His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang and His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche Invited to Attend the Opening Ceremony for the National Palace Museum Southern Branch
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| President Ma Ying-jeou and His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang pose for a photo together in front of the Tibetan Dragon Sutra. | President Ma Ying-jeou, His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, and His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche viewing the Tibetan Dragon Sutra exhibition together. |
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| National Palace Museum Director Feng Ming-chu accompanying President Ma Ying-jeou, His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang, and His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche as they view the exhibits of the museum’s Southern Branch. | His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang and His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche leaving their precious signatures as they visit the National Palace Museum Southern Branch. |
The National Palace Museum Southern Branch, which has taken fifteen years to build, was finally opened for trial operations on December 28th. Its grand opening ceremony was attended by President Ma Ying-jeou and senior officials from every government agency.
His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang and His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche also received invitations to participate in the opening ceremony. Spanning the tenures of multiple directors, preparations for this establishment of the National Palace Museum Southern Branch were finally completed at the end of 2015. During her inaugural address, Feng Ming-chu, Director of the National Palace Museum, gave special thanks to His Eminence Vajra Guru Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche.
The Southern Branch’s opening ceremony included the unveiling of the Asian Buddhist Art exhibit, one of ten major exhibitions being held at the museum. One of the pieces on display was Qing Emperor Kangxi’s Gilded Tibetan Language Edition of the Dragon Sutra, an important classic of Tibetan Buddhism. His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang donated NT$20 million to the National Palace Museum to ensure this manuscript’s successful publication. Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche took great pains to fulfill the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang’s wish, and the Tibetan Dragon Sutra was finally brought to print in February of 2011. As a show of thanks for their enormous efforts, His Holiness the Drikung Kyabgon Chetsang and His Eminence Rinchen Dorjee Rinpoche were invited along with President Ma Ying-jeou to view the Tibetan Dragon Sutra exhibit together.
For the Tibetan Dragon Sutra to have been republished and so smoothly put on display was an extremely auspicious and exceptional event. It is an indication that the Dharma can remain in this world for a long time yet to come, benefiting even more sentient beings.
Updated on December 30, 2015