No More Learning

It is impossible to express them all,
But if one meditates deeply on a single word, One comes to meditate on them all.
All the buddhas, as many as there are,
Have abundantly explained phenomena. But if those skilled in meaning
Were to study only the phrase:
All things are emptiness,
The doctrine of the Buddha would not be scarce.
10 The Divisions of Atiyoga
[190a. 5-190b. 3] Secondly, the esoteric instructions which possess these extraordinary properties are revealed in the divisions of the Atiyoga vehicle. There are three modes of appraising the spiritual and philosophical goal according to the degree ofacumen [in those requiring training]. This is stated in the Great Array:
Now, after I have passed into nirval). a,
This will become manifest:
For those who hold to the mind there will be the
Mental Class;
For those who hold to space there will be the Spatial
Class;
For those who do not strive after stages
There will be the Esoteric Instructional Class.
In this way Atiyoga has three divisions. There is the Mental Class (sems-kyi-sde), which teaches that all things are liberated from the ex- treme of renunciation, because they are not separated from mind-as- such. There is the Spatial Class (klong-gi-sde), which teaches that all apparitions of reality are free from activity and liberated from the ex- treme of the antidote, because they are perfectly gathered in Saman- the space ofreality. And there is the profound Esoteric Instruc- tIonal Class (man-ngag-gi-sde), which teaches that the particular charac- teristics of truth itself are liberated from both extremes of renunciation and antidote because they are established according to the modes of reality (yin-lugs).
1'BE MENT AL CLASS
First, concerning the Mental Class: The spiritual and PhIlosophical goal of the Mental Class is that the compounded truth of the path, which is endowed with corruption and guided by firm percep-
320 Fundamentals: Vehicles ofSecret Mantra
Divisions ofAtiyoga 321
tions which cling to the sequence of the vehicle, the two six transcendental perfections, the two stages and so forth, IS determmed (la-bzla-ba) in the great expanse liberated from aspects of a. nd result, virtue and evil, and acceptance and ! ej. ection to be the pnstme
cognition of great purity and ! hlS IS the natural expanse of reality which is the enlightened mmd m ItS natural state, or the. funda- mental reality of ultimate truth free from elabo. rauon. . In brief, all things which dualistically appear wnhm the subject-object
dichotomy are transcended. The following passages from the All- Accomplishing King also touch upon this:
In mind-as-such, which is the essence Of the enlightened mind,
There is neither meditation on the view, Nor the performance of conduct;
There is neither attainment of the result,
Nor progress through levels;
There is neither the creation of a maJ). c;iala,
Nor recitation, nor the perfection stage;
There is neither the conferral of empowerment,
mately equivalent; ultimately they are even equivalent to opinionatedness. "
While such teachings are insistently denied by the assertion which is made by some ofnarrow intellectual vision regarding the profound abiding nature, that the Great Perfection depreciates deeds, causes and results by allowing the area of skilful means to vanish, it can none the less be realised even from the above-cited passages that, though the childish intellect truly becomes afraid of the profound abiding nature, this doctrine which speaks of the dominion of pristine cognition, tran- scending the objects of conscious thought, and of the uncompounded expanse of reality that is the ultimate truth, is not developed through causes and conditions. It is held essentially not to abide in the three world realms or their elements, which are compounded by positive and negative deeds, and to be completely liberated from these.
If, however, one were to hanker for this [view ofnarrow intelligence], then as the master Nagarjuna's Root Stanzas on the Madhyamaka entitled Discriminative Awareness eCh. 18, v. S) says:
The conceptual elaboration of deeds and conflicting emotions,
Which are elaborated through discursive thought, Comes to cease through emptiness.
Thus [Nagarjuna], having said that all the causes and results of positive and negative deeds have emerged merely from the symbols of concep- tualising thought, then says that all these are pacified by the emptiness which is without conceptual elaborations. Concerning that pacification, too, he says (Ch. 18, v. 9):
Peace which is not extraneously known And absence of conceptual elaboration: These are the attributes of this [emptiness].
And also (Ch. 17, v. 33):
Conflicting emotions, deeds and bodies,
Actors and results are as
Castles in the sky, a mirage,
An optical illusion and the moon's [reflection] in
water.
And then, in his Transcendence of Existence According to Madhyamaka
CMadhyamakabhavasaizkranti, T 3840) he says:
Empty and without any conceptualisation,
Without activity in the mind, neither birth nor death, Apparitional in appearance, devoid of virtue and evil, Empty of'sarpsara and nirval). a,
And:
Nor the keeping of commitments.
The pure reality spontaneously present from the
beginning
Transcends the doctrines of cause and result Which adventitiously strive after sequences.
If one maintains that there is cause and effect For Atiyoga, the yoga of the Great Perfection, One has not realised the meaning of Great
Perfection.
If one maintains the relative and ultimate to be two, One's statements both exaggerate and depreciate;
One has not realised that there are not two.
The realisation of the buddhas of the three times
Is gained in the sole determination that two are not
seen.
And in the Sublime Sutra which Reveals the Relative and Ultimate Truth
eAryaparamarthasarrzvrtisatyanirdesasutra, T 179):
Mafiju8rl declared: "0 son of the gods, that which is just what it is, the expanse of reality, and the utterly are ultimately equivalent; ultimately they. are. ent to the five inexpiable sins. That whIch IS Just what is, the expanse of reality, and the utterly unborn are ulu-
322 Fundamentals: Vehicles ofSecret Mantra
And of emptiness and compassion, . The radiant reality that is inexpressIble Apparitional radiance and. emptiness
Has slain all the buddhas. How is he untainted by sin? Yet if he were so tainted, What result would there be? 312
And eCh. 18, vv. 197-8):
All substances are like an apparition. One who acts to create and destroy them Therefore incurs no sin.
