T293 蓮生活佛英文文集51－無上密與大手印 Spiritual State of Immovability３
- 詳細內容
- 分類：大燈新書上市
Spiritual State of Immovability
●Book 51─Highest Yoga Tantra and Mahamudra
●Written by Master Sheng-yen Lu
●Chapter thirteenth
For more information, please call +1(510)473-4818 or fax +1(510)437-1987.
Contact Address: 3440 Foothill Blvd. Oakland CA 94601, U.S.A.
There was once a Tantric guru who saw a vision of his death during deep meditation. He saw two strings of red pearls hanging from his nostrils, and five arches of rainbows appearing in the sky. His corpse emitted rays of red and yellow lights, and all of his bones displayed multiple colors. His heart remained intact and undestroyed, turning into relics (sariras). He left huge amounts of other relics, around five to six hundred of them, which could fill a big sack. He also saw his disciples cheering at the sight of his many relics. They were all elated.
After this experience, the guru longed to see the entire illusory scene again whenever he entered into meditation because this vision filled him with a great sense of pride. When this desire arose, he found himself experiencing the vision of his own cremation during each meditation session. Finally, when he sensed that something was wrong, it was already too late to erase the illusion. It was pitiful.
On another account, there was an adept who studied Vajrayana from a disciple of the famous Master Atisha. His master had studied dharma at the Tholing Monastery, and he had achieved union with his own inner mandala. He also learned the Three Cycles on Relaxation of the Great Perfection [Dzogpa Chenpo Gyuma Ngalso] and the Profound Quintessence of the Great Perfection [Dzogs Pa Chen Po Klong Chen Snying Thig]. One time, he encountered the following vision during deep meditative absorption:
“Who are you, pretty woman?” the adept asked.
“I am a Tibetan Princess.”
“Why are you here?” the adept asked.
“I am here to continue our past affinity.” The beautiful lady pointed to another dimension as she spoke.
A vision appeared in another dimension, in which he saw himself incarnating as a senior lama from the Nyingma School. He had practiced the consort practice with the Tibetan princess. Their practice began from the initial level reaching to the deep level, proceeding from the wonderful stage to the mystical stage. He lost his righteous thoughts of enlightenment and was overtaken by lust. His defiled thoughts blocked him from seeing through the illusion of the beautiful woman, who was none other than a pile of skeletons. Being caught off guard, he was led astray into a sexual fantasy. Ever since then, he was unable to pull himself out of it.
Every time the adept entered meditation, he saw the beautiful woman and they were sexually intimate. Initially, he felt that there was nothing wrong with that. However, it was only much later that he realized the vision was a camouflage of the three poisons, five dusts, and six robberies. The adept had lost the aura of light rewarded from the Great Perfection. All his radiance had been transformed into discriminating thoughts of love and disdain. When the beautiful woman failed to arrive, he was afflicted to an extreme. Subsequently, the adept could no longer cultivate, and his proper thought in enlightenment and endeavors in cultivation had become futile. He was worse than a mundane mortal. What a pity!
Here is a verse that I wrote in regards to this incident:
The practice of union is a supreme path,
Absence of grasping is the pith teaching,
Illusion and reality have no difference in truth,
A smiling beauty is also a laughing skeleton.
There was another adept who studied the Vajrayana teachings with a lay Buddhist known as Daxin. He professed to hold the lineage transmission of Mahamudra from Guru Tilopa and Guru Naropa. He had also obtained the quintessence from Guru Gampopa, and learned the Heart Essence of the Most Supreme Light of the Nine Vehicles. He completed a two-year dark retreat and was very proud of his supernatural powers.
–To Be Continued–
T292 蓮生活佛英文文集51－無上密與大手印 Spiritual State of Immovability２
- 詳細內容
- 分類：大燈新書上市
●Book 51─Highest Yoga Tantra and Mahamudra
●Written by Master Sheng-yen Lu
●Chapter thirteenth
For more information, please call +1(510)473-4818 or fax +1(510)437-1987.
Contact Address: 3440 Foothill Blvd. Oakland CA 94601, U.S.A.
Perhaps someone might say, “Why have you disclosed the Highest Yoga Tantra and Mahamudra, yet you discourage people to practice the teachings? Aren't you being contradictory?”
My reply is that it is my wish that people know about this rare-to-encounter, supreme dharma. If the affinity is not ripe, people will toss away the book. If the affinity is mature, please quickly seek a true vajra guru and ask for transmission. The reason that I write this book is to preserve the teachings in this world. Someone who receives the genuine transmission and pith instructions from a guru may engage in practice, and he or she will gain phenomenal results in their spiritual realization. On the other hand, if an individual practices Mahamudra superficially, without proper transmission from a vajra master, then he or she is likely to fall into the mara states. So, watch out!
My American disciples have wanted to translate Highest Yoga Tantra and Mahamudra into English, in order to preserve the secrets and pith instructions in the West forever. I have foreseen into the future that a competent individual will incarnate in the West. Upon encountering this book, he or she will help to spread these teachings so that they will flourish and blossom. This is the main reason that I wrote this book.
In the Supreme Bliss state, the most challenging test is none other than the temptation of sexual desire. The seed of sexual desire is inborn, derived from the genes of our parents. An adept without strong stability is an easy prey to sexual desire. As the psychic heat warms up, an adept will see the beautiful woman that he desires gradually appear in an illusion. Being enticed by her seductive gestures and provocative dances from her naked figure, the adept totally fails the sexual test. Practitioners who do not give into sexual temptations are truly rare. When a practitioner succumbs to sexual desire, he is doomed.
