Toh 1287Untitled

Exposition of a Tantric Scripture (Toh 1287)

Context

This scripture belongs to the Kangyur, the Vajrayana Tantra collection, a gathering of the most profound instructions in the Buddhist Dharma tradition. Tantra, or Secret Mantra, is regarded as the swift path to Buddhahood, distinct from the usual Mahayana path, because it combines wisdom, skillful means, and the profound transformation of mind.

The Kangyur is a collection of scriptures, treatises, and Tantric teachings compiled by wise Tibetan masters under the guidance of great eminent teachers. The Tantras section of the Kangyur includes the highest teachings related to deep forms of meditative contemplation, secret lineage teachings, and yogic practices that cannot be taught in an ordinary class without direct instruction from the eminent teacher.

This scripture has been transmitted in Tibetan monastic settings and Buddhist Dharma meditation centers, where faithful disciples have devoted their whole minds to practice in order to realize Buddha nature.

Main Content

Although the title of the scripture has not been fully translated, the teachings in the Vajrayana Tantric section generally focus on essential points: recognition of the empty nature of dharmas, the transformation of ordinary mind into Buddha wisdom, and profound meditative methods connected with mantra, mandala, and yidams, protective deities.

In Vajrayana, the practitioner does not regard himself or herself as a weak being; instead, from the very beginning, the practitioner sees himself or herself as a Buddha or female Buddha in perfect form, a yidam. The process of practice includes three main stages: the generation stage, utpatti-krama, the completion stage, nispanna-krama, and the formless stage, nirmana-kaya. These stages are not independent steps, but different dimensions of a comprehensive training process.

Mantras, streams of Dharma syllables endowed with power, are used to focus the mind on the true nature of phenomena. Mandalas, complex circular diagrams, are maps of the Buddha universe and the practitioner’s mind. Through the combination of these elements, the practitioner gradually merges with Buddha nature.