Hevajra: Embodiment of Yogic Transformation and Great Bliss

Saroruha and Kampala’s focus on Anuttara Yoga Tantra

Anuttara Yoga Tantra finds its roots among those who are cast aside by society—both the outcasts and those who, by choice, step away from the norms. These individuals reclaim their identity and worth through the extraordinary powers they cultivate, becoming recognized and revered for their unique abilities. It is through their triumphs and the recognition they earn that their existence is justified, as they rise like phoenixes from the shadows, asserting their place in a world that often overlooks them.
Saroruha, also called Padmavajra, is known for bringing the Anuttara Yoga Tantra into focus. He achieved this through his well-known commentary and several short works about the Hevajra cycle, including sādhana, vidhi, and stotra. Both he and Kampala lived around the same time as King Indrabhūti and are credited with discovering this tantra. Additionally, the historian Tāranātha mentions Dombi-heruka, who came before Saroruha and Kampala and showed an early interest in the Hevajra-tantra, from which he gained its essence (sāra).

Sucessions of the lineage and publishing of texts

From Indrabhūti II, the lineage continues through Jalandhari to Kṛṣṇa (or Kāṇha), the author of the Yogaratnamālā. This work is one of the few nearly complete commentaries on the Hevajra-tantra in Sanskrit. With Tāranātha, we can trace the succession from Kāṇha to Bhadrapāda, who wrote yet another commentary on the Hevajra-tantra, which we will frequently reference. Bhadrapāda, in turn, instructed Tillopa, who is well-known as the master of NĀROPA, the author of another important commentary, serving as a key link to the Tibetan Ka-gyü-pas lineage. This period also includes figures such as TAṄKADĀSA, a monk from Nālandā, and ATNĀKARAŚĀNTI of Vikramaśīla, both of whom wrote commentaries on this tantra.
Mahāpadmavajra is often identified with Padmasambhava, the adopted son of Indrabhūti, who traveled to Tibet in the second half of the eighth century. Furthermore, Tāranātha states that Kāṇha was a contemporary of King Devapāla, who ruled during the first half of the ninth century. Thus, the Hevajra-tantra likely existed in its current form by the end of the eighth century.

Adoption by Tibetan Schools and Notable Initiates

The Hevajra-tantra was one of the most renowned Buddhist tantras in India and was adopted in Tibet by the Ka-gyü-pas (bKa’-rgyud-pa), as evidenced by the biography of Rechung, and the Sa-kya-pas (Sa-skya-pa). It became a fundamental treatise for these schools, which devoted considerable effort to its exegesis. Notably, it was within this framework that the young Khubilai, who later became the khan of all the Mongols, received initiation from one of their abbots, hGro-dGon hPhags-pa.