It also refers to the experience of the practitioner where one attains the union of
emptiness
and luminosity and also perceives the non-duality of the
125
?
125
?
Khenchen-Thrangu-Rinpoche-The-Life-Spiritual-Songs-of-Milarepa
abhiseka) The conferring of power or
authorization to practice the Vajrayana teachings, the indispensable entrance door to tantric practice. To do a Vajrayana practice one must receive the empowerment from a qualified lama. One should also receive the practice instruction (Tib. trz) and the textual reading (Tib. lung).
Enlightenment. (Tib. jang chub) The definition varies according to the Buddhist tradition, usually the same as Buddhahood. The Hinayana tradition defines liberation as the freedom from rebirth in samsara, with mind free ofignorance and emotional conflict. The Mahayana tradition holds that enlightenment is not complete without development of compassion and commitment to use skilful means to liberate all sentient beings. In the Vajrayana teachings, the
foregoing stages of enlightenment are necessary, but ultimate enlightenment is a thorough purification ofego and concepts. The final fruition of complete liberation transcends all duality and conceptualization.
Essential drops. (Tib. tigle, Skt hindu) Vital essence drops or spheres of psychic energy that are often visualized in Vajrayana practices. Eternalism. (Tib. rtag Ita) The belief that there is a permanent and
causeless creator of everything; in particular, that one's identity or consciousness has a concrete essence which is independent, everlasting and singular.
Experience and realization. (Tib. nyam togs) An expression used for insight and progress on the path. "Experience" refers to temporary meditation experiences and "realization" to unchanging understanding of the nature of things.
120
? Glossary ofTerms
Five Buddhafamilies. (Tib. rig nga) These are the Buddha1 Vajra, Ratna, Padma and Karma families.
Five dhyani Buddhas. Vairochana, Akshobhya, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha and Amoghasiddhi. They are the pure aspects of the five elements and five emotions.
Five degeneration's. 1) of the times, meaning the outer events of the world such as wars and social unrest are becoming worse, 2) of beings, meaning their mind-streams are becoming coarser, 3) length of life is becoming shorter, 4) increase in the emotional affiictions of beings, causing instability in their minds, 5) and degeneration ofview, meaning people's understanding ofreality is growing further
from the truth. Based on these five degenerations we are now living in a dark age.
Five paths. (Tib. lam nga) According to the sutras there are five paths; the path of accumulation, the path of integration/junction, the path of seeing/insight, (attainment of the first bodhisattva level), the path of meditation, and the path of no more learning (Buddhahood). The five paths cover the entire process from beginning dharma practice to complete enlightenment.
Five defilements. (Tib. ! dug nga) Temporary mental states that inhibit understanding: ignorance, pride, anger, desire, and jealousy. The three root poisons are ignorance, desire and anger.
Five wisdoms. The dharmadhatu wisdom, mirror-like wisdom, wisdom of equality, discriminating wisdom and all-accomplishing wisdom. They should not be understood as separate entities but rather as different functions ofone's enlightened essence.
Four empowerments. (Tib. wangshz) The empowerments ofvase, secret, wisdom-knowledge and precious word.
Four extremes. (Tib. tha shz) Existence, non-existence, both and neither. Four ways ofchanging the mind. The four foundations of meditation. (Tib. tun mong gi ngon dro shz) These are the four thoughts that turn the mind toward dharma. They are reflection on precious
human birth, impermanence and the inevitability of death, karma and its effects, and the pervasiveness ofsuffering in samsara.
121
? The Life & Spiritual Songs ofMilarepa
Four immeasurables. Love, compassion, emphatic joy, and impartiality. Four seals. The four main principles of Buddhism: all compounded phenomena are impermanent, everything defiled (with ego-clinging) is suffering, all phenomena are empty and devoid of a self-entity,
and nirvana is perfect peace.
Four truths. The Buddha's first teachings. 1) All conditioned life is
suffering. 2) All suffering is caused by ignorance. 3) Suffering can cease. 4) The eight-fold path leads to the end of suffering: right understanding, thought, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness and meditation.
Four Yogas ofMahamudra. (Tib. phyag chen gyi nal byor zht) Four stages in Mahamudra practice: one-pointedness, simplicity, one taste and non-meditation.
Gampopa. (1079-1153 C. E. ) One of the main lineage holders of the Kagyu lineage in Tibet. A student of Milarepa, he established the first Kagyu. monastic monastery and is known also for writing the jewel Ornament ofLiberation.
Gimacakra. (Tib. tog kyi kor lo) This is a ritual feast offering which is part ofa spiritual practice.
Gods. See six realms.
Ground consciousness. (Tib. kun shi nam she) According to the Cittamatra
school this is the eighth consciousness and is often called the alaya
consciousness or store-house consciousness. (See eightconscioumesses) _Guru. (Tib. lama) A teacher in the Tibetan tradition who has reached
realization.
Guru yoga. (Tib. Lamay naljor) A practice of devotion to the guru
culminating in receiving his blessing and blending indivisibly with his mind. Also refers to the fourth practice of the preliminary practices ofngondro.
Guhyasamaja tantra. (Tib. sangpa duspa) Literally, ''Assembly ofSecrets. " One of the major tantras and yidams of the New School. This is the "father tantra'' of the Anuttarayoga, which is the highest of the four tantras. Guhyasamaja is the central deity o f the vajra family.
