The third Karmapa, Rangjung Dorjé (1284–1339), composed on a variety of topics and is considered a preeminent figure not only in the Kagyü lineages but also those of Severance, or Chö (gcod), and Nyingma. He composed treatises that became the foundation for studies by generations of meditators and scholars in the Karma Kagyü tradition and beyond, ranging from the massive commentary on the highest yoga tantras, The Profound Inner Principles (Zab mo nang don), to condensed profound supplications such as our Aspiration Prayer of Mahamudra, which stands on its own as a deep contemplative practice.

After taking the levels of monastic ordination and studying sutras, tantras, and classical texts with many experts, Mendong Tsampa Rinpoché (1867–1921?) received all the empowerments and instructions on the great secret mantra from Chöwang Tulku Rinpoché, and through mastery of the paths he could control his own wind-mind, achieving liberation from the stains of worldly concerns. He passed his time in retreat and also spoke spontaneously, becoming a great orator. He gave empowerments, guidance, and wrote commentaries on the treatises and oral instructions, creating a vast and profound body of work, now available in the three-volume Collected Works of Mendong Tsampa Rinpoché, Karma Ngedön Tengyé, reproduced from tracings from the collected woodblock prints impressed from the xylographs preserved at Mendong Monastery in western Tibet.

Sarah Harding has been studying and practicing Buddhism since 1974, and has been teaching and translating since completing a three-year retreat in 1980 under the guidance of Kyabje Kalu Rinpoche. She was associate professor at Naropa University for twenty-five years in Boulder, Colorado, where she currently resides, and has been a fellow of the Tsadra Foundation since 2000. She specializes in literature with a focus on tantric practice. Her publications include Creation and Completion; The Treasury of Knowledge: Esoteric Instructions; Niguma, Lady of Illusion; two volumes on Cho and Shije from The Treasury of Precious Instructions; Four Tibetan Lineages: Core Teachings of Pacification, Severance, Shangpa Kagyu, and Bodong; and Ornament of Dakpo Kagyü Thought: Short Commentary on the Mahamudra Aspiration Prayer.