Overview

Ganden Monastery is located 45km east of Lhasa along the Sichuan-Tibet highway, dramatically situated on the ridge of Wangbur Mountain on the south bank of Lhasa River.

Ganden Monastery was the first monastery of the Gelugpa Sect of Tibetan Buddhism and remains the power center of this sect today. Founded in 1417 and the successive leaders of this sect have come to be known as the Ganden Tripa, a post earned through scholastic achievement. The Dalai Lama is the most famous member of this sect.

There are many burial stupas on the grounds of the Ganden Monastery, the most noteworthy of which is the Tomb of the Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelugpa Sect. The Tsongkhapa's preserved body used to sit meditatively in the stupa, but the body was destroyed during the Cultural Revolution. All that remains today are a few enshrined skull fragments.

Getting there & away

Shuttle buses at the square of Jokhang Temple in Lhasa departing for Ganden Monastery at 7:00am and returning at 14:00. Y20 for a round trip, 2.5hrs each way.

Admission Fee:    Y45; Open Hours:  09:00 to 16:00