Near Death Experience - Evidence Against Naturalism

The Rainbow Body - Periodically Updated Research Page

http://www.thenon2.com/Buddhism

"The rainbow body,' a phenomenon in which the corpses of highly developed spiritual individuals reputedly vanish within days of death."  http://livedeepnow.com/christian-buddhist-explorations-the-rainbow-body

This page provides the best direct and supporting evidence for the reality of the rainbow body phenomenon, i.e., paranormal feats associated with the practitioners. Information on how to engage in the practices is also included. The phenomenon, as you will see, has continued to happen right up into modern times. Many additional links beyond those of the original authors have been added throughout the text to better explain and back-up claims made.

Padmasambhava's Rainbow Body (eighth century C.E.) Click on Picture to enlarge

"This is one of the mysteries the Institute of Noetic Sciences paid to investigate. They wanted to find out what the heck is going on here. Is this real? Because they read books that I was reading that talked about this. And the amazing part is, that between China and India (China being Tibet basically) there are 160,000 documented cases of people going through this process. And they have left behind an impressive wealth of visible physical evidence that something remarkable did happen to them. In other words, it's not just that there's documentation that people in the West will pooh-pooh. Even though we have a witness from the Western world, Father Tiso, people are gonna pooh-pooh that too. Even though the Chinese military witnessed it. They're gonna pooh-pooh that. But there is something real going on here with this mystery of the rainbow body." - David Wilcock, Introduction to the Mysteries of Tibet

The Rainbow Body

Christ with Rainbow Aura

“Then the righteous will shine like the sun in the kingdom of their Father.” – Mathew, 13.43:

Stories of luminosity or saintly radiance are common among Christian saints, Sufis, Taoist sages, Hindu yogis, Buddhist mystics and indigenous shamans. Many are historically documented, not metaphor. I am talking about actually radiating light, about radiance emanating from the physical body like light from a light bulb, to extreme cases of becoming a translucent bubble of light. The ultimate Great Completion culmination is the Rainbow or Body of Light attainment. This is widely recognized as a sign of extreme sanctity in Tibetan Buddhism and among the Bönpo. Reports of this level of transmutation are rare, but still they occur and have been chronicled far into antiquity. Interestingly the Bön lays historical claim to a lineage of Dzogchen that pre-dates the entry of Buddhism into Tibet. Rainbow or Body of Light attainment is not limited to Buddhism, as I started out by saying stories of luminosity abound in all the great religions of the planet, but to understand the process we turn to the rationalist Buddhist of Tibet and the well documented and delineated practice of Dzogpa Chenpo or simply Dzogchen.

In the Himalayan regions, the early indigenous religion was that of the Bön. Bön pre-existed the creation of both the sovereign territories, later to become the country of Tibet as well as of Buddhism. When the great Indian tantric sage Padmasambhava brought Buddhism from India to Tibet in the 8th Century AD he found the richly tilled ground of the Bönpo. This land and its peoples took easily to the Buddha’s teachings and the Buddhist beliefs melded well with the rituals of the Bön.

When Padmasambhava left at the end of his time in physical form he dissolved his body completely back to their natural elements leaving no relics behind. At that moment a new lineage of Buddhist teachings was created. This was the start of what has become the Nyingma tradition and is the foundation of Tibetan Buddhism as we have come to know it.

At the heart of the Nyingma tradition is the practice of Dzogchen. Nyingma alludes to an ancient school, but this is simply because it is the oldest of the four schools of Tibetan Buddhism (Nyingma, Kagyu, Sakya, and Gelugpa). The Nyingma teachings are uniquely categorized in nine yanas, or vehicles. The main practices are emphasized in the three inner tantras of Maha Yoga, Anu Yoga, and Ati Yoga. Ati Yoga is also known as the Great Perfection, Dzogpa Chenpo, or simply as Dzog chen or Dzogchen. Dzogchen practitioners who have attained ultimate insight (wisdom) and compassion, a phase in which pure and total presence is stabilized (Trek-chod), are then allowed to practice To-gal.

The Dzogchen symbol 'ah' is ringed by a RainbowTigle

 


http://hiddenyogin.com/the-rainbow-body/

The way I see it, Jesus or Yeshua if you rather, was a rainbow body monk. Just as students go to these monks today for teachings and blessings and just as Padmasambhava is said to have been able to take on someone else's karma to help burn it off, I believe Jesus offers much the same. I have no issue believing that Jesus was an immanation of the divine offering a shortcut to the rainbow body. I suggest trying your best and praying for his help!

http://debunkingdeath.blogspot.com/2017/06/jesus-was-rainbow-body-monk.html

Being Christ-like is my interpretation of coming to the father through him. The hard way is being a monk. The easy way out is just having faith in Jesus the redeemer. The middle-road and one seemingly supported by the Bible in it's talk of faith and good works being necessary is the one I suggested above.

“Concerning matter, we have been all wrong. What we have called matter is energy, whose vibration has been so lowered as to be perceptible to the senses. There is no matter.”
― Albert Einstein

Self-arisen Image of the Dzogchen Symbol, Asura Cave in Nepal.

David Wilcock notes on an episode of his program Wisdom Teachings entitled "Science and the Mysteries of Tibet," that the above image (enhanced in the second shot) is a self-arisen image of the Dzogchen symbol. Padmasambhava, AKA Guru Rinpoche, is said to have used mind over matter to imprint the image in stone inside the Asura Cave in Nepal.

In the same program Wilcock explains that the below image is, "The hand of Padmassanbhava that melted its way right into the rock... He just mashes his hand right into the rock because he has now achieved command over physical matter, because he is the matter... He can change it right back to it's vibrational state, it's no longer solid."

Padmassanbhava's Handprint Outside Asura Cave, Nepal

David Wilcock states in the video embedded towards the bottom of this page, that the discoloration inside of the hand print, is due to the countless individuals who have made the pilgrimage to see it over the years and put their hands inside of it, getting grease in it.

 http://www.dzogchen-monastery.org/html/footprints_in_rock.html

As word of the great transformation spread across the world, new masters arose and left their own marks. From Sri Lanka, across Normandy and Scotland, even into the lands of Syria and Israel we find footprints left in solid stone, where local folklore has not always attributed these signs to ascended masters. David Wilcock reveals the worldwide impressions that Dzogchen masters have made as they spread their quest for transformation around the world in this presentation originally webcast July 28, 2014. - See more at: http://www.gaiamtv.com/video/72-worldwide-footprints-masters#sthash.Tx7JhEz2.dpuf

Footprints of Christ in Solid Rock

Footprint of  St. Patrick in Solid Rock

During performance of Great Accomplishment Practices with Drikung Ontrul Rinpoche, inconceivable accomplishments include the boiling of the contents of the Pantza and Rakta, multiplying of the nectar pills, flowing forth of nectar from the Torma and many other such holy accomplishments are witnessed by all.
Signs of Ganor Rinpoche's attainment: 
1. Rinpoche discovered the water treasure stone from the Brahmaputra river where the oil comes out automatically from this treasure stone. 
2. Rinpoche left a foot print while conducting the rituals of Chöd and 100-fold changbu. 
3. Rinpoche rolled a knife, starting from its tip, between his palms during a group recitation. 
4. Rinpoche left a thumb print on a pebble on July 6 1983. 
5. Rinpoche revealed the Vajra Kilaya Terma. 
6. Rinpoche revealed Terma of The Very Wrathful Achi Chökyi Drolma.

http://lol8.blogspot.com/2007/04/great-terton-ven-ganor-rinpoche.html

Termas are explained in detail near the halfway point of this page.

Padmasambhava's Footprint at Tso Pema (Wyl. mtsho pad+ma) 'Lotus Lake' in Rewalsar, India, where Guru Rinpoche performed the miracle of transforming the funeral pyre into a lake, after the King of Zahor attempted to burn him and Princess Mandarava alive.

http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Tso_Pema 

In the Wisdom Teachings episode "Footprints of the Masters," Wilcock demonstrates that while the most impressive, this is but one of several footprints left by Padmasambhava. He explains that it was made in front of witnesses, painted gold afterwards, and is accompanied by a self-arisen image to the right.

 

Self-Appeared Image of the Tara

During the last 35 years people around Pharping in the southern part of the Kathmandu Valley have noticed that an area of a cliff began to slowly bulge out. It began to look more and more like Tara, the female buddha. At the same time the form of Ganesh also appeared. The place is just below the Asura Cave, sacred to followers of Padmasambhava.

I have seen it many times over the years, and can attest that it has gradually become more distinct.

http://blazing-splendor.blogspot.com/2008_12_01_archive.html

Footprints of the Mastershttp://blazing-splendor.blogspot.com/2008_12_01_archive.html

  
The following is from the site of the Kunzang Palchen Ling Tibetan Buddhist Center:

Story of the Self-Arising Guru Rinpoche Image

[This was shared by Bardor Tulku Rinpoche at the conclusion of his October 4-5, 2014 teachings.]

This is the story of how that image appeared […] When we were offering the daranis to — I mean, we say filling the statues — of the 25 disciples of Guru Rinpoche, at that time, I composed three supplications: a supplication to Guru Rinpoche; a supplication to the eight forms of Guru Rinpoche; and a supplication to each of his 25 disciples as well as a feast practice, all to be added to the Concise Daily Practice of the Combined Sadhana of the Vidyadhara Guru, in other words, the Daily Guru Rinpoche practice.

And having done so, then, we first recited this at the reopening of the practice site that’s called Chodrak Peak. And the peak of Chodrak, which is above Chodrak Monastery, was the place where a previous life of Terchen Barway Dorje, called the Dharma Lord Sonam Zangpo, had spent most of his life practicing in isolated retreat. He had created that site along with his master Langray Drakpa Gyaltsen.

Now, the retreat facility or hermitage that was built there was largely destroyed during the Cultural Revolution, but part of it, couple of its walls, are still standing. And when we performed this feast practice there, subsequently, this image of Guru Rinpoche began to spontaneously emerge from that wall.

http://www.kunzang.org/self-arising-guru-rinpoche/

Trekchö (Tib. ཁྲེགས་ཆོད་, Wyl. khregs chod) — one of the two aspects, along with tögal, of Dzogchen practice^[1]. 

http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Trekch%C3%B6

To-gal is the final practice of Dzogchen. This final practice enables the master yogi or yogini to dissolve his or her physical body into the essence of the elements at the time of death. The master disappears into a body of light becoming the wisdom body, the term is called ‘Ja’-lus or The Rainbow Body, in Tibetan. It has other names in other mystical traditions. This level of attainment is also the central aim of Indian Buddhist tantricism known as Vajrayana that the Taoists call the golden body. Another term is Soruba Samidhi, the golden body, a state of God-realization in which Divinity descends and transforms the spiritual, intellectual, mental, vital and physical bodies. It is considered physical immortality or the highest perfection.

The final process of dissolution of the body happens over varying amounts of time ranging from a short period to many days. During this process the body shrinks dramatically eventually down to only bits of hair, toe-finger nails, and possible nasal septum left behind. Some saints such as the great Milarepa (1050-1123) and Padmasambhava dissolved entirely into light, leaving no relics behind at all... 

