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branches ::: Tibetan Buddhism

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object:Tibetan Buddhism
object:TB
subject class:Buddhism
subject:Buddhism
class:subject

--- Shastras

The study of Indian Buddhist texts called shastras is central to Tibetan Buddhist scholasticism. Since the late 11th century, traditional Tibetan monastic colleges generally organized the exoteric study of Buddhism into "five great textual traditions" (zhungchen-nga).[93]

  Abhidharma
    Asanga's Abhidharma-samuccaya
    Vasubandhu's Abhidharma-koa
  Prajnaparamita
    Abhisamayalankara
    Shantideva's Bodhisattvacaryvatra
  Madhyamaka
    Nagarjuna's Mlamadhyamakakrik
    Aryadeva's Four Hundred Verses (Catuhsataka)
    Candrakrti's Madhyamakvatra
    ntarakita's Madhyamkalakra
    Shantideva's Bodhisattvacaryvatra
  Pramana
    Dharmakirti's Pramavarttika
    Dignga's Prama-samuccaya
  Vinaya
    Gunaprabha's Vinayamula Sutra

--- Other important texts
  Also of great importance are the "Five Treatises of Maitreya" including the influential Ratnagotravibhga, a compendium of the tathgatagarbha literature, and the Mahayanasutralankara, a text on the Mahayana path from the Yogacara perspective, which are often attributed to Asanga. Practiced focused texts such as the Yogcrabhmi-stra and Kamalala's Bhvankrama are the major sources for meditation.

  While the Indian texts are often central, original material by key Tibetan scholars is also widely studied and collected into editions called sungbum.[94] The commentaries and interpretations that are used to shed light on these texts differ according to tradition. The Gelug school for example, use the works of Tsongkhapa, while other schools may use the more recent work of Rim movement scholars like Jamgon Kongtrul and Jamgon Ju Mipham Gyatso.

  A corpus of extra-canonical scripture, the treasure texts (terma) literature is acknowledged by Nyingma practitioners, but the bulk of the canon that is not commentary was translated from Indian sources. True to its roots in the Pla system of North India, however, Tibetan Buddhism carries on a tradition of eclectic accumulation and systematisation of diverse Buddhist elements, and pursues their synthesis. Prominent among these achievements have been the Stages of the Path and mind training literature, both stemming from teachings by the Indian scholar Atia.


--- Tantric literature
Main article: Tantras (Buddhism)

In Tibetan Buddhism, the Buddhist Tantras are divided into four or six categories, with several sub-categories for the highest Tantras.

In the Nyingma, the division is into Outer Tantras (Kriyayoga, Charyayoga, Yogatantra); and Inner Tantras (Mahayoga, Anuyoga, Atiyoga (Tib. Dzogchen)), which correspond to the "Anuttarayogatantra".[95] For the Nyingma school, important tantras include the Guhyagarbha tantra, the Guhyasamaja tantra,[96] the Kulayarja Tantra and the 17 Dzogchen tantras.

In the Sarma schools, the division is:[97]

  Kriyayoga - These have an emphasis on purification and ritual acts and include texts like the Majurmlakalpa.
  Charyayoga - Contain "a balance between external activities and internal practices", mainly referring to the Mahvairocana Abhisabodhi Tantra.
  Yogatantra, is mainly concerned with internal yogic techniques and includes the Tattvasagraha Tantra.
  Anuttarayogatantra, contains more advanced techniques such as subtle body practices and is subdivided into:
    Mother class tantras, which emphasize illusory body and completion stage practices and includes the Guhyasamaja tantra and Yamantaka tantra.
    Father class, which emphasize the development stage and clear light mind and includes the Hevajra Tantra and Cakrasamvara Tantra.
    Non-dual class, which balance the above elements, and mainly refers to the Kalacakra tantra

It is important to note that the root tantras themselves are almost unintelligible without the various Indian and Tibetan commentaries, therefore, they are never studied without the use of the tantric commentarial apparatus.

--- Transmission and realization
There is a long history of oral transmission of teachings in Tibetan Buddhism. Oral transmissions by lineage holders traditionally can take place in small groups or mass gatherings of listeners and may last for seconds (in the case of a mantra, for example) or months (as in the case of a section of the Tibetan Buddhist canon). It is held that a transmission can even occur without actually hearing, as in Asanga's visions of Maitreya.

An emphasis on oral transmission as more important than the printed word derives from the earliest period of Indian Buddhism, when it allowed teachings to be kept from those who should not hear them.[98] Hearing a teaching (transmission) readies the hearer for realization based on it. The person from whom one hears the teaching should have heard it as one link in a succession of listeners going back to the original speaker: the Buddha in the case of a sutra or the author in the case of a book. Then the hearing constitutes an au thentic lineage of transmission. Au thenticity of the oral lineage is a prerequisite for realization, hence the importance of lineages.



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now begins generated list of local instances, definitions, quotes, instances in chapters, wordnet info if available and instances among weblinks


OBJECT INSTANCES [0] - TOPICS - AUTHORS - BOOKS - CHAPTERS - CLASSES - SEE ALSO - SIMILAR TITLES

TOPICS
Gyatso
lama
Pointing-out_instructions
Rinpoche
Tara
Tibetan_Buddhist_canon
Tibetan_Buddhist_canon
Tulpa
SEE ALSO


AUTH
Chokyi_Nyima_Rinpoche
Chone_Lama_Lodro_Gyatso
Erik_Pema_Kunsang
Jigdral_Yeshe_Dorje
Karma_Trinley_Rinpoche
Khandro_Rinpoche
Longchenpa
Minling_Trichen_Rinpoche
Ringu_Tulku_Rinpoche
Tenzin_Palmo
Thubten_Yeshe
Tsogdruk_Rinpoche
Tsongkhapa
Tulku_Urgyen_Rinpoche

BOOKS
The_World_of_Tibetan_Buddhism__An_Overview_of_Its_Philosophy_and_Practice
Turning_Confusion_into_Clarity__A_Guide_to_the_Foundation_Practices_of_Tibetan_Buddhism

IN CHAPTERS TITLE

IN CHAPTERS CLASSNAME

IN CHAPTERS TEXT
1.01_-_Tara_the_Divine
1.01_-_Who_is_Tara
1.02_-_Meditating_on_Tara
1.03_-_Invocation_of_Tara
1.05_-_Buddhism_and_Women
1.07_-_A_Song_of_Longing_for_Tara,_the_Infallible
1953-10-21
3.4.2_-_Guru_Yoga
6.0_-_Conscious,_Unconscious,_and_Individuation
The_Act_of_Creation_text

PRIMARY CLASS

subject
SIMILAR TITLES
The World of Tibetan Buddhism An Overview of Its Philosophy and Practice
Tibetan Buddhism
Turning Confusion into Clarity A Guide to the Foundation Practices of Tibetan Buddhism

DEFINITIONS


TERMS STARTING WITH

Tibetan Buddhism ::: A form of Vajrayana Buddhism practiced within Tibet. Much of Tantric practice finds its links to this style of Buddhism.


TERMS ANYWHERE

Abhisheka ::: In Tibetan Buddhism, this is a tantric empowerment and form of esoteric transmission that confers the blessings of a lineage to an adherent. A practical example: to work successful magic within the mandala of a specific deity, abhisheka is often very close to a necessity.

Adibuddha. (T. dang po'i sangs rgyas/ye nas sangs rgyas; C. benchu fo; J. honshobutsu; K. ponch'o pul 本初佛). In Sanskrit, "original buddha" or "primordial buddha"; the personification of innate enlightenment. The term seems to appear for the first time in the MAHAYANASuTRALAMKARA, where the existence of such a primordial buddha is refuted on the grounds that the achievement of buddhahood is impossible without the accumulation of merit (PUnYA) and wisdom (JNANA). However, the term reemerges in tantric literature, most prominently in the KALACAKRATANTRA. There, the term has two meanings, based on the reading of the term Adi. According to the first interpretation, Adi means "first" such that the Adibuddha was the first to attain buddhahood. According to the second interpretation, Adi means "primordial," which suggests an eternal and atemporal state of innate buddhahood. However, when the commentators on this tantra use the term in this second sense, they appear to be referring not to a person but to an innate wisdom that is present in the minds of all sentient beings and which is the fundamental basis of SAMSARA and NIRVAnA. In Tibetan Buddhism, the term Adibuddha is often used to describe the buddha SAMANTABHADRA (according to the RNYING MA sect) or VAJRADHARA (for the GSAR MA sects); in East Asia, by contrast, the Adibuddha is typically considered to be VAIROCANA.

Agvaandandar. (T. Ngag dbang bstan dar a.k.a. Bstan dar lha ram pa) (1759-1830). Mongolian scholar of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism. He was born into a nomad family in the Eastern Qoshot banner of Alashan, entering the monastery at the age of seven. He was sent to 'BRAS SPUNGS monastery in LHA SA at the age of nineteen, where he completed the Dge lugs curriculum and received the highest rank of DGE BSHES, that of lha ram pa, around 1800. In Tibetan, he is often referred to as Bstan dar lha ram pa. He returned to his native Mongolia shortly thereafter where he was appointed to a high position at Eastern Monastery, before leaving again, this time for A mdo and the great Dge lugs monasteries of SKU 'BUM and BLA BRANG. He traveled extensively, visiting monasteries in both Inner and Outer Mongolia, and going also to China, where he visited Beijing and WUTAISHAN. He was regarded as one of the leading Dge lugs scholars of his generation. Agvaandandar returned to his native Alashan at the end of his life, where he died in 1830. His tomb at Sharil Chindar is still a place of worship. His collected works fill two volumes, comprising thirty-six titles, all written in Tibetan (two are bilingual Tibetan and Mongolian). He wrote on a wide range of topics in Buddhist philosophy, logic, poetics (based on Dandin's KAvyAdarsa), and grammar (both Tibetan and Mongolian), including a Tibetan-Mongolian dictionary. His philosophical work included commentaries on the Hetucakra and the ALAMBANAPARIKsA of DIGNAGA, the SaMtAnAntarasiddhi of DHARMAKĪRTI, and on the PRAJNAPARAMITAHṚDAYASuTRA ("Heart Sutra").

AmarAvatī. (T. 'Chi med ldan). In Sanskrit, "Immortal"; is the modern name for DhAnyakataka or Dharanikota, the site of a monastic community associated with the MAHASAMGHIKA school, located in eastern Andhra Pradesh. The site is best known for its large main STuPA, started at the time of AsOKA (third century BCE), which, by the second century CE, was the largest monument in India. It is thought to have been some 140 feet in diameter and upwards of 100 feet tall, and decorated with bas-reliefs. The stupa is mentioned in numerous accounts, including that by the Chinese pilgrim XUANZANG. AmarAvatī (as DhAnyakataka) reached its historical zenith as the southern capital of the later SAtavAhana [alt. sAtavAhana] dynasty that ended in 227 CE. The last inscription found at the site is dated to the eleventh century, and when first excavated at the end of the eighteenth century by the British, the stupa had long been reduced to a large mound of earth. Over the following centuries, it has been the focus of repeated archaeological excavations that yielded many important finds, making it one of the best researched Buddhist sites of ancient India. The site is important in Tibetan Buddhism because the Buddha is said to have taught the KALACAKRATANTRA at DhAnyakataka. See also NAGARJUNAKOndA.

Amitabha (Sanskrit) Amitābha [from a not + the verbal root mā to measure + ābhā (ābha) splendor, light from ā-bhā to shine, irradiate] Unmeasured splendor; mystically, as boundless light or boundless space, one of the five dhyani-buddhas of Tibetan Buddhism, more often referred to as the five tathagathas or jinas (victorious ones). Originally these dhyani-buddhas represented cosmic spiritual attributes and influences emanating from adi-buddhi, but they have become mythologized as gods, ruling over the central realm as well as the four cardinal directions.

anuyoga. (T. a nu yo ga). In Sanskrit, "subsequent yoga" or "further yoga," the eighth of the nine vehicles (THEG PA DGU) of Buddhism according to the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Here, the system of practice described elsewhere as ANUTTARAYOGATANTRA is divided into three: MAHAYOGA, anuyoga, and ATIYOGA, with anuyoga corresponding to the practices of the "stage of completion" (NIsPANNAKRAMA), mahAyoga to the stage of generation (UTPATTIKRAMA) and atiyoga to the great completion (RDZOGS CHEN) and the spontaneous achievement of buddhahood. Thus, such stage of completion practices as causing the winds (PRAnA) to move through the channels (NAdĪ) to the CAKRAs are set forth in anuyoga. In Rnying ma, anuyoga is also a category of texts in the RNYING MA'I RGYUD 'BUM, divided under the following headings: the four root sutras (rtsa ba'i mdo bzhi), the six tantras clarifying the six limits (mtha' drug gsal bar byed pa'i rgyud drug), the twelve rare tantras (dkon rgyud bcu gnyis), and the seventy written scriptures (lung gi yi ge bdun bcu).

Atisa DīpaMkarasrījNAna. (T. A ti sha Mar me mdzad dpal ye shes) (982-1054). Indian Buddhist monk and scholar revered by Tibetan Buddhists as a leading teacher in the later dissemination (PHYI DAR) of Buddhism in Tibet. His name, also written as Atisha, is an ApabhraMsa form of the Sanskrit term atisaya, meaning "surpassing kindness." Born into a royal family in what is today Bangladesh, Atisa studied MAHAYANA Buddhist philosophy and TANTRA as a married layman prior to being ordained at the age of twenty-nine, receiving the ordination name of DīpaMkarasrījNAna. After studying at the great monasteries of northern India, including NALANDA, ODANTAPURĪ, VIKRAMAsĪLA, and SOMAPURA, he is said to have journeyed to the island of Sumatra, where he studied under the CITTAMATRA teacher Dharmakīrtisrī (also known as guru Sauvarnadvīpa) for twelve years; he would later praise Dharmakīrtisrī as a great teacher of BODHICITTA. Returning to India, he taught at the Indian monastic university of VIKRAMAsĪLA. Atisa was invited to Tibet by the king of western Tibet YE SHES 'OD and his grandnephew BYANG CHUB 'OD, who were seeking to remove perceived corruption in the practice of Buddhism in Tibet. Atisa reached Tibet in 1042, where he initially worked together with the renowned translator RIN CHEN BZANG PO at THO LING monastery in the translation of PRAJNAPARAMITA texts. There, he composed his famous work, the BODHIPATHAPRADĪPA, or "Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment," an overview of the MahAyAna Buddhist path that served as a basis for the genre of literature known as LAM RIM ("stages of the path"). He spent the remaining twelve years of his life in the central regions of Tibet, where he formed his principal seat in Snye thang (Nyetang) outside of LHA SA where he translated a number of MADHYAMAKA works into Tibetan. He died there and his relics were interred in the SGROL MA LHA KHANG. Atisa and his chief disciples 'BROM STON RGYAL BA'I 'BYUNG GNAS and RNGOG LEGS PA'I SHES RAB are considered the forefathers of the BKA' GDAMS PA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. In Tibet, he is commonly known by the honorific title Jo bo rje (Jowoje), "the Superior Lord."

atiyoga. (T. a ti yo ga/shin tu rnal 'byor). In Sanskrit, "surpassing yoga"; the ninth and most advanced of the nine vehicles according to the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Here, the system of practice described elsewhere as ANUTTARAYOGATANTRA is divided into three: MAHAYOGA, ANUYOGA, and atiyoga, with atiyoga referring to the practice of the great completion (RDZOGS CHEN) in which all the phenomena of SAMSARA and NIRVAnA appear as the sport of self-arisen wisdom.

Avalokitesvara. (T. Spyan ras gzigs; C. Guanshiyin/Guanyin; J. Kanzeon/Kannon; K. Kwanseŭm/Kwanŭm 觀世音/觀音). In Sanskrit, "Lord who Looks Down [in Empathy]"; the BODHISATTVA of compassion, the most widely worshipped of the MAHAYANA bodhisattvas and one of the earliest to appear in Buddhist literature. According to legend, Avalokitesvara was produced from a beam of light that radiated from the forehead of AMITABHA while that buddha was deep in meditation. For this reason, Buddhist iconography often depicts AmitAbha as embedded in Avalokitesvara's crown. His name dates back to the beginning of the Common Era, when he replaced the Vedic god BRAHMA as the attendant to sAKYAMUNI Buddha, inheriting in turn BrahmA's attribute of the lotus (PADMA). Images of Avalokitesvara as PADMAPAnI LOKEsVARA ("Lord with a Lotus in his Hand"), an early name, are numerous. Avalokitesvara is the interlocutor or main figure in numerous important MahAyAna sutras, including the PRAJNAPARAMITAHṚDAYASuTRA ("Heart Sutra"). His cult was introduced to China in the first century CE, where his name was translated as Guanshiyin ("Perceiver of the Sounds of the World") or GUANYIN ("Perceiver of Sounds"); his cult entered Korea and Japan with the advent of Buddhism in those countries. Avalokitesvara was once worshipped widely in Southeast Asia as well, beginning at the end of the first millennium CE. Although the MahAyAna tradition eventually faded from the region, images of Avalokitesvara remain. Avalokitesvara is also the patron deity of Tibet, where he is said to have taken the form of a monkey and mated with TARA in the form of a local demoness to produce the Tibetan race. Tibetan political and religious leaders have been identified as incarnations of him, such as the seventh-century king SRONG BTSAN SGAM PO (although that attribution was most likely a later addition to the king's legacy) and, notably, the DALAI LAMAs. The PO TA LA Palace, the residence of the Dalai Lamas, in the Tibetan capital of LHA SA is named for Avalokitesvara's abode on Mount POTALAKA in India. In China, Avalokitesvara as Guanyin underwent a transformation in gender into a popular female bodhisattva, although the male iconographic form also persists throughout East Asia. PUTUOSHAN, located off the east coast of China south of Shanghai, is said to be Potalaka. Avalokitesvara is generally depicted in the full raiments of a bodhisattva, often with an image of AmitAbha in his crown. He appears in numerous forms, among them the two-armed PadmapAni who stands and holds a lotus flower; the four-armed seated Avalokitesvara, known either as Caturbhuja Avalokitesvara [CaturbhujAvalokitesvara] or CintAmani Avalokitesvara [CintAmanyavalokitesvara], who holds the wish-fulfilling jewel (CINTAMAnI) with his central hands in ANJALIMUDRA, and a lotus and crystal rosary in his left and right hands, respectively; the eleven-armed, eleven-faced EKADAsAMUKHA; and the thousand-armed and thousand-headed SAHASRABHUJASAHASRANETRAVALOKITEsVARA (q.v. MAHAKARUnIKA). Tradition holds that his head split into multiple skulls when he beheld the suffering of the world. Numerous other forms also exist in which the god has three or more heads, and any number of arms. In his wrathful form as AstabhayatrAnAvalokitesvara (T. Spyan ras gzigs 'jigs pa brgyad skyob), "Avalokitesvara who Protects against the Eight Fears," the bodhisattva stands in ARDHAPARYAnKA ("half cross-legged posture") and has one face and eight hands, each of which holds a symbol of one of the eight fears. This name is also given to eight separate forms of Avalokitesvara that are each dedicated to protecting from one of the eight fears, namely: AgnibhayatrAnAvalokitesvara ("Avalokitesvara Who Protects from Fear of Fire") and so on, replacing fire with Jala (water), SiMha (lion), Hasti (elephant), Danda (cudgel), NAga (snake), dAkinī (witch) [alt. PisAcī]; and Cora (thief). In addition to his common iconographic characteristic, the lotus flower, Avalokitesvara also frequently holds, among other accoutrements, a jeweled rosary (JAPAMALA) given to him by Aksamati (as related in chapter twenty-five of the SADDHARMAPUndARĪKASuTRA), or a vase. In East Asia, Avalokitesvara often appears in a triad: the buddha AmitAbha in the center, flanked to his left and right by his two bodhisattva attendants, Avalokitesvara and MAHASTHAMAPRAPTA, respectively. In Tibet, Avalokitesvara is part of a popular triad with VAJRAPAnI and MANJUsRĪ. As one of the AstAMAHOPAPUTRA, Avalokitesvara also appears with the other bodhisattvas in group representation. The tantric deity AMOGHAPAsA is also a form of Avalokitesvara. The famous mantra of Avalokitesvara, OM MAnI PADME HuM, is widely recited in the MahAyAna traditions and nearly universally in Tibetan Buddhism. In addition to the twenty-fifth chapter of the Saddharmapundarīkasutra, the KARAndAVYuHA is also devoted to him. See also BAIYI GUANYIN; GUANYIN; MIAOSHAN; MAnI BKA' 'BUM.

Baidurya gser po. (Vaidurya Serpo). In Tibetan, "Golden Beryl." The text is a history of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism, its principal teachers, and its institutions, written in 1698 by the regent of the fifth DALAI LAMA, SDE SRID SANGS RGYAS RGYA MTSHO; also known as the Dga' ldan chos 'byung ("History of the Dga' ldan pa [= Dge lugs pa]"); the full title is Dpal mnyam med ri bo dga' ldan pa'i bstan pa zhwa ser cod pan 'chang ba'i ring lugs chos thams cad kyi rtsa ba gsal bar byed pa baidurya ser po'i me long. Vostrikov's Tibetan Historical Literature gives a summary of the contents of the work.

Bakkula. [alt. Nakula; Vakula; etc.] (P. Bakkula; T. Ba ku la; C. Bojuluo; J. Hakukura; K. Pakkura 薄拘羅). Sanskrit and PAi name of an ARHAT disciple of the Buddha, who became an arhat only eight days after ordaining at the age of eighty. The Buddha declared him to be foremost among those who enjoyed good health, and also one of the four monks most proficient in superknowledges (ABHIJNA), supernatural powers that are the by-products of meditation. ¶ Bakkula is also traditionally listed as fifth (or, in Tibetan, ninth) of the sixteen arhat elders (sOdAsASTHAVIRA), who are charged by the Buddha with protecting his dispensation until the advent of the next buddha, MAITREYA. He is said to reside in JAMBUDVĪPA with eight hundred disciples. According to the East Asian tradition, Bakkula was a fierce warrior. After he ordained, the Buddha calmed him by making him sit in meditation, whence he became known as the "Quietly Sitting Arhat" (Jingzuo Luohan). Bakkula may be the arhat known by the epithet of Kundovahan (Holder of the Mongoose; C. Juntoupohan) referred to in the sAriputraparipṛcchA ("Sutra of sAriputra's Questions"). In Tibetan iconography he holds a mongoose (nakula) spitting out jewels; East Asian images have him seated in a chair holding a mongoose, sometimes accompanied by a beggar child. In CHANYUE GUANXIU's standard Chinese depiction, Bakkula is shown sitting cross-legged on a rock, with both hands holding a backscratcher over his left shoulder. In Tibetan Buddhism, Bakkula (or Bakula) is the first figure in an important incarnation (SPRUL SKU) lineage of the DGE LUGS sect. The nineteenth Bakula Rinpoche (1917-2003) served in the Indian parliament and as the Indian ambassador to Mongolia. Bakkula is alternatively known in Sanskrit as Bakula, Vakkula, Vakula, Vatkula (cf. P. BAkula; Vakkula).

Baotang zong. (J. Hotoshu; K. Podang chong 保唐宗). An important school of the early Chinese CHAN tradition, known for its radically antinomian doctrines. The school takes its name from the monastery (Baotangsi) where the school's putative founder, BAOTANG WUZHU, resided. The monastery was located in Jiannan (in modern-day Sichuan province), in the vicinity of the city of Chengdu. Until the recent discovery of the LIDAI FABAO JI at DUNHUANG, information on this school was limited to the pejorative comments found in the writings of the ninth-century CHAN historian GUIFENG ZONGMI. Owing perhaps to the antinomian teachings espoused by its members, the school was short-lived. The school rejected all soteriological practices and devotional activities. No images of the Buddha were enshrined in their monasteries, and they questioned the value of chanting scriptures and performing repentance rituals. Instead, they insisted on "simply sitting in emptiness and quietude" (zhikong xianzuo) and transmitting "no thought" (WUNIAN) in lieu of formal precepts. The Baotang lineage is often traced back to Hui'an (582-709; also known as Lao'an, "Old An," because of his long life), a disciple of the fifth patriarch HONGREN, and to Hui'an's lay disciple Chen Chuzhang (d.u.), through whose influence Baotang Wuzhu is said to have attained awakening. Although the author of the Lidai fabao ji, a disciple of Wuzhu, attempts to associate the Baotang lineage with that of CHoNGJONG MUSANG, the founder of the JINGZHONG ZONG, these schools are now considered to have been two distinct traditions. Like the Jingzhong school, the Baotang zong also seems to have exerted considerable influence on the development of Tibetan Buddhism, especially on the early teachings of RDZOGS CHEN (dzogchen).

bar do. In Tibetan, literally "between two"; often translated as "intermediate state"; the Tibetan translation of the Sanskrit ANTARABHAVA, the intermediate state between death and rebirth, posited by some, but not all, Buddhist schools (the STHAVIRANIKAYA, for example, rejects the notion). In Tibet, the term received considerable elaboration, especially in the RNYING MA sect, most famously in a cycle of treasure texts (GTER MA) discovered in the fourteenth century by KARMA GLING PA entitled "The Profound Doctrine of Self-Liberation of the Mind [through Encountering] the Peaceful and Wrathful Deities" (Zab chos zhi khro dgongs pa rang grol) also known as the "Peaceful and Wrathful Deities According to Karmalingpa" (Kar gling zhi khro). A group of texts from this cycle is entitled BAR DO THOS GROL CHEN MO ("Great Liberation in the Intermediate State through Hearing"). Selections from this group were translated by KAZI DAWA-SAMDUP and published by WALTER Y. EVANS-WENTZ in 1927 as The Tibetan Book of the Dead. In Karma gling pa's texts, the universe through which the dead wander is composed of three bar dos. The first, and briefest, is the bar do of the moment of death ('chi kha'i bar do), which occurs with the dawning of the profound state of consciousness called the clear light (PRABHASVARACITTA). If one is able to recognize the clear light as reality, one is immediately liberated from rebirth. If not, the second bar do begins, called the bar do of reality (chos nyid bar do). The disintegration of the personality brought on by death reveals reality, but in this case, not in the form of clear light, but in the form of a MAndALA of fifty-eight wrathful deities and a mandala of forty-two peaceful deities from the GUHYAGARBHATANTRA. These deities appear in sequence to the consciousness of the deceased in the days immediately following death. If reality is not recognized in this second bar do, then the third bar do, the bar do of existence (srid pa'i bar do), dawns, during which one must again take rebirth in one of the six realms (sAdGATI) of divinities, demigods, humans, animals, ghosts, or hell denizens. The entire sequence may last as long as seven days and then be repeated seven times, such that the maximum length of the intermediate state between death and rebirth is forty-nine days. This is just one of many uses of the term bar do in Tibetan Buddhism; it was used to describe not only the period between death and rebirth but also that between rebirth and death, and between each moment of existence, which always occurs between two other moments. Cf. also SISHIJIU [RI] ZHAI.

Bar do thos grol chen mo. (Bardo Todrol Chenmo). In Tibetan, "Great Liberation through Hearing in the Intermediate State." It is a section of large cycle of mortuary texts entitled "The Profound Doctrine of Self-Liberation of the Mind [through Encountering] the Peaceful and Wrathful Deities" (Zab chos zhi khro dgongs pa rang grol) also known as the "Peaceful and Wrathful Deities according to Karmalingpa" (Kar gling zhi khro). The Bar do thos grol chen mo is a treasure text (GTER MA) of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, discovered in the fourteenth century by KARMA GLING PA. Selections from it were translated by KAZI DAWA SAMDUP and published by WALTER Y. EVANS-WENTZ in 1927 as The Tibetan Book of the Dead. See also ANTARABHAVA, BAR DO.

'Ba' rom bka' brgyud. (Barom Kagyü). One of the eight Tibetan subsects of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, originating with 'Ba' rom Dar ma dbang phyug (Barom Darma Wangchuk, 1127-1199), a disciple of SGAM PO PA BSOD NAMS RIN CHEN.

Bdud 'joms Rin po che. (Düdjom Rinpoche) (1904-1987). An influential twentieth-century Tibetan master who served for a time as the head of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Born in the southern Tibetan region of PADMA BKOD, Bdud 'joms Rin po che was recognized at the age of three as the reincarnation of the treasure revealer (GTER STON) Bdud 'joms gling pa (Düdjom Lingpa). He trained primarily at SMIN GROL GLING monastery in central Tibet, establishing himself as a leading exponent of Rnying ma doctrine, especially the instructions of RDZOGS CHEN or "great completion." Following his flight into exile in 1959, Bdud 'joms Rin po che became the religious leader of the Rnying ma sect, while actively supporting the educational activities of the Tibetan diasporic community in India. He spent much of his later life in the West, establishing centers and garnering a wide following in the United States and France. He died in 1987 at his religious institution in Dordogne, France. Renowned as a treasure revealer, scholar, and poet, Bdud 'joms Rin po che is especially known for his extensive historical writings, including the comprehensive The Nyingma School of Tibetan Buddhism: Its Fundamentals and History. His full name is 'Jigs bral ye shes rdo rje (Jikdral Yeshe Dorje).

Beg tse. In Tibetan, "Hidden Coat of Mail"; an important wrathful deity in Tibetan Buddhism, one of the eight DHARMAPALA (chos skyong) or protectors of the dharma. He is also known as Lcam sring ("Brother and Sister") and as Srog bdag or Srog bdag dmar po ("Lord of the Life Force" or "Red Lord of the Life Force"). According to legend, he was a war god of the Mongols prior to their conversion to Buddhism. In 1575, he tried to prevent the third DALAI LAMA BSOD NAMS RGYA MTSHO from visiting the Mongol khan but was defeated by the Buddhist cleric and converted to Buddhism as a protector of the dharma. According to some descriptions, he is a worldly protector ('jig rten pa'i srung ma); according to others, he is a transcendent protector ('jig rten las 'das pa'i srung ma). In texts devoted to HAYAGRĪVA, Beg tse is sometimes represented as the principal protector deity.

Bei zong. (J. Hokushu; K. Puk chong 北宗). In Chinese, "Northern school"; a designation for an early tradition of the CHAN school that flourished in the seventh and eighth centuries, and referring specifically to the lineage of SHENXIU and his disciples. The doctrines of the "Northern school" are known to have focused on the transcendence of thoughts (linian) and the five expedient means (fangbian; S. UPAYA); these teachings appear in "Northern school" treatises discovered at Dunhuang, such as the DASHENG WUSHENG FANGBIAN MEN, YUANMING LUN, and Guanxin lun. The appellations "Northern school" and "Southern school" (NAN ZONG) began to be used widely throughout the Tang dynasty, largely due to the efforts of HEZE SHENHUI and his followers. As a result of Shenhui's polemical attacks on Shenxiu and his followers, later Chan historians such as GUIFENG ZONGMI came to speak of a "Northern school" whose teachings promoted a "gradual awakening" (JIANWU) approach to enlightenment (see SUDDEN-GRADUAL ISSUE); this school was distinguished from a superior "Southern school," which was founded on the prospect of "sudden awakening" (DUNWU). While such a characterization is now known to be misleading, subsequent genealogical histories of the Chan tradition (see CHUANDENG LU) more or less adopted Shenhui's vision of early Chan wherein the legendary sixth patriarch (LIUZU) HUINENG, rather than Shenxiu, became the bearer of the orthodox transmission from the fifth patriarch HONGREN. The LIUZU TAN JING played an important role in making this characterization of a gradualist Northern school and a subitist Southern school part of the mainstream tradition. Despite Shenhui's virulent attacks, Shenxiu and his disciples YIFU (661-736), PUJI (651-739), and XIANGMO ZANG played a much more important role in the early growth of Chan than the later tradition generally acknowledges. There is strong evidence, in fact, that Shenxiu was considered by his contemporaries to be the legitimate successor to the fifth patriarch Hongren and he and his followers were part of the metropolitan elite and wielded deep influence at the Chinese imperial court. The Northern school also seems to have been a force in Tibetan Buddhism during the eighth century and the Northern-school monk Heshang MOHEYAN was the Chinese protagonist in the famous BSAM YAS DEBATE.

Bhairava. (T. 'Jigs byed; C. Buwei; J. Fui; K. P'ooe 怖畏). In Sanskrit, "Fierce," "Frightening," "Horrible"; the name of a saivite Hindu and Buddhist deity. Bhairava first appears as one of the emanations of the Hindu god siva. Many stories appear in the Hindu tradition explaining how and why siva first took this wrathful form. In Buddhism, Bhairava, or commonly VAJRABHAIRAVA, is closely related to YAMANTAKA, "He who Brings an End (antaka) to Death (yama)." Vajrabhairava and YamAntaka are understood to be emanations of the BODHISATTVA MANJUsRĪ. Bhairava is particularly popular in Nepal and Tibet. In Tibetan Buddhism, Bhairava is both a meditative deity (YI DAM), where his wrathful appearance is said to frighten away the mistaken belief in a self (ATMAN), as well as a protector of the dharma (DHARMAPALA) who frightens away baleful spirits with his terrifying appearance. In Buddhist art, Bhairava is typically depicted with black or dark-blue skin, a single head (often that of a buffalo), and multiple arms brandishing a variety of weapons. He may also have a necklace made of skulls, a mouth stained with blood, and have his feet holding down a prone figure he has vanquished.

bka' babs bzhi. (kabap shi). In Tibetan, "four instructional lineages" (bka' means words-of a buddha or enlightened master-and babs means to descend in a stream); a series of tantric instructions that the Indian SIDDHA TILOPA received from various masters, codified, and then passed on to his disciple NAROPA. These later became foundational teachings for the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism and were incorporated into the six doctrines of NAropa (NA RO CHOS DRUG). Tibetan sources vary widely regarding the lineage and content of these four transmissions. According to a biography of Tilopa composed by MAR PA CHOS KYI BLO GROS, they are (1) the transmission of illusory body (T. sgyu lus kyi bka' babs) received from the siddha NAGARJUNA; (2) the transmission of dreams (T. rmi lam gyi bka' babs) received from the siddha CaryApa; (3) the transmission of clear light (T. 'od gsal gyi bka' babs) received from the siddha Lavapa; and (4) the transmission of inner heat (T. gtum mo'i bka' babs) received from JNAnadAkinī. According to other sources, these four may alternatively include the transmissions of MAHAMUDRA, the intermediate state (BAR DO), mother tantra (MATṚTANTRA), father tantra (PITṚTANTRA), and individual tantras such as the tantra of CAKRASAMVARA, HEVAJRA, and GUHYASAMAJA.

Bka' brgyud che bzhi chung brgyad. (Kagyü che shi chung gye). In Tibetan, the "Four Major and Eight Minor Bka' brgyud." A division of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism into various sects and subsects stemming from the disciples of SGAM PO PA BSOD RNAM RIN CHEN. The terms "major" and "minor" indicate a relative proximity to the master Sgam po pa and carry no quantitative or qualitative overtones. The four major subsects follow from the direct disciples of Sgam po pa and his nephew Dwags po Sgom tshul (Dakpo Gomtshul, 1116-1169):

Bka' brgyud. (Kagyü). In Tibetan, "Oral Lineage" or "Lineage of the Buddha's Word"; one of the four main sects of Tibetan Buddhism. The term bka' brgyud is used by all sects of Tibetan Buddhism in the sense of an oral transmission of teachings from one generation to the next, a transmission that is traced back to India. Serving as the name of a specific sect, the name Bka' brgyud refers to a specific lineage, the MAR PA BKA' BRGYUD, the "Oral Lineage of Mar pa," a lineage of tantric initiations, instructions, and practices brought to Tibet from India by the translator MAR PA CHOS KYI BLO GROS in the eleventh century. Numerous sects and subsects evolved from this lineage, some of which developed a great deal of autonomy and institutional power. In this sense, it is somewhat misleading to describe Bka' brgyud as a single sect; there is, for example, no single head of the sect as in the case of SA SKYA or DGE LUGS. The various sects and subsects, however, do share a common retrospection to the teachings that Mar pa retrieved from India. Thus, rather than refer to Bka' brgyud as one of four sects (chos lugs), in Tibetan the Mar pa Bka' brgyud is counted as one of the eight streams of tantric instruction, the so-called eight great chariot-like lineages of achievement (SGRUB BRGYUD SHING RTA CHEN PO BRGYAD), a group which also includes the RNYING MA, the BKA' GDAMS of ATIsA, and the instructions on "severance" (GCOD) of MA GCIG LAB SGRON. In some Tibetan histories, Mar pa's lineage is called the Dkar brgyud ("White Lineage"), named after the white cotton shawls worn by its yogins in their practice of solitary meditation. The reading Dka' brgyud ("Austerities Lineage") is also found. The lineage from which all the sects and subsects derive look back not only to Mar pa, but to his teacher, and their teachers, traced back to the tantric buddha VAJRADHARA. Vajradhara imparted his instructions to the Indian MAHASIDDHA TILOPA, who in turn transmitted them to the Bengali scholar and yogin NAROPA. It was NAropa (in fact, his disciples) whom Mar pa encountered during his time in India, receiving the famous NA RO CHOS DRUG, or the six doctrines of NAropa. Mar pa returned to Tibet, translated the texts and transmitted these and other teachings (including MAHAMUDRA, the hallmark practice of Bka' brgyud) to a number of disciples, including his most famous student, MI LA RAS PA. These five figures-the buddha Vajradhara, the Indian tantric masters Tilopa and NAropa, and their Tibetan successors Mar pa and Mi la ras pa (both of whom were laymen rather than monks)-form a lineage that is recognized and revered by all forms of Bka' brgyud. One of Mi la ras pa's chief disciples, the physician and monk SGAM PO PA BSOD NAMS RIN CHEN united the tantric instructions he received from Mi la ras pa and presented them in the monastic and exegetical setting that he knew from his studies in the Bka' gdams sect. Sgam po pa, therefore, appears to have been instrumental in transforming an itinerant movement of lay yogins into a sect with a strong monastic element. He established an important monastery in the southern Tibetan region of Dwags po; in acknowledgment of his importance, the subsequent branches of the Bka' brgyud are sometimes collectively known as the DWAGS PO BKA' BRGYUD. The Bka' brgyud later divided into what is known in Tibetan as the "four major and eight minor Bka' brgyud" (BKA' BRGYUD CHE BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD). A number of these subsects no longer survive as independent institutions, although the works of their major figures continue to be studied. Among those that survive, the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD, 'BRI GUNG BKA' BRGYUD, and 'BRUG PA BKA' BRGYUD continue to play an important role in Tibet, the Himalayan region, and in exile.

Bka' brgyud mgur mtsho. (Kagyü Gurtso). In Tibetan, "An Ocean of Songs of the Bka' brgyud"; a collection of spiritual songs and poetry composed by eminent masters of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. It was compiled by the eighth KARMA PA MI BSKYOD RDO RJE in about 1542, originally intended as a liturgical text to be recited as an invocation of the entire Bka' brgyud lineage. The text is also part biographical recollection and doctrinal catalogue and is still much loved and widely read by adherents of the tradition. Its complete title is: Mchog gi dngos grub mngon du byed pa'i myur lam bka' brgyud bla ma rnams kyi rdo rje'i mgur dbyangs ye shes char 'bebs rang grol lhun grub bde chen rab 'bar nges don rgya mtsho'i snying po.

Bka' brgyud pa. (Kagyüpa). A person affiliated with the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism.

Bka' brgyud sngags mdzod. (Kagyü Ngagdzo). In Tibetan, "Treasury of Bka' brgyud Mantra"; a compilation of tantric teachings belonging to the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, compiled and edited in six volumes by the nineteenth-century Tibetan master 'JAM MGON KONG SPRUL BLO GROS MTHA' YAS. The collection forms one of the five treasuries of Kong sprul (KONG SPRUL MDZOD LNGA), and largely preserves the esoteric instructions transmitted by Bka' brgyud founder MAR PA CHOS KYI BLO GROS to his disciple Rngog Chos sku rdo rje (Ngok Choku Dorje).

Bka' gdams glegs bam pha chos bu chos. (Kadam Lekbam Pacho Bucho). In Tibetan, "The Book of Bka' gdams, Dharma of the Father and Sons" originating with the Indian master ATIsA DĪPAMKARAsRĪJNANA a seminal work of the BKA' GDAMS sect of Tibetan Buddhism, being the primary text of the oral-instruction (man ngag) lineage organized into its present version by Mkhan chen Nyi ma rgyal mtshan (Kenchen Nyima Gyaltsen) in 1302. "Dharma of the Father" refers to Atisa's responses to questions posed by his foremost Tibetan student 'BROM STON RGYAL BA'I 'BYUNG GNAS (the two "fathers" of Bka' gdams); "Dharma of the Sons" refers to Atisa's responses to questions posed by RNGOG LEGS PA'I SHES RAB and Khu ston Brtson 'grus g.yung drung (Kuton Tsondrü Yungdrung), the spiritual sons of Atisa and 'Brom ston pa.

Bka' gdams. (Kadam). An early sect of Tibetan Buddhism. In Tibetan, BKA' (ka) is the word of the Buddha or an enlightened master, and gdams (dam) means "to instruct"; traditionally the compound is parsed as "those who take all of the Buddha's words as instruction." Another etymology associates the word bka' with the words of ATIsA DĪPAMKARAsRĪJNANA, whose followers began the early sect of Tibetan Buddhism, and in place of gdams "to advise" understands dam "to bind," hence, "those who hold his sacred words as binding." The origins of the sect are traced back to the founding of RWA SGRENG monastery in 1056 by Atisa's foremost disciple and interpreter 'BROM STON RGYAL BA'I 'BYUNG GNAS. The three main students of 'Brom ston pa are Po to ba Rin chen gsal (Potowa), Spyan mnga' ba Tshul khrims 'bar (Chen Ngawa), and Bu chung ba Gzhon nu rgyal mtshan (Bu chungwa), from whom originate the three principal Bka' gdams lineages (bka' babs): (1) the authoritative treatises (gzhung) lineage, (2) the essential instruction (gdams ngag) lineage, and (3) the oral instruction (man ngag) lineage, respectively. Po to ba's authoritative treatise lineage emphasized the close study of six paired fundamental Buddhist treatises: the BODHISATTVABHuMI and MAHAYANASuTRALAMKARA, the BODHICARYAVATARA and sIKsASAMUCCAYA, and the JATAKAMALA and UDANAVARGA. The teachings of the lineage of oral instructions are collected in the BKA' GDAMS GLEGS BAM PHA CHOS BU CHOS. The sect is probably best known for its strict discipline and austerity of practice, but the Gsang phu ne'u thog Bka' gdams lineage that is traced back to the founding of the monastery of GSANG PHU NE'U THOG in about 1073 by RNGOG LEGS PA'I SHES RAB, an immediate disciple of Atisa, and his nephew, the translator RNGOG BLO LDAN SHES RAB, gave the Bka' gdams a well-deserved reputation as a sect of great learning. Monks from Gsang phu ne'u thog like PHYWA PA CHOS KYI SENG GE wrote important works on PRAMAnA (logic and epistemology) and formalized debate (rtsod rigs). The Bka' gdams was responsible for the distinctive Tibetan BSTAN RIM (tenrim) ("stages of teaching") genre, based on Atisa's seminal work, the BODHIPATHAPRADĪPA. This genre was later adapted and popularized by TSONG KHA PA in his influential LAM RIM CHEN MO. Tsong kha pa idealized Atisa as the perfect teacher and his early DGE LUGS PA followers, first called Dga' ldan pa (Gandenpa) after the DGA' LDAN monastery he founded, were also known as the new Bka' gdams pa. After the rise of the Dge lugs sect, the Bka' gdams disappeared from Tibetan history, for reasons still not fully understood, with only the monasteries of Rwa sgreng and SNAR THANG retaining their original affiliation.

Bkra shis lhun po. (Tashi Lhunpo). A Tibetan monastery that served as the seat of the PAn CHEN LAMAs, located in the Tibetan city of Gzhi ka rtse (Shigatse), and considered one of the six great institutions of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The others include SE RA, 'BRAS SPUNGS, and DGA' LDAN, all located near LHA SA, together with BLA BRANG BKRA SHIS 'KHYIL and SKU 'BUM, in the northeast region of A mdo. Bkra shis lhun po was founded in 1447 by DGE 'DUN GRUB, a disciple of the Dge lugs luminary TSONG KHA PA. In 1618, the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD monastery Bkra shis zil gnon (Tashi Silnon, "Tashi Lhunpo Suppressor") was established on a nearby hill and, for a short while, superceded Bkra shis lhun po, but it was eventually destroyed amid sectarian strife between the rival institutions. The cleric BLO BZANG CHOS KYI RGYAL MTSHAN enlarged Bkra shis lhun po's original structure, and the fifth Dalai Lama NGAG DBANG BLO BZANG RGYA MTSHO conferred upon him the title of PAn CHEN LAMA, "Great Scholar." Blo bzang chos kyi rgyal mtshan was affirmed as the fourth such master, with the first three prelates recognized posthumously, beginning with Tsong kha pa's disciple MKHAS GRUB DGE LEGS DPAL BZANG. The Pan chen Lama was elevated to a position of great religious and political authority, officially ranking second after the Dalai Lama but often acting as his tutor and occasionally rivaling him in political power. His monastery thus became a key institution in the religious and political history of central and western Tibet from the seventeenth century onward. The large monastic complex of assembly halls, temples, and residences, including its famous golden roof, was spared major destruction during the Chinese Cultural Revolution (1966-1976).

Bla brang bkra shis 'khyil. (Labrang Tashikyil). One of the six great monasteries of Tibet belonging to the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism; located in the northeast region of A mdo near the traditional border with China. The other five include SE RA, 'BRAS SPUNGS, DGA' LDAN, and BKRA SHIS LHUN PO, all located in central Tibet, together with SKU 'BUM in A mdo. The monastery was established in 1709 by the first 'JAM DBYANGS BZHAD PA incarnation, Ngag dbang brtson grus, and became the principal seat of his subsequent incarnations. At its peak, Bla brang bkra shis 'khyil housed four thousand monks and several colleges, making it the largest and most powerful in A mdo.

Black Hats. (C. heimao 黑帽). A popular designation in both European languages and Chinese for the KARMA PA lineage of incarnate lamas in the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD subsect of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Because of his black crown, the Karma pa is sometimes called the "black hat" (zhwa nag) lama. In the nineteenth century, a Western misunderstanding of this term led to the presumption that there was a "Black Hat" sect of Tibetan Buddhism, a mistake that persists in some accounts of Tibetan Buddhism. The Western and Chinese division of major Tibetan sects into YELLOW HATS, RED HATS, and Black Hats has no corollary in Tibetan Buddhism and should be avoided.

bla ma. (lama). A Tibetan term of uncertain derivation, used to translate the Sanskrit word GURU, or "teacher." According to traditional paranomastic glosses, it means "none higher" and "high mother." Outside of Tibet, it is sometimes assumed that any Tibetan monk is a lama, but this is not the case. This misconception is reflected in the Chinese term lama jiao, or "teachings of the lama," the source of the European misnomer for Tibetan Buddhism, "Lamaism." Within Tibetan Buddhism, the term may be applied to any religious teacher, especially one's own teacher, regardless of whether the teacher is a monk or a layperson. In common Tibetan parlance, bla ma usually denotes an incarnate lama (SPRUL SKU).

Bla ma Zhang. [full name, Zhang tshal pa Brtson 'grus grags pa] (Shangtsalpa Tsondrü Drakpa) (1123-1193). The founder of the TSHAL PA BKA' BRGYUD, one of the four major and eight minor subsects of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism (BKA' BRGYUD CHE BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD). He was an important figure in twelfth-century Tibet in both the religious and political realms. Born into an aristocratic family near LHA SA, he is said to have studied black magic in his youth. When both of his parents soon died, he attributed their deaths to his negative deeds and decided to become a Buddhist monk, receiving BHIKsU ordination in 1148. In 1152, he met the nephew of SGAM PO PA, from whom he received instructions in MAHAMUDRA, the subject of his best known work, Phyag chen lam mchog mthar thug ("Supreme Path of MahAmudrA"). In 1175 he established his own community, Tshal gung thang, north of Lha sa, controlling the region with a law code of his own composition and his own militia, dismissing criticisms of his use of force with the claim that such acts were the skillful methods of the tantric master. However, he eventually agreed to renounce violence when he was requested to do so by the first KARMA PA, DUS GSUM MKHYEN PA.

