(By Tsem Rinpoche and Pastor David Lai)

Virupa is one of the most famous Indian Buddhist mahasiddhas in history. He is featured amongst the famous collection of 84 Mahasiddhas by Abhayakirti and he is part of Dorje Shugden’s incarnation lineage, meaning he was one of Dorje Shugden’s previous lives. However, like many other mahasiddhas, Virupa was actually a name he adopted after he gained ‘siddhis’ or realisations. While he was at the great Nalanda Monastery of ancient India, he held the reputation for consorting with strange women who were in reality wisdom dakinis, which earned him the nickname Virupa or ‘wicked’, a name which he later came to adopt himself.

Virupa was born into the royal family of King Suvarnachakra in the ancient city of Vesasa in eastern India. At birth, the child was presented to the court astrologers and upon observing certain marks and signs, they predicted that he would attain great spiritual powers and would proliferate the Buddha’s teachings. He was then given the name Rupyachakra. Due to the workings of karma and his strong inclinations, he entered into the great monastery of Somapura in North Bengal and was duly ordained by the Abbot Vinitadeva and Acharya Jayakirti.

A detailed and exquisite line drawing of the famous Mahasiddha Virupa. Click on image to enlarge.

While at Somapura, Virupa proved to be a gifted student, mastering all the five major Buddhist sciences and establishing himself as a great scholar of the Buddhist doctrine along with other religious and philosophical systems. At Somapura, Virupa also built a temple in which he installed sacred Buddha images to amass vast amounts of merit and purify negative karma for his deceased parents. Upon completion of the temple, Virupa offered a grand feast for the entire Sangha community and then formally dedicated the merits generated. He completed his preliminary studies at the monastery and made his way to Nalanda, the world’s largest monastic seat.

Entering the Great Nalanda Monastery

Virupa received full monastic ordination at Nalanda Monastery from the great Abbot Dharmamitra, also known as Jayadeva. Virupa was given the ordination name Shri Dharmapala. While at Nalanda, he continued his studies at the feet of the abbot, who bestowed upon him many personal instructions and teachings on the Vajrayana path, especially on the Chakrasamvara Tantra. Upon his demise, the abbot left clear instructions that the monastery should appoint Shri Dharmapala as his successor and urged the monks to accord him the due respect. Shri Dharmapala presided over the abbot’s ritual funerary arrangements and at the end of the cremation, the relics were distributed amongst devoted disciples and great patrons.

(Top to bottom): Buddha Shakyamuni, Buddha Vajradhara, Heruka Chakrasamvara, Four-faced Mahakala and Dorje Shugden. Click on image to enlarge.

Shri Dharmapala was a great practitioner of tantra, in particular the Chakrasamvara Tantra which he practised diligently every night, in accordance with secret instructions he had received from the abbot, who was also his personal teacher.

Hence, in the daytime, Shri Dharmapala devoted his time between teaching the Dharma and composing treatises. He taught mainly on the Mahayana and Theravadin treatises but in private, he devoted almost all of his time and energy towards the path of the Secret Mantra or Vajrayana. Throughout the years, he continued to practise Chakrasamvara single-pointedly in the monastery. Despite his years of diligent practice however, Shri Dharmapala did not gain even a single sign of spiritual accomplishment and he also had to grapple with the problems that come with old age and sickness.

At that time, Shri Dharmapala had such intense nightmares that he thought he was being disturbed by evil spirits and wrathful beings. He dreamt that he witnessed a huge fire raging in the valley below and a strange flood gathering on higher ground. Then hail-storms rained down, sending glaciers, icicles and huge blocks of ice crashing down from the sky. After that, he beheld a terrible vision of his Guru, yidam (meditational deity) and spiritual friends hung upside down with bloody torn faces, eyes gouged out and dripping with blood. Such nightmares filled him with dread and he immediately thought that these dreams were an extremely grave omen. He came to the conclusion that he did not have the karma and affinity to make it on the Vajrayana path in this lifetime and made the tough decision to give up his practice. That night, he threw into the latrine the mala (rosary) that he used for his practice.

