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General
Buddhism |
Namo Dharmaya !
Hail to the Teachings
BUDDHISM IN TIBET
CONTENTS
The Initial Introduction
Decline and Revival
Nyingma
Kadam
Kargyu
Sakya
Gelug
Probably Buddhism was first introduced to Tibet in 173 during the reign of
the 28th Yarlung king Lha Thothori Nyantsen.
The first official historic introduction of a Buddhist scripture into Tibet
happened during reign of King Hlato Ri Nyentsen (28th king of Tibet - around
500 CE), however, the book was not translated at the time.
The 33rd King of Tibet, Song Tsen Gampo (born 617) had the book translated and
married two Buddhist princesses. With this, one can say that Buddhism was first
introduced to Tibet.
The 37th King of Tibet, Trisong Detsen invited Indian Pandit Shantarakshita
and Kamalasila, who suggested to invite Padmasambhava (or Guru-Rinpoche) to
Tibet in the 8th. century. The first Buddhist monastery; Samye, was built by
Padmasambhava. Sangha - an ordained spiritual community - was established
and translation of scriptures genuinely began. As of this time, one can say
that Buddhism was firmly established in Tibet, as the presence of Sangha is
considered essential.
In 792, after a great philosophical debate, King Trisong Detsen officially declared
Indian Buddhism and not Chinese Buddhism to be the religion of Tibet.
Buddhism almost disappeared after 842 when King Lang Dharma violently persecuted
Buddhism. After this, for a long time there were no ordinations and no central
religious authority in Tibet. Instead, the original Bon religion prevailed.
In 978, with the introduction of several Indian Pandits and Tibetan monks studying
in India, Buddhism revived, with the help of king Yeshe O. A real revival occurred
after 1042, when Atisha-di-Pankhara (or Lama Atisha) put Tibetans "back on the
right track".
He presented the Buddhist philosophy in a very clear and condensed manner, which became the basis for philosophical teachings in most Tibetan traditions. After Atisha, the influence from Indian teachers was limited. Atisha's main disciple was the layman Dromtönpa, who founded the Kadam-tradition. This tradition does not exist in that form anymore, but strongly influenced the later schools of Kargyu, Sakya and especially Gelug.
Note that Tibetan teachers like His Holiness the Dalai Lama insist that Tibetan Buddhism these days still carefully reflects the Buddhism as was present in India around the 11th century. He also rejects the term Lamaism, as it suggests as if the Tibetan teachers have developed their own form of Buddhism.
The Nyingma school is more or less a continuation of the initially
introduced Buddhism by the Indian Pandit Padmasambhava. Initially, the study
of logic and philosophy was limited, but much emphasis was put on tantric practice.
It must be noted however, that also within the Nyingma school considerable reformation
has taken place over the ages.
Some typical aspects for the Nyingma tradition: the practice of Dzogchen
and the presence of hidden scriptures or "terma" from Padmasambhava,
which are discovered by (mostly Nyingma) Masters.
Not existing as such anymore, but it was the main reformation school after revival of Buddhism in the 11th century by Atisha di Pankara from India and Dromtonpa as his Tibetan disciple.
This tradition started with the Tibetans Marpa Chökyi and Khyungpo Nyaljor,
in the 11th. century, who had Tilopa & Naropa as Indian masters. Probably
the most famous practitioner and master in the lineage is Milarepa (Marpa's
disciple), who attained Buddhahood in one life time by an incredible display
of perseverance. The Kargyu tradition is both a meditation lineage and philosophy
training lineage.
A typical aspects of the Kargyu tradition is the practice of Mahamudra.
It should be noted that currently several suborders of the Kargyu lineage exist,
like the Karma Kargyu (with as leader the Karmapa).
In 1247, the Mongolian prince Godan Khan conquered Tibet and gave temporal
authority over Tibet to Lama Kunga Gyaltsen (better known as Sakya Pandita),
who was one of the earliest major figures in this lineage. In 1254 Mongol emperor
Kublai Khan invited Chögyal Phagpa for teachings. Also Kublai Khan made
Buddhism state religion in Mongolia and made Chogyal Phagpa the first religious
and secular leader over Tibet. The Sakyas ruled Tibet more than 100 yrs.
A typical aspect of the Sakya tradition is called Lamdrey (leading to
state of Hevajra). The Sakyas were much influenced by the Kadam lineage.
In 1354, the rule over Tibet was given to the monk Changchub Gyaltsen, who was not a Sakya. After this, the tradition declined in importance.
The Gelugs (yellow hats) tradition was founded by Tibetan teacher Je Tsongkhapa
in the 14th. century. The basis is formed by the Kadam lineage, but it in fact
includes all other Tibetan traditions. In 1642, the 5th. Dalai Lama became
temporal and spiritual leader of Tibet. Although trained in all four schools,
basically all Dalai Lamas were Gelug, one of the reasons that Gelug tradition
is most widespread in Tibet. Note that the posthumously declared "First Dalai
Lama" named Gedun Truppa (born 1391) was a disciple of Je Tsongkhapa.
Some typical aspects of the Gelug tradition: emphasis on ethics and sound scholarship.
Main Buddhist teachings are collected in the Lamrim presentation. The
Gelug introduced a scholarly title, Geshe,
for a fully qualified and authoritative spiritual master.
The authoritative source for the Tibetan traditions is found on the web page
of the Tibetan Government
in exile .
If you want to help, see the website
of the Tibetan Relief Fund of the UK.
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Last updated: January 26, 2001
