The Generation Stage - Yidam Practice (1/5)

The generation stage (utpatti-krama) 

In the generation stage, one dissolves one's reality into emptiness and meditates on the deity-mandala, resulting in identification with this divine reality. 

What is the generation stage in Vajrayana Buddhism?

The generation stage or creation phase (Tibetan : bskyed rim) (Sanskrit : utpatti-krama), also known as "the phase of imagination" and "the yoga of fabrications," the first phase of tantric deity yoga in the Unsurpassed Yoga Tantra of the later schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It also equates to the Mahayoga of the Nyingma school. 

(Tibetan : bskyed rim) (Sanskrit : utpatti-krama) is the ‘generation’ or ‘development phase’ of practice—otherwise known as visualisation practice—the goal of which is to purify our perception into the purity of our inherent nature.

The first phase of meditational practice (Sadhana) is associated with the anuttara-yoga-tantras in general and especially with the so-called ‘Father Tantras’ such as the Guhyasamaja Tantra. The generation phase involves the use of creative imagination or visualisation as a means of personal transformation through which the practitioners either visualise a divine being before them (front generation) or as themselves (self-generation) in order to alter their perception and experience of the appearance aspect of reality.  

All Vajrayana practices can be subsumed under the categories of the generation stage and the completion stage.

The practice of the generation stage is to purify phenomena primarily through visualization of the buddhas, bodhisattvas, and their mandalas. The practice of the completion stage is to realise emptiness with practices based on the channels, wind energies, and essences of the subtle body.

To practice the union of the generation and the completion stages is to visualize the yidam (the meditational deity) as an illusion, as a dream. 

Normally, the proper sequence of practice is to practice the generation stage first, then the completion stage, but there is no need to follow this sequence in the practice of the union of the two stages. From the standpoint of phenomena, it is the generation stage; the dream-like, illusory emptiness represents the completion stage. 

Why this teaching is necessary

In this Age of Dharma Decline, practitioners always tend to have myriad problems. For example, they pay less attention to the foundational elements of achieving accomplishment in Vajrayana practice, such as visualisation, recitation, cultivation of the right view, mindfulness, etc., but instead busy themselves with just the formalities of practice, such as the mandalas, rituals, offerings, vajra dance, and so on. 

In so doing, the result from practice cannot manifest, nor can the four activities (pacifying, enriching, magnetizing, and subjugating) be accomplished. 

All yidam practices, whether the deity is peaceful or wrathful, involve the generation stage. One cannot do deity practice without knowing how to practice the generation stage. 

To properly practice the generation stage in a retreat, one should first complete all the preliminaries and also pay particular attention to the process—there are many complicated requirements regarding the time, place, and format of the retreat, the time and format of ending the retreat, and so on. 

We don’t need to know the details for the time being, as many people have not yet undertaken the preliminary practice; even if some people have completed the preliminaries once, the quality of the practice is still less than satisfactory. However, the method of visualisation is very important. 

If one is unable to visualize clearly, the entire result of practice will be adversely affected. The preliminary practices, such as the ones for taking refuge, Vajrasattva, and Guru Yoga, also entail the practice of the generation stage. Therefore, it is necessary to briefly explain this practice.

Of course, this is just a brief introduction to the general structure of the generation stage or deity practice, which applies to all practices and serves as the steps and standard that all should follow. To understand the generation stage in more detail, it is best to refer to the text and sadhana of the individual practice. 

*Footnote

For those who have received the empowerment of this Tantric practise, you are reminded not to intentionally or unintentionally disclose the mantra to the public or anyone who may not have the empowerment or permission to practise, and disclosing the mantra intentionally or unintentionally is a form of breaking your Tantric Samaya vows to the lineage masters and Dharma protectors.

Please consult your Guru or a qualified lineage master for Vajrayana practise! Should a devotee even want to start studying and contemplating the Vajrayana practise, then it is truly necessary to first have completed the preliminaries and to be certain that Bodhicitta has arisen and developed in one’s mind. 

