Zhangzhung

Zhangzhung or Shangshung was an ancient culture and kingdom of western and northwestern Tibet, which pre-dates the culture of Tibetan Buddhism in Tibet. Zhangzhung culture is associated with the Bon religion, which in turn, has influenced the philosophies and practices of Tibetan Buddhism. Zhangzhung people are mentioned frequently in ancient Tibetan texts as the original rulers of central and western Tibet. Only in the last two decades have archaeologists been given access to do archaeological work in the areas once ruled by the Zhangzhung.

Kingdom of Zhangzhung

Xangxung ཞང་ཞུང་
c. 500 BC–625 AD[1]
CapitalKyunglung
Common languagesZhangzhung language
Religion
Bön
GovernmentMonarchy
Brtsanpo 
Historical eraIron Age to Classical Antiquity
• Established
c. 500 BC
• Conquest of Songtsen Gampo
625 AD[1]
Preceded by		Succeeded by
Neolithic Tibet
Tibetan Empire
Today part ofChina
India
Nepal
Zhangzhung
Tibetan name
Tibetan ཞང་ཞུང་
Chinese name
Simplified Chinese象雄
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Recently, a tentative match has been proposed between the Zhangzhung and an Iron Age culture now being uncovered on the Changtang plateau in northwestern Tibet.[2]

Extent of the Zhang Zhung kingdoms
Kingdoms in 565

Tradition has it that Zhang Zhung consisted "of three different regions: sGob-ba, the outer; Phug-pa, the inner; and Bar-ba, the middle. The outer is what we might call Western Tibet, from Gilgit in the west to Dangs-ra khyung-rdzong in the east, next to lake gNam-mtsho, and from Khotan in the north to Chu-mig brgyad-cu rtsa-gnyis in the south. The inner region is said to be sTag-gzig (Tazig) [often identified with Bactria], and the middle rGya-mkhar bar-chod, a place not yet identified." While it is not certain whether Zhang Zhung was really so large, it is known that it was an independent kingdom and covered the whole of Western Tibet.[3][4]

The capital city of Zhang Zhung was called Khyunglung (Wylie: Khyunglung Ngülkhar or Wylie: Khyung-lung dngul-mkhar ), the "Silver Palace of Garuda", southwest of Mount Kailash (Mount Ti-se), which is identified with palaces found in the upper Sutlej Valley.[5]

According to Rolf Alfred Stein, author of Tibetan Civilization, the area of Shang Shung was not historically a part of Tibet and was a distinctly foreign territory to the Tibetans:[6]

“…Then further west, the Tibetans encountered a distinctly foreign nation. - Shangshung, with its capital at Khyunglung. Mt. Kailāśa (Tise) and Lake Manasarovar formed part of this country., whose language has come down to us through early documents. Though still unidentified, it seems to be Indo European. …Geographically the country was certainly open to India, both through Nepal and by way of Kashmir and Ladakh. Kailāśa is a holy place for the Indians, who make pilgrimages to it. No one knows how long they have done so, but the cult may well go back to the times when Shangshung was still independent of Tibet. How far Shangshung stretched to the north, east and west is a mystery…. We have already had an occasion to remark that Shangshung, embracing Kailāśa sacred Mount of the Hindus, may once have had a religion largely borrowed from Hinduism. The situation may even have lasted for quite a long time. In fact, about 950, the Hindu King of Kabul had a statue of Vişņu, of the Kashmiri type (with three heads), which he claimed had been given him by the king of the Bhota (Tibetans) who, in turn had obtained it from Kailāśa.”[6]

History of the Zhangzhung

Iron Age culture of the Chang Tang—the Zhang Zhung?

Recent archeological work on the Chang Tang plateau finds evidence of an Iron Age culture which some have tentatively identified as the Zhangzhung.[2]

The Conquest of Zhangzhung
Map showing Zhangzhung and its capital Kyunglung under the Tibetan Empire

