Venerable
Chöje Lama Namse Rinpoche
Dharmapalas
Presented at Karma Theksum
Tashi Choling in Hamburg, July 2007.
When receiving precious Dharma instructions,
especially those of the Great Vehicle, it is necessary to arouse the pure
motivation, Bodhicitta, which is the sincere wish to attain the awakened mind
for the benefit of oneself and every living being.
Before earnestly studying and meditating the
Buddhadharma, it is of utmost importance to recollect the fundamental teachings
and to be sure that one has understood them correctly. Every
Dharma activity presupposes a good understanding of the basic instructions that
Lord Buddha gave to us. For example, any skyscraper that is erected without a
fundament will collapse in a storm. It is the same with knowledge of Dharma: It
is only possible to progress in one’s practice if one understands and has
integrated the basic instructions in one’s life. It is tempting to think one
has understood them, but it happens so very often that practitioners falter if
they skip stages while hoping to traverse the path and achieve fruition.
I was asked to speak about the practice of
Mahakala, but there must be a misunderstanding. In order to meditate Mahakala,
a disciple must have completed Ngöndro (the preliminary practices) and a
Yidam practice. This is the reason why instructions on Mahakala are not
presented to a general audience nor in public - it is not common and would not
benefit anyone.
Western students are fascinated about the idea
of meditating Mahakala, but it is only correct to present the instructions to
advanced practitioners. If a student meditates similar practices without having
completed the preliminary and Yidam practices, then there is the very great
danger and probability that many false concepts will arise and as a result that
person will err, which would be extremely difficult to heal. Without the
fundamental practices, one cannot understand Mahakala. It is better to refrain,
seeing that practicing Mahakala without preparations on the part of a disciple
only makes him or her more neurotic and confused. Furthermore, receiving the
empowerment that allows one to practice Mahakala involves profound details and
a strict commitment. Living up to the commitment of engaging in the quite
complex details of practice that the empowerment entails can become more than
difficult for you. I do not want to withhold anything from you, rather I want
to protect you from making a promise that you cannot keep. But I will offer the
blessing today.oHol
Allow me to explain
this with an example: People in the West need to have completed elementary
school, then junior high, and later received a high school education before
going to college. No parent would think of registering a six-year old child at
a university. Wouldn’t a youngster be out of place and suffer frustrating
consequences if parents overloaded their child with such high
expectations should that child be enrolled in university courses? Dharma is the
same – it is necessary to first fully understand what one is doing.
Intellectually reiterating what one has heard will not do. Disciples need to
discuss their practice with their teacher. If a meditation master sees that a
disciple is ready, then he will suggest which practice is suitable and best.
Students must rely upon the insight and decision that an authentic and
qualified instructor makes when it comes to Dharmapala meditation.
It is necessary to follow the path properly if
one wishes to integrate the Dharma in one’s life. It is of no help at all to
skip stages, because something will be missing along the way; sooner or later
one will have difficulties, because one would not know how to differentiate
mistaken ideas that are so hard to correct. Therefore, it is absolutely
necessary to practice step-by-step and in accordance with an authorized Lama’s
instructions. It is also important to do the practice that he recommends in
order to benefit reliably.
There are different
types of Dharmapalas - male and female, with one or two faces, with two or many
arms, and in powerful and ferocious forms that bewilder and frighten those who
aren’t initiated but see them. So, if a student isn’t ready but meditates a
Dharmapala, there is the great danger that he or she might think it is all
right to destroy enemies or carry out harmful activities with the same force as
a specific protector. This problem is not new; it occurred in Tibet for
hundreds of years - there are always people who misuse these most peaceful yet
powerful techniques of practice. Misled individuals might accomplish their
malicious aims by resorting to Dharmapala practices. One thing for sure,
though, meditating a Dharmapala with the wrong intention and understanding will
directly lead to rebirth in a lower realm of existence, horrendous states in
which beings are doomed to suffer extreme anguish and pain for a very long
period of time. In that case, the favourable freedoms and advantages that we
all have got now and that are so hard to get - a precious human birth - will
have been totally wasted.
