Great Treasury of Merit. Geshe Kelsang Gyatso

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СКАЧАТЬ tradition such demonstrations have little meaning. After all, birds can fly in the sky and mice can travel beneath the ground, but they remain as deluded as before, and are no nearer to liberation or enlightenment as a result. Moreover, during our countless former lives each one of us has possessed miracle powers many times, but our minds remain clouded in ignorance and we continue to take uncontrolled rebirths in states of suffering.

      As a manifestation of the Wisdom Buddha Manjushri, Je Tsongkhapa realized that the best way to help living beings to overcome their ignorance was to set a good example and to give clear and profound teachings. Like a mother caring for her children, Je Tsongkhapa devoted his whole life to helping others eliminate their ignorance through his clear and profound teachings.

      Je Tsongkhapa’s teachings are like keys that unlock the meaning of Buddha’s Sutras and Tantras. Without Je Tsongkhapa’s works, simply by reading the scriptures we would find it impossible to discover Buddha’s intention. These days we are able to practise the stages of the path to enlightenment, Lamrim, only because of the kindness of Je Tsongkhapa. The Lamrim teachings originated from Buddha himself, but they were arranged in their systematic form by Atisha, the great Indian Buddhist Master who was invited to Tibet by the king, Jangchub Ö. Everyone regards Atisha as very kind because he founded the pure tradition known as the Kadampa Tradition and because he wrote the original Lamrim text, Lamp for the Path, but if we look at this text we will see that it is only a few pages long and that the complex meaning of all the stages of the path to enlightenment is condensed into very few words. Without explanation and commentary it is impossible for us to understand these teachings and put them into practice. It was Je Tsongkhapa who provided the essential explanations that enable us to practise Atisha’s precious instructions. In his Great, Middling, and Condensed Expositions of the Stages of the Path, Je Tsongkhapa provides a completely clear and unmistaken guide to each of the essential practices of the path to enlightenment.

      Je Tsongkhapa gave an especially clear and unmistaken explanation of profound emptiness according to the view of Protector Nagarjuna. Prior to Je Tsongkhapa’s appearance in Tibet many practitioners had developed misunderstandings with respect to Buddha’s teachings on emptiness. Unable to distinguish the precise object of negation, they fell into the extremes of permanence and nothingness. Many Tibetans felt that if phenomena were completely empty of inherent existence it would be impossible to establish the infallibility of cause and effect, and so there would be no basis for practising moral discipline or other method practices such as compassion or bodhichitta. On the other hand, they felt that if there were a basis for the method practices, phenomena would exist from their own side, and consequently emptiness would be impossible. Je Tsongkhapa showed the errors in this way of thinking and clearly established that there is no contradiction between emptiness, the lack of inherent existence of all phenomena, and non-deceptive cause and effect. In this way he was able to establish the correct view of the middle way according to Nagarjuna’s intention and thereby protect his followers from falling into the two extremes.

      Besides Lamrim, Dharma practitioners today are also able to practise the special methods of training the mind, or Lojong. These practices, which are extracted from Lamrim and given particular emphasis, are powerful methods for generating a special bodhichitta through the practice of equalizing and exchanging self with others combined with the practice of taking and giving. As with Lamrim, the original instructions on Lojong are very brief and difficult for us to understand. For example, Geshe Chekhawa’s root text, Training the Mind in Seven Points, is only two pages long. If we were to try to practise Lojong by relying upon this text alone we would find it very difficult to make progress. Je Tsongkhapa’s commentaries unlock the hidden meaning of the texts on training the mind and enable us to put them into practice. We are able to practise the instructions on training the mind today only through the kindness of Je Tsongkhapa.

