Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche has taught the Four Dharmas of Gampopa many times, in various places and to different audiences. In spite of its condensed form, the Four Dharmas are in fact a profound instruction that includes the whole path — from encountering the Dharma to reaching the essence of buddhahood — and, naturally, each time it can be presented in a different way to highlight various aspects of that path. Therefore, every opportunity of listening to and contemplating the Four Dharmas could be equally valuable and illuminating. For this reason, we are very happy to have the opportunity to publish this exposition, given some years ago by Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche, in English.

The text of this commentary is based on the teachings Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche gave at Karma Triyana Dharmachakra, the Karmapas’ main American center near Woodstock, New York. It is still uncertain when they took place, but according to some records, it may have been September 1989. There is no written record of those teachings, but the old audio recordings have survived and prove that Rinpoche was teaching at KTD, Chojor Radha was translating simultaneously into English and the Q & A sessions were conducted by Khenpo Karthar Rinpoche.

Recently, Thrangu Monastery revised the Tibetan commentary, first published in 2016, as part of a larger project to create a complete set of the collected works of Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche. The commentary was also edited in those places where audio recordings were unclear or damaged. Thrangu Rinpoche explained those parts again to fill all the gaps, reviewed the entire text and offered its transmission. Shortly afterwards a Chinese edition was published, translated by Khenpo Lodro Tengye (available on the Thrangu Dharmakara website).

Following the format of the Chinese edition, we have also added a short teaching on consciousness and wisdom given by Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche in Germany in 1988. Although this teaching does not include a complete explanation of the fourth of the Four Dharmas of Gampopa — how confusion turns into wisdom — it adds significantly to our understanding, and helps us comprehend the various types of consciousness.