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Eight Early Tantras of The Great Perfection An Elixir of Ambrosia Compress
Eight Early Tantras of The Great Perfection An Elixir of Ambrosia Compress
An Elixir of Ambrosia
Translated by
Christopher Wilkinson
Photograph of butter lamp on cover by Christopher Wilkinson.
ISBN: 1535406585
ISBN-13: 978-1535406581
DEDICATION
This is for all the teachers and students of the Great Perfection.
Also Translated By Christopher Wilkinson
Great Perfection Series:
The Royal Tantra on the Brilliant Diffusion of i\Iajestic Space
The Secret Tantras of the Fish \Vheel and the Nine Spaces:
Two .\ncient Scriptures of the Great Perfection
Secret Sky:
The .\ncient Tantras on \'ajrasattva's ;\fagnificent Sky
Beyond Secret:
The Upadesha of\' airochana on the Practice of the Great Perfection
Secret Wisdom:
Three Root Tantras of the Great Perfection
.-\cknowledgments
Introduction w
6 .-\ Tantra on the Bodhicitta: Grabbing the Peacock by the Neck 127
8 The Tantra on the Self-Liberation ofSamsara for the Unmoving One 183
.-\ Tantra on the Bodhicitta: Grabbing the Peacock by the Neck 261
The Tantra on the Self-Liberation of Samsara for the Unmoving One 279
First and foremost, I wish to thank my root teacher Dezhung Rinpoche for
constantly bringing out the best in me and encouraging me to pursue a
comprehension of every branch of Buddhist learning. It was he who
introduced me to Dilgo Kyentse Rinpoche, and through his
recommendations enabled me to receive full empowerments, transmissions,
and permissions in the areas of Maha, Anu, and Ati Yogas. With the highest
regard I wish to thank Dilgo Kyentse Rinpoche, Khetsun Zangpo
Rinpoche, Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche, and Khenpo Palden Sherab for their
kind instruction and encouragement in my effort to translate the literature
of the rDzogs chen. There are many individuals, too many to name here,
that have helped me over the years to become a qualified translator, in
many ways. At this time I want to remember the kindness of Ngawang
Kunga Trinlay Sakyapa, Jigdral Dagchen Sakya Rinpoche, Dhongthog
Rinpoche, H.H. Karmapa Rangjung Rigpay Dorje, Kalu Rinpoche,
Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche, Geshe Ngawang Nomang, Carl Potter, David
Ruegg, Turrell Wylie, Gene Smith, Karen Lang, Richard Solomon, Jack
Hawley, David Jackson, Cyrus Steams, Herbert Guenther, Eva Neumeier-
Dargyay, Leslie Kawamura, Robert Thurman, Paul Nietupski, Lou
Lancaster, David Snellgrove, Jean-Luc Achard, Steve Landsberg, Tsultrim
Alione, Carolyn Klein, Rob Mayer, Jonathan Silk, David White, and Mark
Tatz. I want to make special thanks to Marcos Gonzalez Pardo for proofing
the manuscript. I also want to make a very special thanks to Robert J.
Barnhart for his ongoing and truly generous support. The Dzogchen
Translation Group, led by Jackson Peterson, has been also been an ongoing
source of encouragement and support, and it was that group that largely
sponsored the translations in this collection. The many people who have
contributed to my understanding and ability to do this work cannot be
counted. I wish to thank everyone that has taken a kind interest in these
translations, however slight, for your part in making this work a reality.
Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
INTRODUCTION
In this book I offer you translations of eight seminal Tantras that are
preserved in the Nyingma Gyubum. The first book herein, The Great
Tantra that is Unwritten, is one of a set of seventeen famous Tantras
known as the Upadesa Instruction Section (Man ngag sde). In addition,
readers who are interested in feminine presentations of enlightenment will
find many books of interest within this volume. The Vajra Yogini Tantra,
the Tantra on the Undisturbed Arali, and the Tantra of the Goddess Light
Rays (Marici) are specifically devoted to the concerns of dakinis and
goddesses, while the Tantra on the One-Pointed Samadhi of Avalokitesvara
represents the questions of the dakini Sun Garland and the Tantra on the
Self-Liberation of Samsara for the Unmoving One represents the questions
of the dakini Lightening Garland. The Tantra on the Flawless Jewel and the
Tantra on the Bodhicitta: Grabbing the Peacock by the Neck both
represent profound and insightful instructions on the experience of
enlightened awareness.
Christopher Wilkinson
August, 2016
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THE MAJESTIC TANTRA THAT IS UNWRITTEN
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
A·
I bow to the Blessed One,
The One Who Reveals the Vision of his Body in its Vastness.
EMa!
Listen,
0 Entourage of Holy Visionaries!
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A
On one occasion I heard these words:
Kye Ma!
Master of Awareness,
Listen!
Then, again, from out of that invisible space, the awareness that has no
teacher gives instructions:
Iy,e Ma!
Iy,e Ma!
0 Entourage of Visionaries who Seem to be Non-Existent,
Listen well!
Iy,e Ma!
I have no life within self-originating wisdom,
So I am beyond the limitations of virtue and evil.
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A Ho!
I have no work or task that comes out of this self-originating wisdom,
So I am beyond both external objects and an internal mind.
EMaHo!
I do not move from the base of self-originating wisdom,
So I cut through any ideas about its appearance.
AA!
I have no joining with or separation from self-originating wisdom,
So my body is actually self-appearing.
Ha Ha!
I am beyond the limitations
Of seeing or envisioning self-originating wisdom,
So I am beyond all objectives.
EHti!
I do not calculate self-originating wisdom,
So I am beyond taking things in and holding onto them.
AAe!
I am beyond both external and internal
With regard to self-originating wisdom,
So I am truly beyond both faults and virtues.
EMa!
I am primordially cleansed
From any delusions regarding self-originating wisdom,
So I do not go beyond the extremes of being and non-being.
Ha Hae!
