Great Saint’s whose virtues rival the Sun and Moon

Chapter 2   Wisdom Firing Set Prairie Ablaze

2.9. Great Saint’s whose virtues rival the Sun and Moon

After talking about the “First Seven Jewel” Shangpa guru the author will briefly tell the story of Tangtong Gyalpo. Lama Tangtong was recognized as the great saint of a generation in Tibetan areas, with merits like the sun and moon and fame extending for thousands of years. He is ranked with Milaripa and lama Khyungpo, and won countless glories for Shangpa Kagyu.

It is said that Tangtong Gyalpo stayed in his mother’s body for one year. As soon as he was born, he was able to recite the 6 character Big Bright Mantra. Fragrance filled the room, celestial music swelled, celestial flowers fell like rain, many good omens appeared, and people of the time exclaimed in wonder. Because his family was poor, he worked as a shepherd for others when he was young. While he was shepherd, the wolves became kind and did not eat sheep and ate grass for subsistence and lived peacefully alongside the sheep. When he was 12 years old, his father gave him many years’ savings and instructed him to do business following somebody. On his way, there was big river and the mules were too scared to pass over the water. Tangtong extended his arms carrying one in his left and one in his right to cross the water. Away from home, he saw 7 people who were thrown to jail because of false testimony, and were going to be killed. The guru used the money for business to buy the lives of these 7 people. Later he did business again, and offered all the profits to Xiangxiong Temple to burn lights. His parents became angry and threw him out. Then Tangtong determined to learn Buddhism.

One day, under the direction of Avalokitesvara, Tangtong went to Qiongbao Temple, became a monk in the place of Nimasang and learnt Tibetan. Then he went to Duoduojiala Temple and received discipline from Huanjuexirao, and had the Dharma name of Zunqinsangbo bestowed on him. Then he went to Angnang Temple, did obeisance under Luosangduojie and others to learn the three treasures of sutra and explanations. Then he went to Sakya temple and received the teaching of Sakya. When he discussed sutra with the monks there, he was very modest. Later he followed the great saints Renqinjianzan, Gunbang and Xiapuwa to learn new and old mantra.

Lama Tangtong went to India and Nepal many times for dharma. He saw Niguma, and learnt the Five Golden Dharma of Niguma directly, and received the “Superior Secret Everlasting Long Living Keeping Enlightening Dharma of Niguma”, then transmitted this dharma to Jianggong Living Buddha in a dream of enlightenment. I and many disciples are all bathed by the dew of this dharma. From the everlasting achiever Walvpa he learnt the Mahamudra dharma. From the great adept Jiangchengquesou he learnt the dharma of six-armed Mahakala. He met Vajra Dhara face to face. Wherever this guru went, there were auspicious signs. Tigers and leopards became his friends, guru taught dharma to them, and the animals could understand. There was a herd of cattle that learnt the dharma of Avalokitesvara from Tangtong, eating grass every odd day and fasting every even day as if sitting in zen. Later he also received another branch of Shangpa Kagyu from Master Tsongkapa.

Lama Tangtong had hundreds of gurus, and meditated diligently and hard. Few in this world have the dedication of Tangtong. He once brought two goats to Tabalin and did retreat for 6 years in a cave called Xiegaladong. During those six years, he did not go out of the cave, did not eat grain and survived on only goat’s milk. Everyday, the goats went out to eat grass during the day and came back at night, giving the milk as offering to guru. One morning, in emptiness outside the cave, a dakini with a lion’s face and rainbow body suddenly appeared very clearly and said “Tangtong Gyalpo, there is an adept called Wangjiubirupa in the Gengruimeipa cadaver forest of India teaching dharma and sutra. You should go there immediately and ask for empowerment.” After hearing that, Tangtong left his seat, went out of the cave, and flew to India. He saw the cadaver forest, full of bones, howling wind and brutal cries of bests. Ghosts surged upon him, but were dispelled by the perfume of sandalwood and Rest wood. In the shade of the sandalwood tree, there was a skin of a gazelle, upon which the yogi Wangjiubirupa, surrounded by daka and dakini. Tangtong prostrated on the floor and worshiped many times, offering treasure created by his mind. Wangjiubirupa was very happy and gave him a skull of amrita, in which appeared the 3 thousand great worlds. Tangtong accepted the amrita and drank it in one breath, then sat quietly in concentration. Jiuwangbilupa transmitted the tantra of perfect meditation result and bestowed the food of everlasting life to him. After receiving the dharma, Tangtong flew back to the Xiegaledong cave and studied the Duozekanggelong Sutra using 10 months.

