Leyjang Commentaries

LEYJANG COMMENTARY ‘82 Oral Commentary on the Leyjang of Künzang Tuktig, The Manifest Essence, given by Kyabje Tulku Urg...

Author: Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

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LEYJANG COMMENTARY ‘82 Oral Commentary on the Leyjang of Künzang Tuktig, The Manifest Essence, given by Kyabje Tulku Urgyen Tsewang Chokdrub Rinpoche, at Nagi Gompa, March 1982. The general practice manual of the peaceful and wrathful ones according to the Pure Gold Great Perfection, the Heart Essence of Samantabhadra, entitled THE MANIFEST ESSENCE. Here, “general” is mentioned. This means that there is a general and a particular practice. The particular refers to Trekchö and Tögal. The general is when the the deities of appearance and existence abiding in the ground (snang srid gzhir bzhugs kyi lha) are manifested in the ground (gzhir bzhengs). When they are slightly fabricated by conceptual mind the label ‘general’ is given. It is nothing other than that. First, there is an A, which is the customary heading of Chokgyur Lingpa. Other tertöns have different ones. This is a terma heading. Even though it may look like an OM, it is actually the letter A. Then, there are four strange letters. They are symbolic script (brda yig), the writing of the dakinis. When he first took out the terma, these letters were on the terma parchment. Afterwards, when this parchment was soaked in amrita and he directed his gaze towards it, each letter became as vast as a valley within which all the other letters appeared clearly and vividly. The reason for placing the symbolic script as a heading is to show that this is a terma teaching (gter chos). It means that everything appeared within these letters. It was not createdby human beings but comes from this (symbolic) script. That is why these strange letters are put at the top. They do not look like more than a BAM, a HAYE and a NYA and so forth [laughs]. I’m just joking. There is nothing more to see, but based on this script there arose the entire teachings on Trekchö, Tögal, the Leyjang and the empowerments.

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COMMENTARY ON KUNSANG TUKTIG LEYJANG 89

Homage to Guru Samantabhadra. This is the real guru. In the word ‘lama,’ ‘la’ means the life force of all beings, the vital principle of all sentient beings; it is like the life force (srog) of all beings. ‘Ma’means mother; the nature of compassion. So, ‘la’ is like the life force and ‘ma’ means ‘the primordially free ground of origination,’ (‘byung gzhi ye grol). “Homage to Guru Samantabhadra.” ‘Kun tu’ means ‘always’ or ‘in all aspects,’ and ‘bzang po’ ‘without any badness.’ That which is always good, excellent, is named Kuntuzangpo, the Ever-Excellent. Here, it is the teacher Samantabhadra. We find Samantabhadra both as teacher and teaching. The teacher Samantabhadra appears in the form of the deity. The ultimate Samantabhadra is self-existing wakefulness (rig pa’i ye shes). There are three things which are called Samantabhadra: ground Samantabhadra, path Samantabhadra and fruition Samantabhadra. But, actually, it is just Samantabhadra whether it is the teaching or the teacher, both are him, and that which is called awareness wisdom, is also him. So, we pay homage to him. When paying homage, there is the relative homage by means of the body and the absolute homage which is free from the three objects, namely the prostration, the one who prostates, and the object of prostration. The absolute homage is prostration within rigpa. It means “I pay homage by the threefold purity!”

With faith, connection, obtainment of empowerments, and possessing pure samayas. This means that one has faith and possesses (pure) samaya. One has requested the empowerments from the teacher and received them. The samayas should be kept pure, (intact).

This is how to carry out the practice. “Carry out” (sgrub) means to accomplish the deities. The self-existing wakefulness abiding in the ground is now manifested in the ground as the deities, (in the great mandala) of appearance and existence, by means of the development stage. That is the act of ‘accomplishing’ which is to be applied in practice.

In a place of solitude, sit on a comfortable seat. This means that one should sit down upon a comfortable seat in a quiet place.

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Having prepared the mandala and gathered the practice materials. Concerning mandala (dkyil ‘khor), there are, first of all, the three kinds of mandalas: (rab lta ba rnam dag gi dkyil ‘khor), the best is the mandala of the perfect view; (‘bring nyams kyi dkyil ‘khor), mediocre is the mandala of experience; and then (tha ma rtags kyi dkyil ‘khor), lowest, is the mandala of symbols which is the example or illustrated one made of colored dust. In Tibet, a white sand was died and used to draw the entire mandala circle, celestial palace and everything. (It is said that) the best is colored sand, the next best is drawing on canvas or painting on cloth, and the lowest is heaps. The heaps are arranged on the mandala plates; forty-two for the peaceful ones and, on another mandala below, fifty-eight for the wrathful ones; so there are two mandalas. They can also be arranged, in front, on a single mandala plate. This is called heaps. So, that was about the mandala. The practice materials (sgrub rdzas) are as follows. The symbol of body is an image of Guru Rinpoche or Samantabhadra. The symbol of speech is the volume of these scriptures. The symbol of the mind is at best a stupa, next best a vajra and bell, and lastly, a natural crystal. These articles are placed in the mandala and are called practice materials. There are two things needed for puja, practice materials and offering materials (mchod rdzas). Offering materials are the outer offerings of ARGHAM, PADYAM, PUSHPE, DHUPE, ALOKE, GANDHE, AND NAIVIDYA which are offerings to the ears, mouth, nostrils and so forth. It is an old tradition from India. The first is (mchod yon), offering drinking water to the deity in order to purify the habitual pattern of drinking water to quench one’s thirst. (zhabs bsil) is water for washing the feet as it was very hot in India and necessary to bathe one’s feet. Flowers (me tog) are for the eyes.Incense, DHUPE, is for the nose. Lamp (mar me) is for the mind. Perfume (dri chab) is to give a nice fragrance to the body, a pleasant scent like white sandalwood and so forth. Food (zhal zas) is for eating. Then, there is music (rol mo), various sounds for the ears. These are the outer offerings (phyi mchod). The inner offerings are the offerings of form, sound, smell, taste and touch. In addition, there are AMRITA, RAKTA and TORMA in order to dissolve the three poisons without any remainder. The torma is stupidity, the nature of flesh. The RAKTA is passion, the nature of blood. The AMRITA (bdud rtsi sman) is semen, the

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nature of aggression. One offers these in order to purify the three poisons. This was the inner offering (nang mchod). The secret offering is first the offering of bliss, then of emptiness, the offering of MAHA SHUNYATA. The bliss offering is the offering of the union of the male and female deities. In the Guhya Mantra teachings there are two things called GANA and TANA. The GANA is the offering of the union (sbyor ba); which is the phonya practice offering (pho nya lam gyi mchod pa). Liberating (tana sgrol ba) means destroying the enemies of the samayas and the teachings, the so-called shingchu and the savage beings. One liberates these evil beings and sends their consciousness to the pure realms. This is a secret method and is called the offering of liberation (sgrol ba’i mchod pa). In short there are four: the outer, inner, secret and most secret thatness offering. These should all be consecrated. (‘du byas la) means that they should be gathered, arranged in completeness. (‘du) means complete (tshang).

Practice the preliminary, main, and concluding sections. The “preliminary” (sbyor ba) is the stages from refuge up until the visualization of the deity. (dngos) is the main part (dngos gzhi) which has five parts: cultivating the visualization of the deity (lha bskyed sgom); making invocation (spyan ‘dren byed); offering (mchod pa); praising (bstod pa); and performing recitation (dzapra bzla ba). The concluding actions (rjes kyi bya ba) are the repetition of the offering and praise in order to complete the two accumulations; then the dissolving and emerging (bsdu ldang), and so forth. No matter which ritual one is practicing, it has to have the three complete stages of preparation, main part and conclusion. For instance, in the worldly work of constructing an aeroplane, it is necessary first to gather all the materials; the preparation. The conclusion is that it flies. Similarly, one should practice the ritual with the complete preparation, main part and conclusion. SAMAYA. This is great samaya.

First, the five stages of preliminaries. First, the preliminaries consist of five topics, the first of which is taking refuge. NAMO

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This means, “I pay homage.” It is the same as “namaste!”

In the empty essence, dharmakaya. That which is called essence (ngo bo) is empty. It is the dharmakaya.

In the cognizant nature, sambhogakaya. This emptiness is by nature not blank nothingness like void space, it is emptiness-cognizance (stong gsal); meaning its nature is cognizant. This is called sambhogakaya. These two, the emptiness and the cognizance, are a unity.

And in the manifold capacity, nirmanakaya. “Manifold” or variegated (sna tshogs) means the ability to tame whoever has need, by the approriate means. The ability to manifest in the perception of others (gzhan snang la sprul) and to realize the awareness wisdom in one’s own perception (rang snang) refers to the various displays of compassion. In these ...

I take refuge until enlightenment. “Until reaching the level of mahabodhisattva, I take refuge in you three. When finally you, the object of refuge, and I, the refuge taker, have become inseparable, then there is no need for the protector and the protected. We have become one. Until then, I will ask you for refuge, I and all sentient beings equal to the sky take refuge in you.” This was taking refuge until enlightenment according to the tradition of Dzogchen. HO HO is something one shouts when calling a person, like yelling ‘Hey!’

All the beings equal to the sky. As far as the sky pervades. So, all beings equal to the sky in number.

In order to establish in the state of buddhahood. In order to be able to establish them in the state of buddhahood.

Through the teaching of the great perfection. Through the oral instructions of Trekchö and Tögal in the three sections of mind (sems), space (klong) and instruction (man ngag).

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I will realize dharmakaya of self- existing awareness. All sentient beings have individual discriminating awareness (so so rang gi rig pa). Everyone has self-existing awareness, however, dharmakaya is obscured by the threefold ignorance. So, in order to clear these away, one wishes, “May I be able to realize dharmakaya.” This is the bodhichitta resolve (sems bskyed), the aspiration according to Dzogchen. HUNG. HUNG, as in OM AH HUNG, is the nature of the life-force mind (thugs srog). To utter HUNG at this point means that one first remains in the state of the view; HUNG is the continuity of mind.

Duality demons of ignorant confusion. From beginningless time until now, not to recognize the tathagatagarbha, the self-existing wakefulness, is called ignorance. One became deluded and confused, and took that which is for something which isn’t. This is called being confused or deluded. Then the dualistic fixation of thinking ‘I’ and ‘that’ arose; these are the obstructing forces. The so-called dire obstructing forces (bgegs) are created solely by one’s own conceptual thoughts; they do not come from outside. “Obstructing forces are conceptual thoughts. Obstructing forces come from one’s mind.” (rnam par rtog pa bgegs yin te, bgegs ni rang gi sems las byung) They are nothing other than one’s mind clinging outwardly to something as being an obstructing force, they don’t originate outside of oneself.

Do not remain here, go elsewhere. “Now you should go away!” When this has happened, then...

The wrathful wisdom king of self- existing awareness. The wisdom of self-existing wakefulness wrathful one.

(rang rig pa’i ye shes)

is itself the great

Will crush you into the realm of nonthought. When conceptual thoughts are destroyed in the nonconceptual space, obstructing forces are completely annihilated. This nonconceptual state (rtog med) is

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the nonconceptual state of awareness (rig pa’i rtog med). The nonconceptual state of ignorance is destroyed in the nonconceptual space of awareness. HUNG HUNG HUNG UCATAYA PHAT.

The three HUNGs are the nature of body, speech and mind, while UCATAYA PHAT means, “You cannot remain here, even on as much space as a tip of a hair. You must go away.” This was dispelling the obstructing forces (bgegs bskrad), making them leave. Now comes the meditation on the protection circle. HUNG

Appearance and existence are the Body, Speech and Mind of the peaceful and wrathful ones. There is not even the term obstructing forces. Since appearance and existence have the nature of the peaceful and wrathful ones there are no obstructing forces whatsoever, therefore “You do not have any chance of entering.” There is not even the name obstructing forces.

