The full Title is: CLOUDLESS SKY The Mahamudra Path ol the Tibetan Kagyii Buddhist School. This is the third Jamgong Kongtrul commenting on a spiritual song of 1St Jamgon Kongtrul by explaining Ground,Path and Fruition Mahamudra.

What is meant by mahamudra? Mahamudra consists ba- sically of three aspects: ground, path, and view mahamudra. Ground mahamudra is the unity of relative truth and ulti- mate truth. It is freedom from both the two extremes of eternalism, or belief in lasting and true existence, and nihil- ism, or belief in the nonexistence of phenomena.

Path mahamudra is the union of skillful means and wis- dom. But not falling into the extremes of either nihilism or Ihe belief in the permanence of appearances, and by not neglecting either wisdom or skillful means, one accom- plishes the two types of accumulations. These are the accu- rnulation of object-related merit and the accumulation of Ilonreferential wisdom. In essence, the path consists in unit- ingthese two accumulations.

Fruition mahamudra is freedom from the extremes of samsara and nirvana. It is based on ground mahamudra, the

inner experiences and transmit the complete meaning of mahamudra and all its aspects-view, action, and medita- tion. They deal with the ultimate teachings !Jresented by the perfect Buddha, the teachings about ultimate truth. This is why these dohas are described as vajra dohas, because their meaning is indestructible and unchanging.

The vajra songs of the Kagyli Gurtso date back to the earlier Kagyi.imasters. When reciting them today, we should adjust our body, speech, and mind so as to take fuli advantage of the recitation. With regard to the body, one should wear appropriate clothing, for instance the three dharma robes if one has taken the vows. With regard to speech, one should sing the melody with great accuracy and pronounce each word properly. Mentally, one should concentrate on every word and internalize its meaning. In this way, one should not simply recite the text but should take great care to involve one' s body, speech, and mind in reading the vajra song.

Vajra songs are meant to help the practitioner overcome three types of obstacles: out er, inner (disturbances related to prana, nadi, and bindu), and secret (those that interfere with spiritual progress and meditation). The practice of mahamudra, the way of the Kagylis, is based mainly on trust and surrender. By reading the vajra songs, one not only de- velops the three types of trust - the trust of conviction, the trust oflonging, and pure trust-but also learns to surren· der. By keeping the examples of one's teachers in mind, one achieves the inner certainty that it is possible to follow the path and, through one's practice, attain realization.

In addition, as mentioned above, each vajra song contains the entire meaning of the teachings of Buddha: emptiness, codependent origination, precious bodhichitta, and insight into the unity of emptiness and compassion; one taste, the unity of relative and ultimate truths, and on path mahamudra, the unity of the two accumulations. In this state, there is no difference between the three realms of samsara and liberation or nirvana. Fruition mahamudra is the realization of the unity of dharmakaya and the form kayas.

Since mahamudra encompasses the three aspects of ground, path, and fruition, it should be evident that there is nothing that it does not accommodate. It includes every thing, from the state of confusion concerning the nature of the path up to the realization of perfect buddahood. In other words, mahamudra is recognizing the nature of one's ownmind.