Footnotes
For The Commentary On
The Great Perfection:
The Nature Of Mind, The Easer Of Weariness
called the Great Chariot

 

 

Chapter 1

1. . This work is part of a trilogy. The other titles are like this one except for substituting bsam gtan, dhyana/ meditation and sgyu ma/ illusion for sems nyid. Dzogchen or ati is the tradition that this teaching is part of, and also its fruition. A basic understanding of the titles is that samsara involves suffering and weariness. The view that sees the nature of mind, practicing meditation, and regarding activity from the viewpoint of all things being illusory are means of easing or weariness or relaxing tension. The result of doing so is resting in the great perfection.
The three means regarded from the viewpoint of the great perfection produce the fruition. If they are samsarically regarded they are part of the problem. The Sanskrit offered for sems nyid is citta, whose primary meaning is mind in the conceptual sense, the very thing that needs to be eased. In the same way meditation as the notion that our being is intrinsically bad and needs to be made into something else is a problem. Illusion in the sense of clinging to confused views and goals is a problem.
This points out a central point of ati, that this very world of samsara is the world of nirvana, when we relax our confused fixations about it and stop struggling with the projects that confusion suggests of saving ourselves and the world from spiritual degradation.

2. . Mind, sems, sometimes equals samsaric mind sometimes equals sems nyid the nature of mind equals enlightened mind.

3. Realm. The same name is used for a bodhisattva personifying the sambhogak_ya Buddha field of Vairochana.

4. . bstan bcos, usually treatise or shastra. Here KPSR said that the sense was more the teachings in general, and US said that the connotation was teachings delivered for certain purposes.

5. . This increases merit so that enlightenment is gained. If reasoning is rightly used it inspires people to appreciate directly the experiential meaning of the teachings and teacher. But often the result is just the opposite, to make it all seem very conceptualized, abstract, and proud of its orthodoxy. It becomes uselessly circular. The teachings are true because the Buddha taught them, and the Buddha is an authentic, true person because the teachings say so. We have to be inspired to see for ourselves what is meant. For example, the Gelugpa often begin more with reasoning and then practice. The Nyingma and Kagyu tend to start in the middle with some of both. But in the end, if they practice well, they all go to the same place. KPSR.

6. . Central equals where the Buddha's teaching is taught.

7. . HVG., literally something like "perverted the limits of action."

8. . Having the perfections pertaining to oneself, and having the perfections pertaining to others altogether perhaps.

9. . This passage consists of mnemonic cues, comprehensible only if one already knows the list.

10. . The title means entering the path to enlightenment.

11. . rtog pa.

12. . dpyod pa.

13. . sems 'byung.

14. . rtog.

15. . spyi la dmigs par mthong ba'i rtog pa.

16. . sems.

17. . blos shes bzhin.

18. . dmigs pa: actually can mean perceive, apprehend, imagine, or conceive in different contexts. However conceptualization is explained in terms of imagery, minimizing this distinction somewhat.

19. . Treasury of elements of existence

20. . Entering the Middle Way.

21. . Great: beyond mind and not mind, all-inclusive.

22. . rig pa: VCTR liked insight (equals wisdom) because the same word is used for conceptual understanding. Awareness or apprehension. Sometimes kaya and wisdom is used to express the enlightened object and perceiver.

23. . bslang.

24. . From the Sanskrit, this seems to be a copyist's error me (flames) for mo (women). I must say I like it better that way. The other is not only politically suspect, it sounds too much like the ballad of Sam Hall:

Now in heaven I do dwell, I do dwell
And the truth it is to tell
Its a goddamn bloody sell
All the whores are down in hell, damn their eyes!

25. . 'gro rnam 'byed kyi mdo: [Analytic discrimination of going/beings //?

26. . Ie monks and lay-people.

27. . The seven Aryan riches, 'phags pa nor bdun, faith, discipline, generosity, learning, decency, modesty, and prajña.

 

Chapter 2

1. . sa gsum: over on and under the earth.

2. . {gser gyi ri bdun the 7 golden mountains [[from Abhidharmakosha: surrounding Mt Meru [[mu khyud a'dzin, [rim] rnam a'dud, rta rna, [horse's ear] lta na sdug, [Pleasing-to-the-eye] seng ldeng can, [ Acacia [sandalwood] Forest] gshol mda'a a'dzin, [plow] gnya'a shing a'dzin [yoke]] ES
Beyond Mt Meru and completely surrounding it like curtains are seven mountain ranges, each forming a square. These seven golden mountain ranges [are named according to the shape of the peaks] Yoke, plow, Acacia [sandalwood] Forest, Pleasing-to-the-eye, Horse's Ear, Bent, and Rim: Myriad Worlds 110.

