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The Rangjung Yeshe Gilded Palace of Dharmic Activity (Front Cover)

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Wakefulness (ye shes, shes pa). In this book, used interchangably for 'wisdom.' [RY] wall making in Tibet. Lines are drawn by slapping on the ground, and later on the wall, a taut string impregnated with white chalk. Ropes are tied across the forms on wooden rods that are laid flat against the forms. The forms are tightened by driving wedges between these forms and the rods. After the earth has been carefully and thoroughly pounded, the extremities of the ropes are cut, freeing the rods and forms. The same process is then repeated above the section of the wall just made. [MR-ShabkarNotes]

Wangchok Dorje (dbang mchog rdo rje) A son of Chokgyur Lingpa. [RY]

Wangchok Dorje [LW1] [RY]

Wangchuk Dorje, Karmapa IX: 1556-1603 [MR]

Wangdu Nyingpo (mthu can dbang sdus snying po): 1765-1806 [MR]

Wangpo Dey. [Daki] [RY]

War Goddess of Shangshung (zhang zhung gi dgra lha). A protectress of the Bönpo doctrine. She was subjugated by Padmasambhava and given the name Great Glacier Lady of Invincible Turquoise Mist. [ZL] [RY]

Warrior spirit (dgra lha). Dralha. [ZL] [RY]

water crystal" (chu shel). The moon is here poetically referred to by the epithet "water crystal" (chu shel). Tibetans see the shape of a hare on the surface of the moon. [MR-ShabkarNotes]

Water with eight qualities;, (chu yan lag brgyad ldan). Water which is cool, sweet, light, soft, clear, pure, and which neither upsets the stomach nor irritates the throat. [MR]

water-eagle (chu glag). This could be an eagle or an osprey. [MR-ShabkarNotes]

water-torma (chu gtor). Water-torma offering is a specific practice with its own texts. By pouring water into bowls, most of which also contain dough-balls, one can make offerings to the Three Jewels and Roots, to the gods of wealth and perform an act of generosity to the beings of the six realms in general, and to the pretas, the tormented spirits, in particular. [Peter Roberts]

water-torma offering (chu gtor) is an offering of pure water made to the "four classes of guests," (see Author's Introduction, note 32). [MR-ShabkarNotes]

Wati Sangpo; (wa ti bzang po): A most famous sandal wood image of Avalokiteshvara in the form of Kasarpani, which used to frequently speak to the temple keepers and give prophecies. People used to come from all over Central Tibet to have the blessing of this image. This image, about the size of a five year old child, is now preserved by His Holiness the 14th Dalai, at Dharamsala in India. [MR]

Wati Zangpo (wati bzang po) or the Jowo of Kyirong (skyid grong jo bo). A famous sandalwood image of Avalokitesvara in the form of Khasharpana, which is one of the five statues brought from Nepal by Akaramatishila at the order of King Songtsen Gampo (see chap.9, note 18), This highly venerated image is said to have spoken several times to the temple keepers and to have given prophecies. People used to come from all over central Tibet to seek its blessing. About the size of a five-year-old child, it was saved by Tibetan refugees and is now preserved by His Holiness the Dalai Lama, at Dharamsala in India. Trakar Taso Tulku Chökyi Wangchuk (see note 44 below) wrote a detailed history of the Wati Zangpo (see bibliography). [MR-ShabkarNotes]

Way of the Bodhisattva; Bodhicharyavatara; (spyod 'jug); Shantideva, 8th century. [PK] [RY]

Wealth gods (nor lha). [RY]

Wealth-deities (phyug lha); [RY]

well-spoken Words of the Buddha; three types of [LW1] [RY]

Wheel of Bonds and Suppression (chings dang log non gyi 'khor lo). Text belonging to the Sadhana Section of Mahayoga composed by Guru Rinpoche. [ZL] [RY]

Wheel of Dharma. [Daki] [RY]

Wheel of Dharma. See Dharma Wheels [LW1] [RY]

Wheel of gathering; Skt. ganachakra; (tshogs kyi 'khor lo). In the ancient times, a feast assembly which during which are made offerings the value of certain measures of gold. Nowadays equivalent to a 'feast offering' (tshogs kyi mchod pa). [RY]

Wheel of Life Scripture (srog gi 'khor lo'i lung). One of the Eighteen Major Scriptures of the Mind Section of Dzogchen. Vol. KA of the Nyingma Gyübum. [ZL] [RY]