It is generally said that the task of a
Dharmapala is to protect the doctrine, its upholders, and practitioners. Dharmapala
is the Sanskrit term that was translated into Tibetan as chös-skyong,
which actually means „protector of the teachings.” Dharmapalas
are either enlightened beings or spirits and gods who have been subjugated by
great masters and bound under oath to guard the teachings. It is not that easy
for lay practitioners to appreciate the various Dharmapalas. Mahakala, for instance, is depicted
stomping on two human beings, who symbolize death of the two main obscurations
that, like a corpse, will not stand up again. Hagiographies of great realized
masters tell us that they recited millions of mantras of Chakrasamvara or
Hevajra, for instance, before they concentrated on a guardian deity. These
practices must be perfectly accomplished before one even hopes to meditate a
Dharmapala correctly. It is of utmost importance to be very cautious, to be
honest with oneself, and to be concise.
There are three kinds of protectors: wisdom,
activity, and worldly protectors. A few wisdom protectors are indivisibly
united with Avalokiteshvara, Chenrezig, the “Lord of Compassion.” Other
wisdom protectors emanate directly. They are completely enlightened
Bodhisattvas who have taken the vow to guard wisdom-holders and the
Buddhadharma for the benefit of sentient beings. When reciting the Refuge
Prayer in Ngöndro, we seek refuge in the Dharma protectors who are wise
and who do not harm a single living being, not even in slightest ways.
Practitioners must be careful about the larger number of worldly protectors.
There are more
worldly protectors than wisdom Dharmapalas. Worldly protectors still have
subtle veils. They can be compared with human beings like us, who are apt to do
good but do bad things too, and they do cause problems. We can compare worldly
protectors with someone who blackmails us or expects a lot in return for any
help they may give. We are bound once we have such an unfortunate relationship,
because they demand regular offerings from us - if we fail, we’re in for a
surprise. There are protectors even more mundane than the worldly protectors;
they control the worldly protectors. If these mundane beings become upset
because we didn’t satisfy them in one way or another, then trouble is in store,
for example, mental and physical illnesses. It is extremely hard to please such
beings; they become very nasty if they don’t like something we did or failed to
do for them.
There are wisdom Dharmapalas who protect a
lineage. Wisdom Dharmapalas are emanations of Bodhisattvas like
Avalokiteshvara. It is said that he once saw that it was necessary to emanate a
wrathful form. Light flowed from the dark blue syllable HUNG in his heart and
spontaneously became a protector that was perceived in such a form. Noble
Avalokiteshvara did emanate for specific purposes - to give advanced masters
powerful practices that enable them to pacify severe situations with wisdom and
compassion and to continuously benefit beings through the unimpeded play of
their enlightened mind. Even though a Dharmapala is an emanation of
Avalokiteshvara, it is not possible for ordinary practitioners to deal with him
adequately, and therefore I want to warn you to please not even think about
meditating a Dharmapala at this stage in your practice.
Most Dharmapala
practices belong to the Secret Mantrayana, which is synonymous with Vajrayana.
It is important to understand what is meant by “secret.” The term ”secret” that
is used in association with higher Tantras is not something like a secret
military force that an evil opponent may not discover, rather it means that the
instructions are only given to disciples if they are useful to them and if they
can practice without taking or causing harm. If a disciple has not met
preparations and is not ready, then it would be too early and even dangerous -
therefore wrong - to impart the meditation instructions, since a disciple could
have mistaken thoughts and distorted ideas about them. For instance, a misled
disciple might think that Dharmapalas are malevolent spirits who are about to
attack - one of the dangers that the Secret Mantrayana brings along. Therefore
it is said that if one wants to embark on the vehicle of Mantrayana, it is
absolutely necessary to rely on a Lama and to practice the instructions that he
imparts. Sincere trust and devotion in a Root Lama enable a follower to
traverse Vajrayana correctly, to practice the profound techniques correctly,
and to attain fruition very fast. If a Lama sees that further deep instructions
do not benefit a disciple, they are kept secret.
