Tulpa
Encyclopedia
Tulpa is an upaya
concept in Tibetan Buddhism
and Bon
, discipline and teaching tool. The term was first rendered into English as 'Thoughtform
' by Evans-Wentz (1954: p. 29):
in the abovementioned quotation, is an ancient mode of mind transmission (Tibetan: dgongs brgyud) or empowerment
(Tibetan: dbang bskur) in the Himalayan traditions, documented in the folklore
and anthropological studies of Himalayan and Siberian Shamanism
. The Russian Psychiatrist Olga Kharitidi published her direct experience of this phenomenon in the Altay Mountains
, where a shaman merged a stream of his consciousness continuum
or 'spirit' with hers. This phenomenon is a variation of the spiritual discipline of phowa
(Tibetan: 'pho ba) and is often rendered as "spirit possession" within English anthropological discourse.
In mysticism
, a tulpa is the concept of a being or object which is created through sheer discipline
alone. It is a materialized thought that has taken physical form and is usually regarded as synonymous to a thoughtform.
The term comes from the works of Alexandra David-Néel
, who claimed to have created a tulpa in the image of a jolly Friar Tuck
-like monk
which later developed a life of its own and had to be destroyed.
The tulpa phenomenon is vindicated through the consciousness-only doctrine first propounded within the Yogācāra
school and is part of the Mahayoga
discipline of the generation Stage
(Wylie:kye rim; Sanskrit: utpattikrama) , Anuyoga
discipline of the completion stage
(Wylie:dzog rim; Sanskrit:saṃpannakrama) and the Dzogchen
perfection of effortless "unification of the generation and completion stages" (Wylie: bskyed rdzogs zung' jug).
(1996: p. 350) in a note to his English translation of the life story of Garab Dorje
defines a tulpa thus:
as they have a consciousness field or mindstream confluence in a dynamic of entrainment-secession and organization-entropy of emergent factors or from the mindstream intentionality of progenitor(s). Thoughtform may be benevolent, malevolent or of complex alignment and may be understood as a "spontaneous or intentional manifestation" or "emergence
" (Tibetan: rang byung) of the 'Five Pure Lights
' (Tibetan: 'od lnga). The Five Pure Lights may be understood as the "radiance" (Tibetan:' od) or Clear Light
(Tibetan:' od gsal) substrate of 'mindstream
' (Tibetan: sems rgyud) and the base or root 'dimensionality of all dharmas' (Sanskrit: dharmadhatu) of Nirvana
and Samsara
. The mindstream is an entwining or confluence of the 'Eight Consciousnesses' (Tibetan: rnam shes tshogs brgyad). Therefore, the Five Pure Lights are the 'root' (Tibetan: gzhi) of the Western scientific conceptions of matter
and energy
. From the Dzogchen perspective energy is nondual to 'spiritual energy' or 'vital force' (Tibetan: rlung
). For the human species, defined in Traditional Tibetan medicine
as the class of entities which holds a human la
(Tibetan: bla), the Five Lung are direct homologues of the Five Pure Lights.
Professor H. H. Price
, an Oxford philosopher and parapsychologist
, held that once an idea has been formed, it "is no longer wholly under the control of the consciousness which gave it birth" but may operate independently on the minds of other people or on physical objects. It is contended that a meme
is not a thoughtform, unless it is sentient. Though, memetic theory may be deemed an informative correlation to thoughtform phenomena.
: "emanate", "manifest" and "pa" is a functional postposition employed to build nouns from verbs) is Tibetan for what has been rendered as "thoughtform" in English. Another similar orthographic and phonemic construction in Tibetan is 'phrul which holds the semantic field: magic, miracle, black art, emanation, jugglery, trick, magical illusion, conjuring, manifestation.
Another term that may be rendered "thoughtform" is 'yilu' (Tibetan: yid lus). 'Yidam
' (Tibetan: yi dam) are tulpa. The concept of "tulpa" is vindicated in the Consciousness-only Doctrine first propounded within the Yogacara School
. The doctrine is entwined with the doctrine and lineage of the Mindstream
and may even have ancient roots and antecedents in Bonpo traditions, Himalayan and Asian shamanism evident in Tibet
, Bhutan
, India
, Nepal
, Tuva
, Mongolia
, Russia
and China
.
A tulpa is, in Tibet
an mysticism
, a being or object which is created through willpower
, visualisation, attention and focus, concerted intentionality and ritual. In other words, it is a materialized thought that has taken physical form.
The tulpa concept was brought to the West in the 19th century by Alexandra David-Néel
, who claimed to have created a tulpa in the image of a jolly, Friar Tuck
-like monk
which later developed a life of its own and had to be destroyed. There is a teaching story inherent in Néel's experience as it is evocative of the English rendering of the famous instruction of Zen
Master Lin Chi: "If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him." Just as the 'mandala
' (Tibetan: dkyil' khor) is created and also destroyed. The 'destroying' or "blowing out
" of the kye-rim stage is the completion of the dzog-rim; yielding an integration, an iteration of the mindstream, a communion.
Freeman (c2007: unpaginated) in his musings on dragons and phenomena, tentatively explores tulpas and thoughtforms in relation to worship
and fear
; energetic reciprocity and lifecycle; and 'spirits of place' (Latin: genius loci
):
tradition, there are three indivisible modes of energy that govern manifestation, and therefore thoughtform phenomena and the energy of sentient beings:
According to the Dzogchen
tradition, there is nothing which is non-sentient, or stated differently, everything is sentient technically Panpsychism
and this is the view of Dzogchen Semde
or "mind series" the principal text of which is the Kulayarāja Tantra. Moreover, two of the English scholars that opened the discourse of the Bardo
literature of the Nyingma
Dzogchen tradition, Evans-Wentz & Jung
(1954, 2000: p. 10) specifically with their partial translation and commentary of the Bardo Thodol
into the English language write of the "One Mind" (Tibetan: sems nyid gcig; Sanskrit: *ekacittatva; *ekacittata; where * denotes a possible Sanskrit back-formation) thus:
This "One Mind" is none other than the "sphere of the great circle" (Tibetan: thig le chen po'i klong) of "self-awareness" (Tibetan: rang rig) of the Samten Migdron
a text like the Kulayaraja Tantra that is also of the Semde class of Dzogchen literature and an important historical source of Dzogchen as it was recovered from the Dunhuang manuscripts
.
Van Schaik
(2004: p. 33) explains the Dzogchen doctrine of the triunic complex of the manifesation of energy further:
The triunic modality of the energy of manifestation and the Trikaya
are indivisible, though particular aspects, qualities or properties of these may be foregrounded and backgrounded according to time, place, circumstance and intention. The dang energy of a sentient being is essentially a mystery, infinite, spacious and formless, it relates to the Dharmakaya
. Rolpa energy is that of an interior vision, or the 'eye of the mind' of visualization; it relates to the Sambhogakaya
. Tsal is the energetic manifestation of what is generally considered 'corporeal' phenomena and it relates to the Nirmanakaya. The interplay of these energies and the profundity and elegance of this doctrine provides a hypothesis of thoughtform phenomenon, emergence
, poltergeist
activity, Will-o'-the-wisp
, psychokinesis
, levitation and other siddhi' (Sanskrit; Tibetan: bsgrub), spiritual healing, intercessory prayer, and the logistics of the doctrine of Pratītyasamutpāda amongst innumerable other 'mysteries'.
narrated in her book Tibet, Bandits, Priests and Demons:
Later David-Néel questions the bonpo that emanated the thoughtform, and the bonpo affirmed:
Thoughtform are evident in Vajrayana
Buddhism
, Bönpo traditions, indigenous cultural traditions throughout the world such as Cherokee
of North America and Indigenous Australians
(who understand the waking, created world to be a thoughtform subset
of The Dreaming
), shamanic traditions, echoes are evident in ghosts or supernatural
agency, folk religion
, esoteric philosophies such as Theosophy
and what is construed as the New Age
.
Though Alice Bailey
may have been inspired (and comparable to a tertön
), her collaborative work with Djwal Khul
, A Treatise on Cosmic Fire, that evocatively described the process for working with thoughtforms, is not formally recognised by the Himalayan
dharmic traditions. Thoughtform are not only the energetic phantasmagoria
of our consciousness
and mindstream
, either intentional or unconscious, but may also constitute an emotional filter (refer trance
, NLP
) or lens that shapes the play of our phenomenal experience; as per the incisive quotation of Bailey et al.(1951: p. 489) in A Treatise on White Magic
:
. We now know from emergent disciplines that thoughts and emotions are chemical as well as electrical processes, refer neuropeptide
s, and may be potentially toxic. So we may indeed be driven, railroaded and possessed by our thought forms and emotions: called in popular currency 'our demon
s'. These 'demons' or 'poisons' in Hindu and Buddhist traditions are known as kleśa (Sanskrit). Moreover, kleśa is often rendered into English as "poison", "obscuration" and "demon". This understanding is not to diminish the reality of adverse as well as benevolent possession and trance
-forms but to establish a complex of views.
In the Vajrayana Buddhist view promulgated by Padmasambhava
and Jamgön Kongtrül
(1999: p. 84), the thought form of the six lokas or "six classes of beings" of 'dependent co-arising' and the obscurations forded by the samsaric view is held to be a dream:
...evocative of Edgar Allan Poe's
: “All that we see or seem, is but a dream within a dream”.
's "agents" are amongst the best known of these. Lester (1995: p. 123) in framing Minsky's "agents" and the logistics of their contingency states:
Andras Angyal
's work and the Dzogchen triunic modality of the manifestation of energy deserve a dialogic analysis. Carl Jung
's technique of Active imagination
involves interacting with thoughtforms of the subconscious mind. Jung identified certain universal thoughtform archetypes such as Anima and Animus and which are characteristic of all humans. Psychological Archetypes are thoughtforms.
The chief difference between these scientific formulations and magickal / spiritual definitions of thoughtforms is that the former are created unconsciously whereas the latter are created deliberately.
Thoughtform phenomena, by any other name, are worked with variously in Imaginal Psychology
and Process Oriented Psychology
and is evident in the work of Gregory Bateson
. Jean Houston
, a disciple of Campbell
and Mead
(and in the direct lineage of Jung
), was a modern pioneer of engaging thoughtform in what she termed the 'imaginal realm', and in the associated discipline of aspecting or 'carrying' deity
, dæmon
or other somesuch (Houston, 1996).
