The Ninth Karmapa, Wangchuk Dorjes Ocean of Certainty

Traleg Kyabgon Rinpoche's commentary on the sixteenth-century work Pith Instructions of Coemergent Wisdom, Entitled the Profound Essence of the Ocean of Certainty, by the Ninth Karmapa, Wangchuk Dorje, provides those who meditate with an overview of the path leading to the realization of Mahamudra, the self-liberated and all-encompassing nature of reality. Beginning with ngondro practice, Traleg Rinpoche guides students through the conditions needed to fully integrate the practice, along with instructions for shamata and vipashyana meditation, which includes visualizations and exercises. A section devoted to strengthening practice lays out common pitfalls and wrong views and how to avoid them. Finally, Rinpoche teaches the four yogas of Mahamudra one-pointedness nonconceptuality, one-flavoredness, and nonmeditation, and the ground, path, and fruition of Mahamudra in relation to the individual practitioner.

The Venerable Traleg Kyabgon Rinpoche was born in 1955 in Eastern Tibet. At the age of two he was recognized by His Holiness the sixteenth Gyalwa Karmapa, head of the Kagyu lineage, as the ninth incarnation of the Traleg tulkus, which can be traced back to the time of Saltong Shogam, a contemporary of the first Karmapa. Traleg Rinpoche was enthroned as the Abbot of Tra'gu Monastery in Tibet, and following the Chinese invasion of his country, was taken to safety in India. Rinpoche came to Australia in 1980 in order to make the teachings and practices of the Kagyu tradition available there. He established the Kagyu E-Vam Buddhist Institute in 1982 and regularly conducts courses and retreats in the practice and theory of Buddhism for the Institute. Rinpoche has traveled widely, giving lectures and seminars on Buddhism and related topics in the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Southeast Asia, and Europe.