A Winter in the Field

Rob Linrothe

n summer 2006, I completed my twelfth trek in

I ladakh and Zangskar, areas of cultural Tibet that are
part of the Indian Himalayas (for a discussion of a
previous research trip to the region, see linrothe,
l999b) . The present article reports on three new finds ,
modest but significant breakthroughs in the ongoing
recovery of the art history of Ladakh and Zangskar (see
also linrothe, 2006). Two of the sites were first encoun-
tered during an autumn and early winter spent in Zang-
skar in 2003-04: the Malakartse Khar stupa near Zangla
and a hidden , blocked-up shrine at Kumbum monastery
in lingshed village. Return trips in the summers of 2004
and 2006 confirmed and extended the investigations of
the earlier winter in the field , and as will be explained,
access to the third site introduced here - a secret room
also at the Kumbum in lingshed - stemmed directly
from the results of that winter's journey.
Gelong Angchuk is the son of my Zangskari mentor,
Karsha lonpo Sonam Angchuk, and a teacher at the
Zangla nunnery school, where I visited him in the late
autumn of 2003 . He offered to guide me to a site up the
canyon behind the old Zangla palace (see the cover
illustration). A ruined fort known as Malakartse Khar as
well as a stupa were there, he said, and the stupa still
contained some old murals. We set off early the next
morning with one of the local nuns , his relative. After
(Fig. 1) Malakartse Khar stupa
following the stream for some time, on the path that is
Zangskar, India
Probably mid- to late 11th century

(Fig. 2) Moulded plaques

Exterior wall of Malakartse
Khar stupa, Zangskar, India
Probably mid- to
late 11th century
Clay

