Guge

Ruins of the Guge capital at Tsaparang

Guge (Tibetan: གུ་གེ་, Wylie: gu ge; Chinese: 古格) was an ancient dynastic kingdom in Western Tibet. The kingdom was centered in present-day Zanda County, Ngari Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region. At various points in history after the 10th century AD, the kingdom held sway over a vast area including south-eastern Zanskar, Upper Kinnaur district, and Spiti Valley, either by conquest or as tributaries. The ruins of the former capital of the Guge kingdom are located at Tsaparang in the Sutlej valley, not far from Mount Kailash and 1,200 miles (1,900 km) westwards from Lhasa.

History[]

Founding[]

Guge was founded in the 10th century. Its capitals were located at Tholing Coordinates: 31°28′55″N 79°48′01″E / 31.48194°N 79.80028°E / 31.48194; 79.80028 and Tsaparang.^[1] Kyide Nyimagon, a great-grandson of Langdarma, the last monarch of the Tibetan Empire, fled from the insecure conditions in Ü-Tsang in 910 to arrive in Ngari (West Tibet). He established a kingdom around 912 and annexed Purang and Guge. He established his capital in Guge.

Nyi ma mgon later divided his lands into three parts. The king's eldest son Palgyigon became ruler of Maryul (Ladakh), his second son received Guge-Purang, and the third son received Zanskar.

Second diffusion of Buddhism[]

Trashigon was succeeded by his son Srong nge or Ye shes 'Od (947–1024 or (959–1036), who was a renowned Buddhist figure. In his time a Tibetan lotsawa from Guge called Rinchen Zangpo (958–1055), after having studied in India, returned to his homeland as a monk to promote Buddhism. Together with the zeal of Ye shes 'Od, this marked the beginning of a new diffusion of Buddhist teachings in western Tibet. In 988 Ye shes 'Od took religious vows and left kingship to his younger brother Khor re.

Guge in Maryul during 11th century

According to later historiography the Turkic Karluks (Gar log) took the Guge king Ye shes 'Od prisoner during a war.^[2] The episode has a prominent place in Tibetan history writing. The Karluks offered to set him free if he renounced Buddhism which he refused to do. They then demanded his weight in gold to release him. His junior kinsman Byang chub 'Od visited him in his prison with a small retinue, but Ye shes 'Od admonished him not to use the gold at hand for ransom, but rather to invite the renowned Mahayana sage Atiśa (982–1054). Ye shes 'Od eventually died in prison from age and poor treatment.^[3] The story is historically debated since it contains chronological inconsistencies.

Successions[]

A brass alloy statue of the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, Guge, c. 1050 CE.

In 1037, Khor re's eldest grandson 'Od lde was killed in a conflict with the Kara-Khanid Khanate from Central Asia, who subsequently ravaged Ngari. His brother Byang chub 'Od (984–1078), a Buddhist monk, took power as secular ruler. He was responsible for inviting Atiśa to Tibet in 1040 and thus ushering in the so-called Chidar (Phyi-dar) phase of Buddhism in Tibet. Byang chub 'Od's son rTse lde was murdered by his nephew in 1088. This event marked the break-up of the Guge-Purang kingdom, since one of his brothers was established as separate king of Purang. The usurping nephew dBang lde continued the royal dynasty in Guge.^[4]

A new Kara-Khanid invasion of Guge took place before 1137 and cost the life of the ruler, bKra shis rtse. Later in the same century the kingdom was temporarily divided. In 1240 the Mongol khagan, at least nominally, gave authority over the Ngari area to the Drigung Monastery in Ü-Tsang.

Grags pa lde was an important ruler who united the Guge area around 1265 and subjugated the related Ya rtse (Khasa) kingdom. After his death in 1277 Guge was dominated by the Sakya monastic regime. After 1363, with the decline of the Mongol-led Yuan dynasty and their Sakya protégés, Guge was again strengthened and took over Purang in 1378. Purang was henceforth contested between Guge and Mustang, but was finally integrated in the former. Guge also briefly ruled over Ladakh in the late 14th century. From 1499 the Guge king had to acknowledge the Rinpungpa rulers of Tsang. The 15th and 16th centuries were marked by a considerable Buddhist building activity by the kings, who frequently showed their devotion to the Gelug leaders later known as the Dalai Lamas.^[5]

