Orbit of the Moon attraction that the Moon exerts on Earth is the cause of tides in the sea; the Sun has a smaller tidal influence. If Earth had a global ocean of uniform depth, the Moon would act to deform both the solid Earth (by a small amount) and the ocean in the shape of an ellipsoid with the high points roughly beneath the Moon and on the opposite side of Earth. However, because of the presence of the continents, Earth's much faster rotation and varying ocean depths, this simplistic visualisation does not happen. Although the tidal flow period is generally synchronized to
Union of the Sun and Moon be assured a rebirth in a natural nirmanakaya realm during the bardo of becoming and there reveal buddhahood without further rebirths." Namkha'i and Shane (1986, 1999: p. 91) open the discourse of the 'Song of the Vajra' (Wylie: rdo rje'i glu zhig) an excerpt of the "Union of the Sun and Moon" into the English language and render it thus: <poem> Union of the Sun and Moon The Union of the Sun and Moon () is one of the Seventeen tantras of the esoteric instruction cycle () which are a suite of tantras known variously as: Nyingtik, Upadesha or Menngagde