Hello iloveds,
Thanks for sharing Virupa/ Birwapa's short bio extract ![Smiley :)](http://www.dorjeshugden.com/forum/Smileys/default/smiley.gif)
1. If Birwapa hails from Nalanda Monastery, would he not then be from the Gelug sect? I'm not too sure, but I got that info from their website...
2. In this sentence: "after achieving Siddhi where he called himself, Virupa, which means "wicked".", how would one be recognized as achieving 'Siddhi'?
3. Also, Birwapa's statues are always of Him with his right-hand held up, which I think is meant to symbolize Him being able to control the sun. In the extract that you gave, it writes that "halting the sun in its normal course for three days from a beer tavern in southern India" - are there any other stories of him halting the sun?
He really must've been known for his magical powers for his statues to be in that form.
4. Birwapa really expresses such great compassion in the 5th paragraph: "Wishing to avoid any disparagement to the doctrine from the misunderstanding of his behaviour, Virupa declared himself "wicked" and left the Nalanda monastery. This was how the name Virupa came about."
He left his home monastery as to not disturb the other monks' minds.
![Sad :(](http://www.dorjeshugden.com/forum/Smileys/default/sad.gif)
Dear Jessicajameson and iloveds,
I have a little explanation and will base it on Jessica's points:-
1. Birwapa is from Nalanda, but Nalanda monastery was founded in India, way before Buddhism took root in Tibet. Hence, it is not Gelug. Gelug tradition was founded in Tibet after Lama Tsongkhapa passed away by students wishing to preserve his precious teachings and elucidation of the ancient lineages. By then, Nalanda monastery was already destroyed by the muslims in north India. However, it is said that Lama Tsongkhapa not only passed on teachings but instituted many customs and tradition of Nalanda in his monastery, Gaden and effect preserving its ancient Indian Buddhist traditions. Hence, other later monasteries like Drepung, Sera, Tashi Lhumpo, Amdo Tashikyil etc etc follow suit.
Birwapa is also Indian and there are no records of him ever travelling to Tibet. He cannot be considered Gelug. The Sakya tradition consider him the founding lineage master of their tradition but they have no exclusive rights over him as he is a Buddha. Just like Lama Tsongkhapa, we cannot consider him exclusively Gelug because he is a Buddha, although the Gelug tradition was officially founded to preserve his teachings and lineage.
2. Birwapa called him wicked as he has attained Mahamudra siddhi (or enlightenment) and see no real value in labels. He merely called himself that as everyone called him that. When he was ostracized with that name, it was also a turning point for Birwapa, or a cause for him to venture into the world to bring benefit. That was his karma and destiny.
3. As far as the stories record, he is known to have only performed the miracle of stopping the sun only once. However, it is also one of the most powerful and influential miracles ever performed by any Mahasiddha. The power and influence is measured by the very fact that he brought the king and all his subjects of an entire kingdom into the Dharma. Hence, he is immortalized with that pose that is depicted on his statue.
Isn't all that simply amazing? By the way, Birwapa/Virupa is not the only incarnation of Dorje Shugden that is a Sakya master. His subsequent incarnation, Sakya Pandita, is a real Sakya master of great repute.