Ancient Indian Education (Brahmanical and Buddhist) c32.s2.21

c32.s2.21

Afterwards, under divine inspiration from Goddess Tārā, he decided to leave for Tibet against the strongest wishes of his esteemed colleagues, Ratnakīrti, Vairochana, Kanakaśrī of Nepal, and many others, and was accompanied on his journey up to Mitra Vihāra by Paṇḍitas Bhūmigarbha, Nagtcho, Gya-tson, Bhūmi Saṁgha, Vīrya Chandra, and others. On reaching Tibet, he was received by "a song of welcome sung by all the people" and conducted to the king by an escort of 300 horsemen. By his work he purged Tibetan Buddhism of its many and gross corruptions which had crept into it in time and founded the new religion of Lamaism, though it was left to his disciple, Brom-ton, to become the founder of the first great hierarchy of Tibet. He worked in Tibet for thirteen years (A.D. 1040-1053) and died at Nethan near Lhāsa at 73. But he is a permanent influence in Tibet mainly through his works showing him as the greatest writer on Tibetan Buddhism on which about 200 works are ascribed to him, mostly on Vajrayāna. He was also a profound scholar in Tibetan, into which he translated twenty-two Sanskrit works.