The Epic of Gesar of Ling : Gesar's Magical Birth, Early Years, and Coronation As King

The epic of Gesar has been the national treasure of Tibet for almost a thousand years. An open canon of tales about a superhuman warrior-king, the epic is still a living oral tradition, included on UNESCO’s Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This book is a translation of the beginning portion of this enormous corpus, covering all the events from Gesar’s divine conception to his human birth and mischievous childhood to his coronation as king of Ling. Born in the pure lands the son of two wisdom deities, Gesar takes rebirth in the human realm in order to defeat the demon kings who had taken over the empires of Asia and to thus liberate the people from suffering. His jealous uncle Trothung proves to be the first major threat to this goal, but Gesar outwits him every time using magic. In the last chapters of the book, he and Trothung’s son face off in a high-tension horse race to decide who will win the throne of Ling and the hand of the coveted Princess Drugmo in marriage.Gesar’s story is popularly read as an allegory, with Gesar representing the ideal of spiritual warriorship—that is, fearlessness in the face of obstacles on the path to enlightenment. Just as Gesar rides his flying steed, we too can ride the energy of dignity, confidence, and power that is inherent to us, subduing inner demons and claiming victory. Review “The Gesar story is one of the Tibetan people’s most popular epics, its stories being enacted and sung at festivals and on important ceremonial occasions. By making the epic of Gesar available in English, the translators are offering the modern reader a chance to experience the particular character of this Tibetan tradition that has brought hope and fortitude to many generations across the Tibetan-speaking world.”—from the foreword by His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama “The timing [of this book] could not be better. As our modern world experiences a loss of heart and humanity, and climactic changes and disasters occur, we need the compassionate, wise, and potent energy of Gesar more than ever.”—from the foreword by Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche About the Author ROBIN KORNMAN (1947-2007) is best known for his work as a Tibetan Buddhist scholar, as well as for being a founding member of the Nalanda Translation Committee. Up until his death, he spent many years working on this translation of the epic of Gesar. A longtime student of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche, he earned his PhD from Princeton University and was a professor of comparative literature at the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee. SANGYE KHANDRO has translated many important Tibetan Buddhist texts. She is a cofounder of Light of Berotsana, a nonprofit organization for translators of Tibetan texts. LAMA CHÖNAM is a Tibetan teacher who received twenty years of traditional training as a monk in Tibet. He is a translator and adviser to the Nalanda Translation Committee and a cofounder of Light of Berotsana. The Gesar of Ling epic is the Tibetan equivalent of The Arabian Nights . For hundreds of years, versions of it have been known in oral and written form in Tibet, China, Central Asia, and across the eastern Silk Route. King Gesar, renowned throughout these areas, represents the ideal warrior. As a leader with his people's loyalty and trust, he conquers all their enemies and protects the peace. His life story, which is full of miracles and magic, is an inspiration and a spiritual example to the people of Tibet and Central Asia even today; Gesar's warrior mask can be seen in the town square and on the door of homes in towns and villages throughout this area. As a Buddhist teaching story, the example of King Gesar is also understood as a spiritual allegory. The "enemies" in the stories represent the emotional and psychological challenges that turn people's minds toward greed, aggression, and envy, and away from the true teachings of Buddhism. These enemies graphically represent the different manifestations of the untamed mind. The teaching is that genuine warriors are not aggressive, but that they subjugate negative emotions in order to put the concerns of others before their own. The ideal of warriorship that Gesar represents is that of a person who, by facing personal challenges with gentleness and intelligence, can attain spiritual realization. This book contains volumes one through three, which tell of Gesar's birth, his mischievous childhood, his youth spent in exile, and his rivalry for the throne with his treacherous uncle. The Gesar epic tells how the king, an enlightened warrior, in order to defend Tibet and the Buddhist religion from the attacks of surrounding demon kings, conquers his enemies one by one in a series of adventures and campaigns that take him all over the Eastern world. He is assisted in his adventures by a cast of heroes and magical characters who include the major deities of Tibetan Buddhism as well as the native religion of Tibet. Gesar fulfills the Silk Route ideal of a king by being both a warrior and a magician. As a magician he combines the powers of an enlightened Buddhist master with those of a shamanic sorcerer. In fact, at times the epic almost seems like a manual to train such a Buddhist warrior-magician. In the story, the people and nation of Ling represent the East Asian notion of an enlightened society. There, meditation, magic, and the oral folk wisdom of a communal nomadic society are synchronized in a lifestyle harmonious with the environment, but ambitious for growth and learning and refined literate culture. Filled with magic, adventure, and the triumphs of this great warrior-king, the stories will delight allyoung and old alike. The Gesar epic is still sung by bards in Tibet. The words of the Gesar epic have never been translated into a Western language before. The epic of Gesar has been the national treasure of Tibet for almost a thousand years. An open canon of tales about a superhuman warrior-king, the epic is still a living oral tradition, included on UNESCO's Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity. This book is a translation of the beginning portion of this enormous corpus, covering all the events from Gesar's divine conception to his human birth and mischievous childhood to his coronation as king of Ling. Born in the pure lands the son of two wisdom deities, Gesar takes rebirth in the human realm in order to defeat the demon kings who had taken over the empires of Asia and to thus liberate the people from suffering. His jealous uncle Trothung proves to be the first major threat to this goal, but Gesar outwits him every time using magic. In the last chapters of the book, he and Trothung's son face off in a high-tension horse race to decide who will win the throne of Ling and the hand of the coveted Princess Drugmo in marriage. Gesar's story is popularly read as an allegory, with Gesar representing the ideal of spiritual warriorship-that is, fearlessness in the face of obstacles on the path to enlightenment. Just as Gesar rides his flying steed, we too can ride the energy of dignity, confidence, and power that is inherent to us, subduing inner demons and claiming victory Foreword By Alak Zenkar Rinpoche -- Foreword By Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche -- Historical Introduction -- Translators' Introduction -- Editor's Note -- Volume One. The Events Leading To Gesar's Incarnation In The Land Of Ling -- Volume Two. Gesar's Birth And Childhood In The Land Of Ling -- Volume Three. Gesar Wins The Horse Race And Becomes The King Of Ling -- Notes -- Glossary Of Names And Places. Translated By Robin Kornman, Sangye Khandro, And Lama Chönam ; Forewords By Alak Zenkar Rinpoche And Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 618) And Index. Foreword / His Holiness the Fourteenth Dalai Lama -- Foreword / Alak Zenkar Rinpoche -- Foreword / Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche -- Preface -- Historical introduction -- Translators' introduction -- Acknowledgments -- Volume one. The events leading to Gesar's incarnation in the land of Ling -- Volume two. Gesar's birth and childhood in the land of Ling -- Volume three. Gesar wins the horse race and becomes the king of Ling -- Postscript -- Notes -- Glossary of terms -- Glossary of names