Relative truth is the perception of an ordinary
{unenlightened)
being who sees the world with all his or her projections based on the false belief in "!
Khenchen-Thrangu-Rinpoche-The-Spiritual-Song-of-Lodro-Thaye
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 means nobody above himself or herself in spiritual experience and ma means 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.
Lineagegurus. The lineage gurus are the gurus of the line of transmission of what we study and practice. These transmissions date from the teachings of the Buddha himself. All of the line of gurus in that transmission from the Buddha, who first gave the teachings, up until the present time constitute what we call the lineage gurus.
Lotsawa. Sanskrit for "translator. "
Lower realm. The three lower realms are birth as a hell being, hungry ghost
and animal.
Luminosity. (Tib. selwa) 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. osel) Literally "free from the darkness of unknowing and
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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 samsara and nirvana.
Madhyamaka. The most influential of the four schools of Indian Buddhism founded by Nagarjuna in the second century C. E. The name comes from the Sanskrit word meaning "the Middle-way" meaning that it is the middle way between eternalism and nihilism. The main postulate of this school is that all phenomena - both internal mental events and external physical objects - are empty of any true nature. The school uses extensive rational reasoning to establish the emptiness of phenomena. This school does, however, hold that phenomena do exist on the conventional or relative level of reality.
Mahamudra. (Tib. cha ja chm po) Literally means "great seal" or "great symbol," meaning that all phenomena are sealed by the primordially perfect true nature. This form of meditation is traced back to Saraha (tenth century) and was passed down in the Kagyu school through Marpa. This meditative transmission emphasizes perceiving mind directly rather than through rational analysis. It also refers to the experience ofthe practitioner where one attains the union ofemptiness and luminosity and also perceives the non-duality of the phenomenal world and emptiness; also the name of Kagyupa lineage.
Mahapandita. Maha means great and pandita Buddhist scholar. Mahasiddha. A practitioner who has a great deal o f 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 ofsome ofthe
most famous is found in The Eighty-four Mahasiddhas.
Mahayana. (Tib. tek pa chen po) Literally, the "Great Vehicle. " These are the teachings ofthe second turning ofthe wheel ofdharma, which emphasize shunyata (see shunyata), compassion and universal Buddha nature. The purpose ofenlightenment is to liberate all sentient beings from suffering as well as oneself. Mahayana schools of philosophy appeared several
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hundred years after the Buddha's death, although the tradition is traced
to teachings he gave at Rajgriha, or Vulture Peak Mountain. Maitripa-was a guru ofMarpa, the Tibetan forefather of the Kagyu lineage. Thus it is through Maitripa that Maitreya and Asanga's crucial work on Buddha nature, the Uttaratantrashastra (Anuttara), became widely followed in Tibet. It is said that he had been a student ofNaropa when the latter was head of Nalanda monastic university. Maitripa also transmitted to Marpa the esoteric aspect of Buddha nature embodied in the Mahamudra teachings, which treat the topic of mind in great detail and provide a wide range of progressive, highly refined meditations. Maitripa was brought to enlightenment through Mahamudra under his guru Savari, who received the complete teachings ofMahamudra from Nagarjuna, who received them from Sahara, whom
Marpa encountered in his dream state.
Mantra. (Tib. ngags) 1) A synonym for Vajrayana. 2) A particular combination
of sounds symbolizing the nature of a deity, for example OM MANI PEME HUNG. These are invocations to various meditation deities which are recited in Sanskrit. These Sanskrit syllables, representing various energies, are repeated in different Vajrayana practices.
Mara. 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 of self; 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 aTibetan who made three trips to India and brought back many tantric texts, including the Six Yogas of Naropa, the Guyhasamaja, 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.
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Mental consciousness. 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. Mental factors are contrasted to mind in that they are more long-term propensities of mind including eleven virtuous factors such as faith, detachment and equanimity; the six root defilements such as desire, anger and pride; the rwenty secondary defilements such as resentment, dishonesty and harmfulness.
Middle-way or Madhyamaka school. A philosophical school founded by Nagarjuna and based on the Prajnaparamita sutras ofemptiness. Milarepa. (1040-1123 C. E. ) Milarepa was a student ofMarpa who attained
enlightenment in one lifetime. Mila, named by the deities and repa means white cotton. His student Gampopa established the (Dakpo) Kagyu lineage in Tibet.
Mind-only school. Also called Chittamatra school. This is one of the major schools in the Mahayana tradition founded in the fourth century by Asanga that emphasized everything is mental events.
Mudra. 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" of a deity.
Nadi. The channels in the vajra body through which the winds flow. Nagarjuna. An Indian master of philosophy. Founder of the Madhyamaka school and author of the Knowledge ofthe Middle "Way and other
important works. (second - third century)
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 of India.
