Padmasambhava or Padmakara, meaning Lotus-born, is the foremost master in Tibetan Buddhism. Guru Rinpoche, another title, is known for bringing the Vajrayana dharma to Tibet, subduing the negative forces, and hiding terma, dharma treasures, for future generations benefit.
Table of Contents
Quotes by Padmasambhava
- “If you think of me, I will be there before you.”
- My compassion will be swifter than that of all the other Buddhas. (my favorite).
- If you supplicate me, I must come, like a mother hearing her child cry out.
- “The mind is the source of all things. When the mind is defiled, the world appears as a polluted land. When the mind is pure, the world appears as a Buddha field.” (Source: The Tibetan Book of the Dead)
- “Do not be lazy. A lazy person does not even achieve ordinary success, let alone liberation.” (Source: Treasure of the Basic Space of Reality)
- “Samsara and nirvana are not separate. They are like the sky and the clouds. The sky is the basis, and the clouds arise from it yet are not separate from it.” (Source: Longchenpa’s Treasury of Precious Qualities)
- “Treat everyone with kindness, even your enemies. This is the foundation of true spiritual practice.” (Source: Oral tradition within the Nyingma lineage)
- “The greatest obstacle is the mind itself. Once the mind is tamed, liberation is within reach.” (Source: Various teachings attributed to Padmasambhava)
Summary: Padmasambhava
| Entity | Description | Synonyms | Related Entities |
|---|---|---|---|
| Padmasambhava | A revered Buddhist master and saint credited with introducing Vajrayana Buddhism to Tibet. | Guru Rinpoche, Lotus-Born, Padmakara | Tibetan Buddhism, Vajrayana Buddhism |
| Yeshe Tsogyal | Chief consort of Guru Rinpoche. Realized being. | Ocean of Knowledge | Guru Rinpoche |
| Vajrayana Buddhism | A branch of Mahayana Buddhism emphasizing esoteric practices and rituals. | Mantrayana, Diamond Vehicle | Mahayana Buddhism |
| Guru Rinpoche Mantra | Om Ah Hum Vajra Guru Padma Siddhi Hum | Body, speech mind indestructible teacher Lotus Born (grant) attainments | 7 Line Supplication to Guru Rinpoche |
| 7-line supplication | Sacred chant in Tibetan Buddhism | Many meanings, practices and visualizations | Vajra Guru Mantra |
| terma | Sacred texts and objects of the dharma, hidden by Guru Rinpoche | Dharma Treasure | terton (treasure discoverer |
| King Trisong Detsen | Tibetan King who invited Padmasambhava to Tibet | ||
| Mahayana Buddhism | A major branch of Buddhism emphasizing the Bodhisattva ideal and the path to enlightenment for all beings. | Greater Vehicle | Theravada Buddhism |
| Theravada Buddhism | A major branch of Buddhism following the teachings of the Pali Canon and focusing on individual liberation. | Elders’ Vehicle | Mahayana Buddhism |
| Guru | A spiritual teacher or guide in Hinduism, Sikhism, and Buddhism. |
Titles of Padmakara
| Name | Meaning | Language |
|---|---|---|
| Padmasambhava | Lotus-Born | Sanskrit |
| Padmakara | ||
| Guru Rinpoche | Precious Teacher | Tibetan |
| Lotsawa Rinpoche | Translator Teacher | Tibetan |
| Pema Jungne | Lotus Youthful One | Tibetan |
| Shakya Jungne | The Lion Youthful One | Tibetan |
| The Second Buddha | Tibetan (honorific title) | |
| The Lotus Guru | English (derived from Sanskrit) | |
| The Lotus Master | English (derived from Sanskrit) |
Note:
- His most common names are included in the table.
- Additional names and titles associated with him exist within Tibetan traditions.
- The meaning of “The Second Buddha” refers to the immense reverence Padmasambhava holds in Tibetan Buddhism, highlighting his role in establishing Vajrayana teachings.
