Palpung Monastery () is Tai Situ's historic monastic seat in Babang,

Kham Kham (; ) is one of the three traditional Tibet, Tibetan regions, the others being Domey also known as Amdo in the northeast, and Ü-Tsang in central Tibet. The official name of this Tibetan region/province is Dotoe (). The original residents of ...

(modern

Sichuan Sichuan is a province in Southwestern China, occupying the Sichuan Basin and Tibetan Plateau—between the Jinsha River to the west, the Daba Mountains to the north, and the Yunnan–Guizhou Plateau to the south. Its capital city is Cheng ...

). Palpung means "glorious union of study and practice". It originated in the 12th century and wielded considerable religious, political, and economic influence over the centuries. The current monastery was founded in 1727 by the 8th Tai Situ " Situ Panchen" with the great support of the Dharma King of

Derge Derge (), officially Gengqing Town (; ), is a town in Dêgê County in Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture in Sichuan, China. It was once the center of the Kingdom of Derge in Kham. History Historically, Derge, which means "land of mercy", was ...

Temba Tsering. It is the seat of four lines of incarnate

lama Lama () is a title bestowed to a realized practitioner of the Dharma in Tibetan Buddhism. Not all monks are lamas, while nuns and female practitioners can be recognized and entitled as lamas. The Tibetan word ''la-ma'' means "high mother", ...

s, the best-known being the

Tai Situ Tai Situ (; from ) is one of the oldest lineages of tulkus (reincarnated lamas) in the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism In Tibetan Buddhism tradition, Kenting Tai Situ is considered as emanation of Bodhisattva Maitreya and Guru Padmasambhava (Guru ...

as well as the Jamgon Kongtrul and the Second Beru Khyentse. The gompa has historically been associated with the

Karmapa The Karmapa Tulku lineage of the Gyalwa Karmapa is the oldest among the major incarnating lineages of Tibetan Buddhism,The Karmapa, "The Karmapas Lineage", Kagyu Office established in 1110 CE by the 1st Karmapa, Düsum Khyenpa. Karmapa means " ...

s: for instance, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, 16th Karmapa, was enthroned first at Palpung before traveling to his main seat at

Tsurphu Monastery Tsurphu Monastery () or Tölung Tsurphu (, "Tsurphu of Tölong") is a gompa which serves as the traditional seat of the Karmapa, the head of the Karma Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. It is located in Gurum in Doilungdêqên District, Tibet ...

Ü-Tsang Ü-Tsang (དབུས་གཙང་། Wylie; dbus gtsang) is one of the three Tibetan regions, the others being Amdo to the northeast and Kham to the east. Geographically Ü-Tsang covers the Yarlung Tsanpo drainage basin, the western dist ...

. The 12th Tai Situ, Pema Tönyö Nyinje, has established another monastic seat in exile at Palpung Sherab Ling Monastery( in

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

's state of

Himachal Pradesh Himachal Pradesh (; Sanskrit: ''himācāl prādes;'' "Snow-laden Mountain Province") is a States and union territories of India, state in the northern part of India. Situated in the Western Himalayas, it is one of the thirteen Indian Himalayan ...

near the city of Baijnath. Palpung Yeshe Rabgye Ling Nunnery is nearby in the city of Manali, in the town Bunthar about a 3 hour drive from the Palpung Sherab Ling Monastery.).

History

Palpung Monastery is the historical seat of the successive incarnations of the Chamgon Kenting Tai Situpas in

. It is also the mother monastery 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, M ...

in Kham and evolved into the center of the

Rimé movement The Rimé movement (Tibetan Wylie: ''ris med''; approximate pronunciation "reemay") also written in some English sources as Rime, Ri-me, Rimay) is a movement or tendency in Tibetan Buddhism which promotes non-sectarianism and universalism.Sam ...

. The seat in exile, outside of Tibet, Sherabling Monastery, is in

. The congregation has monasteries and centers around the world.

