Samding Dorje Phagmo
66-628: Samding Dorje Phagmo Songtsen Gampo (Classical Tibetan: [sroŋpt͡san zɡampo] , pronounced [sɔ́ŋt͡sɛ̃ ɡʌ̀mpo] ) ( Tibetan : སྲོང་བཙན་སྒམ་པོ , Wylie : srong btsan sgam po , ZYPY : Songzän Gambo ; 569–649/650), also Songzan Ganbu ( Chinese : 松贊干布 ; pinyin : Sōngzàn Gānbù ), was the 33rd Tibetan king of the Yarlung dynasty and the founder of the Tibetan Empire . The first of three Dharma Kings of Tibet, he formally introduced Buddhism to Tibet and built
132-513: A city for the Chinese princess, and a palace for her within its walls. According to Chinese sources, "As the princess disliked their custom of painting their faces red, Lungstan (Songtsen Gampo) ordered his people to put a stop to the practice, and it was no longer done. He also discarded his felt and skins, put on brocade and silk, and gradually copied Chinese civilization. He also sent the children of his chiefs and rich men to request admittance into
198-665: A classical Tibetan threefold model: as a royal princess she was called Queen of the Jewel (Konchog Gyalmo), her 'outer' name; when she took her vows she became known as Lamp of the Doctrine (Chokyi Dronma), her 'inner' name; as a divine incarnation she was called Thunderbolt Female Pig (Dorje Phagmo), her 'secret' name. The Wylie transliteration of her name is given by Diemberger as Chos kyi sgron me . The princess's three main names seem to refer to three distinct modes of manifesting herself in different contexts: Konchog Gyalmo (Queen of
264-406: A dispute with his younger brother Tsensong ( Wylie : brtsan srong ), the younger brother was burnt to death by his own minister, Khasek ( Wylie : mkha' sregs ), possibly at the behest of the emperor. The Old Book of Tang records that when the king of 泥婆羅, Nipoluo (" Nepal "), the father of Licchavi king Naling Deva (or Narendradeva), died, an uncle, Yu.sna kug.ti , Vishnagupta ) usurped
330-684: A minor when he succeeded to the throne." The current head of the Royal House of Tibet and king in exile is a direct descendant of the Dharma kings and has been crowned King of Tibet by Tenzin Gyatso, 14th Dalai Lama . His Majesty King Lhagyari Trichen Namgyal Wangchuk lives in the United States and travels the world speaking out for the human and religious rights of the Tibetan people, under
396-569: A sister Sad-mar-kar (or Sa-tha-ma-kar) and a younger brother bTzan-srong who was betrayed and died in a fire, c. 641 . According to one partially damaged scroll from Dunhuang, there was hostility between Sa-tha-ma-kar and bTzan-srong, who was then forced to settle in gNyal (southeast of the Yarlung River and across the 5,090 metres (16,700 ft) Yartö Tra Pass, which borders on modern Bhutan , and Arunachal Pradesh in India). When
462-555: A true incarnation and served as a vice president of the Buddhist Association of China in 1956 while he was president, and Choekyi Gyaltsen, 10th Panchen Lama also as vice president. She went to Lhasa in 1958 and received the empowerment of Yamantaka from the Dalai Lama and the empowerment of Vajrayogini from the Dalai Lama's tutor, Trijang Lobsang Yeshe Tenzin Gyatso . Dechen Chökyi Drönma has been trained in
528-409: Is Dechen Chökyi Drönma, who was born in 1938 or 1942 (?). The twelfth Samding Dorje Phagmo was very young at the time of the Chinese occupation , and her exact date of birth is contested. Some sources claim she was born a year before the death of the previous incarnation (and therefore cannot be the true reincarnation). However, Dechen Chökyi Drönma was recognised by the present 14th Dalai Lama as
594-480: Is a lady who stems from the royal lineage of the Gods of Clear Light ('Od gsal lha) who is devoted to spiritual liberation and to the benefit of all living beings. Her outer name is Lady Queen of the Jewel (bDag mo dKon mchog rgyal mo); her inner name is Female Teacher Lamp of the Doctrine (sLob dpon ma Chos kyi sgron ma); her secret name is Vajravarahi (rDo rje phag mo). Her residence is undefined. According to Diemberger
660-478: Is commemorated in inscriptions at Rajagrha - modern Rajgir – and Bodhgaya . Wang Xuanze made a second journey in 648, but he was badly treated by Harsha's usurper, his minister Arjuna, and Harsha's mission plundered. This elicited a response from Tibetan and Nepalese (Licchavi) troops who, together, soundly defeated Arjuna's forces. In 649, the King of Xihai Jun was conferred upon Songtsen Gampo by Tang Gaozong ,
