在靈感中翻譯佛法，在業力下努力微笑

噶千仁波切2015年西雅圖弘法：0705 Fivefold Profound Path of Mahamudra (IIb) by H. E. Garchen Rinpoche

·         噶千仁波切2015年西雅圖弘法：0705 Fivefold Profound Path of Mahamudra (IIa) by H. E. Garchen Rinpoche

·         噶千仁波切2015年西雅圖弘法：0705《大手印五支道》（二之一）

So when you practice the guru, you bring the guru to mind, you remember the love you have for that guru. And you can practice in different ways. For example, you can visualize a small form of the guru, just an inch in size, in your heart. But you can also visualize before you, in outer space, sitting within a rainbow sphere, and bring to mind the qualities, the love, of the guru. So, in whichever way— sometimes outside, sometimes inside of yourself—you always think of the guru. And when you think of the guru, when you remember the guru’s form, when you visualize the form, then that makes you remember the guru’s mind. And the guru’s mind is a mind of love and compassion. And that is the actual guru. The actual guru is the love that you then find in your own mind. So you should, with mindfulness, recognize love to be the actual guru. If you sustain mindfulness of that, compassion will develop and afflictions will decrease. For example, when an affliction arises, if you are always mindful, then it will dissolve. You will remember the qualities of the guru. And through sustaining mindfulness, you will develop compassion. So in this way, mindfulness leads to the development of compassion, because it recognizes the faults of the affliction. And because it knows then, at any time, unmistakably what to do and what not to do. And so then, you realize that your own mindfulness and the guru are actually indivisible. So, whenever you think of the guru, think about the guru’s mind in such a way. And therefore, if you have many other things to do and not too much time to do a lot of recitations and reading of scriptures, it is sufficient to just practice the guru yoga in this way.

It is also excellent if you have time to recite other prayers, but it is sufficient just to think of the guru in this way—to visualize the guru in a rainbow sphere, sometimes outside and sometimes inside, in different sizes, sometimes large and sometimes small. And whichever way you visualize it, in whichever way the guru appears, where does the guru appear? In whichever way you visualize, the guru appears in your mind. So it is still your own mind; it is your own heart. And that is why we visualize at the heart, because the mind of guru is love and compassion. So also, sometimes if you do not even have time to do any recitations of guru yoga and so on, you can, for example, just practice the “Om – Ah – Hung” mantra recitation, and that is the mind of the guru. Mindfulness is actually the mind of the guru. And if you practice “Om – Ah – Hung” your mind will be undistracted. So this union then, of is mindful of compassion that is the actual guru, the supreme guru yoga practice.

So, a special instruction for practicing the guru yoga, when it comes to the practice of Mahamudra and Dzogchen is, as we have said, to realize that my own mind, the guru’s mind, and the Buddha’s mind are one. So therefore it is said: if you are happy, you should remember the guru. Because if you are happy—for example you have a lot of wealth, you have many friends, you have a happy life, you are feeling well—then you should remember the guru, because this happiness was actually given to you by the guru. Then, how was it given to you by the guru? Because, again, the guru is actually your own Bodhicitta, love and compassion. Because in the previous life you engaged in actions of body and speech with a mind of love and compassion, now in this life you are happy. You are not sick and your mind does not suffer, although there is so much suffering around you in the world. So that is the result of Bodhicitta. So we have to recognize that the guru is indivisible from Bodhicitta; the essence of the guru is Bodhicitta. So the outer guru is just our example, but the actual guru is our own mind, which is actually the same mind as all of the Buddhas of the three times. So for this reason, when I am happy I think of the guru. And then also, when I am sad, I think of the guru. We have to think of the guru!

