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{{Short description|Indian philosopher}}
{{Short description|Indian philosopher}}
{{redirect|Talika|the village in Iran|Talika, Iran}}
{{redirect|Talika|the village in Iran|Talika, Iran}}
{{use Indian English|date=March 2025}}
 
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2025}}
[[File:Tilopa.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Tilopa.]]
[[File:Tilopa.jpg|right|thumb|200px|Tilopa.]]
'''Tilopa''' ([[Prakrit]]; [[Sanskrit]]: '''Talika''' or '''Tilopadā'''; 988–1069) was an Indian Buddhist tantric [[mahasiddha]] who lived along the [[Ganges River]].<ref>{{cite book |last= Nydahl|first= Ole|date= 2019|title= The Four Foundational Practices of the Great Seal|location= Ontario WI|publisher= Diamond Way Press|page= 117}}</ref> He practised [[Anuttarayoga Tantra]], a set of spiritual practices intended to accelerate the process of attaining [[Buddhahood]]. He became a holder of all the tantric lineages, possibly the only person in his day to do so. In addition to the way of insight and [[Mahamudra]], Tilopa learned and passed on the Way of Methods (today known as the [[Six Dharmas of Naropa|Six Yogas of Naropa]]) and guru yoga.<ref name="Nydahl 2019 119">{{cite book |last= Nydahl|first= Ole|date= 2019|title= The Four Foundational Practices of the Great Seal|location= Ontario WI|publisher= Diamond Way Press|page= 119}}</ref> [[Naropa]] is considered his main student.


==Life==
'''Tilopa''' ([[Prakrit]]; [[Sanskrit]]: '''Talika''' or '''Tilopadā''') was a Buddhist [[Tantra|tantric]]{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_914}} [[mahasiddha]]{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_121_122}} who lived in northeast India{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_914}}{{r|thrangu2019|p=x}}{{r|torricelli2018|p=1}} around the 10th century -- perhaps from 988 to 1069{{r|thrangu2019|p=4}}{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_914}} though from 928 to 1009 is also suggested{{r|torricelli2018|p=127}}.
Tilopa was born into the priestly Brahmin [[caste]] of [[Bengalis|Bengali]] origin in [[Eastern India]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Quintman |first1=Andrew |title=The Yogin and the Madman: Reading the Biographical Corpus of Tibet's Great Saint Milarepa |date=5 November 2013 |publisher=Columbia University Press |isbn=978-0-231-53553-3 |pages=41, 72 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=laxAAQAAQBAJ&dq=Tilopa+bengali&pg=PA41}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lopez |first1=Donald |title=Tilopa |journal=The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism |date=2013 |isbn=978-0-691-15786-3 |url=https://www.oxfordreference.com/display/10.1093/acref/9780190681159.001.0001/acref-9780190681159-e-4530}}</ref> He adopted the [[monastery|monastic life]] upon receiving orders from a [[dakini]]<ref>{{cite book |last=Mar-Pa |first=Chos-Kyi Blo-Gros |editor-last=Cayley |editor-first=Vyvyan |translator1-last=Torricelli |translator1-first=Fabrizio |translator2-last=Naga |translator2-first=Acharya Sangye T. |year=1995 |title=The Life of the Mahasiddha Tilopa |publisher=Library of Tibetan Works and Archives |pages=28, 43–44 |isbn=978-81-85102-91-7}}</ref> (female buddha whose activity is to inspire practitioners) who told him to adopt a [[mendicant]] and [[itinerant minister|itinerant]] existence. From the beginning, she made it clear to Tilopa that his real parents were not the persons who had raised him but instead were primordial wisdom and universal voidness. Advised by the dakini, Tilopa gradually took up a monk's life, taking the monastic vows and becoming an erudite scholar. The frequent visits of his Dakini teacher continued to guide his spiritual path and close the gap to enlightenment.{{citation needed|date=February 2023}}
The information of his life comes from spiritual biographies or [[Hagiography|hagiographies]]{{r|torricelli2018|p=xv}} where actual biographical details are few{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_914}} and the texts concentrate on spiritual growth of an individual{{r|mar-pa1995|p=vii}}{{r|thrangu2019|p=3}}. The earliest of these hagiographies was composed during the 11th century{{r|mar-pa1995|p=vii}}.


He began to travel throughout India, receiving teachings from many gurus:
Tilopa practised the [[Cakrasaṃvara Tantra]]{{r|thrangu2019|p=6}}{{r|mar-pa1995|p=43}}, a set of spiritual practices intended to accelerate the process of attaining [[Buddhahood]]. He became a holder of all the tantric lineages, possibly the only person in his day to do so{{cn|reason=This is neither common knowledge nor obvious.|date=October 2025}}. In addition to the way of insight and [[Mahamudra]]{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_500}}, Tilopa learned and passed on the Way of Methods (today known as the [[Six Dharmas of Naropa|Six Yogas of Naropa]]) and guru yoga.<ref name="Nydahl 2019 119">{{cite book |last=Nydahl |first=Ole |date=2019 |title=The Four Foundational Practices of the Great Seal |location=Ontario WI |publisher=Diamond Way Press |page=119}}</ref> [[Naropa]] is considered his main student{{r|thrangu2019|p=35}}, though his [[Hagiography|hagiographies]] mention by name two other disciples as well{{r|thrangu2019|p=34}}.


