The Life of Padmasambhava - Vello Väärtnõu's slide show, 2008

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Author	Vello Väärtnõu
Written	2008 (slide show, 81 slides)

Padmasambhava elulugu

Padmasambhava ('lootosest sündinu'); ka Padmakara; tiibeti keeles Pad-ma ‘byung-gnas (hääldus Padma Jungne) elas 8.-9. sajand. Bhutanis ja Tiibetis, kus Njingma koolkond peab teda teiseks budaks, seal on ta tuntud Guru Rinpotše (Guru Rinpotše, 'Hinnaline Meister') nime all.

Guru Rinpotše oli meister, kes tõi Indiast Tiibetisse vadzrajaana-budismi, millest arenes välja Tiibeti budism.

Buddha Amitabha südamest kiirgus valgus Danakoša järvel asuvasse lootose õienuppu. Õide puhkedes ilmus sealt imeline laps. Kaunistatud suuremate ja väiksemate märkidega istus ta tuhande kroonlehega lootosel.

“Hiilgav Guru Padmasambhava, palun kaitse ja juhata mind kuni saavutan täieliku virgumise!”

Lahutamatu Algbuda Samanthabhadrast, kõike läbiv kolme kalliskivi Isand ja kolme juure (Laama, Iidam, Daakini) meister. Hiilgav Guru Padmasambhava on Buddha Amitabha olemus. Ta ilmutab end kolme miljardi maailmasüsteemi igale olendile vastavalt viimase karmilisele nägemisvõimele, levitades Dharmat, salajast mantrat ja Džogtšeni õpetust. Sel moel on Guru Padmasambhavast loendamatu hulk elulugusid, iga olendi kohta üks. Järgnev elulugu on see mille järgi tunnevad teda tavaliselt tema õpilased.

Sünd

Ahviaasta kuuenda kuu kümnendal päeval, ilmus imelisel teel „Piimaookeani” järvel asuva lootosõie sisse Guru Rinpotše. See järv asub edela Odijanas, Afganistani-Pakistani piiri ääres ja on tuntud ka Danakoša nime all. Sellele vaatamata on Guru Rinpotše sündimise kohta erinevaid seletusi. Mõned India ajaloolased kinnitavad et ta sündis Odijana kuninga või ministri pojana ning teised väidavad et ta ilmus äkitselt Malaya mäe tippu mis asub Sri Lankal. Kuid Guru Padmasambhava aardeõpetused kinnitavad versiooni et Guru Rinpotše sündis iseeneslikult lootosest. See on kõige tuntum versioon ja järgnev elulugu samamoodi edasi antud.

Odijana

Suur jõgi Sindhu, mis on üks neljast suurest jõest mis saavad alguse Kailaši mäelt, voolab läänesuunas Odijana piirkonda ja suubub lõpuks Araabia merre. Oma teel jõudes Odijanasse muutub jõgi järveks, mis on kaetud lootostega. Kuna lootose juured toodavad magusat-piimjat mahla, siis on see järv tuntud ka „Piima Ookeanina”. Enne Guru Padmasambhava sündi oli järve keskel suur, küps ja kaunis punane lootos. Buddha Amitabha südamest lendas välja punane silp HRI mis kukkus lootose suunas ja jäi tema kohale peatuma. Silp muutus valguseks ja äkitselt, sõltumata ema ja isa põhjustest ja tingimustest, tekkis sinna kaheksa aastane laps. Ta oli ehitud suuremate ja väiksemate tunnusmärkidega. Hoides käes vadzra ja lootost, hakkas ta kohe jagama õpetusi jumalatele ja daakinitele selles piirkonnas.

Kuningas Indrabodhi

Samal ajal oli Odijana valitsejaks kuningas Indrabodhi, kes resideeris üheksatipulises palees koos oma kuninganna ja sadade ning tuhandete sisemiste ja välimiste ministritega. Kuna kuningal polnud poega, siis viienda suvekuu täiskuu ajal sooritas ta suuri annetusi Kolmele Kalliskivile ja luges Dharma Pilve Suutrat. Samuti avas ta oma kolme tuhande varakambri uksed ja jagas almuseid vaestele ja puudust kannatajatele kuni varandus sai otsa. Seejärel hüüdis ta ahastuses „Kerjuste rivi ei lõpe, kuid mul pole enam midagi annetada!”.

Kui allesjäänud kerjused ei saanud oma osa, ütlesid nad kuningale et kui viimane ei anna kerjustele nendele kuuluvat osa, siis kõik tema minevikus sooritatud teod on tähtsusetud. Kuuldes seda, tekkis kuningal soov hankida lõppematu varandus kerjuste jaoks. Ta rändas ookeani kaldale, et hankida soovetäitev kalliskivi, mis oli müstilise olendi - Naaga tütre Tšarumati kroonil. Kuningal õnnestus kalliskivi kätte saada ilma äpardusteta ning ta purjetas tagasi, lastiks seitset eri sorti juveele. Kuninga usu-minister Trig Na Dzin oli hakanud oma isandale vastu tulema ning kohtudes jutustas ta loo imelisest lapsest.

Valitseja oli selle uudisega väga rahul ning läks lapse juurde küsides kes on ta isa, ema ja millisesse kasti ning riiki ta kuulub. Laps teatas selle peale:

Minu isa on ise-tekkinud Samantabhadra.

