Ngagi Wangpo (Tibetan : ངག་གི་དབང་པོ, Wylie : Ngag gi dbang po, 1439 – 8 July 1491), also known as Chen-nga Tsenyepa (Wylie : Spyan snga ts'e gnyis pa), was a king of central Tibet who reigned in 1481–1491. He belonged to the Phagmodrupa dynasty, which was the leading regime of central Tibet from 1354 to 1435 and maintained a certain political role until the early 17th century.
Ngagi Wangpo was the only son of King Drakpa Jungne and a lady of the Kharpa family. Still a minor at his father's death in 1445, he was made abbot of Thel in 1454. Four years later his uncle, King Kunga Lekpa, himself acquired the abbot-ship of Thel, and Ngagi Wangpo had to stay in a succession of other places. The late 15th century was filled with internal disputes in Central Tibet, and the direct authority of the Phagmodru ruler was at best restricted to Ü (East Central Tibet). In Tsang (West Central Tibet) the Rinpungpa feudatories dominated. In 1481 Kunga Lekpa was deprived of the kingship by a council of ministers, after a series of invasions by Donyo Dorje of Rinpungpa. Instead, his nephew Ngagi Wangpo was invited to take the position as king (gongma, "the high one"). At his enthronement he married Lady Dsongkhama. In 1488, they had a son called Ngawang Tashi Drakpa. [1]
During his decade-long reign Ngagi Wangpo was honoured by the elites of Central Tibet as their overlord (chipon). Nevertheless, his time was marked by unsafe conditions and rivalry between various parts of the country. In 1485 the Rinpungpa lord Donyo Dorje led an attack on Gyangtse, which was under a Phagmodrupa minister. Three years later the Rinpungpa finally got the upper hand and appropriated Gyangtse. [2] When Ngagi Wangpo died on 8 July 1491 the dominance of the Rinpungpa seemed complete. Donyo Dorje's uncle Tsokye Dorje (d. 1510) took over as regent since the heir to the throne was merely a small boy. The Ming dynasty of China by this time had only the faintest knowledge of internal Tibetan politics, since they noted the accession and subsequent death of Ngagi Wangpo in 1495; they knew the king by the name Ban Aji Jiangdong Daba. [3]
Phagmo Drupa Dorje Gyalpo [1110–1170], was one of the three main disciples of Gampopa Sonam Rinchen who established the Dagpo Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism; and a disciple of Sachen Kunga Nyingpo [1092–1158] one of the founders of the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism. He was the elder brother of Kathog Dampa Deshek [1122–1192], who founded Kathog monastery and the Kathog branch of the Nyingma school.
The Phagmodrupa dynasty or Pagmodru was a dynastic regime that held sway over Tibet or parts thereof from 1354 to the early 17th century. It was established by Tai Situ Changchub Gyaltsen of the Lang family at the end of the Yuan dynasty. The dynasty had a lasting importance on the history of Tibet; it created an autonomous kingdom after Yuan rule, revitalized the national culture, and brought about a new legislation that survived until the 1950s. Nevertheless, the Phagmodrupa had a turbulent history due to internal family feuding and the strong localism among noble lineages and fiefs. Its power receded after 1435 and was reduced to Ü in the 16th century due to the rise of the ministerial family of the Rinpungpa. It was defeated by the rival Tsangpa dynasty in 1613 and 1620, and was formally superseded by the Ganden Phodrang regime founded by the 5th Dalai Lama in 1642. In that year, Güshi Khan of the Khoshut formally transferred the old possessions of Sakya, Rinpung and Phagmodrupa to the "Great Fifth".
Rinpungpa was a Tibetan dynastic regime that dominated much of Western Tibet between 1435 and 1565. During one period around 1500 the Rinpungpa lords came close to assembling the Tibetan lands around the Yarlung Tsangpo River under one authority, but their powers receded after 1512.
