In those who have had even a little practical experience of the firm, tranquil state of dhydna, and in those who have sound nerves, this state continueth for a long time.
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In the setting-face-to-face, the repetition [of the above address to the deceased] is to be persisted in until a yellowish liquid beginneth to appear from the various apertures of the bodily organs [of the deceased]. In those who have led an evil life, and in those of unsound nerves, the above state endureth only so long as would take to snap a finger. Again, in some, it endureth as long as the time taken for the eating of a meal. In various Tantras it is said that this state of swoon endureth for about three and one -half days.
Most other [religious treatises] say for four days; and that this setting-face-to-face with the Clear Light ought to be persevered in [during the whole time]. The manner of applying [these directions] is: If [when dying] one be by one's own self capable [of diagnosing the symptoms of death], use [of the knowledge] should have been made ere this. If [the dying person be] unable to do so, then either the guru, or a shishya, or a brother in the Faith with whom the one [dying] was very intimate, should be kept at hand, who will vividly impress upon the one [dying] the symptoms [of death] as they appear in due order [repeatedly saying, at first] thus: When all the symptoms [of death] are about to be completed, then enjoin upon [the one dying] this resolution, speaking in a low tone of voice in the ear: O nobly-born or, if it be a priest, O Venerable Sir , let not thy mind be distracted.
If it be a brother [in the Faith], or some other person, then call him by name, and [say] thus: O nobly-born, that which is called death being come to thee now, resolve thus: By taking advantage of this death, I will so act, for the good of all sentient beings, peopling the illimitable expanse of the heavens, as to obtain the Perfect Buddhahood, by resolving on love and compassion towards [them, and by directing my entire effort to] the Sole Perfection. I will serve all sentient beings, infinite in number as are the limits of the sky. In saying this, the reader shall put his lips close to the ear, and shall repeat it distinctly, clearly impressing it upon the dying person so as to prevent his mind from wandering even for a moment.
After the expiration hath completely ceased, press the nerve of sleep firmly; and, a lama, or a person higher or more learned than thyself, impress in these words, thus: Reverend Sir, now that thou art experiencing the Fundamental Clear Light, try to abide in that state which now thou art experiencing. And also in the case of any other person the reader shall set him face-to-face thus: O nobly-born so-and-so , listen. O nobly-born, thy present intellect, in real nature void, not formed into anything as regards characteristics or colour, naturally void, is the very Reality, the All-Good.
Thine own intellect, which is now voidness, yet not to be regarded as of the voidness of nothingness, but as being the intellect itself, unobstructed, shining, thrilling, and blissful, is the very consciousness, the All-good Buddha. Thine own consciousness, not formed into anything, in reality void, and the intellect, shining and blissful, — these two, — are inseparable. The union of them is the Dharma-Kaya state of Perfect Enlightenment. Knowing this is sufficient. Recognizing the voidness of thine own intellect to be Buddhahood, and looking upon it as being thine own consciousness, is to keep thyself in the [state of the] divine mind of the Buddha.
Repeat this distinctly and clearly three or [even] seven times. That will recall to the mind [of the dying one] the former [i. Secondly, it will cause the naked consciousness to be recognized as the Clear Light; and, thirdly, recognizing one's own self [thus], one becometh permanently united with the Dharma-Kaya and Liberation will be certain.
But if it be feared that the primary Clear Light hath not been recognized, then [it can certainly be assumed] there is dawning [upon the deceased] that called the secondary Clear Light, which dawneth in somewhat more than a meal-time period after that the expiration hath ceased. According to one's good or bad karma, the vital-force floweth down into either the right or left nerve and goeth out through any of the apertures [of the body]. Then cometh a lucid condition of the mind. To say that the state [of the primary Clear Light] endureth for a meal-time period [would depend upon] the good or bad condition of the nerves and also whether there hath been previous practice or not [in the setting-face-to-face].
When the consciousness-principle getteth outside [the body, it sayeth to itself], Am I dead, or am I not dead? It seeth its relatives and connexions as it had been used to seeing them before. It even heareth the wailings. The terrifying karmic illusions have not yet dawned. Nor have the frightful apparitions or experiences caused by the Lords of Death yet come. During this interval, the directions are to be applied [by the lama or reader]: There are those [devotees] of the perfected stage and of the visualizing stage.
If it be one who was in the perfected stage, then call him thrice by name and repeat over and over again the above instructions of setting-face-to-face with the Clear Light. If it be one who was in the visualizing stage, then read out to him the introductory descriptions and the text of the Meditation on his tutelary deity, and then say, O thou of noble-birth, meditate upon thine own tutelary deity. Earnestly concentrate thy mind upon thy tutelary deity. Meditate upon him as if he were the reflection of the moon in water, apparent yet in-existent [in itself]. Meditate upon him as if he were a being with a physical body.
So saying, [the reader will] impress it. If [the deceased be] of the common folk, say, 9 Meditate upon the Great Compassionate Lord. By thus being set-face-to-face even those who would not be expected to recognize the Bardo [unaided] are undoubtedly certain to recognize it. Persons who while living had been set face to face [with the Reality] by a guru, yet who have not made themselves familiar with it, will not be able to recognize the Bardo clearly by themselves.
Either a guru or a brother in the Faith will have to impress vividly such persons. There may be even those who have made themselves familiar with the teachings, yet who, because of the violence of the disease causing death, may be mentally unable to withstand illusions. For such, also, this instruction is absolutely necessary. Again [there are those] who, although previously familiar with the teachings, have become liable to pass into the miserable states of existence, owing to breach of vows or failure to perform essential obligations honestly.
To them, this [instruction] is indispensable. If the first stage of the Bardo path been taken by the forelock, that is best. But if not, by application of this distinct recalling [to the deceased], while in the second stage of the Bardo, his intellect is awakened and attaineth liberation. While on the second stage of the Bardo, one's body is of the nature of that called the shining illusory- body.
Not knowing whether [he be] dead or not, [a state of] lucidity cometh [to the deceased. If the instructions be successfully applied to the deceased while he is in that state, then, by the meeting of the Mother-Reality and the Offspring-Reality, karma controlleth not. Like the sun's rays, for example, dispelling the darkness, the Clear Light on the Path dispelleth the power of karma.
