Sadique at 16:02, 19 March 2026

2026-03-19T16:02:12Z

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{{Short description|Indian Buddhist master}}
[[File:Buddhaguptanath.jpg|thumb|18th century image of Buddhaguptanatha]]
'''Buddhaguptanatha''' (1514-1610 CE)<ref>{{cite book |last1=Lopez |first1=Donald |title=Seeing the Sacred in Samsara: An Illustrated Guide to the Eighty-Four Mahasiddhas |date=2019 |publisher=Shambhala Publications |isbn=9781611804041 |page=18 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=tgGWDwAAQBAJ&dq=Buddhaguptanatha&pg=PA18}}</ref> was an [[History of Buddhism in India|Indian Buddhist]] tantric master active in the 16th century. Notably he was the teacher of the [[Tibetans|Tibetan]] [[Lama]] and writer, [[Taranatha]].<ref name="Templeman1997">{{cite journal |last1=Templeman |first1=David |title=Buddhaguptanatha: A Late Indian Siddha in Tibet |journal=Proceedings of the 7th Seminar of the International Association for Tibetan Studies, Graz 1995 |date=1997 |volume=2 |pages=955–966 |url=https://www.scribd.com/document/19946171/Buddhaguptanatha-a-Late-Indian-Siddha-in-Tibet}}</ref><ref name=Drime>{{cite journal |last1=Drime |first1=Sherab |title=Buddhagupta-nātha |journal=The Treasure of Lives |date=2015 |url=https://treasuryoflives.org/biographies/view/buddhagupta-natha/6412}}</ref>

==Biography==
The only source on Buddhaguptanatha's life is the biography composed by his disciple, [[Taranatha]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Prabha Ray |first1=Himanshu |title=The Return of the Buddha: Ancient Symbols for a New Nation |date=2014 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=9781317560050 |page=49 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uXo9BAAAQBAJ&dq=Buddhaguptanatha&pg=PT185}}</ref>

Buddhaguptanatha was born to a wealthy [[merchant]] in the coastal city of ''Indra-linga'' located near the modern city of [[Rameswaram]] in [[Tamil Nadu]].<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Sinclair |first1=Iain |title=The Indian Ocean Itinerary of Buddhaguptanātha's Namthar |journal=Journal of Tibetan Literature |date=2024 |volume=3 |issue=2 |pages=27–60 |doi=10.58371/jtl.2024.86 |url=https://journaloftibetanliterature.org/index.php/jtl/article/view/86/240#:~:text=The%20Itinerary's%20Place%20in%20the%20Hagiography&text=Buddhanātha%20travelled%20with%20his%20fellow,the%20Punjab%2C%20and%20so%20on.|doi-access=free }}</ref> He was one of eight siblings. At a young age and with the permission of his father, he joined a community of [[Yogi|yogins]] belonging to the [[Natha Sampradaya|Nath sect]] which combined aspects of [[Buddhism]] and [[Hinduism]]. As per David Templeman, throughout his life, Buddhaguptanatha continued to combine elements of both religions into his practice and visited pilgrimage sites associated with both religions.<ref name= Drime />
At some point, Buddhaguptanatha left the group and began travelling. He visited a wide range of Buddhist holy sites including the [[Mahabodhi Temple]] of [[Bodh Gaya]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Huber |first1=Toni |title=The Holy Land Reborn: Pilgrimage and the Tibetan Reinvention of Buddhist India |date=2008 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=9780226356501 |pages=171–172 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SjzSpGf1eM0C&q=buddhaguptan%C4%81tha&pg=PA480}}</ref> He also ventured further afield and visited the region of [[Oddiyana]], the [[Swat valley]] and eastern [[Afghanistan]] including places near [[Ghazni]] and [[Mazar-i-Sharif]]. For sixteen years, he practiced in an abandoned temple to [[Shiva]] situated in [[South India]] and then went on to visit a temple nearby dedicated to [[Hevajra]]. On an island off the coast of India, he took tantric initiations into Hevajra and the [[Cakrasaṃvara Tantra]] from a teacher named Sumati.<ref name= Drime />

From here he went to [[Sri Lanka]] where he stayed for five years. It was here that he heard about his future teacher, Shantigupta. Shantigupta was a court priest for the [[Rewa (princely state)|Baghela Kingdom of Baghelkhand]]. The Baghelas themselves were Hindu but may have also patronised other religions like Buddhism. It also seems that Buddhaguptanatha was also patronised by them.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Templeman |first1=David |title='South of the Border': Tāranātha's Perceptions of India |journal=The Tibet Journal |date=2010 |volume=34 |issue=3/2 |pages=231–242 |jstor=43302070 |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/43302070}}</ref>

Buddhaguptanatha began to move northwards travelling to [[Tibet]] from [[Assam]] where he visited the monastery of [[Samye]] along with [[Lhasa]].<ref>{{cite book |last1=Kongtru |first1=Jamgon |title=The Treasury of Knowledge: Book Eight, Part Three: The Elements of Tantric Practice |date=2008 |publisher=Shambhala Publications |isbn=9781559398916 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=wn0SAgAAQBAJ&dq=Buddhaguptanatha&pg=PT343}}</ref> It was in the region of [[Ü-Tsang]] that he would first meet his student, Taranatha. Taranatha received various teachings and initiations from Buddhaguptanatha including those related to [[Hevajra]] and [[Tara (Buddhism)|Tara]]. After a three-month stay in Tibet, Buddhaguptanatha returned to India where he continued his travels although little else about his life is known beyond this point.<ref name= Drime />

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:Mahasiddhas]]
[[Category:1514 births]]
[[Category:1610 deaths]]
[[Category:Indian Buddhist missionaries]]

Buddhaguptanātha - Revision history

Sadique at 16:02, 19 March 2026