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{{Short description|Tibetan Emperor (reign 838–842)}}
{{Short description|Tibetan Emperor (reign 841–842)}}
{{Infobox royalty
{{Weasel|date=August 2022}}
{{Infobox monarch
| name = Langdarma<br>{{nobold|{{bo-textonly|གླང་དར་མ}}}}
| name = Langdarma<br>{{nobold|{{bo-textonly|གླང་དར་མ}}}}
| title = [[Tsenpo]]
| title = [[Tsenpo]]
| image =
| image =
| caption =
| caption =
| succession = [[List of emperors of Tibet|Emperor]] of [[Tibetan Empire|Tibet]]
| succession = [[List of emperors of Tibet|King]] of [[Tibetan Empire|Tibet]]
| reign = 838–842
| reign = 841–842
| coronation =
| coronation =
| regnal_name =
| regnal_name =
| full name = Tri Darma Udumtsen ({{bo-textonly|དར་མ་འུ་དུམ་བཙན་}})
| full name = Tri Darma U Dum Tsen ({{bo-textonly|དར་མ་འུ་དུམ་བཙན་}})
| predecessor = [[Ralpacan]]
| predecessor = [[Ralpacan|Ralpalchen]]
| successor = ''None''<br />[[Era of Fragmentation]]
| successor = ''None''<br />[[Era of Fragmentation]]
| regent =
| regent =
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| royal house =
| royal house =
| dynasty =
| dynasty =
| house = [[Yarlung Dynasty]]
| house = [[Yarlung dynasty]]
| father = [[Sadnalegs]]
| father = [[Sadnalegs]]
| mother = Droza Lhagyel Mangmojé
| mother = Droza Lhagyel Mangmojé
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| native_lang1_name1 = [[We Gyaltore Taknye]]
| native_lang1_name1 = [[We Gyaltore Taknye]]
| birth_name = Darma
| birth_name = Darma
| birth_date = After 790s ?
| birth_date = after 790s?
| birth_place =
| birth_place =
| death_date = 842
| death_date = 842
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{{Tibetan-Chinese-box|t=གླང་དར་མ།<br>འུ་དུམ་བཙན་པོ|w=glang dar ma<br/>'u dum btsan po|ipa={{IPA-bo|laŋtaːma|}} /<br/>{{IPA-bo|udum tsɛ̃po|}}|e=Glang Darma,}}
{{Tibetan-Chinese-box|t=གླང་དར་མ།<br>འུ་དུམ་བཙན་པོ|w=glang dar ma<br/>'u dum btsan po|ipa={{IPA-bo|laŋtaːma|}} /<br/>{{IPA-bo|udum tsɛ̃po|}}|e=Glang Darma,}}


'''Darma Udumtsen''' ({{bo|t=དར་མ་འུ་དུམ་བཙན|w=dar ma {{'}}u dum btsan}}), better known by his nickname '''Langdarma''' ({{bo|t=གླང་དར་མ།|w=glang dar ma|s=Lang Darma}}, {{lit}} "Mature Bull" or "Dharma the Bull") was most likely the last [[Tibetan Empire|Tibetan Emperor]] who probably reigned from 838 to 841 CE. Early sources call him Tri Darma "King Dharma". His domain extended beyond Tibet to include [[Dunhuang]] and neighbouring Chinese regions.<ref name="mckay57">Samten Karmay ''in'' {{cite book|last1=McKay|first1=Alex|title=Tibet and her neighbours : a history|date=2003|publisher=Edition Hansjörg Meyer|location=London|isbn=3883757187}}, pg. 57</ref>
'''Darma U Dum Tsen''' ({{bo|t=དར་མ་འུ་དུམ་བཙན|w=dar ma {{'}}u dum btsan}}), better known as '''Langdarma''' ({{bo|t=གླང་དར་མ།|w=glang dar ma|s=Lang Darma}}, {{lit}} "Mature Bull" or "Darma the Bull"), was the 42nd and last king of the [[Tibetan Empire]] who in 838 killed his brother, [[Ralpacan|King Ralpachen]], then reigned from 841 to 842 CE before he himself was assassinated.<ref name=Mandelbaum>Arthur Mandelbaum, "Lhalung Pelgyi Dorje", Treasury of Lives, 2007.</ref> His reign led to the dissolution of the [[Tibetan Empire]], which had extended beyond the [[Tibetan Plateau]] to include the [[Silk Roads]] with the Tibetan imperial manuscript center at [[Dunhuang|Sachu]] (Dunhuang), and neighbouring regions in China, East Turkestan, Afghanistan, and India.<ref>Claude Arpi, "Glimpses on the History of Tibet", Dharamsala: Tibet Museum, 2013.</ref><ref name="mckay57">Samten Karmay ''in'' {{cite book|last1=McKay|first1=Alex|title=Tibet and her neighbours : a history|date=2003|publisher=Edition Hansjörg Meyer|location=London|isbn=3883757187}}, pg. 57</ref>