That which is called the second stage of the Bardo dawneth upon the thought-body. The Knower' hovereth within those places to which its activities had been limited. If at this time this special teaching be applied efficiently, then the purpose will be fulfilled; for the karmic illusions will not have come yet, and, therefore, he [the deceased] cannot be turned hither and thither [from his aim of achieving Enlightenment]. If not liberated even by that, then that called the third Bardo or the Chonyid Bardo dawneth.
In this third stage of the Bardo, the karmic illusions come to shine. It is very important that this Great Setting-face-to-face of the Chonyid Bardo be read: About this time [the deceased] can see that the share of food is being set aside, that the body is being stripped of its garments, that the place of the sleeping-rug is being swept; can hear all the weeping and wailing of his friends and relatives, and, although he can see them and can hear them calling upon him, they cannot hear him calling upon them, so he goeth away displeased.
At that time, sounds, lights, and rays — all three — are experienced. These awe, frighten, and terrify, and cause much fatigue. At this moment, this setting-face-to-face with the Bardo [during the experiencing] of Reality is to be applied. Call the deceased by name, and correctly and distinctly explain to him, as follows: O nobly-born, listen with full attention, without being distracted: There are six states of Bardo, namely: These are the six.
O nobly-born, thou wilt experience three Bardos, the Bardo of the moment of death, the Bardo [during the experiencing] of Reality, and the Bardo while seeking rebirth. Of these three, up to yesterday, thou hadst experienced the Bardo of the moment of death. Although the Clear Light of Reality dawned upon thee, thou wert unable to hold on, and so thou hast to wander here. Now henceforth thou art going to experience the [other] two, the Chonyid Bardo and the Sidpa Bardo. Thou wilt pay undistracted attention to that with which I am about to set thee face to face, and hold on: O nobly-born, that which is called death hath now come.
Thou art departing from this world, but thou art not the only one; [death] cometh to all. Do not cling, in fondness and weakness, to this life. Even though thou clingest out of weakness, thou hast not the power to remain here. Thou wilt gain nothing more than wandering in this Sangsara. Be not attached [to this world]; be not weak. Remember the Precious Trinity. When at this all-important moment [of opportunity] of achieving a great end, May I not fear the bands of Peaceful and Wrathful [Deities], mine own thought-forms. Thereby, whatever visions of awe or terror appear, recognition is certain; and forget not this vital secret art lying therein.
O nobly-born, when thy body and mind were separating, thou must have experienced a glimpse of the Pure Truth, subtle, sparkling, bright, dazzling, glorious, and radiantly awesome, in appearance like a mirage moving across a landscape in spring-time in one continuous stream of vibrations. Be not daunted thereby, nor terrified, nor awed. That is the radiance of thine own true nature.
From the midst of that radiance, the natural sound of Reality, reverberating like a thousand thunders simultaneously sounding, will come. That is the natural sound of thine own real self. The body which thou hast now is called the thought-body of propensities. Since thou hast not a material body of flesh and blood, whatever may come — sounds, lights, or rays — are, all three, unable to harm thee: It is quite sufficient for thee to know that these apparitions are thine own thought-forms.
Recognize this to be the Bardo. O nobly-born, if thou dost not now recognize thine own thought-forms, whatever of meditation or of devotions thou mayst have performed while in the human world — if thou hast not met with this present teaching — the lights will daunt thee, the sounds will awe thee, and the rays will terrify thee. Shouldst thou not know this all-important key to the teachings — not being able to recognize the sounds, lights, and rays — thou wilt have to wander in the Sangsara.
As soon as thou art recovered from this swoon, thou wilt have the thought, 'what hath happened! At that time, all the Sangsdra will be in revolution; and the phenomenal appearances that thou wilt see then will be the radiances and deities. The whole heaves will appear deep blue. Then, from the Central Realm, called the Spreading Forth of the Seed, the Bhagavan Vairochana, white in colour, and seated upon a lion-throne, bearing an eight-spoked wheel in his hand, and embraced by the Mother of the Space of Heaven, will manifest himself to thee.
It is the aggregate of matter resolved into its primordial state which is the blue light. The Wisdom of the Dharma-Dhdtu, blue in colour, shining, transparent, glorious, dazzling, from the heart of Vairochana as the Father-Mother, will shoot forth and strike against thee with a light so radiant that thou wilt scarcely be able to look at it. Along with it, there will also shine a dull white light from the devas, which will strike against thee in thy front.
Thereupon, because of the power of bad karma, the glorious blue light of the Wisdom of the Dharma- Dhdtu will produce in thee fear and terror, and thou wilt [with to] flee from it. Thou wilt beget a fondness for the dull white light of the devas. At this stage, thou must not be awed by the divine blue light which will appear shining, dazzling, and glorious; and be not startled by it. Put thy faith in it, believe in it firmly, and pray unto it, thinking in thy mind that it is the light proceeding from the heart of the Bhagavan Vairochana coming to receive thee while in the dangerous ambuscade of the Bardo.
That light is the light of the grace of Vairochana. Be not fond of the dull white light of the devas. Be not attached [to it]; be not weak. If thou be attached to it, thou wilt wander into the abodes of the devas and be drawn into the whirl of the Six Lokas.
Bardo Thödol
That is an interruption to obstruct thee on the Path of Liberation. Look not at it. Look at the bright blue light in deep faith. Put thy whole thought earnestly upon Vairochana and repeat after me this prayer: Thereupon the setting-face-to-face is, calling the deceased by name, thus: O nobly-born, listen undistractedly. On the Second Day the pure form of water will shine as a white light. At that time, from the deep blue Eastern Realm of Pre-eminent Happiness, the Bhagavan Akshobhya [as] Vajra-Sattva, blue in colour, holding in his hand a five-pronged dorje, seated upon an elephant-throne, and embraced by the Mother MamakI, will appear to thee, attended by the Bodhisattvas Kshitigarbha and Maitreya, with the female Bodhisattvas, Lasema and Pushpema.