(2002: p. 37) translates the 'fruit' (Tibetan: 'bras) of the 'Khorde Rushen' (Tibetan: khor-'das ru-shan) 'preparatory practice' (Tibetan: ngondro
) of the Bön Dzogchen
lineage thus:
Towards the end of his life, the visionary biologist Gregory Bateson intuited the manifested realm to be a thoughtform of the unmanifested. Lawlor (1991: p. 43) cites Bateson from Lovelock
(1995: p. 218):
Buddha Shakyamuni employed ten traditional similes in explanation of 'phenomena' (Sanskrit: dharmas) these are known as the "Ten Similes of Illusory Phenomena" (Wylie: shes-bya sgyu-ma'i dpe-bcu):
(Sanskrit) holds the semantic field "garland", "ley", "wreath", "prayer beads", "rosary". Varṇamālā denotes the alphabet of Devanagari
, that has come to be common for Sanskrit
post-medieval India
. Indeed, Varṇamālā not only denotes the set of phonemes of Sanskrit and languages evolved from it, but denotes the glyphs in the abugida
scripts for such languages. Rongzompa realised the 'thirteenth bhumi of Mantrayana' which may also be rendered in English as "Chakra of Letters" (Sanskrit: Varṇamālā; Wylie: yi ge' khor lo tshogs chen gyi sa). The term Deva+Naga+ri is constructed from a conjunction of deva
"divinity" and nāga
"serpent", and that snakes often form a "circular" garland-like shape, refer Ourorboros, and are evident throughout Dharmic iconography
as girdles, malas, garlands, torques, armbands, etc., as investiture
of adornment are 'symbolic attributes' (Tibetan: phyag mtshan). Devanagari seceded from Brāhmī script
which is even more visually serpentine.
Conze
(1980: p. 12) states:
In addition to the circular formation of snakes (and dragons), their boon as holders and givers of wisdom as well as their bane as bringers of deception and illusion, is evident throughout folklore
of the human condition
and reveals the fundamental qualitative dichotomy of language
and code
as both conduits of information
and noise
. The inherent flexibility and elongation of the snake-form, lends itself to making rudimentrary shapes and forms, and for the ancient Vedic tradition and its cultural tributaries of the Indo-european
language family, is the font
of archetypal signification
. It should also be stated that nāga as concealers and revealers of 'treasures' (Tibetan: Terma
) are endemic in Terma literature, as are Dakini
. Nagarjuna
received the Prajnaparamita
from the Nāga. In discussing the thoughtform Varṇamālā, it should be noted that particular 'energetic signatory glyphs' (Tibetan: gter ston gter btags) are inseparable from the tradition of Tertön
s.
Khanna (2003: p. 21) links mantra
s and yantra
s to thoughtforms:
In the Dharmic traditions, all phenomena are essentially the 'formation of vibration and resonance' (Sanskrit: namarupa
). Mookerjee and Khanna (1977: p. 33) state how all form arises from the Aum
:
Hence, all phenomena are constituted by Bīja
, known in Tibetan as sprul pa cho 'phrul gyi yi ge, "spontaneously emergent magical phonemes/letters/symbols", which is another way of perceiving the all-pervasive buddha-nature
, the 'Thirteenth Bhumi' or the 'Third Bhumi of Enlightenment' (Tibetan: yi ge 'khor lo tshogs chen; "the bhumi where the Universe is present as a rotating procession of spell-letters").
, for example, envisioned his famous "Candy Man" killer to be nothing more than a myth gone terribly awry in his original story.
"Tulpa" is a series of atmospheric tunes by Swedish dark ambient
composer Peter Andersson
. "My Tulpa"is a song title by the Manchester post-punk band Magazine
on their album titled, "Real Life". It was written by Howard Devoto, the lead singer/songwriter. "The Tulpa" is a series of black metal
tunes by Swedish multi-style composer Chaan. •Tulpa is a psychedelic rock band from Toronto, Canada that started performing together in 1981. Eventually releasing a single "Apologize to your Mother", an LP "Mosaic Fish" and "Live From CBGB". John Bottomley
, Chris Bottomley, Sev Micron, Tom Walsh and Nic Gotham.
In the X-Files
episode Arcadia (6X15), the president of the homeowners' association for an exclusive gated community uses a tulpa to enforce the neighborhood rules. The Supernatural
episode Hell House (1.17) features a haunted house in which the resident malevolent spirit turns out to be a tulpa, created when the beliefs of thousands of website visitors are focused through a Tibetan sigil
painted on one wall of the house. In the So Weird
episode PK (or Tulpa). Fi meets a little boy who has created a tulpa he believes to be an imaginary friend.
Authors Loren Coleman
and Jerome Clark
, in their writings for Fate Magazine
in the early 1970s and their first two books, "The Unidentified" (Warner Books, 1975) and "Creatures of the Outer Edge" (Warner Books, 1978), modernized and popularized tulpas for a new generation of ufologists and cryptozoologists. The surviving "zooform" movement in the United Kingdom can be traced to Clark's and Coleman's reworking of the tulpa concepts. Coleman and Clark have since rejected the tulpa theories as the foundation to unexplained phenomena, and have written a new introduction to the combined republishing of these two works by Anomalist Books in 2006: The Unidentified & Creatures of the Outer Edge: The Early Works of Jerome Clark and Loren Coleman (NY: Anomalist Books, 2006, ISBN 1-933665-11-4).
In Vicki Pettersson
's Signs of the Zodiac series, a tulpa is the main antagonist. In Nightingale's Lament by Simon Green, a tulpa in the image of John Taylor's client is sent after him at one point, tracking him by a hair the client left on his jacket; it disappears when the hair is destroyed. In It
by Stephen King
, the eponymous entity's various manifestations are given form and power by the belief of the townspeople.
In Grant Morrison
’s Marvel
graphic novel ‘Fantastic Four
1234’ (2002) Reed Richards muses on a fictitious journey to Tibet
where, with the help of Bön priest, he creates a Tulpa, a “thoughtform”. After Richards names it ‘Victor’ the Tulpa takes on a life of its own, becoming Richards’ opposite number. This was an alternative, fantastical, origin for Richards’ arch enemy Dr Doom (aka Victor Von Doom).
According to the book The Teachings of Don Juan Matus, a Mexican shaman by the name of Don Juan Matus
, who had taught his student Carlos Castaneda
, the books author, about the true nature of the physical universe and how intense concentration can summon, apport
, and even materialize objects out of thin air. It was said that Carlos Castaneda
was able to materialize a living squirrel on the palm of Don Juan's hand based on the latter's instruction. Many of his claims have been disputed by members of the anthropological
profession.
In The Magician
, the second novel in the young adult series, The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel
by Michael Scott
, Niccolò Machiavelli
creates a tupla in the Basilique du Sacré-Cœur in Paris.
In the RPG (Role-Playing Game) Over the Edge, Tulpas are used as background characters (NPC's). They also have natural enemies, sociopathic individuals called Sandmen, who prey on them to create either "Nightmare" (a drug) or "Dreamweb" (gossamer webs that can capture dreams from people). Dreamweb are typically used to capture the nightmares of neurotic individuals, which are also sold as something like a drug. Although the word "Tulpa" is never used in the Changeling: the Dreaming RPG, creatures known as "Chimera" fulfill a role very similar to Tulpa. Chimera may be sentient or non-sentient entities made manifest in the mental alternate reality of "The Dreaming". They typically arise spontaneously due to the force of human thought and emotion, sometimes from the dreams of individuals but potentially as amalgams of all human thought. These beings are typically weakened by exposure to human doubt, but nevertheless some have the necessary strength and abilities to manifest as tangible entities in the mundane world of humans, at least for a time.
Upaya
Upaya is a term in Mahayana Buddhism which is derived from the root upa√i and refers to a means that goes or brings one up to some goal, often the goal of Enlightenment. The term is often used with kaushalya ; upaya-kaushalya means roughly "skill in means"...
concept in Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism
Tibetan Buddhism is the body of Buddhist religious doctrine and institutions characteristic of Tibet and certain regions of the Himalayas, including northern Nepal, Bhutan, and India . It is the state religion of Bhutan...
and Bon
Bon
BON, Bon, or bon may refer to:Places:* Cap Bon, a peninsula in Tunisia* Flamingo International Airport, Bonaire, Netherlands Antilles...
, discipline and teaching tool. The term was first rendered into English as 'Thoughtform
Thoughtform
A thoughtform is a manifestation of mental energy, also known as a tulpa in Tibetan mysticism. Its concept is related to the Western philosophy and practice of magic. links mantras and yantras to thoughtforms:...
' by Evans-Wentz (1954: p. 29):
In as much as the mind creates the world of appearances, it can create any particular object desired. The process consists of giving palpable being to a visualization, in very much the same manner as an architect gives concrete expression in three dimensions to his abstract concepts after first having given them expression in the two-dimensions of his blue-print. The Tibetans call the One Mind's concretized visualization the Khorva (Hkhorva), equivalent to the Sanskrit Sangsara; that of an incarnate deity, like the Dalai or Tashi Lama, they call a Tul-ku (Sprul-sku), and that of a magician a Tul-pa (Sprul-pa), meaning a magically produced illusion or creation. A master of yoga can dissolve a Tul-pa as readily as he can create it; and his own illusory human body, or Tul-ku, he can likewise dissolve, and thus outwit Death. Sometimes, by means of this magic, one human form can be amalgamated with another, as in the instance of the wife of Marpa, guru of Milarepa, who ended her life by incorporating herself in the body of Marpa."The mindstream communion affected by the wife of Marpa
Marpa Lotsawa
Marpa Lotsawa , sometimes known fully as Lhodak Marpa Choski Lodos or commonly as Marpa the Translator, was a Tibetan Buddhist teacher credited with the transmission of many Buddhist teachings to Tibet from India, including the teachings and lineages of Vajrayana and Mahamudra.-Biography:Born as...
in the abovementioned quotation, is an ancient mode of mind transmission (Tibetan: dgongs brgyud) or empowerment
Empowerment
Empowerment refers to increasing the spiritual, political, social, racial, educational, gender or economic strength of individuals and communities...
(Tibetan: dbang bskur) in the Himalayan traditions, documented in the folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
and anthropological studies of Himalayan and Siberian Shamanism
Shamanism
Shamanism is an anthropological term referencing a range of beliefs and practices regarding communication with the spiritual world. To quote Eliade: "A first definition of this complex phenomenon, and perhaps the least hazardous, will be: shamanism = technique of ecstasy." Shamanism encompasses the...
. The Russian Psychiatrist Olga Kharitidi published her direct experience of this phenomenon in the Altay Mountains
Altay Mountains
The Altai Mountains are a mountain range in East-Central Asia, where Russia, China, Mongolia and Kazakhstan come together, and where the rivers Irtysh and Ob have their sources. The Altai Mountains are known as the original locus of the speakers of Turkic as well as other members of the proposed...
, where a shaman merged a stream of his consciousness continuum
Mindstream
Mindstream in Buddhist philosophy is the moment-to-moment "continuum" of awareness. There are a number of terms in the Buddhist literature that may well be rendered "mindstream"...
or 'spirit' with hers. This phenomenon is a variation of the spiritual discipline of phowa
Phowa
Phowa is a Vajrayāna Buddhist meditation practice...
