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| − | <poem>
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| − | [[Padmasambhava]]<ref>[[Padmasambhava]] is actually the specific [[name]] of one of the [[Eight Manifestations of Guru Rinpoche]]. However, this [[name]] now commonly refers to all the {{Wiki|iconographical}} aspects of [[Guru Rinpoche]].</ref> (Skt.), or [[Padmakara]] (Skt. ''[[Padmākara]]''; Tib. {{BigTibetan|[[པདྨཱ་ཀ་ར་]]}}, {{BigTibetan|[[པདྨ་འབྱུང་གནས་]]}}, ''[[Pemajungné]]''; Wyl. ''[[pad+ma 'byung gnas]]'', in [[Sanskrit]] transliteration {{BigTibetan|[[པདྨ་སམྦྷ་ཝ་]]}}) means ‘[[Lotus-Born]]’, which refers to [[Guru Rinpoche's]] [[birth]] from a [[lotus]] in the land of [[Oddiyana]]. [[Guru Rinpoche]], the ‘[[Precious]] [[Master]]’, is the founder of [[Tibetan Buddhism]] and the [[Buddha]] of our [[time]]. Whereas [[Buddha]] is known primarily for having taught the teachings of the [[sutra]] [[vehicle]], [[Padmasambhava]] came into this [[world]], and to [[Tibet]] in particular, in order to teach the [[tantra]]s. While [[Buddha Shakyamuni]] exemplifies the [[buddha]] [[principle]], the most important [[element]] in the [[sutrayana]] [[path]], [[Padmasambhava]] {{Wiki|personifies}} the [[guru]] [[principle]], the [[heart]] of [[Vajrayana]] [[Buddhism]], and he is therefore known as the ‘[[second Buddha]]’ (Tib. {{BigTibetan|[[སངས་རྒྱས་གཉིས་པ་]]}}, ''[[sangyé nyipa]]'').
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| − | =={{Wiki|Biography}}==
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| − | [[Image:Guru rinpoche.jpg|thumb|Guru Rinpoche (courtesy of Terton Sogyal Trust)]]
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| − | ===[[Birth]]===
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| − | In the north-western part of the land of [[Oddiyana]], on an island in the lake of [[Dhanakosha]], the [[blessings]] of all the [[buddhas]] took shape in the [[form]] of a multi-coloured [[lotus flower]]. Moved by [[compassion]] at the [[suffering]] of [[sentient beings]], the [[Buddha]] [[Amitabha]] sent out from his [[heart]] a golden [[vajra]], marked with the {{Wiki|syllable}} [[HRIH]], which descended onto the [[lotus]] blossom. It [[transformed]] into an exquisitely beautiful eight year old child, endowed with all the major and minor marks of [[perfection]], and holding a [[vajra]] and a [[lotus]]. At that moment all the [[buddhas of the ten directions]], together with hundreds of thousands of [[dakini]]s from different [[celestial]] [[realms]], invoked the [[blessings]] and the [[incarnation]] of all the [[buddhas]] for the [[benefit]] of [[beings]] and the flourishing of the [[secret mantra]] teachings. Their invocation is known as ‘The [[Seven Verses of the Vajra]]’, or ‘The [[Seven Line Prayer]]’.
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| − | It is said that his [[birth]] took place in the year of the [[Earth Monkey]], on the tenth day of the waxing [[moon]] in the {{Wiki|monkey}} month. As [[Guru Rinpoche]] was born within the [[lotus flower]] upon the waters of the lake, the [[dakinis]] called out to him from their hearts, and their call spontaneously became the [[Vajra Guru mantra]]. So this [[mantra]] is his [[heart mantra]], his life-core, his [[heart essence]], and to recite it is to invoke his very being.
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| − | It happened that at that [[time]], the [[King]] of [[Oddiyana]], [[Indrabhuti]], as a result of his immense [[generosity]] to the poor and needy of his country, had finally emptied his treasury. In addition, he had no heir to succeed him as [[ruler]], and his [[sight]] had failed him. So he had set out on a voyage on the lake of [[Dhanakosha]] to find a [[wishfulfilling jewel]]. As he returned with the [[jewel]], he encountered the amazing child, and questioned him about his [[parents]], his family line, his [[name]] and country, his sustenance and what he was doing there. The boy [[sang]] his reply in an enchanting {{Wiki|voice}}:
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| − | :My father is the [[pure awareness]] of [[rigpa]], [[Samantabhadra]],
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| − | :My mother, the [[space]] of all things, [[Samantabhadri]],
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| − | :My line, the indivisibility of [[awareness]] and [[space]],
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| − | :My [[name]], the glorious [[Lotus Born]],
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| − | :My homeland, the {{Wiki|unborn}} [[dharmadhatu]],
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| − | :My sustenance, consuming [[dualistic]] [[thoughts]],
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| − | :My [[destiny]], to accomplish the [[actions]] of the [[buddhas]] of {{Wiki|past}}, {{Wiki|present}} and {{Wiki|future}}.
