Sakya Monastery, Tibet in 1948 prior to its destruction
As the seat of the Sakya (or Sakyapa) school of Tibetan Buddhism, it was founded in 1073, by Khön Könchok Gyalpo (Tibetan: དཀོན་མཆོག་རྒྱལ་པོ།, Wylie: dkon mchog rgyal po; 1034–1102), originally a Nyingmapa monk of the powerful noble family of the Tsang, who became the first Sakya Trizin. The "southern monastery" was founded under the orders of Drogön Chögyal Phagpa in 1268, across a river from the earlier structures. 130,000 workers were reportedly drafted for its construction.[2] Its powerful abbots governed Tibet during the 13th and the 14th centuries under the overlordship of the Mongol Yuan dynasty after the downfall of the Tibetan Empire, until they were eclipsed by the rise of the new Kagyu and Gelug schools of Tibetan Buddhism. Most of the southern monastery was burned down in the 16th century. It was only restored to its previous size in 1948.[2]
Its architecture is quite different from that of temples in Lhasa and Yarlung. The only surviving ancient building is the Lhakang Chempo or Sibgon Trulpa. Originally a cave in the mountainside, it was built in 1268 by dpon-chen Sakya Sangpo and restored in the 16th century. It contains some of the most magnificent surviving artwork in all of Tibet, which appears not to have been damaged in recent times. The Gompa grounds cover more than 18,000 square metres, while the huge main hall covers some 6,000 square metres.[3][4][5]
After the March 10th, 1959 Lhasa uprising to protect the 14th Dalai Lama from the Communist ChinesePeople's Liberation Army, the majority of Sakya Monastery's monks were forced to leave. As Namkhai Norbu states in his book; "previously there were about five hundred monks in the Great Sakya Monastery, but by the end of 1959 only 36 aged monks remained."[6] The northern monastery was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution, while the southern half escaped from destruction. The monastery was renovated and rebuilt in 2002.[2]
As to the great library of Sakya, it is on shelves along the walls of the great hall of the Lhakhang chen-po. There are preserved here many volumes written in gold letters; the pages are six feet long by eighteen inches in breadth. In the margin of each page are illuminations, and the first four volumes have in them pictures of the thousand Buddhas. These books are bound in iron. They were prepared under orders of the Emperor Kublai Khan, and presented to the Phagpa lama on his second visit to Beijing.
There is also preserved in this temple a conch shell with whorls turning from left to right [in Tibetan, Ya chyü dungkar ], a present from Kublai to Phagpa. It is only blown by the lamas when the request is accompanied by a present of seven ounces of silver; but to blow it, or have it blown, is held to be an act of great merit."[7]
Library and artEdit
Sakya Monastery houses a huge library of as many as 84,000 books on traditional stacks 60 metres (200 ft) long and 10 metres (33 ft) high. Most of them are Buddhist scriptures, although they also include works of literature, history, philosophy, astronomy, mathematics, agriculture and art. One scripture weighs more than 500 kilograms (1,100 lb), the heaviest in the world. The collection also includes many volumes of palm-leaf manuscripts, which are well-preserved due to the region's arid climate.[2] In 2003, the library was examined by the Tibetan Academy of Social Sciences.[8] The monastery started to digitize the library in 2011. As of 2022[update], all books have been indexed, and more than 20% have been fully digitized. Monks now maintain a digital library for all scanned books and documents.[9]
More than 3,000 murals in Sakya Monastery depict religious, historical and cultural themes, including valuable records of historical scenes such as Phagpa's meeting with Kublai Khan and the monastery's founding. The main library hall contains a 66-meter-long mural showing the life of Gautama Buddha. There are also more than 1,100 pieces of porcelain in the hall, dating from the Yuan dynasty to early 14th century.[2]
Claims that the library contains records dating back 10,000 years have circulated on the Internet, but are untrue.[10]
GalleryEdit
Sakya Monastery Library
Sakya Monastery in IndiaEdit
The 41st Sakya Trizin, Ngawang Kunga, the then throne holder of the Sakyapa went into exile in India in 1959 following the Chinese invasion of Tibet. He has long lived in Dehra Dun, in the foothills of the Western Himalayas, where the Sakya Monastery was reestablished. He has been there with a number of senior monks and scholars, who also escaped from Tibet, joining the new Monastery and providing continuity to Sakya traditions. These monks and scholars saved a number of the original scrolls from the original Sakya Monastery in Tibet and smuggled them to India for safekeeping. The Sakya Trizin and his followers have established several institutions in and around the Dehradun area, including a charitable hospital, a monastic college and a nunnery. Like all leaders of the Sakya school, the current Sakya Trizin is married. He has two sons, and the younger one, Dungsey Gyana Vajra, born 5 July 1979 in Dehra Dun, is director of the Sakya Monastery constructed in Dehra Dun.[11]
^Dowman, Keith. The Power-Places of Central Tibet: The Pilgrim's Guide. Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1988, pp. 275–276. ISBN0-7102-1370-0 (pbk)
^Buckley, Michael and Strauss, Robert. Tibet – A Travel Survival Kit. Lonely Planet Publications. 1986, pp. 170–174. ISBN0-908086-88-1.
