Karma Phuntsok Namgyal
Encyclopedia
Karma Phuntsok Namgyal (1587–1620) was a king of Tibet who ruled from 1618 to 1620. He belonged to the Tsangpa
Dynasty that held power in Tsang
(West Central Tibet) since 1565 and was the foremost secular power in Tibet until 1642.
, ruler of Upper Tsang, and a lady from Yargyab. Other sources make him the son of either of the rulers Karma Tseten
or Karma Tensung
. The law code issued by his son Karma Tenkyong
vaguely says that Karma Thutob Namgyal and his brothers had Karma Phuntsok Namgyal as their son, perhaps suggesting the Tibetan practice of polyandry
. The same text asserts that he was 25 years old in 1611, which in the Tibetan system would indicate 1587 as his year of birth. According to some texts his predecessor Karma Tensung died in the iron-pig year 1611. However, another source mentions Karma Phuntsok Namgyal as a Tsangpa leader by 1603. As such he would have directed the military attack into Ü
(East Central Tibet) in 1605. According to still another text his first major feat was an incident in 1607 when he led his troops in an attack that dispersed a Mongol force that had been called in by the lord of Kyishod near Lhasa
. At his accession he held control over the entire Tsang, Toh in western Tibet, and some parts of Ü. In 1612-13 he led an expedition to Ngari (West Tibet), where Gungthang, Latod Lho and Chang in Gyaru were subjugated. After this feat his writ ran all the way from Chang to Nyangtod, Lotod and Ü. The new acquisitions were nevertheless far from secured, and he had to take up arms from time to time.
sect of Buddhism
. This made him oppose the authority of the Gelugpa sect, headed by the Fourth Dalai Lama
Yonten Gyatso (1589–1616) and the Fourth Panchen Lama
Lobsang Chökyi Gyaltsen (1570–1662). After a tour in southern Tibet, Karma Phuntsok Namgyal arrived to Lhasa
and sent his secretary to ask the Dalai Lama for a religious audience. However, the entourage of Yonten Gyatso declined the request on the pretext that their spiritual lord was in deep meditation and could not be disturbed. Karma Phuntsok Namgyal was deeply offended. In December 1614 he gathered all the governors and religious hierarchs in Tsang to a meeting at Samdrubtse (Shigatse
). He pushed the participants into accepting the head of the Black Hat
line of the Karmapa, Choying Dorje
(1604–74), as the desi (ruler). This step strengthened Tsangpa authority since real power was in their hands. Two years later the Dalai Lama died.
(1594-1651?), a grandson of the prince-abbot
of the Ralung monastery. This person was considered by some to be the reincarnation
of the well-known religious Drukpa scholar Kunkhyen Pema Karpo (1527–92). However, Karma Phuntsok Namgyal refused to acknowledge the claim. A meeting with Ngawang Namgyal was arranged in the Tsang capital Shigatse
in 1614, but the cleric held a disrespectful attitude, and the conversations with the king led to nothing. On Ngawang Namgyal's return to Ralung an incident occurred whereby his men had a fight with a Karmapa lama and his followers, whereby some people were drowned. Karma Phuntsok Namgyal resolved to have Ngawang Namgyal killed, but the latter fled to Bhutan
in 1616. There he built up a position of authority. After some time the Tsangpa king sent a force under Lagunas to invade Bhutan. The expedition captured Padro but was subsequently defeated by Ngawang Namgyal's followers, and Lagunas was killed.
