Overview:
On this page we offer various publications to assist translators and students learning the Tibetan language. A number of these publications including actual translations that we have done with extensive commentaries to the process. You will find insights into grammar, and so on here that can’t be obtained elsewhere.
Translation Issues Raised by the Sutra and its Commentaries:
This is the complete, second introductory chapter of our major publication
Unending Auspiciousness, the Sutra of the Recollection of the Noble
Three Jewels. The chapter contains information about translation that has never been seen in print before,
written by one of the world’s senior-most translators based on a lifetime of experience with Tibetan texts and
their translation into English. Amongst other things, it sets a ground for the process of translating Tibetan
texts into English. We are sure that you will be surprised at the content! Use the button to go the
book description and download from there:from the Books for Sale page.
The Eight Auspicious Noble Ones In Verse:
There is a well-known text in the Nyingma tradition, written by Ju Mipham, which is a set of verses for
creating auspiciousness in one’s activities. There are quite a few translations of the prayer floating
around but most of them have mistakes especially in the first verse, which is quite difficult and demands
a high level of understanding. We have made a complete book with a very nice translation of the prayer,
an explanation of the prayer, and a major exercise in translation to go with it. The Tibetan text is included,
too.from the Ju Mipham section of our free texts page.
The Short Great Vajradhara Prayer:
This is a prayer of the Kagyu tradition that is recited by most Kagyu followers every day. It is more than
popular; it is one of the main prayers of the tradition. There are several translations of the prayer into
English, most of them based on the Nalanda Translation Committee’s translation from the 1970’s. Most of them make serious
mistakes in the last two verses, which deal with profound topics of Mahamudra. Requested by senior students
of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche and the Sakyong in Shambhala Community, we made a new translation of the prayer, and
wrote an extensive explanation to it. The explanation points out places where the translation has been incorrect
and why, especially for the last two verses. Thus it is not only one of the few explanations of the prayer
available but also contains many pointers that will be useful to anyone trying to learn to translate. The
commentary on the prayer received high praise from some of the most senior students of Chogyam Trungpa Rinpoche,
testifying to how valuable it is. The Tibetan text is included,
too.from the Kagyu Prayers and Texts section of our free texts page.
The Longchen Nyingthig Chod Practice:
This is in two parts. The first part is a complete translation, commentary, and critical edition of
the Tibetan text for the practice. The commentary compares the translation in many places with
the wordings found a number of free translations that are floating around the internet, pointing out over and
again where the translation process has gone wrong in those translations and explaining how it should be
approached. This is not a free text.
from our published texts page.
The second part is notes on two parts of the translation process that go into the translation process in detail. There are many interesting points of grammar and Tibetan texts covered. There is also a very interesting section on how to deal with terma break marks in translation and comments on the special case of the terma break mark as found in Longchen Nyingthig literature. This text is free.
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