There is some confusion as to whether Central Tibet conquered Zhangzhung during the reign of Songtsen Gampo (605 or 617–649) or in the reign of Trisong Detsen (Wylie: Khri-srong-lde-btsan ), (r. 755 until 797 or 804).[7] The records of the Tang Annals do, however, seem to clearly place these events in the reign of Songtsen Gampo for they say that in 634, Yangtong (Zhang Zhung) and various Qiang tribes, "altogether submitted to him." Following this he united with the country of Yangtong to defeat the 'Azha or Tuyuhun, and then conquered two more tribes of Qiang before threatening Songzhou with an army of more than 200,000 men. He then sent an envoy with gifts of gold and silk to the Chinese emperor to ask for a Chinese princess in marriage and, when refused, attacked Songzhou. He apparently finally retreated and apologised and later the emperor granted his request.[8][9]

Early Tibetan accounts say that the Tibetan king and the king of Zhangzhung had married each other's sisters in a political alliance. However, the Tibetan wife of the king of the Zhangzhung complained of poor treatment by the king's principal wife. War ensued, and through the treachery of the Tibetan princess, "King Ligmikya of Zhangzhung, while on his way to Sum-ba (Amdo province) was ambushed and killed by King Srongtsen Gampo's soldiers. As a consequence, the Zhangzhung kingdom was annexed to Bod (Central Tibet). Thereafter the new kingdom born of the unification of Zhangzhung and Bod was known as Bod rGyal-khab."[10][11][12] R. A. Stein places the conquest of Zhangzhung in 645.[13]

Revolt of Zhang Zhung in 677

Zhang Zhung revolted soon after the death of King Mangsong Mangtsen or Trimang Löntsän (Wylie: Khri-mang-slon-rtsan , r. 650–677), the son of Songtsen Gampo, but was brought back under Tibetan control by the "firm governance of the great leaders of the Mgar clan".[14]

The Zhangzhung language
Further information: Zhangzhung language

A handful of Zhangzhung texts and 11th century bilingual Tibetan documents attest to a Zhangzhung language which was related to Kinnauri. The Bonpo claim that the Tibetan writing system is derived from the Zhangzhung alphabet, while modern scholars recognize the clear derivation of Tibetan script from a North Indian script, which accords with non-Bon Tibetan accounts. A modern Kinnauri language called by the same name (pronounced locally Jangshung) is spoken by 2,000 people in the Sutlej Valley of Himachal Pradesh who claim to be descendants of the Zhangzhung.[15]

Zhangzhung culture's influence in India

It is noteworthy that the Bonpo tradition claims that it was founded by a Buddha-like figure named Tonpa Shenrab Miwoche,[16] to whom are ascribed teachings similar in scope to those ascribed to the historical Gautama Buddha. Bonpos claim that Tonpa Shenrab Miwoche lived some 18,000 years ago, and visited Tibet from the land of Tagzig Olmo Lung Ring, or Shambhala. Bonpos also suggest that during this time Lord Shenrab Miwoche's teaching permeated the entire subcontinent and was in part responsible for the development of the Vedic religion. An example of this link is said to be Mount Kailash, which is the center of Zhang Zhung culture, and also the most sacred mountain to Hindus. As a result, the Bonpos claim that the supposedly much later teaching at least indirectly owes its origin to Tonpa Shenrab Miwoche.