I have no Dharma regarding self-originating wisdom,
So I am beyond any methods.
A He!
I have not created any cause for self-originating wisdom,
So I am beyond any knowledge.
EMaHo!
I do not reject either emptiness or appearance,
So I am perfect.
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~ye Ala!
I ha,·e no birth or death,
So I have completely perfected
1be Dharma of cessation.
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I have no rival.
I am victorious over everyone.
I have no word that contrives me.
I am superior to everyone.
I have no objects to look at.
I pervade everything.
I have no crevasses.
I beam out through all things.
I have no objects of delusion.
I am a majestic appearance.
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ls my own heart.
It illuminates everything,
So the appearance of delusion
ls my own body.
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[0eMa!
If we delight in the rites of killing and sacrificing,
A majestic illumination will be shining.
If we emancipate all living beings,
We will meet with the mother of self-illwnination.
If we cut through cause and result at the root,
We will purify the six causes and the three effulgencies.
1
Lu gu rgyud
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
From the Very Secret Tantra of the Unwritten, this is chapter one: The
Basic Scene.
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Then the true nature of our awareness enters into the equanimity of a
contemplation of clarity in which nothing whatever is hindered.
Then the master, who appears as if he were non-existent, addresses it
with these words:
}0'e Ma!
Please speak on the majestic purity of the illumination of the body of
the awareness, the majestic dwelling place for the contemplations on the
awareness used by the most perfect Buddha.
Then the awareness of the way things are gives instruction to the
entourage who have the methods to appear there:
~ye Ma!
0 Entourage that Appears \Vithout Having Any Cause to Appear,
Listen!
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EMaHo!
This is a majestic contemplation that is very secret,
So we must dwell within the thusness
Of our own way of sitting.
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Furthermore,
0 Child of Good Family,
This is beyond any big city.
You must live in the solitude of the majestic space of the forest.
You must be free from both outer and inner works.
Furthermore,
You must understand these things:
EMaHo!
The practices of the majestic Buddhas
Do not move away from these four ways of letting ourselves be content.
I teach that there is no other way for Buddhahood to appear.
_,1 A!
The view by which a mountain is content
Is truly secret.
We do not have any doubts.
We are inherently unchanging.
Moreover,
This is totally obvious when we are in the state of being the sky.
This awareness that is the essence of our purpose
\'Vas not created.
\\'here would there be anyone who is its creator?
It is not contrived.
There is no one who ordained it.
It is not a view.
It is beyond the Dharmas that make up views.
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It is not a vision.
It is completely clear of things that make us see.
It is not an illuminator.
It is beyond the positions of things that are illuminated.
It is not written.
It pervades the ten directions without impediment.
It is not a quest.
It is beyond the Dharmas of searching and practice.
It is not singular.
It is beyond the Dharmas of plurality.
It has no outside or inside,
So it is transparent and has no inside or outside.
EAe!
As for the contemplation in which the ocean is content,
It is not something that appears.
It is not something that makes things appear.
It is not empty.
It is not something that exists as emptiness.
It is not a clarity.
It is a country of majestic clarity.
It is not a depression.
It is inherently without wildness.
It does not move.
It has not moved.
It will not move.
It is unshakable.
It does not shake.
It is beyond all shaking.
It was not brought forth by any creator.
It is a view that is a majestic means of settling ourselves.
It does not expand or contract.
It is the state of a unified contentment.
It is not something that remains anywhere,
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OAo!
These are the upadesa instructions for the contentment of our
awareness:
2
Lu gu rgyud
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UO!
As for the magnificent method of letting appearances be naked,
It is the basis for every majestic appearance.
It resembles the Buddhas of the five elements.
The five great ones are, in fact,
Obvious in the appearance of our mother.
Come into the majestic non-grasping
That is in the state of non-distraction!
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Then from out of the unchanging space of the awareness, the palace
that is ornamented by reality, the magnificent embodiment of awareness,
which is an unchanging wisdom, utters these words:
EMa Ho!
This country that is a majestic total purity of natural appearance
Is blazing in its clarity,
So the palace of our body dwells within the unchanging.
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EMaHo!
The Secret Mantra itself abides
Within the Secret Mantra itself.
Through wisdom itself,
We transform into a majestic wisdom.
All reality appears to be centers and peripheries.
Kye Ma!
Secret awareness is accompanied by light,
So please reveal to us the vision of transparency.
F;ye Ma!
0 Entourage Who Are Visible,
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Listen carefully!
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E Ala /-lo!
The pair of Buddhas and sentient beings
Have never experienced separation in the past.
It is impossible that they be separated in the present.
'111ey will not be separated in the future.
For these reasons,
'There are no delusions in the scriptures.
Delusions appear in the upadesa instructions.
So it is said.
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E Ma Ho!
Contemplate this!
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F;ye F;ye!
The illumination of our bodies is unhindered.
The playfulness of our speech
May teach anything at all.
The works of our hearts
Do not exist anywhere.
The deeds and actions of our awareness are not hindered.
The ideas in our minds are multitudinous.
From the great secret that is the Tantra that is Unwritten, this is chapter
three: Revealing the Uncreated Dharma to the Awareness That Is Not
Deluded.
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Then again the awareness, which is not created by any cause, gives
instruction to the All Good Mother, who is of an uncreated transmission.
At this time, we use the method of unhindered illumination to listen:
~ye K;-e!
The visible lineage is endowed with a majestic wisdom.
It is beyond any visualization.
The embodiment of the lineage of the vajra lamb
Is an inestimable majestic illumination.
The body,
The circle,
The embodiment of the half-circle,
The wisdom,
The embodiment of wisdom as form,
The light,
The beaming out and reconvening of the light,
The flickering that has no breath,
The multitude of things that have no minds,
And the body that has no life,
Are gathered here.
It has a fence,
Which was not built.
It has a circumference,
That is not drawn out.
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It has a country,
That has not been surveyed.
