Introduction:
The following poem was composed by Sakya Pandita Kunga Gyaltsen, called
"Pandita"
because of his study of Sanskrit, who lived from
1182 A.D. to 1251 A.D. According to
the colophon, it was
written while he was in the "northern regions". Therefore, it was
undoubtedly written after he arrived at the camp of the Mongol prince
Godan in 1247
A.D. Anyone interested in the historical
particulars should see Shakabpa, Tibet - a
Political History,
(new Haven, 1967 - pp. 61 ff.)
I forego any long introduction to the poem.
Basically, those with some degree of
experience reading
Buddhist literature in translation will have little trouble with
it. What few things require or occasion explanation or comment will be
found in a
section following the text rather than in
footnotes. I think numbers in poems are
awkward and
distracting. Readers of the Tibetan will appreciate the poetic style
(more or less based on Indian kavya models). Non-Tibetans readers will
have to
use their imaginations.
Om svasti siddham!
1. In this land of glacial peaks are many
contemplatives.
I write to them
all: the superior, common, and middling in merit.
I ask that they listen with trusting
hearts
Freed from wrong
orientations.
2. One contemplative is like a snow lion
With the turquoise many of pure
conduct,
With the limbs of pure,
unruffled concentration,
With
the stamina and vitality of pure, unrestless vision.
3. One contemplative is like a soldier going to
battle
Clothed in the armour of
unlimited benefit for others.
Riding the horse of the "Two Accumulations" he/she
urges it on with the whip of
diligence.
He/she vanquishes the
enemy hordes of affliction with
the sword of piercing knowledge.
4. One contemplative benefits all beings with his
accumulations.
He is a jewel
mine of the three pure disciplines.
He/she gives help and confidence to
others.
With his/her gift of the
Dharma, he/she places them on the Path
to Liberation.
5. These three superior contemplatives should be known
to comprise
The heart of hearts
of the Buddha's teachings.
6. Although he/she may not be able to fathom the
ocean of precepts,
Visualizing the Lama at the crown of his/her head
He/she prays, tears of trust
flowing from his/her eyes.
This contemplative leads others down the Path of Liberation.
7. Although not freed from his/her chains through
impartial vision,
He/she
develops his/her mind with the precious Bodhi aspiration.
Not despairing of achieving it
for others,
This
contemplative is soon freed from the world of becoming.
8. Although he/she cannot rightly attain the
higher vehicle,
The floral
bouquet of initiation vows
Protect him/her well like a helmet.
This contemplative is soon
freed from the World of Becoming.
9. Although not inclined towards loving regard for
others' well-being,
After
hearing inspired discourse and pure advice,
He/she earnestly applies
him/herself to what is to be accepted and
rejected, to causes and their
effects.
This
contemplative blocks the passage to perdition.
10. This is how (the middling contemplative) enters the
threshold of
the
teaching
As will be known
to those with spiritual understanding.
He/she should enter a path
that he/she him/herself believes in
And stay with it so as to
promote certainty in others.
11. Not abandoning worldly activity in accordance with sacred
precepts.
He/she keeps
his/her mind in an obscure tranquility
Ever increasing the darkness
of ignorance.
This
contemplative is a groundhog in hibernation.
12. His/her flow of thought untempered by faith and earnest
endeavour,
He's fond of a
fight. Though he stays in the lonely mountains,
His/her mind is always
distracted by things of the senses.
This contemplative is a
carnivore asleep in the mountains.
13. Abandoning the Path of Liberation, he/she increases in
every evil.
He passes
his/her time amid the boulders doing as he/she pleases.
He/she does foundation-laying
ceremonies at the houses of laymen for a fee.
This contemplative is a fox
investigating an empty house.
14. His/her desire for religious renown burns like a grass
fire.
His/her "diligence"
means wandering everywhere for his/her mouth's sake.
Because of his/her wrong
livelihood, he/she's always preoccupied with
making a living.
This contemplative is the
thief who pets the dogs at the edge of town.
15. He/she wears saffron (monk's robes) and the visage of a
tyrant.
He/she spins a
wheel of the varied weapons of hatred and desire.
He/she promotes evil action
wherever he/she goes.
