If you are short on time, concentrate on the large assembly hall and the upstairs former living quarters of the Karmapa. The latter still has some some of the 17th Karmapa’s boyhood possessions, including a globe, a toy car and an eyebrow-raising collection of books that includes Peter Pan, The Fantastic Four and Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back .
The large assembly hall in the main courtyard houses a chörten (stupa) containing relics of the 16th Karmapa, as well as statues of Öpagme (Amitabha), Sakyamuni (Sakya Thukpa), and the eighth and 16th Karmapas.
Scamper up the ladder to the right of the main entrance to visit the private quarters of the Karmapa. First up is the Karmapa’s classroom, complete with a jigsaw puzzle of a Buddhist thangka. The small Audience Hall contains a footprint of the 14th Karmapa as well as a picture of the 16th Karmapa wearing his holy headgear.
Across the upper courtyard is the 17th Karmapa's bedroom , where an attendant monk inside will pat you on the back with a shoe once worn by the man himself. A quick look at the Karmapa's bookshelves reveals an interest in bird watching and astronomy.
Walking west (clockwise) around the monastery complex you pass a large darchen (prayer pole) covered in yak hide and prayer flags to come to the main protector chapel (gönkhang ). There are five rooms here, all stuffed to the brim with wrathful deities. A row of severed animal heads, including ibex and Marco Polo sheep, lines the entry portico.
The first room is dedicated to Tsurphu’s protector deity, an aspect of blue Nagpo Chenpo (Mahakala) called Bernakchen. There are also statues of Palden Lhamo (Shri Devi) and Tamdrin (Hayagriva), as well as a spirit trap and several dead birds. The third room features Dorje Drolo, a wrathful form of Guru Rinpoche astride a tiger, and the fourth room features the Kagyud protector Dorje Phurba holding a ritual dagger. The fifth room contains a silver statue of Tseringma, a protectress associated with Mt Everest, riding a snow lion.
The large building behind the gönkhang is the Serdung Chanpo, which once served as the residence of the Karmapa. The side chapel features new statues of all 16 previous Karmapas.
The Lhakhang Chenmo, which is to the right of the Serdung Chanpo, houses a new 20m-high statue of Sakyamuni that rises through three storeys; this replaced a celebrated 13th-century image destroyed during the Cultural Revolution.
Behind the Serdung Chanpo and Lhakhang Chenmo is the sprawling Chökang Gang Monastery, the residence of the exiled regent of Tsurphu. Newly renovated chapels to explore include the Suri Lhundrup Phodrang and a new shedra (college).
The outer walls of the monastery are marked at four corners by four coloured chörtens.
