Six bardos

Six bardos (Skt. ṣaḍantarābhava; Tib. bardo druk; Wyl. bar do drug) —

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1. the natural bardo of this life which begins when a connection with a new birth is first made and continues until the conditions that will certainly lead to death become manifest.
2. the painful bardo of dying which begins when these conditions manifest and continues until the 'inner respiration' ceases and the luminosity of the dharmakaya dawns.
3. the luminous bardo of dharmata which lasts from the moment the dharmakaya luminosity dawns after death and continues until the visions of precious spontaneous perfection are complete.
4. the karmic bardo of becoming which lasts from the moment the bardo body is created and continues until the connection with a new rebirth is made.
5. the bardo of meditation (Skt. samādhyantarābhava; Wyl. bsam gtan gyi bar do)
6. the bardo of dreaming (Skt. svapanāntarābhava; Wyl. rmi lam gyi bar do)

Further Reading

• His Holiness Dilgo Khyentse Rinpoche, Pure Appearance—Development and Completion Stages in the Vajrayana Practice (Halifax: Vajravairochana Translation Committee, 2002), pages 33-66. restricted publication