We go beyond "bestowing" by proclaiming it imputation,
The defining feature is lost by arising of false views
Destroying what we should learn, we will surely fall.
Take care to be totally mindful of what we accept and reject.
(i.e. Using adapted skillful means, but always being aware of the real nature
of those skillful means. Using both method and wisdom, the two accumulations,
the Two Truths. No absolute, only adapted skillful means. The pure non-dual
nature of everything. A flow of interdependences with no entities in it. All
merely imputed by the mind.
-- Not accepting our path as an absolute, not rejecting our path as meaningless.
-- If we reject the raft before crossing the ocean we will loose the freedom and
opportunity of this precious human life, and take rebirths in the lower realms
for an eternity.
-- If we accept any kind of raft. Also, for skillful means to be efficient as a
path to Liberation, they have to be in accord with the goal. It is not about
taking refuge to any kind of external deities.
-- The Middle Way: not accepting unwholesome, not rejecting wholesome; not
accepting absolutes, not rejecting skillful means in accord with the goal. Using
both method and wisdom. The two accumulations.)
The essence is Buddhahood and enlightenment. If we think that one goes beyond a time of receiving it in rituals, so that bestowing is a mere label, false views arise, the three jewels are abandoned, and we cannot practice. As for offering the precepts of refuge, that they are bestowed is its defining characteristic. Thinking that prostrating to external deities and so forth does no harm is called going in a lower direction.
These violations like an exhausted royal lineage are not included in Buddhism and do not enter into it. Like a merchant deceived by his escort what one destructible. Like a picture falling off a wall, all one's learning and vows are easily destroyed. Like common people without a protector, they are easily trampled on by afflictions. Like a person who has broken the law, by breaking their promises, they will have many births in the lower realms and so forth. In that way, by conceptions that view one's infractions and violations, one will be remorseful; and after that if one's mind receives a vow, one will take it seriously. Though some want a certain fixed accounting, here there is no certainty. If the attitude of renunciation has arisen from virtue, it is because one wants it to. The Bodhicaryavatara says:
Attaining the attitude of renunciation
Is what is called the shila-paramita.
3. The benefits of refuge:
There are seven sections
·
a. The benefit of protection in all one's lives·
b. The benefits of perfecting the two accumulations·
c. The benefit of immeasurable virtues·
d. The benefit of being guarded by the gods, who are partial to virtue·
e. As for the benefits being immeasurable·
f. The benefit of being the support of all virtues·
g. The benefit of clearing away all the continuance of samsara and nirvana
a. The benefit of protection in all one's lives
Now the benefits of refuge are explained. By going to refuge with external deities and so forth, one falls into the lower realms and such:
Benefits of Refuge
Those who see that other refuges are deceptive,
Having faith in the excellence of divine compassion,
Will have no fear, but be protected in all their lives.
What greater happiness and benefit could there be?
Just going to refuge cuts off the door to the lower realms. Establishing the celestial realms, the great path of liberation, and wholesomeness for all one's lives, refuge is unequalled. The Expression of Realization of a Pig says:
Anyone who has gone to the Buddha for refuge
Will not have to go to the lower realms.
After they have left their human bodies,
They will be reborn in the realm of the gods.
b. The benefits of perfecting the two accumulations:
Here, when the soil of a mind that is pure as well as faithful
Has been well-moistened by the rain of merit and wisdom,
Sprouts of auspicious Dharma germinate and grow,
Ripening as a crop of perfect victorious ones.
In the ground of faith, watered by the rain of the two accumulations, the seeds of Dharmadhatu, grow. They ripen as a crop of Buddhas. The Nirvana says:
Those who go to the three-fold refuges
Accumulating holy merit and wisdom,
By the growth of Dharma, conqueror of the world,
Will surely attain the level of Buddhahood.
c. The benefit of immeasurable virtues
Moreover, when we as individuals go to refuge:
We gather the many qualities of Dharmic virtue.
Knowing how to be modest, decent, careful, and mindful.
Emerging from the covering clouds of dharani,
The brilliant sun of wisdom rises within our minds.
We see it even in dreams, and do not lose our awareness.
Keeping it in mind for many generations,
We become elegant with wealth and nobility.
The Sutra Requested by Precious Little Bird Gift says:
As for those who go to refuge with the Buddha, all their virtuous dharmas will grow. They know how to be decent. They take care.
Those who go for refuge with the Dharma are alert. They accumulate many virtues. They remember former lives. They have a share in the good fortune of the Dharma. Those who go for refuge with the Sangha have workable minds. For them there are many doors of samádhi and dharani. They are always of noble family. Even in dreams they are inseparable from the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.
d. The benefit of being guarded by the gods, who are partial to virtue:
Benefits of Refuge
Because of the rejoicing of all sentient beings,
Both the two benefits are a spontaneous presence.
Finally we are the refuge of all who possess a body.
Befriending a host of beings, we hold the wealth of Trikaya.
This is established by our being protected by the joy of the gods, who rejoice in white virtue, and by the increase of virtuous roots. The same text says:
Moreover, we are protected by the gods, who rejoice in virtue, and our virtuous roots increase.
We quickly attain the level of the victorious ones. The Nirvana says:
Whoever has gone to the three-fold objects of refuge
Quickly will become an enlightened being.
Those who have gone to the Buddha for refuge will finally attain Buddhahood. Those who have gone to the Dharma for refuge will turn the wheel of the Dharma. Those who have gone to the Sangha for refuge will be gathered into the ocean-like irreversible Sangha.
e. As for the benefits being immeasurable
In brief, as for these virtues:
Benefits of Refuge
If all the virtues of refuge were to materialize,
Vaster than all of space, they would be limitless.
The Sutra of Spotlessness says:
If the merits of taking refuge were to take on form,
Having filled all of space, they would be even greater.
Moreover, as for clearing away all danger and harm, The Sutra of the Holy Victory Banner says:
O monks, whether you stay in monasteries, charnel grounds, or in the wilderness, those who have gone to the triple refuge will be without fear and suffering, and no one will say even "I will disturb one of your hairs.
Moreover, there will be no fear of Maras and the lower realms. The Sutra of the Essence of the Sun says
Sentient beings who go for refuge with the Buddha
Cannot be killed by even ten million vicious Maras.
As for breakers of discipline and disturbers of the mind,
Their births will certainly go beyond such things as those.
In brief those with the virtues of refuge are protected from kleshas, afflictions, the paths of the lower vehicles, samsara, the lower realms, and all such unpleasantness, while they attain all that is high and good. The Mahayanasutralankara says:
From all the host of kleshas, and wrongdoing,
And even from old age and death itself
They are protected by the Buddha himself.From afflictions the lower realms and untimely death
From permanent views of transitory collections
And from the lower yanas they are protected.
Therefore this is the genuine refuge.
f. The benefit of being the support of all virtues:
Benefits of Refuge
As refuge is the ground of all good qualities,
Why would anyone competent not rely on it?
With these immeasurable virtues, refuge is properly relied on by all those who know what they are doing. The Edifice of the Three Jewels says:
Those who are competent will follow virtue.
By its power perfect benefit is established.
g. The benefit of clearing away all the continuance of samsara and nirvana:
Benefits of Refuge
To the friend of all who abandon evil and go to peace,
Bowing our heads in homage with the deepest faith,
I take refuge in the source of happiness,
The wish-fulfilling tree that is the most excellent leader,
Who is all that is meritorious in the three levels.
The supreme refuge for all who are in the world together with its gods is the three jewels. This is because they protect us from all faults, and are guides that lead us to the peace of nirvana. They are the field of merit, the fulfillers of wishes, and holy treasuries of virtue. The same text says:
These three jewels are worthy of homage by everyone in the world, including the gods.
They are worthy of salutation with joined palms.
They are holy fields of merit.
The Bodhicaryavatara says:
Even those who have do harm are still connected to happiness. [34]
Let us then take refuge in that source of virtue.
Day and night six times or whatever, and at mealtimes, even if we do not want to eat, we should visualize the three jewels before us in space. Mentally we should prostrate and make offerings, confess evil deeds, rejoice in merit, request the turning of the wheel of Dharma, and supplicate the teachers not to pass into nirvana. Then, remembering the virtues of the three jewels, we should join our palms thinking, "May I attain this for the benefit of sentient beings." Thus one builds up to the jewel of the Buddha Bhagavat and so forth. As it says in the Moon Lamp Sutra:
When we have expressed mindfulness of the three jewels, if we subsequently dedicate the merit, evil deeds will be exhausted and virtue will increase. We quickly establish enlightenment and attain inseparability with the three jewels throughout all our lives.
(i.e. The refuge benefits -- Taking Refuge, By Kabje Kalu Rinpoche, Shenpen Osel:
Therefore, if someone practices and completes the 100,000 recitations of the refuge vow and the accompanying 100,000 prostrations, this is exceedingly wonderful, and extraordinarily, incalculably beneficial. But even failing that, to recite the refuge prayer every day, at least seven times, is also extraordinarily beneficial. The result of this seemingly quite simple practice is to cause oneself to gradually actually attain complete Buddhahood, to bring oneself gradually to freedom from the sufferings of samsara, and, beyond that, to be protected in all of one’s lifetimes from fear, danger, and suffering.
If the practice and meaning of going for refuge actually become joined to or instilled in one’s stream of experience, then faith in the three jewels and the three roots will arise naturally or automatically, and, as a result of that faith, practices which lead to the accumulation of merit will be very easy, will come naturally. For example, not only anything with which one would make offerings " such as flowers, incense, lights, and so forth " but anything that one experiences with the senses that is pleasing, one will immediately see as an offering to the three jewels and the three roots. Anything that is beautiful to the sight, that smells good, that sounds beautiful, and so forth, one will use as offering. And by means of this process and this attitude one will gather a vast accumulation of merit.
If one develops this kind of attitude, then the accumulation of merit becomes extremely easy. Almost any situation can be used in this way. For example, if one is walking along a road and one sees beautiful flowers or fine houses, anything that is pleasing along one’s path, then one will immediately think of them as an offering, and mentally offer them to the three jewels and the three roots.
Therefore, all the Kagyupas of the past began their practice with the taking of refuge. By relying upon this as a foundation and basis of all practice they came to realize the ultimate refuge, which is the taking of refuge in one’s own ultimate attainment of the Dharmakaya, Sambhogakaya, and Nirmanakaya, and by means of this they attained siddhi [realization of Buddhahood].
In our present situation as humans, we feel that we are extremely intelligent, that we are free, and that we have control over or power over our own situation, that we can do whatever we wish. But if we examine the situation we will see that we neither have freedom of body nor freedom of mind, because the actual power in our situation is in the hands of our karma, our mental afflictions, and our habits [principally, our habitual cognition of and clinging to the split between self and other].
If we were free, then we would always have been and would always be happy. We
would never become depressed, and nothing unpleasant would ever arise in our
minds. If we were free, then we would always remain the same. We would have
always been young, be young, and would always remain that way. But we don’t.
We have absolutely no control over it; every second of our lives we are growing
older and eventually we are going to die.
If we have intense faith, and are able to entrust ourselves to our lamas, to our
gurus, and to the three jewels, and supplicate them with complete sincerity,
then it is possible to eliminate, or at least lessen, these obscurations,
because of the power and compassion of the three jewels.)
C. The dedication of merit
Now the merit is dedicated for the benefit of sentient beings:
Benefits Of Refuge
As mahasukha is famed as the highest of qualities,
May all beings be well-absorbed in holy conduct.
Worn out by reliance on bad objects that corrupt,
May our minds today find ease from weariness.
By the thunder in the heaped clouds of merit of these auspiciously composed verses and by the excellent flashing display of the garland of their meaning, may sentient beings, who long have relied on inferior objects, the steeds of their minds worn out by many thousands of kinds of samsaric suffering, have their weariness eased by the Buddha Bhagavat in supreme happiness.
Pacified through the Dharma rain of holy amrita,
May goodness in the minds of beings have great increase.
May the wish-fulfilling clouds of the level of Victory,
Always touch us with excellent, liberating wisdom.
On whomever in the ten directions of the world,
There falls the Dharma rain of the Sugatas and their sons
By the coming of benefits may they be illuminated.
With the three lower realms self-emptied, may all become enlightened.
For blind ones wandering in the world without a leader,
May the virtues of the three jewels be fully and clearly proclaimed.
When all have been fully placed on the path of liberation,
May every single one attain enlightenment.
4 EMPOWERMENTS (abhisheka, Wang) |
Obscurations |
4 OBSTACLES |
6 BODIES |
OM (forehead): The vase empowerment |
Body / emotions / physical or perceptible level |
Ordinary rebirth
|
1. |
Empowerment, Wisdom, accumulation:
The vase empowerment is that which purifies the body.
The vase empowerment purifies defilements of body. One is empowered to
meditate in the developing stage. |
|||
AH (throat): The secret empowerment of the Highest Yoga Tantra |
Speech / knowledge / symbolic or conceptual level |
Ordinary intermediate stage
|
2. |
The secret empowerment is the path of preparation.
The secret empowerment purifies obscurations of speech. One is
empowered to meditate on tummo or chandali. |
|||
HUM (heart center): The wisdom mudra empowerment of the Highest Yoga
Tantra (as Vajra-yogini or Heruka) |
Mind / as the union of thought and feeling / intuitive level |
Ordinary death
|
3. The Wisdom Truth Body: the Buddha's omniscient mind The Nature Truth Body: the emptiness or ultimate nature of the mind |
At the end. |
|||
OM AH HUM (navel / three of them): The word empowerment of the Highest
Yoga Tantra |
Body, speech and mind / of habit patterns, which are of four
types- |
Separation of body and mind
|
4. Union of bliss and emptiness: attained when the mind of spontaneous great bliss mixes with emptiness Union of the two truths: attained when the union of meaning clear light and pure illusory body is attained. -- This mind is free from the delusions- obstructions, but is still covered by the obstructions to omniscience Union of body and mind: the "Union of No More Learning", is
attained when the obstructions to omniscience are finally abandoned. |
Transforming fixation, the consciousness of the five gates |
|||
The empowerment of Dharmadhatu wisdom |
(Vajra holder body) |
||
Transforming the mind-consciousness |
|||
Omniscience: Buddha: The Union of Dependent Origination and Emptiness; Union of the Two Truths. |
On The Gradual Path
This is known as the practice of the gradual path (Tibetan lam rim).
