Longchen Rabjam Series

A Mirror Revealing the Crucial Points: Advice on the

Ultimate Meaning
by Longchen Rabjam
Single embodiment of the compassion, power and activity
Of the infinite mandalas of victorious buddhas, beyond measure,
Glorious lama, supreme sovereign lord of a hundred buddha families,
At your feet, now and forever, I pay homage!
Ema! Fortunate yogins, listen now:
We have gained a perfect human form with its freedoms and advantages, we have
met the precious teachings of the Mahyna, and we have the freedom to practice the
sacred Dharma authentically. So, at this time, let us not waste our lives in
meaningless pursuits, but work towards the genuine, lasting goal.
There are infinite categories of teaching and countless are the ways to enter the
vehicles. Explanations can involve a great many words and expressions. Unless we
can take to heart the essence of the genuine meaning, then even committing many
hundreds of thousands of volumes to memory will not decidedly bring benefit at the
moment of death.
Seemingly, we might have boundless knowledge, all derived from study and
reflection, but if our fundamental character is not attuned to the Dharma, we will not
tame the enemy, the destructive emotions.
Unless we limit our desires from within by adopting an attitude of not needing
anything at all, then even mastery over a thousand worlds will bring no real
satisfaction.
Should we fail to prepare for the uncertainty of the time of death, we will not
accomplish the great purpose, that which we will surely need when we die.
If we dont overcome our own faults and train in impartial pure perception, then
having attachment and aversion will prevent us entering the ranks of the Mahyna.
Unless we make pure prayers of aspiration with unceasing compassion and
bodhicitta, in the knowledge that there is not a single being among the three realms
or the six classes who has not been our mother or father in the past, we will not
unlock the treasury of altruism.
Unless we have such devotion for our kind teachers that we consider them as greater
than the Buddha, we will not receive even a single portion of their blessings.
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Without genuinely receiving blessings, the tender shoots of experience and

realization will not grow.
If realization does not dawn from within, dry explanations and theoretical
understanding will not bring the fruit of awakening.
To put it simply, unless we blend our own mind with the Dharma, it is pointless
merely to adopt the guise of a practitioner.
Restricting ourselves to only basic sustenance and shelter, let us regard everything
else as unnecessary.
Practice guru yoga, pray with single-minded attention, and direct all virtuous actions
to the benefit of all beings, your very own parents.
Whatever you encounterbe it happiness or sorrow, good or badregard it as the
kindness of the lama.
In the expanse in which self-knowing rigpa arises spontaneously, free of all grasping,
rest and relax, without contrivance or fabrication. Whatever thoughts arise,
recognizing their essence, allow them all to be liberated as the display of your own
intrinsic nature.
Without the slightest trace of anything to cultivate or focus upon in meditation,
dont allow yourself to drift even for a single instant into ordinary confusion. Instead,
remain aware and undistracted during all activities, and train to recognize all sights
and sounds and sensory experience as the play of illusion. In so doing, you will gain
experience for the bardo state.
In short, at all times and in all situations, let whatever you do accord with the sacred
Dharma and dedicate all virtue towards enlightenment. If you do so, you will fulfill
the vision of your lamas and be of service to the teachings. You will repay the
kindness of your parents and spontaneously benefit yourself and others. Please keep
this in mind.
Even if we were to meet in person, I would have no greater instruction to give you
than this. So take it to heart, all the time, and in any situation.
Lord of the victorious ones, Longchen Rabjam Zangpo, wrote this on the slopes of Gangri
Tkar. May virtue abound!
| Translated by Adam Pearcey, Rigpa Translations, 2011. Revised 2012.