40

part of the Jumlam trek, we started climbing steeply on the
rocky north bank. Once well above the stream, we walked
parallel to it for about an hour, when suddenly a ruined castle
built onto a promontory came into view. Below it was a
conical stupa, its whitewash long ago having worn away to
reveal the tawny colour of the rocks and earth (Fig. l) . On
a band running around the exterior wall, just below the
tapered, tripartite roof, were some fine moulded clay plaques
depicting Kashmiri-style stupas of an ancient type (Fig. 2).
On the east side was a small doorway. A hole in the roof let
in a great deal of light, clearly revealing the interior murals
painted in a recognizable variant of the Kashmiri style found
in various cave temples of the kingdom of Guge in West
Tibet, founded in the lOth century and centred around the
shrines and royal residences at Tholing and Tsaparang. At
times, the Guge kingdom included the regions of Purang,
Spiti and Zangskar. The Malakartse Khar stupa paintings
date from around the mid- to late ll th century, making them
older than the Alchi and Sku murals (see the article by
Melissa Kerin in this issue). To my knowledge, they are the
oldest surviving mural paintings in Zangskar.
Karsha Lonpo and Zorba Tashi, the former abbot of
Karsha monastery (see Linrothe and Kerin, figs 3-5), are
extremely knowledgeable about the history of Zangskar.
Both had heard of Malakartse Khar, but neither had been
(Fig. 3) Main (west) wall
Malakartse Khar stupa, Zangskar, India
Probably mid- to late 11th century
Mural painting
there, nor could they explain or interpret the customary
name of the fort (khar), Malakartse. Although the historical
circumstances in which the stupa was built are now entirely
forgotten , some of the surviving deities depicted in the
murals can be identified. Unfortunately, the three main
deities at the centre of each of the three walls (excluding the
entrance wall) have completely disappeared. They were
originally sculptures, as can be seen by the holes left by the
struts used to attach them, and were surrounded by painted
nimbi in the form of concentric circles (see Figs 3 and 4) .
Gelong Angchuk reported that according to the monk who
showed him the stupa several years previously, fragments of
the sculptures could still be seen within living memory. No
doubt they were made of clay and the hole in the roof is at
least partially to blame for their deterioration; as there has
been some deliberate mutilation of the paintings, the sculp-
tures may have been vandalized as well. Gelong Angchuk
suggested these were the acts not of religious zealots, but of
bored and mischievous children sent to watch the animals.
The main (west) wall opposite the entrance is approxi-
mately 2.5 metres high and 2 metres wide, while the side
walls are slightly wider. Most of the lan~ern ceiling has
collapsed, and the stone rubble pf the conical roof is now
exposed and crumbling fast, as was already clear when I
returned alone in the summer of 2004.just below the ceiling
41
level a series of bands runs around the shrine on all four
walls, with hamsa (geese), curtains and seated Buddhas
alternating with stupas. It is possible that, like the Lalung
Serkhang in Spiti, the compositions on the three walls were
focused on the historical Buddha Shakyamuni on the main
wall, Manjushri on his right (the left, or south wall) and
Prajnaparamita on his left (the right, or north wall) (see
Luczanits, 2004, fig. 105). Alternatively, it could have been
Sarvavid Mahavairochana in the centre (Buddha family),
Vajradharma on his right (Padma family) and Vajrasattva on
his left (Vajra family) , like the small Esoteric Buddhist tern-
(Fig. 3a) Detail of main (west) wall showing bodhisattvas
Malakartse Khar stupa, Zangskar, India
Probably mid- to late 11th century
Mural painting
42
ple at Ratnagiri in Orissa (Linrothe, l999a). One other
possibility would be Buddha in his dharmakaya ('truth-
body') form Sarvavid Mahavairochana, and a diminutive
form of Shakyamuni, his nirmanakaya ('phenomenal-body')
