Let me close this topic by telling a Bon Story - how Buddhism took over Bon. This comes from a Bon text, Grags-pa rin-chen gling-grags(Enlightening the Mind of the Deluded). The story goes thus. I won't venture to guess what is true in this, though.
From the time the divine king Nyatri Tsenpo became the king, all is well in Tibet. Nyatri Tsenpo and his successors were immortal and were linked to the heaven with a rope. When their time is over, they will simply return back to heaven without leaving a corpse behind.
Everyone is happy. But, then, a demon who swore to destroy Bon religion in a future life takes birth as Drigum Tsenpo. He expels the Bons from Tibet but he is killed in such a way that he is unable to ascend to heaven leaving his corpse behind.
From then on, all kings had to leave their bodies behind. Old Tibet Chronicles mention that he was surprised using a charge of yaks and his rope was cut before he was pulled up. Another legend says that the hills of Garuda Valley are the soldiers of these gods
who turned to stones after the gods left to heaven. After his death, Bon is re-established again. When Lhatho Thori, the fourteenth king after Drigum Tsenpo was ruling, Buddhist scriptures miraculously descend on the palace of the king
(the author hints the books were left there by someone - there is no miracle). During the reigns of Namri Lonsten and Mangsong Mangsten, Buddhist scriptures were brought to Tibet as the king wanted to study them. But, the tutelary deities of Tibet get angry and
calamities befall the country. The kings are forced to suppress Buddhism. When Trisong Detsen's father was ruling Tibet, three Indian beggars construct the Stupa of Jari Khashor (Bodhnath) outside Khatmandu. At that time, India and China were unable to halt the Tibetan armies
and plan a stratagem. The Chinese king says, if only Buddhism could be introduced into Tibet, this would weaken the country and so prevent further attacks. But, the two Buddhist beggars didn't understand this and promise to establish Buddhism in their next birth in Tibet.
They are born as Trisong Detsen and the Indian Buddhist masters Padmasambhava and Shantarakshita. At that time, the true Dharma of Shakyamuni is corrupted by a demon who mixed the Dharma with evil spells. The king of India, who upheld the true Dharma is killed by a heretic and
the true Dharma is saved by the Tibetan king and his Bon Priests. When the demon tries again to create troubles, the Bonpo install a tutelary deity of Tibet to protect Buddhism in India and go back. But, what did they get in return for this benevolence?
Trisong Detsen becomes the king and the two - Padmasambhava and Shantarakshita arrive in Tibet and persuade him to practise Buddhism. The king wouldn't listen to the counsels of ministers and tries to subdue neighbouring countries through the power of Buddhism but fails only to
face revolts and chaos. He is forced to expel the two Buddhists and restore Bon religion. But, the two Buddhists are back in a year. They slandered the Bonpos and poisoned the king's mind that the Bonpos will usurp his power. The king gives an open patronage to Buddhism
allowing them to build temples. To support them, a special tax is levied. But the Bon need to be crushed. The king puts a contest and appoints two neutral overseers. First the king asks the two sides to kill by magic and bring back to life. The Bonpo Drenpa Namkha do it but
Padmasambhava fails to do that. The overseers grant the Bonpo victory but the king refuses to accept. Angry, he indulges in impure tantric practices with Padmasambhava and Shantarakshita - many people die and the kingdom is devastated.
The Bonpo perform rituals and stop the plague. The king then decides to test the power of their funerary rights. The Bonpo bring back their champion and they had to bring back the Buddhist champion as well because the other wasn't able to revive him. In the land of the dead,
the Bonpo rituals brought abundance of food but the Buddhist rituals brought only emptiness. The king regains his faith in Bon Religion and the two Buddhists flee to India. But, true to his previous birth, the king's mistrust for the Bonpo is aroused again and
he orders them either to convert or leave Tibet. Drenpa Namkha becomes a Buddhist monk saying it's futile to discriminate between Bon and Buddhism and act against the king. Bonpo texts are transformed into Buddhist texts, Bonpo shrines are converted, Padmasambhava returns and
the Bonpos leave cursing Tibet. The king falls ill and Tibet suffers, the Bonpos are recalled and their privileges given back to restore order. The Bonpo demand expulsion of Buddhists and the king convinces them to allow the Buddhists to stay and asks them to visit Samye,
the main Buddhist shrine. They see nothing sacred there and express their contempt. The Buddhists then scheme to banish the Bonpo from the kingdom and except Drenpa Namkha, everyone leaves Tibet for good. To preserve Bon, the sacred texts are hidden as treasures to be revealed.
Drenpa Namkha is pained and utters a prohecy -
The king’s life will be cut short,
His lineage will be extinguished
The Buddhist order will be corrupted,
Tibet will be invaded by foreign armies, etc.
The king’s life will be cut short,
His lineage will be extinguished
The Buddhist order will be corrupted,
Tibet will be invaded by foreign armies, etc.
True to his prophesy, Trisong Detsen's last years are in confusion and his death lead to a civil war. Tibet will be destroyed within 50 years of Trisong Detsen's death. This is a retrospective harangue of a loser based on historic facts, it's understood.
But, it tells of two things - exactly the same two things which led to the end of pre-Christian Rome - the Bonpa were ready to find a middle ground, the Buddhists were unyielding, the fight between Bonpa and Buddhists went for a long time.
But in due time, Bonpo is allowed back by the same Buddhists, they weren't given their old place but they weren't rejected, both the religions merged together to an extent that it's not easy to distinguish for a layman and no one rememebers all these after a millenium.
In fact, it would surprise many that one of the main Bonpo clans, the Bru became extinct to preserve Buddhism - two Karmapa Lamas in their family and there are no successors left. As it stands today? Both represent Tibet and no one is interested in the bad blood of the past.
