Dudul Dorje was born in 1615 in the Ngulpu (dngul phu) valley of the Derge region of eastern Tibet, near its capital city. His father, Lukyab (klu skyabs), was a doctor from the Ling (gling) clan—the ancestral clan of the legendary King Gesar—which vied for control of a large swath of Kham in the seventeenth century. His mother was named Boluma (bo lu ma). His father taught him to read and write and the fundamentals of Tibetan medicine, and it is said that Dudul Dorje took an interest in religious practice from a very early age, experiencing visions of deities and masters of the past.
At five years old, his family brought him for a refuge ceremony with Sakya Dakchen Jamyang Tutop Wangchuk (sa skya bdag chen mthu stobs dbang phyug, b. 1588), who was visiting Kham from Sakya Monastery (sa skya dgon) in Tsang. A few years later, Dudul Dorje enrolled in Lhundrubteng (lhun grub steng), the royal Sakya monastery at Derge Gonchen (sde dge dgon chen), which had been founded by Tangtong Gyelpo (thang stong rgyal po) in 1448. He took monastic ordination from Kunga Gyatso (kun dga' rgya mtsho), a reincarnation of the great treasure revealer, or terton (gter ston) Rigdzin Godemchen (rig 'dzin rgod lden can, 1337–1409). From him, he received the name Kunga Sonam Chopak (kun dga' bsod nams chos 'phags).
After studying at Lhundrubteng for several years, in his late teens, he sought out instructions in the Nyingma tradition from Konchok Gyeltsen (dkon mchog rgyal mtshan),[1] a meditation master associated with Katok Monastery (kaH thog dgon) who was then staying at Muksang Monastery (rmug sangs dgon) in Jomda—a branch of the major Nyingma monastery of Pelyul (dpal yul dgon). With this master, he received Dzogchen teachings and reportedly attained deep meditative realization.
Next, in his early twenties, from the Derge region he traveled south to Kongpo, where, in the Nyangpo (nyang po) valley, he received empowerments, instructions, and transmissions from Nyangpo Drubtob Terton Tashi Tseten (nyang po grub thob gter ston bkra shis tshe brtan). He then stayed in a valley called Drakar Lhachu (brag dkar lha chu), where he stopped taking food and relied on the alchemical methods of "extracting the essence" (bcud len) of stones and herbs while engaging in yogic practices.
After an unspecified amount of time, he traveled through the central Tibetan regions of U (dbu) and Tsang (gtsang) where he visited Ngor (ngor) and other Sakya monasteries and received the Lamdre Sakya teachings.
He then made his way back to Kongpo, where at Bangri Hermitage (bang ri) he met the treasure revealer Jatson Nyingpo ('ja' tshon snying po, 1585–1656), from whom he received empowerments, transmissions, and instructions, including for Jatson Nyingpo's own treasures. Jatson Nyingpo also prophesied that Dudul Dorje would become a treasure revealer in his own right and instructed him to enter retreat in the verdant southern Tibetan region of Powo (spo bo) and await his destiny to unfold. Jatson Nyingpo also gave him prophesies encouraging him to "open"—that is, bring Buddhism to—the hidden land (sbas yul) of Pemako (pad+ma bkod) and teach the isolated tribes in the region.[2] Pemako was seen by some at the time as a place of refuge from the invasions and political turmoil that would lead, for example, to the sacking of Mindroling Monastery (smin grol gling dgon) in 1717 and the murder of its co-leader, Lochen Dharma Śrī (lo chen dharma shrI, 1654–1717/1718) by Zungkar Mongolian forces.[3] In Powo, he practiced Ratna Lingpa's treasure The Utterly Secret and Unsurpassed Kīlaya (phur pa yang sang bla med). Eventually, he attained a vision of Padmasambhava who granted him empowerments and transmissions and confirmed his destiny as a treasure revealer.[4] He also visited a Nyingma master from Mustang, named Orgyen Pelzang (o rgyan dpal bzang, 1617–1677) who likewise encouraged his path.[5]
In 1643, when he was twenty-eight years old (twenty-nine by the Tibetan custom of reckoning), he found a qualified consort—which tradition holds is a necessary precondition for most treasure revelations—named Lhachik Pemakyi (lha gcig pad+ma skyid). While practicing with her at Yutso Rinchen Drak (g.yu mtsho rin chen brag), and with the assistance of an attendant named Orgyen Gyatso (o rgyan rgya mtsho), he revealed a registry (kha byang) for his first treasure cycle, The Complete Gathering of the Holy Dharma's Intent (dam chos dgongs pa yongs 'dus). A "registry" in this context means that he received the names and relevant sites of the treasures, which would be revealed physically over the next year or two.[6] With Lhachik Pemakyi, he would have a son known as Gyelse Norbu Yongdrak (rgyal sras nor bu yongs grags), who would become one of his heirs.
