Key Facts
- Duration
- c. 500 BC – 625 AD
- Region
- Western and northwestern Tibet
- Associated religion
- Bon
- Capital
- Kyunglung
Imperial Zenith Metrics
Historical Trajectory
Phase I: Rise
Zhangzhung emerged as an organized kingdom in western Tibet around 500 BC, predating the spread of Buddhism into the region. Its people are recorded in ancient Tibetan texts as the original rulers of western Tibet. The kingdom developed around the Bon religious tradition and established political and cultural dominance over a vast highland territory centered on the upper Indus and Sutlej river valleys.
Phase II: Zenith
At its height, Zhangzhung controlled much of western and northwestern Tibet, serving as the primary cultural and religious center of the broader Tibetan plateau before the rise of the Yarlung dynasty. The Bon religion flourished under Zhangzhung rule, producing a distinct spiritual tradition that later deeply influenced Tibetan Buddhist philosophy, iconography, and monastic practice across the region.
Phase III: Decline
Zhangzhung was absorbed by the expanding Yarlung Empire of central Tibet around 625 AD, ending its existence as an independent kingdom. The conquest integrated its territories and population into what would become the Tibetan Empire. The Bon religion survived the political collapse, continuing to shape Tibetan spiritual life even as Buddhism became the dominant tradition of the plateau.