After many years of arduous meditation, Tangtong had attained great achievement. Unencumbered in will, unimpeded in course and at ease in heart, he reached ultimate achievement. One day, he went to some place with disciples. Tangtong walked very fast, far ahead of the others, and rested at an Ebo dedicated to the mountain gods. Suddenly, a strange group of people came: 8 of them had human heads and dragon bodies; there was a black man with 3 eyes, fit muscles, like pig hairs, with a snake as his belt; a lady with a skirt made of peacock feathers led a scorpion as big as yak; there was a white person, with a white flag and lance in hand, riding a white horse and leading 7 white cows. They called themselves the local earth gods and dragon gods, and worshiped and rotated sutra to lama Tangtong, giving offerings of treasure. They said "we will do our best to assist if guru wants to build temples, bridges or ships here in the future.” When the disciples came, the gods disappeared.

One day, Tangtong and disciples went to Sangye Temple, and local ghosts and gods appeared and made offering. Guru taught them the mantra of suppressing evil. Then, guru retreated for 8 years in a cave in Qibu Red Rock Mountain near Sangye Temple.

When lama Tangtong Gyalpo was meditating, he suddenly saw the cave wall shine, and recognized the mantra of long life Buddha Zhenyan King in the light. As soon as he recognized it, the red light disappeared. While guru was still in astonishment, a large stone like a human head had fallen in front of him. There was a big hole where the stone fell. Inside the hole were countless sutra, all were secret treasure. Tangtong retrieved the sutra books and replaced the stone, marking it with a handprint. After he completed retreat, lama Tangtong Gyalpo ordered the local earth gods and wind gods to carefully control the four elements, and not let dust storms assault Sangye Temple.

 Tangtong Gyalpo sought famous teachers in all places, meditated tirelessly and his name spread far and wide. Countless people came to worship him. There is a song, “Emptiness is without bound, the yogi enlightening to emptiness, is like a fearless lord, his name is Tangtong Gyalpo”. People honoured him as “achieving freedom Lord Tangtong.”
    Tangtong Gyalpo travelled throughout the snowy region and often saw great fast flowing rivers. Because there were no bridges, people often fell into the water and died. So he set a great pledge to build bridges for the people. Iron in Tibetan areas was as rare as gold. However, lama Tangtong used his whole life to build over 100 bridges, with over 50 iron chain-bridges and over 70 wooden bridges, benefiting numerous living beings. During the Long March of the red army, they passed Luding Bridge, which was built by Tangtong lama. To build the bridges, Tangtong worked as a blacksmith, wielding iron hammers and bellows, working as hard labour. At the time, the career of a blacksmith was thought of as lowly.

To get money to build bridges, Tangtong lama founded the Tibetan drama group Ajialamu. He wrote the scripts himself and led the 7 daughters of the chief of Beinam, touring everywhere in the performance of Tibetan dramas. Later, Tangtong Gyalpo lama was honoured as the founder father of Tibetan drama.

Apart from benefiting people through building bridges, Tangtong Gyalpo lama also built many meditation places and temples. Numerours disciples of his achieved. For example, in the Jiasang Temple he built in the Ga County, over 100 disciples achieved the rainbow body and the illusory body.

