Longchen Nyingthig
Encyclopedia
Longchen Nyingthig is a systematic explanation of Dzogchen
within the Nyingma
school of Tibetan Buddhism
. Like the world famous Bardo Thodol
, the Longchen Nyingthig is a seminal example of the terma
tradition. The Longchen Nyingthig is generally classified as a Vajrayana
or tantric Buddhist esoteric teaching and has an extensive meditational, trance
and ritual practice, oral tradition
and tantric literature associated with it.
Thondup & Talbott (1996: xiii) state
', a reference to the central figure of Jigme Lingpa's 'pure visions' (Wylie: dag-snang) in which the texts were revealed. 'Nyingthig' (which connotes 'seminal essence' or 'heart focus'). It is worthy of note that 'thig' is an etymon of 'thig-le' which is the Tibetan cognate of the Sanskrit 'bindu
' the central point of the 'mandala
' (Tibetan: Khor lo).
Alternate orthographies: Longchen Nyingtik.
to have first codified Atiyoga into these three indivisible sections, namely: Semde
(mind class/cycle); Longde
(space class/cycle); and Mengagde (direct/oral instruction class/cycle). One of the principal polysemic symbols of Dzogpa Chenpo or Atiyoga is the Gankyil
which is clearly a visual example of a triune and sometimes also a quadrune or a svastika (the sauvastika is also the principal symbol of the Bönpo which shares in the Dzogchen tradition along with the Nyingmapa and Kagyupa). In turn, Shri Singha divided the Mengagde into a further four cycles: the outer, inner, esoteric, and innermost esoteric cycle. These four cycles of the Mengagde are of one kind in that they are teachings on the 'primordially pure nature' (or Kadag; Wylie: Ka Dag) which is called 'cutting through' (or Trekchö; Wylie: Khregs Ch'od) all the grasping, clinging and apprehending obscuring the primordially pure substrate of the mindstream
: refer Kadag Trekchö
. The 'innermost esoteric cycle' of the Mengagde is focused upon the 'spontaneous perfection of appearances' (Lhündrub; Wylie: Lhun Grub) which is known as the 'direct approach' (Tögal; Wylie: Thod rGal): refer Lhündrub Tögal
. There are many Mengagde traditions and teachings although there are two principal historical redactions and elucidations given the nomenclature 'Nyingthig'. These principal two are the Vima Nyingthig brought to Tibet by Vimalamitra
and the Khandro Nyingthig brought to Tibet by Padmasambhava
. Into the mindstream of Jigme Lingpa
merged the mindstream tributaries of Vimalamitra and King Trisong Detsen of whom he, Jigme Lingpa, was a joint 'emanation' (Tibetan: tulku
) or 'embodiment' (Sanskrit: nirmanakaya). Now as was previously stated Vimalamitra brought the Vima Nyingthig to Tibet. Padmasambhava, who brought the Khandro Nyingthig to Tibet, transmitted this to King Trisong Detsen. So both the Khandro Nyingthig and the Vima Nyingthig were within the mindstream of Jigme Lingpa and were realised by him as 'mind ter' or 'mind terma
' (Wylie: dgongs-gter). As Thondup & Talbott state (1996: p.44):
Thondup and Talbott (1996: p.122) state that when Jigme Lingpa was 28 years old:
The teaching was original discovered as a terma
, a revealed teaching given to the 18th century Nyingma teacher Kunkhyen Jigme Lingpa. The teaching is allegedly descended from the Dharmakaya Buddha Kuntu Zangpo (Skt. Samantabhadra), passed to the Samboghakaya Buddha Dorje Sempa (Skt. Vajrasattva
), and then through a series of other teachers until it reached Guru Padmasambhava, who arrived in the mid-8th century to Tibet
and converted much of the populace to Buddhism
.
(2000) opens discourse into English on the themes and motifs of the simultaneous and gradualist approaches to the Great Perfection within the Longchen Nyingthig.