This is the fiery dome of wisdom vajras. The tent of wisdom vajras and wisdom fire has now been pitched.

Do not cross the boundary line. “Do not trespass the border lines!” When the demarcations of the boundary have been laid down, like when a door has been shut, then “You have no chance of entering here.” OM AH HUNG VAJRA RAKSHA RAKSHA BHRUM

The OM AH HUNG are the seals of body, speech and mind. VAJRA is dorje in Tibetan. RAKSHA means wheel. RAKSHA RAKSHA BHRUM is the Sanskrit mantra for the protection circle. Now comes the consecration of the offerings. HUNG HUNG represents mind.

By sending forth wisdom fire, wind and water. 7


By emanating the wisdom fire, wind, and water ...

All fixation on concreteness is purified. Fixation on concreteness (dngos ‘dzin) means to hold the external world, as well as holding the inner contents of beings, to be concrete. The fixation on the concreteness of all the offering materials, such as water being water, food being food, flowers being flowers and so forth, is purified into emptiness.

The universe with its contents is a Samantabhadra offering-cloud. The whole of the universe and all beings, together, are an offering-cloud of the bodhisattva Samantabhadra, not the buddha Samantabhadra. The noble Samantabhadra is able to emanate an inconceivable offering-cloud, so, the world and the beings are an offering-cloud of Samantabhadra.

Inside the vast skull cup of space. The five meats and nectars dissolve into light. Inviting and absorbing the essence of Body, Speech and Mind. The Body, Speech and Mind of all the victorious ones dissolve into the amrita.

The rakta of great bliss is a swirling ocean. The great bliss rakta, blood, flows together as an ocean.

The torma becomes an ocean of sense pleasures. The torma has the five desirable sense objects complete. May it be so! OM AH HUNG SARVA PUJA MEGHA VAJRA SPARANA KHAM SARVA means ‘all.’ PUJA means ‘offering’ and MEGHA ‘cloud’ PUJA and MEGHA together mean ‘offering cloud.’ VAJRA SPARANA KHAM ‘It has become an inconceivable amount of indestructible offering materials and enjoyments.’ Among the five topics of the preparation, this was the consecration of the offerings.

Hereby obstructing forces are pacified, the mind-stream is purified. Since the obstructing forces have been dispelled, they have been pacified. ‘One’s being is purified’ means that the fixation on different things, such as ‘This is water,

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this is fire, this is a flower, this is a lamp!’, has been destroyed. When individual fixation has collapsed, then one’s being is purified.

And one has become a suitable vessel for the siddhis. One has become like a vessel which has been properly cleaned so that a precious liquid will remain pure when poured into it. SAMAYA.

The main section, the five samadhis. Now, the preparation is finished and we have reached the actual main part of the practice. The preparations are like the limbs, the arms and legs, whereas the main part is like the heart. [As an answer to a question, Rinpoche said], think that they are the wisdom fire, the wisdom wind and the wisdom water. Why is that? It is because RAM burns the impurities, YAM blows them away, and KHAM washes them away. Actually, these are the letters of fire, wind and water. The wisdom fire, wisdom wind and wisdom water cleanse away all impurities. That is the meaning of the line:

By sending forth wisdom fire, wind, and water. All the impurities of fixating on offerings as being concrete are burned by fire, scattered by wind and washed away by water. Abandon the fixation on concreteness of ordinary worldly fire and water and think instead that these are wisdom fire, wisdom wind and wisdom water. The meaning of wisdom here is rigpa (rig pa’i ye shes). The awareness wisdom creates the fire, wind and water. In the ignorant offerings of dualistic fixation there are ideas of offerer and what is being offered, right? One thinks that these ideas are purified. To imagine that the Three Jewels remain before oneself, is the refuge. Arousing bodhichitta means, in short, that through compassion one thinks, “May all sentient beings attain the state of enlightenment!” Afterwards, the thoughts which appear as obstructing forces are being dispelled into the nonconceptual space of wisdom. According to ancient custom, the protection circle is a ‘wall of weapons’ (mtshon cha nang ma). After the obstructing forces have been dispelled there is a vajra-cross above, a vajra-cross underneath, vajra-crosses on the sides, and numberless (smaller) vajra-crosses in between, so dense, that they can not be penetrated. This is called ‘vajra plaster’ (rdo rje zhal la). It’s like putting plaster (zhal la) on the walls of a house. First, there are vajras, then jewels and lotuses, then vajra-crosses and wheels, 9


representing the five families, covering everything, like the walls of a house. After these there are the small wrathful forms (khro chung); all the male wrathful ones turn clockwise and all the female wrathful ones turn anti-clockwise. Next, there are the flames of the wrathful ones; the flames of the male wrathful ones blaze clockwise and the flames of the female wrathful ones blaze in anti-clockwise. One should imagine that even the wind at the end of the kalpa has no chance to enter by as much as the tip of a hair. This is called the protection circle according to development stage. As I explained above, this practice is an Ati Shitro, actually more like an Ati Maha Shitro. Therefore, the meaning of the words is as follows. The wisdom fire, wind and water are emanated purifying all fixation on concreteness. Then the whole universe and its contents have become a Samantabhadra offering-cloud. The space of dharmadhatu is like a skull cup. The five meats and the five nectars are of the nature of the five male and female buddhas. All the blessings of body, speech and mind dissolve within this. The mahasukha, great bliss, flows together like an ocean of blood (rakta). Concerning the torma of sense pleasures, one should think that the perfect forms, sounds, smells, tastes and touches are the torma. Just practising like that is all right, (laughs). It is all right if one does not do it as in Maha Yoga; this is an Ati Shitro. Then OM AH HUNG SARVA PUJA MEGHA VAJRA SPARANA KHAM, all the offering articles have become abundantly perfect. It is all right to think just that. In the main part of the practice there are five topics. First is the development stage. HUNG

Dharmakaya, primordial emptiness. First is the samadhi of suchness, the recognition of the view of dharmakaya. At this point one has to remain in the continuity of dharmakaya, rigpa.

It’s nature of wisdom embraces all. Within this state, the luminous aspect of self-existing wakefulness, is like a glowing light bulb, (illuminating) the entire universe and its contents with luminosity. At this point one should arouse compassion. So, first is the empty essence of awareness wisdom, dharmakaya, then, the cognizant nature of awareness

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wisdom, sambhogakaya, is compassion. The unity of these two, essence and nature, is awareness wisdom, so..

Unborn awareness manifests as A. This is the seed samadhi, visualized as the letter A. The A is in the middle of space, radiant like the sun and moon. One should have purified everything, the universe and its contents, to be a vast empty space. A great voidness without even a hairtip of the elements of earth, water, fire and wind. Everything is purified as great emptiness, mahashunyata. Within this state one gives rise to compassion for any sentient being who has not realized this, thinking “Nyingje! Poor ones!” This was the general way according to Maha Yoga. According to Ati Yoga, one remains in awareness and within this one only makes a slight little development stage in the form of the letter A. Then the A radiates light which purifies the universe and all beings into a pure buddha realm.

The radiating light purifies the universe and its contents. In the vast pure space of the five consorts. (Tape switch. Missing part.) Earth, water, fire, wind and space have the nature of the five great mothers of space (dbyings kyi yum chen mo lnga).

Is the celestial mansion of the five wisdoms. The five wisdoms are the wisdom of dharmadhatu, the mirror-like wisdom, the wisdom of equality, the discriminating wisdom, and the all-accomplishing wisdom; all these are the nature of the celestial palace.

Abundant in perfect ornaments and designs. All the ornaments and the decorations of the celestial palace are complete.

This is the two-storied palace of the peaceful and wrathful ones. If you were to ask what this means and how one is supposed to visualize the celestial palace, then first of all the letter A of the seed samadhi sends out the letter E (which transforms into) all-encompassing empty space, dark blue in color, free from any beginning and end - just vast empty space. Then YAM becomes the vajracross (mandala) of wind situated below. Upon the wind, the letter RAM becomes the fire mandala. So, first the mandala of wind, followed by the mandala of fire. On top of that comes the mandala of water and the mandala of earth. So, of the major 11


elements the first is space, empty space without top, bottom or middle; created from the syllable E, upon that comes the vajra-cross of wind from the letter YAM, and upon that is the mandala of fire from the RAM. After these are the mandala of water from KHAM and the mandala of earth from the LAM. On top of these is Mount Meru from the syllable SUM. On the summit of Mount Meru one should visualize a vajra-cross, in the center of which one visualizes the celestial palace. The letter for the palace is BHRUM. The celestial palace is square and has four gates. If one is doing detailed practice, then it is said that there are eight pillars inside. The upper storey is bulbshaped like a vase in which the forty-two peaceful ones reside. The square storey below contains the fifty-eight blazing wrathful ones. The palace looks like a stupa, round above, containing all the deities; it is not a simple box like a house. The lower storey is square like a house and upon that is the bulb like a stupa. Inside are the thrones, the seats of the buddhas and bodhisattvas. Upon those are the thirteen wheels with ornaments (tsa tsa), upon these are the sun and moon discs, but that will be explained later. So, “In the vast pure space of the five female buddhas is the celestial mansion of the five wisdoms abundant in perfect ornaments and designs. This is the two-storied palace of the peaceful and wrathful ones.” The peaceful ones are above in the round-shaped bulb, the wrathful ones are below in the square room. It is two-storied, with the peaceful mandala above, the wrathful mandala underneath.

In the middle of the four-spoked wheel. In the center of the palace, where both the peaceful and the wrathful ones are visualized, the ground is made of diamond. Here is where the wheel with four spokes made of lapis lazuli is visualized. In the middle of this wheel one visualizes Samantabhadra and the buddhas of the five families. Samantabhadra is situated in the center of the wheel. Just in front of him one visualizes Vairochana with his consort. To the east is Akshobhya and his consort, to the south is Ratnasambhava and consort, to the west is Amitabha and consort, and to the north is Amoghasiddhi and his consort. These were the peaceful ones. As for the wrathful ones, Chemchok is in the center and in front of him Buddha Heruka is visualized. This is called ‘in front,’ otherwise there wouldn’t be roomfor all five. This means that Samantabhadra and Chemchok are in the center and in front of each of them

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dwells one of the five buddhas. The other four are to the east, south, west and north. This goes for both the wrathful and the peaceful ones. So, this is the twostoried palace of the peaceful and wrathful ones. In the middle of the four-spoked wheel.

Upon a lion throne, lotus, sun and moon. The blue Guru Samantabhadra. With the hand gesture of equanimity, embracing his consort. On the supreme thrones in the center and in the four directions. Here, center (dbus) refers to the middle in front of Samantabhadra. The four directions are east, south, west and north. On the supreme thrones. . .

Are Vairochana and Dhatvishvari, white with a wheel. First, on the central throne are Vairochana and his consort Dhatvishvari. He is holding a wheel. When saying five families, the family refers to the mudra, the hand-emblem.

Akshobhya and Vajratopa, blue with a vajra. To the east is Akshobhya and his consort Vajratopa; he holds a vajra in his hand and has body of blue color.

Ratnasambhava and Lochana, yellow with a jewel. To the south is Ratnasambhava and his consort Buddha Lochana; their bodies are yellow and he is holding a jewel.

Amitabha and Pandaravasini, red with a lotus. To the west are Amitabha and his consort Pandaravasini (the White Clad One). He is of red color and is holding a lotus in his hand.

And Amoghasiddhi and Tara, green with a crossed vajra. To the north are Amoghasiddhi and his consort Samayatara, both with green bodies. He holds a green vajra-cross in his hand. These were the four spokes of the wheel.

