O TANTRA DE TARA
A Origem de Todos os Ritos de Tara, a Mãe de todos os Tathagatas,
Homenagem para Arya Manjushri!
Assim eu ouvi, o Senhor Buddha estava residindo na pura terra de Tushita.
Bodhisattvas incontáveis como Manjushri e Maitreya, e Yidams incontáveis como Kurukulla e Parnasabari,
Brahma e Shakra estavam sustentando flores celestiais incontáveis como Loto, Kumuda e flores Mandarva,
Instrumentos musicais celestiais incontáveis como Conchas, Vinas, Tambores, Mrdangas, e Surpavinas,
e guarda-sóis celestiais incontáveis, baners e bandeiras. Circumambulando à direita, eles faziam oferecimentos
com nuvens de todos os tipos de oferecimentos.
Então o Buda se fixou na concentração conhecida como Vajra - destruidora de forças hostis.
Imediatamente a Terra tremeu, o círculo dos Maras foi derrotado, e ELE enviou uma
Grande luz brilhante. Era assim: Ele enviou todos os tipos de luzes - Branca, Vermelha, Amarela, Verde,
Azul e mista - purificando todo tipo de sofrimento. E Tara, a Mãe de todos os Buddhas,
desceu à coroa de Kurukulle. Imediatamente massas de oferecimentosse fez presente.
Ela se tornou então como a esfera sem nuvens do Sol.
Então Ela foi elogiada desta maneira:
Nesta terra completamente purificada,
Muitas flores preciosas caem como chuva,
Mãe que produz todos os Buddhas dos três tempos
Mãe Tara
Homenagem e elogio a Você.
Então o Bodhisattva Manjushri o jovem jogou o seu manto exterior por cima do seu ombro, e ajoelhando-se no seu joelho direito, perguntou : "Senhor, todos os Buddhas dos três tempos, é vasto o número. Como Ela os produz então? Como Ela é a Mãe deles/delas?
O Senhor Buddha disse, "Isso é verdade, Manjushri. Mas todos os Buddhas dos três tempos também são não-produzidos e incessantes, não maculados ou não imaculados,
sem diminuição ou aumento, e por natureza em Nirvana. E por isto:
ISSO é a natureza de todos os Dharmas."
O Bodhisattva Manjushri o jovem disse: "Senhor, como são os Buddhas dos três
tempos produzidos, que são não-produzidos e incessantes, não maculados nem imaculados,
sem diminuição ou aumento, e por natureza em Nirvana?
O Senhor Buddha disse: "Manjushri, o Último é chamado Nirvana, a lei Universal é chamada
Nirvana, Ambos são iguais à Verdadeira Meta. Isto é causado através da Grande Compaixão.
A natureza convencional é igual a Samsara. A Mãe que produz os Buddhas
dos três tempos está além disso, então Ela está além de Samsara e aflição.
Assim, Manjushri, Ela é considerada como A Mãe.
O Senhor disse: "Portanto, Manjushri, com o entendimento da ipseidade do Dharma,
se se deve em Tara, a pessoa deve recitar este Dharani, praticar seriamente,
entender as qualidades dela, e fazer oferecimentos a Ela.
A pessoa deve receber instruções e não deve ter nenhuma dúvida.
A pessoa deve agir seriamente nas ações, deve se lembrar dos elogios dela, e deve praticar cada
um dos seu rituais".
Com essas palavras o Senhor Buddha ensinou ao Bodhisattva Manjushri o jovem.
..........................
Capítulo Trinta e cinco - O Ensinamento dos Penhores e Votos
Então o Bodhisattva Manjushri-o-jovem mandarava espalhando, Loto, Kumuda, e outras flores sobre o Senhor nosso Buddha.
Muitos sons de instrumentos musicais divinos também ressoaram. Então ele perguntou para o Buda, "Como se deve praticar os penhores?" O Senhor Buddha respondeu:
Aquele que possui os penhores específicos e votos, e possui a Mandala da deidade,
tem que evitar matança de criaturas vivas, não deve levar o que não lhe é determinado,
Não frequentar as mulheres, não abusar, abandonar a mentira em todos os sentidos,
E sempre evitar intoxicantes, carne, e todo tipo de roubo.
Abandonar totalmente todo pensamento de apego a todas as mulheres,
Mas com uma atitude útil os venerar em tudo, como todas sua mãe.
Em todas as ações do que possui os votos e penhores, haverá poder.
Então Indra, Dominador dos Deuses, e Brahma e outros Deuses incontáveis e uma grande corte na companhia de Manjushri-o-jovem, com deuses, seres humanos, e semi-deuses, exaltaram as palavras do Senhor Buddha.
O Tantra da Senhora Tara chamado o Ensinamento de todos os Ritos está completo.
"Stephan Beyer. The Cult of Tara".
Venerable Chöje Lama Phuntsok
Noble White Tara
Presented at the Kamalashila Institute in Germany, 2005.
Introduction
Before speaking about Noble White Tara, may I ask you to give rise to the mind of awakening, Bodhicitta, and to recall that you are receiving these instructions for your own benefit as well as for the benefit and welfare of all living beings.
White Arya Tara is a practice that belongs to Tantrayana. It is practiced in all four Buddhist Tantras - Kriya, Charya, Yoga, and Anuttara Yoga. I will speak about White Tara according to the instructions from the Anuttara Yoga Tantra, the highest Tantra. There are 21 Taras, so it is a name that refers to each one.
The main characteristic of Arya Tara - Noble Tara - is that she is a Buddha who in earlier times promised to always be born in the pure form of a female body in order to help living beings reach enlightenment. There are many outer and inner impediments that practitioners encounter, so Arya Tara manifests in order to eliminate hindrances and obstacles one runs in to while on the path to liberation from suffering. Let me stress that suffering is not inherent to the true nature of the mind.
