Milarepa
Milarepa
was born in 1052 CE and named Thopaga, which means "delightful
to hear". His wealthy father died when Milarepa was very young
and his uncle stole the family's inheritance. At his mother's request,
Milarepa learned the black arts, killing many people associated
with his uncle. Later, Milarepa repented and sought a spiritual
teacher. He found Marpa the Translator who treated him very harshly.
For a long time Marpa refused to give any teachings to Milarepa, giving him instead a series of increasingly arduous and frustrating tasks as a means of purifying Milarepa from the effects of having brought so much harm to others. For instance, he ordered Milarepa to build a house by hand and when it was completed, ordered him to tear it back down so that he could move it a short distance and build it all over again. Milarepa built and demolished a number of houses in this way.
Marpa then gave Milarepa many teachings and initiations. Milarepa practiced for many years with great energy while living alone in a cave and eating only nettles. Under Marpa's guidance he reached enlightenment in spite of the great harm he had created early in his life.
Milarepa is famous for the many songs he composed to explain his spiritual realisations.
"Meditate in the unborn nature of the mind:
Like space, no centre, no limit;
Like the sun and moon, bright and clear;
Like a mountain, unmoving, unshakeable;
Like the ocean, deep, unfathomable."
- Milarepa
Relic and Source
- These relics were offered to Lama Zopa Rinpoche by his student, Wu Wen Yuen.
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