“Mother of all the Victors, endowed with all supreme aspects,
The ‘face’ of Vajravārāhi, symbolising the signs and meaning
With the certain knowing from seeing self-awareness itself
May the primordial wisdom vajra descend here now!” (Tr. Adele Tomlin (2020))
རྒྱལ་ཀུན་སྐྱེད་ཡུམ་རྣམ་ཀུན་མཆོག་ལྡན་པའི། བརྡ་དོན་རྟགས་ཀྱི་རྡོ་རྗེ་ཕག་མོའི་ཞལ།
རང་རིག་ཉིད་དུ་མཐོང་བའི་ངེས་ཤེས་ཀྱིས། རྡོ་རྗེའི་ཡེ་ཤེས་རྟེན་འདིར་དབབ་དུ་གསོལ།
“Because he had recited the mantra of Vajrayogini in his former life, in this life Vajrayogini in the form of an ordinary woman appeared before the ācārya Abhayā. Because of Abhayā’s steadfast attitude of a strict monk, he did not accept this “ordinary” woman. (His) great teachers, such at Kasoripa and others, told him that he had acted wrongly by not availing himself of the method through which one could realize the innate primordial wisdom (sahaja jnana). On many occasions he prayed to Vajrayogini. The goddess appeared to him in a dream, and said: Now, in this life you will not be united with me. But, if you were to compose many commentaries on profound Tantras and many rites of Maṇḍalas, you would soon become {(18b)} a fortunate one.” –from Origin of Vajrāvalī (Blue Annals, Part 14)
Introduction
Due to merit, devotion and karma, I was fortunate to be sponsored to visit Bhutan this month, and so was able to attend the magnificent three-day Kālacakra empowerment (on 12th-14th November 2025) bestowed for the first time in Thimphu, Bhutan by HH 70th Je Khenpo, Jigme Tulku Chodra . The Global Peace Prayer Event was hosted prior to that from 4th to 10th November. Although, I had originally booked to arrive in time for that too, I decided to delay my trip for various reasons to the 10th November in time for the empowerment and teachings and other Dharma activities.
This new article, the first in a series of forthcoming articles inspired by the Bhutanese Kālacakra 2025 event (and as an offering for yesterday’s Dakini Day) is an introduction and explanation of the lineage tradition of the Vajravārāhi/Abhayākaragupta lineage of Kālacakra that was bestowed in Bhutan in 2025, passed on from the Indian mahasiddha and scholar, Abhayākaragupta who is said to have received the Kālacakra lineage and practice, as well as encouragement and authorisation to teach it from the Sambhogakāya Buddha form of Vajravārahi. So even though, the main teachers invited to the Global Peace Prayer event were notably and predominantly all-male, with the exception of one or two women, the Kālacakra lineage was a unique and unusual “female” one, not usually given (see below).
As many who follow and read my work know, I have done substantive published translation and academic level research on the Jonang and Shangpa Kagyu master, Je Tāranātha and Kālacakra before, culminating in translations of Je Tāranātha’s texts, such as my book on his Commentary on the Heart Sutra (2018) with foreword by Professor Matthew Kapstein, Meaningful to See, Hundreds of Blazing Lights, and a book publication of Chariot that Transports to the Four Kāyas by Bamda Geleg Gyatso (a genuine non-sectarian master of all four main lineages), with foreword by Dr. Cyrus Stearns. As well as an Ashoka Grant funded project and publication on the generation stage of Innate Kālacakra. I recently published a freely downloadable e-book of the online research and translations I have published on Kālacakra, see here.
The Kālacakra lineage tradition of the Jonang and Karma Kagyu (bestowed these days) is predominantly that of the Jonang/Rwa Lotsawa lineage preserved and bestowed by Tibetan masters such as Kunkhyen Dolpopa, 3rd Gyalwang Karmapa, Je Tāranātha and Jamgon Kongtrul Lodro Thaye. I have also written about the Kālacakra origins and sources from India to Tibet and how they originated in Tibet via Kagyu mainly (Indian Mahasiddhas, Tilopa seems to have been one of the main lineage sources and Nāropa be the author of the Kālacakra Tantra), but also Sakya, Jonang and Nyingma. The Gelugpa hijacking of Kālacakra for political and social reasons in Tibet and then in exile is now documented by myself and other researchers. Thus, the Bhutan Kālacakra 2025 event was not only unique and magnificent in terms of its scale, size and stunning Kālacakra mandala, huge statue above the mandala and vast thangka (which I will write about in Part II), but also in terms of the lineage and historical traditions.
