Ngawang Drakpa (Gyaltsen) (Ngag dbang grags pa rgyal mts'an) (d. 1579?) was a king in Central Tibet who ruled from 1564 to maybe 1579. He belonged to the Phagmodrupa dynasty which held power in Tibet or parts of it from 1354 to the early 17th century. Due to internal family feuds most of the powers of his predecessor slipped from his hands.[1]
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Ngawang Drakpa Gyaltsen was the son of Drowai Gonpo (1508-1548), a sub-ruler who resided in Gongri Karpo to the south-west of Lhasa. His grandfather was Ngawang Tashi Drakpa (1488-1564), the last effective king of the Phagmodrupa line. The main palace of the dynasty was Nêdong southeast of Lhasa. In 1553 or 1554 Ngawang Drakpa Gyaltsen temporarily took over the throne of his old grandfather, when the latter was forced to step down for a while.[2] A decade later he rose against the 75-years-old ruler and tried to acquire the throne permanently. He was aided in his ambitions by the ruler of Ganden. He also kept good relations with Sonam Gyatso, later known as the Third Dalai Lama. A number of Buddhist dignitaries tried to intervene in the rebellion, to no avail. In the next year 1564, his grandfather died. New disturbances broke out between the Nêdong and Gongri Karpo branches of the dynasty. Sonam Gyatso was asked to mediate in the conflict. Eventually Ngawang Drakpa Gyaltsen became the new gongma or king. However, the authority of the Phagmodrupa was now almost depleted.[3]
The Chinese dynastic annals, the Mingshi, assert that a new Phagmodrupa ruler sought investiture from the Emperor in 1564, but in fact China had very little interest in Tibet at this time. On the other hand, there was an intense interest from the Tümed Mongols to make contact with the religious leaders of Central Tibet. In 1577 envoys from the Tümed leader Altan Khan arrived to Sonam Gyatso, with an invitation to visit him in Kokonor. Ngawang Drakpa Gyaltsen was supportive of the project, and sent representatives to accompany Sonam Gyatso on his journey.[4] The result of the visit was that the Gelugpa sect established lasting relations with the Mongols, and that their leader acquired the title Dalai Lama.
Although the Phagmodrupa led a Kagyu school of Buddhism, Ngawang Drakpa Gyaltsen supported Sonam Gyatso and the Gelugpa. The Fifth Dalai Lama (1617-1682) wrote enthusistically in his chronicles about the gongma: "He was particularly a devotee both of the Gelugpa and of the Drukpa and heard [from them] many holy teachings. As his thoughts had been purified, because he was bound to the omniscient Sonam Gyatso by the links which pass between a chaplain and a giver of oblations, similar to those uniting the moon and the sun, the Chinese Emperor's court was constantly sending offerings to Gong[ri] Kar[po]."[5] According to the Mingshi a certain Phagmodrupa ruler died by 1579. This may allude to Ngawang Drakpa Gyaltsen.[6] The by now insignificant title was taken over by his son Kagyud Nampar Gyalwa.
| Preceded by Ngawang Tashi Drakpa |
Ruler in Tibet 1564–1579? |
Succeeded by Kagyud Nampar Gyalwa |