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| − | [[Image:Padmasambhava.jpg|thumb|Guru Padmasambhava, from a set of [[thangka]]s depicting his [[Eight Manifestations of Guru Rinpoche|eight manifestations]]]]
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| − | [[Indrabhuti]] took him back to the {{Wiki|kingdom}} and installed him as the {{Wiki|crown}} {{Wiki|prince}}. At different points in his [[life]], [[Guru Rinpoche]] is known by different names. Now he was known as Pemajungné, [[Padmakara]] or [[Padmasambhava]], ‘The [[Lotus-Born]]’, as well as [[Tsokyé Dorjé]], ‘[[Lake Born Vajra]]’.
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| − | ===[[Marriage]] and Exile===
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| − | [[Padmasambhava]] married the [[dakini]] [[Prabhavati]] and ruled the {{Wiki|kingdom}} according to the [[Dharma]], ushering in a [[time]] of [[happiness]] and [[peace]]. He was known then as [[King]] [[Tortokchen]], ‘The Turbaned [[King]]’. [[Seeing]] that as a [[ruler]] he would be unable truly to serve others and bring them [[spiritual]] [[benefit]] on a vast scale, he begged for permission to abdicate, but was refused. So [[Padmasambhava]] employed a [[skilful]] device in order to escape. Perceiving that a harmful minister’s son was just on the point of dying and being [[reborn]] in the [[lower realms]], he dropped his [[trident]] while [[dancing]] on the palace roof, and it [[caused]] the [[death]] of the child, who was {{Wiki|liberated}} and [[reborn]] in a [[buddha realm]]. [[Padmasambhava]] was banished, and roamed in ‘The Chilly Grove’, [[Shitavana]], [[charnel ground]], and then in the other [[charnel grounds]], ‘[[Joyous Grove]]’ and [[Sosadvipa]]. There, he received [[empowerments]] and [[blessings]] from the [[dakinis]] ‘Tamer of [[Mara]]’ and ‘Sustainer of [[Bliss]]’, and practised [[yogic]] [[disciplines]], bringing the [[dakinis]] of the [[charnel grounds]] under his sway. The [[name]] he was known by was [[Shantarakshita]], ‘Preserver of [[Peace]]’.
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| − | Returning to the island in [[Lake Dhanakosha]], [[Padmasambhava]] brought its [[dakinis]] under his command. Then, in ‘The [[Rugged Forest]]’ [[Parushakavana]] [[charnel ground]], [[Vajravarahi]] appeared to him, and blessed him. He subdued [[naga]]s of the oceans and [[planetary spirits]] of the [[heavens]]; [[wisdom]] [[dakas]] and [[dakinis]] granted him [[supernatural powers]] and [[siddhi]]s, and he was known as Dorjé [[Drakpo]] [[Tsal]], ‘[[Wrathful]] [[Vajra]] Might’.
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| − | ===In [[Zahor]]===
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| − | At ‘the [[Vajra seat]]’ in [[Bodhgaya]], he displayed [[miracles]], [[acknowledging]] he was a self-manifested [[buddha]], and then he went to the land of [[Zahor]]. Although [[Padmasambhava]] was a fully [[enlightened]] [[buddha]], he appeared as a [[nirmanakaya]] [[manifestation]] to tame and teach [[beings]] in this age, and so for their [[benefit]] he acted as if receiving teachings, accomplishing the practice and passing through the various stages of [[spiritual]] [[realization]], one by one. Some accounts tell how in [[Vajrasana]], he was [[ordained]] by the [[Buddha’s]] closest [[disciple]], [[Ananda]]. Others say he took [[ordination]] from [[Prabhahasti]] in [[Zahor]], and was given the [[name]] [[Shakya Sengé]], ‘[[Lion of the Shakyas]]’. He received the teachings on [[Yoga Tantra]] from him eighteen times, and [[experienced]] [[pure visions]] of the [[deities]]. Then he received [[empowerment]] from the [[wisdom dakini]] [[Kungamo]], also known as [[Khandroma Lékyi Wangmo]], who [[transformed]] him into a {{Wiki|syllable}} HUNG, swallowed him, and passed him through her [[body]] and out through her secret [[lotus]], granting him outer, inner and secret [[empowerments]], and purifying the three [[obscurations]]. From the [[eight vidyadharas]] at [[Deché Tsekpa]], he received the teachings on the eight great [[sadhana]]s of [[Kagyé]], from [[Buddhaguhya]] the teachings on ‘The [[Secret Essence Tantra]]’, and from [[Shri Singha]] the teachings of [[Dzogchen|Dzogpachenpo]]. [[Padmasambhava]] would [[master]] a [[teaching]] the first [[time]] he encountered it, and [[experienced]] visions of [[deities]] without needing to practise. [[Attaining]] the first [[vidyadhara level]], the stage of ‘the [[vidyadhara level of maturation]]’ or ‘[[vidyadhara with karmic residue]]’, [[Guru Rinpoche]] was known as [[Loden Choksé]], ‘[[Wise Seeker of the Sublime]]’.