BodhicaryAvatAra. (T. Byang chub sems dpa'i spyod pa la 'jug pa; C. Putixing jing; J. Bodaigyokyo; K. Porihaeng kyong 菩提行經). In Sanskrit, lit. "Introduction to the Practice of Enlightenment," a.k.a. BodhisattvacaryAvatAra, "Introduction to the Bodhisattva Practice"; a poem about the BODHISATTVA path, in ten chapters, written by the Indian poet sANTIDEVA (fl. c. 685-763). The verse is regarded as one of the masterpieces of late Indian MAHAYANA Buddhism, eliciting substantial commentary in both India and Tibet. The most influential of the Indian commentaries is the BodhicaryAvatArapaNjikA by PRAJNAKARAMATI. The text is especially important in Tibetan Buddhism, where it has long been memorized by monks and where stanzas from the text are often cited in both written and oral religious discourse. The poem is an extended reverie on the implications of the "aspiration for enlightenment" (BODHICITTA) that renders a person a bodhisattva, and on the deeds of the bodhisattva, the six perfections (PARAMITA). In the first chapter, sAntideva distinguishes between two forms of bodhicitta, the intentional (PRAnIDHICITTOTPADA) and the practical (PRASTHANACITTOTPADA), comparing them to the decision to undertake a journey and then actually setting out on that journey. In the fifth chapter he provides a famous argument for patience (KsANTI), stating that in order to walk uninjured across a surface of sharp stones, one can either cover the entire world with leather or one can cover the sole of one's foot with leather; in the same way, in order to survive the anger of enemies, one can either kill them all or practice patience. In the eighth chapter, he sets forth the technique for the equalizing and exhange of self and other, regarded in Tibet as one of the two chief means of cultivating bodhicitta. The lengthiest chapter is the ninth, devoted to wisdom (PRAJNA). Here sAntideva refutes a range of both non-Buddhist and Buddhist positions. On the basis of this chapter, sAntideva is counted as a PRASAnGIKA in the Tibetan doxographical system. According to legend, when sAntideva recited this chapter to the monks of NALANDA monastery, he began to rise into the air, leaving some questions as to precisely how the chapter ends. The final chapter is a prayer, often recited independently.

bodhicittotpAda. (T. byang chub kyi sems bskyed pa; C. fa puti xin; J. hotsubodaishin; K. pal pori sim 發菩提心). In Sanskrit, "generating the aspiration for enlightenment," "creating (utpAda) the thought (CITTA) of enlightenment (BODHI)"; a term used to describe both the process of developing BODHICITTA, the aspiration to achieve buddhahood, as well as the state achieved through such development. The MAHAYANA tradition treats this aspiration as having great significance in one's spiritual career, since it marks the entry into the MahAyAna and the beginning of the BODHISATTVA path. The process by which this "thought of enlightenment" (bodhicitta) is developed and sustained is bodhicittotpAda. Various types of techniques or conditional environments conducive to bodhicittotpAda are described in numerous MahAyAna texts and treatises. The BODHISATTVABHuMI says that there are four predominant conditions (ADHIPATIPRATYAYA) for generating bodhicitta: (1) witnessing an inconceivable miracle (ṛddhiprAtihArya) performed by a buddha or a bodhisattva, (2) listening to a teaching regarding enlightenment (BODHI) or to the doctrine directed at bodhisattvas (BODHISATTVAPItAKA), (3) recognizing the dharma's potential to be extinguished and seeking therefore to protect the true dharma (SADDHARMA), (4) seeing that sentient beings are troubled by afflictions (KLEsA) and empathizing with them. The Fa putixinjing lun introduces another set of four conditions for generating bodhicitta: (1) reflecting on the buddhas; (2) contemplating the dangers (ADĪNAVA) inherent in the body; (3) developing compassion (KARUnA) toward sentient beings; (4) seeking the supreme result (PHALA). The Chinese apocryphal treatise DASHENG QIXIN LUN ("Awakening of Faith According to the MahAyAna") refers to three types of bodhicittotpAda: that which derives from the accomplishment of faith, from understanding and practice, and from realization. JINGYING HUIYUAN (523-592) in his DASHENG YIZHANG ("Compendium on the Purport of MahAyAna") classifies bodhicittotpAda into three groups: (1) the generation of the mind based on characteristics, in which the bodhisattva, perceiving the characteristics of SAMSARA and NIRVAnA, abhors saMsAra and aspires to seek nirvAna; (2) the generation of the mind separate from characteristics, in which the bodhisattva, recognizing that the nature of saMsAra is not different from nirvAna, leaves behind any perception of their distinctive characteristics and generates an awareness of their equivalency; (3) the generation of the mind based on truth, in which the bodhisattva, recognizing that the original nature of bodhi is identical to his own mind, returns to his own original state of mind. The Korean scholiast WoNHYO (617-686), in his Muryangsugyong chongyo ("Doctrinal Essentials of the 'Sutra of Immeasurable Life'"), considers the four great vows of the bodhisattva (see C. SI HONGSHIYUAN) to be bodhicitta and divides its generation into two categories: viz., the aspiration that accords with phenomena (susa palsim) and the aspiration that conforms with principle (suri palsim). The topic of bodhicittotpAda is the subject of extensive discussion and exegesis in Tibetan Buddhism. For example, in his LAM RIM CHEN MO, TSONG KHA PA sets forth two techniques for developing this aspiration. The first, called the "seven cause and effect precepts" (rgyu 'bras man ngag bdun) is said to derive from ATIsA DIPAMKARAsRĪJNANA. The seven are (1) recognition of all sentient beings as having been one's mother in a past life, (2) recognition of their kindness, (3) the wish to repay their kindness, (4) love, (5) compassion, (6) the wish to liberate them from suffering, and (7) bodhicitta. The second, called the equalizing and exchange of self and other (bdag gzhan mnyam brje) is derived from the eighth chapter of sANTIDEVA's BODHICARYAVATARA. It begins with the recognition that oneself and others equally want happiness and do not want suffering. It goes on to recognize that by cherishing others more than oneself, one ensures the welfare of both oneself (by becoming a buddha) and others (by teaching them the dharma). MahAyAna sutra literature typically assumes that, after generating the bodhicitta, the bodhisattva will require not one, but three "incalculable eons" (ASAMKHYEYAKALPA) of time in order to complete all the stages (BHuMI) of the bodhisattva path (MARGA) and achieve buddhahood. The Chinese HUAYAN ZONG noted, however, that the bodhisattva had no compunction about practicing for such an infinity of time, because he realized at the very inception of the path that he was already a fully enlightened buddha. They cite in support of this claim the statement in the "BrahmacaryA" chapter of the AVATAMSAKASuTRA that "at the time of the initial generation of the aspiration for enlightenment (bodhicittotpAda), complete, perfect enlightenment (ANUTTARASAMYAKSAMBODHI) is already achieved."

Bon ::: A specific tradition within Tibetan Buddhism with its own unique beliefs, practices, and teachings.

Bon, Bön (Tibetan) [possible variation of bod Tibet, or an ancient word meaning invoker] Also pon and bhon. The Tibetan religion before the introduction of Buddhism in the latter half of the 8th century. The priest and adherents of Bon are called Bonpos (bon po), the ancient invokers for the pre-Buddhist and non-Buddhist kings and nobles of Tibet. The Bon religion, which survives today, seems based on at least four sources: 1) the ancient folk religions of the Tibetan people; 2) the tradition of the ancient “invokers”; 3) a conscious competition with Buddhism in terms of doctrine, texts, institutions, pantheon, and ritual; and 4) a number of non-Tibetan influences, including Hindu, Iranian, Central Asian, and other elements. Bon has been influenced by Buddhism to the extent that it has its own Kanjur and Tanjur, its own monks and monasteries, and its own “Buddha,” Shen-rab (gshen rab). All existing Bon literature was produced after the introduction of Buddhism, and shows the influence of and competition with Buddhism. Bon has also influenced Tibetan Buddhism, especially the Nyingmapa and Kargyupa sects.

'Bras spungs. (Drepung). In Tibetan, literally "Rice Heap"; one of the three monastic seats (GDAN SA GSUM) of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism; located eight kilometers west of the Tibetan capital of LHA SA. The monastery is named after the Dhanyakataka stupa in AMARAVATĪ in southern India, where the Buddha is said to have first taught the KALACAKRATANTRA. It was founded in 1416 by 'JAM DBYANGS CHOS RJE BKRA SHIS DPAL LDAN, one of TSONG KHA PA's leading disciples, and after only a few years in operation already housed over 2,000 monks. In the early sixteenth century, the second DALAI LAMA Dge 'dun rgya mtsho (Gendün Gyatso, 1475-1542) became the monastery's abbot; in 1530, he established a residence and political institution there called the DGA' LDAN PHO BRANG or "Palace of TUsITA." Following him, Bsod nams grags pa (Sonam Drakpa, 1478-1554) became the abbot. Thereafter, until the ascendancy of the Dalai Lamas, the most powerful religious dignitaries in the monastery were the Dalai Lamas and the reincarnations of Bsod nams grags pa. In the seventeenth century, under the direction of the fifth Dalai Lama NGAG DBANG BLO BZANG RGYA MTSHO, the Dga' ldan pho brang (also known as the gzims khang 'og ma or "lower chambers" to distinguish it from the "upper chambers," gzims khang gong ma, where the incarnations of Bsod nams grags pa resided), was moved to the PO TA LA palace. There it functioned as the seat of the Tibetan government until the Chinese occupation of Tibet in 1959. The monastery is an enormous complex of assembly halls, temples, chapels, living quarters and mountain hermitages. At the time of the fifth Dalai Lama, 'Bras spungs housed over 10,000 monks divided into seven (and later four) colleges (grwa tshang), more than fifty regional dormitories (khams tshan), and occupied an area of some 180,000 square feet, easily forming the largest monastery in Tibet. At the height of its florescence, 'Bras spungs drew applicants from all quarters of the Tibetan cultural world including the far east and northeast in A mdo, as well as Mongolia, Kalmykia, and Buryatia. The monastery was large enough to accommodate individuals of a wide range of capacities and interests. A large percentage of its monks engaged in little formal intellectual study, instead choosing to work for the institution as laborers, cooks, and ritual assistants. Even so, 'Bras spungs's numerous monastic colleges also attracted some of Tibet's most talented and gifted scholars, producing a line of elite academicians and authors. The complex was sacked a number of times, first by the King of Gtsang (Tsang) during a civil war in 1618, then by the Mongol army in 1635, and again by Lha bzang Khan in 1706. It was most recently plundered by the People's Liberation Army during the Chinese Cultural Revolution but opened again in 1980 with five hundred monks.

'Bri gung bka' brgyud. (Drigung Kagyü). A subsect of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, counted among the "four major and eight minor Bka' brgyud subsects" (BKA' BRGYUD CHE BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD). The lineage stems from the twelfth-century meditation master 'JIG RTEN GSUM MGON, who founded the sects seat at 'BRI GUNG MTHIL monastery in 1179, from which the lineage derives its name. Although the 'Bri gung bka' brgyud wielded political power at times during the thirteenth century, members of the tradition are primarily renowned as great meditators. The sect established prominent retreat centers around Mount KAILASA in western Tibet and LA PHYI in the south. It has remained an active Bka' brgyud subsect under the guidance of its principal reincarnate teachers, the Che tshang and Chung tshang lamas. The former has established an exile seat in Dehra Dun, Uttar Pradesh in northern India, with numerous affiliated centers in India, Nepal, and the West, while the latter remains in Tibet.

'Bri gung mthil. (Drigung Til). An important monastery affiliated with the 'BRI GUNG BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, located northeast of the Tibetan capital of LHA SA. A hermitage was initially established at the site in 1167 by Mi nyag sgom ring (Minyak Gomring), a disciple of the influential Bka' brgyud hierarch PHAG MO GRU PA RDO RJE RGYAL PO. In 1179 Phag mo gru pa's disciple 'JIG RTEN GSUM MGON, founder of the 'Bri gung bka' brgyud sect, constructed a monastery there, deriving its name (literally "back of a female yak") from the contour of the surrounding ridge. The institution was renowned for its excellence in meditative training and gained great political power during the thirteenth century when it rivaled even the SA SKYA establishment. 'Bri gung mthil was sacked by the Mongol-backed Sa skyas in 1290 but was rebuilt and later flourished as an active, though politically insignificant, religious center for the 'Bri gung bka' brgyud teachings. One of central Tibet's most famous sky-burial sites is affiliated with the monastery.

'Brog mi ShAkya Ye shes. (Drogmi ShAkya Yeshe) (c. 992-1072?). Tibetan scholar and founder of the SA SKYA sect of Tibetan Buddhism; one of the foremost translators of the new traditions (GSAR MA) in Tibet. Also known as 'Brog mi Lo tsA ba ("Drokmi the Translator"), 'Brog mi traveled to Nepal and India and studied for thirteen years under numerous masters and at the monastic university of VIKRAMAsĪLA. After returning to Tibet, he translated a variety of Sanskrit works, including important tantric treatises and commentaries. Chief among these were the HEVAJRATANTRA and the RDO RJE TSHIG RKANG ("Vajra Verses") of the adept VIRuPA. He received the latter in Tibet from the Indian master Gyadhara (d. 1103) and it formed a scriptural basis for the seminal Sa skya tradition known as LAM 'BRAS, or "path and result." His chief disciple, DKON MCHOG RGYAL PO, is credited with founding SA SKYA monastery.

'Brom ston Rgyal ba'i 'byung gnas. (Dromton Gyalwe Jungne) (1004-1064). The foremost Tibetan disciple of the Bengali scholar ATIsA, and central figure in the founding of the BKA' GDAMS sect of Tibetan Buddhism during the period known as the later dissemination (PHYI DAR) of Buddhism in Tibet. Born in central Tibet, he began his education at an early age. Toward the middle years of his life, news of Atisa's arrival in western Tibet reached him, and he set out on the arduous journey to meet the master. 'Brom ston pa became an early and close student of Atisa and made arrangements for his Indian guru's tour of central Tibet in 1045. After Atisa's death, 'Brom ston pa established RWA SGRENG monastery in 1056, consolidating his career as translator and teacher at this important religious institution. He is remembered especially for the firm austerity of his religious practice. 'Brom ston pa's instructions, as recorded in Bka' gdams pa works such as the Bka' gdams gtor bu ("Bka' gdams Miscellania"), perhaps wary of the potential abuses of tantric practice, instead emphasize meditation on impermanence and compassion coupled with adherence to strict ethical principles and monastic discipline.

'Brug chen incarnations. (Drukchen). An important "incarnate lama" (SPRUL SKU) lineage of Tibetan masters, esteemed as prominent teachers of the 'BRUG PA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The recognized line began in the fifteenth century, although the first embodiment is held to be GTSANG PA RGYA RAS YE SHES RDO RJE who lived several centuries earlier. Perhaps most famous among the 'Brug chen incarnations was the fourth, PADMA DKAR PO, an exceptional scholar and prolific author and historian. The current 'Brug chen incarnation established a residence in India following the Chinese occupation of Tibet. The lineage includes:

'Brug pa bka' brgyud. (Drukpa Kagyü). A lineage counted among the four major and eight minor BKA' BRGYUD subsects (BKA' BRGYUD CHE BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD) of Tibetan Buddhism, which maintained an active presence throughout central and western Tibet and became a predominant tradition in neighboring Bhutan. Its practitioners were widespread and renowned for their simple lifestyle and intensive meditative practices. For this reason, a Tibetan proverb arose that said, "Half of the people are 'Brug pas. Half of the 'Brug pas are beggars. Half of the beggars are saints." The lineage originated with GLING RAS PA PADMA RDO RJE (1128-1188), student of renowned Bka' brgyud master PHAG MO GRU PA RDO RJE RGYAL PO, and his disciple GTSANG PA RGYA RAS YE SHES RDO RJE. The sect eventually divided into three branches, known as (1) Upper 'Brug (stod 'brug), established by Gtsang pa rgya ras's disciple RGOD TSHANG PA MGON PO RDO RJE; (2) Middle 'Brug (bar 'brug), established by Gtsang pa rgya ras's disciple Lo ras pa Dar ma [alt. Grags pa] dbang phyug (Lorepa Darma Wangchuk) (1187-1250); and (3) Lower 'Brug (smad 'brug) established by Gtsang pa rgya ras himself. It was the Middle 'Brug tradition that was transmitted to Bhutan by ZHAB DRUNG NGAG DBANG RNAM RGYAL.

'Brug pa kun legs. (Drukpa Kunlek) (1455-1529). Also known as 'Brug smyon pa, "the Drukpa madman"; stories about his exploits, similar to the exploits of A khu ston pa (Aku Tonpa), are much beloved in Tibetan society; they draw on Tibetan folk narratives, the Indian SIDDHA tradition, and the Tibetan holy madman (smyon pa) tradition, poking fun at powerful interests and figures of religious authority, particularly monks, and often referring obliquely to esoteric tantric practices; the stories often suggest he engages in profane sexual and scatological activities in order to awaken people from ignorance to an understanding of Buddhist truths. The historical 'Brug pa kun leg (his given name was Kun dga' legs pa; 'Brug pa is short for 'BRUG PA BKA' BRGYUD, a BKA' BRYUD subsect) was born into the noble Rgya (Gya) lineage of RWA LUNG; he was a student of Lha btsun Kun dga' chos kyi rgya mtsho and possibly the Bhutanese saint and RNYING MA treasure revealer (GTER STON) PADMA GLING PA. His lineage was carried on after his death by his son. In his autobiography he describes himself as a difficult and contrary person from an early age; he was an adept at the practice of MAHAMUDRA. Later biographies of Kun dga' legs pa give anachronistic accounts of him making fun of SA SKYA PAndITA and TSONG KHA PA, iconic figures in Tibetan Buddhism, describe his appetite for barley beer and his fantastic love life; some accounts say he was the paramour of over five thousand women whom he enlightened by his teaching and practice. There is a small monastery of 'Brug pa kun legs with a phallic symbol in Bhutan where he is especially revered.

Bsod nams rtse mo. (Sonam Tsemo) (1142-1182). A renowned scholar of the SA SKYA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, considered one of the five Sa skya forefathers (SA SKYA GONG MA RNAM LNGA). He was born the second son of the great Sa skya founder SA CHEN KUN DGA' SNYING PO. His brother was another of the Sa skya forefathers, Grags pa rgyal mtshan (Drakpa Gyaltsen). He was the uncle of SA SKYA PAndITA. Bsod nams rtse mo was a devoted student of PHYWA PA CHOS KYI SENG GE, studying MADHYAMAKA and PRAMAnA with him over the course of eleven years. Bsod nams rtse mo was famous for his commentarial work on Indian tantra, which he categorized in works such as his Rgyu sde spyi rnam par bzhag pa ("A General Presentation on the Divisions of Tantra").

Tibetan Buddhism ::: A form of Vajrayana Buddhism practiced within Tibet. Much of Tantric practice finds its links to this style of Buddhism.

Bu ston rin chen grub. (Buton Rinchen Drup) (1290-1364). A Tibetan scholar, translator, and encyclopedist, renowned for systematizing the Tibetan Buddhist canon into its present form. According to Tibetan hagiographies, Bu ston was born into a lineage of tantric practitioners and considered a reincarnation of the Kashmiri master sAKYAsRĪBHADRA. Having mastered tantric ritual at an early age, he then received ordination at the age of eighteen. He trained under numerous teachers, studying all branches of Buddhist learning and eventually earned a reputation especially for his knowledge of the KALACAKRATANTRA. At age thirty, Bu ston accepted the abbacy of ZHWA LU monastery in central Tibet, where he authored and taught his most influential works; his entire corpus fills twenty-eight volumes in one edition. Bu ston's tenure at Zhwa lu was so influential that it provided the name for a new lineage, the so-called Zhwa lu pa (those of Zhwa lu) or the Bu lugs tshul (the tradition of Bu ston). In about 1332 Bu ston completed his famous history of Buddhism (BU STON CHOS 'BYUNG) and it was during this time that, based on previous canonical lists, he began to reformulate a classification system for organizing the Tibetan canon. Bu ston was not the only editor (among them were Dbu pa blo gsal and Bcom ldan rig pa'i ral gri), but he was the most important figure in the final redaction of the BKA' 'GYUR and BSTAN 'GYUR; he compared manuscripts from the two major manuscript collections at SNAR THANG and 'Tshal, added other works not found there, eliminated indigenous Tibetan works, decided on criteria for inclusion in the canon, standardized terminology, and decided on categories under which to include the many volumes. It is customary in modern works to include Bu ston in the SA SKYA sect and indeed his explanations of the ABHISAMAYALAMKARA and the ABHIDHARMASAMUCCAYA, among others, are considered authoritative by that sect. But his influence is not limited to that sect; for example, TSONG KHA PA's commentary on the perfection of wisdom (LEGS BSHAD GSER 'PHRENG), and his explanation of the different types of tantra (SNGAGS RIM CHEN MO) (both authoritative texts in the DGE LUGS sect) borrow heavily from Bu ston's work. Bu ston is one of several key figures in the history of Tibetan Buddhism to be referred to as kun mkhyen, or "all knowing."

'Chad ka ba Ye shes rdo rje. (Chekawa Yeshe Dorje) (1102-1176). A scholar of the BKA' GDAMS sect of Tibetan Buddhism, most famous for his influential work on the practice of "mind training" (BLO SBYONG) called BLO SBYONG DON BDUN MA ("The Seven Points of Mind Training"). He is also known as Dge bshes Mchad kha ba (Geshe Chekawa).

Chos 'byung mkhas pa'i dga' ston. (Chojung Kepe Gaton). In Tibetan, "A Scholar's Feast of Doctrinal History"; the title of a seminal historical study of Indian and Tibetan Buddhism, composed between 1545 and 1564 by the renowned scholar DPA' BO GTSUG LAG PHRENG BA. Due to the author's lineage affiliation as an incarnation (SPRUL SKU) of the BKA' BRGYUD sect, the text emphasizes the history and doctrine of the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD, tracing lines of transmission and doctrinal development, although it also addresses other Tibetan traditions more cursorily. There is an extensive section on Tibet's early imperial period, likely written on the basis of first-hand access to many original documents, ledgers, royal receipts, and historical notes, all long since lost. This religious history is therefore held by both Tibetan and Western scholars to be an authoritative and historically reliable source. It is also known as the Lho brag chos 'byung ("The Lho brag History of the Doctrine") in reference to the author's principal seat in the region of Lho brag in southern Tibet. Its complete title is Dam pa'i chos kyi 'khor los bsgyur ba rnams kyi byung ba gsal bar byed pa mkhas pa'i dga' ston.

Dalai Lama. (T. DA la'i bla ma). An honorific title given to members of a prominent Tibetan incarnation (SPRUL SKU) lineage belonging to the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The Dalai Lamas are traditionally revered as earthly manifestations of AVALOKITEsVARA, the BODHISATTVA of compassion and protector of Tibet. Although the term has become widely known outside the region, Tibetans most frequently refer to the Dalai Lama as Rgyal ba rin po che (Gyalwa Rinpoche) "Precious Conqueror," Sku mdun (Kundun) "The Presence," or Yid bzhin nor bu (Yishin Norbu) "Wish-fulfilling Gem." The name originated during the sixteenth century when ALTAN KHAN, ruler of the Tümed Mongols, bestowed the title on the Dge lugs teacher BSOD NAMS RGYA MTSHO by translating the prelate's name rgya mtsho ("ocean") into Mongolian as dalai. The name thus approximately means "ocean teacher." It is not the case, as is often reported, that the Dalai Lamas are so named because their wisdom is as vast as the ocean. After Bsod nams rgya mtsho, all subsequent incarnations have rgya mtsho as the second component of their name. At the time of his meeting with the Altan Khan, Bsod nams rgya mtsho was already a recognized incarnate lama of the Dge lugs. Bsod nams rgya mtsho became the third Dalai Lama and two of his previous incarnations were posthumously recognized as the first and second holders of the lineage. From that time onward, successive incarnations have all been known as the Dalai Lama. Although writings outside Tibet often describe the Dalai Lama as the head of the Dge lugs sect, that position is held by a figure called the DGA' LDAN KHRI PA, the "Throneholder of Ganden Monastery." The fourteen Dalai Lamas are:

Dar ma mdo sde. (Darma Dode, eleventh century). Chief son of the renowned Tibetan translator MAR PA CHOS KYI BLO GROS. According to Mar pa's traditional biographies, he originally intended to make Dar ma mdo sde the principal heir to his most important teachings, especially the practice of transferring consciousness into-and thereby reanimating-a corpse (GRONG 'JUG). The son, however, died as a youth in an equestrian accident. As he was about to die, Mar pa gave him the instructions, and Dar ma mdo sde transferred his consciousness into the corpse of a nearby pigeon, who then flew to India, where he again transferred his consciousness into the corpse of a young brAhmana child. The revived brAhmana grew up to become a tantric adept named TI PHU PA ("Pigeon Man") and became an important link in the transmission of the nine aural lineage cycles of the formless dAkinīs (LUS MED MKHA' 'GRO SNYAN RGYUD CHOS SKOR DGU) for the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. According to some traditions, the translator RWA LO TSA BA RDO RJE GRAGS PA used black magic to cause Dar ma mdo sde's fatal accident.

David-Néel, Alexandra. (1868-1969). A famous traveler to Tibet. Born Alexandra David to a bourgeois family in Paris, she was educated in a Calvinist convent before studying Indian and Chinese philosophy at the Sorbonne and the Collège de France. In 1888, she traveled to London, where she became interested in Theosophy. In 1891, she journeyed to Ceylon and India (where she studied Vedānta) and traveled as far as Sikkim over eighteen months. Upon returning to France, she began a career as a singer and eventually was offered the position of female lead in the Hanoi Opera. Some years later, in Tunis, she met and married a railroad engineer, Philippe Néel, who insisted that she retire from the stage. She agreed to do so if he would finance a one-year trip to India for her. He ended up not seeing his wife again for another fourteen years. David-Néel became friends with THOMAS and CAROLINE RHYS DAVIDS in London, leading scholars of THERAVĀDA Buddhism, and corresponded with the ZEN scholar DAISETZ TEITARO SUZUKI, before publishing her first book on Buddhism in 1911, entitled, Le modernisme bouddhiste et le bouddhisme du Bouddha. She continued to Sikkim, where she met the thirteenth DALAI LAMA in Darjeeling in 1912, while he was briefly in residence there after fleeing a Chinese invasion of Tibet. David-Néel spent two years in retreat receiving instructions from a RNYING MA hermit-lama. In 1916, the British expelled her from Sikkim, so she traveled to Japan, where she was the guest of D. T. Suzuki. From there she went to China, traveling west in the company of a young Sikkimese monk named Yongden. Disguised as a pilgrim, she arrived in LHA SA in 1924, presumably the first European woman to reach the Tibetan capital. She returned to France as a celebrity the following year. She published the best-selling book My Journey to Lhasa, followed by a succession of books based on her travels in Tibet and her study and practice of Tibetan Buddhism. She built a home in Digne, which she named Samten Dzong, "Fortress of Concentration." David-Néel made one final trip to Asia as World War II began, but spent the rest of her life writing in Digne, where she died at the age of one hundred.

dbu ma chen po. (uma chenpo) [alt. dbu ma pa chen po]. In Tibetan, "great MADHYAMAKA"; a term central to the "self empty, other empty" (RANG STONG GZHAN STONG) debate in Tibetan Buddhism, on the question of which Indian masters are the true representatives of the Madhyamaka. According to the DGE LUGS view, among the three turnings of the wheel of the dharma as described in the SAMDHINIRMOCANASuTRA, the second wheel, generally identified with the view of emptiness as set forth in the PRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀ sutras and propounded by the Madhyamaka, is definitive (NĪTĀRTHA), while the third wheel, generally identified with YOGĀCĀRA and TATHĀGATHAGARBHA teachings, is provisional (NEYĀRTHA). Other sects, most notably the JO NANG PA, as well as certain BKA' BRGYUD and RNYING MA thinkers, especially of the so-called RIS MED movement, disagreed, asserting that the third wheel is the definitive teaching while the second wheel is provisional. (Both agree that the first wheel, setting forth the FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS to sRĀVAKAs, is provisional.) For the Dge lugs pas, the highest of all Buddhist doctrines is that all phenomena in the universe are empty of an intrinsic nature (SVABHĀVA); emptiness is the lack of any substantial existence. The Dge lugs pas are therefore proponents of "self-emptiness" (rang stong), arguing that that each object of experience is devoid of intrinsic nature; the unenlightened wrongly believe that such a nature is intrinsic to the object itself. In reality, everything, from physical forms to the omniscient mind of a buddha, is equally empty, and this emptiness is a nonaffirming negation (PRASAJYAPRATIsEDHA), an absence with nothing else implied in its place. Furthermore, this emptiness of intrinsic nature is the ultimate truth (PARAMĀRTHASATYA). The Jo nang pa's look to the third wheel, especially to those statements that describe the nonduality of subject and object to be the consummate nature (PARINIsPANNA) and the understanding of that nonduality as the highest wisdom, described as eternal, self-arisen, and truly established. This wisdom exists autonomously and is thus not empty in the way that emptiness is understood by the Dge lugs. Instead, this wisdom consciousness is empty in the sense that it is devoid of all defilements and conventional factors, which are extraneous to its true nature. Hence, the Jo nang pas speak of "other emptiness" (gzhan stong) the absence of extrinsic and extraneous qualities. For the Dge lugs pas, the supreme interpreter of the doctrine of emptiness (as they understand it) is CANDRAKĪRTI. The Jo nang pas do not dispute the Dge lugs reading of Candrakīrti but they deny Candrakīrti the rank of premier expositor of NĀGĀRJUNA's thought. For them, Candrakīrti teaches an emptiness that is a mere negation of intrinsic existence, which they equate with nihilism. They also do not deny that such an exposition is found in Nāgārjuna's philosophical treatises (YUKTIKĀYA). However, they claim that those works do not represent Nāgārjuna's final view, which is expressed instead in his devotional corpus (STAVAKĀYA), notably the DHARMADHĀTUSTAVA, and, according to some, in the works of VASUBANDHU, the author of two defenses of the prajNāpāramitā sutras. Those who would deny the ultimate existence of wisdom, such as Candrakīrti, are classed as "one-sided Madhyamakas" (phyogs gcig pa'i dbu ma pa) as opposed to the great Madhyamakas among whom they would include the Nāgārjuna of the hymns and ĀRYADEVA as well as thinkers whom the Dge lugs classify as Yogācāra or SVĀTANTRIKA MADHYAMAKA: ASAnGA, Vasubandhu, MAITREYANĀTHA, and sĀNTARAKsITA.

Dga' ldan. (Ganden). The Tibetan translation of the Sanskrit TUsITA, the joyous, or contented, heaven (see DEVA), which is the abode of the future buddha MAITREYA. ¶ The short name for Dga' ldan rnam rgyal gling (Ganden Namgyal Ling), one of the three chief monasteries (known as the GDAN SA GSUM or "three seats") of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism and one of the sect's principal monasteries, located twenty-eight miles (forty-five kilometers) east of LHA SA. Named after the tusita heaven, the monastery was established by the Dge lugs founder TSONG KHA PA in 1409 near a hill originally associated with the consecration rituals performed after the birth of the king SRONG BTSAN SGAM PO. A nearby ridge was the favored picnic ground of the king's royal wives. According to legend, the JO BO statue of Lha sa's JO KHANG temple miraculously confirmed the location's significance to Tsong kha pa. The great assembly hall was added in 1417, followed by the two colleges, Byang rtse (Jangtse) and Shar rtse (Shartse). Tsong kha pa died at Dga' ldan in 1419 and was entombed there in a STuPA. Following Tsong kha pa's death, the abbacy passed to two of his foremost disciples, first, RGYAL TSHAB DAR MA RIN CHEN, then twelve years later to MKHAS GRUB DGE LEGS DPAL BZANG. Thus, the tradition of the DGA' LDAN KHRI PA or Throne Holder of Dga' ldan was established. Because Dga' ldan was the seat of Tsong kha pa and his two chief disciples, his followers were initially called Dga' ldan pa'i lugs, "the system of Dga' ldan." This was shortened to Dga' lugs and eventually to Dge lugs. Dga' ldan monastery was traditionally said to have 3,300 monks, although over the course of its history it often housed twice that number, forming a vast monastic complex. It was completely destroyed by the Chinese in the 1960s but has since been partially rebuilt. It has also been reestablished in exile in southern India.

Dga' ldan khri pa. (Ganden Tripa). In Tibetan, lit. "Holder of the Dga' ldan Throne"; title of the head of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism, who is regarded as the successor of TSONG KHA PA. The first two Dga' ldan khri pas were Tsong kha pa's disciples; the first was RGYAL TSHAB DAR MA RIN CHEN and the second was MKAS GRUB DGE LEGS DPAL BZANG. Together with Tsong kha pa, they are traditionally considered to be the founders of the Dge lugs sect. The fifteenth Dga' ldan khri pa Pan chen Bsod nams grags pa (Panchen Sonam Drakpa) (1478-1554) is known for his role during the terms of the third and fourth DALAI LAMAs. At present, the Dga' ldan khri pa is selected by the Dalai Lama from a group of candidates who have already served in a number of specific positions in the major Dge lugs monasteries and tantric colleges; the term of office is generally seven years. It is not the case, as is often imagined, that the Dalai Lama is the head of the Dge lugs sect, or that the Dga' ldan khri pa is necessarily an incarnate lama (SPRUL SKU). According to the traditional system of selection, the monk who became the Dga' ldan khri pa had to rise through several ranks of the Dge lugs sect. First, he completed the prescribed course of study in one of the three GDAN SA (the major Dge lug monasteries in the LHA SA area) and achieved the highest degree in the Dge lugs academy, that of DGE BSHES lha ram pa. He then entered one of the two Dge lugs tantric colleges in Lha sa (see RGYUD STOD and RGYUD SMAD) and became a dge bshes sngags ram pa (ngakrampa). Only a dge bshes sngags ram pa could become a dge skos (geko) (disciplinarian) of a tantric college. Rgyud stod and Rgyud smad chose three disciplinarians each year, and the bla ma dbu mdzad (lama umdze), literally "leader of the chant," i.e., vice abbot, was chosen from among the former dge skos and served for three years. Following that period, he became the abbot (mkhan po) of his tantric college for three years. The senior-most former abbot (mkhan zur) received the title Byang rtse chos rje, if he attended Rgyud smad, and Shar rtse chos rje if he attended Rgyud stod. (Byang rtse and Shar rtse are two colleges of Dga' ldan monastery.) Since the time of the eighth Dga' ldan khri pa these two alternated in the position of Dga' ldan khri pa. To date there have been 102 Dga' ldan khri pas.

dge bshes. (geshe). A Tibetan abbreviation for dge ba'i bshes gnyen, or "spiritual friend" (S. KALYĀnAMITRA). In early Tibetan Buddhism, the term was used in this sense, especially in the BKA' GDAMS tradition, where saintly figures like GLANG RI THANG PA are often called "geshe"; sometimes, however, it can have a slightly pejorative meaning, as in the biography of MI LA RAS PA, where it suggests a learned monk without real spiritual attainment. In the SA SKYA sect, the term came to take on a more formal meaning to refer to a monk who had completed a specific academic curriculum. The term is most famous in this regard among the DGE LUGS, where it refers to a degree and title received after successfully completing a long course of Buddhist study in the tradition of the three great Dge lugs monasteries in LHA SA: 'BRAS SPUNGS, DGA' LDAN, and SE RA. According to the traditional curriculum, after completing studies in elementary logic and epistemology (BSDUS GRWA), a monk would begin the study of "five texts" (GZHUNG LNGA), five Indian sĀSTRAs, in the following order: the ABHISAMAYĀLAMKĀRA of MAITREYANĀTHA, the MADHYAMAKĀVATĀRA of CANDRAKĪRTI, the ABHIDHARMAKOsABHĀsYA of VASUBANDHU, and the VINAYASuTRA of GUnAPRABHA. Each year, there would also be a period set aside for the study of the PRAMĀnAVĀRTTIKA of DHARMAKĪRTI. The curriculum involved the memorization of these and other texts, the study of them based on monastic textbooks (yig cha), and formal debate on their content. Each year, monks in the scholastic curriculum (a small minority of the monastic population) were required to pass two examinations, one in memorization and the other in debate. Based upon the applicant's final examination, one of four grades of the dge bshes degree was awarded, which, in descending rank, are: (1) lha rams pa, (2) tshogs rams pa, (3) rdo rams pa; (4) gling bsre [alt. gling bseb], a degree awarded by a combination of monasteries; sometimes, the more scholarly or the religiously inclined would choose that degree to remove themselves from consideration for ecclesiastical posts so they could devote themselves to their studies and to meditation practice. The number of years needed to complete the entire curriculum depended on the degree, the status of the person, and the number of candidates for the exam. The coveted lha rams pa degree, the path to important offices within the Dge lugs religious hierarchy, was restricted to sixteen candidates each year. The important incarnations (SPRUL SKU) were first in line, and their studies would be completed within about twelve years; ordinary monks could take up to twenty years to complete their studies and take the examination. Those who went on to complete the course of study at the tantric colleges of RGYUD STOD and RYUD SMAD would be granted the degree of dge bshes sngags ram pa.

Dge 'dun chos 'phel. (Gendun Chopel) (1903-1951). A distinguished essayist, poet, painter, translator, historian, and philosopher; one of the most important Tibetan intellectuals of the first half of the twentieth century. He was born in the Reb kong region of A mdo, the son of a respected SNGAGS PA. At the age of five, he was recognized as the incarnation (SPRUL SKU) of an abbot of the famous RNYING MA monastery, RDO RJE BRAG. Following his father's untimely death, he entered a local DGE LUGS monastery, eventually moving to BLA BRANG BKRA' SHIS 'KHYIL. He gained particular notoriety as a debater but apparently criticized the monastery's textbooks (yig cha). In 1927, he traveled to LHA SA, where he entered Sgo mang College of 'BRAS SPUNGS monastery. In 1934, the Indian scholar and nationalist Rahul Sankrityayan (1893-1963) arrived in Lha sa in search of Sanskrit manuscripts, especially those dealing with Buddhist logic. He enlisted Dge 'dun chos 'phel as his guide, just as he was completing the final examinations at the end of the long curriculum of the DGE BSHES. After visiting many of the monasteries of southern Tibet, Sankrityayan invited Dge 'dun chos 'phel to return with him to India. Over the next decade, he would travel extensively, and often alone, across India and Sri Lanka, learning Sanskrit, Pāli, several Indian vernaculars, and English. He assisted the Russian Tibetologist, GEORGE ROERICH, in the translation of the important fifteenth-century history of Tibetan Buddhism by 'Gos lo tsā ba, DEB THER SNGON PO ("The Blue Annals"). He visited and made studies of many of the important Buddhist archaeological sites in India, writing a guide (lam yig) that is still used by Tibetan pilgrims. He studied Sanskrit erotica and frequented Calcutta brothels, producing his famous sex manual, the 'Dod pa'i bstan bcos ("Treatise on Passion"). During his time abroad, he also spent more than a year in Sri Lanka. In January 1946, after twelve years abroad, Dge 'dun chos 'phel returned to Lha sa. He taught poetry and also gave teachings on MADHYAMAKA philosophy, which would be published posthumously as the controversial Klu sgrub dgongs rgyan ("Adornment for NĀGĀRJUNA's Thought"). Within a few months of his arrival in Lha sa, Dge 'dun chos 'phel was arrested by the government of the regent of the young fourteenth Dalai Lama on the fabricated charge of counterfeiting foreign currency. Sentenced to three years, he served at least two, working on his unfinished history of early Tibet, Deb ther dkar po ("The White Annals"), and composing poetry. He emerged from prison a broken man and died in October 1951 at the age of forty-eight.

Dge 'dun grub. (Gendün Drup) (1391-1475). A revered scholar of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism, posthumously recognized as the first DALAI LAMA. He was from the clan of Ngar tso in the region of Ru lug and received his early training at SNAR THANG monastery, where he earned fame for his erudition. In 1415, he traveled to central Tibet, where he became a close disciple of the Dge lugs polymath TSONG KHA PA in the years before the master's death in 1419. He went on to serve as the abbot of DGA' LDAN monastery. In 1447, Dge 'dun grub founded BKRA SHIS LHUN PO monastery, later the seat of the PAn CHEN LAMAS in the central Tibetan city of Gzhis ka rtse (Shigatse). After the Mongolian ruler Altan Khan bestowed the title Dalai Lama on BSOD NAMS RGYA MTSHO in 1578, Dge 'dun grub was posthumously identified as the lineage's first incarnation. He was a renowned scholar, writing influential works on both VINAYA and ABHIDHARMA.

Dge lugs. (Geluk). In Tibetan, lit. "System of Virtue"; one of the four major sects of Tibetan Buddhism (see also BKA' BRYUD, SA SKYA, RNYING MA). Originating among the disciples of TSONG KHA PA, it was originally referred to as the Dga' ldan pa'i lugs (abbreviated as Dga' lugs) "the system of those from Dga' ldan Mountain," where Tsong kha pa, with the patronage of the powerful Phag mo gru family, founded Ri bo DGA' LDAN monastery in 1409. (The name Dge lugs may have originally been an abbreviation of Dga' ldan pa'i lugs.) Within a few years of the founding of Dga' ldan, two followers of Tsong kha pa, 'JAM DBYANGS CHOS RJE BKRA SHIS DPAL LDAN and Byams chen chos rje Shākya ye shes (1354-1435), founded 'BRAS SPUNGS (1416) and SE RA (1419) monasteries, respectively, apparently at Tsong kha pa's urging. These three monasteries developed into the institutional center of Dge lugs power and influence; Tsong kha pa with his two most prominent followers, RGYAL TSHAB DARMA RIN CHEN (called Rgyal tshab rje) and MKHAS GRUB DGE LEGS DPAL BZANG PO (called Mkhas grub rje)-both important scholars in their own right-became the cultic center, called rje yab sras gsum ("the lord and his two spiritual sons"). BKRA SHIS LHUN PO monastery, the fourth great Dge lugs monastery, was founded in Gzhis ka rtse (Shigatse) in 1447 by another of Tsong kha pa's followers, the scholarly and politically astute DGE 'DUN GRUB, providing a basis for Dge lugs power in the west. Dge 'dun grub was posthumously recognized as the first DALAI LAMA. The fifth Dalai Lama NGAG DBANG BLO BZANG RGYA MTSHO and BLO BZANG CHOS KYI RGYAL MTSHAN, with the help of the Mongols, established the Dge lugs as the largest and most powerful Buddhist sect in Tibet. After the founding of the DGA' LDAN PHO BRANG government in 1642, the Dalai Lama was invested with temporal power, making the Dge lugs the de facto ruling party and bringing an end to the political instability that accompanied the rise of the sect during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Blo bzang chos kyi rgyal mtshan became abbot of Bkra shis lhun po and began the lineage of powerful PAn CHEN BLA MAS, after the Dalai Lamas, the second most powerful lineage of Dge lugs incarnate lamas (see SPRUL SKU). The influence of the Dge lugs sect over Tibet was based on an elaborate system of regional monasteries with ties to the four central Dge lugs monasteries; the two largest of the regional monasteries, BLA BRANG BKRA SHIS DKYIL and SKU 'BUM in A mdo, rivaled the central monasteries in size and stature. The sect is known for its scholastic curriculum, and for a rigorous examination system that culminates in the rank of DGE BSHES, providing a steady stream of abbots and incarnate lamas to administer the system in collaboration with the aristocratic elite under the oversight of the Dga' ldan pho brang government. In its rise to power, the Dge lugs incorporated doctrines and monasteries that were earlier separate and distinct traditions.

Dge lugs pa. (Gelukpa). A person affiliated with the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism.

dharmapāla. (P. dhammapāla; T. chos skyong; C. fahu; J. hogo; K. popho 法護). In Sanskrit, "protector of the DHARMA"; in Mahāyāna and tantric texts, dharmapālas are divinities, often depicted in wrathful forms, who defend Buddhism from its enemies and who guard Buddhist practitioners from various forms of external and internal dangers. The histories of many Buddhist nations often involve the conversion of local deities into dharma protectors. In Tibet, for example, the worship of dharmapālas is said to have begun in the early eighth century CE at the instigation of PADMASAMBHAVA (c. eighth century), when he was invited to the country by the Tibetan king KHRI SRONG LDE BTSAN. On his arrival, PadmasaMbhava is said to have used his powers to subdue baleful local deities he encountered along the way and spared only those who promised to become dharmapālas. In Tibetan Buddhism, dharmapālas are divided into two groups, the mundane ('jig rten pa), who are worldly deities who protect the dharma, and the supramundane ('jig rten las 'das pa), enlightened beings who appear in wrathful form to defend the dharma. The eight types of nonhuman beings (AstASENĀ) are also sometimes listed as dharma-protectors, viz., GARUdA, DEVA, NĀGA, YAKsA, GANDHARVA, ASURA, KIMNARA, and MAHORĀGA.

Dil mgo mkhyen brtse. [alt. Ldil go] (Dilgo Kyentse) (1910-1991). One of the most highly revered twentieth-century teachers of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, renowned both for his scholarship and meditative mastery of RDZOGS CHEN practices. His full name was Rab gsal zla ba gzhan dga'. Born in eastern Tibet, he was recognized at the age of twelve as the mind incarnation of the illustrious nineteenth-century savant 'JAM DBYANGS MKHYEN BRTSE DBANG PO and enthroned at ZHE CHEN monastery. He studied under a number of masters, including the fourth Zhe chen Rgyal tshabs and 'JAM DBYANGS MKHYEN BRTSE CHOS KYI BLO GROS, and then spent close to thirteen years in solitary meditation retreat. At the suggestion of his teachers, he married while in his mid-twenties and fathered several children. Escaping the Communist invasion of Tibet in 1959, he fled to Bhutan where he was invited to live as the spiritual master of the royal family. A prolific author, Dil mgo mkhyen brtse was recognized as a modern-day treasure revealer (GTER STON) and eventually served a period of time as the spiritual head of the Rnying ma. In the early 1980s he founded a new Zhe chen monastery in Kathmandu where his grandson, recognized as the monastery's throne holder, the seventh Rab 'byams incarnation, resides. On December 29, 1995, a young boy named O rgyan bstan 'dzin 'jigs med lhun grub (Orgyan Tendzin Jikme Lhundrup, b. 1993) was enthroned as Dil mgo mkhyen brtse's reincarnation in a ceremony at MĀRATIKA cave in eastern Nepal.

dkar po chig thub. (karpo chiktup). In Tibetan, "self-sufficient white [remedy]" or "white panacea"; in Tibetan pharmacology, a single remedy that has the ability to effect a cure by itself alone. In Tibetan Buddhism, the term was used as a metaphor to describe certain doctrines or methods said to be self-sufficient for bringing about awakening. Although found in various contexts, the term is best known from its use by members of the DWAGS PO BKA' BRGYUD, including SGAM PO PA BSOD NAMS RIN CHEN and his nephew's disciple BLA MA ZHANG. This method is often equated with the introduction to the nature of mind (sems kyi ngo sprod) or the direct realization of the mind's true nature, and is deeply rooted in the tradition of MAHĀMUDRĀ transmitted by Sgam po pa. In Sgam po pa's own words, "I value the realization of the nature of mind as better than excellent meditation." Some Tibetan scholars, most notably SA SKYA PAnDITA KUN DGA' RGYAL MTSHAN, rejected the notion that any single method or factor (even insight into suNYATĀ, or emptiness) could be soteriologically sufficient. He also argued that the fruit of mahāmudrā practice could never be gained through wholly nonconceptual means. Nor, he argued, could it be gained outside of strictly tantric practice, in contrast to Sgam po pa's tradition, which advocated both SuTRA and TANTRA forms of mahāmudrā. Such arguments often disparagingly associate dkar po chig thub with the subitism of MOHEYAN, the Chinese CHAN protagonist in the BSAM YAS DEBATE, who is known to have also used the metaphor.

Dkon mchog rgyal po. (Konchok Gyalpo) (1034-1102). A Tibetan master renowned as the founder of the SA SKYA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. He was a member of the 'Khon clan and a descendent of one of the first seven Tibetans to be ordained as a Buddhist monk (SAD MI BDUN). He studied primarily under the translator 'BROG MI SHĀKYA YE SHES, receiving teachings and initiations of the new translations (GSAR MA), particularly the HEVAJRATANTRA. He was also instructed in the doctrine of "path and result" (LAM 'BRAS), which had originally been transmitted by the great Indian adept VIRuPA. In 1073, Dkon mchog rgyal po founded SA SKYA monastery, one of the sect's principal institutions, and the seat of Tibetan political power for nearly a century; he also served as its first abbot. His son, SA CHEN KUN DGA' SNYING PO, became another important Sa skya hierarch and served as the monastery's third abbot.

Dol po pa Shes rab rgyal mtshan. (Dolpopa Sherap Gyaltsen) (1292-1361). An innovative and controversial Tibetan Buddhist scholar, who is regarded as an early master of the JO NANG lineage. He is best known for promulgating the view of extrinsic emptiness (GZHAN STONG), for his writings on the KĀLACAKRATANTRA, and for constructing a massive multiroom STuPA temple (SKU 'BUM) above JO NANG PHUN TSHOGS GLING monastery. He was born in the region of Dol po in present-day northwestern Nepal, from which his toponym (literally "the man from Dol po") is derived. Although his family was affiliated with the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, he formed an early connection with the SA SKYA teacher Skyi ston 'Jam dbyangs grags pa rgyal mtshan (Gyidon Jamyang Drakpa Gyaltsen, d.u.). As a seventeen-year-old novice monk, Dol po pa fled his home, against the wishes of his parents and without their knowledge, in order to study with this master. He arrived first in the nearby region of Mustang and in 1312 continued on to the Tibetan monastery of SA SKYA itself. He was a gifted student, mastering a broad range of MAHĀYĀNA subjects in a short period of time. His erudition was so great that while still in his early twenties he earned the title "omniscient" (kun mkhyen), an epithet by which he was known for the rest of his life. He was ordained as a BHIKsU in 1314, going on to study with leadings masters from various sects, including the third KARMA PA. He spent several years in strict meditation retreat, during which time he began to formulate his understanding of extrinsic emptiness. In 1326 he formally ascended the abbatial throne at Jo nang, dividing his time between meditative retreats and teaching the monastic community. In 1333, Dol po pa completed construction of the sku 'bum chen po stupa, one of the largest in Tibet. Dol po pa developed a rich new vocabulary for discussing his controversial notion of extrinsic emptiness. Public reaction was mixed, and many Sa skya scholars in particular appear to have felt betrayed by this new doctrine, which seemed to contradict their own. Among his major works written at this time was the Ri chos nges don rgya mtsho ("The Ocean of Definitive Meaning: A Mountain Dharma"). Another of Dol po pa's major projects was a revised translation and reinterpretation of the Kālacakratantra and VIMALAPRABHĀ, both important sources for his major doctrinal theories. In 1338, Dol po pa retired from his position at Jo nang, after which he remained in isolated retreat, in part to discreetly avoid an invitation to the court of the Mongol ruler Toghon Temür (r. 1333-1370). By the end of his life, Dol po pa ranked as one of the leading masters of his time. During a 1358 trip to LHA SA toward the end of his life, the halls in which he taught literally collapsed from the enormous size of the crowds in attendance. On his return to Jo nang, he visited the monastery of ZHWA LU, home of another leading scholar and Kālacakra expert of the day, BU STON RIN CHEN GRUB. According to several accounts, Bu ston declined the opportunity to debate, but Dol po pa uttered the opening exclamation for debate as he departed, which cracked the walls of Bu ston's residence. While Dol po pa's views were considered unorthodox, even heterodox, particularly in the DGE LUGS sect, his works made a lasting impression on the landscape of Buddhism in Tibet.

Dpa' bo Gtsug lag phreng ba. (Pawo Tsuklak Trengwa) (1504-1566). A renowned master and historian of the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, second in the line of DPA' BO INCARNATIONS. Born in the region of Snye thang (Nyethang), south of LHA SA in central Tibet, Gtsug lag phreng ba was recognized at the age of five as the embodiment of his predecessor, Dpa' bo Chos dbang lhun grub (Pawo Chowang Lhundrup). At nine, he received monastic ordination from the fourth ZHWA DMAR, Chos grags ye shes (Chodrak Yeshe, 1453-1524), and he later studied with masters such as Dwags po pandita Chos rgyal Bstan pa'i rgyal mtshan (Chogyal Tenpe Gyaltsen, b. fifteenth century), the mad yogin of central Tibet Dbus smyon Kun dga' bzang po (Ü Nyon Kunga Sangpo, 1458-1532) Heruka. At the age of twenty-nine he received the name Gtsug lag phreng ba from the eighth KARMA PA MI BSKYOD RDO RJE. He was active throughout his life in the southern Tibetan region of LHO BRAG; he became the abbot of LHA LUNG monastery and later renovated SRAS MKHAR DGU THOG, the famed site of MI LA RAS PA's tower, commissioning many religious paintings, adding a large a golden roof and constructing a large monastic complex. Among Gtsug lag 'phreng ba's major literary works is the famous history of Indian and Tibetan Buddhism CHOS 'BYUNG MKHAS PA'I DGA' STON, composed between 1544 and 1564.