Those destined to follow the gradual path will start first with the Hinayana path and then continue with the Mahayana and Vajrayâna. Others may
be able to follow the direct path due to circumstances related to their state of mind and their karmic connections. -- His Holiness Sakya Trizin, A Brief Overview of the Lam DreThe great Atisha, the modern Mahayanist Buddhist teacher, who was born in India, in Bengal, and he was invited by the king of Tibet. He came to Tibet. And great Atisha wrote Lam Rim text, called Bodhi-patha Pradipam, "Lamp for the Path of Enlightenment." So this text, Bodhi-patha Pradipam, is the very first Lam Rim text. The concept of Lam Rim, the Lam Rim tradition, was actually born when Atisha wrote the Bodhi-patha Pradipam text in Tibet. He wrote the text in Tibet, in Sanskrit, and also translated into Tibetan. Then the Sanskrit translation was sent back to India, to Nalanda, to Bodhgaya and so forth. And the Indian people, Buddhists at that time, were so impressed, felt so appreciative because Atisha wrote this text. It was so important text. Because Lam Rim means "gradual path to Enlightenment." And the teaching explains how to become Buddha, how to become enlightened, gradually. One can become enlightened; one can become Buddha, gradually. Of course complete enlightenment, or Buddhahood, is final enlightenment, final stage of the spiritual path. But there is also gradual enlightenment. As you practice the path, gradually, then the gradual enlightenment will happen to you. The enlightenment realization will be born within you. And the gradual awakening is happening for all of us when we practice, practicing path. And gradually awakening, the realization is gradually happening, by practicing the gradual path. And Atisha explained how to practice the path, Dharma, gradually, step-by-step...But these teachings are so vast. Sometimes people kind of feel a little discouraged. Therefore, we need teaching that is written down and taught and explained, how to practice step-by-step, and gradually. So that's why Atisha's teaching, the text was so precious. And for that reason various masters, according Tibetan tradition, wrote commentaries, these different types of Lam Rim texts. --Lama Zasep Tulku Rinpoche, The Three Stages of the Path
The focus in Buddhism is to benefit sentient beings and bring them to liberation. It is not to teach only one's particular understanding or one's particular favorite teaching. Just like if you give a very profound teaching to somebody who can't comprehend something very profound, they would be very unhappy. If you give something that is too simplistic or superficial to someone who wants the depth, they won't be happy either. That's why there are different levels of teachings. It is just like a newly born infant who gradually grows up to maturity. My teachings are that way. It is like a staircase where you walk step by step, from the very first step of entering the path until the final completion. -- Tulku Urgyen, Empty Cognizance with a Core of Knowing
The development of pure body, speech and mind comes from gradually leaving the impure states and their being transformed into the pure. How is this done? The path is indicted by the next four syllables...HHDL, The Meaning of OM MANI PADME HUM (His Holiness The Dalai Lama)
Transforming the mind is a slow and gradual process. -- Kathleen McDonald, How to Meditate
We can overcome selfishness and become more caring and compassionate. It is just a question of gradually training our mind, learning to transform our thoughts so that we are less concerned with me -- what I want, what I need, what makes me happy -- and more concerned about others -- what they want and need, what makes them happy. The Eight Verses explains how to do this. ...the practice of taking and giving is a very effective way gradually to overcome self-cherishing and to develop its opposite: the mind that cherishes others. -- Ven Sangye Khadro, On The Eight Verses of Thought Transformation
Equanimity is an attitude that involves having equal respect and concern for every being regardless of where they stand in relation to us. In this prayer, we wish all beings to develop the state of equanimity. Practically speaking, however, we must start by developing it ourselves. This involves gradually overcoming the three attitudes that run counter to it: possessive-attachment, uncaring indifference, and anger and ill will. -- Ven Sangye Khadro, The Practice of The Four Immeasurables
All beings wish to be happy and free from misery. Although scientific development, modern weapons and abundant material progress may alleviate the temporary effects of dissatisfaction, such external means can never totally eradicate its fundamental cause. The true solution is to cultivate deep human compassion, love and respect for others. Whether a person is a Buddhist or a Christian, a follower of a specific religion or simply a believer in non-violence and morality, good human qualities such as kindness, generosity, humility and compassion are preferred by all. By cultivating such altruistic and beneficial attributes, the cause of suffering, self-cherishing, will gradually diminish. This, in turn, will promote unity and harmony among human beings of all nations. -- From The Sadhana of the Inseparability of the Spiritual Master and Avalokiteshvara, Venerable Geshé Damchö Yönten
And he also says in the Non-Conceptual Progress Formula: "When a son of the Victor meditates on This holy Doctrine without conceptual thought, He gradually attains the non-conceptual." -- Atisha, A Lamp for the Enlightenment Path
Paramitayana: The "Perfection Vehicle"; one of the two divisions of the Mahayana. This is the gradual path to enlightenment traversed by bodhisattvas practicing the six perfections of charity, morality, patience, effort, concentration, and wisdom, through the ten-bodhisattva levels (bhumis) over countless eons of rebirths in samsara for the benefit of all sentient beings. It is also called Sutra-yana.
If, for example, after you encounter Buddhism for the first time you think it contains wonderful ideas and immediately try to make radical changes to your life, you won't make any progress at all. You have to implement it step by step. To actualize Dharma you have to look at your basic situation, what you are now, and try to change gradually, checking as you go. -- Lama Thubten Yeshe, Spirituality and Materialism
As long as we live in this world we are bound to encounter problems. If, at such times, we lose hope and become discouraged, we diminish our ability to face difficulties. If, on the other hand, we remember that it is not just ourselves but everyone who has to undergo suffering, this more realistic perspective will increase our determination and capacity to overcome troubles. Indeed, with this attitude, each new obstacle can be seen as yet another valuable opportunity to improve our mind! Thus we can strive gradually to become more compassionate, that is we can develop both genuine sympathy for others' suffering and the will to help remove their pain. As a result, our own serenity and inner strength will increase. -- HHDL, Compassion and the Individual (His Holiness The Dalai Lama)
A human can begin from his own starting point and then gradually attain higher levels of being, until final perfection is achieved...He first eliminates the coarse level of ignorance and then, through gradual meditation on method combined with wisdom, attains the perfect achievement. -- Geshe Lhundrub Sopa, Method, Wisdom and the Three Paths
Taking mind as the subject and mind's ultimate reality as its object, one will arrive at a proper comprehension of the true essence of mind, i.e. its ultimate reality. And when, after prolonged patient meditation, one comes to perceive and grasp at the knowledge of mind's ultimate reality which is devoid of dual characteristics, one will gradually be able to exhaust the delusions and defects of the central and secondary minds such as wrath, love of ostentation, jealousy, envy and so on. -- HHDL, Happiness, Karma and Mind (His Holiness The Dalai Lama)
So don't worry about the next life or nirvana: these things will come gradually. At first when you try to control disturbing negative minds it is difficult. The first day, the first week, the first month you cannot control them well. But if you make constant efforts, gradually your negativities will decrease. Progress in mental development does not come about through taking medicines or other chemical substances; it depends on controlling the mind. -- HHDL, The Eight Verses of Thought Transformation (His Holiness The Dalai Lama)
The primary concern of followers of the Mahayana path is not merely their own liberation but the enlightenment of all sentient beings. With this motivation of bodhicitta--their hearts set on attaining enlightenment as the best means of helping others--these practitioners practice the six transcendent perfections and gradually progress through the ten bodhisattva levels until they have completely overcome both types of obscurations and attained the supreme enlightenment of Buddhahood. This is the path and the result of the Mahayana. The essence of the practice of the six transcendent perfections is the unification of method and wisdom so that the two enlightened bodies -- Rupakaya and Dharmakaya-- can be attained. Since they can be attained only simultaneously, their causes must be cultivated simultaneously. Thus together we must build up a store of merit, as the cause of the Rupakaya, the body of form, and a store of deep awareness, or insight, as the cause of the Dharmakaya, the body of wisdom. In the Paramitayana, we practice method grasped by wisdom and wisdom grasped by method, but in the Vajrayâna we practice method and wisdom as one in nature. -- HHDL, The Four Noble Truths (His Holiness The Dalai Lama)
Buddhism can be understood on many different levels, and people who actualize the Buddhist path do so gradually. Just as you pass slowly through school and university, graduating from one year to the next, so do Buddhist practitioners proceed step by step along the path to enlightenment? In Buddhism, however, we're talking about different levels of mind; here, higher and lower depend upon how much spiritual progress you have made. -- Lama Thubten Yeshe, Everything Comes from the Mind
There is only one emptiness that directly cuts the root of samsara. This is the emptiness taught by the Prasangika-Madhyamika school, whose view of emptiness is the unmistaken, pure one and the only one that can cut the specific ignorance that I mentioned before. However, not everybody has the karma to accept this, to understand this, to realize this. Sentient beings have different levels of mind. Therefore, the all-knowing, kind, compassionate Buddha taught varying levels of philosophy to guide sentient beings' minds gradually up to the level where they could realize the Prasangika view of emptiness. One could start with the gross explanations of emptiness taught by the lower schools and gradually progress up to the most subtle, the Prasangika. That's how the four schools came into being. The lower schools were steps to the higher ones, leading ultimately to the Prasangika. So even though the views of these various schools seem to contradict each other, actually they're a method for gradually developing through study and meditation the Prasangika view. -- Lama Thubten Zopa Rinpoche, Meditation on Emptiness
Mental development does not happen through radical change. Defilements are eliminated, or purified, slowly, slowly. There's a gradual evolution. It takes time. Some people, for instance, cannot accept what Buddhism teaches about universal love, that you should want others to have the happiness that you want for yourself. They feel, "It's impossible for me to love all others as I love myself." It takes time for them to realize universal love or enlightenment because their minds are preoccupied by misconceptions and there's no space for wisdom. But slowly, slowly, through practicing their religion, people can be led to perfect wisdom. That's why I say that a variety of religions is necessary for the human race. Physical change is easy, but mental development takes time. For example, a doctor might tell a sick person, "Your temperature is very high, so please avoid meat and eat only dry biscuits for a few days." Then, as the person starts to recover, the doctor slowly reintroduces heavy food into his diet. In that way the doctor gradually leads the person back to perfect health...Approaching enlightenment is a gradual process, but once you attain it, there's no going back; when you reach the fully awakened state of mind, the moment you experience that, you remain enlightened forever. -- Lama Yeshe, Make Your Mind an Ocean
A Buddhist Approach to Mental Illness...The Buddhist method is to have him check his own mind in order to gradually see its true nature. And the process is gradual; it takes time. Some problems have to be overcome gradually, by degrees. So there is a diversity of adapted methods, an amazing variety of psychological remedies to a vast range of problems. -- Lama Yeshe, Make Your Mind an Ocean
Tibetan Buddhism teaches you to overcome your dissatisfied mind, but to do that you have to make an effort. To put our techniques into your own experience, you have to go slowly, gradually. You can't just jump right in the deep end. It takes time and we expect you to have trouble at first. But if you take it easy it gets less and less difficult as time goes by. -- Lama Teshe, Your Mind is Your Religion
In order to renounce your own samsara, first you have to feel detached from this life. Only with detachment from this life can you practice Dharma purely. Renunciation of this life is the preliminary understanding you need before you can develop renunciation from the whole of your samsara. In order to develop great compassion for all sentient beings, you need these preliminary realizations. Compassion doesn't just drop into your brain from the sky or appear in your mind the moment you read about it. Compassion and bodhicitta have to be developed in a step-by-step manner by gradually developing the preliminary realizations in their logical order. -- Lam Yeshe, Practicing the Good Heart / Compassion / Bodhicitta
However remote this may be from our own samsaric experience, we are basically no different from such enlightened beings. Our enlightened nature is covered by obscurations that can gradually be removed, that is the essence of the teaching of the four noble truths. -- Kenpho Karthar Rinpoche, The Four Noble Truths
So by gradually eliminating this habit of projecting inherent existence on ourselves and objects we will also gradually abandon the cause of suffering...So gradually that way we reach the complete elimination of suffering. -- Sangra Jampa Tulku, Appearance and Reality
Desire and attachment won't change overnight. But desire becomes less ordinary as we redirect our worldly yearning toward the aspiration to do everything we can to help all beings find unchanging happiness. We don't have to abandon the ordinary objects of our desires, relationships, wealth, fame, but as we contemplate their impermanence, we become less attached to them. Rejoicing in our good fortune when they arise, yet recognizing that they won't last, we begin to develop spiritual qualities. We commit fewer of the harmful actions that result from attachment, and hence create less negative karma; we generate more fortunate karma, and mind's positive qualities gradually increase. -- Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche, Working with Attachment and Desire
Gradually we come to see that the object we perceive is actually only the mind in action. No different from the mind, the object is the mind, and there is therefore no need to create any artificial duality by maintaining a clear distinction between subject and object. If we look at the essence of this non-duality, the true nature of both the object and the mind that perceives it, we will discover the essence of the mind itself. -- Lama Gendyn Rinpoche, Seeing into the true nature of emotions
Behind the games of ego lies nothing but radiant wisdom and mind's joyful radiance will always be there. When such confidence has been installed, mind's veils will fall gradually and by themselves. -- Lama Ole Nydahl, Learning in a Total Way; Teacher - Student Relationship
How do I know which spiritual path or practice to pursue? There are few shortcuts. Trial and error -- following your heart's intuition, while seeking advice from those who have gone before you -- seem to provide the main highway. It is a gradually unfolding process, for which both patience and perseverance are required. Mistakes are inevitable; so do not be easily discouraged. Stumbling blocks can become stepping-stones. The great Way is right beneath your feet. Please do not overlook that. There are countless Dharma gates. It is up to you to enter. -- Lama Surya Das
Gradually, step-by-step, we can purify all our negative thoughts, afflictive emotions, dispel our delusions and ignorance and finally attain the complete Enlightenment with maximum ability to benefit others...First, we generate and practice that thought in our own mind. Then step-by-step when we have achieved some good qualities, we share with others as much as we can both for the welfare of others and for our own progress. The journey on the path may be long, but when we gradually see that our negative thoughts, and negative, afflictive emotions are becoming less and less powerful and the mind is becoming clearer and we are more sincere to others, and ourselves then we are progressing on the path. Step by step without expectation, practice with patience, confidence, devotion and perseverance, sooner or later, all our obscurations and the causes of suffering will be exhausted. It is just a matter of time. -- Venerable Khenchen Konchog Gyaltshen Rinpoche, The Four Noble Truths
The ten bhumis and five paths are like climbing a staircase.
Because of complete causes and conditions, one can gradually progress.
One should maintain the activity of a bodhisattva.
This is my heart's advice.
