Guru Rinpoche
The Mural Path
A Brief Journey through his Life
The Great Indian Pandit, whose kindness for Tibet is great,
The one born in a lotus, whose body is beyond birth and death.
Right now taming and subduing the rakshasas of the South West,
The precious one of Uddiyana, to you we pray!
This short prayer to Guru Rinpoche, also known as Padmasambhava, is recited daily by the Vajrayana Buddhists. He is the second Buddha whose birth was prophesied by Buddha Shakyamuni himself.
What follows is a very brief life story of Padmasambhava. It is based on few hagiographies of the Guru along with The Wish-Fulfilling Tree: The Life Story of the Master of Uḍḍiyāna, a terma (treasure teaching) discovered by the Great Terton Chogyur Lingpa. This Great Terton appeared in the 19th century in Eastern Tibet. He was the emanation of Prince Murub Tsenpo, the second son of the Tibetan Dharma King Trisong Deutsen who invited Padmasambhava to Tibet.
Small quotes from The Wish-Fulfilling Tree appear alongside particular panels.