CENTRAL TIBET, NGOR MONASTERY, 18TH CENTURY

This painting functions as a historical archive, a lineage chart, and a map of monastic patronage within the Sakya tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. The central composition establishes this direct line of spiritual authority through a dual portrait of religious masters. An inscription written in dbu chen script identifies the prominent figure on the right as Palden Chokyong (1702–1759), who served as the thirty-fourth abbot of Ngor Monastery between 1733 and 1740. The text employs an extensive honorific epithet, exalting the abbot as a direct emanation of Vajradhara, the All-Pervading Lord of the Hundred Buddha Families. This "vajra holder" title was regularly claimed by Ngor’s reigning leaders to assert supreme tantric status. To his left sits Tashi Palden identified by the inscription mtshungs med bstan pa’i mnga’ bdag bkra shis dpal ldan la na mo - Homage to Tashi Palden, the peerless lord of the Doctrine. Palden Chökyong (1702–1759), the 34th abbot of Ngor (tenure: 1733–1739). With different titles, Palden Chökyong mentions a "Tashi Palden" twice in his autobiography, both in the context of Ngor masters who prior to himself were active in Derge. When mentioning him the second time, Palden Chökyong gives him with the title of a "zhapdrung" (zhabs drung). In the context of Ngor, this title meant "a candidate to the abbaccy" and was given to promising masters from Ngor's lama palaces. These candidates, as well as other younger masters, were dispatched on year-long tours to collect offerings. They were also dispatched to Khams, including Derge. Later they could become an abbot of Ngor.
This portraiture of the Sakya lineage directly mirrors the administrative and regional networks that sustained the physical monastery. A separate dedicatory text written in 'bru tsha script on the silk frame records the object's patronage, identifying the donor as Lama Rinchen Lhundrup, a Tibetan-born master. Rinchen Lhundrup presented this painting and a ceremonial canopy (bla bre) to the communal house (spyi khang) of the Minyak (mi nyag) people at Ngor. Large Tibetan monasteries were organized into these regional houses, or khang tshan, to support monks arriving from specific geographic frontiers. Minyak represented a vital sector on the eastern Tibetan borderland. Cross-referencing this epigraphy with the abbot’s biography, Ngor mkhan chen dpal ldan chos skyong zhabs kyi rnam thar, uncovers the personal connection behind this gift. Rinchen Lhundrup served directly under Abbot Palden Chokyong as his domestic chaplain and master of ceremonies (mchod dpon). The commission was a calculated act of institutional and regional loyalty, explicitly intended to generate good fortune for the donor in his current and future lives.
The subsidiary portraits depicted in the upper registers provide an important chronological and institutional framework for understanding the painting. Together, they situate the principal figures within the lineage of both Ngor Monastery and the wider Sakya tradition, while also helping to establish a probable date for the work.
In the upper left appear two of the most revered figures in the history of Ngor. The highest figure is Ngorchen Kunga Zangpo (1382-1456), founder and first abbot of Ngor Monastery, whose reforms and teachings established the monastery as the principal seat of the Ngor branch of the Sakya tradition. Beneath him is Tsultrim Lhundrub (1676-1730), the thirty-second abbot of Ngor, who served from 1725 until his death in 1730. Their inclusion emphasizes the institutional lineage from which both Tashi Palden and Palden Chökyong derived their authority.
The upper right register depicts two contemporaries closely connected to the events surrounding Palden Chökyong's career. At the top is Kunga Sonam Rinchen (1705-1741), the thirtieth throne holder of Sakya, representing the broader hierarchal authority of the Sakya school. Below him appears Jampa Sonam Zangpo (1689-1749), who served as the thirtieth abbot of Ngor on two separate occasions, first from 1713 to 1722 and again from 1739 to 1740. His presence is particularly significant for dating the painting. Historical records indicate that when Palden Chökyong resigned the abbacy of Ngor in 1739 in response to an invitation from the royal house of Derge to become court chaplain, it was Jampa Sonam Zangpo whom he installed as his successor. The inclusion of Jampa Sonam Zangpo with the title of abbot therefore suggests a date after the commencement of his second tenure in 1739.
Viewed as a whole, the portrait program reflects the close relationship between Ngor, Sakya, and Derge. The painting commemorates two masters who were instrumental in transmitting the Ngor tradition in eastern Tibet, while simultaneously situating them within an unbroken lineage stretching from Ngorchen Kunga Zangpo through successive abbots and throne holders. The appearance of Jampa Sonam Zangpo as abbot provides particularly strong evidence that the work was commissioned after 1739, likely in connection with Palden Chökyong's move to Derge and his subsequent service as court chaplain to the kingdom.
Our thanks to Dr. Jörg Heimbel of Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München for the translation and interpretation.