Often masters that attain the Body of Light will return one last time out of compassion for their beloved disciples and give what are known as posthumous teachings, delivered in the form of a last testament. Often the master is in the transfigured state on occasion suspended in the sky. 

 http://hiddenyogin.com/the-rainbow-body/

Wisdom Teachings with David Wilcock: [#69] Science and the Mysteries of Tibet (July 2014 - See more at: http://www.gaiamtv.com/video/69-science-and-mysteries-tibet#sthash.ob67eACg.dpuf

Thogal – Translates as “direct crossing” or “leap over”.

It comprises of the final stage practice in Dzogchen in order to ‘attain’ the Body of Light, although in actual fact it is ones true body and one is merely dissolving that which obscures it.

Practices include sun and sky gazing, staring into the Vajra chains, various yogic postures and the Six Lamps of Awareness.

In short, it mostly involves literally integrating the universe ‘out there’ with ones consciousness. Realizing that it is all made up of dancing light and that it is in fact your very self, one eventually (re)turns into light, able to take on any form at any time and go anywhere.

http://www.buddhabrats.com/glossary/thogal#sthash.g2b2FQIS.dpuf

The ultimate fruition of the thodgal practices is a body of pure light, called a rainbow body (Wylie 'ja' lus, pronounced Jalü.)^[5] If the four visions of thogal are not completed before death, then at death, from the point of view of an external observer, the following happens: the corpse does not start to decompose, but starts to shrink until it disappears. Usually fingernails, toenails and hair are left behind^[6] (see e.g. Togden Urgyen Tendzin, Ayu Khandro, Changchub Dorje.) The attainment of the rainbow body is typically accompanied by the appearance of lights and rainbows.^[5]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rainbow_body

The four visions (Tib. སྣང་བ་བཞི་, Wyl. snang ba bzhi) of tögal are:

1. direct realization of reality itself (Tib. ཆོས་ཉིད་མངོན་སུམ་, chönyi ngön sum; Wyl. chos nyid mngon sum)
2. increasing experience (Tib. ཉམས་གོང་འཕེལ་, nyam gong pel; Wyl. nyams gong ‘phel)
3. awareness reaching full maturity (Tib. རིག་པ་ཚད་ཕེབས་, rigpa tsé pep; Wyl. rig pa tshad phebs)
4. dissolution of experience into the nature of reality (Tib. ཆོས་ཉིད་ཟད་ས་, chönyi zésa, chönyi zépa or chözé lodé; Wyl.chos nyid zad sa)

http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Four_visions

Recent Rainbow Body Experiences

Rainbow Body practitioner

Composed by His Eminence Dzogchen Khenpo Choga Rinpoche and his disciples on the 23rd of November, 2013, the auspicious day of Lha Bab Duchen, the Buddha’s Mother’s Day, at the auspicious place of the Dzogchen Retreat Center, USA.

Dear Students,

As you know from my recent message, my precious teacher Dzogchen Lama Karma Rinpoche passed away on the 11th of November, 2013. Yesterday I received extraordinary news from my Dharma friends in the holy Dzogchen area of Tibet that the sacred body of my kind teacher Lama Karma has obviously and dramatically shrunk in size. Lama Karma’s body was about 175cm (approx. 5’9”) tall, but two weeks after he passed away, his seated body has now shrunk to about 20cm (approx. 8”), which means his body, including his skeleton, shrank nearly 80%. According to Dzogchen tantra, this kind of miraculous display shows he has attained the Small Rainbow Body, which is a sign that he has attained the supreme accomplishment of Buddha in this very life. Please deeply rejoice in his devoted practice and realization of Dzogchen. In doing so, you accumulate immeasurable merit.

https://bodhiactivity.wordpress.com/2013/11/29/rainbow-body-practitioner/

His Holiness Lama AChuk Rinpoche - 2011

At age of 84, Lama Achuk entered into paranirvana and achieved the rainbow body, a great inspiration to disciples to persevere in their practice of the Great Perfection teachings.29 August 2011, the cremation ceremony of Lama Achuk commenced.  The body of Lama  Achuk shrunk from a height of 1.8 meters shrunk to about 1 inch tall, a sign of achieving the rainbow body

From time of Lama Achuk’s paranirvana to the cremation, many auspicious signs appear, five colored rainbows are often sighted in the sky and the area surrounding Lama Achuk’s body often appears five colored pure lights bindu.  

More than 100,000 sangha members and lay devotees attended the puja and paid respect to the sacred body of Lama Achuk, it was a spectacular sight to behold.

 http://www.thenon2.com/content/rinpoche/his-holiness-lama-achuk-rinpoche

For those who are incredulent about the possible high and unbelievable achievements of the dharma especially the Dzogchen teachings may refer to the unadulterated photos above.  Top shows Achuk Lama Rinpoche in puja, at his forehead is the self manifesting image of Chenrezig.  Bottom Left shows Achuk Lama Rinpoche with Samantabhadra above his crown. Bottom Right shows Achuk Lama Rinpoche who manifested the rainbow body in photograph (by the way, the lotus at the bottom is not there when they took the photo, in case you are wondering… generally lamas are not put on a lotus, they are put on thrones). You may click to enlarge…

Achuk Lama Rinpoche is widely acknowledged to be the emanation of Longsal Nyingpo, Longchen Rabjam, Padmasambhava’s disciple Gyalwa Choyang, and various other great masters.   He has displayed many signs of miracles such as freely leaving hand-prints, foot-prints, discovering termas, going into the water for days without harm, knowing the past, present, and future without any impediment, and most popularly for his body mandala and many thousands of people have witnessed the many deities and mandalas of the major tantras present in his body itself.  Seeing his body mandala is a unique means of blessing, empowerment and also a way to ascertain the disciple’s realisation.  For some karmically ready people, it is also an introduction to wisdom mind.
I post this photo for two reasons despite my many hesitations…

1. The photo proves that accomplishments are present in this day. Many of Rinpoche’s disciples in China have attained accomplishment, including layperson disciples.

2. The photo of an accomplished being brings blessings by sight.  Achuk Lama Rinpoche is widely acknowledged to be thong-drol which means liberation by sight.

https://bodhiactivity.wordpress.com/2011/01/18/mahasiddha-khenpo-achuk-lama-rinpoche/

Rainbow body of Lama Achuk Rinpoche - 2011, size about 3 cm.   

http://soonyata.home.xs4all.nl/sorubasamadhi.htm

Terma (Tibetan: གཏེར་མ་, Wylie: gter ma; "hidden treasure")^[1] are key Tibetan Buddhist and Bon teachings, which the tradition holds were originally esoterically hidden by various adepts such as Padmasambhava and his dakinis (consorts) in the 8th century for future discovery at auspicious times by other adepts, known as tertöns. As such, they represent a tradition of continuous revelation in Tibetan Buddhism.^[1] Termas are a part of tantric literature.

Tradition holds that terma may be a physical object such as a text or ritual implement that is buried in the ground (or earth), hidden in a rock or crystal, secreted in a herb, or a tree, hidden in a lake (or water), or hidden in the sky (space). Though a literal understanding of terma is "hidden treasure", and sometimes objects are hidden away, the teachings associated should be understood as being 'concealed within the mind of the guru', that is, the true place of concealment is in the tertön's mindstream. If the concealed or encoded teaching or object is a text, it is often written in dakini script: a non-human type of code or writing. 

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terma_%28religion%29

"Termas are very interesting, because one of the things that these monks would do throughout the next 1,200 years is they would download the Termas. They would channel the original texts, without having any documents in front of them and they were tested based on how accurately they could transcribe the original and they would fail the test if they didn't get every single word exactly correct. Now these scriptures in some cases would be hidden away in far off Monasteries that nobody had visited in a long time and then after they had channeled the Terma, they would go back to the Monastery where the original copy was stored and then compare the two" - Wisdom Teachings with David Wilcock: [#71] The Path of Padmasambhava - See more at: http://www.gaiamtv.com/video/71-path-padmasambhava#sthash.kIBO4hnZ.dpuf

"Some of the Termas included material that was embeded in rocks and converted skeptics because they didn't believe in any of this stuff and then the master would say well then break open that rock over there and then they would and there would be an object in it just like he described. So this ultimately knocked down people's denial and helped them on this rainbow body quest." - Wisdom Teachings with David Wilcock: [#70] Footprints of the Masters (July 2014) - See more at: http://www.gaiamtv.com/video/70-footprints-masters#play/53021

Wisdom Teachings with David Wilcock: [#70] Footprints of the Masters (July 2014) - See more at: http://www.gaiamtv.com/video/70-footprints-masters#play/53021

When Dudjom Rinpoche (bdud ’joms rin po che)... was sitting in small room facing the entrance of Padmasambhava’s cave on the cliff of Paro Taksang (pa ro stag tshang) in Bhutan, the yellow scroll for his Vajrakilaya cycle of teachings came floating in the air through a small open window and landed in his lap. In some other cases, tertons are said to have toiled for days with axes and rods to reach the terma deeply embedded in the rock.

http://www.chinabuddhismencyclopedia.com/en/index.php?title=How_Terma_is_Found

Wisdom Teachings with David Wilcock: [#71] The Path of Padmasambhava - See more at: http://www.gaiamtv.com/video/71-path-padmasambhava#sthash.kIBO4hnZ.dpuf

Wisdom Teachings with David Wilcock: [#71] The Path of Padmasambhava - See more at: http://www.gaiamtv.com/video/71-path-padmasambhava#sthash.kIBO4hnZ.dpuf

Father Francis V. Tiso has written and lectured widely. He is the recipient of grants from the American Academy of Religion, the American Philosophical Society, the Palmers Fund in Switzerland, and the Institute of Noetic Sciences in Petaluma, CA. 

http://www.ippolito-desideri.net/indici/father-francis-tiso/

Through his Swiss contact, Tiso received the name of the monk whose body had vanished after his death: Khenpo A-chos, a Gelugpa monk from Kham, Tibet, who died in 1998. Tiso was able to locate the village, situated in a remote area where Khenpo A-chos had his hermitage. He then went to the village and conducted taped interviews with eyewitnesses to Khenpo A-chos’ death. He also spoke to many people who had known him.

“This was a very interesting man, aside from the way he died,” observes Tiso. “Everyone mentioned his faithfulness to his vows, his purity of life, and how he often spoke of the importance of cultivating compassion. He had the ability to teach even the roughest and toughest of types how to be a little gentler, a little more mindful. To be in the man’s presence changed people.”

Tiso interviewed Lama Norta, a nephew of Khenpo Achos; Lama Sonam Gyamtso, a young disciple; and Lama A-chos, a dharma friend of the late Khenpo A-chos. They described the following:

A few days before Khenpo A-chos died, a rainbow appeared directly above his hut. After he died, there were dozens of rainbows in the sky. Khenpo A-chos died lying on his right side. He wasn’t sick; there appeared to be nothing wrong with him, and he was reciting the mantra OM MANI PADME HUM over and over. According to the eyewitnesses, after his breath stopped his flesh became kind of pinkish. One person said it turned brilliant white. All said it started to shine.

Lama A-chos suggested wrapping his friend’s body in a yellow robe, the type all Gelug monks wear. As the days passed, they maintained they could see, through the robe, that his bones and his body were shrinking. They also heard beautiful, mysterious music coming from the sky, and they smelled perfume.

