Audio recorded at Buddha House Adelaide. Transcript auto-generated and AI-corrected; may contain errors.
About this talk. In this 31-minute teaching, Lama Zopa Rinpoche guides a long-life initiation with Amitayus, the Buddha of longevity, grounded in the aspiration to achieve enlightenment for all beings. He details the elaborate visualization of the celestial mansion, wisdom fire encircling the realm, and the deity Amitayus — white-bodied, adorned with robes and jewels, holding a vase of immortal nectar. He then teaches how to take vows at different levels of commitment: full Bodhisattva vows, interim vows of ethical practice, or a determination to practice compassion — explaining which level suits which practitioners. The emphasis throughout is on the extraordinary merit accumulated through practice and its dedication for all beings’ happiness and world peace.
File metadata (for organising)
File: 2005 06 05 5 TAIWAN LTK LONG LIFE 5.mp3
UUID: 10132795-bb83-4d39-a038-d51ca0dff2a4
Teacher: Lama Zopa Rinpoche 1
Collection: z Taiwan (Lama Zopa Rinpoche 1)
Date: 2005-06-05
Recorded at: Buddha House Adelaide
Duration: 30.8 minutes
Words: ~1,522
So please repeat the prostration prayer. So as I mentioned before, in general, strong strong motivation, bodhicitta, obtain initiation. Then so bring all in your heart, you know, all sentient beings and everything, for freedom from saṃsāra and to bring to enlightenment. They must achieve enlightenment. So to develop on Nāgārjuna’s path and to do the practice, listening to teachings, mental practice and to benefit others.
Yeah. With long life, we’re going to take a long life initiation. And then also the place where we take initiation, not only the place, the appearance is celestial mansion, celestial mansion, which has four doors and the walls, ceiling, all that, and then vast wisdom fire encircling outside the realm. All this is appearance of wisdom. Then where there’s the long life altar, also think there, upon the lotus, moon disc, sun disc, jewel, red vase.
The large, you know, the vase is, you know, the container part. The, you know, the long neck and the with whatever. Yeah. This one. Actually, not this one.
Sorry. Long neck, and then you see it has this part. And then the spout, the hanging one. Then it has a divine dress. And then with the wish-granting tree adorned.
Then inside the vase, there’s a celestial mansion for the four doors and the four gates, replete with complete characteristics of beauty. Then inside, there’s a throne raised up by snow lions, jewel throne. On that, the jewel throne, which is very extensive, above this lotus, variegated lotus, moon disc, and sun disc. On this, then essence of all the Buddhas, Victorious One, the dharmakaya of Buddha, great Amitayus. Long life Amitayus, whose holy body is white but having red complexion.
Then full face like full moon, and extremely smiling, the long eye. Then holy body adorned with, let’s say, beautified with the three types of robes. Then adorned with on the crown, on the head, the pointed, the very pointed, you know, the elongated pointed head, golden color. Then the right hand, mudra of granting supreme realizations, extended finger holding the stem of the utpala flower, and the petals opened against the ear and holding wisdom sword. The utpala flower, above the utpala, on the utpala flower, there’s wisdom sword.
Utpala flower that’s blossomed. I can see here. Then left hand in meditative concentration, holding the vase, immortal long life vase filled with immortal long life nectar, which is adorned with the Ashoka tree. Then thumb and the finger holding the stem of the flower, which blossomed at the left side, the ear, against, you see, holding the petal. Then text about the four immeasurables and the six paramitas, calm, clear, natural light.
Then the beams emit from the holy body, fill the whole world, all the realms. And all the realms appear under Lama’s holy body, and Lama’s holy body appears pervading all the realms. In that nature, then you visualize that way. And the lama also, the guru, the lama of this initiation also, visualize as the actual deity, the actual one. Then above, all the lineage gurus, Mahāyāna gurus, Dharma protectors, like clouds gathering in the sky.
Then the person going for refuge. Yeah. Then the compassion, bodhicitta, from the very beginning. Rejoice in your merits, others’ merits. Okay?