Wheel of the Dharma (chos kyi 'khor lo). The cycle of teachings given by the Buddha; three such cycles, known as the Three Turnings of the Wheel of the Dharma, were taught by Shakyamuni Buddha during his lifetime. To turn the wheel of Dharma is poetic for giving teachings.[Primer] [RY]

Wheel of the Dharma (chos kyi 'khor lo). The cycle of teachings given by the Buddha; three such cycles, known as the Three Turnings of the Wheel of the Dharma, were taught by Shakyamuni Buddha during his lifetime. [RY]

WHEEL OF THE DHARMA (chos kyi 'khor lo). To turn the wheel of Dharma is poetic for giving teachings. In specific, the cycle of teachings given by the Buddha; three such cycles, known as the Three Turnings of the Wheel of the Dharma, were taught by Shakyamuni Buddha during his lifetime. [AL] [RY]

Wheel of the twelve links of interdependence (rten 'brel yan lag bcu gnyis kyi 'khor lo). [RY]

Wheel of Yama (gshin rje'i 'khor lo). Tantra belonging to the Sadhana Section of Mahayoga; focused on a wrathful form of Manjushri. [ZL] [RY]

Wheel ornamented with the inexhaustible Body, Speech, Mind, Qualities, and Activities (sku gsung thugs yon tan phrin las mi zad pa (b)rgyan gyi 'khor lo). The endless activity of buddhahood. See !!! Inexhaustible adornment wheel....)White Lotus Sutra, "mdo sde pad dkar". [RY]

Wheel that Liberates the Cities (grong khyer grol ba'i 'khor lo). See sgrub thabs kun btus, vol.13, p.689. Once, Atisha pondered the terrible state of suffering of beings in general and of the Tibetan people in particular. He shed tears and wondered if there could be a way to ease these sufferings. One night a dakini appeared in his dream and told him to go to Vajrasana in India (Bodh-gaya). Atisha transported himself there miraculously and prayed ardently in front of the place where the Buddha had attained enlightenment. At that moment a beautiful dakini appeared in the sky before him in a mass of light and showed him the "Wheel that Liberates the Cities." She told him that if he had that "wheel," or chakra, drawn in Tibet it would relieve immense suffering. So Atisha had this done. The a chakra depicts Atisha at the center, with mantras written around him. It is said that it liberates from rebirth in the lower realms of samsara the whole population of the place where it is kept. Shabkar was famous for drawing such chakras, writing tiny letters and drawing in miniature. Some of these were kept at his birthplace, Shohong, until recently. [MR-ShabkarNotes]

wheels of the three roots. The three wheels mentioned here are said to be the traditional tantric classification, that demonstrates omnipresence: the wheel of the mind in the regions above the earth; the wheel of the speech upon the earth; and the wheel of the body, below the earth. [Peter Roberts]

White Amitayus (tshe dkar). [RY]

white and red offering-tormas, ganachakra food, the command-torma, the Tenma-torma, and so on. The white offering tormas are for peaceful deities, the red (blunt-headed) tormas for the wrathful. Here they are offered to the guardian of the Könchok Chidu terma, who is described as being one of the Genyen class of Tibetan deities. The command-torma is for the native Tibetan deities, who made an oath to Padmasambhava to protect the Dharma and its practitioners. The Tenma torma is particularly for the twelve Tenma goddesses, the national deities of Tibet, who were also subdued by Padmasambhava. [Peter Roberts]

white and red offering-tormas, ganachakra food, the command-torma, the Tenma-torma, and so on. The white offering tormas are for peaceful deities in general, the red (blunt-headed) tormas for the wrathful. The command-torma is for the native Tibetan deities, who made an oath to Padmakara to protect the Dharma and its practitioners, and the Tenma torma is particularly for the twelve Tenma goddesses, the national deities of Tibet, who were also subdued by Padmakara. [Peter Roberts]

White Annals composed by dge '. dun chos 'phel (deb ther dkar po) (The, translated by Samten Norboo, Library of Tibetan Works and Archives, Dharamsala, 1978) [MR]

White Garuda is a common name given to the dzomo by villagers. [MR-ShabkarNotes]

White Gings (dkar po ging). [ZL] [RY]

White Glacier (gangs dkar) is Mount Kailash; the Red Rock (brag dmar) is another place where Jetsun Milarepa meditated. [MR-ShabkarNotes]

white Hook-goddesses, yellow Thong-goddesses, red Shackle-goddesses and green-Bell goddesses; These four are often encountered as traditional guardians of deity-mandalas. Their insignia are: hook, thong, shackle or bell. [Peter Roberts]

