8 passages · 8,849 Tibetan characters · 2,327 English words
Translation
gemma4:31b (English, machine-assisted)
Status
Edition 1.0 · 2026 · machine draft
Rights
Derge Kangyur/Tengyur e-text, Esukhia/Barom edition — public domain (mechanical reproduction)
The Tantra of the Blazing Jewel is a technical manual focused on the non-dual integration of skillful means and insight, framed through the symbolic and physiological lens of the Ra Li. The text posits that the body and speech are manifestations of desire and delusion, respectively, which must be transformed through the understanding of non-duality. It establishes a cosmological and somatic mapping where specific tantric divisions are linked to the letters A and RA and entrusted to groups of dakinis. The work commits the reader to a rigorous system of internal alchemy, involving the manipulation of channels, the heat of Caṇḍālī, and the recognition of wisdom mudrās as instruments of liberation. By bridging the gap between coarse physical forms and the subtle nature of the mind, the text aims to lead the practitioner toward the realization of a buddha-nature characterized by purity and the dissolution of the aggregates.
Provenance
About this text
A technical manual focused on the non-dual integration of skillful means and insight, the Ratnajvālatantra (Tibetan: rin chen 'bar ba'i rgyud) belongs to the collection of the Unexcelled Yoga Tantras. The work was translated into the classical Tibetan language by the yogini Zla ba'i phreng ba and the translator Śākya Yeśes. This version is preserved in volume ག of the Kangyur, where it extends over seven pages. The text enacts a system of internal alchemy and somatic mapping, framing the body and speech as manifestations of desire and delusion that must be transformed. It posits a cosmological structure where tantric divisions are linked to the letters A and RA and entrusted to groups of dakinis, specifically focusing on the non-duality of the Ra Li. A scholar or serious reader consults this work today to examine its specific approach to bridging the gap between coarse physical forms and the subtle nature of the mind, aiming for a realization of purity and buddha-nature through the manipulation of channels and the recognition of wisdom mudrās.
Cite thisAnuvāda, “The Tantra of the Blazing Jewel” (Toh 396), machine draft, 2026.https://naxiai.com/tibetan/works/toh396
Summary & commentary
Significance
This work is significant for its detailed mapping of the subtle body and its use of seed syllables to categorize tantric methods. It provides insight into the intersection of somatic practice and non-dual philosophy within the Indo-Tibetan tradition, specifically regarding the role of dakinis as custodians of specific tantric knowledge.
Structure
Passages
Section
Description
1-2
Introduction and Non-duality
Establishes the non-dual nature of Ra Li, identifying the body as skillful means and speech as insight.
3-4
Tantric Divisions and Dakinis
Links the letters A and RA to the tantras of form and speech, and their entrustment to the eight dakinis.
5-7
Somatic and Ritual Framework
Discusses the jewel palace, the nature of mudrās, the secret wheel, and the internal heat of Caṇḍālī.
8
Realization and Buddha-nature
Outlines the various types of birth, the bhūmis, and the nature of purity as the garment of phenomena.
Themes
Non-duality of Means and Insight (1-2)
Somatic Alchemy and Subtle Body (4-7)
Seed Syllables and Tantric Transmission (3)
Buddha-nature and Purity (8)
Summary, significance and provenance note generated by gemma4:31b from the translation and the catalogue record.
The King of the Glorious Jewel Radiance Tantra
Homage to the glorious Samantabhadra.
He he, the vajra heart mantra,
And the consort and others;
Having perfectly condensed the three doors,
Listen to the division of the great Ra Li.
From La arises the tantra of method;
From Ra arises the tantra of insight;
After I, from A, the non-dual tantra.
Method is the body, insight is the speech;
Non-duality should be known as the mind.
From the nature of body, speech, and mind,
The twenty-four arise.
A la la ho e ma!
How does method arise from La?
How does insight arise from Ra?
How does non-duality arise from A?
How do they become body, speech, and mind?
How are they divided into twenty-four?
E ma o, I pray the Protector explain.
The Great Fearless One spoke:
From A is Avadhuti;
This is the source and cause from which the non-dual tantra arises.
From La is the channel of La La Na;
Examine the cause, source, and essence of the tantra of method arising from that.
From Ra is the channel of Ra Sa Na;
This is the cause and source from which the insight of Ra Li arises.
Because Ra is attached, it is insight;
The sixteen letters of insight are indicated.
Because La is western, it is method;
The fourteen letters of method are indicated.
Unborn from the very beginning,
A is the nature of non-duality;
Non-duality is not the object of the conceptual mind,
Because the mind and sound are conventional.
