Kagyu school

Kagyu school
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Name	Kagyu school
Founded	11th–12th century
Founder	Marpa Lotsawa
Headquarters	Tsurphu Monastery; Rumtek Monastery (seat in exile)
Traditions	Mahamudra, Vajrayana, Tantric lineages
Practices	Six Yogas, Phowa, Deity Yoga, Guru Yoga

Kagyu school

The Kagyu school is a major Tibetan Buddhist school tracing transmission through Tilopa, Nyangrel Nyima Özer, Marpa Lotsawa, and Milarepa to medieval and modern teachers such as Gampopa, Phagmo Drupa, and the Karmapa lineage. It emphasizes experiential transmission, meditation techniques like Mahamudra, and esoteric cycles such as the Six Yogas of Naropa, with institutional centers including Tsurphu Monastery, Rumtek Monastery, and numerous monasteries across Tibet, Bhutan, Nepal, Sikkim, and the Himalayas.

History

The early Kagyu transmission centers on figures like Tilopa and Naropa, their interactions with the Indian Tantra environment, and the translation activities of Marpa Lotsawa who traveled to Bengal, Odisha, and Bihar to bring texts from teachers such as Sodaripa and Bodongpa. The development of the school was influenced by monastic reformers including Gampopa who synthesized Kadampa elements and the tantric path, and by regional patrons like the Sakya rulers and the Mongol Empire that reshaped Tibetan polity. Branching into sub-lineages occurred during the era of master-disciple transmission involving figures such as Phagmo Drupa, Karma Pakshi, Lingchen Repa, and leaders linked to dynastic patrons like the Phagmodrupa Dynasty and the Rinpungpa. The modern period saw exile and reconstitution in places tied to the 1959 Tibetan uprising, relocation to Dharamsala, establishment of seats such as Rumtek Monastery by Situ Rinpoche, and ongoing recognition controversies surrounding claimants like the 17th Karmapa.

Lineages and Sub-schools

Key Kagyu branches include the Karma Kagyu founded by the Karmapa lineage, the Drikung Kagyu associated with Drigung Thil, the Drukpa Lineage centered on Rinpungpa and influential in Bhutan under figures like Ngawang Namgyal, and the Barom Kagyu and Phagdru Kagyu strands linked to regionally influential lamas such as Phagmo Drupa and disciples like Jetsun Milarepa. Other notable branches are the Shamarpa and Jamgon Kongtrul traditions, the Tsurphu and Palpung institutions, and reformed sub-schools connected to teachers like Khamtrul Rinpoche, Situ Rinpoche, and Gyaltsab Rinpoche.

Teachings and Practices

Doctrinally Kagyu teachings center on meditative experience transmitted through uninterrupted master-student channels, including the Mahamudra view, the tantric practices of Vajrayana and specific yogic cycles like the Six Yogas of Naropa. Instructional frameworks incorporate guru devotion introduced by figures such as Marpa Lotsawa and practiced by disciples like Milarepa, ethical guidance paralleling roots in Gampopa and codified precepts observed at monasteries like Palpung Monastery and Nubra Monastery. Vajrayana elements draw on textual and practice sources shared with other schools, including tantras associated with Indian masters such as Tilopa and ritual manuals preserved by lineages like Karma Kagyu and Drikung Kagyu.

Rituals, Meditation and Texts

Kagyu ritual life integrates deity yoga, mandala offerings, and ritual arts preserved at centers like Tsurphu Monastery and Dzogchen Monastery, with liturgies reflecting cycles compiled by figures such as Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Thaye and scriptural compilations influenced by Sakya Pandita and Butön Rinchen Drub. Meditation curricula emphasize Mahamudra meditation, the Six Yogas of Naropa (including tummo and phowa), and Kagyu-specific sadhanas transmitted from Milarepa to later yogis like Rechungpa and Gampopa. Key texts include transmissions attributed to Tilopa, the collected songs of Milarepa, the teachings assembled by Karmapa Mikyö Dorje, and treatises by later masters such as Karma Chagme and Drikung Kyobpa Jigten Sumgön.

Monastic Institutions and Geography

Major Kagyu monasteries include Tsurphu Monastery (traditional seat of the Karmapa), Rumtek Monastery (seat-in-exile), Drigung Thil Monastery, Palpung Monastery, and numerous meditation hermitages associated with Milarepa in regions of Lhodrak and Nyalam. The school established strong presences in Kham, Amdo, Ladakh, and the Kathmandu Valley, with important centers in Sikkim (e.g., Pemayangtse Monastery), Bhutan (e.g., Tashichho Dzong associations), and diasporic establishments in India and the West such as foundations by teachers like Chögyam Trungpa and Kalu Rinpoche. Patronage networks historically linked Kagyu monasteries to families like the Rinpungpa and regional polities including the Tsang rulers.

Notable Teachers and Lineage Holders

Prominent Kagyu figures include early Indian and Tibetan masters Tilopa, Naropa, Marpa Lotsawa, and Milarepa; institutional founders Gampopa and Phagmo Drupa; major lineage holders such as the successive Karmapa incarnations (including 1st Karmapa Düsum Khyenpa and 16th Karmapa), the Shamarpa and Situ Rinpoche lines; revivalists like Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Thaye, Kalu Rinpoche, Trungpa Rinpoche, and Dudjom Rinpoche (noted across schools); contemporary teachers active in dissemination such as Sogyal Rinpoche associates and Western transmitters linked to centers like Rumtek. Other influential figures include hermit-yogis Rechungpa, scholarly abbots Karma Chagme and Drikung Kyobpa Jigten Sumgön, and patrons like Ngawang Namgyal who shaped regional expressions of Kagyu practice.

Category:Tibetan Buddhism