Buddha-body of Perfect Resource longs-spyod rdzogs-pa’i sku, Skt. sambhogakāya
The Buddha-body of Perfect Resource refers to the luminous, immaterial, and unimpeded reflection-like forms of the pure energy of enlightened mind, exemplified in the case of our text by the assembly of the forty-two peaceful deities and the fifty-eight wrathful deities (see Appendix Two), which become spontaneously present (lhun-grub) and naturally manifest (rang-snang) at very high levels of realisation, that is to say at the point at which the duality between subject and object dissolves. The intermediate state of reality (chos-nyid bar-do) is considered to be an optimum time for the realisation of the Buddha-body of Perfect Resource.
Buddha-body ofReality chos-sku, Skt. dharmakāya
The Buddha-body of Reality is the ultimate nature or essence of the enlightened mind, which is uncreated (skye-med), free from the limits of conceptual elaboration (spros-pa’i mtha’-bral ), empty of inherent existence (rang-bzhin-gyis stong-pa), naturally radiant, beyond duality and spacious like the sky. The intermediate state of the time of death (’chi-kha’i bar-do) is considered to be an optimum time for the realisation of the Buddha-body of Reality.
Buddha Family de-bzhin gshegs-pa’i rigs, Skt. tathāgatakula
One of the five enlightened families (pañcakula) into which the meditational deities of the Buddha-body of Perfect Resource are subdivided. The deities of the Buddha family include the peaceful aspects Vairocana and Dhātvῑśvarῑ and the corresponding wrathful aspects Buddha Heruka and Buddhakrodheśvarῑ. See Appendix Two.
Buddha Field zhings-khams, Skt. [buddha]kṣetra
The operational fields or ‘paradises’ presided over by specific buddhas, which spontaneously arise as a result of their altruistic aspirations, are known as buddha fields. Such environments are totally free from suffering, both physical and mental, and they transcend the mundane god realms (devaloka) inhabited by sentient beings of the world-systems of desire, form, and formlessness. It is said that when sentient beings who have not yet been permanently released from the bondage of cyclic existence have an affinity with a specific buddha and are consequently born into a respective pure realm, they become temporarily free not only from manifest sufferings of the body and mind but also from the pervasive sufferings of past conditioning. Such fields or pure realms are regarded as conducive to the continuing cultivation of the path to buddhahood.
Buiddhahood sangs-rgyas nyid / sangs-rgyas-kyi go-phang, Skt. buddhatva/ buddhapada
The attainment of a buddha, who has not only gained total freedom from karmically conditioned existence and overcome all the tendencies imprinted on the mind as a result of a long association with dissonant mental states, but also fully realised or manifested all aspects of buddha-body, buddha-speech, buddha-ind, buddha-attributes and buddha-actvities.
Buddha-mind thugs, Skt. citta
The term buddha-mind is synonymous with pristine cognition ( jñāna), five modes of which are differentiated. See Pristine Cognition. In the particular literature of the Nyingma school, these five modes are distinctively known as manifest enlightenment (mngon-byang-gi thugs), indivisible indestructible reality (mi-phyed rdo-rje’i thugs), great sameness (mnyam-pa chen-po’i thugs), great non-discursiveness (mi-rtog chen-po’i thugs), and liberator of sentient beings (’gro-ba’i sgrol-ba’i thugs).
Buddha Nature rigs, Skt. gotra
The seed of enlightenment inherent within the mental continuum of all sentient beings. It is this potential which makes it possible for every individual to realise the ultimate nature, given the application of appropriate methods. The notion of buddha nature is intimately linked with the Buddhist concept of the essential nature of mind, which according to Buddhism is considered to be pure, knowing and luminous. Dissonant mental states such as attaahment, aversion and jealousy, which perpetually afflict our mind and give rise to suffering, are not the essential elements of our mind but adventitious and conditioned tendencies. Moreover, these dissonant states are all rooted in an ignorant state of mind which misapprehends the true nature of reality. Hence, through gaining genuine insights into the true nature of reality, misconceptions can be dispelled, thus cutting the root of all our dissonant mental states and allowing the buddha-nature within to manifest. The term ‘nucleus of the tathāgata’ (tathāgatagarbha) is a synonym for this essence of buddhahood.
