Angren Qude Monastery: A Thousand-Year-Old Resonance of the Gelug School in Tsang
Nestled in a mountain valley at an altitude of 4,300 meters in Kaga Town, Angren County, Shigatse, lies an ancient Gelugpa monastery, its red walls and golden roofs gleaming under the high-altitude sun – this is Angren Qude Monastery. Located approximately 180 kilometers from Shigatse city, it is a historically significant religious site in the Tsang region, boasting nearly 600 years of heritage, exquisite Tibetan architecture, and precious cultural relics, making it a cultural haven on the Tibetan Plateau.
The monastery was founded in the 15th century by Gongga Sangpo, a disciple of Tsongkhapa, and was one of the core monasteries for the early spread of the Gelugpa school in Tsang. After renovations and expansions during the Ming and Qing dynasties, it reached its current scale. In 2006, it was listed as a national key cultural relics protection unit, witnessing the development of the Gelugpa school in western Tibet.
The entire monastery is laid out in a terraced style along the mountainside, with buildings arranged in a harmonious and orderly manner, showcasing the grandeur and ingenuity of Tibetan architecture. The core building, the Great Assembly Hall, faces south and features Tibetan-style fortress-like walls, up to 1.8 meters thick, to withstand the harsh winds of the high plateau. The roof is covered with gilded copper tiles, and the ridge is decorated with auspicious symbols such as the Dharma wheel and golden deer, creating a solemn and magnificent atmosphere. Inside, the beams and pillars are exquisitely carved and painted with Buddhist motifs such as lotus flowers and scrolls. Gilded statues of Shakyamuni Buddha, Master Tsongkhapa, and his disciples are enshrined. Butter lamps burn continuously, their incense smoke filling the air, creating a solemn atmosphere.
On either side of the Assembly Hall are monks' quarters, a protector deity hall, a scripture library, and a group of stupas. The scripture library houses thousands of volumes of Tibetan Buddhist scriptures, some of which are handwritten copies and woodblock prints from the Ming and Qing dynasties. The characters are neat, the binding exquisite, and they possess extremely high documentary value. The murals in the temple's corridors are particularly precious, depicting stories of the Buddha's life and biographies of Gelugpa monks. The colors are vibrant, the brushstrokes delicate, and they blend the unique style of Tsang painting, remaining clearly legible even after a century.
As a serene place of spiritual practice, the monks of Angren Qude Monastery follow the teachings of Tsongkhapa, chanting scriptures and practicing meditation amidst the morning bells and evening drums, continuing a religious ritual unchanged for millennia. Every year in the first and sixth months of the Tibetan calendar, the monastery holds grand Dharma assemblies, attracting devotees from the surrounding areas to circumambulate the prayer wheels and pray for blessings. The melodious chanting of sutras and the flourishing incense demonstrate the profound faith of western Tibet.
The surrounding scenery is magnificent. The vast Angren Grassland stretches to the horizon, with majestic snow-capped mountains in the distance and the Lhozhag River meandering through the landscape, creating a harmonious highland panorama with the ancient monastery's red walls and golden roofs. Today, Angren Qude Monastery maintains its tranquil atmosphere of spiritual practice while also being open to tourists. Strolling through the monastery, touching the textures of the thousand-year-old stone walls, and listening to the distant chanting, one can experience the profoundness of Gelugpa culture and the brilliance of Tsang art in the serenity of the plateau.