aspect, placed within the small nimbus above his head
(Buddha family); Amitayus on his right (Padma family); and
Akshobhya on his left (Vajra family). At any rate, the iconog-
raphic structure corresponds more to the earlier, simpler,
three-family (trikula) system of Esoteric Buddhism than it
does to the more elaborate five-family (panchakula) system
which came to dominate later.
The area on the main wall enclosed by the frame of the
outer nimbus is densely pocked with holes jammed with
broken wood staves (Fig. 3). These are most likely the
remains of the support system for an elaborate three-di-
mensional mandorla of curling vines, leogryphs on ele-
phants and other motifs, like those found at several other
early sites (see , for example, Luczanits, 2004, figs 70, 97,
138 and 170). Beyond the mandorla are two vertical rows
of deities painted against the rich sky-blue ground found
throughout the stupa murals, this shade being one of the
hallmarks of the Kashmiri painting style in Guge as well.
On the viewer's left, the first deity at the top is a blue
wrathful Vajrapani, while the one on the right is Hayagriva,
the horse-head crest visible in his hair. Below these are
remnants of ten bodhisattvas, with the area at the bottom
completely eroded but comfortably leaving room for three
more bodhisattvas on each side, making sixteen in total
(Fig. 3a). The visible ones are grouped in sets of four. With
the left hand held in a fist at the hip like Vajrasattva,
perhaps they represent the sixteen Vajrasattva bodhisat-
tvas, which are found in four sets of four among the various
mandalas of the Sarvadurgatiparishodhana (Skorupski , pp.
9-10). This text, Elimination of All Evil Destinies , largely
corresponds to the early, pre-Anuttarayoga Tantra School
of Esoteric Buddhism that was current in Kashmir from
the 8th to the late lOth century (corresponding to Phase
Two, as set out in Linrothe, l999a).
The right wall has two groups of deities, the eight
offering goddesses and the four wrathful gate guardians,
which are also featured in mandalas of early Esoteric
Buddhism (Fig. 4). On the viewer's left, at the top are the
offering goddesses associated with the southwest direction
- Puspa holding a bowl of flowers (Fig. 4a) and Mala
holding a garland with both hands (Fig. 4b). Below them
is a standing wrathful deity with a noose, Vajrapasha, the
guardian of the south gate. In the upper right corner, the
offering goddess Dipa bears a flaming lamp, while below
her is the goddess of song, Gita, carrying a bow across her
lap and with a stringed instrument resembling a modern
sarangi held upright in her left hand. Dipa and Gita are
associated with the northwest direction. Standing beside
Dipa is Vajrasphota, guarding the west gate with a chain
fetter. The four other offering goddesses and the two other
 (Fig. 4) Right (north) wall
Malakartse Khar stupa, Zangskar, India
Probably mid- to late 11th century
Mural painting

(Fig. 4b) Detail of right (north) wall showing Mala with a garland
Malakartse Khar stupa, Zangskar, India
Probab~y mid- to late 11th century

(Fig . 4a) Detail of right (north} wall showing Puspa with a bowl of flowers Mural painting
Malakartse Khar stupa, Zangskar, India
Probably mid- to late 11th century
Mural painting

43
gate guardians are too damaged to recognize , but can be
presumed originally tq have completed both sets on that
wall.
The left wall is in worse condition than the right. Five of
the ten visible nimbi surrounding the missing central sculp-
ture enclosed female deities , all on the left side closest to the
entrance wall. As they are without the attributes of the eight
offering goddesses, they must have constituted a different
set. No wrathful deities are visible. The entrance wall has a
different arrangement to the other walls; it had to accommo-
date the door, and another hole was later cut through the
mural at the top centre. A horizontal panel above the door
features three wrathful deities, including the blue Vajra-
humkara on the right (Fig. Sa) . With his long hair arranged