Vajrayana features countless skillful and powerful methods that, if practised in the proper way, can make the process of accumulation and purification incredibly swift and direct. It is absolutely necessary to have pure motivation and to know that Vajrayana practise is not carried out to increase one’s own ego, power, or self-interest.  

Donations for our Buddhist research and development

Do you earnestly cherish our devoted work? Assuming this is the case, we are delighted that you are finding our blog useful and valuable. Would you consider making a donation for our Buddhist research and development?

We need your help to secure the future of scholarly interaction with Buddhism. Since our very first publication of Dharma works and activities in 2008, we have been effortlessly providing free distribution of Dharma posts and articles throughout the previous 14 years. We have exceptionally constrained support and do not receive subsidies or funding from people in general.

 

Please help us develop our Dharma activities that will not only benefit you but all Dharma readers on the planet. Please consider showing your support. Your generosity will certainly help us enhance our work and accomplish more for a better and brighter future.

 

Thank you for reading. May you find peace and great bliss. With your support, it helps to spread the Buddha’s precious teachings and turn the Dharma wheels in the world.

 

Aspiration For Bodhichitta

For those in whom the precious Bodhichitta has not arisen

May it arise and not decrease.

But increase further and further.

 

Dedication of Merit

By this merit, may we then obtain omniscience then.

Having defeated the enemies wrongdoings

May we liberate migratory from the ocean of existence.

With its stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness, and death.

 

*Note

I do not own or infringe any copyright on the picture(s).

Picture(s) courtesy and credit to the rightful distributors and/or studios

The picture(s) are intended for editorial use only.

Deity Yoga -The Completion Stage (3/3)

The Utpattikrama Song

Whenever I'm meditating on the Yidam generation stage

My body is rainbow-like in the sky of appearance and emptiness.

Not turning that into a mental fixation, craving is consumed.

Speech is sound and emptiness—like an echo in an empty valley.

With neither good nor bad about it, to indulge or refuse is consumed.

The mind is luminous emptiness, like the light of the sun and the moon.

Without the slightest bias in it, the idea of a self is consumed.

What is thought of as the usual body, speech, and rational mind?

Are self-existent vajra body and speech, self-existent vajra heart?

There's nothing left of the usual triple gates, and what a relief!

Whatever I do, it fits with Dharma, and that puts me in a state of delight!

My way of life is a Dharma journey—that's why I'm cheerful and bright! 

What is deity yoga in Vajrayana Buddhism? 

Deity yoga is a practice found in Tibetan Buddhism involving visualisations that have the normative goal of “becoming one” with a supernatural being. During the practice, practitioners report experiencing that their own body transforms into the body of the deity. 

Deity yoga engages creative visualisation as a skillful means of personal transformation through which the practitioner (sadhaka) visualises a chosen deity (Yidam) as part of a mandala or refuge tree in order to transform their experience of the appearance aspect of reality. 

The fundamental practice of Vajrayana and Tibetan tantra is deity yoga (devatayoga), meditation on a chosen deity or "cherished divinity" (Tibetan: Yidam), which involves the recitation of mantras, prayers, and visualisation of the deity, the associated mandala of the deity's Buddha field, along with consorts and attendant Buddhas and bodhisattvas. According to the Tibetan scholars, deity yoga is what separates Tantra from Sutra practice. 

In the Unsurpassed Yoga Tantras, the most widespread tantric form in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, this method is divided into two stages: 

In Vajrayana, there appear to be many different types and stages of mediation as well. One form is called "generation stage meditation,"  also known as utpattikrama. What exactly is "generation stage meditation" and how is it practiced? 

2) The completion stage (nispanna-krama).

In the completion stage, the divine image and the subtle body are applied to the realisation of luminous emptiness.

What is the completion stage in Vajrayana Buddhism?

The completion stage Then look directly at the meditating mind. All that is meditated upon will vanish into emptiness. The second part, the completion stage, is as follows: by looking directly at the mind that is meditating, all that was previously visualized dissolves into emptiness. 