Within a few years, in the company of seven or eight disciples at Tsawa Drodrak (tsha ba sgro brag), Dudul Dorje began revealing the three volumes of his second major treasure cycle: Holy Teachings of the Heart Essence of the Nirmāṇakāya (dam chos sprul sku snying thig). At this time, he had taken a new consort named Sonam Kyi (bsod nams skyid)—the daughter of a local chief. With her, he would have two sons—Tutob Dorje (mthu stobs rdo rje) and Chime Dorje ('chi med rdo rje)—and one daughter, Semo Tsewang Gyalmo (sras mo tshe dbang rgyal mo).[7]
Next, when he was thirty-five, at Puri Dakdzong (spu ri dag rdzong),[8] just west of Powo, he revealed his third major treasure cycle, The Profound Meaning of the Secret Heart Essence (zab don gsang ba snying thig).[9]
Finally, around 1645, still in his thirties, at Puri Shelgi Yangdrom (spu ri shel gyi yang sgrom), he revealed his fourth and last major treasure cycle called The Trio of Amitāyus, Yangdak Heruka, and Vajrakīla (tshe yang phur gsum), which was only partially transcribed at the time and completed around seventeen years later.[10]
Throughout his thirties, during the 1640s and 1650s, he traveled extensively and revealed additional treasures at Powo; Tromzil Trom (khrom zil khrom); Gyokchen Dongra (sgyog chen gdong ra); Magyel Pomra (rma rgyal spom ra); Rudam (ru dam); Lhadrak Kar (lha brag dkar); Dudri Namchak (bdud ri gnam lcags); Dechen Sangpuk (bde chen gsang phug); Samye (bsam yas); Serachok (bse rwa cog); Shinje Donka (gshin rje dong kha); Rigdzin Sangpuk (rig 'dzin gsang phug); Nabun Dzong (na bun rdzong); the Jokhang Temple (jo khang) in Lhasa, and other sites. These treasure-revealing activities, however, only resulted in a few scriptures. Tradition holds that the majority of them were not deciphered into Tibetan, and so were not taught or preserved.[11] In addition to the texts he revealed, many of his treasures were images, sacred objects, and substances. A detailed description of these items, as well as Dudul Dorje's treasure-revealing process, can be found in the seventeenth-century scholar Takrepa's (stag ras pa) Concise Biography and Treasure History (gter 'byung mdor bsdus pa).[12]
By the time he reached his early forties, Dudul Dorje had earned a reputation as a formidable treasure revealer, and in 1656, when he was forty-two, he was invited back to his home region of Derge by his former teacher Kunga Gyatso and the Derge prince and ranking preceptor at Lhundrubteng, Jampa Puntsok ('byams pa phun tshogs). The Derge hierarchs felt that Dudul Dorje had been prophesied as a master who would benefit the teachings and beings of the realm; they even constructed a shrine in his honor—the Dudul Temple (bdud 'dul lha khang)—on the government estates.
