Disciplinarian of the great assembly. The title given to a chief disciplinary official in a large monastery. In the case of the “three monastic seats” (gdan sa gsum), each seat had two head disciplinarians who would implement the decisions of its governing council (bla spyi), and were thus officials of considerable power. Before 1959, the head disciplinarians of Drepung would take on secular authority during the Great Prayer Festival, and during that time could arbitrate cases that local people brought before them.

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