Marpa - His Life

Part One

Marpa

First Chapter: Marpa takes birth and later meets with the Holy Dharma

The great being Marpa Lotsawa was born in the place of Pesar in Trowo valley in the district of Lhotrak J. Chukhyer. His father was Marpa Wangchuk Oser. His mother was Lady Gyamo Sa Dode. They had both fields and highland dairy farms and were very wealthy. His mother and father had three children, of whom Jetsun Marpa was the youngest son. Even from the time he was very young, Marpa was very short-tempered and stubborn.

His father said, 'If my son doesn't go the wrong way, he will be very successful whether he follows the dharma or a worldly life, and there will arise great benefit for himself and others. If he goes the wrong way, he will bring disaster on himself and everyone else. Considering the potential benefits and risks, it would be good to entrust him to the dharma from the beginning.'

At first, Marpa was called Tarma Wangchuk. When he was twelve years old, Marpa was sent to a local teacher, who gave him the name Chokyi Lodro, and he entered into the dharma. He then studied reading and writing, and through the great sharpness of his mind, he mastered them completely. But as he aggressive and liked to fight very much, his family said, he could cause great harm, killing himself or us, or he could less harm such as damaging our wealth, fields, and home.

As everyone, in his home and outside, said bad and slander things about Marpa, his father decided that it would be best he went to study with a good guru, far away from there. Listening to his father, Marpa decided to become a student and ask his parents for provisions. They replied, "Use these horse and provisions to study the dharma for a while.'' And so Marpa took two yak-loads of paper, enough for a sixteen-volume prajnaparamita, a sang of gold, a silver ladle, a good horse, a middle of teakwood, and a roll of heavy silk brocade.

As the guru Drogmi Lotsawa had just returned from India and had become very famous, Marpa went to the monastery of Ugu valley in the region of Mangkhar. When he met Drogmi, Marpa offered him the two yak-loads of paper and told him that wanted to study dharma. He requested abhiseka and oral instructions, but Drogmi did not give them to him. So Marpa studied literary Sanskrit and the colloquial languages of India three years, and became completely conversant in them.

go to Second Chapter: Life of Marpa