Penba Wangdu, a lecturer of Tibetan Fine Arts at the Art School of Tibet University, talks to CRI reporter inside the university library in Lhasa on July 13, 2010. [Photo: CRIENGLISH.com/Chu Daye]

Nonetheless, teacher Penba Wangdu still said student's time is pressed. He said the many courses, necessary and good as they are, are draining students' time to practice drawing. There is also other stuff, such as the many worldly pursuits, that undermines the single most required quality in art-devotion.

To become a Thangka painter, let alone a master, is very demanding. That cannot be acquired without long application, and then not by everyone.

After evolution of hundreds of years, Thangka drawing has developed stringent rules and regulations for painters to follow, yet these rules and regulations cannot be followed blindly without intuition.

For example, the rule requires that the height of the Buddha must be equal to the total width of 125 of his own fingers, whereas his face should be exactly as tall as the added width of 12.5 of his fingers. Learners could only achieve such precision after practicing for years.

For a talented kid, he will need one to two years to master the basic line drawing, then he may proceed to coloring, to be followed by drawing patterns with pure gold powder and advanced coloring, and finally he could learn to draw facial expressions and make overall adjustments. Only after that it could be said that he has mastered all the elements of Thangka painting.

"For a student whose natural gift rises above others, if he studies for ten hours a day, and he doesn't have to take other courses to distract his attention, then he might become a passable Thangka painter after three years."

A few in a hundred succeed in this. The rest and the less fortunate have to study for 9 to 10 years.

Dazha said line drawing and coloring are the most difficult parts for him. Whenever hitting a bottleneck in the course of painting, Dazha would go to Lhasa's Barkor Street and watch workshop artisans there painting Thangka to draw inspiration.

However, his classmate, 21-year-old Gama Jiacuo, has his own remedy.

"Spend more time looking at and studying fine works. And spend more time practicing line drawing."

Now both Dazha and Gama Jiacuo have painted two to three Thangkas independently. But teacher Penba Wangdu said they have just passed the very first level in Thangka painting.

There is a ladder, starting from painting Sakyamuni, then Lady Buddha, then Buddha with many limbs, and finally Guardian Buddha, to measure the prowess of a Thangka painter.

Penba Wangdu said the most difficult part for students to master is to manage the proportion of Buddha's body, and that is where the criteria of a good Thangka painting lie.

Penba Wangdu said students in his class mainly study the more prevalent Miantang School Thangka painting.

The Qinze School, which excels in painting gods in rage, is a less dominant school, though it equals the Miantang School in artistic value and is somewhat more "precious" as a cultural heritage as there are a far fewer number of inheritors.

Penba Wangdu is one of the few dozen inheritors of that particular School.

In 2005, Penba Wangdu played a major role in the enlistment of the Miantang School and Qinze School Thangka painting as state-level intangible cultural heritages. As a result, a protection center was established at Tibet University in 2006, supported each year with subsidies and fiscal aid allocated by the central and regional government.

Penba Wangdu said that with the successful enlistment, he felt the responsibility on his shoulders grew heavier.

This summer vacation, Penba Wangdu planned a training session in which his 14 students will get some elementary education on the styles of the Qinze School Thangka painting.

"This course is a first, and I hope there will be a second and a third. With gradual effort, we hope we could carry on and promote the Qinze School. This is my wish. And I believe this is also the wish of the leaders of our art school, our University and cultural departments of Tibet Autonomous Region."

As one of the 14, Dazha has, at least, the determination that his teacher can be proud of.

"Become a Thangka painter, that is my dream. Ever since I was a kid. It will be difficult though, but I shall overcome."