The Derge of 1656 was not the one Dudul Dorje remembered from his childhood in the 1620s. The kingdom had grown significantly in power and administrative reach—much of this due to the increasingly complicated geo-political climate in Tibet, where the Fifth Dalai Lama (ta la'i bla ma 05, 1617–1682) and the Mongolian strongman Gushri Khan (gu shrI bstan 'dzin chos rgyal, 1582–1655) were consolidating power. In the late 1630s and early 1640s, Derge was fortunate enough to receive support from Gushri Khan, allowing it to become one of eastern Tibet's main powers. In accord with the times, the Derge Kingdom loosely adopted the "religion and politics combined" (chos srid gnyis ldan) form of government that had been established by the Dalai Lama and Gushri Khan. Thus, while religion and politics had almost always been closely intertwined in greater Tibet, by the time Dudul Dorje reached Derge in 1656, their tense symbiosis had intensified. It was no longer sufficient to have a strong king who also led the religious establishment; it was more necessary than ever for the king and his court to constantly replenish their authority through the legitimization of charismatic religious leaders who would actively participate in the kingdom's institutions. This was the role Dudul Dorje was meant to play.[13]
Unsurprisingly, the atmosphere in Derge at the time was fraught with competitiveness, intrigue, and all the other infelicities of high-stakes politics and economics. While the details of his activities there are fuzzy, he is likely to have been employed mostly in rituals for the benefit of the state and in giving teachings to the court and religious elites. During his years as Derge chaplain, he toured the regions of Dzing Namgyel ('dzing rnam rgyal), Barom ('ba' rom/rong), and the great Nyingma monasteries of the region, including Katok, where he remained in retreat for some time at the Tapu Drak Hermitage (rta phu brag dben). Posthumously, owing to the influence of his disciple, Longsel Nyingpo (klong gsal snying po, 1625–1692), Dudul Dorje and his treasures would become one of the pillars of the Katok tradition.
Within a few years of his arrival in Derge, however, it is said that an influential Sakya lama named Sangye Pelzang (sangs rgyas dpal bzang) succeeded in impugning Dudul Dorje's integrity, thus souring his relationship with the king and making his presence there uncomfortable. The exact motivations behind his departure remain open to speculation. Jann Ronis argues that one of the reasons why Dudul Dorje moved on from Derge was that he may have neglected to contribute to the strengthening of the kingdom's institutions, perhaps by having focused more on the relatively low-profile tantric lifestyle he was accustomed to. By contrast, Dudul Dorje's disciple, Longsel Nyingpo later enjoyed sustained Derge patronage largely thanks to his immense efforts in reviving and reforming the religious culture of the venerable Katok Monastery, which had fallen into a moribund condition.i[14]
Ronis also explains how Dudul Dorje had inadvertently made things difficult for himself with comments and prophecies in his early treasure cycles that were critical of the Fifth Dalai Lama. At the time of those cycles' revelation, it was by no means certain that the Fifth Dalai Lama would become the political powerhouse that he became. Dudul Dorje had little reason to promote a figurehead of the Geluk tradition, so, instead, passages in his revelations praise the Dalai Lama's rivals, namely the Tenth Karmapa Choying Dorje (karma pa 10 chos dbyings rdo rje, 1604–1674), Sakya Dakchen Tutob Wangchuk, and the political founder of Bhutan, Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel (zhabs drung ngag dbang rnam rgyal, 1594–1651). When Dudul Dorje was revealing his fourth treasure cycle in the late 1640s, however, the Dalai Lama's star had risen. Aware of this, Dudul Dorje tried to make up for his previous underestimation of the Dalai Lama by inviting him to be the destined treasure master (gter bdag) of his cycle The Trio of Amitāyus, Yangdak Heruka, and Vajrakīla. This move proved too little too late. Ronis explains that the Dalai Lama "was a discerning judge of character and an astute textual scholar, and these inconsistencies were not lost on him."[15] In the Fifth Dalai Lama's own writings, he said of Dudul Dorje, "Because of the contradictions I became convinced from the depths of my heart he is a hypocritical fabricator of treasures."[16]
This state of affairs ensured that Dudul Dorje would not be welcome back in central Tibet, nor would he enjoy support at Derge from the Dalai Lama's administration. By 1658 or 1659, Dudul Dorje left Derge, never to return.
