Notes to Chapter IV 455 51 The six elements (khams drug) are earth (p¸thivı, sa), water (toya, chu), fire (agni, me), wind (v›yu, rlung), space (›k›Ÿa, nam mkha’), and pristine awareness (jñ›na, ye shes) (Kalachakrapada’s Expanding on the Brief Discussion of the [Kalachakra] Initiation [Toh 1353], f 6b3) Kongtrul specifies that the element of pristine awareness refers to the emission of the seminal essence (khu ba ltung ba) (IOK, vol II, p 633) 52 This verse from the Fundamental Tantra of Kalachakra is cited in Pundarika’s Stainless Light (Toh 1347) vol Tha, f 117b3-4 53 Oddiyana (O rgyan): the land identified by some scholars as the Swat Valley in northern Pakistan, said to have been at one time a sacred land of sky-farers, practitioners of the tantra, and the place from where many tantras were brought to central India See Dharmashri’s Commentary on the Three Vows, f 196b2-6 54 Indestructible Peak Tantra (VajraŸekharamah›guhyayogatantra; gSang ba rnal ’byor chen po’i rgyud rdo rje rtse mo) (Toh 480), f 210b5-6 55 Ibid., f 210b6 56 Samvarodaya Tantra, vol Kha, f 302a7 57 Jnanakara’s Guide to Mantra (Mantr›vat›ra; gSang ngags la ’jug pa) (Toh 3718), f 196a2 58 Pema Karpo states that to abandon the correct view on the conventional (belief in the law of causality) is to adopt a nihilistic view To renounce the Three Jewels amounts to abandoning the Buddhist teachings, while to forsake the conventional (relative) mind of awakening would amount to rejecting the Universal Way To reject the initiation is to forsake the Indestructible Way (TV, vol Ca, f 304) Jnanakara states that the first pledge is not to deny the law of causality and to believe in the ripening results of actions This pledge is called basic because it is the vow common to both Buddhists and non-Buddhists who wish to attain higher status within cyclic existence The second pledge is not to venerate deities other than the Three Jewels, a pledge exclusive to those who have entered the Buddhist doctrine The third pledge forms the special basis for the Secret Mantra The fourth means not to have received the initiation, or to reject it, in which case one cannot be called a mantric adept (Commentary on the Guide to Mantra [Mantr›vat›rav¸tti; sNgags la ’jug pa’i ’grel ba] [Toh 3719], f 206a1-7) 59 Summary of Pledges (Dam tshig thams cad bsdus pa) (Toh 3725) (by Ashvaghosha), f 45a4 Kedrupjé states with reason and finality that this text is wrongly attributed to Atisha (IBTS, p 155) 60 Susiddhi Tantra (Susiddhikaramah›tantras›dhanop›yikapa˛ala; Legs grub/ Legs par grub par byed pa’i rgyud chen po las sgrub pa’i thabs rim par phye ba) (Toh 807), f 172b4-5 The pledges for the practitioner of the Action Tantra are discussed on ff 172b3-175b7 of this tantra 61 According to Kedrupjé, the Secret Tantra of the General Ritual for All Mandalas (Sarvama˚˜alas›m›nyavidhı-n›ma-guhyatantra; dKyil ’khor thams cad kyi spyi’i cho 456 Buddhist Ethics ga gsang ba’i rgyud) (Toh 806), the Susiddhi (Susiddhikaramah›tantras›dhanop›yikapa˛ala; Legs grub/ Legs par grub par byed pa’i rgyud chen po las sgrub pa’i thabs rim par phye ba) (Toh 807), the Questions of Subahu Tantra (Subahuparip¸ccha-n›ma-tantra; dPung bzang gis zhus pa zhes bya ba’i rgyud) (Toh 805), and the Dhyanottara (Dhy›nottarapa˛alakrama; bSam gtan gyi phyi ma rim par phye ba) (Toh 808) are the four general Action tantras (IBTS, p 135) For a description of their contents, see IBTS, pp 135-137 62 Ngor chen kun dga’ bzang po (1382-1456): the founder of the Ngor subschool of the main Sakya lineage A contemporary of Tsongkapa, he had received tantric teachings from him but later openly criticized some of Tsongkapa’s views on the tantra 63 To have faith in the Three Jewels, the Secret Mantra Way, and the Universal Way 64 Pema Karpo enumerates the five deeds of immediate retribution: to kill a saint, one’s father, or one’s mother, to create a schism in a harmonious monastic community, and out of malice to cause a buddha to bleed Five deeds almost as serious as those of immediate retribution are to destroy a reliquary of the Buddha, to kill a bodhisattva, to engage a nun who has extinguished her emotions in sexual intercourse, to kill a person who is on the path of training, and to steal the belongings of the monastic community If the practitioner were to commit any of these, he would be reborn in the hell of Unceasing Torture for an eon In this life, even if he were to apply himself earnestly to tantric practice to achieve the powers of the Secret Mantra, he would not attain them (TV, vol Ca, f 31a1-b2) 65 The offense of harming the Three Jewels: to squander or burn scriptures containing the teachings of the Joyful One (Buddha), or to throw them into a river out of malice; to reject the reality dimension of awakening; to kill a monk or a nun endowed with all the levels of monastic ordination; to kill a male or female lay practitioner; or to set a temple on fire out of malice (TV, vol Ca, f 31b2-6) 66 Bodong Panchen or Bodong Choklé Namgyel (Bo dong phyogs las rnam rgyal) (1376-1451): an eminent scholar and tantric master in the Kalachakra lineage; also a prolific writer who composed about one hundred volumes of commentary Originally an upholder of the Sakya lineage, he started a school bearing his name which has not survived as an independent school His General Presentation of Tantras (rGyud sde spyi’i rnam bshad) is found in vol 24 (b’ha) of the Collected Works of Phyogs las rnam rgyal 67 Jampa Lingpa (Byams pa gling pa): Panchen Jampa Lingpa, an eminent disciple of Tsongkapa The text alluded to here, Great Mantra Discipline (Byams pa gling pa’i sNgags ’dul chen mo), is identified by Ven Jampa Wangyal as Jampa Lingpa’s commentary on Tsongkapa’s Stages of the Mantra called The Stairways Leading to the State of Union (sNgags kyi ’grel chen zung ’jug bgrod pa’i thems skas) 68 Kongtrul expands on the verses of the General Tantra (Toh 806), ff 163b-164a 69 According to the traditional explanation, the common Three Jewels are the Buddha, his teachings, and the spiritual community; the exceptional ones are the master, meditational deities, and sky-farers and guardians of the teaching Notes to Chapter IV 457 However, commenting on this vow, Pema Karpo does not distinguish between the common and exceptional The Buddha, he states, refers to awakening and the omniscient ones; the teachings, scriptural transmission and spiritual accomplishment; and the community, the eight great [kinds of] persons (those who abide in the result of stream-enterer, etc.) and bodhisattvas on the irreversible path (TV, vol Ca, f 15b) 70 Pema Karpo explains these three kinds of “mantra” as follows: Tantras may be classified as six or three The three classes are secret mantras (guhyamantra, gsang sngags), awareness mantras (vidy›mantra, rig sngags), and recollection mantras (dh›ra˚ı mantra, gzungs sngags) Secret mantras are primarily the tantras that expound the method aspect or the male deity Awareness mantras are primarily the tantras that expound the wisdom aspect or female deity Recollection mantras are part of both secret and awareness mantras as they serve as means to recollect or not to forget the import of these two after one has understood them Recollection mantras can also be understood as tantra including both male and female aspects of one tantra In the ultimate sense, these “mantras” represent the indivisibility of skillful means and wisdom They are called secret mantras since they represent knowledge of the principle of indestructibility, i.e., indivisible pristine awareness, and since they serve as protection for living beings and one’s own mind They are called awareness mantras because they remove ignorance and thus impart awareness They are called recollection mantras since they symbolize the tantras of indivisible method and wisdom (TV, vol Ca, ff 16b5-17a4) See also IBTS, p 116, n 18 On the different ways of positing the three mantras, see Jnanashri’s Dispelling the Two Extremes in the Indestructible Way (rDo rje theg pa’i mtha’ gnyis sel ba) (Toh 3714), f 117a6-7 71 The master in this case is the one from whom the disciple has received the tantra, who should be regarded as the Buddha himself (TV, vol Ca, f 18a4-5) 72 Deities whose worship is shared by other practitioners (thun mong sgrub pa’i lha) refers to worldly or transworldly deities that are not the specific focus of one’s practice, the worldly ones worshiped also by non-Buddhists (Karma Ngedön Nyingpo’s Commentary on Ngari Panchen’s Three Vows [henceforth cited as CNPTV], f 69b4.) 73 On this pledge, Pema Karpo cites the following from the Subahu Tantra (TV, vol Ca, f 22b1-4): Even in fear, one should not worship Indra, Vishnu, Or the wrathful Deity of Wind, Or rely on their doctrines Do not engage in their ascetic practices, never offer to them Without feeling defiant of their doctrines, Never take delight in their activities; Do not recite their hymns or incantations 74 On this pledge, Pema Karpo states: If you are tired of recitation (tantric practice), to purify your past evil deeds, read the scriptures, or in a clean and isolated 458 Buddhist Ethics place, build reliquaries of the Joyful One To the relics or the reliquaries housing them, offer with great faith praises, garlands, perfumes, lights, parasols, standards, banners, and music In these and other ways, a mantric adept should cultivate merit (TV, vol Ca, f 19a1-5) 75 Sitting with the body straight and unmovingly watching the senses, the adept engages in recitation of mantra This should not be too fast (in order not to omit syllables), not too slow (not to become distracted), not too loud (a sign of excitement), not too low (a sign of torpor), not while speaking (since the words of the mantras are blessed by the joyful ones; therefore, it is improper to mix them with ordinary speech), not while distracted by some object (other than the form of the deity, the letters of the mantra, or its sound), and not without reverence (for the visualization or sound of the