Teachings at Medicine Buddha Puja (Audio and Unedited Transcripts)

By Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche
Shakyamuni Center, Taiwan 2007 (Archive #1610)

Lama Zopa Rinpoche gave these teachings during a Medicine Buddha Puja at Shakyamuni Center, Taichung, Taiwan on March 10, 2007. The teachings include extensive commentary on the Thirty-five Buddhas practice, the offering bath and dedications, along with the recitation of the puja.

The teachings were being translated into Chinese and while we have edited those sections out you may still occasionally hear the Chinese interpreter's voice in the background.

Medicine Buddha Puja Dedications

So now, no negative karma, no even negative imprints left, totally, completely purified, the mental continuum is totally pure.

Even one die now, even one suddenly die now, no regret. The mind is very happy, like that, nothing to be afraid to.

So like that state of mind, completely purified.

Now rejoice, the Lama Tsongkhapa, particularly Lama Tsongkhapa, all his three-time merits, and then rejoice Lama Tsongkhapa’s the qualities, the skies of qualities of his holy body, holy speech, holy mind, he has. And then the extensive benefits that, the special extensive benefits that offered to sentient beings, teaching of Buddha. Skies of benefit offered to sentient beings, teaching of Buddha, and made the clearest explanation of the Buddha’s teachings, sutra and tantra, all the most difficult points, that many meditators made mistakes, many learned ones. So here, Lama Tsongkhapa made the clearest explanation and made it so easy to have correct understanding and practice and realizations, and to achieve enlightenment quickly, to achieve enlightenment easily, as well as tantra. So rejoice.

So many enlightened beings happened in the past from Lama Tsongkhapa’s teachings, now and which will be in the future, so rejoice.

Now rejoice all the Lama Tsongkhapa’s disciples, New Kadampa tradition, the lineage lamas, all their three-time merits.

Present, future merits, and all their qualities and all the extensive benefits for sentient beings.

And then rejoice the present gurus, especially His Holiness the Dalai Lama, then all the other, Kyabje Chöden Rinpoche and Kyabje _______ Rinpoche, ________ Rinpoche, so, then the Geshe Lama Konchog, all the, then all their three-time merits, and all their skies of qualities what they have, and their inconceivable benefit to sentient beings, like His Holiness, that millions of people so, in this world, so millions of people get so much benefit, every different parts of the world, millions of people get so much benefit, so their hearts get transformed into good heart, loving kindness and compassion, so they get so much peace and happiness, all that, however, plant the seed of enlightenment so much, even by one hour talk, so even by seeing, even by just seeing His Holiness, and then their minds get transformed, get so much benefit, deep benefit, and plant the seed of enlightenment, so we rejoice.

So today, I’m not sure whether there’s another day we’ve collected that much merit like today, extensive merit by rejoicing very extensively and offering very extensively this time, so that seven limb practice. However, that some may not, might be today the first time. So, anyway, so rejoicing all those merit field, lineage lamas, all their qualities, all their extensive benefit to sentient beings, so we create the cause, sooner or later to have the same qualities as Lama Tsongkhapa, all the rest, same qualities we create, today we created so much cause to have same qualities as them, like Guru Shakyamuni Buddha, then to be able to offer limitless skies of benefit to sentient beings like them, we create so much cause for that. So, sooner or later to be like that.

So, then, the next one, requesting to turn the Dharma wheel by offering the thousand-spoke golden dharmachakra, numberless yourself all the way round, cover the ground, numberless yourself offering dharmachakra to the merit field, okay?

And then the golden throne with the double vajra, eight snow lions raised up, decorated with beautiful jewels. Then requesting to have a stable life. To the gurus, then the buddhas in nirmanakaya aspect, so like that.

[Rinpoche continues with the Medicine Buddha Puja.]

Since we’ve collected extensive merits, then we dedicate, extensive dedication for sentient beings, King of Prayers. You can do it in Japanese language. King of Prayers.

King of the Prayer.

[The group chants King of Prayers in Chinese, while Rinpoche does protector prayers in Tibetan.]

The Four-Arm Mahakala.

[Ven. Sophia leads the Praise to Four-Arm Mahakala in Chinese.]

Secret Hayagriva.

[Rinpoche chants in Tibetan.]

So, by making offerings to Medicine Buddha, we collected merits, each time we have made offering to Medicine Buddha, we collected merits exactly the same amount of merit we offered to all the buddhas, every time when we made offering to Buddha, Medicine Buddha, so from each offering, from each light, from each water, from each incense, from each offering to Medicine Buddha, from each offering, each offering, water, incense, water, food, by offering to Medicine Buddha, we’ve collected the same amount of merit we offered each of those to all the buddhas. So that’s unimaginable merits, unimaginable.