White Jowo Jamali (jo bo jamali dkar po) in the royal city of Yambu (Kathmandu) is the Sveta Matsyendranath, Jamalesvara, the White Avalokitesvara, in the city of Kathmandu. [MR-ShabkarNotes]

White Lotus Flower by Mipham Jampal Gyepey Dorje. Tibetan title: padma dkar po. An explanation of the famous Seven Line Supplication to Padmasambhava. Published by Taklung Tsetrül Rinpoche, Darjeeling, India. [ZL] [RY]

White Lotus Sutra (mdo sde pad dkar) [LW1] [RY]

White Lotus Sutra, (snying rje pad ma dkar po'i mdo). Skt. karunapundarika sutra. [MR]

White Path of Liberation (thar lam dkar po). This text could not be identified. [MR-ShabkarNotes]

White princess (lha lcam dkar mo). Same as Mandarava. [RY]

White Rock Monkey Fortress (brag dkar sprel rdzong) near Hang-nge Chado Monastery (hang nge bya mdo dgon), north of Amnye Machen, is said to be a site filled with blessings equal to those of the sacred land of Tsari. Drigung Chökyi Trakpa ('bri gung chos kyi grags pa, 1597-1659) wrote a description (dkar chag) of the place. In this, he quotes the following prediction said to be anterior to the coming of Guru Padmasambhava: "In this degenerate age, the Lotus Born Guru, Padmasambhava, will go to Lake Trishok Gyalmo, subdue the "nine samaya-breaking brothers" (dam sri spun dgu) at Yerma Thang, hide there many spiritual treasures, and go on to Trakar Drel Dzong. There, while Guru Padmasambhava will remain in deep samadhi in a cave, two fierce Rakshasis will block the top entrance of the cave with a rock. Having removed the rock with his vajra and subdued the Rakshasis, Guru Rinpoche will bind under oath the guardian of this sacred place, a spirit with a human body and a monkey head, and pray that no evil will ever harm people of the locality. Finally he will hide spiritual treasures there, and leave imprints of his feet on the rocks." At the White Monkey Fortress, beside these hand and footprints, there are images of Guru Rinpoche and of his eight manifestations, as well as letters and symbols, which are said to have appeared naturally on the surface of the rocks. See AC, vol.2, pp. 61-68, as well as RO, pp.699-700). [MR-ShabkarNotes]

White Rock Monkey Fortress 1. brag dkar sprel rdzong near Hangne Chado Monastery (hang nge bya mdo dgon). Same to be a place filled with the same blessings as Tsari. There is a dkar chag (description) of the place written by Drigung Chotrag ('bri khung smyos chos kyi grags pa). In it one finds a prediction (condensed here) which says that in this degenerated age the Lotus Born Guru, Padmasambhava will go to Lake Trishok Gyalmo, then subdue the Nine Oath Breaker Brothers at Yerma Thang, hide there many spiritual treasures and reach to Trakar Drel Dzong. There, while he will remained asorbed in deep samadhi in a cave, two fierce Rakshsanis (?) will block the top entrance of teh cave with a rock. Guru Rinpoche will remoce the rock with his vajra and subdue the Rakshanis. [RY]

White Rock Monkey Fortress 2. Then Guru Rinpoche will bond under oath the guardian of the place, a spirit with human body and monkey head. Guru Rinpoche will then make prayers that no evil ever harm people of the locality and hide many spiritual treasures and left many imprints of his feet and the rocks. One also finds all around many images of Guru Rinpoche, his eight manifestations, letters and symbols, naturally appeared at the surface of the rocks. [MR]

White Rock of Tidro (ti sgro brag dkar). [ZL] [RY]

White Skull Naga Forefather (klu'i mes po thod dkar). Another name for the protector Nyenchen Tanglha. [ZL] [RY]

