Phuntsoling Monastery, now home to 50 monks, was once the central monastery of the Jonangpa. This Kagyu sect is especially known for the examination of the nature of emptiness undertaken at the monastery by its greatest scholar, Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen (1292–1361). He was one of the first proponents of the hard-to-grasp notion of shentong . Roughly, this is based on the idea that the buddha-mind (which transcends all forms) is not ultimately empty, even though all forms are empty illusions. (No, we don't get it either…)
Shentong has been debated among Buddhist philosophers for seven centuries. The Gelugpa school did not share Dolpopa’s view, to the point where in the 17th century the fifth Dalai Lama suppressed the Jonangpa school and forcibly converted Phuntsoling into a Gelugpa institution.
The monastery was expanded by the writer and scholar Taranatha (1575–1634) whose next incarnation was the first Bogd Gegeen (spiritual leader) of Mongolia. Thereafter the monastery was closely associated with the Bogd Gegeens, which is why you will see pictures of the 8th and 9th incarnations in front of the main altar. The ninth Bogd fled to India as a young man but revisited Phuntsoling in 1986 and 1993, helping to reopen the monastery following its closure during the Cultural Revolution.
You can visit the monastery’s large assembly hall, which is dominated by a statue of Chenresig (Avalokiteshvara). Other statues include those of the 10th Panchen Lama, Tsongkhapa and the fifth Dalai Lama. The inner sanctum of the hall contains a statue of Mikyöba (Akshobhya), while the murals on the roof tell the story of the life of Sakyamuni (Sakya Thukpa). Tame ghoral (mountain goats) wander the central courtyard.
The highlight of the monastery is a walk up to the ruined fortifications behind the monastery, which offer stunning views of the valley. Look for the ruined dzong on a cliff across the Yarlung Tsangpo.
A festival is held at Phuntsoling around the middle of the fourth lunar month (equivalent to June/July) every year, and sees lamas and pilgrims from all over the county gathering in the courtyard for prayers and celebrations.
