Biggest Natural Mirror of the World!
A student of mine, Lin Lee, sent me this forwarded email which had such beautiful photos. It is of the world’s largest salt flat (plane) which spans about 10, 582 sq km in the Potosi region of Bolivia.
Called Salar de Uyuni, every year many tourists visit the South-West of Bolivia to view this remarkable “heaven on earth” site. If you take a look at the photos, you can see that people can walk on the salt plane… like they’re walking on water! In the dry season, the salt plane is like a completely hardened block of dry salt… just like walking on a concrete road! In the wet season, there is just a thin layer of water but it is still drivable and walkable.
It is about 11,995 ft above sea level, and at the very center the salt composite can be up to 10 metres thick! Under the surface of Salar de Uyuni is a lake of brine. Brine is a saturated solution of table salt (Lithium Chloride and Magnesium Chloride in water). The depth of the lake is about 7-66 feet deep!
The legend behind the salt flat revolves around how a man left his wife and their child… and when she teared while breast-feeding her child, her tear mixed with her milk and formed the salt plane.
Geologically, however, the salt flat formed after several thousands of years of transformations between many prehistoric lakes. It is extremely rich in Lithium and it contains about 50-70% of the world’s Lithium reserves!!
Although there aren’t any wildlife or vegetation to be seen, people who visit get to see the pink flamingo which breeds in Salar de Uyuni.
It is a beautiful scene when you take a photo and you see no difference between the ground below you or the sky above you.
Tsem Rinpoche
(click the photos to enlarge)
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Dear Rinpoche,
We do have our very own ‘Sky Mirror in Malaysia’. It’s located in Kuala Selangor. Do check it out here https://vibrantdot.co/sky-mirror-malaysia-malaysias-own-salar-de-uyuni/#:~:text=This%20natural%20phenomenon%2C%20known%20as,it%20right%20here%20in%20Malaysia%3F
Bolivia’s Salar de Uyuni salt flats are one of the most remarkable vistas on earth. Been the world’s largest salt flat, which is over 10,000 square kilometres in area. At times the salt flat is covered in very clear water, making it the largest natural mirror in the world. Though wildlife is rare in this unique ecosystem, many pink flamingos were seen at times. Many enthusiastic photographers will be flocking there to capture the unique landscape. The world’s largest salt flat, it a truly amazing sight to behold. To experience the incredible richness of natural beauty and diverse landscapes will definitely make an forgettable memories a life time. A place worth visiting.
Well here in Malaysia there is a place dubbed as the ‘Salar de Uyuni due to its mysterious appearance that resembles the salt flats in Bolivia. That’s wonderful where it could attract people to see it for themselves.
Thank you Rinpoche for this sharing,
This is TOTALY AMAZING ! This is somewhat in Kuala Selangor known as ‘sky mirror’, which was named after mirror- like reflection. Really feel like visiting the beauty of mother nature.
Thank you for the info sharing wish to explore and enjoy the nature.
https://bit.ly/3mq0VLn
Salar de Uyuni is one of the world’s most extreme and mysterious landscapes. It is the world’s largest salt flat, located in Bolivia’s Altiplano. Every year photographers and many tourist flock there to capture the unique landscape. Despite being remotely located, this world’s largest salt plain is a popular and scenic destination for many.
In fact quite a number of places in Malaysia do have this Sky Mirror which many use to call it. Other than in Kuala Selangor as mentioned by Jacinta , here in Kuantan also do have place as well but not popular yet .
Thank you Rinpoche for this sharing.
Dear Rinpoche,
I found out that in Malaysia we have our very own Sky Mirror as well.
Here’s a short description “KUALA SELANGOR;
Sky Mirror named after its mirror-like reflection of the sky is a mystery island that will only emerge for several days every month: During the 1st and 15th of a lunar month, as well as 4 days before or after these dates. It is also dubbed the Salar de Uyuni of Malaysia, after similar natural wonder in Bolivia.”
Amazing …such a beautiful place natural mirror of the worl. One of the most breath-taking locations of Salar de Uyuni, amid the Andes in southwest Bolivia, has to offer to tourist around the world. It’s the legacy of a prehistoric lake that went dry. Itis the world largest salt lake. and yearly many tourist will go there to see for themselves the beauty of it.
Thank you Rinpoche and Lin Lee for sharing these amazing pictures .
Wow!!!…Those pictures of that salt lake are extremely beautiful.I love the fact that no matter whether you look up or down all you see is basically the same thing. So cool! Thank you Rinpoche for sharing these beautiful pictures of the salt lake. 🙂
Mother nature never fails to amaze and humble. This is first time I have ever heard of Salar de Uyuni or seen these amazing photos. Imaging standing on a plane where you see no difference between the ground below you or the sky above you. I can’t imagine how surreal that would feel like.
We tend to believe what we see and is more dependent on our sight than we realize. We give trust to something that can easily be tricked. Have you not ever seen one of those optical illusion images. Most of us have but choose not to think about what optical illusion really tells us about our visual perception.
