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Six Yogas of Naropa

 
Buddhism Dictionary: Six Yogas of Nāropa
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(Tibetan, nāro chos drug). Common term for six dharmas or doctrines transmitted by the tantric adept Nāropa to the founder of the Kagyü school, Marpa. The Six Yogas have remained an important part of the teachings of the school since its foundation and are standard practice in the three-year, three-month, and three-day retreat undergone by trainee Kagyü lamas. They consist of: (1) Tummo (gtum mo) or ‘heat yoga’, a technique of heating the body by visualizing fire and the sun in the meditator's body; (2) Gyulü (sgyu lus), an illusory or subtle body endowed with the qualities of a Buddha, including the Six Perfections (ṣaḍ-pāramitā); (3) Milam (rmi lam) or ‘dream yoga’, in which the meditator learns to maintain conscious awareness in the dream state; (4) Osal ('od gsal) or ‘clear light’, by which the natural luminosity of emptiness (śūnyatā) is apprehended; (5) Bar-do or ‘intermediate state yoga’ which trains the meditator to withstand the disorienting experiences of the intermediate state between death and rebirth; (6) Phowa ('pho ba) or transference of consciouness, in which the ability to separate the consciousness from the body is attained. Sometimes a seventh yoga is mentioned known as ‘transference’ (grong 'jug), by means of which a meditator can transfer his consciousness into a recently deceased body in the event of premature death. This enables him to continue his meditational practice without the interruption caused by being reborn as a baby.

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The Six Yogas of Nāropa or Naro Choe Druk (Tib. na-ro'i-chos-drug), also called Naro's Six Doctrines (Mandarin: Ming Xing Dao Liu Cheng Jiu Fa; rendered in English as: Wisdom Activities Path Six Methods of Accomplishment)[1], describe a set of advanced Tibetan Buddhist tantric practice and meditation sadhana compiled in and around the time of the Indian monk and mystic Nāropa (1016-1100 CE), and conveyed to his student Marpa the translator. The Six Yogas were intended in part to help in the attainment of siddhi and enlightenment in an accelerated manner.

Contents

Classification

The Six Yogas are a synthesis or collection of the completion stage practices of several tantras. In the Kagyu traditions by which the Six Yogas were first brought to Tibet, abhisheka into at least one Anuttarayoga Tantra system (generally Chakrasamvara and/or Vajrayogini/Vajravarahi) and practice of its utpatti-krama is the basis for practice of the Six Yogas; there is no particular empowerment for the six yogas themselves.

Though variously classified, up to ten yogas, the Six Yogas generally conform to the following conceptual list:

(Tibetan Wylie transliteration and Sanskrit in parentheses)

  • Tummo (T: gtum-mo, S: caṇḍālī) — the Yoga of Inner Heat (or Mystic heat).
  • Gyulu (T: sgyu-lus, S: māyākāyā) — the Yoga of the Illusory Body.
  • Ösel (T: hod-gsal, S: prabhāsvara) — the Yoga of the Clear Light or Radiant Light.

These three first are considered the main practices of the completion stage (T: dzog rim, S: saṃpanna-krama) in the Anuttara Yoga Tantra . [2][3]

  • Milam (T: rmi-lam, S: svapnadarśana) — the Yoga of the Dream State.
  • Bardo (T: bar-do, S: antarābhava) — the Yoga of the Intermediate State. This is well-known through the Bardo Thodol. Bardo yoga as the yoga of liminality may include aspects of Gyulu and Milam and is therefore to be engaged as an extension of these disciplines.
  • Phowa (T: hpho-ba, S: saṃkrānti) — the Yoga of the Transference of Consciousness, to a pure Buddhafield.

Other yogas, sometimes grouped with those above, or set as auxiliary practices, include:

  • Forceful projection, into another body.[4] This technique may no longer be extant, or is kept secret. The forceful projection of the mindstream into the bodymind of another is a variation that consists of elements of Phowa, Ösel and Gyulu.
  • Keown, et al. (2003) list a "seventh yoga" that is a variation of Phowa, in which the sadhaka by transference (grong 'jug), may transfer their mindstream into a recently deceased body.[5]
  • Kāmamudrā or "loveseal" (sometimes Karmamudrā or "actionseal") (T: las kyi phyag rgya). This is the tantric yoga involving a physical partner. Like all other yogas, it cannot be practiced without the basis of the inner heat yoga, of which kāmamudrā is an extension.
  • Nāropa himself, in the Vajra Verses of the Whispered Tradition, adds the practice of self-liberation in the "wisdom of non-duality" [6], which is the resolved view of Mahāmudrā and Dzogchen. But this is always considered as a distinct path.
  • There are many preliminary practices, and physical exercises called yantras, to the inner heat yoga. A good example of this is the visualization on the body as being hollow: "here the body and the energy channels (nadis) are to be seen as completely transparent and radiant". [7] This essential technique releases tensions and give suppleness to the prāna channels.

As Nāropa is a Kagyu lineage holder, the six meditative practices are strongly associated with the Kagyu lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. The teachings of Tilopa (988-1069 CE) are the earliest known work on the Six Yogas. Nāropa learned the techniques from Tilopa. Nāropa's student Marpa taught the Tibetan Milarepa, renowned for his yogic skills. Milarepa in turn taught Gampopa. Gampopa's student, the future first Karmapa, Düsum Khyenpa, attained enlightenment while practicing the Six Yogas.

The Karmapa, the first figure in Tibetan Buddhism whose reincarnation was officially recognised, has been strongly associated in certain reincarnations with particular yogic attributes. Many Gelukpa practitioners, including Dalai Lamas, are expert in the Six Yogas of Nāropa.

Related traditions

The Six Yogas of Niguma are almost identical to the Six Yogas of Nāropa. The second Dalai Lama, Gendun Gyatso has compiled a work on the Tantric Yogas of Sister Niguma. [8] Depending on the sources, Niguma [9] was either his sister or his spiritual consort. Her teachings were transmitted to yogini Sukhasiddhī and then to Khyungpu Neldjor, [10] the founder of the Shangpa Kagyu lineage.

Notes

  1. ^ Dr. Yutang Lin (2006). Six Yogas in Great Harmony. [1] (accessed: November 16, 2007)
  2. ^ Philippe Cornu, Dictionnaire encyclopédique du Bouddhisme. Editions du Seuil, Paris, 2001. 843 p./ p.541.
  3. ^ And also: Readings on The Six Yogas of Naropa. Translated, edited and introduced by Glenn H. Mullin. Snow Lion Publications, Ithaca (USA), 1997. 175p./ p.14. This latter is also the main source of the other informations contained herein.
  4. ^ This process was comically rendered in the film All of Me.
  5. ^ Keown, Damien (ed.) with Hodge, Stephen; Jones, Charles; Tinti, Paola (2003). A Dictionary of Buddhism. Great Britain, Oxford: Oxford University Press. P.270. ISBN 0-19-860560-9
  6. ^ Ibid.2, p.39
  7. ^ Ibid.2, p.58.
  8. ^ 2nd Dalai Lama. Tantric Yogas of Sister Niguma, Snow Lion Publications, 1st ed. U. edition (May 1985), ISBN 0937938289 (10), ISBN 978-0937938287 (13)
  9. ^ ni gu ma ( b. 10th cent. )
  10. ^ khyung po rnal 'byor ( b. 978/990 d. 1127 )

See also

References

Further reading

  • Mullin, Glen H (2005) The Six Yogas of Naropa, Snow Lion Publications.

External links


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