After seven days, they removed the yellow cloth, and no body remained. Lama Norta and a few other individuals claimed that after his death Khenpo A-chos appeared to them in visions and dreams.

Other Rainbow Body Manifestations

Francis Tiso remarks that one of is most intriguing interviews was with Lama A-chos. He told Tiso that when he died he too would manifest the rainbow body. “He showed us two photographs taken of him in the dark, and in these photographs his body radiated rays of light.”

Because Lama A-chos emphasized that it was possible to manifest the rainbow body while still alive, not just in death, Tiso plans to return to Tibet with professional camera equipment to try to photograph this radiating light.

Other incidents of metanormal occurrences upon death are also being studied. For instance, several of Tiso’s colleagues were present for the postmortem process of Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, who died eight years ago. “This man was a very large-boned individual,” says Tiso, “and it was reported that seven weeks after his death the flesh was reduced. That could have been done by chemical substances, however, the bones also shrank.”

Shrinkage of the body occurred with another guru, Lama Thubten. His miniature-sized frame is now kept in a monastery in Manali, India. Tiso has ascertained that incidents of bodies shrinking or disappearing shortly after death were documented centuries ago, such as in the classic story of Milarepa, a Buddhist saint from Tibet who lived in the 11th century. Milarepa’s biography was translated into French by Jacques Bacot in 1912, and into English by Walter Evans-Wentz in the 1920s.

“In the ninth chapter of this literary classic,” explains Tiso, who wrote a dissertation about the Buddhist saint, “It states that his body completely disappeared shortly after his death.”

Even the earliest biographies of Milarepa, says Tiso, attest to this phenomenon. In addition, accounts exist about the great eighth-century tantric master Padmasambhava and how his body vanished.

The Significance of Practice and Culture

When conducting this type of research, says Tiso, it is important not only to interview as many people as possible, but also to study biographies and any written explanations of these events. When he arrived in Tibet to investigate the death of Khenpo A-chos, Tiso was fortunate enough to obtain the bulk of his biography by Sonam Phuntsok within an hour of his arrival.

What is at stake, explains Tiso, is not simply verification of a phenomenon, but understanding the values, spiritual practices, and culture in which this phenomenon is embedded. “We need to examine these institutions and practices in a new light in order to recover for humanity some very profound truths about the expansion of the human consciousness and our potential as human beings.”...

Lama A-chos told Tiso that it takes sixty years of intensive practice to achieve the rainbow body. “Whether it always takes that long, I don’t know,” acknowledges Tiso, “but we would like to be able to incorporate, in a respectful way, some of these practices into our own Western philosophical and religious traditions.”

At the same time, continues Tiso, the research team plans to expend the scope of this research beyond the confines of the Tibetan culture, so they can compare the rainbow body phenomenon with the resurrection of Jesus Christ. To our knowledge, says Tiso, the bodies of most Christian saints did not disappear or shrink after their deaths.

“Highly realized saints in Catholic and Orthodox Christianity tend to move in the direction of incorruption, so that the body does not decay after death.”

However, he adds, bodily ascensions are mentioned in the Bible and other traditional texts for Enoch, Mary, Elijah, and possibly Moses. And there are numerous stories of saints materializing after their death, similar to the widespread phenomenon known as the “light-body.”

“In my church of Saints Cosmas and Damian in Italy, we have a large number of accounts, going back centuries, that indicate that these saints appeared in dreams and visions, rescued people from harm, and cured them of diseases. Even today, people still tell me they have these visions,” says Tiso.

In 1984, when Tiso was meditating with his eyes open in a chapel in Italy, he, too, had an extraordinary vision. Jesus Christ, he says, appeared before him in the form of a violet light-body. At that time, Tiso was considering taking a teaching position in the United States, but in this vision Christ indicated he should stay in Italy. “It was important not to make a mistake at that point in my life,” reflects Tiso. “I did stay in Italy, where I was eventually ordained, and I lived in a hermitage chapel for almost twelve years.”

Tiso has also had several Tibetan teachers appear to him in dreams. When he gives public lectures he speaks frankly about these experiences, because he feels it is important for people to understand that they are more common than we think. “I think that as people mature in their spiritual practice, they begin to have visionary experiences.”

http://livedeepnow.com/christian-buddhist-explorations-the-rainbow-body

Rangjung Rigpe Dorje (August 14, 1924 – November 5, 1981)

During the seven weeks between his death and his cremation, the Karmapa's body spontaneously shrank to the size of a small child. He was cremated in Rumtek. His two dogs died on the day of his cremation even though they were healthy.^[9] During the cremation a triple circular rainbow appeared above the monastery in a clear blue sky.^[6] Many photographs exist of this remarkable phenomenon^[where?]. While his body burnt, an object rolled from the flames to the Lopon Tsechu. This object was quickly recovered and proved to be the Karmapa's eyes, tongue and heart.^{[citation needed]} This was taken^{[by whom?]} to indicate that the body, speech and mind have come together to be saved as relics for the future and is common in only the highest of accomplished Buddhist yogis - exactly the same thing is said to have occurred during the cremation of Gampopa and the Second Karmapa, Karma Pakshi.^[10]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rangjung_Rigpe_Dorje,_16th_Karmapa#Death

Rangjung Rigpe Dorje - The beginning stages of the rainbow body - see past incarnations

(This is not a case of motion blur or long exposure as can be clearly seen with the nose that has no history line of motion and the whole body which is blur without a direction of motion on the clear background. Also keep in mind that this picture was taken in the late 70's so no digital camera tricks or computer tricks are at work.)

http://soonyata.home.xs4all.nl/sorubasamadhi.htm

"This is not photoshopped. People witnessed this in the room. He literally faded his physical body away." - David Wilcock

Rainbow Body: The Life and Realization of a Tibetan Yogin, Togden Ugyen Tendzin, presents the remarkable life story of Togden Ugyen Tendzin (1888–1962), a Tibetan yogin who in death achieved the “rainbow body,” the release of the physical body in the essence of the five elements and one of the highest spiritual attainments of Dzogchen, recognized as the supreme level of Tibetan Buddhism. His nephew, Chögyal Namkhai Norbu, one of the greatest living masters of Dzogchen, composed the book from his own recollections of his uncle as well as direct quotes from talks with the great yogin himself and his disciple Sala Karma Samten. The book traces the yogin’s childhood struggles, the circumstances that led him to his teacher, the eminent Adzom Drugpa, and his difficult path to self-realization. Finally, Chögyal Namkhai Norbu relates the story of Ugyen Tendzin’s death during imprisonment by the Chinese, when witnesses discovered that though his sheepskin robe still sat upright, his body was gone—a testament to its having dissolved into the rainbow body.

Excepts:

Showing Miraculous Powers

One day, lightning struck Kamge Nyendrag, a monk from Rabten who was with Ugen Tendzin at that time, and it almost killed him. Immediately, Togden wrapped the lightning bolt in his robe and hurled it far away... Another time, when a hunter was shooting at wild animals, Togden cried out, "Ouch! Ouch!" and the bullet veered toward him instead...

They looked inside the sheepskin robe and saw Togden's dead body sitting up straight, the size of a three- or four-year-old child... Tresdön clearly understood that Togden Rinpoche was in the process of realizing the rainbow body, but he did not say anything to his assistant. They immediately went back to the local district office and related in detail to the officers what had happened. "How could something like this happen?" a Chinese officer who was present burst out. But nobody replied.

End of excepts.

Nyala Rinpoche Rigdzin Changchub Dorje (1826 – 1961/1978) was a teacher of Dzogchen, terton and practitioner of Tibetan medicine...

Nyala Pema Dündul was a teacher of Dzogchen and Tantric Buddhism in Eastern Tibet... Many of his students attained rainbow body (e.g. Ayu Khandro and Nyala Rinpoche Rigdzin Changchub Dorje).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nyala_Rinpoche
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nyala_Pema_D%C3%BCndul

Kenchen Tsewang Rigdzin-Rainbow Body 

Flying Away into the Sky
 
What is described below is one popular version of the event that was commonly known to the elder local people in Tongde County. This version was known to most people and believed by most people. Our investigation, witness interviewing, analysis and verification were conducted around this version.

According to local people, one day in September of 1958, a mass assembly was to be held near the Digan Temple in Tongde County to criticize and interrogate Khenchen Tsewang Rigdzin (Khenpo Chaiwan Runzheng). At that time, he was already in jail in the County Prison. Several small hills must be crossed from the prison to the site of the mass assembly. Several soldiers were escorting the Khenpo after taking him from the prison. Because of his handicap, the Khenpo was allowed to ride on the back of a red yak. When the group of five or six people were approaching their destination, an extremely strong and violent whirlwind (cyclone) suddenly took place. The wind was so strong that none of the soldiers could open their eyes. Their location at the time was close to the top of a hill, with a distance of several kilometers from the Digan Temple. After the wind had gone away, the soldiers started to look around. However, Khenchen Tsewang Rigdzin (Khenpo Chaiwan Runzheng) was no longer on the yak. Before starting the trip, to prevent an accident, the soldiers had tied the Khenpo tightly on the back of the yak with rope. All their efforts were proven to be in vain, because the Khenpo had flown into the sky, accompanied by several auspicious colored clouds. This event was witnessed by many people at the scene.

3. My Investigation

If you come to Tongde County and mention the name of Khenchen Tsewang Rigdzin (Khenpo Chaiwan Runzheng) to people, almost anyone will tell the above story to you in similar details. Even though the story is so commonly known, I still decided to do my investigation from the start. My first goal was to clarify the doubt many people may have. On the other hand, I wanted to have the facts recorded truthfully. I wished to find out: did people put their feelings into the story so the truth got covered by kind lies? Also, between legend and fact, to what degree and scope can the truth be re-manifested?

The people I interviewed in my investigation included some who were escorting the Khenpo at the time; those who were near the location when the Khenpo was flying away, including some eye witnesses; and a number of people who listened to the entire story from eye witnesses. When putting their words into text, I wrote down exactly what they said almost without editing a word. My goal was to let the readers draw their own conclusions naturally, without being influenced by the subjective and, possibly, already fixed thinking in my mind. I believe that this style of truthfully presenting the original narration would be convincing to the readers.

My first interview was with the elderly Zhimei, who is 77 years old now. He was a local shepherd in Tongde County. He told me:

“On the day when Master Tsewang Rigdzin (Chaiwan Runzheng) was taken from the prison to the site of the mass meeting, I was watching cattle on one of the hills he must pass. I saw several soldiers passing by with the Master. They tied the Master onto the back of a red yak. When they went over the top of the hill, I was with the cattle half way on the hill. Then, I suddenly saw the Master, in monk’s clothing, started to ascend from the other side of the hill. At the beginning, he was flying up slowly. Eventually he disappeared into the clouds. Many people said that there was a strong swirling wind and auspicious colorful clouds appeared in the sky but I did not see those scenes. This may be because I was half way up this side of the hill, while the Master had already gone to the other side. All I saw was that the Master flew into the sky. I saw that with my own eyes. I was still young then with good eye sight. It would be impossible that what I saw was some illusion. Years later, the charges to those jailed in 1958 were dropped. The Master’s hometown Hongyuan also sent people to request the Master’s remains from Tongde County. I knew that they would not get them because the Master flew away into the sky. I saw that with my own eyes. I told this to my family members but I dare not to tell the people from Hongyuan.  After all these years, now as an elderly person of almost 80 years old, I am telling this story again from my memory. Do you think I would fabricate it to deceive you? I absolutely do not have any false statement in it. I do not have any reason to lie on this. In general, there are two possible motives for one to lie. One is trying to reap benefits from doing so. The other is being forced to lie and under pressure. My situation has nothing to do with either of these. That’s why I can guarantee you that I did not make any false statement in what I said.”

