Buchu Monastery, Buchu Sergyi Lhakhang, or Buchasergyi Lakang Monastery is a temple in an ancient monastery about 28 km south of the modern town of
Bayi, which replaces the old village of Drakchi, in
Nyingchi County of eastern Tibet.
Description
The two-storied monastery has a striking golden roof which can be seen from afar. There have been only eight monks living here recently.
Previously the temple contained images of the Eight Manifestations of
Padmasambhava
Padmasambhava ("Born from a Lotus"), also known as Guru Rinpoche (Precious Guru) and the Lotus from Oḍḍiyāna, was a tantric Buddhist Vajra master from India who may have taught Vajrayana in Tibet (circa 8th – 9th centuries)... According ...
, and the upper floor had eight images of
Amitayus which have not yet been restored. The lower part of the large Padmasambhava downstairs survived, and still contains the ''zungjuk'' or mantra-core.
History
The original buildings here were built during the 7th century reign of King
Songtsen Gampo
Songtsen Gampo (; 569–649? 650), also Songzan Ganbu (), was the 33rd Tibetan king and founder of the Tibetan Empire, and is traditionally credited with the introduction of Buddhism to Tibet, influenced by his Nepali consort Bhrikuti, of Nepal ...
. It was created as one of the eight "demoness-subduing" temples, and was constructed according to
geomantic theory on the right elbow of the ogress who represented Tibet. It is the oldest Buddhist structure in the eastern Tibetan region of
Kongpo
Kongpo () is a region of central-eastern Tibet, centered in modern Gongbo'gyamda County, Nyingchi Prefecture. It is situated on the Nyang River, a northern tributary of the Yarlung Tsangpo River.
Kongpo Drula Gonpa is the oldest and largest mo ...
. It originally belonged to the
Nyingmapa
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 ...
, but by the 17th century there were
Gelugpa
240px, The 14th Dalai Lama (center), the most influential figure of the contemporary Gelug tradition, at the 2003 Bodhgaya (India).
The Gelug (, also Geluk; "virtuous")Kay, David N. (2007). ''Tibetan and Zen Buddhism in Britain: Transplantati ...
present here, and it formally adopted by them during the time of the Regent, Demo Rinpoche (r.1886-1895).
Geomancy
The temple is part of a network of 12 temples arranged around Jo-khang temple at Lhasa. All of them were built in the time of King
Songtsen Gampo
Songtsen Gampo (; 569–649? 650), also Songzan Ganbu (), was the 33rd Tibetan king and founder of the Tibetan Empire, and is traditionally credited with the introduction of Buddhism to Tibet, influenced by his Nepali consort Bhrikuti, of Nepal ...
.
RigpaWiki: Thirteen geomantic temples
/ref>
Footnotes
References
*Dorje, Gyurme. (1999). ''Footprint Tibet Handbook with Bhutan''. (2nd Ed.) Footprint Handbooks, Bath, England. .
*Mayhew, Bradley and Kohn, Michael Tibet. (2005). 6th Edition. Lonely Planet. .
{{coord missing, Tibet
Buddhist monasteries in Tibet
Buddhist_temples_in_Tibet
Gelug monasteries
7th-century establishments in Tibet