Atisha Dipankara
Also called: Atisa, Dipankara Srijnana · Topic: Early Medieval North India: Harsha to the Rajputs · NCERT: Beyond NCERT
Meaning
Atisha Dipankara, also called Atisa or Dipankara Srijnana, was a Buddhist scholar from Bengal (982–1054). He taught at Vikramashila, the great monastic university set up by the Pala king Dharmapala. A monastic university was a large monastery where monks studied and taught. Around 1042, Atisha went to Tibet. His work shows how Pala-era Bengal passed Buddhist learning on to Tibet.
Example
In Tibet, Atisha taught, wrote and helped bring Buddhism back to life. He is remembered as the founding figure of the Kadam tradition of Tibetan Buddhism.
Don't confuse with
- Dipankara Buddha: in Buddhist stories, a Buddha who lived long before Gautama Buddha. He is not a historical scholar.
Related concepts
- Tripartite struggle
- Matsyanyaya
- Gopala
- Pala dynasty
- Dharmapala
- Devapala
- Vikramashila
- Odantapuri
- Somapura Mahavihara
- Pala school of art