Kongpo Regional House Headquarters
(kong po khang tshan)

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Images of Kongpo Regional House Headquarters

THL Reference Number: s056

College Affiliation: Mé (smad)

Regional House Affiliation: Kongpo (kong po)

This is the main khang tshan compound of the kong po regional house, one of the best-restored khang tshan compounds in the monastery. Located on the se ra main sand street, it is one of the most aesthetically pleasing khang tshan-s, both architecturally and artistically. The khang tshan temple has fabulous murals. All of the artwork, however, is new. The golden stupa on the main altar contains the relics of a bla ma of this khang tshan whose reincarnation is in India. The renovation of the khang tshan was completed in 1991. It took two artists a total of three years to complete the murals inside the temple. A Tibetan man (identified as zla ba don grub) and his family (from kong po), sponsored all of the artwork inside the temple. They are depicted on the back wall of the temple (left as one enters). The two artists' names are tshe ring nor bu and bu chung (per the inscription on the back wall).

It seems that throughout its history the khang tshan produced at least two holders of the dga' ldan throne. Shar chen ngag dbang tshul khrims (19th century), abbot of shar chen monastery in kong po, and rgyal dbang chos rje blo bzang 'phrin las rnam rgyal (also 19th century), author of the rGyal bang mdzod, a renowned commentary on Abhidharma philosophy. Among the more important contemporary scholars from this khang tshan are the great polymath dung mkhar blo bzang 'phrin las (1927-199?), who published extensively on history and poetics especially (he lived in Lhasa), and the erudite dge bshes 'jam dpal seng ge, who left Tibet in 1959, was invited by G. Tucci to Italy, and worked at IsMEO (Rome) until his death in 1981.

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