Audio recorded at Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 79-minute teaching, Kyabje Rinpoche guides practitioners through the foundational practices of phowa—consciousness transference to Amitābha’s pure land. He emphasizes mental preparation: cleaning your meditation space, vividly visualizing Sukhāvati (the pure land), and establishing correct motivation as a Mahāyāna practitioner (seeking rebirth there to benefit all beings, not for personal gain). He then covers practical preliminaries: proper meditation posture, refuge, bodhicitta, offerings, and detailed visualization of Buddha Amitābha—his ruby-red body, the marks and adornments of a Buddha, and the surrounding bodhisattvas. He explores variations in visualization technique, including an optional Samaya Vajrasattva on the crown. Finally, he instructs how to transform your meditation room itself into the pure land. Intended for practitioners with prior familiarity with Tibetan Buddhist terminology and initiation.
File metadata (for organising)
File: Line in 0110 – KR.mp3
UUID: 92eaf1a5-ef5f-4aff-b1e2-d283d45e44aa
Teacher: Kyabje Rinpoche
Collection: Awakening Heart
Recorded at: Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide
Words: ~2,900
So please generate the motivation to listen to this teaching on the pure land of Amitābha with the wish of placing all mother sentient beings as vast as place in a state in that with all qualities and bereft of all defects. So this morning we completed the presentation of what is akin to the preliminaries of this practice of the phowa of Amitābha, which is an explanation of the type of practitioner who should engage the practice of poa, the necessity of practicing poa, the various types of poa which can be practiced, all these were covered, as well as the advantages of this uncommon practice of the consciousness transference of Amitābha. And with regards to the actual practice of poa, the last line of our text before entering into this points out that poa can be practiced both for one’s own benefit and for the benefit of others. So Rinpoche says it is most probably the case that depending on being able to perform correctly for oneself, one will be able to perform correctly for others. And within this first implicit outline, is practicing for oneself, we now enter the main body of the practice.
Our text reads regarding the first. There are there’s a twofold division, practicing phowa and connecting it to karma. Now practicing phowa refers to the training in the practice of phowa in the context of meditative sessions before the time of death. Connecting it to karma refers to the actual practice of phowa at the time of death, which is contingent on our own karma to be reborn in the Pure Land. And regarding the first, the training of the practice of poa, this in turn is divided into two sections, the preliminary practice and the actual body of the practice.
The preliminary practice in turn is divided into the contrived motivation, the actual taking of refuge, and generating the mind. And regarding this, the first is to clean carefully the place in which we will be practicing. So in which he says, we will be practicing in meditation room. This must be carefully cleaned. And then our text reads onwards, and we must place the field of Sukhāvati and allow it to appear clearly to the mind.
The reason of reason of this, Rinpoche says, is that before we wish to be reborn somewhere, we should be aware of the qualities of the place. So we should visualize clearly the beauty, qualities, and attractions of Sukhāvati. And then our our text reads onwards, for the sake of training in the Buddha field, dispose on an alter, representations of the body, speech and mind of the main practice, in this case Amitābha, which we will be engaging in. Now training in the Buddha field, here the term actually refers to meditating on the environment as the Buddha field, and the representations of body speech and mind of Amitābha would be in the case of the body, for instance, a thangka of Buddha Amitābha, the case of the speech sutras connected with this practice, the Sukhavativyuha sūtra and so forth. And then, think that one’s abode is in actuality the pure land of Buddha Amitābha, Sukhāvati.
So we must at this point meditate clearly that the place we are in is Sukhāvati, and that it has no ordinary appearance anymore, and generate strong faith and conviction that Buddha Amitābha is abiding in actuality here. Then, if we have the possibility to do this, what we should make offerings, and these offerings should be whichever offerings such as flowers and so forth we can obtain, and they should be both pure and authentic offerings. At this point, seated on a comfortable cushion facing to the east, we should settle in the meditation position which has the seven characteristics. And the key characteristics here in which he says is that one’s leg should be crossed, one’s hands should be joined slightly below the navel with both thumbs joined, one’s shoulders and elbows should be slightly open for ventilation, one’s head should be slightly bent downwards, one’s tongue should be touching the cleft of one’s palate and one’s mouth should be open so that the breath can flow easily, and one one’s eyes should be fixed at a point slightly ahead of one’s nose. And at this point, after having entered in the position with the seven characteristics of Vairochana, then one must generate the motivation.
First, the motivation should not be to strive for the affairs of this life, and to strive, for instance, for material gain, fame or prosperity. This is not a Dharma motivation. And in addition to this, one should not wish to be reborn in Sukhāvati for one’s own benefit, because such a motivation is not a Mahāyāna motivation. Instead, one should reflect that if one is reborn in the pure land of Sukhāvati to the West, then one would be able to perform the welfare of countless sentient beings, and for the sake of leading all these sentient beings to liberation, and with this and this alone as a motivation, I aspire to be reborn at once in the pure land of Sukhāvati, to lead all sentient beings to the state of full enlightenment. And therefore, with this as a motivation to be reborn in such a pure land, I would engage in the practice of this profound and swift teaching of phowa.
