Je Tsongkhapa

Tsongkhapa Lobsang dragpa ( Tib. kha pa blo bzang tsong grags pa, Tibetan: ཙོང་ཁ་པ, * 1357 in Tsongkha, † 1419 ) was a great reformer, from whose teaching presentation later gave rise to the Gelug school of Tibetan Buddhism.

The Gelug school is one of the traditions of the New Translation ( Sarma ) the spread to Tibet from the 11th century. At these schools, the new translation period in Tibet today include the Kagyu, Sakya and Gelug School, in contrast to the period of ancient translations from the 8th and 9th centuries, from which developed the Nyingma tradition.

Life

Tsongkhapa was born as the fourth of six sons of a family near the Kokonor lake in Tibet. Age of three he received from the 4th Karmapa, the lay ordination and seven years, he was ordained as a novice monk and given the name " Lobsang dragpa ". The full ordination ( gelong / Bhikkhu ) he received at age 21. He learned from more than 100 masters of all Tibetan Buddhist traditions and mastered the teachings of various schools, such as the Drigung Kagyu school. His main teacher in the Madhyamaka philosophy was the Sakya master Rendawa ( 1349-1412 ). He later received the three lines of transmission of the Kadam school - two of them from the Nyingma master Khenchen Lama Lhodrag namkha Gyeltshen (1326-1402) - and studied the most important Tantras with masters of different schools of thought.

The core of the transmissions of the Gelug lies in the Mahayana teachings of Atisha and of the practice of Sutra and Vajrayana. He summed up the Mahayana teachings of the great Indian Buddhist scholar Nagarjuna and Asanga together ( " Great Exposition of the step path " ) in his work Lamrim Chenmo. In the Vajrayana the union of the Tantras of Guhyasamaja, Chakrasambhava and Yamantaka is emphasized. In addition, Tsongkhapa, Atisha as also played a special role in the maintenance of the Kalachakra Tantra. Tsongkhapa consistently represented the ideals of the Kadam school and stressed the importance of Vinaya - rules out. He reformed in this way the monastic tradition in Tibet. For this reason, set the Gelug monastic discipline on celibacy and great value and are also known as " Reformed School".

It is said in Tibetan comments have Tsongkhapa had little confidence. He studied especially the comments of the great Indian pundits who are considered error free. It is also said that he had direct vision of the Bodhisattva Manjushri, with whom he discussed his understanding and experiences directly. The text of the three principal aspects of the path to have been dictated to him directly from Manjushri. His visions he tested again with Lama Umapa, of the Karma Kagyu school, who had a direct connection with visionary Manjushri. With Umapa and other close disciples went Tsongkhapa frequently in meditation retreats. From Tsongkhapa the word was coined: "When you by a teacher certain explanations or instructions given and sees that they do not meet the statements of the writings of the great Indian masters such as Nagarjuna, Asanga, or, one should rather dispense with the instructions of this teacher as the importance of large fonts give up. "

Most teachers Tsongkhapa were also his students and taught them and honored each other. So, for example, were Rendawa, Lama Lhodrag and Umapa both teachers and students Tsongkhapa.

Tsongkhapa's heritage

Tsongkhapa founded in 1409 Ganden Monastery near Lhasa. He left the world eighteen volumes of collected teachings that contain hundreds texts on all aspects of Buddhism and clarify some of the most difficult points of Sutra and Tantra.

Major works among these are:

• " The Great Exposition of the Stages of the Path " ( Tib: lam rim chen mo),
• " The Great Exposition of Tantras " ( Tib: sngags rim chen mo),
• "The Essence of the Notes on the Final Interpretative and teachings" ( Tib. nges legs penetrated bshad snying po)
• " Praise of Dependent existence " ( Tib: rten ' brel bstod pa)
• " The Great Exposition of the five stages of Guhyasamaja " ( Tib: gsang 'dus rim lnga gsal ​​sgron ) and
• " A golden wreath excellent explanations" ( Tib: legs gyi bshad gser phreng ba).

These writings are the primary source for the study in the Gelug tradition and still have the same authority as his time. They are considered as protection against false opinions in the Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism.

Je Tsongkhapa is also regarded as a holder of the mystical "magic same font of the Middle Gaden line."

Tsongkhapa had many disciples. The most outstanding among them were Ganden Thri Rinpoche Dharma Rinchen (1364-1431), Khedrub Geleg Pelsang (1385-1438) and Gyelwa Gendun Drup, the 1st Dalai Lama ( 1391-1474 ).

The practiced annually since 1409 Monlam Prayer Festival goes back to his initiative and is regarded as one of the " four great deeds " Tsongkhapa. The " four great deeds " are:

Works

• Tsongkhapa, Cornelia Krause ( translator's ): The center stepped path. Diamond - Verlag, 2006, ISBN 3-9810682-3-8