The elderly Zhimei was an eye witness of the event. The next person I met, Chongpeier, provided detailed collaborating materials in many aspects. Also, he was the most talkative person among those I interviewed.

Chongpeier is over 60 now. He is a local resident and currently stays at home after retiring from his job. He was a middle-level cadre of Tongde County. He described to me, in great detail, what he learned on this event:

“I remember that it was a day in October of 1988. I was the director of the Bureau of Industry and Commerce Management of Tongde County then. On that day, when it was near the end of workday, a Han (mandarin) person came to see me and invited me to have dinner with him. At the dinner table, he told me his purpose of looking for me. His name was Li Desheng and he was from the Shangchun Village of Huangzhong County in Qihai Province. He came to Tongde County to buy about 500 head of cattle and lambs from local people. He wanted to ask me a favor of collecting less taxes and fees from him. He told me that he knew many senior officials in Tongde County very well, but not me. I asked him where he had worked before. He said that he has been a soldier in the security force of Tongde County and had risen to the position of a squad leader. While we were enjoying wine and dining, he told me a miraculous experience of his that was beyond imagination:

‘I saw a person who flew away in front of my own eyes. At that time, I and several soldiers of my squad were escorting that Lama from the prison to the mass meeting site near the Digan Temple. We tied him tightly onto the back of a yak and surrounded him as we were on our way. While we were climbing the hill and close to the top, he started to chant something that we could not understand. At the top of the hill, we ordered him to stop making the sound. Then we saw that the other side of the hill was flat land. Suddenly, many pieces of colored clouds flew over. The Lama got carried away by the clouds!

Well, it was easy for him to get carried away by the clouds but we were left with the burden of reporting this event to the upper level. When I reported this to the county government, I was told that I did not accomplish my task and I had to write a report to repent myself. I did write that report of repentance.’

Li Desheng also told me that, after hearing this event, the Attorney General of the county was a little moved and said, ‘This is really very strange.’ Just for saying this, the Attorney General was removed from his position, because the higher level thought he was a superstitious person. Many people in Tongde County knew about the firing of the Attorney General from his job but they all speculated that it was due to some other fault he committed and did not know the real reason. Li Desheng mentioned that he told his parents about this and they held their palms together and respectfully said, ‘this person (Khenchen Tsewang Rigdzin) is great and incredible.’”

Chongpeier added, “Normally he should be charged over 2000 Yuans of taxes and fees. For telling me this event, I only collected about 700 Yuans from him.”

1-Wherever possible, the names and places listed here have been translated as they appeared in other Tibetan-English sources. The transliteration of these names from the original Chinese article are also provided in parentheses.

2-Other accounts of this story indicate that Tsewang Rigdzin was a very big man, weighing over 330 pounds at the time of his leaving this world. It was not uncommon for people from this area to be over seven feet tall.

3-In another account of this event, it was reported that after witnessing the lama flying away, several of the soldiers who had pointed their guns at the lama became devout Buddhist.  Although that article has not been translated yet from the Chinese, I believe from oral accounts that it was written by one of these soldiers.

This examples given were taken from an article written by the abbot of Shangdan Temple in Tongde County, Huangnan Region of Qinghai Province.  Before 1958, Shangdan Temple had been the home base of Khenchen Tsewang Rigdzin (Khenpo Chaiwan Runzheng) for propagating the dharma and benefiting living beings.

http://xuanfa.net/articles/kenchen-tsewang-rigdzin-rainbow-body/

Story of the Flying Saint Joseph of Cupertino and Buddhist Monk Kenchen Tsewang Rigdzin Offer Corroborating Evidence That Death Is Bunk!

Ayu Khandro Dorje Peldron b.1839 - d.1953

In 1953, apparently having lived to the age of one hundred and fifteen, Ayu Khandro passed away. For the few weeks before her death she spent most of her time seeing anyone who wanted to speak to her and gave away her valuable possessions, such as a precious statue of Padmasambhava which she gave to Adzom Gyelse Gyurme Dorje (a 'dzom rgyal sras 'gyur med rdo rje, 1895-1959), the son of Adzom Drukpa, and a small statue of Jamyang Khyentse, made by his own hand, which she left for Namkhai Norbu. After her death, it is said she remained in meditation for two weeks and by the end of the two weeks her body had shrunk to a fraction of its original size, a sign of her accomplishment of Dzogchen practice.

http://www.treasuryoflives.org/biographies/view/Ayu-Khandro-Dorje-Peldron/13139

It is said that at least once Ayu Khandro had a spontaneous involuntary experience of long-distance teleportation. After the event she could not replicate the achievement at will and was forced to travel home for many days.

http://rywiki.tsadra.org/index.php/Ayu_Khandro

Anniversary of Shardza Tashi Gyaltsen Attaining the Rainbow Body

The 13th day of the 4th month on the Tibetan lunar calendar is the anniversary of the rainbow body of Shardza Tashi Gyaltsen.  This year, that date is June 11th.  Shardza Tashi Gyaltsen was a Yungdrung Bön monk, teacher, scholar and realized practitioner of the modern age.  In 1934, he attained the rainbow body, Tibetan jalu, which is a sign of high realization in the practice of Dzogchen.  Essentially, the practitioner has purified their karma and realized the ultimate state of mind such that at the moment of death, the five elements which construct the physical body dissolve into pure light rather than degrading.  In this way, over the course of a few days, the physical body proportionally shrinks and, in some cases, completely disappears leaving only the hair and nails.

Hair and nails of Shardza Tashi Gyaltsen that were recovered after his attainment of the rainbow body

Throughout his life, Shardza Tashi Gyalstsen was known for stringent adherence to the many hundreds of vows that he had taken throughout his life.  Additionally, he taught a multitude of disciples, organized the reconstruction of temples, went on pilgrimages, and spent a great deal of time in isolated meditational retreats.  A prolific writer, he wrote volumes on the subjects of Bön history, instructions and guidance for the practice of Tibetan yoga, and detailed instructions for the advanced practice of inner heat, known as Tummo, among many other subjects.    

In 1934 at the age of 76 during an offering ceremony, he began to spontaneously sing songs of realization.  A few days later, he sewed himself inside of a tent and forbid any of his disciples to open the tent.  The next day, rainbow lights began appearing above and around the tent.  After 3 days, the ground shook.  By the 4th day, rainbow-colored mist was seen coming through the seams of the tent.  On that 4th day, Shardza’s disciple Tsultrim Wangchuk, afraid that his lama’s body would completely disappear and leave nothing for veneration, opened the tent.  He found Shardza’s body enveloped in rainbow light, levitating in midair, and shrunken to the proportional size of a 1 year old.  The area around the heart was still warm but most of the nails of the hands and feet had fallen onto Shardza’s seat below.  For the next 49 days, disciples paid their respect.  After that, the precious remains were placed into a reliquary chorten.  From time to time, many people have reported seeing clear or rainbow-colored light emanating from this chorten.

http://ravencypresswood.com/2014/06/09/anniversary-of-shardza-tashi-gyaltsen-attaining-the-rainbow-body/

Excerpts from Rainbow Body: The Life and Realization of a Tibetan Yogin concerning
Adzom Drukpa Drodul Pawo Dorje (1842-1924):

Written in verse in the form of invocation, it was composed by Lhundrub Tso (1864-1946)...

To me and other students,

You pointed your index finger skyward in the threatening gesture
And caused the character [Dzogchen symbol 'ah'] white and luminous to appear...

Summoning your beloved student
Togen Ugyen Tendzin,

You predicted in a clear way
That soon you would pass into Nirvana...

[After three weeks]

On the twenty-fifth day of the ninth month...
You... passed into nirvana...

In that moment in the pure space of the sky,
Rainbow clouds ammassed in the form or ceremonial parasols,
While you showered us with a delicate snow
Of white lotus blossoms...

Then you left a body that was the size of an eight-year-old boy...

And when they carried your body to the cremation grounds,
Thunder rolled three times...

And they [hundreds of lamas] all saw clearly
That the sky was filled with rainbows,
That among flames five-colored [Buddhist Hum Symbol] were appearing,
And then even the smoke took the form of [Buddhist Hum Symbol]...

End of excerpt.

Now, with regard to the "Rainbow Body", I have a great book that I inherited from my grandmother called "A Gift of Prophecy" by Ruth Montgomery (1965). It's about the psychic Jeane Dixon. In it, there's an account by a friend of Jeane's, Joan, who was sitting with Jeane in church as the two were praying together. The following is a quote from the book: "I had been there several times with Jeane," she (Joan) says wonderingly, "but on this particular morning I happened to glance toward her while she was praying, and she wasn't there. This may sound silly, but the place beside me was absolutely vacant. All I could see was a soft haze of light and the empty pew. In a moment, of course, she was back, quietly praying as before. It was a profound experience. I still don't believe in psychic things, but I believe utterly in Jeane."

At the time I read this, I had just recently read a post by David Wilcock entitled, "Reality and Romance" (December 21, 2012). Here's the link to the article: http://divinecosmos.com/start-here/davids-blog/1099-2012romancereality . I suddenly realized that Jeane's temporary transformation into the "Rainbow Body" was what Joan described in her account and is what David described in his article.

http://www.theearthplan.blogspot.com/2015/01/rainbow-body-event-wisdom-teachings.html 

Historical Rainbow Body Experiences

http://soonyata.home.xs4all.nl/sorubasamadhi.htm

Arutprakasa Vallalar Chidambaram Ramalingam (5 October 1823 – disappeared on 30 January 1874)

Ramalingar raised the flag of Brotherhood on his one room residence Siddhi Valakam^[16] in Mettukuppam on October 22, 1873. He gave his last and most famous lecture, entreating his audience to undertake a spiritual quest and look into the "nature of the powers that lie beyond us and move us," and asking them to meditate on the lighted lamp from his room, which he placed outside.

Adigal on January 30, 1874, entered the room and locked himself and told his followers not to open it. He said that even if they did open it they would find nothing (United with Nature & ruling the actions of 'all of the alls' - as told in his poem called 'Gnana Sariyai'). His seclusion spurred many rumors, and the Government finally forced the doors open in May. The room was empty, with no clues. The Madras District Gazetteer published by the South Arcot District in 1906 records his disappearance.^[17]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ramalinga_Swamigal

Swami Ramalingam attained a Supramental state of deathless triple body; the siddha or perfected physical (gross) body, the subtle or mantric body, and the jnana or knowledge body. Finally, he dissolved his outer form (the equivalent of the Tibetan "Rainbow Body" in order to enter into universal existence and continue the work of Supramentalization that was then taken up by Sri Aurobindo and the Mother.

http://kheper.net/topics/divinisation/Ramalingam.html

Nyala Pema Dündul (1816–1872), also known as Terton Nyala Pema Duddul, was a teacher of Dzogchen and Tantric Buddhism in Eastern Tibet.

