Condensed Amitaba Practice

Buddha Amitabha Downloadable Image
Buddha Amitaba Downloadable Image

I’d like to address the very newest Dharma practitioners, and offer the #METHOD I speak so often and so fondly of. All can benefit.

Many are interested in Buddhism, read and think about it, enjoy it’s thoughtfulness. But the main point of Dharma is accomplishment.

One can be a friend of Dharma, a supporter, collector, even a Guru junkie! But the point of Dharma is awakening, + method applied.

There are no quick and easy routes, no magic buttons, no gadgets, no tincture of this or that worth the money or effort. Dharma is free.

All you really need is a comfy cushion, a quiet sacred space, a Mala (prayer beads) an image relating to your practice really helps.

Most practice requires empowerment (Wang) breath transmission (Lung), and the Lama’s commentary. Therefore one needs a qualified Guru.

Fortunately, through compassion, certain Buddhas have made themselves more accessible in these times. One is Buddha Amitaba.

Amitaba vowed that anyone speaking His Mantra or even hearing it, He would liberate at death, thus accomplishing Dharma in one life.

Practicing Amitaba, then, is swift and extraordinary, can be done without wang or lung if the strong vow is made to seek these out asap.

As quickly as possible these tweets will be arranged usefully with an image of Amitaba for practice. Now, settle onto your cushion.

Allow the mind to simply relax and clear. Practice makes perfect, you will improve in time. The body is relaxed but the spine straight,

The legs should be crossed Indian style or Lotus style, but comfortable.

THE PRACTICE

Instantly in the space in front-above arises Buddha Amitaba.

He is red in color, one face, 2 hands resting in His lap, palms up w/knuckles touching. This mudra symbolizes meditative equipoise.

He is holding a begging bowl and wearing robes of ordination, seated in Lotus Posture. He is surrounded with His retinue of Sublime ones.

As we are awed by His splendor we take refuge with body, speech, and mind.

Buddha Amitaba I take refuge in you in this and every life”  repeat 3 x

Then, thinking kindly of all sentient beings, recite:

For the sake of beings I give rise to the Bodhicitta so all may benefit” repeat 3 x

If you have a PURE Lama, consider that while the appearance is Amitaba, the essence is identical to one’s Root Guru. If not, get one.

Then hold the mala and recite Mantra, counting with beads. One full Mala is 108 reps.

The mantra; OM AMI DEWA HRI is repeated 108 times.

While reciting, one concentrates on compassion as motivation, the extraordinary qualities of Amitaba, the yearning for Liberation in one life.

So the mind should be filled with pure Devotion and wholesome yearning, and Kindness toward all beings, every one, animals, ALL.

After at least one full Mala of Mantra, recite:

I prostrate to Amitaba Buddha!”

May I be reborn in the pure realm of great bliss

Then Amitaba and his entourage dissolve into light, and pour into top of one’s head (crown). And mixes like milk and water with one’s mind.

“And may all sentient beings without exception be placed in that very state.”

That’s a VERY short condensed method, taken from Nam Cho.

The best thing to do is make a commitment to do this practice every day. It is in the commitment and the doing that benefits,

Along with the very sacred Mantra and the blessing it holds. Therein lays benefit and accomplishment. Samaya.

Some links you may find helpful:

How To Use a Mala

A List of Palyul Centers Around the World

Follow ahkonlhamo on Twitter

Willingness to Change

Jetsunma at KPC
Jetsunma at KPC

I love people of #FAITH who commit to compassion,tolerance,wisdom, making the world better. People who jerk others around w/their ego? Nah.

I would not want to just take up space, and contribute nothing to the world community.

If I see simple kindness in a human heart I will joyfully accept that one as a student. As a friend and ally.

If I see a gossip, or someone who causes division in the spiritual community I will work to correct it. I believe in love

If I see a student of moderate accomplishment but has come a long way, they are a jewel to me.

If I see a student with tremendous potential but making no progress on the path I am saddened. I cannot help.

Many of my students have made much progress in this very life and have worked hard. I am so proud and joyful!

Then some find the path and lose it. Some spiral down quickly by abandoning the Guru and following confusion. How sad.

In Vajrayana it is possible to repair broken vows. It requires courage and effort. The ball is ALWAYS in your court.

May those having lost their way always find the Supreme Nirmanakaya! May dullness and fever fall away, clarity return!

May all sentient beings be Liberated in this very lifetime! OM AH HUNG BENZAR GURU PEMA SIDDHI HUNG!

Cultivating Virtue

intergenerational_garden

The following teaching is from a series of tweets by Jetsunma Ahkon Lhamo:

Happiness is a habit to be cultivated from within. Our minds are habitual but like a rider on a horse you must direct it.

Like a gardener we must cultivate good qualities. Why follow anyone with poor habits and bad qualities?

Good qualities and habits: attitude of gratitude, generosity, compassion, selflessness, right thinking, understanding of cause and result…

Don’t get caught in the trap of judgment – criticism, whining, neediness, selfishness, sloth, greed, and mindless unhelpful chatter.

What is your work? Is it in line with your morality, beliefs, conscience, does it help others? Is it honest work? These things really matter

The mind really is like a muscle to be used and developed. But so is the heart. Ethics are extremely important!

We make peace within ourselves, it does not visit, we cannot catch it. When our elements are in balance we are peaceful.

Anger, violence, grasping, fearfulness, ignorance, hatred, constant desire- these are some habits that keep us unbalanced.

