Ganden Monastery

Ganden Monastery is located in the Tagtse County, 47 kilometers (29 miles) from Lhasa City, atop the Wangbur Mountain at an altitude of 3800m. It is one of the 'great three' Gelukpa university monasteries of Tibet. The other two 'great monasteries' are Sera Monastery and Drepung Monastery.

The Ganden Monastery was built by Tsong Khapa, the founder of Gelugpa (the Yellow Sect of Lamaism) of the Tibetan Lamaism, in the 7th year (1409) during the Yongle reign of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). The Ganden Monastery was the ancestral temple of Gelugpa, and was granted the name of Yongtai Temple by Emperor Yongzheng of the Qing Dynasty (1644-1911). Its tripa, abbot of the monastery, is actually the Throne Holder of Gelugpa, which is Panchen Lama and Dalai Lama's order.

 

In the monastery, there are 50 structures in total including the Main Assembly Hall (or Coqen Hall), Zhacangs, Khangtsens, and Myicuns.

 

The Main Assembly Hall or the Coqen Hall stands in the northern part of the complex and faces south. It serves as the main assembly hall. It has three levels, and is 43.8 meters (143.7 feet) wide and 44.7 meters (146.7 feet) long. It is segregated into three levels. The Sutra hall is in the middle of the first floor and is huge enough to accommodate around 3000 lamas at once. Three Buddha Halls branch out from it and house the statues of the Maitreya Buddha and the master Tsong Khapa, the establisher of Gelugpa.

 

To the west of the Coqen hall is another Main Hall which comprises of the Buddhist Guardian Hall, Mandala Hall, and other complexes. A huge stone at the back of this hall is believed to have flown all the way from India.

 

Tri Thok Khang is one of the earliest Buddha Halls in the Ganden Monastery, and once served as Tsong Khapa and other tripas' bedchamber. Originally built in 1409, and added onto in 1720, it was once adorned with luxurious gilded bronze bricks. In the hall are enshrined statues of the Sitatapatra and Manjushri Bodhisattva. Its windows are ornately carved in the style of the Central Plains. Due to the fact that is houses clothing of Tsong Khapa and other tripas, it is also known as the 'Clothing-Preserving Hall'.

 

In the Ganden Monastery, Serdhung is the Holy Stupa Hall. It was made use of by Tsongkhapa and post his death, a silver pagoda was constructed inside to honour him. Initially, 900 taels of silver surrounded the body of Tsongkhapa. Later on, the 13th Dalai Lama covered it with gold. From this time onwards a siver pagoda was erected every time the tripa of the monastery died. 95 pagodas were erected in the hall till the time of Tibet's liberation. The Holy Stupa Hall is indeed worthy visiting, but the monastery also has some other attractions within. These include the jewel studded armour of Qing Dynasty (1644 - 1911), beautiful tapestries from Jiangsu Province, sutra written in gold and a set of thangka painted with sixteen arhats and the four Heavenly Kings.

 

There are two tantric colleges or Zhacang in the Ganden Monastery - Xaze and Jamze. These colleges spread over an area of 1000 sqm and can accommodate 1500 lamas at a time. There are also 23 Khangtsens and 20 Myicuns that function as monks' living area. 9 debating courtyard are the place where the monks conduct debates on sutras and perform summons ceremonies.

 

Tourists visiting the monastery need to keep a complete day in hand, not because the monastery itself takes so long to be explored completely, but because of the distance from the Lhasa city. The monastery is open for visit from 9 in the morning to 4 in evening.

 

Admission Fee: CNY45
Opening Hours: 09:00 to 16:00