Table Of Content

• Yoga Tantra Paths to Magical Feats Yoga Tantra Paths to Magical Feats His Holiness the Dalai Lama Dzong-ka-ba Jeffrey Hopkins Translated and edited by Jeffrey Hopkins Co-edited by Kevin A. Vose and Steven N. Weinberger Contents Detailed Outline 7 List of Charts 11 List of Illustrations 11 Preface by Jeffrey Hopkins 13 I: The Features of Yoga Tantra by His Holiness the Dalai Lama 22 1. The Basics 23 2. Yoga With Signs 34 3. Yoga Without Signs 57 4. Feats 64 II: The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra: Yoga Tantra by Dzong-ka-ba 67 1. The Root Tantra 69 2. Initiation and Vows 78 3. Observing a Deity 82 4. Observing a Hand-Symbol 91 5. Yoga Without Signs 98 6. Feats 110 III: Supplement by Ke-drup-ge-lek-bel-sang 121 1. Five Manifest Enlightenments 123 2. Four Seals 128 IV: Practical Outline of the Steps of the Path formulated by Jeffrey Hopkins 141 Appendix: Achieving Buddhahood through the Five Manifest Enlightenments by Lo-sang-66-gyi-gyel-tsen 154 Back-notes 159 List of Abbreviations 165 Bibliography 167 Index 175 Detailed Outline List of Charts 1 1 List of Illustrations 1 1 Preface by Jeffrey Hopkins 13 I: The Features of Yoga Tantra by His Holiness the Dalai Lama 22 1. The Basics 23 Yoga Tantra 24 The Root Tantra 26 2. Yoga With Signs 34 Coarse Yoga With Signs 34 A Student's Single Yoga 34 Seal-Impression 38 A Master's Great Yoga of Self-Completion 42 Three Meditative Stabilizations 44 Meditation on a Subtle Object 47 Process of Achieving Calm Abiding 48 Developing Meditative Dexterity in Yoga Tantra 54 3. Yoga Without Signs 57 Meditating on Emptiness 58 Progress on the Path 61 Purpose of Yogas With and Without Signs 62 4. Feats 64 11: The Great Exposition of Secret Mantra: Yoga Tantra by Dzong-ka-ba 67 1. The Root Tantra 69 I low the Stages of the Path Are Taught in Yoga Tantras 69 [The Parts of the Compendium of Principles Tantra] 69 [The Four Sections as being Both for Separate Persons and for One Person] 71 [Seventy-Two Meditative Stabilizations] 72 [Four Sections, Lineages, Mandalas, Bases of Purification, Afflictive Emotions, Seals, and Effects of Purification] 73 [Pattern of Deity Yoga] 76 2. Initiation and Vows 78 Stages of Practicing the Meaning of the Yoga Tantras 78 How to Become a Receptacle Suitable for Cultivating the Paths 78 Having Become a Receptacle, How to Maintain Purity of Pledges and Vows 79 3. Observing a Deity 82 How to Perform Prior Approximation while Abiding in the Pledges 82 Yoga With Signs 82 Yoga of Four Sessions Observing the Coarse, a Deity 82 Cultivation of the Yoga Observing the Coarse, a Deity, in Four Sessions 82 Yoga of Four Sessions for Those Who Have Obtained Only a Student's Initiation 82 Yoga of Four Sessions for Those Who Have Obtained a Master's Initiation 86 Procedure for Those Unable to Cultivate the Yoga Observing a Deity in Four Sessions 89 4. Observing a Hand-Symbol 91 Yoga of Four Sessions Observing the Subtle, a Hand-Symbol 91 Purpose of Meditating on a Subtle Object 91 Making the Mind Stable through Observing a Subtle Object 92 How to Perform Diffusion, Gathering, and so forth Once Stability Is Attained 96 5. Yoga Without Signs 98 Yoga Without Signs 98 How Yoga Without Signs Is Explained in the Compendium of Principles Tantra 98 How Yoga Without Signs Is Described in an Explanatory Tantra 100 How Yoga Without Signs Is Cultivated in the One-Gone-Thus Lineage 100 How Yoga Without Signs Is Cultivated in the Vajra Lineage 101 How Yoga Without Signs Is Cultivated in the Jewel Lineage 102 How Yoga Without Signs Is Cultivated in the Lotus Lineage 103 Brief Exposition of How to Cultivate Yoga Without Signs 104 6. Feats 110 How to Achieve Feats once the Approximation Is Serviceable 110 How to Achieve Feats through Concentration 110 Revealing Treasure 1 1 1 Not Sinking into Water 112 Going in Space 112 Knowledge-Mantra Bearer 113 Physical Transformation 113 How to Achieve Feats through Repetition 115 Physical Transformation 115 Pledge Seal 115 Protection 116 Diagnosing Possession through Descent 116 Finding Lost Articles through Descent 117 Physical Displays through Descent 117 Controlling Another's Mind 117 Love and so forth 118 How to Achieve Feats through Burnt