Pilgrims in Lhasa

Lhasa, the capital city of Tibet Autonomous Region, derives its name from the term "Holy Land" in the Tibetan language, and attracts a great many pilgrims.

Every day around the Jokhang Temple, the ultimate pilgrimage destination for Tibetan pilgrims, local pilgrims and those coming from other places kowtow to show their piety to their beliefs. It is a ritual in Tibetan Buddhism.

The Barkhor Street circling the temple, the most famous pilgrim circuit in Lhasa, is thronged with pilgrims from all over Tibet, walking clockwise with prayer wheels, Buddhist prayer beads or incense.

Some have spent weeks moving forward body-lengths by body-lengths from hundreds or even thousands of kilometers away.