(From the Jewel Treasury of Advice) -- Khenchen Konchog Gyaltsen Rinpoche, Vajrayâna practicesAlthough Buddha Nature is present within you, it is not revealed. It is still hidden or obscured. It's presence, and the recognition of its presence, or trust in its presence are not in themselves enough to dispel the sufferings of samsara. In order to actually dispel those sufferings, you have to fully reveal this Buddha Nature. You have to make it's qualities manifest. Now the process of revealing it, or the methods by which it can be revealed, are what we call Dharma. To train in these profound methods for gradually revealing your own Buddha Nature, which involves enhancing or developing both wisdom and compassion, is going for Refuge in the genuine Dharma. -- The Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, The refuge
This is a little hard, because this ultimate nature transcends the intellectual or conceptual mind. However it is necessary to begin with a conceptual examination of it. In the midst of a conceptual examination, one can view or acquire a glimpse of the wisdom that itself transcends concept. In fact, one has to proceed in that way. One cannot say at the very beginning "This wisdom and this nature are totally transcending conceptual mind, and so there is no point in attempting to reach it gradually." One has to make use of conceptual mind; but conceptual investigation will lead to a realization that transcends the concepts...If one investigates the true existence of things, one investigates it to determine whether things are real or not--whether they have a true existence, and if they are solid. This is more than just a coarse or shallow examination; the manner of investigation is primarily threefold. One investigates by reasoning a) by cause, b) by result or effect, and c) by nature. Through the application of these various manners of analysis, one comes to gradually reveal the emptiness of all things. -- The Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche, Vipashyana Meditation
Well, the point of this is that we support and confirm our ignorance and suffering and our kleshas through the constant generation of impure projections or impure appearances, which make up our experience of samsara. And in order to transcend this process, we need to transcend these impure projections, together with the suffering that they bring about. A very effective way to do this is to replace these gradually, replace these projections of impurity with pure projections based on the iconography of the yidam, the Dharmapala, and so on. By starting to experience the world as the mandala of the deity and all beings as the presence of that deity, then you gradually train yourself to let go of mental afflictions, let go of impure projections, and you create the environment for the natural manifestation of your own innate wisdom. Now, all of this occurs gradually through this practice of the generation stage...By generating clarity of these visualized appearances and stabilizing that, then gradually we transform how we experience the world. -- The Very Venerable Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche, The Reason We Practice Meditation
There is a tendency for some persons to take a very easy approach to realization, to Buddhahood, simply thinking that one might achieve Buddhahood just taking it very easy, sort of just eating and sleeping leisurely without any thought of effort or trying to achieve something, thinking that everything will come by itself. In fact we should compare ourselves to a sick person who needs a physician who can prescribe the right medicine, and by taking the medicine gradually one has a chance to be cured. Similarly, we are the sick person caught in ignorance and delusion. And the spiritual friend, or the spiritual master is like the skillful physician, and the teaching is like the medicine, and the practice of the teaching is like taking the medicine, which can gradually cure one's illness. So if we attend to a qualified teacher, and if we receive his teaching and put it into practice, then gradually we can cure ourselves from the sickness of delusion and ignorance, and then all the obscuring emotions and ignorance will disappear and the condition of suffering will be gone. But if one hoped to be cured without attending to the clever physician, without taking the medicine, then there is no way we can achieve such a goal. So this is the simile we use in the Buddhist teachings. -- Chatrul Rinpoche, The True Fact of Emptiness
Pure perception is to appreciate the primordial qualities of the true nature. Start with the teacher and then begin to apply the same pure vision to all beings. Practice on the teacher first, and then gradually see everything in the state of primordial purity, just as you would observe the teacher. -- Khenpo Palden Sherab, Kinder Than the Buddha
You have to develop Bodhicitta gradually according to your capabilities. We cannot make gigantic steps and then stop totally, we must try to develop as much as we can according to our capabilities. So we start with the smallest point of view and then develop according to our capabilities. -- Padma Dorje
Able to accomplish all the Buddha's Dharma,
May I renounce the world as a youth and maintain morality,
Always relying on holy spiritual masters,
And gradually traverse the ten paths.
-- Nargarjuna’s Aspiration
Gradual vs. Sudden
HUI-NENG: Hung-jen, the fifth patriarch of the Ch'an Buddhist tradition, died in 675 C.E., about four years after the emergence of Shen-hsiu as the sixth patriarch. Sixteen years after Shen-hsiu began his work as the spiritual guide of Northern Ch'an, Hui-neng emerged in the south. Also a disciple of Hung-jen, he enunciated a doctrine of direct insight into reality and challenged the view that enlightenment is a linear result of a long, gradual and steady discipline in Dhyana and shila, meditation and right conduct. His work is preserved in the Fa-pao-t'an-ching (Platform Sutra), the only Chinese text which has been elevated to the status of scripture....Whether or not these verses were actually composed by their putative authors, they illustrate the fundamental difference between Northern and Southern Ch'an and between the gradual and sudden approaches to enlightenment. According to the Platform Sutra, Hung-jen recognized the merits of Shen-hsiu's verse publicly, but secretly gave the robe and the law to Hui-neng, warning him to go into hiding in the south until the time was ripe for his public teaching. Hui-neng fled to the south, and it is said that some monks pursued him to capture the robe of the patriarchate. When the most athletic of the monks finally caught up with Hui-neng, he was overwhelmed by the presence of the sixth patriarch. Rather than seize the robe of office, he respectfully requested instruction. Hui-neng said, "Not thinking of good, not thinking of evil, tell me what was your original face before your mother and father were born?" Upon hearing this remarkable query, the pursuer attained enlightenment. This statement became the hallmark of Hui-neng's teaching. Methodologically, it illustrates the pithy utterances, which stun the mind by defying logic and yet point to the truth. Philosophically, it declares the fundamental Ch'an teaching that all beings always have the Buddha-nature (the 'original face') and that it needs to be recovered, not created. Ontologically, it asserts that the Buddha-nature is prior to shila and samádhi, ethics and meditation. It is, in fact, equivalent to prajna, wisdom. Psychologically, it teaches the therapy of transcendence or of radically letting go in contrast to adjustment and directed maturation...Hui-neng was nonetheless convinced that the gradual path to enlightenment, however useful in focusing the mind and ordering one's life, could not lead to enlightenment.
The Patriarch addressed the assembly as follows: "So far as the Dharma is concerned, there can be only one School. (If a distinction exists) it exists in the fact that the founder of one school is a northern man, while the other is a Southerner. While there is only one Dharma, some disciples realize it more quickly than others. The reason why the names 'Sudden' and 'Gradual' are given is that some disciples are superior to others in mental dispositions. So far as the Dharma is concerned, the distinction of 'Sudden' and 'Gradual' does not exist."
"When our Essence of Mind is free from impurity, infatuations and disturbances," replied the Patriarch, "when we introspect our mind from moment to moment with Prajna, and when we do not cling to things and phenomenal objects we are free and liberated. Why should we formulate any system of Dharma when our goal can be reached no matter whether we turn to the right or to the left? Since it is with our own efforts that we realize the Essence of Mind, and since the realization and the practice of the Dharma are both done instantaneously, and not gradually or stage by stage, the formulation of any system of Dharma is unnecessary. As all Dharmas are intrinsically Nirvanic, how can there be gradation in them?"
About Buddha Qualities:
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(i.e. The qualities are the "dependent origination" side of the two truths; they are the wholesome actions that are in accord with the real nature of everything. They are the accumulating merit. They are the first five paramitas that are gradually perfected. So they are the results, and the skillful means in accord with Liberation. They are the self-amplifying virtues. They are wholesome actions on the path, and Buddha activities. They have always been there because acting in accord with the real nature of everything has always been there. They bring more peace and happiness because they are in accord with the real nature of everything.·
The qualities are also empty of inherent existence, dependently arisen to motivate, to set a progressive path, to develop good habits more in accord with the real nature of everything. But their perfection is done by combining their activities with the wisdom of emptiness.)·
As for the mind’s qualities, there are no limitations. How he describes this is the very commonly accepted way of describing it in high level Vajrayâna teachings, which is the unity of emptiness and clarity...But then, these two qualities -- cognitive lucidity and emptiness, clarity and emptiness, luminosity and emptiness -- are one. It is all the mind. It is a miracle in itself. The unity of emptiness and clarity is the ground for purification. If you remember what I told you about the ground earlier, then that applies here as well.·
Now I would like to go on a little side-track here. The tremendous benefit of shinay (i.e. shamatha and vipashyana equals shinay and lhaktong in Tibetan; tranquility and insight in English) is that during its practice our inner potential -- the Buddha nature, the essence, the limitless potential -- somehow manifests itself temporarily. You could have been very confused and very disturbed and inadequate in many things. But then you might sit down and do a very good session of shinay immediately after that, and then feel more clear and see things more clearly. Even if you have made some mistakes, you see quite clearly where things went wrong and you are able to develop some perspective on everything more effectively. Of course, without stable realization, this is temporary. But it is all right there. The reason that that happens is that it is all within us; it is not coming from outside. The shinay does not add something to us from outside. It is letting our inner potential and its own natural remedies manifest, and is providing the space for it to manifest. Instead of our inner potential’s being imprisoned and then suffocated and being stepped all over, shinay lets the Buddha quality manifest. For beginning practitioners particularly, shinay is an extremely effective means of meditation.·
This is based upon an understanding of the nature of appearances. The actual nature of appearances, no matter how impure we may consider them to be, is pure, because the nature of all things is emptiness, not a static or dead emptiness, but an emptiness that is at the same time a fullness of all of the qualities of Buddha nature. Because this is the nature of all things, therefore, the fundamental nature of all appearances and all experiences is pure.·
Today we are discussing the question of Mahamudra, the ultimate experience of the nature of mind that we have described as being empty and essentially intangible, mind as being "no thing" in and of itself, but nevertheless, exhibiting qualities which are an illuminating potential [cognitive clarity or cognitive lucidity] and the ability to experience the unimpeded and dynamic manifestation of awareness.·
It was said by the Buddha that the power or benefit of this technique lies in the fact that the physical form of the Buddha is actually an embodiment of the qualities of the Dharmakaya. Therefore, by using the physical form as a basis for meditation, you come to be a great bodhisattva who is constantly in a state of meditative absorption.·
The meaning of this is that when you experience your mind’s nature there is nothing substantial or nothing there that you are experiencing. But nevertheless, that nature itself is the cognitive capacity which allows for all experience - both experience in the state of bewilderment, which we call samsara, and experience in the state free of bewilderment, which we call nirvana, and which consists of the experience of the kayas and qualities and realms of Buddhahood.·
Without clinging to "I" there is utterly no suffering. Without clinging to our conceptual versions of perceiver and perceived, there is no misperception, and where there is no misperception, there is the clear light nature of mind and reality; there is happiness and all positive qualities....
The basic element, which serves as seed
Is seen as the support of all great qualities.
Through gradual refinement, step-by-step,
The stage of Buddhahood will be attained.
The potential to attain enlightenment - here referred to as the basic element - is like the seed, which produces Buddhahood, and is asserted to be the basis for all the qualities of enlightenment. And through refinement of this potential, step-by-step, the state of enlightenment can be reached.·
The "garment of attributes" refers to the spontaneously present qualities of enlightenment. But if one becomes attached to these qualities as being real, then they are not qualities any longer; they become clothing that covers over the nakedness of the fruition. The attributes of the fruition are spontaneously present, but if one fixates on them as being real, then they become clothing and thus an obscuration. These attributes that are spontaneously present are inconceivable; what they are cannot be conceptualized. When we start to conceptualize them, saying, "Oh, they are this quality or that quality," then that all of a sudden covers them over.
The basic element, which serves as seed
Is seen as the support of all great qualities.
Through gradual refinement, step-by-step,
The stage of Buddhahood will be attained.
The ground of the qualities of Buddhas,
The fruits of training fully held in hand,
The transformation, when perfectly completed,
Is given "Dharmakaya" as its name.
