The figure of Tilopa is familiar in Tibetan Buddhism. What is less popular is that his words and teachings, before reaching the Tibetan plateau, were uttered in India and had to pass through Nepal: A fact which would deserve more attention than Before. This book is a sort of portrait of that Bengali Siddha of the tenth century. In the first chapter, a geographical and historical background is painted; a landscape of waters kings polities and cities, based on epigraphical numismatic, and archeological material; on written travelogues of Chinese Arab, and Italian Travellers on Tibetan accounts and compilations. In the second chapter, the relevant Indo-Tibetan hagiograhic resources are describe, discussed, and outlined in the context of their tradition. With a view to characterising such a tradition and its Tibetan sprouts, mostly among the Kagyu lineages, the following main entries are introduced: Tantric Buddhism, Yoginitantras, Cakrasamvara, Manobhanga, Cittavisrama,Uddiyana, dakini, siddha, guru, and smasana. In the third chapter, an attempt is madea a biographical picture of Tilopa, assessing the who, the when, and the where. In the last chapter, a preliminary description is given on the bibliographic details and context of the Indic and Tibetan sources which have transmitted Tilopa's word.


Tilopa: A Buddhist Yogin of the Tenth Century, Fabrizio Torricelli, LTWA, 282 pp, $17.50