Dpa' bo incarnations. (Pawo). A lineage of incarnate lamas (SPRUL SKU), members of the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism and traditionally responsible for the propitiation of the sect's protector deities. The second incarnation, DPA' BO GTSUG LAG 'PHRENG BA, was a renowned scholar and historian. The incarnation line includes:

Dpal sprul Rin po che. (Patrul Rinpoche) (1808-1887). One of the most important teachers of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism during the nineteenth century, famous for his great humility and simple lifestyle. Recognized as an incarnate lama (SPRUL SKU) while a child, Dpal sprul Rin po che trained under the great ascetic 'Jigs med rgyal ba'i myu gu (Jigme Gyalwe Nyugu), himself a disciple of the renowned treasure revealer (GTER STON) 'JIGS MED GLING PA, from whom he received instructions on the KLONG CHEN SNYING THIG, "Heart Essence of the Great Expanse." He later studied with many other great masters, including MDO MKHYEN RTSE YE SHES RDO RJE, mind emanation (thugs sprul) of 'Jigs med gling pa. Although he established himself as one of the foremost scholars of his time, Dpal sprul Rin po che emulated the renunciate lifestyle of his masters, wandering from place to place with few possessions, often in the guise of an ordinary beggar. He was known for his exceptional kindness, treating both king and pauper with equal compassion. The author of numerous commentaries and treatises on Buddhist philosophy and doctrine, he is perhaps best known for his KUN BZANG BLA MA'I ZHAL LUNG ("Words of My Perfect Teacher"), an explanation of the preliminary practices of the klong chen snying thig. Together with other great lamas of eastern Tibet, Dpal sprul Rin po che was also an active participant in the so-called RIS MED (nonsectarian) movement, which sought to cut through the rampant sectarian controversies of the time. According to one account, when asked what religious affiliation he maintained, Dpal sprul Rinpoche famously remarked that he was only a follower of the Buddha. He is also known as Rdza Dpal sprul (Dza Patrul) and O rgyan 'jigs med chos kyi dbang po.

Dpal spungs. (Palpung). A large fortress-like monastic compound located near SDE DGE in the eastern Tibetan region of Khams belonging to the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism and serving as the seat of the TAI SI TU INCARNATION lineage; its full name is Dpal spungs thub brtan chos 'khor gling (Palpung Tupten Chokorling). The center was established in 1727 by the eighth Si tu CHOS KYI 'BYUNG GNAS, a great Bka' brgyud scholar, historian, and linguist, with support from Derge's ruler Bstan pa tshe ring (Tenpa Tsering, 1678-1738). Prior to this, the Si tu line mainly resided at the nearby Karma dgon monastery. Dpal spungs was also home to the nineteenth-century luminary 'JAM MGON KONG SPRUL BLO GROS MTHA' YAS and became one of the largest and most powerful Bka' brgyud institutions in eastern Tibet. An important monastic college (BSHAD GRWA) and several centers for practicing the traditional three-year meditation retreat are located nearby. Not far from Dpal spungs is one of the region's premier retreat locations, Tsa 'dra Rin chen brag-a locale reckoned to be equivalent in spiritual power to the famed region of TSĀ RI in southern Tibet. The founding of Dpal spungs coincides with the start of the so-called RIS MED (nonsectarian) movement in Khams.

Dream Yoga ::: Practices, traditionally ascribed to Tibetan Buddhism, for mastering spiritual work through the dream state. Lesser forms of this include topics such as lucid dreaming and astral projection.

Drops ::: A concept in the etheric anatomy of Tibetan Buddhism referring to areas of energy accumulation and dispersement. The idea of winds, channels, and drops is more subtle and nuanced than the generic idea of the etheric body of chakras and channels explored on this site so this is a concept broached only briefly at the moment.

Dus gsum mkhyen pa. (Dusum Kyenpa) (1110-1193). A renowned Tibetan master recognized as the first in the lineage of KARMA PA incarnations and early founder of the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. He was born in the Tre shod region of eastern Tibet and at the age of sixteen was ordained by a monk of the BKA' GDAMS sect and received tantric instruction from a disciple of ATIsA DĪPAMKARAsRĪJNĀNA. He went on to study MADHYAMAKA and the KĀLACAKRATANTRA with some of the leading scholars of the day. At the age of thirty, Dus gsum mkhyen pa met his principal GURU, SGAM PO PA BSOD NAMS RIN CHEN, from whom he received many teachings, including so-called "heat yoga" (gtum mo; see CAndĀLĪ). He also studied with MI LA RAS PA's renowned disciple RAS CHUNG PA. He devoted himself to the teachings that would become the hallmark of the Bka' brgyud, such as the six yogas of NĀROPA and MAHĀMUDRA, but he also received teachings from a number of Bka' gdams and SA SKYA masters. He went on to found three important Bka' brgyud monasteries: Kam po gnas nang in 1164, KARMA DGON in 1184, both in eastern Tibet, and MTSHUR PHU northwest of LHA SA in 1187. The latter became a powerful central-Tibetan institution as the primary seat of the Karma pas up to 1959. It is said that at the age of sixteen Dus gsum mkhyen pa received a hat woven from the hair of one hundred thousand dĀKINĪs. This hat has been passed down to subsequent Karma pas, and seen in the so-called "black hat ceremony" (zhwa nag).

Dwags po Bka' brgyud. (Dakpo Kagyü). The main branch of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism stemming from MAR PA CHOS KYI BLO GROS, MI LA RAS PA, and SGAM PO PA BSOD NAMS RIN CHEN. It refers to the various Bka' brgyud branches, known as the four major and eight minor Bka' brgyud subsects (BKA' BRGYUD CHE BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD) that formed and flourished due to the activities of Sgam po pa and his immediate disciples. The name Dwags po Bka' brgyud is derived from Sgam po pa's main seat, DWAGS LHA SGAM PO, located in the Dwags po region of southern Tibet.

Dzogchen ::: Sanskrit for "Great Perfection". A tradition within Tibetan Buddhism and within Bon that seeks a return to the primordial state of rigpa (i.e. non-duality) as the natural stage of awareness.

Esoteric Transmission ::: A concept in certain religions and spiritual traditions that emphasizes a relationship between a teacher and a student (or a group and its members) in order to preserve certain systems of magic and specific spiritual practices. Over time and over the course of many minds working the system, power is built up through a lineage and the rituals and practices themselves become vital to being able to work within the current being taught. This is a complex idea but, as an example, is found in Tibetan Buddhism when one wants to work with a Tantric deity, they first must receive abhisheka from a lama. Even in Christianity there are lineages that confer the power to bestow appellations and blessings of the Church to others. The idea is that these are more than symbolic gestures; being a part of the lineage and being empowered within that lineage is necessary in many cases to work magic or utilize the practices taught effectively or at all.

Fazun. (法尊) (T. Blo bzang chos 'phags) (1902-1980). Twentieth-century Chinese translator of Buddhist scriptures and scholar of Tibetan religious and political history. In 1920, Fazun was ordained as a novice on WUTAISHAN. He became acquainted with Dayong (1893-1929), a student of TAIXU's who introduced him to the techniques of Buddhist TANTRA, at the time a popular strand of Buddhism in China in its Japanese (MIKKYo) and Tibetan forms. Fully ordained in Beijing in 1922, Fazun trained under Taixu's patronage in the tenets of the PURE LAND and TIANTAI schools at the Wuchang Institute for Buddhist Studies. During the same years, Taixu urged Dayong to train in Japanese mikkyo on KoYASAN. Taixu's aim was to verify and rectify the opinions about Buddhist tantra that circulated in China, where this form of Indian Buddhism had flourished at the Tang court. Upon his return, Dayong conferred on Fazun several ABHIsEKAs of the lower tantric cycles that he had brought from Japan. He also instructed Fazun in the Mizong gangyao ("Essentials of Tantra"), a primer for students of Buddhist tantra by the Japanese SHINGONSHu scholar Gonda Raifu (1846-1934) that Wang Hongyuan (1876-1937), a Chinese student of Gonda's, had translated in 1918. After an introduction to the Tibetan tantric traditions by Bai Puren (1870-1927), a Mongolian lama stationed at Beijing's Yonghe Gong, Dayong became gradually dissatisfied with Japanese mikkyo. With Taixu's endorsement, he resolved to study Buddhist tantra in its Tibetan form. In 1924, Fazun joined Dayong's Group for Learning the Dharma in Tibet (Liu Zang Xuefa Tuan), a team of some thirty Chinese monks who were studying the basics of the Tibetan language in Beijing. From 1925 to 1929, Fazun carried on his language learning in eastern Tibet and began his training in the classics of the DGE LUGS monastic curriculum, which in the ensuing years would become his main focus of translation. After Dayong's passing in 1929, Fazun followed his Tibetan teacher, DGE BSHES A mdo, to central Tibet. He stayed at 'BRAS SPUNGS monastery from 1930 to 1933. In 1934, Taixu asked Fazun to take on the position of director at the newly established Sino-Tibetan Institute (Hanzang Jiaoli Yuan) near Chongqing. The thirteenth DALAI LAMA also encouraged Fazun to spread TSONG KHA PA's synthesis of the Buddhist teachings in China. Hence from 1935, under the Japanese occupation and during the Chinese civil war, Fazun served as an educator of young monks in Tibetan Buddhism and as a translator of Tibetan scriptures at the Sino-Tibetan Institute. These years of prolific translation work established Fazun as the foremost translator of Buddhism from Tibetan sources in the history of Chinese Buddhism. Among his translations are Tsong kha pa's LAM RIM CHEN MO (Putidao cidi guanglun), LEGS BSHAD SNYING PO (Bian liaoyi buliaoyi lun), SNGAGS RIM CHEN MO (Mizong daocidi lun); MAITREYA's ABHISAMAYĀLAMKĀRA (Xianguan zhuangyan lun); CANDRAKĪRTI's MADHYAMAKĀVATĀRA (Ru zhonglun); and ĀRYADEVA's CATUḤsATAKA (Sibailun song). Fazun also translated into Tibetan the ABHIDHARMAMAHĀVIBLĀsA, extant in the two hundred rolls of XUANZANG's Chinese rendering (Da piposha lun), by the title Bye brag bshad mdzod chen mo. In 1950, after the Communist authorities discontinued the activities of the Institute, Fazun moved to Beijing. The Committee for Minority Affairs appointed him as a translator of communist propaganda materials, including Chairman Mao's Xin minzhu zhuyi("New Democracy") and Lun renmin minzhu zhuanzheng ("On the People's Democratic Dictatorship"), for the education of the new generation of cadres in occupied Tibet. In 1966, as the Cultural Revolution set in, he was charged with expressing anti-Communist sentiments during the 1930s. He was confined in a labor camp until his release in 1972. During the 1970s Fazun resumed his translation activity from Tibetan with DHARMAKĪRTI's PRALĀnAVĀRTTIKA (Shiliang lun), DIGNĀGA's PRALĀnASAMUCCAYA (Jiliang lun), and ATIsA DĪPAMKARAsRĪJNĀNA's BODHIPATHAPRADĪPA (Putidao deng lun). Fazun suffered a fatal heart attack in 1980. Because of his unsurpassed knowledge of Tibetan language, religion, and history, and his writing style inspired by KUMĀRAJĪVA's and Xuanzang's Buddhist Chinese, Fazun is often referred to as "the Xuanzang of modern times."

Feilaifeng. (J. Hiraiho; K. Piraebong 飛来峰). In Chinese, "Flying-In Peak," site of Buddhist rock carvings and grottoes, located in front of LINGYINSI in Hangzhou, Zhejiang province. Feilaifeng houses the most important sculptural works of Tibetan Buddhism found in Han Chinese territory. The name of the peak was inspired by a legend, according to which Vulture Peak (GṚDHRAKutAPARVATA) flew to this location from India. There are more than three hundred carved images still in existence at the site, with eleven from the Five Dynasties period, more than two hundred from the Song dynasty, and around one hundred from the Yuan. The Song-dynasty images were mostly carved during the Xianping era (998-1003) under Emperor Zhenzong. Many of these figures are ARHATs (C. LUOHAN), but some works illustrate special themes, such as XUANZANG's pilgrimage to India or MAITREYA's "Hemp Sack" (BUDAI) form. The gilded, colorfully painted Yuan images are delicately carved and constitute a significant development in the history of Chinese sculpture. Nearly half of these images depict esoteric themes, with buddhas, bodhisattvas, female deities, and dharma protectors (DHARMAPĀLA). The image enshrined in Niche 25 is VAJRADHARA. Also found here are images of MANJUsRĪ, AVALOKITEsVARA, and VAJRASATTVA. The female deity SITĀTAPATLĀ is depicted in Niche 22; she was highly venerated by the Yuan rulers because she was believed to be able to destroy armies and overcome disasters.

ganacakra. (T. tshogs kyi 'khor lo/tshogs). In Sanskrit, lit. "circle of assembly" or "feast"; originally, the term may have referred to an actual gathering of male and female tāntrikas engaging in antinomian behavior, including ingesting substances ordinarily deemed unclean, and sexual activities ordinarily deemed taboo. In Tibet, the ganacakra is typically a ritualized tantric liturgy, often performed by celibate monks, that involves visualizing impure substances and transforming them into a nectar (AMṚTA; PANCĀMṚTA), imagining the bliss of high tantric attainment, and mentally offering this to buddhas, bodhisattvas, and various deities (see T. TSHOGS ZHING) and to oneself visualized as a tantric deity. The ritual is regarded as a rapid means of accumulating the equipment (SAMBHĀRA) required for full enlightenment. In Tibet the word is inextricably linked with rituals for worshipping one's teacher (GURUYOGA) and in that context means an extended ritual performed on special days based on practices of highest yoga tantra (ANUTTARAYOGATANTRA). ¶ To start the ganacakra ritual, a large accumulation of food, including GTOR MA, bread, sweets, and fruit is placed near the altar, often supplemented by offerings from participants; a small plate with tiny portions of meat, a small container of an alcoholic beverage, and yogurt mixed with red jam is placed in a small container nearby. After visualizing one's teacher in the form of the entire pantheon of buddhas, bodhisattvas, and so on, the ganacakra consists of worship on the model of the BHADRACARĪPRAnIDHĀNA, i.e., the seven-branch worship (SAPTĀnGAVIDHI) of going for refuge, confessing transgressions, giving gifts, rejoicing, asking the teacher to turn the wheel of dharma, asking the buddhas not to pass into NIRVĀnA, and, finally, dedicating the merit to full enlightenment (see PARInĀMANĀ). Following this, the participants visualize the nectar (AMṚTA) and the bliss of high tantric attainment. Three participants then line up in front of the officiating master (VAJRĀCĀRYA) and ritually offer a plate with a gtor ma and other parts of the collected offerings, along with a tiny bit of meat, a slight taste of alcohol, and a drop of the mixed yogurt and jam. While singing tantric songs extolling the bliss of tantric attainment, the rest of the offerings are divided up equally among the other participants, who are also given a tiny bit of meat, a slight taste of alcohol, and a drop of the mixed yogurt and jam. The ganacakra forms the central part of the worship of the teacher (T. bla ma mchod pa) ritual and is a marker of religious identity in Tibetan Buddhism, because participants visualize their teacher in the form of the head of the particular sect, tradition, or monastery to which they are attached, with the historical buddha, and the tantric buddha telescoped into smaller and smaller figures in his heart; the entire pantheon of buddhas, bodhisattvas and so on are then arrayed around that form. A ganacakra is customarily performed at the end of a large ABHIsEKA (consecration) or teaching on TANTRA, where participants can number in the thousands.

gdan sa gsum. (den sa sum). In Tibetan, lit. "three seats" or "three foundations," a term that refers to the three principal monasteries of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism in the LHA SA area: DGA' LDAN, 'BRAS SPUNGS, and SE RA. TSONG KHA PA, with the patronage of the powerful Phag mo gru family, founded Dga' ldan monastery in 1409; two followers of Tsong kha pa, ' JAM DBYANGS CHOS RJE BKRA SHIS DPAL LDAN and Byams chen chos rje Shākya ye shes (1354-1435), founded 'Bras spungs (1416) and Se ra (1419) monasteries, respectively, apparently at Tsong kha pa's urging. These three monasteries developed into the institutional center of Dge lugs power and influence.

Gelug: The reformed sect of Lamaism (Tibetan Buddhism); called the Yellow Sect. Its head and representative, the Dalai Lama, has temporal rule over Tibet.

Gling ras pa Padma rdo rje. (Lingrepa Pema Dorje) (1128-1188). A Tibetan YOGIN venerated as a founder of the 'BRUG PA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism; also known as Gling chen ras pa (Lingchen Repa) and Gling rje ras pa (Lingje Repa). He trained under the renowned BKA' BRGYUD master PHAG MO GRU PA RDO RJE RGYAL PO at GDAN SA MTHIL monastery and later spent numerous years in solitary meditation retreat. He consecrated the site upon which his principal disciple, GTSANG PA RGYA RAS YE SHES RDO RJE, founded the important 'BRUG PA monastery of RWA LUNG.

gnas skor ba. (nekorwa). In Tibetan, lit. "going around a [sacred] place," generally translated as "pilgrimage," a pervasive practice of Tibetan Buddhism. Tibetan pilgrimage is most often a communal practice, involving a group of persons of the same family, the same village, or the same monastery, in some cases led by one or more monks or lamas who provide information and religious instruction along the route. Pilgrimage is undertaken to accrue merit and to expiate transgressions, but it also plays an important social and economic role in Tibetan society. Once the pilgrimage begins, pilgrims will do everything possible not to turn back; failure to complete the journey is thought to be like breaking a vow. Pilgrims generally traverse the pilgrimage route on foot; it is said that more merit is accrued if one walks rather than travels on horseback. The length of the pilgrimage varies according to the distance traveled, the season, the number of mountain passes to be crossed, and the number of sites to be visited. The trip can sometimes take several years, especially if the pilgrims perform prostrations along the entire route. Pilgrims make offerings at the monasteries and temples they visit, both on behalf of themselves but also for relatives who have not made the journey. Monasteries offer pilgrims ceremonial scarves (kha btags), blessed pills, and sometimes also food and lodging. Among the most important destinations for pilgrims is the city of LHA SA. There are eight famous mountains and mountain ranges, including Mount KAILĀSA in western Tibet and Dag pa shel ri (the Crystal Mountain) in TSA RI, a site sacred to CAKRASAMVARA on the border with eastern Nepal, and further afield the sacred sites in India (BODHGAYĀ, SĀRNĀTH, etc.) and in China (WUTAISHAN, etc.). See also MAHĀSTHĀNA.

Go bo rab 'byams pa Bsod nams seng ge. [alt. Go rams pa Bsod nams seng ge] (1429-1489). A renowned philosopher and logician of the SA SKYA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, he studied at NA LAN DRA (founded in 1435 by RONG STON SMRA BA'I SENG GE) then NGOR (founded in 1429 by Ngor chen KUN DGA' BZANG PO), where he later became the sixth abbot. His complete works in five volumes, included in the set of works of the great masters of the Sa skya sect, present the authoritative interpretation of statements by the five Sa skya hierarchs (SA SKYA GONG MA RNAM LNGA) on important topics in ABHIDHARMA and epistemology (PRAMĀnA). Particularly highly regarded are his works on MADHYAMAKA and the thought of DHARMAKĪRTI, as well as his explanation of Sa skya Pandita's SDOM GSUM RAB DBYE, a core text of the Sa skya curriculum explaining the three sRĀVAKA, BODHISATTVA, and tantric moral codes, written as a corrective to the work of his contemporary SHĀKYA MCHOG LDAN.

Gter bdag gling pa. (Terdak Lingpa) (1646-1714). Also known as Smin gling Gter dag gling pa 'Gyur med rdo rje, an important monk and lama of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism and brother of the prominent teacher Lo chen Dharma shrī. He studied widely with masters of the major traditions of Tibetan Buddhism and was a close associate of the fifth DALAI LAMA, both receiving teachings from him and giving teachings to him. As his name Gter bdag ("Lord of Treasure") suggests, he was an important GTER STON, or discoverer of treasure texts (GTER MA). In addition to discovering important treasure texts, he complied and commented upon the BKA' MA. In 1676, he founded the monastery of SMIN GROL GLING, which would become one of the six major monasteries of the Rnying ma sect.

gter ston rgyal po lnga. (terton gyalpo nga). A Tibetan term, lit. "the five kingly treasure revealers," referring to a list of five renowned treasure revealers (GTER STON) believed to be reincarnations of the king KHRI SRONG LDE BTSAN. The list is found most often in writings of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The five include:

Gtsang pa rgya ras Ye shes rdo rje. (Tsangpa Gyare Yeshe Dorje) (1161-1211). The founder of the 'BRUG PA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, and considered to be the first in the line of 'BRUG CHEN INCARNATIONS that begins historically with Chos rje Kun dga' dpal' 'byor (Choje Kunga Paljor, 1426/8-1476). His works include the Rten 'brel rab bdun ("Seven Auspicious Dharmas") and the Ro snyom skor drug ("Six Spheres of Equal Taste"), said to be teachings concealed as GTER MA (treasure) by RAS CHUNG PA, the disciple of MI LA RAS PA and discovered by Gtsang pa rgya ras. These works were systematized by PADMA DKAR PO, a prolific author and scholar, and fourth in the line of reincarnations. The students of Gtsang pa rgya ras founded three 'Brug pa bka' brgyud subsects; of the three, the so-called Bar 'Brug (middle Drukpa) was passed down through Gtsang pa rgya ras's family to the fourth incarnation, Padma dkar po. Of the two candidates to the lineage throne on his death, ZHABS DRUNG NGAG DBANG RNAM RGYAL fell afoul of strong political forces in Dbus (central Tibet) and was forced to flee to Bhutan where he founded the southern sect (Lho 'brug bka' brgyud) and became both the spiritual and temporal head of the country. The name of Bhutan, 'Brug yul (Drukpa Lands), stems from that time.

Guhyagarbhatantra. (T. Gsang ba'i snying po'i rgyud). In Sanskrit, the "Secret Essence Tantra," a central text of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism and the RDZOGS CHEN tradition. The tantra is regarded as an expression of the enlightened intention of the primordial DHARMAKĀYA, the buddha SAMANTABHADRA. It is a work of Indic origin, appearing around mid-eighth century, probably after the GUHYASAMĀJATANTRA. It is unclear whether the text was called Guhyagarbha at the time of its composition or whether that title was added later. In DUNHUANG documents, it is usually referred to as the Māyājālatantra. By the time of a late tenth-century manuscript, it is called the Guhyagarbhatantra. The later Tibetan tradition identifies the Guhyagarbha as the root tantra of the MAHĀYOGA class, as well as the main tantra of the MĀYĀJĀLA cycle of tantras, a group of eighteen mahāyoga tantras. The Guhyagarbha was particularly influential in late eighth- and early ninth-century Tibet, when it was a principal inspiration for the early rdzogs chen movement. Its Māyājāla MAndALA of one hundred deities (forty-two peaceful and fifty-eight wrathful) was widely employed. In the PHYI DAR period, the tantra was condemned by a number of GSAR MA figures (especially the eleventh-century translator 'Gos khug pa lhas btsas) as an apocryphal Tibetan creation, probably because of its importance in the Rnying ma sect and in the still-developing rdzogs chen tradition. However, a Sanskrit copy of the tantra was discovered at BSAM YAS and verified by sĀKYAsRĪBHADRA. In the thirteenth century, Lcom ldan rig ral ordered a new translation on the basis of the manuscript. Major commentators include Rong zom chos bzang (eleventh century) and KLONG CHEN RAB 'BYAMS, and eventually, two schools of interpretations formed, the Rong klong lugs and the Zur lugs. The tantra exists in three distinct versions: in twenty-two, forty-six, and eighty-two chapters. The shorter version is considered the root tantra and is the subject of most commentary.

Gunaprabha. (T. Yon tan 'od; C. Deguang/Junabolapo; J. Tokko/Kunaharaba; K. Tokkwang/Kunaballaba 德光/瞿拏鉢剌婆) (d.u.; c. seventh century). Indian YOGĀCĀRA scholar and VINAYA specialist. In the Tibetan tradition, he is considered one of the most important of the Indian scholars because of his exposition of the vinaya. In the list of the "six ornaments and two supreme ones of JAMBUDVĪPA," the six ornaments are NĀGĀRJUNA and ĀRYADEVA, ASAnGA and VASUBANDHU, and DIGNĀGA and DHARMAKĪRTI; the two supreme ones are Gunaprabha and sĀKYAPRABHA. Gunaprabha is said to have been an adviser to King Harsa, who unified most of northern India following the demise of the Gupta empire. Born into a brāhmana family in MATHURĀ during the seventh century, Gunaprabha is said to have first studied the MAHĀYĀNA teachings and wrote several treatises on YOGĀCĀRA. He is known as the author of the Bodhisattvabhumivṛtti, a commentary on the BODHISATTVABHuMI, the Bodhisattvasīlaparivartabhāsya, an expansion of that commentary, and the PaNcaskandhavivarana, an exegesis of VASUBANDHU's work. Subsequently, this same Gunaprabha seems to have abandoned Yogācāra for sRĀVAKAYĀNA teachings and thereafter devoted several of his works to critiquing various aspects of the Mahāyāna. (There is some controversy as to whether Gunaprabha the Yogācāra teacher is the same as Gunaprabha the vinaya specialist, but prevailing scholarly opinion now accepts that they are identical.) Taking up residence at a monastery in Mathurā, he became a master of the vinaya, with a specialty in the monastic code of the MuLASARVĀSTIVĀDA school (see MuLASARVĀSTIVĀDA VINAYA). His most influential work is the VINAYASuTRA. Despite its title, the work is not a sutra (in the sense of a work ascribed to the Buddha) but is instead an authored work composed of individual aphoristic statements (sutra). The text offers a summary or condensation of the massive Mulasarvāstivāda vinaya. At approximately one quarter the length of this larger vinaya, Gunaprabha's abridgment seems to have functioned as a kind of primer on the monastic code, omitting lengthy passages of scripture and providing the code of conduct that monks were expected to follow. In this sense, the text is an important work for determining what lived monastic practice may actually have been like in medieval India. The Vinayasutra became the most important vinaya text for Tibetan Buddhism, being studied in all of the major sects; in the DGE LUGS, it is one of the five books (GZHUNG LNGA) that served as the basis of the monastic curriculum. According to legend, Gunaprabha traveled to the TUŞITA heaven in order to discuss with MAITREYA his remaining doubts regarding ten points of doctrine. The accounts of this trip say that Gunaprabha did not learn anything, either because Maitreya was not an ordained monk and hence was unable to teach him anything or because Maitreya saw that Gunaprabha did not require any additional teaching. XUANZANG writes about Gunaprabha in his DA TANG XIYU JI ("Great Tang Dynasty Record of [Travels to] the Western Regions").

guru. (T. bla ma; C. shi; J. shi; K. sa 師). In Sanskrit, lit. "heavy," hence "venerable" and thus "religious guide or teacher." In mainstream Buddhism, the UPĀDHYĀYA (novice monk's preceptor) takes the role of the guru; the preceptor and disciple are said to be like father and son; the preceptor teaches the disciple and gives him his robes and alms bowl. In MAHĀYĀNA SuTRA literature, the increased importance of the guru is evident in the story of SADĀPRARUDITA and his teacher DHARMODGATA, from whom he seeks to learn the PRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀ, and in the GAndAVYuHA section of the AVATAMSAKASuTRA, which recounts SUDHANA's spiritual journey in search of enlightenment through a series of fifty-three spiritual mentors (KALYĀnAMITRA, a word often synonymous with guru). In tantric Buddhism, the guru is of greatest importance: the first of the SAMAYAs (tantric vows) is not to despise one's guru, who is considered to be the equal of all the TATHĀGATAs. The GURUPANCĀsIKĀ ("Fifty Verses on the Guru") explains the proper conduct students should observe in the presence of a tantric guru. In Tibetan Buddhism, the ritual worship of a guru is crucially important, supported by the doctrine that it is only through one's guru that one hears the Buddha's teaching; for only when the buddhas take the form of a personal guru can they convey the salvific doctrine to students. The ritual worship of the guru (see GAnACAKRA) in the form of the entire Buddhist pantheon (TSHOGS ZHING) is common to all Tibetan sects.

guruyoga. (T. bla ma'i rnal 'byor). The practice of GURU devotion, considered especially important in tantric practice, in which one's teacher is regarded as a buddha. In Tibetan Buddhism, guruyoga is included in a series of preliminary practices (SNGON 'GRO) to be undertaken before receiving a consecration. According to such works as DPAL SPRUL's KUN BZANG BLA MA'I ZHAL LUNG ("Words of My Perfect Teacher"), guruyoga includes reciting one hundred thousand repetitions of the name MANTRA of one's guru, visualized in the form of an enlightened being (in the case of that text, PADMASAMBHAVA). Guruyoga also includes the proper attitude toward a guru, as set forth in the GURUPANCĀsIKĀ and expanded on at length at the beginning of works of the LAM RIM-type genre. See also GAnACAKRA.

G.ya' bzang bka' brgyud. (Yasang Kagyü). One of the four major and eight minor subsects of the Bka' brgyud sect of Tibetan Buddhism (BKA' BRGYUD CHEN BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD), originating with Zwa ra ba Skal ldan ye shes seng ge (Sarawa Kalden Yeshe Senge, d. 1207), a disciple of the BKA' BRGYUD hierarch PHAG MO GRU PA RDO RJE RGYAL PO.

Gyer sgom Tshul khrims seng ge. (Gyergom Tsultrim Senge) (1144-1204). A Tibetan student of the BKA' BRGYUD hierarch PHAG MO GRU PA RDO RJE RGYAL PO, considered the founder of the SHUG GSEB BKA' BRGYUD-one of the four major and eight minor subsects of the Bka' brgyud sect of Tibetan Buddhism (BKA' BRGYUD CHEN BZHI CHUNG BRGYA). He founded the retreat center located at SHUG GSEB nunnery, south of LHA SA.

Haribhadra. (T. Seng ge bzang po) (c. 800). Indian Buddhist exegete during the Pāla dynasty, whom later Tibetan doxographers associate with the YOGĀCĀRA-*SVĀTANTRIKA syncretistic strand of Indian philosophy. He may have been a student of sĀNTARAKsITA and was a contemporary of KAMALAsĪLA; he himself lists Vairocanabhadra as his teacher. Haribhadra is known for his two commentaries on the AstASĀHASRIKĀPRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀSuTRA ("PRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀ in Eight Thousand Lines"): the longer ABHISAMAYĀLAMKĀRĀLOKĀ-PrajNāpāramitāvyākhyā, and its summary, the ABHISAMAYĀLAMKĀRAVIVṚTI. He is also known for his recasting of the twenty-five-thousand-line version of the prajNāpāramitā (PANCAVIMsATISĀHASRIKĀPRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀSuTRA) in a work entitled the Le'u brgyad ma in Tibetan. Each of these works is based on the interpretative scheme set forth in the ABHISAMAYĀLAMKĀRA ("Ornament for Clear Realizations"), a guide to the PaNcaviMsati that Haribhadra explicitly attributes to MAITREYA. His AbhisamayālaMkārālokā builds upon PRAMĀnA, MADHYAMAKA, and ABHIDHARMA literature and was extremely influential in Tibet; its summary (known as "'grel pa don gsal" in Tibetan) is the root text (rtsa ba) for commentaries in the GSANG PHU NE'U THOG monastery tradition originating with RNGOG BLO LDAN SHES RAB. It is the most widely studied prajNāpāramitā commentary in Tibetan Buddhism to the present day. Haribhadra is known for his explanation of a JNĀNADHARMAKĀYA (knowledge truth-body) in addition to a SVĀBHĀVAKĀYA, viz., the eternally pure DHARMADHĀTU that is free from duality. He is characterized as an alīkākāravādin ("false-aspectarian") to differentiate him from Kamalasīla, a satyākāravādin ("true-aspectarian") who holds that the objects appearing in the diverse forms of knowledge in a buddha's all-knowing mind are truly what they seem to be. He cites DHARMAKĪRTI frequently but appears to accept that scripture (ĀGAMA) is also a valid authority (PRAMĀnA). There are two principal commentaries on his work, by Dharmamitra and Dharmakīrtisrī. BuddhasrījNāna (or simply BuddhajNāna) was his disciple. The Subodhinī, a commentary on the RATNAGUnASAMCAYAGĀTHĀ, is also attributed to him.

Hevajratantra/HevajradākinījālasaMvaratantra. (T. Kye rdo rje'i rgyud; C. Dabei kongzhi jingang dajiao wang yigui jing; J. Daihi kuchi kongo daikyoo gikikyo; K. Taebi kongji kŭmgang taegyo wang ŭigwe kyong 大悲空智金剛大教王儀軌經). An important Indian Buddhist TANTRA, classified as an ANUTTARAYOGATANTRA, and within that group, a YOGINĪTANTRA and a mother tantra (MĀTṚTANTRA). Likely composed in the eighth century, the work consists of seven hundred fifty stanzas written in a mixture of Sanskrit and APABHRAMsA; it is traditionally said to be a summary of a larger work in five hundred thousand stanzas, now lost. The tantra is presumed to derive from the SIDDHA movement of north India, and the central deity, HEVAJRA, is depicted as a naked siddha. Like most tantras, the text is particularly concerned with ritual, especially those that result in the attainment of worldly (LAUKIKA) powers. It famously recommends the use of "intentional language" or "coded language" (SANDHYĀBHĀsĀ) for tantric practitioners. The widespread ANUTTARAYOGA system of the channels (NĀdĪ), winds (PRĀnA), and drops (BINDU), and the various levels of bliss achieved through the practice of sexual yoga is particularly associated with the Hevajratantra. It sets forth the so-called four joys, the greatest of which is the "innate" or "natural" (SAHAJA) joy. A Chinese translation of the Hevajratantra was made in 1055 by Dharmapāla, but neither the text nor its central deity gained particular popularity in East Asian Buddhism. The text was much more important in Tibet. The tantra was rendered into Tibetan by the Sa skya translator 'BROG MI SHĀKYA YE SHES in the early eleventh century and popularized by MAR PA, whose Indian master NĀROPA wrote a well-known commentary to the text. The scriptures associated with the Hevajratantra were the basis for the Indian adept VIRuPA's LAM 'BRAS ("path and result") systematization of tantric doctrine. This practice is central in the SA SKYA tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. The SaMputatantra is regarded as an explanatory tantra of the Hevajra. There are a number of important commentaries to this tantra written in the Indian tradition and dozens composed in Tibet.

homa. (T. sbyin sreg; C. humo; J. goma; K. homa 護摩). In Sanskrit, "burnt offering," an esoteric Buddhist ritual in which various offerings are consigned to flames. In the older Brahmanical traditions of the Indian subcontinent, burnt offerings were made through the medium of the deity AGNI (the god of fire) to the Vedic gods, in exchange for the boon of cattle and other forms of wealth. These rituals were systematized first in the Brāhmanas, and subsequently in the Āranyaka literature, where the exoteric homa rituals were questioned and reconceptualized as inner worship. Buddhist TANTRA includes both an outer offering of grain and other materials into a fire, and an inner offering into the fire of transcendental wisdom. In the latter, the inner offering is done by visualizing a skull cup (KAPĀLA) atop a triangular fire in a hearth made of three skulls. Impure objects are visualized as melting into a bliss-producing nectar (AMṚTA) that is then offered to one's GURU and to oneself visualized as the meditation deity. In Tibetan Buddhism, a homa ritual is often performed at the end of a meditation retreat as a means of purification.

'ja' lus. (jalu). In Tibetan, "rainbow body." In both Tibetan Buddhism and Bon, particularly in explanations of RDZOGS CHEN, the physical body dissolves into light when the adept reaches the final goal (often attained through a practice called THOD RGAL). This dissolution may be in the form of a miraculous disappearance while meditating, but is more usually associated with the time of the adept's death. The elements of the material body that remain at death depend upon the spiritual level of the deceased adept; the very highest leave no physical remnant at all, or in some explanations just hair and nails, and disappear with just a rainbow left behind. The colors in the rainbow body are sometimes associated with the transformation of the five aggregates (SKANDHA) into the colors of the five buddhas (PANCATATHĀGATA).

'Jam mgon kong sprul Blo gros mtha' yas. (Jamgon Kongtrül Lodro Thaye) (1813-1899). A renowned Tibetan Buddhist master, prolific scholar, and proponent of the RIS MED or nonsectarian movement, of eastern Tibet. He is often known as 'Jam mgon kong sprul (Jamgon Kongrtul) or simply Kong sprul. Born to a BON family in the eastern Tibetan region of Rong rgyab (Rongyap), 'Jam mgon kong sprul studied Bon doctrine as a youth, eventually receiving Buddhist ordination first in the RNYING MA and then the BKA' BRGYUD sects of Tibetan Buddhism. He was a gifted pupil, studying under at least sixty different masters representing all the various sects and lineages of Tibet. Early experiences with the sectarianism and religious intolerance rampant in many Buddhist institutions of his time left him somewhat disaffected and were to have a profound impact on his later career. He resided at DPAL SPUNGS monastery near Derge, where his reputation as a brilliant scholar spread widely. When Kong sprul was in danger of being drafted into the provincial administrative offices, the ninth TAI SI TU, Padma nyin byed (Pema Nyinje, 1774-1853), abbot of Dpal spungs, recognized him as the reincarnation of the former Si tu's servant, thereby exempting him from government service. In his autobiography, Kong sprul himself appears to have looked upon this event with some dismay. Together with other luminaries of the period such as 'JAM DBYANG MKHYEN RTSE DBANG PO, MCHOG 'GYUR GLING PA, and MI PHAM RGYA MTSHO, Kong sprul strove to collect, compile, and transmit a multitude of teachings and instruction lineages that were in danger of being lost. The impartial (ris med) approach with which he undertook this project has led him to be credited with spearheading a "nonsectarian" or "eclectic" movement in eastern Tibet. He was a proponent of the "other emptiness" (GZHAN STONG) view, which gained new impetus when his associate Blo gsal bstan skyong was able to arrange for the printing of the woodblocks preserved at TĀRANĀTHA's former seat at DGA' LDAN PHUN TSHOGS GLING, works that had been banned since the time of the fifth DALAI LAMA. 'Jam mgon kong sprul was a prolific author whose writings fill more than ninety volumes. These works are divided into the so-called KONG SPRUL MDZOD LNGA (Five Treasuries of Kongtrul), which cover the breadth of Tibetan Buddhist culture. Since the death of Blo gros mtha' yas, a line of Kong sprul incarnations has been recognized and continues to play an important role within the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD sect. The lineage is:

japamālā. (T. bzlas brjod kyi 'phreng ba; C. shuzhu/nianzhu; J. juzu/nenju; K. suju/yomju 數珠/念珠). In Sanskrit and Pāli, lit. "garland for recitation," thus "prayer beads" or "rosary"; a string of beads held usually in the right hand and fingered by adherents to keep count of the number of recitations made in the course of a worship service, MANTRA recitation, or meditation session. The beads are often made from sandalwood or seeds of the BODHI TREE (Ficus religiosa), the tree under which the Buddha gained enlightenment, although rosaries made from a range of other materials are also common; in some tantric practices, a rosary with beads made from human bone is used. The number of beads on a rosary varies widely. The most common number is 108, the significance of which receives widely varying explanations. One common interpretation is that this number refers to a list of 108 afflictions (KLEsA); fingering all 108 beads in the course of a recitation would then be either a reminder to remain mindful of these afflictions or would constitute their symbolic purification. Alternatively, this 108 can refer to all of phenomenal existence, i.e., the eighteen elements (DHĀTU), viz., the six sense bases, six sense objects, and six sensory consciousnesses, in all of the six states of existence (GATI) (18 × 6 = 108). In Tibetan Buddhism, the number 111 is sometimes used, based on the assumption that for each ten mantras recited, one will be mistaken and need to be repeated, thus adding an additional ten beads for 110. An additional bead is then added to account for the mistaken recitation among the additional ten. Thus, although a mantra might be recited 111 times, only 100 are counted. The Chinese PURE LAND advocate DAOCHUO (562-645) is famous for having used small beans (xiaodou) to keep track of the number of times he had recited the buddha AMITĀBHA's name (see NIANFO); some believe his habit of using such counting beans is the origin of the East Asian japamālā. In many Buddhist traditions, carrying a rosary serves almost as a symbol of the faith. In East Asia, Buddhist monks and nuns, and even many lay adherents, will commonly wear the full-length rosary around their necks. Rosaries of abbreviated lengths, which are more typically worn around the wrist, are sometimes designated duanzhu (J. tanju; K. tanju), or "short rosary." These rosaries will be a maximum of fifty-four beads in length (half the usual length), which would require two repetitions to complete a full round of recitation, and a minimum of nine beads, which would take twelve repetitions. In Tibetan Buddhism, a short rosary is sometimes worn around the right hand while doing prostrations. The CHAN school often uses a short rosary with eighteen beads, requiring six repetitions. See also JAPA.

'Jigs med gling pa. (Jikme Lingpa) (1729-1798). A Tibetan exegete and visionary, renowned as one of the premier treasure revealers (GTER STON) in the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. 'Jigs med gling pa was born in the central Tibetan region of 'Phyong rgyas (Chongye), and from an early age recalled many of his previous incarnations, including those of the Tibetan king KHRI SRONG LDE BTSAN, the scholars SGAM PO PA and KLONG CHEN PA and, in his immediately preceding birth, Chos rje gling pa. After a period of monastic education, in his late twenties, he undertook an intense series of meditation retreats, first at Dpal ri monastery and then at the CHIMS PHU cave complex near BSAM YAS. In one of the numerous visions he experienced during this period, he received the KLONG CHEN SNYING THIG, or "Heart Sphere of the Great Expanse," from a dĀKINĪ at the BODHNĀTH STuPA in Kathmandu. The revelation of this text is considered a "mind treasure" (dgongs gter), composed by Padmasambhava and revealed to the mind of a later disciple. 'Jigs med gling pa kept this revelation secret for seven years before transcribing it. The klong chen snying thig corpus systematized by 'Jigs med gling pa, including numerous explanatory texts, tantric initiations, and ritual cycles, became a seminal component of the RDZOGS CHEN teachings in the Rnying ma sect. While based in central Tibet, 'Jigs med gling pa was also influential in Tibet's eastern regions, serving as spiritual teacher to the royal family of SDE DGE and supervising the printing of the collected Rnying ma tantras in twenty-eight volumes. His patrons and disciples included some of the most powerful and prestigious individuals from Khams in eastern Tibet, and his active participation in reviving Rnying ma traditions during a time of persecution earned him a place at the forefront of the burgeoning eclectic or nonsectarian (RIS MED) movement. Numerous subsequent visionaries involved in promulgating the movement identified themselves as 'Jigs med gling pa's reincarnation, including 'JAM DBYANG MKHYEN BRTSE DBANG PO, MDO MKHYEN BRTSE YE SHES RDO RJE, DPAL SPRUL RIN PO CHE, and DIL MGO MKHYEN BRTSE. See also GTER MA.

Jo nang. A sect of Tibetan Buddhism that flourished between the thirteenth and seventeenth centuries, seated primarily at the monastery of JO NANG PHUN TSHOGS GLING, northwest of Shigatse. The lineage of masters affiliated with the Jo nang, traditionally said to begin with the eleventh-century yogin-scholar Yu mo Mi bskyod rdo rje (Yumo Mikyo Dorje), includes such highly acclaimed luminaries as DOL PO PA SHES RAB RGYAL MTSHAN and TĀRANĀTHA. Jo nang scholars are often noted for their interest in the KĀLACAKRATANTRA and the controversial doctrine of GZHAN STONG, or "extrinsic emptiness," developed and promulgated by Dol po pa. This theory, and its attendant interpretation of TATHĀGATAGARBHA, was later adopted, reformulated, and actively transmitted by numerous other masters, especially those of the BKA' BRGYUD and RNYING MA sects. Others, especially SA SKYA and later DGE LUGS adherents, presumed that these doctrines were incorrect and even heretical. In 1650, under the aegis of the fifth DALAI LAMA, the monastery of Jo nang was forcibly converted to the Dge lugs sect, its books locked under state seal. The Jo nang tradition survived, however, secretly in small pockets throughout central and western Tibet, and at 'DZAM THANG monastery in A mdo in eastern Tibet, where it has been practiced openly up to the present day. The name is also used to designate the principal central Tibetan monastery affiliated with the Jo nang tradition, Phun tshogs gling; see JO NANG PHUN TSHOGS GLING.

Jo nang phun tshogs gling. (Jonang Puntsokling). A monastery in west-central Tibet, northwest of Shigatse, which served as the principal seat of the JO NANG tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. Its foundation was laid by Kun spangs pa Thugs rje brtson 'grus (Kunpangpa Tukje Tsondrü, 1243-1313), and was later expanded by the Jo nang luminary DOL PO PA SHES RAB RGYAL MTSHAN, who became the monastery's principal teacher in 1326. Dol po pa also established his own hermitage in a valley above the monastery, the site where he later constructed his famed STuPA, based upon descriptions in the KĀLACAKRATANTRA. The massive structure, standing nearly seventy feet tall, was consecrated in 1333. The monastic structure was again expanded by the sixteenth-century Jo nang scholar TĀRANĀTHA, who gave it the name Phun tshogs gling. The full name of the monastery is Rtag brtan dam chos phun tshogs gling (or Rtag brtan dam chos gling); it is referred to as Jo nang phun tshogs gling because it was the seat of the Jo nang sect. The monastery is particularly famous for its extensive murals depicting the events in the life of sĀKYAMUNI Buddha, based on the biography of the Buddha by Tāranātha. The monastery was converted to a DGE LUGS establishment under the fifth DALAI LAMA and renamed DGA' LDAN PHUN TSHOGS GLING.

Kagyud: A semi-reformed sect of Lamaism (Tibetan Buddhism); called the White Sect.

Kah-dum-pas (Tibetan) bka’ gdams pa (Ka-dam-pa) The first “reformed” school of Tibetan Buddhism, founded by the Indian Buddhist teacher Dipamkara Srijnana or Atisa (982-1048), who came to Tibet in 1042. Tshong-kha-pa is viewed as a successor to Atisa, and the Gelukpa order is sometimes called the “New Kadampa.”

Kaḥ thog. An important monastery affiliated with the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, founded in 1159 by Kaḥ thog Dam pa bde gshegs (Katok Dampa Deshek, 1122-1192) in the eastern Tibetan region of Khams, also called Kaḥ thog rdo rje gdan (Katok Dorjeden). It is situated on the ridge of a mountain said to be shaped like the Tibetan letter "ka," from which the institution takes its name. One of the oldest surviving Rnying ma monasteries in Tibet, along with BSAM YAS, Kaḥ thog has had a long and active history and maintained numerous rare instruction lineages that were lost in central Tibet. Widely famed for its philosophical studies, the monastery's college traditionally drew students from all parts of eastern Tibet. Kaḥ thog's monks were also renowned for their meditative training. The institution was home to the great scholar and historian Kaḥ thog rig 'dzin Tshe dbang nor bu (Katok Rikdzin Tsewang Norbu, 1698-1755). More contemporary figures associated with the monastery include the third KAḤ THOG SI TU, Chos kyi rgya mtsho (Chokyi Gyatso, 1880-1925); the scholar Mkhan po Sngags ga (Khenpo Ngakga, 1879-1941); and the meditation master Bya bral Sangs rgyas rdo rje (Jadral Sangye Dorje, 1913-). It is one of the four major Rnying ma monasteries in eastern Tibet, the others being ZHE CHEN, RDZOGS CHEN, and DPAL YUL.

Kailāsa. The Sanskrit name for one of the most important sacred mountains in Asia, generally referred to in English as Kailash or Mount Kailash. It is 21,778 ft. high and is located in southwestern Tibet, not far from the current borders of India and Nepal. Lake Manasarovar is located eighteen miles to the southeast; these two sites have long been places of pilgrimage for Buddhists, Hindus, Jains, and followers of Tibetan BON, some of whom have regarded the striking dome-shaped peak as Mount SUMERU. The mountain is particularly important in Tibetan Buddhism, where it is called Gangs dkar Ti se ("White Snow Mountain Ti se") or simply Gangs rin po che ("Precious Snow Mountain"). Pilgrims from across the Tibetan Buddhist world visit Mount Kailāsa, especially in the Year of the Horse, which occurs once every twelve years in the Tibetan calendrical cycle. Within that year, it is considered auspicious to visit the mountain at the time that marks the Buddha's birth, enlightenment, and passage into PARINIRVĀnA (generally falling in May or June, depending on the lunar calendar). The primary form of practice is the thirty-two mile clockwise circumambulation of the mountain, often completed in a single day, with specific rituals and practices performed along the route. It is said that one circumambulation purifies the negative KARMAN of one lifetime, ten circumambulations purify the negative KARMAN accumulated over the course of a KALPA, and one hundred circumambulations ensure enlightenment. The mountain came to take on numerous tantric associations beginning in the eleventh century. According to a popular story, the yogin MI LA RAS PA won control of the mountain for the Buddhists by defeating a rival Bon priest, Na ro bon chung, in a contest of miracles. The mountain later became an important meditation site for the followers of Mi la ras pa, principally members of the 'BRUG PA BKA' BRGYUD and 'BRI GUNG BKA' BRGYUD sects. Both sĀKYAMUNI Buddha and PADMASAMBHAVA are said to have visited Kailāsa. One of the most important associations of Mount Kailāsa is with the CAKRASAMVARATANTRA, which names twenty-four sacred lands (PĪtHA) as potent locations for tantric practice. The CakrasaMvara literature recounts how long ago these twenty-four lands came under the control of Mahesvara (siva) in the form of Rudra Bhairava. The buddha VAJRADHARA, in the wrathful form of a HERUKA deity, subdued BHAIRAVA, transforming each of the twenty-four sites into a MAndALA of the deity CakrasaMvara and his retinue. In Tibetan literature, Mount Kailāsa came to be identified with one of the twenty-four sites, the one called Himavat or Himālaya ("The Snowy," or "The Snow Mountain"); this was one of several important transpositions of sacred locations in India onto Tibetan sites. The BKA' BRGYUD sect grouped the peak together with two other important mountain pilgrimage sites in southern Tibet, LA PHYI and TSA RI, identified respectively as CakrasaMvara's body, speech, and mind. These claims drew criticism from some Tibetan quarters, such as the renowned scholar SA SKYA PAnDITA, who argued that the sites associated with CakrasaMvara were located not in Tibet but in India. Such criticism has not prevented Mount Kailāsa from remaining one of the most important pilgrimage places in the Tibetan cultural domain.

