The Lion's Roar of a Yogi-Poet - by Migmar Tseten (Paperback)

About the Book

"Jetsun Rinpoche Dragpa Gyaltsen (1147-1216)-revered as one of Tibet's greatest yogis and one of the founding figures of the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism-composed his Great Song of Experience as a way to distill and communicate the essence of the Buddhist path to enlightenment. Shimmering with double meanings, seeming tautologies, and ribald references, Dragpa Gyalsten's verses resound with insights thrown out like bolts of lightning: "When mind itself is comprehended, that is Buddha; do not seek elsewhere for the Buddha!" Beloved teacher Lama Migmar Tseten's newly updated translation of Dragpa Gyeltsen's Great Song brings these verses to life with a clarity and immediacy that belies the underlying challenge that these verses pose to our ordinary ways of thinking and being. In his extensive verse-by-verse commentary, Lama Migmar unravels Dragpa Gyaltsen's terse, enigmatic verses with clarity and humor, bringing Rinpoche's ecstatic realization and pointed insights into conversation with twenty-first-century concerns, showing how the experiential teachings of a twelfth-century Tibetan yogi can help us understand and counteract the modern pressures of wanton consumerism, greed and inequality, isolation and loneliness, and environmental degradation. Lama Migmar's insightful commentary opens the door to the radical vision presented by Dragpa Gyalsten's poetic teachings, showing us a view of the mind without center or limits, as bright as the sun, and clear and open as space. In addition to Lama Migmar's extensive verse-by-verse commentary, the book includes facing-page English and Tibetan editions of the root text of Great Song of Experience, and the laudatory poem Praise to Jetsun Rinpoche Dragpa Gyaltsen by Dragpa Gyaltsen's nephew and student, the great Sakya Paònòdita (1182-1251)"--

Book Synopsis

An exultant song of realization by one of Tibet's greatest yogis, explained and elaborated upon by a beloved contemporary Tibetan teacher.

Jetsun Rinpoche Dragpa Gyaltsen (1147-1216)--revered as one of Tibet's greatest yogis and one of the founding figures of the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism--composed his Great Song of Experience as a way to distill and communicate the essence of the Buddhist path to enlightenment. Shimmering with double meanings and seeming tautologies, Dragpa Gyaltsen's verses resound with insights thrown out like bolts of lightning.

Beloved teacher Khenpo Migmar Tseten's newly updated translation of Dragpa Gyaltsen's Great Song brings these verses to life with a clarity and immediacy that belies the underlying challenge that these verses pose to our ordinary ways of thinking and being.

In his extensive verse-by-verse commentary, Khenpo Migmar unravels Dragpa Gyaltsen's terse, enigmatic verses with clarity and humor, bringing Rinpoche's ecstatic realization and pointed insights into conversation with twenty-first-century concerns, showing how the experiential teachings of a twelfth-century Tibetan yogi can help us understand and counteract the modern pressures of wanton consumerism, greed and inequality, isolation and loneliness, and environmental degradation. Khenpo Migmar's insightful commentary opens the door to the radical vision presented by Dragpa Gyaltsen's poetic teachings, showing us a view of the mind without center or limits, as bright as the sun, and clear and open as space.

In addition to Khenpo Migmar's extensive verse-by-verse commentary, the book includes facing-page English and Tibetan editions of the root text of Great Song of Experience, and the laudatory poem Praise to Jetsun Rinpoche Dragpa Gyaltsen by Dragpa Gyaltsen's nephew and student, the great Sakya Pandita (1182-1251).

Review Quotes

"The Great Song of Experience by Jetsun Dragpa Gyaltsen is a truly powerful and effective teaching. It conveys genuine pith instructions from one of Tibet's greatest masters to the hearts and minds of serious practitioners. Carefully studying and understanding this text will greatly enhance one's progress on the path to enlightenment."--His Holiness the Forty-First Sakya Trichen

"Jetsun Rinpoche shares his experiences of view, meditation, conduct, and result with their deviations to help yogis practice more holy Dharma and abandon the eight worldly dharmas. Khenpo elucidates Jetsun Rinpoche's yogic teachings and practices for contemporary practitioners."--His Eminence Thartse Kunga Rinpoche

"Khenpo Migmar Tseten, the learned Harvard Buddhist chaplain, skillfully breathes life into these teachings, presenting them in a modern, accessible language that is both easy to read and comprehend."--Klaus-Dieter Mathes, Ven. Yuen Hang Memorial Trust Professor in Buddhist Studies, the University of Hong Kong

"This masterpiece of timeless wisdom, skillfully enhanced by Khenpo Migmar Tseten's contemporary commentary, is a treasure to be kept close to every practitioner's heart."--Karl Brunnholzl, author and translator, Sounds of Innate Freedom: The Indian Texts of Mahamudra