Although this was my third trip to Bhutan, this was the first time I had ever attended HH Je Khenpo’s teachings, or received an empowerment, and was deeply impressed by his commanding voice, wise and clear teachings, as well his incredible stamina and energy. Je Khenpo sat (almost without any break) for hours at a time, delivering the teachings and empowerment from 9am to around 3 to 4pm. Considering his age as well, this was clearly a sign of his bodhicitta flowing and realisations. As Je Khenpo’s teachings on each of the three days, were profound, yet wise, clear and accessible, for the next article (Part II), I will go into more detail (and provide a full transcript) of some of the important insights he shared about Kālacakra, the lineage, and Vajrayāna empowerments, teachings and practice in general. Je Khenpo did not share any secret teachings, for reasons he also explained, and so on the third and final day of the empowerment, there were few if any instructions at all, with it being guided on the secret level to suitable recipient vessels. So there was nothing revealed that is restricted and so on and he explained this very clearly to all who listened.
I conclude this first article with sharing my experience and photos of a karmically auspicious and timely meeting with Bhutanese female tulku, Dorje Phagmo Khandro Rinpoche (the only female tulku teacher on the main podium with the eminent male tulkus during the predominantly all-male event,). A meeting that arose out of the Kālacakra empowerment and Vajravārāhi visualisation on the final day and end of the empowerment, and a spontaneous gift of one of the most stunning Vajravārāhi thangkas I have ever seen (which caused me to spontaneously break down sobbing with suprise, joy and devotion), as it was the same stunning painting I had spontaneously posted on my Facebook page the previous day! I had wanted to meet Khandro Rinpoche for some years and so the timing, place and experience was like a magical culmination of karma, devotion to the deity, aspirations and merit coming to fruition. It also inspired me with intense devotion and respect for Dorje Phagmo Khandro la’s wisdom, generosity and lack of attachment to material objects.
As I will write about in Part II, although I was nervous about coming to Bhutan again for a variety of reasons, my experience at the Kālacakra empowerment and in Bhutan was blissful and karmically flowing with blessings galore. The Bhutanese people I met were polite, kind, gentle, helpful, friendly, and accommodating. And even though I did not request it, and was not an official guest, when arriving each day just before the empowerment was due to start, volunteers swiftly led me to a front row seat right in front of and next to the sand mandala and statue of Kālacakra, and directly opposite the seats of the invited guest Rinpoches and HH Je Khenpo.
The event was also highly symbolic in moving away from the contemporary (and false) association of Kālacakra with the Dalai Lamas/Gelugpa, and a return to the original lineages and non-sectarian purpose of Kālacakra (more on that in the next article!). For my 2025 article on the founding of Bhutan and its roots in the Mongolian-Gelugpa sectarian violence against the Drugpa Kagyu Tibet and Ladakh, see here.
In such a degenerate age of conflict, violence and corruption of the sacred Buddha Dharma for worldly reasons, the existence of a country and culture which continues to promote and preserve the Shakyamuni Buddha’s profound message of peace, compassion, love, emptiness, bodhicitta, Buddha Nature and attaining full awakening is like a light in the darkness. In that respect, then the Bhutan Kālacakra 2025, will be remembered in 21st Century history as a uniquely significant non-sectarian beacon of light, hope and respect for Bhutan, Buddha Dharma, Vajrayāna teachings and practice, like no other before it. This first article is thus offered to the fully enlightened deities, Dharma King patrons and Vajrayana masters of Bhutan, the Jonang, Kagyu and Nyingma Kālacakra masters (past and present) and dedicated to all beings to attaining the full awakened state of Vajravārāhi and Kālacakra.
Music? Vajrayogini mantra oṃ oṃ oṃ sarvabuddhaḍākiṇīye vajra varṇanīye vajra vairocanīye hūṃ hūṃ hūṃ phaṭ phaṭ phaṭ svāhā, Flying Dakini by Yungchen Lhamo and Naked Spirit by (feat. Djivan Gasparyan) · Sainkho Namtchylak.
