notes to chapter ten c 385 ceivable and the action-seal yoga involving passion as its branches, that bull’s hoof becomes a complete path The experience of clarity and emptiness that results from having made the winds and mind enter the central channel through the bull’s hoof is transformed into the special melted bliss; all dispersed winds are drawn together and dissolved, and all channel-knots released These effects arise due mainly to the actionseal yoga The yoga of the inconceivable augments and stabilizes those effects though the sustained experience of pristine awareness in the dimension of nonconceptuality Since those two (the yoga of the inconceivable and the action-seal yoga involving passion) are applied in each of the four pervaded aspects, they are designated as “pervading aspects” (a summary of Taranatha’s Chatuhpitha Tantra Manual of Instructions for the Practice, pp 875.4-876.1) 16 The pristine awareness of warmth (drod kyi ye shes) refers specifically to the pristine awareness manifested on the first stage of the path of preparation called warmth (drod ), which is a prelude to the actual pristine awareness of the path of seeing (mthong lam) At the stage of pristine awareness of warmth, one has gained some degree of experiential understanding that everything is simply a projection of mind See Longchenpa’s Finding Comfort and Ease in the Nature of Mind, vol Kha, ff 127a6-128b1 The path of preparation (sbyor lam), the second of the five paths that form the Buddhist way to awakening, has four stages known as warmth (drod ), peak (rtse mo), acceptance (bzod pa), and supreme worldly quality (’jig rten chos kyi mchog) See H V Guenther, trans., The Jewel Ornament of Liberation, pp 232-233 17 The esoteric instructions of the coiled king of the nagas (klu dbang ’khyil ba’i man ngag, nagendrakundali) are needed for the inner-fire rite in the context of the cow’s udder and are applied to some extent in the context of the plantain banana They constitute a special means of making the inner fire blaze at the navel (the “fire of Brahma”) (Taranatha’s Chatuhpitha Tantra Manual of Instructions for the Practice, p 876.6-7) See also Bhavabhadra’s Commentary on the Chatuhpitha Tantra, Toh 1607, vol ’A, ff 255b4-256a4 18 The bull’s hoof (ba lang rmig pa) derives its name from the knots of the central channel, primarily those at the heart, and secondarily those at the navel The cow’s udder (ba nu lta bu) derives its name from the channel-wheel at the crown of the head and the path of the uvula (lce chung) It can also refer to the tip of the secret place in both male and female The bunch of plantain bananas (chu shing snye ma) or the plantain flower (chu shing me tog) derives its name from a channel in the middle of the heart It corresponds to what other tantras call “spring.” The stupa-vase (mchod rten bum pa) is so called because the channel-wheel at the heart faces downward and the channel-wheel at the navel faces upward, and between them is what resembles a long cord They are connected as well by other channels in what resembles the vase of a stupa (a summary of Taranatha’s Chatuhpitha Tantra Manual of Instructions for the Practice, pp 876.7-878.4) See also Bhavabhadra’s Commentary on the Chatuhpitha, Toh 1607, vol ’A, ff 254b2-262a7; and Kalyanavarman’s Exposition of the Exalted Chatuhpitha, Toh 1608, vol Ya, ff 51a4-52a1 19 The Chatuhpitha Tantra, or Vajra Chatuhpitha is set forth in sixteen chapters, four for each of four seats: the seat of oneself (bdag gi gdan); the seat of other ( gzhan gyi gdan); the seat of application (sbyor ba’i gdan); and the seat of the secret ( gsang ba’i 386 C not es to chapter ten gdan) In some contexts, the four seats are explained in terms of the three continuums, that of the cause, the method or path, and the result See Kongtrul’s Treasury of Knowledge: Systems of Buddhist Tantra (English translation), pp 294-295 The name Chatuhpitha means “four seats.” Here, “seat” has the meaning of “abode,” that is, the sections of the text where the various meanings to be expressed (i.e., what “abides”) are found (in their “abodes”) Vajra (in Vajra Chatuhpitha) means “unchanging” and refers to the ultimate dimension of phenomena The means to realize that vajra is also called vajra; therefore, the words that reveal that vajra constitute a “vajra seat” or “vajra abode.” “Oneself ” (in “the seat of oneself ”) refers to the ground of everything, the natural emptiness of all phenomena of cyclic existence “Other” refers to the deity who is to be venerated and who appears to have a separate mind “Application” refers to the applications of mantra and tantra in various forms “Secret” means all the completion-phase yogas of the inner channels, winds, and vital essences (a summary of Taranatha’s Chatuhpitha Tantra Manual of Instructions for the Practice, pp 880.1-884.7) 20 Read gsang gdan for gsang ldan One line below (IOK, p 251, last line), brtan cing is evidently a transcription error since suffix na should be followed by the particle zhing; we have been unable to verify our reading as bstan zhing 21 The fire-offering rite of the ultimate reality (de kho na nyid kyi sbyin sreg) is the same as the practice of the inner-fire offering explained as a branch of the cow’s udder See Chapter 10, n 12 22 Above, the instruction is called the bunch of plantain bananas (chu shing snye ma); here, it is called the plantain flower (chu shing me tog) 23 This refers to the Chatuhpitha Explanatory Tantra (Toh 430), vol Nga 24 Mantramsha Explanatory Tantra of the Chatuhpitha (Toh 429), vol Nga 25 Nagarjuna’s Practice of the Armpit (Toh 1609), vol Ya 26 Aryadeva’s Single Tree Commentary on Difficult Points of the Glorious Chatuhpitha and Explanation of the Eight Topics Applied to the Inner Meaning (Toh 1614), vol Ya 27 Read cher for tsher 28 Jetari’s Four Essential Principles of Chatuhpitha, Toh 1620, vol Ya Its author, Jetari, also known as Guhyajetari, was a lay master at Vikramashila monastery He was tutored in the tantras by his father, Garbhapada, and studied with many other teachers Moreover, he received instructions directly from Manjushri He is known to have taught Shantipa and was the author of numerous works on sutra and tantra now preserved in the Tengyur See Taranatha’s History of Buddhism in India (English translation), pp 290-292 29 Mother and Son Notes ( yig chung ma bu) Not identified 30 Ngokpa (rNgog pa) or Ngoktön Chöku Dorjé (rNgog ston chos sku rdo rje) (10361122) was one of the four principal students of Marpa, the great forefather of the Kagyu lineage notes to chapter ten c 387 As to the transmission of this practice, there were two traditions in India: that of Aryadeva and that of Bhavabhadra In Tibet, the practice has been transmitted through three lineages: one derived from the tradition of Gö Khugpa Lhetsé (’Gos khug pa lhas btsas), based on the translations done by Smritijnana; one derived from the tradition of the Indian Gayadhara and the Tibetan translator Drokmi, who also translated related texts; and the foremost one, derived from the tradition of Marpa, who heard the tantra and the explanation from the dakini named Adorned with Human Bones (Mi rus kyi rgyan can) Taranatha writes that, at present, the complete and uninterrupted stream of initiations, explanations, and esoteric instructions for this tantra is that of the tradition of Marpa and Ngokpa (Taranatha’s Chatuhpitha Tantra Manual of Instructions for the Practice, p 882.5-6) 31 The cycle of Mahamaya contained in the Kangyur and Tengyur includes the root tantra (Toh 425) and the commentaries (Toh 1622 to 1648) Mahamaya (sGyu ma chen po), the central deity of this tantra, belongs to the vajra family and is depicted as the blue, four-faced, four-armed Vajradaka, in dancing mode, embracing his consort, Vajradakini, who resembles him Four dakinis, one in each of the four cardinal directions, surround the central deity (Vajradakini’s Sadhana of Mahamaya, Toh 1626, vol Ya f 226a6-b2) 32 Many traditions of the Mahamaya existed in India, such as those stemming from Vinayadatta and Ratnakarashantipa The related texts were translated by Gö Lotsawa and Atisha and were also taught by them, but their lineages have vanished Shantibhadra, an expert on Mahamaya who had gained realization through practice of that tantra, was a master of both Marpa and Gö Lotsawa Marpa received the Mahamaya transmission from Shantibhadra, and its lineage of initiation, explanations, and essential instructions was passed on to Ngoktön and later to Taranatha The Marpa tradition of Mahamaya also draws from the tradition of Krishna, the essential instructions of Naropa, and so forth In addition, Marpa heard various instructions on Mahamaya from other masters Later, in a vision arising from pristine awareness, he received the transmission directly from Kukuripa (a summary of Taranatha’s Mahamaya Tantra Detailed Exegesis, p 542.1-6) 33 The phrase “yoga of reality (the ultimate)” (mthar thug chos kyi rnal ’byor) does not appear in the commentary in either edition of IOK Because it appears in the root text, it has been added to the translation 34 The Mahamaya phase of creation consists of the lesser yoga of shape, which has two aspects: the natural yoga of shape and the emanation yoga of shape For the first, through a simple procedure of creation—the instantaneous method or creation from a seed-syllable—one performs deity yoga in which one meditates on Vajrasattva, the basis of the emanation The second, regardless of whether one practices the long or the short version, is the meditation on the heruka or the dakini, which is the emanation itself The lesser yoga of shape definitely belongs to the creation phase alone, whereas the supreme yoga of shape definitely belongs to the phase of completion However, for the actual practice of this tantra, one may visualize oneself in various forms, such as Vajra- 388 C not es to chapter ten sattva, the male heruka in union, or the dakini Jnaneshvari (a summary of Taranatha’s Mahamaya Tantra Detailed Exegesis, pp 544.7-545.5) 35 The mantra yoga involving the channel-wheels (’khor lo sngags kyi rnal ’byor) comprises three practices that differ in the number of channel-wheels in the visualization For the mantra yoga of one channel-wheel, one adopts the seven-pointed posture of Vairochana, expels the residual breath three times, and breathes normally (these points of breath and posture are also applied in the next practices) In the center of the body, one visualizes the central channel and the two parallel channels on either side, their characteristics and colors as specified in the instructions The upper tips of the three channels reach the crown of the head; the lower tips are inserted in a tetrahedron at the navel Inside the lower tip of the central channel at the navel is the astroke; inside the right channel are the thirty-two consonants, arranged from top to bottom; and inside the left channel, the sixteen vowels arranged from bottom to top Naropa notes that some Mahamaya experts state that the consonants are arranged from bottom to top; and the vowels, from top to bottom In any case, one performs the specified breath-control technique as the upper and lower winds activate the astroke, which blazes slightly, and one imagines that one is experiencing warmth and bliss For the mantra yoga of two channel-wheels, the basic visualization is as just explained In addition, one visualizes a white syllable ham, inverted, inside the central channel at the crown of the head One applies the specified form of the breath-control technique From the a-stroke, a thin orange flame rises, burning parts of the syllable at the head, and a thin stream of vital essence descends and dissolves into the fire For the mantra yoga of four channel-wheels, one visualizes the channel-wheels of the navel, heart, throat, and crown of the head Each has four spokes, or “petals.” Inside the central channel, at each of four places, the navel, throat, heart, and crown of the head, is a different syllable, the first two upright, the second two inverted One visualizes the syllables in the right and left channels as described above while controlling the winds in the specified way From the syllable at the navel, a very thin, sharp flame rises through the central channel and penetrates the syllables at the heart and throat It presses on the syllable at the crown of the head, melting the vital essence, and so on, through the steps of the visualization, until the body is filled with bliss (a summary of Taranatha’s Mahamaya Tantra Manual of Instructions: The Excellent Path of the Victorious Ones, pp 812.1-813.5) 36 The mantra yoga of vital essences (thig le sngags kyi rnal ’byor) involves focusing on three points: the upper nose-tip, the lower nose-tip, and the center of the body For the first, the upper nose-tip, there are five cycles of visualization that stem from the different sadhanas, but their natures are identical According to Shantipa’s instructions, called the “esoteric instruction of the upper beads,” one imagines at the heart channel-wheel an open lotus with a sphere on each of its four petals On the corolla is a sun disk, the nature of fire and wind, and on that, a moon disk, the nature of earth and water The sun and moon are joined together and between them is a sphere of vital essence, the size and color as specified in the instructions The sun-and-moon union is entwined by a thin ray of light that resembles a spider’s