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''The Dharma Connection with the Six Gatekeepers'' is a fascinating
cycle, as it is one of the few texts we have in the Sakya tradition that
records Drokmi’s personal interactions with his gurus at Vikramaśīla. In
order, the six paṇḍitas are Ratnākaraśānti, Prajñākaragupta, Jñānaśrīmitra,
Ratnavajra, Vāgīśvarakīrti, and Naropa (all late tenth to mid-eleventh
centuries). ''The Dharma Connection with the Six Gatekeepers'' includes four sections:
(1) Ratnākaraśānti’s ''Merging Sutra and Tantra and instructions'', (2)
T''he Trio for Removing Obstructions'' by Prajñākaragupta, Jñānaśrī, and Ratnavajra,
(3) Vāgīśvarakīrti’s ''Clear Mindfulness of the Innate'' and instructions,
and (4) Naropa’s ''Mahāmudrā That Removes the Three Sufferings''. There
appear to be no Tibetan commentaries on them, other than the summaries
by Kunga Drölchok.2
Ameshap’s ''Ocean That Gathers Excellent Explanations'' relates that when
Drokmi is studying Sanskrit in the Katmandhu Valley, he requests the
empowerments of Hevajra, Cakrasaṃvara, Guhyasamāja, Bhairava, and
Mahāmaya from the Nepali paṇḍita, Śāntibhadra. Drokmi studies with
Śāntibhadra for one year, excelling in his studies and earning the title “translator.”
Preparing to leave for India, Śāntibhadra encourages Drokmi and his
companions to head for Vikramaśīla after they pay respects at Bodhgaya. He
tells them there are six gatekeepers (''sgo srung'') at Vikramaśīla:
:Five hundred paṇḍitas who have received royal parasols are at that place. Foremost among them is Guru Śantipa, the one with the twofold omniscience in the age of degeneration. Śantipa is the eastern gatekeeper of Vikramaśīla, charged with debating grammar and epistemology. Vāgīśvarakīrti is the southern gatekeeper, charged with debating scriptural dharma. Since these two are equals, they also guide students together. The western gatekeeper is Prajñākaragupta of Oḍḍiyāna, charged with debating non-Buddhist systems. His special expertise is the view, meditation, conduct, and result of equipoise. The northern gatekeeper is Lord Naropa, charged with debating mantra. These two are considered equals. Jñānaśrīmitra of Kashmir and Ratnavajra are the so-called two great pillars in the center. However, they are not considered to have qualities greater than the others, and these five do not have less knowledge than Śantipa. Also, you should request dharma connections with the others.3
Amezhap tells us that Drokmi studied under Śantipa for a total of eighteen
years, receiving teachings in Vinaya and Prajñāparamitā, including Śantipa’s
own commentary on the ''Perfection of Wisdom in Twenty-Five
Thousand Lines''.4 After these studies, Drokmi received Cakrasaṃvara and other
empowerments from Śantipa as well as the special instruction, ''Merging
Sutra and Tantra''. Drokmi then makes dharma connections with the other
five masters listed above and receives instruction from them.
Ratnākaraśānti’s ''Merging Sutra and Tantra'' is exactly what it sounds like,
a text on how to practice sutra and tantra in union. It recounts a conversation
between Śantipa and Drokmi, and then provides a method of practice
for the verse that Ratnākaraśānti utters. Amezhap furthers notes that Ratnākaraśānti
explains his view according to the path of the Mind Only school
and he practices the creation stage according to the Buddhajñāpāda system.
The person who authored the attached meditation instruction as well as
the remaining texts is not recorded, but it resembles the style of the eight
ancillary path cycles.
The rest of the cycle begins with an interlude and a title list of the five
paṇḍitas with whom Drokmi makes dharma connections. While Naropa’s
and Vāgīśvarakīrti’s texts are listed first, they actually come last. First
is ''The Trio for Removing Obstructions by Prajñākaragupta, Jñānaśrī, and
Ratnavajra''.
We know very little about Prajñākaragupta of Oḍḍiyāna, Jñānaśrīmitra
of Kashmir, and Ratnavajra other than their works in the Tengyur. These
three texts are quite brief and their titles are self-explanatory.
The thing of note here is that it appears that the person who put these three texts into
writing is Chöje Zhönu Drup, a Sakya master of the thirteenth century.
The next section is devoted to an instruction of Vāgīśvarakīrti, related to
''Mahāmudrā without Syllables'', with two parts. The first part of the text is
directly attributed to Vāgīśvarakīrti; the second part is a somewhat detailed
description of how to meditate in connection with the pledged deity, Hevajra.
Notable in the lineage is the presence of Khyungpo Naljor, the founder
of the Shangpa Kagyu.
The final section in this cycle is Naropa’s ''Mahāmudrā That Removes the
Three Sufferings''. Naropa himself needs no introduction. Like the Ratnākaraśānti
text that begins the cycle, this text also presents a dialogue with
Drokmi. No author is given for the final text, but there is a note that the
original text was somewhat unclear, and this text represents a reorganization
of the original text on behalf of an aristocratic woman named Trinle Kyi.
<center>'''''Introduction to Āryadeva's Grand Poem on Severance and its commentary Pure Honey'''''</center>
This text attributed to Brahmin Āryadeva ([[Bram ze A rya de ba]]) is the single Indian source text for the Sutra tradition of Severance, which is based entirely on the perfection of wisdom. The text appears in several editions of the [[Tengyur]], as well as in collections on Severance. It was known as the ''Fifty-Verse Poem'' (''Tshigs su bcad pa lnga bcu pa''), or the Grand Poem (''Tshigs bcad chen mo'').
There is very little information on the Brahmin Āryadeva, though it is clear that he is not the same person as Āchārya Āryadeva, the famous disciple of Nāgārjuna, since both Āryadevas often appear in the same lineage of Severance. In the many complex lines of transmission, Brahmin Āryadeva is placed variously after Nāgārjuna and Āchārya Āryadeva, after Tārā and Sukhasiddhī, and after Mañjushrī, all indicating his importance as an ancient source. In all cases, however, the direct recipient of his lineage was the Indian Dampa Sangye (d. 1117), who was his maternal nephew. It is Dampa Sangye (also called Pha dam pa, or Father Dampa) who apparently brought the text from India to Tibet, having translated it himself, and gave it to the translator Zhama to edit, as stated in the colophon. Dampa Sangye is sometimes misidentified as the great Indian scholar Kamalashīla (740–795) and even as the Ch’an patriarch Bodhidharma (c. late fourth to early fifth centuries). In any case, it is Dampa Sangye who is considered the forefather of the system of Pacification (''zhi byed'') and its subsidiary, Severance (''gcod'').
The actual lineage of Āryadeva's teaching, known as the “male Severance” (''pho gcod''), is presented in Jamgön Kongtrul’s catalog of ''The Treasury of Precious Instructions'' as follows: “Pa Dampa Sangye gave Kyotön Shākya Yeshe and Yarlung Mara Serpo the autonomous Severance of the Sutra tradition, the meaning of Āryadeva’s small ''Fifty Verse'' source text, as the instructions of the Six Pieces (''gDams ngag brul tsho drug''). Kyö gave them to his own nephew, Sönam Lama. He, then, is known to have bestowed four sections to [his disciple] Machik Lapdrön.”'"`UNIQ--ref-00000492-QINU`"' Many of Machik’s own compositions show the influence of this source text, which had joined with her own realizations derived from her readings of the Perfection of Wisdom sutras.
'''Notes'''
'"`UNIQ--references-00000493-QINU`"'
Of the six deities from whom Mitrayogin received the instructions included in this volume, Avalokiteshvara appears to be only deity for which a sādhana text is provided. The structure of the sādhana is slightly unusual in that the offering and praise sections come after the recitation of the mantra instead of before it. +
'phags pa spyan ras gzigs kyi byang chub lam gyi rim pa'i khrid kyi cha lag man ngag gser gyi thur ma rin po che'i sgron me +
In the Vajrayāna, it is the “pith instructions” an authentic vajra master gives their disciple, often in response to a particular question or to address a particular difficulty, that transform the formal instructions into a living practice. Many of them are never written down and, as is pointed out below, do not appear in any texts. It is usually to save such vital pieces of advice from being lost that they are eventually recorded in texts such as this one.
The pith instructions in this text need to be read in conjunction with the relevant sections in the two preceding texts. Some of them provide considerable extra detail to the instructions in those texts, others discuss points that are barely touched upon, and yet others condense the practice into the essential points that might otherwise be forgotten when one is concentrating on the details. +
A
Jamgön Kongtrul’s teacher and cocreator of his treasuries, Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo (1820–1892), extracted the following sections and added a structural outline and a few notes from the most important source text of the Pacification tradition for inclusion in ''The Treasury of Precious Instructions''. According to his colophon, he considered these three chapters the most essential: Chapter Ten because it contains an exposition of the unique Pacification approach to the five paths, Chapter Seventeen because it contains the crucial empowerments and pledges, and Chapter Twenty-Three because it condenses the introduction, view, meditation, practice, conduct, and results of the essential meaning. He may also have chosen these three because they are the most comprehensible of this fascinating and mystifying tantra.
In his brief background of the lineage in ''The Treasury of Knowledge'': ''Esoteric Instructions'', Kongtrul cites the ''Ālikāli Inconceivable Secret Great River Tantra'' and ''Mahāmudrā Symbol Tantra'' [''the Secret in the Hearts of All Ḍākinīs''] as the two source tantras of the Pacification tradition. These were briefly explored in the general introduction. With regard to the ''Ālikāli Tantra'', Kongtrul weaves its title into this statement about Dampa’s accomplishments:
:<blockquote>The mighty lord of accomplishment Dampa Sangye mastered the semantic meaning of the unborn ''ālikāli'' and through ''inconceivable'' secrets taught countless approaches to dharma corresponding to the faculties and dispositions of beings. '"`UNIQ--ref-000002D2-QINU`"'</blockquote>
What Kongtrul only hints at with his suggestion that Dampa mastered the “semantic meaning of the unborn ''ālikāli''” (''skye med āli kāli’i sgra don'') is that practices based on the vowels (''āli'') and consonants (''kāli'') of the Sanskrit alphabet were at the heart of the teachings propounded by Dampa Sangye, brought by him from India into Tibet, and were of particularly Indian character. Each syllable or phoneme references a crucial aspect of ultimate reality while at the same time carrying mystical powers even without semantic meaning. This will be revealed, though not explained, in later texts in this volume, particularly the empowerment rituals. But in the tantra itself, these syllabary practices are laid out in great detail. This goes far beyond the use of mantras, which usually have a somewhat translatable meaning. Perhaps that is what is meant here by “unborn.”
The greater part of both of these source tantras concerns the implications of this idea. Yet for the most part, this is what Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo and Jamgön Kongtrul chose to omit. The three chapters that are included here concern mostly familiar Tibetan Buddhist concepts that could be found everywhere at the time of these two masters. The style is cryptic, though not nearly so much as many of Dampa Sangye’s more famous utterances. However, the essential ideas in these three chapters are explained in two commentaries that follow later in this volume: ''Distilled Elixir'' by Lochen Dharmashrī and ''Stainless Appearance'' by Sönam Pal.
The last (twenty-fourth) chapter of the ''Ālikāli Tantra'' and its interlinear note reveal that Dampa Sangye himself played a major role in the history of this tantra. He reconstituted three somewhat disparate sections (''dum bu'', still marked as such) of the tantra that were previously divided according to the following story. After the Buddha entrusts the tantra to various protectors, he departs for Kushinagar.
:<blockquote>Then the assembly came to the king’s palace and divided the tantra into three parts. The first eight chapters were written on leaves of the wish-fulfilling tree, then encased in a precious crystal vase. The gods summoned it and it rests inside a gandhola on the peak of Supreme Mountain. The middle section of eight chapters was written on the inner bark of the wish-fulfilling tree and encased in a precious silver amulet box. The demigods and yakṣhas summoned it and it rests in a copper house of blazing weapons midway up Supreme Mountain. The last section of eight chapters was written on blue water silk and encased in a golden box. The nāgas summoned it and it rests in the nāga storehouse at the base of Supreme Mountain. Later these three divided treasure teachings were brought together into one and written on the skin of a demoness (''srin mo'') and put into the skin bag of a white lioness. It rests in the endless knot of the secret treasury in the charnel ground of glorious Oḍḍiyāna.'"`UNIQ--ref-000002D3-QINU`"'</blockquote>
'''Notes'''
'"`UNIQ--references-000002D4-QINU`"'
B
Amitāyus (''Tshe dpag med''), the buddha of infinite life, is an aspect of Buddha Amitābha (''’Od dpag med''), the buddha of infinite light, and as his name suggests, he is associated with practices that promote longevity. In these instructions, both names are used to refer to the same deity. +
''Trulkhors for the Path of Method'' and the following text, ''Eighteen Trulkhors for Caṇḍālī'', contain relatively brief descriptions of trulkhors (''yantra, ’khrul ’khor''), sometimes translated as “yogic exercises.” Trulkhors are physical movements or postures that, when combined with breathing practices and caṇḍālī visualizations, develop and enhance a practitioner’s experiences and realizations of caṇḍālī, in all its forms, from outer caṇḍālī to suchness caṇḍālī. These texts serve as reminders for those who know the practices and are not meant to be used by anyone who has not been instructed in the practices and shown the trulkhors in person.
