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Atiśa, also known as Dīpaṃkaraśrījñāna (982-1054), is famous for being a master from the ancient Indian Buddhist land of Bengal and for his journeys in Indonesia and Nepal. He is most well known for the last thirteen years of his life in Tibet. Atiśa was one of the most influential Indian Buddhist masters ever to set foot in Tibet. (James Apple, ''Atiśa Dīpaṃkara'', page 1).
In Tibet, Atiśa is known as Jowo Jé or Jowo Jé Palden Atisha (ཇོ་བོ་རྗེ་དཔལ་ལྡན་ཨ་ཏི་ཤ་) or Pandita Dipamkara (པཎྜིཏ་དཱི་པཾ་ཀ་ར་), where he is considered the founding father of the Kadam tradition. Born in Sāhor (modern-day Bangladesh), he became a scholar of the famous Indian university of Vikramaśila before coming to Tibet in 1042, where he taught and authored works that are still studied today. [https://bca.tsadra.org/index.php/Articles/Ati%C5%9Ba_D%C4%ABpa%E1%B9%83kara_%C5%9Ar%C4%ABj%C3%B1%C4%81na%27s_Teaching_on_the_Bodhisattvacary%C4%81vat%C4%81ra:_One_Text_to_Rule_Them_All_(Forgues_2024) Learn more about him and his teachings on The Way of the Bodhisattva here].<br>
'''Princeton Dictionary Entry:''' Indian Buddhist monk and scholar revered by Tibetan Buddhists as a leading teacher in the later dissemination (''phyi dar'') of Buddhism in Tibet. His name, also written as Atisha, is an Apabhraṃśa form of the Sanskrit term atiśaya, meaning “surpassing kindness.” Born into a royal family in what is today Bangladesh, Atiśa studied Mahāyāna Buddhist philosophy and tantra as a married layman prior to being ordained at the age of twenty-nine, receiving the ordination name of Dīpaṃkaraśrījñāna. After studying at the great monasteries of northern India, including Nālandā, Odantapurī, Vikramaśīla, and Somapura, he is said to have journeyed to the island of Sumatra, where he studied under the Cittamātra teacher Dharmakīrtiśrī (also known as guru Sauvarṇadvīpa) for twelve years; he would later praise Dharmakīrtiśrī as a great teacher of bodhicitta. Returning to India, he taught at the Indian monastic university of Vikramaśīla. Atiśa was invited to Tibet by the king of western Tibet Ye shes 'od and his grandnephew Byang chub 'od, who were seeking to remove perceived corruption in the practice of Buddhism in Tibet. Atiśa reached Tibet in 1042, where he initially worked together with the renowned translator Rin chen bzang po at Tho ling monastery in the translation of prajñāpāramitā texts. There, he composed his famous work, the ''Bodhipathapradīpa'', or “''Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment'',” an overview of the Mahāyāna Buddhist path that served as a basis for the genre of literature known as lam rim (“stages of the path”). (Source: "Atiśa Dīpaṃkaraśrījñāna." In ''The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism'', 77. Princeton University Press, 2014. http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt46n41q.27.)