·
Saying that the Buddha passed into parinirvana means that his physical body passed away. His mind and the wisdom of his mind did not pass away, which is to say that the qualities of his awakening - the wisdom that knows the nature of each and every thing and the wisdom that knows the variety of things, the compassion that is dedicated to the liberation of all beings, and the actual ability or capacity to bring about the liberation of all beings - these three qualities of wisdom, compassion, and ability, did not and never will change. This unchanging wisdom mind of the Buddha is called the Dharmakaya. What passed away at Kushinagara 2,500 years ago is called a supreme Nirmanakaya. The Dharmakaya does not stop, does not change. Therefore, because of its unchanging quality, we consider the Dharmakaya to be permanent, and because it is permanent, we call the Dharmakaya "Vajradhara." We call it "vajra" because vajra means permanence, that which does not change. And it is called "dhara," or that which holds the vajra, because the mind of the Buddha holds this wisdom beyond fluctuation or change within it or in its heart.·
As for the qualities of the mind, its inherent lucidity, and so forth, they are never lost and never affected, and therefore they are always ready to be recognized through the practice of meditation. * These qualities include all positive virtues, which are in fact one unitary virtue that we can only point to with such terms as the union of wisdom and emptiness, lucidity and emptiness, awareness and emptiness, bliss and emptiness, and compassion and emptiness. So long as we are bound in samsara, we use terms like loving kindness, compassion, primordial intelligence, devotion, primordial confidence, etc., to refer to these virtues that are really just one virtue.·
When it says in the text that through the blessings of the guru entering your heart, your mind will become liberated, it means that the nature of your mind will become manifest. As was said by Saraha, "The mind is in its nature like a wish-fulfilling jewel." Saraha made the famous statement, "I pay homage to the mind that is like a wish-fulfilling jewel." The meaning of this is that, intrinsically, the mind is free of defects and possesses all possible qualities in completeness and in abundance. In other words, the potential to benefit not only yourself but all other beings is innate within your mind, already present. For example, all of the qualities and activities of Buddha Shakyamuni, starting from his attainment of unsurpassable awakening, his turning of the Dharmakara and his subsequent establishment of innumerable beings in various states of liberation, all of these abilities to benefit beings in this way came from the qualities that were always innate within the mind of Buddha Shakyamuni, and which he recognized when he attained Buddhahood. Buddha Shakyamuni is not the only one who possesses these qualities. We all possess these qualities. The difference between a Buddha and ourselves is that our qualities are effectively dormant, because they are obscured by what the mahasiddhas of our lineage have called the cocoon of conceptuality. With our thoughts we create a cocoon that completely covers all of the qualities that are innate and always there, always present within the mind - which is a waste. We waste the nature of our mind, not in the sense of its being damaged, but in the sense of its being so hidden that it is effectively dormant. Liberation refers to the bringing of the mind out from this covering, this obscuration or cocoon.·
Something that is important to understand about mixing in general, and especially in the context that you just brought up, is what does and what does not constitute distraction. It was said by Tilopa, "Child, it is not by appearances that you are fettered, but by craving. Therefore, Naropa, relinquish or cut through craving." The distinction needs to be made between appearances and our craving for or grasping at them. Appearances themselves are not a problem. Grasping or craving is problematic. When you study you are training your intellect through the acquisition of knowledge and training yourself in learning more efficiently, and so forth. That training of the intellect that cultivation of the prajna of study is not a problem, because essentially what you are working with is the cognitive lucidity, which is one of the qualities of your mind, the other quality being emptiness. The problem is grasping at the concepts or fixating on the concepts acquired through study or knowledge. The way to work with this is simply to study in a way in which you cultivate a mindfulness within the performance of study analogous to that of meditation, and if there is mindfulness while you are studying, and alertness, then the study will not generate grasping and in that way can be mixed to some extent with practice.·
The ten powers, the four fearlessnesses, the eighteen distinctive qualities, etc. of a perfect being are discussed in The Changeless Nature, the Mahayana Uttara Tantra Sastra, by Arya Maitreya and Acarya Asanga, in the chapter entitled, "Sixth Vajra Point - The qualities of Buddhahood."Ø
The ten powers of perfect knowledge are 1) perfect knowledge of the appropriate and the inappropriate, referring to an appropriate result corresponding to the nature of an action, and an inappropriate result lacking such correspondence; 2) perfect knowledge of the full maturation of actions; 3) perfect knowledge of the various sorts of faculties of beings; 4) perfect knowledge of their different temperaments; 5) perfect knowledge of their wishes; 6) perfect knowledge of the paths which lead everywhere; 7) perfect knowledge of meditative stability, etc. - that which is unstained by the negative affects; 8) perfect knowledge of remembrance of former states; 9) perfect knowledge of divine vision; and 10) perfect knowledge of peace - the way to exhaust impurity. These ten powers are said to be like a vajra because they penetrate ignorance’s armor, shatter its walls, and hew down its tree.Ø
Because, when enlightenment is reached, everything to be purified has been purified and everything to be realized is realized, Buddhas are endowed with four fearlessnesses: 1) fearlessness in knowledge of their perfect enlightenment with respect to every phenomenal domain; 2) fearlessness in teaching the obstacles and how to stop them; 3) fearlessness in teaching the path; and 4) fearlessness in stating their achievement of cessation of suffering.Ø
Buddhas can truthfully tell others of their own realization and in so doing are completely unhindered, 1) because they themselves know and help others know every aspect of the knowable; 2) because they themselves have relinquished and help others relinquish those things which must be relinquished; 3) because they teach and make taught what ought to be taught; 4) because they have attained and help others attain the utterly stainless highest attainment. In this regard, "what is to be known" is the truth of suffering; "what is to be given up," karma and the kleshas, is the truth of the origin of suffering; "what is to be relied upon," what ought to be taught, is the truth of the path; and "the goal to be achieved" is the truth of cessation.Ø
The eighteen distinctive qualities of Buddhas are that 1) Buddhas make no mistakes, 2) they do not chatter noisily, 3) their mindfulness is never at fault, 4) their mind is never not resting in meditation, and 5) they do not harbor ideas and thoughts of various kinds; 6) their impartiality is never something un-deliberate; 7) their mighty aspiration to help beings is never subject to degradation, 8) nor is their diligence, 9) their memory, 10) their perfectly pure and immaculate prajna, 11) their constant perfect liberation, or 12) their perception through the jnana [primordial awareness] of perfect liberation, which sees all aspects of the knowable; 13) the actions of their perfect bodies are preceded by jnana, 14) as are the actions of their pure speech, and 15) their noble mind; 16) their jnana is un-obscured with respect to the past, 17) the present, and 18) the future.Ø
Since Buddhahood is jnana or primordial awareness, then Buddha activity is the spontaneous activity of jnana and is always preceded and accompanied by jnana. Therefore, all three activities - body, speech, and mind - are preceded by and accompanied by primordial awareness. The perfect knowledge of Buddhas constantly and extensively penetrates the three times without hindrance. These eighteen powers having been realized, those victors, the Buddhas, endowed with compassion’s magnificence, accomplish a perfect and fearless turning of the great wheel of the true dharma for beings. - Adapted from The Changeless Nature, by Arya Maitreya and Acarya Asanga, published in Scotland by Karma Drubgyud Darjay Ling (Karma Kagyu Trust).·
Although the mind is empty in the sense of being devoid of any kind of substantial existence, it nevertheless is the ground for all of the qualities of Buddhahood and for all of the confusion of samsara. So, we would have to say, finally, that it is beyond being something or nothing. We cannot say the mind is something because it has no substantial characteristics that make it meaningful to view it that way. Nor can we say that it is nothing, because it is the ground for all qualities and the ground of experience. Therefore, the mind is said to be beyond being something or nothing, beyond existence and non-existence. One of the implications of this is that when looking at the mind you have no need to pretend that that which exists does not exist, or that that which does not exist, does exist. You simply see the mind as it is.·
It was said by Lord Gampopa, "The mind itself is the co-emergent Dharmakaya."Ø
This means that when you look at the mind itself - as you do, for example, when looking at the mind within stillness - and if you identify it as it is, you will see that it is empty, which is to say that it has no substantial existence of any kind.Ø
However, the mind is not merely empty; while being empty, it also is cognitive lucidity. Therefore the mind itself is the seed of the attainment of the Dharmakaya, because the mind in itself possesses the qualities and potential that will enable you to remove all obscurations and to perfect all wisdoms.In the next line of this quotation, Lord Gampopa says, "Appearances are the light of the co-emergent Dharmakaya," which is taking things in a slightly different order from the one that we have been using in this text. Having talked about the mind itself as the co-emergent Dharmakaya, he then says that the nature of appearances is that they are the light or radiance of that co-emergent Dharmakaya. This refers in general to what we have been calling both external and internal appearances. It is perhaps easier to see with regard to internal appearances, which are experiences within the mind that arise from the mind just as the rays of sunlight arise from the sun. This means that this mind itself, which, as we have seen, is empty and yet is cognitive lucidity, has a natural radiance or power to it as cognitive lucidity. Before meditating, before recognizing things to be as they are, one will have seen the radiance of this mind as solid external things that are sources of pleasure and pain. But through practicing meditation, and through coming to recognize things as they are, you will come to see that all of these appearances are merely the display or radiance or light of the mind which experiences them.
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A Buddha is not an idiot, a Buddha sees all things exactly as they are, sees all beings exactly as they are, and is fully capable of engaging in unlimited activity for the benefit of beings. The reason why a Buddha has these qualities is that emptiness is spontaneous presence.Ø
However, you might wonder: If emptiness is spontaneous presence, in other words, if the display of emptiness is unceasing even after it has been recognized, does that mean that that display will continue to manifest as kleshas and suffering as it does now in the unrecognized state?Ø
The answer is no, because when the nature of this display is recognized to be as it is, to be the spontaneous present display of emptiness, then that display is self-liberated, which means that when thoughts arise and their nature is recognized, then simultaneously with their arising they are already freed, they are already liberated, they bring no fixation.·
At the first level of bodhisattva realization there is this limited freedom of mind, which permits the mind to express itself with greater freedom than we now experience. Instead of there being simply one physical body that the mind experiences, the mind that reaches the first level of bodhisattva-hood can manifest 100 emanations in a single instant. This poses no conflict or logical problem at that point. In fact, the texts speak of twelve different qualities, which are simply an expression of this freedom of mind, which is beginning to develop. **For further elaboration of the various powers of bodhisattvas residing on the ten bodhisattva bhumis or levels, see Chapter 19 of Gems of Dharma, Jewels of Freedom. Gampopa describes the twelve particular abilities of a first level bodhisattva in the following way: "At best, in an instant, a short moment, just a fraction of time, they can:
§
(1) Attain a hundred profound absorptions and experience their stable fruition,§
(2) See a hundred Buddhas,§
(3) Most properly be aware of those Buddhas’ blessings [i.e. transmission of realization],§
(4) Shake a hundred world systems [with the truth of their teachings],§
(5) Visit a hundred Buddha fields,§
(6) Illuminate a hundred world systems,§
(7) Bring a hundred sentient beings to full maturity,§
(8) Live a hundred eons,§
(9) Be excellently aware of the past and future up to a hundred eons past or hence,§
(10) Open a hundred gates of dharma,§
(11) Manifest a hundred emanations anywhere and§
(12) Manifest each of these physical forms as being accompanied by a hundred other bodhisattvas."In the following bodhisattva levels - the second, third, fourth, and so on - it is written that these various qualities increase tenfold on each of the successive levels. By the time one is at the tenth level of bodhisattva realization it is said that one can enter 100 million states of mind in a single instant, that one can produce 100 million emanations in a single moment.* There is this incredible freedom of mind which has developed.
* It is likely that the translator got it wrong at this point, for in Gems of Dharma, Jewels of Freedom, Gampopa talks of the particular ability of a tenth level bodhisattva: "In one instant, a short moment, a small fraction of time, they can enter as many profound absorptions as there are pure particles in a thousand million, million ‘countless’ Buddha fields etc. etc." Concerning the meaning of "countless," the translators, Ken and Katia Holmes write in a footnote on countless: "In the various systems of counting that were imported to Tibet from India, there are names for each multiple of 10, i.e. the equivalent of our words, ‘hundred, ’ ‘thousand,’ etc. up to 10 to the 59th power. In some systems there are names for multiples of 100, reaching further than figures 120 numbers long. These figures were used, among other things, in Buddhism, to compare realities experienced by different sorts of beings - their relative lifespan, etc. ‘Countless’ signifies a figure beyond those having their own name, rather than something which was uncountable." Therefore, it would appear that Kalu Rinpoche’s translator’s figure of 100 million was a gross underestimation.
With the attainment of total enlightenment - Buddhahood - beyond this tenth level of bodhisattva realization, even this incredible level of limited freedom of the tenth level cannot compare to the unlimited freedom of full enlightenment, because at that point all limiting factors have been removed completely. There has been a total elimination of the four levels of obscuration that we spoke of earlier; thus, the unlimited potential of mind can express itself entirely, and so we cannot speak at this point in terms of hundreds of thousands, or of billions or trillions. There is simply no limit to what is possible and that is why we speak of the qualities of Buddhahood as infinite. That is why we speak of their enlightened activities for the benefit of all beings as unlimited or infinite.
The teachings of Buddha dharma, which can enable the practitioner to discover the state of total enlightenment, still exist. They are still accessible. So we have a choice. We can choose to follow the path and to attain the state of enlightenment, or we can choose to wander about in confusion, which will lead one into various states of rebirth [replete with suffering]. Certainly we have this choice.·
By the power of meditation arise the eyes and supernormal perceptions,
Sentient beings are ripened and Buddha fields are perfectly purified,
The aspirations that accomplish the qualities of a Buddha are fulfilled.
By bringing these three to utmost fruition -- fulfilling, ripening, and purifying -- may utmost Buddhahood be manifest.
In these four sentences, The Third Gyalwa Karmapa describes the Buddha, the final enlightenment of Buddhahood, in a simple but comprehensive manner. He says that the result of the strength of meditation, which develops through the practice of Mahamudra, through the meditation on the nature of mind, is that one attains the "eyes." Chen in Tibetan means eyes. In Buddhism in general, and in Mahayana and Vajrayâna Buddhism in particular, a Buddha’s qualities are described in this manner: five eyes and five ngönshe, which is hard to translate. Lots of people say something like clairvoyance. But I don't think it is the same thing. Ngönshe means knowing beyond the limitation of time and distance. Someone who has ngönshe will know the future, will know everything. That is what we call ngönshe. There are five aspects of ngönshe.
Our ordinary eyes see forms and colors of forms. Beyond this, Karmapa is describing how Buddhas see everything -- and these eyes represent five different aspects of seeing everything -- ngönshe. It doesn't mean Buddha has five eyes. But then, the Karmapa did not mention all the details here. So, the simple way to look at this is that the eyes represent the omniscient quality of the Buddha, which quality is the result of the power of meditation.
This ngönshe is gradually obtained with varying degrees of limitation. Before you attain the enlightenment of Buddhahood you will have ngönshe to see the past, present, and future. Etc. You will have the quality of these five eyes, but it will be limited. For example, a first-level bodhisattva can manifest in 100 physical forms in 100 physical locations all at the same time. That is one of the miracles of the first-level bodhisattva as far as physical form is concerned.* The second-level bodhisattva has all of these special qualities and insights multiplied by 100. That means that the second-level bodhisattva can manifest 10,000 manifestations at the same time etc. In this way, the five eyes and the five ngönshe get more and more limitless, but at the beginning they are limited. Like people like me -- I have a hard time even manifesting in one form correctly most of the time. [Laughter] So, this is a way of describing enlightenment by referring to these particular eyes and particular ngönshe. And The Third Gyalwa Karmapa is saying that as one progresses along the path these special qualities gradually develop from being limited to being limitless.
Then he says, may we benefit beings. However, for benefiting sentient beings, here he uses a very particular word, min, which means ripen. A fruit, which is not min, is a green one. You can’t eat it, it is very sour, it is very hard. It is very hard to digest. Once it becomes min, then it is really good. It tastes good, it’s soft, it’s good for the health. I think a superficial word for that is to ripen. Karmapa says, ripen sentient beings. This means that, although you can’t change sentient beings’ essence, because they are all Buddha and, therefore, don’t have to change anything -- they are good just as they are -- still their essence has to ripen in its manifestation, because right now they don’t talk like a Buddha. They don’t think like a Buddha, they don’t behave like a Buddha. And sometimes they even do totally wrong things. That means they are not ripe. So, it is the compassionate aspiration and the compassionate activity of the Buddha to make beings ripe, so that their inner essence may manifest and become more apparent -- so that they may become more kind and more compassionate, and then have the ability to be more compassionate and kind, too.
Many people would like to be kind, but don’t exactly know how too. There is a very common saying that kind people always suffer. They say things like that, that good people always suffer, which is not true. It doesn’t have to be that way. When a good person suffers, that means the person has good intentions, but somehow things are not right, so that their kindness is not working. It doesn’t mean that all kind people have to suffer, does it? The problem is that there is no power together with their kindness; there is kindness, but their kindness doesn’t have power. So that when you do something, instead of other people really appreciating it and being happy and benefiting from what you do, they somehow resent it, and you get into trouble. Or something similar. So, min means everything, every aspect of the essential qualities of beings has to be ripened.
At the same time, sang gye shing rap jang also has a very particular meaning. A great bodhisattva, after attaining realization, but before attaining Buddhahood, receives direct transmission from all the Buddhas. That is what we call shing kam, pure land. Superficially speaking, it is like pilgrimaging to all the pure lands. But it is not physical. It is the inspiration and blessing and transmission of all the Buddhas to dispense empowerment. That’s what it means. After that, gradually all the qualities of Buddha, beyond any limitation, become complete: sang gye chö nam drup pay mönlam dzok. At that stage, the original aspiration such as, I wish to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings, is fulfilled and completely accomplished.