==History==
By tradition Langdarma is held to have been [[Persecution of Buddhists|anti-Buddhist]] and a follower of [[Bon]]. He is attributed with the assassination of his brother, King [[Ralpacan]], in 838 AD and he is generally held to have [[Persecution of Buddhists|persecuted Buddhists]]. According to traditional accounts, during the first two years of his rule, Langdarma remained a Buddhist, but under the influence of [[We Gyaltore Taknye|Wégyel Toré]] ({{bo|w=dbas rgyal to re}}), he became a follower of Bon. Following his persecution of Buddhism [[Atiśa]] was called from Sumatra to restore Buddhism to Tibet.<ref>{{cite book |title= The ulti- mate reason why Atīśa was subsequently invited to Tibet was for the ‘restoration’ and purification of Buddhism again so as to be able to overcome the setback that Tibetan Buddhism had suffered from the persecutions initiated by King Lang Darma}}</ref>
Earlier in his life as a Tibetan prince, Langdarma was Buddhist, but under the influence of [[We Gyaltore Taknye|Wégyel Toré]] ({{bo|w=dbas rgyal to re}}), he became a follower of [[Bon]], after which he assassinated his brother King [[Ralpacan|Ralpachen]],<ref name=thlib/> in 838. Following this, he widely [[Persecution of Buddhists|persecuted]] Tibetan monks, nuns, and destroyed their monasteries<ref name=thlib>"History of Meru Nyingpa Monastery", ''Places'', ''Monasteries'', The Himalayan Library</ref> which were those of the [[Nyingma]] school, the only school of [[Tibetan Buddhism]] at that time.