* from [[Saryapa]] he learned of [[tummo|inner heat]] (Sanskrit: ''caṇḍalī'', Tib. ''tummo'', inner heat);
* from [[Nagarjuna]] he received the [[Ösel (yoga)|radiant light]] (Sanskrit:  ''[[prabashvara]]'') and [[Six Yogas of Naropa#Pure illusory body|illusory body]] (Sanskrit:  ''maya deha'', Tib. ''gyulu'') teachings (''[[Cakrasaṃvara Tantra]]''), [[Lagusamvara tantra]], or Heruka [[Abhidharma]];
* from [[Lawapa]], the [[dream yoga]];
* from [[Sukhasiddhi]], the teachings on life, death, and the [[bardo]] (states between lives and consciousness transference/[[phowa]]);
* from [[Indrabhuti]], he gained [[wisdom in Buddhism|wisdom]] (''prajña'');
* and from [[Matangi]], the resurrection of the dead body.


As advised by Matangi, Tilopa started to work at a brothel in Bengal for a prostitute called Dharima as her solicitor and bouncer. During the day, he was grinding sesame seeds for his living.<ref name="kagyu2">[http://www.kagyu.org/kagyulineage/lineage/kag02.php Kagyu Lineage History: Tilopa] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130228050913/http://www.kagyu.org/kagyulineage/lineage/kag02.php |date=28 February 2013 }}</ref> During a meditation, he received a vision of [[Vajradhara]] and, according to legend, the entirety of [[mahamudra]] was directly transmitted to Tilopa. After receiving the transmission, Tilopa meditated in two caves and bound himself with heavy chains to hold the correct meditation posture. He practised for many years and then met the mind of all buddhas in the form of a Diamond Holder [[Vajradhara]]. He is considered the grandfather of today's [[Kagyu Lineage]].<ref name="Nydahl 2019 119"/> [[Naropa]], his most important student, became his successor and carried and passed on the teachings. On the premises of [[Pashupatinath Temple]], regarded as the greatest [[Hindu]] shrine in [[Nepal]], there are two caves where Tilopa attained [[Siddhi|siddhis]] and initiated his disciple Naropa.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Lhundrup Tsek (Pashupati, Kathmandu Valley) |url=https://www.nekhor.org/padmasambhava/nepal/lhundrup-tsek |access-date=15 August 2024 |website=Nekhor |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=17 December 2022 |title=Tilopa Cave, Pashupatinath, Kathmandu, Nepal - Sannidhi The Presence |url=https://sannidhi.net/sannidhi/tilopa-cave-pashupatinath-kathmandu-nepal/ |access-date=15 August 2024 |language=en-US}}</ref>
== Life ==
 
The historical documentation of Tilopa's life doesn't exist or is not known
{{r|thrangu2019|p=xii}}. The first biography or hagiography of Tilopa was written in the 11th century, and another major biography was written during the 14th century{{r|thrangu2019|p=xiii}}; however, others followed in e.g. 16th century{{r|thrangu2019|p=xiii}}. The account below is a synopsis of biography in Chos-Kyi Blo-Gros ''The Life of the Mahasiddha Tilopa''{{r|mar-pa1995}}.
The one thing most accounts agree is that he was born in northeast India into the Brahmin [[caste]], i.e. in what nowadays is [[Bangladesh]] or [[Eastern India]]{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_914}}{{r|mar-pa1995|p=28,64-65}}{{r|quintman2013|p=41, 72}}{{r|thrangu2019|p=x}}{{r|torricelli2018|p=131}}.
After his birth a soothsayer profesied to his mother that he'd be either a [[Buddhahood|buddha]], [[Deva_(Buddhism)|deva]], [[nāga]] or [[yaksha]]{{r|mar-pa1995|p=28}}.
Later his mother had a vision of several ugly women, telling Tilopa's her to make him a buffalo herder and also learn scriptures{{r|mar-pa1995|p=29}}{{r|torricelli2018|p=133}} -- the latter might mean taking monastic vows{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_914}}{{r|gampopa|p=12}} instead of just learning to meditate.
His mother adhered to advice given, and having grown up, Tilopa encountered the same women in another vision while herding buffaloes -- this time they revealed Tilopa's spiritual pedigree and exhorted the boy to go to a cemetery of Salavihara{{r|mar-pa1995|p=30}} or Salabheraha{{r|torricelli2018|p=134}}.
 
In the cemetery Tilopa encountered a teacher called Cāryapa, and a teacher called Lawapa{{r|mar-pa1995|p=30}} or Kambalapā{{r|torricelli2018|p=144}} who both gave him spiritual instructions. In the cemetery he was taught by an ascetic named Mātangīpa too{{r|mar-pa1995|p=31}}{{r|torricelli2018|p=142-3}}.
 
