The Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (1204 page)

see
KAÑCUKA
.

 
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(Tib.,
dus.kyi.’khor.lo
, ‘Wheel of Time’). Perhaps the most revered
tantra
in Tibetan Buddhism, which in addition to yogic teachings involves an esoteric world history and
eschatology
. The introduction of the tantra into Tibet is often ascribed to
Ati
a
, but it is hard to substantiate this. The K
lacakra teachings figured prominently in the old
Kadam
and
Jonang
schools due to its chief 14th-cent. promulgators, Butön and Dolpopa.
The K
lacakra Tantra has three aspects, ‘outer’, ‘inner’, and ‘other’. The ‘outer’ is lore concerning the environment: astrology, history, eschatology; the ‘inner’ concerns the esoteric physiology of the ‘subtle body’; the ‘other’ consists of the ‘generation’ and ‘completion’ stages of yoga, and aims to purify the ‘outer’ and ‘inner’ aspects. Of these, the ‘generation’
(utpattikrama)
involves the
visualization
of the 722 deities of the K
lacakra
ma
ala
, which has at its centre the
di buddha
in the form of the sexual union (
yab-yum
) of K
lacakra and Vishvam
t
. The ‘completion’
(sampannakrama)
stage involves the manipulation of one's subtle energies to produce a consciousness with the capacity for enlightenment. K
lacakra is a member of the Anuttara (unsurpassed) class of tantras, and as such offers buddhahood through its mastery.