Tsokye Dorje (, 1450–1510) was a regent of

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, ...

who ruled in 1491–1499. He belonged to the

Rinpungpa Rinpungpa (; ) was a Tibetan dynastic regime that dominated much of Western Tibet and part of Ü-Tsang between 1435 and 1565. During one period around 1500 the Rinpungpa lords came close to assemble the Tibetan lands around the Yarlung Tsangpo R ...

family and headed the central government in Nêdong during the minority of the heir of the

Phagmodrupa Dynasty The Phagmodrupa dynasty or Pagmodru (, ; ) was a dynastic regime that held sway over Tibet or parts thereof from 1354 to the early 17th century. It was established by Tai Situ Changchub Gyaltsen of the Lang () family at the end of the Yuan dynast ...

Rinpungpa ascendency

Tsokye Dorje was the fourth son of

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 ...

, who founded the fortunes of the Rinpungpa in 1435. From this time the family dominated political life in the Tsang region (West Central Tibet) at the expense of the Phagmodrupa kings who resided in Nêdong in Ü (East Central Tibet). When Norzang died in 1466, his second 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 ...

took over the leadership of the family, while Tsokye Dorje received the fief Khartog in the

Yarlung Valley The Yarlung Valley is formed by Yarlung Chu, a tributary of the Tsangpo river, Tsangpo River in the Shannan Prefecture in the Tibet Autonomous Region, Tibet region of China. It refers especially to the district where Yarlung Chu joins with the Cho ...

area. The direct influence of the Phagmodrupa was on the wane, and in 1481 one of their line was deposed by his ministers after a Rinpungpa attack. The next ruler

Ngagi Wangpo Ngagi Wangpo (, 1439 – 8 July 1491), also known as Chen-nga Tsenyepa (), was a King of central Tibet who reigned in 1481–1491. He belonged to the Phagmodrupa Dynasty, which was the leading regime of central Tibet from 1354 to 1435 and maintained ...

had a short and turbulent reign, and when he died in 1491 his son

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 ...

was only a boy of three. It was then decided to appoint Tsokye Dorje of the Rinpungpa as regent during his minority. At this time the chief of the Rinpungpa faction was Tsokye Dorje's nephew

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 ...

(1463–1512).

Internal feuding

In spite of the position of Rinpungpa kinsmen in both Tsang and Ü, the political turmoil in

Central Tibet Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known as ...

continued. In 1492 Donyo Dorje invaded Ü and captured three districts. In 1498 he captured

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 ...

where his forces maintained Rinpungpa power until 1517. The Rinpungpa were intimately allied to the

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 ' ...

sect. 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 ...

monks of

Drepung Drepung Monastery (, "Rice Heap Monastery"), located at the foot of Mount Gephel, is one of the "great three" Gelug university gompas (monasteries) of Tibet. The other two are Ganden Monastery and Sera Monastery. Drepung is the largest of all ...

and Sera were therefore impeded from celebrating the annual

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 ...

festival during the occupation of Lhasa. Finally, in 1499, several officers under Donyo Dorje convened in Nêdong and decided to enthrone the Phagmodrupa heir Ngawang Tashi Drakpa. Tsokye Dorje appears to have handed over power without making trouble, and eventually died in 1510. He may have had an appeasing influence on political affairs, since his demise immediately triggered a violent conflict between Donyo Dorje and Ngawang Tashi Drakpa.Giuseppe Tucci, 1971, p. 229. A son of Tsokye Dorje,

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 ...

, later became the leader of the Rinpungpa faction.

References

{{Phagmodrupa rulers Phagmodrupa dynasty 15th-century Tibetan people 16th-century Tibetan people 1510 deaths Year of birth unknown 1450 births

Rinpungpa ascendency

Internal feuding

See also

References