The full name of Tashilhunpo Monastery is "Tashilhunbu Baijideqinqu Tangjielnan Bajwarin", which means "auspicious Sumeru gathers blessings and excels all other states". Tashilhunpo Monastery has a history of more than 500 years. It is located on the Nyima Ri Mountain in the northwest of Shigatse City. It is built on the mountain with towering halls and magnificent momentum. It is one of the six major temples of the Gelug Sect of Tibetan Buddhism. This auspicious temple has left the world in awe with its magnificent architecture, exquisite art and long history. It is the crystallization of the great wisdom of the Tibetan people.

Tashilhunpo Monastery was built under the leadership of Gendun Drupa (the first Dalai Lama), a famous disciple of Tsongkhapa, the founder of the Gelug sect. Gendun Drubpa was born in a herdsman's family in Gumo, Tibet. He studied Buddhism assiduously since he was a child. Later, he became a disciple of Master Tsongkhapa and became a famous figure.

In 1447, with the funding of the then Tibetan aristocrats Quxiong Langpa Sonam Baisang and Qiongyepa Sonam Panjue, Tashilhunpo Monastery was built, which took 12 years to complete. Gendun Drupa was appointed as the first legal representative. In 1600, the fourth Panchen Lama Lobsang Chogye Gyaltsen expanded the Tashilhunpo Monastery. Later, it underwent continuous repairs and expansions by the Panchen Lama, and now has the scale it has today. The temple has a construction area of 300,000 square meters, and the number of monks at its peak reached more than 4,000.

Tashilhunpo Monastery has four major monasteries, 62 rice villages (depending on the place of origin of the monks), and nearly 60 Buddhist halls and pagodas. The center of the temple is the palace area, which includes the Cuoqin Hall, the Four Dracsangs, the Panchen Ladrang, the Qiangba Buddha Hall, the Panchen Lama Pagoda and the Shrine Hall.

Tsoqen Hall is the earliest building of Tashilhunpo Monastery. The lecture hall in the temple is about 500 square meters. The main sutra hall has 48 pillars and can accommodate more than 3,000 people. It is the center of the temple's religious activities. In the pure room in the north of the hall, there is a statue of Sakyamuni Buddha built by Gendhun Drubpa in memory of his sutra master Xirab Sengge. In the middle, there are three statues of Tsongkhapa and his disciples. On the right side of the pure room is the Qiangba Buddha Hall, which houses the 11-meter-high Qiangba Buddha statue. On both sides are the statues of Guanyin and Manjusri Bodhisattva carved by the Dalai Lama himself. On the left is the Tara Hall, which contains a gold-plated white Tara statue. In the west of the hall is the Dharma Protector Temple, which has great power, a six-armed father, a white-robed father and an auspicious goddess.

Xiazi Dracang, one of the four major Dracangs, houses the murals of Tsongkhapa, the gilded bronze statue of Sakyamuni, and the six-armed Buddha.

The main sutra hall of Jikang Dracang has 24 pillars, which are mainly dedicated to Buddha Sakyamuni and his eight disciples, Venerable Zarima, sister protectors, etc.

The main sutra hall of Tosang Linzhacang has 24 large pillars and is divided into clean rooms on the east and west sides. In the pure room on the west side, there are statues of Sakyamuni Buddha, the eleven-faced Guanyin, and the holding Vajra, etc.; in the clean room on the east side, there are three statues of Sakyamuni's main family members and the goddess protectors.

Aba Zhacang is the tantric academy of the entire temple and was built in 1615 by the fourth Panchen Lama Lobsang Chokyi Gyaltsen. There are 16 pillars in the sutra hall, and there are many murals about the master, including the throne of Vajra Master and the silver pagoda of Master Gongjo Gyaltsen.

The Panchen Ladrang refers to the palace of the Panchen Lama in Zha Temple. There are 4 palaces and many sleeping palaces in the temple. In 1660, the fourth Panchen Lama Lobsang Chokyi Gyaltsen took over as the 16th Buddhist altar of the temple and carried out a large-scale expansion of the temple. In 1645, Gushi Khan gave Lobsang Chogyi Gyaltsen the title of "Panchen Bogdo"; in 1713, the Qing government conferred the title of "Panchen Erdeni" to the fifth Panchen Lobsang Yeshi. At this point, the status of the Panchen Lama was confirmed, and the temple became the place where successive Panchen Lama masters were stationed.

The Qiangba Buddha Hall was built in 1914 by the ninth Panchen Lama Chokyi Nyima. The hall is 30 meters high and has a construction area of 862 square meters. The hall is divided into five floors: the Lotus Seat Hall, the Waist Hall, the Chest Hall, the Facial Hall and the Crown Hall. You can go up by wooden stairs. 8,928 taels of gold and more than 231,450 jins of copper were used. The Jampa Buddha enshrined in the hall is 26.7 meters high, with a face width of 4.2 meters, an ear length of 2.8 meters, a hand width of 1.6 meters, a length of 3.6 meters, a foot length of 4.2 meters, and a shoulder width of 11.5 meters. Only one extra-large diamond with a diameter of 3 cm, 32 diamonds with a diameter of 1 cm, more than 300 large pearls, and more than 1,400 pieces of amber, coral, turquoise, etc. were used for the pekoe inlaid between the eyebrows of the Buddha statue, which shows its high cost. level of craftsmanship.

In addition to holding religious services on auspicious days such as the 8th, 15th, and 30th of each month in the Tibetan calendar, Tashilhunpo Monastery also holds religious ceremonies on the 15th day of the first lunar month, the "Sagadawa Festival" in April, On September 22nd, the "Seance Festival" and on October 25th, the anniversary of Tsongkhapa's death, ritual activities are held to pray for the prosperity of Buddhism and the safety of all living beings. The most distinctive festival of the temple is "Simo Qinmo", which is similar to the "Shoton Festival" in Lhasa and is also a festival celebrated by both monks and laypeople.

In addition to priceless Buddha statues, pagodas, and thangkas, Tashilhunpo Monastery also has handwritten Beiye Sutras and "Gangyur" and "Tengyur" copied with gold powder. In addition, there are various porcelain, enamelware, glassware, etc. from the Ming and Qing Dynasties. All of these are priceless treasures for studying the political, religious and social development of Tibet in various historical periods.

In addition, the murals of Tashilhunpo Temple are also very distinctive. They have ever-changing forms, bright colors and meticulous brushwork. They are another masterpiece of Buddhist art.