Nihilism. (Tib. chad Ita) Literally, "the view ofdiscontinuance. " The extreme
view ofnothingness: no rebirth or karmic effects, and the non-existence
of a mind after death.
Nirmanakaya. (Tib. tulku) There are three bodies of the Buddha; the
nirmanakaya or "emanation body" manifests in the world and in this context manifests as the Shakyamuni Buddha. (see kayas, three. )
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Nirvana. Literally, "extinguished. " Individuals live in samsara and with spiritual practice can attain a state ofliberation in which all false ideas and conflicting emotions have been extinguished. This is called nirvana. The nirvana ofa Hinayana practitioner is freedom from cyclic existence as an arhat. The nirvana of a Mahayana practitioner is Buddhahood, free from extremes ofdwelling in either samsara or the perfect peace of an arhat.
Sometimes it is categorized as three types: nirvana of naturalness, which is ground nirvana; nirvana ofcessation, which is path nirvana; and non-abiding nirvana, which is the reward or fruition nirvana.
Non-distraction. (Tib. yeng me) Not straying from the continuity of the practice.
Non-fabrication. (Tib. zo me) The important key point in meditation of Mahamudra and Dzogchen; that innate wakefulness is not created through intellectual effort.
Non-meditation. (Tib. gom me) The state of not 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.
Non-thought. (Tib. mi tog) A state in which conceptual thinking is absent. Obscurations. There are two categories ofobscuration or defilement that cover one's Buddha nature: the defilement ofdisturbing emotions (see afflictive obscurations); and the defilement of latent tendencies sometimes called the obscuration of dualistic perception, or the intellectual/cognitive obscurations (see cognitive obscurations). The first category prevents sentient beings from freeing themselves from samsara, while the second
prevents them from gaining accurate knowledge and realizing truth. Occurrence. The period when thoughts are arising in the mind. Compare
with "stillness. "
One-pointedness. The first stage in the practice ofMahamudra.
One taste. The third stage in the practice ofMahamudra.
Ordinary Mind. (Tib. tamal kyi shepa) There is no need to do anything to
your present wakefulness at the moment of recognizing; it is already as
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it is. That is the true meaning of naked ordinary mind, a famous term in Tibetan. It means not tampered with. There is no "thing" which needs to be accepted or rejected; it is simply as it is. The term 'ordinary mind' is the most immediate and accurate term to describe the nature of mind. No matter what terminology is being utilized within the Middle-way, Mahamudra or Dzogchen, naked ordinary mind is the simplest term.
Pandita. A great scholar.
Path ofLiberation. The path of Mahamudra practice.
Path ofMeans. Refers to the Six Yogas of Naropa as well as to the stages of
creation and completion with attributes.
Prana. Life supporting energy. The "winds" or energy-currents of the vajra
body.
Prajna. (Tib. she rab) In Sanskrit it means "perfect knowledge" and can
mean wisdom, understanding or discrimination. Usually it means the
wisdom ofseeing things from a high (i. e. , non-dualistic) point ofview. Prajnaparamita. 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 ofemptiness in the Prajnaparamita Hridaya or
Heart Sutra, made possible by the extraordinarily profound dharma of the birth ofShakyamuni 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 of about 40 Mahayana sutras that all deal with the realization of prajna.
Pure realm. Realms created by Buddhas which are totally free from suffering and dharma there can be received directly. These realms are presided over by various Buddhas such as Amitabha, Avalokiteshvara, and Maitreya who presides over Tushita.
Rangjung Dorje. (1284-1339 C. E. ) The Third Karmapa, especially well known for writing a series of texts widely used in the Kagyu school.
Rtzngtongschool. The Madhyamaka or Middle-way is divided into two major
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schools; Rangtong {empty of self) and Shentong {empty of other). Rangtong is from the second turning ofthe wheel ofdharma and teaches that reality is empty of self and beyond concepts.
Recognition. In this context it means "recognizing the nature of mind. " Red element. The residual seed essence of the mother's ovum, obtained at conception, which remains present in the centre of the body below the
navel for the duration ofa person's life.
Relative truth. (Tib. kunsop) There are two truths: relative and absolute 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 belief in "! " and "other. "
Rigpa. The primordial, non-dual awareness in the Dzogchen teachings. Rinpoche. Literally, "very precious" and is used as a term of respect for a
Tibetan guru.
Root lama. A practitioner ofVajrayana can have several types of root guru:
the vajra master who confers empowerment, who bestows reading transmission, or who explains the meaning ofthe tantras. The ultimate root guru is the master who gives the "pointing out instructions" so that one recognizes the nature of mind.
Sakya Pandita. A hereditary head o f the Sakya lineage. A great scholar ( 1181- 1251 C. E. )
Samadhi. A state of meditation that is non-dualistic. There is an absence of discrimination between selfand other. Also called meditative absorption or one-pointed meditation, this is the highest form of meditation.
