THE QUINTESSENCE OF THE ARYA MANJUSHRI TANTRA

(ALTERNATIVE TRANSLATION)
by Guru Chkyi Wangchuk


The Quintessence of the rya Majur Tantra

gyagar k du
In the language of India:

arya majushri tantra citta
rya majur tantra garbha

bk du
In the language of Tibet:

pakpa jampal gy kyi yang nying

phags pa jam dpal rgyud kyi yang snying
In the English language: the Quintessence of the rya Majur Tantra

jampal shynnur gyurpa la chaktsal lo

Homage to Majur, the youthful!

ditar sangye chomdend

In this way, to the Awakened One, the transcendent Lord,

yeshe ku t rangjungwa
The wisdom kaya, spontaneously arisen,


yeshe mik chik drimam
The single eye of wisdom, entirely unobscured,

yeshe nangwa lammewa

The light of wisdom, forever shining brightly,

a ra pa tsa na ya t nama
To you, Arapacana, I pay homage.

yeshe ku nyi khy la d

To you, the very embodiment of wisdom, I bow.

dzokp sangye kn gyi sh

Thus it is explained by all the perfect buddhas.

chomdend jampal yeshe semp dndamp tsen yangdakpar jpa

This concludes this teaching, spoken by the transcendent lord
Shakyamuni:

chomdend deshyin shekpa shakya tubp shyal n sungpa dzok so

the Essence of the Perfect Recitation of the Names of the Wisdom Being,
the Transcendent Lord Manjushri.


This is a terma. Guru Rinpoche proclaimed to Jomo Shedrn that reciting this prayer is equal to reciting
the whole of the Majur Nma Sagti.

ARYA MANJUSHRI TANTRA CHITTACOMMENTARY

by Jamgn Kongtrul Lodr Thaye

Quintessence of the Arya Majushri Tantra Commentary

This quintessence of the tantra of the Great Perfection of Majushri has three parts.

1. The Meaning of the Beginning

In the language of India: rya majushri tantra garbha
Since India is the source of the Dharma, this shows the pure origin of the teaching.
In the language of Tibet: (pakpa jampal gy kyi yang
nying)
It is translated in order to make it it is easier to understand.
Homage is then paid to the yidam deity, so that obstacles will not arise, and merit
will increase:
Homage to Majushri!
Majushri is Gentle Glory: gentle indicates the freedom from the two
obscurations, which is the perfect abandonment; glory indicates the perfect
realization, in which all qualities are fully present. What does this refer to? It is the
wisdom of the natural state of the Great Perfection, which is by its nature clear
light with the essence of emptiness. To realize this without duality is to pay
homage.

2. The Meaning of the Main Part

From this point onwards is the main part of the text. First of all, there is the perfect
context for the teaching, which is shown by the words in this way.
This indicates the five perfections. It indicates that in this place, this teacher gave
this teaching, at this time, to this retinue. The place is the great heaven of
Akanishtha, the teacher is the Buddha Vajradhara, the teaching is this tantra, which
reveals the profound nature of ultimate reality, the retinue is made up of
bodhisattvas on the tenth bhumi, such as Vajrapani and the rest, and the time is the
inconceivable time. Furthermore, this same phrase also shows how the teaching
was brought about: as a result of Vajrapanis request to reveal the profound and
secret teaching, the teacher taught in this way. At that time, the teacher and retinue

were blessed into a state of indivisibility.