In particular, he discovered and practiced the terma of the long-life practice of Guru Amitayus, called the Union of Primordial Essences.

Most sources state that the teacher in 1872 attained rainbow body. According to one source, he on purpose did not, but reduced the left dead body in size and transformed it so that it would not decompose. According to the source the small body is now hidden at a secret location.

Many of his students attained rainbow body (e.g. Ayu Khandro and Nyala Rinpoche Rigdzin Changchub Dorje).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nyala_Pema_D%C3%BCndul

Lama Tsongkhapa 1357–1419:

On the morning of October 25, Tsongkhapa entered into samadhi meditation. He made many inner offerings and stopped his breath. Many saw his body transform back into that of a 16-year-old boy and rainbows emitting from his body. Some even saw dakas and dakinis in the sky, making a lot of offerings to welcome Tsongkhapa back into the Pure Land. He was 63 when he passed away.

 http://www.lama-tsongkhapa.com/origin2/

 

Paranormal Feats of Buddhist Monks Lending Credence to the Rainbow Body Phenomenon - Periodically Updated Research Page

In the following presentation David Wilcock contends that Rangjung Rigpe Dorje did not fully achieve the rainbow body, however, this is contradicted by the information on Dorje found above, found just below the third image counting upwards. Wilcock also contends that Padmasambhava was a human extraterrestrial.

The Dzogchen teachings state:

In the north-western part of the land of Oddiyana, on an island in the lake of Dhanakosha, the blessings of all the buddhas took shape in the form of a multi-coloured lotus flower. Moved by compassion at the suffering of sentient beings, the Buddha Amitabha sent out from his heart a golden vajra, marked with the syllable HRIH, which descended onto the lotus blossom. It transformed into an exquisitely beautiful eight year old child, endowed with all the major and minor marks of perfection, and holding a vajra and a lotus.

http://www.rigpawiki.org/index.php?title=Padmasambhava#Birth

The Tibetan Book of the Dead is one of the texts that, according to legend, Padma-Sambhava was compelled to hide during his visit to Tibet in the late 8th century. The guru hid his books in stones, lakes, and pillars because the Tibetans of that day and age were somehow unprepared for their teachings. Now, in the form of the ever-popular Tibetan Book of the Dead, these teachings are constantly being discovered and rediscovered by Western readers of many different backgrounds--a phenomenon which began in 1927 with Oxford's first edition of Dr. Evans-Wentz's landmark volume. While it is traditionally used as a mortuary text, to be read or recited in the presence of a dead or dying person, this book--which relates the whole experience of death and rebirth in three intermediate states of being--was originally understood as a guide not only for the dead but also for the living. As a contribution to the science of death and dying--not to mention the belief in life after death, or the belief in rebirth--The Tibetan Book of the Dead is unique among the sacred texts of the world, for its socio-cultural influence in this regard is without comparison.

This fourth edition features a new foreword, afterword, and suggested further reading list by Donald S. Lopez, author of Prisoners of Shangri-La: Tibetan Buddhism and the West. Lopez traces the whole history of the late Evans-Wentz's three earlier editions of this book, fully considering the work of contributors to previous editions (C. G. Jung among them), the sections that were added by Evans-Wentz along the way, the questions surrounding the book's translation, and finally the volume's profound importance in engendering both popular and academic interest in the religion and culture of Tibet. Another key theme that Lopez addresses is the changing nature of this book's audience--from the prewar theosophists to the beat poets to the hippies to contemporary exponents of the hospice movement--and what these audiences have found (or sought) in its very old pages.

From the book Lifetimes - True Accounts of Reincarnation by Frederick Lenz, PH.D:

Fifteen persons with whom I have spoken claim to have recalled the passage of their soul through the nonphysical worlds. In these cases a person had a remembrance in which he experienced full participation in one of his past lives. But instead of his remembrance terminating during some point within that lifetime, he believes that he reexperienced his death at the end of that lifetime, he believes that he reexperienced his death at the end of that past life, the passage of his soul through the higher worlds after his death, and his rebirth in his next incarnation. In each of these cases of between-life remembrance, people experienced similar phenomena to note that although none of these cases persons were familiar with the Book of the Dead prior to their remembrance, their descriptions of both the order and nature of their experiences are strikingly similar to the descriptions of death and rebirth process found in the Tibetan Book of the Dead.

From The Death and Afterlife Book: The Encyclopedia of Death, Near Death, and Life After Death by James R. Lewis (Writing in regard to the Tibetan Book of the Dead):

The consciousness of the departed has an ecstatic experience of the primary "clear light" at the death moment. Everyone gets at least a fleeting glimpse of the light. The more spiritually developed see it longer, and are able to go beyond it to a higher level of reality. The average person, however, drops into the lessor state of the secondary "clear light."

In stage two, the departed encounters the hallucinations resulting from the karma created during life. Unless highly developed, the individual will feel that she is still the body. The departed then encounters various apparitions, the "peaceful" and "wrathful" deities, that are actually personifications of human feelings and that, to successfully achieve nirvana, the deceased must encounter unflinchingly. Only the most evolved individuals can skip the Bardo experience altogether and transit directly in the paradise realm.

  The Bardo of Death

The Tibetan Buddhist tradition has concentrated more attention on helping the dying person cross the borders of death than any other living religious tradition...

Following the process leading up to death, the person's experience of the bardo of death commences. However, for most individuals, it passes by in a split second and goes unnoticed. Only those who have undergone training in and practiced meditation, contemplative prayer, and similar spiritual disciplines will likely even be aware of the bardo of death.

One description of the kind of meditation done by advanced practitioners consists of a conscious effort to "dissolve space into light", which if successful will propel the dying soul into an a state of light and bliss beyond the continual cycles of birth and death to which most souls are subject. For those less familiar with such formal meditation practices, the act of remembering very bright light (such as, for example, remembering an experience of staring into the sun) and seeing that light as a source of pure awareness or divine love could produce a similar effect. A series of meditations and understandings that can be helpful as one enters or prepares to enter the bardo can be found on our Death Meditations page.

 ...

In Dream Yoga and the Practice of Natural Light, Chögyal Namkhai Norbu gives instructions for developing clarity within the sleep and dream states. He goes beyond the practices of lucid dreaming that have been popularized in the West by presenting methods for guiding dream states that are part of a broader system for enhancing self-awareness called Dzogchen. In this tradition, the development of lucidity in the dream state is understood in the context of generating greater awareness for the ultimate purpose of attaining liberation.

This revised and expanded edition includes additional material from a profound and personal Dzogchen book, which Chögyal Namkhai Norbu wrote over many years. This material deepens the first edition's emphasis on specific exercises to develop awareness within the dream and sleep states. Also included in this book is a text written by Mipham, the nineteenth-century master of Dzogchen, which offers additional insights into this extraordinary form of meditation and awareness.

The god Heimdallr stands before the rainbow bridge while blowing a horn (1905) by Emil Doepler. In Norse mythology, Bifröst (ⁱ/ˈbɪvrɒst/^[1] or sometimes Bilröst or Bivrost) is a burning rainbow bridge that reaches between Midgard (the world) and Asgard, the realm of the gods.

 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bifr%C3%B6st

Rainbow Body-like Experiences in Fiction

What REALLY Happened to LUKE in The Last Jedi? (SPOILERS) - Star Wars Explained - Thor Ragnarok Odin is Dead

Lucy Movie Review— If you had the means to use more than 10 percent of your brain, but it meant changing your diet— would you do it? When I am on the "Raw Food Diet" my brain is more creative, clear, able to focus and happier. As my cells become cleaner from daily toxins, I experience a higher functioning brain. I also avoid fluoride, which is said to cause foggy brain and I drink a half a gallon of distilled water a day. But, the key to my brain power is my raw food diet.

The raw food diet is similar to the "blue drugs" that Scarlett Johansson get's exposed to. Live Food is packed with "Enzymes". Cooked foods kill the natural enzymes. Our brains thrive on nutrients and minerals from live organic produce.

I also loved how the alcohol was used in the film "Lucy.".…Scarlett's cells in the film are replicating at a rapid speed as her brain is using more of it's capacity. Normally, the toxins that we are exposed to in life have a slow response to long term damage, but not in the film. Everything is happening at a rapid speed, showing how when you expose cells to toxic conditions, the result in decay. Yet, when you expose cells to an ideal environment they become immortal, like the jelly fish. Or live springing up from life.

As Lucy reaches 100 percent usage of her brain, she explodes like a monk, in what is known as "rainbow body" becoming one with everything (unseen). Lucy joins the whole, the invisible unknown reality of all consciousness, which is alive and expanding.

http://happy-firewalker.blogspot.com/2015/01/lucy-movie-review.html

Luc Besson on Lucy and Knowing the Limits of the Human Brain

The 10 percent is a metaphor in a way. So that’s why I was not bothered by that. I’m always amazed by these people who become scientists at the last minute and go, “This is wrong!” Of course; it’s a film. [Laughs.] What’s more interesting — more than the 10 percent or the 15 percent — is that if we get the capacity of full intelligence, in the film, we say that the first step is the control of the cell, the second step is the control of others, the third is the control of matter, and the fourth is the control of time. And I talked to a lot of scientists, and they believe that at least the first three are possible. They don’t say it’s true, but it’s at least logical. The good thing is when you take a lot of things that are totally right and mix them very well with a few things that are wrong, at the end of the film, you think everything is real. And that’s the magic of film.

http://www.vulture.com/2014/07/luc-besson-director-lucy-chat.html

Star Wars

Rainbow Body: A Monk vanishing into the Universe.

According to the Tibetan Buddhism, a highly achieved monk can join into the universe by his command, discarding the physical body. FYI, George Lucas took this idea for Obi-Wan Kenobi vanishing himself during the dual with Darth Vader.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/7345606@N07/3673484947/

http://starwarsparodyhub.blogspot.com/2015/02/rainbow-body-monk-vanishing-into.html

More Books on Spiritual Practice

The Good Heart: A Buddhist Perspective on the Teachings of Jesus - The result of the Dalai Lama's decision to lead the 1994 John Main Seminar sponsored by the World Community for Christian Meditation, this book is a record of the seminar. It is refreshing to read the Dalai Lama's meditations on the New Testament selections, many of which he had never read before this seminar but which are among the most familiar for Christians. As His Holiness thinks about famous passages like the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5:1-10) and Jesus' resurrection appearance to Mary (John 20:10-18), we see them from the entirely new perspective of Tibetan Buddhist spiritual knowledge and understanding. Consequently, familiar passages are renewed and opened to unexpected insights. In his readings and his dialogues with other seminar participants, the Dalai Lama establishes himself as an authentic presence respectful of Christian traditions. Indeed, he insists that his purpose in the dialogues is not to cast doubt on Christianity but to help others rediscover the deeper meaning and power of the Christian tradition. This is a fascinating book which deserves a great deal of attention in these times of multicultural exchange. Related: Jesus was a Buddhist Monk BBC Documentary

The Tibetan Book of Meditation - Meditation helps us relax, sharpens our minds, and increases our creativity. In The Tibetan Book of Meditation, Lama Christie McNally demonstrates that meditation also provides a much greater gift. It awakens our innate potential to shape our reality, to make moments of joy last forever, and to bring us the peace and contentment that we all ultimately seek. 