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| − | Returning to [[Zahor]], [[Padmasambhava]] took the {{Wiki|royal}} {{Wiki|princess}} [[Mandarava]] as his [[consort]], and they then went to the [[Maratika cave]], where for three months they practiced the [[sadhana]] of longevity. The [[Buddha]] of Limitless [[Life]], [[Amitayus]] appeared, [[empowered]] them with longevity, and blessed them as inseparable from him. They both accomplished the second [[vidyadhara level]], ‘[[vidyadhara]] with [[mastery]] over [[life]]’.
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| − | [[Image:Tso Pema.jpg|thumb|left|[[Tso Pema]] as it is today]]
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| − | The [[king]] of [[Zahor]] and his ministers arrested [[Guru Rinpoche]] and [[Mandarava]] and burned him alive, but he [[transformed]] the pyre into a lake, and was found sitting, cool and fresh, on a [[lotus]] blossom in its centre. This lake is considered to be the [[Rewalsar Lake]], ‘[[Tso Pema]]’, in the present-day {{Wiki|Indian state}} of [[Himachal Pradesh]]. Overcome with remorse, and in homage, the [[king]] [[offered]] [[Padmasambhava]] his entire {{Wiki|kingdom}}, beginning with his garments and his five {{Wiki|royal}} [[robes]]. In paintings and [[statues]], [[Guru Rinpoche]] is portrayed wearing the clothing of the [[king]] of [[Zahor]]. For example, the hat [[offered]] by the [[king]] is called The [[Lotus]] which {{Wiki|Liberates}} on [[Sight]], or The Petalled Hat of the [[Five Families]]; its inner and outer layers [[symbolize]] the {{Wiki|unity}} of generation and completion phases, its three points the [[three kayas]], its five colours the [[five kayas]] working for the [[benefit]] of [[beings]], the {{Wiki|sun}} and [[moon]] [[skilful means]] and [[wisdom]], its blue border [[unlimited]] [[samaya]], the [[vajra]] top unshakeable [[concentration]] and the vulture’s feather the [[realization]] of the [[highest]] [[view]] and the culmination of the practice. [[Guru Rinpoche]] taught the [[king]] and [[subjects]] of [[Zahor]], and many attained [[realization]].
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| − | With [[Mandarava]], he then returned to [[Oddiyana]], but was [[recognized]], and burned on a {{Wiki|sandalwood}} pyre. After some [[time]], they were found seated on a [[lotus]] in a lake of sesame oil, wearing a garland of skulls, as a [[symbol]] of their liberating all [[beings]] from [[samsara]] through [[compassion]]. [[Padmasambhava]] was now known as [[Pema Thötreng Tsal]], ‘The Powerful [[Lotus-born]], with a Garland of Skulls’. For thirteen years [[Padmasambhava]] and [[Mandarava]] remained to teach in [[Oddiyana]], as a result of which the [[king]], [[Wikipedia:Queen consort|queen]] and many others attained [[realization]] and the [[rainbow body]]. Then
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| − | [[Padmasambhava]] was known as [[Padma Raja—Pema Gyalpo]]—, ‘The [[Lotus-born]] [[King]]’.
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| − | [[Manifesting]] himself as the [[monk]] [[Indrasena]], it is said that [[Padmasambhava]] inspired the great [[king]], [[Ashoka]] (3rd century BC), to have [[faith]] in the [[Buddhadharma]]. After defeating various anti-Buddhist rulers, [[Guru Rinpoche]] was poisoned, but remained unharmed, and he was thrown in the [[Ganges]], but made the [[river]] flow upstream and danced in the [[air]], therefore earning the [[name]] of [[Khyeu Khanding Tsal]], ‘Mighty Youth, Soaring in the Sky like a [[Garuda]]’.