These six Bodhic deities will appear to thee. The aggregate of thy principle of consciousness, being in it's pure form — which is the Mirror-like Wisdom — will shine as a bright, radiant white light, from the heart of Vajra-Sattva, the Father-Mother, with such dazzling brilliancy and transparency that thou wilt scarcely be able to look at it, [and] will strike against thee. And a dull, smoke-coloured light from Hell will shine alongside the light of the Mirror-like Wisdom and will [also] strike against thee.
Thereupon, through the power of anger, thou wilt beget fear and be startled at the dazzling white light and wilt [wish to] flee from it; thou wilt beget a feeling of fondness for the dull smoke-coloured light from Hell. Act then so that thou wilt not fear that bright, dazzling, transparent white light. Know it to be Wisdom. Put thy humble and earnest faith in it. That is the light of the grace of the Bhagavan Vajra- Sattva. Think, with faith, 'I will take refuge in it'; and pray. That is the Bhagavan Vajra-Sattva coming to receive thee and to save thee from the fear and terror of the Bardo.
Believe in it; for it is the hook of the rays of grace of Vajra-Sattva. Be not fond of the dull, smoke-coloured light from Hell. That is the path which openeth out to receive thee because of the power of accumulated evil karma from violent anger. If thou be attracted by it, thou wilt fall into the Hell-Worlds; and, falling therein, thou wilt have to endure unbearable misery, whence there is not certain time of getting out. That being an interruption to obstruct thee on the Path of Liberation, look not at it; and avoid anger.
Be not attracted by it; be not weak. Believe in the dazzling bright white light; [and] putting thy whole heart earnestly upon the Bhagavan Vajra-Sattva, pray thus: Again, calling the deceased by name, the setting-face-to-face is thus: On the Third Day the primal form of the element earth will shine forth as a yellow light. At that time, from the Southern Realm Endowed with Glory, the Bhagavan Ratna-Sambhava, yellow in colour bearing a jewel in his hand, seated upon a horse-throne and embraced by the Divine Mother Sangyay-Chanma, will shine upon thee.
The two Bodhisattvas, Akasha-Barbha and Samanta-Bhadra, attended by the two female Bodhisattvas, Mahlaima and Dhupema — in all, six Bodhic forms — will come to shine from amidst a rainbow halo of light. The aggregate of touch in its primal form, as the yellow light of the Wisdom of Equality, dazzlingly yellow, glorified with orbs having satellite orbs of radiance, so clear and bright that the eye can scarcely look upon it, will strike against thee. Side by side with it, the dull bluish-yellow light from the human [world] will also strike against thy heart, along with the Wisdom light.
Thereupon, through the power of egotism, thou wilt beget a fear for the dazzling yellow light and wilt [with to] flee from it. Thou wilt be fondly attracted towards the dull bluish-yellow light from the human [world]. At that time do not fear that bright, dazzling-yellow, transparent light, but know it to be Wisdom; in that state, keeping thy mind resigned, trust in it earnestly and humbly. If thou knowest it to be the radiance of thine own intellect — although thou exertest not thy humility and faith and prayer to it — the Divine Body and Light will merge into thee inseparably, and thou wilt obtain Buddhahood.
If thou dost not recognize the radiance of thine own intellect, think, with faith, 'It is the radiance of the grace of the Bhagavan Ratna-Sambhava; I will take refuge in it'; and pray. It is the hook of the grace- rays of the Bhagavan Ratna-Sambhava; believe in it.
Be not fond of that dull bluish-yellow light from the human [world]. That is the path of thine accumulated propensities of violent egotism come to receive thee. If thou art attracted by it, thou wilt be born in the human world and have to suffer birth, age, sickness, and death; and thou wilt have no chance of getting out of the quagmire of worldly existence.
That is an interruption to obstruct thy path of liberation. Therefore, look not upon it, and abandon egotism, abandon propensities; be not attracted towards it; be not weak. Act so as to trust in that bright dazzling light. Put thine earnest thought, one- pointedly, upon the Bhagavan Ratna-Sambhava; and pray thus: Yet, though so often set face to face, there are classes of men who, having created much bad karma, or having failed in observance of vows, or, their lot [for higher development] being altogether lacking, prove unable to recognize: Again, the setting-face-to-face is, calling the deceased by name, thus: On the Fourth Day the red light, which is the primal form of the element fire, will shine.
At that time, from the Red Western Realm of Happiness, the Bhagavan Buddha Amitabha, red in colour, bearing a lotus in his hand, seated upon a peacock-throne and embraced by the Divine Mother Gokarmo, will shine upon thee, [together with] the Bodhisattvas Chenrazee and Jampal, attended by the female Bodhisattvas Ghirdhima and Aloke.
The six bodies of Enlightenment will shine upon thee from amidst a halo of rainbow light. The primal form of the aggregate of feelings as the red light of the All-Discriminating Wisdom, glitteringly red, glorified with orbs and satellite orbs, bright, transparent, glorious and dazzling, proceeding from the heart of the Divine Father-Mother Amitabha, will strike against thy heart [so radiantly] that thou wilt scarcely be able to look upon it.
Along with it, a dull red light from the Preta-loka, coming side by side with the Light of Wisdom, will also shine upon thee. Act so that thou shalt not be fond of it. Abandon attachment [and] weakness [for it]. At that time, through the influence of intense attachment, thou wilt become terrified by the dazzling red light, and wilt [wish to] flee from it. And thou wilt beget a fondness for that dull red light of the Preta-loka.
At that time, be not afraid of the glorious, dazzling, transparent, radiant red light. Recognizing it as Wisdom, keeping thine intellect in a state of resignation, thou wilt merge [into it] inseparably and attain Buddhahood. If thou dost not recognize it, think, 'It is the rays of the grace of the Bhagavan Amitabha, and I will take refuge in it'; and, trusting humbly in it, pray unto it.
The Tibetan Book of the Dead by Gyurme Dorje
That is the hook-rays of the grace of the Bhagavan Amitabha. Trust in it humbly; flee not. Even if thou fleest, it will follow thee inseparably [from thyself]. Be not attracted towards the dull red light of the Preta-loka. That is the light-path proceeding from the accumulations of thine intense attachment [to sangsaric existence] which hath come to receive thee. If thou be attached thereto, thou wilt fall into the World of Unhappy Spirits and suffer unbearable misery from hunger and thirst.
