Rinpungpa (; ) was a

Tibet Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa people, ...

an dynastic regime that dominated much of Western Tibet and part of

Ü-Tsang Ü-Tsang is one of the three traditional provinces of Tibet, the others being Amdo in the north-east, and Kham in the east. Ngari (including former Guge kingdom) in the north-west was incorporated into Ü-Tsang. Geographically Ü-Tsang covere ...

between 1435 and 1565. During one period around 1500 the Rinpungpa lords came close to assemble the Tibetan lands around the

Yarlung Tsangpo River The Yarlung Tsangpo, also called Yarlung Zangbo () is the upper stream of the Brahmaputra River located in the Tibet Autonomous Region, China. It is the longest river of Tibet and the fifth longest in China. The upper section is also called Da ...

under one authority, but their powers receded after 1512.

Rise to power

The Rinpungpa belonged to the Ger () clan, which is traced back to the days of the

Tibetan Empire The Tibetan Empire (, ; ) was an empire centered on the Tibetan Plateau, formed as a result of imperial expansion under the Yarlung dynasty heralded by its 33rd king, Songtsen Gampo, in the 7th century. The empire further expanded under the 38 ...

. One of their line, Namkha Gyaltsen, served as ''nanglon'' (minister of internal affairs) under the Phagmodrupa ruler

Jamyang Shakya Gyaltsen Jamyang Shakya Gyaltsen (, 1340–1373) was a ruler of Central Tibet in 1364–1373. He was a member of the Phagmodrupa Dynasty which was the major Tibetan power from 1354 to 1435. His time was one of political stability in Central Tibet, and the es ...

, who held power over Ü-Tsang. He was appointed ''dzongpon'' (governor) of the fief Rinpung in Rong, a region in Tsang in an unknown year before 1373. His political position was strengthened by the marriage with the Phagmodrupa princess Sönam Palmö. Their daughter in turn was given in marriage to Sangye Gyaltsen, a Phagmodrupa prince, and gave birth to the later ruler

Drakpa Jungne Drakpa Jungne (, 1414–1445) was a king of central Tibet who ruled in 1432–1445. He belonged to the Phagmodrupa Dynasty which was the leading regime in Tibet from 1354 to 1435, and exerted some influence until the early 17th century. His reign sa ...

(r. 1432–1445). The son of Namkha Gyaltsen was Namkha Gyalpo who took over the Rinpung estate at the age of 14 and held a number of ministerial positions. He was succeeded in 1413 by his young son

Norzang Norzang (1403–1466), in full Norbu Zangpo (), was the founder of the power of the Rinpungpa Dynasty in Central Tibet. Religious activities Norzang was the son of Namkha Gyalpo, the chief of the Rinpung fief in Tsang (West Central Tibet). His g ...

, a strong personality who expanded the fortunes of the family on a Tibet-wide level. He increased his control over territories in Shang, Tag, Ling and Kyur and was the patron of the Jamchen Monastery, founded in 1427. He also founded the Kyemotsal Monastery in Dzongkar in 1437. The Rinpungpa took advantage of a family feud within the Phagmodrupa Dynasty in 1434. With the united troops from Rong and Shang, Norzang seized the important place Samdrubtse, modern

Shigatse Shigatse, officially known as Xigazê (; Nepali: ''सिगात्से''), is a prefecture-level city of the Tibet Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China. Its area of jurisdiction, with an area of , corresponds to the histor ...

, from the governor of the Chonggye family. This is traditionally said to have taken place in 1435, though the more likely date is 1446. Samdrubtse was a very strategic spot and the key to power over Tsang. In the following years Norzang expanded his influence over Tsang, Rong and Shang. His kinsman, the Phagmodrupa king

Kunga Lekpa Kunga Lekpa (, 1433–1483) was a King of central Tibet who ruled from 1448 to 1481. He belonged to the Phagmodrupa Dynasty, which was the leading political regime in central Tibet from 1354 to 1435, and retained a certain political status until the ...