3. . as far as Nyashing Dzin and the other... Usually the outer volcanic iron mountains are called the Horse Face Mountain Range. Since Nyashing Dzin is already said to be one of the inner mountains, this may be a copyists error.

4. . It contains a thousand squared or a million worlds.

5. . It contains a thousand cubed, or a billion, worlds. However, Mipham argues in his commentary on Kalachakra that the proper meaning is a realm of three thousand worlds like ours, and cites texts that have this approach.

6. . The first Buddha of the present kalpa.

7. . As a name equals Kuvera.

8. . Some think legs pa equals sadhu just has the sense of guard well. Sadhu means good, ie a religious renunciate devoted to goodness.

9. . Below, upon, and above the earth.

10. . Forces of sudden affliction by madness and calamity, for Tibetans personified as demons

11. . lto a'phyes, a sort of python demi-god, not the same as nagas.

12. . a'phags pa'i nor bdun.

13. . A long verse passage.

 

Chapter 3

1. . Flowing in four directions from Mt Kailash, these are the Ganges, Yamuna, Bhramaputra, and Indus.

2. . The precious wheel, gem, queen, elephant, horse, treasure-vase, and minister.

3. . A kind of yaksha with animal head

4. . lus srul po ES.

5. . The Life of Yeshe Tsogyal has some similar passages for any heterosexual females who may feel left out.

6. . blo. Nothing to do with low blows.

7. . These are the three poisons or root kleshas.

8. . shes pa.

9. . yul so so.

10. . sems, the sense identified with grasping.

11. . yul can gyi blo.

12. . yid la byed pa.

13. . rang ngo.

14. . Yoga practice.

15. . mtshan nyid, rnam grangs. mtshan nyid is the same word logicians use for the defining characteristics discovered by valid reasoning. The word is one of the categories refuted by madhyamaka (what isn't?) but even there it is allowed validity conventionally. Here, provocatively, it is simply equated with being wrong, and distinguished from the accountable, which here is the sphere of conventional truth and falsity.

16. . kun btags.

17. . rin po che sna bdun.

18. . rang [gi] snang [ba].

19. . It could also be said that if everything is mind, the term makes no distinction and is meaningless. Both of these arguments involve some questionable assumptions about what kind of distinctions are possible. Conceptualizing experience can be subtler than dividing bricks into piles.

20. . This takes mind in the limited samsaric sense.

21. . The approach is like that of madhyamaka. If we take our ordinary concepts as literal descriptions of absolute reality, it is easy to get into trouble by inferring contradictory propositions.

22. . rang gi sang ba.

23. . don spyi.

24. . This appears to be addressed to an exponent of madhyamaka who holds that external objects truly exist from a conventional viewpoint, though not from the viewpoint of analysis for the absolute.

25. . Ordinary language distinguishes my sensations (personal appearances) of this flower from the flower itself, although there is no double vision of both at once. For example, if I close my eyes, the sensations vanish, but the flower does not.

26. . This is a play on gnyis med which can mean either both are not (existent) or not two equals non-dual. In the Tibetan the reader has to try possible combinations of the above and pick the one that seems to fit best.

27. . snang ba, appearance, as used in Tibetan can mean something in mind, but can also include external objects, which appear to us to exist and to be directly perceived. However the characteristics of e.g. a tree are no more predicable of mind than those of a perception of a tree. Neither, therefore and be the same as mind.

28. . Red and white can have the sense subjective and objective.

29. . rang rig. Sometimes Longchenpa says things that sound similar, but would never say that such things transcend emptiness.

30. . By identifying mind, true existence, and appearance, it will follow, although this is not what these exponents of mind-only want to say, that what appears is what truly exists and that the confusions of the relative are absolute and truly exist.

31. . sems rig pa.

32. . Mipham's Shentong Senge Ngaro helps clarify this kind of reasoning considerably, explaining in what sense positive statements like those of the Uttaratantra can and cannot be made about the absolute.

33. . rang mtshan pa gzhan.

34. . khams

35. . dpe bsdu'i bye brag.

36. . Explained in the STSN. Any truth in appearance, including wisdom, is annihilated, while the concept of emptiness is fixated as a negative eternal absolute.

37. . srab mthug.

38. . Lord of Death and King of Hell.

39. . gro bzhin skyes rna bye ba ris.

40. . Wooden clacker.

41. . Cleaned it up, eliminated each other.

42. . Or fermenting grain.

43. . Iron trees of hell with sharp leaves etc.

44. . 1 ^________: having blisters; 2 __________^: bursting blisters 3 swo tham tham pa: teeth chattering 4 __________ achu_ 5 ____________ ALAS!_ 6 __________ut pa la ltar_7 ____ pad ma_ 8 ________ pad ma che.

45. . blong blong: made dark and filthy, or suffering from intense panic.

46. . Guenther reads this as "the country of Magadha."