Thou wilt have no chance of gaining Liberation [therein]. That dull red light is an interruption to obstruct thee on the Path of Liberation. Be 16 not attached to it, and abandon habitual propensities. Trust in the bright dazzling red light. In the Bhagavan Amitabha, the Father-Mother, put thy trust one-pointedly and pray thus: Yet, though thus set face to face, sentient beings, unable through long association with propensities to abandon propensities, and, through bad karma and jealousy, awe and terror being produced by the sounds and radiances — the hook-rays of grace failing to catch hold of them — wander down also to the Fifth Day.
A light proceeding from the Asura-loka, produced by the evil passion of jealousy, will also come to receive one. The setting-face-to-face at that time is, calling the deceased by name, thus: On the Fifth Day, the green light of the primal form of the element air will shine upon thee. These six Bodhic forms, from amidst a halo of rainbow light, will come to shine.
The primal form of the aggregate of volition, shining as the green light of the All-Performing Wisdom, dazzlingly green, transparent and radiant, glorious and terrifying, beautified with orbs surrounded by satellite orbs of radiance, issuing from the heart of the Divine Father-Mother Amogha-Siddhi, green in colour, will strike against thy heart [so wondrously bright] that thou wilt scarcely be able to look at it.
That is the natural power of the wisdom of thine own intellect. Abide in the state f great resignation of impartiality. Along with it [i. Meditate upon it with impartiality, — with neither repulsion nor attraction. Be not fond of it: Thereupon, through the influence of intense jealousy, thou wilt be terrified at the dazzling radiance of the green light and wilt [with to] flee from it; and thou wilt beget a fondness for that dull green light of 17 the Asura-loka.
At that time fear not the glorious and transparent, radiant and dazzling green light, but know it to be Wisdom; and in that state allow thine intellect to rest in resignation. Flee not from it. Even though thou shouldst flee from it, it will follow thee inseparably [from thyself]. Be not fond of that dull green light of the Asura-loka.
That is the karmic path of acquired intense jealousy, which hath come to receive thee. If thou art attracted by it, thou wilt fall into the Asura-loka and have to engage in unbearable miseries of quarrelling and warfare. Be not attracted by it. Trust in the dazzling green radiance, and putting thy whole thought one-pointedly upon the Divine Father-Mother, the Bhagavan Amogha-Siddhi, pray thus: Yet, although set face to face so very often in that manner, one long habituated to strong propensities and lacking in familiarity with, and pure affection for, Wisdom, may be led backwards by the power of one's own evil inclinations despite these many introductions.
The hook-rays of the light of grace may not be able to catch hold of one: Thereupon all the Divine Fathers-Mothers of the Five Orders [of Dhyani Buddhas] with their attendants will come to shine upon one simultaneously. At the same time, the lights proceeding from the Six Lokas will likewise come to shine upon one simultaneously. The setting-face-to-face for that is, calling the deceased by name, thus: O nobly-born, until yesterday each of the Five Orders of Deities had shone upon thee, one by one; and thou hadst been set face to face, but, owing to the influence of thine evil propensities, thou wert awed and terrified by them and hast remained here till now.
If thou hadst recognized the radiances of the Five Orders of Wisdom to be the emanations from thine own thought-forms, ere this thou wouldst have obtained Buddhahood in the Sambhoga-Kaya, through having been absorbed into the halo of rainbow light in one or another of the Five Orders of Buddhas. Act so as to know them. O nobly-born, on this the Sixth Day, the four colours of the primal states of the four elements [water, earth, fire, air] will shine upon thee simultaneously. From the Northern Realm of Perfected Good Deeds, the Buddha Amogha-Siddhi, the Divine Father-Mother, along with the attendants will come, amidst a halo of rainbow light, to shine upon thee at this very moment.
These forty-two perfectly endowed deities, issuing from within thy heart, being the product of thine own pure love, will come to shine. O nobly-born, these realms are not come from somewhere outside [thyself]. They come from within the four divisions of thy heart, which, including its centre, make the five directions. They issue from within there, and whine upon thee. The deities, too, are not come from somewhere else: Know them to be of that nature.
O nobly-born, the size of all these deities is not large, not small, [but] proportionate. These deities are formed into groups of five pairs, each group of five being surrounded by a fivefold circle of radiances, the male Bodhisattvas partaking of the nature of the Divine Fathers, and the female Bodhisattvas partaking of the nature of the Divine Mothers. All these divine conclaves will come to shine upon thee in one complete conclave. They are thine own tutelary deities.
Know them to be such. O nobly-born, from the hearts of the Divine Fathers and Mothers of the Five Orders, the rays of light of the Four Wisdoms united, extremely clear and fine, like the rays of the sun spun into threads, will come and shine upon thee and strike against thy heart.
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From the heart of Vajra-Sattva, the white light-path of the Mirror-like Wisdom, white and transparent, glorious and dazzling, glorious and terrifying, made more glorious with orbs surrounded by smaller orbs of transparent and radiant light upon it, each like an inverted mirror, will come to shine. From the heart of Ratna-Sambhava, the yellow light-path of the Wisdom of Equality, [glorified] with yellow orbs [of radiance], each like an inverted gold cup, surrounded by smaller orbs, and these with yet smaller orbs, will come to shine.
From the heart of Amitabha, the transparent, bright red light-path of the Discriminating Wisdom, upon which are ors, like inverted coral cups, emitting rays of Wisdom, extremely bright and dazzling, each glorified with five [satellite] orbs of the same nature — leaving neither the centre nor the borders [of the red light-path] unglorified with orbs and smaller satellite orbs — will come to shine. These will come to shine against thy heart simultaneously.
O nobly-born, all those are the radiances of thine own intellectual faculties come to shine. They have not come from any other place. Be not attracted towards them; be not weak; be not terrified; but abide in the mood of non-thought-formation. In that state all the forms and radiances will merge into thyself, and Buddhahood will be obtained.
