Path of Means

bka' brgyud - Kagyü. The lineage of teachings brought to Tibet by Lord Marpa, received from the dharmakaya buddha Vajradhara by the Indian siddha Tilopa, Saraha, and others. Transmitted by Naropa and Maitripa to the Tibetan translator Marpa, the lineage was passed on to Milarepa, Gampopa, Karmapa and others. The main emphasis is on the path of means which is the Six Doctrines of Naropa, and the path of liberation which is the Mahamudra instructions of Maitripa [RY]

grol lam - Path of liberation. 1) When related to the 'path of ripening' it refers to the practice of the oral instructions of one's personal vajra master. 2) When related to the path of means it refers to the practice of sustaining the natural state of mind; Mahamudra or Dzogchen [RY]

chos drug - Six Doctrines of Naropa. Tummo, illusory body, dream, luminosity, bardo, and phowa. See also 'path of means' (thabs lam) [RY]

thabs dang shes rab - means and knowledge; Skt. prajna and upaya. Buddhahood is attained by uniting means and knowledge; in Mahayana, compassion and emptiness, relative bodhichitta and ultimate bodhichitta. In Vajrayana, means and knowledge are the development stage and completion stage. According to the Kagyü schools, means refers specifically to the 'path of means,' the Six Doctrines of Naropa and knowledge to the 'path of liberation,' the actual practice of Mahamudra. According to Dzogchen, 'knowledge' is the view of primordial purity, the Trekchö practice of realizing the heart of enlightenment in the present moment, while 'means' is the meditation of spontaneous presence, the Tögal practice of exhausting defilements and fixation through which the rainbow body is realized within one lifetime [RY]

thabs lam na ro chos drug - path of means as the Six Doctrines of Naropa [RY]

yid rton rung ba'i thabs lam - trustworthy/ reliable method/[path of means] [IW]