Buddha-speech gsung, Skt. vāk
The speech of the buddhas is, according to Nyingma literature, said to have five aspects in that the buddhas may communicate through 1) uncreated meaning (skye-med don-gi gsung), 2) enlightened intention and symbols (dgongs-pa brda’i gsung), 3) expressive words (brjod-pa tshig-gi gsung), 4) indivisible reality (dbyer-med rdo-rje’i gsung), and 5 ) the blessings of awareness (rig-pa byin-labs-kyi gsung). See Buddha Attributes and Mantra.
Burnt Offerings sbying-sreg, Skt. homa
A tantric ritualin which many substances, such as wheat, sesame seeds, and mustard, etc., are burnt as offerings in a fire lit on a specifically designed hearth. There are different types of burnt-offering rituals corresponding to the enactment of the four rites related to the four aspecs of enlightened activity: pacification, enrichment, subjugation and wrath.
Calm Abiding zhi-gnas, Skt. śamatha
Calm abiding is a meditative technique common to the entire Buddhist tradition, characterised by a stabilisation of attention on an internal object of observation conjoined with the calming of external distractions to the mind. Calm abiding is an essential basis for training one’s mind in the generation of penetratrative insight (vipaśyana), a true analytical insight into the more profound aspects of a chosen object, such as its emptiness or ultimate nature.
Camaradvipa rnga-yab gling
The subcontinent Cāmaradvῑpa is particularly associated, in Nyingma literature, with the Copper-oloured Moutain of Padmasambhava. See Four Continents and Eight Subcontinents.
Caryatantra spyod-pa’i rgyud
See Ubhayatantra.
Causal Vehicles rgyu mtshan-nyid-kyi theg-pa
See Vehicle.
Cause and Efffect rgyu-’bras, Skt. hetuphala
In the context of Buddhist philosophy the term refers to the natural law that exists between a cause and its effect. Some of the principal features of the law are: 1) nothing evolves uncaused; 2) any entity which itself lacks a process of change cannot cause any other event; and 3) only causes which possess natures that accord with specific effects can lead to those effects. The term ‘cause and effect’ is often used to translate the Sanskrit word karma, which literally means ‘action’. See Past Actions.
Celestial Palace gzhal-yas-khang, Skt. vimāna
See Maṇḍala.
Central Channel rtsa dbu-ma, Skt. avadhūti See Energy Channels.
Chang-bu Offerings chang-bu, Skt. piṇḍa
Finger-pressed strands of dough, which are made as offerings to assuage anuished spirits and to appease negative forces.
Channel Branch rtsa-’dab
According to the tantras and related medical traditions, there are five energy centres located along the central channel of the body at the focal points of the crown, throat, heart, navel and genitalia. A specific number of channel branches (rtsa-‘dab) emerges from each of these energy centres, and these in turn conduct vital energy throughout the body through a network of 72,000 minor channels. See Energy Channels.
Channel of Pristine Cognition ye-shes-kyi dhūti
According to the tantras, the channel of pristine cognition is a synonym for the central channel of the body. See Vital Energy
Chiliocosm stong dang-po ’jig-rten-gyi khams, Skt. sahasralokadhātu
According to traditional Indian Buddhist cosmology, the world of the four continents surrounding Mount Sumeru when multiplied one thousand times forms a chiliocosm of parallel worlds (stong dang-po). The chiliocosm when multiplied one thousand times forms a larger dichiliocosm (stong gnyis-pa), which in turn when multiplied one thousand times forms an even larger trichili
ocosm (stong gsum-pa). This evolution of expanding worlds continues to enlarge incrementally until the inconceivably vast number of multiple worlds is reached, in which a single supreme Buddha-body of Emanation is said to function simultaneously.
Citipati dur-khrod bdag-po bdag-mo
The Citipati are a pair of male and female acolytes of Yama, lord of death, who are depicted as two skeletons in dancing posture, symbolising the rites of the charnel ground.
