Religious Studies 295: Intro. to Tibetan Buddhism

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Religious Studies 295Intro. to Tibetan Buddhism
Week 4

• Instructor
• Justin Whitaker

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Early History of Tibet Three Buddhist Kings

• Songtsen Gampo (c. 618-650)
• Introduced writing, Buddhist texts
• Marriages Nepali Chinese
• Trisong Deutsen (c. 755-797)
• Presided over the famous Samye debate
• Cuts off Chinese Buddhism
• Ralpachen (c. 815-838)
• Sino-Tibetan Treaty of 821 CE
• Systematizes translations

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Early History of Tibet Three Buddhist Kings

• gLang Darma
• Destroyer of Buddhism in Tibet ?
• Ruled 838 AD 841 or 842
• Killed/liberated by a Buddhist Monk

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Middle History of Tibet

• 9th-14th Centuries (842-1276 AD)
• Social de-Centralization
• Local Hegemonic Period
• Loss of support for monasteries
• Continuation of shamanic strand
• Nyingma and Bon schools

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Middle History of Tibet Nyingma Bon

• Method of religion pragmatic, communal,
  shamanic
• See quote p.460
• Terma and tertons (well cover this in greater
  depth later on in the course)
• A way to keep the teachings alive and adapting
• Dzogchen

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Middle History of Tibet Dzogchen

• rDzogs perfection
• chen great
• The highest teachings for
• Nyingma and Bon
• Accused of being too close to
• Hvashang Mahayana (Samye loser) by
• Sakya Pandita (Scholar from grey-earth)
• Important for later development rimed movement
  (19th-20th Cent.)

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Middle History of Tibet Dzogchen3
Philosophical Doctrines

• Madhyamaka (Yogacara)
• Meditative, subitist
• Madhyamaka (Prasangika)
• Logical, gradualistic
• Tathagatagharba

• Jen-tong (empty of other)
• primordial purity
• Rang-tong (empty of own nature)
• emptiness is empty too!
• Origins Unknown obvious overlap with Yogacara

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Middle History of Tibet Atisha

• King Yeshe Od
• Quote page 466-7
• Invites Atisha (980-1054 AD) in 1042
• Pronounced a-tish-a
• Dipamkara Shrijnana
• Light-bringer Abode of Wisdom
• Marks the beginning of the second transmission

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Middle History of Tibet Atisha

• Atisha, the synthesizer
• Prajna Bodhicitta
• Prasangika Yogacara
• Insight Method
• Sutra Tantra
• Lojong (mind training) and
• Tong-len (exchanging self and other) p.469

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Middle History of Tibet Atisha

• His student, Dromtonpa Est. Kadampa school
• Teaching of 3 stages of the Path
• Lowest
• Hedonistic
• Middle
• Hinayanist (self-concern for nirvana)
• Highest
• Mahayanist (concern for awakening for all)
• Taught as a progression
• Change of meaning Hinayana Mahayana now refer
  more to an attitude that anyone can have than to
  any particular school or doctrines

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Middle History of Tibet Shamanism

• Responding to growth of Kadampas
• Yet still largely free of any central control
• Retains great power - - - but viewed with
  increasing skepticism
• Buddhism and Shamanism merge
• Quote page 472
• Shamanic community
• the reality of shamanic power, and the need for
  it to be used on behalf of the community, were
  taken for granted p.472
• A powerful, direct sense of interconnectedness
• vs Monastic community
• Monks are involved with the acquisition of good
  karma for themselves and others. p.473
• Working with individuated beings toward (the
  realization of) interconnectedness

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Middle History of Tibet Sakya Kagyu

• Sakya
• New translations, new Tantras (more authentic(?))
• Gompas (monasteries) mostly celibate
• Kagyu
• Indian siddhas/yogis Tilopa (988-1089) and
  Naropa (1016-1100)
• Tibetan Translator Marpa (1012-1097)
  studied also with Kadampas
• Tibetan Yogi Milarespa (1052-1135)
• His student Gampopa (1079-1153)

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Middle History of Tibet Gampopa

• Practical innovation
• Highest teachings Mahamudra
• (literally Great Seal or Symbol)
• Uses visualization no sex, no death
• OK for monks!
• Philosophical Innovation
• 2nd paragraph, p.479
• Enlightenment is something (positive), not a
  mere-emptiness or state of interconnectedness
  (negative), but this is beyond words or concepts