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Ramoche Monastery is often called the "Minor Jokhang Monastery" and is located in the North part of Lhasa city, about 1km from the Jokhang Monastery.
The Ramche Monastery was built by Tibetan and Han craftsmen under Princess Wen Cheng's supervision. Although it was originally built in the Han style, it burned down and was reconstructed so many times that its original form can no longer be discerned.
In the days of King Songtsan Gampo, Ramoche Monastery was originally built to house the famous statue of Sakyamuni, now found in the Jokhang, which was originally brought to Tibet by Princess Wen Cheng. Legend has it that when Princess Wen Cheng and her entourage arrived at the North gate of Lhasa, her carriage got stuck in the mud. Her assistants could not remove the statue and so they covered it temporarily with 4 pillars and white brocade. Later, the Princess ordered the construction of Ramoche as a shrine for the statue. Twenty years on, in 652A.D., the leader of Tibet was concerned with rumors that the Chinese Emperor was considering an invasion of Tibet. As a protection, he moved the Sakyamuni Statue from Ramoche to the Jokhang, and hid it from view. It has remained there ever since. In exchange Ramoche Monastery received a smaller bronze statue of Sakyamumi, which has been brought to Tibet by Songtsan Gampo's other wife, the Nepalese Princess Tritsum. This can still be seen at Ramoche Monastery today.
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