(Tibetan: 'pho ba) and is often rendered as "spirit possession" within English anthropological discourse.
In mysticism
Mysticism
Mysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
, a tulpa is the concept of a being or object which is created through sheer discipline
Discipline
In its original sense, discipline is referred to systematic instruction given to disciples to train them as students in a craft or trade, or to follow a particular code of conduct or "order". Often, the phrase "to discipline" carries a negative connotation. This is because enforcement of order –...
alone. It is a materialized thought that has taken physical form and is usually regarded as synonymous to a thoughtform.
The term comes from the works of Alexandra David-Néel
Alexandra David-Néel
Alexandra David-Néel born Louise Eugénie Alexandrine Marie David was a Belgian-French explorer, spiritualist, Buddhist and writer, most known for her visit to Lhasa, Tibet, in 1924, when it was forbidden to foreigners...
, who claimed to have created a tulpa in the image of a jolly Friar Tuck
Friar Tuck
Friar Tuck is a companion to Robin Hood in the legends about that character. He is a common character in modern Robin Hood stories, which depict him as a jovial friar and one of Robin's Merry Men. The figure of Tuck was common in the May Games festivals of England and Scotland during the 15th...
-like monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
which later developed a life of its own and had to be destroyed.
The tulpa phenomenon is vindicated through the consciousness-only doctrine first propounded within the Yogācāra
Yogacara
Yogācāra is an influential school of Buddhist philosophy and psychology emphasizing phenomenology and ontology through the interior lens of meditative and yogic practices. It developed within Indian Mahāyāna Buddhism in about the 4th century CE...
school and is part of the Mahayoga
Mahayoga
Mahayoga is the designation of the first of the three Inner Tantras according to the ninefold division of practice used by the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism....
discipline of the generation Stage
Generation stage
In Tantric Buddhism, the generation stage is the first phase of meditative Buddhist sādhana associated with the 'Father Tantra' class of anuttara-yoga-tantras of the Sarmapa or associated with what is known as Mahayoga Tantras by the Nyingmapa...
(Wylie:kye rim; Sanskrit: utpattikrama) , Anuyoga
Anuyoga
Anuyoga is the designation of the second of the three Inner Tantras according to the ninefold division of practice used by the Nyingma school of Tibetan Buddhism...
discipline of the completion stage
Completion stage
The completion stage is one of the two stages of Anuttarayoga Tantra. Completion stage may also be translated as perfection stage or fulfillment mode...
(Wylie:dzog rim; Sanskrit:saṃpannakrama) and the Dzogchen
Dzogchen
According to Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, Dzogchen is the natural, primordial state or natural condition of the mind, and a body of teachings and meditation practices aimed at realizing that condition. Dzogchen, or "Great Perfection", is a central teaching of the Nyingma school also practiced by...
perfection of effortless "unification of the generation and completion stages" (Wylie: bskyed rdzogs zung
Nomenclature, etymology and orthography
- A similar orthographic and phonemic construction in Tibetan is 'phrul which has the various meanings: magic, miracle, black art, emanation, jugglery, trick, magical illusion, conjuring, manifestation.
- Another term that may be rendered "thoughtform" is 'yilu' (Tibetan: yid lus). 'YidamYidamIn Vajrayana Buddhism, an Ishta-deva or Ishta-devata is a fully enlightened being who is the focus of personal meditation, during a retreat or for life. The term is often translated into English as tutelary deity, meditation deity, or meditational deity...
' (Tibetan: yi dam) are tulpa.
Introduction
John Myrdhin ReynoldsJohn Myrdhin Reynolds
John Myrdhin Reynolds, whose initiated name is Vajranatha was born in 1942 and is a scholar, linguist, author, translator, mystic and initiated ngagpa of the Nyingmapa....
(1996: p. 350) in a note to his English translation of the life story of Garab Dorje
Garab Dorje
Garab Dorje was the semi-historical first human teacher of the Ati Yoga or Great Perfection teachings according to Tibetan Buddhist tradition. Prior to Prahevajra, the Nyingma hold that the Dzogchen teachings had been expounded only in celestial realms and the 'pure lands' of the Buddhas,...
defines a tulpa thus:
A Nirmita (sprul-pa) is an emanation or a manifestation. A Buddha or other realized being is able to project many such Nirmitas simultaneously in an infinite variety of forms.Thoughtform may be understood as a 'psychospiritual' complex of mind, energy or consciousness manifested either consciously or unconsciously, by a sentient being or in concert. In the Dzogchen view, accomplished thoughtform of the kye rim mode are sentient beings
Sentient beings (Buddhism)
Sentient beings is a technical term in Buddhist discourse. Broadly speaking, it denotes beings with consciousness or sentience or, in some contexts, life itself. Specifically, it denotes the presence of the five aggregates, or skandhas...
as they have a consciousness field or mindstream confluence in a dynamic of entrainment-secession and organization-entropy of emergent factors or from the mindstream intentionality of progenitor(s). Thoughtform may be benevolent, malevolent or of complex alignment and may be understood as a "spontaneous or intentional manifestation" or "emergence
Emergence
In philosophy, systems theory, science, and art, emergence is the way complex systems and patterns arise out of a multiplicity of relatively simple interactions. Emergence is central to the theories of integrative levels and of complex systems....
" (Tibetan: rang byung) of the 'Five Pure Lights
Five Pure Lights
The Five Pure Lights are experiential manifestations in the Dzogchen tradition of Bön and Nyingma and are aspects of non-dual clarity and primordial luminosity of dharmakaya, kunzhi and/or emptiness...
' (Tibetan: 'od lnga). The Five Pure Lights may be understood as the "radiance" (Tibetan:
Ösel (yoga)
Ösel , the Yoga of the Clear Light Ösel (tib. hod-gsal; od gsal), the Yoga of the Clear Light Ösel (tib. hod-gsal; od gsal), the Yoga of the Clear Light (often translated as 'Radiant Light' (Sanskrit: prabhasvara), referring to the 'intrinsic purity' (Tibetan: ka-dag) of the substratum of the...
(Tibetan:
Mindstream
Mindstream in Buddhist philosophy is the moment-to-moment "continuum" of awareness. There are a number of terms in the Buddhist literature that may well be rendered "mindstream"...
' (Tibetan: sems rgyud) and the base or root 'dimensionality of all dharmas' (Sanskrit: dharmadhatu) of Nirvana
Nirvana
Nirvāṇa ; ) is a central concept in Indian religions. In sramanic thought, it is the state of being free from suffering. In Hindu philosophy, it is the union with the Supreme being through moksha...
and Samsara
Samsara
thumb|right|200px|Traditional Tibetan painting or [[Thanka]] showing the [[wheel of life]] and realms of saṃsāraSaṅsāra or Saṃsāra , , literally meaning "continuous flow", is the cycle of birth, life, death, rebirth or reincarnation within Hinduism, Buddhism, Bön, Jainism, Sikhism, and other...
. The mindstream is an entwining or confluence of the 'Eight Consciousnesses' (Tibetan: rnam shes tshogs brgyad). Therefore, the Five Pure Lights are the 'root' (Tibetan: gzhi) of the Western scientific conceptions of matter
Matter
Matter is a general term for the substance of which all physical objects consist. Typically, matter includes atoms and other particles which have mass. A common way of defining matter is as anything that has mass and occupies volume...
and energy
Energy
In physics, energy is an indirectly observed quantity. It is often understood as the ability a physical system has to do work on other physical systems...
. From the Dzogchen perspective energy is nondual to 'spiritual energy' or 'vital force' (Tibetan: rlung
Lung (Tibetan Buddhism)
Lung is a word that means wind or breath. It is a key concept in the Vajrayana traditions of Tibetan Buddhism and as such is part of the symbolic 'twilight language', used to non-conceptually point to a variety of meanings. Lung is a concept that's particularly important to understandings of the...
). For the human species, defined in Traditional Tibetan medicine
Traditional Tibetan medicine
Traditional Tibetan medicine is a centuries-old traditional medical system that employs a complex approach to diagnosis, incorporating techniques such as pulse analysis and urinalysis, and utilizes behavior and dietary modification, medicines composed of natural materials and physical therapies...
as the class of entities which holds a human la
(Tibetan: bla), the Five Lung are direct homologues of the Five Pure Lights.
Professor H. H. Price
H. H. Price
Henry Habberley Price was a Welsh philosopher, known for his work on perception. He also wrote on parapsychology....
, an Oxford philosopher and parapsychologist
Parapsychology
The term parapsychology was coined in or around 1889 by philosopher Max Dessoir, and originates from para meaning "alongside", and psychology. The term was adopted by J.B. Rhine in the 1930s as a replacement for the term psychical research...
, held that once an idea has been formed, it "is no longer wholly under the control of the consciousness which gave it birth" but may operate independently on the minds of other people or on physical objects. It is contended that a meme
Meme
A meme is "an idea, behaviour or style that spreads from person to person within a culture."A meme acts as a unit for carrying cultural ideas, symbols or practices, which can be transmitted from one mind to another through writing, speech, gestures, rituals or other imitable phenomena...
is not a thoughtform, unless it is sentient. Though, memetic theory may be deemed an informative correlation to thoughtform phenomena.
Tulpa
Tulpa (Tibetan: sprul ba; Tibetan: sprul pa where "sprul" holds the semantic fieldSemantic field
A semantic field is a technical term in the discipline of linguistics to describe a set of words grouped by meaning in a certain way. The term is also used in other academic disciplines, such as anthropology and computational semiotics.-Definition and usage:...
: "emanate", "manifest" and "pa" is a functional postposition employed to build nouns from verbs) is Tibetan for what has been rendered as "thoughtform" in English. Another similar orthographic and phonemic construction in Tibetan is 'phrul which holds the semantic field: magic, miracle, black art, emanation, jugglery, trick, magical illusion, conjuring, manifestation.
Another term that may be rendered "thoughtform" is 'yilu' (Tibetan: yid lus). 'Yidam
Yidam
In Vajrayana Buddhism, an Ishta-deva or Ishta-devata is a fully enlightened being who is the focus of personal meditation, during a retreat or for life. The term is often translated into English as tutelary deity, meditation deity, or meditational deity...
' (Tibetan: yi dam) are tulpa. The concept of "tulpa" is vindicated in the Consciousness-only Doctrine first propounded within the Yogacara School
Yogacara
Yogācāra is an influential school of Buddhist philosophy and psychology emphasizing phenomenology and ontology through the interior lens of meditative and yogic practices. It developed within Indian Mahāyāna Buddhism in about the 4th century CE...