Kalu Rinpoche. (1905-1989). An important modern meditation master and teacher of Tibetan Buddhism. Recognized as an incarnation (SPRUL SKU) of the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD master 'JAM MGON KONG SPRUL, Kalu Rinpoche was ordained at the age of thirteen by the eleventh SI TU RINPOCHE. Kalu Rinpoche began serious meditation study at an early age, undertaking his first three-year retreat at the age of sixteen. He also received the transmission of the teachings of the SHANGS PA sect of Bka' brgyud. He later served as the meditation teacher at DPAL SPUNGS monastery. Following the Chinese invasion, Kalu Rinpoche left Tibet in 1962 and first stayed at a small monastery outside of Darjeeling, India. He later settled in Sonada, West Bengal, where he built a three-year retreat center, teaching there before traveling internationally for ten years (1971-1981). In 1971, he traveled to France and the United States, at the request of the DALAI LAMA and the KARMA PA, in order to educate Westerners in Buddhism. During those ten years, Kalu Rinpoche founded many meditation and dharma centers in Canada, the United States, and Europe, with his main meditation school in Vancouver, Canada. Kalu Rinpoche led his first three-year retreat for Western students of Tibetan Buddhism in France in 1976. His full name is Kar ma rang 'byung kun khyab phrin las.

Kamalasīla. (T. Ka ma la shī la) (c. 740-795). One of the most important Madhyamaka authors of late Indian Buddhism, a major representative of the Yogācāra-Madhyamaka synthesis, and a participant in the famous BSAM YAS DEBATE. According to Tibetan doxographies, he was a proponent of the YOGĀCĀRA-SVĀTANTRIKA-MADHYAMAKA. Although little is known about his life, according to Tibetan sources he was a monk and teacher at NĀLANDĀ. Tibetan sources also count him as one of three (together with sĀNTARAKsITA and JNĀNAGARBHA) "Eastern Svātantrikas" (RANG RGYUD SHAR GSUM), suggesting that he was from Bengal. He was clearly a direct disciple of sāntaraksita, composing important commentaries on his teacher's two major works, the MADHYAMAKĀLAMKĀRA and the TATTVASAMGRAHA. The latter commentary, which is extant in Sanskrit, is an important source for both Hindu and Buddhist philosophical positions in the eighth century. sāntaraksita had gone to Tibet at the invitation of the Tibetan king KHRI SRONG LDE BTSAN, where, with the assistance of PADMASAMBHAVA, he founded BSAM YAS, the first Buddhist monastery in Tibet. According to tradition, at the time of his death sāntaraksita warned that a mistaken philosophical view would become established in Tibet and advised the king to invite Kamalasīla to come to Tibet in order to dispel it. This mistaken view was apparently that of Heshang MOHEYAN, a Northern CHAN (BEI ZONG) monk who had developed a following at the Tibetan court. Kamalasīla was invited, and a debate was held between the Indian monk and his Chinese counterpart, with the king serving as judge. It is unclear whether a face-to-face debate took place or rather an exchange of documents. According to Tibetan sources, the king declared Kamalasīla the winner, named MADHYAMAKA as the official philosophical school of his realm, and banished the Chinese contingent. (Chinese records describe a different outcome.) This event, variously known as the BSAM YAS DEBATE, the Council of Bsam yas, and the Council of Lhasa, is regarded as one of the key moments in the history of Tibetan Buddhism. Three of Kamalasīla's most important works appear to have been composed in response to the issues raised in the debate, although whether all three were composed in Tibet is not established with certainty. These texts, each entitled BHĀVANĀKRAMA or "Stages of Meditation," set forth the process for the potential BODHISATTVA to cultivate BODHICITTA and then develop sAMATHA and VIPAsYANĀ and progress through the bodhisattva stages (BHuMI) to buddhahood. The cultivation of vipasyanā requires the use of both scripture (ĀGAMA) and reasoning (YUKTI) to understand emptiness (suNYATĀ); in the first Bhāvanākrama, he sets forth the three forms of wisdom (PRAJNĀ): the wisdom derived from hearing or learning (sRUTAMAYĪPRAJNĀ), the wisdom derived from thinking and reflection (CINTĀMAYĪPRAJNĀ), and the wisdom derived from meditation (BHĀVANĀMAYĪPRAJNĀ). This "gradual" approach, very different from what was advocated in the Chinese CHAN ZONG, is set forth in all three of the Bhāvanākrama, which, according to Tibetan tradition, were composed in Tibet after the Bsam yas debate, at the request of the king. However, only the third, and the briefest, directly considers, and refutes, the view of "no mental activity" (amanasikāra), which is associated with Moheyan. It was also during his time in Tibet that Kamalasīla composed his most important independent (i.e., noncommentarial) philosophical work, the MADHYAMAKĀLOKA, or "Illumination of the Middle Way," a wide-ranging exposition of the Yogācāra-Madhyamaka synthesis. It deals with a number of central epistemological and logical issues to articulate what is regarded as the defining tenet of the Yogācāra-Svātantrika-Madhyamaka school: that major YOGĀCĀRA doctrines, such as "mind-only" (CITTAMĀTRA), and the three natures (TRISVABHĀVA) are important in initially overcoming misconceptions, but they are in fact only provisional (NEYĀRTHA) teachings for those who have not yet understood the Madhyamaka view. The Madhyamakāloka is also important for its exploration of such central MAHĀYĀNA doctrines as the TATHĀGATAGARBHA and the question of the EKAYĀNA. On this latter point, Kamalasīla argues against the Yogācāra position that there are three final vehicles (for the sRĀVAKA, PRATYEKABUDDHA, and BODHISATTVA, with some beings excluded from any path to liberation) in favor of the position that there is a single vehicle to buddhahood (BUDDHAYĀNA) for all beings. Kamalasīla is said to have been murdered in Tibet by partisans of the Chinese position, who caused his death by squeezing his kidneys.

Kanglings ::: In Tibetan Buddhism, this is a trumpet or horn made of a human femur.

Kapala ::: In Tibetan Buddhism, this is a human skull used as a ritual bowl.

Karma Bka' brgyud. (Karma Kagyü). One of four major subsects of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Also known as the Karma kaM tshang, it dates to the first KARMA PA, DUS GSUM MKHYEN PA. Headed by a lineage of incarnate lamas (SPRUL SKU), who each hold the title of Karma pa, the sect held great political power from the late fourteenth through the early seventeenth century, until the ascendancy of the DGE LUGS at the time of the fifth DALAI LAMA. It continues to be strong in exile. The Karma bka' brgyud is known for its equal emphasis on study and practice, and in the realm of practice, on MAHĀMUDRĀ. Because of the black crown worn by the Karma pa, the sect is sometimes mistakenly referred to in the West as the "BLACK HATS." For a detailed history, see KARMA PA.

Karma gling pa. (Karma Lingpa) (1326-1386). A treasure revealer (GTER STON) of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. He is best known for unearthing the treasure cycle entitled the Zhi khro dgongs pa rang grol ("Peaceful and Wrathful Deities, the Natural Liberation of Intention") from a mountain peak in his native region of Dwags po (Dakpo). Part of this doctrinal cycle, called the BAR DO THOS GROL CHEN MO ("Great Liberation through Hearing in the Intermediate State"), became widely known in the West as the so-called Tibetan Book of the Dead. See also BAR DO; ANTARĀBHAVA.

Karma pa. In Tibetan, a title given to the incarnate lama (SPRUL SKU) identified at birth in each generation as the head of the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD subsect of the BKA' RGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The term is commonly etymologized as "man of [enlightened] action." In the history of Tibetan Buddhism, the lineage of the Karma pas is considered to be the first to institutionalize its succession of incarnate lamas, a practice later adopted by the other sects. According to tradition, at the time of his death, each Karma pa composes a letter that specifies the date and location of his next incarnation. This letter is given to a close disciple, who then reveals its contents upon the death of the Karma pa, with the information in the letter used to locate the child who has been born as the next Karma pa. Among the most famous and sacred possessions of the Karma pa is a black crown, said to be made from the hair of one hundred thousand dĀKINĪS. The actual crown is said to be invisible to persons lacking sufficient merit. However, during the Ming dynasty, the Yongle emperor (r. 1402-1424) presented the fifth Karma pa with a visible physical replica of the crown. The replica itself is said to have great power; the "black hat ceremony," in which the Karma pa dons the crown, is among the most important in the sect. In the ceremony, the Karma pa holds the hat upon his head; otherwise, it is said, it will fly off into space. It is also said that those who see the crown will be liberated from rebirth. Due to the importance of the crown, the Karma pas are sometimes called the "black crowned" (zhwa nag). In the nineteenth century, a Western misunderstanding of this term led to the identification of a sect of Tibetan Buddhism called the "BLACK HATS," a mistake that persists in some accounts of Tibetan Buddhism. Like the DALAI LAMAs, the Karma pas are considered to be emanations of the BODHISATTVA AVALOKITEsVARA. Also like the Dalai Lamas, the Karma pas have been among the most important and revered religious figures in the history of Tibet; they include many great scholars and yogins. Some have also had political power, at times leading to conflicts, sometimes polemical, and sometimes military, with the DGE LUGS PA. Although the main seat of the Karma pas was MTSHUR PHU Monastery in central Tibet, the Karma pas tended to travel widely. Their importance and influence extended throughout the Tibetan cultural domain, including China. The lineage includes:

Khams sprul incarnations. (Kamtrül). A revered Tibetan lineage of incarnate masters (SPRUL SKU) belonging to the 'BRUG PA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The fourth, Bstan 'dzin chos kyi nyi ma (Tendzin Chokyi Nyima, 1730-1780), composed an important description of the sacred sites of the Kathmandu Valley. The lineage includes

Khri srong lde btsan. (Trisong Detsen) (r. 754-799). A Tibetan ruler considered the second of three great religious kings (chos rgyal) during the Imperial Period, the other two being SRONG BTSAN SGAM PO and RAL PA CAN, and as a human incarnation of the BODHISATTVA AVALOKITEsVARA. Inheriting the throne in 754 as the thirty-eighth monarch of the Yar klungs dynasty, Khri srong lde btsan directed several events that are considered milestones in Tibetan history. During the early years of his reign, he extended the boundaries of the Tibetan empire forged under his predecessors. In 763, the king's army occupied the imperial capital of Tang China at Chang'an (present-day Xi'an), an action commemorated on a stele that was erected in front of the PO TA LA Palace. However, Khri srong lde btsan is best remembered for his patronage of Buddhism and support in founding Tibet's first Buddhist monastery of BSAM YAS. Later chronicles record that he actively suppressed the native BON religion, as well as the aristocratic clans who were its benefactors, although he never entirely proscribed early Bon rituals. Khri srong lde btsan invited the renowned Indian Buddhist preceptor sĀNTARAKsITA to oversee the project of building Bsam yas and to establish the first monastic order in Tibet. According to traditional accounts, local spirits inimical to Buddhism created obstacles that hindered the project, which prompted the Indian abbot to request Khri srong lde btsan to invite the powerful tantric master PADMASAMBHAVA to Tibet in order to aid in their subjugation, after which the establishment of the monastery was able to proceed. Khri srong lde btsan is said to have become a devotee of Padmasambhava, with one of his queens, YE SHES MTSHO RGYAL, becoming the yogin's consort and serving as scribe for many of his GTER MA teachings. Padmasambhava also revived the king's eight-year-old daughter PADMA GSAL after her death in order to bestow a special teaching. According to tradition, at the time of his death, sĀNTARAKsITA warned in his final testament that a mistaken philosophical view would become established in Tibet and advised the king to invite KAMALAsĪLA to come to Tibet in order to dispel it. The view was apparently that of the Northen Chan (BEI ZONG) monk Heshang Moheyan, who had developed a following at the Tibetan court. Kamalasīla was invited and a debate was held between the Indian monk and the Chinese monk, with the king serving as judge. It is unclear whether a face-to-face debate took place or rather an exchange of documents. According to Tibetan sources, the king declared Kamalasīla the winner, named MADHYAMAKA as the official philosophical school of his realm, and banished the Chinese party from his kingdom. (Chinese records describe a different outcome.) This event, variously known as the BSAM YAS DEBATE, the Council of Bsam yas, and the Council of Lhasa, is regarded as one of the key moments in the history of Tibetan Buddhism.

Khro phu bka' brgyud. (Trophu Kagyü). One of the four major and eight subsects of the Bka' brgyud sect of Tibetan Buddhism (BKA' BRGYUD CHE BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD), originating with Rgya tsha (Gyatsa, 1118-1195), Kun ldan ras pa (Kundenrepa, 1148-1217), and their nephew Khro phu lo tsā ba Byams pa dpal (Tropu lotsaba Jampapal, 1173-1228).

Khyung po rnal 'byor Tshul khrims mgon po. (Kyungpo Naljor Tsultrim Gonpo) (c. tenth-eleventh centuries) A Tibetan scholar and adept considered the founder of the SHANGS PA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Although his traditional biographies are somewhat ambiguous, it is known that he traveled to India and studied under several MAHĀSIDDHA including MAITRĪPA and two female masters, Sukha and NIGUMA. From the latter, who was said to have been the wife or sister of the Indian scholar NĀROPA, Khyung pa rnal 'byor received a collection of instructions known as the six doctrines of NIGUMA (Ni gu chos drug). These ranked with the better known doctrines of NĀROPA (NA RO CHOS DRUG) and became the seminal teachings of the Shangs pa bka' brgyud. Khyung po rnal 'byor returned to Tibet and, according to traditional accounts, founded 108 religious establishments in the region of Shangs, from which the Shangs pa bka' brgyud takes its name. Khyung po rnal 'byor established his main seat at Zhang zhong monastery (also called Zhang zhang and Zhong zhong) and attracted a great number of disciples from all parts of Tibet. Although the Shangs pa bka' brgyud never developed a strong centralized institution, the transmission of Khyung po rnal 'byor's distinctive teachings spread in many directions, eventually finding their way into nearly every sect of Tibetan Buddhism.

Klong chen rab 'byams. (Longchen Rabjam) (1308-1364). Also known as Klong chen pa (Longchenpa). An esteemed master and scholar of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism known especially for his promulgation of RDZOGS CHEN. Klong chen pa is believed to be the direct reincarnation of PADMA LAS 'BREL RTSAL, who revealed the Rdzogs chen snying thig, and also of PADMA GSAL, who first received those teachings from the Indian master PADMASAMBHAVA. Born in the central Tibetan region of G.yo ru (Yoru), he received ordination at the age of twelve. At nineteen, he entered GSANG PHU NE'U THOG monastery where he engaged in a wide range of studies, including philosophy, numerous systems of SuTRA and TANTRA, and the traditional Buddhist sciences, including grammar and poetics. Having trained under masters as diverse as the abbots of Gsang phu ne'u thog and the third KARMA PA, RANG 'BYUNG RDO RJE, he achieved great scholarly mastery of numerous traditions, including the Rnying ma, SA SKYA, and BKA' BRGYUD sects. However, Klong chen pa quickly became disillusioned at the arrogance and pretension of many scholars of his day, and in his mid-twenties gave up the monastery to pursue the life of a wandering ascetic. At twenty-nine, he met the great yogin Kumārarāja at BSAM YAS monastery, who accepted him as a disciple and transmitted the three classes of rdzogs chen (rdzogs chen sde gsum), a corpus of materials that would become a fundamental part of Klong chen pa's later writings and teaching career. Klong chen pa lived during a period of great political change in Tibet, as the center of political authority and power shifted from Sa skya to the Phag mo gru pa hierarchs. Having fallen out of favor with the new potentate, TAI SI TU Byang chub rgyal mtshan (Jangchub Gyaltsen, 1302-1364), he was forced to spend some ten years as a political exile in the Bum thang region of Bhutan, where he founded eight monasteries including Thar pa gling (Tarpa ling). Among the most important and well-known works in Klong chen pa's extensive literary corpus are his redaction of the meditation and ritual manuals of the heart essence (SNYING THIG), composed mainly in the hermitage of GANGS RI THOD DKAR. Other important works include his exegesis on the theory and practice of rdzogs chen, such as the MDZOD BDUN ("seven treasuries") and the NGAL GSO SKOR GSUM ("Trilogy on Rest"). Klong chen pa's writings are renowned for their poetic style and refinement. They formed the basis for a revitalization of Rnying ma doctrine led by the eighteenth-century visionary and treasure revealer (GTER STON) 'JIGS MED GLING PA.

klong chen snying thig. (longchen nyingtik). In Tibetan, the "Heart Essence of the Great Expanse," one of the most important cycles of "treasure texts" (GTER MA) of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. They are RDZOGS CHEN teachings revealed by 'JIGS MED GLING PA in 1757. The teachings were a dgongs gter, or "mind treasure," discovered by him in his own mind. They are considered to embody the two major snying thig lineages, the BI MA SNYING THIG brought to Tibet by VIMALAMITRA and the MKHA' 'GRO SNYING THIG brought to Tibet by PADMASAMBHAVA. The revelation eventually encompassed three volumes, including dozens of individual treatises, SĀDHANAS, and prayers.

klong sde. (long de). In Tibetan, the "expanse class," one of the three classes of ATIYOGA in the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The atiyoga or RDZOGS CHEN teachings are traditionally divided into three classes: the mind section (SEMS SDE), which emphasizes the luminosity of the mind (RIG PA) in its natural state; the expanse section, which emphasizes the expansive or spacious mind in its natural state; and the instruction section (MAN NGAG SDE), which emphasizes the indivisibility of luminosity and expansiveness. The root tantra of the klong sde is traditionally said to be the Klong chen rab 'byams rgyal po'i rgyud, a long text in which the term klong figures prominently. Some of the texts ascribed to this class may date from as early as the ninth century, but the genre seems to have taken shape in the twelfth century; an important tantra for this class is the Rdo rje sems dpanam mkha'i mtha' dang mnyam pa'i rgyud chen po, where an important theme is the four signs (brda). According to tradition, klong sde is traced back to the late eighth-century Tibetan master VAIROCANA.

Kong sprul mdzod lnga. (Kongtrül dzo nga). In Tibetan, lit. "five treasuries of Kong sprul"; the name for a collection of five encyclopedic works composed by the Tibetan author 'JAM MGON KONG SPRUL BLO GROS MTHA' YAS. Kong sprul himself classified his writings in more than ninety volumes into a scheme of five "treasuries," in order to preserve and systematize numerous teachings that were in danger of being forgotten or lost. These collections of works, which belonged primarily to the BKA' BRGYUD and RNYING MA sects of Tibetan Buddhism, are now regarded as a primary source for the so-called nonsectarian (RIS MED) movement of the late nineteenth century and as outstanding literary achievements. The five treasuries are (1) SHES BYA KUN KHYAB MDZOD ("Treasury Embracing All Knowledge"); (2) BKA' BRGYUD SNGAGS MDZOD ("Treasury of Bka' brgyud Mantra"); (3) RIN CHEN GTER MDZOD ("Treasury of Precious Treasure Teachings"); (4) GDAMS NGAG MDZOD ("Treasury of Practical Instructions"); and (5) THUN MONG MA YIN PA'I MDZOD ("Uncommon Treasury").

Kun byed rgyal po. (Kun che gyalpo). In Tibetan, the "All-Creating King," an important tantra for the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, known for its exposition of RDZOGS CHEN. Within the tripartite division of ATIYOGA, it is placed in the SEMS SDE class. Although presented as an Indian text (in which case, its Sanskrit title would be Kulayarāja), the work is likely of Tibetan origin, dating from the late tenth century. A work in eighty-four chapters, it takes the form of a dialogue between the All-Creating King and Sattvavajra. Among its famous teachings are the "ten absences" (med pa bcu) that point to the special nature of primordial awareness, called BODHICITTA as well as the "all-creating king" in the text. The ten are as follows: no philosophical view on which to meditate, no vows to maintain, no method to seek, no MAndALA to create, no transmission to receive, no path to traverse, no BHuMI to achieve, no conduct to abandon or adopt, an absence of obstacles in the primordial wisdom, and spontaneous perfection beyond all hope and fear.

Kun bzang bla ma'i zhal lung. (Kunzang Lame Shelung). In Tibetan, "Words of My Perfect Teacher," a popular Buddhist text, written by the celebrated nineteenth-century Tibetan luminary DPAL SPRUL RIN PO CHE during a period of prolonged retreat at his cave hermitage above RDZOGS CHEN monastery in eastern Tibet. It explains the preliminary practices (SNGON 'GRO) for the KLONG CHEN SNYING THIG ("Heart Essence of the Great Expanse"), a system of RNYING MA doctrine and meditation instruction stemming from the eighteenth-century treasure revealer (GTER STON) 'JIGS MED GLING PA. The work is much loved for its direct, nontechnical approach and for its heartfelt practical advice. Dpal sprul Rin po che's language ranges from lyrical poetry to the vernacular, illustrating points of doctrine with numerous scriptural quotations, accounts from the lives of past Tibetan saints, and examples from everyday life-many of which refer to cultural practices specific to the author's native land. While often considered a Rnying ma text, the Kun bzang bla ma'i zhal lung is read widely throughout the sects of Tibetan Buddhism, a readership presaged by the author's participation in the RIS MED or so-called nonsectarian movement of eastern Tibet during the nineteenth century.

Kun dga' dpal 'byor. (Kunga Paljor) (1426/8-1476). The second "throne holder" ('Brug chen) of the 'BRUG PA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, after GTSANG PA RGYA RAS YE SHES RDO RJE, the founder of the 'Brug pa bka' brgyud. Prior to Kun dga' dpal 'byor (called Chos rje "dharma lord"), the line of 'BRUG CHEN INCARNATIONS passed down for twelve generations through Gtsang pa rgya ras's family; the line of incarnations is counted from Chos rje Kun dga' dpal 'byor, a great teacher and author. His collected works in two volumes include explanations of MAHĀMUDRĀ, tantric songs (mgur), and special instructions.

Lama ::: A guru in Tibetan Buddhism.

Lamaism. An obsolete English term that has no correlate in Tibetan, sometimes used to refer to the Buddhism of Tibet. Probably derived from the Chinese term lama jiao, or "teachings of the lamas," the term is considered pejorative by Tibetans, as it carries the negative connotation that the Tibetan tradition is something distinct from the mainstream of Buddhism. The use of this term should be abandoned in favor of, simply, "Tibetan Buddhism."

lam 'bras. (lamdre). In Tibetan, lit. "path and result." The central tantric system of the SA SKYA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, derived from the HEVAJRATANTRA and transmitted to Tibet by 'BROG MI SHĀKYA YE SHES. The system was first set down in written form by the first of the five Sa skya hierarchs, SA CHEN KUN DGA' SNYING PO of the aristocratic 'Khon family. There are two exegetical traditions, first, the slob bshad (lopshe), or "explanation for disciples," was originally reserved for members of the 'Khon family, and the second, the tshogs bshad (tsokshe), or "explanation in the assembly," was for a wider audience. The preliminary practices of the lam 'bras are taught under the rubric of the snang ba gsum (nangwa sum) "three appearances" (impure, yogic, and pure) that systematize the topics found in the fundamental Sa skya teaching called "parting from the four attachments" (zhen pa bzhi bral) (see SA CHEN KUN DGA' SNYING PO). These topics are covered in other Tibetan sects under different such names as BSTAN RIM, LAM RIM ("stages of the path"), and so on. The second, the tantric part of the system, requires consecration and includes the practice of esoteric yogas. The practices convey to the practitioner the insight that the nature of the basis (gzhi), path (lam), and result ('bras bu) is the same, and that liberation through the practice of coemergent knowledge (lhan cig skyes pa'i ye shes)-i.e., the enlightened body, speech, and mind-is indivisible from the basis.

lam rim. In Tibetan, "stages of the path"; a common abbreviation for byang chub lam gyi rim pa (jangchup lamkyi rimpa), or "stages of the path to enlightenment," a broad methodological framework for the study and practice of the complete Buddhist path to awakening, as well as the name for a major genre of Tibetan literature describing that path. It is closely allied to the genre known as BSTAN RIM, or "stages of the doctrine." The initial inspiration for the instructions of this system is usually attributed to the Bengali master ATIsA DĪPAMKARAsRĪJNĀNA, whose BODHIPATHAPRADĪPA ("Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment") became a model for numerous later stages of the path texts. The system presents a graduated and comprehensive approach to studying the central tenets of MAHĀYĀNA Buddhist thought and is often organized around a presentation of the three levels of spiritual predilection, personified as "three individuals" (skyes bu gsum): lesser, intermediate, and superior. The stages gradually lead the student from the lowest level of seeking merely to obtain a better rebirth, through the intermediate level of wishing for one's own individual liberation, and finally to adopting the MAHĀYĀNA outlook of the "superior individual," viz., aspiring to attain buddhahood in order to benefit all living beings. The approach is most often grounded in the teachings of the sutra and usually concludes with a brief overview of TANTRA. Although usually associated with the DGE LUGS sect, stages of the path literature is found within all the major sects of Tibetan Buddhism. One common Dge lugs tradition identifies eight major stages of the path treatises:

Lha btsun nam mkha' 'jigs med. (Lhatsün Namka Jikme) (1597-1653). An adept of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, renowned for his mastery of many Rnying ma doctrines and his great supernatural powers. Although ordained as a monk while a youth, he spent much of his life as a YOGIN, practicing meditation in retreat centers across the Tibetan countryside. He is best remembered for entering the region of Sikkim (T. 'Bras mo ljongs), in 1646, "opening" it as a place of pilgrimage and spiritual practice, and for founding the retreat center of Bkra shis lding (Tashiding).

Lho brag. (Lhodrak). In Tibetan, lit. "the southern cliffs"; a region of alpine meadows and narrow gorges in southern Tibet on the border with Bhutan and location of numerous monasteries and retreat hermitages. The area was home to many translators and treasure revealers (GTER STON) of the RNYING MA and BKA' BRGYUD sects of Tibetan Buddhism during the early period of the later dissemination (PHYI DAR) of the DHARMA. Perhaps the most famous among them is the translator MAR PA CHOS KYI BLO GROS, who is often called Lho brag pa (Lhodrakpa), "The Man from Lhodrak," who established his seat at GRO BO LUNG. Other leading masters and their institutions include NYANG RAL NYI MA 'OD ZER who founded Smra bo rcog (Ma'ojok) monastery; Nam mkha'i snying po (Namke Nyingpo), Lo ras pa (Lorepa, 1187-1250), and PADMA DKAR PO, who established MKHAR CHU monastery; GURU CHOS KYI DBANG PHYUG, whose main seat was the Guru lha khang; and DPA' BO GTSUG LAG PHRENG BA, abbot of the monasteries at LHA LUNG and SRAS MKHAR DGU THOG.

Lidai fabao ji. (J. Rekidai hoboki; K. Yoktae poppo ki 歴代法寶). In Chinese, "Record of the Dharma-Jewel throughout Successive Generations"; an influential genealogical history of the early CHAN tradition, composed by disciples of the Chan master BAOTANG WUZHU in the JINGZHONG ZONG. The history of the Chan school as related in the Lidai fabao ji begins with the arrival of Buddhism in China during the Han dynasty, which is followed by a brief discussion of the lineages of dharma transmission in the FU FAZANG YINYUAN ZHUAN and LENGQIE SHIZI JI. The Lidai fabao ji then provides the biographies of the six patriarchs (ZUSHI) of Chan in China: Bodhidharmatrāta [alt. BODHIDHARMA], Huike, Sengcan, Daoxin, Hongren, and Huineng. Each biography ends with a brief reference to the transmission of the purple monastic robe of Bodhidharma as a symbol of authority. The manner in which this robe came into the hands of Zhishen (609-702), a disciple of the fifth patriarch Hongren, is told following the biography of the sixth, and last, patriarch Huineng. According to the Lidai fabao ji's transmission story, Huineng entrusted the robe to Empress WU ZETIAN, who in turn gave it to Zhishen during his visit to the imperial palace. Zhishen is then said to have transmitted this robe to Chuji [alt. 648-734, 650-732, 669-736], who later passed it on to his disciple CHoNGJUNG MUSANG (C. Jingzhong Wuxiang). The robe finally came into the possession of Musang's disciple Baotang Wuzhu, whose teachings comprise the bulk of the Lidai fabao ji. After the Lidai fabao ji was translated into Tibetan, Wuzhu's teachings made their way to Tibetan plateau, where they seem to have exerted some influence over the early development of Tibetan Buddhism. The Lidai fabao ji was thought to have been lost until the modern discovery of several copies of the text in the manuscript cache at DUNHUANG. Cf. CHUANDENG LU; LENGQIE SHIZI JI.

Lo chen Dharma Shri. (1654-1717). Eminent scholar of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. He was the younger brother of the founder of SMIN GROL GLING monastery, GTER BDAG GLING PA. More scholarly than his older brother, his collected works cover the entire range of traditional subjects, including astrology, VINAYA, and TANTRA, filling twenty volumes. Particularly important is his detailed explanation of Mnga' ris pan chen Padma dbang rgyal's (Ngari Panchen Pema Wangyel) SDOM GSUM RNAM NGES, his Sdom pa gsum rnam par nges pa'i 'grel ba legs bshad ngo mtshar dpag bsam gyi snye ma, the study of which forms the central part of the curriculum of many Rnying ma BSHAD GRWA (monastic schools).

lus med mkha' 'gro snyan brgyud chos skor dgu. (lüme kadro nyengyu chokorgu). In Tibetan, "the nine teachings from the aural lineage of the formless dĀKINĪ"; a series of brief one-line instructions that the Indian SIDDHA TILOPA received from the formless display of reality. Tilopa passed these instructions to his disciple NĀROPA, who in turn passed them in part to his disciple MAR PA CHOS KYI BLO GROS and later, in full, to the Indian master TI PHU PA (said to be the miraculous reincarnation of his son). Mar pa transmitted four of the nine to his disciple MI LA RAS PA who then famously sent his disciple RAS CHUNG PA RDO RJE GRAGS to India in order to receive the remaining five from Ti phu pa. These instructions are understood to summarize the entire path of tantric practice and are foundational for many teachings of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The nine are:

Mahāmāyātantra. (T. Sgyu 'phrul chen mo'i rgyud). In Sanskrit, the "Great Illusion Tantra"; an important ANUTTARAYOGATANTRA of the "mother tantra" class, famous for its instructions on "dream yoga," one of the SIX YOGAS OF NĀROPA. It was translated into Tibetan during the earlier dissemination of the dharma (SNGA DAR) by VAIROCANA and GNUBS CHEN SANGS RGYAS YE SHES. It would later be counted as one of the five principal tantras of the SHANGS PA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism.

mahāyoga. (T. rnal 'byor chen po/ma hā yo ga). In Sanskrit "great yoga"; the seventh of the nine vehicles according to the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Here, the system of practice described elsewhere as ANUTTARAYOGATANTRA is divided into three: mahāyoga, ANUYOGA, and ATIYOGA, with mahāyoga corresponding roughly to practices of the "stage of generation" (UTPATTIKRAMA), in which one visualizes oneself as a deity and one's environment as a MAndALA. Its root text is the GUHYAGARBHATANTRA.

mālā. (T. 'phreng ba; C. man; J. man; K. man 鬘). In Sanskrit and Pāli, lit. "garland" a "rosary," viz., a string of beads usually held in the right hand and used for counting the recitations of prayers or MANTRAs; also called a JAPAMĀLĀ. The number of beads on the rosary varies by tradition, with some rosaries in pure land traditions having twenty-seven beads, and rosaries in Tibetan Buddhism commonly having 108 or 111 beads. The rationale for 111 beads is as follows: it is assumed that in each set of ten repetitions, one repetition will be faulty and need to be redone. Thus ten beads are added for the first hundred beads and one bead is added for the additional ten beads. The significance of the more common number of 108 is less clear. One common interpretation is that this number refers to a list of 108 afflictions (KLEsA); fingering all 108 beads in the course of a recitation would then be either a reminder to remain mindful of these afflictions or would constitute their symbolic purification. Alternatively, this 108 can refer to all of phenomenal existence, i.e., the eighteen elements (DHĀTU), viz., the six sense bases, six sense objects, and six sensory consciousnesses, in all of the six realms of existence (GATI) (18 × 6 = 108). See also JAPAMĀLĀ.

mandala. (T. dkyil 'khor; C. mantuluo; J. mandara; K. mandara 曼荼羅). In Sanskrit, lit. "circle"; a polysemous term, best known for its usage in tantric Buddhism as a type of "circular diagram." Employed widely throughout South, East, and Central Asia, mandala are highly flexible in form, function, and meaning. The core concept of mandala originates from the Sanskrit meaning "circle," where a boundary is demarcated and increasing significance is accorded to areas closer to the center; the Tibetan translation (dkyil 'khor) "center periphery" emphasizes this general scheme. In certain contexts, mandalas can have the broad sense of referring to circular objects ("mandala of the moon") or a complete collection of constituent parts ("mandala of the universe"). This latter denotation is found in Tibetan Buddhism, where a symbolic representation of the universe is offered to buddhas and bodhisattvas as a means of accumulating merit, especially as a preliminary practice (SNGON 'GRO). Mandalas may have begun as a simple circle drawn on the ground as part of a ritual ceremony, especially for consecration, initiation, or protection. In its developed forms, a mandala is viewed as the residential palace for a primary deity-located at the center-surrounded by an assembly of attendant deities. This portrayal may be considered either a symbolic representation or the actual residence; it may be mentally imagined or physically constructed. The latter constitutes a significant and highly developed contribution to the sacred arts of many Asian cultures. Mandalas are often depicted two dimensionally by a pattern of basic geometric shapes and are most commonly depicted in paint or colored powders. These are thought of almost as architectural floor plans, schematic representations viewed from above of elaborate three-dimensional structures, mapping an ideal cosmos where every element has a symbolic meaning dependent upon the ritual context. Mandalas are occasionally fashioned in three dimensions from bronze or wood, with statues of deities situated in the appropriate locations. When used in a private setting, such as in the Buddhist visualization meditation of deity yoga (DEVATĀYOGA), the practitioner imagines the entire universe as purified and transformed into the transcendent mandala-often identifying himself or herself with the form of the main deity at the center. In other practices, the mandala is visualized within the body, populated by deities at specific locations. In public rituals, including tantric initiations and consecration ceremonies, a central mandala can be used as a common basis for the participation of many individuals, who are said to enter the mandala. The mandala is also understood as a special locus of divine power, worthy of ritual worship and which may confer "blessings" upon devotees. Religious monuments (BOROBUDUR in Java), institutions (BSAM YAS monastery in Tibet), and even geographical locations (WUTAISHAN in China) are often understood as mandalas. Mandalas have also entered the popular vocabulary of the West. Swiss psychologist Carl Jung developed theories of cognition incorporating mandalas as an analytical model. The fourteenth DALAI LAMA has used the KĀLACAKRA mandala as a means of spreading a message of peace throughout the world. See also KONGoKAI; TAIZoKAI.

ma ni 'khor lo. In Tibetan, lit. "MAnI wheel," commonly rendered into English as a "prayer wheel"; a device for the repetition of a MANTRA, so-called because of its frequent use in conjunction with repetitions of the mantra OM MAnI PADME HuM. The device, commonly used in Tibetan Buddhism, is a hollow cylinder ranging in length from a few inches to a few feet, filled with a long scroll of paper on which a mantra has been printed thousands of times. The scroll is wrapped tightly around the central axis of the device and enclosed in the cylinder. Each turn of the wheel is considered the equivalent of one recitation of the mantra, multiplied by the number of times the mantra is printed on the scroll. Smaller prayer wheels are carried and spun in the left hand while a rosary (JAPAMĀLĀ) is counted in the right hand as the mantra is recited. Larger versions are often mounted in a series along walls; very large wheels may even fill a small temple, where they are turned by pushing handles at their base. There are also wheels that are turned by the wind, water, or convection.

MaNjusrīmitra. (T. 'Jam dpal bshes gnyen). An important, and possibly mythical, figure in the RDZOGS CHEN tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. According to some accounts, he was a king of Singhala (Sri Lanka). The rdzogs chen teachings are said to have originated from the primordial buddha SAMANTABHADRA, who transmitted them to his emanation (SAMBHOGAKĀYA), the buddha VAJRASATTVA, who in turn transmitted them to his NIRMĀnAKĀYA emanation, known by the Tibetan name DGA' RAB RDO RJE (perhaps Pramodavajra in Sanskrit), who finally transmitted them to MaNjusrīmitra. He is said to have received these teachings in the form of 6,400,000 verses and organized them into the three categories of SEMS SDE, KLONG SDE, and MAN NGAG SDE. He in turn transmitted these teachings to srīsiMha. MaNjusrīmitra is the author of Rdo la ser zhun.

man ngag sde. (me ngak de). In Tibetan, "instruction class"; comprising the third of three main divisions of RDZOGS CHEN doctrine according to the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The other two are SEMS SDE (mental class) and KLONG SDE (spatial class). The man ngag sde teachings, regarded as the highest of the three, have constituted the core of Rnying ma practice since the eleventh century. It is said that sems sde teaches the clarity/awareness side of enlightenment, klong sde teaches the spatial side of enlightenment, and man ngag sde combines the two. A wide range of practices are included in the man ngag sde, concerned above all with the presentation by the teacher of a "pure awareness" (RIG PA) that is free from dualistic conceptions, and the recognition and maintenance of that state by the student; the instructions on the BAR DO emerged from these texts. The most famous practices of man ngag sde are "cutting through" (KHREGS CHOD) and "leaping over" (THOD RGAL). The man ngag sde has a number of subcategories, the most famous of which is the SNYING THIG. The root tantras of the man ngag sde are said to be the seventeen tantras.

mantra. (T. sngags; C. zhenyan; J. shingon; K. chinon 眞言). In Sanskrit, "spell," "charm," or "magic formula"; a syllable or series of syllables that may or may not have semantic meaning, most often in a form of Sanskrit, the contemplation or recitation of which is thought to be efficacious. Indian exegetes creatively etymologized the term with the paronomastic gloss "mind protector," because a mantra serves to protect the mind from ordinary appearances. There are many famous mantras, ranging in length from one syllable to a hundred syllables or more. They are often recited to propitiate a deity, and their letters are commonly visualized in tantric meditations, sometimes within the body of the meditator. Although mantras are typically associated with tantric texts, they also appear in the SuTRAs, most famously in the PRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀHṚDAYASuTRA ("Heart Sutra"). Numerous tantric SĀDHANAs require the recitation of a particular mantra a specific number of times, with the recitations counted on a rosary (JAPAMĀLĀ). In Tibetan Buddhism, mantras are also repeated mechanically by turning "prayer wheels" (MA nI 'KHOR LO). Perhaps the most famous of all such spells is the six-syllable mantra of the bodhisattva AVALOKITEsVARA, OM MAnI PADME HuM, which is recited throughout the Tibetan Buddhist world. The Japanese SHINGONSHu takes its name from the Sinitic translation of mantra as "true word" (C. zhenyan; J. shingon).

mantrayāna. (T. sngags kyi theg pa; C. zhenyan sheng; J. shingonjo; K. chinon sŭng 眞言乘). In Sanskrit, "mantra vehicle"; often used as a synonym of VAJRAYĀNA, suggesting the central place of mantras in tantric practice. According to one popular paronomastic gloss, the term MANTRA means "mind protector," especially in the sense of protecting the mind from the ordinary appearances of the world. In this sense, the mantrayāna would refer not simply to the recitation of mantra but to the entire range of practices designed to transform the ordinary practitioner into a deity and his ordinary world into a MAndALA. In Tibetan Buddhism, the Tibetan forms of the terms mantrayāna and guhyamantrayāna ("secret mantra vehicle") are used as commonly as vajrayāna and more commonly than TANTRAYĀNA.

Mar pa Chos kyi blo gros. (Marpa Chokyi Lodro) (1012-1097). A renowned Tibetan translator and lay Buddhist master who played an important role in the later transmission (PHYI DAR) of Buddhism from India to Tibet. He is regarded as the Tibetan founder of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, which traces its lineage to India and the MAHĀSIDDHAs TILOPA and NĀROPA. In his traditional biographies, Mar pa is generally regarded as a reincarnation of the Indian mahāsiddha DOMBĪ HERUKA. Mar pa was born to wealthy landowners in the southern Tibetan region of LHO BRAG and quickly proved to be a gifted child. As an adult, Mar pa was characterized as having a volatile temper, although ultimately compassionate. His parents sent their son to study Sanskrit and Indian vernacular languages with the translator 'BROG MI SHĀKYA YE SHES in western Tibet. Because resources for studying Buddhism in Tibet were limited as the so-called dark period between the earlier dissemination (SNGA DAR) and later dissemination (phyi dar) came to an end, Mar pa decided to make the harrowing journey to India to seek instruction from Buddhist masters. He would make three journeys there over the course of his life. He first spent three years in Nepal, acclimating to the new environment and continuing his study of local languages. There he met two Nepalese teachers, Chitherpa and Paindapa, who offered many religious instructions but also encouraged Mar pa to seek out the master who would become his chief guru, the great SIDDHA NĀROPA. According to tradition, Mar pa studied under Nāropa at the forest retreat of Pullahari, receiving initiations and teachings of several important tantric lineages, especially those of the BKA' 'BABS BZHI (four transmissions) that Nāropa had received from his principal teacher TILOPA. Despite the fame of this encounter, contemporary Tibetan sources indicate that Mar pa himself never claimed to have studied directly with Nāropa, who had already passed away prior to Mar pa's trip to India. Mar pa's other great master was the Indian siddha MAITRĪPA, from whom he received instruction in MAHĀMUDRĀ and the tradition of DOHĀ, or spiritual song. Mar pa received other tantric transmissions from Indian masters such as JNānagarbha and Kukkurīpā. Upon his return to Tibet, Mar pa married several women, the most well known being BDAG ME MA, who figures prominently in the life story of MI LA RAS PA. He began his career as teacher and translator, while also occupying himself as landowner and farmer. He had intended to pass his dharma lineage to his son DARMA MDO SDE, for whom Mi la ras pa's famous tower was built, but the child was killed in an equestrian accident. Mar pa's accumulated instructions were later passed to four principal disciples: Ngog Chos sku rdo rje (Ngok Choku Dorje), Mes tshon po (Me Tsonpo), 'Tshur dbang nge (Tsur Wangnge), and the renowned YOGIN and poet Mi la ras pa. At least sixteen works translated from Sanskrit by Mar pa are preserved in the Tibetan Buddhist canon. He is also known as Mar pa LO TSĀ BA (Marpa the Translator) and Lho brag pa (Man from Lhodrak). Among the biographies of Mar pa, one of the most famous is that by GTSANG SMYON HERUKA.

Mi la'i mgur 'bum. (Mile Gurbum). In Tibetan, "The Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa", containing the collected spiritual songs and versified instructions of the eleventh-century Tibetan yogin MI LA RAS PA. Together with their brief narrative framing tales, the songs in this collection document the later period of Mi la ras pa's career, his life as a wandering hermit, his solitary meditation, subjugation of demons, and training of disciples. The work catalogues his songs of realization: expressions of his experiences as an awakened master, his reflections on the nature of the mind and reality, and his instructions for practicing the Buddhist path. The songs are composed in a vernacular idiom, abandoning the highly ornamental formal structure of classical poetry in favor of a simple and direct style. They are much loved in Tibet for their clarity, playfulness, and poetic beauty, and continue to be taught, memorized, and recited within most sects of Tibetan Buddhism. Episodes from the Mi la'i mgur 'bum have become standard themes for traditional Tibetan Buddhist plastic arts and have been adapted into theatrical dance performances (CHAMS). The number 100,000 is not literal, but rather a metaphor for the work's comprehensiveness; it is likely that many of the songs were first recorded by Mi la ras pa's own close disciples, perhaps while the YOGIN was still alive. The most famous version of this collection was edited and arranged by GTSANG SMYON HERUKA during the final decades of the fifteenth century, together with an equally famous edition of the MI LA RAS PA'I RNAM THAR ("The Life of Milarepa").

Mi la ras pa. (Milarepa) (1028/40-1111/23). The most famous and beloved of Tibetan YOGINs. Although he is associated most closely with the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, he is revered throughout the Tibetan cultural domain for his perseverance through hardship, his ultimate attainment of buddhahood in one lifetime, and for his beautiful songs. The most famous account of his life (the MI LA RAS PA'I RNAM THAR, or "The Life of Milarepa") and collection of spiritual songs (MI LA'I MGUR 'BUM, or "The Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa") are extremely popular throughout the Tibetan world. The themes associated with his life story-purification of past misdeeds, faith and devotion to the GURU, ardor in meditation and yogic practice, and the possibility of attaining buddhahood despite the sins of his youth-have inspired developments in Buddhist teaching and practice in Tibet. Mi la was his clan name; ras pa is derived from the single cotton robe (ras) worn by Tibetan anchorites, an attire Milarepa retained for most of his life. The name is therefore an appellation, "The Cotton-clad Mi la." Although his dates are the subject of debate, biographies agree that Mi la ras pa was born to a wealthy family in the Gung thang region of southwestern Tibet. He was given the name Thos pa dga', literally "Delightful to Hear." At an early age, after the death of his father, the family estate and inheritance were taken away by Mi la ras pa's paternal aunt and uncle, leaving Mi la ras pa, his mother, and his sister to suffer poverty and disgrace. At the urging of his mother, Mi las ras pa studied sorcery and black magic in order to seek revenge. He was successful in his studies, causing a roof to collapse during a wedding party hosted by his relatives, with many killed. Eventually feeling remorse and recognizing the karmic consequences of his deeds, he sought salvation through the practice of Buddhism. After brief studies with several masters, he met MAR PA CHOS KYI BLO GROS, who would become his root guru. Mar pa was esteemed for having traveled to India, where he received valuable tantric instructions. However, Mar pa initially refused to teach Mi la ras pa, subjecting him to all forms of verbal and physical abuse. He made him undergo various ordeals, including constructing single-handedly several immense stone towers (including the final tower built for Mar pa's son called SRAS MKHAR DGU THOG, or the "nine-storied son's tower"). When Mi la ras pa was at the point of despair and about to abandon all hope of receiving the teachings, Mar pa then revealed that the trials were a means of purifying the negative KARMAN of his black magic that would have prevented him from successfully practicing the instructions. Mar pa bestowed numerous tantric initiations and instructions, especially those of MAHĀMUDRĀ and the practice of GTUM MO, or "inner heat," together with the command to persevere against all hardship while meditating in solitary caves and mountain retreats. He was given the initiation name Bzhad pa rdo rje (Shepa Dorje). Mi la ras pa spent the rest of his life practicing meditation in seclusion and teaching small groups of yogin disciples through poetry and songs of realization. He had little interest in philosophical discourse and no tolerance for intellectual pretension; indeed, several of his songs are rather sarcastically directed against the conceits of monastic scholars and logicians. He was active across southern Tibet, and dozens of locations associated with the saint have become important pilgrimage sites and retreat centers; their number increased in the centuries following his death. Foremost among these are the hermitages at LA PHYI, BRAG DKAR RTA SO, CHU DBAR, BRIN, and KAILĀSA. Bhutanese tradition asserts that he traveled as far as the STAG TSHANG sanctuary in western Bhutan. Foremost among Milarepa's disciples were SGAM PO PA BSOD NAMS RIN CHEN and RAS CHUNG PA RDO RJE GRAGS. According to his biography, Mi la ras pa was poisoned by a jealous monk. Although he had already achieved buddhahood and was unharmed by the poison, he allowed himself to die. His life story ends with his final instructions to his disciples, the account of his miraculous cremation, and of how he left no relics despite the pleas of his followers.

Mkha' 'gro snying thig. (Kandro Nyingtik). In Tibetan, "Heart Essence of the dĀKINĪs"; an important set of treasure texts (GTER MA) of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. These RDZOGS CHEN teachings are said to have been transmitted by PADMASAMBHAVA to Princess PADMA GSAL and to YE SHES MTSHO RGYAL. The treasure texts were discovered by PADMA LAS 'BREL RTSAL and were later included in the SNYING THIG YA BZHI, the fourfold collection of snying thig teachings by KLONG CHEN PA. He composed a commentary on the Mkha' 'gro snying thig, entitled Mkha' 'gro yang thig. The text and commentary together are known as the Mkha' 'gro snying thig ma bu, the "Mother and Son Heart Essence of the dākinīs."

Mkhar chu. (Karchu). An important monastic center associated with both the RNYING MA and BKA' BRGYUD sects of Tibetan Buddhism, located in the LHO BRAG region of southern Tibet. The original site was established by the 'Brug pa bka' brgyud master Lo ras pa (1187-1250), but was later renovated and enlarged by famed 'Brug pa scholar and historian PADMA DKAR PO. The monastery and surrounding environs were a wealthy and active center for Buddhist practice, visited by numerous important masters. His disciple Nam mkha'i snying po stayed in a meditation retreat nearby, where he is said to have attained realization of MAHĀMUDRĀ. Mkhar chu later became a seat for Nam mkha'i snying po's successive reincarnations. Other Rnying ma and Bka' brgud masters associated with Mkhar chu include NYANG RAL NYI MA 'OD ZER, RGOD TSHANG PA MGON PO RDO RJE, GURU CHOS KYI DBANG PHYUG, and Me long rdo rje (1234-1303).

Mkhas grub Dge legs dpal bzang. (Kedrup Gelek Palsang) (1385-1438). Also known as Mkhas grub rje, an early leader of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism, who trained first under the influential scholar Red mda' ba Gzhon nu blo gros (Rendawa Shonu Lodro, 1349-1412). At the age of twenty-three he met TSONG KHA PA, who became his principal GURU. Mkhas grub rje excelled in his study of Buddhist logic and philosophy and his collected works contain numerous influential treatises on PRAMĀnA, MADHYAMAKA, and TANTRA (especially the KĀLACAKRA); among his most famous works is the Stong thun skal bzang mig 'byed. At the age of forty-seven, he ascended the golden throne of DGA' LDAN monastery as the institution's abbot, replacing Tsong kha pa's other illustrious student RGYAL TSHAB DAR MA RIN CHEN (see DGA' LDAN KHRI PA). Mkhas grub rje was recognized posthumously as being first in the line of PAn CHEN LAMA incarnations. Mkhas grub rje is commonly depicted in paintings and statues called rje yab sras gsum, "the triumvirate of the foremost father and his [two] sons," showing Tsong kha pa flanked by Rgyal tshab and Mkhas grub. Here Mkhas grub can often be distinguished from Rgyal tshab by his younger visage and darker hair, and by his wild eyes, said to have been a result of his tantric practice.

Mtshur phu rgyal tshab incarnations. (Tsurpu Gyaltsap). A line of incarnate lamas (SPRUL SKU) of the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, entrusted as the regents of MTSHUR PHU monastery and traditionally close to the KARMA PAs. The lineage includes:

Ningma: The ancient, unreformed form of Lamaism (Tibetan Buddhism); called the Red Sect, rich in esoteric teachings and traditions.

