The Complete Nyingma Tradition from Sutra to Tantra, Book 14

Translation of Treasury of Precious Sūtras and Tantras

Book

In 1838, Choying Tobden Dorje, a Buddhist yogi-scholar of eastern Tibet, completed a multivolume masterwork that traces the entire path of the Nyingma tradition of Tibetan Buddhism from beginning to end. Written by a lay practitioner for laypeople, it was intended to be accessible, informative, inspirational, and above all, practical. Its twenty-five books, or topical divisions, offer a comprehensive and detailed view of the Buddhist path according to the early translation school of Tibetan Buddhism, spanning the vast range of Buddhist teachings from the initial steps to the highest esoteric teachings of great perfection. Choying Tobden Dorje’s magnum opus appears in English here for the first time.

An Overview of Buddhist Tantra is the fourteenth volume from this collection and the first in the series to focus on tantra. Whereas previous volumes presented the general exoteric teachings of Buddhism, this work outlines the esoteric practice of tantra according to the Nyingma system. The author defines the parameters of tantra by dividing the work into outer and inner tantras, and concludes with explaining the result of the tantric path—enlightenment itself. Designed to be a companion for dedicated practitioners who receive direct instructions from a qualified teacher, this work is a comprehensive manual that provides the foundation for understanding the genuine and profound teachings of Buddhist tantra. (Source: Shambhala Publications)

Citation	Zangpo, Ngawang (Hugh Leslie Thompson) trans. The Complete Nyingma Tradition from Sutra to Tantra, Book 14: An Overview of Buddhist Tantra. By Choying Tobden Dorje (chos dbying stobs ldan rdo rje). Tsadra Foundation Series. Boulder, CO: Snow Lion, 2017.

Preface to the 1986 Tibetan Publication of the Root Text and Outline,
by Nor-drang Orgyanix
A Biography of the Author, Choying Tobden Dorje, by Golok Nor-dexiii
Foreword to the English Translation, by Hungchen Chenagtsangxxiii
In Memoriam, by Zenkar Rinpoche Tübten Nyimaxxxi
Translator’s Introductionxxxiii

The Extensive Commentary: Book 141
Book 14: An Overview of Buddhist Tantra3
- Part 1: Outer Esoteric Buddhism3
- 1. The Teaching of Tantra5
- 2. The Tantra of Rites19
- 3. The Tantra of Techniques49
- 4. The Tantra of the Welcome of Our Genuine State57
- Part 2: Inner Esoteric Buddhism71
- 5. The Tantra of the Highest Welcome of Our Genuine State73
- 6. The Empowerments and Covenant of the Tantra of the Supreme
  Welcome of Our Genuine State95
- 7. Three Aspects of the Tantric Path—Its Outlook, Meditation, and
  Conduct181
- 8. The End of the Path, Its Result—Enlightenment243
The Root Verses: Book 14257
The Outline: Book 14277
The Concise Commentary: Book 14285

Translator’s Notes315
Vocabulary List321
Notes331
Works Cited by the Author335
Index339

Chos dbyings stobs ldan rdo rje. Mdo rgyud rin po che'i mdzod kyi rgya cher 'grel pa tshangs chen bskal pa'i mdzes rgyan. In Mdo rgyud mdzod, Vol. 3: 1-111. Khreng tu'u: Si khron mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 2000.