Then the actual theme of the tantra is expressed in terms of the three tantras (or
continua)the continua of the ground, path and fruition.
The Continuum of the Fruition
The continuum of the fruition is taught first in order to inspire students. The
Awakened One, the transcendent Lord indicates the ultimate level of fruition,
the state of a perfectly awakened buddha or transcendent lord, who has abandoned
all that must be abandoned, realized all that must be realized, and carries out
enlightened activity continually and uninterruptedly.
The Continuum of the Ground
Then the continuum of the ground is shown. You might wonder from where the
continuum of the fruition arises, so the text says, The wisdom kaya,
spontaneously arisen. Wisdom here means the apparent wisdom, which is pure
awareness, or rigpa. Kaya means the dharmakaya, the aspect of emptiness. This
emptiness and clarity, which has the essence of awareness, is the nature of all
beings minds. It is not made any better by enlightenment; nor does the state of an
ordinary being make it any worse. It has always been present, without falling into
the extremes of samsara or nirvana, and so it is naturally arisen.
The Continuum of the Path
Although this naturally arising wisdom already abides in such a way, the continuum
of the path must still be revealed so that we can purify our false clinging and
dualistic perception.
The single eye of wisdom, entirely unobscured refers therefore to the essence,
the wisdom of primordial purity, which is free from all delusion. This is referred to
as the eye of wisdom because it is our own individual awareness. It is single
because this alone sees the nature of all things. It is entirely unobscured because
when we rest in this pure awareness according to its own mode of being, all the
conceptual constructs of dualistic perception are pacified.
The next line, the light of wisdom, forever shining brightly, refers to the nature,
the wisdom of spontaneous presence, which is referred to as the light of wisdom
because it has the discernment of clear light. When this is seen through skilful
means it continually arises, so the text says forever shining brightly. As the mind
becomes habituated to these two forms of wisdom, all our dualistic perceptions

and the elements of the body are all purified, and we attain the kaya of the wisdom
being Majushri, so the texts says To you, Arapachana, I pay homage. This
refers to the wisdom of clear light, which is beyond arising, beyond ceasing,
beyond remaining, beyond characteristics, beyond aspiration, and beyond coming
and going.
This is the meaning of the main part: realizing the ground, training in the path and
gaining the fruition.

3. The Meaning of the Conclusion

Then there is a praise rejoicing in the meaning of what has been expressed: To
you, the very embodiment of wisdom, I bow. This is a homage paid in the
recognition and realization that the teacher and retinue are non-dual in nature.
Thus it is explained by all the perfect buddhas means that since this is the
profound definitive meaning which is taught by all the buddhas of the past, present
and future, it should be cherished by all those of supremely good merit and fortune.
The main part of the text could also be explained in another way. The first wisdom
could be taken to mean the yoga of the Great Perfection beyond conceptual ideas,
and the second wisdom could refer to the deity, mantra, mandala, subtle channels,
energies and essences and so on.
The name of the tantra is the Essence of the Perfect Recitation of the Names of
the Wisdom Being, the Transcendent Lord Majushri.
Essence here indicates that just like butter churned from milk, the entire meaning
of the tantra is shown here in just three statements.
This concludes this teaching, spoken by the transcendent lord Shakyamuni.
Of the two categoriesWord and treatisesthis belongs to the category of Buddha
Word. Of the three types of Buddha Worddirectly spoken, spoken by
authorization and spoken through blessingthis belongs to the category of
teachings that were directly spoken. As for the one who taught it, it was
Shakyamuni. He taught it directly, and since all buddhas are one in their wisdom
mind, they also taught it indirectly. This concludes means that this is complete in
terms of both word and meaning, with nothing whatsoever omitted.
Guru Padma gave this to Jomo Shedrn. [1]

Then it was hidden as a terma. The precious Guru Chkyi Wangchuk took it from
Khoting Lhakhang in Lhodrak, where it was entrusted to Nyentn
Dzambhala[2] of Yangdrok and the terma seals were released, bringing benefit
to beings on a vast scale.
Virtue! Virtue! Virtue!
| Translated by Adam Pearcey, Rigpa Translations, 2007.
1.

(sh zang drn), a consort of Guru Rinpoche. She later incarnated

as Tertn Sarben (or Bensar) Chokme.

2. Nyentn Dzambhala was one of the main terma assistants (teryok) of Guru
Chwang.

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