Dear KC and PSG Friends, I sometimes receive questions regarding ngondro that reveal a certain level of confusion about the topic. Byron has recently finished editing the transcript that was done by Margaret David of the practice instructions for the terma practices of Terchen Barway Dorje. The transcript is currently undergoing proof reading by Mat Willis, Alan McCoy, Lama Jim Kukula, and Lama David Nilson. There is a paragraph in the forward to that transcript that I thought nicely summarized what ngondro is and I thought it might be helpful for you to have it, so you can explain it to students at your center/group: “Before undertaking advanced vajrayana practices in Tibetan Buddhism, most students will first complete a set of foundational practices that are designed to prepare them for what is to come. These foundational practices are generally referred to by the Tibetan term "ngondro" or, in English, as the preliminaries. They are divided into two parts called the common preliminaries and the uncommon preliminaries. Each of the cycles of teachings contained in the treasures, or termas, of Terchen Barway Dorje (1836 - 1918) has its own complete and individual set of the preliminary practices. However, Bardor Tulku Rinpoche, the third incarnation of Terchen Barway Dorje and the founder and spiritual director of Kunzang Palchen Ling (KPL), has decided that the set of preliminaries for The Four Sadhanas of the Vidyadhara Guru will serve as the necessary preliminaries for the practice of his other termas as well. That means that a student who has completed that particular set of preliminary practices and has received the appropriate empowerments, oral transmissions, instructions, and permissions can then engage in any of the practices from the treasures of Terchen Barway Dorje.” Best wishes, Basia
Posted on: Mon, 22 Jul 2013 22:06:19 +0000
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