Tummo Initiation

The Dharma of Tummo

        I digress. The third Dharma that has been transmitted from The Supreme and Unsurpassable Mahamudra of Liberation is the Dharma of Tummo concentration I just mentioned. Tummo is the Tibetan word for “inner fire.” Many who practice Tibetan Buddhism practice a form of this. I have even met people who are not Buddhist say they have experienced a sort of spontaneous inner fire like this. I believe there are Bon³² masters who teach a form of tummo as well. There are many workshops being offered by those who promise the benefits of tummo, but they are not what we are talking about here. One of my students told me of learning Reiki Tummo from an Asian master, and while she experienced the movement of energy that made her feel good, it was not the sort of practice that is offered in The Supreme and Unsurpassable Mahamudra of Liberation. We have all heard of the legendary holy men of the Himalayas like Milarepa who can live in mountain caves for years under very cold conditions with no source of external heat and who wear very little or no clothing. There have also been televised documentaries of nuns and others drying wet shawls under subzero conditions using only their body heat. This is but a small fraction of what is possible with this kind of Dharma practice. However, today it is very difficult to see a true manifestation of tummo power.

        Tummo concentration is a very high-level Buddha Dharma meditation. It is a rare holy Dharma indispensable for cultivating certain other high Dharmas and the accomplishment of the rainbow body. Regardless of what illness or disease one has, practicing tummo can eliminate it completely. One can even eliminate karmic obstructions in others with this Dharma. The perfect accomplishment in the practice of this Dharma combined with Vajra Substitute Body Meditation can lead to the accomplishment of becoming a Bodhisattva at the twelfth stage or higher. So, you can see that this is a very important Dharma for attaining liberation.

        A vajra brother, Venerable Xiangge Qiongwa Rinpoche, explained the methods and stages of tummo very well in an article he wrote about making the inner-tantric Daba Buqiong and Black Jewel (Kazhuo Ande) Medicine Pills that require the practice of tummo concentration.³³ First, he explained that there are two types of practices of tummo concentration. One is Yoga Tummo from Tibetan Esoteric Buddhism. The other is the Corpse Pose Tummo regarded as “the King of Tummo” from The Supreme and Unsurpassable Mahamudra of Liberation. When practicing tummo, the higher the body temperature can be raised to, the higher the realization power of the practitioner. The normal body temperature of humans is between 98.6°F and 99.5°F. When the body temperature reaches a level between 104°F and 105.8°F, one is regarded as having a high fever. A temperature above 106°F can cause danger to one’s life. However, practitioners of tummo concentration can attain much higher temperatures than that. My former roommate, Akou Lamo Rinpoche, practiced the Tibetan form while another vajra brother, Kaichu Rinpoche practiced the Corpse Pose form. Both were able to give demonstrations of their ability and have been videotaped using modern heat sensing technology to show their levels of accomplishment. Although a practitioner does not normally do this, they both were willing to risk losing their powers so as to help others understand the power and awesomeness of the true Buddha Dharma. Akou Lamo personally told me that her master in Tibet had warned her that she would lose her ability to practice if she told anyone what she did. I had suspected for some time that she was secretly practicing this Dharma and saw her health improve dramatically. However, as a true Bodhisattva, she was only concerned about helping living beings and did not hesitate to demonstrate her skills, if that would help others.

