Dromtön, Drom Tonpa or Dromtönpa Gyelwé Jungné (, 1004 or 1005–1064) was the chief disciple of the Buddhist master
Atiśa
Atish Dipankar Shrijnan (Sanskrit transliteration: Atiśa Dipankara Shrijnana) (c. 982–1054 CE) was a Bengalis, Bengali Buddhist religious teacher and leader. He is generally associated with his body of work authored at Vikramashila, Vikram ...
, the initiator of the
Kadam school of
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism is a form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet, Bhutan and Mongolia. It also has a sizable number of adherents in the areas surrounding the Himalayas, including the Indian regions of Ladakh, Gorkhaland Territorial Administration, D ...
and the founder of
Reting Monastery.
Early life and education
Dromtönpa was born in
Tolung at the beginning of the period of the second propagation of Buddhism in Tibet. "His father was Kushen Yaksherpen (sku gshen yag gsher 'phen) and his mother was Kuoza Lenchikma (khu 'od bza' lan gcig ma)." His father's title ''skugshen'' indicates he was an important figure in the
Bon
Bon or Bön (), also known as Yungdrung Bon (, ), is the indigenous Tibetan religion which shares many similarities and influences with Tibetan Buddhism.Samuel 2012, pp. 220–221. It initially developed in the tenth and eleventh centuries but ...
tradition. He began preaching in
Tibet
Tibet (; ''Böd''; ), or Greater Tibet, is a region in the western part of East Asia, covering much of the Tibetan Plateau and spanning about . It is the homeland of the Tibetan people. Also resident on the plateau are other ethnic groups s ...
in 1042.
Career
Dromtön is considered to be the 45th incarnation of
Avalokiteśvara
In Buddhism, Avalokiteśvara (meaning "the lord who looks down", International Phonetic Alphabet, IPA: ), also known as Lokeśvara ("Lord of the World") and Chenrezig (in Tibetan), is a Bodhisattva#Bhūmis (stages), tenth-level bodhisattva associ ...
, an important
bodhisattva
In Buddhism, a bodhisattva is a person who has attained, or is striving towards, '' bodhi'' ('awakening', 'enlightenment') or Buddhahood. Often, the term specifically refers to a person who forgoes or delays personal nirvana or ''bodhi'' in ...
and thus a member of the early lineage of the Dalai Lamas (the First Dalai Lama is said to have been the 51st incarnation).
Dromtön founded
Reting Monastery in 1056 in the Reting Tsampo Valley north of Lhasa which became the seat of the Kadampa lineage and brought some relics of Atisha there.
[Dowman, Keith. (1988). ''The Power-Places of Central Tibet: The Pilgrim's Guide'', p. 93. Routledge & Kegan Paul, London. .]
Students
It was Dromtönpa's student
Chekawa Yeshe Dorje
Geshe Chekhawa (or Chekawa Yeshe Dorje) (1102–1176) was a prolific Kadampa Buddhist meditation master who was the author of the celebrated root text ''Training the Mind in Seven Points'', which is an explanation of Buddha's instructions on trai ...
who first compiled Atiśa's core teachings on the practice
Lojong
Lojong (, 'mind training') is a contemplative practice in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition which makes use of various lists of aphorisms or slogans which are used for contemplative practice. The practice involves refining and purifying one's m ...
for developing of
bodhicitta
In Mahayana Buddhism, bodhicitta ("aspiration to enlightenment" or "the thought of awakening") is the mind ( citta) that is aimed at awakening (bodhi) through wisdom and compassion for the benefit of all sentient beings.Dayal, Har (1970). ''T ...
in written form, as ''The Seven Point Mind Training''.
Footnotes
Further reading
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Dromton
1000s births
1064 deaths
11th-century lamas
11th-century Tibetan people
Kadampa lamas
Tibetan Buddhists from Tibet