Tsaparang, the ruins of the ancient capital of Guge

Ladakhi invasions[]

The first Westerners to reach Guge were a Jesuit missionary, António de Andrade, and his companion, brother , in 1624. De Andrade reported seeing irrigation canals and rich crops in what is now a dry and desolate land. Perhaps as evidence of the kingdom's openness, de Andrade's party was allowed to construct a chapel in Tsaparang and instruct the people about Christianity.^[6] A letter by De Andrade relates that some military commanders revolted and called the Ladakhis to overthrow the ruler. There had been friction between Guge and Ladakh for many years, and the invitation was heeded in 1630. The Ladakhi forces laid siege to the almost impenetrable Tsaparang. The King's brother, who was chief lama and thus a staunch Buddhist, advised the pro-Christian ruler to surrender against keeping the state as tributary ruler. This treacherous advice was eventually accepted. Tibetan sources suggest that the Guge population was maintained in their old status.^[7] A legend has it that the Ladakhi army slaughtered most of the people of Guge, about 200 of whom managed to survive and fled to .^[8] The last king Khri bKra shis Grags pa lde was brought to Ladakh as prisoner with his kin, and died there. The King's brother-lama was killed by the Ladakhis. Later on the last male descendant of the dynasty moved to Lhasa where he died in 1743.^[9]

Integration into Tibet[]

Tsaparang and the Guge kingdom were later conquered in 1679–80 by the Lhasa-based Central Tibetan government under the leadership of the 5th Dalai Lama, driving out the Ladakhis.

Historiography[]

Western archeologists heard about Guge again in the 1930s through the work of Italian Giuseppe Tucci. Tucci's work was mainly about the frescoes of Guge. Lama Anagarika Govinda and Li Gotami Govinda visited the kingdom of Guge, including Tholing, and Tsaparang, in 1947–1949. Their tours of Central and Western Tibet are recorded in black-and-white photos.^[10]

Rulers[]

A list of rulers of Guge and the related Ya rtse kingdom has been established by the Tibetologists Luciano Petech and Roberto Vitali^[11]

A. Royal ancestors of the Yarlung dynasty.

(in Central Tibet 842–905) son of Glang Darma
(in Central Tibet 905–910) son
(in Ngari Korsum, c. 912–?) son
(received Ladakh, 10th century) son
(received Zanskar, 10th century) brother

B. Kings of Guge and Purang.

(received Guge and Purang, fl. 947) brother
Srong nge Ye shes 'Od (?–988 or 959–1036) son
(religious leader, d. 1023) son
(religious leader, d. 1026) brother
(988–996) uncle
(996–1024) son
(1024–1037) son
(1037–1057) brother
(religious leader, d. 1111) brother
(1057–1088) son of Byang chub 'od

C. Kings of Ya rtse.

(early 12th century)
(mid-12th century)
(12th century)
(12th century) brother of bTsan phyug lde)
(fl. 1225)
(fl. 1255–1278) son
(fl. 1287–1293) son
(late 13th century) brother
(fl. 1312–1214) son
(early 14th century) son
(1321–1328) son of Jitarimalla
(14th century)
(14th century)
(fl. 1336–1339) of Purang royalty
(fl. 1354–1358) son

D. Kings of Guge.

Ruins of Tsaparang.

(1088 – c. 1095) nephew of Che chen tsha rTse lde
(c. 1095 – early 12th century) son
(before 1137) son
(regent, mid-12th century) brother
(12th century) son of bKra shis rtse
(12th century) son
(12th/13th century) son
(12th/13th century) son
(13th century) probably an outsider
(died c. 1260) of foreign origin
(c. 1260–1265)
(c. 1265–1277) prince from Lho stod
unknown rulers
(c. 1396 – 1424) son of a Guge ruler
(1424–1449) son
(1449–?) son
(died c. 1485) son
(c. 1485 – after 1499) son
(early 16th century) son
(fl. 1537–1555) son?
(16th century) son
(16th century) son
(late 16th century) son
(c. 1600) son
(fl. 1618) son
(before 1622–1630) son
Kingdom conquered by Ladakh (1630)
Kingdom later conquered by Tibet under the Fifth Dalai Lama (1679–1680)

References[]

Specific references:

