Samding Dorje Phagmo
82-685: The Samding Dorje Phagmo ( Wylie : བསམ་སྡིང་རྡོ་རྗེ་ཕག་མོ ) is the highest female incarnation in Tibet and 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
164-685: A state coach in Europe or a horse used in Northern Ghana. The chiefs of the Ga ( mantsemei ) in the Greater Accra Region ( Ghana ) use also figurative palanquins which are built after a chief's family symbol or totem. But these day the figurative palanquins are very seldom used. They are related with the figurative coffins which have become very popular among the Ga in the last 50 years. Since these figurative coffins were shown 1989 in
246-420: A Buddhist nun in about 1442CE. Chökyi Drönma 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
328-419: A bed or couch, sometimes enclosed by curtains , for the passenger or passengers to lie on. These are carried by at least two porters in equal numbers in front and behind, using wooden rails that pass through brackets on the sides of the couch. The largest and heaviest types would be carried by draught animals. Another form, commonly called a sedan chair , consists of a chair or windowed cabin suitable for
410-440: A better idea of pronunciation. However, these schemes were often applied inconsistently, and usually only when the word would normally be capitalised according to the norms of Latin text (i.e. at the beginning of a sentence). On the grounds that internal capitalisation was overly cumbersome, of limited usefulness in determining pronunciation, and probably superfluous to a reader able to use a Tibetan dictionary, Wylie specified that if
492-664: 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
574-465: A cot or frame suspended by the four corners from a bamboo pole and borne by two bearers, is called a doli . Larger palanquins are rectangular wooden boxes eight feet long, four feet wide, and four feet high, with openings on either side screened by curtains or shutters. Interiors are furnished with bedding and pillows. Ornamentation reflects the social status of the traveller. The most ornate palanquins have lacquer paintwork and cast bronze finials at
656-577: A fare system was established for Scottish sedans, and the regulations covering chairmen in Bath are reminiscent of the modern Taxi Commission's rules. A trip within a city cost six pence and a day's rental was four shillings. A sedan was even used as an ambulance in Scotland's Royal Infirmary. Chairmen moved at a good clip. In Bath they had the right-of-way: pedestrians hearing "By your leave" behind them knew to flatten themselves against walls or railings as
738-422: A fixed elaborately carved roof and doors. While the cáng has become obsolete, the kiệu is retained in certain traditional rituals a part of a temple devotional procession. In Thailand, the royalty were also carried in wooden litters called wo ("พระวอ" Phra Wo, literally, "Royal Sedan") for large ceremonies. Wos were elaborately decorated litters that were delicately carved and colored by gold leaf. Stained glass
820-555: A large military procession, with a yellow (the Javanese colour for royalty) square canopy. The ceremonial parasol ( payung ) was held above the palanquin, which was carried by a bearer behind and flanked by the most loyal bodyguards, usually about 12 men, with pikes , sabres , lances , muskets , keris and a variety of disguised blades. In contrast, the canopy of the Sumatran palanquin was oval-shaped and draped in white cloth; this
902-467: 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 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
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#1732772891964984-460: A litter, porters either place the carrying poles directly upon their shoulders or use a yoke to transfer the load from the carrying poles to the shoulders. A simple litter consists of a sling attached along its length to poles or stretched inside a frame. The poles or frame are carried by porters in front and behind. Such simple litters are common on battlefields and emergency situations, where terrain prohibits wheeled vehicles from carrying away
1066-453: A part of the year in Edo (Tokyo) with their families, resulting in yearly migrations of the rich and powerful ( Sankin-kōtai ) to and from the capital along the central backbone road of Japan. Somewhat similar in appearance to kago are the portable shrines that are used to carry the "god-body" ( goshintai ), the central totemic core normally found in the most sacred area of Shinto Shrines , on
1148-567: A pole projecting fore and aft. The word is derived from the Sanskrit palyanka , meaning bed or couch. The Malay and Javanese form is palangki , in Hindi and Bengali, palki , in Telugu pallaki . The Portuguese apparently added a nasal termination to these to make palanquim . English adopted it from Portuguese as "palanquin". Palanquins vary in size and grandeur. The smallest and simplest,
