Recent media reports indicate that China is strengthening its military presence at Larung Gar Buddhist Academy, reputed to be the largest center of Tibetan Buddhist study in the world. Security measures at the renowned institute have been heightened, with an estimated 400 troops reported to have been deployed on 20 December, along with helicopter surveillance.
Previous crackdowns on the academy by the local authorities, notably in 2016–17, saw thousands of monastic dwellings demolished and at least 4,820 Tibetan and Han Chinese monks and nuns forcibly evicted, according to sources in the region, dramatically reducing the monastic population from around 10,000 at its height.
“Reliable sources reveal plans for stringent new regulations starting 2025,” the Central Tibetan Administration (CTA) reported. “These policies will reportedly limit residency at Larung Gar to a maximum of 15 years and require registration of all monks and nuns. Moreover, the authorities plan to reduce the number of religious practitioners at the institution. Chinese students are reportedly being asked to leave, suggesting a targeted approach to reducing the monastery’s population.” (Central Tibetan Administration)
Situated some 4,000 meters above sea level in a remote valley in the traditional Tibetan region of Kham, now part of China’s Sichuan Province, Larung Gar Buddhist Academy was founded in 1980 by the highly respected teacher Khenpo Jigme Phuntsok (1933–2004), a lama of the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism. Since its inception, Larung Gar has been an independent center of education, administered since Jigme Phuntsok’s death by groups of senior monks.
“The latest measures represent an escalation in China’s broader campaign to restrict religious freedom in Tibet, where traditional Buddhist institutions have faced increasing pressure under state policies aimed at controlling religious practice and education,” the CTA stated. (Central Tibetan Administration)
In a March 2017 report, the Washington, DC-based International Campaign for Tibet said that the expulsions and demolitions at Larung Gar, along with stiffer restrictions at Yachen Gar, another large Buddhist institute of learning in Sichuan Province, were part of an unfolding political strategy aimed at controlling the influence and growth of these important centers for Tibetan Buddhist study and practice.
“According to the UN, EU, and the Human Rights Desk, Tibet Advocacy Section, DIIR, Central Tibetan Administration, China has deployed large military forces at the Larung Gar Buddhist Academy, located in Serthar (Ch: Seda) county, Karze, in the traditional province of Kham, Tibet,” the Tibet Post news website reported. “Around 400 Chinese military personnel from Drakgo (Ch: Luhuo) and neighboring counties in Karze (Ch: Ganzi) arrived at Larung Gar on 20 December 20.” (The Tibet Post)
The site of Larung Gar was chosen by Khenpo Jigme Phuntsok because of its historical connection to the Vajrayana tradition. It is said that His Holiness the first Dudjom Rinpoche, Dudjom Lingpa (1835–1904) stayed here with 13 disciples. The academy was conceived as an independent center of study that would help revitalize the Dharma and revive the study and practice of Tibetan Buddhism following China’s Cultural Revolution (1966–76), during which Tibetan Buddhism was suppressed and thousands of monasteries were destroyed. The institute has become renowned for the quality of both its religious and secular education. English, Chinese, and Tibetan languages and modern computer studies are taught alongside a traditional non-sectarian Buddhist curriculum. About 500 khenpos—holders of doctoral degrees in divinity—have studied at Larung Gar Buddhist Academy.
See more
Tibet’s Larung Gar Buddhist Academy Faces New Restrictions as Military Presence Increases (Central Tibetan Administration)
China’s military deployment to Larung Gar in Tibet: A new phase of repression (The Tibet Post)
China deploys 400 troops, choppers at Larung Gar Buddhist Academy in Tibet (The Times of India)
Shadow of dust across the sun: how tourism is used to counter Tibetan cultural resilience (International Campaign for Tibet)
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Welcoming Voices from Larung Gar
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The Wonders of Kham and Larung Gar, Part Two