Hevajra. (Tib. kye dorje) This is the "mother tantra'' ofthe Anuttarayoga 122
? Glossary ofTerms
tantra, which is the highest ofthe four yogas. "He" is said to be an exclamation of joy. Hevajra transforms sense pleasures into joy through the realization ofthe identity ofform and emptiness. He is depicted in two, four, six, twelve, and sixteen-armed forms, dancing in union with his consort, usually Nairatmya.
Hevajra tantra. (Tib. kye dorje) This is the "mother tantra'' of the Anuttarayoga tantra, which is the highest of the four yogas.
Hinayana. (Tib. tekpa chungwa) Literally, the "lesser vehicle. " The first of the three yanas, or vehicles. The term refers to the first teachings ofthe Buddha, which emphasized the careful examination ofmind and its confusion. It is the foundation ofBuddhas teachings focusing
mainly on the four truths and the twelve interdependent links. The
fruit is liberation for oneself.
Hungryghosts. (Tib. yiddvags) Oneofthesixclassesofsentientbeings.
Such beings are tormented by their own impure karmic perception causing them to suffer tremendously from craving, hunger and thirst. It is said that even if they came upon a lake of pure fresh water, due to their heavy karmic obscurations, they would see it as an
undrinkable pool of pus. Pretas are depicted with very large bodies
and very thin necks.
Illusory body. (Tib. gyu lu) The transformation of a practitioner's very
subtle energy body into a deathless miracle body of the deity during the completion stages. When this is purified it becomes the form body of the Buddha, one of the Six Yogas ofNaropa. (see Six Yogas ofNaropa)
jealous gods. See six realms.
Kadampa. (Tib. ) One of the major schools in Tibet, it was founded by
Atisha (993-1054 C. E. ).
Kanjur. The preserved collection of the direct teaching of the Buddha. Kagyu. (Tib. ) Ka means oral and gyu means lineage; The lineage of oral
transmission. One ofthe four major schools ofBuddhism inTibet. It was founded in Tibet by Marpa and is headed by His Holiness Karmapa. The other three are the Nyingma, the Sakya and the Gelugpa schools.
123
? The Life & Spiritual Songs ofMilarepa
Karma. (Tib. lay) Literally "action. " The unerring law of cause and effect, e. g. , positive actions bring happiness and negative actions bring suffering. The actions of each sentient being are the causes that create the conditions for rebirth and the circumstances in that lifetime.
Karma Kagyu. (Tib:) One of the eight schools of the Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism which is headed by His Holiness Karmapa.
Karmapa. The name means Buddha activities. The Karmapas are the head of the Kagyu school of Buddhism and were the first to implement the tradition ofincarnate lamas. Karmapas are thought to be an emanation of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara.
Key instructions - a text's key instruction rests upon establishing the line ofreasoning in a teaching. Seeing this line ofreasoning, we can distingui~h between the form and the content of the teachings. What key instructions do are wake a person up to the true nature ofthe expe. rience that the teachings generate, such as the dissolving ofthe objective form ofthe experience, which can be seen as it truly is, appreciated as having no independent reality and hence no power, as would be the case ifit existed independently. The key instruction
that, ifacted upon, generates a liberating personality transformation,
is repeated at each level of the teachings.
Klesha. (Tib. nyon mong) Also called the "disturbing emotions," these
are the emotional afflictions or obscurations (in contrast to intellectual obscurations) that disturb the clarity ofperceptiori. . These are also translated as "poisons. " They include any emotion that disturbs or distorts consciousness. The three main kleshas are desire, anger and ignorance. The five kleshas are the three above plus pride and envy/jealousy.
Lama. (Skt. guru) La nobody above himself or herself in spiritual experience and ma expressing compassion like a mother. Thus the union ofwisdom and compassion, feminine and masculine qualities. Lama is also a title given to a practitioner who has completed some extended training.
124
? Glossary ofTenns
Latencies. (Skt. vasana. Tib. bakchak) Patterns of conditional response that exist as traces or tendencies stored in the alaya-vijnana, the eighth consciousness sometimes called the store-house or all-base consciousness. So called because it is a repository of all karmically conditioned patterns. All dualistic or ego-oriented experiences leave a residue, which is stored in the alaya-vijnana until a later time when some conscious occurrence activates the habitual pattern. The pattern then generates a response in the form ofa perception or an action. This response leaves its own karmic residue, stored again in the unconscious repository, and thetycle continues. The explanation of this system is a central tead). ing of the Cittamatrin tradition of Mahayana Buddhism.
Liberation. (see enlightenment)
Lotsawa. Sanskrit for "translator. "
Luminosity. (Tib. salwa) In the third turning of the wheel of dharma,
the Buddha taught that everything is void, but this voidness is not completely empty because it has luminosity. Luminosity or clarity allows all phenomena to appear and is a characteristic of and inseparable from emptiness (Skt. shunyata).
Luminosity. (Tib. ose~ Literally "free from the darkness of unknowing and endowed with the ability to cognize. " The two aspects are "empty luminosity," like a clear open sky; and "manifest luminosity," such as colored light images, and so forth. Luminosity is the uncompounded nature present throughout all of sarrisara and
nuvana.
Mahamudra. (Tib. cha ja chen po) Literally means "great seal" or "great
symbol" meaning that all phenomena are sealed by the primordially perfect true nature. This form ofmeditation is traced back to Saraha (1Oth century) and was passed down in the Kagyu school through Marpa. This meditative transmission emphasizes perceiving mind direcdy rather than through rational analysis.
It also refers to the experience of the practitioner where one attains the union of emptiness and luminosity and also perceives the non-duality of the
125
? The Life & Spiritual Songs ofMilarepa
phenomenal world and emptiness; also the name ofKagyupa lineage. Mahapandita. (Tib. pan di ta chen po) Maha means great and pandita
Buddhist scholar.
