Larung Gar
Located on the exact hermitage site of Lama Rung (shortened as ‘Larung’), which had been established in 1880 by Düdjom Lingpa on the left bank of the Ser Chu, in Serta, Larung Gar was founded by Chöjé Dampa Jikmé Püntsok in 1980. According to a prophecy of the First Dodrubchen Jikmé Trinle Özer,
In the land of Lama Rung [...] there will appear one named Jikmé" who will "illuminate the teachings of sutra and tantra" and “whose followers will pervade throughout the ten directions.
At first, Chöjé Dampa Jikmé Püntsok maintained the site as a Chögar (a mobile encampment of practitioners gathered around a particular teacher). Then, he built a small shedra, and a drubdra. At its peak, there were as many as 10,000 students in residence in Larung Gar, and on many occasions, more than 100,000 students would gather to hear Jikmé Püntsok's teachings. Today, Larung Gar is still one of the world's largest and most influential centers for the study and practice of Sutra and Tantra for many ethnicities, lay and monastic, although under increasing restrictions by the Chinese government.
Since the early 8th century, Tibetans and Himalayan people have treasured "Namtars" as written or spoken narratives that demonstrate the realization of the Buddhist path by exceptional practitioners. These namtars, or spiritual biographies, serve as inspirational guides on the path to enlightenment.
Today, Namtars Foundation aims to record, preserve, and freely offer the world a written and electronic treasury of the oral wisdom of Tibetan and Himalayan Buddhism.
