In a general sense, samādhi can describe a number of different meditative states. In the Mahāyāna literature, in particular in the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras, we find extensive lists of different samādhis, numbering over one hundred.In a more restricted sense, and when understood as a mental state, samādhi is defined as the one-pointedness of the mind (cittaikāgratā), the ability to remain on the same object over long periods of time. The Drajor Bamponyipa (sgra sbyor bam po gnyis pa) commentary on the Mahāvyutpatti explains the term samādhi as referring to the instrument through which mind and mental states “get collected,” i.e., it is by the force of samādhi that the continuum of mind and mental states becomes collected on a single point of reference without getting distracted.Also rendered as “meditative concentration.”

Lit. “action seal,” a worldly (human) consort. Also rendered here in Sanskrit as “karmamudrā.”

Also rendered in this translation as “externally added.”

Raviśrījñāna’s commentary on the Mañjuśrīnāmasaṃgīti .

Also rendered in this translation as “middle channel.”

Also rendered here as “without duality,” “nonduality,” “nondual.”

In the general Mahāyāna teachings the mind of awakening (bodhicitta) is the intention to attain the complete awakening of a perfect buddha for the sake of all beings. On the level of absolute truth, the mind of awakening is the realization of the awakened state itself.

One of the self-arisen supramundane beings.

Also rendered here as “control of the winds.”

Lit. “wheel.”

Another name for the channel carrying semen, used when it carries menstrual blood.

The middle channel above the navel.

See i.­9 and i.­15.

The fourth joy.

Literally, in Sanskrit, “coming together.” Samaya refers to precepts given by the teacher, the corresponding commitment by the pupil, and the bond that results, which can also be the bond between the practitioner and the deity or a spirit. It can also mean a special juncture or circumstance, or an ordinary time or season.

Dhyāna is defined as one-pointed abiding in an undistracted state of mind, free from afflicted mental states. Four states of dhyāna are identified as being conducive to birth within the form realm. In the context of the Mahāyāna, it is the fifth of the six perfections. It is commonly translated as “concentration,” “meditative concentration,” and so on.

Another name for the channel carrying semen.

Also rendered here as “breath control.”

Also rendered in this translation as “embodied being,” and “living being.”

One of the thirty-two signs, or major marks, of a great being. In its simplest form it is a pointed shape of the head like a turban (the Sanskrit term, uṣṇīṣa, in fact means “turban”), or more elaborately a dome-shaped extension. The extension is described as having various extraordinary attributes such as emitting and absorbing rays of light or reaching an immense height.

Also rendered here as “existence.”

A period of 24 minutes. See also n.­32.

One of the three poisons (dug gsum) along with aversion, or hatred, and attachment, or desire, which perpetuate the sufferings of cyclic existence. It is the obfuscating mental state which obstructs an individual from generating knowledge or insight, and it is said to be the dominant characteristic of the animal world in general. Commonly rendered as confusion, delusion, and ignorance, or bewilderment.

In Tibetan, māra is usually rendered as bdud; lha min usually translates asura (“demigod”).

In Buddhist cosmology, this is our own realm, the lowest and most coarse of the three realms of saṃsāra. It is called this because beings here are characterized by their strong longing for and attachment to the pleasures of the senses. The desire realm includes hell beings, hungry ghosts, animals, humans, asuras, and the lowest six heavens of the gods‍—from the Heaven of the Four Great Kings (cāturmahā­rājika) up to the Heaven of Making Use of Others’ Emanations (para­nirmita­vaśa­vartin). Located above the desire realm is the form realm (rūpadhātu) and the formless realm (ārūpyadhātu).

Digit of the moon refers to the light of a lightning.

Name of women’s avadhūtī referring to menstruation.

In the context of Buddhist philosophy, one way to describe experience in terms of eighteen elements (eye, form, and eye consciousness; ear, sound, and ear consciousness; nose, smell, and nose consciousness; tongue, taste, and tongue consciousness; body, touch, and body consciousness; and mind, mental phenomena, and mind consciousness).This also refers to the elements of the world, which can be enumerated as four, five, or six. The four elements are earth, water, fire, and air. A fifth, space, is often added, and the sixth is consciousness.

Also rendered in this translation as “corporeal being,” and “living being.”

