270 Buddhist Ethics Which is born from many actions The pledge of vajra mind Is not to torment others in any way Or to demean one’s mind With a net of discursive thoughts The pledge of vajra speech Is to speak gently And not utter harsh words Out of sheer jealousy.228 To elaborate, the pledge of the vajra body is never to disrespect the body of any being, male or female, of the six classes because each possesses the nature of the body of enlightenment The pledge of the vajra mind is not to cause distress to oneself or another by instigating feelings of guilt, etc., because all sentient beings possess the nature of enlightened mind The pledge of the vajra speech is never to speak harsh words but always gentle ones that please and not upset others, because all beings have the nature of enlightened speech These pledges are taught with consistency in many tantras such as the Indestructible Nucleus’ Ornament Tantra.229 The Chakrasamvara Fundamental Tantra presents eight special pledges: (1) Not to allow the movement of bodhichitta (loss of the seminal essence) Bodhichitta is the seed of desire-realm [bliss] gained from relying on an action seal; the seed of form-realm [bliss], from relying on an imaginary seal; and the seed of the fruit which is the enlightenment of the great seal.230 Thus, not to lose the seminal essence serves as the cause for all powerful attainments (2) To cultivate [or safeguard] the pledge,231 which means to cause the sixteen [aspects of] bliss to gradually arise at the throat, heart, navel, and genital focal points of energy by using the passion of the wisdom-woman (3) Not to unite with the emissary of another buddha family after having discarded the consort of one’s own buddha family if one’s purpose is that of gaining only outer attainments.232 (4) To attain the undivided state at the end of the full moon,233 which means to fulfill the pledges related to the four seminal essences of the four focal points of energy by resting in the state of the indivisibility of emptiness and innate bliss The Vows and Pledges of Secret Mantra 271 (5) To shun the waning phase of the moon,234 which means not to lose [the seminal essence] that has the nature of the sixteen joys through the bliss of emission (6) To churn [or follow] the female conduct 235 (the conduct of the transcendent Samantabhadri236), which means always to accomplish with joy the many ways to benefit others (7) To maintain chastity at the face of the vajra,237 which is to always maintain the ethics of not emitting [the seminal essence] (8) To draw [the seminal essences] up the central channel238 which means to draw up and to stabilize at the crown focal point of energy the seminal essences that have flowed down to the tip of the secret place by reversing them and experiencing the joys in the ascending order [Vajrapani’s] Eulogy-Commentary on the Chakrasamvara Tantra239 explains these eight pledges in detail and states the benefit of safeguarding them in these words: A practitioner who at all times cultivates the eight [special] pledges will swiftly gain the attainment of the great seal In addition to these, there are many classifications of the different minor pledges presented in the tantras However, the principal ones are included in those explained above Other Ways of Enumerating the Pledges [b'] Mikyö Gawa asserts that all pledges are included in the four pledges related to the four initiations: The pledges to be safeguarded, of sustenance, of conduct, and not to be apart from The omniscient Mikyö Gawa asserts that all the vows and pledges of the Highest Yoga Tantra are included in four pledges related to the four initiations These are enumerated briefly as follows: (1) The vows of the vase initiation are comprised by the “pledge to be honored”: to observe the general and specific pledges of the five families, and not to commit the fourteen root downfalls and eight secondary ones (2) The vows of the secret initiation are comprised by the “pledge of sustenance”: to partake of the five meats and the five nectars 272 Buddhist Ethics (3) The vows of the pristine-awareness-through-wisdom initiation are comprised by the “pledge of conduct”: the special pledges, to liberate [evil] beings, etc (4) The vows of the fourth initiation are comprised by the “pledge not to be apart from”: to wear the attire of Heruka and to rely on a wisdom-woman Pema Karpo presents the pledges of restraint from root downfalls, the pledges of practice of the six families, And the pledges related to practice, which form the three groups of pledges prescribing ritual articles, Pledges prescribing enjoyments, and pledges of equipoise and post-equipoise The omniscient Pema Karpo presents the pledges concerning the fourteen root and secondary downfalls to be avoided, the pledges of the six families to be practiced, and the common and special pledges relating to application240 which are grouped into three categories: (1) the pledges prescribing use of ritual articles, for example, to keep ritual articles such as images, volumes [of the tantras], and symbolic ornaments241; (2) the pledges prescribing enjoyments, such as to enjoy the five meats, five nectars, five drinks, and five types [of consorts]242; (3) the pledges of equipoise, such as the four pledges