The Wheel of Time - Kalacakra

The Kalachakra is a polysemic term in Vajrayana Buddhism that means "wheel of time" or "time cycles". "Kālacakra" is also the name of a series of Buddhist texts and a major practise lineage in Indian Buddhism and Tibetan Buddhism.

What is the significance of Kalachakra?

This is a sacred event where key Buddhist teachings are passed on to devotees. The word Kalachakra actually means "wheel of time" in Vajrayana Buddhism. Kalacakra also refers both to a patron tantric deity or yidam in Vajrayana and to the philosophies and yogas of the Kalacakra tradition. 

It depicts a mythic reality whereby cosmic and socio-historical events correspond to processes in the bodies of individuals. These teachings are meant to lead to a transformation of one's body and mind into perfect Buddhahood through various yogic methods.

Who teaches Kalachakra?

The Kalachakra Path is fully integrated with the foundational practices of the sutra tradition of Buddhism as taught by Shakyamuni Buddha, but in order to practice Kalachakra, it is necessary to be formally invited, which is the primary purpose of taking an initiation. As is evident, receiving an invitation to this great path is based on causes and conditions of both the receiver and the giver – simply attending the ceremony does not guarantee that one will receive true initiation. 

So too, the ceremony may form a connection to the path yet it is not the path. One can liken Kalachakra initiation to receiving a seed for practice however it is the practitioner that plants, nurtures and cultivates the seed.

The Buddha's teaching of the Kalachakra is described in the Paramadibuddha, the Kalachakra, Basic Tantra:

As the teacher demonstrated the Dharma on Vulture Heap according to the Perfection of Wisdom system, he also taught the mantra system at Shri Dhanyakataka. What teacher taught what tantra, when and where was he dwelling? What was the place, who was the worldly entourage, and what was the purpose?

"He taught the unexcelled Mahayana, the system of the Perfection of Wisdom, to the Bodhisattva on Mount Vulture Heap. Then at the same time the Tathagata dwelt together with Bodhisattvas and others in the great stupa, in the mandala of the sphere of phenomena. He dwelt in the house of universal vajra, in space, immaterial and very lucid, unpartitioned and radiant. He taught the tantra in the beautiful sphere of phenomena, for the merit and gnosis of human beings.

The initiation and empowerment required to practice

Qualified teachers for giving the Kalachakra initiation should have completed extensive practice (retreat) of the generation and completion stage practices. It is not enough simply to receive the initiation and then pass it on to others.

The Kalacakra tradition holds that Kalacakra teachings were taught in India by Gautama Buddha himself. According to modern Buddhist studies, the original Sanskrit texts of the Kalacakra tradition "originated during the early decades of the 11th century CE, and we know with certainty that the Sri Kalacakra and the Vimalaprabhā commentary were completed between 1025 and 1040 CE. 

Kalacakra remains an active tradition of Buddhist tantra in Tibetan Buddhism, and its teachings and initiations have been offered to large public audiences, most famously by the 14th Dalai Lama, Tenzin Gyatso.

What are the three types of Kalachakra?

Overview of the Kalachakra Tantra Teachings and Practice

Kalachakra means The Wheel of Time. The root text, the Kalachakra Tantra, includes three levels of teachings: External Kalachakra, Internal Kalachakra and Alternative Kalachakra.

What is Kalachakra practice?

The Kalachakra system offers profound methods for transforming one's impure perceptions and experiences, and unveiling our deepest reality. Within the context of Buddhist Tantra, there are many systems which provide methods for attaining enlightenment.

What is Kalachakra meditation?

In the practice of Kalachakra , and any other anuttarayoga tantra , there is a special way of meditating on voidness ( emptiness ) in which we meditate not just on the actual meaning of voidness , but also we try to simulate doing this with a clear light mind .

What is kalacakra tantra?

Kalacakra-tantra, (Sanskrit: “Wheel of Time Tantra”) a chief text of divergent, syncretistic, and astrologically oriented a school of Tantric Buddhism, or Vajrayana, that arose in India in the 10th century.

What does Kalachakra symbol protect?

Kalachakra Symbol Protection. It is also believed to protect you from sickness, hunger, natural disaster, and inauspicious dates while traveling or while doing a business, including untimely death. The present Dalai Lama gives emphasis to Kalachakra Mandala for world peace.

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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 obtain omniscience then.

Having defeated the enemies wrong-doings.

May we liberate migratory from the ocean of existence.

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

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