Nāropā or
Naropa (
PrakritPrakrit is the name for a group of Middle Indic, Indo-Aryan languages, derived from Classical Sanskrit and other Old Indic dialects. The word itself has a flexible definition, being defined sometimes as, "original, natural, artless, normal, ordinary, usual", or "vernacular", in contrast to the...
; , 956-1041) was an
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
n
BuddhistBuddhism, as traditionally conceived, is a path of salvation attained through insight into the ultimate nature of reality. It encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha...
yogiA yogi is a term for a male practitioner of various forms of spiritual practice. In contemporary English yogin is an alternative rendering for the word yogi....
,
mysticMysticism is the pursuit of communion with, identity with, or conscious awareness of an ultimate reality, divinity, spiritual truth, or God through direct experience, intuition, instinct or insight. Mysticism usually centers on a practice or practices intended to nurture those experiences or...
and
monkA monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, whilst always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
. He was the disciple of
TilopaTilopa was born in either Chativavo , Bengal or Jagora, Bengal. He was a tantric practitioner and mahasiddha...
and brother, or some sources say partner and pupil, of Niguma . Naropa was the main teacher of
MarpaMarpa may refer to:* Marpa Lotsawa, Tibetan Buddhist teacher credited with the transmission of many Buddhist teachings to Tibet from India.* MARPA, Modification and Replacement Parts Association.* MARPA, Mini Automatic Radar Plotting Aid....
, the founder of the
KagyuThe Kagyu, Kagyupa, or Kagyud school, also known as the "Oral Lineage" or Whispered Transmission school, is today one of four main schools of Himalayan or Tibetan Buddhism, the other three being the Nyingma , Sakya , and Gelug...
school of
Tibetan BuddhismTibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India...
. As an Indian
tantricVajrayāna Buddhism is also known as Tantric Buddhism, Tantrayāna, Mantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Esoteric Buddhism and the Diamond Vehicle. The period of Vajrayana Buddhism has been classified as the fifth or final period of Indian Buddhism...
Buddhist, he has a place in
VajrayanaVajrayāna Buddhism is also known as Tantric Buddhism, Tantrayāna, Mantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Esoteric Buddhism and the Diamond Vehicle. The period of Vajrayana Buddhism has been classified as the fifth or final period of Indian Buddhism...
Buddhism as a whole, but he is particularly renowned in Tibetan Buddhism via his name being attached to the
six yogas of NaropaThe Six Yogas of Nāropa or Naro Choe Druk , also called Naro's Six Doctrines , describe a set of advanced Tibetan Buddhist tantric practice and meditation sadhana compiled in and around the time of the Indian monk and mystic...
, a suite of advanced yogic practices for the attainment of skills relevant to the
completion stageThe completion stage is one of the two stages of Anuttarayoga Tantra. Completion stage may also be translated as perfection stage or fulfillment mode...
of anuttarayogatantra.
Naropa was born a high status
BrahminBrahmins have historically been the class of educators, scholars and preachers in Hinduism. They are considered as belonging to the "forward castes" of the four varnas of Hinduism....
but from an early age showed an independent streak, hoping to follow a career of study and meditation.
Nāropā or
Naropa (
PrakritPrakrit is the name for a group of Middle Indic, Indo-Aryan languages, derived from Classical Sanskrit and other Old Indic dialects. The word itself has a flexible definition, being defined sometimes as, "original, natural, artless, normal, ordinary, usual", or "vernacular", in contrast to the...
; , 956-1041) was an
IndiaIndia, officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country, and the most populous democracy in the world. Bounded by the Indian Ocean on the south, the Arabian Sea on the west, and the Bay of Bengal...
n
BuddhistBuddhism, as traditionally conceived, is a path of salvation attained through insight into the ultimate nature of reality. It encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha...
yogiA yogi is a term for a male practitioner of various forms of spiritual practice. In contemporary English yogin is an alternative rendering for the word yogi....
,
mysticMysticism is the pursuit of communion with, identity with, or conscious awareness of an ultimate reality, divinity, spiritual truth, or God through direct experience, intuition, instinct or insight. Mysticism usually centers on a practice or practices intended to nurture those experiences or...
and
monkA monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, whilst always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
. He was the disciple of
TilopaTilopa was born in either Chativavo , Bengal or Jagora, Bengal. He was a tantric practitioner and mahasiddha...
and brother, or some sources say partner and pupil, of Niguma . Naropa was the main teacher of
MarpaMarpa may refer to:* Marpa Lotsawa, Tibetan Buddhist teacher credited with the transmission of many Buddhist teachings to Tibet from India.* MARPA, Modification and Replacement Parts Association.* MARPA, Mini Automatic Radar Plotting Aid....
, the founder of the
KagyuThe Kagyu, Kagyupa, or Kagyud school, also known as the "Oral Lineage" or Whispered Transmission school, is today one of four main schools of Himalayan or Tibetan Buddhism, the other three being the Nyingma , Sakya , and Gelug...
school of
Tibetan BuddhismTibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India...
