Report September 2024: Tikle Gyachen Wang & Tormas

This month we published two new translations, the Tikle Gyachen empowerment and instructions on the tormas of the Longchen Nyingtik. But we had more good news this month: the Longchen Nyingtik Project is now a foundation and has charity status.

Our first text for this month is The Supreme Bestowal of Wisdom, The Ripening Empowerment for the Innermost Secret Guru Practice, the Sealed Quintessence (Tiklé Gyachen), revealed by Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo. Khyentse Wangpo composed this empowerment text for Tiklé Gyachen following a vision of Longchenpa that he experienced while visiting the master's residence at Gangri Thökar in 1840. The text is therefore regarded as a mind treasure, supplemental to Jigme Lingpa's original Longchen Nyingtik revelation. Later, several arrangements of this root text have been made, one by the 15th Karmapa and even two arrangements by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, which we hope to translate soon as well.

Rigdzin Düpa torma produced by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche

Our second text is Clarificatory Notes on the Tormas of the Heart-Essence of the Vast Expanse. These notes from the oral tradition of Jigme Lingpa clarify the shape and arrangement of the various tormas needed when practising the sādhanas and protector rites of the Longchen Nyingtik cycle. Although it is included in Jigme Lingpa's collected writings, the mention of Rangjung Dorje (I.e., Jigme Lingpa) in the homage and the Sanskritized name (Abhāyadhīkāśa) given at the end suggest that the text was not composed by Jigme Lingpa himself but by one of his immediate disciples, Jigme Losal Özer.

Charity status for the Longchen Nyingtik Project

After several months of behind-the-scenes preparation, the Longchen Nyingtik Project is now officially registered as a charity organization in the Netherlands. This development offers numerous benefits and will significantly support our goal of translating the Longchen Nyingtik texts into English and other languages, as well as advancing the teaching and practice of these texts. While there are still a few bureaucratic hurdles to clear before we can share all the details, we will keep you updated on our progress.