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Geshema Namdrol Phuntsok leading a discussion group at Kopan Nunnery, Kathmandu, Nepal, September 2020. Photo by Ani Lobsang Drolma.
Monks have held the Jang Guncho, the winter debate festival, for centuries. The first Nuns’ Jang Guncho took place in Dharamsala, India, in 1995. An annual event, the Nuns’ Jang Guncho is an opportunity for nunneries to gather together to train in and practice debate. The 2018 Nuns’ Jang Guncho took place at Khachoe Ghakyil Ling Nunnery (Kopan Nunnery), an FPMT nunnery in Kathmandu, Nepal. Ani Lobsang Drolma, from Khachoe Ghakyil Ling, shares about the Jang Guncho in 2020 and how its been affected by the pandemic.
In mid-August, Kopan Nunnery started the Jang Guncho, the month-long winter debate session. Most of the Kopan senior nuns, except for the staff, participated in this festival.
The famous event originated in Central Tibet in the monasteries and nunneries west of Lhasa. The focus is on logic, using the text Pramanavartika (Commentary on Valid Cognition) by Dharmakirti.
Geshema Namdol Phuntsok teaching debate by example with her students at Kopan Nunnery, Kathmandu, Nepal, September 2020. Photo by Ani Lobsang Drolma.
This inter-monastic debate festival has been held annually. Currently organized by the Tibetan Nuns Project, the Gelug nunneries in Nepal and India would usually gather together to debate with each other, with each institution taking turns hosting. Unfortunately this year plans to gather in India had to be canceled due to the pandemic. For months nuns haven’t left their nunneries as a precaution to prevent possible exposure to the virus.
The younger nuns, who are still in school subjects such as language, science, and math, continue with their studies and prayer memorization. Only the nuns who have graduated from these subjects and now study Buddhist philosophy participate in the festival. During this month, only Pramanavartika is studied in depth and debated. The schedule is intense, with two debate sessions daily, and ongoing memorization and discussion of logic in between.
Lama Zopa Rinpoche at Kopan Nunnery, Kathmandu, Nepal, September 2020. Photo by Ven. Thubten Choying.
The winter debate festival ended on September 15. The tsenphue dhamcha, a night group debate between the classes, was held that day from 4 p.m. until midnight. Lama Zopa Rinpoche and nunnery abbot Khen Rinpoche Geshe Chonyi, who are both staying at nearby Kopan Monastery, visited the nunnery to listen to the nuns debate and then left at dinner time. Rinpoche gave a precious teaching before he left, and he appear to be very happy with the nuns. The next day was the final day of the Yarne, the summer retreat.
Tsenphue Dhamcha at Kopan Nunnery, Kathmandu, Nepal, September 2020. Photo by Ven. Thubten Choying.
Now that both the Jang Guncho and the Yarne are finished the nuns are getting a holiday for a week. However, many nuns are busy with their Gelug college exam preparations. The rest of the nuns will have good break.
Watch a one-minute video of the Kopan nuns debating during the Jang Guncho:
https://youtu.be/sUKC1HPX1zc
For more information about Kopan Nunnery, visit their website:
http://www.khachonunnery.org/
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