Seminario 4

Geshe Jamyang Tashi: Consciousness in Tibetan Buddhism

Abstract: In Tibetan Buddhism, consciousness is understood as a continuum articulated in different levels of subtlety. The tradition distinguishes a gross level of mind, closely related to sensory perception and ordinary cognitive activity; a subtle level, which emerges as sensory and discursive functions gradually subside; and a very subtle or primordial level of mind, known as the Clear Light, regarded as the deepest and most fundamental dimension of consciousness. Through contemplative and meditative practices developed within the Tibetan monastic tradition, practitioners can progressively explore these different levels of mind, learning to recognize the nature of awareness beyond ordinary mental activity. This perspective also provides a key to understanding the process of death: according to Tibetan Buddhism, at the moment of dying consciousness gradually withdraws from the gross levels and reveals the most subtle dimension of mind, the Clear Light, which represents the deepest level of consciousness.