Riwoche Monastery, or Riwoche Tsukla Khang Tragyelma (Tib. ''ri-bo-che'';Dorje and Kapstein (1991), p. 475. Ch. ''Leiwuqi Si'') is a

Taklung Kagyu The Taklung Kagyu () is a sub-school of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism. History The Taklung Kagyu lineage was founded by Taklung Thangpa Tashi Pal in 1180 CE. Like the other Sarma schools, it is part of the second founding of Buddhism in ...

monastery of the

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. ...

school of

Tibetan Buddhism Tibetan Buddhism is a form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet, Bhutan and Mongolia. It also has a sizable number of adherents in the areas surrounding the Himalayas, including the Indian regions of Ladakh, Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, D ...

. It was founded in 1276 by Sangye On, and is one of the oldest and largest monasteries in eastern Tibet. A highly respected

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 ...

regional monastery, it's also famous for its philosophers and logicians, and for the red, black and white painted tree-trunk columns. Riwoche Monastery is situated 29 km north of the small town of Ratsaka (also known as Riwoche Town), and 134 km west of

Chamdo Chamdo, officially Qamdo () and also known in Chinese as Changdu (), is a prefecture-level city in the eastern part of the Tibet Autonomous Region, China. Its seat is the town of Chengguan in Karuo District. Chamdo is Tibet's third largest c ...

. It is at an altitude of about 3,400 metres (11,152 ft) in a fertile valley containing the Dzi River, a tributary to the

Mekong River The Mekong or Mekong River ( , ) is a transboundary river in East Asia and Southeast Asia. It is the world's List of rivers by length, twelfth-longest river and List of longest rivers of Asia, the third-longest in Asia with an estimated l ...

History

Riwoche was founded in 1276 CE by Sangye On, who was a student of Sangye Yarjon, the third lineage-holder of the Taklung branch of the

School of Tibetan Buddhism, and Abbot of

Taklung Monastery Taklung Monastery, Taklung ''stag-lung'',Dorje and Kapstein (1991), p. 478. Taklung Yarthang Monastery, Pel Taklug Tang (''dPal sTag lung thang'') or Taklung or Taglung Gompa is a Kagyu Buddhist monastery about 120 km north of Lhasa. Histor ...

. He had promised the abbot's chair to two nephews, Onpo (1251–1296) and Mangalaguru. When Yarjon died, Onpo, just a young man, assumed the hierarch's position for one year. His older cousin, Mangalaguru (1231–1297), later took control of the monastery. Later, Onpu's disciple Choku Orgyan Gonpo (1293–1366), became second abbot of Riwoche. It became the main branch of the Taklung Kagyu in Kham and, according to

Go Lotsawa Go, GO, G.O., or Go! may refer to: Arts and entertainment Games and sport * Go (game), a board game for two players * ''Travel Go'' (formerly ''Go – The International Travel Game''), a game based on world travel * Go, the starting position l ...

, the author of the ''

Blue Annals The ''Blue Annals'' (), completed in 1476, written by Gö Lotsawa Zhönnu-pel (, 1392–1481), is a Tibetan historical survey with a marked ecumenical (Rimé movement) view, focusing on the dissemination of various sectarian religious traditions ...

'', it once had as many as 2,000 monks, and held the greatest reputation among Khampa monasteries. Riwoche Monastery is also famous for its monks' capabilities in philosophy and in logic. From the time of its founding, the Taklung lineage was divided into "upper" and "lower" branches, Riwoche forming the "lower" branch.Dorje (2009), p. 471. Today there are 305 monks residing at Riwoche Monastery.

Description

The main temple is three-storied and has been undergoing restoration since 1985, after its earlier destruction by Chinese communists.Dorje (2009), p. 472. It is very imposing, supported by huge tree trunks and painted in black red and white vertical stripes, which is distinctive of the Taklung lineage. The monastery contained a notable 14th-century cloth painting entitled ''Jnanatapa'' which was unearthed in recent years. The central figure depicts the Onpo Lama Rinpoche and the spiritual lineage of Riwoche monastery. The surrounding community of practitioners includes both members of the Kagyu and

Nyingma Nyingma (, ), also referred to as ''Ngangyur'' (, ), is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The Nyingma school was founded by PadmasambhavaClaude Arpi, ''A Glimpse of the History of Tibet'', Dharamsala: Tibet Museum, 2013. ...

schools, some of whom are married.

Footnotes

References

*Dorje, Gyurme and Matthew Kapstein (1991). ''The Nyingma School of Tibetan Buddhism: Its Fundamentals and History''. Volume Two: Reference Material. Wisdom Publications. Boston. . *Dorje, Gyurme. (2009) ''Tibet Handbook''. Footprint Handbooks, Bath, England. . *Dowman, Keith. (1988)
''The Power-Places of Central Tibet: The Pilgrim's Guide''
Routledge & Kegan Paul, London. .

External links

{{Buddhist monasteries in Tibet Buddhist monasteries in Tibet Buddhist temples in Chamdo 1056 establishments in Asia Taklung Kagyu monasteries and temples Kham