Ngondro | Tibetan Buddhist Altar

Vairocana

December 24, 2014March 25, 2014 by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo

The following is an excerpt from a teaching by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo offered during a Phowa retreat:

On the first day, it is Vairochana Buddha that will appear. He either manifests in the form of a Buddha, according to our beliefs, should we have the capacity to recognize, or he will manifest in the form of dazzling blue lights and geometric shapes. These dazzling blue lights are just that—they are dazzling. They are unlike anything we have ever seen on the physical level. They will knock you for a loop. Literally knock you for a loop. It will be unlike anything you have ever seen. The ultimate light show, friends. And it will be different than you have ever seen it. So one needs to practice in order to be able to recognize the nature that is Vairochana Buddha.

At the same time that this almost violent, dazzling, ultra-dazzling blue light will appear, another softer white light will appear. The softer and white light will be more welcoming, but this softer white light corresponds to the world of the gods. Do not follow. Go to that light which is dazzling, perhaps more unfamiliar, perhaps more frightening. Call out to the Buddha. Try not to take the easiest way out, but ask yourself, require yourself to recognize the Buddha. If the person seeing this has no idea of what is happening, the sheer brightness of the light of the Buddha is somehow terrifying. If they haven’t practiced, you see, they are unused to it, so it is terrifying; and one will be more inclined to follow the light of the worlds of the gods, as it is soft and pleasing. So beware of that.

Here are the two correct attitudes, according to this lama, that are very helpful to adopt in order to face the situation. The first one consists of becoming conscious that the blinding blue light manifests the presence of Vairochana Buddha. So we pray every day from now until the time of our death, and especially around the time of our death, that he will dispel the suffering and phenomena of the bardo. And particularly when we see him, when we see this very bright blue light or when we recognize that the Buddha is present, we pray to him and ask him to dispel the delusion and make the way clear for us. The second method requires more profound knowledge than the first one. The first one, you only have to have heard; literally, you now have enough to do that. You have heard, and through the force of your caring about this hearing and wanting to internalize it, it is that force that will make you remember that you have heard that Vairochana will appear at this time. Now you know that. You are expecting to be in the bardo; you are expecting to see light that you are uncomfortable with. You are expecting to see things you do not recognize or feel familiar with, and you will know not to be afraid. That’s the first way, you see.

The second way requires more knowledge than the first way, and it involves recognizing that the light which appears that is Vairochana has no external existence separate from oneself. That it is the manifestation of one of the five Buddhas present within our own mind. And he says here that, “Their manifested aspects are externally expressed, but in truth their light has no intrinsic external existence.” This blue is actually the luminosity of our own minds; yet we cannot recognize it because we have not become familiar with our own minds. And so the second method, in order to get through this particular aspect of the bardo, is to recognize that this has no inherent existence outside of ourselves. That this is, in fact, a display of our own inherent Buddha nature, and in that way, to become familiar with it and non-dual. Remaining fully aware that the light and the mind are one will free us from the suffering of the bardo. On the other hand, if we are enticed by the white light of the god realm, we will be seduced to be reborn as a long life god—the god that lives a long time and smells good and looks good, feels good, but then eventually, pffft., A bad end to that vacation. So we do not wish to be reborn in the god realm. Do not go for instant gratification in this case. Trust me on this one.

The Challenge of Limited Perception

December 16, 2014February 16, 2014 by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo

The following is an excerpt from a teaching by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo offered during a Phowa retreat:

Now you have to examine yourself, and you have to ask yourself: What are your habit patterns? If it has been your habit that you have not finished tasks, then you have to train yourself in a way that you have never trained yourself before. If it has been your habit that you have thought of yourself as inept, incompetent, not worthy, and a failure, and you think that probably you will begin this but you will not be able to finish it, you will not be able to succeed at it… You have the idea that you’re not going to go all the way with it, and you could feel yourself slip-sliding away… You could feel yourself kind of going in a direction that you mentally have the habit of going in, but one that is not productive to you and will absolutely lead to the end of this situation that you find yourself in. Then, of course, you will have to train yourself in a way that you have never trained yourself before. And the reason why is that, first of all, you must understand this: You can. That’s the first reason to do it. Because you have the habit pattern, that does not excuse you from changing the habit or from learning how to apply the antidote. Because things have been this way up until this time does not mean that you have no aptitude for training yourself with method. Through using method and through relying on the method and relying on the help from your spiritual friend or teacher, there’s no reason you cannot do that, even if you have never done that before.