Samaya. The vows or commitments made in the Vajrayana to a teacher or to a practice. Many details exist but essentially it consists of outwardly, maintaining a harmonious relationship with the vajra master and one's dharma friends and inwardly, not straying from the continuity of the practice.
Sambhogakaya. There are three bodies of the Buddha, the sambhogakaya, also called the "enjoyment body," is a realm of the dharmakaya that only manifests to bodhisattvas {see kayas, three).
Samsara. "Cyclic existence. " The conditioned existence ofordinary life in which
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suffering occurs because one still possesses attachment, aggression and ignorance. It is contrasted to nirvana. Through the force of karma motivated by ignorance, desire and anger one is forced to take on the impure aggregates and circle the wheel ofexistence until liberation.
Sentient beings. With consciousness; an animated being as opposed to an inanimate object. All beings with consciousness or mind who have not attained the liberation ofBuddhahood. This includes those individuals caught in the sufferings of samsara as well as those who have attained the levels ofa bodhisattva.
Shamatha. (Tib. shinay) See tranquility meditation.
Shamatha with support. The practice of calming the mind while using an
object of concentration, material or mental, or simply the breath. Shamatha without support. The act of calming the mind without any particular object, resting undistractedly. This practice serves as a prelude
for Mahamudra and should not be mistaken for the ultimate result. Shentong school. The Madhyamaka or Middle-way is divided into two major schools, Rangtong (empty of self) and Shentong (empty of other). Shentong is from the third turning ofthe wheel ofdharma and explains
that ultimate reality is emptiness and luminosity inseparable. Shunyata. See emptiness.
Siddha. An accomplished Buddhist practitioner.
Siddhi. "Accomplishment. " The spiritual accomplishments ofaccomplished
practitioners. Usually refers to the "supreme siddhi" of complete enlightenment, but can also mean the "common siddhis," eight mundane accomplishments.
Simplicity. I) The absence of creating mental constructs or conceptual formations about the nature ofthings. 2) The second stage in the practice of Mahamudra.
Six Dharmas (Yogas} ofNaropa. These six special yogic practices were transmitted from Naropa to Marpa and consist of the subtle heat practice, the illusory body practice, the dream yoga practice, the luminosity practice, the ejection ofconsciousness practice and the bardo practice.
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Six realms. The realms of the six classes of beings: gods, demigods, humans, animals, hungry ghosts and hell beings. These are the possible types of births for beings in samsara and are: the god realm in which gods have great pride, the jealous god realm in which the jealous gods try to maintain what they have, the human realm which is the best realm because one has the possibility of achieving enlightenment, the animal realm characterized by stupidity, the hungry ghost realm characterized by great craving, and the hell realm characterized by aggression.
Spiritual song. See doha.
Stillness. Absence of thought activity and disturbing emotions, but with subtle
fixation on this stillness.
Subtle channels. (Skt. nadi, Tib. tsa) These refer to the subtle channels which
are not anatomical ones but ones in which psychic energies or "winds"
(Skt. prana, Tib. lung) travel.
Subtle heat. (Tib. tummo) An advanced Vajrayana practice for combining
bliss and emptiness producing heat as a by product.
Sugata. An epithet for the Buddha.
Sugatagarbha. (Tib. de sheg nying po) Buddha nature or that enlightened
essence present in all beings that allows them to have the capacity to
achieve enlightenment. It is closely related to tathagatagarbha. Supreme siddhi. Another word for enlightenment.
Sutra. Sometimes "surra" is used to cover all o f the teachings given by the Buddha
himself. But correctly it means one of the three sections of the dharma called the Tripitaka or Three Baskets. In the Tripitaka there are the Sutras, the Vinaya and the Abhidharma. The sutras are mainly concerned with meditation or samadhi; the Abhidharma is mainly concerned with the development of wisdom and understanding; and the Vinaya is mainly concerned with discipline and the rules o f morality and conduct.
Sutra Mahamudra. The Mahamudra system based on the Prajnaparamita scriptures and emphasizing Shamatha, Vipashyana and the progressive journey through the five paths and ten bhumis.
Svabhavikakaya. The "essence body. " Sometimes counted as the fourth kaya, the unity o f the first three.
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Tantra. Literally, tantra means "continuity," and in Buddhism it refers to two specific things: the texts (resultant texts, or those that take the result as the path) that describe the practices leading from ignorance to enlightenment, including commentaries by tantric masters; and the way to enlightenment itself, encompassing the ground, path and fruition. One can divide Buddhism into the surra tradition and the tantra tradition. The surra tradition primarily involves the academic study of the Mahayana texts and the tantric path primarily involves practicing the Vajrayana practices. The tantras are primarily the texts of the Vajrayana practices.
Tantra Mahamudra. The same as mantra Mahamudra. The Mahamudra practice connected to the Six Yogas of Naropa.
