Fresh Face of a Seasoned Seminary

by Chen Biao

Labrang Monastery in western Xiahe County of Gannan Tibetan Autonomous Prefecture， Gansu Province， known as the world seminary of Tibetan Buddhism， is currently undergoing its biggest renovation in 300 years. “On September 17， 2012， the protection and renovation project for Labrang Monastery was launched，” reveals Sonam Je， deputy head of Xiahe County Administrative Bureau of Culture， Sports， Radio， Film， and Television. “In addition to the annual investment， the central government earmarked 305 million yuan in the renovation， and the whole project is expected to last seven or eight years.”

A Closer Look of Labrang Monastery

Why was such a huge sum of money invested in renovating a monastery？ A closer look at the structure may provide some insight.

In the Tibetan language， “Labrang”means “residence of Living Buddhas.” The monastery stands on a rolling mountain that resembles the shape of a phoenix， inspiring its name， “Phoenix Mountain.”Facing Phoenix Mountain is Dragon Mountain which was also named after its shape. The Daxia River flows between the two mountains and forms a semicircular basin. Tibetan people call the place Tashi Basin， a name with auspicious undertones. In 1709， Jamyang， the first Living Buddha of Labrang， founded the monastery with his followers.

Over the past 300 years， the monastery has consistently expanded. Now， it is comprised of six institutes， 48 halls and rooms for the Living Buddhas and 12，000 rooms for lamas. Classified by functionality， the complex is divided into five sections， including sutra halls， Buddha halls， residences of Living Buddhas， bedrooms for lamas， and rooms for other functions.

Labrang Monastery is one of the six ancestral monasteries of the Gelugpa （Yellow） Sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Labrang has preserved six traditional institutes， namely the Institute of Exotoric Buddhism， the Higher Institute of Theology， the Lower Institute of Theology， the Institute of Kalachakra， the Institute of Hevajra， and the Institute of Medicine.

Of the six， the Institute of Exotoric Buddhism is the largest， and focuses only on its namesake. The other five are smaller and teach esoteric Buddhism. The major difference between exotoric and esoteric Buddhism is that the exotoric sect emphasizes philosophy that can be imparted to anyone. Students are free to debate tenets of the religion and can even pursue the equivalent of a doctorate degree. Requirements for practicing esoteric Buddhism are much more rigid. Without tutors guidance and abhisheka （a method for performing esoteric transmission）， esoteric Buddhism cannot be passed on to others or practiced in public. The highest degree a student can earn in esoteric Buddhism is a bachelors degree. A lama can start his studies at the Institute of Exotoric Buddhism before transferring to one of the other five institutes. However， if a lama first studies esoteric Buddhism， he is not allowed to transfer to the Exotoric Institute.

The Institute of Exotoric Buddhism places emphasis on listening to sutras and meditating， both methods of practicing Buddhism. The Institute of Exotoric Buddhism was the first to be constructed after Jamyang founded the monastery， and also the largest in terms of scale and enroll-ment. Many lamas come to the institute to study， and at peak times， the number reaches about 3，000.

Of the five institutes of esoteric Buddhism， rules in the Higher Institute of Theology and the Lower Institute of Theology are highly strict and complicated. Lamas must agree to follow specific procedures and take oaths before they are admitted. They also must follow a number of rules during their studies. For instance， lamas are forbidden to wear silk， eat too much， or even make noises while eating. They are also required to hold alms bowls in hand when eating， hold a stick when going out， and keep their heads down when walking.

“Kalachakra” means reincarnation in Tibetan Buddhism， and also alludes to the existence of reality passing in a flash like the wheel of time. The Institute of Kalachakra teaches astrology， language， poetry， calligraphy， and music. Perhaps the most important task of the institute is constructing Tibetan calendars for upcoming years.

Hevajra， also called Happy Vajra， is a yidam of Anuttara Yoga in Tibetan Buddhism. The Institute of Hevajra is a comprehensive art school that teaches Tibetan grammar， calligraphy， music， dance， and mandala sand painting.

In the Institute of Medicine， students learn how to treat patients as well as how to collect and process Tibetan medicine and study Buddhist sutras along with medical books. Every summer and autumn， lamas trek into the fields to collect medicinal herbs.

The defining feature of Tibetan Buddhism at Labrang Monastery is its systematic teaching methods perfected over centuries of development. All six institutes retain religious discipline as their foundations. Today， the monastery houses a collection of 30，000 Buddhist statues， 70，000 sutra holders， and a wealth of murals， embroideries， and scroll paintings. The monastery is also home to about 65，000 volumes of sutras and books， covering fields such as philosophy， esoteric Buddhism， medicine， poetry， history， biography， rhetoric， and astronomy.

Careful Renovation

The current renovation project for Labrang Monastery includes protection and repair of cultural relics， infrastructure enhancement， and construction of supporting facilities. Despite recent repairs of the monastery， the mud and wood structure remains in urgent need of attention due to cracks and leaks brought by the passage of time. Murals have also been damaged.

Since this is the biggest maintenance and repair project in the monasterys 300-year history， its staff， the engineering group， and the local government lacked relevant experience. Sonam Je visited other places to learn from successful renovations， such as the Potala Palace in Lhasa， and found huge differences between projects. “The Potala Palace used‘Aga soil， a traditional Tibetan construction material featuring a mixture of water， earth， rubble and butter，” he explains. Labrang Monastery used a different material when it was first built， which created problems in the form of cracks on roofs and walls， although it prevents leaks better than many materials.

Just two days before China Pictorials interview， Sonam met with engineers to discuss how to use the Aga soil in Labrangs renovation. Considering the huge differences in terms of natural conditions between the Potala Palace and Labrang Monastery such as altitude， climate， and sunlight， Sonam faces some difficult decisions. “Even the soil used in the renovation of the Potala Palace was modified. Now， we need to choose between improved traditional techniques and totally modified material.”

Renovation of the six institutes， 20 badly-damaged Buddhist halls， and residences of Living Buddhas remain major cultural relic protection tasks. “We will finish all the preparatory work by the end of 2012， and the whole project will commence next April，”predicted Sonam. The Cultural Relics Man- agement Committee of the monastery has been in charge of regular repairs over recent years. Lamas from the committee insisted that for this renovation， they would make all-out efforts to recruit top-notch craftsmen. Stonemasons from Xunhua Salar Autonomous County， Qinghai Province， are known for their skill and experience， and have repaired the monastery in previous years. For carpenters， they looked to Linxia Hui Autonomous Prefecture in Gansu Province. Skilled carpenters from that area are familiar with wooden structures in Labrang Monastery and can produce work on par with the lofty standards of the renovation. Timber used in the renovation must also be carefully selected. Currently， the monastery is searching for a suitable selection from forests all over the country.

Another problem remains. The maintenance and restoration of various Tibetanstyle paintings and murals in the main halls of the monastery are still in the design stage. It is not easy to find workers qualified to restore the art works.

“Also， we must take seasonal factors into consideration and large-scale religious activities must not be affected，” adds Sonam. Three to four important religious activities are scheduled to take place in the Great Golden-tiled Hall， a major structure of the monastery， between the end of 2012 and early May 2013， and renovation should stop during these activities. When major structures are being repaired， religious observances will be inevitably affected.“We need to explain this to practitioners and reopen the structures as soon as repair work finishes.”

It is estimated that the entire renovation project will last seven to eight years. “An ideal final result will please the monastery， practitioners， experts on cultural relic protection， and related scholars， which is quite a difficult task，” smiles Sonam. “But we will try our best to reach this goal.”