. The doctrine is entwined with the doctrine and lineage of the Mindstream
Mindstream
Mindstream in Buddhist philosophy is the moment-to-moment "continuum" of awareness. There are a number of terms in the Buddhist literature that may well be rendered "mindstream"...
and may even have ancient roots and antecedents in Bonpo traditions, Himalayan and Asian shamanism evident in Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
, Bhutan
Bhutan
Bhutan , officially the Kingdom of Bhutan, is a landlocked state in South Asia, located at the eastern end of the Himalayas and bordered to the south, east and west by the Republic of India and to the north by the People's Republic of China...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Nepal
Nepal
Nepal , officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked sovereign state located in South Asia. It is located in the Himalayas and bordered to the north by the People's Republic of China, and to the south, east, and west by the Republic of India...
, Tuva
Tuva
The Tyva Republic , or Tuva , is a federal subject of Russia . It lies in the geographical center of Asia, in southern Siberia. The republic borders with the Altai Republic, the Republic of Khakassia, Krasnoyarsk Krai, Irkutsk Oblast, and the Republic of Buryatia in Russia and with Mongolia to the...
, Mongolia
Mongolia
Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest...
, Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
and China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
.
A tulpa is, in Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
an mysticism
Mysticism
Mysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
, a being or object which is created through willpower
Willpower
Willpower may refer to:*Self discipline, training and control of oneself and one's conduct, usually for personal improvement*Self control, the ability of a person to exert his/her will over the inhibitions of their body or self...
, visualisation, attention and focus, concerted intentionality and ritual. In other words, it is a materialized thought that has taken physical form.
The tulpa concept was brought to the West in the 19th century by Alexandra David-Néel
Alexandra David-Néel
Alexandra David-Néel born Louise Eugénie Alexandrine Marie David was a Belgian-French explorer, spiritualist, Buddhist and writer, most known for her visit to Lhasa, Tibet, in 1924, when it was forbidden to foreigners...
, who claimed to have created a tulpa in the image of a jolly, Friar Tuck
Friar Tuck
Friar Tuck is a companion to Robin Hood in the legends about that character. He is a common character in modern Robin Hood stories, which depict him as a jovial friar and one of Robin's Merry Men. The figure of Tuck was common in the May Games festivals of England and Scotland during the 15th...
-like monk
Monk
A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...
which later developed a life of its own and had to be destroyed. There is a teaching story inherent in Néel's experience as it is evocative of the English rendering of the famous instruction of Zen
Zen
Zen is a school of Mahāyāna Buddhism founded by the Buddhist monk Bodhidharma. The word Zen is from the Japanese pronunciation of the Chinese word Chán , which in turn is derived from the Sanskrit word dhyāna, which can be approximately translated as "meditation" or "meditative state."Zen...
Master Lin Chi: "If you meet the Buddha on the road, kill him." Just as the 'mandala
Mandala
Maṇḍala is a Sanskrit word that means "circle". In the Buddhist and Hindu religious traditions their sacred art often takes a mandala form. The basic form of most Hindu and Buddhist mandalas is a square with four gates containing a circle with a center point...
' (Tibetan: dkyil
Nirvana
Nirvāṇa ; ) is a central concept in Indian religions. In sramanic thought, it is the state of being free from suffering. In Hindu philosophy, it is the union with the Supreme being through moksha...
" of the kye-rim stage is the completion of the dzog-rim; yielding an integration, an iteration of the mindstream, a communion.
Freeman (c2007: unpaginated) in his musings on dragons and phenomena, tentatively explores tulpas and thoughtforms in relation to worship
Worship
Worship is an act of religious devotion usually directed towards a deity. The word is derived from the Old English worthscipe, meaning worthiness or worth-ship — to give, at its simplest, worth to something, for example, Christian worship.Evelyn Underhill defines worship thus: "The absolute...
and fear
Fear
Fear is a distressing negative sensation induced by a perceived threat. It is a basic survival mechanism occurring in response to a specific stimulus, such as pain or the threat of danger...
; energetic reciprocity and lifecycle; and 'spirits of place' (Latin: genius loci
Genius loci
In classical Roman religion a genius loci was the protective spirit of a place. It was often depicted in religious iconography as a figure holding a Cornucopia, patera and/or a snake. There are many Roman altars found in Western Europe dedicated in whole or in part to the particular Genius Loci...
):
Areas of intense Fortean phenomena are called window areas. Many of them were places of former religious importance that have now waned or fallen from use. Could the worship or occult use of an area over hundreds of years create a sort of artificial life form? Something that fed on the worship. When the worship is taken away the "thing" still needs to feed. It now feeds by creating fear with paranormal manifestations. Another idea is that they are a massive, collective, sub-conscious, thought form. The thought form or tulpa is said to be a 3-D semi solid image created by the power of the mind. Buddhist llamas[ sicSicSic—generally inside square brackets, [sic], and occasionally parentheses, —when added just after a quote or reprinted text, indicates the passage appears exactly as in the original source...] in Tibet are said to be able to summon up tulpas during intense meditation. Western explorer Dame Alexandra [David-Néel] was said to have created a tulpa of a monk whilst studying in Tibet. Polish medium Franek Kluski (Teofil Modrzejewski) was said to have summoned up huge cats, birds, and even ape-men during séances. Perhaps, considering the types of beast he called up, he was creating tulpas. If individuals can create tulpas imagine what the collective, gestalt mind of humanity as a species could do. Perhaps dragons are a giant worldwide thought form emanating from our innermost fears.
Three aspects of energy
In the DzogchenDzogchen
According to Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, Dzogchen is the natural, primordial state or natural condition of the mind, and a body of teachings and meditation practices aimed at realizing that condition. Dzogchen, or "Great Perfection", is a central teaching of the Nyingma school also practiced by...
tradition, there are three indivisible modes of energy that govern manifestation, and therefore thoughtform phenomena and the energy of sentient beings:
According to the Dzogchen
Dzogchen
According to Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, Dzogchen is the natural, primordial state or natural condition of the mind, and a body of teachings and meditation practices aimed at realizing that condition. Dzogchen, or "Great Perfection", is a central teaching of the Nyingma school also practiced by...
tradition, there is nothing which is non-sentient, or stated differently, everything is sentient technically Panpsychism
Panpsychism
In philosophy, panpsychism is the view that all matter has a mental aspect, or, alternatively, all objects have a unified center of experience or point of view...
and this is the view of Dzogchen Semde
Semde
Semde translated as "mind division", "mind class" or "mind series" is the name of one of three scriptural and lineage divisions within Atiyoga, Dzogchen or the Great Perfection which is itself the pinnacle of the ninefold division of practice according to the Nyingma school of Tibetan...
or "mind series" the principal text of which is the Kulayarāja Tantra. Moreover, two of the English scholars that opened the discourse of the Bardo
Bardo
The Tibetan word Bardo means literally "intermediate state" - also translated as "transitional state" or "in-between state" or "liminal state". In Sanskrit the concept has the name antarabhāva...
literature of the Nyingma
Nyingma
The Nyingma tradition is the oldest of the four major schools of Tibetan Buddhism . "Nyingma" literally means "ancient," and is often referred to as Nga'gyur or the "old school" because it is founded on the first translations of Buddhist scriptures from Sanskrit into Tibetan, in the eighth century...
Dzogchen tradition, Evans-Wentz & Jung
Jung
Carl Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist, an influential thinker and the founder of analytical psychology.Jung may also refer to:* Jung * JUNG, Java Universal Network/Graph Framework-See also:...
(1954, 2000: p. 10) specifically with their partial translation and commentary of the Bardo Thodol
Bardo Thodol
The Liberation Through Hearing During The Intermediate State , sometimes translated as Liberation Through Hearing or Bardo Thodol is a funerary text...
into the English language write of the "One Mind" (Tibetan: sems nyid gcig; Sanskrit: *ekacittatva; *ekacittata; where * denotes a possible Sanskrit back-formation) thus:
"The One Mind, as Reality, is the Heart which pulsates for ever, sending forth purified the blood-streams of existence, and taking them back again; the Great Breath, the Inscrutable Brahman, the Eternally Unveiled Mystery of the Mysteries of Antiquity, the Goal of all Pilgrimages, the End of all Existence."
This "One Mind" is none other than the "sphere of the great circle" (Tibetan: thig le chen po'i klong) of "self-awareness" (Tibetan: rang rig) of the Samten Migdron
Samten Migdrön
Samten Migdrön is a Tibetan text of historical importance for the historical relationship of Dzogchen and Zen as well identifying the view of its author, Nubchen Sangye Yeshe. The Samten Migdron was recovered amongst the Dunhuang texts....
a text like the Kulayaraja Tantra that is also of the Semde class of Dzogchen literature and an important historical source of Dzogchen as it was recovered from the Dunhuang manuscripts
Dunhuang manuscripts
The Dunhuang manuscripts is a cache of important religious and secular documents discovered in the Mogao Caves of Dunhuang, China during the early 20th century. Dating from the 5th to early 11th centuries, the manuscripts include works ranging from history and mathematics to folk songs and dance...
.
Van Schaik
Sam van Schaik
Sam Julius van Schaik is an English Tibetologist. He obtained a PhD in Tibetan Buddhist literature at the University of Manchester in 2000, with a dissertation on the translations of Dzogchen texts by Jigme Lingpa...
(2004: p. 33) explains the Dzogchen doctrine of the triunic complex of the manifesation of energy further:
In terms of energy – there are three characteristic ways in which the energy manifests – Dang, Rolpa, and rTsal (gDang, rol pa, and rTsal). Dang is the energy in which ‘internal’ and ‘external’ are not divided from that which manifests. It is symbolised by the crystal sphere which becomes the colour of whatever it is placed upon. Rolpa is the energy which manifests internally as vision. It is symbolised by the mirror. The image of the reflection always appears as if it is inside the mirror. rTsal is externally manifested energy which radiates. It is symbolised by the refractive capacity of the faceted crystal. For a realised being, this energy is inseparable in its manifestation from the dimension of manifest reality. Dang, Rolpa, and rTsal are not divided.
Dang, Rolpa and rTsal are not divided and neither are the ku-sum (sKu gSum – the trikaya) the three spheres of being. Chö-ku (chos sKu – Dharmakaya), the sphere of unconditioned potentiality, is the creative space from which the essence of the elements arises as long-ku (longs sKu - Sambhogakaya) the sphere of intangible appearances – light and rays, non material forms only perceivable by those with visionary clarity. Trülku (sPrul sKu – Nirmanakaya), the sphere of realised manifestation, is the level of matter in apparently solid material forms. The primordial base manifests these three distinct yet indivisible modes.
The triunic modality of the energy of manifestation and the Trikaya
Trikaya
The Trikāya doctrine is an important Mahayana Buddhist teaching on both the nature of reality and the nature of a Buddha. By the 4th century CE the Trikāya Doctrine had assumed the form that we now know...
are indivisible, though particular aspects, qualities or properties of these may be foregrounded and backgrounded according to time, place, circumstance and intention. The dang energy of a sentient being is essentially a mystery, infinite, spacious and formless, it relates to the Dharmakaya
Dharmakaya
The Dharmakāya is a central idea in Mahayana Buddhism forming part of the Trikaya doctrine that was possibly first expounded in the Aṣṭasāhasrikā prajñā-pāramitā , composed in the 1st century BCE...