The completion stage (rdzogs rim,also "perfection" or "fulfilment" stage), also known as "the yoga of the natural state," is the second stage of the Unsurpassed Yoga Tantra. According to Kongtrül, the Sanskrit equivalent to rdzogs is niṣpanna"meaning the ultimately true, or the natural state. 'Completion' therefore denotes what is ultimately true, the natural state, or the nature of things.

Jamgon Kongtrul writes that the main characteristic of completion stage practice is non-conceptual great bliss arising from the melting of the vital essences (bindus) in the subtle body, which allows the yogi to realise the true nature of reality, bodhicitta. Bodhicitta is here defined as the inseparability of emptiness and compassion (understood as the pristine awareness of unchanging great bliss). This yoga, which focuses on directing the vital winds into the central channel, is also termed the "vajra yoga of the union of method and wisdom. 

What is the completion stage with marks?

Completion stage with marks' means yogic practices such as tummo, inner heat.

What is the completion stage without marks?

The completion stage without marks' is the practice of Dzogchen and Mahamudra.

*Footnote

For those who have received the empowerment of this Tantric practise, you are reminded not to intentionally or unintentionally disclose the mantra to the public or anyone who may not have the empowerment or permission to practise, and disclosing the mantra intentionally or unintentionally is a form of breaking your Tantric Samaya vows to the lineage masters and Dharma protectors.

Please consult your Guru or a qualified lineage master for Vajrayana practise! Should a devotee even want to start studying and contemplating the Vajrayana practise, then it is truly necessary to first have completed the preliminaries and to be certain that Bodhicitta has arisen and developed in one’s mind. 

Vajrayana features countless skillful and powerful methods that, if practised in the proper way, can make the process of accumulation and purification incredibly swift and direct. It is absolutely necessary to have pure motivation and to know that Vajrayana practise is not carried out to increase one’s own ego, power, or self-interest.  

Donations for our Buddhist research and development

Do you earnestly cherish our devoted work? Assuming this is the case, we are delighted that you are finding our blog useful and valuable. Would you consider making a donation for our Buddhist research and development?

We need your help to secure the future of scholarly interaction with Buddhism. Since our very first publication of Dharma works and activities in 2008, we have been effortlessly providing free distribution of Dharma posts and articles throughout the previous 14 years. We have exceptionally constrained support and do not receive subsidies or funding from people in general.

 

Please help us develop our Dharma activities that will not only benefit you but all Dharma readers on the planet. Please consider showing your support. Your generosity will certainly help us enhance our work and accomplish more for a better and brighter future.

 

Thank you for reading. May you find peace and great bliss. With your support, it helps to spread the Buddha’s precious teachings and turn the Dharma wheels in the world.

 

Aspiration For Bodhichitta

For those in whom the precious Bodhichitta has not arisen

May it arise and not decrease.

But increase further and further.

 

Dedication of Merit

By this merit, may we then obtain omniscience then.

Having defeated the enemies wrongdoings

May we liberate migratory from the ocean of existence.

With its stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness, and death.

 

*Note

I do not own or infringe any copyright on the picture(s).

Picture(s) courtesy and credit to the rightful distributors and/or studios

The picture(s) are intended for editorial use only.

Deity Yoga -The Generation Stage (2/3)

The Utpattikrama Song

Whenever I'm meditating on the Yidam generation stage

My body is rainbow-like in the sky of appearance and emptiness.

Not turning that into a mental fixation, craving is consumed.

Speech is sound and emptiness—like an echo in an empty valley.

With neither good nor bad about it, to indulge or refuse is consumed.

The mind is luminous emptiness, like the light of the sun and the moon.

Without the slightest bias in it, the idea of a self is consumed.

What is thought of as the usual body, speech, and rational mind?

Are self-existent vajra body and speech, self-existent vajra heart?

There's nothing left of the usual triple gates, and what a relief!

Whatever I do, it fits with Dharma, and that puts me in a state of delight!

My way of life is a Dharma journey—that's why I'm cheerful and bright! 

What is deity yoga in Vajrayana Buddhism? 

Deity yoga is a practice found in Tibetan Buddhism involving visualisations that have the normative goal of “becoming one” with a supernatural being. During the practice, practitioners report experiencing that their own body transforms into the body of the deity. 