''Trulkhors for the Path of Method ''contains the well-known six root trulkhors and the thirty-nine branch trulkhors. The trulkhors in the second text, ''Eighteen Trulkhors for Caṇḍālī'', are also well known and practiced in
the Kagyu traditions. For those who practice these yogic exercises, these are
welcome source texts.
''Transmission lineage received by Jamgön Kongtrul''. It is the same as previously stated for ''The Short Text''.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000162-QINU`"' +
''The Instruction Manual on the Six Dharmas'' teaches the set of
meditation practices associated with the second abhiṣeka and corresponds closely to the presentation given in ''Vajra Verses'', adopting its descriptive headings for each of the six dharmas (see outline below). In both this
text and the Vajra Verses, the six dharmas are caṇḍālī, illusory forms, dreams,
luminosity, transference, and entering a body. The Vajra Verses contains
forty-five lines on these practices, twenty-nine of which are quoted in one
of the compared editions of this text,'"`UNIQ--ref-00000B46-QINU`"' demonstrating not only the close
connection between this text and the ''Vajra Verses''’ instructions on the practices of the secret abhiṣeka, but also showing how Milarepa’s text is a commentary on those lines of the ''Vajra Verses''. Caṇḍālī is the longest section in
''The Instruction Manual on the Six Dharmas'' (fourteen pages in Tibetan),
with the instructions on the other five dharmas being considerably shorter
(three to four pages each). This text contains the most detailed instructions
on the six dharmas of all the texts in this volume related to these practices,
which makes it very valuable as does its proximity in time to the root texts
by Vajradhara and Tilopa.
There are at least two texts by students of Milarepa that are also commentaries on these practices, as their titles suggest: Gampopa’s ''Aural Transmission of the Unequaled Dakpo Rinpoche'' and Ngamdzong’s ''From the Instructions on the Abiding-State Wish-Fulfilling Gems in the Ngamdzong Aural Transmission: Caṇḍālī, Illusory Forms, Dreams, Luminosity, Transference, and Entering a Body Connected with the Great Bliss of the Upper Door.'''"`UNIQ--ref-00000B47-QINU`"'
''Transmission lineage received by Jamgön Kongtrul''. It is the same as previously stated for The Short Text.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000B48-QINU`"' +
This feast liturgy'"`UNIQ--ref-00000612-QINU`"' is essentially the long lineage supplication found in the ''Source of All Qualities'' (pp. 309–11), the only difference being that the lines naming the place and the person are followed by “dwells in the midst of heroes and heroines: I supplicate with longing and devotion,” rather than with the four lines requesting blessings. Then the short prayer requesting the consecration of the environs for the feast is added here after the supplication. This too is nearly the same as in the ''Source of All Qualities'', where it is attributed to [[Machik]] and Rigongpa. It seems that this liturgy offers a short alternative, rather than an addition, to the extensive feast supplications in the longer liturgies. +
''Truly Valid Words'' is Tilopa’s account of teachings he received from
Vajradhara. This text is mostly known through the very common quotations of some of its verses, which are found frequently in Kagyu texts and
commentaries (where it is also referred to as the Earlier Authoritative Text).'"`UNIQ--ref-000000B8-QINU`"'
Pema Karpo calls it “the root text of the entire [Kagyu tradition],”'"`UNIQ--ref-000000B9-QINU`"' and
wrote a lengthy commentary on it, ''Clarifying the Thought of Vajradhara'',
which is the basis for this translation.
The text opens with some of its most famous verses about the gradual and
instantaneous types, the abiding states of body and of mind, and a little later
gives Tilopa’s renowned instructions on six ways to rest:
:Don’t reflect, don’t think, don’t analyze.
:Don’t meditate, don’t speculate—rest naturally settled.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000BA-QINU`"'
The majority of the instructions for the instantaneous type belong to the
perfection process: caṇḍālī, karmamudrā, illusory forms, dreams, luminosity, bardo, transference, and entering a body. Thus, this text contains eight perfection-process practices, two more than the six that later became known
as “the six dharmas of Nāropa” (caṇḍālī, illusory forms, dreams, luminosity,
bardo, and transference). In the section Pema Karpo calls instructions for
the gradual type, there are only four perfection-process practices: entering a
body, transference, dream, and bardo. All these perfection-process instructions are found in various father and mother tantras cycles, some of which are identified by Pema Karpo (see outline below).
The edition of ''Truly Valid Words'' contained here is related to an anonymously authored text of the same name included in the Derge and Cone
Tengyurs (Toh. 2331). However, this paracanonical edition has 998 lines, or
249½ four-line verses, whereas the Tengyur redaction has 222 lines, or 55½
four-line verses. In other words, only 23 percent of the DNZ Truly Valid
Words is contained in the Tengyur text redaction: lines 9–808 of DNZ
Truly Valid Words are not in the Tengyur redaction. And only 6 random
lines and 1 four-line verse of the Tengyur redaction are not contained in
DNZ Truly Valid Words. As can be seen from the topical outline provided
by Pema Karpo below, the lines not included in the Tengyur redaction
represent the part of DNZ Truly Valid Words that describes the path for
those who engage instantaneously. The Tengyur redaction only contains the
instructions for those of the gradual approach.
''Truly Valid Words'' was not included in the canon catalogs of Chomden
Raldri or Butön Rinchen Drup and is only included in the Derge and Cone
Tengyurs, not the Peking, Gaden, or Narthang, which are based on the nonextant Jingwa Taktse Tengyur.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000BB-QINU`"'
Much of ''Truly Valid Words'' seems to be drawn from various tantras (Hevajra Tantra, Sampuṭa Tantra, Catuṣpīṭha Tantra, Cakrasaṃvara Tantra,
and probably others), and its lines are also found in other texts, such Nāgārjuna’s Five Processes; unfortunately, a thorough analysis of its antecedents is beyond the scope of this work. Truly Valid Words (or its sources) is also
a source for texts by Nāropa, starting with Nāropa’s Authoritative Texts in
Verse (DNZ 7:16)*'"`UNIQ--ref-000000BC-QINU`"' and including his Concise Illumination of the Five Stage,
which contains at least ten identical, or corresponding, lines, only two of
which are found in his Authoritative Texts in Verse.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000BD-QINU`"'
Pema Karpo begins his commentary with the following account of the
transmission of these instructions, as he says, to inspire confidence in the
sources. Vajradhara, who resides in Akaniṣṭha, manifested as the supreme
nirmāṇakāya Buddha Śākyamuni in this impure world. Surrounded by
innumerable heroes and ḍākinīs, the Buddha spoke these vajra words out of
his love for future disciples. They were collected by Guhyapati Vajragarbha,
placed under seven seals in a dharma vault in Oḍḍiyāna and entrusted to the
ḍākinīs. Later on, parts of those teachings were brought to India through
the kindness of the collector.
The mahāmudrā instructions were received by Saraha and then passed to
Lūyipa, who gave them to Dārikapa and Ḍeṅgipa. The instructions related
to the father tantras were bestowed by the divine son Ratnamati on Nāgārjunagarbha, who gave them to Mātaṅgīpā. The mother tantra instructions
were given by Sumatī Subhaginī to Medhini (Tanglopa), *Parṇa (Shinglopa), and Vajraghaṇṭa, who resided on Mount Karṇa. The instructions
on luminosity and other practices were given by Ḍombi Heruka to the
yoginī Vinasavajra (or Bhinasavajra) and those were heard by Kambala of
Oḍḍiyāna. Then, Tilopa, having received a directive from the vajra queen
in Oḍḍiyāna, relied on Dārikapa and his brother (Ḍeṅgipa), Vajraghaṇṭa,
Mātaṅgīpā, and Kambala as his gurus.
===Outline of Truly Valid Words===
An abbreviated version of Pema Karpo’s topical outline in Clarifying the
Thought of Vajradhara is provided here as an overview of the contents of this
text.*'"`UNIQ--ref-000000BE-QINU`"' Line numbers are included in parentheses.
I. The individuals (1–8)
II. The path
:A. The path engaged instantaneously
::1. The summary (9–10)
::2. Establishing the realizations
:::a. The abiding state of entities
::::i. The abiding state of the body entity (11–19)
::::ii. The abiding state of the mind entity (20–32)
:::b. The process of the path
::::i. The maturing abhiṣekas (33–35)
::::ii. The liberating path
:::::A) The general explanation of the meditation approach of the two processes (36–41)
:::::B) Establishing the specific realizations
::::::1) The generation process (42–43)
::::::2) The perfection process
:::::::a) The overview (44–64)
:::::::b) The detailed explanation
::::::::i) Caṇḍālī: The foundation of the path
:::::::::(A) The caṇḍālī of action
::::::::::(1) Establishing the details of caṇḍālī (65–166)
::::::::::(2) An overview of explanations in the tantras
:::::::::::(a) An explanation from the Hevajra Tantra (167–70)
:::::::::::(b) An explanation from the Sampuṭa Tantra (171–78)
:::::::::::(c) An explanation from the Catuṣpīṭha Tantra (179–90)
:::::::::::(d) An explanation from the Cakrasaṃvara Tantra (191–98)
:::::::::(B) The caṇḍālī of experience or blazing (199–252)
:::::::::(C) The caṇḍālī of great realization (253–86)
::::::::ii) Karmamudrā: The enhancement of the path (287–371)
::::::::iii) Illusory forms: The life-force pole of the path (372–432)
::::::::iv) Dreams: The assessment of progress on the path (433–72)
::::::::v) Luminosity: The heart of the path (473–532)
::::::::vi) Bardo: Arriving at the end of the path through recollection (533–612)
::::::::vii) Transference: The escort on the path (613–90)
::::::::viii) Entering a body: The extender of the path (691–720)
::3. The process of development of the result
:::a. Ground unification (721–35)
:::b. Path unification (736–59)
:::c. Resultant unification (760–802)
:B. The path engaged gradually
::1. The trainings in keeping with the common yānas (803–7)
::2. The guidance on the path of the great yogas
:::a. The generation process (808)
:::b. The perfection process
::::i. The process of vajra repetition (809–10)
::::ii. The process for observing mind (811–13)
::::iii. The path of self-blessing
:::::A) The overview (817–21)
:::::B) The detailed explanation
::::::1) The process of realization (822–26)
::::::2) The process of self-consecration
:::::::a) Transference: Awakening without meditation
::::::::i) Transference using the mode of the generation process (827–45)
::::::::ii) Transference of the actual illusion (846–57)
::::::::iii) Transference into luminosity (858–71)
:::::::b) A branch of transference: Entering a body (872–80)
:::::::c) Dreams: Awakening through purifying latent tendencies (881–963)
:::::::d) Bardo: Awakening through recognizing the nature
::::::::i) Awakening in the first bardo for those of highest abilities and who have trained (964–69)
::::::::ii) Awakening in the bardo where excellent qualities are complete for those with intermediate training (970–78)
::::::::iii) Awakening in the bardo of illumination, darkness, and light for those with basic training (979–98)
''Transmission lineage received by Jamgön Kongtrul''. Vajradhara to Jñānaḍākinī,
Vajrapāṇi, Tilopa, Nāropa, Marpa, Milarepa, and Rechungpa, who passed it
to both Gyalwa Lo and Sumpa Repa and to Burgom. Pakmo Drupa received
it from the latter and passed it to Ling Repa, who also received it from both
Gyalwa Lo and Sumpa Repa. Ling Repa bestowed it on Tsangpa Gyare,
from whom it passed to Önre Dharma Senge, Zhönu Senge, and Nyima
Senge. Ön Dorje Lingpa received it from the preceding two, who were
uncle and nephew, and it passed to Pökyawa Senge Rinchen, Senge Gyalpo,
Kunga Senge, Dorje Rinchen, Lodrö Senge, Sherap Senge, Yeshe Rinchen,
Namkha Palzang, Sherap Zangpo, Chöje Kunga Paljor, Ngakwang Chökyi
Gyalpo, and Jamyang Chökyi Drakpa, from whom both Avadhūtipa and
Ngaki Wangchuk Drakpa Gyaltsen received it. They both then passed it
to the omniscient Pema Karpo, from whom it passed to Lhatse Ngakwang
Zangpo, Paksam Wangpo, Yongdzin Kunga Lhundrup, Chökyi Wangchuk,
Gelek Zhepa, Jamgön Gyepa, Jampal Pawo, the all-seeing Chökyi Nangwa,
Gyalwang Tekchok Dorje, the omniscient Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo, and
Jamgön Kongtrul.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000BF-QINU`"'
The visualization of the lineage teachers described by Jamyang Khyentse Wangchuk in the guru yoga section of his Notes does not, for obvious reasons, include any of the teachers who succeeded him. This text, therefore, contains the visualization details of the teachers in the lineage between Jamyang Khyentse Wangchuk and Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo, which are to be inserted into the description in the Notes.* It appears to have been compiled incrementally by the some of the teachers described here. There is no colophon, but the fact that Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo refers to this supplement in his teaching guide† would suggest that he or perhaps Jamgön Kongtrul added the visualizations of the two most recent lineage holders. +
''The Instruction Manual for the Shared Wish-Fulfilling Gems'' is
the first in a series of texts that amplify the Wish-Fulfilling Gems of
the Saṃvara Aural Transmission, which are presented in the ''Vajra Verses''
and ''Short Text''. This and the following text, ''The Instruction Manual on the
Six Dharmas, Which Liberate through the Upper Door'', are the longest texts
in this collection authored by Milarepa and are possibly the longest texts
authored by Milarepa. Along with a third text in ''The Treasury'' by Milarepa,
''Instructions Pointing Out the Bardos'','"`UNIQ--ref-00000A99-QINU`"' they are teachings Milarepa entrusted
to Rechungpa, which he wrote at the hermitage of Drö Puk in Nyanang (or
Nyanam),'"`UNIQ--ref-00000A9A-QINU`"' and signed “by Dorje Gyaltsen with love,” using the name Marpa
gave him when conferring upon him lay and bodhisattva vows.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000A9B-QINU`"'
In this text, Milarepa begins with a brief account of the transmission
from Vajradhara to Jñānaḍākinī, Tilopa, Nāropa, and Marpa, incorporating
some often-quoted verses and the permission he received from Vajrayoginī
to bestow these teachings on Rechungpa.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000A9C-QINU`"' He then states that the Aural
Transmission teachings are divided into three parts: the characteristics of
the ācāryas, the characteristics of the disciples, and the abiding state of the
dharma. This differs slightly from the approach found in later presentations (such as the topical outline in Jadrel Ritröpa Tsultrim Palden’s ''Short Text'' commentary) that begin with the threefold division into the Wish-Fulfilling Gems of the Lineage, Wish-Fulfilling Gems of the Maturing Path, and Wish-Fulfilling Gems of the Liberating Path. Milarepa lists those three
headings under his third part, the abiding state of the dharma.
