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Kandze Monastery (or Garze monastery), also known as Garze Shadrub Norbuling, meaning “Pure, Beautiful, Auspicious Land,” belongs to the Gelug Pa of Tibetan Buddhism and is home to over 400 monks, which makes it the largest Tibetan Buddhist Temple in Garze County.

Brief

Built in the first year of Emperor Kangxi of Qing Dynasty (1662 AD). It was founded by Dalai Lama V’s disciple with a history of nearly five hundred years.

Location and size

Kandze Monastery is situated on hillside in the northern part of Garze County. It is a typical Tibetan and Chinese Han architectural style. The whole building faces south with construction area of 197,000 square meters and covering an area of 285,000 square meters overlooking Garze County.

There were about 3,300 monks and lamas in Kandze Monastery in 1957. It has 13 sub-monasteries; and had several commerce business in Lhasa, Chengdu, India.In 1958, most of the monks and lamas resumed secular life. The monastery was demolished during the Cultural Revolution in 1967.Then after being rebuilt in 1980. It was approved for opening in 1981 and being restored its original appearance.

Buildings

The main buildings of the monastery include a large hall, ten small scripture halls, and a Maitreya Hall, all evenly distributed and meticulously structured. The halls are adorned with magnificent decorations, colorful murals, and lifelike sculptures. Beneath the monks’ quarters, there are densely packed residential buildings surrounding the monastery.

The large hall is a wooden structure with four floors, housing the main scripture hall on the first floor, the guardian deity hall on the second floor, the Jampa Buddha hall on the third floor, and the “Jowo Rinpoche” brought from India on the fourth floor. The top of the large hall features an official-style square pavilion with flying eaves at each corner, covered with glazed tiles, copper vases, and copper dharma wheels, shimmering in the sunlight with extraordinary magnificence.

Numerous monk residences have been orderly constructed around the monastery, giving the entire complex a well-organized, distinct, and majestic layout with a unique ethnic style.

In the guardian deity hall, a large number of Tibetan knives and old-fashioned firearms can be seen. It is said that these were offered by the local Tibetans to the monastery as a sign of their commitment to abstain from killing.

Inheritance

Garze Monastery is currently led by the 3^rd reincarnation of the Shanggen Living Buddha. The lineage of the Shanggen Living Buddha began in 1846 and has been passed down to the present third reincarnation. The first reincarnation was one of the three candidate reincarnations of the 11^th Dalai Lama. After the 11^th Dalai Lama selected one of the candidates through a traditional method involving a “Serbum Krugpa”, the chosen reincarnation became the 1^st Shanggen Living Buddha, named “Lorong Tsonchen” with the dharma name “Losang Kechu.” The lineage of the Shanggen Living Buddha is closely related to the “Konjo Tusi” family of Garze.

Education

Currently, there are more than 600 monks at Garze Monastery, including 80 young monks studying at the monastery school. The monastery has assigned knowledgeable teachers to teach them.

Tibetan Buddhist monastery train monks through debate. Young monks at the school need to participate in debates to gain access to higher levels of learning. Monks at the monastery gradually accumulate their respective degrees through study.

Exam results are publicly posted on the morning of the 15^th day of the 1^st lunar month. The monastery encourages outstanding monks in front of the entire monastery and the faithful, using this to motivate everyone to study hard. The monastery has a lama specifically in charge of educational affairs to supervise the study life of the monks and to urge temple teachers to fulfill their duties.

Legend and History

According to legend, over 500 years ago, the leader of the Hor tribe, his eldest son Gele Longrong Puntso was a monk (Dragba), studied in Lhasa for more than 10 years. After returning to Garze, he built a monastery by the hot-spring, named Dragen monastery (also known as “Xu-ri monastery”). In the 7^th generation, when Hor Mashu Tusi-Langka Jiangze sent his brother Gaji Langka Ore to study Buddhist scriptures at Drepuung monastery in Tibet for more than 10 years, he returned to Dragen monastery for many years of practice. Due to frequent disasters, the monastery was not prosperous. Later, a wandering monk came and predicted, “If Dragen monastery can be relocated to a mountainside with many white stones, it will prosper.”

Following this prophecy, Gaji Langka Ore relocated the monastery and in 1657 AD, in the current location of Garze monastery, a sky burial site was moved to a high hill in order to build this monastery, renaming it “Garze monastery.”