Contrary to Shri Dharmapala’s interpretation, the terrifying dreams were actually a sign of his impending tantric realisation. Unbeknownst to him, he had completed the Mahayana path of Accumulation and Preparation and was about to attain the Path of Seeing. Unfortunately, at this point, his guru had already passed away and he had no one to consult on this matter, hence he did not receive the pith instructions. However, the enlightened deity Nairatmya who had karmic connection with him, appeared in his dream as a blue woman dressed in heavenly silks. Nairatyma told him that he should not give up his practice as he was about to gain realisations and told him to retrieve his mala, purify it with scented water and confess his misdeed. From then on, he should resume his tantric practice and sadhana. In the morning, he felt remorseful for giving up and acting according to her instructions, Shri Dharmapala resumed his practice. Shortly thereafter, he attained the realisation of a Bodhisattva on the Sixth of the Ten Grounds.

A statue of the famous Mahasiddha Virupa. Click on image to enlarge.

In thanksgiving to his guru and yidams, Shri Dharmapala instructed his attendants to prepare ingredients for Ganachakra or a tantric feast. This included, amongst other types of offerings, meat and alcohol which disturbed some monks who were not initiated into tantra. When he engaged in the ritual offering, a number of monks peered into his chamber. One eyewitness saw him in the company of 15 beautiful maidens; another saw him in the company of only eight maidens; yet another saw him amidst 15 oil lamps. News broke out about the abbot in the company of women in his private chambers and all manner of scandalous rumours ensued. His stainless reputation as a pure monk was thus compromised by these persistent rumours and his abbotship of the great monastic institution was called into question.

In the end, to quell the rumours, Shri Dharmapala decided to come clean about his behaviour. Standing before a great image of the Buddha in the monastery, Shri Dharmapala openly professed his sins, removed his robes, set down his begging bowl and loudly proclaimed, “I am wicked” or “Ame Virupa”. Then, he left the monastery and acquired some flowers from a flower seller and placed them on his head. He also acquired some radishes from a marketplace stall, some of which he placed in his mouth while others were tucked under his armpit. Adopting an eccentric behaviour, he frequented bars and brothels which resulted in his official expulsion from the monastery. To solemnise the expulsion, the sacred monastic gongs were beaten and Shri Dharmapala, in turn, responded by singing songs of realisations. Henceforth, he would call himself ‘Virupa’ as he wandered through the land as a crazy yogin.

The Wandering Yogin

After his expulsion from the monastery, Virupa made his way towards the great river Ganges. Several monks followed him and while they were at the riverbank, the mahasiddha proclaimed, “I am wicked and so you should part your waters so I would not have to desecrate it.” To the amazement of the monks, the water miraculously parted and he walked across without getting wet. The monks realised that their former abbot was highly attained so they begged for his forgiveness, requesting him to return to the monastery. Virupa forgave them but declined to return. Thereafter, Virupa set out to Bhimesara, first coming to settle in the forests of Varanasi where he lived, meditated and begged for food in the manner of a renounced ascetic. Just like most ascetics of his day, he wore no clothes and his complexion became so dark that he appeared to be bluish. He was quite a fearsome sight for the nearby townsfolk who came to offer him alms.

Virupa (right) had a special karmic relationship with the goddess Nairatmya (left). She appeared to him in a dream when he gave up his tantric practice. Click on image to enlarge.

The kingdom in which he now lived was Hindu and many regarded the strange ascetic as just another Hindu yogin while some suspected he was actually Buddhist. Nevertheless, news of his presence in the forest soon reached the king. The King of Varanasi, the great Govindachandala, was a staunch Hindu and great patron of Hindu ascetics. The presence of this strange yogin piqued his interest as he wanted to make offerings to him but he feared that if Virupa turned out to be Buddhist, the king felt it would harm the faith of his kingdom. Hence, the king ordered his ministers to investigate this matter. However, they were unable to determine his faith merely by observing him. So the king told his ministers to summon Virupa to the palace so he could be interrogated and put to the test.

En route to the palace, the great mahasiddha devoured worms, birds and various insects in a frenzy. Then, not only did he regurgitate them, but Virupa revived them as well. His behaviour was reported ahead of time to the king at the palace, and he was referred to as ‘wicked’. This worried the king as he wondered what to make of this crazy ascetic. When he arrived, Virupa was brought before the king to be interrogated. The king posed many questions but Virupa remained silent. This infuriated the king, leading him to declare that Virupa must be a Buddhist yogin considering the fact he lacked any visible signs of a Hindu ascetic. The king ordered for him to be thrown into the river so the guards seized Virupa, tied him up and led him away.