(Fig. 5a) Detail of entrance (east) wall showing Vajrahumkara

Malakartse Khar stupa, Zangskar, India
Probably mid- to late 11th century
Mural painting

(Fig. 5b) Detail of entrance (east) wall showing donors

Malakartse Khar stupa, Zangskar, India
Probably mid- to late 11th century
Mural painting

44
in horn-like crests and with skulls in his crown and snakes
as earrings, necklace and armbands, he closely corresponds
to an enigmatic Kashmiri metal sculpture in The Cleveland
Museum of Art (see Czuma, fig. 15) as well as to wrathful
deities depicted in the Piyang and Dungkar caves (see Neu-
mann, fig. 9 and Pritzker, fig. 24) . Although not of the same
high quality as the Dungkar caves, and lacking their patrons'
wealth or generosity in the inclusion of gold pigment, the
Malakartse Khar stupa has other points of resemblance,
including an eleven-headed Avalokiteshvara, now faded, on
the vertical panel to the left of the doorway when facing it.
Patrons wearing archaic-looking hats and wide-lapelled
robes are depicted to the right of the door (Fig. Sb). Seven
aristocratic donors are portrayed, a row of three seated
women above a register of four kneeling men making ges-
tures of respect.
In addition to these similarities to mural paintings in
West Tibetan caves associated with the 11th and 12th cen-
turies in the Kashmiri style, the most distinctive hallmarks
of the style can be found in the goddess imagery. The
Malakartse Khar goddesses are somewhat idiosyncratic in
the mannered attenuation of their waists, exaggeration of
chins and of heavy-lidded eyes, and small faces pushed
forward with small noses and tiny mouths (see Figs 4a and
4b) . These peculiarities, however, are manipulations of char-
acteristics well within the parameters of the Kashmiri style
known mainly from sculpture. They may represent the work
of eccentric painters from a particular, perhaps provincial,
region of Kashmir or possibly even of West Tibetan followers
fluent in the Kashmiri style (see Klimburg-Salter, figs 103
and 104). There are many small signs of an assured and
internalized understanding of Kashmiri style, general aes-
thetics and material culture.
Several, mostly minor features are worth noting for their
resemblance to Kashmiri and Kashmiri-derived painting and
sculpture. Multiple rings pierce the lobes of some of the
goddesses' ears (see Fig. 4b). Hairstyles are built up with
flowers and ornaments intertwined with a coiled chignon,
and long strands of hair flowing down the back (compare
Czuma, fig. 7) . Triangular pendants are attached to the tiaras.
There is a reddish pentimento-like underdrawing with
darker red or black outlining, to which are added blushes of
lighter or darker colour at the edges of forms to suggest
three-dimensionality (except for the blue figures). There is
an overall fascination with unrepeated textile patterns on the
goddesses' skirts. The silhouette of the eye away from the
viewer flares confidently beyond the outline of the face, and
the angle of the eyebrows is different from the orientation of
the eyelids. Each necklace loops over one high full breast and
then falls between the two. A deep curving crease bisects the
rounded abdomen up to the navel. There is a conventional-
ized understanding of the solid, tripartite structure of the
male torso and the more fluid and curvaceous body of the
female. Not least, there is the well-attested early indication
of effulgence in the halos: alternating straight and tightly
waving lines. Even such attributes as the comma-shaped,
five-stringed harp resting on the lotus flower of one of the
bodhisattvas take a non-Tibetan form, rather one that is
attested in Kashmir and Sogdiana (see Czuma, fig. 18). All
these features , and more, suggest an integrated style exe-
cuted rather sketchily, perhaps even hurriedly, when com-
pared to the more elaborate and detailed executions at
Dungkar and Piyang.
The presence of this painting style, hitherto unattested
in Zangskar, complements sculptural evidence of Kashmiri
activity in Zangskar. Along with metal sculptures imported
from Tibet (Linrothe, 2006) and larger stone sculptures that
may have been produced by itinerant Kashmiri sculptors and
their local followers , the paintings at Malakartse Khar sug-
gest that Kashmiri painters were working in Zangskar. Per-
haps en route to Guge , or on their way back home , they
visited Zangskar and were employed by the court at Zangla.
Certainly, some of the artists who travelled to Spiti and Guge
from the Kashmir valley came via Zangskar, and not neces-
sarily through Ladakh or Kinnaur, journeys that are longer
and less direct. It is also possible that the Zangla court,
though not as well endowed as the Guge kings, attracted
itinerant artists directly from Kashmir, and that some of them
were engaged by the inhabitants of the now-ruined fortified
castle ofMalakartse Khar to decorate the stupa. The patrons'
motivation is unclear, but it may have been general piety or
to house the remains of a great teacher, to celebrate the
repulsion of an invasion or perhaps to seal an alliance.
According to the oldest histories, sometime between the
lOth and 11th centuries, Zangskar was incorporated into a
state ruled first by the sons of Kyilde Nyimagon, a descen-