47. . khal: 25-30 lb.

48. . cf. JOL p. 61

49. . ___: Such as yakshas, mountaintop spirits, powerful raksh_asas and their kings cannibal demons drinking blood and eating corpses and such, often harmful, especially if not propitiated. Vaishravana is a king of these and R_vana is their supreme king, supposed to live in Sri Lanka.

50. . {'dul ba lung gzhi'i mdo} ? pn Sutra on teachings that are the bases of discipline.

51. . ngal snabs read nar snabs.

52. . KPSR explains this by saying it means the skandhas are closely associated with suffering. etc.

53. . ES Four Currents {'dod pa}, equals desire {srid pa}, existence {ma rig pa}, ignorance {log par lta ba}, wrong views.

 

Chapter 4

1. . rtog pa of the pars rtog dpyod, conception and analysis which are linked to grasping and fixation.

2. . ^_______________^

3. . Air.

4. . The first dhatus appears to equals physical element, while the second also seems to have the sense of the 18 dhatus.

5. . The sense in which there is a time of becoming enlightenment vs. enlightenment being primordial reality.

6. . rig.

7. . yid or sems.

8. . gzung ba'i rtog pa. Longchenpa uses the two terms as equivalent.

9. . 'dzin pa'i rtog pa. Sometimes dpyod pa instead of rtog pa.

10. . vasanas, bag chags, stored habitual patterns.

11. . dbyen spyos

12. . Klesha mind is the main villain here. There is some ambiguity about conception generating mental consciousness.

13. . yul and yul can.

14. . ____ ___ ___________

15. . yid.

16. . ___

17. . Cf. a second account below. In general it is said that Dhyana 2 eliminates concept and analysis, Dhyana 3 concentrated joy, and 4 bliss, leaving several other factors such as those named.

18. . in the god realms.

19. . The Ornament of Clear Realization.

20. . Compendium of the Perfection of Knowledge.

21. . The main objection seems to be not frivolity but possibly misleading people.

22. . Treasury of the Clear Presentation of Dharmas.

23. . cf. {'bras bu lnga} - rgyu mthun gyi 'bras bu dang, bdag po'i 'bras bu dang, skyes bu byed pa'i 'bras bu dang, rnam smin gyi 'bras bu dang, bral ba'i 'bras bu ste lnga'o,//.
the five fruitions are the fruition according with the cause, dominant fruition, being-producing fruition, fruition of ripening, and fruition of separation. The last applies only to good actions.

24. . ^______^_________.

25. . Guenther has 2 extra lines p 62.

26. . Son of Champion Wealth.

27. . Going to Ceylon

28. . When these relative virtues are practiced in the absence of prajna.

29. . _____________________________________ the ^______________________________ _____________________________ __________________________ _________________________________________ ____________________ ________________________________ _____ _______

30. . ^__________. Empty continuity? It could also mean thousand tantras.

31. . ^_________^.

32. . Dharmakaya

33. . Rupakaya.

34. . Their true enlightened nature

35. . Or a statue in a clay mold.

36. . 1 Passion, 2 aggression, and 3 ignorance; 4 all acting or as 5 imprint;
That to be abandoned by 6 seeing and 7 meditation;
The higher bhumis relatively 8 impure and 9 pure. This summarizes the relationship of the nine examples to the defilement removed and the level of the path on which the removal occurs.

37. . This can also be read as saying that there are further rag-like obscurations to be abandoned BY wisdom on the path of meditation of the second to sixth bhumis. It can be read as saying that this is done by the analytic meditation, which establishes universal lack of true existence and self-nature. Longchenpa reads the passage as saying that is nihilism which rejects the wisdom of sugatagarbha. Mipham's Lions Roar that Proclaims Shentong is a good source for sorting out the issues involved.

38. . cf UT page 40.

39. . kha myag. It affects the mother too.

40. . gzhan dbang VCTR.

41. . ______________________.

42. . ____________________

43. . 6 paramitas and compassion.

44. . The glossary to the Rain of Wisdom qv says they are like the seven aspects of supreme union: evidently nature-less, filled with the wisdom of bliss-emptiness, possessing changeless mahasukha, they have all enjoyments without suffering, their changeless wisdom bliss is uninterrupted, they are filled with the great compassion. Taming others in all the times and directions they have continuity.

45. . ES lists a The Arya-subhapariprcha-nama-TANTRA Good Army Tantra dpung bzangs kyi mdo.

46. . mgron, also entertainments, festivities, invitation as a guest

47. . The five powers and faculties of a Buddha.

 

Chapter 5

1. . Karma.

2. . That accomplishes wishes.

3. . River of ashes and boiling water in the fourth supplementary hell.

4. . stong can mean either, and both work in context.

5. . dpyod here is on the level of direct comprehension.

