Padmasambhava's Students
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 female disciples, including the five principal consorts: Yeshé Tsogyal, Mandarava, Shakyadevi, Kalasiddhi and Tashi Khyidren.
Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche said:
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 mahasiddhas, 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.