The life of lama Tangtong is the stuff of legend. In dharma beyond the world, his achievement in meditation is unrivalled; in the career of benefiting people, he built bridges and temples, with merits as great as the sun and moon; culturally, he was the founding master of the tradition of Tibetan drama. In the China Tibetan Drama Art Net, there is an article honouring lama Tangtong as “the god of Tibetan drama”:

In former activities of Tibetan folk drama, Tangtong Gyalpo is worshiped as the drama god. The statue or Tang card of Tangtong Gyalpo is honoured in the centre of all performance areas of Tibetan drama. The opening act is mainly worship and praise to Tangtong Gyalpo, when audiences make donatations, they first offer Hada to the image of Tangtong Gyalpo. Statues of Tangtong Gyalpo are also honoured in many temples of Tibet, and receive the continuous worships of many who kowtow and give offerings.

Although Tangtong Gyalpo is a historical person of the 14^th and 15^thcenturies, there are many tales of the Drama God spread among the people. For example, it is said that he stayed in his mother’s body as long as 60 years and was born an aged newborn with white beard, white eyebrows and white hair. It is said that when he entered meditation concentration in a lonely plateau on day, red, yellow, blue, white, and green goddesses descended from the sky, dancing and singing around him. Each sang a line of song. Together it meant "wide borderless great dam, yogi achieved in empty nature, like a fearless lord sitting upon the dam, Tangtong Gyalpo your name is received henceforth”.

Tangtong Gyalpo is from Angren in Tibet. Regarding his birth year, one saying holds that it is the 18^th year of Hongwu in the Ming dynasty (the sixth Laoqiong Wood Cow Year of the Tibetan Calendar, 1385). He was the 3d of 6 siblings, and named Chiwubandan. He was open and liberal from childhood, liking drink and entertainment, and was especially good at composing, dancing and singing…He studied hard and mastered exoteric and esoteric Buddhism. He has extremely high cultivation and understanding in the “Greater and Lesser Five Brightness” including drama…… He travelled all places, seeking teachers and visiting friends. He paid respects to masters of many lineages, such as Nyingma, Sakya and Jonangpa. Later, he went to Angren to worship the Great Living Buddha Luozhuduojie and Gongqueta as guru. Together with Tsongkapa, the founder of Gelugpa, he worshiped the famous monk Rendaba Xuannuluozhui of Sakya as guru. His root guru is Yuepurigongwa of Shangpa Kagyu lineage. He inherited the essence and rituals of Shangpa Kagyu in relative entirety.

