Category: Discourse

Through the inspiration and blessing of our Guru comes realization of the Four Noble Truths. Thus our realization of the Noble Truths is the inspiration and blessing of our Guru. To be shown the Four Noble Truths is not realization, that requires wisdom.

Guru Yoga

In meditation, visualize the essence of your Guru as Vajradhara, a tantric aspect of Shakyamuni Buddha, as manifested in the non-dual space before you.

Vajradhara (‘holder of the vajra’) is an expression of the Dharmakaya and root of all the enlightened-families. The vajra (Tibetan: dorje) is a diamond (‘sovereign among all stones’) scepter-like ritual object that indicates the indestructible reality of buddhahood. The vajra and bell together represent the perfect union of discriminative awareness and skillful means.    

In appearance, Guru Vajradhara, radiant blue in color, sits upon a throne supported by eight snow lions atop a lotus and sun seat. He holds a vajra and a bell and embraces his blue consort. Their blue spatial radiance is great bliss and wisdom of non-duality.  Recognize it as such.

At their crown chakra visualize a white om atop a moon seat, at their throat chakra a red āh atop a red lotus, and at their heart chakra a blue hūm atop a sun. They have great kindness and concern for you.

Light radiates in the ten directions from the hūm  at Guru Vajradhara‘s heart. Atop each ray you may visualize one of the lamas who have mastered the practice of inner fire yoga and have realized the illusory body and wisdom of clear light.

Preform the seven-limb prayer (below) with mandala offering. The best offering to give is the offering of meditation practiced sincerely toward happiness and realization.

Pray intently to Guru Vajradhara, the Dharma protector, for realization according to the development of your practice.

Visualize all the lineage lamas as they dissolve into Guru Vajradhara.

From Guru Vajradhara, emanating  rays of:

• white light from the om at his crown chakra enters yours
• red light from the āh at his throat chakra enters yours
• blue light from the hūm at his heart chakra enters yours

Visualize as Guru Vajradhara absorbs into you at your crown, enters into your central channel and into your your heart chakra. Unify your body and speech with those of Guru Vajradhara. Unify your mind with  Guru Vajradhara’s transcendental, blissful wisdom of dharmakaya.

If you have a dualistic conceptual view of Guru Vajradhara you do not comprehend.

Recognize the guru in every moment.

Seven Limbed Prayer

Before those of great compassion
we lay bare with mind of regret
all non-virtuous actions of misfortune
committed since beginning-less time
or have caused others to commit or have rejoiced in,
we vow never to commit again. 

All things are like a dream, lacking inherit or natural existence, 
sincerely we rejoice in the happiness
and joy of all Āryas and non-Ārya beings
and in ever white arisen virtue. 

May the rains of vast profound Dharma  fall
From a hundred thousand billowing clouds 
of sublime wisdom and loving-compassion, 
to nurture, sustain and propagate a garden of moon flowers
for the benefit and bliss of infinite beings. 

Your vajra-body subject to neither birth nor death
is a vessel  of Unity’s wish-granting gems,
Please abide forever in keeping with our wishes:
Pass not into nirvāna until samsāra’s end. 

We dedicate white virtues created
that we may be inseparably protected throughout all our lives
by venerable Gurus possessing the three kindnesses 
and that we may attain Vajradhāra Unity. 

 

This World Which Is Made Of Our Love For Emptiness
by Jalāl ad-Dīn Mohammad Balkhī (Rumi)

Praise to the emptiness that blanks out existence.
Existence: this place made from our love for that emptiness! 
Yet somehow comes emptiness, 
this existence goes. 
Praise to that happening, over and over!

For years I pulled my own existence out of emptiness. 
Then one swoop, one swing of the arm, 
that work is over. 
Free of who I was, free of presence, free of dangerous fear, hope, free of mountainous wanting. 

The here-and-now mountain is a tiny piece of straw
blown off into emptiness. 

These words I am saying so much begin to lose meaning:
existence, emptiness, mountain, straw:
words and what they try to say swept
out the window, down the slant of the roof.  

Tibetan: rigs. Sanskrit: kula.

The five ‘Enlightened Families’ are perfected, purified states of our five aggregates, elements, sense-organs, and sensory perceptions. Since all sentient beings possess these faculties, either in their potential or fully manifest forms, any individual who attains buddhahood realizes their perfected state. Each of the five enlightened families comprise a central male buddha, representing one of the purified aggregates, and a female buddha representing one of the purified elements. In addition, four of the five enlightened families are surrounded by peripheral bodhisattvas, representing the purified sense-organs, and sensory perceptions.

The five are as follows:

1. the buddha-family headed by the male buddha Vairocana (the purified aspect of our aggregate of consciousness/form)
2. the vajra family headed by the male buddha Akshobhya (the purified aspect of our aggregate of consciousness/form)
3. the ratna family, headed by the male buddha Ratnasambhava (the purified aspect of our aggregate of feeling)
4. the padma family, headed by the male buddha Amitabha (the purified aspect of our aggregate of perception/discrimination)
5. the karma family, headed by the male buddha Amoghasiddhi (the purified aspect of our aggregate of conditioning and motivational factors)

The correlation between the ‘enlightened-families’ and the aggregates can vary according to differing tantric system, particularly in the case of Vairocana and Akshobhya who may alternately be know as the purified aspect of consciousness or of form.  

Bibliography:
The Handbook of Tibetan Culture, 1993. 
Compiled by Graham Coleman