In 1655 AD, Ngawang Losang Gyatso sent his disciple Hor Chokyi Ngangwon Pengtso to the Hor area of Kham to build Gelugpa monastery

After arriving in the Hor area, in 1662 AD, the original Garze monastery was first expanded, making it the first of the 13 monasteries built in the Hor area (commonly known as the “mother monastery”).

After the completion, Hor Chokyi Ngaweng Pungtso became the head lama of the monastery, and he named it “Garze Shadrub Norbuling “.

During the Cultural Revolution in the 1960s, the monastery suffered severe damage. In 1957, Garze monastery had 3,300 monks and lamas, with 13 subordinate monastery, and operated multiple businesses in India, Lhasa, Chengdu, and locally.

In 1958, most of the monks and lamas returned to secular life.

During the “Cultural Revolution” in 1967, the monastery was demolished.

The monastery was rebuilt around 1980. There are now over four hundred monks in the temple.

In 1981, it was approved to be reopened, and the temple has now been restored to its original appearance.

Religious Activities

Ceremony to Welcome the Maitreya Buddha

Every year in the 1^st month of the Tibetan calendar, Garze Monastery holds a large prayer ceremony. During the ceremony, the monastery donates 21% of the offerings received to the local Kongsa Tusi. In return, the Kongsa Tusi distributes large round cakes (weighing about 1 kilogram) to all the monks and lamas of the monastery on the 28^th day of the 12^th month of the Tibetan calendar as a New Year’s gift.

On the 16^th day of the 1^st month of the Tibetan calendar, Garze Monastery holds a ceremony to welcome the Maitreya Buddha. This is the day with the highest number of participants in the monastery’s ceremonies.

Maitreya Buddha, transliterated from Tibetan, is the title of the future Buddha in Buddhism’s “Three Jewels.” The annual welcoming of the future Buddha on the 16^th day of the Tibetan calendar signifies the continuation and prosperity of Buddhism, allowing the faithful to witness the arrival of the era of the future Buddha.

Before 7 o’clock in the morning, before the sun rises, the faithful leave their homes and gather at the locations where the Maitreya Buddha will pass. Here, people hold white khata scarves as they respectfully welcome the Maitreya Buddha and the auspicious “Three Jewels” of Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.

The road around the monastery used to be very narrow, without any lanes for vehicles. People used to carry the Maitreya Buddha around the mountain using their hands and shoulders. Despite the crowded conditions and the narrow mountain paths, the Maitreya Buddha was always carried steadfastly on people’s shoulders. Normally, it takes an hour to walk around the mountain path surrounding Garze Monastery. Carrying the Maitreya Buddha around the mountain takes a full five hours, in addition to the preparatory and cleansing rituals upon returning to the monastery. The ceremonies last from 6am in the morning until past 13pm in the afternoon. Now, with improved conditions at the monastery, a road has been opened on the back mountain, and the Maitreya Buddha is now “driven” around the mountain. The faithful no longer need to carry the Maitreya Buddha on their shoulders with such care.

During the procession to welcome the Maitreya Buddha, the monks hold prayer ceremonies at several fixed locations. The monks of Garze Monastery organize the ceremonies, and the faithful attend as observers. Every year, there is a dedicated person at Garze Monastery responsible for the ceremony to welcome the Maitreya Buddha, including the process, important details during the ceremony, and feedback after the ceremony.

The Iron Rod Lama is a monk who maintains order during the ceremony, symbolizing the authority of the monastery. The iron rod he holds is a symbol of the monastery’s discipline. When the Iron Rod Lama appears during the ceremony, both the monks and the faithful are struck by his solemn and dignified presence.

The day before the welcoming of the Maitreya Buddha, on the 15^th day of the 1^st month of the Tibetan calendar, the monastery holds a grand ceremony for offering butter flowers. As night falls, the faithful gather at the monastery to participate in the annual butter flower offering ceremony.

Tsongkhapa, a religious reformer in Tibetan Buddhism, is the lineage master of the Gelug sect to which Garze Monastery belongs. Every Tibetan New Year, Garze Monastery holds various religious ceremonies following the tradition of the Gelug sect. The monks of the monastery make various Buddha statues and flowers out of ghee, among which the three masters and disciples of Tsongkhapa are the ghee offerings that must be made every year. The three of them are surrounded by exquisite butter flowers, which is extremely solemn.

