Chapter 20 - Trophupa (iii): Khro phu lo tsa ba

Birth

khro phu lo tsa ba was the nephew of the brothers, rgyal tsha and kun ldan ras pa, He was born as son of father jo phan and mother bsregs mo gsal byed in the year Water Female Serpent (chu mo sbrul, 1173 A.D.), the third year following the death of ‘gro mgon phag mo gru pa.

Childhood

At the age of six, he learnt reading. At the age. Of eight, he met rgyal tsha. At the age of ten, he took up the noviciate, rin po che rgyal tsha and kun ldan acting as upādhyāya and ācārya, and received the name of tshul khrims shes rab.

At the age of eleven, he proceeded to listen to the exposition of the Pramāṇaviniścaya (rnam nges) from the kalyāṇa mitra gtsang. At the age of twelve, he went to sa skya to attend the religious assembly on the occasion of the passing of bsod nams rtse mo. Zhu ston hral mo also came to this assembly.

Youth

Then until the age of sixteen, he studied extensively with gtsang dkar. He conducted debates with the monks, who had gathered for the assembly, and defeated his opponents. He also made large offerings, and attended on the ācārya gtsang dkar ba.

At the age of seventeen he invited to khro phu rtse ston kun bzangs, the spiritual son of snur pa, aged eighty-eight, and studied under him the rites of over 500 maṇḍalas including that of the Vajradhatu (rdor dbyings), etc. Later, at the time of his departure, rtse ston kun bzangs saw in a dream rnan thos sras (Kuvera) of bya rgod gsongs who told him to introduce him (phog pa) to the Son of a Priest (lo sras). He then heard (from him) the rjes gnang (authorization) of Vaiśravaṇa (rnam sras).

At the age of nineteen, he studied the work of a translator with a learned lo tsa ba called zhang dge ba, a nephew of zhang, and became expert in it. In the same year he took up the final monastic ordination, rin po che rgyal tsha acting as upādhyāya, the ācārya gtsang dkar as karma ācārya, and kun ldan ras pa as Secret Preceptor. Then, in order to study the Vinaya with gtsang nag (brtson 'grus seng ge), he attended on him for two full years, and became learned (in the Vinaya).

Contracting Leprosy

At the age of twenty-one, he heard from kun ldan the exposition of the upāya mārga of lo ro ras pa, his thun 'jog (name of a book), and other texts. About that time he suspected that he had contracted leprosy, caused by his father’s black magic. He therefore spent three years in seclusion, and was relieved of the ailment. During that time at sunrise he obtained from rgya tsha the 136 kinds of different precepts and one called "the Thirteen Commandments" (bka' babs bcu gsum).

Rgya tsha’s Death

When he was twenty-four, Lord rgya tsha passed away. At the time of his death, he called him in, and bestowed on him numerous instructions, and uttered a prophecy (concerning his future), saying: "Similar to the shape of a brass trumpet, your fortune will widen at the end." He also performed the rite of initiation into the method of the Jñāna praveśa (ye shes 'pho ba'i dbang bskur). (rgya tsha) died within two months.

Travel to Nepal

Having duly performed the funeral rites for rgya tsha, and having erected (the latter’s) image, etc., he, aged twenty-four, proceeded towards Nepal. On reaching Nepal, he studied extensively the Tantras and Sūtras with the maha paṇḍita Buddhaśrī. He also met there the Venerable Mitra, and invited him to Tibet. The latter spent 18 months with him, and blessed the laud of the monastery of khro phu. When the Venerable Mitra was about to depart, he escorted him as far as the Pass of skyi rong (on the Nepal-Tibetan border).

After this he invited the maha paṇḍita Buddhaśrī. Intending to erect a great image (the khro phu byams chen), he sent a message to chag dgra bcom pa (who) invited the paṇḍita as far as gnyal. There he assembled numerous excellent disciples and offered the mahā paṇḍita 300 srans, and then returned. After this, he made his retinue work on the erection of the image.

Travel to India and Kashmir

The Teacher with several disciples proceeded via the gro mo Pass (the valley of Chumbi) to India to a trade mart called vai dūr (Vai dūr tshong 'dus, in Assam?). He then invited the mahā paṇḍita (Śākyaśrī) who came to Tibet in the year Wood Male Mouse (shing pho byi ba, 1204 A.D.). The mahā paṇḍita laboured for the welfare of living beings from North rwa sgreng to lho brag and Lower gnyal, During the mahā paṇḍita’s ten years' residence in Tibet, he (khro phu lo tsa ba) acted as interpreter to the mahā paṇḍita. The greater part of the offerings received by the mahā paṇḍita was given away by him for the erection of the image (khro phu byams chen), and the rest was distributed among Tripiṭakadharas and other persons.

Later, when the mahā paṇḍita was returning to Kāśmīra, (khro phu) lo tsā ba escorted him as far as mnga' ris. When the Teacher (Śākyaśrī) and disciples were about to part, the mahā paṇḍita sent away his other retainers, and gave to khro phu lo tsa ba 300 srans in gold ingots (gser sil). Then the mahā paṇḍita, without taking with him the offerings given to him by Tibetans, continued his journey to Kāśmīra, and spent there 12 years. He restored the waning Doctrine in Kāśmīra and caused it to spread.

Death

It is said that he passed away in the year Wood Female Hen (shing mo bya 1225 A.D.). In this manner this lo tsa ba (khro phu) had invited three mahāpaṇḍitas. He built viharas and large images, etc. The story of his Life is voluminous, but here I have given an abridged account only.