(r. 1448–1481) was born from a Rinpung princess and in turn married a Rinpungpa daughter. He was not able to stop the advances of his powerful vassal. Norzang himself married Kunga Lekpa's sister, further emphasizing the elaborated net of kinship ties between the two families. While still acknowledging the Phagmodrupa, the Rinpungpa subsequently built up a strong position, bearing the title ''desi'' (regent).

Confrontation and invasion

The increasing importance of the

Buddhist Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and ...

sects in this period made it crucial for secular rulers to seek support from religious networks. In Tibetan

historiography Historiography is the study of the methods of historians in developing history as an academic discipline, and by extension is any body of historical work on a particular subject. The historiography of a specific topic covers how historians ha ...

the members of the family are famous as the patrons of the

Karma Kagyu Karma Kagyu (), or Kamtsang Kagyu (), is a widely practiced and probably the second-largest lineage within the Kagyu school, one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The lineage has long-standing monasteries in Tibet, China, Russia, Mon ...

school of

Buddhism Buddhism ( , ), also known as Buddha Dharma and Dharmavinaya (), is an Indian religion or philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha. It originated in northern India as a -movement in the 5th century BCE, and gra ...

, which was sometimes opposed to the

Gelugpa 240px, The 14th Dalai Lama (center), the most influential figure of the contemporary Gelug tradition, at the 2003 Bodhgaya (India). The Gelug (, also Geluk; "virtuous")Kay, David N. (2007). ''Tibetan and Zen Buddhism in Britain: Transplantati ...

. However, the early Rinpungpa lords supported other sects such as

Sakya The ''Sakya'' (, 'pale earth') school is one of four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism, the others being the Nyingma, Kagyu, and Gelug. It is one of the Red Hat Orders along with the Nyingma and Kagyu. Origins Virūpa, 16th century. It depict ...

and its important philosopher

Gorampa Gorampa Sonam Senge (, 1429–1489Dreyfus (2003) p.301) was an important philosopher in the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism. He was the author of a vast collection of commentaries on sutra and tantra whose work was influential throughout Tibetan B ...

. After the death of Norzang in 1466 the fortunes of the Rinpungpa took a downturn for a while under his obscure son

Kunzang Kunzang (1445 – c. 1479), in full Kuntu Zangpo (), was a prince of the Rinpungpa Dynasty that wielded power in Tsang (West Central Tibet). He was the second son of Norzang, the founder of the power of the family, and the Phagmodrupa princess Y ...

. This person died in the 1470s and was succeeded by

Donyo Dorje Donyo Dorje () (1463 – 23 March 1512) was the third and most powerful prince of the Rinpungpa Dynasty that held power in much of Central Tibet from 1479 to 1512. Succession and religious patronate Donyo Dorje was the second son of the previous ...

, the most powerful figure of the line. While pursuing an aggressive and warlike policy to achieve domination over Central Tibet, he also stood out as a religious patron. Thus he sponsored the foundation of the

Yangpachen Monastery Yangpachen Monastery is a Tibetan Buddhist monastery in Yangpachen (Tibetan: ''yangs pa can''; ''Thub btsan yangs pa can''), in the Lhasa Prefecture of Tibet. It is historically the seat of the Shamarpas of Karma Kagyü. It is about southeast ...

for the

Shamarpa The Shamarpa (; literally, "Person (i.e. Holder) of the Red Crown"), also known as ''Shamar Rinpoche'', or more formally Künzig Shamar Rinpoche, is a lineage holder of the Karma Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism and is regarded to be the mind ma ...

hierarch of the Karma Kagyu sect. This included comprehensive economic dispositions; 2,800 nomadic households were donated to the Shamarpa for providing butter-lamp offerings, and all the monks of Yangpachen were granted a daily measure of

barley Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley pr ...

