Thume Sambota
At the height of the Tibetan Empire in the early 7th Century, the 33rd king of Tibet, Songtsen Gampo ]N}$-02,-"1-.}k^í, known as the Dharma King, felt there was a need for a written language for the existing spoken Tibetan of the time. Therefore 16 young and intelligent scholars were sent to India to study the Indian language. When hearing how difficult it was to go to India, some decided not to go. Those who reached India died of heat and sickness except for Thume Sambota ]*v-1m-=ZL}@k^
Under the distinguished tutelage of Brahmin Li Jin Kara and Pandit Lha Rig Pay Sang Kay, Thume Sambota became proficient in the ancient Indian language. His linguistic achievement became well known even in India. After returning to Tibet, at the fort of Maru, Thume Sambota created the first script modeled on the Nakari script. Later on the king studied the Tibetan language under Thume Sambota. The great master wrote 8 different treatises on Tibetan grammar of which we have only 2 left today. The first one is "The Root of Grammar: The Thirty Verses" ];v$-`o-%},-.-P-0-=v1-%t-.k^. This treatise includes the basics of the Tibetan grammar. It defines the letters, vowels and consonants, and how they can be put together. It also defines the eight cases and non-cases of the Tibetan language. The other treatise is called "Grammar: The Application of Gender Signs" ];v$-%},-.-K#=-<m-8'v#=-.k^í.This text explains the gender of all letters. There are five letter genders for base consonants, four letter genders for prefixes, and three letter genders for suffixes. The effects of gender on a letter group is a very complicated subject, and few people are able to fully grasp this most complex subject of Tibetan grammar.
When Thume Sambota had created the script and grammar for the Tibetan language, king Songtsen Gampo arranged for numerous texts to be translated into the new language. This was the beginning of massive translation projects that lasted for several centuries. Through the new written language, knowledge and Dharma spread all over the country. For all of this the Tibetan people are deeply grateful to the distinguished scholar of Tibet, Thume Sambota. This is the beginning of an era when the red-faced warriors of Tibet were eventually transformed into peaceful Buddhist followers.