Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen
Encyclopedia
Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen (1619-1656) was an important Gelug
pa lama and a contemporary of the Fifth Dalai Lama (1617 – 1682). His Seat was the upper residence (gzims khang gong ma) of Drepung monastery
(wylie: 'bras spungs dgon), a famous Gelugpa monastery located near Lhasa
.
of Panchen Sonam Dragpa (wylie: Pan-chen bSod-nams grags-pa), who was the 15th Gaden Tripa. Some say he has been the second reincarnation
of Sönam Drakpa, who, before his death in 1554, had established his own estate, the Upper Chamber (Zimkhang Gongma), which was named because of its location at the top of Drepung, just below the Ngakpa debating courtyard.
According to Lindsay G. McCune the "Gelukpa authorities" agreed that he was the incarnation of Sönam Gelek Pelzang (1594-1615), the fourth incarnation, or trülku
, in the Drepung Zimkhang Gong ma line.
His short "incarnation lineage" includes:
Drakpa Gyaltsen (1619-1656) was born at Ge Khasa in Tolung in 1619 to his mother Lak Agyal and father Namsey Norbu. The Fifth Dalai Lama was asked to write a prayer to Dragpa Gyaltsen mentioning his previous lifetimes. "His chamberlain, Sonam Chöpel, who when he became involved in politics became known as Sonam Rabten, objected ... and he created disturbances ... saying that [the] prayer ... was wrong. This stirring of conflict and division made it so that the fifth Dalai Lama did not compose [this] prayer."
Tibetan historian Samten Karmay writes that after the death of Dragpa Gyaltsen the search for his reincarnation was banned. Thus the Drepung Zimkhang Gong ma line ended and the estate founded by Panchen Sönam Dragpa (also called Dakpa) in 1554 at the Upper Chamber of Drepung ceased to exist in 1656. Later on he (Dragpa Gyaltsen) appeared as Dorje Shugden
.
Because Dragpa Gyaltsen's fame rivaled that of the Fifth Dalai Lama, Sonam Chöpel and some of the Dalai Lama's other attendants became extremely jealous and later murdered Dragpa Gyltsen.
Tibetan historian Samten Karmay further writes "The circumstances of his death, whether natural or not, were contested and part of the dGe-lugs-pa school believed that the official Norbu, acting under the sDe-srid's orders had assassinated him. Whatever the truth, the search for his reincarnation was banned, which suggests that the affair must have been quite serious indeed. In 1658, the actual building of the 'Upper Chamber' was destroyed and the stupa containing the remains of the Lama was supposedly thrown into the sKyid-chu river. It was then believed that the spirit of Grags-pa rgyal-mtshan had returned as a sort of 'protector of the Buddhist religion'."
After he reappeared as Dorje Shugden
, the Fifth Dalai Lama was frightened and requested various lamas to perform an exorcism:
This exorcism was unsuccessful, and so the Dalai Lama realized Dorje Shugden to be a holy being, wrote one of the first prayers to him, built a temple to him called Trode Khangsar
, and made a statue of him with his own hands.
Lobsang Tamdin’s be bum extracted the biographies (rnam thar) of Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen and his reincarnation lineage into a work called sprul sku grags pa rgyal mtshan gyi sngon byung ‘khrungs rabs dang bcas pa'i rnam thar (dza ya pandi ta blo bzang 'phrin las kyi gsan yig nas zur du bkod pa bzhugs so). The originals can also be found directly in the catalog of received teachings (thob yig) of Jaya Pandita published by Lokesh Chandra, International Academy of Indian Culture (1981, vol. 4, folios 43-60). This contains the list of the long incarnation lineage of Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen, with brief biographies. The biography of Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen himself contains a year by year account of his life.
In his introduction to the be bum, Lobsang Tamdin writes that Dorje Shugden is a magical emanation of Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen’s three enlightened secrets (gsang gsum).
A relevant entry is found in Sumpa Khenpo’s Chronology of Tibet for the Wood Sheep year (1655-1656), preceded by a symbol that denotes an entry for a person’s birth:6 “The Kangxi Emperor [is born and] becomes famous as the reincarnation of Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen.”
Gelug
The Gelug or Gelug-pa , also known as the Yellow Hat sect, is a school of Buddhism founded by Je Tsongkhapa , a philosopher and Tibetan religious leader...
pa lama and a contemporary of the Fifth Dalai Lama (1617 – 1682). His Seat was the upper residence (gzims khang gong ma) of Drepung monastery
Drepung Monastery
Drepung Monastery ,, located at the foot of Mount Gephel, is one of the "great three" Gelukpa university monasteries of Tibet...
(wylie: 'bras spungs dgon), a famous Gelugpa monastery located near Lhasa
Lhasa
Lhasa is the administrative capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China and the second most populous city on the Tibetan Plateau, after Xining. At an altitude of , Lhasa is one of the highest cities in the world...
.
