by Ben Deitle
Rinchen Zangpo (rin chen bzang po, 958-1055) was a prolific translatore during the early part of the Later Spread (phyi dar) of Buddhism in Tibet. Born in the region of Ngari (mnga’ ris) in west Tibet, he was ordained as a monk at the age of thirteen. He undertook several trips to Kashmir to study Buddhism and Indian languages, at times enjoying the patronage of Lha Lama Yeshé Ö (lha bla ma ye shes ’od), the king of Ngari. When Atiśa came to Tibet, Rinchen Zangpo (who was eighty-five at the time) met and studied with him. During his life, Rinchen Zangpo was also instrumental in the construction of religious buildings and monuments in west Tibet, some of which survive to this day.
Gö Lotsawa gives Rinchen Zangpo a preeminent position in the Blue Annals, providing a short biography of the Great Translator at the beginning of his chapter on the later spread of the Dharma in Tibet (Roerich, 68-9). Rinchen Zangpo’s biography is only preceded in this chapter by a brief sketch of how a vinaya lineage was kept alive in Amdo (a mdo) during the period between the persecution of the Doctrine by Lang Darma (glang dar ma) and the beginning of the new translations. After that scene setting transition between the earlier and later spread, Rinchen Zangpo appears as the first true figure of the later spread. Indeed, Gö Lotsawa seems to use the ordination of Rinchen Zangpo as a turning point in the reemergence of Buddhism in Tibet: “Thus the year of the lo tsā ba’s ordination is the seventieth year from the year Iron-Hen (lcags bya — 901 A.D.) of the suppression of the Doctrine. From the above it seems clear that the Doctrine had first reappeared in mnga' ris, and later in Central Tibet (dbus and gtsang)” (Roerich, 68). This may not be particular to Gö Lotsawa, it would be interesting to see how other Tibetan historians date the beginning of the Later Spread. Is Rinchen Zangpo a common benchmark for this turning point? I would presume that it is. Indeed, at least one modern scholar uses Rinchen Zangpo to mark the emergence of the Sarma (gsar ma) traditions (Germano, “Architecture and Absence in the Secret Tantric History of the Great Perfection,” JIABS 17, no. 2: 204). In the Blue Annals, Gö Lotsawa also gives us an outline of the translator’s life, his ordination, his study in Kashmir, his numerous translations (sutras and tantras), construction projects, and finally his death with accompanying miraculous signs.
Gö Lotsawa largely credits Rinchen Zangpo with the increase of tantra in Tibet. In the Fragment on the Later Spread of the Teachings he writes: “The ‘later’ spread of the Tantras in Tibet was greater than the ‘early’ spread (of the Tantras), and this was chiefly due to this translator (lo tsā ba)” (Roerich, 68). In the Fragment on the New Secret Mantra Traditions, he notes that a certain “Lord Smṛti” may have preceded Rinchen Zangpo in some of his translations of “New Tantra,” but he does not seem to give as much credence to this figure (Roerich, 204). The other figure noted in that section for his pioneering work in the translation of tantra is Drokmi (’brog mi). Later in the same fragment of the Blue Annals, in sections which give the history of specific tantras in Tibet, Rinchen Zangpo’s name often appears, such as in the context of the Guhyasamāja (Roerich, 359, 372-3) and the Cakrasamvara (Roerich, 380, 383). His work in the translation and teaching of these tantras was pioneering. According to Gö Lotsawa: “The widely propagated teaching and manuals of meditation (sgrub yig) according to the initiation and Tantra of Śrī¬Saṃvara, originated first in the Spiritual Lineage of the disciples of the Great Translator (rin chen bzang po)” (Roerich, 380).
The impact of Rinchen Zangpo was amplified by his instruction of others who could carry out further work. Shortly after Rinchen Zangpo’s biography, Gö Lotsawa discusses the sutra translation activities of other figures and then contrasts that with the work of Rinchen Zangpo and his disciples: “Numerous learned translators, disciples of the Great Translator (lo chen), translated numerous texts from the Vinaya piṭaka ('dul ba'i sde snod), the Prajñāpāramitā, and many Tantric works.” In the biographical sketch itself, Gö Lotsawa notes: “He had many learned disciples, such as gur shing brtson 'grus rgyal mtshan and others, as well as more than ten translators who were able to correct transla¬tions (zhus chen pher ba'i lo tsā ba)” (Roerich, 68-9). One gets the impression that Rinchen Zangpo had established a translation workshop of sorts. This also seems likely given the sheer number of works translated under his name, which raises the question about the manner in which translations were made in the renaissance period. How many of the translations by Rinchen Zangpo might actually have been a collective effort of several people working together under the direction of the Great Translator? What was the division of labor and the processes involved, such as translating versus correcting/editing as mentioned above? How does translation relate to teaching and study?
