The New Guide to Dakini Land. Geshe Kelsang Gyatso
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now have a very precious opportunity to study and practise them. We will generate a feeling of great joy which will give us great confidence in the instructions and encourage us to put them into practice.
BIOGRAPHIES OF PAST BUDDHIST PRACTITIONERS WHO GAINED REALIZATIONS THROUGH PRACTISING THESE INSTRUCTIONS
Many people have accomplished the highest attainments through Vajrayogini practice. Of the Eighty-four Mahasiddhas of ancient India, many gained their attainments through the practices of Heruka and Vajrayogini, and since the time when these Tantras were introduced into Tibet many Tibetans have also gained similar realizations. It is still possible to emulate these practitioners and accomplish the same attainments.
There now follow brief biographies of five great practitioners who received special care and guidance from Vajrayogini and as a result reached Dakini Land.
LUYIPA
Luyipa was a great Indian Mahasiddha who relied upon Heruka and Vajrayogini. One day, on the tenth day of the month, he went to a charnel ground to meditate. When he arrived he saw a group of men and women having a picnic. One of the women gave him a piece of meat, which he ate, and as a result his mind was blessed and instantly purified of ordinary appearance. He attained a vision of Heruka and Vajrayogini, and realized that the men and women were in reality Heroes and Heroines. His previous pure practice of Vajrayogini had caused her to manifest as the woman who offered him the meat. In this way Vajrayogini helped him to attain both outer and inner Dakini Land.
GHANTAPA
The Mahasiddha Ghantapa lived deep in a forest in Odivisha (present-day Orissa) in India, where he engaged in intensive meditation on Heruka and Vajrayogini. Since he was living in such an isolated place his diet was poor and his body became emaciated. One day the king of Odivisha was out hunting in the forest when he came across Ghantapa. Seeing how thin and weak he was, the king asked Ghantapa why he lived in the forest on such a poor diet, and encouraged him to return with him to the city where he would give him food and shelter. Ghantapa replied that just as a great elephant could not be led from the forest by a fine thread, so he could not be tempted to leave the forest by the riches of a king. Angered by Ghantapa’s refusal, the king returned to his palace threatening revenge.
Such was the king’s anger that he summoned a number of women from the city and told them about the arrogant monk in the forest. He offered great wealth to any one of them who could seduce him and force him to break his vows of celibacy. One woman, a wine-seller, boasted that she could do this and she set out for the forest to look for Ghantapa. When eventually she found him she asked if she could become his servant. Ghantapa had no need of a servant, but he realized that they had a strong relationship from previous lives and so he allowed her to stay. Ghantapa gave her spiritual instructions and empowerments and they engaged sincerely in meditation. After twelve years they both attained the Union of No More Learning, full enlightenment.
One day Ghantapa and the former wine-seller decided to encourage the people of the city to develop a greater interest in Dharma. Accordingly, the woman returned to the king and reported that she had seduced the monk. At first the king doubted the truth of her story, but when she explained that she and Ghantapa now had two children, a son and a daughter, the king was delighted with the news and told her to bring Ghantapa to the city on a particular day. He then issued a proclamation disparaging Ghantapa, and ordered his subjects to assemble on the appointed day to insult and humiliate the monk.
When the day came, Ghantapa and the woman left the forest with their children, the son on Ghantapa’s right and the daughter on his left. As they entered the city Ghantapa was walking as if he were drunk, holding a bowl into which the woman was pouring wine. All the people who had gathered laughed and jeered, hurling abuse and insults at him. ‘Long ago’, they taunted him, ‘our king invited you to the city but you arrogantly refused his invitation. Now you come drunk and with a wine-seller. What a bad example of a Buddhist and a monk!’ When they had finished, Ghantapa appeared to become angry and threw his bowl to the ground. The bowl sank into the earth, splitting the ground and causing a spring of water to appear. Ghantapa immediately transformed into Heruka and the woman into Vajrayogini. The boy transformed into a vajra which Ghantapa held in his right hand, and the girl into a bell which he held in his left hand. Ghantapa and his consort then embraced and flew into the sky.
The people were astonished and immediately developed deep regret for their disrespect. They prostrated to Ghantapa, begging him and the emanation of Vajrayogini to return. Ghantapa and his consort refused, but told the people that if their regret was sincere they should make confession to Mahakaruna, the embodiment of Buddha’s great compassion. Through the deep remorse of the people of Odivisha and the force of their prayers a statue of Mahakaruna arose from the spring water. The people of Odivisha became very devoted Dharma practitioners and many of them gained realizations. The statue of Mahakaruna can still be seen today.
Because of Ghantapa’s pure practice of Heruka and Vajrayogini in the forest, Vajrayogini saw that it was the right time for him to receive her blessings and so she manifested as the wine-seller. Through living with her Ghantapa attained the state of full enlightenment.
DARIKAPA
King Darikapa was another of the Eighty-four Mahasiddhas. He received empowerments and instructions on Heruka and Vajrayogini from Luyipa. Luyipa predicted that if Darikapa were to abandon his kingdom and apply great effort in the practice of Vajrayogini and Heruka he would swiftly attain enlightenment. Darikapa immediately left his palace and wandered from place to place as a beggar, practising meditation at every opportunity. In a city in South India he met a wealthy courtesan who was an emanation of Vajrayogini. The woman owned a large mansion and she took Darikapa in as her servant, where he worked for twelve years. During the day he performed menial tasks in and around the house, and at night he practised Luyipa’s instructions. After twelve years he attained the fifth stage of completion stage, the union that needs learning. It is said that Darikapa and the courtesan’s entire entourage of fourteen thousand all attained the Pure Land of Keajra with their human bodies. In this way Darikapa received the guidance of Vajrayogini.
KUSALI
A novice monk called Kusali also came under Vajrayogini’s care. One day, while travelling along the banks of the River Ganges, he met an old leper woman in great pain, who wanted to cross the river. Kusali was overcome with compassion for her. He bound her onto his back with his upper garment and started to ford the river but, when they were half way across, the leper woman transformed into Vajrayogini and led him to Dakini Land.
PURANG LOTSAWA
Purang Lotsawa was a great Teacher who lived near Shiri Monastery in western Tibet and who had many spiritually advanced students. When he became aware through various signs that he was ready to attain the Pure Land of Keajra, he dug out a small cave in a hillside where he planned to live in solitary retreat. As he entered the cave at the start of his retreat he announced that if he left before attaining the Pure Land his throat should be cut by the Dharma Protectors. He told his assistant to seal the entrance of his cave, leaving only a small hole through which food and drink could be passed.
Some time later a Tantric Yogi accompanied by eight women arrived and asked to see Purang. The assistant turned them away, but that evening, when he told Purang about the visitors, Purang told him not to dismiss anyone who asked to see him. The visitors returned the next day and so the assistant showed them to the cave. Suspecting that they were not ordinary people, he looked for a place to hide so that he could see what would happen, but by the time he had found a suitable place the visitors had unaccountably entered the cave. The assistant crept up to the small hole in the side of the cave and looked in. The cave was full of radiant light. The eight women were sitting in a row with the Yogi at one end and Purang at the other. The Yogi was rolling letters of gold, which he passed to the women. They in turn passed them to Purang, who appeared to be eating them. Purang became aware of his assistant looking through the hole and shouted at him to go away. The assistant left immediately. Later, when he returned with Purang’s supper, Purang was sitting alone with no sign of the Yogi or the eight women. That night Purang went to Dakini Land, the Pure Land of Vajrayogini.
The next morning the assistant took Purang his breakfast but found the cave empty. Although he