Obermiller, Eugène. (1901-1935). Noted Russian scholar of Indian and Tibetan Buddhism, born in St. Petersburg to a family devoted to music and the arts. He studied English, French, and German as a youth and was planning to become a musician. However, when he was eighteen years of age, he was stricken by syringomyelia, a disease of the spinal cord, which deprived him of the full use of his hands and fingers. After the Russian Revolution, he attended FYODOR IPPOLITOVICH STCHERBATSKY's lectures on Sanskrit at the University of Petrograd (later Leningrad and St. Petersburg) and studied Sanskrit, Tibetan, and Mongolian. He became Stcherbatsky's student, preparing Sanskrit-Tibetan and Tibetan-Sanskrit indexes to the NYĀYABINDU and assisting him in editing the Tibetan text of the ABHIDHARMAKOsABHĀsYA. Obermiller spent a great deal of time in Buryatia in the Transbaikal, studying at Mongolian monasteries of the DGE LUGS PA tradition, where he learned to speak Tibetan. In working closely with learned Buddhist monks, Obermiller anticipated what would become a common model of scholarship after the Tibetan diaspora that began in 1959. In 1928, Stcherbatsky formed the Institute of Buddhist Culture (later to become part of the Institute of Oriental Studies), and Obermiller was appointed as a research scholar. In 1929, the two colleagues published an edition of the ABHISAMAYĀLAMKĀRA. Obermiller continued to suffer from syringomyelia throughout this period. By the age of thirty, he had become incapacitated to the point that he was not able to write and died four years later. Despite his debilitating illness, during his last years, he remained committed to his scholarship and published a number of pioneering translations, including BU STON's "History of Buddhism" (BU STON CHOS 'BYUNG) and the RATNAGOTRAVIBHĀGA (Uttaratantra) in 1932. In his articles (several of which have been republished), he focused especially on the PRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀ exegetical literature, relying largely on Dge lugs expositions.

oM mani padme huM. (T. oM mani padme huM; C. an mani bami hong; J. on mani padomei un; K. om mani panme hum 唵嘛呢叭彌吽). In Sanskrit, "homage to the Jewel-Lotus One"; the most famous of all Buddhist MANTRAs and important especially in Tibetan Buddhism, where it is the mantra most commonly recited and most often placed in prayer wheels; indeed, the Tibetan term rendered in English as "prayer wheel" is MA nI 'KHOR LO, or "MAnI wheel." This phrase is the renowned mantra of the bodhisattva of compassion, AVALOKITEsVARA. The mantra seems to appear first in the KĀRAndAVYuHA, a MAHĀYĀNA SuTRA presumed to have been composed in KASHMIR sometime around the end of the fourth or the beginning of the fifth century CE. The sutra exalts Avalokitesvara and praises the mantra at length, referring to it as the "six-syllable spell" (sAdAKsARĪVIDYĀ). Contrary to the widespread view, the mantra does not refer to "the jewel in the lotus." Instead, it is a call (in the vocative case in Sanskrit) to Avalokitesvara, using one of his epithets, Manipadma, "Jewel-Lotus One." The mantra receives extensive commentary in Tibetan Buddhism. For example, according to the MAnI BKA' 'BUM, the six syllables correspond to the six rebirth destinies (sAdGATI) of divinities, demigods, humans, animals, ghosts, and hell denizens, so that by reciting the mantra, one is closing the door for all sentient beings to any possibility of further rebirth. See also QIANSHOU JING.

O rgyan gling pa. (Orgyen Lingpa) (1323-1360). A Tibetan treasure revealer (GTER STON) and master of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. At the age of twenty-three he is said to have discovered treasure texts (GTER MA) at BSAM YAS monastery. He is credited with discovering numerous treasure cycles, including the "Five Chronicles" (BKA' THANG SDE LNGA). He is also responsible for revealing a well-known biography of PADMASAMBHAVA, the PADMA BKA' THANG YIG, also referred to as the "Crystal Cave Chronicle" (Bka' thang shel brag ma) due to its extraction from Padmasambhava's meditation site at "Crystal Cave" (Shel brag) in the Yar klungs valley of central Tibet.

Padma gsal. (Pemasel) (fl. c. eighth century). The daughter of the Tibetan King KHRI SRONG LDE BTSAN, to whom PADMASAMBHAVA entrusted a lineage of RDZOGS CHEN instructions known as MKHA' 'GRO SNYING THIG. She died at the age of eight. When the Tibetan king brought her body before the Indian master at the Brag dmar ke'u tshang (Drakmar Ke'utsang) cave at CHIMS PHU, he asked why someone with the great merit to be both a princess and a disciple of Padmasambhava had to die while still a child. The Indian master revealed she had been a bee who stung one of the four brothers involved in the completion of the great BODHNĀTH STuPA. Thereafter Padmasambhava miraculously revived her, transmitted the instructions of the Mkha 'gro snying thig, and prophesied that she would reveal the teachings as a treasure (GTER MA) in a future rebirth as PADMA LAS 'BREL RTSAL. Some traditions describe a lineage of five pure incarnations of the royal princess Padma gsal (lha lcam padma gsal gyi dag pa'i skye ba lnga), including several important lamas of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism:

Padmasambhava. (T. Padma 'byung gnas) (fl. eighth century). Indian Buddhist master and tantric adept widely revered in Tibet under the appellation Guru rin po che, "Precious Guru"; considered to be the "second buddha" by members of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, who view him as a founder of their tradition. In Tibetan, he is also known as Padma 'byung gnas (Pemajungne), "the Lotus Born," which translates his Sanskrit name. It is difficult to assess the many legends surrounding his life and deeds, although the scholarly consensus is that he was a historical figure and did visit Tibet. The earliest reference to him is in the SBA BZHED (a work that purports to be from the eighth century, but is likely later), where he is mentioned as a water diviner and magician, suggesting that he may have been an expert in irrigation, which would have required the ability to subdue local spirits. Two texts in the Tibetan canon are attributed to him. The first is the Man ngag lta ba'i phreng ba, which is a commentary on the thirteenth chapter of the GUHYAGARBHATANTRA. The second is a commentary on the Upāyapāsapadmamālā, a MAHĀYOGA TANTRA. Regardless of his historical status and the duration of his stay in Tibet, the figure of Padmasambhava has played a key role in the narrative of Buddhism's arrival in Tibet, its establishment in Tibet, and its subsequent transmission to later generations. He is also venerated throughout the Himalayan regions of India, Bhutan, and Nepal and by the Newar Buddhists of the Kathmandu Valley. According to many of his traditional biographies, Padmasambhava was miraculously born in the center of a lotus blossom (PADMA) on Lake Danakosa in the land of OddIYĀNA, a region some scholars associate with the Swat Valley of modern Pakistan. Discovered and raised by King Indrabodhi, he abandoned his royal life to pursue various forms of Buddhist study and practice, culminating in his training as a tantric adept. He journeyed throughout the Himalayan regions of India and Nepal, meeting his first consort MANDĀRAVĀ at Mtsho padma in Himachal Pradesh, and later remaining in prolonged retreat in various locations around the Kathmandu Valley including MĀRATIKA, YANG LE SHOD and the ASURA CAVE. His reputation as an exorcist led to his invitation, at the behest of the Indian scholar sĀNTARAKsITA, to travel to Tibet in order to assist with the construction of BSAM YAS monastery. According to traditional accounts, Padmasambhava subdued and converted the indigenous deities inimical to the spread of Buddhism and, together with sāntaraksita and the Tibetan king KHRI SRONG LDE BTSAN, established the first Buddhist lineage and monastic center of Tibet. He remained in Tibet as a court priest, and, together with his Tibetan consort YE SHES MTSHO RGYAL, recorded and then concealed numerous teachings as hidden treasure texts (GTER MA), to be revealed by a later succession of masters spiritually linked to Padmasambhava. The Rnying ma sect preserves the corpus of instructions stemming from the master in two classes of materials: those revealed after his passing as treasure texts and those belonging to an unbroken oral tradition (BKA' MA). It is believed that Padmasambhava departed Tibet for his paradise known as the Glorious Copper-Colored Mountain (ZANGS MDOG DPAL RI), where he continues to reside. From the time of the later dissemination of the doctrine (PHYI DAR) in the eleventh century onwards, numerous biographies of the Indian master have been revealed as treasure texts, including the PADMA BKA' THANG YIG, BKA' THANG GSER 'PHRENG, and the BKA' THANG ZANGS GLING MA. Padmasambhava is the focus of many kinds of ritual activities, including the widely recited "Seven Line Prayer to Padmasambhava" (Tshig 'dun gsol 'debs). The tenth day of each lunar month is dedicated to Padmasambhava, a time when many monasteries, especially those in Bhutan, perform religious dances reverencing the Indian master in his eight manifestations. In iconography, Padmasambhava is depicted in eight forms, known as the guru mtshan brgyad, who represent his eight great deeds. They are Padma rgyal po, Nyi ma 'od zer, Blo ldan mchog sred, Padmasambhava, Shākya seng ge, Padmakara (also known as Sororuhavajra, T. Mtsho skyes rdo rje), Seng ge sgra sgrogs, and RDO RJE GRO LOD.

Pe har rgyal po. (Pehar Gyalpo). A god of the Tangut people (T. Mi nyag; C. Xixia), who was adopted into Tibetan Buddhism as the state oracle. According to Tibetan legend, at the completion of the BSAM YAS monastery at the end of the eighth century, the monastery was in need of a protector god. At that time, Pe har was in residence at a hermitage in Bhata hor, having come there from Bengal. In the early ninth century, the Tibetan king KHRI SRONG LDE BTSAN sent his nephew Prince Mu rug btsan po to conquer Mi nyag and destroy Bhata hor, which he did with the assistance of the god VAIsRAVAnA. Pe har fled, turning himself into a vulture to escape. A YAKsA in Vaisravana's command shot him with an arrow, and brought him to Bsam yas, where PADMASAMBHAVA installed him as the monastery's protector. Other versions credit Padmasambhava with the actual capture of Pe har, and still others have GE SAR defeat Pe har. The kingdom of Mi nyag was finally destroyed by the Mongol Genghis Khan in the twelfth century, leading to an influx in Mi nyag refugees; this was a time when Pe har's legends were being developed. From that point, Pe har, as a captured deity made to serve the Tibetan state, is a figure much interwoven in the events of the history of Tibetan imperial expansion. Pe har is said to have resided at Bsam yas for some seven centuries before moving to the Gnas chung shrine below 'BRAS SPUNGS monastery outside of LHA SA at the time of the fifth DALAI LAMA. It is at GNAS CHUNG, a monastery with both RNYING MA and DGE LUGS PA affiliations, that he serves as the state oracle. The legends of his move involve an initial move to a Rnying ma monastery on the banks of the Skyid chu upriver from Lha sa. Pe har and the abbot of the monastery did not get along, and, after causing a fair amount of mischief, Pe har was locked in a wooden box that was thrown into the river. Various accounts relate how the box was retrieved by monks of 'Bras spungs, and how Pe har then escaped, alighting in the form of a white dove in a tree below Gnas chung monastery where Pe har subsequently took up residence. (See GNAS CHUNG ORACLE for Pe har's activities as the Tibetan state oracle.) Pe har has been fully integrated into native Tibetan spirit pantheons: he is the head of the worldly DHARMAPĀLA, chief of the three hundred sixty rgyal po spirits, and leader of a group of deities known as the rgyal po sku lnga, the "kings of the five bodies," who in addition to Pe har are Brgya byin, Mon bu pu tra, Shing bya can, and Dgra lha skyes gcig bu, all of whom are also seen as emanations of Pe har. His consort is named Bdud gza' smin dkar. In iconography Pe har is frequently pictured as white, with three faces and six arms riding a white lion, although he is also shown with one face and two hands. Finally, the spelling of his name varies considerably, including Dpe kar, Pe dkar, Spe dkar, Dpe dkar, Be dkar, Dpe ha ra, and Pe ha ra.

'Phags pa Blo gros rgyal mtshan. (Pakpa Lodro Gyaltsen) (1235-1280). An eminent scholar of the SA SKYA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, famed for the position of political power he held at the court of the Mongol emperor of Qubilai Khan (r. 1260-1294). He is also revered as one of the five great Sa skya forefathers (SA SKYA GONG MA RNAM LNGA). 'Phags pa's uncle, SA SKYA PAndITA, was summoned to the court of the Mongol prince Godan in 1244, eventually meeting the prince in 1247. 'Phags pa and his younger brother accompanied their uncle during this journey. After Sa skya Pandita cured Godan Khan of a disease and converted him to Buddhism, the khan appointed him as regent of Tibet under Mongol patronage, and the young 'Phags pa was invited to remain at the Mongol court. After the death of Godan Khan, Qubilai Khan summoned 'Phags pa to his court (at what would come to be called Shangdu), seeking to solidify Mongol rule over Tibet by controlling the politically powerful Sa skya leaders. En route, he gave teachings in eastern Tibet and converted the Rdzong gsar region from BON to Buddhism, establishing the Sa skya tradition there. According to some accounts, 'Phags pa arrived at Qubilai Khan's court in 1253. He soon impressed the emperor with his erudition and display of magical powers, which apparently outshone those of other religious figures at the Mongol court, defeating Daoist priests in debate. By 1258, 'Phags pa had so impressed his hosts, first the emperor's wife Chabi and then Qubilai himself, that he was asked to bestow tantric initiations and teachings, thus converting the imperial couple to Buddhism. According to an arrangement suggested by Chabi, 'Phags pa would sit in a lower position than the emperor during state rituals, and the emperor would sit in a lower position than 'Phags pa in religious rituals. 'Phags pa would later identify Qubilai Khan as an incarnation of MANJUsRĪ and as a CAKRAVARTIN. In 1260, the year Qubilai ascended to the rank of Great Khan, 'Phags pa was given the official positions of imperial preceptor (C. dishi) and state preceptor (C. GUOSHI). In this latter position, he was the head of the Buddhist clergy of the entire empire, including Tibet, although he himself remained in China. A new office of dpon chen (great minister) was created for a Mongol-appointed Tibetan official who would serve as civil and military administrator for Tibet. In 1280, 'Phags pa died, allegedly having been poisoned by the dpon chen. The relationship between 'Phags pa and Qubilai is often cited as the model for the subsequent relationship between Tibet and China known as "patron and priest" (YON MCHOD). According to the Tibetan view, this relationship was formed between the leading lama of Tibet (a position later filled by the DALAI LAMAs) who acted as chief spiritual advisor and priest to the emperor, who in return acted as patron and protector of the lama and the dominion of the Buddhist realm, Tibet. 'Phags pa is often called by the honorific title chos rgyal, or "dharma king," and is also credited with creating in 1269 a new script for the pan-empire use of the Mongolian language. The square forms of the 'Phags pa script had been thought by some scholars to have been the model for the creation of the indigenous Korean alphabet of Han'gŭl in the mid-fifteenth century. However, it is now generally believed that the shapes of the Han'gŭl letters mimic the mouth's shape when articulating classes of consonants, although probably with some influence from the 'Phags pa forms.

'pho ba. (powa). In Tibetan, "transferring consciousness," a tantric practice included among the "six yogas of NĀROPA" (NĀ RO CHOS DRUG) by which one is able to eject one's consciousness from one's body (through the aperture at the top of the skull) at the moment of death and send it into a pure realm, with SUKHĀVATĪ of the buddha AMITĀBHA generally the preferred destination. In order to gain this ability, the practitioner requires instruction and initiation. Although the practice is found in all sects of Tibetan Buddhism (as well as in BON), it is particularly associated with the BKA' BRGYUD, and within it the 'BRI GUNG. It is one of the few forms of meditation in Tibet that is practiced by laypeople and one of the few forms that is practiced in a group setting.

phur pa. [alt. phur bu] (S. kīla). A Tibetan ritual dagger. Although the word is used colloquially for any form of stake driven into the ground, such as a tent peg, in the context of Tibetan Buddhism it refers to a ritual implement used in the performance of tantric ceremonies. In its most common design, the phur pa is shaped like a stake with a three-sided blade tapering to a point, while the shaft of its handle is frequently capped with three wrathful or semiwrathful faces and a half-VAJRA. They are fashioned from a variety of materials and may be carved in clay, wood, or bone and are regularly cast from metal alloys. In some instances, phur ba daggers revealed as treasure (GTER MA) are said to be formed from meteorites (rnam lcags). The phur pa is regularly used in rituals for the subjugation of harmful or obstructive forces, such as the "black hat dance" in which participants repeatedly strike an effigy believed to embody those forces. It is also associated with the tantric literature of Rdo rje phur ba (S. VAJRAKĪLAYA) attributed to PADMASAMBHAVA, in which the lower portion of the central deity takes the form of a ritual dagger.

phyi dar. (chi dar). In Tibetan, "later dissemination." Tibetan historians have traditionally divided the dissemination of Buddhist teachings in Tibet into two periods. The "earlier dissemination" (SNGA DAR) began in the seventh century with the conversion of king SRONG BTSAN SGAM PO to Buddhism and continued with the arrival of the Indian masters sĀNTARAKsITA and PADMASAMBHAVA and the founding of the first monastery at BSAM YAS during the reign of king KHRI SRONG LDE BTSAN. This period ended in 842 with the assassination of king GLANG DAR MA and the fall of the Tibetan monarchy. There ensued a "dark period" of almost two centuries, during which recorded contact between Indian and Tibetan Buddhists declined. The "later dissemination" commenced in earnest in the eleventh century. It is marked by patronage of Buddhism by king YE SHES 'OD in western Tibet and especially the work of the noted translator RIN CHEN BZANG PO, who made three trips to India to study and to retrieve Buddhist texts, as well as the work of RNGOG LEGS PA'I SHES RAB. The noted Bengali monk ATIsA DĪPAMKARAsRĪJNĀNA arrived in Tibet in 1042. The "later dissemination" was a period of extensive translation of Indian texts; these new (GSAR MA) translations of tantras became central to the so-called "new" sects of Tibetan Buddhism: BKA' GDAMS, SA SKYA, BKA' BRGYUD, and later DGE LUGS, with the RNYING MA ("ancient") sect basing itself on "old" translations from the earlier dissemination. Of particular importance during this later dissemination was the resurgence of monastic ordination, especially that of the MuLASARVĀSTIVĀDA VINAYA. New artistic styles were also introduced from neighboring regions during this period.

Prasphutapadā. (T. Tshig rab tu gsal ba). In Sanskrit, "The Clearly Worded," a work by the Indian scholiast Dharmamitra (c. ninth century); the full title of this text is AbhisamayālaMkārakārikāprajNāpāramitopadesasāstratīkā-prasphutapadā or "The Clearly Worded, Commentary on Treatise Setting Forth the Perfection of Wisdom, the Verses of the Ornament of Realization." The Prasphutapadā is a subcommentary on HARIBHADRA's ABHISAMAYĀLAMKĀRAVIVṚTI, which is intended to clarify points on the ABHISAMAYĀLAMKĀRA, one of five texts that were purportedly revealed to ASAnGA by the BODHISATTVA MAITREYA in the fourth or fifth centuries CE. The Prasphutapadā was written shortly after the composition of the AbhisamayālaMkāravivṛti in the early ninth century. In the Prasphutapadā, Dharmamitra seeks to clarify Haribhadra's views as they appear in the Vivṛti, rather than put forth his own ideas regarding the AbhisamayālaMkāra. In his work, Dharmamitra explains a number of doctrinal elements that would have a great impact on later forms of Tibetan Buddhism, including the TATHĀGATAGARBHA doctrine and the theory of multiple buddha bodies (BUDDHAKĀYA). For instance, in the Prasphutapadā, Dharmamitra asserts that the enjoyment body (SAMBHOGAKĀYA) is accessible only to a bodhisattva who has reached the tenth stage (BHuMI) of the bodhisattva path (see BODHISATTVABHuMI). Dharmamitra's text, together with the Durbodhāloka, the subcommentary on the AbhisamayālaMkāravivṛti by DHARMAKĪRTIsRĪ (the teacher of ATIsA DĪPAMKARAsRĪJNĀNA), is often cited in Tibetan PRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀ commentaries.

prātimoksa. (P. pātimokkha; T. so sor thar pa; C. boluotimucha; J. haradaimokusha; K. parajemokch'a 波羅提木叉). In Sanskrit, "code" or "rules," referring to a disciplinary code of conduct (of which there are several versions) for fully ordained monks (BHIKsU) and nuns (BHIKsUnĪ), or a text that sets forth that code, which probably constitutes the oldest part of the various Buddhist VINAYAs. The pre-Buddhist denotation of prātimoksa is uncertain, and may perhaps mean a promise that is to be redeemed; the Buddhist etymologies seem to indicate a "binding obligation" and, by extension, a monastic regulation. Indian Buddhist schools tended to define themselves in terms of the particular monastic code to which they adhered, and differences in the interpretation of the rules of conduct resulted in the convening of councils (SAMGĪTI) to adjudicate such differences and, ultimately, in the schisms that produced the various mainstream Buddhist schools. Several different recensions of the prātimoksa are extant, but there are three main lineages followed within the Buddhist tradition today: the THERAVĀDA pātimokkha followed in Sri Lankan and Southeast Asian Buddhism; the DHARMAGUPTAKA prātimoksa followed in Chinese and Korean Buddhism; and the MuLASARVĀSTIVĀDA prātimoksa followed in Tibetan Buddhism. Despite divergences in the numbers of rules listed in these codes (the Theravāda, for example, has 227 rules for bhiksus, the Dharmaguptaka 250, and the Mulasarvāstivāda 253, and all have considerably more rules for bhiksunī), there is substantial agreement among the prātimoksa of the various mainstream Buddhist schools. They are all similarly structured, with separate codes for monks and nuns, enumerating a set of categories of transgressions: (1) PĀRĀJIKA transgressions of ethical expectations that were so serious as to bring "defeat" and in some vinaya traditions to require expulsion from the order, e.g., engaging in sexual intercourse and murder; (2) SAMGHĀVAsEsA, transgressions entailing temporary suspension from the order, such as masturbation, acting as a go-between for sexual liaisons, or attempting to cause schism in the order (SAMGHABHEDA); (3) ANIYATA, undetermined cases exclusive to monks who are found with women, which require investigation by the saMgha; (4) NAIḤSARGIKAPĀYATTIKA, transgressions requiring confession and forfeiture of a prohibited object, such as hoarding excessive numbers of robes (CĪVARA), begging bowls (PĀTRA), and medicine, or keeping gold and silver; (5) PĀYATTIKA, transgressions that can be expiated through confession alone, such as lying; (6) PRATIDEsANĪYA, minor transgressions to be acknowledged, related to receiving and eating food, which were to be confessed; (7) sAIKsA, minor training rules governing monastic etiquette and deportment, such as not wearing robes sloppily or eating noisily, violations of which were called DUsKṚTA, lit. "bad actions." Both the bhiksu and bhiksunī prātimoksa also include (8) ADHIKARAnAsAMATHA, seven methods of resolving ecclesiastical disputes. Regardless of the school, the prātimoksa was recited separately during the fortnightly UPOsADHA ceremony by chapters of monks and nuns who gather inside a purified SĪMĀ boundary. All monks and nuns were expected to have confessed (see PĀPADEsANĀ) to any transgressions of the rules during the last fortnight prior to the recitation of the code, thus expiating them of that transgression. At the conclusion of the recitation of each category of transgression, the reciter questions the congregation as to whether the congregation is pure; silence indicates assent.

pure land. (C. jingtu; J. jodo; K. chongt'o 浄土). An English term with no direct equivalent in Sanskrit that is used to translate the Chinese JINGTU (more literally, "purified ground"); the Chinese term may be related to the term PARIsUDDHABUDDHAKsETRA (although this latter term does not appear in the SUKHĀVATĪVYuHASuTRA, the text most closely aligned with pure land thought). The term "pure land" has several denotations in English, which have led to some confusion in its use. These include (1) a buddha-field (BUDDHAKsETRA) purified of transgressions and suffering by a buddha and thus deemed an auspicious place in which to take rebirth; (2) the specific (and most famous) of these purified fields, that of the buddha AMITĀBHA, named SUKHĀVATĪ; (3) the tradition of texts and practices in MAHĀYĀNA Buddhism dedicated to the description of a number of buddha-fields, including that of Amitābha, and the practices to ensure rebirth there; (4) a tradition of texts and practice in East Asian and Tibetan Buddhism, associated specifically with the goal of rebirth in the purified buddha-field of Amitābha; (5) the JoDOSHu and JoDO SHINSHu schools of Japanese Buddhism, deriving from the teachings of HoNEN and SHINRAN, which set forth a "single practice" for rebirth in sukhāvatī. It is important to note that, although the Sukhāvatīvyuhasutra (and other sutras describing other buddha-fields) originated in India, there was no "pure land school" in Indian Buddhism; rebirth in a buddha-field, and especially that of sukhāvatī, was one of the many generalized goals of Mahāyāna practice. Although there was an extensive tradition in China of scriptural exegesis of the major pure land sutras, this was not enough in itself to constitute a self-consciously "pure land school"; indeed, techniques for rebirth in sukhāvatī became popular in many strands of Chinese Buddhism (see NIANFO), especially in light of theories of the disappearance of the dharma (see MOFA). Finally, it is important to note that the goal of rebirth in sukhāvatī was an important practice in Japan prior to the advent of Honen, and remained so in schools other than Jodoshu and Jodo Shinshu.

Rabten, Geshe. (1920-1986). A Tibetan monk-scholar of the DGE LUGS sect who played an important role in the transmission of Tibetan Buddhism in the West. He was born into a farming family approximately fifty miles south of Dar rgyas (Dargye) monastery in the Tre hor region of Khams. At the age of seventeen Geshe Rabten began his studies at SE RA monastery in LHA SA; he later became the teacher of the five-year-old incarnate lama Dgon gsar rin po che (Gonsar Rinpoche), who would remain his close disciple throughout Geshe Rabten's life. Geshe Rabten and Dgon gsar followed the DALAI LAMA into exile where he received his DGE BSHES lha ram pa degree in 1963 at the age of forty-three. He attracted many students, was appointed religious assistant (mtshan zhabs) to the DALAI LAMA, and began to teach Western students in 1969. He started Tharpa Choling Center of Higher Tibetan Studies near Lausanne, Switzerland, later in 1977. His full name is Dge bshes Rta mgrin rab brtan (Geshe Tamdin Rabten).

Rang 'byung rig pa'i rdo rje. (Rangjung Rikpe Dorje) (1924-1981). A renowned and influential Tibetan Buddhist master, recognized as the sixteenth Karma pa, principal leader of the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. He was born in 1924 in the SDE DGE area of Khams, eastern Tibet, to an aristocratic family, and was recognized as the incarnation of the fifteenth Karma pa by the eleventh TAI SI TU. At the age of eight, the Karma pa was enthroned by the Tai Si tu at DPAL SPUNGS monastery in Khams. Soon after, he went to MTSHUR PHU monastery in central Tibet, where he undertook his studies. In his early years, he received many important Bka' brgyud, SA SKYA, and RNYING MA teachings from eminent masters of the time. In his teenage years, the Karma pa divided his time between Mtshur phu and Dpal spungs monasteries, settling at Mtshur phu at the age of eighteen for several years of retreat. In 1947, the Karma pa took his first long pilgrimage and visited the holy sites of India, Nepal, and Sikkim. In 1954, he accompanied the fourteenth DALAI LAMA to Beijing in attempts to find a peaceful agreement between the nations of China and Tibet. The next year, the Karma pa returned to Khams, where he sought to mediate conflicts between Tibetan militias and the Chinese military, which was beginning to establish a presence in Tibet. By the spring of 1959, the Karma pa decided that it would be better for the preservation of his tradition's religious heritage to leave his homeland and move into exile. After informing the Dalai Lama of his decision, the Karma pa left for Bhutan with an entourage of one hundred fifty laypeople, incarnate lamas (SPRUL SKU), and monks. He soon moved to Rumtek (Rum theg) monastery in Sikkim, which had been founded previously by the ninth Karma pa DBANG PHYUG RDO RJE. By 1966, the sixteenth Karma pa and his followers had restored Rumtek and formed a new seat in exile for the Karma Bka' brgyud sect. Rang 'byung rig pa'i rdo rje was renowned for his erudition in Buddhist philosophy as well as his mastery of meditation and his ability to work miracles. Beginning in 1974, the sixteenth Karma pa undertook numerous journeys to Europe and North America, where he founded several important Karma bka' brgyud study and meditation centers. During this time, he traveled widely, attracting a great number of Western disciples. In 1981, the sixteenth Karma pa passed away in a hospital near Chicago. His attending physician attested to the fact that the Karma pa's body remained warm for three days after being pronounced dead. Rang 'byung rig pa'i rdo rje was succeeded by the seventeenth Karma pa, O rgyan 'phrin las rdo rje (Orgyan Tinle Dorje).

rang stong gzhan stong. (rang dong shen dong). In Tibetan, lit. "self-emptiness, other-emptiness," an important and persistent philosophical debate in Tibetan Buddhism, dating to the fifteenth century. The opposing factions are the DGE LUGS sect on one side and the JO NANG sect on the other, with support from certain BKA' BRGYUD and RNYING MA authors. The debate concerns issues fundamental to their understanding of what constituted enlightenment and the path to its achievement. For the Dge lugs, the most profound of all Buddhist doctrines is that all phenomena in the universe are empty of an intrinsic nature (SVABHĀVA), that the constituents of experience are not naturally endowed with a defining characteristic. Emptiness (suNYATĀ) for the Dge lugs is the fact that phenomena do not exist in and of themselves; emptiness is instead the lack of intrinsic existence. The Dge lugs then, are proponents of "self-emptiness," and argue that the hypostatized factor that an object in reality lacks (i.e., is empty of) is wrongly believed by the unenlightened to be intrinsic to the object itself. Everything, from physical forms to the omniscient mind of the Buddha, is thus equally empty. This emptiness is described by the Dge lugs as a non-affirming or simple negation (PRASAJYAPRATIsEDHA), an absence with nothing else implied in its place. From this perspective, the Dge lugs judge the sutras of the second of the three turnings of the wheel of the dharma as described in the SAMDHINIRMOCANASuTRA, "the dharma wheel of signlessness" (ALAKsAnADHARMACAKRA), to contain the definitive expression of the Buddha's most profound intention. By contrast, the Jo nang look for inspiration to the third turning of the wheel, "the dharma wheel for ascertaining the ultimate" (PARAMĀRTHAVINIsCAYADHARMACAKRA; see also *SUVIBHAKTADHARMACAKRA), especially to those statements that describe the nonduality of subject and object to be the consummate nature (PARINIsPANNA) and the understanding of that nonduality to be the highest wisdom. They describe this wisdom in substantialist terms, calling it eternal, self-arisen, and truly established. This wisdom consciousness exists autonomously and is thus not empty in the way that emptiness is understood by the Dge lugs. Instead, this wisdom consciousness is empty in the sense that it is devoid of all afflictions and conventional factors, which are extraneous to its true nature. Hence, the Jo nang speak of the "emptiness of the other," the absence of extrinsic and extraneous qualities. The Dge lugs cannot deny the presence of statements in the MAHĀYĀNA canon that speak of the TATHĀGATAGARBHA as permanent, pure, blissful, and endowed with self. But they argue that such statements are provisional, another example of the Buddha's expedient means of attracting to the faith those who find such a description appealing. The true tathāgatagarbha, they claim, is the emptiness of the mind; it is this factor, present in all sentient beings, that offers the possibility of transformation into an enlightened buddha. This is the view of CANDRAKĪRTI, they say, whom they regard as the supreme interpreter of the doctrine of emptiness. The Jo nang do not deny that this is Candrakīrti's view, but they deny Candrakīrti the rank of premier expositor of NĀGĀRJUNA's thought. For them, Candrakīrti teaches an emptiness which is a mere negation of true existence, which they equate with nihilism, or else a preliminary stage of negation that precedes an understanding of the highest wisdom. Nor do they deny that such an exposition is also to be found in Nāgārjuna's philosophical corpus (YUKTIKĀYA). But those texts, they claim, do not represent Nāgārjuna's final view, which is expressed instead in his devotional corpus (STAVAKĀYA), notably the DHARMADHĀTUSTAVA ("Praise of the Sphere of Reality"), with its more positive exposition of the nature of reality. Those who would deny its ultimate existence, such as Candrakīrti, they classify as "one-sided Madhyamakas" (phyogs gcig pa'i dbu ma pa) as opposed to the "great Madhyamakas" (DBU MA PA CHEN PO), among whom they would include the Nāgārjuna of the four hymns and ĀRYADEVA, as well as thinkers whom the Dge lugs classify as YOGĀCĀRA or SVĀTANTRIKA-MADHYAMAKA: e.g., ASAnGA, VASUBANDHU, MAITREYANĀTHA, and sĀNTARAKsITA. The Dge lugs attempt to demonstrate that the nature of reality praised by Nāgārjuna in his hymns is the same emptiness that he describes in his philosophical writings.

Ras chung pa Rdo rje grags. (Rechungpa Dorje Drak) (1083/4-1161). A close disciple of the Tibetan sage MI LA RAS PA and an early master of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. He was born in the southwest Tibetan region of Gung thang and, while herding cattle at the age of eleven, met Mi la ras pa, who was meditating in a nearby cave. Much to the consternation of his family, Ras chung pa left his home to follow the YOGIN, subsequently spending many years serving and training under his GURU. As one of Milarepa's youngest disciples, he earned the name Ras chung pa, lit. "little cotton-clad one." He was later dispatched to India in order to retrieve several transmissions of the LUS MED MKHA' 'GRO SNYAN RGYUD CHOS SKOR DGU ("nine aural lineage cycles of the formless dĀKINĪs"); Mi la ras pa's teacher MAR PA CHOS KYI BLO GROS had only received five of these nine cycles during his own studies in India. Ras chung pa acquired these teachings from the brāhmana-adept TI PHU PA in India and, returning to Tibet, spent many years in solitary meditation. He eventually taught numerous disciples of his own. Although Ras chung pa was not a central part of the Bka' brgyud sect's institutional development, a role played by Mi la ras pa's other well-known disciple SGAM PO PA BSOD NAMS RIN CHEN, he figures prominently in the MI LA'I MGUR 'BUM ("Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa"), the collected verse instructions of Mi la ras pa. He also transmitted an important tradition of tantric instructions that were redacted as the RAS CHUNG SNYAN BRGYUD (Aural Lineage of Ras chung). These teachings gained some importance over the next several centuries and were later revived during the fifteenth century by GTSANG SMYON HERUKA at a religious center founded at one of Ras chung pa's principal meditation caves, RAS CHUNG PHUG.

Ratna gling pa. (Ratna Lingpa) (1403-1478). An important treasure revealer (GTER STON) of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, credited with discovering twenty-five collections of treasure texts (GTER MA). As a youth, he was identified as the reincarnation of Lang gro Dkon mchog 'byung gnas, one of the twenty-five disciples of PADMASAMBHAVA. According to traditional sources, he is said to have uncovered in a single lifetime the treasures ordinarily discovered in three lifetimes, and therefore is known under three names: Zhig po gling pa (Shikpo Lingpa), 'Gro 'dul gling pa (Drodul Lingpa), and Ratna gling pa. The treasures included RDZOGS CHEN teachings, peaceful and wrathful guru SĀDHANAs, AVALOKITEsVARA practices, and MAHĀMUDRĀ texts. He also searched extensively for ancient tantras and oral traditions and compiled an extensive RNYING MA'I RGYUD 'BUM, a compendium of the tantras and tantric exegetical literature of the Rnying ma sect; that compendium is no longer extant, but it served as the basis of the rnying ma'i rgyud 'bum of 'JIGS MED GLING PA.

Rdo grub chen. (Do Drupchen). An important monastic seat of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The first Rdo grub chen lama, 'Jigs med phrin las 'od zer (Jigme Tinle Öser, 1742-1821) founded the monastery of Yar klungs Padma bkod in the Mgo log region of A mdo in 1810. His successor, 'Jigs med phun tshogs (Jikme Puntsok), founded another monastery in the same region at Rdo stod. The third Rdo drub chen lama, 'Jigs med bstan pa'i nyi ma (Jikme Tenpe Nyima, 1865-1926), a student of the RIS MED masters 'JAM DBYANGS MKHYEN BRTSE'I DBANG PO and 'JAM MGON KONG SPRUL BLO GROS MTHA' YAS, constructed a seminary there, attracting a large number of students.

Rdo rje brag. (Dorje Drak). The monastic seat for the BYANG GTER or "Northern Treasure" tradition of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, located on the Gtsang po (Tsangpo) River in central Tibet. The Byang gter tradition originated with the treasure revealer Dngos grub rgyal mtshan (Ngodrup Gyaltsen), better known as RGOD LDEM CAN. His subsequent reincarnations, called the Rdo rje brag rig 'dzin ("the VIDYĀDHARAs of Dorje Drak"), became the institution's principal teacher. Rdo rje brag monastery was established in its present location in the sixteenth century by the third Rdo rje brag rig 'dzin Ngag gi dbang po (Ngaki Wangpo, 1580-1639), together with his master Bkra shis stobs rgyal (Tashi Topgyal, 1550?-1603). It was greatly expanded by the fourth Rdo rje brag rig 'dzin Padma 'phrin las (Pema Trinle, 1641-1717), but was subsequently destroyed (and Padma 'phrin las himself killed) during the Dzungar Mongol invasion. It was again demolished during the Chinese Cultural Revolution and has since been rebuilt. The monastery takes its name, lit. "vajra cliffs," from the shape of the surrounding rock face, said to resemble the shape of a VAJRA. Rdo rje brag is one of the six major Rnying ma monasteries; besides SMIN GROL GLING in central Tibet, they are KAḤ THOG, ZHE CHEN, RDZOGS CHEN, and DPAL YUL in Khams.

Rdo rje shugs ldan. (Dorje Shukden). A protector of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism. According to his legend, he is the spirit of Grags pa rgyal mtshan (Drakpa Gyaltsen), an alternate candidate for the position of fifth DALAI LAMA and a distinguished scholar who later was either assassinated or committed suicide. Grags pa rgyal mtshan was himself said to be the reincarnation of Pan chen Bsod nams grags pa (Sonam Drakpa), an important abbot of 'BRAS SPUNGS monastery after the death of the third Dalai Lama. Following the death of Grags pa rgyal mtshan, numerous calamities struck the Tibetan capital and the person of the fifth Dalai Lama. The Tibetan government enlisted the aid of the abbot of SMIN SGROL GLING monastery, who successfully convinced the spirit to adopt the role of protector of the Dge lugs pa, in which role he is said to guard against the corrupting influences of other sects' teachings, specifically those of the RNYING MA sect. He resides outside GNAS CHUNG monastery below 'Bras spungs monastery, outside of LHA SA, where the east gate is always locked to keep him from entering and displacing the state oracle, PE HAR RGYAL PO. He is depicted riding a snow lion. He has one face and three eyes and is holding a khadga and skull cup (S. KAPĀLA), with a mongoose and a golden goad (ankusa) held in his left arm. Since the early twentieth century, Rdo rje shugs ldan became a widely worshipped protector of the Dge lugs pa due largely to the prominent Dge lugs cleric Pha bong kha pa (1878-1943). Both the thirteenth and fourteenth Dalai Lamas outlawed his worship on the grounds that he is in fact a harmful spirit, with the proclamations of the fourteenth Dalai Lama generating opposition from within the Dalai Lama's own Dge lugs sect, especially from monks who had been close disciples of the Dalai Lama's junior tutor Khri byang rin po che. In 1997, the principal of the School of Buddhist Dialectics in DHARMAsĀLĀ, India, DGE BSHES Blo bzang rgya mtsho (Geshe Losang Gyatso), a supporter of the Dalai Lama's position, was brutally murdered. The Indian authorities issued arrest warrants for six men, mainly from the Cha phreng region of eastern Tibet associated with a group supporting worship of Rdo rje shugs ldan.

rdzogs chen. (dzokchen). A Tibetan philosophical and meditative tradition, usually rendered in English as "great perfection" or "great completion." Developed and maintained chiefly within the RNYING MA sect, rdzogs chen has also been embraced to varying degrees by other Tibetan Buddhist sects. The non-Buddhist Tibetan BON religion also upholds a rdzogs chen tradition. According to legend, the primordial buddha SAMANTABHADRA (T. Kun tu bzang po) taught rdzogs chen to the buddha VAJRASATTVA, who transmitted it to the first human lineage holder, DGA' RAB RDO RJE. From him, rdzogs chen was passed to MANJUsRĪMITRA and thence to sRĪSIMHA, and the Tibetan translator Ba gor VAIROCANA, who had been sent to India by the eighth-century Tibetan King KHRI SRONG LDE BTSAN. In addition to Vairocana, the semimythical figures of VIMALAMITRA and PADMASAMBHAVA are considered to be foundational teachers of rdzogs chen in Tibet. Historically, rdzogs chen appears to have been a Tibetan innovation, drawing on multiple influences, including both non-Buddhist native Tibetan beliefs and Chinese and Indian Buddhist teachings. The term was likely taken from the GUHYAGARBHATANTRA. In the creation and completion stages of tantric practice, one first generates a visualization of a deity and its MAndALA and next dissolves these into oneself, merging oneself with the deity. In the Guhyagarbha and certain other tantras, this is followed with a stage known as rdzogs chen, in which one rests in the unelaborated natural state of one's own innately luminous and pure mind. In the Rnying ma sect's nine-vehicle (T. THEG PA DGU) doxography of the Buddhist teachings, these three stages constitute the final three vehicles: the MAHĀYOGA, ANUYOGA, and ATIYOGA, or rdzogs chen. The rdzogs chen literature is traditionally divided into three categories, which roughly trace the historical development of the doctrine and practices: the mind class (SEMS SDE), space class (KLONG SDE), and instruction class (MAN NGAG SDE). These are collected in a group of texts called the RNYING MA'I RGYUD 'BUM ("treasury of Rnying ma tantras"). The mind class is comprised largely of texts attributed to Vairocana, including the so-called eighteen tantras and the KUN BYED RGYAL PO. They set forth a doctrine of primordial purity (ka dag) of mind (sems nyid), which is the basis of all things (kun gzhi). In the natural state, the mind, often referred to as BODHICITTA, is spontaneously aware of itself (rang rig), but through mental discursiveness (rtog pa) it creates delusion ('khrul ba) and thus gives rise to SAMSĀRA. Early rdzogs chen ostensibly rejected all forms of practice, asserting that striving for liberation would simply create more delusion. One is admonished to simply recognize the nature of one's own mind, which is naturally empty (stong pa), luminous ('od gsal ba), and pure. As tantra continued to grow in popularity in Tibet, and new techniques and doctrines were imported from India, a competing strand within rdzogs chen increasingly emphasized meditative practice. The texts of the space class (klong sde) reflect some of this, but it is in the instruction class (man ngag sde), dating from the eleventh to fourteenth centuries, that rdzogs chen fully assimilated tantra. The main texts of this class are the so-called seventeen tantras and the two "seminal heart" collections, the BI MA SNYING THIG ("Seminal Heart of Vimalamitra") and the MKHA' 'GRO SNYING THIG ("Seminal Heart of the dĀKINĪ"). The seventeen tantras and the "Seminal Heart of Vimalamitra" are said to have been taught by Vimalamitra and concealed as "treasure" (GTER MA), to be discovered at a later time. The "Seminal Heart of the dākinī" is said to have been taught by Padmasambhava and concealed as treasure by his consort, YE SHES MTSHO RGYAL. In the fourteenth century, the great scholar KLONG CHEN RAB 'BYAMS PA DRI MED 'OD ZER systematized the multitude of received rdzogs chen literature in his famous MDZOD BDUN ("seven treasuries") and the NGAL GSO SKOR GSUM ("Trilogy on Rest"), largely creating the rdzogs chen teachings as they are known today. With the man ngag sde, the rdzogs chen proponents made full use of the Tibetan innovation of treasure, a means by which later tantric developments were assimilated to the tradition without sacrificing its claim to eighth-century origins. The semilegendary figure of Padmasambhava was increasingly relied upon for this purpose, gradually eclipsing Vairocana and Vimalamitra as the main rdzogs chen founder. In subsequent centuries there have been extensive additions to the rdzogs chen literature, largely by means of the treasure genre, including the KLONG CHEN SNYING THIG of 'JIGS MED GLING PA and the Bar chad kun gsal of MCHOG GYUR GLING PA to name only two. Outside of the Rnying ma sect, the authenticity of these texts is frequently disputed, although there continue to be many adherents to rdzogs chen from other Tibetan Buddhist lineages. Rdzogs chen practitioners are commonly initiated into the teachings with "pointing-out instructions" (sems khrid/ngos sprod) in which a lama introduces the student to the nature of his or her mind. Two main practices known as KHREGS CHOD (breakthrough), in which one cultivates the experience of innate awareness (RIG PA), and THOD RGAL (leap over), elaborate visualizations of external light imagery, preserve the tension between the early admonition against practice and the appropriation of complex tantric techniques and doctrines. Extensive practices engaging the subtle body of psychic channels, winds, and drops (rtsa rlung thig le) further reflect the later tantric developments in rdzogs chen. ¶ RDZOGS CHEN is also used as the short name for one of the largest and most active Tibetan monasteries, belonging to the Rnying ma sect of Tibetan Buddhism, located in the eastern Tibetan region of Khams; the monastery's full name is Rus dam bsam gtan o rgyan chos gling (Rudam Samten Orgyan Choling). It is a major center for both academic study and meditation retreat according to Rnying ma doctrine. At its peak, the monastery housed over one thousand monks and sustained more than two hundred branches throughout central and eastern Tibet. The institution was founded in 1684-1685 by the first RDZOGS CHEN INCARNATION Padma rig 'dzin (Pema Rikdzin) with the support of the fifth DALAI LAMA NGAG DBANG BLO BZANG RGYA MTSHO. Important meditation hermitages in the area include those of MDO MKHYEN RTSE YE SHE RDO RJE and MI PHAM 'JAM DBYANGS RNAM RGYAL RGYA MTSHO. DPAL SPRUL RIN PO CHE passed many years in retreat there, during which time he composed his great exposition of the preliminary practices of Tibetan Buddhism entitled the KUN BZANG BLA MA'I ZHAL LUNG ("Words of My Perfect Teacher").

Red Hats. (C. hongmao 紅帽). A popular designation in both European languages and Chinese for the BKA' BRGYUD and sometimes the RNYING MA sects of Tibetan Buddhism, whose lamas do indeed wear red hats. Although the term ZHWA DMAR, or "Red Hat," is used to designate an important lineage of incarnate lamas within the KARMA BKA' RGYUD sect, the Western and Chinese division of major Tibetan Buddhist sects into the YELLOW HATS, Red Hats, and BLACK HATS has no corollary within the Tibetan tradition and should be avoided.

Rgod ldem can Dngos grub rgyal mtshan. (Godemchen Ngodrup Gyaltsen) (1337-1408). An important master and treasure revealer (GTER STON) of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, often venerated with the title rig 'dzin (S. VIDYĀDHARA). According to traditional accounts, three vulture feathers miraculously grew from the crown of his head at the age of twelve; five more appeared when he turned twenty-four. For this reason he is known as Rgod ldem can, the "vulture quilled." He began his career as treasure revealer at twenty-nine, forming an important lineage known as the Northern Treasure (BYANG GTER) tradition. The Northern Treasures were eventually seated at RDO RJE BRAG monastery south of LHA SA, with Rgod ldem can's subsequent incarnations, known as the Rdo rje brag rig 'dzin lineage, serving as the institution's abbot.

Rgod tshang pa Mgon po rdo rje. (Gotshangpa Gonpo Dorje) (1189-1258). A Tibetan Buddhist master revered as the founder of the upper (stod) branch of the 'BRUG PA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. He was born in the LHO BRAG region of southern Tibet, and as a child was known for his pleasing appearance and his beautiful singing voice. In his youth, he studied under a number of tutors and finally reached RWA LUNG monastery, where he met his principal guru, the 'Brug pa Bka' brgyud founder GTSANG PA RGYA RAS YE SHES RDO RJE, from whom he received monastic ordination and extensive instruction. In accordance with his master's advice, he spent much of his life as a wandering YOGIN, traveling across central, southern, and western Tibet and visiting numerous pilgrimage places including KAILĀSA, TSA RI, and Jālandhara (the modern Kangra Valley of Himachal Pradesh in northwest India). He also established several important retreat centers where he passed many years in meditation, including Rgod tshang near modern-day Rtsib ri in Gtsang, Steng gro, Bde chen stengs, and Bar 'brogs Rdo rje gling.

Ri bo che. (Riwoche). A branch monastic seat of the STAG LUNG subsect of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, located near Chab mdo in eastern Tibet. Ri bo che's founder, Sangs rgyas dbon (Sangye Ön, 1250/1-1296) better known as Dbon po bla ma (Önpo Lama), previously served a brief period as abbot of Stag lung monastery, the subsect's main seat in central Tibet. According to traditional sources, Sangs rgyas dbon left central Tibet in order to fulfill the prophecy that he would construct an even greater monastic institution in the east. His departure, however, may have been hastened by political pressure exerted by Stag lung monastery's political patrons, who favored a rival abbot. Sangs rgyas dbon established Ri bo che in 1276, and while it originally served as a branch of Stag lung monastery, it later developed a strong, nearly independent tradition. With its grand, imposing structure, Ri bo che was renowned as one of the great centers of Buddhist learning in eastern Tibet, possessing an impressive library of religious works. Its monks were highly esteemed for their expertise in meditation.

rig pa. The standard Tibetan translation of the Sanskrit term VIDYĀ, or "knowledge." The Tibetan term, however, has a special meaning in the ATIYOGA and RDZOGS CHEN traditions of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, where it refers to the most profound form of consciousness. Some modern translators of Tibetan texts into European languages consider the term too profound to be rendered into a foreign language, while others translate it as "awareness," "pure awareness," or "mind." Unlike the "mind of clear light" (PRABHĀSVARACITTA; 'od gsal gyi sems) as described in other tantric systems, rig pa is not said to be accessible only in extraordinary states, such as death and sexual union; instead, it is fully present, although generally unrecognized, in each moment of sensory experience. Rig pa is described as the primordial basis, characterized with qualities such as presence, spontaneity, luminosity, original purity, unobstructed freedom, expanse, clarity, self-liberation, openness, effortlessness, and intrinsic awareness. It is not accessible through conceptual elaboration or logical analysis. Rather, rig pa is an eternally pure state free from the dualism of subject and object (cf. GRĀHYAGRĀHAKAVIKALPA), infinite and complete from the beginning. It is regarded as the ground or the basis of both SAMSĀRA and NIRVĀnA, with the phenomena of the world being its reflection; all thoughts and all objects of knowledge are said to arise from rig pa and dissolve into rig pa. The ordinary mind believes that its own creations are real, forgetting its true nature of original purity. For the mind willfully to seek to liberate itself is both inappropriate and futile because rig pa is already self-liberated. Rig pa therefore is also the path, and its exponents teach practices that instruct the student how to distinguish rig pa from ordinary mental states. These practices include a variety of techniques designed to eliminate karmic obstacles (KARMĀVARAnA), at which point the presence of rig pa in ordinary experience is introduced, allowing the mind to eliminate all thoughts and experiences itself, thereby recognizing its true nature. Rig pa is thus also the goal of the path, the fundamental state that is free from obscuration. Cf. LINGZHI.