. Rolpa energy is that of an interior vision, or the 'eye of the mind' of visualization; it relates to the Sambhogakaya
Sambhogakaya
The Sambhogakāya is the second mode or aspect of the Trikaya. Sambhogakaya has also been translated as the "deity dimension", "body of bliss" or "astral body". Sambhogakaya refers to the luminous form of clear light the Buddhist practitioner attains upon the reaching the highest dimensions of...
. Tsal is the energetic manifestation of what is generally considered 'corporeal' phenomena and it relates to the Nirmanakaya. The interplay of these energies and the profundity and elegance of this doctrine provides a hypothesis of thoughtform phenomenon, emergence
Emergence
In philosophy, systems theory, science, and art, emergence is the way complex systems and patterns arise out of a multiplicity of relatively simple interactions. Emergence is central to the theories of integrative levels and of complex systems....
, poltergeist
Poltergeist
A poltergeist is a paranormal phenomenon which consists of events alluding to the manifestation of an imperceptible entity. Such manifestation typically includes inanimate objects moving or being thrown about, sentient noises and, on some occasions, physical attacks on those witnessing the...
activity, Will-o'-the-wisp
Will-o'-the-wisp
A will-o'-the-wisp or ignis fatuus , also called a "will-o'-wisp", "jack-o'-lantern" , "hinkypunk", "corpse candle", "ghost-light", "spook-light", "fairy light", "friar's lantern", "hobby lantern", "ghost orb", or simply "wisp", is a ghostly light or lights sometimes seen at night or twilight over...
, psychokinesis
Psychokinesis
The term psychokinesis , also referred to as telekinesis with respect to strictly describing movement of matter, sometimes abbreviated PK and TK respectively, is a term...
, levitation and other siddhi' (Sanskrit; Tibetan: bsgrub), spiritual healing, intercessory prayer, and the logistics of the doctrine of Pratītyasamutpāda amongst innumerable other 'mysteries'.
Spiritual lineage
Jansen (1990: p. 7–8) in her treatise on singing bowls relates the experience that David-NéelAlexandra David-Néel
Alexandra David-Néel born Louise Eugénie Alexandrine Marie David was a Belgian-French explorer, spiritualist, Buddhist and writer, most known for her visit to Lhasa, Tibet, in 1924, when it was forbidden to foreigners...
narrated in her book Tibet, Bandits, Priests and Demons:
When she entered the temple of the Bön monastery of Tesmon, the service that was being conducted was rudely interrupted. While a lama was busy with a kyilkhor, a magic diagram, and sacred cakes, called tormas, one of her bearers entered the temple, clearly indicating that he was not very impressed by the sacred rituals. He was ordered away by the monks. Objecting and cursing violently he insulted the lamas by shouting out that the tormas were only made of momo dough (bread dough).
- '(...)Then, as the man came forward, the bonpo grasped a chang, which was standing next to him, and swung it around. Strange, savage sounds filled the room with a tidal wave of vibrations that pierced my ears. The disrespectful peasant screamed and staggered back with his arms held up as though he was warding off something threatening. 'Get out', the lama repeated again. The other bearers grabbed their friend and rushed out of the temple, greatly disturbed. Bong! Bong! continued the drum. The accompanying bonpo returned unpurturbed, sat in front of the kyilkhor, and continued the muffled singing and chanting. What had happened? I hadn't noticed anything, except for that extraordinary sound. I went outside and asked my bearers. The troublemaker who had disturbed the sacred ritual had lost his bravado. 'It was a snake. I tell you', he said, nodding to the others who sat around him. 'A snake of fire came out of the chang.' 'What? Did you really see a snake of fire?' I asked. 'Is that why you recoiled?' 'Didn't you see it?' they replied. 'It came out of the chang when the lama beat upon it.' 'You must have dreamt it,' I said. 'I didn't see anything.' 'We didn't see the snake, but we did see flashes of light shoot out of the chang,' the other bearers interjected. In fact, they had all been witnesses to a miracle. (...)
Later David-Néel questions the bonpo that emanated the thoughtform, and the bonpo affirmed:
'That it was the power of the zoung that I cast,' declared the lama emphatically. Speaking more softly he said: 'The sound creates shapes and beings..[.]the sound inspires them.
Thoughtform are evident in Vajrayana
Vajrayana
Vajrayāna Buddhism is also known as Tantric Buddhism, Tantrayāna, Mantrayāna, Secret Mantra, Esoteric Buddhism and the Diamond Vehicle...
Buddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
, Bönpo traditions, indigenous cultural traditions throughout the world such as Cherokee
Cherokee
The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...
of North America and Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians
Indigenous Australians are the original inhabitants of the Australian continent and nearby islands. The Aboriginal Indigenous Australians migrated from the Indian continent around 75,000 to 100,000 years ago....
(who understand the waking, created world to be a thoughtform subset
Subset
In mathematics, especially in set theory, a set A is a subset of a set B if A is "contained" inside B. A and B may coincide. The relationship of one set being a subset of another is called inclusion or sometimes containment...
of The Dreaming
Dreamtime
In the animist framework of Australian Aboriginal mythology, The Dreaming is a sacred era in which ancestral Totemic Spirit Beings formed The Creation.-The Dreaming of the Aboriginal times:...
), shamanic traditions, echoes are evident in ghosts or supernatural
Supernatural
The supernatural or is that which is not subject to the laws of nature, or more figuratively, that which is said to exist above and beyond nature...
agency, folk religion
Folk religion
Folk religion consists of ethnic or regional religious customs under the umbrella of an organized religion, but outside of official doctrine and practices...
, esoteric philosophies such as Theosophy
Theosophy
Theosophy, in its modern presentation, is a spiritual philosophy developed since the late 19th century. Its major themes were originally described mainly by Helena Blavatsky , co-founder of the Theosophical Society...
and what is construed as the New Age
New Age
The New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
.
Though Alice Bailey
Alice Bailey
Alice Ann Bailey , known as Alice A. Bailey or AAB to her followers, was an influential writer and theosophist in what she termed "Ageless Wisdom". This included occult teachings, "esoteric" psychology and healing, astrological and other philosophic and religious themes...
may have been inspired (and comparable to a tertön
Tertön
A tertön is a discoverer of ancient texts or "terma". Many tertöns are considered incarnations of the 25 main disciples of Padmasambhava. A vast system of transmission lineages developed...
), her collaborative work with Djwal Khul
Djwal Khul
Djwal Khul , is believed by some Theosophists and others to be a Tibetan disciple in the tradition of ancient esoteric spirituality known as The Ageless Wisdom tradition...
, A Treatise on Cosmic Fire, that evocatively described the process for working with thoughtforms, is not formally recognised by the Himalayan
Himalayas
The Himalaya Range or Himalaya Mountains Sanskrit: Devanagari: हिमालय, literally "abode of snow"), usually called the Himalayas or Himalaya for short, is a mountain range in Asia, separating the Indian subcontinent from the Tibetan Plateau...
dharmic traditions. Thoughtform are not only the energetic phantasmagoria
Phantasmagoria
Phantasmagoria can refer to:* Phantasmagoria, a type of show using an optical device to display moving images* Phantasmagoria, a video game* Phantasmagoria: A Puzzle of Flesh, a video game sequel to Phantasmagoria...
of our consciousness
Consciousness
Consciousness is a term that refers to the relationship between the mind and the world with which it interacts. It has been defined as: subjectivity, awareness, the ability to experience or to feel, wakefulness, having a sense of selfhood, and the executive control system of the mind...
and mindstream
Mindstream
Mindstream in Buddhist philosophy is the moment-to-moment "continuum" of awareness. There are a number of terms in the Buddhist literature that may well be rendered "mindstream"...
, either intentional or unconscious, but may also constitute an emotional filter (refer trance
Trance
Trance denotes a variety of processes, ecstasy, techniques, modalities and states of mind, awareness and consciousness. Trance states may occur involuntarily and unbidden.The term trance may be associated with meditation, magic, flow, and prayer...
, NLP
Neuro-linguistic programming
Neuro-linguistic programming is an approach to psychotherapy, self-help and organizational change. Founders Richard Bandler and John Grinder say that NLP is a model of interpersonal communication and a system of alternative therapy which seeks to educate people in self-awareness and effective...
) or lens that shapes the play of our phenomenal experience; as per the incisive quotation of Bailey et al.(1951: p. 489) in A Treatise on White Magic
A Treatise on White Magic
A Treatise on White Magic is a book by Alice Bailey. It is considered to be among the most important by students of her writings, as it is less abstract than most, and deals with many important subjects of her works in an introductory, even programmatic fashion. It was first published in 1934 with...
:
It may be valuable to extend the water metaphor of "the springs of life" aforementioned to include the mindstream
"A thought-form can also act as a poisoning agent, and poison all the springs of life....A violent dislike, a gnawing worry, a jealousy, a constant anxiety, and a longing for something or someone, may act so potently as an irritant or poison that the entire life is spoilt, and service is rendered futile. The entire life is embittered and devitalized by the embodied worry, hatred and desire....and is held back by the poison in his [sic.] mental system. His vision becomes distorted, his nature corroded, and all his relationships impeded by the wearing, nagging thoughts which he himself embodies in form and which have a life so powerful that they can poison him."
Mindstream
Mindstream in Buddhist philosophy is the moment-to-moment "continuum" of awareness. There are a number of terms in the Buddhist literature that may well be rendered "mindstream"...
. We now know from emergent disciplines that thoughts and emotions are chemical as well as electrical processes, refer neuropeptide
Neuropeptide
Neuropeptides are small protein-like molecules used by neurons to communicate with each other. They are neuronal signaling molecules, influence the activity of the brain in specific ways and are thus involved in particular brain functions, like analgesia, reward, food intake, learning and...
s, and may be potentially toxic. So we may indeed be driven, railroaded and possessed by our thought forms and emotions: called in popular currency 'our demon
Demon
call - 1347 531 7769 for more infoIn Ancient Near Eastern religions as well as in the Abrahamic traditions, including ancient and medieval Christian demonology, a demon is considered an "unclean spirit" which may cause demonic possession, to be addressed with an act of exorcism...
s'. These 'demons' or 'poisons' in Hindu and Buddhist traditions are known as kleśa (Sanskrit). Moreover, kleśa is often rendered into English as "poison", "obscuration" and "demon". This understanding is not to diminish the reality of adverse as well as benevolent possession and trance
Trance
Trance denotes a variety of processes, ecstasy, techniques, modalities and states of mind, awareness and consciousness. Trance states may occur involuntarily and unbidden.The term trance may be associated with meditation, magic, flow, and prayer...
