Kadam (Tibetan Buddhism)

The Kadampa (Tibetan: བཀའ་གདམས་པ་, Wylie: bka' gdams pa) school of Tibetan Buddhism was founded by Dromtön (1005–1064), a Tibetan lay master and the foremost disciple of the great Bengali master Atiśa (982-1054). The Kadampa were quite famous and respected for their proper and earnest Dharma practice. The most evident teachings of that tradition were the teachings on bodhicitta. Later, these special presentations became known as lojong and lamrim by Atiśa.

Kadam instructional influence lingered long after the school disappeared:

The Bka' gdams was responsible for the distinctive Tibetan Bstan rim (tenrim) ("stages of teaching") genre, based on Atiśa's seminal work, the Bodhipathapradīpa. This genre was later adapted and popularized by Tsong kha pa in his influential Lam rim chen mo.

After the death of Atiśa, his main disciple Dromtön organized his transmissions into the legacy known as "The Four Divinities and Three Dharmas" - a tradition whereby an individual practitioner could perceive all doctrines of the Sutras and Tantras as non-contradictory and could personally apply them all as complementary methods for the accomplishment of enlightenment.

Dromtön founded Reting Monastery (Wylie: rwa sgreng) in 1056 in Reting Tsangpo Valley north of Lhasa, which was thereafter the seat of the lineage. The nearby Phenpo Chu and Gyama Valleys were also home to many large Kadampa monasteries.

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