Toh 1534An Exposition of the Empowerments of the Utterly Pure Path of the Lion Posture (Siṃhāsana)

An Exposition of the Scripture An Exposition of the Path (Toh 1534)

Context

This text belongs to the Tengyur, the Tibetan Treatise Collection, one of the treasuries of Buddhadharma scriptures translated from Sanskrit into Tibetan in the eighth and ninth centuries. In the Mahayana and Northern Tibetan tradition, especially the schools of Vajrayana Buddhism, these treatises are profound teachings on methods of practice, drawing out the deep intent of the sutras.

The scripture "An Exposition of the Path" is a work devoted to the path of practice in the Siṃhāsana method, the Lion Seat, a meditative form related to the seated posture of the lords. Its focus on "empowerments" (transmissions, or abhiṣeka) indicates that this work is intended for those who have received empowerment and are ready to follow the Vajrayana method. Siṃhāsana is not only a physical posture, but a symbol of confidence, meditative stability, and the Buddha-nature already present in all sentient beings.

Main Content

The scripture teaches the "utterly pure path," a foundational concept in Vajrayana Buddhism. Purity here is not the result that comes after action, but the primordial nature of all phenomena; the four noble truths and the dharmic practices (dharmāḥ) have been made clear since the third century BCE.

Empowerment (abhiṣeka) is presented as a process that activates innate potential. According to the Northern Tibetan tradition, there are four levels of empowerment: the formal empowerment, the secret empowerment, the wisdom empowerment, and the word-by-word empowerment (caturabhiṣeka). Each level corresponds to stages of spiritual maturation, from the initial refinement of the subtle body to the realization that the practitioner himself or herself is the Buddha.

The Siṃhāsana method is directly connected with the elements of body and mind — the three mysteries (kāya, vāg, citta), the basic processes of Tantric practice.