If because of miserliness or selfishness you hold back from giving what you find the most
pleasing
and offer only what you do not want for yourseJf, how can your promise to give yourself totally for the work of_benefiting all sentient beings be anything but a farce ?
Wang-ch-ug-Dor-je-Mahamudra-Eliminating-the-Darkness-of-Ignorance
and those caused by harmful spirits.
- You -will die (a horrible death) caused by =demons, ?
plague~ or poison.
(12).
You will be killed by (wicked) kings. or fire,
by poisonous snakes, water, witches? or ban- dits, by harmful ? spfrits or -~avages;? and ~hen
be reborn in ahell. ;? . 03)
Never disturb your Guru's mind. , Should you be foolish and happen to do. this, ? you will surely roil in a hell.
(14)
Whatever fearful hells have been taught~. suc}i as Avici, the Hell of Uninterrupted Pai'ri, i"t"is clearly explained that those who disparage their Gurus will have to remain there (a very long time).
(15)
Therefore e~ert y~urselfwhole~~eart. ~~l_y. ! W~~~ to belittle your 'l'aqtric Ma~t~r:)Y~O ,ma~~~. . n. <> disp:ay of his great. wisdoin and virtu. ~;
As ? your Gur:J is a Buddha, despising? birn? is ? the ? same~-as hating all who are Enlightened. The state of Buddhahood-ll one of complete Liberation frQJD all suffering, ignorance, delu- sions and opstacles. H is. th~;attainment of. all go()d. qualities, complete perfection and t~tal Omniscience. Despising or be-
littling such? a? state by disparaging your Guru, you c~st yourself
? iri? tbe opposite? direction from happiness and _f~~e~. 9. m: ):lavll\g contempt for wisdom and Liberation, you gam 1nstead bondage and pain. Such tormented states are what have been described in all- the scriptures . as the -varioUs hells.
Tl;lus: the1c. are great. , dangers? in? . entering a Guru-disciple relationship. :Your. Tantric. . Master may . be the. one . who has g~yc:_n yo~ eopower~e. nts, a tantri~. qisc~~rs~ Or, eVel). instructiOD
~at~1~;~lf. ~h~i~a~i:-~g:J~:Jl~JfJf~ti~~:~:~ lie~itate to'ad. riit ~horteoniings. . . if1o'ti do'not . reb~g'nisesuch traits as indication's' ibf his 'perfechori; '? 'liufuility' lfiid skilful means, you may make the serious mistake of belittling or seeing faults . in hi~. HaviM:-~$lflblished a? . forma:l; bond>:with this
,. <;iUfU. ? :a,n~; ~h~9~~h;itjf! ! ,: . ~nt~re<la Pfll~! ). V~Y! ~~. ol? ~! ld~hahood, yo~, i)~V,~;! then, ca~t. y~urself ~~to. tey;olp1~utrer! n~. jf. from the depth o_r your. heart 1~o. u bre~~ th1~,h~~? ,,,T,he~~f? l'~,~ou must have great awareness, ror although b'uru-devotJOn will elevate? )uU to Full Enlightenment, a breach of it will be your downfall.
(16) (Iffrom. ~l~ck. ofawareness? you'have' shown
. ,? . . . ? ? '. . ~ . r. . . disrespect)' to your 'Guru? ,. reverently present
an offering to hinr :and see~ his forgiveness. Theh? i. in; 1i~? e~~l;iture'~-p~h. . ~atrii'as? pta~es will
not? befaiLydii.
. ,. ,A~_! ! . U~<l~hft. fa, Guf. l:l,, w~ll, ne:)(~C,ho~~1! gr~~~~? ,,1Showing h1m disrespect. cannot poss1bly:. p~~nd. :~~~~rt ~? ~;. 1The onl. y one you harm IS yourself. TherHore if you repent and beg hss. forgiveness, he will accept what! you offer with great compassion. Tbe'rl; by tlie fdrcC:~f~youffaith,U iespect)Mld' &V. otion~. you need
11at;~perience)great misfotlone
The beneficial'. ! effects. of,Guru-devoti~nian~ t:l\o dire conse- ,qp~n~es, ! o f a : . ? b r y f . l c J l ; o f ? i t . 41. ~~~ , r y o t , , ~:qw'"~~ ~-,n~i p ! J p i s h m e n t s from a godly Guru. ~~~y,,foll~,c;l. i,rfcl)y1frm~,8! \1,1~1:! lind effect.