Auguste Barth (born in Strasbourg 22 May 1834; died in Paris 15 April 1916) was a French orientalist. He is best known by his work in connection with the religions of India. His volume, ''Les religions de l'Inde'' (Paris, 1879), was translated into English (London, 1882). Mention may also be made of his ''Inscriptions sanscrites du Cambodge'' (Sanskrit inscriptions of Cambodia; Paris, 1885) and of numerous monographs and reviews in ''Journal Asiatique'', in ''Mélusine'', and in the ''Mémoires de la Société de Linguistique''. His annual reports on researches into the history of Indian religions, in ''Revue de l'Histoire des Religions'' (1880) are especially valuable. He was a member of the French Institute. Barth became a foreign member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences in 1896. ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Auguste_Barth Source Accessed Aug 15, 2023]) +
Aurelian Scrima was the founder and general manager of Herald Publishing House until 2016. +
Aśoka. (P. Asoka; T. Mya ngan med; C. Ayu wang; J. Aiku ō; K. Ayuk wang 阿育王) (c. 300-232 BCE; r. c. 268-232 BCE). Indian Mauryan emperor and celebrated patron of Buddhism; also known as Dharmāśoka. Son of Bindusāra and grandson of Candragupta, Aśoka was the third king of the Mauryan dynasty. Aśoka left numerous inscriptions recording his edicts and proclamations to the subjects of his realm. In these inscriptions, Aśoka is referred to as Devānām Priyaḥ, "beloved of the gods." These inscriptions comprise one of the earliest bodies of writing as yet deciphered from the Indian subcontinent. His edicts have been found inscribed on boulders, on stone pillars, and in caves and are widely distributed from northern Pakistan in the west, across the Gangetic plain to Bengal in the east, to near Chennai in South India. The inscriptions are ethical and religious in content, with some describing how Aśoka turned to the dharma after subjugating the territory of Kaliṅga (in the Coastal region of modern Andhra Pradesh) in a bloody war. In his own words, Aśoka states that the bloodshed of that campaign caused him remorse and taught him that rule by dharma, or righteousness, is superior to rule by mere force of arms. While the Buddha, dharma, and saṃgha are extolled and Buddhist texts are mentioned in the edicts, the dharma that Aśoka promulgated was neither sectarian nor even specifically Buddhist, but a general code of administrative, public, and private ethics suitable for a multireligious and multiethnic polity. It is clear that Aśoka saw this code of ethics as a diplomatic tool as well, in that he
dispatched embassies to neighboring states in an effort to establish dharma as the basis for international relations. The edicts were not translated until the nineteenth century, however, and
therefore played little role in the Buddhist view of Aśoka, which derives instead from a variety of legends told about the emperor. The legend of Aśoka is recounted in the Sanskrit Divyāvadāna, in the Pāli chronicles of Sri Lanka, Dīpavaṃsa and Mahāvaṃsa, and in the Pāli commentaries, particularly the
Samantapāsādikā. Particularly in Pāli materials, Aśoka is portrayed as a staunch sectarian and exclusive patron of the Pāli tradition. The inscriptional evidence, as noted above, does not support that claim. In the Mahāvaṃsa, for example, Aśoka is said to have been converted to Theravāda Buddhism by the
novice Nigrodha, after which he purifies the Buddhist saṃgha by purging it of non-Theravāda heretics. He then sponsors the convention of the third Buddhist council (samgītī) under the presidency of Moggaliputtatissa, an entirely Theravāda affair. Recalling perhaps the historical Aśoka's diplomatic missions, the legend recounts how, after the council, Moggaliputtatissa dispatched Theravāda missions,
comprised of monks, to nine adjacent lands for the purpose of propagating the religion, including Aśoka's son (Mahinda) and daughter (Saṅghamittā) to Sri Lanka. In Sri Lanka, where the legend appears to have originated, and in the Theravāda countries of Southeast Asia, the Pāli account of King Aśoka was adopted as one of the main paradigms of Buddhist kingship and models of ideal governance and proper saṃgha-state relations. A different set of legends, which do not recount the conversion
of Sri Lanka, appears in Sanskrit sources, most notably, the Aśokāvadāna. (Source: "Aśoka." In ''The Princeton Dictionary of Buddhism'', 70–71. Princeton University Press, 2014. http://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctt46n41q.27.)
Indian paṇḍita known to have been an expert in Abhidharma and to have assisted in the Tibetan translation of the ''Saddharmasmṛtyupasthānasūtra''. ([https://read.84000.co/translation/toh287.html Source Accessed Aug 31, 2021]) +
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Dynamic lecturer, progressive scholar, and one of the most prolific writers and translators of Tibetan Buddhism in the West, B. Alan Wallace, Ph.D., continually seeks innovative ways to integrate Buddhist contemplative practices with Western science to advance the study of the mind.
