Known as Tibetan Buddhism or Vajrayana Buddhism, Lamaism is generally practiced by Tibetans, Mongols, the Monba people and the Yugu people. It was founded by Master Padmasambhava in the 8th century. The fundamental doctrine of Lamaism is based on Mahayana Buddhist Sutra and assimilated with some concepts or beliefs of Hinayana, Tantrism and Bon Religion.
Lamaism has exerted a profound influence on Tibetan culture and tradition. Buddhism was introduced to Tibet in the 7th century. King Songtsan Gambo unified the whole Tibet and established the Kingdom of Tupo. In order to build up a stable relationship with neighbouring countries, the king married Princess Khridzun of Nepal and Princess Wencheng(625-680) of the Tang Empire. Both the princesses traveled to Tibet with their retinues who carried Buddha statues and Buddhist scriptures. He gave an order to build a Buddhist monastery in Lhasa and named it as Jokhang Temple. In the year of 710, King Tride Zhotsan married Princess Jincheng of the Tang. The princess replaced the old Buddha statues in Jokhang Temple with the new ones which she brought. In the middle of the 8th century, Master Padmasambhava was invited to Tibet by King Trisong Detsan. He was a celebrated monk in ancient India. Master Padmasambhava built the famous Samye Monastery and founded the Nyingma Buddhism. However, Buddhism failed to spread widely in Tibet due to the collapse of the Tubo Kingdom. King Lan-Darma(799-842) forbade his people from practicing Buddhism. In the year of 842, he was assassinated by a monk. Then, the Kingdom of Tupo was torn apart. Tibetan Buddhism revived in the late 10th century, and flourished rapidly in the following centuries.
Lamaism has been developed into five schools, namely, the Nyingma Sect, the Sakya Sect, the Kar-gyu-pa Sect, the Kah-dam-pa Sect and the Ge-lug-pa Sect. The most influential one is the Gelugpa Sect at present. Both Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama are the spiritual leaders of the Ge-lug-pa Buddhists.
The Nyingma Sect was founded by Master Padmasambhava in the 8th century. Nyingma is a Tibetan word which means “old and ancient” in English. Monks who practice Nyingma Lamaism always wear red robes and red hats, therefore it is also called the Red School of Lamaism. Nyingma Sect is more freely than any other tinged with the native Bon religion, and celibacy and abstinence are rarely practised. It regards the metaphysical Bodhisattva Samantabhadra as its primordial deity. Its mystic insight is Mahautpanna or “the great ultimate perfection”. The top six lamaseries of Nyingma Sect include Mindroling Monastery, Kathok Monastery, Dorje Drak Monastery, Palyul Monastery, Dzogchen Monastery and Shechen Monastery.
The Sakya Sect was founded in 1073, taking its name from the white colour of the scanty soil at the site of its first monastery in western Tibet. Sakya means the white soil in English. The walls of the Sakya monasteries are usually painted with three stripes, the red, the white and the blue. The stripes represent the top three Bodhisattvas in Tibetan Buddhism, namely, Manjusri, Avalokitesvara and Vajradhara. Therefore, it is also called the Tri-colored School of Lamaism. The founder of the Sakya Sect was Kon-dkon-mchog Rgyal-po, a pupil of Kugpa-lhabtsas, who claimed inspiration from the celestial Bodhisattva of wisdom, Manjusri, through the Indian sages ranging from Nagarjuna to Vasuputra. He mixed “the Old Tantra” and “the New Tantra”, calling his doctrine “the New-Old Occult Mystery of the Deep Sight”. Tarapatha(1235-1280), the fourth successor of Sakya Sect was canonized under the title of “the Reverend Holiness” by Kublai Khan of the Yuan Empire. By the support of Yuan Empire, Master Tarapatha established the first theocratic regime in Tibet. Since then, Tibet has become a part of China. The world famous Parkhang Sutra-Printing House was built by a Sakya monk in the year of 1729. It is located in Dege County, Sichuan Province.
The Kar-gyu-pa Sect is also known as the White School of Lamaism for the white uniforms worn by its followers. The name Kar-gyu-pa means a follower of the successive orders, expressive of the fact that the sect believes that the rulings of its later sages are inspired. It was the second school of Lamaism with dominating political power in Tibet. One of its sub-sects was called the “Black-cap” created the Living Buddha Reincarnation System. It is the most obvious feature distinguishing Lamaism from other Buddhist schools. The Tibetan Buddhists hold that the spirit of the deceased Grand Lama is always reborn in a child, who has to be found by oracular signs, and duly installed in the vacant chair.
The Kar-dam-pa Sect was established in 1056. Its founder was Dom Bakshi(1005-1064), a pupil of Master Atisa(982-1054). Atisa was a famous Buddhist scholar in ancient India. He taught Dom Bakshi the mystic Mahayana and Tantric doctrines. Dom Bakshi built a monastery to the northeast of Lhasa and named it as Reting Monastery, which was the first Kar-dam-pa Lamasery. The Kar-dam-pa Sect is also known as the Old Yellow School of Lamaism for the yellow caps put on by its monks. Three and a half centuries later, in Master Tson-Kapa’s hands, it was ultimately reformed and became the Ge-lug-pa sect which was less ascetic and more ritualistic.
The Ge-lug-pa Sect is also called the Yellow School of Lamaism. Under the title of “the Virtuous Style”, it has become the dominant sect of Tibetan Buddhism. In the early 15th century, the Ge-lug-pa arose as a regeneration of Kar-dam-pa by Master Tson-Kapa(1357-1419), who was the teacher of both Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama. Master Tson-Kapa lived in a period when the ruling-class of Tibet decayed. He was determined to reform the monastic system. The reformer received the traditions from the Kar-dam-pa Sect, attracted followers by instituting a highly ritualistic service and urged his disciples to be a great doer. Master Tson-Kapa was an ardent proselytizer and spent most of his strength in organization. He collected the scattered ascetics of the Kar-dam-pa Sect and housed them together with his new followers. The master built a lamasery in 1409 about 48 kilometers(30 miles) east of Lhasa, and named it as Gah-dan Monastery(or Gandain Monastery). In the following years, many Ge-lug-pa monasteries were constructed by his pupils in Tibetan’s homeland, such as the Tashi-lhunpo Monastery(in 1455), De-pung Monastery(in 1414) and Se-ra Monastery(in 1417). His chief pupils were Ge-dun-dub and Mkhas-grub-rie Dge-legsdpal-bzang. The former was Tson-Kapa’s nephew. Known as the First Dalai Lama, Ge-dun-dub built Tashi-lhunpo Monastery and became the second Grand Lama of the Ge-lug-pa Sect. The latter was the second pupil of Tson-Kapa. He is known as the First Panchen Lama. In the year of 1653, the Fifth Reincarnated Grand Lama of Lhasa was canonized as Dalai Lama by Emperor Shunzhi of the Qing Dynasty, and in the year of 1713, the Fourth Reincarnated Grand Lama of Tashi-lhunpo Monastery was conferred with the title of Panchen Lama by Emperor Kangxi. Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama are respectively known as the reincarnations of Avalokitesvara Bodhisattva and Amitabha Buddha. Then, the Ge-lug-pa Sect became the dominant Lamaist sect.
Author: Tina Luo
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