Uyghur Empire ... 763 AD

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The Uyghur Khaganate, or, Uyghur Empire or Uighur Khaganate or Toquz Oghuz Country (Mongolian: Уйгурын хаант улс, Tang era names, with modern Hanyu Pinyin: traditional Chinese: 回鶻; simplified Chinese: 回鹘; pinyin: Huíhú or traditional Chinese: 回紇; simplified Chinese: 回纥; pinyin: Huíhé) was a Turkic empire that existed for about a century between the mid 8th and 9th centuries. They were a tribal confederation under the Orkhon Uyghur (回鶻) nobility, referred to by the Chinese as the Jiu Xing ("Nine Clans"), a calque of the name Toquz Oghuz.

Khagan Tengri Bögü met with Manichaean priests from Iran while on campaign, and was converted to Manicheism, adopting it as the official religion of the Uyghur Empire in 763. One effect of this conversion was the increase in influence of the Sogdians in the Uyghur court.

Tun Bagha Tarkhan ascended the throne with title Alp Qutlugh Bilge ("Victorious, glorious, wise") and enforced a new set of laws, which he designed to secure the unity of the khaganate.

The last great khagan of the Empire was a khagan with unknown name, bearing the title Kün tengride ülüg bulmïsh alp küchlüg bilge ("Greatly born in sun heaven, victorious, strong and wise")

The power of Uyghur Empire declined and the empire started to fragment after Tun Bagha Tarkhan's death in 789. The Tibetans took from Uyghurs the area of Beshbalik.

Collapse.......The following spring, in 840 AD, one of 9 Uyghur ministers, Kulug Bagha, rival of Kurebir, fled to the Kyrgyz tribe and invited them to invade from the north with a force of around 80,000 horsemen. They sacked the Uyghur capital at Ordu Baliq, razing it to the ground. The Kyrgyz captured the Uyghur Khagan, Kürebir (Hesa) and promptly beheaded him. The Kyrgyz went on to destroy other Uyghur cities throughout their empire, burning them to the ground. The last legitimate khagan, Öge, was assassinated in 847, having spent his 6-year reign in fighting the Kyrgyz,the supporters of his rival Ormïzt, a brother of Kürebir, and Tang China boundary troops in Ordos and Shaanxi, which he invaded in 841. The Kyrgyz invasion destroyed the Uyghur Empire, causing a diaspora of Uyghur people across Central Asia.

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November 2012

John Hopkins....Northern New Mexico

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Uighur Kingdom of Khocho

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Later Shambhalists would identify the ancient Uighur kingdom of Khocho, centered around the Turfan Depression, as one of the prime candidates for the physical location of Shambhala

Gaochang (Chinese: 高昌; pinyin: Gāochāng), also called Qara-hoja or Kara-Khoja (قاراھوجا in Uyghur), is the site of an ancient oasis city built on the northern rim of the inhospitable Taklamakan Desert in Xinjiang, China. The site is also known in published reports as Chotscho, Khocho, Qocho, or Qočo. During the Yuan and Ming dynasties, Gaochang was referred to as "Halahezhuo" (哈拉和卓) (Qara-khoja) and Huozhou.

"A busy trading center, it was a stopping point for merchant traders traveling on the Silk Road. It was destroyed in wars during the 14th century, and old palace ruins and inside and outside cities can still be seen today. The ruins are located 30 km southeast of modern Turpan. Nearby Gaochang is the site of the Astana tombs

"...... the tale of Shripala, although legendary in nature, does contain a curious detail which might pertain to the actual physical location of Shambhala. According to the Dro Tradition a young man, the son of two yoga practioners, heard that boddhisattvas themselves were teaching the Dharma somewhere to the north of India in the country of Shambhala. Eager to learn the Dharma he set out on a journey to find these teachers. Beyond India but before reaching Shambhala, we are told, he encountered a vast desert which would have taken four months to cross......One may speculate here that the desert in question is the Taklamakan Desert of western China. As noted earlier, the Uighur kingdom of Khocho, located at the northern edge of the Taklamakan, has often been posited as the "historical" Shambhala. To reach Khocho from the southern edge of the Taklamakan would indeed have taken four or more months, depending on what route the traveler took.