which was harassed in various ways. In 1618, before a new reincarnation of the Dalai Lama had been found, a host of Chokhur Mongols who had come to Ü on pilgrimage
raided cattle belonging to the Tsangpa. Karma Phuntsok Namgyal invaded Ü in retaliation. At first the Mongol and Ü forces were successful, but in the end the Tsangpa troops were completely victorious. Monks from Drepung and Sera tried to resist but suffered great losses. Several Gelugpa monasteries in Ü were forced to convert to the Karmapa brand of Buddhism. The Kyishod estates were subdued and the secular lord had to leave for Tsokha The victorious Tsangpa ruler became known as cakravartin, world ruler, 'by virtue of his strength.' The Karmapa leader Choying Dorje appointed him ruler of Ü and Tsang and bestowed a seal on him. By this time he may be termed king of Tibet, although he was never able to overcome his enemies completely. After his victory he repaired the temples that had been destroyed during the fighting and made offerings to the sacred Jowo
statue in the Jokhang
temple. He also resumed the expansion in western Tibet, where the Gungthang kingdom was definitely incorporated in 1619. The Panchen Lama, although an enemy of the dynasty, was supposedly invited to treat Karma Phuntsok Namgyal from an illness which his ordinary physicians were unable to remedy. As a reward the ruler lifted the ban to search for the reincarnation of Yonten Gyatso. The boy was eventually found in 1619 and installed as Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso, the Fifth Dalai Lama
(1617–82). Shortly after this, Karma Phuntsok Namgyal died. According to one account his enemy Ngawang Namgyal of Bhutan cast a tantric
spell over him, which caused the demise of him and his two wives from smallpox
. His date of death is given variously as 1620, 1621, 1623, or 1631. He was succeeded by his son Karma Tenkyong
, the last king of the Tsangpa Dynasty.
Tsangpa
Tsangpa was a dynasty that dominated large parts of Tibet from 1565 to 1642. It was the last Tibetan royal dynasty to rule in own name. The regime was founded by Karma Tseten, a retainer of the prince of the Rinpungpa Dynasty and governor of Shigatse in Tsang since 1548.-Superseding the...
Dynasty that held power in Tsang
Ü-Tsang
Ü-Tsang , or Tsang-Ü, is one of the three traditional provinces of Tibet, the other two being Amdo and Kham. Geographically Ü-Tsang covered the central and western portions of the Tibetan cultural area, including the Tsang-po watershed, the western districts surrounding and extending past Mount...
(West Central Tibet) since 1565 and was the foremost secular power in Tibet until 1642.
Family
The family background of Karma Phuntsok Namgyal is somewhat unclear. According to a religious biography, he was the son of Karma Thutob NamgyalKarma Thutob Namgyal
Karma Thutob Namgyal was a prince of the Tsangpa Dynasty that ruled parts of Central Tibet from 1565 to 1642....
, ruler of Upper Tsang, and a lady from Yargyab. Other sources make him the son of either of the rulers Karma Tseten
Karma Tseten
Karma Tseten was a king of Upper Tsang in West Central Tibet. He was the founder of the Tsangpa Dynasty that had an important role in the history of Tibet up to 1642.-Rebelling against the Rinpungpa:...
or Karma Tensung
Karma Tensung
Karma Tensung , in full Karma Tensung Wangpo , was a king of Tsang in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth century. He belonged to the Tsangpa Dynasty that ruled parts of Tibet from 1565 to 1642....
. The law code issued by his son Karma Tenkyong
Karma Tenkyong
Karma Tenkyong , in full Karma Tenkyong Wangpo , was a king of Tibet who ruled from 1620 to 1642. He belonged to the Tsangpa Dynasty which had been prominent in Tsang since 1565. His reign was marked by the increasingly bitter struggle against the Gelugpa sect and its leader the Dalai Lama...
vaguely says that Karma Thutob Namgyal and his brothers had Karma Phuntsok Namgyal as their son, perhaps suggesting the Tibetan practice of polyandry
Polyandry
Polyandry refers to a form of marriage in which a woman has two or more husbands at the same time. The form of polyandry in which a woman is married to two or more brothers is known as "fraternal polyandry", and it is believed by many anthropologists to be the most frequently encountered...
. The same text asserts that he was 25 years old in 1611, which in the Tibetan system would indicate 1587 as his year of birth. According to some texts his predecessor Karma Tensung died in the iron-pig year 1611. However, another source mentions Karma Phuntsok Namgyal as a Tsangpa leader by 1603. As such he would have directed the military attack into Ü
Ü (region)
Ü is a geographic division and a historical region in Tibet. Together with Tsang , it forms Central Tibet Ü-Tsang , which is one of the three Tibetan regions or cholka . The other two cholka are Kham and Amdo...
(East Central Tibet) in 1605. According to still another text his first major feat was an incident in 1607 when he led his troops in an attack that dispersed a Mongol force that had been called in by the lord of Kyishod near Lhasa
Lhasa
Lhasa is the administrative capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China and the second most populous city on the Tibetan Plateau, after Xining. At an altitude of , Lhasa is one of the highest cities in the world...
