Luipa

Luipa or Luipada (c. 10th century) was a mahasiddha siddhacharya from the Brahmaputra Valley or Luit. He was a Buddhist saint from the Kamrupian Kãivartā community. He was a poet and writer of a number of uddhist textsmainly the Charyapadas which is the earliest form of the Assamese Language.

Nomenclature and etymology

Although the Tibetan translation for ''Lui'' is "the fish-gut eater" (), the root of the word is probably Sanskrit ''lohita'' which means "red" and the names like Luidhar, Luichandra and Luiya mentioned in the ''Dharmamangal''s of the late medieval period originated from the same root.Sen, Sukumar (2002). ''Charyageeti Padabali'' (in Bengali), Ananda Publishers, Kolkata, , pp.20-1

Ayyappapanicker & Akademi (1997: p. 599) amplify the view of prior scholarship in that the nomenclature "Luipa" is related to the Brahmaputra River:

Hagiographical accounts

Luipa appears in ''The Legends of Eighty-four Siddhas'' (), a Tibetan namtar detailing the lives of Indian mahasiddhas. It was written by the Tibetan monk Mondup Sherab and was probably a translation of the ''Chaturashiti-Siddha-Pravritti'', based on what was narrated to him by Abhayadatta Sri of Champaran (c. 12th century). In the ''Chaturasiti-Siddha-Pravritti'', Luipa is said to be the second son of a very rich king of Singhaladvipa, believed to be Sri Lanka. However, several other regions were also known as Singhaladvipa, and one of them was Oddiyana, which other sources mentioned as the place of birth of Luipa.

Luipa's father chose him as his successor, but he left his kingdom to achieve bodhi, i.e. enlightenment. Luipa first headed for Ramesvaram and then went to Vajrasana, known today as Bodh Gaya, the place where Gautama Buddha achieved enlightenment. There Luipa received his first teaching from a dakini. Later, when he reached Saliputra, or Magadha, a ''Loka-Dakini'' advised him to get rid of the slightest pride of his royal blood to achieve enlightenment by leaving aside all prejudices regarding the purity of foods. Following her advice, Luipa consumed only the guts of the fishes thrown away by the fishermen on the Ganges for twelve years. This practice led to him being known as Lui, one who eats fish-guts.

Luipa also appears in the ''Chaturashiti-Siiddha-Pravritti'', where he meets the king of Magadha, Indrapala and his Brahmin minister. These two became his disciples and were known as Darikapa and Dengipa. Luipa initiated them into the mandala of Cakrasaṃvara.

In Buton Rinchen Drub's ''History of Buddhism'' (), Luipa is mentioned as the son of King Lalitachandra of Oddiyana. When the prince met Śabara, a disciple of Saraha, he was immensely impressed by this great adept and begged him for instruction. He received initiation into the tantra of Cakrasaṃvara. The initial part of his penance was completed when he joined a circle of twenty-four Dakas and Dakinis in a ganachakra in a charnel ground which climaxed in consumption of the corpse of a sage. With a final blessing from his Guru he left Oddiyana and became a mendicant sage. The period ended when, feeling the need for sustained one-pointed meditation practice, he sat down to meditate beside a pile of fish-guts by the banks of the River Ganges in Bengal, where he remained till he had attained mahamudra-siddhi, the highest level of spiritual attainment in Vajrayana Buddhism.

The Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism records that Luipa's was a ''kayastha'' or scribe, at the court of Dharmapala, the emperor of Varendra in northern Bengal. While begging for alms at Dharmapala's palace Savaripa recognized the scribe Luipa as a suitable recipient for his Samvara lineage; his extraordinary talent was evident in the versified letters he wrote to the king's correspondents, a task requiring a pointed concentration.

The account of Luipa found in the work of Taranatha, a scholar from the Jonang school of Tibetan Buddhism, differs significantly from that found in Buton's work. Here, Luipa was a scribe to the King of Oddiyana and was initiated into the Vajravārāhī mandala.

Poetry of Luipa rendered into English

The following poetic extract of Luipa is from his work, '' Kāā Tarubara'', the first ''pada'' of the ''Charyapada'' (c. 9-10th century) and rendered into English by Mahendra Bora and cited in Ayyappapanicker & Akademi (1997: p. 599):
:The body is a gentle tree with its branches five in number,
:Into the stuff of unsteady mind enters Time the wrecker.
:Get your mind steadied and enjoy the bliss never-waning,
:Lui counsels, know it from your teacher just by asking:
:Why all these modes of meditation one should toil and try,
:When going through joy and sorrow all must one day die?
:Ignoring this bond of deception, trust in sense-perception,
:Riding on the wings of pure void, make her your companion.
:Lui testifies, I have seen her clear in my meditation,
:Seated on twin mats doing inhalation and exhalation.
It is also notable to refer here that Luipa has also contributed to the 29th song/Raga/Hymn of the Charyapada, the first discovered manuscript of Bangla Literature. This song is reads:-
:Where is it and where is it not that entity;
:Who is here to be pleased with this duality?
:The truth is really far to find
:The feelings like senses can never bind.
:That is non-perceived by colored forms and signs
:The Vedas and Agamas trace only in blind.
:The moon reflected in the water
:Perceives as true even mirage for sure.
:What is for me to think as astray
:The life I lead in transcendental gay?

Date of Luipa

The most significant information available from the legends of the Sakya school is that Luipa worked at the court of the Maharaja of Varendra, Dharmapala. If this king is same as Pala Emperor Dharmapala, then this identification places Luipa as a younger contemporary of Dharmapala (770 – 810 CE). If Luipa was initiated in his youth, his date of initiation must be at the end of the eighth century or the beginning of the ninth century.

In the ''Abhisamaya-Vibhanga'' of the Tengyur, Atiśa is mentioned as a co-author of the text along with him but it seems that actually Atisha had either completed his text or wrote a ''Vibhanga'' (commentary) on his ''Abhisamaya''. So, it is more probable that he belonged to the 10th century.

From Luipa's date, his guru Śabara's time can be fixed, along with the dates of his disciples Darikapa and Dengipa, and also Dombi Heruka, whom Luipa taught. Since Kilapa was probably one of his descendants, his date can also be fixed.

Identification with Minapa/Matsyendranath

Many modern scholars have identified Luipa with Matsyendranath, the ''adiguru'' and the founder of the Nath Sampradaya

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