Tibetan Trulkor Yoga

“I whole-heartedly recommend Aniko – she is in a class of her own.”

Trulkor is neither a physical or mental yoga but something beyond. The practices support and channel profound experiences of the Mind.

The practice of Trulkor, also known as Yantra Yoga in sanskrit, is based on unblocking the information of our inner channels related to the emotions. Etymologically, Trulkor Nelyor means: ” the union of body and mind to unblock the knots in the body which are similar to a wheel”.

Tibetan Yoga, known as Trulkor Nelyor in Tibetan comes from 2 origins: the ancient Indian Shivaistic lineage and Bonpo – the original practices form Tibet – known as Bonpo Yar Lung.

Unlike the other living lineages which exist today such as Bon, Nyingma, Shakya or Gelug, the Kagyu tradition has a direct connection to the Shivaistic traditions from Kashmir.

Trulkor is based on the teachings of Anuyoga so consequently the word Tong-Ra in Tibetan describes this as: “body that moves in emptiness”. This means that the Yogi understands the presence of emptiness through the innate frequencies existing in nature.

One can only understand the depth of Trulkor by calming the mind and cultivating inner vision through Meditation.

It has been kept secret for centuries and one needs a living teacher (Guru) to transmit the various frequencies along with personal astrological numbers, colours and directions.

The preliminary practices

These are exercises to warm and oxygenate the body, Lung Ro Sal, as translated from Tibetan “expulsion of dead winds”. This is followed by Shi Yong, strengthening the joints. Then we perform a self massage to warm the inner channels known as: Sa Dul. And finally we practice Lung San to purify the inner winds.

The principle exercises

  • So Lung – learning different forms of Vase breathing to channel the entire central channel.
  • Padma – The different lotus positions related to the 5 basic mental factors.
  • Bebs – jumping to stimulate the inner fire.

This class will be a great opportunity for those who have practised Trulkor to come and review as well as for new students to experience the wonderful benefits of Tibetan yoga.

A short history of Trulkor follows below, as shared with us by Lama Jampa.

Lama Jampa Gyatso Rinpoche’s lineage comes from the Dakini Niguma (Yogini) which is related to the traditional Shivaistic exercises along with the yogas of Naropa, Virupa and Padampa Sanghie which are also part of his lineage.

The word Trulkor is composed of two words: trul (movement) & kor (wheel). The corresponding term is “yantra yoga” in the Sanskrit language.

Trulkor is the result of a meditative practice developed through exercises that can unlock the deeper emotional nodes of the gross, subtle and very subtle bodies. These exercises are closely linked to the chakras (Korlo), channels and drops which belong to the subtle body known as tha varja body and in turn are closely related to disruptive or destructive emotions.

Bonpo lineage:

This lineage dates back to its legendary founder Tongpa Sherab who, according to Bon, descended on Earth 18,000years ago, and transmitted the fundamental teachings of Tibetan astrology, medicine, and the so-called medicine yoga “Trulkor Men La”.

Nyingmapa lineage:

It is called “lineage of the ancients”, dates back from the seventh century AD during the reign of Songten Gampo (569-650). It widely expanded throughout Tibet in the eighth century through widely expanded through the figures of Santarakshita and Guru Rinpoche (Padmasambhava). These great masters brought to Tibet the teachings of Mahanuttarayogatantra or Ati Yoga(Dzogchen) and transmitted the Trulkor Namkhai Nelyor or “ Yoga of Space” and the Trulkor Nyima Dwa, or Trulkor of the Sun and Moon.

Kadampa lineage:

Traditionaly it is said to have originated from the visit of the Indian master Atisha in Tibet (circa 1042) along with the preaching of his first two disciples Rinchen Tsampo and Drontopa. Atisha had previously been abbot of the Nalanda Monastic University in Tibet and brought with him the following:

1)   The teachings of Mind training called Longjong

2)   The technique or method called Ton-len (to Give and Take), designed to change the ego, which in turn influenced the birth of several Trulkor methodologies.

Sakya lineage:

This lineage dates back to the Indian Mahasiddha Virupa, the translator Drokmi Lotsawa (992-1074)and their disciple Kongchog Gyalpo (1033-1112). The transmission line is in turn divided into two sides lineages: Sarpa and Norpa. The founder teachers brought to Tibet the tantra of Kalachakra and developed various Trulkor techniques within this tantra.