Mahasiddha. (Tib. drup thop chen po) A practitioner who has a great
deal of realization. Maha means great and siddha refers to an accomplished practitioner. These were particularly Vajrayana practitioners who lived in India between the eight and twelfth century and practiced tantra. The biography of some of the most famous is found in The Eighty-four Mahasiddhas.
Mahayana. (Tib. tek pa chen po) Literally, the "Great Vehicle. " These are the teachings of the second turning of the wheel of dharma, which emphasize shunyata (see shunyata), compassion and universal buddha nature. The purpose of enlightenment is to liberate all sentient beings from suffering as well as oneself. Mahayana schools of philosophy appeared several hundred years after the Buddha's death, although the tradition is traced to a teaching he is said to have given at Rajgriha, or Vulture Peak Mountain.
Maitripa - was a guru of Marpa, the Tibetan forefather of the Kagyu lineage. Thus it is through Maitripa that Maitreya and Asanga's crucial work on Buddha nature, the Uttaratantrasastra (Anuttara), became widely followed in Tibet. It is said that he had been a student ofNaropa when the latter was head ofNalanda monastic university. Maitripa also transmitted to Marpa the esoteric aspect of Buddha nature embodied in the Mahamudra teachings, which treat the topic ofmind in great detail and provide a wide range ofprogressive, highly refined meditations. Maitripa was brought to enlightenment
through Mahamudra under his guru Savari, who received the complete teachings of Mahamudra from Nagarjuna, who received them from Sahara, whom Marpa encountered in his dream state.
Maitreya. The Loving Orie. The bodhisattva regent of Buddha Shakyamuni, presently residing in the Tushita heaven until becoming the fifth Buddha of this kalpa.
Mandala. (Tib. chi! kor) Literally "centre and surrounding" hut has
126
? Glossary oJTenns
different contexts. A diagram used in various Vajrayana practices
that usually ~as a central deity and four directions.
Mantra. (Tib. ngags) I) A synonym for Vajrayana. 2) A particular combination ofsounds symbolizing the nature ofa deity, for example OM MAN! PEME HUNG (Tib. ngak). These are invocations to various meditation deities which are recited in Sanskrit. These Sanskrit syllables, representing various energies, are repeated in
different Vajrayana practices.
Mantrayana. Another term for the Vajrayana.
Mara. (Tib. du) Difficulties encountered by the practitioner. The Tibetan
word means heavy or thick. In Buddhism mara symbolizes the passions that overwhelm human beings as well as everything that hinders the arising ofwholesome roots and progress on the path to enlightenment. There are four kinds: skandha-mara, which is incorrect view ofself; klesha-mara, which is being overpowered by negative emotions; matyu-mara, which is death and interrupts spiritual practice; and devaputra-mara, which is becoming stuck in
the bliss that comes from meditation.
Marpa. (1012-1097 C. E. ) Marpa was known for being a Tibetan who
made three trips to India and brought back many tantric texts, including the Six Yogas of Naropa, the Guhyasamaja, and the Chakrasamvara practices. His root teacher was Tilopa, the founder of the Kagyu lineage and the teacher of Naropa. Marpa initiated and founded the Kagyu lineage in Tibet.
Mental consciousness. (Tib. yid kyi namshe) The sixth consciousness is the faculty of thinking which produces thoughts based upon the experiences of the five sense consciousnesses or its own previous content. (see eight consciousnesses).
Mentalfactors. (Tib. sem yung) Mental factors are contrasted to mind in that they are more long-term propensities ofmind including eleven virtuous factors such as faith, detachment, and equanimity, and the six root defilements such as desire, anger, and pride, and the twenty secondary defilements such as resentment, dishonesty, harmfulness.
127
? The Life dr Spiritual Songs ofMi1arepa
Milarepa. (1040-1123 C. E. ) Milarepa was a student of Marpa who attained enlightenment in one lifetime. Mila, named by the deities and repa means white cotton. His student Gampopa established the (Dagpo) Kagyu lineage in Tibet.
Mind-only schooL Also called Cittamatra school. This is one ofthe major schools in the Mahayana tradition founded in the fourth century by Asanga that emphasized everything is mental events.
Mudra. (Tib. chak gya) In this book it is a "hand seal" or gesture that is performed in specific tantric rituals to symbolize certain aspects of the practice being done. Also can mean spiritual consort, or the "bodily form" ofa deity.
Nadi. The channels in the vajra body through which the winds flow. Naropa. (956-1 040 C. E. ) An Indian master best known for transmitting many Vajrayana teachings to Marpa who took these back to Tibet
before the Moslem invasion oflndia.
Nihilism. (Tib. . chad ita) Literally, "the view of discontinuance. " The
extreme view of nothingness: no rebirth or karmic effects, and the
non-existence of a mind after death.
Nirmanakaya. (Tib. tulku) There are three bodies of the Buddha and
the nirmanakaya or "emanation body'' manifests in the world and in this context manifests as the Shakyamuni Buddha. (see kayas, three. )
Nirvana. (Tib. nyangde) Literally, "extinguished. " Individuals live in samsara and with spiritual practice can attain a state of enlightenment in which all false ideas and conflicting emotions have been extinguished. This is called nirvana. The nirvana of a Hinayana practitioner is freedom from cyclic existence, an arhat. The nirvana ofa Mahayana practitioner is Buddhahood, free from extremes of dwelling in either samsara or the perfect peace of an arhat.