. At his accession he held control over the entire Tsang, Toh in western Tibet, and some parts of Ü. In 1612-13 he led an expedition to Ngari (West Tibet), where Gungthang, Latod Lho and Chang in Gyaru were subjugated. After this feat his writ ran all the way from Chang to Nyangtod, Lotod and Ü. The new acquisitions were nevertheless far from secured, and he had to take up arms from time to time.
Fighting the Gelugpa
Like his predecessors Karma Phuntsok Namgyal was a staunch supporter of the KarmapaKarmapa
The Karmapa is the head of the Karma Kagyu, the largest sub-school of the Kagyupa , itself one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism....
sect of Buddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
. This made him oppose the authority of the Gelugpa sect, headed by the Fourth Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...
Yonten Gyatso (1589–1616) and the Fourth Panchen Lama
Panchen Lama
The Panchen Lama , or Bainqên Erdê'ni , is the highest ranking Lama after the Dalai Lama in the Gelugpa lineage of Tibetan Buddhism...
Lobsang Chökyi Gyaltsen (1570–1662). After a tour in southern Tibet, Karma Phuntsok Namgyal arrived to Lhasa
Lhasa
Lhasa is the administrative capital of the Tibet Autonomous Region in the People's Republic of China and the second most populous city on the Tibetan Plateau, after Xining. At an altitude of , Lhasa is one of the highest cities in the world...
and sent his secretary to ask the Dalai Lama for a religious audience. However, the entourage of Yonten Gyatso declined the request on the pretext that their spiritual lord was in deep meditation and could not be disturbed. Karma Phuntsok Namgyal was deeply offended. In December 1614 he gathered all the governors and religious hierarchs in Tsang to a meeting at Samdrubtse (Shigatse
Shigatse
Shigatse is a county-level city and the second largest city in Tibet Autonomous Region , People's Republic of China, with a population of 92000, about southwest of Lhasa and northwest of Gyantse...
). He pushed the participants into accepting the head of the Black Hat
Karma Kagyu
Karma Kagyu , or Kamtsang Kagyu, is probably the largest and certainly the most widely practiced lineage within the Kagyu school, one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The lineage has long-standing monasteries in Tibet, China, Russia, Mongolia, India, Nepal, and Bhutan, and current...
line of the Karmapa, Choying Dorje
Chöying Dorje
Chöying Dorje , also Choying Dorje, was the tenth Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Kagyu School of Tibetan Buddhism.Chöying Dorje was born in Khaytri Tang in the kingdom of Golok in Amdo. At the age of eight, he was recognized by Shamar Mipan Chökyi Wangchuk, the sixth Shamarpa and received the complete...
(1604–74), as the desi (ruler). This step strengthened Tsangpa authority since real power was in their hands. Two years later the Dalai Lama died.
Relation to Ngawang Namgyal and Bhutan
Meanwhile a fateful conflict flared up with Ngawang NamgyalNgawang Namgyal
Ngawang Namgyal was a Tibetan Buddhist lama and the unifier of Bhutan as a nation state...
(1594-1651?), a grandson of the prince-abbot
Abbot
The word abbot, meaning father, is a title given to the head of a monastery in various traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not actually the head of a monastery...
of the Ralung monastery. This person was considered by some to be the reincarnation
Reincarnation
Reincarnation best describes the concept where the soul or spirit, after the death of the body, is believed to return to live in a new human body, or, in some traditions, either as a human being, animal or plant...
of the well-known religious Drukpa scholar Kunkhyen Pema Karpo (1527–92). However, Karma Phuntsok Namgyal refused to acknowledge the claim. A meeting with Ngawang Namgyal was arranged in the Tsang capital Shigatse
Shigatse
Shigatse is a county-level city and the second largest city in Tibet Autonomous Region , People's Republic of China, with a population of 92000, about southwest of Lhasa and northwest of Gyantse...
in 1614, but the cleric held a disrespectful attitude, and the conversations with the king led to nothing. On Ngawang Namgyal's return to Ralung an incident occurred whereby his men had a fight with a Karmapa lama and his followers, whereby some people were drowned. Karma Phuntsok Namgyal resolved to have Ngawang Namgyal killed, but the latter fled to Bhutan
Bhutan
Bhutan , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China...
in 1616. There he built up a position of authority. After some time the Tsangpa king sent a force under Lagunas to invade Bhutan. The expedition captured Padro but was subsequently defeated by Ngawang Namgyal's followers, and Lagunas was killed.