Kagyu lineage:

This lineage is also called “ lineage of the oral tradition”. It spread  through Tibet during the eleventh century and was established by Marpa Lotsawa (1012-1097). There are various Kagyu lineages. It is a lineage with a very strong connection to the teachings of the Indian Mahasiddhas Tilopa, Naropa, Maitripa and Sahara. On his travels from India to Tibet, Marpa brought with him the teachings of Mahamudra and clarified the teachings about the so-called “Six Yogas” who took his name, also known as the Six Wheels (Trulkor). Marpa in turn united the teachings from India with the Tibetan indigenous tradition of Psycho-physical movement called Lu-Jong.

Shangpa Kagyu lineage (currently included in the Karma Kagyu school and belonging to the non-sectarian movement of “Rime”):

It is traced back to the Tibetan master Kyung po Nel-yor (978-1079). In India he met the Mahasiddha Maitripa, from whom he received teachings of the so called Five Golden Dharmas and then from the yoginis Niguma and Sukhasiddhi from whom he received he received The Six Yogas of Niguma.  In these last teachings, a particular emphasis is given to the union of the red and white channels through the practice of Tummo. This yoga is the foundation of 32 Trulkor exercises which in turn include different methods of breathing, movement and body postures.

Gelugpa lineage:

Traditionally, the foundation of this lineage dates back to the fifteenth century through the work of the Tibetan master Lama Tsong Khapa (1357-1419), founder of the Ganden monastery and author of the meditation treaties included in the Lam Rim Chemno.

Lama Tsong Khapa received teachings from masters of all the four earlier traditions. In his work the teachings of Sutra and Tantra are skilfully combined. Within this tradition, the Third Panchen Lama, Lobsang Ckokyi Gyaltsen, composed the famous text called Lama Chopa, which is a compendium of the teachings of Mahamudra and Sutra. The fifth Dalai Lama (1617-1682) was a practitioner of traditional Trulkor of the Nyingmapa lineage. Evidence of his practice are in the frescoes painted on the walls of the Lukang building in Lhasa. These frescoes illustrate the practices of both inner and outer yogas belonging to the Nyingma and other Tibetan schools, the yoga of Clear Light and Rainbow body that finally show the various manifestations of Guru Rinpoche and the 84 Mahasiddhas. The practitioners of the Gelugpa lineage follow the six Yogas of Naropa and those of Niguma, even if the original texts have been slightly modified.

The great yogis of the past like Tilopa, Naropa, Ayardeva, etc, have done considerable research on the relationship between mind and body, transmitting its results from one generation of practitioners to another. The heart of this research is the fact that the body, breathing and movement are the starting point for understanding the mind. We must first understand the relationship between the structure of the body and the five elements. Secondly, we must understand the way in which the breathing process nourishes the entire physical body at all levels. Thirdly, we need to know the sounds in order to unlock the subtle emotional knots that create emotional imbalances or even diseases.

Trulkor was therefore not invented through the imagination of some solitary meditators.

People who transmitted this practice know and are familiar with the physical and mental constitution of human beings through their own experience, combining the inner wisdom to present needs. Over the centuries, Trulkor was always taught with great confidentiality.

Nevertheless, in these degenerate times in which we live, it is thanks to the compassion of the great contemporary masters such as the Venerable Kalu Rinpoche that Trulkor began to be taught outside its traditional closed circles. In particular, thanks to this late master, the system Trulkor Nangpa Nelyor, also called Yoga of the Interior, based on ancient lineages of the past and drawn from his personal experience to benefit all beings, has been transmitted t a western audience.

Lama Gangchen Rinpoche, with this same goal, clarified and transmitted ancient teachings adapted to these modern times. The system Ngalso coincides with the movements and inner work of the Tantric Trulkor, in order to awaken the positive and aware side which each of us carries within.

About the Teacher

AnikoNagyAniko Nagy works at Orassy Ultimate Healh as an assistant Director. She worked as a dancer and has been practising yoga for 20 years and teaching Zen Essence Yoga since 1996.She studied directly with Konstantin Pavlidis, founder of Zen Essence Yoga and Dance Mastery,  as well as an International Okido-Yoga teacher. In 2007 she went on retreat and also trained to become a  Sivananda Yoga teacher.She teaches on-going classes for staff at BBC, Shell Oil, Ipsos MORI and Orassy Ultimate Health amongst other venues around London, UK. She trained with Lama Tsultrim in Trulkor Tibetan Yoga from 2004 and subsequently became a lineage holder of this yoga system.
Lama Tsultrim was a direct disciple of the late Kalu Rinpoche. Prior to that she had followed teachings in both Zen and Tibetan Buddhism where she received several initiations into self-healing and advanced meditative Vajrayana practices through Lama Gangchen Rinpoche.For more information on Aniko, please visit her website.

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