Nondistraction. (Tib. yengs med) Not straying from the continuity of the practice.
Nonfobrication. (Tib. zo med) The important key point in meditation
128
? Glossary ofTerms
ofMahamudra and Dzogchen; that inate wakefulness is not created
through intellectual effort.
Nonmeditation. (Tib. gom med) The state ofnot holding on to an object
meditated upon nor a subject who meditates. Also refers to the fourth stage of Mahamudra in which nothing further needs to be meditated upon or cultivated.
Nonthought. (Tib. mi tog) A state in which conceptual thinking is absent. Obscurations. There are two categories of obscurations or defilements that cover one's buddha nature: the defilement of disturbing emotions (seefive poisons & afflictive obscurations) and the defilement oflatent tendencies or sometimes called the obscuration ofdualistic perception, or the intellectual/cognitive obscurations. The first
category prevents sentient beings from freeing themselves from samsara, while the second prevents them from gaining accurate knowledge and realising truth.
Occurrence. (Tib. gyu ba) The period when thoughts are arising in the mind. Compare with "stillnes~. "
One-pointedness. (Tib. Tse cig) The first stage in the practice of Mahamudra.
One tt/Ste, (Tib. ro cig) The third stage in the practice of Mahamudra. Oral transmission. As opposed to the scholastic traditions, the oral instructions of the Practice lineages are concise and pithy so they can always be kept in mind; they are practical and to the point so
they are effective means to deal directly with the practice. Pandita. A great scholar.
Paramita. "Transcendental" or "Perfection. " Pure actions free from
dualistic concepts that liberate sentient beings from samsara. The six paramitas are: generosity, diligence, patience, morality, contemplation, and transcendental knowledge or insight.
Path ofLiberation. (Tib. drol lam) The path of Mahamudra practice. Path ofMeans. (Tib. thab lam) R~fers to the Six Yogas ofNaropa as well
as to the stages ofcreation and completion with attributes. Phowa. (Tib. ) There are different kinds ofphowa practice. The highest
129
? The Life & Spiritual Songs oJMilarepa
result of dharmakaya phowa and sambhogakaya phowa is full enlightenment. In this text, reference has primarily been to nirmanakayaphowa, called "the phowa that one practices" and Kacho Phowa, an advanced tantric practice of dream yoga and clear light yoga concerned with the ejection of consciousness at death to a favourable realm or rebirth.
Pointing-out instructions. (Tib. ngo sprod kyi gdampa) The direct introduction to the nature of mind.
Prana. Life supporting energy. The "winds" or energy-currents of the vajra body. .
Prajnaparamita. (Tib. she rab chi parol tu chinpa) Transcendent perfect knowledge. The Tibetan literally means, "gone to the other side" or "gone beyond" as expressed in the prajnaparamita mantra, "Om gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha. " The realization of emptiness in the Prajnaparamita Hridaya or Heart Sutra made possible by the extraordinarily profound dharma of the birth of Shakyamuni Buddha in the world and the practices that came from it, such as the Vajrayana tantras, which make use of visualization and the control of subtle physical energies.
Prajnaparamita sutras. Used to refer to a collection ofabout 40 Mahayana sutras that all deal with the realization of prajna.
Pratyekabuddha. "Solitary Awakened One. " These are the body disciples of the Buddha. One who has attained awakening for himself, and on his own, with no teacher in that life. Generally placed on a level between arhat and Buddha. It is the fruition ofthe second level of the Hinayana path through contemplation on the twelve interdependent links in reverse order.
Provisional meaning. The teachings of the Buddha which have been simplified or modified to the capabilities of the audience. This contrasts with the definitive meaning.
Recognition. (Tib. ngo shes, ngo phrod) In this context it means "recognizing the nature of mind. "
Relative truth. (Tib. kunsop) There are two truths: relative and absolute
i30
? Glossary ofTerms
or ultimate truth. Relative truth is the perception of an ordinary (unenlightened) being who sees the world with all his or her projections based on the false beliefin "I" and "other. "
Root guru. (Tib. tsa way lama) A practitioner of Vajrayana can have several types of root guru: the vajra master who confers empowerment, who bestows reading transmission, or. who explains the meaning of the tantras. The ultimate root guru is the master who gives the "pointing out instructions" so that one recognizes the nature of mind.
Sacred outlook. (Tib. dag snang) Awareness and compassion lead the practitioner to experience emptiness (shunyata). From that comes luminosity manifesting as the purity and sacredness of the phenomenal world. Since the sacredness comes out ofthe experience ofemptiness, the absence ofpreconceptions, it is neither a: religious nor a secular vision: that is, spiritual and secular vision could meet.
Moreover, sacred outlook is not conferred by any god. Seen clearly,
the world is self-existingly sacred.
Sakya Pandita. A hereditary head o f the Sakya lineage. A great scholar
(1181-1251 C. E. )
Samadhi. (Tib. tin ne zin) A state of meditation that is non-dualistic.
There is an absence ofdiscrimination between selfand other. Also called meditative absorption or one-pointed meditation; this is the highest form of meditation.
Samantabhadra. Samanta means all and bhadra means excellent. "He who is All-pervadingly Good" or "He whose Beneficence is Everywhere. " There are two Samantabhadras, one is the dharmakaya and the other is one of the eight main bodhisattvas, embodiment ofall Buddhas aspirations. In the Vajrayana tradition Samantabhadra is the primordial Buddha and representative of the experiential content of the dharmakaya.
