![Pehar](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/63/Pehar.jpg)
According to
Tibetan Buddhist
Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...
myth, Gyalpo Pehar (
lso spelt: ''pe kar'' & ''dpe dkar'' is a spirit belonging to the
gyalpo class. When
Padmasambhava
Padmasambhava ("Born from a Lotus"), also known as Guru Rinpoche (Precious Guru) and the Lotus from Oḍḍiyāna, was a tantric Buddhist Vajra master from India who may have taught Vajrayana in Tibet (circa 8th – 9th centuries)... According ...
arrived in
Tibet
Tibet (; ''Böd''; ) is a region in East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are some other ethnic groups such as Monpa, Taman ...
in the eighth century, he subdued all
gyalpo spirits and put them under control of Gyalpo Pehar, who promised not to harm any sentient beings and was made the chief guardian spirit of
Samye
Samye (, ), full name Samye Mighur Lhundrub Tsula Khang (Wylie: ''Bsam yas mi ’gyur lhun grub gtsug lag khang'') and Shrine of Unchanging Spontaneous Presence is the first Tibetan Buddhist and Nyingma monastery built in Tibet, during the reign ...
during the reign of
Trisong Deutsen. Pehar is the leader of a band of five gyalpo spirits and would later become the protector deity of
Nechung Monastery in the 17th century under the auspices of the
Fifth Dalai Lama
Ngawang Lobsang Gyatso (; ; 1617–1682) was the 5th Dalai Lama and the first Dalai Lama to wield effective temporal and spiritual power over all Tibet. He is often referred to simply as the Great Fifth, being a key religious and temporal leader ...
.
After the fall of the
Western Xia
The Western Xia or the Xi Xia (), officially the Great Xia (), also known as the Tangut Empire, and known as ''Mi-nyak''Stein (1972), pp. 70–71. to the Tanguts and Tibetans, was a Tangut-led Buddhist imperial dynasty of China tha ...
, the influx of
Tangut refugees into Tibet led to the adoption of Pehar into Tibetan Buddhism, eventually in the important role as the state oracle, the
Nechung Oracle
The Nechung Oracle is the personal oracle of the Dalai Lama since the second Dalai Lama. The medium currently resides in Nechung Monastery established Dalai Lama in Dharamsala, India. The Nechung Oracle was the designated head of the Nechung ...
.
References
External links
Buddhist Worldly Protector: Pehar- at HimalayanArt.org
Dorje Legpa Votive Plaque at the University of Michigan Museum of Art
Dharmapalas
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