In the four intermediate directions upon a lotus, sun and moon.

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On the seats of lotus, sun and moon, in the four intermediate directions, the eight male bodhisattvas are together with the eight female bodhisattvas. Here, they should be distinguished into the four inner male and female bodhisattvas and the four outer male and female bodhisattvas; they are not all together. The four inner bodhisattvas are embraced by the four inner female bodhisattvas; they are in union.

Are Kshitigarbha and Lasya, white. Kshitigarbha and his consort Lasya (Grace Goddess) are in the intermediate direction of the south-east and are of white color.

Akashagarbha and Mala, yellow. In the intermediate direction of south-west are the bodhisattva Akashagarbha and his consort Mala (Garland Goddess). They are of yellow body color and sit embracing each other.

Avalokiteshvarendra and Gita, red. In the north-western direction, are Avalokiteshvara and his consort Gita (Song Goddess) of red body color.

And Vajrapani and Nirti green. In the north-eastern direction are the bodhisattva Vajrapani and his consort Nirti (Dance Goddess) of green color.

In the four corners of the square, upon lotus and moon. Then there is a square, another design with the corners turned towards east, south, west and north. So, first of all there is a four-spoked wheel upon which Samantabhadra and the five male and female victorious ones are seated. In between these are the four male and female bodhisattvas. Finally, in the four corners of the square, the eastern, southern, western and northern corners, upon lotus and moon discs, are the other four bodhisattvas:

Are Maitreya and Pushpa, white-yellow. The victorious Maitreya is white-yellow and is embraced by his consort Pushpa (Flower-Goddess).

Nivarana Vishkambhin and Dhupa, red-yellow.

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Then there is the bodhisattva Nivarana Vishkambhin with an orange body color, like vermilion and embraced by his consort Dhupa (Incense Goddess).

Samantabhadra and Aloka, red-green. The bodhisattva Samantabhadra is of red-green color and embraced by his consort Aloka (Lamp Goddess).

And Manjushri and Gandha light-green. The color of Manjushri is light green, not dark green. He is embraced by his consort Gandha (Perfume Goddess). This completes the four corners of the square.

Everyone is complete in the major and minor marks. They all have the thirty-two major marks complete and are decorated with the eighty minor ones.

Ornamented with silks, jewels and bones. They all wear the five silk dresses, the eight jewel ornaments, and the bone ornaments.

And are emanating boundless rays of light. The rays of light radiating from them are inconceivable and infinite. They emanate multi-colored light rays. Multi-colored means white, yellow, red, green, blue and many-colored. The radiation of the lights of these six colors is incredible. This completes the five male and female buddhas and the eight male and female bodhisattvas.

Along the sides are the six nirmanakaya munis. “Along the sides” (khyams) refers to the area around the square. The six munis are the perfectly enlightened ones, the nature of nirmanakaya.

Free from attachment, in the manner of taming beings. Unattached (chags bral) means without consort.

Standing on single lotus flowers. Standing shows that they are benefitting beings. They are the bhagavats (bcom the six aspects of munis: Indra, the lord of the gods; (thags bzang), the lord of the asuras; Shakyamuni (shakya thub pa), the lord of the humans; (seng rab), the lord

ldan ‘das),

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of the animals; (kha la me ‘bar), the teacher of the pretas; and Dharmaraja, the teacher of the hell beings. These are the six buddhas and they are standing.

At the four gates are the four great wrathful kings. At the four gates are the four gate-keepers, the four great wrathful kings such as Hayagriva, Achala and so forth; four in all. The four female wrathful ones are their consorts.

Endowed with the nine-fold dance moods and embracing their consorts. The four consorts are the purified aspect of the four times; past, present, future and the unfixed time. They are embracing.

With the eight charnel ground ornaments, they blaze in the fire of the kalpa. The eight charnel ground ornaments are the skins of tiger, leopard, human, ash ointment and so forth, eight in all. They are blazing with the flames of (the end of) the kalpa. This is what one should visualize. These four male and female wrathful gate-keepers are included within the forty-two peaceful ones. This completes the forty-two peaceful deities.

In the center of the great palace of the wrathful ones. Now, below is the great palace of the wrathful ones. In the wrathful palace there are banners, pillars, pillar ornaments, human corpses, lakes of blood and so forth; the palace of the wrathful ones should be visualized as terrifying.

Upon the huge rock, lotus, sun and rudra. There is a great diamond rock upon which is a lotus and a sun disc. Then there is Rudra, the demon Matram Rudra, who is being trampled down.

Is the great and glorious Chemchok Heruka. The wrathful transformation of Samantabhadra is Chemchok Heruka.

Dark blue, right face white and left face red. He has three faces and six arms.

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His three right (hands hold) vajras, the left ones skulls with blood. He embraces the great consort Krotishvari. In the center and in the four directions, upon lotus and sun. Are the maroon Buddha Heruka with consort. Just like before, in the case of the five buddhas, in the center (in front) is Buddha Heruka and his consort of maroon body color.

The blue Vajra Heruka with consort. He is to the east.

The yellow Ratna Heruka with consort. He is to the south.

The red Padma Heruka with consort. He is to the west.

And the green Karma Heruka with consort. He is to the north. If you were to ask what (khrag ‘thung) is, then its meaning is the same as the word (he ru ka). (khrag ‘thung) is Tibetan, (he ru ka) is the Indian term. he means enjoying, drinking. ru means blood and ka means kapala, skull. So he ru ka means drinking blood from the skull, or drinking the blood of the skull. Heruka therefore means ‘You who are drinking blood from skull cups.’

They are blazing in the twenty modes of wrath. There are twenty modes of wrath: the nine dancing moods of a heruka, such as grace, bravery and so forth, as well as the ten glorious and the eight charnel ground ornaments. The herukas wear all of them.

Adorned with the glorious and the charnel ground ornaments. The ten glorious ornaments are from the time when Rudra was ‘liberated’ and the heruka then dressed in his charnel ground attire.

In the corners and in the protruding places of the four families.

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Here, also, there is a square outside the wheel spokes. It is like above, in the case of the peaceful deities, the only difference is that the wheel of the peaceful ones is golden and here it is made of diamond. So, in the protruding places (glo ‘bur) of the four families and at the four corners of the square . . .

Are the eight great wrathful ladies of the sacred places. The eight bodhisattvas are transformed into the eight great wrathful ladies. Samantabhadra is transformed into Chemchok Heruka the five kinds of victorious ones are transformed into the five male herukas with their consorts, and, now, the eight bodhisattvas have become the eight mamos of the sacred places, the eight wrathful ladies.

In various colors and standing on corpses. ”Standing on corpses” corpses.

(zhing la rol)

means that they are standing upon human

Along the sides are the eight tramen of the sacred countries. These are the eight female bodhisattvas. The tramen, hybrid goddesses, have animal heads such as pig, tiger, leopard’s heads. The goddesses with these animal heads are called tramen. The first eight, the eight great wrathful ladies have female bodies and human heads. That is how we should visualize them.

With various heads and terrifying forms. Various heads means the heads of goat, sheep, dog, pig and so forth. Now come the gate keepers.

At the four gates are the four female gate-keepers, the annihilators. “Annihilators” (mtha’ byed) means that the four female gate-keepers have the ability to destroy, put an end, to all the vicious forces. They are just gate-keepers, not great wrathful ones. They have heads of goat, lion, pig and snake.

Performing the acts of summoning, binding, chaining and intoxicating. One of them summons with an iron hook, one binds with a lasso, one chains with iron shackles on the hands and the legs, and one renders unconscious. 18


In the outer yard are the twenty-eight Ishvaris. Outside the celestial palace, in the outer yard, are the twenty-eight Ishvaris (dbang mo, dbang phyug ma). They are in four groups of seven each, surrounding each of the four female gate-keepers; making twenty-eight altogether. They are of white color in the east, yellow to the south, red in the west, and green to the north. These are called the twenty-eight Ishvaris. They surround the palace and have various heads. Seven have fangs, seven have shu, seven have claws, and seven have horns.

With the colors of their families and holding their attributes. The family colors mean that those to the east are white, to the south yellow, to the west red and to the north green. The attributes refer to the various things that they are holding such as a corpse-club (zhing dbyug), a child’s head, a skull-cup, a lasso and so forth; twenty-eight different things. This completes the forty-two peaceful and the fifty-eight wrathful ones.

Vidyadharas, and victorious ones with their sons. “Vidyadharas” refers to those who have attained the states of the four vidyadhara levels through Maha Yoga. “Victorious ones” (rgyal ba) means the buddhas, “Sons” means the bodhisattvas.

And hosts of dakas, dakinis and Dharma protectors. “Dakas” are the males, “dakinis” are the female; the “Dharma protectors” (chos skyong) are the guardians of the teachings belonging to the three classes of male, female and neuter (dgon po).

Are manifest filling the phenomenal world like a full sesame pod. The whole of appearance and existence is visualized with male and female deities, all of which are...

Possessing the vajra body, speech and mind. They are endowed with the vajra body, speech and mind. They have Vairochana, as vajra body, on the top of their head; Amitabha, as the vajra speech, in their throat; and Akshobhya, as vajra mind, in their heart. The letters are OM AH HUNG. We imagine that these things are present.

They are perfected in the essence of the five wisdoms. 19


They all wear the crown which has the nature of the five buddha aspects. OM AH HUNG OM AH HUNG SVAHA OM AH HUNG is the Sanskrit mantra which consecrates the three places. What one visualizes is ‘endowed with the vajra body, speech and mind, they are perfect in the essence of the five wisdoms.’ The vajra body, speech and mind are OM AH HUNG, and the five wisdoms are OM AH HUNG SVAHA. Now we come to what is called invocation (spyan ‘dren). The main part had five topics. The first was the development stage and the second is the invocation. The deity which one visualizes as oneself is called samaya being (dam tshig dpa’). The deity which is then invoked or invited is called wisdom being (ye shes sems dpa’). Yourself as the samaya being is like a crystal or mirror and the wisdom being is like when it is hit by the sunlight. Imagine that the wisdom being becomes inseparable from yourself.

HUNG.

In the dharmadhatu realm of simplicity. (chos kyi dbyings)

is dharmadhatu. From this realm which is unconstructed like

the sky..

From the palace of sambhogakaya. With bodies like rays of rainbow light, speech like seed syllables and mind in the continuity of the primordially pure depth of brilliance.

Peaceful and wrathful buddhas with your retinues. All of you...

By the power of your samaya, please come. “Samaya” (thugs dam) means that eternally since primordial time, the deity and yourself have a bond, a samaya. What does that mean? It means that one’s body, speech and mind are inseparable from the three vajras of the deities, we have the same samaya. “By the power of your samaya, please come.” means, “We have a great samaya, don’t we? There is no way you can avoid coming; so please come!” VAJRA SAMAYA JAH

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VAJRA means (rdo rje), SAMAYA means (dam tshig). “We have a vajra samaya, an indestructible bond.” E HAYA HI

This means “come quickly, come quickly now!” JAH HUNG BAM HO

This refers to the four immeasurables: compassion like an iron hook, loving kindness like a lasso, sympathetic joy like a chain, and impartiality like a bell. “As the continuity of the essence, remain in the four immeasurable states!” KA VA CI JNANA VAJRA TISHTHA.

Here, kaya is condensed to KA, vaka to VA, and citta to CI. They are abbreviated and mean, “Take seat as the (wisdom) vajras of body, speech and mind!” ATI PU HO

This means, “Now you have arrived, that is most kind of you, namaste!” PRATICCHA HO

This means that the deities answer back, “Oh, namaste!”; they reply and then they take seat. OM AH HUNG

These are the blessings of body, speech and mind.

The outer offering is a Samantabhadra offering cloud. “The outer offerings I display as the offering-cloud emanated by Arya Samantabhadra and offer to you.”