6. . mhkhen po, upadhyaya. Learned one, teacher, preceptor. This is the way the teacher is thought of in Hinayana, as opposed to the guru of Vajrayâna

7. . BCV ci nas ting 'dzin brtson pa ni As for trying to keep samádhi in every way
com ci nas rtse cig sems kyis ni
equalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequalsequals
bdag gi yod 'di gar /spyod/dpyod ces.//think "where is mind

8. . com srog la bab kyang srung shig ces BCV thams cad 'bad pas...with every effort.

9. . spyan lnga BVC spyan sna before their eyes.

10. . bcv rnam comm rnams: pronunciation and meaning the same.

11. . com chags pa bcv chags par

12. . bvc sa rko rtsa com sa brko rtswa. no difference pronunciation and meaning.

13. . bcv dor com btang. Can be synonymous, but might not.

14. . bcv brtan pas com par. No difference in meaning.

15. . bav 'am or com dang and.

16. . slu sems bcv bslu sems. No difference in pronunciation or meaning.

17. . comm 'gyod BCV 'gyed: no difference in meaning.

18. . com yid ni brtan por. bcv de ni brtan par referring back to another "yid." Same meaning.

19. . bcv brtan stable, trustworthy com brten: supporting, trustworthy.

20. . bcv bcas dang com dang bcas. No difference in meaning.

21. . bcv yid 'di this mind com yid ni, as for mind. No real difference in meaning.

22. . com sprul zhing nga rgyal med pa ni: Without emanation and pride: Error. A plausible copyists mistake. bcv sprul pa bzhin du nga med par.

23. . here ^_____ while RV has _____^.

24. . bsngo. The same word is used for dedication the merit.

25. . Something like eight stupas or eighth stupa.

26. . Sa skya equals place having white earth, lime, or chalk.

27. . equals child or fool listening.

28. . dgrar bcas equals with enemies.

29. . This story ifs the subject of the Gandavyuha Sutra.

 

Chapter 6

1. . __________: Earlier such-ness, former one itself.

2. . <Going to refuge in them is causal refuge.>

3. . Body, speech, and mind.

4. . {gsung rab yan lag bcu gnyis} ? twelve divisions of the teachings. 1) {mdo 'i sde}. equals general teachings. 2) {dbyangs kyis bsnyad pa'i sde}. equals hymns and praises. 3) {lung du bstan pa'i sde}. equals prophecies. 4) {tshigs su bcad pa'i sde}. equals teaching in verse. 5) {ched du brjod pa'i sde}. equals aphorisms. 6) {gleng gzhi'i sde}. equals pragmatic narratives. 7) {rtogs pa brjod pa'i sde}. equals biographical narratives. 8) {de sta bu byung ba'i sde}. equals narratives of former events as examples. 9) {skyes pa'i rabs kyi sde}. equals {jatakam} narratives of former births. 10) {shen tu rgyas pa'i sde}. equals extensive teachings. 11) {rmad du byung ba'i sde}. equals narratives of marvels. 12) {gtan la dbab pa'i sde}. equals teachings in profound doctrines.

mdo sde dbyangs bsnyan lung bstan tshigs su bcad
ched brjod rtogs pa brjod dang de ltar byung
gleng gshi shin tu rgyas dang skyes rabs bcas.
gtan phab rmad du byung ba'i sde rnams so
Sutra and geya vy_kara_a and g_th_,
Ud_na and nid_na, avad_na and ityukta,
J_taka vaipulya, adbhuta[dharma], and upadesha.

5. . {dge bsnyen} layman, lay devotees, virtue obtained, people with the five precepts [not to kill, not to lie, not to steal, not to take intoxicants, not to engage in sexual misconduct], [upas_ka]. The five to be renounced for laymen, lay-vows. see also under renunciate and layman {dge tshul} ? novice, novice monk, [shramanera]. novitiate . those five with the addition of afternoon food, singing and the wearing of ornaments, the ten to be renounced by novices {dge slong} - fully ordained monk with 250 precepts, --ma nun with 350.

6. . _______^_ seems to equals ____^ partiality, aspect, direction, one-sided purpose. _______^_ could also be taken like sems nyid or chos nyis, dharmata or the nature of min, as referring to the absolute.

7. . Like Buddha family.

8. . The Tibetan for "jewel" in this case literally means "rare and excellent."

9. . The new transmission schools call the inner tantras Anuttara yoga, and say that it has within it father, mother, and non-dual tantras, eg. Hevajra, Chakrasamvara, and Kalachakra. The Nyingma usually say that beyond maha-yoga are two more vehicles, anuyoga and ati yoga. This passage has been phrased to work in both cases.