The importance of Rinchen Zangpo is again seen in the way that Gö Lotsawa uses dates in the translator’s life to establish relative chronology and context when discussing other figures. This is a commonly used device in the Blue Annals. Figures used for this purpose included widely-recognized personalities such as Atiśa and the Karmapas. Rinchen Zangpo appears in the Blue Annals for this purpose in a section discussing the dates of Zur Chungwa (zur chung ba) (Roerich, 123) and again when relating the departure of Drokmi and Taklo Zhönnu Tsöndrü (stag lo gzhon nu brtson ’grus) (Roerich, 205).
Rinchen Zangpo emerges as the first true figure of the renaissance. While the dharma was kept alive and brought back to Ü (dbus) and Tsang (gtsang) by Lumé, this was more a process of continuing the previous spread of the Dharma. The features associated with the renaissance, particularly the emergence of the Sarma (gsar ma) traditions,—such as renewed interest in India, new translations made by individual translators, the emphasis on tantra (particularly the new yogini tantras), local patronage, and so forth—are first embodied in life of Rinchen Zangpo.
It seems somewhat ironic that in Rinchen Zangpo you have the basic elements of institutional formation—a charismatic and energetic figure with a following of disciples, religious scriptures in translation (some representing new practices), physical buildings and monuments, and the support of powerful patrons—and yet there did not arise a long-lived institution or school surrounding his figure. Maybe his works were taken up by and provided influence to various schools and later institutions in other ways. It might be fruitful to try to trace the ways in which specific buildings or translations have been used by various different schools and sects at different times. In other words, who has claimed Rinchen Zangpo as their own and for what purposes?
| LABEL | DATA | |
|---|---|---|
| TBRC ID | P753 | |
| Wylie name | rin chen bzang po | |
| Name etymology | rin-chen bzang-po = Excellent Precious One | |
| Naming history | Age 13 (971 CE) he becomes a novice monk and recieves the name "rin chen bzang po" from ye shes bzang po (Roerich 68, Tsepak 28-29 gives the name of the teacher as legs pa bzang po). | |
| Person type | human | |
| Ethnicity | bod: mnga' ris | |
| Clan | gshen (Namgyal 45) | |
| Gender | male | |
| Summary | Rinchen Zangpo (rin chen bzang po, 958-1055) was a prolific translatore during the early part of the Later Spread (phyi dar) of Buddhism in Tibet. Born in the region of Ngari (mnga’ ris) in west Tibet, he was ordained as a monk at the age of thirteen. He undertook several trips to Kashmir to study Buddhism and Indian languages, at times enjoying the patronage of Lha Lama Yeshé Ö (lha bla ma ye shes ’od), the king of Ngari. When Atiśa came to Tibet, Rinchen Zangpo (who was eighty-five at the time) met and studied with him. During his life, Rinchen Zangpo was also instrumental in the construction of religious buildings and monuments in west Tibet, some of which survive to this day. | |
| Birth date (Tibetan) | earth male horse (Roerich 68, Chengdu 95) | |
| Birth date (international) | 958 CE (TBRC, Tsepak) | |
| Birth place (Tibetan) | mnga' ris: khung wang: rad ni (Tsepak 29) | |
| Death date (Tibetan) | wood female sheep (Roerich 69, Chengdu 96) | |
| Death date (international) | 1055 CE (TBRC, Tsepak) | |
| Death place | khwa tse wing gir (Roerich 69, Chengdu 96) | |