In the Mahayana teachings it is very clearly said that enlightenment won’t happen without someone’s first giving rise to enlightenment mind.* One has to first have the inspiration to attain enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings. Without this, true enlightenment won’t happen by accident. So, in this way the original inspiration is being fulfilled, beyond any limitation.
* Bodhicitta: the altruistic mind that aspires to awaken in order to liberate all sentient beings from suffering, the awakening mind
Then Karmapa condenses the first three lines into one very short sentence. He says, dzok min jang sum thar jin sang gye shok.Ø
Dzok means all the qualities of Buddha are complete;Ø
Min means benefiting sentient beings, and min means benefiting oneself, also, ripening is complete;Ø
And jang means that the empowerment by all the Buddhas and bodhisattvas is complete.Ø
So, The Gyalwa Karmapa prays, may one attain this total enlightenment of Buddhahood -- sang gye shok.That concludes the final part of the main body of the prayer.
-- Shenpen osel·
May we attain the state of Buddha through maturity, realization, and completion, And develop beings through divine eyes and clear sight arising through the power of meditation. May we realize the Buddha fields and fulfill the wishing prayer of the perfection of the Buddha qualities. -- Wishing Prayer for the Attainment of the Ultimate Mahamudra·
The nature of emptiness is not separate from us. The Buddha qualities we described earlier are also not separate from us. In fact, we are inherently inseparable from the nature of emptiness as well as from all the Buddha qualities.·
All these impurities are merely adventitious, they are not essential, they are not part of the pure consciousness itself. The Buddha qualities, on the other hand, are essential to it, so that when the mind is cleaned, polished, as it were, the Buddha qualities (the ten powers of perfect knowledge etc. see pp. 338 ff.) will naturally shine forth... In reality there is no defiling element to be removed, no purifying element to be added, since the Buddha qualities are an intrinsic part of the Dharmakaya itself, and the Dharmakaya is inherent in sentient beings as the Tathagata-garbha....This tradition is known as gzhan strong, other-empty, because, following the Srimala Sutra, it teaches that this Ultimate is empty of adventitious defilements which are intrinsically other than it, but is not empty of its own inherent existence and is also not empty of the Buddha qualities which are part of its own very nature.·
Perfect Wisdom and the Other Five Perfections
Gems exist potentially scattered in the earth,
And, when conditions are favorable, they grow in great variety:
All the qualities of enlightenment [that are in] the five perfections,
They all grow from the perfection of wisdom.
Wherever, we know, the Universal Monarch may travel,
There is all the army of all the seven precious things:
Wherever there is this perfection of wisdom of the Jinas,
There also all dharmas of good quality are brought along." -- Verses On The Perfection Of Wisdom·
As for the ocean of Buddha qualities of this primordial lord. The glorious Net of Illusion says: The lord is timeless perfection, known as Buddhahood. This is the precious ocean of Buddha quality.·
After doing some insignificant bit of good, we shall not have complete attainment. But by exerting themselves in the truth and goodness of Dharma alone, many attain the perfection of the Buddha qualities.·
This luminous nature of mind, the nature, the dhatu, the essence, is empty of all fallacious things. It has the characteristics of the Buddha qualities. Its purity of essence is beyond faults and virtues, and establishing or clearing away.·
The fruition of separation is that when sugatagarbha has been freed from all defilements, the Buddha qualities manifest.·
The words are different, but the meaning is the same. Within that state, without dependence, is the nature of ignorance, the alaya of the various habitual patterns. It is the cause of impure samsara and its consciousness. That compounded wholesome entities are associated with the level joined to liberation has been taught for a long time. The alaya of reality is associated with the Buddha qualities of nirvana, which depend on it. These arise because of the essence, emptiness; the nature, luminosity; and all pervading compassion. The jewel-like qualities of the alaya of reality, neither defiled nor free from defilement, are spontaneously present as realization of the primordially luminous kayas and wisdoms.·
Even at the time of being a sentient being, the nature of mind has the apparent Buddha qualities of Rupakaya and the Buddha qualities of the emptiness aspect as Dharmakaya; but since they are obscured by un-removed defilements, this is called the dhatu or enlightened family. At the time of Buddhahood, since mind is free from all defilements, it is called enlightenment. --·
O son of noble family, as for the nature of mind, naturally luminous and naturally essence less, the way naturally pure mind appears is by participating in Buddha qualities that blaze with the major and minor marks, and not being separate from them. Nevertheless its empty and apparent natures are distinguished. --·
Their existence and non-existence; their Buddha qualities. Are what should be known as the meaning of liberation. --·
So the Buddha qualities of sentient beings. Have sunk and disappeared among the filth-like kleshas. Having been seen by the Sage, to purify them that filth, For all beings he caused the dharma to arise. --·
After its defilements are purified, by manifesting its full-blown Buddha qualities, it is called the "developed gotra." Its root, self-awareness wisdom, is luminosity. When those two gotras are awakened, by the two accumulations being accumulated, defilements of the two gotras are purified. The Buddha qualities are made capable of appearing. Ultimate Rupakaya with its Buddha qualities is attained. --·
This is what is realized by the Sugatas-- With the excellent Buddha qualities of the victorious ones, the mark-less natural state is the peace of the unborn. Its powers and strengths are powers of Buddha qualities. This itself is the Buddha, supreme among all leaders. By collecting the qualities of excellent white dharmas we attain the power of wisdom and Buddha qualities And the excellences of miracle and higher perception. --·
Emanations and Buddha qualities are the phenomena of the first bhumi.·
The final teaching says that the dhatu is naturally pure and possesses the Buddha qualities primordially. At the time of having practiced the path, the Buddha qualities appear to arise, and are proclaimed to appear. In the mantra-yana all beings naturally exist as the mandala, as explained below. Since these two are without distinction, it amounts to the same thing. In the path, the two accumulations of upaya and prajna are also the same. In the fruitions, the kayas and wisdoms are the same. Therefore former great masters like Padmasambhava have explained their relationship as inner and outer. Therefore, we should strive to meditate on the four immeasurables.·
Above what is referred to by such passages was called the dhatu or essence. This exists primordially with the spontaneous presence of the Buddha qualities. --·
Disturbances of the kleshas are pacified. By wisdom with neither grasping or fixation, the samádhi of complete non-thought, enlightened insight, the Buddha qualities of liberation, the five eyes, and the higher perceptions are established. --·
At that time, it is said that the kleshas are transformed, and that with the power of the nature as cause, becoming the mere appearance of virtues, they are transformed into the fruition, the Buddha qualities. It is not maintained that the impure becomes pure. That the cause or essence of evil deeds, the kleshas, becomes completely pure is not possible. Depending on the power of separating separable defilements, the Buddha qualities become directly visible. If this is called "transformation," the five poisons may be said to be transformed into the five wisdoms. Alaya is transformed into the wisdom of Dharmadhatu. Alayavijñana is transformed into the mirror-like wisdom etc…·
This is the pure ultimate. When we reach the luminous state of peace, the space of the dhatu, within that sky is the new moon of wisdom, the inner luminosity of omniscience. This is the support, or basis of arising, of the Buddha qualities. At this point, aside from that, the phenomena or appearances of Sambhogakaya do not exist externally from the viewpoint of those who are to be tamed. This is the time of solitary Dharmakaya, transcending the defilements of the four extremes. The new moon is in the sky, but its luminosity is invisible to others. So the profound and subtle wisdom of Dharmakaya is gathered into space.·
Even the bodhisattvas from the first through the tenth bhumi do not see the Sambhogakaya self-appearances of Buddhahood. This is because they are still not free of all obscurations. They are not able to see these realms, and the Buddha qualities and Buddha activity and so forth, limitlessly filling the whole of space. This is because, except for the qualities of their own bhumi, they have not attained the pure mental eye that sees all good qualities. --·
The purpose of visualization is a very subtle topic. In general, it is the process of cultivating the recognition of the qualities of Buddha, i.e.. Kindness and loving compassion in all beings. But equally importantly, it is the cultivation of very real Buddha qualities in your mind stream. By creating these visualizations in your mind stream, and all things that are perceived are part of your mind stream, you are engendering a basis for the further development of the qualities of enlightened mind. One must develop faith in the object of meditation as being real, and those qualities as being real--not imagined.
The Licchavi bodhisattva Ratnakara's hymn to the Buddha - the
qualities of a Buddha
(first the purification of all the worlds by the Buddha; and placing oneself
under his mighty protection;
some deep meditation themes mixed with the qualities and power of the Buddha)
Thereupon, the Licchavi bodhisattva Ratnakara, with five hundred Licchavi youths, each holding a precious parasol made of seven different kinds of jewels, came forth from the city of Vaisali and presented himself at the grove of Amrapali. Each approached the Buddha, bowed at his feet, circumambulated him clockwise seven times, laid down his precious parasol in offering, and withdrew to one side....
The young Licchavi Ratnakara knelt with his right knee on the ground raised his hands, palms pressed together in salute of the Buddha, and praised him with the following hymn. (i.e. also about the eighteen special qualities of the Buddha)
Pure are your eyes, broad and beautiful, like the petals of a blue lotus.
Pure is your thought, having discovered the supreme transcendence of all trances.
Immeasurable is the ocean of your virtues, the accumulation of your good deeds.
You affirm the path of peace.
Oh, Great Ascetic, obeisance to you!Leader, bull of men, we behold the revelation of your miracle.
The superb and radiant fields of the Sugatas appear before us,
And your extensive spiritual teachings, that lead to immortality
Make themselves heard throughout the whole reach of space.Dharma-King, you rule with the Dharma your supreme Dharma-kingdom,
And thereby bestow the treasures of the Dharma upon all living beings.
Expert in the deep analysis of things, you teach their ultimate meaning.
Sovereign Lord of Dharma, obeisance to you.All these things arise dependently, from causes,
Yet they are neither existent nor nonexistent.
Therein is neither ego, nor experiencer, nor doer,
Yet no action, good or evil, loses its effects.
Such is your teaching.O Shakyamuni, conquering the powerful host of Mara,
You found peace, immortality, and the happiness of that supreme enlightenment,
Which is not realized by any among the heterodox,
Though they arrest their feeling, thought and mental processes.Wonderful King of Dharma,
You turned the wheel of Dharma before men and gods,
With its threefold revolution, its manifold aspects,
Its purity of nature, and its extreme peace;
And thereby the Three Jewels were revealed.Hose who are well disciplined by your precious Dharma
Are free of vain imaginings and always deeply peaceful.
Supreme doctor, you put an end to birth, decay, sickness, and death.
Immeasurable ocean of virtue, obeisance to you!Like Mount Sumeru, you are unmoved by honor or scorn.
You love moral beings and immoral beings equally.
Poised in equanimity, your mind is like the sky.
Who would not honor such a precious jewel of a being?Great Sage, in all these multitudes gathered here,
Who look upon your countenance with hearts sincere in faith, Each being beholds the Victor, as if just before him.
This is a special quality of the Buddha.Although the Lord speaks with but one voice,
Those present perceive that same voice differently,
And each understands in his own language according to his own needs.
This is a special quality of the Buddha.From the Leader's act of speaking in a single voice,
Some merely develop an instinct for the teaching, some gain realization,
Some find pacification of all their doubts.
This is a special quality of the Buddha.Obeisance to you who command the force of leadership and the ten powers!
Obeisance to you who are dauntless, knowing no fear!
Obeisance to you, leader of all living beings,
Who fully manifests the special qualities!Obeisance to you who have cut the bondage of all fetters!
Obeisance to you who, having gone beyond, stand on firm ground!
Obeisance to you who save the suffering beings!
Obeisance to you who do not remain in the migrations!You associate with living beings by frequenting their migrations.
Yet your mind is liberated from all migrations.
Just as the lotus, born of mud, is not tainted thereby,
So the lotus of the Buddha preserves the realization of void-ness.You nullify all signs in all things everywhere.
You are not subject to any wish for anything at all.
The miraculous power of the Buddhas is inconceivable.
I bow to you, who stand nowhere, like infinite space.
The actuality of the four main elements
(An example of the use of "skillful means" to get the attention and
teach the Dharma)
Friends, the body of a Tathágata is the body of Dharma, born of gnosis.
The body of a Tathágata is born of the stores of merit and wisdom. (Two accumulations)
It is born of morality, of meditation, of wisdom (three superior trainings), of the liberations, and of the knowledge and vision of liberation.
It is born of love, compassion, joy, and impartiality. (Four immeasurables)
(Six Paramitas)Ø
It is born of charity, discipline, and self-control.Ø
It is born of the path of ten virtues. (Abandoning the ten non-virtues)Ø
It is born of patience and gentleness.Ø
It is born of the roots of virtue planted by solid efforts.Ø
It is born of the concentrations, the liberations, the meditations, and the absorptions.Ø
It is born of learning, wisdom, and liberative technique.It is born of the thirty-seven aids to enlightenment. (The same as The seven sets of the Wings of Awakening)
It is born of mental quiescence and transcendental analysis.
It is born of the ten powers, the four fearlessnesses, and the eighteen special qualities. (i.e. thirty-two distinctive qualities)
It is born of transcendences. (The six transcendences / paramitas)
It is born from sciences and super-knowledge’s.
It is born of the abandonment of all evil qualities, and of the collection of all good qualities.
It is born of truth.
It is born of reality.
It is born of conscious awareness."Friends, the body of a Tathágata is born of innumerable good works.
Toward such a body you should turn your aspirations, and, in order to eliminate the sicknesses of the passions of all living beings, you should conceive the spirit of unexcelled, perfect enlightenment."
The seat of enlightenment
(Bringing the result into the Path; all facets of the result used as the causes;
acting them is acting as a Buddha)
The Buddha then said to the young Licchavi Prabhavyuha,
"Prabhavyuha, go to the Licchavi Vimalakirti to inquire about his illness."
Prabhavyuha replied,
"Lord, I am indeed reluctant to go to that good man to inquire about his illness. Why? Lord, I remember one day, when I was going out of the great city of Vaisali, I met the Licchavi Vimalakirti coming in. He greeted me, and I then addressed him: 'Householder, where do you come from?'
He replied, 'I come from the seat of enlightenment.'
I then inquired, 'What is meant by "seat of enlightenment"?'
He then spoke the following words to me,
'Noble son, the seat of enlightenment is the seat of positive thought because it is without artificiality.
It is the seat of effort, because it releases energetic activities.
It is the seat of high resolve, because its insight is superior.
It is the seat of the great spirit of enlightenment, because it does not neglect anything."'It is the seat of generosity, because it has no expectation of reward.
It is the seat of morality, because it fulfills all commitments.
It is the seat of tolerance, because it is free of anger toward any living being.
It is the seat of effort, because it does not turn back.
It is the seat of meditation, because it generates fitness of mind.
It is the seat of wisdom, because it sees everything directly."'It is the seat of love, because it is equal to all living beings.