Yo~r _Gun~. ~~--. ~~e. ,~oc. ~l,. point _fo~ ~? ? u~. ,p,r~crti~e~. ,! ~~~~:ngto ? ~nhghtenment. ' The more devoted yolf are towards. . . . t~e stjltc 'or:p~rfectio~? ,he;"'represents> "tiae? cJ. :>~ei'you'come "towards. 'tbis.
GURci~D? VOTJON 171
? ~72 MAHAMUDRA
goal Despising him can only take you further away into 6ark?
ness an<. ;gnorance.
(17)
It has been taught that for the Guru to whom
you have pledged your word of honour (to visualise as one with your meditational deity), you should willingly sacrifice your wife, children and even your life, although these are not (easy) to give away. Is there need to memion your fleeting wealth?
(18)
(Such pr&~LJCe of offering) can confer even
Buddhahood on a zealous (disciple) in his very lifetime, which otherwise might be difficult to attain even in countless minions of eons.
{19)
Always keep your word of honour. Always
make offerings to the Enlightened Ones. Always make offerings also to your Guru, for he is the same as all the Buddhas.
(20)
Those who wish (to attain) the inexhaustible
(state of a Buddha's Wisdom Body) should give to their Guru whatever they themselves find pleasing, from the most trifling objects to those of best quality.
(21)
Giving (to your Guru) is the same as maldug
continual offerings to all the Buddhas. From such giving much merit is gathered. From such collection comes the supreme powerful attainment (of Buddhahood).
Mating offerings to your Guru as the representative of aU the Budd bas is extremely important. Such generosity is symbolic
? of your total dedication to achieving Buddhahoood. .
If because of miserliness or selfishness you hold back from giving what you find the most pleasing and offer only what you do not want for yourseJf, how can your promise to give yourself totally for the work of_benefiting all sentient beings be anything but a farce ? Without. any attachment you must be willing to sacriRce every- thing for your attainment cf Enlightenment thrGugh your Guru. Th4t offering maodala ! iymbolises this dedication of your body, speech and mind, and even the entire uni-. erse for this goal.
Jf you arc poor like Jc~tziin Mi-la rl-pa, it docs not matter that you do not have riches to offer. What is important is your state of mind and willingness to sacsiOcc anything for the. sake of your Guru, Enlightenment and all sentient beings. The best
? offering, then, is of your practice. But if you have wealth, you must neve. ~ hesitate to use it for gaining merit. ?
? ? ? J~? ?
Therefore making . offerings is not so? that your Guru can . become rich. On his part the Guru should regard such offerings as a tiger would lopk at grass. The point is to benefit yourself and ultimately everyone else by your total dedication. Great merit is gathered from such practice, resulting in your attain- ment of the Form Body of a Buddha. , If you can sec the void nature, that is the lack of true . independent existence of your- self, your Guru and what you offer, then you accumulate at the same time the insight that will result in your achievement of a Buddha's Wisdom Body. Thus the supreme powerful attainment of Buddhabood comes from making offerings to
your Guru.
(22)
Therefore, a disciple with the good qualities ofcompassion,generosity, moral self-control and patience should~everregardasdifferent his Guru and the Buddha Vajradh'a:ra.
Y our Guru, the meditational deities and V ajradhira, the form Buddha assumes in the tantras, arc all the same ia nature. They are llkc a sio. Jie person in a drama changing masks and costumes and playing different roles. The same is true if you
GURU-DEYOT/ON 113-
? 174 MAHAMUDRA
have many Gurus. You must regard them all as'Buddha,? differ-
:ing only in the face he wears. 1
? ? ?
. . 'rite ~bllity to' sec? 'youfCiurl1 aa not different ftom Buddha Vajradhara depends on your motivation:? If you have developed and Enlightened Motive of . Bodhicitta~ you ? ? ? arc striving? to become . a Buddha yourself in order to be fully able to benefit others. \ The. stronger. this 'motive, the more. 'the thought of Enlighten~en'fcomes to pervade your mind compleh:ly. ThinlC- hig 'only: of. Enligllteriment. ~? nd ways. 't'o achieve'; it, you will automatically be able to sec your Guru in terms of this :state
t*eaus'enothing elsd will be'in your mind.
,. ',? ' '? f? ,. . :J_~ . ;,. ,I '. ? ? . I'-? . . .