Later he encounted a [[ḍākinī]] named Subhagini{{r|mar-pa1995|p=67}} or Matongha{{r|kagyu2}} in the temple where his uncle was an abbot and taught{{r|mar-pa1995|p=31, 67}}.
Subhagini asked whether or not he understood the text of Satasāhasrikā{{r|mar-pa1995|p=31}}.
Having received a negative answer she further explicated the text to him, and told him to meditate{{r|mar-pa1995|p=31}}.
However, Tilopa's uncle had forbidden him from meditating{{r|mar-pa1995|p=31}}.
So, the ḍākinī then urged him to fasten the text Satasāhasrikā with a rope, toss it out of the temple door in water, and act like a madman {{r|mar-pa1995|p=31-32}}.
The act didn't go unnoticed: Though the text did not suffer damage, he was remonstrated and beaten{{r|mar-pa1995|p=32}}.
Some time after that, Subhagini told him go East to the market place of Pañcapana, find a prostitute called Bharima{{r|mar-pa1995|p=32}} or Dharima{{r|kagyu2}}, and follow her as a servant{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_914}}{{r|mar-pa1995|p=32}}.
 
Tilopa did what Subhagini told him to do, went to Pañcapana, found Brahima, and worked as a pimp for her at nights while also working as a sesame seed trasher during the day{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_914}}{{r|mar-pa1995|p=32}}.
Later, while trashing sesame seeds, he attained the perfection close to the [[Mahamudra|great seal]] or mahamudra{{r|mar-pa1995|p=32}}.
At the same time people around the city had flaming visions of him or visions of his bone ornaments blazing{{r|mar-pa1995|p=32-3}};
the people came and asked him to teach them{{r|mar-pa1995|p=32-3}}, and the king of the country too came to pay his respects{{r|mar-pa1995|p=33}}.
 
From several teachers Tilopa received teachings:
* From [[Nagarjuna]] he learned the of illusory body{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_121}}, and perhaps transmission the [[Ösel (yoga)|radiant light]]{{cn|date=October 2025}} (Sanskrit:  ''[[prabashvara]]'') and [[Six Yogas of Naropa#Pure illusory body|illusory body]] (Sanskrit:  ''maya deha'', Tib. ''gyulu'') teachings (''[[Cakrasaṃvara Tantra]]''){{cn|date=October 2025}}, [[Lagusamvara tantra]]{{cn|date=October 2025}}, or Heruka [[Abhidharma]]{{cn|date=October 2025}}.
* From Caryāpa he received the transmission of dreams{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_121}}.
* From [[Lawapa]] he learned the transmission of clear light{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_121}} and possibly the [[dream yoga]]{{cn|date=October 2025}}.
* From either Jñānaḍākinī{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_121}} or [[Saryapa]]{{cn|date=October 2025}} he learned the transmission of [[tummo|inner heat]].
From [[Vajradhara]] -- by direct transmission -- instructions{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_914}} or the entirety of [[mahamudra]]{{r|buswell_et_lopez2014_954}}.
* From [[Sukhasiddhi]] Tilopa received the teachings on life, death, and the [[bardo]] (states between lives and consciousness transference/[[phowa]]){{cn|date=October 2025}}.
* From [[Indrabhuti]] he gained [[wisdom in Buddhism|wisdom]] (''prajña''){{cn|date=October 2025}}.
* And, from [[Matangi]] he learned the resurrection of the dead body{{cn|date=October 2025}}.


==Teachings==
==Teachings==
Line 24: Line 48:


===Six Precepts or Words of Advice===
===Six Precepts or Words of Advice===
Tilopa gave [[Naropa]] a teaching called the Six Words of Advice, the original [[Sanskrit]] or [[Bengali language|Bengali]] of which is not extant; the text has survived through its [[Tibet]]<nowiki/>an translation. In Tibetan, the teaching is called ''gnad kyi gzer drug''<ref>[[Tsele Natsok Rangdröl]] (tr. Erik Pema Kunsang), [https://www.amazon.com/Lamp-Mahamudra-Immaculate-Perfectly-Illuminates/dp/9627341312 ''Lamp of Mahamudra: The Immaculate Lamp that Perfectly and Fully Illuminates The Meaning of Mahamudra, The Essence of All Phenomena'', Boston & Shaftesbury: Shambhala, 1989], p. 72 and n. 18.</ref> – literally, "six nails of key points"; the aptness of the title becomes clear if one considers the meaning of the English idiomatic expression, "to hit the nail on the head."
Tilopa gave [[Naropa]] a teaching called the Six Words of Advice{{r|garchen}}. The original text does not survive, but a Tibetan translation has been preserved{{r|garchen}}.
 
