320 C not es to chapter seven which manifests at this stage as one arises from the contemplative equipoise of the final-example luminous clarity of the mind-isolation stage The final (mthar thug pa) illusory body is the body of union, that is, the enjoyment dimension of awakening or vajra body The illusory body in progress ( gong du ’phel bzhin pa), or interim body, refers to the various stages between the first and the third illusory body 33 According to Lakshmi, in the stage of luminous clarity, or “actual awakening,” there are two methods: the seal (phyag rgya, mudrā); and the contemplation (ting nge ’dzin, samādhi) The seal practice consists of an outer actual awakening and an inner actual awakening The outer actual awakening is enacted through the pledge seal (dam tshig gi phyag rgya, samayamudrā) or outer seal (a real consort); and the inner, solely through the pristine-awareness seal ( ye shes kyi phyag rgya, jñānamudrā), an imaginary consort According to another explanation, in the outer awakening, the night serves as an illustration for the pristine awareness of light; the day, the pristine awareness of the increase of light; the twilight in the evening, the pristine awareness of the full culmination of light; and the daybreak, the pristine awareness of luminous clarity Moreover, the outer actual awakening is characterized by five indicative signs, which resemble a mirage, smoke, fireflies, the flame of a lamp, and a cloudless sky; the inner actual awakening is characterized by one’s own self-knowing awareness The practice of contemplation consists of the meditative absorption of total apprehension (ril por ’dzin pa, piṇḍagraha) and the meditative absorption of successive destruction (rjes su gzhig pa, anuvināza) For the meditative absorption of total apprehension, at the center of the navel is imagined the first vowel a Light emanating from the vowel pervades one’s body up to the head; from there, to the heart; and from there, to the feet Then, from there, light emanates in the same way, causing the body to dissolve into emptiness For the second method, successive destruction, by means of light emanating the universe is made to dissolve, and then oneself also dissolves Buddha Vajradhara taught that the stage of practice with a seal is intended for persons with strong desire, while the stage of contemplation is meant for persons with strong aversion Those with a mixture of desire and aversion should apply both methods alternately (a summary of Lakshmi’s Elucidation of the Meaning of the Five Stages, Toh 1842, vol Chi, ff 191a7-b5; 261b4-5) For the meditative absorption of total apprehension and that of successive destruction, see Chapter 12, section entitled “Meditation on Luminous Clarity.” See also next note 34 The illusory body becomes purified when made to dissolve into luminous clarity through the sequence of outer or inner awakenings, or by relying on the meditative absorption of total apprehension or that of successive destruction (Lakshmi’s Elucidation of the Meaning of the Five Stages, Toh 1842, vol Chi, f 205a6) Nagarjuna’s Five Stages describes the meditative absorption of total apprehension: From the head down to the feet, Until [the light] reaches the heart, The yogin enters the true limit: This is known as “total apprehension.” notes to chapter seven c 321 and the successive destruction: First, the animate and the inanimate Are transformed into luminous clarity Afterwards, one does the same with oneself These are the steps of successive destruction (f 205b1-3) The outer and inner sequences of awakenings (as mentioned in the previous note) are brought about by a real consort and an imaginary one, respectively Both entail the experience of five signs, the last of which is luminous clarity As explained by Butön, in the inner awakenings, first one sees a mirage-like vision engulfed in a mass of light of five colors Second, one sees the light, which is like the light of the moon Third, one sees the increase of light, which is like the light of the sun Fourth, one sees the culmination of light, which is like darkness or obscurity Then, the instant that darkness disappears, there is luminous clarity, utterly clear and ever pure; and the very nature of the ultimate truth is seen with one’s pristine-awareness “eyes.” Having realized the all-empty in that way, one trains first in either of the two meditative absorptions, which are the methods to enter that luminous clarity; and second, one trains in the three contemplations of luminous