10. . gzungs can also mean to the power of retentiveness of what is learned on all levels. G: spiritual sustenance

11. . {kun tu sbyor ba gsum} - the three fetters. 1) {'jig lta} equals {'jig tshogs la lta ba} -view of a transitory collection, futile view, perishable view. ? satkaryadrsti futile view, wrong view believing in the real "I" and mine in the many impermanent, perishable entities included within the five perpetuating skandhas. futile view. belief in the transitory collection, parikalpitasatkagadrsti, intellectual futile view. 2) {tshul brtul mchog 'dzin} -holding a discipline as paramount. 3) {the tshom nyon mongs can} -possessing the klesha of doubt.]

12. . {rgyal srid rin chen sna bdun} - the seven precious royal possessions. 1) {'khor lo} -, {rtsibs stong} -1000 spoked wheel. 2) {nor bu} -, {yid bzhin nor} -wish-fulfilling gem. 3) {btsun mo} -queen 4) {glang po} elephant -, {khyu mchog glang} herd-leader or bull elephant. 5) {rta mchog} excellent horse - 6) {khyim bdag} -steward. 7) {dmag dpon} -general.

13. . {'dod lha drug} - the six kinds of desire gods/ gods in the realm of desire, [{rgyal chen bzhi} - {sum cu rtsa gsum pa} - {'thab bral} - {dga' ldan} - {'phrul dga'} - {gzhan 'phrul dbang byed} {'phrul dga'} - Delighting in creation, the Nirmanarati devas, delight in emanation, one of the 28 classes of gods in the 'dod khams, desire realm.

14. . {gzhan 'phrul dbang byed} - constantly enjoying pleasures provided, one of the 28 classes of gods in the desire realm, land of controlling other's emanations, the Paranirmitavasavartin gods, Heaven of controllers of others's emanations, the 6th heaven in the realm of desire gods.

15. . Youth, prince.

16. . Lord of third and highest first Dhyana realm.

17. . bsam pa dag pa bcu. The following may or may not be the same: As for the ten purities, there are 1-3) virtue, 4-6) study, 7) the path, 8) knowing what is not the path, 9) the thirty-seven factors of enlightenment chos sum bcu bdun and 10) producing the ripeness of sentient beings. The first two are counted three times for body, speech and mind.

18. . Dharma, eaming, definitions, and brilliant confidence.

19. . the eighth bhumi.

20. . This and "at the end above: rgyun mthar.

21. . The four Dhyanas, four formless attainments, and samapatti of cessation.

22. . ^____________^

23. . Or forgotten ^______.

24. . ___ ^________________________. These are Buddha qualities.

25. . chung nu li looks like copy error or something that could be left out. ???

26. . _______.

27. . sprul sku gsum, ___________: ________________ _____________ _______________ bzo ba'i sprul sku, skye b'i sprul sku, mchog gi sprul sku. OR ______________ ________________ _______________, skye ba'i sprul sku, mchog gi sprul sku OR sna tshogs sprul sku; 'gro 'dul sprul sku and rang bzhin sprul sku: The working or various tülkus are gifted individuals, artists, craftsmen, scientists etc who so benefit beings. The born or taming tülkus are the Rinpoche’s usually called tülkus, who have taken human birth in order to tame beings by the dharma. The supreme tülku is the Buddha.

28. . Here, as in the name of the Gyalwa Karmapa, karma is synonymous with buddha activity.

29. . ^_______.

30. . {nges par 'byed pa'i cha dang mthun pa bzhi}: {drod} {rtse mo} {bzod pa}{'jig rten pa'i chos mchog}.

31. . {dad pa gsum} ? ES Three Faiths. Sincere faith {dang ba'i dad pa}. conviction {yid ches pa'i dad pa}. and irreversible devotion {phyir mi ldog pa'i dad pa}. the three kinds of faith. inspired, aspiring, and confident faith [or confidence]
{dad pa} ? Faith, as one of the eleven virtuous mental states, devotion, to have/ feel faith, to wish, thirst, to believe, willingness to participate. yid ches pa dang/ dang ba dang/ 'dod pa gsum ?
Another list in Tilopa biography:
By means of the ten causes, two types of faith arise: outer faith and inner faith. There are three types of outer faith: faith of faith, faith of desire and faith of trust.
The object that gives rise to the faith of faith is the three jewels. The object that gives rise to the faith of desire is the four truths...[details omitted]... relying on samsara and nirvana, knowing what to accept and what to reject are the essence of the faith of desire. The object that gives rise to the faith of trust is both virtuous and evil deeds. Do not make white actions the ground of all dharmas.
Inner faith also has three aspects. The first: the object of the faith of faith is the holy guru who is the authentic embodiment of all places of refuge. The second, the faith of desire, is the desire that the mind of the holy guru and one's own mind be inseparable. It is the desire to mix together the guru's mind and one's own mind at all times, day and night. The third is the faith of trust: One should attain confidence in the knowledge of the realization that the body, speech, and mind of the guru and one's own body, speech, and mind are inseparable.