And then it is said in our text, this refers to the root text, which Pabongka is commenting upon, take refuge and generate the mind, in other words, bodhicitta at first. With respect to the generation of refuge in this context, first we must visualize the field of refuge. And regarding the field of refuge, it can be visualized either in keeping with the Vajrayāna, or in keeping with the six preliminary practices of Lamrim. If one chooses to do it in keeping with Lama Chöpa, then when we visualize the field of refuge without visualizing the tree as the base of the field, or the ocean of milk beneath it, alternatively, one has perfectly the right to visualize it in keeping with the six preliminary practices of Lamrim. However, if we choose to visualize it in keeping with Lama Chöpa, as you will know, the central figure in the field of Lama Chöpa is which is with Buddha Śākyamūni or Vajradhāra in the center. So we would replace this central figure with Buddha Amitābha who is visualized red in color in the aspect of a fully ordained monk, a Bhikśu, wearing the outer formal robe, the Namjar, and holding a vase, a begging bowl filled with nectar at his navel, his hand in the traditional mudrā of Buddha Amitābha.
And then unlike in the practice of Lama Chöpa where you have the five lineages which are above the central figure of These five lineages are eliminated, and instead we visualize above the central figure of Buddha Amitābha, in keeping with our text, either the lineage of these Kadampa masters of the 16 Kadampa drops tradition,, Or the text unfortunately is quite ambiguous here, the lineage of lamas who are the holders of the transmission of poa. So it is unclear whether it is both of these or one or the other, but he thinks perhaps it would make more sense to visualize the lineage of the lamas who are the holders of the poa lineage. So, Rinpoche says there is a mistake in the Tibetan text, and probably the way the text should read is visualize the teachers or the lamas of the lineage of poor practitioners in the same way as you would visualize the lineage of the 16 Kadampa Geshes who are holders of the 16 drops tradition in the Kadampa tradition. Alternatively, as you know, some place five lineages of teachers above the central teacher in the visualization of Lama Chöpa, which are the lineages of Yamāntaka, Heruka, Guhyasamāja, Vajrayoginī, Heruka.
And for the fourth lineage, some place Hevajra, and some place the practice of the lineage holders of the 16 Kadampa drops. So alternatively, the reading of this passage would mean to drop the fourth lineage of the 16 Kadampa drops and replace it by the lineage holders of phowa. At this point, Rinpoche says you can choose to take refuge in the more elaborate way, in keeping with the preliminary practices of Lamrim, with the verses which read, myself and all sentient beings, as well as cyclic existence in general, and so forth, go for refuge. You find these verses in the preliminary practices of Lama, which is Pabongka Rinpoche’s the explanation of Pabongka Rinpoche’s text.
Or and on top of this, you generate the aspiring bodhicitta through the verses. I give rise to aspiring bodhicitta by means of the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha. All the way up through the to the verses, I go for refuge in the Buddha, which actually, in the triple gem, excuse me, which actually refers to the generation of the engaging mind. So this would be the elaborate way of taking refuge. If you were to prefer to do it in a more concise way, you just would recite, I take refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha in keeping with the usual formulation.
So then you can either generate, as Rinpoche explained, first the mind of refuge and then the aspiring and engaging bodhicitta in dependence on these verses from the Jorchö, from the preliminary practices of Lamrim, or in a much more concise fashion, as you are accustomed to do, through reciting, I take refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha, through the practice of generosity and so forth, the other perfections, until I attain full enlightenment. Both of these are valid. And moreover, when we recite it in keeping with the summarized way, the first two verses, I take refuge in the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha, actually refer to the aspiring bodhicitta, And the last two verses, I take refuge in the triple gem until I attain full enlightenment with the practice of the perfections and so forth, refers to the to the engaging bodhicitta. And then, in our text we have reached the point of the generation of the four immeasurables, may all sentient beings be free from suffering and the cause of suffering, may they all be endowed with happiness and the cause of happiness, and so forth. And our text reads, generate through meditation the four immeasurables, reciting may all sentient beings, and so forth.
And at the time of the generation of the special mind of bodhicitta, and the special mind of bodhicitta, Rinpoche says here, refers to that very uncommon mind which aspires here to rebirth in a pure land for the benefit of others, say, because of that, I will engage in the practice of the oral instructions regarding this profound path of poa. Generally speaking, Rinpoche says, if you practice phowa for yourself, it is better to do it with the more elaborate recitations. If you’re practicing it for the benefit of others, you can do it in a more concise fashion. And then our text reads onwards, if one does not dissolve the field of accumulation of merit, and meditates on it in space in front of oneself, this is said to be supreme. So what this means is obviously that not dissolving the field of merit is the best way to practice.