Samaya. (Tib. dam sig) The vows or commitments made in the Vajrayana to a teacher or to a practice.
authorization to practice the Vajrayana teachings, the indispensable entrance door to tantric practice. To do a Vajrayana practice one must receive the empowerment from a qualified lama. One should also receive the practice instruction (Tib. trz) and the textual reading (Tib. lung).
Enlightenment. (Tib. jang chub) The definition varies according to the Buddhist tradition, usually the same as Buddhahood. The Hinayana tradition defines liberation as the freedom from rebirth in samsara, with mind free ofignorance and emotional conflict. The Mahayana tradition holds that enlightenment is not complete without development of compassion and commitment to use skilful means to liberate all sentient beings. In the Vajrayana teachings, the
foregoing stages of enlightenment are necessary, but ultimate enlightenment is a thorough purification ofego and concepts. The final fruition of complete liberation transcends all duality and conceptualization.
Essential drops. (Tib. tigle, Skt hindu) Vital essence drops or spheres of psychic energy that are often visualized in Vajrayana practices. Eternalism. (Tib. rtag Ita) The belief that there is a permanent and
causeless creator of everything; in particular, that one's identity or consciousness has a concrete essence which is independent, everlasting and singular.
Experience and realization. (Tib. nyam togs) An expression used for insight and progress on the path. "Experience" refers to temporary meditation experiences and "realization" to unchanging understanding of the nature of things.
120
? Glossary ofTerms
Five Buddhafamilies. (Tib. rig nga) These are the Buddha1 Vajra, Ratna, Padma and Karma families.
Five dhyani Buddhas. Vairochana, Akshobhya, Ratnasambhava, Amitabha and Amoghasiddhi. They are the pure aspects of the five elements and five emotions.
Five degeneration's. 1) of the times, meaning the outer events of the world such as wars and social unrest are becoming worse, 2) of beings, meaning their mind-streams are becoming coarser, 3) length of life is becoming shorter, 4) increase in the emotional affiictions of beings, causing instability in their minds, 5) and degeneration ofview, meaning people's understanding ofreality is growing further
from the truth. Based on these five degenerations we are now living in a dark age.
Five paths. (Tib. lam nga) According to the sutras there are five paths; the path of accumulation, the path of integration/junction, the path of seeing/insight, (attainment of the first bodhisattva level), the path of meditation, and the path of no more learning (Buddhahood). The five paths cover the entire process from beginning dharma practice to complete enlightenment.
Five defilements. (Tib. ! dug nga) Temporary mental states that inhibit understanding: ignorance, pride, anger, desire, and jealousy. The three root poisons are ignorance, desire and anger.
Five wisdoms. The dharmadhatu wisdom, mirror-like wisdom, wisdom of equality, discriminating wisdom and all-accomplishing wisdom. They should not be understood as separate entities but rather as different functions ofone's enlightened essence.
Four empowerments. (Tib. wangshz) The empowerments ofvase, secret, wisdom-knowledge and precious word.
Four extremes. (Tib. tha shz) Existence, non-existence, both and neither. Four ways ofchanging the mind. The four foundations of meditation. (Tib. tun mong gi ngon dro shz) These are the four thoughts that turn the mind toward dharma. They are reflection on precious
human birth, impermanence and the inevitability of death, karma and its effects, and the pervasiveness ofsuffering in samsara.
121
? The Life & Spiritual Songs ofMilarepa
Four immeasurables. Love, compassion, emphatic joy, and impartiality. Four seals. The four main principles of Buddhism: all compounded phenomena are impermanent, everything defiled (with ego-clinging) is suffering, all phenomena are empty and devoid of a self-entity,
and nirvana is perfect peace.
Four truths. The Buddha's first teachings. 1) All conditioned life is
suffering. 2) All suffering is caused by ignorance. 3) Suffering can cease. 4) The eight-fold path leads to the end of suffering: right understanding, thought, speech, action, livelihood, effort, mindfulness and meditation.
Four Yogas ofMahamudra. (Tib. phyag chen gyi nal byor zht) Four stages in Mahamudra practice: one-pointedness, simplicity, one taste and non-meditation.
Gampopa. (1079-1153 C. E. ) One of the main lineage holders of the Kagyu lineage in Tibet. A student of Milarepa, he established the first Kagyu. monastic monastery and is known also for writing the jewel Ornament ofLiberation.
Gimacakra. (Tib. tog kyi kor lo) This is a ritual feast offering which is part ofa spiritual practice.
Gods. See six realms.
Ground consciousness. (Tib. kun shi nam she) According to the Cittamatra
school this is the eighth consciousness and is often called the alaya
consciousness or store-house consciousness. (See eightconscioumesses) _Guru. (Tib. lama) A teacher in the Tibetan tradition who has reached
realization.
Guru yoga. (Tib. Lamay naljor) A practice of devotion to the guru
culminating in receiving his blessing and blending indivisibly with his mind. Also refers to the fourth practice of the preliminary practices ofngondro.
Guhyasamaja tantra. (Tib. sangpa duspa) Literally, ''Assembly ofSecrets. " One of the major tantras and yidams of the New School. This is the "father tantra'' of the Anuttarayoga, which is the highest of the four tantras. Guhyasamaja is the central deity o f the vajra family.
Hevajra. (Tib. kye dorje) This is the "mother tantra'' ofthe Anuttarayoga 122
? Glossary ofTerms
tantra, which is the highest ofthe four yogas. "He" is said to be an exclamation of joy. Hevajra transforms sense pleasures into joy through the realization ofthe identity ofform and emptiness. He is depicted in two, four, six, twelve, and sixteen-armed forms, dancing in union with his consort, usually Nairatmya.