Cittamatra sems-tsam-pa
One of the four major Buddhist philosophical schools of ancient India, also known as Vijñānavāda, and associated in some respects with the Yogācāra tradition. The Cittamātra (lit. ‘mind only’) school founded by the fourth-century Indian master Asaṅga propounds an idealist or phenomenalistic view of the world. Its main tenet is that all phenomena are either actual mental events or extensions of the mind and the mind is regarded as existing as a substantially real entity. In addition, the school propounds that there exists no atomically composed material world external to, or independent of, our perceptions. According to the Cittamātra school consciousness itself is considered to be eightfold, with the ground-of-all consciousness as the foundation. See Aggregate of Consciousness.
Cittamatrin sems rtsam-pa-po
A follower of the Cittamātra school.
Cvaṃcivaka shang-shang
A mythical creature with the head, arms, and torso of a human being, and the wings and legs of a bird. The throne of the male uddha Amoghasiddhi assumes the form of a cῑvaṃcῑvaka bird.
Coemergent Delight lhan-cig skyes-pa’i dga’-ba, Skt. sahajasukha/sahajānanda
The coemergent delight is one of the four delights (dga’-ba bzhi) experienced during the perfection stage (sampannakrama) of meditation. See Four Delights. It is said that the coemergent delight is also naturally experienced at the moment of death (see Chapter 8) and at the moment of conception (see Chapter 11).
Coemergent Ignorance lhan-cig-skyes-pa’i ma-rig-pa, Skt. sahajāvidyā
See Fundamental Ignorance.
Coemergent Pristine Cognition lhan-skyes ye-shes, Skt. sahajajñāna
The natural emergence of pristine cognition that occurs during the perfection stage of meditation, when vital energy is absorbed within the central channel of the subtle body.
Commitement dam-tshig, Skt. samaya
A sacred commitment or pledge taken by a practitioner which is a prerequisite for the practice of the tantras. The Tibetan ‘dam-tshig’ literally means ‘binding word’, indicating that the person becomes bound by a solemn oath. Each class of tantra has its own categorisation of basic and ancillary commitments, which complement the prātimokṣa and bodhisattva vows taken by those who uphold the vinaya and the sūtra tradition of the Greater Vehicule respectively. See Vows. Samaya may entail the observation of specific precepts which are common to a whole class of tantra, or individual precepts, which must be observed in relation to a particular meditational deity. When such commitments are broken they must be restored through appropriate tantric ritual practices, for their degeneration may cause serious hindrances to progress on the path. See Chapter 7.
Commitments of Indestructible Reality rdo-rje dam-tshig, Skt. vajrasamaya
A synonym for the commitments in general which are undertaken in the context of the Vehicle of Indestructible Reality(Vajrayāna).
Commitments Undertaken in Respect of Reality de-kho-na-nyid-kyi dam-tshig
A synonym for the four commitments specific to the practice of Atiyoga.
Compassion snying-rje/thugs-rje, Skt. karunā
In Buddhist literature, the term ‘compassion’ is often used as a synonym for ‘great compassion’ (mahākarunā), which refers to a totally unbiased mind that aspires to the liberation of all sentient beings from suffering, equally. Compassion is said to become ‘great’ only when, through proper training of the mind, such an altruistic aspiration becomes spontaneous and no longer requires any conscious effort for its arising. The measure of having realised such a state is that one spontaneously feels a sense of intimacy and compassion towards all others, with the same degree of commitment and intensity that one feels towards one’s most beloved. It is worth bearing in mind that in Buddhism, compassion should not be understood in terms of pity, which may imply a feeling of superiority toward the object of compassion.
Conceptual Elaboration spros-pa, Skt. prapañca
Conceptual elaboration refers to the presence of discursive or conceptual thought processes, the absence of which (Skt. nisprapañca, Tib. spros-bral) is characteristic of the realisation of emptiness or actual reality.
Confession of Negativity sdig-pa’i gshags-pa, Skt. pāpadeśanā
A spiritual practice which involves the disclosure and purification of accumulated negative actions. The successful application of confession must be undertaken within the framework of what are known as the four antidotal powers. For an explanation of these see the introductory context to Chapter 7.