Taking the vow. By generating the wish, in the interim, bodhicitta, for sentient beings, they’re taking the vow. And they can practice until enlightenment is achieved. Okay? Yeah.
So here, those who have not taken Bodhisattva vow in the past and who are unable to take now, so Bodhisattva vow is the wishing Bodhisattva vow and the engaging Bodhisattva vow too. So those who can, interim vow is the abstaining from the ten nonvirtues. And then if, for this is the basis, those who can do this, then they can take wishing vow, avoiding the four black dharmas, practicing the four white dharmas. So the four white dharmas, avoiding four black dharmas, so that’s ten: not lying, not being cunning, not hiding one’s mistakes, not deceiving, not praising oneself. These are what in Tibetan are called the five…
Then criticizing the Bodhisattvas. Then when another sentient being practices Dharma, when somebody has the opportunity to do a lot of retreat, then you feel sad, or you feel unhappy, regret. You know, instead of rejoicing, you feel regret. Or somebody able to understand Dharma so much, and you’re unable to understand or unable to study, then you feel regret. So this kind of thing to say is that’s one of the black dharmas to avoid.
Therefore, white Dharma is open heart, sincerity towards the guru, the opposite of hypocrisy. Then also open heart, sincerity towards sentient beings. Then placing the Bodhisattvas, respecting them as Buddha, and then sentient beings who are looking up to you, who are connected to you, who are connected to you, you inspire them to bring the mind to Dharma. That’s the white Dharma. So one can practice, one can take these vows.
And even this is difficult, at least once you think that I’m going to practice from now on, I’m going to practice more compassion towards others, and definitely, I’m going to practice bodhicitta in this life. So make strong determination like that. So please repeat. Yeah. Then purpose is to free all beings from the ocean of suffering.
What makes it possible to achieve that is only if I achieve Buddhahood, if I take Buddha’s vows, living by Buddha’s vows. Only then is it possible to achieve enlightenment. Even one is Buddhist, but without taking Buddha’s vows, living by Buddha’s vows, enlightenment is not possible. Just mentioning it in the teachings won’t do whatever. So with great joy, happiness, think confess all the karmas, purify.
Think everything is purified, and your mind is completely pure. Feel happiness in your three doors, and after that, give happiness to all other beings. Send them merit with three-time merits dedication. Okay? Then the teaching on enlightenment, and then I am going to say something.
So here, short ceremony, then wishing bodhicitta vow, the engaging vow. Those who are taking, so those who are, of course, no question, those who have taken before, then by taking again, it purifies and destroys whatever degenerations there are. Those who are, if in case there’s somebody who’s the first time, then according to whatever your aspiration, take the vow. And then even if that is difficult to do, then, you know, as I mentioned before, then generally, I’m going to practice more compassion and in particular bodhicitta in this lifetime. So those who have taken the vow, then think as I mentioned, normally, every second, you collect limitless skies of merit.
So rejoice in that, rejoice. Today, my life has become most most meaningful and beneficial to sentient beings and to Buddha. Not only that, every day, whatever merit you collect every day, it increases millions of times. So you can rejoice in that. How wonderful it is.
Then third, this is my best contribution for world peace and the peace and happiness of all sentient beings, not only just this world, but for the great happiness. So it’s very important to make a general strong determination. Now I will say something about those who have taken the initiation. Then I think the obstructors who interfere are dispelled. In the realm of space, light rays are emitted from the guru’s heart, and they dispel the obstructors into the expanse of dharmata.
So you look at the I. How does the I appear to you? Does it appear as merely labeled by mind or not merely labeled by mind? However, for us sentient beings, one can ultimately reach enlightenment by emptiness meditation when you become a higher being. Whatever appears, it appears as truly existent.
So the I that has appeared, appearing to you, not merely labeled by the mind. Right? Think this, is this, there’s a real I appearing from its own side. This is the subtle object to be refuted, and then the I appears to you as something not merely labeled by the mind. So this is what the object of refutation is.
Okay. That means the I of that, the hallucination. While you are focused on that, thinking the meaning of emptiness, which means that this real I, this existing from its own side, is totally nonexistent. Totally nonexistent. Empty.
So try to get to this point.