The Great Saints Who Carried Vajrayana from India to Tibet

Vajrayana Buddhism, or Tantric and Esoteric Buddhism, is now primarily associated with the beautiful high monasteries and frigid open plains of Tibet; however, it is important to recognize that its roots lie deep in the spiritual heart of ancient India where teachings, practices and philosophical contexts of Vajrayana were cultivated and developed over hundreds of years. This profound path with its nuanced blend of sutra and tantra, reason and mysticism, started at the crossroads of Indian thought and meditative experience.

Vajrayana was developed by visionary saints and teachers who moved across cultural and geographical frontiers, bringing the light of Indian thought across these boundaries, entering Tibet. These six significant figures—Shantarakshita, Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Atisha Dipamkara, Tilopa, and Naropa—are not only responsible for the transmission of Dharma into Tibet but also for carving out the philosophical, ethical, and meditative shape of what is now known as Vajrayana Buddhism. The legacy of these past masters continues to inspire and illuminate the spiritual path of countless practitioners through the centuries..

The Nalanda Legacy: Cradle of Vajrayana Transmission

Nalanda Mahavihara, the famous monastic university of ancient India, was an important center for Buddhist thought and activity from the 5th to the 12th centuries CE. More than a place of education, it was a testing ground for Mahayana Buddhist teachings, where ideas thrived and were debated among thousands of monks, scholars, and philosophers. The university served as a focal point for the efforts of Buddhist culture for more than 700 years, going down in history as a total of mystical and scholarly activity that challenged statements made in sacred texts, examined their reasoning, and tested them in meditative experience. 

Many of the masters featured in this blog were either trained in Nalanda or were informed by it in similar ways. In the creation of Tibetan culture, Nalanda became a source of life from which Tibetan Buddhism would grow, much like a Buddhist civilization would arise in the Himalayas. The deep structures of the Vajrayana doctrine—its philosophical foundations, ethical frameworks, and esoteric practices—were all retained, expanded upon, and exported from this grand university. Philosophical discussion, attitudes towards tantra, and meditative training were all practiced and supported by devotees from the great monastic site, Nalanda, a place to make the Dharma both deep and real.

Shantarakshita: The Harmonizer of Philosophy and Tantra

Shantarakshita’s Role in Establishing Tibetan Buddhism

Recognized in the history of Buddhism as an important 8th-century Indian scholar-monastic, Shantarakshita was invited by King Trisong Detsen to introduce a complete Dharma tradition to Tibet. He established the ultimate framework for an inclusive Dharma tradition comprised of monastic discipline, Madhyamaka, and logical inquiry. His invite to tibet became a historical moment that resulted in the founding of the first Tibetan monastery, Samye Monastery. This was not merely a significant religious milestone. It was a cultural milestone that integrated Indian scholastic Buddhism in a deep relationship with Tibetan soil.

Shantarakshita was an exceptional synthesizer of philosophical reflection and introspective insight gleaned from tantra. His advocacy for the integration of the Madhyamaka empty view of inherent existence, argued with calmness and intellectual reason, with the ritual and meditative practices of Vajrayana, represents a unified philosophical and practical aesthetic. His significance can be understood from the text he composed, titled Tattvasamgraha, that Tibetan scholars still study today. In addition, Shantarakshita foresaw the arrival of Padmasambhava, who would help subdue obstacles to Dharma growth in Tibet, and as a duo, they were fundamental to establishing the framework for the Nyingma school that promised a particular interdependence of monastic structure and tantric depth.

Iconography of Shantarakshita

Shantarakshita, in Himalayan art, is typically depicted as a prestigious monastic figure, clad in full robes, seated on a lotus throne. He is shown using his right hand in the vitarka mudra (the teaching and intellectual discussion gesture), while his left hand is holding an alms bowl, which signifies his disciplined monastic lifestyle and renunciation. These elements together constitute his role as a philosopher and spiritual guide who developed a deeper understanding of the connections between Indian scholarship and Tibetan Dharma.

Nagarjuna: The Serpent Buddha and Madhyamaka Master

Architect of Emptiness and Bridge to Tantra

Arya Nagarjuna, the Indian master from the second century, is the founder of the Madhyamaka, or Middle Way, school and is widely respected among all Tibetan Buddhist traditions. His teachings on shunyata, or emptiness, provided the philosophical basis for Mahayana and Vajrayana alike. Nagarjuna disassembled the conceptual pathways into an experience of reality that is inherently non-dual, in texts like the Mulamadhyamakakarika. It is even said he received hidden teachings from the Nagas—serpent spirits, whose mythic tale demonstrates Nagarjuna's function as a unifier of sutric reason with the depths of tantra.

