Francesca FremantleBesprekingen

This centuries old scripture was traditionally read aloud to the dying to help them attain liberation. This translation emphasizes the practical advice that the book offers to the living as well.

The Bardo Thotrol is a Tibetan Buddhist scripture of the Nyingma or old traditon. It concerns the nature of the mind and its projections-beautiful or terrible, peaceful or wrathful-which seem to exist objectively and inhabit the external world. In particular it describes these projections as they appear immediately after death, in a much more overwhelming form since the consciousness is no longer grounded and shielded by its connecton with a physical bodiy. It teaches recognition of these terrifying and seductive forms, and through recognition atttainment of the state of enlightenment.

Contents

List of illustrations
Foreword, by Chogyam Trungpa, Rinpoche
Introduction, by Francesca Fremantle
Commenary
The Great Liberation Through Hearing in the Bardo
Inspiration-Prayers
Inspiration-Prayer calling on the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas for rescue
The main verses of the six Bardos
Inspiration-prayer for deliverance form the dangerous pathway of the Bardo
The Bardo prayer which protects from fear
Pronunciation of Sanskrit words
Glossary of Sanskirt words
Bibliography
Index

In this classic of the world's religious literature-traditionally read aloud to the dying-death and rebirth are seen as a process that offers the possibility of attaining ultimate liberation. This unabridged translation emphasizes the practical advice that the book offers to the living. The insightful commentary by the renowned meditation master Chogyam Trungpa explains what the scripture teaches about human psychology.

Contents

Editor's note
Foreword by Chogyam Trungpa
Introduction by Francesca Fremantle
Commentary by Chogyam Trungpa
The Tibetan Book of the Dead
Notes

> Babelio : https://www.babelio.com/livres/Trungpa-Le-livre-des-morts-tibetain/366950
> BIBLIOGRAPHIE de… LibrayThing: Auteurs > Chogyam Trungpa

> « Le Livre du Bardo décrit l’expérience de la mort en fonction des différents éléments
du corps, en allant de plus en plus profondément. Physiquement, on se sent lourd lorsque
l’élément terre se dissout en eau ; et, quand l’eau se dissout en feu, on se rend compte
que la circulation cesse de fonctionner. Quand le feu se dissout en air, toute sensation
de chaleur ou de croissance commence à s’évanouir et, quand l’air se dissout dans l’espace,
on perd le dernier contact avec le monde physique. Enfin, quand l’espace ou conscience se
dissout dans le nâdi central, lorsque tout s’est complètement introverti, vient la sensation
de la luminosité interne, d’une clarté intérieure. »
—Chogyam Trungpa, Le Livre des Morts Tibétain, Le Courrier du Livre, 1979.

In this classic scripture of Tibetan Buddhism—traditionally read aloud to the dying to help them attain liberation—death and rebirth are seen as a process that provides an opportunity to recognize the true nature of mind. This translation of The Tibetan Book of the Dead emphasizes the practical advice that the book offers to the living. The insightful commentary by Chögyam Trungpa, written in clear, concise language, explains what the text teaches us about human psychology. This book will be of interest to people concerned with death and dying, as well as those who seek greater spiritual understanding in everyday life.

Il celebre Libro tibetano dei morti - il Bardo Thötröl (o Thodol), libro di istruzione sulla natura dell'impermanenza, inteso per l'uso sia da parte dei morenti che dei vivi - appartiene a una serie di istruzioni sulla liberazione composte da Padmasambhava, il fondatore del buddhismo tibetano. In questa nuova versione i traduttori hanno voluto dare grande risalto all'applicazione pratica del testo, comunicandone lo spirito vitale e l'immediatezza, affinché il buddhismo tibetano possa fondarsi anche in Occidente come tradizione viva

A great book that provides an understanding of the highly important book of Tibetan Buddhism. More a guide to living than a book for the dying - hence the original name "Liberation Through Hearing." It is no great surprise that I spent more than 5 months with this book - and I intend on reading it a few more times to get a greater understanding.

Great quote from the book... "In relation to everyday life, the bardo of existence represents each new moment just as it is about to arise; every thought, every action, and every form of expression we make. It is conditioned by the past and in turn shapes the future. "½

The Liberation Through Hearing During The Intermediate State (Tibetan: bardo "liminality"; thodol as "liberation", sometimes translated as Liberation Through Hearing or Bardo Thodol is a funerary text. It is often referred to in the West by the more casual title, "Tibetan Book of the Dead," a name which draws a parallel with the ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead, another funerary text.

The Tibetan text describes, and is intended to guide one through, the experiences that the consciousness has after death, during the interval between death and the next rebirth. This interval is known in Tibetan as the bardo. The text also includes chapters on the signs of death, and rituals to undertake when death is closing in, or has taken place. It is the most internationally famous and widespread work of Tibetan Nyingma literature.

According to Tibetan tradition, the Liberation Through Hearing During the Intermediate State was composed in the 8th century by Padmasambhava, written down by his primary student, Yeshe Tsogyal, buried in the Gampo hills in central Tibet and subsequently discovered by a Tibetan terton, Karma Lingpa in the 12th century. There were variants of the book among different sects.

The Liberation Through Hearing During the Intermediate State is recited by Tibetan Buddhist lamas over a dying or recently deceased person, or sometimes over an effigy of the deceased. The name means literally "liberation through hearing in the intermediate state."

The Liberation Through Hearing During the Intermediate State differentiates the intermediate state between lives into three bardos:

1.The chikhai bardo or "bardo of the moment of death," which features the experience of the "clear light of reality," or at least the nearest approximation of which one is spiritually capable.
2.The chonyid bardo or "bardo of the experiencing of reality," which features the experience of visions of various Buddha forms (or, again, the nearest approximations of which one is capable).
3.The sidpa bardo or "bardo of rebirth," which features karmically impelled hallucinations which eventually result in rebirth. (Typically imagery of men and women passionately entwined.)
The Liberation Through Hearing During the Intermediate State also mentions three other bardos: those of "life" (or ordinary waking consciousness), of "dhyana" (meditation), and of "dream" (the dream state during normal sleep).

Together these "six bardos" form a classification of states of consciousness into six broad types. Any state of consciousness can form a type of "intermediate state", intermediate between other states of consciousness. Indeed, one can consider any momentary state of consciousness a bardo, since it lies between our past and future existences; it provides us with the opportunity to experience reality, which is always present but obscured by the projections and confusions that are due to our previous unskillful actions.

An interesting, and informative, read.

Amazon Review:

Imagine that as you leave your body at death, you hear the voice of a loved one whispering in your ear explanations of everything you see in the world beyond. Unlike other translations of Bar do thos grol (or The Tibetan Book of the Dead), Robert Thurman's takes literally the entire gamut of metaphysical assumptions. Thurman translates Bar do thos grol as The Great Book of Natural Liberation through Understanding in the Between. It is one of many mortuary texts of the Nyingma sect of Tibetan Buddhism and is commonly recited to or by a person facing imminent death. Thurman reproduces it for this purpose, explaining in some depth the Tibetan conception of postmortem existence. Over as many as 12 days, the deceased person is given explanations of what he or she sees and experiences and is guided through innumerable visions of the realms beyond to reach eventual liberation, or, failing that, a safe rebirth. Like a backpacker's guide to a foreign land, Thurman's version is clear, detailed, and sympathetic to the inexperienced voyager. It includes background and supplementary information, and even illustrations (sorry, no maps). Don't wait until the journey has begun. Every page should be read and memorized well ahead of time. --Brian Bruya