Report November 2020
This month we published two new translations.
We are most pleased with the first one, which is quite a rare and special text: The History of the Kīla of Lightning-Forged Meteoric Iron, the Material Treasure of the Blazing Hayagrīva and Garuḍa (Takhyung Barwa), by Jigme Lingpa. This letter relates the history of the kīla that Jigme Lingpa found as a material treasure at Mount Hepori. The text was written for Queen Tsewang Lhamo of Derge and offered to her together with the kīla itself. The letter is found only in the Lhasa edition of Jigme Lingpa's writings, which might indicate that it was initially kept secret and only discovered after her passing, too late to be included in other editions.
Our second translation builds on our earlier work on the Takhyung Barwa cycle: A Liturgy for the Activity Manual of the Blazing Wrathful Guru, Hayagrīva and Garuḍa, from the Heart-Essence of the Vast Expanse, arranged by Jamgön Kongtrul Lodrö Thayé, and translated by Josh Capitanio and Han Kop.
The anniversary of Adzom Drukpa Drodul Pawo Dorje, one of the greatest lineage holders and propagators of the Longchen Nyingtik teachings, fell in this month, and so we would like to encourage everyone to check out our blogpost from last year about him.
This time we end our monthly update with an excerpt from the illustrious Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche on the importance of deity practice:
Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche
Importance of a Yidam
"If you were to examine how all the realized masters of India and Tibet attained their realization, you would find that it was through the practice of a yidam deity and steeped in the meditation that’s known as the union of kyerim and dzogrim. These great realized masters cherished their individual yidams as tenderly as they cherished their own lives, and therefore they practised the path of the union of development and completion. This was how they finally attained realization.
But nowadays, people say, “Oh, what a lot of bother. Deity meditation, mantra recitation, bah! I hate all that stuff.” They toss it all out before they’ve even tried, then just sit on their round meditation cushions, close their eyes and make sure their backs are straight. You can forget about trying to elicit signs of attainment with such people. As far as I can see, they don’t develop even the tiniest smidgen of realization." - Orgyen Tobgyal Rinpoche
Source: All-OTR