A renowned female master in eastern Tibet, Do Dasal Wangmo - Do Khyentse's great-granddaughter - served as nun, physician, and treasure revealer, later teaching medicine despite political hardship. A Brief Biography of Jetsunma Do Dasal Wangmo The omniscient Jigme Lingpa’s incarnation was the greatly accomplished knowledge-holder Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje , the renowned son of the family. [ 1 ] Yeshe Dorje’s son, Dechen Rigpe Raltri , was born to Dzompa Kyi, the daughter of Golok Akyong Lhachen. [ 2 ] And from Rigpe Raltri and Ragshulsa Rigche Wangmo of Minyak, Kham, Do Rinpoche Khamsum Silnön Gyepa Dorje and his sister, Tsedzin Wangmo, were born. [ 3 ] DO RINPOCHE KHAMSUM SILNÖN GYEPA DORJE Sherab Mebar, a son of the refuge protector Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje, was the incarnation of the elder Dodrubchen [ Jigme Trinle Öser ]. [ 4 ] Sherab’s reincarnation was the knowledge-holder Drimé Drakpa from Gutang in Gyalrong, [ 5 ] and Drimé Drakpa’s emanation was Do Rinpoche Khamsum Silnön Gyepa Dorje. DO FAMILY Since the time of the refuge protector Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje’s life, the Do family has worked for the benefit of beings everywhere in the Land of Snow through their lama encampment. Because they looked after the people of the eighteen kingdoms of Gyalrong and the Dardo Chakla king as their disciples, [ 6 ] their lama encampment became famously known as the Do Camp. [ 7 ] During the time of Khamsum Silnön Gyepa Dorje, the Do Camp significantly expanded its beneficial activities through the new establishment of Mewa Monastery and other developments. [ 8 ] Many wealthy spiritual followers came to venerate and serve them. But Khamsum Silnön Gyepa Dorje maintained a nomadic lifestyle, following the tradition of the previous lords, and moved the encampment around as he carried out his beneficial deeds. JETSUNMA DO DASAL WANGMO The sister of lord Do Rinpoche Khamsum Silnön Gyepa Dorje was Tsedzin Wangmo, considered to be the miraculous manifestation of the ḍākinī Karmendrāṇī. [ 9 ] Jetsunma Do Dasal Wangmo was born to Tsedzin Wangmo at the sacred place of Tratsang in the Machen Mountain range of Golok in 1928, the Earth Dragon year of the sixteenth calendrical cycle. [ 10 ] She worked extensively for the benefit of beings through the Dharma and the general fields of knowledge, particularly the science of healing. She was a true bodhisattva, lovingly caring for the ill with no set system for collecting payment for her medical treatments. Being essentially unattached to worldly things, Dasal Wangmo exemplified the view, conduct, and excellent character of a sublime being in every way. She never took delight in such worldly pleasures as traditional jewelry, and she intentionally cast away, destroyed, ruined, or hid the many necklaces and other ornaments she received, striving to transcend any need for fashionable attire. Since she was innately intelligent due to her training in previous lives. When she was about eight years old, she learned to spell and read from her maternal uncle, Tulku Rangjung, in only one sitting. [ 11 ] The following day, he placed the text of the Mañjuśrīnāmasaṃgīti into her hands, telling her to read it, and she began reading it immediately. There were numerous amazing indications of her innate intelligence such as these. Later her maternal uncle, Do Rinpoche Gyepa Dorje, saw the pure realms (i.e., he passed away). The family requested that she assume responsibility for the Do Camp’s property and continue the family lineage. But she never accepted these familial obligations due to her tremendous and enduring wisdom. Usually, when washing her hair, she would appear irritated and ask, “When will it be the time to cut my hair?” So, when Dasal Wangmo was twenty-two, her precious mother knew that her daughter was all grown up and possessed the ability to analyze the path that lay before her, and her mother inquired, “Are you sure you have decided?” Since Dasal Wangmo's response was in accord with the unchanging conviction that she had always held in her heart, her mother accepted and planned to send her to Tulku Drachen of Lautang in Minyak along with a silk scarf. [ 12 ] First, she sent an official letter of request to Tulku Drachen. He replied, "I'm hesitant to perform her first hair-cutting ceremony, but I could do so if I used the hair from her brush." Thus, having brushed her hair by herself and offered it to him, the supreme Tulku Drachen imparted the vows of a laywoman of pure conduct. The following year, when she was twenty-three, Dasal Wangmo traveled to Dzogchen Monastery, where she received novice vows and the name Tubten Tsultrim Palmo from Khenchen Tubten Drak, a paṇḍita of the five fields of knowledge. [ 13 ] She honored Khenchen Rinpoche as her primary lama and stayed at the Dzogchen Kyamo Hermitage for about six years, receiving many sūtra and tantra teachings, including Longchenpa’s Seven Treasuries, Trilogy of Finding Comfort and Ease, and Yeshe Lama , in addition to Adzom’s preliminary practices, The Treasury of Precious Qualities , and Madhyamakāvatāra . [ 14 ] From Dzogchen Khenchen Jigme Yöntan Gönpo, she received instructions on the Lama Yangtik and Yeshe Lama , as well as the entrustment ceremony for the Enlightened Heart-Essence (Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje’s treasure cycle), authorizing empowerment for Primordially Pure Liberation , and other teachings. [ 15 ] She received empowerments and transmissions from the Early Translation school from Adzom Rinpoche, including the Gongpa Sangtal , Chetsun Nyingtik, and his own treasures of Divine Lifeforce and Vajrakīla . [ 16 ] She received numerous further teachings, such as the empowerment of the Natural Liberation of Grasping from the Enlightened Heart-Essence and the appropriate instructions and transmissions for the aural lineage of the ḍākinīs, oath fulfillment practices, and the preliminaries from her maternal uncle Do Rinpoche Khamsum Silnön Gyepa Dorje’s teachings. From Drubchen Khenpo Önam, she received the instructions of The Wish-Fulfilling Treasury , The Treasury of Precious Qualities , and The Thirty-Seven Practices of Bodhisattvas , and from Gapa Khyentse, she received the lifeforce entrustment of Gesar. [ 17 ] Dasal Wangmo relied upon several supreme beings who possessed both scholarship and accomplishment, such as her maternal uncle, the supreme Tulku Rangjung. She retained the numerous teachings of sūtra and tantra she received in her mind, which is like an ocean of milk, completely maturing her mind-stream through empowerment, transmission, explanation, and pith instructions. She obtained the textual explanations and practical instructions on the medical sciences, principally the glorious Four Tantras, from Troru Jampal, a direct disciple of Ju Mipam, and from Troru Jampal’s disciple Guru Sanglo, as well as her own mother Tsedzin Wagmo. [ 18 ] She also studied the sciences of Indian astrology and Chinese elemental calculations with Palri Lama Orgyan Rangdröl and Dzogchen Khenpo Chötsa, including the five components, five planets, and the Svarodaya Tantra , thus becoming a specialist in both medicine and astrology. [ 19 ] Moreover, under these masters, she studied all the ordinary fields of knowledge, such as philology, poetry, and grammar, and came to a [well-rounded] understanding. During the “time of change,” Dasal Wangmo went to the community of Goro in Lhagang in her fatherland of Minyak, Kham, and made the Ragshul settlement (her maternal household) her residence. [ 20 ] During the violent turbulence of these terrible times, she was forced to wear the hat of the four types of bad people, also known as the hat of gods, demons, provocative forces, and obstructors. For more than fourteen years, she experienced immeasurable suffering and torment due to conflicts, beatings, and manual labor reform. But like gold that has been set to flame, cut, and rubbed, she always displayed the true nature of an excellent being regardless of the torment of these cruel circumstances. She always trained her mind in bodhicitta and exclusively enacted altruistic deeds. Amid discord and beatings, she secretly gathered medicinal herbs and freed the destitute and ill from the suffering of unwelcomed illness. Later Dasal Wangmo was the “bare-footed doctor” of Goro village and built a Tibetan medical center in a township of Naklung. [ 21 ] Regardless of whether it was day or night, she compassionately bestowed the gift of deathless vitality to the destitute and ill, who traveled from near and far to see her. Although trapped in strife and a recipient of beatings, she was more concerned with serving and performing duties for the refuge protector Senkar Choktrul [Tubten Nyima]. [ 22 ] In 1978 when the Dege Printing House was reopening, Dasal Wangmo assisted with editing the Kangyur, Tengyur, and other collected works for Sönam Dargye. [ 23 ] Then in 1979, following the invitation from the Dartsedo district and Kardze autonomous region’s health department, she became the primary editor for the publications of the Four Tantras and the Garland of Crystal Balls at the Kardze News Office. [ 24 ] In 1981 following the enlightened intent of the refuge protector Tubten Nyima, she became an inaugural teacher at the Sichuan Province Tibetan Language Institute—initially responsible for preparing the necessary textbooks at the newly constructed school. Then in 1983, she journeyed to Lhasa in central Tibet, where she received extensive instructions and explanations on the glorious Four Tantras, as well as empowerments and oral transmissions for the Yutok Nyingtik from Troru Khenchen Tsenam. [ 25 ] When Khenpo Petse, Rakor Khenpo Tubnor, Khenpo Wanglo, and others taught on the Bodhicaryāvatāra , Gateway to Knowledge , Prajñāpāramitā, Madhyamaka, and other topics at the Tibetan Language Institute, Dasal Wangmo was not at all complacent and unceasingly received the textual instructions as if she was a student. [ 26 ] She also continued to kindly teach lessons on medicine and astrology to many students from Dzogchen, Tau, and Dartsedo, to name a few, and many lineage-holding students. Moreover, Jetsunma Do Dasal Wangmo was renowned as the actual ḍākinī emanation of Ḍākki Losal Wangmo , and from time to time, she directly perceived symbolic scripts and prophetic visions. [ 27 ] However, because of her location and circumstances, she did not widely disseminate these teachings, and some of her mind-treasures were forever lost since she was unable to tend to them. She also considered most of these teachings to be of little benefit, so she offered them into the mouth of her fire. Nowadays, those found and collected have been compiled and published. Even though Dasal Wangmo has turned eighty this year, she generously shares her allotted teachings with numerous devotees from Dzogchen, Minyak, Murhā, Drago, Golok, Serta, Mewa, Kenlho, and other places, especially the empowerments, transmissions, and entrustment for the Enlightened Heart-Essence. [ 28 ] While nurturing the destitute and ill and bestowing deathless vitality upon them, her indestructible lotus feet always remain in the essence of the seven vajra attributes.