The Magical Duel between Milarepa and Naro Bönchung: Who Really Won?

Abstract: Probably everyone who has even a little interest in Tibet knows or has at least heard of the magical contest between Buddhist yogi Milarepa and Bönpo sorcerer Naro Bönchung which is purported to have taken place at Mount Kailash.  The tale has been told and retold for centuries in Tibet and beyond to illustrate the superiority of Indo-Tibetan Buddhism over Yungdrung Bön. But does it have any grounding in real events? Did this magical duel really happen on Mount Kailash? And who was the real winner? I will attempt to answer these questions by examining both Bönpo and Buddhist…
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