Gyal Khatun
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| Gyal Khatun རྒྱལ་ཁ་ཐུན། | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gyalmo, Silima, Tara | |||||
 Leh Palace, the royal residency of Gyal Khatun, built by her son Sengge Namgyal. | |||||
| Born | Skardu or Khaplu, Baltistan | ||||
| Died | Nubra, Ladakh | ||||
| Husband | Jamyang Namgyal | ||||
| Issue | Sengge Namgyal | ||||
| |||||
| House | House of Maqpon or House of Yabghu (by birth) House of Namgyal (by marriage) | ||||
| Father | Yabgo Shey Gilazi or Ali Sher Khan Anchan | ||||
| Religion | Noorbakshia Islam | ||||
Gyal Khatun (Balti: རྒྱལ་ཁ་ཐུན།,lit. 'Royal Queen'), also known as Argyl Khatun, was a Balti princess and the chief consort of Jamyang Namgyal, the ruler of Ladakh in the 17th century. In Balti and Ladakhi language songs, she is also called Silima Khatun, meaning “Untainted and Pure Queen”.[1][2]
The ancestry of Gyal Khatun is disputed in the sources; while some mention her as the daughter of Balti ruler Ali Senge Anchan,[3] others describe the raja of Khaplu, Yabgo Shey Gilazi as her father.[4][5][6] Even though Gyal and her daughter-in-law Gyal Kelsang, who was also a Balti princess, were Muslims, the Ladakhi Buddhists viewed them in high regard. They considered them same as the Tibetan Buddhist Goddess Tara. Gyal Khatun is also famous for starting the Gelugpa order of Tibetan Buddhism in Ladakh by putting the Je Tsongkhapa sculpture in the Basgo Temple.[7][8]
Gyal Khatun is respected in Ladakh because she supported both Gompas and Mosques. Her leadership brought peace between the kingdoms of Maqpon and Ladakh. Her son, Sengge Namgyal, later became the greatest ruler in Ladakhi history, known as the “Lion King of Ladakh”. The Balti and Ladakhi rulers saw her as a strong and secular role model.[1][9]
Dowry and Wedding traditions
During his time as ruler, Jamyang Namgyal, the king of Ladakh, decided to help the Sultan of Chigtan take control of Skardu, the Makpon Kingdom. But while they were crossing the mountains in winter, Namgyal's soldiers got lost in a big snowstorm. Ali Senge Anchan's skilled army attacked Namgyal's troops and trapped them because the snow blocked all the mountain passes and valleys. This made Namgyal surrender.[10]
Jamyang Namgyal was captured and put in prison in Skardu. Ali Senge Anchan then took over Ladakh and made It a part of the Makpon kingdom, and even reached into Western Tibet. According to the Chronicles of Ladakh, while Namgyal was in prison, he fell in love with Ali Senge's daughter, Gyal Khatun. They promised to marry each other, and Gyal Khatun became pregnant. When Ali Senge found out, he told Namgyal he could marry his daughter and go back to Ladakh with his people if he promised to be loyal to Ali Senge Anchan.[11] However, other sources describe the Yabghu raja of Khaplu, Yabgo Shey Gilazi, as her father. Accordingly, Shey Gilazi had married her daughter to Namgyal on condition that her son would be the next ruler of Ladakh and Namgyal's sons from the first wife, Queen Tsering would have no claim over the throne of Ladakh. Furthermore Gyal Khatun was to be given the status of first queen.[4] A daughter of Namgyal, Mandoq Gyalmo was also married to Anchan. Because of this, Jamyang's two sons, Lhawang and Stanzin had to leave Ladakh and go to Central Tibet.[8]
The Balti kings were known for giving big dowries when their princesses got married. The dowry included things they could move, like gold, silver, precious stones, jewelry, expensive clothes, swords, guns, and 12 sets of kitchen cutlery. Gyal Khatun's movable dowry can be still seen at the Stok Palace Museum in Ladakh. They include the Queen’s decorated dress front and a necklace made of thirteen rows of silver beads. As part of the things they couldn't move, they also gave villages. According to local customs, a number of Muslim maids, male helpers, and a group of Balti musicians (later called Kharmon or Royal Musicians)[note 1] were sent to Ladakh as part of Gyal Khatun’s wedding party.[12][13]
According to Balti traditions, King Jamyang might have needed to give gifts to his bride's parents. This tradition, called "khamital (Balti: ཁམི་ཏལ་)", means the boy's parents send gifts to the girl's parents.[note 2] After this, the boy's parents should follow the tradition of "rintho" or "onarin, where the boy's parents should pay for the milk the girl drank when she was a baby. Once they pay with 24 tolas of gold and 24 goats, the wedding date is set. The Ladakhi Lamas welcomed Gyal Khatun as the Buddhist god of long life, the White Tara.[13]
Succession as ruler
After King Jamyang Namgyal died, Gyal Khatun took over the government while her young son, Sengge Namgyal, grew up. She is famous for being Sengge Namgyal's mother. Sengge Namgyal was called the "Lion King of Ladakh". There is a famous ballad that tells the story of Sengge Namgyal's birth, when he was held by his mother, Gyal Khatun, also known as Zi-Zi:[note 3]
“Today the old king’s name shall resound through the verse, for see the lovely babe his grandson, born today. see him in the arms of his mother, this child whose name shall be famous all the world, see him in the arms of Zi-Zi, the Queen. This child whose name shall be famous in all the world”.[11]
