Tara was Atisha's primary yidam deity and constant guide. She appeared to him in visions throughout his life, most critically advising him to accept the invitation to Tibet — warning that his lifespan would be shortened but that his benefit to beings would be immeasurable. He composed some of the earliest Tara devotional texts in the Tibetan canon.
Tsongkhapa explicitly built on Atisha's legacy. His Lamrim Chenmo is a vast expansion of Atisha's Lamp for the Path, and the Gelug school he founded is the direct descendant of Atisha's Kadampa tradition — so much so that early Gelugpas were called 'New Kadampas'.
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