Deity yoga engages creative visualisation as a skillful means of personal transformation through which the practitioner (sadhaka) visualises a chosen deity (Yidam) as part of a mandala or refuge tree in order to transform their experience of the appearance aspect of reality. 

The fundamental practice of Vajrayana and Tibetan tantra is deity yoga (devatayoga), meditation on a chosen deity or "cherished divinity" (Tibetan: Yidam), which involves the recitation of mantras, prayers, and visualisation of the deity, the associated mandala of the deity's Buddha field, along with consorts and attendant Buddhas and bodhisattvas. According to the Tibetan scholars, deity yoga is what separates Tantra from Sutra practice. 

In the Unsurpassed Yoga Tantras, the most widespread tantric form in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, this method is divided into two stages: 

In Vajrayana, there appear to be many different types and stages of mediation as well. One form is called "generation stage meditation,"  also known as utpattikrama. What exactly is "generation stage meditation" and how is it practiced? 

1) The generation stage (utpatti-krama) 

In the generation stage, one dissolves one's reality into emptiness and meditates on the deity-mandala, resulting in identification with this divine reality. 

What is the generation stage in Vajrayana Buddhism?

The generation stage or creation phase (Tibetan : bskyed rim) (Sanskrit : utpatti-krama), also known as "the phase of imagination" and "the yoga of fabrications," the first phase of tantric deity yoga in the Unsurpassed Yoga Tantra of the later schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It also equates to the Mahayoga of the Nyingma school. 

(Tibetan : bskyed rim) (Sanskrit : utpatti-krama) is the ‘generation’ or ‘development phase’ of practice—otherwise known as visualisation practice—the goal of which is to purify our perception into the purity of our inherent nature.

The first phase of meditational practice (Sadhana) is associated with the anuttara-yoga-tantras in general and especially with the so-called ‘Father Tantras’ such as the Guhyasamaja Tantra. The generation phase involves the use of creative imagination or visualisation as a means of personal transformation through which the practitioners either visualise a divine being before them (front generation) or as themselves (self-generation) in order to alter their perception and experience of the appearance aspect of reality.

*Footnote

For those who have received the empowerment of this Tantric practise, you are reminded not to intentionally or unintentionally disclose the mantra to the public or anyone who may not have the empowerment or permission to practise, and disclosing the mantra intentionally or unintentionally is a form of breaking your Tantric Samaya vows to the lineage masters and Dharma protectors.

Please consult your Guru or a qualified lineage master for Vajrayana practise! Should a devotee even want to start studying and contemplating the Vajrayana practise, then it is truly necessary to first have completed the preliminaries and to be certain that Bodhicitta has arisen and developed in one’s mind. 

Vajrayana features countless skillful and powerful methods that, if practised in the proper way, can make the process of accumulation and purification incredibly swift and direct. It is absolutely necessary to have pure motivation and to know that Vajrayana practise is not carried out to increase one’s own ego, power, or self-interest.  

Donations for our Buddhist research and development

Do you earnestly cherish our devoted work? Assuming this is the case, we are delighted that you are finding our blog useful and valuable. Would you consider making a donation for our Buddhist research and development?

We need your help to secure the future of scholarly interaction with Buddhism. Since our very first publication of Dharma works and activities in 2008, we have been effortlessly providing free distribution of Dharma posts and articles throughout the previous 14 years. We have exceptionally constrained support and do not receive subsidies or funding from people in general.

 

Please help us develop our Dharma activities that will not only benefit you but all Dharma readers on the planet. Please consider showing your support. Your generosity will certainly help us enhance our work and accomplish more for a better and brighter future.

 

Thank you for reading. May you find peace and great bliss. With your support, it helps to spread the Buddha’s precious teachings and turn the Dharma wheels in the world.

 

Aspiration For Bodhichitta

For those in whom the precious Bodhichitta has not arisen

May it arise and not decrease.

But increase further and further.

 

Dedication of Merit

By this merit, may we then obtain omniscience then.

Having defeated the enemies wrongdoings

May we liberate migratory from the ocean of existence.

With its stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness, and death.

