The Treasury of Lives

Konste Tsewang Dondrub (dkon rtse tshe dbang don grub), born in 1809, was the father of the Eleventh Dalai Lama, Khedrub Gyatso (tA la'i bla ma 11 mkhas grub rgya mtsho, 1838-1855). His youngest son, Ngawang Gyeltsen (ngag dbang rgyal mtshan, 19th c.), was an incarnate lama at Drib Tsechok Ling (grib tshe mchog gling).

Yabzhi (yab gzhi) status was granted to families of the Dalai Lamas by the Manchu Qing Dynasty in Beijing, a tradition beginning with the family of the Seventh Dalai Lama, Kelzang Gyatso (tA la'i bla ma 07 bskal bzang rgya mtsho, 1708-1757). Tsewang Dondrub received the title of fuguo gong (輔國公) on October 10, 1841. In 1845, the Punkhang (phun khang) estate near Trandruk in the Yarlung valley was granted to the ennobled family, and Tsewang Dondrub became the head of Yabzhi Punkhang (yab gzhi phun khang), known also as Puntsok Khangsar (phun tshogs khang gsar).

In 1848, Tsewang Dondrub was granted a coral button and a peacock feather, both used to denote high-ranking elite during the Qing dynasty. Although he did not take an active role in politics, he did engage in political ceremonies. The Lhasa Punkhang Mansion (phun tshogs khang gsar gzims shag), which was built around 1843, was the family's Lhasa residence.

Tsewang Dondrub outlived the Eleventh Dalai lama, although an exact date of death is unknown. Sources mention him as late as 1860. His descendants remained active in political life into the twentieth century. They included Punkhang Tashi Dorje (pun khang bkra shis rdo rje,19th c.) a civil servant who was given the title of gong (公) – often translated as "duke" -- in 1919, and also acted as kalon (bka' blon), or government minister, from 1938-1946. Tashi Dorje's son, Gonpo Tsering (mgon po tshe ring,  b.1918) married into the royal family of Sikkim. Another son, Jampel Nyamnyi ('jam dpal mnyam nyid, 19th c.) was a Kadron (bka' mgron), or assistant cabinet member in the Lhasa government.