Mahamudra Teachings and Medicine Buddha Teachings (Audio and Unedited Transcript)

By Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche
Crestone, CO USA June 2008 (Archive #1711)

These teachings were given in June 2008 at the White Eagle Conference Center in Crestone, Colorado. Included is the oral transmission of the First Panchen Lama's Root Text for the Precious Gelug/Kagyu Tradition of Mahamudra.

You can also listen to the Chinese translation of the teachings here. Read the edited transcripts of these teachings here.

Day Four Part B: Medicine Buddha Jenang (conclusion)

So if you have not taken the entering vow which involves the abstaining from the eighteen root falls and then forty-six vices, then you can take the wishing vow. Wishing vow it has, involves practicing the four white dharmas, abandoning the four black dharmas, okay, so then, the opening the heart, since you open the heart towards the guru, then, the not telling lies to the guru, and then not deceiving sentient beings and then also the, then, you praised to the bodhisattvas, like that, then, that’s right, then you, people, sentient beings who are around you, you inspire them to practice, to follow the Mahayana path, okay, so like that.

So that’s the four white dharmas. Then the opposite is the four black dharmas, except, the other one, the, other sentient being practicing Dharma, who collects virtue, practices Dharma, then you feel regret, you feel unhappy, you feel regret, the other person practicing Dharma, so like that, so that’s, so that, black dharma to abandon. Otherwise, the opposite is the black dharmas.

So if you can’t, if you are unable to take even that, then, just think I’m practicing more compassion for sentient beings.

[Rinpoche continues with the jenang.]

So please repeat this. So here, next one is requesting the guru, I mean, some are different, eight benefits, ten benefits, two different, ten benefits, and then eight benefits. So however, the last one is, last one is liberation from samsara, enlightenment, so it’s a very important benefit, it has. So each time when you do like this [?Rinpoche shows hands in prostration] to any holy object, okay, Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, all the statues, stupas, scriptures, so unbelievable, unbelievable, unbelievable benefit you get.

This creates enlightenment, this creates, when you prostrate to, not just doing like this, but when you do like this to Buddha, prostrate, that time, you are creating your enlightenment, okay, it’s cause to achieve enlightenment, you have to know that.

So, when you do, in daily life when you do practice, then, after this, then you say, whatever prayer I do, may it be actualized immediately, okay, so you add it that.

So now the Tsen Leg absorbs to the Dra Yang Gyalpo.

Now requesting to the Dra Yang Gyalpo, okay, prostration and refuge.

So it is the same, when you hear different name.

[Rinpoche continues with the jenang.]

So normally when you do daily practice, chö ?to means offering, so whatever offering you have at the house, outside, garden, flower, altar, whatever you have, lights, so everything you offer, okay, how much offering, chö ?to means you’re offering, kyab su chi wo is going for refuge, okay?

So now think, Dra Yang Gyalpo, whatever prayer you have done in the past to me and all sentient beings, may it be actualized immediately, please bless.

So anyway, you just think that. When I say, you just think that, and then it gets done.

Then absorb to the Ser Zang.

[Rinpoche continues with the jenang.]

Then think in your heart, Ser Zang Dri Me, whatever prayer you have done to me and all sentient beings, may it be actualized immediately, right now, please bless.

Absorbed to Nya Ngän Me Chhog.

So each time, what you are requesting, must think that they have accepted your request, very happily.

[Rinpoche continues with the jenang.]

Whatever prayer you have done to me and all sentient beings, may it be actualized immediately.

Nya Ngän Me Chhog then whatever prayer you have done to me and all sentient beings, may it be actualized immediately.

Nya Ngän Me Chhog absorbs to Chhö Drag Gya Tshö.

[Rinpoche continues with the jenang.]

Chhö Drag Gya Tshö, whatever prayer you have done to me and all sentient beings, may it be actualized immediately, please bless.

Absorbed to Ngön kyi Gyalpo.

[Rinpoche continues with the jenang.]

Ngön kyi Gyalpo, whatever prayer you have done to me and all sentient beings, may it be actualized immediately, please bless.

Ngön kyi Gyalpo absorbed to the Medicine Buddha.

