The Seventeen Dzogchen Tantras

“If one knows the Self-Arisen Vidyā Tantra, the Self-Liberated Vidyā Tantra, and the Tantra Without Syllables, one will have command over the general meaning of the tantras, like a king who has command over his subjects.”
—Treasury of the Supreme Vehicle

 

The Seventeen Dzogchen Tantras is a special multivolume series in which Acarya Malcolm Smith has taken up the task of translating all seventeen of these crucial source tantras. Malcolm brings his unique ability to make abstract concepts crystal clear to these important tantras, providing clarity and insight while making them accessible to a larger audience in a way they never have been before.

“The Seventeen Tantras are the apex of the Great Perfection teachings, guaranteeing the eventual liberation of all those who even take a sincere interest in the Great Perfection. Among all the teachings of the buddhas, the Seventeen Tantras are the teachings most dear to me. While they are not easy to understand, they are a legacy left for all humanity, a beacon which shines light on innate liberation, the true potential of all human beings.”
—Acarya Malcolm Smith

EXPLORE THE SETS

VOLUMES 1 & 2

This boxed set provides luminous translations of two central texts of the Seventeen Tantras of the Great Perfection.

The Self-Arisen Vidya Tantra: A Translation of the Rigpa Rang Shar (Volume 1)

This is the only complete English translation of the Self-Arisen Vidyā Tantra, which is the major commentary tantra on all aspects of the doctrine of the Great Perfection.

“This preeminent tantra, the Self-Arisen Vidyā Tantra, has arrived in the English language to be taught and studied, read and reread, contemplated and savored, and practiced by any/every fortunate person. This crown jewel of human civilization covers all the big questions in life and brings certainty about the deepest topics to interrupt, transform, and free the mind from confusion and ignorance . . . I deeply rejoice in this.” —Erik Pema Kunsang, translator, Rangjung Yeshe

 

 

The Self-Liberated Vidya Tantra: Translation of the Rigpa Rangdrol (Volume 2)

Volume 2 in the set, the Self-Liberated Vidyā Tantra, outlines the structure of Dzogchen tantras in general and also provides a detailed outline of the Self-ArisenVidyā Tantra.

“Acarya Malcolm Smith has certainly given the world a rare gift by presenting to English-reading Dzogchen practitioners this skilled translation of the first two volumes of the Seventeen Tantras.” —Sangye Khandro, translator and teacher, Light of Berotsana Translation Group

 

 

VOLUMES 3 & 4

This boxed set provides two luminous root texts in crystal-clear translation, along with their commentaries, which break down the tantra passage by passage under headings that contextualize many instructions for the practice of the Great Perfection. The two texts are published together because they contain some of the most detailed expositions on which are based the two essential practices of the Great Perfection: trekchö, the view, and thögal, the meditation.

The Tantra without Syllables: A Translation of the Yigé Mepai Gyü and Its Commentary (Volume 3)

The Tantra Without Syllables focuses on the theoretical basis for trekchö. The actual tantra discussed in this text is not the words of the tantra, but rather the subject matter that the tantra points to: the continuum of one’s own vidyā confirmed in a direct perception, which cannot be explained in words.

“I wish to express deep gratitude to Malcolm and the wonderful Zangthal team for their noble aspiration and qualified capacity to finally bring these most precious teachings that exist in our world into the English language.”
—Sangye Khandro, Translator and Teacher, Light of Berotsana Translation Group 

 

The Blazing Lamp Tantra: A Translation of the Drönma Barwai Gyü and Its Commentary (Volume 4)

The Blazing Lamp Tantra focuses on the theoretical basis of thögal, detailing the four lamps, which are crucial for understanding the contemplative visions unique to the Great Perfection.

“The Seventeen Tantras of the Quintessential Secret Heart Essence cycle of the Great Perfection have the potential to reveal directly the genuine realization of clear light. They are the source of all Heart Essence teachings. . . . The blessings of this lineage are forever present and fresh in the sacred words of these sources. In fact, they are the origin from which all information about this pinnacle cycle of the Great Perfection is derived.” —from the foreword by Lama Chönam and Sangye Khandro

 

Meet the Translator

Acarya Malcolm Smith has been a student of the Great Perfection teachings since 1992. His main Dzogchen teachers are Chogyal Namkhai Norbu and the late Kunzang Dechen Lingpa. He is a veteran of a traditional three-year solitary Tibetan Buddhist retreat, a published translator of Tibetan Buddhist texts, and was awarded the Acharya degree by the Sakya Institute in 2004. In 2009 he graduated from Shang Shung Institute’s School of Tibetan Medicine. He has worked on translations for renowned lamas since 1992, including His Holiness Sakya Trizin, Kyabgön Phakchok Rinpoche, Kunzang Dechen Lingpa,  Khenpo Migmar Tseten, Tulku Dakpa Rinpoche, Khenchen Konchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche and many others.