to be interpreted243; and the pledges of post-equipoise, such as the twenty-five modes of conduct [taught in the Wheel of Time Tantra], the fourteen [modes of conduct taught] in the Indestructible Tent Tantra, and other post-equipoise pledges.244 The victorious Rangjung Dorjé states that all pledges are included in four pledges In his Ocean of Pledges, the omniscient and victorious Rangjung Dorjé states: The Three Jewels and inner and outer awakening mind; Perceived and perceiver; outer and inner conditions; Activity of annihilation and liberation; All pledges are included in these The Vows and Pledges of Secret Mantra 273 All pledges are condensed into these four pledges: not to renounce the Three Jewels or the outer relative and inner ultimate awakening minds; not to harbor doubts about the purity of the object perceived and the perceiver; to rely on the outer and inner conducive conditions; and not to neglect the activity of annihilation and liberation at the proper time All of these pledges are encompassed by two categories: prohibitions and injunctions All the pledges that have been presented fall into two categories: prohibitions, which are prescriptions for restraint; and injunctions, prescriptions for what to practice The first includes root downfalls, secondary downfalls, and the modes of conduct The second includes the vows of the five families and the pledges of the higher initiations Six modes of conduct are taught in Tent Tantra for practitioners who have reached the stage of warmth The Indestructible Tent Tantra prescribes six modes of conduct to be performed by a practitioner who has achieved a stable state of contemplation and has attained the pristine awareness of experiential warmth245: Do not perform symbolic hand gestures Do not build reliquaries [or cast votive images] Do not bow to the [representations of the] exalted three vajras [i.e., body, speech, and mind of the buddhas] Do not draw mandalas, or other outer rituals Do not these even in your dreams Honor your tantric master, [his lineage,] and [spiritual] siblings, But not pay homage to other teachers Practitioners who have perfected pristine awareness are beyond codes of behavior A practitioner who has attained a deep level of realization and has perfected pristine awareness has transcended all the creations of dualistic thought, concepts of vows and transgressions, codes of behavior prescribing what to and what not to do, proper and improper conduct, and so on For this adept, all pledges are inherently observed in the “pledge of the great observance.” 274 Buddhist Ethics The Seriousness of a Transgression and the Means to Restore Pledges [c'] This section has two parts: (1) the seriousness of a downfall, and (2) means to restore pledges Seriousness of a Downfall [i'] A defeat occurs when there is motivation, recognition, pursuing, separation, Lack of regret, non-deranged state of mind, and overdue acknowledgment If some completing factors are missing, the infraction may be a serious transgression, downfall, or a minor infraction The root downfalls qualify as actual tantric defeats when seven factors are present: (1) The offense being motivated by a negative emotion; (2) Recognition of the object [basis of the infraction]; (3) Having pursued the wrongdoing with physical action or words; (4) Having engaged in the main part of the particular downfall; this is referred to as “separated” [since the action must be separated from its antidote by a period of three hours to be considered completed] (5) To be pleased and to have no regret; (6) To be in a non-deranged state of mind [when committing the downfall]; (7) To let one, or [at the most] three, years pass while the master is still alive without acknowledging the downfall When six factors are present, but the deadline for acknowledgment has not passed, the offense is called a downfall and is equivalent in seriousness to a partial defeat in the monastic code To have engaged in the very cause of the downfall but without having allowed the deadline for acknowledgment to pass and with one of the other factors missing is equivalent to a serious transgression in the monastic code To have engaged in the very cause of the downfall but without the deadline having passed and with more than one of the other factors missing is equivalent to a downfall [that requires forfeiture or confession alone] in the monastic code To have pursued the wrongdoing with physical action or words in the absence of all the other factors is equivalent to a minor infraction in the monastic code One also incurs minor infractions when one transgresses the pledges due to not recollecting them.246 ... secondary ones (2) The vows of the secret initiation are comprised by the “pledge of sustenance”: to partake of the five meats and the five nectars 272 Buddhist Ethics (3) The vows of the pristine-awareness-through-wisdom.. .The Vows and Pledges of Secret Mantra 271 (5) To shun the waning phase of the moon,234 which means not to lose [the seminal essence] that has the nature of the sixteen joys through the bliss... practice The first includes root downfalls, secondary downfalls, and the modes of conduct The second includes the vows of the five families and the pledges of the higher initiations Six modes of conduct