[Rinpoche continues with the jenang.]

Then, the so now here, those who have received, lower tantra great initiation like Chenrezig, Compassion Buddha, Miktrukpa, or any lower tantra great initiation, if you have received, then, no question if you have received Highest Tantra, no question. But, yeah, if you have received a great initiation of lower tantra, then Medicine Buddha, you can visualize Medicine Buddha, how to say, then you can generate yourself Medicine Buddha, Medicine Buddha absorbed to you, you can become Medicine Buddha.

But if you haven’t received any great initiation, then you cannot do this meditation. What you should do is then, melted, Medicine Buddha melted in light, melted in light, Medicine Buddha send light, send light within you, then all the negative karma, defilements, completely, all the negative karma, the, all the sicknesses, spirit harm, negative karma, defilements—four things—completely, come out from the anus and from the, come out. Then completely come out, and then your body becomes like, say, calm and clear, like crystal, okay, not crystal, but calm and clear like crystal, okay. So that way now. That’s just there now.

But if you have received a great initiation, any of them, maha-anuttara tantra or lower tantra, then what you do, Medicine Buddha entered in your central channel, come down, so radiating, brightful, come down, then, as it comes down, completely, clean down, all the, these four thing—sickness, spirit harm, negative harm, defilements—all come out, okay, completely come out, then your body become calm and clear, like crystal, and you become Medicine Buddha, okay, Medicine Buddha, then with the entourage, then, right side Dawa ______ _______, left side Nyima _____ ______, okay, also with all those entourage, bodhisattvas, okay, so like that.

Then, OM AH HUNG, visualize, blessing the three doors.

So then beams emitted from the guru that you visualized as Medicine Buddha, from the heart beams emitted away, inconceivable beams and invoked seven Medicine Buddhas, and then all other buddhas, bodhisattvas, so everyone invoked, absorbed on your crown, okay.

[Rinpoche continues with the jenang.]

Then, from the, where the, altar, the Medicine Buddha, and then from the guru, the visualized in Medicine Buddha’s heart, Medicine Buddhas like Mt. Meru, so small like atoms, numberless, absorbed through your crown, and through your pores of the body, okay, so blessed, bless your mind, your heart.

In the center there’s HUNG, okay, and then you generate strong devotion to the guru, thinking that Medicine Buddha, okay. Then from the guru’s heart, mantra came, through the holy mouth of the guru, entered in your mouth, okay, and it is decorated around at your heart, around the HUNG, okay. So repeat the mantra.

[Rinpoche gives transmission of the Medicine Buddha mantra: TADYATHA OM BHEKHANDZYE BHEKHANDZYE MAHA BHEKHANDZYE BHEKHANDZYE RAJA SAMUDGATE SVAHA.]

That’s the heart mantra, now the near-heart mantra. Here in the text it says the first one is the nearing-heart mantra, and the next one, it doesn’t say, but, usually the heart mantra is, the, should be the first one, anyway,

[Rinpoche gives transmission of OM NAMO BHAGAVATE BHEKHANDZYE GURU BAIDURYA PRABHA RAJAYA TATHAGATAYA ARHATE SAMYAKSAM BUDDHAYA TADYATHA OM BHEKHANDZYE RAJA SAMUDGATE SVAHA.]

So you don’t need to repeat, repeat, I just do the lung, just read, the long mantra. So, when you have very important success, for anything, for sicknesses, whatever, so this is very good to chant this long one, twenty-one or whatever number, it’s very, very good.

[Rinpoche gives the oral transmission of the long Medicine Buddha mantra.]

Then, offering flower to the guru, the, then please repeat this.

[Rinpoche continues with the jenang.]

I’m going to, say, hold, please, please be near me, or please be one with me, so.

Okay, so now next one. Then the flower that you offered, think blessed by the guru in garlands of flowers, and then placed on your crown, okay, and blessed you like that.

[Rinpoche continues with the jenang.]

