Lung means wind or breath. It is a key concept in the Vajrayana traditions of Tibetan Buddhism and has a variety of meanings. Lung is a concept that is particularly important to understandings of the subtle body and the Three Vajras. Traditional Tibetan medicine practitioner Dr Tamdin Sither Bradley provides a summary:
Usages
Some of the different usages of the term lung include:
the psychic winds that travel in the internal channels, or nadi of the subtle body and are manipulated in certain Vajrayana yoga practices.
a type of tantric buddhist empowerment that involves the transference of spiritual power from master to augment or refine that of the disciple through the recitation of scripture or song. This oracular transmission received aurally defines Vajrayana and Ngagpa traditions and provides them with their nomenclature.
the "reading transmission" of sutrayana texts, in which the entirety of the text is read aloud from teacher to student.
Traditional Tibetan medicine
Traditional Tibetan medicine, a discipline practiced throughout the Himalayas, identifies a system of 'The Five Lung' which help to regulate the human body:
'Life-grasping lung' is located in the brain. This lung regulates swallowing, inhalation, spitting, eructation, sneezing, and generally clearing the senses and steadying of the mind and concentration.
'Upward moving lung' is located in the thorax. This lung regulates speech, energy to work, body weight, memory, the increase of bodily vigour and health, complexion and the skin lustre, mental endeavour and diligence.
'All pervading lung' is located is in the heart. This lung regulates lifting, walking, stretching and the contraction of muscles: opening and closing of the mouth, eyelids, anus etc.
'Fire accompanying lung' is located is in the stomach and abdomen area. This lung regulates digestion and the metabolism. This lung also ripens the Seven Bodily Sustainers.
views the human body as consisting of a coarse body made of six constituent elements of earth, water, fire, wind, space and consciousness and also of a subtle body, or 'Vajra body', of winds, channels and drops. There are many types of wind or 'subtle breath' that move along the invisible channels of the subtle body. The 'vital breath' is considered the most important. It is "the essence of life itself that animates and sustains all living beings". Anuttarayoga Tantra practices from the Mahamudra meditation system, such as Guhyasamāja, Cakrasaṃvara and Hevajra tantras, provide various methods to penetrate the vital points of the Subtle Body. The 14th Dalai Lama summarises the practice: "To penetrate these points means to gather there the energy-winds and the subtle minds that ride on them, basically by means of different types of absorbed concentration focused on these spots.". Practices that work with the subtle energy winds includes tummo or 'Inner Fire', one of the Six Yogas of Naropa. In this practice, the yogin or yogini uses breathing and meditation techniques to draw the lung or subtle winds into the central channel and hold them there, traversing the body vertically.
Tsa Lung
Tsalung are special yogic exercises. The exercises are used in the Bon tradition and the four main schools of Tibetan Buddhism. Trul khor employs the tsa lung and they constitute the internal yantra or sacred architecture of this yoga's Sanskrit name, yantra yoga. Tsa lung are also employed in generation stage practices. The exercises are used:
That coincides with mind releasing dualistic misperceptions and abiding in non-dual awareness of rigpa. Detailed instructions on the exercises describe 3 levels of rtsa rlung: external, internal and secret. Each level contains 5 exercises corresponding to five elements.
Tsa
Dr Arya defines "Tsa" in relation to śūnyatā, zero, bodymind and bindu:
