Jangtse Choje Rinpoche presiding over the Monlam prayer festival at Kopan Monastery, 2017. Photo by Ven. Lobsang Sherab.

Since 1998, the Gelug Monlam—known as the Great Prayer Festival—has been held at Kopan Monastery, Nepal, in the tradition of Lama Tsongkhapa, who founded the festival in 1409. The Monlam is regarded as one the “four great activities” of Lama Tsongkhapa’s life. It is held on the first Tibetan month of the year, during Chotrul Duchen, or the “Fifteen Days of Miracles.”

We reached out to Geshe Losang Sherab, who has served as the umze, or chant leader, for the Gelug Monlam at Kopan since 2001, to help share how this tradition, now over six centuries old, is preserved and carried on at Kopan today.

From Lhasa to Kopan – A Brief History of the Great Prayer Festival

Chotrul Duchen is one of the four major anniversaries celebrating the extraordinary deeds of Shakyamuni Buddha. According to the vinaya text Treasure of Quotations and Logic, karmic potential on these special Buddha Days are increased by a 100 million. Chotrul Duchen marks the time when Shakyamuni Buddha, while in Sravasti, India, displayed a series of miraculous acts in response to a public challenge by six ascetics, as a means to instill faith and inspiration.

The first Great Prayer Festival to celebrate Chotrul Duchen was led by Lama Tsongkhapa at the Jokhang temple in Lhasa, Tibet, during the Tibetan New Year of 1409. The Monlam tradition would become very popular and eventually adopted by all the major schools of Tibet.

Geshe Losang Sherab explains, “Lama Tsongkhapa started the festival to remember the kindness of the Buddha and also to create an environment for the people, both lay and Sangha, to create merit. Thousands of monks from all major monasteries around Lhasa such as Sera, Ganden, and Drepung took part every year. So many sponsors would come from all parts of Tibet to make offerings to the Sangha. It was a great opportunity for the both the Sangha, the sponsors, and all who took part in it to accumulate a great number of merits.”

The Gelug Monlam would continue to be held at the Jokhang in Lhasa until 1498, when it was stopped due to political strife at the time. The second Dalai Lama, Gendun Gyatso, revived the Monlam in 1517 while serving as abbot of Drepung Monastery. It was celebrated at the Jokhang Temple continuously until the invasion of Tibet by the Chinese army in 1959.

Geshe Losang Sherab continues, “After 1959, the three great monasteries held Monlam in Buxa, and after the three great monasteries were re-established in south India, they celebrated it in their own monasteries. I think the reason was the distance between the monasteries, which made it difficult, costly, and time consuming to assemble together as in Tibet”

The Gelug Monlam began to be held in Nepal in 1992. Kopan Monastery’s location, up in the hills outside of Kathmandu, was seen to be less ideal than other monasteries at the time, so Kopan never hosted the festival during its first years in Nepal.

According to Geshe Losang Sherab, it was around 1998 that new challenges arose for preserving the continuity of the Gelug Monlam. After His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s request for the discontinuation of the practice of Shugden, some monasteries were still continuing to do the practice. Under the circumstances, Lama Zopa Rinpoche and Khensur Rinpoche Lama Lhundrup offered to hold the Monlam at Kopan. A few other monasteries joined, and a new Gelug Monlam committee also formed around this time. The committee requested Lama Zopa Rinpoche to lead the Gelug Monlam that year.

Geshe Losang Sherab remarks about the 1998 prayer festival:

“With blessings of Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche, the Monlam that year at Kopan went very well, with many locals attending despite the distance they had to travel, and with donations from locals, generous benefactors from other countries, FPMT’s Lama Tsong Khapa Teachers Fund, and some FPMT centers. From that year, almost every year the Monlams were held at Kopan. Some of the other monasteries that didn’t give up the worship of Shugden at first gave it up and joined Monlam at Kopan. After that, many great lamas such as the 100th Ganden Tripa Geshe Lobsang Nyima Rinpoche, (then Jangtse Choje Rijong Rinpoche), Denma Locho Rinpoche, the present Ganden Tri Rinpoche and presently Jangtse Choje Gosok Rinpoche presides over the Monlam.”

How the Gelug Monlam Tradition is Carried Forward Today

Chant Master of Gelug Monlam at Kopan Monastery, Geshe Losang Sherab.

Geshe Losang Sherab has been the head chant master for the Gelug Monlam for twenty-one years. He describes the position:

“Being the umze of the Monlam I have the responsibility of the leading the chanting and to make sure that it’s done in as authentic a way as possible. I prepare a group of monks who are called Kesang (“good voice”) and Donsang (“having memorized many texts”) and teach them the tunes, and also make them memorize the texts they haven’t memorized. I also do at least six to seven days of training with all Kopan monks and a full rehearsal before the actual Monlam.”