Tangtong Gyalpo was a travelling monk with profound cultivation in yoga. He was called “Zhuduo” (Dharma Master of Yoga) or “Zhuqian” (Great Master of Yoga Dharma)…He dared to break ingrained habits of religion and proposed that lamas should not meditate only in temples, mountains or caves, but should come down from the mountains and meditate in travels, and solve some practical sufferings of people. Therefore, he was not welcomed by traditional powers. Referring to so-called “high monks” who only preached Buddhism without practical conduct, he said “loathing, sadness and laziness are all disasters when we benefit people. Their words at best are like songs. Monks living in mountains are like wild animals or mice, burrowing into a cave and meditating. Whoever willingly follows me should not fuss over food and clothing, benefiting people should be done through actions.” During his travelling meditation, he felt deeply the difficulties of people who passed over high mountains, great rivers and rushing waters. He was inspired by the small iron chain used as a dog leash that was brought by an 18 year old dakini like maiden. He committed to building bridges of iron chains above large rivers and rushing waters to benefit people. He presided over the building of the chain bridges of Riwuqi in Angre, Duilong, the ferry of Qushui and many other places. When he was building the chain bridge in the ferry of Qushi, funds were short, so he organized the seven sisters of South Mountain to choreograph and perform the Wenba dances and sing folk arts such as “lamamani” and ”maniqiangyang” to publicise the significance of building the bridges. In this way, he raised a large sum of money and eventually the bridge was built. When he was building the Zhaxizi bridge over the Yangluzhangbu River in Xietongmen of Tibet, he brought the seven sisters to do fund raising performances. Several local old Jialu watched the performance, drinking, and became very happy. They danced with crutches, and girls in Zhaxizi could not help going to the stage and performing their local songs and dances. This gave Tangtong very great inspiration. He added the Jialu dance and the folk dances and songs performed by the girls into the original dance of Wenba. In later performances, he absorbed and used the white mask folk drama, as well as the mode of singing stories of gods and Buddhas in “lamamani”. He developed these arts collectively to portray the stories of Buddha’s native lives, such as LUO SANG PRINCE and ZHI MEI GENG DENG to further attract audiences. From this he raised huge funds and built 58 chain bridges. Following the building of the many chain bridges, the “Ajilamu” form of Tibetan drama also developed and became popular. In his later life, Tangtong Gyalpo brought the Ajilamu style of performing with white masks to his hometown. In the Qiongriwuqi Temple of his hometown, it was reformed and developed into the Ajilamu style of performing in blue masks, and the first blue masked Tibetan drama was created to welcome the drama group of Qiongriwuqi Temple. Therefore, generation after generation of people honour him as the drama god who created and built Tibetan drama and the “ancestral master” of blacksmiths and carpenters who build bridges. In the eyes of the Tibetan people, he is the manifestation of creativity, wisdom and strength.

There is an interesting memorial song which has deep meaning and is very droll:

“Above raging rivers

Stones piled into supports are as high as small hills

These hills rank with Xumi Mountain

Rings of irons link into a chain

Neat, beautiful and magnificent

The elite and the lowly alike, people of all status

Cross smoothly and peacefully

Poor people are even more appreciative

Endlessly merciful lama Tangtong

Did a great kind deed for all people

Former meditators

Lacked no persons with of exceptional prowess

Also all thought to benefit people

But who can compare with Tangtong Gyalpo

Who suckled living beings like a mother

They all left when achieving Buddhahood

Do they hide from living beings for shame?

This song is very insightful. It mocks those meditators who do hard meditation in order to “leave when achieving Buddhahood”: do they to hide from living beings out of shame? The meanings within cannot be explained in a few lines. What is the aim of becoming Buddha? Living beings and Buddha are one in nature; the confused are sentient beings, the awakened are Buddha; if there are no living beings, what need is there for Buddha? Many meditators visualize arduously, the reason they do not achieve despite devoting their whole life is lack of Bodhi-chitta. If meditation is only for oneself, it loses its meaning. Jianggong guru told me many stories, which spoke of meditators who dedicated themselves to mantra recitation but were without benevolence and finally became hungry ghosts. Therefore the success or failure of meditation all depends on the heart.

On the other hand, if lama Tangtong did not meditate hard, he would not have had such lofty status, or great intentions without great strength, therefore intention and diligent meditation are the two wings of success. All enlighteners have their causes, either building bridges or roads to benefit people, or transmitting dharma and empowerment to expand the dharma lineage, or writing literature to pass on the truth to later generations, or to hide from the world and accumulate merits unseen, or donating widely to pursue dharma through practical action. All deeds can be called root paths. But these practitioners all set up big heart and do real work, accumulating small streams into rivers, accumulating small steps to thousands of kilometres. I have never seen an enlightener who achieved through only talking and not substantiating.

I often see people with high ambitions. When they hear of guru who transmit dharma, they all go there. Today, they receive Green Tara but still want Vajra dharma. When they receive Vajra dharma, they want wealth, longevity or fame. Nothing in the temporal world can be given up. They forget only one thing: in meditation, you must at least be a good person first. A few meditators do not even treat their parents well. In another words, they have failed even as a son. To not follow the most basic principles of human decency, and yet still looking to become Buddha – it is truly comical. Let’s not say first of all that it would be impossible, even if you really became a Buddha, there would be no benefit. Since when were there selfish Buddhas? Where is there Buddha who do not benefit living beings? No Buddha forsakes living beings to rejoice in their own perfection.