Not only offerings here but the offerings in the FPMT centers’ gompas, and also those different places, Aptos house, Washington, all those places. So there’s so many offerings there. So, even just from that, numberless cause of enlightenment, numberless cause of liberation, numberless cause of happiness of future lives, and no question this life, so even just from that.

By offering to Medicine Buddha, that’s one benefit.

The other one, the twelve groups of protectors, not potatoes, protectors, so each one is surrounded by 700,000 protectors, so they all protect you every day, even just by making offering to Medicine Buddha it has this benefit. So that makes it great success and protection.

Then, each time when we made offering to, each time we made offerings, the first offering to the Medicine Buddha, the eight bodhisattvas, Dharma protectors, so all the gurus, numberless buddhas, numberless Dharma, numberless Sangha, already, so many times limitless skies of merit, so many times we collect by just from that, numberless causes of enlightenment, liberation, happiness of future lives.

Then after that we made offering to numberless Buddha, Dharma, Sangha, by thinking of the guru. So especially by thinking of the guru, then, most extensive merit that many times, numberless times, we collected like that, three times we collected.

So, again numberless causes of enlightenment, liberation, happiness of future lives, so many times like that, so many times. Then again, numberless statues, stupas, scriptures, all the holy objects, by thinking of the guru, again, most extensive merit we collected numberless times, more than three times, and then, again numberless causes of enlightenment, liberation, and happiness of future lives we collected with each offering. Today, we did offering with each Christmas light, with each water, incense. With each offering we collected, so so many times, that’s just I’m talking about here one time, one seven limb, but then there’s many seven limbs that we did. So therefore, must rejoice, “How fortunate today my life has been so unbelievable, like a dream, purified so much negative karma and collected unbelievable merits, made so much closer to enlightenment, to liberation from samsara, so much closer to have attainment.

So, all this incredible benefit we have opportunity, we have received, all this then due to His Holiness the Dalai Lama’s kindness. So, without his existence in this world, we wouldn’t have this opportunity, and without him being out of Tibet, we wouldn’t have this opportunity. So this is completely by His Holiness’s kindness that I have this opportunity to participate, to explain, to participate with you and that you are able to have this opportunity to practice. So it’s completely by His Holiness’s kindness. So therefore, every single understanding of Dharma, every single purification and collecting merits, every single imprint of enlightenment in the mind is all by the kindness of His Holiness the Dalai Lama, so therefore, we should dedicate all this extensive merit for the very first thing, to His Holiness to have a stable life, all the holy wishes to be succeed, and this coming year is obstacle, this year is obstacle year according to the ordinary view of sentient beings, so to be pacified immediately, nothing, not even the smallest to be experienced.

So to dedicate, okay? So like that, very strong dedication from the heart. Then to be guided by Compassion Buddha, Chenrezig, His Holiness, in all the lifetimes, like that. That, so many you may have received teachings, initiations, in the past also here in Taiwan, so then real Chenrezig, real Compassion Buddha, so to be guided in all the lifetimes, okay? So we are going to dedicate for that.

All the merits collected by oneself, and all the merits collected by other sentient beings, all together then we dedicate like this.

Gang ri ra wäi….

The next prayer, His Holiness, all the wishes to be succeed immediately. That, the top leaders of mainland China, then to be able to realize that His Holiness is the embodiment of all the buddhas’ compassion, not ordinary leader, embodiment of all the buddhas’ compassion, and then totally devoted, do exactly what His Holiness wishes, and invite in China that give teachings to all the billions of people that they unbelievable, they get opportunity to have Dharma happiness like the sun shining, unbelievable happiness. So like that, freedom to have, as well as in Tibet, then like this, same in Tibet, and then, _____ _______ guide, and then, the even more bodhisattvas, buddhas, to, may, to happen in Tibet more than before, and then by preserving the complete Buddhadharma, the whole entire Buddhadharma, then in that way, the rest of the world, the Buddhism last a long time, and to be flourished, like that.

[Rinpoche chants the prayer for the fulfillment of His Holiness’s wishes.]