32. . Who is the true spiritual friend, [cut for meter.]

33. . ^____________.

34. . bde ba or virtue.

 

Chapter 7

1. . good, evil, and neutral. Cut for meter.

2. . An onion is good western equivalent.

3. . Variant: commentary has " give credence to complexities."

4. . dam pa gnyis.

Chapter 8

1. . There are some problems with section headings in this chapter not being of the number claimed.

2. . The commentary says nine.

3. . ___ ___

4. . gsang ba bsam gyi mi khyab pa'i mdo.

5. . most translations say something like "reflected on this."

6. . phyung: give remove reveal, draw out.

7. . dga' byed, joy producer. Sanskrit equivalents are Rama or Nanda.

8. . ^__________________: Supreme among those who possess glorious [Buddha] qualities.

9. . The text here says de dag, "they," but otherwise only one seems to be mentioned.

10. . ^_________.

11. . ^__________.

12. . among the animals

13. . A class of pretas.

14. . Gold, silver, turquoise, coral, pearl, emerald, sapphire.

15. . ^____________.

16. . I like what G did with this one

17. . Kettle-drum style.

18. . ___.

19. . ________.

20. . I.e. the Buddha.

21. . Attaining the first bhumi, supremely joyful.

22. . ^__________^

23. . Subject, action, and object of an action. Has other meanings in other contexts.

24. . Can also mean non-conceptuality, non-perception, imagelessness.

25. . ^____ true, absolute, ultimate. Below, three excellencies equals ^_________^

26. . __________ can also mean dyer, and that would be the most likely meaning for these words in isolation, but that does not seem to be the most likely meaning in this case. Of course this is using the root verses to explain the commentary.

27. . This seems to correspond in a general way to Chapter 51 of Cleary's translation pp. 328 ff. There are one differences in detail

28. . Where the previous passage is more like a summary this is a particular verse on p 339 of Cleary:
Look at Sudhana, son of compassion and love, universally kind;
Welcome tranquil eyes, do not flag in practice.

29. . Next verse. The differences here seem to come from differences in translation in different versions.

30. . The same also means kindness.

31. . P. 349 Cleary

32. . Cf. Cleary p. 350. This is summary.

33. . Shik_a.

34. . ____.

35. . ^^____.

36. . ^^_________

37. . Trungpa Rinpoche had a catchy quote that might be a variant on, this something like:
Like swarming bees on honey or flies on rotten meat
Creating an all consuming power of effort
We shall gain supreme enlightenment.

38. . ^_______.^

39. . ^____________^.

40. . de kho

41. . One of the four scriptures of the Vinaya.

42. . Shantideva says dpung. Longchenpa glosses this as dpung tshogs: troops. Ie it is a metaphor of battling evil.

43. . grel chen substitutes 'dun pa "aspiration.

44. . In a good sense, so that one is steadfast and confident.

45. . ______^: situation, conditions, specific application.

46. . [[always exert yourselves to guard]]

47. . ______.

48. . __________.

49. . read srog shing.

50. . ^___________ read ___^.

51. . _____.

52. . gong nas gong du literally means higher and higher. This is thog med bzang po's reading. Other translations have eg "generosity is highest than others."

53. . It is conceivable than inanimate things are meant.

54. . The Triskhanda Sutra, in ed. Bereford Mahayana Purification Practices, Library of Tibetan Works and Archives Dharamsala, 1978

55. . ^______________________________________^

56. . nga pa.

57. . {'phags pa'i nor bdun} ? the seven aryan riches/ faith, discipline, generosity, learning, decorum, modesty, and knowledge, knowledge/ intelligence.

58. . ^________________.

59. . {ldem por dgongs pa rnam bzhi} ? Four Kinds of Covert Intention . The covert intention with respect to entry into the teaching {gzhugs pa la ldem por dgongs pa}. or avatarabhisandhi., in respect of characteristics {mtshan nyid la ldem por dgongs pa}. or lakshanabhisandhi., in respect of antidotes {gnyen po la ldem por dgongs pa. or pratipak_h_bhisandhi., and in respect of interpretation {bsgyur ba la ldem por dgongs pa}. or pari__man_bhisandhi. Refer to Fundamentals, Pt.3, [GD?MK]

60. . __________ do my message.

61. . _______^.

62. . longs spyod: often enjoyment, but that is too fruition oriented for this case.

63. . Aggressive actions etc.

64. . pratimoksha, so so thar pa.

65. . cho ga, spyod yul.

66. . Although this is seemingly contradicted by common experience, strictly speaking it should be said that when the karma connected to harm has been worked through, no further harm will take place.

