A preliminary Survey of Sangs rgyas gling pa’s (1340–1396) Autobiographical Sketch and Prophecies in Search of Elements Relevant to the Northern Treasures

Stéphane Arguillère (IFRAE/Inalco)

An image of Sangs rgyas gling pa, on p. 6 of
rGyud kyi rgyal po pad sdong brtsegs pa rtsa ‘grel sogs
(gTer ston sangs rgyas gling pa. rGyud kyi rgyal po pad sdong brtsegs pa rtsa ʼgrel sogs. gSer thang bla rung lnga rig nang bstan slob gling. Buddhist Digital Resource Center (BDRC), purl.bdrc.io/resource/MW3CN4603. Accessed 1 May 2025. [BDRC bdr:MW3CN4603])

Sangs rgyas gling pa’s account of his own treasure discoveries (2006a: gTer ’byung chen mo) is surprisingly poor in elements (especially names of people or teachings) that would allow ut to connect him to both known earlier and contemporary figures. The mention of the mKha’ ’gro snying thig seems to be the only detail that could allow us to locate him somewhere in the network of contemporary gter stons. We read in a passage of the text (2006a, pp. 51-52):

དེའི་དུས་སུ་མཁའ་འགྲོའི་སྙིང་ཐིག་ལ་ཤིན་ཏུ་ [52] མོས་པར་བྱུང་བས། བླ་མ་ཤེས་རབ་མགོན་པོ་བྱ་བས་མཁའ་འགྲོ་སྙིང་ཐིག་གི་ཁྲིད་མཛད་པར་ཡོད་ཟེར་བ་ཐོས་པས།, etc.

Unfortunately, Shes rab mgon po, the person that is named as Sangs rgyas gling pa’s master for this cycle, is not a known figure in the mid-14th century mKha’ ’gro snying thig specialists. However, this is as such an interesting hint to the fact that the mKha’ ’gro snying thig spread broader and quicker and faster than we could imagine. Revealed in 1313, it seems that it had already become quite widely available in the mid-fourteenth century, at least in the milieus of treasure discoverers.

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Pictures of ‘Khor gdong Monastery in Khams

By Varvara Chatzisavva, 2019–2025

This post presents pictures by Varvara Chatzisavva documenting the Byang gter monastery of ‘Khor gdong in eastern Tibet. This is to be used together with her forthcoming article entitled “The present and future of ’Khor gdong Monastery
in Brag ’go (Khams, Eastern Tibet) and Siliguri (West Bengal, India).”

The presentation was initially given during the First International Conference on the Northern Treasures held at the Inalco, 2 rue de Lille, Paris, on Octobre 18-20.

‘Khor gdong Monastery

‘Khor gdong from the 1980 to 2024
The main temple as rebuilt by dBon chen bSod nams ’od gsal
The main temple as currently restored
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A Parallel Edition of The Clarifying Ray of Sunlight

Jay Holt Valentine (Troy University)

The Clarifying Ray of Sunlight: A Biography of the Great Emanation (sPrul sku chen po’i rnam thar gsal byed nyi ma’i ‘od zer) is the most complete, early biography of Rigdzin Gödem (1337–ca. 1401), the founding tertön of the Northern Treasures tradition. It was authored, presumably early in the fifteenth century, by Nyima Zangpo (Nyi ma bzang po), who was one of his minor disciples later in life.

Jurgen Herweg (1994) included “a lightly abridged paraphrase of the entire” biography, which features numerous “translated sections,” (p. 15) in his MA thesis completed at the University of Washington. Despite Herweg’s humble assessment of his efforts, his translation of the biography is sufficient enough to allow one to form a rather complex understanding of this famous treasure revealer.

Nevertheless, as Herweg himself admits, his translation is not complete. Additionally, as it has only been published within an MA thesis, it is also rather inaccessible. Lastly, as so much more is known now (2025) about the Northern Treasures, in no small measure as a result of the publication in 2015 of a 63-volume compilation of the tradition’s literature, it is time for a new, complete translation.

Thus, over the past several years, I have been preparing a translation of this historiographically significant biography, which will likely be published, along with a lengthy introduction, at some point in 2026.

In order to facility my translation work, I created the parallel edition of the biography that is presented below. The first column contains the 1983 edition, which I used as the “base text” for my translation. The second column contains the 2015 edition of the biography, which has apparently been edited for clarity at many points throughout text. While I personally would not describe all of the unique features of the 2015 edition as “improvements,” it does provide alternative means for understanding some of the difficult passages as they appear in the other editions. The second column also contains the page number markings for the 1985 edition and an unpublished manuscript, which is represented by the number “0000,” that allow one to quickly check all four manuscripts as needed. The differences between the two editions have been placed in bold as to draw attention to them. There are, in fact, other editions of the biography that have become available since I created this parallel edition, but, alas, I have only included information drawn from the following four editions.