The green light-path of the Wisdom of Perfected Actions will not shine upon thee, because the Wisdom-faculty of thine intellect hath not been perfectly developed. At that time, thou must remember the teachings of the setting-face-to-face which thou hast had from thy guru. If thou hast remembered the purport of the settings-face-to-face, thou wilt have recognized all these lights which have shone upon thee, as being the reflection of thine own inner light, and, having recognized them as intimate friends, thou wilt have believed in them and have understood [them at] the meeting, as a son understandeth his mother.
And believing in the unchanging nature of the pure and holy Truth, thou wilt have had produced in thee the tranquil-flowing Samddhi; and, having merged into the body of the perfectly evolved intellect, thou wilt have obtained Buddhahood in the Sambhoga-Kdya, whence there is no return. O nobly-born, along with the radiances of Wisdom, the impure illusory lights of the Six Lokas will also come to shine. If it be asked, 'What are they?
These six thus will come to shine, along with the six radiances of Wisdom; whereupon, be not afraid of nor be attracted towards any, but allow thyself to rest in the non-thought condition. O nobly-born, if thou art one who hath not obtained the select words of the guru, thou wilt have fear of the pure radiances of Wisdom and of the deities thereof.
Being thus frightened, thou wilt be attracted towards the impure sangsaric objects. Humbly trust in the dazzling pu7re radiances of Wisdom. Frame thy mind to faith, and think, 'The compassionate radiances of Wisdom of the Five Orders of Buddhas have come to take hold of me out of compassion; I take refuge in them.
Thus by being set face to face in that detailed manner, those who are destined to be liberated will come to recognize [the Truth]; thereby many will attain Liberation. The worst of the worst, [those] of heavy evil karma, having not the least predilection for any religion — and some who have failed in their vows — through the power of karmic illusions, not recognizing, although set face to face [with Truth], will stray downwards.
Simultaneously, the pathway to the brute world, produced by the obscuring passion, stupidity, also cometh to receive one. On the Seventh Day the vari-coloured radiance of the purified propensities will come to shine. Simultaneously, the Knowledge-Holding Deities, from the holy paradise realms, will come to receive one. From the centre of the Circle [or Mandala], enhaloed in radiance of rainbow light, the supreme Knowledge-Holding [Deity], the Lotus Lord of Dance, the Supreme Knowledge-Holder Who Ripens Karmic Fruits, radiant with all the five colours, embraced by the [Divine] Mother, the Red DdkinT, [he] 21 holding a crescent knife and a skull [filled] with blood, dancing and making the mudra of fascination, [with his right hand held] aloft, will come to shine.
To the east of that Circle, the deity called the Earth- Abiding Knowledge-Holder, white of colour, with radiant smiling countenance, embraced by the White DdkinT, the [Divine] Mother, [he] holding a crescent knife and a skull [filled] with blood, dancing and making the mudra of fascination, [with his right hand held] aloft, will come to shine. To the south of that Circle, the Knowledge-Holding Deity called [He] Having Power Over Duration of Life, yellow in colour, smiling and radiant, embraced by the Yellow DdkinT, the [Divine] Mother, [he] holding a crescent knife and a skull [filled] with blood, dancing and making the mudra of fascination, [with his right hand held] aloft, will come to shine.
To the west of that Circle, the Knowledge-Holding Deity of the Great Symbol, red of colour, smiling and radiant, embraced by the Red DdkinT, the [Divine] Mother, [he] holding a crescent knife and a skull [filled] with blood, dancing and making the mudra of fascination, [with his right hand held] aloft, will come to shine.
To the north of that Circle, the deity called Self-Evolved Knowledge-Holder, green of colour, with a half-angry, half-smiling countenance, embraced by the Green Dakinl, the [Divine] Mother, [he] holding a crescent knife and a skull [filled] with blood, dancing and making the mudra of fascination, [with his right hand held] aloft, will come to shine.
In the Outer Circle, round about these Knowledge-Holders, innumerable bands of ddkinTs — ddkinTs of the eight places of cremation, ddkinTs of the four classes, ddkinTs of the three abodes, ddkinTs of the thirty holy-places and of the twenty-four places of pilgrimage — heroes, heroines, celestial warriors, and faith-protecting deities, male and female, each bedecked with the six bone-ornaments, having drums and thigh-bone trumpets, skull-timbrels, banners of gigantic human[-like] hides, human-hide canopies, human-hide bannerettes, fumes of human-fat incense, and innumerable [other] kinds of musical instruments, filling [with music] the whole world-systems and causing them to vibrate, to quake and tremble with sounds so mighty as to daze one's brain, and dancing various measures, will come to receive the faithful and punish the unfaithful.
O nobly-born, five-coloured radiances, of the Wisdom of the Simultaneously-Born, which are the purified propensities, vibrating and dazzling like coloured threads, flashing, radiant, and transparent, glorious and awe-inspiring, will issue from the hearts of the five chief Knowledge-Holding Deities and strike against thy heart, so bright that thy eye cannot bear to look upon them. At the same time, a dull blue light from the brute world will come to shine along with the Radiances of Wisdom.
Then, through the influence of the illusions of thy propensities, thou wilt feel afraid of the radiance of the five colours; and [wishing to] flee from it, thou wilt feel attracted towards the dull light from the brute-world. Thereupon, be not afraid of that brilliant radiance of five colours, nor terrified; but know the Wisdom to be thine own. Within those radiances, the natural sound of the Truth will reverberate like a thousand thunders. The sound will come with a rolling reverberation, [amidst which] will be heard, 'Slay!
If thou art attracted, thou wilt fall into the brute -world, wherein stupidity predominates, and suffer the illimitable miseries of slavery and dumbness and stupidness; and it will be a very long time ere thou canst get out. Be not attracted towards it. Put thy faith in the bright, dazzling, five-coloured radiance.
Direct thy mind one- pointedly towards the deities, the Knowledge-Holding Conquerors. Alas, for a being like me!
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May the Knowledge-Holding Deities not let me go downwards further than this, but hold me with the hook of their compassion, and lead me to the holy paradises. All the pandit classes, too, coming to recognize at this stage, obtain liberation; even those of evil propensities being sure to be liberated here. Here endeth the part of the Great Thodol concerned with the setting-face-to-face of the Peaceful [Deities] of the Chonyid Bardo and the setting-face-to-face of the Clear Light of the Chikhai Bardo. The setting-face- to-face at each stage should have [caused the deceased] to recognize either at one or another [stage] and to have been liberated.