Table 8 Manifestations of Guru Rinpoche
Guru Rinpoche’s eight manifestations embody various aspects of his enlightened qualities and activities in spreading Vajrayana Buddhism. Here’s a table outlining each manifestation and its significance:
| Manifestation | Description | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| Pema Jungne (Tibetan: pad ma ‘byung gnas) | A 16-year-old prince adorned with princely attire. | Represents Padmasambhava’s youthful appearance and his introduction of Vajrayana teachings to the ruling class. |
| Padmasambhava (Sanskrit) | A monk in saffron robes holding a lotus flower and a vajra (thunderbolt). | Represents Guru Rinpoche as a scholar and the establishment of monastic institutions for preserving the teachings. |
| Pema Gyalpo (Tibetan: pad ma rgyal po) | A king wearing royal attire and holding a wheel, symbolizing dominion. | Represents Padmasambhava’s role in subduing negative forces and establishing the Dharma (teachings) in Tibet. |
| Dorje Drolo (Tibetan: rdo rje gro lod) | A wrathful figure with multiple arms and legs, holding various implements. | Represents Padmasambhava’s subjugation of demons and obstacles hindering the spread of the Dharma. |
| Nyima Ozer (Tibetan: nyi ma ‘od zer) | A radiant figure emitting light, often depicted seated on a lotus flower. | Represents Padmasambhava’s embodiment of wisdom and the illumination brought by his teachings. |
| Shakya Senge (Tibetan: sha kya seng ge) | A figure resembling the historical Shakyamuni Buddha, holding a begging bowl and a staff. | Represents the connection between Padmasambhava’s teachings and the lineage of the Buddha. |
| Senge Dradok (Tibetan: seng ge sgra sgrog) | A wrathful form riding a lion, holding a trident and a skullcup. | Represents Padmasambhava’s subjugation of negative forces and protection of the Dharma. |
| Loden Chogse (Tibetan: blo ldan mchog sred) | An elderly scholar with a white beard, holding a book and a mala (prayer beads). | Represents Padmasambhava’s role in transmitting knowledge and establishing lineages of Vajrayana practitioners. |
Additional Notes:
- These manifestations are often depicted in Tibetan Buddhist art, particularly in thangkas (scroll paintings) and mandalas (symbolic diagrams).
- The specific details and interpretations associated with each manifestation can vary slightly across different Tibetan Buddhist traditions.
- Understanding these eight forms offers a deeper appreciation of the multifaceted nature of Padmasambhava and his profound impact on Vajrayana Buddhism.
Padmasambhava: Guru Rinpoche of Tibetan Buddhism
Padmasambhava, also known as Guru Rinpoche (Precious Teacher) and Lotus-Born, stands as a towering figure in Tibetan Buddhism. His life and Wirken (activities) are shrouded in an aura of mystery, with legend and history intertwining to paint a portrait of a remarkable individual who irrevocably transformed the religious landscape of the Himalayas.
Historical records suggest Padmasambhava’s activities occurred around the 8th-9th century. While details surrounding his origins remain elusive, his impact on Tibetan Buddhism is undeniable. Epithets like “Guru Rinpoche” reflect the profound reverence he commands, and he is even referred to as the “Second Buddha” in Tibetan traditions.
The “Father of Tibetan Buddhism”: Padmasambhava’s Profound Influence
Padmasambhava’s legacy is deeply intertwined with the establishment of Vajrayana Buddhism (also known as Mantrayana or Diamond Vehicle) in Tibet. Vajrayana Buddhism emphasizes esoteric practices, rituals, and the significance of the teacher-student relationship. Padmasambhava is credited with introducing these unique elements to Tibet, laying the foundation for a distinct form of Buddhist practice that flourished in the region.
Taming the Demons:
Legend tells of Padmasambhava’s arrival in Tibet, where he encountered local deities and spirits who resisted the spread of Buddhism. Through his wisdom and skillful means, he is said to have subdued these forces, paving the way for the establishment of Dharma (teachings). This narrative holds symbolic meaning, representing the taming of inner obstacles and the overcoming of negativity that hinders spiritual progress.
Treasure Concealer: The Legacy of Terma
Padmasambhava is also associated with the concept of terma. Terma refers to teachings or Dharma objects believed to have been hidden by Padmasambhava himself, intended for discovery by future generations. The tradition of “terma discovery” continues to hold immense significance in Tibetan Buddhism, with revelations considered significant events that enrich the existing knowledge and practices.
7 Line Supplication
Here’s the 7 Line Supplication to Padmasambhava, also known as Guru Rinpoche, presented in both Tibetan and English:
Tibetan:
༄༅། ཨོ་རྒྱན་ཆེན་པོ་པདྨ་འབྱུང་བ་མཆོག་གྱུར་ཅོད་པན་ཐོབ་པ་དང་། པད་མ་གར་དབང་མཆོག་གིས་སྐྱེ་དངོས་ཀུན་ཀྱང་བསྐྱངས། ཕྱག་འཚལ་གུས་པ་ཆེན་པོས་བསྟན་སྲོལ་འཛིན་པ་འདི་དག་གིས་། ཨོཾ་ཨཱཿཧྰ། གུ་རུ་པདྨ་སiddhi ཧཱུྃ། བདག་ཅག་ལ་དམ་པ་ཡེ་ཤེས་ཀྱི་ཕྲིན་ལས་བསྩལ་ཞིང་། རྒྱུད་ཀྱི་བདག་ཉིད་གོང་དུ་འཕེལ་ཕྱིར་སྐལ་པ་གསོལ་། ཐུགས་རྗེའི་སྐྱེད་བུ་ཆེན་པོ་གང་གི་ཞབས་པད་ལ་སྐྱབས་འཆིའོ།།
English: (many widely varying translations exist – find one you like!)
Oddiyana’s lotus-born, supreme and wondrous siddhi attained,
Renowned as Padmakara, by dakinis surrounded and sustained.
