60 C t he t reasury of knowled ge The Way to Cultivate the Pristine Awareness of the Creation Phase [a] In the creation phase, one must abandon ordinary appearances, fixation, And apprehension of reality; the remedies whose features are antidotal Are clear image, pride, and the conviction that what appears is illusory The initial step in cultivating pristine awareness in the phase of creation is to identify what is to be abandoned The Indestructible Tent [Tantra] states:1 The right meditation has been proclaimed In order to conquer ordinary thoughts Thus, ordinary appearances and fixation on what is ordinary are to be abandoned Meditation practice [that entails] the appearance of the deity’s form and fixation on the deity immediately stops the manifest arising of [ordinary] appearances and fixation (which are to be abandoned) Moreover, by understanding the deity to be without inherent nature, apprehension of both ordinary appearances and the deity’s appearance as inherently real is also stopped These [results] are due to [the practitioner] having earnestly applied remedies whose features specifically counteract each of the three—[ordinary] appearances, fixation, and apprehension of a [false] reality—individually This approach is in contrast to that of the way of the perfections.2 In the perfections practice, one subdues emotional afflictions, which are the cause [of suffering], thereby simply stopping the arising of future suffering, the result In this [creation phase], right from the start one transforms the truth of suffering, these impure appearances themselves, into a pure mandala, thereby immediately stopping the manifestation of suffering That being so, in the phase of creation, generating a clear image of the deity’s form is antidotal to ordinary form Cultivating the pride of being a heruka3 or another [deity] is antidotal to [conceptions] such as ordinary human pride Viewing what arises as being like an illusion is antidotal to th e ph ase of creation c 61 apprehending experiences as inherently real In the context of those [methods], once a clear image has arisen, immediately those [ordinary conceptions] will be stopped, and the clear image will easily arise again, like a clear image of a woman seen in the mind of someone who desires her [Dharmakirti’s] Treatise on Valid Cognition states:4 Therefore, whether it be the true or untrue, If one becomes very familiarized with that And brings the process to its culmination, One will reap a clear, thought-free mind.5 Thus, once proficiency has been achieved, there will arise clarity of image in both what is true and what is untrue The Creation Methods, Practitioners, and Bases of Purification [b] This section has three parts: an examination of the different kinds of creation [methods]; an examination of the practitioners of the creation phase; and an examination of the bases of purification, the [various] modes of birth Creation Methods [i] The eight varieties of creation, transformation of bases of purification, and so on, May be condensed into two: transformation of bases; and removal of bases The varieties of creation methods have been presented in many formats, detailed and condensed These methods may be classified as eight types or all contained in two [broad categories] In the eightfold classification, the methods are as follows: creation based on transformation of the bases of purification; creation by means of strong intent; creation [like] the flash of a fish [as it springs] from water; creation based on the seed-syllable and name only; creation based on the essential mantra only; creation in three steps only; creation in three steps plus a seat; and creation based on the sun and moon together 62 C t he t reasury of knowled ge The first method is creation based on transformation of the bases of purification An example would be the visualization of [white and red] spheres [of light] within the channels [of one’s body] and the heroes and heroines who arise from the transformation of those spheres.6 The second method is creation by means of strong intent This is to imagine that [the deity] has fully manifested in an instant simply by bringing her to mind It is a meditation that is spontaneous, dependent solely on will This method is also called instantaneous creation The third method is creation [like] the flash of a fish [as it springs] from water This is to imagine that [the deity suddenly] appears above a seat or within a celestial palace, like the springing of a fish from water or the swelling up of a bubble The fourth method is creation based on a seed-syllable or name only An example would be [the visualization of the deity] as one says, “from i [arises] Amoghasiddhi”; or, “from tam [arises] Tara.” The fifth method is creation based on the essential mantra only.7 An example would be to imagine that by saying “om amoghasiddhi svaha,” the body of Amogasiddhi arises The sixth method is creation in three steps [only] An example would be visualization [of the deity] as one says, “[The seed-syllable i appears.] From i [arises] a sword From the sword [arises] Amoghasiddhi.” The seventh method is creation in three steps plus a seat This is to visualize [the deity] by following the [previous] three steps, with the addition of a lotus and moon [seat] or a lotus and sun [seat] The eighth method is creation based on the sun and moon together This is to visualize [the deity] arising from a seed-syllable that stands between sun and moon [disks] joined together, or from a seed-syllable atop sun and moon [disks] Those eight methods of creation of the deity may be condensed