Dakini Teachings: Padmasambhava's Oral Instructions to Lady Tsogyal (Shambhala Dragon Editions)

The words of advice collected in this book are part of an ancient tradition of religious texts known as terma (treasures) -- works that were hidden in secret places -- both tangible and intangible -- during the first spread of Buddhism in Tibet in the ninth century -- to be rediscovered by qualified persons (tertons) and newly expounded to further generations. According to legend, Padmasambhava's oral teachings to his chief disciple -- Yeshe Tsogyal, Princess of Karchen -- were recorded in coded language called "dakini script" and concealed for centuries, until they were revealed by Nyang Ral Nyimey Oser and Sagye Lingpa. The selections in Dakini Teachings are short, direct instructions in the Vajrayana tradition of Tibetan Buddhism.