Minu ema on tegelikkuse sfäär, Samantabhadri.

Minu kastiks on ürgtarkuse ja Dharmadhatu ühtsus.

Ning minu nimeks on kuulsusrikas Padmasambhava.

Lootosest-Sündinu

Seda kuuldes oli kuningas Indrabodhi väga rahul. Ta mõtles et Nirmanakaja on sündinud ja kutsus lapse lossi oma pojaks ning samuti ka religioosseks juhiks. Lapsele pandi nimeks „Padmasambhava” mis tähendab „Lootosest Sündinu”. Hiljem abiellus Padmasambhava Prabhadharaniga, kes oli kuningas Tšandan Gomašree tütar ning juhtis kuningriiki Dharma seaduste järgi. Ta sai tuntuks kui Šikhabandh Radža ehk „Krunnis juustega Kuningas”..

Rodravadžrakala

Peagi märkas ta aga et poliitika ja vabanemisele viiv õpetus on vastuolus ja tema selline positsioon ei aita olendeid ülimal eesmärgil. Seetõttu sooritas ta müstilise toimingu tappes kurja ministri poja ja juhtis viimase teadvuse Dharmadhatusse. Selle tulemusena pagendati ta maalt välja kardetud Sitavana surnuaiale. Sooritades järjest Nandavanis, Daanbhumidvipas, Parušakavanis ja teistes surnuaedades müstilisi toiminguid saavutas ta tavalisi ja ebaharilikke siddhisid (imevõimeid) ning sai tuntud kui Rodravadžrajakala ehk „Vadžra raevukas ilming”.

Guru Dhimana Varrutži

Soovides inspireerida oma tulevasi õpilasi, rändas ta Bodhgayasse ja teistesse paikadesse, et saada õpetusi mitmetelt suurtelt õpetlastelt, realiseerunud meistritelt ja Daakinitelt. Ta oli võimeline ainuüksi ühekordse kuulamisega mõistma ja realiseerima terve Vinaja, Sutra ja Abhidharma kolmik-korvi. Lisaks välimised ja sisemised salajased mantrad, suulised ülekanded ning kõrgeima ja varjatuima - Atijooga juhised. Mandala jumalused ilmutasid talle oma vorme ja Padmasambhavast sai võrratult erudeeritud ja Dharmas realiseerunud meister. Seeläbi ilmutas ta märke - Täielikult Küpsenud Teadlikkuse Hoidja - taseme saavutamisest. Seejärel tunti teda kui Guru Dhimana Varutši, „Ülim Armastus Õnnistatud Tarkusega”.

Abielu Mandravaga

Seejärel võttis ta omale (vaimseks kaasaks) Zahori kuninga Šastradhara tütre Mandrava. Kuna kuningatütrel oli Daakini tunnuseid, siis viis ta oma kaasa Maratika mägikoopasse, mis asub Nepaalis ja on tuntud Haleša nime all. Seal praktiseerisid nad pikeaelisuse rituaale kolme kuu jooksul ning saavutasid Surematu Vadžrakeha, mis on märgiks Surematu Elu Teadlikkuse Hoidja taseme saavutamisest.

Tso Pema

Soovides Odijana inimesi rahustada ja vaigistada nende viha, läks Padmasambhava sinna tagasi olles maskeerunud kerjuseks kuid sellegipoolest tundsid paljud ta ära ning teda taheti vihaste ministrite ja rahvahulga poolt ära põletada sandlipuust tuleriidal. Kui tuli süüdati, siis muutis Padmasambhava selle müstilisel viisil suureks lootostega järveks, istudes ise koos oma konsordiga keset järve suurel lootosel. See rabas kohalviibijaid, ning ministrites ja rahvas tärkas suur usk meistrisse.

Lisaks sellele, praktiseeris ta Nepaalis Yanglašodi koopas Višhuda Iidamit koos konsordi Sakya Deviga Nepaalist ning peagi saavutasid nad mõlemad ülima Mahamudra Teadlikkuse Hoidja realisatsiooni. Need oli mõned Guru Padmasambhava saavutused enne Tiibetisse minekut.

Meister levitab Dharmat Lumemaal (Tiibetis)

Detšogma sünd

Kui Isand Buddha andis Avalokitešvarale ülesande taltsutada mahajäänud Tiibeti maa, siis vaadates sellele barbaarsele maale, hakkasid tal pisarad veerema. Neist pisaraist sündisid Jumalanna Ganga ja Gangtšungma. Ühel päeval varastas Jumalanna Gangtšungma mõningaid taevaseid lilli. Selle teo tõttu kaotas ta palju pälvimusi ja surres ei saanud ta enam sündida jumalate riiki vaid sündis inimesena. Ta sündis Detšogma nimelise tüdrukuna .

Detšogma pojad

Olles sündinud Avalokitešvara pisarast, oli Padmasambhaval suur usk Dharmasse ning seetõttu asus ta juhtima hiilgava stuupa ehitamist Boudhas, Kathmandu lähedal Nepaalis. Siiski suri ta enne kui stuupa valmis. Tal oli neli poega, kes andsid lubaduse ehitada stuupa lõpuni. Seda austuseks oma emale ja ülimast veendumusest Dharmasse. Peale stuupa valmimist palusid nad siiralt, et tulevikus sündiksid nad Dharmakuningana, suure õpetatud khenpona (Dharma professorina), võimsa tantra meistrina ja saadikuna, kes viib kõik eelmised kokku. Legend räägib ka, et stuupa ehitamise ajal kuulis nende tark eesel seda kõike pealt. Seda kuuldes, mõtles eesel „Ma olen nende heaks niipalju töötanud aga nad isegi ei pea mind oma palevetes meeles! Annan lubaduse hävitada nende palvete viljad.”Too eesel sündis kuningas Langdarmana järgmises elus.