Tathagatagarbha. (Tib. deshin shegpai nyingpo) This is the seed or essence of tathata (suchness) and is also called Buddha essence or enlightened essence. Terton. (Tib. ) A master in the Tibetan tradition who discovers treasures
(terma) which are teachings concealed by great masters of the past. Terma. (Tib. ) Literally, hidden treasure. Works which were hidden by great bodhisattvas and later rediscovered. They may be actual physical texts or
they may come from "the sky" as transmissions from the sambhogakaya. Three realms. These are three categories ofsamsara. The desire realm includes existences where beings are born with solid bodies due to their karma, ranging from the deva paradises to the hell realms. The form realm is where beings are born due to the power ofmeditation, and their bodies
are of subtle form in this realm. These are the meditation paradises. The formless realm is where beings due to their meditation (samadhi) have entered a state of meditation after death and the processes of thought and perception have ceased.
Three roots. Guru, yidam and dakini. Guru is the root ofblessings, yidam of accomplishment and dakini of activity.
Three sufferings. These are the suffering ofsuffering, the suffering ofchange, and pervasive suffering (meaning the inherent suffering in all of samsara).
Three vehicles. Hinayana, Mahayana and Vajrayana.
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Tilopa. (928-1 009 C. E. ) One of the eighty-four mahasiddhas who became the guru ofNaropa who transmitted his teachings to the Kagyu lineage in Tibet.
Tranquility meditation. (Tib. Shinay, Skt. Shamatha) One of the two main types of meditation, calm abiding, the meditative practice of calming the mind in order to rest free from the disturbance of thought activity; the other is insight or Vipashyana.
Tulku. (Tib. Skt. nirmanakaya) The Tibetan means "Multiple body. " It is the term used for describing the emanation body of an enlightened being or bodhisattva. The syllable tul has both direct and indirect meanings. The direct meaning is "multiple" and the indirect meaning, "manifestation," which refers to the sending out of compassion. It is the illusory emanation of the dharmakaya as a nirmanakaya form. Ku means body. In Tibet, however, it came to mean the emanation of an advanced Buddhist master who chooses to continue to incarnate for the benefit ofothers.
Tummo. (Tib. ) An advanced Vajrayana practice for combining bliss and emptiness which produces heat as a by product. This is one of the Six Yogas of Naropa.
Two accumulations. The accumulation of merit with concepts and the accumulation ofwisdom beyond concepts.
~jra. (Tib. dorje) Usually translated "diamond like. " This may be an implement held in the hand during certain Vajrayana ceremonies, or it can refer to a quality which is so pure and so enduring that it is like a diamond.
Vajradhara. (Tib. Dorje Chang) "Holder of the vajra. " ~jra means indestructible and dhara means holding, embracing or inseparable. The central figure in the Kagyu refuge tree, and indicating the transmission of the close lineage of the Mahamudra teachings to Tilopa. Vajradhara symbolizes the primordial wisdom of the dharmakaya and wears the ornaments of the sambhogakaya Buddha, symbolizing its richness.
~jrapani. A major bodhisattva said to be lord of the mantra and a major protector ofTibetan Buddhism.
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Vajrasattva. The Buddha of purification. Vajrasattva practice is part of the four preliminary practices. A sambhogakaya Buddha who embodies all the five families. He is also a major source of purification practices.
Vajravarahi. A dakini who is the consort ofChakrasamvara. She is the main yidam of the Kagyu lineage and the embodiment of wisdom.
Vajrayana. Literally, "diamond-like" or "indestructible capacity. " Vajra here refers to method, so the method yana. There are three major traditions of Buddhism (Hinayana, Mahayana, Vajrayana). The Vajrayana is based on the tantras and emphasizes the clarity aspect of phenomena. A practitioner of the method of taking the result as the path.
View, meditation andaction. The philosophical orientation, the act ofgrowing accustomed to that- usually in sitting practice- and the implementation ofthat insight during the activities ofdaily life. Each ofthe three vehicles has its particular definition ofview, meditation and action.
Vipashyana meditation. Sanskrit for "insight meditation. " This meditation develops insight into the nature of reality (Skt. dharmata). One of the two main aspects of meditation practice, the other being Shamatha.
Wangchuk Dorje. (1556-1603 C. E. ) The Ninth Karmapa.
Wisdom ofnature ofphenomena. This is transcendent knowledge (jnana) of
the true nature of reality, not as it appears to individuals in samsara. Wisdom ofmultiplicity or variety. This is the transcendent knowledge (jnana)
of the variety of phenomena.
Wheel ofdharma. (Skt. dharmachakra) The Buddha's teachings correspond
to three levels which very briefly are: the first turning was the teachings on the Four Noble Truths and the teaching of the egolessness of person; the second turning was the teachings on emptiness and the emptiness of phenomena; the third turning was the teachings on luminosity and Buddha nature.
