The All-Pervading Melodious Drumbeat: The Life of Ra Lotsawa - Paperback

by Ra Yeshe Senge (Author), Bryan J. Cuevas (Translator), Bryan J. Cuevas (Introduction by)

The story of Tibet's notorious master of Buddhist sorcery--translated for the first time into English

An essential sacred text of Tibetan Buddhism, The All-Pervading Melodious Drumbeat tells the wondrous story of Ra Lotsawa Dorjé Drak. Though he was can­onized as a saint and a fully enlightened buddha, the eleventh-century Ra Lotsawa's life story presents a darker path than those taken by Siddhartha Gautama and Milarepa. Viewed by some as a mur­derous villain and by others as a liberator of human suffering, Ra Lotsawa used his formidable power and magical abilities to defeat his rivals, accumulate wealth, and amass a devoted following. His life offers a rare view into the often overlooked roles of magic and sorcery in the Buddhist tradition. Despite this sinister legacy, his fame also rests on an illustrious career as a translator of Buddhist scriptures, through which he helped spark a renaissance of Buddhism in Tibet. This spirited new translation gives readers in English their first opportunity to encounter one of the most colorful and memorable figures in Tibetan Buddhist history.

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Author Biography

RA YESHÉ SENGÉ was the eldest son of Ra Lotsawa's nephew. He lived in Tibet's western province of Tsang around the late twelfth or early thirteenth century and is traditionally renowned as the first patriarch of what came to be known as the "Western tradition" of Ra Lotsawa's spiritual lineage.

BRYAN J. CUEVAS is the author of Travels in the Netherworld: Buddhist Popular Narratives of Death and the Afterlife in Tibet, among other works. He is John F. Priest Professor of Religion and Director of Buddhist and Tibetan Studies at Florida State University.