Kuningas Trisong Detsen

Vastavalt nende soovpalvetele sündiski üks poegadest Trisong Detsenina (38’s Tiibeti kuningas ja Mandžusri kehastus), teine kuninga saadikuks, kes kutsus Indiast Tiibetisse khenpo Šantarakšita ja tantra-meistri Guru Padmasambhava. Padmasambhava, mäletades oma mineviku lubadusi oli kutsega nõus. Tee peal Tiibetisse alistas ta kahjulikke jumalaid ja deemoneid, muutes nad ustavateks Dharma-kaitsjateks. Tiibetis, asutasid kuningas Trisong Detsen, Guru Rinpotše ja khenpo Šantarakšita Tiibeti esimese budistliku kloostri Samye, sisustades selle kujudega. Seejärel andsid esimesed seitse munka neile mungatõtused ning veidi aja pärast alustati sanskriti keelsete suutrate ja tantrate tõlkimise ja tõlkimise standardiseerimisega. Pandi kindel alus õppimise, mõtiskluse ja meditatsiooni traditsioonile ning seeläbi hakkas Tiibetis Buddha Dharma särama nagu päikesekiired.

Langdarma

Eesel sündis hiljem ümber Langdarmana (41. Tiibeti kuningas), ning tal õnnestus peaaegu hävitada Dharma levik Tiibetis.

Guru Padmasambhava käis imelisel viisil läbi kogu Tiibeti, õnnistades kõik mäed, järved ja koopad et nad oleksid sobivad paigad eneseteostuseks. Eriti Ngari piirkonna Tiibeti ülaosas, kus ta õnnistas kahtkümmet mägikoobast. Utsangis õnnistas ta 21 kahtkümmet üht salajast paika. Lisaks sellele kolm kuningliku aarde paika ülem, kesk ja alam Tiibetis. Viis provintsi, kolm orgu, ühe saare ja nii edasi. Sellele lisaks, et vaigistada olendeid tulevikus, peitis ta kaheksateist erinevat aaret, mille hulka kuulusid tekstid, materiaalsed rikkused, pühad pildid jne. Lisaks andis ta selged ettekuulutused nende aarete leidmise kohta tulevikus (aarde avastaja, kaitsja ja ka avastamise aja kohta).

Guru Rinpotše kaheksa kehastust

Padmasambhava olevat väidetavalt võtnud kaheksa erinevat kuju ehk manifestatsiooni (Tib. Guru Tsen Gye) esindades vastavalt oma erinevaid olemise aspekte - reavukad, vaigistavad jne...:

1. Guru Orgyen Dordže Tšhang (Oddijana Vadžradhara)- selle nime sai Padmasambhava peale seda kui oli omandanud Mahajooga õpetused Vadžrasattvalt ja saavutanud 9. Bhumi (Bodhisattva) taseme. Kõikide Tathagathade kehastus.

Guru Šakja Senge (Šakja lõvi) - Teades et tema ajal elavad olendid ja olendid tulevikus vajavad vaimset juhendamist, õppis Padmasambhava erinevate suurte õpetajate juhendamise all inimeste ja mitte inimeste ilmades.

Guru Pema Gjalpo (Lootose Kuningas) - periood mil Padmasambhava oli 5 aasta jooksul Oddijana kuningaks.

Guru Padmasambhava (Lootosest Sündinud Õpetaja) - Kõikide Budade kolme keha ning ka keha, kõne ja meele ilming . Selle vormina on ta meile kõige rohkem tuntud.

Pärimuse järgi toimus jumaluste allatulek mandalasse esmakordselt VIII sajandil, mil budistliku tantrismi rajaja Tiibetis, Padmasambhava, olevat valmistanud esimese mandala ning mediteerinud seejärel seitse päeva, mispeale jumalused laskusid mandala keskmesse ning tegid seda, milleks nad olid kutsutud..

Guru Loden Tšokse (Ülima Tarkuse Hoidja) - Periood mil 5 aasta jooksul Guru Rinpotše õpetas Kašmiiris Särava Õndsuse surnuaias Dharmat Dakadele ja Daakinitele.

Guru Njima Ozer (Päikese Kiir) - Viie aasta jooksul õpetas Guru Rinpotše dharmat daakinitele Bedha nimelisel maal kohas kus toimus laipade tuhastamine. Seal läks ta otse Dharmadathu - Akaništa taevasse et hankida teadmisi algbudalt Samantabadralt.

Guru Dordže Drolo - Padmasambhava raevukas vorm, mille ta võttis et vaigistada ja muuta dharmakaitsjateks Tiibeti kohalikud vaimud.

Guru Senge Dradog (Tarkuse Lõvi) - Padmasambhava kutsuti Nalandasse budistide ja mittebudistide väitlusele kuna budistid pelgasid et ei suuda mittebudistide okultsetele jõududele vastu astuda. Padmasambhava näitas Buddha-dharma ülimat loomust võttes selle vormi mille peale vastaspoole väitlejad tunnistasid end võidetuks ja võtsid varjupaiga Kolmes Kalliskivis.