Dr. Wallace, a scholar and practitioner of Buddhism since 1970, has taught Buddhist theory and meditation worldwide since 1976. Having devoted fourteen years to training as a Tibetan Buddhist monk, ordained by H. H. the Dalai Lama, he went on to earn an undergraduate degree in physics and the philosophy of science at Amherst College and a doctorate in religious studies at Stanford. ([http://www.alanwallace.org Source Accessed Nov 17, 2020]) +
'Baatra' Erdene-Ochir is a Ph.D. student in Buddhist Studies. He received a bachelor's degree in philosophy from UCSB and a master's degree in theological studies from Harvard Divinity School. He is interested in Indo-Tibetan Buddhist philosophical polemics and the history of Buddhist scholastic traditions as well as monastic institutions in Tibet and Mongolia. ([https://www.religion.ucsb.edu/people/student/erdenebaatar-baatra-hehimhis-erdene-ochir/ Source Accessed June 9, 2021]) +
Dr. Baijnath Puri, the Professor Emeritus, was one of the leading Indian historians, a widely traveled man and was often invited to deliver lectures at many universities in Europe. He was for more than five years Professor and Head of the Department of Ancient Indian History and Archaeology at the Lucknow University.
His two works ''India in the Time of Patanjali'' and ''The History of the Gurjara Pratiharas'' earned him the two research degrees of M. Litt. and D. Phil. from the Oxford University. He has more than 25 published works to his credit. (Source: [https://www.mlbd.in/products/buddhism-in-central-asia-b-n-puri-9788120803725-8120803728 Motilal Banarsidass]) +
Baizhang Huaihai (Chinese: 百丈懷海; pinyin: Bǎizhàng Huáihái; Wade-Giles: Pai-chang Huai-hai; Japanese: Hyakujō Ekai) (720–814) was a Zen master during the Tang Dynasty. A native of Fuzhou, he was a dharma heir of Mazu Daoyi (Wade-Giles: Ma-tsu Tao-i).[1] Baizhang's students included Huangbo, Linji and Puhua.
Hagiographic depictions of Baizhang depict him as a radical and iconoclastic figure, but these narratives derive from at least a century and a half after his death and were developed and elaborated during the Song dynasty.[2] As Mario Poceski writes, the earliest strata of sources (such as the ''Baizhang guanglu'' 百丈廣錄 ) about this figure provide a "divergent image of Baizhang as a sophisticated teacher of doctrine, who is at ease with both the philosophical and contemplative aspects of Buddhism."[3] Poceski summarizes this figure thus:
:The image of Baizhang conveyed by the Tang-era sources is that of a learned and sagacious monk who is well versed in both the theoretical and contemplative aspects of medieval Chinese Buddhism. Here we encounter Baizhang as a teacher of a particular Chan brand of Buddhist doctrine, formulated in a manner and idiom that are unique to him and to the Hongzhou school as a whole. Nonetheless, he also comes across as someone who is cognizant of major intellectual trends in Tang Buddhism, as well as deeply steeped in canonical texts and traditions. His discourses are filled with scriptural quotations and allusions. He also often resorts to technical Buddhist vocabulary, of the kind one usually finds in the texts of philosophically oriented schools of Chinese Buddhism such as Huayan, Faxiang, and Tiantai. Here the primary mode in which Baizhang communicates his teachings is the public Chan sermon, presented in the ritual framework of “ascending the [Dharma] hall [to preach]” (''shangtang'').[4]
Regarding his teachings, Poceski notes:
:A central idea that infuses most of Baizhang’s sermons is the ineffability or indescribability of reality. Ultimate reality cannot be predicated in terms of conventional conceptual categories, as it transcends the familiar realm of words and ideas. Nonetheless, it can be approached or realized—as it truly is, without any accretions or distortions—as it manifests at all times and in all places. That is done by means of intuitive knowledge, whose cultivation is one of the cornerstones of Chan soteriology. Since the essence of reality cannot be captured or conveyed via the mediums of words and letters, according to Baizhang it is pointless to get stuck in dogmatic assertions, or to attach to a particular doctrine or practice. Like everything else, the various Chan (or more broadly Buddhist) teachings are empty of self-nature. They simply constitute expedient tools in an ongoing process of cultivating detachment and transcendence that supposedly free the mind of mistaken views and distorted ways of perceiving reality; to put it differently, they belong to the well-known Buddhist category of “skillful means” (''fangbian'', or upāya in Sanskrit). Holding on rigidly or fetishizing a particular text, viewpoint, or method of practice—even the most profound and potent ones—can turn out to be counterproductive, as it becomes a source of attachment that impedes spiritual progress. The perfection of the Chan path of practice and realization, therefore, does not involve the attainment of some particular ability or knowledge. Rather, in Baizhang’s text it is depicted as a process of letting go of all views and attachment that interfere with the innate human ability to know reality and experience spiritual freedom.[5]
One of his doctrinal innovations is what are called the “three propositions” (sanju), which are three distinct stages of spiritual realization or progressive ways of knowing:[6]
*Thoroughgoing detachment from all things and affairs
*Nonabiding in the state of detachment
*Letting go of even the subtlest vestiges of self-referential awareness or knowledge of having transcended detachment.
