Kumbum Monastery

“Ticket Prices for Kumbum Monastery in Qinghai: Peak Season (April 1 – October 31): Full Price: 70 RMB, Half Price: 35 RMB; Off-Peak Season (November 1 – March 31): Full Price: 40 RMB, Half Price: 20 RMB”

Kumbum Monastery

Kumbum Monastery is a national AAAAA-level tourist attraction and a key cultural relics protection unit of China.

Kumbum Monastery, together with the Ganden, Drepung, Sera, Tashilhunpo monasteries in Tibet and the Labrang Monastery in Gannan, is known as one of the six great monasteries of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism in China. It is the birthplace of Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelug school. Due to its vast and intact architecture and convenient access, it has become a central destination for visitors exploring Tibetan Buddhist monasteries and the premier tourist attraction in Qinghai Province. The monastery is celebrated for its three artistic masterpieces: murals, appliqué thangkas, and butter sculptures. It is a national 4A-level tourist site and is currently applying for UNESCO World Heritage status.

Kumbum Monastery is located in the Lotus Mountain south of Lushar Town, Huangzhong County, Qinghai Province, about 25 kilometers from the provincial capital Xining. Along with the Ganden, Drepung, Sera, Tashilhunpo monasteries in Tibet and the Labrang Monastery in Gannan, it is recognized as one of the six major monasteries of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism and serves as one of the religious activity centers for Gelug monks and followers.

Kumbum Monastery is the birthplace of Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. After Tsongkhapa became renowned, many legends arose regarding his miraculous signs. It is said that a white sandalwood tree grew where his umbilical cord fell and dripped blood after birth. In the 12th year of the Hongwu era of the Ming Dynasty (1379 AD), following instructions in a letter from her son, Tsongkhapa’s mother, with the help of devotees, built a stupa around this sandalwood tree and a lion-roaring Buddha image sent by Tsongkhapa, creating the earliest structure of the monastery. Later, the stupa underwent multiple renovations and name changes, eventually becoming the Great Silver Stupa housed in the Grand Golden Tile Hall—the monastery’s principal sacred object. The Chinese name “Kumbum Monastery” is derived from this stupa. In the 39th year of the Jiajing era of the Ming Dynasty (1560 AD), the monk Renqin Zongzhe Jianzan built a meditation hut beside the stupa for monks to practice seated meditation. Seventeen years later, a Maitreya Hall was added, and the monastery began to take shape, taking the Tibetan name “Gongben Xianbalin,” meaning “Monastery of the Hundred Thousand Buddha Images of Maitreya.”

Over the past 400 years, Kumbum Monastery has gradually developed into an ancient architectural complex with distinctive ethnic and regional characteristics. The monastery covers an area of over 600 acres, with more than 9,300 monk quarters, 52 halls, and a peak monastic population of 3,600. Surrounded by mountains, the monastery features grand halls, solemn Buddha statues, and numerous stupas. Among them, the Grand Golden Tile Hall and the Great Scripture Hall are the main structures. The Grand Golden Tile Hall was first built during the Kangxi reign of the Qing Dynasty, covering a construction area of 456 square meters with three stories, flying eaves, and a hip-and-gable roof crowned with gilded copper tiles. Its walls are made of glazed bricks with exquisite patterns. Inside the hall is the revered Great Silver Stupa commemorating Tsongkhapa, hailed as “the most magnificent in the world.” Above the main gate of the hall hangs a plaque inscribed with the words “Dharma Banner of Buddhism,” personally written by Emperor Qianlong of the Qing Dynasty. The Great Scripture Hall was initially constructed in the 40th year of the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty (1612 AD) and was rebuilt in the first year of the Republic of China (1912 AD) after being destroyed by fire. Covering a total area of 2,750 square meters, the hall contains 18 long pillars and 90 short pillars, all wrapped in specially made carpets, with floor cushions laid out to accommodate 3,000 monks for collective scripture recitation. The western side enshrines numerous Buddha statues and Tibetan scriptures, with seats designated for the Dalai Lama, Panchen Lama, and the monastery’s abbot. The space between the pillars is adorned with various embroidered scroll paintings.