Everybody wants to be free from suffering and experience happiness. There are two kinds of happiness: temporary and lasting. Sincere practitioners concentrate on achieving lasting happiness and do not give in to temporary joy that changes very fast and therefore ends. In order to experience happiness and joy that is changeless, it is necessary to engage in reliable means to bring this about.
One needs to become aware of the true nature of one’s own mind in order to achieve ultimate happiness. One’s physical body and speech will not lead to lasting happiness. If one really wants to attain enlightenment, it is necessary to engage in inner practices that have nothing to do with the outer world. No outer impression, influence, or situation can enable one to accomplish Buddhahood, rather only training one’s own mind will lead to fruition that is true happiness and bliss.
How does one train one’s own mind? By learning what the mind is - by investigating what the mind really is. A Buddha cannot do this for anyone. As long as one’s mind is obscured by disturbing emotions that govern one’s life, one cannot see and realize mind’s true nature. In order to see one’s own mind, it is necessary to purify it of all veils, i.e., disturbing emotions, that cover and obscure it and that cause one to err.
There are different practices presented in Sutrayana and Tantrayana to purify mind’s obscurations. And the purpose of meditating White Tara is to purify one’s mind of the conceptual and emotional veils that conceal its true nature. Arya Tara also frees from outer hindrances and impediments. What is the biggest outer hindrance? Noble Tara protects disciples from one of the main outer hindrances, which is death - she helps practitioners live a long life.
Having been born as a human being with favourable conditions, the greatest impediment to one’s existence is the time at one’s disposal. Everyone dies. Many die sooner than expected, and Noble White Tara can extend the time one has in this life so that one can practice the precious Dharma. The scripture, Yogini-Tantra – The Source of Tara describes how this is possible. The Yogini-Tantra elucidates how White Arya Tara, from among the 21 Taras, frees practitioners from untimely death. It is truly possible to extend the span of one’s life by practicing White Tara and this will be very beneficial for one’s Dharma practice. Let me stress that it is utterly important to understand the background of the practice of White Tara and the history of the Kagyü Lineage in order to practice correctly.
There are two phases of practice in Anuttara Yoga: the creation phase and the completion phase. Both are equally important, but it is not possible to practice the completion phase without having perfected the creation phase. Therefore a practitioner needs to concentrate on the creation phase and perfect it before being able to reliably engage in the completion phase. There are many ways to practice and perfect the creation phase. It depends upon the ability, devotion, and faith a student has developed. In order to perfect the completion phase of meditation practice in the Kagyüpa Tradition, a student needs to practice the Six Yogas of Naropa. Of course, it is best to practice them in their entirety, which few practitioners really can. It does not matter as long as students practice what is suitable for them correctly, which leads to the same result.
Speaking about Anuttara Yoga and White Arya Tara, much can be said and studied, since the actual ritual is very long and complex. Practicing the summarized short text is just as beneficial as practicing the long version. There are a few translations from Sanskrit into Tibetan of the very extensive version on the history and practice of White Tara. The short text that followers of the Kagyü Lineage practice was translated from Sanskrit into Tibetan by the Eighth Tai Situ Rinpoche after he visited Kathmandu a third time and received the transmission and text there. This summary contains the same meaning and is just as beneficial as the extensive text practiced in the Kagyü Tradition. Practicing the one or the other correctly leads to the same result, which is enlightenment. In both cases, White Tara will protect one from an untimely death, which enables one to practice the Dharma longer in this life.
Now I would like to speak about the great accomplished masters of our Kagyü Lineage, because I think it will inspire you. But before doing so, if you have any questions, please ask.
Student: It is said that death is an outer impediment. What are the inner impediments?
Chöje Lama: There are three main obstacles and impediments, bar-chad in Tibetan: outer, inner, and secret. The outer impediments depend upon the four elements; fire, water, wind, and earth can cause an early death. Inner hindrances pertain to the channels, drops, and wind-energy that are balanced when someone is healthy, imbalanced when someone is sick. When they become imbalanced, then sicknesses arise that obstruct a follower from practicing the Dharma. Secret hindrances are thoughts and concepts. When someone is confused and clings to illusory thoughts, then the outer and inner properties of life become imbalanced too.
The most crucial impediment is the third, because all problems, sufferings, sicknesses, and diseases arise from thoughts that are based upon attachment, aversion, and ignorance as to the way things really are. It is said again and again that the worst obstacle is the third - concepts and thoughts. We continually think that we want to be happy and be free from suffering; we therefore never stop wanting more and more and as a result increase our attachment and aversion. The root of the dilemma is ignorance, which causes the obstructions of frustration, suffering, and woe. So, there are three impediments to achieving ultimate bliss: outer, inner, and secret.
Student: How are the 21 Taras connected?
Chöje Lama: Actually, all Taras are one, but there are different aspects. The aspect that is more fitting and suitable to practice depends upon a student’s inclinations and his or her confidence.
Photo of Noble White Tara from Venerable Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche
“The garland of jewels
who appear in this Oral Instruction Lineage
have reached the citadel of the mind’s nature,
the body of ultimate enlightenment.”
Jamgon Kongtrul Lodrö Thaye, Timeless Rapture
The Oral Instruction Lineage of White Tara in the Kagyüpa Tradition
As mentioned, there are four Tantras - Kriya, Charya, Yoga, and Anuttara Yoga. White Tara is practiced in all Tantras, but I am referring to the highest Tantra of White Arya Tara here.
In order to practice the Sadhana of White Tara it is necessary to receive the transmission from a Lineage Holder, a Lama who instructs disciples how to practice. Why does a student need a Lama? It is important on the side of a student to acknowledge and appreciate the Lineage masters who transmitted a Tantra that he or she wishes to practice. A Lama needs to teach about the Lineage and confer the practice instructions to students so that they can practice well.
When beginning a meditation session on White Tara, a disciple pays homage by repeating the Sanskrit words of the first line in the Sadhana, which reads:
Namo Guru Arya Tara Ye.
This is the short phrase one recites at the beginning. By reciting this praise, one pays respect and honours one’s teacher, who is the embodiment of Noble White Tara.