Crucial Advice: A Complete Set of Instructions for

the Bardos
by Longchen Rabjam
At the feet of the sacred master, respectfully I pay homage!
Although you have gained this life of freedom and advantage, it will not last,
So keep in mind these instructions for the moment of death.
Now, during this intermediate period of the bardo of this life,
Decide, with complete certainty, that the wisdom of your own awareness is
dharmakya,
And sustaining the ongoing experience of its self-radiance, the meditation which is
naturally clear,
Everything will only enhance naturally arising wisdom!
During the bardo of dying, when the four elements dissolve,
There will be the illusory experiences of rising and falling, shaking, and haziness.1
And the dissolution of earth, water, fire, wind and space.
The sense faculties too will cease to function. At that time, remind yourself:
Now I am dying, but there is no need to fear.
Examine: What is death? Who is dying? Where does dying take place?
Death is merely the return of borrowed elements.
In the face of rigpa itself, there is no birth or death.
Within the very form2 of the dharmakya of primordial purity, the union of rigpa
and emptiness,
Examine: What is death? Who is dying? Where does dying take place?
As dying exists nowhere, it is absolutely unreal.
In the experience of this, generate courage and confidence.
The arising of rigpa is not obstructed in any way.
Earth, water, fire, wind and consciousness dissolve into space.
When space dissolves into pure luminosity,
The six consciousnesses dissolve into the basis of all, the dharmadhtu,
As awareness parts from the inanimate, there is an experience of pure awareness,
devoid of phenomena.
Separated from the ordinary mind, the great primordial purity of dharmakya dawns.
Through having recognized this here and now in training,
You will be freed directly, in a single instant.
And gain the dharmakya of twofold purity.
This is how it dawns, but should you fail to recognize it,
Thereafter, clear light appearancesmanifestations of the groundwill arise.
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Sounds, lights and colours, peaceful and wrathful ones filling the sky,
By recognizing all these appearances as rigpa's self-radiance,
You will be freed in the original state, and attain awakening.
It is crucial, therefore, to recognize everything as intrinsic radiance.
Through recognizing the essence, you will gain enlightenment.
This is how it all arises, but should you fail to recognize it,
The dream-like bardo of becoming will dawn.
At that time, by recalling a pure land,
And taking refuge in the lama and the yidam deity,
Some will find freedom in a pure buddha paradise,
And some will gain the seven qualities of birth in a higher realm,
And be assured of gaining liberation in the next life.
Therefore, this most profound essence of instructions,
Which is like placing buddhahood in the palm of the hand,
Will delight the fortunate children of my heart.
This the yogin of the Natural Great Perfection,
Longchen Rabjam Zangpo, has set down.
Through this virtue, may all beings, equal to the vastness of space,
Become fully enlightened within the primordial realm!
This complete instruction for the dying, a secret, unsurpassed introduction, was
composed by the heir of the victorious ones, Drim zer, in response to the requests of
devoted disciples, in the isolated hermitage of Khothang Rinchen Ling.
| Translated by Adam Pearcey, Rigpa Translations, 2010. With many thanks to Alak Zenkar Rinpoche
and Patrick Gaffney. Tulku Thondup Rinpoche's Peaceful Death, Joyful Rebirth (Shambhala, 2005)
contains a partial translation of this text, which in Tibetan is called bar do'i gdams pa tshangs sprugs su
gdab pa gnad kyi man ngag.

1. Phya phyo signifies a major sensation of up and down movement. Yam yom is a
major sensation of shaking to and fro. Ban bun means blurred or hazy. (Alak
Zenkar Rinpoche)
2. Its very form is no form. (Alak Zenkar Rinpoche)

Thirty Pieces of Heart Advice

by Longchen Rabjam (13081363)
From his great clouds of prayers arising through wisdom, which permeates the
dimension of reality completely, and through the sunrays of compassion, amta falls
down unceasingly onto the field of students, ripening the offshoots of the three
kyas. I bow down at the feet of the lama, who protects as the embodiment of the
Three Jewels.
Though I entered the sacred lineage of accomplishment through the power of my
prayers, due to my lack of effort my life has turned out meaningless and is now
vanishing. I had wanted to act in an honest manner, but now I am in despair and
have seen many like me. Out of renunciation I composed these thirty pieces of heart
advice.
1. Kyeho! Drawing a large following by employing a variety of methods
Although we accumulate the right facilities to establish a monastery,
This will become a field of dispute causing attachment.
To remain alone is my heart advice.
2. Performing village rites, like taming demons of dead children and the
living,
Peddling our qualities as merchandise amidst the people
Out of attachment to food and wealth, we get carried away by the demons
of the mind.
To tame ones own mind is my heart advice.
3. By gathering donations from the poor as if imposing taxes,
We can erect large statues and distribute offerings on a vast scale.
But even though this is to support virtuous goals, we instigate others to
commit negative actions.
To keep ones mind virtuous is my heart advice.
4. Teaching others Dharma out of a desire for greatness and
Maintaining a retinue of important and humble people through skilled
methods
A mind involved with this is the source of pride.
To have few aspirations is my heart advice.
5. Were we to offer a hundred valuable things accumulated through wrong
livelihood,
Based on conducting business, taking interest, deception and so on.
We might attempt to be virtuous, but instead give rise to the eight worldly
dharmas.
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To meditate on renunciation is my heart advice.