Multitudes will be liberated by that recognition; [and] although multitudes obtain liberation in that manner, the number of sentient beings being great, evil karma powerful, obscurations dense, propensities o too long standing, the Wheel of Ignorance and Illusion becometh neither exhausted nor accelerated. Although [all be] set face-to-face in such detail, there is a vast preponderance of those who wander downwards unliberated.
This is the Bardo of the Wrathful Deities; and, they being influenced by fear, terror, and awe, recognition becometh more difficult. The intellect, gaining not in independence, passeth from one fainting state to a round of fainting states. If it be asked why? Because of the dawning of the radiances — [which produce] fear, terror, and awe — the intellect is undistractedly alert in one-pointedness; that is why. If at this stage one do not meet with this kind of teaching, one's hearing [of religious lore] — although it be like an ocean [in its vastness] — is of no avail. There are even disciplines-holding abbots [or bhikkhus] and doctors in metaphysical discourses who err at this stage, and, not recognizing, wander into the Sangsdra.
As for the common worldly folk, what need is there to mention them! By fleeing, through fear, terror, and awe, they fall over the precipices into the unhappy worlds and suffer. But the least of the least of the devotees of the mystic mantrayand doctrines, as soon as he sees these blood-drinking deities, will recognize them to be his tutelary deities, and the meeting will be like that of human acquaintances.
He will trust them; and becoming merged into them, in at-one-ment, will obtain Buddhahood. By having meditated on the description of these blood-drinking deities, while in the human world, and by having performed some worship or praise of them; or, at least, by having seen their painted likenesses and their images, upon witnessing the dawning of the deities at this stage, recognition of them will result, and liberation. In this lieth the art. Again, at the death of those discipline -holding abbots and doctors in metaphysical discourses [who remain uninstructed in these Bardo teachings], however assiduously they may have devoted themselves to religious practices, and however in the human world, there will not come any phenomenal signs such as rainbow-halo [at the funeral-pyre] nor bone-reliques [from the ashes].
This is because when they lived the mystic [or esoteric] doctrines were never held within their heart, and because they had spoken contemptuously of them, and because they were never acquainted [through initiation] with the deities of the mystic [or esoteric] doctrines; thus, when these dawn on the Bardo, they do not recognize them. Suddenly [seeing] what they had never seen before, engendered, they pass into the miserable states because of that. Therefore, if the observers of the disciplines, and the [or esoteric] doctrines, such signs as the rainbow-halo come not, nor are bone-reliques and seed-like bones ever produced [from the bones of their funeral-pyre]: The least of the least of mantraydnic [devotees] — who may seem to be of very unrefined manners, unindustrious, untactful, and who may not live in accordance with his vows, and who in every way may be inelegant in his habits, and even unable, perhaps, to carry the practices of his teachings to a successful issue — let no one feel disrespect for nor doubt him, but pay reverence to the esoteric [or mystic] doctrines [which he holdeth].
By that, alone, one obtaineth liberation at this stage. This is because the esoteric [or mystic] doctrines possess great gift-waves. As soon as they cease to breathe, they will be led into the pure paradise realms by the Heroes and Heroines and the Knowledge-Holders. As a sign of this, the sky will be cloudless; they will merge into rainbow radiance; there will be sun- showers, sweet scent of incense [in the air], music in the skies, radiances; bone-reliques and images [from their funeral-pyre].
Therefore, to the abbots [or discipline -holders], to the doctors, and to those mystics who have failed in their vows, and to all the common people, this Thodol is indispensable. But those who have meditated upon the Great Perfection and the Great Symbol will recognize the Clear Light at the moment of death; and, obtaining the Dharma-Kdya, all of them will be such as not to need the reading of this Thodol. By recognizing the Clear Light at the moment of death, they also will recognize the visions of the Peaceful and the Wrathful during the Chonyid Bardo, and obtain the Sambhoga-Kaya; or, recognizing during the Sidpa Bardo, obtain the Nirmana-Kaya; and, taking birth on the higher planes, will, in the next rebirth, meet with this Doctrine, and then enjoy the continuity of karma.
Therefore, this Thodol is the doctrine by which Buddhahood may be attained without meditation; the doctrine liberating by the hearing [of it] alone; the doctrine which leadeth brings of great evil karma on the Secret Path; the doctrine which produceth differentiation instantaneously [between those who are initiated into it and those who are not]: Those sentient beings who have been reached by it cannot go to the unhappy states.
This [doctrine] and the Tahdol [doctrine], when joined together being like unto a mandala of gold inset with turquoise, combine them. Thus, the indispensable nature of the Thodol being shown, there now cometh the setting-face-to-face with the dawning of the Wrathful [Deities] in the Bardo. Not having been able to recognize when the Peaceful [Deities] shone upon thee in the Bardo above, thou hast come wandering thus far.
Now, on the Eighth Day, the blood-drinking Wrathful Deities will come to shine. Act so as to recognize them without being distracted. Know it to be the embodiment of thine own intellect. As it is thine own tutelary deity, be not terrified. Be not afraid, for in reality is it the Bhagavan Vairochana, the Father-Mother. Simultaneously with the recognition, liberation will be obtained: Thereupon, the setting-face-to-face is, calling the deceased by name, thus: Recognizing them, liberation will be obtained at once.
By so proclaiming [them], knowing them to be tutelary deities, merging [in them] in at-one-ment, Buddhahood will be obtained. O nobly- born, listen. On the Tenth Day, the blood-drinking [deity] of the [Precious] -Gem Order named Ratna-Heruka, yellow of colour; [having] three faces, six hands, four feet firmly postured; the right [face] white, the left, red, the central darkish yellow; enhaloed in flames; in the first of the six hands holding a gem, in the middle [one], a trident-staff, in the last [one], a baton; in the first of the left [hands], a bell, in the middle [one], a skull-bowl, in the last [one], a trident-staff; his body embraced by the Mother Ratna-Krotishaurima, her right [hand] clinging to his neck, her left offering to his mouth a red shell [filled with blood], will issue from the southern quarter of thy brain and come to shine upon thee.