So we have covered at present the specific preliminaries for this practice, which are cleaning the abode, taking refuge, generating the two minds of bodhicitta, the aspiring and the engaging mind of bodhicitta. And at present, with regard to the actual means, or the actual mode of practice of poa. After inviting the deities, which in this case refer to Amitābha, visualize clearly the central channel. So the text is not very clear here, but the meaning is basically that first one invites the deities, and then one visualizes the central channel within oneself. And for this, first visualize clearly the field of Sukhāvati from which Buddha Amitābha is invited.
And then, in keeping with the text of Je Tsongkhapa, opening the door to the supreme field of the boundless blissful prayer, which is contained in the collected or disparate works of And then in keeping with this text of Je Tsongkhapa, if we were to inquire where precisely this Pure Land of Buddha Amitābha is, The Pure Land of Buddha Amitābha is to the west of our world, countless universes away from ours, abiding in space, and it is constituted of various precious stones, which form the basis of its ground. Even though in appearance its ground is constituted of precious stones, nonetheless it is soft and yielding, so that when you press down on it, it yields, but then it resumes its shape at once, which is a bit like a rubber ball, if you want. And it is adorned with mountains which are made of jewels, wish-fulfilling trees in the various directions, and through the power of Buddha Amitābha, emanated birds and flocks of birds fly in space uttering melodious sounds which recount and describe the four seals: all phenomena are impermanent, all contaminated phenomena are suffering, all phenomena are empty and selfless, and so forth. And interspersed in this pure land are beautiful pools and gardens, which contain assortments of magnificent flowers which adorn this pure land of all qualities.
And in the center of this pure land, in front of a tree of enlightenment, seated upon a peacock throne, no longer a lion throne, but a throne which is supported by peacocks, which is made of precious stones, upon a lotus and moon seat rests the Bhagavan Amitābha, red in color, whose body is of the radiance of the ruby-red side of Mount Meru, blazing like 100,000 suns. So, in which he says that Buddha Amitābha is red in color, and as you know, the four sides of Mount Meru are of different colors. The western side, which is facing away from us, is bright red, the color of rubies, and is supposed to be blazing like 100,000 suns. And it is precisely this red blazing color which Buddha Amitābha has. He is adorned with the 32 major marks and the 80 minor marks of the Buddha, in other words, the 112 marks, and is in the aspect of a supreme emanation body, in other words, in the aspect similar to that of Buddha Śākyamūni.
His glorious mind abides without wavering in meditative equanimity on suchness, and he emanates countless emanations and resorbs them ceaselessly for the benefit of beings, all his speech manifests clear and melodious teachings of Dharma for the blessing, for the benefit of countless beings who hear it in their own tongue without any impediment. To his right, on a lotus and moon disk sits the son of or the main son of Buddha Amitābha, the bodhisattva Avalokiteśvara, and to his left, the bodhisattva Vajrapāni. And around these three central figures, Mañjuśrī, Kṣitigarbha, as well as the eight proximate Bodhisattvas, and their entourage of Bodhisattvas and Shravakas, and of all of those who were fortunate to meet supreme emanation bodies as ordinary beings in the aspect of bhiksus and sons of the gods in countless in countless circles of disciples. And then continue with our text. In keeping with the lineage of transmission from oral transmission of Amdo, are this is from the East Of Tibet.
There are two ways of visualizing or not visualizing the SamayaVajrasattva on one’s crown. If one visualizes the Samaya Vajrasattva on one’s crown, the pledge being on one’s crown, then, and there’s a mistake in the text, One visualizes on top of the Brahma aperture in one’s on top of one’s crown, clearly the Samaya Vajrasattva, and if one chooses to do this, since this is facultative, then it is a summarized version of the SamayaVajrasattva which is visualized. Instead of being seated on a peacock throne, he is merely visualized, as Buddha Amitābha one’s crown, is merely visualized seated on a lotus and moon disk. And one’s own environment is entirely visualized as a pure land. So Khensur Rinpoche is being very pushy and he says the time is over.
So we can give more details about visualizations of Amitābha. So we visualize at this point clearly that our abode, the house we are in, the meditation room we are in, is actually the pure land of Buddha Amitābha. We are surrounded by Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, an aspect of Buddha Amitābha, and that countless of these Buddhas and Bodhisattvas, an aspect of Buddha Amitābha emanate, they teach teachings such as the Sukhavativyuha sūtra, which cause great happiness and bliss in the minds of the hearers, and then are resorbed and so forth. So the reason for visualizing or for one of the traditions enabling one to visualize Buddha Amitābha on one’s crown is because, as will be explained tomorrow, after visualizing our mind at our heart in the form of a scintillating drop, we will then impel, transfer, that’s the meaning of the verb phowa, our mind into the heart of Buddha Amitābha visualized upon our crown. And this is a process of consciousness transference.
So it would be very beneficial if you could meditate on the Dharma teachings which Rinpoche gave today.