1. Name

gSas khang gSang sngags bdud ’dul gling

2. Location

It is located in Shar steng village 45 km east of Ba yan (Hua long), the

seat of Ba yan county, near the gSer gzhung (Jin yuan) village.

3. History

The temple was founded by rTse dbus tshang bSod nams g-yung drung dbang

rgyal, the founder of To shes Temple (No.118); he founded Shar steng Temple

a year after To shes Temple in 1919.

4. Hierarchical system

There is one leader and two dge bskos and two dbu mdzad. One of the two dbu

mdzad is in fact deputy dbu mdzad, the deputy

dbu mdzad is appointed for two years and then is

appointed dbu mdzad for another two years, on a

rotating basis and according to seniority. The lama is the deputy of the

Temple’s principle master, and is responsible for disposing of the gtor ma during rituals.

5. Number of tantric practioners

There are seventy-three tantric practitioners in the gsas

khang.

6 / 7. Current education and Educational exchange

The older practitioners teach the younger ones. Apart from To shes Temple

with whom it shares the same master, bsTan ’dzin dbang rgyal, the temple has

no ties with any other temple or monastery, since it is relatively isolated

from the rest of the Bonpo community in the Kokonor area.

8 / 9. Rituals

Since the members of the temple, like those of To shes are lay practitioners

and work as farmers, they practise individually on an irregular basis and

gather only for the rituals which are exactly identical with those of To

shes Temple.

There are two annual rituals based on the Yi dam kun

’dus and Dug lnga rang grol held by To shes and

Shar steng in turn and a ritual of the gDugs dkar cycle from the 15th to the

20th day of the 11th month. Only ten practitioners gather for the minor

rituals and these take place exactly the same way as those of To shes

Temple.

12. Local community

The local community consists of fifty families (three hundred people in

total) in Shar steng village.

13. Local festivals

Same as those of To shes Temple

14. Occupation of the local people

Agriculture

Source

(1) Interviews

Interviews in autumn of 1996 with: bsTan ’dzin dbang rgyal, on him, see

To shes Temple.