6. Through taking on responsibility, bearing witness, enforcing the law and
so on,
We reconcile people in their disputes, thinking this benefits them,
But still, aversion and attachment arise.
To be without hope and fear is my heart advice.
7. To have subordinates, wealth, a retinue, good fortune and
Fame spreading through the whole world
At the time of death all this is of no benefit.
To be diligent in ones practice is my heart advice.
8. Even though caretakers, attendants, people in charge and cooks
Constitute the lifeblood of a monastery,
Entertaining dualistic perception is the cause for strife.
To give up such chores is my heart advice.
9. To carry whatever we think necessary to the cave,
Statues, offerings, texts, cooking utensils and the like,
All hastily gathered together, leads to suffering and dispute.
To be frugal is my heart advice.
10. Pointing out faults to a short-tempered retinue
In these degenerate times, even with the wish to benefit,
Gives rise to negative states of mind.
To speak peacefully is my heart advice.
11. Giving advice with a wish to benefit and without self-interest,
Or lovingly pointing out someones hidden faults,
We might be honest, but still it creates heartache.
To speak pleasantly is my heart advice.
12. When we support our own side and refute the other,
We might think this is the way to propagate the teachings during debate,
But instead it will give rise to negative states of mind.
To stop talking is my heart advice.
13. Through being partial towards our lama, lineage and practice,
We believe we are upholding them.
But to praise our own side whilst disparaging others is the source of
attachment and aversion.
To give all this up is my heart advice.

14. After differentiating and examining the teachings we have studied,

We find faults in the teachings of others and might believe this to be
wisdom.
But through this we accrue negative deeds.
To train in pure view is my heart advice.
15. Speaking about blank emptiness and disregarding cause and effect,
Thinking that non-action is the ultimate,
We give up the two kinds of accumulation, leading to the deterioration of
our practice.
To practice unifying both is my heart advice.
16. We let the innermost essence descend for the sake (of practicing) the third
(empowerment),
Thinking we enhance our practice by relying on a consort.
Yet many have been deceived by such contaminated ways.
To practice the path of liberation is my heart advice.
17. To bestow empowerments upon improper people,
And to distribute sacred substances among the ordinary
Is the basis for slander and the deterioration of samaya.
To start in the proper way is my heart advice.
18. To be naked and so on in the middle of ordinary people,
We might think of such eccentric behaviour as part of higher asceticism,
But it is a reason for worldly beings to lose faith in what is pure.
To act with mindfulness is my heart advice.
19. Aspiring to be someone superior where we reside,
Even if we act purely and are learned,
Is the cause to fall from the highest point to the lowest.
To be neither too tight nor too loose is my heart advice.
20. In villages, monasteries, caves and such places
Wherever we might staylet us not look for close friendship,
But with whomever we become acquainted, be neither too intimate nor
too hostile.
To remain self-reliant is my heart advice.
21. In order to receive provisions from the faithful,
We might pay respect in a hypocritical way
To attract attention, but that will only fetter us.
To act regarding everything as equal is my heart advice.