The following is an overview of Milarepa’s presentation of The Abiding
State of the Dharma with notes on the corresponding lines in the ''Vajra Verses'' and ''Short Text'' and any corresponding texts in ''The Treasury of Precious Instructions''. Only the Shared Wish-Fulfilling Gems are explained in
this text.
:Wish-Fulfilling Gems of the Lineage: The External Nirmāṇakāya Instructions*'"`UNIQ--ref-00000A9D-QINU`"'
:Wish-Fulfilling Gems of the Maturing Path: The Inner Saṃbhogakāya Instructions†'"`UNIQ--ref-00000A9E-QINU`"'
:Wish-Fulfilling Gems of the Liberating Path: The Secret Dharmakāya Instructions‡'"`UNIQ--ref-00000A9F-QINU`"'
::Shared Wish-Fulfilling Gems: Practices Connected to the Vase Abhiṣeka§'"`UNIQ--ref-00000AA0-QINU`"'
:::The Sovereigns: Unchanging Dharmatā
::::The Sādhana of the King-Like Male Consort¶'"`UNIQ--ref-00000AA1-QINU`"'
::::The Sādhana of the Queen-Like Female Consort: Ten Yogas
:::::The yoga of immeasurable aspirations
:::::Guru yoga
:::::Deity meditation
:::::Purifying the worldly realms
:::::Gathering the heroes and heroines
:::::Vajra repetition with the breath
:::::Vajra repetition with speech
:::::The perfection process
:::::The mixings and equalizing tastes
:::::Tormas
::::The Sādhana of the Prince-Like Son
:::The ministers: Three types of actions
::::Guru yoga
::::Self-entered samādhi abhiṣekas
::::Recitation of the hundred-syllable mantra
:::The people: The conducive activities
::::The yoga of eating food
::::The yoga of wearing clothes
::::The yoga of sleeping
::::The yoga of going, sitting, and circumambulating
::::The yoga of bathing
::::The yoga of supplications and maṇḍala offerings
::::The yoga of amassing the accumulations and dharma activities
:Samaya Wish-Fulfilling Gems: Connected to all Four Abhiṣekas*'"`UNIQ--ref-00000AA2-QINU`"'
:Abiding-State Wish-Fulfilling Gems: Connected to the Three Superior
::Abhiṣekas
::Six Dharmas: Practices Connected to the Secret Abhiṣeka†'"`UNIQ--ref-00000AA3-QINU`"'
::Great Bliss: Practices Connected to the Prajñājñāna Abhiṣeka‡'"`UNIQ--ref-00000AA4-QINU`"'
:::Mahāmudrā, the Illumination of Wisdom: Practices Connected to the Word Abhiṣeka§'"`UNIQ--ref-00000AA5-QINU`"'
::Instructions on the bardos¶'"`UNIQ--ref-00000AA6-QINU`"'
::Dispelling hindrances**'"`UNIQ--ref-00000AA7-QINU`"'
:::Instructions for those of an instantaneous path: Transforming all activities into accumulations††'"`UNIQ--ref-00000AA8-QINU`"'
''Transmission lineage received by Jamgön Kongtrul''. It is the same as previously stated for The Short Text.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000AA9-QINU`"'
C
The significance of Tilopa’s ''Esoteric Instructions on the Six Dharmas'' is twofold: it contains his instructions on the six dharmas, and
it identifies which instructions he received from which human teachers.
As stated earlier, the biographies of Tilopa vary on the sequence of the
major events of his life. However, if we accept the account in the ''Biographies of the Wish-Fulfilling Gems'', Tilopa first relied on human gurus, as he says:
<blockquote>I have these human gurus:<br>
Nāgārjuna, Caryāpā, Lavapa,<br>
and Subhaginī,<br>
who are the gurus of my four entrusted transmissions.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000E4-QINU`"'</blockquote>
He also said later in his life:
<blockquote>I have no human guru:<br>
my guru is the Omniscient One.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000E5-QINU`"'</blockquote>
And finally, he proclaimed:
<blockquote>I have neither father nor mother:<br>
I am Cakrasaṃvara, sublime bliss.<br>
I have neither preceptor nor ācārya:<br>
I am a self-born buddha.<br>
I have neither grammar nor valid cognition:<br>
my science of reasoning wells up on its own.<br>
The body, speech, and mind of Saṃvara<br>
and my body, speech, and mind are inseparable.<br>
I go in great bliss.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000E6-QINU`"'</blockquote>
''Esoteric Instructions on the Six Dharmas'' records the instructions Tilopa
received from Caryāpā, Nāgārjuna, Lavapa, and Subhaginī, or Sukhasiddhi.
The text does not name the instructions, but they are identifiable as follows,
paired with the teacher and in the order that they appear in this text:
*Caryāpā caṇḍālī instructions
*Nāgārjuna illusory form instructions
*Lavapa dream instructions
*Nāgārjuna luminosity instructions
*Sukhasiddhi bardo instructions
*Sukhasiddhi transference instructions
Curiously, even though this text is clear about the sources of these instructions, subsequent accounts in the biographies of Tilopa do not concur with it or necessarily each other.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000E7-QINU`"'
''Esoteric Instructions on the Six Dharmas'' is not included in the canon
catalogs of Chomden Raldri or Butön Rinchen Drup, though it is included
in one of the two canon catalogs of the third Karmapa and is found in five
Tengyur redactions (Peking, Gaden, Derge, Cone, and Narthang).
''Transmission lineage received by Jamgön Kongtrul''. Vajradhara to Jñānaḍākinī,
Vajrapāṇi, Tilopa, and then the same as previously stated for the Ganges
Mahāmudrā.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000E8-QINU`"'
Draklha, an aspect of the dharma protector Mahākāla, is the protector associated with all the teachings transmitted by Mitrayogin. He has already featured in the Avalokiteshvara sādhana in chapter 15. The present text is a sādhana dedicated entirely to him, but it would normally be practiced within a yidam deity sādhana, perhaps along with other prayers and offerings to the dharma protectors. In any case, it is necessary to visualize oneself as one’s yidam deity before visualizing the protector in front of oneself, making offerings, and entrusting him with the activities of guarding the teachings and protecting those who practice them. +
D
This'"`UNIQ--ref-0000061B-QINU`"' is the last of the addenda to the Severance feast activities in the [[Zurmang]] tradition that seem to be connected to [[Tekchok Dorje]]’s compilation ''Source of All Qualities''. It is a beautiful and quite graphic text, but unfortunately there is no author statement identifying the poet.
Torma (''gtor ma'') is literally “that which is thrown out or scattered,” and it refers to the custom of creating sculpture out of flour or other malleable material that represents either the offerings in the ritual or the recipient of those offerings, such as the deities. The creation of torma is a vast and elaborate art form in vajrayāna practice. In particular, the torma at a feast offering may be represented by one or more feast torma sculptures and supplemented with many other edibles, or the edible offerings themselves may simply be designated as the feast torma. That seems to be the case here, where the “torma” is one’s body that has been separated from consciousness and creatively prepared in imagination for the various recipients.
In this liturgy, those recipients are specifically all [[ḍākinī]]s—hundreds of thousands of them—affectionately called ''ḍākimas'' here. The principal one is [[Vajravārāhī]], who always plays an important role in Severance. She is goddess, yidam, [[ḍākinī]], lineage holder, and one’s own consciousness. Designated here as “the birth mother of the buddhas,” she is identical to the Great Mother, the [[perfection of wisdom]]. A hundred thousand [[ḍākinī]]s emanate from each aspect of her body and her accessories. But there are trillions more [[ḍākinī]]s of basic space, trillions more from the twenty-four sacred sites of India, and many, many others. All of them are invoked to receive the feast torma and then reminded about their sacred pledges. Finally, their powers are commandeered to avert all kinds of calamities, disease, and just plain bad luck. +
Dam chos sdug bsngal zhi byed dang gcod yul brgyud pa'i bla ma rnams chab gcig tu mchod cing gsol ba 'debs pa'i cho ga bkra shis grags pa'i snying po +
Styled as an offering and supplication to all the gurus of both Severance and Pacification, this text provides a great example of how such a liturgy can be so much more. Here is [[Jamgön Kongtrul]] at his creative best, with nearly all the prayers being original compositions. Within the refrains of supplication and service, not only are all the relevant lineage gurus worshipped, but the various practices are as well, if one knows where to look. The text could serve as a communal ritual or “guru pūja” covering all the bases, and would be both inspirational and informative.
The text was placed at the end of the previous volume on Pacification (''zhi byed'') in the Palpung blocks, but it was appropriately moved in the Shechen printing to the end of this volume on Severance. In [[Jamgön Kongtrul]]’s scheme of the [[Eight Great Chariot]]s of the practice lineages that entered Tibet from India—the organizational framework for this ''Treasury of Precious Instructions''— Pacification is listed as the sixth, with Severance considered a subsidiary of that. Both lineages connect back to the Indian saint [[Pa Dampa Sangye]]. This liturgical ritual is the grand finale covering all the gurus and practices of both Pacification and Severance. +
Dampa Sangye gives Bodhisattva Kunga advice about how to prepare for and practice in the future, when the times are rife with degeneration. It echoes many such prophetic texts, with a long litany of dreadful circumstances and perversions, many of which are already familiar to us. Kunga plays the role of an innocent, unable to believe that it will be so bad. Surely, if they follow this dharma, future disciples will be saved! Dampa offers little comfort. His final answer will be quite a surprise.
This text is not mentioned in Kongtrul’s catalog nor in the ''Record of Teachings Received''. Instead, the two aspiration prayers—Dampa’s Thirty and Kunga’s Thirteen—that appear now with the ''Golden Garland'' were apparently how he meant to end this section on instructions. Nor is this text found in the ''Zhije Collection'' or Tengyur texts. A few of the Q&As made their way much later into Khamnyön’s Life Story of Dampa, but no early paper trail has made an appearance. One can only assume that it was recorded or remembered by Bodhisattva Kunga. +
Maitrīpa (986–1063)'"`UNIQ--ref-0000012F-QINU`"' was a scholar and siddha whose mahāmudrā
teachings had a major impact in Tibet, primarily through the teachings of his student Vajrapāṇi. Maitrīpa was, along with Nāropa, one of
Marpa Lotsāwa’s most important teachers. He began his Buddhist studies after being defeated in debate by Nāropa, whereupon he studied sūtra
teachings with Nāropa for twenty years, Vajrayāna with Rāgavajra for five
years, and the Nonexistent Images'"`UNIQ--ref-00000130-QINU`"' form of Yogācāra with Ratnākaraśānti.
Urged in his dreams by Tārā, then by Avalokiteśvara, in his early fifties he
set out to meet his guru Śavari. Once he found Śavari in the Śrī Parvata
mountains in the south of India, Maitrīpa was instructed by him in a variety
of unconventional ways that eventually led to his full realization. Told by
his guru to return to central India, Maitrīpa, now known as Advayavajra,
took up residence in Bodh Gaya where he taught and also defeated all challengers in debate. Later, while living in the charnel ground called Blazing Fire Mountain, he composed the series of texts called the Dharma Cycle
on Amanasikāra (Nonattention),'"`UNIQ--ref-00000131-QINU`"' in which he blended the mahāmudrā
teachings he received from Śavaripa (who received them from Nāgārjuna,
Saraha’s student) with his Complete Nonabiding Madhyamaka view.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000132-QINU`"'
The ''Ten Stanzas on Suchness'' begins with a homage that states what suchness (''tattva, de kho na nyid'') is not: it is neither existent nor nonexistent. This is followed by a statement that it is of the nature of awakening; in other words,
suchness is no different from buddhahood. The text says that it is realized
through the “samādhi of [realizing suchness] as it is” (''yathābhūtasamādhi,ji ltar ’byung ba’i ting nge ’dzin'') and describes the conduct for yogic practitioners with realization. In his commentary on this text, Maitrīpa’s student,
Sahajavajra, says that it was “composed as concise esoteric instructions on the Pāramitā[yāna] that accords with the Mantra approach.”'"`UNIQ--ref-00000133-QINU`"' Although the
text does not use the term “mahāmudrā,” Jamgön Kongtrul explains in his
interlinear note to the colophon that Marpa considered this text to be the
primary one of the Amanasikāra (Nonattention) Cycle that teaches view.
