“clericalization” of retreat practice
VI. The religious lineages, secular history and sacred geography of sKyo brag geography of sKyo brag
VI.1. The kingdom of Nang chen and its hermitic rulers
Briefly introduced by a few travelers’ reports and acutely underrepresented in academic writing, the territory of the historical kingdom of Nang chen (Nang chen rgyal khab) was composed of a wide pastoral area stretching around the rDza chu (Chin. Mekong) and Dri chu currents (Chin. Yangtse).392 Its existence is dated between 1230– and 1950; the dominion of sDe dge, mentioned as culturally prominent in northern Khams and vital for the emergence of the Ris med movement, was located to the east of the Nang chen sovereignty.
In the beginning of the 14th century, a clan called ’Bru seized the throne of Nang chen and their sons remained in power as rgyal po until the Chinese communist invasion in 1950.
However, before the era of the rgyal po, Nang chen was governed by a succession of ascetics, whose proficiency in the gtum mo practice earned them the designation of ras pa, and who at the same time, were principal holders of the ’Ba’ rom school. In the case study sections, I will argue that the specific heritage of shamanic power gained through retreat and combined with worldly authority expressed at sKyo brag, the former power center of Nang chen, is reenacted
391 chos rje ’ba’ rom pa yab sras sku dus su/ ras tshang sgom sde zhes pa’i mtshan ’dogs par gyur/ ras tshang sgom sde zhes pa’i rgyu mtshan/ ras pa bla slob rim byon gyis sku ring la/ pha bka’ brgyud bla ma’i rnam thar bskyongs nas dbyar dgun med par ras rkyang mdzad/ tshang zhes pa bla slob tshogs pa la zhe sa’i tshig dang/
sgom sde zhes pa/ pho thams cad sgom pho/ mo thams cad sgom mo nyams rtogs yon tan gyi bdag po yin pas ras tshang sgom sde zhes byas so/ (’Jam dbyangs, et al. 1995-1997, 2: 2-3). Also see Tulku Urgyen, et al. 2005: 13 and 373 n. 16. The designation is further elaborated on in ’Brong pa rgyal po 2003: 81-82. Compare the fragment cited above with Tshangs gsar (2005: 237-238) for his version on how Nang chen became famous as
“family of the cotton-clad ones, land of meditators;” he claims it was due to the widespread activity of the ’Ba’
rom pa school. For the ras tshang sgom sde phrase compare also ’Jam dbyangs, et al. (1995-1997, 1: 51-52).
This last source reports how the emergence of Nang chen as an organized polity was supported by the ’Ba’ rom bKa’ brgyud hierarchy, which developed its many branches there.
392 Gruschke 2004: 33, 103 and Marshall & Cooke 1997: 1590-1591, 2397. For a fragmentary map of historical Nang chen see Karma phrin las (1965: 80) and compare with Gruschke’s map (2004: 2), which actually shows today’s Nang chen county of Yushu TAP and as such is much smaller than the original kingdom.
today in order to pose the revivalists’ own adaptation of the local past in opposition to the official history writing in the PRC.393
One of the earliest ’Ba’ rom bKa brgyud pa monasteries in Nang chen by the name of sKu
’bum, lead by the master-yogin Ras pa dkar po (1198-1262) was described as the first institution in the region, which came to unite religious and political power as Ras pa dkar po, and Godan Khan formed a mchod yon relationship as early as in 1239.394 The Mongols introduced an administrative structure which secured their authority over the land; it was most probably in this period, along with the advent of Mongol executive titles, that Nang chen became divided into twenty-five pastoral tribes (dpon khag nyi shu tsa lnga) and eighteen monastic districts (ri khag bco brgyad).395
Nowadays, the districts are still discernible in the landscape of the former nomadic kingdom, since most of its monasteries and hermitages were rebuilt after 1980. The historical districts, each headed by a major monastery, are all said to have originally belonged to the
’Ba’ rom bKa’ brgyud school, perhaps owing it to the early ’Ba’ rom supremacy in that region.396 Thus, Nang chen grew to be a bKa’ brgyud stronghold, and the ’Ba’ rom school, which was to undergo a substantial decline in later times, became the leading force of the realm in the initial stage of its existence. Indeed, the rise, descent and successive revivals of the ’Ba’ rom bKa’ brgyud school have been inextricably bound with the secular history of the Nang chen area, especially in the eighth monastic district of sKyo brag centered around its major monastery. In the case study chapters I will present the contemporary attempts to resurrect that power.
A further consolidation of religious and mundane dominance of the ’Ba’ rom school in Nang chen occurred during the reign of gSang ba Lus med rdo rje (1227-1292), the principal
’Ba’ rom heir and disciple of Ras pa dkar po. 397 After the latter’s demise, ’Gro mgon Chos rgyal ’Phags pa (1235–1280) sanctioned Lus med rdo rje to exert absolute power over
393 For the politicization of Chinese historiography especially in relation to Tibetan areas, see Schwieger 2007:
81-82.
394 ’Brong pa rgyal po 2003: 321, Tshangs gsar 2005: 235, 246; Karma phrin las 1965: 35, ’Jam dbyangs, et al.
