Manaslu Expedition (8156)
Manaslu was
first climbed in 1956 by a japanese
expedition. Its name comes from
the Sanskrit word Manasa, meaning
'intellect' or 'soul'. This
is the same word that is the
root of the name of the holy
lake Manasarover near Mt kailas
in Tibet. Just as the British
considered Everest to be there
mountain, Manaslu has always
been a 'Japanese' mountain.
The record
on manaslu in 2002 was 175 summiters,
120 expeditions and 49 deaths.
HW Tilman and
Jimmy Roberts photographed manaslu
during a trek in 1950, but the
first real survey of the peak
was made by a japanese expedition
in 1952.
A Japanese
team made the first serious
attempt on the peak from the
Buri Gandaki valley in 1953
when anothere team followed
in 1954, the villagers of Samagaon
told them that the first team
had been responsible for an
avalanche which destroyed a
monastery, and refused to let
the 1954 expedition climb. The
expedition set off to climb
Ganesh Himal instead.
Despite a large
donation for the rebuilding
of the monastery, subsequent
japanese expeditions, including
the one that made the first
ascent in 1956, took place in
an atmosphere of animosity and
mistrust. The second successful
Japanese expedition was in 1971
there was South Korean attempt
in 1971, and in april 1972 an
avlanche which resulted in the
death of five climbers and 10
Sherpas ended the second South
Korean expedition.
Reinhold Messner
made the fourth ascent of Manaslu
as a member of a Tyroleam expedition
that climbed the peak from the
Marsyangdi valley in 1972.