Lama. (Skt. guru) La means nobody above himself or herself in spiritual experience and ma means 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.
Lineagegurus. The lineage gurus are the gurus of the line of transmission of what we study and practice. These transmissions date from the teachings of the Buddha himself. All of the line of gurus in that transmission from the Buddha, who first gave the teachings, up until the present time constitute what we call the lineage gurus.
Lotsawa. Sanskrit for "translator. "
Lower realm. The three lower realms are birth as a hell being, hungry ghost
and animal.
Luminosity. (Tib. selwa) 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. osel) Literally "free from the darkness of unknowing and
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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 samsara and nirvana.
Madhyamaka. The most influential of the four schools of Indian Buddhism founded by Nagarjuna in the second century C. E. The name comes from the Sanskrit word meaning "the Middle-way" meaning that it is the middle way between eternalism and nihilism. The main postulate of this school is that all phenomena - both internal mental events and external physical objects - are empty of any true nature. The school uses extensive rational reasoning to establish the emptiness of phenomena. This school does, however, hold that phenomena do exist on the conventional or relative level of reality.
Mahamudra. (Tib. cha ja chm po) Literally means "great seal" or "great symbol," meaning that all phenomena are sealed by the primordially perfect true nature. This form of meditation is traced back to Saraha (tenth century) and was passed down in the Kagyu school through Marpa. This meditative transmission emphasizes perceiving mind directly rather than through rational analysis. It also refers to the experience ofthe practitioner where one attains the union ofemptiness and luminosity and also perceives the non-duality of the phenomenal world and emptiness; also the name of Kagyupa lineage.
Mahapandita. Maha means great and pandita Buddhist scholar. Mahasiddha. A practitioner who has a great deal o f 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 ofsome ofthe
most famous is found in The Eighty-four Mahasiddhas.
Mahayana. (Tib. tek pa chen po) Literally, the "Great Vehicle. " These are the teachings ofthe second turning ofthe wheel ofdharma, which emphasize shunyata (see shunyata), compassion and universal Buddha nature. The purpose ofenlightenment is to liberate all sentient beings from suffering as well as oneself. Mahayana schools of philosophy appeared several
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hundred years after the Buddha's death, although the tradition is traced
to teachings he gave at Rajgriha, or Vulture Peak Mountain. Maitripa-was a guru ofMarpa, the Tibetan forefather of the Kagyu lineage. Thus it is through Maitripa that Maitreya and Asanga's crucial work on Buddha nature, the Uttaratantrashastra (Anuttara), became widely followed in Tibet. It is said that he had been a student ofNaropa when the latter was head of Nalanda monastic university. Maitripa also transmitted to Marpa the esoteric aspect of Buddha nature embodied in the Mahamudra teachings, which treat the topic of mind in great detail and provide a wide range of progressive, highly refined meditations. Maitripa was brought to enlightenment through Mahamudra under his guru Savari, who received the complete teachings ofMahamudra from Nagarjuna, who received them from Sahara, whom
Marpa encountered in his dream state.
Mantra. (Tib. ngags) 1) A synonym for Vajrayana. 2) A particular combination
of sounds symbolizing the nature of a deity, for example OM MANI PEME HUNG. These are invocations to various meditation deities which are recited in Sanskrit. These Sanskrit syllables, representing various energies, are repeated in different Vajrayana practices.
Mara. 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 of self; 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 aTibetan who made three trips to India and brought back many tantric texts, including the Six Yogas of Naropa, the Guyhasamaja, 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.
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Mental consciousness. 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. Mental factors are contrasted to mind in that they are more long-term propensities of mind including eleven virtuous factors such as faith, detachment and equanimity; the six root defilements such as desire, anger and pride; the rwenty secondary defilements such as resentment, dishonesty and harmfulness.
Middle-way or Madhyamaka school. A philosophical school founded by Nagarjuna and based on the Prajnaparamita sutras ofemptiness. Milarepa. (1040-1123 C. E. ) Milarepa was a student ofMarpa who attained
enlightenment in one lifetime. Mila, named by the deities and repa means white cotton. His student Gampopa established the (Dakpo) Kagyu lineage in Tibet.
Mind-only school. Also called Chittamatra school. This is one of the major schools in the Mahayana tradition founded in the fourth century by Asanga that emphasized everything is mental events.
Mudra. 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" of a deity.
Nadi. The channels in the vajra body through which the winds flow. Nagarjuna. An Indian master of philosophy. Founder of the Madhyamaka school and author of the Knowledge ofthe Middle "Way and other
important works. (second - third century)
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 of India.
Nihilism. (Tib. chad Ita) Literally, "the view ofdiscontinuance. " The extreme
view ofnothingness: no rebirth or karmic effects, and the non-existence
of a mind after death.