^Norbu, Thubten Jigme and Turnbull, Colin. Tibet: Its History, Religion and People. Chatto & Windus, 1969. Penguin Books reprint. 1987, p. 193.
^Norbu, Dawa (1999). Tibet: The Road Ahead. London: Random House. pp. 225. ISBN978-0-7126-7063-0. OCLC 728663181.
^Das, Sarat Chandra. Lhasa and Central Tibet, (1902), pp, 241–242. Reprint: Mehra Offset Press, Delhi. 1988.
^"Ancient Lections of Tibetan Buddhism to Be Sorted out". China Through A Lens. China Internet Information Center. Retrieved 22 July 2021.
^"西藏萨迦寺完成20%古籍数字化逐叶扫描". China News Service. 28 February 2022. Retrieved 18 May 2022.
^"Claim of 10,000-year-old Tibet library find not worth paper it's written on". Australian Associated Press. Retrieved 6 October 2023.
^Brief history of the Sakya Lineage and Order 18 April 2008 at the Wayback Machine
External linksEdit
Media related to Sakya Monastery at Wikimedia Commons
Berzin, Alexander (September 1991). "A Brief History of Sakya Monastery". Study Buddhism. Original version published in "Sakya Monasteries." Chö-Yang, Year of Tibet Edition (Dharamsala, India), (1991). Retrieved 6 June 2016.
October 17, 2023
sakya, monastery, tibetan, དག, wylie, skya, dgon, also, known, sakya, tibetan, དཔལ, wylie, dpal, skya, white, earth, pale, earth, buddhist, monastery, situated, town, county, about, kilometres, west, shigatse, tibet, autonomous, region, tibetan, transcription,. Sakya Monastery Tibetan ས ས དག ན པ Wylie sa skya dgon pa also known as Pel Sakya Tibetan དཔལ ས ས Wylie dpal sa skya White Earth or Pale Earth is a Buddhist monastery situated in Sa gya Town ས ས Sa gya County about 127 kilometres 79 mi west of Shigatse in the Tibet Autonomous Region 1 Sakya MonasteryTibetan transcription s Tibetan ས ས དག ན Wylie transliteration sa skya dgonSakya MonasteryReligionAffiliationTibetan BuddhismSectSakyaLeadershipSakya TrizinLocationLocationShigatse Prefecture Tibet Autonomous RegionLocation within Tibet Autonomous RegionGeographic coordinates28 54 18 N 88 1 5 E 28 90500 N 88 01806 E 28 90500 88 01806ArchitectureFounderKhon Konchok GyalpoDate established1073This article contains Tibetan script Without proper rendering support you may see very small fonts misplaced vowels or missing conjuncts instead of Tibetan characters Kunga Tashi and Incidents from His Life Abbot of Sakya Monastery 1688 1711 Contents 1 History 2 Library and art 2 1 Gallery 3 Sakya Monastery in India 4 References 5 External linksHistory Edit nbsp Sakya Monastery Tibet in 1948 prior to its destructionAs the seat of the Sakya or Sakyapa school of Tibetan Buddhism it was founded in 1073 by Khon Konchok Gyalpo Tibetan དཀ ན མཆ ག ར ལ པ Wylie dkon mchog rgyal po 1034 1102 originally a Nyingmapa monk of the powerful noble family of the Tsang who became the first Sakya Trizin The southern monastery was founded under the orders of Drogon Chogyal Phagpa in 1268 across a river from the earlier structures 130 000 workers were reportedly drafted for its construction 2 Its powerful abbots governed Tibet during the 13th and the 14th centuries under the overlordship of the Mongol Yuan dynasty after the downfall of the Tibetan Empire until they were eclipsed by the rise of the new Kagyu and Gelug schools of Tibetan Buddhism Most of the southern monastery was burned down in the 16th century It was only restored to its previous size in 1948 2 Its architecture is quite different from that of temples in Lhasa and Yarlung The only surviving ancient building is the Lhakang Chempo or Sibgon Trulpa Originally a cave in the mountainside it was built in 1268 by dpon chen Sakya Sangpo and restored in the 16th century It contains some of the most magnificent surviving artwork in all of Tibet which appears not to have been damaged in recent times The Gompa grounds cover more than 18 000 square metres while the huge main hall covers some 6 000 square metres 3 4 5 After the March 10th 1959 Lhasa uprising to protect the 14th Dalai Lama from the Communist Chinese People s Liberation Army the majority of Sakya Monastery s monks were forced to leave As Namkhai Norbu states in his book previously there were about five hundred monks in the Great Sakya Monastery but by the end of 1959 only 36 aged monks remained 6 The northern monastery was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution while the southern half escaped from destruction The monastery was renovated and rebuilt in 2002 2 Das Sharat Chandra writes As to the great library of Sakya it is on shelves along the walls of the great hall of the Lhakhang chen po There are preserved here many volumes written in gold letters the pages are six feet long by