Drepung Monastery was founded in 1416 by Jamyang Choge Tashi Palden (1397–1449), one of
Tsongkhapa's main disciples, and it was named after the sacred abode in South India of Shridhanyakataka. Drepung was the principal seat of the
Gelug school and it retained the premier place amongst the four great Gelug monasteries. The
Ganden Phodrang (
dga´ ldan pho brang) in Drepung was the residence of the Dalai Lamas until the
Great Fifth Dalai Lama constructed the
Potala Palace. Drepung was known for high standards of academic study, and was called the
Nalanda of Tibet, a reference to the great Buddhist monastic university of India. Old records show that there were two centres of power in Drepung: the so-called lower chamber (Zimkhang 'og ma) associated with the Dalai Lamas-to-be, and the upper chamber (Zimkhang gong ma) associated with the descendants of Sonam Drakpa, an illustrious teacher who died in 1554. The estate of the Dalai Lamas at Drepung Monastery, called
Ganden Phodrang, had been constructed in 1518 by
Gendun Gyatso (1476–1541), retrospectively named the
2nd Dalai Lama. The name of the Tibetan government established by the 5th Dalai Lama came from the name of this estate.
Penchen Sönam Drakpa (1478-1554 CE) succeeded
Gendün Gyatso (1476–1541) in 1535 on the Throne of Drepung, both being major figures of the Gelug tradition. By the time Sönam Drakpa was appointed to the Throne of Drepung (Drepung Tri), he was already a famous Gelug master. He had already occupied the Throne of Ganden (
Ganden Tri) and was considered the most prolific and important Gelug thinker of his time. He was succeeded by
Sönam Gyatso (1543-1588 CE), the lama who would receive the official title of the Third Dalai Lama (Talé Lama Kutreng Sumpa). Before his death in 1554, Sönam Drakpa established his own estate, the Upper Chamber (Zimkhang Gongma), which was named because of its location at the top of Drepung, just below the
Ngakpa debating courtyard "Ngagpa Dratshang".
Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center attributes the following
Name variants to Penchen Sönam Drakpa: "bsod nams grags pa [primaryName], paN chen bsod nams grags pa [title], khri 15 bsod nams grags pa [primaryTitle], rtses thang paN chen bsod nams grags pa [title], gzims khang gong ma 01 bsod nams grags pa [title], this last one referring to the Seat of the Upper Chamber established in 1554. According to TBRC his successors referring to the estate of the Zimkhang Gongma were Sonam Yeshe Wangpo (1556–92), Sonam Gelek Palzang (1594–1615) and
Tulku Dragpa Gyaltsen (1619–1656) - closely connected to the famous story of
Dorje Shugden. (Some say that Drakpa Gyeltsen was Sönam Drakpa’s second reincarnation, but usually he is considered to be the 4th incarnation of Panchen Sonam Dragpa). It seems to be commonly accepted that Dragpa Gyaltsen was the fourth holder of the
gzims khang gong ma incarnation line. According to Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center
gzims khang gong ma 04 grags pa rgyal mtshan has been his "primary title". Since the search for his reincarnation has been banned, he has been the last one. Chapman reported that in the late 1930s Drepung was divided into four colleges, each housing monks from a different locality: "one being favoured by
Khampas, another by
Mongolians, and so on." Each college was presided over by an abbot who had been appointed by the late
13th Dalai Lama. Drepung is now divided into what are known as the seven great colleges: Gomang (sGo-mang), Loseling (Blo-gsal gling), Deyang (bDe-dbyangs), Shagkor (Shag-skor), Gyelwa (rGyal-ba) or Tosamling (Thos-bsam gling), Dulwa (‘Dul-ba), and Ngagpa (sNgags-pa). It can be a somewhat useful analogy to think of Drepung as a university along the lines of
Oxford or
the Sorbonne in the
Middle Ages, the various colleges having different emphases, teaching lineages, or traditional geographical affiliations. According to local sources, today the population at the monastery in Lhasa is about 300 monks, due to population capping enforced by the Chinese government. However, the institution has continued its tradition in exile with campuses in South India on land in
Karnataka given to the Tibetan community in exile by Prime Minister
Jawaharlal Nehru. The monastery in India houses over 5,000 celibate monks today, with around 3,000 at Drepung and some 2,000 at
Drepung Gomang. Hundreds of new monks are admitted each year, many of them refugees from Tibet. The
Ganden-Phodrang-Palace situated at Drepung Monastery was constructed by the
2nd Dalai Lama in 1518 and declared his chief residence/governmental palace until the inauguration of
Potala Palace by the 5th Dalai Lama. ==Recent events==