298 A Lam p to Illum inate the Five Stages Expansive, very expansive, intoxicated, downfall, and friend:596 these are known as the five channels, clearly pervasive below the vajra For the upper prdna, in the middle too, the realm of space at the center of the vajra, prdna, the great life wind arises, destroyed, reliant upon knots, but flowing as five, the five channels at the tips: lunar segment, light, service, dewlap, and spleen.597 The continuation of the passage was quoted previously To explain this pas sage: This is a highly secret topic, not clearly taught in any other tantra, a yoga of vajra repetition that opens the knots at the heart, in which the knots to be opened are described as follows The center of the heart cakra, in line with the location of the exalted-wisdom-vajra indestructible drop is in the empty space within the hollow o f the dhutl channel; it is bound by three knots, very difficult to open Although the right and left channels entwine the dhutl with three knots each from the right and the left to make six knots in total, together they have three knots Those knots block the evacuative wind and prevent it from flowing upward, meaning that it is not free to flow upward in the dhutl from the point of the knots The fact that, generally, the evacuative wind flows upward has been explained previously “Destroyed by that, flowing as five” does not mean that the evacuative wind flows as five winds but that, below the blockage of the knots, the five winds flow downward because they flow “pervasively” below the previously mentioned wisdom vajra This is similar to statements from this tantra that the evacuative winds pull in a downward direction The word “again” indicates that the five winds also flow upward The five winds—the life-sustaining wind and so on—flow respectively from the five channels, called expansive and so on Above the center of the vajra, too, and in the middle, the life-sustaining wind arises from the realm of space of the hollow channel and “flows as five.” This phrase can be placed here “Destroyed, reli ant upon knots” means that the upper life-sustaining wind is blocked by the knots also, and therefore within the dhutl it is not granted downward access The tantra says: The upper winds also travel downward, but well destroyed by the prdna, Vajra Repetition 299 they dwell inside the life channel, [186] facing downward, and not travel downward, bound by the knots o f ignorance.598 To express the fact that the flow o f prdna is destroyed, “destroyed by the prdna' is not a good translation The upper winds can flow downward also, but within the dhutl they not move below the juncture of the knots “and not travel downward.” The reason for this is taught by the line beginning “bound b y ” Therefore the Shiwa O translation, “the magic wheel of igno rance,” is incorrect The text also says that the life-sustaining wind flows from the upper hollow channels as the five winds— naga and so on—and that the upper winds emanate through the gateways of the senses by the power of the life-sustaining wind At this point the Vajra Garland Tantra states that the wind as the chariot of the consciousness is mixed with the imprints of con sciousness, and when objects are engaged, it creates the intrinsic conceptual minds Through the contamination of the imprints, you wander in samsara, and there is no samsara other than that After this the text continues: Therefore, in order to leave samsara, gain the stage that divides the drop, make efforts in meditation, and by opening the central knot, which is the ignorance unseen by others, you will gain the siddhi.599 Therefore, to cleanse the imprints for wandering in samsara, you crack open the egg of ignorance that binds the dhutl at the heart and “divides the drop” by meditating on the realities of mantra and wind This is saying that until the life-sustaining and evacuative winds that create the conceptual minds are dissolved into the indestructible drop at the heart, the clear light will not fully arise For this to occur you have to open the knots at the heart, and that means being opened by the reality of mantra Therefore the Vajra Garland in the sixth chapter speaks of the necessity of opening the channel knot at the heart, and if it is opened by the reality of mantra, you will gain siddhis of the sword, the pill, clairvoyance, and so on, and the siddhi of mahamudra It also explains the reality of mantra as being recitation applied to hum and hoh, the two winds of entering and rising, and if this meditation is performed for six months, these results will definitely be achieved.600 Is this the opening of the channel knots by two-syllable vajra repetition, or 300 A Lam p to Illum inate the Five Stages is it also accomplished by three syllables? The mantra reality that opens the knots, as taught here, is of two types One is described here in the sixth chap ter, and the second is found in the fifteenth chapter: The vajras of body, speech, and mind are to be recited by three mantras By this, siddhi is soon attained and is the transcendence of the winds.601 Also: Now the teaching on the reality of mantra: It is the nonapprehending level, clearly apparent, the very cause of Vajrasattva, the mantra, endowed with every quality, the compilation