The Holy Madmen of Tibet

Abstract

Over the course of the last millennium in Tibet, tantric yogins have been taking on norm-overturning modes of behavior and dress, including provoking others to violence, publicly consuming filth, having sex, and draping themselves in human remains. Because of this they have been called “madmen” (smyon pa), but have also achieved a degree of saintliness. This book is the first comprehensive study of these “holy madmen,” who have captured the imaginations of Tibetans and Westerners alike. Through a close examination of the madmen’s biographies, writings, and other sources, this study explores what can be known about the historical individuals behind these colorful personas. Much of the book focuses on the lives and works of the three most famous “holy madmen,” who were all born in the 1450s, during a period of civil war and great change in the religious culture of Tibet: the Madman of Tsang (author of The Life of Milarepa), the Madman of Ü, and Drukpa Künlé, the “Madman of the Drukpa Kagyü.” These three individuals had complex relationships with their public, with the political leaders of the day, and with each other. This book is in large part a study of the production of representations through biographical literature, and the roles those representations play in the formation of sectarian identities. By considering the processes through which the Kagyü sect formulated its own historical mythology, and the roles played by the madmen in this process, significant facets of the sect’s history are brought to light. The “holy madmen” emerge as self-aware and purposeful individuals who were anything but crazy.

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