For example, when you are sick or you have problems, and so on. Then you should consider: why do I have this difficulty, this suffering? It is because in the past life I did not remember Bodhicitta, and was controlled by my selfish mind, controlled by afflictions. And with that, I have created karma, which is now ripening. And because karma is ripening, there’s nothing that we can do. Karma is ripening on the outer and the inner level, and no one can protect us from that—no country, no parent, no medicine—no one can protect us from the ripening of our own karma. Because karma is infallible. Once karma is created and ripens, there’s nothing we can do about it; nobody can save us from it. But people don’t like to hear that!   Often they get angry when we say: oh, this is your karma! But whether or not we want to accept karma, this is just how things are; it is the nature of things. One thing leads to another thing and there’s nothing we can do or change about it. So when we say “this is one’s karma,” whatever ripens is one’s karma. Whether or not we want it, or we believe in karma, in the end there’s no other way than to follow the law of karma, because everything follows the law of cause and effect. So everything undesirable—everything that we dislike, all the suffering that we experience—all comes back to cause and effect. It is our karma. And the cause lies within our own afflictions, our self-grasping. So therefore, we should never separate from our inner guru of Bodhicitta; we have to always remember our inner guru of Bodhicitta. We suffer because we did not remember the guru, which is Bodhicitta. So therefore, it is important that in any circumstance you think of your guru, whether you are happy or sad.

There also was a teaching by Dzogchen Patrul Rinpoche who counted how many times he was able to think of the guru, whenever he felt happy or sad. So first it was ten times, and then a hundred times, and so on, in all of his activities. And by counting and becoming aware of how often he thinks of the guru, he was actually developing mindfulness. And mindfulness is indivisible from the guru; mindfulness is the guru. So ultimately, therefore, the guru is what we called 'Mahamudra' when we practice Mahamudra. Because the essence of the guru is mindfulness, if you are mindful, then in all your activities you will be able to let go of afflictions and you will be able to practice, developing love and compassion. So the inner guru is what we call Mahamudra. So therefore we pay homage to our own mind of Mahamudra.

There is a verse which says “I pay homage to my own self-knowing awareness, which is actually the Buddha.” So one’s own mind is the guru. The mind of the guru is Mahamudra; the mind of the disciple is Mahamudra. What we call this term 'Mahamudra' is nothing but the actual nature of the mind, the natural state of the mind. And apart from that, there is no separate Mahamudra elsewhere. So Mahamudra is the Dharmakaya. And the Dharmakaya is like space and within space we all are the same. So within the space-like nature of Dharmakaya, all the Buddhas of the three times, the guru, and yourself are all the same, are all one. So, therefore it is said also in the Drikung prayer: you should recognize the guru and understand the guru to be the Dharmakaya. If you understand the guru to be the Dharmakaya, that is the perfect devotion of non-duality. So when you sustain mindfulness, you recognize your own mind to be the guru because your own mindfulness and the guru’s mindfulness are the same.

So then: the practice of the guru when you practice on a regular basis. If you are a practitioner of the channels, winds, and drops, then you can visualize the guru for example at the navel, about the size of an inch, like a thumb joint. And you can visualize it depending on the circumstances, as hot or cold. For example, when you feel cold, you can visualize it as hot in nature, like fire. And when you feel hot, then you can visualize it as cold in nature, white in color, and so on. Also you can visualize the guru at different places in your body as well. For example, there is a special instruction by Jigten Sumgön : when you have a sickness or some kind of illness in your body, you can visualize the form of the guru wherever you have the sickness. Just focus the visualization of the form of the guru single-pointedly wherever the sickness is located. That is actually very helpful to heal the illness and also enhances your experience and realization.

It is said in the Kagyu lineage that the illness, obstacles, evil spirits, and so on, are an encouragement to practice and purify our obscurations. That is because, without illness and suffering, obstacles, enemies and so on, the afflictions will not surface. And if they do not arise, if they do not surface, we are always happy and content and we will not practice at all. Then we will just become distracted by the happiness of this life and we will not practice or apply any method to clear away suffering. So it is only because we know suffering, because we are sick, because we have problems, that we are looking for methods of practice. It is for this reason that many people enter the Dharma; they want to practice the Dharma because first they suffer. Otherwise they have no interest in practicing the Dharma. But because they suffer, suffering actually becomes an encouragement for them to practice virtue. Otherwise, if there is no suffering, then they are distracted by the pleasures of this life. Even if you practice some virtue in this life, if you are just distracted, then these virtues will only become the cause of birth in the god realm. Because we are distracted, we do not really recognize suffering. So in this sense, actually illness and suffering are an enhancement to one’s practice; they encourage us to really engage in practice. And then also, in this way, you can practice the guru also when there is sickness and suffering. And when you are at the time of death, you should visualize the guru above your crown. So, you see, you can really practice the guru in various ways, visualizing the guru at any different place in your body. So wherever you visualize the guru, your mindfulness and that of the guru are indivisible. So therefore, the guru is Mahamudra.

