The five traditions

Below is a slightly edited excerpt from Khentrul Rinpoche's book, Paths of Pure Vision: the Histories, Views and Practices of Tibet's Living Spiritual Traditions, translated by Michael Sheehy.

This book attempts to resolve confusion about the different schools and give people the opportunity to see the five Tibetan Buddhist traditions equally. His Holiness the Dalai Lama commented that it was a precious and unique book, the first to give a concise history of all five Tibetan Buddhist traditions.

A brief comparative history

Master Padmasambhava

Sakya founders

Gampopa

Dolpopa

Tsongkhapa

Even though there are numerous disagreements regarding when the Buddha passed away, in India, Burma, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Cambodia and other countries that generally follow the system of the Sthavira School or the School of the Elders, this year (2005) makes it 2,549 years since the Buddha's nirvana. In the year 433 of the Buddhist calendar, 977 years after the Buddha's nirvana, during the seventh century C.E., Buddhism was introduced into Tibet by the Dharma King Songtsen Gampo. By the late eighth and early ninth centuries, the Abbot Shantarakshita, the Master Padmasambhava, and the Dharma King Trisong Deutsen had met, and Buddhism had begun to flourish in Tibet. During this time, one-hundred and eight scholars from India and one-hundred and eight translators of the Tibetan language gathered at the great Temple of Samye.

This time is known as the early flourishing of the Buddha's teachings. At this time of early flourishing, King Trisong Deutsun and the twenty-five disciples of Padmasambhava, eighty accomplished adepts, one-hundred and eight great meditators from Chuwori, thirty accomplished adepts from Sheldrak, twenty-five realized masters from Yangdzong Phuk, and many other awareness-holders and adepts were present.

Beginning in the year 901, a seventy year persecution of Buddhism in Tibet began, during which the Buddhist communities were banished, and all the tantras of the early translation period were stored away in safe places by tantric practitioners, allowing these texts to remain uncorrupted. In 973, there was a revival of Buddhism. Ever since this revival and later flourishing, the translations of the Buddha's teachings have been designated as those of the new translations.

The Sakya, Kagyu, Jonang, and Kadam all arose during this new translation period. Later, the instructions of the Kadam tradition were assimilated into a more general teaching tradition. More specifically, the oral Kadam tradition was expanded and reinterpreted by Tsongkhapa to become known as the New Kadam or Geluk tradition. In addition to these major traditions, there were also many minor oral instruction lineages such as the Shalupa, Orgyenpa, Wodongpa, and so forth. Although some of the philosophical influences of these traditions have survived, their great enlightened activities never spread. Today in Tibet, the Sakya, Kagyu, Jonang, and Geluk are the four best known surviving traditions of this later translation period.

Sakya Monastery was established by Kontan Konchok Gyalpo in 1073, making it the oldest of these four traditions. Not long after this, the forefather of the Kagyu tradition, Lotsawa Marpa Lodro was born. During his lifetime, Marpa traveled to India in order to bring back essential guidance instructions of the Buddha to Tibet. Although this accomplishment helped to increase Buddhism in Tibet, it did not firmly establish the Kagyu tradition. It was not until Marpa entrusted the Buddha's essential instructions to his disciple Milarepa, who then transmitted these instructions to Gampopa, that the Kagyu tradition was established. Gampopa founded Gampo Mountain Monastic Center in the year 1121, commencing the development of the Kagyu tradition as we know it today.

The Jonang tradition was established almost one century after the Kagyu tradition. Even though many of the sutras and tantras that elucidate Buddhanature were translated from Sanskrit into Tibetan during the time of the Abbot Shantarakshita, Master Padmasambhava, and Dharma King Trisong Deutsen, a tradition of extensively explaining zhentong Madhyamaka did not develop from these early translations. Later, Zi Lotsawa Gaway Dorje initiated the system of sutra zhentong, and then Dro Lotsawa Sherab Drakpa initiated the system of tantra zhentong in Tibet. The Jonang tradition firmly took root in the year 1292 when Kunpang Thugje Tsondru established the monastic seat in Jomonang. From this time onwards, the teachings of the Jonang have continued. In the fourteenth century, the great master of the Jonang, Kunkhyen Dolpopa Sherab Gyaltsen unified the sutra and tantra teachings, causing the view and practices of the Great Madyamaka zhentong to spread far and wide, like the tremendous roar of a lion.

In 1407, more than one hundred years after the Jonang tradition initiated, the great Jetsun Tsongkhapa established Ganden Monastery in the highlands of Central Tibet, commencing the Gelug tradition.