Teachings By Lama Zopa Rinpoche 

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Lama Zopa on Medicine Buddha

Lama Zopa Rinpoche on the Medicine Buddha Puja

The Benefits of Chanting “om mani padme hum”

The Practice of Ksitigarbha to Avert Danger and Purify Obstacles

The Benefits of Prayer Wheels

Tara Meditation 

Holy Objects

Vajrasattva Purification Practice

Practices to Counteract the SARS virus 

 

 

Lama Zopa on Medicine Buddha

Edited and condensed from a talk during Medicine Buddha Puja

by Lama Zopa Rinpoche, LMB, 28 July 2001

“To the Bhagawan with equal compassion for all Whose name when just heard dispels lower realms’ suffering Dispeller of disease and the three poisons I prostrate to Medicine Buddha Lapis Light.”

The Fifth Dalai Lama explains that the first verse expresses what Medicine Buddha is and talks about the qualities. Bhagawan means “Destroyer Qualified Gone Beyond One” or Chom Den De in Tibetan. “Destroyer” means not only destroyer of one’s own gross and subtle defilements, the delusions, but also destroyer of other sentient beings’ delusions and defilements. “Qualified” refers to six qualities. “Gone Beyond” means gone beyond the oceans of samsaric suffering. “With equal compassion for all” means Medicine Buddha’s compassion is equal towards all sentient beings, there are no discriminating thoughts. Buddha doesn’t just help those who have faith in him. Medicine Buddha has compassion to every single living being, equally-and that includes us. Then, “Whose name when just heard dispels lower realms’ suffering”.

Any living being who hears the name of Medicine Buddha never gets reborn in the lower realms-that’s the benefit, the power of just hearing the name, the mantra. Buddha asked

his attendant Ananda: “Do you believe this?” and Ananda replied, “Yes I believe what the Buddha says.” Then Buddha said “Why?” Ananda replied, “Because Buddha has inconceivable qualities, therefore I have no doubt.” Then Buddha said, “Even animals who hear Medicine Buddha’s name from that time on will never be reborn in the lower realms.” This is such an easy way to save living beings from heavy suffering. There’s no question about animals having faith in Medicine Buddha’s power-so how can there be any doubt that human beings who hear Medicine Buddha’s mantra will never again be reborn in the lower realms, whether they have faith or not? Just hearing the name is enough, so when people are dying one of the best things to do is to recite the name loudly in the ear, then you save the person from the suffering of the lower realms for many aeons. The reason there is so much power is due to Medicine Buddha’s compassion. In the past when he was a bodhisattva he made so many prayers and dedications with strong compassion for his name to be wish fulfilling, to bring happiness.

When he became enlightened, one of the ten powers of a Buddha is the power of prayer - that means that all the prayers that have been made get fulfilled. So it is extremely important in our daily life to practice Medicine Buddha and to chant his name for the animals. It’s an unbelievably easy way to liberate yourself and to help others too.

If you eat meat, recite the mantra of Medicine Buddha and blow over the meat. This way the animal’s negative karma gets purified. No matter how far away the consciousness is it receives the effect and helps the animal to a higher rebirth. Also, if you find insects in the house, by reciting the mantra and blowing on them it purifies their negative karmas and helps them to have a good rebirth. That fulfils the purpose of them coming into your house, into your room. It makes their life meaningful and since you are able to benefit them it makes your life meaningful also.

Some years ago I did retreat in Big Sur in America, in a cabin near the water. Many ants used to come into the kitchen. So I sent three tsa-tsas (images of Buddha) to the cooks and told them each time they found ants or insects in the house to put them in a plastic bag - don’t seal it - or container, then hold the tsa-tsa in one hand and with the other hand circumambulate the bag clockwise at the same level as the tsa-tsa. With each circumambulation all the ants create the cause for enlightenment, and by the way the cause for liberation from samsara and by the way the cause for all the happiness of future lives for hundreds of thousands of lifetimes. This is such an easy way to help them, to liberate them. Since that time whenever we see insects in the house we try to take them around holy objects a few times. By coming into the house they make us do the best practice - helping others. They make our lives meaningful and we make their lives meaningful. We help each other.

Medicine Buddha practice also purifies any broken vows, like Pratimoksha vows, or precepts. It is very powerful for purification and for healing sickness. Normally people think that Medicine Buddha is for healing but it’s not only that, it’s also very powerful for purifying negative karma and very powerful for success. When I was in Germany I read the Medicine Buddha Sutra and actually the Medicine Buddha practice is so precious. It seems that you can do Medicine Buddha Puja for ANY purpose, ANY problem, ANYTHING. You can use the Medicine Buddha practice for any kind of problem, for court cases, to stop wars, to stop violence, anything. It is very good for business, for mothers who are pregnant to give birth successfully, anything.

The practice can be done for anything. It is very powerful for success and of course the most important success is to have the realizations of the Lam Rim, the path to

enlightenment: to realize emptiness, develop wisdom, bodhicitta and guru devotion - to be able to give extensive benefit to other sentient beings.

Many of the Dharma kings in Tibet who did great benefit to preserve and spread the Dharma practised Medicine Buddha on every 8th day of the Tibetan month (that’s the same as Tara day) and also on the fifteen special days of the Buddha performing miracles (the first fifteen days of the first Tibetan month). Recently I read a detailed explanation by the Fifth Dalai Lama on the Medicine Buddha practice, both sutra and tantra, and the biographies of the lineage lamas. Each one was able to give so much benefit to sentient beings and the teachings of Buddha and had great realizations by doing Medicine Buddha practice.