See also

Footnotes
  1. Aldenderfer, Mark (2007). "Defining Zhang Zhung ethnicity: an archaeological perspective from far western Tibet". In Amy Heller and Giacomella Orofino (ed.). Discoveries in Western Tibet and the Western Himalayas: Essays on History, Literature, Archaeology and Art. Tibetan Studies, Proceedings of the Tenth Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Oxford, 2003. Leiden: Brill. pp. 1–22. ISBN 978-90-04-15520-6.
  2. "KM-III EXPLORATION REPORT: A Reconnaissance Mission to Locate the Sri Ashtapad Temple". Archived from the original on 2010-05-28. Retrieved April 14, 2010.
  3. Karmey, Samten G. (1979). A General Introduction to the History and Doctrines of Bon, p. 180. The Toyo Bunko, Tokyo.
  4. Stein, R. A. (1972). Tibetan Civilization. Stanford University Press, Stanford, California. ISBN 0-8047-0806-1 (cloth); ISBN 0-8047-0901-7.
  5. Allen, Charles. (1999). The Search for Shangri-La: A Journey into Tibetan History. Abacus Edition, London. (2000), pp. 266-267; 273-274. ISBN 0-349-11142-1.
  6. Tibetan Civilization by R.A. Stein, Faber and Faber
  7. Karmey, Samten G. (1975). "'A General Introduction to the History and Doctrines of Bon", p. 180. Memoirs of Research Department of The Toyo Bunko, No, 33. Tokyo.
  8. Lee, Don Y. (1981). The History of Early Relations between China and Tibet: From Chiu t'ang-shu, a documentary survey, pp. 7–9. Eastern Press, Bloomington, IN.
  9. Pelliot, Paul. (1961). Histoire ancienne du Tibet, pp. 3–4. Librairie d'Amérique et d'orient, Paris.
  10. Norbu, Namkhai. (1981). The Necklace of Gzi, A Cultural History of Tibet, p. 30. Information Office of His Holiness The Dalai Lama, Dharamsala, H.P., India.
  11. Beckwith, Christopher I. (1987). The Tibetan Empire in Central Asia, p. 20. Princeton University Press, Princeton, NJ. Fourth printing with new afterword and 1st paperback version. ISBN 0-691-02469-3.
  12. Allen, Charles. The Search for Shangri-La: A Journey into Tibetan History, pp. 127–128. (1999). Reprint: (2000). Abacus, London. ISBN 0-349-11142-1.
  13. Stein, R. A. (1972). Tibetan Civilization, p. 59. Stanford University Press, Stanford California. ISBN 0-8047-0806-1 (cloth); ISBN 0-8047-0901-7.
  14. Beckwith, Christopher I. The Tibetan Empire in Central Asia. A History of the Struggle for Great Power among Tibetans, Turks, Arabs, and Chinese during the Early Middle Ages, 1987, Princeton: Princeton University Press. ISBN 0-691-02469-3, p. 43.
  15. Ethnologue 14 report for language code:JNA
  16. http://www.ligmincha.org/bon/founder.html

Sources
  • Allen, Charles. (1999) The Search for Shangri-La: A Journey into Tibetan History. Little, Brown and Company. Reprint: 2000 Abacus Books, London. ISBN 0-349-11142-1.
  • Bellezza, John Vincent: Zhang Zhung. Foundations of Civilization in Tibet. A Historical and Ethnoarchaeological Study of the Monuments, Rock Art, Texts, and Oral Tradition of the Ancient Tibetan Upland. Denkschriften der phil.-hist. Klasse 368. Beitraege zur Kultur- und Geistesgeschichte Asiens 61, Verlag der Oesterreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften, Wien 2008.
  • Hummel, Siegbert. (2000). On Zhang-zhung. Edited and translated by Guido Vogliotti. Library of Tibetan Works and Archives. Dharamsala, H.P., India. ISBN 81-86470-24-7.
  • Karmey, Samten G. (1975). A General Introduction to the History and Doctrines of Bon. Memoirs of the Research Department of the Toyo Bunko, No. 33, pp. 171–218. Tokyo.
  • Stein, R. A. (1961). Les tribus anciennes des marches Sino-Tibétaines: légends, classifications et histoire. Presses Universitaires de France, Paris. (In French)
  • Zeisler, Bettina. (2010). "Ëast of the Moon and West of the Sun? Approaches to a Land with Many Names, North of Ancient India and South of Khotan." In: The Tibet Journal, Special issue. Autumn 2009 vol XXXIV n. 3-Summer 2010 vol XXXV n. 2. "The Earth Ox Papers", edited by Roberto Vitali, pp. 371–463.

Further reading
  • Bellezza, John Vincent. (2010). "gShen-rab Myi-bo, His life and times according to Tibet’s earliest literary sources." Revue d’Etudes Tibétaines Number 19 October 2010, pp. 31–118.
  • Blezer, Henk. (2010). "Greatly Perfected, in Space and Time: Historicities of the Bon Aural Transmission from Zhang zhung." In: The Tibet Journal, Special issue. Autumn 2009 vol XXXIV n. 3-Summer 2010 vol XXXV n. 2. "The Earth Ox Papers", edited by Roberto Vitali, pp. 71–160.
  • Zeisler, Bettina (2010). “East of the Moon and West of the Sun? Approaches to a Land with Many Names, North of Northern India and South of Khotan.” In: The Earth Ox Papers. Special Issue. The Tibet Journal, Autumn 2009 vol XXXIV n 3-Summer 2010 vol. SSSV n. 2. Edited by Roberto Vitali. Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, Dharamsala, H.P., India. pp. 371–463.
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