Ganden Namgyal Ling Monastery, the actual name for the Ganden Monastery was founded by Tsongkapa (the scholar from Amdo Tsongka and founder of the Yellow Hat sect in Tibetan Buddhism) that covers 11,000 square meters.

The monastery is situated 45 kilometers away from Lhasa city and locates on Wangkur Mountain with an altitude of 3900 meters above sea level. The snow-capped mountains around the monastery are breath-takers with amazing views of tide mountains and valleys straight down the monastery, one lengthy path leads to circulating the monastery from outside with beautiful views and sceneries which Tibetans called Lingkor.

History of Ganden Monastery

According to the local legends, Ganden monastery is the initial Yellow Hat monastery that was built by Tsongkapa (a scholar from Qinghai province from a small village called Tsongka) on Mount Wangkur in the year 1409 at an altitude of 3900 meters. The monastery has a wide area occupying the different building, Tsokchen (main assembly hall) erected in 1417 with a holy image or statue of Budhha, and two colleges called Changtse (Northern College) and Shartse (Eastern College) that was founded by two of close disciples of Tsongkapa.

Then later a chapel of Tsongkapa’s golden throne was erected under the order of monastery heads, there is also a meditation cave of Tsongkapa in which there are self-arising images of gods (Tsongkapa, Shakyamuni, Amitayus, Atisha, and Dromtonpa) and goddess (Shridev), at one corner of the meditation cave there is a rock contains the palm printings of the holy master.

Later the holy scholar was deceased in the year 1419 and the seat passed to Gyaltsab Ji and Kyedrup Ji respectively, gradually the Gaden Tripa (the only Lama that is choosing accordingly to individual knowledge) came to look after the only monastery. As there is a saying in Tibet goes “Whoever got the superior knowledge the seat of Gaden Tripa is always empty for those”, based on this concept monks use to struggle a lot to practice and theories of Buddhism.

At the ridge of the mountain, there is a place for sky-burial still used in the present days, where dead bodies are cut and given to vultures as the thought of givingness. This place can be seen when people go for the Ganden Monastery Lingkor path which is the circumambulatory route for pilgrims, the route is filled up with many mythical stories and prayer flags waving along the wind.

At present, the monastery has 300 monks residing there, most part of the monastery is also restored which was destroyed during Cultural Revolution. The zigzagging road of 6 kilometers is one of the best snapshots from the Lingkor path. And especially on the Gaden Serthang festival which displays a giant Buddha embroidered is one of the most sacred religious festivals in Tibet that attends by thousands of local Tibetan pilgrims from all corners of the Tibetan plateau.

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