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November 2012

John Hopkins....Northern New Mexico

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Gyerpung Nangzher Lodpo (8th C. AD)

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"The country of Zhang Zhung was once a powerful kingdom that lay in what is now Western and Northern Tibet, centering around the famous Mount Kailash. As a written tradition, these teachings and practices are said to go back at least to the eighth century of our era, coming from the great Bonpo master Tapihritsa and transmitted to his disciple Gyerpung Nangzher Lodpo. The master Tapihritsa gave his disciple permission to set down in writing these precepts of Dzogchen in the Zhang Zhung language for the first time. Then in the tenth century, these same precepts were translated into the Tibetan language by Ponchen Tsanpo for the benefit of his Tibetan disciples. In the eleventh century, these precepts were collected from various sources in Western Tibet and in Nepal and put into their present form by Orgom Kundul and Yangton Sherab Gyaltsan. Thus, never having been concealed due to persecution, this transmission represents a continuous and uniterrupted lineage from the early times until present.

The chief disciple of the master Tapihritsa was the great Gyerpung Nangzher Lodpo. He was also born in Zhang-zhung, in the lake district of Darok in Northern Tibet. He began to study the Nine Ways of Bon became very proficient in all of these practices. Then at the age of forty-seven, he met Tsepung Dawa Gyaltsan who had previously been the master of Tapihritsa.

Five years after this first encounter, when Gyerpungpa was in retreat on the island in the Darok lake, at midday on the fifteenth day of the first month of summer, he had his second encounter with the master Tapihritsa which became known as "the Intermediate Advent and Encounter." The youthful Tapihritsa again appeared to him in a blaze of light, seated naked in the middle of a rainbow sphere suspended in the sky. Gyerpungpa prostrated to him and made three circumambulations. Thereupon Tapihritsa taught Gyerpungpa how to see in the ultimate sense, transmitting to his disciple the teachings regarding the Six Lamps.

Sometime later, Gyerpungpa had his third encounter with the master Tapihritsa while he was meditating again on an island in the Darok lake. Tapihritsa again manifested in front of him in his Nirmanakaya form. Tapihritsa then addressed him, saying, "You have been led to the Primordial Base. Now I will teach you the profound and secret oral instructions for Dzogchen. This will be my final teaching to you and it represents the highest teachings of Bon and the heart of the Tantra teaching. It is like the eye of the body." These teachings had originally come from the Dharmakaya Himself and had been transmitted by way of the celestial and the terrestrial lineages to Tapihritsa. The master gave his permission and at his command Gyerpungpa wrote down these brief teachings with blue ink on white paper. Thus he recorded "The Upadesha in Eight Chapters." Then Tapihritsa taught him "The Twenty-One Little Nails," which belonged to the exceeding secret cycle. This was their third and final encounter.

http://vajranatha.com/excerpts/dzogchen-in-zhang-zhung.html......detail from John Myrdhin Reynolds - Vajranatha

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November 2012

John Hopkins....Northern New Mexico

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Magyal Pomra & Shenlha Okar

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Amnye Machen: a mountain god of the Amdo region of north eastern Tibet.

Tibetan: Ma chen pom ra

Magyal Pomra (Wyl. rma rgyal spom ra), also known as Machen Pomra or Amnye Machen (a myes rma chen), is a mountain range in the Golok area of Eastern Tibet and the protector deity associated with it.

Handsome in appearance with one face and two hands he holds upraised in the right a long spear with a fluttering pendent. The left holds to the side a golden treasure vase. Attired in the garb of a warrior, a helmet crowns the head and armor protects the torso, arms and legs. Bright coloured garments loosely worn are caught by the wind and unfurl upward. A bow and full quiver of arrows hang at the waist. Riding on the back of a white snow lion with a green mane, atop a leopard skin mat, he sits surrounded by a circle of rainbow light - also enclosing the mountain named Machen Pomra above.