dant of the Central Tibetan Purgyal ('Yarlung') kings. This
state was then consolidated into a kingdom that included
Spiti and Guge. This political framework would have facili-
tated the Zangla elites' contacts with the courts and monas-
teries there, as well as the Kashmiri artists working for them.
The artists working in a Kashmiri idiom were hired to
give form to a Buddhist subject-matter that is associated with
the early period of the so-called Second Diffusion of Bud-
dhism into Tibet, primarily via Kashmir in the west, although
Amdo as well as eastern India and Nepal also played impor-
tant roles. Despite its deterioration, the Malakartse Khar
stupa presents a version of early Esoteric Buddhist art in
quite a simplified, unalloyed form. It is striking that there
were no true mandalas in the stupa, as these are so prominent
in Dungkar. This may be another sign of its relative earliness,
and a date of the mid- to late 11th century seems justified on
stylistic as well as iconographic grounds.
t the end of January 2004, on the way· from Karsha to
A Chiling, I stayed for a few days at Kumbum monastery
in Lingshed with my friend, Lama Ngawang Tsephel Gong-
mapa , jishul. He told me that the previous autumn, he and
45
a few other monks had discovered a hole in the wall behind
a reliquary stupa in a monastery shrine room they were
renovating, 'the Tashi Odbar Lhakhang (Fig. 6). Shining a
torch inside, Lama Tsephel saw to his surprise a darkened,
but still rich mural of a makara (a fantastic , composite beast
associated with water and floriated scrolling, and most com-
monly found in ornamental thrones in or derived from
India) , not a metre away. Intrigued, he crawled through the
hole and found himself in the anteroom to a truncated cella,
which together formed an T shape. The fragment he had
seen in the anteroom across from the hole was part of a mural
that was interrupted by a stone and rubble wall. This had
been built some forty years earlier as part of a project in
which his late father participated, to prevent the complete
collapse of the ceiling. Sections of the anteroom, which
extends from the kitchen and leads to the surviving cella,
were filled in. Then, during the 1985-86 building of the new
Chamba (Maitreya) Lhakhang, the door leading to the ante-
(Fig. 6) View of Tashi Odbar Lhakhang showing opening in wall leading to the Hidden
Lhakhang, below the small reliquary at upper left
Lingshed monastery, Zangskar, India
46
chamber from the kitchen was blocked off (Linrothe,
l999b). Today, the only access to this 'Hidden Lhakhang' is
through the small hole behind the stupa in the corner of the
Tashi Odbar Lhakhang.
The niche-like cella of the Hidden Lhakhang, onto which
the right (north) side of the anteroom leads, has murals on
three walls. These are dirty, dusty, cobwebbed and faded;
moreover, large sections of the wall surface have fallen off
with the paint attached. Even so, they feature compositions
of considerable beauty, power and age. The main wall, to the
west, is about 1.5 metres wide and 1.9 metres high, from the
dirt floor to the wood rafters. The paintings on the side walls
are approximately 1.25 metres wide , though the south wall
is interrupted on the left by the rubble support wall. Above
the hole in the wall on the interior is a carved wood lintel,
suggesting that the present hole is located at the original
doorway.
On the main wall of the cella is a noble image of Shakya-
muni making the teaching gesture (dhar-
machakra mudra), accompanied by two bod-
hisattvas , probably Manjushri on his left and
Avalokiteshvara on his right (Fig. 7). He sits on
an elaborate lotus throne beneath a downward-
facing Garuda, with two makara above his shoul-
ders (Fig. 7a). Overhanging the throne, a pat-
terned textile with an upright vajra hangs below
a double row of lotus petals (not pictured) sup-
porting the throne, and the composition is en-
closed within an oval backdrop. The postures of
the bodhisattvas, their necklaces and the elon-
gated head nimbus of the Buddha are important
style markers of the late 13th century. The muted
but sumptuous coloration, as well as the spacious
arrangement of elements, lends an archaic ele-
gance to the painting.
The two side walls each feature a large central
figure of a monk surrounded by smaller
vignettes, many of which seem to be biographical
in nature and have inscriptions below them.
There is a great deal of damage at the top and
bottom of each wall, though it is not limited to
the edges, and the face of the monk on the south
wall is unfortunately disfigured by water seepage.
There were lineage transmission portraits above
both monks, but only the one on the south wall
is sufficiently intact to allow an interpretation. It
illustrates the main Kagyu lineage, beginning
with Vajradhara on the right, closest to the Shak-
yamuni wall, followed by the two mahasiddhas
('great adepts') Tilopa and Naropa. The sub-
sequent image is too damaged to decipher, but
next in line would have been Marpa. It is fol-
lowed first by a much clearer depiction of the
white-clad Milarepa and then by a monk, no
(Fig. 7) Main (west) wall of cella showing
Shakyamuni with two bodhisattvas
Hidden Lhakhang, Lingshed monastery, Zangskar, India
Probably late 13th century
Mural painting

