Rainbow body

The rainbow body in Buddhism is a body that is made of light, not flesh. The term is mostly used in the part of Tibetan Buddhism called Dzogchen.

According to Dzogchen, the rainbow body is a sign of complete mastery of the Dzogchen view. Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche states: “The realized Dzogchen practitioner, no longer deluded by apparent substantiality or dualism such as mind and matter, releases the energy of the elements that compose the physical body at the time of death”.

Padmasambhava, who was the founder of Buddhism in Tibet, is often shown with the rainbow body on paintings known as thangkas.

References

• Blackman, Sushila (Compiled and edited) (1997). Graceful Exits: How Great Beings Die: Death Stories Of Tibetan, Hindu & Zen Masters. New York, USA: Weatherhill, Inc. ISBN 0-8348-0391-7
• Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche (Edited by John Shane) (1988). The Crystal and the Way of Light.. Routledge & Kegan Paul. ISBN 0-14-019084-8
• Namkhai Norbu Rinpoche (1999). The Crystal and The Way of Light: Sutra, Tantra and Dzogchen. Snow Lion Publications. ISBN 1-55939-135-9
• Reynolds, John Myrdhin (1996). The Golden Letters. (1st ed edition). Snow Lion Publications. ISBN 978-1559390507
• Sogyal Rinpoche; Harvey, Andrew (Editor) & Gaffney, Patrick (Editor)(1993). Tibetan Book of Living and Dying. (Rev and Updated ed.). HarperSanFrancisco. ISBN 9780062508348
• Tenzin Wangyal Rinpoche (2002). Healing with Form, Energy, and Light. Ithaca, New York: Snow Lion Publications. ISBN 1-55939-176-6

Other websites

• Images of Rainbow Body Archived 2011-07-24 at the Wayback Machine