"I had not heard of the Guge Kingdom till I began reading about Far West Tibet and its history. And then, unexpectedly, a wonderful lost world of flourishing trade, benevolent kings, free religious debate, the synthesis of art and culture, all seemed to converge and blend for a few centuries at the temple town of Toling and Tsaparang, its capital. The kingdom had a short life, but it was then the centre of Tibet, marked by royal patronage of arts, craft, trade and religion. It was caught in the crossfire between the indigenous Bonpo and foreign Buddhist rituals and thoughts, Christian evangelism and marauding Muslim warriors from Ladakh."

--from Here Be Yaks by Manosi Lahiri

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