. As an Indian
tantricVajrayāna Buddhism is also known as Tantric Buddhism, Tantrayāna, Mantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Esoteric Buddhism and the Diamond Vehicle. The period of Vajrayana Buddhism has been classified as the fifth or final period of Indian Buddhism...
Buddhist, he has a place in
VajrayanaVajrayāna Buddhism is also known as Tantric Buddhism, Tantrayāna, Mantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Esoteric Buddhism and the Diamond Vehicle. The period of Vajrayana Buddhism has been classified as the fifth or final period of Indian Buddhism...
Buddhism as a whole, but he is particularly renowned in Tibetan Buddhism via his name being attached to the
six yogas of NaropaThe Six Yogas of Nāropa or Naro Choe Druk , also called Naro's Six Doctrines , describe a set of advanced Tibetan Buddhist tantric practice and meditation sadhana compiled in and around the time of the Indian monk and mystic...
, a suite of advanced yogic practices for the attainment of skills relevant to the
completion stageThe completion stage is one of the two stages of Anuttarayoga Tantra. Completion stage may also be translated as perfection stage or fulfillment mode...
of anuttarayogatantra.
Biography
Naropa was born a high status
BrahminBrahmins have historically been the class of educators, scholars and preachers in Hinduism. They are considered as belonging to the "forward castes" of the four varnas of Hinduism....
but from an early age showed an independent streak, hoping to follow a career of study and meditation. Succumbing to his parents wishes, he agreed to an arranged marriage with a young brahmin girl. After 8 years they both agreed to dissolve their marriage and become ordained. At the age of 28 Naropa entered the famous Buddhist University at
NalandaNālandā is the name of an ancient university in Bihar, India.The site of Nalanda is located in the Indian state of Bihar, about 55 miles south east of Patna, and was a Buddhist center of learning from 427 to 1197 CE...
where he studied both
SutraSūtra , literally means a thread or line that holds things together, and more metaphorically refers to an aphorism , or a collection of such aphorisms in the form of a manual...
and
TantraTantra , or tantram is a religious philosophy according to which Shakti is usually the main deity worshipped, and the universe is regarded as the divine play of Shakti and Shiva...
. He gained the reputation as a great scholar and faultless debater, essential at that time as the tradition of debate was such that the loser automatically became a student of the winner. He eventually gained the title "Gatekeeper of the North"; engaged in many debates, taught and won many students.
According to his Tibetan namthar, or spiritual biography, one day whilst he was studying a
dakiniA dakini is a tantric deity described as a female embodiment of enlightened energy. In the Tibetan language, dakini is rendered Khandroma which means 'she who traverses the sky' or 'she who moves in space'...
appeared to Naropa and asked if he understood the words of the dharma, Buddha's teachings. He replied that he did and when she seemed happy with his response, he added that he also understood their meaning. At this point the dakini burst into tears, stating that he was a great scholar, but also a liar, as the only one who understood the teachings was her brother
TilopaTilopa was born in either Chativavo , Bengal or Jagora, Bengal. He was a tantric practitioner and mahasiddha...
. On hearing the name Tilopa, he experienced an intense feeling of devotion, and Naropa realised he needed to find the teacher in order to achieve full realization. He abandoned his studies and position at the university and set out to find Tilopa. Naropa then underwent what is known as the twelve minor hardships in his quest to find his teacher, all the hardships being hidden teachings on his path to enlightenment. When he finally met Tilopa, he was given the four complete transmission lineages which he then began to practice. While studying and meditating with Tilopa, Naropa had to undergo a further twelve major hardships, trainings to overcome all the obstacles on his path, culminating in his full realization of
MahāmudrāMahamudra literally means 'great seal' or 'great symbol'. Thubten Yeshe explains the use of the term: "Mahamudra means absolute seal, totality, unchangeability. Sealing something implies that you cannot destroy it...
. Naropa spent a total of twelve years with Tilopa.
Later in his life Naropa stayed in Phullahari, where he died aged 85. One of the few reliable historical accounts of him comes from a Tibetan translator named Ngatso Lotsawa, who made an effort to visit Naropa at the monastery of Phullahari while waiting to visit with
AtishaAtiśa Dipankara Shrijnana was a Buddhist teacher from the Pala Empire who, along with Konchog Gyalpo and Marpa, was one of the major figures in the establishment of the Sarma lineages in Tibet after the repression of Buddhism by King Langdarma .-Early life:Atisha is most commonly said to have...
at Vikramashila. He records:
Legacy
Naropa is remembered for his trust and devotion to his teacher, which according to his namthar enabled him to attain enlightenment in one lifetime.
He is also remembered as part of the 'Golden Garland', meaning a
lineageA lineage in Buddhism is a record of teachers and their disciples, or students. Several branches of Buddhism, including Zen and Tibetan Buddhism maintain records of their historical teachers who, according to the traditional history of that school, have passed the Dharma, or Buddhist teachings,...
holder of the
Tibetan BuddhistTibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India...
