Chambaling Monastery (强巴林寺, Qiang Ba Lin Si in Chinese) stands amid the high mountains and old glaciers located near the intersection of the rivers of Ang’qu and Zaqu in Qamdo Region. It got its name because the master Buddha of the monastery is the Buddha of Great Kindness (Chamba). A legend goes that in 1373, Tsongkhapa, who was 16 years old then, from the Gulug (Yellow Hat) Sect, had been traveling from Qinghai to Lhasa to learn diligently about Buddhism. When he passed the beautiful scenery at the intersection of rivers, he prophesied that this place would be the center of championing Buddhism. The prophet came true in the year 1444, one of the pupils of Master Tsongkhapa built the Chambaling Monastery, during which he visited a wealthy household in the area to preach Buddhism and they donated their pastureland for him. He spent a total of eight years to complete the work. According to the Gulug rules, the Chambaling Monastery can accommodate about 2,500 monks. During its most flourishing times, the monastery had 130 subsidiary temples in Qamdo and neighboring regions.

Because Qamdo has traditionally been a passage that linked Sichuan and Tibet, doing business became the main occupation of local residents. They influenced the holy atmosphere in the Chambaling Monastery, where monks did business apart from spiritual cultivation. The money and interest were divided fairly to the monks. If there were some surplus, they would also distribute evenly among themselves.

It is no doubt that the big monastery has owned a large amount of land and exploited serfs in its history, or else, master monks could not live a wealthy life. Drinking water, for example, due to the Chambaling Monastery was built on the mountain, the monks had to hire civilians to carry it up the hill from a river. There were 22 giant vessels in the monastery that each could carry about 100 buckets of fresh water. The dangerous mountain path, which goes up along the steep slope and hard labor have led many water-carriers died of fatigue, starvation and drowned. 

After founding of the new China, the Chinese government built a reservoir near the Chambaling Monastery that completely solved the difficulty of obtaining drinking water.

The Chambaling is undoubtedly the biggest and the most influential Gulug monastery in Qamdo region. It has five big Dratsangs (religious schools). The architectural details are well preserved with delicate artworks of Buddhist statues, murals and Tibetan Thangkas. The weird but grand divine dance show, which will be held about the time of celebrating the Tibetan New Year, is worth to see. The dancers wear masks with fearful expressions and gorgeous costumes. 

Transportation: If not go there by taxi, it is still quite convenient to start your trip on foot at a square located opposite Changqing Street, Old District of Qamdo Town. Climb along a steep road. It takes about only ten minutes. Admission is free.

Zezhol Monastery (孜珠寺, Zi Zhu Si in Chinese) is Mount Zezhol, Dingqing County of Qamdo, Tibet. It is about 37 kilometers away from the county’s city center. The earliest history of the monastery may trace back to 2,000 or 3,000 years before present. A prominent master in Bon Religion (苯教) had rebuilt the Zezhol Monastery in mid-fourteenth century AD. “Zezhol” in Tibetan means “Six Summits”. It aptly describes the majestic but dangerous scenery combining of towering peaks, odd rocks and mystic grottoes. Due to some complicated historical reasons, Bon, a religion that had once dominated Tibetan Plateau, gave way to Buddhism and it escaped to remote areas. This was in order to preserve the religion and its spiritual power. Therefore, Dingqing County in Qamdo area has traditionally been the stronghold of Bon and the Zezhol is the one of the biggest Bon monasteries in Qamdo’s Kang region with most followers and most fundamental religious rituals. The abbey inside the Zezhol Monastery, the preachers can systematically tell the Bon scriptures and yoga practices from ancient times. Additionally, it still holds the exotic, divine nude dance rituals. This kind of nude ritual can only be seen here in whole Tibet today.

Transportation: It takes about 7 hours and 3 hours coach ride from Qamdo and Dingqing County as far as the Zezhol Monastery respectively.