Sahajavajra’s ''Extensive Commentary on the “Ten Stanzas on Suchness”'' is cited
by Gö Lotsāwa in his ''Blue Annals'' as evidence that mahāmudrā was taught
within a Sūtra, or Pāramitā, context in India.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000134-QINU`"'
The colophon of the ''Ten Stanzas on Suchness'' contained in ''The Treasury of
Precious Instructions'' states that it was translated by Vajrapāṇi and Tsur Yeshe
Jungne,'"`UNIQ--ref-00000135-QINU`"' who were the first translators of the text before it was revised by
Tsultrim Gyalwa. Thus, this edition is not the one contained in the Tengyur,
which is the one revised by Tsultrim Gyalwa. The text here also accords
with the root text used in Sahajavajra’s commentary, which was translated
by Vajrapāṇi, Kalyanavarma, and Tsur Jñānākara (Yeshe Jungne).
''Transmission lineage received by Jamgön Kongtrul''. Maitrīpa to the Indian
Vajrapāṇi, Ngari Nakpo Sherde, Lama Sotön, Nyangtön Tsakse, Roktön
Dewa, Che Yönten, Che Dode Senge, Chöku Özer, Upa Sangye Bum,
Lotsāwa Chokden, Baktön Zhönu Tsultrim, and Gyalwa Yung Tönpa,
Lama Sönam Zangpo, Lama Tsultrim Gönpo, Jangsem Sönam Gyaltsen,
Khenchen Sönam Zangpo, Gośrī Paljor Döndrup, the seventh Gyalwang
Karmapa, Chödrak Gyatso, the mahāsiddha Sangye Nyenpa, the eighth
lord Mikyö Dorje, Karma Lekshe Drayang, Gelong Dorje Chö, Chetsang
Karma Tenkyong, the exalted Könchok Tenzin, Jamgön Sungrap Gyatso,
the omniscient Tenpai Nyinje, Gyalwang Dudul Dorje, the glorious Pawo
Tsuklak Chökyi Gyatso, and Jamgön Kongtrul.
Another transmission was from Maitrīpa to the siddhā Tepupa, Rechung
Dorje Drakpa, Burgom Nakpo, Pakdru Dorje Gyalpo, Gyalo Pukpa, Serdingpa Zhönu Drup, and the omniscient Chöku Özer, after whom it is as
above.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000136-QINU`"'
The ''Treasury of Dohās'', the second dohā text in this collection, is
also probably by Saraha. The author is referred to in the colophon as
Śavari (or Śabari), whom some take to be Śavaripa, Saraha’s student and
Maitrīpa’s guru.* However, the colophons of the editions of this text found
in the Tengyur, the Indian Mahāmudrā Collection, and the Eightfold Treasury of Dohās volume of the Tsibri Parma Collection state that the author
is Saraha, and that attribution has been followed here.† We don’t know the
circumstances of this song, who it was first sung to, but we do know that it
was translated into Tibetan by Vairocanarakṣita, a teacher of Lama Zhang
(himself a student of Gampopa and Gomtsul, as well as the initiator of the
Tsalpa Kagyu tradition).'"`UNIQ--ref-00000059-QINU`"'
The ''Treasury of Dohās'' contains instructions on mahāmudrā, which follow a common theme of ground, path, and result, with path being expressed in terms of view, meditation, and conduct. The Tsibri Parma Collection
edition includes annotations that are a topical outline, which have been
inserted into the translation in square brackets to aid readers.
''Transmission lineage received by Jamgön Kongtrul''. Śavaripa to Maitrīpa,
Indian Vajrapāṇi, Drangti Lodrö Wang, Tsangyang Dakbar, Pukzung
Kyap, Tsang Jungser, Chetön Dode Senge, Chöku Özer, Upa Sangye Bum,
Lotsāwa Chokden, Baktön Zhönu Tsultrim, Yung Tönpa, Lama Sönam
Zangpo, Lama Tsultrim Gönpo, Jangsem Sönam Gyaltsen, Khenchen
Sönam Zangpo, Gośrī Paljor Döndrup, the seventh Gyalwang Karmapa,
Chödrak Gyatso, the mahāsiddha Sangye Nyenpa, the eighth lord Mikyö
Dorje, Karma Lekshe Drayang, Gelong Dorje Chö, Chetsang Karma Tenkyong, the exalted Könchok Tenzin, Jamgön Sungrap Gyatso, the omniscient Tenpai Nyinje, Gyalwang Dudul Dorje, the glorious Pawo Tsuklak
Chökyi Gyatso, and Jamgön Kongtrul.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000005A-QINU`"' +
Saraha is regarded as the grandfather of the mahāmudrā tradition.
There are various tales of his colorful life, attested to in the songs
attributed to him.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000001A-QINU`"' These songs, also called dohās (after the name of the
meter of verse), are spicy, inspiring, and instructive though at times cryptic.
Among the twenty-six texts in the Tengyur attributed to Saraha, eighteen
are songs, and within those the most famous are the Dohā Trilogy: Dohā for
the King, Dohā for the Queen,and Dohā for the People. These are said to have
been sung to King Mahāpāla, his queens, and his people. The one chosen
for this anthology is the longest, traditionally said to be 160 verses, whose
purpose was to set the common people on the true path.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000001B-QINU`"'
Karma Tinle, a fifteenth-century Kagyu master and author of commentaries on the Dohā Trilogy, relates the circumstances leading up to these
songs as follows. Saraha, born into a brahman family in south India, took
monastic vows from Rāhulabhadra and became a great paṇḍita, learned in
all areas of knowledge and known as Brahman Rāhula. He was greatly honored at that time by King Mahāpāla. At one point, in order to train those
of the instantaneous type, Hayagrīva took the form of the bodhisattva Ratnamati, who manifested as a female arrowsmith specifically to benefit the
great Brahman Rāhula. Saraha encountered her making arrows in a marketplace and, intrigued by the focused way she worked, asked her if she
was a female arrowsmith. She replied that the intent of the Buddha is only
recognized through symbols and methods, not through words and letters,
at which point the meaning of the ḍākinī’s symbols arose in his mind. Since
he was liberated instantly by the symbols of the arrow, he became known as Saraha.*'"`UNIQ--ref-0000001C-QINU`"'
Recognizing her skill as a teacher of symbols, Saraha stayed with
her as a fellow practitioner of yoga. Saying such things as, “Until yesterday
I was not a brahman, but from today on I am a brahman,” he departed for
charnel grounds, where they conducted gaṇacakras and sang vajra songs.
When the local people of the kingdom heard that the one formally
known as Brahman Rāhula was singing vajra songs, keeping company with
the female arrowsmith, and living in charnel grounds, they were shocked
and outraged, saying he had not only fallen from his pure monastic conduct, but he was also wandering about in the company of a woman of a bad
caste, engaging in depraved conduct. When King Mahāpāla heard this, he
issued an edict that his subjects should supplicate the great Brahman to
renounce his inferior conduct and return to his pure conduct for the sake
of the people of the kingdom. In response, Saraha sang the words that have
become known as the Dohā for the King, Dohā for the Queen, and Dohā for
the People.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000001D-QINU`"'
Since this was originally sung, at some point it was written down in
an eastern dialect of Apabhraṃśa, a Middle Indic language.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000001E-QINU`"' The Tibetan
accounts of the formation of the trilogy and its scribes vary. Karma Tinle
reports that some say that when Saraha sang of his experiences, the song
was not divided into shorter and longer sets of verses (that is, it was one
long song) and that later, when Saraha’s student Nāgārjuna wrote down the
verses, he divided it into three songs. Karma Tinle also relates that others
believe that it was Śavari who, having heard the songs from Nāgārjuna, wrote
them down for the benefit of his student Maitrīpa. However, Karma Tinle
says the first explanation is to be regarded as authoritative.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000001F-QINU`"' On the other
hand, Chomden Raldri, a thirteenth-century Kadampa teacher and author
of a commentary on the Dohā for the People, relates that Saraha taught the
Dohā for the People to Padmavajra, Nāgārjuna, and Śavari, and that it was
composed at Padmavajra’s request.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000020-QINU`"'
Some time later it was translated into Tibetan. Karma Tinle states that
the edition of the Dohā for the People he used for his commentary was
translated into Tibetan by the Nepali master Balpo Asu based on an Indic
manuscript belonging to his teacher Vajrapāṇi.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000021-QINU`"' The Sakya scholar Drakpa Dorje reports there were three translations of the Dohā for the People into Tibetan: one by Atiśa and Naktso, one by Ma Lotsāwa Chöbar, and one
by Balpo Asu. Chomden Raldri says that it was translated by Nyal Tengpa
Lotsāwa.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000022-QINU`"' Since neither the edition of the Dohā for the People in The Treasury of Precious Instructions nor the edition in the Tengyur contain the name
of the translator, we do not know if they should be considered editions of
the same text by one translator or represent different translations. There are,
as would be expected, a number of other paracanonical editions, the oldest
datable one being a xylograph edition printed by Lhatsun Rinchen Namgyal in 1543, whose colophon says it was translated by Balpo Asu.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000023-QINU`"'
Karma Tinle in his commentary on the Dohā for the People says that there
were three traditions of explaining Saraha’s Dohā Trilogy: The Bal tradition
coming from what Balpo Asu received from Vajrapāṇi, the Rechung tradition based on what Rechungpa heard from Balpo Asu and Tipupa, and the
Par tradition derived from what Ngari Joden transmitted to Drushulwa.
The Rechung tradition also developed into the Kar tradition (named after
Karmapa Rangjung Dorje) and the Ling tradition (so-called because of
Ling Repa’s commentary, who studied with Rechungpa’s students).'"`UNIQ--ref-00000024-QINU`"' This
translation is based on the commentaries listed in chapter 2, note 1, with the
primary reliance being on Karma Tinle’s commentary, Mirror That Reveals
the Liberation of Mind (which closely follows Parpuwa Lodrö Senge’s Illuminating the Connate), and Ling Repa’s Clarifying Suchness. Reliance on
the Apabhraṃśa edition or other commentators would obviously produce
a different translation.
''Transmission lineage received by Jamgön Kongtrul''. Saraha to Śavaripa,
Ngulchu Bairo, the exalted Dusum Khyenpa, Rechen Sönam Drakpa,
Pomdrakpa Sönam Dorje, Karma Pakshi, Nyenre Gendun Bum, the
exalted Rangjung Dorje, Yung Tönpa, Lama Sönam Zangpo, Lama Tsultrim Gönpo, Jangsem Sönam Gyaltsen, Khenchen Sönam Zangpo, Gośrī
Paljor Döndrup, the seventh Gyalwang Karmapa, Chödrak Gyatso, the
mahāsiddha Sangye Nyenpa, the eighth lord Mikyö Dorje, Karma Lekshe Drayang, Gelong Dorje Chö, Chetsang Karma Tenkyong, the exalted
Könchok Tenzin, Jamgön Sungrap Gyatso, the omniscient Tenpai Nyinje,
Gyalwang Dudul Dorje, the glorious Pawo Tsuklak Chökyi Gyatso, and
Jamgön Kongtrul.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000025-QINU`"'
Dombi Heruka is credited as the author of several texts in the
Tengyur, the most important of which is ''Accomplishment of the Connate.''
However, that text is not translated in this chapter at all, but rather
this chapter presents an instruction for practicing the meaning of that text.
This text has three sections. The first section is not clearly divided into
an outline. After some introductory statements detailing vows and differences
between how vows are followed in the path of the ascetic who does
not rely on a consort and the path of the infant who does rely on a consort,
Drakpa Gyaltsen then goes on to detail the connate nature of the cause, the
path, and the result. The section on the connate nature of the cause details
fifteen dharmas. The connate nature of the path mainly concerns how the
path of the ascetic and the infant are practiced. The connate nature of the
result begins with signs of the practice and concludes with the seven limbs
of three kāyas.
The second section is a detailed discussion of mudras related to the path
of the infant. The third section concerns the process of retaining and drawing
up the bindu. In ''Effortless Accomplishment of the Two Benefits'', Amezhap
explains that the practitioner of this instruction is to meditate on themselves
as Hevajra according to the six-limbed sādhana.2
Ḍombi Heruka is one of the two named disciples of Virūpa, along with
Kāṇha. In Drakpa Gyaltsen’s ''Chronicle of the Indian Gurus'', Virūpa encounters
Ḍombi Heruka during the episode when Virūpa reverses the Ganges
River. At this time, Ḍombi Heruka is a simple ferryman, taking people
across the Ganges River. Ḍombi Heruka and Kaṇhā accompany Virūpa
on his most famous adventures, such as stopping the sun and taming the
goddess Caṇḍikā3 and her retinue of cannibal yoginīs. Following the latter
episode, Virūpa gave empowerment and complete instructions to Ḍombi.
