In Tibet, near Shigatse, foundations are laid
for the rebuilding of this ancient structure

Peace Times 10

Fund raising is already underway. A US$ 400,000 project that aims to help the people in one of the poorest regions west of Lhasa

West of Lhasa, not far from Shigatse, in a particularly poor and arid part of Central Tibet, the rebuilding of the ancient Gangchen Monastery is becoming a reality. Despite the harsh winter most of the village inhabitants are busy cutting stones and stacking the wooden poles needed for the construction: in spring time, everything will be ready to lay the foundations and therefore build the new four floor structure.

The original Monastery was founded at the beginning of the 16th Century by Panchen Zangpo Tashi, heart disciple of Panchen Gedundrup the first Dalai Lama, and which was completely destroyed in 1959, will now soon come back to life. Panchen Zangpo Tashi is a previous incarnation of Lama Gangchen, founder of the Lama Gangchen World Peace Foundation, a United Nations affiliated Non-Governmental Organisation.

From life to life, it has been 500 years that Lama Gangchen has been taking care of this monastery, seat of an absolutely unique lineage of teachings passed down from master to disciple of which he was appointed custodian. By saving the monastery one saves the truly precious teachings which are such a great gift to humanity, giving them the possibility to know spiritual practices which open the doors to a life filled with wisdom and the chance of reaching enlightenment.

Moreover, the monastery is the reference point in the life of the entire community: this is where people go to find a solution to all the problems of daily life; where those who wish to learn to read gather; a place to receive medical help and food... The Gangchen Monastery which is situated in a particularly arid region has even guaranteed water supply to the whole community. The project is also the continuation of that which already brought about the construction of a clinic and a school on the land.

In the 80’s Lama Gangchen financed the construction of a tiny monastery; a simple construction made of humble materials, and which is falling to ruins under the extreme atmospheric conditions. Lama Gangchen - deeply thankful to the Central Chinese Government and to the Provincial Tibetan Government who made everything possible - has now taken the commitment to raising the necessary funds to build a larger and more solid monastery.

With the granting of the necessary permission from the authorities of the Shakya District, where the monastery is situated, and the arrival of the first generous donations, work has been able to start immediately. A jeep and a lorry are among the most urgent acquisitions. The estimated cost to complete the work ammounts to about US$ 400,000. An exact replica of the monastery would be far too costly, and therefore it has been decided to put up a single four floor building. The three lower floors will house the assembly hall, the meditation hall, the protector room, library, some retreat rooms, the monks quarters, bathrooms, the kitchens and storerooms. According to tradition the top floor will be reserved for the rooms for His Holinesses the Dalai Lama and the Panchen Lama, as well as Lama Gangchen and Lama Michel’s rooms.

The finished edifice, built in wood, stone and cement, will be adorned with paintings, statues and wood carvings. There will be statues of the most important tantric divinities and of the lineage gurus, eight stupas and thousands of prayer wheels will be placed in the monastery area.

The Monastery of Gangchen will be equipped with a source of ecological energy for light and heating of the rooms, a water pump and a telephone line. The walls and columns will be adorned with thangkas and brocades and will include altars, thrones for lamas and seating facilities for the monks, carpets and cushions, induments for offerings, tantric implements, three dimensional mandalas, costumes for cham dancing and sacred rituals and initiations. The list of acquisitions will also include working tools, kitchen utensils, a sewing machine, furniture for common use, shelves, beds... The library will contain all of the most important Tibetan Buddhist texts and in particular, those of the Gelugpa tradition: the 101 volumes of the Kangyur and the 200 volumes of the Tengyur, all of the works by Lama Tsong Khapa and Panchen Lama, the texts of the most important tantric practices, beginning with that of the Medicine Buddha.

The Monastery will take care of launching teaching programmes to preserve and revitalise the Tibetan Buddhist tradition and at the same time offer to the younger generations the possibility to learn how to use computers and become profficient in english language in addition to Tibetan and Chinese.

Donations can be made to Lama Gangchen Kiurok Tsochun - Pro Monastero di Gangchen, account number 7770/67, Banca Popolare di Sondrio, Agency 13, 20124 Milan, Italy; ABI 5696 CAB 1612. For donations made from outside of Italy add SWIFT POSOIT22MIL.

Sharon Dawson