Derge Kangyur/Tengyur e-text, Esukhia/Barom edition — public domain (mechanical reproduction)
This text is a ritual manual, or sādhana, for the practice of White Vajrayoginī. It functions as a prescriptive guide for a practitioner to engage in a specific meditative visualization and offering rite. The text begins by establishing the linguistic identity of the practice in both Sanskrit and Tibetan, followed by a formal homage. It then initiates the visualization process by instructing the practitioner to place specific seed syllables—E, Vaṃ, and Paṃ—as the foundation for the deity's manifestation upon a multicolored lotus. The ritual culminates in a mantra designed to offer oblations to the deity and request siddhi, or spiritual attainment. Finally, the text commits the reader to a specific temporal discipline, mandating that these offerings and meditations be performed on the eighth and fourteenth days of the lunar month, thereby integrating the practice into a cyclical calendar of devotion.
Provenance
About this text
A ritual manual for the practice of White Vajrayoginī, the Śuklavajrayoginīsādhana belongs to the genre of sādhana. The work is attributed to the Indian author Indrabhūti. It entered the Tibetan tradition through the work of translators including bla ma bai ro tsa na, and is preserved in the Tengyur, volume ཟ, where it comprises two pages. Within the Tibetan canon, it is situated among the Śaṃvara and Related Tantras. The work enacts a prescriptive meditative process, beginning with a formal homage and the visualization of seed syllables—E, Vaṃ, and Paṃ—to establish a multicolored lotus and a sun maṇḍala. This visualization leads to the recitation of a mantra to offer oblations and request siddhi. Furthermore, the text mandates a specific temporal discipline, requiring the practitioner to perform these meditations and offerings on the eighth and fourteenth days of the lunar month. A scholar or serious reader consults this classical Tibetan text today to examine the precise intersection of visualization, mantra, and lunar timing required for the attainment of spiritual goals within this specific ritual framework.
Cite thisAnuvāda, “A Sādhana of White Vajrayoginī” (Toh 1549), machine draft, 2026.https://naxiai.com/tibetan/works/toh1549
Summary & commentary
Significance
The work is significant as it exemplifies the technical precision of Vajrayāna deity yoga, specifically the use of seed syllables to construct a sacred space. For the modern reader, it illustrates the intersection of linguistic tradition, visualization, and lunar timing in Tibetan ritual practice.
Structure
Passages
Section
Description
1
Introduction and Visualization
Provides the title in Sanskrit and Tibetan, an homage, and the initial setup of seed syllables and the lotus throne.
2
Mantra and Scheduling
Contains the ritual mantra for offerings and specifies the lunar dates required for the practice.
Themes
Deity Yoga Visualization (1)
Ritual Offerings and Mantras (2)
Lunar Calendar Observance (2)
Summary, significance and provenance note generated by gemma4:31b from the translation and the catalogue record.
In the language of India: Suklavajrayoginīsādhanam. In the language of Tibet: rDo rje rnal ’byor ma dkar mo’i sgrub thabs (The Sādhana of White Vajrayoginī). Homage to Vajrayoginī!
First, in the center of the syllables E and Vaṃ, upon the hub of a multicolored lotus arising from the syllable Paṃ, is a white syllable Aṃ, which completely transforms into a sun maṇḍala. Above that, from the complete transformation of a white syllable Hūṃ, arises the Blessed Lady Vajrayoginī, white in color, naked and without ornaments, with loose hair, one face, and two arms. Her left hand holds a khaṭvāṅga and a skull-cup; her right hand holds a vajra-hammer. With one leg raised, she tramples Indra and Brahmā; with the other leg beneath her, she tramples Mahābhairava and Kālarātri. Nectar constantly flows from her mouth. She has three eyes, with red, round, and flickering, fierce pupils. Her brow is furrowed with a frown, her fangs are bared, and she has an extremely fierce form. One should meditate on her in a charnel ground or similar location.
When weary, one should perform the recitation. The recitation mantra is: Oṃ sarvabuddhaḍākinīye vajravarṇanīye vajravairocanī hūṃ hūṃ hūṃ phaṭ phaṭ phaṭ svāhā. The root mantra is: Oṃ vajraḍākinī hrīḥ hūṃ phaṭ svāhā. This is the near-essence mantra. Oṃ vajrayoginī hūṃ phaṭ svāhā. Oṃ vaṃ hūṃ. This is the heart mantra. Likewise, the mantra for the torma is:
[End of passage]
Oṃ vajrayoginī imaṃ baliṃ gṛhṇa gṛhṇa ruru kha kha kha kha pheṃ pheṃ pheṃ pheṃ a a a a mama siddhiṃ prayaccha hūṃ phaṭ svāhā. One must certainly make offerings and perform the meditation on the eighth and fourteenth days of the lunar month. This concludes the Sādhana of White Vajrayoginī, the source text of King Indrabhūti. Translated by the Guru Vairocana.