Audio recorded at Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 44-minute teaching on the first limb of the Guru Puja, Kyabje Rinpoche examines prostration—both why it accelerates the path to Buddhahood and how to perform it with full spiritual benefit. After exploring five contexts for prostration, he centers on the opening verse about offering homage at Vajradhāra’s lotus feet. He teaches three forms—physical, verbal, mental—and gives precise practical instruction: where to place folded hands (at crown, forehead, throat, and heart, each seeding a Buddha quality you wish to develop); how hand position symbolizes method, wisdom, and the ten perfections; and why prostration counteracts pride. The teaching concludes with Q&A on maintaining the right mental states during practice. For practitioners who have received Guru Puja initiation.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 1992-08-21 – 11B – KR.mp3
UUID: aba84138-f58a-4265-a2ba-aa363ada24b3
Teacher: Kyabje Rinpoche
Collection: Guru Puja – Lama Chopa
Date: 1992-08-21
Recorded at: Tibetan Buddhist Institute, Adelaide
Words: ~1,679
Accumulating the collection and purifying our negativities. Without doing these two process, without involving ourselves in these two process there’s no way that we can attain Buddhahood. But not only can we not attain Buddhahood through this process, for example by means of the Secret Mantra in general in one in dependence upon one base or one life. But through this method of increasing the efficacy of our means of accumulating the collection and purifying our negativities, can, in accordance with the teachings of Jé Tsongkhapa, we can achieve Buddhahood within three years and three phases of the moon and that such a method exists for us to achieve Buddhahood. So there have been many individuals who have achieved Buddhahood in the course of one life through such practices such as Ghantapada and Milarepa.
So the Guru Puja is the quick path to Buddhahood. There is no practice which is more effective than the practice of Guru Puja. If one were to offer the practice of Guru Puja in combination with the method of attaining the illusory body according to Guhyasamāja and the clear light practice as contained within Heruka, then this would be a complete practice of secret mantra. So now we’re going to discuss the first of the seven limb prayers is is the, know, the seven limb prayers consist of such practices as prostrations, making offerings, etcetera. We’re beginning with the first of these, that of prostration.
So in terms of the objects of prostration, are making prostration to terms of five different not five objects but they can be thought of in five ways, in five manners. Prostration in terms of in the context of five different contexts. The first of these is prostration in terms of truth body. Second, in terms of the enjoyment body. Third, third the emanation body, the fourth is in terms of the objects of refuge that is to say the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha.
So that’s one object in terms of and then in terms of the one that was just listed in terms of the refuge, the Three Jewels of the Buddhadharma and Sangha, that’s one. And then the common object of the Lamas, the meditation deities, the various Buddhas, Buddhas, Buddhas, heroes, etcetera. That’s the fifth. So we’re beginning with the verse 18 where it says, we prostrate at your lotus feet, O Vajradhāra Gurus, your jewel like bodies through compassion, bestow, and in an instant even supreme attainment of three bodies this sphere of great bliss. So this is the prostration to the lama, but in terms of of the enjoyment body.
So the lama is being prostrated in terms of the enjoyment body. So it is in reliance upon the kindness. It is in reliance upon the kind of kindness of the root the lama that the three bodies are attained. The three bodies of the emanation body, enjoyment body and the truth body. And this requires a tremendous accumulation of the collection in order to attain this end, and if we were to practice accumulation, only in terms of the the the vehicle of the six perfection, the perfection vehicle, then this takes countless eons in order to accumulate the necessary collection, that is to say it would take an extremely long time, but through secret mantra and by relying upon the lama, even in, as it says in the text, even in an instant.
That is to say by instant we mean in one lifetime. It is comparatively an instant, a time that we can in one very one lifetime that we can create we can accumulate the necessary collection to achieve Buddhahood and this is an unimaginable quality that the root lama possesses and this is the great kindness of the root lama and that the lama is compared to a wish fulfilling jewel and as such that the Lama who is referred to as the Vajradhāra is one prostrates at his lotus feet. So in terms of prostration, there are verbal, and mental prostrations. And prostrations are an antidote to the afflictive emotion of pride. If one is filled with pride, one simply will resist offering respect to another and therefore it is out of prostration.
