Derge Kangyur/Tengyur e-text, Esukhia/Barom edition — public domain (mechanical reproduction)
The Personal Instructions on the Drop of Bodhicitta is a technical manual focused on the realization of the Body of Great Bliss. The text frames its instructions as a transmission received from the Buddha, positioning the practice within a lineage of secret wisdom. It argues that the spontaneous accomplishment of the welfare of others is a byproduct of achieving a specific internal state, described through the metaphor of a seed swirling in the location of the great wheel. The work divides its pedagogical approach into two primary components: the necessary conditions and the actual yoga. By committing to this path, the reader is led toward the four results, utilizing the sixth wisdom—the Great Secret—as the causal mechanism for enlightenment. The text functions as a concise guide to the intersection of internal energetic processes and the altruistic motivation of bodhicitta.
Provenance
About this text
An instruction on the drop of bodhicitta, the Bodhicittabindūpadeśa belongs to the tradition of the Non-dual Tantra. The work is attributed to the Indian author Karmapāda. Preserved in the classical Tibetan period, the text appears in the Tengyur, volume ཏ, where it occupies two pages under the Tibetan title byang sems thigs pa'i man ngag. The work enacts a transmission received from the Buddha, focusing on the realization of the Body of Great Bliss and the spontaneous accomplishment of the welfare of others. It argues that the sixth wisdom, known as the Great Secret, serves as the cause for enlightenment, dividing the path into the necessary conditions and the yoga to achieve the four results. A scholar or serious reader consults this text today to examine the intersection of internal energetic processes—metaphorically described as a seed swirling in the location of the great wheel—and the altruistic motivation of bodhicitta.
Cite thisAnuvāda, “Personal Instructions on the Drop of Bodhicitta” (Toh 1344), machine draft, 2026.https://naxiai.com/tibetan/works/toh1344
Summary & commentary
Significance
This work is significant for its synthesis of tantric physiology and the ethical imperative of bodhicitta. It illustrates the tradition's belief that high-level meditative realizations are the most efficient means of benefiting others. For the modern reader, it provides a primary example of how the 'Great Secret' is conceptualized as a causal process rather than mere theoretical knowledge.
Structure
Passages
Section
Description
1
Introduction and Preliminaries
Provides the Sanskrit and Tibetan titles, an homage to Hevajra, and an introduction to the central metaphor of the seed.
2
The Nature of Great Bliss and Method
Defines the Body of Great Bliss, explains the spontaneous accomplishment of welfare, and outlines the division between conditions and yoga.
Themes
The Body of Great Bliss (2)
Spontaneous Accomplishment (2)
The Great Secret as Cause (2)
Conditions and Yoga (2)
Summary, significance and provenance note generated by gemma4:31b from the translation and the catalogue record.
AnuvādaPersonal Instructions on the Drop of Bodhicitta·
In the language of India: Bodhicittabindu-upadeśa-nāma. In the language of Tibet: Byang sems thigs pa’i man ngag ces bya ba (The Instruction on the Drop of Bodhicitta). Homage to the glorious Hevajra.
The seed, like a full moon, swirls in the location of the great wheel. It is the essence of all Buddhas, abiding by nature within all wandering beings. This is explained as the first, the authentic [state]. When it is frozen by the wind of the water of conceptual objects, various sufferings are produced therein. When that ceases, one desires to enter [the path]. One should meditate on the portion at the tip of the nose. At the center of the lotus, wisdom and method are joined in union; there, it is split like a stainless mustard seed, clear as crystal. The window, divided into a hundred parts like the seeds of a drum, is the maṇḍala of the portion of method. With the syllables possessing the "cow-rope" (va-thag), one should wind them into the vajra action. With the light rays of the yogi’s eyes, one should look at the mustard seeds. When one eventually relies upon that, the five signs will arise. The stainless nature of the assembly that gives birth to the Victorious Ones—thus, all three realms are the non-referential wisdom of the cause, the aspect of non-duality; it is the wisdom of Mahāyoga. From the path of the nose, the wind is stirred from its own abode. By the left and the blazing, it is desired to go to the great wheel through the path of the windows. It becomes the authentic melting. Through the vajra path of the channels, it expands like four sesame seeds. This is the fruit of the culmination of yoga.
It is called the Body of Great Bliss.
The qualities such as the welfare of others
Are spontaneously accomplished without effort.
The sixth wisdom, the Great Secret,
Is explained as being the "Cause."
The Buddha’s feet taught it to me:
It becomes twofold: the conditions and the yoga.
The four results are the Great Secret,
Known as "Great Bliss."
From all the Tantras of Application,
Even that which the Victorious Ones have concealed,
The great-souled, worthy vessel who is perfectly refined
Should uphold it.
Having experienced the bliss of body and mind,
One should rely upon the linking of the rebirth.
This was taught by the Buddha’s feet.
May this wisdom of bodhicitta,
The non-duality of method and insight,
Be meditated upon by those who desire Buddhahood.
The Instruction on the Drop of Bodhicitta: The Non-duality of Method and Insight, composed by the great lord of yogis, the venerable Karmapa, is hereby complete.