In Tibetan, the teaching is called ''gnad kyi gzer drug''<ref>[[Tsele Natsok Rangdröl]] (tr. Erik Pema Kunsang), [https://www.amazon.com/Lamp-Mahamudra-Immaculate-Perfectly-Illuminates/dp/9627341312 ''Lamp of Mahamudra: The Immaculate Lamp that Perfectly and Fully Illuminates The Meaning of Mahamudra, The Essence of All Phenomena'', Boston & Shaftesbury: Shambhala, 1989], p. 72 and n. 18.</ref> – literally, "six nails of key points"; the aptness of the title becomes clear if one considers the meaning of the English idiomatic expression, "to hit the nail on the head."
 
The six precepts have been translated in several rather different ways. Three are presented below.
 
==== McLeod translation ====
 
[[Ken McLeod]]'s translation{{r|mcleod}}{{r|unfettered_mind}}{{r|vonbujdoss2018}} together with original Tibetan:


According to [[Ken McLeod]], the text contains exactly six words; the two English translations in the following table are attributed to him.
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|+Six Words of Advice
|+Six Words of Advice
|-
|-
!  !! First short, literal translation !! Later long, explanatory translation !! Tibetan (Wylie transliteration)
!  !! Literal translation !! Explanatory translation !! Original Tibetan !! Tibetan (Wylie transliteration)
|-
|-
| 1
| 1
| Don't recall || Let go of what has passed || mi mno
| Don't recall || Let go of what has passed || མི་མནོ་ || mi mno
|-
|-
| 2
| 2
| Don't imagine || Let go of what may come || mi bsam
| Don't imagine || Let go of what may come || མི་བསམ || mi bsam
|-
|-
| 3
| 3
| Don't think || Let go of what is happening now || mi sems
| Don't think || Let go of what is happening now || མི་སེམས || mi sems
|-
|-
| 4
| 4
| Don't examine || Don't try to figure anything out || mi dpyod
| Don't examine || Don't try to figure anything out || མི་དཔྱོད་ || mi dpyod
|-
|-
| 5
| 5
| Don't control || Don't try to make anything happen || mi sgom
| Don't control || Don't try to make anything happen || མི་སྒོམ་ || mi sgom
|-
|-
| 6
| 6
| Rest || Relax, right now, and rest || rang sar bzhag
| Rest || Relax, right now, and rest || རང་སར་བཞག་ || rang sar bzhag
|}
|}
<br>
<br />
'''Watts-Wayman translation'''
 
==== Khenpo Konchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche translation ====
 
Another translation by Khenpo Konchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche renders the original Tibetan in English as{{r|gampopa|p=247}}
:Do not ponder, think, or cognize.
:Do not meditate or examine.
:Leave the mind to itself.
 
==== Watts-Wayman translation ====


An earlier translation circa 1957 by [[Alan Watts]] and Dr. [[Alex Wayman]] rendered Tilopa's "Six Precepts" as<br>
An earlier translation circa 1957 by [[Alan Watts]] and Dr. [[Alex Wayman]] rendered Tilopa's "Six Precepts" as<br />
:No thought, no reflection, no analysis,
:No thought, no reflection, no analysis,
:No cultivation, no intention;
:No cultivation, no intention;
:Let it settle itself.
:Let it settle itself.


In a footnote, Watts cited a Tibetan source text at partial variance with McLeod's in sequence and syntax, namely:<br>
In a footnote, Watts cited a Tibetan source text at partial variance with McLeod's in sequence and syntax, namely:<br />
:''Mi-mno, mi-bsam, mi-dpyad-ching,''
:''Mi-mno, mi-bsam, mi-dpyad-ching,''
:''Mi-bsgom, mi-sems, rang-babs-bzhag.''
:''Mi-bsgom, mi-sems, rang-babs-bzhag.''


Based on an "elucidation" provided by Wayman, Watts explained that<br>
Based on an "elucidation" provided by Wayman, Watts explained that<br />
:''Mi-mno'' is approximately equivalent to the Zen terms ''wu-hsin'' (無心) or ''wu-nien'' (無念), "no-mind" or "no thought." ''Bsam'' is the equivalent of the Sanskrit ''cintana'', i.e., discursive thinking about what has been heard, and ''dpyad'' of ''mimamsa'', or "philosophical analysis." ''Bsgom'' is probably ''bhavana'' or the Chinese ''hsiu'' (修), "to cultivate," "to practice," or "intense concentration." ''Sems'' is ''cetana'' or ''szu'' (思), with the sense of intention or volition. ''Rang-babs-bzhag'' is literally "self-settle-establish," and "self-settle" would seem to be an almost exact equivalent of the Taoist ''tzu-jan'' (自然, [[pinyin]]: zì rán), "self-so", "spontaneous", or "natural".<ref>{{cite book |last=Watts |first=Alan |year=1999 |orig-year=First published 1957|title=The Way of Zen |publisher=Vintage Books |page=79 and n. 3}}</ref>
:''Mi-mno'' is approximately equivalent to the Zen terms ''wu-hsin'' (無心) or ''wu-nien'' (無念), "no-mind" or "no thought." ''Bsam'' is the equivalent of the Sanskrit ''cintana'', i.e., discursive thinking about what has been heard, and ''dpyad'' of ''mimamsa'', or "philosophical analysis." ''Bsgom'' is probably ''bhavana'' or the Chinese ''hsiu'' (修), "to cultivate," "to practice," or "intense concentration." ''Sems'' is ''cetana'' or ''szu'' (思), with the sense of intention or volition. ''Rang-babs-bzhag'' is literally "self-settle-establish," and "self-settle" would seem to be an almost exact equivalent of the Taoist ''tzu-jan'' (自然, [[pinyin]]: zì rán), "self-so", "spontaneous", or "natural".<ref>{{cite book |last=Watts |first=Alan |year=1999 |orig-year=First published 1957 |title=The Way of Zen |publisher=Vintage Books |page=79 and n. 3}}</ref>