Optical illusion is proof that we don’t always see what we think we saw. It can be a scary and daunting thought. If I cannot believe what my eyes see, then what else can I believe in.
Perhaps the way to truly see is not with our eyes but with our mind. The Buddha taught us to gain the eye of wisdom, the eye of penetrative insight to see the true existence of phenomena.
Like The Paranormal Zone host Phng Li Kim always says “What we see may not be real, what is real we may not see”.
Dear Rinpoche,
Wowie!!! What an awesome place to be!!!
I have heard of this place before and seen a lot of pictures of this place and the pictures are so so awesome!
I love the fact that no matter whether you look up or down all you see is basically the same thing…. so cool!
I would really love to make a visit there and if I could I would love to see the sunset and rise.
Just seeing the pictures make me so wanna go there and take lots of shots.
Thank you Rinpoche for blogging about this awesome wonders of the world!!!
Love
Jutika
This is indeed one of the more interesting natural wonders of the world! It is very strange to be walking on a landscape where the land is a giant mirror that reflects the heavens. It must be a most surreal experience walking on this alien landscape. It is amazing and I do wonder if it is caused by a giant meteorite that crash and the salt is the remains of this meteorite.
It does have a strange chemical content like being high in Lithium. That’s what they use to make batteries and that’s why I think it may be a heavenly body that crashed here in ancient times. But I guess, if it was, the scientists would have discovered evidence for that. Nonetheless, this makes it a very interesting place.
Thank you Rinpoche for sharing this beautiful picture !! I want to say :Wowww !!such a beautiful place…I wish we all can visit there to enjoy the nature and peace ya *_*
Kacho pure land on earth! Nature is such a wonderful thing that makes amazing things for everyone to enjoy. For this to be remained, we need to all work together to not exploit what nature has to offer, starting from ourselves to use enough water, electricity on a daily basis irregardless where we are. We can learn to rely on the nature light and not to turn on the light in the afternoon. Turn on the tab water for enough water to come through. Take short and quick shower. Turn off pipe while brushing teeth, washing face etc. We can even lead the second rinse water load from our washing machine to water the garden, to wash our balcony etc. We can reduce the use of air-conditioner and not to leave electrical items on stand-by mode. Mother earth is our home, where our concrete home is build on. It is our responsibilities to take care of it together. No more styrofoam and plastic bags please!
Great photos… mother earth is amazing! I think it takes good karma to be able to appreciate the natural wonders of the world and not be addicted to the insides of shopping malls 😉
It’s very surreal and see that such place exist. Wow! The salt mirror can stand the weight of a lorry, incredible…
The photos are stunning!! It is such a beautiful site!! I sincerely wish that this place is preserved well because places like these are getting less and less.
It is said in the other post ( http://blog.tsemtulku.com/tsem-tulku-rinpoche/current-affairs/bolivia-sets-the-first-ever-law-of-mother-nature.html ) that there are laws setup to preserve this place, and the law will grant nature the equal rights to human. It is so thoughful!!
May be one day I can do my Sadhana here…
This is simply spectacular! So beautiful, so pretty! I agree with Philip, personally, I like nature very much too. I love the smell of dew, greens, the ocean, mountains. Visiting places like these gives so much more peace than say… Milan for shopping, as what many people would rather opt for.
Wow! Amazing how nature works!
Wow! Those pictures of that salt lake are extremely beautiful. There are really many magical places to explore in the world. I want to go there and check that place out. Although there aren’t any wildlife or plants to be seen, I want to see the pink flamingos in Salar de Uyuni. Thank you, Rinpoche for sharing with us all these lovely photos of the salt lake.
I must also say wow!. The pictures of the salt lake are very beautiful. The reflection of the sky onto the salt is so beautiful with the different hues of colours.. Although there may be tourists going to the salt lake in Bolivia. Do they do business with the salt. Salt lake contains very rich Lithium which contains 50% – 70% of it. Although you can’t see any wild life or vegetation around. Tourist who go there will be able to see pink Flamingos in Salar de Uyuni. Thank you Lin Lee for sending these beautiful pictures to Rinpoche to share with us.
WOWOWOWOW!!!!!!! It’s amazingly beautiful. I wanna go there. So many beautiful places to explore. I am thinking what it feels like to be there? When a take a breath of air in, will there be the salty air aroma or will there be none? How amazing the mother earth is.
Thank you so much for sharing the post with us, dear Rinpoche
Wow this is really beautiful! I always dream of traveling the world to visit places like the above.
I do not understand why people these days just stay in their houses or go to the shopping malls to have ‘fun’. I personally love the outdoor or more precisely the nature. Since young I loved going camping and I really feel at peace when I’m in the forest.
I can just lie down on the soil for hours to feel the breeze and enjoy the nature’s ‘music’!
WOW! Now, this is SUBLIME!