. ? 'the more yoU: wish to. attain . Enlightenment~the clearer you sec the' necessity (6r your'Guru'to be a'BuddhiL'. ' 'rhus with the
. ! '. . ' ' . . ? ? ? . . '? . . . . . ' . ! ? i. ' . . . . . . . ' ? ' . ? ~ strong compassion of wi,shirig others never to ? suffer, you can
d~dicate:Yourself~asitY~~awithJo:Y. : Through the 'practice:or t h e p e r f e c t i o n s o f gerier6~ity~ t h e d i s c i p l i n e o f m o r a l self~coiltrol, patierice arid 'so fdrtll; all 'centred ;t'round ? your ' Guru~ you will
the[{be' able to ittain ~is'sta~c~ (23)
If,:~. ? ~,I? sllRUI4'i tl~~e~? . tf~~d,1 ~~~. ;? ~v~n,? . ? (y~~ . p1;lql'st sflA4'? ~~~. . ~e~~u. se,. ,t~e1 . re,? ,~p1Pe co~~e~ ,quence& at;~. th~? :sam~ as . d~sf~;~yin. g,a stupa;. js there. n. eed ? tO:;mention never stepping on,or :aver: his shoes or seat,; (sitting. ? in his: place- or riding) his mount? ?
A sHipa is a monument in which relics of a Buddha are
kept. Like your Guru, it serves as a focal point for your venera~
. t_io,n1and _devotion; }o,~~tt,~ining. :1Ju4db~boo~,? ,. -~~~~? Ying one <and steppmg on your ? Guru's? shadow, then,' are both acts of Jextreme-? disregard? :and. ? disrespect? ? forl 1thc ;stlife? ? or Enlighten- . 'ro~ot. :! 'Therefore ;the . fearsome: consequences? : of both arc the
same.
. If yqu . treat . you~ . Guru? s shoes? . ,seat :and . the :horse or ~#licle ,he rides. as, ot;dinary 9bjects, and presume to usc. them Y<? Ursclf. Of stc;p -on :. them, . . YOlU'' arrogant attitude . can: ? only
. ~co,m~ a, JDajor bindr! lnce t9 your attainment, of Buddhahood.
? (~4)
(A:? ? disciple) having great sense shoul(tcpbcy) ? the-words:? of''his~GuruJoyfully and wJt'b enth'U- siasnt. . Jf you ? tack the kt1owledge ? ot? ab. llii\t. (to do what he say~), explain in (polite) words
why you cannot (comply). (251
It, js ftoill _your?
(12).
You will be killed by (wicked) kings. or fire,
by poisonous snakes, water, witches? or ban- dits, by harmful ? spfrits or -~avages;? and ~hen
be reborn in ahell. ;? . 03)
Never disturb your Guru's mind. , Should you be foolish and happen to do. this, ? you will surely roil in a hell.
(14)
Whatever fearful hells have been taught~. suc}i as Avici, the Hell of Uninterrupted Pai'ri, i"t"is clearly explained that those who disparage their Gurus will have to remain there (a very long time).
(15)
Therefore e~ert y~urselfwhole~~eart. ~~l_y. ! W~~~ to belittle your 'l'aqtric Ma~t~r:)Y~O ,ma~~~. . n. <> disp:ay of his great. wisdoin and virtu. ~;
As ? your Gur:J is a Buddha, despising? birn? is ? the ? same~-as hating all who are Enlightened. The state of Buddhahood-ll one of complete Liberation frQJD all suffering, ignorance, delu- sions and opstacles. H is. th~;attainment of. all go()d. qualities, complete perfection and t~tal Omniscience. Despising or be-
littling such? a? state by disparaging your Guru, you c~st yourself
? iri? tbe opposite? direction from happiness and _f~~e~. 9. m: ):lavll\g contempt for wisdom and Liberation, you gam 1nstead bondage and pain. Such tormented states are what have been described in all- the scriptures . as the -varioUs hells.
