Jokhang Temple

The Jokhang, traditionally dated to the seventh century under King Songtsen Gampo, houses the Jowo Rinpoche, the statue tradition brings to Lhasa with the Chinese princess Wencheng and the most venerated image in Tibetan Buddhism. Pilgrims prostrate and circle the Barkhor kora around the temple day and night, the temple anchors the Barkhor and the old city of Lhasa, and the ensemble is part of the UNESCO Historic Ensemble of the Potala Palace, inscribed in 1994 and extended to include the Jokhang in 2000.

Both frames on the temple today are documented. The living pilgrimage continues: circumambulation, prostration, butter lamps. Radio Free Asia reported Losar 2024 restrictions that limited Jokhang access to the first day of the new year and closed it for several days after, with identity checks around Lhasa''s temples, while Chinese state media presents the temple as open and protected. For foreign visitors, Tibet remains permit-controlled: a registered Tibet travel agency books the Tibet Travel Permit, guided transport is required, and the temple''s reported entry ticket is around CNY 85. This entry reports both records and takes no side.

Visiting

There is no single official operator page. Foreign visitors arrange the Tibet Travel Permit through a registered Tibet travel agency well ahead of travel; the Barkhor is open to circumambulation, and access rules announced around major festivals should be treated as current fact.

Photo: Pilgrims on the circuit, [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Crowd_of_pilgrims_at_the_Jokhang_temple_in_Lhasa,_Tibet.jpg), CC BY-SA 4.0, Jan Kranendonk.