Tathagath Great Precious Prince of Dharmawas one of the Three Major Princes of Dharma. In the fifth year of Yongle(1470 A. D.), Ming Emperor Chengzu conferred the honorific title of “Tathagath Great Precious Prince of Dharma” upon Karmapa, the fifth Rinpoche of the Karma-bkav-brgyud-pa Sect and bestowed upon him a seal. From them on, Rinpoches of Karmapa Black Hat Sect of successive generations were all conferred upon the title of “Great Precious Prince of Dharma”, who was higher in status than Great Vehicle Prince of Dharma and Great Compassion Prince of Dharma. It was the highest honorific title among leading figures of Tibetan Buddhism.