At the top center is the primordial deity Shenlha Okar, peaceful, white, with the hands in meditation posture. At the left is a figure wearing monastic robes and a hat. At the right is a white Kandroma (Sky Goer) holding a curved knife and skullcup, standing in a dancing posture. At the right and left corners sit deity figures.

Directly below are two main attendant figures similarly enclosed in spheres of rainbow light. Mounted on horses, attendants numbering twenty-eight stand at the sides and below, also a monk with a yellow hat riding a bird, four figures in red cloaks standing at the bottom and numerous wild animals.

Worldly Protector (Buddhist) - Machen Pomra

http://www.himalayanart.org/image.cfm/70133.html

http://www.himalayanart.org/search/set.cfm?setID=682

"Mountain Gods and Goddesses of Tibet and the Himalayan regions are spirits indigenous to a specific geographic region and considered worthy of worship by the local populace. The gods can be considered Bon, Buddhist or regional - equally worshiped by all. The more famous of the gods have been incorporated into religious traditions, losing their local flavour, and worshiped throughout Tibet and the Himalayas.

It can be difficult to classify Mountain Gods and Local Deities as to their status as living beings or entities. They are certainly not human and they don't readily fit into the Buddhist description of the Wheel of Life concept coming from the Abhidharma. They are not gods of the Gods Realm, nor are they animals or hell beings. They seem to fit closest to the Ghost Realm, although not exactly hungry ghosts living in a vast empty, dusty, wind swept expanse.

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Email....okarresearch@gmail.com

October 2012

John Hopkins....Northern New Mexico

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Protector & Snow Lion

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Worldly Protector (Buddhist) - Machen Pomra

http://www.himalayanart.org/image.cfm/70133.html

http://www.himalayanart.org/search/set.cfm?setID=682

"Mountain Gods and Goddesses of Tibet and the Himalayan regions are spirits indigenous to a specific geographic region and considered worthy of worship by the local populace. The gods can be considered Bon, Buddhist or regional - equally worshiped by all. The more famous of the gods have been incorporated into religious traditions, losing their local flavour, and worshiped throughout Tibet and the Himalayas.

It can be difficult to classify Mountain Gods and Local Deities as to their status as living beings or entities. They are certainly not human and they don't readily fit into the Buddhist description of the Wheel of Life concept coming from the Abhidharma. They are not gods of the Gods Realm, nor are they animals or hell beings. They seem to fit closest to the Ghost Realm, although not exactly hungry ghosts living in a vast empty, dusty, wind swept expanse.

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Email....okarresearch@gmail.com

October 2012

John Hopkins....Northern New Mexico

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Mounted Protector

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Worldly Protector (Buddhist) - Machen Pomra

http://www.himalayanart.org/image.cfm/70133.html

http://www.himalayanart.org/search/set.cfm?setID=682

"Mountain Gods and Goddesses of Tibet and the Himalayan regions are spirits indigenous to a specific geographic region and considered worthy of worship by the local populace. The gods can be considered Bon, Buddhist or regional - equally worshiped by all. The more famous of the gods have been incorporated into religious traditions, losing their local flavour, and worshiped throughout Tibet and the Himalayas.

It can be difficult to classify Mountain Gods and Local Deities as to their status as living beings or entities. They are certainly not human and they don't readily fit into the Buddhist description of the Wheel of Life concept coming from the Abhidharma. They are not gods of the Gods Realm, nor are they animals or hell beings. They seem to fit closest to the Ghost Realm, although not exactly hungry ghosts living in a vast empty, dusty, wind swept expanse.

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Email....okarresearch@gmail.com

October 2012

John Hopkins....Northern New Mexico

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Werma Deity Nyinya

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Tibetan: Werma Nyinya (war ma nyi nya).

Werma Nyinya: a worldly deity arising from the Bon 'Treasure Tradition' and specifically the Chang Sen Tagdu text unearthed by Terton Ponse Khyung Gotsal (12th century).

