Lord, essence of the buddhas’ body, speech, and mind,
Since you’re the source of many siddhis,
You are like a wish-fulfilling jewel.
Like the pinnacle of a victory banner,
Take your seat upon the crown of my head.
I purify with true intention.
Without any distraction night and day,
Should one supplicate, prostrate, and make offerings to you,
All hopes and wishes will be fulfilled,
All that one desires will be accomplished.
Precious Lord, like a powerful sovereign,
I praise and prostrate to you.
From the mass of clouds of your compassion
The rain of the wisdom nectar of your blessing falls
And at the stream of milk, fortunate ones drink.
Right within this very life,
They will tame the harsh afflictions,
The sprout of realization will grow,
And they’ll reach the thirteenth bhumi of Vajradhara.
Plentiful will be the flowers and fruits
Of your kayas, wisdom, and activity.
They will satisfy fully every being.
May they quickly be harvested.
Until that has been accomplished,
Having given rise to great undefiled samadhi
That comes from the bliss of this defiled body—
The support for traversing the messenger path—
In order to abide in the samadhi of bliss-emptiness
With the wisdom of the four joys
And in order to enter into the Middle Way’s reality,
May I become a thoroughly trained prajña-consort.
Thus, with joy, please grant your permission.
In conclusion we make this request:
Regarding this dharma of liberation from the treacherous bardo,
Through your hinting words, we didn’t fully get the meaning.
With practical instruction, please explain in detail
And give the key points of Pointing Out the Four Kayas.*35
Please give an instruction of the condensed practice saying,
“When the time actually comes and you enter the bardo,
There is nothing more [you need] than this concise instruction.”
Furthermore, by your power,
We’ve become subjects under your will.
By teaching us various core instructions,
Our mind-streams and faculties are content
And we’ll perfect the result of practice.
Within the appearance of this very life,
We’ll have realization and many good qualities.
Jetsun, may we be equal to you.
Thus they offered to the Jetsun this song concluding with virtuous aspirations.
Then the Jetsun said, “Beautiful ones, one is exhausted by the conditioning of the eight freedomless states in the three realms, the ground, and goes successively, again and again, through the three paths of existence.103 With weary body, three types of travelers traverse this long path: persons who have the instructions and also put them into practice, persons who have the instructions but do not put them into practice, and persons who do not have the instructions nor do any practice. The first of these will have no fear of places such as the path of becoming, the fearsome treacherous path, or the places where demons lurk, because they are liberated through the key points of meditation.
“The last type of persons are equivalent to completely ordinary beings. Once they enter the fearsome treacherous path they are naturally led by demons. They experience the unending cycle of birth and death, like a waterwheel, in samsara’s three realms.
“The middle type of persons have previously been taught instructions for clearing away trepidation on the fearsome treacherous path and for investigating the retinues of demonic obstructions. Thus, if you have unwavering faith, the prajña of interest toward the profound, as well as the unyielding armor-like diligence, then in accordance with disposition, faculties, and time, I will gradually explain.
“Now, to teach you what to apply at the junctures when each of the three kayas are actualized:*36 at the time of death, on the treacherous path, where, after all vitality has ceased and the ayatanas of the outer and inner elements have gradually dissolved, one is freed from the bonds of the afflictions in their entirety. Like the sun and moon shining in a cloudless sky, the dharmadhatu, where all elaborations are completely pacified, the unfabricated natural state whose essence is emptiness, will dawn just as it is at that time. That very luminosity at the time of death is the dharmakaya. You must recognize it for what it is. In order to recognize that, right now, you must understand the reality of the view of the abiding nature that is pointed out by a noble guru, and you must train in the path luminosity that symbolizes [reality].
“The path of the bardo of becoming is the treacherous path where the mental body, based on one’s previous body, will be tormented by karma’s henchmen. In that bardo of light and dark appearances, all of the sense faculties are intact and the body is not impeded by anything. One has the miraculous light body of karma. That very [illusory body of the] bardo is the sambhogakaya.
“When the appearance of the deity of union that is like an illusion arises, one purifies the body of residual latent tendencies. You should recognize that for what it is. In order to recognize it as such, now, at this time, you should train in the clear visualization of the deity’s form of the creation stage and the paths of illusory body and dreaming that are symbolic.
“The final stage on the path of the bardo of becoming is the treacherous path where without control one is blown by the karmic winds of consciousness. When searching for a place for rebirth, a womb for the disembodied consciousness,*37 attachment and aggression arise toward a man and woman engaging in sexual intercourse.*38 Through the key point of remembering the previous instructions, perfecting skill in the antidote without being separated from the experience of bliss-emptiness, karmic appearances do not arise. These various rebirths that are then taken according to one’s wish are the nirmanakaya.104 You should recognize this for what it is. In order to recognize it as such, now, at this time, develop the wisdom of the heat of chandali, the path of liberation; then in reliance on a karmamudra in the path of passion, through experiencing the complete reality of the third abhisheka, jealousy is purified.
