BY: Amnyi Trulchung
Source: http://www.amnyitrulchung.org/
Category: Guru-Rinpoche
Padmasambhava, an emanation of the Buddha
Amitaba, was a great yogi from the region that borders on present-day
Pakistan and Afghanistan. He brought Buddhism to Tibet in the eighth
century and is affectionately called Guru Rinpoche. He spent more than
55 years in Tibet, manifesting countless wonders and is highly revered
by all the schools of Tibetan Buddhism, and especially by the Nyingma.
Guru Padmasambhava gave teachings and transmission of the Vajrayana
to hundreds of disciples. His main students, The Twenty Five Disciples,
are the root incarnations of the masters of this day. With his
principle disciple, Yeshe Tsogyal, he concealed thousands of hidden
teachings or Termas in many places for the benefit of future
generations.
Some termas are discovered within the mindstream of realized
disciples, and are revealed when most appropriate for the times. In
this way each successive generation of students is able to make a new
beginning with a fresh revelation that is suited to its particular needs
and capacities. Similarly, the distance from the Buddha to the
practitioner is very short when a revelation is fresh and direct and
there is no possibility of loss or corruption in the line of
transmission. Through the Terma tradition the Nyingma school has been
able to stay in close and continual contact with the spirit, energy and
inspiration of Guru Rinpoche.
Guru Rinpoche appeared miraculously in the blossom of a lotus in Lake
Danakosha, the "Ocean of Milk" in South West Oddiyana. When the king
saw the child sitting on the lotus, he was filled with delight and
invited the him to the palace as his son and religious guide. The child
was named Padmasambhava, the "lotus-born."
Padmasambhava killed the son of a wicked minister and transferred his
consciousness. As a result he was banished form the country to the
fearful cemetery of Sitavana where he gradually he accomplished the
common and uncommon siddhis and came to be known as Rodravajrakala.
In order to inspire faith towards the teachings in disciples of the
future, he traveled to Bodhgaya and many other places receiving
teachings from many scholars, accomplished masters and dakinis. By
listening just once, he comprehended and accomplished the whole Vinaya,
Sutra and Abhidharma, as well as the teachings of the outer and inner
secret mantra, oral transmissions, and the pith instructions of the
highest tantra of Atiyoga.
He took princess Mandarava, daughter of the king of Zahor, as his
consort. In the mountain cave of Maratika, in Nepal, they performed the
accomplishment rituals of longevity and actualised the immortal vajra
body.
Guru Rinpoche returned to Oddiyana disguised as a beggar but many
people recognised him and he was sent to be burned alive in a sandalwood
fire. When the fire was lit, he miraculously transformed it into a huge
lake filled with lotuses. Seated with his consort on a giant lotus in
the middle of the lake, the king, ministers, and people were astounded
and developed great faith in him.
Guru Rinpoche's activities and accomplishments in Tibet
When Lord Buddha gave Avalokitesvara the responsibility of taming the
land of Tibet, Avalokitesvara looked at the barbaric land and shed
tears of compassion. From these tears the goddesses Ganga and
Gangchungma were born. Gangchungma stole some flowers and due to her
decline in merit she was unable to take rebirth as a god and took rebirh
in the human realm as the woman, Dechogma.
Dechogma naturally had great faith in the Dharma and commissioned the
construction of a magnificent stupa in Boudha near Kathmandu. Although
she died before the stupa was finished, her sons completed the work.
They each prayed to be reborn as a Dharma king, a great learned khenpo, a
powerful tantric master, and a messenger that would bring the other
three together.
One son was reborn as Trisong Detsen, the 38th king of Tibet and an
incarnation of Manjushri. Another was reborn as the king's messenger who
invited the reincarnations of the other two sons, the great Khenpo
Shantarakshita and the tantric master Padmasambhava from India.
Recalling his past aspirations, Padmasambhava accepted the invitation,
and on his way he subdued the demons of Tibet, transforming them into
faithful guardians of the Dharma.
The king, guru and khenpo together constructed Tibet's first great
monastery at Samye. They gave vows to Tibet's first seven monks,
standardised translation methods, supervised translation of most of the
sutras and tantras from Sanskrit to Tibetan, and firmly established the
tradition of study, contemplation and meditation, thereby radiating the
Buddha Dharma in Tibet.
Guru Rinpoche miraculously walked upon the entire land of Tibet and
blessed all the mountains, lakes and caves as places for accomplishment.
With Yeshe Tsogyal, he concealed eighteen varieties of treasure
including texts, material wealth, holy image, and made prophesies
regarding the future manifestation of these treasures, including the
revealer, the protector of the treasure, and the time of revelation.
Main Source: http://www.amnyitrulchung.org/lineage/masters/Guru-Rinpoche/
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