Written by Adele Tomlin, 15th November 2025.
The seventeen main lineages of the Six Vajra yogas (of the completion stage) of Kālacakra from India to Tibet
As the Jonang and Kālacakra master, Je Tāranātha taught in his famous work on Kālacakra, Hundreds of Blazing Lights (see my translation of that here), there are generally considered to be seventeen main lineages of Kālacakra coming from the Indian sub-continent (now called India, Nepal and Afghanistan) into Tibet. For my English translation of that section, see here. Some of these lineages like the Tsami Karma Kagyu lineage, seem to have been lost, however, the main ones bestowed and given for the past one hundred years or so outside of Tibet, have been from the Rwa Translator lineage, including that of the Jonang, Karma Kagyu and Gelugpas. However, as I wrote here in Kālacakra and the Dalai Lamas/Gelugpas, the Kālacakra was “hijacked” by the Gelugpas from the 20th Century onwards (starting with the 9th Panchen Lama) for political power and social/entertainment reasons. Even to this day, the Gelugpas do not hold the full lineage of Rwa tradition Kālacakra completion stage practices.
The Vajravārāhi Kālacakra lineage from Indian master, Abhayākaragupta
The lineage of Kālacakra bestowed by HH Je Khenpo in Bhutan, November 2025, was that of Inidan scholar and siddha, Abhayākaragupta. According to historical source texts, the Last Kālacakrapada, and Śrī Nā-ro-pa (transmitted the Kālacakra teachings) to Mañjukīrti and Abhayākaragupta (Tibetan: Jigme Jungne Bepa). As I wrote in my research e-book, Innate Kalacakra:
” It is said that Abhayākaragupta wrote the Entering the Kālacakra (Dus ‘khor la ‘jug) in 1071, that was translated by Abhayākara himself. Abhayākaragupta was a Buddhist monk, scholar and tantric master (vajracarya) and the abbot of Vikramashila. He was born in the city of Gaur, West Bengal, in Eastern India, and is thought to have been influential in the late 11th-early 12th century CE and died in 1125.”
Abhayākaragupta was a significant figure in the transmission and development of the Kālacakra tantra and other tantric systems. His contributions to the Kālacakra tradition include:
- Translation and Transmission: Abhayākaragupta was involved in the translation of key Kalachakra texts into Tibetan, sometimes working with Tibetan translators (lotsawas) such as Nyen Lotsāwa.
- Lineage Holder: He is mentioned as a holder in one of the primary Kālacakra transmission lineages that entered Tibet, receiving the system from masters like Mañjukīrti.
- Authoritative Commentaries: While the Vimalaprabhā is the primary commentary on the Abridged Kālacakra Tantra, Abhayākaragupta authored numerous important treatises that synthesized and systematized tantric practice and philosophy, including the Vajrāvalī and Niṣpannayogāvalī, which are major works on tantric iconography and ritual that cover the Kālacakra mandala and its associated deities[i].
- Scholarly Defence: He was known for his profound understanding of the Kālacakra doctrines and successfully defended them in debates against other scholars who initially questioned the system.
The result of “denying Vajrayogini as a method” : The origin of the Vajrāvali [Vajra Garland] of Abhayākaragupta
Extracted from the Blue Annals (part 14, chapter 10, pages 669-670) by Go Lotsawa Zhonnu Pal (1392-1481):
“The ācārya Abhaya who was endowed with a mind free of illusions in regard to any of the systems of the Prajnapāramita or Tantra, from the Lesser sciences (rig gnas phra mo) to the Anuttara yoga Tantra. Because he had recited the mantra of Vajrayogini in his former life, in this life Vajrayogini in the form of an ordinary woman appeared before the ācārya Abhaya. Because of his steadfast attitude of a strict monk, he did not admit this woman. (His) great teachers, such at Kasoripa and others, told him that he had acted wrongly by not availing himself of the method through which one could realize the innate primordial wisdom (sahaja jnana).