Baizhang's teachings and sayings have been translated by Thomas Cleary in ''Sayings and Doings of Pai-Chang''.[7] The Wild fox koan is attributed to Baizhang. ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baizhang_Huaihai Source Accessed July 15, 2021])
Nicola Bajetta is a Hamburg University graduate. Received the Khyentse Foundation Award for Excellence in Buddhist Studies (In recognition of distinction in the field of Indo-Tibetan Buddhist Studies for the year 2018). +
Balangoda Ananda Maitreya Thero (Sinhala: අග්ග මහා පණ්ඩිත බලංගොඩ ආනන්ද මෛත්රෙය මහා නා හිමි;23 August 1896 – 18 July 1998; was a Sri Lankan Buddhist monk who was one of the most distinguished scholars and expositors of Theravada Buddhism in the twentieth century. He was highly respected by Sri Lankan Buddhists, who believed that he had achieved a higher level of spiritual development.[2][5] Sri Lankan Buddhists also considered Balangoda Ananda Maitreya Thero as a Bodhisattva, who will attain Buddhahood in a future life.
Balangoda Ananda Maitreya Thero lived a modest life and did a great service for the propagation of Buddhist philosophy. In recognition of his valuable service at the Sixth Buddhist council held in Burma, the Burmese government conferred on him the title of Agga Maha Pandita (Chief Great Scholar) in 1956. Later in March 1997, the Burmese government conferred on Balangoda Ananda Maitreya Thero the highest Sangha title, Abhidhaja Maha Rattha Guru (Most Eminent Great Spiritual Teacher), which is equivalent to Sangharaja, in honor of his unique service to the Buddhist religion. ([https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Balangoda_Ananda_Maitreya_Thero Source Accessed Feb 13, 2023]) +
Banārasī Lāl was an Indian scholar specializing in Buddhist studies, particularly in the areas of Sanskrit texts and Buddhist philosophy. He made significant contributions to the field through his research and publications in academic journals.
Lāl's work focused on analyzing and interpreting important Buddhist texts. He published an article titled "Āryamañjuśrī-nāma-saṃgīti: A Text-Analysis" in the journal ''Dhīḥ'' in 1986, demonstrating his expertise in textual analysis of Sanskrit Buddhist literature. In 1994, he worked on the texts "Amṛtakaṇikā" by Raviśrījñāna and "Amṛtakaṇikod-dyotanibandha," further showcasing his philological skills.
His research interests extended to Buddhist iconography and symbolism. In 2003, Lāl published a study on "Samyaksambuddhabhāṣitapratimālakṣaṇa" in ''Dhīḥ'', exploring the characteristics of Buddha images as described in Buddhist literature.
