Sakya sect became less central as a newer, reform school grew, the Gelukpa, System of Virtue. This was the first eclectic school to draw its roots from Tibet, not India. One of the Gelukpa leaders, Sonam Gyatso (1543–1588) visited the Mongol chief Altan Khan. Although all priests in Tibet were called lamas, Altan conferred on Sonam Gyatso the title Dalai Lama, which meant “Ocean of Wisdom.” Altan Khan decided to retroactively make Sonam Gyatso’s two predecessors the first and second Dalai Lamas, and Sonam Gyatso was to be the third. The authority for this title was conferred by the Mongols, but eventually the Dalai Lama would become the sole leader of the country without any outside authority to authenticate the title.
The fifth Dalai Lama, Ngawang Losang Gyatso (1617-1682), was a talented, dynamic individual who had a profound influence on Tibet and Tibetan Buddhism. He had the rare ability of being competent as both statesman and religious teacher. He united Tibet politically into one country and spiritually under the Gelukpa sect. Although he maintained the priest-patron relationship with the Mongols, he gradually shifted the source of the Dalai Lama’s power from the Mongols to the Tibetan patron-saint Avalokitesvara. In this way, the Dalai Lamas came to be seen as incarnations of Avalokitesvara. He built a palace, the Potala, in Lhasa, where the Dalai Lamas of the future would live and rule, making Lhasa the spiritual and political capital of Tibet.
THE MANCHU INFLUENCE
In 1664, the Manchus conquered China and established the Ch’ing dynasty, which maintained control of China until 1911. Although the Manchus continued to be linked with Tibet, like the Mongols before them, the interactions were often vague and irregular. Tibet became more isolated from its neighbors. Although the Dalai Lama tradition continued, a truly strong leader did not come along until the thirteenth Dalai Lama.
The thirteenth Dalai Lama, Tupden Gyatso (1876-1933), was a competent, somewhat controversial leader who had a lasting influence on Tibet’s course as he carried it into the twentieth century. During the early years of Tupden Gyatso’s reign, the Manchu general Chao Erh-feng tried to take control of Tibet. Though he met with resistance from the people as he marched to Lhasa, the unarmed farmers could do little to stop him. The Dalai Lama, warned of the invasion, fled to India. When Chao finally arrived at the Tibetan capital to negotiate surrender, he found no Tibetan government to negotiate with! Chao’s quest for control was finally put to an end when the Manchu government fell to the Chinese Nationalists in 1911. Chao was executed by China’s new government, and the Dalai Lama returned to rule his country.
The thirteenth Dalai Lama’s experiences showed him that Tibet had become too isolated from the international community, militarily weak, and socially underdeveloped. He decided to alter Tibet’s direction. He created an army and encouraged young Tibetans to study in England as a way to introduce them to Western-style thinking. Both plans met with some opposition from the monastic establishment, but the wheel of modernization had begun to turn.
CONCLUSION
Tibet’s history shows how, despite great adversity through the ages, Tibetan Buddhism’s ancient wisdom has been a great source of strength. Carefully passed along from gum to student, these timeless insights inspire us today as they have inspired people in the past, proving that there is hope for the inner development of all humanity.
Padmasambhava in the form of Guru Drakpoche, Pictured embracing his female consort, Thangka, late 17th century, Tibet, The Newark Museum/Art Resource, N.Y.
CHAPTER 3
The Spokes of the Wheel: The Four Tibetan Sects
The notion that the whole universe until the totality of its phenomena forms one single whole in which even the smallest element has an effect upon the largest, because secret threads connect the smallest item until the eternal ground of the world, this is the proper foundation of all tantric philosophy.
—Walt Anderson
Indian Buddhism was eclectic when it was brought to Tibet. Students learned traditions from both Hinayana and Mahayana. They used all resources available, including sutras and tantras drawn from many different Indian Buddhist sects. As Tibetans integrated these learnings into their culture, they formed their own schools with a uniquely Tibetan flavor. Four major traditions arose in Tibet to guide people in Tibetan Buddhist practice: Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya, and Gelukpa.
NYINGMA SCHOOL
Nyingma was the first school and is often referred to as the Old School to set it apart from the other three, which are considered New Schools, based in newer Tibetan translations and interpretations. The founder of Nyingma was Padmasambhava, the first Buddhist to influence Tibet. He not only showed Tibetans how to practice Buddhism, but he also introduced tantric practices, which were his specialty.
Nyingma has nine sets of teachings, organized and guided by the practice of certain tantras: three common, three outer, and three inner. These teachings guide and help transform the conduct, beliefs, thoughts, and feelings of practitioners into higher consciousness. The first six tantras are similar to the other sects. The first three are HearerVehicle, Solitary RealizerVehicle, and Bodhisattva Vehicle. The three associated with outer tantras are action tantra, performance tantra, and yoga tantra. The three inner tantras are called Mahayoga, Anuyoga, and Atiyoga and help people realize the true nature of mind, cutting through appearances to reality. Sudden insight leads to enlightenment. The goal becomes the path, and the path is not reliant on images or visualizations.
Nyingmas clear their minds and focus attention on the present moment of experience without conceptualizing what the object of experiencing is. Distorted, inaccurate perceptions of phenomena transform to accurate perceptions of reality’s true nature, a union of luminosity and emptiness free from opposition and polarities without distinctions that could confuse or deceive. Nyingma teaching is designed to lead to the actualization of this awareness in everyday life.
Deity Yoga is an important part of the Nyingma school. Through Deity Yoga, practitioners can identify with and incorporate the best qualities of their guru and the many great Buddhas throughout time. The deities of this school are Samantabhadra, the primordial Buddha, and Vajradhara, the emanation of Samantabhadra.
SECRET DOCTRINES: TERMA
Nyingma utilizes terma, documents, artifacts, and images that had been hidden by their original teacher, Padmasambhava. The terma fill out and develop further the concepts and practices of Nyingma.
The terma were supposed to be found and revealed at appropriate times by disciples called tertons, gifted bodhisattvas who are believed to be emanations of Padmasambhava himself. Dakinis, female wisdom beings, help guide the tertons in finding these important writings and objects. Once the terma is discovered, the tertons transmit the teachings. According to tradition, terma were hidden throughout Tibet, with spells on them to prevent their being uncovered prematurely. Terma are continually being found and released by tertons, who, using secret keys to uncover and decode them, rediscover and reinterpret the doctrine in ways appropriate to the time and place. In this way, the Nyingma teachings continue to evolve and adapt so they can guide humanity regardless of present or future conditions and circumstances. Terma will be discovered and disseminated when they are needed.
SAKYA SCHOOL
Sakya descended from the Khon lineage, a people who claimed to be derived from celestial beings. The Khon were followers of the Indian yogin Virupa, who taught Drogmi Shakya Yeshe (992—1074). Drogmi Shakya Yeshe journeyed from Tibet to India to study and brought back to Tibet teachings from Virupa on the Kalachakra, the Path and Fruit, as well as the doctrines of other Indian masters. There is only one authoritative text for this