A sudden realizer, he attained realization equal to Virūpa and was sent to
East India to tame a king named Dehara. In ''Effortless Accomplishment of the
Two Benefits'', Amezhap explains that this Ḍombi Heruka is the first of the
three siddhas bearing this name.4
Parpuwa Lodrö Senge (twelfth century) is an important figure
in the transmission of dohā teachings in Tibet. In his youth, he studied philosophy with Chapa Chökyi Senge of Sangpu monastery. He later
received explanations of the dohā teachings, first from Drushulwa and then
from Pakmo Drupa, one of the main students of Gampopa and initiator of
the Pakdru Kagyu.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000003C-QINU`"' Drushulwa was a student of Ngari Joden, who received
the dohā teachings directly from Vajrapāṇi (a student of Maitrīpa) and from
Vajrapāṇi’s student Balpo Asu.
The ''Blue Annals'' states that Parpuwa composed eight texts related to the
Dohā cycle,'"`UNIQ--ref-0000003D-QINU`"' and although those include a commentary on the ''Dohā for
the People'', Jamgön Kongtrul chose the ''Summary of Topics'' to be included
here, for which Tashi Chöpal’s ''Record of Teachings Received'' says there is no
reading transmission (lung).'"`UNIQ--ref-0000003E-QINU`"'
The ''Summary of Topics'' is an outline (''sa bcad'') in which the first word(s)
of each verse (or group of verses) is connected to a topical heading.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000003F-QINU`"' The
words in parentheses after the headings are these first words corresponding
to the words that begin each line in Tibetan—unfortunately, because of the
linguistic differences between Tibetan and English, it was not possible to
have the English verses begin with the same words. The line numbers of the
''Dohā for the People'' have been added in parentheses for each heading. +
G
The [[Third Karmapa]], [[Rangjung Dorje]] (1284–1339), was one of the earliest and most important figures in the Severance tradition. His many works on Severance are considered authoritative in the [[Kagyu]] lineage, and he may have been the first to incorporate the term [[mahāmudrā]] as part of the descriptive title of Severance, thus bringing it into the [[Kagyu]] fold.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000570-QINU`"' The text translated here—his commentary and structural outline for ''The Great Bundle of Precepts on Severance''—appears in ''The Treasury'' under the simple title ''Outline'', although it also contains a commentary as a separate text, bearing the Sanskrit name ''ṭīkā'', usually translated into Tibetan as “complete explanation” (''rnam par bshad pa''). It is unusual and quite edifying for a Tibetan author to actually separate out the outline from the commentary, although it does present a few extra problems of consistency. Nevertheless, [[Rangjung Dorje]]’s work exhibits his usual precision and brilliance. The text is also found in his collected works. The words in parentheses after the headings in the ''Outline'' were included by [[Rangjung Dorje]] to indicate the beginning word(s) of each verse, and they are repeated in the commentary. However, due to the differences between Tibetan and English grammar, it was not always possible to keep them exactly as they appear at the very beginning of each verse in the translation. +
''Rainfall of Desirables'' is a supplement to the liturgy that immediately follows it, ''The Body Donation and Feeding Ritual''. The two are listed under one heading in the Shechen edition and were apparently compiled together in this form by [[Karma Chakme]] Rinpoche, which may be why it is attributed to [[Karma Chakme]] in the Kundeling printing. However, they are listed separately in the ''Catalog''.
This text is signed [[Könchok Bang]] ([[dkon mchog 'bangs]]), the ordination name of the [[Fifth Zhamar]] incarnation, [[Könchok Yenlak]] ([[dkon mchog yan lag]], 1525–1583). He was the student and successor of the [[Eighth Karmapa]], [[Mikyö Dorje]] ([[Mi bskyod rdo rje]], 1507–1554), himself a very important author in the Severance tradition. [[Könchok Yenlak]] was a prolific master whose commentaries on such works as the ''Ornament of Clear Realization'' (''[[Abhisamayālaṃkāra]]'') and ''[[The Profound Inner Principles]]'' (''[[Zab mo nang don]]'') are widely consulted. He authored several other texts on Severance that are listed in the Drepung Catalog, as well as providing the groundwork for a number of compositions on Severance by [[Karma Chakme]].
''Rainfall of Desirables'' contains some very practical instructions on the Severance practice that are not always found in other explanations: for example, what time of day or night to travel to and from the Severance practice locations; how to get there using various gaits; which apparitions are easy to deal with and which are difficult; how to prevent hail; and what to do in other specific challenging situations. The descriptions of the visualizations are quite brief, and many of the recitations are merely indicated by a few words. The full text of these can be found in ''The Body Donation and Feeding Ritual''.
Aside from this useful information, what is most interesting about the text is that it appears to be based on a mysterious text called ''[[Machik]]’s Vajra Verses'' (''[[Ma gchig gi rdo rje tshig rkang]]''). ''Rainfall of Desirables'' provides numerous intriguing quotations from that source, as does ''The Body Donation and Feeding Ritual''. Other than these two texts and one brief mention in ''[[Machik’s Complete Explanation]]'','"`UNIQ--ref-000005B2-QINU`"' this seemingly crucial source text has not surfaced.
[[Karma Chakme]], or [[Rāga Asya]] (1613–1678), was a remarkable scholar and yogin with an enormous literary output that covered a wide variety of topics from both the [[Karma Kagyu]] and [[Nyingma]] traditions. He founded the monastery of [[Nedo]] ([[mNas mdo dgon]]) in 1662, which became the locus of the [[Nedo Kagyu]] subsect and enabled the continuation of his teachings and practices (''gnas mdo'' or ''chags med lugs''). His [[Nyingma]] practices are continued by the [[Palyul]] tradition. Two entire volumes of his collected writings are devoted to Severance, and perhaps even more are not found there. It seems that the safest attribution of an unsigned Severance text is to [[Karma Chakme]].
''Pearl Rosary'' represents the now classical form of a Severance ritual to offer one’s body, to be done as either a group or an individual practice. It is not particularly specified as a healing ritual for the sick, as the previous text is, yet it contains many of the same prayers and liturgies, including most of the Ninefold Spirit Feast (here attributed not to [[Rangjung Dorje]] but to his student [[Yakde Paṇchen]]). The general order of practice is similar to most later Severance practices, even in the very condensed sādhanas, and matches the descriptions in ''[[Machik’s Complete Explanation]]''. Authors of these rituals may expand any of the requisite sections almost indefinitely, adding the familiar prayers and praises that have become the classic fare of Severance. After the crucial separation of body and mind, the multiple transformations and offerings of the corpse that is left—as mandala, as [[ḍākinī]] feeding, as feast, and so on—can be confusing in their repetitiveness. Yet they reflect the many kinds of offering rituals to be found in Tibetan Buddhism, all of which are fulfilled by these offerings of one’s own body. +
An important function of vajrayāna ritual is to ensure that whatever offerings have been made will serve the purpose of fulfilling obligations as well as accumulating merit. This is the practice of ''kangwa'' (''bskang ba''), translated variously as fulfillment, renewal, amendment, appeasement, and so forth. The pledges or commitments or covenants (''dam tshig'') that are thereby fulfilled involve two levels: Secret Mantra practitioners have a special relationship with the buddhas, deities, [[ḍākinī]]s, and other holy beings who will bless and protect them as long as the practitioner keeps up his or her practice. The second level concerns the various worldly protectors, ground masters, and local spirits who pledged themselves to the dharma, usually under pressure during the time of Guru [[Padmasambhava]], but who must be regularly appeased with offerings to remind them of that commitment. In both cases, the ritual also serves to emend any breaches or deficiencies in the mutual agreement, and thus it may also contain a confession of mistakes.
This text contains three rituals that utilize the offering of one’s own body as a communal feast to renew those commitments. After the initial setup visualization, the first is “Mother Transformation” by Chökyi Drakpa of Tsalkar ([[mTshal dkar Chos kyi grags pa]]). This very common name might be the [[fourth Zhamar]] incarnation (1453–1524/5), but the Tsalkar designation is not identified. The title might suggest that it is a variation of a previous “mother” text. The text calls on the usual lineage gurus up through [[Karmapa Rangjung Dorje]] and continues with yet another line of masters coming through the [[Zurmang]] line. Then it focuses on the divine beings, such as the [[ḍākinī]]s of the charnel grounds, the buddhas of the ten directions, and the protectors, before going on to the local spirits.
The second text, “Gem Treasury,” is attributed to Guru [[Dharmakīrti]]. This is the Sanskrit for the Tibetan name Chökyi Drakpa and could well indicate the author of the previous text. “Gem Treasury” is said to be an amendment of a composition by [[Situ Norbu Sampel]] ([[Si tu Nor bu bsam ’phel]]). Though this has been suggested as another name for the [[sixth Situ]], [[Mipam Trinle Rapten]] ([[Mi pham phrin las rab brtan]], 1658–1682), his dates do not line up with the statement in the colophon that it had been requested by [[Ratnashrī]], or Palden Rinchen in Tibetan, the author of the third fulfillment liturgy and named here in the [[Zurmang]] lineage after [Rupa] [[Wangchuk Dorje]], who is only two gurus after [[Rangjung Dorje]] (1284–1339). The lineage prayer ends with the fourth [[Trungpa]], [[Kunga Namgyal]] (1567–1629).
The third text is called simply “Fulfillment Ritual” and is attributed to the adept of Runda, Palden Rinchen (Ru mda grub thob dPal ldan rin chen). His Sanskrit name, [[Ratnashrī]], appears in many other [[Zurmang]] lineage prayers, and a brief account of his life can be found in the Collected Histories of the Glorious [[Zurmang Kagyu]].'"`UNIQ--ref-0000063F-QINU`"' This liturgy itself does not contain a lineage prayer but calls on the deities and [[ḍākinī]]s and then includes an extensive confession. It ends with a long list of the actual items that fulfill the pledges.
Gcod kyi tshogs las yon tan kun 'byung gsungs rgyun 'khrul med ltar bkod pa bzhugs pa'i dbu phyogs +
This text is the [[Fourteenth Karmapa]]’s arrangement of the prayers and practices traditionally used in the Severance feast activities of the [[Zurmang]] tradition. The first part of the title is nearly identical to that of ''White Crystal Mirror'' in this volume; most likely [[Karmapa Tekchok Dorje]] ([[Theg mchog rdo rje]], (1798/9–1868/9) wished to enhance that earlier text. Also found here are many sections from ''Pearl Rosary''. And it is clear from the internal comments (''yig chung'') that to practice it one must draw on the liturgies of these earlier compositions. What is distinctive in this text is the addition of a number of the ancient supplications to the gurus of the lineage, particularly the beautiful prayers to [[Machik]] by her son and grandson. The most unusual feature of all is that [[Tekchok Dorje]] provides the authorship for each of the added prayers, a rarity in this Tibetan tradition of recycled liturgy.
[[Karmapa Tekchok Dorje]] was a contemporary of [[Jamgön Kongtrul]] and similarly played an integral part in the nonsectarian (''[[ris med]]'') activities of the times in Kham. They exchanged transmissions and teachings, and both of them counted the great [[Situ Pema Nyinje Wangpo]] ([[pad+ma nyin byed dbang po]], 1774–1853) as a primary guru. Their close colleagues included [[Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo]] (1820–1892) and Tertön [[Chokgyur Lingpa]] (1829–1870), among many others.
In addition to this text, [[Tekchok Dorje]] is usually cited as the author of the most popular daily practice of Severance in the [[Kagyu]] tradition, ''The Concise Charity of the Body for Daily Practice'' (although the [[Fifteenth Karmapa]] and [[Karma Chakme]] have also been credited with it). Despite their close connection, [[Kongtrul]] did not actually receive the transmission of ''Source of All Qualities'' directly from [[Tekchok Dorje]] but through the [[Chöwang Tulku]], according to the ''Catalog'', which also mentions that [[Tekchok Dorje]] himself received it from [[Situ Pema Nyinje]].
Venerable [[Tāranātha]] ([[grol ba'i mgon po]], 1575–1635) was one of the great polymaths of Tibet. At the age of one year he declared himself to be the [[Jonang]] master [[Kunga Drölchok]] (1507–1566) and was formally recognized as [[Kunga Drölchok]]’s reincarnation when he was four. He studied with disciples of [[Kunga Drölchok]] and received transmissions of all the schools, especially the [[Jonang]] and [[Shangpa]] lineages. He learned Sanskrit and studied with Indian yogins and scholars in Tibet, one of whom, [[Buddhaguptanātha]], became his principal master. [[Tāranātha]]’s advancement of [[Dolpopa]]’s stunning philosophy of ''[[zhentong]]'', or Great [[Madhyamaka]], earned him dubious notoriety with the [[Gelukpa]] hierarchy under the [[fifth Dalai Lama]], and his support for the rulers of Tsang, who opposed [[Gelukpa]] rule, ultimately resulted in the confiscation of [[Jonangpa]] monasteries in central Tibet and the suppression of [[Tāranātha]]’s works. Nevertheless, [[Tāranātha]] remains a towering figure in Tibet for his activities and huge literary legacy.