The inner offering is sense-pleasures and amrita medicine. Here, amrita, rakta and torma are included within the amrita.

The secret offering is the primordial pure space of great bliss. The secret offering is mahasukha, great bliss, the space of primordial purity.

I offer all these to the peaceful and wrathful victorious ones with their retinues.

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“I offer these to the peaceful and wrathful victorious ones, as well as to their retinue of emanations, re-emanations, an infinite and inconceivable in number.” One should imagine it very vastly. The offering mantra is in Sanskrit; OM VAJRA ARGHAM and so forth. In Tibetan it is: drinking water (mchod yon); washing water (zhabs bsil); flowers (me tog); incense (dug spos); a lamp (mar me); perfumed water (dri chab); food (zhal zas); and music (rol mo). OM VAJRA ARGHAM PADYAM PUSHPE DHUPE ALOKE GANDHE NAIVIDYA SHABTA PRATICCHA HO

“These I offer to you.” That was the outer offering. The inner offering is: MAHA PANCA AMRITA KHARAM KHAHI

... which means “please, all of you, drink the great five nectars!” OM AH HUNG MAHA RAKTA KHARAM KHAHI

“Be pleased to enjoy the rakta!” and MAHA BALINGTA KHARAM KHAHI

“Be pleased to enjoy the balingta!,” the torma. MAHA SUKHA GANA PUJA HO

“Then I give you the offering of mahasukha, the great bliss of union.” MAHA DHARMADHATU TANA PUJA HO

“I present you the offering of freeing the view into dharmadhatu.” MAHA SHUNYATA JNANA PUJA HO

“I present you the absolute offering, the samadhi (of great emptiness wisdom).” These were the outer, inner, secret and thatness offering. Now the offering is completed. OM

This is the syllable of the nature of kaya. Now comes the praise.

Your body is complete with the major and minor marks.

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The thirty-two major marks are complete and the eighty minor marks are also complete, the body is perfect. “Just like the Buddha, you have completed all the major and minor marks.”

Your vajra speech is dharmata’s natural sound. “You have the unceasing vajra speech, the self-utterance of dharmata.”

Your vajra mind is changeless wisdom. “Your have a mind which is like vajra wisdom.”

I praise your inconceivable qualities and activities. “Your qualities and activities are completely beyond the boundaries of thought. I offer you this praise.” This was the praise to the forty-two peaceful ones. Now comes the praise to the fifty-eight wrathful ones. HUNG

This is the nature of mind.

Though unstirred from the essence itself. Without having moved from the natural state of the peaceful ones,..

You (appear) in wrathful forms before those to be tamed. “You transform your peaceful expression and appear as the wrathful ones.” Those to be tamed (‘dul bya) means that for the sake of all savages, the sentient beings of the six realms, you have manifested as the wrathful ones.”

Sending out emanations and attendants as envoys. As I mentioned before, there are numerous emanations, re-emanations, attendants, aides, and messengers. So, “dispatching emanations and attendants as messengers.”

I praise the compassionate ones who are skilled in means. “Skillful in methods, endowed with great compassion, all of you are very amazing. I offer you this praise.” This completes the praise of the wrathful ones. Now comes the the realization of the recitation (dzapra kyi dgongs pa). The development stage which accomplishes the form of the deity is complete and now

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comes the accomplishment of speech. The kaya is accomplished, now for the accomplishment of vaka, speech, through mantra. HUNG.

All sights are the body of the peaceful and wrathful ones. The external world, whatever appears to the eyes, is the form of the peaceful and wrathful ones.

All that is heard is the sound of mantra. Whatever the ears hear is the speech of the peaceful and wrathful ones, the sound of mantra.

Nonconceptual awareness is the space of luminosity. All movements of thoughts and memories are the nonconceptual luminosity, dwelling as the continuity of awareness wisdom.

The ocean-wide realms are filled with clouds of offerings. “I offer these as an offering upward to the Three Jewels.”

The various activities free the beings. “Freeing those who have not been freed, crossing over those who have not crossed over, relieving those who have not been relieved, and causing those who have not gone beyond misery to go beyond misery, everything you do for the sake of all beings of the six realms cause, by the power of compassion, all the ignorant samsaric sentient beings to realize the awareness wisdom and to attain enlightenment, thus freeing those who have not been freed.” Taking across those who have not crossed over, refers to the beings in all the different religions or beliefs in this world and helping them to arrive at the space of awareness wisdom. Relieving those who have not been relieved refers to all those who have not attained enlightenment; relieving them with the attainment of buddhahood. So, “the various activities free the beings.”

This is the all-pervading mandala of the victorious ones. “Pervading space” means that as far as space pervades it is pervaded by sentient beings. As far as sentient beings pervade, they are pervaded by karma and kleshas.

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As far as karma and kleshas pervade, the self-existing wakefulness also pervades. So, “This is the “all-pervading mandala of the victorious ones,” the buddha mandala.

Everything is perfect in the continuum of one taste. The external universe, the beings contained within it and all the different kinds of joys and sorrows in between are innumerable. One taste (ro gcig) means that they are nothing but the single awareness, they are complete within the space of the single awareness. “Everything is perfect in the continuum of one taste.” Remaining in the continuity of the view, one does the recitation of the mantra of the forty-two peaceful ones: OM BODHICITTA MAHASUKHA JNANADHATU AH

and OM RULU RULU HUNG BHYO HUNG.

which is the mantra of the fifty-eight blazing Herukas.

Reciting according to ability, maintain the realization. Reciting as much as one is able, maintaining the realization, remain in samadhi, do the practice. By making this kind of effort. . .

All siddhis and activities will be accomplished. One will accomplish all the relative and absolute siddhis.

Samaya These were the five topics of the main part.

The five concluding stages are as follows: At the end, there are also five topics or stages. The development stage has been completed, and now comes the completion stage. If you were to ask what is meant by completion stage, then the development stage completes ‘the deities of appearance and existence abiding in the ground’ (snang srid gzhir bzhugs kyi lha), ‘appearance and existence manifest in the ground’ (snang srid gzhir bzhengs) and given offerings and praise; this is called ‘development’ (bskyed). ‘Completion’ (rdzogs) means completed within the space of awareness, dissolved into emptiness. The stage of dissolving (bsdu rim) is called completion stage.

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HUNG HUNG HUNG

The nature of body, speech and mind.

The apparent yet empty forms of the deities dissolve like rainbows into space. The deity is appearance-emptiness. The deity which is visualized or imagined, besides being appearance-emptiness, has no physical form, intestines or inner organs. Appearing, it is like a rainbow; it appears to one’s eyes, yet it is empty. “The apparent yet empty forms of the deities dissolve like a rainbow into space.” When a rainbow dissolves into empty space, then it is gone.

The resounding yet empty sounds of speech vanish like thunder in the sky. The resounding yet empty sound of speech is like thunder, the roar of thunder, which has vanished into the sky.

Resting the unborn and empty awareness in the unfabricated state. “Unborn” (skye med) means that, in the beginning, the empty and cognizant awareness was never created through causes or conditions. When it is left in the unfabricated state, then it remains as ‘self-luminous wakefulness’ (rang gsal lhag ge) in the state free from fabrications.

Abide in the unimpeded realization of Samantabhadra. Here “realization” (dgongs pa) means that body, speech and mind, all three, remain as one nature in the ‘realization’ of the view; it is unimpeded openness (zang thal); it is remaining in the continuity of the absolute Samantabhadra. This was the dissolution. A A A.

Now comes the emergence (ldang). Re-emerge by uttering A three times.

Whatever appears as body is primordially the Body of the peaceful and wrathful ones.

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The sound of speech is primordially the Speech of the peaceful and wrathful ones. The mind of unfabricated awareness is the Mind of the peaceful and wrathful ones. Inseparable, they appear from the expression of Samantabhadra. They arise again from the expression just like an electric light which was switched off is now turned back on. ‘Inseparable, they appear from the expression of Samantabhadra.’ One thinks, ‘I am Samantabhadra’ and again visualizes the form. If you were to ask why do this, then it is because the dissolution destroys the extreme view of permanence, known as eternalism. The emergence destroys the extreme idea of nothingness, nihilism, thinking that there are no past and future lives, no cause and effect of karma, that everything is just empty. But it is not just total emptiness, one emerges again in the form of the deity; this destroys the extreme of being empty, just thinking “all existence is empty.” These two are called dissolving and emerging. After this comes the dedication (bsngo ba) and the verse of aspiration (smon lam). OM AH HUNG

The external universe, the nature of space, is the realm of fivecolored light. This is the external vessel, the universe.

The inner contents of sentient beings are the five aspects of the male and female ones. Everything, in the nature of the five wisdoms. Is spontaneously perfected as the display of Samantabhadra. This was the dedication. Now comes the aspiration. HO

This practice of Samantabhadra and the peaceful and wrathful victorious ones. Making this aspiration.

And all the virtue gathered in the three times.

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I add together and dedicate towards the unsurpassable great enlightenment. All the virtue which I have gathered throughout the three times.

May I and all the infinite sentient beings. Both I and all sentient beings, equal to space in number.

Exhaust the two obscurations and perfect all qualities. Having cleared away and exhausted, the two obscurations and perfected all qualities. When the two obscurations have been purified and the two accumulations perfected, then the qualities are perfected.

May we awaken as the unified Vajradhara. The unity of the two kayas. When the two obscurations are purified, the two kinds of knowledge blossom and the two kayas are perfected, “may we attain enlightenment as Vajradhara, the unity of the two kayas,” the unity of appearance and emptiness. This was the aspiration. Now comes the verse for auspiciousness: OM

May there be the auspiciousness of the empty essence, dharmakaya. May there be the auspiciousness of the cognizant nature, sambhogakaya. May there be the auspiciousness of the manifold capacity, nirmanakaya. May there be the auspiciousness of their inseparability, Samantabhadra. This completes the verse for auspiciousness.

The perfection of all activities is the fruition. When this ritual is completed then the fruition can be perfected; that is its purpose. SAMAYA.

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Bestowing benefit on whomever encounters it. “Whomever encounters” means that if one performs this ritual, does this practice, then great benefit will arise.

This ‘activity practice,’ The Manifest Essence Among body, speech, mind, qualities and activities, “activity practice” (phrin las) is that which accomplishes the actions; it refers to this ritual practice.

From the end of the dark age to the final time Will spread the heart teachings of Samantabhadra. In the age when the five degenerations are rampant, and at the final end of this time has arrived, then the teaching of Samantabhadra will flourish, spreading more and more and never diminishing.

For the fortunate ones in those times. To all the fortunate ones, the disciples, of that time.

It is easy to do, convenient to carry out, and has swift blessings. Since there are only a few pages, it is easy to do and easy to carry with you. The blessings are great and the effect is swift. This is how it is.

In order to be meaningful to encounter. Whoever encounters this will be benefited.

Carefully condensing the tantras of Dzogchen. He gathered this from the Dzogchen tantras.

I, Padma composed this excellently. “I, Padma, made this very short and concise.”

(Yeshe) Tsogyal wrote it down respectfully. And concealed it as a profound treasure. The termas are always profound, they are very precious. “I buried it as a terma.”

May it meet my fortunate son. “May it meet the son with the karmic connection,” Chokgyur Lingpa.

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On meeting him, may the teachings flourish! “Having met him, may the teaching spread.” This was the aspiration he made. SAMAYA.

Seal of treasure, seal of concealment, seal of profundity. Then again there are four symbolic letters at the end.