Hevajra tantra. (Tib. kye dorje) This is the "mother tantra'' of the Anuttarayoga tantra, which is the highest of the four yogas.
Hinayana. (Tib. tekpa chungwa) Literally, the "lesser vehicle. " The first of the three yanas, or vehicles. The term refers to the first teachings ofthe Buddha, which emphasized the careful examination ofmind and its confusion. It is the foundation ofBuddhas teachings focusing
mainly on the four truths and the twelve interdependent links. The
fruit is liberation for oneself.
Hungryghosts. (Tib. yiddvags) Oneofthesixclassesofsentientbeings.
Such beings are tormented by their own impure karmic perception causing them to suffer tremendously from craving, hunger and thirst. It is said that even if they came upon a lake of pure fresh water, due to their heavy karmic obscurations, they would see it as an
undrinkable pool of pus. Pretas are depicted with very large bodies
and very thin necks.
Illusory body. (Tib. gyu lu) The transformation of a practitioner's very
subtle energy body into a deathless miracle body of the deity during the completion stages. When this is purified it becomes the form body of the Buddha, one of the Six Yogas ofNaropa. (see Six Yogas ofNaropa)
jealous gods. See six realms.
Kadampa. (Tib. ) One of the major schools in Tibet, it was founded by
Atisha (993-1054 C. E. ).
Kanjur. The preserved collection of the direct teaching of the Buddha. Kagyu. (Tib. ) Ka means oral and gyu means lineage; The lineage of oral
transmission. One ofthe four major schools ofBuddhism inTibet. It was founded in Tibet by Marpa and is headed by His Holiness Karmapa. The other three are the Nyingma, the Sakya and the Gelugpa schools.
123
? The Life & Spiritual Songs ofMilarepa
Karma. (Tib. lay) Literally "action. " The unerring law of cause and effect, e. g. , positive actions bring happiness and negative actions bring suffering. The actions of each sentient being are the causes that create the conditions for rebirth and the circumstances in that lifetime.
Karma Kagyu. (Tib:) One of the eight schools of the Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism which is headed by His Holiness Karmapa.
Karmapa. The name means Buddha activities. The Karmapas are the head of the Kagyu school of Buddhism and were the first to implement the tradition ofincarnate lamas. Karmapas are thought to be an emanation of the bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara.
Key instructions - a text's key instruction rests upon establishing the line ofreasoning in a teaching. Seeing this line ofreasoning, we can distingui~h between the form and the content of the teachings. What key instructions do are wake a person up to the true nature ofthe expe. rience that the teachings generate, such as the dissolving ofthe objective form ofthe experience, which can be seen as it truly is, appreciated as having no independent reality and hence no power, as would be the case ifit existed independently. The key instruction
that, ifacted upon, generates a liberating personality transformation,
is repeated at each level of the teachings.
Klesha. (Tib. nyon mong) Also called the "disturbing emotions," these
are the emotional afflictions or obscurations (in contrast to intellectual obscurations) that disturb the clarity ofperceptiori. . These are also translated as "poisons. " They include any emotion that disturbs or distorts consciousness. The three main kleshas are desire, anger and ignorance. The five kleshas are the three above plus pride and envy/jealousy.
Lama. (Skt. guru) La nobody above himself or herself in spiritual experience and ma expressing compassion like a mother. Thus the union ofwisdom and compassion, feminine and masculine qualities. Lama is also a title given to a practitioner who has completed some extended training.
124
? Glossary ofTenns
Latencies. (Skt. vasana. Tib. bakchak) Patterns of conditional response that exist as traces or tendencies stored in the alaya-vijnana, the eighth consciousness sometimes called the store-house or all-base consciousness. So called because it is a repository of all karmically conditioned patterns. All dualistic or ego-oriented experiences leave a residue, which is stored in the alaya-vijnana until a later time when some conscious occurrence activates the habitual pattern. The pattern then generates a response in the form ofa perception or an action. This response leaves its own karmic residue, stored again in the unconscious repository, and thetycle continues. The explanation of this system is a central tead). ing of the Cittamatrin tradition of Mahayana Buddhism.
Liberation. (see enlightenment)
Lotsawa. Sanskrit for "translator. "
Luminosity. (Tib. salwa) In the third turning of the wheel of dharma,
the Buddha taught that everything is void, but this voidness is not completely empty because it has luminosity. Luminosity or clarity allows all phenomena to appear and is a characteristic of and inseparable from emptiness (Skt. shunyata).
Luminosity. (Tib. ose~ Literally "free from the darkness of unknowing and endowed with the ability to cognize. " The two aspects are "empty luminosity," like a clear open sky; and "manifest luminosity," such as colored light images, and so forth. Luminosity is the uncompounded nature present throughout all of sarrisara and
nuvana.
Mahamudra. (Tib. cha ja chen po) Literally means "great seal" or "great
symbol" meaning that all phenomena are sealed by the primordially perfect true nature. This form ofmeditation is traced back to Saraha (1Oth century) and was passed down in the Kagyu school through Marpa. This meditative transmission emphasizes perceiving mind direcdy rather than through rational analysis.
It also refers to the experience of the practitioner where one attains the union of emptiness and luminosity and also perceives the non-duality of the
125
? The Life & Spiritual Songs ofMilarepa
phenomenal world and emptiness; also the name ofKagyupa lineage. Mahapandita. (Tib. pan di ta chen po) Maha means great and pandita
Buddhist scholar.