Merits also are the same.
Whoever is without either sin or merit
Is said to have enlightenment.
According to the extensive teachings given in passages such as these, the area of skilful means is indeed allowed to vanish. None the less, reality appears as a dream-like ripening of cause and result to those who have not realised this abiding nature and perceive dream-like phenomena to be the truth. Therefore it is said in the Madhyamaka [ef. Introduction to the Conduct of a Bodhisattva, Ch. 9, v. lIcd]:
With reference to the nature of mere illusory subjectivity:
One who is endowed with an illusory mind Incurs both merit and sin.
These therefore are false as a dream.
Now the Mental Class, if classified, consists of seven categories. The first is the area of mind which holds the result to be the mind's point of origin (,bras-bu sems-kyi byung-sar 'dod-pa'i sems-phyogs). The result is unchanging in the original expanse [of reality], and so the mind does not wander from this disposition, although it does ·arise in the manner of sarp. sara from the apparitional, spontaneously present aspect of the ground that is released from the same unchanging disposition. Therefore the mind is empty of impure particulars, and its emergence from the expanse, its abiding in the expanse and its dissolving in the expanse in the manner of a miraculous event in the sky, which are derived from that apparitional aspect, are determined to be primordial liberation, and effortless, natural presence (ye-grol rang-gzhag 'bad-rtsol nzed-par la-bzla-ba'o).
The second is the area of mind which has determined deviation and Obscuration (gol-sgrib la-bzla-ba'i sems-phyogs). The eight sequences [of the vehic1'e] from Anuyoga downwards are deviations from the ground because they are designated by the intellect. In this [area of the Mental Class], on the other hand, cause and conditions have been determined by the naturally present pristine cognition free from the intellect, so that the great, emptiness, which is reality, is unobscured
Is without substance and Ideas.
. h h passages which indicate the realisation of the
suc,
In accord WIt
. l' [th Mental Class] has occasion to revea
1d' 1h uect y t at vour of go d
ultimate rea lty, e
the realisation which occurs in the supreme common sa
. . 0 d '1 unfettered and unliberated by all posItIve and
an deeds is as previously stated, the in whIch the neg . . d' . d to be aspirationless m character. Such IS
of all thmgs IS etermlne - h· - said in the Authentic Conduct of a Bodhisattva (Aryabod lsattvacarya-
nirdesasutra, T 184): Ratnadatta said:
, Such must be declared:
Do not abandon desire.
Subdue not hatred.
. 311
Don't clarify de1USlon.
Do not move so as to surpass your own body.
Practice vice.
Do not eliminate opinion.
Don't teach about the entanglements.
Grasp the components as whole. . .
Combine the psychophysical bases mto one entity. Indulge in the sensory activity fields.
Do not progress beyond an infantile level.
Think unvirtuously.
Renounce virtue.
Do not pay attention to the Do not reflect upon the doctnne. Worship not the sarrzgha. . .
Do not properly undertake the traInIngs. Try not to pacify wordly existen. ce.
Do not cross the river [of suffenng].
an. should be instructed and advised. Why so? Because {t IS this abiding condition of the reality of things that a one
abides. . Ch 18 And it is similarly said in the glorious GuhyasamiiJa Tantra ( . ,
vv. 194-S):
. . b' sand buddhas: There is a sameness In sentIent. emg . )
Which is to be attained? Who IS at. tamer. The lord of attainment, supreme IdentIty,
Such are the instructions wIt w lC
.
. . h h' h ovice bodhisattva
Divisions ofAtiyoga 323
324 Fundamentals: Vehicles ofSecret Mantra
in its fundamental nature, beyond recollection, thought, bias, emergent sensation and so forth. .
The third is the area of mind which shatters source (gtan-tshigs khungs-rdib-pa'i sems-phyogs). By reahsmg the truth. whIch is uncontrived with respect to the ground, or the. su. preme such, free from conceptual elaboration, essence Is. hberated ':Ithout being created, and its unimpeded expreSSIve power evenly dIffused in a vast openness. There is no support so there is no ripening of either positive or negatlve attnbutes. ThIS Is_held to be liberation in sameness, throughout the extent ? f sarpsara and
. - b means of axioms [arising within]313 whIch concern the mrvana, Y . l'b'
emptiness of reality, its natural punty and great 1 eratlOn from extremes. .
The fourth is the area of mind which holds that IS no into partiality or bias (rgya-chad phyogs-lhung-med-par I phyogs). Although mind-as-such, the COg? l- tion, encompasses all of sarpsara and It IS WIth respect to substantial appearances, respect to msubstan- tial emptiness, and, being without eIther, not even descen. d into bias with respect to their coalescence. S. Ince 1. tS empty IS liberated from the extreme of eternalism a? ? ItS power is liberated from the extreme of It IS the reahty WIthout activity, transcending happiness and .
The fifth is the area of mind concermng the level of philosophical systems (phyogs-'dzin grub-mtha'i sa'i out abiding and without existing anywhere, the essence of mmd ans. es unimpededly in any appearance whatsoever. It is said in the Supenor Magical Net:
Appearing nowhere and everywhere,
The uncreated, magical diversity appears. The diverse maJ). 9alas of the Conqueror, too, Are the great miraculous display of mind.