An old and exquisite statue of the Mahasiddha Virupa forged in the Chinese imperial kilns of Yongle Emperor of the Ming dynasty. Click on image to enlarge.

Although Virupa was subsequently thrown into the river, he later reappeared at the court unharmed. The king barked for the guards to seize him again; once again, they tied him up and threw him into the river. Virupa again reappeared before the king and this was repeated a few times until the king ordered for him to be stabbed instead with multiple spears and weapons. The weapons however, could not penetrate his skin and Virupa remained unharmed. Then the king ordered for him to be scalded with molten iron and bronze. A trench was dug in the ground to accommodate Virupa before molten iron and bronze were poured onto him. The trench was then covered with soil before elephants were guided on top to level the soil.

In spite of everyone’s best efforts, Virupa remained unscathed and reappeared before the king. The king was amazed and developed a deep faith in him. He knelt down and sought Virupa’s forgiveness. In this way, Virupa went on to proliferate the Buddha’s teachings in Varanasi.

Meeting Dombi Heruka

After that incident, Virupa went southward and came to the banks of the river Ganges again. There was only a single boat ferrying people across the river. Virupa asked a nearby ferryman to take him across. He immediately recognised the ferryman to be someone he had karmic affinity with. However, the ferryman declined to take Virupa across without a fee and so Virupa told him that he would do whatever the ferryman wanted in exchange for a ride across.

Virupa’s very first disciple was the ferryman who later became known as the famous Mahasiddha Dombi Heruka. Click on image to enlarge.

Virupa asked if the ferryman preferred the river to be larger or smaller. The ferryman replied that he liked the river to be bigger at times but mostly he preferred it to be smaller. Virupa promised the river as payment and then pointed his hand in a threatening mudra (sacred gesture). Suddenly, the river began to flow backwards. However, that caused a deluge that flooded the riverbank and swept away a number of homes by the riverbank. People were alarmed with this supernatural occurrence and news broke out that it was happening due to the power of a powerful mendicant. The villagers pleaded with the king to intercede and King Chalabhadra personally came to request Virupa to restore the river to its normal flow.

The king along with the villagers came bearing rich offerings of gold, silver, cattle, grain and flowers. In response to the request, Virupa broke into song and midway, he snapped his fingers. With that, the river was restored. Nonetheless, Virupa took none of the offerings, giving it to the ferryman instead. The ferryman refused to take any of the offerings and instead, he knelt down and touched Virupa’s feet, requesting to be his disciple. Virupa accepted and later, the ferryman who came to be known as Dombi Heruka, became a great mahasiddha in his own right. The guru and disciple left town and the pile of offerings behind.

Stopping the Sun

The guru and disciple travelled down to Dakshinipata, which was near Bhimesara. They chanced upon a tavern belonging to the lady Kamarupasiddhi. Upon entering, Virupa asked for some wine but she took one look at them and asked if they could afford to drink. Virupa replied, “Serve me until I am satisfied and you will be rewarded with whatever you want.””

However, she remained sceptical and went on to ask, “But when will you actually pay?””

Virupa drew out a dagger and carved a line on the floor and said, “I will settle the bill when the sun reaches this point.”

This scene immortalises Virupa’s miracle of pinning the sun at Kamarupasiddhi’s tavern. She is depicted here in green. Click on image to enlarge.

Unbeknownst to the tavern owner, Virupa had already used his great powers to pin the sun from moving along its usual course. The hours rolled by as Virupa continued to drink and demanded more wine. In a short time, the tavern’s wine vats were completed emptied. Although many hours had passed, the shadow of the building had not moved an inch since Virupa entered the tavern. In order to keep her end of the bargain, the lady had to buy wine from other nearby taverns. Virupa had drunk five elephant-loads of wine and it was still not enough. Despite drinking so much wine, his thirst was not abated, and the unrelenting midday heat began to dry up crops across the land while rivers and lakes began to shrink. The people throughout the land were exhausted but unable to rest because of the terrible heat and sunshine.

