NOTES 133 The ten levels and five paths of a Bodhisattva Here the meaning seems to be progress on the path in general 134 From the earliest times, the tradition was that Buddhist monks offered the first part of what they received on their daily begging round to the Three Jewels, ate the middle part without discrimination, and gave the last part to the needy 135 "Arousing bodhicitta" is only one possible translation of sems bskyed The word bskyed means to give birth to, to produce, but also to make grow, to develop The word sems, which is an abbreviation of byang chub kyi sems (Skt bodhicitta), the "mind of enlightenment," has several levels of meaning For the beginner, it is simply the intention to liberate all beings However in a deeper sense, bodhicitta is a synonym of Buddha-nature, (Skt Tathiigatagarbha) and of primal awareness (rig pa) At this level it is not something to be produced which was not there before, because it is the fundamental nature of our mind, which has always been with us and only has to be discovered and made manifest We have chosen "arouse" to try to convey something of both aspects 136 This is defined by NT as "to promise to attain the fruit." 137 NT says: "The bodhicitta of application is the will to practise the six transcendent perfections, which are the cause or the means of attaining the fruit." 138 "Relative bodhicitta is produced with the support of our thoughts." NT 13 "Absolute bodhicina is wisdom in which the movements of thought have dissolved." NT 140 Here, for the sake of clarity, we have inserted a heading that is not in the original text 141 The moon's reflection in water appears vividly but has no true, independent existence The same is true of what we perceive through the senses, since phenomena are empty of any objective essence However, we are led asttay by the belief that those appearances are objectively real It is this fundamental confusion which is the basis for the negative emotions which make us wander in sarilsara 142 The reason why bodhicitta is so fundamental to the path of enlightenment is because at the absolute level it is the Buddha-nature itself, inherent in all beings, which naturally has limitless love and compassion The process of relative bodhicitta serves to make that nature manifest NT says of these two aspects: "The first is the deep cause of attaining Buddhahood, and the second is the circumstantial cause." 143 NT explains that one should first try to arouse bodhicitta for the merest instant, then for two, then three and so on 144 Guidance according to experience, nyams khrid, is a method of teaching in which the teacher first gives just a little instruction The student puts it into practice and then presents his experience of the practice to the teacher, who then advises him or gives further instruction on that basis, and so on in a continuous interaction 145 A form of the Bodhisattva Avalokitesvara, crystalline white in colour 146 Skt Uf~i~: this protuberance on the crown of the head is one of the physical marks of a Buddha In the case of Jewel Crest, this mark was present even though he was not a fully enlightened Buddha 147 The first five perfections are related to the accumulation of merit, while nonetheless being infused with wisdom It is this that makes generosity and so on "transcendent perfections." 148 Bodhisattvas who have attained the sublime levels have realized emptiness and have vast and pure intentions, which is not the case with ordinary beings 149 rang don, one's own benefit (AT goal), implies the total realization of emptiness, the 387 NOTES dharmakaya, from which the sambhogakaya and nirmaQakaya then manifest out of compassion to accomplish gzhan don, the benefit of others 150 See glossary: warmth 151 The medicinal tree symbolizes the bodhicitra, which cures oneself and others of all sufferings 152 The symbolic offering of the body is explained in Part Two, Chapter Five 153 This is explained in Part One, Chapter 4, section III (pages 124-126) 154 NT explains that what can be destroyed in this way is the result of positive actions which only produce merit (bsod nams), that is to say those which are performed without the three supreme methods 155 "To keep discipline for a day is more valuable than a hundred years of generosity; to cultivate patience for a day is more valuable than a a hundred years of discipline." NT 156 They were presumably students of one of the Sravakayana schools which hold that there is no truly existing personal self (gang zag gi bdag med), but not recognize the total emptiness of true existence of phenomena (chos k.yi bdag med) 157 It is the unlimited openness of love and compassion for all beings that allows the mind to open fully to the vasmess of the Mahayana view 158 See also note 46 159 "Avoid falling into an extreme which will bring about excessive fatigue, or practising an exaggerated asceticism which will put an end to your life." NT 160 "One becomes more and more artached to meditative experiences These are the experience of bliss, in which one feels happy for no reason; the experience of clarity, when the mud of thoughts has settled and one feels like a house that is empty, within and without; the experience of non-thought, in which, when one checks whether any thoughts are arising, one has the impression that there are none to arise One still dings to the reality of an 'I,' (gang zag gi bdag) by thinking of 'my experience.' And one also dings to the reality of the object (chos k.yi bdag) by thinking there are real experiences to be attached to This conflicts with the realization of the emptiness of true existence which is the source of liberation." NT At this stage of concentration, one has only achieved sustained calm (zhi gnas Skt §amatha) without profound insight (/hag mthong Skt vipaJyan4) 161 Seven point posture of Vairocana - rnam snang chos bdun, the seven points of the ideal meditation posture: legs crossed in the vajra posture, back straight, hands in the gesture of meditation, eyes gazing in the direction of the tip of the nose, chin slightly tucked in, shoulders well apart "like a