Langdarma only reigned for a year to a year and a half,<ref name=thlib/><ref name=Mandelbaum/> before his own death. Another source says the reign was either six or thirteen years.<ref name="stein70-1">{{cite book|last1=Stein|first1=R. A.|title=Tibetan civilization|date=1972|publisher=Stanford Univ. Press|location=Stanford, Calif.|isbn=0-8047-0901-7|edition=[English ed.].}}, pp. 70-71</ref> A Buddhist hermit or [[bhikkhu|monk]] named [[Lhalung Pelgyi Dorje]] is often credited with assassinating Langdarma in 842,<ref name=Mandelbaum/> or in 846,<ref name="stein70-1" /><ref name=beckwith>{{cite book|last1=Beckwith|first1=Christopher I.|title=The Tibetan empire in Central Asia : a history of the struggle for great power among Tibetans, Turks, Arabs, and Chinese during the early Middle Ages|date=1993|publisher=Princeton Univ. Press|location=Princeton, NJ|isbn=0-691-02469-3|edition=4. print., and 1st pbk.}}, pp. 168-169</ref> but other sources credit Nyingma master [[Nubchen Sangye Yeshe]] with frightening him to death<ref name=Mandelbaum/> after Langdarma threatened the practitioners in Nubchen Sangye Yeshe's monastic institute.<ref>John Myrdhin Reynolds, "The Golden Letters", Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications, 1996</ref> His death was followed by civil war and the dissolution of the Tibetan empire, leading to the [[Era of Fragmentation]].<ref name="mckay57" />
The [[Persecution of Buddhists|anti-Buddhist]] portrayal of this king has been questioned by several historians,<ref name=Schlieter>{{cite web | author=Jens Schlieter | title=Compassionate Killing or Conflict Resolution? The Murder of King Langdarma according to Tibetan Buddhist Sources | publisher=University of Berne | url=http://info-buddhism.com/Tibetan_Buddhism_Compassioate_Killing_King_Langdarma-Jens_Schlieter.html}}</ref> most prominently [[Zuiho Yamaguchi]].<ref>[[Zuiho Yamaguchi|Yamaguchi, Zuiho]]. “The Fiction of King Dar ma's Persecution of Buddhism.” ''in'' {{cite book|last1=Drège|first1=textes réunis par Jean-Pierre|authorlink=Jean-Pierre Drège|title=De Dunhuang au Japon : études chinoise et bouddhiques offertes à Michel Soymié|date=1996|publisher=Droz|location=Genève|isbn=2600001662}}</ref>


== Family ==
Langdarma's reign was plagued by external troubles. The [[Uyghur Khaganate]] to the north collapsed due to a revolt by the [[Yenisei Kirghiz]] in year 840 and many displaced people fled to Tibet. According to one source, he only reigned for a year and a half, while others give six or thirteen years.<ref name="stein70-1">{{cite book|last1=Stein|first1=R. A.|title=Tibetan civilization|date=1972|publisher=Stanford Univ. Press|location=Stanford, Calif.|isbn=0-8047-0901-7|edition=[English ed.].}}, pp. 70-71</ref> According to traditional accounts, a Buddhist hermit or [[bhikkhu|monk]] named [[Lhalung Pelgyi Dorje]] assassinated Langdarma in 842 or 846.<ref name="stein70-1" /><ref name=beckwith>{{cite book|last1=Beckwith|first1=Christopher I.|title=The Tibetan empire in Central Asia : a history of the struggle for great power among Tibetans, Turks, Arabs, and Chinese during the early Middle Ages|date=1993|publisher=Princeton Univ. Press|location=Princeton, NJ|isbn=0-691-02469-3|edition=4. print., and 1st pbk.}}, pp. 168-169</ref> His death was followed by civil war and the dissolution of the Tibetan empire, leading to the [[Era of Fragmentation]].<ref name="mckay57" />
Langdarma had at least two children: sons Tride Yumten by his first wife, and Namde Ösung by his second wife.<ref name=Davidson>{{cite book|last1=Davidson|first1=Ronald M.|title=Tibetan renaissance : Tantric Buddhism in the rebirth of Tibetan culture|date=2008|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publishers|location=Delhi|isbn=978-8120832787|edition=1st Indian}}</ref> They apparently competed for power, the former ruling over the central kingdom of [[Ü-Tsang|Ü]], and the other ruling over the "left wing", probably the eastern territories.<ref name="stein70-1" />


