Caṇḍālī (Tummo) Practice based on Four Nāḍī-Chakras
Notes:
There are tummo practices that rely on the Nāḍī-chakras and those that don't. At this link you can read my previous post on 'Tummo practices that are not based on the Nāḍī-chakras' associated with the Sakya tradition. Tummo practices based on the Nāḍī-chakras also have different types, practices that rely on one chakra, two chakras, three chakras and four chakras. The title of this Tibetan text is 'Caṇḍālī based on Four Nāḍī -Chakras', which is available in the Drikung Great Dharma Treasury. There is no mention of the author in this text, but it could be Marpa Lotsawa, as the same text is found in his collected works. Since this Tummo practice is based on four Nāḍī-chakras, I have added the configuration of the Nāḍī-chakra system at the end of the article.
Caṇḍālī Practice based on Four Chakras
Body posture
Cross your legs at the ankles by wrapping your right leg around your left. Tie them together with a yoga belt. The purpose is, the lower air (apana vayu) is spontaneously restrained in this way.
Place your hands in dhyana mudra at the pubic hairline and squeeze your thumbs together. The purpose of this is to open the lower mouth of the Avadhuti [central] channel. For example, it is like a fish opening its mouth when you place a finger on its forehead. Squeezing the thumbs under the navels helps to generate heat quickly.
Keep your back straight. This will help prevent the illnesses caused by trapped air.
Bend the neck slightly like an iron hook (elephant goad). This will help you to control the air as you press the air down below the navel. (Helps to control the upper air/prana vayu).
The eyes and teeth do not have the vital [energy] points [in this practice]. Therefore, let them remain in whatever position is comfortable.
Leave the anus as it is. This will reduce the negative impacts of the practice.
Three key practices
1. Yoga of breathing
(i) Preliminary: Training the body & clearing the breath
Train your body first. If you do not train your body first, the vital air [in the channels] will not be able to reach its proper place. Even if it gets there, it won't benefit you. So stretch out your head by turning it to the right and left. And turn your arms and stretch them out to the front and to the back as well.
Clear your breath by blowing out the air in the manner of a horse's breath (exhalation). Repeat this several times. This will make it easier to control or hold your breath, and if you hold it, it won't make you headache.
(ii) Actual yoga of breathing
The following four breathing techniques are essential. Without knowing these breathing methods, the practice becomes harmful.
(I) Inhalation [through the nose]
At the end of the exhalation, with the [mental sound of] ཨོཾ [Om]་, inhale through the nostrils up to the space between the eyebrows. This is the first breathing technique.
(II) Filling in [the breath into mouth of central channel at the navel]
Now bring the air in through the upper tips of the right and left channels, situated in the space between the eyebrows. Bring the air down through the right and left channels [with the mental sound of Om]. These two channels extend four inches below the secret chakra, and their lower tips turn upward and remain within the Avadhuti [central] channel. The air [breath] then passes through them and touches the A-stroke of the navel. Place your focus here. This is the second breathing technique.
(III) Retention [of breath]
This technique is called 'pacifying' because in this stage of breathing it pacifies the pain of the previous 'filling-in' method of breathing. In this method, you hold or retain the breath [in the navel region] as much as possible. If you cannot, take a [short] inhalation and let the air and mind gather in the syllable A. This is the third breathing technique, pacification.
(IV) [Exhalation] Shooting [breath] like an arrow.
When you can no longer hold the breath [in the navel region], even though the breath will come out through the nose [during letting out the breath], imagine the breath travelling through the avadhuti [central] channel with the [mental sound of] syllable ཧཱུཾ [Hum] and shooting out [the air] like an arrow through the cranial aperture at a distance. This is the fourth breathing technique.
Summary: These four breathing techniques are also known as vajra breathing practice, using the syllables Om, Ah and Hum for inhaling, holding and exhaling respectively. As you practise this repeatedly, a slight heat will arise in the body due to the auspicious circumstances created by the air and mind gathering in the syllable A of the navel. The syllable A in the navel is called Vajra Nairatmya Devi, Chandali, which epitomises all Dakinis.
