Two Tibetan Inscriptions from the Juuqu Valley

Two Buddhist Inscriptions near the Village of Saruu

33 km south of the village of Saruu in the Jety-Oguz district of the Issyk-Kul region, deep in the Juu-Ku gorge, there is a large stone with a six-line inscription carved in Tibetan script. 15 meters to the north, there is another stone with a similar inscription consisting of three lines. The inscription (which we refer to as the small one) is made in larger letters (Table XXIV, Fig. 1.2)

According to local residents, in the same gorge, 27 km from the village of Saruu, in the Kulağan-Tash area, there is another inscription; supposedly, there are three more inscriptions in the It-Tishi gorge, 30 km from the village of Saruu.

In the large six-line inscription, the Tibetan Buddhist formula "Om mane padme hum" — "Give, Lord" or, as it is also translated, "Oh, precious stone in the lotus flower," "There is no grace higher than the lotus," "The jewel in the lotus flower" is repeated three to four times in each line. In the small three-line inscription, the same formula is repeated several times. These inscriptions were evidently carved by Buddhist pilgrims passing through these places.