Monlam Pavillion, Bodhgaya,
5 February 2025
His Holiness 17th Gyalwang Karmapa began by offering his greetings to the various Rinpoches and all of the other “nirmanakayas, tulkus, Khenpo Lodro Donyo Rinopoche as well as all the khenpos, masters, and spiritual friends. The source of Refuge, the monks and nuns of the Sangha, as well as all the faithful people who have come from all over the world. I would like to wish you all well.”
Today the topic of our teaching is to go through the life of Atisha. There are several different reasons for teaching his life story, so I thought I would go through them. Because if you don’t know the reasons why we need to teach Atisha’s life story, it’s not so good.
Reasons for Teaching Atisha’s Life Story
1) One reason for teaching his life story is discussed in Dromtönpa’s, The Praises of Atisha in Thirty Verses:
Great scholar, if you had not come to Tibet, There would be the teaching of the Buddha, But most would have been deluded about the profound meaning. So, I prostrate to you who taught well.
As this explains, before Atisha went to Tibet, there were many people who practiced the Secret Mantra improperly. Likewise, there were also people who didn’t know how to practice the Dharma of the three vehicles of the Sutra and Tantra without contradiction as one practice. There were many difficulties that had occurred, and so Atisha was invited to Tibet.
The teachings were reformed and he explained all of the main points of the Sutra and Dharma well. He also taught well the pith instructions. Because of this, there came to be many people in Tibet who were able to practice the Sutra and Tantra in union. They were also able to keep the three vows without contradiction. In this way, Atisha was very kind for the teachings in Tibet. This is one main point as to why we need to know his life story. 2) The second reason why we need to know Atisha’s life story is that normally when we think in terms of Buddhism, we think about: Refuge, we think about Bodhicitta, the teachings on Mind Training, the Four Points of Mind Training; we have all of the stages of the Path of the common vehicles. No matter which of these we are speaking about, there is not a single one of them that was not transmitted by Atisha. This is also a really important point. The beneficial influence of Atisha is extended not only to the Kadampa lineage, but also all of the other lineages: Sakya, Geluk, Kagyu and Nyingma. All of the traditions of Tibet are permeated by his influence. Therefore, this is another reason why it is important to know the life story of Atisha.
3) The third reason is a specific reason. Within the Gelukpa and the Kagyu lineages, there are the pith instructions of the Kadampa lineage that come down from Atisha as well as the Tantric teachings of Marpa. Both of these lineages practice these two teachings. In particular, the well-known specific practices of the Dakpo Kagyu school come specifically from Atisha. For example, when we speak about the preliminary practice we speak about revulsion and the wish for liberation. We also speak about bodhicitta, which also came from Atisha. Likewise, when we speak about the co-emergent yoga, this was a practice that came from Atisha. And when we think about the Four Yogas, or divide them into three, which is the twelve stages of the Four Yogas, these also were passed down through Atisha’s lineage. When one thinks about the origins of the Dakpo Kagyu, many of the teachings were passed down through Atisha. In this way, he was very kind in teaching Buddhism in Tibet, in general, and in particular for the Kagyu.
It is extremely important for us to know the life story of Atisha. The reason for this is that, as it is written in Lord Gampopa’s collected works, Naropa’s pith instructions are incredibly profound, however, if you are unable to join them and combine them with the stages of the path, from the Kadampa teachings, then it is not so beneficial. If this is written in Gampopa’s own works, for those of us who are his followers, we need to have this understanding. For a time, the pith instructions from the Kadampa lineage from Atisha were not emphasized by anyone, there were not many people who took much interest in them. So, they declined and deteriorated. Because of this, the problem that occurred was that practitioners were unable to establish solid preliminaries; a solid foundation for their Dharma practice. Therefore, I think that in the future it is really important for us to emphasize the Kadampa teachings and accomplish the practices of the Kadampa. For this reason, a few years ago, I had the thought that during the Kagyu Monlam we should have the tradition of teaching the profound Dharma during the pre-Monlam. Then during the Monlam itself, we should have teachings on the Kadampa instructions. This is the practice that we are continuing to follow. In the future, I think it is important that we should remember to do this. We should remind ourselves of this.
So, I have, in brief, explained why we should remember the life story of Atisha.
His Birthdate
When you speak about Atisha’s life story in actuality, the date of his birth was likely in 982 CE. The reason why we say this is because in the life story of Atisha by Dromtönpa, it is written: “The omniscient guru was born in the year of the Female Fire Tiger.” Dromtönpa’s namthar of Atisha was a primary source. In general, there are disagreements about the dates of Atisha’s birth as well as the dates of his passing into parinirvana, but this is the main source.