A female practitioner will see an attractive man appearing in her mind. He will tempt her into sexual union. After being persuaded, she will be consumed by sexual pleasure. Thus, the result is the same and she will fall into the hands of mara.
Some overestimate their will power, taking no precautions for sexual temptation. That is because they have not encountered such a vicious challenge. Confucius described men and women on earth as “men and women of food and drink.” He also added that “food and sex are part of human nature.” There is truth in the sage's statement. I feel that no one can defy sexual temptation, except for a few adepts who have acquired strong capabilities in stillness and stability.
If a practitioner holds any slightest fear, that fear will magnify into a monster born from his own fear during the supreme stage. The single-horned fearsome monster stands several stories tall, glaring at the practitioner, with its eyes as big as the size of bronze bells. It roars and extends his huge tongue, showing its razor-sharp, knife-like teeth. Sometimes a single mara appears, and at times a legion of maras numbering in the tens of thousands come to terrify the practitioner, hindering him from entering into meditative absorption. Even after he enters meditation, the maras still do not give up on distracting him. Eventually, he can no longer eat and sleep properly. His mind simply breaks down. There are many situations where adepts fall into the mara realms due to their fears. Such occurrences are numerous indeed.
During the illusory visions, many events of joy and sadness manifest themselves. For example, one may witness the death of loved ones or see them tormented in hell. One may see one's spouse leave one or run to embrace another person, and so forth. These are examples of sad visions. On the other hand, joyful occurrences are also just as plentiful, and they include visions of seeing oneself as a king, as Sakyamuni Buddha, as the richest man on earth, or one may be approached from the person that one is most fond of.could fill a big sack. He also saw his disciples cheering at the sight of his many relics. They were all elated.
–To Be Continued–
T291 蓮生活佛英文文集51－無上密與大手印 Spiritual State of Immovability１
- 詳細內容
- 分類：大燈新書上市
●Book 51─Highest Yoga Tantra and Mahamudra
●Written by Master Sheng-yen Lu
●Chapter thirteenth
For more information, please call +1(510)473-4818 or fax +1(510)437-1987.
Contact Address: 3440 Foothill Blvd. Oakland CA 94601, U.S.A.
During the Supreme Bliss state, the winds flow through the channel knots and fan up the [flames of the] psychic heat, which then circulate through the entire body. At this time, mind and matter become a single entity, creating a state of balance and synchronization. The inherent nature of the mind emerges, and divine guidance manifests. This stage is considered the initial stage of samadhi in Mahamudra.
After the initial state, if the practitioner can tune his inherent mind to the supreme consciousness of the cosmos and immerse in the deep state of samadhi, the type of meditative absorption experienced will transform from that of a layman to a sage. If he continues to achieve union even after his inherent mind has totally merged with the universe, then he will attain the ability to transform to any spiritual state at will. If he can remain in this state for an extended period of time, including the moment of his departure, he will be able to unshackle himself from the chain of cyclic existence, achieve Buddhahood in the present body, and reap the fruition of great liberation and release.
In the state of Supreme Bliss, hallucinations may appear when the psychic heat passes through the channel knots. These hallucinations are manufactured by the mara states, causing one to potentially have mental disorders. In the supreme state, one will experience a sensation of lightness, as though one is floating in space. One may even find oneself drifting in an ethereal realm, and then disappearing into the void completely. All forms of illusions and delusions suddenly appear and some practitioners will become enthralled by these hallucinations. As a result, they may generate likes and dislikes, or be attached to taking and giving, which causes them to develop grasping. Once grasping arises, they will fall into the net of the mara states. Thus, it is of vital importance throughout the practice to properly handle the hallucinations.
In most Sutrayana traditions, the secrets of the psychic heat practice are a taboo, due to the fear that most mundane humans are not spiritually steady enough. When individuals reach the supreme state, they may fall into the mara states soon after. Therefore, the teachings in the Sutrayana traditions focus on reciting the buddha's name. The teachings emphasize that by relying on the buddhas and the power of Amitabha Buddha, people will be reborn in the Western Paradise of Ultimate Bliss. After arriving there, people can continue to pursue the path of Buddhahood. This is a safer way to avoid the mara states.
I first studied Taoism, followed by Sutrayana, before I finally settled and focused on Vajrayana. I have been wanting to write the Highest Yoga Tantra and Mahamudra book for quite a while. I mastered the Eighteen Assemblies in the Vajrasekhara [Sutra], and received the full pith teachings and transmissions in the Five Tantras of Garbhadhatu. Thus, I am capable of validating the quintessence of the Three Secrets in Vajrayana. However, I see that the natural capacities in sentient beings are quite far apart. Therefore, I want to emphasize that if anyone is inspired by this book and would like to practice the Highest Yoga Tantra, he must first seek an authentic guru, take refuge in him, and receive the empowerments before starting the practice. People should not blindly dive into the practice without proper guidance from a qualified master. In Tibet, only a few adepts have the high qualifications required to practice Mahamudra. Those who merely show vague curiosity, who have insufficient concentration, or who have weak spiritual energy, are destined to fall into the mara states.
Many Tibetan lamas and Chinese Vajrayana practitioners have reservations about the Highest Yoga Tantra and Mahamudra. They are afraid of falling into the mara realms and losing all of their accomplishments due to the lack of timely guidance from the guru, during the Supreme Bliss state. Because additional detailed instructions are required from the vajra guru, owning a copy of the Highest Yoga Tantra and Mahamudra book still does not entitle you to practice Mahamudra. Please remember this point, and remember it well!
–To Be Continued–
