Yogin and the Madman

Andrew Quintman is assistant professor in the Department of Religious Studies at Yale University.

Quintman is the leading authority on the Milarepa story, and this book is the most important contribution to our understanding of this great narrative's rich history to date. -- Kurtis R. Schaeffer, University of Virginia The most important study yet published about the literary tradition surrounding the greatest single work in Tibetan literature. It does more than any previous study to give historical access to the life (and lives) of Tibet's most revered and influential yogin and poet. -- Roger R. Jackson, Carleton College This book studies the making of perhaps the greatest masterpiece in Tibetan history. Quintman shows how a bare account of events is transformed into a human story that touches the lives of both its author and its avid readers, making a signal contribution to the study of literature and its place in religion. -- Janet Gyatso, Harvard Divinity School The Yogin and the Madman is a treasure trove for anyone, who wishes to learn more about literary traditions in the Himalayas, Buddhist history, and about the life of Milarepa. Kuensel Quintman's work represents a groundbreaking achievement in the presentation of Tibetan biographies to a wider audience. His command of both Tibetan and Tibetan Buddhism ensures a solid presentation of complex and wide-ranging material, and his deep knowledge of literary theory broadens the reader's understanding of sacred biography in general. -- Cecile Ducher Bulletin of the School of Oriental and African Studies [A] masterful study. -- Janet Gyatso The Journal of Asian Studies

• Acknowledgments Introduction 1. Earliest Sources: A Biographical Birth 2. Proto-Lives: Formations of a Skeletal Biography 3. Biographical Compendia: Lives Made Flesh 4. A New Standard: Tsangnyon Heruka's Life and Songs of Milarepa 5. The Yogin and the Madman: A Life Brought to Life 6. Conclusions Epilogue: Mila Comes Alive! List of Abbreviations Appendix 1: Gampopa's Life of Jetsun Mila Appendix 2: Colophons Appendix 3: Outlines and Concordances Notes Bibliography Index