The king of the area ordered his ministers to investigate the cause for this mysterious anomaly. It was not long before the king discovered Virupa’s bargain with the tavern owner. Thus, he immediately set out to meet with Virupa and pleaded with him to restore the sun to its normal cycle. Virupa agreed only if the king would settle the wine bill, which the king readily agreed to. The sun was released at midday of the third day since Virupa entered the tavern. As the sun was set that day, the entire kingdom rejoiced and developed deep faith in the Mahasiddha Virupa.

By this time, Virupa had gathered quite a following after displaying the miracle of parting the Ganges River and stopping the sun. This became his most famous miracle and he is often depicted with a hand raised aloft in a wrathful gesture at the sun.

Meeting Krishnacharya

Virupa and his disciple arrived at Bhimesara, which was ruled by a Hindu dynasty. The monarch at that time was King Narapati. The king himself was a great patron of 500 Hindu yogis traditionally renowned for their plaited hair. The yogis congregated at a temple complex with a huge Shiva linga and a large statue of Mahadeva installed by the previous King Bhayasena. The height of their religious celebration was a sacred day of ritual sacrifice of 10,000 cattle and goats every year.

Virupa arrived amidst the yearly sacrifice and he spontaneously began to compose and recite Sanskrit verses of praise to the Shiva linga. The king heard some of these verses and was greatly impressed with the scholarship of the praise, thereby appointing him the leader of the congregation of 500 yogis. Virupa seized this opportunity and quickly accepted the position, which required him to preside over the worship and rituals. During the regular worship sessions, the entire congregation were required to bow and make flower offerings to the statue of Mahadeva. At this point, Virupa pulled out a Prajnaparamita Sutra tucked away in his hair and bowed to this text instead. He would do this each time and the yogis who witnessed this became suspicious and reported it to the king.

A depiction of Krishnacharya. Click on image to enlarge.

Initially, the king told the yogis off, “You are just jealous. He is such a great scholar and master of the Vedas. How could he not pay homage to the great Mahadeva, the king of the gods?””

However, the yogis were persistent with their allegations until the king decided that he should go and observe himself. The next day at the temple shrine, the king arrived unannounced and he was able to witness for himself the great Virupa bowing to the Prajnaparamita text. The king was shocked and asked Virupa, “Why are you not worshipping the great Mahadeva?”

“Why should I do that?”, Virupa replied. “After all, he would not be able to bear my homage.””

“He is the most powerful god in the entire realm! How can you say that? You should pay homage to him!”, the king said.

Virupa faced the statue and said, “I have no choice but to do what the sinful king insists. You have to forgive me for this.“”

Virupa raised both his hands in supplication above his head and recited, “Namo Buddhaya” (I take refuge in the Buddha). At this point, the statue spontaneously cracked. Then he lowered his hands to his throat and recited, “Namo Dharmaya” (I take refuge in the Dharma). The massive cracks extended all over the statue before Virupa lowered his hands to his heart and recited, “Namo Sanghaya” (I take refuge in the Sangha). At this point, the statue broke apart and crumbled to the ground. It was heavy negative karma for the worldly deity to have such an attained being prostrate to him and hence, his image crumbled as a result of this accumulation.

The king was shell-shocked and he turned to Virupa with a mixed expression of fear and reverence. Nonetheless, he composed himself and requested for the statue to be restored. Virupa miraculously restored the statue and placed a black stone image of Avalokiteshvara on it. He told the king not to remove the image because the statue would instantly crumble to the ground. With that, Virupa suddenly departed, leaving the temple. Amongst the 500 yogis, one yogi had developed tremendous faith in Virupa. This yogi renounced his faith and entered the Buddhist path, leaving the order to become Virupa’s disciple. His name was Krishnacharya of the East. and he would eventually become a very powerful and famous mahasiddha in his own right.

Subjugation of Tambrapratima and the Goddess Chandika

Virupa and his two disciples travelled south and came to a Hindu stronghold ruled by powerful Brahmins. They arrived at a popular temple complex that had a towering 120-feet statue of Shiva that was known as Tambrapratima. It was a massive figure with three faces and six arms, all cast in bronze by the great king Jomgi. In accordance with tradition, devotees from all over the kingdom would come to this temple with thousands of goats and livestock in order to sacrifice them, which were then offered to the god. When the three mahasiddhas (Virupa, Dombi Heruka and Krishnacharya) arrived at the temple, the temple was in the midst of worship and the temple grounds were filled with devotees.