Mahasiddha. (Tib. drup thop chen po) A practitioner who has a great
deal of realization. Maha means great and siddha refers to an accomplished practitioner. These were particularly Vajrayana practitioners who lived in India between the eight and twelfth century and practiced tantra. The biography of some of the most famous is found in The Eighty-four Mahasiddhas.
Mahayana. (Tib. tek pa chen po) Literally, the "Great Vehicle. " These are the teachings of the second turning of the wheel of dharma, which emphasize shunyata (see shunyata), compassion and universal buddha nature. The purpose of enlightenment is to liberate all sentient beings from suffering as well as oneself. Mahayana schools of philosophy appeared several hundred years after the Buddha's death, although the tradition is traced to a teaching he is said to have given at Rajgriha, or Vulture Peak Mountain.
Maitripa - was a guru of Marpa, the Tibetan forefather of the Kagyu lineage. Thus it is through Maitripa that Maitreya and Asanga's crucial work on Buddha nature, the Uttaratantrasastra (Anuttara), became widely followed in Tibet. It is said that he had been a student ofNaropa when the latter was head ofNalanda monastic university. Maitripa also transmitted to Marpa the esoteric aspect of Buddha nature embodied in the Mahamudra teachings, which treat the topic ofmind in great detail and provide a wide range ofprogressive, highly refined meditations. Maitripa was brought to enlightenment
through Mahamudra under his guru Savari, who received the complete teachings of Mahamudra from Nagarjuna, who received them from Sahara, whom Marpa encountered in his dream state.
Maitreya. The Loving Orie. The bodhisattva regent of Buddha Shakyamuni, presently residing in the Tushita heaven until becoming the fifth Buddha of this kalpa.
Mandala. (Tib. chi! kor) Literally "centre and surrounding" hut has
126
? Glossary oJTenns
different contexts. A diagram used in various Vajrayana practices
that usually ~as a central deity and four directions.
Mantra. (Tib. ngags) I) A synonym for Vajrayana. 2) A particular combination ofsounds symbolizing the nature ofa deity, for example OM MAN! PEME HUNG (Tib. ngak). These are invocations to various meditation deities which are recited in Sanskrit. These Sanskrit syllables, representing various energies, are repeated in
different Vajrayana practices.
Mantrayana. Another term for the Vajrayana.
Mara. (Tib. du) Difficulties encountered by the practitioner. The Tibetan
word means heavy or thick. In Buddhism mara symbolizes the passions that overwhelm human beings as well as everything that hinders the arising ofwholesome roots and progress on the path to enlightenment. There are four kinds: skandha-mara, which is incorrect view ofself; klesha-mara, which is being overpowered by negative emotions; matyu-mara, which is death and interrupts spiritual practice; and devaputra-mara, which is becoming stuck in
the bliss that comes from meditation.
Marpa. (1012-1097 C. E. ) Marpa was known for being a Tibetan who
made three trips to India and brought back many tantric texts, including the Six Yogas of Naropa, the Guhyasamaja, and the Chakrasamvara practices. His root teacher was Tilopa, the founder of the Kagyu lineage and the teacher of Naropa. Marpa initiated and founded the Kagyu lineage in Tibet.
Mental consciousness. (Tib. yid kyi namshe) The sixth consciousness is the faculty of thinking which produces thoughts based upon the experiences of the five sense consciousnesses or its own previous content. (see eight consciousnesses).
Mentalfactors. (Tib. sem yung) Mental factors are contrasted to mind in that they are more long-term propensities ofmind including eleven virtuous factors such as faith, detachment, and equanimity, and the six root defilements such as desire, anger, and pride, and the twenty secondary defilements such as resentment, dishonesty, harmfulness.
127
? The Life dr Spiritual Songs ofMi1arepa
Milarepa. (1040-1123 C. E. ) Milarepa was a student of Marpa who attained enlightenment in one lifetime. Mila, named by the deities and repa means white cotton. His student Gampopa established the (Dagpo) Kagyu lineage in Tibet.
Mind-only schooL Also called Cittamatra school. This is one ofthe major schools in the Mahayana tradition founded in the fourth century by Asanga that emphasized everything is mental events.
Mudra. (Tib. chak gya) In this book it is a "hand seal" or gesture that is performed in specific tantric rituals to symbolize certain aspects of the practice being done. Also can mean spiritual consort, or the "bodily form" ofa deity.
Nadi. The channels in the vajra body through which the winds flow. Naropa. (956-1 040 C. E. ) An Indian master best known for transmitting many Vajrayana teachings to Marpa who took these back to Tibet
before the Moslem invasion oflndia.
Nihilism. (Tib. . chad ita) Literally, "the view of discontinuance. " The
extreme view of nothingness: no rebirth or karmic effects, and the
non-existence of a mind after death.
Nirmanakaya. (Tib. tulku) There are three bodies of the Buddha and
the nirmanakaya or "emanation body'' manifests in the world and in this context manifests as the Shakyamuni Buddha. (see kayas, three. )
Nirvana. (Tib. nyangde) Literally, "extinguished. " Individuals live in samsara and with spiritual practice can attain a state of enlightenment in which all false ideas and conflicting emotions have been extinguished. This is called nirvana. The nirvana of a Hinayana practitioner is freedom from cyclic existence, an arhat. The nirvana ofa Mahayana practitioner is Buddhahood, free from extremes of dwelling in either samsara or the perfect peace of an arhat.
Nondistraction. (Tib. yengs med) Not straying from the continuity of the practice.