Of that enormous output, surprisingly few of [[Tāranātha]]’s texts are devoted to Severance—a total of merely fifty pages or so—and his autobiography mentions the transmission of Severance only a few times.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000632-QINU`"' What connection [[Tāranātha]] did have with the practice of Severance can probably be attributed mainly to his predecessor, [[Kunga Drölchok]]. That master compiled an anthology of one hundred eight different lineage practices, ''The Hundred Guides of Jonang'', of which Severance is number six. This work is reprinted in volume 18 of ''[[The Treasury of Precious Instructions]]'' and indeed may have been the prototype for [[Jamgön Kongtrul]]’s own vast, eclectic collection. In any case, [[Kongtrul]]’s reverence for and deep connection to [[Tāranātha]] are evident everywhere in his work. The eclectic movement (''[[ris med]]'') in eastern Tibet spearheaded by [[Kongtrul]] helped to revive the [[Jonang]] tradition and ''[[zhentong]]'' view. [[Tashi Chöpel]]’s ''[[Record of Teachings Received]]'' notes that [[Kongtrul]] received the blessing empowerments of profound Severance of Evil Object in the [[Gyaltang]] tradition of the great adept [[Samten Özer]] based on [[Tāranātha]]’s ''Object Severance Empowerment Known as Opening the Sky Door''.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000633-QINU`"' Its inclusion here ensured the continuation of this lineage of Severance up to the present.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000634-QINU`"'
This is [[Jamgön Kongtrul]]’s own liturgy for the donation of the body as food; it is included in the collection of his compositions called ''Treasury of Extensive Teachings'' (''[[rGya chen bka’ mdzod]]''). The idea of practice “in a single sitting”—literally, “on a single seat” (''stan thog gcig tu'')—basically indicates that the various extensive instructions, rituals, and postmeditation activities have been distilled into a manageable daily practice. [[Kongtrul]] stated his intention clearly in the colophon: the text was intended for use in the three-year retreat that he established in the upper hermitage at [[Palpung Monastery]], Kunzang Dechen Ösal Ling. Although not specifically listed in the retreat curricula that he composed, the practice of Severance is a well-known integral part of the program. The successor of that retreat tradition, Kyapje [[Kalu Rinpoche]], went on from Palpung to establish such retreats around the world. At some point, this composition of [[Kongtrul]]’s was replaced in the retreats by the now popular version attributed to the [[Fourteenth Karmapa]], [[Tekchok Dorje]], called ''The Concise Charity of the Body for Daily Practice''.
[[Kongtrul]] also names his sources in the colophon: [[Samten Özer]] and [[Jamyang Gönpo]], whose teachings from visionary experiences of [[Machik]] are called direct lineages (''nye brgyud''); and the composed teachings from [[Jonang Tāranātha]] and [[Minling Terchen]] Rinpoche. The [[Jonangpa]] tradition of [[Tāranātha]]’s Severance coming from [[Kunga Drölchok]] was discussed in the introduction to chapter 14. [[Kongtrul]] regarded himself as an incarnation of [[Tāranātha]], affirming his deep spiritual connection with that lineage. [[Minling Terchen]] ([[sMin gling gter chen]], 1646–1714), also known as [[Terdak Lingpa]] ([[gTer bdag gling pa]]) and Gyurme Dorje ([[’Gyur med rdo rje]]), was the great treasure revealer and founder of [[Mindroling Monastery]], one of the six main [[Nyingma]] monastic complexes in Tibet. [[Jamgön Kongtrul]] relates many dreams of this master in his autobiography and mentions several great lamas who believed that [[Kongtrul]] himself was an incarnation of [[Minling Terchen]].'"`UNIQ--ref-00000625-QINU`"' [[Kongtrul]]’s inspiration from these two masters is obviously much deeper than just an appreciation of their work.
There may be a direct connection here to [[Minling Terchen]]’s brief composition (not a revealed text) bearing the similar name ''Hero’s Loud Laugh: Instructions on Object Severance in a Single Sitting'' (as well as several supportive texts with the “single sitting” signature).'"`UNIQ--ref-00000626-QINU`"' The basic procedure for the all-at-once practice in both texts is comparable, although by [[Minling Terchen]]’s time this had become fairly standard. This text by [[Kongtrul]], however, differs in several ways. The inclusion of the origin story based on the ''Verse Summary'' quotation and the classical definition of the term ''[[gcod]]'' is unusual for a short sādhana practice, though typical of [[Kongtrul]]. [[Kongtrul]] also makes the correlation between the three Buddhist meditative absorptions (Skt. [[samādhi]]) with the three phases of view, meditation, and conduct as applied to Severance practice.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000627-QINU`"' Finally, the [[Samten Özer]] and [[Tāranātha]] connections are revealed in the inclusion of their two outstanding instructions:
“the meaning of the Mother” and “severing the four devils in basic space.” Thus it is truly a distillation of the many deep dharma streams of which [[Kongtrul]] was the beneficiary.
In this practice instruction [[Tāranātha]] clearly lays out the main teachings of Severance and the order in which to practice them. To actually utilize this text as a practice, however, one would need the liturgy that should accompany these explanations, called ''Supplication Liturgy for the Essence of the Vital Meaning: A Practice Manual of Profound Object Severance''.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000059A-QINU`"' [[Kongtrul]] did not include that in this volume of the ''Treasury'', perhaps because there were more recent liturgies from other lineage holders.
The ''[[Record of Teachings Received]]'' affirms that [[Kongtrul]] received the guidance or practice manual (''khrid yig'') “in the style of the transmission guidance (''lung khrid'') from the sacred writings of Venerable [[Kunga Drölchok]] and detailed guidance based on Venerable [[Jonang Tāranātha Rinpoche]]’s ''Essence of the Vital Meaning''.”'"`UNIQ--ref-0000059B-QINU`"'
As is typical of this particular lineage that originated with [[Machik]] via [[Samten Özer]], through [[Kunga Drölchok]], [[Tāranātha]], and on to [[Kongtrul]] himself, the main practices have the specific designations of “the meaning of the Mother” (''yum don'') and “severing the four devils in basic space” (''bdud bzhi dbyings su gcod''). The first is the direct instruction on the nature of mind according to the [[perfection of wisdom]] (that is, the Mother), and the second is how to enact and enhance that realization through coping with the problematic experiences of existence, called the four devils. Everything beyond that is considered auxiliary practice to be done as postmeditation activity. This important fact was often lost as the demon-feeding elements gained prominence, which is why [[Kongtrul]] emphasized it again and again. +
Grub chen dam pa sangs rgyas kyis rnal 'byor gyi dbang phyug mi la ras pa la gdams pa'i dam chos sdug bsngal zhi byed kyi snying por dril ba'i rdo rje'i mgur +
This special vajra song (''rdo rje’i mgur'') sung by Pa Dampa Sangye to the yogi Milarepa is plucked from the amazing account of the meeting of these two most extraordinary masters, a story that bears repeating not only for context here but for what it tells us about what happens when Indian buddha meets Tibetan buddha. It made an early written appearance in ''The Hundred Thousand Songs'' of Milarepa, completed by Tsangnyön Heruka in 1488.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000032F-QINU`"' However, the presence of an appended structural outline here signed by Mikyö Dorje of Latö, otherwise known as Gyalwa Tene (1127–1217), would seem to imply that it had been around a lot longer. The version in Khamnyön’s biography of Dampa Sangye,'"`UNIQ--ref-00000330-QINU`"' written in 1906, is a nearly verbatim replica of Tsangnyön’s version, except that two of Milarepa’s songs are omitted, making Dampa’s responses somewhat puzzling. The summary here will follow the earlier version directly.
The great Tibetan yogi Milarepa (b. 1052/1040) hears from a lion-faced ḍākinī that the great Indian master Dampa Sangye is nearby. Milarepa doesn’t think he has much to learn from him, but figures it won’t do any harm to meet this revered master anyway. Meanwhile, the lion-faced ḍākinī has also told Dampa to expect the famous Milarepa, so the meeting is all but inevitable. As Milarepa heads out with prāṇa-driven speed, he asks some folks about the Indian master’s whereabouts. They respond that they don’t know about “Holy Buddha” (a literal translation of his name, ''dam pa sangs rgyas'') but that they saw an old gray āchārya (i.e., Indian) now sleeping at the guesthouse. (That is, he seems humble, but also ugly.) As Milarepa approaches, he decides to test Dampa’s reputation for having pure clairvoyance, so he transforms his body into a clump of flowers. Dampa Sangye walks right past, but as soon as Milarepa thinks he has no clairvoyance, Dampa turns and kicks the flowers. Dampa says,
::You should not emanate Milarepa’s body as flowers—get up! You have sung the melodious songs of the ḍākinīs’ life essence. As punishment, the flesh-eating ḍākinīs have carried away your soul, breath, living heart, and hopes. I met with them last night and we ate those [essences] in communal feast. You will not live past this night. What confidence do you have facing death?
Milarepa immediately jumps up as himself and sings the song “Six Measures of Confidence in Facing Death,” in which he compares his own courage to that of lions, stags, and so forth, in classic Milarepa style. Dampa Sangye considers the song useless because it uses allegory of outer phenomena, and he challenges Milarepa, saying, “If you were a real yogi, you would have conviction in this present moment of awareness (''da lta’i rig pa ’di'').” So Milarepa sings the song “Six Convictions of a Happy Mind.”
At this point in past translations, there has been a bit of confusion over the phrase that ends each verse (''bde bde ’dra na dam pa rang yang mdzod''). The earliest translation misses that ''dam pa'' is Dampa’s name and translates it as “Happy and joyful as I gain supremacy.” Later it is taken to be “Of such bliss, Dampa himself is a treasury” (mistaking the imperative mdzod). But Dampa’s response to the song—“I’ve already done all that”—makes sense only if Milarepa is saying, “Happy! If you want such happiness, you, Dampa, should also do this.” In any case, Dampa Sangye is now satisfied and prepares to leave, but Milarepa grabs him by the robe and insists that he also sing a song to explain the Holy Dharma Pacification of Suffering that brings about realization of the Buddha’s intention instantly through one’s turning inward and meditating. Dampa then says, curiously, “Previously no one has heard when I sang. And they never will, so let me go.” But Milarepa persists, so Dampa Sangye sings this vajra song.
Milarepa enjoys Dampa’s song and sits relaxed with his private parts exposed, as he is famously wont to do. Dampa says, “The body has one thing that should be hidden, and yet you act like a crazy man exposing it. Don’t do that!” At this Milarepa sings a delightful song called “This Crazy Way.” An impressed Dampa says, “Your crazy ways are most excellent.” Afterward, they have a crazy communal feast together, during which, among other incredible things, they sit atop stalks of grass. Milarepa wonders why only his stalks bend slightly with his weight, since he has proven himself an equally great adept. Dampa assures him that they are equal except for one thing: Milarepa was born in Tibet! That one quip says worlds about the development of Buddhism in Tibet.
'''Notes'''
'"`UNIQ--references-00000331-QINU`"'
Grub chen dam pa sangs rgyas nas brgyud pa'i dam chos sdug bsngal zhi byed kyi lam lnga'i khrid yig dri med snang ba grub pa mchog gi zhal lung +
Sönam Pal of Nyedo Monastery (1216–1277) was often just called “The All-Knowing” or “Omniscient One.” His accomplishments as recounted in ''The Blue Annals'' make it clear why that was so, yet this is not an uncommon title, which has led to some problems of identification. He was the eldest of three sons of Mawai Senge (also known as Tsöndru Senge), who was one of the “three family incarnate siblings” (''rigs gsum sprul pa’i sku mched''). The other two were Rokchen Sherap Özer (or Rokben) and Zhikpo Nyima Senge, all of them disciples of Gyalwa Tene. Sönam Pal, in turn, had three sons known as the Kunga Siblings, all of whom also figure in the lineage of the later transmission of Pacification. Thus it seems to have become a family affair for a while at least. In fact, it might have happened earlier if Gyalwa Tene’s heir-apparent son had not died at an early age.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000067D-QINU`"' However, actual offspring and “spiritual sons” are sometimes confused, and it should be noted that in Dampa’s biography, five entirely different sons are listed for Sönam Pal.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000067E-QINU`"' This is because the author, Khamnyön Dharma Senge, apparently misread the information in ''The Blue Annals'', which in fact assigns those five to the other important lineage holder, his cousin Trulzhik Darma Senge.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000067F-QINU`"' Many who were in the lineage were associated with the monastery of Nyedo, and thus “Nyedowa” often precedes their names. Nyedo Monastery was established in the thirteenth century and reportedly offered to Rokben (Sönam Pal’s uncle), who instead passed it to his brother Tsöndru Mawai Senge in 1208.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000680-QINU`"' Sönam Pal was installed there in 1229. This monastery was the seat of a branch of the Che (''lce'') lineage, part of the middle transmission, and the teachings followed there were both Pacification and the Kālachakra. According to the short biography in the ''Treasury of Names'', Sönam Pal was a master of Kālachakra, as well as almost everything else.
The lineage held by All-Knowing Sönam Pal is often called simply the “Guide to Five Paths” (''lam lnga’i khrid'') and, as pointed out by Kongtrul in his catalog, appears as the twenty-first lineage in the ''Hundred Guides of Jonang'' by Kunga Drölchok (1507–1566), which is sometimes considered the prototype of Kongtrul’s collection. The essential points are summarized by Kunga Drölchok in very familiar detail in ''Texts of the One Hundred and Eight Profound Guides''.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000681-QINU`"' Surprisingly, it is stated there and elsewhere by Drolchok to be drawn from a guidebook by Rongtön Sheja Kunrik (1367– 1449), the great Sakya master also known as Shākya Gyaltsen. Furthermore, Kunga Drölchok says that in turn was received from another Sakya lama, Changlungpa Zhönnu Lodrö (1372–1475). These guidebook(s) have not been located, but chronologically they must have been based on that of Sönam Pal, who appears seven generations earlier than Changlungpa in one transmission line.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000682-QINU`"' I mention all this just because it is a rather surprising variation from the usual Pacification lineages and the Sakya connections need more investigation.
