This blogpost on the Most Secret Hayagriva (Tamdring Yangsang) practice was originally written for the Jamyang Buddhist Center
Tibetan Buddhism is famous for its colorful and diverse depictions of enlightenment, with buddha-forms of many colors bearing multiple attributes in their multiple hands. In an attempt to avoid confusion or misinterpretation, some Tibetan Buddhist communities in the West try to limit the number of wrathful images displayed openly, but a quick visit to a temple in the Himalayan region would still introduce one to the vastness and expressiveness of the artistic system. Some people erroneously believe that Tibetan Buddhism has a monopoly on these dynamic images, and some confuse them with images of worldly spirits or local pre-Buddhist deities. However, a quick tour of Chinese and Japanese Buddhist temples reveals that these dynamic wrathful forms are common to the Mahāyāna countries and have been seen as expressions of wisdom and compassion even since the times of the great Indian mahasiddhas.
One form that can be equally seen in China, Japan, and Tibet is that of Hayagriva: the horse-crowned form of Avalokiteśvara, or the buddha/bodhisattva of compassion. The roots of Hayagriva’s form might go to pre-Buddhist times: much like Mongolians, ancient Aryans had great appreciation for horses, and the emergence of divinities bearing horse-related symbols was almost inevitable. One such divinity—the Hindu Hayagriva—came to be seen as an avatar of Vishnu the Preserver; manifesting in a form bearing a horse’s head, Vishnu, as is typical for him, preserves universal order and harmony while also symbolizing the qualities of wisdom and learning. Another form, adorned with horse heads above the main anthropomorphic head, arose in the context of Buddhist tantra; evolving from a secondary figure in Avalokiteśvara’s retinue, Hayagriva eventually became a major self-sufficient expression of compassionate qualities, serving, either as a Dharma protector (a dharmapala) or as a titular meditational deity (ishta-devata, or yidam in Tibetan) for multiple generations of practitioners across the world.
In the Chinese-speaking countries, Hayagriva is primarily invoked as a protector: a field of energy that can be accessed to create positive interdependence that removes inner obstacles and, potentially, even protects one from outer dangers. In Japan, Hayagriva is worshipped as Bato-Kanon (or “the horse Avalokiteśvara”): the expression of wise compassion in the realm of animals. For Mongolians, who have a very strong historical connection to horses, he serves as the protector of these beautiful animals (and, in some cases, also as a guardian for those born in the astrological year of the horse). But Hayagriva’s most exciting role has perhaps been played in the Himalayan region, including Tibet. It is here that his practices became a major tool on the path to full awakening, sometimes serving as a full path for those who (through thorough training) have become ready to work on the advanced practices of tantra.
All of the major Tibetan lineages have received and preserved different Hayagriva-related transmissions originating in India. For the example, the first Karmapa, Dusum Kheynpa, practiced a five-deity Hayagriva method that originally came from Atīśa. For the Sakya tradition, an important long-life practice combining Hayagriva with Āmitāyus is connected to the legacy of the great master Thangtong Gyalpo (famous for his Prayer that Saved Sakya from Disease). However, the greatest emphasis on Hayagriva methods is found in the Nyingma tradition of Padmasambhava and in the Sera Je lineage of the Gelug tradition; the latter is a derivative of the former and is firmly rooted in the legacy of Guru Rinpoche.
Most Secret Hayagriva
Although there are dozens of Hayagriva forms, two play an important role in the Gelug tradition: the Hayagriva of “Secret Accomplishment” (Sangdrub Tamdrin), seen as a more exoteric and accessible practice, and the “Most Secret” Hayagriva (Yangsang Tamdrin), that, true to its name, remains more exclusive, both because it belongs to the highest levels of tantra and because of its intricate, technical nature. Both practices originally came from the Nyingma tradition, and so it might be worthwhile to look at their roots.
In the Nyingma system of tantric practice, Hayagriva methods primarily belong the seventh out of nine vehicles, or Maha-Yoga, which roughly corresponds to the generation stage of highest yoga tantra as described in the new translation schools. Maha-Yoga teachings, in turn, are divided into the classes of tantras and sadhanas; the sadhana class is divided into the three roots of guru, deity, and dakini. The deity section is then broken down into what’s known as the “Eight Logoi” or “Eight Pronouncements” (or Kagye in Tibetan): eight systems of practice that were carefully collected and transmitted by Guru Padmasambhava in order to serve as the liberating methods for beings with different propensities. Amongst these “eight pronouncements”, which correspond to the different facets and activities of enlightenment, Hayagriva belongs to the second one, known as “Lotus Speech”.
