Property:Gloss-term
From Buddha-Nature
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Kadampa;kadampa;s the name given to the lineage established by Atisha in Tibet. It was later integrated into the Kagyupa school by Gampopa, and was the foundation of the Gelugpa lineage of the Dalai Lamas. +
pith-instructions;pith-instructions;The personal communication of the essence of a meditation practice from guru to student. Through this direct communication both the literal meaning and the intuitive sense are transmitted to a receptive disciple, since merely being in the field of a guru who has personally realized the practice conveys a powerful and subtle non-verbal message. The guru also adapts his presentation to the capacity, individual needs, and ripeness of the student in the moment. Meditations learned from books are considered useless without receiving the oral instructions from a guru. Because of its firm emphasis on the orally transmitted pith-instructions being passed from teacher to student, the Kagyu lineage is also known as the "hearing lineage." +
sindura mandala;A mandala drawn on a mirror or polished silver surface covered with sindura, a powder made of red lead, vermillion or cinnabar. In some traditions the red powder would be made of dried menstrual blood. +
illusory body;illusory body;In an ordinary being it refers to the subtle body composed of nadis, prana, and bindu. In an accomplished yogi who has refined the nadis, prana, and bindu, the illusory body becomes the basis for the rupakaya. It is also called the rainbow body or vajra body. See also ''four bodies of a Buddha'' and ''vajra body''. +
The Six Treatises of the Kadampas;the six treatises of the kadampas;are: The ''Buddhajataka'' or the ''Jataka Tales'', the collection of stories of the Buddha's former lifetimes;one excellent English version is ''The Hungry Tigress: Buddhist Legends and Jataka Tales'' as told by Rafe Martin, Berkeley: Parallax Press, 1990. The ''Dharmapada'' (Pali: ''Dhammapada'');numerous fine translations are available in English. The ''Bodhisattvacharyavatara'', by Shantideva;several translations exist in English, including, ''A Guide to the Bodhisattva's Way of Life'', translated by Stephen Batchelor. The ''Shikshasamuchaya'';the ''Bodhisattvabhumi'';and the ''Shravakabhumi''. +
ushnisha;The mound atop a Buddha's head, forming one of the major marks of a Buddha. +
transformation chakra;transformation chakra;This is the navel chakra (nirmana-chakra in Sanskrit) and is the source of creative power. Tummo practice is cented ([[sic]]) at the navel chakra, the center of creative spiritual force through which one can achieve tremendous realization. The navel chakra is also the easiest door through which to bring the energy-winds from the rest of the body into the central channel. +
method path;method path;This refers to the Six Yogas of Naropa, wherein, through meditation on the channels, winds, and drops, one transforms ordinary body, speech, and mind into the three vajras: vajra body, vajra speech, and vajra mind. It also refers to the generation and completion stage "with signs" (see ''completion stage'').
:Another meaning of "method" is great bliss. In contrast to other paths, which may emphasize the direct experience of wisdom through a penetrating realization of emptiness, the method path of Vajrayana emphasizes the union of wisdom and method, that is, the union of wisdom simultaneous with great bliss. +
Bhagavan;Blessed One. An epithet which usually refers to the Buddha. It is also used when referring to one's guru (who one sees as the Buddha), or when referring to a peaceful male yidam. +
daka;Sky-goer, hero, warrior. A male semi-wrathful yidam. One of the three roots of tantric refuge, dakas are beings who are related to enlightened activity and skillful means. They may also be messengers or protectors, depending on the context. There are both worldly and enlightened dakas. +
samadhi;Meditative concentration or absorption, when the meditation and the mind of the meditator become inseparable. +
Vinaya;One of the "Three Baskets" (Tripitaka) of the Buddhist scriptures, the Vinaya deals with Buddhist ethics and rules of conduct governing the life of the sangha. The bulk of the Vinaya pertains to monks and nuns, but it also contains precepts, teachings, and advice for laypeople. +
Shi Tro;shi tro;The tantras of the peaceful and wrathful deities, a special Nyingmapa cycle of teachings composed by Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava) and written down by his consort, Yeshe Tsogyal. The text (containing, among many other books, ''The Tibetan Book of the Dead'') was buried in the earth to be found at a later time. It is one of the many terma or "treasures" that Guru Rinpoche hid throughout Tibet. It was discovered by Karma Lingpa, who was the incarnation of Guru Rinpoche's close disciple, Lotsawa Lui Gyaltsen. +
tummo;tummo;Inner heat yoga. The tummo practice is the first of the Six Yogas of Naropa, and serves as the foundation for all of the other yogas. +
nadi;hese are the pathways of the illusory body through which the prana and bindu flow. The three most important nadis in Highest Yoga Tantra are the avadhuti (central channel), the lalana (left channel), and the rasana (right channel). These channels subdivide and eventually form a network of 72,000 channels pervading the entire body. See also ''prana'' and ''bindu''. +
heart energy-wind;heart energy-wind;One of the five main energy-winds or pranas. Also called the "life supporting wind," it is seated in the heart and spine, and is the mother of all the other winds in the body. +
karmamudra;Action seal. A yogic consort or tantric sexual partner. +
bodhisattva;Awakening hero. One who is following the Mahayana path of the six paramitas and is cultivating bodhichitta, both relative and absolute. One formally takes the bodhisattva vow from one's spiritual master, and thereafter renews the vow daily with the aspiration to attain enlightenment not merely for oneself, but for the sake of all sentient beings, and to continue to be reborn within samsara until all beings have attained enlightenment. +
Vajradhara;Holder of the Vajra. Vajradhara symbolizes the primordial state of the dharmakaya. Blue in color, Vajradhara is depicted wearing the ornaments of a sambhogakaya Buddha, holding a vajra in his right hand and a bell in his left hand. It is said that the Kagyu tradition was transmitted by Vajradhara to Tilopa in a vision. +
mala;A rosary, usually with 108 beads, used to count mantra recitations. One round of the mala is counted as an even one hundred recitations, under the assumption that one's mind may have been distracted at some point during the round, so one adds an extra eight for good measure. +