. b . . . d d unapprehend- Accordingly, [the mind] does anse, ut It IS ummpe e ,
Divisions ofAtryoga 325
are the display of mind, the diversity of appearances is essenceless because mind-as-such is also essenceless; and although both the sub- jective forms of the mind which arise and objective appearances which emerge seem to differ, they are actually indivisible in reality, the
naturally present pristine cognition, where there is no such thing. The duality of sarpsara and nirvaJ). a arises from the spontaneously present vibration of [mind's] natural expressive power, and yet that which arises is without essence. The distinctive doctrine ofthis [Mental Class]
is therefore that [the mind] proceeds to natural liberation at the very moment when it arises. It says in the All-Accomplishing King:
Phenomenal existence, the world and its contents, All buddhas and sentient beings,
Are created by the mind,
And are one in the disposition of mind.
The Texts and Teaching Cycles ofthe Mental Class (NGB Vols. 1-3)
[l95a. 1-195b. 3] The tantras which express this Mental Class are said to number two million two hundred thousand verses. If these are sub- sumed, they comprise the Three Spaces (klong gsum-po) which are
contained in six thousand three hundred sections (bam-po), namely, the Space in which Reality is Inexpressible (chos-nyid brjod-du med-pa'i klong), the Space in which the View is Not Absent (lta-ba min-pa med-pa'i
klong) and the Space in which Conduct is Not Present (spyod-pa yin- pa med-pa'i klong). If further subsumed, these are gathered into the Three Vaults [or Appendices] ('phyong-gsum), namely, the Vault which Directly Reaches the Abiding Ground (gnas-pa gzhi-thog-phebs-pa'i 'Phyong), the Vault into the Liberation of Appearances Right Where
They Are (snang-ba rang-sar grol-ba'i 'phyong) and the Vault into the Equalisation without Differentiation (ngo-mnyam tha-dad med-pa'i
'Phyong).
The texts of the Mental Class also comprise one thousand and three great tantra sections which are entitled the Fifty Nails Undeviating with to Reality (chos-nyid-la 'chugs-pa med-pa'i gzer-bu lnga-bcu), the FIve Hundred and Eleven Situations in which Objects are Viewed as Mind (Yul sems-la lta-ba'i gnas lnga-bgya-bcu-gcig), the Twenty Thousand Simul-
taneous Distinctions between Appearances and Mind (snang-sems cig-car-du
khri-phrag-gnyis), the Fifty Thousand Determinations Made
In the All-Surpassing View (lta-ba thod-rgal-du la-bzla-ba lnga-khri) and
the Thousand Situations which Cut Through the Idea ofBeing in Meditation (sgOm-yod rtog-pa gcod-pa'i gnas cig-stong) .
. l. f this spiritual and philosophical goal of the Mental Class is essen- All the apparitions of reality which appear are perfect in reality, t e expanse of the enlightened mind, without having to seal all phenom- enal appearances with the seal of reality. The awareness of appearances
ing and non-conceptual.
The Sixth is the area of mind which transcends dogmatlsm co
h 'd ' l 'das-pa ing that which is free from the intellect (blo-bral p y,0? s- zzn-. as ee fr0111
sems-phyogs). The naturally present pristine cogmtIOn that ears. the intellect does not exist as any truth or falsehood, however , . pp nd It is a display of great liberation from the extremes of bemg a
non-being. r in ref-
'lMs-
The seventh is the area of mind which propounds actua . h . tu 314 smra-ba z
self'
erence to mind-as-such (sems-kyz p yogs yzn-.
phyogs). Although all these appearances appear dIversely becaus
e they
. ncern-
'I'
326 Fundamentals: Vehicles ofSecret Mantra
as the expressive power [of mind], or as a display [of . them without deliberate recogmtlon. The glonous
accompames
Narotapa [Naropa] also says:
This nature of diverse appearances
Is reality, and thus indivisible.
Therefore, for the radiant mind-as-such or mtentlOn,
In which [appearances and reality] Nothing even slightly appears that not reahty. This essence through which
Is seen as the nucleus of pristine cogmtlon ItSelf. Essentially it is inexpressible.
THE SPATIAL CLASS
[195bA-197bA] Secondly, concerning the Spatial Class: the s ace of SamantabhadrI, the reality of naturally present pnstme COglll- tfon, all apparitions of reality which are merely that array which manifests in and of Itself. . Other t deYh . 0
not exist as bondage and liberation, or as whIch anse an t actual arising. It is therefore not claimed, as m Mental Class. , t at [the apparitions of reality] appear as the and. dIsplay [of the mind]. The spiritual and philosophIcal
is the establishment of a great infinity of u scrutinised in terms of relational proof, explicit of implicitly affirmative negation of existence, or punty and lmpunty. The master Naropa's Means for Attaining the Real also says:
The effortless unconceived awareness, .
An blissful space manifest in and ? f. ltself, Arises as the spontaneously present space of pnstme
unchanging, naturally beyond causes and conditions, and without spa- tial parts. There are three subclassifications, namely, the Black Space of Deeds (mdzad-pa klong-nag) , the Black Space of Spirituality (thugs-rje klong-nag) and the Black Space of Emanation (spntl-pa klong-nag-gi sde).
As for the essence of the second, the teaching of the Variegated Space propounded as Diversity (klong khra-bo sna-tshogs-su smra-ba): It is positively held that the appearances in the display of this naturally present pristine cognition are an adornment and display of reality, which appears as a naturally arisen diversity; and it is negatively held that the [same] display, which arises all-pervasively and without direc- tion, is beyond refutation and proof. There are three subclassifications, namely, the Variegated Space which propounds Being in Conformity with the Mental Class (yod-smra sems-sde dang mthun-pa'i klong khra-bo), the Variegated Space which propounds Non-Being in Accordance with the Natural Position [of the Spatial Class, med-smra rang-gnas dang mthun-pa'i klong khra-bo], and the Variegated Space which propounds Both Being and Non-Being in Conformity with the Esoteric Instructional Class (yod-med man-ngag dang mthun-pa'i klong khra-bo).