1230-446: A simple wooden chair with an attached tumpline . The occupant sat in the chair, which was then affixed to the back of a single porter, with the tumpline supported by his head. The occupant thus faced backwards during travel. This style of palanquin was probably due to the steep terrain and rough or narrow roads unsuitable to European-style sedan chairs. Travellers by silla usually employed a number of porters, who would alternate carrying
1312-494: A single occupant, also carried by at least two porters, one in front and one behind, using wooden rails that pass through brackets on the sides of the chair. These porters were known in London as "chairmen". These have been very rare since the 19th century, but such enclosed portable litters have been used as an elite form of transport for centuries, especially in cultures where women are kept secluded. Sedan chairs, in use until
1394-466: A standard transliteration scheme in Tibetan studies, especially in the United States. Any Tibetan language romanization scheme faces the dilemma of whether it should seek to accurately reproduce the sounds of spoken Tibetan or the spelling of written Tibetan. These differ widely, as Tibetan orthography became fixed in the 11th century, while pronunciation continued to evolve , comparable to
1476-522: A status symbol. During the 17–18th centuries, palanquins (see above) were very popular among European traders in Bengal , so much so that in 1758 an order was issued prohibiting their purchase by certain lower-ranking employees. A similar but simpler palanquin was used by the elite in parts of 18th- and 19th-century Latin America . Often simply called a silla (Spanish for seat or chair), it consisted of
1558-424: A tour to and from a shrine during some religious festivals . Traditional Vietnam employed two distinct types of litters, the cáng and the kiệu . The cáng is a basic bamboo pole with the rider reclining in a hammock . More elaborate cáng had an adjustable woven bamboo shade to shelter the occupant. Dignitaries would have an entourage to carry parasols. The kiệu resemble more of the sedan chair, enclosed with
1640-607: 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
1722-499: A word was to be capitalised, the first letter should be capital, in conformity with Western capitalisation practices. Thus a particular Tibetan Buddhist sect ( Kagyu ) is capitalised Bka' brgyud and not bKa' brgyud . Wylie's original scheme is not capable of transliterating all Tibetan-script texts. In particular, it has no correspondences for most Tibetan punctuation symbols, and lacks the ability to represent non-Tibetan words written in Tibetan script (Sanskrit and phonetic Chinese are
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#17327728919641804-463: 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
1886-481: Is a class of wheelless vehicles , a type of human-powered transport , for the transport of people. Smaller litters may take the form of open chairs or beds carried by two or more carriers, some being enclosed for protection from the elements. Larger litters, for example those of the Chinese emperors , may resemble small rooms upon a platform borne upon the shoulders of a dozen or more people. To most efficiently carry
1968-479: 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
2050-643: Is also used to decorate the litters. Presently, Royal Wos and carriages are only used for royal ceremonies in Thailand. They are exhibited in the Bangkok National Museum. In traditional Javanese society, the generic palanquin or joli was a wicker chair with a canopy, attached to two poles, and borne on men's shoulders, and was available for hire to any paying customer. As a status marker, gilded throne-like palanquins, or jempana , were originally reserved solely for royalty, and later co-opted by
2132-748: 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 is very similar to that of
2214-566: Is illustrated by licensing records which show twenty-seven sedan chairs in 1800, eighteen in 1817, and ten in 1828. During that same period the number of registered hackney carriages in Glasgow rose to one hundred and fifty. The wealthy are recorded to have used sedan chairs in the cities of colonial America and the early period of the United States. In 1787, Benjamin Franklin , at the time 81 years old, gouty , and in generally declining health,
2296-521: Is noted to have travelled to meetings of the United States Constitutional Convention in a sedan chair carried by four prisoners. In various colonies, litters of various types were maintained under native traditions, but often adopted by the colonials as a new ruling and/or socio-economic elite, either for practical reasons (often comfortable modern transport was unavailable, e.g. for lack of decent roads) and/or as