Nonfobrication. (Tib. zo med) The important key point in meditation
128
? Glossary ofTerms
ofMahamudra and Dzogchen; that inate wakefulness is not created
through intellectual effort.
Nonmeditation. (Tib. gom med) The state ofnot holding on to an object
meditated upon nor a subject who meditates. Also refers to the fourth stage of Mahamudra in which nothing further needs to be meditated upon or cultivated.
Nonthought. (Tib. mi tog) A state in which conceptual thinking is absent. Obscurations. There are two categories of obscurations or defilements that cover one's buddha nature: the defilement of disturbing emotions (seefive poisons & afflictive obscurations) and the defilement oflatent tendencies or sometimes called the obscuration ofdualistic perception, or the intellectual/cognitive obscurations. The first
category prevents sentient beings from freeing themselves from samsara, while the second prevents them from gaining accurate knowledge and realising truth.
Occurrence. (Tib. gyu ba) The period when thoughts are arising in the mind. Compare with "stillnes~. "
One-pointedness. (Tib. Tse cig) The first stage in the practice of Mahamudra.
One tt/Ste, (Tib. ro cig) The third stage in the practice of Mahamudra. Oral transmission. As opposed to the scholastic traditions, the oral instructions of the Practice lineages are concise and pithy so they can always be kept in mind; they are practical and to the point so
they are effective means to deal directly with the practice. Pandita. A great scholar.
Paramita. "Transcendental" or "Perfection. " Pure actions free from
dualistic concepts that liberate sentient beings from samsara. The six paramitas are: generosity, diligence, patience, morality, contemplation, and transcendental knowledge or insight.
Path ofLiberation. (Tib. drol lam) The path of Mahamudra practice. Path ofMeans. (Tib. thab lam) R~fers to the Six Yogas ofNaropa as well
as to the stages ofcreation and completion with attributes. Phowa. (Tib. ) There are different kinds ofphowa practice. The highest
129
? The Life & Spiritual Songs oJMilarepa
result of dharmakaya phowa and sambhogakaya phowa is full enlightenment. In this text, reference has primarily been to nirmanakayaphowa, called "the phowa that one practices" and Kacho Phowa, an advanced tantric practice of dream yoga and clear light yoga concerned with the ejection of consciousness at death to a favourable realm or rebirth.
Pointing-out instructions. (Tib. ngo sprod kyi gdampa) The direct introduction to the nature of mind.
Prana. Life supporting energy. The "winds" or energy-currents of the vajra body. .
Prajnaparamita. (Tib. she rab chi parol tu chinpa) Transcendent perfect knowledge. The Tibetan literally means, "gone to the other side" or "gone beyond" as expressed in the prajnaparamita mantra, "Om gate gate paragate parasamgate bodhi svaha. " The realization of emptiness in the Prajnaparamita Hridaya or Heart Sutra made possible by the extraordinarily profound dharma of the birth of Shakyamuni Buddha in the world and the practices that came from it, such as the Vajrayana tantras, which make use of visualization and the control of subtle physical energies.
Prajnaparamita sutras. Used to refer to a collection ofabout 40 Mahayana sutras that all deal with the realization of prajna.
Pratyekabuddha. "Solitary Awakened One. " These are the body disciples of the Buddha. One who has attained awakening for himself, and on his own, with no teacher in that life. Generally placed on a level between arhat and Buddha. It is the fruition ofthe second level of the Hinayana path through contemplation on the twelve interdependent links in reverse order.
Provisional meaning. The teachings of the Buddha which have been simplified or modified to the capabilities of the audience. This contrasts with the definitive meaning.
Recognition. (Tib. ngo shes, ngo phrod) In this context it means "recognizing the nature of mind. "
Relative truth. (Tib. kunsop) There are two truths: relative and absolute
i30
? Glossary ofTerms
or ultimate truth. Relative truth is the perception of an ordinary (unenlightened) being who sees the world with all his or her projections based on the false beliefin "I" and "other. "
Root guru. (Tib. tsa way lama) A practitioner of Vajrayana can have several types of root guru: the vajra master who confers empowerment, who bestows reading transmission, or. who explains the meaning of the tantras. The ultimate root guru is the master who gives the "pointing out instructions" so that one recognizes the nature of mind.
Sacred outlook. (Tib. dag snang) Awareness and compassion lead the practitioner to experience emptiness (shunyata). From that comes luminosity manifesting as the purity and sacredness of the phenomenal world. Since the sacredness comes out ofthe experience ofemptiness, the absence ofpreconceptions, it is neither a: religious nor a secular vision: that is, spiritual and secular vision could meet.
Moreover, sacred outlook is not conferred by any god. Seen clearly,
the world is self-existingly sacred.
Sakya Pandita. A hereditary head o f the Sakya lineage. A great scholar
(1181-1251 C. E. )
Samadhi. (Tib. tin ne zin) A state of meditation that is non-dualistic.
There is an absence ofdiscrimination between selfand other. Also called meditative absorption or one-pointed meditation; this is the highest form of meditation.
Samantabhadra. Samanta means all and bhadra means excellent. "He who is All-pervadingly Good" or "He whose Beneficence is Everywhere. " There are two Samantabhadras, one is the dharmakaya and the other is one of the eight main bodhisattvas, embodiment ofall Buddhas aspirations. In the Vajrayana tradition Samantabhadra is the primordial Buddha and representative of the experiential content of the dharmakaya.
Samaya. (Tib. dam sig) The vows or commitments made in the Vajrayana to a teacher or to a practice.
