Five practices of enlightenment without meditation

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The five practices of enlightenment without meditation (Tib. མ་སྒོམ་སངས་རྒྱས་ཆོས་ལྔ་, ma gom sangye chö nga, Wyl. ma sgom sangs rgyas chos lnga) are sometimes given as:

  • liberation through seeing (chakras) (Tib. tongdrol, Wyl. mthong grol);
  • liberation on hearing (mantras and dharanis) (Tib. tödrol, Wyl. thos grol);
  • liberation by tasting (amrita) (Tib. nyongdrol, Wyl. myong grol);
  • liberation by touch[1] (mudra) (Tib. takdrol, Wyl. btags grol); and
  • liberation by recollection or thinking (which includes the practice of phowa) (Tib. drendrol)[2]

Alternative Lists

  • liberation by touching (Tib. regdrol, Wyl. reg grol) is sometimes added to the list, making six methods that lead to liberation.[3]

Notes

  1. or 'wearing'
  2. Also called liberation through meditation (Tib. gomdrol, Wyl. bsgom grol)
  3. Source: Songtsen: Kyabje Kangyur Rinpoche’s Tagdröl yantra. Link here

Further Reading

  • Gayley, Holly. "Soteriology of the Senses in Tibetan Buddhism" in Numen 54 (2007) 459–499
  • James Gentry, Liberation through sensory encounters in Tibetan Buddhist practice, Revue d’Etudes Tibétaines, no. 50, 2019.