 

*Note

I do not own or infringe any copyright on the picture(s).

Picture(s) courtesy and credit to the rightful distributors and/or studios

The picture(s) are intended for editorial use only.

Deity Yoga - Yidam (1/3)

 

What is deity yoga in Vajrayana Buddhism? 

Deity yoga is a practice found in Tibetan Buddhism involving visualisations that have the normative goal of “becoming one” with a supernatural being. During the practice, practitioners report experiencing that their own body transforms into the body of the deity.

Deity yoga engages creative visualisation as a skillful means of personal transformation through which the practitioner (sadhaka) visualises a chosen deity (Yidam) as part of a mandala or refuge tree in order to transform their experience of the appearance aspect of reality. 

The fundamental practice of Vajrayana and Tibetan tantra is deity yoga (devatayoga), meditation on a chosen deity or "cherished divinity" (Tibetan: Yidam), which involves the recitation of mantras, prayers, and visualisation of the deity, the associated mandala of the deity's Buddha field, along with consorts and attendant Buddhas and bodhisattvas. According to the Tibetan scholars, deity yoga is what separates Tantra from Sutra practice. 

In the Unsurpassed Yoga Tantras, the most widespread tantric form in Indo-Tibetan Buddhism, this method is divided into two stages: 

In Vajrayana, there appear to be many different types and stages of mediation as well. One form is called "generation stage meditation,"  also known as utpattikrama. What exactly is "generation stage meditation" and how is it practiced?

1) The generation stage (utpatti-krama) 

In the generation stage, one dissolves one's reality into emptiness and meditates on the deity-mandala, resulting in identification with this divine reality. 

What is the generation stage in Vajrayana Buddhism?

The generation stage or creation phase (Tibetan : bskyed rim) (Sanskrit : utpatti-krama), also known as "the phase of imagination" and "the yoga of fabrications," the first phase of tantric deity yoga in the Unsurpassed Yoga Tantra of the later schools of Tibetan Buddhism. It also equates to the Mahayoga of the Nyingma school.

2) The completion stage (nispanna-krama).

In the completion stage, the divine image and the subtle body are applied to the realisation of luminous emptiness.

What is the completion stage in Vajrayana Buddhism?

The completion stage Then look directly at the meditating mind. All that is meditated upon will vanish into emptiness. The second part, the completion stage, is as follows: by looking directly at the mind that is meditating, all that was previously visualized dissolves into emptiness.

What is the completion stage with marks?

Completion stage with marks' means yogic practices such as tummo, inner heat.

What is the completion stage without marks?

The completion stage without marks' is the practice of Dzogchen and Mahamudra.

*Footnote

For those who have received the empowerment of this Tantric practise, you are reminded not to intentionally or unintentionally disclose the mantra to the public or anyone who may not have the empowerment or permission to practise, and disclosing the mantra intentionally or unintentionally is a form of breaking your Tantric Samaya vows to the lineage masters and Dharma protectors.

Please consult your Guru or a qualified lineage master for Vajrayana practise! Should a devotee even want to start studying and contemplating the Vajrayana practise, then it is truly necessary to first have completed the preliminaries and to be certain that Bodhicitta has arisen and developed in one’s mind. 

Vajrayana features countless skillful and powerful methods that, if practised in the proper way, can make the process of accumulation and purification incredibly swift and direct. It is absolutely necessary to have pure motivation and to know that Vajrayana practise is not carried out to increase one’s own ego, power, or self-interest.  

Donations for our Buddhist research and development

Do you earnestly cherish our devoted work? Assuming this is the case, we are delighted that you are finding our blog useful and valuable. Would you consider making a donation for our Buddhist research and development?

We need your help to secure the future of scholarly interaction with Buddhism. Since our very first publication of Dharma works and activities in 2008, we have been effortlessly providing free distribution of Dharma posts and articles throughout the previous 14 years. We have exceptionally constrained support and do not receive subsidies or funding from people in general.

 

Please help us develop our Dharma activities that will not only benefit you but all Dharma readers on the planet. Please consider showing your support. Your generosity will certainly help us enhance our work and accomplish more for a better and brighter future.

