Khunpang Lhawang Dorje () (died 1605 or 1606) was a prince of the

Tsangpa Tsangpa (; ) was a dynasty that dominated large parts of Tibet from 1565 to 1642. It was the last Tibetan royal dynasty to rule in their own name. The regime was founded by Karma Tseten, a low-born retainer of the prince of the Rinpungpa Dynasty ...

Dynasty who held power in parts of

Central Tibet Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

, especially Tsang (West Central Tibet), between 1565 and 1642.

Family background

Khunpang Lhawang Dorje was one of the nine sons of the king of Upper Tsang,

Karma Tseten Karma Tseten (; ) (died 1599), also known as Zhingshak Tseten Dorje () was a king of Upper Tsang in West Central Tibet. He was the founder of the Tsangpa Dynasty, that had an important role in the history of Tibet from 1565 to 1642. Karma ruled du ...

, who founded the dynasty in 1565. He was considered by some as the incarnation of Bernagchen, the two-armed

Mahakala Mahākāla is a deity common to Hinduism and Tantric Buddhism. In Buddhism, Mahākāla is regarded as the sacred '' Dharmapāla'' ("Protector of the Dharma"), while in Hinduism, Mahākāla is a fierce manifestation of the Hindu god Shiva and th ...

who is the protector of the

Karma Kagyu Karma Kagyu (), or Kamtsang Kagyu (), is a widely practiced and probably the second-largest lineage within the Kagyu school, one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The lineage has long-standing monasteries in Tibet, China, Russia, ...

sect. When his father was still alive, he became involved in a dispute among a regional noble family, the Changdakpa. Two brothers called Namkha Gyaltsen and Tashi Tobgyal were in disagreement. Khunpang Lhawang Dorje supported the elder brother. His father Karma Tseten endorsed his judgment and banned the junior brother Tashi Tobgyal from Tsang, forcing him in exile to Ü (East Central Tibet). Tashi Tobgyal (1550?–1603) was a disciple of the

Nyingma Nyingma (literally 'old school') is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It is also often referred to as ''Ngangyur'' (, ), "order of the ancient translations". The Nyingma school is founded on the first lineages and transl ...

lama Jampa Chokyi Gyaltsen and well versed in tantric practices. In order to exact revenge, he performed tantric rituals which supposedly killed Karma Tseten. Possibly, this happened in 1599.

Co-reigning with his brothers

Khunpang Lhawang Dorje was co-ruler of Tsang for a while. His exact dates are not known, but according to one list, he ruled already in the year 1582, in the time of his father. After the demise of Karma Tseten, a division took place between Khunpang Lhawang Dorje and two of his brothers,

Karma Thutob Namgyal Karma Thutob Namgyal () (died 17 October 1610) was a prince of the Tsangpa Dynasty that ruled parts of Central Tibet from 1565 to 1642. Family and offspring Karma Thutob Namgyal was the son of the king of Upper Tsang, Karma Tseten, who founded th ...

(d. 1610) and

Karma Tensung Karma Tensung (died 1611), in full Karma Tensung Wangpo (; ), was a king of Tsang (West Central Tibet) who probably reigned from 1599 to 1611. He belonged to the Tsangpa Dynasty that ruled parts of Tibet from 1565 to 1642. Background Karma Tensun ...

(d. 1609 or 1611). Khunpang Lhawang Dorje resided in the Samdrubtse castle (in present

Shigatse Shigatse, officially known as Xigazê (; Nepali: ''सिगात्से''), is a prefecture-level city of the Tibet Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. Its area of jurisdiction, with an area of , corresponds to the histor ...

), the main base of the dynasty, and took care of government affairs from there. He entertained good contacts with the

Jonang The Jonang () is one of the schools of Tibetan Buddhism. Its origins in Tibet can be traced to early 12th century master Yumo Mikyo Dorje, but became much wider known with the help of Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen, a monk originally trained in the ...

lama

Taranatha Tāranātha (1575–1634) was a Lama of the Jonang school of Tibetan Buddhism. He is widely considered its most remarkable scholar and exponent. Taranatha was born in Tibet, supposedly on the birthday of Padmasambhava. His original name was Kun ...

and the

Shamarpa The Shamarpa (; literally, "Person (i.e. Holder) of the Red Crown"), also known as ''Shamar Rinpoche'', or more formally Künzig Shamar Rinpoche, is a lineage holder of the Karma Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism and is regarded to be the mind ma ...

hierarch Chokyi Wangchuk who visited him on a number of occasions, gave ritual sanction to his political authority, and gave him advice on how to arrange his daily life. However, in the historical sources he is entirely overshadowed by his younger brother

who appears to have been the main ruler over Tsang. Khunpang Lhawang Dorje was taken ill in 1604 and Taranatha was asked to perform a ''geg'' ritual to drive away demons from the old and ailing ruler, who suffered from failing memory. This seemed to help for a while, but the illness soon returned, and he died after about a year, in 1605 or 1606.David Templeman, ''Becoming Indian: A study of the life of the 16th-17th century Tibetan Lama Taranatha''. PhD Thesis, Monash University 2008. According to Yolmo Tenzin Norbu's (1598–1644) autobiography, Khunpang Lhawang Dorje was alive in his infant years; see Bogin 2013, p. 173.

References

{{Tsangpa rulers Tsangpa dynasty 16th-century Tibetan people 17th-century Tibetan people