Yang-le-shod: Seg Narayana Sthan

Yang-le-shod: Seg Narayana Sthan: 

on the road to Pharping is the great power place where the Second Buddha Mahaguru subdued gods, spirits and demons.Yanglesho in the Kathmandu Valley is the power place of the Great Master Padma `Byung-gnas (Padma Sambhava), and the name of this place is blown on the wind to all, to the wise and the ignorant in the valley of Tibet, the Land of Snow Mountains.

And since the Buddhists of Nepal accept this as the power place of the Uddiyana vajracarya Padmakara,they are in agreement with the Tibetans.The Hindus believe that this is the residence of Sesa Narayana, both the Naga 'Remainder' (kLu lhag-ma-can) and Visnu. However, the Gubarjus have only this legendary indication of the place which relates to the Buddhist ethos: When the Great Master Padma 'Byung-gnas himself was sitting at this place in samadhi, through the Naga's magical devices a plethora of venomous snakes appeared, hanging down from above; disturbed by this temptation, the Guru, with a fixed gaze, struck the Naga on the crown of his head with a vajrakila (rdo-rje phur-ba) and turned the menacing serpents into stone.

Even today on the crag {overhanging the temple} many serpentine shapes are to be seen struggling downwards. From the trace of the kila on the crown of the head of the central snake, water emerges at certain auspicious moments.

The Great Master Padma 'Byung-gnas, having previously practised various ascetic yogas in cremation grounds,took to wandering,and at that time he received initiation from Vajra Varahi,attaining the Knowledge Holder of Spiritual Maturity (rnam-par-smin-pa'i rig-'dzin) and gaining victory over the 'devil of corporeality'.

At the cave of Maratika (Heileshe, east of Okoldunga and south of Mt. Everest) he attained the Knowledge Holder of Immortality (tshe-la dbang-ba'i rig-'dzin), gaining victory over the devil 'Lord of Death'.

At Yanglesho he attained the Mahamudra Knowledge Holder (phyag-chen rig-'dzin), gaining victory over the 'devil of emotivity'.

At Vajrasan (Bodha Gaya) he attained the Knowledge Holder of Spontaneity (lhun-gyi-grub-pa'i rig-'dzin), gaining victory over the 'godling devil'.Amongst these four Knowledge Holder attainments the mastery of Mahamudra is the ultimate, unsurpassable, supreme attainment, and since the Guru achieved it in Yanglesho, this place is of equal significance to Vajrasan {where Sakyamuni attained enlightenment} for the Guhyamantra rNying-ma-pa school. [CN]

In Guru Padma's biographical bKa'-thangs it is not made clear exactly how he divided his practice between the cave at Yanglesho and the Asura Cave; but it my be inferred that his mahamudra practice is associated with the former, and the practice of Yang-dag and Phur-ba with the later. This is an adaptation of the 5th chapter of the bKa'-thang zangs-gling-ma, a revealed text (gter-ma) of Nyang-ral Nyi-ma 'Od-zer (1124-1192 A.D.), which describes Guru Padma's accomplishment of the Mahamudra Knowledge Holder,
by means of Yang-dag and Phur-ba combined, at Yanglesho:

Then the Guru thought to himself, 'Although I have attained the Knowledge Holder of Immortality, there is no advantage unless I attain the Mahamudra Knowledge Holder.' So he came to the meditation cave at Yanglesho between India and the Kathmandu Valley,
to the Tree of Generosity that never withers in winter. Here he captivated a highly qualified yogini, called Sakya Devi (Sakya bDe-mo), and began his practice with the Mandala of Glorious Yang-dag's Nine Lamps. Obstacles immediately arose. The Nagas, Raksasas and Sky-Demons conspired to cause a three year drought and famine in Nepal, Tibet and Indian, and plague struck both men and cattle.The appearance of Death provoked Guru Padma to the realisation that he must destroy the power of those demons
if he was to attain mahamudra, and giving an ounce of gold dust to his Nepali disciples Jila Jisad and Kun-la ku-bzhi, he sent a plea to his pandita Gurus in India to send the means to achieve the subjection of the obstructing spirits. He was instructed to apply to Prabhahasti, which he did, and he received the text of the Phur-ba Vitotama, which two men could barely carry. Immediately upon the appearance of the text in Yanglesho, the ocean threw up gifts, the earth was suddenly fertile and clouds gathered in the sky. Rain fell upon the parched soil and simultaneously shoots, levels, buds and fruit matured. By eating this fruit both men and cattle were cured of disease and the Kingdom was filled with happiness and laughter.