1995-1997, 2: 50.
395 Tulku Urgyen, et al. 2005: 20-21, Gruschke 2004: 105-108, ’Jam dbyangs, et al. 1995-1997, 2: 79-87; Yudru Tsomu 2006: 37.
396 ’Jam dbyangs, et al. (1995-1997, 2: 88-105) lists the eighteen districts as follows: 1. Nyin dgon pa; 2. rGod tshang pa; 3. Be’u ri pa; 4. dGon gsar; 5. rNa rong pa; 6. sTon nag pa; 7. Zab pa; 8. sKyo brag pa; 9. Shor phu pa; 10. Phug pa ba; 11. Ro lo ba; 12. Shar pa; 13. rGe’u sna ba; 14. So brag pa; 15. Kho phug pa; 16. Ri pha; 17.
Deng thog pa; 18. rDza ri pa. Compare Tulku Urgyen, et al. 2005: 21.
397 Birth date after Matthieu Ricard: 1226. See “Chronology of Buddhism by Matthieu Ricard,” at http://rywiki.tsadra.org/index.php/Chronology_of_Buddhism_by_Matthieu_Ricard (accessed 23.08.2010).
central Nang chen.398 Since Lus med rdo rje originated from a locally prominent Tshangs gsar clan, the Tshangs gsar house came to unite both religious and worldly power – as ’Ba’ rom pa lineage holders and concurrently, temporal rulers.399
The subsequent ’Ba’ rom pa ruler in this family lineage was Byang chub gzhon nu (1254-1323), nephew to Lus med rDor je. The story of succession of this renunciate hermit is shrouded in legend; it is even said that Byang chub gzhon nu was in solitary meditation retreat, when envoys came to solicit him to seize the Nang chen throne.
The ’Ba’ rom school had become subject to fragmentation already during the reign of Byang chub’s guru and predecessor, Lus med rdo rje.400 Later, during Byang chub gzhon nu’s reign, also the political unity in the Nang chen kingdom showed initial signs of a breakdown.
Due to the pressure on the side of a Sa skya-connected power fraction, Byang chub gzhon nu lost control of the monastic-political capital of Nang so chen mo, won to the aristocratic ’Bru Tre bo house instead. Thus in 1300, the ’Bru Tre bo prince, the monk Chos kyi rgyal mtshan was installed on the Nang so chen mo throne.401
As a result, twenty-four years later, the kingdom was divided into two territories of equal status according to the Sa skya-Mongol legal system.402 The Tshangs gsar clan was left to rule over a fraction of the territory including several monastic complexes. Their sway over upper-central Nang chen gradually subsided and so did their complete independence from the Nang chen rgyal po.403 The position the Tshangs gsar house had in the preservation of the practices of the ’Ba’rom bKa’ brgyud was taken over by the monastic-hermitic center of sKyo brag.404 In 1731, Nang chen was placed under the nominal administration of the Qing amban governing from Zi ling (Chin. Xining), but the rgyal po remained directly responsible for the political and to some extent also religious affairs in his realm.405 According to later reports, the Nang chen king possessed a varying degree of influence over the thirty-three “inner” tribes (nang sde) and the eighteen monastic districts. Since his rights were in fact nominal, Nang
398 ’Jam dbyangs, et al. (1995-1997, 2: 164) accounts for Phags pa’s visit to the ’Ba’ rom monastery of sKu ’bum in 1274. Compare Gruschke 2004: 29, 116. Also see ’Brong pa rgyal po 2003: 321-2; Tulku Urgyen, et al. 2005:
19-20, and Tshangs gsar 2005: 227-228.
399 Tulku Urgyen, et al. 2005: 17-21, ’Brong pa rgyal po 2003: 321-322; Gruschke 2004: 29, 110.
400 See below in the section on the ’Ba’ rom history.
401 Tshangs gsar 2005: 262, ’Jam dbyangs, et al. 1995-1997, 2: 63. Compare Sperling 2003: 10.
402 Tshangs gsar 2005: 233-234. Compare Tulku Urgyen, et al. 2005: 19-20; ’Jam dbyangs, et al. 1995-1997,2:
49,166; sGa Karma don grub, et al. 1999: 332.
403 Tshangs gsar 2005: 256; Tulku Urgyen, et al. 2005: 20-21.
404 See below in section VI.2.
405 See Tuttle (n.d.), “A Guide to the Use of Chinese Gazetteers for Amdo [Qinghai, Gansu, Sichuan],” at http://
http://www.columbia.edu/cu/lweb/img/assets/10223/finalgazetterguide2009.doc (accessed 06.02.2011). Also see Gruschke 2004: 105-108.
