The New Eight Steps to Happiness. Geshe Kelsang Gyatso

Чтение книги онлайн.

      The Preliminary Practices

      Inner realizations do not arise magically from the earth, nor do they fall from the sky. Gaining deep experience of the practices explained in Eight Verses depends upon certain inner conditions, which we can create by engaging in the preliminary practices. Just as a farmer needs to prepare the ground before he plants his crop, so we need to prepare our mind before we can hope to harvest a crop of spiritual realizations. There are many people who are very interested in meditation but who, not understanding the importance of the preliminary practices, neglect them and consequently are disappointed when their efforts in meditation do not yield results. They are like a farmer who fails to weed, fertilize or water his field, yet still expects his crop to flourish. The more conscientiously we practice the preliminaries, the more easily we will gain realizations from our practice of training the mind.

      The preliminary practices perform three functions: they purify our mind of negativity; they accumulate merit, good fortune or good luck; and they help us receive the blessings of the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Purifying our mind is like removing rocks and weeds from a field before sowing the seeds. At the moment our mind is polluted by the imprints of negative thoughts and the potentials left by all the non-virtuous actions that we have performed in the past. Until we remove this negativity from our mind through the practice of purification, it will obstruct the growth of virtuous qualities and our meditation will not produce results.

      Secondly, we need to endow our mind with the strength to support the growth of Dharma realizations by accumulating merit. Merit is the positive energy of virtuous actions. Just as well-fertilized soil will produce an abundant harvest, so if our mind is enriched with merit we will harvest a bountiful crop of spiritual realizations.

      Thirdly, we need to receive the blessings of the holy beings. Unless our mind is watered by a rain of blessings, or inspiring energy, from the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, it will remain like a dry field in which the seeds of spiritual realizations sown through meditation are unable to grow. The way to receive blessings is to develop strong faith and devotion in the holy beings and request them to bless our mind. Just as rain can bring a desert to life, so if our mind receives the blessings of the holy beings our virtuous potentials will be activated and spiritual realizations will grow in our mind.

      If we prepare our mind well by purifying negativity, accumulating merit and receiving blessings, our meditations will be very successful. A simple way of doing this is to begin each meditation session on training the mind by reciting the prayers entitled Essence of Good Fortune, found in Appendix III, while contemplating their meaning and engaging in the appropriate visualizations. For those with less time, a more condensed practice called Prayers for Meditation can also be found in Appendix III. Both sets of prayers contain the six preparatory practices for successful meditation. These are:

      1. Cleaning the meditation room and setting up a shrine

      2. Arranging beautiful offerings

      3. Sitting in the correct meditation posture, going for refuge and generating bodhichitta

      4. Visualizing the Field for Accumulating Merit

      5. Offering the seven limbs and the mandala

      6. Requesting the holy beings to bestow their blessings

      The instructions on the six preparatory practices are based on the Perfection of Wisdom Sutras. Atisha received these instructions from his Guru, Lama Serlingpa, and subsequently this tradition flourished throughout the Kadampa world.

      Both Essence of Good Fortune and Prayers for Meditation include the practice of Guru yoga, which is the gateway to receiving the blessings of all the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. In this particular practice we visualize Buddha Shakyamuni in the space in front of us, surrounded by all the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas. Focusing on Buddha Shakyamuni, who is seen as one with our Guru, or Spiritual Guide, we develop faith and request his blessings. When reciting these prayers as a preparation for meditation on Eight Verses it is auspicious to make a minor alteration to the visualization. At the heart of Guru Buddha Shakyamuni we visualize Buddha Amitabha, who has a red-colored body and sits with his two hands in the gesture of meditative equipoise. Alternatively we can visualize Buddha Amitabha instead of Buddha Shakyamuni. The reason for making this slight alteration is to strengthen our connection with Bodhisattva Langri Tangpa, who, as already explained, is an emanation of Buddha Amitabha. Visualizing in this way helps us to develop greater faith in the author of these verses and in his instructions, and this will help us to receive his inspiring blessings more quickly.

      Buddha Amitabha is known as the “Vajra Speech Buddha,” which indicates that he is the manifestation of the speech of all Buddhas. In the future all living beings will meet this Buddha in the aspect of an ordinary being who will guide them along the path to enlightenment. Buddha Amitabha, Buddha Amitayus and Buddha Vajradharma are the same in nature, differing only in aspect. On the crown of Avalokiteshvara, the Buddha of Compassion, Buddha Amitabha, his Spiritual Guide, is always present. In the same way, on the crowns of all faithful disciples, Buddha Amitabha, their Spiritual Guide, will always be present.

      Apart from this change in the visualization, the remaining preparatory practices are exactly the same. A brief explanation of the six preparatory practices will now be given.

      CLEANING THE MEDITATION ROOM

       AND SETTING UP A SHRINE

      Cleaning practice

      We know from our own experience that dirty and untidy surroundings tend to bring our mind down and drain our energy, while a clean and tidy environment uplifts our mind, making it clear and vibrant. When people invite special guests into their home it is natural that they show their respect by making an effort to clean the house beforehand. In our meditation session we invite all the Buddhas and Bodhisattvas to appear before us, accept our offerings and prayers and help us in our meditation, so it is only natural that before we begin our session we should spend some time cleaning our meditation room.

      Having physically cleaned our room, we should imagine that our environment transforms into the Pure Land of Buddha. We feel that all the enlightened beings are delighted to come into our meditation, and that our mind becomes lucid and concentrated. It is very helpful to recall the story of Lam Chung, whose sole practice was sweeping the floor of the temple. Imagining that he was sweeping away his delusions, Lam Chung spent all his time cleaning the temple, and by doing so he purified his karmic obstructions, received Buddha’s profound blessings and spontaneously developed high realizations. This story is explained in detail in the book Joyful Path of Good Fortune.

      Setting up a shrine

      If our circumstances СКАЧАТЬ