According to the essence of the third, the teaching of the White Space propounded as the Mind (klong dkar-po sems-su smra-ba): It is held that everything which arises as outer appearance and inner aware- ness from the disposition of naturally present awareness is a display of mind, that appearances and conditions are pure from their basis with nothing to be done because they are liberated right where they are, and that there is nothing to be attained in the abiding nature. There are two subclassifications, namely, the White Space ofthe Inexpressible, Great Natural Arising (brjod-med rang-shar chen-po'i klong dkar-po), and the White Space of the Non-Duality of View and Meditation (lta-sgom gnyis-su-med-pa'i klong dkar-po).
Concerning the essence of the fourth, the teaching of the Infinite
Space in which Cause and Result are Determined Cklong rab-'byams
rgyu-'bras la-bzla-ba); It is held that all things which arise from the
disposition of the naturally present pristine cognition are known through
mind inasmuch as they are apparent, and are known through the abiding
inasmuch as they are not apparent. There are four subclassifica-
tIons, namely, the Outer Infinity which concerns Freedom from Activity
(bya-ba dang bral-ba phyi'i rab-'byams), the Inner Infinity which prop-
ounds the Spiritual and Philosophical Goal in accordance with the Texts
of the Spatial Class itself (grub-mtha' rang-gzhung-du smra-ba nang-gi
rab-'byams), the Secret Infinity which concerns the Dispelling of Obs-
(gegs-bsal-ba gsang-ba'i rab-'byams), and the Infinity of the Real
;Vhlch Unties the Essential (gnad-bkrol-ba de-kho-na-nyid-kyi rab- bYarns).
If these [four kinds of Spatial Class] are then subsumed, they comprise the teaching of the Four Spaces (klong-bzhi) concerning display (rol-pa) ,
cognition.
Naturally present and pervasive as . the . sky. .
This enlightened mind of
Is a blissful space of illusory pnstme It actually radiates as the holders of the pnstme
cognition t Of intuitive awareness, who are a naturally presen
illusion.
. . Ifclassified thisSpatialClassconsIstsoffour
[of teaching]· pounded
The essence the first, the teaching of the Blacdk pace is that
g po rgyu-me -du smra as the Absence of Causes (kiong na - . ' I
. . 'tion m Its natura state,
this naturally present pnstme cogm . ' r ' t If because it 15
refer to either the apparitions of realIty or rea Ity 1 se
. '
,
does not .
Divisions ofAtiyoga 327
328 Fundamentals: Vehicles ofSecret Mantra
adornment (rgyan), reality (chos-nyid), and freedom from activity (bya- bral). As to the first, [the Space of Display]: It is present because the display of mind-as-such does not change or alter from the disposition in which it unimpededly arises; and it is absent because this display which is without substantiality is not apprehended as an extreme. Its intention is openly directed in the manner of the sky.
As to the second, [the Space of Adornment]: Appearance, mind, natural presence and freedom from both artificiality and corruption, which successively arise as primordial adornments, arise unimpededly from that unborn disposition [of reality]. Appearances and mind are therefore neither refuted nor proven. Its intention is one of great natural rhythm and natural radiance.
As to the third, [the Space of Reality]: All things, whatever their source, neither come about, nor abide, nor cease. Though all the expres- sive powers of their display appear from the disposition of reality, they remain equipoised in the disposition of reality, just as the four elements do not wander from space.
Then, as to the fourth, [the Space of Freedom from activity]: Accept- ance and rejection through strenuous efforts are not required with reference to anything whatsoever. Everything abides in an uncom- pounded realm, in the manner of the sky, because it abides not to be done but primordially completed, not to be liberated but primordially liberated, not to be purified but primordially purified, and not to be attained but primordially accomplished.
If these categories of the Spatial Class are similarly subsumed, they are gathered into Nine [Spaces], namely, the Space in which the View is Unchanging (lta-ba 'pho-'gyur med-pa'i klong), the Space in which Meditation is neither Present nor Absent (bsgom-pa yin-min med-pa'i klong), the Space in which there is neither Hope nor Doubt for the Result (,bras-bu re-dogs med-pa'i klong), the Space in which the Essence is neither Accomplished nor Clarified (ngo-bo grub-bsal med-pa'i klong), the Space in which Natural Expression is Unimpeded (rang-bzhin ma- 'gags-pa'i klong), the Space in which Appearance and Mind are Liberated with respect to Characteristics (mtshan-nyid-la snang-sems grol-ba'i klong) , the Space in which the Expanse is Unchanging (dbyings 'pho-'gyur med-pa'i klong), the Space in which Display Unimpededly and Naturally Arises (rol-pa 'gag-med rang-shar-gyi klong) and the Space which is the Total Presence of Spontaneous Sameness and Primordial Liberation (lhun- mnyam ye-grol cog-bzhag-gi klong).
If these, in turn, are subsumed, they are gathered into Three Spaces, namely, the Space of Supremely Vast Spontaneous Presence (lhun- grub yangs-pa chen-po'i klong) , the Space of Effortless Radiance (rang-gsal bya-rtsol med-pa'i klong) and the Space which IS Primordially Accomplished though Nothing is Done (ma-byas ye-nas grub-pa'i klong).