into two methods of creation known as “transformation of the bases” and “removal of the bases.” The first corresponds exactly to the first of the eight methods [The second,] removal of the bases, refers to creation after the bases of purification have been cleared away through [meditation on] emptiness This corresponds to the remaining seven ways [of creating the deity] The [eight] methods may also be condensed into four types: creation of the full form all at once; creation based on only a seed-syllable; creation in three steps; and creation through the five [steps of ] actual awakening.8 th e ph ase of creation c 63 In this format, the first corresponds to the second and third [of the above eight methods]; the second, to the fourth and fifth; the third, to the sixth and seventh; and the fourth, to the eighth Practitioners of the Creation Phase [ii] This examination has two parts: differences [in the methods of creation] depending on the levels of faculties of practitioners; and the way practitioners advance through four [stages of ] pristine awareness Differences [in Methods] Depending on Faculties [aa] The individual may be of weak, mediocre, or sharp faculties To the question of whether or not there are [specific] levels of yogins’ faculties [suited] to the stages of those various methods of creating the deity, one must answer in the affirmative This is substantiated by the following citation from the Samvarodaya Tantra:9 For meditation on the creation-phase mandala, The weak and mediocre should imagine the mandala, While one of sharp faculties should meditate On the mandala that is mind itself, in an instant; By means of the yoga performed in an instant One should meditate on the phase of completion The first [two] lines mean that the first two types of creation-phase practitioner—those of weak or mediocre faculties—create [the deity] gradually [The second two lines] mean that the third type—of sharp faculties—does the method of creation of the full form all at once, which takes [only] an instant The last two lines mean that even the full manifestation of the body of pristine awareness in the phase of completion is accomplished in an instant, as in the previous case (the sharp) An alternative interpretation would be, as stated in [Abhayakaragupta’s] Garland of the Complete Yogas,10 that creation performed instantaneously, called “the profound phase of creation” or “the superficial phase of completion,” is the method of deity yoga intended for a person of sharp faculties 64 C t he t reasury of knowled ge The Way to Advance through Four [Stages of] Pristine Awareness [bb] The practitioner advances through the stages of the four yogas: The beginner’s stage, the descent of pristine awareness, Minimal mastery, and the ultimate level of great mastery Whatever one’s type of faculties, after having cultivated the pristine awareness of the phase of creation according to [the methods] spoken of above, one will advance through the realizations [arising] from four yogas: the beginner’s stage; the descent of pristine awareness; a minimal degree of mastery of pristine awareness; and great mastery of pristine awareness The first stage, that of the beginner, starts with the meditation sequence of the four branches of familiarization and attainment11 and includes everything up to the point of [being able] to visualize clearly the coarse deities in gradual steps but not visualize them clearly all at once The second stage, that of the descent of pristine awareness, is the point at which [one is able] to visualize clearly the mandala of coarse [deities] all at once but not visualize clearly the [subtle] deities of the sense fields [of the coarse deities], and so forth, all at once The third stage, known as that of a minimal degree of mastery or [simply] mastery of pristine awareness, is the point at which there is a clear visualization of all the deities of the sense fields [of the coarse deities] all at once Everything up to that point will be accomplished by the phase of creation alone Beyond that point, there will not arise [any realization if the meditation is] not conjoined with the phase of completion However, meditation on the creation and completion [phases] together will enable one to emanate and reabsorb the mandala within subtle spheres, and the contrast between periods of formal meditation and post-meditation will disappear If one [continues to] make an effort [in this], one will [be able to] remain in the contemplation of creation and completion with no distinction between day and night This stage includes everything just prior to the point of unhindered performance of all the various types of activation rites based on meditative absorption The fourth stage, known as that of great or perfect mastery of pristine awareness, is the point at which there arise in a single instant the infinite, all-encompassing, clear images of contemplation, as well as the power to effect a multiplicity of benefits for sentient beings merely by intending to ... examination of the different kinds of creation [methods]; an examination of the practitioners of the creation phase; and an examination of the bases of purification, the [various] modes of birth... The eight varieties of creation, transformation of bases of purification, and so on, May be condensed into two: transformation of bases; and removal of bases The varieties of creation methods... t he t reasury of knowled ge The first method is creation based on transformation of the bases of purification An example would be the visualization of [white and red] spheres [of light] within