thread, forming three loops At the level of the moon on top, on the three loops of the thread of light, are the vowels and consonants On the right loop are consonants; on the central loop, vowels; and notes to chapter ten c 389 on the left, consonants, as specified in the instructions Those letters on the thread of light resemble beads on a rosary In the center of the moon is a small hole through which one focuses intensely on the tiny sphere inside Other authors explain the visualization in slightly different ways For the mantra yoga that focuses at the lower nose-tip, one imagines a tiny sphere of vital essence at the tip of the vajra of the male or at the secret channel-wheel of the consort It rests on a single anther within a closed eight-petalled lotus, which sits between sun and moon disks, and is the nature of bliss One performs the vajra recitation, synchronized with the movements, inward and outward, of the upper wind, while imagining the movements of syllables through the moon and vajra path For the mantra yoga that focuses on the center of the body, according to Kukuripa’s middle-length sadhana of Mahamaya, one imagines at the crown of the head a green wind mandala, half-moon in shape; at the heart, a yellow earth mandala, square; at the navel, a white water mandala, round; and at the secret place, a red fire mandala, triangular Above the wind mandala at the crown of the head is a sphere, and above that, an upside-down ham The movement of the wind mandala causes the sphere to roll down to the heart and consume the earth mandala Likewise, the sphere consumes the water mandala at the navel and the fire mandala at the secret place As this occurs, the sphere becomes increasingly luminous Then, it rolls back up to the crown of the head, and so on, through the steps of the sequence The visualization is then synchronized with the breath as set forth in the instructions Following that, one imagines that the sphere elongates (becoming like a thread of silk), its lower extremity extending to the lower tip of the central channel At the level of the navel, that thread-like sphere divides into two branches that reach the nostrils Synchronized with the phases of the breath, one imagines that from the navel a syllable rolls upward along the right branch and exits from the right nostril, and so on, through the steps of the visualization See Taranatha’s Mahamaya Tantra Manual of Instructions: The Excellent Path of the Victorious Ones, pp 813.5-818.5 37 For the mantra yoga of the subtle (phra mo sngags kyi rnal ’byor), there are three aspects: training in the natural flow of the winds (rlung rgya yan la bslab pa); training in counting the numbers of breaths (brtsi bgrang la bslab pa); and training in the vaseshaped holding of the breath (bum can la bslab pa) The first has two aspects: training in the natural flow of winds, for which, as one exhales, one imagines that illnesses, suffering, aging, and death are expelled, and as one inhales, that life span, positive potential, and physical radiance are increased; and the vajra breathing, in which the rhythm of the breath is synchronized with the awareness of the three syllables om, hum, and ah The second, training in breath counting, has three aspects: First, one counts each exhalation and inhalation as one, in sets of ten, doing that many times Second, one repeats the previous aspect while performing vajra breathing Third, one repeats the previous aspect while visualizing a white hum on a moon disk at one’s heart From that syllable issues forth a thread of light with om at its tip One imagines that this thread of light encircles the syllable on the moon seven times clockwise, then unravels, moves upward, exits from the nostrils along with the breath, and so on, through the steps of the sequence, which is carried out ten times The third, training in the vase-shaped holding of the breath, has two aspects: a ... are explained in terms of the three continuums, that of the cause, the method or path, and the result See Kongtrul’s Treasury of Knowledge: Systems of Buddhist Tantra (English translation),... bstan zhing 21 The fire-offering rite of the ultimate reality (de kho na nyid kyi sbyin sreg) is the same as the practice of the inner-fire offering explained as a branch of the cow’s udder See... Not identified 30 Ngokpa (rNgog pa) or Ngoktön Chöku Dorjé (rNgog ston chos sku rdo rje) (1 0361122) was one of the four principal students of Marpa, the great forefather of the Kagyu lineage notes