The History of Bhutan by Phuntsho Karma

Author:Phuntsho, Karma [Phuntsho, Karma]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9788184004113
Publisher: Random House India
Published: 2013-04-23T00:00:00+00:00

Mipham Wangpo’s escape and the continuation of Bönbji rule

One of the best outcomes of the conflict was Bhutan’s new phase of warm relations with Tibet. Perhaps due to the imperial intervention or maybe because Tibet had now at last succeeded in punishing the irritable neighbour, which it had desperately wanted to do for a long time, Tibet’s approach to Bhutan turned more conciliatory and friendly. The credit for this development of cordial relations must to some extent go to the Tibetan ruler Pholhaney. He did not approach Bhutan with the same patronizing and supercilious attitude as his predecessors did. The antagonism between the Gelugpa and Drukpa governments and between the Northern and Southern Drukpa schools also began to disappear as they undertook some joint religious projects and exchange of religious hierarchs. This change in Tibet’s Bhutan policy marked the end of over a century of wars between the two countries and the beginning of a whole new neighbourly relationship.

Despite easing the tension with Tibet, the internal tensions in Punakha were far from over. We don’t know exactly what triggered it but on the twenty-fifth of the first Bhutanese month, 8 March 1736, Mipham Wangpo with a number of attendants sneaked out of the Punakha dzong at midnight and made their way to Tibet. It is not even clear if Mipham Wangpo was running away or simply setting out secretly on a tour of Tibet. John Ardussi states that political opposition to Mipham Wangpo had reached its peak, his biography merely says he made the journey due to ‘other circumstances’ and Gedun Rinchen adds that he went on a pilgrimage in order to carry out funerary rites for his deceased brother.22 Whichever it may be, the departure was sudden and his flight left the court in disarray and the Je Khenpo extremely worried. Some monks pursued them but before they could catch up, Mipham Wangpo’s team managed to cross the border over Wakyela to Tibet despite being very poorly equipped for the snow and blizzard.

When Pholhaney heard of his arrival in Tibet, the ruler sent supplies and ordered local officials on the route to offer him service. On his way, Mipham Wangpo spent a night in Ralung and when he reached Nyethang, he was received by his uncle, Tshering Wangchen, the Bhutanese representative in Lhasa. When he reached Lhasa, the Tibetan officials extended Mipham Wangpo a grand reception. Pholhaney, according to the Bhutanese biographer, was extremely courteous to Mipham Wangpo and he and Mipham Wangpo found each other congenial as if they have already known other. Mipham Wangpo’s time in Lhasa was filled with formal receptions and dinners with the Lhasa officials, Chinese Amban and lamas. He also met the 7th Dalai Lama Kelzang Gyatsho (1708–57), who had just been reinstated in Lhasa. The Bhutanese team also went on pilgrimage to the major religious sites in Kyichu and Yarlung valleys and Tshurphu. Mipham Wangpo also met many senior religious hierarchs, including the incarnation of Drukpa Kunley, who later visited Bhutan.

We don’t know if Mipham Wangpo carried out any political discussions during his stay in Lhasa.

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.