King Doha: Saraha's Advice to a King

by Traleg Kyabgon

While on the one hand, it is said that Mahamudra is a very advanced form of meditation, on the other, if one were already advanced one would not need any instructions. Mahamudra manuals often tend to explain everything step by step as if the reader does not know anything. Obviously then, they are meant for people like us. In the King Doha, Saraha gives a step by step account of the pitfalls a meditation practitioner can fall into and how to avoid them. With a background of practicing extensively in the tantric tradition, he gives his reasons for considering the Mahamudra approach an appropriate path. Based on a commentary by Karma Trinleypa, Traleg Rinpoche gives a straightforward and clear explanation of Saraha's message to us as practitioners of Mahamudra.

Genres: Meditation

120 pages, Paperback

Published September 1, 2018

About the author

Traleg Kyabgon Rinpoche (1955–2012) was the ninth incarnation of the Traleg tulku line, a line of high lamas in the Kagyu lineage of Vajrayana. He was a pioneer in bringing Tibetan Buddhism to Australia.

Traleg Rinpoche was born in 1955 in Kham (Eastern Tibet), and two years later was recognized by HH 16th Gyalwa Karmapa as the ninth incarnation of the Traleg Tulkus and enthroned as the Abbot of the Thrangu monastery. He was taken to safety in India during the 1959 Chinese Communists invasion of Tibet. There he was given a traditional tulku education, supplemented by five years of schooling at Sanskrit University in Varanasi, India. He lived and studied for several years at Rumtek Monastery in Sikkim, the main seat in exile of the Kagyu Lineage. He died on July 24, 2012 in Melbourne, Australia.

In 1980 Rinpoche transmitted the Dharma in Australia where he established Kagyu E-vam Buddhist Institute in Melbourne. He relinquished his monastic vows, became a lay teacher and married. He earned a Masters degree in Comparative Philosophy from La Trobe University. In 1989, he taught extensively at Karma Triyana Dharmachakra, visiting the North American affiliates of HH Gyalwa Karmapa. In 2004 he established the Evam Institute in New York in Chatham, NY. He also taught extensively in the Karma Thegsum Choling network of the Karmapa's centers and at Shambhala Buddhist centers. His wife, Felicity Lodro, is also an active dharma teacher.

Reviews

[Eugene Pustoshkin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent commentary on the great master Saraha’s doha (song that awakens). Traleg Rinpoche’s style, as always, makes a lot of sense and is profound.

[James · Rating 5 out of 5]

I absolutely love this book (both the intro and commentary on Saraha's doha). It is a thin book but one packed with practical experiential meditation advice and wisdom. Traleg Kyabgon was a rare teacher with a gift for making the traditional and esoteric approachable and applicable.

[Linus · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent instruction and commentary of Mahamudra practice, from the perspective of both Saraha and Traleg Kyabgon. Highly recommended to anyone interested in non-duality and Tibetan Buddhist practices.