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| − | He [[manifested]] as a number of great [[siddhas]], such as [[Saroruha]], [[Saraha]], [[Dombi Heruka]], [[Virupa]] and [[Kanha|Krishnacharya]]. In [[charnel ground]]s like Kuladzokpa, ‘Perfected in [[Body]]’, he taught the [[secret mantra]] to [[dakinis]], and made outer and inner [[spirits]] into [[protectors]] of the [[Dharma]]. He was then known as [[Nyima Özer]], ‘[[Rays of the Sun]]’.
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| − | [[Padmasambhava]] challenged and defeated five hundred upholders of [[wrong views]] in [[debate]] at [[Bodhgaya]]. He reversed their [[magic]] with the aid of a [[wrathful]] [[mantra]] given him by the [[lion-faced dakini]] [[Marajita]]. He was known as [[Senge Dradok]], ‘The [[Lion’s Roar]]’.
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| − | ===At [[Yangleshö]]===
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| − | [[Image:YangleshoGuruRinpocheCave.jpg|thumb|201px|Guru Rinpoche statue inside the cave at [[Yangleshö]]]]
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| − | Then at [[Yangleshö]], {{Wiki|present}} day [[Pharping]] in [[Nepal]], he practised the [[sadhana]] of [[Yangdak Heruka]] with the [[consort]] [[Shakyadevi]], daughter
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| − | of a [[king]] of [[Nepal]]. Powerful [[spirits]] [[caused]] a three year drought, with famine and {{Wiki|disease}}, and [[Padmasambhava]] asked his [[teachers]] in [[India]]
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| − | for a [[teaching]] to counter them. Two men returned, laden with the [[tantras]] and commentaries of [[Vajrakilaya]], and the moment they
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| − | arrived, the {{Wiki|obstacles}} were pacified. [[Guru Rinpoche]] and [[Shakyadevi]] both attained the third [[vidyadhara level]], ‘[[vidyadhara of the great seal]], or [[mahamudra]]’. [[Guru Rinpoche]] [[recognized]] that [[Yangdak]] is like a {{Wiki|merchant}} engaging in trade—the [[achievement]] can be great,
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| − | but so can the {{Wiki|obstacles}}, whereas [[Vajrakilaya]] is like an armed escort; he is needed to guard against {{Wiki|obstacles}} and overcome them. He
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| − | then composed [[sadhanas]] of [[Yangdak]] and [[Vajrakilaya]] combined, and bound the guardians of [[Vajrakilaya]] to {{Wiki|protect}} the teachings.
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| − | As for the [[Dzogchen]] teachings, it is said that [[Padmasambhava]] met [[Garab Dorje]] in a [[pure vision]], and he also received the [[Nyingtik teachings]] from [[Manjushrimitra]]. As [[Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche]] explains in his ‘History of the Natural [[Dzogpachenpo]]’ A Marvellous Garland of Rare [[Gems]], [[Guru Rinpoche]] travelled to the [[Parushakavana]] [[charnel ground]] where [[Shri Singha]] granted him the teachings of the [[Three categories|Three Classes of Mind, Space and Pith Instructions]]. After granting him the Outer, Inner and Secret cycles, [[Shri Singha]] conferred on [[Padmasambhava]] the teachings of the Innermost
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| − | [[Unsurpassed]] Cycle of [[Pith Instructions]], the [[Khandro Nyingtik]], along with all the [[tantras]] and instructions. He stayed for twenty-five years, receiving and contemplating on this [[teaching]]. Subsequently, he went to the Sosadvipa [[charnel ground]] and practised for three years, obtaining an [[enlightened body]] that was “like the {{Wiki|reflection}} of the [[moon]] in [[water]], not [[subject]] to [[birth]] or [[death]]”. He attained ‘the [[rainbow body]] of great transference’, in which [[form]] he later went to [[Tibet]]. In this {{Wiki|subtle}} [[light body]], great [[masters]] such as [[Padmasambhava]] and [[Vimalamitra]] can remain, without dissolving into the [[dharmakaya]], for as long as there is service to perform for [[sentient beings]].
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| − | [[Guru Padmasambhava]] visited lands and {{Wiki|kingdoms}} all over {{Wiki|Asia}}, including [[Mongolia]], [[China]] and [[Shangshung]], where he [[manifested]] as Tavihricha to teach the hearing [[lineage]] of [[Dzogchen]] in the [[Bön]] [[tradition]], which led many to [[enlightenment]] and the [[rainbow body]].
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| − | “In this way,” [[Jamgön Kongtrul]] writes, “[[Padmasambhava’s]] [[activity]] for leading [[people]] to the [[path of liberation]] through appearing in various places and in various [[forms]], and {{Wiki|speaking}} various [[languages]], is indeed beyond all [[measure]].”