clarity For the first of the two meditative absorptions, successive destruction, one sits in the proper posture and, having previously meditated that everything is like an illusion, one regards all of the universe and its inhabitants, the animate and the inanimate, as illusion With neither distraction nor fixation, one views everything as empty of inherent nature As a result, all appearances gradually dissolve into luminous clarity For the second, total apprehension, one regards oneself and all others, everything animate and inanimate in the three realms, as being the illusory body of the Great Vajradhara, and one remains in an undivided equipoise that sees things in that way As a result, that body becomes luminous clarity, like a cloudless sky The three contemplations of luminous clarity are the luminous clarity of equipoise, the luminous clarity of sleep, and the luminous clarity of death (Butön’s Instruction Manual on the Five Stages, ff 18b3-19a2) Sherab Gyatso describes the two meditative absorptions as follows: For the method of successive destruction, one visualizes oneself as a deity with consort Light from one’s heart strikes everything in the animate and inanimate worlds The outer world then melts into light, which dissolves into all of the inhabitants of the universe All beings dissolve into oneself The consort dissolves into oneself Oneself as the male deity dissolves into the syllable at the heart That syllable gradually dissolves until only the nada remains Then the nada dissolves into luminous clarity That process whereby the outer world and sentient beings are first dissolved, after which one’s own psychophysical constituents are destroyed in succession, is called successive destruction For the method of total apprehension, one visualizes oneself as Vajradhara with consort All aspects from the consort dissolving into oneself as Vajradhara right up to the nada dissolving into luminous clarity, that is, the totality of one’s psychophysical constituents dissolving into luminous clarity, is called total apprehension (Sherab Gyatso’s Memorandum of Direct Instructions on the Five Stages of the Completion Phase of Guhyasamaja: The Nectar of Akshobhya’s Oral Teaching, f 33a5-b6) See also Chapter 12, section entitled “Meditation on Luminous Clarity.” 322 C not es to chapter seven 35 Lakshmi explains that in meditation on the true limit (the true luminous clarity), as in meditation on the eighteen emptinesses, one may stray into nihilism To eliminate such a risk, one meditates on the stage of union in which the relative and ultimate truths are not distinguished (Lakshmi’s Elucidation of the Meaning of the Five Stages, Toh 1842, vol Chi, f 205b2-3) In that context, union refers to that of the relative and ultimate truths Relative truth means the body of pristine awareness, that is to say, the contemplation of the illusion-like body born from the stage of self-consecration This body is called relative truth because it is obscured by the concept of illusion Ultimate truth stands for the natural luminous clarity attained at the fourth stage of experience of light These two stages becoming indistinguishable is what is meant by the stage of union at which there is no more training (mi slob pa, aśaikṣa), the characteristic of the stage of a buddha It is of the essence of non-abiding liberation (mi gnas pa’i mya ngan ’das), an indivisible nature (tha mi dad pa’i rang bzhin) It is a contemplation whose nature is undivided attention (rtse gcig pa’i rang bzhin du gyur pa’i ting nge ’dzin), the contemplation of union (Lakshmi, f 205b4-7) Butön explains that, having entered the true limit, one experiences the absence of phenomena, and then arises from the state of luminous clarity as the body of nondual pristine awareness With one’s previous aspiration serving as the cause, one’s contemplation as the facilitating condition, and recollection serving as a link, one experiences luminous clarity and the pristine awarenesses of the three lights in the reverse order, together with their winds, and one then arises as the body of Vajradhara, the nature of nondual pristine awareness This is union (Butön’s Instruction Manual on the Five Stages, f 21a1-3) At that time, cyclic existence and perfect peace, the two truths, the two phases, and so forth—all phenomena—are realized as one, a union Having attained that union, one trains further in order to overcome obstacles and accomplish the union beyond training Union at the stage of training involves practicing the