If we have poor habits and qualities we also have no self esteem. And we go further into the chaos of falsity and lies. Crazy!

In short; be a proper gardener! Pull the weeds of bad habit and quality and plant the seeds of loving kindness! You will BLOOM!

Follow Jetsunma on Twitter to see teachings as they happen:

Follow ahkonlhamo on Twitter

Pith Dharma

Jetsunma visiting rescue dogs at Tara's Babies
Jetsunma visiting rescue dogs at Tara's Babies
The following Dharma nuggets represent tweets Jetsunma sent on October 29, 2009
  • I worry when I see a Buddhist who shows no sign of compassion or is full of judgment. I know that person hasn’t heard the teachings truly.
  • Compassion or Bodhicitta is the very basis of Mahayana Buddhism, the first
thing we are taught. And we are reminded at every teaching.
  • If the practitioner cannot be kind, they have not tamed the mind. Haven’t learned the first thing about Dharma. Hateful speech is not Dharma.
  • There R methods 2 correct lack of compassion. Contemplation on suffering; equality of ALL that lives, striving 2 B happy, praying 4 others.
  • Some just feed the ego by studying about Dharma but not practicing it. What a waste! Like eating crumbs under the table of a banquet.
  • Liberation is possible! We can climb that hill! So why waste time drawing yet another map? It has been done by the Buddhas+ Bodhisattvas!
  • This life is short. No time 2 waste. We must walk our talk, or it’s not worth much. Pontificators not needed. Practioners much needed. Much!
  • Bottom line- you can’t change Dharma to suit you. You gotta change yourself to accomplish Dharma. That is the way and the truth.
  • If you practice Dharma but say U have nothing to give- wrong. U have shoes, food, clothes, arms to hold, heart to love, eyes to guide, etc.
  • May your feet move willingly, and your heart open wide! May U always be a healing presence, a friend. Walk that talk, please or we R lost!
  • If you have everything and brag, what is that? If you have nothing and brag, what is that?  So be humble in spirit- not arrogant.
  • If you have or have not- doesn’t matter. Have a good heart and offer charity and strength to those less fortunate. True Dharma.

How to use a Mala

 

Mala
Mala

About Malas

The meaning of the Sanskrit word “Mala” is “garland.”  The word for Mala in Tibetan is Akshamala.  For Buddhist practitioners a mala is considered an essential tool.  Below is a brief explanation about Malas, their purpose, meaning, and use.

What is a Mala?

From a practical and outer point of view, a mala can simply be understood as a method for counting Mantra recitation.  There are typically 108 beads on a Mala string.  Traditionally, when counting mantras, only 100 of the 108 are recorded in the accumulation.  The extra 8 are not counted because of errors that may have occurred during the recitation.  However, a Mala can be a great deal more than just a counting device.

Symbology of a Mala

On a deeper level, the Mala represents the Form and Speech of the Deity.  It can be viewed as the Root Deity and the entire assembly or mandala of that Deity.  For example, if you are doing a Chenrezig practice, the large bead on the Mala represents Chenrezig and the other beads represent the entourage of the Deity.  In this view, the Mala is a support for one’s practice and can become an object of refuge for the practitioner.

Before using a Mala, it is essential to ask a Lama to bless it.  After that, it must be treated with reverence and not touched by other people or animals.

How to Use a Mala

Traditionally one holds the mala in one’s left hand.  With each recitation a bead is pulled forward. Symbolically, this represents the “Vajra Hook” which brings forth blessings and virtue.  The basic instruction is to use the thumb to move the bead forward.

While reciting mantra, it is auspicious to hold the mala to one’s heart.  This is symbolic of “protecting one’s heart” with meritorious and virtuous activity.

The large bead on the Mala is called the Guru Bead or Mother Bead. One never crosses over this bead, just as one would never step over something precious and rare.  Out of respect and gratitude, one reverses direction after 108 recitations.

Types of Malas

A variety of materials may be used to make a mala:  wood or metal beads, seeds, raksha beads (the dried fruit of the raksha tree), as well as precious gemstones or jewels.

Guru Rinpoche gave specific instructions on various types of malas and their use.  For example, he said that a mala made of iron or steel multiplies the virtue of accumulating mantra recitations in a general way. With a copper mala, the virtue increases four times.  A Raksha mala increases it 20 million times.  A pearl or ruby mala increases it 100 million times.  The virtue is multiplied by 100,000 if one uses a silver mala.  The potential benefit from using a Bodhi seed mala is limitless for any form of practice.

Mantra Recitation

To understand the meaning and purpose of Malas, one should also understand Mantra recitation.  The Sanskrit word “Mantra” literally means “protection of the mind.”  For each practice that is dedicated to a Meditational Deity, there is a mantra specific to that Deity.  A Mantra is a collection of precious seed syllables representing the condensed essence of all the pure qualities and attributes of a Deity.  Reciting a Mantra in this profound, virtuous way helps our own pure qualities to come forth.  These qualities are ultimately non-dual with the Deity’s.  For example, Chenrezig’s mantra is “Om Mani Padme Hung.”  If a practitioner recites this mantra with a pure heart and proper motivation, seeking to be of benefit to sentient beings, with faith, devotion, and proper understanding of the method, then only benefit will arise in the mind.  One’s natural compassionate nature will be cultivated and nurtured.  Over time, transformation of one’s negative qualities will be replaced by virtuous, pure qualities that are inherent within us all.  This method of recitation helps us to awaken to our true nature.

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