Watts had studied Chinese, and Wayman was a Tibetologist and professor of Sanskrit associated with UCLA and later Columbia University.
===Mahamudra instructions===


===Mahamudra instructions===
Tilopa also gave [[mahamudra]] instruction to [[Naropa]] by means of the song known as "The Ganges Mahamudra,"{{r|thrangu2019|p=58}} one stanza of which reads:
Tilopa also gave [[mahamudra]] instruction to [[Naropa]] by means of the song known as "The Ganges Mahamudra,"<ref>{{cite book |last1=Thrangu |first1=Khenchen |title=Tilopa's Wisdom: His Life and Teachings on the Ganges Mahamudra |year=2019 |publisher=Snow Lion |location=Boulder, Colorado |isbn=978-1-55939-487-1 |page=58}}</ref> one stanza of which reads:


:The fool in his ignorance, disdaining Mahamudra,
:The fool in his ignorance, disdaining Mahamudra,
Line 76: Line 114:
:For when his blessing touches your heart, the mind is liberated.<ref>[http://www.keithdowman.net/mahamudra/tilopa.htm Keith Dowman / Tilopa's Instruction to Naropa<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>
:For when his blessing touches your heart, the mind is liberated.<ref>[http://www.keithdowman.net/mahamudra/tilopa.htm Keith Dowman / Tilopa's Instruction to Naropa<!-- Bot generated title -->]</ref>


===Attachment and enjoyment===
=== Attachment and enjoyment ===
One of the most famous and important statements attributed to Tilopa is: "The problem is not enjoyment; the problem is attachment."<ref>{{Cite web |last=Institute |first=Garchen |title=Tilopa {{!}} Garchen Buddhist Institute |url=https://garchen.net/tilopa-988-1069/ |access-date=6 August 2023 |language=en-US}}</ref>


==See also==
Tilopa also gave instructions concerning pleasure: "The problem is not enjoyment; the problem is attachment."{{r|garchen}}{{cn|reason=There appears to be lots of web sites giving the same quotation with no reference to any source, and what's even worse is that they all seem to be copies of each other. Cleary a more trustworthy source is needed to attribute this saying to Tilopa.|date=October 2025}}
* [[Erdne Ombadykow]], as ''Telo Tulku Rinpoche'', supposed reincarnation of Tilopa
* [[History of Tibet]]


