The Four Yogas of Mahāmudrā by the Yogin Darma Wangchuk – with H.E. Garchen Rinpoche’s Commentary

translated by Ina Bieler

“When the mind remains relaxed and at ease, it will not be agitated by the currents of conceptual thoughts, like an ocean without waves. When the mind is established in the quality of being free from lethargy and agitation, this is the yoga of one-pointedness.”

Yogin Lorepa said that by letting your mind rest within itself, it will not be agitated by the currents of conceptual thoughts, like an ocean without any waves. When mind is established in the quality of being free from mental sinking and agitation, this is the yoga of one-pointedness. If the nature of mind is relaxed and at ease, conceptual thoughts will not stir, like an ocean without waves. This is single-pointed yoga.

“When mind looks at mind, there is neither something looked at nor someone looking. It is like meeting an acquaintance from the past. When mind recognizes its own true condition, this is how freedom from conceptual elaboration arises.”

When mind looks at itself, when you look at your own mind and see there is neither meditation nor meditator, this is freedom from elaboration. The mind’s natural clarity recognizes itself. When you look at the mind, it becomes non-dual, confusion is destroyed. This the unelaborated yoga.

“By habituating to this, one recognizes that everything that appears and exists in saṃsāra and nirvāṇa is one’s own mind, which itself is primordially pure. This is the yoga of one-taste.”

By habituating to this through meditation, one recognizes that everything that appears and exists in samsara and nirvana is one’s own mind, which itself is primordially pure. This is the yoga of one-taste. When you habituate to that, all appearances and existence, samsara and nirvana without exception, are understood to be your own mind. When there is no thought, you understand non-duality. Suchness is primordially pure: this is one-taste.

“The natural state of the mind—the ground of all—is without coming and going, like space. When space dissolves into space, then the conceptual mind, all phenomena, and wisdom become exhausted. This is the yoga of non-meditation.

At Lake Namtso Chukmo, I, the yogin Lorepa, wrote down how these four yogas arise, according to what came to my mind. By this virtue, may awakening be swiftly gained!

[Thus, he wrote down] the words he had heard from Nangchen Ade Rinpoche.”

The actual nature of mind, the underlying basis, is without coming and going, like space. When space dissolves into its fundamental state, the intellect, the conceptual mind, all phenomena, and wisdom become exhausted. This is the yoga of non-meditation. You always rest in the natural state of mind like space, whether there are thoughts or not, whether there are outer appearances or not, you don’t engage but mind stays without a focal point like space.

Milarepa said that when there is no difference between mind and space, that’s the perfection of the dharmakaya. The fundamental nature of mind is like space without coming and going. Space dissolves into space; everything dissolves into space: the intellect, phenomena and wisdom. This is the yoga of non-meditation.

In brief: One-pointedness is to subdue discursive thoughts. Freedom from elaboration uproots discursive thoughts. Through one-taste, self-born primordial wisdom shines from within. Non-meditation attains stability in this.

Yogin Lorepa, wrote down these four levels of the attainment of Mahamudra at Lake Namtso Chugmo, according to what came to his mind.