Palpung in Tibet

Palpung Monastery is a gompa in Babang Township, Dêgê County,

Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, often shortened to Ganzi Prefecture, is an autonomous prefecture in the western arm of Sichuan province, China bordering Yunnan to the south, the Tibet Autonomous Region to the west, and Gansu to the north ...

in western

. It has historically always been associated with the

s such as the 16th Karmapa being enthroned first at Palpung before traveling to his main seat at

. The Karmapas and Tai Situpas have been connected closely over time, alternating as master and disciple. Palpung originated in the 12th century and wielded considerable religious influence over the centuries. Palpung Monastery was founded by the 8th Tai Situpa " Situ Panchen" in 1727 and developed into a preeminent center of learning and scholarship on the eastern Tibetan plateau. The monastery once hosted more than 1000 monks and had one of the most leading monastic universities of the area. It is the seat of various lines of incarnate

s, the best known being the

Tai Situpa Tai Situ (; from ) is one of the oldest lineages of tulkus (reincarnated lamas) in the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism In Tibetan Buddhism tradition, Kenting Tai Situ is considered as emanation of Bodhisattva Maitreya and Guru Padmasambhava ( Gur ...

and the Jamgon Kongtrul. Palpung was known for its huge library with more than 324,000 texts and an art collection of more than 10,150

thangka A ''thangka'' (; Tibetan: ཐང་ཀ་; Nepal Bhasa: पौभा) is a Tibetan Buddhist painting on cotton, silk appliqué, usually depicting a Buddhist deity, scene, or mandala. Thangkas are traditionally kept unframed and rolled ...

s. It was also leading in the fields of spiritual painting and the Situ Rinpoche is the founder of Karma Gadri painting style. At the time of the 11th Tai Situ Rinpoche, Palpung was already famous for spiritual, studious and artistic excellence and authority. Social turmoil from the late 1950s to 1976 brought destruction of some monastery buildings and neglected maintenance to Palpung's main temple. Construction and repair, initially funded by the government, then later by the 12th Tai Situpa and others, commenced in the late 1980s. Palpung’s main temple was recognized in 2013 as a national cultural heritage site, having previously been a provincial-level site. It was named to the World Monuments Watch list in 1998 and 2000. There are an estimated 800 monks residing in the monastery itself and a larger number resident in the surrounding region.

Palpung in India

Pema Tönyö Nyinje, the 12th Tai Situpa, fled from Kham to

Bhutan Bhutan, officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked country in South Asia, in the Eastern Himalayas between China to the north and northwest and India to the south and southeast. With a population of over 727,145 and a territory of , ...

and then India at the age of six, where he consequently received his formal traditional training under Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, 16th Karmapa. At the age of 22 he started to set up his seat in exile, Palpung Sherabling Monastery, in

North India North India is a geographical region, loosely defined as a cultural region comprising the northern part of India (or historically, the Indian subcontinent) wherein Indo-Aryans (speaking Indo-Aryan languages) form the prominent majority populati ...

. Palpung Sherabling Monastery currently has approximately 1,000 monks; 250 are enrolled in the monastic university curriculum on the premises. Palpung Yeshe Rabgyeling Nun Monastery is located near the city of Manali, in the Bunthar town has about 200 nuns. The Monastery also offers the traditional

Kagyu The ''Kagyu'' school, also transliterated as ''Kagyü'', or ''Kagyud'' (), which translates to "Oral Lineage" or "Whispered Transmission" school, is one of the main schools (''chos lugs'') of Tibetan Buddhism, Tibetan (or Himalayan) Buddhism. ...

three-year retreat for both monks and nuns on the compound.

Palpung Congregation

The Palpung congregation consists of more than 180 monasteries and temples throughout some Chinese and Tibetan districts. Palpung Congregation also has branch institutions in Europe, USA, Canada Oceania and Asia altogether about 300 branches world wide. Its European Seat is Palpung Yeshe Chökhor Ling Europe, Palpung Europe which was established and is under the direction of Chöje Lama Gelongma Palmo.

References

Sources

A brief introduction to PalpungPalpung Yeshe Chökhor Ling Europe: Palpung congregation

External links

Palpung CongregationPalpung EuropePalpung CongregationPalpung CongregationPalpung Ireland
{{Authority control Tibetan Buddhist temples in the Garzê Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture Karma Kagyu monasteries and temples Buddhist monasteries in Sichuan Buddhist monasteries in Himachal Pradesh Buildings and structures in Kangra district 1976 establishments in Himachal Pradesh