Then, the second, next, then there’s so many people got benefit from the learning Buddhism from FPMT centers, the students by creating the centers, then, so many sentient beings, so many people meet, so studied Dharma, lamrim, and receive initiations and tantric teachings, and, so again, all these unbelievable opportunities also from FPMT centers one learned, received, all these unbelievable opportunities, sutra and tantra, from any, from great lamas or from geshes, from the FPMT centers, and that is, then that is the second one, completely by the kindness of the great master, Lama Yeshe, even though you cannot see, you haven’t met in the past, but the kindness is still happening, so that’s due to his kindness, who is the founder of this organization, so therefore all his wishes be, we dedicate the merits, the extensive merits today, all his wishes to be succeed, whatever intentions he has to be succeed immediately, and Lama Osel Rinpoche to be, he was in Taiwan, did long-life initiation and maybe there’s 1000 people or something like that, so some time ago. So anyway, Lama Osel Rinpoche, then to be dynamic teacher in this world, inspiration for young people, liberating them from all the problems and emotional problems, bring, give light in the young people’s lives, and to bring to liberation and enlightenment. So to become dynamic teacher, spiritual teacher, inspiring the whole world, and then that and be like Lama Tsongkhapa, okay?

Then, same, Geshe Lama Konchog’s reincarnation to have long life, and then to complete the Dharma studies as quick as possible and spread Dharma in this world, so again like the sun shining, dynamic teacher.

Then, Kyabje Kirti Tsenshab Rinpoche to return back as quick as possible, take a new holy body, inspiring face, new holy body, then turn the Dharma wheel more than before, again guide us sentient beings, as well as Kyabje Chogye Trichen Rinpoche, who recently passed away, from whom I received many initiations, then same, similar like that. Think Kyabje Ribur Rinpoche also the same. So to quickly return back. So to be able to meet quickly, and then turn Dharma in this world, like that.

Je tsün la mäi ku tshe rab tän ching…

As I mentioned before then also dedicate now merits: Due to all the three-time merits collected by me and the three-time merits collected by others, then, all the Sanghas and particular Sanghas in the organization, then able to, first, holy beings in different traditions, who are in this world only to benefit others, may they have long life, all their holy wishes to be succeeded immediately.

Then Sanghas, the general Sanghas in the world and Sanghas here in this organization, be able to complete, able to have long life and able to complete their scriptural understandings, realizations of the path to enlightenment, able to complete in this very lifetime by living in pure vinaya, and receiving all the needs, all the protection, in their lives, to happen that.

Then also all the, all of us here, due to all the three-time merits collected by me, the three-time merits collected by others, all of us here, everyone and all the family members, then everybody who has a connection, anyone who has connection to the family member, everybody, then have a long life, to be healthy, all the wishes to be succeed immediately, everyone I said, including the whole family, then, all the wishes to be succeed immediately, everybody have a long life to be healthy, all their wishes to be succeed immediately according to the holy Dharma.

And most important, able to actualize the stainless teaching of Lama Tsongkhapa, unified of sutra and tantra, the whole lamrim from guru devotion up to enlightenment, especially bodhicitta, clear light, in this very lifetime.

Now, similar, in this organization, all the organizers in this FPMT organization and all the students, and supporters, benefactors, there are so many who give up their life, sacrifice their life to the organization doing service to sentient beings, teaching of Buddha, so and those who rely upon me, whom I promised to pray, whose name is given to me, including those, then doing service, so everybody, then, also same, have a long life, to be healthy, all their wishes be succeed immediately according to the holy Dharma, and then actualize the stainless teaching of Lama Tsongkhapa, unified of sutra and tantra, in this very lifetime.

Same, then, also the, all the supporters of the teaching of Buddha, the Sanghas in this world, also to have long life, all their wishes to be succeed, to serve the teachings of Buddha, to the Sangha, to _______ that.

Then, any family members who passed away, any of your family members who passed away, we dedicate all the merits also for them, any family members who have passed away in the past, and that, then the numberless beings who are unimaginably suffering in the hells, hungry ghosts, animals, and all those students who have passed away up to now in this organization, and then those who rely upon me, whom I promised to pray, whose names are given to me, those who have died, and those, there are two people, one who committed suicide, one girl…. Girl or boy?

[Huang Chen Ru: Girl.]

So the two people. Those who request to pray, then, so all those, then, may they immediately get liberated from those heaviest sufferings of the lower realms, and then, may they be born in the pure land where they can become enlightened or may they receive perfect human body, may they meet the perfectly qualified Mahayana guru, Mahayana teachings, and from a very young time, so receive a perfect human rebirth, and very young time to be ordained, to live in the ordination of renunciation, and then, like this. Then, by only pleasing most the virtuous friend, with body, speech, and mind, with the guru yoga mind seeing Buddha, so correctly devoting with thought and action, so like that. So then, train the mind in the three principal aspects of the path, and achieve the generation stage which is ripening the mind, and the liberating path, the completion stage, then to actualize, then, achieve the Vajradhara, that which has seven qualities, embracing so forth, the seven qualities. So to achieve that as quick as possible.

