Table of Contents

Preface Marcia Binder Schmidt

Foreword Dzongsar Khyentse Rinpoche

Lamrim Yeshe Nyingpo and the Nyingma Tradition

Short Biography of Guru Rinpoche

How to Follow A Spiritual Guide

Students Responsibilty

Characteristics of a Qualified Student

Lama Practice

Removing Obstacles

Overview of Lama Practice, Tukdrub

The Concise Daily Practice of Padmasmabhava

Yidam Practice

The Practice of the Single Form of Vajrakilaya

Dakini Practice

Commentary on the Essence of the Two Accumulations

Dakinis

Magnetizing Practice

Drubchen Practice

Drubchen

Drubchen Framework

Vajrasattva Drubchen

Enhancement Practices

Smoke Offering

Pilgrimage

Tibetan Source Material

Endnotes

About the Author

A major practitioner, vajra master, and teacher of Vajrayana or Tibetan Buddhism. Brilliantly trained in the most traditional aspects of Tibetan Ritual and meditation, OTR, fondly referred to, is unequaled in precision to detail. Widely revered, his sense of humor and irony has given him a reputation as being someone who tells it like it! Dzongsar Jamyang Khyentse Rinpoche born June 18, 1961),[1] also known as Khyentse Norbu, is a Tibetan/Bhutanese lama, filmmaker, and writer. His four major films are The Cup (1999), Travellers and Magicians (2003), Vara: A Blessing (2013) and, most recently, Hema Hema: Sing Me a Song While I Wait (2017). He is the author of the books What Makes You Not a Buddhist (Shambhala, 2007); Not for Happiness: A Guide to the So-Called Preliminary Practices (Shambhala, 2012); The Guru Drinks Bourbon (Shambhala, 2016); and Best Foot Forward: A Pilgrim's Guide to the Sacred Sites of the Buddha (Shambhala, 2018. Dzigar Kongtrul was born in the Northern Indian province of Himachal Pradesh 23 Oct 1964to Tibetan refugee parents; his father was the third Neten Chokling Rinpoche and his mother, Mayum Tsewang Palden, practiced all her life, even in the midst of raising five children. Rinpoche grew up in a monastic environment. He was trained in the Longchen Nyingtik lineage of the Nyingma school as well as the Khyen-Kong Chok-Sum lineages (those of Jamgon Kongtrul, Khyentse Wangpo and Chokgyur Lingpa—the three primary figures in the rimé movement) by his root guru H.H. Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche. Rinpoche also studied extensively under Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, Nyoshul Khen Rinpoche and the great scholar Khenpo Rinchen. He moved to the United States in 1989 with his family and began a five-year tenure as a professor of Buddhist philosophy at Naropa University (then Institute) in 1990.
Not long after arriving in the United States, Rinpoche founded Mangala Shri Bhuti, an organization established to further the practice of the Longchen Nyingtik and Khyen-Kong Chok-sum lineages. He established a mountain retreat center, Longchen Jigme Samten Ling, in southern Colorado, where he spends much of his time in retreat and guides students in long-term retreat practice. When not in retreat, Rinpoche travels widely throughout the world teaching and furthering his own education.
Dzigar Kongtrul Rinpoche is also an abstract expressionist painter, and wrote a book, Natural Vitality. He has also published two books with Shambhala and one with Rangjung Yeshe Publications, Uncommon Happiness.