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| − | [[Image:Guru ngadrama.JPG|frame|left|The famous '[[Looks Like Me]]' statue of [[Guru Padmasambhava]] at [[Samye]]]]
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| − | ===In [[Tibet]]===
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| − | Now, the thirty seventh {{Wiki|king of Tibet}}, [[Trisong Detsen]], had invited the great [[pandita]] [[Shantarakshita]], also known as [[Khenpo Bodhisattva]], to establish [[Buddhism]] in his country. The author of the famous ''[[Ornament of the Middle Way]]'' (Skt. ''[[Madhyamakalamkara]]'') and ''[[Compendium on Reality]]'' (Skt. ''[[Tattvasamgraha]]''), [[Shantarakshita]] began [[teaching]] in [[Tibet]], and laid the foundations for [[Samye|Samyé monastery]]. This provoked the local [[spirits]], who embarked on a campaign of disasters—disease, floods, storms, hail, famine and drought—and whatever construction work was done at [[Samyé]] during the day was dismantled at night. [[Shantarakshita]] urged the [[king]] to invite [[Padmasambhava]], and he despatched envoys under the [[leadership]] of [[Nanam Dorje Dudjom]]. With his prescience, [[Guru Rinpoche]] knew already of their [[mission]], and had gone to meet them at [[Mangyul]], between [[Nepal]] and [[Tibet]]. According to [[Dudjom Rinpoche|Kyabjé Dudjom Rinpoche]], it was in the [[Iron Tiger]] year (810) that [[Padmasambhava]] came to [[Tibet]]. It is said that he was then over a thousand years old. On the way to {{Wiki|central Tibet}}, he began to subjugate the local [[spirits]] and made them take oaths to {{Wiki|protect}} the [[Dharma]] and its followers. He met the [[king]] at the Tamarisk {{Wiki|Forest}} at Red Rock, and then went to the top of [[Mount Hépori]] and brought all the ‘[[gods]] and {{Wiki|demons}}’ of [[Tibet]] under his command.
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| − | ‘Glorious Samyé—the Inconceivable—the [[unchanging]], spontaneously accomplished [[temple]]’ was then built without any [[hindrance]], completed within five years, and [[consecrated]], amidst miraculous and [[auspicious]] [[signs]], by [[Padmasambhava]] and [[Shantarakshita]].
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| − | There then began a vast {{Wiki|undertaking}}, an [[extraordinary]] wave of [[spiritual]] [[activity]] in [[Tibet]]. [[Vimalamitra]] and other great [[scholars]] and [[masters]], one hundred and eight in all, were invited; [[Padmasambhava]], [[Shantarakshita]] and [[Vimalamitra]] gave teachings, and then worked with [[Tibetan]] [[translators]], such as [[Vairotsana]], [[Kawa Paltsek]], [[Chokro Lüi Gyaltsen]] and [[Shyang Yeshé Dé]], to translate the [[sutra]]s, [[tantra]]s and [[shastra|treatise]]s into [[Tibetan]]; the [[seven men to be tested|first seven Tibetan monks]] were [[ordained]] into the [[Sarvastivadin]] [[lineage]], and this was the [[time]] when the two [[sanghas]], the [[monastic]] [[celibate]] [[sangha]] of [[monks and nuns]] and the {{Wiki|community}} of lay [[tantric]] practitioners, came into being in [[Tibet]]; and [[Vairotsana]] and [[Namkhé Nyingpo]] were despatched to [[India]] to receive teachings, on [[Dzogchen]] from [[Shri Singha]], and on [[Yangdak]] from [[Hungkara]], respectively.
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| − | At [[King]] [[Trisong Detsen’s]] request, [[Padmasambhava]] opened the [[mandala]] of the [[vajrayana]] teachings in the [[caves]] of [[Chimphu]] above [[Samyé]] to the [[twenty-five disciples]], headed by the [[King Trisong Detsen]], [[Yeshé Tsogyal]] and [[Vairotsana]]; nine of the twenty-five attained [[siddhis]] through practising the [[sadhanas]] he transmitted to them. It is said that he convened them in three great gatherings, to teach the [[Kagyé Deshek Düpa]], the [[Lama Gongdü]], and the [[Kadü Chökyi Gyatso]].
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| − | [[Image:Yeshe Tsogyal.JPG|thumb|Guru Rinpoche's closest disciple, [[Yeshe Tsogyal]]]]
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| − | [[Guru Rinpoche]] and his closest [[disciple]] [[Yeshé Tsogyal]] travelled all over [[Tibet]] and the [[Himalayas]], and blessed and [[consecrated]] the entire land, especially: “the twenty [[snow mountains]] of [[Ngari]], the twenty-one [[sadhana]] places of [[Ü]] and [[Tsang]], the [[twenty-five great pilgrimage places of Dokham]], the three hidden lands, five ravines, three valleys and one region.”