vulture's wings," and the tip of the tongue touching the palate 162 Keeping the back straight allows the subtle energy (rlung) to flow freely in the subtle channels (rtsa) There is an intimate relationship between this subtle physical system and the movements of the mind It is said that the mind rides on this energy like a rider on a horse 163 The transcendent perfections of means (thabs), strength (stobs), aspiration (smon lam) and primal wisdom (ye shes) are added to the usual six to make what are called the ten transcendent perfections 164 This means neither suppressing thoughts nor following them, nor deliberately trying to alter the state of one's mind or achieve a specific state of meditation All deluded thoughts are in a sense alterations of the natural flow of awareness 165 That is, having nothing to be ashamed of in front of the Three Jewels 388 NOTES 166 Concentration is the absence of distractions The source of distraction is taking appearances as real To meditate on appearances as deities (which means as pure wisdom manifestations with no concrete reality) is to be concentrated 167 nges shes, lit "certainties," is used here to mean extreme views, such as etemalism and nihilism, which state that phenomena definitively or not exist 168 "Here srid pa (samsaric existence) refers to anything that one believes to be real and to which one is attached." DKR 169 Since the view is the realization of emptiness, the realizer, what is realized and the process of realization are recognized as being without any intrinsic reality They only appear as the illusory magical display of awareness, empty and naturally radiant 170 The union of appearances and emptiness, awareness and emptiness, bliss and emptiness, and clarity and emptiness 171 This means acting without conceptualizing, in the realization that the actor, the action and the object acted upon are all without intrinsic reality 172 Before embarking on this practice one should have received the empowerment of Vajrasattva from a qualified holder of the lineage In general, the practices which follow in the rest of the text from this point should only be undertaken under the guidance of a qualified teacher 173 In the practices of the Vajrayana one considers the visualized deity as one's own root teacher who represents all the Buddhas of past, present and future Vajrasattva (Tib rdo rje sems dpa') is the particular Buddha who, as a Bodhisattva, pledged that whoever recited his mantra would be purified of all their negative actions and obscurations His name refers to the indestructible purity of the nature of mind 174 Aitgulimila, who had been given a false teaching that he would gain liberation by killing one thousand people and collecting a finger from each, had already killed nine hundred and ninety-nine, and was on his way to complete the thousand by killing his mother when he met the Buddha, whom he tried to kill instead Because of the Buddha's powers, he was unable to attack him Then the Buddha spoke to him and turned his mind to the Dharma 175 Nanda is the example of someone with extreme attachment attaining liberation; Aitgulimila is the example of someone with extreme ignorance; Dariaka (another name for Ajita§atru) is the example of extreme aggression; ~ankara is the example of someone with both extreme attachment and extreme anger Nanda and Aitgulimila became Arhats, Darsaka became a Bodhisattva, and ~ankara was reborn in a god realm and subsequently attained the path of seeing 176 NT describes this as the external support 177 NT describes taking refuge, generating bodhicitta, and especially compassion as the inner support 178 NT speaks of six thing$ to be contemplated for the practice of regret: 1) Time: regretting all the negative actions that one has done from time without beginning until now, during this life, in a particular month, or day, or moment, and so on 2) Motivation: regretting all acts committed under the sway of desire, aversion and confusion 3) Accumulation: regretting whatever negativity one has accumulated physically, verbally, or mentally 4) The nature of the action: regretting both acts which are negative in themselves (such as the ten negative actions, the five acts with immediate retribution, etc.) and particular faults, transgressions of one's vows and so on S) Object: regretting all wrong actions, whether directed towards sarilsira or nirvil;la 6) Karma: 389 NOTES 179 180 181 182 183 184 185 186 187 188 189 190 191 192 193 regretting all harmful acts and downfalls which have earned one a short life, many illnesses, poverty, fear of enemies and endless wandering in the lower realms The printing and distribution of sacred books is considered a powerful practice for accumulating merit and purifying obscurations, provided that it is done purely as an offering without any profit dag pa dran pa: This Tibetan expression literally means "remembering the purity." It refers to the fact that every element of visualization is not a mere image but has a particular meaning, and it is important to be aware of this significance as one does the practice The precise way in which the elements of this practice relate to the four powers is explained a few paragraphs later Although here we are only dealing with the preliminary practice, many points mentioned in this chapter are useful for the main practice of the generation and perfection phases In the main practice (see Innoduction) one often visualizes oneself in the form of a deity Here we consider we are ordinary and impure at first, and through the practice we become pure So at the outset we think of our body as being in its usual everyday form ston pa: This common epithet of the Buddha literally means "revealer," and signifies the teacher who taught the Dharma for the first time in our kalpa and world Vajrasanva is the first teacher of many traditions of the Vajrayana in the same way as the Buddha Sakyamuni is the originator of the vehicle of characteristics Here the vajra and bell symbolize skilful means and wisdom The shorter of these necklaces comes down to the breast, the longer down to the navel