Having paid homage to White Arya Tara, one recites the names of the great masters who taught the practice that has been handed down to us. First one reads the name Ngawang Dragpa and thus recalls the great master who lived at Nalanda University in India at the same time as Mahasidda Naropa. Then one reads the name and recalls the great Indian scholar and saint Serlingpa, who was a student of Ngawang Dragpa and the teacher of the eminent scholar Atisha. The next master listed in the Sadhana is Joboje, another name for Atisha; he was the foremost Indian scholar and master who accepted the invitation that was sent by King Yeshe Öd to travel to West Tibet and was responsible for the second diffusion of Buddhism in Tibet in the 11th century. Dromtönpa is then listed; he was the main Tibetan student of Pandit Atisha. Following, one recalls Je Ngawang, who was a student of Dromtönpa and a master of the Kadampa Lineage. Then one recites the name Drewaje, who succeeded Je Ngawang and was also a master of the Kadampa Lineage. Gampopa, also known as Dhagpo Rinpoche, was the student and direct successor of Drewaje. Before he met Jetsün Milarepa and became his foremost disciple, Gampopa was a Kadampa practitioner.
When Gampopa, Dhagpo Lhaje, turned 42 years old, it was prophesied that he would only live another 3 years. Having learned that he would die soon, he spoke with his teacher Drewaje, who told him that he needed to practice White Arya Tara in order to avert death. Gampopa practiced, was able to live a long life, and could benefit beings immensely. He was a Kadampa follower then, practiced the White Tara Sadhana that was from the Kadampa Tradition, had not attained realizations, and was not a Lineage Holder before he met Jetsün Milarepa.
Three masters listed so far were Indian masters: Ngawang, Serlingpa, and Atisha. Dromtönpa, Drewaje, and Je Ngawang were Tibetans who belonged to the Kadampa Lineage.
Gampopa had three main disciples; his closest disciple was Düsum Khyenpa, the First Gyalwa Karmapa who was the founding father of the Karma Kagyü Lineage. Dogen Rechen, who was the First Situ Rinpoche, was the main disciple of the First Karmapa. His main disciple was Pomdhakpa. The main student of Pomdhakpa was the Second Gyalwa Karmapa, whose name was Chökyi Lama but has become known as the Mahasiddha Karma Pakshi. The main disciple of Karma Pakshi was Orgyenpa, who was the Third Karmapa, Rangjung Dorje. Yüntön Gyalwa was the Third Karmapa’s main disciple and became the teacher of Rolpe Dorje, who was the Fourth Gyalwa Karmapa. His main pupil was Khachö Wangpo, who was the Second Shamarpa. His main disciple was Deshin Shekpa, who was the Fifth Gyalwa Karmapa. His successor was Rigröl, i.e., Ratnabhadra. His direct successor was the Sixth Karmapa, Tongwa Dönden, whose direct disciple and successor was Chagye Sangpo. His main disciple was Goshirje, who was the First Gyaltsab. His direct successor was Chödrak Gyaltso, the Seventh Karmapa, whose main disciple was Sangye Nyenpa. The main student and direct successor of Sangye Nyenpa was Mikyö Dorje, the Eighth Karmapa. His direct successor was the Fifth Shamarpa. His disciple was Wangchuk Dorje, the Ninth Gyalwa Karmapa. Chökyi Wangchuk, the Sixth Shamarpa, was his direct successor. His main disciple was Karma Chagme, known as Raga Asi. Raga Asi’s main disciple was Dulmopa, whose successor was Pachenpo, the Eighth Shamarpa. His main disciple was Chökyi Jungne, the Eighth Situpa. Düdül Dorje, the Thirteenth Karmapa, is then listed; his closest disciple and successor was the Ninth Situpa, Pema Nyingje Wangpo.
Now practitioners speak a prayer to the Buddhas who were prophesied by Buddha Shakyamuni himself. They are Jamgon Kongtrul Lodrö Thaye the Great and Khyabje Dorje, the Fifteenth Glorious Karmapa. One asks them to please bestow their blessings on all living beings.
The Fifteenth Gyalwa Karmapa was the disciple of Jamgon Kongtrul Lodrö Thaye the Great, who was the First Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche. Khyentse Öser, the Second Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche, who was the disciple of the Fifteenth Karmapa, is brought to mind at this point. Then the Sixteenth Gyalwa Karmapa, Rangjung Rigpe Dorje, who was the disciple of the Second Jamgon Kongtrul Rinpoche, is called to mind and one venerates him, too, with sincerest devotion and deep gratitude.
Kang-ki-sMin-gdröl-bkha-babs-brgyüd-pa’i-srol.
This line means that Bhadarika, Jetsün Drolma, truly ripens (smin) and liberates (gdröl) those who pray for her blessings with faith and devotion. sMin is the cause, gdröl is the result.
White Arya Tara, Jetsün Drolma in Tibetan, is the embodiment of all Tsagyüd Lamas, “Root and Lineage Lamas” who are listed in the Sadhana. A practitioner reveres them while reciting the liturgy and at all times. Six Transmission Holders encompass all Lamas of the Lineage. Therefore one prays for their blessings while reciting the line,
Rim-pa-drug-ldän-rnams-la-gsöl-ba-‘debs.
The six Transmission Holders are Marpa Lotsawa, the Great Translator, who travelled to India several times, received instructions from the most renowned teacher of his time, Naropa, and who brought Anuttara Yoga Tantra to Tibet. In the Kagyüpa Tradition, he is revered as the great teacher of highest Tantra in Tibet. Marpa Lotsawa passed the teachings on to his most eminent pupil, Jetsün Milarepa, who practiced in solitude, achieved highest realizations, and therefore became renowned as the Great Mahasiddha Milarepa. Jetsün Milarepa passed the highest teachings on to his foremost pupil, Lhaje Gampopa, who became the foremost teacher of Tantrayana in Tibet. Dipamkara Atisha was the leading teacher of Sutrayana in Tibet. Lhaje Gampopa brought the instructions of Sutrayana and Tantrayana together and unified them into what has become known as Mahamudra; he passed the Mahamudra instructions on to his most worthy disciple Khache, who was Düsum Khyenpa, the First Gyalwa Karmapa.