2378-526: Is required of her that she never take her rest lying down; in 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
2460-750: The Ramayana ( c. 250 BC ). Indian women of rank always travelled by palanquin. The conveyance proved popular with European residents in India, and was used extensively by them. Pietro Della Valle , a 17th-century Italian traveller, wrote: Going in Palanchino in the Territories of the Portugals in India is prohibited to men, because indeed 'tis a thing too effeminate, nevertheless, as
2542-402: 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
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2624-632: The Ark of the Covenant in the Book of Exodus resembles a litter. In Ancient Rome , a litter called lectica or sella often carried members of the imperial family, as well as other dignitaries and other members of the rich elite, when not mounted on horseback. The habit must have proven quite persistent, for the Third Council of Braga in 675 AD saw the need to order that bishops, when carrying
2706-457: The English orthography and French orthography , which reflect late medieval pronunciation. Previous transcription schemes sought to split the difference with the result that they achieved neither goal perfectly. Wylie transliteration was designed to precisely transcribe Tibetan script as written , which led to its acceptance in academic and historical studies. It is not intended to represent
2788-568: The Karmapa and is linked to the dakinis and Yeshe Tsogyal in particular. Wylie transliteration Wylie transliteration is a method for transliterating Tibetan script using only the letters available on a typical English-language typewriter . The system is named for the American scholar Turrell V. Wylie , who created the system and published it in a 1959 Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies article. It has subsequently become
2870-656: 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
2952-522: The Portugals are very little observers of their own Laws, they began at first to be tolerated upon occasion of the Rain, and for favours, or presents, and afterwards became so common that they are us'd almost by everybody throughout the whole year. Some translations of the Hebrew Bible refer to a wooden palanquin which King Solomon is said to have made for himself. Being transported by palanquin
3034-403: The seggioli of Naples and Genoa , which were chairs for public hire slung from poles and carried on the shoulders of two porters. From the mid-17th century, visitors taking the waters at Bath would be conveyed in a chair enclosed in baize curtains, especially if they had taken a heated bath and were going straight to bed to sweat. The curtains kept off a possibly fatal draft. These were not
3116-517: The 12th of this line, resides in Lhasa . where she 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
3198-475: The 19th century, were accompanied at night by link-boys who carried torches. Where possible, the link boys escorted the fares to the chairmen, the passengers then being delivered to the door of their lodgings. Several houses in Bath, Somerset , England still have the link extinguishers on the exteriors, shaped like outsized candle snuffers. In the 1970s, entrepreneur and Bathwick resident, John Cuningham, revived
3280-789: 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
3362-524: The Dalai and Panchen Lamas, (and when they were in Tibet, 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),
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3444-465: The Dutch, as a status marker: the more elaborate the palanquin, the higher the status of the owner. The joli was transported either by hired help, by nobles' peasants, or by slaves. Historically, the palanquin of a Javanese king ( raja ), prince ( pangeran ), lord ( raden mas ) or other noble ( bangsawan ) was known as a jempana ; a more throne-like version was called a pangkem . It was always part of
3526-531: 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
3608-403: The chairmen hustled through. There were often disastrous accidents, upset chairs, and broken glass-paned windows. In Great Britain, in the early 19th century, the public sedan chair began to fall out of use, perhaps because streets were better paved or perhaps because of the rise of the more comfortable, companionable and affordable hackney carriage . In Glasgow , the decline of the sedan chair
3690-515: The dead and wounded. Litters can also be created quickly by the lashing of poles to a chair . Such litters, consisting of a simple cane chair with maybe an umbrella to ward off the elements and two stout bamboo poles, may still be found in Chinese mountain resorts such as the Huangshan Mountains to carry tourists along scenic paths and to viewing positions inaccessible by other means of transport. A more luxurious version consists of