KagyuThe Kagyu, Kagyupa, or Kagyud school, also known as the "Oral Lineage" or Whispered Transmission school, is today one of four main schools of Himalayan or Tibetan Buddhism, the other three being the Nyingma , Sakya , and Gelug...
school, and was considered an accomplished scholar. A great
meditatorMeditation is used here as a broad term for practices done by a sole practitioner without much, if any, external aide, often for the purpose of self-transformation...
, Naropa is best known for having enumerated and developed the
six yogas of NaropaThe Six Yogas of Nāropa or Naro Choe Druk , also called Naro's Six Doctrines , describe a set of advanced Tibetan Buddhist tantric practice and meditation sadhana compiled in and around the time of the Indian monk and mystic...
. These practices were designed to help achieve a more rapid attainment of
enlightenmentIn sramanic thought, Nirvana is the state of being free from suffering. It is an important concept in Buddhism and Jainism....
. Many subsequent Kagyus
KarmapaThe Karmapa is the head of the Karma Kagyu, the largest sub-school of the Kagyupa , itself one of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism....
s have been particularly adept at one or more of these six yogic practices, which in
VajrayanaVajrayāna Buddhism is also known as Tantric Buddhism, Tantrayāna, Mantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Esoteric Buddhism and the Diamond Vehicle. The period of Vajrayana Buddhism has been classified as the fifth or final period of Indian Buddhism...
tradition were given by the Buddha, and have been passed on through an unbroken lineage via
TilopaTilopa was born in either Chativavo , Bengal or Jagora, Bengal. He was a tantric practitioner and mahasiddha...
to Naropa,
MarpaMarpa may refer to:* Marpa Lotsawa, Tibetan Buddhist teacher credited with the transmission of many Buddhist teachings to Tibet from India.* MARPA, Modification and Replacement Parts Association.* MARPA, Mini Automatic Radar Plotting Aid....
and
MilarepaJetsun Milarepa , is generally considered one of Tibet's most famous yogis and poets, a student of Marpa Lotsawa, and a major figure in the history of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism....
, and up to the present day.
Naropa is considered one of the eighty-four
mahasiddhaMahasiddha is a term for someone who embodies and cultivates siddhi of perfection...
s, the 'saints' of tantric Buddhism. The
Naropa UniversityNaropa University is a private American liberal arts university in Boulder, Colorado. Founded in 1974 by Tibetan Buddhist teacher Chögyam Trungpa, it is named for the eleventh-century Indian Buddhist sage Naropa, an abbot of Nalanda....
in
ColoradoColorado is a U.S. state located in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States of America. It may also be considered to be part of the Western and Southwestern regions of the United States. Colorado entered statehood in 1876 and was nicknamed the “Centennial State”...
, U.S.A. was named in his honour.
See also
- six yogas of Naropa
The Six Yogas of Nāropa or Naro Choe Druk , also called Naro's Six Doctrines , describe a set of advanced Tibetan Buddhist tantric practice and meditation sadhana compiled in and around the time of the Indian monk and mystic...
- six yogas of Niguma
- Tilopa
Tilopa was born in either Chativavo , Bengal or Jagora, Bengal. He was a tantric practitioner and mahasiddha...
- Mahasiddha
Mahasiddha is a term for someone who embodies and cultivates siddhi of perfection...
- Marpa
Marpa may refer to:* Marpa Lotsawa, Tibetan Buddhist teacher credited with the transmission of many Buddhist teachings to Tibet from India.* MARPA, Modification and Replacement Parts Association.* MARPA, Mini Automatic Radar Plotting Aid....
- Kagyu
The Kagyu, Kagyupa, or Kagyud school, also known as the "Oral Lineage" or Whispered Transmission school, is today one of four main schools of Himalayan or Tibetan Buddhism, the other three being the Nyingma , Sakya , and Gelug...
Further reading
- The Life and Teaching of Naropa by Herbert V Gunther. Shambhala Publications
Shambhala Publications is an independent publishing company based in Boston, Massachusetts. According to the company, it specializes in "books that present creative and conscious ways of transforming the individual, the society, and the planet". Many of its books deal with Buddhism or related topics...
1999 Massachusetts. ISBN 1-56957-110-4
- The Life of Marpa the Translator, Seeing Accomplishes All. Tsang Nyon Heruka Translated by the Nalanda Translation Committee. Shambhala Publications 1995 Boston. ISBN 1-57062-087-3 (pbk.)
- The Life Story of Naropa by Kenpo Chodrak Rinpoche. Published in Kagyu Life International No's 3 & 4,1995 San Francisco.
- The Golden Kagyu Garland, A History of the Kagyu Lineage, adapted by Bruce Tarver. Published in Buddhism Today Issue 15, 2005
- 2nd Dalai Lama. Tantric Yogas of Sister Niguma, Snow Lion Publications, 1st ed. U. edition (May 1985), ISBN 0937938289 (10), ISBN 978-0937938287 (13)