Ekai Kawaguchi (1866-1945), a Buddhist monk known as an early explorer of Tibet, was the first Japanese visitor to Nepal. Having studied the Tibetan language in Darjeeling, the 34-year-old Kawaguchi came to Nepal in 1899 with the goal of secretly entering Tibet, which was then closed to foreigners. Originally he hesitated about whether he should go to Tibet via Bhutan or Nepal. Eventually he chose the Nepal route, considering that even if he failed to enter Tibet, Nepal had many Sanskrit manuscripts which deserved to be thoroughly investigated and studied,…
Read MoreEkai Kawaguchi, a Buddhist Monk, First Japanese Visitor to Nepal