I, Chokgyur Dechen Lingpa, took this out from the Cave of Glowing Turquoise on the southern slope of Namkhadzö in Dokham and translated it from the yellow parchment at Orgyen Samten Ling in Rudam Snow Range. May it be virtuous! Then it says, “I, Chokgyur Dechen Lingpa,” this is his name. Dokham is a province within Kham. “On the southern slope of Namkhadzö” means the amazing white rock mountain, a great mountain which takes five days to circumambulate, it is a sacred place of Guru Rinpoche. At the southern slope of it is the cave called Turquoise Cave where he found this terma. The terma parchment was then taken to the practice center near Dzogchen Monastery at Rudam Snow Range. The practice center is called Urgyen Samten Ling, and here the yellow terma parchment was translated and written down. Sarvatha manggalam. May all be auspicious! La-so! That’s it.

Requested by Andreas Kretchmar in 1982. Translated at Nagi Gompa according to the oral instructions of Kyabje Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, by Erik Pema Kunsang, 83-84. Edited again by Michael Tweed and Erik in 1994. © Rangjung Yeshe Translations & Publications. 1996

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LEYJANG COMMENTARY 89 Spoken by Kyabje Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche at Nagi Gompa 23 January 1989.

The teachings of the Buddha are composed of two types — Sutra and Tantra. Sutra is known as the extensive teachings, and tantra is known as the profound teachings. All the teachings can also be condensed into relative truth and absolute truth. When condensing the teachings according to how they are applied, there are three aspects, the Maha, Anu, and Ati, also called tantra, scripture, and instructions. In order to attain enlightenment by means of the Sutra teachings, one has to proceed through the five paths and ten bhumis; one attains enlightenment by the method of unifying means and knowledge — the means being great compassion and knowledge being emptiness. But that is the longer path. There are the long and the short paths. The Sutra path is the long path. The short path is called Tantra. In Tantra, as well, one attains complete enlightenment by uniting means and knowledge. Means is development stage, while knowledge is completion stage. According to the system of development stage there are three aspects — development, recitation, and completion. First, for the development, according specifically to Maha Yoga, one attains enlightenment by means of what is called the three mandalas. That is the shorter path according to Maha Yoga. According to Anu Yoga, one bases the practice on the vajra body, the yidam deity, which is the manifestation of one’s buddha-nature. The mandala is called the body mandala. That’s the concise quality of Lung Anu Yoga. The system of Ati Yoga instructions is not based on our external mandala, but the mandala which is in the mind, called the “thatness” mandala of buddha nature, or the nature of the mind. Fully realizing this, one attains complete buddhahood. The present teaching, Kunzang Tuktig, is Ati Yoga, but within Ati Yoga it belongs to the Maha Yoga aspect. Each of these three yogas has three aspects — Maha, Anu, and Ati, so that there are nine yogas altogether. The Kunzang Tuktig is the Maha aspect of Ati Yoga. Ati and Maha combine in that the teachings are Dzogchen, but the practice is with characteristics — faces and arms, deities, mandalas, and so forth.

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Before reaching the human realm, the Dzogchen teachings flourished in three different abodes in the realm of the gods. The first of these is called Akanishtha, the second is Tushita, and finally, the Dzogchen teachings spread in the realm of Indra on the summit of Mt. Sumeru. They were taught in the central palace called the palace of complete victory. The teachings originated from the expanse of the wisdom mind of Buddha Samantabhadra and transmitted through the lineage of the Buddha’s mind to the five buddhas, headed by the sixth buddha, Vajradhara, and again through mind transmission to the abodes of the three families and, later, through the symbolic lineage of vidyadharas to the great masters of India. That is how the teachings flourished in this world. When the Dzogchen teachings are counted in detail, there are 6,400,000 sections. When condensed there are three sections — mind, space, and instruction. Guru Rinpoche himself took all the Dzogchen teachings and condensed them in a way that is concise, easy to understand, and convenient to put into practice. That is the special quality of the instruction which is Ati Yoga compared to Maha and Anu, in that the Anu Yoga teachings contain all the Maha Yoga teachings, and the Ati Yoga teachings contain all the Anu Yoga, but in a way that is shorter and more concise. It is not that something is lacking. Concise, comprehensive teachings are like purified or refined gold. That’s why the name of this teaching is called “Refined Gold.” It’s not just gold itself — it’s like the essence of purified gold. When starting the practice, one begins with the supplication to the lineage gurus. The lineage prayer we have here, was written by Chokgyur Lingpa himself. The main meaning of what I have spoken up to this point is contained within the lineage prayer. The first word, EMAHO, means “how wonderful, “how amazing.” That which encompasses or penetrates all of samsara and nirvana is called dharmadhatu, and the dharmakaya realm is called Akanishtha, “the realm that is densely arrayed. In that realm I supplicate Samantabhadra, Vajradhara.” Here, Samantabhadra is like the cause while Vajradhara is like the result. They are not two different buddhas. They are identical, except that one is with and one is without adornments. It’s like the difference between Amitabha and Amitayus — there is none. Tantra has three aspects — ground, path, and fruition. Here we ask for the blessings to realize or establish the continuity of ground tantra. The next four lines are the supplication to the sambhogakaya, which includes the symbolic lineage of 32


the vidyadhara masters. What one asks for is the bestowal of blessings to realize the path tantra from among the three kinds of tantra. There are three kayas — dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, and nirmanakaya. There are also three aspects called essence, nature and capacity. The third verse concerns nirmanakaya, or what is manifested out of the compassion aspect, which is the thousand buddhas of this excellent kalpa. One makes a supplication to all of these buddhas. And one makes a prayer — “Please bestow blessings to realize the fruition tantra.” The next four lines are directed to Vajrasattva. They start out with the particular. The reason for that is that Vajrasattva is the single embodiment of the five buddha families, like the quote I mentioned: “Those who are pervaded are the five buddhas. The one who pervades is Vajrasattva.Just as the sun shining in the sky is reflected everywhere, likewise it is the nature of Vajrasattva that manifests as all the different types of buddhas.” Dzogchen practice has two aspects. One is called Kadag Trekchö, ‘the cutting through of primordial purity,’ which is the view. And the other is called Lhündrub Tögal, ‘the direct crossing of spontaneous presence,’ which is the meditation. To realize this, one first asks for the blessing for the view of Trekchö. The next four lines concern Garab Dorje. Garab Dorje is called the first human vidyadhara, the chief propagator of the teachings of Dzogchen in this world. That doesn’t mean that Buddha Shakyamuni’s teachings were imperfect or lacking. They were totally perfect. But still, Garab Dorje was foremost in expounding the Dzogchen teachings in our world after they had flourished in the three divine abodes. We beseech Garab Dorje to bestow the blessings to realize the inseparability of space and awareness. Space means absence of constructs. Awareness means cognizing or recognizing this space. That is the root of the teachings — the inseparability of space and awareness. The next four lines are for Manjushrimitra, also known as Jampal Shenyen. His main dwelling place was a charnel ground called Tsang Tsing Trikpa, or Dense Wilderness, I think. He lived there, but he was the heart son, the chief disciple, of Garab Dorje. The main teacher in this world was Garab Dorje. His main successor was Jampal Shenyen. We pray to realize “increased experience.” That is the second vision of the four visions of the Dzogchen teachings. These four are like stages or stopping places along the path, just like the demarcations in the sutra teachings 33


called the five paths and ten bhumis. They can be applied either to Trekchö or to Tögal and are usually called the four visions. The first vision is called “direct perception of manifest dharmata,” and this [above it says otherwise — ed.]is what we pray to realize. The second one is “increased experience.” The next verse is for Sri Singha, who lived in the charnel ground called Sitavana, “Cool Grove.” We beseech him to bestow the realization of the third vision in Dzogchen, known as “awareness reaching fullness.” The next four lines are for Padmasambhava or Padmakara. His pure land is situated on one of the subcontinents surrounding Mt. Sumeru. We know that there are four main continents and eight subcontinents; Chamara is one of the eight minor ones. On the summit of the mountain is situated Guru Rinpoche’s pure land, called the “Realm of Lotus Light.” Within this palace resides the next master in the lineage, Master Padmakara, whom we supplicate to bestow the blessings to realize the fourth vision in Dzogchen called the “exhaustion of dharmata.” Next, the center of this world is Bodhgaya, situated in India, and to the north of that is the Land of the Snowy Ranges called Tibet, the supreme abode to which the Buddhist teachings were transmitted from India. In Tibet is a sacred place called Samye, and above Samye is a hermitage called Chimphu. From there we supplicate Tsogyal, the princess, as the consort. The 'male' (yab) refers to Trisong Deutsen, and the 'princes' refer to his three sons - Murub Tseypo, Muney Tsenpo, and Mutig Tsenpo. We ask to please grant the blessings that my being may be ripened and liberated. Ripening takes place by receiving empowerment, liberation by receiving and realizing the oral instructions. Next we supplicate the revealer of these teachings, Chokgyur Lingpa. Since he was a realized being, wherever he stayed was itself the source for the flourishing of the Vajrayana. But his particular dwelling place is called Sang-ngak Podrang, the “Palace of Secret Mantra.” We supplicate him that we may be able to observe the samayas correctly. The next verse concerns the place where the Kunzang Tuktig terma was concealed and later revealed, a certain cave in a mountain, called Yubaldrak, the cave of scattered turquoise. We supplicate that we may be able to realize the profound meaning. Then follow all the places where this teaching is being taught — meaning the abode of the protector of this oral lineage. The protectress is Ekajati herself. She 34


was entrusted with the teaching by Guru Rinpoche, then she protected it until it was to be revealed. We supplicate her so that the teaching may spread throughout this world, like the light of the sun and moon. The next two lines are the retreat places for practice indicated or prophesied by the guru. In the past, one would traditionally ask the teacher, “Where should I go and practice? In order to attain realization where should I live?” He would say, “Go to such and such a place and practice there.” These lines mean that in all these caves where luminosity is dawning or appearing, I supplicate all practicing Dharma friends. The next line talks about pure perception. We ask to be blessed with having impartial pure perception. In order to practice the Kunzang Tuktig, one needs to cultivate pure perception, both towards the place where one abides, and also towards the teaching, the lineage, and one’s Dharma friends, neither criticizing nor pondering the faults of others. Here’s the short teaching on pure perception: since the very first, the whole world is composed of the five elements. The five elements are by nature the five female buddhas. All inhabitants of the world, the sentient beings of the six realms, are composed of the five aggregates. The nature of the five aggregates is the five male buddhas. Therefore, if you really think about it, you won’t be able to find anything which transcends being either the five male or the five female buddhas. Only due to the confusion of sentient beings does it seem that there’s any impurity in this world — actually there isn’t any. Primordially, everything is a perfect mandala; one simply recognizes this for being what it is. Seeing this is called pure perception. We never have to superimpose some purity upon an impure world, like imagining that a piece of wood is made of pure gold. That would be unreliable and, sooner or later, one would lose faith. But Vajrayana teaching is based on fact, recognizing things to be what they are, that everything is primordially a mandala of total perfection. It is never the case that we have to purify it or imagine it to be something it’s not. The word “impartial” can also refer to the different traditions of Buddhist teaching. Towards all three vehicles, including the four schools and the eight great chariots of the practice lineage, we should have impartial pure perception. Never be disdainful towards any of the schools of Buddhist teachings; there’s no difference in quality, only in the courage and mental capacity of those who practice. That’s where 35


the difference lies rather than in the teachings themselves. There’s no such thing as good teachings or bad teachings. There might be people who can practice to different extents, but the teachings themselves are always pure. So in this way, we should have impartial pure perception of all the teachings. Next we supplicate all the kind, sacred masters. There are three different types of root gurus: those who turn one’s mind toward the Dharma, those who cause one to enter the teachings by giving explanations on the four mind changings, and those who give empowerment, explain the tantras, and point out the mind essence. The specific lineage we’re receiving comes from Guru Rinpoche, who personally concealed this precious teaching as a terma. Later on it was revealed by the great tertön, Chokgyur Lingpa, at a mountain called Lawa Kangchik in a cave called Yubaldrak. He passed the teaching on to his son, Tsewang Norbu. Then he gave it to his own nephew, who is my uncle, Samten Gyatso. I received it from Samten Gyatso personally. The two masters between Chokgyur Lingpa and myself were excellent great beings. Before me there were only great masters in the lineage. It’s only now, when I am merely pretending to give empowerments and oral instructions, that this lineage is not continuing. But still, if we have faith that we are actually receiving the blessings from the lineage, then we will certainly be able to receive them because the lineage is extremely short. What we pray for is that we will be able to take the teachings to heart and assimilate them into our being, that we may understand death and impermanence and the preciousness of the freedoms and riches, and so forth — in short, that we may be able to develop renunciation, which means the desire for enlightenment. Then, we also ask for the blessings to have trust in the three jewels, in our guru, and in enlightened beings, that we may have compassion for those who are not enlightened, all sentient beings who have been one’s own parents, and that we be able to practice with great diligence to attain complete enlightenment within this very lifetime. We pray that we may be able to equalize life and practice, — which means to practice for as long as one is alive. (Rinpoche reads through the next four lines on realizing the teachings of Trekchö and Tögal.) We can realize and progress through the four visions of Dzogchen through Trekchö, and also through Tögal, and by having this realization maybe we will be able to accomplish the great transformation, the form of the rainbow body. This was the short teaching on the supplication to the lineage gurus. 36