The explanation of the five paths by Sönam Pal provided the blueprint for Dharmashrī’s explanation of the Red Guide in the later transmission in ''Distilled Elixir''. The version here in ''The Treasury of Precious Instructions'' has been augmented by Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo, who probably added the interlinear notes. In the catalog, Kongtrul states specifically that the verses at the beginning and the end were added by Khyentse, but then in typical safe mode adds “et cetera” (''la sogs pa''), so it is difficult to say exactly what has been altered or added without an original edition. But to judge by Dharmashrī’s copy, as well as Kunga Drölchok’s summary, Sönam Pal’s work has been well preserved.
'''Notes'''
'"`UNIQ--references-00000683-QINU`"'
The ''Authoritative Texts in Verse'' consists of eight sections, or
short texts, on the differences between the gradual and the instantaneous types,'"`UNIQ--ref-000000CF-QINU`"' caṇḍālī, dream, luminosity, bardo, entering a body, transference, and vital points of instruction, omitting illusory form (typically
the second of the six dharmas) in favor of instructions for entering a body.
''Authoritative Texts in Verse'' is closely related to Tilopa’s ''Truly Valid Words''
(in both its forms, ''The Treasury of Precious Instructions text'' and the Tengyur
redaction) and to an anonymously authored Tengyur text called the ''Later Authoritative Texts''.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000D0-QINU`"'
First, regarding the relationship between the ''Authoritative Texts in Verse''
and the DNZ ''Truly Valid Words'', the ''Authoritative Texts in Verse'' has 324
lines of verse and three sections of prose, whereas ''Truly Valid Words'' is written entirely in verse and has 998 lines. Of the ''Authoritative Texts’'' 324 lines of verse, 230 are found in ''Truly Valid Words'', meaning that 70 percent of
the ''Authoritative Texts'' is virtually identical to ''Truly Valid Words''—although
these corresponding, or identical, lines are not in the same order in the two
texts. A small portion of the prose sections of the ''Authoritative Texts'' is represented by 15 lines of verse in ''Truly Valid Words''. Looked at from the perspective of ''Truly Valid Words'', 25 percent of ''Truly Valid Words'' is found in
the ''Authoritative Texts''.†'"`UNIQ--ref-000000D1-QINU`"'
The ''Authoritative Texts'' also has a close relationship to the Tengyur ''Truly Valid Words'' (T. PD. 2331), which has 222 verse lines. Of the ''Authoritative Texts’'' 324 lines, 193 are found in the Tengyur ''Truly Valid Words'' redaction. In other words, 86 percent of the Tengyur Truly Valid Words is found in the ''Authoritative Texts''.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000D2-QINU`"'
A significant similarity between the Authoritative Texts and the Tengyur ''Truly Valid Words'' is that their first 77 lines are almost identical (in content and sequence), and while those 77 lines are found in the DNZ ''Truly Valid Words'', they correspond to its first eight lines and then to lines much later in the text (and not in the same order, as shown in the table below).
Nevertheless, the ''Authoritative Texts'' and the DNZ ''Truly Valid Words'' have
more shared text than the ''Authoritative Texts'' and the Tengyur ''Truly Valid Words'' do.
Although the title of the anonymous ''Later Authoritative Texts''*'"`UNIQ--ref-000000D3-QINU`"' in the Tengyur is closer to that of the ''Authoritative Texts'', the ''Later Authoritative Texts'' has less in common with the ''Authoritative Texts'' than the other two
aforementioned texts. It has eight sections (caṇḍālī, illusory forms, dreams,
luminosity, transference, bardo, entering a body, and esoteric instructions
on bodhicitta, the path of method) in 333 lines of verse. Of the ''Later Authoritative Texts’'' 333 lines, 84 lines are found in the ''Authoritative Texts''; that is, 25 percent of the ''Later Authoritative Texts'' is found in the DNZ ''Authoritative Texts'' and, since the two texts are of similar lengths, the opposite is true: 25 percent of the DNZ ''Authoritative Texts'' is found in the ''Later Authoritative Texts''.
The final text in the Tengyur that has been identified as being connected
to the ''Authoritative Texts'' is Āryadeva’s ''Lamp that Summarizes the Practices''.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000D4-QINU`"' Sections of chapters 6–11 in Āryadeva’s ''Lamp'' parallel almost all of section four, “Authoritative Text on Luminosity” in the ''Authoritative Texts''.
Turning to the content, as the above comparison shows, the DNZ Authoritative Texts contains only a portion of the instructions found in the ''DNZ Truly Valid Words''. The correspondence is as follows: (View Table [[tables|here]])
Looked at from the perspective of Pema Karpo’s topical outline for ''Truly Valid Words'', it is hard to generalize about a larger pattern of “borrowing” as the shared sections do not fall neatly into a particular broad category, such as their shared lines being only within the instructions for the gradual type.
''Transmission lineage received by Jamgön Kongtrul''. Vajradhara to Jñānaḍākinī, Vajrapāṇi, Tilopa, and then the same as previously stated for the ''Ganges Mahāmudrā''.'"`UNIQ--ref-000000D5-QINU`"'
Tilopa (c. 988–c. 1069) is often considered the first human guru in
the Marpa Kagyu lineage of mahāmudrā instructions. Although the
accounts of his life vary, all seem to agree that he was born into a brahman family in Sahor (in present-day Bangladesh). Some biographies say he entered the monastery of Somapura in northern Bangladesh or a charnel
ground of the same name, where he took monk vows and studied. All concur that he was urged by a ḍākinī to seek the ultimate instructions, though
they differ as to whether he studied with his human gurus before or after
he went to Oḍḍiyāna where he received the Cakrasaṃvara Aural Transmission from Jñānaḍākinī. He is said to have spent twelve years working for
the prostitute Bharimā at night and grinding sesame seeds by day, probably after he received instructions from his four human gurus and before he went to Oḍḍiyāna. During the last period of his life, when he was living as
a vagrant siddha, Nāropa found him and began his apprenticeship, undergoing twelve major and twelve minor hardships. This training culminated
in Nāropa’s attainment of realization and was the occasion for this song.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000067-QINU`"'
Of the numerous songs and texts attributed to Tilopa, these instructions on mahāmudrā sung on the banks of the Ganges River to Nāropa are
probably his most famous and have been translated into English numerous
times. The paracanonical edition contained here was translated by Marpa
Lotsāwa. The canonical edition found in the Tengyur differs significantly
in both word choices and line order and does not state the translator in the
colophon, leading to suppositions that it was not translated by Marpa. As
Jan Sobisch remarks:
<blockquote>One of the most significant differences between the paracanonical and the canonical versions can be found in the structure of the text itself. It was a great surprise to discover the vast extent of structural intervention undertaken by the redactors of the canon. . . . One of the key features of this structure is that the [paracanonical] text directly introduces with 25 lines the nature of the mind to the yogis of highest capacity. The practice of individuals of lesser talents is relegated to the very end of the treatise, almost as an afterthought. The key feature of the structure of the canonical version, on the other hand, is that the text teaches (after the same brief advice to listen) first a gradual teaching of 28 lines before it offers an introduction to the nature of the mind. The chief structural intervention of the redactors of the canon is therefore that they change the very nature of the text, namely from being right from the beginning an upadeśa directly introducing individuals of the highest capacity to the nature of their mind, into being a gradual (rim gyis) introduction to the practice of mahāmudrā.
The second intervention of the editors of the canon is that they have changed the irregular pattern of the number of syllables per line into a regular pattern of nine syllables. . . . Thus, at some point there seems to have been an intention to streamline this teaching both in form and content, that is, it was made to fit a very widely used highly regular verse pattern, and it was adjusted to what we could almost call the “dogma of gradualism.”'"`UNIQ--ref-00000068-QINU`"'</blockquote>
The paracanonical editions have long been favored in the Kagyu traditions.
Pema Karpo included one in his Aural Transmission Collections, and
paracanonical editions are the basis for commentaries by Rangjung Dorje,
Shamar Könchok Yenlak, and the recently published ones by Thrangu Rinpoche and Sangyes Nyenpa Rinpoche.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000069-QINU`"'
Given the differences between the paracanonical versions and the canonical ones, Draszczyk, in “Tilopa’s Upadeśa,” raises the possibility that Marpa was not the translator for all versions, though it may be, as Sobisch says
in “Paracanonical Tibetan Texts” and “Paracanonical Translation,” that the
editors of the Tengyur took a great deal of liberty and created a version more
in keeping with an orthodox gradual approach.
''Transmission lineage received by Jamgön Kongtrul''. Tilopa to Nāropa, Marpa
Lotsāwa, Milarepa, the unequaled Dakpo [Gampopa], Dusum Khyenpa,
Drogön Rechen, Pom Drakpa, Drupchen Pakshi, Nyenre, Rangjung Dorje,
Yung Tönpa, Rolpai Dorje, Khachö Wangpo, Dezhin Shekpa, Drung Mase
Lodrö Rinchen, Chöpal Yeshe, Lodrö Drakpa, Jatang Lodrö Gyatso, Döndrup Tashi, Lekshe Drayang, Lodrö Namgyal, Sangye Rinchen, Drung
Rinpoche Kunga Namgyal, Garwang Karma Tenkyong, Sönam Gyurme,
Könchok Tenzin, Drupgyu Tenpa Namgyal, Sungrap Gyatso, Chökyi
Jungne, Gelek Rapgye, Drung Gyurme Tenpal, Tenzin Gelek Nyima, and
Jamgön Kongtrul.5
Gsum tshan gsum gyi man ngag ces kyang bya gces pa'i snying po zhes bya ba snying dang 'dra ba'i man ngag +
The alternative title of this profound collection of pith instructions refers to its division into three sections, each of which is further divided and subdivided into sets of three. +
''Transmission lineage received by Jamgön Kongtrul''. It is the same as previously stated for ''The Short Text''.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000156-QINU`"' +
K
The following prayers intone the names of the progenitors or inspirational sources of the One Hundred and Eight Guidebooks and their successive historical lineage holders in India and Tibet through to the time of their compiler, Kunga Drolchok (1507–1565). Jamgon Kongtrul Lodrotayé (1813–1899) later extended the lineage of the first prayer, Parting from the Four Attachments, by adding the names of subsequent lineage holders who followed Kunga Drolchok, including the latter’s acknowledged reincarnation Drolmei Gonpo Tāranātha (1575–1634), as well as Rinchen Dorjéma Ratnavajriṇī (1585–1668), Katok Tsewang Norbu (1698–1755), Zhalu Lotsāwa Losal Tenkyong (b. 1804), and Jamyang Khyentsé Wangpo (1820–1892). Readers should understand that this extended lineage is to be appended to each of the one hundred and eight guidebooks in turn.
Each prayer concludes with a pithy quatrain of verses requesting the blessings of the lineage holders and alluding tersely to the doctrinal content of the lineage in question. In a few instances explanatory notes have been added, but in general the reader should understand that these allusions and technicalities are explained in the corresponding guidebooks themselves (Ch. 9).
In his concluding remarks at the end of this chapter, Kunga Drolchok comments on the difficulty he encountered in composing these versified prayers. In order to maintain the meter, he frequently resorted to a well-established poetic device—rendering the names of the successive lineage holders obliquely through epithets or contracted variant forms. For the aid of the reader, this translation presents these names, not in metrical verse, but in a simplified linear form, and each prayer is preceded by a short paragraph, dating the relevant chronology. +
The supplementary lineage prayer that forms the content of the short second chapter was composed by Losal Tenkyong of Zhalu at the behest of Jamyang Khyentsé Wangpo. It commences with Kunga Drolchok (1507–1565), the compiler of the One Hundred and Eight Guidebooks, and continues through the Jonang line of transmission as follows: the latter’s disciple Draktopa Choku Lhawang Drakpa (fl. 16th century), and reincarnation Tāranātha, aka. Drolwei Gonpo Kunga Nyingpo (1575–1634), the ḍākinī Ratnavajriṇī, aka. Jonang Jetsunma Kunga Trinle Pelwangmo (1585–1668), Khenchen Rinchen Gyatso Neten Dorjedzin (fl. 17th century), Nyingpo Lodrotaye (fl. 17th century), Dzalongkar Lama Drubwang Kunzang Wangpo (fl. early 18th century), Katok Rigdzin Tsewang Norbu (1698–1755), Ngawang Nampar Gyelwa, On Dzalongkar Lama Kunzang Chojor, Drinchen Lobzang Tutob (fl. late 18th–early 19th centuries), Chakzampa Tulku Nyima Chopel, and the hermit Zhalu Lotsāwa Losal Tenkyong (b. 1804). Thereafter the lineage passed to Jamyang Khyentsé Wangpo (1820–1892) and Jamgon Kongtrul Lodrotayé (1813–1899), compiler of the Treasury of Oral Instructions. +
Chapters Five and Six contain diverse anecdotal accounts of the transmission of the One Hundred and Eight Guidebooks by earlier generations of lineage holders. Many peripheral texts associated with these cycles are also incidentally mentioned. References are generally found in the bibliography and in the notes to Chapter Nine.
