La
The word la (Tib. བླ་, Wyl. bla) means 'above' or 'higher' and is sometimes translated as 'spirit'. The la is what remains behind when a person dies, while the life-force is what ends and the consciousness is what proceeds to take rebirth.
Further Reading
- Khenpo Kartar Rinpoche, Karma Chakme's Mountain Dharma, Vol. II (Woodstock: KTD Publications, 2006), p.88.