This essay forms part of a larger project to re-foreground the place of Śākyamuni in Tibet by exploring how images and texts related to the Buddha served as a primary organizing principle for the monastery Rtag brtan Phun tshogs gling, religious seat of the great seventeenth-century polymath Tāranātha Kun dga’ snying po (1575–1634) and his Jo nang tradition in the Tibetan region of Gtsang. It suggests that Phun tshogs gling’s central icon – a Śākyamuni statue of miraculous origin referred to as the Jo bo Phyogs las rnam rgyal, 'Lord All Victorious' – not only acted as an object of veneration, but also served Tāranātha more broadly in the promotion and maintenance of his monastery. It did so in several ways. First, as a representation of the Buddha of our present age, the image formed the core of Phun tshogs gling’s thematic focus on Śākyamuni, a tradition I refer to as the ‘Buddha Program.’ Second, and perhaps more importantly, from its position at the monastery’s ritual and architectural center, the revered statue served as a source of elevated prestige for Tāranātha, for his seat at Phun tshogs gling, and for his patrons in western Tibet during a period of political contestation with the Fifth Dalai Lama and the growing Dge lugs hegemony in Lhasa. Tāranātha’s Jo bo statue of Śākyamuni Buddha encapsulated his vision of what a Buddhist monastery should be and played an instrumental role in fashioning a singular institutional identity.
目次
Introduction 111 Phun tshogs gling’s Buddha Program: Building an Indian Identity Around the Buddha 116 Jo bo Statues as “Lords” of the Temple 123 The Jo nang Jo bo Phyogs las rnam rgyal “Lord All Victorious” 128 Conclusion 136 Appendix 139 Tāranātha’s description of the Jo bo Phyogs las rnam rgyal according the Descriptive Guide (Gnas bshad , 172–3) 139 Bibliography 141