Nirmanakaya. (Tib. tulku) There are three bodies of the Buddha; the
nirmanakaya or "emanation body" manifests in the world and in this context manifests as the Shakyamuni Buddha. (see kayas, three. )
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Nirvana. Literally, "extinguished. " Individuals live in samsara and with spiritual practice can attain a state ofliberation in which all false ideas and conflicting emotions have been extinguished. This is called nirvana. The nirvana ofa Hinayana practitioner is freedom from cyclic existence as an arhat. The nirvana of a Mahayana practitioner is Buddhahood, free from extremes ofdwelling in either samsara or the perfect peace of an arhat.
Sometimes it is categorized as three types: nirvana of naturalness, which is ground nirvana; nirvana ofcessation, which is path nirvana; and non-abiding nirvana, which is the reward or fruition nirvana.
Non-distraction. (Tib. yeng me) Not straying from the continuity of the practice.
Non-fabrication. (Tib. zo me) The important key point in meditation of Mahamudra and Dzogchen; that innate wakefulness is not created through intellectual effort.
Non-meditation. (Tib. gom me) The state of not 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.
Non-thought. (Tib. mi tog) A state in which conceptual thinking is absent. Obscurations. There are two categories ofobscuration or defilement that cover one's Buddha nature: the defilement ofdisturbing emotions (see afflictive obscurations); and the defilement of latent tendencies sometimes called the obscuration of dualistic perception, or the intellectual/cognitive obscurations (see cognitive obscurations). The first category prevents sentient beings from freeing themselves from samsara, while the second
prevents them from gaining accurate knowledge and realizing truth. Occurrence. The period when thoughts are arising in the mind. Compare
with "stillness. "
One-pointedness. The first stage in the practice ofMahamudra.
One taste. The third stage in the practice ofMahamudra.
Ordinary Mind. (Tib. tamal kyi shepa) There is no need to do anything to
your present wakefulness at the moment of recognizing; it is already as
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it is. That is the true meaning of naked ordinary mind, a famous term in Tibetan. It means not tampered with. There is no "thing" which needs to be accepted or rejected; it is simply as it is. The term 'ordinary mind' is the most immediate and accurate term to describe the nature of mind. No matter what terminology is being utilized within the Middle-way, Mahamudra or Dzogchen, naked ordinary mind is the simplest term.
Pandita. A great scholar.
Path ofLiberation. The path of Mahamudra practice.
Path ofMeans. Refers to the Six Yogas of Naropa as well as to the stages of
creation and completion with attributes.
Prana. Life supporting energy. The "winds" or energy-currents of the vajra
body.
Prajna. (Tib. she rab) In Sanskrit it means "perfect knowledge" and can
mean wisdom, understanding or discrimination. Usually it means the
wisdom ofseeing things from a high (i. e. , non-dualistic) point ofview. Prajnaparamita. 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 ofemptiness in the Prajnaparamita Hridaya or
Heart Sutra, made possible by the extraordinarily profound dharma of the birth ofShakyamuni 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 of about 40 Mahayana sutras that all deal with the realization of prajna.
Pure realm. Realms created by Buddhas which are totally free from suffering and dharma there can be received directly. These realms are presided over by various Buddhas such as Amitabha, Avalokiteshvara, and Maitreya who presides over Tushita.
Rangjung Dorje. (1284-1339 C. E. ) The Third Karmapa, especially well known for writing a series of texts widely used in the Kagyu school.
Rtzngtongschool. The Madhyamaka or Middle-way is divided into two major
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schools; Rangtong {empty of self) and Shentong {empty of other). Rangtong is from the second turning ofthe wheel ofdharma and teaches that reality is empty of self and beyond concepts.
Recognition. In this context it means "recognizing the nature of mind. " Red element. The residual seed essence of the mother's ovum, obtained at conception, which remains present in the centre of the body below the
navel for the duration ofa person's life.
Relative truth. (Tib. kunsop) There are two truths: relative and absolute 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 belief in "! " and "other. "
Rigpa. The primordial, non-dual awareness in the Dzogchen teachings. Rinpoche. Literally, "very precious" and is used as a term of respect for a
Tibetan guru.
Root lama. A practitioner ofVajrayana can have several types of root guru:
the vajra master who confers empowerment, who bestows reading transmission, or who explains the meaning ofthe tantras. The ultimate root guru is the master who gives the "pointing out instructions" so that one recognizes the nature of mind.
Sakya Pandita. A hereditary head o f the Sakya lineage. A great scholar ( 1181- 1251 C. E. )
Samadhi. A state of meditation that is non-dualistic. There is an absence of discrimination between selfand other. Also called meditative absorption or one-pointed meditation, this is the highest form of meditation.