Here’s why. When we deal with our own lives and our own self opinions, our own ideas about ourselves, our own habitual tendencies, our own ways that we function, and particularly our own ways in which we think about and perceive ourselves, there’s a certain degree of flexibility. There is very little about life that will come up and slap you in the head in such a way as to tell you exactly what you are doing wrong. Life will slap you in the head, no doubt about that, but it may happen ten years after you’re making the mistake that you’re making now. It could happen in the next life. You may never have the opportunity to make the connection as to what you did wrong, what happened, where you fell short, and why things didn’t pan out.

So life isn’t really a good teacher. We like to say that we learn from life. Life confuses us more than anything else. We don’t learn from life because many of the causes that we begin within our own lifespan in this lifetime won’t even ripen in this lifetime. When they do, consider yourself fortunate. If you conduct yourself in a way that is inappropriate—unkind, lacking in generosity, self-absorbed, hateful, or whatever—and you see the ripening of it within a short enough time to where you can recognize the connection, that is Guru Rinpoche’s blessing; and you should consider it Guru Rinpoche’s blessing. Really, you should immediately drop to your knees and do some prostrations, because that is luck. That is a blessing. But what usually happens is that the result of what we have done becomes hidden by years, and by all of the flip-flop, inside-out movements that we make during the course of our lives. There are so many options, so many ways that we can go, that we literally don’t have the kind of mind that can follow the threads through. See what I’m saying? We don’t have the kind of mind that can pull the thread and follow it from beginning to end, coupled by the fact that we have the additional problem that relatively, proportionately, very little of our non-virtuous causes will ripen during the course of this lifetime. Most of them will ripen in the bardo state after death, or in the next life, or the life after that. There are no guarantees. So it’s very difficult to learn.

Terton Migyur Dorje: The Origin of Nam Chö by HH Penor Rinpoche

August 7, 2013 by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo

The following is an excerpt from a teaching offering by Kyabje His Holiness Pema Norbu Rinpoche at Palyul Ling in New York:

First examine your mind and try to get rid of any afflictive emotions or negative thoughts. Try to give rise to devotion, faith, inclination, and in that way, carry through the Guru Yoga prayers with a very sincere mind. From the core of one’s heart do the supplication prayers.

All the practices that we are doing during the retreat were revealed by Treasure Revealer, Tulku Migyur Dorje. The history or story of Tulku Migyur Dorje starts before the time of Shakyamuni Buddha. There was a king called Akara. When he was the son of the king, he went to collect some jewels from the ocean and wandered. As he was wandering he carried with him a cloth net called Zarapa, which is why he is also referred to as Arapa. For a while he had been looking for the guru named Apara. Apara was a great mahasidda who wandered, so Akara had not been able to find him. One day the guru master, Apara, knew that the King’s son was coming, so he waited in a certain place. When the King’s son, Arapa met the master Apara, he didn’t know who he was, and asked, “Do you know where Apara is?”

Instantly Apara flew in the air and landed on a rock where he left a footprint, and stayed there. Instantly Zarapa developed tremendous devotion. He went there and started receiving teachings. He received all the teachings and based on his practice, he had accomplishment. Then Zarapa also had many disciples.

He was reborn as three masters who had great miraculous activities. And then he was reborn several times in India. He was reborn as Kungol during the time when Shakyamuni Buddha was just attaining enlightenment in India. Kungol attended all the Buddha’s teachings and maintained the Buddha’s teachings.

During the time when Guru Padmasambhava came to Tibet, he was born as a great yogi known as Shupu Palge Senge. He helped Guru Padmasambhava’s activity by translating all the teachings from Sanskrit to Tibetan and then also by bringing tantric texts and teachings to Tibet.

