Lha (, b.697 – ?d. r. 704 – 705) was a ( De facto) Tibetan Emperor who ruled briefly in 704 to 705. The circumstances of his reign are not very clear, and he is not counted in most lists of rulers.

Biography

Lha was one of the sons of emperor

Tridu Songtsen Tridu Songtsen (), Tridu Songtsen or Dusong Mangban, (b.668 – 704d.; r. 676–704 CE) was the 36th king of Tibet and reigned during the Tibetan Empire period. Ascent to throne 'Dus-rong ascended the Tibetan throne after the death of his father, ...

, who met a hasty end in 704. The ''

Old Book of Tang The ''Old Book of Tang'', or simply the ''Book of Tang'', is the first classic historical work about the Tang dynasty, comprising 200 chapters, and is one of the Twenty-Four Histories. Originally compiled during the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdo ...

'' say that the southern tributaries of the empire revolted and during the imperial military reaction, Tridu Songtsen was killed. Due to squabbling by his sons, his seven-year-old son Lha was enthroned. ''

Tibetan Annals The ''Tibetan Annals'' or ''Old Tibetan Annals'' (''OTA'') are composed of two manuscripts written in Old Tibetan language found in the early 20th century in the "hidden library" in the Mogao Grottoes near Dunhuang in northwestern Gansu provinc ...

'' from

Dunhuang Dunhuang () is a county-level city in northwestern Gansu Province, Western China. According to the 2010 Chinese census, the city has a population of 186,027, though 2019 estimates put the city's population at about 191,800. Sachu (Dunhuang) was ...

briefly mention that an older brother of

Me Agtsom Me most often refers to: * Me (pronoun), the first-person singular pronoun, referring to the speaker Me, M.E. or ME may also refer to: Language * Me (cuneiform), a sign in cuneiform writing * Me (kana), a letter in Japanese script * Middle En ...

was deposed in 705. There is no information about the circumstances of his brief enthronement, or the causes of his disgrace. Possibly it had something to do with the disturbances in the southern dependencies of the empire that took place at this time. On the basis of these materials the historian Christopher Beckwith argues that Me Agtsom did not succeed his father immediately. Rather, the throne was briefly held by Lha, who was also possibly called ''Lha Balpho''. After a short while, his powerful grandmother, the empress dowager

Khri ma lod Empress Khri ma lod (or Thrimalö) was an empress consort and twice regent of Tibet. She was empress consort by marriage to emperor Mangsong Mangtsen. She was the ruler of the Tibetan empire twice: in 675-689 during the minority of her son emperor ...

, dethroned him and placed the infant Gyal Tsugru - the future Me Agtsom - on the throne. The coup was accompanied by revolts and executions involving the vassal country Serib at the south-western border of Tibet. Lha was apparently not killed. It has been suggested that he was the person who actually received the Princess Jincheng as his bride in 710, though this is very unclear.Christopher Beckwith, ''The Tibetan empire in Central Asia''. Princeton 1987, pp. 69-70. The princess is usually regarded as the consort of Me Agtsom.

References

{{Emperors of Tibet Emperors of Tibet Buddhist monarchs 8th-century monarchs in Asia Tibetan Empire 8th-century Tibetan people

Biography

See also

References