A Cloudburst of Blessings

Of crucial importance in the life of anyone who wishes to follow the path of secret mantra, the occasion of a tantric empowerment stands out as a pivotal moment of guidance in which the stages and direction of the path to be followed are made clear. All too often, however, practitioners in the western world have been forced to remain little more than spectators, patiently witnessing the profound initiation rites of their own ‘vajra empowerments’ as outsiders, because the rites are conducted in a foreign language and in a manner that is not at all easy to understand. Now, in order to encourage full participation by English-speaking disciples who wish to take the mantra path to heart, a complete series of ritual empowerments for the deity Vajrakila in the tradition of the Northern Treasures has been translated and annotated. Bringing joy to disciples, may all confusion be dispelled and may the clear light of wisdom illuminate the world! Together with the Tibetan texts translated herein, this book contains a number of teachings from the mahasiddhas of India with regard to the three special codes of tantric conduct: that of a skull-bearing ascetic, the vow of the consort, and the conduct of a madman. Violating all social niceties and worldly conventions, these radical and transgressive instructions remind us of the words of kLong-chen rab-’byams-pa, “When one sees the reality of existence, one spontaneously bursts out laughing!”