The New Guide to Dakini Land. Geshe Kelsang Gyatso
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GENERAL EXPLANATION
Practising Guru yoga sincerely is relying upon the Spiritual Guide, the root of the spiritual path. As practitioners of Highest Yoga Tantra we have a commitment to practise Guru yoga six times every day. Guru yoga is an especially powerful method for receiving the blessings of the Buddhas and increasing our merit. By following the Sutra path alone it would take a thousand aeons to accumulate the vast amount of merit needed to attain Buddhahood, but, as Sakya Pandita observed, by wholeheartedly practising Guru yoga we can accumulate the same amount of merit in the brief span of one human life.
Our mind is like a field, purifying negative karma and accumulating merit are like clearing the field of obstructions and fertilizing it, and meditating on generation stage and completion stage is like sowing good seeds. However, these seeds will grow into a harvest of realizations only if they are watered by a rain of blessings from the Yidams and Buddhas. Practising Guru yoga is the means by which we receive these blessings.
The practice of relying upon our Spiritual Guide, as explained in Joyful Path of Good Fortune, is the best way to enhance our practice of Guru yoga. Yeshe Tsondru, a highly accomplished Teacher, says in Essence of Nectar:
When disciples rely sincerely upon their Spiritual Guide
All the Buddhas naturally enter and abide within the Spiritual Guide’s body,
And he, delighted with his disciples, accepts their offerings
And blesses their mental continuums.
At that time the minds of the faithful disciples
Receive the blessings of all the Buddhas.
Thus maras, evil spirits and delusions will not harm them,
And they will naturally gain the realizations of the spiritual grounds and paths.
Many Dharma practitioners, such as Naropa, Dromtonpa and Geshe Jayulwa, have gained instant, pure realizations of Sutra and Tantra through receiving the blessings of their Spiritual Guides.
Animals are generally unable to generate virtuous minds, but occasionally, through receiving the blessings of the Buddhas, they spontaneously develop minds such as compassion, love, and the wish to help others. If this happens when an animal is about to die, its mind will become peaceful and positive, and this will help it to obtain rebirth as a human or a god. Nagarjuna said that there is no living being who has not experienced the happiness of humans or gods through receiving the blessings of the Buddhas.
Whether or not we receive the Buddhas’ blessings through our Spiritual Guide depends upon how we view him or her. If we view our Spiritual Guide as a Buddha we will receive the blessings of a Buddha, if we view him as a Bodhisattva we will receive the blessings of a Bodhisattva, and if we see him as an ordinary being we will receive no blessings. Geshe Potowa said that whether or not our Spiritual Guide is precious depends upon our own view and not upon the Spiritual Guide’s qualities. It does not matter whether or not our Spiritual Guide is an actual Buddha. If we lack faith in our Spiritual Guide we will gain nothing from him, even if he is a living Buddha. Conversely, if our Spiritual Guide is an ordinary being but we regard him as a Buddha we will definitely receive Buddha’s blessings. The benefits of relying upon our Spiritual Guide and the methods for doing so in thought and in deed are explained in detail in Lamrim. It is important that we train in relying upon our Spiritual Guide in accordance with the Lamrim instructions.
Who is our root Guru? As Tantric practitioners our root Guru is the Spiritual Teacher from whom we receive the empowerment, transmission and complete commentary of our main Yidam practice. Thus if our main practice is Vajrayogini our root Guru is the Teacher who gave us the empowerment, transmission and complete commentary of Vajrayogini. Some Vajrayogini practitioners may have more than one root Guru, but when they practise Guru yoga they should visualize Buddha Vajradharma and regard him as being the essence of all their Gurus; and with this recognition make prostrations, offerings, requests and so forth.