726-723: Is currently a member of the monastic community of the Thangthong Dewachen Nunnery at Zilingkha in Thimphu , which follows the Nyingma and the Shangpa Kagyu tradition." One of the distinctive features of the Samding Dorje Phagmo's iconography is a black hat. This hat can be seen in both ancient and modern mural paintings as well as in photographs of the later reincarnations. This black hat
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#1732782858569792-515: Is generally accepted that he was born in an Ox year of the Tibetan calendar . He ascended the throne at age thirteen, circa 618. There are difficulties with the ascension dates, and several earlier dates for the birth of Songtsen Gampo have been suggested, including 569, 593 or 605. It is said that Songtsen Gampo was born at Gyama in Meldro , a region to the northeast of modern Lhasa , the son of
858-477: Is known as Female Living Buddha Dorje Palma by China . The present incarnation [i.e. in 1882] of the divine Dorje Phagmo is a lady of twenty-six, Nag-wang rinchen kunzag wangmo by name. She wears her hair long; her face is agreeable, her manner dignified, and somewhat resembling those of the Lhacham, though she is much less prepossessing than she. It is required of her that she never take her rest lying down; in
924-710: Is said to have had five wives, the Nepalese princess Bhrikuti , and the Chinese Princess Wencheng , both devout Buddhists, are the best known, but he also married daughters of the King of Zhangzhung and the King of the Western Xia , as well as one each from the Ruyong and Mong (or Mang) clans (although other lists exist). Gungsong Gungtsen was born to Mangza (or Mongsa) Tricham ( Wylie : mang bza' khri lcham, mang bza' khri mo mnyen ldong steng ),
990-482: Is said to have only ruled for these five years and died at eighteen. Songtsen Gampo, returned to the throne. Gungsong Gungtsen is said to have been buried at Donkhorda, the site of the royal tombs, to the left of the tomb of his grandfather Namri Songtsen (gNam-ri Srong-btsan). According to Tibetan tradition, Songtsen Gampo was enthroned while still a minor as the thirty-third king of the Yarlung dynasty after his father
1056-516: Is very similar to that of the Karmapa and is linked to the dakinis and Yeshe Tsogyal in particular. Gungsong Gungtsen Gungsong Gungtsen (b. 605/617, d. 649/655) was the only known son of Songtsen Gampo (b. 557/569, d. 649/650), the 33rd king of the Tibetan Empire . Gungtsen was born on 605/617 C.E in Lhasa , Tibet during his grandfather Namri Songtsen 's reign. Songtsen Gampo
1122-402: The dakinis heaven ( khecara ), her true home. She left her skull with special features as the wish-fulfilling gem of the great meditation center of Tsagong . The great siddha [Thang Tong Gyalpo] had said earlier, 'A skull with special features will come to this sacred place, together with a mountain dweller from Ngari', and thus the prophecy had come true, greatly enhancing the devotion of
1188-559: The Bailang , and Qiang tribes. The Bailan people were bounded on the east by the Tanguts and on the west by the Domi . They had been subject to the Chinese since 624. After a successful campaign against China in the frontier province of Songzhou in 635–36 ( OTA l. 607), the Chinese emperor agreed to send a Chinese princess for Songtsen Gampo to marry. Around 639, after Songtsen Gampo had
1254-557: The Goddess of Compassion , the female aspect of Chenrezig , where "Dolma, or Drolma ( Sanskrit means Tara ). As Sarat Chaundra explains, the two wives of Emperor Srong-btsan gambo are venerated under this name. The Chinese princess is called Dol-kar, of 'the white Dolma,' and the Nepalese princess Dol-jang, or 'the green Dolma.' The latter is prayed to by women for fecundity." The Jiu Tangshu adds that Songtsen Gampo thereupon built
