Chogdong Monastery (or Chagdrung Monastery) in Kham, Tibet celebrated their 9th Annual Monlam Chenmo festival in July 2014. The festivities centered around a vast open plain, with huge tents erected to accommodate the thousands of monks and lay people who gathered to celebrate this auspicious occasion.

This particular event was organized by H.E. Nyedru Rinpoche, a close student of the previous Denma Gonsa Rinpoche. Through his hard work and dedication in spreading and upholding the lineage and practices entrusted to him by his teacher, Nyedru Rinpoche is widely regarded as an important and respected Dorje Shugden lama in his district of Yushu (or Yulshul), Tibet.

The Monlam Chenmo Festival or “Great Prayer Festival” was established by Lama Tsongkapa in 1409, to commemorate Shakyamuni Buddha’s performance of miracles in Shravasti. Commonly known as the third of Lama Tsongkapa’s four great deeds, Monlam Chenmo celebrations have been observed every year since, to pray for the long life of attained masters from all traditions, for the growth of Dharma in the minds of all sentient beings, and for world peace.

As seen from the images below, Monlam Chenmo is still traditionally practiced and upheld in a grand manner in Tibet. The occasion is marked by extensive communal offerings by both ordained and lay people, to overcome obstacles to peace and generate conducive conditions for all to live in harmony. Recently, another grand Monlam Chenmo celebration was also held in Chatreng, with over 400,000 Dorje Shugden practitioners gathering in Trijang Rinpoche’s Sampheling Monastery. Undoubtedly, Dorje Shugden practitioners make up a significant segment of the Gelugpa tradition, despite the efforts of the Dalai Lama and the Central Tibetan Administration to claim otherwise.

We at DorjeShugden.com rejoice in the strong faith and loyalty that the people of Tibet have for high lamas such as H.H. Trijang Rinpoche, H.E. Denma Gonsa Rinpoche, Nyedru Rinpoche and many more who are tirelessly turning the wheel of Dharma for the sake of all sentient beings. May the pure teachings and practices of the Gelug tradition live on and soar to greater heights.

Massive tents were erected around the monastery to accommodate the many people that traveled from great distances for the celebration

Tens of thousands gathered for this blessed occasion

Bountiful offerings made during Chogdong Monastery’s Monlam Chenmo festivities

H.E. Nyedru Rinpoche (right) with his teacher, the previous Denma Gonsa Rinpoche (left)

H.E. Nyedru Rinpoche (right) with the current incarnation of Denma Gonsa Rinpoche, the 19th of his lineage (centre)

This was puja was performed by the courageous monks of Serpom Monastery.

Dear Wisdom Being, 
Thank you for this wonderful video of Sampheling monastery. It is so beautiful to imagine Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche has once walked through these walkways to give teachings and advice to the predecessors of these monks.

Have you guys read the autobiography of Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche? When Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche first came here in his previous life, he was not at all welcome.

But through his hard work, sincerity, great compassion and wisdom in teaching the monks, everybody turned around and began to respect and love Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche a lot. Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche completely revitalized the monastery and he is remembered today for the great High Lama that he was. It was because of Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche that the monastery is a stalwart upholder of Dorje Shugden’s lineage.

From Zawa Tulku Rinpoche (on Facebook):

I have nothing particular to say, all Chatring-Pa (the people who live in this region) whether you are in India, Europe, and America etc, I have one very important request to you, you all must sincerely follow and respect to our precious His Holiness Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche. He is the one living Buddha in our time.

We must not have wrong views, and do not follow the wrong path. The way to our enlightenment is to follow the Buddhas, and our lineage holder is from Tsongkhapa to the present Masters, and our protector is Dharmapala Dorjee Shugden.

In the Chatring region from beginning till now, we are following and practicing those high beings. This is the gift to you from your elder generation. Wherever you are living and staying, you should always obey the laws and regulations of the country of one’s residence.

My last wishes are that you have a very long life and may the activities of His Holiness Trijang Choktrul Rinpoche flourish. Wherever you are, you must stand united for this issue. Lastly, Tashi Deleg to all.