From Derge he traveled to the rival kingdom of Ling (gling tshang) where he enjoyed the ruler's hospitality before moving around over the next several years through such places as Barkam (bar khams), Denyul (ldan yul), Karma Lhateng (karma lha steng), Riwoche (ri bo che), Gato (sga stod), and Nangchen (nang chen). In Nangchen, the important Nyingma-Kagyu master Karma Chakme (karma chags med, 1613–1678) introduced him to a young, up-and-coming treasure revealer, Namcho Mingyur Dorje (gnam chos mi 'gyur rdo rje, 1645–1667), with whom he would establish a close bond and exchange treasures.[17] Also around Nangchen, in the early 1660s, Dudul Dorje met another young treasure revealer, then eleven years old—Nyima Drakpa (nyi ma grags pa, 1647–1710), whose career he would support. Despite Dudul Dorje's own falling out at Derge, he remained respected there, and his legitimization of Nyima Drakpa helped that master later achieve considerable influence in Derge and Ling.[18]
According to Dudul Dorje's biographies, during his mature years he received invitations from powerful figures to return to central Tibet. These may have included the Sakya Zhabdrung Jamgon Amye Zhab Ngawang Kunga Sonam ('jam mgon a myes zhabs ngag dbang kun dga' bsod nams, 1597–1660) and the ruler of Taktse, a district near Lhasa.[19] However, they agree that his further activities in the region were thwarted by unnamed enemies.[20] Most extant hagiographies even claim that the Fifth Dalai Lama encouraged him to return, but this seems to gloss over the Dalai Lama's firm rejection of Dudul Dorje in the late 1640s. Indeed, Chatral Sangye Dorje (bya bral sangs rgyas rdo rje, 1915–2013), writing in the twentieth century, says that the reason Dudul Dorje did not return to central Tibet was that the Fifth Dalai Lama was "a bit unhappy with him."[21]
In Dudul Dorje's own treasure Self-liberation Upon Hearing: A Guidebook to the Joyful Land of Pemako, a prophesy attributed to Padmasambhava laments the embroilments Dudul Dorje had to endure:
Even though this fortunate person will have brought joy to the world, no one will acknowledge the potential benefits of his kindness.
They will abuse him like a dog and commit various acts of slander against him.
The one of spontaneous and miraculous birth sustains others' temporal and ultimate happiness with food, clothing and Dharma.
Those who are hypocritical, disreputable, and discordant have broken their samaya vows.
Due to pride in their own accomplishments, they will be blind to his (Düdül Dorjé's) good qualities.
They will become two-faced rivals, creating difficulties for the holy man with their malicious gossip.
Consequently, the swiftness of his Buddha activities, which are like sunbeams, will fade.[22]
On retiring from life among the political elites in the latter half of the 1660s, Dudul Dorje stayed mostly in the isolated and verdant southern Tibetan regions of Powo and Kongpo, where he "opened" multiple new pilgrimage sites, including in the hidden land of Pemako (pad+ma bkod), which he had previously explored at the command of his guru, Jatson Nyingpo.[23] Despite the area's picturesque landscapes, it was far from a touristic adventure. Indeed, he and his disciples were risking their lives to fulfill the prophecies they felt guided them. They would have camped in thick jungle on damp ground, foraged unfamiliar foods, and contended with strange new illnesses, tigers, snakes, insects, and hostile backwoods tribes.[24]
In these southern regions, he trained disciples and continued to occasionally reveal treasures, often with the assistance of his son, Gyelse Norbu Yongdrak, whose job it was to transcribe the treasures from the original yellow scrolls that had been concealed by Padmasambhava.
It was primarily during this period that he trained his influential disciple Longsel Nyingpo, who stayed with him for up to three years.[25] Also joining Longsel Nyingpo was his younger brother, Tashi Wozer (bkra shis 'od zer). In Powo he also transmitted his own treasures and the Heart Essence of the Great Perfection (rdzogs chen snying thig) to the First Dzogchen Drubwang Pema Rigdzin (rdzogs chen grub dbang 01 pad+ma rig 'dzin, 1625–697), the founder of Dzogchen Monastery (rdzogs chen dgon).
His other principal students included Bakha Rigdzin Chokyi Gyatso (rba kha rig 'dzin chos kyi rgya mtsho), Rigdzin Kunzang Sherab (rig 'dzin kun bzang shes rab), Kunzang Kyabdel Lhundrub (kun bzang khyab rdal lhun grub), Taksham Nuden Dorje (stag sham nus ldan rdo rje), and the First Pema Norbu (pad+ma nor bu, 1679–1757).
One of his illustrious female disciples was Rikden Orgyen Butri (rigs ldan o rgyan bu khrid), a reincarnation of Khandro Sonam Peldren (mkha' 'gro bsod nams dpal 'dren) and Tasho Bumo Pematso (lta shod bu mo pad+ma mtsho). As Terton Taksham Nuden Dorje's consort, Orgyen Butri helped open the sacred hidden lands of the Droklung ('brog lung) and Gawalung (dga' ba lung) regions of Powo.[26]
Dudul Dorje passed away in 1672 at the age of fifty-eight. His immediate reincarnation was Gyelse Sonam Detsen (rgyal sras bsod nams sde'u btsan, 1679–1728), the son of Longsel Nyingpo, and an important abbot of Katok Monastery.