recitation) The Subahu Tantra states: A man who does not hold the sword properly, Grasping it by its edge, will likely cut his hand Likewise, a mantrin who does not recite mantras correctly Either attains no result or is defeated Setting the mind single-pointedly in a continuous state of awareness, the mantrin should make the mind pliable; with such pliability, he or she will accomplish without obstacles the powers coming from recitation of mantra (TV, vol Ca, ff 19a4-20b2) 76 Pema Karpo states that to maintain the pledges of the other families means to observe the pledges of the deities of the three [main Action Tantra families], the pledges of their rites, the pledges in relation to attainments reached through these rites, and exclusive pledges particular to an individual, according to the tantras of each [deity] (TV, vol Ca, f 20b3-5) 77 The seals (phyag rgya) in the Action Tantra refer mainly to hand gestures 78 Pema Karpo explains that to remain peaceful means to transform attachment by viewing the body as impure, to transform anger by using the moisture of love and compassion, and to transform stupidity by applying knowledge of the interdependence of phenomena To transform attachment when the object is another person, one reflects upon the changing nature of relationships (sometimes, even an enemy may become one’s friend; one’s friend may become an enemy; similarly, someone who was neutral may become friend or enemy) Setting aside exaggerated liking for friends, a mantric adept should rest the mind relaxedly in a virtuous state and transform emotions by pondering upon the selflessness of phenomena: Things not exist before they arise Neither are they created by Ishvara, Nor they arise without causes Beings arise from actions and emotions Form is composed of the five elements; These are not the self, and the self does not possess them There neither is self in form, nor does self have form Form is empty, as are the other aggregates Form is like froth, Notes to Chapter IV 459 And feeling, like bubbles on water To see things in this way is the correct view Seeing them differently is a perverse view (TV, vol Ca, f 21a1-b5) 79 The practitioner should eat at the appropriate time, wash three times a day, and offer to the deity garlands of flowers, lights, incense, and perfumes, but not meat or alcohol Then, sitting on a mat of kuŸa grass, he engages in meditation With the knowledge of the purity of the body and assuming the purificatory fast precepts for one, two, or three days, he should fast and dedicate himself to the meditation (TV, vol Ca, ff 21b5-22a5) 80 Not to invent mantras or rites even for the sake of defeating an evil person (TV, vol Ca, f 22b4-6) 81 Pema Karpo specifies that a mantric adept should not perform fierce rites with the perverse wish to hinder someone’s efforts in performing rites to gain supernatural powers As part of this pledge, a practitioner should not perform rites that include striking the dagger while reciting fierce mantras in a place that is inhabited by n›gas or a similar class of beings (TV, vol Ca, ff 23a2-24a4) 82 A mantrin must not perform tantric activities to compete with or to injure or kill another (TV, vol Ca, f 24a4-b2) 83 A master should reveal the mandala, initiate, and transmit the secret instructions, which are the seals of mantra, only to disciples who have made the pledges and can preserve them Disciples who have not made the pledges are not authorized to see the mandala of the deity or to receive the initiation If a master were to give them the secret instructions and they to follow them, unfortunate consequences would befall both Even though they may already know tantric procedures, disciples who not honor the master are not to be taught the tantras (TV, vol Ca, ff 44b2-45a) 84 Concerning this pledge, Pema Karpo cites the following words of the Susiddhi Tantra: Do not eat or destroy What resembles [ritual] weapons Or, likewise, sentient beings, Or resembles tantric symbols Neither should a good mantrin Degrade medicines By making them dirty Or stepping on them, Or ride chariots, Crush lotus flowers, Or touch with the feet Leftover food (TV, vol Ca, f 25a4-b2) 85 Not to be unrestrained in body, speech, and mind with regard to food and behavior Pema Karpo cites the Susiddhi Tantra as follows: Even a learned lay practitioner of Mantra Should not wear clothes dyed his preferred color ... states that to maintain the pledges of the other families means to observe the pledges of the deities of the three [main Action Tantra families], the pledges of their rites, the pledges in relation... distracted by some object (other than the form of the deity, the letters of the mantra, or its sound), and not without reverence (for the visualization or sound of the recitation) The Subahu Tantra states:... life, even if he were to apply himself earnestly to tantric practice to achieve the powers of the Secret Mantra, he would not attain them (TV, vol Ca, f 31a1-b2) 65 The offense of harming the Three