Skip to main content

Glorian averages 100 donors a month. Are you one of the few who keep Glorian going? Donate now.

Kumbum



(Tibetan) The name of a region and a monastery in Tibet, which is named after a sacred tree there.

"The Sephirotic tree of the Kabbalah and the Aswatta or sacred fig tree are symbols of divine wisdom. Zoroaster represented the nervous system and the liquid system of human beings by the "Haona"of the Mazdeists. Other symbols are the "Kumbum" of Tibet and the "Yggradsil," the Pheredydes oak of the ancient Celts." - Occult Medicine and Practical Magic

(quote from The Berzin Archives): Jampa-ling Monastery (sKu-"bum Byams-pa gling) was founded in 1583 by the Third Dalai Lama, Sonam-gyatso (rGyal-ba bSod-nams rgya-mtsho) (1543-1588). It was built in Amdo (A-mdo), near Lake Kokonor (mTsho-sngon), at the site where Tsongkhapa (rJe Tsong-kha-pa Blo-bzang grags-pa) (1357-1419), the founder of the Gelug Tradition, had been born. It was prophesied in several texts of the Kadam (bKa"-gdams) masters.

A drop of blood fell from Tsongkhapa"s umbilical cord when it was cut after his birth. From this drop grew a wondrous white sandlewood tree. It has a very broad trunk and 100,000 leaves, which it never sheds. In Tibetan, the number 100,000 merely signifies a very large number, and is not meant literally. On each leaf is an image of the Buddha Sinhanada (Seng-ge sgra). On the bark of the branches and trunk are the designs of the seed syllables and hand implements of this Buddha. In the future, Tsongkhapa will take birth as Sinhanada, the eleventh Buddha of the 1,000 who will grace the earth during this fortunate eon.

In 1379, Tsongkhapa"s mother, with the help of the local faithful, built a small temple with a stupa around this tree. It stands to this day.