[ 29 ] COLOPHON Jetsunma Do Dasal Wangmo’s nephew, the young and humble Tsangpo, whom she lovingly cared for, composed this biography in June 2007. NOTES [1] 'jigs med gling pa, 1730–1798, BDRC P314 ; mdo mkhyen brtse ye shes rdo rje, 1800–1866, BDRC P698 [2] bde chen rig pa'i ral gri 1830–1896, BDRC P7933 ; 'dzom pa skyid, BDRC P1PD76600 ; mgo log a skyong lha chen [3] rag shul bza' rig byed dbang mo, BDRC P1PD76607 ; mi nyak, BDRC G1033 ; rdo grub 'jigs med 'phrin las 'od zer 04 khams gsum zil gnon dgyes pa rdo rje, 1890–1939, BCRD P8431 ; tshe 'dzin dbang mo, 1894–1953, BDRC P1PD76609 [4] rdo grub 'jigs med 'phrin las 'od zer 02 shes rab me 'bar, 1829–1842, BDRC P1PD76603 ; rdo grub chen 01 'jigs med 'phrin las 'od zer, 1745–1821, BDRC P293 [5] rdo grub 'jigs med 'phrin las 'od zer 03 dri me grags pa, 1846–1886, BDRC P8006 ; 'gu thang, BDRC G1PD76606 [6] chags la rgyal po; dar rtse mdo, BDRC G1135 [7] dar mdo lcags la, BDRC G1489 ; mdo sgar [8] rme dgon pa, BDRC G3217 [9] mkha' 'gro ma las kyi dbang mo [10] mgo log rma chen khra tshang, BDRC G1PD76615 [11] sprul sku rang byung [12] sprul sku sgra gcan [13] rdzogs chen dgon, BDRC G16 ; thub bstan tshul khrims dpal mo; mkhan chen thub bstan snyan grags, 1883–1959, BDRC P6958 [14] rdzogs chen skya mo ri khrod [15] rdzogs chen mkhan chen yon tan mgon po, 1899–1959, BDRC P6600 [16] a 'dzom rgyal sras 'gyur med rdo rje, b. 1895, BDRC P741 [17] grub chen mkhan po 'od rnam; sga pa mkhyen brtse [18] gso rig rgyu bzhi, BDRC WA3CN1694 ; khro ru 'jam dpal, BDRC P1PD76610 ; 'ju mi pham , 1846–1912, BDRC P252 ; dgu ru gsang lo, BDRC P1PD76616 [19] Personal communication from Tibetan doctor and astrologer Erik Jampa Andersson ( www.shrimala.com ): The five components (lnga bsdus) refer to the days of the week, lunar days, lunar mansions, yoga, and karaṇa (gza' tshes skar sbyor byed pa lnga). For more information on the five components, see: Edward Henning, Kālacakra and the Tibetan Calendar (New York: American Institute of Buddhist Studies, 2007), 40–45. The Svarodaya Tantra (dbyangs 'char gyi rgyud) is a manuscript of Śaiva origin relating to Indic astrology and astrological magic. For more information on Svarodaya Astrological Magic, see: https://www.himalayanart.org/search/set.cfm?setID=2779 ; mi nyag dpal ri dgon pa'i mkhan po o rgyan rang grol, BDRC P1PD76612 ; rdzogs chen mkhan po chos tsha [20] The “time of change” here alludes to the Cultural Revolution. khams mi nyag lha sgang go ro lha sde [21] nags lung [22] a lags gzan dkar 03 thub bstan nyi ma, b. 1943, BDRC P2362 [23] sde dge par khang, BDRC G1657 [24] shel gong 'phreng, BDRC W7516 [25] g.yu thog rnying thig, BDRC WA2DB13636 ; khro ru mkhan po tshe rnam, 1928–2005, BDRC P4779 [26] rdzogs chen mkhan po pad+ma tshe dbang lhun grub, 1931–2011, BDRC P9514 ; rwa skor mkhan po thub bstan nor bu, 1924–1987, BDRC P1272 ; dge mang khen po dbang lo [27] DAk+ki blo gsal sgrol ma, 1802–1861, BDRC P1GS138134 [28] mur hA; brag 'go, BDRC G2299 ; mgo log BDRC G1490 ; gser rta, BDRC G2302 ; kan lho, BDRC G2199 [29] These seven qualities of a vajra include: (1) invulnerability (mi chod pa), (2) indestructibility (mi shigs pa), (3) authenticity (bden pa), (4) incorruptibility (sra ba), (5) stability (brtan pa), (6) unobstructibility (thogs pa med pa), and (7) invincibility (ma pham pa). See Dudjom (2002), 33–34. Published: February 2022 BIBLIOGRAPHY Mdo zla gsal dbang mo. “Rje btsun ma mdo zla gsal dbang mo'i mdzad rnam rags bsdus.” In Gsung thor bu zla gsal dbang mo. Par gzhi dang po, Mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2007, pp. 1–8. BDRC MW1GS60403 Abstract Nun, physician, and treasure revealer, Do Dasal Wangmo was a well-respected female master in eastern Tibet. She was the great-granddaughter of Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje and the last member of his family line. Her religious affinity and familial connections allowed her to follow a contemplative, studious, and altruistic lifestyle as a monastic physician and professor of Tibetan medicine. Although briefly imprisoned and under difficult circumstances for fourteen years, she was later allowed to practice medicine and was appointed to government-funded medical schools in Kham. BDRC MW1GS60403 DOWNLOAD TRANSLATION GO TO TRANSLATION LISTEN TO AUDIO 00:00 / 10:36 TRADITION Nyingma INCARNATION LINE N/A HISTORICAL PERIOD 20th Century 21st Century TEACHERS Troru Jampal Minyak Palri Gönpe Khenpo Orgyan Rangdröl Guru Sanglo Dzogchen Khenchen Yönten Gönpo Khenchen Tubten Nyendrak Adzom Gyalse Gyurme Dorje The Sixth Dzogchen Jigdral Changchub Dorje Do Rinpoche Kamsum Silnön Gyepa Dorje Tsedzin Wangmo Tulku Rangjung Tulku Drachen Drubchen Khenpo Önam Gapa Khyentse Dzogchen Khenpo Chötsa The Third Alak Senkar, Tubten Nyima Troru Khenchen Tsenam Dzogchen Khenpo Petse Rakor Khenpo Tubnor Geman Khenpo Wanglo TRANSLATOR Tib Shelf INSTITUTIONS Dzogchen Monastery Śrī Siṃha College Dzogchen Kyamo Hermitage Kardza Hermitage Sichuan Province Tibetan Language Institute STUDENTS Lama Dorde Tubten Chödar AUTHOR Tsangpo A Brief Biography of Jetsunma Do Dasal Wangmo VIEW ALL PUBLICATIONS NEXT PUBLICATION > < PREVIOUS PUBLICATION Home Publications Read Listen Watch People Information About Meet the Team Services Translators Terms of Use Privacy Policy Donate Subscribe to our newsletter Support Tib Shelf's ongoing work & Subscribe Today! 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A compilation of supplication verses and transmission lineage for Do Khyentse's Dzinpa Rangdröl treasure cycle, arranged by Galwang Nyima from original revealed texts. A Lineage Prayer for the Natural Liberation of Grasping ཀུན་བཟང་ཡབ་ཡུམ་སྟོན་པ་འོད་མི་འགྱུར། ། kunzang yabyum tönpa ö mingyur Samantabhadra and Samantabhadrā in union, Teacher of Immutable Light, [ 1 ] ཁྲག་འཐུང་གཞོན་ནུ་དཔའ་བོ་སྟོབས་ལྡན་དཔལ། ། traktung shönnu pawo tobden pal Glorious, powerful, and blood-drinking Youthful Hero, [ 2 ] དྲི་མེད་གསང་བདག་དགའ་རབ་མཚོ་སྐྱེས་རྗེ། ། drimé sangdak garab tsokyé jé Stainless Lord of Secrets [Vajrapani], Garab Dorje, the Lake-Born Lord, བདེ་ཆེན་མནྡཱ་ར་ལ་གསོལ་བ་འདེབས། ། dechen mendara la solwa deb And Great Bliss Mandarava, to you I pray. སྦྱོར་སྒྲོལ་བརྟུལ་ཞུགས་མཐར་ཕྱིན་རཀྵི་ཏ། ། jordrol tulshuk tarchin rakshi ta Rakshita, who perfected the yogic observances of union and liberation, གྲུབ་བརྒྱའི་སྤྱི་མེས་ཕ་ཅིག་དམ་པ་རྗེ། ། drub gyé chimé pa chik dampa jé Lord Dampa, who is the sole forefather of a hundred adepts, ཌཱཀྐིའི་རྗེ་མོ་དབྱིངས་ཕྱུག་ལབ་ཀྱི་སྒྲོན། ། daki jemo yingchuk lab kyi drön Labdron, who is the lady of the dakinis and the queen of space, ཞི་གཅོད་བརྒྱུད་པར་བཅས་ལ་གསོལ་བ་འདེབས། ། shi chö gyüpar ché la solwa deb Lineages of Pacification and Severance, to you I pray. ཨོ་རྒྱན་པད་བྱུང་བི་མའི་སྒྱུ་འཕྲུལ་གར། ། orgyen pé jung bi mé gyutrul gar Dancing illusory display of Padmasambhava of Oddiyana and Vimalamitra, ཟབ་གསང་བསྟན་པ་གཞིར་བཞེངས་སློང་མཛད་རྗེ། ། zabsang tenpa shir sheng long dzé jé Lord who brought forth the foundation of the profound and secret teachings, ཌཱ་ཀིའི་གསང་མཛོད་ཆེན་པོར་དབང་བསྒྱུར་བའི། ། daki sangdzö chenpor wang gyurwé Master of the magnificent, secret treasury of the dakinis— གཏེར་ཆེན་འཇའ་ལུས་རྡོ་རྗེར་གསོལ་བ་འདེབས། ། terchen jalü dorjér solwa deb The great treasure-revealer, Jalu Dorje, to you I pray. མཁའ་སྤྱོད་བདེ་ལྡན་ཞིང་ན་ཝཱ་ར་ཧི། ། khachö deden shing na varahi Vajravarahi in the blissful realm of Khecara རྔ་ཡབ་གླིང་དུ་མེ་ཏོག་མནྡཱ་ར། ། ngayab ling du metok mendara And Mandarava Flower in Chamaradvipa, སླར་ཡང་བསྟན་འགྲོའི་དོན་དུ་མི་རྫུར་བྱོན། ། lar yang ten drö döndu mi dzur jön You came once again in the guise of a human for the benefit of the teachings and beings; ཡི་དམ་གྲུབ་བརྙེས་དངོས་གྲུབ་རྣམ་གཉིས་ཐོབ། ། yidam drub nyé ngödrub nam nyi tob Discovering the attainments of the deities, you gained the two accomplishments— ཡུམ་ཆེན་ཌཱ་ཀི་མཆོག་ལ་གསོལ་བ་འདེབས། ། yumchen daki chok la solwa deb Great Mother and supreme dakini [ Losel Drolma ], [ 3 ] to you I pray. སྣང་སྲིད་དབང་བསྒྱུར་གྲུབ་བརྒྱའི་ཞལ་སྐྱིན་མཆོག ། nangsi wanggyur drub gyé shal kyin chok Supreme successor of a hundred adepts with mastery over all appearing existence; ཡེ་ཤེས་རྡོ་རྗེའི་གསང་གསུམ་བྱིན་བརྒྱུད་མཛོད། ། yeshe dorjé sang sum jin gyü dzö Yeshe Dorje’s three secrets, blessings, lineage, and treasuries— ཡོངས་ལ་དབང་བསྒྱུར་སྐུ་གསུང་ཐུགས་ཀྱི་སྲས། ། yong la wanggyur ku sung tuk kyi sé Master of them all, a son of enlightened body, speech, and mind, བདེ་ཆེན་རིག་པའི་རལ་གྲིར་གསོལ་བ་འདེབས། ། dechen rigpé raldrir solwa deb Dechen Rigpai Reltri , [ 4 ] to you I pray. བློས་བྱས་འདིར་སྣང་ཆོས་ཀུན་སྒྱུ་མའི་ངང་། ། löjé dir nang chö kün gyumé ngang In the state where all apparent, mind-made phenomena of this life are illusory, རྨི་ལམ་ཚུལ་གཟིགས་རེ་དང་དོགས་པ་བྲལ། ། milam tsul zik ré dang dokpadral You recognized their dream-like nature and were free from hope and doubt, ང་ཁྱོད་ཕྱོགས་རིས་ཀུན་བྲལ་འགྲོ་བའི་མགོན། ། nga khyö chokri kündral drowé gön Beyond all biased distinctions between self and other—protector of beings, སྐྱབས་མཆོག་བདེ་ཆེན་འོད་ཟེར་ལ་གསོལ་བ་འདེབས། ། kyab chok dechen özer la solwa deb Supreme refuge, Dechen Ozer, [ 5 ] to you I pray. དྲི་མེད་མཁྱེན་པའི་ལྷ་ལམ་ཡངས་པ་ནས། ། drimé khyenpé lha lam yangpa né Through the vast, heavenly path of stainless knowledge, བརྩེ་བའི་སྙིང་རྗེའི་འོད་སྟོང་འབར་བའི་གཟིས། ། tsewé nyingjé ötong barwé zi You blaze brilliantly with the intense