Incarnation Lineage
Dragpa Gyaltsen is usually considered to be the 4th incarnationIncarnation
Incarnation literally means embodied in flesh or taking on flesh. It refers to the conception and birth of a sentient creature who is the material manifestation of an entity, god or force whose original nature is immaterial....
of Panchen Sonam Dragpa (wylie: Pan-chen bSod-nams grags-pa), who was the 15th Gaden Tripa. Some say he has been the second reincarnation
Reincarnation
Reincarnation best describes the concept where the soul or spirit, after the death of the body, is believed to return to live in a new human body, or, in some traditions, either as a human being, animal or plant...
of Sönam Drakpa, who, before his death in 1554, had established his own estate, the Upper Chamber (Zimkhang Gongma), which was named because of its location at the top of Drepung, just below the Ngakpa debating courtyard.
According to Lindsay G. McCune the "Gelukpa authorities" agreed that he was the incarnation of Sönam Gelek Pelzang (1594-1615), the fourth incarnation, or trülku
Tulku
In Tibetan Buddhism, a tulku is a particular high-ranking lama, of whom the Dalai Lama is one, who can choose the manner of his rebirth. Normally the lama would be reincarnated as a human, and of the same sex as his predecessor. In contrast to a tulku, all other sentient beings including other...
, in the Drepung Zimkhang Gong ma line.
His short "incarnation lineage" includes:
- 0. Buton Rinchen Drub (1291-1364) - Seat: zhwa lu dgon monastery/Shalu monasteryShalu MonasteryShalu Monastery or Ṣalu Monastery is small monastery 22 km south of Shigatse in Tibet. Founded in 1040 by Chetsun Sherab Jungnay, for centuries it was renowned as a centre of scholarly learning and psychic training and its mural paintings were considered to be the most ancient and beautiful...
- 1. Panchen Sonam DragpaPanchen Sonam DragpaPanchen Sonam Dragpa, , was the fifteenth Ganden Tripa or throneholder of Ganden Monastery. His texts form the core curriculum for most Gelugpa monasteries...
(1478-1554) - 2. Sonam Yeshe Wangpo (1556-92) - Seat: Drepung monastery
- 3. Sonam Gelek Palzang (1594-1615) - Seat: Drepung monastery
- 4. Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen (1619-56) - Seat: Drepung monastery
Drakpa Gyaltsen (1619-1656) was born at Ge Khasa in Tolung in 1619 to his mother Lak Agyal and father Namsey Norbu. The Fifth Dalai Lama was asked to write a prayer to Dragpa Gyaltsen mentioning his previous lifetimes. "His chamberlain, Sonam Chöpel, who when he became involved in politics became known as Sonam Rabten, objected ... and he created disturbances ... saying that [the] prayer ... was wrong. This stirring of conflict and division made it so that the fifth Dalai Lama did not compose [this] prayer."
Tibetan historian Samten Karmay writes that after the death of Dragpa Gyaltsen the search for his reincarnation was banned. Thus the Drepung Zimkhang Gong ma line ended and the estate founded by Panchen Sönam Dragpa (also called Dakpa) in 1554 at the Upper Chamber of Drepung ceased to exist in 1656. Later on he (Dragpa Gyaltsen) appeared as Dorje Shugden
Dorje Shugden
Dorje Shugden , "Vajra Possessing Strength", or Dolgyal Shugden , "Shugden, King of Dhol" is a deity in Tibetan Buddhism, especially its Gelug school, who is regarded as a Dharma Protector or "guardian angel." The practice of Dharma Protectors is central to most religious Tibetans and...
.
Rivalry, Murder and Reincarnation
Tibetan historian Samten Karmay writes "It should be recalled that he had been one of the candidates for the reincarnation of the Fourth Dalai Lama. As a result, he was always seen as a rival of the Fifth Dalai Lama though he invariably proclaimed himself a disciple of the latter. He came to be despised by a number of officials and especially the sDe-srid."Because Dragpa Gyaltsen's fame rivaled that of the Fifth Dalai Lama, Sonam Chöpel and some of the Dalai Lama's other attendants became extremely jealous and later murdered Dragpa Gyltsen.
Tibetan historian Samten Karmay further writes "The circumstances of his death, whether natural or not, were contested and part of the dGe-lugs-pa school believed that the official Norbu, acting under the sDe-srid's orders had assassinated him. Whatever the truth, the search for his reincarnation was banned, which suggests that the affair must have been quite serious indeed. In 1658, the actual building of the 'Upper Chamber' was destroyed and the stupa containing the remains of the Lama was supposedly thrown into the sKyid-chu river. It was then believed that the spirit of Grags-pa rgyal-mtshan had returned as a sort of 'protector of the Buddhist religion'."
After he reappeared as Dorje Shugden
Dorje Shugden
Dorje Shugden , "Vajra Possessing Strength", or Dolgyal Shugden , "Shugden, King of Dhol" is a deity in Tibetan Buddhism, especially its Gelug school, who is regarded as a Dharma Protector or "guardian angel." The practice of Dharma Protectors is central to most religious Tibetans and...