Drakpa Changchub was a ruler of Central Tibet in 1374–1381. He belonged to the Phagmodrupa dynasty which was the dominating regime in Tibet between 1354 and 1435. Drakpa Changchub was the second son of Rinchen Dorje, a brother of the preceding regent Jamyang Shakya Gyaltsen. His mother was Zina Tashi Kyi. Like the other Phagmodrupa rulers he had a monastic upbringing, and was made abbot of Dansa Thel when fifteen years of age. In 1374 he was appointed regent (desi) of Tibet shortly after the demise of his uncle. For the next seven years he was jointly lama and regent. In 1381 he abdicated his political powers and retired to Dansa Thel in order to teach tantras. Since his reign was quite brief he was never formally acknowledged by the emperor of the Ming dynasty. He was succeeded as regent by his younger half-brother Sonam Drakpa.
Sonam Drakpa was a regent of Central Tibet who ruled in 1381–1385. He belonged to the Phagmodrupa dynasty, the leading regime in Tibet from 1354 to 1435.
Gongma Drakpa Gyaltsen was a king of Tibet who ruled in 1385–1432. He belonged to the Phagmodrupa dynasty, which was the leading regime in Tibet between 1354 and 1435. His reign was comparatively tranquil, but he was also the last ruler of the dynasty to wield full powers over the central parts of Tibet.
Drakpa Jungne was a king of central Tibet who ruled in 1432–1445. He belonged to the Phagmodrupa dynasty which was the leading regime in Tibet from 1354 to 1435, and exerted some influence until the early 17th century. His reign saw the collapse of the political power of the dynasty, and the beginning of two centuries of internal strife.
Kunga Lekpa was a King of central Tibet who ruled from 1448 to 1481. He belonged to the Phagmodrupa dynasty, which was the leading political regime in central Tibet from 1354 to 1435, and retained a certain political status until the early 17th century. His time saw the further fragmentation of Tibetan politics.
Tsokye Dorje was a regent of Tibet who ruled in 1491–1499. He belonged to the Rinpungpa family and headed the central government in Nêdong during the minority of the heir of the Phagmodrupa dynasty.
Ngawang Tashi Drakpa was a king of Tibet who ruled in 1499–1554 and 1556/57–1564. He belonged to the Phagmodrupa dynasty which was the dominating regime in Tibet from 1354 to 1435 and maintained a degree of authority until the early 17th century. His rule is sometimes considered to be the last of importance in the history of the dynasty.
Norzang (1403–1466), in full Norbu Zangpo, was the founder of the power of the Rinpungpa Dynasty in Central Tibet.
Kunzang, in full Kuntu Zangpo, was a prince of the Rinpungpa Dynasty that wielded power in Tsang.
Donyo Dorje was the third and most powerful prince of the Rinpungpa Dynasty that held power in much of Central Tibet from 1479 to 1512.
Ngawang Namgyal was a prince of the Rinpungpa dynasty that dominated the Tsang region in West Central Tibet between 1435 and 1565. He reigned from 1512 to 1544, and was a patron of the Karma Kagyu school as was the Rinpungpa dynasty.
Dondup Tseten Dorje was the penultimate prince of the Rinpungpa dynasty which held power in Tsang between 1435 and 1565. The details about his reign, and his exact years in power, are relatively obscure.
Ngawang Jigme Drakpa was the last ruling prince of Tsang of the Rinpungpa Dynasty. He was also a renowned author. His increasingly chaotic reign ended in 1565, when the Tsangpa dynasty deprived the Rinpungpa of their main possessions.
Karma Tseten, also known as Zhingshak Tseten Dorje was a king of Upper Tsang in West Central Tibet. He was the founder of the Tsangpa Dynasty, that had an important role in the history of Tibet from 1565 to 1642. Karma ruled during the period 1565–1599.
The Imperial Preceptor, or Dishi, was a high title and powerful post created by Kublai Khan, founder of the Yuan dynasty. It was established as part of Mongol patronage of Tibetan Buddhism and the Yuan administrative rule of Tibet.
The Phagmo Drupa Kagyu or Phagdru Kagyu (ཕག་གྲུ་བཀའ་བརྒྱུད) is a subschool of the Tibetan Kagyu school.