light of love and compassion འགྲོ་རྣམས་མུན་པའི་སྨག་རུམ་སེལ་མཛད་པ། dro nam münpé makrum sel dzepa And dispel the dense darkness of transmigrating beings, ཐུབ་བསྟན་ཆོས་ཀྱི་རྡོ་རྗེར་གསོལ་བ་འདེབས། ། tubten chö kyi dorjér solwa deb Tubten Chokyi Dorje, [ 6 ] to you I pray. སྤང་རྟོགས་རྒྱལ་བ་རྣམས་དང་རོ་གཅིག་ཀྱང་། ། pang tok gyalwa nam dang ro chik kyang Although you are experientially the same as the victorious ones in renunciation and realization, ཐུགས་རྗེས་རྗེས་འཛིན་སངས་རྒྱས་དངོས་ལས་ལྷག ། tukjé jedzin sangye ngö lé lhak In your compassionate care for disciples, you are actually superior to the buddhas— བཀའ་དྲིན་མཚུངས་མེད་བསྟན་པའི་སྒྲོན་མེ་མཆོག ། kadrin tsungmé tenpé drönmé chok Incomparably gracious and supreme lamp of the teachings, དཔལ་མགོན་བླ་མ་མཆོག་ལ་གསོལ་བ་འདེབས། ། palgön lama chok la solwa deb Glorious protector, supreme guru, to you I pray. རླབས་ཆེན་ཐུགས་བསྐྱེད་ཟབ་ཡངས་རྒྱ་མཚོ་ལས། ། lab chen tukkyé zab yang gyatso lé Great [blessing] waves from the extensive ocean of the profound awakening mind, སྨིན་གྲོལ་གདམས་པའི་ཆུ་བོ་རྣམ་པ་བཞིས། ། mindrol dampé chuwo nampa shi The four rivers of instructions concerning maturation and liberation, སྐལ་བཟང་གདུལ་བྱའི་ཞིང་ཀུན་ཁྱབ་མཛད་པའི། ། kalzang duljé shing künkhyab dzepé Pervade all realms containing disciples endowed with good fortune— དངོས་བརྒྱུད་བླ་མའི་ཚོགས་ལ་གསོལ་གསོལ་བ་འདེབས། ། ngö gyü lamé tsok la sol solwa deb Assemblies of lineage gurus, to you I pray. སངས་རྒྱས་ཀུན་འདུས་བླ་མ་ཆོས་ཀྱི་སྐུ། ། sangye kündü lama chö kyi ku Embodiment of all buddhas, dharmakaya guru, མ་ཅིག་ཡུམ་ཆེན་དབྱེར་མེད་བཀའ་དྲིན་ཅན། ། ma chik yumchen yermé kadrinchen Inseparable from the single, gracious Great Mother, སྙིང་ནས་གདུང་ཤུགས་དྲག་པོས་གསོལ་བ་འདེབས། ། nying né dungshuk drakpö solwa deb I fervently pray to you from the depths of my heart! འཁྲུལ་སྣང་སྙེམས་བྱེད་བདུད་བཞི་ལས་རྒྱལ་ཞིང་། ། trulnang nyem jé dü shi lé gyal shing Bless me with victory over the four maras, creators of delusional perception and pride! སྐྱེ་མེད་ཆོས་སྐུ་རྟོགས་པར་བྱིན་གྱིས་སློབས། ། kyemé chöku tokpar jin gyi lob Bless me to realize the unborn dharmakaya! རང་གི་ཐུགས་ཀའི་འོད་ཀྱིས་བསྐུལ་བས་ཕྱོགས་བཅུ་དུས་བཞིའི་སྐྱབས་གནས་རྒྱ་མཚོ་བདུད་འདུལ་ཁྲོས་མ་ལྷ་ལྔའི་དཀྱིལ་འཁོར་གྱི་རྣམ་པར་མདུན་གྱི་ནམ་མཁར་བཛྲ་ས་མ་ཡ་ཛཿ ཚོགས་ཞིང་མདུན་མཁར་སད་པར་བྱས་ནས་མཐར་ཛཿཧཱུྃ་བྃ་ཧོས་ཚོགས་ཞིང་རང་ལ་བསྡུ་པར་བྱའོ།། Light issues from my heart, invoking in the space before me the oceanic sources of refuge from the ten directions and three times in the aspect of the mandala of the five deities of the demon-subduing Fierce Mother [ 7 ] —Vajra Samaya Jah. The field of merit is thus awakened in the space before me. Finally, with Jah Hum Bam Hoh, the field of merit dissolves into me. COLOPHON None NOTES [1] This is an epithet for Samantabhadra. [2] This is the sixth of the twelve foundational teachers (ston pa bcu gnyis) of Dzogchen in this world-system. [3] Losel Drolma (1802–1861) was Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje’s half-sister and spiritual consort, as well as a custodian of his teachings and a respected Dzogchen teacher in her own right. BDRC P1GS138134 [4] Dechen Rigpai Reltri (1830–1896) was the second son of Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje. See: Treasury of Lives [5] Dechen Ozer Taye of Tsering Jong, the residence of Jigme Lingpa (1730–1798), was a student and scribe for Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje. [6] The Fifth Dzogchen Drubwang, Tubten Chokyi Dorje (1872–1935). See: Treasury of Lives [7] The Fierce Mother, or Tröma Nakmo (khros ma nag mo). Photo credit: Himalayan Art Resources Thanks to Adam Pearcey at Lotsawa House for his editing. Published: April 2021 BIBLIOGRAPHY Ye shes rdo rje. Edited by Rgyal dbang nyi ma. 1978. ' Dzin pa rang 'grol brgyud pa'i gsol 'debs bzhugs . In Gcod 'dzin pa rang grol gyi 'don cha'i skor, pp. 43–45. Paro: Ngondrub and Sherab Demy. BDRC W26033 Abstract This lineage prayer for Do Khyentse's treasure cycle of the Natural Liberation of Grasping (Dzinpa Rangdröl) is found in a liturgical compilation arranged by Galwang Nyima. The prayer comprises verses from the supplication prayer and Tröma practice as located in the revealed treasure texts as well as a short transmission lineage. BDRC LINK W26033 DOWNLOAD TRANSLATION GO TO TRANSLATION LISTEN TO AUDIO 00:00 / 03:42 TRADITION Nyingma INCARNATION LINE Jigme Lingpa HISTORICAL PERIOD 19th Century TEACHERS The Fourth Dzogchen Drubwang, Mingyur Namkhe Dorje The First Dodrubchen, Jigme Trinle Özer Gyurme Tsewang Chokdrub Dola Jigme Kalzang Jigme Gyalwe Nyugu TRANSLATOR Tib Shelf INSTITUTIONS Mahā Kyilung Monastery Katok Monastery Dzogchen Monastery Tseringjong STUDENTS Losal Drölma Tsewang Rabten Nyala Pema Dudul The Second Dodrubchen, Jigme Puntsok Jungne Patrul Orgyen Jigme Chökyi Wangpo The First Dodrubchen, Jigme Trinle Özer Ranyak Gyalse Nyoshul Luntok Tenpe Gyaltsen Özer Taye Kalzang Döndrub Pema Sheja Drime Drakpa Kunzang Tobden Wangpo Gyalse Zhenpen Taye Özer Chöying Tobden Dorje Rigpe Raltri AUTHOR Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje Gyalwang Nyima (Editor) A Lineage Prayer for the Natural Liberation of Grasping VIEW ALL PUBLICATIONS NEXT PUBLICATION > < PREVIOUS PUBLICATION Home Publications Read Listen Watch People Information About Meet the Team Services Translators Terms of Use Privacy Policy Donate Subscribe to our newsletter Support Tib Shelf's ongoing work & Subscribe Today! 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Treasure Revealer Chöje Lingpa 1682–1720 BDRC P671 LOTSAWA HOUSE PHOTO CREDIT Chöje Lingpa was born into a noble lineage in Dagpo and later recognized as a reincarnation of several esteemed masters. He received extensive monastic training before embracing his role as a treasure revealer. He would become a prolific revealer in his own right and was considered the penultimate emanation of Gyalse Lhaje before his rebirth as Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo. His life was marked by rigorous practice, visionary experiences, and the revelation of numerous esoteric teachings, including cycles related to Guru Padmasambhava, Mahāmudrā, and Dzogchen. Translated Works Biography A Biography of Chöje Lingpa Jamgön Kongtrul Lodrö Taye A Biography of Chöje Lingpa by Jamgön Kongtrul Lodrö Taye, detailing the life of Chöje Lingpa (Rogje Lingpa), a seventeenth- to eighteenth-century Tibetan treasure revealer (tertön) known for discovering and transmitting profound spiritual treasures (terma), including teachings on Guru Padmasambhava, Mahāmudrā, and Dzogchen. Read Biography A Brief Biography: The Successive Incarnations of Tsoknyi Özer Önpo Gelek The reincarnation lineage of Tsoknyi Özer exemplified supreme devotion - illustrated by the Third Tsoknyi's offering of his burning finger as a lamp to fulfill his guru's wishes. Read Mentioned In Menu Close Home Publications Read Listen Watch People Information About Meet the Team Services Translators Terms of Use Privacy Policy Donate SUBSCRIBE Publications Watch People Listen

Ancient Buddhist scriptures from the Collection of Precious Qualities reveal how collective karma shapes our universe's formation and every world system within it. The Formation of the Outer Container As it says in the Noble Verses on the Collection of Precious Qualities [ 1 ] concerning the formation of the outer container, the foundation of the earth and the mountains: “The wind [element] depends on space and aggregations of the water [element] depend on the wind [element]. This great earth, supporting sentient beings, depends on the water [element].” Furthermore, the former constituents of that world system, having been destroyed by fire, water, and wind of an eon then for twenty intermediate eons, will all together become nothing. It is after this [period of time], the constituents of the world system will form .[ 2 ] The initial cause of this world system depends upon the collective karma of sentient beings. Known as the Pure Mind, [ 3 ] it is a white space that radiates light and develops into a sizable container [ 4 ] capable of supporting a three-thousandfold world system .[ 5 ] Atop that space forms a wind mandala, and a blue rippling wind rises forth known as the Great Churning Wind. [6] The All-Pervading Wind [ 7 ] spreads it in all directions amassing like fog in the sky. The Wild and Rough Wind [ 8 ] noisily scatters that wind like clouds in the sky, which is collected by the Colossal Gathering Wind, [ 9 ] becoming vast and thick. Through the burning of the fire that spreads from the orange Ripening Fire Wind, [ 10 ] the wind mandala becomes smooth with an even surface. The multi-coloured Wind of the Dividing Wind [ 11 ] rises up in a rush, dispersing the wind mandala, and the Churning Wind mixes it into its proper formation. The colour of the wind takes the aspect of a sapphire jewel, shaped like a crossed vajra and surrounded by a round rim. As for its size, its thickness is 1,600,000 yojanas [ 12 ] and has an immeasurable width. Since its inherent quality is solid and firm, it supports the [elements] such as water. A water mandala forms on top of that, and clouds possessing the essence of gold gather in the space above the wind mandala. A stream of rain descends about the size of a chariot’s axel. From its swirling centre a shape like a full circular moon forms called the Calm and Clear Water .