Full Description
Offering a modern translation of "The Legends of the Eighty-four Mahasiddhas," a 12th-century Tibetan text, translator Keith Dowman shares stories of the spiritual adventurers, rebellious saints, and enlightened tantric masters of ancient India known as "siddhas." He shows how the mahasiddhas arose from the grassroots of society and represented an entire spectrum of human experience. Counted among the greatest of the siddhas are a washerman, a cowboy, a thief, a conman, a gambler, and a whore, all extraordinary men and women who attained the goal of their meditations, as well as enlightenment and magical powers, by disregarding convention and penetrating to the core of life.
Recounting the magical and "crazy" deeds of the mahasiddhas, such as walking through walls, flying, talking with birds, and turning people to stone, Dowman reveals the human qualities of the tantric masters and the vital elements of the siddhas' philosophy of nonduality and emptiness. Richly illustrated with paintings of the tantric saints by artist Robert Beer, these stories of the mahasiddhas show us a way through human suffering into a spontaneous and free state of oneness with the divine.
Contents
Autobiographical Note by the Illustrator
Introduction
The Mahasiddhas
Minapa, The Bengali Jonah
Luipa, The Fish-Gut Eater
Virupa, Master of Dakinis
Dombipa, The Tiger Rider
Saraha, The Great Brahmin
Lilapa, The Royal Hedonist
Savaripa, The Hunter
Goraksa, The Immortal Cowherd
Tantipa, The Senile Weaver
Khadgapa, The Master Thief
Caurangipa, The Limbless One
Kankaripa, The Lovelorn Widower
Aryadeva, The Lotus-Born
Nagarjuna, Philosopher and Alchemist
Vinapa, The Music Lover
Thaganapa, Master of the Lie
Camaripa, The Divine Cobbler
Syalipa, The Jackal Yogin
Naropa, The Dauntless Disciple
Tilopa, The Great Renunciate
Santipa, The Academic
Mekopa, The Wild-Eyed Guru
Kambala, The Yogin of the Black Blanket
Vyalipa, The Courtesan's Alchemist
Tantepa, The Gambler
Kukkuripa, The Dog Lover
Kanhapa, The Dark-Skinned One
Acinta, The Avaricious Hermit
Bhadrapa, The Snob
Kalapa, The Handsome Madman
Bhusuku (Santideva), The Lazy Monk
Kotalipa, The Peasant Guru
Indrabhuti, The Enlightened King
Jalandhara, The Chosen One
Bhiksanapa, Siddha Two-Teeth
Ghantapa, The Celibate Monk
Campaka, The Flower King
Kumbharipa, The Potter
Godhuripa, The Bird Catcher
Vinapa, The Music Lover
Thaganapa, Master of the Lie
Camaripa, The Divine Cobbler
Syalipa, The Jackal Yogin
Naropa, The Dauntless Disciple
Tilopa, The Great Renunciate
Santipa, The Academic
Mekopa, The Wild-Eyed Guru
Kambala, The Yogin of the Black Blanket
Vyalipa, The Courtesan's Alchemist
Tantepa, The Gambler
Kukkuripa, The Dog Lover
Kanhapa, The Dark-Skinned One
Acinta, The Avaricious Hermit
Bhadrapa, The Snob
Kalapa, The Handsome Madman
Bhusuku (Santideva), The Lazy Monk
Kotalipa, The Peasant Guru
Indrabhuti, The Enlightened King
Jalandhara, The Chosen One
Bhiksanapa, Siddha Two-Teeth
Ghantapa, The Celibate Monk
Campaka, The Flower King
Kumbharipa, The Potter
Godhuripa, The Bird Catcher
Kapalapa, The Skull Bearer
Carbaripa (Carpati), The Siddha Who Turned People to Stone
Kantalipa, The Rag Picker
Jayananda, The Crow Master
Dhilipa, The Epicure
Darikapa, Slave-King of the Temple Whore
Udhilipa, The Flying Siddha
Laksminkara, The Mad Princess
Nirgunapa, The Enlightened Moron
Mekhala and Kanakhala, The Headless Sisters
Kirapalapa (Kilapa), The Repentant Conqueror
Nagabodhi, The Red-Horned Thief
Sarvabhaksa, The Empty-Bellied Siddha
Manibhadra, The Model Wife
Saroruha, The Lotus Child
Publisher's Note