22. There a many texts on craft, astrology and medicine,

All sources for understanding the methods of interdependence,
Yet to know too many things ruins ones meditation.
To limit the objects of knowledge is my heart advice.
23. To replicate the arrangements of the home,
When venturing into solitude
Is to waste ones life in a meaningless manner.
To give up too many activities is my heart advice.
24. There might be excellent qualities in striving
For learnedness and purity,
But whatever we are attached to will only bind the mind stream.
To be without bias is my advice from the heart.
25. Summoning hail and thunderbolts and the like, producing black magic
spells and protecting oneself,
We might believe these are activities to subdue those who are hardest to
tame,
But this will only inflame their minds and lead us to the lower realms.
To take a humble place is my heart advice.
26. To amass a multitude of profound texts
Such as scriptures, commentaries and oral instructions,
Without practicing them, will be of no benefit at the time of death.
To watch your mind is my heart advice.
27. When we accomplish remaining one-pointedly, we can gain insights and
understanding,
But to write spiritual texts and songs of realization about them,
Even though they are signs of experience, will give rise to
conceptualization.
To maintain a non-conceptual frame of mind is my heart advice.
28. When conceptual thoughts arise, the direct view is crucial;
Having examined the mind, to settle it is crucial;
Even as there is nothing to meditate on, to meditate is crucial.
To remain undistracted is my heart advice.
29. Dwelling in the state of emptiness, acting according to (the law of) cause
and effect;
Realizing non-action, keeping the three vows;
Without focus, exert yourself in benefitting beings through compassion.
To engage in the two accumulations indivisibly is my heart advice.

30. If we have listened to many learned masters and received deep

instructions,
Have studied a few stras and tantras,
Without ever applying themOh how pitiful!we are just fooling
ourselves.
For myself and others like me, I have explained these thirty pieces of heart advice.
Through composing this, with a mind of renunciation, may all beings be freed from
cyclic existence and reach the pure realms. May I emulate the conduct of the victors of
the three times, their heirs and the great rishis, so that I may become their foremost heir.
Motivated by a slight sense of renunciation, I, Tsultrim Lodr, composed these thirty
pieces of heart advice. May all be auspicious!
| Translated by Daniela Hartmann and edited by Judith Amtzis, Jacqueline Bourbon and Monsieur "Fifi"
Greywhiskers.

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A Guide to Locations for Cultivating Samdhi