[ 13 ] As for the size of the water mandala, its thickness is 120,000 yojanas and has an immeasurable width. On top of that a golden foundation forms: The Churning Wind arises from the wind mandala that is underneath the water, churning the water mandala. Out of the cream that is produced from the churning of the water mandala, a golden foundation is established, like the ice that forms on a lake. It is square with a yellow gold-like hue, as for the size, its thickness is 220,000 yojanas and has an immeasurable width. Mountains, oceans, and continents form on top of that. Moreover, in the space above the golden foundation clouds of various constituents amass, and a stream of water descends from them for a significant duration. After this, the Gathering and Sorting Wind [ 14 ] separates the elements: a billion Mt. Sumerus are established from the best elements, a billion mountains of the seven rings are established from the mediocre elements, and billions of iron mountains of the outer rim, billions of the four continents, and billions of the sub-continents are established from the inferior elements. The manner of this formation is stated in the sutra. In that way, when the four continents and sub-continents are formed with the inferior elements, the head of the four great rivers and the great Mt. Kailash are also established in the centre of the southern Jambudvipa [continent]. This should be known. COLOPHON None NOTES [1] ārya prajñāpāramitāratnaguṇasaṃcayagāthā [2] According to Buddhist cosmology, the cycle of the world system consists of four periods: 1. eon of formation (chags pa'i bskal pa, vivartakalpa), 2. eon of abiding (gnas pa'i bskal pa, vivartasthāyikalpa), 3. eon of dissolution ('jig pa'i bskal pa, saṃvartakalpa), and 4. eon of nothingness (stong pa'i bskal pa, saṃvartasthāyikalpa). The Abhidharmakośabhāṣya (Chos mngon pa'i mdzod kyi bshad pa), attributed to the famous master Vasubhandu (c. 4th–5th CE), states that each of the four eons consists of twenty intermediate eons (bar bskal pa, antarakalpa). This initiatory section of the text describes the cycle of these four eons. For more information see: The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism 2014: kalpa. [3] yid rnam par dwangs pa [4] snod [5] A three-thousandfold world system is the largest universe or cosmological container capable of containing upwards of a billion world systems each with their own central Mt. Sumeru and geological and continental structures. For more information see: The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism 2014: trisāhasramahāsāhasralokadhātu [6] rnam par srub byed kyi rlung [7] kun tu khyab byed kyi rlung [8] rtsub 'gyur gyi rlung yam [9] rnam par sdud byed kyi rlung [10] smin byed me'i rlung [11] 'byed byed rlung gi rlung [12] Yojana – An ancient Indic measurement of distance said to be the distance that a pair of yoked oxen can travel in a single day. There are various modern measurements estimating this distance ranging from four to ten miles. For more information see: The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism 2014: yojana. [13] zhi ba gsal dag [14] 'byed sdud kyi rlung BIBLIOGRAPHY 'Bri gung chos kyi blo gros. 1998. Phyi snod sa gzhi ri bcas chags tshul . In Gnas yig phyogs bsgrigs, pp. 136–139. Khreng tu'u: Si khron mi rigs dpe skrun khang. BDRC W20820 Abstract The Formation of the Outer Container is a description of the formation of the universe according to Buddhist cosmogony. BDRC LINK W20820 DOWNLOAD TRANSLATION GO TO TRANSLATION LISTEN TO AUDIO 00:00 / 04:15 TRADITION Kagyu INCARNATION LINE N/A HISTORICAL PERIOD Unknown TEACHERS Unknown TRANSLATOR Tib Shelf INSTITUTION Unknown STUDENTS Unknown AUTHOR Drigung Konchok Tendzin Chokyi Lodro The Formation of the Outer Container VIEW ALL PUBLICATIONS NEXT PUBLICATION > < PREVIOUS PUBLICATION Home Publications Read Listen Watch People Information About Meet the Team Services Translators Terms of Use Privacy Policy Donate Subscribe to our newsletter Support Tib Shelf's ongoing work & Subscribe Today! Name * Email* Submit Tib Shelf is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to translating, presenting and preserving primary source Tibetan texts across a vast array of genres and time periods. We make these literary treasures accessible to readers worldwide, offering a unique window into Tibet's rich history, culture and traditions. Tib Shelf has been accredited by the British Library with the International Standard Serial Number (ISSN): 2754–1495 CONTACT US | SHELVES@TIBSHELF.ORG © 2024 Tib Shelf. All rights reserved.

Two spontaneous songs by Lelung Zhepe Dorje: one honoring the mysterious Je Traktung Pawo, another celebrating unobstructed awareness - both transmitting direct spiritual experience through verse. A Series of Spontaneous Spiritual Songs Aho mahāsukha ye! I bow at the feet of the benevolent, paternal lama! Akaniṣṭha, the celestial realm of lotus light, Is where the peaceful and wrathful victorious protectors reside. As foretold by the oath-bound mother ḍākinīs, Je Traktung Pawo (“Lord Heroic Blood-Drinker”), set foot here— In this supreme, protected holy abode where spiritual experiences naturally arise, I offer these spontaneous spiritual songs. Here today the assembly of vajra brothers and sisters, Due to previously accumulated karmic fortune, which is not lacking, Have met you, the essence of all refuge. Now, having gained this feast of good fortune, Vajra blessings permeate our three doors: We’re ablaze with spontaneous visions in every way. Our bodies, maṇḍalas of the major and minor marks, shimmer like a rainbow. We’ve received the essential nectar of vajra speech. The great joyful awakened mind embraces us. [183] What auspicious fortune—an excellent, blissful experience! Yet, we were born at the end of this degenerate age, Where stainless Dharma conduct has nearly declined— All paternal siddhas have passed into the realm of space. Those who boast of being doctrine holders Only ever pass their time in attachment and aversion. In the glorious Vajrayāna tradition, Sincere devotion is extraordinarily rare. The life stories of the great, holy noble lords— They have sullied them with their misconceptions, Creating all sorts of entrances to negative deeds. Even righteous deeds they view as wrong. In these times when whatever one does becomes flawed, Thinking of this stirs up anguish within. Peerless precious father, Infallible refuge, When I recall how you care for me, My anguish is quashed. We, brothers and sisters, gathered here, With minds of unwavering faith, At this time we make this supplication: Glorious Traktung Wangpo, our lord lama, Atop the unchanging vajra throne, May the prints of your vajra feet ever remain! With the magnificent maṇḍala [184] of your three secrets, In the hidden grove where the mother ḍākinīs assemble, May you open gateways to hundreds of pure lands And ever turn the wheel of the profound and vast Dharma! With your limitless enlightened activity that tames beings, O Protector, may you illuminate The essential meaning of the glorious, indestructible luminosity In all directions, times, and circumstances! Those gathered together in this sacred abode, All the devoted, fortunate men and women, In the self-appearing Akaniṣṭha pure land, With the lord lama, King of Self-Awareness, [1] Amidst a retinue of one hundred thousand drops of self-luminous wisdom, In a feast gathering of inseparable union, In times that never shift, change, or wane, May we enjoy it as one taste! Root and lineage gurus of the three transmissions And the assembly of heroes and ḍākinīs of the three places, Through your unified unwavering enlightened intent, May our hopes and aspirations be fulfilled! Aho ye sarva maṅgalaṃ! Colophon: Thus, when Dzogchen Tulku Rinpoche, the blood-drinking accomplished hero and crown jewel of all holders of the knowledge mantras, journeyed from Ölga in the east to the supreme place of the Glorious Copper-Colored Mountain, those gathered there offered elaborate long-life prayers along with a feast offering, during which this melodious song, blazing with spiritual insight and faith, was spontaneously offered. Later on, Rabten, the venerable manager of that holy one’s enlightened activities, requested these be put into writing. Although the words may not be an exact match, I, Zhepe Dorje, the one who [185] practices according to his own spontaneous nature, arranged whatever I could recall. Aho ye! I’ve realized my mind to be the dharmakāya! Even what is called “Buddha” is nothing other than this. In the state of the astonishing, unobstructed view, Let whatever appearances arise be free and unfettered, Undistracted presence in the continuity of non-meditation. Though there is nothing to abandon like dullness, agitation, and other afflictions, Rest the thoughts that grasp the objects of the six senses Completely in the meditative equipoise where they naturally dissolve. All appearing sense pleasures are for the enjoyment of one’s own mind. Joyfully relaxing in a continuity free from grasping, Rest in just this uncontrived yoga. Through the kindness of the authentic guru, my sole father, By making devoted prayers from the very depths of my heart, Blessings have pervaded the wheel of phenomenal existence And there is no distinction between the guru and my mind. How joyful is the way I, the yogin, nurture good experiences! There is no difference between the six classes of beings and buddhas. Everything is the great dharmadhātu’s festive display. By understanding this very nature of the fundamental state, May everything be liberated effortlessly into the body of light! COLOPHON I, Zhepe Dorje, composed this following the wishes of Chö Samdrub the Scholar of Letters. NOTES [1] “King of Self-Awareness” ( rang rig gi rgyal po ) is one appellation for the personification of the primordial ground ( gzhi ) in the Dzogchen view. This figure, who resides in the keep of Dzogchen thought, is generally referred to by various epithets, including All-Creating King ( kun byed rgyal po ), All-Knowing King ( kun rig rgyal po ), King of Awareness ( rig pa rgyal po ), King of Cognizant Awareness ( shes rig gi rgyal po ), Purifying King of Self-Cognizant Awareness ( sbyong byed rang shes rig pa’i rgyal po ), and Purifying King of Awareness ( sbyong byed rig pa rgyal po ), amongst others. Also see Karmay 2007, 52, n. 45. Photo credit: Lelung Dharma Centre Published: November 2024 BIBLIOGRAPHY Primary: Zhepe Dorje (bzhad pa’i rdo rje). 1983–1985. mgur gyi rim pa thol byung rdo rjeʼi glu . In gsung ’bum/_bzhad pa’i rdo rje , vol. 6, 181–185. Leh: T. Sonam & D.L. Tashigang. BDRC MW22130_9A3DB8 . Secondary: Karmay, Samten Gyaltsen. 2007. The Great Perfection (rDzogs Chen): A Philosophical and Meditative Teaching of Tibetan Buddhism . 