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| − | [[Guru Padmasambhava]] made many {{Wiki|prophecies}} about the {{Wiki|future}}, and together with [[Yeshé Tsogyal]] concealed countless [[terma]] teachings, in order to: prevent the destruction of the teachings of the secret [[mantrayana]]; avoid corruption of the [[vajrayana]] or its [[alteration]] by intellectuals; preserve the [[blessing]]; and [[benefit]] {{Wiki|future}} followers. For each of these [[terma treasures]], he predicted the [[time]] for its [[revelation]], the [[Wikipedia:Identity (social science)|identity]] of the revealer, and those who would receive and hold the teachings. At thirteen different places called [[Tiger’s Lair]], [[Taktsang]], [[Guru Rinpoche]] [[manifested]] in “the [[terrifying wrathful form of crazy wisdom]]”, binding [[worldly]] [[spirits]] under oath to {{Wiki|protect}} the [[terma treasures]] and serve the [[Dharma]]. Then he was named [[Dorje Drolö]], ‘[[Wild Wrathful Vajra]]’.
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| − | At [[Shyotö Tidrö]] in the [[Drikhung Valley]], the great [[Guru]] transmitted the teachings of [[Dzogpachenpo]], the Innermost, [[Unsurpassed]] Cycle of the [[Category of Pith Instructions]], and the [[Khandro Nyingtik]], to a single [[human]] [[disciple]], [[Yeshé Tsogyal]], and a hundred thousand [[wisdom dakinis]]. Later, at [[Chimphu]], when [[Trisong]] Detsen’s daughter, the {{Wiki|princess}} [[Pema Sel]], [[died]] at the age of eight, [[Padmasambhava]] drew a red {{Wiki|syllable}} NRI on her [[heart]], summoned her [[consciousness]], restored her to [[life]] and gave her the [[transmission]] of the [[Nyingtik teachings]], soon after which she passed away. [[Yeshé Tsogyal]] concealed the teachings as [[terma]], and centuries later, [[Pema]] Sel’s [[incarnation]], the [[master]] [[Pema Ledreltsal]], revealed the [[Khandro Nyingtik]] cycle. His next [[rebirth]] was as the [[omniscient]] [[Longchen Rabjam]].
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| − | ===Departure from [[Tibet]]===
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| − | [[Image:Chogyur_Lingpas_Cu_Coloured_Mt.jpg|thumb|300px|left|The [[Zangdokpalri|Copper–Coloured Mountain]] according to the [[vision]] of [[Chokgyur Lingpa]]]]
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| − | After the [[death]] of [[Trisong Detsen]], [[Padmasambhava]] stayed on in [[Tibet]] into the reign of his successors. But he knew that the [[rakshasa]] cannibal {{Wiki|demons}}, inhabiting the south-western continent of [[Chamara—Ngayab]]—were set to invade and destroy [[India]], [[Nepal]] and [[Tibet]], and if not subdued, they would sweep the [[earth]] and destroy all [[human]] [[life]]. So, after fifty five and a half years in [[Tibet]], in the Wood {{Wiki|Monkey}} year (864), [[Guru Rinpoche]] prepared to leave, and went, accompanied by the young [[king]] [[Mutik Tsepo]] and a large [[gathering]] of [[disciples]], to the pass of [[Gungthang]] in [[Mangyul]]. They implored him to stay, but he refused. He gave final teachings and instructions to each of them, and then, on the tenth day of the {{Wiki|monkey}} month, left for the land of [[Ngayab Ling]] in the [[southwest]], and for his [[manifested]] [[pure land]] on [[Zangdokpalri]], the [[Copper Coloured Mountain]] of Glory.
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| − | The many accounts of his [[life]] vie in their [[beauty]] when they come to describe his departure. The [[Zanglingma]] {{Wiki|biography}} says that
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| − | after giving his final instructions, “[[Padmasambhava]] mounted a beam of sunlight and in the flicker of a moment soared away into
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| − | the open sky. From the [[direction]] of the [[south west]], he turned his face to look back, and sent forth a light ray of [[immeasurable]] [[loving kindness]] that established the [[disciples]] in the state of non-return. Accompanied by a cloud-like throng of [[dakinis]], outer and inner,
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| − | and amid the [[sound]] of the {{Wiki|music}} they were [[offering]], he went to the south-western continent of [[Ngayab]].” But different [[people]] had
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| − | different [[perceptions]] of his departure. Some saw him leaving in swirling clouds of coloured light, mounted on a [[divine]] [[horse]];
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| − | others saw him riding a [[lion]]. In some accounts, the [[twenty-five disciples]] in their [[meditation]] watched him receding in the sun’s
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| − | rays, first the size of a [[raven]], then a dove, a sparrow, a bee, and finally a tiny speck that disappeared from [[sight]]. They saw him
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| − | alighting in the land of the [[rakshasas]] and [[teaching]] them the [[Dharma]].