Guru Padmasambhava tegevuse tulemuste hulka kuuluvad tema kahekümne viie lähima õpilase vabanemine (sansaarast), kaheksakümmend õpilast saavutasid vikerkaarekeha. Lisaks sellele saavutasid kolm miljonit õpilast stabiilse tantrika loomise-staadiumi, sajal tuhandel olid teostuse märgid, üheksakümmend tuhat õpilast saavutasid rikkumata Illusoorse Keha ja kaheksakümmend miljonit õpilast said teatavaid saavutusi. Olles lõpule jõudnud nende suurepäraste saavutustega ja teades et olendid Maal on rahustatud lahkus ta Edela-poolsesse universumi, kus elasid maagilised kannibalid. Tema eesmärgiks oli aidata neid olendeid ja kaitsta Maad nende poolt tekitatava kahju eest.

Guru Padmasambhava elas Indias kolm tuhat kuussada aastat, hoides üleval Buddha õpetusi ja aidates olendeid. Tema viibimise kohta Tiibetis on mitmeid erinevaid versioone. Mõnede kohaselt viibis ta seal kolm aastat, kuus aastat, kolmteist aastat jne...Vaatamata neile erinevustele viibis Guru Padmasambava enda - kama õpetuste kohaselt Tiibetis viiskümmend viis aastat ja kolm kuud, kehastades õpetuste olemust ja tuues nii kasu lugematule hulgale olenditele.

Lahkusega mis on suur kui ilmaruum, teenis Guru Padmasambhava raugematult olendeid jumalate, inimeste ja nagade ilmades. Mäletades oma mineviku lubadusi, läbi piriitult sügavate aarde õpetuste ja materiaalsete rikkuste, tõi ta eriti kasu lumemaa-Tiibeti olenditele.

Üldine info

Guru Rinpotše elust on teada vähe ajalooliselt kindlaid tõsiasju. Tema elu on mähitud legendidesse. Uurijad peavad ajalooliseks tõsiasjaks, et ta kasvas üles kuningas Indrabodhi kasupojana praeguse Pakistani alal.

Pärimuse kohaselt sündis Guru Rinpotše üleloomulikul teel (mitte üsast), vaid ilmus imelisel kombel kaheksa-aastase lapsena lootoseõiele Dhanakoša järves Uddijanas. Budistlikes allikates mainitud Uddijana maa arvatakse olevat asunud Swati jõe oru piirkonnas praeguses Pakistanis Afganistani piiri lähedal.

Padmasambhava ilmumist kuulutati mitmetes Buddha Šakjamuni suutrates, näiteks Nirvaanasuutras. Padmasambhavat peetakse buda Amitabha kehastuseks ning pärimuse järgi ilmnevad temas kõikide aegade kõikide budade kõik siddhid.

Uddijana kuningas võttis ta endale kasvatada ning andis talle naiseks ühe oma tütre.

Guru Rinpotšel oli võime esoteerilisi tekste ühe kuulmise peale meelde jätta. See tõi talle teistest üle oleva meistri kuulsuse. Hiljem pagendas kuningas ta, sest Padmasambhava olevat müstilisel teel tapnud ühe kurja ministri või tema poja. Ühe versiooni järgi pagendati ta kuningriigist, teise järgi pagendati ta õukonnast ning pidi elama asuma surnuaeda. Ta käis läbi mitmeid taevaid ja põrguid ning omandas võime väljuda elurattast .

Oma rännakutel õppis ta India - viit klassikalist teadust ja lisaks veel astroloogiat. Indias pühitses Prabhahasti ta mungaks. Seejärel õppis ta paljudelt india meistritelt eksoteerilise ja esoteerilise tantra õpetusi. Tema õpetajad olid "India kaheksa teadjat" (Mahasiddhat) Hungkara, Mandžušrimitra, Nagardžuna, Prabhahasti, Dhanasanskrita, Vimalamitra, Rombuguhya ja Šantigarba ning paljud teised meistrid. "Suure täiuslikkuse" (dzogchen) õpetused ja volitused sai ta Garab Dordželt ja Sri Singhalt.

Zahori printsess Mandarava oli Guru Rinpotše kuulus tantristlik kaaslanna Indias, Kharcheni printsess Ješe Tsogjal oli tema tähtsaim tantristlik kaaslanna Tiibetis. Sageli kujutatakse neid kaaslannasid tiibeti thankadel tema kummalgi küljel.

Padmasambhava erilistel võimetel oli otsustav tähtsus Tiibeti esimese budistliku kloostri (Samye-Ling, "Haaramatu") rajamisel. Ta pani aluse ka Tiibeti budismi esimesele koolkonnale nimega Njingma - vanad.

Guru Rinpotše elulugudes on palju juttu tema üleloomulikest tegudest. Ta olevat tantraväega allutanud lumemaa (Tiibeti) kohalikud vaimud ja deemonid, kes budismile vastu astusid, ning sidunud paljud neist dharmapaladena (dharmakaitsjatena) Buddha õpetusega.