2nd ed. Leiden: Brill. Abstract In this publication, we are introduced to two spontaneous spiritual songs by Lelung Zhepe Dorje. The first reverently focuses on a figure named Je Traktung Pawo, though his exact identity remains elusive. The second shifts to a more introspective theme, emphasizing the experience of unobstructed, spontaneous presence—a state free from rigid meditation or effort, embodying the natural flow of awareness. These spontaneous songs, or gur ( mgur ), are composed without premeditation and serve as a profound means for both the singer and the listener to connect with the essence of the teachings. Through these verses, we are invited to experience a direct and heartfelt transmission of the subject being sung, bridging the inner realization of the practitioner with the audience’s understanding. Please note video narration is only 2nd song at the present time. BDRC MW22130_ 9A3DB8 DOWNLOAD TRANSLATION GO TO TRANSLATION LISTEN TO AUDIO 00:00 / 06:03 TRADITION Geluk | Nyingma INCARNATION LINE Lelung Jedrung HISTORICAL PERIOD 18th Century TEACHERS The Sixth Dalai Lama, Tsangyang Gyatso The Fifth Panchen Lama, Lobzang Yesh e Damchö Zangpo Mingyur Paldrön Chöje Lingpa Dönyö Khedrup The First Purchok, Ngawang Jampa Ngawang Chödrak Yeshe Gyatso Damchö Gyatso Losal Gyatso Lhundrub Gyatso Dungkar Tsangyang Drukdrak TRANSLATOR Tib Shelf INSTITUTION Lelung Monastery Mindröling Ngari Dratsang Chökhor Gyal Trandruk Potala Tsāri STUDENTS Kunga Mingyur Dorj e Dorje Yom e Kunga Paldzom Lobzang Lhachok Dönyö Khedrub Polhane Sönam Tobgy e Ngawang Jampa Mingyur Paldrön The Fifth Dorje Drak Rigdzin, Kalzang Pema Wangchuk Lhasang Khan AUTHOR Lelung Zhepe Dorje A Series of Spontaneous Spiritual Songs VIEW ALL PUBLICATIONS NEXT PUBLICATION > < PREVIOUS PUBLICATION Home Publications Read Listen Watch People Information About Meet the Team Services Translators Terms of Use Privacy Policy Donate Subscribe to our newsletter Support Tib Shelf's ongoing work & Subscribe Today! Name * Email* Submit Tib Shelf is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to translating, presenting and preserving primary source Tibetan texts across a vast array of genres and time periods. We make these literary treasures accessible to readers worldwide, offering a unique window into Tibet's rich history, culture and traditions. Tib Shelf has been accredited by the British Library with the International Standard Serial Number (ISSN): 2754–1495 CONTACT US | SHELVES@TIBSHELF.ORG © 2024 Tib Shelf. All rights reserved.

Teacher Losal Drölma 1802–1861 BDRC P1GS138134 TREASURY OF LIVES PHOTO CREDIT Ḍākki Losal Drölma (1802–1861) was a remarkable Tibetan Buddhist practitioner, recognized for her deep spiritual achievements and her contributions to the religious legacy of her brother, the treasure revealer Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje . Born in the Golok region, she received teachings from some of the most esteemed masters of her time, including Dodrubchen Jigme Trinle Özer and others at monasteries like Drigung Til and Katok. Renowned for her visionary experiences, including manifestations ḍākinī emanations, she played a critical role in preserving and disseminating treasure teachings, earning titles such as "dharma custodian" (chos bdag ). Despite familial constraints preventing formal recognition as a tulku, she maintained significant influence in spiritual and educational spheres, serving her community, family, and lineage with profound devotion until her passing. Translated Works Biography The Biography of Ḍākki Losal Drölma Tubten Chödar A realized female master, Ḍākki Losal Drölma served as custodian of her half-brother Do Khyentse's treasure teachings while deepening her own spiritual attainments in Tibet's sacred sites Read Biography The Biography of Gyalse Rigpe Raltri Tubten Chödar Son of Do Khyentse and recognized as Jigme Lingpa's son's reincarnation, Rigpe Raltri became a revered Minyak guru, transmitting the Yangsang Khandro Tugtik treasures to his own son. Read Timetable A Chronological Timetable: Lives of Do Khyentse’s Familial Line Tubten Chödar A chronology of birth and death dates mapping Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje's family lineage through its key figures and connections. Read Biography A Brief Biography of Jetsunma Do Dasal Wangmo Tsangpo A renowned female master in eastern Tibet, Do Dasal Wangmo - Do Khyentse's great-granddaughter - served as nun, physician, and treasure revealer, later teaching medicine despite political hardship. Read Aspirational Prayer For the Long Life of Ḍākki Losal Drölma Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje Do Khyentse, writing as Tragtung Dorje, crafts a long-life prayer for Ḍākki Losal Drölma that playfully incorporates her lesser-known name Drön while praising her spiritual attainments. Read Guru Yoga, Prayer, Supplication Prayer Cloudbanks of Blessings: A Guru Yoga Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje A rare guru yoga from Do Khyentse's treasure teachings centered on a historical yoginī, revealing unique insights into female practitioners and tantric transformation in Tibet. Read Lineage Prayer A Lineage Prayer for the Natural Liberation of Grasping Gyalwang Nyima, Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje A compilation of supplication verses and transmission lineage for Do Khyentse's Dzinpa Rangdröl treasure cycle, arranged by Galwang Nyima from original revealed texts. Read Biography Abridged Biographies: The Lineage of the Do Family Do Dasal Wangmo Chronicling Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje's lineage, with special attention to his half-sister Losal Drölma - an honored teacher whose story emerges from the margins of temple narratives. Read Mentioned In Menu Close Home Publications Read Listen Watch People Information About Meet the Team Services Translators Terms of Use Privacy Policy Donate SUBSCRIBE Publications Watch People Listen

Treasure Revealer Guru Chökyi Wangchuk 1200/1212–1270 BDRC P326 TREASURY OF LIVES LOTSAWA HOUSE Guru Chökyi Wangchuk, also known as Guru Chöwang, was one of the five treasure-revealing kings (gter ston rgyal po lnga ) and a scion of the Southern Treasures. He is known for his illuminating treatise on the phenomenon of treasure (gter ), known as Guru Chöwang’s Great Treasure Account (gu ru chos dbang gi gter ’byung chen mo ), and for his revelations: Lama Sangdu and Kabgye Sangwa Yongzok, amongst others. Biography The Great Symbolic Vision at Palpuk Ring: A Dream of Guru Chökyi Wangchuk Guru Chökyi Wangchuk In this 1245 dream vision at Palpuk Ring, Guru Chöwang encounters his recurring guide, a ḍākinī named Yeshe Gyen, at his childhood home - sparking profound symbolic revelations of dharmic truth. Read Biography Namkechenma: A Dream of Guru Chökyi Wangchuk Guru Chökyi Wangchuk Armed with the 'scroll of devastation' from his father, Guru Chöwang's first treasure excavation leads to a terrifying encounter with the Nine-Headed Nāga Demon, guardian of hidden teachings. Read Biography How Guru Chöwang Met the Guru at Ne Ngön Guru Chökyi Wangchuk During an alchemical corpse ritual, Guru Chöwang meets Padmasambhava in a profound encounter that defies categorization as dream, vision, or reality - an event he insisted truly occurred. Read Biography An Extraordinary Pure Vision at Kharchu's Nectar Cave: A Dream of Guru Chöwang Guru Chökyi Wangchuk After five days of Guru Pema practice, Chöwang's pure vision atop Mt Meru reveals worldly omens and a profound teaching: all phenomena, even demons, arise from mind itself. Read Translated Works Mentioned In Menu Close Home Publications Read Listen Watch People Information About Meet the Team Services Translators Terms of Use Privacy Policy Donate SUBSCRIBE Publications Watch People Listen

Teacher The First Dodrubchen, Jigme Trinle Özer 1745–1821 BDRC P293 TREASURY OF LIVES LOTSAWA HOUSE PHOTO CREDIT The First Dodrubchen Jigme Trinle Özer (1745–1821) was a prominent Tibetan Buddhist master and the principal heir to Jigme Lingpa's Longchen Nyingtik lineage. Born in Golok's Do valley, he trained under renowned teachers, including the Second Shechen Rabjam and other Dzogchen masters, and undertook extensive pilgrimages across Tibet, receiving key transmissions such as the Khandro Nyingtik. Known for his profound retreats and visionary experiences, he established significant religious centers, including Dodrubchen Monastery, and spread the Longchen Nyingtik teachings widely in Kham. As a trusted spiritual advisor to the Derge royal family and the Tibetan government, he performed pivotal rituals and contributed to regional stability. Revered as a treasure revealer and author, his disciples included luminaries like Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje and Dza Patrul Rinpoche, cementing his legacy as a cornerstone of the Nyingma tradition. Translated Works Biography The Biography of Ḍākki Losal Drölma Tubten Chödar A realized female master, Ḍākki Losal Drölma served as custodian of her half-brother Do Khyentse's treasure teachings while deepening her own spiritual attainments in Tibet's sacred sites Read Biography A Brief Biography of Jetsunma Do Dasal Wangmo Tsangpo A renowned female master in eastern Tibet, Do Dasal Wangmo - Do Khyentse's great-granddaughter - served as nun, physician, and treasure revealer, later teaching medicine despite political hardship. Read Biography Biography Of Getse Lama Jigme Ngotsar Gyatso Tenzin Lungtok Nyima Getse Lama Jigme Ngotsar Gyatso, disciple of Jigme Lingpa and founder of Kilung Monastery, spread the Longchen Nyingtik teachings while establishing his own enduring legacy. Read Biography The Hook Which Invokes Blessings: A Supplication to the Life and Liberation of Knowledge-Holder Jalu Dorje Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje A self-penned biographical prayer by Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje, composed at the request of Trokyab's king Namkha Lhündrub, invoking blessings through life stories. Read Biography Abridged Biographies: The Lineage of the Do Family Do Dasal Wangmo Chronicling Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje's lineage, with special attention to his half-sister Losal Drölma - an honored teacher whose story emerges from the margins of temple narratives. Read Mentioned In Menu Close Home Publications Read Listen Watch People Information About Meet the Team Services Translators Terms of Use Privacy Policy Donate SUBSCRIBE Publications Watch People Listen