It is the seat of compassion, because it tolerates all injuries.
It is the seat of joy, because it is joyfully devoted to the bliss of the Dharma.
It is the seat of equanimity, because it abandons affection and aversion."'It is the seat of paranormal perception, because it has the six super-knowledge’s.
It is the seat of liberation, because it does not intellectualize.
It is the seat of liberative technique, because it develops living beings.
It is the seat of the means of unification, because it brings together living beings.
It is the seat of learning, because it makes practice of the essence.
It is the seat of decisiveness, because of its precise discrimination.
It is the seat of the aids to enlightenment, because it eliminates the duality of the compounded and the uncompounded.
It is the seat of truth, because it does not deceive anyone."'It is the seat of interdependent origination, because it proceeds from the exhaustion of ignorance to the exhaustion of old age and death.
It is the seat of eradication of all passions, because it is perfectly enlightened about the nature of reality.
It is the seat of all living beings, because all living beings are without intrinsic identity.
It is the seat of all things, because it is perfectly enlightened with regard to void ness."'It is the seat of the conquest of all devils, because it never flinches.
It is the seat of the triple world, because it is free of involvement.
It is the seat of the heroism that sounds the lion's roar, because it is free of fear and trembling.
It is the seat of the strengths, the fearlessnesses, and all the special qualities of the Buddha, because it is irreproachable in all respects.
It is the seat of the three know ledges, because in it no passions remain.
It is the seat of instantaneous, total understanding of all things, because it realizes fully the gnosis of omniscience."'Noble son, when bodhisattvas are thus endowed with the transcendences, the roots of virtue, the ability to develop living beings, and the incorporation of the holy Dharma, whether they lift up their feet or put them down, they all come from the seat of enlightenment. (i.e. all facets of the same enlightenment) They come from the qualities of the Buddha, and stand on the qualities of the Buddha.'
"Lord, when Vimalakirti had explained this teaching, five hundred gods and men conceived the spirit of enlightenment, and I became speechless. Therefore, Lord, I am reluctant to go to that good man to inquire about his illness."
"Thereupon, Mara said to the goddesses, 'now come along and let us return home.'
"They said, 'you gave us to this householder. Now we should enjoy the delights of the Dharma and should no longer enjoy the pleasures of desires.'
(i.e. meaning the bliss is better that the brief pleasure of the satisfaction of ordinary desires.)"Then Mara said to the Licchavi Vimalakirti, 'If it is so that the bodhisattva, the spiritual hero, has no mental attachment, and gives away all his possessions, then, householder, please give me these goddesses.'
"Vimalakirti replied, 'they are given, Mara. Go home with your retinue. May you fulfill the religious aspirations of all living beings!'
"Then the goddesses, saluting Vimalakirti, said to him, 'Householder, how should we live in the abode of the Maras?'
"Vimalakirti replied,
'Sisters, there is a door of the Dharma called "The Inexhaustible Lamp." Practice it!
What is it?
Sisters, a single lamp may light hundreds of thousands of lamps without itself being diminished. Likewise, sisters, a single bodhisattva may establish many hundreds of thousands of living beings in enlightenment without his mindfulness being diminished. In fact, not only does it not diminish, it grows stronger. Likewise, the more you teach and demonstrate virtuous qualities to others, the more you grow with respect to these virtuous qualities. This is the door (#1) of the Dharma called "The Inexhaustible Lamp." When you are living in the realm of Mara, inspire innumerable gods and goddesses with the spirit of enlightenment. In such a way, you will repay the kindness of the Tathágata, and you will become the benefactors of all living beings.'"Then, those goddesses bowed at the feet of the Licchavi Vimalakirti and departed in the company of Mara. Thus, Lord, I saw the supremacy of the magical power, wisdom, and eloquence of the Licchavi Vimalakirti, and therefore I am reluctant to go to that good man to inquire about his illness."
Qualities of Vimalakirti by Manjushri
(Qualities of the orator)
Then, the Buddha said to the crown prince, Manjusri,
"Manjusri, go to the Licchavi Vimalakirti to inquire about his illness."
Manjusri replied,
"Lord, it is difficult to attend upon the Licchavi Vimalakirti.
He is gifted with marvelous eloquence concerning the law of the profound.
He is extremely skilled in full expressions and in the reconciliation of dichotomies.
His eloquence is inexorable, and no one can resist his imperturbable intellect.
He accomplishes all the activities of the bodhisattvas.
He penetrates all the secret mysteries of the bodhisattvas and the Buddhas.
He is skilled in civilizing all the abodes of devils.
He plays with the great super-knowledge’s.
He is consummate in wisdom and liberative technique.
He has attained the supreme excellence of the indivisible, non-dual sphere of the ultimate realm.
He is skilled in teaching the Dharma with its infinite modalities within the uniform ultimate.
He is skilled in granting means of attainment in accordance with the spiritual faculties of all living beings.
He has thoroughly integrated his realization with skill in liberative technique.
He has attained decisiveness with regard to all questions.
Thus, although he cannot be withstood by someone of my feeble defenses,
still, sustained by the grace of the Buddha, I will go to him and will converse with him as well as I can."Thereupon, in that assembly, the bodhisattvas, the great disciples, the Sakras, the Brahmas, the Lokapalas, and the gods and goddesses, all had this thought:
"Surely the conversations of the young prince Manjusri and that good man will result in a profound teaching of the Dharma."
Thus, eight thousand bodhisattvas, five hundred disciples, a great number of Sakras, Brahmas, Lokapalas, and many hundreds of thousands of gods and goddesses, all followed the crown prince Manjusri to listen to the Dharma. And the crown prince Manjusri, surrounded and followed by these bodhisattvas, disciples, Sakras, Brahmas, Lokapalas, gods, and goddesses, entered the great city of Vaisali.
Meanwhile, the Licchavi Vimalakirti thought to himself,
"Manjusri, the crown prince, is coming here with numerous attendants. Now, may this house be transformed into emptiness!"
Then, magically his house became empty. Even the doorkeeper disappeared. And, except for the invalid's couch upon which Vimalakirti himself was lying, no bed or couch or seat could be seen anywhere.
C) The domain of the bodhisattva
"That, Manjusri, is the way a sick bodhisattva should concentrate his mind; he should live neither in control of his mind, nor in indulgence of his mind. Why?
Ø
To live by indulging the mind is proper for foolsØ
And to live in control of the mind is proper for the disciples.Therefore, the bodhisattva should live neither in control nor in indulgence of his mind. Not living in either of the two extremes is the domain of the bodhisattva.
"Not the domain of the ordinary individual and not the domain of the saint, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.
Ø
The domain of the world yet not the domain of the passions, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
Where one understands liberation, yet does not enter final and complete liberation, there is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
Where the four Maras manifest, yet where all the works of Maras are transcended, there is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
Where one seeks the gnosis of omniscience, yet does not attain this gnosis at the wrong time, there is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
Where one knows the Four Holy Truths, yet does not realize those truths at the wrong time, there is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
A domain of introspective insight, wherein one does not arrest voluntary reincarnation in the world, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
A domain where one realizes birthlessness, yet does not become destined for the ultimate, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
Where one sees relativity without entertaining any convictions, there is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
Where one associates with all beings, yet keeps free of all afflictive instincts, there is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
A domain of solitude with no place for the exhaustion of body and mind, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of the triple world, yet indivisible from the ultimate realm, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of void-ness, yet where one cultivates all types of virtues, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of sign-less-ness, where one keeps in sight the deliverance of all living beings, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of wish-less-ness, where one voluntarily manifests lives in the world; such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
"A domain essentially without undertaking, yet where all the roots of virtue are undertaken without interruption, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of the six transcendences (the six paramitas?), where one attains the transcendence of the thoughts and actions of all living beings, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of the six super-knowledge’s, wherein defilements are not exhausted, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of living by the holy Dharma, without even perceiving any evil paths, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of the four immeasurables, where one does not accept rebirth in the heaven of Brahma, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of the six remembrances, unaffected by any sort of defilement, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.(The Seven Sets -- The thirty-seven Seven Factors Of Enlightenment)
Ø
The domain of contemplation, meditation, and concentration, where one does not reincarnate in the formless realms by force of these meditations and concentrations, such is the domain of the bodhisattva. (i.e. the four frames of reference)Ø
The domain of the four right efforts, where the duality of good and evil is not apprehended, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of the four bases of magical powers, where they are effortlessly mastered, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of the five spiritual faculties, where one knows the degrees of the spiritual faculties of living beings, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of living with the five powers, where one delights in the ten powers of the Tathágata, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of perfection of the seven factors of enlightenment, where one is skilled in the knowledge of fine intellectual distinctions, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of the holy eightfold path, where one delights in the unlimited path of the Buddha, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of the cultivation of the aptitude for mental quiescence and transcendental analysis, where one does not fall into extreme quietism, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of the realization of the unborn nature of all things, yet of the perfection of the body, the auspicious signs and marks, and the ornaments of the Buddha, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of manifesting the attitudes of the disciples and the solitary sages without sacrificing the qualities of the Buddha, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain of conformity to all things utterly pure in nature while manifesting behavior that suits the inclinations of all living beings, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
A domain where one realizes that all the Buddha-fields are indestructible and un-creatable, having the nature of infinite space, yet where one manifests the establishment of the qualities of the Buddha-fields in all their variety and magnitude, such is the domain of the bodhisattva.Ø
The domain where one turns the wheel of the holy Dharma and manifests the magnificence of ultimate liberation, yet never forsakes the career of the bodhisattva, such is the domain of the bodhisattva!"When Vimalakirti had spoken this discourse, eight thousand of the gods in the company of the crown prince Manjusri conceived the spirit of unexcelled, perfect enlightenment.
Right Effort : Follow the wrong ways with the right perception
and attitude
(always living the way of liberation, but without ever abandoning the progress
of the world)
Then, the crown prince Manjusri said to the Licchavi Vimalakirti,
"Noble sir, how does the bodhisattva follow the way to attain the qualities of the Buddha?"
Vimalakirti replied,
"Manjusri, when the bodhisattva follows the wrong way, he follows the way to attain the qualities of the Buddha."...
The family of the Tathágatas
(necessity of the passions for enlightenment
Right effort does not consist of stopping unskillful qualities like in Hinayana;
it transcends them and uses them as skillful means with the motivation of
Bodhicitta)
(The trick is that without Bodhicitta you cannot transcend them and then use
them skillfully
- that is the vajra power.)
Then, the Licchavi Vimalakirti said to the crown prince Manjusri,
"Manjusri, what is the 'family of the Tathágatas'?"
Manjusri replied,
"Noble sir, the family of the Tathágatas consists of all basic egoism; of ignorance and the thirst for existence; of lust, hate, and folly; of the four misapprehensions, of the five obscurations, of the six media of sense, of the seven abodes of consciousness, of the eight false paths, of the nine causes of irritation, of the paths of ten sins. (10+9+8+7+6+5+4+3+2+1equals 55 missing 7) Such is the family of the Tathágatas. In short, noble sir, the sixty-two kinds of convictions constitute the family of the Tathágatas!" (i.e. like the 62 deities of the mandala of the body of Heruka?)
Vimalakirti: Manjusri, with what in mind do you say so?
Manjusri:
Noble sir, one who stays in the fixed determination of the vision of the uncreated is not capable of conceiving the spirit of unexcelled perfect enlightenment. However, one who lives among created things, in the mines of passions, without seeing any truth, is indeed capable of conceiving the spirit of unexcelled perfect enlightenment.
Noble sir, flowers like the blue lotus, the red lotus, the white lotus, the water lily, and the moon lily do not grow on the dry ground in the wilderness, but do grow in the swamps and mud banks. Just so, the Buddha-qualities do not grow in living beings certainly destined for the uncreated but do grow in those living beings who are like swamps and mud banks of passions. Likewise, as seeds do not grow in the sky but do grow in the earth, so the Buddha-qualities do not grow in those determined for the absolute but do grow in those who conceive the spirit of enlightenment, after having produced a Sumeru-like mountain of egoistic views.
Noble sir, through these considerations one can understand that all passions constitute the family of the Tathágatas. For example, noble sir, without going out into the great ocean, it is impossible to find precious, priceless pearls. Likewise, without going into the ocean of passions, it is impossible to obtain the mind of omniscience.
Then, the elder Mahakasyapa applauded the crown prince Manjusri:
"Good! Good Manjusri! This is indeed well spoken! This is right! The passions do indeed constitute the family of the Tathágatas. How can such as we, the disciples, conceive the spirit of enlightenment, or become fully enlightened in regard to the qualities of the Buddha? Only those guilty of the five deadly sins can conceive the spirit of enlightenment and can attain Buddhahood, which is the full accomplishment of the qualities of the Buddha!
"Just as, for example, the five desire objects have no impression or effect on those bereft of faculties, even so all the qualities of the Buddha have no impression or effect on the disciples, who have abandoned all adherences. Thus, the disciples can never appreciate those qualities.
"Therefore, Manjusri, the ordinary individual is grateful to the Tathágata, but the disciples are not grateful. Why? The ordinary individuals, upon learning of the virtues of the Buddha, conceive the spirit of unexcelled perfect enlightenment, in order to insure the uninterrupted continuity of the heritage of the Three Jewels; but the disciples, although they may hear of the qualities, powers, and fearlessnesses of the Buddha until the end of their days, are not capable of conceiving the spirit of unexcelled perfect enlightenment."
11.3 - The same perfection of the Buddhas-qualities in all of
them
(whatever the skillful means used, the result is always the same)
"Ánanda, this is a Dharma-door called 'Introduction to all the Buddha-qualities.’ The bodhisattva who enters this Dharma-door experiences neither joy nor pride when confronted by a Buddha-field adorned with the splendor of all noble qualities, and experiences neither sadness nor aversion when confronted by a Buddha-field apparently without that splendor, but in all cases produces a profound reverence for all the Tathágatas. Indeed, it is wonderful how all the Lord Buddhas, who understand the equality of all things, manifest all sorts of Buddha-fields in order to develop living beings!
"Ánanda, just as the Buddha-fields (Dharma doors) are diverse as to their specific qualities but have no difference as to the sky that covers them, so, Ánanda, the Tathágatas are diverse as to their physical bodies but do not differ as to their unimpeded gnosis.
"Ánanda, all the Buddhas are the same as to the perfection of the Buddha-qualities, that is: their forms, their colors, their radiance, their bodies, their marks, their nobility, their morality, their concentration, their wisdom, their liberation, the gnosis and vision of liberation, their strengths, their fearlessnesses, their special Buddha-qualities, their great love, their great compassion, their helpful intentions, their attitudes, their practices, their paths, the lengths of their lives, their teachings of the Dharma, their development and liberation of living beings, and their purification of Buddha-fields. Therefore, they are all called 'Samyaksam-Buddhas,' 'Tathágatas,' and 'Buddhas.'