One of Langdarma's grandsons, Kyidé Nyima Gön ({{bo|w=skyid lde nyi ma gon}}), conquered [[Ngari Prefecture|Ngari]] in the late 10th century, although his army originally numbered only 300 men. Kyidé Nyima Gön founded several towns and castles and he apparently ordered the construction of the main sculptures at [[Shey]]. "In an inscription he says he had them made for the religious benefit of the ''Tsenpo'' (the dynastic title of his father and ancestors), and of all the people of ''Ngaris'' (Western Tibet). This shows that already in this generation Langdarma's opposition to Buddhism had disappeared."<ref name=Francke>{{cite book|last1=Francke|first1=A. H.|title=Antiquities of Indian Tibet (2 volumes)|date=1914|publisher=S. Chand|edition=1972 reprint}}, pp. 89-90.</ref> Shey, just 15&nbsp;km east of modern [[Leh]], was the ancient seat of the [[Ladakh]]i kings.
Langdarma is said to have had two sons: Tride Yumten, by his first wife and Namde Ösung by his second wife.<ref name=Davidson>{{cite book|last1=Davidson|first1=Ronald M.|title=Tibetan renaissance : Tantric Buddhism in the rebirth of Tibetan culture|date=2008|publisher=Motilal Banarsidass Publishers|location=Delhi|isbn=978-8120832787|edition=1st Indian}}</ref> They apparently competed for power, the former ruling over the central kingdom of [[Ü-Tsang|Ü]], and the other ruling over the "left wing", probably the eastern territories.<ref name="stein70-1" />


Following his persecution of Tibetan Buddhism, [[Atiśa]] was called from Sumatra to restore Buddhism to Tibet.<ref>{{cite book |title= The ultimate reason why Atīśa was subsequently invited to Tibet was for the ‘restoration’ and purification of Buddhism again so as to be able to overcome the setback that Tibetan Buddhism had suffered from the persecutions initiated by King Lang Darma}}</ref>
One of Langdarma's grandsons, Kyidé Nyima Gön ({{bo|w=skyid lde nyi ma gon}}), conquered [[Ngari]] in the late 10th century, although his army originally numbered only 300 men. Kyidé Nyima Gön founded several towns and castles and he apparently ordered the construction of the main sculptures at [[Shey]]. "In an inscription he says he had them made for the religious benefit of the ''Tsanpo'' (the dynastic title of his father and ancestors), and of all the people of ''Ngaris'' (Western Tibet). This shows that already in this generation Langdarma's opposition to Buddhism had disappeared."<ref name=Francke>{{cite book|last1=Francke|first1=A. H.|title=Antiquities of Indian Tibet (2 volumes)|date=1914|publisher=S. Chand|edition=1972 reprint}}, pp. 89-90.</ref> Shey, just 15&nbsp;km east of modern [[Leh]], was the ancient seat of the [[Ladakh]]i kings.


The [[Persecution of Buddhists|anti-Buddhist]] portrayal of this king is well documented in primary and secondary Tibetan sources, but reinterpretations have been published from two historians,<ref name=Schlieter>{{cite web | author=Jens Schlieter | title=Compassionate Killing or Conflict Resolution? The Murder of King Langdarma according to Tibetan Buddhist Sources | publisher=University of Berne | url=http://info-buddhism.com/Tibetan_Buddhism_Compassioate_Killing_King_Langdarma-Jens_Schlieter.html}}</ref> most prominently [[Zuiho Yamaguchi]].<ref>[[Zuiho Yamaguchi|Yamaguchi, Zuiho]]. “The Fiction of King Dar ma's Persecution of Buddhism.” ''in'' {{cite book|last1=Drège|first1=textes réunis par Jean-Pierre|authorlink=Jean-Pierre Drège|title=De Dunhuang au Japon : études chinoise et bouddhiques offertes à Michel Soymié|date=1996|publisher=Droz|location=Genève|isbn=2600001662}}</ref>
In Tibetan Buddhist culture, Darma Udumtsen was said to be the incarnation of [[Gośīrṣa]], the [[Ox-Head and Horse-Face|bull-head]] guardian of hell, thus he got the nickname, Langdarma, literally, "Darma, the bull".