Geluk Founder Tsongkhapa Lobzang Dragpa 1357–1419 BDRC P64 TREASURY OF LIVES LOTSAWA HOUSE HAR Tsongkhapa Lobzang Dragpa was the founder of Gelugpa order, the most dominant religious sect in the history of Tibet. At the age of sixteen, he traveled from Tsongkha in Amdo to Utsang, central Tibet, a place where he came to influence greatly. He was a prominent teacher, philosopher, and yogi during a time when Buddhist intellectualism developed considerably. He emphasized the monastic code, reinterpreted Madhyamaka philosophy, inaugurated the Great Prayer Festival (Mönlam Chemo), founded Ganden Monastery, and composed his most famous work, The Great Treatise on the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment (Lamrim Chenmo ). His intellectual legacy changed the course of Tibetan history and is still very much alive. Praises In Praise of the Goddess Sarasvatī Tsongkhapa Lobzang Dragpa Tsongkhapa's celebrated ode to Sarasvatī resonates beyond monastery walls into Tibet's artistic and literary spheres, becoming a cultural touchstone of devotional poetry. Read Translated Works Mentioned In Menu Close Home Publications Read Listen Watch People Information About Meet the Team Services Translators Terms of Use Privacy Policy Donate SUBSCRIBE Publications Watch People Listen

From imperial-era Nyingma roots to its 17th-century Geluk conversion, Drago Monastery continues as a major Buddhist center, now housing 500 monks and preserving Tibetan culture. A Brief History of Drago Monastery The glorious Hor Drago Ganden Rabten Nyamgal Ling Monastery upholds the Great Lord’s (Tsongkhapa) tradition, the refined gold of the Victor’s teachings. [ 1 ] Tibet—a great land of accomplishment completely encompassed by mountains—is the stage of our sole, destined deity, the most exalted Lotus Holder (Avalokiteśvara). It is in this deity’s realm that the flower of the snow-mountain people of Tibet fell. When Gyalse Lhalung Palgyi Dorje was practicing and passing through the Six Ranges of Dokham: Drida Salmogang, Tsawagang, Markhamgang, Poborgang, Mardzagang, and Minyak Rabgang, following his liberation of Langdarma, he constructed the initial Hor Drago Monastery (around 920 CE) .[ 2 ] This occurred in the supreme sacred place of Ramagang, which is endowed with such excellent qualities as the four pillars and the four protectors of the land .[ 3 ] It is located about a mile south of the center of the Drago district, a county called Trehor Dago of Dotö, which belongs to greater Tibet when Tibet is divided into Tibet and greater Tibet. Today we can see the supreme, sacred places of Lhari Chödzong Mukpo and Dori Barsing, where Lhalung Palgyi Dorje conducted accomplishment practices for some time in the many caves where ḍākinīs congregate. [ 4 ] He gathered the accumulations [of merit and wisdom] through making an unthinkable amount of real and mentally emanated offerings to the buddhas and bodhisattvas of the ten directions. As a sign of this accomplishment, there is an imprint of one of his offerings in the stone at the sacred place of Ramagang, which can still be seen today. In 1633, Dza Chöje Ngawang Puntsok, the great heart disciple of the Fifth Supreme Victor, Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso who is the crown jewel of all beings, even the gods, converted Hor Drago Monastery to the Geluk tradition. [ 5 ] He named the monastery The Steadfast and Utter Victorious Religious Institutional Abode: A Wish-Fulfilling Jewel of the Victor’s Teaching and All-Conquering Order of the Powerful Sovereign ( Ganden Rabten Namgyal Ling Chödra Gyalten Yishin Norbu Wangi Gyalpo Chokle Nampar Gyalwe De ). The victorious resounding drum of this monastery’s fame came to fill the earth. [DRAGO MONASTERY'S ARTWORK] At that time, the benevolent lord Tseten Norbu, an emanation of a great bodhisattva king, was the great ruler of the land. [ 6 ] Being a descendent of Hor Godan Khan, Tseten Norbu was a descendent of the heavenly king, lord Genghis Khan. The benevolent lord Tseten Norbu sent applications to the kings of Tibet and China (Manchu), intending to construct Drago Monastery’s principal sacred object—a Jowo Rinpoche statue of white silver and riches as a representation of the Teacher (Buddha Śākyamuni). Having invited craftsmen from Nepal and other areas, the beautifully crafted and high-quality statue was constructed for devotees to collect their merit. The Nanghola Temple, which is also named “Marvelous Temple,” was built to house this precious statue .[ 7 ] Above its door, the temple’s name was written in three scripts: Tibetan (Tsedé Ling), Mongolian (Nanghola), and Chinese. Namkha Gyen, an unrivaled and divinely emanated artisan, was born in the village of Tropa, Drago. [ 8 ] When he was a young boy, he went to herd cattle but ended up falling asleep. In his dream he had a vision of the master Lake-Born Vajra (Padmasambhava), who said to him, “From now on you must paint deities, as it’ll accomplish vast benefit for beings.” [ 9 ] The master then handed Namkha Gyen the artistic tools that he would need. Upon awakening from his nap, Namkha Gyen recalled many imprinted memories from his previous lives, then noticed four brushes and a complete set of tools right in front of him, which he clutched immediately. Never needing to learn how to paint, he became widely known as a divinely emanated artisan, as his innate talent naturally produced divine works of art. There are many of his sacred paintings at the monastery that are endowed with refined artisanship and shimmer with blessings. Painted scrolls and frescos of the six ornaments, two supreme ones, and Sukhāvatī are some of these precious sacred works. [ 10 ] It is said that a master woodcarver capable of engraving a lion and snow mountain facing each other on a single grain of barley was born in a village called Dragyab in Drago. [ 11 ] He carved many scriptural woodblocks and statues of buddhas and bodhisattvas, including the four Kadam deities, a liberating diagram, the Kuntik maṇḍala, and woodblocks of the Great Compassionate One (Avalokiteśvara). [ 12 ] (Historical documents also record that he carved the monastery’s name above the door in Mongolian, but this has yet to be found.) ESTABLISHING DRAGO MONASTERY'S PHILOSOPHICAL COLLEGE In Kardze Kushab Trungsar Lama Lobsang Puntsok’s dream, a samaya-breaking elemental spirit was on the verge of wreaking havoc by loosening an arrow at Drago Monastery. [ 13 ] The lama thought establishing a philosophical college would be beneficial in preventing this catastrophe. When Drago’s political rulers came before him, he described his dreams in minute detail. [Upon learning about the vision], the people of Drago requested him to come and establish the philosophical college. But Lama Lobsang Puntsok replied, “In the past, the Great Fifth [Dalai Lama] ordered Amdo Jamyang Shepa to establish philosophy colleges at thirteen monasteries in Hor. So, you should invite him.” [ 14 ] At first, a messenger was dispatched to Ladrang Tashikhyil to invite Amdo Jamyang Shepa, and slowly about a hundred laypeople and monastics of Drago made the trip. [ 15 ] Jamyang Shepa embarked on his journey to Drago after receiving the initial messenger. But, since it was not the right time for him to come, a fiercely powerful and massive river unlike anything seen before surged and flooded the road. They waited there for a while, but Jamyang Shepa came to realize that the timing was not quite right. So, before making his homeward journey, he sent a skilled swimmer with a letter that read, “Although this is not the right time for me to come to Drago, at some point, there will be a person named Jamyang who will establish a philosophical college at Drago Monastery.” [Many decades later,] Jamyang Shepa’s reincarnation Jamyang Surpa who lived at Sera Keutsang Hermitage eventually came to Kham and established Drago Monastery’s philosophical college for sūtra studies in the “All-Mighty,” Fire, Female-Ox year (1817) of the fourteenth sexagenary. [ 16 ] AN ACCOUNT OF DRAGO MONASTERY'S SUBLIME LAMAS Jetsun Lama Dampa Keutsang Lobsang Tenzin Yargye On the fifteenth day of the third month of the Wood, Sheep year in the village of Kharshul, Karze, the glorious and kind Lobsang Tenzin Yargye was born to Tsetan (father) and Atso (mother) .[ 17 ] He was ordained at the age of seven by the glorious and excellent Trungsar Dorjechang Losang Puntsok Tutob Gyatso. [ 18 ] Kushap Lodrö Puntsok came to recognize him as the reincarnation of Keutsang Lama Pönlop Jampa Mönlam. [ 19 ] When he went to Lhasa at the age of twelve, he studied the sūtra and tantra teachings as he relied upon many spiritual masters—namely, the omniscient protector, [the Eleventh Dalai Lama] Khedrup Gyatso. [ 20 ] He would later return to Kham and take responsibility for Drago Monastery’s teachings of scripture and realization all the while compassionately caring for his disciples. Lobsang Tenzin Yargye authored numerous texts, including The Essence of Tantra and Sūtra: Notes Taken During the Bestowal of The Fifty Verses on the Lama and Eight Serious Downfalls and Fourteen Root Downfalls ; The Harbor from which Bodhisattva Captains Board on the Ship That Traverses the Ocean of the Two Accumulations: How to Practice the Stages of the Path to Enlightenment conjointly with Mahāyāna Mind Training ; Stream of Faith: A Melodious Praise to Remember the Guru’s Kindness ; The Guide who Presents the Excellent Path of Great Bliss: Pith Instruction for the Yoga of Harnessing Amitābha combined with the Practice of Transference . In the perception of his disciples, he concluded his life by dissolving his rūpakāya while abiding in meditative equipoise within the dharmadhātu, the nature of bliss and emptiness. This sublime being’s reincarnation took birth twice in the village of Gangshab, but both ended up passing away shortly after. [ 21 ] Keutsang Choktrul Rinpoche, Tubten Palden Gelek Nyamgyal In the Water, Male-Tiger year of the fifteenth sexagenary cycle, Tubten Palden Gelek Nyamgyal was born in Shaposhi in eastern Minyak to Apo (father) and Tsering Drölma (mother). [ 22 ] Sigyab the great vajra-holder prophesied and recognized him as the reincarnation of the supreme Keutsang. [ 23 ] When he turned four on the sixteenth day of the eleventh month in the Wood, Snake year, Drago Monastery invited him to Sengdeng Hermitage Dechen Samten Ling and offered him the room called “Tashi Nyi'ö Khyilwa.” [ 24 ] At the age of eight, he was enthroned as Drago Monastery’s throne holder. He eventually traveled to Lhasa and studied all the teachings of sūtra and tantra. Being endowed with unimaginable qualities of erudition and discipline, he became as famed as the sun throughout China and Tibet. Dragkar Tulku Lobsang Palden Tenzin Nyendrak Lobsang Palden Tendzin Nyendrak was born in the fifteenth sexagenary cycle. [ 25 ] He became a great scholar who hoisted the precious victory banner of theory and practice into the sky. He accomplished this by bestowing the teachings of the fourth guide of this fortunate age (Buddha Śākyamuni) and the great Jamgön Lama Tsongkhapa’s teachings of scripture and realization. There are twelve volumes of his works that cover sūtra, tantra, and the general sciences. His main residence was Gethar, situated in Drago. [ 26 ] Tri Rinpoche Jampa Chödrak Tri Rinpoche Jampa Chödrak was born in the village of Walung. [ 27 ] He enrolled in Drago Monastery’s religious studies institution at an early age and studied Prajñāpāramitā and valid cognition, among other topics. He traveled to central Tibet at the age of fifteen and enrolled at Drepung Monastery, where he thoroughly studied the five major subjects .