. His policy towards the Phagmodrupa was one of confrontation. The king Kunga Lekpa lived in a conflict-ridden marriage with the Rinpung princess, which added to the rift. Her kinsman Donyo Dorje eventually invaded the central domain of the king in 1480. In the following year a conference was convened in the Phagmodrupa capital Nêdong where the Rinpung princes participated. In the end Kunga Lekpa was forced to abdicate in favour of a nephew, a relative non-entity.

Height of political authority

The agreement did not put an end to the endemic political turbulence in Central Tibet. The Rinpungpa proceeded to defeat various regional lords and increase their power. In 1485 they attacked the important estate

Gyangtse Gyantse, officially Gyangzê Town (also spelled Gyangtse; ; ), is a town located in Gyantse County, Shigatse Prefecture, Tibet Autonomous Region, China. It was historically considered the third largest and most prominent town in the Tibet region ( ...

and captured the lord of Yung. New turbulence arose in 1489 and again allowed the Rinpungpa to keep the upper hand. Two years later Donyo Dorje's uncle

Tsokye Dorje Tsokye Dorje (, 1450–1510) was a regent of Tibet who ruled in 1491–1499. He belonged to the Rinpungpa family and headed the central government in Nêdong during the minority of the heir of the Phagmodrupa Dynasty. Rinpungpa ascendency Tsokye ...

took power as regent in the Phagmodrupa seat Nêdong (1491–1499) during the minority of the heir

Ngawang Tashi Drakpa Ngawang Tashi Drakpa (, 1488–1564) was a king of Tibet who ruled in 1499–1554 and 1556/57–1564. He belonged to the Phagmodrupa Dynasty which was the dominating regime in Tibet from 1354 to 1435 and maintained a degree of authority until the ea ...

. The years around 1500 saw the high tide of Rinpungpa power, and the authority of Donyo Dorje was almost absolute, being supported by the Karmapa and Shamarpa hierarchs. There was also a political expansion to the west. In 1499 the important kingdom of

Guge Guge (; ) 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 ...

Ngari Ngari Prefecture () or Ali Prefecture () is a prefecture of China's Tibet Autonomous Region covering Western Tibet, whose traditional name is Ngari Khorsum. Its administrative centre and largest settlement is the town of Shiquanhe. History Ngar ...

(West Tibet) had to acknowledge the Rinpungpa.

Setbacks in the east

Due to pressure from the Rinpungpa, who favoured the Karma Kagyu, the Gelugpa school were forbidden to participate in the new year celebration and the great

Monlam Monlam also known as The Great Prayer Festival, falls on 4th–11th day of the 1st Tibetan month in Tibetan Buddhism. History The event of Monlam in Tibet was established in 1409 by Tsong Khapa, the founder of the Geluk tradition. As the greates ...

ceremony in

Lhasa Lhasa (; Lhasa dialect: ; bo, text=ལྷ་ས, translation=Place of Gods) is the urban center of the prefecture-level city, prefecture-level Lhasa (prefecture-level city), Lhasa City and the administrative capital of Tibet Autonomous Regio ...

between 1498 and 1517. After the deaths of the powerful princes Tsokye Dorje (1510) and Donyo Dorje (1512), however, the power of the Rinpungpa declined. In spite of Rinpungpa patronage the hierarchs of the Karma Kagyu,

Karmapa The Karmapa (honorific title '' His Holiness the Gyalwa'' ��ྒྱལ་བ་, Victorious One''Karmapa'', more formally as ''Gyalwang'' ��ྒྱལ་དབང་ཀརྨ་པ་, King of Victorious Ones''Karmapa'', and informally as the ' ...

and

, were adverse to being closely controlled by the secular lords. They therefore strove to once again stabilize the long-effaced Phagmodrupa rule. In the early sixteenth century Ngawang Tashi Drakpa of the Phagmodrupa managed to regain a degree of influence, pushing out the new Rinpung lords Zilnonpa and