In Tibetan Buddhist culture, Darma U Dum Tsen was said to be the incarnation of [[Gośīrṣa]], the [[Ox-Head and Horse-Face]] guardian of hell, thus he got the nickname, Langdarma, literally, "Darma, the bull".{{citation needed|date=April 2024}}

Langdarma was said to have had "a black tongue", and a common gesture of Tibetans briefly sticking out their tongues is interpreted to show agreement, and as a sign of respect.{{citation needed|date=May 2023}} When they demonstrate that they do not have black tongues, they show they are not guilty of evil deeds, and that they are not incarnations of the malevolent king.{{citation needed|date=May 2023}}

==See also==
* [[Huichang persecution of Buddhism]], an anti-Buddhist movement in Tang China in the same period


==Notes==
==Notes==
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{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}


[[Category:Tibetan emperors]]
[[Category:Emperors of Tibet]]
[[Category:9th-century rulers in Asia]]
[[Category:9th-century monarchs in Asia]]
[[Category:Anti-Buddhism]]
[[Category:Anti-Buddhism]]
[[Category:9th century in religion]]
[[Category:9th-century Buddhism]]
[[Category:9th-century Tibetan people]]
[[Category:9th-century Tibetan people]]
[[Category:9th-century births]]
[[Category:9th-century births]]

Latest revision as of 18:27, 9 December 2024

Langdarma
གླང་དར་མ
Tsenpo
King of Tibet
Reign841–842
PredecessorRalpalchen
SuccessorNone
Era of Fragmentation
BornDarma
after 790s?
Died842
Burial
Trülgyel Mausoleum, Valley of the Kings
SpouseManamza
Tsépongza Tsen Mopen
IssueTride Yumten
Namde Ösung
Names
Tri Darma U Dum Tsen (དར་མ་འུ་དུམ་བཙན་)
LönchenWe Gyaltore Taknye
HouseYarlung dynasty
FatherSadnalegs
MotherDroza Lhagyel Mangmojé
ReligionBön
Langdarma
Tibetan name
Tibetan གླང་དར་མ།
འུ་དུམ་བཙན་པོ
Transcriptions
Wylieglang dar ma
'u dum btsan po
Lhasa IPA[laŋtaːma] /
[udum tsɛ̃po]

Darma U Dum Tsen (Tibetan: དར་མ་འུ་དུམ་བཙན, Wylie: dar ma 'u dum btsan), better known as Langdarma (Tibetan: གླང་དར་མ།, Wylie: glang dar ma, THL: Lang Darma, lit. "Mature Bull" or "Darma the Bull"), was the 42nd and last king of the Tibetan Empire who in 838 killed his brother, King Ralpachen, then reigned from 841 to 842 CE before he himself was assassinated.[1] His reign led to the dissolution of the Tibetan Empire, which had extended beyond the Tibetan Plateau to include the Silk Roads with the Tibetan imperial manuscript center at Sachu (Dunhuang), and neighbouring regions in China, East Turkestan, Afghanistan, and India.[2][3]

History

[edit]

Earlier in his life as a Tibetan prince, Langdarma was Buddhist, but under the influence of Wégyel Toré (Wylie: dbas rgyal to re), he became a follower of Bon, after which he assassinated his brother King Ralpachen,[4] in 838. Following this, he widely persecuted Tibetan monks, nuns, and destroyed their monasteries[4] which were those of the Nyingma school, the only school of Tibetan Buddhism at that time.

Langdarma only reigned for a year to a year and a half,[4][1] before his own death. Another source says the reign was either six or thirteen years.[5] A Buddhist hermit or monk named Lhalung Pelgyi Dorje is often credited with assassinating Langdarma in 842,[1] or in 846,[5][6] but other sources credit Nyingma master Nubchen Sangye Yeshe with frightening him to death[1] after Langdarma threatened the practitioners in Nubchen Sangye Yeshe's monastic institute.[7] His death was followed by civil war and the dissolution of the Tibetan empire, leading to the Era of Fragmentation.[3]

Family

[edit]

Langdarma had at least two children: sons Tride Yumten by his first wife, and Namde Ösung by his second wife.[8] They apparently competed for power, the former ruling over the central kingdom of Ü, and the other ruling over the "left wing", probably the eastern territories.[5]