For meditation, I place being a good person at the fore. First, I am a good son who treats parents like Buddha, sincerely offering without daring to be lax. Next, I strive to be a good person and not give unto other what I myself would not desire. Although sometimes I make mistakes, I know to regret, and constantly check myself. Besides meditation, the purpose of my literary creation is to sow kindness in people as much as I am able. In my limited life, I will use my pen to take all opportunities of spreading the wisdom I have come to realise. My novel Da Mo Ji (Shanghai Culture Publish), Lie Yuan (Beijing Oct Art Publish) and The Stone Cavern of Western Xia are all immersed with the Buddhist spirit of benefiting people. Because of their existence, people who read them become more understanding, kind and compassionate than before. Certainly, what I have done is a long way from what I aspire, but I believe that as long as there is persistence, I eventually will achieve my goal.

There are many edifications in the life of lama Tangdong. The value of one person depends on his heart and conduct, and has nothing to do with others. Many people often suggest I have my fortune told. I said “Fate can be changed. If the heart changes, fate will change. If you have the heart of petty person, you will have the fate of a petty person, doing only that which benefits oneself at a loss to others. If your heart changes from pettiness to nobleness, your heart will direct your action in noble things, and then your fate will become the fate of the noble.” Things are really like that. When Milaripa killed, his fate was that of an avenger. When he steeled his heart to entreat dharma from Marpa, his fate became that of a dharma seeker. When he attained ultimate achievement, his fate became the fate of great adepts. Once the heart changes, fate will change accordingly. The actions of Great Saint Tangtong were not things that only he could complete. Anyone could have done it, but the reason only Tangtong Lama has as merits as great as the sun and moon is that Tangtong did what others did not do. His heart dictated his action. His action created the value of his life. When you understand this point, you will discover that become any great saint is possible. You need only follow a word everyone has heard “altruism”. Unfortunately, because of greed and delusion, this easily spoken word is as hard to put in action as going to the sky.

I have always been interested in The Four Lessons of Liaofan. That talk about how to change fate by doing good and kind deeds. I have talked about this book with a Buddhist. He said, what this book mentions is only leakable reward of fortunate. Because there is no true nature of good and bad, meditators should concentrate on liberation and attaining ultimate benefit through meditation. But we cannot give up small good deeds because of this. The bridges built by Tangdong lama will break eventually, but his the spirit of his actions shines like the sun and moon.

I often say to others: Bodhisattva referred to in Buddhism does not refer to any specific person, but to a spirit that benefits living beings. Benevolence focused on mercy is called Avalokitesvara, benevolence focused on wisdom is called Manjusri and benevolence focused on courage and strength called Vajrapani. Buddhism is such a spirit, what has shone for thousands of years is this spirit.

What Tangtong lama demonstrated is precisely such spirit.

I often think about the meaning of life. I deeply appreciate the empty nature of all dharma and the changeable nature of everything, and I have also often fallen into confusion. Since there is no “ego”, what is the one that needs liberation? Since nothing in the world can avoid creation, being, injury and destruction, and this world will eventually perish, then all kind deeds are obviously not forever. Their nature too, is empty. What then is the meaning of meditation? Later, I understood. Although human existence is also an illusory phenomenon, it is also relatively everlasting in a spiritual level.

There are many things which meanings beyond themselves, such as giving up the body to feed the tiger and cutting flesh to feed the hawk. The body and tiger, flesh and hawk, have by now disappeared into the dust of an unknown place, but the spirit is passed on in the form of stories, giving people everlasting spiritual nutrition. This is also the meaning of religion.

When thinking about Tangtong lama, we cannot fail to be deeply moved by his career and try our best to leave from the bad interest and become a little more noble. This significance is great than the building of his bridges.