Tholing monastery was built in the eleventh century, during the reign of Yeshe-O, the King of Guge, Western Tibet. It proved a refuge for numerous scholars and translators. It was here that Atisha met Lotsawa Rinchen Sangpo and also where he wrote his seminal text, Lamp of the Path, which has remained an inspiration for generations up to the present day. The monastery, said to have been modeled after Samye in Central Tibet, is noted today for the exquisite quality of the murals that cover its walls. These paintings delightfully express the vigour of the transmission of Buddhism from India to Tibet and the dynamic mingling of cultures. Even after so many centuries, which have seen the abandonment and ruin of the buildings that house them, they retain a freshness that is a joy to see. – Dalai Lama, Foreword: Ewald Hein / Günther Boelmann: Tibet – Der Weiße Tempel von Tholing.