Derge Kangyur/Tengyur e-text, Esukhia/Barom edition — public domain (mechanical reproduction)
This fragment of a set of pith instructions on the Coemergent (Saṃvara) focuses on the ontological status of the practitioner's nature and the transformation of mental states. The text posits a dualistic framework of naturally pure nature that serves as the causal basis for eight common characteristics shared by worldly beings. The central argument revolves around a paradoxical identification of the five poisons or afflictions: they are simultaneously identified as the objects to be abandoned and as the path itself. By framing the obstacles as the means of liberation, the text commits the reader to a non-dual practice where the inherent purity of the mind is leveraged to transmute ordinary experience into the path of the Heruka deity.
Provenance
About this text
Offering pith instructions on the Glorious Coemergent, the dpal lhan cig skyes pa'i man ngag belongs to the classical Tibetan tradition. The work is attributed to the Indian author Mahāśabara. It was translated into Tibetan by rje mi nyag lo tsa ba and is preserved in the Tengyur, volume ཞ, where it is situated within the collection of Śaṃvara and Related Tantras. Spanning two pages in this edition, the work addresses the ontological status of the practitioner's nature and the transformation of mental states. It posits a framework of naturally pure nature as the causal basis for eight characteristics common to worldly beings, arguing that the five afflictions are simultaneously the objects to be abandoned and the path itself. By framing these obstacles as the means of liberation, the text enacts a non-dual practice wherein the inherent purity of the mind is leveraged to transmute ordinary experience into the path of the Heruka deity. Scholars and serious readers consult this text today to examine how the inherent purity of the mind is utilized to navigate the paradox of the poisons as the path.
Cite thisAnuvāda, “Personal Instructions on the Glorious Spontaneously Arisen [Saṃvara]” (Toh 1457), machine draft, 2026.https://naxiai.com/tibetan/works/toh1457
Summary & commentary
Significance
The work is significant for its representation of the Anuttarayoga Tantra approach to the transformation of afflictions into wisdom. It illustrates the specific technical methodology of the Saṃvara tradition, where the path is not found by removing the poisons but by recognizing their nature as purity.
Structure
Passages
Section
Description
1
Introduction and Pith Instructions
An opening homage to Heruka followed by a concise explanation of the relationship between naturally pure nature, worldly commonalities, and the dual role of the five afflictions as both obstacle and path.
Themes
Non-dual transformation of afflictions (1)
Naturally pure nature (1)
Summary, significance and provenance note generated by gemma4:31b from the translation and the catalogue record.
AnuvādaPersonal Instructions on the Glorious Spontaneously Arisen [Saṃvara]·
The Pith Instructions on the Glorious Coemergent. Homage to the glorious Heruka!
Because the two types of naturally pure nature act as the cause, the eight are common to worldly beings. The five themselves are what is to be abandoned, and the five themselves are also the path. The essence of the purifier is the body of the nature of mind. Inconceivable conceptualization arises within oneself. Free from the four, one does not conceptualize in terms of the three. The purifier appears in the state of natural purity. Abandoning the two, take the one itself as the path. Unattached to the five, like a mad elephant; this conduct, like kusha grass stirred by the wind, is dear to me. This healing, like a fresh wound, is dear to all—so the Mountain Dweller said.
The conduct of one who has not realized or has realized is like that of a madman. To not act after having realized is the conduct of a fool. Without conceptualizing anything at all, rest in that state. One will be liberated; of this there is no doubt. "Abandon the three and look at yourself!" Thus he instructed.
The Pith Instructions on the Glorious Coemergent, known as the Self-Consecration, the speech of the Great Mountain Dweller, translated by the Lord Minyak Lotsāwa, is complete.