“This is a combined, complete summary of the way of actualizing the resultant three kayas at the time of death; you should understand it in this way. Even the whispered lineage’s pointing out of reality, the vital elixir drawn from the heart of Marpa from Lhodrak, [which is] the ultimate key point of the path of means, has nothing more to offer than this.
“This yogi’s conviction is that there is no other immediate practice [for the bardo]. Therefore, beautiful ones, you should understand and practice it.”
Among the five dakinis, the leader, Tashi Tseringma, had tremendous faith and devotion toward the path of means’ profound pointing out of reality. So again she put her head at the Jetsun’s feet and said to him, “From this time forth, in all my births I will follow you and be a karmamudra. Until I have perfected the experience and realization of these points of pointing out the bardo, please think of me.” Thus she fervently supplicated. Performing many prostrations and circumambulations, she then returned to her own abode. So it is said.
This is known as “The Golden Garland of Stupas,”*39 where the great Repa Lord, whose name, Shepa Dorje, is not lightly uttered, and the five worldly dakini goddesses sang songs with questions and answers regarding the key points of liberation in the treacherous bardo.
SAMAPTA*40
The lord, precious jewel, who is so kind,
Repa who has attained the siddhis,
And the worldly dakinis of the shudra caste,*41
The five karma Shmashana dakinis:
The meaning from their questions and answers
Were sung in beautiful poetic songs,
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Words strung together like a garland of flowers.
This true intended meaning of the experience of instantaneity105
Is not suitable to be written in letters.
But for fear that I would come to forget
And for the future lineage-holder descendants
To become inspired and give rise to devotion,
I wrote it in letters in accord with the guru’s words.
Three times I asked to write this down,
And with a smile, he did not grant permission.*42
In order to prevent the dakinis’ anger,
Who have disdain toward self-creation, I did not do it.
“Until one gives practice instruction and examines
Meditators in the future, yet to come,
You should withhold the instruction and not show the writings.”
Thus my lord guru commanded me.
If you should transgress this command,
You will incur the punishment of the dakinis;
Thus, please do not propagate it, but keep it hidden.
In the time of the Muni, the perfect Buddha,*43
During the late waning moon of the month of miracles,*44
In the forest of Omchung Pal,
A grove where soft-furred animals roam,
My elder brother,
My vajra sibling with samaya,
The Guru Bodhiraja, and
I with the name Shiwa Ö
Assiduously conferred in depth;
Then asking questions, we reviewed and clarified it.
This dharma of liberation in the treacherous bardo
Is called the “Golden Garland of Stupas.”
Because it is meaningful, it was so named.
By whatever merit is gained through its writing,
May all beings be liberated in the bardo.
This is the cycle of the response of the cloth-clad one, the great yogi and unequaled lord, given at the request of the Five Sisters including the qualified mudra Tashi Tseringma. These key points of liberation in the treacherous bardo were afterward discussed and written down by two repas. Thus concludes these notes, an offering of service.
*1 The word “treacherous” here is often used as a synonym for the bardo (i.e., treacherous path). The Tibetan word it translates (’phrang) generally refers to the narrow paths that go along the sides of very steep cliffs, which occur frequently in Tibet. The Tibetan word vividly illustrates the precarious situation one encounters in the bardo, or in-between state.
*2 Laughing Vajra, the secret name for Milarepa.
*3 The presence of the planet Rahu indicates an eclipse in ancient Indian cosmology.
*4 Auspicious Garuda Peak Snow Mountain (T: gangs khyung mgo bkra shis), yet another name for Tashi Tseringma Mountain.
*5 The Tashi Oma River (Auspicious Milk River) (T: bkra shis ’o ma’i chu bo) is the name used today for the Lohit River; and the Dütsi Ngödrup, or Amṛita Siddhi, River (T: bdud rtsi dngos grub kyi chu bo) is another name for the Mayang River (today called the Rongshar Tsangpo).
*6 The names of these illnesses are obscure, and in the Tibetan are given as transliterations of Indian names for the diseases, but no references could be found for them. Both The Black Treasury and The Twelve Great Sons give alternate spellings for some of them (DN 541; BCC 195b).
*7 T: dmar thab. The bonfire mentioned here, more specifically, is “a fire in which flesh, skin, and hair are burned; it was believed by ancient [Tibetan] shamanistic culture that such fires would upset local deities” (TDC).
*8 T: sha za. Literally, “flesh-eaters.” A type of preta similar to rakshasas and yakshas who eat human flesh.
*9 When the river overflows, it covers the river banks entirely, all at once. There is no need to make each part of the river bank wet individually. Likewise, if Tashi Tseringma is happy, then there will be no need to appease each of the other spirits individually. (ATW)
*10 T: rnam par rgyal ma. A female long-life deity.
*11 This is connected with the practice of Ushnishavijaya (T: de bzhin gshegs pa’i gtsug tor nas byung ba’i snying po can gyi gzungs).
*12 This term is difficult to translate with one word in English. It can refer to a puja where many offerings are made as well as to the collection of offerings themselves. It literally means “gathering,” or “accumulation” (T: tshogs).
*13 That is, I nearly died.
*14 The four magnetizing activities are pleasant speech, generosity, harmonious conduct, and concordant conduct (integrity).
