milarepa was born in the village of kya ngatsa in the gungthang province of western tibet to a family of farmers. he was named mila thöpaga, which means "mila, a joy to hear." when his father died, milarepa's uncle and aunt took all of the family's wealth and property and mistreated milarepa, his mother and sister. at his mother's urging, milarepa left home and studied magic so that he could take revenge on his uncle and aunt.