After that there is the practice of development, recitation and completion. The development aspect is contained within the daily practice called the Leyjang which also contains the recitation aspect. The specific teachings on completion are found in a separate text on Trekchö and Tögal, which we can slowly get to later on. Today I will teach the Leyjang, the activity practice. First, about the title: Dzogpa Chenpo, Great Perfection. Among the three cycles or sections of the Great Perfection (mind, space, and instruction), this belongs to the third, the Instruction Section. It is like purified or refined gold, the very heart of the matter. It’s called Kunzang Tuktig, which means the Heart Essence, the quintessence of the mind of Samantabhadra., Then the general title is the Tünmong Shi-tro Leyjang, or the ‘General Practice Manual for the Peaceful and Wrathful Ones.’ “General” here means that it’s a way to accomplish and realize the peaceful and wrathful deities in a general way, that is, through a sadhana, not through direct meditation instructions. [End of tape one, some missed]The meaning is fully present. In the past there were other practices of the peaceful and wrathful deities. One of the famous ones is the Karling Shi-tro, which had two versions, Tsölchen and Tsölchung, which mean “Great Effort” and “Smaller Effort.” The Greater Effort was a huge volume that one had to go through, and the Smaller Effort was about half that size. But this small text here contains the entire meaning of both these other termas revealed by Karma Lingpa; nothing is lacking. The teachings begin with four characters or letters of symbolic dakini script. They’re placed at the head of the teachings because they’re the source from which the tertön was able to transcribe the whole teaching. The dakini script is like a magical city which appears, like a hologram in the vision of the tertön; the whole vision of the teaching remains there until the tertön has been able to write it all down. If he makes a spelling mistake, the writing simply remains there until he can proofread and correct. Then it disappears, and the next script appears. Each of such symbolic dakini characters can be the source for whole volumes of teachings. They are placed at the beginning of the text in order to show that the teachings have a pure and authentic source. First comes the homage to the guru. It says, “Homage to Samantabhadra,” the guru of Guru Rinpoche. First there is some small print which is not to be recited aloud, but to be understood. It begins with remarks about the person who practices 37


this. He should have certain qualifications —he should have faith in this teaching; he should have received the empowerments; and he should keep the samayas pure. Those three things are important. Then, as for beginning the actual practice, it says, “Sit on a comfortable seat in a quiet, secluded place. Gather the requisites for the mandala and sadhana.” The requisites which are important for this practice are few— we should have the articles for the four empowerments, which are a vase, a kapala, a round mirror with center, and a crystal. Those are the four special articles. We should also have an image of Vajrasattva and arrange the seven offerings in front of it. Padmasambhava then says to practice by means of preparation, main part, and conclusion—the three sections of the sadhana practice. The first one runs from the beginning of the text, starting with the refuge all the way up to the visualization of the deities. The main part begins with the samadhis and visualization of the deities, and continues down to and including finishing the recitation. The concluding section goes from the feast offering through the dedication of merit and auspicious verses. These three sections are present in all sadhana practices. Each of these three has five points so that altogether there are fifteen sections in this sadhana. Of the five that make up the preparation, the first section is refuge. Generally, there are two types of refuge — relative and absolute. The refuge in the Kunzang Tuktig sadhana belongs to the absolute type. What it really means is the three kayas: this is what one takes refuge in until enlightenment. Usually, there are nine aspects to refuge. Outer refuge is Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha; inner refuge is Lama, Yidam and Dakini; and secret refuge is Dharmakaya, Sambhogakaya, and Nirmanakaya. Here, the outer and inner are included within the secret. That is why the Kunzang Tuktig refuge is called the ultimate or absolute refuge. Next, arousing bodhichitta also may be ultimate or absolute. It’s not superficial. In order to reach the state of buddhahood, for the sake of all sentient beings equal in number to the sky, through the teachings of the Great Perfection I will realize the dharmakaya of natural awareness. The third point (of the first five) is called “gektor” or “torma for the obstructers.” Obstructers are like immaterial beings, spirits who create obstacles for the practitioner. But the source of all these is one’s own ignorance, confusion, and holding on to the duality of observer and observed; that’s where all the obstacles really came from. So, in order to dispel these obstacles, there’s what is called the 38


“gektor”. One presents the torma, imagining it as the perfect abundance of the five sense pleasures; then one offers it to all spirits, who actually come from one’s own ignorance. This is done in three ways — first, through giving, then by commanding or insisting, finally by dispelling. Giving is to present the torma to them. Insisting is saying, “Now you better not remain here — you better leave.” Dispelling is visualizing oneself as the wrathful heruka, scaring away all hostile forces. There’s a famous saying that the obstructers are thoughts. Thoughts come from your own mind. As long as one has no insight into the nature of one’s mind, there are always obstructions, and seeming-spirits interfere with one’s Dharma practice. In order to bring an end to that, one makes a gektor offering. As long as one has thoughts, conceptions, and thinking, then the obstructers have a foothold and can interfere. The reason why no spirits or evil forces can make trouble for enlightened beings is that they have purified conceptual thinking totally. It’s like trying to take hold of space; it’s impossible because there’s nothing to harm or hurt. Likewise, when we realize the absence of conceptual thinking, there’ll be no more interference from obstructing forces. The liturgy for this practice begins with HUNG, which is the seed syllable for the mind of all enlightened beings. Then, one addresses the obstructers of dualistic fixation, ignorance and confusion: “Don’t stay here; go elsewhere. Otherwise, the wrathful king of wisdom, self-cognizance, will destroy you, obliterate you into the space of nonthought!” This means first, giving torma; then commanding; and finally, scaring them away. The triple HUNG in the mantra which follows is for outer, inner, and secret interferences. UTSATAYA PHAT means to get away. Just as in the example of finding a thief in your house — first you scare him out, and then you lock the door. Locking the door is the same as the next point here, the fourth one, erecting the protection circle. It says that all of appearance and existence is the body, speech and mind of the peaceful and wrathful ones. There’s no such thing as even the term, impurity or obstructers; so, one says: with the wisdom vajras’ fire, the whole dome of that, “I draw the boundary which you cannot cross.” OM AH HUM are the seed syllables for enlightened body, speech and mind. BENZA is for vajra, RAKSHA, RAKSHA is for the protection circle, and DHRUNG is for the calestial palace. Next comes what is called the consecration of offerings, the fifth preliminary section. This begins with the purification by means of wisdom fire, wind and water. 39


What one purifies is clinging to things as being concrete, solid and real. Through that, everything, the world, the beings, are automatically an offering cloud of the bodhisattva Samantabhadra. That’s for the external offerings. For the inner offerings it says, “Within the vast skullcup of space melt the five meats and nectars into light,” That’s the consecration of the Five Wisdoms. Then the essences of body, speech and mind are invited and dissolved into that. It says also mantras for consecration of the rakta and the torma. Then the mantra OM AH HUM SARVA PUJA MEGHA VAJRA SAPHARANA KAM is the consecration of offerings, but not only the offerings; the whole world and all beings, too, are consecrated as offerings. The reason for practicing these five preliminary points is to pacify obstructers, to purify one’s mind, and to become a suitable recipient for the accomplishments. For the main part there are also five points. The first three lines refer to the three samadhis. The first is the samadhi of suchness, that dharmakaya is primordial emptiness, the empty aspect. The second line expresses the quality of compassion, that the nature of wisdom is all-pervasive. The third samadhi is the unity of emptiness and compassion that takes the form of the syllable AH in the center of space. Within the framework of the three samadhis, one starts the sadhana. The syllable AH radiates light which purifies the whole world and all beings. Within the space of the five female buddhas, occur the Five Wisdoms which are the Celestial Palace, naturally adorned with all perfect adornments and decorations. It is, by itself, the palace of the peaceful and wrathful deities, wrathful buddhas below, peaceful above. In the center of the palace there is a wheel with four spokes. In the center of that there is a lion throne with lotus, sun and moon seat. Here sits the Guru Samantabhadra. In different directions are other thrones, on which the buddhas of the different families are seated. Each has animals of a different kind supporting his throne, such as peacocks, horses, elephants, and another kind of bird called shang-shang. or garuda. The next sequence about all the different buddhas and bodhisattvas is quite simple, as there's not much we don't understand about them. Just as without space the four elements have no place to appear — there would be no openness for the elements to appear if it weren't for the open, accommodating quality of space — in exactly the same way, unless one has been introduced to the view of Trekchö, the nature of mind, there’s no possibility for a pure, clear development stage to unfold. The very basis for the rupakaya’s manifestation is the 40


dharmakaya. One has to recognize the view of Trekchö in order to practice this sadhana correctly, but even if one has not recognized the view, one can still practice in a way where one simply imagines that everything has dissolved into emptiness. In other sadhanas this is usually done with the shunyata mantra, and one simply imagines that all is empty. After that one tries to feel compassion for all sentient beings. With such emptiness and compassion, one then imagines it is manifest as the palace and celestial deities. But in this sadhana through the view of Trekchö and spontaneous compassion, these two naturally manifest as a unity, in the center of space, as the unbounded syllable AH, and that is the source of the whole mandala. It sends out the different syllables for the five elements RAM, YAM, LAM, KAM, and E, and finally SUM for Mount Sumeru and DHRUNG for the celestial palace on top of Mt. Sumeru. Then the syllable AH descends like a shooting star into the palace and becomes the central figure in the mandala. The mandala itself is shaped like a stupa with two stories, the lower one being square, the upper circular, just like the smaller stupas we see around (in Nepal). Inside and outside, it is perfectly transparent. It has all the different features. In the four directions there are four gates with archways, staircases, and all the [or, the many instead of all the] decorations we can read about. Inside the palace is a central throne supported by lions. For the other buddhas there are thrones held up by elephants, horses, peacocks, and garudas. They are listed in detail in the Karling Shitro. These things are visualized not just to be impressive or to feel magnificent because one is sitting on snow lions, and so on. Each of these animals represents a certain quality with a particular meaning, and, at the same time, each has its own mind poison. Some animals are especially stupid, some are especially hateful, some are very lustful, and so forth. Being supported on a throne by such animals means both that the quality has been realized, and that the flaw or shortcoming has been transmuted. Each of the details in the celestial palace is a symbol for some particular quality that has been realized or transmuted on the path. The Five Buddhas, for example, are the transformations of the five aggregates; the Five Female Buddhas are the five elements; the male bodhisattvas are the eight consciousnesses in their purified form; the eight female bodhisattvas are the objects of those eight consciousnesses. Then there are, also, the six buddhas of the six realms and the gatekeepers, both male and female, in the four directions. According to this 41