His Birthplace
Regarding his birthplace, he was born in the noble land of India; medieval India. Within medieval India there were the different regions of north, east, south, and west. In addition, there was the central region. All together, these were called the Five Regions of India. These terms are also frequently used in the accounts of Chinese translators, including Xuanzang, of their travels to India. Among these five regions, Atisha was born in the eastern region of India. In Dromtönpa’s, The Praises of Atisha in Thirty Verses, it says: “In the prosperous land of Bengal”.
This part of Bengal is not included in present day India, but is part of Bangladesh. It was in the eastern region of India, and now it is in the country of Bangladesh. In terms of the actual place he was born, according to Nagtso’s, Praise of Atisha in Eighty Verses, it says:
In the eastern region of Sahara, There is great city.
That is Vikramapura.
According to contemporary researchers, the Munshiganj district in Bangladesh, was known as Vikramapura in medieval times. In terms of the history of Bengal, from the tenth to the thirteenth century, Vikramapura was the capital of three dynasties: the Chandra, the Varmana, and the Sena. During the time period of these three dynasties, this capital was a hub of Buddhism in Eastern Asia. It was a very important place for Buddhism during that time.
His Family
The family that Atisha was born into was actually a royal family and was of the royal caste. It was likely the Pala dynasty. His father’s name was, Kalyanachandra and his mother’s name was, Prabhavati. His parents had three sons, Padmagarbha, Chandragarbha, and Śrīgarbha. Among them, Atisha, was probably the middle son, Chandragarbha. According to the contemporary histories of Bangladesh, Atisha’s father’s name was, Kalyanachandra. He was the third king of the Chandra dynasty in East Bengal. He reigned from 975-1000 CE. From Dromtönpa’s, The Praises of Atisha in Thirty Verses, it states: “His father’s venerable family was the line of kings of Zahor.”
So, Atisha was from a royal family, this is very clear. One particular thing to know here is, during the time of the Tibetan king Trisong Detsen, Śāntaraksita went to Tibet, about 200 years before Atisha’s birth. Śāntaraksita was also from eastern India. It is said that both he and Atisha were from the same family line. The reason for this is that within Dromtönpa’s Praise of Atisha it says, “The line in which the Bodhisattva Śāntaraksita was born…” When we look at this and think about the Indian masters who had the greatest influence on Tibet, there was Śāntaraksita who appeared in ancient Tibet and the great Master who came later, Lord Atisha. Both of them were similar having come from eastern India, but not only that, they also came from the same royal family line. This is something really special and there was, how should I say… a particular reason for this.
Childhood and Early Life
When he was a child, Atisha was known by the name Chandragarbha. From an early age he was very smart. He was also very respectful of his parents and served them obediently. Atisha was also extremely handsome and attractive so everyone who saw him was captivated by him. Because he was so physically attractive, the lamas who were free of desire treated him very nicely so what need is there to mention people who were still lustful and full of desire? He was so beautiful and lovely to see, so many people enjoyed seeing him. What Atisha said about this was, because he was so good looking, all the gurus were pleased by that. In any case, he was quite attractive and many people had faith in him. Whether lamas or ordinary people, everyone was kind and nice to him. Atisha himself said this many times.
Connection to Tara
Atisha also had a particular connection to Lady Tara. When he was very young, he had visions of Tara and she became his yidam deity. One time when he was very young, sleeping in his cradle in the palace, there was a loud cracking sound. When his parents went to look at what had made the sound there was a huge scorpion which had fallen onto Atisha’s body. But Atisha wasn’t at all scared, there was no sign of him being afraid of it at all. So, the scorpion gradually left. What this shows is that this was a sign. In order to be able to see his yidam deity, and in order to be able to practice naturally and authentically, he would have obstacles. The next day, there was another loud crackling and rumbling sound, and again, his mother and father were really afraid and wondered what had happened this time. When they went to look, his mother saw a blue utpala flower that had just bloomed. At that point, as Atisha later said, when his parents looked, they had seen a beautiful blue utpala flower, but he had seen Tara’s face. Even though this occurred when he was very young, from that time on, if he ever had any doubts, questions, or decisions he was unable to make, he would arrange offerings in front of a painting of Tara. He would make aspirations and supplicate her, and even if Tara didn’t actually say anything to him or teach him Dharma, the doubts or questions would be naturally resolved from within. What this shows is that between them there was a really special connection.
