Material: Fabric. Print. Scroll. (Tsongkhapa)

Size: Approx. 124 x 84 cm

Description:

Tsongkhapa (Tibetan: Tsongkhapa, Losang Drakpa, 1357–1419) is one of the most important figures in the history of Tibetan Buddhism, revered as **Master Tsongkhapa** or **Je Rinpoche** (Precious Dharma King). Many Tibetan Buddhists consider him an incarnation of **Manjushri**. He was born in Huangzhong (Tibetan: "Tsongkha") in Qinghai Province, hence the name "Tsongkhapa".

Biography

- **Birth and Childhood** (1357): Born in Tsongkha, Amdo (present-day Kumbum Monastery in Huangzhong County, Qinghai Province). His father was a local official (Darughachi) of the Yuan Dynasty, and his mother was also a devout Buddhist. His birth was accompanied by many auspicious signs (such as a sandalwood tree growing from the umbilical cord and Buddha images appearing on its leaves).

At the age of 3, he received lay vows from the Fourth Karmapa, Rinpoche.

At 7, he was ordained as a novice monk at Shachung Monastery by Idondrup Rinchen, receiving the Dharma name Losang Drakpa (also known as Shanhui). He received empowerments in various tantric practices, including Chakrasamvara, Vajra, Kalachakra, and Yamantaka, from several masters.

**Study Period** (from age 16, approximately after 1373): At 16, he left Qinghai for Ü-Tsang (present-day Tibet) to seek Dharma teachings, visiting masters of the Sakya, Kagyu, Shalu, Jonang, and Kadampa schools, systematically studying both exoteric and esoteric teachings.

He benefited most greatly from the teachings of Rinchen Rinpoche of the Sakya school, extensively studying the Fifteen Great Treatises, including logic, Prajnaparamita, Madhyamaka, Abhidharma, and Vinaya.

At 29, he received full ordination (Bhikkhu vows), and at 30, he completed the full ordination ceremony. He placed great importance on discipline and maintained strict adherence to precepts throughout his life (even minor precepts such as filtering water and not eating at inappropriate times were strictly observed).

- **Maturity and Propagation Period** (around age 40): Deepened spiritual practice, completed rigorous preliminary practices such as the Six Million Prostrations, personally realized emptiness, and had multiple direct visions of deities such as Manjushri and Yamantaka, and was able to directly request teachings to resolve doubts.

Major Works:

- 1402–1403: Completed *The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment* (a general outline of exoteric Buddhism, based on Atisha's *Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment*, systematically expounding the three paths: the path of the lower, middle, and higher beings).

- 1406: Completed *The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path of Secret Mantra* (a general outline of esoteric Buddhism).

These two treatises became the core teachings of the Gelug school, exerting a profound influence.

- **Religious Reform and Founding of the School** (from 1409 onwards):

In 1409 (the seventh year of the Yongle reign of the Ming Dynasty), initiated the unprecedented Great Prayer Festival (the Great Prayer Festival) in Lhasa, with over ten thousand monks participating, receiving support from the Phagmodrupa regime.

In the same year, he founded Ganden Monastery (the ancestral monastery of the Gelug school) at Wanggur Mountain northeast of Lhasa, formally establishing the Gelug school (meaning "the school of virtuous rules").

Monks wear yellow hats (symbolizing strict adherence to monastic discipline, originating from the early tradition of upholding monastic rules), hence it is also commonly known as the Yellow Hat School.

His disciples later founded Drepung Monastery and Sera Monastery, collectively known as the "Three Great Monasteries," laying the foundation for the Gelug school.

- **Passed away** (1419): He passed away at Ganden Monastery on the 25th day of the tenth month of the Tibetan calendar, at the age of 63. He passed the throne to his chief disciple, Gyaltsab Je (one of the three great disciples: Tsongkhapa, Gyaltsab Je, and Khedrup Je).

Among his later disciples, Gendun Drup became the first Dalai Lama, and Khedrup Je was posthumously recognized as the first Panchen Lama.

Impact on Tibetan Buddhism: Tsongkhapa's greatest contributions lie in his **religious reforms** and **the synthesis of Buddhist teachings**, exerting a profound and lasting influence on Tibetan Buddhism:

1. **Revitalizing Discipline**: At the time, Tibetan Buddhism (especially after the later propagation period) suffered from problems such as lax discipline, indiscriminate transmission of esoteric teachings, and a disconnect between exoteric and esoteric practices. Tsongkhapa strongly advocated "discipline as the foundation," emphasizing renunciation, bodhicitta, the view of emptiness, and strict adherence to precepts, placing discipline back at the core of Buddhism and reversing this decline.

2. **A Complete Path to Enlightenment Integrating Exoteric and Esoteric Teachings**: He integrated the exoteric path of the Kadampa school (the *Lamrim Chenmo*) with various esoteric schools (Sakya, Kagyu, Kalachakra, etc.), creating a complete system of practice from preliminary practices → exoteric teachings → esoteric teachings, avoiding the bias of focusing solely on esoteric or exoteric teachings. This system became the most systematic and widely accepted framework for later study and practice.

3. **Establishment of the Madhyamaka Prasangika View:** On the view of emptiness, he advocated the Madhyamaka view of the Chandrakirti Prasangika school (dependent origination is emptiness, and emptiness does not hinder dependent origination), and used rigorous logic to refute the misunderstandings of other Madhyamaka schools, bringing Tibetan Madhyamaka philosophy to its peak.

4. **The Gelug School Becomes the Mainstream of Tibetan Buddhism:** Later, with the support of the Khoshut Mongols and the Qing Dynasty, the Gelug school became the de facto ruling sect in Tibet (after the Fifth Dalai Lama established the Ganden Phodrang government in 1642). It remains the sect with the most followers, monasteries, and widespread influence in Tibetan Buddhism. The Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama lineages both originate from the Tsongkhapa tradition.

5. **Cultural and Social Impact:** The Lhasa Great Prayer Festival, which he promoted, continues to this day; his teachings spread to Mongolia, Manchuria, and Han areas, promoting cultural exchange between Han and Tibetan, and between Mongolia and Tibetan; Kumbum Monastery and Ganden Monastery became important holy sites.

In short, Tsongkhapa did not create entirely new doctrines, but rather, like a surgeon, "reorganized" Tibetan Buddhism, achieving a comprehensive and balanced integration of exoteric and esoteric teachings, discipline, concentration, wisdom, and study, thus ushering in a more rigorous, systematic, and enduring phase for Tibetan Buddhism. His influence remains one of the core pillars of Tibetan Buddhism to this day.