tradition, the four male gatekeepers represent the sensation of touch, the consciousness of perceiving texture, the act of doing so, and the organ of perceiving a texture. The four female gatekeepers represent the four concepts of permanence, annihilation, characteristics, and ego, I believe. Each of these features has a different meaning, but these we can learn about from other sources. When we do the actual practice, while chanting the lines, we try to imagine what they mean. When we have come to the point where all the peaceful figures have been visualized on the ground story, they elevate to the top story, leaving the ground floor empty, ready for visualization of the wrathful deities. That is what is meant by the line where it says, "This is the two-storied palace of the peaceful and wrathful ones." The different deities sit in the middle of the four-spoked wheel, which means that on the floor is the design of a wheel with four spokes in the cardinal directions. Exactly in the center is a throne with Samantabhadra and consort. As for the other five buddhas, the one which is generally the central figure sits a little in front, meaning to the east. The further directions are clear enough. The text mentions the Five Buddhas — Vairochana, Akshobhya, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha, and Amoghasiddhi. All are in union and seated upon their respective thrones. Then it says that in the four intermediate directions, on the rim of this wheel, there are not thrones but lotuses with sun and moon seats. Here are the four inner bodhisattvas and four inner offering goddesses — Ksitigarbha & Lasya, Akashagarbha & Mala, Avalokiteshvara & Gita, and Vajrapani & Nirti , who are white, yellow, red and green respectively, also in union. Then it says “in the four corners of the square,” — there is a square around the wheel. Its tips (corners) face in the four cardinal directions, unlike the celestial palace itself. In these corners, also upon lotus and moon seats, are Maitreya and Pushpa to the SE, white/yellow; Nivarana Vishkambhin and Dhupa to the SW, yellow/red; Samantabhadra and Aloka to the NW, red/green; and Manjushri and Gandha to the NE, green/light green. Each deity is complete in the marks and signs, ornamented with silks, jewels and bones, emanating boundless rays of light. In one way you have the three kayas complete as the figures of the deities. Dharmakaya is Samantabhadra and consort. Sambhogakaya is the five male and female buddhas, as well as the eight male and female bodhisattvas. Nirmanakaya is the six buddhas of the six realms standing upon single lotuses, dressed not like 42


ngakpas but like monks, standing up. They are the buddhas who tame sentient beings in each of the six realms. They’re situated in between the wheel and the palace walls, surrounding the central figures, three to the right and three to the left. It says here that at the four gates there are four great wrathful beings. They belong to the mandala of peaceful deities. There are four male and four female gatekeepers, showing the nine expressions of drama, wearing charnel ground ornaments, ablaze in the kalpa-fire. This should make 42 peaceful deities in all. They all elevate to the story above, leaving the center free to be visualized as the palace for the wrathful deities. Now we begin the visualization of the wrathful deities. One should visualize the lower palace as a palace for wrathful deities. Where before on the floor we had a wheel, now there is a huge rock. Actually, this rock is a solid diamond, and it has nicely carved facets. On a flat platform on top is Chemchok Heruka upon a seat composed of a lotus, sun, and moon, while Rudra in consort, the main demon, lies on the seat upon which Heruka is standing. His body is dark blue, with three heads, the central head blue, the right white, and the left red. He holds vajras in his three right hands and skullcups with blood in his three left hands. He’s embracing his consort, Krotishvari. In the center, in front of Chemchok Heruka, is the white Buddha Heruka with consort. He’s the wrathful manifestation of Buddha Vairochana. To the east, further in front of oneself as Chemchok Heruka, is the blue Vajra Heruka, the wrathful manifestation of Akshobhya. To one’s right, to the south, is yellow Ratna Heruka, the wrathful manifestation of Ratnasambhava. Behind oneself to the west is the red Padma Heruka, the wrathful manifestation of Amitabha. To one’s left, to the north, is green Karma Heruka, the wrathful manifestation of Amoghasiddhi. They are posing in the twenty modes of wrath, meaning different expressions of wrathful deities, and are adorned with all the ornaments, both the set called the glorious ornaments and the charnel ground ornaments. Now there are two groups of eight. In the corners and in the protruding places of the four families, meaning around the central diamond platform, are [*end of tape 1}... [fill in the missing] ... a bear, lion, and so forth — terrifying, with various heads and frightening forms. At the four gates are the four female gatekeepers, the annihilators or terminators. They carry out the four activities of summoning, binding, chaining and intoxicating by means of hooks, chains, shackles, and the 43


sound of the bell. Outside the four gates there’s the outer yard, in which reside the 28 Ishvaris, Wangchukma in Tibetan — actually the emanations of the female gatekeepers. Of these there are four sets, possessing the four colors; to the east, seven white ones, to the south seven yellow, to the west seven red and to one’s left, the north, seven green ones. With the colors of their families, indicating the four activities which they carry out, they’re holding their attributes — mainly the four which I mentioned, hooks, lassos, chains, and bells, but they hold other implements as well. Right now we already possess these deities. Their natures are present within the mandala of one’s body, already at this very moment. What we are doing is simply bringing to mind or visualizing what is already present. Each of these 28 Ishvaris has an animal head which is symbolic; each of the animals symbolizes a certain quality. It is not that we should think they have something to do with the animal realms, which are impure manifestations. It is not like that. When we pass away and encounter the vision of the peaceful and wrathful deities, this is exactly what manifests from oneself, what is already present. This is what we’re bringing to mind here by means of the sadhana, all the peaceful and wrathful deities. If they weren’t already present, they could not appear at that time. Also, there are vidyadharas and victorious ones with their sons, the bodhisattvas, as well as countless hosts of dakas, dakinis and Dharma protectors, all of which manifest, filling the phenomenal world full like a sesame pod, totally full. Question: “Are they inside or outside the celestial palace?” Rinpoche: They are everywhere. The celestial palace in Tibetan means the “immeasurable palace.” That means there is no size to this celestial palace; it is beyond measure. At the last two lines, beginning, “Possessing the vajra body, speech, and mind,” one should visualize the essence of vajra body as Buddha Vairochana in one’s forehead, the essence of vajra speech as Buddha Amitabha in one’s throat center, and the essence of vajra mind as Buddha Akshobhya in one’s heart center. Also, one should perform the empowerment of the Five Buddhas as one’s crown. This is called “empowering the deities with deities.” Next follows the invitation. It says, “In the dharmadhatu realm of simplicity which is the dharmakaya buddhafield, from the palace of sambhogakaya, the sambhogakaya buddhafield — peaceful and wrathful buddhas and {unclear}, by the 44


power of your samaya, please come.” VAJRA SAMAYA JAH means that we share the same vajra samaya as the deities. E HAYA HI means “please come quickly.” The JAH HUNG BAM HOH refers to the four immeasurables — immeasurable love, compassion, joy, and equanimity or impartiality. It means, "By means of the hook, lasso, chain and bell, please remain firmly seated." Then it says, KA VA CI, an abbreviation of KAYA VAKA CHITTA, meaning, "body, speech, and mind" — wisdom-vajra — TISHTA meaning “please be seated". The visualization here is called “dagkye”, or “visualization of oneself as the deity". Paying respect to the deities means, first, from the heart center of the central figure, one emanates countless offering goddesses, who then turn back facing oneself and pay homage. The way the offering goddesses pay homage is by saying ATIPU HOH. Then the deities (oneself) respond back PRATICCHA HOH, which is the same as saying, “Namaste.” Next we throw a banquet. The pure forms of deities have no such notions as hunger or thirst, but we usually have habitual concepts of feeling hungry or thirsty. So, in order to purify those, one makes a food offering. Offerings are of three types — outer, inner, and secret. The outer one is the offering cloud of Samantabhadra — here the bodhisattva not the deity in the mandala. He’s taken as an example of someone who can visualize an incredible, immeasurable amount of offerings multiplying. Inner offerings are the sense pleasures, as well as amrita, medicine; and you can also include rakta and torma. Secret offerings are the primordial pure basic space of great bliss, which is the view of primordial purity, of Trekchö. These three outer, inner, and secret offerings we offer to all the peaceful and wrathful deities, and to their retinues. The first line, OM VAJRA ARGHAM PADYAM, etc. is for the outer offerings. The next three lines — MAHA PANCA AMRITA KHARAM KHAHI / OA AH HUNG MAHA RAKTA KHARAM KHAHI / MAHA BALINGTA KHARAM KHAHI — are for the inner offering. MAHA SUKHA GANA PUJA HOH / MAHA DHARMADHATU TANA PUJA HOH — These two lines are for union and liberation (TANA and GANA). MAHA SHUNYATA JNANA PUJA HOH — this third line is for the “thatness offering”, the innermost offering. All the offering goddesses emanated from one’s own heart center, having made offerings to oneself, have now finished making their offering. 45


Now they sing praises to oneself. First, all of you possess the complete 32 major and 18 minor marks of excellence. The marks do not refer to the dharmakaya. Only sambhogakaya or nirmanakaya deities with their visible forms possess these marks.Next, all of you possess the vajra speech which is dharmata’s self-sound, the spontaneous sound of dharmata, unceasing, the king of all expression and all melodies, not like an ordinary voice, interrupted and impermanent. Third, your vajra mind is changeless wisdom, not like our ordinary flow of thoughts and emotions, which fail to continue from one instant to the next, totally fickle and without stability: the vajra mind, changeless wisdom, meaning the enlightened state of mind.In short, we also have inconceivable great qualities and wisdom. That was the praise for the peaceful deities. Then it says that though unstirred — meaning not moving away from the essence of primordial purity itself — while remaining in that state, you appear in wrathful form for those to be tamed. The way to benefit beings in this way is to deliver those who have not been delivered, emancipate those who have not yet reached emancipation, relieve those who have not been relieved, and lead to complete nirvana of buddhahood those who have not reached it. You send out countless emanations and attendants, and re-emanations, and again their emanations. So it says: to you who are compassionate and skilled in the methods of taming beings, I offer this praise. Now we are finished with what is called the development section, andwe come to the recitation of mantra. First, whatever is perceived, all that appears, is the body of the peaceful and wrathful ones; whatever is heard is the sound of mantra; whatever is thought is by itself the cognizance of awareness. The whole universe is filled with presented offerings. You possess the great kindness of carrying out all the activities to benefit beings — pacifying, increasing, magnetizing, and subjugating. This is the spontaneously present mandala, which is not a product of one’s imagination, and which naturally encompasses all the animate and inanimate, the world and beings, samsara and nirvana. The nature of mind of sentient beings is all perfect as one taste of self-existing wakefulness. OM BODHICITTA MAHASUKHA JNANADHATU AH is the mantra of the 42 peaceful ones. OM RULU RULU HUNG BHYOH HUNG is the mantra of the 58 blazing wrathful ones. It says, “Reciting according to one’s ability, 46


maintain the view.” meaning to rest in the view of Trekchö and recite as much as you can. This, in itself, will accomplish all the supreme, as well as the common siddhis. SAMAYA indicates that all deities and oneself share a great samaya. When we recite the mantra, now, in this state, [the meaning here is a little unclear — ed.]the absolute minimum is 108. The more one can do beyond that — 1000, 10,000, 100,000 and so on — only increases the benefit, but one should never do less than 108. While reciting, one should apply what is called the ‘threefold practice of carrying into the path’, which is regarding appearances as deities, sounds as mantra, and thought activity as pure awareness. Now we have finished ten of the fifteen subsections, the five preliminaries and the five of the main part; and now we come to the five aspects of the concluding stages. When we began visualizing the mandala, the visualization took place out of the space of awareness, dharmakaya, in the forms of deities. Now we reverse this process, dissolving the forms of deities back into the space of dharmakaya. The triple HUNG is to dissolve the body, speech and mind of the buddhas. The forms of the deities are already like rainbow light; they appear like rainbows dissolving into space. The sound of the mantra was already an empty resounding, just like an echo or thunder, and now it vanishes in that same way. And awareness is beyond arising, dwelling, and ceasing; it’s the unity of emptiness and cognizance — so simply leave that without application. When it says realization here, it means selfexisting awareness which is unimpeded and wide open. We rest in that without fabrication, and that itself is the mind of Samantabhadra. When you say “AH AH AH,” then everything is dissolved into the space of nonarising. This was the ultimate dissolution phase. If we want to practice the relative dissolution phase, we should first imagine that the celestial palace dissolves into light, and it is absorbed into the surrounding retinue of deities. The retinue again dissolve into light, which is absorbed into the five male and five female buddhas. They again dissolve into the central figure, Samantabhadra with consort. Samantabhadra with consort dissolves into light which is absorbed into the seedsyllable AH. The AH again vanishes like a rainbow into space, the nonarising space of primordial purity. Again one reemerges. Whatever appears is primordially the body of the peaceful and wrathful ones. All sound is the speech of the peaceful and wrathful ones. Our