On many occasions he prayed to Vajrayogini. The goddess appeared to him in a dream, and said: Now, in this life you will not be united with me. But, if you were to compose many commentaries on profound Tantras and many rites of Maṇḍalas, you would soon become {(18b)} a fortunate one. Following her instructions, he composed the srīsaṃpuṭatantra-rājaṭikāmnāya-manjarīnāma, the Śrī Buddha-kāpalamahātantrā-rajaṭikā abhayapaḍhati nāma, and the Vajravali nāma maṇḍalasādhana (dkyil ‘khor gyi cho ga rdo rje phren ba).
Now, it is said {R1047} that when the mahā pannddita from Kashmira (Sakyaśrībhadra) bestowed on three occasions the initiation of the Vajravali, on the first two occasions he performed all (the mandala rites) accompanied by rites of the Anuttara Tantra (only), and on the last occasion he said: The Tibetans are very suspicious! Had I not divided (these mandalas) according to the different classes of Tantras, they would not accept the initiations (through their suspicious nature). Therefore he divided them according to the classes of Tantras and thus bestowed the initiations.
Chag Lotsawa (Chag lo tsa ba chos rje dpal) heard it from Ravindra. He maintained the point of view, that by being initiated into the twenty eight mandalas one could obtain (the initiations) of all the others. The lo tsa ba Grags pa rgyal mtshan obtained it from Bhūmiśrī, the mahapannddita of Kashmira. He used to bestow initiations, having arranged them into 45 mannddalas.
The Vajravali having been translated by many translators/lotsawas, there exist many different versions (of it). Nowadays most people favour the translation by Chag Lotsawa.
From The Chapter on the origin of Vajrāvali (rdo rje phren ba) and other texts.
Abhayākaragupta’s work helped integrate the complex Kālacakra teachings within the broader framework of Mahāyāna Buddhism, developing the Mantrayana-Madhyamaka doctrine to its final Indic form. For example, perhaps the most important of the original Indian sources on the drawing of the Kālacakra maṇḍala, and one that is important to all the Tibetan traditions, is the Vajrāvalī-nāma-maṇḍalopāyikā (དཀྱིལ་འཁོར་གྱི་ཆོ་ག་རྡོ་རྗེ་ཕྲེང་བ་) of Abhayākaragupta. This text gives the details of how to prepare for the purpose of giving empowerment, 26 maṇḍalas[ii].
Many Tibetans have elaborated on the methods given in the Vajrāvalī, and the tradition is very much still alive, particularly the transmission of the Kālacakra, although it is said some frown on the Vajrāvalī Kālacakra because it allows the use of a painted rather than powder maṇḍala. This is considered by critics to be improper. However, Je Khenpo also referred to this issue in his teachings during the Kālacakra empowerment and gave a clear explanation of it, which I will write about later.
How the Abhayākaragupta/Vajrāvalī Kālacakra lineage came into Bhutan
A month before the Kālacakra empowerment in Bhutan, on October 12 2025, HE Laytshog Lopen Rinpoche gave a brief introduction to the origin of the initiation in Bhutan, and briefly refers to the Abhayākaragupta lineage in it (see video here). Although Laytshog Lopen does not give much detail about Abhayākaragupta, he describes how the lineage came from the Shambhala Kings, to India (mentioning Silupa (Kālacakrapāda the Elder, in particular as important), then to Tibet and how the lineage came into Bhutan via Abhayākaragupta. It then was passed down that lineage to Zhabdrung Ngawang Namgyel (considered to be the founding father of Bhutan) and continued in Bhutan via the great Siddha, Drupon Sonam Zangpo to the present Abbot of Bhutan, HH Je Khenpo.
Lopen Rinpoche also explained that:
“To further promote and provide Kālachakra tradition and initiations, recently the central monastic body under the guidance of the Bhutanese king, have opened an Institute of Advanced Vajrayana Institute at the upper campus. There are many curriculums and slivers that are based on Kālacakra initiations and traditions. So this initiative is primarily focused to preserve, promote and practice or to keep alive the Kālacakra initiations that have been passed down through generation to generation until to this our present generation.”
So Bhutan is now clearly a place and centre for excellence in study, practice and research in Kālacakra. Also, Niraj Kumar an Indian Kālacakra translator and researcher (whom I also interviewed for my podcast on Kālacakra in February 2024), was also interviewed (in five parts) by the Bhutanese as part of the preliminary events to the Kālacakra 2025, see videos here.
