Born In Tibet

304 Pages·2000·3.32 MB·English

by  Chögyam Trungpa

Center: Marpa the Translator, father of the Kagyü school.
Clockwise from top: Vajradhara Buddha with two Indian gurus, Gampopa, Mahakala (the Protector),
Karmapa, Vajra Yogini (female divinity), and Milarepa.
DRAWN BY SHERAB PALDEN BERU.
BORN IN TIBET
by
CHÖGYAM TRUNGPA
The eleventh TRUNGPA TULKU
as told to
ESMÉ CRAMER ROBERTS
With Forewords by
THE SAKYONG MIPHAM RINPOCHE
and
MARCO PALLIS
Fourth Edition
SHAMBHALA
Boston & London
2010
To my Mother and motherland
Shambhala Publications, Inc.
Horticultural Hall
300 Massachusetts Avenue
Boston, Massachusetts 02115
www.shambhala.com
© 1966 by George Allen & Unwin Ltd.
Epilogue © 1977 by Chögyam Trungpa
Foreword to the 1995 Edition © 1995 by Diana Mukpo
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or
mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without
permission in writing from the publisher.
The Library of Congress catalogues the 1985 edition of this book as follows:
Trungpa, Chögyam, 1939–
Born in Tibet.
Reprint. Originally published: Boulder, Colo.: Shambhala, 1977, c1966.
Includes index.
1. Trungpa, Chogyam, 1939– . 2. Lamas—China—Tibet—Biography. I. Roberts, Esmé Cramer. II. Title.
BQ990.R867A33 1985 294.3 923 0924 [B] 85-8174
eISBN 978-0-8348-2130-9
ISBN 0-87773-333-3
ISBN 0-394-74219-2
ISBN 1-57062-116-0
ISBN 1-57062-714-2
CONTENTS
FOREWORD TO THE 1995 EDITION
FOREWORD TO THE 1977 EDITION
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
How to Pronounce Tibetan Names and Words
1. Found and Enthroned
2. The Founding of Surmang
3. Dütsi Tel and Namgyal Tse
4. My Childhood at Dütsi Tel
5. In the Steps of the Tenth Trungpa
6. I Go to My Guru
7. Death, Duties and a Vision
8. A Many-Sided Training
9. The Dalai Lama’s Visit
10. Khampas in Revolt
11. Lonely Vocation
12. Into Hiding
13. Must We Escape?
14. It Must Be India
15. Refugees on the Move
16. Traveling the Hard Way
17. Days of Crisis
18. Touch and Go!
19. Across the Himalaya
Song of the Wanderer in Powo Valley
Epilogue to the 1977 Edition
Epilogue to the 1971 Edition
APPENDIX 1 The Administration of the Kagyü Monasteries of East Tibet
APPENDIX 2 The Doctrine of Tulkus
GLOSSARY
INDEX
Foreword to the 1995 Edition
W
HEN I THINK back upon my father’s life, it amazes me how much he
accomplished in such a short time. He was only forty-eight years old when he
passed away, but within that time, the experiences he had and the people he
encountered were as varied and rich as if he had lived for hundreds of years.
Often people would ask him how he was able to adapt to so many diverse
cultures, and how he was able to deal with the tremendous hardships of his life.
Always his answer would be that it was due to the rigorous traditional training
and education that he received in Tibet while he was young. It might appear to
the reader that the Tibet of Chögyam Trungpa’s youth was medieval; it seems so
distant from today’s modern world, and so harsh. Ironically, however, it was that
very training, with its simplicity and realness, that gave him the foundation that
enabled him to relate with this modern world.
My father had two distinct roles in his life, corresponding with the periods of
his life spent in the East and the West. During the first part of his life, since he
was recognized as the incarnation of a famous teacher, people had high
expectations of him. Many of the lamas and monks at the monastery were quite
concerned that he be able to fit into his traditional role and continue the work of
his predecessor. He very much had to fulfill the ambitions of the monastic
community, as well as those of the laypeople of his religion.
Once he left Tibet, his role was quite different—almost totally the opposite. In
the West, very few people knew much about Buddhism as a whole, and they
knew even less about the role of a lama, a spiritual teacher. People had little
basis for any kind of expectations. In many ways, this was incredibly liberating
for Chögyam Trungpa, and in fact it enabled him to become one of the most
prominent Buddhist teachers of his time. His unique gift was that he was able to
synthesize the ancient wisdom of Buddhism and transmit it to the West in a clear
and concise way that was both meaningful and refreshing—so much so that a
new generation of Western practitioners was born.
Born in Tibet is a unique book, one that I personally have always loved to
read. It is not just a historical document, a book about Tibetan culture, but it
reveals many subtleties of what that life was actually like. It shows the spiritual
development of teacher and disciple, and it illustrates the humanness that
everyone possesses, regardless of culture, and the politics that come about from
that.
Even though my father was not particularly a nostalgic person, he had
tremendous pride in his Tibetan heritage, which he transmitted to me in various
ways. Occasionally in the middle of the night, we would prepare bandit soup
together. This was one of his favorite Tibetan delicacies, which was simply raw
meat with hot water poured over it.
Knowing the tremendous hardships and challenges that confronted Chögyam
Trungpa, and how he was able to overcome them through his courage, humor,
and his faith in the spiritual disciplines of Tibet, I have always found this book
inspiring. I hope that you too may be inspired by his example, and that this book
will continue to benefit numberless beings.
THE SAKYONG MIPHAM RINPOCHE
November 25, 1994
Karmê Chöling