Samaya. The vows or commitments made in the Vajrayana to a teacher or to a practice. Many details exist but essentially it consists of outwardly, maintaining a harmonious relationship with the vajra master and one's dharma friends and inwardly, not straying from the continuity of the practice.
Sambhogakaya. There are three bodies of the Buddha, the sambhogakaya, also called the "enjoyment body," is a realm of the dharmakaya that only manifests to bodhisattvas {see kayas, three).
Samsara. "Cyclic existence. " The conditioned existence ofordinary life in which
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suffering occurs because one still possesses attachment, aggression and ignorance. It is contrasted to nirvana. Through the force of karma motivated by ignorance, desire and anger one is forced to take on the impure aggregates and circle the wheel ofexistence until liberation.
Sentient beings. With consciousness; an animated being as opposed to an inanimate object. All beings with consciousness or mind who have not attained the liberation ofBuddhahood. This includes those individuals caught in the sufferings of samsara as well as those who have attained the levels ofa bodhisattva.
Shamatha. (Tib. shinay) See tranquility meditation.
Shamatha with support. The practice of calming the mind while using an
object of concentration, material or mental, or simply the breath. Shamatha without support. The act of calming the mind without any particular object, resting undistractedly. This practice serves as a prelude
for Mahamudra and should not be mistaken for the ultimate result. Shentong school. The Madhyamaka or Middle-way is divided into two major schools, Rangtong (empty of self) and Shentong (empty of other). Shentong is from the third turning ofthe wheel ofdharma and explains
that ultimate reality is emptiness and luminosity inseparable. Shunyata. See emptiness.
Siddha. An accomplished Buddhist practitioner.
Siddhi. "Accomplishment. " The spiritual accomplishments ofaccomplished
practitioners. Usually refers to the "supreme siddhi" of complete enlightenment, but can also mean the "common siddhis," eight mundane accomplishments.
Simplicity. I) The absence of creating mental constructs or conceptual formations about the nature ofthings. 2) The second stage in the practice of Mahamudra.
Six Dharmas (Yogas} ofNaropa. These six special yogic practices were transmitted from Naropa to Marpa and consist of the subtle heat practice, the illusory body practice, the dream yoga practice, the luminosity practice, the ejection ofconsciousness practice and the bardo practice.
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Six realms. The realms of the six classes of beings: gods, demigods, humans, animals, hungry ghosts and hell beings. These are the possible types of births for beings in samsara and are: the god realm in which gods have great pride, the jealous god realm in which the jealous gods try to maintain what they have, the human realm which is the best realm because one has the possibility of achieving enlightenment, the animal realm characterized by stupidity, the hungry ghost realm characterized by great craving, and the hell realm characterized by aggression.
Spiritual song. See doha.
Stillness. Absence of thought activity and disturbing emotions, but with subtle
fixation on this stillness.
Subtle channels. (Skt. nadi, Tib. tsa) These refer to the subtle channels which
are not anatomical ones but ones in which psychic energies or "winds"
(Skt. prana, Tib. lung) travel.
Subtle heat. (Tib. tummo) An advanced Vajrayana practice for combining
bliss and emptiness producing heat as a by product.
Sugata. An epithet for the Buddha.
Sugatagarbha. (Tib. de sheg nying po) Buddha nature or that enlightened
essence present in all beings that allows them to have the capacity to
achieve enlightenment. It is closely related to tathagatagarbha. Supreme siddhi. Another word for enlightenment.
Sutra. Sometimes "surra" is used to cover all o f the teachings given by the Buddha
himself. But correctly it means one of the three sections of the dharma called the Tripitaka or Three Baskets. In the Tripitaka there are the Sutras, the Vinaya and the Abhidharma. The sutras are mainly concerned with meditation or samadhi; the Abhidharma is mainly concerned with the development of wisdom and understanding; and the Vinaya is mainly concerned with discipline and the rules o f morality and conduct.
Sutra Mahamudra. The Mahamudra system based on the Prajnaparamita scriptures and emphasizing Shamatha, Vipashyana and the progressive journey through the five paths and ten bhumis.
Svabhavikakaya. The "essence body. " Sometimes counted as the fourth kaya, the unity o f the first three.
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Tantra. Literally, tantra means "continuity," and in Buddhism it refers to two specific things: the texts (resultant texts, or those that take the result as the path) that describe the practices leading from ignorance to enlightenment, including commentaries by tantric masters; and the way to enlightenment itself, encompassing the ground, path and fruition. One can divide Buddhism into the surra tradition and the tantra tradition. The surra tradition primarily involves the academic study of the Mahayana texts and the tantric path primarily involves practicing the Vajrayana practices. The tantras are primarily the texts of the Vajrayana practices.
Tantra Mahamudra. The same as mantra Mahamudra. The Mahamudra practice connected to the Six Yogas of Naropa.
