Record of Teachings Received

Precious Bundle of Grains

A Record of Received Teachings for the Collected Works of the Omniscient Guru Jigme Lingpa and Patrul Orgyen Jigme Chökyi Wangpo (extract)

1. The Lineages of Transmission

The lord guru Shechen Rabjam Gyurme Chökyi Senge Palzangpo, master of the vast ocean of buddha families and maṇḍalas, received all the root and branch teachings of the Longchen Nyingtik in their entirety.[1] Through his kindness, we have received the complete empowerments for this entire cycle, including all the practical instructions and liturgies, based on the arrangement composed by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, A Feast that Delights the Fortunate Ones and Reveals the Nectar of the Profound and Secret,[2] without any omissions.

1. The Distant Lineage

The general, 'distant' lineage of the main teaching cycle is as follows. From dharmakāya Samantabhadra to sambhogakāya Vajrasattva, nirmāṇakāya Garab Dorje, vidyādhara Śrī Siṃha, master Mañjuśrīmitra, the learned Jñānasūtra, the great paṇḍit Vimalamitra, Guru Padmasambhava of Oḍḍiyāna, King Tri Songdetsen, the subject Vairotsana, the friend Yeshe Tsogyal, and to the primordial protector and omniscient Dharma King Longchen Rabjam. The second Omniscient One, Rigdzin Jigme Lingpa, had numerous visions of Longchenpa and received the blessings of the close lineage in their entirety. His heart son was the first incarnation of Dodrupchen Jigme Trinle Özer. From these two—spiritual father and son—the transmission passed to the great bodhisattva Jigme Gyalwe Nyugu. From him, it passed to Dzogchen Khenpo Pema Damchö Özer, who was also known as Pema Dorje.

Furthermore, Dodrupchen Jigme Trinle Özer gave the transmission to:

• The lord of accomplishment, the Fourth Dzogchen Rinpoche, Mingyur Namkhe Dorje
• The Glorious Heruka Do Khyentse Jigme Yeshe Dorje
• The charioteer of the teachings of the Victorious One, Gyalsé Shenpen Thayé.

Khenchen Pema Vajra received the transmission from all three of these masters. From him it was passed to the Omniscient Jamyang Khyentse Wangpo, and then to Adzom Drukpa Ösel Natsok Rangdrol, the Omniscient Jamyang Lama Chökyi Lodrö, Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche Gyurme Tekchok Tenpe Gyaltsen, and finally to the seventh supreme incarnation of Shechen Rabjam, Gyurme Chökyi Senge, who received these transmissions many times.

In addition, Jigme Gyalwe Nyugu granted the elaborate Rigdzin Düpa empowerment according to the manual by Dodrupchen, the elaborate Dukngal Rangdrol empowerment, the lord of the families Amitābha and the ḍākinī Queen of Great Bliss, and all the instructions pertaining to both the preliminaries and the main practice to the Omniscient Mañjughoṣa[3] when the latter was nineteen years old.

In addition, the transmission passed from Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje—the Omniscient Jigme Lingpa's mind incarnation—to Dodrup Drime Drakpa[4] (the son of Do Khyentse's enlightened body, speech and mind) to Trehor Bapuk Tulku Thubten Chöpal Gyatso, alias Lodrö Drimś, to Adzom Drukpa Natsok Rangdrol, to the lord guru Jamyang Chökyi Lodrö Rimé Tenpe Gyaltsen,[5]] who thus received the complete empowerments, instructions, and oral transmissions of the Longchen Nyingtik. From him the transmission passed to Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, and finally to the supreme Rabjam tulku—this is the lineage.

Additionally, the Omniscient Khyentse Wangpo bestowed the elaborate empowerment of Rigdzin Düpa on Gyaltsab Rinpoche.[6] All the empowerments and oral transmissions of the Heart-Essence were transmitted to Juwön Jigme Dorje, who passed it to Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche. If we consider only the lineage of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, which will suffice, then the lineage was transmitted from the Omniscient Khyentse Wangpo to Shechen Gyaltsab Rinpoche, then to the lord guru Rabsal Dawa [Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche], and from him to the Seventh Shechen Rabjam Gyurme Chökyi Senge. Through his kindness, we have all been matured, like the glory of spring, by the transmissions. This is the distant lineage.

Furthermore, the empowerments and transmissions of the Longchen Nyingtik texts other than the main texts [by Jigme Lingpa], written by the First Dodrupchen, Khyentse Wangpo and others, were gradually transmitted from each author to Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche following the common lineages.

Omniscient Jigme Lingpa also received the White Tārā of Atiśa's Tradition, which is known as a branch or supplementary teaching of the Heart-Essence, as a short lineage directly from noble Tārā. These teachings are considered to be kama, terma and pure vision. The lineage is as follows: from the Noble Tārā Wish-fulfilling Jewel it passed to the Omniscient Jigme Lingpa, then to the noble Jñānatāradīpaṃ,[7] alias Yeshe Chödrön, to Zhabdrung Tenzin Dorje, Chakzam Tulku Tenzin Khyenrab Thutob,[8] Jamyang Lama Khyentse Wangpo, Adzom Drukpa Natsok Rangdrol, and from Jamyang Khyentse [Chökyi Lodrö] onward according to the general lineage.