Offerings 118 III: Supplement by Ke-drup-ge-lek-Gel-sang 121 1. Five Manifest Enlightenments 123 2. Four Seals 128 Etymology of Seal 128 Divisions of Seals 128 Order of the Four Seals 131 Purpose and Benefit of Seal-Impression 134 How to Do Seal-Impression 134 Pledge Seal 134 Cause Giving Rise to a Pledge Seal 134 Rite of Constructing the Entity of a Pledge Seal Itself 135 Cause of Achieving a Pledge Seal 135 Cause of Mastery over What Has Been Achieved 136 Doctrine Seal 136 Cause Giving Rise to a Doctrine Seal 136 Rite of Constructing the Entity of a Doctrine Seal Itself & Cause of Achieving a Doctrine Seal 136 Cause of Mastery over What Has Been Achieved 137 Action Seal 138 Cause Giving Rise to an Action Seal 138 Rite of Constructing the Entity of an Action Seal Itself 138 Cause of Achieving an Action Seal 138 Cause of Mastery over What Has Been Achieved 138 Great Seal 139 Cause Giving Rise to a Great Seal 139 Rite of Constructing the Entity of a Great Seal Itself 139 Cause of Achieving a Great Seal 139 Cause of Mastery over What Has Been Achieved 139 IV: Practical Outline of the Steps of the Path formulated by Jeffrey Hopkins 141 The Practice of Yoga Tantra 143 Yoga With Signs 143 Yoga Observing a Single Deity in Four Sessions for Those Who Have Obtained a Student's Initiation 143 Yoga Observing a Complete Mandala of Deities in Four Sessions for Those Who Have Obtained a Master's Initiation 148 Great Yoga of Self-Completion 148 Three Meditative Stabilizations 149 Procedure for Those Unable to Cultivate either the Yoga Observing a Single Deity or the Yoga Observing a Mandala of Deities 150 Yoga Observing a Subtle Hand-Symbol in Four Sessions 150 Yoga Without Signs 152 Appendix: Achieving Buddhahood through the Five Manifest Enlightenments by Lo-sang-cho-gyi-gyel-tsen 154 Backnotes 159 List of Abbreviations 165 Bibliography 167 1. Sutras and Tantras 167 2. Other Sanskrit and Tibetan Works 168 Index 175 List of Charts Sets of Fours 32 Seventy-two Meditative Stabilizations 45 List of Illustrations demonstrated by Jhado Tulku, abbot emeritus of Namgyel Tantric College (see insert) Seal 1. great seal of Vajrasattva Seal 2. pledge seal of Vajrasattva Seal 3. doctrine seal of Vajrasattva for yoga without signs Seal 4. action seal of Vajrasattva Seal 5. vajra-binding Seal 6. vajra-palms Seal 7. vajra Seal 8. iron hook Preface by Jeffrey I lopkins This book on Yoga Tantra is the third in a series presenting The Stages of the Path to a Conqueror and Pervasive Master, a Great Vajradhara: Revealing All Secret Topics' by the late-fourteenth- and early-fifteenth-century scholar and yogi Dzong- ka-ba Lo-sang-drak-ba" of Tibet. By way of introducing the present book, let us briefly consider Dzong-ka-ba's procedure in the first two volumes. 1. TANTRA IN TIBET Dzong-ka-ba's text begins the Great Exposition of Secret Mantra,' as it is also called, with an examination of the difference between the Buddhist vehicles. That section-presented in the first book in this series, Tantra in Tibet'mainly analyzes a variety of earlier delineations of the difference between the Sutra Great Vehicle and the Mantra Great Vehicle. Although he does not mention Bu-don Rin-then- drupd (1290-1364) by name, it is apparent that his prime source is Bu-don's encyclopedic presentation of the difference between Sutra and Mantra in his Extensive General Presentation of the Tantra Sets, Key Opening the Door to the Precious Treasury of Tantra Sets.` Budon lists presentations by several Indian scholars who delineate various numbers of ways the Mantra Great Vehicle surpasses the Sutra Great Vehicle, or Perfection Vehicle as it is commonly called: • Tripitakamala and commentator Vajrapani-four differences • Jnanashri-eleven differences • Ratnakarashanti-three differences • Nagarjuna-six differences' • Indrabhuti-seven differences • Jnanapada-three differences • Dombhiheruka-five differences Vajraghantapada-four differences • Samayavajra-five differences. In a radical departure from Bu-don's catalogue of opinions, Ijzong-ka-ba analyzes the structure of the path to Buddhahood and analytically chooses to emphasize a single central distinctive feature of the Mantra Vehicle, deity yoga. The main