THE PRACTICE OF GURU YOGA
This has six parts:
1 Visualization
2 Prostration
3 Offerings
4 Requesting the lineage Gurus
5 Receiving the blessings of the four empowerments
6 Absorbing the Gurus
VISUALIZATION
In the space in front of us, arisen from the omniscient wisdom of Guru Vajradharma and inseparable from emptiness, is a celestial mansion which is square with four doorways, ornaments and archways. It possesses all the essential architectural and ornamental features. In the centre of this mansion is a precious jewelled throne supported by eight snow lions. Upon this, on a lotus of various colours, a moon, and a sun cushion, sits our root Guru in the aspect of Buddha Vajradharma. He has a red-coloured body, one face, and two hands, which are crossed at his heart and hold a vajra and bell. He is in the prime of his youth, adorned with silk garments and the appropriate jewel and bone ornaments.
Around Guru Vajradharma are the lineage Gurus. They are arranged in a counter-clockwise sequence, forming a square around Guru Vajradharma. In front of Guru Vajradharma is the first lineage Guru, Buddha Vajradharma. In the sadhana it says ’Buddha Vajradhara’. Buddha Vajradhara and Buddha Vajradharma are the same nature. Here, Buddha Vajradhara is appearing in the aspect of Buddha Vajradharma.
To Buddha Vajradharma’s left is Vajrayogini, followed by Naropa, Pamtingpa, and Sherab Tseg. The next nine lineage Gurus from Malgyur Lotsawa to Sonam Gyaltsen are to Guru Vajradharma’s left, the next nine Gurus from Yarlungpa to Wangchug Rabten are behind him, the next nine Gurus from Jetsun Kangyurpa to Ganden Dargyay are to his right, and the last five Gurus from Dharmabhadra to Losang Yeshe are in front of him and to the right of Buddha Vajradharma. The complete list of the lineage Gurus can be found in the extensive sadhana, Quick Path to Great Bliss, in Appendix II.
From Buddha Vajradharma to Lama Losang Yeshe Dorjechang Trijang Rinpoche there are thirty-seven lineage Gurus, but the total number of lineage Gurus can vary for different disciples. For example, if a practitioner’s root Guru is Dorjechang Trijang Rinpoche, Trijang Rinpoche should be at the centre of his or her visualization in the aspect of Guru Vajradharma. For that practitioner the last lineage Guru would then be Je Phabongkhapa Dechen Nyingpo and the lineage Gurus would number thirty-six. Therefore, the number of lineage Gurus is not fixed.
We should visualize Buddha Vajradharma and Vajrayogini in their usual aspects. The remaining lineage Gurus are in the aspect of Hero Vajradharma. In the prime of their youth, they have red-coloured bodies with one face and two hands. They sit in the vajra posture wearing the six bone ornaments. With their right hands they play damarus and with their left hands they hold at the level of their hearts skullcups filled with nectar. Khatangas rest against the inside of their left elbows.
At the crown of each Guru is a white letter OM, the symbol of the body of all Buddhas; at their throat a red AH, the symbol of the speech of all Buddhas; and at their heart a blue HUM, the symbol of the mind of all Buddhas. These three letters show that these Gurus are the synthesis of the Three Jewels. Visualizing our root and lineage Gurus in this way is called ‘generating the commitment beings’.
From the HUM at the heart of our root Guru, light rays radiate and invite all the Gurus, Yidams, Buddhas and Dharma Protectors to come from their natural abodes. The natural abode of all Buddhas is the Nature Body, the ultimate nature of their omniscient mind. We then recite:
OM VAJRA SAMADZA DZA HUM BAM HO
Each becomes a nature which is the synthesis of all objects of refuge.
and we imagine that the invited wisdom beings dissolve into the commitment beings.
PROSTRATION
Focusing on our Spiritual Guide on the central throne we generate three recognitions: (1) he or she is the embodiment of all Buddhas, (2) he or she is inseparable from Vajrayogini, and (3) his or her kindness exceeds that of all other Buddhas. In this way we generate deep faith and respect for our Spiritual Guide. With