Yeshe Tsogyel, consort of Guru Padmasambhava, is one of the most famous of the enlightened women of Tibet. Few works deal with the spiritual practices and evolution of female aspirants, and for this reason Sky Dancer is virtually unique in the biographical literature of Tibet. Women are shown in an eminent position, and a path of practice is presented for initiates to emulate. Tsogyel's experiences and her detailed instructions to her disciples are inspirational for today's practitioners. Keith Dowman lives in Kathmandu, where he has spent many years researching tantric traditions, translating Tibetan texts and interpreting for Western audiences.
Sky Dancer, Keith Dowman, Snow Lion Publications, Paperback, 1996, 379 pages, $29.95
Keith Dowman has spent the last twenty years in India and Nepal. He has been educated in the theory and practice of Tibetan Buddhism by eminent Lamas of Several Tibetan schools, and has translated several major Tibetan texts into English. He now lives with his family in Kathmandu, where he continues to explore the Tibetan tradition and to interpret it for people in the West.
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Contents: SKY DANCER - The Secret Life and Songs of the Lady Yeshe Tsogyel |
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Foreword by Trinley Norbu Rimpoche |
ix |
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Translator's Introduction |
xii |
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THE SECRET LIFE AND SONGS OF THE LADY YESHE TSOGYEL |
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Homage |
3 |
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Protection |
3 |
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Gyelwa Jangchub's Introduction |
4 |
1 |
Tsogyel's Conception |
6 |
2 |
Auspicious Omens and Birth |
10 |
3 |
Disillusionment and Meeting the Master |
15 |
4 |
Initiation and Instruction |
25 |
5 |
Meditation, Austerity and Spiritual Accomplishment |
65 |
6 |
Signs of Success and Proofs of Power |
94 |
7 |
Establishing, Spreading and Perpetuating the Teaching |
97 |
8 |
Fruition and Buddhahood |
142 |
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Notes to the Text |
188 |
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COMMENTARY |
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1 |
The Path of the Inner Tantra |
217 |
2 |
Woman and the Dakini |
253 |
3 |
The Nyingma Lineages |
274 |
4. |
The Historical Background |
305 |
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Notes to the Commentary |
345 |
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Indexes |
354 |
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Index of Tibetan Words |
354 |
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Index of Sanskrit Words |
359 |
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Index of Texts |
361 |
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Index to Place-Names |
362 |
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Index of Men, Buddhas, Gods and Demons |
369 |
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