Katse monastery, (near) Kungar, Xizang, CN

Raw data

Katse Lhakhang, Medro Katse - Close to the confluence of the Kyichu/Lhasa River and Medro rivers, on the far side of Medro R., opposite of Medro Kongkar/Medro Gongkar/Maizhokunggar. The monastery, like the nearby Tangkya, was built by Emperor Sontsen Gampo in the 7th c. as a part of a geomantic project to subdue a she-demon who interfered with the construction of Buddhist structures in Lhasa. Initially a Nyingma monastery, in the 13th c., a Drigung establishment, became a Gelugpa monastery in the 17th c. - Dowman (1988:109)

Input by: tmciolek, Jan 17, 2013

"The small monastery of Katsel is situated in the vicinity of the town of Medrogungkar at the bottom of the Kyichu Valley's eastern scarp. Built in the 7th century, Katsel (ska tshal) is one of the oldest Buddhist temples of Tibet. In ancient times, according to legend, Tibet was ruled by a giant demoness named Sinmo, who periodically ravaged the land with disasters. Her body was formed by the topography of the country. King Songtsen Gampo had four temples and monasteries built on geomantically significant places in order to subordinate the demoness to the Buddhist faith." - http://www.drikung.org/drikung-kagyu-lineage/main-monasteries/drikung/katsel
Input by: tmciolek, Mar 15, 2013

Final data (and their sources)

Last updated: 15 Mar 2013

Lat/Long coordinates' accuracy:
The monastery in question is assumed to be situated actually no farther than 200m from the point defined by the coordinates below.

Location of Katse monastery, CN.

General location of the Katse monastery, CN.
Lat 29.86177 Long 91.75320
Mapping & images: Falling Rain Genomics (http://www.fallingrain.com), 2013.


Google Map link:

http://maps.google.com/maps?q=29.86177+91.75320+(Approx.%20loc.%20of%20the%20Katse%20monastery,%20CN)&ll=29.86177,91.75320&spn=05.0,05.0&t=k&hl=en


Final data - explanatory notes

1. Monastery's name

  • Katse monastery - Dowman (1988:109)

2. Monastery's modern country & province

  • China:Xizang Zizhiqu

3. Monastery's alternative/historical names


4. Monastery's lat/long coordinates

  • Approx. Lat 29.86177 Long 91.75320 - based on the visual identification of the Katse monastery's stupas (in ruin) in maps/satellite imagery, maps.google.com - tmciolek, 15 Mar 2013.

5. Other known nearby Buddhist monasteries


6. Modern name of the known nearest city, town, or village


7. The settlement's alternative/historical names


8. The settlement's coordinates


9. Monastery's major Buddhist tradition

  • Vajrayana

10. Monastery's Buddhist sub-tradition

  • Nyingma - Dowman (1988:109)
  • Drigung monastery in the 13th c. - Dowman (1988:109)
  • Gelugpa monastery in the 17th c. - Dowman (1988:109)

11. Date-early

  • Built by Emperor Sontsen Gampo in the 7th c - Dowman (1988:109)
  • MBM chrono-tag 0633-66c - tmciolek 17 Jan 2013
  • 0633-66c 0667-99c 0700-32c 0733-66c 0767-99c 0800-32c 0833-66c 0867-99c 0900-32c 0933-66c 0967-99c 1000-32c 1033-66c 1067-99c 1100-32c 1133-66c 1167-99c 1200=> dated-el

12. Date-intermediate

  • In the 13th c., a Drigung establishment, became a Gelugpa monastery in the 17th c. - Dowman (1988:109)

13. Date-late

  • In existence in the late 1980s - Dowman (1988:109)
  • MBM chrono-tag 1200=> - tmciolek 17 Jan 2013

14. Details of contacts with other monasteries

  • A part of a series of geomantically located monasteries around Lhasa - Dowman (1988:109)

15. Type of evidence regarding the monastery

  • [missing data]

16. Additional notes

  • [missing data] (incl. details of the size of the monastic population)

17. Corrections & addenda to this page were kindly provided by

  • [missing data]

18. Available Printed Literature

  • [bibliographical details of the Book/Article 1]
  • [bibliographical details of the Book/Article 2]
  • [bibliographical details of the Book/Article 3]

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