2. Yoga of fire
The posture and breathing practice are the same as above. Now, focusing your mind on the syllable A of the navel, imagine that the air [in the region of the navel] ignites the syllable A, and from the syllable A there arises a very fine flame, four finger-spans long, which is extremely hot to touch. At this moment it is important to press the air down as much as possible, as taught before. If you can no longer, then let the air out as before. You should now focus your mind on the fire. It is said that the finer the flame that you can visualise, the faster the generation of heat will be. As you practise this over and over again, more and more heat will be generated in your body. Then you have entered the path of tummo. The power of the heat of tummo will digest all the food and drink you have consumed and transform it into bodhicitta bindu. It will also melt all the bodhicitta bindu in the channels, generating bliss. It will also automatically generate non-conceptual wisdom. This achieves the union of bliss and emptiness (non-conceptual wisdom). This is a unique path to Buddhahood.
3. Bodhicitta Bindu yoga
The posture and breathing practice are the same as before. As you focus your mind on the syllable A of the navel, a fine flame will arise from it. This is called the Tummo blazing at the navel. As the flame goes up to the heart nadi-chakra, it burns the five tathagathas (seed syllables five tathagathas-one in the centre of the chakra and four on the four nadi-petals which corresponds to the conceptual minds arising from the fixation of five skandhas/aggregates). And as the flame continues to rise to the throat nadi chakras, it burns the seed syllables of the five female Buddhas (corresponding to the conceptual mind arising from the fixation of the four elements). As the flame continues to rise and touches the Ham syllable of the crown nadi chakra, it melts the bodhicitta bindu. As the bodhicitta bindu falls, imagine the arising of instantaneous wisdom and wisdom of joy [jñānānanda} within you. When the bodhicitta bindu falls on the throat nadi chakra, imagine the flame being pushed down and the seed syllables [that were burnt] being revived giving rise to Wisdom of supreme joy (jñānaparamānanda). When the bodhicitta bindu comes down and reaches the heart nadi-chakra, imagine the seed syllables [that were burnt] being revived giving rise to joy of absence of joy (viramānanda). The next practice is called 'bathing a very hot elephant with a hundred pots of water'. When the bodhicitta bindu is about to fall on the nadi chakra of the navel, focus the mind for a long time on the bindu, which is about to touch the syllable A in the navel, and it finally dissolves into the syllable A. This revives the [burnt] seed syllable and the bindu spreads throughout the lower body, giving rise to innate joy (sahajānanda). During this practice, it is important to press the air down as much as possible, as taught before. If you can no longer, then let the air out as before. Focus your mind only on this innate joy. If you practise this over and over again, there will truly arise the four joys in your body and mind. It will also automatically generate non-conceptual wisdom. This achieves the union of bliss and emptiness (non-conceptual wisdom). This is a unique path to Buddhahood.
Configuration of the nadi chakra in the vajra body
When the human body is formed after the union of the semen and the blood of the parents and the consciousness of a person between death and birth, it first appears in the form of A-shad (A-stroke) at the navel nadi-chakra. It is called the channel of coiled-snake (kuṇḍala) in other traditions.
From this arises the Avadhuti [central] channel and then the right and left channels. Avadhuti remains straight in the body whose upper tip remain pierced to the cranial aperture (brahmarandhra) and its lower tip four fingers below the secret chakra.
The upper ends of the right and left channels remain pierced to the space between the eyebrows. From there, the lower ends of these two channels follow slightly down towards the top of the head (mūrdha) and meet [with the central channel]. These three channels form the [triangular knot] dharmodaya. These two channels then follow a little further down and meet at the throat, forming the [triangular] dharmodaya. They continue down and meet at the heart (centre of the chest), forming [triangular] dharmodaya. They meet again, as before, at the navel, forming Dharmodaya. They continue down towards the secret chakra, and four inches below the secret chakra, the ends of these two channels turn upward and remain within the avadhuti. Thus, these three primary channels act as the axle of the five nadi chakras.