Divisions ofAtiyoga 329 The Texts of the Spatial Class (NGB Vols. 3-4)
[197b. 4-198a. 4] There are eleven thousand chapters and six million four hundred thousand verses subsumed under the titles of the three thousand tantras, which extensively reveal these modes [of the Spatial Class]. . too, are gathered into the Eighty Thousand Aspects of Determznatzon (la-bzla-ba khri-phrag-brgyad); these are then gathered into Twenty. Thousand Aspects ofDistinction (shan-'byed khri-phrag gnyis); and these, m turn, are then gathered into Nine Hundred Conclusions ('gags with Two Thousand Essentials (gnad nyis-stong)
and the Nazis (gzer-bu lnga-bcu), all of these, if subsumed, are gathere? categories, namely, Liberation from Activity (byas- grol), LIberatIOn m the Establishment [of the Abiding Nature] (bzhag- grol) and Direct Liberation (cer-grol).
It is said in the Doha Composed by Lord Maitripa (Mahamudra- kanakamala, T 2454):
Non-conceptual, without ideas,
Transcending objects of ideas and scrutiny, Unthinking, without mind, utterly unthinkable, Without support or lack of support,
Or going, coming and abiding,
Awakening to the happiness and sorrows
Of saqlsara and nirval). a
In the space of supreme bliss,
Uncontrived, unwavering and naturally relaxed, Is the inner radiance, free from coming or going, In which mental events have been interrupted. Its appearance is ineffable and it is without any
master.
It is recognised to be reality,
The intrinsically radiant awareness, and the body of reality.
Passages such as this, too, have arrived at the spiritual and philosophical goal of the [Spatial Class].
THE ESOTERIC INSTRUCTIONAL CLASS
. . 3) Thirdly, there is the Esoteric Instructional Class: This M s dlstmctIOn over the two lower [Mental and Spatial Classes]. The thental Class, by referring positively to the mind has mostly achieved the area of profundity rather than radiance, and' yet by not realising
e power of radiance to be reality, it almo;t clings to mental scrutIny Th S . I C .
r d' . e patla lass, though equally achIeving profundity and a lance, rather than the mental scrutiny which apprehends reality,
330 Fundamentals: Vehicles ofSecret Mantra .
almost lapses into a deviation point within the of emptmess. T. he
Esoteric Instructional Class, on the other hand, IS act_ually supenor . h ·thI·n the expanse of reality that is free from concep-
Divisions ofAtiyoga 331
because It gat ers WI
tual elaboration, all apparitions of realIty whIch appear t . roug t e
self-manifesting, spontaneously present and expressIve As such [these apparitions] are the tone of the pnJ? ordIally
·bl e the supreme transcendence of mtellect. It IS Said In pressl e essenc , .
the Great Array of the Hzghest:
o holder of indestructible reality,
If this is not established, .
There are those who cling to mental And those who resort, in particular, to nothmg
at all.
Therefore this definitive, secret nucleus,
As a butter lamp amid the darkness, Or as an elephant among oxen,
A lion among wild animals,
Or a horseman among pedestrians, Is superior to them all.
The essence of this Esoteric Instructional Class is con. trary to those
bases and doctrines which refer to the dichotomy
·lderment or of realisation and non-reahsatIOn, by divIdmg non-beW I, r· hmeral the originally liberated and primordially pure Ity mto e k
objects that are to be inspected and the conSCIOusness whIch rna es inspection. From the position of the essence,
tual elaboration, both the subjective perceptIOn ObjectIve in of perception are equal in their lack of authentICIty, other . t h a _ mere conventional usage, the thoughts and prehend that dichotomy are genuinely transcended. ThIs class . t
resembles a geomantic centre which directly essentIa
e transcending intellect, thoughts of the mind, thmkmg process
mental scrutiny. It is said by MafijusrI:
Inwardly radiant by nature, Primordially pure as the sky,
The primordial realities have abandoned
characteristics.
They are neither things nor reality:
Similar to space which is without substantIaht! ', They are liberated from all words and phonetIc
expressions.
. .
which are unceasing and [continually] arising, so that the root ofworldly existence cannot be removed. As the same text says:
The emptiness of the conquerors
Is said definitively to remove all views.
If this [Esoteric Instructional Class] is classified, it comprises three categories, namely, the Random (kha-'thor), the Oral Tradition (kha- gtam) and the Teaching which Accords with its own Textual Tradition of Tantras (rgyud rang-gzhung-du bstan-pa, NGB Vols. 9-10). The es- sence of the first, [the Random category of esoteric instructions], is that the pristine cognition, which transcends the intellect, instantane- ously arises without regard for extraneous classifications and clarifica- tions. Its subdivisions are twofold: With reference to establishment [of reality], there are the Esoteric Instructions which Conclude the Path (bzhag-pa lam-gyi mtha'-gcod-pa'i man-ngag), and with reference to lib- eration, there are the Esoteric Instructions ofPure Power which Disclose the Path (grol-ba stabs dag-pa lam mngon-gyur gyi man-ngag).
The second [category of Esoteric Instructions], those given in the
15
manner ofan Oral Tradition, are essentialll
unbewildered. They naturally shatter the source of conceptualisation and, characteristically, they are free from deliberate recognition. Its subdivisions are twofold: the Oral Tradition which Permeates All Dis- course (gleng-bayongs-la bor-ba'i kha-gtam) and the Oral Tradition which is Divulged in Speech at No Fixed Time (khar-phog dus-med-pa'i kha- gtam).