The Dorje Shugden Torgya is a powerful ritual performed to avert or ward off all negative energies and obstacle-causing entities so that good energies, prosperity and peace are ushered in.

These two videos show the Dorje Shugden Torgya ritual recently performed at Serpom Monastery.

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This video shows the Tibetan New Year pujas at Shar Gaden Monastery.

These videos were taken on the 16th of December 2011 and shows the arrival of Kyabje Yongyal Dorje Chang just before the official opening of Serpom Monastery on the 18th of December 2011.

See the monks and lay people respectfully making traditional khata offerings to Kyabje Yongyal Dorje Chang.

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(Part 2 of 11) Debate session between monks of Serpom Monastery and Shar Gaden Monastery

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(Part 3 of 11) Inauguration and Consecration of the Assemply Hall of Serpom Monastery by Kyabje Yongyal Rinpoche, followed by Mangja Puja

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(Part 4 of 11) The Invocations of Dharmapalas Dorje Shugden, Jowo Chingarwa, Setrap and Kache Marpo in the Assembly Hall of Serpom Monastery

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(Part 5 of 11) The Opening Ceremony of Serpom Monastery

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It was presided by the chief guests:

His Eminence Kyabje Yongyal Rinpoche

His Excellency Shri S.A. Ramdas (Honorable Minister for Medical Education from Health & Family Welfare Department and Mysore Distric Minister)

Shri Venkatesh (Member of Legislature Assembly) with participation by local authorities, chairmen of Indian organizations, venerable monks, and delegates and guests from 18 different countries

(Part 6 of 11) The Opening Ceremony of Serpom Monastery

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The ceremony was presided by the chief guests:
His Eminence Kyabje Yongyal Rinpoche
His Excellency Shri S.A. Ramdas (Honorable Minister for Medical Education from Health & Family Welfare Department and Mysore Distric Minister)
Shri Venkatesh (Member of Legislature Assembly) with participation by local authorities, chairmen of Indian organizations, venerable monks, and delegates and guests from 18 different countries

(Part 7 of 11) Serpom monks engage in Buddhist studies in a systematic way, and therefore Buddhist education is making rapid progress.

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It goes without saying that it is a good example for Buddhism in general

(Part 8 of 11) On the occasion, Dungkar Samten Choeling Monastery from Darjeeling presented Buddhist traditional Cham dance.

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The Cultural Dance Department of Shar Gaden Monastery performed Tashi Shopa and Snow Lion dance

(Part 9 of 11) Kyabje Yongyal Rinpoche has kindly given oral transmissions, commentaries and empowerments to thousands of devotees at Serpom Monastery

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(Part 10 of 11) Serpom Monastery and devotees offered Long Life Puja to Kyabje Yongyal Rinpoche

(Part 11 of 11) Kyabje Yongyal Rinpoche paid visit to debate session and various departments of Serpom Monastery

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This video can be called the ‘Making of Serpom Monastery’. One can see the huge amount of work that went into preparing the monastery. The establishment of this Buddhist monastery feels like a second renaissance of Buddhism.

Video of the Taktse Dupcho puja at Shar Gaden Monastery, India.

Drepung Monastery

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Location

Mount Gephel, Lhasa Prefecture, Tibet, China

Founded by

Jamyang Chojey

Founded

1416

Sect

Gelug

Dedicated to

Je Tsongkhapa

Colleges

7 – Gomang, Loseling, Deyang, Shagkor, Gyelwa or Tosamling, Dulwa and Ngagpa

Drepung Monastery (Wylie: ‘bras spungs dgon [1]),(literally “Rice Heap” monastery[2][3]), located at the foot of Mount Gephel, is one of the “great three” Gelukpa university monasteries of Tibet. The other two are Ganden and Sera.

Drepung is the largest of all Tibetan monasteries and is located on the Gambo Utse mountain, five kilometers from the western suburb of Lhasa.

