Reported By Palden
Edited By Kelsang Jinpa
Translated By TenGyal
The Chinese government has forced the sudden shutdown of the Ganjong Sherig Academy (Gangjong Academy of Ancient and Modern Studies), an institution established bythe late Tulku Hungkar Dorje.
About two years ago, the Chinese government banned new student enrollment at the Gangjong Sherig Academy because the school refused to teach Chinese Communist Party ideology. Recently, after the institution’s final thirty or so students graduated, authorities stepped in on the 24th of this month to force the permanent closure of the academy, which was originally founded by Tulku Hungkar Dorje.
According to a local source familiar with the situation, the Chinese government warned the academy about two years ago that it would be shut down if it did not implement curriculum related to Chinese Communist ideology When TulkuHungkar Dorje Rinpoche refused to allow Chinese Communist educationin the school curriculum, authorities immediately banned new student enrollment. Recently, after the institution’s final thirty or so students completed their studies, the Chinese government officially forced the school to close.
Speaking on the legacy of the Gangjong Academy of Ancient and Modern Studies, its founder Tulku Hungkar Dorje Rinpoche had previously stated: “Born from pure intention, hard work, perseverance, patriotism, time, and material resources, and shaped by our teachers, staff, and rigorous discipline—in short, the fruit of a hundred trials and triumphs—this academy represents the very bone and marrow of my love for my people.”
In a wave of collective grief and anxiety, current students as well as alumni of the school have changed their WeChat profile backgrounds to images of the academy and the Tulku Rinpoche. Expressing their deep distress, they posted: ‘This holy being spent his entire life offering everything he had for the Buddha’s teachings and the Land of Snows. In his own words: ‘This Gangjong Academy ofAncient and Modern Studies represents the very bone and marrow of my love for my people.’
The Gangjong Academy of Ancient and Modern Studies situated near Lung-ngon Monastery in Gade County, Golog, Tibet, was founded on July 6, 2008, by the late, venerable Tulku Humkar Dorje. The prominent academy offers specialized programs in Tibetan language and culture, alongside courses in English, painting, traditional Thangka art, and calligraphy.Following the Chinese government’s closure of the Sengdruk Taktse School in early July 2021, authorities ordered and enforced the shutdown of seven more private schools across Golog—including the Sengdruk Taktse Boarding School in Darlag County, three schools in Machen County, one in Gade County, and two in Chikdril County—culminating on July 14, 2024, when the government forcibly closed the prominent Ragya Gangjong Sherig Norbuling School.
In 2004, Tulku Hungkar Dorje founded the Tsongon (Qinghai)Gesar Philanthropic Foundation, undertaking extensive work to preserve the cultural heritage of the Gesar epic. Beginning in 2007, with approval from the Golog Prefectural Government and the Bureau of Education, he established the Hungkar Dorje Nationalities Vocational High School—which grew to host around one thousand students and staff—and successively founded around 14 primary and secondary schools to provide free education to thousands of nomadic and rural children across Tibet. Ultimately, because he established numerous monasteries and monastic colleges to systematically preserve and revive Tibetan religion, culture, and language, the Chinese government has targeted him with various political accusations.