(Fig. ?a) Detail of main (west) wall of cella

showing makara decorating Shakyamuni's throne
Hidden Lhakhang , Lingshed monastery, Zangskar, India
Probably late 13th century
Mural painting

47
doubt Gampopa. This lineage provided the first clue to the
original affiliation of the cella's paintings.
Lama' Tsephel and I did our best to decipher the inscrip-
tions, copying down those that could be seen by torchlight
as well as photographing them, which proved more effective.
Back in New York, I showed the images to two colleagues,
jeff Watt· and Christian Luczanits, who noticed a reference
to the founder of the Drigung Kagyu lineage, Jigten Gonpo
Rinchen Pal ( 1143-1217). jig ten Gonpo was a disciple of
Phagmo Drupa (1110-70) , who had in turn been the disciple
of Gampopa (1079-1153), one of the images in the lineage
listed above. This made it likely that at least one of the two
large monk portraits was of Jigten Gonpo , but which one?
Later, while trying to translate the clearer inscriptions, I sent
difficult passages to the outstanding scholar of Tibetan relig-
ion and history, Dan Martin. Remarkably, he was able to read
and translate several surrounding the monk on the south
wall and then to locate the text from which they came - a
13th century 'prostration' verse biography of]igten Gonpo,
whose author is identified ambiguously as Shakya Gelong
Densaba. Martin found references to him as Chyennga
Densaba in Jig ten Gonpo's own writings, and he was jig ten
Gonpo's successor as abbot of Densatil, Phagmo Drupa's seat.
Once the identity of the main figure on the south wall was
established, several more scenes connected with his life
(Fig. Sa) Detail of left (south) wall of cella showing Phagmo Drupa and Jigten Gonpo
Hidden Lhakhang, Lingshed monastery, Zangskar, India
Probably late 13th century
Mural painting
48
made sense, even when damage prevented the corroboration
of the inscriptions.
Jigten Gonpo has always been associated with his devo-
tion to Tara, his vision of seven Taras and the prayer he
composed to them. Sure enough, prominently placed above
Jigten Gonpo's right shoulder is a small scene showing him
seated in front of Green Tara. There is also an image of two
monks above his head (Fig. Sa) followed by a scene of a
monk in front of a stupa. The inscriptions confirm that these
pertain to the relationship between Jigten Gonpo and
Phagmo Drupa. According to Liu Kuo-wei, who has worked
onjigten Gonpo's various biographies: 'At the time of Phag
mo gru pa's passing, a golden vajra, bearing a slight stain,
was seen to emerge from Phag mo gru pa's heart and entered
that of jig rten mgon po' (Liu, p. 73), and later,Jigten Gonpo
returned to Phagmo Drupa's monastery and paid homage to
the reliquary there, as the inscription indicates. Despite
having lost its inscription, one scene can be interpreted on
the basis of Jigten Gonpo's biography alone: it shows four
monks kneeling in reverence before a larger figure, intended
asjigten Gonpo (Fig. Sb) . Directly overhead is a large fiery
sun, and two loaded pack animals are shown 'behind' the
kneeling monks. This must refer to a miracle that took place
during Jigten Gonpo's travels with four disciples, after he
founded the monastery of Drigungtil. The episode is men-
 (Fig. 8b) Detail of left (south) wall of cella showing Jigten Gonpo staying the sun
Hidden Lhakhang, Lingshed monastery, Zangskar, India
Probably late 13th century
Mural painting
tioned somewhat enigmatically in Shakya Gelong Densaba's
verse biography, but a fuller version is paraphrased here from
a different biography:
Afterwards, they went to Khyung sgom monastery in Ko khyim,
where many people gathered to perform a ceremony. jig rten mgon
po gave many teachings there and made tea offerings for the
assembly. When he sat on the throne to give teachings, a rainbow
appeared above his throne, so all those assembled felt strong
devotion. It was winter at that time. Although the daytime in winter
was short, the sun remained high in the sky all the time while he
sat upon his throne. As soon as he descended, the night fell. ... Thus
everyone was amazed by his power to stay the sun. (ibid., pp. 86-87)
The monk on the north wall has not been positively identi-
fied (Fig. 9a). Since he is to the left of Shakyamuni, while
Jigten Gonpo is on the Buddha's more auspicious, 'senior'
right, he could not bejigten Gonpo's teacher, Phagmo Drupa.
In the spatial hierarchical dynamics of Tibetan art, the
teacher would never appear in the 'junior' position. It is
therefore more likely to be one of]igten Gonpo's successors
and/or disciples, possibly Shakya Pal Gardampa Chodingpa
(1192-1254), a close disciple who, as Gene Smith (Executive
Director of the Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center and the
highly regarded 'dean' and muse of Tibetan Buddhist stud-
ies) pointed out to me, was the preceptor to the Tangut Xia
(c. 982-1227) kings. Another 13th century verse biography
of]igten Gonpo calls Gardampa Chodingpa 'the unquestion-
able siddha', and relates a story about him that is illustrated
above the monk's right shoulder (Fig. 9b) . It depicts a white
bodhisattva kneeling before a Buddha and making precious
offerings. The inscription below refers to Lurik Dronma,
who according to another 13th century biography of Jigten
Gonpo , was a king with lOO sons, all of whom achieved
Buddhahood except for the youngest. Too attached to his
queen and the kingdom, the youngest son instead made
sumptuous offerings to his father and brothers, and vowed
that someday he would become their equal. Jigten Gonpo
identifies himself as the royal father-turned-Buddha in a
previous life, and Gardampa Chodingpa in one of his pre-
vious lives as the youngest son (Gyaltsen, pp. 258 and
262-63). This is certainly suggestive of the main figure's
identity, if the vignettes surrounding the main figure on the
north wall are biographical episodes from his life, as they are
on the south wall for Jigten Gonpo himself. That would also
fit with a stylistic date of the second half of the 13th century,
at a time when Gardampa Chodingpa's fame, already singled
out and celebrated in biographies by his eo-disciple, Chen-
nga Sherab jungne (d. 1241), was probably at its height.
The history of the Drigung lineage in LC}dakh and Zang-
skar is still being uncovered, though certainly by the early
13th century, whenjigten Gonpo died and the Alchi Sumtsek
was built, Drigungpa were active there . Although the Alchi
49
 (Fig. 9a) Detail of right (north) wall of cella showing Gardampa Chodingpa(?)
Hidden Lhakhang, Lingshed monastery, Zangskar, India
Probably late 13th century
Mural painting