Ngawang Namgyal Ngawang Namgyal (later granted the honorific Zhabdrung Rinpoche, approximately "at whose feet one submits") (; alternate spellings include ''Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel''; 1594–1651) and known colloquially as The Bearded Lama, was a Tibetan Buddh ...

from Lhasa. He was friendly disposed to the Gelugpa leader

Gedun Gyatso Gedun Gyatso, also Gendun Gyatso Palzangpo (, "Sublimely Glorious Ocean of Spiritual Aspirants", layname: Yonten Phuntsok; 1475–1542), was considered posthumously to have been the second Dalai Lama. Early life Gedun Gyatso was born near Shig ...

(posthumously counted as the second

Dalai Lama Dalai Lama (, ; ) is a title given by the Tibetan people to the foremost spiritual leader of the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" school of Tibetan Buddhism, the newest and most dominant of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. The 14th and current Dal ...

), which at this stage did not exclude heartily relations with the Karma Kagyu. The direct power of Rinpungpa in Ü (East Central Tibet) was henceforth limited.

External threats and fall from power

An agreement between the factions of Ü and Tsang was reached in 1518. The nominal head of the Rinpungpa, the boy Zilnonpa, asked the king for investiture as ''dzongpon'', and such was given. In fact, however, the Rinpungpa continued to wield power over Tsang on their own accord. The following decades were marked by a confusing succession of clashes and temporary reconciliations between the factions of Central Tibet. In 1532 the Rinpungpa domains were briefly threatened by an invasion by the

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

general

Mirza Muhammad Haidar Dughlat Mirza Muhammad Haidar Dughlat Beg (Persian: میرزا محمد حیدر دولت بیگ c. 1499/1500 – 1551) was a Chagatai Turco-Mongol military general, governor of Kashmir, and a historical writer, He was a Turkic speaking Dughlat prince w ...

, operating on the orders of

Sultan Said Khan Sultan Said Khan (; 1487–1533) ruled the Yarkent Khanate from September 1514 to July 1533. He was born in the late 15th century in Moghulistan, and he was a direct descendant of the first Moghul Khan, Tughlugh Timur, who had founded the state ...

, the ruler of

Kashgar Kashgar ( ug, قەشقەر, Qeshqer) or Kashi ( zh, c=喀什) is an oasis city in the Tarim Basin region of Southern Xinjiang. It is one of the westernmost cities of China, near the border with Afghanistan, Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan and Pakistan ...

. The waning of Rinpungpa power was marked by an abortive invasion of the Mangyül Gungthang kingdom in West Tibet in 1555, which was badly defeated. In 1557 one of the retainers of the Rinpungpa,

Karma Tseten Karma Tseten (; ) (died 1599), also known as Zhingshak Tseten Dorje () 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 from 1565 to 1642. Karma ruled du ...

, who was governor of Shigatse since 1548, rebelled against his lord. In 1565, finally, the learned and cultivated Rinpungpa ruler

Ngawang Jigme Drakpa Ngawang Jigme Drakpa () (died 1597) was the last ruling prince of Tsang (West Central Tibet) of the Rinpungpa Dynasty. He was also a renowned author. His increasingly chaotic reign ended in 1565, when the Tsangpa dynasty deprived the Rinpungpa of t ...

was defeated by Karma Tseten though a surprise attack. In that way Karma Tseten founded the new

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 their own name. The regime was founded by Karma Tseten, a low-born retainer of the prince of the Rinpungpa Dynasty ...

Dynasty which would rule large parts of Central Tibet up to 1642. The Rinpungpa survived in their heartland Rong and periodically tried to revive their fortune. They staged an abortive attack on Kyishö in Ü in 1575 and quarreled with the Tsangpa ruler in the next few years. After the Tsang-Rong war of 1589 their power was exhausted, and they were forced to capitulate in 1590. Local Rinpungpa princes are known up to the early 17th century.