Dynamic in appearance with one face and two hands, white in colour, he has the head of a lion - snarling and gaping. The right hand holds aloft a sword ready to strike and the left stretched to the side a trident on a long shaft. Wearing a flower and jewel crown the head is topped with a green bird. Adorned with a necklace, bracelets and anklets, a pink and green scarf is worn around the shoulders and the lower body is draped in a tiger skin skirt. Sharp blue wings extend from the back as he stands in a wrathful posture atop a raging tiger above two red figures, a sun disc and multi-coloured lotus seat. Six attendants in similar appearance stand at the right and left. (Textually there are 13 retinue figures).

http://www.himalayanart.org/search/set.cfm?setID=682

"Mountain Gods and Goddesses of Tibet and the Himalayan regions are spirits indigenous to a specific geographic region and considered worthy of worship by the local populace. The gods can be considered Bon, Buddhist or regional - equally worshiped by all. The more famous of the gods have been incorporated into religious traditions, losing their local flavour, and worshiped throughout Tibet and the Himalayas.

It can be difficult to classify Mountain Gods and Local Deities as to their status as living beings or entities. They are certainly not human and they don't readily fit into the Buddhist description of the Wheel of Life concept coming from the Abhidharma. They are not gods of the Gods Realm, nor are they animals or hell beings. They seem to fit closest to the Ghost Realm, although not exactly hungry ghosts living in a vast empty, dusty, wind swept expanse.

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Email....okarresearch@gmail.com

October 2012

John Hopkins....Northern New Mexico

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Werma Deity

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Worldly Protector (Buddhist) - Machen Pomra

http://www.himalayanart.org/image.cfm/70133.html

http://www.himalayanart.org/search/set.cfm?setID=682

Tibetan: Werma Nyinya (war ma nyi nya).

Werma Nyinya: a worldly deity arising from the Bon 'Treasure Tradition' and specifically the Chang Sen Tagdu text unearthed by Terton Ponse Khyung Gotsal (12th century).

Dynamic in appearance with one face and two hands, white in colour, he has the head of a lion - snarling and gaping. The right hand holds aloft a sword ready to strike and the left stretched to the side a trident on a long shaft. Wearing a flower and jewel crown the head is topped with a green bird. Adorned with a necklace, bracelets and anklets, a pink and green scarf is worn around the shoulders and the lower body is draped in a tiger skin skirt. Sharp blue wings extend from the back as he stands in a wrathful posture atop a raging tiger above two red figures, a sun disc and multi-coloured lotus seat. Six attendants in similar appearance stand at the right and left. (Textually there are 13 retinue figures).

It can be difficult to classify Mountain Gods and Local Deities as to their status as living beings or entities. They are certainly not human and they don't readily fit into the Buddhist description of the Wheel of Life concept coming from the Abhidharma. They are not gods of the Gods Realm, nor are they animals or hell beings. They seem to fit closest to the Ghost Realm, although not exactly hungry ghosts living in a vast empty, dusty, wind swept expanse.

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Email....okarresearch@gmail.com

October 2012

John Hopkins....Northern New Mexico

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Tibetan: Werma Nyinya

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Tibetan: Werma Nyinya (war ma nyi nya).

Werma Nyinya: a worldly deity arising from the Bon 'Treasure Tradition' and specifically the Chang Sen Tagdu text unearthed by Terton Ponse Khyung Gotsal (12th century).

Dynamic in appearance with one face and two hands, white in colour, he has the head of a lion - snarling and gaping. The right hand holds aloft a sword ready to strike and the left stretched to the side a trident on a long shaft. Wearing a flower and jewel crown the head is topped with a green bird. Adorned with a necklace, bracelets and anklets, a pink and green scarf is worn around the shoulders and the lower body is draped in a tiger skin skirt. Sharp blue wings extend from the back as he stands in a wrathful posture atop a raging tiger above two red figures, a sun disc and multi-coloured lotus seat. Six attendants in similar appearance stand at the right and left. (Textually there are 13 retinue figures).

"Mountain Gods and Goddesses of Tibet and the Himalayan regions are spirits indigenous to a specific geographic region and considered worthy of worship by the local populace. The gods can be considered Bon, Buddhist or regional - equally worshiped by all. The more famous of the gods have been incorporated into religious traditions, losing their local flavour, and worshiped throughout Tibet and the Himalayas.