For example, Lha Lama Yeshe Oe, the Dharma king who invited Lama Atisha to Tibet did Medicine Buddha practice as a main deity and was able to establish many monasteries with extensive listening, reflection and meditation practice. He sacrificed his life to spread pure Dharma in Tibet by inviting Lama Atisha. When he went to look for gold as an offering, he was captured and put in prison near Nepal where he passed away. When they offered fire to his holy body rainbow lights were emitted and there were rainfalls of flowers for seven days. Then a Medicine Buddha, the size of a thumb, appeared from his heart and went to Pure Land. The sky was filled with the sound of music and there were so many wonderful signs. All the lineage lamas of Medicine Buddha did Puja on the 8th of every month, had incredible realizations and when they passed away there were wonderful signs like this king Lha Lama Yeshe Oe.

“Dispeller of disease and the three poisons” - the three poisons are ignorance, hatred and attachment, the sicknesses of the mind from which come the physical sicknesses-cancer, depression, etc.

“I prostrate to Medicine Buddha Lapis Light.”

Medicine Buddha’s mantra is: tayatha om bekandze bekandze maha bekandze radza samudgate soha.

Tayatha - means “like this”. Om - is composed of the three pure sounds A U and MA, which signifies one’s own body, speech and mind that get transformed into the vajra holy body, speech and mind. Then bekandze bekandze -“eliminating pain, eliminating pain”. What eliminates pain is medicine. This pain is not ordinary pain - even animals do not want to experience that. The first eliminating pain is true suffering, the second is the true cause of suffering. The medicine that eliminates pain is first the graduated path of the lower capable being, and second the graduated path of the middle capable being. Then maha bekandze -“the great eliminating pain” is the graduated path of the higher capable being, which eliminates the subtle defilements. So bekandze bekandze maha bekandze contains the whole path to enlightenment, the ultimate medicine. Radza - is king. Samudgate. Soha - to establish the foundation in the heart, the blessing, the devotion from which the realization comes.

By actualising the meaning of the path contained in bekandze bekandze maha bekandze, the whole Lam Rim, you cease the defilements, gross and subtle, and purify the ordinary body, speech and mind into the vajra holy body, speech and mind. After this you are able to do perfect works for other sentient beings.

Lama Zopa Rinpoche on the Medicine Buddha Puja

The following is advice that Lama Zopa Rinpoche originally composed for Land of Medicine Buddha, but Rinpoche would also like as many centers as possible to do these pujas and offerings.

“It is very important that the elaborate Medicine Buddha puja with extensive offerings be done regularly. The offering should be as extensive and as beautiful as possible, and done in order to benefit all FPMT.

Medicine Buddha puja is also something that can be done for people who are dying or who have already passed away, and also for individual success in all kind of activities. This Medicine Buddha practice is extremely powerful and beneficial especially when it is done with extensive offerings beautifully arranged.

It is always the case that there are many students that have no time or very little time to do practice, always too busy. Such people can be encouraged to make regular offerings from their wages for the Medicine Buddha puja, i.e. towards the extensive offerings. In this way they are able to create merit, and as they know it is happening regularly, from their home they can mentally make the offerings to the Guru Triple Gems. Even they can do the mental offerings in their car or the office. This is a very good way to help the center to develop and also help the individual’s Dharma practice.

Traditionally wealthy Tibetan families would have a monk or a nun doing this in their home and taking care of a beautiful altar, and making beautiful offerings as the family had no time. They would offer at least one hundred waterbowls etc. The offerings can be beautiful and extensive, include flowers, etc. This is also very good if it can happen at many of our centers, where someone who has the time and energy can do puja and the offerings for those who have no time and energy, and they in turn can be supported in doing this.

It would be excellent if the extensive Medicine Buddha could be done every week, at least once a month. If sometimes the extensive one is too long, the short Wisdom booklet one can be done. Of course other people can come to the puja, as many people as possible. There is a Medicine Buddha sutra, which can be recited. It is unbelievable inspiring to read. It explains the benefits of the Medicine Buddha practice. If that was available, that could be read occasionally.

The Benefits of Chanting “om mani padme hum”Lama Zopa RinpocheExcerpted from Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s invitation to join the Chenrezig Institute mani retreat, composed

by Rinpoche during a stay at Deer Park Buddhist Center in Madison, Wisconsin, USA in July 2000, scribed and edited by Ven. Lhundup Damchö;

excerpt edited by Dr. Nick Ribush. Rinpoche’s entire teachings at the retreat have been edited by Ven.

Ailsa Cameron and will be published for free distribution by the Lama Yeshe Wisdom Archive in Teachings from the Mani Retreat, due in late 2001.

The benefits of reciting the Compassion Buddha mantra are infinite, like the limitless sky.

Even if you don’t have much intellectual understanding of Dharma, even if the only thing you know is OM MANI PADME HUM, still the happiest life is one lived with an attitude free of the eight worldly concerns. If you live your life with the pure attitude free of attachment clinging to this life and simply spend your life chanting OM MANI PADME HUM—this six-syllable mantra that is the essence of all Dharma—that’s the purest Dharma.It looks very simple, very easy to recite. But if you think of the benefits, it’s not at all simple. Here, I’d to mention just the essence of its infinite benefits.

Reciting the Compassion Buddha mantra just once completely purifies the four defeats of breaking the four root vows of self-liberation and the five uninterrupted negative karmas1.

It is also mentioned in the tantras that by reciting this mantra you achieve the four qualities of being born in the Amitabha Buddha pure land and other pure lands; at the time of death, seeing Buddha and lights appearing in the sky; the devas making you offerings; and never being reborn in the hell, hungry ghost or animals realms. You will be reborn in the pure land of Buddha or as a happy transmigratory being.

When one who recites ten malas a day goes swimming, whether in a river, an ocean or some other body of water, the water that touches that person’s body gets blessed.

It is said that up to seven generations of that person’s descendents won’t get reborn in the lower realms. The reason for this is that due to the power of mantra, the body is blessed by the person reciting the mantra and visualizing their body in form of the holy body of Chenrezig. Therefore, the body becomes so powerful, so blessed that this affects the consciousness up to seven generations and has the effect that if one dies with a non-virtuous thought, one is not reborn in a lower realm.

