When vitality and windhorse are upside down,89
All worldly skills are like bubbles in water.
The castle of the dralas is turned away90
And this enemy fortress will take away one’s life.
The mighty warrior whose heart was once brave
At the moment of death is a lump piled with earth.
A rich man’s avaricious inner stores91
Amount to a wooden stake of attachment driven into the ground.92
His whole life spent pursuing illusory food and clothes,
At the hour of his death, he is naked with empty hands.
Even the high king on his golden throne
Must pillow his head that day on cold earth,
And the queen with silken robes on her back
Burns in an oven, clothed in red flames.
Even the youthful tigers in their prime, with their six attributes of a warrior,
Are dragged on the ground by the king of birds,n
And the wise mothers and aunts
Are bound head to foot by the black rope.
In the Frightening Red Charnel Ground,
On the day when the pale corpse is hacked to pieces by the knife and the ax,
Alas! It is too late for regret.
The hot and cold of hell is unbearable.
The hungry ghosts are starving and parched.
The animals, mute and stupid, lose their freedom.
The warring jealous gods struggle and die by the knife.
And we gods of the higher realms,
Though spared illness and aging, are carried away by distractions.
Seven days before death the portents of the god’s death arise;
The brightness of his lovely palaces fades,
His dear wife withdraws far away,
His garlands of sweet smelling flowers wither,
His body starts to stink and its light dims.
The negative experience of cause and effect blazes up in terrible suffering;
Now even regret is merely cause for more suffering.93
All you heedless and crazy beings of the six realms
Do not wander; turn your awareness inward.
Lord gurus, determine to resolve the nature of mind.94
Imperial rulers, do not mistreat the law of cause and effect.
Mighty warriors, do not disturb the policy of the king.
Rich men, offer up and give down most generously.
Common people, do prostrations, circumambulations, and recite the MAṆI mantra.
Through a precious human life there is no virtue that cannot be accomplished.
Exert yourself with as much vigilance as possible.
I am Vajrasattva himself,
The primordially pure dharmadhātu Samantabhadra.
O beings pervaded by impure illusions,
Listen to this song’s words and think through their actual meaning.95
Hold this jewel close.
If you do not understand, there is no way to explain it.96
Thus he proclaimed the great sound of dharma according to the minds and dialects of all animate and inanimate beings.
[Thöpa Gawa is empowered with the five Buddha families.]97
At that time, on Zangdog Pelri in Cāmara, the Master, Lotus Skull Garland, knew that the time had come to confer empowerment on Thöpa Gawa. From his forehead, white rays of light invoked the mind stream of the Buddha Vairocana in Akaniṣṭha. From Padma’s heart center, blue rays of light invoked the mind of Akṣobhya in Abhirati. From his navel, yellow rays of light evoked the mind stream of Ratnasambhava in the buddha field Pelden Palden [Endowed with Glory]. From his throat center, red rays of light invoked the mind stream of Amitābha in Sukhāvatī. From his secret center, green rays of light invoked Amoghasiddhi in the buddha field of Lerab Dzog [All-Accomplishing Activity]. Then Padmasambhava raised this song in order to supplicate for the fruition of the truth.
[Padma invokes the five Buddhas in order to empower Thöpa Gawa.]
OṂ
The perfectly pure five poisons are the five wisdoms.
I invoke the sacred oath [samaya] from unborn space.
The perfectly pure five elements are the five goddesses
Arising for the benefit of beings from unceasing space.
From the supreme method of the empty nature of phenomena.
Prajñā shines as the embodiment of compassion.
To this nirmāṇakāya who will guide beings,
Grant empowerment so that he may conquer the hordes of māras.
This is the ultimate song of self-luminosity.
According to common worldly proverbs:
It is a sorry guru who has neither empowerment nor textual transmission.
It is a sorry student who lacks the sacred vows of samaya.
It is a sorry ruler who has no supporters to honor and magnify him,
And sorry subjects who lack good manners.
Weapons which are neither sharp nor tempered,
Even if they have both handle and sheath, cannot handle the enemy.
If you have the main six herbal ingredients, but not the additives,98
Even if the medicine is pleasing and fragrant it will not heal.
A field which has not been worked
Will not bear fruit even if the six grains are sown.
So therefore let us enthrone, praise, and honor him.
Sever the life force of the enemy with the weapon of compassion,99
Heal the six realms with the medicine of blessings,
Spread enlightened activity through the field of disciples,
And pray that all sentient beings be liberated.
May there be the auspiciousness of the complete accomplishment of all wishes.
With these words he invoked the samaya vow of the compassionate minds [of the five Buddhas and their consorts].
[Buddha Vairocana gives the empowerment of body and names the divine child.]