Innate Happiness guides busy Westerners on the path of liberation, the realization of compassion-emptiness, with concise weekly practices based on the yogi tradition of Tibetan Buddhism. The book includes a brief history of Buddhism in India and Tibet, as well as its major principles. This is followed by clear, concise steps on the Path of Individual Liberation, the Path of Altruism, the Path of Tantra, and the Path of Great Perfection. Each path takes the reader through the Three Teachings: ethics, meditation, and wisdom. Thus, it covers a complete cycle of for study, contemplation, meditation and realization, each highly suitable for the busy lives of Westerners with little time for formal meditation. May ALL beings be happy!


Vajra Wisdom: Deity Practice in Tibetan Buddhism - Vajra Wisdom presents the commentaries of two great nineteenth-century Nyingma masters that guide practitioners engaged in development stage practice through a series of straightforward instructions. The rarity of this kind of material in English makes it indispensable for practitioners and scholars alike.

The goal of development stage meditation in the Tibetan Buddhist tradition is to directly realize the inseparability of phenomena and emptiness. Preceded by initiation and oral instructions, the practitioner arrives at this view through the profound methods of deity visualization, mantra recitation, and meditative absorption.

Rainbow Painting: A Collection of Miscellaneous Aspects of Development and Completion - Rainbow Painting is saturated with direct, pithy instruction, the very quintessence of the Buddhist Spiritual approach. Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche speaks from experience, expressing what he himself has undergone, instructing us in the way we should train in a complete and unmistaken manner. We come to understand that to become enlightened we must experience what was always present within us. The ultimate object of realization, the natural state of mind, unmistakenly and exactly as it is, need not be sought for elsewhere but is present within ourselves. Stability in this unexcelled state of unity is not attained independently of means, proper conduct and knowledge of the view. We should unite view and conduct; and this book contains the key points for doing just that.

“Some people have the habit of thinking that something is bound to happen after practicing meditation a while — like going through school — that after ten or fifteen years you end up with a degree. That’s the idea in the back of people’s minds: “I can make it happen! I can do enlight¬enment!” Not in this case, though. You cannot make enlightenment, because enlightenment is unconstructed. Realizing the awakened state is a matter of being diligent in allowing nondual awareness to regain its natural stability. It is difficult to reach enlightenment without such dili¬gence, without undertaking any hardship.”
---Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche

“Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche is someone who has lived at length in mountain hermitages, spent many years in retreat, and done a considerable amount of meditation training. For this reason, he gives the very quintessence of the sacred Dharma spoken by our compassionate Buddha Shakyamuni. He speaks from experience, expressing what he himself has undergone, instructing us in the way we should practice in a complete and unmistaken manner. These teachings, saturated with direct, pithy instruction, are unique.”

---Chökyi Nyima Rinpoche

The ultimate object of realization, the natural state of mind, unmistakenly and exactly as it is, need not be sought elsewhere than in ourselves. We become enlightened through experiencing what is always innately present. Stability in this unexcelled unawareness is attained when view, the knowledge aspect and conduct, the means are integrated. In Rainbow Painting, Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche presents the practices to accomplish this unity.

Advice from the Lotus-Born: A Collection of Padmasambhava's Advice to the Dakini Yeshe Tsogyal and Other Close Disciples

“Don’t mistake mere words to be the meaning of the teachings. Mingle the practice with your own being and attain liberation from samsara right now.”
Padmasambhava

Padmasambhava is the primary master of Vajrayana, the teachings for our time. Out of his great compassion and wisdom, he instructed his main disciple Yeshe Tsogyal to conceal terma treasures to be revealed at the destined time for future practitioners. The profundity of this advice is meant to be personally applied by all individuals in all circumstances. It is a classic work, which contains valid truth for anyone who sincerely wants to follow a spiritual path.

“The chief compiler of Padmasambhava’s teachings was Yeshe Tsogyal, an emanation of a female Buddha. There may be some people who believe that only men can attain enlightenment, but her life is proof to the opposite. The awakened state of mind is neither male or female.”
Tulku Urgyen Rinpoche, from Introductory Teachings

The Life of Shabkar has long been recognized by Tibetans as one of the masterworks of their religious heritage. Shabkar Tsogdruk Rangdrol devoted himself to many years of meditation in solitary retreat after his inspired youth and early training in the province of Amdo under the guidance of several extraordinary Buddhist masters. With determination and courage, he mastered the highest and most esoteric practices of the Tibetan tradition of the Great Perfection. He then wandered far and wide over the Himalayan region expressing his realization. Shabkar's autobiography vividly reflects the values and visionary imagery of Tibetan Buddhism, as well as the social and cultural life of early nineteenth-century Tibet.

Related: 

From The Death and Afterlife Book: The Encyclopedia of Death, Near Death, and Life After Death by James R. Lewis:

Ian Stevenson's credentials and careful research methods have led to acceptance of his work by colleges who would dismiss other psychic researchers out of hand. He was president of the international Parapsychological Association in both 1988-89. His publications include Telepathic Impressions (1970), Twenty Cases Suggestive of Reincarnation (1974), Cases of the Reincarnation Type (in four volumes, 1975-1983), and Children Who Remember Previous Lives: A Question of Reincarnation (1987).

Scientific Proof of Reincarnation by Dr. Ian Stevenson

Reincarnation in the Bible

Scientific Evidence Supporting Near-Death Experiences and the Afterlife

Scientists Claim That Quantum Theory Proves Consciousness Moves To Another Universe At Death 

DzogchenTV

Friday, June 24, 2016

The Tibetan Rainbow Body | Photographs, Evidence, and Anecdotes – 21 Grams of the Soul, Light Body, Transmutation or Transfiguration, Padmasambhava, Ati Yoga, The Dzogchen Path, and more

by Justin Deschamps

The Rainbow Body is a term describing a state of being wherein an individual has transcended all suffering and attained a state of complete union with the universe and the consciousness of creation.

This state of being is very similar to what is contemporaneously been described as ascension. In times of old, it was defined as enlightenment. It is the state of completely destroying the separate selfish self, the negative ego, which emerges thereafter as a servant of universal will. But there are many other ways to describe this state of being, such as Universal Consciousness, Ascended, Sovereign, Self Mastered, Self-Actualized, and so on.

David Wilcock and William Henry are researchers—to name a few—who have featured the Rainbow Body teachings in their work.

Henry recently appeared on Cosmic Disclosure, a web-based weekly show on gaia.com, discussing the topics of ascension and blue spheres depicted in iconic art from antiquity.


The Rainbow Body Technique

While there is much to say insofar as understanding the core teachings of this technique, it can be summarized as making every thought a loving thought.

The mind and consciousness energize the body in terms of how we define our experiences. If we label experiences as bad and reject the fullness of what life offers, this creates blockages within the mind as voids of comprehension. We can't understand and reconcile what we've chosen to ignore or deny about existence. Therefore, in order to restore wholeness so as to become holy, one must progressively change all their mental programs or beliefs that support separation consciousness.

For example, if we dislike some household chore, refusing to embrace it in fullness, this creates a schism within the mind that generates negative emotions. If we accept this state of being as our truth, dissociation with reality occurs, preventing the energies of creation from fully realizing the Rainbow Body state. Clearly, we have not made every thought a loving thought if we hate washing dishes or detest some other part of our lives.

The principle of polarity defines separation vs. universal consciousness, which is a spectrum or a difference of extremes. At one end of the pole is separation consciousness and the selfishness that comes with it. On the other end of the pole is universal consciousness and the freedom and empowerment that come with it. But it is not enough to stop feeding separation consciousness, we must actually be proactive in becoming universally conscious.

Consider that if we want to walk towards a desired location, we must take steps in that direction. If we find ourselves off course it isn't enough to stop moving in the wrong direction, we have to actually step forward in the right direction. Therefore, in order to gain universal consciousness we must stop feeding separation consciousness while at the same time nurturing universal consciousness via acts of unselfish love or kindness.

In essence, anytime we feel negative emotions, it is an indication that we've endorsed beliefs of separation and victimhood in relation to the thing that caused us to feel this way. Even if the thing is justified in society (like being stolen from, violently attacked, oppressed, and so on), if we feed into the idea that it is OK to hate, we block our consciousness from evolving. In this sense, the primary method for achieving enlightenment is to change the metaphysical part of oneself, our mind. This mental alchemy is expressed in breathtaking detail within iconic imagery, featured within Henry's work.

But accepting the truth about our experience doesn't also mean being complacent to tyranny and oppression. Defending oneself against harm is a choice to accept the truth in fullness while also proactively making an effort to stop harm when it is observed.

In the below-linked article, I offered a detailed analysis of the mental nature of personal evolution, and that all techniques or methods of growth are founded on this principle of mental alchemy or transformation. And that the symbology of certain iconic works provides key teachings for consciousness evolution as a function of making contact with universal law and will.

Related Cosmic Disclosure Season 5 - Episode 4: Symbiotic Relationships of Ascension - Summary and Analysis | Corey Goode and David Wilcock


The Spiritual Nature of All Things

The method of achieving Rainbow Body is the art of embracing all of what life has to offer, including experiences that society labels as unquestionably bad or undesirable. To be sure, we need not seek out suffering, harm, or oppression, yet at the same time, we must develop a comprehension of the spiritual nature of all things.

Once one really perceives that all events and things in life are spiritual at their foundation, gratitude for being able to experience them can be developed. In this way, any experience, no matter how seemingly horrific and tragic, can be viewed or defined in a way that produces the experience of gratitude. The more one finds success in this path and the more one feels empowered by the challenges of life, the more one can embrace change and evolve in harmony with the ever-emerging newness or novelty of existence.

Related The Five Stages of Awakening, and More on the Final Stage of the Spiritual Warrior by Justin

The state of consciousness developed as a result of walking this path has been called universal consciousness, in contrast to separation consciousness. But there are many names for this state of being.

As was stated, there are countless works, methods, techniques, esoteric teachings, mystery schools, and so on, which describe this process, how to do it, and what effect it has on practitioners. In my research, one of the most complete and replete presentations is in the book Children of the Law of One and the Lost Teachings of Atlantis, as well as, The Emerald Tablets of Thoth the Atlantean. 


The Altruism of the Rainbow Body

As one point of consideration, the Rainbow Body, as described below, is not a selfish or self-serving practice. While one does achieve increasing states of personal healing, transcendence, and empowerment, it is harmonized with an ever-increasing desire to service others and become an instrument of universal will.

As one gains universal consciousness, their desires transform so as to integrate the universe as a whole into one's outlook. In other words, we no longer want to do just our will, but the will of the universe at large, which by its very nature, takes into account all things.

Related Universal Consciousness – "Focus on the now, but be aware of the ALL"

After gaining universal consciousness, we do what we do—at all times—not just for ourselves, but for the whole of creation. This doesn't mean avoiding our desires, reactions or experiences, for that rejects a part of what IS. Instead, we harmonize our personal desires against the backdrop of the universe as a whole. When we've achieved this state, we do what we do for the All, which, of course, includes the self.


Testing Our Progress

One method for testing how far along this path we've come is to list the reasons we use to support our choices, desires, and actions. Our reasons tell us if we are focused only on ourselves or the universe as a whole.