Legacy

The significance of the Rinpungpa is difficult to assess due to the terseness of the written sources. They upheld political hegemony in Tsang for 120–130 years, but little is known in detail of administrative and economic issues. Their relationship with the Chinese

Ming Dynasty The Ming dynasty (), officially the Great Ming, was an Dynasties in Chinese history, imperial dynasty of China, ruling from 1368 to 1644 following the collapse of the Mongol Empire, Mongol-led Yuan dynasty. The Ming dynasty was the last ort ...

seems to have been indirect at best. The most detailed account, ''The New Red Annals'' (1538), was written by Panchen Sonam Dragpa who extolled the achievements of the Phagmodrupa kings at the expense of the Rinpung lords, who were depicted as a destabilizing, power-hungry force. One may note, however, that their grab of power only began after the Phagmodrupa regime had started to decline due to internal squabbles. The chronicle of the

Fifth Dalai Lama Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso (; ; 1617–1682) was the 5th Dalai Lama and the first Dalai Lama to wield effective temporal and spiritual power over all Tibet. He is often referred to simply as the Great Fifth, being a key religious and temporal leader ...

, ''The Song of the Spring Queen'' (1643), gives a more balanced picture: although sometimes characterized as devious and beset by "fierce pride", the rulers had great cultural and religious interests. They funded new monasteries, commissioned precious artwork such as gilded

Buddha Siddhartha Gautama, most commonly referred to as the Buddha, was a śramaṇa, wandering ascetic and religious teacher who lived in South Asia during the 6th or 5th century BCE and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition, he was ...

s and

thangka A ''thangka'', variously spelled as ''thangka'', ''tangka'', ''thanka'', or ''tanka'' (; Tibetan: ཐང་ཀ་; Nepal Bhasa: पौभा), is a Tibetan Buddhist painting on cotton, silk appliqué, usually depicting a Buddhist deity, scene, ...

s, and at least one of them,

(d. 1597), was a gifted author whose works are still read. Ngag-dBang Blo-bZang rGya-mTSHo (1995), ''A history of Tibet''. Bloomington: Indiana University, pp. 161-5. The family eventually fell from power for the same reasons as the Phagmodrupa: they had to uphold a fragile balance among autonomous local lords which broke down when a number of dissatisfied elements sided with the new

polity.

List of rulers

1435–1466 *

1466–c. 1479 (son) *

c. 1479–1512 (son) *

1512–1544 (son of Tsokye Dorje, a son of Norzang) * Dondup Tseten Dorje 1544–? (son) *

1547–1565 (brother)

References

Citations

Sources

Hugh E. Richardson Hugh Edward Richardson (22 December 1905 – 3 December 2000) was an Indian Civil Service officer, British diplomat and Tibetologist. His academic work focused on the history of the Tibetan empire, and in particular on epigraphy. He was am ...

(1962), ''Tibet and its History'', London: Oxford University Press. * Tsepon W. D. Shakabpa (1967), ''Tibet: A Political History'', New Haven & London: Yale University Press. *

Giuseppe Tucci Giuseppe Tucci (; 5 June 1894 – 5 April 1984) was an Italian orientalist, Indologist and scholar of East Asian studies, specializing in Tibetan culture and the history of Buddhism. During its zenith, Tucci was a supporter of Italian fascism ...

(1949), ''Tibetan Painted Scrolls'', Roma: La Libreria dello Stato. * bSod nams grags pa; edited by

(1971), ''Deb t'er dmar po gsar ma'', Roma: IsMEO.
4 - The Pagmodru, Rinpung, and Tsangpa Hegemonies
A Survey of Tibetan History by Alexander Berzin, Study Buddhism. {{Tibet topics Tibetan kings History of Tibet Former countries in Chinese history Former monarchies of Asia 15th century in Tibet 16th century in Tibet