Thus, when a person who has recited ten malas of OM MANI PADME HUM a day goes into a river or an ocean, the water that touches the person’s body gets blessed, and this blessed water then purifies all the billions and billions of sentient beings in the water. So it’s unbelievably beneficial; this person saves the animals in that water from the most unbelievable suffering of the lower realms.

When such a person walks down a road and the wind touches his or her body and then goes on to touch insects, their negative karma gets purified and causes them to have a good rebirth. Similarly, when such a person does massage or otherwise touches others’ bodies, those people’s negative karma also gets purified.

Such a person becomes meaningful to behold; being seen and touched becomes a means of liberating other sentient beings. This means that even the person’s breath touching the bodies of other sentient beings purifies their negative karma. Anybody who drinks the water in which such a person has swum gets purified.

We are unbelievably fortunate to have met the Dharma and to have the opportunity to do recitation and meditation on the Compassion Buddha. It is an easy way of purifying whatever negative karma we have collected, in not only this life but in many previous lives as well.

Because we have met the Buddhadharma, and especially this method--the practice of Compassion Buddha and recitation of his mantra--it is easy to purify negative karma and collect extensive merit and thus to achieve enlightenment. We are unbelievably fortunate.

Therefore, there is nothing more foolish than not taking advantage of this great opportunity. Normally, we get continuously distracted and waste our lives. Not only that, but all the actions done with ego and with the three poisonous minds of anger, attachment and ignorance create negative karma, the cause of suffering. In all existence, there is nothing more foolish than using this perfect human body to create only suffering.

In places such as Tibet, Nepal, India and Ladakh, there’s a well-established tradition of doing the Compassion Buddha retreat and reciting 100 million OM MANI PADME HUM mantras. The one held at Chenrezig Institute was the first such retreat held in the West and the first in the FPMT organization. This is to happen there once each year—only once each year!

If you’re feeling guilt in your life, you can overcome this through the purification of attending this retreat.

The retreat is not just chanting mantras with sadhanas, but also includes taking the Eight Mahayana Precepts, if not every day, at least frequently. Whatever merit you collect that day increases 100,000 times. This becomes such an easy and quick way to purify, collect extensive merit, achieve enlightenment and liberate sentient beings from unimaginable suffering and bring them to enlightenment quickly.

Whoever attends a mani retreat is unbelievably fortunate. Even if you can’t attend the whole retreat, you can participate for two months, one month or at least a few weeks. You can do even just one week. I especially hope this retreat will also be established in Mongolia, since their main food is meat and so many animals are killed there every day. This practice helps purify that. After our temple in Mongolia has been built, I hope that thousands of people will attend mani retreats there. Gradually too, I would like this retreat to be established in other parts of the West.

This retreat also blesses the country where it is held and brings so much peace, happiness and prosperity.

Even if you know the teachings on how to meditate on bodhicitta, you still need to receive the special blessings of the deity, Compassion Buddha. You receive these by doing the meditation and recitation we practice in the mani retreat. Therefore, recitation of OM MANI PADME HUM is one way to actualize bodhicitta--to transform your mind into bodhicitta and make your meditation on bodhicitta effective.

Generally, according to my experience, in my home of Solu Khumbu in the Himalayas of Nepal, there are people who live their lives chanting OM MANI PADME HUM but have no idea of the three principal aspects of the path--renunciation, bodhicitta and the right view of emptiness--not even the words. Even though they can’t read and don’t even know the alphabet, they have great devotion to compassion and bodhicitta and live their lives reciting OM MANI PADME HUM. Such people are warm-hearted, very kind, very compassionate. This is proof from my experience that it has the effect of transforming the mind into a good heart and compassion.

Without bodhicitta, you cannot cause all the happiness for all sentient beings. You cannot do perfect work for all sentient beings, and you cannot achieve the complete qualities of the realizations and cessation, even for yourself.

Thus, everyone is most welcome to join the 100 million OM MANI PADME HUM mantra retreat.

Footnotes1. These are karmas so heavy that they ripen immediately as a rebirth in the hell realm upon the exhaustion of the karma of this life. The five are: killing one’s mother, killing one’s father, drawing the blood of a Buddha, killing an arhat and causing disunity among the Sangha.   The Practice of Ksitigarbha to Avert Danger and Purify Obstacles  The Practice It is good to recite daily the sutra prayer (after the mantra) praised by Buddha to Ksitigarbha and the prayer that I have added below. 

“I prostrate, go for refuge, make offerings, please grant blessing. The Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha, who has unbearable compassion for me and all sentient beings whose minds are obscured and who are suffering, who has qualities like the sky and liberates sentient beings from all the sufferings and gives all the happiness.” (x 3) 

With hands folded in prostration, visualize doing the prostrations to all the Buddhas and bodhisattvas; that becomes prostration when you say the word prostrate. When you say the word refuge, think that you are asking to be free from the two obscurations (to be able to achieve enlightenment). When you say the word offering, you think that all the offerings that you have are then offered. When you ask for blessings, you think in your mind that the whole path to enlightenment is the blessing to be received. This is the mantra that Ksitigarbha heard from Buddhas equaling the number of sand grains of the river Ganga. He made offerings to them and then received this mantra. This mantra is to be used for any difficulties, problems; it is the best one to do for any problems in any situation. Even reciting four or five times, just a few times, it is very powerful. It is