Know them to be the embodiment of thine own intellect. Recognition [of them] and the obtaining of liberation will be simultaneous. O nobly-born, on the Eleventh Day, the blood-drinking [deity] of the Lotus Order, called the Bhagavan Padma-Heruka, of reddish-black colour; [having] three faces, six hands, and four feet firmly postured, the right[face] white, the left, blue, the central, darkish red; in the first of the right of the six hands holding a lotus, in the middle [one], a trident-staff, in the last, a club; in the first of the left [hands], a bell, in the middle [one], a skull-bowl filled with blood, in the last, a small drum; his body embraced by the Mother Padma-Krotishaurima, her right hand clinging to his neck, her left offering to his mouth a red shell [filled with blood]; the Father and Mother in union; will issue from the western quarter of thy brain and come to shine upon thee.
Recognize [them] to be the product of thine own intellect; as [they are] thine own tutelary deity, be not afraid. In reality they are the Father -Mother Bhagavan Amitabha. Concomitantly with recognition, liberation will come. Through such acknowledging, recognizing them to be tutelary deities, in at-one-ment thou wilt merge [into them], and obtain Buddhahood. Thereupon, on the Twelfth Day, the blood-drinking deities of the Karmic Order, accompanies by the Kerima, Htamenma, and Wang-chugma, will come to receive one.
Not recognizing, terror may be produced. Whereupon, the setting-face-to-face is, calling the deceased by name, thus: O nobly-born, on the Twelfth Day, the blood-drinking deity of the Karmic Order, named Karma- Herua, dark green of colour; [having] three faces, six hands, [and] four feet firmly postured; the right [face] white, the left, red, the middle, dark green; majestic [of appearance]; in the first of the right of six hands, holding a sword, in the middle [one], a trident-staff, in the last, a club; in the first of the left [hands], a bell, in the middle [one], a skull-bowl, in the last, a plough-share; his body embraced by the Mother Karma-Krotishaurima, her right [hand] clinging to his neck, the left offering to his mouth a red shell; the Father and Mother in union, issuing from the northern quarter of thy brain, will come to shine upon thee.
Recognize them to be the embodiment of thine own intellect. Believe; and be humble; and be fond [of them]. Through the guru's select teaching, one cometh to recognize them to be the thought-forms issuing from one's own intellectual faculties. For instance, a person, upon recognizing a lion-skin [to be a lion-skin], is freed [from fear]; for though it be only a stuffed lion skin, if one do not know it to be so actually, fear ariseth, but, upon being told by some person that it is a lion-skin only, one is freed from fear. Similarly here, too, when the bands of blood-drinking deities, huge of proportions, with very thick-set limbs, dawn as big as the 27 skies, awes and terror are naturally produced in one.
Then, when upon the Mother Clear-Light — which one had been accustomed to formerly — a secondary Clear- Light, the Offspring Clear-Light, coming together like two intimate acquaintances, blend inseparably, and [therefrom] a self-emancipating radiance dawneth upon one, through self-enlightenment and self- knowledge one is liberated. Then the Eight Wrathful Ones, the Kerimas, and the Htamenmas, having various [animal] heads, issue from within one's own brain and come to shine upon one's self.
There- upon the setting-face-to-face is, calling the deceased by name, thus: On the Thirteenth Day, from the eastern quarter of thy brain, the Eight Kerimas will emanate and come to shine upon thee. From the east of thy brain, the White Kerima, holding a human corpse, as a club, in the right [hand]; in the left, holding a skull-bowl filled with blood, will come to shine upon thee.
From the south, the Yellow Tseurima, holding a bow and arrow, ready to shoot; from the west, the Red Pramoha, holding a maWa-banner; from the north, the Black Petali, holding a dorje and a blood-filled skull-bowl; from the south-east, the Red Pukkase, holding intestines in the right [hand] and [with] the left putting them to her mouth; from the south-west, the Dark-Green Ghasmarl, the left [hand] holding a blood- filled skull-bowl, [with] the right stirring it with a dorje, and [she then] drinking it with majestic relish; from the north-west, the Yellowish- White Tsandhal?
Yet be not afraid. O nobly-born, from the Circle outside of them, the Eight Htamenmas of the [eight] regions [of the brain] will come to shine upon thee: These Eight Htamenmas of the [eight] regions, likewise surrounding the Blood-Drinking Fathers, and issuing from within thy brain, come to shine upon thee.
Know them to be the thought- forms of thine own intellectual faculties. Thus, issue the Four Female Door-Keepers also from within thine own brain and come to shine upon thee; as tutelary deities, recognize them. O nobly-born, on the outer Circle of these thirty wrathful deities, Herukas, the twenty-eight various- headed mighty goddesses, bearing various weapons, issuing from within thine own brain, will come to shine upon thee.
Recognize whatever shineth to be the thought-forms of thine own intellectual faculties. At this vitally important time, recollect the select teachings of the guru. At this time when the Fifty-eight Blood-Drinking Deities emanating from thine own brain come to shine upon thee, if thou knowest them to be the radiances of thine own intellect, thou wilt merge, in the state of at-one-ment, into the body of the Blood-Drinking Ones there and then, and obtain Buddhahood.
O nobly-born, by not recognizing now, and by fleeing from the deities out of fear, again sufferings will come to overpower thee. If this be not known, fear being begotten of the Blood-Drinking Deities, [one is] awed and terrified and fainteth away: Furthermore, the bodies of the largest of the Peaceful and Wrathful Deities are equal [in vastness] to the limits of the heaves; the intermediate, as big as Mt. Meru; the smallest, equal to eighteen bodies such as thine own body, set one upon another. Be not terrified at that; be not awed. If all existing phenomena shining forth as divine shapes and radiances be recognized to be the emanations of one's own intellect, Buddhahood will be obtained at that very instant of recognition.
The saying, 'Buddhahood will be obtained in a moment [of time]' is that which applieth now. Bearing this in mind, one will obtain Buddhahood by merging, in at-one-ment, into the Radiances and the Kdyas. O nobly-born, whatever fearful and terrifying visions thou mayst see, recognize them to be thine own thought-forms.