1320-606: The Jokhang in Lhasa , the city in which he is credited in one tradition with founding and establishing as his capital, and Tradruk Temple in Nêdong . During his reign, the translation of Buddhist texts from Sanskrit into Tibetan began. Songtsen Gampo is considered to be the first of the three Dharma Kings ( Wylie : chos rgyal ) — Songtsen Gampo, Trisong Detsen , and Ralpacan — who established Buddhism in Tibet. The inscription on
1386-649: The Jokhang with the influence of his Nepali queen Bhrikuti , of Nepal 's Licchavi dynasty . He unified several Tibetan kingdoms, conquered lands adjacent to Tibet, and moved the capital to the Red Fort in Lhasa . His minister Thonmi Sambhota created the Tibetan script and Classical Tibetan , the first literary and spoken language of Tibet. His mother, the queen, is identified as Driza Thökar ( Tibetan : འབྲི་བཟའ་ཐོད་དཀར་ , Wylie : ' bri bza' thod dkar , ZYPY : Zhisa Tögar ). The exact date of his birth and his enthronement are not certain, and in Tibetan accounts it
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#17327828585691452-658: The Kongpo people." As part of her relationship with Thang Tong Gyalpo , Chökyi Drönma received the complete teachings of the Heart Practice ( thugs sgrub ) of treasure teachings from Trasang ( bkra bzang gter kha ), as well as Chöd (teachings of Machig Labdrön and Mahāmudrā instructions from him. Chökyi Drönma was known by a variety of names during her lifetime. Diemberger writes: Three names in particular frame her [the Dorje Phagmo's] identity according to
1518-598: The Tibetan script . He then presented the script to the court and taught the king. Songsten Gampo then retired for four years to learn the written language, after which he translated twenty-one tantric texts on Avalokiteshvara, and the Mani Kumbum . Songtsen Gampo moved the seat of his newly unified kingdom from the Yarlung Valley to the Kyichu Valley, site of the future city of Lhasa . The site itself
1584-440: The 80 novice nuns under her care into furious wild sows—they left the goods and valuables they had plundered as offerings at the monastery and fled the region. Charles Alfred Bell met the tulku in 1920 and took photographs of her, calling her by the Tibetan name for Vajravarahi, Dorje Pamo (which he translated as "Thunderbolt Sow"), in his book. The current incarnation, the 12th of this line, resides in Lhasa . where she
1650-412: The 8th Zhenguan year, or 634 CE. Tang dynasty chronicles describe this as a tribute mission, but it brought an ultimatum demanding a marriage alliance, not subservient rituals. After this demand was refused, Tibet launched victorious military attacks against Tang affiliates in 637 and 638. There is some confusion as to whether Central Tibet conquered Zhangzhung during the reign of Songtsen Gampo or in
1716-792: The Bodongpa tradition and remains the head of the Samding Monastery . She simultaneously holds the post of a high government cadre in the Tibet Autonomous Region . She has, as a result, been accused by many of "collaborating" with the Chinese. According to Diemberger there also is a Dorje Phagmo line in Bhutan : [She] was recognized by the Sakya Lama Rikey Jatrel, considered an incarnation of Thangtong Gyalpo (1385–1464 or 1361–1485). The Dorje Phagmo
1782-469: The Chinese Ambans) were permitted to travel by palanquin or sedan chair . Unlike most other nuns, Dorje Pakmo was allowed to wear her hair long, but was never to sleep lying down – in the day she could sleep sitting up in a chair, but was expected at night to remain in a meditative position. The first Dorje Phagmo, Chökyi Drönma (1422–1455), was the daughter of Tri Lhawang Gyaltsen (1404-1464),
1848-549: The Chinese Emperor, Gaozong , a devout Buddhist, gave him the title variously written Binwang , "Guest King" or Zongwang , "Cloth-tribute King" and 3,000 rolls of multicoloured silk in 649 and granted the Tibetan king's request for "silkworms' eggs, mortars and presses for making wine, and workmen to manufacture paper and ink." Traditional accounts say that, during the reign of Songtsen Gampo, examples of handicrafts and astrological systems were imported from China and
1914-582: The Chinese and that the Tang emperor delivered a bride under threat of force. Early Tibetan accounts say that the Tibetan king and the king of Zhangzhung had married each other's sisters in a political alliance. However, the Tibetan wife of the king of the Zhangzhung complained of poor treatment by the king's principal wife. War ensued, and, through the treachery of the Tibetan princess, "King Ligmikya of Zhangzhung, while on his way to Sum-ba ( Amdo province)
