chen po zhang lHa bzang

00237 

Other names / Alternative spellings 

lHa bzang po (ms. ITJ 751 l. 36v2) 

Social groups (status, family, lineage...) 

Tshes pong family? 

Period of activity 

VIIIth century? 

IXth century 

Reign of Khri Srong lde brtsan ? 

Reign of Mu ne btsan? 

Reign of Khri lDe srong brtsan? 

Reign of Khri gTsug lde brtsan 

Biographical data  

'Bro Khri sum rje stag snang and chen po zhang lHa bzang defeated rGya, Drug, lJang and other kings of the borders (China, Turks and Nanzhao, ms. ITJ 751 l. 36v1-36v3, 40r1).

In the land of dByar mo thang, at De ga g.yu tshal, 'Bro Khri sum rje stag snang and zhang chen po lHa bzang built a gtsug lag khang (ms. ITJ 751 l. 41v1-41v2).

In a Sheep year [827 or 839?*], zhang lHa bzang, zhang Leg sum brtsan and others gathered an assembly  (? ms. PT 1297.3 l. 1).

Titles 

chen po zhang (ms. PT 16 l. 26r2, 27r1, 29r4, 29v4, ms. ITJ 751 l. 36v2 39r2, 40r1) 

zhang chen po (ms. PT 16 l. 28v4, ms. ITJ 751 l. 41v1, 41v3) 

zhang? (ms. PT 1297.3 l. 1) 

Notes 

Chen po zhang lHa bzang is most likely the "Shang La zang xu lü po" of Chinese documentation (see Demiéville p. 280-281 in the 1952 ed.), and the Tshe spong zhang lHa bzang klu dpal mentioned in later Tibetan chronicles (such as Ne'u pandita 2005 ed. p. 29). 

The title chen po zhang / zhang chen po (great/elder maternal uncle or maternal uncle superior ?) may refer to lHa bzang's elder status as compared to 'Bro Khri sum rje stag snang : as a member of the Tshes pong family, lHa bzang [klu dpal] would have been linked to Tshes pong za rMa rgyal ldong skar (Khri Srong lde brtsan' s queen and the mother of Khri lDe srong brtsan ) while 'Bro Khri sum rje stag snang would be linked to 'Bro za lHa rgyal mang mo rje (i. e. Khri lDe srong brtsan's queen mother of Khri gTsug lde brtsan and 'U 'i dum brtan ). 

In the bKa' thang sde lnga lHa bzang klu dpal is a blon chen "skilled in war" (dmag gi mkhas pa 2011 ed. p. 379). 

Later Tibetan documentation usually associates lHa bzang klu dpal with the reign of Khri Srong lde brtsan : 

- according to the Padma bka' thang he was sent as a representative of Khri Srong lde btsan at the time of Padmasambhava's arrival in Tibet (see U rgyan gling pa 1996ed p. 368) 

- the rGyal rabs gsal ba'i me long states that the dmag dpon lHa bzang klu dpal sang a song during the foundation of bSam yas (rGyal rabs gsal ba'i me long 2005ed. 219, Sørensen 1994 p. 396).

Ms. PT 1297.3 transl. in Takeuchi 1995 p. 153-158. 

On lHa bzang klu dpal see also Stoddard 1997.

* see Takeuchi 1995 p. 154