Often when people are introduced to Mahamudra they cannot recognize it, because it is 'emptiness'. Mahamudra is emptiness and they cannot recognize 'emptiness' upon being introduced. That is because emptiness is nothing we can introduce one to,　Emptiness is something you must realize and see for yourself through sustaining mindfulness. And so, regarding the mindfulness, or visualization, of the guru’s form: you can either, if you have great devotion, visualize the guru’s form, or if you do not have such great devotion or your perception is not that pure with regard to that guru, you can also visualize the guru in the form of a Buddha—for example, the Buddha Shakyamuni, or Amitabha, or Chenrezig, or Tara (or any one that you like). And the mind of that Buddha is Bodhicitta, and that is the mind of the guru. So it is very important to recognize that the guru actually is the mind of love and compassion. 　

We read the long-life prayers today especially it is His Holiness Dalai Lama’s birthday. So page 13: “For this realm…”

[screening of a brief video of His Holiness' birthday message]

So we have just received advice, instruction, from His Holiness the Dalai Lama, and it is really very auspicious, very appropriate to our point here, with regards to Mahamudra.

His Holiness is actually a regent of the Buddha Shakyamuni. And if we really think about it, he’s even greater than the Buddha in terms of spreading the Dharma in this world. So, he has just said that outer peace and happiness is not as important as the inner peace and happiness of the mind. It is more important to find peace of mind. So where can we find this peace and happiness within the mind? Actually, the natural state of the mind itself, the nature of the mind itself is a state of great peace. And in the Nyingma, in the old tantric system, that is represented by Samantabhadra. In the new tantric system, that state of mind is represented by Vajradhara. And so, who has this mind? Actually everyone has this Vajradhara, this Samantabhadra in their mind because, primordially, the mind has the nature of the Buddha.

In the Kagyu lineage we also say that it is only that beings have not recognized that their mind itself is the Buddha. The mind itself is like space. And space is vast—the vast space of mind itself. So the mind is like space, and then the various thoughts—happiness, sadness, and so on, arising in the mind—are like clouds, a 'mask' of mentation. So the clouds appearing in the sky, coming and going, are impermanent. But the natural state of the mind, the mind itself, remains permanently. We are trying to hold onto something as 'permanent' while, at the same time, perceiving something that actually is permanent as impermanent! We perceive something that is impermanent as permanent, but in actuality everything is impermanent and constantly changing. We think about the things that happened in the past and the things that will happen in the future. We think about many things. So all this thinking creates a lot of suffering. We hold on to our ideas and our thoughts as a reality and that creates much suffering.

So the mind is like a vast ocean. And with our thoughts, we are creating something like blocks of ice in this ocean, that float on the ocean. And we have done that since beginningless time until now by habituating to this idea of a self. So this self-grasping is like the weather getting cold. It is this notion of an 'I', the existence of an I that is present on an ongoing basis. At all times of the day and night there is this conception of an 'I'. And that is what creates all suffering, through the thinking that constantly happens within our mind. So here the mind, the image of the mind, is like space. And the clouds in that space, in that sky, are the thoughts in our mind, the thinking.

So Milarepa has said: when you, not realizing the nature of the mind, call the mind 'the rational consciousness', that consciousness discerns the outer objects that appear. It labels them as 'this is me' and 'that is him'—self and others, and so on. So this is the rationalizing consciousness, and that is what creates this duality of samsara. But then, when you look at this consciousness, within this consciousness all sorts of thoughts arise—virtuous thoughts, non-virtuous thoughts—all sorts of thoughts. What we need to recognize is the awareness that perceives those thoughts arising—that which recognizes those thoughts. So when you observe the mind, there will sometimes be a moment where the past thoughts have stopped and the future thoughts have not yet risen, and when you look into that space between the thoughts, the mind is completely and naturally empty. And then you know that this is the space-like nature of the mind.