powerful to recite or just to think of the name of the bodhisattva. It is very, very powerful. tsimbo tsimbo / dze tsimbo / aga ga tsimbo / bagara tsimbo / om ah bara tsimbo / bara tsimbo / badzira tsimbo / aroga tsimbo / dehama tsimbo / tsatewa tsimbo / sadenewa tsimbo / bewaroga sharwa tsimbo / owashama tsimbo / nyana tsimbo / bagasama moni ran-nga tsimbo / chana tsimbo / begimaba ria tsimbo / shashe dala maba tsimbo / bea dahso / dama haley / dombay abbey / satasey / satabasaley / geley / gela garaba / bara baretey / hasaley / barebey / paresata bendaney / benra / tsatsa tsatsa / heleneley / agata / take takelo / tare tare / nelematey / nemtey gulemela / om gutsibatey / arregerey / gutashamaley / dunga dunga dungurey / huru huru huru / gunodumeley / marito / naretey / mendata / harakam rem / huru huru // Alternative mantra, which Rinpoche advised to do in preference to the above one: tayata muni/ muni gha bhe / muni ki dha ye / muni rogi ba tza le / muni hali de / muni gha me shu bha khye / mirla bhag / khe bhaa la la bhag khye / so ri kirta / tor na kir tsa le / bha tag sha kir te / ku ku la mir le / ava khya sa re / er ha ki li bha / muni bhaa thaba soha SHORT MANTRA

om ah khtiti garbha thaleng hung

PRAISE BY BUDDHA TO KSHITIGARBHA

You have generated stability of thought and pure thought (altruism / bodhicitta) and eliminated the sufferings of immeasurable sentient beings. I see (sentient beings) receiving happiness like the wish granting jewel, and like the vajra you cut the nets of the doubt (of others). You offer the Destroyer, Qualified-Gone-Beyond-Ones holy offerings with great compassionate thought and perseverance. You liberate the sentient beings from the sufferings with oceans of wisdom. Because you have no fear (delusions), you have gone beyond samsara.

This is especially beneficial for those who have heavy problems, serious health problems, big projects or financial difficulties. I will suggest it is extremely powerful to recite every day at least four or five times or more, depending on how crucial it is also, for protection. Even to grow crops well and to protect land and crops.

It explains in the sutra the extensive benefits and qualities, like the sky, of the Bodhisattva Ksitigarbha, like skies of benefit to all beings. There have been experiences, similar benefits received by those who practice Ksitigarbha.

This practice was translated, compiled and checked by Lama Zopa Rinpoche.

The Benefits of Prayer Wheels by Lama Zopa Rinpoche

Given at Land of Medicine Buddha, June 1994

Transcribed and first edited by Jindati Doelter; second edit by Briege Wallbridge; third edit by Ailsa Cameron.

Copyright Wisdom Publications, Boston, MA, USA. In Solu Kumbu all the old men and women turn prayer wheels every day. When they are at home in the morning and in the evening before they go to bed, they hold a mala in their left hand, a prayer wheel in their right, and recite om mani padme hung. And when they walk around, they constantly turn the prayer wheel and recite om mani padme hung. I often used to think, “How does turning of the prayer wheel become Dharma practice?” I had this question in my mind, simply because I was ignorant as to the benefits of the practice. I didn’t know what an important practice it is and how beneficial it is in terms of purification. Just touching and turning a prayer wheel brings incredible purification and accumulates unbelievable merit. At Lawudo I found many old manuscripts, handwritten texts by the Lawudo Lama. The previous Lawudo Lama was called Lama (Kunsang) Yeshe and some people think he has something to do with my life. The Lawudo Lama did not have a monastery, but lived in retreat in a cave. He put a lot of effort into copying texts of the practices of various Vajrayana deities. At that time such texts were very rare, so he wrote many out by hand. Because they had been stored in the cave which was very humid, the texts were damp, and I used to dry them in the sun. If you don’t dry them, the texts grow fungus and are then destroyed by worms. The worms reincarnate among the texts and make some interesting holes in them. One day when I was laying the texts out in the sun, I saw one old text with the title Mani Kabum. It contains all the history of the evolution of the world, including how Dharma came into this world and how the sentient beings of Tibet, the Snow Land, became the particular objects to be subdued by the Compassion Buddha Avalokiteshvara. Amitabha and the Compassion Buddha are the same in essence and are very strongly linked. And for more than twenty years, the Compassion Buddha and Amitabha have guided not only Tibet and China, but also Western countries, especially by spreading Dharma. In Mani Kabum I saw a short explanation of the lineage of the prayer wheel practice and a few lines on how to visualize and meditate when you do the

practice. In Tibet, and generally wherever there are the Mahayana teachings of Vajrayana, the practice of the prayer wheel has spread. Nagarjuna gave the practice to Lion-faced Dakini, who gave it to Padmasambhava, who then brought it to Tibet. After reading this, I developed faith that the practice was not nonsense, but had valid references and was valuable and meaningful. From this text, I got some idea of how powerful the prayer wheel practice is in purifying the mind and in accumulating extensive merits.In 1987, when I was at Chenrezig Institute in Australia, I noticed that the place had become incredibly peaceful. It felt so serene that you wanted to be there, to live there. Chenrezig Institute had not been like that before, and I wondered why it had changed. At that time, Geshe Lama Konchog was there. Geshe-la has done a lot of Dharma practice. After he escaped from Tibet, he spent many years in retreat in Milarepa’s caves in the Himalayas. He did 2,000 nyung-nays, the intensive two-day retreat on the Compassion Buddha, that involves taking the eight Mahayana precepts and doing many prostrations and mantras. Geshe Lama Konchog has trained his mind well in the path, so I thought that the serenity of Chenrezig Institute might be due to his bodhicitta. However, one day near the end of my stay there, the thought came into my mind, “Oh, the change might be due to the prayer wheel—it wasn’t there before.” The prayer wheel is much smaller than the one here at Land of Medicine Buddha, but it also contains many mantras on microfilm and is very nicely made. Some time later, when I was in Brazil at the invitation of a meditation center there, a student gave me a book written by one of Tarthang Tulku’s senior disciples about his experiences when he was in charge of building stupas and prayer wheels in Tarthang Tulku’s centers. In one section he mentioned that after a prayer wheel was built, the area was completely transformed, becoming so peaceful, pleasant, and conducive to the mind. This confirmed my belief, based on my own reasoning, that Chenrezig Institute had become so peaceful because of its new prayer wheel. Somebody else experiencing a similar effect from building the prayer wheel helped to stabilize my faith.

