DHARMSALA, India – The Tibetan government-in-exile says a weekend fire at the sprawling Jokhang monastery in Tibet did not affect the main chapel at the 1,300-year-old religious site, considered the spiritual heart of Tibetan Buddhism.
The Jokhang chapel houses many Tibetan cultural treasures, including the Jowo Sakyamuni, a life-sized statue of the 12-year-old Buddha.
Video on Chinese social media showed a roof in the monastery complex hit by large flames that were visible from hundreds of meters (yards) away.
Lobsang Sangay, the prime minister of the Tibetan government-in-exile, expressed relief Monday that the fire did not affect the Jokhang chapel.
No injuries were reported from the Saturday blaze. The cause of the fire remains unknown.
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