FOR 104 Fortress Monasteries of the Himalayas Tibet Ladakh Nepal and Bhutan.pdf

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FORTRESS

MONASTERIES OF

THE HIMALAYAS

Tibet, Ladakh, Nepal and Bhutan

PETER HARRISON

ILLUSTRATED BY PETER DENNIS

FORTRESS • 104

FORTRESS MONASTERIES

OF THE HIMALAYAS

Tibet, Ladakh, Nepal and Bhutan

PETER HARRISON

ILLUSTRATED BY PETER DENNIS

Series editor

Marcus Cowper

CONTENTS

INTRODUCTION

CHRONOLOGY

TIBETAN CULTURE AND ITS DISTINCTIVE ARCHITECTURE

The development of the Tibetan Cultural Region

A brief outline of a distinctive architecture

THE CAUSES AND NATURE OF WARFARE IN THE TIBETAN CULTURAL

REGION

Religious conflicts, civil wars and invasions The raising of standing forces and militias

Equipment of the armed forces and militias Training and the method of warfare

HIMALAYAN FORTIFICATIONS

Generic approaches and the principles of defence

THE FORTIFIED MONASTERIES OF TIBET

The background The architectural features of the fortress monasteries, exemplified by the southern

monastery at Sakya Chokorgyel Monastery: the Triune, ‘three in one’,

gompa

Dechen dzong

Gyantse – dzongs, monasteries and the British The Potala: the holy palace in the snow land

THE FORTRESS MONASTERIES AND MONASTIC PALACE FORTRESSES

OF LADAKH

The Namgyal Dynasty The fortress monasteries of the 17th century The defensive system in the

Ladakhi Indus Valley The hidden valleys of Zanskar, Lahaul and Spiti

NEPAL

The hidden Kingdom of Mustang and the fortified town of Lo Manthang

of Mustang

The other monasteries

THE DZONGS OF BHUTAN

The Shabdrung and the heavenly abodes of the tantric divinities

Bhutanese dzongs

The characteristics of

AFTERMATH

Destruction, neglect and changing circumstances

Mustang, Nepal Bhutan

Tibet

Ladakh and the ‘hidden valleys’

THE SITES TODAY

Tibet

Ladakh

Mustang

The fortress monasteries of Bhutan

FURTHER READING

GLOSSARY

INDEX

FORTRESS MONASTERIES OF THE

HIMALAYAS: TIBET, LADAKH,

NEPAL AND BHUTAN

INTRODUCTION

The Himalayan mountain range separates the Indian subcontinent from the

isolated, aloof and mystical country of Tibet where the inhospitable and arid

Jang Tang, the Tibetan plateau, is known to its inhabitants as the ‘roof of the

world’. This region of Asia is sparsely populated, and probably always has

been, a consequence of a harsh climate, inhospitable terrain and high altitude.

Its people have embraced Buddhism and have developed a culture and

architecture, instantly recognizable, that loosely binds them together whether

they belong to the Kham people of western China or the Ladakhis of the

western Himalayas. This is a huge area that embraces part of China,

the Tibetan Autonomous Region, Northern India, Sikkim, Bhutan and parts

of Nepal. Geography and a political wish to remain isolated from the western

world have ensured that this ‘Tibetan World’ is little known even today.

This is a book about the fortress Buddhist monasteries that are ubiquitous

throughout the region. Whilst there is a difference between monasteries that

were fortified and those that were conceived from the outset to be both a

combined fortress and monastery this distinction is blurred in most of the

regions under discussion. Only in Bhutan can a clear definition be made;

elsewhere the dating of monastic complexes is very imprecise. An attempt

will be made, however, to understand why and how distinct architectural

forms developed.

Researching the subject has been problematical; there is a great lack of

written or illustrative material. Plans, for example, are almost non-existent

(Tibetan artisans are steeped in tradition, learning their craft from experienced

and skilled practitioners). In addition most of the monasteries that exist

today date from the 16th century and have

undergone periods of rebuilding, repair and

restoration as a result of natural and man-made

disasters. The annexation of Tibet by the Chinese

in 1950 proved devastating for the monastic

communities and their monasteries; almost all

of its 3,000-plus monasteries were destroyed to

varying degrees.

In the Himalayas the reduction in the number

of monks has led to many monasteries falling

into disrepair. This is especially true of Ladakh

or ‘Indian Tibet’ whilst in Bhutan the Buddhist

The relationship between

dzong and monastery at Tuwa

is shown here. Both appear to

be monumental fortifications

and the monastery has

additional fortifications in the

form of a walled bailey with

round corner towers. A similar

arrangement is found at Hanle

in Ladakh.

penchant for butter lamps has seen many fortress monasteries (here known

as dzongs) destroyed by conflagration. Many have also been severely

damaged by earthquakes. Although the majority have been rebuilt in the

traditional manner many of the defensive features have been lost. Fortunately

the drawings and watercolours of Samuel Davies done at the end of the

18th century during an expedition from India into Bhutan have survived.

The volumes of photographs taken at the turn of the 20th century in Bhutan

and Tibet, mainly by British administrator John Claude White amply

illustrate these changes.

In the selection of illustrative examples two basic principles have been

followed: that there are remains of substantial fortifications or that there is

documentary or pictorial evidence that military architecture was incorporated

into the monasteries. Many examples combine these two criteria.

In addition I feel that brief digressions are necessary. In Tibet the secular

nobility ruled their estates from fortresses also, confusingly, known as dzongs.

Here, however, there was only rarely incorporation of religious architecture;

the dzong had a symbiotic relationship with a neighbouring monastery

although the two were physically separate. This is, today, seen at Gyantse

where the dzong had a geographical and spiritual relationship with the nearby

fortified monastery of Pelkhor Chode. A description of the dzong is included

as it is the sole surviving dzong in the whole of Tibet; all the rest are now

little more than piles of rubble, many destroyed by the Chinese in the 1950s.

In Ladakh there are substantial remains of a number of fortress-palaces that

incorporate substantial Buddhist temples and accommodation for monks.

Together with the fortified monasteries they formed a defensive network for

the inhabitants of this part of the Indus Valley.

Finally the Potala Palace in Lhasa, a huge monastic fortress with its

attendant fortified village, is described in some detail. It is one of the world’s

great buildings and has remained basically unaltered since it was completed

in the 17th century, apart from the addition of residential quarters for the

13th Dalai Lama.

CHRONOLOGY

640

Buddhism introduced into Tibet.

1207

Mongol influence starts when Tibet submits to Genghis Khan.

1430–70

Ladakh divided into two kingdoms with capitals at Leh and Shey in

the east and Basgo and Temisgang in the west.

1525

Kashmir and India are invaded by Muslims from Afghanistan led by

Babur, leading to the establishment of the Mughal Empire.

1610–45

King Sengge Namgyal rules Ladakh and founds many monasteries and

builds the nine-storeyed ‘lion palace’ at Leh.

1616

Nagawang Namgyal, the Shabdrung, leaves the monastery of Ralung

for Bhutan.

1629

Simtokha dzong, the first of the Shabdrung’s dzongs, built.

1635–42

Monastic sectarian war breaks out between Shigatse and Lhasa in Tibet.

1639

Tibetans invade Bhutan and are defeated.

1643

A further Tibetan invasion, reinforced by Mongol forces is also defeated.

1642

Gushri Khan, the Mongol ruler intercedes on behalf of the Gelukpas of

Lhasa and installs Nagawang Gyatso as the fifth Dalai Lama.

1651

The Shabdrung dies but his death is kept secret.

1656

The first of seven invasions from Tibet into Bhutan.

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