THUBTEN YESHE
This is the first step on the Buddhist path to inner freedom. It is not anything new. Most of us take refuge already, but in external things. We seek security in money, food, marriage, and even drugs, hoping to find happiness and satisfaction. In the end we realize that all of this is temporary and short term – taking refuge in material pleasures is transient and cannot last.
In a Buddhist sense, taking refuge means turning inward to discover your own mind and your unlimited potential to realize the peerless happiness of a permanent kind – that which comes from giving voice and liberation to your inherent “inner wisdom” energy. The way to realize this inner-mind liberation is to take refuge in the Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha, also known as the “Guru-Triple Gem.”
Buddha Refuge means accepting the guidance of enlightened beings as the only solution to the continuing cycle of temporary happiness and suffering.
Dharma Refuge is the wisdom that understands our own true nature. So it means using our inner wisdom immediately, now! Dharma means understanding the true nature of reality.
Sangha Refuge means seeking security in the company of those endowed with wisdom, such as ordained monks and nuns, and also spiritual friends who inspire and support us in our quest for the flowering of our inner-mind wisdom.
This is the mantra of taking refuge in the Guru, the Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha:
NAMO GURU BHYE
NAMO BUDDHAYA
NAMO DHARMAYA
NAMO SANGHAYAH
Saying this refuge mantra seven times each morning when you wake up, and seven times at night before you sleep, brings you under the care of the Buddhas; if you have a guru, it brings you under the care of the guru. This simple mantra is extremely powerful because it plants the imprint of taking refuge in the Guru-Triple Gem.
HOMAGE MANTRA TO THE BUDDHA
You can say this longer homage mantra to the Buddha, and incorporate a simple “receiving blessing” visualization. Chant this mantra three times each morning:
LAMA TON PA CHOM DEN DAY
DE ZHIN SHEG PA DRA CHOM PA
YANG DAG PAR DZOG PAY SANG GYAY
PEL GYEL WA, SHAKYA TUB PA LA
CHAG TSEL ZHING, KYAB SU CHI WO
CHO DO JIN GYI LAB TU SOL
TRANSLATION:
To the founder, the endowed transcendent destroyer, the one gone beyond, the foe destroyer, the completely perfect, fully awakened being, the subduer from the Shakya clan, I prostrate. Please grant me your blessings.
As you chant this mantra, feel the presence of the Buddha and take refuge in him. Visualize his body as golden light. He is seated in the Vajra position; his face is very beautiful, and his gaze is compassionate. Rays of light emanate from each pore of the Buddha’s body and reach every corner of the world. Feel the rays waft completely over you, entering the top of your head and filling your whole body. Feel very blessed.
Shakyamuni Buddha, or historical Buddha.
One of the first things that Rinpoche taught me when I met him in Bodhgaya, India, was how beneficial it was to learn how to make prostrations to the holy objects, and especially to images of Buddha. Rinpoche said, “The merit is greater than all the grains of sand on the bed of the river Ganga . . .”
Rinpoche explained that because most of us have minds that are not purified of karmic obstacles, even if numberless Buddhas were to come in front of us, we would not be able to “see” the aspect of the Buddha, or that which is the pure aspect. We can only see the image of the Buddha shown as in a painting, or as a statue. So when we prostrate to an image of Buddha, in our minds and our hearts we are prostrating to Buddha. The image helps us to visualize. Those of us who have the good karma to meet a perfectly qualified guru can see Buddha emanating as an ordinary being who appears in the form of a humble monk and teacher. This explains why Tibetan Buddhists see His Holiness the Dalai Lama as the Buddha of Compassion. Although he takes the form of an ordinary human being, those who revere him see him as an emanation of the Buddha Chenrezig, the Compassionate Buddha (see page 34). So making prostrations to images of the Buddhas (or holy objects) and to our precious gurus is an act of reverence that precedes all prayers. Making prostrations helps the mind to develop genuine humility, and is a perfect way of overcoming arrogance and pride.
PROSTRATION MANTRA
Prostrate three times while reciting the mantra below. This multiplies it one thousand times. Prostrations purify the negative karma of the body. Verbally reciting mantras exalts the Buddha, purifying the negative karma of speech. The mental action of remembering the supreme power of the Buddha purifies the negative karma of the mind, thereby arousing faith.
OM NAMO MANJUSHRIYE
NAMA SUSHRIYE
NAMA UTTAMA SHRIYE SVAHA
PROSTRATION MUDRA
If for some reason you find it difficult to make the full-length or even the short prostrations (see opposite),