For example, why do you eat the food you do? How do you spend your free time and what are the reasons for doing so?

The answers to these questions reveal where your focus is, and if they are centered on the self only, it is an indication we're operating from separation consciousness. When our reasons become universal in scope, we make a step on the path to attaining an ascended state of being. And often we have to invoke that consciousness first so as to replace a rationale based on separation. That is to say, if we only eat food because it tastes good, this is a self-serving rationale—no one else is considered in the justification process. But contemplate a different rationale, such as wanting to fuel our bodies so we can become better vehicles for universal will and service others—then this reason would be universal in scope.

The context or scope of our reasons determines if they are universal or self-serving in nature. But if we never question our reasons, if we never seek to gain knowledge of why we do the things we do, then the selfish separate self will become dominant, and the suffering that comes from identification with separation consciousness is sure to taint everything we do.

The same principle of choice we are discussing here is similar to the parable of the wolf.

A grandfather is talking with his grandson and he says there are two wolves inside of us which are always at war with each other.

One of them is a good wolf which represents things like kindness, bravery and love. The other is a bad wolf, which represents things like greed, hatred and fear.

The grandson stops and thinks about it for a second then he looks up at his grandfather and says, “Grandfather, which one wins?”

The grandfather quietly replies, the one you feed.

As was stated earlier, the difference between universal and separation consciousness is a matter of degrees. This means that if we are progressing along a spiritual path our reasons become more and more universal as time goes on. The progress we feel now can be compared to points in the past to reveal how far we've come but there will always be a step forward that can be made. And we need not dwell on the past to motivate us towards changing in the future.

The important thing to focus on is that we're making a choice in the direction of universal consciousness. How far we leap in that step isn't as important as making one in the right direction. In our efforts to motivate ourselves in all the moments of our lives, focusing on the process is more important than comparing our progress to others or the past.

So while we may be tempted to look for validation of our efforts, don't lose heart if you discover that there is more work to be done. Regaining universal consciousness, enlightenment or the Rainbow Body state is a grand task, one that requires complete devotion to accomplish.


The Price of Separation Consciousness

The satisfaction that comes from a self-serving rationale is fleeting and limited at best. Hence, all of human history is marred by the trappings of separation consciousness of the ego gone mad and in this state of self-imposed insanity, it seeks to consume all that exists in a foolish attempt to fill the hole left in one’s heart.

Related The Shamanic View of Mental Illness, and its Spiritual Causes | Jennifer's Story: Healing Bipolar Mania/Depression Naturally

In short, we must be proactive in our desire to achieve enlightenment by constantly going within and asking ourselves why we are doing what we do. Don't let relative degrees of success hold you back from making steps towards the ultimate goal.


A Change is upon Us

In these times of great change and extremes of polarity, the ability to raise one's own vibration and consciousness, so as to become a beacon of light for others, is an essential part of the great work of our age. But the quality of our service depends directly on our own state of attainment and evolution. We can't offer upliftment and healing to others if we refuse to give this to ourselves.

Our spiritual life purpose in this sense is a merger of personal evolution and altruistic service. And the best way to experience compassion, harmlessness, and service of others is to live out these ideals within our lives. In doing so we not only stop feeding separation consciousness we actually feed the emerging universal soul.

Knowing the path is a constant pursuit that is forever balanced against walking the path.

Related Why is Life So Hard Sometimes? | Adversity Witnessed, is a Potential Act of Kindness

Yet in these times of transition, all the traditions and blindly accepted doctrines of the past are being questioned.

The individual has more opportunity to become an agent of change due to their access to critical information, like what is presented herein, than all the previous ages of history combined.

We are living in the times of the great unveiling, the apocalypse. The question is, will be take up the spiritual nature within each of us, or will we continue to feed into separation consciousness?

- Justin

The preceding article is a Stillness in the Storm original creation. Please share freely. 
Source - Soonyata

by Edwin Chris and Litsa van Ouwerkerk

What is a rainbow body?

A fully enlightened person (a jivan mukti) who also liberates the body into light.

Now there are 3 levels of the Rainbow body:

A) Rainbow body

B) Rainbow body of light

C) Rainbow body of great transference

A) The most common level is the normal Rainbow body that occurs only after body death. Every 10 years or so a Buddhist from Tibet enters into this state. There are no physical signs indicating the start of the process before death and once physical death occurs it takes on average 7 days for the body to shrink and dissolve into light and most of the time a small child size body remains behind and in more advanced yogi's only hair and nails.

 

Chokgyur Lingpa rainbow body and his hand prints (Only a small body of around 5 cm remained)

Related Reclaiming the Rainbow Throne: Understanding Alchemy of Consciousness, Density and Light

B) The more advanced level is also called the Rainbow body, but for due purposes lets call it the Rainbow body of light as in this level all the signs are showing up while the yogi is still alive. The process of dissolving into light might go really fast but in most cases it takes month to years to complete, all while remaining fully functional. It is also possible that the yogi who is in the middle of this process slows it down or is unable to continue the process and dies before the completion of the Rainbow body. This has been the case with most of the famous siddhars. If the process is continued the body will start to shrink and shine real light over time until it reaches the size of a baby and then as a flash of bright rainbow light will disappear into emptiness forever.

Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (did not complete the process but was well on its way)

C) The most advanced and extremely rare level is the attainment of the Rainbow body of great transference. In this level the yogi not only dissolves the body completely into light but remains functional and visible as light.

Padmasambava's Rainbow Body (Guru Rinpoche)

For clarification, these 3 states have nothing to do with Spontaneous Human Combustion SHC and some have made the mistake of believing some saints to have attained the Rainbow body state while in fact it was a SHC case, such as Sambandar, Appar and Sundarar.

-- -- --

So lets go a little deeper into the history and background of the phenomena called the Rainbow body.

21 grams:

Dr. Duncan "Om" MacDougall (c. 1866 – October 15, 1920) was an early 20th-century physician in Haverhill, Massachusetts who sought to measure the mass lost by a human when the soul departed the body at death. MacDougall attempted to measure the mass change of six patients at the moment of death. His first subject, the results from which MacDougall felt were most accurate, lost "three-fourths of an ounce", which has since been popularized as "21 grams". The rainbow body goes way beyond this value.

-- -- --

The ultimate Great accomplishment in meditation is the attainment of the Rainbow body. This is widely recognized as a sign of extreme sanctity in Tibetan Buddhism and among the Bönpo. Reports of this level of transmutation are rare, but still they occur and have been chronicled far into antiquity. The rainbow body however is not limited to Buddhism only as you will see in the pictures below but to understand the process we will turn to the well documented and delineated practice of Dzogchen in Tibet and reflect this practice to the stories of Vallalar from south India who went through the same process.

In the Himalayan regions, the early indigenous religion was that of the Bön. Bön pre-existed the creation of both the sovereign territories, later to become the country of Tibet as well as of Buddhism. When the great Indian tantric sage Padmasambhava (look at drawing above) brought Buddhism from India to Tibet in the 8th Century AD he found the richly tilled ground of the Bönpo. This land and its peoples took easily to the Buddha’s teachings and the Buddhist beliefs melded well with the rituals of the Bön.

When Padmasambhava left at the end of his time in physical form he dissolved his body completely back to their natural elements leaving nothing behind. At that moment a new lineage of Buddhist teachings was created. This was the start of what has become the Nyingma tradition and is the foundation of Tibetan Buddhism as we have come to know it. At the heart of the Nyingma tradition is the practice of Dzogchen otherwise called Ati Yoga or the Great Perfection.

According to Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, Dzogchen is the natural, primordial state or natural condition of a human being and the practice of Dzogchen is a body of teachings and meditations aimed at realizing that condition. According to Dzogchen literature, Dzogchen is the highest and most definitive path to enlightenment.

From the perspective of Dzogchen, the ultimate nature of all sentient beings is said to be pure, all-encompassing, primordial clarity or naturally occurring timeless clarity. This intrinsic clarity has no form of its own and yet is capable of perceiving, experiencing, reflecting, or expressing all form. It does so without being affected by those forms in any ultimate, permanent way. The analogy given by Dzogchen masters is that one's nature is like a mirror which reflects with complete openness but is not affected by the reflections, or like a crystal ball that takes on the color of the material on which it is placed without itself being changed. The knowledge that ensues from recognizing this mirror-like clarity (which cannot be found by searching nor identified) is what Dzogchenpas refer to as rigpa. The most direct way to realizing this state are the practices of Trekchö - an advanced practice in Dzogchen.

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Trekchö practice is a releasing or a cutting through of all one’s tensions and rigidities, all obscurations must be purified. This accomplished through mastering the art of contemplation and visualization. It is mastering meditation in the state of Union. It is a prerequisite for practicing the Tögal practice. For a novice understanding it is a practice of witnessing ones karma and forgiving and dissolving it to the point it holds no power of cause. The physical body can be calmed to a death like state of samadhi. One then is able to consciously contemplate while in a deep state of union.

Related The Programmable Mind - An Extraordinarily Powerful 6 Minute Video from Bruce Lipton

Related Transmuting The Symbols Of Fear Into Love | Symbolism is the Language of the Mysteries

As Drubwang Tsoknyi Rinpoche once explained:

"Trekchö is the thorough cut of cutting through, cutting the obscurations completely to pieces, like slashing through them with a knife. So the past thought has ceased, the future thought hasn't yet arisen, and the knife is cutting through this stream of present thought. But one doesn't keep hold of this knife either; one lets the knife go, so there is a gap. When you cut through again and again in this way, the string of thought falls to pieces. If you cut a rosary in a few places, at some point it doesn't work any longer."

(Picture of Tsoknyi Rinpoche the 3rd)

When the state of full Self-realization has been accomplished, the yogi or yogini is ready for the next and last Dzogchen practice, the practice of Tögal. This final practice enables the master yogi or yogini to dissolve his or her physical body into the essence of the elements at the time of death. The master disappears into a body of light becoming the wisdom body, the term is called ‘Ja’-lus or Rainbow body in Tibetan. This level of attainment is also the central aim of Indian Buddhist tantricism known as Vajrayana that the Taoists call the golden body. Another term frequently used is Soruba Samadhi or Gnana Deham as Vallalar used to called it. It is a golden body, a state of God-realization in which Divinity descends and transforms the spiritual, intellectual, mental, vital and physical bodies. It is considered physical immortality or the highest perfection.

Related Fractal Universe | Proof of Consciousness and a Creator, the Dreamer within the Dream – Understanding the Fibonacci Sequence and Golden Ratio

Related How to Free Yourself From Subconscious Programming And Access Your Psychic Ability to Read Minds

The practice Tögal occurs in a deep state of contemplation union and is a practice of becoming the essence of all that is. In essence this practice shifts identity to the Cosmic-Awareness. In duality there is always an observer versus the rest. Even in deep meditation there always seems to be an observer left who can realize or recognise things. However if the Trekchö practice has done its job in cleaning and clearing all the blockages, karma and thoughts, the meditation might enter into a state called nirvikalpa samadhi - but in that state all is emptiness and the body is non functional. In Tögal there is a way around this by going into the non-breathing state but remaining fully functional and by doing this you automatically dive into the source of the observer and root it out completely. What remains is the essence of all that is without an observer. Vallalar called this practice Gathi and that was the starting point of the formation of the Rainbow body.