One of Langdarma's grandsons, Kyidé Nyima Gön (Wylie: skyid lde nyi ma gon), conquered Ngari in the late 10th century, although his army originally numbered only 300 men. Kyidé Nyima Gön founded several towns and castles and he apparently ordered the construction of the main sculptures at Shey. "In an inscription he says he had them made for the religious benefit of the Tsenpo (the dynastic title of his father and ancestors), and of all the people of Ngaris (Western Tibet). This shows that already in this generation Langdarma's opposition to Buddhism had disappeared."[9] Shey, just 15 km east of modern Leh, was the ancient seat of the Ladakhi kings.

Following his persecution of Tibetan Buddhism, Atiśa was called from Sumatra to restore Buddhism to Tibet.[10]

The anti-Buddhist portrayal of this king is well documented in primary and secondary Tibetan sources, but reinterpretations have been published from two historians,[11] most prominently Zuiho Yamaguchi.[12]

In Tibetan Buddhist culture, Darma U Dum Tsen was said to be the incarnation of Gośīrṣa, the Ox-Head and Horse-Face guardian of hell, thus he got the nickname, Langdarma, literally, "Darma, the bull".[citation needed]

Langdarma was said to have had "a black tongue", and a common gesture of Tibetans briefly sticking out their tongues is interpreted to show agreement, and as a sign of respect.[citation needed] When they demonstrate that they do not have black tongues, they show they are not guilty of evil deeds, and that they are not incarnations of the malevolent king.[citation needed]

See also

[edit]

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d Arthur Mandelbaum, "Lhalung Pelgyi Dorje", Treasury of Lives, 2007.
  2. ^ Claude Arpi, "Glimpses on the History of Tibet", Dharamsala: Tibet Museum, 2013.
  3. ^ a b Samten Karmay in McKay, Alex (2003). Tibet and her neighbours : a history. London: Edition Hansjörg Meyer. ISBN 3883757187., pg. 57
  4. ^ a b c "History of Meru Nyingpa Monastery", Places, Monasteries, The Himalayan Library
  5. ^ a b c Stein, R. A. (1972). Tibetan civilization ([English ed.]. ed.). Stanford, Calif.: Stanford Univ. Press. ISBN 0-8047-0901-7., pp. 70-71
  6. ^ Beckwith, Christopher I. (1993). The Tibetan empire in Central Asia : a history of the struggle for great power among Tibetans, Turks, Arabs, and Chinese during the early Middle Ages (4. print., and 1st pbk. ed.). Princeton, NJ: Princeton Univ. Press. ISBN 0-691-02469-3., pp. 168-169
  7. ^ John Myrdhin Reynolds, "The Golden Letters", Ithaca: Snow Lion Publications, 1996
  8. ^ Davidson, Ronald M. (2008). Tibetan renaissance : Tantric Buddhism in the rebirth of Tibetan culture (1st Indian ed.). Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass Publishers. ISBN 978-8120832787.
  9. ^ Francke, A. H. (1914). Antiquities of Indian Tibet (2 volumes) (1972 reprint ed.). S. Chand., pp. 89-90.
  10. ^ The ultimate reason why Atīśa was subsequently invited to Tibet was for the ‘restoration’ and purification of Buddhism again so as to be able to overcome the setback that Tibetan Buddhism had suffered from the persecutions initiated by King Lang Darma.
  11. ^ Jens Schlieter. "Compassionate Killing or Conflict Resolution? The Murder of King Langdarma according to Tibetan Buddhist Sources". University of Berne.
  12. ^ Yamaguchi, Zuiho. “The Fiction of King Dar ma's Persecution of Buddhism.” in Drège, textes réunis par Jean-Pierre (1996). De Dunhuang au Japon : études chinoise et bouddhiques offertes à Michel Soymié. Genève: Droz. ISBN 2600001662.
[edit]
Regnal titles
Preceded by Emperor of Tibet
r. 838–841
Succeeded by