Tulku Migyur Dorje had about 500 different lives. For a long time he had been manifesting in the six realms and benefiting all sentient beings, especially beings in hell. Lots of hell beings were liberated. When he was in the hell realm, of course, he didn’t experience the suffering of hell because of his power and realization. He just benefited and liberated all those hell beings. He emptied many areas of hell. Sometimes the karma of some hell beings was so strong that he couldn’t help them, so he drew mantras on the sand and then threw them in the fire, which extinguished the fire, and benefited those beings.

Also he manifested in the animal realm just as very tiny animals like insects, and then huge animals, and birds and so forth. And then according to their own family, they started giving teachings and that way lots and lots of animal beings were benefited and liberated.

Later in Tibet he was born in a place called Ngam. When he was just three years old, he started giving teachings. His parents wouldn’t allow him saying, “What kind of ghost language you are speaking?” When he was 11 years old, his master, Chagmed Rinpoche, knew he was a special being and invited him to his place. Chagmed Rinpoche had a relative who was a very negative guy. The relative saw that Migyur Dorje was staying there for awhile and somehow obscured his mind a bit. So Chagmed Rinpoche gave Migyur Dorje lots of purification nectar, and with that the obscurations were purified. Later he had clear visions of many deities. That is how all the Namchö teachings were revealed.

Then Chagmed Rinpoche started teaching Migyur Dorje all the scripts. And Migyur Dorje told him, “I know all those scripts.” Then he asked Chagmed Rinpoche about the scripts from many different countries, and said, “Do you know these?” And Chagmed Rinpoche said, “I don’t know them.”

In the beginning Chagmed Rinpoche was Tulku Migyur Dorje’s master. Then later when Tulku Migyur Dorje started revealing the Namchö cycle of teachings, Chagmed Rinpoche took Tulku Migyur Dorje as his master. The whole complete revelation of the Namchö cycle of teachings were revealed in that way.

This Namchö is the exact Dharma teaching appropriate for this time. It is very condensed and profound, and has a great deal of blessings. In that way Tulku Migyur Dorje brought a lot of benefit. Then somewhere in another Buddhafield, a Buddha was going to pass into Nirvana, and so Migyur Dorje needed to go there then as a kind of representative and to attain enlightenment. He lived only about 19 years on this earth.

The complete revelation of this Namchö passed from Chagmed Rinpoche to Rigdzin Kunzang Sherab until our present day lineage holders. Many countless beings have become great mahasiddhas. It has been explained that there would be like 100 million masters who are honored with that banner. All the lamas who have the rank of Vajra Acharya, have great signs when they pass away. You are also following this tradition and practice. If you think properly and do the practice, then the same blessings are also there for you.

Kün-zang La-may Zhal-Lung: Introduction by Sonam T. Kazi

May 23, 2013 by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo

The following is respectfully quoted from an introduction to Kün-zang La-may Zhal-lung by translator Sonam T. Kazi:

It is a universal truth that it is extremely enjoyable to live in this phenomenal world. Nobody wants to part with worldly pleasure. It is also a universal truth that everything that conditionally exists, sooner or later, must face ultimate destruction. This is not a pessimistic view. It is a fact. As the pleasant dream we have about health, wealth, beauty, fame, love, affection, and so on suddenly begins to fail, our sorrow knows no bounds. It is then that some of us get puzzled and begin to question the true meaning of existence. When death comes nearer, terrified by the unknown changes we will have to face, we try, as a last resort, to seek the help of the gods, goddesses, and the like. But do we have any idea who they are? For, the potentially most useful times in our life are spent fishing, watching television, smoking, drinking, gossiping and so forth. Even the small amount of spiritual practice that we pretentiously do is adulterated with worldly interest.