[ 28 ] There he earned a Geshe Lharam degree and became well known since he was the top of his class. [ 29 ] He went on to enroll in the glorious Gyumé Monastery and became an erudite authority in the study of secret mantra. [ 30 ] He later became the abbot of Gyumé and subsequently Jangtse Monastery’s throne holder. [ 31 ] In 1920, he became Ganden Monastery’s golden-throne holder and continued to conduct marvelous and unfailing spiritual activities of the three spheres. [ 32 ] After completing his role as the Ganden throne holder, he traveled to Nepal and renovated the Svayaṃbhūnāth Stūpa and consecrated it while he presented an immense number of offerings. This, in turn, made him extremely popular. [ 33 ] In the end, he passed into the dharmadhātu. His reincarnation, Jampa Chökyi Tendar, was born in Lhasa. [ 34 ] He enrolled in a monastery at a young age and learned the Tibetan scripts and studied Buddhist scripture. He later came to Drago Monastery and was the monastery’s throne holder. He accomplished magnificent benefit for sentient beings and the teaching by heading prayer festivals. Tulku Lobsang Palden Tenpe Gyaltsen Lobsang Palden Tenpe Gyaltsen, the reincarnation of Khenpo Lobsang Wangchuk, was born in the nomadic area of Norpa, Drago. [ 35 ] He traveled to Lhasa and enrolled in a monastery at the age of twenty, where he thoroughly and broadly studied the teachings of sūtra and tantra. Returning home, he greatly benefitted his disciples and the restoration of the teachings until he passed away at the age of sixty-one. Trehor Kyor Pönpo Rinpoche Tsewang Norbu Trehor Kyor Pönpo Rinpoche Tsewang Norbu, the renunciant lord of siddhas, was born in the village of Tropa, adjacent to the central district of Drago. [ 36 ] Ever since he was young, he was free from the behaviors of ordinary people, possessed a strong faith in the Three Jewels, and developed renunciation, bodhicitta, and a pristine view in his heart. He enrolled in Drago Monastery, where he studied reading while he was receiving teachings. Following his time at Drago Monastery, he went to Lhasa and enrolled at Drepung Monastery, where he thoroughly studied the main scriptures. There he earned a Geshe Lharam degree and became well known since he was the top of his class. Eventually he entered the glorious Gyumé Monastery and studied the great secret-mantra tradition. In the end, he renounced all worldly matters and entrusted his three doors of body, speech, and mind to a life of isolation, while he practiced all that he had learned. Consequently, he developed clear realization, leading people to revere him as the crown jewel of all scholars and siddhas and giving him the moniker of the “Second Lord Milarepa.” Kushab Jampa Rinpoche Kushab Jampa Rinpoche’s first reincarnation was Lama Lobsang of Hor .[ 37 ] He was the master of the twenty-five lamas of the local ruler. His residence was at Sangra Hermitage, where he practiced meditation, eventually passing away. [ 38 ] The second reincarnation, Geshe Gönpo Rinchen, was born in the nomadic area of Norwa, Drago .[ 39 ] He went to Lhasa in central Tibet, where he enrolled in a monastery and received a Geshe degree. After returning to his homeland, he gave numerous teachings, empowerments, and transmissions. In the end, he upheld the lifestyle of a renunciant yogin, practicing the essence of the scriptures. This resulted in the state of his accomplishment reaching a high level. The third reincarnation, Kushap Jampa Rinchen, was born in Tau, and Purchok Jampa Rinpoche recognized him as the reincarnation of the previous Jampa Rinpoche .[ 40 ] He was accepted by Kushab Khentrul and went to Lhasa at the age of fifteen to join Drepung Monastery. He took the title of “Tulku of the Great Assembly” and completed the studies of five major scriptural subjects. He escaped to India in 1950 and is still alive, emanating the light of scholastic qualities. [ 41 ] Furthermore, like an unbroken garland of jewels, there have been numerous learned and accomplished holders of the Tripiṭaka. Gehse Sönam Gönpo and Geshe Yeshe Norbu are two such examples of these excellent and great beings. They are emanations merely playing the role of a human. [ 42 ] All these excellent beings benefitted the precious Buddhist teachings and sentient beings in addition to developing Drago Monastery’s teachings that integrate the sūtra and mantra traditions. There are an unlimited number of biographies concerning these spectacular people but penning them here would be much too extensive. DRAGO MONASTERY'S FOUR GREAT HERMITAGES 1. In the past, Sanglung Palgyi Hermitage in the Sugye valley was the abode of numerous yogins known as the "four protectors and five communities.” [ 43 ] Take Repa Janchup Öser as an example of one of these yogins. [ 44 ] Lobsang Tsultrim Tenpe Gyaltsen and Lamdrak Dorjechang Kalsang Namgyal were among the many others who came to live there. [ 45 ] The hermitage holds a tradition of having twenty-five monks live at the hermitage. 2. Sungjuk Gawé Hermitage situated in Noru is the sacred place of accomplishment of Tongkor Lama Jamyang Gedun Gyatso and Amdo Lama Döndrub Miyi Senge. [ 46 ] It maintains a tradition of having twenty-five monks live at the hermitage. 3. Sengdeng Hermitage was the seat of Pangnang Kyabgön Shalupa. [ 47 ] Eventually Ala Geshe Yeshe Tsöndru lived there, followed by Kharsar Lama Sönam Tashi, Keutsang Lama Tenzin Yargye, and Keutsang Tubten Palden Gelek Nyamgyal, respectively. [ 48 ] Twenty-five monks live at the hermitage. 4. Sangra Hermitage was founded by the benevolent lord Tseten Norbu for twenty-five Hor lamas to teach, practice, and study secret mantra. [ 49 ] Geshe Gönpo Rinpoche later developed it even further. Then Khentrul Lobsang Palden Tenpe Gyaltsen and Yangtrul Jampa Tubten Rinchen lived there. There are twenty-five monks, five nuns, and around one hundred male and female lay disciples at the hermitage. RASOGANG On the sacred Rasogang (Goat Feeding Hill) there is a stūpa which the Dharma king Aśoka erected with his magic power. [ 50 ] This occurred when the Dharma king constructed millions of stūpas around the world. This stūpa contains relics of Buddha Kāśyapa. When Tibetan emperor Songtsen Gampo invited the Unshing Kongjo (Wencheng), a noble heiress of Tang emperor Taizong, to be his queen, she came with a divinely emanated goat hauling soil intended for the construction of the Rasa Trulnang Temple (Jokhang Temple). [ 51 ] Since they stayed in Drago and fed the goat on that hill, the place is called Rasogang. The intelligent minister (Gar Tongtsen) and the princes constructed a temple as well as a Jowo (Buddha) statue there. [ 52 ] This temple is said to be one of the Further Taming Temples. [ 53 ] A CURRENT ACCOUNT OF DRAGO MONASTERY During the time of the teaching’s revival [in the 1980s], Drago’s laypeople and monastics, such as Tritrul Jampa Chödak Tendar, Kushab Jampa Tubten Rinchen, Tripa Geshe Ador, Geshe Yeshe Döndrub, chant leader Jamyang, and the leader of the monks Gönpa Kyab, convened and consulted lamas and deities. [ 54 ] As a result, on the eighth day of the tenth month in Wood, Male-Rat year, 1984, of the sixteenth sexagenary cycle, they began to prepare the foundation of Drago Monastery’s temple. This took place at the foot of the auspicious and verdant Rasogang in the mountain range of Dokham Salmogang. The scale of the temple is eighty-eight pillar measurements. The Jokhang temple is the length of forty-nine pillars measurements. The two-story mantra temple is the length of twenty-nine pillars measurements. All in all, construction was completed in 1998. During the period of chaotic upheaval, some thoughtful monks and laypeople put their lives on the line and hid numerous, old sacred objects. These included religious paintings, such as the six ornaments and the two supreme ones painted by Namkha Gyen, and ritual instruments, such as the two types of cymbals. There are a lot of stories one could write concerning these sorts of events, but as it would be too much, I will not write them here. The education system of the monastery provides studies in sūtra and mantra. First, for the general subjects, monks began their education at the newly founded school for Buddhist studies by learning to read and write from basic grammar textbooks beginning with The Children’s Orthography to The Guide to Signs . Later, their instruction consists of [foundational curriculum of] The Classification of Mind , The Classification of Reasons , and The Collected Topics , after which they study the four subjects of Prajñāpāramitā. Pramāṇavārttika ( Commentary on Valid Cognition ) is studied during the winter term and does not have a separate class for it. Those who study the tantra tradition conduct the great approach [of the three-year retreat] and the five hundred thousand accumulations [that make one a] suitable [vessel]. Through all of this, the monastery extensively spreads the teachings of scripture and realization. Additionally, are many other cultural traditions cherished in this monastery, but they are not written here. COLOPHON This brief history is from Drago Monastery’s website .