Shulmo Monastery
Shulmo Monastery aka Shulmo Gön Püntsok Dargyé Ling (Tib. ཤུལ་མོ་དགོན་ཕུན་ཚོགས་དར་རྒྱས་གླིང་གི་ལོ་རྒྱུས།, Wyl. shul mo dgon phun tshogs dar rgyas gling) is a Karma Kagyü monastery in northern Powo, Tibet.
Location
Shulmo Püntsok Dargyé Ling is located in northern (Upper) Powo at the uppermost part of the Potö Chu river, just above Yuri Monastery. Further south, the Potö Chu flows into the Parlung Tsangpo at the town of Kanam.[1]
Origins
Shulmo Monastery was founded by the Ninth Karmapa, Wangchuk Dorje (1556–1601/3).[2]
Description
The central temple housed a statue of Buddha Shakyamuni, as well as relics, clothes and statues of the Kagyü forefathers, Marpa and Milarepa, and later lineage holders. The library contained many texts of Kagyü and Kadampa traditions.[3]
Developments
For a time, Shulmo Monastery became home of the Tenth Karmapa, Chöying Dorje (1604–1674), who had been driven out of Tsurphu Monastery by the government of Central Tibet. Later, the Tenth Karmapa returned to Central Tibet. Some decades later, Shulmo Monastery was offered to Situ Panchen Chökyi Jungné (1700-1774). Thus, Shulmo Monastery became part of Palpung Monastery, the stronghold of the Karma Kagyü in Eastern Tibet. Because of this, Situ Panchen Chökyi Jungné became the one to appoint the regents and throne holders of Pulung Rinchen Ling and Shulmo Monastery, in Powo. Also, a close relation to Yuri Monastery was kept.[4]
In the late nineteenth century and early twentieth century, tensions between Shulmo Monastery and Trepo Sönam Yangchen (Wyl.spras po bsod nams dbyangs chen), the Twenty-Fourth Kanam Depa, arose, likely due to Trepo Sönam Yangchen’s affiliation with the Geluk order that was, at that time, suppressing the Karmapa’s activity. Those tensions resulted in Trepo Sönam Yangchen, Twenty-Fourth Kanam Depa, being killed by a representative of Shulmo. The dispute was eventually settled by troops from the Central Tibetan government and by the Qing emperor of China forcing Shulmo to recompensate in blood money.[5][6]
Earlier, the monastic body of Shulmo Monastery comprised 136 monks. At the present time, it consists of 19 monks.
Main Practices
Among the main practices held at Shulmo Monastery were Mahamudra, Six Yogas of Naropa, Chakrasamvara, Vajravarahi, following the tradition of the Karma Kagyü.
Main Teachers
The main teachers of Shulmo Monastery are the Karmapa and the Shamarpa.
Notes
- ↑ Emeric Yeshe Dorje, The History of the Düdjom Tersar, forthcoming.
- ↑ Phurbu rdo rje (1988), sPo bo lo rgyus, [History of Powo], Lhasa: Bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang.
- ↑ Phurbu rdo rje (1988), sPo bo lo rgyus, [History of Powo], Lhasa: Bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang.
- ↑ Phurbu rdo rje (1988), sPo bo lo rgyus, [History of Powo], Lhasa: Bod ljongs mi dmangs dpe skrun khang.
- ↑ Schwieger, Peter (2002): A Preliminary Historical Outline of the Royal Dynasty of sPo-bo, in: Tractata Tibetica et Mongolica. Festschrift für Klaus Sagaster zum 65. Geburtstag. Wiesbaden, pp. 224-225.
- ↑ Emeric Yeshe Dorje, The History of the Düdjom Tersar, forthcoming.