There are earth, water, fire and wind prayer wheels. One of the benefits of the prayer wheel is that it embodies all the actions of the buddhas and bodhisattvas of the 10 directions. To benefit sentient beings, the buddhas and bodhisattvas manifest in the prayer wheel to purify all our negative karmas

and obscurations, and to cause us to actualize the realizations of the path to enlightenment. All the beings (not only the people but also the insects), in the area where the prayer wheel is built are saved from rebirth in the lower realms; they receive a deva or human body, or are born in a pure land of Buddha. If you have a mani prayer wheel in your house, your house is the same as the Potala, the pure land of the Compassion Buddha. If you have a prayer wheel next to you when you die, you don’t need powa. Having the prayer wheel itself becomes a method to transfer your consciousness to a pure land. Simply thinking of a prayer wheel helps a dying person to shoot the consciousness up the central channel and out through the crown to reincarnate in the pure land of Amithaba or the Compassion Buddha. Simply touching a prayer wheel brings great purification of negative karmas and obscurations. Turning a prayer wheel containing 100 million om mani padme hung mantras accumulates the same merit as having recited 100 million om mani padme hungs. The prayer wheel here at Land of Medicine Buddha contains 11.8 billion mantras, so turning it one time is the same as having recited that many mantras. In that few seconds, you perform so much powerful purification and accumulate; so much merit. Turning the prayer wheel once is the same as having done many years of retreat. This is explained as one of the benefits of prayer wheels. With the water prayer wheel, the water that touches the wheel becomes blessed. When that water goes into an ocean or lake, it carries the power to purify all the billions of animals and insects there. I have had a wish, which has recently become stronger, to build a prayer wheel in the ocean. Because I have been requested to help with so many other Dharma projects, the idea of making a water prayer wheel had been postponed. However, when I was in the center in Taiwan recently, in a conversation about prayer wheels, I mentioned the idea. One of the benefactors, who has been running the family business for some years, was very happy to make a water prayer wheel because his father had started the business by buying fish. Since the family’s prosperity came from fishing, he felt his family owed a lot to the fish, and he already had in mind of doing something to repay or to benefit the fish. When I mentioned the idea of the water prayer wheel, he almost cried, and then he asked, “Why are you telling me to build this prayer wheel?” After I explained the reasons, he was very happy to build a water prayer wheel. I mentioned the idea of building

it in the ocean near Taiwan, but he thought to build it in Hawaii where the water of the Pacific Ocean would touch the prayer wheel and bring great benefit. A fire prayer wheel is turned by the heat of either a candle or an electric light. The light that comes from the prayer wheel then purifies the negative karmas of the living beings it touches. It is similar with a prayer wheel turned by wind. The wind that touches the prayer wheel is blessed by the power of the prayer wheel and then has the power to purify the negative karmas and obscurations of any being it touches. Because prayer wheels are so powerful in purifying negative karmas, I think it is a very good idea to use them. After I explained the benefits of prayer wheel a few years ago at Kopan, Lorna and Terry voluntarily took it upon themselves to make prayer wheels available to other students who wanted to do the practice. They generously made many small prayer wheels and offered them to many students, including me. I then offered mine to the king of Nepal. When I mentioned to him that having a prayer wheel helps when one dies, he suddenly became distant. I think it’s not a subject commonly talked about to him. He asked, “Do I have to keep this?” So I said, “Yes.” It is also mentioned that prayer wheels stop harm from spirits and other beings and also stop disease, so one idea I have is use them for healing. Anyone with a disease such as AIDS or cancer, whether or not they have any understanding of Dharma, can use the prayer wheel for meditation and healing. For example, sick people could come here to Land of Medicine Buddha for several hours every day to turn the prayer wheel and do the visualizations. There are two visualizations. With the first, you visualize light beams coming from the mantras in the prayer wheel, illuminating you and purifying you of all your disease and the causes of disease, your negative thoughts and the imprints of these left on your mental continuum. You then visualize the light illuminating all sentient beings and purifying all their sufferings, as well as their negative karmas and obscurations. With the second visualization, beams are emitted from the mantras and, like a vacuum sucking up dust, they hook all the disease and spirit harms and, most importantly, the cause of disease, the negative karmas and obscurations. All these are absorbed or sucked into the prayer wheel. While reciting five or ten malas of the mantra, you visualize purifying yourself in this way.

At the end recite some malas while visualizing that the beams emitted from the prayer wheel purify all the sufferings and obscurations of the sentient beings of the six realms. These absorb into the prayer wheel and all sentient beings, including you, are then liberated, actualizing the whole path and becoming the Compassion Buddha. (You can also do circumambulations with the same visualizations.) If someone with AIDS, cancer or some other disease meditated like this and every day, for as many hours as possible, there would definitely be some effect. I know quite a few people who have completely recovered from terminal cancer through meditation. Even though the person might not know about Dharma, about reincarnation or karma; because they want to have peace of mind now and a peaceful death; because they care about having a healthy body and a healthy mind, they should use this extremely powerful and meaningful method of healing. I would like to emphasize that every large and small prayer wheel can be used by sick people for healing. This practice is very practical and very meaningful. Two years ago, I asked Jim McCann to build a prayer wheel here at Land of Medicine Buddha, not only for people to do the practice, but also to bless the land. It helps all the insects and animals as well as the human beings. Jim and his wife, Sandra, put a lot of time and effort into actualizing this extremely beautiful prayer wheel, though I’m sure many other people helped them. From the depth of my heart I would like to thank them very much for their achievement. A prayer wheel makes the place very holy and precious, like a pure land.  

