GANDEN NAMCHOE

This offering of lights, marked on the twenty fifth day of the 10th month of the Tibetan calendar, celebrates the anniversary of the enlightenment of Je Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Tibetan Gelukpa School of Tibetan Buddhism.

Je Tsongkhapa was born in Amdo Province in the 14th century. He sought out the most enlightened teachers of his time, drawn from various lineages, ultimately founding a new order, the Gelukpa, or Virtuous Ones, and Ganden Monastery near Lhasa.

Celebrated as one of Tibetan Buddhism’s greatest yogis, he was an exceptionally brilliant scholar, whose wisdom and extensive writings brought clarity to the essence of Buddhist teachings. His exemplary life and accomplishments, which set a standard of excellence, inspired generations of monks and practitioners, forming an uninterrupted lineage of lamas and scholars to this day.