>Scy77 at 20:20, 16 March 2021

2021-03-16T20:20:54Z

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{{Infobox religious biography
|name = Dharmasvamin
|image =
|birth_date = 1197
|image_size =
|caption =
|birth_place =
|death_date = 1264
|death_place =
|religion = [[Buddhism]]
|school =
|students =
|spouse =
|parents =
|children =
}}

'''Dharmasvamin''' (''Chag Lo-tsa-ba Chos-rje-dpal'', 1197–1264) was a [[Tibet]]an [[Bhikkhu|monk]] and [[pilgrim]] who travelled to [[India]] between 1234 and 1236. His biography by [[Upasaka]] Chos-dar provides an eyewitness account of the times.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Chos-dar|first1=Upasaka|translator=George Roerich|translator-link=George Roerich|others=Introduction by [[A.S. Altekar]]|title=Biography of Dharmasvamin (Chag Lo Tsaba Chos-rje-dpal), a Tibetan Monk Pilgrim|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jWGAOwAACAAJ|accessdate=24 December 2014}}</ref>

== India visit ==

The objective of Dharmasvamin's tour of India was to visit [[Bodh Gaya]] and to study the Buddhist texts with the Indian scholars. However, by the time he reached India, the Buddhist sites in eastern India had been destroyed.<ref name="SK_JCS_1998">{{cite book |editor1=Steven Kossak |editor2=Jane Casey Singer |title=Sacred Visions: Early Paintings from Central Tibet |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lTN6hDziKC0C&pg=PA14 |year=1998 |publisher=Metropolitan Museum of Art |isbn=978-0-87099-862-1 |page=14 }}</ref>

According to Dharmasvamin's biography, when he visited [[Uddandapura]], it was the residence of a [[Turkic peoples|Turushka]] (Turkic) military commander. The [[Vikramashila]] had been completely destroyed by the Turushka army. At [[Nalanda]], there were 80 small viharas, which had been abandoned after being damaged by the Turushkas, and only two of the viharas were functional.<ref name="AW_2002">{{cite book |author=André Wink |title=Al-Hind: The Slavic Kings and the Islamic conquest, 11th-13th centuries |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uQ7k2vQlYxEC&pg=PA147 |year=2002 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=0-391-04174-6 |pages=147–148}}</ref> Less than hundred monks resided there, and a local king named Buddhasena financially supported the Nalanda's 90-year abbot Rahula Shribhadra.<ref name="SK_JCS_1998"/>

Rahula Shribhadra accepted Dharmasvamin as a student, and the two men translated [[Sanskrit]] Buddhist texts into Tibetan. Dharmasvamin had mastered Sanskrit while in Tibet, using knowledge from his uncle and the 9th century dictionary ''[[Mahāvyutpatti]]'': his command over Sanskrit was so strong, that he was mistaken to be an Indian when he visited Bodh Gaya.<ref name="SK_JCS_1998"/>

Dharmasvamin also visited the court of the [[Karnat dynasty]] of [[Mithila (region)|Mithila]] which was ruled by [[Ramasimhadeva]]. He described Ramasimhadeva as treating him with courtesy and even offering him the role of palace priest despite being Buddhist.<ref name =Choudhary1970>{{Cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/HistoryOfMuslimRuleInTirhut/page/n33/mode/2up |title=History of Muslim rule in Tirhut, 1206-1765, A.D. |last=Choudhary |first=Radhakrishna |date=1970 |publisher=Chowkhamba Sanskrit Series Office |page=19 |language=en}}</ref>

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Explorers of India]]
[[Category:Pilgrimage accounts]]
[[Category:1197 births]]
[[Category:1264 deaths]]
[[Category:Tibetan Buddhists from Tibet]]
[[Category:Sanskrit scholars]]

Dharmasvamin - Revision history

>Scy77 at 20:20, 16 March 2021