The Purpose of Meditating Noble White Tara, Jetsün Drolma
The next verse explains why one practices the White Tara Tantra and reads:
bsKyed-snags-rzogs-pa’i-rim-pa-mthar-phyin-te
‘shi-med-ye-shes-rdo-rja’i-sku-mchog-’grub
rgyäl-ba-kung-bskyed-yid-bshin-‘khor-lo-dang
dbyer-med-dön-gnyis-lhung-grub-bying-kyis-rlobs.
“Give your blessings that I may perfect the phases of creation, mantra, and completion,
attain the supreme Vajra Body of wisdom and deathlessness,
be indivisible with Chittachakra, who gives birth to all Buddhas,
and accomplish the benefits for myself and others.”
Let me explain this verse a little more. There are two phases of practice in Tantra, the creation and completion phases. If one fails to perfect them, then one cannot eliminate the main impediment to practice, which is an early death. If one has a long life and practices diligently, then one can attain a Vajra Body of wisdom and become inseparable with the wish-fulfilling wheel – Chittachakra, yid-bshin-‘khor-lo – that White Tara turned for the benefit of everyone. One prays that Tara assists one to attain the same level of realization that she has realized by accomplishing one’s goal, which is to achieve enlightenment, and by benefiting others so that they also realize enlightenment. When others attain enlightenment, it helps oneself spontaneously, lhung-grub, and then one realizes that all living beings are without any differentiation and inseparable, dbyer-me.
In short, the ultimate goal of a sincere Vajrayana disciple is to attain the deathless Vajra Body, rdo-rja’i-sku. In order to accomplish this highest realization, it is necessary to practice the creation and completion phases of Tantra in the same sequence as Arya Tara taught. It is only possible to attain the Vajra Body if one practices correctly. We will remember that it was prophesied that Gampopa would only become 42 years old, but he received the transmission, practiced the creation and completion phases of White Tara correctly and died when he was either 82 or 84. As a result, Gampopa was able to benefit a limitless number of sentient beings. If one can practice the creation and completion phase of White Tara correctly, then one will also be able to eliminate the impediment of an untimely death and will live a long life.
Question: Can you say a little more about the Vajra Body?
Chöje Lama: Yes. There are the Nirmanakaya, the Sambogakaya, and the Dharmakaya. If one explains it differently, there are the two Rupakayas, which are the Nirmanakaya and Sambogakaya; then there are the Svabhavikakaya and Jnanadharmakaya. The Vajra Body is indivisible with the Svabhavikakaya. The Nirmanakaya and Sambogakaya can be directly perceived by living beings; these Kayas have a form and colour. The Dharmakaya, that is divided into the Svabhavikakaya and Jnanadharmakaya, cannot be perceived; these two Kayas have no form or colour. The Nirmanakaya can be perceived by average beings, whereas the Sambogakaya can only be perceived by very worthy practitioners. Gampopa was only able to extend his life because an Emanation Tulku appeared to him, imparted the transmission and teachings, and therefore Gampopa was able to practice correctly and live a long life.
Question: Since the Svabhavikakaya and Jnanadharmakaya are both formless, what is the difference between them?
Chöje Lama: Let me speak about the two Rupakayas and the Dharmakaya first. It is not right to speak about a difference between these two, because they are indivisible. When speaking about the Svabhavikakaya, actually it refers to the indivisibility, i.e., the union, of the two Rupakayas and the Dharmakaya. For example, as human beings we have a body, a speech, and a mind, which are inseparable; it is not possible to point to the one or other characteristic and say that only that aspect is a human being. In the same way, the Svabhavikakaya is the inseparability of the Rupakayas and the Dharmakaya.
Student: One time I hear that the Vajra Body is the Svabhavikakaya and at another time I hear that it is the Jnanadharmakaya. Yes, one time I hear that it is the three Ye-she-sku-s and at another time I hear that it is the Ngo-bo-nyid-kyi-sku.
Pupil: What is the Jnanadharmakaya?
Chöje Lama: It is the Buddha nature that every single living being has.
The Preliminaries: Taking Refuge, Giving Rise to Bodicitta, & Developing the Four Immeasurables
There are three stages of meditating White Tara: the preliminaries, the actual practice, and the post-meditative state. The preliminaries consist of taking refuge in the Three Jewels and giving rise to Bodhicitta, the mind of awakening. The Refuge Prayer is:
Sang-rgäs-chös-dang-tsogs-kyi-mchog-rnams-la
byang-chub-bar-du-bdag-ni-skyabs-su-mchi.
bDag-gis-sbyin-sogs-bkyis-pa’i-bsöd-nams-kyis
‘gro-la-phan-phir-sangs-rgyäs-‘grub-bar-shog.
“In the Buddha, Dharma, and excellent Sangha
I take refuge until enlightenment is reached.
Through the virtue (developed by practicing) generosity and so forth
may I achieve Buddhahood for the benefit of all living beings.”
As mentioned earlier, both a Sutrayana and Tantrayana practitioner go for refuge in the Three Jewels, and going for refuge in the Three Jewels is the mark of a Buddhist. Yet, the difference between a Hinayana and Mahayana devotee is stated in The Refuge Prayer. Mahayana and Vajrayana disciples pray, “I take refuge until enlightenment is reached,” whereas Hinayana followers pray, “I take refuge until my death.” It is important for a Mahayana practitioner to be aware of the fact that one takes refuge in the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha until one attains enlightenment - this distinguishes him and her from a Hinayana practitioner. A Hinayana follower aspires to become free of own suffering and therefore takes refuge until death. A Mahayana follower, on the other hand, wishes to lead others to freedom from suffering. He and she know that it will take longer than a single lifetime to lead others over the bumpy road of obstacles to freedom from suffering and therefore takes refuge until enlightenment.