At this time, Guru Padma had a vision of the retinues of both Yang-dag and Phur-ba. Attaining identity with Yang-dag he gained great siddhi, but obstacles arose too; then upon rDo-rje Phur-ba's entourage's manifestation all obstacles disappeared. Then practising their combined rites (Yang-dag phur-ba 'brel-ba) he attained Supreme mahamudra-siddhi. Through that night, at evening, at midnight and before dawn, various spirits came to him offering their life-essence, and he bound them all to pledges to serve as rDo-rje Phur-ba's Logos Protectors (bKa'-srung). The Four bSe-mo Sisters, the Four Sho-na-ma Sisters, the Four Remati Sisters and the families of the Four Bse-yi skyes-bu, the Four Iron Beings (lCags-kyi skyes-bu), and the Four Conch beings (Dung gi skyes bu) wer all bound in this way. Thus Guru Padma overwhelmed the arrogant spirits of the Mandala of Divine Form: he brought all sound and vibration of the Mandala of Mantra under his control; and every mental construct and thought, and all of the five poisons, were rendered void as they arose into the mandala of the True Nature of Mind,into the reality of indeterminate, non-conceptual purity. In the plenum of Innate purity he entered the Unchangeable Mind of Mahamudra.

Another account tells of how Ting-lo-sman of the north,sTag-sman-zor-bar-gdong and Byang-phug bsTan-ma-bcu-gnyis sen a stoem down upon Guru Rimpoche while he was staying at Yanglesho, paralysing his entourage with cold. The Guru pointed his fingers in mudra of threat and a firestorm emanating from his fingers raged around the snow and shale mountains where the gods dwelt. Then they all came to him offering him their lives.
[Dudjom Rimpoche, Yid-kyi mun sel, p.44a]

If you look through the lattice at the side of the Hindu Temple (underneath the hanging serpentine forms) you can see the golden image of the Naga Sesa, Sesa Narayan. This temple is forbidden to non-Hindus and zealously guarded. Outside the door (to the right of the temple and to the left of the Guru Rimpoche Cave) is a stone image of Visnu's avatar Balarama (Stobs-ldan). [CN]

Since CN's time the golden image of Sesa has disappeared and the temple is anything but well-guarded. The image of Sesa Narayan (Newari: Seg Narayan) is a wreath garlanded stone painted fire-engine red to the right of the central image of Narayan. Sesa is 'The Remainder' of the cosmic ocean after visnu has created the universe. He is identical to Visnu. Upon the dissolution of the universe he becomes Ananta, the Endless, upon which Visnu reclines at the end of his 'day'. Here the Naga is elevated to symbolise all Life Force, or the element water in its cosmic context where as the source of life it is pre-eminent. To the right of the temple are two stone friezes of Visnu's avatars, Balarama and Visnu Vikranta (Vamana). In Guru Rimpoche's Cave the Guru's hand holes and head print can be seen in the roof. This cave is usually occupied by a yogin associated with Guru Sangye Dorje's retreat centre which is just to the north.

Ye-shes mTsho-rgyal visited Sakya De-ma (Sakya Devi), Jilajipha (Jilaji-sad), and others at Yanglesho and Asura during her first visit to Nepal (ca. 780-90). Sakya Dema was Guru Padma's mystic partner. [TND] Her mother died at childbirth and she was left at the cremation ground after the cremation of her mother. She was reared by monkeys until Guru Padma discovered her and took her from Sankhu to Yanglesho to practise the Yang-dag and Phur-ba meditation rites. [UL] When mTsho-rgyal met her she was a fully matured yogini in her own right and passed on the precepts which she had received. [TND]