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A Tibetan Buddhist Monastery at the Crossroads Of 548 PART VI. MODERN TIBET 叫 Ku吨， Th e Hi时orzcal Account of Mcdern Minorities' Economy in China, 135 130. 105. 1 iiη＝ -5 kilogram. 1。6. Samuel，“Tibet as a Stateless Society and Some Islamic Parallels," 221 n. 10. 1。手Li，“Dege, A Study of Tibetan Population," 2f ,. 108. Mgo log is the name of a nomadic tribe that had an exceptional reputation as fighters. For an interesting article on its leadership in the early twentieth centurv, see “ Lcdey Lhaw吨 The Conf< Lungta of Colok," 8 (1992?). Cha卢ter 30 1c9. Rockhill，“Tibet, A Geographical, Ethr】ographical and Historical Sketch,' 232…233- J。 Rockhill，“Tibet, A Geog阻pl阳1, Ethnog即h口l and Histor 1 Sketch,' LAB丑ANG 210-217 m. See Sichuansheng bia叫izu, A Socio-Historical Imestigation of the Tibetans in Ga Prefecture, Sichuan Province, Land and zn Tibet, A ηzi 106 112; and Carrasco, p。lity TIBETAN BUDDHIST MONASTERY AT THE CROSSROADS OF 147 151. FOUR CIVILIZATIONS 112. Karma rgyal mtshan, ed., A Brief Religious His臼巾，Sc 83. C.f. Li，“Dege, A Study of Tibetan Pop飞，lation，”283 285, who recorded thirty』our monasteries in the Paul Nie句卢ski 盯ea of Sde dge lying east of the 'Bri chu (Yangzi Rive叶and classified them on the basis of their nomadic or agricultural location. A useful source岛r tracing these names is Peter Kessl町， Laufende Arbeiten zu einem etlznohistoηschen Atlas Tibets (EA 40,1 . historischen Konigreiche Lin und Derge going Work Toward an 町 Die g [Cη Ethno hi.storical Atlas of Tibet (EAF) 40,1, the Historic Kingdoms Ling and Derge], XI, If there is no easily recognizable state apparatus in the northeast that we might readily 143 S., I刀， Kt. + 2 Beil., z Kt. Beil (Rikon/Zlirich, Tibet-Inst, 19句） compare with the Central Tibetan government, what was the political structure of ’ ’ n3. ')am dpal blo gros, Dpal sprul, Bed na bzhugs 户a irnyingma z dgon deb [Record Amdo? This e臼ay by Paul Nietupski, a portion of his自rst book-length treatment of o{N ma Monasteries －民 ）＇ηg in Tibet] (Dalhousie, Paltul )ampal Lod时，1965), 79 Labrang monastery, offers the beginnings of an answer. The book focuses o口the sur­ 轨 目 n4- Li，“Dege, A Study of Tibetan Population，” 285. viving photographs taken by出e Griebeno s, a Protestant mi ionary family active u5.’）am dpal blo gros, Record ofNyingma Monasteries in Tibet, 86. around Labrang in the early twentieth century. The p』otographs are an important source for this history in their own right, and bear detailed investigation. Here Niet­ n6. Li，“Dege, A Study ofTihetan Population," 283. ’ u7. Li’“Dege, A Study 。fTibetan Population," 235- upski offersan overview ofLabra吨as a political cer由r. )ust as the last e臼町 s study of ” u8. Li，“Dege, A Study of Tibetan Populati。n 288. the Derge kingdom represented a typical pattern for the Kham region, this essay on u9. Sichuansheng bianjizu, A Socio Historical Inv臼tigation of the Tibetans in Labrang represents a typical pattern forAmdo, there were few principalities or k旧t Ganzi Prefecture, S灿uan Province，时 doms,。 but many monasteries that held real political power. Labrang, for instance, 120. Sichuansheng bianjizu, A Socio-Historical Investigation of the Tibetans in c ntrolled an area about the size of Switzerland, through a complicated network of Ganzi Prefecture, Sic/man Province. estates, subordinate rulers and monasteries, and representative political envoys. The multiethnic nature of the frontier in Amdo 机as especially important to 等罄 Labrang's development. First, the Mongols who ruled Amdo until 1724 were key to ’ the monastery s foundationand later continued their support. In fact, the main spnn­ “ sor, the Khoshud Mongol Prince Erdeni )inong, known in Chinese as the Henan 在主这 Qir ang, decision to forego participation in the 1723俨24 uprising against the Qing meant that Labrang experieηced growth at a time when most of the other maj。r monasteries in Ar扪才。had been destroi ed and were trying to rebuild. Later, in the twentieth century, ܇ 550 PART VJ. MODERN TIBET A ibetan Buddhist Monastery at the Crossroads of Four Civilizations 551 cooperation with the Chinese 叭 as necessary as well, especially in the faceof Muslim The monastery itself, by far the largest aηd most influential political and re­ agg而且ion. ligious institution in Amdo in the first half of this century, is located on the Sangchu river, a tributary of the Yellow river, on the Xiahe or Kalawat plateau, Labrang monastery is located in the Amdo region ofTib时， more specifically in just south of the H山market town of Linxia. It is about 103 kilometers from what Tibetans refer to as Khagya Tsodruk. Amdo occupi臼 the northeast corner Linxia, and about 285 kilometers west-southwest from Lanzhou, the capital city of the Tibetan Plateau, north of the steep valleys and high pa白白 of Kham, and of Gansu province. There were trails to the other border towns, Chone (Choni) east of the high Northern Plains ofTibet. Most of Amdo, including the Labrang and