Dzogchen
According to Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, Dzogchen is the natural, primordial state or natural condition of the mind, and a body of teachings and meditation practices aimed at realizing that condition. Dzogchen, or "Great Perfection", is a central teaching of the Nyingma school also practiced by...
within the Nyingma
Nyingma
The Nyingma tradition is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism . "Nyingma" literally means "ancient," and is often referred to as Nga'gyur or the "old school" because it is founded on the first translations of Buddhist scriptures from Sanskrit into Tibetan, in the eighth century...
school of Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India . It is the state religion of Bhutan...
. Like the world famous Bardo Thodol
Bardo Thodol
The Liberation Through Hearing During The Intermediate State , sometimes translated as Liberation Through Hearing or Bardo Thodol is a funerary text...
, the Longchen Nyingthig is a seminal example of the terma
Terma (Buddhism)
Terma are key Tibetan Buddhist and Bön teachings, which the tradition holds were originally esoterically hidden by various adepts such as Padmasambhava and his consorts in the 8th century for future discovery at auspicious times by other adepts, known as tertöns. As such, they represent a...
tradition. The Longchen Nyingthig is generally classified as a Vajrayana
Vajrayana
Vajrayāna Buddhism is also known as Tantric Buddhism, Tantrayāna, Mantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Esoteric Buddhism and the Diamond Vehicle...
or tantric Buddhist esoteric teaching and has an extensive meditational, trance
Trance
Trance denotes a variety of processes, ecstasy, techniques, modalities and states of mind, awareness and consciousness. Trance states may occur involuntarily and unbidden.The term trance may be associated with meditation, magic, flow, and prayer...
and ritual practice, oral tradition
Oral tradition
Oral tradition and oral lore is cultural material and traditions transmitted orally from one generation to another. The messages or testimony are verbally transmitted in speech or song and may take the form, for example, of folktales, sayings, ballads, songs, or chants...
and tantric literature associated with it.
Thondup & Talbott (1996: xiii) state
Longchen Nyingthig (the heart-essence of infinite expanse, or the ultimate truth of the universal openness) is a cycle of mystical teachings that represent the innermost meditation of Dzogpa Chenpo [Dzogchen], revealed by the great scholar and adept Jigme Lingpa (1730-1798). Jigme Lingpa discovered them as a "mind ter" (or "mind treasure"), teachings that were discovered from the enlightened nature of the mind.
Nomenclature, orthography and etymology
The Longchen Nyingtig may be translated as 'seminal heart of LongchenpaLongchenpa
Longchen Rabjampa, Drimé Özer "Longchenpa" was a major teacher in the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism. Along with Sakya Pandita and Je Tsongkhapa, he is commonly recognized as one of the three main manifestations of Manjushri to have taught in Central Tibet...
', a reference to the central figure of Jigme Lingpa's 'pure visions' (Wylie: dag-snang) in which the texts were revealed. 'Nyingthig' (which connotes 'seminal essence' or 'heart focus'). It is worthy of note that 'thig' is an etymon of 'thig-le' which is the Tibetan cognate of the Sanskrit 'bindu
Bindu
Bindu is a Sanskrit term meaning "point" or "dot". The feminine case ending is bindi which denotes a small ornamental, devotional and/or mystical dot that is cosmetically applied or affixed to the forehead in Hinduism....
' the central point of the 'mandala
Mandala
Maṇḍala is a Sanskrit word that means "circle". In the Buddhist and Hindu religious traditions their sacred art often takes a mandala form. The basic form of most Hindu and Buddhist mandalas is a square with four gates containing a circle with a center point...
' (Tibetan: Khor lo).
Alternate orthographies: Longchen Nyingtik.
History and background
Atiyoga is traditionally conveyed as a triunic teaching, that is, it has three indivisible sections. The tradition holds MañjushrīmītraMañjusrimitra
Mañjuśrīmitra was an Indian Buddhist scholar, the main student of Garab Dorje and a teacher of Dzogchen.-Nomenclature and etymology:...
to have first codified Atiyoga into these three indivisible sections, namely: Semde
Semde
Semde translated as "mind division", "mind class" or "mind series" is the name of one of three scriptural and lineage divisions within Atiyoga, Dzogchen or the Great Perfection which is itself the pinnacle of the ninefold division of practice according to the Nyingma school of Tibetan...