three types of conduct while implementing vajra recitation in order to bring about others’ welfare That leads to the union beyond training, which means the exhaustion of all that is to be abandoned, the realization of all that is to be realized, and the accomplishment of one’s twofold purpose (ibid., f 21b1-4) 36 In the way of the perfections, ten stages (sa bcu) of realization or awakening are enumerated: joyful (rab tu dga’ ba, pramuditā), stainless (dri ma med pa, vimalā), luminous (’od byed pa, prabhākarī), flaming (’od ’phro ba, arciṣmatī), invincible (sbyang dka’ ba, sudurjayā), realized (mngon du gyur ba, abhimukhī), going far (ring du song ba, dūrangamā), unshakeable (mi g.yo ba, acalā), fine intelligence (legs pa’i blo gros, sādhumatī), cloud of teachings (chos kyi sprin, dharmamegha); plus the resultant stage called “all-luminous” (kun tu ’od ) For detailed descriptions of the ten stages, see sGam.po.pa The Jewel Ornament of Liberation, trans H V Guenther, pp 239-256 The individual tantras and their commentaries describe the stages of awakening using specific names The number of stages ranges from ten to sixteen, depending on the system The differentiation into twelve stems from tantras such as the Samputa and the Ocean of Dakinis In those tantras, the first of the twelve stages is that at which a practitioner is still an ordinary being, known as conduct based on aspiration (mos pa spyod pa) The next ten stages correspond to the ten explained in the way of the per- notes to chapter seven c 323 fections, from joyful to cloud of teachings The twelfth is the stage of Vajradhara This last appears to correspond to the all-luminous stage spoken of in the way of the perfections See Sertok Lozang Tsultrim’s Presentation of the Stages and Paths of the Indestructible Way: The Jewel Staircase (pp 49-62) See also Lakshmi’s Elucidation of the Meaning of the Five Stages (Toh 1842, vol Chi, ff 188b4-189a3) for a different interpretation of twelve stages 37 During the second propagation of Buddhism in Tibet, the Guhyasamaja Tantra was translated by Rinchen Zangpo After him, many Tibetan translators journeyed to India and received the Guhyasamaja teaching, but the most important traditions of the Arya system of the Guhyasamaja were established by Marpa Chökyi Lodrö (Mar pa chos kyi blo gros) (1012-1097) and Gö Khugpa Lhetsé (’Gos khug pa lhas btsas) The tradition that stemmed from Marpa and was transmitted through his disciple Tsurtönpa (mTshur ston pa) is known as the Marpa tradition Gö Khugpa Lhetsé received the transmission of the Guhyasamaja from seventy masters (including Devakarachandra and Viryabhadra) and two dakinis In Tibet, he thoroughly revised the Guhyasamaja texts that had already been translated He had numerous outstanding disciples, and his transmission is known as the Gö tradition Both traditions, that of Marpa and that of Gö Lotsawa, were received by Butön Rinchen Drup For the life of Marpa, see Tsang Nyön Heruka’s The Life of Marpa the Translator (English translation) 38 The teachings of Marpa’s tradition are found in Taranatha’s Guhyasamaja Tantra, Arya Tradition, Manual of Instructions on the Five Stages The teachings of the Gö tradition are found in Taranatha’s Guhyasamaja Tantra, Arya Tradition, Manual of Instructions on the Five Stages Transmitted through Gö Lotsawa 39 Buddhashrijnana ( Jnanapada), Oral Teachings of Manjushri/ Meditation on the Essential Principles of the Two Stages, Toh 1853, vol Di 40 Buddhashrijnana, also known as Jnanapada and Buddhajnanapada, was a disciple of Haribhadra and the tutor of King Dharmapala who reigned between 770 and 810 C.E Buddhashrijnana consecrated Vikramashila Monastery where he became one of the main teachers See Taranatha’s History of Buddhism in India (English translation), pp 260, 276, 278; and The Blue Annals, trans Roerich, pp 369-370 41 Buddhashrijnana’s Vital Essence of Liberation (Toh.1859), vol Di 42 For a description of the arising of the four joys (dga’ ba bzhi), initial joy, supreme joy, special joy, and innate joy, see Chapter 3, n 82 43 See Chapter 12, section entitled “Meditation on Luminous Clarity.” 