In the mental continuum of the vajra disciples. [Tibetan]

Then, traditionally there’s, because it has unbelievable, unbelievable benefit, so therefore, there’s a kind of a commitment that, to recite this mantra, to devote to Medicine Buddha as mind-seal deity, yidam, and then recite the mantra, okay. So there’s no particular number, except, how, you can, when you take commitment, you can take less, but actually you can recite more. When you recite more, but when you take commitment, you can take, a little number, but actually when you recite, you can recite more. So, this way, how to say, so then, okay.

I’m going to take as yidam, the Medicine Buddha until I achieve enlightenment. Then recite this mantra, this number, this many numbers of mantra every day, so like that.

[Rinpoche continues with the jenang.]

Be guided as a disciple, please guide me as a disciple, then, I offer also part of my things, like that.

So now, here, the lineage of this initiation, so, to show, the references, not just somebody made it up, not like that, lineage of the initiation, so from Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, starts from Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, to Manjushri, ____ ______, I read very quickly, okay, so the names.

[Rinpoche recites the names in Tibetan.]

Just here, because one talk, I didn’t, say the, I mentioned the red light, blue light, but I didn’t, then went on, but didn’t, so I just, I gave you all the examples, so, here just, so, so gave the example, the line, like this, first you see this line, then afterwards, somebody teaches you, that this is A, then you believe, then your mind labels, with belief, and then you have the appearance, then you see A. So seeing A comes much later.

So then, so then each time when you, so then, now here, you have to understand, each time when you see the A, , each time you see the A, you have to see something first; you have to see something first, which causes, some particular design you have to see first, which causes your mind to label, A, okay, which you are taught by somebody. So, so the first you have to see this one, that’s the base, that is the base, okay. So, because you are educated by somebody, the label of that, A. So then, then first you see this, then your mind labels, A, so what you see first is the base, okay, which causes your mind to choose this particular label, A, okay.

So base comes first, you see the base first, then you label, then you see the label, okay, then you label A, after. You don’t see the A before, you don’t see the A before seeing the base, okay. You don’t see the base, this one, this line, the base, and A together, no, it comes later. The label, you see the base first, then you see the label, A, after your mind labels, okay? So after, it has to come after, okay, so you have to get that.

So, therefore, now, when you drive in car, we think, you see the red light first, green light first, no. That’s wrong, that’s totally hallucination, wrong. So, you have to see something which makes you to choose the label, green, and red. So, okay, so therefore, what very first thing you see? What you see very first thing that you see, that’s green light, red, no. Not that. What you are seeing first is the base, then, after seeing that, then your mind, then labels, green or red, okay, comes after, the label comes after. But this is, how this evolution happened, I mean this is so subtle, the graduate, you see the base first, the base first, what you see the first is the base. So, anyway, so, then after that your mind labels red and green, it comes after, the label comes after. So then you see red and green, okay. You don’t see red and green at the very beginning. You have to see the base first, that thing, you have to see first, then label red, green comes after, then you see the label, okay.

So, therefore, so, this is so subtle, so, it’s total wrong belief, from the very beginning you see red light, no, like this example here, you can see very clear, so like that.

So, so therefore, appearing to you, the red and green light, red, green light, it never came from your mind, it came from its own side. So, however, that’s very gross, gross wrong view. But, just, you see red, green light existing from its own side, you see, you never see it merely imputed by your mind right now, you don’t see that, and then, appeared existing from its own side, okay, now that is the object to be refuted, that’s the object to be refuted. You see the red, green light from its own side, oh that’s the object to be refuted, that’s totally empty, doesn’t exist there, totally, doesn’t exist there, totally empty, okay. So therefore, so, what is a green light, red light is what is merely imputed by your mind, so that exists.

So, therefore, when we drive a car, we have to stop there, so it’s good to meditate on emptiness, take opportunity to meditate on emptiness, red light and green light, meditate on emptiness, okay. So anyway, we have to stop so many times, so it’s a good opportunity, even though you didn’t get to meditate on emptiness at the house, but in the road, so the road gives a lot of opportunities to meditate on emptiness.

Then the other thing, I’m not going to talk other things here, the other things which maybe didn’t finish, about the pleasure, those things.

