Luminous Clarity:Union of Mahamudra and Dzogchen (PDF)

The meditation of Mahamudra and the meditation of Dzogchen are highly appropriate meditations for Western practitioners, who are engaged in their families and their jobs, because these meditations can be done in ordinary life and without elaborate pujas and visualizations, that is, they are done by directly examining the mind.

In this book Thrangu Rinpoche lucidly explains the development of Mahamudra meditation beginning with the Mahamudra Shamatha and Vipashyana in the creation stage and shows how one gradually develops the stage of examining the nature of mind. He then explains how Mahamudra is related to the Trekcho meditation of Dzogchen of the Nyingma lineage. But then Rinpoche goes into a detailed explanation of the rarely discussed Togyal aspect which includes the Six Lamps meditations of Dzogchen Meditation. All these techniques described are designed to develop the realization of the mind's Luminous Clarity.

This book of 190 pages contains extensive notes and a glossary, eight appendices, and a glossary of Tibetan terms. Thrangu Rinpoche based the book on The Union of Mahamudra and Dzogchen by Karma Chagme who held both the Mahamudra and Dzogchen lineages. For this teaching Rinpoche used Karma Chagme's full length teaching, not the short 40 verse teaching of the same name taught by Chokyi Nyima Rinpoche and in Thrangu Rinpoche’s Seattle teaching.

“It is outstanding that these two great masters...are together at last: the incredible Karma Chagme (1613-1678) and the beloved teacher of our times Thrangu Rinpoche. In this book you will find literally everything you need to know for authentic Dharma practice laid out with luminous clarity” —Sarah Harding

“The lucid clarity of Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche’s commentary illuminates Karma Chagme’s precious text on the Union of Mahamudra and Dzogchen for today’s Dharma practitioners. It is simple, practical, and profound—it instructs, inspires, and encourages meditators in the work of realizing the true nature of mind.” —The Twelfth Kenting Tai Situpa.

This PDF is 190 pages long book with six Appendics, extensive Notes, a Glossary, a Glossary of Tibetan terms, Annotated Bibliography, and an Index is is available on this website.