[ 55 ] NOTES [1] hor brag 'go dgon dga' ldan rab brtan rnam rgyal gling, BDRC G3844 [2] lha lung dpal gyi rdo rje, BDRC P6986 [3] ra ma sgang; The four pillars of the soil (sa'i ka bzhi) are the four mountains in the cardinal directions. According to Tibetan geomancy, if a land possesses these four mountains, this is considered to be a fortuitous sign. The four protectors of the land (sa'i srung bzhi) are (1) a whitish-gray tiger in the east, (2) a turquoise dragon in the south, (3) a red bird in the west, and (4) a multicolored turtle in the north. [4] lha ri mchod rdzong smug po; rdo rin bar zing [5] rdza chos rje ngag dbang phun tshogs; ta la'i bla ma 05 ngag dbang blo bzang rgya mtsho, 1617–1682, BDRC P37 [6] dpon drin rje tshe bstan nor bu [7] gnang ho la; ngo mtshar rmad byung bkod pa'i gtsug lag khang [8] rnam mkha' rgyan; dkro pa [9] slob dpon mtsho skyes rdo rje [10] The six ornaments are Nāgārjuna, Āryadeva, Asaṅga, Dignāga, Vasubhandu, and Dharmakīrti. The two supreme ones are Śākyaprahba and Guṇaprabha. [11] grag 'go'i brag rgyab [12] kun tigs dkyil 'khor [13] dkar mdzes sku zhabs 'khrungs sar bla ma blo bzang phun tshogs [ 14] 'jam dbyangs bzhad pa 01 'jam dbyangs bzhad pa'i rdo rje, 1648–1721/1722, BDRC P423 [15] bla brang bkra shis 'khyil, BDRC G162 [16] The text does not specify if this is the east or west Keutsang Hermitage. se ra ke'u tshang ri khrod, BDRC G2509 and BDRC G2511 [17] ke'u tsang blo bzang bstan 'dzin yar gyas; mkar mdzes mkhar shul; tshe brtan; a mtsho [18] 'khrungs sar rdo rje 'chang blo bzang phun tshogs mthu stobs rgya mtsho [19] sku zhabs blo gros phun tshogs; ke'u tshang bla ma dpon slob byams pa smon lam [20] ta la'i bla ma 11 mkhas grub rgya mtsho, 1838–1855, BDRC P255 [21] sgang zhabs [22] thub bstan dpal ldan dge legs rnam rgyal; mi nyag sha pho gshis; a po; tshe ring sgrol ma [23] gzigs rgyab rdo rje 'chang chen po [24] seng ldeng ri khrod bde chen bsam gtan gling; bkra shis nyi 'od 'khyil ba [25] brag dkar sprul pa'i sku blo bzang dpal ldan bstan 'dzin snyan grags [26] brag 'go'i dge thar [27] dga' ldan khri pa 90 byams pa chos grags, 1876–1937, BDRC P5355 ; wa lung [28] 'bras spungs dgon, BDRC G108 ; The five major subjects are Pramāṇavārttika, Pāramitā, Madhyamaka, Vinaya, and Abhidharmakośa. [29] In the Geluk tradition, there are five different kinds of Geshe degrees, of which the Geshe Lharampa is the highest. This degree can be equated to a Ph.D. with honors. [30] rgyu smad grwa tshang, BDRC G394 [31] dga' ldan byang rtse grwa tshang, BDRC G77 [32] dga' ldan dgon, BDRC G337 ; The three spheres ('khor gsum) can be described in many ways as it has a plethora of applications, but here it means body, speech, and mind. [33] 'phags pa shing kun, BDRC G3156 [34] byams pa chos kyi bstan dar [35] sprul sku blo bzang dpal ldan bstan pa'i rgyal mtshan; mkhan po blo bzang dbang phyug; brag 'go'i nor pa [36] tre hor skyor dpon tshe dbang nor bu, 1899–1967, BDRC P9616 ; dkro pa [37] sku zhabs byams pa rin po che; hor gyi bla ma blo bzang [38] bzang ra ri khrod [39] dge bshes mgon po rin chen; brag 'go'i nor ba [40] sku zhabs byams pa thub bsten rin chen; rta'u rdzong, BDRC G2298 ; phur cog byams pa rin po che [41] This brief history of the monastery was written before Kushab Jampa Rinpoche passed away in 2013 at Drepung Monastery in southern India. [42] The Tripiṭaka, or the “three baskets,” is the threefold collection of Buddhist scriptures comprised of Sūtra, Abhidharma, and Vinaya. [43] bzang lung dpal gyi ri khrod; su rgyas [44] ras pa byang chub 'od zer [45] blo bzang tshul khrims bstan pa'i rgyal mtshan; lam brag rdo rje 'chang skal bzang rnam rgyal [46 ] nor 'u khug gi zung 'jug dga ba'i ri khrod; stong skor bla ma 'jam dbyangs dge 'dun rgya mtsho; a mdo bla ma don grub mi yi seng+ge [47] spang nang skyabs mgon zha lu [48] a bla dge bshes ye shes brtson 'grus; mkhar sar bla ma bsod nams bkra shis [49] bzang rwa ri khrod [50] ra gso sgang [51] chos rgyal srong bstan sgam po, 617–650, BDRC P8067 ; Wencheng Kongjo was possibly the daughter of Emperor Taizong’s (598–649) cousin Li Daozong. For further information, see: https://treasuryoflives.org/biographies/view/Wencheng-Kongjo/10811 ; ra sa 'phrul snang, BDRC G4261 [52] mgar stong bstan, BDRC P8117 [53] yang 'dul gyi gtsug lag khang [54] khri pa dge bshe a rdor; dge bshes ye shes don 'grub; dbu mdzad 'jam dbyangs; grwa tshang dbu mdzad dgon pa skyabs [55] This website is currently not active due to the Chinese government's internet censorship. Published: February 2022 Edited: November 2023 BIBLIOGRAPHY brag 'go dgon. 2021. brag 'go dgon gyi lo rgyus mdor . London: Tib Shelf I002. Abstract Drago Monastery ( brag 'go dgon ) has its historical roots during the Tibetan empire. History says that Drogo Monastery used to be a Nyingma monastery until it was converted to the Geluk tradition in the 17th century. Currently, it has around 400 to 500 monks, including the monks who are studying at Drepung Losaling Monastery in south India. Being the largest monastery in Drago, it plays a pivotal role in preserving Tibetan culture and spreading the Buddhist teachings. TIB SHELF I002 DOWNLOAD TRANSLATION GO TO TRANSLATION LISTEN TO AUDIO 00:00 / 18:07 TRADITION Geluk FOUNDED c. 920 REGION Kardze, Kham ASSOCIATED PEOPLE Lhalung Palgyi Dorje Tri Rinpoche Jampa Chödrak Trehor Kyor Pönpo Rinpoche Tsewang Norbu Wencheng Kongjo Not found on BDRC: Dza Chöje Ngawang Puntsok Tseten Norbu Namkha Gyen Kardze Kushab Trungsar Lama Lobsang Puntsok Keutsang Lobsang Tenzin Yargye Keutsang Choktrul Rinpoche, Tubten Palden Gelek Nyamgyal Dragkar Tulku Lobsang Palden Tenzin Nyendrak Jampa Chökyi Tendar Tulku Lobsang Palden Tenpe Gyaltsen Kushab Jampa Rinpoche Hor Lama Lobsang Geshe Gönpo Rinchen Kushap Jampa Rinchen Gehse Sönam Gönpo Geshe Yeshe Norbu Repa Janchup Öser Lobsang Tsultrim Tenpe Gyaltsen Lamdrak Dorjechang Kalsang Namgyal Tongkor Lama Jamyang Gedun Gyatso Amdo Lama Döndrub Miyi Senge Pangnang Kyabgön Shalupa Ala Geshe Yeshe Tsöndru Kharsar Lama Sönam Tashi Tripa Geshe Ador Geshe Yeshe Döndrub Umdze Jamyang Dratsang Umdze Gönpa Kyab TRANSLATOR Tib Shelf INSTITUTION Drago Monastery INCARNATION LINES Ke'utsang Dragkar Kushab Jampa Rinpoche AUTHOR Drago Monastery A Brief History of Drago Monastery VIEW ALL PUBLICATIONS NEXT PUBLICATION > < PREVIOUS PUBLICATION Home Publications Read Listen Watch People Information About Meet the Team Services Translators Terms of Use Privacy Policy Donate Subscribe to our newsletter Support Tib Shelf's ongoing work & Subscribe Today! 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Teacher The Seventh Dzogchen Tenzin Lungtok Nyima Rinpoche b. 1974– BDRC P8686 PHOTO CREDIT Tenzin Lungtok Nyima Rinpoche was born in 1974 in the Baré region of lower Amdo. At the age of seven, he chose to pursue monastic life at Dzogchen Monastery. There, he was raised and educated by senior figures, including his uncle Dzogchen Pema Kalzang Rinpoche. At fifteen, he joined Śrī Siṃha College, where he formally took ordination and began advanced studies in Tibetan grammar, poetry, and Buddhism. By eighteen, he was appointed assistant professor. At twenty-seven, he took full ordination and was formally recognized with the title of Khenpo, becoming an established academic and educator within the Nyingma tradition. Tenzin Lungtok Nyima was formally recognized as the Seventh Dzogchen Rinpoche by Dogden Lama, who publicly acknowledged him during a teaching session by placing a ceremonial scarf around his neck and presenting a handwritten prophecy. Biography Mura Pema Dechen Zangpo Tenzin Lungtok Nyima A genealogy of the Mura lineage through its incarnations, focusing on the Third Mura Pema Dechen's life, teachings, and key relationships, penned by Tenzin Lungtok Nyima. Read Biography Biography Of Getse Lama Jigme Ngotsar Gyatso Tenzin Lungtok Nyima Getse Lama Jigme Ngotsar Gyatso, disciple of Jigme Lingpa and founder of Kilung Monastery, spread the Longchen Nyingtik teachings while establishing his own enduring legacy. Read Translated Works Mentioned In Menu Close Home Publications Read Listen Watch People Information About Meet the Team Services Translators Terms of Use Privacy Policy Donate SUBSCRIBE Publications Watch People Listen

Nun, Physician & Treasure Revealer Do Dasal Wangmo 1928–2018 BDRC P1GS60402 TREASURY OF LIVES LOTSAWA HOUSE PHOTO CREDIT Nun, physician, and treasure revealer, Do Dasal Wangmo was a well-respected female master in eastern Tibet. She was the great-granddaughter of Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje and the last member of his family line. Her religious affinity and familial connections allowed her to follow a contemplative, studious, and altruistic lifestyle as a monastic physician and professor of Tibetan medicine. Although briefly imprisoned and under difficult circumstances for fourteen years, she was later allowed to practice medicine and was appointed to government-funded medical schools in Kham. Biography Abridged Biographies: The Lineage of the Do Family Do Dasal Wangmo Chronicling Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje's lineage, with special attention to his half-sister Losal Drölma - an honored teacher whose story emerges from the margins of temple narratives. Read Translated Works Biography The Biography of Gyalse Rigpe Raltri Tubten Chödar Son of Do Khyentse and recognized as Jigme Lingpa's son's reincarnation, Rigpe Raltri became a revered Minyak guru, transmitting the Yangsang Khandro Tugtik treasures to his own son. Read Timetable A Chronological Timetable: Lives of Do Khyentse’s Familial Line Tubten Chödar A chronology of birth and death dates mapping Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje's family lineage through its key figures and connections. Read Biography A Brief Biography of Jetsunma Do Dasal Wangmo Tsangpo A renowned female master in eastern Tibet, Do Dasal Wangmo - Do Khyentse's great-granddaughter - served as nun, physician, and treasure revealer, later teaching medicine despite political hardship. Read Mentioned In Menu Close Home Publications Read Listen Watch People Information About Meet the Team Services Translators Terms of Use Privacy Policy Donate SUBSCRIBE Publications Watch People Listen