 

Thank you for reading. May you find peace and great bliss. With your support, it helps to spread the Buddha’s precious teachings and turn the Dharma wheels in the world.

 

Aspiration For Bodhichitta

For those in whom the precious Bodhichitta has not arisen

May it arise and not decrease.

But increase further and further.

 

Dedication of Merit

By this merit, may we then obtain omniscience then.

Having defeated the enemies wrongdoings

May we liberate migratory from the ocean of existence.

With its stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness, and death.

 

*Note

I do not own or infringe any copyright on the picture(s).

Picture(s) courtesy and credit to the rightful distributors and/or studios

The picture(s) are intended for editorial use only.

Five Methods of Practicing Guru Yoga - Unexcelled Innermost Secret (5/5)

 

Unless the sun of devotion shines, pleasevisitandandthe and

Upon the snow peak of the master’s four kayas,

The stream of blessings will never fall.

So strive to arouse devotion in your mind!

What is guru yoga in Vajrayana Buddhism?

Guru yoga literally means uniting with the guru. It is the practice in which we try to merge our pure mind and consciousness with the guru's pure mind. Philosophically, our pure mind is the Buddha's mind, and so is everyone's and every living being's pure mind, including the gurus.

What is the ps a teacher who is the holder of the lineage.

2) Gyalwa Ka Yi Lama is the teacher, which is the word of the Buddha. 

What is the importance of a yoga guru?

The yoga guru will teach you about yoga philosophy. Also, yoga instructors should be familiar with the ancient Hindu language (Sanskrit) terminology used in their chosen form of practice, the purpose and benefits of the practice, and how to alter postures and techniques to suit the practitioner.

What is the difference between a yoga teacher and a yoga guru?

A guru is one or something that takes one from darkness to light in a spiritual sense. A guru does not need to do or know yoga. A yoga teacher teaches yoga. 

What is the benefit of a guru?

The four benefits of having a Guru: wisdom, progress, achievement, and liberation.

Guru yoga, in the Buddhist philosophy of yoga, is the practice of devotion to a guru in which an individual links their own personal Buddha-nature and mind to that of his or her guru. The result of this practice is unity with one's spiritual master and receiving the blessing and inspiration of spiritual wisdom.

In Vajrayana, guru yoga is a tantric devotional practice in which the practitioner unites their mindstream with the mindstream of the body, speech, and mind of their guru. Guru yoga is akin to deity yoga since the guru (who can be a Buddha, a historical figure like Padmasambhava, or a living person) is visualised in the same manner as with a meditational deity. 

The process of guru yoga may entail the visualisation of a refuge tree as an invocation of the lineage, with the 'root guru' channelling the blessings of the entire lineage to the practitioner. The guru may be visualized as above the meditator, in front of them, or in their heart. Guru yoga may also include a liturgy, prayer, or mantra, such as the "Seven Line Prayer" of Padmasambhava. 

As in other Buddhist traditions, an attitude of reverence for the teacher, or guru, is highly prized. A guru, or lama, is seen as an essential guide during tantric practice. Without the guru's example, blessings, and guidance, genuine progress in tantra is held to be impossible for all but the most keen and gifted. One particular feature of the Tantric view of the teacher-student relationship is that in Tibetan Buddhist tantra, one is instructed to regard one's guru as an awakened Buddha

*Five Ways of Practicing Guru Yoga 

5. Unexcelled Innermost Secret Guru Yoga: Primordial Purity and Spontaneous Presence.

What is the essence of the guru? The guru is primordially pure and primordially unborn. What are the excellent qualities of the guru? They are spontaneously present. The guru’s knowledge, love, and capacity are spontaneously present; they’ve been there since beginningless, primordial time. 

You need to understand these two: primordial purity and spontaneous presence. You need to understand, “These have never been separate or apart from me. My own mind is primordially pure. My own mind is spontaneously present. This is it—it is the guru. I’ve never been separated from these qualities.” 