There is a clear-knowing consciousness that recognizes this space between the thoughts. So there are two ways of recognizing the nature of the mind. One is: when you meditate and sometimes there is the moment when past thoughts have stopped and the next thought has not arisen, sometimes in this moment it becomes completely empty. That is the empty essence of the mind which is like space. But this space-like nature, this space between thoughts, is also naturally clear. There is a clear, knowing awareness that knows that there are no thoughts. And so that is the knowledge that recognizes when there are thoughts and when there are no thoughts.   In this moment between the thoughts, this awareness knows that there are no thoughts. So there is knowledge and awareness within that empty space. So when you look at that awareness, there’s nothing there, it’s complete emptiness—there is no thought, nothing there within this underlying space—there is only consciousness that is clear. So that is what we have called the unity of clarity and emptiness. The nature of clarity is empty, and the nature of emptiness is clarity. And so this clarity is referred to as the luminosity of the mind. So here the luminosity does not refer to an outer form of light, but it is the clear, thought-free mind. And this clear, thought-free mind is the awareness that recognizes whatever arises within the mind. And so that is the awareness that we need to recognize and then sustain. This awareness is clear and it knows its own empty, space-like nature. And so that is what we refer to as the union of clarity and emptiness.

So in the beginning, when we start to recognize the nature of the mind, we only see it for a very short time. For example, it is just like peeking out of a very small window—you see a small part of the blue sky. But then you need to habituate what you have seen, over and over again. It is the nature of the mind but, by seeing it again and again, it increases. So, from the beginning, you should accustom yourself to this glimpse of it. So that is the space between thoughts, when past thoughts have stopped and future thoughts have not yet arisen. That space in between is what we need to habituate.   Seeing that space is what we need to do, over and over again. There must be awareness, whether or not thoughts are present. And so when that state becomes habituated, even if thoughts arise, even if thoughts are present, you will recognize them but they will not affect you in one or the other. So once that has become habitual, thoughts will still arise. Thoughts do not disappear; thoughts will still arise, but they will not affect you in any way when they arise. And when, in the mindfulness of this state, there is no distinction between the presence or absence of thoughts, this space between thoughts is sustained. Then you will see that thoughts arise, but they are impermanent. They come just like the clouds in the sky—they come and they go—and when they come, they vanish again back into the sky. And so that is what we need to learn.

In this way we habituate to the thought-free state, or, as the text says: you habituate this thought-free mind. So in habituating the thought-free mind, there is no difference between thoughts or no thoughts present. When thoughts are present, they also vanish. And so, then, it speaks of 'the two- fold knowledge', or the planet and stars of the two-fold knowledge. So the mind is like a clear space, a clear sky. And then, within the sky when the sky is very clear, we can see the sun and the moon, the planets and the stars. And these are a metaphor for this two-fold knowledge. And so actual the view—the planet and the star, the sun and moon—represent the view of the two-fold knowledge; they are the outer example. And the inner example, what they point to, is the two-fold knowledge.

So the first [part] of the two-fold knowledge is to know things as they are: to know the nature of all phenomenon in samsara and nirvana. And that means that, although those phenomena do appear, you know that they are compounds and therefore they are impermanent. They only appear as a result of karmic ripening. And they change, moment by moment. They are compounds and therefore impermanent. However, the natural state of the mind never changes and always remains as it is. And when you realize the unchanging nature of the mind, then you will be able to see that, although all phenomena, samsara and nirvana, do appear, they appear just like a dream or an illusion, and actually do not inherently exist. So then, things do appear as real existing things to us. So since those things appear as really existing, why do we say they do not really exist? It is because they are impermanent. Because they are impermanent they do not exist.

