Religion:
In Tibet , there are three main religions, practiced by the people. Around 90% of Tibetans are Buddhist followers, 7% of Tibetans are Bon followers one who believe in Shamanism, & 3% percent Tibetans are Muslim followers. Since the Buddhism was widely spread in Tibet , here are brief introduction to Tibetan Buddhism.
The Buddhism originally penetrated in Tibet in around 5 th Century during the reign of 28 th Tibetan King Lha Thori Nyenstan. It is believed that a volume of a Buddhist scripture had fallen on to the roof of Yumbu Lhakang from the sky in the Lhoka region, the cradle of Tibet but at that time Tibetans did not have their own scrip so they could not read or practice it until 7 th century during the reign of 33 rd Tibetan King Songtsen Gamp. The scripture was kept in Yumbu Lhakang as a secret since they could not read it so it is named as melodious secret.
During the King Songtsen Gampo, he sent one of his wise ministers, Sam Bhota to India to study Sanskrit and he successfully completed his studies in India . After Sam Bhota's return to Tibet , he created a Tibetan own script based on Sanskrit which is the Tibetan language that we are using today. After this the Buddhism began in Tibet and in around 8 th century during the reign of 38 th Tibetan king Trisong Detsan, the Buddhism developed. The King Trisong Detsan sent many of his ministers or Tibetan scholars to India to study. After their successful studies, they returned to Tibet and translated many Buddhist scripture into Tibetan. The king Trisong Detsan invited Pedmasamvawa from India and built Samye monastery, the first monastery of Tibet and created a characteristic Buddhist sect, called Nyingma pa or known as red hat sect.
In the 9 th Century, the 40 th Tibetan King Tri Ralpa Chen, the Buddhism flourished very widely throughout Tibet and it became the major religion of Tibet . There was a demand from the local government that every single family has to send on of their sons to the monastery and study there as monks.
Nevertheless, in the end of 9 th century, the King Tri Ralpachen's brother Lang Dharma assassinated the king and enthroned to his brother's seat and became the Tibetan King. He destroyed most of the temples in Tibet , monks were ordered to work as lay men so since then until 11 th Century the Buddhism was almost disappeared in Tibet . Not long after he took the throne, he was shot to death with an arrow by a Buddhist monk called Lhalung Paldor and Tibet left to decentralization.
However, in 11 th Century, Lha Lama Jangchu Woe invited Atisha from India and brought the Buddhism back to Tibet . Atisha traveled from India through the western part of Tibet and finally to Lhasa , spent some years in Nyethang, close to Lhasa , preaching and writing, the stages of the path to enlightenment. He created a new Buddhist sect, called Kadampa. He got two famous Tibetan students, Dom Tonpa and Nog Lepai Sherrap. Dom Tonpa built the Tara temple of Nyethang and Reting monastery in the northern Tibet .
In the late 11 th Century, a famous Tibetan scholar also considered as a very high Lama, Marpa Lotsawa who went to India many times and brought many Buddhist scriptures from India and translated them in to Tibetan Language. He created a new sect, called Kagyupa and accepted Mila Repa as the main disciple. Mila Repa was a very famous Tibetan Yogi who is believed to achieve the enlightenment within a life time and built Saker Guthok temple (9 storey high) by himself without any help from others. In the 12 th Century, another new sect called Sakyapa founded by Kon Kunchok Gyalpo and Drogon Choegyal Pagpa. Drogon Choegyal Pagpa was the first Tibetan Lama who took the ruling power in Tibet .
In around the 14 th century, a famous Tibetan scholar, Tsongkapa from Amdo region traveled to Lhasa and on the way he has taken many teachers from those above sects and realiased that the monastic rule in those three sects was not proper one because there were many monks who also got married or drank alcohol etc within those three sects so finally he founded a new sect, known as Gelukpa which is the most popular and biggest sect in Tibetan Buddhism at the present day and he emphasized the monastic rule. After a monk admitted a monastery, he had to take the vow of junior monkhood first and then senior monkhood respectively. Once the monks have taken those above vows, they were not allowed to drink, marry, slaughter etc. Those four sects are practiced throughout Tibet and among them, the Gelukpa is widely followed.
Pilgrimage