Gu-Duo Monk Dance Puja, the mysterious repelling evil Puja

The main purpose of this ancient Gu-Duo Puja is to banish the bad luck in the past year, and turn evil into righteousness. Pray for No disease, No disaster on people and livestocks in the coming year, and the weather is good, and Rich harvest

Gu-Duo Monk Dance generally lasts two days on 28th and 29th days of December of Tibetan Calendar. On the first day of this festival, there will be 8 programs (dances). On the 2nd day, the programs are to throw exorcism objects, and to throw “Sui Wu” (“Sui” refers to the disaster caused by evil, “Wu” means object; “Sui Wu” means a object that brings bad luck caused by evil )

As early as a month before this festival, the monks will take a certain amount of time to practise the Holy Mask dance while doing daily religiou work, Under the guidance of the head coach of the monastery, every monk whom wear the mask and dance shall undertsand how to play the gesture operation,dance steps,the purpose of the weapon and secret spell. The festival begins around 9:00 in the morning,

The monks of the whole temple sit in rows , facing south, and the front row is the guardian of honor. The local Tibetan and visitors are allowed to sit at in the east, south, west

When the dance monks appeare, the local people take off their hats with enthusiasm, fold their hands together and prayed silently. In the sound of the music, the monks hold the sword and the religious appliance, dancing while walking side by side and entering the venue slowly

“Doma” is an item that is made of Tsampa with form similar to a child with age of 3 or 4 ; and there is red pigment in its abdomen; After being cut it is like bloodshed. “Doma” is one of the “Sui Wu”.

When the monks enter the venue, they will sourround the “Doma” to do all kinds of rituals; and then having the “Doma” stabbed by the 5 Guardian of God from 5 directions of East, West, South, North and Middle

Around 12:00 at noon, the Puja will end. In the sound of Religious music, the abbot sways the bell by hand,the monks sing the secret scriptures. Monks and local Tibetan take “Doma” and other “Sui Wu” together to the gulley where people cannot see the monastery when they look back, and burned it with fire. At this point, the annual ancient Gu-Duo Monk Dance Puja will be completed.

How to get to there

Kandze Monastery is located at the hill north of Garze County. It is about less than 2 kilometers walk from the center of the town;

You can either walk up to this monastery from center of this town, or to take a car reaching at this monastery within 3 minutes

Litang Chode is also known as Litang Chode Ganden Tubchen Chokhorling, in Chinese Pin-Yin “Chang Qing Chun Ke Er Si” . It is located on the slope of Moraca Mountain in the north of Litang County.

Brief

Originally, it was a Black-Sect (Bon) Monastery. During the Wan-Li Period of Ming Dynasty (1580 AD), the third Dalai Lama – Suo-Nan Gyatso changed it to the Yellow-Sect (Gelug Pa) monastery and had it Consecrated. It is the oldest and largest Yellow-Sect (Gelug Pa) monastery in the east Tibet of Kham.

Meaning of monastery

“Chang Qing Chun Ke Er” is indeed the pronunciation of Tibetan language, the first two words “Chang Qing” means Maitreya Buddha (the future Buddha); the “Chun Ke Er ” means the Dharma Chakra that is always turning, and with fine truth forever.

Building, relics, and tradition

Litang Chode is built on the mountain covering an area of more than 500 acres with more than 4,300 monks. Among of whom, about 800 are the permanent residents.

The main hall is located at the highest point in the center of the temple. Since the end of 20^th Century, this monastery has been rebuilt and maintained under the support of local authority, the temple has restored Maitreya Hall, Asemblly Hall, Thousand Buddha Hall, Xianggen Dormitory, Jinding Red Palace; One 19-meter-high Maitreya Buddha and the Three Thousand Buddha Halls were donated by the locals.

There are unique Buddhist murals on the girders in the temple. The Golden Dome Palace features the spiritual towers of the 1^st and 2^nd Xiang-Gen Rinpoche. The gilded tower is engraved with various patterns and is also inlaid with Red turquoise, Dzi Bead, Agate, coral, amber and other treasures. There are also the footprints of the 3^rd and 5^thDalai Lama in the temple. If lucky, the ancient Buddhist scriptures of “Ganggyur” & “Dangyur” can be viewed.