One of the best known of his compositions is his religious history, The Crystal Mirror: An Excellent Exposition That Shows the Sources and Assertions of All Tenet Systems (grub mtha' thams cad kyi khung dang 'dod tshul ston pa legs bshad shel gyi me long). This important work was completed in 1802, shortly before Tukwan passed away. In it he surveys the Buddhist traditions of India, Tibet, Mongolia, and China, including Bon, which he compares to Chinese Chan. The work is well-regarded for the relative impartiality of its presentation, combining the insults to Bon, Jonang and Nyingma one would expected in a work of its time with sympathetic descriptions of what the author found admirable in the non-Geluk traditions. In contrast to one of his famous teachers, Sumpa Khenpo, the Third Tukwan, looking more towards Beijing than to Lhasa as a base of support, was known for his ecumenical outlook. All three Tukwan incarnations, as well as the first two Changkya incarnations, were known as protectors of the Nyingma in Amdo.
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Other names
- ཐུའུ་བཀྭན་༠༣་ · other names (Tibetan)
- thu'u bkwan 3 · other names
Affiliations & relations
- Gelug · religious affiliation