It has an illumination,
That has not been organized.
Further,
We are present where our dominion and our awareness
Are neither joined with nor parted from.
This is the majestic appearance
Of a land we do not visualize.
It is lacking in any areas of filth,
And from this essence
Our cause is awakening.
Our condition is purity.
Our objectivity is unhindered.
We are self-liberated,
And are together with our own essence.
[0eMa!
Through our illumination,
Inconceivable numbers of bodies appear.
We are whole within a space in which
We do not abandon the conventionality of plurality.
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As for me,
I have brilliantly gone beyond the creator himself.
From the Tantra that is Unwritten and is a great secret, this is chapter
four: The Ultimate Illumination.
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Then again from out of the pure space where there are no objects,
which is inclusive of the inconceivable number of heaps that do appear, the
awareness of methods gives instruction to the knowledge of power, and
because the pure sky is not in balance, it listens very well:
J<;ye!
There are no writings on the way to exemplify this illumination.
It is beyond all words.
It is inherently lacking in anything to be said.
It is inherently lacking in any differential demarcations.
There is no object.
There is no mind.
There are no writings.
For these reasons,
There is no Tantra.
There is no transmission.
There are not any upadesa instructions.
This is beyond all words.
It is empty of having anything to say.
EMa Hof
The appearance of the Dhanna
Is lacking any Ka. 1
I do not have any letters.
I do not have any birth.
From the beginning,
I have not had the letter A.
I have no abode that would be obstructed.
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An Elixir of Ambrosia
EMa Ho!
The reality of being unwritten is pure.
Any designation for either the causes or the impacts of letters
Does not exist.
I brilliantly teach that the causes for the letters are multitudinous,
So letters in themselves are meaningless.
There are not any meanings in the letters.
I do not work toward there being any causes or conditions for letters.
From the beginning,
The three bodies are self-perfecting,
So I do not depend on bunches of letters.
The Tantras, transmissions, and even the upadesa instructions
Do depend on bunches of letters,
So the Tantras and transmissions are obstructing me.
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To begin with,
In a great ground of bondage
We do not find any enlightenment through words.
I am not to be characterized by writings.
From the great secret that is the Tantra that is Unwritten, this is chapter
five: Revealing the Grounds for Deviation There Are in Words about the
Great Perfection.
6
The number of letters in the Sanskrit alphabet.
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
Then again our awareness of reality that is neither joined with nor parted
from rises up from the great illumination that is the illumination of natural
clarity, and gives instruction to the All Good One, the continuum of
illumination:
Kye Kye!
Brilliantly abandon
All your signs,
Letters,
And conventionalities!
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E Ma!
.Appearances that have no substance arc most amazing,
But they are obstructed by the five gross elements.
This cannot be made evident by those who lack the transmission.
lbc essence of self-evident awareness is spontaneously bedazzling.
It is obscured by our subtle emotional problems,
So we cannot make it permanent.
Further,
It is difficult to apprehend the essence of our awareness.
We will succeed by relaxing with the effulgence of wisdom.
The dominion of the awareness is unchanging,
But we will succeed when we have exhausted
'Ibc conditions there are
For the force of our awareness.
1be true nature of the awareness encompasses all things,
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
From the great secret of the Tantra that is Unwritten, this is chapter six:
Revealing the Testament of the Great Perfection.
The awareness of the way things are says to the entourage that has
methods to give:
37
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
0 Teacher,
Vajradhara,
Please teach us,
We being the five kinds of dakinis,
Along with our entourages,
The correct meaning of the inspiration of the circle. 7
The female Bodhisattvas who are the cause must make a frnal settlement
with the male Bodhisattvas who are their results. There will come a time
when the holy Dharma will come up like the rising of the sun, then the
totality of the holy Dharma will fail, and it will no longer be visible. At that
time there will be what is called: "The eon of visible darkness." Then my
teachings will take the victory, and the teachings of Sakyamuni will fail. At
that point, the holy Tantras will be spread, but even after they have been
translated, they will be taken as pathways that are to be possessed, and will
become things that are from the past.
So did Vajrasattva give instruction.
From the Vajrayogini Tantra, this is chapter one: The Basic Scene.
7
Thig le
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So he spoke.
From the Vajrayogini Tantra, this is chapter two: Revealing the Base.
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Blessed One,
Vajrasattva,
The clear light that is delusion regarding the circle
Is not understood to be anything but the barren wind,
So we are confused.
How is it with the lusts of sentient beings?
So he asked.
Again he proclaimed:
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Due to these things there appear the great winds of lust and hatred.
The five kinds of lust and hatred also emerge from the A.
It is the supreme cause for everything that we may talk about.
So he spoke.
From the Vajrayogini Tantra, this is chapter three: Being Deluded into
Being the Six Classes of Living Beings.
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This is chapter four: Recognition of the All Good One that is a Result.
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Recognition
Then he asked:
So he asked.
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So he spoke.
So he spoke.
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
The teachings on the recognition of the All Good One who is a cause
are that we are to recognize the analogy without mistake, the meaning
without mistake, and the signs without mistake.
There are three unmistaken analogies: The garuda, the lion, and the blue
sheep. These are the three analogies for the cause of yoga.
As an analogy,
\Vhen baby garudas emerge on the outside,
The egg cracks open,
And they are equal to their mothers.
They do not worry about those that will come after them.
Without any effort or searching,
They fly into the sky.
They are equal to their mothers,
So they are not different from them.
They all have mouths that are sharp and are to be nurtured.
As an analogy,
\Ve are mistaken when we encounter what things mean.
So he spoke.
As an analogy,
There is the yoga of understanding.
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An Elixir of Ambrosia
So he spoke.
So he spoke.
As an analogy,
The children of the blue sheep abide in the womb.
The sound of freedom does not enter into the rocks.
"Freedom, 0 Freedom" will not go in.
When they come out from their mother's womb ,
And when their mother goes into the rocks,
The children will also doubtlessly be free.