Osade väidete kohaselt ei olnudki Padmasambhava väga palju Tiibetis õpetanud kuna inimesed ei olnud selleks veel valmis. Seetõttu peitis ta õpetusi (Termasid) mida hiljem meistrid leidsid (Tertönid), kui aeg oli selleks küps ja õpetasid siis järgijaid.

Bhutan, rahumeelse kõue-draakoni maa

Bhutan, rahumeelse kõuedraakoni maa, on maailmale tuntud mitme nimega, nagu näiteks “viimane Shangri-La” või “viimane koht maailma katusel”..

747. aastal saabus Bhutani kuninga kutsel Indiast Bhutani budistlik suurkuju Padmasambhava Pärast seda, kui ta olevat Bhutanis alistanud kaheksat liiki deemoneid ja usuvaenlasi ning kuninga budismi pööranud, liikus Padmasambhava edasi Tiibetisse Kui ta Tiibetist naasis, oli ta Paro orgu rajatavate uute kloostrite ehitusel eestseisjaks ning rajas endale isegi Bumthangi peakorteri. Padmasambhava rajas ka Njingmapa koolkonna (mida tuntakse kui „vanade koolkonda “ või „punamütsiliste koolkonna nime all “) mis on pikka aega olnud Bhutanis levinuimaks koolkonnaks. Guru Rimpoche mängib olulist ajaloolist ja usulist rolli Bhutanis kui riiklik kaitsepühak, kes annetas Bhutanile budistlikud tantrad.

Tiigripesa on ehitatud Padmasambhava ehk Guru Rinpoche auks, kes Legendi järgi lendas ematiigril Tiibetist sellele künkale. Tiigripesas olevat hiljem mediteerinud ka Milarepa ja mitmed teised budistlikud pühakud.

Takin - Bhutani rahvusloom.

See liik on väga tugevalt seotud riigi usulise ajaloo ja mütoloogiaga ning samas on ta ka maailmas väga haruldane. Takiniga on Bhutanis seotud müüt: kui pühak Laama Drukpa Kunley külastas Bhutani 15. sajandil, siis tahtis rahvas näha demonstratsiooni tema maagilistest võimetest. Sellest välja tegemata ütles pühak, et talle enne seda serveeritaks lõunasöögiks terve lehm ja terve kits. Ta sõi need isuga ära ja jättis järele vaid kondid.

Takin - Bhutani rahvusloom.

Pärast oma suurt söömaaega võttis Drukpa Kunley kitse pea ja asetas selle lehma keha luudele ning käskis loomal ärgata ja minna mäeküljele rohtu sööma. Kõigi suureks hämmastuseks nii juhtuski ja seetõttu võib tänapäevani näha neid kohmakaid loomi Bhutani mäenõlvadel rohtu söömas. Kusjuures, praeguse ajani ajab takin taksonoome segadusse, sest nad ei tea, kuhu loomaklassi seda looma paigutada.

[edit]

This translation is provided by AI

Author	Vello Väärtnõu
Written	2008 (slide show, 81 slides)

The Life of Padmasambhava

Padmasambhava ('the Lotus-Born'), also Padmakara; in Tibetan Pad-ma 'byung-gnas (pronounced Padma Jungne), lived in the 8th-9th century. In Bhutan and Tibet, where the Nyingma school regards him as the second Buddha, he is known by the name Guru Rinpoche (Guru Rinpoche, 'Precious Master').

Guru Rinpoche was the master who brought Vajrayana Buddhism from India to Tibet, from which Tibetan Buddhism developed.

From the heart of Buddha Amitabha light radiated into a lotus bud on Lake Danakosha. When the flower opened, a wondrous child appeared from it. Adorned with the major and minor marks, he sat on a lotus with a thousand petals.

"Glorious Guru Padmasambhava, please protect and guide me until I attain complete awakening!"

Inseparable from the primordial Buddha Samantabhadra, the all-pervading Lord of the Three Jewels and master of the three roots (Lama, Yidam, Dakini). The glorious Guru Padmasambhava is the essence of Buddha Amitabha. He manifests himself to every being of the three billion world systems according to that being's karmic capacity of vision, spreading the Dharma, the secret mantra and the Dzogchen teaching. In this way there are countless life stories of Guru Padmasambhava, one for each being. The following life story is the one by which his disciples usually know him.

Birth

On the tenth day of the sixth month of the Monkey year, Guru Rinpoche appeared in a miraculous way inside a lotus flower on the lake of the "Ocean of Milk". This lake lies in south-western Oddiyana, by the Afghan-Pakistani border, and is also known by the name Danakosha. Nevertheless there are different explanations of the birth of Guru Rinpoche. Some Indian historians affirm that he was born as the son of a king or a minister of Oddiyana, and others claim that he appeared suddenly on the summit of Mount Malaya, which is in Sri Lanka. But the treasure teachings of Guru Padmasambhava confirm the version that Guru Rinpoche was born spontaneously from a lotus. This is the best-known version, and the following life story is told in the same way.

Oddiyana

The great river Sindhu, which is one of the four great rivers that rise on Mount Kailash, flows westward into the region of Oddiyana and finally flows into the Arabian Sea. On its way, on reaching Oddiyana, the river becomes a lake covered with lotuses. Since the roots of the lotus produce a sweet, milky juice, this lake is also known as the "Ocean of Milk". Before the birth of Guru Padmasambhava there was a large, ripe and beautiful red lotus in the middle of the lake. From the heart of Buddha Amitabha a red syllable HRI flew out, which fell towards the lotus and stopped above it. The syllable turned into light, and suddenly, independent of the causes and conditions of mother and father, an eight-year-old child appeared there. He was adorned with the major and minor marks. Holding a vajra and a lotus in his hands, he at once began to give teachings to the gods and dakinis of that region.

