Tsokchoe Serdreng

Tsokchoe Serdreng: The Ganden Phodrang Ritual That Was Cancelled and Forgotten, Yet Remains Imperishable is a research work that documents the historical rituals of Tibet through both text and images. Drawing on extensive fieldwork, rigorous textual research, and the collection of images, the author Tsering Woeser systematically reconstructs the full history of "Tsokchoe Serdreng" — the highest-ranking religio-political ritual and offering ceremony.


First established at the time of the Fifth Dalai Lama's passing and the construction of the Potala Palace, this grand festival became the emblematic ceremony of the Ganden Phodrang polity for centuries, only to be forcibly cancelled in the mid-twentieth century, and to gradually fade from public memory.


The book consists of eleven chapters and features 135 rare images. From the prophetic visions of the Fifth Dalai Lama and the ritual construction by Desi Sangye Gyatso, to the visual testimony of the Potala Palace murals, oral recollections of old Lhasa residents, detailed accounts of the ceremonial process and spatial routes, its pages also trace the connections with other festivals, examine the shifting political context after the cancellation, and scrutinise contemporary "pseudo-restorations." There is particular discussion of the elephant as a cultural symbol within the festival, and its distinctive status in murals and historical narratives.


Combining academic research with cultural testimony, this book not only comprehensively reconstructs and critically reflects on this Ganden Phodrang ritual effaced by state power, but also actively seeks to recover the historical memory, religio-political dynamics, and cultural heritage of Tibet today — striving to re-present a Ganden Phodrang festival that was cancelled and forgotten.