Guhyagarbha Tantra (with Commentary)
by Gyurme Dorje | 1987 | 304,894 words
The English translation of the Guhyagarbha Tantra, including Longchenpa's commentary from the 14th century. The whole work is presented as a critical investigation into the Nyingma School of Tibetan Buddhism, of which the Guhyagarbhatantra is it's principle text. It contains twenty-two chapters teaching the essence and practice of Mahayoga, which s...
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Text 7.18 (Commentary)
[Guhyagarbha-Tantra, Text section 7.18]
The aspects of the 尘补峁囜笉补濒补 of unique Buddha-speech
Are inconceivable and all-pervasive.
Perceived in distinct sounds, names and words.
All these are the supreme seal of buddha-speech. [18] ...[Tibetan]
gsung-gcig dkyil-'khor yan-lag-ni /
bsam-gyis mi-khyab kun-tu khyab /
sgra-dang ming-tshig so-sor grags /
thams-cad gsung-gi phyag-rgya'i mchog / [18]
Commentary:
[ii. The second (the inconceivable natural expression of buddha-speech, comments on Ch. 7.18):]
The unique buddha-speech (gsung-gcig) of the buddhas, adorned with sixty aspects of intonation, is the genuine 尘补峁囜笉补濒补 (dkyil-'khor). its sixty aspects (yan-lag-ni) include six categories, namely, 叠谤补丑尘腻-like voice, orchestral sound, song & dance, cuckoo-like trill, thunderous bass, and echo鈥攅ach of which has ten features, i.e. they give rise to perception, they are apperceptive, audible, harmonious, most profound, consecutive, imperturbable, euphonous, orderly, and exceedingly clear; making sixty aspects in all.[1]
Alternatively, (buddha-speech) has ten features, namely, greatness of melody, pervasiveness, swift appreciation, precision, one-pointed audio-visual attention, momentariness, total accessibility, devotion, sublimation, and the discipline of all (beings), each of which has six sections, making sixty in all.[2]
When the (former sixty aspects) are combined with (the latter ten features), there are six hundred aspects of intonation. These multiply to six thousand and then to twenty-four thousand when each is subdivided according to the ten directions and the four times. Then, when subdivided according to the six world-systems, the aspects (of buddha-speech) are inconceivable (bsam-gyis mi-khyab) in number, and they are pervasive (khyab) in all (kun-tu) fields.
These (aspects) are perceived (grags) and understood in accordance with the languages or sounds (sgra-dang) of distinct sentient beings. and their appearance as distinct (so-sor) names and words (ming-tshig). All these (thama-cad) languages are indeed shown to be gathered in the nature of the inexpressible supreme seal of buddha-speech (gsung-gi phyag-rgya'i mchog).
[iii. The third (the originally pure abiding nature of buddha-speech, comments on Ch. 7.19):][3]
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Footnotes and references:
[1]:
"Brahma-like voice" (tshangs-pa'i dbyangs), "orchestral sound鈥� (sil-snyan), "song & dance鈥� (glu-gar), "cuckoo-like trill" (ka-la-ping-ka), "thunderous bass鈥� ('brug-sgra), "echo" (sgra-brnyan), "giving rise to perception" ('du-shes bskyed-pa), "apperceptive" (rnam-par rig-pa), "audible" (mnyan-par 'os-pa), "harmonious" (mi-mthun-pa med-pa), "most profound" (shin-tu zab-pa), "consecutive" (rles-su 'byung-ba), "imperturbable" (gang-gis mi-tshugs-pa), "euphonous" (rna-bar snyan-pa), "orderly" (rnam-par ma-'khrugs-pa), and "exceedingly clear" (shin-tu gsal-ba). For an enumeration of the actual sixty aspects of buddha-speech formed by the combination of these modes, see Mah膩vyutpatti 445-504 and the translation provided in T. Ellingson, The Ma峁囜笉ala of Sound: Concepts and Sound Structures in Tibetan, Pt. 1, pp. 122-123.
[2]:
"greatness of melody" (gdangs che-ba), "pervasiveness" (yongs-su khyab-pa), "swift appreciation" (go-bar myur-pa), "precision" (the-tshom gcod-pa), "one-pointed audio-visual attention" (gcig-la gzigs-pa snyam byed-pa), "momentariness" (nyi-tsher ston-pa), "total accessibility" (kun-nas 'jug-pa), "devotion" ('dun-pa bskyed-pa), "sublimation" (khyab-du zhugs-pa), and "discipline of all beings" (thams-cad 'dul-ba).