King Indrabodhi

At the same time the ruler of Oddiyana was King Indrabodhi, who resided in a nine-peaked palace together with his queen and hundreds and thousands of inner and outer ministers. Since the king had no son, at the full moon of the fifth summer month he made great offerings to the Three Jewels and recited the Dharma Cloud Sutra. He also opened the doors of his three thousand treasure chambers and gave alms to the poor and needy until his wealth ran out. Then he cried out in anguish: "The line of beggars does not end, but I have nothing left to give!".

When the remaining beggars did not get their share, they told the king that if he did not give the beggars the share that belonged to them, then all the deeds he had done in the past were of no importance. Hearing this, the king conceived the wish to obtain inexhaustible wealth for the beggars. He travelled to the shore of the ocean to obtain the wish-fulfilling jewel that was in the crown of a mystical being, Charumati, the daughter of a Naga. The king succeeded in getting the jewel without mishap, and he sailed back with a cargo of seven different kinds of jewels. The king's minister of religion, Trig Na Dzin, had set out to meet his lord, and when they met he told the story of the wondrous child.

The ruler was very pleased with this news and went to the child, asking who his father and mother were and to which caste and country he belonged. The child answered:

My father is the self-arisen Samantabhadra.

My mother is the sphere of reality, Samantabhadri.

My caste is the union of primordial wisdom and the Dharmadhatu.

And my name is the glorious Padmasambhava.

The Lotus-Born

Hearing this, King Indrabodhi was very pleased. He thought that a Nirmanakaya had been born, and he invited the child to the palace as his son and also as religious leader. The child was given the name "Padmasambhava", which means "the Lotus-Born". Later Padmasambhava married Prabhadharani, the daughter of King Chandan Gomashree, and ruled the kingdom according to the laws of the Dharma. He became known as Shikhabandha Raja, or "the King with his Hair in a Knot"..

Rodravajrakala

Soon, however, he noticed that politics and the teaching that leads to liberation are in conflict, and that such a position of his did not help beings towards the highest goal. Therefore he performed a mystical act, killing the son of an evil minister, and led the latter's consciousness into the Dharmadhatu. As a result he was banished from the land to the dreaded Sitavana charnel ground. Performing mystical acts one after another in Nandavana, Daanbhumidvipa, Parushakavana and other charnel grounds, he attained the ordinary and extraordinary siddhis (miraculous powers) and became known as Rodravajrajakala, or "the Wrathful Vajra Manifestation".

Guru Dhimana Varruchi

Wishing to inspire his future disciples, he travelled to Bodhgaya and other places to receive teachings from many great scholars, realised masters and Dakinis. He was able, by hearing them only once, to understand and realise the whole three baskets of the Vinaya, the Sutra and the Abhidharma. In addition, the outer and inner secret mantras, the oral transmissions, and the highest and most hidden: the instructions of Atiyoga. The deities of the mandala revealed their forms to him, and Padmasambhava became an incomparably learned master, realised in the Dharma. Through this he showed the signs of having attained the level of the Fully Matured Awareness Holder. After that he was known as Guru Dhimana Varuchi, "Supreme Love Blessed with Wisdom".

The Marriage with Mandarava

After that he took (as his spiritual consort) Mandrava, the daughter of King Shastradhara of Zahor. Since the princess had the marks of a Dakini, he took his consort to the mountain cave of Maratika, which is in Nepal and is known by the name Halesha. There they practised the rituals of long life for three months and attained the Immortal Vajra Body, which is the sign of having attained the level of the Awareness Holder of Immortal Life.

Tso Pema

Wishing to pacify the people of Oddiyana and calm their anger, Padmasambhava went back there disguised as a beggar, but nevertheless many recognised him, and the angry ministers and the crowd wanted to burn him on a pyre of sandalwood. When the fire was lit, Padmasambhava in a mystical way turned it into a large lake with lotuses, sitting himself together with his consort on a large lotus in the middle of the lake. This astounded those present, and great faith in the master arose in the ministers and the people.

In addition to this, in Nepal, in the cave of Yanglashod, he practised the Yidam Vishuddha together with his consort Sakya Devi of Nepal, and soon they both attained the realisation of the supreme Mahamudra Awareness Holder. These were some of the attainments of Guru Padmasambhava before he went to Tibet.

The Master Spreads the Dharma in the Land of Snows (Tibet)

The Birth of Dechogma

When the Lord Buddha gave Avalokiteshvara the task of taming the backward land of Tibet, tears began to roll down his cheeks as he looked at that barbarous land. From these tears the Goddesses Ganga and Gangchungma were born. One day the Goddess Gangchungma stole some heavenly flowers. Because of this deed she lost much merit, and when she died she could no longer be born in the realm of the gods but was born as a human being. She was born as a girl named Dechogma.