General Studies
Until the age of ten, Atisha studied medicine, crafts, writing, spelling, grammar and so forth and he became very well learned in these subjects. Then from the time he was ten until the age of twenty-one he studied non-Buddhist grammar and logic, as well as Buddhist grammar and logic. He studied them thoroughly. Because he was the son of a king, he had to study many different arts and areas of knowledge, and he became extremely well-versed. To give an example of the level he reached, in terms of logic and grammar, when he was fifteen years old, he studied the teachings on the Drop of Reasoning, one single time. He then engaged with a non-Buddhist scholar in debate and defeated the non-Buddhist scholar. This story was told by Geshe Drolungpa Chenpo.
At the time when Atisha went to Tibet, there weren’t any terms for pronunciation or grammar. On one occasion, Bangtön was reciting the long dharani of Avalokiteshvara, the long mantra. He would recite this mantra often and said he had received great blessings. Atisha said because of Bangtön’s mispronunciation of the mantra, there was no way he could get any blessings from the mantra. However, because he had such good intentions, he received blessings. These were the blessings of good intentions, but they were not blessings from the correct pronunciation of the mantra.
In any case, sometimes Atisha’s hand would hurt and he would call for Bangtön. He would say to him, “I have some pain in my hand so please bless my hand. You have good intentions and the good intentions will bring benefit.” So Bangtön would bless his hand.
Likewise, Atisha would say, “You don’t know anything about pronunciation.” So, when they recited mantras there were many mispronunciations. Not only did they mispronounce the mantras, when Atisha went to Tibet, there were not even words or terms for validity and logic. Therefore, if a non-Buddhist came to debate in Tibet, it would be impossible to counter their arguments. Atisha said, “You Tibetans would not be able to stand up to the logic of the non-Buddhists.” In terms of grammar and linguistics, when we think about logic and validity, he was very well-versed and there were many signs of this.
Study of Buddhism and Tantra
Not only did he study the common areas of knowledge, but he also studied the special Buddhist areas of knowledge. He studied the Buddhist philosophy greatly. Before he went forth, he studied many tantras and sutras, but particularly the tantras. When he was twenty-two, he went to a place called the Black Mountain Temple. While there, he met a lama named Rahulagupta. This lama had probably attained some siddhi, he had seen Hevajra and was given prophesies. From Rahulagupta, Atisha received the full tantric empowerments and was given the secret name, Jñānavajra. Not only did he follow Rahulagupta, he also studied with many other lamas. For instance, he also studied with Kamalarakṣita, a yogi of Yamantaka, who could transform beer into milk and levitated on his mat across the Ganges River. Atisha studied many Secret Mantra teachings from him.
There was also a guru named Avadhūtipa who was one of the important teachers of Atisha. Some people say, that he followed him for twelve years, Nagtso Lotsawa said it was nine years. Avadhūtipa primarily taught Atisha many teachings on the Middle Way. He was a Middle Way master but he also was a master of the Yogacara Middle Way. In the eastern regions of India there were many Yogacara Middle Way teachers. For this reason, it seems that Atisha himself held the Yogacara Middle Way view. Later when he went to Tibet, some students asked Atisha why he held the Yogacara Middle Way view. His response was, “I asked the very same question of my guru Avadhūtipa. What my guru said to me was, ‘It was through this Dharma that I was able to see the actual nature, so for that reason, you should also uphold this view.’ And this is why I uphold the Yogacara Middle Way view.” In any case, The Master Avadhūtipa was an incredible guru and Atisha spent many years with him. Normally, people, we often have ordinary conversations, like about the weather… but Atisha and Avadhūtipa never had an ordinary conversation. Sometimes Atisha would give a golden mandala and make an offering, he would request the guru to teach him the Dharma, but, Avadhūtipa wouldn’t teach. Other times when he didn’t even ask him or make an offering, he would teach the Dharma, even if it was during an extremely busy time. Once Atisha and his guru were walking on a very narrow bridge and all of the sudden Avadhūtipa turned around and said, “Son, until you are free of ego-clinging, you must refrain from actions that will ripen karmically”. His guru didn’t usually say much, but even if he said just a single sentence or word of Dharma, there was such an incredible power to each word. Every single word was able to produce true realization in his being.
The histories say that Atisha studied with many different gurus. Some say 150, in any case, over 100 gurus that he studied with. In particular, he followed many gurus who had achieved siddhis of tantric practice. He spent many years practicing yogic conduct, some people say that it was six years, others say it was three years. Atisha practiced yogic conduct as Avadhūtipa had taught him.
Another one of Atisha’s famous teachers was Shantipa, who, at that time, was a well-known teacher of the Mind Only school.
-At this point, there was a technical problem and His Holiness’ teaching, unfortunately, ended abruptly.