White Snow Mountain, Kangkar Tise (gangs dkar ti se), Mt Kailash (lit. Silver Mountain), is one of the world's great holy mountains, sacred to Hindus and Buddhists alike. It is one of the so-called "Three Holy Places of Tibet," associated with the body, speech, and mind aspects of Chakrasamvara and Vajravarahi. The other two are Lapchi (la phyi) and Tsari (tsa ri). These three are also listed among the "twenty-four sacred places" (Skt. pitha) of the world (see Glossary of Enumerations), Kailash being identified as Himavat, Lapchi as Godavari, and Tsari as both Caritra and Devikota. There are several descriptions of and guides to Mt. Kailash, including one written by Konchog Tendzin Chökyi Lodrö, the sixth Drigung Chungtsang ('bri gung chung tshang dkon mchog bstan 'dzin chos kyi blo gros, 1829-1906), and a recent one composed by Chöying Dorje (1990), hereafter quoted as MK. It is recounted in the Chakrasamvara Tantra and its commentaries (as related in MK) that the world was once ruled by Bhairava, the wrathful form of Mahadeva who made the land of Magadha the seat of his power. It is said also that four devas and four gandharvas descended from the sky and established their dominion in eight places known as the eight Celestial Abodes (mkha' spyod kyi gnas brgyad). Likewise, four yaksas and four raksasas, already on the earth, made their way to Jambudvipa where they established themselves in eight Earthtly Abodes (sa spyod kyi gnas brgyad), while four nagas and four asuras came to Jambudvipa from beneath the earth, to settle themselves in eight Underground Abodes (sa 'og gi gnas brgyad). They invited Bhairava to visit their dwellings, twenty-four in all, but he, instead of coming personally, manifested in each place as a lingam to which these savage beings would make blood sacrifices. These demonic forces prevailed from the "golden age" until the beginning of our present "era of strife and conflict." It was then, the tantra recounts, that the Blessed One, Vajradhara, knew that the time had come to subdue these unsuitable beings. Without his mind ever wavering from objectless compassion, he arose in the formidable wrathful display of a Heruka with four heads and twelve arms. He danced, and through the power of the nondual wisdom of all the Buddhas, trampled down Mahadeva and his consort together with their retinue, liberating their minds into the absolute expanse and establishing them in great bliss. The Heruka then blessed each of the twenty-four abodes as a palace of Chakrasamvara and each of the the twenty-four lingams as a mandala of sixty-two wisdom deities. The sixty-two are Chakrasamvara, his consort, and his retinue: the twenty-four male and twenty-four female Bodhisattvas, and the twelve goddesses. At the nirmanakaya level, it is said that Mt Kailash, was miraculously blessed by Buddha Sakyamuni and five hundred arhats. Once, Ravana (mgon po beng) and his consort had taken to their palace in Lanka one of the three statues of the Buddha Sakyamuni which the Lord himself had blessed. Desiring to place this statue on a worthy support, Ravana had planned to take Mt Kailash on his back and carry it to Lanka. At the same moment Lord Buddha and five hundred arhats came flying through the sky and alighted to the west of Mt. Kailash, leaving their footprints in the rock. The Buddha stepped on all four sides of the mountain, leaving footprints in the rock that are known as the Four Immutable Nails of Kailash (mi 'gyur ba'i gzer bzhi). Ravana was thus unable to lift the mountain. Then the Buddha sat on a rock in front of the mountain and taught the Dharma to the naga king Anavatapta, the lord of Lake Manasarovar. He then taught the Lankavatara Sutra to Ravana, and blessed him and his consort as the Glorious Wisdom Protector, the Great Beng and Consort (dpal ye shes mgon po beng chen lcam dral). Mt. Kailash was later blessed by Guru Padmasambhava, and became famous after Jetsun Milarepa lived there in meditation and held his contest of miracles with Naro Bönchung (see below, note 11). Later Gyalwa Götsangpa (see note 60), Lingje Repa (gling rje ras pa, 1128-88), and many other great meditators lived ascetic lives at the foot of Mt. Kailash. In particular, holders of the Drigung Kagyu lineage frequented the place in great number. Drigung Jigten Gonpo ('bri gung 'jigs rten mgon po, 1143-1217) had a dream in which the guardian deities of the three holy places of Tsari, Lapchi and Kailash came and prostrated themselves before him, requesting him to go and bless their territories. Jigten Gonpo replied that he would send great meditators instead. Accordingly, he despatched 80 hermits to each place. Some years later, he reputedly sent 900 hermits and finally 55,525 practitioners to each site (see Huber, 1989). At Kailash they were under the leadership of the great pandita Yakgangpa (pan chen yag sgang pa, who is also called, according to MK, p.59, Dordzin Guhya Gangpa, rdor 'dzin guhya sgang pa); at Lapchi the practitioners were led by Geshey Paldrak (dge bshes dpal grags, 12th-13th century); and at Tsari they were under the guidance of Dordzin Gowoche (rdor 'dzin mgo bo che). In the three sacred places of Kailash, Lapchi, and Tsari, Dordzin (rdor 'dzin, "Holder of the Vajra") usually refers to a spiritual master or an administrator sent from Drigung Monastery as representative of the Drigung hierarchs. (See Petech, 1978, p. 317) [MR-ShabkarNotes]

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The Rangjung Yeshe Gilded Palace of Dharmic Activity (Front Cover)

Go To:

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