This
contemplative increases the three types of perdition.
16. I pray that these malefactors, thieves and robbers of (the
Buddha's) teaching,
Who in
such ways trepass against the virtues of body, speech and mind
May be freed and turned from
their spite
To deeds that
point to the door of the teaching.
17. May this sun enhanced with the rays of poetic metaphor
And with the waxing mandala of
spiritual understanding
Which drawns in the cloudless sky of pure doctrine
Promote growth in the garden
of those under discipline.
So the illustrious Sa-skya
Pandita wrote these verses of advice to Tibetan
contemplatives while
in the northern regions.
Verse One: The meaning of the opening benediction is, in translation from
the
Sanskrit: "(May there be) perfect well-being!" The general
structure of the
poem may not be immediately evident. Verses 2-5 are
on superior contemplatives.
Verses 6-10 on middling contemplatives.
Verses 11-16 on common contemplatives.
The Tibetan word translated
throughout as "contemplative" is "sgom-chen",
meaning
literally "great meditator".
Verse Two: Vision (drshti), concentration (or meditation, dhyana) and
conduct (shila).
This is a traditional group in Buddhism, called The
Three Disciplines (bslab-gsum) in
Verse 4. "Piercing Knowledge"
translates "shes-rab" (prajna).
Verse Three: The Two Accumulations are the accumulations of Merit (punya)
and
knowledge (jnana) which are the positive antidotes for the two
kinds of obscurations:
the obscurations of affliction (klesa) and the
obscurations of knowledge (jneya). The
stages of the path to Bodhi
are based on the progressive purification from these two
obscurations
in their increasingly subtle and "innate" manifestations.
The obscurations of affliction
are mainly due to the false, if normal, assumption
that there is a
permanent subjective personality. The obscurations to knowledge are
ultimately based on those external attachments which presuppose a
permanent,
substantial basis for external appearances (dharmas). In
the practices for "peaceful
abiding" (see note to verse 11) these two
obscurations manifest themselves as
"sinking" and "scattering".
Verse Four: For "The Three Disciplines" see the note to Verse 2. Help
(material
assistance), confidence and Dharma are the three gifts to
which "loving-kindness"
(maitri) may sometimes be added.
Verse Six: Here Lama means a personal religious preceptor or guru (and not
just
"Tibetan monk" as in the common English use of the word). The
relationship with
the guru involves an extraordinary commitment on
both sides. Therefore the
traditional guidelines on the
characteristics of a true spiritual master should not be
ignored by
anyone contemplating such a commitment. There is a good reason for
the emphasis in Tibetan religious literature on the necessity of a close
mutual
examination between the prospective guru and disciple. A
common proverb runs:
"If the guru is not
examined, (it's like) drinking poison.
If the student is not
examined, (it's like) jumping off a cliff."
The first line of the
verse just quoted may evoke images of a certain temporary
event in
startling vivid colours for those of us who lived through and puzzled over
the
news from Guyana. "Ah, but they were Christians," some may say. I
think the parts
faith, hope, and commitment play in the minds of
people of whatever region or religion
don't differ all that much and
wrong commitments are by no means impossible withtin
the Tibetan
Buddhist milieu. The advantages of a right commitment are equalled by
the possible disadvantages of a wrong one. It may be argued that we, as
ordinary
unenlightened humans, can't really judge, but still it is
generally true that "by the
fruits you shall know them". Tibetan
Buddhist literature, fortunately, doesn't leave
the aspirant entirely
in the dark. Those interested should consult (in translation)
Ashvaghosha's "Fifty Stanzas of Guru Devotion"; and Judy Hanson's (tr.):
"The
Torch of Certainty", (pp.123ff).