by Longchen Rabjam
On mountaintops, in secluded forests and on islands and the like,
Places which are agreeable to the mind and well suited to the season,
Cultivate tranquil samdhi, which is single-pointed and unwavering
Clear light, which is free from the slightest conceptual elaboration.
This is achieved naturally when three pure factors come together:
The ideal location, individual and Dharma to be practised.
First of all, the location must be one that is secluded and agreeable,
Somewhere conducive to spiritual practice in the different seasons.
In summer, meditate in cooler dwellings and cooler locations,
In places near to glaciers or on mountaintops and the like,
In simple dwellings made out of reeds, bamboo or straw.
In the autumn, adjust your diet, your clothing, and your conduct,
And stay in a region and residence of moderate temperature,
Such as a forest or a mountainside or a building made of stone.
In winter, stay somewhere warmer at a lower altitude,
Such as a forest, a rocky cave or a hollow in the earth,
And adjust your diet, clothing, bedding and the rest.
In the spring, stay in the mountains or on the edges of a forest,
On a deserted island or in buildings with mild and even temperature,
With diet, clothing and conduct all suitably attunedthis is crucially important.
There is an important interconnection between outer and inner,
So keep to inspiring and secluded places which you find uplifting.
High among the mountains the mind becomes clear and expansive,
Ideal for refreshing mental dullness and for practising the generation phase.
Snowy regions help to make samdhi clear and awareness bright and lucid,
So for cultivating vipayan they make ideal places with the fewest obstacles.
Forests bring stillness of mind and help us to develop mental stability,
So they are ideal places for cultivating amatha with a sense of ease.
Below rocky cliffs we can feel a vivid sense of impermanence and disenchantment,
Clear and inspired, helping us to achieve the union of amatha and vipayan.
On the banks of a river, our attention becomes well focused,
And the wish to escape samsara comes rapidly and afresh.
Charnel grounds are powerful places for swift accomplishment,
Ideal for the generation or completion phases, it is said.
Villages, markets, empty houses, solitary trees and the like, Which are frequented by
humans and non-human demons,
Are distracting for beginners and can bring many obstacles,
But for stable practitioners, they are a support, regarded as supreme.
Temples and shrines, inhabited by gyalpo and gongpo spirits,
Can disturb the mind and incite thoughts of anger and aversion.
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Caverns in the earth and such places, haunted by the senmo demonesses,
Cause passionate desire to arise and bring excessive dullness and agitation.
Solitary trees and other places, which are inhabited by mamos and kins,
As well as boulders and mountain spurs, where the mutsen and theu'rang reside,
Contribute, it is believed, to mental turmoil and bring all manner of obstacles.
The lands of outcastes, ngas, nyen, and local spirits,
By the lakeside, or in meadows, forests and such places,
Adorned with beautiful flowers, plants and trees,
Are pleasant enough at first, but later prove disruptive.
In short, all the areas and dwelling places that seem agreeable at first,
But not so once you come to know them, are sites of lesser accomplishment.
Whereas those which seem frightening and unpleasant at first,
But prove agreeable once you have grown accustomed to them,
Are powerfully transformative, bringing great accomplishments without obstacle.
And everywhere else in between is neutral, neither beneficial nor harmful.
As our minds are affected by the places in which we stay,
This can make our practice grow stronger or make it weaker,
So it is said that to examine locations is of crucial importance.
Moreover, there are four types of place based on the four activities:
Peaceful places, where mind naturally becomes focused and still,
Expansive places, delighting the mind, which are awesome and inspiring,
Magnetizing places, where mind feels captivated and develops attachment,
And wrathful places, where mind is disturbed by feelings of fear and dread.
Further divisions can be made, countless and beyond measure,
But in this context, for samdhi, peaceful places are the best,
And so, fearing an excess of words, I will elaborate no further.
In such a peaceful place, the meditation dwelling should be in solitude,
As this will suit the development of concentration in the mind.
The ideal dwelling is one that is open at the sides and has a clear view.
For nighttime yoga, practise inside a circular dark house,
In a high place, and in the middle of the central chamber,
With your pillow to the north, lying down in the posture of nirvana.
The location for practising the yoga of light during the daytime,
Should be mild in temperature and should have an entrance
With a broad, unobstructed view onto glaciers, waterfalls, forests or valleys,
And the vast and open sky, so that mind becomes clear and bright.
When cultivating amatha, a solitary hut surrounded by a fence
Is the ideal place for stillness of mind naturally to arise.
For vipayan, it is important to have a clear, inspiring view,
And to be constantly cheerful and well attuned to the seasons.
Low-lying and shaded areas, such as forests and ravines,
Are ideal for practising amatha, whereas higher regions,
Such as among snowy mountains, are ideal for vipayan
It is important that you know these different specifications.
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To put it simply, any region or actual dwelling place for retreat,

In which renunciation and disenchantment arise, attention is well focused,
And samdhi grows in strengthany such place of virtuous activity
Is said to be the equal of the sacred site of the heart of awakening.
Whereas any place in which virtues decline, mental afflictions increase,
And one is overcome by distractions and the affairs of this life,
Is a demonic haunt of evil actions, only to be avoided by the wise.
Since these points were taught by Padmasambhava,
They should be learned by all who wish for liberation.
This concludes the first section, being an explanation of the locations for cultivating
samdhi, from Finding Comfort and Ease in Meditation on the Great Perfection.
| Translated by Adam Pearcey, Rigpa Translations, based on an earlier, unpublished translation of
Finding Comfort and Ease in Meditation on the Great Perfection by B. Alan Wallace and Adam Pearcey,
prepared for HH the Dalai Lamas teachings in Lerab Gar, France, 2000.