Following in your footsteps, we, with devotion true and bold,
Beseech you, precious master, to bless us and unfold
The lotus-born’s profound display, the secret doctrine to impart,
Grant us your empowerment, O glorious Guru, from your heart
May all beings find their refuge, in your enlightened sphere we start
Vajra Guru Mantra
Om Ah Hum Vajra Guru Padma Siddhi Hum
The 5 Main Consorts of Padmasambhava
| Consort | Description | Significance |
|---|---|---|
| Mandarava | A princess from Zahor (legendary kingdom in ancient India). | Considered Padmasambhava’s chief consort and key figure in Vajrayana practices. |
| Yeshe Tsogyal | A Tibetan princess known for her wisdom and spiritual accomplishments. | Played a crucial role in transmitting and preserving Vajrayana teachings. |
| Machig Labdron | A Tibetan woman known for her fierce devotion and tantric accomplishments. | Credited with establishing the lineage of “ma cho” teachings within Tibetan Buddhism. |
| Shakya Devi | Believed to be an emanation of the Prajnaparamita (wisdom) aspect of the Buddha. | Represents the embodiment of feminine wisdom and enlightened qualities. |
| Tsa Rinpoche | A manifestation of a wrathful dakini (female embodiment of enlightened energy). | Represents the power and dynamism inherent in spiritual practice. |
Note:
- The historical existence of some consorts is debated, and their portrayals are often intertwined with legend and symbolism.
- These consorts hold significant positions within the pantheon of Tibetan Buddhist figures, particularly in Vajrayana traditions.
The 25 principal disciples of Padmasambhava hold significant importance in Tibetan Buddhism. Here’s a list outlining their names and some additional information:
Note:
- Spellings and transliterations of Tibetan names might vary slightly across sources.
- This list focuses on the core group of 25 disciples, with a brief description for some prominent figures.
| Name | Brief Description |
|---|---|
| King Trisong Detsen | Tibetan king who invited Padmasambhava and played a crucial role in establishing Buddhism in Tibet. |
| Namkhai Nyingpo | Renowned scholar and translator who contributed significantly to the transmission of Vajrayana teachings. |
| Nupchen Sangye Yeshe | Renowned master known for his profound understanding and realization of Dzogchen teachings. |
| Gyalwa Chokyang | A minister and close disciple credited with supporting the spread of Buddhism. |
| Yeshe Yang | A skilled translator and accomplished practitioner. |
| Palgyi Yeshe | A dedicated translator who actively transmitted tantric teachings. |
| Langchen Palgyi Seng | A renowned master known for his mastery of rituals and profound knowledge. |
| Vairotsana | A prominent scholar and translator who played a pivotal role in establishing monastic institutions. |
| Nyak Jnanakumara (Yeshe Shyönnu) | A close disciple known for his expertise in Vajrakila practices and Dzogchen teachings. |
| Gyalmo Yudra Nyingpo | A consort of Padmasambhava and a holder of unique lineages within the Nyingma tradition. |
| Nanam Dorje Dudjom | A master known for his realization and contributions to the Nyingma lineage. |
| Khandro Yeshe Tsogyal | Padmasambhava’s key consort and a central figure in Tibetan Buddhist traditions. |
| Sokpo Lhapal | A devoted practitioner known for his unwavering commitment to the Dharma. |
Additional Information:
- It is believed that all 25 disciples, except King Trisong Detsen, attained the state of Rainbow Body (a state of complete liberation beyond physical death).
- Many disciples became lineage holders and established their own transmission lineages within the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism.
- Several disciples like Vairotsana and Yeshe Yang were renowned translators who played a crucial role in bridging the gap between Indian and Tibetan Buddhist knowledge.
Resources for further exploration:
- Rigpa Wiki: https://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Twenty-five_disciples_of_Guru_Rinpoche
- Termatree: https://www.termatree.com/products/rinpoche-padmasambhava-statue
- Enlightenment Thangka: https://m.facebook.com/imagesofenlightenment/photos/a.10158018976743464/10158792248918464/?type=3
The Timeless Legacy of Guru Rinpoche
Padmasambhava’s influence extends far beyond the introduction of Vajrayana Buddhism. He is credited with shaping Tibetan Buddhist art, literature, and spiritual practices. Temples and monasteries throughout the Himalayas stand as testaments to his enduring legacy.
FAQ
Q: What is the significance of Padmasambhava in Tibetan Buddhism?
A: Revered as the “Father of Tibetan Buddhism,” Padmasambhava introduced Vajrayana teachings, subdued local resistance, and established the foundation for the flourishing of Buddhist traditions in Tibet.
Q: What are the Eight Manifestations of Padmasambhava?
A: These symbolic representations depict various aspects of Padmasambhava’s qualities and activities, including the introduction of Tantra.
May all beings be happy
May all beings be peaceful
May all beings be safe
May all beings awaken to the light of their true nature
May all beings be free