"Ánanda, were your life to last an entire aeon, it would not be easy for you to understand thoroughly the extensive meaning and precise verbal significance of these three names. Also, Ánanda, if all the living beings of this billion-world galactic universe were like you the foremost of the learned and the foremost of those endowed with memory and incantations - and were they to devote an entire aeon, they would still be unable to understand completely the exact and extensive meaning of the three words 'SamyaksamBuddha,' 'Tathágata,' and 'Buddha.' Thus, Ánanda, the enlightenment of the Buddhas is immeasurable, and the wisdom and the eloquence of the Tathágatas are inconceivable."
If these are removed or purified, then the inherent qualities of the mind’s true nature, which we refer to as wisdom or Yeshe, will naturally manifest and spread like the rays of the sun. The word in Tibetan for the removal of these obscurations sang, means "cleansing," and the word for the spreading of the inherent qualities of the mind that occurs as a result of that cleansing is gye, or "increasing." Sangye, these two words together, is the Tibetan word for a Buddha. Therefore, what is meant by Buddhahood is the recognition and realization of the complete purity of the mind.
When the nature of the mind becomes fully manifest, it possesses what are usually enumerated as twenty-seven extraordinary qualities, such as complete unchanging emptiness and great bliss.
In order to benefit those to be trained, the mind of a Buddha exhibits what are usually enumerated as thirty-two qualities, which are outlined as the ten powers, the four kinds of fearlessness, and the eighteen qualities of unmistaken-ness. A Buddha, for instance, knows the nature and situation of all of samsara and all of nirvana. He or she knows the past, present, and future of every sentient being.
Arising from these qualities of the mind of a Buddha are qualities of speech, traditionally sixty qualities, possessed only by a Buddha and not by any ordinary human or god. One such quality is that if a Buddha gives one teaching at one time to 1,000 people, each of whom speaks a different language and is from a different place, each single person will understand what the Buddha is saying.
Beyond that, a Buddha has the capacity to teach in such a way that each single person receives the particular kind of teaching, at the same time, that the individual needs to receive. So, with one teaching of dharma, a Buddha can give the remedy to each person for his or her particular strongest mental affliction.
The qualities of the body of a Buddha are experienced at various levels. Particularly the Sambhogakaya, or body of complete enjoyment of a Buddha, is experienced only by bodhisattvas residing upon the eighth, ninth, and tenth levels of realization. It is a bodhisattva residing upon one of those levels who sees the forms of the Sambhogakaya, Vajradhara, Vajrasattva, Avalokiteshvara, and so forth. The Sambhogakaya is actually experienced as possessing the appearance with which we are familiar, the glorious silk garments, jewel ornaments, the pure form, and so forth. The actual appearance of the Sambhogakaya is an expression of the complete possession by a Buddha of all qualities of the world and beyond the world.
In order to train ordinary beings, the Buddhas manifest as Nirmanakaya, as in the case of the Buddha Shakyamuni. Such a Nirmanakaya possesses what are called the thirty-two major and eighty minor marks of full Buddhahood. These include the ushnisa on the top of the head, the thousand-spoked dharma wheels on the palms of the hands and soles of the feet, and so forth.
These qualities only arise on the body of a Buddha and not upon the body of any human or worldly god. They arise in such a way that anyone who sees the form of a Buddha immediately delights in it and finds it beautiful to see. In this way, the qualities of the body, speech, and mind of a Buddha are superior to anything and anyone else.
The actual excellence or superiority of a Buddha consists in the fact that a Buddha has the wisdom, compassion, and ability to give beings exactly what each needs in order to become free from the sufferings of samsara. So, in order to benefit beings, the Buddha teaches the dharma, the second of the three rare and supreme ones, the three jewels. And as sentient beings possess 84,000 different mental afflictions (kleshas), the Buddha taught 84,000 teachings of the dharma.
Therefore, one must begin by becoming aware of and understanding exactly what the qualities of the Buddha, the dharma, and the Sangha are. By doing so, one will give rise to faith in them. One will be able to feel one’s faith and go for refuge to them. It is necessary that this occur as a basis for practice. Beyond that, the going for refuge must be something that is continually practiced and renewed in one’s daily practice; this is extremely important.
The expression, "Lord of Refuge" is a direct translation of the Tibetan, kyabje, a title which is placed before the names of very great lamas by Tibetans, signifying that the lama in question possesses all of the qualities of wisdom and compassion necessary to lead practitioners from the very beginning of the path all the way through its many stages to the state of Buddhahood.
-- Shenpen Osel 2
The Inner Refuge In The Fundamental Nature Of Our Own Mind As Indivisible
From Buddhahood
The Dzogchen Ponlop Rinpoche
The Buddha
The innermost sense of refuge is the discovery of our own basic nature of mind, which is the nature of Buddha's wisdom. In the context of absolute truth, we go for refuge to the fundamental nature of our own mind, which is indivisible from the jewel of the Buddha. The nature of Buddhahood itself is luminous, naturally cognizant wisdom, usually referred to as the Dharmakaya, or the body of essential qualities. Our fundamental state of mind is totally awake, totally in the state of fully awakened heart. Rediscovery of that heart, making a connection with that heart, again, is what we call taking refuge in the Buddha. You know, that's what Buddha is. Buddha is basically the wisdom of awakened mind, and that awakened mind is nothing "outside" but is within this very nature of our mind. Making a strong connection with that discovery is what we call taking refuge. It is an extremely, extremely close connection. That connection is basic confidence, basic faith, basic trust that we develop through our discovery.
We're making a commitment to discover our own basic nature as being the wisdom of Buddha, to uncover that, to work on the development of our basic potential of Buddha, the Dharmakaya Buddha. Dharmakaya is always within our being, within all sentient beings. We possess the basic qualities of the Buddha from beginning-less time. On the one hand, we are Buddha from the beginning-less time. But, on the other hand, this Buddha quality potential is covered by our defilements, our obscurations. The klesa mind and cognitive obscurations are covering our basic Buddha qualities. So we make a commitment that we are going to work on clearing these obstacles and generating our basic Buddha quality up to the extent that we can fully radiate this quality outside as an historic Buddha. That is the fundamental notion of taking refuge in the Buddha as being within our own nature. Now, to recognize that the nature of our mind is Buddha Nature is the beginning of the process of revealing that nature. By revealing that nature, then we can dispel all the sufferings and all of the fears of samsara. So to recognize that our mind's nature is Buddha Nature, to have confidence or faith in this, and to have the aspiration and commitment to reveal this is the internal way of going for refuge.
The Dharma
Taking refuge in the Dharma in the more sane sense is becoming one with the path of fully developing this discovery of essence, this discovery of seed. Whatever we have discovered, at this point, as an enlightened heart is not yet fully grown, is not yet at the stage of fully grown enlightened mind. Our discovery is a little shaky at this point. It is a very, very profound discovery but, at the same time, it's very shaky, and it's very tricky. At a certain point, it becomes very clear, and we're very confident. And then, on the other hand, we have lots of doubts. We have lots of shaky states that we go through which means we have not fully developed this discovery. We have not fully mastered or familiarized ourselves with the new discovery that we have made or the new connection, or reconnection that we have started. Therefore, the path in this case is the Dharma, taking refuge in the Dharma, which is the genuine path. And that genuine path is nothing but your realization on the path. It is the internalization of Dharma, making yourself one with the Dharma instead of looking at Dharma as path, which is outside you. That is the inner-most sense of taking refuge in the Dharma, becoming one with the path, becoming one with the teachings. Going beyond the language and words of Dharma and simply being Dharma, being in the state of Dharma, being in the state of path is what we call taking refuge in Dharma. That taking refuge in Dharma involves a complete trust, a complete confidence, and complete sense of being which we talked about the other day as the mindfulness of mind.
The Ultimate Dharma, the refuge of Dharma connected with absolute truth, is the arousal of Dharma in your mind, which is to say, the point at which your mind and the Dharma are totally mixed, and you become the Dharma. Ultimately, it is the mixing of the meaning of Dharma with your mind such that your actions and state of body, speech and mind are always in accordance with the Dharma. So the real Dharma is realization and, as an ultimate source of refuge, is not anything outside you or separate from your mind. Nevertheless, in order to increase one's realization of ultimate Dharma, one goes for refuge to the Dharma, which is a commitment to generating and increasing this realization.
Although Buddha Nature is present within you, it is not revealed. It is still hidden or obscured. It's presence, and the recognition of its presence, or trust in its presence are not in themselves enough to dispel the sufferings of samsara. In order to actually dispel those sufferings, you have to fully reveal this Buddha Nature. You have to make it's qualities manifest. Now the process of revealing it, or the methods by which it can be revealed, are what we call Dharma. To train in these profound methods for gradually revealing your own Buddha Nature, which involves enhancing or developing both wisdom and compassion, is going for Refuge in the genuine Dharma.
The Sangha
The third refuge is taking refuge in the Sangha. Taking refuge in the Sangha is the outcome of the first two. After you have discovered this basic heart of enlightenment, after you have familiarized yourself with that, internalized it as the path, then whatever comes out of it as a product and as a result is what we call the Sangha. What manifests from these two first discoveries of enlightened heart and the path of enlightenment is a complete sense of compassionate heart. The warmth, the loving heart which manifests out of these two first discoveries is what we call taking refuge in Sangha. So that is the companion. Our companion is loving-kindness, our companion is bodhicitta, our companion is love for others, and our companion is compassion for others. That is the notion of Sangha here and of taking refuge in the Sangha in the inner-most sense. That is the true refuge that we are taking. There is no form involved. It is a simple, genuine, straightforward heart that you have discovered, and re-strengthening that heart is what we call taking refuge.
When we become one with the Dharma and are in the process of generating this basic Buddha quality, then we are a part of the Sangha. The actual refuge of the Sangha arises when we realize the qualities of the truth of cessation and are then able to help and instruct others. The ultimate Sangha is what happens to our mind when we enter and progress on the path of Dharma, and Dharma starts to become actualized within us. Through engaging in this process of revealing our own fundamental nature, our compassion for other beings as well as our natural wisdom increases and flourishes. As a result, we become able to benefit both ourselves and others. This act of benefiting others is what is meant by going for refuge to the Sangha.
About The Emptiness Of The Objects And Qualities
From: Chandrakirti's Guide to the Middle Way - the 16 emptiness’s:
The Emptiness Of Definition
(i.e. The Emptiness Of Individual Characteristics)
A Brief Explanation
[That which is the non-thing of suitable to be form and so forth
Is the emptiness of definitions.An Extensive Explanation
The Definitions Of The Phenomena Of The Base:
Form has the definition, suitable to be form,
Feeling has the nature of experience,
Discrimination is apprehending signs,
And compositional factors are produced phenomena.The definition of consciousness
Is cognizing aspects of individual objects.
The definition of aggregate is suffering.
The nature of the elements is said to be a poisonous snake.The sources are said by Buddha
To be the doors for generation.
Within dependent relationship, that which arises
Is defined as coming together.The Definitions Of The Phenomena Of The Path
The perfection of giving is giving away.
Moral discipline is defined as without torment.
Patience is defined as without anger.
Effort is defined as without non-virtue.Mental stabilization is defined as gathering.
Wisdom is defined as without attachment.
These are given as the definitions
Of the six perfections.The mental stabilizations, the immeasurables,
And likewise others that are formless
Are said by the Perfect Knower
To have the definition unperturbed.The thirty-seven realizations conducive to enlightenment
Are defined as causing definite emergence.
The definition of emptiness
Is complete isolation through not observing.Sign-less-ness is pacification;
The definition of the third is the absence of suffering and confusion.
The [concentrations of] perfect liberation
Are defined as perfectly liberating.The Definitions Of The Phenomena Of The Result
The forces are said to be the nature of
Utterly perfect decisiveness.
The fearlessnesses of the Protector
Are the nature of utter firmness.The correct, specific cognizer
Have the definition inexhaustible confidence and so on.
Accomplishing the benefit of living beings
Is called great love.Completely protecting those who suffer
Is great compassion.
Joy is defined as supreme joy,
And equanimity should be known by the definition unmixed.Whatever are asserted to be
The eighteen unshared qualities of a Buddha
Are defined as unsurpassed
Because the Blessed One is never surpassed by them.The exalted awareness knowing all aspects
Is said to have the definition direct perceiver
Others, being limited,
Are not called direct perceiversA Summary
Whether they are definitions of produced phenomena
Or definitions of un-produced phenomena,
Their mere emptiness
Is the emptiness of definitions.
A Presentation Of Buddha's Bodies
An Explanation Of The Truth Body
That pacification that comes from the burning of all the dry tinder of objects of knowledge
Is the Truth Body of the Conquerors.
At that time there is no production and no disintegration.
Since minds have ceased, it is experienced directly by the body.An Explanation Of The Complete Enjoyment Body
This pacified body is resplendent, like a wish-granting tree
And without conception, like a wish-fulfilling jewel.
It will remain always until living beings are liberated, for the fortune of the world,
And appear to those who are free from elaboration.An Explanation Of The Body Corresponding To Its Cause
[Emanation Bodies]
How he displays all his deeds in one pore of his bodyThe Powerful Able One, at one time, in one Form Body
Corresponding to that cause, clearly and without disorder
Makes a complete and exquisite display
Of everything that happened during his previous lives now ceased.What the Buddha Lands and their Powerful Able Ones were like;
What their bodies, deeds, and powers were like;
How many assemblies of I fearers there were, and what they were like;
What forms the Bodhisattvas took there;What the Dharma was like, and what he was like then;
What deeds were performed from listening to Dharma;
How much giving was practiced towards them -
All these he displays in one body.Likewise what moral discipline, patience, effort, concentration, and wisdom
He practiced during previous lives;
He displays clearly all these deeds without leaving anything out,
In just one hair pore of his body.How He Displays All The Deeds Of Others There
Buddhas who have passed away, those who are yet to come,
And those of the present dwelling in the world,
Revealing Dharma in a loud voice carrying to the ends of space
And bestowing breath on living beings tormented by suffering;All their deeds from first generating the mind
Through to the essence of enlightenment,
Knowing these things to be the nature of illusions,
He displays them all clearly at one time in one hair pore.Likewise the deeds of all Superior Bodhisattvas,
Solitary Realizers, and Hearers of the three times,
And all the activities of the remaining beings;
He displays all of these at one time in one pore.An Explanation Of His Completely Excellent Mastery Of His Wishes
This Pure One, by enacting his wishes,
Displays the worlds throughout space on a single atom,
And an atom filling the directions of infinite worlds,
Without the atom becoming larger or the worlds becoming smaller.Not being governed by conception, you will show in each instant,
Until the end of samsara,
As many countless different deeds
As there are atoms in all the worlds.A Presentation Of The Good Qualities Of The Forces
Briefly Presenting The Ten Forces
The force knowing source and non-source,
Likewise knowing full ripening of actions,
Understanding the various desires,
And the force knowing the various elements,Likewise knowing supreme and non-supreme powers,
Going everywhere,
And the force knowing the mental stabilizations,
Concentrations of perfect liberation, concentrations, absorptions, and so forth,Knowing recollections of previous places,
Likewise knowing death and birth,
And the force knowing the cessation of contaminations -
These are the ten forces.