But, however, I want to say something, I want to say something very important. So, I talked about beginningless rebirth, life, there’s six realms, in just the animal, how many different animals, insects, unbelievable, unbelievable, so we have, yourself have gone through this. Yourself have gone through this numberless animals just that, big, small, all kinds, even butterflies, so many kinds, and each type is so many kinds, so you have gone through this numberless times, you have gone through this numberless times. Whatever animal you see on TV or, worms, whatever, we have gone through all this, whatever looks strange, we have gone through this numberless times, okay, not even Buddha can see the beginning, okay? Okay? Just think of animals, numberless times, we are born like that, numberless times from beginningless rebirth.

So no question about the hungry ghosts, hell, human beings, whatever different style of life, okay, from beginningless rebirth.

Now, also, after this life, after this life, also, until we are free from samsara, until we get free from samsara, numberless, numberless, until, depends on when you get, depends how, depends when you get out of samsara, so otherwise, if not, numberless, numberless, numberless, what we see all these animals in the ocean, wherever it is, so much suffering, you have experienced numberless.

So, so now, this life, very short, so this life, nothing, very short, very short, like lightning, nighttime, so you see things, then it went away, it appeared, it went, so, it’s very short. Therefore, now, this is very important. So this, the reason why I want to say this, when you think of this, relationship problems, nothing. When you think of this, relationship problems, no problems, you lost friend or whatever, somebody like, somebody doesn’t like, whatever happens, whatever happens, this life is nothing, it’s nothing, you lost business, whatever, all this, this life is very short, so it’s nothing. So, it doesn’t really bother you. If you think, the numberless, all that life you think, then you think of future, so, what other people say to you, how they love you, they respect you, they don’t, how they treat, abuse, what treat you, whatever, what they say is nothing, whatever, even if you have cancer, or whatever, it’s just, life is very, very short. I mean, even if you don’t have cancer there are so many other full of conditions for death, full of conditions of death in the life, car accidents, so many things, so, so it’s not only cancer.

So, anyway, this life is very short, this is just very short. So, so that’s, you see, so the pure Dharma practitioner who renounce this life, so why, when somebody criticizes it doesn’t bother, when somebody praise, it doesn’t bother, so whatever happens, it doesn’t bother, so there’s so much peace, so that’s because of that. So the person, that person, why? Because the person realizes this is very short, nothing really so what the person, important is all the happiness to have all the future lives, liberation and enlightenment is more important than the things of this life, now, could happen, doesn’t happen, so you see.

So, you see, so when you think of this, delusion does not rise, attachment doesn’t rise, anger doesn’t rise, so, this, thinking this is a great, even relationship problems, lost the friend or the, say, husband, wife, whatever it is, even died or gone to somebody else or, you see, now, if you think this, if you think this, it’s nothing. So, I just wanted to say that one, okay, it’s a very important technique for, the, helps to not rise delusion, so, you have peace all the time, so you get done, you get done your practice, you get done to benefit others, so okay, like that.

Yeah, I think that’s it.

Dag gi ji nye sag päi ge wa di….

[Rinpoche and group recite short mandala offering.]

Due to all the past, present, future merits collected by me, three time merits collected by others…. Oh, did you mention?

[Chinese translation]

So therefore, now you can see Dharma practice, now you can hear, nothing more important than Dharma practice, after I mentioned this, after I give this explanation, in the life, nothing more important than Dharma practice, to be free from samsara, to be free from all these sufferings of these different realms, okay. So, that’s the conclusion, there’s a method and ?that’s Dharma practice to be free from suffering, samsara.

So the red light, green light, the, inseparable with the base, you cannot differentiate, it becomes undifferentiable, and that is the definition of object to be refuted, gak cha according to His Holiness Ling Rinpoche, explained like that. So, when you drive, when you look at it, undifferentiable base and the label, oh, that’s the gak cha.

So that’s it.

So, sorry, I didn’t come in the morning to give teachings, so then Chiu-Nan Lai, then, and Kyabje René, Kyabje René, so, anyway, so, so guided meditation, so, he did retreat many years, so I think it’s, so very, very good. So, anyway, I think this place is, yeah, begins, it seems some special, for practice, it seems, it has something special, something which gives, I think, encouragement, for long retreat, you see, like that. Somehow the place it gives, easy to, say, no difficulties to make decision for long, for many years retreat, to practice Dharma, so I think, so, looks like that.

