BUDDHISM IN THE TIBETAN CULTURAL AREA 277ence to the Vinaya (Strong EB, sec. 7.4). On the other hand, he himselfhad
studied under the famous Indian Tantric adept Naropa (see Section 6.3.4),
and is remembered as the conduit of a great number of Tantric initiation lin-
eages in the monastic version ofUnexcelled Yoga (see Section 6.3.5). He was
also responsible for the importation of the cult of Tara, which was to become
Tibet's most widespread bodhisattva cult.
The dual nature of Atisa's thought is best illustrated by his analysis of the
Buddhist Path into three stages: renouncing of the world of sarp.sara, arousing
the thought of Awakening, and attaining a correct view of emptiness. Viewed
from an academic standpoint, this is a fairly standard interpretation of
Mahayana thought. At the same time, however, it also follows the process of
generation in deva-yoga. The renunciation of the world corresponds to the
adept's renunciation of the everyday level of experience to enter into the mal).-
<;lala he/ she is visualizing. The arousing of the bodhicitta corresponds to the
adoption of the deity's mind-set, and the correct view of emptiness corre-
sponds to the recollection of purity, in which the adept stops to reflect that all
levels of reality-everyday and visualized-are equally empty of any self-
nature, so as to prevent the mind from placing any thought constructs on the
ritual experience before proceeding with the remainder of the ritual. It is im-
portant to remember that this pattern of dual meanings applies not only to
Atisa's thought, but also to Tibetan Buddhist thought in general.
The story of Atisa's invitation is interesting for the light it casts on the eco-
nomics of institutional Buddhism both in India and in Tibet at this time. To
induce Atisa to come to Tibet, King O-de had to pledge a large sum of gold
to the university at Vikramasila for what was essentially a three-year contract.
When the three years were up, Atisa's return to India was blocked by political
unrest in the Himalayas. Thus he agreed to stay on, provided that additional
payments be sent back to the university. All of this suggests that the Indian
universities' day-to-day operating expenses and the vagaries of royal support
had forced them to depart from the traditional Buddhist willingness to offer
teachings for free. This, together with the practice among lay Indian Tantric
adepts of charging for their initiations, established the custom among Tibetans
that it was legitimate to charge for the teaching, a custom that continues today.
The Second Propagation continued until the demise of Buddhism in
northern India and Kashmir, and was largely a story of how the new Kadam
movement interacted with other Tantric lineages being brought from India
during this period and with the earlier Buddhist traditions derived from the
First Propagation. Many Tibetans continued traveling to India to collect texts
and initiations throughout this period, but two in particular stand out: Drok-·
mi ('Brog-mi, Nomad) and Marpa. Drok-mi (992-1074) collected a large
number of initiations while in India, principally from the lineage of the Tantric
adept Virupa. After his return to Tibet, another Indian, Gayadhara, sought
him out and gave him exclusive Tibetan rights over his lineage as well. One of
Drok-mi's disciples, Kon-chog Gyalpo (Dkon-mchog Rgyal-po), established a
monastery in Sakya (Sa-skya); his son, adopting the discipline of the Kadams,