The right is skillfull means, lalanā; the left is insight, rasanā. Avadhūti is non-dual. One should understand the nature of the rali of the non-duality of skillful means and insight. The body is skillful means, like the dust of desire. Lalanā is the form; the speech is like the darkness of delusion. Insight, rasanā, is the speech. The mind is the strength of hatred. These are the transformations of form, speech, and mind. There are eight for form, eight for speech, and eight for mind, totaling twenty-four. The rali is fixed as twenty-four. The abodes are twenty-four channels, and the twenty-four bhūtas of Caṇḍālī, the mudrās, and the dakinis. This is fixed as a sign through the division of form, speech, and mind. The abodes, dakinis, and rali are divided, but they are gathered into those three kayas. First is the certainty of the tantra, the certainty of the cause and the abode, the certainty of the focus, the certainty of the sequence, the certainty of the number, the certainty of the family, and the certainty of the fifteen. The sūtra, the class, the vinaya, and the manifest are spoken of in the first level of the inferior. The tantras to be practiced for the inferior follow. Then is the tantra of yoga itself; the yoga tantra is for the taming of those born. After that is the mother tantra, for the total containment of women. First, the root tantra was spoken; then the explained tantra. After that is the later tantra, and after that the later of the later. The ten levels are the cycles, spoken of in the sequence of the inferior and the poor vessels. Just like the essence of a flower, after the later of the later is the heart mantra of the amṛta rali, the essence tantra.
First, from the action of the letter A is the tantra of form. Upon the request of the hero and the dakini, it was entrusted to the eight dakinis of form. Following that, from the action of the letter RA is the tantra of speech, entrusted to the eight dakinis of speech. Later, from the action of the letter A is the tantra of mind, entrusted to the eight dakinis of mind. It is the nectar of non-dual wisdom.
The body of the eye is the body of clarity. Because of that clarity, it is a lamp. It is the nectar of a form like a lion. It is like the light of the sun and the rays of the moon. It is like the sound of a thunderbolt and the depths of the ocean. It is like the current of a river and the spontaneous Mount Meru. It is like the dust of the land of the utpala flower.
Those who seek this out of desire and those who are conceptual cannot analyze it. If one attempts to analyze it according to their own desire, the hero and the dakini will become wrathful, and the head and body will be sliced into a hundred pieces. Therefore, with body and speech, one should please the holy guru, along with one's wife, children, and entourage, and receive the pith instructions like the current of a river.
"O protector, the compassionate one! If the distinction of the letters RA and LI is thus, how is the Great One?"
The Vajradhara spoke: "The twenty-four certainties were spoken to me again. By the twenty-eight that are not abandoned, this RA and LI are certainly Great. Within each of these, there are seven Great ones. For whoever desires the fruit, the cause itself is the primary factor; just as a sprout comes from a seed. Therefore, first, do not abandon the cause. The two co-emergent causes are the naturally co-emergent and the co-emergent co-emergent."
Common and uncommon; from the mouth of the guru, the object of knowledge is known. It is the mouth of the brave ones and the dakinis; it transcends the words that teach this. Those who are confused by this are pitiful. The dissolved aggregates, the channel, and the Shukra are the causes of the co-emergent. Those who claim that wrong thoughts and confusion are the cause, or that the unestablished nature is the cause, or that conventional bodhicitta is the cause, are foolish and unfit. The arising aggregates, the Indra, and the inferior external sense bases are the causes; those who claim these are the cause are pitiful. Whatever the fragrance of the celestial flowers is, the channel-wind that resides by nature and so forth are the causes of the special path. Those who do not know that which resides by nature and who perceive it wrongly are pitiful. With ultimate bodhicitta, however, the co-emergent wisdom is the cause. Those who do not rely on the guru are confused. Those who claim that conventional Shukra is the cause are confused regarding cause and effect. Without conditions, the cause does not produce the effect. Therefore, conditions should not be abandoned. The wisdom-wind and wisdom-Agni are the co-emergent non-dual conditions; these should not be abandoned. The action-wind and Agni, and others as well, should be applied. Taking becoming and taking bliss; not abandoning action and not abandoning bliss is the fourth. The body and the channel of the essence of the body, the dwelling and the great dwelling, not abandoning these are claimed to be the fifth and sixth. This is known externally and internally. Externally, it is the failure to abandon distinctions. The aspect of appearance and the aspect of darkness.
The aspect of fullness and emptiness is the eighth not-abandoned transference. The place of cause and the place of result—one should know that these are not abandoned. In the jewel palace, the support is the not-abandoned silk-cloth vessel. If that is not grasped, the fallen is the not-abandoned flesh-stuffed one. The two form bodies are the not-abandoned protectors. Those not abandoned are twelve. The Indra of the support of happiness born from the support of the wish-fulfilling jewel is the not-abandoned essence of closing the gate. Having known the difference between above and below, the protector is not abandoned by the illusion. Having known the supreme joy of joy, the precursor is not abandoned. That which reverses the ways of saṃsāra, reversing from place to place, is the not-abandoned difference of place. The one who transfers that sequentially is known from the lineage of the guru's guru. The specific entry and exit of saṃsāra are the two types of not-abandoned transference. Because the wisdom Agni blazes fiercely, the aggregates, the elements, the Indras, and so forth, all becoming nectar, is the not-abandoned difference of conditions. All things, whether stable or unstable, such as the hair, nails, and throat of the body, appearing as the essence of happiness, is the not-abandoned difference of essence. That itself has no illusory nature; this is the not-abandoned difference of protectors. The mudrā of one with a beautiful appearance and wide eyes is the not-abandoned mudrā. The mudrā of samaya phenomena, and then the great wisdom mudrā, is the not-abandoned difference of mudrās. It is the action of the mudrā of attachment; the samaya dharma is that of the Mani.