So here you realize impermanence. Although we understand impermanence, we are always still holding on to a permanence, when actually everything is always changing. And because we cling to permanence, we do not integrate impermanence. When things suddenly change, when impermanence comes, then we suffer. We suffer from this change. But if, to begin with, we truly understand impermanence, then when things change, it will not affect us much. For example, we have the karma to spend our time together with a companion. There are two companions together, but that is bound to be impermanent to begin with. So if you understand that, from the beginning, this relationship is impermanent and only for the time being, for however long you have the karma to be together, what is most important is to not spend this time accumulating karma with an afflicted mind. But it is better to see this relation as illusory and, rather, to use this time of being together to develop more love and compassion, in this way creating the causes of happiness. And so, if you understand that in the end everything is impermanent, then you will not suffer so much when things suddenly change. When impermanence actually happens, you move on to the next life and bring with you the causes of happiness, having developed love. So if you understand that, true trust in karma will actually arise.

So the entire universe and all sentient beings are impermanent. Everything is impermanent. The outer world will turn into dust one day; it will turn into ashes and disappear. It is impermanent. And also all the sentient beings are also impermanent; they are here now, but the next moment they are gone. And because everything falls apart, everything is emptiness. So this knowledge is a knowing that, although so many things appear, they are empty because they appear like a dream. So they are not real. If you really think about it, you will see that those perceptions that we have in this life are really not any different from a dream. For example, when we are dreaming, we think the dream is unreal, so we can say the dream is empty. But we still think that our waking state experience is a reality. But only for as long as we live, because after we have died, this entire life is gone. The body of this life is gone, the environment, the surrounding of this world—everything is gone. And then we move on to the bardo, where our karmic imprints create something like an illusory, dream-like body, just as in our dreams, due to this habitual tendency of 'having' a body. And then, due to this habitual tendency of having a body, we will find a new body for as long as we have the karma for this new body. We will have this body and then, when the karma comes to an end, it will again perish, just like the bursting of a water bubble, and we come to a new body. And in this way we go around in circles in samsara.

Meanwhile, at the same time, the mind itself always remains as it is. It is never born and it never dies. We are always constantly changing bodies. So therefore, Jigten Sumgön has said: “it is the body that wanders through the ocean of samsara, it is the body that circles in samsara,” because we exchange the body. So if you understand that, then you will not experience so much suffering when changes arise. If you do not understand that, then because we grasp at things being real, that naturally has the nature of suffering. That is when afflictions arise, and our ideas about them arise, and it all seems real; it seems permanent. We fixate on a belief that this is how things always are. And these ideas, and the labeling of our mind—this is the way in which we create more karma. And so that is the fault of grasping at a substantial reality.

So there are two ways of viewing, or two views. One way is to see the subjects and objects, the objects that appear in the world—the outer world. Different phenomena of this world appear as actually existing things. And the other way of viewing the nature of these objects, of these phenomena, then, is the view of Dharmata. That view is knowing that, although things appear, those things are, by nature, impermanent. They are compound and impermanent and, therefore, do not inherently exist. So, if you view things as they actually are, you see them from the viewpoint of Dharmata, as of the nature of phenomena and not phenomena itself. So then things appear in whichever way we hold them to be true, so that, in whichever way we grasp at them, things appear to us in that way. So if we think that this is how something really is, it is like that. And then that it is how it really appears to us.

It is a perception of our own mind. And so, therefore, it is empty—it is not inherently self-sufficiently existent. Because we do not remember that things are inherently impermanent, when things change, then we suffer. We suffer from this change. Therefore, it is important to have the correct view of this. With the correct view, we see phenomena, we see the objects, but at the same time we understand they do not really exist. So actually, both of these views—seeing phenomena and also seeing the nature of those phenomena—are actually in agreement with one another. They do not necessarily cancel each other out. We do see things. It is fine to see phenomena, the objects, but then at the same time, we must also know that they truly do not inherently and truly exist. Because if we see them and cling to them, if we grasp at them—that is what creates samsara. And that is what will bind us in suffering. However, if we see those same things but understand what they really are, their true nature, then we will just not be affected so much by them. We will not grasp at them. So they appear, but we know whatever appears is impermanent and will again disappear. And when something appears we already know that this is impermanent; it will disappear. Everything arises and then ceases to be, and so then nothing will affect us so much, whatever arises.

