The Treasury of Lives

The Twenty-fourth Ganden Tripa, Jampa Gyatso (dga' ldan khri pa 24 byams pa rgya mtsho) was born in Zhog Drampu (zhogs gram phu) in Penpo ('phan po) in 1516, the fire-mouse year of the ninth sexagenary cycle. He was inducted into the monk-levy ('thu btsun) of Taktse Rinchen Gang Monastery (stag rtse rin chen sgang) and became a monk at very young age. There Jampa Gyatso began his education, studying grammar and poetry and memorizing prayer texts. Thereafter he studied philosophy and related subjects followed by general and advanced tantric subjects.

Though not mentioned in his biography, Jampa Gyatso must have studied in the great seats of learning in the U-Tsang and, based on his later service in monastic administration, it can be presumed that he most probably did his advanced studies in philosophy at Ganden (dga' ldan) and advanced tantra in the Gyume College (rgyud med grwa tshang).

After completion of his studies, Jampa Gyatso served as the abbot of Gyume, Jangtse College (byang rtse grwa tshang) of the Ganden, and his initial monastery, Taktse Rinchen Gang.

At the age of sixty, in 1575, the year of wood-pig of the tenth sexagenary cycle, Jampa Gyatso was enthroned as the Twenty-fourth Ganden Tripa. He served the post for eight years, until 1582. During the tenure he gave many teachings on the topics of sutra and tantra and worked for the enhancement of monastic education in the main seats of Gelukpa tradition. He also created a large appliqué tangka of Maitreya. In 1579 Trichen Jampa Gyatso began to annually attend the Lhasa Monlam Chenmo, the Great Prayer Festival of Lhasa, the year after the departure of the Drepung abbot Sonam Gyatso (ta la'i bla ma 03, bsod nams rgya mtsho, 1543-1588) to Mongolia where he gained the title "Dalai Lama". His presence in the Monlam Chenmo became an example for the following Ganden Tripas.

Unable to live due to a severe attack on Taktse Rinchen Gang by the forces of Pakmodru, Trichen Jampa Gyatso moved to Zhok Gurmon (zhogs gur smon); as a result of his popularity with the development of the dharma center there he earned the epithet Zhok Jampa Gyatso (zhogs byams pa rgya mtsho).

After Trichen Jampa Gyatso retired from the abbatial seat of Ganden Tripa at the age of sixty-seven he settled at Ngon-ga (mngon dga') for personal practice. Because of being a popular resident lama of there he was called Choje Ngon-ga (chos rje mngon dga') as well as Tri Ngonga (khri mngon dga’).

Trichen Jampa Gyatso passed into nirvana in 1590, on the full-moon day of Trumda (khrums zla), the eighth month of the iron-tiger year in the tenth sexagenary cycle, at the age of seventy-five. A silver enlightenment stupa (byang chub mchod rten) was built in his memory and installed in the middle of the so called New Offering-Prayer Hall (chos khang gsar mar grags pa'i dbus su bzhugs so) in Ganden Monastery. Occasional offering-prayer was also done since then.