Suddenly, someone shouted, “There’s no space inside so you should wait outside and we will give you your share of the feast.”

Virupa ignored this and shoved through the crowd towards the large statue and kicked it. “Since there is no space in this place, it is you who should get out of this place!””

The statue followed Virupa and took seven steps before it came crashing to the ground. Devotees were horrified by what they witnessed and Virupa threatened the devotees that he would take their god away if they did not replace their animal sacrifice with vegetarian offerings. They readily agreed and vowed to only make vegetarian offerings to the statue of Shiva.

From then on, it is said that all who heard the name ‘Virupa’ became terribly afraid that he would come to destroy their Hindu gods so they placed a Buddhist image on top of their Hindu gods and goddesses. Once, Virupa came across a Hindu image with a Tara on it and he immediately circumambulated the image. It was said that the Tara image turned her face in the direction of Virupa. The image would eventually be known as the ‘Turning Face Tara’.

There was another time when Virupa and his disciples travelled further south to a place famous for a self-arisen image of the goddess Chandika, that was known as Sahajadevi. At that time, it was a popular place of worship amongst many female Hindu yoginis. At the shrine was a trishula (ritual trident) that on its own accord would pierce and kill some of devotees when they entered the shrine. The resident yoginis would then offer the flesh and blood of the victims to the goddess.

Virupa arrived at the temple and instructed his two disciples to remain outside in order to perform a special breathing exercise. Just as he was about to enter the temple, a yogini came up to him and said, “Why don’t you bring your companions along with you?”

“You can ask them yourself,” he said to her as he pushed his way through into the temple. The yoginis converged around the meditating disciples and ushered them to enter the temple but there was no response. Then, a yogini felt the stomachs of the pair and found that her hands became filled with excrement. She figured that the pair had died and their bodies were rotting away. In disgust, the yoginis left the corpses alone and went back into the temple.

Another depiction of Dombi Heruka. Click on image to enlarge.

Virupa entered the shrine and he moved very quickly as he caught a glimpse of the deadly trident. Just as the trident was poised to hurl itself, Virupa clapped his hands and the trident was destroyed. Then the statue of the goddess rose up into the air and collapsed onto the ground. Thereafter, all the yoginis in the temple began vomiting blood and fainted after witnessing the defeat of their goddess. “Aren’t Buddhists supposed to have compassion for all sentient beings? Please do not do this to us,”” said one yogini, pleading with Virupa.

“It is because of compassion that I am doing this!”, he responded.

Virupa installed a small consecrated stupa above the image of the goddess, which was restored, and introduced the entire congregation of yoginis to the Buddhist path. It was around this period that the ferryman, Dombi Heruka, attained the level of a Sixth Ground Bodhisattva. Virupa rejoiced and sent his newly attained disciple to Rada district in Eastern India to subdue an evil king called Dehara. It is said that Dombi Heruka mounted a pregnant tigress while holding onto a snake bridle and whip as he journeyed to that kingdom. He succeeded in subjugating the king and brought all of the king’s subjects onto the Vajrayana path.

The Request of the Great Compassionate One

Virupa and his remaining disciple, Krishnacharya, travelled south-east to Devikota. There lived an upasaka (lay vow-holder) who went by the name “Iron-legged”, and is now also known as Acharya Maitreyagupta. He was the custodian of a sacred talking statue of Khasarpani (an emanation of the Buddha of Compassion, Avalokiteshvara) that was said to have descended from the Potala Pureland. With deep reverence, Virupa prayed and he was said to have offered up all the activities since the time of his ordination to the defeat of Sahajadevi, up to Avalokiteshvara, the Great Compassionate One.

Upon receiving the offering, the statue spoke,

“Oh Noble One, you have great power to destroy even Mount Meru. However, the karmic propensities of sentient beings are inconceivable, so you should cultivate great compassion for the non-Buddhists instead of terrifying them with your meditative powers.”

Avalokiteshvara Khasarpani. Click on image to enlarge.