However, those of us who are aware of this ultimate catastrophe, in time, search for a solution to transcend death. We visit all the available religious camps in the world. Some of us come across the Buddhist teaching called Dzog-ch’en, or Atiyoga, whose superlative virtues excite us so much that we totally forget the proper approach to it. It is logical that, just as a towering building must have an equally sound foundation, success in the ultimate realization through Dzog-ch’en teaching depends entirely on a thorough understanding of the law of karma at the relative level. Kün-zang La-may Zhal-lung explains how to attain the proper balance between the relative and absolute aspects of the practice in very simple language.

From the Ship to Liberation: Refuge Verses

April 27, 2013 by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo

The following is respectfully quoted from “The Great Perfection Buddha in the Palm of the Hand” from the Nam Chö Treasures by Migyur Dorje:

NAMO DU SUM GYUN CHED MED PAR DRO DÖN DZED
To those beings who accomplish the purpose of others, without interruption in the Three Times,

MI CHOG TSEN PAI RAB GYEN TRINLEY TER
A treasure of miraculous activity, supremely adorned with the major and minor marks,

SANGYE NAM LA CHAG TSAL KYAB SU CHI
To all the Buddhas, I prostrate and go for Refuge.

SHI WA CHAG DRAL CHIR MI DOG PAI LAM
To the peaceful Path of no reversal, which is separate from desire,

GYUD LUNG MEN NGAG DRUB TSOG NYON MONG DRAL
Free from delusion is the path of Tantras, Transmissions, Secret Oral Instructions and Accomplishment Practices

DAM PAI CHÖ LA CHAG TSAL KYAB SU CHI
To the sacred Dharma, I prostrate and go for Refuge.

TSOG SHING MA NOR LAM NAI NYON MONG DRAL
Free from delusion is the unmistaken field of Refuge of Beings who remain on the stages of the Path.

SANGYE TEN DZIN PHAR CHIN DRUG LHA NEI
To the holders of the Buddha’s Doctrine, who maintain the practice of the Six Perfections,

GE DUN NAM LA CHAG TSAL KYAB SU CHI
To the entire Sangha, I prostrate and go for Refuge.

GYAL KUN NGO WO KYIL KHOR KUN GYI TSO
To the essential nature of all the Buddhas and the head of all Mandalas,

YID SHIN DRIN CHEN DREN PAI NGÜDRUB BEB
Whose wish-fulfilling great kindness is the source of all spiritual attainment.

LAMA NAM LA CHAG TSAL KYAB SU CHI
To all my Lamas, I prostate and go for Refuge.

CHÖ KUI TSAL LEI DRO DON SHI TRU TSOG
As the display of the Dharmakaya, the peaceful and wrathful Deities, arise to accomplish the purpose of Beings.

THUG JEI NGANG NEINGÜDRUB KUN TSOL WAI
From whose loving kindness, all spiritual attainments are received.

YIDAM LHA LA CHAG TSAL KYAB SU CHI
To the Meditational Deities, I prostrate and go for Refuge.

DAG PA DEI TSOL DAM TSIG CHEN GYI NYEN
To the source of pure bliss, the friends of Samaya upholders,

LEG NEI TONG DZIN DRUB PAI DROG DZED MA
Bringing good fortune and befriending those who accomplish the understanding of Emptiness.

KHA DRO DAM CHEN TSOG LA KYAB SU CHI
To the Dakinis and Oath Protectors, I prostate and go for Refuge.

YE NEI TONG NYID TRO DRAL DÜ MA CHEI
Primordially, the nature of Emptiness is unaltered and uncompounded,

KA DAG OD SAL LONG YANG RANG SHIN LA
As the natural great expanse of the originally pure clear light,

DZIN MED RANG SAL JEN PAR KYAB SU CHI
In this ungrasped, naked self-clarity, I go for Refuge.

LHUNDRUB RANG SHIN YESHE NGA DEN OD
The natural, spontaneously accomplished light of the five Primordial Wisdoms,

YING RIG THIG LE RIG PA LU GU GYUD
Is the indivisibility of the Sphere of Truth and Pure Awarness appearing as a light chain of pure-awarness molecules.

RANG SAL DU DRAL MED PAR KYAB SU CHI
In this undiminishing self-clarity, I go for Refuge.