| Spheres of activity | mnga' ris; spu hrangs; Kashmir | |
| Sect | ||
| Reference | Page/line | Passage |
| Blue Annals | I - 68; 102; 123; 205; 209; 249; 262; 328; 351-52; 359; 372-3; 380; II - 417; 472; 432; 1085 |
TBRC ID: P753
Name (ming gzhan dag/): rin chen bzang po (རིན་ཆེན་བཟང་པོ་)
Etymology:
rin-chen bzang-po = Excellent Precious One
rin-chen = precious; jewel; abbreviation of "rin po che"
(Tshig mdzod chen mo: (2696) 1) rin thang che ba/ … 2) rin po che'i bsdus tshig … 3) (mngon) 'khor lo dang/ nor bu/ btsun mo/ blon po/ glang po/ rta mchog dmag dpon te rgyal srid rin chen la bdun yod pas grangs bdun mtshon/)
bzang-po = good; beautiful; excellent
(Tshig mdzod chen mo: (2511) 1 … .1) sbyor ba nyer bdun gyi nang gses shig … 2) gnas brtan bcu drug las chu bo ya mu na'i gling na bzhugs pa'i gnas brtan zhig … 2.(mngon) 1) dbang phyug chen po/ … 2) sman bzang la ka ko la dang/ cu gang/ sug smel/ dzA ti/ li shi/ gur gum bcas sna drug yod pas grangs drug mtshon/ … 3) yar ngo'i bzang po dang po tshes gnyis/ gnyis pa tshes bdun/ gsum pa tshes bcu gnyis/ mar ngo'i bzang po dang po tshes bcu bdun/ gnyis pa tshes nyer gnyis/ gsum pa tshes nyer bdun/ … 3.legs pa dang mdzes pa/ … khang bzang/ … gos bzang/ … dri bzang/ … zas bzang po/ … kun bzang/ … spyod)
Type (rigs)
Sentient being type (sems can rigs mi 'dra/):
Gender (pho mo/):
Ethnicity (mi rigs):
Birth International date ('khrungs dus/ _spyi 'o'i lo zla tshes grangs/): 958 CE
Birth Tibetan date ('khrungs dus/ _spyi lo'i lo zla tshes grangs/): earth male horse (Roerich 68, Chengdu 95)
Death date ('das dus/ _spyi 'o'i lo zla tshes grangs/): 1055 CE (Roerich 69, Chengdu 96)
Death date Tibetan ('khrungs dus/ _spyi lo'i lo zla tshes grangs/): wood female sheep (Roerich 69, Chengdu 96)
Birth place ('khrung yul/): mnga' ris: khung wang: rad ni (Tsepak 29)
Death place ('das yul/): khwa tse wing gir (Roerich 69, Chengdu 96)
Principal sphere(s) of activity (spyod yul/):
*mnga' ris and spu hrangs:
Clan (rus pa'i ming/): gshen (Namgyal)
Types:
Past lives:
Teaching institutions:
Things taught (doctrines, ritual, literature):
Occupation:
Religious sectarian affilialtion (chos lugs): see our separate THDL Tibetan religious sect typology for options.
Institutional base(s):
Rin chen bzang po was involved in the construction of numerous temples and religious monuments throughout mnga' ris and spu hrangs, including areas in present day northern India such as Ladakh, Zangskar, Lahaul, Spiti, and Kinnaur (Tsepak 31, Gangnegi 42).
Rin chen bzang po is credited with over 178 translations (Gangnegi 41).
Namgyal Nyima Dagkar. "gShen: The Ancestral Clan of Rin chen bzang po." Tibet Journal 24, no. 2 (1999): 45-59.
Gangnegi, Hera Paul. "A Critical Note on the Biographies of Lo chen Rin chen bZang po." Tibet Journal 23, no. 1 (1998): 38-48.
Roerich, George N. The Blue Annals. Delhi: Motilal Banarsidass, 1949 (reprinted 1996).
Snellgrove, David L., and Tadeusz Skorupski. The Cultural Heritage of Ladakh. 2 vols. New Delhi: Vikas, 1977-80. Volume 2, pages 83-116, gives a translation of the earliest biography of Rin chen bzang po.
Tsepak Rigzin. "Rinchen Zangpo: The Great Tibetan Translator." Tibet Journal 9, no. 3 (1984): 28-37.
Vitali, Roberto. The Kingdoms of Gu-.ge Pu.hrang. Dharamsala: Tho.ling gtsug.lag.khang lo.gcig.stong 'khor.ba'i rjes.dran.mdzad sgo'i go.sgrig tshogs.chung, 1996. Pages 186-89 and note 263 discuss some of the problems involved in the dating of Rin chen bzang po's life.