, the Fifth Dalai Lama was frightened and requested various lamas to perform an exorcism:
- "Because of the manipulations of Lag Agyal (the mother) of Gekhasa, the false reincarnation of Tulku Sonam Geleg Palsang (Tulku Dakpa Gyaltsen) got his way (and was installed as the successful candidate). However, because of distorted prayers he became a perfidious spirit and brought serious harm to sentient beings. Therefore, a total of seven groups of practitioners led by (Pema Trinley) Rinpoche of Dorje Drag, Choegyal Terdag Lingpa, Choeje Vugja Lungpa, Ngari Ngagchang Konchok Lhundup, Palri Tulku and two groups of practitioners of Phende Legshe Ling (Namgyal Dratsang) performed a ritual fire offering and burnt the interfering spirit."
This exorcism was unsuccessful, and so the Dalai Lama realized Dorje Shugden to be a holy being, wrote one of the first prayers to him, built a temple to him called Trode Khangsar
Trode Khangsar
Trode Khangsar is a temple located in Lhasa that is over 300 years old . The temple is dedicated to the protector Dorje Shugden and has been traditionally managed by the Gelug monastery Riwo Chöling, which is located in the Yarlung valley.-Protector:...
, and made a statue of him with his own hands.
Selected information from different sources
One of his disciples, the Mongolian Buddhist monk Jaya Pandita Lozang Trinle (Jaya Pandita blo bzang 'phrin las, 1642-1708) is said to have mentioned in his Collected Works several of the prophesies of Drakpa Gyeltsen, and his rnam thar was preserved in Mongolian Jaya Pandita's works. The latter was an important master at the time when much of the profound knowledge of Buddhism and the Gelug in particular was being imported into Mongolia..Lobsang Tamdin’s be bum extracted the biographies (rnam thar) of Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen and his reincarnation lineage into a work called sprul sku grags pa rgyal mtshan gyi sngon byung ‘khrungs rabs dang bcas pa'i rnam thar (dza ya pandi ta blo bzang 'phrin las kyi gsan yig nas zur du bkod pa bzhugs so). The originals can also be found directly in the catalog of received teachings (thob yig) of Jaya Pandita published by Lokesh Chandra, International Academy of Indian Culture (1981, vol. 4, folios 43-60). This contains the list of the long incarnation lineage of Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen, with brief biographies. The biography of Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen himself contains a year by year account of his life.
In his introduction to the be bum, Lobsang Tamdin writes that Dorje Shugden is a magical emanation of Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen’s three enlightened secrets (gsang gsum).
A relevant entry is found in Sumpa Khenpo’s Chronology of Tibet for the Wood Sheep year (1655-1656), preceded by a symbol that denotes an entry for a person’s birth:6 “The Kangxi Emperor [is born and] becomes famous as the reincarnation of Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen.”
Further reading
- Tales of Intrigue from Tibet's Holy City: The Historical Underpinnings of a Modern Buddhist Crisis Thesis by Lindsay G. McCune The Florida State University College of Arts and Sciences
Literature
- Autobiography of the First Panchen LamaPanchen LamaThe Panchen Lama , or Bainqên Erdê'ni , is the highest ranking Lama after the Dalai Lama in the Gelugpa lineage of Tibetan Buddhism...
(1567-1622) Panchen Lozang Chökyi Gyeltsen (Chos smra ba'i dge slong blo bzang chos kyi rgyal mtshan gyi sphyod tshul gsal bar ston pa nor bu'i phreng ba zhes bya ba zhugs so) - The Vaidurya Serpo (Dga' ldan chos byung vai durya ser po), Desi Sangye GyamtsoDesi Sangye GyatsoDesi Sangye Gyatso was the fifth regent of the 5th Dalai Lama who founded the School of Medicine and Astrology on Chags-po-ri Hill in 1694 and wrote the Blue Beryl treatise. The name is sometimes written Sangye Gyamtso.By some accounts, Sangye Gyatso is believed to be the son of the 5th Dalai...
's (1653-1705) history of the Gandenpa tradition - Dungkar's Encyclopedia (dung dkar tshig mdzod chen mo) by Dungkar Lozang Trinle (1927-1997)
- Treasury of Names (Ming dzod) by Koshül Drakpa Chungne (b. twentieth-century) and Gyelwa Lozang Khedrup (b. twentieth-century)
- Ngawang Lozang Gyamtso's Autobiography of the Fifth Dalai Lama (za hor gyi ban de ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho'i 'di snang 'khrul ba'i rol rtsed rtogs brjod kyi tshul du bkod pa du lu la' gos bzang)
- Ngawang Lozang Gyamtso's Spontaneous Achievement of the Four Enlightened Activities: [Rites of] realization, offerings, expiation, praises, feasts, and so forth for the ocean of loyal dharma protectors who possess unhindered strength and power (Thogs med drag rtsal nus stobs ldan pa'i dam can chos srung rgya mtsho'i mngon rtogs mchod 'bul bskyang bshags bstod tsogs sogs 'phrin las rnam zhi lhun drub ces bya ba bzhugs so)
- Sumpa Khenpo Yeshe Peljor's (1704-1788) Chronological Table (Dpag bsam ljon bzang)