47


unfabricated mind, awareness, is the mind of the peaceful and wrathful ones. Inseparable, they appear from the mind of Samantabhadra. Question (from translator): "What is the word 'inseparable' doing there?" Rinpoche: It refers to body, speech, and mind being inseparable emptiness and appearance, emptiness and resounding, emptiness and awareness. First, the manifest aspects dissolve into the empty aspect. Now again, from the empty aspect, the manifest appears. That was the ultimate way. According to the relative or ordinary way, one imagines oneself reemerging in the form of Samantabhadra. At the point of reemerging, one does not visualize the surrounding deities; just the single figure of Samantabhadra is sufficient. These two phases, dissolving and emerging, clear away the two basic wrong views of eternalism and nihilism. Dissolving clears the view of eternalism, and reemerging clears the view of nihilism. We have many beliefs and points of view in this world, but they can all be condensed into these two, and we need to be free from these. The last three stanzas are the Dzogchen version of dedicating the merit, making aspirations, and uttering the verses of auspiciousness. Every single aspect of practice, even according to the general teaching, but especially according to Ati Yoga, must be embraced by what is called the threefold purity — which is sutra terminology, but it approaches the view of Trekchö. It means free from the three spheres of concepts — subject, object, and action. All the lower vehicles, including Anu Yoga, exist within the framework of subject, object, and action. It is when transcending into Ati Yoga that there is first no concept. When one does the practice with concepts, one should always seal it at the end. For instance, when taking refuge, one should rest free from the three spheres of concepts, in other words, rest in natural threefold purity. But, realistically, unless one has recognized mind essence, there is no way that one can really do that — since whatever one does or imagines is always threefold impurity, involving the concept of oneself doing the practice, there’s an object one tries to hold in mind, and there’s the act of doing so. When resting in mind essence, then naturally the three spheres of concepts are absent. That is something one should remember with all practices. For example, when taking refuge, first there is the point where one thinks of the object of refuge, there’s oneself and all sentient beings who are the ones taking refuge, and then there’s the attitude of the act of taking refuge — three concepts. But at the end of that one dissolves everything; one gives the practice the 48


seal of threefold purity. The same goes for the practice of bodhichitta and so on, all the way to the end with dedicating the merit, making aspirations, and uttering the phrases of auspiciousness. You see in small print here, “The perfection of all activities is the fruition.” If you look at the front page of the text itself, you will also find the word Las, or activities. The Leyjang means “The Manual for Accomplishing the Activities.” Here at the end, Padmasambhava says that by having gone through this, one will perfect all activities, and that itself is the fruition. There’s also a postscript which says, “Whoever will meet this teaching will be benefitted.” This activity practice, The Manifest Essence — that is the name of the text — the Leyjang which is a practice for accomplishing the activities, is the essence of all other practices; that it’s fully manifest means all other qualities are present in this text. It will spread the heart teachings of Samantabhadra from the end of the dark age to the final time. It is said of the teachings that from the first vehicles up to the Mind Section, they are more and more profound. They’re being spread in that same sequence. It is said that especially at this time, the heart teachings of Samantabhadra, which means Dzogchen, will flourish and spread like wildfire. And for the fortunate ones, the practitioners or disciples in these times, the practice is easy to do and simple to carry out; and one will quickly receive the blessings. The text goes on to say: in order to be meaningful, in order to benefit those who need it, who’ll be able to meet a teaching like this, I, Padma [Guru Rinpoche], composed this excellently [perfectly] by carefully condensing all the tantras of Dzogchen. Yeshe Tsogyal wrote it down with great devotion and concealed it as a profound treasure. May it meet my fortunate son [the tertön] in the future. On meeting him, may this teaching flourish. SAMAYA. Seal of treasure, seal of concealment, seal of profundity. It says at the very end, “I, Chokgyur Dechen Lingpa, took this out from the Cave of the Turquoise Turtle on the southern slope of Namkhadzö in Dokham.” Namkhadzö is the name of a mountain, and Dokham is the district. “I translated it from the yellow parchment [the terma he found] in a place called Orgyen Samten Ling at Rudam Snow Range.” That is the upper or the snow retreat center above Dzogchen Monastery in Kham. The way to chant the sadhana is very simple. You just start at the beginning and go all the way through to the end. There’s nothing that needs to be inserted or taken out. It’s done exactly as is. You can use the Spontaneous Tune of the Yogi, 49


meaning whatever tune you feel like, or you can use the Dzogchen Tune as established by Chokgyur Lingpa himself. [Rinpoche said if we want to hear that, he’ll sing it for us.] There is an additional text which is called the Apology and Mending Practice which can be done when we make feast offering. If we want to make just a very short one [does this mean a feast? — ed.], we can extract the Om Yeshe Kuchog, Supreme Wisdom Body, and so forth. If we want to do the feast offering, it appears in the same text as the Apology and Fulfillment, just after it. The way to combine the Apology and Fulfillment practice and feast offering with this sadhana is to go all the way down to the recitations; after having finished the recitations, we jump to the apology and fulfillment, and after that do the feast offering. Having completed the feast offering, we turn back to the sadhana text, and continue with the dissolution and reemergence, and so on, to the dedication of merit. I forgot to say one thingwhich is that between the apology and fulfillment and before the feast offering, we should put in the particular protector petition of the Kunzang Tuktig called A-Döma, and so forth. Before the lineage prayer, we should insert the Seven Line Vajra Supplication, Orgyen Yülgyi Nubjang Tsam. Then there’s a short or extensive way of doing the lineage prayer. [Rinpoche demonstrates by chanting both.] After having completed a minimum number of 108 recitations, we should amend omissions and duplications by means of chanting the Sanskrit Ali-kali mantra three times. Then by means of the Om Yedharma mantra, which is called the Essence of Causation (rten snying) mantra, stabilize the blessings. If we know the general four-lined Nyingma offering praise, we can do that. Otherwise, we can repeat the four lines for offerings from the sadhana, as well as the Sanskrit mantra, and the two times four lines, or four praises. After that, to confess mistakes, one repeats the hundred-syllable mantra three times. This is just how the yogi song was. [Rinpoche sings it.] Also, it’s very good if you can have a vajra and bell. Actually, you should have a vajra and bell so that you can ring it at the right places; you can learn where to ring the bell. Also, the vajra and bell itself is the complete manifestation of all the mandalas of deities, so to have a vajra and bell is very good. It would be good if you could sing the tune. There’s a quote that says if we don’t reflect the melodious tune of Saranath[?], then the three great ones will vanish — meaning the three great views. It’s good to keep the 50


tradition. We don’t have to think that the tune of the sadhana is only made up to entice fickle-minded people into doing sadhana practice. That is not the reason for the tune. It is something very excellent. But on the other hand, if we don’t have any gift for song, then we can also just sing it straight without much tune. It is not indispensable. Also, if we can sound the musical instruments, that will increase the blessings. It is not a heretical or non-Buddhist view, as with the Hindus, to make music. Also, we don’t need to despair if we don’t have a real shrine with an external mandala, where we arrange all the appropriate tormas and shrine articles. We don’t have to be very sad if we don’t have those things or think that we cannot practice a sadhana without them. The special quality of this teaching is that it is not contained in the surrounding environment but in one’s own mind, within one’s own body, that the deities are within one’s own mind and body. There are two types of offerings — there are those we can put on the shrine; but then there are also the mentally created ones. We can imagine that whatever we hear, smell, taste, or touch, all types of sense objects, are offerings. Thus, a whole field of experience becomes an act of offering to the deities intrinsic to oneself. That belongs to the mental offerings. Another point is that even if we don’t have the shrine mandala of the deities, we do have the deities within ourselves. Essentially, the empty and cognizant qualities of the nature of mind are, by themselves, the nature of Samantabhadra and consort. All the other deities in the mandala are their functions or expressions in various ways. One never lacks the shrine with the deities, as it’s always continuously present. There’s a traditional way of doing sadhana practice which is called Kunzang Döngyi Trinley, the Ultimate Sadhana of Samantabhadra, where one simply chants the text while remaining in rigpa, in awareness. Then, automatically, all the different aspects of the sadhana are perfected, all the offerings, and so forth. It is said traditionally that the Vajrayana teachings are especially exalted because they have many methods, they present minor difficulty, they suit people with sharp faculties, and so forth. Also, when one gets into the higher yanas, there are mandalas which are spontaneously perfected without being created, without even having to be visualized. I forgot to mention before that the three aspects of appearances as deities, sounds as mantra, and thoughts as awareness are not present in the lower vehicles, even in Mahayana.

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The basis for all practice is recognizing mind essence. There is a statement that if emptiness is all right, everything is all right. If emptiness is not all right, nothing is all right. Everything can be condensed into simply that, recognizing mind essence. Maybe this is enough for today. I will not mention much about Trekchö and Tögal today because that should be given in the right context. If you are diligent and practice this sadhana, then for sure I will give these teachings later on. There is a terma by Chokgyur Lingpa belonging to Kunzang Tuktig with very clear teachings on Trekchö and Tögal, and there’s a commentary on that, both by the disciple of Chokgyur Lingpa, Karmey Khenpo Rinchen Dargye, as well as another commentary by His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse. Slowly we will get to this. The reason why I am not passing them on as if it were a reading transmission is that Trekchö and Tögal transmissions cannot be given in that way. They should be passed on to the student who has the proper foundation of the preliminaries, as well as the main part of practice, the main yidam practice. Later on, if you will be happy to be diligent in practice, I'll be happy to explain as much as I can. But on the other hand, Trekchö is something you already have received. It’s simply the practice of recognizing and resting in mind essence. Tögal is the source from which deities manifest and can be perceived — it’s simply that. Trekchö according to Kunzang Tuktig is not some other kind of Trekchö than what we’ve already received. It is said according to the literal meaning of Trekchö and Tögal (Cutting Through and Direct Crossing) that if one does not cut through, one will not be able to cross directly. In other words, without having a firm foundation in the practice of Trekchö, then one will not cross very far; one will effect only a short crossing. Translated at Nagi Gompa according to the oral instructions of Kyabje Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, by Erik Pema Kunsang, 1989. Edited by Michael Tweed, Bill Karelis & Erik again in April, 1994. © Rangjung Yeshe Translations & Publications. 1996 P.O. Box 1200 Kathmandu, Nepal

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