13

The Practitioner of Meditation

by Longchen Rabjam
Secondly, as an individual who takes up the practice,
You must have faith, perseverance, renunciation and a sense of disenchantment.
You must be saddened and wearied by sasra, and strive for freedom.
Renouncing the concerns of this life and seeking eventual enlightenment,
You must leave distractions and busyness far behind, and have few mental
afflictions,
Be easy-going and tolerant, and have pure perception and great devotion,
As well as stability of mind1 and deep respect towards the teachings
Practitioners such as this will accomplish the most supreme liberation!2
You must serve, in the best possible way, a noble teacher,
And purify your mind through study, reflection and meditation.
In particular, you should spend your days and nights
Diligently applying yourself to the essential instructions of the aural lineage.
Without becoming distracted for a moment by ordinary concerns,
Diligently apply yourself to the profound innermost meaning.
Never transgressing the precepts of the rvakas, bodhisattvas and vidydharas,
With your own mind under control, help others in any way you can,
And take whatever you experience onto the path to liberation.
As a beginner, it is most important that you secure your own well-being,
Guarding your mind in solitude, abandoning distractions and busyness,
Avoiding unfavourable situations, and subduing the mental afflictions with
appropriate antidotes.
Ensuring that your view and conduct are in harmony, enthusiastically devote
yourself to meditation.
Whenever any of the ordinary five poisons arise, in that very moment,
Catch them with mindfulness, and, without distraction, apply the antidotes.
With conscientiousness, introspective vigilance, self-restraint and a sense of dignity,
bring your own mind under control.
See the equality of praise and blame, approval and disapproval, good and bad
reputation,
For they are just like illusions or dreams and have no true existence.
Learn to tolerate them as if they were mere echoes,
And sever at its root the mind which clings to an I or a self.
In short, by never transgressing the Dharma in all that you do,
Bring your mind under control, do no harm to others,
And without succumbing, even for an instant, to the mental afflictions,
Devote your days and nights to virtuethis is crucial!
Nowadays, when people are so unruly,
It is vital that you first achieve your own well-being in solitude.
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Just as a bird can not fly without both wings,

The welfare of others cannot be accomplished without the higher faculties of
perception,
So diligently strive for your own wellbeing, whilst mentally considering the welfare
of others.
Without letting your mind be deceived by the devious mras of distraction and
busyness, It is vital that you apply yourself to the practice
Do not cause yourself to suffer regrets at the time of death!
Therefore, make your mind ready now,
And consider this: Were you to die now, what would become of you?
Without any assurance as to where youd go or what might happen,3
To spend your days and nights in the grips of confusion and distraction,
Is to squander and make meaningless the freedoms and advantages.
Meditate therefore on the essential meaning, alone and in solitude.
For it is now that a long-term strategy is really needed.
How can you be sure where you will go in future?
You must diligently apply yourself this very day!
These delusory appearances of samsara are like treacherous pathways.
Keep this in mind: You must find the methods to free yourself.
For if you remain deluded now, youll wander in delusion forever.
So arouse perseverance and keep this in your heart.
The ocean of mental afflictions and the sea of self-grasping are difficult to cross,
But now that you have the vessel of the freedoms and endowments, use it to reach
the distant shore!
Now that you have gained this rare opportunity through the force of your merit
access to the path of liberation and enlightenment
Secure your own benefit and happiness by striving with heartfelt sincerity!
Life is impermanent and changes from one moment to the next,
And we expertly deceive ourselves with distractions, postponing virtuous practice.
When we have long become accustomed to delusion,
In each moment were naturally drawn into the mental afflictions,
And even if we apply ourselves to merit and virtue,
We find they do not easily arise.
Strive, therefore, to avert the miseries brought about by your own actions!4
There is not the slightest joy to be found within the states of sasra.
The sufferings of conditioned existence, if you think of them, are impossible to bear.
Therefore apply yourself right now to the means of gaining freedom.
If you do not earnestly devote yourself to the essential meaning,
The state of leisure and intermittent Dharma will bring no benefit.
So develop a strong sense of weariness for all that is impermanent,
And, without being distracted even for an instant, generate enthusiasm for the
practice!
If you realize this at the very outset,
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You will swiftly achieve the state of an rya!