Understand these as two mudrās. The two great wisdom mudrās are considered the mudrās of liberation. The divisions of mudrā have not been omitted. First is the secret wheel, and second is the natural wheel. The divisions of the wheel have not been omitted. First is the secret inner heat, and second is the natural inner heat. The divisions of inner heat have not been omitted. The two—the wind of action and Agni—are conventional cyclic causes. The two—the wind of wisdom and Agni—are ultimate non-dual causes. The divisions of causes have not been omitted. Generating becoming and the bliss of its dissolution is the conventional action of śukra. Not taking becoming and generating self-awareness is the ultimate action of bodhicitta. The divisions of action have not been omitted. The channels of the union method are the action of expanding and opening. One who is not confused by the four union methods—these are the twenty-eight that have not been omitted. The number of those who achieve action through common action is shown by the six persons and so on. Whoever desires the wisdom of self-awareness should properly rely on the time-method of the guru and take the instructions that must not be abandoned. This is the cause of the vajra-holder; from that arises the special fruit. First are the parts, namely the drop, the manner, the possessor of manner, the supreme, the other supreme, and the identity—these are the six. The identity six are Caṇḍālī. For each of these there are four, totaling twenty-four for Caṇḍālī and twenty-four for Ra-lī. Those residing externally are twenty-four; the eyes and mudrās are twenty-four.
Of the Caṇḍālī and the Ralī, the numbers are fixed externally and internally.
"He he, brave vajra-holder, what is the cause from which the Ralī arises? What is the nature of the Ralī?"
The Blessed One spoke:
All the coarse aspects of the body and the hand-signs are the low path of the nature of the Ralī.
The specific Ralī nature is said to reside in the three gates of the sky-sphere, the earth-sphere, and the sub-earth sphere.
The sixteen joys, together with their supports, are examined as the profound nature of the Ralī.
One should know that the ultimate Ralī is self-awareness, emptiness, and means.
A is the unborn at the beginning.
La is the setting and the protecting.
Ra is attachment and the precious.
From Ra comes the blood of desire.
From La comes the phlegm of anger.
From A comes the phlegm of delusion.
This is the nature of the Ralī of sentient beings.
Because the five wisdoms, the ten bhūmi, and so forth are present in all, they reside in the Ralī.
The Ralī of the body arises from the uṣṇīṣa of the crown of the head.
The Ralī of speech arises from the Indra of the tongue.
The Ralī of mind arises from the mind; this is definitively so.
The vajra of body, speech, and mind arises respectively in the eyes.
It arises from the seats of body, speech, and mind, such as the crown of the head.
It arises sequentially from the palms of the hands.
It should be received from the mouth of the guru.
These are the gates of specific emergence.
He he, sentient beings possess the nature of the buddha, the bhūmi, and the path.
As for the ten months and the bhūmi, it is as it is for those born of a hidden birth.
But if they are not buddhas, then all sentient beings from the beginning...
It is said to be a buddha: the hidden-born, the hollow-born, the heat-born, the sprout-born, and so forth. The ten abodes of the mind, the ten bhūmi, the eight consciousnesses, and the five awakening. The abbot is the king of the mind; the nature of purity is the garment of phenomena. The nature of abiding is the splitting of the hair. The two, A and Hūṃ, are the meaning of the mantra. All abide in the mind; without mind, there is no buddha. Because the nature of the mind of females, such as monkeys and dogs, is a buddha, sentient beings are buddha by nature. Furthermore, regarding the manner of cause and effect, the manner of sleeping and constant wandering, the manner of power and direct perception, the learned examine those with form and those without form. A buddha and a sentient being are the same. Thus, since sentient beings are buddha, because the nature of sentient beings is such, apply the mudrā of the body to the body, apply the mudrā of speech to speech, and apply the mudrā of mind to the mind. In the nature of body, speech, and mind, all things become equal in taste.
From this, how can there be a distinction between buddha and sentient being? How can there be high and low? One who fully knows saṃsāra is called one who has passed into nirvāṇa. Abandon all fear and conceptual proliferation. In this, all are wonderful; commit firmly and vow deeply. At that time, all the aggregates of saṃsāra become wonderful and cease to appear.
Thus concludes the King of Tantras, the Glorious Blazing Jewel.
Translated and submitted for finalization by the yogini Garland of the Moon and the translator monk Śākya Wisdom.