Tsongkhapa

Tsongkhapa ("The man from Tsongkha",[1] 1357–1419), usually taken to mean "the Man from Onion Valley", born in Amdo,[2] was a famous teacher of Tibetan Buddhism whose activities led to the formation of the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism. He is also known by his ordained name Losang Drakpa (Wylie: blo bzang grags pa) or simply as "Je Rinpoche" (Wylie: rje rin po che). Also, he is known by Chinese as Zongkapa Lobsang Zhaba,[2] He was the son of a Tibetan Longben Tribal leader who also once served as an official of the Yuan Dynasty of China.[2]

Tsongkhapa, Wylie:tsong kha pa, [tsoŋˈkʰapa]

Tibetan:ཙོང་ཁ་པ།

With a Mongolian father and a Tibetan mother, Tsongkhapa was born into a nomadic family in the walled city of Tsongkha in Amdo, Tibet (present-day Haidong and Xining, Qinghai) in 1357. It is said that the Buddha Sakyamuni spoke of his coming as an emanation of the Bodhisattva Manjusri in the short verse from the Root Tantra of Manjushri (Wylie: 'jam dpal rtsa rgyud):

After I pass away

And my pure doctrine is absent,

You will appear as an ordinary being,

Performing the deeds of a Buddha

And establishing the Joyful Land, the great Protector,

In the Land of the Snows.[3]

According to hagiographic accounts, Tsongkhapa's birth was prophesied by the 12th abbot of the Snar thang monastery, and was recognized as such at a young age, taking the lay vows at the age of three before Rolpe Dorje, 4th Karmapa Lama and was named Künga Nyingpo (Wylie: kun dga' snying po).[4] At the age of seven, he was ordained as a śrāmaṇera by Döndrup Rinchen (Wylie: don grub rin chen, 1309–1385), the first abbott of Jakhyung Monastery (Wylie: bya khyung brag), and was given the ordination name Losang Drakpa (Wylie: blo bzang grags pa).

Monastic career:

Painting depicting the life of Tsongkhapa, the largest image on the left showing the dream he had of the great Indian scholars like Buddhapalita.

It was at this early age that he was able to receive the empowerments of Heruka, Hevajra, and Yamantaka, three of the most prominent wrathful deities of Tibetan Buddhism, as well as being able to recite a great many Sutras, not the least of which was Mañjuśrīnāmasamgīti. He would go on to be a great student of the vinaya, the doctrine of behaviour, and even later of the Six Yogas of Naropa, the Kalachakra tantra, and the practice of Mahamudra. At the age of 24, he received full ordination as a monk of the Sakya school.

From Zhönnu Lodrö (Wylie: gzhon nu blo gros) and Rendawa (Wylie: red mda' pa), he received the lineage of the Pramanavarttika transmitted by Sakya Pandita.[5] He mastered all the courses of study at Drigung kagyud Monastery in Ü-Tsang.[5]

As an emanation of Manjusri, Tsongkhapa is said have been of "one mind" with Atiśa,[6] received the Kadam lineages and studied the major Sarma tantras under Sakya and Kagyu masters.[5] He also studied with a Nyingma teacher, the siddha Lek gyi Dorjé (Wylie: legs gyi rdo rje) and the abbot of Shalu Monastery, Chö kyi Pel (Wylie: zhwa lus pa chos kyi dpal),[5] and his main Dzogchen master was Drupchen Lekyi Dorje (Wylie: grub chen las kyi rdo je), also known as Namkha Gyaltsen (Wylie: nam mkha' rgyal mtshan, 1326–1401).[7]

In addition to his studies, he engaged in extensive meditation retreats. He is reputed to have performed millions of prostrations, mandala offerings and other forms of purification practice. Tsongkhapa often had visions of iṣṭadevatās, especially of Manjusri, with whom he would communicate directly to clarify difficult points of the scriptures.

Honours

Tsongkhapa was one of the foremost authorities of Tibetan Buddhism at the time. He composed a devotional prayer called the Migtsema Prayer to his Sakya master Rendawa, which was offered back to Tsongkhapa, with the note of his master saying that these verses were more applicable to Tsongkhapa than to himself.[8]

Death

Tsongkhapa died in 1419 at the age of sixty-two. After his death several biographies were written by Lamas of different traditions.[9] Wangchuk Dorje, 9th Karmapa Lama, praised Tsongkhapa as one "who swept away wrong views with the correct and perfect ones."[9] Mikyö Dorje, 8th Karmapa Lama, wrote in his poem In Praise of the Incomparable Tsong Khapa.