Understanding primordial purity and spontaneous presence and being able to rest in equipoise within that state is the unexcelled innermost guru yoga.  Just visualising, imagining the guru dissolving into you—their enlightened body and what you think of as your own dirty, impure body mixing together—we can’t do that, right? 

Why? Because it won’t work—you can’t mix something clean with something that is dirty. So we need to understand that our own minds are primordially pure in essence and that all the excellent, enlightened qualities are spontaneously present within our own minds. Remaining vivid and aware in that state of recognition is the unexcelled innermost secret of guru yoga. 

*Footnote

For those who have received the empowerment of this Tantric practise, you are reminded not to intentionally or unintentionally disclose the mantra to the public or anyone who may not have the empowerment or permission to practise, and disclosing the mantra intentionally or unintentionally is a form of breaking your Tantric Samaya vows to the lineage masters and Dharma protectors.

Please consult your Guru or a qualified lineage master for Vajrayana practise! Should a devotee even want to start studying and contemplating the Vajrayana practise, then it is truly necessary to first have completed the preliminaries and to be certain that Bodhicitta has arisen and developed in one’s mind. 

Vajrayana features countless skillful and powerful methods that, if practised in the proper way, can make the process of accumulation and purification incredibly swift and direct. It is absolutely necessary to have pure motivation and to know that Vajrayana practise is not carried out to increase one’s own ego, power, or self-interest.  

Donations for our Buddhist research and development

Do you earnestly cherish our devoted work? Assuming this is the case, we are delighted that you are finding our blog useful and valuable. Would you consider making a donation for our Buddhist research and development?

We need your help to secure the future of scholarly interaction with Buddhism. Since our very first publication of Dharma works and activities in 2008, we have been effortlessly providing free distribution of Dharma posts and articles throughout the previous 14 years. We have exceptionally constrained support and do not receive subsidies or funding from people in general.

 

Please help us develop our Dharma activities that will not only benefit you but all Dharma readers on the planet. Please consider showing your support. Your generosity will certainly help us enhance our work and accomplish more for a better and brighter future.

 

Thank you for reading. May you find peace and great bliss. With your support, it helps to spread the Buddha’s precious teachings and turn the Dharma wheels in the world.

 

Aspiration For Bodhichitta

For those in whom the precious Bodhichitta has not arisen

May it arise and not decrease.

But increase further and further.

 

Dedication of Merit

By this merit, may we then obtain omniscience then.

Having defeated the enemies wrongdoings

May we liberate migratory from the ocean of existence.

With its stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness, and death.

 

*Note

I do not own or infringe any copyright on the picture(s).

Picture(s) courtesy and credit to the rightful distributors and/or studios

The picture(s) are intended for editorial use only.

Five Methods of Practicing Guru Yoga - Innermost Secret (4/5)

Ucheyma, The Headless Vajrayogini 

Unless the sun of devotion shines,

Upon the snow peak of the master’s four kayas,

The stream of blessings will never fall.

So strive to arouse devotion in your mind!

What is guru yoga in Vajrayana Buddhism?

Guru yoga literally means uniting with the guru. It is the practice in which we try to merge our pure mind and consciousness with the guru's pure mind. Philosophically, our pure mind is the Buddha's mind, and so is everyone's and every living being's pure mind, including the gurus.

What is the purpose of Guru Yoga?

In Vajrayana, guru yoga is a tantric devotional practice in which the practitioner unites their mindstream with the mindstream of the body, speech, and mind of their guru.

What is the meaning of a yoga guru? 

As you might know, the word guru comes from two Sanskrit words, Gu, meaning darkness, and Ru, meaning dispeller or remover. Therefore, the literal meaning of the word guru is athe one who dispels darkness“Beautiful, isn't it? In yoga, when you come to asana practice or meditation, the Yoga Guru is your teacher.

What does Guru mean in Vajrayana Buddhism?

There are four kinds of Lama (Guru), or spiritual teachers, in Tibetan Buddhism:

1) Gangzak Gyüpe Lama is a teacher who is the holder of the lineage.

2) Gyalwa Ka Yi Lama is the teacher, which is the word of the Buddha. 

What is the importance of a yoga guru?