(mind class/cycle); Longde
Longde
Longde is the name of one of three scriptural divisions within Atiyoga, also known as Dzogchen or the Great Perfection which is itself the pinnacle of the ninefold division of practice according to the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism.The name Longde is translated as 'Space Division' or 'Space...
(space class/cycle); and Mengagde (direct/oral instruction class/cycle). One of the principal polysemic symbols of Dzogpa Chenpo or Atiyoga is the Gankyil
Gankyil
The Gankyil[Tibetan:དགའ་འཁྱིལ་] is a symbol and ritual tool in Tibetan Buddhism, Bön, Himalayan Shamanism and Korean Buddhism. In Bön and Nyingma Dzogchen lineages, the Gankyil is the principal symbol and teaching tool: it is symbolic of primordial energy and represents the central unity and...
which is clearly a visual example of a triune and sometimes also a quadrune or a svastika (the sauvastika is also the principal symbol of the Bönpo which shares in the Dzogchen tradition along with the Nyingmapa and Kagyupa). In turn, Shri Singha divided the Mengagde into a further four cycles: the outer, inner, esoteric, and innermost esoteric cycle. These four cycles of the Mengagde are of one kind in that they are teachings on the 'primordially pure nature' (or Kadag; Wylie: Ka Dag) which is called 'cutting through' (or Trekchö; Wylie: Khregs Ch'od) all the grasping, clinging and apprehending obscuring the primordially pure substrate of the mindstream
Mindstream
Mindstream in Buddhist philosophy is the moment-to-moment "continuum" of awareness. There are a number of terms in the Buddhist literature that may well be rendered "mindstream"...
: refer Kadag Trekchö
Kadag Trekchö
Kadag Trekchö is a Dzogchen term and practice meaning "thorough cut" or "cutting through". 'Kadag' may be rendered as 'purity' and specifically "primordial purity"...
. The 'innermost esoteric cycle' of the Mengagde is focused upon the 'spontaneous perfection of appearances' (Lhündrub; Wylie: Lhun Grub) which is known as the 'direct approach' (Tögal; Wylie: Thod rGal): refer Lhündrub Tögal
Lhündrub Tögal
Lhündrub Tögal is a Dzogchen term and practice which holds the semantic field "leaping over", "direct crossing" and "direct approach". The Menngagde or 'Instruction Class' of Dzogchen teachings are, for instruction, divided into two indivisible aspects: Kadag Trekchö and Tögal...
. There are many Mengagde traditions and teachings although there are two principal historical redactions and elucidations given the nomenclature 'Nyingthig'. These principal two are the Vima Nyingthig brought to Tibet by Vimalamitra
Vimalamitra
Vimalamitra ), an 8th century Indian adept, is key to the history of Tibetan Buddhist Dzogchen practice. He lived equally in China, Oddiyana and Tibet, but was known as the "Sage of Kashmir". According to tradition, he was born in Western India and travelled to China to become a disciple of Shri...
and the Khandro Nyingthig brought to Tibet by Padmasambhava
Padmasambhava
Padmasambhava ; Mongolian ловон Бадмажунай, lovon Badmajunai, , Means The Lotus-Born, was a sage guru from Oddiyāna who is said to have transmitted Vajrayana Buddhism to Bhutan and Tibet and neighbouring countries in the 8th century...
. Into the mindstream of Jigme Lingpa
Jigme Lingpa
Jigme Lingpa was one of the most important tertöns of Tibet. He was the promulgator of the Longchen Nyingthik, the Heart Essence teachings of Longchenpa, from whom, according to tradition, he received a vision in which the teachings were revealed...
merged the mindstream tributaries of Vimalamitra and King Trisong Detsen of whom he, Jigme Lingpa, was a joint 'emanation' (Tibetan: tulku
Tulku
In Tibetan Buddhism, a tulku is a particular high-ranking lama, of whom the Dalai Lama is one, who can choose the manner of his rebirth. Normally the lama would be reincarnated as a human, and of the same sex as his predecessor. In contrast to a tulku, all other sentient beings including other...