The “Lotus Speech” system of practice is said to have originated with Nāgārjuna, although it is hard to say whether the Nāgārjuna in question is the very same one who penned the famous texts on emptiness and retrieved the Parjnaparamita sūtras. Some scholars think at least 3 Nagarjunas might have existed: the scholar of sutras, the tantric siddha who wrote extensively on Guhyasamāja, and the tantric master who established the “Lotus Speech” lineage of transmission. From a Buddhist point of view, these three teachers might well have been one and the same—after all, if one lives for multiple centuries and works hard, quite a lot can be accomplished!
Nāgārjuna’s lineage of tantric transmission was received by Guru Padmasambhava, who brought the Hayagriva teachings (along with the rest of the Eight Pronouncements) to Tibet. Transmitting these teachings to his disciples, including king Trisong Detsen and Yeshe Tsogyal, Guru Rinpoche also made sure that most of these methods were concealed as treasures (Tib. terma) to be revealed by the pre-destined realized masters of future generations. Numerous terma teachings on Hayagriva have been revealed in the ensuing centuries—and this is where the origin of the Yangsang (Most Secret) Hayagriva teachings, practiced extensively in the Sera Je Monastery in Tibet, lie.
The specific treasure that forms the basis for the Most Secret Hayagriva practice was revealed in Dra Yerpa near Lhasa. Three lamas participated in the process of revelation, but the obstacles to the spread of this powerful method were initially so strong that one of the teachers passed away and two got sick. The lineage, however, was preserved, and eventually came down to a teacher by the name of Nyagton, who, in turn, transmitted it to a realized yogi named Darcharwa: a student of Sakya Pandita and a treasure-revealer in his own right. This lineage of transmission was combined with a more direct transmission that Darcharwa himself received from a magical emanation of Padmasambhava. Mixing the two lineages, Darcharwa established a powerful system of transmission that eventually found its way to Sera monastery (through the founder of Sera Je, Kunkhyen Lodrö Rinchen Senge) and remained unbroken until our own times, coming down to such masters as His Holiness the Dalai Lama, Lama Zopa Rinpoche, and, of course, the senior tantric masters of the Sera monastery. Since Hayagriva practices still retain their Nyingma flavor (when it comes to the unique style of performing tantric practice), Sera Je monastery maintains a whole committee of monks thoroughly trained in this practice and its technical details. This thorough training, combined with the insights and experiences of the great masters of this lineage (including the Fifth Dalai Lama), makes sure that this system remains potent and transformative.
The essence of Hayagriva practices
There are many ways to describe the essential logic of each of the Eight Pronouncements. The practice of Vajrakilaya, for example, is sometimes described in terms of the “four stakes” (or kilas), while the practice of Mañjuśrī-Yamāntaka is related to the so-called “four wheels”. For the Nyingma teachings on Hayagriva, the essence of practice is traditionally explained through the “three neighs” related to the symbolic horse above the deity’s head. The first neigh cuts through our conceptual grasping at the reality of things, or their inherent origination; the second one transforms reality into a cosmic blissful offering; the third one establishes control over everything that exists. This forceful nature of Hayagriva practice explains why it is often (when it comes to the Himalayan region, at least) used for removing obstacles and establishing positive magnetizing interdependence. Even when Hayagriva is not practiced as the primary deity, he often serves as an auxiliary figure meant to inspire us in mastering compassionate magnetizing activity. (As an example of that, he is invoked in Mipham Rinpoche’s famous “Great Cloud of Blessings” prayer).
Like with any other Buddhist tantric practice, our movement towards the qualities of Hayagriva begins with foundational-level training: working on our ethical intelligence, stabilizing our mind, learning to understand the afflictions, strengthening the positive habits of our mind, and so forth. To truly receive a Hayagriva empowerment, one would need to have at least a basic level of experience related to three principal aspects of the path: renunciation, bodhicitta, and the wisdom of emptiness. Having established those through training in lamrim or similar systems, one would find a qualified teacher, receive the necessary empowerments, transmissions and instructions, and then start gradually training in Hayagriva methods proper, uncovering the dynamic compassion that is so badly need to be of service to others and to cut through our own selfish, deluded mind. If that process is of interest to us, we will be powerfully supported by the inspiring examples of past masters, including that of such recent lineage teachers as Lama Zopa Rinpoche and Lama Thubten Yeshe, both of whom were accomplished Hayagriva masters and skillfully benefitted beings through their “triple neigh”.