3772-399: The departed. In pre-colonial Philippines, litters were a way of transportation for the elite ( maginoo , ginu , tumao ); Rajahs , Lakans , Datus , sovereign princes ( Rajamuda ) and their wives use a Sankayan or Sakayan , a wooden or bamboo throne with elaborate and intricate carvings carried by their servants. Also among their retinue were payong (umbrella)-bearers, to shade
3854-528: The difficulties posed by the mountainous terrain of the Korean peninsula and the lack of paved roads, gama s were preferred over wheeled vehicles. In traditional weddings, the bride and groom are carried to the ceremony in separate gama s, this custom goes back to the times of Joseon Dynasty , when the gamas were also used for celebrations of passing government exams and funerals. As the population of Japan increased and less and less land remained available for
3936-606: The elite travelled in light bamboo seats supported on a carrier's back like a backpack. In the Northern Wei dynasty and the Northern and Southern Song dynasty , wooden carriages on poles appear in painted landscape scrolls. A commoner used a wooden or bamboo civil litter ( Chinese : 民轎 ; pinyin : min2 jiao4 ), while the mandarin class used an official litter (Chinese: 官轎 ; pinyin: guan1 jiao4 ) enclosed in silk curtains. The chair with perhaps
4018-443: The ends of the poles. Designs include foliage, animals, and geometric patterns. Ibn Batutta describes them as being "carried by eight men in two lots of four, who rest and carry in turn. In the town there are always a number of these men standing in the bazaars and at the sultan's gate and at the gates of other persons for hire." Those for "women are covered with silk curtains." Palanquins are mentioned in literature as early as
4100-636: The exhibition "Les magicians de la terre" in the Centre Pompidou in Paris they were shown in many art museums around the world. From at least the 15th century until the 19th century, litters of varying types known as tipoye were used in the Kingdom of Kongo as a mode of transportation for the elites. Seat-style litters with a single pole along the back of the chair carried by two men (usually slaves) were topped with an umbrella. Lounge-style litters in
4182-566: The form of a miniature hut. In Spanish-colonial Philippines, litters remained one of the options of transportation for the Spanish inhabitants and members of the native principalia class. In Southern Ghana the Akan and the Ga-Dangme carry their chiefs and kings in palanquins when they appear in their state durbars . When used in such occasions these palanquins may be seen as a substitutes of
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#17327728919644264-572: The full Unicode Tibetan character set) on a Latin keyboard. Since the Wylie system is not intuitive for use by linguists unfamiliar with Tibetan, a new transliteration system based on the International Phonetic Alphabet has been proposed to replace Wylie in articles on Tibetan historical phonology . (Some of the following links require installation of Tibetan fonts to display properly) Sedan chair The litter
4346-520: The gallop'. Portuguese and Spanish navigators and colonisers encountered litters of various sorts in India , Mexico , and Peru . Such novelties, imported into Spain , spread into France and then to Britain . All the European names for these devices ultimately derive from the root sed- , as in Latin sedere , "to sit", which gave rise to seda ("seat") and its diminutive sedula ("little seat"),
4428-701: 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
4510-560: The grazing of animals, restrictions were placed upon the use of horses for non-military purposes, with the result that human-powered transport grew increasingly important and eventually came to prevail. Kago ( Kanji : 駕籠, Hiragana : かご) were often used in Japan to transport the non-samurai citizen. Norimono were used by the warrior class and nobility, most famously during the Tokugawa period when regional samurai were required to spend
4592-428: The greatest importance was the bridal chair ( Chinese : 喜轎 ; pinyin : xi3 jiao4 ). A traditional bride is carried to her wedding ceremony by a "shoulder carriage" (Chinese: 肩輿 ; pinyin: jiān yú ), usually hired. These were lacquered in an auspicious shade of red, richly ornamented and gilded , and were equipped with red silk curtains to screen the bride from onlookers. Sedan chairs were once
4674-575: The invasion of the Dzungars , who were reportedly terrified of her great siddhi powers. When faced with her anger—reputedly by turning 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,