Rimpoche ::: An honorific in Tibetan Buddhism for accomplished lamas and respected elders within a tradition.

rin chen gter mdzod. (rinchen terdzo). In Tibetan, "treasury of precious treasure teachings"; a collection of root texts, liturgical and ritual works, meditation manuals (SĀDHANA), commentarial, and supplemental literature pertaining to the genre of discovered treasure teachings (GTER MA) of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The collection was compiled and edited by the nineteenth-century savant 'JAM MGON KONG SPRUL BLO GROS MTHA' YAS and forms one of his five treasuries (KONG SPRUL MDZOD LNGA). Kong sprul's motivation for this massive project, resulting in sixty-three volumes of literature (over one hundred in modern redactions), was complex. The compilation preserves many systems of instruction that were in danger of being lost or forgotten, but it also forms a canonical collection of authoritative treasure texts-one of the first projects of its kind.

Rngog Legs pa'i shes rab. (Ngog Lekpe Sherap) (fl. eleventh century). Tibetan scholar and translator venerated as an important founder of the BKA' GDAMS sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The exact year of his year of birth is unclear, although it is known that he was born in the western Tibetan region of GU GE. According to Tibetan histories, he was one of twenty-one young scholars sent to India by the region's king, YE SHES 'OD, to study Sanskrit, Buddhist philosophy, and TANTRA. He returned to Tibet and became an important disciple of the Bengali master ATIsA DĪPAMKARAsRĪJNĀNA. He also studied under and collaborated with the famed translator RIN CHEN BZANG PO. Together with Atisa and 'BROM STON RGYAL BA'I 'BYUNG GNAS, Ngog Legs pa'i shes rab is considered an important Bka' gdams forefather. In 1073, he laid the foundations for an early monastic center for Buddhist learning, GSANG PHU NE'U THOG, south of LHA SA. He is also known as Rngog lo tsā ba (Ngog, the translator) and Rngog lo chung (Ngog, the junior translator) in distinction to Rin chen Bzang po, the great translator (lo chen).

Rnying ma'i rgyud 'bum. (Nyingme Gyübum). A compendium of the tantras and tantric exegetical literature of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism; considered apocryphal by the redactors of the Tibetan Buddhist canon (BKA' 'GYUR), the collection thus represents an alternative or supplementary Rnying ma canon of tantric scriptures. Numerous editions are extant, including the SDE DGE edition (twenty-six volumes), the Gting kye (twenty-six volumes), the Skyi rong (thirty-seven volumes), the Tsham brag (forty-six volumes), and the Vairo rgyud 'bum (eight volumes). All but the last divide the tantras into the standard Rnying ma doxographical categories of MAHĀYOGA, ANUYOGA, and ATIYOGA, although within those categories differences emerge (the Vairo rgyud 'bum, for example, includes only atiyoga). Further editions include those recently discovered in Kathmandu and the so-called Waddell edition, a close relative to the Gting kye. All but the Sde dge are manuscripts. Catalogues of Buddhist texts were made as far back as the eighth century, but the roots of the Rnying ma'i rgyud 'bum go back to the second propagation of Buddhism in Tibet (roughly the eleventh to thirteenth centuries). In opposition to the new translation sects (GSAR MA) that developed around newly imported tantras, adherents of the earlier translations coalesced into the Rnying ma, or "ancients," sect. There is evidence that 'Gro mgon Nam mkha' 'phel, the son of one of the earliest proponents of the Rnying ma sect, NYANG RAL NYI MA 'OD ZER, arranged a collection of early tantras in eighty-two volumes, which is no longer extant. The Vairo rgyud 'bum also may date as far back as the twelfth century, although its origins are unclear. When BU STON RIN CHEN GRUB edited the Tibetan Buddhist canon in the fourteenth century, he excluded the tantras found in the Rnying ma'i rgyud 'bum on the basis that he could find no Indic originals with which to authenticate them. Bu ston's position has been shown by Tibetan and Western scholars to have been partisan and inconsistent, and several tantras he excluded, such as the VAJRAKĪLAYA tantras, are accepted by other sects. Some excluded tantras do in fact appear to be early combinations of Indic and Tibetan material, while others, especially later revelatory scriptures (GTER MA) are entirely of Tibetan composition. An early version of the Rnying ma'i rgyud 'bum that may have influenced later editions was that of RATNA GLING PA, no longer extant. The Tshams brag appears to have been commissioned by Tsham brag bla ma Ngag dbang 'brug pa (1682-1748) and was based on a still earlier Bhutanese version. GTER BDAG GLING PA's edition later became the basis for that of 'JIGS MED GLING PA, in twenty-five volumes, which was produced in 1772, and is known as the Padma 'od gling edition. This in turn was the basis for the Sde dge block-print edition, carved between 1794 and 1798 and overseen by Dge rtse pan chen 'Gyur med mchog grub (1761-1829) of KAḤ THOG monastery.

Rnying ma. (Nyingma). In Tibetan, "Ancient," the name of one of the four major sects of Tibetan Buddhism. The name derives from the sect's origins during the "early dissemination" (SNGA DAR) of Buddhism in Tibet and its reliance on translations of TANTRAs made during that period; this is in distinction to the new (GSAR MA) sects of BKA' BRGYUD, SA SKYA, and DGE LUGS, all of which arose during the later dissemination (PHYI DAR) and make use of newer translations. The Rnying ma is thus "ancient" in relation to the new sects and only began to be designated as such after their appearance. The sect traces its origins back to the teachings of the mysterious figure of PADMASAMBHAVA, who visited Tibet during the eighth century and is said to have hidden many texts, called "treasures" (GTER MA), to be discovered in the future. In addition to the Buddhist canon accepted by all sects of Tibetan Buddhism, the Rnying ma adds another collection of tantras (the RNYING MA'I RGYUD 'BUM) as well as the discovered "treasure" (GTER MA) texts to their canonical corpus, works that in many cases the other sects regard as APOCRYPHA, i.e., not of Indian origin. Rnying ma identifies nine vehicles among the corpus of Buddhist teachings, the highest of which is known as ATIYOGA or, more commonly, the "great perfection" (RDZOGS CHEN). These teachings describe the mind as the primordial basis, characterized by qualities such as presence, spontaneity, luminosity, original purity, unobstructed freedom, expanse, clarity, self-liberation, openness, effortlessness, and intrinsic awareness. It is not accessible through conceptual elaboration or logical analysis. Rather, the primordial basis is an eternally pure state free from the dualism of subject and object, infinite and perfect from the beginning, and ever complete. The technique for the discovery of the ubiquitous original purity and self-liberation is to engage in a variety of practices designed to eliminate karmic obstructions, at which point the mind eliminates all thoughts and experiences itself, thereby recognizing its true nature. The rdzogs chen doctrine does not seem to derive directly from any of the Indian philosophical schools; its precise connections to the Indian Buddhist tradition have yet to be established. Some scholars have claimed an historical link and doctrinal affinity between rdzogs chen and the CHAN tradition of Chinese Buddhism, but the precise relationship between the two remains to be fully investigated. It is noteworthy that certain of the earliest extant rdzogs chen texts specifically contrast their own tradition with that of Chan. In comparison to the Dge lugs, Bka' brgyud, and Sa skya, the Rnying ma (with some important exceptions, notably at the time of the fifth DALAI LAMA) remained largely uninvolved in state politics, both within Tibet and in foreign relations. Although they developed great monasteries, such as SMIN GROL GLING, RDZOGS CHEN, and RDO RJE BRAG, the Rnying ma also maintained a strong local presence as lay tantric practitioners (sngags pa) who performed a range of ritual functions for the community. The Rnying ma produced many famous scholars and visionaries, such as KLONG CHEN RAB 'BYAMS, 'JIGS MED GLING PA, and MI PHAM. In the nineteenth century, Rnying ma scholars played a key role in the so-called nonsectarian movement (RIS MED) in eastern Tibet, which produced many important new texts.

Rnying ma pa. (Nyingmapa). A person affiliated with the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism.

Rwa lung. (Ralung). A principal monastic seat of the 'BRUG PA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, located southwest of LHA SA. The monastery was established in 1180 by the 'Brug pa founder GTSANG PA RGYA RAS YE SHES RDO RJE on a site consecrated by his master GLING RAS PA. According to traditional accounts, the site takes its name from a sacred goat whose milk was accidentally splashed on a rock. When the milk dried, the mantra oM aḥ huM was found miraculously inscribed on the rock face. Gling ras pa took this as an important omen and called the site Rwa lung, lit. "Goat's Omen." Rwa lung was first directed by Gtsang pa rgya ras and later, beginning in the fifteenth century, by his successive reincarnations (SPRUL SKU) known as the 'BRUG CHEN INCARNATIONS.

Sa chen Kun dga' snying po. (Sachen Kunga Nyingpo) (1092-1158). A great scholar and adept of the SA SKYA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, renowned especially for his writings on the tantric system of LAM 'BRAS, or "path and result." He is usually referred to simply as Sa chen, or "Great Master of Sa skya." Born the son of DKON MCHOG RGYAL PO, another important Sa skya master and first throne-holder of Sa skya monastery, he was a child prodigy. He first trained under the Sa skya hierarch Ba ri lo tsā ba Rin chen grags pa (Bari Lotsāwa Rinchen Drakpa, 1040-1111), from whom he received numerous transmissions of both SuTRA and TANTRA. At the age of eleven he began a meditation retreat in which he had a visionary encounter with the bodhisattva MANJUsRĪ. The bodhisattva spoke to him four lines that subsequently became a fundamental Sa skya teaching called the zhen pa bzhi bral ("parting from the four attachments"):

Sakya: A semi-reformed sect of Lamaism (Tibetan Buddhism); called the Multiple-Colored Sect.

sākyasrībhadra. (T. Shākya shrī) (1127-1225). Also known as sākyasrī, a monk and scholar from KASHMIR who played an important role in the later dissemination (PHYI DAR) of Buddhism in Tibet, especially for the SA SKYA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. He served as abbot at both NĀLANDĀ and VIKRAMAsĪLA monasteries. As the last abbot of Vikramasīla monastery, he witnessed its destruction by Muslim troops. Declaring that Buddhism had been destroyed in India, he traveled to Tibet in 1204 (at the age of seventy-seven, if his birth year of 1127 is accurate) at the invitation of the Tibetan translator Khro phu lo tsā ba, in the company of nine Indian and Nepalese panditas. There, he gave teachings on PRAMĀnA, ABHIDHARMA, VINAYA, the ABHISAMAYĀLAMKĀRA, MADHYAMAKA, TANTRA, and Sanskrit grammar and poetics. His most famous Tibetan disciple was SA SKYA PAndITA KUN DGA' RGYAL MTSHAN, whom he ordained as a BHIKsU in 1208. It is said that sākyasrībhadra gave him the name Sa skya Pandita ("Scholar from Sa skya") because of his ability to spontaneously translate Tibetan into Sanskrit. The two worked together on a new translation of DHARMAKĪRTI's PRAMĀnAVĀRTTIKA, marking the beginning of Sa skya Pandita's influence in the field of pramāna. sākyasrībhadra's ordination lineage, known as the Kha che lugs, or "Kashmiri system," would be adopted by the GSAR MA sects. sākyasrībhadra gave teachings at many monasteries in central and western Tibet, ordained many monks, translated Sanskrit texts, and established several monasteries. While at BSAM YAS, he discovered a manuscript of the GUHYAGARBHATANTRA and vouched for its authenticity. He is also credited with providing the Tibetans with a more accurate chronology of the life of the Buddha. In 1212, he consecrated a great statue of MAITREYA at Khro pu. After ten years in Tibet, he returned to his native Kashmir where he spent the last decade of his life. He is often referred to in Tibetan simply as Kha che pan chen, the "great pandita from Kashmir."

samānapratibhāsadharmin. (T. chos can mthun snang). In Sanskrit, lit. "subject that appears the same" or "commonly appearing subject," a term in Buddhist logic, particularly important in Tibetan Buddhism. This term refers to the common basis (T. gzhi mthun) that must be present in order for a reasonable and constructive debate to occur. In other words, if adherents of two different doctrinal systems try to debate, but employ only terms and ideas that are unique to their own systems, then no position can be effectively proven or refuted. Furthermore, the participants in a debate must have a common understanding of the subject that is being debated and a shared understanding of what constitutes a logical example. This term is also understood to mean that the participants in a debate must understand the scripture on which the debate is based. Some Buddhist philosophers, such as Jayānanda, refuted the notion that debate or inference (ANUMĀNA) was in any way constructive on the following general grounds: to the enlightened mind, all phenomena are devoid of substance or definition and therefore no phenomenon can serve as a samānapratibhāsadharmin. This is a central issue in MADHYAMAKA, where the proponent of emptiness (suNYATĀ) rejects the notion of anything that possesses its own nature (SVABHĀVA). This raises the question of whether there is a commonly appearing subject in a debate between a Madhyamaka and non-Madhyamaka; if there is, to what degree is the appearance "common"; and how does the Madhyamaka present his position under such circumstances.

Samantabhadra. (T. Kun tu bzang po; C. Puxian; J. Fugen; K. Pohyon 普賢). The Sanskrit name of both an important bodhisattva in Indian and East Asian Buddhism and of an important buddha in Tibetan Buddhism. As a bodhisattva, Samantabhadra is a principal bodhisattva of the MAHĀYĀNA pantheon, who is often portrayed as the personification of the perfection of myriad good works and spiritual practices. He is one of the AstAMAHOPAPUTRA, and an attendant of sĀKYAMUNI Buddha, standing opposite MANJUsRĪ at the Buddha's side. In the PANCATATHĀGATA configuration, he is associated with the buddha VAIROCANA. Samantabhadra figures prominently in the AVATAMSAKASuTRA. In a chapter named after him, he sets forth ten SAMĀDHIs. In the GAndAVYuHA (the final chapter of the AvataMsakasutra), the bodhisattva SUDHANA sets out in search of a teacher, encountering fifty-two beings (twenty of whom are female), including the Buddha's mother Mahāmāyā (MĀYĀ), the future buddha MAITREYA, as well as AVALOKITEsVARA and MANJUsRĪ. His final teacher is the bodhisattva Samantabhadra, who sets forth the ten vows in his famous BHADRACARĪPRAnIDHĀNA. In China, the center of Samantabhadra's worship is EMEISHAN in Sichuan province, which began to develop in the early Tang. According to legend, Samantabhadra arrived at the mountain by flying there on his white elephant, his usual mount. As a buddha, Samantabhadra is the primordial buddha (ĀDIBUDDHA) according to the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. He is depicted naked, blue, and in sexual union with his consort Samantabhadrī. He is embodiment of the original purity of all phenomena of SAMSĀRA and NIRVĀnA. Called the "primordial basis" (ye gzhi), he is regarded as the eternal union of awareness (RIG PA) and emptiness (suNYATĀ), of emptiness and appearance, and of the nature of the mind and compassion. As such he is the wellspring of the ATIYOGA teachings.

sambhala. (T. bde 'byung). Often spelled Shambhala. In the texts associated with the KĀLACAKRATANTRA, the kingdom of sambhala is said to be located north of the Himālayan range. It is a land devoted to the practice of the Kālacakratantra, which the Buddha himself had entrusted to sambhala's king SUCANDRA, who had requested that the Buddha set forth the tantra. The kingdom of sambhala is shaped like a giant lotus and is filled with sandalwood forests and lotus lakes, all encircled by a massive range of snowy peaks. In the center of the kingdom is the capital, Kalapa, where the luster of the palaces, made from gold, silver, and jewels, outshines the moon; the walls of the palaces are plated with mirrors that reflect a light so bright that night is like day. In the very center of the city is the MAndALA of the buddha Kālacakra. The inhabitants of the 960 million villages of sambhala are ruled by a beneficent king, called the Kalkin. The laypeople are all beautiful and wealthy, free of sickness and poverty; the monks maintain their precepts without the slightest infraction. They are naturally intelligent and virtuous, devoted to the practice of the VAJRAYĀNA, although all authentic forms of Indian Buddhism are preserved. The majority of those reborn there attain buddhahood during their lifetime in sambhala. The Kālacakratantra also predicts an apocalyptic war. In the year 2425 CE, the barbarians (generally identified as Muslims) and demons who have destroyed Buddhism in India will set out to invade sambhala. The twenty-fifth Kalkin, Raudracakrin, will lead his armies out of his kingdom and into India, where they will meet the forces of evil in a great battle, from which the forces of Buddhism will emerge victorious. The victory will usher in a golden age in which human life span will increase, crops will grow without being cultivated, and the entire population of the earth will devote itself to the practice of Buddhism. Given the importance of the Kālacakratantra in Tibetan Buddhism, sambhala figures heavily in Tibetan Buddhist belief and practice; in the DGE LUGS sect, it is said that the PAn CHEN LAMAs are reborn as kings of sambhala. There is also a genre of guidebooks (lam yig) that provide the route to sambhala. The location of sambhala has long been a subject of fascination in the West. sambhala plays an important role in the Theosophy of HELENA PETROVNA BLAVATSKY, and the Russian Theosophist Nicholas Roerich led two expeditions in search of sambhala. The name sambhala is considered the likely inspiration of "Shangri-La," described in James Hilton's 1933 novel Lost Horizon.

Sangs rgyas gling pa. (Sangye Lingpa) (1340-1396). Tibetan treasure revealer (GTER STON) and master of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. He was born in the southern Tibetan region of Rkong po (Kongpo) and experienced visions of AVALOKITEsVARA as a child. He was ordained as a BHIKsU at Byang chub gling monastery on TSA RI. From the age of thirty-four onward, he is credited with discovering numerous treasure cycles, especially from the region of Rkong po. Foremost among these are the "six root tantras of the gathering intentions" (dgongs 'dus rtsa ba'i rgyud drug), which he later divided into thirteen volumes. These teachings were acclaimed by masters of varied sectarian affiliation including the fourth and fifth KARMA PAs, the latter transmitting them to the Ming emperor Yongle.

Sa skya gong ma rnam lnga. (Sakya Gongma Namnga). In Tibetan, "five Sa skya forefathers," or "five hierarchs of Sa skya." Five great masters, the most illustrious scholar-saints of the aristocratic 'Khon family, revered as early founders and teachers of the SA SKYA sect of Tibetan Buddhism.

Sa skya khri 'dzin. (Sakya Tridzin). In Tibetan, lit. "throne holder of SA SKYA," used as a title for the principal religious leader of the Sa skya sect of Tibetan Buddhism. It is a hereditary position assumed by male members (often a son or nephew) of the ancient 'Khon family that traces its lineage back to 'Khon DKON MCHOG RGYAL PO, who founded Sa skya monastery in 1073. The forty-first holder of the Sa skya throne, Ngag dbang kun dga' theg chen dpal 'bar (Ngawang Kunga Tekchen Pelbar) (b. 1945), was born in southern Tibet. Following his enthronement at Sa skya monastery in 1959, he escaped the Chinese communist invasion by fleeing to India where he established a new seat near the former British hill station of Dehradun. He continues to travel throughout Asia, Europe, and North America, where he teaches to a wide audience.

Sa skya pa. An adherent of the SA SKYA sect of Tibetan Buddhism.

Sa skya Pandita Kun dga' rgyal mtshan. (Sakya Pandita Kunga Gyaltsan) (1182-1251). Although associated primarily with the SA SKYA sect, Sa skya Pandita is traditionally considered one of the greatest savants and religious luminaries in the history of Tibetan Buddhism. He authored a number of seminal philosophical treatises, and beyond his role as scholar and logician, played an instrumental role in forging a relationship with the Mongol court. The name Sa skya Pandita is an honorific title, meaning "Scholar of Sa skya," often abbreviated as Sa pan. Born into a renowned family, he was the grandson of SA CHEN KUN DGA' SNYING PO and the nephew of the Sa skya BSOD NAMS RTSE MO and Grags pa rgyal mtshan (Drakpa Gyaltsen, 1147-1216), from whom he received teachings. Sa pan began his studies at a young age, and was quickly recognized as a prodigy. He studied extensively with the leading masters of his day, including scholars from the great centers of learning in India, such as sĀKYAsRĪBHADRA, from whom he received BHIKsU ordination in 1208. He excelled in all fields of Buddhist knowledge, especially Sanskrit grammar and poetics and the logical treatises on epistemology (PRAMĀnA). In 1216, Grags pa rgyal mtshan passed away, and Sa pan became the principal religious master of Sa skya. The next twenty-eight years of his career were highly productive. It was during this time that he composed his pramāna masterpiece, TSHAD MA RIGS GTER ("Treasury of Logical Reasoning") circa 1219, and his great synthetic doctrinal tract, SDOM GSUM RAB DBYE ("Clear Differentiation of the Three Vows"), in about 1232. He was renowned as both a debater (famously defeating a renowned Hindu scholar) and a polemicist, composing works critical of various doctrines of the rival BKA' BRGYUD, RNYING MA, and JO NANG sects. In 1244 Sa pan received a summons to the court of the Mongol prince Godan for the purpose of negotiating the submission of Tibet to Mongol authority. Traveling slowly across Tibet together with his nephew and eventual successor 'PHAGS PA BLO GROS RGYAL MTSHAN, he reached the Mongol court and met with Godan in 1247. The prince was greatly impressed by Sa pan's erudition, as well as his magical and medical powers; the prince is said to have converted to Buddhism after Sa pan cured him of a skin disease. Tibet was subsequently spared Mongol occupation, and the Sa skya sect, with Sa pan as its chief prelate, was granted political authority within Tibet, a position that was later passed on to 'Phags pa by Qubilai Khan. The relation of Sa pan, and later 'Phags pa, with the Mongol ruler would be cited as the paradigm of the so-called "priest-patron" (YON MCHOD) relationship. Sa pan did not live to return to Tibet, passing away at the capital of Godan's court. Sa pan authored more than a hundred works and translated many texts from Sanskrit into Tibetan. Among his compositions, the five most famous are, including the two listed above: Legs bshad ("Elegant Sayings"), Mkhas pa rnams 'jug pa'i sgo ("Entrance Gate for the Wise"), and Thub pa'i dgongs gsal ("Elucidating the Intention of the Sage").

Sa skya. (Sakya). In Tibetan, lit. "gray earth"; a principal sect and monastery of the Tibetan tradition. The Sa skya was politically powerful during the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries and renowned for its scholastic training and emphasis on the tantric system of LAM 'BRAS, or "path and result." Its name is derived from the sect's original institution of Sa skya monastery (see infra), which was named after a place by that name, meaning "gray earth"; the monastery is painted with a distinctive gray-blue wash. Sa skya doctrinal history extends back to the Indian adept VIRuPA, who is considered a primary source for the instructions on the HEVAJRATANTRA and lam 'bras, and the Tibetan translator 'BROG MI SHĀKYA YE SHES, who carried these teachings to Tibet. The founding of the Sa skya sect in Tibet is attributed to members of the ancient 'Khon family including DKON MCHOG RGYAL PO, a disciple of 'Brog mi. Dkon mchog rgyal po founded Sa skya monastery in 1073, with its tantric practice based on the new tantras that were then being brought from India; Sa skya is thus one of the "new translation" (GSAR MA) sects. His son SA CHEN KUN DGA' SNYING PO promulgated the seminal Sa skya instructions on the Hevajratantra and lam 'bras. In 1247 the acclaimed scholar SA SKYA PAndITA KUN DGA' RGYAL MTSHAN fashioned an agreement with the Mongol ruler Godan Khan, in which the Tibetan monk was granted supreme political authority in Tibet. Later, Sa skya Pandita's nephew, 'PHAGS PA BLO BROS RGYAL MTSHAN formed a similar agreement with Qubilai Khan, establishing Sa skya rule into the fourteenth century. The principal leaders of the Sa skya were traditionally chosen from among members of the 'Khon family and the position of SA SKYA KHRI 'DZIN, or "Sakya Throne Holder," continues to be a hereditary, as opposed to an incarnation-based, position. Beginning in the fifteenth century several branches of the Sa skya sect developed. The NGOR subsect was established by KUN DGA' BZANG PO, known as Ngor chen ("great man of Ngor"), who founded a seat at NGOR E WAM CHOS LDAN in 1429. Blo gsal rgya mtsho (Losel Gyatso, 1502-1566), called Tshar chen ("great man of Tshar"), established the Tshar Sa skya lineage. Also counted among the greatest Sa skya masters are the SA SKYA GONG MA RNAM LNGA, the so-called "five Sa skya forefathers." ¶ Sa skya is also the name of the monastery that is the monastic seat of the Sa skya sect of Tibetan Buddhism, located in Gtsang (Tsang) in central Tibet, and founded in 1073 by the Sa skya hierarch Sa chen kun dga' snying po. It served as the site of Tibetan political power during the period of Sa skya dominance in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. The central monastic complex is a massive, imposing structure, renowned for its extensive library.

Sde dge. (Derge). A region on the Tibet-China border, which until the 1950s was one of the most famous kingdoms in Khams; now incorporated into China's Sichuan province. The kingdom with its twenty-five districts enjoyed the autonomy of an independent state throughout much of its existence. Included among its famous monasteries are DPAL SPUNGS, KAḤ THOG, RDZOGS CHEN, ZHE CHEN, and DPAL YUL. From the eighteenth century onward, its royal family supported a famous printery that became the repository of hundreds of thousands of woodblock prints. The printing of the entire BKA' 'GYUR and BSTAN 'GYUR edited by TAI SI TU Gstug lag chos kyi 'byung gnas (1700-1774) and of the foundational texts of the SA SKYA and RNYING MA sects, among others, were started there in 1729 and completed in 1744. In the nineteenth century, the region became the center of the Khams RIS MED (nonsectarian) movement; many of the modern traditions of Tibetan Buddhism can be traced back to its founders 'JAM MGON KONG SPRUL, 'JAM DBYANGS MKHYEN BRTSE, and DPAL SPRUL RIN PO CHE.

Sdom gsum rab dbye. (Domsum Rapye). In Tibetan, "Clear Differentiation of the Three Vows," an important work by the Tibetan master SA SKYA PAndITA KUN DGA' RGYAL MTSHAN. Composed in verse, around 1232, it deals with the three vows or codes: the PRĀTIMOKsA vows, the BODHISATTVA vows, and the tantric vows (SAMAYA). In Tibet, it was considered possible, and in some cases ideal, for the Buddhist practitioner to receive and maintain all three sets of precepts: the monk's precepts (prātimoksa), which from the Tibetan perspective derived from the HĪNAYĀNA; the bodhisattva precepts, which derived from the MAHĀYĀNA, and the tantric precepts, which derived from the VAJRAYĀNA. However, there was a wide range of opinion on the relation among these three and how to resolve contradictions among them. The "Clear Differentiation of the Three Vows" is not an exposition of the three sets of precepts, but rather a polemical work in which Sa skya Pandita criticizes interpretations of the three then current in the other sects of Tibetan Buddhism. Sa skya Pandita's own view, in brief, was that the prātimoksa and the bodhisattva precepts provided the foundation for the tantric precepts, such that someone receiving tantric initiation should already hold the other two sets. The work provoked hostile responses from those whose views were criticized in the text, leading Sa skya Pandita to reply to his critics in a series of letters. His text sparked the development in subsequent centuries of a genre of texts on the three vows or codes (SDOM GSUM).

Se ra. A large monastic complex counted among the "three seats" (GDAN SA GSUM) of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism, located at the north end of the LHA SA valley. TSONG KHA PA wrote Rtsa she tik chen rigs pa'i rgya mtsho, his commentary on NĀGĀRJUNA's MuLAMADHYAMAKAKĀRIKĀ, in a hermitage above the future site of the monastery and predicted that it would become a great seat of learning. Foundations for the complex were laid in 1419 by Byams chen chos rje Shākya ye shes (Jamchen Choje Shākya Yeshe, 1354-1435), a disciple of Tsong kha pa. Begun as a center for tantric studies, four colleges were later established, which were later consolidiated into two: Se ra smad (Sera Me) and Se ra byes (Sera Je). Se ra byes, the larger of the two, was constructed by Kun mkhyen blo gros rin chen seng ge (Künkyen Lodro Rinchen Senge, fl. fifteenth century), a disciple of both Tsong kha pa and Byams chen chos rjes. A third college, the Sngags pa drwa tshang (Ngakpa Dratsang) or tantric college, was established in the eighteenth century, most likely under the patronage of the Mongolian ruler Lha bzang Khan. Traditionally said to house 5,500 monks, Se ra was home to roughly eight thousand monks at its peak, with some thirty-five regional dormitories (khams tshan). Monks from Se ra participated in the 1959 uprising against the Chinese People's Liberation Army, which led to the monastery being closed and used as an army barracks. It also suffered significant damage during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. After that, it reopened as a monastery, but with a much smaller monastic population. Following the exodus of Tibetans into exile after 1959, a new Se ra monastery was also established in south India, near the town of Bylakuppe.

Sgam po pa Bsod nams rin chen. (Gampopa Sonam Rinchen) (1079-1153). A principal disciple of the Tibetan YOGIN MI LA RAS PA and leading figure in the early formation of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. At an early age, Sgam po pa trained as a physician but renounced his career and received monastic ordination at the age of twenty-five following the death of his wife and child. He is often known as Dwags po lha rje (Dakpo Lhaje), "the physician from Dakpo," because of his vocation. Sgam po pa initially trained in the BKA' GDAMS tradition under the master Snyug rum pa Brtson 'grus rgyal mtshan (Nyukrumpa Tsondru Gyaltsen, b. eleventh century) as well as Po to ba Rin chen gsal. At the age of thirty-one, he heard three beggars discussing Mi la ras pa and experienced a strong feeling of faith. He asked permission of his Bka' gdams teachers to study with him, which they granted under the condition that he not renounce his monk's precepts. When he met Mi la ras pa in 1109, Sgam po pa offered him gold and tea, which he refused. Mi la ras pa offered him a skullcup full of wine, which Sgam po pa initially declined but then drank, even though it was a violation of his monk's vows. He received a number of teachings from Mi la ras pa, first concerning VAJARVĀRĀHĪ, and later the transmission of MAHĀMUDRĀ instructions and the "six yogas of Nāropa" (NĀ RO CHOS DRUG), stemming from the Indian MAHĀSIDDHAs TILOPA and NĀROPA. Later, Sgam po pa developed his own system of exposition, fusing elements of his Bka' gdams pa training with the perspectives and practices of mahāmudrā. This has been called the "confluence of the two streams of Bka' gdams pa and mahāmudrā" (bka' phyag chu bo gnyis 'dres). Unlike Mi la ras pa, he kept the practices of mahāmudrā and sexual yoga separate, teaching the latter only to select disciples. Sgam po pa remained a monk, founding his monastic seat at DWAGS LHA SGAM PO in southern Tibet and composing numerous works on Buddhist doctrine and practice. His work entitled THAR PA RIN PO CHE'I RGYAN ("Jewel Ornament of Liberation"), remains a seminal Bka' rgyud textbook. He also promulgated the controversial system of mahāmudrā instructions known as the DKAR PO CHIG THUB, or "self-sufficient white [remedy]." The lineage of Bka' brgyud masters and teachings following Sgam po pa came to be known collectively as the DWAGS PO BKA' BRGYUD. The division of the lineage into numerous subsects called the BKA' BRGYUD CHE BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD or "four major and eight minor Bka' brgyud subsects" stem from the disciples of Sgam po pa and his nephew Dwags po Sgom tshul (Dakpo Gomtsul, 1116-1169). Sgam po pa's principal disciples included the first KARMA PA DUS GSUM MKHYEN PA and PHAG MO GRU PA RDO RJE RGYAL PO.

Shamthab ::: In Tibetan Buddhism this is a lower garment sometimes worn in ritualistic practices or gatherings.

Shangs pa bka' brgyud. (Shangpa Kagyü). In Tibetan, "Succession of the Transmitted Precepts of the Shang Valley"; a lineage of Tibetan Buddhism traced back to its founder KHYUNG PO RNAL 'BYOR TSHUL KHRIMS MGON PO who was active in the Shangs Valley of western Tibet. It is generally counted as one of the eight great conveyances that are lineages of attainment (SGRUB BRGYUD SHING RTA CHEN PO BRGYAD). The teachings and practice of the Shangs pa bka' brgyud are in many ways similar to those of the MAR PA BKA' BRGYUD and stem from two principal sources: (1) a tantric system of instruction known as the six doctrines of NIGUMA (Ni gu chos drug), similar to those associated with NĀROPA, of whom Niguma is said to have been the wife or sister; and (2) the MAHĀMUDRĀ text entitled PHYAG CHEN GA'U MA ("Amulet Box Mahāmudrā"). Few Shangs pa bka' brgyud institutions were ever constructed, and the sect has almost disappeared as an independent entity. However, the Shangs pa bka' brgyud was highly influential in Tibet and its most important instructions were also transmitted within the BKA' BRGYUD, DGE LUGS, SA SKYA, JO NANG, and RNYING MA sects. Shangs pa teachings have been especially promulgated in modern times by the late contemporary master KALU RINPOCHE.

Shug gseb bka' brgyud. (Shuksep Kagyü). One of the four major and eight minor subsects of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism (BKA' BRGYUD CHE BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD), considered to have been founded by GYER SGOM TSHUL KHRIM SENG GE, a disciple of the Bka' brgyud hierarch PHAG MO GRU PA RDO RJE RGYAL PO.

Shug gseb. (Shuksep). A Tibetan nunnery located south of LHA SA on a site originally sanctified by the great female adept MA GCIG LAB SGRON. The nunnery and its connected retreat center were established by GYER SGOM TSHUL KHRIM SENG GE, founder of the SHUG GSEB BKA' BRGYUD subsect of Tibetan Buddhism. Due to its close proximity to GANGS RI THOD DKAR, a favored retreat site of RNYING MA master KLONG CHEN RAB 'BYAMS, the nunnery developed a close relationship with the Rnying ma sect from the fourteenth century onwards. The nunnery was home to an important female incarnate lama (SPRUL SKU), the Shug gseb Rje btsun ma (Shuksep Jetsunma).

siddhānta. (T. grub mtha'; C. zong; J. shu; K. chong 宗). In Sanskrit, "conclusion" or "tenet," the term is used to refer to the various schools of Indian philosophy (both Buddhist and non-Buddhist), to their particular positions, and to texts that set out those positions in a systematic fashion. The most important examples of Buddhist siddhānta texts in India are BHĀVAVIVEKA's [alt. Bhavya] autocommentary (called TARKAJVĀLĀ) on his MADHYAMAKAHṚDAYAKĀRIKĀ and sĀNTARAKsITA's TATTVASAMGRAHA; both set forth the positions of non-Buddhist and Buddhist philosophies in order to demonstrate the superiority of their respective MADHYAMAKA positions. They are paralleled in Indian non-Buddhist literature by sankarācārya's Brahmasutrabhāsya, for example, that sets forth the views of nāstika (heterodox) and āstika (orthodox) schools and shows the weaknesses and strengths in each as a strategy to demonstrate the superiority of sankara's own Advaita Vedānta philosophy. None of these Indian works were written simply as informative textbooks about the tenets of different Indian schools of thought. They instead have clear polemical agendas: namely, demonstrating the superiority of their own position, and showing how the lesser philosophies are either a hindrance or a stepping stone to their own philosophy, as revealed by the Buddha in the case of Buddhist siddhānta, and by the Vedas in the case of non-Buddhists. The SarvadarsanasaMgraha, a medieval work written from the perspective of a later Advaita school based on sankara's model, was important during the early reception of Buddhism in Europe and America in the nineteenth century because it cites the works of different schools of philosophy, including YOGĀCĀRA and Madhyamaka writers that were otherwise unknown at the time. As a literary genre, siddhānta reaches its full development in Tibet, where ever more detailed classifications of Indian and later Chinese, Tibetan, and Mongolian schools of Buddhism are found. Of particular importance are works known by the names of their authors: Dbu pa blo gsal (Upa Losel) (fl, fourteenth century), the first 'JAM DBYANGS BZHAD PA (1648-1721), and Lcang skya Rol pa'i rdo rje (1717-1786). Customarily Tibetan Buddhist siddhāntas employ the following structure: under the rubric of non-Buddhist (T. phyi pa) philosophies, they discuss the positions of the six schools that include Nyāya, Vaisesika, JAINA, SāMkhya, Yoga, and MīmāMsā. They are all dismissed as inferior, based on their assertion of the existence of a self (ĀTMAN) and a creator deity (īsvara), both positions that are refuted in Buddhism. The Buddhist schools are set forth in ascending order, starting with the HĪNAYĀNA schools of VAIBHĀsIKA and SAUTRĀNTIKA, followed by the Mahāyāna schools of Yogācāra and Madhyamaka. A typical structure for the presentation of each school was a tripartite division into the basis (gzhi), which set forth matters of epistemology and ontology; the path (lam), which set forth the structure of the path according to the particular school; and the fruition ('bras bu), which set forth the school's understanding of the enlightenment of ARHATs and buddhas. In Tibet, the genre of siddhānta was later expanded to include works that set forth the various sects and schools of Tibetan Buddhism and Chinese Buddhism. Cf. JIAOXIANG PANSHI.

Sitātapatrā. (T. Gdugs dkar; C. Baisangaifoding; J. Byakusangaibutcho; K. Paeksan'gae Pulchong 白傘蓋佛頂). In Sanskrit, "White Parasol," an important female bodhisattva in the MAHĀYĀNA and tantric pantheons. In some accounts, she is said to have emerged from the Buddha's crown protrusion (UsnĪsA) and therefore is sometimes called Usnīsasitātapatrā. She has numerous forms, but the most famous has a thousand heads, a thousand arms, and a thousand feet, with three eyes in each head and an eye in each hand and foot. Sitātapatrā is regarded as a powerful deity, capable of destroying enemies and removing obstacles. During the Mongol Yuan dynasty, she was venerated by emperors because she was believed to be able to destroy armies and overcome disasters. She continues to be highly venerated in Tibetan Buddhism.

Smar tshang bka' brgyud. (Martsang Kagyü). One of the four major and eight minor subsects of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism (BKA' BRGYUD CHE BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD), originating with Smar pa Shes rab seng ge (Marpa Sherap Senge, d.u.), student of Bka' brgyud hierarch PHAG MO GRU PA RDO RJE RGYAL PO.

Smin grol gling. (Mindroling). Largest monastery of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism in central Tibet; established in 1670 by GTER BDAG GLING PA, the brother of LO CHEN DHARMA SHRI, and a close associate and supporter of the fifth DALAI LAMA. It was founded on the site of an earlier structure built in the early eleventh century by Klu mes Shes rab tshul khrims (Lume Sherap Tsultrim, b. c. tenth century). Smin grol gling flourished as the center of the Southern Treasure tradition (LHO GTER), which originated with the teachings and revelations of Gter bdag gling pa. The monastic compound was severely damaged by the Dzungar army in the early eighteenth century and again during the Chinese Cultural Revolution, although it has since undergone significant restoration. The abbots of Smin grol gling became known as the Smin gling khri can (Throne Holder of Mindroling), a line of important masters descending in a familial lineage from Gter bdag gling pa. The lineage of Smin grol gling throneholders is

Snga 'gyur rnying ma. (Ngagyur nyingma). A Tibetan term referring to the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, lit. "Early Translation Ancient Tradition," referring to the fact that the Rnying ma sect relies on translations, especially translations of TANTRAs, that were made prior to the later dissemination (PHYI DAR) of Buddhism to Tibet. In distinction, the other sects of Tibetan Buddhism are called "new" (GSAR MA).

sngon 'gro. (ngondro). In Tibetan, lit "going before," viz., "preliminary practices"; referring generally to practices that are performed in order to establish proper motivation, to purify the mind of afflictions, and to remove obstacles before embarking upon tantric practice. Although present in all sects of Tibetan Buddhism, "preliminary practices" are especially associated with the RNYING MA and BKA' BRGYUD sects. One of the most famous presentations of the preliminary practices is found in the nineteenth-century Rnying ma pa work, the KUN BZANG BLA MA'I ZHAL LUNG ("Words of My Perfect Teacher") by DPAL SPRUL RIN PO CHE. The text first sets forth the "common preliminaries," reflections on central points of Buddhist doctrine, intended to turn one's interests away from SAMSĀRA and toward the wish for liberation from rebirth. These are: (1) the rarity of human birth, (2) the uncertainty of the time of death, (3) the causes and effect of actions, (4) and the sufferings incumbent in the six rebirth destinies (GATI) of SAMSĀRA. The "uncommon preliminary practice" entail the accumulation of a specific number (usually one hundred thousand) of specific practices. It is these practices that are intended to purify afflictions and remove obstacles. These are (1) recitation of the refuge formula while performing a hundred thousand prostrations; (2) cultivation of BODHICITTA (often in the form of a hundred thousand repetitions of a prayer); (3) recitation of the hundred-syllable MANTRA of the buddha VAJRASATTVA; (4) a hundred thousand offerings of a MAndALA; (5) the practice of GURU yoga through a hundred thousand repetitions of the name mantra of the guru. In each case, these practices are to be performed with the appropriate visualization. In order to complete the uncommon preliminary practices, disciples would often go on retreat, during which they would devote all their time to the practices.

snying thig. (nyingtik). In Tibetan, "heart drop" or "heart essence" (an abbreviation of snying gi thig le), a term used to describe an important genre of texts of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The master sRĪSIMHA is said to have divided the "instruction class" (MAN NGAG SDE) of the great completion (RDZOGS CHEN) teachings into four cycles: the outer, inner, secret, and the most secret unexcelled cycle (yang gsang bla na med pa). In Tibet, VIMALAMITRA organized the teachings of this fourth cycle into an explanatory lineage with scriptures and an aural lineage without scriptures and then concealed these teachings, which were later revealed as the BI MA'I SNYING THIG ("Heart Essence of Vimalamitra"). During his stay in Tibet, PADMASAMBHAVA concealed teachings on the most secret unexcelled cycle, called "heart essence of the dĀKINĪ" (MKHA' 'GRO SNYING THIG). In the fourteenth century, these and other teachings were compiled and elaborated upon by KLONG CHEN RAB 'BYAMS into what are known as the "four heart essences" (SNYING THIG YA BZHI): (1) the "heart essence of VIMALAMITRA" (Bi ma'i snying thig), (2) the "ultimate essence of the lama" (bla ma yang thig), (3) the "heart essence of the dākinī" (mkha' 'gro snying thig), and (4) two sections composed by Klong chen pa, the "ultimate essence of the dākinī" (mkha' 'gro yang thig) and the "ultimate essence of the profound" (zab mo yang thig). Although tracing its roots back to Padmasambhava and Vimalamitra in the eighth century, the snying thig texts and their practices likely derive from Tibetan reformulations of great completion teachings beginning in the eleventh century, when new translations of Indian tantras were being made in Tibet. A wide range of new meditative systems were added into the rdzogs chen corpus, which would prove to be essential to Tibetan Buddhist practice, especially in the RNYING MA and BKA' BRGYUD sects in subsequent centuries.

sprul sku. A Tibetan term often seen transcribed in English as "tulku"; it is the Tibetan translation of the Sanskrit term NIRMĀnAKĀYA, the third of the three bodies of a buddha (TRIKĀYA), the "emanation body" that appears in the world for the benefit of sentient beings. Although the term retains this standard Buddhological meaning in Tibetan, sprul sku is used by extension to refer to an "incarnate lama," and the term is sometimes translated as such. It is not believed in every case that each incarnate lama is the emanation body of a buddha. However, the implication is that there is a difference in the processes whereby ordinary beings and incarnate lamas take birth in the world. For the former, rebirth is process over which one has no control, with a strong possibility that one's new life will be in the lower rebirth destinies (DURGATI) as an animal, hungry ghost, or hell denizen. The rebirth of an "emanation body" is instead considered to be a voluntary choice. The sprul sku are said to exercise control over their rebirth; a dying incarnation will often leave instructions for his disciples as to where to find his next rebirth. The practice of identifying children as the incarnations of deceased masters may date from as early as the eleventh or twelfth century. By the fifteenth century, all sects of Tibetan Buddhism had adopted the practice of identifying the successive rebirths of a great teacher, the most famous instance of which are the DALAI LAMAs. There were some three thousand lines of incarnation in Tibet (only several of whom are female). It was also the case that a single lama may have more than one incarnation; there were sometimes three, which were considered individual incarnations of the body, speech, and mind of the deceased master. The institution of the incarnate lama became a central component of Tibetan society, providing the means by which authority and charisma, both symbolic and material, was passed from one generation to another. The spread of Tibetan Buddhism can be traced by the increasingly large geographical areas in which incarnate lamas have been discovered. A variety of types and levels of sprul sku are identified. A mchog gi sprul sku (choki tulku) (UTTAMANIRMĀnAKĀYA) is a buddha, such as sĀKYAMUNI, who appears in the world with a body adorned with the major and minor marks of a MAHĀPURUsA. A skye ba'i sprul sku (kyewe tulku) (JANMANIRMĀnAKĀYA) is the appearance of a buddha in the form of an animal, human, or divinity. Tibetan incarnate lamas would fall into this category. Also in this category would be those cases in which a buddha appears as an inanimate object that provides benefit to sentient beings, such as a bridge across a river, a path, a tree, or a cooling breeze. A bzo bo sprul sku (sowo tulku) (sILPANIRMĀnAKĀYA) is an artisan or craftsman or a particular manifestation of artistic beauty that subdues the afflictions (KLEsA). Within the the large DGE LUGS PA monasteries, a monk with the title of tshogs chen sprul sku (tsokchen tulku, "great assembly tulku") is excused from performing regular assembly duties. In Tibetan, an incarnate lama is addressed and referred to as RIN PO CHE (precious one), although that term is also used for abbots and other holders of high ecclesiastical office; it may also be used for one's teacher, even if he or she is not an incarnate lama. The term BLA MA (lama) is typically used to refer to incarnations but is also used widely for a teacher.

Stag lung bka' brgyud. (Taklung Kagyü). One of the four major and eight minor subsects of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism (BKA' BRGYUD CHE BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD), founded by STAG LUNG THANG PA BKRA SHIS DPAL, a principal disciple of the Bka' brgyud hierarch PHAG MO GRU PA RDO RJE RGYAL PO. Its original seat was STAG LUNG monastery located north of LHA SA, although a branch institution was later founded in the eastern Tibetan region of Khams at RI BO CHE, which eventually eclipsed the former as a center of learning and formed a strong, nearly independent lineage.

Stag lung. (Taklung). The central Tibetan monastic seat of the STAG LUNG subsect of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Originally founded north of LHA SA in 1180 by STAG LUNG THANG PA BKRA SHIS DPAL, the monastery flourished under the guidance of his successors Sku yal ba Rin chen mgon po (Kuyalwa Rinchen Gonpo, 1191-1236) and Sangs rgyas yar byon (Sangye Yarjon, 1203-1272; also known as PrajNāguru). Under the latter's stewardship, Stag lung attained considerable power within the SA SKYA-Mongol political structure at the Yuan court. Together with his disciple and eventual successor Mangalaguru (T. Bkra shis bla ma, 1231-1297), he forged close ties with the Sa skya hierarch 'PHAGS PA BLO GROS RGYAL MTSHAN and towards the end of his life entrusted the monastery's welfare and security to the Sa skya prelate. Stag lung was renowned for its strict adherence to monastic discipline as well as for its prodigious atelier, which produced some of central Tibet's finest paintings of the period. During its peak, the monastic population grew to some seven thousand monks. At that time, the saying originated that monks of other monasteries were "unable to rival even a dog of Stag lung." After Sangs rgyas yar byon's death, the throne fell briefly to his nephew Sangs rgyas dbon (Sangye Won, 1250/1-1296, better known as Dbon po bla ma). Sangs rgyas dbon was compelled to flee into exile after a single year, due to Mangalaguru's close ties with the politically powerful 'Phags pa Blo gros rgyal mtshan. In 1276, Sangs rgyas dbon established a new seat for the Stag lung bka' brgyud tradition at RI BO CHE monastery in the eastern Tibetan region of Khams. This eventually came to eclipse the original monastery in importance. From the sixteenth century onwards, Stag lung was increasingly influenced by officials from SE RA and 'BRAS SPUNGS monasteries in LHA SA. Stag lung monastery was completely destroyed during the Chinese Cultural Revolution.

stavakāya. (T. bstod tshogs). In Sanskrit, "collection of hymns," or "corpus of hymns"; the devotional works attributed to NĀGĀRJUNA. There are traditionally four works in this group, known collectively as the CATUḤSTAVA. They are the LOKĀTĪTASTAVA, the NIRAUPAMYASTAVA, the ACINTYASTAVA, and the PARAMĀRTHASTAVA, although a number of other important hymns, including the DHARMADHĀTUSTAVA, are also ascribed to Nāgārjuna. This group of texts is often referred to in connection with YUKTIKĀYA, the "corpus of reasoning" or "collection of reasoning," a term used to refer collectively to six works that traditionally constitute NĀGĀRJUNA's philosophical oeuvre. Those six works are the MuLAMADHYAMAKAKĀRIKĀ, the YUKTIsAstIKĀ, the suNYATĀSAPTATI, the VIGRAHAVYĀVARTANĪ, the VAIDALYASuTRANĀMA, and the RATNĀVALĪ. In some versions, there are only five works in this corpus, with the Ratnāvalī eliminated. These two collections of Nāgārjuna's works figure prominently in the "self-emptiness, other-emptiness" (RANG STONG GZHAN STONG) debate in Tibetan Buddhism, where the parties disagree on the question of which corpus represents Nāgārjuna's definitive view. The proponents of the rang stong, or "self-empty" position, see a consistent philosophical view between the two collections, whereas the proponents of gzhan stong, or "other-emptiness," find a more substantialist position in the corpus of hymns and regard this as Nāgārjuna's true position.

