Labrang Monastery

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This article is about the Buddhist monastery in Gansu province, China. For the monastery in Sikkim, India see Labrang Monastery (Sikkim)
Labrang Monastery
Tibetan name
Tibetan: བླ་བྲང་བཀྲ་ཤིས་འཁྱིལ་
Wylie transliteration: bla-brang bkra-shis-'khyil
Chinese name
traditional: 拉卜楞寺
Pinyin: lābǔlèng sì
Labrang Monastery is located in China
Labrang Monastery
Location within China
Coordinates: 35°11′44″N 102°30′29″E / 35.19556°N 102.50806°E / 35.19556; 102.50806
Monastery information
Location: Xiahe County, Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, Gansu, China
Founded by: Ngawang Tsondru
Founded: 1709
Type: Tibetan Buddhist
Sect: Gelug
Lineage: Jamyang Zhaypa
Festivals: January 4 - 17
June 26 - July 15

Labrang Monastery (Tibetan: བླ་བྲང་བཀྲ་ཤིས་འཁྱིལ་ Wylie: bla-brang bkra-shis-'khyil; Chinese: 拉卜楞寺 Pinyin: lābǔlèng sì) is one of the six great monasteries of the Geluk (Yellow Hat) school of Tibetan Buddhism. Labrang is located in Xiahe County in Gansu province, and also considered to be in the traditional Tibetan area of Amdo. Labrang Monastery is home to the largest number of monks outside of Tibet Autonomous Region. Xiahe is located about 4 hours from the city of Lanzhou, the capital of Gansu.

Labrang Monastery is located in the town of Xiahe, which belongs to the Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture. The town is reflection of the different ethnic groups that can be found in China, such as Tibetans (about 70% of the population), Hui Chinese (20%) and Han Chinese (10%).

Contents

[edit] History

The monastery was founded in 1709 by the first Jamyang Zhaypa, Ngawang Tsondru. It is Tibetan Buddhism's most important monastery town outside the Tibetan Autonomous Region.

Labrang Monastery is situated at the strategic intersection of four major Asian cultures—Tibetan, Mongolian, Han Chinese, and Chinese Muslim—was one of the largest Buddhist monastic universities. In the early twentieth century, it housed several thousand monks. Labrang was also a gathering point for numerous annual religious festivals, supported an active regional marketplace where Han Chinese artisans rubbed shoulders with Hui merchants and nomadic Tibetan highlanders, and was the seat of a Tibetan power base that strove to maintain regional autonomy through the shifting alliances and bloody conflicts that took place between 1700 and 1950.[1] [2]

Young monk and prayer wheels

[edit] Description

Circling a stupa

The monastery complex dominates the northern part of the village. The white walls and golden roofs feature a blend of Tibetan and Han architectural styles. The monastery contains 18 halls, six institutes of learning, a golden stupa, a sutra debate area, and houses nearly 60,000 sutras. There once were more than 2000 monks in residence, but now only 500, due to a twelve year closure starting in 1958. It has a Buddhist museum with a large collection of Buddha statues, sutras and murals. In addition, a large amount of Tibetan language books, including books on history is available for purchase, together with medicines, calendars, music and art objects.

The monastery today is an important place for Buddhist ceremonies and activities. From 4 to 17 January and 26 June to 15 July (these dates may change according to the lunar calendar), the great Buddhist ceremony will be held with Buddha-unfolding, sutra enchanting, praying, sutra debates, etc.

The monks are extremely friendly to foreigners, and used every opportunity to practice their basic English which in most cases is self-taught. Accommodation is easy to find and a great variety of articles and souvenirs are available. Although the region is mostly rural and pastoral (including yak and other animal rearing), tourism is growing rapidly mainly due to the monastery.

[edit] Recent events

In March 2008 there were protests by monks from Labrang Monastery as well as by other ethnic Tibetans linked to previous protests and rioting that broke out in Lhasa.[3]

[edit] References

  1. ^ http://www.snowlionpub.com/html/21.html LABRANG: A Tibetan Buddhist Monastery at the Crossroads of Four Civilizations
  2. ^ http://www.amazon.com/Labrang-Buddhist-Monastery-Crossroads-Civilizations/dp/1559390905/ref=sr_11_1/104-3313246-3586354?ie=UTF8&qid=1216751336&sr=11-1 LABRANG: A Tibetan Buddhist Monastery at the Crossroads of Four Civilizations (Book Preview Available)
  3. ^ "Open revolt defies China's iron fist". The Sydney Morning Herald. March 17, 2008. http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/open-revolt-defies-chinas-iron-fist/2008/03/16/1205602195404.html. Retrieved 2008-06-29. 

[edit] External links

[edit] Further reading

  • Thubron, Colin (2007) Shadow of the Silk Road 58-67 (New York: HarperCollins).
  • Makley, Charlene E. (1999). "Gendered Practices and the Inner Sanctum: The Reconstruction of Tibetan Sacred Space in "China's Tibet"." In: Sacred Spaces and Powerful Places in Tibetan Culture: A Collection of Essays, pp. 343-366. Edited by Toni Huber. Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, Dharamsala, H.P., India. ISBN 81-86470-22-0.

Coordinates: 35°11′44″N 102°30′29″E / 35.19556°N 102.50806°E / 35.19556; 102.50806

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