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| − | On the peak of the [[Copper Coloured Mountain]], [[Padmasambhava]] {{Wiki|liberated}} the [[king]] of the [[rakshasas]], [[Raksha Thötreng]], and assumed his [[form]]. Now he dwells in [[Zangdokpalri]] as a ‘[[vidyadhara]] of [[spontaneous presence]]’, the fourth [[vidyadhara level]]: “There,” writes [[Kyabjé Dudjom Rinpoche]], “he [[manifested]] the [[inconceivable]] [[Palace of Lotus Light]], and there he presides as [[king]], with one of his [[emanations]] in each of the eight continents of the [[rakshasas]], giving teachings like the [[Eight Great Methods of Attainment]] of the [[Kagyé]], and protecting the [[people]] of this [[world]] of [[Jambudvipa]] from {{Wiki|fears}} for their [[life]]. Even to this day, he reigns as the regent of [[Vajradhara]], the ‘[[vidyadhara]] with spontaneous [[accomplishment]] of the [[Wikipedia:Absolute (philosophy)|ultimate]] [[path]]’; and thus he will remain, without ever moving, until the end of the [[universe]].”
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| − | ==Students==
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| − | As regards [[Guru Rinpoche’s]] [[disciples]], [[Jamgön Kongtrul]] lists “the original twenty-one [[disciples]], the [[intermediate]] [[twenty-five disciples]], and the later seventeen and twenty-one [[disciples]].” Apart from his twenty-five most famous [[disciples]], the [[king]] and [[subjects]], [[Guru Rinpoche]] had numerous highly [[realized]] {{Wiki|female}} [[disciples]], including the [[five principal consorts of Guru Rinpoche|five principal consorts]]: [[Yeshé Tsogyal]], [[Mandarava]], [[Shakyadevi]], [[Kalasiddhi]] and [[Tashi Khyidren]].
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| − | [[Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche]] said:
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| − | :[[Padmasambhava]] had twenty-five close [[disciples]] who were the first [[mahasiddhas]] of [[Tibet]], and of these all attained the [[rainbow body]] except [[Trisong Detsen]]. At [[Drak Yerpa]], eighty students all became [[mahasiddha]]s, attained the [[rainbow body]] and never came out of [[retreat]]; there were thirty [[siddhas]] of [Yangdzong]] who all attained [[realization]], fifty-five ''[[tokden]]'', [[realized]] [[beings]], of Sheldrak, twenty-five [[dakinis]] who attained the [[rainbow body]], seven [[yoginis]] and the seven [[siddhas]] of [[Tsang]].<ref>{{Wiki|Paris}}, April 12, 1986.</ref>
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| − | ==Writings==
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| − | *[[The Garland of Views: An Instruction]] (Tib. {{BigTibetan|[[མན་ངག་ལྟ་བའི་ཕྲེང་བ]]}}{{BigTibetan|་}}, [[Wyl.]] ''[[man ngag lta ba'i phreng ba]]'')
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| − | :{{TBRCW|O003JR198|O003JR198922$W25983|མན་ངག་ལྟ་བའི་ཕྲེང་བ་, ''man ngag lta ba'i phreng ba''}}
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| − | ==Major {{Wiki|Biographies}}==
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| − | There are many accounts of [[Guru Rinpoche’s]] [[life]], written by great [[scholars]] or revealed by the [[tertön]]s.<ref>According to [[Khenpo Palden Sherab]]: "[[Yeshe Tsogyal]] said that [[Guru Padmasambhava]] has nine thousand nine hundred and ninety-nine {{Wiki|biographies}}. [...] These {{Wiki|biographies}} are divided three ways: those relating the one hundred and eight [[activities]] of [[Guru Rinpoche]] according to his [[dharmakaya]] [[buddhahood]], accounts told according to his [[sambhogakaya]] [[nature]], and works chronicling his [[activities]] as a [[nirmanakaya]] [[buddha]]." ([[Khenchen Palden Sherab Rinpoche]], 1992)</ref> Some of the most famous of his {{Wiki|biographies}} (in {{Wiki|chronological}} order of their discovery or composition) are:
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| − | *[[Nyangrel Nyima Özer]] (1136-1204), ''[[Zanglingma|Namthar Zanglingma]]'', ‘The [[Zanglingma]] Lifestory’, named after the {{Wiki|Copper}} [[Temple]] at [[Samyé]] where it was discovered as a [[terma]]
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| − | * [[Orgyen Lingpa]] (b.1323),
