Alloy Statue of Mi-la-ras-pa,Ming Dynasty figural statue,16.5 cm high

Born at Gung-thang in gTsang(north of present sKyid-grong County),Mi-la-ras-pa(1040-1123)was the second-generation forefather of the bKav-brgyud-pa Sect of Tibetan Buddhism and a disciple taught directly by Mar-pa.At the age of seven,his father passed away and his uncle seized his family property.So he learnt evil curses to kill his enemies.Later on,he felt penitent,so he began to learn Buddhist doctrines under the direction of Mar-pa,a great Buddhist translator.Retreating in mountains and forests, he quietly cultivated himself based on Buddhist teachings.And then,he left mountains and roamed everywhere,preaching Buddhist doctrines by singing.He advocated meditation and ascetic practice.He and his disciples Ras-chung-pa and Dwags-po-lha-rje became practice advocators of the bKav-brgyud-pa Sect.He wroted a book titled Mi-la-ras-pa's Thousand Songs.The statue of Mi-la-ras-pa,with a naked upper body,sits in a relaxed singing posture as if he stayed away from the scene of contention and stood aloaf from the worldly success.