Tl;lus: the1c. are great. , dangers? in? . entering a Guru-disciple relationship. :Your. Tantric. . Master may . be the. one . who has g~yc:_n yo~ eopower~e. nts, a tantri~. qisc~~rs~ Or, eVel). instructiOD
~at~1~;~lf. ~h~i~a~i:-~g:J~:Jl~JfJf~ti~~:~:~ lie~itate to'ad. riit ~horteoniings. . . if1o'ti do'not . reb~g'nisesuch traits as indication's' ibf his 'perfechori; '? 'liufuility' lfiid skilful means, you may make the serious mistake of belittling or seeing faults . in hi~. HaviM:-~$lflblished a? . forma:l; bond>:with this
,. <;iUfU. ? :a,n~; ~h~9~~h;itjf! ! ,: . ~nt~re<la Pfll~! ). V~Y! ~~. ol? ~! ld~hahood, yo~, i)~V,~;! then, ca~t. y~urself ~~to. tey;olp1~utrer! n~. jf. from the depth o_r your. heart 1~o. u bre~~ th1~,h~~? ,,,T,he~~f? l'~,~ou must have great awareness, ror although b'uru-devotJOn will elevate? )uU to Full Enlightenment, a breach of it will be your downfall.
(16) (Iffrom. ~l~ck. ofawareness? you'have' shown
. ,? . . . ? ? '. . ~ . r. . . disrespect)' to your 'Guru? ,. reverently present
an offering to hinr :and see~ his forgiveness. Theh? i. in; 1i~? e~~l;iture'~-p~h. . ~atrii'as? pta~es will
not? befaiLydii.
. ,. ,A~_! ! . U~<l~hft. fa, Guf. l:l,, w~ll, ne:)(~C,ho~~1! gr~~~~? ,,1Showing h1m disrespect. cannot poss1bly:. p~~nd. :~~~~rt ~? ~;. 1The onl. y one you harm IS yourself. TherHore if you repent and beg hss. forgiveness, he will accept what! you offer with great compassion. Tbe'rl; by tlie fdrcC:~f~youffaith,U iespect)Mld' &V. otion~. you need
11at;~perience)great misfotlone
The beneficial'. ! effects. of,Guru-devoti~nian~ t:l\o dire conse- ,qp~n~es, ! o f a : . ? b r y f . l c J l ; o f ? i t . 41. ~~~ , r y o t , , ~:qw'"~~ ~-,n~i p ! J p i s h m e n t s from a godly Guru. ~~~y,,foll~,c;l. i,rfcl)y1frm~,8! \1,1~1:! lind effect.
Yo~r _Gun~. ~~--. ~~e. ,~oc. ~l,. point _fo~ ~? ? u~. ,p,r~crti~e~. ,! ~~~~:ngto ? ~nhghtenment. ' The more devoted yolf are towards. . . . t~e stjltc 'or:p~rfectio~? ,he;"'represents> "tiae? cJ. :>~ei'you'come "towards. 'tbis.
GURci~D? VOTJON 171
? ~72 MAHAMUDRA
goal Despising him can only take you further away into 6ark?
ness an<. ;gnorance.
(17)
It has been taught that for the Guru to whom
you have pledged your word of honour (to visualise as one with your meditational deity), you should willingly sacrifice your wife, children and even your life, although these are not (easy) to give away. Is there need to memion your fleeting wealth?
(18)
(Such pr&~LJCe of offering) can confer even
Buddhahood on a zealous (disciple) in his very lifetime, which otherwise might be difficult to attain even in countless minions of eons.
{19)
Always keep your word of honour. Always
make offerings to the Enlightened Ones. Always make offerings also to your Guru, for he is the same as all the Buddhas.
(20)
Those who wish (to attain) the inexhaustible
(state of a Buddha's Wisdom Body) should give to their Guru whatever they themselves find pleasing, from the most trifling objects to those of best quality.
(21)
Giving (to your Guru) is the same as maldug
continual offerings to all the Buddhas. From such giving much merit is gathered. From such collection comes the supreme powerful attainment (of Buddhahood).
Mating offerings to your Guru as the representative of aU the Budd bas is extremely important. Such generosity is symbolic
? of your total dedication to achieving Buddhahoood. .
If because of miserliness or selfishness you hold back from giving what you find the most pleasing and offer only what you do not want for yourseJf, how can your promise to give yourself totally for the work of_benefiting all sentient beings be anything but a farce ? Without. any attachment you must be willing to sacriRce every- thing for your attainment cf Enlightenment thrGugh your Guru. Th4t offering maodala ! iymbolises this dedication of your body, speech and mind, and even the entire uni-. erse for this goal.
Jf you arc poor like Jc~tziin Mi-la rl-pa, it docs not matter that you do not have riches to offer. What is important is your state of mind and willingness to sacsiOcc anything for the. sake of your Guru, Enlightenment and all sentient beings. The best
? offering, then, is of your practice. But if you have wealth, you must neve. ~ hesitate to use it for gaining merit. ?