MA GAG RANG SAL DE CHEN THUG JEI LHA
To the compassionate Deity of great bliss and unceasing self-clarity,

RANG SHIN OD KYI DRO WAI MUN SEL WA
Whose natural light clarifies Beings from the darkness of delusion,

SHAR DROL THOG THA MED PAR KYAB SU CHI
In the nature which is liberated the moment it arises, and unblocked by limitation, I go for Refuge.

REFUGE VERSES:

LAMA LA KYAB SU CHIO
I take Refuge in the Lamas

SANGYE LA KYAB SU CHIO
I take Refuge in the Buddha

CHÖ LA KYAB SU CHIO
I take Refuge in the Dharma

GEDUN LA KYAB SU CHIO
I take Refuge in the Sangha

(Accumulate the Refuge Verses)

Homage to Śrī Samantabhadra: Longchenpa

January 18, 2013 by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo

The following is respectfully quoted from “Kindly Bent to Ease Us” by Longchenpa:

Homage to the beginningless primordial Lord,
an ocean great and full of capabilities,
Whose range of intuition and depth of
tenderness cannot be fathomed,
Who is the birthplace of the Wish-fulfilling Gem, the
Buddhas and their spiritual sons, and
From whom cloud banks of prosperity and bliss arise.

Sheer lucency, founding stratum of meaning,
immaculate, man’s Buddha-nature,
Through ego-centered apprehensions following the loss
of pure awareness, strays into fictitious being.
Wearied and weakened in the deserts of
Karmic actions and turbulent emotions may Mind
today find comfort and ease.

Friends, a precious human body, being a unique
occasion and the right juncture,
Is very hard to find within the six-life forms.
As delighted as a blind man who has stumbled on a
precious hoard,
Use this body for prosperity and bliss.

What is meant by a unique occasion and the right
juncture?
I am a person beyond the eight unfavorable
conditions:
My mind has not been born in the realms of hells,
of hungry spirits,
And of animals, I am not dumb, and I am not one of the
long-living gods, nor one of the savages, and
I do not harbor wrong views, and do not live in a period
in which there are no Buddhas;
And I represent the right juncture; five events affecting
me directly by being complete in me–
I have become a human being, I live in the central
country, and I possess all senses,
I do not revert to inexpiable evil deeds, and I have
confidence in the foundation of spiritual life; and
Five events affecting me directly;
The coming of a Buddha, his having taught the
doctrine, the presence of his teaching now,
The following so that it continues, and the loving
guidance by others.
These are the eighteen facets of a unique occasion and
the right juncture.
While they are thus complete,
Thoroughly exert yourself and realize deliverance.

If in this lifetime you do not make good use (of your
existence)
You will in the hereafter not even hear the word ‘happy life-form’
But for a long time will roam about in evil forms of life.
Not knowing what is to be rejected and what to be
accepted, so going the wrong way,
You cannot but drift about in Samsāra that has
no beginning nor end.

Therefore, while you still have the power now,
Apply yourself to the accumulation of inexhaustible
positive qualities,
In view of the fact that you are the juncture for the path
to happiness,
And pass beyond the stronghold of fictitious being.

But if I dare not cross the endless ocean of Samsāra,
Although I have a precious boat,
What shall I do when forever
Emotional reactions and frustrations are raging in
tumultuous waves?

Then quickly don the armor of perseverance
And, in order to let the turbid state of mind and mental
events be cleared,
Set out on the path of sheer lucency, of immaculate
pristine cognitions,
And let no obstacles impede the road to limpid
clearness and consummate perspicacity.

He who has become the foundation for bliss and
happiness
And has found a precious and clean vessel,
But does not gather the refreshing rain of the
nectar-like doctrine,
Will let himself be crushed by the swelter of Samsāra.

The downpour of (the Buddha’s) truth, the refreshing
water of pristine cognitions
With clouds of glorious bliss and happiness and
prosperity,
Will fall on the pure mind of living beings, the fertile
soil of a unique occasion at the right juncture.
Therefore, with joy and from your heart engage in the
quest for the real meaning of life.