Accomplishing your own welfare, the welfare of others will come naturally,
And you will find the supreme path of liberation from the states of sasra.
When everything that you do is in accordance with the Dharma,
Then you are one who has the basis for attaining enlightenment.
This concludes the second section, being an explanation of the individual practitioner
who cultivates samdhi, from Finding Comfort and Ease in the Meditation of the Great
Perfection.
| Translated by Adam Pearcey, Rigpa Translations, based on an earlier, unpublished translation of
Finding Comfort and Ease in Meditation on the Great Perfection by B. Alan Wallace and Adam Pearcey,
prepared for HH the Dalai Lamas teachings in Lerab Gar, France, 2000.

1. As H.V. Guenther noted, the word meaning "teachings" appears in the

root text and also when the root text is given in the auto-commentary, but in
commenting on this line, Longchenpa uses the word meaning "firm" or
"stable". I have tried to incorporate both senses into the translation.
2. This line appears in the auto-commentary, The Pure Chariot (), but not
in the root text.
3.

The commentary spells this as . I am taking it to mean "assurance"

or "reliability".
4. Root text has . Commentary has .

16


Sampa Nyur Drupma'The Prayer that Swiftly Fulfils All Wishes'
by Omniscient Longchenpa and Rigdzin Jikm Lingpa

emaho, tso gesar pem dongpo la

Emaho! In the heart of a blossoming lotus, upon the waters of the lake,

ku nga yeshe lhn gyi drubp lha

You are the deity who is the spontaneous presence of the five kyas and wisdoms,

rangjung chenpo pema yabyum ni

O great, naturally arisen Padma Yabyum

khandr trinpung trik la solwa deb

Surrounded by clouds of kinsto you we pray:

sampa nyurdu drubpar jingyi lob

Grant your blessing so that all our wishes be quickly fulfilled!

l ngen chep nammin t kyep

As a result of our negative karma, whenever we suffer

n dn barch mak truk mug sok

From illness, malevolent spirits (dns) and obstacles, warfare and violence, famine and
starvation,

khy shyal drenp mla z jep

Then remember your promise that even simply to think of you will immediately dissolve
all such suffering

shyalshy nying n kul lo orgyen j

O Lord of Orgyen, we implore you, from the depths of our hearts,

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sampa nyurdu drubpar jingyi lob

Grant your blessing so that all our wishes be quickly fulfilled!

d dang tsultrim tong la gompa dang

To practise devotion, discipline and generosity,

tp gy drol trely ngotsa sh

To free the mind through hearing the Dharma, and to have dignity, self-control

sherab pnsum tsokp nor dnpo

And discriminating awarenessmake these seven noble human qualities

semchen kn gyi gy la rang shyuk n

Fill the hearts and minds of all sentient beings

jikten dekyi denpar ukjin dz
And so bring peace and happiness to the world.

sampa nyurdu drubpar jingyi lob

Grant your blessing so that all our wishes be quickly fulfilled!

gangla n dang dukngal mind kyen

When oppressed by illness, suffering and unwanted circumstances,

jungp dn dang gyalp chepa dang

Falling prey to harm and obstruction from negativity and demonic forcesjungpo and
gyalpo,

m chu chenzen lamtrang jikpa ch

Threatened by fire, water and journeys of great danger,

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ts yi patar tukp nekab kn

When this life is spent and death arrivesat these times

kyab dang resa shyendu machip

We have nowhere to turn to except to you!

tukj zung shik guru orgyen j

Care for us with your great compassion, O great Orgyen Guru:

sampa nyurdu drubpar jingyi lob

Grant your blessing so that all our wishes be quickly fulfilled!

This prayer should be kept in the hearts of all those with faith, who wish to benefit the land of Tibet, pacify illness,
prevent famine and border invasions, and contribute to the welfare of the teachings and beings.