It can be difficult to classify Mountain Gods and Local Deities as to their status as living beings or entities. They are certainly not human and they don't readily fit into the Buddhist description of the Wheel of Life concept coming from the Abhidharma. They are not gods of the Gods Realm, nor are they animals or hell beings. They seem to fit closest to the Ghost Realm, although not exactly hungry ghosts living in a vast empty, dusty, wind swept expanse.

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Email....okarresearch@gmail.com

October 2012

John Hopkins....Northern New Mexico

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SHENLHA OKAR

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Shenlha Okar is usually depicted with a white body "like the essence of crystal"....

Pictorial descriptions and information on the Tibetan deity Shenlha Okar appear in the book by Per Kvaerne, "The Bon Religion of Tibet" (Shambhala Publications, 1996)

"From the white pure light arises the deity Shenlha Okar at the center of the mandala."(Tenzin Wangyal:1993 p147)...

"The body of Shenlha Wokar is white...his ontological status is that of bonku, 'unconditioned being' or 'supreme being', corresponding to the Buddhist category of dharmakaya...His association with light suggests Manichaean influences....The colour of his body is like the essence of crystal...his ornaments, attire, and palace are adorned by crystal light..." (Paul:1982) (Hoffman:1979,pg 105) (Kvaerne:1996, pg 26)

Shenlha Okar, (alt. Shenla Odker, Shenla Odkar, Shenla Wökar, Wylie: gShen lHa 'od dkar) or Shiwa Okar (Wylie: zhi ba 'od dkar)is the most important deity in the Yangdrung Bon tradition of Tibet.

Shenlha Okar is counted among the "Four Transcendent Lords" (Dewar Shekpa, Wylie: bde bar gshegs pa) along with Satrig Ersang (Sherab Chamma), Sangpo Bumtri, and Tonpa Shenrab Miwoche.

Description of the Thangka depicted above:

Shenlha Okar Tsog Shing: the field of deities for the accumulation of merit. The lineage of Accomplished Ones is seated above with monastic and ascetic lineage lamas at the top center, upper right and left. This composition was designed by Shardza Tashi Gyaltsen (1859 -1933), based on a personal visionary experience. (See the Bon Refuge Field Main Page and Shenlha Okar Main Page).

Located in the center is the great deity Shenlha Okar, white in colour with one face and two hands, peaceful in appearance. The two hands are placed in the lap in the gesture of meditation. Adorning the head is a crown of gold and jewels, red ribbons tied at the sides. The body is decorated with gold earrings, necklaces, bracelets and anklets. A green scarf is draped across the shoulders and unfurls at the sides and the lower body is covered with a skirt of multi-coloured silks. Atop a white moon disc and pink lotus blossom, above a snow lion supported throne, he sits surrounded by a dark blue nimbus and green aureole. The backdrop of white snow lions, golden dragons, pink makaras and a garuda with wings outstretched at the top prevent the arising of obstacles.

In the small rainbow sphere at the upper left is a central Enlightened Conqueror surrounded by eight others in the same appearance. This represents the refuge of Sanggye. Between the two spheres and beneath the chortens are colourful square books. This represents the refuge of Bon. In the small rainbow sphere at the upper right is a Conquering Hero surrounded by eight others. This is the refuge of Sempa.

http://www.himalayanart.org/image.cfm/200013.html

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Email....okarresearch@gmail.com

October 2012

John Hopkins....Northern New Mexico

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White Dzogchen Ngakpa

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Ngagpa

In Tibetan Buddhism and Bon, a Ngakpa (Tibetan: སྔགས་པ ; Wylie: sngags pa; IAST: mantrī; Sanskrit Devanagari: मन्त्री ) is a non-monastic practitioner of Vajrayana, shamanism, Tibetan medicine, Tantra and Dzogchen amongst other traditions, disciplines and arts. Ngakpa is an alternative phonetic transcription; the Wylie is sngags pa. These terms are grammatically masculine; the feminine equivalent is Ngakma or Ngakmo. Ngak'phang is a gender neutral word that covers ngakpa and ngakmo, though this word is obscure. It may either be archaic or of relatively recent construction.