The female figure symbolizes wisdom, and the male figure skilful means; at another level the female symbolizes emptiness and the male appearance, or again they can symbolize absolute space and primal wisdom Their sexual union symbolizes that in the state of enlightenment all these are experienced as inseparably one These are not material channels but the subtle pathways in which the subtle energies of the body flow The significance of these channels becomes clear when one practises the yogic exercises of the perfection phase of the main practice As the nectar fills each wheel, one receives a corresponding blessing, as mentioned in each of the lists of four in this paragraph Literally, "the state of union beyond learning," "union" referring to the union of the riipakaya and dharmakaya In the five paths of the Bodhisattva, the path beyond learning is the fifth, and denotes the state of total Buddhahood These five colours represent the five Buddha families, each representing a particular aspect of wisdom The words dag and ma dag here could also be interpreted in terms of reciting all the syllables of the mantra correctly or otherwise But in view of the explanation in the following paragraph they have been translated as "purity" and "impurity" bskyed rim gsa/ 'debs, the description of the images to be visualized and the different processes of the meditation is recited before proceeding to the actual recitation of the manna This is the standard structure of the ritual texts used for the sadhana (sgrub thabs, lit means of accomplishment) of any deity Such texts are used not only for ceremonies in a group for particular purposes, but also for personal practice The use of tobacco products pollutes the system of subtle channels and energies and thus has a harmful effect on the mind at a deep level The words of the offering section of the sadhana, which are repeated after the recitation of the mantra and before the conclusion 390 NOTES 194 This image indicates that the use of such offerings is karmically very dangerous and can lead to rebirth in the hells 195 When one has received an empowerment, the power of the practice should be maintained by a daily practice, even if this is brief Here the lamas are doing such practices during the ceremony rather than in their own time 196 The three ma~4alas of the teacher's body, speech and mind 197 "Drinking your heart blood" means destroying your life force The Secret Mantrayana puts us in touch with our true narure and our most fundamental energies If we keep the samaya commirments it enables us to progress rapidly But if we not, we give rise to a powerful self destructive force This is called the "vajra ogre" and is the opposite of the wisdom deities 198 To commit a complete root downfall is to break one of the basic vows of the monastic discipline, consciously, in a siruation where it is not impossible to otherwise 199 i.e in which a single figure embodies all the deities This is explained more fully in the chapter on Guru Yoga 200 The twofold purity is to possess the purity of the Buddha narure in the first place, and then the purity of having acrualized it and achieved Buddhahood "According to the · teachings of the Nyingma tradition, the primordially pure narure which is Buddhahood and the qualities of the three kayas already dwell within us in their entirety, and we not need to seek them elsewhere But if we not use the two accumulations as auxiliary factors, these qualities will not become manifest It is like the sun: although its rays illuminate the sky by themselves, it is still necessary for the wind to drive away the clouds which hide it." NT 201 bsags sbyang rang sar dag kyang,lit "even when accumulation and purification are pure in their own place." 202 The directions that follow are sometimes quite technical and are intended to complement an oral explanation, normally accompanied by a demonstration 203 We make offerings in the presence of the accomplishment ma~4ala, which is used rather as one might use a starue of the Buddha It symbolizes the perfect Buddhafield of the five Buddhas which represent the five wisdoms As it is these five wisdoms which we wish to accomplish, this ma~4ala is called the accomplishment m~4ala 204 The convention in a ma~4ala is that the front is east, the back is west, and so on Here the ma~4ala is rurned to face the practitioner, so the eastern side is nearest 205 The Heart-essence of the Vast Expanse (klong chen snying thig) is one of a number of Heart-essence teachings The most important of these are the Heart-essence of the l)akini (mkha' 'gro snying thig) and the Heart-essence ofVimalamitra (bi ma snying thig), transmitted through Yeshe Tsogyal and Vimalamitra respectively Both these teachings have come down through the lineage of Longchenpa 206 A ready made "iron fence" is a ring, usually of metal which one uses to contain the first level of offerings of the rna~ ala It represents the ring of mountains surrounding the world In such a case a second ring contains the offerings of the eight goddesses and a third the sun, moon, etc The ornament for the summit mentioned later is simply a jewel-shaped ornament which one puts on top at the end These accessories are additions to enhance the offering, which is nonetheless perfectly authentic without them 207 If you arrange the m~4ala so that the East is towards you, you should rurn the completed ma~4ala round to face the ma~4ala of accomplishment at the end, when you recite, "I offer this m~4ala " 391 ... embodies all the deities This is explained more fully in the chapter on Guru Yoga 200 The twofold purity is to possess the purity of the Buddha narure in the first place, and then the purity of having... of the mantra correctly or otherwise But in view of the explanation in the following paragraph they have been translated as "purity" and "impurity" bskyed rim gsa/ 'debs, the description of the. .. exercises of the perfection phase of the main practice As the nectar fills each wheel, one receives a corresponding blessing, as mentioned in each of the lists of four in this paragraph Literally, "the