==References==
==References==
{{reflist}}
<references>
 
  <ref name="vonbujdoss2018">
    {{cite web
      | archive-date = 2025-07-08
      | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20250708075408/https://tricycle.org/magazine/tilopas-six-nails/
      | author = von Bujdoss, Justin
      | title = Tilopa’s Six Nails -- Powerful advice for meditation from the 10th-century Indian master
      | url = https://tricycle.org/magazine/tilopas-six-nails/
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="buswell_et_lopez2014_121">
    {{cite encyclopedia
      | editor-last1 = Buswell Jr.
      | editor-first1 = Robert E.
      | editor-last2 = Lopez Jr.
      | editor-first2 = Donald S.
      | encyclopedia = The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism
      | isbn = 978-0-691-15786-3
      | publisher = Princeton University Press
      | page = 121
      | title = bka’ babs bzhi
      | year = 2014
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="buswell_et_lopez2014_121_122">
    {{cite encyclopedia
      | editor-last1 = Buswell Jr.
      | editor-first1 = Robert E.
      | editor-last2 = Lopez Jr.
      | editor-first2 = Donald S.
      | encyclopedia = The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism
      | isbn = 978-0-691-15786-3
      | publisher = Princeton University Press
      | page = 121-2
      | title = Bka’ brgyud
      | year = 2014
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="buswell_et_lopez2014_500">
    {{cite encyclopedia
      | editor-last1 = Buswell Jr.
      | editor-first1 = Robert E.
      | editor-last2 = Lopez Jr.
      | editor-first2 = Donald S.
      | encyclopedia = The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism
      | isbn = 978-0-691-15786-3
      | publisher = Princeton University Press
      | page = 500
      | title = mahāmudrā
      | year = 2014
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="buswell_et_lopez2014_914">
    {{cite encyclopedia
      | editor-last1 = Buswell Jr.
      | editor-first1 = Robert E.
      | editor-last2 = Lopez Jr.
      | editor-first2 = Donald S.
      | encyclopedia = The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism
      | isbn = 978-0-691-15786-3
      | publisher = Princeton University Press
      | page = 914
      | title = Tilopa
      | year = 2014
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="buswell_et_lopez2014_954">
    {{cite encyclopedia
      | editor-last1 = Buswell Jr.
      | editor-first1 = Robert E.
      | editor-last2 = Lopez Jr.
      | editor-first2 = Donald S.
      | encyclopedia = The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism
      | isbn = 978-0-691-15786-3
      | publisher = Princeton University Press
      | page = 954
      | title = Vajradhara
      | year = 2014
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="gampopa">
    {{cite book
      | author = Gampopa
      | editor = Ani K. Trinlay Chodron
      | isbn = 1-55939-092-1
      | location = Ithaca, NY
      | publisher = Snow Lion Publications
      | title = The Jewel Ornament of Liberation -- The Wish-fulfilling Gem of the Noble Teachings
      | translator = Khenpo Konchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche
      | year = 1998
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="garchen">
    {{cite web
      | archive-date = 2024-11-30
      | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20241130123617/https://garchen.net/tilopa-988-1069/
      | publisher = Garchen Institute
      | title = Tilopa
      | url = https://garchen.net/tilopa-988-1069/
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="kagyu2">
    {{cite web
      | archive-date = 2013-02-28
      | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130228050913/http://www.kagyu.org/kagyulineage/lineage/kag02.php
      | title = Kagyu Lineage History: Tilopa
      | url = http://www.kagyu.org/kagyulineage/lineage/kag02.php
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="mar-pa1995">
    {{cite book
      | editor-last = Cayley
      | editor-first = Vyvyan
      | first = Chos-Kyi Blo-Gros
      | isbn = 81-85102-91-0
      | last = Mar-Pa
      | publisher = Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
      | title = The Life of the Mahasiddha Tilopa
      | translator1-last = Torricelli
      | translator1-first = Fabrizio
      | translator2-last = Naga
      | translator2-first = Acharya Sangye T.
      | year = 1995
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="mcleod">
    {{cite web
      | archive-date = 2025-10-12
      | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20251012064611/https://unfetteredmind.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/sixwords.pdf
      | title = Six Words of Advice by Tilopa, translated by Ken McLeod
      | url = https://unfetteredmind.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/sixwords.pdf
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="quintman2013">
    {{cite book
    | date = 2013-11-05
    | first1 = Andrew
    | isbn = 978-0-231-53553-3
    | last1 = Quintman
    | publisher = Columbia University Press
    | title = The Yogin and the Madman: Reading the Biographical Corpus of Tibet's Great Saint Milarepa
    | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=laxAAQAAQBAJ&dq=Tilopa+bengali&pg=PA41}}
  </ref>
  <ref name="thrangu2019">
    {{cite book
      | first1 = Khenchen
      | isbn = 978-1-55939-487-1
      | last1 = Thrangu
      | location = Boulder, Colorado
      | publisher = Snow Lion
      | title = Tilopa's Wisdom: His Life and Teachings on the Ganges Mahamudra
      | year = 2019
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="torricelli2018">
    {{cite book
      | author = Torricelli, Fabrizio
      | publisher = Library of Tibetan Works and Archives
      | title = Tilopa: A Buddhist Yogin of the Tenth Century
      | year = 2018
    }}
  </ref>
  <ref name="unfettered_mind">
    {{cite web
      | archive-date = 2025-08-10
      | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20250810132410/https://unfetteredmind.org/practice/tilopas-advice/
      | title = Mahamudra – Tilopa's Six Words
      | url = https://unfetteredmind.org/practice/tilopas-advice/
    }}
  </ref>
 
</references>


==Bibliography==
==Bibliography==
* {{cite book|last1=Rinpoche|first1=Chökyi Nyima|last2=Nyima|first2=Rinpoche Chokyi|title=Union of Mahamudra and Dzogchen|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E8C3_VZr-QsC&pg=PA51|year=1994|publisher=Rangjung Yeshe Publications|isbn=978-962-7341-21-5}}
* {{cite book|last1=Rinpoche|first1=Chökyi Nyima|last2=Nyima|first2=Rinpoche Chokyi|title=Union of Mahamudra and Dzogchen|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=E8C3_VZr-QsC&pg=PA51|year=1994|publisher=Rangjung Yeshe Publications|isbn=978-962-7341-21-5}}
* {{cite book|last1=Blo-Gros|first1=Mar-Pa Chos-Kyi|last2=(Na-ga.)|first2=Saṅs-rgyas-bstan-dar|title=The Life of the Mahāsiddha Tilopa|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BCALAAAAYAAJ|year=1995|publisher=Library of Tibetan Works and Archives|isbn=978-81-85102-91-7}}
* {{cite book|last=Rinpoche|first=Sangyes Nyenpa|title=Tilopa's Mahamudra Upadesha: The Gangama Instructions with Commentary|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W7lJAwAAQBAJ|year=2014|publisher=Shambhala Publications|isbn=978-0-8348-2974-9}}
* {{cite book|last=Rinpoche|first=Sangyes Nyenpa|title=Tilopa's Mahamudra Upadesha: The Gangama Instructions with Commentary|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=W7lJAwAAQBAJ|year=2014|publisher=Shambhala Publications|isbn=978-0-8348-2974-9}}


