The preliminary practices consist of three parts: the common outer preliminary practice, the uncommon inner preliminary practice and a part of the actual portion of the instructions on the swift path of phowa (meditation on transferring the consciousness at the time of death). From those practices, the common outer preliminary practice consists of four kinds of contemplation: the rarity of the freedoms and favourable conditions, the impermanence of life, the inherent faults of samsara and the law of cause and effect. The uncommon inner preliminary practice is also divided into four: taking refuge and arousing bodhichitta (altruistic mind), mandala offering, the visualization and recitation of Vajrasattva, and Guru Yoga.
In general, the practitioners of the Kagyud lineage practice 400,000 accumulations during the preliminary practices, where taking refuge and generating bodhichitta are counted together. When we say 500,000 accumulations, the refuge and bodhichitta practices are counted separately, but they are in fact the same. Actually, the teachings on taking refuge and the arousing of bodhichitta seem to come simultaneously, but here as we have the tradition of teaching them separately, I will teach them separately.
It is vital to abandon any non-virtuous thoughts just like avoiding poison, and cultivate virtue as much as one can, by examining one’s own mind. Especially for us Dharma practitioners, an altruistic mind is indispensable. Whenever we practise any Dharma, we must arouse the altruistic mind for the sake of all sentient beings, so that whatever Dharma we accomplish will have marvellous strength.
When we talk about generating bodhichitta, it means to recognize all sentient beings equal to space as our parents with humility. Not only recognizing, we must also know how they have nurtured us with their great kindness. We must also realize that all those benevolent motherly beings are suffering endlessly in this cyclic existence. So, we must motivate ourselves to strive to liberate all those beings by any means, as we possess the eighteen freedoms and favourable conditions of a human body with which we can differentiate what to accept and what to avoid.
It is very important to inspire ourselves time and again to dedicate whatever Dharma we accomplish for the sake of all sentient beings. On the other hand, if you pretend to conduct any Dharma activities, such as rituals for the living or the dead, without a definite motivation, they will have only negligible benefits. As human beings have a greater ability to think, it is our main task to think again and again about generating bodhichitta. If you don’t make proper preparation while you are endowed with a human body with eighteen favourable conditions, then it is very difficult to attain such an advantageous opportunity after your death. There are people who say, “I will be reborn as a human being again after death”, but as a matter of fact, it is very difficult without the influence of great virtue because it depends on the law of cause and effect.
We have been doing only non-virtuous actions for beginningless lifetimes and have not accomplished virtue. If we had accumulated pure virtue before, we would have already attained liberation from the sufferings of this cyclic existence. As we don’t have that merit, we are suffering from various discomforts at present. However, by the virtue of a little merit accumulated in one’s previous life, we have obtained a precious human rebirth and met with Buddhadharma. So, we must strive to increase this merit further or we will be reborn in the lower realms if our present merit gets exhausted.
Altruistic mind should be free from egotism. If you practise Dharma with the intention to accomplish comfort and peace only for yourself, it won’t have any benefit. For beginningless lifetimes, we have been wandering in samsara because we have been thinking only about ourselves. Not only human beings, even animals also have this selfish thought, but it doesn’t help any of them. Bodhicitta awakens spontaneously only in those few special beings, while in most other beings self-centred thoughts arise spontaneously. But we have the remedy and the potential to mend these types of conceptual thoughts. The monks know very well about this, but it is difficult for those lay people who are not familiar with Dharma to know about it. Yet it is quite easy if you reflect on it from one angle but difficult if you think from another angle. It can be aroused if you think mindfully, but not by simply going astray thoughtlessly.
In particular, the cause to be born in a Buddha field is to prepare ourselves mentally and to generate faith and devotion in our own mental continuum. To generate faith and devotion within oneself is not meant to glorify the Buddha and his teachings, but it is to benefit individuals in terms of understanding the law of karma and consequently to become free from suffering. Whatever Dharma you practise, it is necessary to be able to reveal its potency. Practitioners should perform the rituals after knowing the meaning of the recitations, as there is no benefit if you recite carelessly without any fixed concept about them. Even if you are not able to do the sublime practices of generation and completion phases like meditation on a tutelary deity and reciting its mantra, there is nothing difficult about merely understanding the literal meaning of what we are reciting. But if you do not generate interest there is no time to be skilful. Whatever rituals we perform, if we take them into our own minds, we will know how to meditate on tutelary deities and to recite their mantras, etc.
Those scholars who think that these rituals cannot be mingled with our mindstreams, taking them as something distant from our minds, other than the literal meaning, shows that the understanding of the meanings of the texts did not benefit them. So, whatever rite we perform, we must practise its meaning and blend it with our minds. Even if you are not able to recite with clarity, accuracy and firmness, if you do it with faith and respect, it will definitely be significant. You should be able to think about its meaning and purpose, unlike an ordinary layman reciting it without any idea. It will prove to be powerful if you chant the Mani and Siddhi mantras with faith, devotion and respect, knowing them to be the seed syllable mantras of Avalokiteshvara and Padmasambhava respectively. Even if you don’t understand them word for word, if you recite them with a general understanding, you will derive benefit from it. If you recite refuge prayers with the intention of liberating all sentient beings from the suffering of cyclic existence and with firm faith in the Three Jewels, then you will receive potency. On the contrary, if you recite them without the proper idea, they will not be of great benefit.
We have to practise Dharma by utilizing our body, speech and mind. When we talk about practising pure perception, we are asked to do so, since we don’t have faith and devotion. This is not meant for elevating the object of pure vision, but for the purification of your own karmic obscurations.
Translated by Rigzod Editors