The third [category of esoteric instructions], the Teaching which Accords with its own Textual Tradition of Tantras, is essentially the point of origin of all transmitted precepts. It is naturally effortless with respect to renunciation and acceptance because it is devoid of sarp. sara and nirvaI). a; and, characteristically, it is untouched by disputation concerning emptiness because it does not abide in sounds or words. Its subdivisions are fourfold: those transmitted precepts given in the manner of the Full Summation of the View (lta-ba sgang dril-ba), those given in the manner of Blood-letting which Removes Obstacles (gtar-ga gegs-sel), those given in a manner which Reveals the Hidden (gab-pa nzngon-du phyung), and those given in the manner of Exegeses which are Naturally Clear (bshad-pa rang-gsal). These, too, are classified into many profound and vast subdivisions with respect to view, meditation and conduct such as: their Hidden Point (gnadgab-pa) and its Revelation (nzngon-du phyung-pa); the Extent of their Warmth (drod-tshad); the Essence which having Penetrated the Essentials of Object and Con-
Throws Open the Naked Awareness (yul-shes gnad-la bor-nas rzg-pa ther-la 'byin-pa'i gnad); the Opposition to Bewilderment at its Ground C'khrul-pa gzhi-la bzlog-pa); and the Essential Penetration of the Seminal Point·(thig-le gnad-la dbab-pa).
. ther than thIS, As long as one refers to objects deSIgnate? m VIews °b b ndoned,
. . .
. . h bjective mmd cannot e a a ]
the posture of chngmg to t e su
and one who has not abandoned that comes to possess
[corruptions
. .
hhh
free from the intellect and
332 Fundamentals: Vehicles ofSecret Mantra
Divisions ofAtiyoga 333
Ifthese are subsumed, they comprise four [cycles], namely, the Outer Cycle which Resembles the Body (Ius-dang 'dra-ba phyi-skor), the Inner Cycle which Resembles the Eyes (mig-dang 'dra-ba nang-skor) , the Secret Cycle which Resembles the Heart (snying-dang 'dra-ba gsang-skor) and the Unsurpassedly Secret Cycle which Resembles the Perfection of All (thams-cad rdzogs-pa-dang 'dra-ba yang-gsang bla-na med-pa'i skor).
According to the first, or the Outer Cycle: Essentially, the five poisons are carried on the path because there are no conflicting emotions. Naturally, whatever appears arises as reality because there is no labori- ous accomplishment; and characteristically, emptiness is not divided into anything at all because there are no spatial parts.
As for the second, the Inner Cycle: Essentially, it is the signless reality because it has transcended formation. Naturally, it is the pristine cognition which permanently and continuously abides because it neither goes nor comes. And characteristically, too, it resembles roots in that it penetrates both sarpsara and nirva1). a; it resembles a tree trunk in that the intrinsic face [of awareness] turns in different [directions]; it resembles branches in that the appearance of expressive power is exten- sive on all sides; it resembles flowers in that the range of radiance is unimpeded; and it resembles fruit in that its diversity is ripened into one.
As for the third, the Secret Cycle: Essentially, it disregards the three
kinds of discriminative awareness because introduction to reality (ngo-
sprod) and realisation occur simultaneously. Naturally, it disregards the
316
power of experience because the cessation ofbreathing
are simultaneous; and characteristically, it disregards the two causally based provisions because buddhahood and the emergence of spirituality are simultaneous.
Then, concerning the fourth, or the Unsurpassedly Secret Cycle: Essentially, it disregards the act of perception because there is nothing to be perceived. Naturally, this reality does not abide in mental because it is directly perceived; and characteristically, vital energy itself IS united in the expanse of the original ground through the four visionary appearances (snang-ba bzhi), without constructing the hope for a result in a future lifetime.
The Texts of the Esoteric Instructional Class (NGB Vols. 5-10)
[200b. 3-202b. l] It is said [by the buddhas] in their transmitted precepts that the meanings and expressions contained in such [categories] of the Esoteric Instructional Class are equal to the limits of the sky. include Twenty Thousand Tantras of Expressive Words (rjod-byed tshig-g1 rgyud khri-phrag gnyis), Thirty-five Thousand Chapters (le'u stong-phrag sum-cu rtsa lnga), Six Million Four Hundred Thousand Verses (sva-lo-ka 'bum-phrag drug-cu rtsa-bzhi) , Five (gnad lnga), Eight Great Vaults [or Appendzces, phyong-chen-po brgya
One Hundred and Eighty Nails (gzer-bu brgya-dang brgyad-cu), Nine Hundred Thousand Conclusions ('gags stong-phrag dgu-brgya), Seventy Thousand Distinctions (shan-'byed khri-phrag-bdun), and One Hundred and Fifty Thousand Determinations (la-bzla-ba 'bum-phrag phyed-dang
gnyis).
The four [cycles] of the Esoteric Instructional Class are also gathered in Three Spaces, namely, the Space of Unceasing Display (rol-pa 'gags- pa med-pa'z klong), the Space in which there is Nothing Unliberated in the Intellect (blo-la ma-grol-ba med-pa'i klong) and the Space in which the Essence is Neither Good Nor Evil (ngo-bo-la bzang-ngan med-pa'i
klong). And the nucleus of the Esoteric Instructions is also fourfold: namely, . that which Unties the Essential (gnad-bkrol-ba), that which Brings FInal Closure [of Obstacles] ('gag-bsdam-pa), that which Intro- duces [Intrinsic Awareness] (ngo-sprad-pa) and that which Visibly Es- tablishes the Intrinsic Essential (mngon-sum rang-gnad-la dbad-pa).
The View and Path ofthe Esoteric Instructional Class
According to this tradition of the Esoteric Instructional Class of the Great Perfection, which is the nucleus of all teachings, the indi- awareness is an object to be experientially cultivated as pnstIne cogmtIOn. It transcends the mind which possesses the nature of the eight aggregates of consciousness, the corrupt grasping
component. On this, indeed, it is said in the Lion's Perfect Expressive Power:
Propensities of the mind and pristine cognition are insubstantial
Though pristine cognition has been freed from all propensities,
The diverse propensities are collected by the mind. Ifmind and pristine cognition are not differentiated as two, The root of objective appearances is not cut off. Although the unconditioned reality is pure,
It is difficult to realise.