      Je Tsongkhapa’s works are also indispensable for the practice of Secret Mantra. If we were to try to practise Secret Mantra by relying upon the Tantras alone we would find the scriptures indecipherable. Without Je Tsongkhapa’s commentaries to unlock their meaning, scriptures such as Vajradhara’s Root Tantra of Guhyasamaja, or his Heruka Root Tantra, which also includes the instructions on Vajrayogini Tantra, would be like sealed treasure chests to which we could not gain access. In his Tantric teachings, Je Tsongkhapa explains the essential practices of all Tantric Deities. These days, for example, many people are able to practise the special yogas of Heruka and Vajrayogini only through the kindness of Je Tsongkhapa. Following Je Tsongkhapa’s explanations, later Teachers wrote the exceptional sadhanas and commentaries of Heruka and Vajrayogini that are practised today.

      From his profound wisdom Je Tsongkhapa presented a very special arrangement of Sutra and Tantra practices which, if followed sincerely, can lead to full enlightenment in one short human life. According to this arrangement we begin by practising Lamrim, the stages of the path, then we progress to Lojong, training the mind, and finally we advance to Vajrayana Mahamudra, which is the actual quick path to enlightenment. There is a Tibetan saying, ‘cho ma nor chag lam lo sum’, which means ‘The unmistaken Dharma is Lamrim, Lojong, and Mahamudra.’ Je Tsongkhapa taught how to incorporate all Dharma practices into this sequence. The first two, Lamrim and Lojong, are preliminary practices and Vajrayana Mahamudra is the actual practice. Many of Je Tsongkhapa’s faithful followers have reached enlightenment in three years by practising the Vajrayana Mahamudra of the Gelugpa Tradition.

      Before Je Tsongkhapa appeared in Tibet there were many misunderstandings and wrong practices with respect to Buddha’s Tantric teachings. Many Tibetans felt that the practices of Tantra were incompatible with keeping pure Vinaya vows, and as a consequence they either abandoned Tantra for the sake of practising the Vinaya or they abandoned the Vinaya for the sake of practising Tantra. Je Tsongkhapa refuted these wrong views and showed how all Buddha’s teachings can be practised purely without contradiction. Externally he showed how to practise the pure moral discipline of the Vinaya by keeping all two hundred and fifty three vows of a fully ordained monk immaculately; internally he showed how to engage in the vast practices of the Bodhisattva’s deeds by maintaining pristine Bodhisattva vows; and secretly he showed how to practise the two stages of Secret Mantra, which culminate in the supreme union of bliss and emptiness, by cherishing his Tantric vows and commitments more dearly than his life. These remarkable qualities of Je Tsongkhapa are praised in a special dedication verse that is often recited in Dharma Centres:

      May I meet the doctrine of Conqueror Losang Dragpa,

      Who has a pure practice of stainless moral discipline,

      The courageous practice of the extensive deeds of a Bodhisattva,

      And the yogas of the two stages to supreme bliss and emptiness.

      Although Je Tsongkhapa never made a public display of his miracle powers while he was alive, there were occasions when he revealed them privately. For example, at one time when he was residing in central Tibet he received many messages from his mother, who was a long way away in eastern Tibet, saying that she missed him very much and wanted him to return home. Because he was so busy helping others Je Tsongkhapa felt that he could not interrupt his work to make such a long journey, and so to console his mother he drew a portrait of himself on a piece of paper and sent it to her through a messenger. When Je Tsongkhapa’s mother received the portrait it spoke to her saying ‘Don’t worry, dear Mother, I am here.’ Later the portrait was taken to Kumbum Monastery where it became a holy object of offering and prostration for thousands of monks.

      When Je Tsongkhapa passed away, the whole country was overwhelmed with sorrow at the loss of their precious Teacher. Not only could they no longer see him directly but, since there were very few representations of him, most people were unable to see even his likeness. Consequently, many craftsmen set about making statues and painting thangkhas of him. Although Je Tsongkhapa had not publicly displayed his miracle powers while he was alive, after he passed away he performed many miracles through these statues and thangkhas. Eight statues in particular have since become very famous. They are known as:

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