Thothori Nyentsen

Lha Thothori Nyentsen ( Tib . : tho tho ri gnyan btsan , Tibetan : ཐོ་ ཐོ་ རི་ གཉན་ བཙན , other spellings: Lha tho tho ri Nyantsen, lHa Tho-tho-ri gNyan-btsan) was, according to Tibetan tradition, the 28th . King of Tibet . The prefix Lha is not part of the personal name, but an honorary title ("the divine"). Lore is legendary, but Thothori is also mentioned in a Chinese source and modern research tends to mistake him for a historical figure. It is now believed that he lived in the 5th century; other dates (birth in 173 or 254) are considered unbelievable. He belonged to the Yarlung dynasty , whose name is derived from the Yarlung region (valley of the Yarlung River in southern Tibet). There was the center of his power, which by no means extended to all of Tibet.

Thothori owes his fame outside of Tibet to a myth that Buddhism first reached Tibet during his reign . A container with relics and Buddhist scriptures (including in particular the Karandavyuha Sutra) is said to have fallen from the sky onto the roof of the royal palace. This myth may have a historical background (arrival of Buddhist missionaries), but this first contact with Buddhism, if it took place at all, apparently had no consequences. It was not until King Songtsen Gampo († 650) that Buddhism was able to establish itself at the Tibetan court.

See also

• Yumbulagang

Remarks

1. ^ Russell Kirkland: The Spirit of the Mountain . In: The History of Tibet , ed. Alex McKay, Vol. 1, London 2003, pp. 183 and 190, note 12; Erik Haarh: Extract from “The Yar Lun Dynasty” . In: The History of Tibet , ed. Alex McKay, Vol. 1, London 2003, p. 147.
2. ^ Hugh Richardson: The Origin of the Tibetan Kingdom . In: The History of Tibet , ed. Alex McKay, Vol. 1, London 2003, p. 159.
3. ^ Russell Kirkland: The Spirit of the Mountain . In: The History of Tibet , ed. Alex McKay, Vol. 1, London 2003, p. 183.
4. ↑ Alexander Studholme: The Origins of Om Manipadme Hum , Albany (NY) 2002, p. 14.