Ganden Monastery... history and significance

Ganden means 'joyous' in Tibetan and is the name of the Western Paradise that is home to the Future Buddha (Jampa). Very ironic, because of all the great monastaries of Tibet, Ganden suffered the most at the hands of the Red Guard during the Cultural Revolution. In 1959, just prior to the Chinese invasion, there were 2000 monks at Ganden.
The monastery is about 30 miles from Lhasa, was the first Gelugpa monastery and has been the main seat of this major Buddhist order since it's founding in 1409. The Dalai Lama himself is a member of the Gelugpa order. Tsongkhapa was the founder and first abbot. He is a very revered man in Tibetan Buddhism, and there are many, many statues of him and his two closest disciples all over Ganden. The Monlam Festival, a major celebration in the Tibetan Buddhist calendar, was begun by Tsongkhapa here at Ganden. The abbotship of Ganden is gained in a unique way amongst Tibetan monasteries. It is gained by scholarly merit, not reincarnation. The abbot is called the Ganden Tripa, and it is he, not the Dalai Lama as you would expect, that is the head of the Gelugpa order.
Today Ganden is the scene of tremendous rebuilding, but this doesn't disguise the ruin that surrounds the new. The destruction was caused by artillery fire and bombing in 1959 and 1966. New chapels and residences are opening all the time, and often even pilgrims are unsure of the order in which to visit the chapels. When you see how high and isolated on this mountain top Ganden is it is hard to imagine why it needed to be bombed and destroyed into ruins. The closest village is a days walk away...
Ganden was temporarily closed in 1996 after intense demonstrations against the governments banning of Dalai Lama photos. The number of monks here is said to have dropped since then. There is a large police building above the complex, and during the day there were always a few fat cops lazying about the courtyard of the guesthouse.. their presence was an annoyance and felt very unnecessary...