Tibetan Buddhist Community in the Nyingma Tradition
Dakini Yeshe Tsogyal
Yeshe Tsogyal
Khandro Yeshe Tsogyal took birth as the child of the father, Mangje Thokar Lekpa, and the mother, Nupza Gyalmotso. The latter dreamt one night that from the circle of the sky, a blue girl threw out the light of a star into her stomach. Nine or almost ten months later, a beautiful daughter with the mark of a double dorje on her forehead and with a breath as fragrant as an utpala flower was born amidst many auspicious signs such as a radiant rainbow and a rain of flowers.
During her youth, she was invited to be the queen of the sovereign king, Tritsong Detsen. At the time of Guru Padmasambhava's giving Dharma teachings in Tibet, extraordinary great faith and devotion for Guru Rinpoche arose in her. She requested that the king allow her to practice Dharma and as this greatly pleased him, he offered her to Guru Rinpoche. Wherever Guru Rinpoche went, Yeshe Tsogyal always accompanied him showing him respect and veneration and servitude. Guru Rinpoche taught her in general on Sutra and Tantra, but in particular he gave solely to Yeshe Tsogyal, his heart consort, the extremely precious pith instructions.
She requested of him again, saying: Great Master, please bestow the instructions of the heart essence, the advice on attaining buddhahood in the non-appearance of the skandhas of this very life. Saying this, she offered countless prostrations and circumambulations. The Great Master responded: Yeshe Tsogyal, your request is excellent. The pinnacle which transcends all the nine yanas is advice which is unequaled by anything I have previously taught you. Through seeing the essence, one destroys the meditation on the view of the examination of the mind. Effortlessly the bhumis and the paths will be perfected. There is no need for transformation nor remedy, disturbing emotions are liberated in their own place. Through non-arising causes, the result is perfected in itself. The coarse mass of the body of this very life is liberated in the clear light body of complete enjoyment or Sambhogakaya. Once having gone to the buddhafield of Ogmin or Akanishta for three years, the field of the spontaneously accomplished Dharmakaya or body of reality becomes the permanent dominion. I possess the secret of this teaching called the Khandro Nyingthik or Heart Essence of the Dakini and I will teach you at the cave of Zhotö Tidro, the great assembly place of khandros.
Guru Rinpoche first taught the complete instructions and the empowerments of the peaceful and wrathful deities foremost to Yeshe Tsogyal but also to one hundred thousand other khandromas or dakinis. He then taught the seventeen tantras of the secret Dzogchen teachings, the eighteen tantras of the Clear Expanse of the Sun and many other complete pith instructions. After that, Yeshe Tsogyal miraculously departed with the Great Master from the expanse of rainbow light to the south-western land of the raksasas or demons.