==External links==
==External links==
* [http://www.keithdowman.net/mahamudra/tilopa.htm An English translation of "The Ganges Mahamudra"]
* [https://keithdowman.net/mahamudra/tilopas-mahamudra-teaching.html Tilopa's Mahamudra Teaching to Naropa] {{webarchive
* [http://www.naturalawareness.net/ganges.html Several English translations of "The Ganges Mahamudra"]
    | url = https://web.archive.org/web/20251012073110/https://keithdowman.net/mahamudra/tilopas-mahamudra-teaching.html
  }}


{{wikiquote}}
{{wikiquote}}
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   | before = [[Dorje Chang]]
   | before = [[Dorje Chang]]
   | title  = [[Kagyu]] school
   | title  = [[Kagyu]] school
   | years  =  
   | years  =
   | after  = [[Naropa]]
   | after  = [[Naropa]]
}}
}}

Latest revision as of 21:30, 28 December 2025

Template:Short description Script error: No such module "redirect hatnote".

File:Tilopa.jpg
Tilopa.

Tilopa (Prakrit; Sanskrit: Talika or Tilopadā) was a Buddhist tantricTemplate:R mahasiddhaTemplate:R who lived in northeast IndiaTemplate:RTemplate:RTemplate:R around the 10th century -- perhaps from 988 to 1069Template:RTemplate:R though from 928 to 1009 is also suggestedTemplate:R. The information of his life comes from spiritual biographies or hagiographiesTemplate:R where actual biographical details are fewTemplate:R and the texts concentrate on spiritual growth of an individualTemplate:RTemplate:R. The earliest of these hagiographies was composed during the 11th centuryTemplate:R.

Tilopa practised the Cakrasaṃvara TantraTemplate:RTemplate:R, a set of spiritual practices intended to accelerate the process of attaining Buddhahood. He became a holder of all the tantric lineages, possibly the only person in his day to do soScript error: No such module "Unsubst".. In addition to the way of insight and MahamudraTemplate:R, Tilopa learned and passed on the Way of Methods (today known as the Six Yogas of Naropa) and guru yoga.[1] Naropa is considered his main studentTemplate:R, though his hagiographies mention by name two other disciples as wellTemplate:R.


Life

The historical documentation of Tilopa's life doesn't exist or is not known Template:R. The first biography or hagiography of Tilopa was written in the 11th century, and another major biography was written during the 14th centuryTemplate:R; however, others followed in e.g. 16th centuryTemplate:R. The account below is a synopsis of biography in Chos-Kyi Blo-Gros The Life of the Mahasiddha TilopaTemplate:R. The one thing most accounts agree is that he was born in northeast India into the Brahmin caste, i.e. in what nowadays is Bangladesh or Eastern IndiaTemplate:RTemplate:RTemplate:RTemplate:RTemplate:R. After his birth a soothsayer profesied to his mother that he'd be either a buddha, deva, nāga or yakshaTemplate:R. Later his mother had a vision of several ugly women, telling Tilopa's her to make him a buffalo herder and also learn scripturesTemplate:RTemplate:R -- the latter might mean taking monastic vowsTemplate:RTemplate:R instead of just learning to meditate. His mother adhered to advice given, and having grown up, Tilopa encountered the same women in another vision while herding buffaloes -- this time they revealed Tilopa's spiritual pedigree and exhorted the boy to go to a cemetery of SalaviharaTemplate:R or SalabherahaTemplate:R.

In the cemetery Tilopa encountered a teacher called Cāryapa, and a teacher called LawapaTemplate:R or KambalapāTemplate:R who both gave him spiritual instructions. In the cemetery he was taught by an ascetic named Mātangīpa tooTemplate:RTemplate:R.

Later he encounted a ḍākinī named SubhaginiTemplate:R or MatonghaTemplate:R in the temple where his uncle was an abbot and taughtTemplate:R. Subhagini asked whether or not he understood the text of SatasāhasrikāTemplate:R. Having received a negative answer she further explicated the text to him, and told him to meditateTemplate:R. However, Tilopa's uncle had forbidden him from meditatingTemplate:R. So, the ḍākinī then urged him to fasten the text Satasāhasrikā with a rope, toss it out of the temple door in water, and act like a madman Template:R. The act didn't go unnoticed: Though the text did not suffer damage, he was remonstrated and beatenTemplate:R. Some time after that, Subhagini told him go East to the market place of Pañcapana, find a prostitute called BharimaTemplate:R or DharimaTemplate:R, and follow her as a servantTemplate:RTemplate:R.