Furthermore, the words recited in The Refuge Prayer, “Through virtue (developed by practicing) generosity and so forth may I achieve Buddhahood for the benefit of all living beings” are those of a Mahayana practitioner. He and she dedicate any merit or virtue, bsöd-nams, that has been accumulated by practicing the six paramitas, the wonderful activities based on loving kindness and compassion that unfailingly benefit others. The six paramitas are generosity, ethics, patience, joyful endeavour, meditative concentration, and discriminating awareness. The six paramitas in Tibetan and Sanskrit, with the English equivalent, are: sbyin-pa (dana, “generosity”), tsul-khrims (shila, “ethics”), bzöd-pa (kshanti, “forebearance, patience”), brtsong-’grüs (virya, “diligence, joyful endeavour”), bsam-gtän (dyana, “meditative concentration”), and shes-rab (prajna, “discriminating awareness, insight”).
The Sanskrit term paramita, which means “perfection,” was translated into Tibetan as pha-rol-tu-phyin-pa and literally means “reaching the other shore.” By practicing the six perfections for the welfare of others, the mind (i.e., heart) of a Mahayana practitioner truly sails out to a shore where Bodhisattvas abound who do not simply think of themselves.
A Mahayana practitioner will always dedicate the merit from practicing the creation and completion phases and when performing the six paramitas for the well-being and enlightenment of every single living being. Before engaging in the meditation practice of White Arya Tara, though, it is necessary to reflect for whom one dedicates the merit of practicing the creation and completion phases. One dedicates any merit accumulated from practicing the Sadhana for the welfare of all living beings and prays that everyone – without exception - attains Buddhahood.
Having taken refuge in the Three Jewels, a devotee recites The Bodhicitta Prayer, which is:
Sems-chen-tham-ched-bde-wa-dang-bde-wa’i-rgyu-dang-lden-par-gyur-chig.
sDug-bsnal-dang-sdug-snal-kyi-rgyu-dan-bral-war-gyur-chig.
sDug-bsnal-med-pa’i-bde-wa’i-dam-pa-dang-mi-dral-war-gyur-chig.
Ne-rin-chag-dang-dang-bral-wa’i-btang-snyom-la-gnäs-par-chig.
“May all living beings have happiness and its causes.
May every living being be free from suffering and its causes.
May nobody ever be separated from true happiness that is free from suffering.
May everyone (always) abide in equanimity.”
Each of the four lines of The Bodhicitta Prayer corresponds to one of the four immeasurable states of mind, tshad-med-bzhi in Tibetan: immeasurable loving kindness, immeasurable compassion, immeasurable sympathetic joy, and immeasurable equanimity. There are two sources of the Four Immeasurables: emptiness, tong-pa-nid, and an open heart, snying-rje. Of course, it is not possible to immediately love everyone – the path is quite profound - and that is why the Four Immeasurables are taught and practiced.
How does one develop the great loving kindness and compassion, snying-rje-chen-po, that all Buddhas have? One begins by generating the last of the Four Immeasurables, namely equanimity. How does one do this? By wishing that all living beings without exception become free of attachment and aversion. Joy arises when they achieve this goal. Compassion arises from joy, and immeasurable love arises when living beings are free of suffering and experience true happiness.
It is important for practitioners to develop equanimity, upeksha in Sanskrit, btang-snyoms in Tibetan. Of course, everyone experiences attachment and becomes angry and resentful. How does one react when such situations occur? Instead of reacting negatively when one thinks one has a reason to be angry, for instance, one remembers that nothing is substantial and lasts and responds with equanimity - again and again. By practicing equanimity repeatedly, the inclination to become attached to specific persons and angry with others will slowly disappear from one’s mind-stream.
Merely thinking that one wishes to help all living beings become free from suffering and attain lasting happiness is wishful-thinking and helps nobody. One begins at the lowest rung of the ladder and contemplates equanimity. If one is in love with a specific person and clings to him or her or if one dislikes someone and feels contempt, one recognizes one’s likes and dislikes, reflects impermanence, and slowly impartiality towards all living beings develops and increases. Equanimity that is impartiality slowly evolves into loving kindness and compassion for every living being - into the great loving kindness and compassion that all Buddhas have.
It is very difficult to develop immeasurable compassion, and nobody has it automatically. Great compassion, karuna in Sanskrit, snying-rje-chen-po in Tibetan, depends upon love, maitri in Sanskrit, byams-pa in Tibetan. Great love, byams-pa-chen-po, depends upon joy, mudita in Sanskrit, dga’-ba in Tibetan. And great joy depends upon equanimity. In the absence of great equanimity, it is not possible to be happy and to have love and compassion. In the absence of happiness and joy, it is not possible to develop love. Likewise, in the absence of love, it will not be possible to attain the immeasurable loving kindness and compassion that all Buddhas have. If one can develop and increase one’s equanimity, then great joy spontaneously arises. If one can develop and increase one’s joy, then great love arises naturally. If one can develop and increase one’s love, then the great loving kindness and compassion of a Buddha will arise in one’s mind. But, it is easier said than done. One must begin by practicing equanimity, again and again and slowly but surely. Then one will proceed in one’s spiritual development and achieve great bliss, bde-ba-chen-po.
Conclusion
In order to practice the Sadhana of White Arya Tara, devotees need to seriously reflect the preliminaries that I presented: firstly taking refuge in the Three Jewels, secondly giving rise to Bodhicitta, and thirdly practicing the Four Immeasurables. If any aspect is missing, then one cannot meditate correctly. It is crucial to perfect the preliminary practices in order to truly be able to engage in the meditation practice of White Tara. Let me give an example: If one doesn’t clean the glass in which one pours pure water that one plans to drink, then the water will be dirty. In the same way, it is necessary to purify oneself of afflictive and cognitive emotions by practicing the preliminaries so that the actual meditation practice brings fruition. If a devotee isn’t aware of the purpose of practice before beginning to recite the devotional prayers, then his or her practice will not only be wrong but any endeavours will also be in vain. Again, it is only possible to practice correctly and truly benefit oneself and all living beings if one has firmly planted Bodhicitta in the soil of one’s own mind.