? ? ? J~? ?
Therefore making . offerings is not so? that your Guru can . become rich. On his part the Guru should regard such offerings as a tiger would lopk at grass. The point is to benefit yourself and ultimately everyone else by your total dedication. Great merit is gathered from such practice, resulting in your attain- ment of the Form Body of a Buddha. , If you can sec the void nature, that is the lack of true . independent existence of your- self, your Guru and what you offer, then you accumulate at the same time the insight that will result in your achievement of a Buddha's Wisdom Body. Thus the supreme powerful attainment of Buddhabood comes from making offerings to
your Guru.
(22)
Therefore, a disciple with the good qualities ofcompassion,generosity, moral self-control and patience should~everregardasdifferent his Guru and the Buddha Vajradh'a:ra.
Y our Guru, the meditational deities and V ajradhira, the form Buddha assumes in the tantras, arc all the same ia nature. They are llkc a sio. Jie person in a drama changing masks and costumes and playing different roles. The same is true if you
GURU-DEYOT/ON 113-
? 174 MAHAMUDRA
have many Gurus. You must regard them all as'Buddha,? differ-
:ing only in the face he wears. 1
? ? ?
. . 'rite ~bllity to' sec? 'youfCiurl1 aa not different ftom Buddha Vajradhara depends on your motivation:? If you have developed and Enlightened Motive of . Bodhicitta~ you ? ? ? arc striving? to become . a Buddha yourself in order to be fully able to benefit others. \ The. stronger. this 'motive, the more. 'the thought of Enlighten~en'fcomes to pervade your mind compleh:ly. ThinlC- hig 'only: of. Enligllteriment. ~? nd ways. 't'o achieve'; it, you will automatically be able to sec your Guru in terms of this :state
t*eaus'enothing elsd will be'in your mind.
,. ',? ' '? f? ,. . :J_~ . ;,. ,I '. ? ? . I'-? . . .
. ? 'the more yoU: wish to. attain . Enlightenment~the clearer you sec the' necessity (6r your'Guru'to be a'BuddhiL'. ' 'rhus with the
. ! '. . ' ' . . ? ? ? . . '? . . . . . ' . ! ? i. ' . . . . . . . ' ? ' . ? ~ strong compassion of wi,shirig others never to ? suffer, you can
d~dicate:Yourself~asitY~~awithJo:Y. : Through the 'practice:or t h e p e r f e c t i o n s o f gerier6~ity~ t h e d i s c i p l i n e o f m o r a l self~coiltrol, patierice arid 'so fdrtll; all 'centred ;t'round ? your ' Guru~ you will
the[{be' able to ittain ~is'sta~c~ (23)
If,:~. ? ~,I? sllRUI4'i tl~~e~? . tf~~d,1 ~~~. ;? ~v~n,? . ? (y~~ . p1;lql'st sflA4'? ~~~. . ~e~~u. se,. ,t~e1 . re,? ,~p1Pe co~~e~ ,quence& at;~. th~? :sam~ as . d~sf~;~yin. g,a stupa;. js there. n. eed ? tO:;mention never stepping on,or :aver: his shoes or seat,; (sitting. ? in his: place- or riding) his mount? ?
A sHipa is a monument in which relics of a Buddha are
kept. Like your Guru, it serves as a focal point for your venera~
. t_io,n1and _devotion; }o,~~tt,~ining. :1Ju4db~boo~,? ,. -~~~~? Ying one <and steppmg on your ? Guru's? shadow, then,' are both acts of Jextreme-? disregard? :and. ? disrespect? ? forl 1thc ;stlife? ? or Enlighten- . 'ro~ot. :! 'Therefore ;the . fearsome: consequences? : of both arc the
same.
. If yqu . treat . you~ . Guru? s shoes? . ,seat :and . the :horse or ~#licle ,he rides. as, ot;dinary 9bjects, and presume to usc. them Y<? Ursclf. Of stc;p -on :. them, . . YOlU'' arrogant attitude . can: ? only
. ~co,m~ a, JDajor bindr! lnce t9 your attainment, of Buddhahood.
? (~4)
(A:? ? disciple) having great sense shoul(tcpbcy) ? the-words:? of''his~GuruJoyfully and wJt'b enth'U- siasnt. . Jf you ? tack the kt1owledge ? ot? ab. llii\t. (to do what he say~), explain in (polite) words
why you cannot (comply). (251
It, js ftoill _your?
