Smartphones meet sutras at ancient monastery

One of China’s leading Buddhist academies is using new technology to continue its age-old mission.

Editor’s note: This is the seventh story in a series about the Tibet autonomous region, focusing on the area’s history, poverty alleviation measures and the cultural and business sectors.

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Dawa cast a stern look at some young monks at Tashihunpo Monastery in the Tibet autonomous region, who were sitting on the stairs playing with their mobile phones.

The senior lama continued walking toward the Tsogchen Hall, aka the Great Chanting Hall, a legendary place for Tibetan Buddhists, where a scripture recital was due to begin.

Dawa’s silent message saw the young, scarlet-robed lamas quickly put on their yellow hats, shaped like a rooster’s comb, and rush to the hall. It is one of the oldest buildings in the monastery, one of the religion’s leading academies, which was erected by the first Dalai Lama in 1447.

“I am letting them off. After all, it’s break time,” said the 39-year-old follower of Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelug sect of Tibetan Buddhism, as he watched the young monks take off their shoes and prepare for the scripture session.

“They would be punished if they were caught using their phones in the hall, where they must learn about Tibetan Buddhism in the most traditional way. This has been preserved in Tashihunpo for hundreds of years.”

Dawa had his first glimpse of the recital, which takes place daily, when he arrived at the monastery at age 10.

Tashihunpo straddles the Niseri Mountain in Tibet’s Shigatse city; the golden-roofed temples sit near the top, while the four dratsangs (schools) occupy the middle and the lamas’ quarters lie at the foot.

The center also provides rooms for the Panchen Lama, one of the most important figures in the Gelug sect, who visits regularly.

The visual impact of the thick windows and door frames, black against the scarlet and white walls, the chimes of bells hanging from the roofs of the temples and the incense smoke lingering in the air quickly draw outsiders into the world of Tibetan Buddhism.

Living Buddhas

Most Tibetans follow the religion, and the region is home to 1,782 monasteries and more than 46,000 lamas and nuns. There are 358 Living Buddhas, monks believed to be the reincarnations of eminent lamas, according to the China Tibetology Research Center in Beijing.

Three of the monastery’s schools specialize in Exoteric Buddhism, the belief that the ultimate state of Buddhahood can be divined through teachings and scripture. According to Tashihunpo tradition, the students spend 18 years mastering the five theories of Tibetan Buddhism and learning to win doctrinal debates.

The other school offers lessons on Esoteric Buddhism, which says the ultimate state is unknowable and cannot be expressed. The courses take up to five years to complete.