Gelug
The Gelug is the youngest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It was founded by Je Tsongkhapa, a Tibetan philosopher, tantric yogi and lama and further expanded and developed by his disciples.
The Gelug school is alternatively known as Kadam, since it sees itself as a continuation of the Kadam tradition of Atisha. The school of New Kadam, or New Kadampa is an offshoot of the Gelug-tradition. Furthermore, it is also called the Ganden school, after the first monastery established by Tsongkhapa. The Ganden Tripa is the official head of the school, though its most influential political figure is the Dalai Lama. Allying themselves with the Mongol Khans, the Gelug school emerged as the dominant Buddhist school in Tibet and Mongolia since the end of the 16th century. Another alternative name for this tradition is the Yellow Hat school or sect.
Doctrinally, the Gelug school promotes a unique form of prasangika Madhyamaka based on the works of Tsongkhapa. According to John Powers, Tsongkhapa's work "contains a comprehensive view of Buddhist philosophy and practice that integrates sutra and tantra, analytical reasoning, and yogic meditation."
Etymology
"Ganden" is the Tibetan rendition of the Sanskrit name "Tushita", the Pure land associated with Maitreya Buddha. At first, Tsongkhapa's school was called "Ganden Choluk" meaning "the Spiritual Lineage of Ganden". By taking the first syllable of 'Ganden' and the second of 'Choluk', this was abbreviated to "Galuk" and then modified to the more easily pronounced "Gelug".The Gelug school was also called the "New Kadam", because it saw itself a revival of the Kadam school founded by Atisha.
History
Tsongkhapa
The Gelug school was founded by Je Tsongkhapa, an eclectic Buddhist monk and yogi who traveled Tibet studying under Kadam, Sakya, Drikung Kagyu, Jonang and Nyingma teachers. These include the Sakya scholar Rendawa, the Drikung Thil scholar Chenga Chokyi Gyalpo, the Kadam mystic Lama Umapa, the Jonang master Bodong Chokley Namgyal and the Dzogchen master Drupchen Lekyi Dorje.A great admirer of the Kadam school, Tsongkhapa merged the Kadam teachings of lojong and lamrim with the Vajrayana teachings of the Sakya, Kaygu and Jonang schools. He also emphasized monasticism and a strict adherence to vinaya. He combined this with extensive and unique writings on madhyamaka, Buddhist epistemology, and Buddhist practice. Tsongkhapa's numerous works on philosophy and tantric practice were widely influential and they marked a turning point in the history of Tibetan Buddhist philosophy.
Tsongkhapa and his disciples founded Ganden monastery in 1409, which was followed by the founding of Drepung and Sera, which became the "great three" Gelug monasteries. According to Sam van Schaik these Gelug centers "came to form a triumvirate of massive Gelug monasteries that would dominate the religious and political life of Central Tibet for centuries."
Early growth
After the death of Tsongkhapa in 1419 the Gelug order grew extremely quickly through the efforts of Tsongkhapa's disciples who founded numerous new monasteries and spread the doctrine throughout Tibet. The Gelug school developed a reputation for strict adherence to monastic discipline and rigorous scholarship as well as for tantric practice. According to Sam van Schaik, while Tsongkhapa himself did not work to establish a brand new school per se, it was Tsongkhapa's disciples who took up the project of formally constructing a new school of Buddhism. Furthermore, van Schaik writes that "much of the credit for defining and defending the new school must go to Tsongkhapa’s student Khedrup."Tsongkhapa's three principal disciples were Khedrup Gelek Palsang, Gyaltsap Darma Rinchen and Dülzin Drakpa Gyaltsen. Other important students of Tsongkhapa were Tokden Jampel Gyatso; Jamyang Chöjé and Jamchen Chöjé ; and Gendün Drup the First Dalai Lama." Several major monastic centers were founded in Tsang, including Tashi Lhünpo, Segyü, Gyümé and Gyütö college. By the end of the fifteenth century, the collected works of Tsongkhapa had been set on woodblock prints. His works would later be collected together with the works of Gyaltsap and Khedrup to become the main unique canonical collection of the Gelug school which is known as the “Father and Sons Collected Works”.
According to Thupten Jinpa, by the end of the fifteenth century, the "new Ganden tradition had spread through the entire Tibetan cultural area, with monasteries upholding the tradition located in western Tibet, in Tsang, in central and southern Tibet, and in Kham and Amdo in the east." John Powers also notes that during the following centuries the Gelug school "continued to produce an impressive number of eminent scholars and tantric adepts."
By the end of the fifteenth century, Tsongkhapa had come to be seen as a second Buddha among in the Gelug tradition, and various hagiographies were written by his disciples. These texts developed the great myths of the Buddha Tsongkhapa and helped established the new identity of the Gelug school as an authentic lineage. Meanwhile, among the other Tibetan schools, Tsongkhapa now came to be considered "a force to be reckoned with, someone whose vision, ideas, and writings had to be understood in relation to their own cherished lineage and tradition."
This initial period of growth also saw scholastic debates and exchanges between the new Gelug tradition and the earlier sects like the Sakya school, who wrote critiques of Tsongkhapa's philosophy, such as Rongton Shakya Gyaltsen . This debate over Tsongkhapa's madhyamaka interpretation was then taken up by a trio of Sakya school thinkers: Taktsang Lotsawa, Gorampa, and Shākya Chokden. Their critique would be countered by the works of numerous Gelug scholars, such as Lekpa Chöjor, the first Panchen Lama Lozang Chökyi Gyaltsen, Jetsun Chökyi Gyaltsen, Sera Jetsun Chökyi Gyaltsen, Panchen Delek Nyima and Jamyang Zhepa.