May they achieve this as quick as possible. Any family members who passed away, us here, then all the rest.

So one thing, what I can remember, last time when I was here, the Mister Lim, who was, last time when I was here, s/he was there, so that one thing I remember. So same, we dedicate, I remember in the past, I think maybe in Taichung where there was a long life puja, and he acted as long-life man, Mister Lim acted long-life man. So, now he is not here. So, same, same dedication, for Mister Lim, who passed away, so there to be, to find perfect human rebirth and to actualize the path, and achieve enlightenment as quick as possible, okay?

Then, all the activities in the organization, continue offering service to monasteries, offering food, and the money offering, money offering, the teachers in the monasteries, Sera, Gaden, Drepung, Tashi Lhunpo and then the two tantric colleges, then ?other monasteries, so forth, there’s also other monasteries, so all those service to be able to continue and the building monasteries, nunneries at different, retreat places, the different parts of the world, those to be accomplished, by His Holiness, and as well as building all the Maitreya statues, and the other statues in different parts of the world, all those to be accomplished, receiving all the needs, and as well as all the social services to be, as I explained before to be, to be succeed and to be most beneficial for sentient beings, all the different social services.

And then, every center, including this Shakyamuni Buddha Center, all the centers here, and all the rest of the centers in different parts of the world to be most beneficial for sentient beings, and cause to generate, find faith in refuge, karma in the hearts of all sentient beings, then loving kindness, compassion, bodhicitta, in the hearts of sentient beings. Then spread Lama Tsongkhapa’s teachings in the hearts of all sentient beings, bring them to enlightenment as quickly as possible. Whatever projects they have, each center, social service or Dharma, spreading Dharma, whatever projects they have, then, to be accomplished, some are buying a house or buying land or looking for a new place, or some, all the building centers, and so forth, all those things to be accomplished immediately.

So anybody who attends, who comes to the center to learn, who put their feet there, immediately their negative karma get purified and may they never ever get reborn in the lower realms, immediately they find faith in refuge, karma, actualize bodhicitta, the minute they come to the center, and realize emptiness, to achieve enlightenment as quickly as possible.

Then, the minute when they come there, all the emotional problems, physical problems, sickness immediately, everything get healed, and free from spirit harms, like that.

So the bodhicitta be generated in the hearts of all the sentient beings, and particularly in this world, in the leaders of the world, and in the leaders of all the Buddhist, Hindu, Muslim, Christian, all the religious people’s hearts the bodhicitta to be generated.

So no suicidal bombs, all these threats and all this unbelievable sufferings to be ended, and only peace and happiness ?revealed in this, okay, in the world. So pray that.

Jang chhub sem chhog rin po chhe…. [3x]

The lamrim dedication.

[The group recites Final Lam-Rim Prayer, then Lama Tsongkhapa dedication prayers.]

The, we have to recite the, so so many merits we collected so the multiply each merit 100,000 times, the mantra, the Buddha’s names, then after that, the Medicine Buddha’s names, and particular Buddha’s name, all the prayers we do to be actualized.

[The group recites the multiplying mantras.]

Due to the blessings of the eminent buddhas and bodhisattvas, due to my special attitude, and unbetrayable dependent arising, may all my pure prayers be succeed immediately.

[Rinpoche chants the verse in Tibetan.]

So, good morning, and good night. As usual. Nothing new.

Sorry, if any caused inconvenient or caused any sleeping or anything.

So, this great opportunity we have also from the center, from the center organizers due to their kindness, so they arranged this, organized the puja so it came from their kindness.

So here, I mentioned a few days ago, here Geshe ?Khedup and Geshe Gyurme, they both, they have studied extremely well in the monastery. They are Lharampa geshes, they passed the examination, all this, so, that, the translator, one who has, Huang Po Chen or something like that, so he made a comment that he had been translating for many other teachers, but that Geshe Gyurme is a great teacher, he expressed to Sophia, so somebody who knew Tibetan well and who knew scriptures, so that was his experience. So it’s good to study, to take the opportunity to study and so the more we study Dharma, the less ignorance and less ignorance, so that means less mistake in the practice, in the realizations, so like that, so it makes to achieve enlightenment easier.

[There’s a problem with Rinpoche’s microphone.]

I think it gave up. It said, “I’m hopeless.”

Okay, so thank you very much.