A Fistful of Sand

  In Vajrayāna, the tension between form and freedom is the crucible of realization. The practitioner begins within the ritual and vow-bound world of mantra and lineage, yet the culmination of that very path is gomé — “gate-free awareness,” beyond entry or exit. The question then arises: if one identifies as gomépa — a “gate-free one” — does that negate the role of the ngakpa , the vowed tantric practitioner? At first glance, the two appear to stand in contrast. The ngakpa ( སྔགས་པ་ ) is defined by the cords of samaya — the sacred vows linking disciple, guru, deity, and lineage. The gomépa ( སྒོ་མེད་པ་ ), by contrast, seems to stand outside gates and boundaries altogether. Yet these are not opposites, but stages of maturation in the same path — form blossoming into formlessness, fidelity into freedom. The ngakpa is one who practices within structure. He or she moves through gates — initiations, empowerments, transmissions — each a threshold of understanding. Through repeti...