Summary

In Part I: “Daughters,” “Lhamo,” Chapter 1, “Border of Western Tibet and Nepal, Spring 1960,” Lhamo’s and Tenkyi’s mother, or Ama, discovered she was an oracle when the People’s Liberation Army, or the Gyami, invaded Tibet (3). The Gyami were seizing Tibetan farms and starving the people. Terrified they would not survive, Lhamo’s village sought help from the gods. In order to test Ama’s powers, the monks presented her with regalia and a series of tests. Eavesdropping on the ceremony, Lhamo feared Ama “would become half god and half human” (6).

Over time, Ama became respected for her gifts. Not long later, the Gyami entered the village. They tested Ama’s powers, insisting she was a hoax. The oracles could not “continue the divinations” (10). The Gyami condemned the people’s “way of life” (10).

One day, Ama’s brother Ashang Migmar...