Freddie Spencer Chapman reported, after his 1936-37 trip to Tibet, that Drepung was at that time the largest monastery in the world, and housed 7,700 monks, “but sometimes as many as 10,000 monks.”[4]

Since the the 1950s, Drepung Monastery, along with its peers Ganden and Sera, have lost much of their independence and spiritual credibility in the eyes of Tibetans since they operate under the close watch of the Chinese security services. All three were reestablished in exile in the 1950s in Karnataka state in south India. Drepung and Ganden are in Mundgod and Sera is in Bylakuppe.

Contents

1 History
2 Recent events
3 Footnotes
4 References
5 See also

History

It was founded in 1416 by Jamyang Choge Tashi Palden (1397–1449), one of Tsongkhapa’s main disciples, and it was named after the sacred abode in South India of Shridhanyakataka.[5] Drepung was the principal seat of the Gelugpa school and it retained the premier place amongst the four great Gelugpa monasteries.[6]

The Ganden Podang (dga´ ldan pho brang) in Drepung was the residence of the Dalai Lamas until the Great Fifth Dalai Lama constructed the Potala. Drepung was known for the high standards of its academic study, and was called the Nalanda of Tibet, a reference to the great Buddhist monastic university of India.

Ganden Phodrang, the residence of Dalai Lama

Old records show that there were two centres of power in Drepung: the so-called lower chamber (Zimkhang ‘og ma) [7] associated with the Dalai Lamas-to-be, and the upper chamber (Zimkhang gong ma) associated with the descendants (future incarnations) of Panchen Sonam Drakpa, an illustrious teacher who died in 1554.[8] The estate of the Dalai Lamas at Drepung monastery, called Ganden Phodrang, had been constructed in 1518 by Gendun Gyatso Palzangpo (1476–1541), retrospectively named and counted as 2nd Dalai Lama.

Panchen Sönam Drakpa (1478-1554 CE) in 1535 succeeded Gendün Gyatso (1476–1541) on the Throne of Drepung, both of them being major figures in the history of the Geluk tradition. By the time Panchen Sönam Drakpa was appointed to the Throne of Drepung (Drepung Tri), he was already a famous Geluk master.

He had already occupied the Throne of Ganden (Ganden Tripa) and was considered the most prolific and important Geluk thinker of his time. His successor was none other than Sönam Gyatso (1543-1588 CE), the lama who would receive the official title of the Third Dalai Lama (Talé Lama Kutreng Sumpa).

Before his death in 1554, Panchen Sönam Drakpa established his own estate (Ladrang), the Upper Chamber (Zimkhang Gongma), which was named because of its location at the top of Drepung, just below the Ngakpa debating courtyard “Ngagpa Dratshang”.

Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center attributes the following Name variants to Panchen Sönam Drakpa: “bsod nams grags pa [primaryName], paN chen bsod nams grags pa [title], khri 15 bsod nams grags pa [primaryTitle], rtses thang paN chen bsod nams grags pa [title], gzims khang gong ma 01 bsod nams grags pa [title], this last one referring to the Seat of the Upper Chamber established in 1554.[9]

According to TBRC his successors referring to the estate of the Zimkhang Gongma were Sonam Yeshe Wangpo (1556–92),[10] Sonam Gelek Palzang (1594–1615)[11] and Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen (1619–1656)[12] – closely connected to the famous story of Dorje Shugden. (Some say that Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen was Panchen Sönam Drakpa’s second reincarnation,[13] but usually he is considered to be the 4th incarnation of Panchen Sonam Dragpa [14]).

It seems to be commonly accepted that Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen was the fourth holder of the Zimkhang Gong ma incarnation line. According to Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center zimkhang gong ma Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen has been his “primary Title”.[15] Since the search for his reincarnation has been banned by the then Tibetan Govt, he has been the last one.

The Tibetan Govt at the time of the 5th Dalai Lama and the 5th Dalai Lama’s ministers were jealous of the fame Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen had. More came to recieve teachings and advice to Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen than to the 5th Dalai Lama. This was threatening the rise in power of the Dalai Lama they thought and had tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen strangled with a scarf. Confiscated his Ladrang (Zimkhang Gong Ma) and banned Tulku Drapka Gyeltsen’s incarnation from being reinstalled.

Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen’s incarnation has been taking rebirth until now since the time of his murder over 350 years ago, but under other under incarnate lama’s names.  There is a a Tulku Drakpa Gyeltsen incarnation currently, but is is under another name. He will continue to incarnate and do his works.

Chapman reported that in the late 1930s Drepung was divided into four colleges, each housing monks from a different locality: “one being favoured by Khampas, another by Mongolians, and so on.” Each college was presided over by an abbot who had been appointed by the late 13th Dalai Lama.[16]

The Repaired Entrance to Drepung

Drepung is now divided into what are known as the seven great colleges: Gomang (sGo-mang), Loseling (Blo-gsal gling), Deyang (bDe-dbyangs), Shagkor (Shag-skor), Gyelwa (rGyal-ba) or Tosamling (Thos-bsam gling), Dulwa (‘Dul-ba), and Ngagpa (sNgags-pa). It can be a somewhat useful analogy to think of Drepung as a university along the lines of Oxford or the Sorbonne in the Middle Ages, the various colleges having different emphases, teaching lineages, or traditional geographical affiliations.

According to local sources, today the population at the monastery in Lhasa is about 300 monks, due to population capping enforced by the Chinese government. However, the institution has continued its tradition in exile with campuses in South India on land in Karnataka given to the Tibetan community in exile by Prime Minister Nehru.

The monastery in India today houses over 5,000 celibate monks, with around 3,000 at Drepung Loseling and some 2,000 at Drepung Gomang. Hundreds of new monks are admitted each year, many of them refugees from Tibet.

The Ganden-Phodrang-Palace situated at Drepung Monastery was constructed by the 2nd Dalai Lama in 1518 [17] and declared his chief residence/governmental palace until the inauguration of Potala Palace by the 5th Dalai Lama.

Recent events

About 40% of the old monastic town was destroyed after the Chinese arrived in Lhasa in 1951, though luckily the chief buildings including the four colleges, the Tsokchen and the Dalai Lamas’ residence were preserved.[6]

Drepung monastery was shut by Chinese authorities on 14 March 2008, after monk-led protests against Chinese rule turned violent and businesses, shops and vehicles were looted and torched. The PRC claims that 22 people were killed in the riots but Tibetan sources put the figure much higher. It was reopened in the last week of August after being shut for five months.[18]

Footnotes

1. TBRC
2. Tibet, Tibet: A Personal History of a Lost Land. Patrick French. (2003) Alfred A. Knopf. New York City, p.240 (in quote from 13th Dalai Lama).
3. Dialogues Tibetan Dialogues Han. Hannue. Quoting a monk at Drepung.
4. Chapman F. Spencer. Lhasa the Holy City, p. 195. Readers Union Ltd., London.
5. Dorje (1999), p. 113.
6. a b Dowman (1988), p. 67.
7. gong ma ‘og ma – the higher and the lower, the one above and the one under
8. [1]
9. TBRC
10. TBRC bsod nams ye shes dbang po (gzims khang gong ma 02)
11. TBRC bsod nams dge legs dpal bzang (gzims khang gong ma 03)
12. TBRC grags pa rgyal mtshan (gzims khang gong ma 04)
13. Drepung: An Introduction by Georges Dreyfus (April 10, 2006)
14. Brief History of Ganden
15. TBRC
16. Chapman F. Spencer. Lhasa the Holy City, p. 198. Readers Union Ltd., London.
17. [2] (german)
18. Major Buddhist monastery reopens in Tibet. The Associated Press

References

• Dorje, Gyurme. (1999). Footprint Tibet Handbook with Bhutan. 2nd Edition. Footprint Handbooks. Bath, England. ISBN 0-8442-2190-2.
• Dowman, Keith. (1988). The Power-places of Central Tibet: The Pilgrim’s Guide. Routledge & Kegan Paul, London and New York. ISBN 0-7102-1370-0

Source: Wikipedia