Throughout the past millennium, certain Tibetan Buddhist yogins have taken on profoundly norm-overturning modes of dress and behavior, including draping themselves in human remains, consuming filth, provoking others to violence, and even performing sacrilege. They became known far and wide as "madmen" (smyon pa, pronounced nyonpa), achieving a degree of saintliness in the process. This book offers the first comprehensive study of Tibet's "holy madmen" drawing on their biographies and writings, as well as tantric commentaries, later histories, oral traditions, and more.
Much of The Holy Madmen of Tibet is dedicated to examining the lives and legacies of the three most famous "holy madmen" who were all of the Kagyu sect: the Madman of Tsang (author of The Life of Milarepa), the Madman of Ü, and Drukpa Kunle, Madman of the Drukpa Kagyu. Each born in the 1450s, they rose to prominence during a period of civil war and of great shifts in Tibet's religious culture.
By focusing on literature written by and about the "holy madmen" and on the yogins' relationships with their public, this book offers in-depth looks at the narrative and social processes out of which sainthood arises, and at the role biographical literature can play in the formation of sectarian identities. By showing how understandings of the "madmen" have changed over time, this study allows for new insights into current notions of "crazy wisdom." In the end, the "holy madmen" are seen as self-aware and purposeful individuals who were anything but insane.
Industry Reviews
"This ambitious monograph constitutes a significant contribution to the study of Tibetan religion and culture ... The Holy Madmen of Tibet is an insightful work that challenges the reader to reconsider not only how the mad saints themselves should be conceived but also how the category of the holy should be approached in responsible scholarship." -- Jay Valentine, H-Net
"DiValerio's analysis of the social and narrative processes that create mad sainthood provides a nuanced account of this fascinating tradition, making a significant contribution to the study of Tibetan religion."--Patrick J. Dowd, Religious Studies Review
"The Holy Madmen of Tibet is a welcome contribution to the study of Tibetan religions and Tantric Buddhism....And although DiValerio has only hinted at some of the possible connections of his work with the broad issue of antinomian religion, I recommend The Holy Madmen of Tibet without hesitation to those who may wish to ponder this question from a comparative angle as well."--Matthew T. Kapstein, Bulletin of the School of Oriental and
African Studies
"The Holy Madmen of Tibet is among the pioneering studies about the tantric practitioners of Tibetan Buddhism. As a weighty contribution to the growing literature of Buddhism, this book challenges our perceptions of the tantric communities and Tibetan Buddhism in the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries. It is invaluable reading for scholars and students of Tibetan Buddhism history."--Kai Chen, Journal of Religious History
"Nyönpas, or religious madmen, stand among the most colorful and influential figures in the transmission of Buddhism across the Himalaya. Blending translation, historical analysis, and contemporary ethnography, DiValerio offers our broadest and most textured account to date of this fascinating tradition. The Holy Madmen of Tibet is a major contribution to the study of Tibetan religion and culture." --Andrew Quintman, Associate Professor of
Religious Studies, Yale University
"fascinating book" --Alexander Studholme, The Mirror
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