The Jokhang Temple is perhaps the most sacred temple in Tibet. It dates back to the 7th century and was built by King Songtsen Gampo (the first of the Buddhist kings of Tibet) over a mythical lake. It was built in order to house the image of Akshobhya Buddha offered to the king by his Nepalese wife, Tristun. Later the Chinese wife of the king, Wen Cheng, gave him the Jowo Shakyamuni statue and the temple was renamed “Jokhang” (which literally means “the shrine of the Jowo”). The Akshobhya statue was moved to Ramoche. Since its founding, the Jokhang has been considerably enlarged and embellished particularly during the reign of the Fifth Dalai Lama.