Nagarjuna's influence is felt in every Vajrayana lineage, giving interpretive clarity to lofty yogic experience and method. His image, like his thought, imparts wisdom that pierces through illusion and maintains the path to realization.

Iconography of Nagarjuna

Nagarjuna is often shown seated on a lotus throne, dressed simply in the monk’s cloth (kasaya) with the Prajnaparamita manuscript alongside him on a lotus, signifying his deep role in expressing Mahayana wisdom. He is usually depicted with his hands in the Dharmachakra mudra, surrounded above only by the seven-headed naga with the ties of serpent spirits and their hidden teachings. Clearly, with a calm face and radiant halo, one sees a teacher who was able to cut through illusion and reveal sacred knowledge, with the possible addition of naga attendants.

Aryadeva: Nagarjuna’s Closest Disciple and Spiritual Heir

Guardian of the Middle Way

Aryadeva, who is Nagarjuna's closest disciple, was instrumental in bringing the Madhyamaka tradition to fruition. His four-hundred-verse (Catushataka) work entered the Tibetan scholastic tradition and drew out improved dialectical instruments with which to refute eternalism and nihilism. Aryadeva, as an accomplished debater, was instrumental in cleansing Buddhism philosophically via rigorous debate and precise reasoning.

Aryadeva's contributions established the foundation for later systems of tantra (especially in the case of Highest Yoga Tantra) wherein Aryadeva's articulation of emptiness remained critical. Aryadeva's intellectual legacy continues to resonate in the Vajrayana lineages of both Gelug and Sakya schools; revelatory understanding of this profound view of reality is the goal of practitioners.

Iconography of Aryadeva

Aryadeva is usually represented as a youthful monk figure sitting in a relaxed position, holding a green leafy branch in one hand and a red ritual vase in the other, sometimes with only a scripture in his hand, all symbols that underscore his healing insight and ritual knowledge. He is shown seated beneath a flowering tree and surrounded by natural symbols of a tranquil environment of wisdom. His robes are bright and flowing, and a calm halo surrounds his head, which hints at his honed purity and balance of Nagarjuna's lineage.

Atisha Dipamkara: The Beacon Who Reformed Tibetan Buddhism

Reviver of Tibetan Buddhism and Founder of the Kadampa Tradition

Atisha Dipamkara Shrijnana, born in 982 CE, was a distinguished academic-monk trained and educated in Vikramashila, trained in both sutra and tantra. During his time, he traveled across the ocean on a quest for true Dharma and ultimate truth and came to Sumatra, where he received the complete (and correctly oriented) bodhicitta teachings. He was invited to Tibet in the 11th century, at a time when Buddhism was in decline due to previous periods of profound persecution as well as the commonality of misinterpreted views on tantra. He also arrived in Tibet just before the Tibetans made a transition from Bonism to the adoption of some degree of Buddhism. He came to Tibet, and that period of wisdom brought about a renaissance—he wrote the auspiciously titled text, Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment, wherein he codified a systematic, ethical, and incremental approach to awakening. Because of this text ("Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment,") this and his other teachings laid the groundwork for the later Lamrim genre. 

Atisha's teachings were the beginnings of the Kadampa school, which focuses on altruism, renunciation, and correct view, and was propagated, processed, and introduced in the later texts by his chief disciple Dromtonpa. The writings and teachings in the Kadampa curriculum influenced Tsongkhapa and the later Gelug school and assured Atisha and his presence in Tibetan Buddhism's ethical and philosophical underpinnings.

Iconography of Atisha Dipamkara

Atisha is usually depicted seated in full monastic robes with hands in the teaching mudra or holding a vajra and bell. His face displays serenity combined with wisdom and genuine loving-kindness. Atisha often has students or other symbols of bodhicitta surrounding him, and the throne sometimes shows lions representing royal spiritual authority.

Tilopa: The Wild Mystic Who Held the Key to Mahamudra

The Tantric Mystic and Source of Mahamudra

Tilopa, a Mahasiddha from the 10th century, exemplified the essence of direct realization by relying on the yogic experience over any sort of academic education. Wandering as a mendicant yogi, he was taught by human gurus as well as by divine sources, including teachings from Vajradhara, and learned from both direct practice and solitude. Tilopa's best-known contribution was the Mahamudra transmission to Naropa, which he distilled into "Six Words of Advice," since it points to the mind's true nature beyond thoughts and concepts. 