The Sons of Dechogma

Being born from a tear of Avalokiteshvara, Dechogma had great faith in the Dharma, and therefore she began to lead the building of a magnificent stupa at Boudha, near Kathmandu in Nepal. Yet she died before the stupa was finished. She had four sons, who gave a promise to build the stupa to the end, in honour of their mother and out of supreme conviction in the Dharma. After the stupa was finished they prayed sincerely that in the future they might be born as a Dharma king, as a great learned khenpo (professor of the Dharma), as a powerful tantric master, and as an envoy who would bring all the former together. The legend also tells that during the building of the stupa their wise donkey overheard all this. Hearing it, the donkey thought: "I have worked so much for them, but they do not even remember me in their prayers! I make a vow to destroy the fruits of their prayers." That donkey was born as King Langdarma in the next life.

King Trisong Detsen

According to their wishing prayers, one of the sons was indeed born as Trisong Detsen (the 38th king of Tibet and an emanation of Manjushri), another as the king's envoy, who invited the khenpo Shantarakshita and the tantric master Guru Padmasambhava from India to Tibet. Padmasambhava, remembering his past promises, agreed to the invitation. On the way to Tibet he subdued harmful gods and demons, turning them into faithful Dharma protectors. In Tibet King Trisong Detsen, Guru Rinpoche and the khenpo Shantarakshita founded the first Buddhist monastery of Tibet, Samye, furnishing it with statues. After that the first seven monks received the monastic vows from them, and a little later the translation of the Sanskrit sutras and tantras and the standardisation of translation were begun. A firm foundation was laid for the tradition of study, reflection and meditation, and through this the Buddha Dharma began to shine in Tibet like the rays of the sun.

Langdarma

The donkey was later reborn as Langdarma (the 41st king of Tibet), and he almost succeeded in destroying the spread of the Dharma in Tibet.

Guru Padmasambhava went in a miraculous way through the whole of Tibet, blessing all the mountains, lakes and caves so that they would be suitable places for realisation. Especially in the Ngari region, in upper Tibet, where he blessed twenty mountain caves. In Utsang he blessed 21 twenty-one secret places. Besides this, three places of royal treasure in upper, central and lower Tibet. Five provinces, three valleys, one island and so on. In addition to this, in order to pacify beings in the future, he hid eighteen different treasures, among which were texts, material riches, holy images and so on. Besides this he gave clear prophecies about the finding of these treasures in the future (about the treasure revealer, the protector and also the time of the discovery).

The Eight Manifestations of Guru Rinpoche

Padmasambhava is said to have taken eight different forms or manifestations (Tib. Guru Tsen Gye), each representing different aspects of his being - wrathful, pacifying and so on...:

1. Guru Orgyen Dorje Chang (Oddiyana Vajradhara) - Padmasambhava got this name after he had mastered the Mahayoga teachings from Vajrasattva and attained the level of the 9th Bhumi (Bodhisattva). The embodiment of all the Tathagatas.

Guru Shakya Senge (Lion of the Shakyas) - Knowing that the beings living in his time and the beings in the future need spiritual guidance, Padmasambhava studied under the guidance of various great teachers in the worlds of humans and non-humans.

Guru Pema Gyalpo (Lotus King) - the period when Padmasambhava was king of Oddiyana for 5 years.

Guru Padmasambhava (the Lotus-Born Teacher) - the manifestation of the three bodies of all the Buddhas and also of body, speech and mind. In this form he is best known to us.

According to tradition, the descent of the deities into the mandala took place for the first time in the 8th century, when the founder of Buddhist tantrism in Tibet, Padmasambhava, is said to have made the first mandala and then meditated for seven days, after which the deities descended into the centre of the mandala and did what they had been invited for..

Guru Loden Chogse (Holder of Supreme Wisdom) - the period when for 5 years Guru Rinpoche taught the Dharma to Dakas and Dakinis in the charnel ground of Radiant Bliss in Kashmir.

Guru Nyima Ozer (Ray of the Sun) - For five years Guru Rinpoche taught the Dharma to the dakinis in a land named Bedha, in a place where corpses were cremated. There he went directly to the Dharmadhatu - Akanishtha heaven to obtain knowledge from the primordial Buddha Samantabhadra.

Guru Dorje Drolo - the wrathful form of Padmasambhava, which he took in order to pacify the local spirits of Tibet and turn them into Dharma protectors.

Guru Senge Dradog (Lion of Wisdom) - Padmasambhava was invited to Nalanda to a debate between Buddhists and non-Buddhists, because the Buddhists feared that they could not stand up to the occult powers of the non-Buddhists. Padmasambhava showed the supreme nature of the Buddha-dharma by taking this form, whereupon the debaters of the opposing side admitted themselves defeated and took refuge in the Three Jewels.

Among the results of Guru Padmasambhava's activity are the liberation (from samsara) of his twenty-five closest disciples; eighty disciples attained the rainbow body. In addition, three million disciples attained a stable tantric generation stage, a hundred thousand had signs of realisation, ninety thousand disciples attained the undefiled Illusory Body, and eighty million disciples gained certain attainments. Having completed these magnificent attainments, and knowing that the beings on Earth had been pacified, he departed to the south-western universe, where magical cannibals lived. His aim was to help these beings and to protect the Earth from the harm caused by them.

Guru Padmasambhava lived in India for three thousand six hundred years, upholding the teachings of the Buddha and helping beings. There are several different versions of his stay in Tibet. According to some he stayed there three years, six years, thirteen years and so on... Despite these differences, according to Guru Padmasambhava's own kama teachings he stayed in Tibet fifty-five years and three months, embodying the essence of the teachings and so bringing benefit to countless beings.

