The Treasury of Lives

Rongton Sheja Kunrik (rong ston shes bya kun rig) was born into a Bonpo family from Gyelrong (rgyal mo rong), a region of Kham. 

As a boy, Rongton studied Bon teachings with his father. At age eighteen he moved to central Tibet to study at Sangpu Neutok (gsang phu ne'u thog) monastery, a highly esteemed center of Kadampa and Sakya learning, especially known for the study of logic. There he took his bodhisattva vows with Rinchen Namgyel (rin chen rnam rgyal, 1318-1388) and studied the sutras, tantras, and Buddhist sciences with great determination. In particular, he studied the lineage of Ngok the Translator (rngog lugs), Madhyamaka, the Eastern Vinaya (smad lugs) tradition, the Abhidharmakośa, Prāsaṅgika Madhyamaka, and the Higher Abhidharma with various masters. By the age of twenty Rongton had achieved an extraordinary level of knowledge and renown and was given the name Mawai Sengge (smra ba'i seng se), after the manifestation of Padmasambhava associated with Mañjuśrī. At twenty-two when he approached the completion of his foundational studies he was given the name Shākya Gyeltsen (shAkya rgyal mtshan).

Sheja Kunrik studied with Yakton Sanggye Pel (g.yag ston sangs rgyas dpal, 1350-1414), Sonam Zangpo (bsod nams bzang po, 1341-1433), Sengge Gyeltsen (seng ge rgyal mtshan, d.u.), and Zhonnu Gyeltsen (gzhon nu rgyal mtshan, d.u.), among others.

In 1424 at Gyelkhartse (rgyal khar mtse) he met the Bengali paṇḍit Vanaratna, who was in Tibet on his first of three journeys there. Vanaratna taught Rongton the Kalāpasūtra, a famous Sanskrit grammar, with the services of a translator named Mañjuśrī. 

Over the course of his long career, Rongton taught at Sangpu Neutok and also traveled throughout U-Tsang and Ngari, visiting sacred places and teaching many students as he went. During his travels he earned the reputation of a great teacher particularly in regards to the sutras although he also taught extensively on Vajrayāna.

Rongton's students included Drakpa Zangpo (grags pa bzang po, d.u.), Zhonnu Pel (gzhon nu dpal, 1392-1481), Shākya Chokden (shAkya mchog ldan, 1428-1507), Yonten Gyatso (yon tan rgya mtsho, 1443-1521), Gorampa Sonam Sengge (go rams pa bsod nams seng ge, 1429-1489), and the Sixth Karmapa, Tongwa Donden (karma pa 06 mthong ba don ldan, 1416-1453), Konchok Gyeltsen (dkon mchog rgyal mtshan, 1388-1469), Namkha Pelzang (nam mkha' dpal bzang, d.u.) as well as many others.

Although he put remarkable effort into teaching, Rongton was also a great yogic practitioner. To attest to Rongton's yogic mastery, one biographical account tells that when Rongton's big toenail fell off it turned into a substance like mother of pearl.

Like his root teacher, Yakton Sanggye Pel, Rongton was a great master in the transmission of Abhidharmakośakārika and was famous for his knowledge of the Prajñāpāramitā teachings, on which he composed a commentary called shes rab kyi pha rol tu phyin pa'i lam nyams su len pa'i rim pa mun sel sgron me. Under Sanggye Pel he also studied and composed a commentary on Haribhadra's Clear Meaning Commentary (Sphutartha), a celebrated work on Maitreya's Abhisamayālaṅkāra. Rongton was the author of a commentary on Maitreya's Great Vehicle Treatise on the Sublime Continuum called Theg pa chen po rgyud bl ma'i bstan bcos legs par 'grel ba. His written works also include dbu ma rtsa ba'i rnam bshad zab mo'i de kho na nyid snang ba, a work on the Root of the Middle Way.

There are a number of biographical works about Rongton, including two composed by his student Shākya Chokden and one by Namkha Pelzang, as well as one written in the twentieth century by Ngawang Tsultrim (ngag dbang tshul khrims).

Rongton founded Penpo Nalendra ('phan po na len dra) monastery, located north of Lhasa, in 1436 when he was sixty-nine years old. Before his death he appointed his famous disciple Dakpo Tashi Namgyel (dwags po bkra shis rnam rgyal, 1399-1458) as his heir at the monastery.