Conceiving the mother of Tibet the early literary live of the Buddhist Saint Yeshe Tsogyel Jue Liang

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Liang, Jue, author.

Series:

Religion, culture, and history series

American Academy of Religion religion, culture, and history

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Ye-shes-mtsho-rgyal, active 8th century.

Ye-shes-mtsho-rgyal.

Yoginīs--China--Tibet Autonomous Region--Biography.

Yoginīs.

China.

China--Tibet Autonomous Region.

Genre:

Biographies

Biographies.

Physical Description:

1 online resource

Edition:

1st ed.

Other Title:

Early literary live of the Buddhist Saint Yeshe Tsogyel

Place of Publication:

New York, NY Oxford University Press [2026]

Summary:

'Conceiving the Mother of Tibet' is a comprehensive study dedicated to the literary tradition surrounding Yeshe Tsogyel, revered as the foremost matron saint of Tibetan Buddhism. It traces the emergence and development of a rich body of narratives about Yeshe Tsogyel during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, focusing on the Tibetan Nyingma Buddhist tradition. Through careful textual analysis, the book constructs an emic (insider) Tibetan Buddhist theory of gender and female religious eminence, examining how Yeshe Tsogyel's multifaceted identities, as a devoted disciple, tantric consort, sky-goer (dakini), and spiritual mother, embody a dialectic that shifts back and forth between Tibetan women's social and cultural marginalization and a Buddhist discourse of soteriological inclusivity

Contents:

Cover

Half Title

Series

Title Page

Copyright Page

Dedication

Contents

Figures

Tables

Acknowledgments

Abbreviations

Early Lives of Yeshe Tsogyel

Technical Notes

Introduction

So, Who Was Yeshe Tsogyel?

Place and Time: Central Tibet in the Fourteenth and Fifteenth Centuries

Remembrance and Revelation of the Imperial Past

Theoretical, Methodological, and Ethical Concerns

Finding Women's Literary Presence

Contextualizing Gender in Tibetan Buddhism

Literary Actors and the Social Logic of a Text

Liberation Philology

Chapter Outline

1 The Literary World of Yeshe Tsogyel

From the Margin of Buddhist Histories: Early Mentions of Yeshe Tsogyel

Pre-fourteenth Century Histories

Yeshe Tsogyel in Early Treasure Literature

Post-fourteenth Century Narratives about Yeshe Tsogyel

The Two Early Lives of Yeshe Tsogyel

Other Narrative Texts and Paratextual Narratives

The Names of Yeshe Tsogyel

2 The Female Inferiority Complex: Questioning Women's Access to Buddhist Teachings

Zhulen in the Nyingma Treasure Tradition

Description of Yeshe Tsogyel as a Disciple

Lamenting Women's Inferior Birth

Female Inferiority as a Real Concern

Female Inferiority as a Narrative Performance

Conclusion

3 Sublimation of Sexuality: Worldly Intimacy, Therapeutic Aid, or Path to Enlightenment?

The Preliminaries: Deal with Your Ex Before You Become a Consort

The Story

Sublimating Worldly Intimacy

The Identity: Consorts as Nuns

Not All Consorts Are Nuns

Good Consort, Bad Consort

The Goals: Soteriological, Hermeneutical, and Therapeutic

Consort Practice as a Vehicle to Liberation

The Role of Consort in Treasure Revelation

The Healing Power of Consort Practice

Conclusions: Toward a Theory of Treasure Consortship

4 A Harmless Demoness and a Childless Mother: Womanhood as Myth in the Nyingma Imagination

Defining the Khandroma

Indian Precedents

Tibetan Developments: Khandroma in the Nyingma Religious Landscape

A Taxonomy of Khandromas

The Khandroma Myth

A Demoness that No Longer Needs Subjugation: Three Stories

An Agent Without Agency?

A Childless Mother

(In)conclusions: The Paradox of Female Enlightenment

Fuzzy Femininities and Muddled Memories: In Lieu of a (Neat) Conclusion

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index

Description based on online resource; title from digital title page (viewed on May 15, 2026)

Other Format:

Print version :

Print version Liang, Jue Conceiving the Mother of Tibet

ISBN:

9780197800102

0197800106

9780197800089

0197800084

OCLC:

1577225526

Publisher Number:

CIPO000362436

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license