Narthang Monastery (Tibetan: སྣར་ཐང་; Chin: 纳塘寺) is a monastery located 15 km (9.3 mi) west of Shigatse in Tibet. Founded in 1153 by Tumtön Lodrö Drakpa,[1] a student of Sharawa Yonten Drak. Narthang was an influential Kadam monastery, and the fourth great monastery of Tsang, with Shalu Monastery, Sakya and Tashilhunpo.[2] Narthang was first famous for its scriptural teaching and monastic discipline. After the fourteenth century it gained great eminence as the oldest of Tibet's three great printing centres (the other being the Potala and the Derge).
Racks of printing blocks, Narthang Monastery
The fourth yash Panchen Lama took control of the monastery and it continued printing the Buddhist scriptures, the Kangyur and the Tengyur, until 1959. Narthang's five main buildings and large chanting hall were razed to the ground by the Chinese in 1966. They had contained priceless 14th century murals possibly painted by the artist scholars of nearby Shalu Monastery. Today, only the mud-brick foundations can be discerned although parts of the Mongolian styled high-fortress walls are still standing.
"I went on to Narthang to visit the largest of the printing establishments in Tibet. The number of engraved wooden plates used for the printing of the various religious books was prodigious. Set up on shelves, in rows, they filled a huge building. The printers, splattered with ink up to their elbows,sat upon the floor as they worked, while in other rooms monks cut the paper according to the size required for each kind of book. There was no haste; chatting and drinking of buttered tea went on freely. What a contrast to the fevered agitation in our newspaper printing-rooms."[3]
"The high crumbling walls of Narthang are visible behind a roadside village: a few monks have returned to the lamasery and several minor buildings have been restored."[4]
An English-language history of Narthang between the 12th and 15th centuries is available.[2]
Footnotesedit
^"Tumton Lodro Drakpa". The Treasury of Lives. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
^ abMichael, Schuman (2016). "Building Place and Shaping Lives: Nartang Monastery From the Twelfth Through Fifteenth Centuries". UVA Library | Virgo. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
narthang, monastery, tibetan, ཐང, chin, 纳塘寺, monastery, located, west, shigatse, tibet, founded, 1153, tumtön, lodrö, drakpa, student, sharawa, yonten, drak, narthang, influential, kadam, monastery, fourth, great, monastery, tsang, with, shalu, monastery, saky. Narthang Monastery Tibetan ས ར ཐང Chin 纳塘寺 is a monastery located 15 km 9 3 mi west of Shigatse in Tibet Founded in 1153 by Tumton Lodro Drakpa 1 a student of Sharawa Yonten Drak Narthang was an influential Kadam monastery and the fourth great monastery of Tsang with Shalu Monastery Sakya and Tashilhunpo 2 Narthang was first famous for its scriptural teaching and monastic discipline After the fourteenth century it gained great eminence as the oldest of Tibet s three great printing centres the other being the Potala and the Derge Racks of printing blocks Narthang Monastery The fourth yash Panchen Lama took control of the monastery and it continued printing the Buddhist scriptures the Kangyur and the Tengyur until 1959 Narthang s five main buildings and large chanting hall were razed to the ground by the Chinese in 1966 They had contained priceless 14th century murals possibly painted by the artist scholars of nearby Shalu Monastery Today only the mud brick foundations can be discerned although parts of the Mongolian styled high fortress walls are still standing I went on to Narthang to visit the largest of the printing establishments in Tibet The number of engraved wooden plates used for the printing of the various religious books was prodigious Set up on shelves in rows they filled a huge building The printers splattered with ink up to their elbows sat upon the floor as they worked while in other rooms monks cut the paper according to the size required for each kind of book There was no haste chatting and drinking of buttered tea went on freely What a contrast to the fevered agitation in our newspaper printing rooms 3 The high crumbling walls of Narthang are visible behind a roadside village a few monks have returned to the lamasery and several minor buildings have been restored 4 An English language history of Narthang between the 12th and 15th centuries is available 2 Footnotes edit Tumton Lodro Drakpa The Treasury of Lives Retrieved 10 December 2018 a b Michael Schuman 2016 Building Place and Shaping Lives Nartang Monastery From the Twelfth Through Fifteenth Centuries UVA Library Virgo Retrieved 10 December 2018 David Neel 2007 p 89 Buckley 2006 References editAlexandra David Neel 1965 Magic amp Mystery In Tibet Corgi Books London ISBN 0 552 08745 9 Michael Buckley 2006 edition Bradt guide to Tibet External links editNarthang Photos29 11 40 N 88 45 42 E 29 19444 N 88 76167 E 29 19444 88 76167 nbsp This Tibet related article is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte nbsp This article about a Buddhist convent is a stub You can help Wikipedia by expanding it vte Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Narthang Monastery amp oldid 1175901551, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