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So he spoke.
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In the present,
This self-luminous self-awareness is not recognized,
So we take the Buddha to be our enemy.
Our awareness falls for Mara,
And we hate our self-luminosity.
We hold this to be an I,
So we are proud.
We hurry after this I,
And so we are jealous.
Due to this we take the Buddha to be our enemy.
Our awareness falls for Mara,
And we put the body of the Dhanna behind us.
E Ma /lo!
Pity for sentient beings!
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From the Dakini Tantra, this 1s chapter seven: Teaching that the
Awareness is Liberated Within.
111 Thigle
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In a single moment,
And they will be liberated into just this.
So he spoke.
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EMa!
The karma and habitual tendencies of sentient beings,
And the body and wisdom of the Sugata
Are equal!
The yoga of understanding appears in its effulgence.
The solitary circle is self-evident.
The light rays of compassion are visible as a body.
So he spoke.
From the Vajradakini Tantra, this is chapter nine: Revealing the Way the
Rewards for the Levels Appear.
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Then the revered Yogini proclaimed this chapter of the Tantra of the
Symbols for the Circle to the Blissful Zombie and the inconceivable
Bodhisattvas who were in a single company with him, those Bodhisattvas
and their entourages who had everything:
So she spoke.
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Rejoicing
The Tantra of the Total Llberation of the Three Realms has been
proclaimed,
So the Vajra Dakinis all rejoice!
It is finished.
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All of those who use the reverted dhyiina meditations of the world
Lack any lucid intelligence.
Instead of a nature of uncontrived perfection,
They are like those who would draw out yellow from a conch.
They are troubled by the three disturbances, 12
So they are stuck in the mud of a disturbed self-clarity.
12
rNyog pa gsum
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We are clear,
Like a clear reflection that is not disturbed,
\Vh.ile we are free from any consciousness.
We infer the experience of great bliss,
\Vhile we enter into the meaning of that supreme bliss
That is brilliantly equal to the domain of the sky.
From the Tantra of the Undisturbed Arali, this is chapter one: Great
Bliss and a Perfect Store.
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1
~ Tibetan: 'Phra men. These arc hwnanoid beings who have animal heads.
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To be without taste
Is to be without any experience or feeling
Of happiness and sorrow.
To be without clarity,
To be without abiding,
And to be free of causes,
Is to believe that equanimity is itself a disturbance.
From the Tantra of the Undisturbed Arali, this is chapter two: Being
Troubled by Disturbances.
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i; Tibetan: Gyi na
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16 Tibetan: Lus
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To be without a search,
Without distractions,
And without engagement
Is dear.
17
gLen pa'i spyod pa
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From the Tantra of the Undisturbed Arali, this is chapter three: The
Recognition of\'{'isdom and the Removal of Disturbances.
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It is born by itself,
From the primordial,
\X'ithout our seeking it.
Our own minds are the souls 1'J of all the teachings.
Through the door of unspeakable awareness
'The teachings on blessings are taught in their vastness.
The teachings are born of themselves.
This is the transmission of perfection.
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
They shine,
And are beyond all disturbances.
\Ve have no consciousness of this,
So we are perfected in our own dominion.
We have given up on origins and applications,
So we are not distracted.
From the Tantra of the Undisturbed Arali, this ts chapter five: The
Instructions of the Aural Lineage.
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It has no enemies.
Its way does not reject fear.
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Tibetan: Gyi na
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From the Tantra of the Undisturbed Arali, this ts chapter six: The
Disturbance of Filth.
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Tr 1
is the clarity of the transmission of awareness.
We engage in it as a follow up,
So we are naturally liberated.
Not being bound
Is the methodical pathway of liberation.
21
Thar is rhe second syllable in .-\ri.
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From the Tantra of the Undisturbed Arali, this is chapter seven: Abiding
with the Way Things Are and Practicing.
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'lbe formless,
And the animals.
'These are totally pure by their very natures,
Yet all of them must also be brought properly into maturity,
Just like pure water that is undisturbed.
From the Tantra of the Undisturbed Amii, this ts chapter eight: Not
Moving Away from Great Bliss.
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This is profound.
The mind is difficult to designate.
The way of non-contrivance
Is the way in which we abide.
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From the Tantra of the Undisturbed Arali, this is chapter nine: Living in
Uncontrived Happiness.
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Everything is happening,
But this is different.
That which is the true nature of these things
Is stamped with a seal
That is evident within indivisible time.
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We do not seek,
And so we are one.
\Ve are instantaneously beyond the faults
Of travelling over levels and paths.
\Ve must not transgress the meaning of being uncontrived.
From the Tantra of the Undisturbed Arali, this is chapter ten: Living
Without the Problems of Limitations.
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From the Tantra of the Undisturbed Arali, this is chapter eleven: These
Teachings Are Instructions for Holy People.
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THE TANTRA OF THE GODDESS LIGHT RAYS
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Then the Great Vajradhara, who holds the Tantras, dispatched five light
rays from the cavity of his urQakosa, and made the realms of the world
luminous. Through the blessings of these light rays there appeared there in
front of him the Protector of the Happy Buddhas called Avalokitesvara. His
body was white in color. He was surrounded by a circlet of light rays. His
right hand was in the mudra of granting refuge. His left was supported on
his knee. He sat on a lotus throne. He was one who is self-apparent. He
proclaimed:
~e~e!
Great Compassionate One,
Please tame the five poisons
That are the emotional problems of sentient beings!
Then the Blessed One rose up from out of his samadhi. He made a
smile with his face, and five light rays beamed out from the lotus of his
tongue:
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0 Great Bodhisattva,
Your asking me these three questions is good.
From the Tantra of the Goddess Light Rays, this is chapter one: Light
Rays Manifest in the Embodiment of the Dharma.