TARA MEDITATION Composed by Lama Thubten Zopa RinpocheTushita Retreat Centre, March 1986

Look at an image of Tara and see it as really her, not as a mere representation. In the middle of a calm and tranquil nectar ocean is a lotus, seated on which is Tara. She is the omniscient mind, the great compassion, and the power of all Buddhas. Through her power she liberates sentient beings from suffering and leads them to the peerless happiness of enlightenment, manifested in the female aspect of Buddha Tara. She has the appearance of a smiling sixteen year old girl.

Make the following request to Tara:

May every living being who merely hears me, sees me, remembers me, touches me, or talks to me, immediately be purified of all his or her problems and their causes – the three poisonous minds rooted in the ignorance that does not realize the nature of the self or of phenomena, and the ignorance that does not understand the cause of

happiness or of suffering. And may they achieve temporal happiness as well as the ultimate happiness. May I be able to lead them to the peerless happiness of enlightenment by showing the various means that are suitable for them, just as you Mother Tara guide the sentient beings.”

Breath in slowly and think of all the obstacles: the three poisonous minds, the actions called karma accumulated with disturbing thoughts that harm yourself and do not allow you to have temporal happiness or especially the peerless happiness of enlightenment, and which also harm others and interfere with their experiencing temporal and ultimate happiness. Besides the true cause of suffering, think of the remaining true suffering - every problem. All this, in the form of filthy, foul-smelling pollution comes out through your nostrils, from your heart, as you breath out slowly. Think that it goes beyond this earth and ceases to exist. Do this several times. Feel purified and empty of all the negativities within you. 

Recite the mantra: OM TARE TUTTARE TURE SOHA and visualize that from Tara’s heart white nectar flows down through your crown and is absorbed through the pores of your body, entering your body and mind.

The first contemplation

Think that the essence of the nectar is Tara’s omniscient mind, her great compassion for all sentient beings, and her power.

While continuously reciting the mantra, think that the essence of the nectar is the wisdom, the fully knowing mind. Then think that you receive all of Tara’s wisdom. Your mind is completely in the nature of being able to guide sentient beings. Concentrate on this. Your mind is the nature of every single wisdom possessed by Tara.

The second contemplation

Again, while still reciting the mantra, nectar enters your heart from Tara and the essence is the great power to perfectly guide sentient beings. Place your mind single-pointedly on having the power to perfectly guide all sentient beings.

The third contemplation

Again visualize the nectar entering your body and mind from Tara; this time its essence is her great compassion. Single-pointedly concentrate on your mind being the nature of great compassion for every suffering sentient being. Feel that their suffering is unbearable and you want to liberate them from it this very second. Concentrate single-pointedly on your mind being completely transformed into the nature of Tara’s great compassion.

The fourth contemplation

Again, reciting the mantra, the nectar enters your body, speech and mind altogether. Feel incredible bliss, so great that if it materialized it could not be contained in the sky. It completely fills your body and mind, and especially feel it at your heart. Every atom of your body from your head to your feet is filled with unceasing bliss. This has no comparison to ordinary pleasures. Single-pointed concentrate on the sensation of bliss.

Think: “My life is not to harm others. Just as I do not wish harm from others, all beings do not wish to receive harm from me. Just as I wish every sentient being to help me, to benefit me by giving temporal and ultimate happiness, all sentient beings wish me to benefit and give temporal and ultimate happiness to them. This is the purpose of my life. My responsibility is not only to not give harm, it is especially to give benefit; every capacity I have I give to others.”

Because of this attitude to not harm and to benefit others, Buddha Mother Tara is extremely pleased and happy. She dissolves into you and your body, speech and mind become identical with Mother Tara’s holy body, speech and mind. Concentrate on this for as long as you can.

Think: “Due to all the merit that I have accumulated, may I achieve the enlightenment of Mother Tara and immediately lead every single being to her peerless happiness.

TARA PRAYER Lama Zopa Rinpoche

 

om chom.den.day.ma phag.ma drol.ma chag.tsel.lo

Om I and all prostrate to the liberator, the transcendental bhagawati  chag.tsel drol.ma ta.re pel.mo You are the glorious mother who liberates with TAREtut.ta.ra.yi jig.kun sel.ma You are the mother who eliminates all fears with TUTTAREtu.re don.nam tham.che ter.me You are the mother who grants all success with TUREso.ha yi.ker che.la rab.tu To the syllables SOHA and all we offer the greatest homage.

Firstly to help you understand the meaning of the prayer, it could be glossed as follows:

OM contains three sounds: AH, O and MM, and signifies the immeasurable qualities of the enlightened beings’ holy body, speech and mind. According to the tantric teachings, the paths contained in the mantra OM TARE TUTTURE TURE SOHA lead to the omniscient state of mind. Through actualizing these paths in our mind we purify our impure body, speech and mind, transforming them into Arya Tara’s vajra holy body, speech and mind. In this mantra, OM stands for the goal and TARE TUTTURE TURE the path.

TARE (Tibetan: Drolma): the liberating female. Usually Tara connotes liberating or releasing us from the suffering of the three lower realms, the general sufferings of samsara and the bondage of nirvana, the blissful state of peace. If we gain freedom from samsara but simply attain arhantship and fall into the blissful state of peace for ourselves alone, it takes us an incredibly long time to escape from that and do extensive work for sentient beings. Compared with the motivation of achieving the omniscient state of mind in order to extensive work for the benefit of other sentient beings, the idea of attaining nirvana for oneself alone is extremely limited and mistaken because it represents concern for only our own peace. Thus Tara not only liberates us from the bondage of samsara, she also liberates us from the blissful state of peace, leading us to the omniscient state of mind. This is the usual meaning of the first TARA: it represents

everything from which we should be liberated, the liberating path – the entire method – and the goal to which Tara leads us, the omniscient state of mind.

However, the meaning of TARE here is explained as being liberation from samsara, indicating the first of the Four Noble Truths, the Truth of Suffering.