) or 'embodiment' (Sanskrit: nirmanakaya). Now as was previously stated Vimalamitra brought the Vima Nyingthig to Tibet. Padmasambhava, who brought the Khandro Nyingthig to Tibet, transmitted this to King Trisong Detsen. So both the Khandro Nyingthig and the Vima Nyingthig were within the mindstream of Jigme Lingpa and were realised by him as 'mind ter' or 'mind terma
Terma (Buddhism)
Terma are key Tibetan Buddhist and Bön teachings, which the tradition holds were originally esoterically hidden by various adepts such as Padmasambhava and his consorts in the 8th century for future discovery at auspicious times by other adepts, known as tertöns. As such, they represent a...
' (Wylie: dgongs-gter). As Thondup & Talbott state (1996: p.44):
Jigme Lingpa was a reincarnation of both Vimalamitra himself and King Trisong Detsen, who was a recipient of Nyingthig teachings from Guru Rinpoche [Padmasambhava] and Vimalamitra. So the Nyingthig teachings of two major lineages flowed together in Jigme Lingpa. Longchen Nyingthig is the essence or embodiment of the two Nyingthig traditions, Vima Nyingthig and Khandro Nyingthig.
Revelation of the Longchen Nyingtig
Thondup and Talbott (1995: p.97) state that:
While transmitting esoteric teachings to his realized disciples in Tibet, Guru Padmasambhava concealed many teachings with the blessings of his enlightened mind stream in the nature of the intrinsic awareness of the minds of his disciples through the power of “mind-mandated transmission” (gtad rgya); thereby the master and disciple became united as one in the teachings and realization. Here, the master has concealed the teachings and blessings, the esoteric attainments, as ter in the pure nature of the minds of his disciples through his enlightened power, and he has made aspirations that the ter may be discovered for the sake of beings when the appropriate time comes.
Thondup and Talbott (1996: p.122) state that when Jigme Lingpa was 28 years old:
In the evening of the twenty-fifth day of the tenth month of the Fire Ox year of the thirteenth Rabjung cycle (1757), he went to bed with an unbearable devotion to Guru Rinpoche in his heart; a stream of tears of sadness continuously wet his face because he was not in Guru Rinpoche’s presence, and unceasing words of prayers kept singing in his breath.
He remained in the depths of that meditation experience of clear luminosity ('Od gSal Gyi sNang Ba) for a long time. While being absorbed in that luminous clarity, he experienced flying a long distance through the sky while riding a white lion. He finally reached a circular path, which he thought to be the circumambulation path of Charung Khashor, now known as Bodhnath Stūpa, and important Buddhist monument of giant structure in Nepal.
Lineage
Tradition holds that the first human master of the Longchen Nyingthig lineage was Prahevajra.The teaching was original discovered as a terma
Terma (religion)
Terma are key Tibetan Buddhist and Bön teachings, which the tradition holds were originally esoterically hidden by various adepts such as Padmasambhava and his consorts in the 8th century for future discovery at auspicious times by other adepts, known as tertöns. As such, they represent a...
, a revealed teaching given to the 18th century Nyingma teacher Kunkhyen Jigme Lingpa. The teaching is allegedly descended from the Dharmakaya Buddha Kuntu Zangpo (Skt. Samantabhadra), passed to the Samboghakaya Buddha Dorje Sempa (Skt. Vajrasattva
Vajrasattva
Vajrasattva is a bodhisattva in the Mahayana, Mantrayana and Vajrayana buddhist traditions...
), and then through a series of other teachers until it reached Guru Padmasambhava, who arrived in the mid-8th century to Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
and converted much of the populace to Buddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
.
Teaching
Van SchaikVan Schaik
van Schaik is a Dutch surname, and may refer to:* Carel van Schaik , Dutch primatologist* Henri van Schaik , Dutch horse rider* Josef van Schaik, Dutch politician* Steef van Schaik, Dutch politician...
(2000) opens discourse into English on the themes and motifs of the simultaneous and gradualist approaches to the Great Perfection within the Longchen Nyingthig.
External links
- Longchen Nyingtik lineage
- Longchen Nyingtik at RangjungYesheWiki
- Lotsawa House
- www.zangthal.co.uk