And also, in Naropa's Means for Attaining the Real:
When this intuitive awareness of the enlightened mind
Is under the sway of the bewilderment of propensities
although non-existent, is materialised ImagInatIOn.
Though the propensities of the mind outwardly appear,
The awareness is unchanging inner radiance. And:
Free from t. he movement of the conceptualising mind,
and liberation
334
Fundamentals: Vehicles ofSecret Mantra
The inner radiance of intrinsic awareness is not grasped.
In brief, all sensory appearances and objects of thought are t? e of samsara which appear through the mind and have the graspmg mmd as particular characteristic. The Sublime Perfection of Discriminative Awareness in Eight Thousand Lznes the very
same point when it says, concerning mind-as-such WhICh transcends the mundane mind and its mental events, that:
In mind there exists no mind. The nature of mind is inner
radiance.
Furthermore, the Sublime Pagoda of Precious Jewels says:
Free from mind, intellect and consciousness, the of contemplation, indeed, is not abandoned. ThIS IS the inconceivable mystery of the Tathagata's mind.
And the sublime Nagarjuna has also said:
Inasmuch as there is no mind, there is nothing at all, There is neither body nor psychophysical base; Hence, according to the non-dual path,
This is well explained as just what is.
Extensive quotations such as these also have an intention directed to- wards the awareness which transcends the mind.
This same awareness is also a primordial liberation (ye-grol) because its intrinsic face is uncovered from the beginning by the things. of samsara, so that the basis of the grasping components of worldly eXIst- has ceased. It is a natural liberation (rang-grol) because, uncon-
trived by any antidote, all that arises [is liberated] without reference to other liberating activities, in the manner of a snake which has naturally uncoiled its knots. It is a direct liberation (cer-grol) because all the consciousnesses of the eight aggregates are naturally liberated ,:ith suddenness in an instant, without a duality of subject and object. A? d
. d it is a liberation from extremes (mthaJ-grol) because It
"
tional aspect or corporeal objects into inner radiance in a spontaneously present manner, and so causes the cessation of apparitional reality.
Cutting Through Resistance
[202b. 1-204a. 5] Concerning the first of these, Cutting Through Resist- ance, which establishes the primordially pure abiding nature: The in- tention of this supreme vehicle is directed towards awareness, the fun- damental reality without bondage or liberation, the essence itself which is primordially pure, uncontrived and utterly impartial. It has not fallen into any direction whatsoever because it cannot be said that "the essence is intrinsically this". This naked, core-penetrating (zang-thal) aware- ness, transcending thought and expression, is itself emptiness in that it is free from the conceptualising intellect; it is signless in that it is not symbolised by verbal or written word during the path; and it is aspirationless in that from the standpoint of the result there is neither hope nor doubt concerning something that is to be obtained. Owing to that awareness, the attributes of enlightenment are perfected, and it is that awareness in which the [aforementioned] three natural ap- proaches to liberation are present as inner radiance. In it, the things subsumed by consciousness which refers to the view, meditation, con- duct and result either with or without thought,317 do not exist. By looking for [awareness] it is not seen; by meditating on it, it is not realised; by conduct no benefit is incurred; and the result is not to be Because it is not [to be obtained], there is nothing to be done WIth to purification on the levels, progression on the paths, or refernng to the results and their respective sequences. The glorious Saraha [in his Song of Esoteric Instruction: An Inexhaustible Treasure Store, DohiikosopadesagUiJT 2264] says:
Listen! do not regard cause and result as two.
There are no causes and results which arise as substances. If this yogin's mind is maddened
By the mind which hopes and doubts,
The co-emergent pristine cognition will be bound therein. Listen! since that is without independent existence,
Do not say it is an object ofmeditation.
If, having realised both the object of meditation
And act of meditating,
One were to think of it as enlightenment
With a dualising intellect,
One would have committed a sin against oneself.
are some who, not having comprehended such an abiding as this, depreciate the profundities of the perfection stage, :ldmg that the resultant buddha-body of form is not achieved without t e accumulation of the two provisions, including the causal creation
oes no After this intrinsic awareness, the naturally present pnstIlle ,cog ,
within the three times or within any perceptual object.
muon
which abides in the dispostion of these four great modes of
" . d ' fh' thIIIorer has been ascertained to be the dIstmCtlve octnne 0 t IS p a , ,
, I' d h 'tt7
that it might be appropnately rea Ise ,t ere eXIS \\0 . _
Through Resistance (khregs-chod), which is oriented towards the
tiness aspect or primordially pure awareness without conceptual e a .
oration and so causes the cessation of [inherently] empty fl
and All-Surpassing Realisation (thod-rgal), which clarifies the appa -
t abi e . '
paths'CutUng
Divisions ofAt0'oga 335
336 Fundamentals: Vehicles ofSecret Mantra
stage and so forth. But their action is one which abandons the doctrine. According to this path [of Cutting Through Resistance] the body of reality itself is obtained because it is the culmination of the buddhas. Elsewhere it is accordingly said [in the Diamond Cutter, Vajracchedika, T 16, para. 26, vv. 1-2b]:
Those who see me as form,
Those who perceive me as sound,
Those persons, who remain on the false path, Do not perceive me.
It is the body of reality
ThatistheBuddha's.
