A Secret of the Golden Urn Lot: Chinese Language Autobiography of Arjia Rinpoche
https://doi.org/10.22162/2075-7794-2018-35-1-22-30
Abstract
The paper covers the life and activities of a former abbot of the great Kumbum Monastery in Amdo (China), now the director of the Tibetan Mongolian Buddhist Cultural Center in Bloomington, Indiana, ― Arjia Rinpoche. The main content is based on the author’s translation from Chinese of the Arjia Rinpoche’s autobiography Against the Winds: the Arjia Rinpoche’s Life and a Secret of the Golden Urn’s Lot published in Taiwan in 2013. This autobiography considerably differs from the former English language autobiography published in the USA in 2010. It is twice as large and is more detailed and reflexive. The article introduces the book and focuses on the main events of Arjia Rinpoche’s life. Born in 1950 in traditional Amdo and recognized as a incarnation of the 8th Arjia Rinpoche, Tsongkhapa’s father, he lived through the all turbulent events of the Tibetan history and gave a deeply moving and fascinating account of his life in a broader context of the Sino-Tibet-Mongolian relations. Being an abbot of Kumbum and a high ranking official as well, he could not compromise his principles in the controversial selection of the 11th Panchen Lama’s incarnation and chose instead to go into exile. The article concludes that Arjia Rinpoche is one of the most important religious and political figures of Tibet, his role in the modern history of Tibet and Amdo is difficult to overestimate, while his autobiography is one of the most valuable and reliable historical sources.
About the Author
Irina R Garri
Department for Religious Studies, Institute for Mongolian, Buddhist and Tibetan Studies of the SB of the RAS
Russian Federation
Ph.D. in History (Doct. of Historical Sc.), Senior Research Associate,
Russian Federation
Ph.D. in History (Doct. of Historical Sc.), Senior Research Associate,
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Review
For citations:
Garri I. A Secret of the Golden Urn Lot: Chinese Language Autobiography of Arjia Rinpoche. Oriental Studies. 2018;11(1):22-30. (In Russ.) https://doi.org/10.22162/2075-7794-2018-35-1-22-30
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