There is a reason
why there are three vehicles in Buddhism; they are differentiated according to
the time it takes for a diligent follower to achieve fruition. Hinayana
practitioners need many eons to accumulate merit, to eliminate negative habits,
and to engage in beneficial activities. Mahayana practitioners advance faster,
but they need many lives to attain fruition. Vajrayana practitioners can attain
Buddhahood within one single life, but they need unwavering trust and devotion.
They did meet preparations in former lives to understand the teachings
correctly now and to have the opportunity to practice them diligently in this
life.
Lord Buddha did not teach Vajrayana in public.
It is recorded in the Tantras that the Buddha did not appear in his usual form
when he taught Vajrayana, rather he manifested as the deity of a specific
Tantra when he spoke to those few individuals in India who were ready to
receive the quite profound teachings. When the great councils were convened
many years after the Buddha’s Parinirvana, nobody knew what Vajrayana followers
were doing – they did not speak about this openly. Noble followers of
Vajrayana did not talk about their practices with anyone except their personal
meditation master, their Root Guru, which enabled them to mature and advance
quickly and efficiently. This very silent approach changed when the Dharma was
brought to Tibet and Vajrayana became the spiritual reference for an entire
nation of citizens. Of course, Vajrayana spread like wildfire in Tibet, but
after it became institutionalised, the number of great practitioners who
attained realization rapidly declined.
There are life-stories of great Indian masters,
particularly life-stories of the 84 Mahasiddhas, who practiced the techniques
of Secret Mantryana, i.e., Vajrayana. They attained
realization very quickly due to their diligence and manifested amazing
activities for the benefit of all sentient beings – they flew through the
sky, walked through walls, left their footprints and handprints on rocks, and
so forth. It is a truth that the saintly Mahasiddhas studied and practiced
Hinayana and Mahayana and developed deep devotion to their teachers for many
lives and were ready and prepared to receive deeper instructions when they did.
The Mahasiddhas did
not speak about their practice in public – they kept it a secret. This is
true of our great Kagyu forefathers, too. The life-stories of Tilopa and Naropa
are well known. We have heard and read about the hardships and difficult tests
that Naropa had to go through before he was even allowed to ask Tilopa for
profound instructions and became worthy to receive them. We also know about the
hardships that our other Kagyu forefathers endured in order to receive profound
transmissions. Their life-stories show us that we - all the more so - still
need to become worthy vessels for the profound teachings and that anything we
do is small in the light of what they went through for our sake and for the
welfare of future generations.
The Dharmapala tradition as we know it arose in
India during the 6th, 7th, and 8th centuries.
The most popular Dharmapala practice that spread within the context of Buddhism
was the four-armed Mahakala, which originated in a vision that Tilopa had while
practicing meditation intensively and for quite a while before he accepted any
pupils.
Residing in utter solitude near Somapuri, the site
of one of the greatest Indian monastic universities during those times, Tilopa
fervently meditated the Chakrasamvara Tantra for twelve years. During this
time, Chakrasamvara often manifested to him - it is said face-to-face. It was
during the most advanced stage in Tilopa’s practice that immense hindrances
arose and subtlest clouds of obscurations had to be removed. Therefore
Chakrasamvara manifested from his heart the four-armed Mahakala, who taught
Tilopa supplication and offering prayers, syllables, and mantras. Tilopa wrote down these instructions and transmitted them to most
worthy disciples. This was the beginning of Dharmapala practice in Vajrayana.
Tilopa’s outstanding disciple was Naropa, who
– like his teacher – rebelled at a young age against his royal
upbringing. When he was eight years old, he left his home in Bengal and went to
Kashmir to study. Having gone through the curriculum in three years, he then
studied logic, science, grammar, rhetoric, and arts with the best teachers.
