Photo shows the Potala Palace and the white pagoda in downtown Lhasa, capital of southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region. [Photo/ifeng.com]

White is the most common color in southwest China's Tibet Autonomous Region as the Tibetans love and worship the white color.

The white snow accompanies Tibetans throughout the year. In the lengthy winter, the plateau becomes a sea of snow. Even in summer, the snow on the Himalayas and the Gangdise Mountains of the region won't melt at all.

As the proverb goes, a timely snow promises a good harvest. However, if the snow is too light, a harvest is out of the question; if the snow is too heavy, a snow disaster may come and threaten people's life and property.

Both gratitude and awe toward white have formed in the heart of Tibetans.

In Tibet, white symbolizes justice, kindness, nobility, purity, auspiciousness as well as festival. As long as it is white, it becomes a reason for Tibetans to worship and love.

White nurtures and maintains Tibetans, giving them many important daily supplies. Fox example, Tsampa, a main staple of Tibetans, is white; the milk and the highland barley wine they drink are white; the clothes they wear are made of white wool.

Tibetan people connect white to their respectable deities. For example, they consider the white Mount Qomolangma as the auspicious goddess in white, and they see the snow-covered Gangdise Mountains as holy mountains.

Also, white is an indispensable color in the Tibetan Buddhism as white prayer flags and white pagoda are seen everywhere in Tibet. And the Kagyu Sect, one of the five major sects of Tibetan Buddhism, is customarily called White Sect.

The Avalokitesvara, deeply respected and adored by Tibetans, is dressed in white, contrary to black, symbol of evil and disaster.

The Tibetan people bring the symbolic meanings of white to not only the transcendent world but also their daily life.

The houses they live are mostly decorated with white auspicious patterns, and the Khada they present to each other is white, delivering best wishes…

If one knows about the "white culture" in Tibet, he or she will have a deeper understanding about Tibetans and their culture.