Tathagatagarbha. (Tib. deshin shegpai nyingpo) This is the seed or essence of tathata (suchness) and is also called Buddha essence or enlightened essence. Terton. (Tib. ) A master in the Tibetan tradition who discovers treasures
(terma) which are teachings concealed by great masters of the past. Terma. (Tib. ) Literally, hidden treasure. Works which were hidden by great bodhisattvas and later rediscovered. They may be actual physical texts or
they may come from "the sky" as transmissions from the sambhogakaya. Three realms. These are three categories ofsamsara. The desire realm includes existences where beings are born with solid bodies due to their karma, ranging from the deva paradises to the hell realms. The form realm is where beings are born due to the power ofmeditation, and their bodies
are of subtle form in this realm. These are the meditation paradises. The formless realm is where beings due to their meditation (samadhi) have entered a state of meditation after death and the processes of thought and perception have ceased.
Three roots. Guru, yidam and dakini. Guru is the root ofblessings, yidam of accomplishment and dakini of activity.
Three sufferings. These are the suffering ofsuffering, the suffering ofchange, and pervasive suffering (meaning the inherent suffering in all of samsara).
Three vehicles. Hinayana, Mahayana and Vajrayana.
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Tilopa. (928-1 009 C. E. ) One of the eighty-four mahasiddhas who became the guru ofNaropa who transmitted his teachings to the Kagyu lineage in Tibet.
Tranquility meditation. (Tib. Shinay, Skt. Shamatha) One of the two main types of meditation, calm abiding, the meditative practice of calming the mind in order to rest free from the disturbance of thought activity; the other is insight or Vipashyana.
Tulku. (Tib. Skt. nirmanakaya) The Tibetan means "Multiple body. " It is the term used for describing the emanation body of an enlightened being or bodhisattva. The syllable tul has both direct and indirect meanings. The direct meaning is "multiple" and the indirect meaning, "manifestation," which refers to the sending out of compassion. It is the illusory emanation of the dharmakaya as a nirmanakaya form. Ku means body. In Tibet, however, it came to mean the emanation of an advanced Buddhist master who chooses to continue to incarnate for the benefit ofothers.
Tummo. (Tib. ) An advanced Vajrayana practice for combining bliss and emptiness which produces heat as a by product. This is one of the Six Yogas of Naropa.
Two accumulations. The accumulation of merit with concepts and the accumulation ofwisdom beyond concepts.
~jra. (Tib. dorje) Usually translated "diamond like. " This may be an implement held in the hand during certain Vajrayana ceremonies, or it can refer to a quality which is so pure and so enduring that it is like a diamond.
Vajradhara. (Tib. Dorje Chang) "Holder of the vajra. " ~jra means indestructible and dhara means holding, embracing or inseparable. The central figure in the Kagyu refuge tree, and indicating the transmission of the close lineage of the Mahamudra teachings to Tilopa. Vajradhara symbolizes the primordial wisdom of the dharmakaya and wears the ornaments of the sambhogakaya Buddha, symbolizing its richness.
~jrapani. A major bodhisattva said to be lord of the mantra and a major protector ofTibetan Buddhism.
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Vajrasattva. The Buddha of purification. Vajrasattva practice is part of the four preliminary practices. A sambhogakaya Buddha who embodies all the five families. He is also a major source of purification practices.
Vajravarahi. A dakini who is the consort ofChakrasamvara. She is the main yidam of the Kagyu lineage and the embodiment of wisdom.
Vajrayana. Literally, "diamond-like" or "indestructible capacity. " Vajra here refers to method, so the method yana. There are three major traditions of Buddhism (Hinayana, Mahayana, Vajrayana). The Vajrayana is based on the tantras and emphasizes the clarity aspect of phenomena. A practitioner of the method of taking the result as the path.
View, meditation andaction. The philosophical orientation, the act ofgrowing accustomed to that- usually in sitting practice- and the implementation ofthat insight during the activities ofdaily life. Each ofthe three vehicles has its particular definition ofview, meditation and action.
Vipashyana meditation. Sanskrit for "insight meditation. " This meditation develops insight into the nature of reality (Skt. dharmata). One of the two main aspects of meditation practice, the other being Shamatha.
Wangchuk Dorje. (1556-1603 C. E. ) The Ninth Karmapa.
Wisdom ofnature ofphenomena. This is transcendent knowledge (jnana) of
the true nature of reality, not as it appears to individuals in samsara. Wisdom ofmultiplicity or variety. This is the transcendent knowledge (jnana)
of the variety of phenomena.
Wheel ofdharma. (Skt. dharmachakra) The Buddha's teachings correspond
to three levels which very briefly are: the first turning was the teachings on the Four Noble Truths and the teaching of the egolessness of person; the second turning was the teachings on emptiness and the emptiness of phenomena; the third turning was the teachings on luminosity and Buddha nature.
