The Biography of the Great Orgyen that Naturally Liberates On Sight From The Profound Secret Heart Essence of the Ḍākinī revealed by Dudjom Lingpa
Due to the length of the text, we will post each day with the final part posting on Guru Rinpoche’s Birthday, July 9th, which is the 10th Tibetan Day of the lunar calendar.Translated by Nick Schmidt, with the assistance of Samten, Stefan Mang, Ben Ewing, Lowell Cook, and Jordi Roig, 2017. Edited by Libby Hogg and Susanne Fairclough, 2018.
Chapter 4 part 2/3
“Then I came to Dechen Dal charnel ground,
Where for three years I subsisted on elemental essences.
I gatheredalloftheḍākasandḍākiṇıs̄ residing in the charnel ground
And gave empowerments and blessings, and bound them to my service.
I also bound the arrogant gods and demons to oaths.
I had a vision of Tröma Nakmo, [48] and received siddhis.
My name was then Guru Nyima Özer.
“Then, to subdue the kingdom of Zahor,
With the direct emanation of the foremost mother ḍākiṇı̄ Guhyajñānā,
The supreme consort of the Protector Amitāyus —
The Princess Mandāravā — the daughter of the King of Zahor,
And the spritual consort for attaining the vidyādhara of with mastery over life,
I saw fit to overpower the kingdom of Zahor.
“Then, on the tenth day of the horse month,
Through the power of a magical emanation,
I arrived at the house of Mandāravā to see a radiant glow.
At that moment, the Princess and her ravishing retinue of servants
Joined their palms in amazement with faith, devotion,
And utmost respect, and requested teachings.
“But the King overheard, and, incandescent with rage,
He sent a message for each and every person in the kingdom
To gather a measure of sandalwood and a measure of sesame oil.
“At a place one yojana beyond the city limits
He burnt us alive. Then, after seven days had passed,
As everyone came to witness the spectacle,
They saw that we were completely unharmed.
The pyre had been transformed to a lake, and we sat on a lotus in the middle.
“Beings of the eight classes – gods, nāgas, and so forth –
Were in attendance, paying homage and listening to teachings.
The King and ministers were accordingly repentant,
And invited me to the highest storey of the palace,
Where they offered the Princess and the kingdom to me.
I stayed in Zahor for three hundred human years,
Converting the royal domain to the noble Dharma.
Then my name was Guru Padmasambhava.
“When the nations in the four directions contested my claim to the princess
The eight classes of gods and demons made me their emissary of activity
To forcefully repel the armies of the four directions.
Then I cultivated the practice of the vidyādhara of with mastery over life.
“On the tenth day of the sheep month
I set out in a chariot accompanied by the Princess.
Bypassing the Kings’ amassed legions,
We arrived at the Māratika Cave,
And all the ministers and subjects returned to their homes.
“For three months we practiced
The longevity ritual of the Protector Amitāyus.
Protector Amitāyus appeared in the space before us,
And we obtained empowerment, blessing, and prophecy.
When the united consorts dissolved into masses of light,
We attained longevity beyond birth and death.
“Later, I saw the realm of Uḍḍiyāna as ready to be tamed.
On the tenth day of the first month of summer
We arrived in Uḍḍiyāna, and when all the lords and subjects
Burned me alive, the mass of fire was transformed into a lake.
All the lords and subjects were boundlessly remorseful.
To control the kingdom, I stayed in the capital,
And, taming them, I established the kingdom in the Dharma.
“Then, the supreme child Manunātha
Was born to the Queen Prabhāvatī.
Bestowing blessings and empowerments in the kingdom,
I made aspirations for the kingdom to be ruled in accordance with the Dharma.
“Later, I returned once again to Zahor.
I taught the doctrine of secret mantra to Vihāradhāra.
In particular, I taught him the Vajra Garland longevity practice. [49]
Accomplishing the practice, he attained the state of the vidyādhara of with mastery over life.
“Then I thought that the kingdom of Gesar [50] was ready to be tamed.
Princess Mandāravā transformed into a dragon,
I mounted her in the form of Yāmarāja,
And we approached King Wangdü Zibar. [51]
“‘O King!’ I proclaimed to him,
‘Your life is almost over,
I am Yamārāja.
There is no time, we must go swiftly!’
“In a panic, the King replied,
‘Alas! Longevity Lord of mortal beings,
If there is a way for me to avert death
I would offer my kingdom, with its subjects and treasury, to you,
And I will be your disciple.
Whatever you command, I will do!’
“In response to his vow, I issued my command:
‘Assemble all of your ministers!’
The King beat a large drum three times,
And immediately, the host of ministers gathered.
“Because of my overwhelming resplendence,
They all asked, ‘What is this?’
To which the King replied,
‘If all of you ministers
Wish to prolong your King’s lifespan,
We must offer the entire kingdom without reservation.’
“In saying that, he installed me on the royal throne
And I held the kingdom for seventy human years,
Converting the entire land to the virtuous Dharma.
“Then, I thought that the King of Persia [52] would be a worthy disciple.
So, when the tenth day of the monkey month arrived,
I emanated as the child of Queen Hāritī,
The Queen of King Mijik Rabten.[53]
“I said, ‘Kye Ho! Listen closely, great King!
There is no heir for your kingdom other than me!
I am Prince Zilnön Pawo [54] –
You must seek my permission in all matters of religion and politics.’
“‘The Great King, thought,
My son is merely three years old,
He is not able to understand religion and politics,
But ultimately, apart from the son, who could hold the kingdom?
But when the thought of what to do arose, he said to me,
“‘Ema! My boy, if this is what you want,
Who can better hold what is received from the father than the son?
Therefore, if you want the kingdom, I will give it to you.’