Conquest of Central Tibet
In Central Tibet itself the religious disputes were soon resumed. Karma Phuntsok Namgyal ordered the construction of a Karmapa monastery at Shigatse, provocatively called Tashi Zilnon, 'the suppressor of Tashilhunpo'. The name alluded to the nearby Gelugpa monastery TashilhunpoTashilhunpo
Tashilhunpo Monastery , founded in 1447 by Gendun Drup, the First Dalai Lama, is a historic and culturally important monastery next to Shigatse, the second-largest city in Tibet....
which was harassed in various ways. In 1618, before a new reincarnation of the Dalai Lama had been found, a host of Chokhur Mongols who had come to Ü on pilgrimage
Pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
raided cattle belonging to the Tsangpa. Karma Phuntsok Namgyal invaded Ü in retaliation. At first the Mongol and Ü forces were successful, but in the end the Tsangpa troops were completely victorious. Monks from Drepung and Sera tried to resist but suffered great losses. Several Gelugpa monasteries in Ü were forced to convert to the Karmapa brand of Buddhism. The Kyishod estates were subdued and the secular lord had to leave for Tsokha The victorious Tsangpa ruler became known as cakravartin, world ruler, 'by virtue of his strength.' The Karmapa leader Choying Dorje appointed him ruler of Ü and Tsang and bestowed a seal on him. By this time he may be termed king of Tibet, although he was never able to overcome his enemies completely. After his victory he repaired the temples that had been destroyed during the fighting and made offerings to the sacred Jowo
Jowo (statue)
Jowo Shakyamuni or Jowo Rinpoche is, with Jowo Mikyö Dorje, the most sacred statue in Tibet. Jowo Rinpoche is housed in the Jokhang temple and Jowo Mikyö Dorje in the Ramoche temple in Lhasa.-History:...
statue in the Jokhang
Jokhang
The Jokhang, , also called the Qokang Monastery, Jokang, Jokhang Temple, Jokhang Monastery or Zuglagkang , is located on Barkhor Square in Lhasa. For most Tibetans it is the most sacred and important temple in Tibet. It is in some regards pan-sectarian, but is presently controlled by the Gelug school...
temple. He also resumed the expansion in western Tibet, where the Gungthang kingdom was definitely incorporated in 1619. The Panchen Lama, although an enemy of the dynasty, was supposedly invited to treat Karma Phuntsok Namgyal from an illness which his ordinary physicians were unable to remedy. As a reward the ruler lifted the ban to search for the reincarnation of Yonten Gyatso. The boy was eventually found in 1619 and installed as Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso, the Fifth Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...
(1617–82). Shortly after this, Karma Phuntsok Namgyal died. According to one account his enemy Ngawang Namgyal of Bhutan cast a tantric
Tantra
Tantra , anglicised tantricism or tantrism or tantram, is the name scholars give to an inter-religious spiritual movement that arose in medieval India, expressed in scriptures ....
spell over him, which caused the demise of him and his two wives from smallpox
Smallpox
Smallpox was an infectious disease unique to humans, caused by either of two virus variants, Variola major and Variola minor. The disease is also known by the Latin names Variola or Variola vera, which is a derivative of the Latin varius, meaning "spotted", or varus, meaning "pimple"...
. His date of death is given variously as 1620, 1621, 1623, or 1631. He was succeeded by his son Karma Tenkyong
Karma Tenkyong
Karma Tenkyong , in full Karma Tenkyong Wangpo , was a king of Tibet who ruled from 1620 to 1642. He belonged to the Tsangpa Dynasty which had been prominent in Tsang since 1565. His reign was marked by the increasingly bitter struggle against the Gelugpa sect and its leader the Dalai Lama...
, the last king of the Tsangpa Dynasty.
Further reading
- Dung-dkar blo-bzang 'phrim-las, The Merging of Religious and Secular Rule in Tibet. Beijing 1991.
- David Snellgrove & Hugh Richardson, A Cultural History of Tibet. Boston & London 1986.
- http://www.tibetinfor.com/tibetzt/tsjb/doc/606.htm (in Chinese).