The Sakya school's root teaching, the "Path and Result" (Lamdré), descends from the Indian mahāsiddha Virūpa, was brought to Tibet by the translator Drokmi, and was perfected there by Sachen Kunga Nyingpo. Sachen heard the Dharma from his father in childhood and, by age twelve, grasped the great meaning of the Lamdré—later honored as the "Great Father of Sakya." His guru yoga is not distant worship of a deity but heart-to-heart communion with this pure lineage of forefathers.

Practicing guru yoga is "entering the forefathers’ wisdom with an ordinary mind." The lama sees Sachen Kunga Nyingpo as inseparable from Hevajra, resting in the view that saṃsāra and nirvāṇa are non-dual, and plants a pure cause of alignment with the lineage for the practitioner—or for the loved one you dedicate to. This is lighting a lamp for later generations through the forefathers’ power.

• **Lineage alignment.** Aligning with guru yoga aligns with the entire pure Sakya lineage; merit and wisdom grow swiftly.
• **Rooted view.** Directly realizing "saṃsāra and nirvāṇa are non-dual" lessens daily opposition and suffering; the mind gradually opens.
• **Stable dedication.** Dedication made with the forefathers as focus, from a pure basis, does not easily scatter.

Guru yoga · Lamdré proceeds thus:

• **Set the focus.** Provide for whom and why; before the mandala pay respect to Sachen Kunga Nyingpo and Hevajra.
• **Visualize union.** The lama sees the forefather as one with Hevajra, intones the guru-yoga mantra, and rests in the non-dual view.
• **Lamdré instruction.** Practice per the Lamdré ritual, planting a pure cause for the dedicatee.
• **Dedicate and settle.** Dedicate all merit solely to the vow, that one align with the lineage and the mind be luminous.

You need not be present—only revere that pure lineage in your heart; the lama's practice connects your lamp for you.