With the reader's
indulgence for the digression, I would like to quote at length
from
a, so-far, untranslated text by a nineteenth century author of the Nying-ma
school,
Dpal-sprul. First, his description of the marks of a true
spiritual friend (kalyanamitra),
from the "Rdzog-pa Chen-po'i
Klong-chen Snying-thig-gi Sngon-'gro'i Khrid-yig:
Kun-bzang Bla-ma'i
Zhal-lung" (pp. 115b ff):
Now that we have
arrived at the present, degenerate age, it is exceedingly
difficult
to find a Lama, pure and perfectly realized in all respects, who teaches
from the
precious Tantric texts. That Lama on whom one should depend must
certainly have
these pure characteristics. Outwardly, he should observe the
Pratimoksha
Vows; inwardly, the Bodhisattva Vows; and secretly, the Tantric
Vows. If he does
not contradict these at any point, he is a pure Tantrika. He
should have much
learning (but not pretentiously) in the scientific treatises,
Sutras and
Tantras. His heart should be graced with loving compassion towards
all living beings
as if they were his only child.
Part of his description of false commitments (lbid., pp. 118b ff):
Although he (the
guru) has few qualities beyond those of any ordinary person,
some
simpletons, through faith without examination, would put him on a high
level,
honouring him with goods and services. This "spiritual guide"
is like a haughty well
turtle:
Once there was a
turtle who came from the ocean to see an old turtle that
had always lived
at the bottom of a well. The well turtle said: "Where do
you come
from?"
"I've
come from the great ocean."
"How is this ocean
of yours?" he asked.
"The ocean is very
great."
"Is it
a quarter the size of my well?"
"No, larger."
"Well, half
then?"
"No."
"Then it
is the size of my well?"
"No, much larger,"
he replied. "There is no way to tell you. You have to see
it for
yourself."
Together they went. When the well turtle saw the ocean, he fell down
senseless
and,
splitting his head, dead.
(Note: the point of the story is that some gurus, using the devotion of
their disciples
to bolster their spiritual pride, have myopic vision
like the well turtle when it comes
to the possibilities of the
spiritual life beyond their level of attainment, thinking that
they
themselves have reached the ultimate perfection.)
(Do not) depend on
a Lama who has great skill as a speaker, but little learning,
having
made no effort in the purifying practices of the Sutras and Tantras. His
"Tantras"
are coarse delusions, without (the prerequisites of)
mindfulness or watchfulness. He
breaks vows and oaths. His qualities
are even worse than an ordinary person's. He
acts as if he were
practicing spiritual methods while his religious commitments are
gone
to the wind. He is full of animosity and prejudice, lacking in loving-kindness
and
compassion. Such a guru is a "demented guide". He leads down
wrong paths.
Having no special
qualities beyond one's own, the guru who lacks the Bodhi
Aspiration
of loving-kindness and compassion is a "blind guide". He lacks the eye
for what is to be accepted and what rejected.
One who, like a Brahmin,
protects his lineage or enters to bathe in a swimming
hole without
knowing the source of the water (having no certain results of learning
and reflection) is called the "parasite guide". He is no different from
an ordinary
person, having a fool's faith. He frequents places of
idle talk. He is a "well turtle",
becoming self-justified in his
unchecked drive for wealth and fame.
Of little learning
himself, he gives high levels of practice to those of low-capacity.
He chops the rope that loving-kindness and compassion hang from. These
"drunken
guides" make wicked actions increase. With no special
qualifications, he relies on the
force of his reputation. Like a
blind sea captain, he makes great blunders, forever
wandering in the
darkness of false commitments.
Some modern "gurus" like
the ones who make money the measure of commitment
or engage in highly
questionable activities, come to mind. The "search for a guru" should
mean more than "doing the Dharma circuit". The search may be less
important than the
effort to become a "suitable vessel". To quote
Milarepa's reply to the young "dandy"
who offers him his sash and
sabre as payment for Dharma:
"I, the snow lioness who
stays in snowy solitudes,
Have milk which is like
the essential nectar.
In the absence of golden
cups,
I would not
pour it in an ordinary vessel.
I bind to my straight,
unwavering waist
the
sash of fierce devotion,
having settled the
ripples of unfeigned thought.
These are the highest
ornaments of all who practice Dharma:
The golden chain of
perseverance
and the
iron chain of faith in instructions
which bind the sheath of
the student's "three confidences"
to the sabre of piercing
Prahna.
Fearing the orders of the
sky-goers (dakinis),
I have not sold Dharma for wealth in the past.
Even now I didn't accept
your offerings
so,
pray, be on your way home."
Note: My literal translation. Compare Chang, p. 171.