Karmic ripenings/descent of blessings as Vajravarahi in the Kālacakra empowerment, that led to a first time meeting with Dorje Phagmo Rinpoche Khandro and receiving the most beautiful, priceless and spontaneous Dorje Phagmo blessings gift in my life
While in Bhutan so many magical karmic ripenings happened, it was like a dream come true, more on that in the next article on the Kālacakra teachings by Je Khenpo and the empowerment. However, I will share one such ripening here that happened after the final day empowerment that led me to meet Dorje Phagmo Rinpoche (the sole woman tulku at the Global Peace Prayer event line-up) and receive not only an incredible meeting with her (more on that soon) but also was spontaneously given a gift by her that is certainly one of the most beautiful, blessed and “priceless” gifts I have ever received in this lifetime.
On the final day of the Kālacakra empowerment, Je Khenpo instructed attendees to visualise themselves as Vajravarahi alone, and then go into union with the deity, Chakrasamvara. As I have the empowerment from qualified lineage teachers for both these empowerments, I did the self-generation and felt the descent of the primordial awareness blessing of Vajravarahi descend and enter me. Hissing and breathing the wisdom fire my head naturally flung back, when I opened my eyes and looked in front, and saw the large video screens around the empowerment grounds were showing me in full blissful mental meditaative union. It was hard not to laugh out loud, at the perfect timing of the deity, as up until then I had been trying to be low key, and not have photos taken.
In any case, that vajra experience led me yesterday (14th November) to post a new profile photo on the Dakini Translations Facebook page, of Vajravarahi for Dakini Day. I looked online and saw a new one I had not seen or posted before, with blonde/golden hair that was vibrantly beautiful and energised. It resonated with me deeply. When I posted it, I did not include the source page it was from and so a man then posted a comment who worked for the Dorje Phagmo Foundation in Bhutan, stating that I should state the source. As he was correct to say that (although another person commented that he found the comment rude and unhelpful), I looked again and saw the image the Dorje Phagmo Foundation in Thimphu and so cited it as a source, and removed the comments!
However, that direct comment seemed to be a message from the deity herself, as it then led me to contact the Foundation and to request a meeting and question and answer session with Dorje Phagmo Khandro Rinpoche, the sole woman on the podium with the male tulkus at the Global Peace Prayer event! This was arranged an hour or so after requesting it, and so karma seemed to be in full, magical flow!
When I arrived at the Foundation centre, a man introduced himself as having posted the comments and pointed to the Vajravarahi thangka hanging up behing the Khandro la, the same as the one I had posted and he had commented on! He explained it had been painted and gifted to Khandro by an American follower. So it was wonderful to see such a stunning painting in “the flesh” so to speak.
During the meeting and when I started filming of some videos, see one here, I mentioned doing the video with the same Dorje Phagmo thangka in the shot, and then she suddenly said to a man who was the Director of the FOundation, that she wanted to give me the thangka, and that he should give it me there and then, and to also take photos of her giving it to me. I was so touched, surprised, moved, and inspired by this incredibly generous spontaneous gesture and blessing, not only due to the beauty of the thangka (which I loved), but also due to who gave it and how! It is easily one of the most priceless and beautiful gifts I have ever received and will cherish and practice with it until I pass away. I have also never owned or bought a Vajravarahi thangka but have often thought about doing so. I could never find one quite right in the shops, and did not have enough money to commission an expert one.
Thus Dorje Phagmo Khandro’s gift was also like a gift from the deity herself. I was so touched by the blessing that I immediately and spontaneously broke down in tears and sobbed with inspiration, gratitude and joy! Although I try to write about the experience here, to inspire others about how karma, merit, wisdom come together in such magical and unexpected ways, it is an inexpressible experience and one whose magic imprints itself on the mindstream in profound and lasting ways. It also revealed the wisdom of Dorje Phagmo Khandro and her amazing lack of attachment to material objects, but also generous and giving too.
I will write more about Dorje Phagmo tulku, and the Dorje Phagmo Foundation in Bhutan soon, in another article, and upload two Q & A video reels I made with her. However, in brief, Khandro immediately struck me as direct, kind, fierce, slightly wrathful, welcoming and humble. She had no pomp or ceremony about her at all, no vanity or attention to her appearance or clothing. Like a drubthob yogini. I immediately felt “at home” with her.