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Then that great Bodhisattva joined his palms together there before
Vajradhara in the way of receiving instructions, and he asked him this
question:
Then the Blessed One arose from his samadhi. He made a smile with his
face, and raised his eyebrows 24 upwards. He beamed out five light rays from
the lotus of his tongue, and proclaimed:
0 You Bodhisattva,
Listen!
In times of yore, before I had come along, there was the highest
Buddha, Unchanging Light. He lived in a grand and self-originated palace
that he did not enter or leave. He dwelt in the heart of enlightenment. He
embodied the dwelling in a heart of enlightenment. He was present in the
base as a heap of light rays. He was unceasing, but this heap of light rays
was itself not eternal. It was also not impermanent. This light emerged,
however, from the embodiment of the Dharma, while the embodiment of
the Dharma neither properly exists nor is it non-existent. In the same way,
this heap of light rays is neither visible nor is it invisible. It is beyond the
limitations of being visible or invisible.
You may ask why this is so. These light rays have no true nature, so they
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are the same as the ends of the sky. This light is not polluted, so it is present
in complete perfection. As an analogy, it is present in the way that the sky
and a painting arc present. For this reason, enlightenment itself, in the true
nature of its heart, is luminescent as light. This pure heart is called the clear
light of wisdom.
Furthermore, at the moment compassion manifests, five rays of light
emerge from each of our doors. This heart-essence that we teach to sentient
beings emerges for each of them.
0 Mahasattva, I teach the inconceivable compassion of the three
embodiments for the sake of sentient beings, but if we say that this
Dharma, the meaning of which is unspeakable, is a space where there is no
Buddha, and if we do not teach that there is no joining with or separation
from the three aspects of generation, perfection, and the great perfection,
then even the Buddhas will stop up the door from which compassion
emerges. As an analogy, we would be teaching in the way of the udumbara
flower. 25
\X'e may present our embodiment in this way, but if we do not
summarize it into a single summery, then the Sutras on all the Dharmas will
also not be compiled. For this reason, this is beyond any division into five
families.
lbe five embodiments excel into the essential embodiment. The five
consorts excel into the purity of the space of the sky. The five wisdoms
excel into that magnificent wisdom that is not static. The five elements,
both external and internal, excel into the magnificent sky. "Ibe five lights
excel into the great light of self-origination. The five rays excel into the
effulgence of compassion. All of the Tantras excel into the Great Root
Tantra of the ;\ll Good One, the Unwritten Tantra. All the transmissions
excel into the Bodhicitta heart-essence. All of the upadesa instructions excel
into an absence of effort or quest.
All of these things are also dharmas. All dharmas excel into the space of
the wisdom of total liberation. All Buddhas excel into the space where there
are no Buddhas. "These words that say "excel" are all elaborated into being
ornaments for the Dharma. \X'c may transcend even these.
Child of Good Family, all dharmas are the designations of words.
Child of Good Family, the heart of enlightenment is beyond the
limitations of there being or not being any heart.
The teachings that arc given about the three embodiments are also
insubstantial, so their natural effulgence is not to be confused with
something that we must know.
~; Ir is said that the udumbara flower blooms only once in three thousand years.
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From the Tantra of the Goddess Light Rays, this 1s chapter two:
Teaching that Light Rays are Totally Pure.
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Then again the Blessed One arose from the samadhi of the five heaps of
light rays, and he proclaimed:
Listen, You!
The five measurable light rays are present in a Bodhisattva, on his own
behalf, but there are obstructions in the things that we must know within
the measure of our own knowledge. The five countable lights are present
within the gods, on their own behalf. They are formed from the merits in
their practice of devotion, so they are visible in reality. The five lights that
are to be exemplified are formed within humans, on their own behalf.
\,'hat is more, profound knowledge is difficult to teach. The heart that
has no residue is the Bodhicitta. In the mandala of light that is exemplified,
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the embodiment of our heart's Bodhicitta is deep. Its subtle parts are
unceasing. It is naturally luminous, and so it appears.
Just as lion cubs will wander when separated from their mother, when
we are separated from our self, we will shine in the dominion of wisdom.
So he said.
Thus there is the presentation on how light rays emerge within the
Buddhas and how light rays emerge within sentient beings.
From the Tantra of the Goddess Light Rays, this 1s chapter three:
Teaching that the Buddhas have Bodies of Wisdom.
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THE TANTRA OF THE FLAWLESS JEWEL
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He asked:
King of Equanimity,
Totally Aware One,
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If we desire to be happy.
Dhyana meditation and samadhi are dear.
The mind and wisdom are like water and milk.
They are separated when we do not settle with stability,
Like the beaks of geese.
From the Tantra on Flawless Wisdom, this is chapter one: The Tantra
on the Contemplations of the Buddhas of the Three Times.
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Then the Blessed One, the glorious Vajrasattva, there in the palace of
Willow Leaves in Akani~ta, expounded with a voice that was like a lion. The
enquirer was Vajradhara. There in the charnel ground of the Playfulness of
Majestic Secrets, in a place that is known as "Blazing Volcano," where
smoke pours out during the day and fire blazes during the night, where
witches, 26 the lords of the dead, 27 and a multitude of harmful beings gather,
he listened there.
0 Vajradhara,
Listen!
I will pierce the space of the heart
Of all the Sugatas of the ten directions and the three times!
I will teach this Tantra of the upadesa instructions of the flawless jewel!
2<, l\Ia mo
27 gShin rje
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Non-recognition,
Disbelief,
Indecision,
Recognition,
Belief,
Decision.
These six letters have two translations. They contain the mudras of the
Tathagatas. When we transcend them, we are totally liberated.
From the Tantra of the Flawless Jewel, this is chapter two: Laying out
the Instructions for Buddhahood.
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Then the organizer, who was the head of the Vajra Dharma, Garden of
Light, there in front of the Bodhi Tree, where the Buddhas come forth,
asked about the four kinds of gathering:
0 Great Vajradhara,
Please explain the four things that gather.
So he did ask.