The Dalai Lamas and spread to Mongolia
In 1577 Sönam Gyatso, who was considered to be the third incarnation of Gendün Drup, formed an alliance with the then most powerful Mongol leader, Altan Khan. As a result, Sönam Gyatso was designated as the 3rd Dalai Lama. "Dalai" is a translation into Mongolian of the Tibetan name "Gyatso". Gendün Drup and Gendun Gyatso were posthumously recognized as the 1st and 2nd Dalai Lamas respectively.Sönam Gyatso was very active in proselytizing among the Mongols, and the Gelug tradition was to become the main religion of the Mongols in the ensuing centuries. Sönam Gyatso traveled to Mongolia, and supported the establishment of monasteries and the translation of Buddhist texts to Mongolian. He also worked against certain shamanistic practices such as animal sacrifice and blood sacrifices.
This turn of events provided the Gelug school with powerful patrons who were to propel them to political pre-eminence in Tibet. The Gelug-Mongol alliance was further strengthened as after Sonam Gyatso's death, his incarnation was found to be Altan Khan's great-grandson, who became the 4th Dalai Lama. The influence of the Gelug school on Mongolian Buddhism remains strong today. According to Thupten Jinpa "an important legacy of this relationship has been the tradition of young Mongols studying at the great Geluk centers of learning in Amdo and central Tibet."
The rule of the Great Fifth
Following violent strife among the sects of Tibetan Buddhism, the Gelug school emerged as the dominant one, with the military help of the Mongol Güshri Khan who invaded Tibet in 1642 in order to defeat the king of Tsang. According to Tibetan historian Samten Karmay, Sonam Chophel, treasurer of the Ganden Palace, was the prime architect of the Gelug's rise to political power. Later he received the title Desi , meaning "Regent", which he would earn through his efforts to establish Gelugpa power.The 5th Dalai Lama, Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso, was the first in his line to hold full political and spiritual power in Tibet. He established a formal theocratic system of government, opened diplomatic relations with Qing dynasty China, built the Potala Palace in Lhasa, institutionalized the Tibetan state Nechung Oracle, and spurred a major renaissance in art and book printing. From the period of the 5th Dalai Lama in the 17th century, the Dalai Lamas held political control over central Tibet. The core leadership of this government was also referred to as the Ganden Phodrang. According to Thupten Jinpa, the 5th Dalai Lama's rule "would bring Tibet into a semblance of political unity for the first time since the collapse of the Tibetan empire some seven hundred years earlier."
The Fifth Dalai Lama was a prolific author and scholar. According to Jinpa "the Fifth Dalai Lama was personally an ecumenist who revered Tibet’s other major Buddhist traditions, especially the Nyingma." In this he was influenced by his teacher Paljor Lhundrup who was a Gelug monk and master of the Nyingma Great Perfection tradition. The "Great Fifth" wrote numerous works and revealed a cycle of Dzogchen teachings. One of his students, Desi Sangye Gyatso was also known as a great scholar who wrote various works on topics like Tibetan medicine, astrology, biography and calligraphy. He is the author of the important Tibetan medical text, The Mirror of Beryl, commissioned a set of medical paintings and wrote a biography of the Fifth Dalai Lama.
During the rule of the Fifth Dalai Lama that his teacher Lobsang Chökyi Gyaltsen received the title "Panchen Bogd" from Altan Khan and the Dalai Lama in 1645. This is the beginning of the Panchen Lama tulku line, who traditionally rules Shigatse and the Tsang region from his base at Tashilhunpo Monastery. The institutions of the Dalai Lama and Panchen Lama each participate in the process of recognizing each other's reincarnations. Lobsang Chökyi Gyaltsen was a prolific scholar and a great yogi who is particularly known for his writings on Gelug Mahamudra.
file:Zanabanzar self-portrait.jpg|thumb|220px|Zanabanzar, self-portrait, late 17th or early 18th century, Museum of Fine Arts, Ulan BatorThe Fifth Dalai Lama is also known for having recognized Zanabazar as the first official Jebtsundamba Khutuktu, the spiritual leader of the Mongolian Gelug tradition. Zanabazar was a great Mongolian polymath who excelled in painting, sculpture, poetry, scholarship and languages. He is credited with having launched a renaissance of Mongolian culture in the seventeenth century, with having created the Soyombo script and with widely promoting Buddhism among the Mongols. Zanabazar also oversaw the construction of numerous major Gelug monasteries in Mongolia, such as Shankh Monastery, Tövkhön Monastery and Erdene Zuu Monastery.
The rule of the 5th Dalai Lama also oversaw the repression of the schools of Tibetan Buddhism who were political enemies of the Gelug school and had supported the Tsang dynasty. After the war, many Kagyu and Jonang monasteries were forcefully converted to Gelug monasteries. The writings of the Jonang school as well any literature from the Sakya masters who had attacked Tsongkhapa were also banned and their woodblock prints were locked away. The Dalai Lama's attitude towards Nyingma was different, and he supported the collection and preservation of Nyingma texts, as well as personally patronizing the Mindroling monastery and their leaders Terdag Lingpa and Lochen Dharmashri.