Teachings attributed to Naropa that have come down through the Tibetan and Indian Buddhist traditions tend to circle again and again around the nature of mind. One recurrent line describes how “all phenomena are your own mind,” and that this mind is “beyond birth and death” and of the nature of “luminous emptiness.” Another image likens the mind in its natural state to the sky—“clear, open, and unobstructed”—suggesting that what obscures this clarity are passing clouds of grasping and confusion rather than any flaw in awareness itself. Such statements are preserved mainly in songs of realization and Mahāmudrā instructions, where wording varies but the contemplative thrust remains consistent.

A second cluster of sayings concerns Mahāmudrā and meditation. Mahāmudrā is described as “neither to be taken nor to be rejected,” not something to be found elsewhere, but “the nature of your own mind.” Practice, in this light, is expressed as “do not alter the mind; let it remain in its own natural state,” and “rest in the natural state without fabrication or manipulation.” Rather than forcing thoughts to stop, one is advised to let them arise and subside “like waves in the ocean” within the expanse of awareness. These lines point to a path where effort gives way to a more relaxed, direct recognition of what is already present.

Another recurring theme is the non-duality of saṃsāra and nirvāṇa and the futility of searching outside oneself. One teaching states that “saṃsāra and nirvāṇa are not two: when the mind clings, that is saṃsāra; when clinging ceases, that is nirvāṇa.” In the same spirit, seekers are warned, “do not seek the Buddha outside yourself; your own mind is the Buddha,” and “you seek the Buddha outside yourself, yet the Buddha dwells within your own mind.” Realization, therefore, is “not attained by going somewhere else,” but when “you see your own mind clearly, the goal is reached.” These lines together suggest that the spiritual journey culminates in recognizing what has, in a sense, never been absent.

The relationship with the teacher and the unfolding of wisdom are also emphasized. One pith instruction says, “at first, rely on the guru’s instructions; in the middle, rely on your own experience; in the end, rely on the nature of mind itself,” while another compares the guru’s instructions to “a lamp that illuminates the darkness of ignorance.” As for wisdom, it is said that “when there is grasping at a view, there is conflict; when there is no grasping, the great peace is found,” and that “when you realize the emptiness of phenomena, compassion arises spontaneously.” In tantric language, this is sometimes expressed as “in the union of bliss and emptiness, all dualities are resolved,” pointing to a realization in which liberation is not something newly produced, but “the recognition of what has always been present.” All of these lines are transmitted through oral and textual lineages, and are best approached as representative renderings of Naropa’s teaching style rather than verbatim historical records.