(EN) Yumbulagang (Tibetan: ཡུམ་བུ་བླ་སྒང་ also known as Yumbu Lakhang or Yungbulakang Palace) is an ancient palace in the Yarlung Valley, Nêdong County in the vicinity of Zêtang the seat of the prefectural administration of Lhoka (Pinyin: Shannan), in the South of Tibet Autonomous Region of the People's Republic of China.
According to legend it was the first building in Tibet and the palace of the first Tibetan king, Nyatri Tsenpo. Yungbulakang stands on a hill on the eastern bank of the Yarlung River in the Yarlung Valley of southeast Naidong County, about 192 km southeast of Lhasa, and 9 km south of Tsetang. According to a legend of followers of the Bön religion, Yumbulagang was erected in the second century B.C. for the first Tibetan king Nyatri Tsenpo, descended from the sky. During the reign of the 28th king, Lha Thothori Nyantsen, in the fifth century, a golden Stupa, a jewel (and/or a form to the manufacture of dough-Stupas) and a Sutra that no one could read fell from the sky on the roof of Yumbulagang; a voice from the sky announced: in five generations one shall come, that understands its meaning! Later, Yumbulagang became the summer palace of the 33rd king Songtsen Gampo and princess Wencheng. After Songtsen Gampo had transferred his seat to Lhasa, Yumbulagang became a shrine and under the reign of the 5th Dalai Lama, Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso, a monastery of the Gelugpa school.
The Yumbulagang was heavily damaged and reduced to a single storey during the Cultural revolution but was reconstructed in 1983.
VALPARD
Map for Tibet trip :
Journey to Tibet's first Palace Yumbu Lhakhang and first Monastery Samye
Three hours from Lhasa along the northern banks of the Yarlung Tsangpo river stands the Samye Monastery.
Samye was built in the mid 8th century and is the first Buddhist Temple constructed in Tibet in a formerly Bon dominated region. Samye monastery was built under the patronage of King Trisong Detsen by the great Indian Masters Padmasambhava and Shantarakshita.
The lay out of Samye Monastery is in the shape of a giant mandala, the main temple in the centre represents the legendary Mount Meru. In the corners of Samye Monastery are four stupas in the colours white, red, green and black.
One of the highlights at Samye is the Chenrezig Lhakhang, which houses a beautiful statue of Chenrezig with a eye painted on the palm of each of his thousand hands. Samye Monastery contains many precious relics like the hair of Padmasambhava and his walking stick, the skull of Shantarakshita.
The Yarlung Valley (ཡར་ཀླུང་གཞུང་ ,雅鲁流域) has a diverse history, it is considered the cradle of Tibetan civilization. According to legends the first Tibetan king, Nyatri Tsenpo, was believed to have descended here from heaven.
Yumbulhakhang, the first palace in Tibet, is located on the Zhaxi Ceri Mountain in Tsedang, 7 miles from Nedong County in Lhoka Prefecture of Tibet. It has a history of over 2000 years.
The followers of the Bon religion believe that the Yumbulhakhang Palace was erected in the 2 century BC by the first Tibetan king of the Yarlung Dynasty, Nyatri Tsenpo, who was believed to have descended from heaven onto the sacred mountain Yarlha Shampo.
Later Yumbulhakhang Palace became the summer palace of the 33rd ruler of the Yarlung Dynasty King Songtsen Gampo and Princess Wencheng of the Tang Dynasty. King Songsten Gampo built the Potala Palace and Jokhang Temple in Lhasa in Central Tibet. Under the reign of the 5th Dalai Lama of the Gelug School (Yellow Hat tradition) of Tibetan Buddhism, Yumbulhakhang was converted into a monastery for the Gelug school.
On another memorable journey with Geshe Gyaltsen la and Tseyang Khangkar from the Office of His Eminence Khyungser Trichen Rinpoche.
Khyungser Trichen Rinpoche Shangri-la Buddhist Institute
Trandruk Monastery
Built in 7th century，Trandruk Monastery is located in Nêdong County, Lhoka City,China’s Tibet Autonomous Region. It is a Monastery of Gelug Sect of Tibetan Buddhism.The main building in Trandruk is the Tshomchen, in which Padmasambhava is enshrined.