Thank you very much.
Participant: Most Venerable Chöje Lama Phuntsok, thank you very much for the precious teachings and for giving us a glimpse of non-duality, peace, wisdom, love, and compassion.
Lama Phuntsok: I want to thank you for having invited me to Kamalashila. The actual purpose of my visit was to help with the Peace Stupa that you are building. I want to thank Lama Sönam Rabgye and Lama Kelzang Wangdi, the resident Lamas here, as well as all members for your sincere trust and devotion in the Dharma. I hope to return in a year and see the Stupa when it is finished. The Stupa that you are building will certainly contribute to peace in the world, particularly in Germany. I want to thank you for carrying out this project.
The Kamalashila Institute is the home of the Karma Kagyü Lineage in Germany - it is like a mother. If everyone makes the very best of the Temple and Stupa here, then other Kagyüpa Centers will benefit greatly. I have the feeling that all the Stupas that I have seen so far - in America, on the Philippines, in India and Germany - contribute to world peace and benefit all living beings immensely. I truly hope that more Stupas will be built in the future. I strongly believe that the Kamalashila Institute will become a pilgrimage site for Buddhists and tourists when the Stupa is completed and that everyone will accumulate much merit by circumambulating it.
Organizer: Venerable Lama Phuntsok, we would never be able to build the Stupa without your help. You not only advised us, but planted the Life Tree, prepared Tsa-tsas, rolled all the Mantras and texts and placed them into sacred vases for the Stupa, painted the ornaments, made sketches for the craftsmen of the 13 discs that symbolize the path to enlightenment, provided the sketches for making the sun and moon as well as the pinnacle of the Stupa, and blessed all the sacred statues and Lord Buddha seated above the entrance. Without your help, we would not be able to have a Stupa. You helped us so much. Thank you!
Lama Phuntsok: This makes me very happy. I will make special prayers that the Stupa is completed and that His Holiness the Gyalwa Karmapa will come to Kamalashila. I am really looking forward to that day and also hope to return often.
It is most important that everyone recites the prayers so that His Holiness the Karmapa visits not only Germany but America and all over the world. His visit will contribute to world peace, so we need to recite all prayers. Thank you!
Preparations and building of the Peace Stupa at the Kamalashila Institute in Germany facilitated by
Venerable Chöje Lama Phuntsok & Venerable Khenpo Karma Namgyal and inaugurated by Khenchen Thrangu Rinpoche in 2006.
May the life of the Glorious Lama remain steadfast and firm.
May peace and happiness fully arise for beings as limitless (in number) as space (is vast in its extent).
Having accumulated merit and purified negativities, may I and all living beings without exception
swiftly establish the levels and grounds of Buddhahood.
Teachings of Venerable Chöje Lama Phuntsok translated into German by Anneke Bouwman, into English and edited by Gaby Hollmann. Copyright Venerable Chöje Lama Phuntsok Rinpoche, Karma Lekshey Ling Institute in Kathmandu, as well as the Kamalashila Insitute in Germany, 2007.
Sitatara (WHITE TARA, M: AGHAN DARA EKE)
Zanabazar (1635-1723)
Late 17th-early 18th century
Gilt bronze
H:27 1/8 in. (69.9 cm) Diam:17 5/8 in. (44.8 cm)
Fine Arts Museum
While he was living in retreat, Ged,ndrup (1391-1475), the First Dalai Lama and Tsongkhapa's most eminent disciple, wrote a prayer of praise to White Tara, "A Gem to Increase Life and Wisdom." Its opening verses may well have been the inspiration for Zanabazar's image of White Tara, the goddess who, above all others, filled the hearts of Tibetan and Mongolian Buddhists with her compassion and with the hope of long life:
Homage to White Tara, a Female Buddha exquisite with youth. Radiant as the eternal snows in all their glory, She sits on a white lotus and a silvery moon Indicating fully developed compassion and knowledge.
Homage to the Youthful One with full breasts, One face and two arms. Sitting in vajra position, She regally displays both grace and calm And is filled with great bliss.(1)
Ged,ndrup came into his Gelugpa title, Dalai Lama, only posthumously, but his love for the goddess Tara was nurtured during his childhood, which he spent in a Kadampa monastery. The Kadam order ("Bound to the Proclamation") was founded by the Indian sage, Atisha (982-1054), who was "preserved by Tara, the patron deity of his former lives."(2) Tsongkhapa too was inspired by Atisha's teachings; his reformed Gelugpa was styled the "New Kadam," and his teachings recognize Tara as the mother of all Buddhas, past, present, and future; transcendent, yet capable of intercession and compassionate action.
Atisha was one of several Indian pundits who were invited to Tibet to help restore the dharma after the bitter persecutions of the apostate king Langdarma (838-42). Trained at the great monasteries of India and Indonesia, Atisha was a tantric adept and a devotee of Tara. His life was "filled with visions of the goddess,"(3) and it was she who encouraged him to make the journey to Tibet, warning him in a dream that it would shorten his life, but go far in re-establishing the faith. Atisha's teaching of the tantric Buddhism current in India was severely censored by Tibet's neo-orthodox religious hierarchy, however, who feared that the tantras, with their sexual imagery, would have an adverse effect on Tibetan morals. This stance determined Tara's (and Atisha's) career in Tibet, for her primary texts were tantras, not sutras, and therefore were not, at first, translated or taught.(4)
By Atisha's day, Tara was an established goddess in India. Even very early texts, such as the Manjushrimula-kalpa and the Mahavairochana-sutra, place her near Avalokiteshvara, the bodhisattva of compassion, and the earliest known Indian images of her show her as a celibate consort of Avalokiteshvara, whose active role in compassionate work she eventually assumed.(5) By the ninth century, however, she had already appeared in the Buddhist cave-temples at Ellora as an independent savioress, who, like Avalokiteshvara, rescued those who prayed to her from both physical and psychological dangers. This role is implied by her name, which means both star and saviour, a reading that derives from the Sanskrit root tar, to "cross over," and, in the Buddhist context, means "to cross over the ocean of rebirths to enlightement." Her eight different forms as Green Tara, each one efficacious against a different peril, and her twenty-one forms, described in the Praise in Twenty-one Homages (Ekavamstatistotra), were all well-known to Atisha (see cat. nos. 103-106).