Emptiness denotes the ultimate nature of reality, the total absence of inherent existence and self-identity with respect to all phenomena. According to this view, all things and events are devoid of any independent, intrinsic reality that constitutes their essence. Nothing can be said to exist independent of the complex network of factors that gives rise to its origination, nor are phenomena independent of the cognitive processes and mental constructs that make up the conventional framework within which their identity and existence are posited. When all levels of conceptualization dissolve and when all forms of dichotomizing tendencies are quelled through deliberate meditative deconstruction of conceptual elaborations, the ultimate nature of reality will finally become manifest. It is the first of the three gateways to liberation.

Also rendered here as “void.”

Also rendered here as “cyclic existence.”

A commentary on the Mūlatantra .

A commentary on the Laghukālacakratantra .

Also rendered in this translation as “adventitious.”

In Sanskrit, the term nirvāṇa literally means “extinguishment” and the Tibetan mya ngan las ’das pa literally means “gone beyond sorrow.” As a general term, it refers to the cessation of all suffering, afflicted mental states (kleśa), and causal processes (karman) that lead to rebirth and suffering in cyclic existence, as well as to the state in which all such rebirth and suffering has permanently ceased.More specifically, three main types of nirvāṇa are identified. (1) The first type of nirvāṇa, called nirvāṇa with remainder (sopadhiśeṣanirvāṇa), is the state in which arhats or buddhas have attained awakening but are still dependent on the conditioned aggregates until their lifespan is exhausted. (2) At the end of life, given that there are no more causes for rebirth, these aggregates cease and no new aggregates arise. What occurs then is called nirvāṇa without remainder ( anupadhiśeṣanirvāṇa), which refers to the unconditioned element (dhātu) of nirvāṇa in which there is no remainder of the aggregates. (3) The Mahāyāna teachings distinguish the final nirvāṇa of buddhas from that of arhats, the nirvāṇa of arhats not being considered ultimate. The buddhas attain what is called nonabiding nirvāṇa (apratiṣṭhitanirvāṇa), which transcends the extremes of saṃsāra and nirvāṇa, i.e., existence and peace. This is the nirvāṇa that is the goal of the Mahāyāna path.

Wisdom, sensation, consciousness, matter, karmic formations, and discrimination.

One of the three realms of saṃsāra in Buddhist cosmology, it is characterized by subtle materiality. Here beings, though subtly embodied, are not driven primarily by the urge for sense gratification. It consists of seventeen heavens structured according to the four concentrations of the form realm (rūpāvacaradhyāna), the highest five of which are collectively called “pure abodes” (śuddhāvāsa). The form realm is located above the desire realm (kāmadhātu) and below the formless realm (ārūpya­dhātu).

The great drop refers to the light of a blue moon disk that illuminates all things movable and immovable.

The left channel above the navel.

In Buddhist literature, this is an epithet applied to buddhas, most often to Śākyamuni. The Sanskrit term generally means “possessing fortune,” but in specifically Buddhist contexts it implies that a buddha is in possession of six auspicious qualities (bhaga) associated with complete awakening. The Tibetan term‍—where bcom is said to refer to “subduing” the four māras, ldan to “possessing” the great qualities of buddhahood, and ’das to “going beyond” saṃsāra and nirvāṇa‍—possibly reflects the commentarial tradition where the Sanskrit bhagavat is interpreted, in addition, as “one who destroys the four māras.” This is achieved either by reading bhagavat as bhagnavat (“one who broke”), or by tracing the word bhaga to the root √bhañj (“to break”).

Lit. “impossible to be cut.”

The first joy.

(When referring to the female consort it is left untranslated: “prajñā.”)

The third joy, interpreted as intense joy in the Kālacakra system, where it supplants the joy of cessation of the Yoginī Tantra. While both these meanings can be derived from the Sanskrit viramānanda, the Tibetan dga’ bral dga’ ba seems to reflect only the joy of cessation.

See “wisdom mudrā.”

A treatise on love.

See “action mudrā.”

Mañjuśrī Yaśas’s condensed version of the Paramādibuddha .

The left channel above the navel.

Also rendered in this translation as “embodied being,” and “corporeal being.”

Lit. “great seal.” One of the three types of mudrā, with aspects as causal and resultant mahāmudrā (see Introduction, i.­33 et seq.).

The energy centers along the middle channel.

Toh 360.