With a kindness as great as space, Guru Padmasambhava served beings tirelessly in the worlds of the gods, humans and nagas. Remembering his past promises, through boundlessly deep treasure teachings and material riches, he brought benefit especially to the beings of the Land of Snows, Tibet.

General Information

Few historically certain facts are known about the life of Guru Rinpoche. His life is wrapped in legends. Researchers regard it as a historical fact that he grew up as the adopted son of King Indrabodhi in the area of present-day Pakistan.

According to tradition Guru Rinpoche was born in a supernatural way (not from a womb), but appeared miraculously as an eight-year-old child on a lotus flower in Lake Dhanakosha in Uddiyana. The land of Uddiyana mentioned in Buddhist sources is thought to have been in the region of the Swat river valley in present-day Pakistan, near the Afghan border.

The appearance of Padmasambhava was foretold in several sutras of Buddha Shakyamuni, for example in the Nirvana Sutra. Padmasambhava is regarded as an emanation of the Buddha Amitabha, and according to tradition all the siddhis of all the Buddhas of all times are manifest in him.

The king of Uddiyana took him to raise and gave him one of his daughters as wife.

Guru Rinpoche had the ability to remember esoteric texts after hearing them once. This brought him the fame of a master surpassing others. Later the king banished him, because Padmasambhava was said to have killed an evil minister or his son in a mystical way. According to one version he was banished from the kingdom, according to another he was banished from the court and had to settle in a charnel ground. He passed through many heavens and hells and gained the ability to leave the wheel of life.

On his wanderings he studied the five classical sciences of India and astrology as well. In India Prabhahasti ordained him as a monk. After that he studied the teachings of exoteric and esoteric tantra from many Indian masters. His teachers were "the eight knowers of India" (Mahasiddhas) Hungkara, Manjushrimitra, Nagarjuna, Prabhahasti, Dhanasanskrita, Vimalamitra, Rombuguhya and Shantigarbha, and many other masters. The teachings and empowerments of the "Great Perfection" (dzogchen) he received from Garab Dorje and Sri Singha.

The princess of Zahor, Mandarava, was Guru Rinpoche's famous tantric consort in India; the princess of Kharchen, Yeshe Tsogyal, was his most important tantric consort in Tibet. These consorts are often depicted on Tibetan thangkas on either side of him.

Padmasambhava's special powers were of decisive importance in the founding of the first Buddhist monastery of Tibet (Samye-Ling, "the Inconceivable"). He also laid the foundation of the first school of Tibetan Buddhism, called Nyingma - the old ones.

The life stories of Guru Rinpoche tell much about his supernatural deeds. He is said to have subdued by the power of tantra the local spirits and demons of the Land of Snows (Tibet) who opposed Buddhism, and to have bound many of them to the Buddha's teaching as dharmapalas (Dharma protectors).

According to some claims, Padmasambhava did not teach very much in Tibet, since the people were not yet ready for it. Therefore he hid teachings (Termas), which masters (Tertons) later found when the time was ripe for it, and then taught to followers.

Bhutan, the land of the peaceful thunder dragon

Bhutan, the land of the peaceful thunder dragon, is known to the world by several names, such as "the last Shangri-La" or "the last place on the roof of the world"..

In the year 747, at the invitation of the king of Bhutan, the great Buddhist figure Padmasambhava came from India to Bhutan. After he had, it is said, subdued eight kinds of demons and enemies of the faith in Bhutan and converted the king to Buddhism, Padmasambhava moved on to Tibet. When he returned from Tibet, he oversaw the building of the new monasteries being founded in the Paro valley and even founded his own headquarters in Bumthang. Padmasambhava also founded the Nyingmapa school (known as "the school of the old ones" or by the name "the school of the Red Hats"), which has long been the most widespread school in Bhutan. Guru Rinpoche plays an important historical and religious role in Bhutan as the national patron saint, who gave Bhutan the Buddhist tantras.

The Tiger's Nest was built in honour of Padmasambhava, or Guru Rinpoche, who according to legend flew on a tigress from Tibet to this hill. Milarepa and several other Buddhist saints are also said to have meditated later in the Tiger's Nest.

The Takin - the national animal of Bhutan.

This species is very strongly connected with the religious history and mythology of the country, and at the same time it is also very rare in the world. A myth about the takin is told in Bhutan: when the saint Lama Drukpa Kunley visited Bhutan in the 15th century, the people wanted to see a demonstration of his magical powers. Paying no heed to this, the saint said that first he should be served a whole cow and a whole goat for lunch. He ate them with relish and left only the bones.

The Takin - the national animal of Bhutan.

After his great meal Drukpa Kunley took the goat's head and placed it on the bones of the cow's body, and ordered the animal to wake up and go to the mountainside to graze. To everyone's great amazement this is just what happened, and that is why to this day these clumsy animals can be seen grazing on the mountain slopes of Bhutan. Moreover, to this day the takin confuses taxonomists, because they do not know in which class of animals to place it.

[edit]

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Vello Väärtnõu's own writing "Padmasambhava elulugu" (slide show, 2008)

The Life of Padmasambhava - Vello Väärtnõu's slide show, 2008

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The Life of Padmasambhava - Vello Väärtnõu's slide show, 2008

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