Hor monastery Nyintso-Gonpa: history and modernity
The Nyitso-gonpa monastery is one of the Thirteen Hor monasteries of Kham. It is located in the town of Xiangshui, Tau county (Chin. Daofu), Kandze Tibet Autonomous Prefecture (Chin. Ganzi), Sichuan Province. The Hor region was one of the traditional Kham polities. Historically the Nyitso-gonpa monastery had great influence in it, not only in religious, but also in political and economic spheres, exercising political power in the region in close relationship with secular rulers. Yet, the separation of religion from the state, executed during the 1956 ‘democratic reforms’ and the ‘cultural revolution’ in 1966-1967, undermined the subsistence of the monastery, and it practically ceased to exist. In turn, the full-scale reforms promoted after the death of Mao Zedong stimulated its blooming revival and restoration of its former functions in the local society. Since the topic is poorly investigated in Tibetan and Chinese Studies, the main task of the article was to present the phenomenon of Hor and the Nyitso-gonpa in its historical perspective and present stage in the context of the Mongol-Tibetan and Sino-Tibetan relationships in Kham. The principal trajectory of research and the main conclusions are the following: The history of Hor goes back to the 13th century and is connected with the conquest of Tibet by the Mongols of Genghis Khan. By the 17th century representatives of the Hor clan have become the secular leaders of the local population, the Five Hor states were established, and the Thirteen Hor monasteries of the Gelugpa order had emerged. During the Qing reign, the Hor states fell under the nominal control of the empire, but were in fact autonomously ruled by their secular chiefs and monasteries. At the end of the Qing dynasty, Beijing gained, for a short time, full control over the region, which, however, was again lost during the period of the Republic of China. Since those times the Hor states along with Nyarong and Derge have been a disputed object in the Sino-Tibetan conflict, but by balancing between these two centers of power, could maintain their autonomy until the communists’ victory in China and the establishment of the PRC. During the period of its incorporation into China the region has undergone tremendous changes, from the total destruction of all traditional institutions to the restoration of religion and the monastic system. Using the example of the Nyitso-gonpa, one can see both the transformation of the Tibetan monastic system and its role in the Sino-Tibetan borderlands at the present time. Constituting still the core of traditional Tibetan politics and identity the Tibetan monastic system not only ensure the preservation and continuity of Tibetan culture and lifestyle, but also restore its own social functions and, moreover, make a significant impact on the local political agenda.