Ocean, As Much As Rain

Tsering Woeser is a Tibetan writer, poet, activist, and the author of numerous books of poetry and prose.Fiona Sze-Lorrain is a writer, poet, translator, and the author of, most recently, Dear Chrysanthemums: A Novel in Stories.Dechen Pemba is the editor of High Peaks Pure Earth.

• Foreword / Pankaj Mishra viiIntroduction. Ocean Can Be Rain: Woeser’s Poetry, Fiction, and Lyrical Prose / Fiona Sze-Lorrain 1Translation Credits 11. A Sheet of Paper Can Also Become a Knife 132. My Tongue Surgery 143. Spring 184. Rinchen the Sky-Burial Master 195. Tibet 356. Garpon La’s Offerings 387. On the Fifteenth Midnight of the Fourth Month in the Tibetan Calendar 498. Two Excerpts from The Prayer Beads of Fate 519. The King of Dzi 5410. “Do Not Forget the Past . . .” 7311. Celebrity Street Toilets in Lhasa 7412. Ocean, as Much as Rain 8713. Remembering a Smashed Buddha 10614. The Ruins of Lhasa: Yabzhi Taktser 10815. Let Me Write, the Fear of Lhasa Breaks My Heart 13116. Only This Useless Poem—for Lobsang Tsepak 13317. Back of Lhasa, Day One, from Seven Days in Lhasa 13618. The Killing Trip 14719. A Few Years Later 16320. Masks and Tea 16521. An Eye for History and Reality: Woeser and Her Story of Tibet / Dechen Pemba and Fiona Sze-Lorrain 167Acknowledgments 181Glossary of Place Names 183Bibliography 185Biographies 189Index 191

“Ocean, as Much as Rain is more than just a book; it’s an act of bearing witness. It’s a testament to the enduring strength of the Tibetan spirit and a powerful reminder of the importance of preserving cultural heritage in the face of political adversity. Highly recommended for anyone seeking a deeper understanding of Tibet and the human condition.” - Tsering Shakya, author of The Dragon in the Land of Snows"Tsering Woeser, a Tibetan author and activist, has been one of the most essential voices on Tibet writing within China for decades. That comes at a price — she is unable to leave the country, where her books are banned. Which makes the work of translating her all the more valuable, as it is in this upcoming collection of her essays and poems, skilfully curated and translated by Fiona Sze-­Lorrain with Dechen Pemba."—China Books Review"Woeser’s unique position as an insider in Tibet with direct access to places and people and at the same time a brave objective observer have turned her into one of the most valuable Tibetan voices of the first three decades of the twenty-first century."—Kamila Hladíková, High Peaks Pure Earth"This translated collection is a work powered by collective memory, collaboration, and the strength displayed by Woeser and many other Tibetans who continue to speak truth to power. Ocean is triumphant in its call to action and further fuels the Tibetan liberation struggle by rejecting compliance with China, and challenging a state that reduces Tibet to Shangri-La mythology, a museum of ancient relics, and/or a capitalist market for consumption."—Thinley Chodon, Lhakar Diaries