*15 Literally, “Medicine Deity Mountain” (T: sman lha), another name for the mountain of Tashi Tseringma.
*16 The four rivers are birth, old age, sickness, and death. (DPR)
*17 Each of these tantras is part of the Marpa Kagyu lineage.
*18 Dhyana means “meditative concentration.”
*19 Svabhavikakaya is the union of the three kayas (dharmakaya, sambhogakaya, and nirmanikaya); it is the total entity of buddhahood.
*20 Padmasambhava (eighth century) was a powerful practitioner of Secret Mantra invited to Tibet by the king to help establish the Buddhadharma in Tibet.
*21 Danyi Khala Rong-go (T: zla nyi kha la rong sgo) is one of the twenty-five sacred sites of Kham (Eastern Tibet) and the site where Padmasambhava is said to have hidden the treasure (T: gter ma) Barchey Kunsel, later revealed by the tertön Chokgyur Lingpa.
*22 Literally, “Resounding Darkness” (T: mun pa sgra sgrog). This is possibly a conflation of the names of two of the eight renowned charnel grounds, Munpa Mizepa and Kilikili Dradrokpa (Kongtrul 2008: 274).
*23 Literally, “Armor of the Directions” (T: phyogs gyi go cha). No reference was found for this master.
*24 Also known as Krishnacharya, one of the eighty-four mahasiddhas. Literally, “One of Black Conduct” (T: spyod pa nag po).
*25 Nyen are a type of local deity who when disturbed are noted to inflict illness.
*26 T: sman yul; literally, “Medicine-land.”
*27 T: nying mtshams sbyor. This term in Tibetan connotes joining up or making a connection with one’s new body.
*28 Literally, “Four [skandhas] of name.” In the bardo, one is without a body (the skandha of form), leaving only the four skandhas of mind or name (T: ming bzhi ’khyams po).
*29 A makara (T: chu srin) is type of sea beast in Hindu mythology. In Tibetan it literally means “sea monster” or “water dragon.”
*30 Along with Nalanda, one of the two most important centers for Buddhist study in ancient India. It is generally thought, however, that Naropa was the keeper of the northern gate at Nalanda.
*31 The three paths of existence (T: lam srid pa gsum) refer to birth, death, and the bardo. The three realms of samsara (T: gnas khams gsum) are the desire realm, the form realm, and the formless realm.
*32 The three travelers, as Milarepa explains below, are those who have the instructions and practice them, those who have the instructions and do not practice them, and those who do not have the instructions at all.
*33 No specific reference has been found regarding what the three guides refers to. (DPR)
*34 This refers to the thirty-two major and eighty minor physical marks and signs, respectively, of a buddha.
*35 This seems to be the same teaching Milarepa mentions above, “Pointing Out the Three Kayas,” as the fourth kaya (the svabhavikakaya) is the totality of the “three kayas.”
*36 Milarepa here is saying he will give instructions on how to practice in the three bardos, each of which corresponds to one of the three kayas.
*37 The Tibetan literally says “scent eater” (dri za). The Buddhist teachings refer to beings in the bardo in this way because they cannot eat coarse food but are thought to subsist on odors.
*38 The man and woman, here, are to be the new parents of the wandering consciousness.
*39 T: mgur chu. This literally refers to the base section of a stupa.
*40 This is Sanskrit for “finished.”
*42 The author requested Milarepa three times to record this story, but each time, Milarepa only smiled without answering.
*43 During this current age of the Buddha Shakyamuni.
*44 The first month of the Tibetan calendar (T: cho ’phrul).
31
The Five Tseringma Sisters’ Investigation
Garland of Clouds of Bliss-Emptiness Wisdom
NAMO GURU
On the eighth day of the month of the female fire-bird just past the first part of the night,106 it is said a vivid bright light shone at the nirmanakaya palace, the solitary site of Chuwar. Then hearing the bustling sound of many people, Milarepa thought, “Who is there?” A wonderful scent unlike any he had smelled before filled his nostrils.
At that point, [the five] Tashi Tseringma [sisters appeared] fully adorned with ornaments: one of the retinue came carrying burning incense with many different delightful scents; another brought many provisions of food and drink; another brought many types of sound [offerings]; one carried fine clothing; and one brought a variety of flowers. Then the five of them made many prostrations and circumambulations, emanating many pleasing objects and offered them. Then all five, in a single voice, sang this song:
Lord, precious and qualified guru,
So fortunate with a body of freedoms and resources,
The name that the guru and deities gave you,
Is it not Shepa Dorje?
The name that your father and mother gave you,
Is that not Mila Töpa-ga?
And the name you are known by throughout the land,
Is that not the Siddha Repa?
You with these wondrous three names:
At the left side of the Lhamen*1 Queen Mountain,
On the banks of the Lohit River,
Is the palace of Dungdra, the Naga King,
A site that is the source of all desires.
There, at Chuwar, in the marvelous Menlung Valley,
You pursue practice as the essential purpose
And you’ve tossed away the eight worldly concerns.
You’ve been drawn from the wilderness of samsaric existence.
The Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa Page 41