Nyingtik Yabshi

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Nyingthig Yabshi (snying thig ya bzhi) (སྙིང་ཐིག་ཡ་བཞི) - the Four-fold Heart

Essence

The Nyingthig Yabshi, one of the most famous set of Dzogchen scriptures, was compiled by
Longchenpa to condense the two primary lineages of Dzogchen practice in Tibet, those of
Padmasambhava and Vimalamitra. Together, this collection of texts is considered the core
teaching on the practice of Dzogchen, and in particular the Heart Essence teachings of the
Instruction Class.

The teachings of Padmasambhava on the Innermost Unexcelled Cycle are contained in two
volumes and are referred to as the Khandro Nyingthig (mkha' 'gro snying thig.
Longchenpa's commentaries on this cycle of teachings comprise three further volumes,
which are known as the Khandro Yangthig (mkha' 'gro yang thig).

The teachings of the Vimalamitra's lineage, which unite the two aspects of Innermost
Unexcelled Cycle — the explanatory lineage with scriptures and the hearing lineage without
scriptures, are contained in four volumes, known as the Vima Nyingthig (bi ma snying thig.
Longchenpa's 51 commentaries on this cycle of teachings comprise two volumes, which are
referred to as the Lama Yangthig (bla ma yang thig).

Longchenpa also wrote two volumes of commentary that relate to both lineages, entitled
Zabmo Yangthig (zab mo yang thig).

Explaining the content of this collection of teachings, the 3rd Dzogchen Rinpoche writes:

"The import of the three classes, the nine-fold expanse, and all the other key instructions of
the Great Perfection were condensed by the Kashmiri scholar Vimalamitra and codified in
the Secret Heart Essence, the Sangwa Nyingtik. These teachings came to be known as The
Vast Heart Essence of Vimalamitra, or Vima Nyingtik. The Heart Essence of the Ḍākinīs , or
Khandro Nyingtik, was codified by Padmakara, the master from Oḍḍiyāṇa. His teachings
came to be known as The Profound Heart Essence of Padma, or Pema Nyingtik. The
omniscient Longchenpa then wrote short commentaries on the first of these and more
extensive commentaries on the second. The former is referred to as The Quintessential Wish-
fulfilling Jewel, which is also known as The Guru’s Quintessence, or Lama Yangtik, and the
latter as The Ḍākinī’s Quintessence, or Khandro Yangtik. All of these teachings were then
gathered into one compilation, thus condensing both the transmitted teachings and
treasures. This collection is referred to as the Four-fold Heart Essence, the Nyingtik Yabshi."
(from shing rta bzang po, p. 257) CJD
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Contents

Publication Data
klong chen rab ‘byams (compiler). snying thig ya bzhi. Reprint of the ‘dzom ‘brug pa
chos sgar edition. Darjeeling: Talung Tsetrul Pema Wangyal, 1976.
These teachings have been input and are being prepared for publication by the
Nitartha Input Center, under the direction of Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, along with
the collected works of Longchenpa.

In Translation

Internal Links

Alternate Translations
Four Branches of Heart Essence
Four Heart-Essences
Nyingtig Ya Shi

External Links

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