Here, for the time being, I share some photos (see below) of this karmically auspicious and timely meeting below for others to feel inspired by and rejoice. Thus it seemed even more appropriate to start the series of articles on Bhutan Kālacakra and events 2025, with one about the Vajravarahi lineage of Kālacakra and the meeting with Vajravarahi in person!
I also bought a stunning Green Tāra artwork available on canvas, or as a framed picture from the Dorje Phagmo Foundation (see photo), which is a special Tāra tradition practised by Dorje Phagmo Rinpoche’s nuns (I was told). Also the shop there had some lovely kashmere wool shawls in the monastic maroon Dharma colour, that Bhutanese people traditionally wear for Dharma teachings and events. Normally, I do not feel comfortable wearing “Dharma clothes/robes” and prefer to be more like an ordinary hidden yogini (ha ha), the timing and fact the money from the sales goes to support Khandro Dorje Phagmo and the Foundation, as well as the fact I needed a shawl as the evenings were quite cold in Bhutan, unlike the very sunny days, I bought one too.
Also, I bought lovely rose quartz mala (see photo) just after the first day of the Kālacakra empowerment. I had been wanting to buy such a rose quartz mala in SE Asia, where I was staying before going to Bhutan, but could not find one, then this one miraculously manifested in the right place, right time, and right price (ha ha) fulfilling my Dharma wishes.
Sources
Blue Annals, by Go Lotsawa Zhonnu Pel, Part 14: The Origin of Vajrāvali.
Endnotes
[i] Here is an explanation from David Reigle on the Kalacakra website (http://www.kalacakra.org/k_seed.htm): “Abhayākara-gupta in his Niṣpannayogāvalī describes 26 Buddhist tantric maṇḍalas for visualization in meditation, of which Kālacakra is the 26th. He tries to give the heart seed-syllable (hṛd-bīja) for the primary deity of each of the 26 maṇḍalas. For Kālacakra, he gives this as hūṃ (long u), as found in almost all known Sanskrit manuscripts and Tibetan blockprints. Benoytosh Bhattacharyya’s 1949 printed Sanskrit edition of this text, based on three Sanskrit manuscripts, also gives it as hūṃ (long u) in accordance with them. Then in 2004 a new critical edition of the Niṣpannayogāvalī was published, based on more and older Sanskrit manuscripts, and also several Tibetan blockprints. The editor, Yong-hyun Lee, calls attention to the problem of the heart seed-syllables, especially in regard to Kālacakra, in his Introduction, p. xv:
“Probably the most formidable textual problem of the NPY [Niṣpannayogāvalī] is restoring the correct seed-syllables and heart-mantras which are prescribed mostly at the end of each chapter of the NPY. A satisfactory resolution of this problem seems at first sight to depend on their identification in the tantras related to the NPY. Even the use of all available Sanskrit MSS and the Tibetan translations would not help us without this work. There are, however, two problems for this identification: First, it is not easy to find them in the tantras; second, there is no guarantee they are the correct seed-syllables and heart-mantras, unless the tantras have been critically edited. Moreover, even though we have critically edited Sanskrit texts, some seed-syllables and heart-mantras may be disputed; the seed-syllable of Kālacakra seems to be one of the best examples, i.e. hraṃ versus hūṃ [long u].”
[ii] The Vajrāvalī has been analysed by Masahide Mori in his 1997 SOAS thesis, “The Vajrāvalī of Abhayākaragupta”. This text is available to download free from the British Library’s Electronic Theses Online Service, EThOS. Registration (at no cost) is required. Perhaps of more interest to those familiar with Tibetan and Sanskrit is the two-volume “Vajrāvalī of Abhayākaragupta : edition of Sanskrit and Tibetan versions”, by Masahide Mori, published by The Institute of Buddhist Studies, Tring, UK, 2009. See also: http://www.kalacakra.org/mandala/vvali_km.htm
Wow.. now there’s a happi Bhadri
wow..so amazing information and great depth of knowledge.
Thank you!
E ma so shiney..the blissful Bhadrini,,, love the dress, and then Five More Forms
manifesting via Tai Situpa at Bokar Shedra…you make it all seem so real!
is there a strategy to diety-spontaneity….must just be practiced
Guru Deva Dakini.
Blessings Accomplishing enlightened activity
thanks for taking us along