Atisha's visions of Tara were inspired by the tantras, sadhanas (visualization texts), and prayers that described her in her green, or active form, but also by the potent, personal revelations of her contemplative white form granted to the Indian Vagishvarakirti (ninth-tenth century), who first conceived of her specialized function of "cheating death" and bestowing long life.(6) Atisha wrote an evocation of Vagishvarakirti's White Tara and another of Green Tara. White Tara, however, was more acceptable to the neo-orthodox hierarchy of eleventh-century Tibet, because she was the product of a personal vision, rather than a figure whose authority came through the tantras. During Atisha's brief sojourn in Tibet, it was his own abiding devotion to the goddess more than anything else that fueled the growth of her cult in a way that ignored sectarian lines.
The Mongolian Bogdo Gegen, Zanabazar, received his own devotion to Tara through two transmissions of Atisha's teachings, the first (as outlined above) via the Gelugpa adoption of Kadampa precepts, the second inherently, by way of his immediate preincarnation, Taranatha (1575-1634). Taranatha belonged to the Jonangpa, an offshoot of the Sakyapa (whose lamas also wholeheartedly shared Atisha's reverence for Tara) and was one of the greatest of Tibet's religious historians. His Origin of the Tara Tantra, written in 1604, deals with the source of the tantra and its promulgation, and it is he who is credited with the diffusion and promotion of the cult of Green Tara, and with fashioning its mature form.(7)
There are a few scattered records that document Zanabazar's relationship to Tara; certainly images he made of her in her many forms dominate his extant works (see also cat. nos. 103-106). In 1649, when he went as a fifteen-year-old boy to Tibet to receive consecrations from the Panchen and Dalai lamas, he was also recognized as Taranatha's rebirth. Before returning to Mongolia, he traveled to monasteries where he had spent his earlier lives, collecting, among other things, the goddess's texts and images.(8) Legend also has it that Zanabazar had a beautiful consort, the Girl Prince, who was as deft a sculptor as he. She died at the age of eighteen and her ashes were used for printing scriptures. Zanabazar is said to have modeled his Taras on her, the White Tara shows her as a young virgin, the large Green Tara in her last year, as a physically mature, voluptuous woman (several of his twenty-one Taras are echoes of this central figure; see Berger, "After Xanadu," fig. 5.)
Zanabazar's White Tara was originally kept at the monastery at Erdeni-zuu, and in scale, style, and detail she approximates his extraordinary group of the Five Meditation Buddhas (see cat. no. 97). His Tara is a pubescent girl, exquisite in form and with an expression of focused, serious compassion. She appears just as the First Dalai Lama, Ged,ndrup, describes her in his poem, where she is revealed as the "Spiritual Mother" of the Buddhas, as the "Refuge of the World," and as she "whose head is adorned with Amitayus, Buddha of Boundless Life."(9) White Tara sits on a moon-disc placed on top of a single lotus pedestal, erect and alert, and without any of the activating dÈhanchement usually seen in images of her. Nonetheless, her posture and even her flesh appear remarkably natural; Zanabazar's abstractions take the subtler form of perfectly exquisite surface and proportion. Tara lowers her right hand in a gesture of "Supreme Giving," and holds a white lotus in her left. Her hands and feet are inset with eyes; she also has a third eye in her forehead, but even these extraordinary attributes seem natural. Her "sapphire tresses" are half-knotted and half-free, and she wears a five-pointed crown that transforms itself into a kirtimukha (a protective, terrifying halo-face) at the front. Elaborate earrings and fluttering, flattened scarves surround her elongated ears, and her body is adorned with the spare, elegant jewelry of a bodhisattva, typical of Zanabazar's Nepalese-inspired sensibility.
The First Dalai Lama's poem (as well as his invocation to the goddess) specifically appeals to her for long life, but it also prays for protection from danger, and access to enlightenment, hopes that are inextricably intertwined. This vision of Tara as the source of long life is based on Vagishvarakirti's revelations, which saw Tara as a sixteen-year-old girl, in every way the antithesis of death, and his dream of the goddess is perfectly captured by Zanabazar's calm, yet energized image. In the most basic sense, Buddhists in Tibet and Mongolia saw the offerings, praises, and prayers they offered to Tara as an "initiation into life,"(10) and as a way of extending and prolonging the unique opportunity for enlightenment that only human life presented.
--P.B.
All images and text copyright The Asian Art Museum; not to be reproduced without permission.
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1. Glenn H. Mullin, Selected Works of the Dalai Lama I: Bridging the Sutras and Tantras, pp. 194-97. back
2. Stephan Beyer, The Cult of Tara, p. 11. back
3. Ibid. back
4. Ibid, pp. 11-13. back
5. Mallar Ghosh, Development of Buddhist Iconography in Eastern India: A Study of Tara,Prajnas of Five Tathagatas and Bhrikuti, pp. 6-31; and Martin Willson, In Praise of Tara: Song to the Saviouress, pp. 39-43. back
6. Stephan Beyer, The Cult of Tara, p. 363. back
7. Jo-nan Taranatha, The Origin of the Tara Tantra, David Templeman, ed. and trans.; and Martin Willson, In Praise of Tara, pp. 33-36, 169-206. back
8. See e.g. Charles Bawden, The Jebtsundamba Khutkhtus of Urga, p. 45. back
9. Glenn H. Mullin, Selected Works of the Dalai Lama I, p. 195. back
10. Stephan Beyer, The Cult of Tara, pp. 363-467. back
Elogio de Arya Tara
por
Palden Atisha
Homenagem para Arya Tara Venerável!
