Many tertöns are considered to be incarnations of the twenty five main disciples of Padmasambhava (Guru Rinpoche), who foresaw a dark time in Tibet.
The 5th Dalai Lama was a tertön who revealed a Dzogchen terma cycle through his pure visions known as the Sangwa Gyachen (Bearing the Seal of Secrecy).
[5] Consorts, with whom they practice sexual yoga or karmamudra to accelerate and enhance their capacity for realization, are thought to be very important to tertöns.
[6] Fremantle (2001: p. 19) states that: One of the special requirements for the discovery of termas is the inspiration of the feminine principle, just as it was necessary for their concealment.
The great majority of tertöns have been men, and generally they are accompanied by their wives or female companions (who need not necessarily have a sexual relationship with them).