What does "Longchen Nyingthig" Mean?
A lot has been written about the correct way to translate the name but it is fairly straightforward when you know the original terms and how they are used.

The transmission of the highest practice of Buddhism that came into Tibet is called in Indian languages, according to the texts of the practice itself, "Mahasamdhi".  This name was translated into Tibetan with the term "rdzogs pa chen po".  The practice is actually

a whole system of practice that has three or four, depending on which of the early Indian masters you follow, increasingly profound levels of practice.  The very innermost level of practice has several names, one of which is, again in ancient Indian language, "tilaka".  This word is a common Indian word literally meaning a little sphere or droplet or circle.  From the idea of a small little drop, it has the further meaning of "the absolute essence", which is the meaning intended when used to name this innermost level of practice.  This term "tilaka" was translated into Tibetan with "snying gi thig le", a semi-literal translation that also conveys the actual meaning of the term when used in this context.  That term is then abbreviated to Nyingthig.

Tibet had a few teachings on this "distilled essence" called Nyingthig.  One came directly from Padmasambhava so was called "Padmasambhava's teaching of Nyingthig" or Padma Nyingthig for short.  Another came from Vimalamitra and was accordingly called Vima Nyingthig.  Yet another came from Longchen Rabjam so was called Longchenpa's Nyingthing or, in short, Longchen Nyingthig.

Longchen Nyingthig in English
Lama Tony is an expert in Longchen Nyingthig and has made a point of translating the core texts of the system into English and publishing them as high quality classics.  A unique feature of the translations is the use of a common vocabulary and style of translation throughout, with the provision of ample notes to explain anything that might not be clear.  Because of this, practitioners find them to be particularly useful and meaningful to study.  Here is an excerpt from the book (see below) on deity practice:

Over the past thirty years, I have gradually developed a complete vocabulary in English which does capture the unique vocabulary of the higher tantras and have used it consistently not only within each translation but across all of them.  Readers have often remarked on the great value of this consistent use of technical vocabulary throughout all of our publications.

A feature of our translations that knowledgeable Tibetan teachers have remarked on is that we do not taken the simplistic approach seen in some other translations in which several important terms, each with its own specific shade of meaning, are translated with one English term.  You will find that, just like in the original Tibetan, every single term has its own unique equivalent in the English translation, and that the equivalents are consistently used so that the reader really can follow the many and profound threads of meaning in the text.

The vocabulary is well explained where its meaning is not obvious; an abundance of notes to explain these terms and an extensive glossary have also been provided.

Core Texts of Longchen Nyingthig in English
1. Longchen Nyingthig Core Texts: Preliminary Practices, English:
A complete translation of the Longchen Nyingthig Preliminary practice, with several commentaries, including the commentary by Khyentse the Great, is available in book form on our texts for purchase page.  This is the most complete book of the preliminary practice available.  Two of the texts in the book are major core texts of the Longchen Nyingthig Root Volumes.

2. Longchen Nyingthig Core Text: Chod Practice, English:
A complete translation of Jigmey Lingpa's Longchen Nyingthig Chod Practice with a translations of Dza Patrul's very popular commentary to it, a long commentary by the author, Lama Tony Duff, and carefully edited Tibetan texts, is available in book form on our texts for purchase page.  The Chod text itself is one of major core texts of the Longchen Nyingthig Root Volumes.

3. Longchen Nyingthig Core Text: Deity Practice Instructions, English:
A complete translation of Jigmey Lingpa's A Presentation of Instructions for the Development Stage Deity, a long introduction by the author, Lama Tony Duff, and carefully edited Tibetan text, is available in book form on our texts for purchase page.  The text is one of major core texts of the Longchen Nyingthig Root Volumes.

4. Longchen Nyingthig Core Text: Triyig Yeshe Lama - Guidebook Called "Highest Wisdom", English:
A complete translation of Jigmey Lingpa's Guidebook Called "Highest Wisdom", with a long introduction by the author, Lama Tony Duff, and carefully edited Tibetan text, is available in book form on our texts for purchase page.  This translation is the only authentic translation available at the moment; there are two other translations but, as is well-known at this point to learned Tibetans and Westerners alike, they are problematic.  The text is one of major core texts of the Longchen Nyingthig Root Volumes.

Key Texts of Longchen Nyingthig in English
Thorough Cut:
The central practices of Longchen Nyingthig are Thorough Cut (thregcho) and Direct Crossing (thogal).  There are many key texts concerning these subjects available on our texts for purchase pages.  The set of three texts on the Three Lines teaching of Garab Dorje, all written by Longchen Nyingthig lineage holders and explained according to the Longchen Nyingthig system of that teaching are especially important.  These are the texts by Dza Patrul Feature of the Expert Glorious King, Dodrupchen III About the Three Lines, and Ontrul Tenpa'i Wangchug Relics of Dharmakaya.

Study Program for Longchen Nyingthig in English
Our publications have been carefully selected to create a complete system of study for practitioners of Great Completion.

Core Texts of Longchen Nyingthig in Tibetan
On the free Tibetan texts page you will find a download containing many of the common liturgical texts of the Longchen Nyingthig system.  Some of the texts are available in our special TibetD Reader format.  A free Reader is available so that you can download and easily make your own pecha or practice texts using the software and these files.  Many of the texts are also in RTF format that can be read by Word and other programs.

On the Tibetan texts and references page you will find the complete root texts of the Longchen Nyingthig system in the collection called Longchen Nyingthig Root Volumes.  This is the entire transmission of Longchen Nyingthig that was written down by Jigmey Lingpa and includes all the root texts of the transmission.  It is almost impossible to find a good set of these texts these days.  With our free electronic edition and software provided you can print your own, high quality set of texts.

Other, Related Texts and Resources
Various Tibetan Texts of Longchen Rabjam:
On the free Tibetan texts page you will also find several sets of Longchenpa's texts, including nearly all of his three trilogies.  Longchenpa wrote three sets of trilogies and these are an essential part of the education of anyone practising the Nyingma tradition.  The texts are in Tibetan and are derived from Adzom Drukpa's edition of the texts, an edition that is regarded as the best available.  Our editions are not like what you usually find on the internet for free.  They are the very highest quality productions slowly and carefully prepared and very carefully edited for accuracy.

The Seven Treasuries of Longchen Rabjam in Tibetan:
On the Tibetan texts and references page you will find the complete set of Longchenpa's Seven Treasuries.  This set was meticulously prepared and is by far the best, currently available edition.  As with all of our other Tibetan texts, it comes with special software that makes it fully searchable and printable.