chen was effectively more of a formal kingdom than an actual monarchy.406 The four, and later seven ministers (be hu or be’u selected out of a larger number of officials designated by the same title) directed military and administrative units characterized by varying levels of independence from the ruler.407 For the absence of political force that could override this complex network of local power as well as the lack of an economic superstructure, Nang chen was more of a federation of tribes assembled under the royal banner, rather than a more structured polity in the style of the neighboring sDe dge.408 The reasons for which the be hu associated with the Nang chen king were borne more out of a sentiment for him as “a moral and social institution,” rather than out of a recognition of his political leadership.409
Given its de-centralization and the concentration of the sgrub brgyud, Nang chen was a typically shamanic environment, which encouraged the development of hermitages that gave rise to many famous hermits. As I mentioned above, oral lore even eulogizes an ardent interest in meditation retreats expressed by some of the rulers.410
When religious and temporal rule was united under the early ’Ba’ rom pa masters, some Nang chen monasteries maintained the status of quasi-independent territories (dpon tshang khag/dgon khag gsum) until the advent of the communist Chinese. They were Lab dgon (dGe lugs pa), sKyo brag (‘Ba’ rom pa), rTa rna (Yel pa bKa’ brgyud) and Zur mang (sub-school of the Karma pa).411 These selected monasteries were placed in the high be hu rank, received their own territories along with many serfs and enjoyed great privileges.412 This proves that in spite of the separation of the religious and temporal spheres in the 14th century, the political scene in Nang chen maintained many hierocratic traits until the middle of the 20th century.
Especially the example of sKyo brag will be brought up in a section below, since the traditional practice of centralizing power within this monastic and hermitic center has had profound consequences on the revival of Buddhist activity in this region today.
In 1915, Nang chen fell under the control of the Chinese warlord Ma Pufang (1903–
1975), who became the same sort of a nominal governor as the ambans, likewise ruling from the distant Zi ling. However, this did not alter the socio-political status quo in Nang chen,
406 Yudru Tsomu 2006: 37.
407 Sperling 2003: 12.
408 Tsomu 2006: 37; Gruschke 2004: 105-108.
409 Gruschke 2004: 107.
410 Tulku Urgyen, et al. 2005: 227. The Nang chen rgyal rabs extols the religious feats of the kings to such an extent, that at times it is reminiscent of a rnam thar more than historiography; see Karma phrin las 1965.
411 Tshangs gsar 2005: 276-277; ’Jam dbyangs, et al. 1995-1997, 2: 85.
412 Gruschke 2004: 31.
with the king presiding over the be hu system and the four semi-independent monastic estates.
In fact, Ma Pufang only expressed real interest in controlling the commercially important town of sKye dgu mdo (which, for its historical position in Sino-Tibetan trade is largely known by its Chinese name Yushu) as he set up his administration in the town. Unlike other Chinese warlords in Khams, Ma expressed no intention to interfere with the local political scene or to re-arrange the traditional social structures in Nang chen.413
During the reign of the last Nang chen monarch, the communist forces of Mao Zedong defeated Ma Pufang, conquered Xining and spread further south, overtaking sKye dgu mdo in June 1950.414 After October 5th, Nang chen became the corridor for the transition of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to Ri bo che and consequently, to Chab mdo.415 The transfer of power from local rulers to the Chinese communists was a process that began with the incorporation of old power structures into the superstructure of the new People’s Republic of China. Thus, 1951 saw the establishment of the “Tibetan People’s Autonomous Prefecture of Yushu or Upper Khams” (Khams stod dam yu shul bod rigs sa khongs rang skyong) with the former king bKra shis tshe dbangs stobs rgyal as its head.416
In 1956-58, the unavoidable reforms of collectivization swept across Khams. In Nang chen, a largely pastoral area, they were especially difficult to accept, since they required a fundamental change in lifestyle, as all nomadic herdsmen were forced to settle “in order to facilitate socialist transformation and socialist collectivization.”417 As a result, also the old be hu system was finally eliminated. Public dissention at the devastation of local economy, the socio-political structure and traditional ways of living erupted in an extensive revolt, which occurred between spring and winter that year, involving some 2.000-3.000 Tibetans across Khams. In the effort to bring the revolt under control, the PLA destroyed several monasteries in old Nang chen, executed some of their reincarnate lamas and finally closed down all religious institutions in the Yushu TAP until late 1970s.418
Today, modern maps of the gigantic, multi-ethnic Chinese state delineate a kingdom once ruled by master hermits, lamas and powerful clansmen, fostered by emperors and kings. As a memento of the former glory of Nang chen and perhaps also its travesty, new maps of the
413 Tulku Urgyen, et al. 2005: 226, Gruschke 2004: 17, 31-32, Marshall & Cooke 1997: 1593, 2375 and D.P.
Jackson 2003: 523.
414 Marshall & Cooke 1997: 1593, Gruschke 2004: 33.
415 Marshall & Cooke 1997: 682.
416 ’Jam dbyangs, et al. 1995-1997, 2: 211, Gruschke 2004: 33.
417 W.W. Smith 1994: 65.
418 Gruschke 2004: 33-4, Marshall & Cooke 1997: 2400, 2404; ’Jam dbyangs, et al. 1995-1997, 2: 213 and Yan Chia-ming 2006: 9.
PRC indicate a mere fraction of this historical territory by the same name. However, the modern meaning of the expression “Nang chen” pertains to nothing more but an impoverished and remote county of Nangqen, located in the Yushu Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture, in the southwest of the Qinghai province, People’s Republic of China.419