The Hundred Thousand Songs of Milarepa
Page 57
Then the Jetsun went to Chuwar where his disciple-sons had gathered. “The teacher-physician will benefit many sentient beings. Last night, I dreamt that a single vulture flew from where I was to Ü, where he landed upon the peak of a great mountain. In every direction, it was surrounded by many geese. Then, after a while, the geese lifted off, each gathering five hundred more of their own retinue, and the valley became completely filled with geese. This shows that while I am a lay-yogi, later, there will be many monks in my lineage. Now I have fulfilled my duty to the Buddha’s teachings.” And he was very pleased.
This is the cycle of the supreme heart-son of the great Jetsun, the noble Gampopa.
*1 Great Compassion White-Lotus Sutra (T: snying rje chen po padma dkar po).
*2 The Physician of Dakpo.
*3 Bodhisattva Great Being.
*4 Small reliquaries often containing the ashes of someone who has died.
*5 Putowa Rinchen Sal (1027–1105), a student of Dromtönpa, was one of the forefathers of the Kadampa lineage.
*6 “Sang” (T: srang), translated here as “measure,” referred to a weight of approximately 37.5 grams. The amount here, sixteen sang, would be six hundred grams or a little over twenty-one ounces (just under one and a half pounds).
*7 Each of these texts is studied widely still today as a part of the training of the Sutrayana.
*8 Suvarna-prabhasottama-sutra (T: mDo gser ’od dam pa).
*9 Pekar (T: pe dkar), here, may be an alternate spelling for the legendary Tibetan dharma protector Pehar Gyalpo, but it is not clear (Buswell 2014: 638).
*10 Dombi Heruka was an Indian mahasiddha. Originally a king, he left his kingdom to engage in deep yogic practice in the forest. His kingdom having fallen into disarray, he was summoned by the council of Brahmans to return to rule. When he left the forest (apparently with no intention to return to his throne), he is said to have been seen together with his consort riding a ferocious pregnant tigress.
*11 Famous naga kings.
*12 According to traditional Tibetan history, Lhaga and Luga (T: lha dga’ and klu dga’) were the two strongest men in China entrusted with transporting the Jowo Shakyamuni along with the princess Kongjo when she was sent to marry the Tibetan king Songtsen Gampo (Gyaltsen 1996: 147).
*13 Gampopa.
*14 The Tibetan word translated as “pot” here (slo) actually refers specifically to a container used in the process of winnowing grains (TDC).
*15 Literally, “Even if a bird is hungry, he will still keep his garuda horns” (T: bya ltogs rung khyung ru deng nge bya ba yin).
*16 Tse De (T: tse lde) was a king of the Western Kingdom of Tibet, Guge, who probably began his reign in 1057 C.E. (Gyatso 2005: 75).
*17 Practiced as a method of accumulating merit, the seven branches are paying homage, offering, confession, rejoicing, requesting to teach the dharma, requesting to remain and not pass into nirvana, and dedication.
*18 A radung is a long bass trumpet used ceremonially in Tibetan monastic rituals.
*19 This is an epithet for the central region of Tibet (T: nyi ma dbus).
*20 With this statement, Milarepa makes reference to Gampopa’s name: “Sonam” means merit, and “Rinchen” means precious.
*21 This refers to Gampopa.
*22 Sindhura literally means “sediment from the banks of the Indus,” referring to red earth from a place sacred to Vajrayogini, though the word is used for sacred red earth from any place. Lead oxide (red lead powder) is often used as a substitute. (Roberts in RY)
*23 T: myal ba thig nag. One of the eight hot hell realms that are taught in traditional Buddhist cosmology. In it, black lines are drawn on the bodies of its inhabitants, which the hell guardians use as a guide to saw them in half.
*24 “Rakta” means blood in Sanskrit, and here refers to the red bindu.
*25 Luyipa was one of the mahasiddhas of India who held a lineage of the practice of Chakrasamvara.
*26 Arya Sadaprarudita (T: rtag ru ngu) is also known as the Ever-Weeping Bodhisattva. His story is told in the Prajñaparamita Sutra in eight thousand verses. He underwent great hardship in anticipation of the teaching of the Bodhisattva Dharmodgata (Patrul 1998: 154).
*27 The Bodhisattva Dharmodgata (T: chos ’phags) lived in the City of Fragrances and was renowned for teaching the Prajñaparamita. Sadaprarudita heard of this and longed to receive those teachings. Before meeting him in person, because of his deep faith and devotion, Sadaprarudita had a vision in which he could hear Dharmodgata teaching (Patrul 1998: 154).
*28 T: sum gal khra bo dor gcig. This style of bag is actually one piece but is designed so that each end can be filled; when it is slung over the shoulders, there is equal weight at either end. (TN)
*29 This reference is obscure, but could refer to a region (bzang dkar) in current day Ladakh that was heavily influenced culturally by the Tibetan Plateau throughout history (Powers 2012: 746).
