The formative impact of Guru Chöwang's Secret Embodiment of the Lama (bla ma gsang 'dus) on the Padmasambhava ritual traditions

Book section : Chapter

The discussion of Padmasambhava rituals in this chapter represents provisional work towards what I hope will be more extensive research on Guru Chöwang’s legacy.118 It also ties in with my doctoral fieldwork on contemporary rNying ma ritual from the early 1980s, and with much of the Tibetan Studies work I have been involved with over the years, including work on the rNying ma canon, and early Tibetan Buddhist tantric rituals. After all, Padmasambhava or Guru Rinpoche is central to all rNying ma ritual and meditative practice. There is also considerable continuity between Guru Rinpoche related tantric rituals of different cycles, and here I introduce a thirteenth century Revelation (gter ma) which left its indelible mark on the tradition: that of the Secret Embodiment of the Lama (bla ma gsang ’dus) of Guru Chos kyi dbang phyug or Guru Chöwang (guru chos dbang) for short...

Authors: Cantwell, C

• Publication status: Published
• Peer review status: Peer reviewed
• Publisher: Garuda Books
• Host title: About Padmasambhava: Historical Narratives and later Transformation of Guru Rinpoche
• Pages: 123-145
• Chapter number: 4
• Place of publication: Switzerland
• Publication date: 2020-01-01
• Edition: 1
• ISBN-10: 3906139360
• ISBN-13: 9783906139364
• Language: English
• Subtype: Chapter