Derived from the Sanskrit verb √sādh, “to accomplish,” the term sādhana most generically refers to any method that brings about the accomplishment of a desired goal. In Buddhist literature, the term is often specifically applied to tantric practices that involve ritual engagement with deities, mantra recitation, the visualized creation and dissolution of deity maṇḍalas, etc. Sādhanas are aimed at both actualizing spiritual attainments (siddhi) and reaching liberation. The Tibetan translation sgrub thabs means “method of accomplishment.”

Dhyāna is defined as one-pointed abiding in an undistracted state of mind, free from afflicted mental states. Four states of dhyāna are identified as being conducive to birth within the form realm. In the context of the Mahāyāna, it is the fifth of the six perfections. It is commonly translated as “concentration,” “meditative concentration,” and so on.

In a general sense, samādhi can describe a number of different meditative states. In the Mahāyāna literature, in particular in the Prajñāpāramitā sūtras, we find extensive lists of different samādhis, numbering over one hundred.In a more restricted sense, and when understood as a mental state, samādhi is defined as the one-pointedness of the mind (cittaikāgratā), the ability to remain on the same object over long periods of time. The Drajor Bamponyipa (sgra sbyor bam po gnyis pa) commentary on the Mahāvyutpatti explains the term samādhi as referring to the instrument through which mind and mental states “get collected,” i.e., it is by the force of samādhi that the continuum of mind and mental states becomes collected on a single point of reference without getting distracted.Also rendered as “absorption.”

In Buddhism more generally, merit refers to the wholesome karmic potential accumulated by someone as a result of positive and altruistic thoughts, words, and actions, which will ripen in the current or future lifetimes as the experience of happiness and well-being. According to the Mahāyāna, it is important to dedicate the merit of one’s wholesome actions to the awakening of oneself and to the ultimate and temporary benefit of all sentient beings. Doing so ensures that others also experience the results of the positive actions generated and that the merit is not wasted by ripening in temporary happiness for oneself alone.

Also rendered in this translation as “avadhūtī.”

The sixteenth solar phase.

Another designation for the Paramādibuddha .

Root tantra.

Period of 24 minutes.

Neither male nor female.

Also rendered here as “nonexistence.”

Also rendered here as “nonbeing.”

The original extensive Kālacakratantra taught by the Buddha.

The passion for emission of semen.

One of the meanings of the Skt. term dharma. This applies to “phenomena” or “things” in general, and, more specifically, “mental phenomena” which are the object of the mental faculty (manas, yid).

The right channel above the navel.

(When not referring to the female consort it is translated here as “insight.”)

A word-by-word commentary on the Mūlatantra .

A word-by-word commentary on the Laghukālacakratantra .

The right channel.

A state of involuntary existence conditioned by afflicted mental states and the imprint of past actions, characterized by suffering in a cycle of life, death, and rebirth. On its reversal, the contrasting state of nirvāṇa is attained, free from suffering and the processes of rebirth.

Nāropa’s commentary on the Sekoddeśa.

Sādhuputraśrīdharānanda’s commentary on the Sekoddeśa.

Here referring to the three types of summaries and three types of explanations.

Metaphorical expression for something unreal, illusionary.

Another name for the channel carrying semen.

Text by Sahajavajra (Toh 2227).

The king of Śambhala requesting this tantra.

Laghukālacakratantra .

Nāropa gives the following five supramundane knowledges: divine eye (Tib. lha’i mig), divine ear (Tib. lha’i rna ba), knowing the minds of others (Tib. gzhan gyi sems shes pa), recollecting the past lives of oneself and others (Tib. rang dang gzhan gyi sngon gyi gnas rjes su dran pa), and the miraculous power of being able to walk in the sky (Tib. nam mkha’ la ’gro ba’i rdzu ’phrul).

The second joy.

The middle channel above the navel.

One of the thirty-two marks of a great being. It consists of a soft, long, fine, coiled white hair between the eyebrows capable of emitting an intense bright light. Literally, the Sanskrit ūrṇā means “wool hair,” and kośa means “treasure.”

‍—

(1) The four vajrayogas are the vajrayogas of purity (Skt. viśuddha), dharma, mantra, and form (Skt. saṃsthāna).(2) In this text, Vajrayoga is also the name of one of the six self-arisen supramundane beings, see i.­41.

Puṇḍarīka’s commentary on the Laghukālacakratantra .

Also rendered here as “empty.”

Lit. “wisdom seal,” a visualized consort. Also rendered here as “jñānamudrā.”