I go—I go into the dharmadhātu wisdom expanse,

The dharmadhātu wisdom is beyond speech, thought, and expression.

I go—I go into the state of mirror-like wisdom.

Luminous clarity, unobstructed—vividly clear, alertly awake.

I go—I go into the all-equalising wisdom expanse,

Saṃsāra and nirvāṇa, subject-object and conceptual elaborations dissolve into the expanse.

I go—I go into the state of discriminating wisdom.

The six clairvoyances[2] arise—vividly clear.

I go—I go into the state of all-accomplishing wisdom.

Displaying manifold emanations suited to disciples.

I go, I go—to the Vidyādhara realm of Pari.

When your wisdom mind is equal with Heruka,

Three emanations will come as your companions.

After my passing, regarding the ḍākinīs' secret symbolic scripts—

Until the time arrives for them to be clearly revealed,

Keep them concealed—bind them with the seal of secrecy.

Symbolic signs will never fade—tiṣṭha lhan!

Son, remain in good health.

Now you have overcome the obstacles to the succession of incarnations.[3]

Until appearance and existence are liberated as signs and scriptures,

Knowing saṃsāra as a dream and illusion,

Take up the path—apply yourself without fixing onto anything whatsoever.

The empowerment of the seal of entrustment and the casting of the all-encompassing aspiration—

This is the most difficult of all empowerments.

COLOPHON

None

NOTES

[1] On the identity of Chökyi Gyalpo. In the context of this final testament song, Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje attributes it to Chökyi Gyalpo, whom we identify as the First Dodrubchen, Jigme Trinle Özer (1745–1821), his root guru (rtsa ba’i bla ma). This identification is supported by several converging sources. The publisher’s introduction to the collected biography explicitly equates the names, referring to “the holy lama Jetsun Chökyi Gyalpo, possessor of the three kindnesses, Dodrub Wang Rinpoche” (mDo mkhyen brtse ye shes rdo rje and sKal bzang don grub 1997, 10). Within the autobiography itself, he is also called “the protector Dodrub Wang, the Omniscient One” (mDo mkhyen brtse ye shes rdo rje 1997, 134), and Do Khyentse addresses him directly as “my lama, the Omniscient Chökyi Gyalpo” (ibid., 56).

The name “Dodrub Wang” is independently attested as an epithet of the First Dodrubchen (Dasal Wangmo 2007), while the biographical account situates his seat at Shugchen Takgo in the Do valley (mDo mkhyen brtse ye shes rdo rje 1997, 35), identified by Garry (2007) and Dasal Wangmo (2007) as his principal early centre (shugs chen stag mgo ru phan bde ’gro don gling; BDRC G4952). Finally, the date of the passing described—on the thirteenth day of the Iron Snake year (mDo mkhyen brtse ye shes rdo rje 1997, 155)—corresponds exactly with the recorded death date of the First Dodrubchen (Garry 2007; Dasal Wangmo 2007). Taken together, these sources strongly support that Chökyi Gyalpo refers to Jigme Trinle Özer.

[2] The six include:

1. Divine eye (lha'i mig gi mngon shes)—perceiving death and rebirth of beings.

2. Divine ear (lha'i rna ba'i mngon shes)—hearing all sounds near and far.

3. Knowing others' minds (gzhan gyi sems shes pa'i mngon shes)—perceiving the mental states of others.

4. Recollection of former lives (sngon gyi gnas rjes su dran pa'i mngon shes)—remembering past existences of self and others.

5. Miraculous powers (rdzu 'phrul gyi mngon shes)—traversing space, multiplying forms, and so forth.

6. Exhaustion of defilements (zag pa zad pa'i mngon shes) — directly knowing the exhaustion of afflictive and cognitive obscurations

[3] The BDRC e-text reads sku 'phrang (“narrow pass” or “defile”), which appears to be a scribal error for sku 'phreng (“succession of incarnations”). The emended reading yields a more coherent sense in context, aligning with Chökyi Gyalpo’s final words to Do Khyentse as his lineage successor. The translation therefore follows the emended reading.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Dasal Wangmo (zla gsal dbang mo). 2007. mdo tshang gi brgyud pa'i rnam thar mdor bsdus. In gsung thor bu, 283–297. pe cin: mi rigs dbe skrun khang. BDRC W1GS60403

Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje (mDo mkhyen brtse ye shes rdo rje). "mDo mkhyen brtse ye shes rdo rjeʼi rang rnam mkhaʼ ʼgroʼi zhal lung." In mDo mkhyen brtse ye shes rdo rjeʼi rnam thar, 13–303. Khreng tuʼu: Si khron mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 1997. BDRC MW21847_3C101C.

Do Khyentse Yeshe Dorje (mDo mkhyen brtse ye shes rdo rje) and Kalzang Dondrub (sKal bzang don grub). mDo mkhyen brtse ye shes rdo rjeʼi rnam thar. Khreng tuʼu: Si khron mi rigs dpe skrun khang, 1997. BDRC MW21847.

Garry, Ron. "The First Dodrubchen, Jigme Trinle Wozer." Treasury of Lives: Biographies of Masters from the Tibetan Buddhist Traditions. 2007. TBRC_p293.

Thondup, Tulku. Masters of Meditation and Miracles: The Longchen Nyingthig Lineage of Tibetan Buddhism. Edited by Harold Talbott. Boston: Shambhala Publications, 1996.