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A Parallel Edition of The Prayer of the Eighteen Great Omens

Jay Holt Valentine (Troy University)

The Prayer of the Eighteen Great Omens is a sketch of the life of Rigdzin Gödem (1337–ca. 1401) that is told through signs, omens, and symbols. It is of interest firstly because it has ostensibly been composed by the great treasure revealer himself, and it is therefore generally understood to be autobiographical. Secondly, the prayer is of great value because excerpts of it have consistently appeared in Rigdzin Gödem’s biographies. Studying the complete prayer gives us the opportunity to more completely understand this piece of literature that has—along with a wealth of other source materials—shaped our understanding of the life of this founding treasure revealer of the Northern Treasures Tradition.

This parallel edition of The Prayer of the Eighteen Great Omens is intended to act as a supplement to a short, forthcoming article that features a translation of the entire prayer, which will hopefully be published in Revue d’Etudes Tibétaines in late 2025 or early 2026.

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A Preliminary Study of Biographical Material Relating to rDo rje gling pa (1346–1405) and What it Might Contribute to Research on the Northern Treasures

Stéphane Arguillère (IFRAE / Inalco)

rDo rje gling pa is an almost exact contemporary of Rig ’dzin rGod ldem (1337–ca. 1401). They were admittedly not active in exactly the same region, although both were in Central Tibet. They had some of their interests in common, not only because were important treasure discoverers (gter ston), but also insofar as both had very extensive revelations about rDzogs chen of a comparable nature. Indeed, rDo rje gling pa’s Pha rgyud lta ba klong yangs and would deserve a careful comparison with Rig ’dzin rGod ldem’s Kun bzang dgongs pa zang thal. Extracts of both have been compiled together by Kong sprul Blo gros mtha’ yas (as well as passages of some of their other rDzogs chen treasure cycles) in vol. 88 of the Rin chen gter mdzod (1976), with the idea that they both belong to the category which the compiler calls Padma snying thig—meaning: the system of rDzogs chen Heart Essence (snying thig) associated with Padmasambhava, the prototype of which is Padma las ’brel rtsal (1291–1319)’s mKha’ ’gro snying thig (1313). Another element is the centrality of Ba gor Bee ro tsa na to rDo rje gling pa—which is reminiscent of the way in which rGod ldem’s dGongs pa zang thal presents itself as a combination of the highest rDzogs chen teachings of the rig ’dzin rnam gsum—Padmasambhava, Vimalamitra and Bee ro tsa na. For these reasons, we could not avoid examining his biography to see how far it could provide elements of context for Rig ’dzin rGod ldem.

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The History of the Transparent Contemplation of Samantabhadra as Portrayed in Jamyang Sönam Gyeltsen’s Garland of Jewels — Part II — The Symbolic Transmission of the Knowledge-Holders

 Jean-Luc Achard
(CNRS, CRCAO)

Edited by Marianne Ginalski

2. The Entrustment of the teachings to
Garab Dorje, Indra, and Tröma Nakmo

Then, Vajrasattva emanated from the sanctuary of Akaniṣṭha into the pure realms of the Enjoyment Body where he remained for sixty-one years,1 absorbed in the radiant state of his own Wisdom of Awareness. He then emanated himself in the sanctuary of the Thirty-three Gods and stood on the Armolika stone, with his retinue consisting of the three groups of the Vajra clan.2 He stayed there for twenty-three years, and in the abode of the gods, gave teachings on symbols (brda) and their meaning (don) to Garab Dorje,3 Indra (the Lord of the Gods), and to the Protectress Tröma Nakmo.4

To liberate gods, he taught symbols to Indra; to liberate men, he taught the condensed meaning of these symbols to Garab Dorje; and to fiercely protect the teachings of Dzogchen, he gave Tröma Nakmo a seal of entrustment. He also gave a seal of entrustment to Garab Dorje, addressing him with the following words:

You, the emanated Garab Dorje, perform the good of Jambudvīpa for one hundred and one human years! (Then,) in three thousand and five hundred years from now, an emanated son of the noble Mañjuśrī, bearing the name of Mañjuśrī(-mitra) will come, so entrust him (with these teachings)! (…)5

Then, the Emanation Body Garab Dorje went to the southern island of Jambudvīpa where he entrusted Mañjuśrīmitra6 with the Dzogchen teachings similar to the Body of the Buddha. He gave the king, his minister, and the son of a brahman7 the Dzogchen teachings similar to the Buddha’s Speech. Eventually, he gave the erudite Śrī Siṃha the Dzogchen teachings similar to the Buddha’s Mind.8

