Epic tale remains a story worth telling

Due to the oral tradition and collaborative creation of the epic, determining its precise length is difficult.

In 2019, the Himalayan Encyclopedia, an online sharing platform of a digital Tibetan library, collected and compiled the epic, and jointly published The Complete Works of the Epic of King Gesar with the Sichuan Nationalities Publishing House and the Sichuan Fine Arts Publishing House.

This monumental edition spans 300 volumes and contains approximately 130 million words, offering a glimpse into the epic's immense scale.

Yeshe Ihamo has studied the epic at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences since 2011. She says many institutions and scholars have published books to preserve it over the past decades, which were supported by the government.

Since the 1950s, China has initiated efforts to preserve The Epic of King Gesar. Research centers dedicated to the epic have been established in Xizang, Qinghai and Sichuan. These centers have brought together scholars and academic institutions to conduct specialized research and preservation work, including a long-term focus on talented storytellers, with endeavors to record and transcribe their oral traditions.

"Many local governments have started establishing databases and are utilizing digital methods to aid in its preservation. But storytellers are still critical for preserving and passing down the ancient legend," says Yeshe Ihamo.

Most elder storytellers are unable to read or write, but they can recite the king's tales for days. With their passing, the stories they once narrated and sang are at risk of being lost. Scholars and experts capture these singers on film as they perform in their later years, providing the sole means of preserving their renditions.

Thankfully, the younger generation is now taking on the task of preserving this cultural heritage, with help from local government funding.