Mikyö Dorje (, 1507–1554) was the eighth

Karmapa The Karmapa (honorific title ''His Holiness the Gyalwa'' ��ྒྱལ་བ་, Victorious One''Karmapa'', more formally as ''Gyalwang'' ��ྒྱལ་དབང་ཀརྨ་པ་, King of Victorious Ones''Karmapa'', and informally as the '' ...

, head of the

Kagyu The ''Kagyu'' school, also transliterated as ''Kagyü'', or ''Kagyud'' (), which translates to "Oral Lineage" or "Whispered Transmission" school, is one of the main schools (''chos lugs'') of Tibetan (or Himalayan) Buddhism. The Kagyu lineag ...

school of

Tibetan Buddhism Tibetan Buddhism (also referred to as Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, Lamaism, Lamaistic Buddhism, Himalayan Buddhism, and Northern Buddhism) is the form of Buddhism practiced in Tibet and Bhutan, where it is the dominant religion. It is also in majo ...

Biography

Mikyö Dorje was born in Satam,

Kham Kham (; ) is one of the three traditional Tibetan regions, the others being Amdo in the northeast, and Ü-Tsang in central Tibet. The original residents of Kham are called Khampas (), and were governed locally by chieftains and monasteries. Kham ...

. According to the legend, he said after being born: "I am Karmapa." and was recognized by

Tai Situpa Tai Situpa (; from ) is one of the oldest lineages of tulkus (reincarnated lamas) in the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism In Tibetan Buddhism tradition, Kenting Tai Situpa is considered as emanation of Bodhisattva Maitreya and Guru Padmasambhava ...

. In this case there was another child from

Amdo Amdo ( �am˥˥.to˥˥ ) is one of the three traditional Tibetan regions, the others being U-Tsang in the west and Kham in the east. Ngari (including former Guge kingdom) in the north-west was incorporated into Ü-Tsang. Amdo is also the bi ...

who also claimed to be Karmapa
Gyaltsab Rinpoche
the regent of the region, thought of a test to decide who was the real Karmapa. This was the first time that a test was used to determine a

reincarnation Reincarnation, also known as rebirth or transmigration, is the philosophical or religious concept that the non-physical essence of a living being begins a new life in a different physical form or body after biological death. Resurrectio ...

. Later this became the standard method for all major lamas. Mikyö Dorje left numerous Buddhist writings on Gongchik commentary

Madhyamaka Mādhyamaka ("middle way" or "centrism"; ; Tibetan: དབུ་མ་པ ; ''dbu ma pa''), otherwise known as Śūnyavāda ("the emptiness doctrine") and Niḥsvabhāvavāda ("the no ''svabhāva'' doctrine"), refers to a tradition of Buddhis ...

Abhidharma The Abhidharma are ancient (third century BCE and later) Buddhist texts which contain detailed scholastic presentations of doctrinal material appearing in the Buddhist ''sutras''. It also refers to the scholastic method itself as well as the f ...

, Tantric and

Mahamudra Mahāmudrā ( Sanskrit: महामुद्रा, , contraction of ) literally means "great seal" or "great imprint" and refers to the fact that "all phenomena inevitably are stamped by the fact of wisdom and emptiness inseparable". Mahāmud ...

texts, poetry (verses of profound wisdom) and even linguistics. He introduced special

guru yoga In Vajrayana, guru yoga (Tib: ''bla ma'i rnal 'byor'') is a tantric devotional practice in which the practitioner unites their mindstream with the mindstream of the body, speech, and mind of their guru. Guru yoga is akin to deity yoga since t ...

in four sessions, which is the basis for Karma Kagyu teachings. He was also a skillful painter and metal craftsman with many famous

thangka A ''thangka'', variously spelled as ''thangka'', ''tangka'', ''thanka'', or ''tanka'' (; Tibetan: ཐང་ཀ་; Nepal Bhasa: पौभा), is a Tibetan Buddhist painting on cotton, silk appliqué, usually depicting a Buddhist deity, scene, ...

s and

statue A statue is a free-standing sculpture in which the realistic, full-length figures of persons or animals are carved or cast in a durable material such as wood, metal or stone. Typical statues are life-sized or close to life-size; a sculpture t ...

s. The eighth Karmapa strongly influenced all arts of his time. He was invited by the emperor of China, however he said that the emperor would die before he could get to him; and according to the legend it happened as well. He selected as lineage holder the fifth

Shamarpa The Shamarpa (; literally, "Person (i.e. Holder) of the Red Crown"), also known as ''Shamar Rinpoche'', or more formally Künzig Shamar Rinpoche, is a lineage holder of the Karma Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism and is regarded to be the mind ma ...

, Konchog Yenlag, whom he had identified, and to whom he had passed on the Kagyu transmission, stating that the Karmapa and Shamarpa incarnations are inseparable, and of the same

mindstream Mindstream (''citta-santāna'') in Buddhist philosophy is the moment-to-moment continuum (Sanskrit: ''saṃtāna'') of sense impressions and mental phenomena, which is also described as continuing from one life to another. Definition ' (Sanskr ...

. He compiled a biography of Bodong Chogle Namgyal (1376–1451), one of the main teachers of

Dorje Pakmo The Vajra () is a legendary and ritual weapon, symbolising the properties of a diamond (indestructibility) and a thunderbolt (irresistible force). The vajra is a type of club with a ribbed spherical head. The ribs may meet in a ball-sha ...

, entitled ''Ocean of Miracles'' (ngo mtshar gyi rgya mtsho).

Works

*The Hundred Pith Instructions of Karmapa Mikyö Dorje * The Collection of Monastic Activities *E-Wam Mahamudra, An Introduction to the Three Kayas *Introduction to the Middle Way http://dharmacloud.tsadra.org/product/དབུ་མ་ལ་འཇུག་པའི་ཀར་ཊཱ/

References

External links

http://www.karmapa.orgMantra Karmapa mkyen no (Karmapa Chenno)TBRC - Tibetan Buddhist Resource Center entry for Mikyö Dorje
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mikyo Dorje Karmapa 8 16th-century lamas 1507 births 1554 deaths 8 16th-century Tibetan people Tibetan philosophers Buddhist artists

Biography

Works

References

Further reading

External links