Chapter Five, written by Kunga Drolchok, covers the anecdotal accounts of the first seventy-four guidebooks, commencing with Parting from the Four Attachments and concluding with Kharamukha Cakrasaṃvara. The supplement by Tāranātha which is contained in Chapter Six completes the remainder, from the seventy-fifth to the one hundred and eighth.
The introductory verses of Chapter Five are not balanced by any corresponding concluding verses, which may perhaps suggest that it was originally Kunga Drolchok’s intention to complete these anecdotes himself. Tāranātha, the acknowledged reincarnation, may have considered this task as a personal responsibility. +
In 1607 Tāranātha completed this supplement to the historical anecdotes contained in the previous chapter. These cover the thirty-three remaining guidebooks, commencing from The Six Meditations of Vajravārāhī and concluding with The Nature of Mind: The Wish-fulfilling Gem. At the end of the chapter Tāranātha explains that he was encouraged to do so by his teacher Lhawang Drakpa, who himself had been a disciple of Kunga Drolchok. +
In the penultimate chapter, Kunga Drolchok begins by enumerating the One Hundred and Eight Guidebooks in verse, intimating how he personally assimilated their meaning in his practice. In the second part, he names the one hundred and eight protector deities for which he received empowerment, headed by the diverse aspects of Mahākāla, and at the end of that section he subsumes them all in twenty-seven classes. In the third and final part, he lists more than one hundred empowerments that he received often multiple times according to the diverse classes of tantra, individually naming the teachers who conferred them. +
Although Kunga Drolchok had remarked that guidance should be given according to the individual guidebooks after the empowerments of Hevajra and so forth, had been conferred, in later times only the chanting of the scriptural transmission survived. For this reason, Katok Tsewang Norbu during the eighteenth century introduced the so-called “empowerment of the book” which transfers the blessings of the anthology—the actual volume containing the One Hundred and Eight Guidebooks. The liturgical arrangement for this empowerment ceremony, which is the subject of this final chapter, was composed by Losal Tenkyong of Zhalu during the nineteenth century. +
In this chapter, Kunga Drolchok explores the classifications of the One Hundred and Eight Guidebooks, according to the primary distinction between sūtras, tantras and their integration. By his own calculation, there are altogether “twenty-five ordinary instructions, twenty-five instructions common to all traditions, twenty-five pertaining to the Sakya tradition, and thirty-three instructions pertaining to the Kagyu lineage.” +
Having presented the historical background in the foregoing chapters, in the second part of this book, Kunga Drolchok focuses on the actual experiential cultivation of the One Hundred and Eight Guidebooks. The ordinary and extraordinary preliminary practices, briefly presented in Chapter Seven and Chapter Eight respectively are the prerequisites for those wishing to pursue any of the main practices that are compiled in the long Chapter Nine. Among them, Chapter Seven outlines the preliminary approaches suitable for individuals of lowest, average and superior capacity. The endnotes here refer to the detailed and succinct explanation of these topics found in Patrul Rinpoche’s The Words of My Perfect Teacher. As before, the chapter is introduced by auspicious verses and concludes with a signature quatrain. +
The more advanced visualizations of the extraordinary preliminaries outlined here are practiced in the contexts of taking refuge, setting the mind on enlightenment, ritual purification, and offering the body maṇḍala. These finally enable the practitioner to settle into the physical posture appropriate for calm abiding, and thence to undertake the main practices of the One Hundred and Eight Guidebooks that follow in the next chapter. +
In this personal statement Kunga Drolchok describes how he was inspired by Sangyé Pel to seek out the respective lineage holders of the One Hundred and Eight Guidebooks. Over thirty-one years, starting from young age of seven through to his thirty-eighth year, he assiduously acquired these diverse teachings and here he presents his achievement in the well-established format of a “record of teachings received” (thob yig, bsan yig). The names of the teachers from whom he obtained each lineage are documented here, including his own root guru, Kunga Chogdrub, to whom he respectfully refers not by name, but by the epithet “venerable hidden buddha” (rje sbas pa’i sangs rgyas).
Kunga Drolchok also provides a wealth of information concerning the names of the Tibetan authors and redactors of these guidebooks, where they are known, and, in cases where the authorship is unclear, he remarks that they derive from unspecified ancient writings. There is evidence of an incisive critical faculty in the way in which he occasionally differentiates between multiple strands of a given lineage, indicating which are to be included in the anthology and which are not. Further information on these primary sources, their antecedents, and so forth, can be found in the bibliography and also in the intial note to each of one hundred and eight actual guidebooks in Chapter Nine.
The chapter begins with a “signature” quatrain, in which the four syllables of Kunga Drolchok’s own name are embedded within the lines of verse, and it ends with a poetic dedication of merit, and a colophon. +
''The Eight Special Appendices'' is very different in style from the other two sets. More like a guide, it is the only one that seems to present a progressive practice rather than a loose collection of topics. The first four sections are divided into subcategories that contain not only descriptions but actual liturgy to be used in the practice, as well as citations from the source teachings, inevitably the Perfection of Wisdom sutras. Indeed, this text is the only one attributed to Machik Lapdrön or any early source in which one can recognize the implementation of the practice of Severance as we have come to know it. The fact that there is only this one brings up interesting questions on the development of the Severance practice and the relationship of later liturgical texts with the “original” teachings by Machik Lapdrön and the other early masters in the lineage. +
L
<center>'''''Introduction to the Egg Trilogy'''''</center>
The “Egg Trilogy” is one part of a series of compendia of the sayings and songs of the great adepts of India known as the mahāsiddhas; the collection and importation of which are attributed to Dampa Sangye. Studies of these by Kurtis Schaeffer reveal that there are seventeen in all.'"`UNIQ--ref-00000209-QINU`"' Eleven can be found in the Tibetan Tengyur, where they constitute the majority of such anthologies. Most of them, with only one exception, are also found in the five-volume ''Zhije Collection'', which also contains the six others, including our Silver, Golden, and Crystal Eggs.
The Egg Trilogy falls under the set of Pacification teachings known as Stainless (''dri med''). Each of the Eggs contains short sayings of fifty-four or fifty-five great adepts who were Dampa’s personal teachers and are included as a set in the lineage histories of the later transmission. They are known as the “common” or popular (''mthun mong'') male and female gurus, not because they were ordinary but rather because those gurus were held in common by many other disciples and were not unique to Dampa Sangye. Indeed, many of them are quite famous and can be seen to overlap with another set known as the eighty-four adepts (grub thob brgyad bcu bzhi). This group is also found in the Tengyur and many other places and has become the more official, standard list.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000020A-QINU`"' But it is good to remember that there were just really a lot of great saints in India and the book is never closed. Dampa was extremely lucky.
Pa Dampa’s fifty-four or -five teachers are divided into five groups by Gö Lotsāwa in ''The Blue Annals'''"`UNIQ--ref-0000020B-QINU`"' and other places, such as in ''Distilled Elixir'' in this volume. They are as follows: eleven gurus who taught defining characteristics and Sanskrit grammar, eleven gurus who taught the movements of vital winds in the father tantras, eleven gurus who taught bliss experiences in the mother tantras, eleven gurus who taught symbols of mahāmudrā, and ten gurus who introduced pure awareness. Thus, the story continues, Dampa Sangye received all the instructions of the outer vehicle of characteristics and the inner father and mother tantras and practiced them. Unfortunately, the lists of names in these sources and in all the anthologies vary quite a bit, with no two being identical. This uncertainty is compounded by unreliable back-translations into their Sanskrit names as well as by ubiquitous scribal errors. So to attempt a definitive list here would just be aggravating.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000020C-QINU`"' However, loosely speaking, the order of gurus in the three texts presented here more or less follows those five nominal group divisions.
That is the classification according to names. According to content, it would be difficult to precisely identify how each terse dictum fits into the above five categories. Nevertheless, one can see a rough pattern, with philosophical subjects appearing in the beginning, vital winds mentioned often in the next set, and so forth. In particular, and only in the ''Treasury'' editions, ''The Pure Silver Egg'' is divided into five sets named according to the traditional five paths (''lam lnga'') of Mahayana Buddhism. However, these five paths are presented in a unique and distinctive way in Pacification, as will become clear in the later texts in this volume. The five-path division here was apparently added by Kongtrul or Khyentse or an editor, and it may even have been an attempt to correlate the five sets of gurus with the five paths. The divisions don’t exactly correspond to the list of names, but they are close enough. So that is helpful.
It would be another matter entirely to find these actual sayings within the recorded works of those named adepts. Until someone undertakes that kind of research, we will have to be content to say that those great spiritual adepts probably did (or would) say something akin to what is recorded here.
A note on word choices: In texts such as these that have been copied since ancient times, the many editions have innumerable variations. While this is by no means a critical edition of the Eggs, I have included many of the variations in the notes in an effort to help find the meaning. But I have committed the terrible translator crime of choosing in some cases to override the Treasury version if other variations made more sense, were more common, or seemed more original. Finally, this edition of ''The Treasury of Precious Instructions'' luckily contains an interlinear note to support my translation of sgong (also ''sgo nga'') as “egg.” It states that it means “a summary of the source scripture’s meaning” (''gzhung gi don bsdus pa'o''). This is the common word for “egg,” and pastoral allegories are everywhere to be found in the literature of Tibet. But perhaps it just does not carry a particularly spiritual ring to our modern ears, so far from the farm.
'''Notes'''
'"`UNIQ--references-0000020D-QINU`"'
<center>'''''Introduction to the Egg Trilogy'''''</center>
The “Egg Trilogy” is one part of a series of compendia of the sayings and songs of the great adepts of India known as the mahāsiddhas; the collection and importation of which are attributed to Dampa Sangye. Studies of these by Kurtis Schaeffer reveal that there are seventeen in all.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000021B-QINU`"' Eleven can be found in the Tibetan Tengyur, where they constitute the majority of such anthologies. Most of them, with only one exception, are also found in the five-volume ''Zhije Collection'', which also contains the six others, including our Silver, Golden, and Crystal Eggs.
The Egg Trilogy falls under the set of Pacification teachings known as Stainless (''dri med''). Each of the Eggs contains short sayings of fifty-four or fifty-five great adepts who were Dampa’s personal teachers and are included as a set in the lineage histories of the later transmission. They are known as the “common” or popular (''mthun mong'') male and female gurus, not because they were ordinary but rather because those gurus were held in common by many other disciples and were not unique to Dampa Sangye. Indeed, many of them are quite famous and can be seen to overlap with another set known as the eighty-four adepts (grub thob brgyad bcu bzhi). This group is also found in the Tengyur and many other places and has become the more official, standard list.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000021C-QINU`"' But it is good to remember that there were just really a lot of great saints in India and the book is never closed. Dampa was extremely lucky.
Pa Dampa’s fifty-four or -five teachers are divided into five groups by Gö Lotsāwa in ''The Blue Annals'''"`UNIQ--ref-0000021D-QINU`"' and other places, such as in ''Distilled Elixir'' in this volume. They are as follows: eleven gurus who taught defining characteristics and Sanskrit grammar, eleven gurus who taught the movements of vital winds in the father tantras, eleven gurus who taught bliss experiences in the mother tantras, eleven gurus who taught symbols of mahāmudrā, and ten gurus who introduced pure awareness. Thus, the story continues, Dampa Sangye received all the instructions of the outer vehicle of characteristics and the inner father and mother tantras and practiced them. Unfortunately, the lists of names in these sources and in all the anthologies vary quite a bit, with no two being identical. This uncertainty is compounded by unreliable back-translations into their Sanskrit names as well as by ubiquitous scribal errors. So to attempt a definitive list here would just be aggravating.'"`UNIQ--ref-0000021E-QINU`"' However, loosely speaking, the order of gurus in the three texts presented here more or less follows those five nominal group divisions.
That is the classification according to names. According to content, it would be difficult to precisely identify how each terse dictum fits into the above five categories. Nevertheless, one can see a rough pattern, with philosophical subjects appearing in the beginning, vital winds mentioned often in the next set, and so forth. In particular, and only in the ''Treasury'' editions, ''The Pure Silver Egg'' is divided into five sets named according to the traditional five paths (''lam lnga'') of Mahayana Buddhism. However, these five paths are presented in a unique and distinctive way in Pacification, as will become clear in the later texts in this volume. The five-path division here was apparently added by Kongtrul or Khyentse or an editor, and it may even have been an attempt to correlate the five sets of gurus with the five paths. The divisions don’t exactly correspond to the list of names, but they are close enough. So that is helpful.
It would be another matter entirely to find these actual sayings within the recorded works of those named adepts. Until someone undertakes that kind of research, we will have to be content to say that those great spiritual adepts probably did (or would) say something akin to what is recorded here.
A note on word choices: In texts such as these that have been copied since ancient times, the many editions have innumerable variations. While this is by no means a critical edition of the Eggs, I have included many of the variations in the notes in an effort to help find the meaning. But I have committed the terrible translator crime of choosing in some cases to override the Treasury version if other variations made more sense, were more common, or seemed more original. Finally, this edition of ''The Treasury of Precious Instructions'' luckily contains an interlinear note to support my translation of sgong (also ''sgo nga'') as “egg.” It states that it means “a summary of the source scripture’s meaning” (''gzhung gi don bsdus pa'o''). This is the common word for “egg,” and pastoral allegories are everywhere to be found in the literature of Tibet. But perhaps it just does not carry a particularly spiritual ring to our modern ears, so far from the farm.
'''Notes'''
'"`UNIQ--references-0000021F-QINU`"'