Related Science Of Ascension, Evolution and much more | Fractality: What Makes a LIVE ENZYME - Alive? with Dan Winter

Basically to reach the highest state possible in meditation, the so called jalus powa chenpo or rainbow body of great transference, all 3 granthi's otherwise known as the 3 dantien or used as the 3 bandhas in yoga have to be cleared of stress completely. How do you know when this is done completely:

1. Brahma Granthi completely stress free - No more sexual orgasms possible.

2. Vishnu Granthi completely stress free - no more breathing needed and as an immediate effect also no food consumption needed anymore.

3. Rudra Granthi completely stress free - no more thoughts or dreams. Absolute ego death.

Often masters that attain the Rainbow body will return one last time out of compassion for their beloved disciples and give what are known as posthumous teachings, delivered in the form of a last testament. Often the master is in the transfigured state on occasion suspended in the sky.

Related Restoring Wholeness by Integrating the Conscious and Subconscious Mind | Conscious Breathing Meditation (Beginner)

Jesus Christ

Related William Henry – The Blue Avians and Sphere Beings | Analysis of Ancient Art Revealing Connections to Jesus, Thoth, Bird Tribes, Blue Avians, Angels, and more

A) The Rainbow body

Lama Achuk Rinpoche

At age of 84, Lama Achuk entered into paranirvana and achieved the rainbow body, a great inspiration to disciples to persevere in their practice of the Great Perfection teachings. 29 August 2011, the cremation ceremony of Lama Achuk commenced. The body of Lama Achuk shrunk from a height of 1.8 meters shrunk to about 3 cm tall, a sign of achieving the rainbow body.

Lama Achuk Rinpoche who manifested the rainbow body in 

photograph (by the way, the lotus at the bottom is not there when 

they took the photo, in case you are wondering…)

Rainbow body of Lama Achuk Rinpoche - 2011, size about 3 cm.

Chogye Trichen

Chogye Trichen rainbow body - 2007

Nima Cultrim Rinpoche

Khenpo Acho 1998

Lama Karma Rinpoche

November 2013

Lama Karma Rinpoche's Rainbow body of 20cm in size.

Tasha Lamo

She is the mother of Lokgar Rinpoche which is one of the Tulku in Nyingma Katok Monastery.

Tasha Lamo Rainbow body 40 cm long

Vallabha Acharya

(a Hindu) who attained the rainbow body in 1530 AD

Shardza Tashi Gyaltsen

Nyala Pema Duddul 1872

Pang Mipham Gonpo

Ogyen Tendzin

Ayu Khandro

-- -- --

B) Rainbow body of light 

(otherwise referred to as Soruba samadhi or in more detail Pranava Deham, Suddha Deham and finally Gnana Deham)

According to the description done by Vallalar, in those who have reached the state of Pranava and Suddha Deham, the beginning stages of the rainbow body while still alive, body changes start occurring starting off with a the inner and outer skin becoming extraordinarily smooth; nerves and muscles relax gradually; bones, membranes and cartilages become automatically flexible; blood and semen changes from a liquid to a thickened state; the brain and all its parts became spongy expanded like a flower; through the entire body leaks the Amrit - "Nectar of the Goddess" - the drink flowing from the crown chakra down into the body and tastes sweet like burned sugar when it passes through the throat chakra and grants immortality when it flows nonstop. The face become brilliant, delicate and harmonious, making evident the internal state of supreme happiness.

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When this state deepens the senses can perceive all without being limited by any barrier or obstacle; the eyes can have a view of whole Universe, by that reason they aren't interested in observing the things of the world; they are able to see the content of all the worlds and beings (as much external as internally), without this vision may be hindered by dense barriers like walls or high like mountains; their tongue taste all the flavours, their skin experiences all tactile sensations, their nose sniffs all the smells, their ears are filled of melodies being able to listen any sound produced in any place. With their arms and hands they can take one thing independently of the distance, or give it to other there where he may be; they can reach any destiny without need that their legs do some physical movement, moving without step the ground; with their voice can communicate with anybody in any place of the universe and still beyond. They will be free from the need to consume food, from satisfy the sexual impulse and from feel fear; the body exempt from defects and impurities is refreshed, does not excrete, does not perspire and does not project shadow on the ground; their external appearance corresponds approximately to twelve years old; their hair doesn't become grey, their skin doesn't become wrinkle, they do not age and do not be under the control of death. Their breast and heart swell up palpitating of Love; the four aspects of the mind are illuminated and in total harmony; all the visible parts of the body radiate ecstacy; the ego has disappeared. God, in the form of Supreme Love, fills those Pure bodies with Divine Life.

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Not being subjected to any limitation, those who have achieved the Pranava and Suddha Deham states are able to create and destroy according to their own will, to resurrect a dead person and return an elder to the youth. Their knowledge is God's Knowledge, their action is God's Action, their experiences come from God himself, being manifested the Divine Grace through them. Even the most insignificant inanimate thing will be called to enter into a conscious life only by the Grace of their Look and by their mere Presence; the Greatness and the Glory of their Divine State necessarily will cover what is said by the six traditional spiritual disciplines (Vedanta, Siddhanta, Kalanta, Bodhanta, Nadanta -Tantra- and Yoganta), but will transcend and surpass all of them, being this Divine State what will carry them to achieve the Total and Perfect Bliss.

In one of his poems Vallalar assures having experienced Pranava Deham transformation and evolved even more. By doing it, the Supreme Grace was manifested as total Bliss. Ramalinga explains how he realized the experience of the highest and ultimate transformation: the transmutation in the Divinity, which he described as the fusion with the Supreme God's Body. This Body of Bliss, or Gnana Deham, is omnipresent but imperceptible for the senses.

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Rangjung Rigpe Dorje (16th Karmapa)

Rangjung Rigpe Dorje - see past incarnations

On internet this picture is claimed to be the rainbow body of Rangjung Dorje, however I have come to belief that this is rather a long exposure blur (similar to stroboscopic photography) than the beginning stages of a rainbow body such as that Vallalar described.

Stroboscopic photography 

Motion blur

Below you find an image of Lama Achuk that I belief is real and is a sign of the beginning stages of the rainbow body, exactly as Vallalar described.

Lama Achuk beginning stage of the rainbow body

The following 8 pictures are from individuals who were approaching the rainbow body of light state (all individuals below reached the state of non breathing - while remaining alive), however not completing the process such as what Vallalar did, but entered Jeeva or Maha samadhi.

Vishudhananda 

Lahiri Mahasaya

Mayamma Devi 

Mayamma Devi

Parameshti Guru H.H. Sadasiva Bhremendra Saraswathi [Sri Sri Judge Swamigal] of Pudukkottai 

Jeganathar

Devaraha Baba 

Trailanga

Sadaisiva 

Sadasiva

Padakacheri Ramalinga

Just like the 4 examples above, the 18 siddhars of Tamil nadu and the 84 tantric mahasiddhars of the himalaya underwent a similar process towards the rainbow body but most of them have not completed the process.

 

All the pictures below are from individuals who have dissolved their bodies into the ‘Light Body’ and disappears completely into space.

Andal Nachair

Mewa Khenchen Tsewang Rigdzin 

Chetsun Nyingtig 

Manickavasagar

Hand-drawn by Chidambara swamigal. 

The only one of the 64 Nayanmars who reached the rainbow body state. 

Jigmed Gyalwai Nyugu

Chetsun Senge Wangchuk

Vajrasattva

Jampal Shenyen Vajrapani 

Manjushrimitra

Kunkyen Longchen Rabjampa 

Vairotsana

Shri Singha 

Jnanasutra

Sri Arunagirinathar swamigal

Mahavir (The 24th Tirthankara of Jainism)

Below the other 23 Tirthankara's of Jainism who all attained the rainbow body of light state:

Rishabha

Ajitnath

Sambhavanath

Abhinandannath

Sumatinath 

Padmaprabha 

Suparshvanath 

Chandraprabha

Suvidhinatha 

Sheetalnath 

Shreyansanath 

Vasupujya

Vimalnath 

Anantnath 

Dharmanath 

Shantinath

Kunthunath 

Aranath 

Mallinath 

Munisuvrata

Naminatha 

Neminatha 

Parshvanath

Murugan

(Siddhar Boganathar mentioned in one of his poems that Murugan went through the same process of shrinking and dissolving as described above to attain the rainbow body of light. - this quaote originates from Vallalar but needs verification.)

Sukhasiddhi

The life story of Sukhasiddhi is very wonderful. When she was about sixty years old, or maybe sixty-five, she experienced a great deal of suffering. Due to that, she engaged in the practice of vajrayana and attained a state where she appeared like a sixteen-year-old girl. Her story is that she and her family were very poor and they got to the point where they only had one container of rice left. So, her husband and son went out to look for food. They went all over, searching, begging for food. Though they went through a great deal of difficulties, they were unable to find any food. Thinking that they had one container of rice left, they went back home to eat it. However, while they were gone, Sukhasiddhi, out of great compassion, had given the food to a beggar. When her husband and son came back, they were very hungry and expecting to eat the last container of rice, but they found that there was no rice left, that she had given it away to a beggar. They were very upset and very angry with her, saying that though they were all experiencing a great deal of suffering, a great deal of problems, she had given their last food away. They were so upset with her that they threw her out of the house. Then she became very upset and cried about her husband and son throwing her out of her home. Leaving her town, she gave rise to a very strong renunciation for samsara, and based upon this very strong renunciation and good fortune, she was able to meet with a siddha from whom she received oral instructions. She meditated upon them and realized mahamudra, the supreme siddhi. Her mind was liberated within this state of luminosity, and her body became an empty form like a rainbow. She looked like a sixteen- year-old girl. She unified luminosity and the illusory body. It is said that even at this time she resides in India and can be found in various places there.

-From Mahamudra Shamatha and Vipashyana, Rocky Mountain Shambhala Center, 1991, p.195. Translated by Elizabeth Callahan.

Avalokitesvara

Bodhisattva-Samantabhadra

Manjusri

Shukadeva

C) Rainbow body of great transference / ja lü phowa chenpo:

This state is similar to the rainbow body of light state, however the process of shrinking goes much faster and in most cases almost instantaneous and the light body remains visible for those who are in need for their help. Now keep in mind that the light body that remains is not a person or individual as we know it. It is divine itself in the form of light. It has no will nor desire and only remains for those who are attuned to it.

Amithaba

Mahavatar Babaji

Dzogchen master Khenchen Tsewang

Sarva nivarana Vishkambhin

Nyang Tingdzin Zangpo

Amogasiddhi

Akshobhya

Ratnasambhava 

Vairocana

Manjusri 

Avalokitesvara

Bhaisajyaguru 

Akasagarbha

Ksitigarbha

Krishna

Vimalamitra

Nirmanakaya Garab Dorje

Vallalar (Ramalinga)

Mandarava 

Khandro Yeshi Tshogyal

Simandhar swami

Tapihritsa

Samantabhadra & Samantabhadri

Our true nature - the highest state attainable in meditation. They are completely naked, free from any concepts or ideas and surrounded by an colorful aura signifying the state of rainbow body of great transference. His name, Kuntuzangpo in Tibetan, Samantabhadra in Sanskrit, means ‘always good' or ‘always well’.

This is who we truly are...

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