Meanwhile his parents arranged for his marriage; eight years later Naropa left
wife and home and was ordained as a monk in far-off Kashmir. He sought a better
education and went to Nalanda University near Pullahari in the district of
Bihar and soon became abbot there. But a Dakini told him that meditation was
more important than studies, that he should seek Tilopa and ask for
instructions, which he did. Without recognizing Tilopa when he did find him, he
was put through twelve excruciating tests, persevered, and mastered the
instructions. Then he took disciples of his own. Why did Tilopa put Naropa
through so many hardships before he transmitted the teachings to him? Although
Tilopa saw that Naropa was a most perfect vessel for the teachings and more
advanced than he realized that he himself was, through the clarity of his
enlightened mind he saw that Naropa was still proud and had less obvious,
subtle obscurations that needed to be purified.
Naropa went through
much pain before he even dared ask Tilopa for instructions. There is a story
that describes how difficult it was for Naropa to even be accepted as Tilopa’s
student. The story goes that they were walking through the country and arrived
in a little town. They passed an empty building and Tilopa murmured out loud so
that Naropa could kind of hear, “If I had a pupil who really trusted me, he
would jump from the roof of that building without hesitating.” Naropa looked
around, didn’t see anyone, and thought to himself, “He didn’t mean me, did he?”
Realizing nobody else could be meant and due to his great devotion and trust,
he climbed on the roof, jumped, and landed on the hard ground, smattered and
smashed. When Tilopa casually returned from his walk around the area and saw
Naropa more dead than alive, he asked him, “What happened? How do you feel?”
Naropa answered, “I feel awful, like a corpse.” This is why Naropa has come to
be known by the name Naro, which means “human corpse.”
Naropa had to go
through further hardships and, having withstood them, he then received precious
instructions during the many years he spent with his wonderful teacher. He
practiced diligently and achieved perfect realization. Among the teachings he
received were rare Dharmapala practices. Other great Mahasiddhas received other
Dharmapala practices and they shared them with each other, aware that future
generations would benefit immensely.
Naropa’s most excellent pupil was Marpa, who
visited India three times, learned from a hundred teachers, and spent many
years at the feet of his Root Guru. Marpa practiced all teachings he received,
achieved realization, brought the teachings to Tibet, and translated them from
Sanskrit into Tibetan. And so, the precious teachings of
Tilopa were handed down to Naropa; he passed them on to Marpa, who brought them
to Tibet.
The Dharmapala
practices developed further at this time; the main ones that Naropa gave Marpa
are the four-armed Mahakala and Palden Lhamo, called Shri Devi in Sanskrit.
Palden Lhamo, the “Glorious Goddess,” also known as Düsum, is the only female
among the eight Dharma protectors. The eight Dharmapalas are Mahakala, Palden
Lhamo, Yamantaka, Kubera, Hayagriva, Changpa, Yama, and Begtse. We know that
Naropa told Marpa, “These practices are very efficient but difficult to
practice. They are not meant for everyone. Please, only give them to disciples
who are advanced enough to practice them correctly. It is not right to give
them to every disciple. If a few advanced disciples practice them, then the
inspiration and blessings that must be kept secret will undoubtedly embrace and
benefit everyone.”
There are protectors who originated when Guru
Rinpoche came to Tibet and subjugated spirits that did everything in their
power to prevent Buddhism from being established on Tibetan soil. In the
life-stories of Guru Rinpoche, Padmasambhava, we read that he ran into many
negative forces when he arrived in Tibet. He bound them to the oath that they
would not only stop harming others but would protect anyone involved with
beneficial activities for the welfare of others. As a result, many Dharmapalas
arose in Tibet.
In the ancient texts that are continuing to
come to light, we read that it is certainly not good if every devotee meditates
a Dharmapala, that only a very small number of practitioners are qualified and
eligible, and that others should not become involved with them. The ancient
scripts also state that before even thinking about taking up the practice of a
Dharmapala, a devotee needs to have studied and understood Lord Buddha’s
fundamental teachings, the purpose of the teachings, why it is necessary to
strive for enlightenment for the benefit of all living beings, and so forth.