Then in Akaniṣṭha, from Vairocana’s forehead, light rays streamed out in the ten directions. They purified the obscurations of ignorance of all sentient beings and gathered back here in the form of the syllable OṂ representing the enlightened body blessings of the sugatas of the ten directions. This became a white wheel with eight spokes. The wheel traveled in the realm of the mid-heavens to rest directly in front of the divine child. From it came the self-proclaiming sound resounding with these words:100
OṂ
From the self-appearing wisdom of dharmadhātu,
At the moment of your birth, you are the lord of beings.
You are the king who possesses various magical emanations.
You dispel delusions from the deluded minds
Of all confused sentient beings
Who are pitifully unclear, befuddled by the eight confusions.o
Through laziness, doubt, and delusion,
And ignorance due to conceptual obscurations,
Though free, they are still distracted by saṃsāric activities;
Though well-favored, they are too lazy for dharma.
When the time of death finally arrives:
Though the guru lacking dharma wears a golden hat,
Shining to show his lofty rank,
He will have trouble finding the path to the next life.
The leader who lacks a gentle mind,
Whose tyranny shows he is strong in the law,
Will be punished by karma as he punishes others
Like a man struck by a stone he throws in the air.101
The disciple with no samaya,
Whose open mind shows him to be learned,102
Has empty talk which is nothing but a mist of spit.
The rich man with no generosity,
Though he has collected wealth through avarice,
At the time of death will be naked and empty-handed.
These are the characteristics of saṃsāra.
On this noble being is bestowed
The n
ame Thöpa Gawa.
When the name of this Buddha, endowed with blessings,
Is heard it brings joy and exhausts negativity.
If this leader with vast sovereignty remains,
He will bring happiness to the kingdoms of the world.
May his presence defeat the enemies of the four directions.
May everyone who meets him be free from rebirth in the lower realms.
May everyone who sees him enter into the pure lands.
Buddha Abhiśinytsa OṂp
After the wheel had uttered these words, it dissolved into the child’s forehead. From this day on he was known as Thöpa Gawa [Joyful to Hear].
[Buddha Akṣobhya gives the empowerment of the enlightened mind of the Vajra Buddha family.]
Then, in the eastern pure land of Abhirati, from the heart center of Akṣobhya, light rays streamed forth. They purified the obscurations of aggression of all sentient beings and gathered back in the form of a blue five-pointed vajra, the embodiment of the mind blessings of the victorious ones, and then dissolved into the heart center of the divine child. As a result he mastered the treasury of samādhi. Then the entire assembly of the five buddha families holding jeweled vases filled with amṛta offered to bathe him, saying:
HŪṂ
From the great vajra space of emptiness
Flows the nectar of mirror-like wisdom.
May the weapons of vajra aggression
Conquer the hosts of enemies,
The poisons of the ignorant angry sentient beings of saṃsāra.
The guru who has no compassion,
Even though he exerts himself in mantra recitation,
Will still not become a buddha.
The ruler who has no loving kindness
May enforce the law, but will lose his districts.
The warrior who has no restraint,
Though hearty and brave, will die by the sword.
Therefore, in the savage minds of all sentient beings
May no sinister thoughts arise.
Supreme being, divine child, Thöpa Gawa,
Even though you are not obscured by the three poisons,
Still I will grant you the empowerment of the three kāyas.
May you spontaneously perform the buddha activity of pacifying.
Vajra Abhiśinytsa HŪṂ
Thus they bathed him with amṛta.
[Ratnasambhava confers the enlightened qualities empowerment of the Ratna Buddha family, dresses him as a king, and enthrones him.]
Again, in Pelden Palden, from the navel of Ratnasambhava, light rays streamed forth, purifying the obscurations of pride of all sentient beings. They gathered back as all the qualities and merit of the victorious ones in the form of a blazing jewel and dissolved into the navel of the divine child. He was then adorned by the bodhisattvas of the ten bhumis with priceless precious ornaments: jeweled crest ornaments; throat, shoulder, hand, leg, and ear ornaments; rings; long and short necklaces of crystal; divine clothes of panyacalika silk, and so forth, ornaments worthy of a great being. With all of these he was clothed and enthroned, as they raised this auspicious song:
TRAṂ
The precious wisdom of equanimity,
Perfectly purified pride is the wealth of the ārya.
Meritorious one, accumulator of all merit,
Great source of jewel wisdom, Ratnasambhava,103
As you are empowered in order to tame the difficult to tame,
Through your compassion please work for the welfare of beings.
Your compassion is like the sky,
May the auspiciousness of equanimity be present.
For disciples who are like the constellations,
May the auspiciousness of your boundless buddha activity be present.
For your life span like a vajra,
May the auspiciousness of indestructible deathlessness be present.
For the symbol of the stability of your vows to benefit beings,
May the auspiciousness of unchanging spontaneity be present.
