Tibetan Texts > Tibetan Texts Technology Workplans > Stylesheets For Front End Catalogs > 'bri Khung Thel
Drikung Thil Monastery ('bri khung thel) in Tibetan Texts Worksite
Alison Melnick, Feb 2007
Drikung Thil Monastery (also called Drikungthil Ogmin Jangchubling Monastery) was founded in 1179 by the Kagyu practitioner Drikung Kyobpa Jigten Gönpo Rinchenpel (1143-1217). Located 150 miles east of Lhasa, the monastery is the seat of the Drikung Kagyu Lineage. Drikung Jigten Gönpo and his nephew (and successor) Ön Sherap Jungne (1187-1217) were both members of the Kyura clan. They began the tradition of holding biannual discourses (called "The Summer and Winter Sessions of the Doctrine") and established Mahamudra and ethical self-discipline as the institutional foci of the tradition. The monastery's main focus was on ritual practice and religious dances at least until the 19th century. Until that time, there were two monastic colleges, the Colleges of Practice of the East and West. The 34th Abbot, Kyabje Zhiwe Lodrö, established the Nyichang Shedra, which focused on scriptural textual study, logic, and debate. The monastery is known for its emphasis on meditation practice (it has many nearby meditation caves), especially tantric practices instituted by Drikung Jigten Gönpo. It is also known for conducting Phöwa. According to one source, meditators traditionally participate in the Six Yogas of Naropa and the "Possessing Five Tradition" (Chö-yang, 1991, pg. 48)
The Drikung Kagyu is one of the eight subsects of the Kagyu tradition (although only a few of these survive today). Named for the monastery and the valley in which it is located, the tradition has a significant presence in Nangchen (eastern Tibet) as well as in western Tibet and Ladakh. Other associated religious sites in Tibet include Drikung Terdrom Nunnery, Drikung Katsel, and Drikung Ogmin Thupten Sherdrup Ling Monastery. The two heads of the tradition are the Drikung Chetsang and Drikung Chungtsang Rinpoches.
During the 13th century, both the Sakya and Kagyu sects were in competition for Tangut patronage. Davidson considers Drikung Jigten Gönpo to be part of the same neoconservative movement as Sakya Pandita and Chaglo Choje-pel (Davidson, 2005, pg. 369).
Sources:
Davidson, Ronald M. Tibetan Renaissance: Tantric Buddhism in the Rebirth of Tibetan Culture. Columbia University Press, 2005.
Yeshi, Pedron & Russell, Jeremy Chö-yang, the voice of Tibetan Religion and Culture Council of Religious and Cultural Affairs of H. H. The Dalai Lama, 1991.
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