In addition, there are the Maitreya Hall, the Nine-Room Hall, the Three Dalai Lamas’ Stupa Hall, the Shakyamuni Hall, the Protector Deity Hall, the Small Golden Tile Hall, the Flower Temple, the Juba Dratsang, the Dingke Dratsang, the Menba Dratsang, the Eight Stupas of the Tathagata, the Gateway Stupa, the Bodhi Stupa, the Kalachakra Stupa, the Scripture Printing House, the Grand Lama Residence, and various incarnate lama mansions. In addition to exquisitely crafted Buddha statues, ritual instruments, and scroll paintings, the monastery also houses precious artifacts such as a celadon jar from the Song Dynasty’s Ge Kiln, jade carvings, a dragon-patterned porcelain vase from the Ming Dynasty, a dragon-fish bottle from the Qing Dynasty, a bamboo-carved Shouxiang figure, and a jade Guanyin statue. It also preserves various plaques bestowed by rulers throughout history and bilingual Tibetan-Chinese stone inscriptions.

Kumbum Monastery is a treasure trove of Tibetan culture and art. In the 40th year of the Wanli era of the Ming Dynasty (1612 AD), under the advocacy of the Third and Fourth Dalai Lamas, Kumbum Monastery established the first school of exoteric Buddhism (Hinayana), creating a system for teaching Dharma and establishing formal studies of Buddhist logic, wisdom, middle way, abhidharma, and monastic discipline. Later, schools of esoteric Buddhism, Kalachakra, and medical science were successively built, forming a standardized study system covering esoteric Buddhist texts on generation and completion stages, as well as knowledge in astronomy, calendrics, and medicine. Today, the monastery houses tens of thousands of volumes of literature and books on Buddhism, Tibetan history, literature, and linguistics, making it a valuable resource for Tibetan studies. Additionally, the monastery’s butter sculptures, murals (thangkas), and appliqué thangkas are acclaimed as the “Three Artistic Wonders,” enjoying great renown throughout the Tibetan region.

Kumbum Monastery holds four grand scripture assembly festivals each year during the first lunar month, the fourth month, the sixth month, and the ninth month, attracting numerous pilgrims and tourists. These scripture assemblies are ceremonial events where monks make offerings, pray, and recite sutras to the Buddhas and bodhisattvas. In addition to fixed religious rituals, the festivals also feature activities such as unfurling giant thangkas (Thongdrol), Cham dances, and circumambulating the golden Buddha. On the morning of the 15th day of the fourth lunar month during the April assembly, and the morning of the 6th day of the sixth lunar month during the June assembly, a massive appliqué thangka of the Buddha is displayed on the slopes of Lotus Mountain east of the monastery, a tradition known as “Unfurling the Great Buddha.” The thangka measures over 30 meters in length and 20 meters in width. Monks perform ritual music and chant prayers before it, drawing crowds of tourists and merchants, as well as devoted worshippers who come to offer alms. On the morning of the 8th day of the sixth lunar month, the Golden Buddha Circumambulation takes place, a ritual where monks carry an ornate palanquin housing a golden Maitreya statue—adorned with flying eaves on its four corners—and parade it around the monastery, led by a procession carrying musical instruments, incense burners, and banners. Other monks follow, each holding a sacred relic, in a display of solemnity and grandeur. On the 22nd day of the ninth lunar month during the annual festival, all temple halls and cultural relic storage rooms are opened for public viewing, known as the “Display of Treasures.” Each scripture assembly also includes the Cham dance, also called “Lama Dance” or “Silent Opera,” a unique masked dance rich in religious symbolism. Common performances include the “Dharma King Dance” on the 14th days of the first, fourth, and sixth lunar months, and the “Hayagriva Dance” on the 15th day of the fourth lunar month, the 8th day of the sixth lunar month, and the 23rd day of the ninth lunar month. Performers wear colorful costumes and special masks, showcasing distinct and varied dance movements. Other notable events include the “Festival of Lanterns” held around the 25th day of the tenth lunar month to commemorate Tsongkhapa’s parinirvana, and year-end prayer gatherings to bid farewell to the old year and welcome the new.