0 Compiler,
Vajra Dharma,
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Listen well!
The Dharma of samara is not to be cut off in its vastness. The great
bliss of the embodiment of the Dharma is to be cut off in its vastness.
However, if samsara is not to be cut off in its vastness, we will not reach
any end. If we understand that the embodiment of the Dharma is to be cut
off in its vastness, there will be no change. The wisdom of the Buddha is
beyond the limitations of ideas about and clingings to its own appearance.
The non-duality of samsara and nirvana does not envision the purposes
of sentient beings. Once sentient beings appear to be objects, Buddhahood
will have outflows. The Bodhisattvas travel from level to level, so they do
not give up on things to seek and to purify. Even though they travel from
level to level, their wisdom is self-evident. \\'hile they are travelling, there
will be sounds and the earth will shake. So it is that living beings will see
their perfect Buddhahood.
Buddhahood is totally beyond the objects of our demarcations, but it is
evident to our own knowing intellects, so our gurus speak of it, and so it is
that living beings see perfect Buddhahood.
So he spoke.
So he spoke.
From the Tantra of the Flawless Jewel of the Bodhicitta that was
brought forth from the space of the heart of the glorious Secret Manjusri,
this is chapter three: The Extract of the Elixir of the Heart-Essence of the
Tantra of the Heaps of Precious Jewels of the Holy Lineage of the Heart.
It is finished.
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A TANTRA ON THE BODHICI'ITA:
GRABBING THE PEACOCK BY THE NECK
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It is not present.
It is not a self.
It is totally pure from the beginning.
It is not contrived.
It is spontaneously realized.
It is the supreme heart of great bliss.
It appears to everyone in common.
It is the embodiment of the pleasure of great bliss.
Karma and compassion are like the clouds and the sky.
Without hatred or purification,
Our reality is the Bodhicitta.
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Garab Dorje,
Who is the best man among the wise,
Brought this unto a lineage of hearts
Who were fortunate and had the karmic inclinations.
So hold onto this jeweled treasure,
For it is not to be suppressed or diminished,
And bind this as a holy thing
Upon bad recipients and students of evil lineages,
As if they had the necks of crocodiles.
0 Vajradhara,
Listen!
I will certainly teach you the vow of the three words. Keep it well in
your mind!
Child of Good Family, everything in the world that is our external vessel
is made up of the five elements.
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In times of yore, there was a Buddha field that was entirely pure. It
appeared without being created. It was pleasant and expansive. There was
no pain. Its vastness was not limited. It was not a topic for words or for our
senses. It was beyond all speech.
\\'hat we call "the past" is also just the enumeration of a name. This was
also not something that was just a name. 'Through it we have liberated the
great distance of the ocean of samsara into a completely pure realm.
The sentient beings of the three realms have been shoved into boats of
sorrow. "Ibey have been enveloped in an ocean of ignorance, and they live
in sorrow, but the Bodhicitta of their hearts is self-originating, and their
own light shines, without any causes or conditions. It is primordially pure,
so it is fitting that they may live in a vajra-like samadhi.
It is not the case that those who have material form lack a heart of
wisdom. All the sentient beings of the six classes live within a stainless
embodiment of the heart-essence of a vajra, so it encompasses them
entirely, yet they fall under the power of others, even though their vastness
is not limited by residues or stains.
"Ibe king of methods, an awareness of power, dawns on them, and
samsara itself is primordially pure in that it is a self-originating wisdom. The
swamp of sorrows is itself pure as being a great bliss, so we have built a
vajra fortress in the swamp of samsara.
Child of Good Family, listen! All sentient beings are to be understood as
having three bodies.' 2 Their body of wisdom liberates them from the
limitations of sorrow. Their body that is a maturation of their habitual
tendencies is their material body of flesh and blood. The body that connects
these two maintains both the happiness and the sorrow that is in their
minds.
"Ibe knowledge of the base is the embodiment of the Dharma. It does
not have the illnesses of habitual tendencies, but the body of the conceptual
mind manifests as the illnesses of our habitual tendencies. So the King of
Medicine that is a healer heals them with the medicine that will heal them.
So it is said.
Ignorance is the disease of samara. Our awareness is healed by nirvana.
Our sorrow is a disease that is like a swamp. It is healed by the great bliss of
wisdom that has no outflows. Stupidity is a disease that is like darkness. \X'e
are healed by a knowledge that is like a butter lamp that is not moved by the
wind. Our habitual tendencies are a disease that is like a defiled drink. It has
no true nature, so we are healed by the fact that it resembles a crystal. The
pain of our coarse and subtle understandings is a disease that is like a thorn.
It is healed by an equanimity that is like an unmoving ocean.
12 Tibetan: Lus.
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~yema!
Blessed One,
Vajradhara!
To use the Tathagata's dhyana meditation to consecrate the path that
has no outflows is a non-dual application of our real intellects. It is the
inspiration of the Buddha himself! Please teach us how to be skilled in this
method!
Vajradhara,
You!
Listen!
It is good that you ask this question. The inspiration of the Tathagatas
has no measure, but it is applied to the differentials in the intellects of
sentient beings with the intentions of having our minds rest in the Dhanna,
just as it is. We dwell in the uncontrived, just as it is, as if we were touching
the shaft of a butter lamp. In this way we are solitary. So it is said.
It is also in the scriptures: If we have both something to teach and
someone to teach it, why would we not have something to meditate on and
someone who meditates? So it is said.
In the heart-essence of enlightenment we teach the heart-essence of
enlightenment. In order that we may teach this heart-essence, we must
forever remain within this heart-essence. The thing we call "knowing the
meaning of what we understand" is unceasing, but for so long as the
grandmother of the oral transmission is not clear in our own personal
continuum, we must establish clearly the things that we must know, and we
must abide in samadhi.
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From the Tantra of the Bodhicitta: Grabbing the Peacock by the Neck,
this is chapter two: The Base and the Path.