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  1. There is probably a hermeneutical interpretation of that number of years but it currently eludes me. []
  2. rdo rje rigs kyi sde gsum. This expression is not listed in the dictionaries at my disposal. Given the context, I would suggest that this corresponds to three groups comprising gods (lha), humans (mi) and Protectors of the teachings (bka’ srung). The Armolika stone is also often spelt Amolika and is a large slab that supports Indra’s throne. It is on this stone slab that Vajradhara and others have preached Dharma in the realm of the Thirty-three Gods. See inter alia, Martin, A History of Buddhism in India and Tibet, p. 373 (PDF version) n. 1212. See also, id., “Ar mo” https://lists.h-net.org/cgi-bin/logbrowse.pl?trx=vx&list=H-Buddhism&month=1001&week=c&msg=LTCjmKyDJGXaZRaHvFNqVg&user=&pw=. []
  3. dGa’ rab rdo rje is traditionally presented as having been the first human lineage holder of the Dzogchen teachings. Depending on the sources that explain his place in the line of transmission of the Great Perfection, he received these teachings either from Vajradhara, Vajrasattva, or even Vajrapāṇi. See a version of his life-story in Nyoshul Khenpo, A Marvelous Garland of Rare Gems, pp. 37-38. See also Düdjom Rinpoche, The Nyingma School, pp. 490-494. []
  4. She is a wrathful form of Vajravārāhī who plays an important role in the practice of Chö (gCod, in particular in the Düdjom Tersar tradition) and in the protection of Dzogchen teachings. She is often presented as the “Lady of Cemeteries” (dur khrod kyi bdag mo); see for instance, Nebesky-Wojkowitz, Oracles and Demons, p. 474. In the cycle of The Transparent Contemplation of Samantabhadra (Kun bzang dgongs pa zang thal), she plays a crucial role as the Protectress of the lineage known as the Contemplative Transmission of the Victorious Ones (rgyal ba dgongs brgyud); see Turpeinen, Vision of Samantabhadra, p. 43. []
  5. P. 48 : sprul pa dga’ rab rdo rje khyod mi lo brgya dang rtsa gcig bar/ /’dzam bu’i gling gi don gyis shig /da nas stong gsum lnga brgya nas/ /’phags pa ‘jam dpal sprul pa’i sras/ /’jam dpal ming can ‘byung gis gtod/ (…). The temporal periods that are referred to in this quote are rather puzzling, to say the least. To my knowledge, they are quite unusual when compared to other narratives associated with dGa’ rab rdo rje. The same remark applies to other durations that are mentioned below. []
  6. On this historical figure, see Nyoshul Khenpo, op. cit., pp. 38-39. []
  7. The king is possibly Dha he na ta lo, on whom see Karmay, The Great Perfection, p. 19. However, later, on p. 51, the author states that the account regarding the king, his minister and the son of a brahman mentioned here is unclear (gsal kha med pa) and is actually of little importance (gal chung). He therefore unfortunately does not provide any information on these figures. []
  8. There is evidently a progression in the increasing subtlety of the teachings that were transmitted, those associated with the Buddha’s Mind (sangs rgyas kyi thugs) being both essentialized and deeper than the previous ones. []

A Critical Remark about Misleading Polemical Amalgamations: “emptiness-of-other,” “subitism” and “practice linages”

Stéphane Arguillère (IFRAE / Inalco)

Much has been written about the debate on “emptiness-of-other,” “subitism” and “practice linages,”1 to the extent that some may have presented it as something that became central as early as the 14th century and remained so for the rest of Tibetan intellectual history. At some point, such an ideological device was constructed, but it actually became central as a commonly shared doxographical framework only in the nineteenth century with the “non-sectarian” (ris med) masters of eastern Tibet in their struggle for life against Gelug hegemony. In historical research, it is important to deconstruct false historiography—that is to say, to understand these late narratives as an ideological product of their own time, expressing the power games of that period, and basically irrelevant to the era we are studying.