Although Tilopa never set foot in Tibet, the teachings came to Tibet with Naropa and Marpa, shaping the Kagyu lineage and placing Vajrayana Buddhism in the immediacy of lived realization over academic form.

Iconography of Tilopa

Tilopa is depicted in either royal ease or cross-legged, and sometimes balancing on one leg, embodying yogic spontaneity and inner mastery. His visage shows calm but intensity with a slightly open mouth hinting at wild wisdom and direct realization. Tilopa often holds a fish in his left hand or rests one on his lap, denoting freedom from convention, while his right hand offers a skull cup or vajra. Ultimately, he wears the five-skull crown and six bone ornaments, though he has a little more than a tiger-skin loincloth representing renunciation and tantric accomplishment. 

Naropa: The Scholar Who Became a Siddha

From Scholar to Siddha

Naropa began as an accomplished scholar and gatekeeper to Nalanda University, known for his academic mastery and reputation as a fierce debater. However, with his academic success and prestige came a deep-seated spiritual hunger. Following a transformative encounter with a dakini who unveiled Naropa's pride, he left his scholarly accolades behind and started searching for the Mahasiddha Tilopa. Over the course of his search, Naropa endured twelve grueling missions to receive the full transmission of the tantric teachings. 

Naropa's trials were a serious test of his character up to this point, and ultimately, he developed the Six Yogas of Naropa (a serious development of some advanced practices, including tummo, illusory body, and dream yoga). The six yogas and Naropa's teachings were finally transmitted to Marpa the Translator. Marpa brought Naropa's teachings to Tibet, where he then trained Milarepa in the living natural tradition of direct realization through fierce inner transformation.

Iconography of Naropa

Naropa is usually shown seated cross-legged in a teaching position or in a dynamic, energetic dancing position, effectively illustrating his active and dynamic role in establishing the lineage. His wide-open eyes and open mouth communicate direct perception and fearless compassion. He is often depicted with a vajra, damaru, or ritual horn, with one hand exhibiting the vitarka mudra, deepening our understanding of his identity as a lineage's teacher. Like Tilopa, Naropa is generally depicted wearing the five-skull crown, as well as bone ornaments, but may also include refined features like layered jewels, scarves, or ritual sashes. Naropa is generally depicted wearing yogic robes that are light or a simple dhoti. 

The Unbroken Chain of Wisdom

The lives of the six Indian saints, Shantarakshita, Nagarjuna, Aryadeva, Atisha, Tilopa, and Naropa, mark the established living stream of transmission from the ancient university of Nalanda to the lofty plateaus of Tibet. Their lives and teachings show us the uninterrupted flow from scholarly theoretical work to embodied personal practice, and the transition from the sutra foundations of Buddhism to the practices that delineate Vajrayana, which means "the vehicle of indestructible form." This lineage is more than history; it is a living and breathing lineage, with realized masters embodying wisdom, bodhicitta, and compassion. Collectively, their legacies show us that Vajrayana is not simply a philosophy or a system of esoteric exercises, but a living tradition that provokes a transformation of the mind and heart, moving practitioners toward liberation through intellectual clarity and insight through practice.

In today's Tibetan monasteries, meditation centers, and retreats throughout the Himalayas and the larger Buddhist diaspora, their traditions resonated within the teachings of countless seekers. Whether through the systematic knowledge and integrative approach of Shantarakshita, the penetrating emptiness wisdom of Nagarjuna, the ethical reformation and pragmatic clarity of Atisha, or the experiential depth and yogic intensity demonstrated by Tilopa and Naropa, all the saints exhibited significant aspects of the lived tradition of Vajrayana. In concert, they represent a living, breathing community of beings spanning centuries and cultures - adapting, yet remaining true to the essence of the Dharma. 

Conclusion: The Sacred Bridge Between India and Tibet

The narrative of Vajrayana Buddhism is not Tibetan only; it is intertwined with Indian history. The saints considered above changed Tibetan spiritual geography, but they also placed the teachings of Indian Mahayana firmly in the Land of Snows, and so will continue for time immemorial. In this contemporary climate of Vajrayana practitioners studying the Vajrayana path, understanding these masters is not only historical, but an offering of respect to the lineage we all belong to, digging our roots deeper with the help of the past in walking the path with greater clarity and conviction.

Their lives are simply the markers of timelines for any traveller currently lost in the ocean of tantra, revealing that true freedom from suffering does not lie in what we can accumulate externally, but in the conscientious revealing of the awakened mind that exists within, without fear.