So that is the nature of phenomenon, the view of Dharmata, that is, the Buddhist view. We call it a 'Buddhist view', but it is not just a Buddhist view—it is actually the nature of phenomena, of all phenomena that appear and exist. So things appear and we perceive them, but they do not inherently exist. Also we can understand that, for example, by looking at how people perceive things. For example, you think 'this is how it is'; somebody else thinks 'this is not how it is. So there is a contradiction. So, it is whichever way you see it, according to your own way of viewing it. And this is how it will become—how it will actually become for you. So to you it is a reality. But then, when you cling to that reality, it creates samsara, and that creates the bondage of suffering.

So we habituate to the view of Dharmata, of seeing how things really are, the nature of things. And that is a method to clear away suffering. Even though things happen, things arise, one does not cling to them much. One does not hold on to the reality of a difficulty, for example; one understands that, even though this negative thought arises, it is a confusion—it doesn't really exist. So you can recognize: I’m actually clinging to something that doesn’t really exist, so it’s not really there. In the same way, anything else that appears, on the inner or outer level, whatever we grasp at turns into an illusion. So, if you recognize that, then it is fine if things appear, but you will see them as like a dream or an illusion. You will see them as like a play of illusion, without holding them to be true. Then anything can arise, pleasant or unpleasant, and you will not hold anything to be truly existing. And so, because anything can arise and you do not cling to anything, you will be able to bear with any kind of difficulty. Nothing will affect your mind in a negative way.

So when you hold this view of Dharmata, that is how things really are. It is based on knowing that whatever appears is compounded and therefore impermanent. Everything that we see and perceive is impermanent. For example, the relation between two companions: you look at each other and you see two people. But what you see is those two bodies, which are actually impermanent—the body is a compound. This is explained clearly in the Heart Sutra. When you look at the mind, there’s nothing to be seen there. The mind is free from all of the extremes—the four extremes of existence and non-existence, eternalism and nihilism. If you look at the mind, even if you think you want to hold on to something, you cannot find anything to hold on to. It is ungraspable. It is only an idea, a thought that this mind is there, something to grasp at. But when you really try to grasp it—to find the mind—there’s nothing there to be found at all. So when you realize that—that there’s nothing to grasp at when you look at the mind—you relax into a state of ease. Then anything can arise. Any difficulty on the outer level, any affliction, any thought can arise and it will naturally dissipate back into the mind. So this is what will happen when we resolve this point of the nature of Dharmata or the inner nature of phenomena.

So then, of those two types of knowledge, the second one is knowing as many things as there are, knowing things to their fullest extent. That is, that various, countless phenomena in samsara and nirvana do appear, but in knowing their appearance, one also knows that they appear temporarily, just like ice on water, and they are impermanent. So this knowledge, that knows as many things as there are, has first realized that the nature of mind is empty like space and its nature is clear and empty. Then, however, even though the mind is clear and empty, things appear: various thoughts arise temporarily, various positive and negative thoughts, appearances, good and bad experiences of samsara and nirvana. All of that arises naturally, like an illusion, depending on our movement of thoughts in the mind. And if we grasp at the duality of self and other, what appears are the six realms of samsara. Like an illusion, they also will not stay. They will remain for as long as the karma for them to remain is present. And until then, we experience various types of suffering. And then, likewise, at the same time, there are pure manifestations which are the reflection of Bodhicitta, manifesting as the pure lands and the enlightened forms which are the natural expression of the five wisdoms.

So the five wisdoms and the five afflictions are actually the same—the same form of energy—where the afflictions are the impure aspect of it and, in its pure, refined aspect there are the five wisdoms. It is like wood that turns into fire. All of the wood turns into the same fire. And so temporarily, for the time being, there are perceptions of pure and impure depending on various thoughts that temporarily arise in our minds.   And whatever arises appears as an illusory play. So the knowledge that knows the many things as they are, to their fullest extent, is that, although everything is empty by nature, karma still is infallible. So although things are empty, still nevertheless, due to various pure or impure thoughts, we experience various forms of happiness and suffering and so on.