eighteen inches in breadth In the margin of each page are illuminations and the first four volumes have in them pictures of the thousand Buddhas These books are bound in iron They were prepared under orders of the Emperor Kublai Khan and presented to the Phagpa lama on his second visit to Beijing There is also preserved in this temple a conch shell with whorls turning from left to right in Tibetan Ya chyu dungkar a present from Kublai to Phagpa It is only blown by the lamas when the request is accompanied by a present of seven ounces of silver but to blow it or have it blown is held to be an act of great merit 7 nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp Library and art EditSakya Monastery houses a huge library of as many as 84 000 books on traditional stacks 60 metres 200 ft long and 10 metres 33 ft high Most of them are Buddhist scriptures although they also include works of literature history philosophy astronomy mathematics agriculture and art One scripture weighs more than 500 kilograms 1 100 lb the heaviest in the world The collection also includes many volumes of palm leaf manuscripts which are well preserved due to the region s arid climate 2 In 2003 the library was examined by the Tibetan Academy of Social Sciences 8 The monastery started to digitize the library in 2011 As of 2022 update all books have been indexed and more than 20 have been fully digitized Monks now maintain a digital library for all scanned books and documents 9 More than 3 000 murals in Sakya Monastery depict religious historical and cultural themes including valuable records of historical scenes such as Phagpa s meeting with Kublai Khan and the monastery s founding The main library hall contains a 66 meter long mural showing the life of Gautama Buddha There are also more than 1 100 pieces of porcelain in the hall dating from the Yuan dynasty to early 14th century 2 Claims that the library contains records dating back 10 000 years have circulated on the Internet but are untrue 10 Gallery Edit Sakya Monastery Library nbsp nbsp nbsp nbsp Sakya Monastery in India EditThe 41st Sakya Trizin Ngawang Kunga the then throne holder of the Sakyapa went into exile in India in 1959 following the Chinese invasion of Tibet He has long lived in Dehra Dun in the foothills of the Western Himalayas where the Sakya Monastery was reestablished He has been there with a number of senior monks and scholars who also escaped from Tibet joining the new Monastery and providing continuity to Sakya traditions These monks and scholars saved a number of the original scrolls from the original Sakya Monastery in Tibet and smuggled them to India for safekeeping The Sakya Trizin and his followers have established several institutions in and around the Dehradun area including a charitable hospital a monastic college and a nunnery Like all leaders of the Sakya school the current Sakya Trizin is married He has two sons and the younger one Dungsey Gyana Vajra born 5 July 1979 in Dehra Dun is director of the Sakya Monastery constructed in Dehra Dun 11 References Edit TBRC sa skya dgon pa TBRC G880 New York TBRC 2011 http tbrc org link RID G880 a b c d e 萨迦寺 Tibet Online Dowman Keith The Power Places of Central Tibet The Pilgrim s Guide Routledge amp Kegan Paul 1988 pp 275 276 ISBN 0 7102 1370 0 pbk Buckley Michael and Strauss Robert Tibet A Travel Survival Kit Lonely Planet Publications 1986 pp 170 174 ISBN 0 908086 88 1 Norbu Thubten Jigme and Turnbull Colin Tibet Its History Religion and People Chatto amp Windus 1969 Penguin Books reprint 1987 p 193 Norbu Dawa 1999 Tibet The Road Ahead London Random House pp 225 ISBN 978 0 7126 7063 0 OCLC 728663181 Das Sarat Chandra Lhasa and Central Tibet 1902 pp 241 242 Reprint Mehra Offset Press Delhi 1988 Ancient Lections of Tibetan Buddhism to Be Sorted out China Through A Lens China Internet Information Center Retrieved 22 July 2021 西藏萨迦寺完成20 古籍数字化逐叶扫描 China News Service 28 February 2022 Retrieved 18 May 2022 Claim of 10 000 year old Tibet library find not worth paper it s written on Australian Associated Press Retrieved 6 October 2023 Brief history of the Sakya Lineage and Order Archived 18 April 2008 at the Wayback MachineExternal links Edit nbsp Media related to Sakya Monastery at Wikimedia Commons Berzin Alexander September 1991 A Brief History of Sakya Monastery Study Buddhism Original version published in Sakya Monasteries Cho Yang Year of Tibet Edition Dharamsala India 1991 Retrieved 6 June 2016 Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Sakya Monastery amp oldid 1178871950, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