        Ven. Xiangge Qiongwa Rinpoche went on to describe tummo practice to say that “the realization power from tummo concentration is defined by four steps. The first step is called the Initial Warmth Step. At this step, body temperature can be raised to between 115°F and 130°F but the ability of curing illnesses is not strong yet. The second step is the Joy of Heat from Meditation Step, with the body temperature raised to between 130°F and 150°F. The heat of tummo can be released at certain locations of the body to provide a relatively strong ability of curing illnesses. However, there are five illnesses that cannot be cured by this ability. Anyway, one will rarely become ill with the accomplishment at this step. The third step is the Step of Emptiness and Existence at High Temperature. The body temperature can be raised to between 150°F and 200°F. The heat of tummo can be distributed to any part of the body to heal illness by oneself, with the exception of two illnesses. The practitioner can collect the dark karma generated daily due to ignorance and burn it away with tummo. Such a practitioner can also move the heat of tummo outside of his body to cure illness and eliminate hindrance for other people or to subdue demons and evil spirits. The fourth step is the magnificent Joy at Extreme Temperature. The temperature will exceed 200°F and the heat of tummo will spread to the entire body. Master Milarepa used his realization power of this step to ignite his own body to attain the accomplishment of the Sambhogakaya and Nirmanakaya.”

        When I first witnessed Kaichu Rinpoche demonstrate his tummo power, I sensed that something was going wrong. The Buddha Master was quite concerned, and we were all sprinkled liberally with nectar water. What I found out later through translation was that the rinpoche had taken his body temperature very rapidly to almost 200°F, and the Buddha was concerned that he might reach this fourth stage. Something very wonderful happened after that. A very large and beautiful bright red seed character appeared mysteriously on the rinpoche’s naked chest. My Dharma brother Kaichu Rinpoche is also accomplished in the Xian Liang Great Perfection and Vajra Body Substitution Meditation Dharmas.

        So, we can see that the Dharmas that are being made available from The Supreme and Unsurpassable Mahamudra of Liberation are the very highest Dharmas in the world today and indeed have the power to liberate living beings. Needless to say, I was overjoyed to learn that I would receive the preliminary practices and begin to learn tummo.

        First was the Tummo Concentration Empowerment to remove my karmic obstructions. A holy being placed the middle finger of his right hand on my throat. He held it there for a long time. We both chanted mantras. Suddenly it was like a very sharp fire shot out of his finger and entered my body. I don’t know how long it lasted, but I know I screamed—the pain was very intense. This whole empowerment was videotaped and is included in several videos, including one showing how the Xuanfa Institute in Sanger, California, became empowered by H.H. Dorje Chang Buddha III as the Fourth Vajra Throne in the World. Yet it was like the Dharma Wheel empowerment I described earlier, the pain was also no-pain. I can’t explain that, any better, but my Buddha Master told me this was the precursor to the Dharmakaya, to experiencing your original nature. I had experienced and seen this samadhi fire before during other forms of empowerment and initiation, but not like this. I only learned much later that the holy being performing that ceremony was Venerable Wangzha Shangzun.

        Late the next day the Tummo Dharma was transmitted. I must not tell any of the details of these transmissions. I vowed that I would not, but I must say that it is a wonderful practice that I wish all living beings could learn. I am sharing this with you readers so that you can also aspire to achieving liberation with the myriad of practices available in The Supreme and Unsurpassable Mahamudra of Liberation.

        This empowerment fire left a triangular scar that appeared to be hollow—an upside-down right triangle with the long side on the left and point at the bottom. Three other rinpoches also received this Dharma at that time. We all received it at different locations on our bodies. I am assuming that was due to our different karmic conditions. One had a huge mark on the top of his head, another on his forehead and the third on his upper lip. I have been blessed with so many of these types of initiations, but this had been the most dramatic and powerful to date.

        I already described another empowerment that I had received from my Buddha Master that caused a diamond shape to form on my crown. I have never been given an explanation. When I asked about it, my Buddha Master just smiled, but I am sure it is part of His plan to help me become accomplished. Perhaps this is part of His Phoenix strategy. What I find so amazing about my Buddha Master is how he uses such different techniques to cause each of us disciples to mature in the Dharma. We all have such different karmic conditions and are so different and so our training is likewise very different. This has confused me in the past, but I am beginning to realize the magnificence and wisdom of this approach. We have become so accustomed to thinking that there is a generic solution to what is an infinitely more complex situation. I only hope that I can develop the same compassion and understanding of the different karmic needs of my students and gain the wisdom to know how to help them.