TUTTURE : dispelling all fears. “Fears” is the translation of the Tibetan word used here – the main fear dispelled is that of the delusions;

the suffering of attachment, which is like a great flood;the suffering of hatred, which is like fire;the suffering of ignorance, which is like an elephant;the suffering of jealousy, which is like a snake;the suffering of pride, which is like a lion;the suffering of miserliness, which is like a chain;the suffering of wrong views, which is like a thief;the suffering of doubt, which is like a spirit.

Thus an example is given for each delusion. If we take refuge in Tara, recite her mantra and practise her method, she will release us from not only the internal suffering of the delusions but also from external dangers such as floods, fires and thieves.

Hence TUTTURE means that Tara liberates us from the true cause of suffering – karma and the unsubdued mind from which the karma arises. By reciting this our fears are dispelled, which shows that Tara leads us to the true path of the three vehicles, according to our level of mind, and to the absolute Dharma – the real remedy for the cause of suffering.

TURE: she who grants all success. Here success refers to the goals of those of the three levels – lowest, intermediate and highest – of capability: the bodies of the happy transmigrators, arhantship or nirvana, and the great nirvana, the omniscient state of mind. Furthermore, as it is taught here, all success also refers to success in all the pursuits of this life – business, other worldly activities, finding perfect conditions for our Dharma practice and accomplishing our Dharma goals.

SOHA. Each word of the mantra – from OM to SOHA – performs the functions explained above; each brings incredible benefit. Thus to the letters SOHA and the rest we pay homage.

SOHA: “May the blessings of Tara, which are contained in the mantra OM TARE TUTTURE take root in our hearts.” If we want to harvest fruit in our garden, that is where we should plant the roots of the tree. Similarly, if we want to attain the omniscient state of mind, we should plant the root of the complete path, which is contained in the mantra OM TARE TUTTURE TURE SOHA, in our hearts. By praying to Tara and reciting her mantra we receive her blessings; as SOHA implies, through the blessings of Tara entering our heart we are able to generate the entire path to the omniscient state of mind. By generating the path – method and wisdom – in our own minds, our impure body, speech and mind are purified and transformed into Tara’s vajra holy body, speech and mind.

The Visualization

When you recite this prayer, visualize that light beams with nectar running down them – like rain-drops running down a wire – emanate from the point where Tara’s left thumb

and ring finger touch each other. These reach you and all other sentient beings. Visualize in particular the people you dislike or who dislike you, in front of you. The rays and nectar flow constantly, purifying the hindrances to Dharma practice and the two obscurations of yourself and all other sentient beings. Remember, too, all those with specific problems for whom you are praying to Tara.

The rays and nectar flow to all sentient beings: narak beings, pretas, animals, humans, asuras, devas, intermediate state beings, arhants and bodhisattvas. In the midst of whatever suffering they are experiencing – you can visualize, for example, humans fighting in wars, or full of anger, pride and jealousy – rays and nectar enter their bodies and minds and pacify completely all their true cause of suffering and the true sufferings themselves. All sentient beings become totally liberated. Recite the prayer with this meditation.

You can also visualize the person for whom you are praying, yourself and all other sentient beings under Tara’s right hand, which is in the mudra of granting refuge, completely covered and protected by it.

Think repeatedly, with deep conviction, that Tara has accepted your request and answers your prayers. You can do one rosary of the prayer with the purifying meditation, and another where you and all sentient beings become one with Tara. With each prayer identical Taras emanate from the principal Tara you are visualizing and dissolve into you and all other sentient beings. You become one with Tara’s holy body, speech and mind.

Daily Purification: A Short Vajrasattva PracticeLama Zopa Rinpoche ( This teaching  and many other wonderful teachings by Lama Zopa and Lama Yeshe are available from LYWA lamayeshe.org ) This teaching was given by Lama Zopa Rinpoche during the Vajrasattva retreat, Land of Medicine Buddha, Soquel, California, USA, 1999, and revised in New York, November 1999. Editor’s Introduction In Liberation in the Palm of Your Hand, Pabongka Rinpoche explains how the great Atisha would purify any negativity, no matter how small, immediately. Even in public or when riding his horse, as soon as he noticed a breach of his ethics, he would stop what he was doing, drop to one knee and then and there, purify it with the four opponent powers-the powers of dependence, regret, remedy and restraint. Of course, compared to us, Atisha may not have had that much to purify. Still, he would say, “I never break my pratimoksha vows; I rarely break my bodhisattva vows; but my tantric vows-I transgress those like falling rain.” Atisha practiced purification in this way because of his deep realization of the psycho-mechanics of negative karma, especially its four fundamentals: negative karma is certain to bring suffering; it multiplies exponentially; if eradicated, it cannot bring its suffering result; and once created, it never simply disappears. Through the study and practice of Dharma, we should try to attain Atisha’s level of understanding. In the meantime, we should try to practice as he did.

Therefore, out of his great compassion, Lama Zopa Rinpoche has composed this short Vajrasattva practice and requested that it be published in a format that is easy for people to carry around and have available at all times. Thus, we can be like the great Atisha-whenever we notice we have broken a vow or created any other kind of negative karma, we can whip out our little Vajrasattva book and purify that negativity with the four opponent powers without a second’s delay. Nicholas Ribush