“Then he placed me on the royal throne,
Where, as regent, I converted the kingdom to the sacred Dharma.
Staying in that country for eighty human years,
I was renowned as Prince Kunkyong .[55]
“Then, focusing on ruling the kingdom
As the victorious one, the heir supreme,
I returned once again to Zahor,
Resolving back into the heart of Padmasambhava.
“After King Vihāradhāra died,
I held the reins of the kingdom
For three hundred and fifteen years
After establishing myself in the form Prince Kunkyong.
“Then, I thought that the kingdom of Bhaṅga [56] was ready to be tamed.
All of the lords and subjects of that country,
King Tumden [57] and his host of ministers,
Supported the six types of Extremist teachers.
“In Kyemo Grove, [58] a most delightful place,
Ḍākas and ḍākinīs transformed into humans
And I appeared to turn the Dharma Wheel to their assembly.
“Lacking respect, the wealthy King Tumchen scolded: [59]
‘A Ho! Sweet-talking ascetic swindler!
Arriving here, in my realm,
You dare to give a stream of explanations.
You attempt to dilute and corrupt our doctrines.
If you don’t leave this very moment,
You will be flayed alive and boiled in water.
Therefore, get out and go back to your own land.’
“In response, I said, ‘You Extremist!
These are the heretical teachings of Māra.
You are a mere murderer, hurling the kingdom into the lower realms.
Therefore, I have come here
To convert all your lands to my teaching.
King, you are under my power.’
“At my words, the King was apoplectic.
The evil-doers of that country, the evil demons, seized me.
They kept me in a wretched prison for seven years,
Where various strange sufferings befell me.
“Finally, he commanded, ‘Boil him alive in water!’
But though the ministers bound
My feet and hands in iron, they could not hold me.
They said, ‘Carry him away and throw him on an elephant.’
“The ministers lifted me up,
But, like trying to heave Mount Meru, they couldn’t carry me.
Following the royal command to kill me,
The ministers struck me with various weapons,
But due to the indestructible Vajra-like Samādhi, [60]
Their weapons shattered without harming me at all.
“The King thought,
‘How can this arrogant one be unassailable?
Since he cannot be controlled and is unpredictable,
I must summon my teachers, those worthy of worship.
If he can be vanquished through debate, we can banish him —
There is no skilful recourse apart from that.’
“The religious traditions of the kingdom,
The six groups of Extremists
And the Extremist teachers were defeated in debate.
They said, ‘Now, we must compete with various miracles!’
“In the contest of miracles, the Extremists were again defeated.
They said, ‘Now, we must compete through power and ability,’
And the Extremists retreated to the sandalwood forest.
When it was time to prove my powers,
I spat saliva on the tip of my outstretched finger, [61]
And cast it to to the sky, towards the black planetary demon [62]
Who was surrounded by the oath-bound ones of the Eight Classes.
As summoned, they filled the sky, and with twelve great thunderbolts
Crushed to dust the Extremists and their retinues.
“At that, the King was supremely amazed
And he converted his kingdom to the holy Dharma.
Both King and ministers offered the kingdom to me.
“At that time I said,
‘I have no need for this kingdom.
Like foxes and monkeys, the Extremists
Deceive sentient beings and block the various paths to liberation.
“‘Therefore, in order to lock the gates to the lower realms
And establish all of this kingdom’s subjects on the path to liberation,
I don’t have a hair’s breadth of selfish ambition
Apart from appearing here in order to benefit being.’
The King and ministers rejoiced at this
And the entire kingdom of Bhaṅga was established in the doctrine.
“Then I thought that the kingdom of Vedalī was ready to be tamed.
Vedalī’s king, Kunthub, 63 was an eloquent speaker.
He saw the sun falling on the edge of the palace
As he was revelling with his foreign and domestic ministers.
Just then a light rain began to fall in the sunlight
From rainbow clouds amassing in the sky.
“Then the King said,
‘How wondrous! Listen, wise ones,
Today my mind has been calmed —
A joyful bliss arises, the likes of which I have never known!
Heaven, earth, and space display this elemental omen.
Such a spectacle as this has never happened before!
What do you all think? Please, speak!’
“Then great minister Dondrub [64] spoke:
Excellent! Just as the great King has said,
I feel a similar experience of joyful bliss.
48 Tröma Nakmo (khros ma nag mo) that is black Vajrayoginī.
49 The Vajra Garland longevity practice (tshe sgrub rdo rje’i phreng ba) is found among the revealed treasures of Pema Lingpa and Ratna Lingpa.
50 The “kingdom of Gesar” (ge sar rgyal khams) is referring to Mongolia.
51 King Wangdü Zibar (rgyal po dbang sdud gzi ‘bar)
52 King of Persia (stag gzigs).
53.Queen Hāritī (btsun mo yid ‘phrog ma) and King Mijik Rabten (rgyal po mi ‘jigs rab brtan)
54 Prince Zilnön Pawo (rgyal sras zil gnon dpa’ bo)
55 Prince Kunkyong (rgyal po kun skyong)
56 Bhaṅga (bha+nga’i rgyal khams) possibly refers to Bengal or Eastern Magadha.
57 King Tumden (rgyal po gtum ldan)
|58 Kyemo Grove (skyes mos tshal)
59 King Tumchen (rgyal po gtum chen)
60 The indestructible Vajra-like Samādhi (vajropama-samādhi, rdo rje lta bu’i ting ‘dzin)
61 Possibly because his spit was infused with the power of his mantra repetition.
62Possibly the planetary protector Rahula.
63 Kunthub (kun thub)
64 Dondrub (don grub)
Continues with Chapter 4 ~ 3/3 tomorrow.
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