By these beautiful ornaments, the precious jewel crown,
May the auspiciousness of exalted majesty be present.
By these earrings and rich golden necklaces,
May the auspiciousness of your sky-pervading fame be present.
By these fine, soft, and light vestments,
May the auspiciousness of conquering the hosts of māras be present.
Great being, precious Thöpa Gawa,
Although you are not attached to ordinary ornaments,
I empower you with the five precious noble qualities.q
May your buddha activity of enriching be spontaneously accomplished.
Ratna Abhiśinytsa TRAṂ
Thus he was enthroned with auspiciousness.
[Amitābha confers the enlightened speech empowerment of the Lotus Buddha family.]104
Again, in the Sukhāvatī pure land, from the throat center of Amitābha, light rays streamed forth, purifying the obscurations of desire of all sentient beings. They gathered back here as the blessings of the speech of all the sugatas in the form of a red lotus and dissolved into the throat center of the divine child. He was then empowered with the sixty branches of melodious speech. Furthermore, the support of the samaya of all tathāgatas,105 a golden five-pointed vajra, descended from the sky into his hand:
HRĪḤ
Perfectly purified desire is the space of discerning wisdom.
Great desire is exaltation free from attachment, Lord of Lotus Speech,
You are the supreme skillful means of connate wisdom.
This vajra is the support for your sacred vows, your samaya.
Until the ocean of saṃsāra is empty,
You will liberate the ocean of sentient beings.
Having realized the ocean of wisdom,
May you perfect the ocean of aspiration.
You empowered the imperial lha above,
And will proclaim commands upon the middle nyen
And open the treasury of the nāgas below106
In the Wishing Land of Ling,r look after the benefit of beings,
The Black Düd and the Yellow Hor,107
Those with form and those without, bind them all by oath.
Although the bodhisattva who looks after the benefit of beings
Needs no encouragement to keep this samaya,
Just as you promised to lead beings from saṃsāra,
May you spontaneously accomplish the activity of magnetizing.
Padma Abhiśinytsa HRĪḤ
This song was pronounced throughout the mid-heavens.
[Amoghasiddhi empowers him with the enlightened activity of the Karma Buddha family.]
Again, in the All-Accomplishing Activity pure land, from the secret center of the Blessed One Amoghasiddhi, light rays streamed forth, purifying the obscurations of jealousy of all sentient beings. They dissolved into the secret center in the form of a green double vajra, the essence of the activity of all the sugatas. He accomplished mastery over all vast buddha activities. Furthermore, a silver bell descended into his left hand, representing the spontaneous accomplishment of all four buddha activities of the sugatas.
ĀḤ
Perfectly purified jealousy is Amoghasiddhi,
The completely pure wisdom of all-accomplishing action.
Great wrath is the great sound
That quells the self-occurring sound of the five poisons
And skillfully tames the disciples of the five corruptions.
Powerful hero
Who conquers the great mountain of conditioned existence,
You who have perfected all buddha activity,
From the great billowing clouds of your peaceful compassion
The terrible lightning strikes flash
And conquer the crags of the great sinners’ pride.
The guru addicted to wealth,
If he is not conquered by the logic of the learned,108
Then his guts will be f
illed with empty quotes.
The ruler who is full of pride,
If karma does not fall right on him,
It will ripen as agony for the people and the land.109
The prideful youth, tiger in his prime, full of himself,
Unless a real warrior knocks him out,
Then his hollow bragging will roar like a thousand dragons.
The self-absorbed young woman,
If famine does not strike her down,
Then her self-centeredness will reach beyond the sky.
Therefore, in this time of the dark age,
The vindictive sentient beings
Be little cause and effect, and pile up perverted aspirations.
Let not your compassion abandon them but liberate them into the purelands.
Let a downpour of vajra weapons descend upon the skandhas.110
Seal their consciousnesses with this vajra of the dharma realm.
You, bodhisattva, are the embodiment of compassion.
Although your buddha activity is unfaltering,
May your wrathful buddha activity be spontaneously accomplished.
Karma Abhiśinytsa ĀḤ
Thus the abhiṣeka was conferred.
All the assemblies of great supreme wrathful deities enthroned him with the four empowerments.111 Then the divine child Thöpa Gawa became full of learning, good qualities, splendor, and dignity unrivaled in the world.
This was the chapter on the birth by magical transformation and the conferral of empowerment. Composed in colloquial terms that are easy to understand, it is known as A Continuously Flowing Stream of Blessing.
a. Avalokiteśvara.
b. One of the epithets of Guru Rinpoche, Padmasambhava.
c. The five buddha families.
d. One of the epithets of Gesar.
e. E ma ho! is a Tibetan exclamation of wonder and jubilation.
f. Jasmine tea.
The Epic of Gesar of Ling Page 10