Derge Kangyur/Tengyur e-text, Esukhia/Barom edition — public domain (mechanical reproduction)
This text is a sādhana, a liturgical manual for deity yoga, centered on the figure of Karma Vajra Gaurī. The provided fragments outline the preliminary and initial stages of a ritual practice. The text begins with formal homages to Vajrasattva, the Mahāmudrā, and the Prajñāpāramitā, establishing the philosophical grounding of the practice in emptiness and equanimity. It then instructs the practitioner in the technical process of visualization: the purification of the senses, the construction of a mandala or form using seed syllables, and the invocation of the Vidyāpuruṣa Akṣobhya alongside the primary deity. By following these instructions, the practitioner commits to a structured meditative process of transformation, moving from the purification of the ordinary self to the invitation and propitiation of enlightened beings through offerings.
Provenance
About this text
A ritual manual for deity yoga centered on the figure of Karma Vajra Gaurī, the Karmavajragaurīsādhana belongs to the genre of sādhana within the classical Tibetan tradition. The work is attributed to the Indian author Atīśa Dīpaṃkaraśrījñāna. It was translated into Tibetan by Prajñājñānakīrti and is preserved in the Tengyur, volume མི, where it is situated within the collection of Other Skillful Means Tantras. Spanning two pages in this edition, the work enacts a structured meditative process of transformation. It begins with homages to Vajrasattva, the Mahāmudrā, and the Prajñāpāramitā, followed by instructions for the purification of the senses and the construction of a form using seed syllables. The practitioner is guided through the invocation of the Vidyāpuruṣa Akṣobhya and the primary deity, who are propitiated with offerings and praise before dissolving into the practitioner. A scholar or serious reader consults this text today to examine the technical specifics of visualization and the liturgical framework used to accomplish the welfare of sentient beings through unimpeded diligence.
The work is significant as an example of the synthesis between Indian tantric origins and Tibetan ritual application, as evidenced by the bilingual title. It illustrates the standard structural requirements of a sādhana, specifically the integration of the Five Buddha families through the invocation of Akṣobhya.
Structure
Passages
Section
Description
1
Preliminaries
Contains the title in Sanskrit and Tibetan and formal homages to the lineage and philosophical foundations.
2
Ritual Procedure
Instructions for purification, visualization of the seed syllable, and the invitation of the deities.
Themes
Deity Yoga (2)
Purification (2)
Homage and Devotion (1)
Summary, significance and provenance note generated by gemma4:31b from the translation and the catalogue record.
In the language of India: Karmavajrī-gaurī-sādhana-nāma. In the language of Tibet: Las kyi rdo rje gau rī’i sgrub thabs (The Sādhana of Karmavajrī Gaurī). Homage to the glorious Vajrasattva!
Homage to the Great Seal, the purity of equanimity,
To the Perfection of Wisdom.
To accomplish the welfare of sentient beings
Through unimpeded diligence, I shall explain the sādhana of Gaurī.
One should understand the purification of the outer and inner
Through bathing, ornaments, clothing, and ointments.
Having made offerings to one’s own sublime yoga,
One should cause the wheel of bliss to enter oneself.
Abiding in the yoga of the four immeasurables,
One should meditate on the luminosity that is the essence of all phenomena.
From the syllables of the body, speech, and mind within one’s own continuum,
Which become the essence of the single-flavored bindu,
A vajra emerges from the sun and, by radiating forth,
Clearly manifests the protection wheel.
From the syllable ru upon a lotus and moon,
An emerald-green utpala and sword arise.
From their center, they radiate and reabsorb; thus, one should cultivate the divine pride:
Oṃ vajra-gaurī svabhāva-ātmako ’haṃ.
The transformed body is emerald-green in color,
With a white face to the right and a red face to the left.
Her beautiful hands hold a curved knife, a sword, a wheel, a skull-cup,
A jewel, and a lotus. Her hair stands upright, adorned with five skulls,
And she is draped with the heads of Brahmā and Śakra.
Terrifying with nāga, emerald, and bone ornaments,
She wears a tiger skin and stands with her right leg extended,
Blazing intensely within a mandala of majestic fire.
Bless the body, speech, mind, eyes, and so forth; then, using syllables or signs, construct whichever form is desired. From the seed syllable at the heart, a sublime wheel radiates; having supplicated, the Vidyāpuruṣa Akṣobhya and the corresponding deity are invited. Having pleased them with offerings and praise, they dissolve into oneself. With varieties of offerings filling the expanse of space, make offerings as one pleases through the emanations of the bhaga. The mantrin, holding the vajra and bell, should make offerings accompanied by melodious song.
To the one liberated from all through the vajra, the inseparable body of the Vajra of Envy; to this Vajra of Equanimity, the Vajra of Action, I prostrate and offer praise. Having blessed the substances with the three syllables, one should taste them to make offerings to all the Victors. Having transformed all sentient beings into the vajra body, recite the mantra wheel as desired: OṂ VAJRA RĀTI HŪṂ HŪṂ HŪṂ PHAṬ PHAṬ SVĀHĀ. In the realm of the Victorious One, milk is accomplished. Through the constant transformation from the form of skillful means, I have composed this sādhana of the visualization of Yamāntaka, the King of Permanence. May all beings abide in the peace free from conceptual elaboration and realize the wisdom of the Buddha. This concludes the "Sādhana of Vajragaurī."
Translation status: Not among 84000's published translations, and not in progress there. Translations published elsewhere have not been searched for, so one may exist. (source: 84000 catalogue + registry; checked 2026-11-10).
Set in Newsreader and EB Garamond; Tibetan in Noto Serif Tibetan; Chinese in Noto Serif SC.