Nyakpuwa Sonam Zangpo

Nyakpuwa Sonam Zangpo (gnyag phu ba bsod nams bzang po) was born in 1341 in Sumdo (gsum mdo), Tsang. He received his lay vows at the age of five from a Sakya lama named Nyakchen Sonam Wangchuk (gnyag chen bsod nams dbang phyug, d.u.), his novice vows at the age of ten from Khenpo Dondrub Pelden (mkhan po don grub dpal ldan, d.u.), and was fully ordained at the age of nineteen by Khenpo Yonten Gyatso (mkhan po yon tan rgya mtsho, d.u.) and Pelden Tsondru (dpal ldan brtson 'grus, d.u.).

At Sakya Monastery Sonam Zangpo trained with multiple teachers. He studied Logic with Nyapon Kunga Pel (nya dpon kun dga' dpal, 1285-1379); Chakrasamvara with Kunkyen Gangpa (kun mkhyen gangs pa, d.u.); Kalachakra with Pelden Lama (dpal ldan bla ma, d.u.); the Jordruk (sbyor drug) with Khenchen Jangsem (mkhan chen byang sems, d.u.); and Lamdre with Techen Choje Kunga Tashi (theg chen chos rje kun dga' bkra shis, 1349-1425). He also received numerous teachings from Jonang Chokle Namgyel (jo nang phyogs las rnam rgyal, 1306-1386).

Following his education at Sakya Sonam Zangpo went to the Kadam monasteries of Sangpu (gsang phu) and Tsetang (rtses thang) to engage in debate. He was defeated by Khenchen Tsondru Pel (mkhan chen brtson 'grus dpal). At the instruction of Jamyang Namkha Rinchen ('jam dbyangs nam mkha' rin chen, d.u.) he established the monastic college of Zangden Gepel (bzang ldan dge 'phel) and remained there for sixteen years, gathering some three hundred students.

Sonam Zangpo then served as abbot of Joden Gendungang (jo gdan dge 'dun sgang), becoming the seventh in the line of transmission of Sakyashribhadra's Vinaya. He was appointed to this post in 1384 by the future ruler of Tibet, Gongma Drakpa Gyeltsen (gong ma grags pa rgyal mtshan, 1374-1432). After sixteen years he retired to Tsalmin (mtshal min).

Sonam Zangpo was known to have composed several works in his later years that are no longer extant, including a commentary on the Vinaya written at the age of seventy-two; a commentary to Nagarjuna's Dharmadhatustava written at the request of Jamyang Khache ('jam dbyangs Kha che) when he was seventy-seven; a Pramanavarttika commentary at the age of seventy-nine; a reply to Lotsawa Kyabchok Pel's (lo tsa ba skyabs mchog dpal, d.u.) refutation of Zhentong (gzhan stong) at eighty; another commentary on the Vinaya at eighty-two; and an Uttaratantra exegesis together with several works  several texts concerning tathagatagarbha written at the age of eighty-four.

Sonam Zangpo died in 1433 at the age of ninety-three. Among his disciples were Mawai Sengge Rongton Sheja Kunrig (smra ba'i seng+ge rong ston shes bya kun rig, 1367-1449), the 5th Karmapa Deshin Shekpa (karma pa 05 de bzhin gshegs pa, 1384-1415), the 6th Karmapa Tonwa Donden (karma pa 06 mthong ba don ldan, 1416-1453), and Kachuwa Pema Zangpo (dka' bcu pa pad+ma bzang po, d.u.).

Sources

Grags pa 'byung gnas. 1992. Gangs can mkhas grub rim byon ming mdzod. Lanzhou: Kan su'u mi rigs dpe skrun khang, pp. 677-678; 1330-1331.

Van der Kuijp, Leonard W.J. 1995. "Two Biographies of Sakyasribhadra, The Eulogy of Khro phu Lo-tsa-ba and its "Commentary" by bSod-nams-dpal-bzang-po: Texts and Variants from Two Rare Exemplars Preserved in the Bihar Research Society, Patna, a Review Article." Journal of the American Oriental Society, vol. 114, no. 1.

Alexander Gardner
March 2010