A Short Vajrasattva Meditation

The Power of Dependence (A): Taking Refuge “I forever take refuge in Buddha, Dharma and Sangha,I take refuge in all the three vehicles,In the dakas and dakinis of secret mantra yoga,In the heroes and heroines, the gods and goddessesAnd in the bodhisattvas of the ten bhumis.But most of all, I take refuge in my holy guru forever.” (3x)  The Power of Regret First recall the definition of negative karma-any action that results in suffering, usually an action motivated by ignorance, attachment or aversion. “Almost every action I do, twenty-four hours a day, is motivated by worldly concern, attachment to the comfort of this life. It is like this from birth to death in this life and has been like that from beginningless rebirths. Nearly every action I have ever created has been non-virtuous, the cause of suffering. Not only that, but continuously I have also been breaking my pratimoksha, bodhisattva and tantric vows. Worst of all, I have created the heaviest of negative karmas in relation to my virtuous friends-getting angry at them, generating wrong views, having non-devotional thoughts towards them, harming their holy body and disobeying their advice. Having these negative imprints on my mental continuum is unbearable. It’s as if I’ve swallowed a lethal poison. I must practice the antidote right away and purify all this negative karma immediately, without a second’s delay.” In this way, generate strong feelings of urgency and regret. Remembering Impermanence and Death “Many people my age or younger have died. It’s a miracle that I’m still alive and have this incredible opportunity to purify my negative karma. Death is certain but its time is most uncertain. If I were to die right now, I would definitely be born in the lower realms. Because I could not practice Dharma there I would remain in the lower realms for countless eons. Therefore, how unbelievably fortunate I am to be able to purify my negative karma right now, without even a second’s delay, by practicing the Vajrasattva meditation-recitation.” The Power of Dependence (B): Generating Bodhicitta “But I am not practicing this Vajrasattva purification for myself alone-the purpose of my life is to release all hell beings, pretas, animals, humans, asuras, suras and intermediate state beings from

all their suffering and its causes and lead them to unsurpassed enlightenment. In order to do this I must first reach enlightenment myself. Therefore, I must purify all my negative karma immediately by practicing the Vajrasattva meditation-recitation.” Visualization “Above the crown of my head, seated upon a lotus and moon seat, are Vajrasattva father and mother. Their bodies are white; each has one face and two arms. He holds a dorje and bell, she a curved knife and skull cup. They are embracing each other. The father is adorned with six mudras, the mother with five. He sits in the vajra posture, she in the lotus. “Vajrasattva is my root guru, the holy mind of all the buddhas, the dharmakaya, who out of his unbearable com-passion, which embraces me and all other sentient beings, appears in this form to purify me and all others.” In this way, your mind is transformed into guru devotion-the root of all blessings and realizations of the path to enlightenment. “On a moon disk at Vajrasattva’s heart stands a hum encircled by a garland of the hundred syllable mantra. A powerful stream of white nectar flows from the hum and mantra garland and I am cleansed of all sickness, spirit harm, negative karma and obscurations.” The Power of the Remedy: Mantra Recitation “om vajrasattva samaya manupalaya, vajrasattva denopa titha, dido me bhava, suto kayo me bhava, supo kayo me bhava, anurakto me bhava, sarva siddhi me prayatsa, sarva karma su tsame, tsittam shriyam kuru hum, ha ha ha ha ho, bhagavan sarva tathagata, vajra mame muntsa, vajra bhava maha samaya sattva ah hum phet” The meaning of the mantra: You, Vajrasattva, have generated the holy mind (bodhicitta) according to your pledge (samaya). Your holy mind is enriched with the simultaneous holy actions of releasing transmigratory beings from samsara (the circling, suffering aggregates). Whatever happens in my life-happiness or suffering, good or bad-with a pleased, holy mind, never give up but please guide me. Please stabilize all happiness, including the happiness of the upper realms, actualize all actions and sublime and common realizations, and please make the glory of the five wisdoms abide in my heart. Recite the mantra seven or twenty-one times or as many times as possible, practicing the three techniques of downward cleansing, upward cleansing and instantaneous cleansing.1 Generating Faith in Having Been Purified “From the crown of my head, Guru Vajrasattva says, ‘Son of the race2, your negativities, obscurations and broken and damaged pledges have been completely purified.’” Generate strong faith that they have been completely purified just as Guru Vajrasattva has said. The power of Refraining from Creating Negativities Again “Before Guru Vajrasattva, I vow never again to commit those negative actions from which I can easily abstain and not to commit

for a day, an hour or at least a few seconds those negative actions from which I find it difficult to abstain.” Absorption Guru Vajrasattva is extremely pleased with your pledge. Vajrasattva father and mother melt into light and dissolve into you. Your body, speech and mind become inseparably one with Guru Vajrasattva’s holy body, speech and mind. Dedication “In emptiness, there is no I, creator of negative karma; there is no action of creating negative karma; there is no negative karma created.” Place your mind in that emptiness for a little while. In this way, look at all phenomena as empty-they do not exist from their own side. With this awareness of emptiness, dedicate the merits. “Due to all the merits of the three times collected by me, buddhas, bodhisattvas and all other sentient beings (which appear to be real, from there, but which are empty), may the I (which appears to be real but is empty) achieve Guru Vajrasattva’s enlightenment (which appears to be real but is empty) and lead all sentient beings (who appear to be real but are totally empty) to that enlightenment (which appears to be real but is empty) by myself alone (which appears to be real but is also totally empty, non-existent from there). “May the precious bodhicitta, the source of all happiness and success for myself and all other sentient beings, be generated within my own mind and in the minds of all sentient beings without even a second’s delay; and may that which has been generated be increased. “May I and all other sentient beings have Lama Tsong Khapa as our direct guru in all our lifetimes, never be separated for even a second from the pure path that is greatly praised by the conqueror buddhas, and actualize the complete path-the three principal paths and the two stages of Highest Yoga Tantra-the root of which is guru devotion, within our minds as quickly as possible. “Just as the brave Manjushri and Samantabhadra realized things as they are, I dedicate all these virtues in the best way, that I may follow after them. “Whatever dedication the three time victorious ones gone to bliss have admired as best, in the same way, I also perfectly dedicate all these roots of virtue so that I may perform good works.” Notes 1. See The Tantric Path of Purification, pp. 58-60, for details of these three methods of purification. 2. This “son of the race” has nothing to do with gender but refers to a sentient being of a certain mental type, which in turn relates to the buddha family into which one has been initiated.