[ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

have recently died. The texts of this terma have become incorrectly known in the West as the
Tibetan Book of the Dead, due to the mistranslations by Evans Wentz. (See John Reynolds
Self-Liberation Through Seeing with Naked Awareness, p. 132, note 2.) The correct name of
the two main texts is The Bardo Thodrol and Liberation Through Hearing in the Intermediate
State. Ultimately there are six bardos or  intermediate states corresponding to experiences
from death to rebirth, including the after-death experience, all of which are described within
the Shitro Terma.
5. Karmic vision: According to the Buddhist theory of karma, our very perception is the result
of previous actions which lead to incarnation in a realm where there is a shared  reality .
Indeed, the same environment may be perceived differently depending on one s  vision .
According to a classic Buddhist example, a river which to a human being is seen as
refreshing might be viewed as a river of molten lava by a hell dweller, while to a fish it is
seen as its very atmosphere.
6. Mayic body: The illusory body, developed through practicing one of the Six Yogas of
Naropa.
Notes To Chapter Four 58
Dream Yoga And The Practice Of Natural Light
7. The Six Yogas of Naropa: These yogas were compiled by Naropa, a Mahasiddha of the
Kagyud tradition, and include the following: The Yoga of Dumo (heat), the Yoga of the
Mayic or illusory body, the Yoga of Milam (dreams), the Yoga of Light, the Yoga of the
Bardo, and the Yoga of Phowa (transference of consciousness).
8. Nyen: A class of Dharma Protectors, often associated with a particular location such as a
particular mountain or lake.
9. Kapala: Ritual container often made from a human skull. The kapala is a ritual object from
the Anuttaratantra. It represents compassion, as the blood of all sentient beings is
symbolically carried inside of it.
10. Guru Padmasambhava s twenty-five disciples: The chief Tibetan disciples of the great
Master Padmasambhava during the time he taught the Dharma in Tibet. Each of the
twenty-five disciples took a vow to take future rebirths in human form in order to discover
Terma for the benefit of future practitioners. It is important to note that not all Termas come
from Guru Padmasambhava; some also come from Vimalamitra, for example.
11. Chorten, also called stupa: A monument whose design reflects the stages of the path to
enlightenment. The interior of the chorten is often filled with religious relics.
12. Garuda (Sanskrit) or khyung in Tibetan: A mythical bird resembling an eagle. In Tibet the
garuda represents the fire element. It is also a manifestation of lightning. The garuda subdues
the class of nagas (snake beings). The garuda or khyung is especially invoked to heal disease
provoked by the nagas, such as skin diseases and different types of cancer. In the Hindu
tradition the garuda is half human and half bird and is also the vehicle of the deity Vishnu.
The garuda is related to the Thunder Bird or Fire Bird in other mythologies.
13. Mt. Kailash: Located in West Tibet, Mount Kailash is the mountain most sacred to Tibetan
Buddhists. It is considered an archetypal manifestation of the sacred mountain at the center of
the world. It is also highly revered by Bonpos, Hindus and Jains.
Notes To Chapter Four 59
5 THE BUDDHA NO FURTHER THAN ONES S
PALM
Editor s note: The following is a previously untranslated text on the Dzogchen path. The author, the
great Nyingma meditation master Mipham Rinpoche (1846-1914), has attempted to point out the
 true nature of mind.
The Quintessential Instructions of Mind; The Buddha No
Further Than One s Palm
I.
I bow to Padmasambhava, and to the glorious Lama who is the emanation of the wisdom being
Manjushri1 and like all the Buddhas and their sons.
To those desiring to learn the meditation of recognizing the profound meaning of the mind, I will
explain in brief, the beginning path of the pith instructions.2
It is initially necessary to rely on the quintessential instructions of a Lama who has the experience of
realization.
If one does not enter into the experience of the Lama s instructions, Then all persevering and effort
in meditation is like shooting an arrow in the dark. For this reason, renounce all corrupt and artificial
views of meditation.
The pith point is placing one s awareness in the unfabricated, self-settled state; the face of naked
wisdom which is separate from the shell of the mind i.e., that which identifies. By recognizing this
wisdom, one reaches the essential point.
The meaning of  abiding from the beginning is the natural, unfabricated state.3
Having developed an inner conviction that all appearances are the essence of the Dharmakaya4 , do
not reject this knowledge. Indulging in discursive explanations about the path is similar to chasing
after a rainbow.
When meditative experiences arise as the product of awareness of the great unfabricated state, it
is not through external focus, but rather through maintaining non-activity.5
Amazing, how one reaches this knowledge.
II.
At the fortunate time of reaching the intermediate state, One maintains the unwavering state
continuously by recollection of the self-settled state of  mind-itself.
Just placing in that state is enough. The unfabricated mind is no other than this.
If obstructed by the arising clouds of mental analysis which create a distinction between the subject
and object of meditation, at that time recall the nature of mind which from the beginning is
unfabricated  mind-itself, vast as the sky.
By relaxing, free tightness and dispel grasping to these conceptions. [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]