Virupa agreed by saying, “I must go to Somanatha in the west where thousands of animals are sacrificed yearly to this god and I have to subdue him first. After that, I shall do as the Great Compassionate One has requested.” The Bodhisattva advised Virupa to subdue them using skilful means instead of brute force. Thereafter, Virupa and his disciple journeyed to the west and midway, the worldly deity Somanatha came to know of their intention via his ordinary clairvoyance. He appeared to them in the form of a travelling Brahmin.

“Where are you two yogins travelling to?”, asked the Brahmin.

“We are heading to subdue the god Somanatha,” replied Virupa knowingly.

“If you are kind and compassionate Buddhists, why do you need to subdue this god?”, asked the Brahmin.

“That is precisely why we need to subdue Somanatha.”

“Well, he is not at the place you are heading. He has gone to Purvavideha, the eastern continent.” The Brahmin said, trying his best not to reveal his fear.

“Well, I will definitely go there! I will go to all four continents and I will even go to the realm of the Brahmas or wherever he is to subdue him. Come what may!”, threatened Virupa.

Somanatha shook with fear and finally revealed his true identity, begging Virupa not to subjugate him forcefully. Virupa said, “Since you have revealed yourself, if you agree to stop animal sacrifice, I will not use force. However, you must establish Sangha communities and build Buddhist monasteries. On top of the doors of these institutions, the monastics can have my image and make regular offerings. They can first make rice and vegetarian food offerings to the three jewels, then to me and finally to yourself with any leftovers. If they abandon the sacrifice of animals and replace that practice with the offerings I have described, I will allow you to remain there. Otherwise, I will reduce your temples and images to dust.”

A thangka of the famed Mahasiddha Virupa and Protector Dorje Shugden. Click on image to enlarge.

Somanatha agreed and vowed to fulfil Virupa’s request. In appreciation, Somanatha requested Virupa to remain in the world until the sun and the moon cease to exist. Later, Somanatha entered the dream of King Chandradeva of Tishala and requested him to fulfil Virupa’s request, which otherwise would result in the fall of his kingdom. Motivated by fear, the king quickly had the monasteries built and outlawed the practice of animal sacrifice. Later, the king held a grand reception for Virupa with a mixture of awe and curiosity towards this powerful yogin, who was feared even by Mahadeva (Somanatha) himself.

By this time, the Mahasiddha Virupa had already given his pith instructions, which is known as the Vajra Verses, to his disciple Krishnacharya who had not yet attained equal realisation to his guru. He blessed his disciple to gain realisations and requested him to fulfil three main tasks:

1. to subdue an evil king in the east,
2. to accept a future disciple by the name of Damarupa and transmit the ear-whispered lineage to him and finally,
3. to recover five texts pertaining to the Vajra Verses from the land of Oddiyana.

The lineage of the Vajra Verses has since become incorporated into the Sakya Lamdre tradition.

The Passing of a Mahasiddha

According to legend, there are two accounts of Virupa’s passing. One says that he dissolved into a stone statue of Somanatha at his temple. Some practitioners believe that the statue still exists in the same location to this day, as there are many accounts of miracles occurring at this place.

The Mahasiddha Virupa is sometimes depicted with the mudra of teaching the Dharma. In the Sakya tradition, he is believed to be main Indian lineage master of their Lamdre teachings. Click on image to enlarge.

In another account, Virupa is said to have become a stone statue himself. Some say this statue is enshrined in the same temple which has the statue of Somanatha. He is seated in meditative posture with a golden pot in his left hand, which acts like a philosopher’s stone and is reputed to turn ordinary metals into gold. This statue has a reputation of varying in size depending on the devotee. It becomes very large if the devotee is disrespectful and has no faith, so that one cannot even see the head. If it is revered and one has faith, the statue becomes big enough for even a child to make offerings, and all that one wishes will become fulfilled.

Conclusion

The hagiography of the famous Mahasiddha Virupa consists mainly of fragmented stories along with several biographical details of his life. Very few reliable sources of his life story have survived the passage of time. It is said that many of these tales have been passed through an oral tradition and thus, there is a heavier emphasis on the miracles he performed. It is believed that the merits of the beings of that time was greater. As a result, they were able to gain great faith merely by witnessing miracles. These days, lamas and incarnations of mahasiddhas have to utilise the teachings in order to inspire faith and subdue the minds of sceptical disciples.

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