O nobly-born, if thou recognize not, and be frightened, then all the Peaceful Deities will shine forth in the shape of Maha-Kala; and all the Wrathful Deities will shine [forth] in the form of Dharma-Raja, the Lord of Death; and thine own thought- forms becoming Illusions [or Mdras], thou wilt wander into the Sangsdra. O nobly-born, if one recognize not one's own thought-forms, however learned one may be in the Scriptures — both Sutras and Tantras — although practicing religion for a kalpa, one obtaineth not Buddhahood. If one recognize one's own thought-forms, by one important art and by one word, Buddhahood is obtained.
If one's thought-forms be not recognized as soon as one dieth, the shapes of Dharma-Raja, the Lord of Death, will shine forth on the Chony id-Bar do. The largest of the bodies of Dharma-Raja, the Lord of Death, equaling the heavens [in vastness]; the intermediate, Mt. Meru; the smallest, eighteen times 30 one's own body, will come filling the world-systems.
They will come having their upper teeth biting the nether lip; their eyes glassy; their hairs tied up on the top of the head; big-bellied, narrow-wasted; holding a [karmic] record-board in the hand; giving utterance from their mouth to sounds of 'Strike! O nobly-born, when such thought-forms emanate, be thou not afraid, nor terrified; the body which now thou possessest being a mental-body of [karmic] propensities, though slain and chopped [to bits], cannot die. Because thy body is, in reality, one of voidness, thou needest not fear. The [bodies of the] Lord of Death, too, are emanations from the radiances of thine own intellect; they are not constituted of matter; voidness cannot injure voidness.
Beyond the emanations of thine own intellectual faculties, externally, the Peaceful and the Wrathful Ones, the Blood-Drinking Ones, the Various-Headed Ones, the rainbow lights, the terrifying forms of the lord of Death, exist not in reality: Thus, knowing this, all the fear and terror is self-dissipated; and, merging in the state of at-one- ment, Buddhahood is obtained. If thou recognizest in that manner, exerting thy faith and affection towards the tutelary deities and believing that they have come to receive thee amidst the ambuscades of the Bardo, think, '[I] take refuge [in them]'; and remember the Precious Trinity, exerting towards them [the Trinity] fondness and faith.
Whosoever thine own tutelary deity may be, recollect now; [and] calling him by name, pray thus: When wandering alone, separated from dear friends, When the void forms of one's own thoughts are shining here, May the Buddhas, exerting the force of their grace, Cause not to come the fear, awe, and terror in the Bardo. When the five bright Wisdom-Lights are shining here, May recognition come without dread and without awe; When the divine bodies of the Peaceful and the Wrathful are shining here; May the assurance of fearlessness be obtained and the Bardo be recognized.
When, by the power of evil karma, misery is being tasted, May the tutelary deities dissipate the misery; When the natural sound of Reality is reverberating [like] a thousand thunders, 31 May they be transmuted into the sounds of the Six Syllables. When unprotected, karma having to be followed here, I beseech the Gracious Compassionate [One] to protect me; When suffering miseries of karmic propensities here, May the blissfulness of the Clear Light dawn; May the Five Elements not rise up as enemies; But may I behold the realms of the Five Orders of the Enlightened Ones. Being undistracted, repeat it in that manner, three of [even] seven times.
However heavy the evil karma may be and however weak the remaining karma may be, it is no possible that liberation will not be obtained [if one but recognize]. If, nevertheless, despite everything done in these [stages of the Bardo], recognition is still not brought about, then — there being danger of one's wandering further, into the third Bardo, called the Sidpa Bardo — the setting-face-to-face for that will be shown in detail hereinafter.
To those who have meditated much, the real Truth dawneth as soon as the body and consciousness- principle part. The acquiring of experience while living is important: Again, the meditation on the deities of the Mystic Path of the Mantra, [both in the] visualizing and the perfecting stages, while living, will be of great influence when the peaceful and wrathful visions dawn on the Chonyid Bardo. Thus the training in this Bardo being of particular importance even while living, hold to it, read it, commit it to memory, bear it in mind properly, read it regularly thrice; let the words and the meanings be very clear; it should be so that the words and the meanings will not be forgotten even though a hundred executioners were pursuing [thee].
It is called the Great Liberation by Hearing, because even those who have committed the five boundless sins are sure to be liberated if they hear it by the path of the ear. Therefore read it in the midst of vast congregations. Through having heard it once, even though one do not comprehend it, it will be remembered in the Intermediate State without a word being omitted, for the intellect become th ninefold more lucid [there]. Hence it should be proclaimed in the ears of all living person; it should be read over the pillows of all persons who are ill; it should be read at the side of all corpses: Those who meet with this [doctrine] are indeed fortunate.
Any state of consciousness can form a type of "intermediate state", intermediate between other states of consciousness. Indeed, one can consider any momentary state of consciousness a bardo, since it lies between our past and future existences; it provides us with the opportunity to experience reality, which is always present but obscured by the projections and confusions that are due to our previous unskillful actions.
The Tibetan Book of the Dead
The bar do thos grol is known in the west as The Tibetan Book of the Dead , a title popularized by Walter Evans-Wentz 's edition, [9] [10] but as such virtually unknown in Tibet. Evans-Wentz chose this title because of the parallels he found with the Egyptian Book of the Dead. Indeed, he warns repeatedly of the dangers for western man in the wholesale adoption of eastern religious traditions such as yoga.
They construed the effect of LSD as a "stripping away" of ego-defenses, finding parallels between the stages of death and rebirth in the Tibetan Book of the Dead , and the stages of psychological "death" and "rebirth" which Leary had identified during his research. Symbolically he must die to his past, and to his old ego, before he can take his place in the new spiritual life into which he has been initiated.
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia. History Timeline Outline Culture Index of articles. What happens when we die? Interviews with Tibetan Lamas, American scholars, and practicing Buddhists bring this powerful and mysterious text to life. State-of-the-art computer generated graphics will recreabinte this mysterious and exotic world. Follow the dramatized journey of a soul from death In Tibet, the "art of dying" is nothing less than the art of living.
The New York Times. Oxford University Press, The Collected Works of C. Reynolds, John Myrdin , "Appendix I: The views on Dzogchen of W. Archived from the original on 16 September