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Yushu mourns quake victims with butter lamps

(Xinhua)
Updated: 2010-04-28 07:42

YUSHU, Qinghai: Picking up a just-lit butter lamp in front of Gesar Square in the heart of quake-hit Gyegu Town, 28-year-old Nanze pauses to stare at the flickering flame as a chilly wind blows.

Almost two weeks after an earthquake struck Yushu prefecture of Qinghai Province on April 14, tons of yak butter in plastic bags and pots of different sizes lay alongside a blue tent with more than 600 burning butter lamps inside.

Sitting beside them are monks in crimson cloaks and other volunteers. They wipe the empty lamps clean, fill them with freshly boiled yak butter and replace the cotton wicks after each lamp burns out.

"The lamps help the deceased find their way to the land of bliss in their afterlife," said Nanze, who only said he ran a small business in Qinghai provincial capital Xining.

Despite the freezing cold outside, Nanze wore only a black T-shirt in the tent, where the butter lamps have filled the tent with both flickering and a defiant warmth.

"Without the butter lamps, people would be lost in the darkness at the end of their lives," he said.

As of Sunday afternoon, the earthquake had claimed 2,220 lives, and 70 others are still missing.

At the Yushu racecourse and Gesar Square, hundreds of butter lamps can be seen burning through day and night to mourn the dead.

Nanze arrived in Yushu, where his mother still live, with his best friend Mala on April 15 after driving from Xining for more than 12 hours.

"We went past the Yushu racecourses on our way back. Everything was in ruins, and I just couldn't help but cry," said Nanze, the father of an 18-month boy. His aunt, uncle and nephew also died in the earthquake.

He bought 30,000 yuan's worth of yak butter the day after the quake and lit a dozen butter lamps at Gesar Square, where thousands of quake victims had by then pitched tents after their homes were destroyed.

"We figured there was not much left for us to do at the time because there was so many people working to save lives already," he said.

People soon started bringing more lamps and yak butter to Nanze. They asked him to light the butter lamps for them. He and his friends now light at least 4,000 butter lamps each day.

Many people, including monks and nuns, and volunteers from other parts of China, also offered to help.

The need for their service increased so quickly Nanze and his nine friends brought in another tent on Monday night to house more butter lamps, even as the ten of them cram into a tent of less than 20 square meters at night.

"We hope all people who come to us pray for all quake victims first and not just their lost family and friends," he said.

Nanze said if everything goes well, he and his friends will light the lamps for 49 days in accordance with local traditions. "I don't care about my business. What is more important is the butter lamps and praying for the dead," he said.

But they have done much more than that.

From April 17 to 19, Nanze and his friend Mala also provided food, including meat, vegetables and instant noodles, to those in need at Gesar Square.

They also brought with them two diesel engines to provide power for local residents to recharge their cell phone batteries and other electronic devices. They are also arranging with the local government free plane and car rides to help relief-work volunteers get home.

"We have so far helped 150 volunteers get home after they helped with the relief work here," said Mala, who lost her sister and sister-in-law in the quake.

What about 49 days later?

"I hope the souls of the dead can be blessed and the living can grow stronger," Nanze said.