So that is the knowledge that knows as many things as there are. It knows that although things are empty, arising of things does never transcend karma. Things are empty and the nature of that emptiness is the working of karma. So if you understand that, you see that the nature of the mind is possessing this two-fold knowledge; it is free from the two extremes, from the limitations of both eternalism and nihilism. It is free from the extreme of eternalism, of the real existence of things, because the mind is like space. It is, however, not only like space, but also clear. It is this clarity of mind which dispels the fault of nihilism. So the nature of the mind is free of those two faults. And when you always remain within this nature of clarity and emptiness, then that will naturally bring about the pure land and pure forms of the Buddha. So these are those two types of knowledge.

So then, to understand this two-fold of knowledge is also to understand the two types of truth, the relative and the ultimate. So, ideally, you recognize that, whatever appears, you realize that from the ultimate level everything that appears is emptiness. And because it is impermanent, like a compound, everything that appears doesn’t inherently exist. So that is the greatest understanding in relation to whatever appears. In order to really put that into practice, we are first introduced to the various levels of meditation, for example, to Mahamudra. Within the introduction of Mahamudra, we go, for example, through three levels of observing the mind: the abiding mind, the moving mind, and then awareness.

So the abiding mind is, according to the Vinaya teachings, the practice of Shamatha. First we abide calmly: 'calm abiding'. And this is like an ocean. The mind abides calmly like an ocean. So, first at this stage, we do not follow any thoughts of the three times arising. Whatever arises, we let it be, and it will just settle in the natural state of the mind. And so, first, we develop this thought-free mind. And then one understands that when all thoughts are cleared away, and they are pacified, the mind is naturally blissful. So one then experiences the great bliss that is inherent to the natural state of the mind without all of those thoughts. So always abiding within that state is what we call Shamatha, or calm abiding. Then, however, abiding within this great state of bliss, we also must also develop a clarity, a clear recognition of that—that now there is this blissful state which is the nature of the mind—because otherwise, without this clarity, we will become attached to this blissful state. And that, again, leads to many faults. When we become attached to this blissful state of mind, we lose our clarity again and, in the end, we will not become entirely free from suffering. So, for the time being, when we rest in the state of Shamatha we rest calmly. There’s no suffering in that state, but we are still far away from the actual state of enlightenment.

So therefore, we need the second level, Vipassana, which is insight into the mind, the clarity. We need to always recognize with clarity. Although the essence of the mind is empty, we need to sustain clarity of this, the natural clarity of mind. So the empty essence is the state of Shamatha; we abide in the state of emptiness calmly. And that state is naturally blissful, because there are no thoughts within that state. So there’s a natural blissful state. But then at the same time, we must develop a clarity of this blissful state, a clear-knowing awareness that recognizes this blissful state. So, within bliss, we find clarity and within clarity, we find the state of non-thought, non-conceptuality. And then we stay within this natural state on an ongoing basis, all of the time. And if we always stay within this state, even if thoughts arise, we just let them be, we don’t pay attention to them. And they will naturally dissolve. Then they cannot do anything to you. They cannot disturb the mind or move the mind in any way.

So thoughts arise, but you just let them be without following them at all. For example, when anger arises, you get angry. Then, immediately as it arises, there is a clear-knowing awareness that knows that anger has arisen—you are fully aware that anger has arisen—and that awareness must be sustained with the view. You must hold the view with stability. So it is said in the Bodhicharyavatara, regarding the cultivation of Samadhi meditation, that we need to develop this firmness like the trunk of a tree, without following anything that arises, whatever thought arises. Whatever arises, like wind for example, the tree remains as it is, unmoving. No matter what arises, the mind doesn’t move; it’s not disturbed. So, you continue to remain within this state. And when thoughts arise, they come like waves on the water, and again they naturally dissolve on their own. So this is how we practice. For example, when thoughts arise for ordinary beings, it is like waves arising in the water. They will then follow those waves; they will try to grasp those waves. So one wave follows another wave, and then it creates difficulty. It creates suffering and conflict.