4756-534: The latter of which was contracted to sella , the traditional Classical Latin name for a chair, including a carried chair. In Europe this mode of transportation met with instant success. Henry VIII of England (reigned 1509–1547) was carried around in a sedan chair—it took four strong chairmen to carry him towards the end of his life—but the expression "sedan chair" did not appear in print until 1615. Trevor Fawcett notes (see link) that British travellers Fynes Moryson (in 1594) and John Evelyn (in 1644–45) remarked on
4838-408: The letter a is used to represent the default vowel "a" (e.g. ཨ་ = a). Many previous systems of Tibetan transliteration included internal capitalisation schemes—essentially, capitalising the root letter rather than the first letter of a word, when the first letter is a prefix consonant. Tibetan dictionaries are organized by root letter, and prefixes are often silent, so knowing the root letter gives
4920-580: The mid-17th century, sedans for hire had become a common mode of transportation. London had "chairs" available for hire in 1634, each assigned a number and the chairmen licensed because the operation was a monopoly of a courtier of King Charles I . Sedan chairs could pass in streets too narrow for a carriage, helping to alleviate the crush of coaches in London streets, an early instance of traffic congestion . A similar system later operated in Scotland . In 1738
5002-406: The mid-19th century, palanquins remained popular for those who could afford them, but they fell out of favor for long journeys as steamers, railways, and roads suitable for wheeled transport were developed. By the beginning of the 20th century they were nearly "obsolete among the better class of Europeans". Rickshaws , introduced in the 1930s, supplanted them for trips around town. Modern use of
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#17327728919645084-658: The most common cases). Accordingly, various scholars have adopted ad hoc and incomplete conventions as needed. The Tibetan and Himalayan Library at the University of Virginia developed a standard, EWTS —the Extended Wylie Transliteration Scheme—that addresses these deficiencies systematically. It uses capital letters and Latin punctuation to represent the missing characters. Several software systems, including Tise , now use this standard to allow one to type unrestricted Tibetan script (including
5166-508: The most significant works of art, architecture, and engineering of her time and had seminal influence in 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
5248-570: The only public conveyance in Hong Kong, filling the role of cabs. Chair stands were found at all hotels, wharves, and major crossroads. Public chairs were licensed, and charged according to tariffs which would be displayed inside. Private chairs were an important marker of a person's status. Civil officers' status was denoted by the number of bearers attached to his chair. Before Hong Kong 's Peak Tram went into service in 1888, wealthy residents of The Peak were carried on sedan chairs by porters up
5330-624: The palanquin is limited to ceremonial occasions. A doli carries the bride in a traditional wedding , and they may be used to carry religious images in Hindu processions. Many parts in Uttar Pradesh, India like Gorakhpur and around places Vishwakarma communities has been involved in making the dolis for wedding processions. The last known doli making dates back around 2000 by Sharmas(Vishwakarmas) in Gorakhpur, Uttar Pradesh. In Han China
5412-443: The pigs disappeared to become venerable-looking lamas and nuns, with 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
5494-411: The pronunciation of Tibetan words. The Wylie scheme transliterates the Tibetan characters as follows: In Tibetan script, consonant clusters within a syllable may be represented through the use of prefixed or suffixed letters or by letters superscripted or subscripted to the root letter (forming a "stack"). The Wylie system does not normally distinguish these as in practice no ambiguity is possible under
5576-445: The proper sedan chairs "to carry the better sort of people in visits, or if sick or infirmed" ( Celia Fiennes ). In the 17th and 18th centuries, the chairs stood in the main hall of a well-appointed city residence, where a lady could enter and be carried to her destination without setting foot in a filthy street. The neoclassical sedan chair made for Queen Charlotte (Queen Consort from 1761 to 1818) remains at Buckingham Palace . By
5658-446: The relics of martyrs in procession, must walk to the church, and not be carried in a chair, or litter, by deacons clothed in white. In the Catholic Church, Popes were carried the same way in sedia gestatoria , which was replaced later by the popemobile . A palanquin is a covered litter, usually for one passenger. It is carried by an even number of bearers (between two and eight, but most commonly four) on their shoulders, by means of