44 Buddhashrijnana’s Oral Teachings of Manjushri (Toh 1853), vol Di, f 3a3-4 45 Sertok Lozang Tsultrim describes this phase of completion in his Presentation of the Stages and Paths of the Indestructible Way: The Jewel Staircase He explains that the phase of completion in the Jnanapada system is a path comprising four yogas differentiated in terms of the four joys First, in one’s heart is imagined the pristine-awareness being within whose heart is an insignia with an indestructible sphere of vital essence (mi zhigs pa’i thig le) at 324 C not es to chapter seven its center One visualizes the entire mandala, as in the creation phase, within that sphere In the heart of the main deity of that mandala is an indestructible sphere of vital essence from which special “emanating and withdrawing” is performed Having repeated the emanating and withdrawing many times, one focuses the mind on that sphere This is the way one applies the yoga from the perspective of joy Then, the sphere of vital essence at the heart descends to the secret place where it is held Within that sphere, one visualizes the entire mandala In the heart of the main deity is a sphere of vital essence Focusing the mind on that, one performs the many special emanations and withdrawings As a result, the five signs, mirage, smoke, fireflies, lamp, light of space, and other signs manifest This is the way one applies the yoga from the perspective of the supreme joy By training in the yoga of vital essence in those two ways, the vital essences become workable Thereafter, one contemplates an emanation sphere of vital essence at the nose-tip (sna rtse sprul pa’i thig le) at the upper door, training in the vajra recitation and various other special practices One thereby gains the understanding that all phenomena are like magical creations, and so forth This is the way one applies yoga from the perspective of the joy free from attachment Next, one trains in the wind yoga, by means of which the winds become workable Once the vital essences and winds are brought under one’s control through these yogas, one imagines, as before, the entire mandala in the center of the sphere in the insignia at the heart of the pristine-awareness being At the heart of the main deity is the special indestructible vital-essence sphere (mi shigs pa’i thig le khyad par can), from which emanates light that dissolves the entire universe and draws into it all beings The beings themselves are transformed into light and absorbed into oneself At the end of the gradual dissolution effected by the meditative absorption of successive destruction (rjes gzhig gi ting nge ’dzin), one focuses the mind on the vital-essence sphere in what is called “an emptiness-related contemplation.” Gradually, there again manifests the mandala at the heart, as well as the mandala of the pledge-being, the beings, and the universe In that way, one repeatedly contemplates dissolution in the forward order (lugs ’byung du sdud pa) into luminous clarity and the re-emergence in the reverse order (lugs ldog tu ldang ba) As a result, the five signs manifest, and thereafter one attains the body of pure pristine awareness, the indivisibility of profundity and clarity This is the way one applies the yoga from the perspective of the innate joy (a summary of Sertok Lozang Tsultrim’s Presentation of the Stages and Paths of the Indestructible Way: The Jewel Staircase, ff 128-129) For presentations of the steps of meditation in those yogas, see Buddhashrijnana’s Guide to the Means of Self-Attainment (Toh 1860, vol Di, ff 52b2-54b4) and Sadhana called Samantabhadra (Toh 1855); Shriphalavajra’s Commentary on the Sadhana of Samantabhadra (Toh 1867); Thagana’s Commentary on the Sadhana of Glorious Samantabhadra (Toh 1868); and Taranatha’s Guhyasamaja Tantra, Arya Tradition, Manual of Instructions on the Five Stages 46 The term “great seal” (phyag rgya chen po, mahāmudrā), when used to refer to the body of the deity, is similar to its use in the context of the four seals as understood in yoga tantra (rnal ’byor rgyud, yogatantra) As Padmavajra explains, the great seal is the image of the deity’s body, which reveals the nature of the deity Since that image serves as the primary basis for meditation on the essential nature of the deity, it is called the ... meant by the stage of union at which there is no more training (mi slob pa, aśaikṣa), the characteristic of the stage of a buddha It is of the essence of non-abiding liberation (mi gnas pa’i mya... perspective of the innate joy (a summary of Sertok Lozang Tsultrim’s Presentation of the Stages and Paths of the Indestructible Way: The Jewel Staircase, ff 128-129) For presentations of the steps of. .. ten stages (sa bcu) of realization or awakening are enumerated: joyful (rab tu dga’ ba, pramuditā), stainless (dri ma med pa, vimalā), luminous (? ??od byed pa, prabhākarī), flaming (? ??od ’phro ba,