The first stanza is taken from the verses of praise in The Infinite Cloud Banks of Profound Meaning (Zabdn
Gyats Trinpung), the background teachings to the omniscient Longchenpas Khandro Yangtik, and the later
verses are the blessed vajra words of the second omniscient one, Rigdzin Jikm Lingpa.
| Rigpa Translations

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The Greatness of the Omniscient Longchen Rabjam

by Khenpo Shenga
Due to the kindness of Guru Padmasambhava, there have been many great holders of
the teachings here in Tibet, the Land of Snows. There have appeared highly
accomplished saints who were no different from the vidydharas of India, the Land
of the ryas. Yet although there have been countless eminent scholars, none of them
might be compared with the Six Ornaments and Two Supreme Ones of India in
terms of wisdom and enlightened activity.
In later times there was the Omniscient One from Samy, Longchenpa, who was the
equal of the Jowo Kadampa geshes in terms of his ethical discipline and practice of
training the mind (lojong), and who was like Jetsn Milarepa in how he first served
his teacher and then spent his life meditating in solitude on the gurus instructions.
On account of his total mastery of study and contemplation, his fearless eloquence
and his achievements in explanation, debate and composition we might compare
him to the likes of Sakya Paita, the Lord of Dharma, or the precious Je
Tsongkhapa. How he reached the final accomplishment and arrived at the
exhaustion of reality within the primordial state was just like the great Chetsn
Senge Wangchuk, Melong Dorje and others. In terms of his ability to manipulate
phenomenal existence and call upon the assistance of the oath-bound guardians he
was comparable to the great awareness-holders of Nub. In keeping to the tenets of
the pinnacle of all ynas and surpassing all the views and philosophies fabricated by
the ordinary mind, he was like the great Rongzom. If we consider the vast array of
instructions he passed on in an aural lineage and the way he cared for the disciples
who maintained his tradition, we might compare him to Sachen Kunga Nyingpo or
Marpa Lotsawa. His mastery over the conventional sciences and the way in which
Sarasvat, the goddess of learning, lent power to his speech,1 made him the equal of
the lotsawas of the past. The way great clouds of blessings are amassed within his
written instructions makes them identical to the profound dharma treasures of the
great tertns. His perfect training in bodhichitta and his ability to benefit all those
with whom he came into contact was reminiscent of Dromtnpa or the peerless
Dakpo Lharje [Gampopa].
Other Tibetan scholars took as their basis the excellent Indian treatises but then
added explanations based on their own clever ideas, with the result that on occasion
their statements no longer accord with scripture or valid reasoning. In particular, the
works of Ngrjuna and his successors have been fervently debated among Tibetans,
with the assertions of earlier Tibetan scholars subjected to a great deal of
presumptuous refutation and affirmation by later scholars. Yet the explanations of
the Omniscient One remain true to the tradition of the Six Ornaments and Two
Supreme Ones in their beginning, middle and end.
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Other Tibetan siddhas possessed only a few instructions from the aural lineage and
then taught the holders of their tradition to meditate on selected instructions.
Gyalwa Longchenpa, by contrast, was the master of countless teachings from
profound transmissions. He possessed all manner of instructions, which had been
passed down from vidydharas and accomplished siddhas, from kas and kins,
or received directly from Guru Padmasambhava and so on. This meant he could lead
the holders of his tradition to attainment by encouraging them to practise diligently
those instructions for which they felt the greatest affinity.
Other learned and accomplished masters may have given complete teachings on
particular instructions, but they did not have practices for all the teachings in their
entirety. The Omniscient Guru explained all the teachings completely. He revealed
the instructions for gaining supreme and common accomplishments in general, from
the kriy and cary tantras onwards, and all the tantras and pith instructions of
Dzogpachenpo in particular, and so he is the true charioteer of the essence of clear
light teachings.
In addition, his wisdom body has appeared in visions before those with great good
fortune, granting them realization and so on.2
In short, I believe Gyalwa Longchenpa to be the unique embodiment of the
enlightened qualities of all the learned and accomplished masters of the Land of
Snows. If you consider this honestly, you will find this to be just how it is, neither an
exaggeration nor an understatement.
Gaining experience and realization through meditation
That is common to all forms of pith instruction.
But gaining experience and realization through non-meditation
How could anyone fail to seize upon something so amazing?
Ha! Ha!
| Translated by Adam Pearcey, Rigpa Translations, 2006. Revised 2012.

1. Literally: frolicked in his throat.

2. Khenpo Shenga himself was blessed with such a vision.

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