Banārasī Lāl's contributions to the field of Buddhist studies helped advance the understanding of complex Sanskrit texts and their philosophical implications. His work continues to be cited by contemporary scholars. +
Baoyun 寶雲 (376?–449) was from Liangzhou. He traveled to Central Asia, Khotan (Hotan), and India around 397. There he met Faxian and other Chinese pilgrims. In India he studied languages, then returned to Chang’an and became a follower of Buddhabhadra (359–429). Buddhabhadra was in Chang’an from 406–408. Baoyun then followed Buddhabhadra south to Mount Lu, and ultimately to Jiankang (Nanjing). His good friend Huiguan accompanied Baoyun throughout the entire journey. All three men stayed at Daochang Temple in Jiankang. Baoyun later moved to Liuheshan Temple, outside of Jiankang. It was at these two temples that he made his translations [of the ''Buddhacarita''], reading the Indian text and translating orally. In this way the ''Buddhacarita'' was rendered in 421 C.E. (Yongchu 2 of the Liu Song), at Liuheshan Temple. (Willemen, ''Buddhacarita: In Praise of Buddha's Acts'', translator's introduction, xiv–xv). In addition to the ''Buddhacarita'' Baoyun is recorded as having assisted in the translation of several sūtras, including the ''Akṣayamatinirdeśasūtra'' and the ''Sāgaramatiparipṛcchāsūtra''. +
Barbara Frye, a student of Tibetan Buddhism for several years, has edited numerous works by Tibetan authors. +
Dr. Barbara Nelson is a Lecturer in the School of Culture, History and Language, ANU College of Asia and the Pacific, The Australian National University, Canberra, Australia. Her research interests include the history of Mahāyāna Buddhism in India, bodhisattva path and ''kshaanti'' (patience), Buddhist texts in Sanskrit, translation studies, Indian history and religions, and the policy and practice of secularism in India. ([https://researchers.anu.edu.au/researchers/nelson-be Source Accessed Jan 13, 2021]) +
Barbra Clayton is an Associate Professor of Religious Studies at Mount Allison University, a liberal arts institution located in the heart of maritime Canada. She is the author of ''Moral Theory in Śāntideva's Śikṣāsamuccaya'', the article on Buddhist Ethics in the ''Oxford Handbook of World Philosophy'', and several articles on Mahāyāna morality. Her recent work focuses on the ethics of environmentalism in the Shambhala Buddhist community, as well as on Buddhist monasticism at Gampo Abbey in Canada. She is the co-editor with Dan Cozort of the ''Journal of Buddhist Ethics'', though is currently taking an extended sabbatical from this role . . . ([https://www.cardus.ca/contributors/bclayton/ Source Accessed Jan 19, 2021]) +
Bardor Tulku Rinpoche was born in 1949 in Kham, East Tibet. At a very early age, he was recognized by His Holiness the 16th Gyalwang Karmapa as the third incarnation of Terchen Barway Dorje.
When Rinpoche was a small child, with his family and his Dharma tutor he maintained a nomadic life style. Rinpoche was six when he left East Tibet in the company of his grandparents on a journey that took him first to Lhasa, then Tsurphu, and finally to Drikung where Rinpoche was to remain for a couple of years at the home of his grandparents.
After Rinpoche’s grandparents passed away, his parents and siblings joined him in Drikung. When the political and social conditions in Tibet worsened as a result of the Chinese Communist occupation, Rinpoche and his family—initially a party of thirteen—set out toward India over the Himalayas along with many other Tibetans who were also fleeing the fighting.
They traveled through Kongpo to Pema Ku. In Pema Ku, at the border of Tibet and India, as a result of the arduous journey, all Rinpoche’s family members died. When Rinpoche’s father—the last member of his family—died, Rinpoche left Pema Ku and continued on toward Assam with other refugees.
At the township known as Bomdila, where the borders of Tibet, Bhutan, and India meet, a bombing raid dispersed the group. Rinpoche and a young friend fled the attack and traveled westward, along the border of Bhutan and India, to Siliguri and eventually to Darjeeling. When they arrived in Darjeeling, His Holiness the 16th Karmapa was notified that Rinpoche had safely made his way out of Tibet. Filled with joy at the good news, His Holiness arranged for Rinpoche to be brought to Sikkim, and for Rinpoche’s friend to be taken care of.
Bardor Tulku Rinpoche was enthroned as a tulku at Rumtek Monastery when he was in his teens. It was also at Rumtek Monastery, under the tutelage of His Holiness the 16th Karmapa, that Rinpoche’s formal training took place.