In the 100,000 Songs of Milarepa, there was a song that he sang to his disciple Bardabom in which he gave her instruction to meditate on the mind like an ocean. And after doing that, she came back to him and reported: “When I meditate on my mind like the ocean, then the waves of thoughts appear, and that creates much discomfort in me.” And then Milarepa replied: “Let the thoughts be. The waves are nothing but the magical display of the ocean itself. Just let them naturally settle back into the ocean.” So, settle back within the natural state of the mind, in a natural way, and let the waves of the thoughts be. It is due to the movement of the winds in us that all kinds of thoughts arise, but no matter what arises, try to sustain the stability of mindfulness, of awareness, and recognize that the thoughts that arise are not actually separate from the mind, just as the waves are not separate from the ocean.

And so we need to habituate that. In the beginning we habituate that by not holding on to those little thoughts, the less intense thoughts.   Letting them go, they arise and you just let them be and they go on their own. So, first we liberate those small waves. And that is necessary to do in all activities, in whatever you do. Whatever you do, you need to bring this view of Vipassana with you, whatever activity you are engaged in. And so this Vipassana, this insight—that is the actual guru. That is the nature of the guru. It is the nature of mindfulness and this mindfulness is indivisible from the mindfulness of the guru. And this mindfulness recognizes all kinds of thoughts. The more subtle thoughts, the coarser thoughts—whatever arises, you recognize it, you know it. And that knowledge is the Guru, the ultimate source of devotion.

So therefore, in this verse explaining Mahamudra, it says: “I pay homage to my own self-knowing awareness, which is the ultimate Buddha.” So one’s own mind is actually the Buddha, or the Guru. So, in Tibetan the word the word for enlightenment is “Sangye” and “sang” means to clear away.   So what is cleared away is all of the grasping at whatever arises, whatever thought or affliction arises. And “gye” means vast or expansive. That is, if you do not grasp at anything that arises, the mind is vast, open and happy and always just naturally blissful because that’s the nature of the thought-free state.

So, in the beginning actually, as beginning practitioners, we get tired from meditation. We meditate and then we become too tired to meditate. But later, when we have become habituated, we actually get tired when we are not meditating. We feel very happy when we are meditating, because when we are not meditating we become distracted and this distraction wears us out. It makes us tired, it makes us sleepy, and so on. So then we feel discontent when we are not meditating. But until then, we need to habituate, and it begins with sustaining mindfulness. First, recognizing in all your activities that, whatever arises, whether you are eating food or you are walking around, you need to sustain mindfulness. So in the beginning, as a support to sustain mindfulness for example, we practice the “Om Ah Hung” Vajra recitation. Of course, if you are always able to sustain mindfulness, you do not have to, for example, practice the Om Ah Hung. You can just think of the Hung or of the guru.

But in the beginning, it is good to have something that we can come back to, some kind of support for mindfulness. Because if you have nothing to hold on to, like the Hung and the guru, and so on, then the mind cannot remain with stability, single-pointedly. So for the purpose of the mind remaining with stability, we use the support of thinking of one thing, like the Hung or the guru. So that is necessary for the beginning practitioner to sustain mindfulness on an ongoing basis. Then later on, when that is naturally habituated, you will become more aware of the subtle movements of the winds through your channels, and then you will feel the vibrating sound of Hung naturally resonating entirely throughout your channels. And that is a time when the mind and the winds have become indivisible. Then there is a natural state of mindfulness that is fully aware of this subtle vibration of Hung pervading all the channels of your body.

~ 感謝Diane, Kaya, Xiaosong, Iris, Freda, Natalie & DJ（美國西雅圖直貢道場、臺灣普賢法譯小組等成員）英聽、中譯、校對與完稿，標點符號（）為同一名詞可作不同的解釋，［］為譯校所加的連接用語，為的是幫助讀者理解。本篇待續。一切善德迴向上師長壽康健常轉法輪，文稿若有錯謬敬請來信指正：sstc.roc@gmail.com，感激不盡！