1. Deuses e asuras com suas coroas
se curvam até Seus pés de loto;
Libertadora de todos os problemas,
[A mãe] Tara - homenagem para Você!
2. Para os atormentados pelo fogo de Avici,
aprisionados de uma rede de fogo,
Sua compaixão faz chover o néctar -
Tara, homenagem adicional para Você!
3. Para os cansados de se aferrar por muito tempo,
nova e novamente, entre os seis
Destinos, Você concede o repouso
supremamente agradável das Grandes Felicidades.
4. Deusa que trabalha pela prosperidade dos outros!
Só em pensar em Você se dispersam os problemas!
Você, dotada com carinho e compaixão,
libera dos laços de samsara.
5. Deusa que a toda hora é
imparcial para com os seres sensíveis,
Para a colheita dos migradores
Você chove incessantemente - homenagem para Você!
6. Como o sol e lua dispersa
a angústia da escuridão dos migrantes seres sensíveis,
Deusa suprema - homenagem para Você!
7. Em um loto e assento de lua
Imaculado como um utpala,
Seu corpo azul-esverdeado, gracioso,
Você segura um utpala - homenagem para Você!
8. Por três eternidades incontáveis Você acumulou Merecimento e Sabedoria,
Rejeitando todas as ofuscações de impedimento,
E com os quatro Meios de Atração atraíndo os migradores,
Oh Mãe compassiva - homenagem para Você!
9. Sem faltas corporais, Você tem as Marcas e Sinais;
Sem faltas de fala, como as tensões de kalavinka;
Sem faltas de mente, Você sabe todas as coisas conhecíveis.
Chama de fortuna e glória - homenagem para Você!
10. Como a pedra preciosa que limpa a água,
Deusa, Você sempre purifica
A lama da mente dos seres sensíveis
e se esforça pelo seu bem-estar - homenagem para Você!
11. Os que retêm o Seu nome,
O elogie, e sua prática,
Sempre Você faz frutífero
E inesquecível - homenagem para Você!
Tibet
1700 - 1799
Buddhist Lineage
55.88x36.83cm (22x14.50in)
Ground Mineral Pigment on Cotton
Collection of Rubin Museum of Art
(acc.# P1994.8.10)
Ravigupta (Tibetan: nyi ma be pa): from the set of 84 Mahasiddhas according to the text and list of the Indian scholar Vajrasana of Bodhgaya (11th century). He was a layperson from Kashmir that was cured of leprosy by a miraculous statue of the goddess Tara. Ravigupta is famous for having many visions of Tara and originating many lineages of her practice such as the Twenty-one forms of Tara, Vajra Tara, Seventeen Deity Tara practice, etc.
The Cycle of the Tārā transmitted by Ravigupta (nyi ma sbas pa).
It is said that in the country of Kashmira there had been an image of the Ta'u Tārā endowed with miraculous powers (siddhi) in the Temple of rang byung lha lnga, lepers after worshiping the image were cured of their ailment.
About that time the acharya Ravigupta (nyi ma sbas pa), who was learned in the five sciences and especially in the Tantra, was attacked by leprosy (klu'i gnod pa). He built a hut for himself to the west of the vihara, and prayed for three months. Then the {R1051} temple's gate moved (by itself) westwards, and the Tārā said: What is your wish? and the acharya replied: I wish to be cured of leprosy. In that very moment his entire body, except for a small sore on his forehead, assumed its former appearance. He asked: What was the reason for not curing the sore on the forehead? The Tārā replied Formerly you were born as a hunter, killed animals and in the end set fire to a forest. In consequence of this, yon were reborn in Hell and this is your last rebirth of the 500 rebirths in Hell, and saying so, she bestowed on him the sadhana, accompanied by a stotra. The Tara said with their help, one may perform any kind of magic rite. I shall grant you miraculous powers (siddhi).
After that the acharya composed a magic rite which corresponded to the twenty one sādhanas, as well as general rites and their branches. He taught it to Chandragarbha. The latter to Jetari. The latter to Vāgiśhvara (Ngaggi dbang phyug). The latter to Śhraḍhākara. The latter to Tathāgata Rakshita. The latter to Dānaśhila, who bestowed it on Mal gyo lo tsa ba. In the translation by Mal gyo the sādhanas and the magic rites were arranged in separate sections, but in the translation by the Khro phu lo tsa ba the magic rites were added in the end of each of the propitiation rites. {(20b)}
Its Lineage: Tārā, Ānanda (Kun dga' bo), the arhat Madhyantika (dgra bcom ri ma gun pa), Krrssnnavāsinn (Kṛśṇa'i gos can), the Kashmirian Ravigupta (Kha che nyi ma sbas pa), Rāhulaśrī, Vindaśrī, panchen sakyaśrī(bhadra). The latter bestowed it on khrophu lo tsa ba, bla chen bsod dbang, rin po che pa, tshad ma'i skyes bu and bu rin po che. mal gyo preached it to sa chen. The latter to rtse mo. The latter to the Venerable One (rjebtsun), who composed many {R1052} text books on the system, and taught it to 'chims chos seng, the Dharmasvimin 'jam gsar, rong pa rgwa lo, shes rab seng ge, dpal ldan seng ge, the bla ma dam pa bsod nams rgyal mtshan, the mahāupādhyāya shes rdor pa, chos sgo ba choskyi rgya mtshan, and rgod phrug grags pa 'byung gnas. I obtained it from the latter.
In general, the cycle of the Tārā (transmitted) through different Lineages filled Tibet.
The Chapter on miscellaneous doctrines.
Jeff Watt 9-2002