Traditionally, ngakpas wear uncut hair and white robes. From this they are referred to as gö kar chang loi de or "the white-robed and uncut-hair group" (gos dKar lCang lo'i sDe).

Ngakpas often marry and have children. Some work in the world, though they are required to devote significant time to retreat and practice and in enacting rituals when requested by, or on behalf of, members of the community. There are family lineages of Ngakpas, with the practice of a particular yidam being passed through family lineages. That said, a Ngakpa (inclusive of both sexes) may also be deemed as anyone thoroughly immersed and engaged in the practice of the teachings and under the guidance of a lineage-holder, and who has taken the appropriate vows or samaya and had the associated empowerments and transmissions. Significant lineage transmission is through oral lore.

While Ngakpas may perform many different rituals and energetic workings; these called multi-coloured ngakpas. The white ngakpas are Dzogchen practitioners who practise mainly the inner yogas. There are then the black ngakpasrites of passage, particularly known for performing birth rituals, weddings, funerals, divinations, and pacification of ghosts or nature spirits and exorcisms. Typically, Ngagpas live with their families in villages; but many Ngagpas also congregate in dratsangs, the Ngakpa equivalent of a monastery. Some Ngakpa are comparable in practice to the Mahasidda; indeed, the Mahasidda may be correctly referred to as Ngakpa.

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Email....okarresearch@gmail.com

October 2012

John Hopkins....Northern New Mexico

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Trulkor Exercises

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Click on the image to enlarge

Trulkor exercises from the lineage of Do Kheytnse Yeshe Dorje

Trul khor...
Wylie transliteration: rtsa-rlung 'khrul-'khor
literal meaning: magical movement instrument, channels and inner breath currents

Tsa lung Trul khor (lit. "magical movement instrument, channels and inner breath currents") known for brevity as Trul khor (lit. "magical instrument" or "magic circle;" Sanskrit: adhisāra) is a Vajrayana discipline which includes pranayama and body postures (asanas). From the perspective of Dzogchen, the mind is merely vāyu (wind, air) in the body. Thus working with vāyu and the body is considered superior to meditation. Chögyal Namkhai Norbu, a prominent exponent of Trul khor, prefers to use the Sanskrit equivalent term, Yantra Yoga, when writing in English. Trul khor derives from the instructions of the Indian Mahasiddhas who founded Vajrayana.

Trul khor traditionally consists of 108 movements, including bodily movements (or dynamic asana), incantations (or mantra), pranayama and visualizations. The flow or vinyasa (Sanskrit) of movements are enlikened to beads on a mala. Trul khor body postures (asanas) are depicted on the walls of the Dalai Lama's summer temple of Lukhang.

Namkhai Norbu et al. (2000, revised)[3] opened the English discourse on Trul Khor with his treatise on Yantra Yoga, essentially a commentary on a practical yoga manual by Vairotsana, 'phrul 'khor nyi zla kha sbyor gyi dgongs 'grel dri med nor bu'i me long (Wylie). Namkhai Norbu tilled the ground for the dissemination of Yantra Yoga through his practical teaching and esoteric transmission of this discipline within the International Dzogchen Community which he founded post 1975 from its seat in Italy, Merigar.

Chaoul (2006) has opened the discourse of Bon traditions of Trul Khor into Western scholarship in English with his thesis from Rice University. In his work, Chaoul makes reference to a commentary by the famed Bonpo Dzogchen master, Shardza Tashi Gyaltsen, byang zab nam mkha' mdzod chen las snyan rgyud rtsa rlung 'phrul 'khor (Wylie)....Chaoul, Alejandro (2006). Magical movements ('phrul 'khor): ancient yogic practices in the Bon religion and contemporary medical perspectives. Rice University.

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Email....okarresearch@gmail.com

October 2012

John Hopkins....Northern New Mexico

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