Kings of Shambhala

This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these messages) This article may require copy editing for style. You can assist by editing it. (December 2016) (Learn how and when to remove this message) This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Find sources: "Kings of Shambhala" – news · newspapers · books · scholar · JSTOR (January 2017) (Learn how and when to remove this message) (Learn how and when to remove this message)

In the Indo-Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhist tradition, there are thirty-two Kings of Shambhala that all reside in a mythical kingdom.

The first notable king of Shambhala, King Suchandra (sometimes wrongly Sanskritized as "Chandrabhadra," Tib. Dawa Sangpo), requested teaching from the Buddha. In response to this request, the Buddha gave him the first Kalachakra root tantra. By practicing the Kalachakra, the whole of Shambhala became an enlightened society. Suchandra was followed by an additional six Dharmarajas (Truth Kings), with his eighth successor, Manjushri Yashas (sometimes wrongly Sanskritized as "Manjushrikirti"), the first of the 25 Kalki Kings (Tib. Rigden, wylie: rigs ldan) (see below).

1. Suchandra (Tib. Dawa Sangpo) c. 900 to 876 BC. Note: the Kalachakra calculations put the life of Shakyamuni Buddha quite a bit earlier than is generally accepted, and the Tibetans produced a number of divergent calculations of the dates given here. Many of the named kings are often wrongly Sanskritized (i.e., back-translated from the Tibetan) within Western publications.
2. Devendra (Tib. Lhayi Wang) (876-776 BC) - Fond of Sentient Beings
3. Tejasvin (Tib. Ziji Chän) (776-676 BC) Bearer of the Dharma Wheel and the Auspicious Conch
4. Somadatta (Tib. Dawä Jin) (676-576) Lord of Speakers
5. Shevardnadze/Surshvara (Tib. Lhaji Wangchug) (576-476) Destroyer of the City of Delusion
6. Krishnamurti (Tib. Natshog Zug) (476-376) Conqueror of False Leaders, Holding a Lotus
7. Susquehanna (Tib. Lhayi Wangdän) (376-276) Cutter of Delusion, Uprooter of Karma and Klesha

The most recent 25 of the 32 Kings of Shambhala are known as Kalki kings (Tib. Rigden, wylie: rigs ldan), meaning "Holder of the Castes." The Kalki King is said to reside upon a "Lion Throne" in Kalapa, the capital city of the Kingdom. The Kalki are holders of the Kalachakra (Wheel of Time), which are the teachings of Buddha Shakyamuni passed down from the original seven Dharmarajas of Shambhala.

As explained by Buddhist scholar John R. Newman, the Kalki are often erroneously termed "Kulika" by Tibetan Buddhist scholars unfamiliar with the original Sanskrit texts:

".. . so far no one seems to have examined the Sanskrit Kalachakra texts. The Buddhist myth of the Kalkis of Shambhala derives from the Hindu Kalki of Shambhala myths contained in the Mahabharata and the Puranas. The Vimalaprabha even refers to the Kalki Purana, probably the latest of the upapuranas. This relationship has been obscured by western scholars who have reconstructed the Tibetan translation term rigs ldan as "Kulika." Although Tibetan rigs ldan is used to translate the Sankrit kulika in other contexts, here it always represents Sanskrit kalkin (possessive of kalkah; I have used the nominative kalki)."^[1]