The yoga guru will teach you about yoga philosophy. Also, yoga instructors should be familiar with the ancient Hindu language (Sanskrit) terminology used in their chosen form of practice, the purpose and benefits of the practice, and how to alter postures and techniques to suit the practitioner.

What is the difference between a yoga teacher and a yoga guru?

A guru is one or something that takes one from darkness to light in a spiritual sense. A guru does not need to do or know yoga. A yoga teacher teaches yoga.

What is the benefit of a guru?

The four benefits of having a Guru: wisdom, progress, achievement, and liberation.

Guru yoga, in the Buddhist philosophy of yoga, is the practice of devotion to a guru in which an individual links their own personal Buddha-nature and mind to that of his or her guru. The result of this practice is unity with one's spiritual master and receiving the blessing and inspiration of spiritual wisdom.

In Vajrayana, guru yoga is a tantric devotional practice in which the practitioner unites their mindstream with the mindstream of the body, speech, and mind of their guru. Guru yoga is akin to deity yoga since the guru (who can be a Buddha, a historical figure like Padmasambhava, or a living person) is visualised in the same manner as with a meditational deity. 

The process of guru yoga may entail the visualisation of a refuge tree as an invocation of the lineage, with the 'root guru' channelling the blessings of the entire lineage to the practitioner. The guru may be visualized as above the meditator, in front of them, or in their heart. Guru yoga may also include a liturgy, prayer, or mantra, such as the "Seven Line Prayer" of Padmasambhava. 

As in other Buddhist traditions, an attitude of reverence for the teacher, or guru, is highly prized. A guru, or lama, is seen as an essential guide during tantric practice. Without the guru's example, blessings, and guidance, genuine progress in tantra is held to be impossible for all but the most keen and gifted. One particular feature of the Tantric view of the teacher-student relationship is that in Tibetan Buddhist tantra, one is instructed to regard one's guru as an awakened Buddha. 

*Five Ways of Practicing Guru Yoga 

4) Innermost Secret Guru Yoga: Resting Uncontrived in Equipoise

Resting in equipoise. You leave your mind completely uncontrived, unfabricated, unaltered, and totally at ease. This is the innermost secret of guru yoga. 

The Nyingtik Teachings

The Nyingtik teachings are the innermost secret teachings of Dzogchen. The Dzogchen teachings were revealed to Prahevajra (Tibetan: Garab Dorje) by Vajrasattva, and passed down through an unbroken lineage to present day masters. Within the Dzogchen teachings, there are three categories of teachings suitable for students of different capacities. The Nyingtik is the innermost secret cycle of teachings in the Category of Pith Instructions; this cycle is the most direct approach for students of the highest capacity.

The innermost secret guru practice of the Longchen Nyingtik cycle focuses on Longchen Rabjam and is considered an indispensable preliminary to Dzogchen practice. Jigme Lingpa revealed the practice some time around 1761, during his second three-year retreat, then kept it secret for five years.

*Footnote

For those who have received the empowerment of this Tantric practise, you are reminded not to intentionally or unintentionally disclose the mantra to the public or anyone who may not have the empowerment or permission to practise, and disclosing the mantra intentionally or unintentionally is a form of breaking your Tantric Samaya vows to the lineage masters and Dharma protectors.

Please consult your Guru or a qualified lineage master for Vajrayana practise! Should a devotee even want to start studying and contemplating the Vajrayana practise, then it is truly necessary to first have completed the preliminaries and to be certain that Bodhicitta has arisen and developed in one’s mind.
 
Vajrayana features countless skillful and powerful methods that, if practised in the proper way, can make the process of accumulation and purification incredibly swift and direct. It is absolutely necessary to have pure motivation and to know that Vajrayana practise is not carried out to increase one’s own ego, power, or self-interest.  

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Aspiration For Bodhichitta

For those in whom the precious Bodhichitta has not arisen

May it arise and not decrease.

But increase further and further.

 

Dedication of Merit

By this merit, may we then obtain omniscience then.

Having defeated the enemies wrongdoings

May we liberate migratory from the ocean of existence.

With its stormy waves of birth, old age, sickness, and death.

 

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