5740-558: The royalty and nobility from the intense heat. Princesses ( binibini , dayang dayang ) who were sequestered from the world were called Binukot or Binocot (“set apart”). A special type of royal, these individuals were forbidden to walk on the ground or be exposed to the general populace. When they needed to go anywhere, they were veiled and carried in a hammock or a basket-like litter similar to bird's nests carried by their slaves. Longer journeys required that they be borne inside larger, covered palanquins with silk covers, with some taking
5822-431: The rules of Tibetan spelling. The exception is the sequence gy- , which may be written either with a prefix g or a subfix y . In the Wylie system, these are distinguished by inserting a period between a prefix g and initial y . E.g. གྱང "wall" is gyang , while གཡང་ "chasm" is g.yang . The four vowel marks (here applied to the base letter ཨ ) are transliterated: When a syllable has no explicit vowel marking,
5904-589: 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
5986-500: The sedan chair service business for a brief amount of time. In traditional Catholic processions , holy statues and relics are still carried through the streets using litters. In pharaonic Egypt and many other places such as India , Rome , and China , the ruler and divinities (in the form of an idol like lord Krishna ) were often transported in a litter in public, frequently in procession, as during state ceremonial or religious festivals. The instructions for how to construct
6068-469: The shape of a bed were used to move one to two people with a porter at each corner. Due to the tropical climate, horses were not native to the area nor could they survive very long once introduced by the Portuguese. Human portage was the only mode of transportation in the region and became highly adept with missionary accounts claiming the litter transporters could move at speeds 'as fast as post horses at
6150-679: The steep paths to their residence including Sir Richard MacDonnell's (former Governor of Hong Kong ) summer home , where they could take advantage of the cooler climate. Since 1975 an annual sedan chair race has been held to benefit the Matilda International Hospital and commemorate the practice of earlier days. In Korea, royalty and aristocrats were carried in wooden litters called gama ( Korean : 가마 ). Gama s were primarily used by royalty and government officials. There were six types of gama , each assigned to different government official rankings. Because of
6232-760: The wounded from the battlefield. In the early 19th century, the most prevalent mode of long-distance transport for the affluent was by palanquin. The post office could arrange, with a few days notice, relays of bearers to convey a traveller's palanquin between stages or stations. The distance between these in the government's dak ( Hindi : "mail") system averaged about 10 miles (16 km), and could be covered in three hours. A relay's usual complement consisted of two torch-bearers, two luggage-porters, and eight palanquin-bearers who worked in gangs of four, although all eight might pitch in at steep sections. A passenger could travel straight through or break their journey at dak bungalows located at certain stations. Until
6314-609: Was pleasant. Owning one and keeping the staff to power it was a luxury affordable even to low-paid clerks of the East India Company . Concerned that this indulgence led to neglect of business in favor of "rambling", in 1758 the Court of Directors of the company prohibited its junior clerks from purchasing and maintaining palanquins. Also in the time of the British in India, dolis served as military ambulances, used to carry
6396-464: Was reflective of greater cultural permeation by Islam. Occasionally, a weapon or heirloom, such as an important keris or tombak, was given its own palanquin. In Hindu culture in Bali today, the tradition of using palanquins for auspicious statues, weapons or heirlooms continues, for funerals especially; in more elaborate rituals, a palanquin is used to bear the body, and is subsequently cremated along with
6478-469: Was returned to him; but, incensed at her refusing to obey his summons, he tore down 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
6560-443: Was the daughter of Tri Lhawang Gyaltsen (1404-1464), 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
6642-479: Was the student and consort of the famous polymath Thang Tong Gyalpo , who first identified her as an emanation of Vajravārāhī , and 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
6724-451: 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 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
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