By means of frustration as an antidote that one overcomes this resistance to showing respect, that one overcomes pride. So in in in terms of the physical prostration, if we will accumulate a collection equal to the number of bodies that we emanate in the process of offering, that there will be a corresponding numbers of skillful actions created with the skillful actions created will correspond to the number of bodies that we emanate which are prostrating with us. And we can increase the power of our practice by reflecting upon the fact that we have taken birth in numberless realms and that all the beings in these number of realms are in human aspect prostrating along with it. Terms of physical prostrations, we can show this respect by means of full bodily prostrations, half prostrations, or simply folding the hands in signs of respect. It may be so in terms of verbal prostration, this involves recitation and phrases and of the excellent qualities of the Buddha’s, Bodhisattvas, the Lamas, etcetera.
And if one could emanate various bodies and that each of these bodies has a head, each of these heads has a mouth which are also reciting, offering praises, but this might be difficult to do this, to imagine this. And the way we make, so this isn’t, this was the, this presentation of the excellent qualities is the way we make verbal prostration in terms of mental prostration by the generation of the mental qualities such as faith and respect and remembering the kindness of these beings, we make mental prostration, pay mental homage. So there’s a tremendous benefit to be gained through prostration. So for example, in folding our hands as a way of showing paying homage. We shouldn’t we should put our thumbs inside our hands, we shouldn’t leave our it’s not good to leave your hands empty.
There’s a danger that you may be reborn in place that’s empty of Buddha’s, so placing one’s thumbs in one’s hands. So there’s a lot that could be explained in terms of the hand making paying homage with folded hands. The right and left hand symbolize the method and wisdom that the fingers and the two thumbs represent the 10 perfections. By placing the folded hands at the crown of one’s head, one imprints latencies by one will achieve the crown protrusion, the uṣṇīṣa of a Buddha. By placing them, the hands, the folded hands at the forehead one is intended whereby one will achieve the hair curl of a Buddha.
At the throat one will achieve the speech of a Buddha and at the heart one will achieve the mind of the Buddha. If you touch the three places of the forehead, throat, and heart then this would implant latency to achieve three bodies of the Buddha. The body, speech, mind of the Buddha. So there are tremendous benefits if I mean doing prostrations and we’re going to stop there. You mean the in general, prayer?
The the the abbreviated prayer in this prayer. So while you’re doing prostrations, you offer these five verses of prostration. Why you’re doing your prostration? So these very these very these very words themselves are they’re doing the prostrations and stuff, offering these there are verses. Yes.
So there are many different aspects. Some of some of the Yidams, some of the meditation or deity, some of the Dakinis. Many different aspects. And the all the aspects of the field of accumulation, they would come in that aspect. And the first part of your question was when you go down?
When you do that? Body side. Yeah. And then when you get up and do it again. The the eula.
I really don’t understand the question. You’re offering yourself. So and one can offer one’s body, speech and mind but in prostration that’s not one’s not offering one’s body, speech and mind in prostration. So later on in Guru Puja in the upper section. Alright.
And later on it says, In reverence we offer ourselves as servants to please you, please keep us in your service as long as the heavens endure. It is at this point that one can reflect that one is offering one’s speech, mind. In the prostration section, that’s not what what I’m doing. When? But what are we doing?
So it’s okay to offer your body, speech, and mind here if you like, but it’s not necessary here, it’s going to come later. When you say what are we doing, what do you mean by what are we doing physically, mentally? So the word for prostration or homage in Tibetan is and the word has the connotation that it is the elimination of negativities, and is requesting to please generate within my mind all your excellent qualities. So did you have in mind when you when you make prostration, you’re making an offering? Yeah.
It can be sometimes translated. As. So in you have generated a reverence for the excellent qualities of the lama and respect of their great kindness. So it’s a remembrance remembrance of of their their great kindness and their great qualities and generating a sense of respect, reverence and faith, reverence, prostration or homage. When you stand up, when you rise up, So purification takes place by means of the four counteracting power.
So for example when we recite the confession of the 35 Buddhas, has to be done in the context of the four opponent powers, not merely by standing up, So if you have remembrance of the kindness, respect and reverence then there’s no need to visualize receiving blessings because you are receiving the blessings. This is what is to be kept in mind, what one is thinking about is generating reverence and respect, and it also should be done within the context of the four opponent power.