1980-468: The Chinese) more than 200,000 men (100,000 according to Tibetan sources). He then sent an envoy with gifts of gold and silk to the Chinese emperor to ask for a Chinese princess in marriage and, when refused, attacked Songzhou. According to the Tang annals, he finally retreated and apologised, and, later, the emperor granted his request, but the histories written in Tibet all say that the Tibetan army defeated
2046-532: The Jewel), her birth name; Chokyi Dronma (Lamp of the Dharma), the name she was given when she was ordained as a novice; and Dorje Phagmo ( Vajravārāhī ), the name attributed to her when she was revealed as an emanation of this deity. In an introductory letter written by Thang Tong Gyalpo before Chökyi Drönma departed from Northern Lato in 1454, he presented her with the following letter describing her names: Now there
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2112-528: The Nepalese wife", Wylie : bal mo bza' khri btsun ma ) as well as the Chinese Princess Wencheng ("Chinese Wife", Wylie : rgya mo bza' ). Songtsen sponsored the building of two temples to house the images of Buddha brought by his Nepalese and Chinese wives, however he showed little interest in propagating Buddhism otherwise, and was buried according to pre-Buddhist protocols and rituals when he died. Songtsen Gampo's heir, Gungsong Gungtsen , died before his father, so his younger son Mangsong Mangtsen inherited
2178-529: The Skar cung Pillar (erected by Ralpacan, who ruled c. 800–815) reports that during Songtsen Gampo's reign, "shrines of the Three Jewels were established by building the temple of Ra-sa [Lhasa] and so on." The first edict of Trisong Detsen mentions a community of monks at this vihara . Songtsen Gampo was adept at diplomacy as well as on the field of battle. The king's minister, Nyang Mangpoje Shangnang , with
2244-786: The Western Xia; the dharma and the art of writing came from India; material wealth and treasures from the Nepalis and the lands of the Mongols , while model laws and administration were imported from the Uyghurs of the Second Turkic Khaganate to the North. Songtsen Gampo is traditionally credited with being the first to bring Buddhism to the Tibetan people . He is also said to have built many Buddhist temples, including
2310-523: The Yarlung king Namri Songtsen . The book The Holder of the White Lotus says that it is believed that he was a manifestation of Avalokiteśvara , of whom the Dalai Lamas are similarly believed to be a manifestation. His identification as a cakravartin and incarnation of Avalokiteśvara began in earnest in the indigenous Buddhist literary histories of the 11th century. Songtsen Gampo's mother,
2376-466: The age of thirteen (twelve by Western reckoning), his father, Songtsen Gampo, retired and he then ruled the country for five years (which could have been the period when Songtsen Gampo was working on the constitution). Gungsong Gungtsen also married 'A-zha Mang-mo-rje when he was thirteen and they had a son, Mangsong Mangtsen (r. 650-676 CE). Gungsong Gungtsen is said to have only ruled for five years when he died at eighteen. His father, Songtsen Gampo, took
2442-504: The aid of troops from Zhangzhung, defeated the Sumpa in northeastern Tibet circa 627 ( Tibetan Annals [ OTA ] l. 2). Six years later (c. 632/633), Myang Mang-po-rje Zhang-shang was accused of treason and executed ( OTA l. 4–5, Richardson 1965). Minister Mgar-srong-rtsan succeeded him. The Jiu Tangshu records that the first ever embassy from Tibet arrived in China from Songtsen Gampo in
2508-484: The consort of Bodong Panchen. The seat of the Samding Dorje Phagmo is at Samding Monastery , in Tibet. The seat of the Samding Dorje Phagmo is at the Samding Monastery "Temple of Soaring Meditation." The Samding Monastery is associated with the Bodong school of Tibetan Buddhism . It was unique because half of the inhabitants were monks and the other half were nuns and its head was a woman. The female tulku who