^ .Snelling, John. (1990). The Sacred Mountain: The Complete Guide to Tibet's Mount Kailas. 1st edition 1983. Revised and enlarged edition, including: Kailas-Manasarovar Travellers' Guide. Forwards by H.H. the Dalai Lama of Tibet and Christmas Humphreys, p. 181. East-West Publications, London and The Hague. ISBN 0-85692-173-4.
^ Beckwith, Christopher I. (2009). Empires of the Silk Road: A History of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present. Princeton University Press. pp. 169–. ISBN 978-0-691-13589-2.
^ Shakabpa, Tibet: A Political History (1984), pp. 56–57.
^ Hoffman, Early and Medieval Tibet (1990), pp. 388, 394; Petech, Ya-ts'e, Gu-ge, Pu-ran (2003), pp. 53–66
^ Petech, Ya-ts'e, Gu-ge, Pu-ran (2003), pp. 42–45, 68–89.
^ McKinnon, John. "The Kingdom of Guge, Western Tibet: an account of its history, Western visitors and significance". www.greenkiwi.co.nz. Retrieved 19 April 2018.
^ Petech, The Kingdom of Ladakh (1977), pp. 44–45.
^ "Guge, a lost kingdom in Tibet". Archived 2012-10-21 at the Wayback Machine
^ Petech, Ya-ts'e, Gu-ge, Pu-ran (2003), p. 44.
^ Li Gotami Govinda, Tibet in Pictures (Berkeley, Dharma Publishing, 1979), 2 volumes.
^ Petech, Ya-ts'e, Gu-ge, Pu-ran (2003); R. Vitali (1996), The kingdoms of Gu.ge Pu.hrang. Dharamsala: Tho.ling gtsug.lag.khang.

General references:

Allen, Charles. (1999) The Search for Shangri-La: A Journey into Tibetan History. Little, Brown and Company. Reprint: 2000 Abacus Books, London. ISBN 0-349-11142-1.

External links[]

[1] "Submerged in the Cosmos" by David Shulman, The New York Review of Books, February 24, 2017, retrieved March 2, 2017.
"Unravelling the mysteries of Guge" by Xiong Lei, China Daily, May 8, 2003, retrieved November 24, 2005

[1] .Snelling, John. (1990). The Sacred Mountain: The Complete Guide to Tibet's Mount Kailas. 1st edition 1983. Revised and enlarged edition, including: Kailas-Manasarovar Travellers' Guide. Forwards by H.H. the Dalai Lama of Tibet and Christmas Humphreys, p. 181. East-West Publications, London and The Hague. ISBN 0-85692-173-4.

[Beckwith2009-2] Beckwith, Christopher I. (2009). Empires of the Silk Road: A History of Central Eurasia from the Bronze Age to the Present. Princeton University Press. pp. 169–. ISBN 978-0-691-13589-2.

[FOOTNOTEShakabpa,_Tibet:_A_Political_History198456–57-3] Shakabpa, Tibet: A Political History (1984), pp. 56–57.

[4] Hoffman, Early and Medieval Tibet (1990), pp. 388, 394; Petech, Ya-ts'e, Gu-ge, Pu-ran (2003), pp. 53–66

[FOOTNOTEPetech,_Ya-ts'e,_Gu-ge,_Pu-ran200342–45,_68–89-5] Petech, Ya-ts'e, Gu-ge, Pu-ran (2003), pp. 42–45, 68–89.

[6] McKinnon, John. "The Kingdom of Guge, Western Tibet: an account of its history, Western visitors and significance". www.greenkiwi.co.nz. Retrieved 19 April 2018.

[FOOTNOTEPetech,_The_Kingdom_of_Ladakh197744–45-7] Petech, The Kingdom of Ladakh (1977), pp. 44–45.

[8] "Guge, a lost kingdom in Tibet". Archived 2012-10-21 at the Wayback Machine

[FOOTNOTEPetech,_Ya-ts'e,_Gu-ge,_Pu-ran200344-9] Petech, Ya-ts'e, Gu-ge, Pu-ran (2003), p. 44.

[10] Li Gotami Govinda, Tibet in Pictures (Berkeley, Dharma Publishing, 1979), 2 volumes.

[11] Petech, Ya-ts'e, Gu-ge, Pu-ran (2003); R. Vitali (1996), The kingdoms of Gu.ge Pu.hrang. Dharamsala: Tho.ling gtsug.lag.khang.

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