67. . ^___ ____ ___^ seem equals.

68. . ^___________.

69. . yung drung.

70. . ^____________.

71. . The ninth dhyana is then called the "peak of samsara."

72. . rdza: substance.

73. . mthong ba'i chos la bde bar gnas pa'i bsam gtan. ES. [sder gnas read bder gnas]

74. . bsam gtan.

75. . dga' bde. bde is frequently translated bliss.

76. . nyer bsdogs

77. . bor rtog. read brtag pa. Guenther has an interesting discussion in PPA 49ff suggesting that the Pali usage (used by the schools who most emphasize this meditation) is a little different than this, drawn from the Bodhisattvabhumi of Asanga. He says that in the former brtag pa, vitarka, combines notions of examining, positing, forming the basis of judgement and introducing new contents to the mind, while dpyod pa, vicara, involves sustained analysis. In this case the contrast is not between greater and lesser degrees of conceptuality in cognition.

78. . dpyod pa. Rtog dpyod: conception and discernment, ideas and scrutiny.

79. . yid la byed pa.

80. . shed.

81. . ___________________________.^

82. . ^________^.

83. . ^____________.

84. 0 . ______.

85. . ^_____^.

86. . ^___________________^

87. . <virtuous>.

Chapter 9

1. . <This is made to manifest.>

2. . <of training.>

3. .[tribal or common].

4. . rngam glog is also the name of a deity.

5. . This can also be a name for Mount Meru, which has sides of precious substances.

6. . bldad pa.

7. . sbubs.

8. . <Various>. See chos dpal rgya mtsho's commentary for details. .

9. . Lord of the mandala, Vairochana and his consort Akashadhatvishvari.

10. . dran rig.

11. . Snying po'i don la blang 'dor med pa'i phyir, could mean because within ultimate sugatagarbha there is nothing to accept or reject, etc, but that seems less clear.

12. . grags shing gnas, OR exist and are known by talked about in sounds of speech.

13. . bkod, also as "display" just above.

14. . Ordinary meanings and communication seem to become a universal display of teachings. VCTR said that at a certain point on the path this may be intense enough to become a sense of being haunted.

15. . Here the essence of the concepts of ordinary understanding, rig pa is transparently seen rig as rig pa in the ati sense, insight-wisdom beyond concept. Longchenpa takes pains to point out that the difference between this and saying conceptual mind is Buddha is as great as that between heaven and earth. This sort of passage is behind the VCTR translation of rig pa as insight—which is both ordinary and extraordinary.

16. . ...Three mandalas.

17. . rdzogs. This is similar to emptiness/luminosity.

18. . gshags.

19. . The net of nadis and prana, which when mastered gives mastery of the network of interdependence.

20. . bdegs equals btegs

21. . don snod. With intensified neurosis or psychosis one becomes like a broken vessel that cannot hold the teachings.

22. . chagya nyi is two mudras, jor might be union, application, or wealth.

23. . tana gana equals sbyor sgrol, union and liberation. Liberation sometimes equals killing. The other action is consuming intoxicants in feast practice. These five are the negation of the five precepts of getsul vows or which often accompany refuge vows for lay disciples.

24. . The five amritas substituting human flesh for brains.

25. . bud med kun usually means "all women.

26. . This suggests, but doesn't actually say live 5,000 years.

27. . rang snang.

28. . Kayas and amritas.

29. . This could mean that their seed syllables or symbolic emblems are on the spokes, a not infrequent feature of sadhanas, and perhaps of another version of this practice. However the visualization as described says only that the wheel arises from H__ and that from it come ten seats marked with the same syllable.

30. . Sambhogakaya

31. . Beams over the main shrine area that protrude.

32. . phibs.

33. . pu shu.

34. . {lda ldi} - silk tongues tied together at the upper end in garlands ste a particular kind of offering hung on house tops, fringe or tassel, string of beads or flowers, cloth wreath.

35. . [also name of deity] , Deje Tsegpa.

36. . The roof structure over the square.

37. . tsong tsong.

38. . bsil ba dang, zhim pa, yang ba, 'jam
pa, dvangs pa, dri ma med pa, lto la mi gnod pa, mgrin pa la mi
gnod pa bcas yon tan sna brgyad dang ldan pa'i chu bzang.

39. . sometimes also azure

40. . Gyenther says: 1" of light.

41. . tshon gang as above.

42. . Lapis lazuli.

43. . pi wang

44. . <of skillful means>.

45. . 'byung ba.

46. .

47. . Like "sphere" in English it doesn't mean something technical like chakra but just the place where it happens.

48. . noose.

Chapter 10

1. . Confused dualistic appearance.

2. . Skyes pa: might mean person, birth, or object of arising. The overall point would be the same.