2574-548: The daytime she may recline on cushions or in a chair, but during the night she sits in the position prescribed for meditation. [...] In 1716, when the Jungar invaders of Tibet came to Nangartse, their chief sent word to Samding to the Dorjo Phagmo to appear before him, that he might see if she really had, as reported, a pig's head. A mild answer was returned to him; but, incensed at her refusing to obey his summons, he tore down
2640-402: The development of printing. Furthermore, she expressed a particular commitment toward women, promoting their education, establishing nunneries, and even creating religious dances that included roles for them. Chökyi Drönma died at the age of thirty-three, leaving a tangible mark on history not only through her own deeds but even more through what happened after her death: her disciples searched for
2706-606: The emperor of the Tang dynasty . According to the Tibetan Annals , Songtsen Gampo must have died in 649, and, in 650, the Tang emperor sent an envoy with a "letter of mourning and condolences". His tomb is in the Chongyas Valley near Yalung, 13 metres high and 130 metres long. Samding Dorje Phagmo The Samding Dorje Phagmo ( Wylie : བསམ་སྡིང་རྡོ་རྗེ་ཕག་མོ ) is the highest female incarnation in Tibet and
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2772-704: The girl in whom she had reincarnated and thus initiated a line of female incarnations that became the first and most famous in Tibet." Chökyi Drönma was a leading figure in the Tibetan Bodongpa tradition which gradually waned under Gelugpa rule, but is being gradually restored today. She died at the Manmogang Monastery in Tsari to the southeast of Dakpo, near the Indian border, in 1455. Diemberger also says: [T]he Venerable Lady passed away into
2838-438: The king of Mangyül Gungthang and a descendant of the ancient kings of Tibet. Gungthang was an independent kingdom in southwestern Tibet in the 15th century. As a princess, she was married to the prince of southern Lato ( La stod lho ) who was described as a supporter of Bon practices. After the death of her only child, a daughter, she renounced her family and royal status to become a Buddhist nun in about 1442CE. Chökyi Drönma
2904-606: The king refused to consummate the marriage, she then helped Songtsen Gampo to defeat Lig myi-rhya and incorporate the Zhangzhung of Western Tibet into the Tibetan Empire in 645, thus gaining control of most, if not all, of the Tibetan plateau. Following the visit by the famous Chinese pilgrim monk Xuanzang to the court of Harsha , the king ruling Magadha , Harsha sent a mission to China which, in turn, responded by sending an embassy consisting of Li Yibiao and Wang Xuance , who probably travelled through Tibet and whose journey
2970-402: The national school to be taught the classics, and invited learned scholars from China to compose his official reports to the emperor." However, according to Tibetologist John Powers, such accounts of Tibet embracing Chinese culture through Wencheng are not corroborated by Tibetan histories. Songtsen Gampo's sister Sad-mar-kar was sent to marry Lig-myi-rhya, the king of Zhangzhung. However, when
3036-467: The noble woman from the Mang or Mong clan of Tölung ( Wylie : stod lung ), a valley to the west of Lhasa . It seems most unlikely that Songtsen Gampo handed over power to his son after his marriage to Princess Wencheng in 641, as she was married to the ruling monarch and there is no mention of such an event in the Chinese or Tibetan Annals . If Gungsong Gungtsen was married and had a son before 641, he
3102-510: The occupation of the People's Republic of China . Songtsen Gampo sent his minister Thonmi Sambhota and other young Tibetans to India to devise a script for Classical Tibetan , which led to the creation of the first Tibetan literary works and translations, court records and a constitution . After Thonmi Sambhota returned from India, he stayed in retreat at Kukhamaru Palace in Lhasa while creating
3168-431: The prince Gungsong Gungtsen reached the age of thirteen (twelve by Western reckoning), his father, Songtsen Gampo, retired, and the prince ruled for five years, which could have corresponded to the period when Songtsen Gampo was working on a new Tibetan constitution. Gungsong Gungtsen is also said to have married 'A-zha Mang-mo-rje when he was thirteen, and they had a son, Mangsong Mangtsen (r. 650–676 CE). Gungsong Gungtsen