1. Yashas (Tib. Jampal Dakpa; "Manjushri Yashas") King Yashas is said to have lived in the second century BCE. He formatted the Kalachakra teachings into a condensed and simplified structure termed the "Sri Kalachakra" or "Laghutantra." He also converted a group of non-Buddhist Brahman priests of Shambhala to Buddhism and gave them the Kalachakra initiation, thereby uniting all inhabitants into one "vajra caste," or family of tantric practitioners. Yashas is said to have predicted the coming of "Barbarian Dharma" after 800 years (about 600 CE), which indicates a form of Islam.
2. Pundarika (Tib. Pema Karpo) (176-76 BCE) White Lotus, cherished by the Lord of Potala. King Pundarika wrote a commentary called "Vimalaprabha" (Skt.) or "Stainless Light." This text, together with the Sri Kalachakra, is the source text of the Kalachakra system as it is now practiced. Other practice texts are commentaries on these two. The Dalai Lamas are said to be incarnations of Pundarika.
3. Bhadra (Tib. Zangpo) (76 BC -227 CE) One who Rules by the Thousand-spoked Wheel.
4. Vijaya (Tib. Nampar Gyäl) (227-327) Attractor of Wealth, Victorious in War.
5. Sumitra (Tib. Shenyen Zangpo) (327-427) Integrator of Method and Wisdom, Victorious over Samsara.
6. Raktapani (Tib. Rinchen Chag) (427-527) Holder of the Blissful Vajra and Bell.
7. Vishnugupta (Tib. Kyabjug Bäpa) (527-627) Smiling Holder of the Trident and Rosary.
8. Suryakirti (Tib. Nyima Drag) (627-727) Annihilator of Wild Demons.
9. Subhadra (Tib. Shintu Zangpo) (727-827) Holder of the Sword and Shield.
10. Samudra Vijaya (Tib. Gyatso Namgyäl) (827-927) Annihilator of all types of Devils.
11. Aja (Tib. Gyälka) (927-1027) Who binds with Unbreakable Iron Chains.
12. Surya/Suryapada, (Tib. (Wonang) Nyima) (1027-1127) All-Pervading, Radiant Jewel Light.
13. Vishvarupa (Tib. Natshog Zug(chän)) (1127-1227) Holder of the Vajra Prod and Noose.
14. Shashiprabha (Also Sasiprabha or Chandraprabha, Tib. Dawäi Ö) (1227-1327) Lord of Secret Mantras, Holder of the Wheel and Conch.
15. Ananta, Thayä (Tib. Nyen) (1327-1427) Holder of the Mallet that Crushes False Ideas.
16. Shripaala or Parthiva (Tib. Sakyong) (1427-1527) Holder of the Cleaver that Cuts the Bonds of Ignorance.
17. Shripala (Tib. Pälkyong) (1527-1627) Annihilator of the Host of Demons.
18. Singha (Tib. Senge) (1627 -1727) Who Stuns the Elephant with his Vajra.
19. Vikranta (Tib. Nampar Nön) (1727 - 1827) Subduer of the Mass of Foes, the Inner and Outer Classes of Devils.
20. Mahabala (Tib. Tobpo Che) (1827 - 1927) Tamer of all False Leaders by Means of the Sound of Mantra.
21. Aniruddha (Tib. Magakpa) (1927-2027) Who Draws and Binds the Entire Three Worlds. Aniruddha, the present Kalki king, was prophesied to rule during a time when Vajrayana Buddhism and the Kalachakra are nearly extinguished.
22. Narasingha (Tib. Miyi Senge) (2027-2127) Ruling by the Wheel, Holding the Conch.
23. Maheshvara (Tib. Wangchug Che) (2127-2227) Victorious over the Armies of Demons.
24. Anantavijaya (Tib. Thaye Namgyäl) (2227-2327) Holder of the vajra and Bell.
25. Raudra Chakrin (Tib. Dakpo Khorlocen) (2327 to ? ) Forceful Wheel Holder. The final king prophesied in the Kalachakra, Raudra Chakrin is further prophesied to appear to all humanity in 2424, and to establish a planet-wide Golden Age subsequent to his defeat of degenerate world rulers.

The Dalai Lamas are said to be incarnations of the second Kalki, Pundarika. In particular, the Second, Seventh and Fourteenth (present) Dalai Lamas are said to have strong affinity to the Kalki kings, with the present Dalai Lama having to date offered the Kalachakra initiation thirty times.

Followers of the contemporary Tibetan Buddhist teachers Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche and his son Sakyong Mipham Rinpoche believe them to be intimately connected to the Kalki kings, and are thus dedicated to propagating the wisdom of Shambhala to the entire world. The term "Sakyong" in Tibetan literally means "earth-protector," although it is colloquially understood to mean "King." The Sakyong King lineage is traditionally familial.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Kings of Shambhala.

• International Kalachakra Network