Kharchen Pelgyi Wangchuk
Kharchen Pelgyi Wangchuk, a disciple of Padmasambhava, is said to have been the brother of Yeshe Tsogyel. He was said to be able to kill evil doers by brandishing his kila dagger.
Kharchen Pelgyi Wangchuk (mkhar chen dpal gyi dbang phyug) was born into the Kharchen clan, and was, according to some traditions, the brother of Padmasambhava’s consort, Yeshe Tsogyel (ye shes mtsho rgyal). He mastered the Vajrakīla practices and could vanquish enemies simply by holding his kīla dagger high. A layman, Pelgyi Wangchuk is said to have accompanied Padmasambava and Yeshe Tsogyel throughout Tibet teaching.
Sources
Tarthang Tulku. 1975. Bringing the Teachings Alive. Cazadero, CA: Dharma Publishing, p.
Smith, Gene. 2006. “Siddha Groups and the Mahasiddhas in the Art and Literature of Tibet”. In Holy Madness: Portraits of Tantric Siddhas. New York: Rubin Museum of Art, p. 72.
’Jam mgon kong sprul blo gros mtha’ yas. 2007. Gter ston brgya rtsa. In Rin chen gter mdzod chen mo. New Delhi: Shechen, v.1 p.
Gu ru bkra shis. 1990. Gu bkra’i chos ’byung. Beijing: Krung go’i bod kyi shes rig dpe skrun khang, pp. 172-173.
Arthur Mandelbaum August 2007