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0 Teacher,
You are compassionate.
You are a protector for those who live.
You are a Sugata.
Please explain the results we will get
From a path where the basic path and its results are non-dual.
It is good that you have asked this question. The precious instructions
of the fully perfected Buddha are insurmountable statements and are
difficult to teach. I will, however, say a few words to exemplify them.
You may ask who it is that receives the empowerment into their mind.
This is how it happens, so hold this well in your mind:
Child of Good Family, the unsurpassed fruit does not occur from
someone else. The moment when the base and the path are non-dual is
called: "The dhyana meditation of the Tathagata." Once our peaceful
abiding and our higher perception are non-dual, our self-originating wisdom
will be like a butter lamp that is not moved by the wind. \\'hen we have the
experience of what we must know, we reach the conclusion of the base, the
path, and the result. TI1is is called: "Unified Buddhahood."
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The result that is the two Embodiments of Form comes from the cause
that is the Embodiment of the Dharma, yet there is no blockage in the
channels of our bindus. What is more, at the moment that the inseparability
of the cause and the result is understood in its effulgence, the wisdom of
the three embodiments, which is the ultimate result for our bodies, speech,
and minds, is evident in its self-origination.
When our wisdom becomes visible in these three embodiments, form is,
itself, naturally pure. When we transcend our demarcations, our result is
realized to be wisdom. The appearance of our true essence is one in which
the measure of its appearance is the measure of our repute. This is taught to
be like cleaning the tarnish off of a mirror. In the ultimate reality, however,
it is free from any complications, and it is naturally clean. This is called:
"The majestic wisdom that does not dwell on any results."
The embodiment of the Dharma that is free from any demarcations is
beyond all of our efforts. This is called: "The unsurpassed result."
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He had reached his ultimate result, and at the very moment that he had
reached the end of the things he personally had to know the demons and
the Tirthakaras no longer had a chance. He was no longer friends with Luck
or with Isvara. He was like the tip of a victory banner that never falls down.
He was like a precious jewel that is never exhausted.
At the moment he was imparted empowerment into the things that he
personally had to know, into the essence of the things that he personally
had to know, he became known as: "Noble One of Stainless Crown Knot."
At the moment his Bodhicitta was in the Bodhicitta, he was like a
tributary that had been gathered into the great ocean, and through all the
time in which the subjects of the Dharma appeared to be demarcated within
the unborn space of reality he was naturally and totally pure, so he was
called: "The Bodhisattva All Good One."
He did not discriminate any Dharmas and did not look at them in terms
of being good or bad. He did not understand things in terms of self and
other, and at that moment he was like the sun in the sky, and he became
known as: "The Bodhisattva Maitreya who Sees All Things."
He did not take up any Dharma at all. He did not reject any Dharma at
all. He was not obstructed by anything, and there was no one whosoever to
liberate him. He did not depend on anyone. He did not deviate in any way.
He was by nature completely pure, so he had none of the limitations of
permanence. He was not obstructed in the essence of what he had to know,
so things were totally clear to him. So he had none of the limitations of
annihilation. So he became known as: "The Noble Heart of the Sky."
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Understanding Practice
0 Youthful Manjusril
Supreme Hero!
When we have reached the end of the base, the path, and the result
We will have cut through
The continuum of samsara's emotional problems.
We will be purely liberated into a pure realm.
This is because we will have overwhelmed our conceptualizations.
Please explain the rule of the way for our practice!
0 Vajrasattva,
Listen to me!
Practice is always of three kinds:
There is the practice of entering onto the path of the ox,
The practice where we scatter our hearts without mindfulness,
And are mad,
And there are its close friends,
Which are the practice of being a lotus flower in the mud,
Of being a black bird entering its nest,
And of being like the mother of an only son.
Now these are the practices of the Great Yogas.
Then there are the practices of the heroic austerities of the tiger,
The austere practices of the pigs,
The practices of the mindless bees,
The manipulative practices of the Tirthakaras,
And the practices in which we put our happiness into sessions.
These are the practices of the Middling Yogas.
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11
Bya ri skcgs
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the practices of moving through the sky, of walking on the water without
sinking, and an effulgence in which we are invisible to others.
At the moment we dawn into the dominion of awareness, visions of
other lands will dawn on us.
At the moment our minds are fit for the work, we will know the minds
of others and the lies that are spoken about every entity.
At the moment our reality is fit for the work of emptiness, we will be rid
of the external elements and all the voices of non-human beings.
These very pure practices are apparent to Vajrasattvas who are pure in
lineage. \Vithout throwing off their bodies, they are actually perfect
Buddhas.
~ye fe:ye!
It is good, 0 Glorious Great Lord!
It is difficult for this to come out from a mouth!
\Vhat you have spoken with your mouth is the supreme intent!
You have opened the mouth of the darkness in my intellect!
From the Tantra on Grabbing the Peacock by the Neck, this is chapter
four: Understanding Practice.
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0 Manjusri,
You who are forever young,
0 Compassionate One,
The question and what was said were well spoken
By the protector of living beings, Vajrasattva.
Please teach us how these light rays emerge
From the crest of glory at the Buddha's heart,
From the knotted crown at the Buddhas head,
And from the fine tongue in the Buddha's mouth.
Vajradhara,
You,
Listen!
It is good that you have asked this question.
The things that are brought forth by the compassion of all the Buddhas
of the ten directions and the three times cannot be taken up in speech.
They are inconceivable. Still, I will teach a mere summary, for the sake of
the sentient beings of the future.
Listen, You!
There are many ways to divide up compassion,
But its effulgence does not stop.
As an analogy,
It comes forth like the clouds and the rain in the sky.
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From the crown knot of his head there comes forth the one called:
"Manjusri, the Stainless Heart,"
And he teaches the Dhannas of the relics of physical remains.
From the tongue of his mouth he brings forth the one called:
''Vision of Ten Million Buddhas,"
And he teaches all the Dhannas of cause and result,
With none excepted.