Sumtsek paintings are celebrated examples of the marriage

of Drigung values and Kashmiri aesthetic conventions, the
Hidden Lhakhang at Lingshed depicts early images of the
Drigung hierarchs in the artistic style current in the 13th
century in Central Tibet, not Kashmir. It documents two
important things: first, that artists working in the Central
Tibetan styles current at Drigungtil, Densatil and Taglung
monasteries were also at work at this period on the border
of Ladakh and Zangskar. Second, it shows that much earlier
than the purported 15th century founding of the Kumbum
monastery at Lingshed by a disciple of Tsongkhapa (1357-
1419; the originator of the Gelugpa lineage) (on which more
below), the establishment was Drigung, as were the shrines
of Phyang, Wanla, Lamayuru and Kanji to the north , in
Ladakh proper.

(Fig. 9b) Detail of right (north) wall of cella showing Lurik Dronma (Jigten Gonpo in a previous life)
with his youngest son (Gardampa Chodingpa in a previous life) making offerings
Hidden Lhakhang, Lingshed monastery, Zangskar, India
Probably late 13th century
Mural painting

50
 he study of the bricked-up Drigung shrine at Lingshed's
T Kumbum monastery led to access to the better-known,
if rarely visited 'Secret Room' (gsang khang), at the same
complex. The room adjoins the Dukhang of the monastery,
the principal gathering hall for monks. However, the door-
way to the Secret Room is curtained off and admittance
restricted since it is adjacent to the most powerful protective
deity of the monastery, which tourists and women are strictly
warned against approaching. Until June 2006, I had never
been allowed inside.
On my summer's trek in 2006, I brought to Lingshed
copies of photographs of the Hidden Lhakhang, along with
the Tibetan text that corresponded with the legible inscrip-
tions on the mural of the biography of Jigten Gonpo. These
piqued the interest of some of the more historically minded
monks, including Gelong Samdup, a student for the geshe
degree (the highest attainment in philosophical study of the
Gelugpa lineage) at Drepung monastery in South India, who
happened to be visiting Lingshed and was keen to have a
look at the Hidden Lhakhang and help correct and improve
my deciphering of the inscriptions. Since I offered indisput-
able proof of the original lineage affiliation of the murals in
the Hidden Lhakhang, Gelong Samdup and others tenta-
tively hoped that I would also be able to solve the question
of the original subject-matter of the Secret Room. They were
hoping I would confirm their belief that its paintings were
'just like Alchi' and thus associated with the great translator
Rinchen Zangpo (958-1055) who is popularly connected
with Alchi despite inscriptions to the contrary.
On 26 July, Lama Samdup and I received permission to
enter the Secret Room for a few minutes and take several
photographs. The wall parallel to the entrance wall of the
Dukhang, the east wall, has a very large painted mandala,
which is damaged by water seepage as well as bisected by the
south wall of the Dukhang. At its centre is an eight-armed,
four-headed deity, possibly male , that I have not yet identi-
fied , while to the viewer's right beyond the outer border is a
painted eleven-headed Avalokiteshvara. The only connec-
tion to Alchi from an art-historical perspective is the super-
ficial similarity of a wall-sized mandala mural, the style being
much more like the Central Tibet-derived style at the Wanla
Sumtsek of the early 14th century, or even the Lhakhang
Soma at Alchi, but certainly not the latter's Kashmiri-style
Sumtsek and Dukhang.
The adjoining, south wall, opposite the entrance of the
Secret Room, seems to be structurally complete, but only the
left half has murals which are intact, if damaged. Typical of
early Drigung shrines, including the Lhakhang Soma at
Alchi, the Wanla Sumtsek, the Guru Lhakhang near Phyang
and others, the lowest register of paintings depicts the life
story of Shakyamuni. At the southeast corner is the scene in
Tushita Heaven, where the great being, ready to commence
his descent to earth for his final life, removes his crown and
hands it over to Maitreya, who awaits his turn as the future
Buddha. Near it, the dream of Queen Maya, in which a white
elephant enters her womb signifying Shakyamuni's concep-
tion, can also still be distinguished.
In the register above are some unidentified narratives
involving monastic teachers and mahasiddhas. Above these
are two large monk figures, the main theme on that wall,
seated on elaborate thrones and accompanied by bodhisat-
tvas (Figs lOa and lOb). They closely resemble the roughly
13th to 14th century Drigung lineage portraits found else-
where (Luczanits, 2006b) . Above them, at the top of the wall,
are two further registers. The lower one contains a band of
seated Buddhas and the upper one the distinctive eight great
adepts. The highlighting of the eight great siddhas in this
particular form is one of the recognizable features of early
Drigung painting and, as Luczanits has pointed out, is also
found in one of the stupas at Ale hi (Luczanits, 2006a and c).
The two main lamas have not been identified, though
Martin Mills, reporting contemporary belief, states that the
room contains depictions of Rinchen Zangpo (Mills, p. 19) .
They resemble depictions of Jigten Gonpo and his teacher,
Phagmo Drupa, though they could also beJigten Gonpo and
Gardampa Chodingpa, as has been suggested for the monk
portraits in the Hidden Lhakhang. Other candidates would
be the successors of the progenitors at Drigungtil, the mon-
astery founded by Jigten Gonpo and the flagship-monastery
of the lineage. Alternatively, they could depict some of the
Drigung hierarchs who taught at the great Drigung medita-
tion centres of Mount Kailash or in Ladakh and Zangskar. It
is not clear whether there were more such portraits along the
same wall to the right or on the other, now-destroyed walls.
Presumably, neither of the two partial walls on which paint-
ings remain were the original main wall, which, like the
Hidden Lhakhang, may have had a Shakyamuni triad as its