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  1. The full history of the fabrication of these amalgamations and stereotypes has not yet been written. The fact that they cannot be used as a frame of reference for serious history would not prevent them from being good objects of study for the historian. The purpose of inserting these explanations is merely to exorcise them so that we can appreciate the actual facts without the superimposition of irrelevant ideology. []

The History of the Transparent Contemplation of Samantabhadra as Portrayed in Jamyang Sönam Gyeltsen’s Garland of Jewels — Part I — The Contemplative Transmission of the Buddhas

Jean-Luc Achard
(CNRS, CRCAO)

Edited by Marianne Ginalski

The first volume of the Compilation of Northern Treasures (Byang gter phyogs bsgrigs) contains an interesting proto-historical work dealing with the origins, early transmission, and revelation of the central treasure cycle of Jangter known as The Transparent Contemplation of Samantabhadra (Kun bzang dgongs pa zang thal). This text has been composed by Jamyang Sönam Gyeltsen1 and is entitled The History of the Lineage, the Garland of Jewels (brGyud pa’i lo rgyus nor bu’i ‘phreng ba).2 The narrative given in the text is rather classical but it is also a departure from similar works in terms of several details and transmission schemes. In general, the history of cycles belonging to the Precepts Section (Man ngag sde) is organized according to three main lineages of transmission:

  1. the Contemplative Transmission of the Victorious Ones (rgyal ba dgongs brgyud),
  2. the Symbolic Transmission of Knowledge-Holders (rig ‘dzin brda rgyud), and
  3. the Oral Transmission of Great Beings (gang zag snyan brgyud).3

This of course also applies to the present text except that these lines of transmission are not precisely defined and do not follow with accuracy the details of the traditional history as for instance recorded in other Heart Drops (sNying thig) cycles. There are also several elements that will certainly seem unusual to readers reasonably accustomed to the “standard” histories of the Precepts Section (Man ngag sde) as we shall see below. Continue reading

  1. On this personage, see Achard, “A Line of Transmission of the dGongs pa zang thal according to the History of the Lineage known as the Garland of Gems (brGyud pa’i lo rgyus nor bu’i ‘phreng ba)”. The identification with the well-known sa skya master of the same name is problematic since the dates that are traditionally attributed to him (1563–1617) conflict with the chronology he himself introduces at the end of his work. []
  2. See the bibliography in fine under the name of ‘Jam dbyangs bSod nams rgyal mtshan. []
  3. This is the scheme followed by Klong chen pa (1308–1364), in several of his works. See inter alia, his Lo rgyus rin po che’i phreng ba, in the Bla ma yang tig. It is the same in the dGongs pa zang thal: see for instance, Rig ‘dzin rgod ldem, Yid ches brgyud pa’i lo rgyus stong thun gyi spyi chings chen mo, p. 6. According to Düdjom Rinpoche (and the sources he uses), the three transmissions respectively correspond to the lineages of Victorious Ones, bodhisattvas, and yogins (see Düdjom Rinpoche, The Nyingma School, p. 447). The first line of transmission is defined as “Contemplative” because it was given through the state of Contemplation (dgongs pa), without uttering a single word. The second line is described as “Symbolic” or transmitted through symbols (brdas brgyud pa) because Knowledge-Holders (rig ‘dzin, corresponding to the category of bodhisattvas in Düdjom Rinpoche’s The Nyingma School referred to above) used specific symbols to illustrate the natural state and transmit the knowledge associated with it. Then, the third line is that of “individuals” (gang zag) who used oral transmission (snyan brgyud) to communicate that knowledge and all its related secret precepts. We will see below that other modes of transmission are used in the revealed literature. See Tulku Thondup, Hidden Teachings of Tibet, p. 102 et seq. []

The Unknown Source of the Hidden Lands: A Note about Tshe brtan rgyal mtshan’s dates

Stéphane Arguillère (IFRAE / Inalco)

sPrul sku Tshe brtan rgyal mtshan (also known as gTer ston Chos kyi blo gros) is a treasure revealer who has been placed in either the 12th or the 13th century. His dating is important, since he is the first known figure to be associated with hidden lands (sbas yul). He was once regarded as a very important gter ston, sometimes counted as one of the five “gTer ston Kings”, as well as among the five emanations of Padmasambhava. According to The Prophecy of O rgyan gling pa quoted by the Fifth Dalai Lama (Thob yig 1970-71: vol. 3, f°11b):

sKu sprul nyi ma ‘od zer yin ༔ 
gSung sprul chos kyi dbang phyug yin ༔ 
Thugs sprul rgod kyi ldem phru yin ༔
Yon tan o rgyan gling pa yin ༔ 
‘Phrin las tshe brtan rgyal mtshan yin ༔ 
‘Di lnga padma ‘byung gnas dngos ༔ 

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Report on the First International Conference on the Northern Treasures

Written by Cécile Ducher (FCHNT)

From the 17th to the 19th of October, 2024, the First International Conference on the Northern Treasures took place in Paris. Twenty participants were gathered and gave talks in the auditorium of the Inalco on Rue de Lille, a few steps away from the Musée d’Orsay and the Seine.

During this conference, the Northern Treasures’ history and ritual traditions were discussed by an international panel of speakers coming from Tibet, India, Italy, China, the USA, Japan, Russia, Hungary, Greece, and France.

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