Furthermore, a practitioner needs to have completed the common, the special,
and the very special preliminaries. In order to practice the special
preliminaries, a diligent student needs to have received the empowerment of the
Yidam deity and should have meditated this deity for quite a while. There are
outer, inner, and secret aspects of each Yidam. If one practices correctly and
discusses one’s experiences with one’s meditation master, quite a number of
years will pass. If one’s teacher then says that one may begin meditating a
protector or if he says one should not, then it is only proper to respect and
heed his advice.
Should a devotee
even start studying and contemplating the Dharmapalas, then it is truly
necessary to first have completed the preliminaries and to be certain and sure
that Bodhicitta has arisen and developed fully in one’s mind. It is absolutely
necessary to have the pure motivation and to know that Dharmapala practice is
not carried out to increase one’s own power and profit. Negative intentions of
any kind may not be, so a practitioner must have vanquished the greatest number
of negative thoughts and emotions in the own mind - that everyone does have -
and he or she needs to rely on a meditation instructor who can truly judge
whether this is the case or not. Therefore, at this stage in practice, it is
very important that disciples increase Bodhicitta, which is loving kindness and
compassion, so that one day they can reliably benefit others. How does one
practice properly? By receiving the instructions, by contemplating them ever
more deeply, and by meditating them so that one actually experiences the truth
of the teachings. If one succeeds, then one will achieve liberation from
suffering in cyclic existence and be able to benefit others; one will not go
astray by thinking that one can do practices one is not really ready for and
that will present great obstacles. So it is much better for you to concentrate
on a few essential practices and to practice them for the rest of your life as
sincerely and diligently as possible. -- Thank you very much.
Dedication Prayers
Through this goodness, may omniscience be attained
And thereby may every enemy (mental defilement)
be overcome.
May beings be liberated from the ocean of
samsara
That is troubled by waves of birth, old age,
sickness, and death.
May
bodhichitta, great and precious,
Arise where it has not arisen,
Never weakening where it has arisen.
May it grow ever more and more.
Long Life Prayer for
the Dharma Lord Lama Namse,
entitled “Deathless Moon Nectar”
You who took birth in the invincible vajra net
of the Three Secrets,
In a mudra dance of the Four Indestructible
Vajras,
May your glorious life, like a nectar rain of
stable understanding
Be embraced by the anthers in White Tara's
heart.
While you place all beings, in their many
forms, on the wholesome path of liberation,
The glory of your excellent signs blaze in the
midst of millions of Bodhisattvas.
May you let the deep melodious sound of Dharma,
the blissful union of the Two Truths
Resound in the nectar residence of the ear of
those wishing liberaton.
Through the power of the truth of the Three
Roots, the deities, and the whole gathering of yidam deities
May the glorious Lama's lotus feet remain
stable for hundreds of kalpas.
May your amazingly wholesome activity flow like
a river in a sandalwood tree forest.
May your noble and learned good qualities
spread as far as the sky.
His Holiness the
XVIIth Gyalwa Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje, prayed like this at the request of
Khen Loyak. May it be virtuous!
Long-Life Prayer for
His Holiness the XVIIth Gyalwa Karmapa, Ogyen Trinley Dorje,
composed by His
Eminence the XIIth Goshir Gyaltsab Rinpoche
Naturally arising Dharmakaya, unchanging and
ever-present,
Karmapa, you appear as the form kayas’ magical
illusions.
May your three secret vajras remain stable in
the realms
And your infinite, spontaneous activity blaze
in glory.
Photo of flowers taken & gracioiusly offered
for this article by Lena Fong. In reliance on the German rendering of the
seminar kindly offered by Thomas Roth, translated into English & edited by
Gaby Hollmann, Sincere gratitude to Madhavi Simoneit for having made the
recording available. Copyright Chöje Lama Namse Rinpoche, Karma Sönam Dargye
Ling, Toronto, the main center of His Holiness Gyalwa Karmapa in Canada, & Karma
Theksum Tashi Choling in Hamburg, 2009. Special thanks to Gaby Hollman. All rights reserved. Distributed for
personal use only.
May virtue & goodliness
increase!