An Extensive Explanation Of The Ten Forces
Any cause from which something is definitely produced
Is said by the Omniscient Ones to be the source of that.
The opposite of what is explained is not a source.
The knower of infinite objects of knowledge that has abandoned obstructions is said to be a force.The desirable, the undesirable, the reverse of these, actions of abandonment,
And their full ripening - a great variety -
The powerful, able, unobstructed knower engaging individually,
That encompasses objects of knowledge of the three times is said to be a force.Desires arising through the force of attachment and so forth-
A great variety of inferior, middling, and especially superior desires -
The knower of these and others besides them
Encompassing all living beings of the three times is known as a force.Through their skill in perfectly distinguishing the elements,
Buddhas say that whatever is the nature of eyes and so forth is an element.
The limitless knower of complete Buddhas
realizing the distinctions of all types of element is said to be a force.Of conceptualization and so forth, only the very sharp are accepted as supreme;
Middling types and the dull being explained as non-supreme.
The knower of all aspects free from attachment
That understands the eyes and so forth, and their ability to support each other, is said to be a force.Some paths lead to the very state of a Conqueror,
Some to the enlightenment of a Solitary Realizer or the enlightenment of a Hearer, Others to hungry ghosts, animals, hell beings, gods, humans, and so forth; The knower of these that is free from attachment is said to be the force going everywhere.The different types of Yogi throughout limitless worlds
Have the mental stabilizations, the eight [concentrations of] perfect liberation, Those that are tranquil abidings, and the nine that are absorptions; The unobstructed knower of these is said to be a force.For as long as there is confusion, there is abiding in samsara.
Oneself and each and every living being of samsara now past,
However many there are, a limitless number, their origins and places of birth - The knower of these is said to be a force.The many varieties of death and birth of every single living being
Inhabiting the worlds as extensive as space -
The limitless knower without attachment and completely pure
That apprehends all aspects of these at one time is said to be a force.The Conquerors' swift destruction of delusions together with their imprints
Through the force of the knower of all aspects,
And the cessation of delusions by wisdom in the disciples and so forth-
The limitless knower of these that is free from attachment is said to be a force.
Why All The Qualities Cannot Be Described
Just as a bird does not turn back due to lack of space,
But returns when its strength is consumed,
So the disciples and Sons of the Buddhas
Turn back when describing the good qualities of
Buddha, which are as limitless as space.So how could one such as I
Understand or explain your good qualities?
However, since they were explained by Superior Nargarjuna,
I have overcome my apprehension and mentioned just a few.The Benefits Of Understanding The Two Good Qualities
The profound is emptiness,
And the vast are the other good qualities.
Through understanding the ways of the profound and the vast
These good qualities will be attained.
(There are four ways of making requests to the Guru:
·
i. Requesting by reciting the name mantra·
ii. Requesting by remembering his good qualities and his kindness·
iii. Requesting by expressing his good qualities·
iv. Single-pointed request)
Requesting by thinking of the Guru's good qualities
His good qualities according to the Vinaya
(According to the Vinaya, a qualified Teacher must be an elder, which means that he must have been ordained for at least ten years without breaking any of his vows, and he must possess fifteen good qualities. These include:
§
Great moral discipline,§
Extensive understanding of the three sets of doctrine,§
Expertise in the rules of the Vinaya,§
Loving compassion for his disciples and for sick people,§
Freedom from any worldly relationships,§
And skill in teaching Dharma at the appropriate time.Because our Spiritual Guide possesses all these qualities he is like a second Buddha for us, showing us the path and leading us to liberation and enlightenment. Contemplating these excellent qualities, we develop deep faith in our Spiritual Guide and request his blessings.)
We make our requests to you, O Holders of the Elders' Vinaya,
O Masters, second Buddhas clad in saffron:
You brim with a treasury of the jewels of much hearing
And are a source of excellence, an immense ocean of moral discipline.
His good qualities according to the common Mahayana teachings
(As a fully-qualified Mahayana Spiritual Guide, our Guru possesses the ten qualities explained by Maitreya in "Ornament for Mahayana Sutras":
1. A mind that is controlled by the practice of moral discipline.
2. A mind that has become peaceful and undistracted through the practice of concentration
3. Reduced self-grasping through the practice of wisdom
4. Greater knowledge than the disciple
5. Delight in teaching Dharma
6. A wealth of spiritual knowledge
7. A deep and stable realization of emptiness
8. Great skill in explaining Dharma
9. Compassion and love for his disciples
10. Enthusiasm for teaching Dharma, being free from discouragement or laziness)
We make our requests to you, O Mahayana Gurus, Lords of Dharma,
Representing the Victorious Ones without exception;
You possess the ten qualities that render you suitable guides
Along the path of Those Who Have Gone to Bliss.
His qualities according to the Vajrayâna teachings
(Our Spiritual Master is also a full-qualified Tantric Master. A Tantric Master must have many special qualities in addition to those required by a Mahayana Spiritual Guide. Needless to say he must have received all the relevant empowerments and transmissions, and have completed the close retreats of those practices.
In addition, he must have Thirteen good qualities, which are indicated by the present verse. He must possess:
1. Actions of body, speech, and mind that are fully controlled through the practice of moral discipline.
2. Great wisdom.
3. The three types of patience.
4. Straightforwardness; not pretending to have qualities he does not possess.
5. Honesty; not deceiving others.
6. Knowledge of all the rituals and practices explained in the Tantric texts.
7. Great compassion.
8. Extensive understanding of the three sets of doctrine.
9. The ten outer and ten inner qualities.
10. Expertise in constructing and visualizing mandalas.
11. Skill in explaining Secret Mantra.
12. Great experience of Secret Mantra.
13. A mind controlled by the three higher trainings.
The Ten Outer Qualities Referred To Here Are:
14. Expertise in drawing and constructing mandalas.
15. Skill in visualizing mandalas.
16. The concentration of the preparatory practice of the Deity. This is a very precise practice of self-generation, the first of the "three concentrations" explained in the Heruka and Guhyasamaja Tantras. Any practice that involves these three concentrations is an extensive self-generation sadhana.
17. The concentration of emanating Mudras from the heart. This is the second concentration and involves more elaborate visualizations than the first.
18. The concentration of the ritual of the mandala. This is the third concentration and is the most complex.
19. Skill in granting empowerments.
20. Skill in performing the "Earth Dance", which is a ritual for purifying a site before constructing a mandala.
21. Skill in performing offering dances.
22. Skill in reciting mantras.
23. Skill in reabsorbing mandalas at the conclusion of a session.
The Ten Inner Qualities Are:
24. Expertise in visualizing protection circle to eliminate obstacles.
25. Competence in drawing and blessing wheels to be worn as amulets.
26. Experience in conferring the vase empowerment and the secret empowerment.
27. Experience in conferring the wisdom-mudra empowerment and the word empowerment.
28. The ability to perform wrathful actions when they are required.
29. Expertise in making authentic tormas.
30. The ability to use the ritual dagger, or curved knife.
31. Skill in reciting mantras.
32. Skill in bestowing blessings.
33. Skill in constructing and offering mandalas.)
We make our requests to you, O foremost Holders of the Vajra:
You are skilled in explaining and composing,
Are endowed with both sets of ten qualities
And a knowledge of tantra and its rituals;
You are honorable, without pretense of guile,
Patient, broad-minded, with your three doors well subdued.
Requesting by remembering the Guru's kindness (ii-b)
The Guru is kinder than all the Buddhas
(Although countless Buddhas have already appeared in this world, we did not have the good fortune to be their disciples, and so we are sill in samsara. Even after Buddha Shakyamuni passed away, countless realized beings such as Nargarjuna and Asanga appeared, but again we were not among their disciples. Even though all these holy beings had great compassion and wished to help all living beings, we did not have the faith or the merit to receive their help. Now we have met our precious Spiritual Guide who reveals to us exactly the same path that all the previous Buddhas have revealed. Therefore, for us, our Spiritual Guide is kinder than all the other Buddhas because it is he who is helping us directly. Moreover, unlike during the golden age when Buddha Shakyamuni was teaching, during these degenerate times it is very difficult to help disciples because they have so little merit and such strong delusions; and yet our Spiritual Guide is working continuously to help us by patiently teaching us Dharma, setting a good example for us to follow, and constantly encouraging us. Who could be kinder than this?)
We make our requests to you, O Compassionate Refuge-Protectors:
With precision you impart the good way of Those Gone to bliss
To the unruly beings of this degenerate age
Who are difficult to curb and were not tamed
By the countless Buddhas of past.
He is even kinder than Shakyamuni Buddha
(Buddha Shakyamuni manifested as a Supreme Emanation Body and performed the twelve principal deeds. Now he has passed away it is as if spiritually the sun has set, but because our kind Spiritual Guide has manifested to help sentient beings, the world has not yet been plunged into spiritual darkness. For all the beings with little merit who did not have the good fortune to meet Buddha Shakyamuni directly, and who would otherwise be without protection and refuge, our Spiritual Guide performs exactly the same deeds as Buddha Shakyamuni himself. During these degenerate times he brings us the precious Dharma Jewel, which is the real refuge and protection. Therefore, for us, he is kinder even than Buddha Shakyamuni.)
We make our requests to you, O compassionate Refuge-Protectors;
You enact the deeds of the Victorious Ones
For the many beings who lack a Protector-Refuge
At this time when the sun-like teachings of the Sage are setting,
Even his relatives, animals, etc. are a higher object of offering than all
the Buddhas
(Requesting by remembering that he is a Supreme Field of Merit)
(In general, all Buddhas are a Field of Merit to whom we can make offerings and prostrations but in the Guhyasamaja Tantra it says that our Spiritual Guide is the supreme Field of Merit and that making offerings to just one hair pore of his body yields far greater results than making offerings to all the other Buddhas.
As explained above, our Spiritual Guide's body is like a temple in which all the Buddhas of the three times and the ten directions dwell, and when we make offerings or prostrations to him we also make offerings and prostrations to all the other Buddhas. Therefore, for us, he is the kindest of all Buddhas. When we place offerings on the shrine we receive the merit of making offerings, but we do not receive the merit of our offerings being directly accepted. When we make offerings to our Spiritual Guide, however, we do receive this merit. Moreover, even though the Buddhas have given teachings, these can be of direct benefit to us only if they are brought into focus and presented in a way in which we can understand them and apply them, and it is our Spiritual Guide who does this for us...If we think about this deeply we will realize that our Spiritual Guide is kinder than all the other Buddhas.)
We make our requests to you, O compassionate Refuge-Protectors:
Even a single hair from your pores
Is for us a Field of Merit more highly praised
Than all the Victorious Buddhas of the three times and ten directions.
Requesting by expressing the Guru's outer, inner, secret and Such-ness
qualities
His outer qualities
We make our requests to you, O compassionate Refuge-Protectors;
From an intricate lattice of mirage-like skillful means
Emblazoned with the Three Body Wheels of those Gone to bliss
You manifest in an ordinary guise to lead all beings.
His inner qualities
(Internally his body is a temple.)
We make our requests to you, O supreme Gurus,
The essence of the Three Jewels of Refuge;
Your aggregates, elements, sensory bases and limbs
Are in nature the fathers, mothers, male and female Bodhisattvas,
And the wrathful protectors of the five Buddha-families.
His secret qualities
(He is Vajradhara.)
We make our requests to you, O Protectors of Primordial Unity,
Foremost Holders of the Vajra, All-pervading Lords of hundreds of Buddha families:
Unfolding from the play of omniscient pristine awareness,
You are the quintessence of ten million mandala cycles.
His Such-ness qualities
(He is the Truth Body)
We make our requests to you Immaculate Samantabhadra, who are in reality ultimate Bodhicitta,
Free of beginning or end,
The nature of all things, pervading everything in motion and at rest,
Inseparable from simultaneous Bliss in play without obstruction.
Special One-Pointed Request
(Note: depending on the context of this Guru Puja.)
You are our Gurus; you are our Yidams; you are our Dakinis and Dharma
Protectors.
From this moment until our Enlightenment, we need seek no refuge other than
you.
In this life, the Bardo and all future lives,
Hold us with your hook of compassion.
Free us from samsara and Nirvana's fears, grant all attainments,
Be our unfailing friend and guard us from interferences. (Repeat Three times.)
·
The whole idea again is to develop both method and wisdom together: taking refuge in the causal gems and then meditating on their emptiness.·
Or taking refuge in the unborn non-dual Dharmakaya.·
Taking refuge is a wholesome action, building good karma in accord with the goal, accumulating merit, and also wisdom if one finish by meditating on the emptiness of the three.·
The path is a gradual path. One has to learn the stages.·
Taking refuge is the ground of every path.·
The whole path depends on the level of understanding and the motivation of the student: next rebirth, Hinayana, Mahayana, Tantra-yana.·
As with the definition of the guru, the objects of refuge depend on the stage.Ø
So there is the causal refuge,Ø
And the fruition refuge.
·
Where is there such a refuge?Ø
Ultimately only in Dharmakaya.Ø
The refuge is the singleness of Buddhahood.Ø
With the goal of establishing the nature of the two truths, going to the three jewels for refuge is the causal refuge.Ø
The nature of one's own mind, self-arising wisdom, is the primordially existing three jewels. This is the object of fruition-refuge. Resting in that without accepting and rejecting or defilements of artificiality is the fruition refuge. The external causal refuges are a corresponding condition for establishing that.Ø
In brief, the temporary refuge is the three jewels. The ultimate refuge is the singularity of Buddhahood.
·
By taking refuge again and again, we remember the qualities and virtues and build good karma in accord with the goal, liberation from all conditioning. This is the same as for wholesome actions. The more we do them the more good karma is build, and the more we do them. And since they are in accord with the goal, and since we know also remember constantly that they are also empty of inherent existence, then we practice both method and wisdom together.·
The way to take refuge is to remember them clearly, to remember their qualities, their details -- and not to take refuge in other.
·
Guru Puja - Reviewing the Stages of the PathAghast at the searing blaze of suffering in the lower realms,
We take heartfelt refuge in the Three Precious Gems and seek
Your blessings that we may eagerly endeavor to practice the various means
For abandoning what is bound to misfortune and accumulating virtuous deeds.