of body, speech, and mind, [187] the reality producing the supreme wisdom, a reality that is the synthesis of all; supremely apparent in the lotus of the heart, the peerless reality of the mantra, accomplished by recitation for six months: thus will it be produced but otherwise not.602 These passages very clearly speak of the three-syllable mantra and how its accomplishment is reached by a six-month recitation of the reality of the winds from the lotus of the heart Therefore it is clearly the position of the tantra that both the two-syllable and the three-syllable vajra repetition will loosen the channel knots On the way these knots are loosened, the tantra says that sound is given the name hum and drop is given the name hoh, and then: Opened by the two winds, the knots of ignorance are loosened.603 For example, when a tube is blocked, you work a long instrument back and forth inside to free the blockage Similarly, the winds entering and rising achieve the same effect The tantra says: Vajra Repetition 301 A person without aham is like a tree without a root.604 Lacking the knowledge of the definitive meaning of aham is to be like a sev ered root The tantra continues: A is said to be the life-sustaining wind; the evacuative wind likewise is spoken of as ham These two as one are said to be aham.m In this tradition the life-sustaining and evacuative winds are mixed within the indestructible drop at the heart Compilation o f the three-syllable mantra This has two divisions On the provisional compilation, chapter 15 of the Vajra Garland says that a, which is the first of the vowels, u, which is the fifth vowel, and m>which is the affix to thep consonant group — the last of the k , cy tyty andp consonant groups— are put together.606 From a and u comes oyand the form o f the letter u is elided The m is added as an anusvdra to make om Therefore, in all three translations of this tantras chapter on the essence of the enlightened body, speech, and mind, the rendering instead of u is incor rect The u as it appears in the commentary is correct For dhy take the first vowel a twice and add hy which is the affix to the Uusman section,” or sibilant group W hen two identical short vowels are placed together, the first becomes long and the second is elided, and so here a is formed from the first two letters of this group of three The commentary explains that the letter h without its life-giving vowel becomes a visarga.607 This is because letter is mentioned twice Last, to the letter h from the usman section, «, the sixth vowel, is added to form hie To this, the letter m ywhich is the affix of the p consonant group, is added in the form of an anusvdray to make hum On the line Tast of the usman section, with segment,” the commentary says that “segment” expresses a crescent moon Therefore die statement from Aryadevas Compendium o f Practice that each of the three syllables is comprised of three letters should be understood likewise [188] The definitive mantra compilation also has three parts On the compila tion o f the definitive omythe above tantra says: 301 A Lamp to Illum inate the Five Stages Letter a dwelling in the dharma-cakra lotus, pervading the wind cakra: that alone is the great wind expressed by all asprana.m Therefore the letter a from the three letters that make up om refers to the lifesustaining wind For the last line, the commentary translation has “prdna, comprising all.” It explains the meaning of this line as the life-sustaining wind comprising all other winds The tantra continues: Om abides in the enjoyment cakra, like fire and like the sun, dwelling in the region of the throat, pervading the crown, an entity of radiance.609 The definitive meaning of the letter u pervades from the enjoyment cakra to the great-bliss cakra Its color is like that of fire and sunlight Brilliantly radiant, its entity is that of the upward flowing wind The Shiwa O and Ra Lotsawa translations, as well as the commentary translation, have u instead of om This is better Then: Dwelling in the great-bliss cakra, the letter m as just the drop, its height, twelve finger widths, abiding in the region of the conqueror s crown.610 The definitive meaning of the letter m is the bodhicitta drop dwelling in the crown region measuring twelve finger widths above the midway point between the eyebrows The Shiwa O translation has: A span of twelve finger widths, abiding in the transcended crown The provisional om is placed at the crown of the head Similarly, the defini tive om is a composite of the life-sustaining wind, the upward flowing wind, and the ham syllable drop, all contained within the dhutl in the great-bliss cakra channel knot ... understood likewise [188] The definitive mantra compilation also has three parts On the compila tion o f the definitive omythe above tantra says: 301 A Lamp to Illum inate the Five Stages Letter a. .. contamination of the imprints, you wander in samsara, and there is no samsara other than that After this the text continues: Therefore, in order to leave samsara, gain the stage that divides the. .. channels as the five winds— naga and so on? ??and that the upper winds emanate through the gateways of the senses by the power of the life-sustaining wind At this point the Vajra Garland Tantra