Tapihritsa or Tapahritsa (c 7th ~ 8th century) was a Bon practitioner who achieved the Dzogchen mastery of the rainbow body and consequently, as a fully realised trikaya Buddha, is invoked as an iṣṭadevatā (Classical Tibetan: yi dam) by Dzogchen practitioners in both Bon and Tibetan Buddhism. He famously achieved the rainbow body achievement.[1]
The historical Tapihritsa was born in Zhangzhung to a family of nomads. Tapihritsa's principal teacher was Dawa Gyaltsen.
Tapihritsa was contemporaneous with Ligmincha, King of Zhangzhung, and Trisong Detsen, Emperor of Tibet.
John Myrdhin Reynolds has published "Space, Awareness, and Energy" (2007), which is a study of the origins of Bon Dzogchen in western Tibet and Central Asia and contains translations of primary texts that showcase Tapihritsa.
Tapihritsa is often visualized as representing the realization of all the masters of the Zhangzhung Whispered Transmission (Wylie: zhang zhung snyan brgyud) lineage, one of the three Bon Dzogchen lineages.
References
- ^ Karmay, Samten G; Watt, Jeff, eds. (2007). Bon, the magic word : the indigenous religion of Tibet (1. ed.). New York: Rubin Museum of Art. p. 217. ISBN 9780977213122.
- https://web.archive.org/web/20070927211654/http://www.kabirkadre.com/study/prose/Tenzin/Tapihritsa.htm (broken link: 5/14/2014)
- http://www.ligmincha.org/program/description/tapihritsa.html (accessed: Saturday, February 10, 2007)
- Reynolds, John Myrdhin (2005). The Oral Tradition from Zhang-Zhung: An Introduction to the Bonpo Dzogchen Teachings of the Oral Tradition from Zhang-Zhung known as the Zhang-zhung snyan-rgyud. Kathmandu, Vajra Publishers. ISBN 99946-644-4-1 (paperback).
- A Prayer to Tapi[hrih]tsa Aum Ah Hung Phet Svaha
External links
- [1] (Sunday, February 25, 2007)