Tsongkhapa in Yonghegong, restored

[fruven]

For the past 13 years I have been working in China and many times staying for months in Beijing  but it has never occur to me that there is a place called “yonghegong”, the house of largest Tsongkhapa statue that patron by the Chinese emperor himself. It was only through my Guru and my good karma manifesting that I realised the reality of Tsongkhapa’s practice that one could be so near to it and yet completely missed it. By knowing it now the next chance that if even happen that I could be in Beijing again instead of the flowers and birds markets, this will be my top priority to view with my own eyes the gigantic Tsongkhapa statue .

On the contrary I had the good merits to have visited Yonghegong a few years back and made prayers and circumambulations around the great Lama Tsongkhapa statue. As it is indoor, very tall and in confined space; I can't really see the top of the statue clearly like on the picture above.
Nevertheless I felt that the people in China has tremendous merits to have a large Lama Tsongkhapa statue and am surprised too that there are many people making prayers in the traditional Chinese way like offering red chinese style incense sticks.
I also went to the museum in Yonghegong and there were many artifacts of the Qing era ie statues, thangka and implements of Tibetan Buddhism. I also realise that the Chinese treated the Han, the Manchus, the Mongols and the Tibetans as "Chinese" with very little differentiation. That is what I observed.

I would like to visit Yong He temple one day too if I have the merits. China has such rich tradition of Buddhism. The fact that Lama Tsongkhapa statue is present in China shown that he was highly revered by the rulers. Only a saint who has benefited so much could receive such a honor.

[Kim Hyun Jae]

It was with good merits and karma to be connected to Lama Tsongkhapa through my Guru many years ago. I had the fortune to visit YongHeGong Lama Temple, Beijing twice. Whenever I get the chance to be in Beijing, I would go visit and pay homage to the largest indoor wooden Lama Tsongkhapa statue in the world. I saw many tourists and surrounding local people offer un-lit joss sticks in the courtyard just outside of Maitreya Buddha before entering into the inner court where Lama Tsongkahapa stood. It is an amazing sight.

There were sangha members doing daily pujas inside where Lama Tsongkhapa statue stood. The sangha also take fruits and khata offerings from us to make offerings on the main altar.

The smaller museum is a MUST see, located towards the end of the last courtyard. Many Manjushri, Tsongkhapa and other Buddha deities statues were on displayed, including a 3 to 4 feet Vajrayogini, all housed in 2 blocks of the smaller buildings. The museum was NOT an obvious find. You need to walk towards the end of the temple to find it. Many visiting sanghas of the Gelukpa sect also visits this temple.

Very happy the Chinese government choose to restore this beautiful Lama Tsongkhapa statue because it would impress anyone who visits.

[Klein]

Restoration work is very tedious and it takes only people with the passion to do this job. Some of these projects may take decades. It's a pity that the younger generation are not compensated well financially for such important works. Perhaps the government can allocate a certain budget to finance restoration works because this promotes the country's culture and history.

I've had the fortune to visit Yonghegong Temple. It is well kept and the statue of Lama Tsongkhapa is magnificent. May it continue to bless the visitors and plant seeds of enlightenment in their mind stream.

[Shugdener]

It is really wonderful and amazing to know that China has commissioned for the Lama Tsongkhapa statue in YongHeGong. It is really good to see that China is putting effort into restoring and preserving such holy sites.

What is even better to know is that the methods they are using to restore the Lama Tsongkhapa statue through the traditional method of painting the face. Reading the illustrations above and looking at the list of items needed for the restoration, it is definitely no easy task to restore this Lama Tsongkhapa statue back to its former glory.

 Thank you for sharing!

[Rinchen]

To have the image of Lama Tsongkhapa restored is really something that is magnificent. For even to create the gold dust for the offering on to Tsongkhapa, the steps are so intricate. I really like the image that shows the steps of how the gold dusting will be like. Thank you Ensapa for sharing this with all of us here.

[pgdharma]

Buddha statues represent the Buddha’s body and in general benefit sentient beings that see them by calming and inspiring their mind. Many people also circumambulate statues and make offerings to generate great merits and blessings. It is wonderful that China is putting effort towards the restoration of Lama Tsongkhapa statue in Yonghegong and this is evidence that Tibetan Buddhism was practiced in China by the emperors.

May more and more be blessed by Lama Tsongkhapa and may the seeds of enlightenment be planted on those who see this majestic statue bought back to glory by the Chinese Government.

[Tenzin Malgyur]

Thank you for this detailed write up on the process of restoration work on the gold painting of Lama Tsongkhapa's face at Yonghegong. I noted that all the materials used in the procedure are natural substances and they are delicately prepared. It is so meritorious to be able to beautify a Buddha image so that many more devotees to this temple could lay a gaze on this holy image of the founder of Gelugpa school of Tibetan Buddhism.
I have been told by friends who have visited this temple that there is a altar for Dorje Shugden situated at another section of the temple. Wish I could visit Yonghegong one day.

[Pema8]

The Lama Tsongkhapa is so beautifully restored! I rejoice for all those who were involved.
Would be great to visit such a holy place. Lama Tsongkhapa and Dorje Shugden in the same temple!
Tibetan Buddhism is strongly rooted in China.

[Tenzin K]

There is a long history of Yonghegong in China. Building work on the Yonghegong started in 1694 during the Qing dynasty. It originally served as an official residence for court eunuchs. It was then converted into the residence of Yinzhen (Prince Yong), the fourth son of the Kangxi Emperor. After Prince Yong ascended the throne as the Yongzheng Emperor in 1722, half of the building was converted into a lamasery, a monastery for monks of Tibetan Buddhism. The other half remained an imperial palace.

After the Yongzheng Emperor's death in 1735, his coffin was placed in the temple. The Qianlong Emperor, who succeeded the Yongzheng Emperor, gave the temple imperial status signified by having its turquoise tiles replaced with yellow tiles which were reserved for the emperor. Subsequently, the monastery became a residence for large numbers of Tibetan Buddhist monks from Mongolia and Tibet, and so the Yonghe Lamasery became the national centre of Lama administration.

After the Chinese Civil War ended in 1949, the temple was declared a national monument and closed for the following 32 years. It is said to have survived the Cultural Revolution due to the intervention of Premier Zhou Enlai. Reopened to the public in 1981, it is today both a functioning temple and highly popular tourist attraction in the city.

In Yonghegong, Lama Tsongkhapa statue was located at the Hall of the Wheel of the Law which functions as a place for reading scriptures and conducting religious ceremonies.

It’s a rejoicing news to know that China is restoring Lama Tsongkhapa statue to continue to preserve the Gelug lineage through the tradition lineage. The statue not just a historical monument but is also a proof of how great Chinese Emperor embrace the Tibetan Buddhism teaching during that time. This definitely create the seed to many people to be able to meet the teaching in that country when the time is right.