Dudul Dorje's descendants continued to reside in Powo and the Derge region, producing multiple prominent lamas. One of these was Jamyang Khyentse Chokyi Lodro ('jam dbyangs mkhyen brtse chos kyi blo gros, 1893–1959), who descended from Dudul Dorje on his father's side.[27]
His and Longsel Nyingpo's writings were compiled and redacted in exile after 1959 by the Third Zhichen Bairo Tulku (gzhi chen bai ro sprul sku) of Katok Monastery, which greatly contributing to their preservation and spread to the present day.[28]
Dudjom Rinpoche Jigdrel Yeshe Dorje (bdud 'joms rin po che 'jigs bral ye shes rdo rje, 1904–1987) is considered a later reincarnation of Dudul Dorje.
[1] This lama is variously named as Guru Sengha (gu ru seng+ha), Jatang Traya Singha (bya btang tra ya sing ha), Drenpa Konchok Gyeltsen ('dren pa dkon mchog rgyal mtshan), Ardo Konchok Sengge (a rdo dkon mchog seng ge), and Drenpa Konchok Sengge ('dren pa dkon mchog seng ge) See Ronis 2006, p. 174.
[2] Samuel, p. 72; Hazelton, p. 148; McDougal, p. 207.
[3] On the Zungkar sacking of Lhasa and Mindroling, see Petech, pp. 53–47; Townsend, pp. 112n71, 227–228.
[4] Cantwell 2020, p. 115.
[5] Ehrhard 1998.
[6] Ronis 2006, p. 174.
[7] Ronis 2006, p. 175; Stag ras pa kun bzang pad+ma blo ldan, p. 15.
[8] Gu ru bkra shis, p. 567. Stag ras pa kun bzang pad+ma blo ldan, p. 15.4 gives the spelling of this site as spu ri dwags rdzogs. Bya bral sangs rgyas rdo rje, p. 81 gives spu ri dwags rdzong.
[9] Stag ras pa kun bzang pad+ma blo ldan 1997, p. 15.
[10] Ronis (2006, p. 175), relying on Takrepa Kunzang Pema Loden, says that the remaining transcription occurred seven years later. Cathy Cantwell, investigating discrepancies in several sources' dating of the matter, argues that it happened seventeen years later (Cantwell 2020, pp. 116–117).
[11] The titles of these treasure texts can be found in Dudjom 1991, p. 815. See also Ronis 2006, 175; Thinley Norbu, "Tragtung Dudul Dorje."
[12] Stag ras pa kun bzang pad+ma blo ldan 1997, pp. 21–52.
[13] Ronis 2006, pp. 177, 179.
[14] Ronis 2006, p. 180; Cantwell 2020, p. 113n1.
[15] Ronis 2006, p. 183.
[16] Ronis 2006, p. 183. See also Bya bral sangs rgyas rdo rje, p. 85.
[17] Ronis 2006, p. 181. More on the meeting between Mingyur Dorje and Dudul Dorje can be found in Karma Chagme, pp. 160–171.
[18] For more about his relationship with Nyima Drakpa, see Cuevas, p. 187.
[19] Stag ras pa kun bzang pad+ma blo ldan (1997, p. 19) names this second figure as Kyisho Taiji Dorje Namgyal (P2672 skyid shod tha'i ji rdo rje rnam rgyal).
[20] Gu ru bkra shis, p. 569; Bya bral sangs rgyas rdo rje, p. 85.
[21] Bya bral sangs rgyas rdo rje, p. 85.
[22] Modified from Maynard, p. 118.
[23] Bya bral sangs rgyas rdo rje, p. 86.
[24] For a creative description of their journey, see Baker, Part 1.1, "A Curriculum of Caves."
[25] Ronis 2009, p. 59
[26] Ehrhard 2021, pp. 170–171.
[27] Bya bral sangs rgyas rdo rje, p. 87; Dilgo Khyentse, ch. 1.
[28] Cantwell, pp. 117–118.
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Publication of this biography was made possible through support of Jnanasukha Foundation.
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