*30 There are different enumerations of the eight examples; one lists them as a dream, an echo, a city of gandharvas, an optical illusion, a mirage, an illusion, a reflection, and a city produced through magic.
*31 Literally, “the youthful son of the Victors” (T: rgyal sras gzhon nu); this is an epithet for Mañjushri.
*32 This symbolizes our craving for pleasure and convenience.
*33 Vipashyana (T: lhag gis mthong).
*34 “Bhikshu, holder of the vajra, renowned throughout the world” (T: dge slong rdo rje ’dzin pa dzam gling grags pa).
42
Lotön Gendun
NAMO GURU
When the Jetsun Milarepa was staying in the Omchung Pal Forest,*1 a friend of Darlo, the teacher who had previously debated with the Jetsun, named Lotön Gendun came to visit Milarepa, going through Rechungpa and Seben Repa. He offered many prostrations, and said, “Great precious Jetsun, when I met you, I had devoted interest. I saw the way that my friend Darlo died, and I could not determine if the things to abandon in our dharma tradition were something I should place more emphasis upon or lessen. I came to have faith in you and so I have come into your presence to request dharma I can practice. Please, I ask you to teach me.”
Then the Jetsun said, “You should place emphasis on abandoning all manner of dharma practice that does not embrace mindfulness of death; and activities that entail goals and objectives should be lessened.” Then he sang this song of realization:
In general, the Victorious One, Lord of Humans,
Taught the dharma to subdue the eight worldly concerns.
Now, for all those arrogant scholars
Do the eight worldly concerns not increase?
The Victorious One taught that keeping discipline
Is to abandon all mundane activity.
The monks, these days, who are “keeping discipline,”
Are they not just engaging in more activity?
The way of the sages of previous times
Was taught to cut all ties to close ones.
But with the way of renunciants in this day and age,
Do they not just increase their attempts to please others?
In short, when one has the dharma that does not embrace mindfulness of death,
Then whatever one does will be mistaken.
Thus he sang. Then Lotön said, “Before, I was like that, and I have regret. Now, since I am mindful of death, please give me dharma to put into practice.”
The Jetsun thought, “Now, I will see whether he is able to apply himself only to meditation or not.” Then he said, “If you have no desire for this life, though it will be a bit longer, it is also possible to attain enlightenment through the path of characteristics.*2” Then he sang this song of realization:
I prostrate to the father gurus.
E MA! Listen here you great teachers:
The discipline of pratimoksha, the root,
Is the pillar of the great house of the teachings.
Keep it forthrightly, without wavering!
The logic and
reasoning of exposition and study
Is what cleans off the jewel of the Buddha’s teaching.
Take off the rust of incorrect thought!
The precepts of the three trainings
Are the friend of the Buddha’s teaching.
Do not take such a friend as a foe!
The logic and discussion of the Mahayana
Are to destroy the ignorance of opponents.
Transform the perceptions of ordinary ones!
Thus he sang. Then Lotön requested fervently, “Right now, I only practice the dharma of mere words, thus please teach me the essence of dharma.” Knowing that it was the right time for taming this one to be tamed and thinking that he must now accept him, Milarepa sat there silently for a while. Then the monk asked Rechungpa and Seben Repa to intercede for him in requesting to receive the dharma in its entirety, and they petitioned the Jetsun on behalf of Lotön.
The Jetsun was pleased and said, “The two repas have petitioned well for you to receive the dharma in its entirety. Since the teacher is capable of meditating and the requester is worthy, I must bestow the key instructions. But you must meditate! If you conceptually understand dharma but do not meditate, this is what will happen.” Then he sang this song of realization:
I prostrate to the guru lords.
For you, teacher, the two meditators made a request.
Their greatness is known throughout three valleys.149
This teacher, who has studied and trained in terms,
Has asked to enter the path of key instructions.
The requester and his interceders are worthy, indeed.
I, the yogi Milarepa,
Am the treasured child of the Buddha Marpa.
My words are not hearsay, nor do they stray from the point.
They’re without personal ambition or hostility.
They’re words whose meaning penetrates the heart.
They’re easy to grasp, with excellent meaning.
If you examine them with logic, you’ll find they hold up.
Now listen well to what this old man says.
Having mixed dharma with your mind-stream but not meditated on it,
You’ll remain ordinary like a preta who moves through the sky:
He knows the extent of the sections of tantra,
And the logic of connections and contradictions.
He correctly knows terms, grammar, and pramana,
And has higher perceptions and magical power.
He has excellent resources and material wealth,
And his intellectual prowess is very sharp.
However, he doesn’t practice the actual dharma
And is not concerned with subtle cause and effect.
Thus, he has not let go of great worldly arrogance.
His concepts of ambition have not been exhausted,
And so emptiness and compassion do not develop.
He will never cross the river of samsara;
The sprouts of suffering will never dry up.
He is expert in knowable things but still seeks the higher perceptions.
The concepts that establish connections and contradictions*3
Are the firewood that scorches his own mind-stream.