The lineage of the Tantra System Vajrakīlaya (Gyüluk Phurba): from the Fifth Dzogchen Rinpoche Thubten Chökyi Dorje—the lord of accomplishment, it passed to the lord guru Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, and then to the lord of refuge Rabjam Rinpoche. Through his kindness, we have received this maturing transmission.

As for the supplementary text for The Long-Life Practice of the Vidyādharas: The Vase of Immortal Life composed by [the First Do]Drupchen Rinpoche, called The Wish-fulfilling King of Power Who Spontaneously Accomplishes the Twofold Aim, and the writings of the Omniscient Jigme Lingpa, Khyentse Rinpoche Dharmamati [Chökyi Lodrö] and Khenchen Jigme Pema Losal both passed it to the lord guru Rabsal Dawa.

2. The Close Lineage

All the empowerments, sādhanas and associated activities of the Omniscient Jigme Lingpa's mind treasures were later transmitted through the close lineage of pure visions to the Omniscient Khyentse Wangpo. Thus, the two rivers of the long and close lineages merged into one.

Additionally, according to the Dzogchen history by Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche Jamyang Dorje, the venerable master Rabsal Dawa himself had a vision of the great vidyādhara Jigme Lingpa at Paro Taktsang in Bhutan, who empowered him as a master of the Nyingtik teachings and holder of the lineage.[9] It is certain, therefore, that the warmth of the blessings of the extremely close lineage has not vanished in this world of ours.

Though there are many other teachings and individual lineages mentioned in Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche's record of received teachings of the Longchen Nyingtik,[10] we have not included them here. If you wish to know more, please consult that text in detail.

2. List of Transmitted Empowerments

The Basic Principles of Empowerment, written by Jigme Lingpa himself, states:

Here, the first ripening empowerments of the maṇḍala of the three seats of completeness are granted based on the Peaceful and Wrathful Deities.

Thus, when an elaborate empowerment is given to ordinary students—including the preparatory stage, the outer and inner entering, and the benefiting, enabling and profound empowerments—it is necessary to begin with the ripening empowerment according to the tantras. Firstly, therefore, the empowerment of the Peaceful and Wrathful Deities: Purifying the Lower Realms—which is closely related to the intent of the tantras—must be given in stages.

1) The empowerment for the Peaceful and Wrathful Deities: Purifying the Lower Realms—which belongs to the tantra section—including the preparatory stage, the main part and the entrustment, was given according to the empowerment manual of the Longchen Nyingtik written by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche Ösal Tukchok Dorje

2) The elaborate empowerment for The Gathering of Vidyādharas (Rigdzin Düpa), which is the first of the sādhana class, was given based on the manual by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche Pema Wangchen Gyepa Tsal.

3) The long-life empowerment of The Gathering of Vidyādharas was given according to the supplementary instructions of The Wish-Fulfilling King of Power Who Spontaneously Accomplishes the Twofold Aim: A Method for Bestowing the Long-Life Empowerment for 'The Long-Life Practice of the Awareness Holders: The Vase of Immortal Life' written by the First Dodrupchen.

4) The Blazing Wrathful Guru, Hayagrīva and Garuḍa (Lama Drakpo Takhyung Barwa) was given based on The Vajra Garland: A Ritual to Grant Blessings for the Blazing Wrathful Guru, Hayagrīva and Garuḍa written by Jamgön Kongtrul Rinpoche,

5) The root empowerment for the Ritual for Making Offerings to the Gurus based on Vajrasattva, the peaceful yidam deity and the lord of all the buddha families, was given based on the root text by Khyentse Wangpo. The special activity of the long-life empowerment, which is like a beautifying adornment, was given based on the manual by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche Dorje Tsewang Drubpa Tsal. The actual empowerment for medicinal amṛta connected with the ritual for making offerings to the guru and the additional empowerment for the pills were given based on the manual by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche Trinle Rolpe Dorje, as found in his manual for empowerments of the Longchen Nyingtik.[11]

6) The Gathering of Awesome Ones (Palchen Düpa) is the wrathful practice of The Eight Maṇḍalas of Great Accomplishment (Drupchen Kagye), the very wrathful blue guru practice, the universal embodiment of yidam deities—the root of accomplishment. The ripening empowerment for the root maṇḍala, including the preliminaries of the preparatory stages and the main part of the empowerment, was given based on the Longchen Nyingtik empowerment manual by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche Ziji Rabtu Gawe Pal.

7) Emanating from the main heart-practice of The Gathering of Awesome Ones are the branch practices of the four families of herukas: the enlightened body, speech, mind and activities. The specific empowerment for each of them is as follows. The empowerment for Vajra Body—Mañjuśrī Yamāntaka, Overpowering the Lord of Death, was given based on the manual by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche Jampal Gawe Shenyen.