Conqueror rgyal-ba, Skt. jina
In Buddhist literature, this term is an epithet for a buddha, indicating the victory attained by a buddha over cyclic existence (samsāra). In particular in the context of this book, the Buddha-body of Perfect Resource in the maṇdala of the Peacefuland Wrathful Deities is described as represented by the ‘five enlightened families of the conquerors’ (rgyal-ba rigs-lnga), where the five male buddhas, in both peaceful and wrathful forms, are known as the five conquerors. Vajradhara, an aspect of the primordial buddha Samantabhadra, who represents the Buddha-body of Reality, is also known as the ‘sixth conqueror’ (rgyal-ba drug-pa) or ‘lord of the sixth enlightened family’. More generally, in its Tibetan form, this same epithet is frequently used as an honorific title before the names of highly venerated beings, e.g. Gyalwa Yizhin Norbu (for HH the Dalai Lama), or Gyalwa Karmapa.
Consciousness rnam-par shes-pa, Skt. vijñāna
In Buddhism, consciousness is defined as ‘an awareness which is knowing and luminous’. It is not physical and thus lacks any resistance to obstruction. It has neither shape nor colour; it can be experienced but not externally perceived as an object. In short, it includes both the conscious cognitive events and the subconscious aspects of the mind through which we know and perceive the world, as well as the emotions. A distinction is made between the mundane consciousness (vijñāna) of sentient beings, and the pristine cognition (jñāna) of the buddhas. See Pristine Cognition and Aggregate of Consciousness.
Consciousness Transference ’pho-ba, Skt. samkrānti
A unique tantric practice undertaken to transfer the consciousness at the time of death, ideally to the unconditioned state of the realisation of the Buddha-body of Reality, or to a realm of existence with a favourable migration, ideally the pure realm of a meditational deity. See Chapter 10.
Continuum of the Ground gzhi’i rgyud, Skt. āśrayatantra
The continuum of the ground is identified with the primordially present intrinsic awareness, and the actual reality or emptiness, which is in harmony with the fruitional aspects of buddhahood. According to the tantras, the continuum of the ground (gzhi’i rgyud) is the basis through which the continuum of the path (lam-gyi rgyud) fully manifests as the continuum of the result (’bras-bu’i rgyud).
Continuum of the Path lam-gyi rgyud, Skt. mārgatantra
According to the tantras, the continuum of the path is the means through which the continuum of the ground (gzhi’i rgyud) becomes fully manifest as the continuum of the result (’bras-bu’i rgyud).
Continuum of the Result ’bras-bu’i rgyud, Skt. phalatantra
According to the tantras, the continuum of the result is the fruition or conclusion attained when the continuum of the ground (gzhi’i rgyud) becomes fully manifest through the continuum of the path (lam-gyi rgyud).
Copper-coloured Mountain zangs-mdog dpal-ri, Skt. Tāmraśrῑparvata
A sacred abode located on the subcontinent Cāmaradvῑpa (rnga-yab gling), where Padmasambhava is said to currently reside in an
awesome rainbow-light form.
Core-penetrating zang-thal
See Ascending and Core-penetrating.
Cutting through Resistance khregs-chod
According to the pith or esoteric instructions (man-ngag-gi sde) of the Great Perfection (Atiyoga) there are two meditative techniques, which are engaged in successively. The first, Cutting through Resistance (khregs-chod) focuses on the recognition of primordial purity (ka-dag), the nature of awareness (rig-pa), through which the Buddha-body of Reality is attained. The second, All-surpassing Realisation (thod-rgal ), focuses on the recognition of spontaneous presence (lhun-grub), eliciting and recognising the radiances of pristine cognition and the purity of our psycho-physical aggregates and elements, through which the rainbow-like Buddha-body of Form is attained. In All-surpassing Realisation practice, once a stable realisation of the nature of awareness has been attained through Cutting through Resistance, all phenomenal appearances are liberated through a spontaneous realisation of their essential modality as inner radiance. Cutting through Resistance is the subject matter of Chapter 4 of the present work. The introduction to the intermediate state of reality, in Chapter 11 of our text, is illustrative of the esoteric instructions on All-surpassing Realisation, which is the pinnacle of meditative practice according to the Nyingma school.
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