As a footnote to this
long tangent, I would like to quote a passage from Henry
Vaughn's
Thalia Rediviva (1678 A.D.) which sounds remarkably like something
one
of the members of People's Temple might said:
"Unhappy, sad exchange!
What, must I buy
Guiana with the loss of all the sky?
Intelligence shall I
leave, and be
Familiar only with mortality?
Must I know nought, buy
thy Exchequer?
Shall
my purse and fancy be symmetrical?
Are there no Objects
left but one?
Must
we in gaining that, lose our variety?"
("The Importunate Fortune", line 93 ff.)
Verse Seven: Here is one form of the Bodhi Aspiration from lbid., pp. 3a-3b:
Among all the creatures
of Samsara there is not one who has not acted as my
father or mother. While
they were my parents, they raised me with kindness,
gave me the best food
and dressed me in the finest clothes. Although, in their
kindness, they desired
happiness, they did not understand the practice of the
ten virtues which are at
the root of happiness. Although they did not wish for
suffering, they did not
understand the avoidance of the ten non-virtues which
are the cause of
suffering. I feel compassion for these creatures who, in their
confusion, having fallen
into wrong paths like a blind man abandoned in the
middle of a field. Now I
must learn the sacred Dharma, put it into practice,
and strive for the Goal,
in order that all the creatures of the six types [of
Cyclic Existence] may be
freed from affliction and the propensity for suffering
and obtain the level of
Omniscient Buddhahood.
Verse Eight: the reference is to be four Tantric initations.
Verse Nine: for "perdition", see note to verse 15.
Verse Eleven: "Obscure Tranquility" translates 'zhi-gnas bying-ba".
"Zhi-gnas" means
"peaceful abiding" and as such it forms a part of
meditation practice, a pre-requisite
to meditation, properly
speaking.
"Bying-ba" and "Rgod-pa"
are two extremes that must be avoided in order to
keep the
mind in a state of "peaceful abiding". "Bying-ba" may be translated as
"heaviness", "sinking", "obscuration", or "drowsiness". "Rgod-pa"
means "wildness"
or "scattering" of the mind to objects other
than the focus of concentration.
"Phyi-ba" means a kind of
marmot. I have used an animal more familiar to
Americans, the
groundhog, which is also a kind of marmot. The Tibetan "Phyi-ba",
according to Das's dictionary, is nicknamed "Sgom-chen", the word which I
have
translated "contemplative".
Verse Thirteen: "Grong-chog", translated "foundation laying ceremonies",
is to be
found in the Tibetan-English Dictionaries of Chodag and
Dagyab.
Verse Fourteen: This verse is about the sort of person who is known in
street
language as the "hustler", in this case a "contemplative" with
the "hustling"
mentality.
Verse Fifteen: The three types of perdition (ngan-song) are: rebirth in
the infernos,
the animal kingdom, or the realm of the "hungry ghosts"
(pretas).
Ashvaghosha, "Fifty Stanzas of Guru Devotion", contained in Wang-ch'ug
Dorje,
"The Mahamudra Eliminating the Darkness of Ignorance", Library
of Tibetan
Works and Archives, Dharamsala, 1978, pp. 158-187 (also
published as separate
pamphlet).
Chang, Karma C.C., (tr), "The Hundred Songs of Milarepa", Boulder, 1962.
Kong-sprul Blo-gros-mtha'-yas (tr. Judy Hanson), "The Torch of
Certainity",
Boulder, 1977.
Dpal-sprul O-rgyan-'jigs-med-chos-kyi-dbang-po, "Rdzogs-pa Chen-po'i
Klong-chen
Snying-thig-gi-Sngon-'gro'i Khrid-yig: Kun-Bzang Bla-ma'i
Zhal-lung", a woodblock
print in 307 leaves, no publisher, no
date.
Sa-skya Pandita Kun-dga'rgyal-mtshan, "Gangs-can-gyi Sgom-chen-mams-la
Gdams-pa", a woodblock print in three leaves, no publisher, no date.
Shakabpa, Tsepon W.D., "Tibet - A Political History", New Haven, 1967.
Vaughn, Henry, "The Complete Poetry of Henry Vaughn", New York, 1964.