So it is said.
The inconceivable virtues of all the Buddhas of the ten directions and
the three times manifest as one. They also appear as the effulgence of the
great Buddha Amitabha. The Buddha Amitabha himself manifests within
the heart of every living thing, and in every living and sentient being the
purity of their heart is a perfect wisdom.
So he spoke.
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0 Vajradhara, listen!
A Bodhisattva who is wise in methods
Has parents who are sentient beings,
So he must have a meaningful presence,
And be stainless for them.
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11
· Sangs rgyas gtsug pu<l mam par rgyal ba
15
· Sangs rgyas bye ba mam par gzigs
I<, Byang chub kyi sems rma bya mjing bsnol
1
~ Lha mo 'o<l zer gyi rgyu<l
18
Bya btsal med par ye shes hla ma'i rgyud
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From the Tantra on the Bodhicitta: Grabbing the Peacock by the Neck,
this is chapter five: The Unsurpassed Vehicle and the Rewards of the Great
Perfection.
The Tantra that is called: "The Bodhicitta: Grabbing the Peacock by the
Neck" was presented by Manjusri Garbha 19 to the Bodhisattva Blissful
Zornbie.4<'
19
'Jam dpal sn)ing po. This is probably a name for ;\laiijusri ;\litra.
10
Ro langs bDe ba. This is another name for Garab Dorje (dGa' rab rDo rje).
151
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
'Phags pa spyan ras gzigs ting nge 'dzin rtse gcig gi rgyud ces bya ba
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The Blessed One, the All Good One, was brilliantly surrounded by
Avalokitesvara, the Playful Lion, and by the dakinis.
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Listen,
0 Dakini Sun Garland!
I will teach you!
So he spoke.
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Listen,
0 Vajra Dakini!
It manifests pristinely,
And has no adversary.
The unborn vajra is self-evident.
There are no circumstances under which
It would be defeated by any adversary.
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So he spoke.
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~1 Shugs
~2 The six senses: sight, hearing, smell, taste, touch, and thought.
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Self-liberated playfulness
Is competent over any essential conditions.
So he spoke.
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Listen,
0 Vajra Dakini!
~, This is the point just between and slightly above our eyebrows.
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So he spoke.
~~ sBug pa
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Listen,
0 Vajra Dakini!
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So he spoke.
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Listen,
0 Vajra Dakini!
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So he spoke.
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It has no obstructions,
So its flow is undammed.
It was not made by a creator,
So it is not compounded.
There is no damming the river of our wisdom.
So we are competent over its conditions.
So he spoke.
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So he spoke.
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So he spoke.
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During the interim there are the habits and tendencies of our bodies.
\Ve are competent over the conditions of our habits,
As our own bodies are embodiments of the Dharma.
\Vhen we understand that our tendencies are self-originating
\Ve are competent over our habits and tendencies.
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So he spoke.
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So he spoke.
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181
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THE TANTRA ON
THE SELF-LIBERATION OF SAMSARA
FOR THE UNMOVING ONE
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0 Dakinis,
In the spontaneously realized majesty of the basis of appearance
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So he spoke.
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Then there was the teaching of the All Good One on how the base itself
is self-evident:
187
An Elixir of Ambrosia
So he spoke.
188
Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
Listen,
0 Dakini Lightening Garland!
So he spoke.
189
An Elixir of Ambrosia
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
Listen,
0 Dakini Lightening Garland!
So he spoke.
191
An Elixir of Ambrosia
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
Then there are the teachings of the Blessed All Good One
To the dakini Lightening Garland
On the self-evident self-liberation of the six classes of living beings:
The self-evident base is, in fact, the lights of the five elements.
The self-evident levels for these
Are the effulgence in our base of knowledge.
The base is, itself, self-evident within the doors of the five poisons.
So he spoke.
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An Elixir of Ambrosia
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
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An Elixir of Ambrosia
So he spoke.
196
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So he spoke.
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So he spoke.
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So he spoke.
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~ Yid gsum
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~ This is the spot between and a little upward of our eyebrows.
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
So he spoke.
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An Elixir of Ambrosia
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
Rejoicing
From the Great Tantra on the Self-Liberation of Samsara for the Noble
Unmoving One:
In Lho sTag tsang Seng ge, 48 this was transmitted to lDom bi Chung
ram, and by him to Myang sTon. He transmitted it to the teachers from
Central Tibet.
4
H This is the name of the cave near Paro, Bhutan where the famous Taktsang
(Tiger's Nest) temple was built. It is said to be one of the caves that
Padmasambhava once dwelt in.
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National Library, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimpu, 1982. 46 Vols.
Volume 11, pp. 298-322
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Images from the rNying ma rgyud 'bum mTshams brag dgon kyi bri ma,
National Library, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimpu, 1982. 46 Vols.
Volume 9, pp. 70-81.
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National Library, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimpu, 1982. 46 Vols.
Volume 8, pp. 79-102.
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
Images from the rNying ma rgyud 'bum mTshams brag dgon kyi bri ma,
National Library, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimpu, 1982. 46 Vols.
Volume 9, pp. 437-446.
249
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
Images from the rNying ma rgyud 'bum mTshams brag dgon kyi bri ma,
National Library, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimpu, 1982. 46 Vols.
Volume 9, pp. 64-70.
255
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257
An Elixir or Ambrosia
258
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
Images from the rNying ma rgyud 'bum mTshams brag dgon kyi bri ma,
National Library, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimpu, 1982. 46 Vols.
Volume 4, pp. 158-175.
261
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
Images from the rNying ma rgyud 'bum mTshams brag dgon kyi bri ma,
National Library, Royal Government of Bhutan, Thimpu, 1982. 46 Vols.
Volume 9, pp. 896-908.
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Eight Early Tantras of the Great Perfection
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Volume 9, pp. 921-931.
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ABOUT THE TRANSLATOR
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