The progression and practice of the Monlam is very elaborate and specifically organized. We asked Geshe Losang Sherab to help describe a picture of the tradition. He kindly offered a detailed account below:

“The prayers that are recited during Monlam are common in all Gelug monasteries, but the tune that is used during the actual Monlam is always from Drepung Monastery, as it was done since the time of the second Dalai Lama.”

Geshe Losang Sherab explained that it was the second Dalai Lama who “restored the great Monlam in Lhasa and established rules and regulations, including the set of prayers that are recited during the Monlam.”

The rest of the prayers, apart from the main Monlam activities, are chanted in the Sera Je Monastery tradition – the monastery that Kopan is most closely connected with.

“During the first session in the morning, many prayers are recited, mainly the homage to Buddha, confession to Thirty-five Buddhas, Ornament for Clear Realization (Abisamayalankara ) by Venerable Maitreya, Introduction to the Middle Path (Madhyamakavatara) by Chandrakirti and Manjushri Nama Samgiti, etc. Tea and bread is served during this session.

“During the second session, monks and nuns from all the monasteries and nunneries would debate on logic to the geshes from Kopan who are appointed to answer the debate.

“During the third session, the head lama of Monlam is invited with procession of gyaling [horns], victory banners and yellow parasol.  The chant master chants Migtsema prayers until the lama sits on the throne. Then all Sangha sit on the floor offering three prostrations to the lama. The lama would lead the Heart Sutra followed by the prayers to lineage lamas. After that, the chant master makes three prostrations and chants the mandala offering, after which the lama would teach on the Jakata Tales. After it’s completed, the lama would do dedications, and then he’s invited to his quarters in the same way he was invited to the teaching venue.

“After that, there’s a session during which tea and lunch is served. During this session, Lama Tsongkhapa guru yoga, lamrim Lines of Experience, Triple Ground of Glory, prayers to sixteen Arhats, eight powerful prayers, mantras such as the Namgyalma long mantra, and Medicine Buddha mantras are recited.

“Then after half an hour break, the fourth session begins. During this the monks and nuns from all the monasteries and nunneries debate on the paramitas and on view of the Middle Way to the appointed answers from Kopan.

“Then the actual Monlam begins after the Head Lama is invited with a procession of gyaling [horns], victory banners, and parasol. The lama makes three prostrations to the altar and then sits on the throne. After this all the Sangha sit down. The chant master leads prayers standing on his seat, beginning with the Likdrima (praise to Tara), Kapsumpa (praise to the Buddha by Lama Tsongkhapa), Losang Gyalkunma (supplication to the lineage gurus), prayers of Maitreya, and the Prayers at the Beginning, Middle and End by Lama Tsongkhapa. During the last two prayers, the chant master would walk with huge steps during each verse which is called Cham (“dance”), and offer a khata [scarf] to the lama. The chant master then walks backwards and sits on the seat.

“After that, the assistant chant master and his three companions stand up and start the bath offering prayers and offering the five objects of desire, the seven royal possessions, etc., then an extensive mandala offering followed by prostrations, reciting the confession to Thirty-five Buddhas, and sits down. Then the head lama starts the torma offering to the landlord, after which the chant master stands up and leads the prayer of secret biography of Lama Tsongkhapa. During this, the chant master performs the Cham dance with huge steps at the end of every verse. Then the Foundation of All Good Qualities is chanted. While chanting, the chant master goes back to his seat, walking backwards with huge steps and sits down on his seat. After this, the head lama recites the dedication prayers.

“At the end of the session, the chant master, the assistant chant master and his three companions stand up, wearing the yellow hat and recite the auspicious prayers. Then the lama is invited to his quarters. During the fifth session, extensive White Umbrella prayers and prayers to Lion-face Dakini, and Twenty-one Tara praises are recited. Dinner is served during this session.

“During every prayer session, the Gegu (“master of discipline”) reads the dedication forms with the names of sponsors. During every prayer session, the Heart Sutra and the Hundred-syllable mantra are recited, and at the end of every prayer session, the torma offering to Palden Lhamo and other protectors are recited. The program ends with debate on Vinaya and Abhidharma in the evening.

“On the fourth day of Monlam, which falls on the full moon day, the beautiful butter sculpture made by Kopan monks is displayed outside for the people to get blessed. On the last day of Monlam, Maitreya Buddha statue is invited with a huge procession. And in the afternoon [of the last day], Kopan Lama Gyupas offer the Torgyak which they have prepared and consecrated for three days. Then a dinner session is held and during which the secretary of the Monlam reads out the account of income and expenses of Monlam, and then the Monlam of that year concludes auspiciously.”

Please join us in rejoicing in the preservation of this incredible tradition at Kopan Monastery! The Lama Tsongkhapa Teachers Fund is a sponsor of the Gelug Monlam which is essential for preserving the Lama Tsongkhapa tradition. 

Since its inception, the Lama Tsongkhapa Teachers Fund, an extension of the Supporting Ordained Sangha Fund, has supported the preservation of the Gelug School of Tibetan Buddhism. 

With tremendous thanks to Geshe Losang Sherab for his time and information about this rich tradition.