Your very own faults bring your own negativity.
Thus, you should practice the genuine dharma.
The medicinal nectar that can revive one from death:
If the person who is sick does not take it himself,
Though he has the nectar, what good will it do?
If you want to be quickly relieved from an illness,
You must take the medicine that revives you from death.
The nectar of the deathless gods,
The asuras have a lot of it themselves,
But because they cannot make any use of it,
Asuras mostly have untimely death.
What good does the deathless nectar do them?
If you want to be freed from untimely death,
You must partake of such nectar yourself.
The most excellent food with exquisite taste,
Though Yama’s storehouse has a lot of it,
He cannot eat the food himself.
So, Yama most likely will die of hunger.
What good did that excellent food do for him?
If you want to be free of hunger’s illness
You must partake of the excellent food yourself.
Thus he sang. Lotön was delighted by this and said, “I am able to develop certainty in everything the Jetsun said; that explanation was very profound. Please, also teach me the essential points of the six paramitas.” Then Milarepa sang this song of realization:
I know nothing of being a scholar of words
Nor have I great skill in giving talks.
Though this is so, this requester is worthy.
All dharma is subsumed in the six paramitas:
Generosity is the dharma of kings.
When owners give away what they have,
They attain the kingdoms of the higher deva realms,
Which is a cause of distraction for those practicing dharma.
Discipline is the stairway to liberation for all.
Everyone who has entered the Buddha’s teachings,
Layperson or monastic, cannot do without it.
Take hold of the teachings, all of you here.
Patience is the special quality of a sage.
Following after the Buddha Shakyamuni,
It is clothing of hardship for all to wear.
You must excellently wear the mantle of patience.
Diligence is the direct path to liberation
It is necessary for all genuine dharma.
If one doesn’t have it, there’s no hope at all.
Ride the horse of diligence, and you’ll come along.
These four dharmas accumulate merit;
They’re the indispensable guide for everyone.
Now as to the dharma connected with wisdom:
Meditative concentration is the threshold of both accumulations.
Upon this threshold one must perfectly sit.
It’s the method for protection for when distraction comes.
It must be joined with both accumulations.
Wisdom, the dharma of definitive meaning,
Is the single treasure of all the buddhas.
When engaged, it’s an inexhaustible treasure-lode of wealth.
It’s the sublime offering—wealth to be cast away
Toward all worldly sentient beings with none left out.
By becoming free of all the freedomless states,
The supreme leisure is granted.
The accumulation of wisdom is a precious jewel.
Gradually one is brought to supreme excellence.
This is my reply for the teacher’s request;
Reflect on it happily and put it into practice!
When he had sung this, all of Milarepa’s disciple-sons experienced great enhancement in their practice. Then the Jetsun said to Rechungpa and Seben Repa, “I will give the abhishekas to the monk. Arrange the offerings.” Accordingly, they arranged the offerings. Milarepa bestowed the abhishekas and key instructions, and sent Lotön to meditate. A variety of experiences arose for him.
At one point, when many of Milarepa’s disciple-sons were present, Lotön came to the Jetsun and said to him, “A variety of appearances have arisen for me, and although I meditate, my mind doesn’t rest and has proliferating thoughts. If this is a fault, please give me a method for eliminating it. If it is a good quality, then please give me an enhancement practice and a method for resting.”
The Jetsun thought, “He is actually meditating.” Then he said to Lotön, “Teacher, although a variety of appearances have come up and your thoughts proliferate, they do not exist apart from the one thing. Whatever faults or good qualities there may be, put effort into practicing with the view.” Then he sang this song of realization:
I prostrate to the gurus.
Lotön, and everyone gathered here, listen:
Do you understand what appearances are?
If you don’t understand what appearances are,
Appearances appear as anything.
If you don’t realize it, then that’s samsara.
For those who realize it, they appear as dharmakaya.
When appearances dawn as dharmakaya,
There’s no need to search for any other view.
Do you understand the method for resting the mind?
If you don’t understand the method for resting the mind,
Not allowing mind itself to move about,
Do not contrive with your own mind.
Rest in your own nature, like a small child.
Rest like an ocean free of waves.
Rest in clarity like a candle flame.
Rest without pride like a human corpse.
Rest without movement, like a mountain.
Mind itself has no imputations.
Do you understand the way experiences dawn?
If you don’t understand the way experiences dawn,
The sun’s energy clears away darkness;
Concepts don’t need to be abandoned for something else.
Without any base, they dawn like a dream.
Without any fixation, they dawn like water-moons.
With nothing substantial, they dawn like rainbows.
Without any bias, they dawn like space.
Do you understand the antidote for bad experiences?
If you don’t understand the antidote for bad experiences,
Though winds may be strong, their nature is space.
Though waves may be big, their nature is the ocean.
Though southern clouds may be thick, their nature is the sky.
Though the mind’s thoughts proliferate, their nature is unborn.
For engaging in balanced awareness,
Consider the key instruction of consciousness riding the prana.