Longchenpa & Dolpopa: Contemporaries

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DGA
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Longchenpa & Dolpopa: Contemporaries

Post by DGA »

I recently came across the volume Mountain Doctrine at the university library (this is Hopkins' translation of Dolpopa's Ocean of Definitive Meaning nges don rgya mtsho). I hadn't noticed until then that Dolpopa & Longchenpa were close contemporaries. Given the social & geographic circumstances of the Tibetan cultural world in the mid-14th century (about which I know precious little), were these two masters aware of each other and each other's teaching?

I'm asking because I'm trying to better understand the stakes of all these debates, commentaries, discussions, and treatises composed by and distributed among Tibetans. Were they in obvious conversation with each other, implicitly so, not at all, or only sometimes...?

Thanks in advance for any insights.
Silent Bob
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Re: Longchenpa & Dolpopa: Contemporaries

Post by Silent Bob »

Jikan wrote:I recently came across the volume Mountain Doctrine at the university library (this is Hopkins' translation of Dolpopa's Ocean of Definitive Meaning nges don rgya mtsho). I hadn't noticed until then that Dolpopa & Longchenpa were close contemporaries. Given the social & geographic circumstances of the Tibetan cultural world in the mid-14th century (about which I know precious little), were these two masters aware of each other and each other's teaching?

I'm asking because I'm trying to better understand the stakes of all these debates, commentaries, discussions, and treatises composed by and distributed among Tibetans. Were they in obvious conversation with each other, implicitly so, not at all, or only sometimes...?

Thanks in advance for any insights.
Cyrus Stearns's excellent and very readable study of Dolpopa, "The Buddha from Dolpo", makes no mention of any exchange between them.

Chris
"All the sublime teachings, so profound--to throw away one and then grab yet another will not bear even a single fruit. Persevere, therefore, in simply one."
--Dudjom Rinpoche, "Nectar for the Hearts of Fortunate Disciples. Song No. 8"
udawa
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Re: Longchenpa & Dolpopa: Contemporaries

Post by udawa »

One connection between the two is Rangjung Dorje, the 3rd Karmapa.

I think I'm right in saying that Rangjung Dorje studied alongside Longchenpa and he met Dolpopa at some point.

D
Edwards: You are a philosopher. Dr Johnson: I have tried too in my time to be a philosopher; but, I don't know how, cheerfulness was always breaking in.
Malcolm
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Re: Longchenpa & Dolpopa: Contemporaries

Post by Malcolm »

udawa wrote:One connection between the two is Rangjung Dorje, the 3rd Karmapa.

I think I'm right in saying that Rangjung Dorje studied alongside Longchenpa and he met Dolpopa at some point.

D
Kumararaja 1266 - 1343
Rangjung Dorje 1284 -1339.
Longchenpa 1308 - 1364.

If they had met, I am sure it would have been with Longchenpa being a common monk going to meet a very high Lama. I seriously doubt whether they ever studied together, but they both studied with Kumararaja.

I believe Longchenpa only meets Kumararaja when he is 29, two years prior to the death of the third Karmapa.
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