After completing many years of study and practice, Bardor Tulku Rinpoche accompanied the 16th Karmapa on his world tours in 1974 and 1976. In 1977, His Holiness asked Rinpoche to remain in Woodstock, New York, at Karma Triyana Dharmachakra (KTD). During his first two years at KTD, Rinpoche worked side-by-side with the staff to renovate and winterize the house and prepare for the last visit of His Holiness the Sixteenth Karmapa to the West. During that last visit, in 1980, His Holiness directed that his monastery and seat in North America be established at KTD, and he performed the formal investiture. After the groundbreaking ceremony in May of 1982, Bardor Rinpoche directed the construction activities and labored each day to build the monastery. When the construction of the shrine building was essentially completed in early 1990s, he assumed responsibilities as a teacher at KTD and its affiliate Karma Thegsum Chöling centers (KTCs).
In 2000, with a blessing from His Holiness the 17th Karmapa and His Eminence the 12th Tai Situ Rinpoche, Bardor Tulku Rinpoche established Raktrul Foundation in order to help rebuild the Raktrul Monastery in Tibet and provide educational facilities for monks and the lay community. In 2003, Rinpoche established Kunzang Palchen Ling (KPL), a Tibetan Buddhist Center in Red Hook, New York. Based on nonsectarian principles, KPL offers Dharma teachings from all traditions of Tibetan Buddhism and serves as a base for preserving and bringing to the West the terma teachings of Terchen Barway Dorje.
After working tirelessly for thirty-one years with the Venerable Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche, the abbot of KTD, to firmly establish KTD and its affiliates in the United States, in October 2008, Bardor Tulku Rinpoche resigned from all his responsibilities at KTD. In August 2009, the KTD Board of Trustees issued an appreciation letter acknowledging Bardor Tulku Rinpoche’s role in the establishment KTD and its affiliates in North America.
Since he left KTD, Bardor Tulku Rinpoche has been directing the activities of Kunzang Palchen Ling, guiding Palchen Study Groups nationwide, overseeing translation projects of terma texts of Terchen Barway Dorje and the construction of the new facility at Kunzang Palchen Ling that is an implementation of his vision for KPL. Rinpoche also serves as an adviser for Dharma TV, an online Buddhist television project. [http://www.kunzang.org/biography/ Source Kunzang.org, Accessed January 27, 2022.]
Bari Lotsawa, also known as Rinchen Drak, was the second throne holder of Sakya school (Tib. Sakya Trizin). At the age of 63, he retained the seat of Sakya for a period of eight years (1102-1110). He is one of the main lineage figures in the transmission and translation of the White Tara practice and tantras that originate from the Indian master Vagishvarakirti. (Source: [https://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Bari_Lotsawa Rigpa Wiki]) +
Mr. Bryant was a painter and musician strongly influenced by Tibetan Buddhism. In 1973 he founded the Samaya Foundation in Manhattan, a nonprofit organization dedicated to spreading Tibetan culture in the United States. (Samaya is the Sanskrit word for vow or commitment.)
In the spring of 1988, the foundation brought Tibetan monks to New York City from the Namgyal monastery in India to create the Wheel of Time sand mandala at the American Museum of Natural History. The mandala -- a large, colorful, circular meditational image of intricate design -- was made entirely of sand painstakingly poured from small funnels. It took over two weeks to complete; it was then ritually destroyed, its contents carried in procession to the banks of the Hudson and scattered on the water.
The mandala was recreated in other cities in the United States and Europe thereafter. In 1993, Mr. Bryant published a book, ''The Wheel of Time Sand Mandala: Visual Scripture of Tibetan Buddhism,'' to which the Dalai Lama contributed a foreword. ([https://www.nytimes.com/1997/05/25/arts/barry-bryant-56-a-proponent-of-the-tibetan-buddhist-culture.html Source Accessed Mar 22, 2023]) +
Dr. Barry Clark is the only Westerner to have undergone the complete theoretical and clinical training of a Tibetan doctor. For almost 20 years, he has studied, practiced and taught the ancient science of Tibetan medicine. His primary teacher was Dr. Yeshe Donden, the personal physician to H.H. the Dalai Lama for eighteen years. Dr. Clark now lives and practices in New Zealand, and frequently teaches and gives workshops in Europe, North America and SE Asia. (Source: [https://www.shambhala.com/snowlion_articles/the-quintessence-tantras-of-tibetan-medicine/ Shambhala Publications]) +