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| − | **''[[Pema Kathang]]'' or ''[[Namthar]] [[Sheldrakma]]'', ‘The Life-Story from the {{Wiki|Crystal}} {{Wiki|Cave}}’
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| − | **The ''[[Five Chronicles]]''
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| − | *[[Sangyé Lingpa]] (1340-1396), ''[[Golden Garland Chronicles]]'' or ''[[Kathang Sertreng]]''
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| − | *[[Pema Lingpa]] (1450-1521), ''[[Torch to Dispel Darkness]]''
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| − | *[[Tashi Tobgyal]] (1550?-1603), ''[[Ocean of Perfect Wonder]]''
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| − | *[[Sokdokpa Lodrö Gyaltsen]] (1552-1624), ''[[Dispelling Mind's Darkness]]''
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| − | *[[Taranatha]] (1575-1634), ''[[The Indian Version of the Life of Guru Rinpoche]]''
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| − | *[[Chokgyur Dechen Lingpa]] (1829-1870), ''[[Wish-Fulfilling Tree]]''
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| − | *[[Sera Khandro]] (1892-1940), ''[[Immaculate White Lotus]]''
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| − | ==Further Reading==
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| − | ===In English===
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| − | *Blondeau, A.M. "Analysis of the {{Wiki|Biographies}} of [[Padmasambhava]] According to [[Tibetan Tradition]]: {{Wiki|Classification}} of Sources'' in {{Wiki|Michael Aris}} and Aung San Suu Kyi (ed.) ''[[Tibetan Studies]] in Honour of Hugh Richardson'', Aris and Phillips, 1980
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| − | *Dalton, Jacob. 2004. “The Early Development of the [[Padmasambhava]] Legend in [[Tibet]]: A Study of IOL Tib J 644 and Pelliot tibétain 307.” Journal of the American {{Wiki|Oriental}} {{Wiki|Society}} 124.4: 759-772.
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| − | *[[Dudjom Rinpoche]], ''The [[Nyingma School]] of [[Tibetan Buddhism]]'', trans. and ed. by [[Gyurme Dorje]] and Matthew [[Wikipedia:Matthew Kapstein|Kapstein]] (Boston: [[Wisdom Publications]], 1991), vol. 1, pages 468–474.
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| − | *[[Ngawang Zangpo]], ''[[Guru Rinpoche: His Life and Times]]'', Ithaca: Snow Lion, 2002.
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| − | *[[Nyoshul Khenpo]], ''[[A Marvelous Garland of Rare Gems: Biographies of Masters of Awareness in the Dzogchen Lineage]]'', trans. [[Richard Barron]] (Junction City: [[Padma Publishing]], 2005), pages 41–48.
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| − | *[[Padmasambhava]], ''Legend of the [[Great Stupa]]'', {{Wiki|Berkeley}}: [[Dharma]] Publishing, 1973
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| − | *[[Padmasambhava]] & [[Jamgön Kongtrul]], ''The [[Light of Wisdom]]'', trans. by {{Wiki|Erik Pema Kunsang}} ([[Boudhanath]]: [[Rangjung Yeshe Publications]], 1986-1999), pages 43-47 & Appendix 5.
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| − | *[[Taranatha]], ''The [[Life]] of [[Padmasambhava]]'', [[Shang Shung]] Edizioni, 2005
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| − | *[[Tulku Thondup]], ''[[Masters of Meditation and Miracles]]'', [[Shambhala]], 1996.
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| − | *[[Yeshe Tsogyal]], ''[[Life]] and [[Liberation]] of [[Padmasambhava]]'', translated by Kenneth Douglas and Gwendolyn Bays (Emeryville: [[Dharma]] Publishing, 1978, republished 2008).
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| − | *[[Yeshe Tsogyal]], ''[[Lotus]] Born—The [[Life]] Story of [[Padmasambhava]]'', [[Rangjung Yeshe Publications]], 2004.
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| − | *‘The [[Life]] of [[Guru Padmasambhava]]’ in ''[[A Great Treasure of Blessings]]'', The [[Tertön Sogyal Trust]], 2004.
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| − | {{reflist}}
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| − | </poem>
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| − | {{RigpaWiki}}
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| − | [[Category:]]
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