3234-602: The queen, is identified as a member of the Tsépong clan ( Wylie : tshe spong , Tibetan Annals Wylie : tshes pong ), which played an important part in the unification of Tibet. Her name is recorded variously but is identified as Driza Tökar ("the Bri Wife named White Skull Woman", Wylie : ' bri bza' thod dkar , Tibetan Annals Wylie : bring ma tog dgos ). Songtsen Gampo had six consort queens, of whom four were Tibetan and two were foreign born. The highest-ranking consort
3300-459: The reign of Trisong Detsen (r. 755 until 797 or 804 CE). The Old Book of Tang do seems to place these events clearly in the reign of Songtsen Gampo, for they say that in 634, Yangtong (Zhangzhung) and various Qiang peoples "altogether submitted to him." Following this, he united with the country of Yangtong to defeat the 'Azha, or Tuyuhun , and then conquered two more tribes of Qiang before threatening Songzhou with an army of (according to
3366-486: The saintly Dorje Phagmo at their head. Filled with astonishment and veneration for the sacred character of the lady abbess, the chief made immense presents to her lamasery. Samding Monastery was destroyed after 1959 but is in the process of being restored. In premodern Tibet, the successive incarnations of Dorje Pakmo were treated with royal privilege and, along with the Dalai and Panchen Lamas, (and when they were in Tibet,
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#17327828585693432-590: The second Dorje Phagmo was Kunga Sangmo (wylie: Kun dga' bzang mo) (1459–1502). The ninth Dorje Phagmo -Choying Dechen Tshomo-, for example, became a renowned spiritual master not only for Samding but also for the Nyingma tradition, discovered some terma and died at Samye . Her skull is still preserved and worshipped as a holy relic in the Nyingmapa monastery on the island of Yumbudo in Yamdrok Tso Lake. The current (12th) Samding Dorje Pakmo Trülku
3498-605: The third highest-ranking person in the hierarchy after the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama . She was listed among the highest-ranking reincarnations at the time of the 5th Dalai Lama , recognized by the Tibetan government and acknowledged by the emperors of Qing China . In her first incarnation, as Chökyi Drönma (1422 CE –1455 CE ), she was the student and consort of the famous polymath Thang Tong Gyalpo , who first identified her as an emanation of Vajravārāhī , and
3564-622: The throne after emperor Harshavardhan's death around 647 CE, the Licchavi king came to their aid. Songtsen Gampo married Princess Bhrikuti , the daughter of King Licchavi. The Chinese Princess Wencheng , niece of the Emperor Taizong of Tang , left China in 640 to marry Songtsen Gampo, arriving the next year. Peace between China and Tibet prevailed for the remainder of Songtsen Gampo's reign. Both wives are considered to have been incarnations of Tara (Standard Tibetan: Drolma ),
3630-466: The throne again. He is said to have been buried at Donkhorda, the site of the royal tombs, to the left of the tomb of his grandfather Namri Songtsen (gNam-ri Srong-btsan). The dates for these events are very unclear. It is unclear whether Gungsong Gungtsen was really enthroned as Emperor during the five years he is said to have reigned, nor is there any mention of his reign in the Chinese or Tibetan Annals. He is, therefore, sometimes not included among
3696-527: The throne. "The Tibetans gave him refuge and reestablished him on his throne [in 641]; that is how he became subject to Tibet." Sometime later, but still within the Zhenguan period (627–650 CE), the Tibetans sent an envoy to present day Nepal, where the king received him "joyfully", and, later, when a Tibetan mission was attacked in present-day India by then minister of emperor Harshavardhan who had usurped
3762-576: The throne. Two Dunhuang sources give different mothers for Mangsong Mangtsen: the Tibetan Annals say the mother was the btsan mo (Princess Wencheng) of Songtsen while the Genealogy says it was Mangmoje Trikar Wylie : mang mo rje khri skar ). It is unlikely that the mother was the btsan mo because the Annals did not use the honorific kinship term yum (mother) for her. Tibetan Empire-era documents found at Dunhuang say that Songsten Gampo also had