-forms but to establish a complex of views.
In the Vajrayana Buddhist view promulgated by Padmasambhava
Padmasambhava
Padmasambhava ; Mongolian ловон Бадмажунай, lovon Badmajunai, , Means The Lotus-Born, was a sage guru from Oddiyāna who is said to have transmitted Vajrayana Buddhism to Bhutan and Tibet and neighbouring countries in the 8th century...
and Jamgön Kongtrül
Jamgon Kongtrul
Jamgön Kongtrül is a name of a prominent line of Tibetan Buddhist teachers , primarily identified with the first Jamgon Kongtrul, but also the name shared by members of a lineage held by tradition to be his subsequent reincarnations , to date....
(1999: p. 84), the thought form of the six lokas or "six classes of beings" of 'dependent co-arising' and the obscurations forded by the samsaric view is held to be a dream:
Due to the great demon of coemergent and conceptual ignorancePratitya-samutpadaDependent origination or dependent arising is a cardinal doctrine of Buddhism, and arguably the only thing that holds every Buddhist teaching together from Theravada to Dzogchen to the extinct schools. As a concept and a doctrine it has a general and a specific application, both being integral to...
,
From the solidified habitual patterns of grasping and fixation,
And the different perceptions of worlds and inhabitants,
The six classes of beingsSix realmsThe desire realm is one of three realms or three worlds in traditional Buddhist cosmology into which a being wandering in may be reborn. The other two are the form realm, and the formless realm The desire realm (Sanskrit kāma-dhātu) is one of three realms (Sanskrit: dhātu, Tibetan: khams) or...
appeared as a dream. (NB: original text not meta-enhanced.)
...evocative of Edgar Allan Poe's
Edgar Allan Poe
Edgar Allan Poe was an American author, poet, editor and literary critic, considered part of the American Romantic Movement. Best known for his tales of mystery and the macabre, Poe was one of the earliest American practitioners of the short story and is considered the inventor of the detective...
: “All that we see or seem, is but a dream within a dream”.
Scientific lineage
Thoughtforms, in the sense of being homunculi of awareness with the attribute of self-will and self-determination – also figure in various cognitive and psychological theories. Marvin MinskyMarvin Minsky
Marvin Lee Minsky is an American cognitive scientist in the field of artificial intelligence , co-founder of Massachusetts Institute of Technology's AI laboratory, and author of several texts on AI and philosophy.-Biography:...
's "agents" are amongst the best known of these. Lester (1995: p. 123) in framing Minsky's "agents" and the logistics of their contingency states:
Minsky (1986), cofounder of the artificial intelligence laboratory at MIT, proposes that there are agencies of the mind, by which he means any and all psychological processes. Although he grants that a view of the mind as made up of many selves may be valid, he suggests that this may be a myth that we construct.
However, when introducing the concept of agencies (a broad term that includes selves as one type of agency), Minsky (1986) does suggest several important questions to ask about agencies: How do agents work? What are they made of? How do they communicate? Where do the first agents come from? Are we born with the same agents? How to make new agents and change old ones? What are the most important kinds of agents? What happens when agents disagree? How could networks of agents want or wish? How can groups of agents do what separate agents cannot do? What gives them unity or responsibility? How could they understand anything? How could they have feelings and emotions? How could they be conscious or self-aware? Not all of these questions, of course, apply to subselves. But the questions of origins, heredity, learning, character, authority, and competence are pertinent to subselves.
Andras Angyal
Andras Angyal
Andras Angyal was born in rural Transylvania , Angyal received his Ph.D. from the University of Vienna in 1927 and his M.D. from the University of Turin in 1932....
's work and the Dzogchen triunic modality of the manifestation of energy deserve a dialogic analysis. Carl Jung
Carl Jung
Carl Gustav Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist and the founder of Analytical Psychology. Jung is considered the first modern psychiatrist to view the human psyche as "by nature religious" and make it the focus of exploration. Jung is one of the best known researchers in the field of dream analysis and...
's technique of Active imagination
Active Imagination
Active Imagination is a concept developed by Carl Jung between 1913 and 1916. It is a meditation technique wherein the contents of one's unconscious are translated into images, narrative or personified as separate entities. It can serve as a bridge between the conscious 'ego' and the unconscious...
involves interacting with thoughtforms of the subconscious mind. Jung identified certain universal thoughtform archetypes such as Anima and Animus and which are characteristic of all humans. Psychological Archetypes are thoughtforms.
The chief difference between these scientific formulations and magickal / spiritual definitions of thoughtforms is that the former are created unconsciously whereas the latter are created deliberately.
Thoughtform phenomena, by any other name, are worked with variously in Imaginal Psychology
Imaginal Psychology
Imaginal Psychology is a recent branch of psychology which considers soul to be psychology’s primary concern. Central to this new discipline is the idea that the 'soul' expresses itself in images, and that care of the soul requires that we pay great attention to the images we 'inhabit'...
and Process Oriented Psychology
Process Oriented Psychology
Process oriented psychology refers to a body of theory and practice that encompasses a broad range of psychotherapeutic, personal growth, and group process applications. It is more commonly called "process work" in the United States, the longer name being used in Europe and Asia...
and is evident in the work of Gregory Bateson
Gregory Bateson
Gregory Bateson was an English anthropologist, social scientist, linguist, visual anthropologist, semiotician and cyberneticist whose work intersected that of many other fields. He had a natural ability to recognize order and pattern in the universe...
. Jean Houston
Jean Houston
Jean Houston is an American scholar, lecturer, author and philosopher who has helped pioneer and motivate the human potentials movement. As a teacher and visionary thinker, Houston holds conferences and seminars with social leaders, educational institutions and business organizations worldwide...
, a disciple of Campbell
Joseph Campbell
Joseph John Campbell was an American mythologist, writer and lecturer, best known for his work in comparative mythology and comparative religion. His work is vast, covering many aspects of the human experience...
and Mead
Margaret Mead
Margaret Mead was an American cultural anthropologist, who was frequently a featured writer and speaker in the mass media throughout the 1960s and 1970s....
(and in the direct lineage of Jung
Carl Jung
Carl Gustav Jung was a Swiss psychiatrist and the founder of Analytical Psychology. Jung is considered the first modern psychiatrist to view the human psyche as "by nature religious" and make it the focus of exploration. Jung is one of the best known researchers in the field of dream analysis and...
), was a modern pioneer of engaging thoughtform in what she termed the 'imaginal realm', and in the associated discipline of aspecting or 'carrying' deity
Deity
A deity is a recognized preternatural or supernatural immortal being, who may be thought of as holy, divine, or sacred, held in high regard, and respected by believers....
, dæmon
Daemon (mythology)
The words dæmon and daimôn are Latinized spellings of the Greek "δαίμων", a reference to the daemons of Ancient Greek religion and mythology, as well as later Hellenistic religion and philosophy...
or other somesuch (Houston, 1996).
Phenomenal world as thoughtform
Tenzin NamdakLopön Tenzin Namdak
Lopön Tenzin Namdak is Bön religious leader.-Birth, family & early education:Lopön Tenzin Namdak born in Khyungpo Karu in Xikang province of Republic of China to a family of famous artists. In 1933, at the age of seven he entered Tingchen Monastery in the same district...
(2002: p. 37) translates the 'fruit' (Tibetan: 'bras) of the 'Khorde Rushen' (Tibetan: khor-'das ru-shan) 'preparatory practice' (Tibetan: ngondro
Ngöndro
Ngöndro refers to the preliminary, preparatory or foundational 'practices' or 'disciplines' common to all four schools of Tibetan Buddhism and also to Bön...
) of the Bön Dzogchen
Dzogchen
According to Tibetan Buddhism and Bön, Dzogchen is the natural, primordial state or natural condition of the mind, and a body of teachings and meditation practices aimed at realizing that condition. Dzogchen, or "Great Perfection", is a central teaching of the Nyingma school also practiced by...
lineage thus:
All things are created by your thought and mind - and if you look back to the source of your thought and mind you find that it disappears. It dissolves and goes back to its nature. That is the limit; every individual thing is dependent on the mind. All worldly life, all the beings in the six realms are in the same situation. The purpose of this practice is to stop all desire for worldly life - to see that it is all created by our mind. The world is like a common mind.
Towards the end of his life, the visionary biologist Gregory Bateson intuited the manifested realm to be a thoughtform of the unmanifested. Lawlor (1991: p. 43) cites Bateson from Lovelock
James Lovelock
James Lovelock, CH, CBE, FRS is an independent scientist, environmentalist and futurologist who lives in Devon, England. He is best known for proposing the Gaia hypothesis, which postulates that the biosphere is a self-regulating entity with the capacity to keep our planet healthy by controlling...
(1995: p. 218):
The individual mind is imminent but not only in the body. It is imminent also in pathways and messages outside the body, and there is a larger mind of which the individual mind is only a sub-system. This larger mind is comparable to God and is perhaps what some people mean by God, but it is still imminent in the total interconnected social systems and planetary ecology.
Buddha Shakyamuni employed ten traditional similes in explanation of 'phenomena' (Sanskrit: dharmas) these are known as the "Ten Similes of Illusory Phenomena" (Wylie: shes-bya sgyu-ma'i dpe-bcu):
The ten similes which illustrate the illusory nature of all things are: illusion (sgyu-ma), mirage (smig-rgyu), dream (rmi-lam), reflected image (gzugz-brnyan), a celestial city (dzi-za'i grong-khyer), echo (brag-ca), reflection of the moon in water (chu-zla), bubble of water (chu-bur), optical illusion (mig-yor), and an intangible emanation (sprul-pa).
Varṇamālā (Garland of Phonemes)
Varṇa (Sanskrit) holds the semantic field "colour", "class", "phoneme", "syllable", "letter"; mālāBuddhist prayer beads
Buddhist prayer beads are a traditional tool used to count the number of times a mantra is recited whilst meditating. They are similar to other forms of prayer beads used in various world religions; thus some call this tool the Buddhist rosary.-Mala:...
(Sanskrit) holds the semantic field "garland", "ley", "wreath", "prayer beads", "rosary". Varṇamālā denotes the alphabet of Devanagari
Devanagari
Devanagari |deva]]" and "nāgarī" ), also called Nagari , is an abugida alphabet of India and Nepal...
, that has come to be common for Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
post-medieval India
Medieval India
Medieval India refers to the Middle Ages i.e. 5th to 15th century AD in the Indian subcontinent, it includes:*Early Middle Ages: Middle kingdoms of India*Hoysala Empire*Kakatiya Kingdom*Delhi Sultanate*Ahom Kingdom*Reddy Kingdom...