In this way, the nucleus of indestructible reality, the primordially pure awareness, enters into the qualitative experience of the original body of reality's modes (yin-lugs). In the manner of the naturally radiant sun, it is liberated from the obscuring action of conceptual elaboration, and it is held to be seen in the present moment, just like the sun, once the overwhelming ideas of the mind, which activate the eight sequences [of the vehicle] and cause obscuration through their dependence on the symbolic creation stage, have been purified of their obscuration. Since it possesses such distinctions, the naturally present pristine cognition, uncontrived by a conceptual view, meditation, conduct, and result, is determined in its natural establishment. This awareness is just present in its natural disposition, open, uncontrived, unconstructed, unmeditat- ing, unwavering, unbewildered, without entering into ideas and scrutiny, aloof, naked, and relaxed; and it is only nominally called a view and a meditation. It says in the Tantra ofthe Great Natural Arising of Awareness:
In the awareness that is without conceptual elaboration How could there be bewilderment and ignorance?
In the pristine cognition that is without mind
How could there be ignorance and propensities?
So it is that, through meditative equipoise, the fundamental, uncon- trived abiding nature of great primordially pure awareness is directly introduced, and there can be no bondage through the subject-object dichotomy. The means ofnot contaminating it with objects ofmeditation or the act of meditating is excellently revealed by teachings such as the Twelve Great Laughs of Indestructible Reality (rdo-rje gad-mo chen-po bcu-gnyis ) .
If firm experience in this very path has come about, finally one dissolves into a great, primordially pure point of liberation. The coarse atoms of the four elements are transformed into the power of the fire of pristine cognition, and, having been so purified, they vanish accom- panied by great miraculous events. If, on the other hand, activity on
Divisions ofAtiyoga 337
behalf of is to, the dissolving atoms emanate as, and then leave behmd, relIcs of four kinds, while the awareness centred in the expanse of body of reality then acts on behalf of living beings through unceasmg emanational bodies.
All-Surpassing Realisation
[204a. 5-211b. 4] Concerning the second [path] th
. . .
e esotenc mstructIOns
. " ,
of - urpassmg RealIsatIon which establish the t 1
All S ' '
,spon
aneous y present
VISIOnary appearances: Accordmg to Cutting Through R ' h b 'ld ' eSIstance, t e
eWI enng appearance of apprehended obJ'ects wI'thout d
'h ' d" ,groun an wIt out root, IS lfectly lIberated in fundame t i l ' H '
1S ' '" na reaIty. owever,thIS [AI -, urpassmg RealIsatIOn] IS superior to that lower path b
herem all those apparitional aspects of the th 1 ' , ecause , h " ree rea ms are lIberated
III e radIance of a great seminal point of five-coloured Ii ht
WhICh IS the natural tone of awareness, It is said in the P Sound:
This ,[view] is that, upon the display of [subtle] objects
the disposition [of awareness],
WIthout, entering into the conditions of samsara,
them to the very core, ' the [coarse] apparitional aspect
Of objects and consciousness,
They are directly liberated from their respective grounds. 318
And the glorious Naropa also says: All substances by nature
Are the point of the expanse of reality. Concernmg the means for attaining this,
Ihe nucleus, awareness itself, arises,
so darkness of extremes is purified by its dISPOSItIOn.
this naturally present attainment,
That IS not to be attained
Th '
e three realms are proven to be inner radiance
the buddha-mind, '
,g enetratzon OJ
Thisexpla t' b'fl ' ,
ary ap na IOn ne y mdicates the path through which the vision-
pearance of the expa . d h '
(rdo-rje lu-gu r ud) 319 ,nse an t e mdestructible chains [of light]
Finally th gy , ,:hIch are the nucleus or awareness are matured
inner e and mner elements of the three realm; dissolve
their t rouidgh the appearance of the cessation of y c os-ny zad-pa 1 snang-ba).
d
338 Fundamentals: Vehicles ofSecret Mantra
Divisions ofAtiyoga 339
Now this [path of All-Surpassing Realisation] is also subsumed in the Three Supportive Essentials of the Body (bca'-ba lus-kyi gnad-gsum), the Three Essentials which Guide [the Eyes] towards the Expanse C'khrid-pa dbyings-kyi gnad-gsum) and the Three Essentials of Objective Appearance (snang-bayul-gyi gnad-gsum) , which are to be experientially cultivated. And when. [the essential of light] within the last of these groupings is classified according to the four lamps (sgron-ma bzhi), it consists of the watery lamp of the far-sighted [eyes] (rgyangs-zhag chu'i sgron-ma), the lamp of the expanse of awareness (rig-pa dbyings-kyi sgron-ma), the lamp of emptiness which is the seminal point (thig-le stong-pa'i sgron-ma), and the lamp of naturally present discriminative awareness (shes-rab rang-byung-gi sgron-ma).
The first of these lamps, [the watery lamp of the far-sighted eyes], senses the appearances which arise because it externally perceives the tone of awareness. The second, [the lamp of the expanse of awareness], is the ground from which the inner expanse arises as a tone of external radiance. The third, [the lamp of emptiness which is the seminal point], is the support which activates the arising forms. And the fourth, [the lamp of naturally present discriminative awareness], is the unerring abiding nature of higher insight, or the face of awareness, when it arises as a pure essence and not as a [gross] object.
Concerning these divisions, the Tantra of the Great Natural Arising of Awareness says:
In the ma1). gala which is empty as the sky
Four kinds of uncontrived lamp
Radiate owing to the unimpeded reality. Concerning the lamp of the expanse of awareness: In the centre of space which is empty as the sky, The body of light, the natural expression of the
expanse,
Radiates in unimpeded, unceasing forms.
The body of buddha-mind, endowed with five
pristine cognitions,
Arises as an indestructible chain [of light]. Its coming and going
And its movement, too, are indeterminate. Penetration of this lamp of the expanse of
awareness,
If awareness is not disturbed,
Is well explained to be unchanging realisation.