3828-454: The walls of the monastery of Samding, and broke into the sanctuary. He found it deserted, not a human being in it, only eighty pigs and as many sows grunting in the congregation hall under the lead of a big sow, and he dared not sack a place belonging to pigs. When the Jungars had given up all idea of sacking Samding, suddenly the pigs disappeared to become venerable-looking lamas and nuns, with
3894-541: Was Pogong Mongza Tricham ( Wylie : pho gong mong bza' khri lcam , also called Mongza , "the Mong clan wife", who is said to have been the mother of Gungsong Gungtsen . Other notable wives include a noble woman of the Western Xia known as Minyakza ("Western Xia wife", Wylie : mi nyag bza' ), and a noble woman from Zhangzhung . Well-known even today are his two foreign wives: the Nepali princess Bhrikuti ("the great lady,
3960-403: Was ambushed and killed by King Srongtsen Gampo's soldiers. As a consequence, The Zhangzhung kingdom was annexed to Bod [Central Tibet]. Thereafter the new kingdom born of the unification of Zhangzhung and Bod was known as Bod rGyal-khab." R. A. Stein places the conquest of Zhangzhung in 645. He next attacked and defeated the Tangut people who later formed the Western Xia state in 942 CE),
4026-411: Was most probably born sometime before 625. He is traditionally said to have been born at a nine-storied palace known as the "Celestial Auspicious Mansion of Draglha", built by Bhrikuti to the south of Lhasa. It is said that a shrine and a stupa were then built by his father on a rocky mountain near Yerpa which resembled a seated image of Tara . Some accounts say that when Gungsong Gungtsen reached
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#17327828585694092-399: Was one of his teachers. She manifested at Samding Monastery in order to tame Yamdrok Lake , a sacred lake as well as a dangerous flashpoint for massive flooding events in Tibet . However, her effects were more practical: as abbess of Samding, she stopped the invasion of the Dzungars , who were reportedly terrified of her great siddhi powers. When faced with her anger—reputedly by turning
4158-463: Was originally a herding ground called Rasa ("the place of goats") but the name was changed to Lhasa ("the place of gods") on the king's founding of the Jokhang Temple. The name Lhasa itself originally referred simply to the temple precincts. He is also credited with bringing many new cultural and technological advances to Tibet. The Jiu Tangshu , or Old Book of Tang , states that after the defeat in 648 of an Indian army in support of Chinese envoys,
4224-436: Was poisoned circa 618. He is said to have been born in an unspecified Ox year and was 13 years old (12 by Western reckoning) when he took the throne. This accords with the tradition that the Yarlung kings took the throne when they were 13, and supposedly old enough to ride a horse and rule the kingdom. If these traditions are correct, he was probably born in the Ox year 605 CE. The Old Book of Tang notes that he "was still
4290-472: Was the abbess of Samding was traditionally a nirmāṇakāya emanation of Vajravārāhī . The lineage started in the fifteenth century with the princess of Gungthang, Chökyi Drönma ( Wylie : chos kyi sgron me , 1422–1455). She became known as Samding Dorje Pagmo ( Wylie : bsam lding rdo rje phag mo ) and began a line of female tulkus, reincarnate lamas . She was a contemporary of the 1st Dalai Lama (1391–1474) and her teacher Bodong Panchen Chogley Namgyal also
4356-481: Was understood to be an incarnation of Machig Labdrön . She rapidly became famous as a dynamic and inspirational follower, possibly a tantric consort ( Wylie : phyag rgya ma ) of three of the outstanding religious tantric masters of the era. She was also recognised as a master in her own right and as the spiritual heir of her main teacher. She contributed to some of the most significant works of art, architecture, and engineering of her time and had seminal influence in
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