. Indeed, Varṇamālā not only denotes the set of phonemes of Sanskrit and languages evolved from it, but denotes the glyphs in the abugida
Abugida
An abugida , also called an alphasyllabary, is a segmental writing system in which consonant–vowel sequences are written as a unit: each unit is based on a consonant letter, and vowel notation is obligatory but secondary...
scripts for such languages. Rongzompa realised the 'thirteenth bhumi of Mantrayana' which may also be rendered in English as "Chakra of Letters" (Sanskrit: Varṇamālā; Wylie: yi ge
Deva (Buddhism)
A deva in Buddhism is one of many different types of non-human beings who share the characteristics of being more powerful, longer-lived, and, in general, living more contentedly than the average human being....
"divinity" and nāga
Naga
Naga or NAGA may refer to:* Nāga, a group of serpent deities in Hindu and Buddhist mythology.-People:* Nayan / Nayar/Nair people of Kerala Society* Naga people, a diverse ethnic identity in Northeast India...
"serpent", and that snakes often form a "circular" garland-like shape, refer Ourorboros, and are evident throughout Dharmic iconography
Iconography
Iconography is the branch of art history which studies the identification, description, and the interpretation of the content of images. The word iconography literally means "image writing", and comes from the Greek "image" and "to write". A secondary meaning is the painting of icons in the...
as girdles, malas, garlands, torques, armbands, etc., as investiture
Investiture
Investiture, from the Latin is a rather general term for the formal installation of an incumbent...
of adornment are 'symbolic attributes' (Tibetan: phyag mtshan). Devanagari seceded from Brāhmī script
Brāhmī script
Brāhmī is the modern name given to the oldest members of the Brahmic family of scripts. The best-known Brāhmī inscriptions are the rock-cut edicts of Ashoka in north-central India, dated to the 3rd century BCE. These are traditionally considered to be early known examples of Brāhmī writing...
which is even more visually serpentine.
Conze
Edward Conze
Eberhart Julius Dietrich Conze was an Anglo-German scholar probably best known for his pioneering translations of Buddhist texts.-Life and work:...
(1980: p. 12) states:
For the last two thousand years Buddhism has mainly flourished in rice-growing countries and little elsewhere. In addition, and that is much harder to explain, it has spread only in those countries which had previously had a cult of Serpents or Dragons, and never made headway in those parts of the world which view the killing of dragons as a meritorious deed or blame serpents for mankind's ills.
In addition to the circular formation of snakes (and dragons), their boon as holders and givers of wisdom as well as their bane as bringers of deception and illusion, is evident throughout folklore
Folklore
Folklore consists of legends, music, oral history, proverbs, jokes, popular beliefs, fairy tales and customs that are the traditions of a culture, subculture, or group. It is also the set of practices through which those expressive genres are shared. The study of folklore is sometimes called...
of the human condition
Human condition
The human condition encompasses the experiences of being human in a social, cultural, and personal context. It can be described as the irreducible part of humanity that is inherent and not connected to gender, race, class, etc. — a search for purpose, sense of curiosity, the inevitability of...
and reveals the fundamental qualitative dichotomy of language
Language
Language may refer either to the specifically human capacity for acquiring and using complex systems of communication, or to a specific instance of such a system of complex communication...
and code
Code
A code is a rule for converting a piece of information into another form or representation , not necessarily of the same type....
as both conduits of information
Information
Information in its most restricted technical sense is a message or collection of messages that consists of an ordered sequence of symbols, or it is the meaning that can be interpreted from such a message or collection of messages. Information can be recorded or transmitted. It can be recorded as...
and noise
Noise
In common use, the word noise means any unwanted sound. In both analog and digital electronics, noise is random unwanted perturbation to a wanted signal; it is called noise as a generalisation of the acoustic noise heard when listening to a weak radio transmission with significant electrical noise...
. The inherent flexibility and elongation of the snake-form, lends itself to making rudimentrary shapes and forms, and for the ancient Vedic tradition and its cultural tributaries of the Indo-european
Indo-European
Indo-European may refer to:* Indo-European languages** Aryan race, a 19th century and early 20th century term for those peoples who are the native speakers of Indo-European languages...
language family, is the font
Font
In typography, a font is traditionally defined as a quantity of sorts composing a complete character set of a single size and style of a particular typeface...
of archetypal signification
Sign (semiotics)
A sign is understood as a discrete unit of meaning in semiotics. It is defined as "something that stands for something, to someone in some capacity" It includes words, images, gestures, scents, tastes, textures, sounds – essentially all of the ways in which information can be...
. It should also be stated that nāga as concealers and revealers of 'treasures' (Tibetan: Terma
Terma (Buddhism)
Terma are key Tibetan Buddhist and Bön teachings, which the tradition holds were originally esoterically hidden by various adepts such as Padmasambhava and his consorts in the 8th century for future discovery at auspicious times by other adepts, known as tertöns. As such, they represent a...
) are endemic in Terma literature, as are Dakini
Dakini
A dakini is a tantric deity described as a female embodiment of enlightened energy. In the Tibetan language, dakini is rendered khandroma which means 'she who traverses the sky' or 'she who moves in space'. Sometimes the term is translated poetically as 'sky dancer' or 'sky walker'. The dakini, in...
. Nagarjuna
Nagarjuna
Nāgārjuna was an important Buddhist teacher and philosopher. Along with his disciple Āryadeva, he is credited with founding the Mādhyamaka school of Mahāyāna Buddhism...
received the Prajnaparamita
Prajnaparamita
Prajñāpāramitā in Buddhism, means "the Perfection of Wisdom." The word Prajñāpāramitā combines the Sanskrit words prajñā with pāramitā . Prajñāpāramitā is a central concept in Mahāyāna Buddhism and its practice and understanding are taken to be indispensable elements of the Bodhisattva Path...
from the Nāga. In discussing the thoughtform Varṇamālā, it should be noted that particular 'energetic signatory glyphs' (Tibetan: gter ston gter btags) are inseparable from the tradition of Tertön
Tertön
A tertön is a discoverer of ancient texts or "terma". Many tertöns are considered incarnations of the 25 main disciples of Padmasambhava. A vast system of transmission lineages developed...
s.
Khanna (2003: p. 21) links mantra
Mantra
A mantra is a sound, syllable, word, or group of words that is considered capable of "creating transformation"...
s and yantra
Yantra
Yantra is the Sanskrit word for "instrument" or "machine". Much like the word "instrument" itself, it can stand for symbols, processes, automata, machinery or anything that has structure and organization, depending on context....
s to thoughtforms:
Mantras, the Sanskrit syllables inscribed on yantras, are essentially 'thought forms' representing divinities or cosmic powers, which exert their influence by means of sound-vibrations.
In the Dharmic traditions, all phenomena are essentially the 'formation of vibration and resonance' (Sanskrit: namarupa
Namarupa
Nāmarūpa is a dvandva compound in Sanskrit and Pali meaning "name and form ".-Nāmarūpa in Hinduism:The term nāmarūpa is used in Hindu thought, nāma describing the spiritual or essential properties of an object or being, and rūpa the physical presence that it manifests...
). Mookerjee and Khanna (1977: p. 33) state how all form arises from the Aum
Aum
Om or Aum Om or Aum Om or Aum (also , written in Devanāgari as and as , in Sanskrit known as (lit. "to sound out loudly"), ', or ' (also as ') (lit. "Auṃ form/syllable"), is a sacred/mystical syllable in the Dharmic or Indian religions, i.e...
:
The Primal Sound as the monosyllabic mantra Oṃ is the basis of cosmic evolution. All the elemental sound-forms of mantras emanate from this eternal sound. Sound and form are interdependent, and every form is a vibration of a certain density; conversely, every sound has a visual equivalent. Sound is the reflex of form and form is the product of sound. All that is animate and inanimate are vibrations of a particular frequency. All the mantras have their colour forms, and when a mantra is pronounced properly its visual correlates begin to manifest. The dynamic power-pattern rooted in sound by which it is revealed is called a yantra.
Hence, all phenomena are constituted by Bīja
Bija
In Hinduism and Buddhism, the Sanskrit term बीज bīja , literally seed, is used as a metaphor for the origin or cause of things and cognate with bindu....
, known in Tibetan as sprul pa cho 'phrul gyi yi ge, "spontaneously emergent magical phonemes/letters/symbols", which is another way of perceiving the all-pervasive buddha-nature
Buddha-nature
Buddha-nature, Buddha-dhatu or Buddha Principle , is taught differently in various Mahayana Buddhism traditions. Broadly speaking Buddha-nature is concerned with ascertaining what allows sentient beings to become Buddhas...
, the 'Thirteenth Bhumi' or the 'Third Bhumi of Enlightenment' (Tibetan: yi ge 'khor lo tshogs chen; "the bhumi where the Universe is present as a rotating procession of spell-letters").
In popular culture
Many authors and artists have since used tulpas in their works, both in the context of fiction and in writing about mysticism. Horror author Clive BarkerClive Barker
Clive Barker is an English author, film director and visual artist best known for his work in both fantasy and horror fiction. Barker came to prominence in the mid-1980s with a series of short stories which established him as a leading young horror writer...
, for example, envisioned his famous "Candy Man" killer to be nothing more than a myth gone terribly awry in his original story.
"Tulpa" is a series of atmospheric tunes by Swedish dark ambient
Dark ambient
Dark ambient is a subgenre of ambient music that features foreboding, ominous, or discordant overtones. Although it had its roots in the 1970s, Dark ambient emerged in the 1980s and 1990s with the introduction of newer, smaller, and more affordable Effects units, synthesizer and sampling technology...
composer Peter Andersson
Peter Andersson (composer)
Peter Andersson is a music composer within the ambient, noise, industrial, electronic and experimental genre....
. "My Tulpa"is a song title by the Manchester post-punk band Magazine
Magazine
Magazines, periodicals, glossies or serials are publications, generally published on a regular schedule, containing a variety of articles. They are generally financed by advertising, by a purchase price, by pre-paid magazine subscriptions, or all three...
on their album titled, "Real Life". It was written by Howard Devoto, the lead singer/songwriter. "The Tulpa" is a series of black metal
Black metal
Black metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. Common traits include fast tempos, shrieked vocals, highly distorted guitars played with tremolo picking, blast beat drumming, raw recording, and unconventional song structure....
tunes by Swedish multi-style composer Chaan. •Tulpa is a psychedelic rock band from Toronto, Canada that started performing together in 1981. Eventually releasing a single "Apologize to your Mother", an LP "Mosaic Fish" and "Live From CBGB". John Bottomley
John Bottomley
John Bottomley was a Canadian singer-songwriter. Bottomley was born in Toronto in 1960 and died in 2011 in Brackendale, British Columbia...
, Chris Bottomley, Sev Micron, Tom Walsh and Nic Gotham.