Songpan to the south, to theTibetan highlands to the west a口d southwest, region, averages over 10,oc o feet above sea level, and has the severe climate and to Kumbum, other monasteries and Xining city to the northwest, to local towns unique vegetation, animal life, and ecosystem peculiar to high-altitude envi east of Labrang, and to Lanzhou. ronments. The mo口astery itself is located at a』out 8,400 feet (2,820 meters) Few a_ccurate population statistics exist for Labrang in the early twentieth above sea level. The Labrang region of Amdo borders on China, Muslim ter­ century, much less forearlier times. Apa Alo, the local leader during the Griebe­ ritories and Mo口golia. It is also near the Hexi corridor section of the ancient now mission, describing Amdo in the early twentieth century, gives some at "Silk Road，＇’the main conduit for economic, military, and cultural exchanges least approximate data: 』etween Asia and Europe. The Griebenows and all foreignvisitors marveled at the variety and numbers Amdo consists of about two million square kilometers of territory, 2 1s sur­ of animal and plant species in Amdo and Labrang. It was a wild, rugged land, rounded by mountains, notably the Amnye Machen mountains. According “ 1日 this respect analogous to the early North American Wild West," or Alaska. to estimates made in the 193cs there were about 6co ethnic groups in Untapped and seemingly unlimited resources in remote places with severe cli Amdo. The political structure can be roughly described as a regionally vari mates populated by tough, intensely territorial mountain people with a strange able mixture of large estates or small kingdoms with inherited titles and religious culture all gave an exotic image to the Labrang region of Amdo in the powe白，towns built up around major monasteries, and open, unsettled ter­ eyes of foreignvisitors. ritori臼 claimed by groupsof nomads. There were altogether about one and ’ Labrang monastery s natural setting is indeed striking. It is located in a high a half million people in Amdo. Buddhism was the primary religion.3 valley that descends from the 18,000-foot-high glacier-capped peaks that sur­ round the Tibetan Plateau. The upper passes are narrow，. 』ut they widen into Labrang Monastery was a口 importantTibetan cultural center and an impor­ high plateaus with grassy plains suitable for livestock in the summer months. tant trading center located at a strategic intersection of major ethnic groups. Valleys below the tree line separate into forests that teemed with wildlife in the first halt of the twentieth century. Labrang monastery itself stands in a relatively 口 恒 臼 na ow, winding valley amidst fields of barley and 11 gra es once surrounded ’ LABRANG S CULTURAL HERITAGE by evergreen forests. In the early twentieth century neighboring regions were ac­ cess1』le only by narrow trails along steep gorges; there were no roads to Labrang The Tibetan Buddhists describe the Sangchu valley in poetic terms. The.valley until 1940. The Labrang valley continues to twist down in elevation to the is visualized as more than just a valley; the eight Buddhist auspicious signs4 and northeast, finally ending in the Yellow river lowlands in nearby China. Nearly the seven attributes of royalty5 are implicit in the mountain peaks, and in the all sources describe the descent along this valley as a place where the culture twisting, forested valleys, rivers, and high plains. Certainly this se口se of inspira­ obviously changes fromTibetan to Chinese. This cultural geography confirms tion fromthe environment is not misplaced, nor is the image of a jewel of Bud­ the comment that most Tibetans live on the Tibetan Plateau and the Chinese dhist dharma in a remo恒 high-alt阳de mountai川alley, since Labrang mona由ry prefer the lower elevations, each choosing the environment more c011ducive to was a major center ofTibetan religious culture, with a rich and distinctive heri­ the maintenance of their cultures and lifestyles.1 tage. The enchanting image is reinforcedby the predicti。ns which the Tibetans The Amdo region boasts ma口y rivers, including the Drichu (Yangtze) and the findin classical Indian Buddhist literature about Buddhism coming to Labrang. 6 Maclrn (Yellow）口vers. The Yellow river valley passes through the center of the These visions and predictions have been living forcenturies in Amdo's religious Labrang region, from the Ragya monaste可down to the confluenceof the Yellow history and cultural imagination. and Sangchu (Xiahe) rivers ，口ot far from L劝阻ng monastery and modern』 day Long before La』rang monastery was founded, Amdo's culture was diverse: Lanzhou. This region contained the greatest number of monasteri臼 m Amdo, Chinese Buddhism from the Tang dynasty courts had considerable influence including Labrang. in the region, the pre-Tibetan Bon religion was established throughout Amdo, tan Buddhist Monaste at Crossroads of Fo町 Civilizations 552 PART VI.
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