lama, Guru Rinpoche. If we are actually able to accomplish the indivisibility of our own mind with the wisdom mind of the lama, then we are accomplishing Guru Rinpoche. If not, we are not accomplishing the lama.
If one has already found a genuine master, then Padmasambhava’s advice to supplicate one’s guru becomes relevant. The precious master Padmasambhava appeared in Tibet and taught his primary twenty-five disciples. He empowered them to appear at various intervals in the future, manifesting, for example, as the one hundred major treasure-revealers. But understand that all of them are indivisible from Padmasambhava; they are the magical web, the play of his wisdom mind, without exception.
Padmasambhava is Buddha, and Buddha is dharmakaya. Dharmakaya permeates, or is present as, the nature of mind of every single being in a constant, spontaneously present, and all-pervasive way. Thus, firmly resolve that your personal root guru is indivisible from the Precious Master Padmasambhava. Your personal root guru is none other than the dharmakaya of all buddhas. Having understood this, call upon Padmasambhava from the core of your heart with complete surrender. He says there is no deeper advice than supplication. This is the intent of all sutras and tantras. You can supplicate in many ways, but the condensed essence of all supplication is calling upon your root guru. To clear away all hindrances and gain every accomplishment, there is one supreme method, which is calling upon your root guru. Padmasambhava has personally said there is no deeper advice than that.
There are many obstacles and blockages as well as methods to overcome them. All mistaken experiences are a hindrance, but once you understand that every thought-state is your own display, there is no hindrance whatsoever. If you don’t understand this, there are many obstacles. For a person who wants to practice the Dharma in an authentic way, it is possible to diagnose exactly what’s wrong—the outer hindrances, the imbalances of the four elements, the imbalances in this illusory body and in the subtle channels and energies, and the hindrances created by fixating on duality and deluded thinking. Just being overcome by obstacles and leaving it like that is absolutely not all right. We need to identify exactly what’s wrong, and Padmasambhava, who is omniscient, made categories for all the obstacles and hindrances.
Now, let’s get back to the rest of the history of this cycle, the Tukdrub Barchey Künsel. After listening to Guru Rinpoche’s advice for overcoming obstacles, heartfelt supplication to the guru, his three main students, King Trisong Deütsen, Yeshe Tsogyal, and Prince Murub Tseypo, reflected on his words. They came to realize Avalokiteshvara is the main deity associated with Tibet and Guru Rinpoche is the chief lama associated karmically with Tibet. As for themselves, they had no other refuge, no other lama than Guru Rinpoche. They asked him to give an actual means of accomplishment, a way to be able to really eliminate obstacles. Guru Rinpoche agreed. Placing his left hand on the head of Yeshe Tsogyal, his right hand on the head of King Trisong Deütsen, and his forehead on the forehead of Prince Murub Tseypo, he brought forth from the vast expanse of his dharmakaya wisdom mind the prayer called Sampa Lhündrub.
Then they told Guru Rinpoche this was an extraordinary prayer that all his students would recite, but they still requested him to give an actual sadhana, an application, to eliminate obstacles. Guru Rinpoche agreed, and he manifested the Tukdrub Barchey Künsel mandala. Padmasambhava is the main deity, as the nirmanakaya Nangsi Zilnön. Above him is the sambhogakaya Avalokiteshvara, and above him is the dharmakaya Amitabha or Amitayus, together with the twelve manifestations of Guru Rinpoche, the four gate keepers, and the dakas and dakinis in union. Guru Rinpoche displayed the mandala and gave this teaching, complete with the root tantra, as well as the sadhanas and the different texts for accomplishing the activities through this teaching.
Later these teachings were transmitted to his disciples, who practiced them and, in this way, removed all obstacles and attained accomplishment. Yeshe Tsogyal wrote down the teachings. Twelve years after Guru Rinpoche left Tibet, she hid this terma in the cave of Da-Nying Khala Rong-Go, according to Guru Rinpoche’s prophecy. King Trisong Deütsen’s middle son, Murub Tseypo, made very deep and noble wishes, which, combined with Guru Rinpoche’s blessings, enabled him to appear as Chokgyur Dechen Lingpa and reveal this terma. He kept this terma secret for eight years, just practicing it himself. At the same time, King Trisong Deütsen incarnated as the great master Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo. These two together brought forth this terma treasure of incredible blessing and swift results, known as Lamey Tukdrub Barchey Künsel. With the help of Jamgön Kongtrül, an incarnation of the translator Vairotsana, these teachings were spread throughout Tibet and are now present up to this day.
Lamey Tukdrub Barchey Künsel is the guru’s heart practice that clears away all hindrances, thus actualizing the siddhis. To combine everything in essence and clear hindrances and obstacles, supplicate the root guru. Outer hindrances, caused by the eight or sixteen types of threats, can be removed by calling upon the root guru. All the hindrances inside the subtle channels and energies, which result from mistaken use of the structured channels, the moving energies, and the blissful essences, can be cleared away by calling upon one’s root guru. Defilements can also be cleansed by supplicating one’s root guru. On a secret level, deluded thinking, the multitude of different thoughts that well up, can be purified as well by calling upon one’s root guru.
This is a short explanation that hits the point. In order to apply this deep method, one needs to be a person of higher capacity, someone who has identified and has trust in a root guru—not just lip service, platitudes, or other superficial forms of trust, but a deep willingness from the core of one’s heart to see the root guru as the Buddha in person. Having this trust, one is able to feel complete devotion and surrender, seeing whatever the guru does as perfect and whatever he or she says as excellent. If one is that kind of disciple, able to call upon the root guru out of deep yearning and devotion, with or without words, from the basic seed of one’s mind, completely surrendering from the core of one’s being to the root guru—that is enough. But if one isn’t, and one needs more of a detailed way of going about removing obstacles, then one should supplicate the four additional deities in this cycle, Arya Tara, Achala, Mewa Tsekpa, and Dorje Bechön, to clear away outer, inner, secret, and innermost obstacles. For each of these deities, there is an empowerment, a sadhana, pith instructions on how to practice, activities to carry out, and so forth—many details.
(clockwise from top left): Dorje Bechön, Miyowa, Mewa Tsekpa, Tara
THE QUINTESSENCE OF WISDOM OPENNESS%
Padmasambhava
Emerging from samadhi, Padmakara taught this root yoga, the source of all mandalas:%
Having obtained the supreme freedoms and riches, and being weary of impermanence,%
With intense renunciation, endeavor in accepting and rejecting what concerns cause and effect.%
Those possessing faith and compassion,%
Who wish to attain the supreme and common siddhis in this very life,%
Should ripen their being through empowerment and, with totally pure samaya,%
Take refuge, the root of the path,%
As well as generate the twofold bodhichitta, the essence of the path.%
All evil deeds and obscurations, the conditions opposing experiences and realization%
Of Vajrayana, the ultimate part of the path,%
Should be purified through the profound practice of Vajrasattva.%
In order to perfect