In the X-Files
The X-Files
The X-Files is an American science fiction television series and a part of The X-Files franchise, created by screenwriter Chris Carter. The program originally aired from to . The show was a hit for the Fox network, and its characters and slogans became popular culture touchstones in the 1990s...
episode Arcadia (6X15), the president of the homeowners' association for an exclusive gated community uses a tulpa to enforce the neighborhood rules. The Supernatural
Supernatural (TV series)
Supernatural is an American supernatural and horror television series created by Eric Kripke, which debuted on September 13, 2005 on The WB, and is now part of The CW's lineup. Starring Jared Padalecki as Sam Winchester and Jensen Ackles as Dean Winchester, the series follows the brothers as they...
episode Hell House (1.17) features a haunted house in which the resident malevolent spirit turns out to be a tulpa, created when the beliefs of thousands of website visitors are focused through a Tibetan sigil
Sigil (magic)
A sigil is a symbol created for a specific magical purpose. A sigil is usually made up of a complex combination of several specific symbols or geometric figures, each with a specific meaning or intent.- Name and origin :...
painted on one wall of the house. In the So Weird
So Weird
So Weird is a television series shot in Vancouver, British Columbia that aired on the Disney Channel as a midseason replacement from January 18, 1999 to September 28, 2001. In season one and season two, the series centered around teenage girl Fiona Phillips who toured with her rock star mom ,...
episode PK (or Tulpa). Fi meets a little boy who has created a tulpa he believes to be an imaginary friend.
Authors Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman
Loren Coleman is an author of books on a number of topics, including cryptozoology, who was born in 1947 in Norfolk, Virginia and grew up in Decatur, Illinois.-Education:...
and Jerome Clark
Jerome Clark
Jerome Clark is an American researcher and writer, specializing in unidentified flying objects and other anomalous phenomena; he is also a songwriter of some note....
, in their writings for Fate Magazine
Fate Magazine
Fate is a U.S. magazine about paranormal phenomena. Fate was co-founded in 1948 by Raymond A. Palmer and Curtis Fuller, suspended print publication in July 2009, and launched a new website in January 2010 featuring news, articles, and blogs written by experts and paranormal researchers.Promoted as...
in the early 1970s and their first two books, "The Unidentified" (Warner Books, 1975) and "Creatures of the Outer Edge" (Warner Books, 1978), modernized and popularized tulpas for a new generation of ufologists and cryptozoologists. The surviving "zooform" movement in the United Kingdom can be traced to Clark's and Coleman's reworking of the tulpa concepts. Coleman and Clark have since rejected the tulpa theories as the foundation to unexplained phenomena, and have written a new introduction to the combined republishing of these two works by Anomalist Books in 2006: The Unidentified & Creatures of the Outer Edge: The Early Works of Jerome Clark and Loren Coleman (NY: Anomalist Books, 2006, ISBN 1-933665-11-4).
In Vicki Pettersson
Vicki Pettersson
Vicki Pettersson is an American author best known for her Zodiac urban fantasy series set in modern Las Vegas which sets Agents of Light and Shadow against each other for control over Sin City. The series follows casino heiress Joanna Archer, who discovers on her 25th birthday that she has...
's Signs of the Zodiac series, a tulpa is the main antagonist. In Nightingale's Lament by Simon Green, a tulpa in the image of John Taylor's client is sent after him at one point, tracking him by a hair the client left on his jacket; it disappears when the hair is destroyed. In It
It (novel)
It is a 1986 horror novel by American author Stephen King. The story follows the exploits of seven children as they are terrorized by the eponymous inter-dimensional predatory life-form that exploits the fears and phobias of its victims in order to disguise itself while hunting its prey. "It"...
by Stephen King
Stephen King
Stephen Edwin King is an American author of contemporary horror, suspense, science fiction and fantasy fiction. His books have sold more than 350 million copies and have been adapted into a number of feature films, television movies and comic books...
, the eponymous entity's various manifestations are given form and power by the belief of the townspeople.
In Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison
Grant Morrison is a Scottish comic book writer, playwright and occultist. He is known for his nonlinear narratives and counter-cultural leanings, as well as his successful runs on titles like Animal Man, Doom Patrol, JLA, The Invisibles, New X-Men, Fantastic Four, All-Star Superman, and...
’s Marvel
Marvel Comics
Marvel Worldwide, Inc., commonly referred to as Marvel Comics and formerly Marvel Publishing, Inc. and Marvel Comics Group, is an American company that publishes comic books and related media...
graphic novel ‘Fantastic Four
Fantastic Four
The Fantastic Four is a fictional superhero team appearing in comic books published by Marvel Comics. The group debuted in The Fantastic Four #1 , which helped to usher in a new level of realism in the medium...
1234’ (2002) Reed Richards muses on a fictitious journey to Tibet
Tibet
Tibet is a plateau region in Asia, north-east of the Himalayas. It is the traditional homeland of the Tibetan people as well as some other ethnic groups such as Monpas, Qiang, and Lhobas, and is now also inhabited by considerable numbers of Han and Hui people...
where, with the help of Bön priest, he creates a Tulpa, a “thoughtform”. After Richards names it ‘Victor’ the Tulpa takes on a life of its own, becoming Richards’ opposite number. This was an alternative, fantastical, origin for Richards’ arch enemy Dr Doom (aka Victor Von Doom).
According to the book The Teachings of Don Juan Matus, a Mexican shaman by the name of Don Juan Matus
Don Juan Matus
Don Juan Matus is a major figure in the series of books on Nagual 'Sorcery' by Carlos Castaneda.Matus is described as a Yaqui Indian to whom Castaneda was first introduced at a bus depot in Yuma, Arizona in the early 1960s. He turns out to be a 'Man of Knowledge' who imparts much of his wisdom and...
, who had taught his student Carlos Castaneda
Carlos Castaneda
Carlos Castaneda was a Peruvian-born American anthropologist and author....
, the books author, about the true nature of the physical universe and how intense concentration can summon, apport
Apport
According to parapsychologists and ghost hunters, an apport is the paranormal transference of an article from one place to another, or an appearance of an article from an unknown source that is often associated with poltergeist activity or spiritualistic séances. The Skeptic's Dictionary states...
, and even materialize objects out of thin air. It was said that Carlos Castaneda
Carlos Castaneda
Carlos Castaneda was a Peruvian-born American anthropologist and author....
was able to materialize a living squirrel on the palm of Don Juan's hand based on the latter's instruction. Many of his claims have been disputed by members of the anthropological
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
profession.
In The Magician
The Magician
-Performers of magic:* Magician , a person who performs feats using supernatural means* Magician , a character in a fictional fantasy context who performs supernatural feats...
, the second novel in the young adult series, The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel
The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel
The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel will be a series of six fantasy novels written by Irish author Michael Scott when complete. Completion is due to be in 2012. The first book in the series, The Alchemyst was released in 2007, the sequels are scheduled to follow at the rate of one per year,...
by Michael Scott
Michael Scott
Michael Scott, Michael Scot, or Mike Scott may refer to:* Michael Scott , former regional manager of Dunder Mifflin Scranton in the U.S. TV series The Office-Academics:...
, Niccolò Machiavelli
Niccolò Machiavelli
Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli was an Italian historian, philosopher, humanist, and writer based in Florence during the Renaissance. He is one of the main founders of modern political science. He was a diplomat, political philosopher, playwright, and a civil servant of the Florentine Republic...
creates a tupla in the Basilique du Sacré-Cœur in Paris.
In the RPG (Role-Playing Game) Over the Edge, Tulpas are used as background characters (NPC's). They also have natural enemies, sociopathic individuals called Sandmen, who prey on them to create either "Nightmare" (a drug) or "Dreamweb" (gossamer webs that can capture dreams from people). Dreamweb are typically used to capture the nightmares of neurotic individuals, which are also sold as something like a drug. Although the word "Tulpa" is never used in the Changeling: the Dreaming RPG, creatures known as "Chimera" fulfill a role very similar to Tulpa. Chimera may be sentient or non-sentient entities made manifest in the mental alternate reality of "The Dreaming". They typically arise spontaneously due to the force of human thought and emotion, sometimes from the dreams of individuals but potentially as amalgams of all human thought. These beings are typically weakened by exposure to human doubt, but nevertheless some have the necessary strength and abilities to manifest as tangible entities in the mundane world of humans, at least for a time.
See also
- Alexandra David-NéelAlexandra David-NéelAlexandra David-Néel born Louise Eugénie Alexandrine Marie David was a Belgian-French explorer, spiritualist, Buddhist and writer, most known for her visit to Lhasa, Tibet, in 1924, when it was forbidden to foreigners...
- BardoBardoThe Tibetan word Bardo means literally "intermediate state" - also translated as "transitional state" or "in-between state" or "liminal state". In Sanskrit the concept has the name antarabhāva...
- CryptidCryptidIn cryptozoology and sometimes in cryptobotany, a cryptid is a creature or plant whose existence has been suggested but is unrecognized by scientific consensus and often regarded as highly unlikely. Famous examples include the Yeti in the Himalayas and the Loch Ness Monster in...
- DialogueDialogueDialogue is a literary and theatrical form consisting of a written or spoken conversational exchange between two or more people....
- Dream yogaDream yogaDream Yoga or Milam — the Yoga of the Dream State are a suite of advanced tantric sadhana of the entwined Mantrayana lineages of Dzogchen...
- EgregoreEgregoreEgregore is an occult concept representing a "thoughtform" or "collective group mind", an autonomous psychic entity made up of, and influencing, the thoughts of a group of people...
- GolemGolemIn Jewish folklore, a golem is an animated anthropomorphic being, created entirely from inanimate matter. The word was used to mean an amorphous, unformed material in Psalms and medieval writing....
- Imaginary friendImaginary friendImaginary friends and imaginary companions are a psychological and social phenomenon where a friendship or other interpersonal relationship takes place in the imagination rather than external physical reality. Imaginary friends are fictional characters created for improvisational role-playing. They...
- String theoryString theoryString theory is an active research framework in particle physics that attempts to reconcile quantum mechanics and general relativity. It is a contender for a theory of everything , a manner of describing the known fundamental forces and matter in a mathematically complete system...
- Thought FormsThought FormsThought-Forms is a book by Annie Besant and C.W. Leadbeater, which is a study on the nature and power of thoughts. It has been translated into more than five languages....
Further reading
- Besant, AnnieAnnie BesantAnnie Besant was a prominent British Theosophist, women's rights activist, writer and orator and supporter of Irish and Indian self rule.She was married at 19 to Frank Besant but separated from him over religious differences. She then became a prominent speaker for the National Secular Society ...
; Leadbeater, Charles WebsterCharles Webster LeadbeaterCharles Webster Leadbeater was an influential member of the Theosophical Society, author on occult subjects and co-initiator with J. I. Wedgwood of the Liberal Catholic Church...
. Thought Forms - Makransky, Bob (2000). Thought Forms. Dear Brutus. ISBN 0-9677315-3-4
- Smith, Russell James (2003). Tulpa. Writers Advantage. ISBN 0595274900 / ISBN 978-0595274901 (fiction)