivity to counter the forays of the Chinese and to provide facilities to our own people. Ladakh has the potential to become the crown of India.
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