Tilopa did what Subhagini told him to do, went to Pañcapana, found Brahima, and worked as a pimp for her at nights while also working as a sesame seed trasher during the dayTemplate:RTemplate:R. Later, while trashing sesame seeds, he attained the perfection close to the great seal or mahamudraTemplate:R. At the same time people around the city had flaming visions of him or visions of his bone ornaments blazingTemplate:R; the people came and asked him to teach themTemplate:R, and the king of the country too came to pay his respectsTemplate:R.

From several teachers Tilopa received teachings:

From Vajradhara -- by direct transmission -- instructionsTemplate:R or the entirety of mahamudraTemplate:R.

  • From Sukhasiddhi Tilopa received the teachings on life, death, and the bardo (states between lives and consciousness transference/phowa)Script error: No such module "Unsubst"..
  • From Indrabhuti he gained wisdom (prajña)Script error: No such module "Unsubst"..
  • And, from Matangi he learned the resurrection of the dead bodyScript error: No such module "Unsubst"..

Teachings

File:Mahasiddha Tilopa, southern Tibet, 16th-17th century AD, bronze - Linden-Museum - Stuttgart, Germany - DSC03693.jpg
Mahasiddha Tilopa, southern Tibet, 16th-17th century AD, bronze - Linden-Museum - Stuttgart, Germany.

Six Precepts or Words of Advice

Tilopa gave Naropa a teaching called the Six Words of AdviceTemplate:R. The original text does not survive, but a Tibetan translation has been preservedTemplate:R.

In Tibetan, the teaching is called gnad kyi gzer drug[2] – literally, "six nails of key points"; the aptness of the title becomes clear if one considers the meaning of the English idiomatic expression, "to hit the nail on the head."

The six precepts have been translated in several rather different ways. Three are presented below.

McLeod translation

Ken McLeod's translationTemplate:RTemplate:RTemplate:R together with original Tibetan:

Six Words of Advice
Literal translation Explanatory translation Original Tibetan Tibetan (Wylie transliteration)
1 Don't recall Let go of what has passed མི་མནོ་ mi mno
2 Don't imagine Let go of what may come མི་བསམ mi bsam
3 Don't think Let go of what is happening now མི་སེམས mi sems
4 Don't examine Don't try to figure anything out མི་དཔྱོད་ mi dpyod
5 Don't control Don't try to make anything happen མི་སྒོམ་ mi sgom
6 Rest Relax, right now, and rest རང་སར་བཞག་ rang sar bzhag


Khenpo Konchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche translation

Another translation by Khenpo Konchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche renders the original Tibetan in English asTemplate:R

Do not ponder, think, or cognize.
Do not meditate or examine.
Leave the mind to itself.

Watts-Wayman translation

An earlier translation circa 1957 by Alan Watts and Dr. Alex Wayman rendered Tilopa's "Six Precepts" as

No thought, no reflection, no analysis,
No cultivation, no intention;
Let it settle itself.

In a footnote, Watts cited a Tibetan source text at partial variance with McLeod's in sequence and syntax, namely:

Mi-mno, mi-bsam, mi-dpyad-ching,
Mi-bsgom, mi-sems, rang-babs-bzhag.

Based on an "elucidation" provided by Wayman, Watts explained that

Mi-mno is approximately equivalent to the Zen terms wu-hsin (無心) or wu-nien (無念), "no-mind" or "no thought." Bsam is the equivalent of the Sanskrit cintana, i.e., discursive thinking about what has been heard, and dpyad of mimamsa, or "philosophical analysis." Bsgom is probably bhavana or the Chinese hsiu (修), "to cultivate," "to practice," or "intense concentration." Sems is cetana or szu (思), with the sense of intention or volition. Rang-babs-bzhag is literally "self-settle-establish," and "self-settle" would seem to be an almost exact equivalent of the Taoist tzu-jan (自然, pinyin: zì rán), "self-so", "spontaneous", or "natural".[3]

Mahamudra instructions

Tilopa also gave mahamudra instruction to Naropa by means of the song known as "The Ganges Mahamudra,"Template:R one stanza of which reads:

The fool in his ignorance, disdaining Mahamudra,
Knows nothing but struggle in the flood of samsara.
Have compassion for those who suffer constant anxiety!
Sick of unrelenting pain and desiring release, adhere to a Guru,
For when his blessing touches your heart, the mind is liberated.[4]

Attachment and enjoyment

Tilopa also gave instructions concerning pleasure: "The problem is not enjoyment; the problem is attachment."Template:RScript error: No such module "Unsubst".

References

  1. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  2. ↑ Tsele Natsok Rangdröl (tr. Erik Pema Kunsang), Lamp of Mahamudra: The Immaculate Lamp that Perfectly and Fully Illuminates The Meaning of Mahamudra, The Essence of All Phenomena, Boston & Shaftesbury: Shambhala, 1989, p. 72 and n. 18.
  3. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  4. ↑ Keith Dowman / Tilopa's Instruction to Naropa

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Bibliography

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External links

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