8) The empowerment for Vajra Speech—Hayagrīva's Play of the Three Realms, was given based on the manual by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche Pema Drime Shintu Gawe Dorje.

9) The empowerment for Vajra Mind—Yangdak, Union of the Buddhas, which embodies the Nine Crescents, was given based on the manual by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche Dorje Tukchok Tsal.

10) The empowerment for Vajra Activity—Vajrakīlaya, Overpowering the Forces of Māra, which is the wisdom intent of the Fragment of the Vajrakīla Root Tantra, was given based on the manual by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche Düdul Trinle Drakpo Tsal.

11) The empowerment for the Secret Practice of the Great Compassionate One, the Natural Liberation of Suffering, was given based on the empowerment manual Boundless White Light written in the vajra words of Dodrupchen Rinpoche, Jigme Trinle Özer himself. The additional empowerment for the pills that liberate on taste, which is extracted from Guru Chökyi Wangchuk's profound treasure The Great Compassionate One's Innermost Assembly (Tukje Chenpo Yangnying Düpa), follows the instructions of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche's Longchen Nyingtik empowerment manual.[12] The empowerment for the thousand buddhas was given through Ratna Lingpa's Secret Gathering of the Compassionate One (Tukje Sangdü) following the manual of Jamgön Kongtrul.

12) The empowerment for the Innermost Secret Guru Practice of the Luminous Sealed Quintessence, the empowerment for the pills that liberate on taste, and the empowerment for the cakra of the vidyādharas was given based on the Longchen Nyingtik empowerment manual by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche Ösal Natsok Rangdrol.

13) Among the various ways to practice the Queen of Great Bliss—the root of all enlightened activities—the fundamental practice is the outer practice of A Glorious Garland of Great Bliss, which was given based on the manual Cascading Essence of Great Bliss written by Jamgön Kongtrul Pema Garwang. From the inner practices, the longevity empowerment connected with the fourth of the associated activities was given based on the words of Khyentse [Wangpo] Rinpoche,[13] and the eighteenth activity of Tārā Yoginī who purifies poison was given based on the words of the Omniscient Jigme Lingpa himself.

14) The empowerment for The Lord of the Families Amitābha was given based on the manual Dispelling the Darkness of Ignorance written by the First Dodrupchen. The longevity empowerment was given based on the text by Khyentse [Wangpo].

15) The empowerments for The Lion-Faced Ḍākinī (Senge Dongma), which is the secret practice of the Queen of Great Bliss (Yumka Dechen Gyalmo), was given based on the Longchen Nyingtik empowerment manual by Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche Lhenkye Gawe Dorje.

As for empowerments from the Core Texts (tsapö) that were not given, the life-force entrustment[14] for Magön Chamdral—the extraordinary protectors of this entire Dharma cycle (which includes practices of the Guru, Great Perfection and Compassionate One)—and the life-force entrustment for the Five Mentsün Sisters of Tseringma were not given to everyone.

There are two other empowerments in Jigme Lingpa's collected works that were granted. The first is the vast empowerment for the Tantra System Vajrakīlaya (Gyüluk Purpa), which has a preparatory and main part. Then there is the long-life empowerment for White Tārā According to Atiśa's Tradition, compiled by Jigme Lingpa, which was given based on the words of Jamyang Khyentse [Wangpo].

With this, everything is thoroughly and auspiciously concluded. May virtue and excellence abound!

| Translated by Han Kop, reviewed by Matthias Staber and edited by Barry Cohen for the Longchen Nyingtik Project, 2025.

Bibliography

Tibetan edition

zhe chen go sgrig tshogs chung. kun mkhyen bla ma 'jigs med gling pa dang dpal sprul o rgyan 'jigs med chos kyi dbang po'i bka' 'bum gyi thob yig rin chen snye ma. Shechen Monastery, 2019.

Other Primary Sources

Mangala Sribhuti. "Kun mkhyen bla ma ʼjigs med gling paʼi bkaʼ ʼbum gyi thob yig rin chen snye ma dang dgongs gter rtsa pod a ʼdzom ʼbrug sgar gyi spar ma ltar dang kha skong bcas paʼi thob yig rin chen shel gyi me long." In gsung ʼbum rab gsal zla ba, 25:291. Delhi: Shechen Publications, 1994. BDRC bdr:MW21809.

Mangala Sribhuti. "rdzogs pa chen po klong chen snying gi thig leʼi rtsa gsum spyi dang bye brag gi dbang bskur baʼi bklag chog tu bkod pa zab gsang bdud rtsiʼi sgo ʼbyed skal bzang kun dgaʼi rol ston". In gsung ʼbum rab gsal zla ba, 11:325–660. Delhi: Shechen Publications, 1994. BDRC MW21809_AD9F79.

Secondary Sources

Nyoshul Khenpo. A Marvelous Garland of Rare Gems. Translated by Richard Barron. Junction City, California: Padma Publication, 2005.

Tulku Thondup. Masters of Meditation and Miracles: Lives of the Great Buddhist Masters of India and Tibet. Boston, MA.: Shambhala, 1996

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