So, anyway, so I didn’t, sorry, Chiu-Nan Lai invited to do course here a few times, but it didn’t happen, so, of course, I must apologize. [RL] And then, so I’m very happy that I did make this time, and, so, ?due to her kindness, so I would like to thank, for this life and all past lives, okay, so thank you.

Thank you very much. Thank you so much, thank you very much. This is Medicine Buddha.

[Chiu-Nan Lai: Rinpoche, on behalf of all sentient beings, we are requesting you come back very, very soon, again, and again, and again. Make this place your home.]

Tomorrow. Tomorrow. Thank you very much. Thank you. Very good.

So, due to all the past, present, future merits collected by oneself, and all the three time merits collected by others, then, oneself, any people [in your house?] who count, just merely being in this world, then may it cause, say, all the sentient beings living in this universe, world, country, area, house, all those sentient beings, then, you see, their negative karma, get immediately purified, just your, just merely your being in this universe, country, world, okay, all those sentient beings, you see, including your house, so everybody, their negative karma immediately get purified, okay, and never get reborn in the lower realms, and, then they actualize, say, they finally created rich karma, refuge in the Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, they find faith in _ and karma, and then actualize Bodhicitta, may they achieve enlightenment as quickly as possible.

And, may war, famine, disease, _sicknessses, danger, fires, wars, or air, earthquakes, wherever this happens, may this, wherever it’s happening the danger, may it be stopped immediately. May nobody in this world experience all these forever.

Then, due to all the past, present, future merits collected by oneself, three time merits collected by others, that which, all the merits which are collected during this retreat, okay, so, if you don’t dedicate to achieve enlightenment, you see, then, so that merits, then does not become, you see, the cause of that, and also, you know, inexhaustible, you see, that work finishes, how much you enjoy, you see, so that it becomes that, and also then, if you don’t dedicate the merits by sealing with emptiness, even though we worked very hard, say, you know, put a lot of time, life, toward practice, but then, if you don’t dedicate the merits, if you don’t know how to dedicate merits, if you don’t dedicate merits by sealing with emptiness, then, when the heresy, anger arises, they can get destroyed, or become, even if it is dedicated to achieve enlightenment, but if you don’t seal with emptiness, they still get destroyed, don’t get destroyed completely, but they are going less.

So therefore it’s very, very important, not only dedicate to achieve enlightenment, but, but sealing with emptiness, so, then, heresy, anger arises, it cannot destroy your merits protected, because emptiness is the one that which eliminates the root of all the suffering—ignorance—so it has that power.

So due to all the past, present, future merits collected by oneself, three time merits collected by others, others means all sentient beings, not only some people, all sentient beings, even bodhisattvas, that doesn’t mean a few people, some friends, you see, and then, including Buddha. Other means everybody, including Buddha, okay, so due to all the three time merits collected by oneself, and three time merits collected by others, okay, that which, say, okay, that which exists, but which is totally empty, non-existent from its own side, empty, okay, so like that.

May the I who is, who exists but who is totally empty from its own side, achieve Guru Shakyamuni Buddha’s enlightenment which exists, but which is totally empty from its own side, and lead all the sentient beings, who exist, but who are totally empty from their own side, to that Guru Shakyamuni Buddha’s enlightenment, which exists but which is totally empty from its own side, by myself alone, who exists but who is totally empty from its own side.

I dedicate all the merits to be able to follow holy extensive deeds of bodhisattvas Samantabhadra and Manjugosha as they realizes, I dedicate all the merits in the same way as the three time buddhas dedicate their merits.

So this is a very, this is the heart prayer, this contains the, you know, Bodhisattva Samantabhadra’s prayer, King of Prayers, it’s the heart of that.

[Rinpoche chants in Tibetan]

So I don’t know what I did. But, anyway, so it’s finished.

So, anyway, so I would like to thank very much to everyone for, everybody who came here, and then like that, I already said [?] that all of you are in my prayers, okay, so thank you so much.

Thank you very much. Okay, thank you.