3. . This split in time distinguishes the terminology from the more common use of the same words by Longchenpa and others, to refer to the simultaneous split of non-dual vision into the duality of subject and object.

4. . gzig pa. Leopard. Presumably for gzigs: usually honorific for see or realize. Perhaps just elegant here.

5. . Ma dros pa: Lake Manasvowar which never gets warm.

6. . dam pa as in don dam pa.

7. . 'gro, going cal also mean beings.

8. . <and six lokas.>

9. . As opposed to the pure fruition approach where it is said that primordially here is nothing to purify.

10. . Another pen name of Longchenpa, "Spotless Rays of Light."

11. . rang mtshan: individualizing characteristics.

12. . Datura contains alkaloids like scopolamine which can be dangerously toxic.

Chapter 11

1. . spyod: Including realization and activity

2. . spyod bsdus (sgron ma?).

3. . it is logically possible to read the last as a general characteristic of all the others, though in fact there is nothing in the grammar to encourage this.

4. . khams 'dus.

5. . Ripples in the air, transitory light forms on a wall, mirages optical illusions.

6. . dmigs can mean perceived, conceived, imagined, or taken as an object of attention. All are relevant and in fact are related in the way we deal with objects.

7. . of an individual and of dharma.

8. . Also Saraha.

9. . rtog pa. Thought or conception. But like dmigs pa, it is commonly used to refer to any conceptualized samsaric perception.

10. . blo bde.

11. . This is discussed in hinayana texts like Buddhagosha's Path of Purification.

12. . Source of proliferation, [of dharmas] ^____^ has negative connotation like the spread of fire or plague] space is still a non-thing dharma.

13. . Usually neither perception not non-perception.

14. . The nine dhyanas have a particular focus, so they are to that extent consciousness rather than wisdom without reference point. But that consciousness does have a sense of border--like the phenomena around a black hole.

15. . VCTR 73, p 63, 3rd is effort. The point is still emptiness of mind, but rather than analytical or illusion-like emptiness, spontaneous presence and activity is emphasized.

16. . 'dun dang 'bad rtsol brtson 'grus bzhis: Guenther: willingness, eagerness, resoluteness, perserverence.

17. . sems equals bsam thought or mind equals contemplation; and mindfulness equals exertion VCTR

18. . Second time.

19. . thog bsring ES

Chapter 12

1. . cho ga.

2. . Poisonous cucumber causing thirst and then death.

3. . They don't fit the list in the root verses. E.g. malice and desire are not mentioned at all there.

4. . yid la byed pa bcu gcig.

5. . What yogachara calls bon-duality, madhyamaka calls non-true existence.

6. . rang rig.

7. . dmigs

8. . the moon, with its rabbit's image.

Chapter 13

1. . The continents and sub-continents.

2. . Dense: Literally elaborately ornamented. Depicted by the symbolism of this iconography is the density of structure expressed by saying that all the worlds are inside an atom etc.

3. . Manifestations.

4. . ye shes sang ba.

5. . This has also been translated "complete wakefulness."

6. . <victorious>.

7. . or plush.

8. . In the upper and lower jaw.

9. . A bird.

10. . rgyas.

11. . Cognitive capacity, organism, its objects, and the range of the world. g 288 cf. sc 823]

12. . The Buddhas of the six lokas.

13. . Samantabhadra/i.

14. . Guenther has a quote with the details.

15. . rang snag and gzhan snang.

16. . The bodhisattvas see the pure relative. Since Buddhas see things as they are, their seeing is called absolute.

17. . Above it says that the Buddhas do not see one another because there is nothing to see in the single nature of them all. Omniscience does see all manifestations, including those of the various Buddhas.

18. . Concrete G.

19. . G variations of phenomena as teacher.

20. . rang bzhin, a'gro a'dul, sna tshogs.

21. . Akshobhya in RV.

22. . Sometimes Padmakuta.

23. . equals Sambhogakaya.

24. . so sor yang dag rang gi rig pa bzhi. Of Dharma, meaning, definitions, and brilliant confidence, (chos, don, nges tshig, spobs).

25. . Self equals both spontaneous and non-dual.

26. . gyer kha are little brass jingle bells from the little bangles on garments up to cowbell size.

27. . Palm, palmyra, banana.

28. . These are abilities to cure different diseases.

29. . yan lag drug bcu'i dbyangs.

30. . <the body of>.

31. . Created, born tülkus, and the supreme nirmanakaya, the Buddha.

32. . sngags kyi gong rgyan.

33. . Remaining in the Tushita heaven, entering the womb, being born, proficiency in the arts, enjoying consorts, renouncing the world, practicing asceticism, reaching the point of enlightenment, conquering the host of Mara, attaining perfect enlightenment, turning the wheel of dharma, passing into the final nirvana. Lists vary.

Chapter 14

[none]