The great Yogi and poet, Jetsun Milarepa, was born in 1052 CE in Kyangtsa, in the Kyirong region on the border of Tibet near Rasuwa, Nepal. A great master of Buddhism, his childhood name was Thopaga, which means “a pleasure to hear.” His family was prosperous in his early childhood. Days of hardship began after his father’s death. Before his passing, his father is said to have written a will entrusting all his property to his uncle and aunt on the condition that they would return it later. Subsequently, his uncle and aunt betrayed him, seizing the property and forcing him to work as a servant. His mother called the villagers and requested the return of their property, but when his uncle beat everyone and refused to return it, his mother sought revenge. She sent Thopaga to learn black tantric magic, which he used to cause a hail storm and heavy rain that destroyed the village, killing more than 35 people. Deeply remorseful for the deaths of innocent villagers due to his wicked deed, he sought refuge with Guru Marpa Lotsawa, searching for the Dharma and freedom from sin. The Guru put him through extremely difficult trials, making him build and demolish houses to purify his sins, after which he attained wisdom. Upon returning to his village later, he found out that his mother had passed away and his sister had become a beggar; his aunt and uncle also chased him to kill him. This sparked a deep sense of detachment (vairagya), and he performed intense meditation for many years in isolated mountains, surviving only on stinging nettles. He practiced asceticism in many places in Tibet and Nepal and attained Bodhi (enlightenment). After attaining wisdom, Milarepa became a Yogi and a Guru. His journey presents an astonishing path from the sins committed in his life towards the ultimate truth and attainment of knowledge, through a journey of remorse for his actions, detachment, unwavering determination, deep compassion, and unshakeable faith in his accomplished Guru. He is one of the principal figures of the Kagyu school of Tibetan Buddhism.
