Dorje Legpa
Dorje Legpa ( tib . : rdo rje legs pa ; also: Damchen Dorje Legpa , tib .: dam can rdo rje legs pa ) or Vajrasadhu is a protector of the Buddha's teachings , who is particularly important in Tibetan Buddhism .
Dorje Legpa was originally a deity worshiped in the Tibetan Bon religion. According to tradition, at the time of the first dissemination of Buddhist teachings in Tibet, Dorje Legpa opposed the great tantric master Padmasambhava in the Tsang province in order to stop the spread of Buddhism in the country. Due to the special power of Padmasambhava, Dorje Legpa was subjugated and tied to Buddhist teachings as a sworn protector (Tib. Damchen ) .
Dorje Legpa is of great importance in the Nyingma and Kagyu schools of Tibetan Buddhism. With the Nyingma he is not only considered a general Dharma protector, there he is closely connected with the teachings of Dzogchen , which in this school and in Bon are considered the essence of the Buddha's teachings. Dorje Legpa is next to Rahula and Ekajati one of the most important protectors of the Nyingma. Besides the Twelve Tenma protectors, the mountain god Nyanchen Thangla and Tongpon Dralha, the Nyingma consider him to be one of the great Terdag , a guardian of the spiritual treasures (terma) hidden by Padmasambhava in the 9th century .
Dorje Legpa is iconographically shown riding a snow lion or a billy goat, he wears a broad-brimmed hat, wields a Dorje in his right hand and with his left hand leads the torn heart of an enemy of the doctrine to his mouth. As with all wrathful deities of Tibet, his body is shown surrounded by flames.
See also
literature
- René de Nebesky-Wojkowitz : Oracles and Demons of Tibet . Gordon Press, New York 1976, ISBN 0-87968-463-1 (Reprint of the ed. Published by Mouton, 's-Gravenhage 1956)
- Guru Padmasambhava: The Secret Doctrine of Tibet . Kösel Verlag, Freiburg 1998, ISBN 3-466-20439-9