focus. Both the surviving large hierarchs on the south wall
look toward the west, in the direction of what must have
been the main wall, to the right of the entrance.
The exact physical relationship between the Kumbum's
two older shrines, the Hidden Lhakhang and the Secret
Room, still needs to be worked out. As can be seen in Martin
Mills's layout (which includes the Tashi Odbar shrine but not
the newly revealed Hidden Lhakhang), they are near each
other, but were probably originally separate chambers (ibid.,
p. 26) . The Hidden Lhakhang, with its two portraits sur-
rounded by narratives , appears to be the older of the two,
probably dating to the late 13th century or possibly the early
14th, while the Secret Room fits well into the mid-14th
century or perhaps slightly later, and certainly not the 12th
century as suggested by Mills (ibid. , p. 19). Once the mon-
astery was converted to the Gelugpa affiliation, those lha-
khang which focused on Jigten Gonpo or other Drigung
leaders, protectors and mandalas were obvi,ously considered
superfluous and sacrificed for the sake of chambers where
murals of Tsongkhapa and his primary teachings could
decorate the walls. Indeed, the Drigung origin of the mon-
51
(Fig. 1Oa) Detail of wall (south) opposite
entrance showing two Drigung lamas
Secret Room, Lingshed monastery, Zangskar, India
Possibly mid-14th century or slightly later
Mural painting
astery at Lingshed has been so thoroughly erased from the
oral culture and understanding of the monks living there,
that several were dubious and surprised when shown the
indisputable evidence of the pre-Gelugpa history of their
monastery. Certainly, in the history of the monastery that
Mills painstakingly assembled in his study, no mention of a
Drigung past was recorded. The range of responses I encoun-
tered to the evidence of the Hidden Lhakhang is actually
quite revealing. Aside from disbelief, slow acceptance,
amazement and curiosity, the most surprising and somewhat
paranoid reaction among a minority of monks was to ask me
not to tell the leaders at the prominent Ladakhi Drigung
monastery Phyang, for fear that they might try to take over
the Lingshed Kumbum.
The accepted myths of the founding of Lingshed's mon-
astery are somewhat hazy, but they involve Tsongkhapa's
student Changsem Sherab Zangpo (1395-1457) (ibid., pp.
19-20) . Not much is known of him, but he is included among
the six great disciples of Tsongkhapa who spread the self-
proclaimed revivalist 'new Kadampa' teachings to the fron-
52
tiers of the Tibetan cultural world. The main historical
source on Changsem Sherab Zangpo's activities seems to be
the Vaidurya Serpo ('Yellow Beryl'; a history of the Gelugpa
lineage written in 1698 byDesiSengye Gyatso [1653-1705]) .
A Ladakhi, Changsem Sherab Zangpo is said to have first
returned to his home from Central Tibet to propagate
Tsongkhapa's system. With charismatic zeal, he founded and
converted several monasteries there, then moved across
Zangskar before reaching Spiti with the same missionary
aims and successes. From Spiti he returned to Ladakh, went
to Nubra, and again returned to Zangskar (Vitali, pp. 82-83).
On one or another of his expeditions to Zangskar, he con-
verted Karsha and Phugtal monasteries to the Gelugpa fold,
and to this day, the large stupa built into the opening of the
cave above Phugtal monastery is believed to be his reliquary
stupa (personal communication, Geshe Kalsang Kunchyan,
5 July 2006) .
Lingshed's monastery was another of his conquests. In
fact, the shrine room where the hole leading to the Hidden
Lhakhang is found is principally a place associated with
Changsem Sherab Zangpo (see Fig. 6). The story I have been
told repeatedly at Lingshed is the one recorded by Mills, that
when surmounting the Haluma La pass leading to Lingshed,
Changsem Sherab Zangpo saw a glowing light and thousands
of Buddha images emanating from a rock, and thus decided
on the site where the monastery came to be built- the monks
and Mills speak of him 'founding', not converting, the mon-
astery (Mills, p. 20). That rock, known as the Kumbum Tashi
Odbar, is now enshrined within the reliquary stupa in the
room known as the Tashi Odbar Lhakhang. So, if it was
devotion to the Gelugpa teaching brought by Changsem
Sherab Zangpo that over the centuries worked to erase the
memory of the Drigung foundations of Lingshed's monas-
tery, it was also devotion to his memory and relics that led
to the restoration of the Tashi Odbar Lhakhang, and the
rediscovery of the Hidden Lhakhang and a key chapter in the
monastery's history.
A few sentences from my earlier article, 'A Summer in the
Field', resonate here: 'The first few times [trekking in Ladakh
and Zangskar], naturally, it was to visit and explore the most
important, most well-known sites, and it might be expected
that after these were studied, fewer and fewer new sites or
objects would be left to find . In fact it is quite the opposite.
Each time I have returned I have found more and more things
of interest, and fewer and fewer of them are as well studied
as one might expect.'
(Fig. 10b) Detail of wall (south) opposite entrance showing
a bodhisattva attending the lama on the left in Figure 1Oa
Secret Room, Lingshed monastery, Zangskar, India
Possibly mid-14th century or slightly later
Mural painting
After my winter in the field, these words ring truer than
I could have known when I first wrote them some eight years
ago.
Rob Linrothe is Associate Professor of Art History at Skidmore College
in Saratoga Springs, New York.
Besides those mentioned in the essay, the author would like to thank
Melissa R. Kerin for help and encouragement in deciphering the in-
scriptions of the Hidden Lhakhang at Lingshed, and Heinrich Poll for
pointing out a Kashmiri ivory depiction of the harp depicted in Figure
3a. Thanks also to Dan Martin for his erudition and generosity, which
have repeatedly helped to confirm interpretations and historical con-
jectures. The article is dedicated to the memory of Professor Harrie
Vanderstappen, S.VD.
All photography by the author.
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