When Thubten Told me stories like this about Drukpa Kunley he had me laughing on the floor
However, at the time I thought Drukpa Kunley was a fictional Character made up to bring especially men into the Dharma. But, over 20 or more years later I found out that he was a real person who lived a lot of the Time in Bhutan but also traveled a lot too. He was very unique in some ways and it really makes one think about the Varieties of Religious Experience regarding Enlightenment. begin quotes from AI overview
NOTE: I met Thubten because he was a Tibetan Buddhist Monk who had given up his robes to his Uncle Geshe Lobsang Gyatso so he could take care of his parents when they became too old to work to support themselves anymore. He worked as a Mountain Climbing Guide in the Himalayas to support his parents until they passed away. After I met him he married an American Lady and moved I think to Minnesota with her I believe. I saw him once where I live on the coast of Northern California while he was announcing in English for the Gyuto Tantric Monks in Santa Cruz, California. I saw them perform in Santa Cruz then too. I met him in January of 1986 and then he and his wife to be traveled with us along with Geshe Lobsang Gyatso to Rewalsar, India. And eventually within a month of this he and his American Wife traveled back to the U.S. to Minnesota I believe (maybe Saint Paul?)
Drukpa Kunley (1455–1529)—known as the Divine Madman of Bhutan and Tibet—was a 15th-century Buddhist saint and poet who taught through humor, outrageous pranks, and unconventional behavior.
1. Creating the Takin from Lunch Bones
When Drukpa Kunley traveled to Bhutan, a crowd of locals gathered and begged him to perform a miracle.
The demand: He agreed, on one condition—they had to feed him an entire cow and an entire goat for lunch.
The magic trick: After devouring all the meat, he stacked up the leftover bones. He placed the skull of the goat onto the skeleton of the cow, snapped his fingers, and chanted a mantra.
The result: The strange hybrid creature sprang to life and galloped up into the mountainside. This animal became known as the takin, which is now the national animal of Bhutan.
2. The Arrow That Found Bhutan
Before heading south into Bhutan from Tibet, Drukpa Kunley was guided by a vision.
The shot: He shot a magical arrow into the sky and vowed to follow wherever it landed.
The landing: The arrow flew across the mountains and struck the wooden stairway inside a three-story house in the village of Toep Chagdana, right where a woman named Pelzang Bhuti lived.
The confrontation: When her husband returned and angrily protested the arrival of the wild monk, Drukpa Kunley casually tied the husband's metal sword into a soft knot with his bare hands, settled into the house, and left a lasting lineage behind.
3. The Lewd Mantra for Old Man Ap Tendzin
Drukpa Kunley loved breaking people's stiff social habits and false piety.
The assignment: He taught an elderly man named Ap Tendzin a daily prayer/mantra packed with absurd, vulgar words, telling him to shout it as loudly as humanly possible.
The banishment: Ap Tendzin chanted it so loudly and relentlessly that his embarrassed wife and daughter locked him outside in a small shed.
The punchline: One day, the daughter went to check on the quiet shed. Instead of an old man, she found a glowing sphere of rainbow light with a sacred syllable in the center, which floated up into the sky still echoing her father’s booming voice. Both the wife and daughter were left completely stunned and converted to instant devotion.
4. The Nunnery Shortcut
When Drukpa Kunley visited a local nunnery in Tibet, one of the nuns discovered he was the father of a child.
The rumor: Other nuns looked at her and said, "Wait—all regular women get to enjoy life, and now it's easy for us too! If we get pregnant, we'll just say Drukpa Kunley is the father and we won't get in trouble."
The chaos: Soon, nearly every nun in the nunnery gave birth. When the strict abbot stormed in demanding to know who was responsible, every single nun gave the exact same answer. The poor abbot could only groan in helpless disbelief at the mad saint's handiwork.
Would you like to hear more about Chimi Lhakhang (the Temple of the Divine Madman) and why phallus symbols are painted on houses in Bhutan, or dive into his bawdy poetry and songs?
Shambhala Publications
Tales of a Mad Yogi: The Life and Wild Wisdom of Drukpa Kunley - 9781611807059
*Tales of a Mad Yogi: The Life and Wild Wisdom of Drukpa Kunley* is a book by Elizabeth L. Monson. The book is about the fifteenth...
Amazon.com
Tales of a Mad Yogi: The Life and Wild Wisdom of Drukpa Kunley
Book details ... A fascinating biography of Drukpa Kunley, a Tibetan Buddhist master and crazy yogi. The fifteenth-century Himalay...
Talking Myths
Drukpa Kunley – Talking Myths
Feb 18, 2018 — Drukpa Kunley is known for his unconventional teaching methods and socially unacceptable behavior. He challenged the preconceived ...
He used poetry, song, dance, humour, liquor, The story below tells how Drukpa in his crazy state created a magical animal called Takin. Armed with a bow and ...
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