Shri Singha- Tibetan FigureMortal"Third Human Dzogchen Lineage Holder"

Receiving the Transmission

Shri Singha's place in the Dzogchen lineage follows Garab Dorje, the first human recipient of the Dzogchen teachings, and Manjushrimitra, the second. According to the lineage histories preserved in the Vima snying thig and related Nyingma sources, Shri Singha was born in the Chinese city of Shokyam (identified in some accounts with a region of Central Asia) and studied extensively before seeking out Manjushrimitra.

The transmission occurred at the charnel ground of Sosadvipa. When Manjushrimitra passed away, his body dissolved into a mass of light, and from the luminous sphere a golden casket descended into Shri Singha's outstretched hands. Within it were the complete pith instructions (man ngag sde) of the Dzogchen teaching, together with Manjushrimitra's final testament. This moment of transmission through the master's death and dissolution established Shri Singha as the third holder of the lineage and the custodian of its most esoteric teachings.

The Four Cycles

Shri Singha's principal contribution to the Dzogchen tradition was his classification of the pith instruction teachings into four cycles of increasing subtlety and directness. These four divisions, the outer, inner, secret, and innermost secret (yang gsang bla med) cycles, organized the vast body of teaching he had received into a graduated structure that subsequent masters could transmit according to the capacity of their students.

This fourfold classification proved foundational for the later development of Dzogchen practice within the Nyingma school. The innermost secret cycle, in particular, became the basis for the most advanced practices transmitted through the lineage, including those that would eventually be formalized in the Vima Nyingthig and Khandro Nyingthig collections.

Shri Singha transmitted the complete teachings to three principal students: Jnanasutra, Vimalamitra, and Padmasambhava. Each of these masters received the transmission at different times and carried it forward through distinct lineage streams. Vimalamitra brought the teachings to Tibet directly, while Padmasambhava transmitted them both openly and through concealed terma. The divergence of these streams from Shri Singha's single source ensured the preservation of the Dzogchen teachings through multiple channels.