Tai Si tu incarnations. An influential incarnation (SPRUL SKU) lineage in the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The Tai Si tu incarnations are traditionally venerated as emanations of the future buddha MAITREYA and, according to Tibetan sources, early members of the line include the Indian MAHĀSIDDHA dOMBĪ HERUKA and the Tibetans MAR PA CHOS KYI BLO GROS and TĀRANĀTHA. As one of the leading incarnate lamas of the Karma bka' brgyud, the Si tu incarnations traditionally maintained a close relationship with the KARMA PAs, the sect's spiritual leader; indeed, the two often alternated as guru and disciple. The first of the line, Chos kyi rgyal mtshan (Chokyi Gyaltsen, 1377-1448), trained under the fifth Karma pa and in 1407 received the honorary title from the Ming Emperor Yongle (r. 1403-1425). Perhaps most famous in the lineage is the eighth Si tu, CHOS KYI 'BYUNG GNAS, who is renowned for his erudition and literary accomplishments. The Tai Si tu lineage includes:

Taixu. (太) (1889-1947). In Chinese, "Grand Voidness"; a leading figure in the Chinese Buddhist revival during the first half of the twentieth century. Taixu was ordained at the age of fourteen, purportedly because he wanted to acquire the supernatural powers of the buddhas. He studied under the famous Chinese monk, "Eight Fingers" (Bazhi Toutou), so called because he had burned off one finger of each hand in reverence to the Buddha, and achieved an awakening when reading a PRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀ SuTRA. In 1908, he joined a group of radicals, including other Buddhist monks, intent on revolution. In 1911, he organized the first of many groups (many of them short-lived) to revitalize Buddhism during this time of national crisis following the fall of the Qing dynasty. In 1912, he was involved in a failed attempt to turn the famous monastery of Chinshansi into a modern school for monks. After this disgrace, beginning in 1914, he went into retreat for three years, during which time he studied Buddhist scriptures and formulated plans to revitalize Buddhism, outlined in such works as his 1915 Zhengli sengqie zhidu lun ("The Reorganization of the SAMGHA System"). He drafted a number of such plans over the remainder of his career, although none was ever implemented. In general, these plans called for improved and modernized education for monks and their participation in community and governmental affairs. He believed that Buddhism had become ossified in China and needed to be reformed into a force that would both inspire and improve society. In his view, for an effective reform of the monastic system to take place, Chinese Buddhists had to be educated according to the same standards as those in other Buddhist countries, beginning with Japan. For Taixu, the revival of Chinese Buddhism entailed starting a dialogue with the Buddhist traditions of other Asian countries; hence, a modern Buddhism had to reach out to these traditions and incorporate their intuitions and original insights. It was from these initial ideas that, during the 1920s, Taixu developed a strong interest in Japanese MIKKYo and Tibetan VAJRAYĀNA, as well as in the THERAVĀDA tradition of Sri Lanka. Taixu's participation in the "Revival of Tantra" (mijiao chongxing) debates with Wang Hongyuan (1876-1937), a Chinese convert to Japanese SHINGON, demonstrated his eclectic ideas about the reformation of Chinese Buddhism. The first of Taixu's activities after his return to public life was the founding of the Bodhi Society (Jueshe) in Shanghai in 1918. He was involved in the publication of a wide variety of Buddhist periodicals, such as "Masses Enlightenment Weekly," "Sound of Enlightenment," "Buddhist Critic," "New Buddhist Youth," "Modern SaMgha," "Mind's Light," and the most enduring, "Sound of the Tides" (Haichaoyin). In 1922, he founded the Wuchang Buddhist Institute, where he hoped to produce a new generation of Buddhist leaders in China. In 1923, he founded the first of several "world Buddhist organizations," as a result of which he began to travel and lecture widely, becoming well known in Europe and America. He encouraged several of his students to learn the languages and traditions of Buddhist Asia. Among his students who went abroad in Tibet and Sri Lanka, FAZUN was the most accomplished in making several commentaries of late Indian Buddhism available to the Chinese public, thus fostering a comparison between the historical and doctrinal developments of Buddhism in China and in Tibet. In 1928 in Paris, Taixu donated funds for the establishment of the World Buddhist Institute, devoted to the unification of Buddhism and science; it would eventually be renamed Les Amis du Bouddhisme. He lectured in Sri Lanka and arranged an exchange program under which Chinese monks would study there. In 1929, he organized the Chinese Buddhist Society, which would eventually attract millions of members. During the Japanese occupation of China in the 1930s and 1940s, Taixu followed the Nationalist government into retreat in Sichuan. In this period, as a result of his efforts to internationalize Chinese Buddhism, Taixu founded two branches of the Wuchang Institute of Buddhist Studies specializing in Pāli and Tibetan Buddhism: the Pāli Language Institute in Xi'an, and the Sino-Tibetan Institute in Chongqing. In 1937, at the Sino-Tibetan Institute, in his famous essay "Wo de fojiao geming shibai shi" ("History of My Failed Buddhist Revolutions"), Taixu began an earnest self-reflection on his lifelong efforts to reform Chinese Buddhism, deeming them a failure in three domains: conceiving a Buddhist revolution, globalizing Buddhist education, and reorganizing the Chinese Buddhist Association. When the first global Buddhist organization, the WORLD FELLOWSHIP OF BUDDHISTS, was founded in 1950, Taixu, who had died three years earlier, was credited as its inspiration. His insights would eventually be developed and implemented by later generations of Buddhists in China and Taiwan. His collected works were published in sixty-four volumes. Several of the leading figures of modern and contemporary Chinese and Taiwanese Buddhism were close disciples of Taixu, including Fazun (1902-1980), Yinshun (1905-2005), Shengyan (1930-2009), and Xingyun (1927-).

Thar pa rin po che'i rgyan. (Tarpa rinpoche gyen). In Tibetan, "Jewel Ornament of Liberation"; a systematic presentation of Buddhist teachings and a seminal textbook for the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism written by SGAM PO PA BSOD RNAM RIN CHEN. The text belongs to the genre of Tibetan literature known as LAM RIM, or "stages of the path," presenting an overview of the elementary tenets of MAHĀYĀNA doctrine through scriptural citation, philosophical reflection, and direct illustration. Its clear, concise, and unpedantic style has made it accessible to generations of readers. The doctrinal content reflects Sgam po pa's training in both the BKA' GDAMS sect and the tradition of MAHĀMUDRĀ, fusing Buddhist theory prevalent in both SuTRA and TANTRA and presenting what has been called sutra mahāmudrā-a tradition of mahāmudrā that does not rely on prerequisite tantric initiations and commitments. Sgam po pa thus transmits the underlying insights of tantric theory outside traditional methods of the VAJRAYĀNA. This system was later criticized by certain scholars such as SA SKYA PAndITA KUN DGA' RGYAL MTSHAN. The work is also commonly known as the Dwags po thar rgyan, after the author's residence in the region of Dwags po (Dakpo).

The four surviving schools of Tibetan Buddhism are the Rnying ma pa (Nying-ma-pa), the Bka’ rgyud pa (Kar-gyu-pa), the Sa skya pa (sa-kya-pa), and the Dge lugs pa (Ge-lug-pa). The Kar-gyu-pa, the lineage of Marpa and Milarepa, is more than the others divided into many subschools. One of these is the Dugpa sect, dominant in the Indo-Tibetan border areas of Ladakh in the west and Bhutan in the east. The Bhutanese and Tibetan name of Bhutan is ’brug yul (dug-yul), “country of the thunder-dragon” (’Brug means both thunder and dragon). One explanation for the name of the sect refers to an experience of the sect’s founder, Tsand-pa Gya-re (Gtsang pa rgya ras, 1161-1211). In the course of establishing a monastery he was either startled by intense thunder or witnessed a flight of dragons, and named the monastery thunder-dragon (’brug). The sect and its adherents were named after the monastery, and the country where they prevailed was named after the sect. The dugpa subschool is further subdivided into three branches, known as Middle Dugpa (’bar ’brug), Lower Dugpa (smad ’brug), and Upper Dugpa (stod ’brug). See also DAD-DUGPA

theg pa dgu. In Tibetan, the "nine vehicles"; an important formulation of the Buddhist path, especially in the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. In this schema, the three vehicles of sRĀVAKAYĀNA, PRATYEKABUDDHAYĀNA, and BODHISATTVAYĀNA and the three vehicles of HĪNAYĀNA, MAHĀYĀNA, and VAJRAYĀNA are reorganized into nine, with three groups of three. The first group is called the "causal vehicle of characteristics" (rgyu mtshan nyid kyi theg pa) and consists of the srāvakayāna, pratyekabuddhayāna, and bodhisattvayāna. The second group is called the "outer tantras" (phyi'i rgyud) and consists of KRIYĀTANTRA, CARYĀTANTRA (also called upatantra), and YOGATANTRA. The third group is called the "inner tantras" (nang gi rgyud) and consists of MAHĀYOGA, ANUYOGA, and ATIYOGA (also called RDZOGS CHEN). Although there are precedents for such a schema in Indian sources, this specific formulation appears to have originated in Tibet.

The Great Brotherhood of the mahatmas on earth, through their chief, the Mahachohan, is the representative on our globe of adi-buddha. Because of this, Tibetan Buddhism recognizes the continuous “reincarnations of Buddha” — not that Gautama Buddha is thus reimbodied but that adi-buddha through its human ray perpetuates itself by reflection in fit and chosen human beings. As adi-buddha is the individualized divine ideation of our universe, all-permeant and omnipresent, those individuals who raise themselves to become self-consciously at one with a ray from adi-buddha are de facto “reincarnations,” greater or minor imbodiments of the cosmic buddha. Adi-buddha manifests through the hierarchy of the celestial buddhas or dhyani-buddhas, these again manifest through the manushya-buddhas and in lesser degree through human individuals who, though great, are inferior to the manushya-buddhas.

This book represents more than twelve years of effort. Donald Lopez initiated the project with the assistance of several of his graduate students at the University of Michigan, many of whom have now gone on to receive their degrees and be appointed to university positions. Around that time, Robert Buswell asked Lopez to serve as one of the editors of his two-volume Encyclopedia of Buddhism (New York: Macmillan Reference, 2004). When that project was completed, Lopez invited Buswell to join him as coauthor of the dictionary project, an offer he enthusiastically accepted, bringing with him his own team of graduate students from UCLA. In dividing up responsibilities for the dictionary, Buswell took principal charge of entries on mainstream Buddhist concepts, Indian abhidharma, and East Asian Buddhism; Lopez took principal charge of entries on MahAyAna Buddhism in India, Buddhist tantra, and Tibetan Buddhism. Once drafts of the respective sections were complete, we exchanged files to review each other's sections. Over the last seven years, we were in touch almost daily on one or another aspect of the project as we expanded upon and edited each other's drafts, making this a collaborative project in the best sense of the term. Graduate students at both the University of Michigan and UCLA assisted in gathering materials for the dictionary, preparing initial drafts, and tracing the multiple cross-references to Asian language terms. This project would have been impossible without their unstinting assistance and extraordinary commitment; we are grateful to each of them. Those graduate students and colleagues who made particularly extensive contributions to the dictionary are listed on the title page.

Thubten Yeshe. (Thub bstan ye shes) (1935-1984). Influential teacher of Tibetan Buddhism in the West. Born to a farming family, in a village near LHA SA, Thubten Yeshe's first experience with monasticism began when, as a toddler, he was discovered to be an incarnation of the abbess of 'Chi med lung monastery. He displayed strong leanings toward the monastic life from a very early age and, when he was six, his parents put him in the care of an uncle at SE RA monastery outside Lha sa. He spent the next nineteen years at Se ra, where he studied diligently but was unable to complete his DGE BSHES (geshe) degree prior to fleeing Tibet at the time of the Lha sa uprising of 1959. He escaped to India with two of his brothers, going to the refugee camp in Buxador in northeast India. He began teaching Western students at Kopan monastery, near BODHNĀTH in Kathmandu, Nepal. He also traveled the world with his main disciple and fellow monk, Zopa Rinpoche. Together they created the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahāyāna Tradition in 1975, along with Wisdom Publications, the Root Institute in BODHGAYĀ, the Tushita Dharma Center in DHARMAsĀLĀ, India, and Nalanda monastery near Toulouse, France.

Thun mong ma yin pa'i mdzod. (Tunmong Mayinpe Dzo). In Tibetan, "The Uncommon Treasury"; an encyclopedic work written by the nineteenth-century Tibetan scholar 'JAM MGON KONG SPRUL BLO GROS MTHA' YAS. The text is counted among the five treasuries of Kongtrül (KONG SPRUL MDZOD LNGA). It preserves numerous tantric ritual and liturgical texts of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, as well as works on philosophy, poetry, astrology, and descriptions of local Buddhist practices and sites.

transmission. Many strands of Buddhism employ the concept of transmission to describe the dissemination of a particular doctrine or practice from teacher to student, with an unbroken dissemination line going back to the originator of the teaching (usually the Buddha) often considered essential for maintaining the authenticity and authority of the teaching and those who propound it. This line of transmission is often spoken of as the "lineage." Various forms of transmission are set forth in a number of Buddhist traditions, including the famous seal of transmission (YINKE) and "mind-to-mind transmission" (YIXIN CHUANXIN) of the East Asian CHAN schools, which is considered to be a "special transmission outside the teachings" (JIAOWAI BIECHUAN). In Tibetan Buddhism, reference is often made to the "aural transmission" (NYAN BRGYUD), the teachings received orally from a master as opposed to those derived from a text. The aural transmission often refers to practical instructions for meditation practice that have not been recorded in a text. See also CHUANDENG LU; CHUANFA; FASI; PARAMPARĀ.

Trungpa, Chogyam. (Chos rgyam Drung pa) (1939-1987). One of the most influential Tibetan teachers of the twentieth century in introducing Tibetan Buddhism to the West. Chogyam Trungpa (his name, Chos rgyam Drung pa, is an abbreviation of chos kyi rgya mtsho drung pa) was born in Khams in eastern Tibet and identified while still an infant as the eleventh incarnation of the Drung pa lama, an important lineage of teachers in the BKA' BRGYUD sect, and was enthroned as the abbot of Zur mang monastery. He was ordained as a novice monk at the age of eight and received instruction from some of the leading scholars of the Bka' brgyud and RNYING MA sects. In 1958, he received the degrees of skyor dpon and mkhan po, as well as BHIKsU ordination. After the Tibetan uprising against Chinese occupying forces in March 1959, he escaped across the Himalayas to India on horseback and on foot, accompanied by a group of monks. In 1963, he traveled to England to study at Oxford University. In 1967, he moved to Scotland, where he founded a Tibetan meditation center called Samye Ling. While there, he suffered permanent injury in a serious automobile accident and decided thereafter to give up his monastic vows and continue as a lay teacher of Buddhism. In 1969, he moved to the United States, where he established a meditation center in Vermont called Tail of the Tiger. Trungpa Rinpoche's extensive training in Tibetan Buddhism, his eclectic interests, and his facility in English combined to make him the first Tibetan lama (apart from the fourteenth DALAI LAMA) to reach a wide Western audience through his many books, including Born in Tibet (1966), Meditation in Action (1969), and Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism (1973). In 1974, he founded the Naropa Institute (now Naropa University) in Boulder, Colorado, a center devoted to the study of Buddhism, psychology, and the arts. He also developed a network of centers around the world called Dharmadhatus, as well as the Shambhala Training Program. He invited several important Tibetan lamas to the United States in the late 1970s and early 1980s, including DIL MGO MKHYEN BRTSE, BDUD 'JOMS RIN PO CHE, and the sixteenth KARMA PA. In 1986, he moved his headquarters to Halifax, Nova Scotia, and died there the following year.

Tshal pa bka' brgyud. (Tshalpa Kagyü). One of the four major and eight minor subsects of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism (BKA' BRGYUD CHE BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD), originating with Zhang tshal pa Brtson grus grags pa (Shangtsalpa Tsondrü Drakpa, 1123-1193), better known as BLA MA ZHANG, a disciple of Dwags po Sgom tshul (Dakpo Gomtsül, 1116-1169). In about 1175, Bla ma Zhang established Tshal Gung thang monastery near LHA SA, which served as a seat of the Tshal pa bka' brgyud.

Tsong kha pa Blo bzang grags pa. (Tsong kha pa Losang Drakpa) (1357-1419). A Tibetan scholar and teacher venerated as the founder of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism; typically known simply as Tsong kha pa. Born in the Tsong kha region of A mdo in northeastern Tibet, he received his initial lay vows under the fourth KARMA PA and began his religious education in the BKA' GDAMS tradition. In 1372, he traveled to central Tibet for further study. He became a disciple of the SA SKYA scholar Red mda' ba Gzhon nu blo gros (Rendawa Shonu Lodro, 1349-1412) but went on to study under many of the leading scholars of the day, including masters of various schools and sectarian affiliations. Another influential teacher was the lama Dbu ma pa (Umapa), from whom he received instructions on the KĀLACAKRATANTRA. He distinguished himself as a brilliant scholar and exegete of both SuTRA and TANTRA. According to his traditional biographies, Tsong kha pa experienced visions of Indian masters such as NĀGĀRJUNA and BUDDHAPĀLITA, who helped to clarify difficult points of doctrine. He is also said to have maintained a special relationship with MANJUsRĪ, the bodhisattva of wisdom, who appeared in visions throughout Tsong kha pa's life offering instruction and advice; Tsong kha pa is sometimes called 'Jam mgon, or "protected by MaNjusrī." Tsong kha pa's biographies speak of four major deeds undertaken during his lifetime. The first, in 1399, was his restoration of an image of the future buddha, MAITREYA. The second was a council to reform the code of VINAYA, convened in 1403 and attended by monks representing all sects of Tibetan Buddhism. The third was the Great Prayer Festival (SMON LAM CHEN MO) inaugurated in 1409 at the JO KHANG in LHA SA, in which he offered the ornaments of a SAMBHOGAKĀYA to the famous statue of JO BO SHĀKYAMUNI, celebrating the Buddha's performance of the sRĀVASTĪ MIRACLES. The festival became an important annual event, drawing thousands of participants from all quarters of the Tibetan Buddhist world. The fourth was the founding in 1409 of DGA' LDAN monastery, which would become one of principal religious institutions in the Lha sa region and seat of the leader of the Dge lugs sect. Tsong kha pa was an original and penetrating philosopher, who saw reason and intellectual development as key aspects of the path to enlightenment. Born during a period when the Tibetan Buddhist canon had been newly formulated, he sought a comprehensive explanation of the Buddhist path, with the PRĀSAnGIKA-MADHYAMAKA of BUDDHAPĀLITA and CANDRAKĪRTI as the highest philosophical view. His works are marked with a concern with systematic consistency, whether it be between sutra and tantra or PRAMĀnA and MADHYAMAKA. A prolific author, Tsong kha pa's works fill eighteen volumes. Among his best known writings are the LAM RIM CHEN MO ("Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment"), composed in 1402 at RWA SGRENG monastery, the SNGAGS RIM CHEN MO ("Great Treatise on the Stages of Mantra"), and the Drang nges LEGS BSHAD SNYING PO ("Essence of Eloquence on the Definitive and Interpretable"). Tsong kha pa called his system of religious practice the Bka' gdams gsar ma, or "New Bka' gdams," after the sect founded by the Bengali master ATIsA DĪPAMKARAsRĪJNĀNA. His followers were later known as Dga' ldan pa (Gandenpa), "those of Dga' ldan," after the monastic seat established by Tsong kha pa. This was sometimes abbreviated as Dga' lugs pa, "those of the system of Dga' ldan," eventually evolving into the current name Dge lugs pa, "those of the system of virtue." Tsong kha pa's fame was greatly elevated through the political power of the Dge lugs sect after the establishment of the institution of the DALAI LAMA. His tomb at Dga' ldan became an important site of pilgrimage prior to its destruction during the Chinese Cultural Revolution. Tsong kha pa's fame in Tibet was sufficiently great that he is commonly known simply as Rje rin po che, the "precious leader."

Tsong-kha-pa (Tibetan) “The man from Tsong-kha,” a district in Amdo — his personal name was Blo bzang grags pa (Lo-zang Dag-pa); a great teacher and reformer of Tibetan Buddhism (1357-1419), founder of the Gelukpa school.

Tummo ::: Inner heat practices as taught in Tibetan Buddhism.

utpattikrama. (T. bskyed rim; C. shengqi cidi; J. shokishidai; K. saenggi ch'aje 生起次第). In Sanskrit, "stage of generation" or the "creation stage," one of the two major phases (along with the NIsPANNAKRAMA or the "stage of completion") of ANUTTARAYOGATANTRA practice. The term encompasses a wide range of practices that commence after one has received initiation (ABHIsEKA), generally involving the practice of the SĀDHANA of a particular deity with the aim of the "generation" or transformation of the body, environment, enjoyments, and activities of the practitioner into the body, environment, enjoyments, and activities of a buddha. This is done through the practice of deity yoga (DEVATĀYOGA), in which the meditator visualizes himself or herself as a buddha and the environment as a MAndALA. In the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, MAHĀYOGA generally corresponds to the utpattikrama.

Vajradhara. [alt. Vajradhāra] (T. Rdo rje 'chang; C. Jingangchi; J. Kongoji; K. Kŭmgangji 金剛持). "Vajra Holder"; an important buddha of the tantric systems, where he appears in some texts as an ĀDIBUDDHA (primordial buddha). He is closely related to VAJRAPĀnI; indeed, Vajrapāni and Vajradhara may have originally been two names for the same deity (the Chinese translations of the two deities' names are the same). Vajradhara is the principal deity in many father-class tantras and is the chief buddha for the MAHĀMUDRĀ traditions. Vajradhara is said to have revealed the MAHĀMUDRĀ teachings to TILOPA; they were then transmitted in succession to NĀROPA, then to MAR PA, and then to MI LA RAS PA. Vajradhara is sometimes referred to as the sixth buddha, representing the quintessence of the five buddhas (PANCATATHĀGATA) and the five buddha families. In Tibetan Buddhism, he is one of two buddhas considered as both a primordial buddha (ādibuddha) and as a DHARMAKĀYA; the other is the buddha SAMANTABHADRA, the primordial buddha of RNYING MA. Vajradhara is the primordial buddha of the three new, or GSAR MA, sects, SA SKYA, BKA' BRGYUD, and DGE LUGS. Vajradhara is typically depicted as dark blue, with one head and two arms, dressed as a SAMBHOGAKĀYA, seated in VAJRAPARYAnKA, holding a VAJRA in each hand (or a vajra in his right and a bell in his left), which are crossed at his chest in the VAJRAHuMKĀRA pose. He is sometimes depicted surrounded by the eighty-four MAHĀSIDDHAs. When he is depicted with a consort, she is usually VAJRAVĀRĀHĪ. See also FEILAIFENG.

Vajrakīlaya. (T. Rdo rje phur pa). In Sanskrit, "Vajra Dagger," a tantric buddha worshipped primarily by the RNYING MA and BKA' BRGYUD sects of Tibetan Buddhism. He is the deification of the KĪLA (see PHUR PA), the ritual dagger used in tantric ceremonies. In the rituals involving the use of the kīla, the tantric dagger is typically used to subdue a ritual site, to subjugate the local demon by pinning him or her to the ground; the MAndALA is thus planted and established on top of the offending demon. The dagger may be stabbed into a three-sided box, the triangle representing the violent tantric activity of liberation, or into an effigy. As a deity, Vajrakīlaya originally held the same duties as the ritual dagger: to protect the borders of ritual space and to pin down and destroy enemies, human or otherwise. This tradition may derive in part from the ancient Indian myth of Indrakīla, in which the serpent Vṛtra is pinned and stabilized by a mythic "peg" (kīla). Vajrakīlaya is found in the major early tantra systems as well as the GUHYASAMĀJATANTRA and the SARVATATHĀGATATATTVASAMGRAHA, which contains his mantra and places him in the center of a MAndALA, although throughout his status is inferior to that of the buddhas and bodhisattvas. It is only in the Vajrakīlaya tantras that the deity attains the status of a buddha. These texts are reputed to be eighth-century translations from Indic languages, transmitted in Tibet by PADMASAMBHAVA. The tantras form a substantial section of the RNYING MA'I RGYUD 'BUM, but BU STON rejected the Indian origin of the tantras and left them out of the BKA' 'GYUR. Defenders of the tradition cite the fact that 'BROG MI SHĀKYA YE SHES wrote that he saw the eight-syllable Vajrakīla MANTRA at the BODHGAYĀ STuPA. In addition, SA SKYA PAndITA discovered a Sanskrit fragment of the Vajrakīlamulatantrakhanda at BSAM YAS, and sĀKYAsRĪBHADRA confirmed that the cycle had existed in India. Although no East Asian tradition of Vajrakīlaya exists, some scholars have suggested an identification with Vajrakumāra; tantras concerning this deity were brought to China in the eighth century by AMOGHAVAJRA, but this identification is disputed. Vajrakīlaya is wrathful, with three faces with three eyes each, and six or more hands holding various instruments in addition to the kīla. He is said to dispel obstacles to progress on the path to enlightenment and to the swift attainment of both mundane and supramundane goals.

Vajravārāhī. (T. Rdo rje phag mo). One of the most common forms of VAJRAYOGINĪ, an important female tantric deity associated especially with the CAKRASAMVARATANTRA of the ANUTTARAYOGATANTRA class, popular in all sects of Tibetan Buddhism, where she is a consort of the central deity. Vārāhī means sow, referring to the goddess's characteristic porcine head protruding from the right side of her face. She likely derives from the Hindu goddess Vārāhī, depicted with a head of a boar; she is the counterpart of Vārāha, the incarnation of Visnu who took the form of a boar. In the case of Vajravārāhī, she is typically (although not invariably) depicted with a human face but with a boar's head (sometimes quite small) visible on the right side of her face, contributing in part to her wrathful aspect. She is usually depicted as red in color, naked in a dancing pose, standing on the body of Bhairava. She holds a cleaver in her right hand and skull cup in her left, and is adorned with a garland of fifty severed heads. Beginning perhaps as one of a number of wrathful YOGINĪs situated as protectors on the outer circles of the MAndALA, she moved toward the center as one of the consorts of the central deity in the HEVAJRATANTRA and became the main consort of HERUKA in the CakrasaMvara cycle, where she also appears without a consort as the "sole heroine" (ekavirā) in the center of the mandala.

Vajrayoginī. (T. Rdo rje rnal 'byor ma). The most important of the dĀKInĪ in the VAJRAYĀNA, associated especially with the "mother tantras" (MĀTṚTANTRA) of the ANUTTARAYOGA class. She is also the most important of the female YI DAM. Her visualization is central to many tantric SĀDHANAs, especially in the practice of GURUYOGA, in which the meditator imagines himself or herself in the form of Vajrayoginī in order to receive the blessings of the GURU. She is also visualized in GCOD and GTUM MO practice. Her worship seems to originate with the CAKRASAMVARATANTRA and is popular in all sects of Tibetan Buddhism. Vajrayoginī plays a special role in the "six yogas of NĀROPA" (NĀ RO CHOS DRUG), where she is known as Nā ro mkha' spyod ma (Kachoma). She is closely associated with VAJRAVĀRĀHĪ, the consort of CAKRASAMVARA. In her most common form, she stands in the ĀLĪdHA posture, holding a KAtVĀnGA and a skull cup.

Vasubandhu. (T. Dbyig gnyen; C. Shiqin; J. Seshin; K. Sech'in 世親) (fl. c. fourth or fifth centuries CE). One of the most influential authors in the history of Buddhism, and the only major figure to make significant contributions to both the MAINSTREAM BUDDHIST SCHOOLS and MAHĀYĀNA. In Tibetan Buddhism, Vasubandhu is counted as one of the "six ornaments" (T. rgyan drug), along with NĀGĀRJUNA, ĀRYADEVA, ASAnGA, DIGNĀGA, and DHARMAKĪRTI. There has been considerable speculation about his dates, so much so that ERICH FRAUWALLNER proposed that there were two different Vasubandhus. This theory has been rejected, but there is still no consensus on his dates, with most scholars placing him in the fourth or fifth century CE. Vasubandhu is said to have been born in Purusapura in GANDHĀRA (identified with Peshawar in modern Pakistan), as the brother or half brother (with the same mother) of Asanga. He was ordained as a monk in a SARVĀSTIVĀDA school and studied VAIBHĀsIKA ABHIDHARMA philosophy in KASHMIR-GANDHĀRA, as well as the tenets of the rival SAUTRĀNTIKA school. At the conclusion of his studies, he composed his first and what would be his most famous work, the Abhidharmakosa, or "Treasury of the Abhidharma." In over six hundred stanzas in nine chapters, he set forth the major points of the Vaibhāsika system. He then composed a prose autocommentary, the ABHIDHARMAKOsABHĀsYA, in which he critiqued from a Sautrāntika perspective some of the Vaibhāsika positions that he had outlined in the verses. These two texts would become two of the most influential texts on the abhidharma in the later history of Buddhism on the subcontinent and beyond, serving, for example, as the root texts for abhidharma studies in Tibet and as the foundational text for the Kusha (Kosa) school of early Japanese Buddhism. At some point after his composition of the Kosa, he encountered his half brother Asanga, author of at least some of the texts collected in the YOGĀCĀRABHuMI, who "converted" him to the Mahāyāna. After his conversion, Vasubandhu became a prolific author on Mahāyāna materials, helping especially to frame the philosophy of the Yogācāra school. Major works attributed to him include the VIMsATIKĀ, or "Twenty [Stanzas]" and the TRIMsIKĀ, or "Thirty [Stanzas]," two works that set forth succinctly the basic philosophical positions of the Yogācāra. The TriMsikā was, together with DHARMAPĀLA's commentary to the text, the basis of XUANZANG's massive commentary, the CHENG WEISHI LUN (*VijNaptimātratāsiddhi), which was the foundational text for the FAXIANG ZONG of East Asian Yogācāra. In his TRISVABHĀVANIRDEsA, Vasubandhu also set forth the central doctrine of the Yogācāra, the "three natures" (TRISVABHĀVA), of imaginary (PARIKALPITA), dependent (PARATANTRA), and consummate (PARINIsPANNA). His VYĀKHYĀYUKTI set forth principles for the exegesis of passages from the sutras. He is also credited with commentaries on a number of Mahāyāna sutras, including the AKsAYAMATINIRDEsA, the SADDHARMAPUndARĪKASuTRA, and the DAsABHuMIKASuTRA (with his commentary serving as the basis of the DI LUN ZONG in China), as well as commentaries on three of the five treatises of MAITREYA, the MAHĀYĀNASuTRĀLAMKĀRA, the MADHYĀNTAVIBHĀGA, and the DHARMADHARMATĀVIBHĀGA. He also wrote a commentary on Asanga's MAHĀYĀNASAMGRAHA. His KARMASIDDHIPRAKARAnA, or "Investigation Establishing [the Correct Understanding] of KARMAN," examines the theory of action in light of the Yogācāra doctrine of the ĀLAYAVIJNĀNA. The PANCASKANDHAPRAKARAnA, or "Explanation of the Five Aggregates," presents a somewhat different view of the five aggregates (SKANDHA) than that found in his Abhidharmakosabhāsya and thus probably dates from his Mahāyāna period; it is a reworking of the presentation of the five aggregates found in Asanga's ABHIDHARMASAMUCCAYA. In addition to the Abhidharmakosabhāsya and the ViMsatikā, a third text of his was highly influential in East Asia. It is a commentary on the larger SUKHĀVATĪVYuHA, whose Sanskrit title might be reconstructed as the *Sukhāvatīvyuhopadesa. However, the work is known only in Chinese, as the JINGTU LUN, and its attribution to Vasubandhu has been called into question. Nonetheless, based on this traditional attribution, Vasubandhu is counted as an Indian patriarch of the PURE LAND schools of East Asia. ¶ In Tibet, a bṛhattīkā commentary on the sATASĀHASRIKĀPRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀ and a paddhati on three PRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀ sutras (T. Yum gsum gnod 'joms) are attributed to Vasubandhu, although his authorship is disputed.

Vimuktisena. [alt. Ārya Vimuktisena] (T. Grol sde). An Indian scholar-monk (likely from the sixth century CE) who is the author of the first extant commentary (vṛtti) on the ABHISAMAYĀLAMKĀRA, a work associated with the name of MAITREYA or MAITREYANĀTHA, the most influential PRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀ commentary for Indian and Tibetan Buddhism. Vimuktisena connects the AbhisamayālaMkāra to the PANCAVIMsATISĀHASRIKĀPRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀ ("Perfection of Wisdom in Twenty-five Thousand Lines"), making the otherwise cryptic AbhisamayālaMkāra comprehensible. In scholastic Tibetan Buddhism his name is linked with the Yogācāra-Madhyamaka synthesis, but Vimuktisena's view is more closely aligned to MADHYAMAKA, without the distinctive terminology associated with the PRAMĀnA school of DIGNĀGA and DHARMAKĪRTI.

vinayapitaka. (T. 'dul ba'i sde snod; C. lüzang; J. ritsuzo; K. yulchang 律藏). In Sanskrit and Pāli, "basket of discipline" or the "collection of discipline"; one of the three "baskets" (TRIPItAKA), or divisions of Buddhist scripture, together with the SuTRAPItAKA and the ABHIDHARMAPItAKA. Although typically presumed to include just the rules and regulations of monastic conduct, the vinayapitaka is actually one of the richest sources for understanding Buddhist practice and institutions in India. It is said that the Buddha instituted a new rule only after the commission of some form of misconduct that he sought to prevent in the future, so the vinayas are careful to recount in great detail the circumstances leading up to the Buddha's promulgation of the rule. The vinayapitaka is therefore composed largely of narratives, some of considerable length; one of the earliest biographies of the Buddha appears in the vinaya of the MuLASARVĀSTIVĀDA school (see MuLASARVĀSTIVĀDA VINAYA). According to tradition, the redaction of the vinayapitaka occurred at the first Buddhist council (SAMGĪTI; see COUNCIL, FIRST), shortly after the Buddha's death, when a group of ARHATs assembled to recite the Buddha's teachings. There, the monk UPĀLI, considered an expert in the monastic code, was called upon to recite the vinaya. However, assuming that such a recitation occurred, disputes soon arose over what was allowable conduct according to the rules and regulations included in the vinayapitaka. At the time of his death, the Buddha told ĀNANDA that, after his death, the minor rules could be disregarded. At the first council, he was asked what those minor rules were, and Ānanda admitted that he had failed to ask. All rules were therefore retained, and his failure to ask was one of his errors requiring a confession of wrongdoing. The eventual division into the traditional eighteen MAINSTREAM BUDDHIST SCHOOLS often centered on questions of vinaya practice and conduct. There is, therefore, no single vinayapitaka, but a number of vinayapitakas, with the precise content determined by the specific Indian school. To give one example, the Pāli vinayapitaka, which was perhaps redacted around the first century CE, is composed of the following three major divisions: (1) SUTTAVIBHAnGA (S. sutravibhanga; cf. VINAYAVIBHAnGA), which includes the pātimokkha (S. PRĀTIMOKsA) code with explanations and commentary, including the mahāvibhanga with the rules for monks and the bhikkhunīvibhanga with the rules for nuns; (2) KHANDHAKA (S. skandhaka; cf. VINAYAVASTU), which is subdivided between the MAHĀVAGGA, which includes chapters on such topics as the procedure for the ordination of monks, the fortnightly observances (P. uposatha; S. UPOsADHA), the rains retreat, the use of clothing, food, medicine, and so forth, and the CulAVAGGA, which includes a variety of judicial rules, procedures for the ordination of nuns, and accounts of the first and second Buddhist councils; and (3) PARIVĀRA, an appendix that provides a summary and classification of the rules of monastic conduct. ¶ Numerous vinaya texts were translated into Chinese, including complete (or near-complete) vinayapitakas associated with five of the mainstream schools of Indian Buddhism. In the order of their translation dates, these five are (1) "Ten-Recitations Vinaya" (C. Shisong lü; C. *Dasabhānavāravinaya; *Dasādhyāyavinaya) of the SARVĀSTIVĀDA school, perhaps composed sometime between the first and third centuries CE and translated into Chinese between 404 and 409 CE; (2) DHARMAGUPTAKA vinaya, the renowned "Four-Part Vinaya" (SIFEN LÜ), translated between 410 and 412 CE, which becomes the definitive recension of the vinaya in the East Asian traditions and the focus of scholarship in the different East Asian vinaya schools (see NANSHAN LÜ ZONG, DONGTA LÜ ZONG, RISSHu); (3) MAHĀSĀMGHIKA vinaya (Mohesengji lü), composed between 100 and 200 CE and translated between 416 and 418; (4) MAHĪMsĀSAKA vinaya, or the "Five-Part Vinaya" (Wufen lü), perhaps composed in the first century BCE and translated between 422 and 423; and (5) the MuLASARVĀSTIVĀDA vinaya, perhaps composed in the fourth or fifth century CE and translated into Chinese between 703 and 713. (The complete Tibetan translation of this vinaya becomes definitive for Tibetan Buddhism). ¶ It is important to note that the texts contained in the vinayapitaka of any school have served as just one source of the monastic code. In China, no complete recension of any Indian vinaya was translated until the beginning of the fifth century. (Indeed, none of the surviving recensions of the vinayas of any Buddhist school can be dated prior to the fifth century CE.) When the Indian vinayas were translated into Chinese, for example, their regulations were viewed as being so closely tied to the customs and climate of India that they were sometimes found either incomprehensible or irrelevant to the Chinese. This led to the composition of indigenous Chinese monastic codes, called guishi ("regulations") or QINGGUI ("rules of purity"), which promulgated rules of conduct for monks and nuns that accorded more closely with the realities of life in East Asian monasteries. In Tibet, the VINAYASuTRA by GUnAPRABHA, a medieval Indian summary of the much larger Mulasarvāstivāda vinaya, was the primary source for the monastic code, but each monastery also had its own regulations (BCA' YIG) that governed life there. See also PRĀTIMOKsASuTRA.

Vinayasutra. (T. 'Dul ba'i mdo). In Sanskrit, "Discourse on Discipline"; a work on the monastic code by the Indian master GUnAPRABHA, who is dated between the fifth and seventh century CE. Despite its title, the work is not a SuTRA (in the sense of a discourse ascribed to the Buddha), but instead is an authored work composed of individual aphoristic statements (sutras). The text offers a summary or condensation of the massive MuLASARVĀSTIVĀDA VINAYA. At approximately one quarter the length of this massive vinaya collection, Gunaprabha's abridgment seems to have functioned as a kind of primer on the monastic code, omitting lengthy passages of scripture and providing the code of conduct to which monks were expected to subscribe. In this sense, the text is an important work for determining what monastic practice may actually have been like in medieval India. The Vinayasutra became the most important vinaya text for Tibetan Buddhism, being studied in all of the major sects. In the DGE LUGS, it is one of the five books (GZHUNG LNGA) that served as the basis of the monastic curriculum. The detailed commentaries on the Vinayasutra by the Pāla dynasty writer Dharmamitra (early ninth century) and the BKA' GDAM PA master Tsho sna ba Shes rab bzang po's (b. thirteenth century) were widely studied.

Virupa. (Bi ru pa). Sanskrit proper name of one of the eighty-four MAHĀSIDDHAs, particularly revered in the SA SKYA sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Very little can be said with certainty about his life (whether he was a historical figure is open to question), but he may have lived at the end of the tenth century CE. He is said to have been a monk and a distinguished scholar of NĀLANDĀ monastery (in some sources, SOMAPURA), who was originally named Dharmapāla, devoting himself to scholastic study during the day and tantric practice at night. He recited the MANTRA of CAKRASAMVARA for years, but, unable to make any progress in his practice, he threw his rosary into the latrine. That night, the goddess NAIRĀTMYĀ, appeared to him in a dream, instructing him to retrieve his rosary. Over the course of six nights, she conferred initiations and instructions that allowed him to attain the sixth bodhisattva BHuMI. She also gave him a text, which is otherwise unknown in Sanskrit, whose Sanskrit title might be reconstructed as *Mārgaphalamulasāstra, the "Root Treatise on the Path and Its Fruition." Dharmapāla subsequently began to engage openly in tantric practices and was expelled from the monastery and branded "deformed" or "ugly" (virupa), whence he derived his name. Among the many stories told about him, perhaps the most famous tells of his stopping in a tavern to drink. When the tavern keeper demanded payment, he offered her the sun instead, using his ritual dagger to stop the sun in its course. The sun did not move for three days, during which time Virupa consumed huge amounts of drink. In order to set the sun on its course, the king agreed to pay his bill. Virupa eventually encountered two YOGINs who became his disciples: dombiheruka and Kṛsnacārin. In the eleventh century, the Tibetan scholar SA CHEN KUN DGA' SNYING PO of the 'Khon clan is said to have had a vision of Virupa in which he received transmission of the *Mārgaphalamulasāstra. This became the foundation for the LAM 'BRAS teachings of the Sa skya sect, where Virupa is regarded as a buddha, equal in importance to Nāropa for the BKA' RGYUD sect. His most famous work is his RDO RJE TSHIG RKANG ("Vajra Verses").

Wangyal, Geshe. (1901-1983). Tibetan monk-scholar of the DGE LUGS sect who played an important role in the transmission of Tibetan Buddhism to the United States. He was born in the region of Kalmykia of Czarist Russia, whose Mongol population practiced Tibetan Buddhism, and became a novice monk at the age of six. He was selected by AGVAN DORZHIEV to continue his studies in LHA SA, enrolling at the Sgo mang college of 'BRAS SPUNGS monastery in 1922. After nine years of study, he traveled to Beijing and then to Calcutta, where he was hired to serve as translator for Sir Charles Bell (1870-1945), British political officer for Sikkim, Bhutan, and Tibet, during his travels in China and Manchuria. In India, he met the British mountaineer Marco Pallis, with whom he spent four months in England in 1937. With the Chinese invasion of Tibet, he left Tibet for India, coming to the United States in 1955 at the invitation of the Kalmyk community of New Jersey. In 1958, he founded the Lamaist Buddhist Monastery of America, known in Tibetan as the Bslab gsum bshad grub gling (Labsum Shedrup Ling), in Freewood Acres, New Jersey, the first Tibetan Buddhist monastery in the United States. At the monastery and subsequently at Retreat House (later named Tibetan Buddhist Learning Center) in Howell, New Jersey, he brought a number of monks to the United States and gave teachings to a large number of students, several of whom went on to become scholars of Buddhism. His full name was Dge bshes Ngag dbang dbang rgyal.

Winds ::: A concept in the etheric anatomy of Tibetan Buddhism referring to areas of energy flow. The idea of winds, channels, and drops is more subtle and nuanced than the generic idea of the etheric body of chakras and channels explored on this site so this is a concept broached only briefly at the moment.

Wonch'ŭk. (T. Wen tsheg; C. Yuance; J. Enjiki 圓測) (613-695). In Korean, "Consummate Keenness"; Silla-dynasty monk renowned for his expertise in Sanskrit and YOGĀCĀRA doctrine, who was influential in Chinese and in later Tibetan Buddhism. Wonch'ŭk is said to have left for Tang-dynasty China at the age of fifteen, where he studied the writings of PARAMĀRTHA and the She lun, or MAHĀYĀNASAMGRAHA, under Fachang (567-645). Wonch'ŭk later became the disciple of the Chinese pilgrim-translator XUANZANG who, in accordance with the new Yogācāra teachings of DHARMAPĀLA that he had brought back from India (see FAXIANG ZONG), denounced the existence of the ninth "immaculate consciousness" (AMALAVIJNĀNA), which Paramārtha had advocated, and taught instead the innate impurity of the eighth "storehouse consciousness" (ĀLAYAVIJNĀNA). These crucial doctrinal issues are said to have caused a split between the major disciples of Xuanzang: Wonch'ŭk and his followers came to be known as the Ximing tradition in honor of Wonch'ŭk's residence, XIMINGSI, and was said to have been more open to positions associated with the earlier SHE LUN ZONG; and the lineage of his fellow student and major rival KUIJI (632-682), which came to be known as the Ci'en tradition after Kuiji's monastery, Da CI'ENSI, and honed more rigidly to Xuanzang and Dharmapāla's positions. Wonch'ŭk's famed Haesimmilgyong so (C. Jieshenmi jing shu), his commentary on Xuanzang's translation of the SAMDHINIRMOCANASuTRA, includes traces of Wonchŭk's earlier training in She lun zong thought and Paramārtha's expositions on the controversial notion of amalavijNāna. Wonchŭk regarded the amalavijNāna as simply another name for the inherent purity of the ālayavijNāna, but, unlike Xuanzang, he considered the ālayavijNāna to be essentially pure in nature. He also disagreed with Xuanzang's contention that the ICCHANTIKA could not attain buddhahood. Hence, his work seems to be an attempt to reconcile the divergences between the old Yogācāra of Paramārtha and the new Yogācāra of Xuanzang. Wonch'ŭk's commentary to the SaMdhinirmocanasutra was extremely popular in the Chinese outpost of DUNHUANG, where CHOS GRUB (Ch. Facheng; c. 755-849) translated it into Tibetan during the reign of King RAL PA CAN (r. 815-838). Only nine of the ten rolls of the commentary are still extant in Chinese; the full text is available only in its Tibetan translation, which the Tibetans know as the "Great Chinese Commentary" (Rgya nag gi 'grel chen) even though it was written by a Korean. Five centuries later, the renowned Tibetan scholar TSONG KHA PA drew liberally on Wonch'ŭk's text in his major work on scriptural interpretation, LEGS BSHAD SNYING PO. Wonch'ŭk's views were decisive in Tibetan formulations of such issues as the hermeneutical stratagem of the three turnings of the wheel of the dharma (DHARMACAKRAPRAVARTANA), the nine types of consciousness (VIJNĀNA), and the quality and nature of the ninth "immaculate" consciousness (amalavijNāna). Exegetical styles subsequently used in all the major sects of Tibetan Buddhism, with their use of elaborate sections and subsections, may also derive from Wonch'ŭk's commentary. Consequently, Wonch'ŭk remains better known and more influential in Tibet than in either China or Korea. Wonch'ŭk also wrote a eulogy to the PRAJNĀPĀRAMITĀHṚDAYASuTRA, and commentaries to the RENWANG JING and Dharmapāla's *VIJNAPTIMĀTRATĀSIDDHI, the latter of which is no longer extant.

Wutaishan. (五臺山). In Chinese, "Five-Terraces Mountain"; a sacred mountain located in northern Shanxi province, which, together with EMEISHAN, PUTUOSHAN, and JIUHUASHAN, is one of the "four great mountains" (sidamingshan) of Buddhism in China. The name Wutai is derived from its five treeless, barren peaks (one in each cardinal direction and the center) that resemble terraces or platforms. During the Northern Wei dynasty (424-532), Wutaishan came to be identified with the mythic Mt. Qingliang (Clear and Cool) of the AVATAMSAKASuTRA, which speaks of a mountain to the northeast where the bodhisattva MANJUsRĪ is said to be constantly preaching the DHARMA. From the time of the identification of Mount Wutai as Mt. Qingliang, numerous testimonies to the manifestation of MaNjusrī on the mountain have been reported. Mt. Wutai thus came to be known as the primary abode and place of worship for MaNjusrī and for this reason drew pilgrims from across the continent, including South Asia and, later, Tibet. Numerous monasteries and hermitages of both Buddhists and Daoists occupy its peaks. The first Buddhist monastery on Wutaishan, Da Futu Lingjiusi (Great Buddha Vulture Monastery), is claimed to have been built by KĀsYAPA MĀTAnGA (d.u.) and Dharmaratna (d.u.) sometime during the first century (see also BAIMASI and SISHI'ER ZHANG JING). The name of the monastery was changed to Xuantongsi and then to (Da) Huayansi during the Tang dynasty to reflect its role as the center of HUAYAN studies. The Huayan patriarch CHENGGUAN (738-839) composed his great HUAYANJING SHU at this monastery. The esoteric monk AMOGHAVAJRA also assisted in the establishment of another monastery on Mt. Wutai, which was given the name Jingesi (Gold Pavilion Monastery) in 770 after its gilded tiles. Emperor Daizong (r. 762-779) declared Jingesi as an important center for the new esoteric teachings (MIJIAO) brought to China by Amoghavajra. The monk FAZHAO also established the monastery of Zhulinsi (Bamboo Grove Monastery) on the model of a majestic monastery that MaNjusrī had revealed to him in a vision. The monasteries Qingliangsi, Beishansi, Manghaisi, and Da Wenshusi are also located on the mountain. During a pilgrimage to Wutaishan by the Korean monk CHAJANG (d.u., c. mid-seventh century), he had a vision in which MaNjusrī guided him to a Korean analogue of the mountain; that mountain is now known as Odaesan (the Korean pronunciation of Wutaishan) and is itself a major pilgrimage center of Korean Buddhism. During the Qing dynasty, Wutaishan was also the major center for the study of Tibetan Buddhism in China.

Yamāntaka. (T. Gshin rje gshed; C. Yanmandejia/Daweide mingwang; J. Enmantokuka/Daiitoku myoo; K. Yommandokka/Taewidok myongwang 焰曼德迦/大威德明王). In Sanskrit, "Destroyer of Death" (lit. "he who brings an end (antaka) to death (yama)"), closely associated with BHAIRAVA ("The Frightening One") and VAJRABHAIRAVA; one of the most important tantric deities. In Tibetan Buddhism, he was one of the three primary YI DAM of the DGE LUGS sect (together with GUHYASAMĀJA and CAKRASAMVARA). Yamāntaka is considered to be a fully enlightened buddha, who appears always in a wrathful form. He is depicted both with and without a consort; the solitary depiction, called "sole hero" (ekavīra), is particularly popular. Bhairava also appears in the Hindu tantric pantheon as a wrathful manifestation of the god siva. According to Buddhist mythology, MANJUsRĪ, the bodhisattva of wisdom, took the form of the terrifying bull-headed deity in order to destroy the Lord of Death (YAMA) who was ravaging the country; hence the epithet Yamāntaka (Destroyer of Death). Yamāntaka has nine heads, thirty-four arms, and sixteen legs, each arm holding a different weapon or frightening object, and each foot trampling a different being. Each of these receives detailed symbolic interpretation in ritual and meditation texts associated with Yamāntaka. Thus, his two horns are said to represent the two truths (SATYADVAYA) of MADHYAMAKA philosophy: ultimate truth (PARAMĀRTHASATYA) and conventional truth (SAMVṚTISATYA). His nine heads represent the nine categories (NAVAnGA[PĀVACANA]) of Buddhist scriptures. His thirty-four arms, together with his body, speech, and mind, symbolize the thirty-seven "factors pertaining to awakening" (BODHIPĀKsIKADHARMA). His sixteen legs symbolize the sixteen emptinesses (suNYATĀ). The humans and animals that he tramples with his right foot represent the attainment of the eight accomplishments, viz., supernatural abilities acquired through tantric practice, including the ability to fly, to become invisible, and travel underground. The birds that he tramples with his left foot represent the attainment of the eight powers, another set of magical abilities, including the ability to travel anywhere in an instant and the power to create emanations. His erect phallus represents great bliss, his nakedness means that he is not covered up with obstacles, and his hair standing on end symbolizes his passage beyond all sorrow (DUḤKHA). The Yamāntaka root tantras are the Sarvatathāgatakāyavāgcittakṛsnayamāritantra ("Body, Speech, and Mind of All Tathāgatas: Black Enemy of Death Tantra") in eighteen chapters; Sarvatathāgatakāyavāgcittaraktayamāritantra ("Red Enemy of Death Tantra," in large part, a different version of the same tantra in nineteen chapters); and the important Kṛsnayamārimukhatantra, also called the "Three Summaries Tantra" (T. Rgyud sdom gsum) because it has no chapters. Also included in the cycle is the Yamāntakakrodhavijayatantra ("Victorious Wrathful Yamāntaka Tantra"), a CARYĀTANTRA. Based on these three works, in Tibet, the three varieties of Yamāntaka are called the "red, black, and the frightening" (T. dmar nag 'jigs gsum) derived from Raktayamāri (Red Enemy of Death), Kṛsnayamāri (Black Enemy of Death), and Vajrabhairava.

Yellow Hats. (C. huangmao 帽). A popular designation in both European languages and Chinese for the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism, whose monks do indeed wear yellow hats. Although the term zhwa gser, or "yellow hat," does occur occasionally in Tibetan as a term of self-appellation for the Dge lugs, the Western and Chinese division of major Tibetan sects into Yellow Hats, RED HATS, and BLACK HATS has no corollary in Tibetan Buddhism and should be avoided.

Yel pa bka' brgyud. (Yelpa Kagyü). One of the four major and eight minor subsects of the BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism (BKA' BRGYUD CHE BZHI CHUNG BRGYAD), originating with Ye shes brtsegs pa (b. 1134), a student of Bka' brgyud hierarch PHAG MO GRU PA RDO RJE RGYAL PO. After a period of decline, it was revived by CHOS KYI 'BYUNG GNAS but was latter absorbed into KARMA BKA' BRGYUD.

ye shes. (yeshe). In Tibetan, lit. "primordial knowledge," with ye meaning "original" or "primordial." The term renders the Sanskrit JNĀNA; in the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, it refers to the originally pure mind. See RIG PA; JNĀNA.

yi ge brgya pa. (yi ge gyapa). In Tibetan, "hundred-syllable MANTRA"; term used to describe a number of lengthy MANTRAs, most commonly that of VAJRASATTVA, recited as part of a Tibetan tantric confession and purification practice. This is one of the preliminary practices (SNGON 'GRO) of the RNYING MA sect of Tibetan Buddhism, involving one hundred thousand repetitions of the Vajrasattva mantra.

yuktikāya. (T. rigs tshogs). In Sanskrit, literally "corpus of reasoning," or "collection of reasoning"; a term used in the Indian and Tibetan traditions to refer collectively to six works that traditionally constitute NĀGĀRJUNA's philosophical oeuvre. The six works are the MuLAMADHYAMAKAKĀRIKĀ, YUKTIsAstIKĀ, suNYATĀSAPTATI, VIGRAHAVYĀVARTANĪ, VAIDALYAPRAKARAnA, and RATNĀVALĪ. (Some versions list only five works in the corpus, eliminating the Ratnāvalī; others substitute the AKUTOBHAYĀ in place of the Ratnāvalī as the sixth work). This group of texts is often referred to in connection with the STAVAKĀYA, or "corpus of hymns," the devotional works attributed to Nāgārjuna. There are traditionally four works in this group of hymns, known collectively as the CATUḤSTAVA: the LOKĀTĪTASTAVA, NIRAUPAMYASTAVA, ACINTYASTAVA, and PARAMĀRTHASTAVA, although a number of other important hymns are also ascribed to Nāgārjuna. These two collections of Nāgārjuna's works figure prominently in the "self-emptiness, other emptiness" (RANG STONG GZHAN STONG) debate in Tibetan Buddhism, where the parties disagree on the question of which corpus represents Nāgārjuna's final view.

Zangs mdog dpal ri. (Sangdok Palri). In Tibetan, the "Glorious Copper-Colored Mountain"; the abode of PADMASAMBHAVA. It is located on the island of Cāmara, one of the two "subcontinents" flanking the island of JAMBUDVĪPA; Cāmara is sometimes identified as Sri Lanka. After leaving Tibet, Padmasambhava is said to have departed for the Copper-Colored Mountain. The island was inhabited by ogres (RAKsASA), whom he first had to subdue. He then constructed an octagonal palace, called "Lotus Light" (Padma 'od), at the summit of the mountain, where he will abide until the end of SAMSĀRA. In Tibetan Buddhism, Copper-Colored Mountain came to function as a PURE LAND, although it is located on earth, and is not flat as pure lands are supposed to be. There are numerous prayers for rebirth on the Copper-Colored Mountain and numerous accounts of devotees being transported there in dreams and visions. Among the most common depictions of Padmasambhava in Tibetan painting are those of him enthroned on the Copper-Colored Mountain.

Zaya Pandita. [alt. Jaya Pandita] (1599-1662). An important Mongolian monk of the DGE LUGS sect of Tibetan Buddhism. Born as the fifth son in a noble family of the Qoshot tribe, in 1615 he was selected by its leader to become a monk. He was sent to Tibet where he became a disciple of the first (also counted as the fourth) PAn CHEN LAMA, BLO BZANG CHOS KYI RGYAL MTSHAN, studying both the scholastic curriculum and the tantric curriculum. In 1639, after twenty-two years in Tibet, on the instructions of the Pan chen Lama and the fifth DALAI LAMA, he returned to his homeland, serving as a missionary among the Qoshot. During this period, he invented the todorxoi üzüg (clear script) for the transcription of the Oirad language. In 1650, he returned to Tibet to make offerings to the Dalai Lama and to visit the Pan chen Lama, and then continued his missionary work, going as far west as the Kalmyk region of the Volga. Zaya Pandita died while en route back to Tibet in 1662. He was a distinguished translator, translating 177 works from Tibetan into the Oirad language. The title of Zaya Pandita was given to masters of the five traditional sciences; there were at least two other important Mongolian monks who bore the title and had lines of incarnation. The monk described here can be distinguished by his Tibetan name, Nam kha'i rgya mtsho.

Zhabs drung Ngag dbang rnam rgyal. (Shapdrung Ngawang Namgyal) (1594-1651). A Tibetan Buddhist figure noted for unifying Bhutan as a Buddhist state. At a young age, Ngag dbang rnam rgyal was installed as the eighteenth successor to the throne of RWA LUNG monastery, seat of the 'BRUG PA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism in central Tibet and its leaders, the 'BRUG CHEN INCARNATIONS. In 1616, at the age of twenty-three, he was forced to flee to Bhutan in a political dispute over his recognition as the reincarnation of the fourth 'Brug chen master, PADMA DKAR PO. Ngag dbang rnam rgyal initially gained control over the western region, with his forces eventually defeating his rivals and uniting the various regions into a single country under his leadership. He later successfully repelled an invasion of Bhutan by Tibetan forces mustered by the fifth DALAI LAMA. His title Zhabs drung (literally "at the feet") refers to his great stature as a Buddhist master. He is famed for establishing a religious and political system of monastic and administrative centers called rdzong (fortress), which are still in use today in Bhutan. Ngag dbang rnam rgyal is also considered the first master of a prominent Bhutanese incarnation lineage, the Zhabs drung incarnations.

Zhe chen. (Shechen). One of the four main RNYING MA monasteries in eastern Tibet, the others being KAḤ THOG, RDZOGS CHEN, and DPAL YUL; founded in 1735 by the second ZHE CHEN RAB 'BYAMS incarnation, 'Gyur med kun bzang rnam rgyal (Gyurme Kunsang Namgyel, 1710-1769). Zhe chen then became the seat for his subsequent incarnations, who all served as abbot, and a principal institution of the Rnying ma sect of Tibetan Buddhism. The monastery, comprised of several main temples and surrounding structures, was at times also governed by a line of regent lamas, the Zhe chen rgyal tshab (Shechen Gyaltsap) incarnations. The fourth Zhe chen rgyal tshab, Padma rnam rgyal (Pema Namgyel, 1871-1926), formally recognized the young twentieth-century luminary DIL MGO MKHYEN BRTSE as one of five reembodiments of 'JAM DBYANG MKHYEN BRTSE DBANG PO, a leading figure of the nineteenth-century RIS MED, or nonsectarian movement. The institution's full name is Zhe chen bden gnyis dar rgyas gling (Shechen Dennyi Dargyeling).

Zhwa dmar incarnations. (Shamar). An influential incarnation (SPRUL SKU) lineage in the KARMA BKA' BRGYUD sect of Tibetan Buddhism, regarded as a human incarnation of AMITĀBHA. The first incarnation, Grags pa seng ge (Drakpa Senge, 1283-1349), was a disciple of the third KARMA PA, who offered him a red crown (zhwa dmar), from which the name of the line of incarnations derives. Subsequent Zhwa dmar embodiments had close relationships with the Karma pa line, in many cases alternately serving as GURU and pupil to the BKA' BRGYUD hierarch. Grags pa seng ge founded a seat at GNAS NANG monastery in central Tibet, later moved to YANGS PA CAN monastery under the direction of the fourth incarnation, Chos grags ye shes (Chodrak Yeshe, 1453-1524). Several Zhwa dmar incarnations spent considerable time in Nepal, including the sixth, Gar dbang Chos kyi dbang phug (Garwang Chokyi Wangchuk, 1584-1630), who composed a detailed description of his travels. The lineage was interrupted for nearly a century when the tenth incarnation, Chos grub rgya mtsho (Chodrup Gyatso, 1741-1791), was accused of forging a treasonous alliance with the Gorkha army during a Tibetan conflict with Nepal, during which BKRA SHIS LHUN PO monastery was sacked. The tenth Zhwa dmar died in prison, by either suicide or murder. The Tibetan government seized Yangs pa can monastery and converted it into a DGE LUGS monastery. It also banned recognition of new Zhwa dmar embodiments, a proscription that lasted more than a century. In the interim, several incarnations were found but never officially installed. The incarnation lineage includes:



QUOTES [5 / 5 - 24 / 24]


KEYS (10k)

   1 Wikipedia
   1 Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche
   1 Judith Simmer-Brown
   1 Dalai Lama
   1 ?

NEW FULL DB (2.4M)

   3 Tenzin Palmo
   3 B Alan Wallace
   2 Scott Carney

1:If you want others to be happy practice compassion. If you want to be happy, practice compassion." ~ Dalai Lama, (14th , b. 1935). Dalai Lamas are important monks of the Gelug school, the newest school of Tibetan Buddhism, Wikipedia.,
2:In the Judeo-Christian tradition, it is called 'the resurrection body ' and 'the glorified body.' The prophet Isaiah said, 'The dead shall live, their bodies shall rise' (Isa. 26:19). St. Paul called it 'the celestial body' or 'spiritual body ' (soma pneumatikon) (I Corinthians 15:40). In Sufism it is called 'the most sacred body ' (wujud al-aqdas) and 'supracelestial body ' (jism asli haqiqi). In Taoism, it is called 'the diamond body,' and those who have attained it are called 'the immortals' and 'the cloudwalkers.' In Tibetan Buddhism it is called 'the light body.' In Tantrism and some schools of yoga, it is called 'the vajra body,' 'the adamantine body,' and 'the divine body.' In Kriya yoga it is called 'the body of bliss.' In Vedanta it is called 'the superconductive body.' In Gnosticism and Neoplatonism, it is called 'the radiant body.' In the alchemical tradition, the Emerald Tablet calls it 'the Glory of the Whole Universe' and 'the golden body.' The alchemist Paracelsus called it 'the astral body.' In the Hermetic Corpus, it is called 'the immortal body ' (soma athanaton). In some mystery schools, it is called 'the solar body.' In Rosicrucianism, it is called 'the diamond body of the temple of God.' In ancient Egypt it was called 'the luminous body or being' (akh). In Old Persia it was called 'the indwelling divine potential' (fravashi or fravarti). In the Mithraic liturgy it was called 'the perfect body ' (soma teilion). In the philosophy of Sri Aurobindo, it is called 'the divine body,' composed of supramental substance. In the philosophy of Teilhard de Chardin, it is called 'the ultrahuman'.
   ~ ?, http://herebedragons.weebly.com/homo-lumen.html,
3:WHEN THE GREAT YOGIN Padmasambhava, called by Tibetans Guru Rinpoche, "the precious teacher," embarks on his spiritual journey, he travels from place to place requesting teachings from yogins and yoginls. Guided by visions and dreams, his journey takes him to desolate forests populated with ferocious wild animals, to poison lakes with fortified islands, and to cremation grounds. Wherever he goes he performs miracles, receives empowerments, and ripens his own abilities to benefit others.

   When he hears of the supreme queen of all dakinls, the greatly accomplished yogini called Secret Wisdom, he travels to the Sandal Grove cremation ground to the gates of her abode, the Palace of Skulls. He attempts to send a request to the queen with her maidservant Kumari. But the girl ignores him and continues to carry huge brass jugs of water suspended from a heavy yoke across her shoulders. When he presses his request, Kumari continues her labors, remaining silent. The great yogin becomes impatient and, through his yogic powers, magically nails the heavy jugs to the floor. No matter how hard Kumari struggles, she cannot lift them.

   Removing the yoke and ropes from her shoulders, she steps before Padmasambhava, exclaiming, "You have developed great yogic powers. What of my powers, great one?" And so saying, she draws a sparkling crystal knife from the girdle at her waist and slices open her heart center, revealing the vivid and vast interior space of her body. Inside she displays to Guru Rinpoche the mandala of deities from the inner tantras: forty-two peaceful deities manifested in her upper torso and head and fifty-eight wrathful deities resting in her lower torso. Abashed that he did not realize with whom he was dealing, Guru Rinpoche bows before her and humbly renews his request for teachings. In response, she offers him her respect as well, adding, "I am only a maidservant," and ushers him in to meet the queen Secret Wisdom. ~ Judith Simmer-Brown, Dakini's Warm Breath: The Feminine Principle in Tibetan Buddhism, Introduction: Encountering the Dakini,
4:Ekajaṭī or Ekajaṭā, (Sanskrit: "One Plait Woman"; Wylie: ral gcig ma: one who has one knot of hair),[1] also known as Māhacīnatārā,[2] is one of the 21 Taras. Ekajati is, along with Palden Lhamo deity, one of the most powerful and fierce goddesses of Vajrayana Buddhist mythology.[1][3] According to Tibetan legends, her right eye was pierced by the tantric master Padmasambhava so that she could much more effectively help him subjugate Tibetan demons.

Ekajati is also known as "Blue Tara", Vajra Tara or "Ugra Tara".[1][3] She is generally considered one of the three principal protectors of the Nyingma school along with Rāhula and Vajrasādhu (Wylie: rdo rje legs pa).

Often Ekajati appears as liberator in the mandala of the Green Tara. Along with that, her ascribed powers are removing the fear of enemies, spreading joy, and removing personal hindrances on the path to enlightenment.

Ekajati is the protector of secret mantras and "as the mother of the mothers of all the Buddhas" represents the ultimate unity. As such, her own mantra is also secret. She is the most important protector of the Vajrayana teachings, especially the Inner Tantras and termas. As the protector of mantra, she supports the practitioner in deciphering symbolic dakini codes and properly determines appropriate times and circumstances for revealing tantric teachings. Because she completely realizes the texts and mantras under her care, she reminds the practitioner of their preciousness and secrecy.[4] Düsum Khyenpa, 1st Karmapa Lama meditated upon her in early childhood.

According to Namkhai Norbu, Ekajati is the principal guardian of the Dzogchen teachings and is "a personification of the essentially non-dual nature of primordial energy."[5]

Dzogchen is the most closely guarded teaching in Tibetan Buddhism, of which Ekajati is a main guardian as mentioned above. It is said that Sri Singha (Sanskrit: Śrī Siṃha) himself entrusted the "Heart Essence" (Wylie: snying thig) teachings to her care. To the great master Longchenpa, who initiated the dissemination of certain Dzogchen teachings, Ekajati offered uncharacteristically personal guidance. In his thirty-second year, Ekajati appeared to Longchenpa, supervising every ritual detail of the Heart Essence of the Dakinis empowerment, insisting on the use of a peacock feather and removing unnecessary basin. When Longchenpa performed the ritual, she nodded her head in approval but corrected his pronunciation. When he recited the mantra, Ekajati admonished him, saying, "Imitate me," and sang it in a strange, harmonious melody in the dakini's language. Later she appeared at the gathering and joyously danced, proclaiming the approval of Padmasambhava and the dakinis.[6] ~ Wikipedia,
5:GURU YOGA
   Guru yoga is an essential practice in all schools of Tibetan Buddhism and Bon. This is true in sutra, tantra, and Dzogchen. It develops the heart connection with the masteR By continually strengthening our devotion, we come to the place of pure devotion in ourselves, which is the unshakeable, powerful base of the practice. The essence of guru yoga is to merge the practitioner's mind with the mind of the master.
   What is the true master? It is the formless, fundamental nature of mind, the primordial awareness of the base of everything, but because we exist in dualism, it is helpful for us to visualize this in a form. Doing so makes skillful use of the dualisms of the conceptual mind, to further strengthen devotion and help us stay directed toward practice and the generation of positive qualities.
   In the Bon tradition, we often visualize either Tapihritsa* as the master, or the Buddha ShenlaOdker*, who represents the union of all the masters. If you are already a practitioner, you may have another deity to visualize, like Guru Rinpoche or a yidam or dakini. While it is important to work with a lineage with which you have a connection, you should understand that the master you visualize is the embodiment of all the masters with whom you are connected, all the teachers with whom you have studied, all the deities to whom you have commitments. The master in guru yoga is not just one individual, but the essence of enlightenment, the primordial awareness that is your true nature.
   The master is also the teacher from whom you receive the teachings. In the Tibetan tradition, we say the master is more important than the Buddha. Why? Because the master is the immediate messenger of the teachings, the one who brings the Buddha's wisdom to the student. Without the master we could not find our way to the Buddha. So we should feel as much devotion to the master as we would to the Buddha if the Buddha suddenly appeared in front of us.
   Guru yoga is not just about generating some feeling toward a visualized image. It is done to find the fundamental mind in yourself that is the same as the fundamental mind of all your teachers, and of all the Buddhas and realized beings that have ever lived. When you merge with the guru, you merge with your pristine true nature, which is the real guide and masteR But this should not be an abstract practice. When you do guru yoga, try to feel such intense devotion that the hair stands upon your neck, tears start down your face, and your heart opens and fills with great love. Let yourself merge in union with the guru's mind, which is your enlightened Buddha-nature. This is the way to practice guru yoga.
  
The Practice
   After the nine breaths, still seated in meditation posture, visualize the master above and in front of you. This should not be a flat, two dimensional picture-let a real being exist there, in three dimensions, made of light, pure, and with a strong presence that affects the feeling in your body,your energy, and your mind. Generate strong devotion and reflect on the great gift of the teachings and the tremendous good fortune you enjoy in having made a connection to them. Offer a sincere prayer, asking that your negativities and obscurations be removed, that your positive qualities develop, and that you accomplish dream yoga.
   Then imagine receiving blessings from the master in the form of three colored lights that stream from his or her three wisdom doors- of body, speech, and mind-into yours. The lights should be transmitted in the following sequence: White light streams from the master's brow chakra into yours, purifying and relaxing your entire body and physical dimension. Then red light streams from the master's throat chakra into yours, purifying and relaxing your energetic dimension. Finally, blue light streams from the master's heart chakra into yours, purifying and relaxing your mind.
   When the lights enter your body, feel them. Let your body, energy, and mind relax, suffused inwisdom light. Use your imagination to make the blessing real in your full experience, in your body and energy as well as in the images in your mind.
   After receiving the blessing, imagine the master dissolving into light that enters your heart and resides there as your innermost essence. Imagine that you dissolve into that light, and remain inpure awareness, rigpa.
   There are more elaborate instructions for guru yoga that can involve prostrations, offerings, gestures, mantras, and more complicated visualizations, but the essence of the practice is mingling your mind with the mind of the master, which is pure, non-dual awareness. Guru yoga can be done any time during the day; the more often the better. Many masters say that of all the practices it is guru yoga that is the most important. It confers the blessings of the lineage and can open and soften the heart and quiet the unruly mind. To completely accomplish guru yoga is to accomplish the path.
   ~ Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, The Tibetan Yogas Of Dream And Sleep, [T3],

*** WISDOM TROVE ***

1:As a dialectical teacher, I have had many lives where I have taught Zen and Tibetan Buddhism and mysticism. I teach in many different modalites. But the theme that unites them - is love. ~ frederick-lenz, @wisdomtrove

*** NEWFULLDB 2.4M ***

1:Tibetan Buddhism had an enormous impact on me. ~ Richard Gere,
2:Tibetan Buddhism, has inspired me and accelerated my understanding of life. ~ Jet Li,
3:I was studying Tibetan Buddhism when I was quite young, again influenced by Kerouac. ~ David Bowie,
4:Buddhism - Tibetan Buddhism - teaches us many things, peace comes from within, we must be free ourselves from earthly desires... ~ Peter Sagal,
5:As a dialectical teacher, I have had many lives where I have taught Zen and Tibetan Buddhism and mysticism. I teach in many different modalites. But the theme that unites them - is love. ~ Frederick Lenz,
6:A text of Tibetan Buddhism describes the time of death as a unique opportunity for spiritual liberation from the cycles of death and rebirth and a period that determines our next incarnation. ~ Stanislav Grof,
7:What I like about Tibetan Buddhism is it was taken to Tibet in the 7th century and then again in the 11th. It has everything that had been collected in India up until that time. And so on all levels, it's so vast. ~ Tenzin Palmo,
8:According to Tibetan Buddhism, otherness and self are identical, and when man wars against this otherness he wars against his own body, his own oneness with the self. ~ Rix Weaver, The Wise Old Woman: A Study of Active Imagination,
9:What sets Tibetan Buddhism apart from other Buddhist traditions—such as the Zen Buddhism of Japan or the Theravada tradition in Sri Lanka—is that while Tibetans aim to become enlightened, they don’t want to enter Nirvana. ~ Scott Carney,
10:The teachings of Osho, in fact, encompass many religions, but he is not defined by any of them. He is an illuminating speaker on Zen, Taoism, Tibetan Buddhism, Christianity and ancient Greek philosophy... and also a prolific author. ~ Nevill Drury,
11:In the early '60s there was very little reliable information on Tibetan Buddhism. I was living in London and I had joined the Buddhist Society. For the most part, people there were either interested in Theravada or Zen Buddhism. There was almost no one into Tibetan Buddhism at that time. ~ Tenzin Palmo,
12:My mother was a spiritualist. We had weekly séances at our house with a neighbor who was a medium and various friends, and so I was brought up with the idea that there are many realms of being all around us. So that prepared me for Buddhism, and especially Tibetan Buddhism with all its talk of different realms and dimensions of being. ~ Tenzin Palmo,
13:Within Tibetan Buddhism, shamatha practice maps on to the nine stages of attentional development wherein thoughts gradually subside as concentrative power is increased to the point at which one can effortlessly maintain single-pointed focus on a chosen object for at least four hours. The accomplishment of shamatha is accompanied by a powerful experience of bliss, luminosity, and stillness. ~ B Alan Wallace,
14:In Tibetan Buddhism, taking a root lama creates a sort of indelible connection to a teacher that can’t be erased by any sort of worldly action. The vows of obedience work on the spiritual plane and form a connection that persists in all future rebirths. It entails total submission to the will of another person, and complete trust that they will give you the tools you need to progress spiritually. From the moment she took the vows, McNally gave away control of her own life. ~ Scott Carney,
15:Our ancient sources of wisdom call on human beings to rise to their highest capacity and behave in extraordinarily open and generous ways to one another, under difficult circumstances to transcend differences and create understanding across all barriers of convention and fear. This wisdom is fragile as our environment is fragile, threatened by an overwhelming material culture. I believe in a spiritual ecology. In today’s world, Judaism and Tibetan Buddhism and other wisdom traditions are endangered species. ~ Rodger Kamenetz,
16:The text presented here, the Vajra Essence by Düdjom Lingpa, a nineteenth-century master of the Nyingma order of Tibetan Buddhism, is known as the Nelug Rangjung in Tibetan, meaning “the natural emergence of the nature of existence.”1 This is an ideal teaching in which to unravel some of the common misunderstandings of Tibetan Buddhism, since it is a sweeping practice that can take one from the basics all the way to enlightenment in a single lifetime. The present volume explains the initial section on shamatha, or meditative quiescence, about nine percent of the entire Vajra Essence root text. ~ B Alan Wallace,
17:Shamatha is presented in the Vajra Essence as a foundational practice on the Dzogchen path. Dzogchen, often translated as “the Great Perfection,” is the highest of the nine vehicles (yanas) in the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. Classically speaking, after achieving shamatha, the yogi will use his or her newly acquired powers of concentration to practice insight into the nature of emptiness (vipashyana), followed by the Dzogchen practices of tregchö (breakthrough) and tögal (direct crossing-over). These four practices comprise the essential path to enlightenment from the Nyingma point of view. The practice of Dzogchen brings one into direct contact with reality, unmediated by the individual personality or society. ~ B Alan Wallace,
18:As we go through life, the experiences we encounter depend largely upon our own minds. Tibetan Buddhism teaches that the mind does not passively receive images of the world but actually creates and projects them onto the sense impressions of bare reality, using its store of memories and habitual traits. For this reason, few of us ever experience reality as it is in actuality, but instead overlay it with a host of our own projections. These projections are usually negative in nature.

According to our level of inner growth, we may be able to modify these self-created visions into forms and images that are more conducive to our spiritual health and growth. Their hallucinatory nature becomes more apparent at the time of death as well as when we become more accomplished in meditation.

In only we can let go of our needs and fears, then we can come to terms with such projections. If we can let go, we will come to rest in the natural state of the mind. For this profound experience to occur, our confused minds must be soothed and all our fears pacified by the compassion and skill of our spiritual friends and guides. ~ Jeffrey M Schwartz,
19:In the Judeo-Christian tradition, it is called 'the resurrection body ' and 'the glorified body.' The prophet Isaiah said, 'The dead shall live, their bodies shall rise' (Isa. 26:19). St. Paul called it 'the celestial body' or 'spiritual body ' (soma pneumatikon) (I Corinthians 15:40). In Sufism it is called 'the most sacred body ' (wujud al-aqdas) and 'supracelestial body ' (jism asli haqiqi). In Taoism, it is called 'the diamond body,' and those who have attained it are called 'the immortals' and 'the cloudwalkers.' In Tibetan Buddhism it is called 'the light body.' In Tantrism and some schools of yoga, it is called 'the vajra body,' 'the adamantine body,' and 'the divine body.' In Kriya yoga it is called 'the body of bliss.' In Vedanta it is called 'the superconductive body.' In Gnosticism and Neoplatonism, it is called 'the radiant body.' In the alchemical tradition, the Emerald Tablet calls it 'the Glory of the Whole Universe' and 'the golden body.' The alchemist Paracelsus called it 'the astral body.' In the Hermetic Corpus, it is called 'the immortal body ' (soma athanaton). In some mystery schools, it is called 'the solar body.' In Rosicrucianism, it is called 'the diamond body of the temple of God.' In ancient Egypt it was called 'the luminous body or being' (akh). In Old Persia it was called 'the indwelling divine potential' (fravashi or fravarti). In the Mithraic liturgy it was called 'the perfect body ' (soma teilion). In the philosophy of Sri Aurobindo, it is called 'the divine body,' composed of supramental substance. In the philosophy of Teilhard de Chardin, it is called 'the ultrahuman'.
   ~ ?, http://herebedragons.weebly.com/homo-lumen.html,
20:WHEN THE GREAT YOGIN Padmasambhava, called by Tibetans Guru Rinpoche, "the precious teacher," embarks on his spiritual journey, he travels from place to place requesting teachings from yogins and yoginls. Guided by visions and dreams, his journey takes him to desolate forests populated with ferocious wild animals, to poison lakes with fortified islands, and to cremation grounds. Wherever he goes he performs miracles, receives empowerments, and ripens his own abilities to benefit others.

   When he hears of the supreme queen of all dakinls, the greatly accomplished yogini called Secret Wisdom, he travels to the Sandal Grove cremation ground to the gates of her abode, the Palace of Skulls. He attempts to send a request to the queen with her maidservant Kumari. But the girl ignores him and continues to carry huge brass jugs of water suspended from a heavy yoke across her shoulders. When he presses his request, Kumari continues her labors, remaining silent. The great yogin becomes impatient and, through his yogic powers, magically nails the heavy jugs to the floor. No matter how hard Kumari struggles, she cannot lift them.

   Removing the yoke and ropes from her shoulders, she steps before Padmasambhava, exclaiming, "You have developed great yogic powers. What of my powers, great one?" And so saying, she draws a sparkling crystal knife from the girdle at her waist and slices open her heart center, revealing the vivid and vast interior space of her body. Inside she displays to Guru Rinpoche the mandala of deities from the inner tantras: forty-two peaceful deities manifested in her upper torso and head and fifty-eight wrathful deities resting in her lower torso. Abashed that he did not realize with whom he was dealing, Guru Rinpoche bows before her and humbly renews his request for teachings. In response, she offers him her respect as well, adding, "I am only a maidservant," and ushers him in to meet the queen Secret Wisdom. ~ Judith Simmer-Brown, Dakini's Warm Breath: The Feminine Principle in Tibetan Buddhism, Introduction: Encountering the Dakini,
21:Ekajaṭī or Ekajaṭā, (Sanskrit: "One Plait Woman"; Wylie: ral gcig ma: one who has one knot of hair),[1] also known as Māhacīnatārā,[2] is one of the 21 Taras. Ekajati is, along with Palden Lhamo deity, one of the most powerful and fierce goddesses of Vajrayana Buddhist mythology.[1][3] According to Tibetan legends, her right eye was pierced by the tantric master Padmasambhava so that she could much more effectively help him subjugate Tibetan demons.

Ekajati is also known as "Blue Tara", Vajra Tara or "Ugra Tara".[1][3] She is generally considered one of the three principal protectors of the Nyingma school along with Rāhula and Vajrasādhu (Wylie: rdo rje legs pa).

Often Ekajati appears as liberator in the mandala of the Green Tara. Along with that, her ascribed powers are removing the fear of enemies, spreading joy, and removing personal hindrances on the path to enlightenment.

Ekajati is the protector of secret mantras and "as the mother of the mothers of all the Buddhas" represents the ultimate unity. As such, her own mantra is also secret. She is the most important protector of the Vajrayana teachings, especially the Inner Tantras and termas. As the protector of mantra, she supports the practitioner in deciphering symbolic dakini codes and properly determines appropriate times and circumstances for revealing tantric teachings. Because she completely realizes the texts and mantras under her care, she reminds the practitioner of their preciousness and secrecy.[4] Düsum Khyenpa, 1st Karmapa Lama meditated upon her in early childhood.

According to Namkhai Norbu, Ekajati is the principal guardian of the Dzogchen teachings and is "a personification of the essentially non-dual nature of primordial energy."[5]

Dzogchen is the most closely guarded teaching in Tibetan Buddhism, of which Ekajati is a main guardian as mentioned above. It is said that Sri Singha (Sanskrit: Śrī Siṃha) himself entrusted the "Heart Essence" (Wylie: snying thig) teachings to her care. To the great master Longchenpa, who initiated the dissemination of certain Dzogchen teachings, Ekajati offered uncharacteristically personal guidance. In his thirty-second year, Ekajati appeared to Longchenpa, supervising every ritual detail of the Heart Essence of the Dakinis empowerment, insisting on the use of a peacock feather and removing unnecessary basin. When Longchenpa performed the ritual, she nodded her head in approval but corrected his pronunciation. When he recited the mantra, Ekajati admonished him, saying, "Imitate me," and sang it in a strange, harmonious melody in the dakini's language. Later she appeared at the gathering and joyously danced, proclaiming the approval of Padmasambhava and the dakinis.[6] ~ Wikipedia,
22:Your job then, should you choose to accept it, is to keep searching for the metaphors, rituals and teachers that will help you move ever closer to divinity. The Yogic scriptures say that God responds to the sacred prayers and efforts of human beings in any way whatsoever that mortals choose to worship—just so long as those prayers are sincere.

I think you have every right to cherry-pick when it comes to moving your spirit and finding peace in God. I think you are free to search for any metaphor whatsoever which will take you across the worldly divide whenever you need to be transported or comforted. It's nothing to be embarrassed about. It's the history of mankind's search for holiness. If humanity never evolved in its exploration of the divine, a lot of us would still be worshipping golden Egyptian statues of cats. And this evolution of religious thinking does involve a fair bit of cherry-picking. You take whatever works from wherever you can find it, and you keep moving toward the light.

The Hopi Indians thought that the world's religions each contained one spiritual thread, and that these threads are always seeking each other, wanting to join. When all the threads are finally woven together they will form a rope that will pull us out of this dark cycle of history and into the next realm. More contemporarily, the Dalai Lama has repeated the same idea, assuring his Western students repeatedly that they needn't become Tibetan Buddhists in order to be his pupils. He welcomes them to take whatever ideas they like out of Tibetan Buddhism and integrate these ideas into their own religious practices. Even in the most unlikely and conservative of places, you can find sometimes this glimmering idea that God might be bigger than our limited religious doctrines have taught us. In 1954, Pope Pius XI, of all people, sent some Vatican delegates on a trip to Libya with these written instructions: "Do NOT think that you are going among Infidels. Muslims attain salvation, too. The ways of Providence are infinite."

But doesn't that make sense? That the infinite would be, indeed ... infinite? That even the most holy amongst us would only be able to see scattered pieces of the eternal picture at any given time? And that maybe if we could collect those pieces and compare them, a story about God would begin to emerge that resembles and includes everyone? And isn't our individual longing for transcendence all just part of this larger human search for divinity? Don't we each have the right to not stop seeking until we get as close to the source of wonder as possible? Even if it means coming to India and kissing trees in the moonlight for a while?

That's me in the corner, in other words. That's me in the spotlight. Choosing my religion. ~ Elizabeth Gilbert,
23:William Butler Yeats’s “Second Coming” seems perfectly to render our present predicament: “The best lack all conviction, while the worst / Are full of passionate intensity.” This is an excellent description of the current split between anaemic liberals and impassioned fundamentalists. “The best” are no longer able to fully engage, while “the worst” engage in racist, religious, sexist fanaticism.
However, are the terrorist fundamentalists, be they Christian or Muslim, really fundamentalists in the authentic sense of the term? Do they really believe? What they lack is a feature that is easy to discern in all authentic fundamentalists, from Tibetan Buddhists to the Amish in the U.S.: the absence of resentment and envy, the deep indifference towards the non-believers’ way of life. If today’s so-called fundamentalists really believe they have their way to truth, why should they feel threatened by non-believers, why should they envy them? When a Buddhist encounters a Western hedonist, he hardly condemns him. He just benevolently notes that the hedonist’s search for happiness is self-defeating. In contrast to true fundamentalists, the terrorist pseudo-fundamentalists are deeply bothered, intrigued, fascinated by the sinful life of the non-believers. One can feel that, in fighting the sinful Other, they are fighting their own temptation. These so-called Christian or Muslim fundamentalists are a disgrace to true fundamentalists.
It is here that Yeats’s diagnosis falls short of the present predicament: the passionate intensity of a mob bears witness to a lack of true conviction. Deep in themselves, terrorist fundamentalists also lack true conviction-their violent outbursts are proof of it. How fragile the belief of a Muslim must be, if he feels threatened by a stupid caricature in a low-circulation Danish newspaper. The fundamentalist Islamic terror is not grounded in the terrorists’ conviction of their superiority and in their desire to safeguard their cultural-religious identity from the onslaught of global consumerist civilization. The problem with fundamentalists is not that we consider them inferior to us, but rather that they themselves secretly consider themselves inferior. This is why our condescending, politically correct assurances that we feel no superiority towards them only make them more furious and feeds their resentment. The problem is not cultural difference (their effort to preserve their identity), but the opposite fact that the fundamentalists are already like us, that secretly they have already internalized our standards and measure themselves by them. (This clearly goes for the Dalai Lama, who justifies Tibetan Buddhism in Western terms of the pursuit of happiness and avoidance of pain.) Paradoxically, what the fundamentalists really lack is precisely a dose of that true “racist” conviction of one’s own superiority. ~ Slavoj i ek,
24:GURU YOGA
   Guru yoga is an essential practice in all schools of Tibetan Buddhism and Bon. This is true in sutra, tantra, and Dzogchen. It develops the heart connection with the masteR By continually strengthening our devotion, we come to the place of pure devotion in ourselves, which is the unshakeable, powerful base of the practice. The essence of guru yoga is to merge the practitioner's mind with the mind of the master.
   What is the true master? It is the formless, fundamental nature of mind, the primordial awareness of the base of everything, but because we exist in dualism, it is helpful for us to visualize this in a form. Doing so makes skillful use of the dualisms of the conceptual mind, to further strengthen devotion and help us stay directed toward practice and the generation of positive qualities.
   In the Bon tradition, we often visualize either Tapihritsa* as the master, or the Buddha ShenlaOdker*, who represents the union of all the masters. If you are already a practitioner, you may have another deity to visualize, like Guru Rinpoche or a yidam or dakini. While it is important to work with a lineage with which you have a connection, you should understand that the master you visualize is the embodiment of all the masters with whom you are connected, all the teachers with whom you have studied, all the deities to whom you have commitments. The master in guru yoga is not just one individual, but the essence of enlightenment, the primordial awareness that is your true nature.
   The master is also the teacher from whom you receive the teachings. In the Tibetan tradition, we say the master is more important than the Buddha. Why? Because the master is the immediate messenger of the teachings, the one who brings the Buddha's wisdom to the student. Without the master we could not find our way to the Buddha. So we should feel as much devotion to the master as we would to the Buddha if the Buddha suddenly appeared in front of us.
   Guru yoga is not just about generating some feeling toward a visualized image. It is done to find the fundamental mind in yourself that is the same as the fundamental mind of all your teachers, and of all the Buddhas and realized beings that have ever lived. When you merge with the guru, you merge with your pristine true nature, which is the real guide and masteR But this should not be an abstract practice. When you do guru yoga, try to feel such intense devotion that the hair stands upon your neck, tears start down your face, and your heart opens and fills with great love. Let yourself merge in union with the guru's mind, which is your enlightened Buddha-nature. This is the way to practice guru yoga.
  
The Practice
   After the nine breaths, still seated in meditation posture, visualize the master above and in front of you. This should not be a flat, two dimensional picture-let a real being exist there, in three dimensions, made of light, pure, and with a strong presence that affects the feeling in your body,your energy, and your mind. Generate strong devotion and reflect on the great gift of the teachings and the tremendous good fortune you enjoy in having made a connection to them. Offer a sincere prayer, asking that your negativities and obscurations be removed, that your positive qualities develop, and that you accomplish dream yoga.
   Then imagine receiving blessings from the master in the form of three colored lights that stream from his or her three wisdom doors- of body, speech, and mind-into yours. The lights should be transmitted in the following sequence: White light streams from the master's brow chakra into yours, purifying and relaxing your entire body and physical dimension. Then red light streams from the master's throat chakra into yours, purifying and relaxing your energetic dimension. Finally, blue light streams from the master's heart chakra into yours, purifying and relaxing your mind.
   When the lights enter your body, feel them. Let your body, energy, and mind relax, suffused inwisdom light. Use your imagination to make the blessing real in your full experience, in your body and energy as well as in the images in your mind.
   After receiving the blessing, imagine the master dissolving into light that enters your heart and resides there as your innermost essence. Imagine that you dissolve into that light, and remain inpure awareness, rigpa.
   There are more elaborate instructions for guru yoga that can involve prostrations, offerings, gestures, mantras, and more complicated visualizations, but the essence of the practice is mingling your mind with the mind of the master, which is pure, non-dual awareness. Guru yoga can be done any time during the day; the more often the better. Many masters say that of all the practices it is guru yoga that is the most important. It confers the blessings of the lineage and can open and soften the heart and quiet the unruly mind. To completely accomplish guru yoga is to accomplish the path.
   ~ Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, The Tibetan Yogas Of Dream And Sleep, [T3],

IN CHAPTERS [10/10]



   3 Buddhism
   1 Psychology
   1 Occultism
   1 Integral Yoga


   3 Thubten Chodron
   3 Bokar Rinpoche


   3 Tara - The Feminine Divine
   3 How to Free Your Mind - Tara the Liberator


1.01 - Tara the Divine, #Tara - The Feminine Divine, #unset, #Zen
  meet one of the great orders of Tibetan Buddhism in
  particular. The same predispositions make us situate
  --
  Tibetans themselves into the practice of Tibetan Buddhism,
  especially in regard to deities. They may believe, for
  --
  the lineages of Tibetan Buddhism as well as Hindu
  doctrines. The Dalai Lama himself received many
  --
  had entered Tibetan Buddhism.
  It happened that no one had seen the sahib for

1.01 - Who is Tara, #How to Free Your Mind - Tara the Liberator, #Thubten Chodron, #unset
  ers of Tibetan Buddhism meditate upon such a being? How can a spiritual
  relationship with her enrich our lives?

1.02 - Meditating on Tara, #How to Free Your Mind - Tara the Liberator, #Thubten Chodron, #unset
  teacher of Tibetan Buddhism. The following description alone is not to be
  used for meditation.
  --
  about Tibetan Buddhism. I have heard people speak of Theravada, Mahayana,
  how to free your mind
  --
  Others think that if someone practices Mahayana, she doesnt practice Theravada teachings. Some Westerners believe that Tibetan Buddhism is only
  Vajrayana, that it doesnt include the Theravada or general Mahayana teachings. Such ideas are incorrect.
  Tibetan teachers make it clear that someone following Tibetan Buddhism
  doesnt practice only Vajrayana. Visualizations and the chanting of mantras

1.03 - Invocation of Tara, #Tara - The Feminine Divine, #unset, #Zen
  traditions of Tibetan Buddhism use according to their
  preference. The one most often used in the Kagyu

1.05 - Buddhism and Women, #Tara - The Feminine Divine, #unset, #Zen
  In all the schools of Tibetan Buddhism, Nyingma,
  Sakya, Kagyu, and Gelug, numerous women have

1.07 - A Song of Longing for Tara, the Infallible, #How to Free Your Mind - Tara the Liberator, #Thubten Chodron, #unset
  we dont have to take responsibility for making it happen. In Tibetan Buddhism we make long life pujas with elaborate offerings for our teachers. Once
  some people in the West wanted to do this after a series of teachings, and
  --
  Not observing who is qualied and who is not. I remember in the midseventies when people were just learning Tibetan Buddhism, they would
  often request highest yoga tantra initiations from Lama Yeshe, Lama, please
  --
  done in deep voices. In Tibetan Buddhism, there are red hats, yellow hats,
  and black hats. People compete to get hats; they ght over hats. Such behavior is not Dharma.

1953-10-21, #Questions And Answers 1953, #The Mother, #Integral Yoga
   Ah! as for Buddhism. The people of the South and the North have different kinds of imagination. The southern people are generally more rigid, arent they? I dont know, but for Buddhism, the Buddhism of the South is quite rigid and doesnt allow any suppleness in the understanding of the text. And it is a terribly strict Buddhism in which all notion of the Godhead in any form whatsoever, is completely done away with. On the other hand, the Buddhism of the North is an orgy of gods! It is true that these are former Buddhas, but still they are turned into gods. And it is this latter that has spread into China and from China gone to Japan. So, one enters a Buddhist temple in Japan and sees There is a temple where there were more than a thousand Buddhas, all sculptureda thousand figures seated around the central Buddha they were there all around, the entire back wall of the temple was covered with images: small ones, big ones, fat ones, thin ones, women, menthere was everything, a whole pantheon there, formidable, and they were like gods. And then too, there were little beings down below with all kinds of forms including those of animals, and these were the worshippers. It was it was an orgy of images. But the Buddhism of the South has the austerity of Protestantism: there must be no images. And there is no divine Consciousness, besides. One comes into the world through desire, into a world of desire, and abandoning desire one goes out of the world and creation and returns to Nirvanaeven the nought is something too concrete. There is no Creator in Buddhism. So, I dont know. The Buddhism of the South is written in Pali and that of the North in Sanskrit. And naturally, there is Tibetan Buddhism written in Tibetan, and Chinese Buddhism written in Chinese and Japanese Buddhism in Japanese. And each one, I believe, is very very different from the others. Well, probably there must be several versions of the Ramayana. And still more versions of the Mahabharata that indeed is amazing!
   (Nolini) Of the Ramayana also.

3.4.2 - Guru Yoga, #The Tibetan Yogas of Dream and Sleep, #Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche, #Buddhism
  Guru yoga is an essential practice in all schools of Tibetan Buddhism and Bon. This is true in sutra, tantra, and Dzogchen. It develops the heart connection with the master. By continually streng thening our devotion, we come to the place of pure devotion in ourselves, which is the unshakeable, powerful base of the practice. The essence of guru yoga is to merge the practitioner's mind with the mind of the master.
  What is the true master? It is the formless, fundamental nature of mind, the primordial awareness of the base of everything, but because we exist in dualism, it is helpful for us to visualize this in a form. Doing so makes skillful use of the dualisms of the conceptual mind, to further streng then devotion and help us stay directed toward practice and the generation of positive qualities.

6.0 - Conscious, Unconscious, and Individuation, #The Archetypes and the Collective Unconscious, #Carl Jung, #Psychology
  found in the sphere of Tibetan Buddhism. 2 I shall use as an
  example a Tibetan mandala, to which my attention was drawn
  --
  found, for instance, in Tibetan Buddhism, and as dance figures
  these circular patterns occur also in Dervish monasteries. As
  --
  7*4 In Tibetan Buddhism the figure has the significance of a
  ritual instrument (y antra), whose purpose is to assist meditation

The Act of Creation text, #The Act of Creation, #Arthur Koestler, #Psychology
  recital of mantras fulfils a magic function; in Tibetan Buddhism
  the work is left to the prayer mill. This attitude lingers on in medieval

WORDNET



--- Overview of noun tibetan_buddhism

The noun tibetan buddhism has 1 sense (no senses from tagged texts)
              
1. Lamaism, Tibetan Buddhism ::: (a Buddhist doctrine that includes elements from India that are not Buddhist and elements of preexisting shamanism)


--- Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of noun tibetan_buddhism

1 sense of tibetan buddhism                      

Sense 1
Lamaism, Tibetan Buddhism
   => Buddhism
     => religion, faith, religious belief
       => belief
         => content, cognitive content, mental object
           => cognition, knowledge, noesis
             => psychological feature
               => abstraction, abstract entity
                 => entity
       => theological virtue, supernatural virtue
         => cardinal virtue
           => virtue
             => good, goodness
               => morality
                 => quality
                   => attribute
                     => abstraction, abstract entity
                       => entity


--- Hyponyms of noun tibetan_buddhism
                                    


--- Synonyms/Hypernyms (Ordered by Estimated Frequency) of noun tibetan_buddhism

1 sense of tibetan buddhism                      

Sense 1
Lamaism, Tibetan Buddhism
   => Buddhism




--- Coordinate Terms (sisters) of noun tibetan_buddhism

1 sense of tibetan buddhism                      

Sense 1
Lamaism, Tibetan Buddhism
  -> Buddhism
   => Mahayana, Mahayana Buddhism
   => Theravada, Theravada Buddhism
   => Lamaism, Tibetan Buddhism
   => Zen, Zen Buddhism
   => Shingon
   => Tantra, Tantrism




--- Grep of noun tibetan_buddhism
tibetan buddhism



IN WEBGEN [10000/71]

Wikipedia - Bodongpa -- One of the smaller traditions of Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Category:Tibetan Buddhism in Switzerland
Wikipedia - Category:Tibetan Buddhism stubs
Wikipedia - Category:Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Category:Tibetan Buddhism writers
Wikipedia - Classes of Tantra in Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Dagpo Kagyu -- Branches of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism that trace their lineage back through Gampopa
Wikipedia - Death horoscopes in Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Drikung Kagyu -- One of the eight "minor" lineages of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Dzogchen Monastery -- major monastery of the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Dzogchen -- tradition of teachings in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Empowerment (Tibetan Buddhism)
Wikipedia - Gelug -- dominant sect of Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - History of Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Kadam (Tibetan Buddhism) -- Renowned Dharma practice & bodhicitta teachings later known as lojong & lamrim
Wikipedia - Kalachakra -- Nondualistic tantra tradition in Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Karma in Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Khata -- Traditional ceremonial scarf in Tibetan Buddhism and tengrism
Wikipedia - Lama -- Title for a teacher of the Dharma in Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Lung (Tibetan Buddhism) -- Principle of Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Mahakala -- God in Hinduism, and Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Nyingma -- school of Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Ole Nydahl -- Danish teacher in Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Panchen Lama -- Prominent figure in Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Pointing-out instruction -- Direct introduction to the nature of mind in Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Regong arts -- Popular arts on the subject of Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Sakya -- One of four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Sarma (Tibetan Buddhism)
Wikipedia - Schools of Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Svatantrika-PrasaM-aM-9M-^Egika distinction -- doctrinal distinction within Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Template talk:Tibetan Buddhism sidebar
Wikipedia - Template talk:Tibetan-Buddhism-stub
Wikipedia - Tenma goddesses -- Twelve guardian deities in Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - The World of Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Tibetan Buddhism -- form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet
Wikipedia - Tibetan Buddhist canon -- A loosely defined list of sacred texts recognized by various schools of Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Tibetan Tantric Practice -- tantric practices in Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Tulku -- Honorary title in Tibetan Buddhism
Wikipedia - Wheel of Time (film) -- 2003 documentary film about Tibetan Buddhism directed by Werner Herzog
Wikipedia - Yogambara -- Tutelary deity in Tibetan Buddhism belonging to the Wisdom-mother class of the Anuttarayoga tantra
Wikipedia - Zhang Yudrakpa Tsondru Drakpa -- Founder of the Tshalpa Kagyu sect of Tibetan Buddhism
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/208192.Essential_Tibetan_Buddhism
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/261155.The_Essence_of_Tibetan_Buddhism
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/418410.Tibetan_Buddhism_from_the_Ground_Up
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8344558-the-essence-of-tibetan-buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/Category:Schools_of_Tibetan_Buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/Category:Tibetan_Buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/Mantra#Mantra_in_Indo-Tibetan_Buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/Mantra#Some_other_mantras_in_Tibetan_Buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/New_Kadampa_Tradition#Kadampa_Buddhism_and_Tibetan_Buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/New_Kadampa_Tradition#Separation_from_contemporary_Tibetan_Buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/Portal:Tibetan_Buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/Talk:Portal:Tibetan_Buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/Template_talk:Tibetan_Buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/Template:Tibetan_Buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/Three_Jewels#Three_Jewels_in_Tibetan_Buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/Tibetan_Buddhism
https://religion.wikia.org/wiki/Vajrayana#Tibetan_Buddhism
Integral World - Sogyal Rinpoche and the Collapse of Tibetan Buddhism, Frank Visser
https://thoughtsandvisions-searle88.blogspot.com/2012/10/tibetan-buddhism.html
Dharmapedia - Lung_(Tibetan_Buddhism
Dharmapedia - Tibetan_Buddhism
Psychology Wiki - Tibetan_Buddhism
Classes of Tantra in Tibetan Buddhism
Death horoscopes in Tibetan Buddhism
History of Tibetan Buddhism
Kadam (Tibetan Buddhism)
Karma in Tibetan Buddhism
Lung (Tibetan Buddhism)
Sarma (Tibetan Buddhism)
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