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The Bodhisattva Path of Wisdom and Compassion

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by Chogyam Trungpa




  ABOUT THE BOOK

  The Profound Treasury of the Ocean of Dharma represents meditation master Chögyam Trungpa’s greatest contribution to Western Buddhism. This three-volume collection presents in lively, relevant language the comprehensive teachings of the Tibetan Buddhist path of the hinayana, mahayana, and vajrayana. This work will resonate with new students of Buddhism as well as the most senior students.

  The second volume, The Bodhisattva Path of Wisdom and Compassion, presents the bodhisattva teachings of the mahayana. At this point, having trained and seen the benefits of looking within, the student begins to shift their focus outward to the broader world. Formal entry into the mahayana occurs with taking the bodhisattva vow. Mahayana practitioners dedicate themselves to the service of all sentient beings, aspiring to save them from sorrow and confusion, and vowing to bring them to perfect liberation. This stage of the path emphasizes the cultivation of wisdom through the view and experience of emptiness, or shunyata, in which all phenomena are seen to be unbounded, completely open, ungraspable, and profound. From the ground of shunyata, compassionate activity is said to arise naturally and spontaneously. In addition to mindfulness and awareness, the mahayanist practices lojong, or “mind training,” based on the cultivation of the paramitas, or “transcendent virtues”: generosity, discipline, patience, exertion, meditation, and prajna, or “knowledge.” As a component of lojong, tonglen, or “sending and taking,” is practiced in order to increase maitri, or loving-kindness. Other topics covered in detail in this volume include bodhichitta, skillful means, Buddha nature and basic goodness, Madhyamaka, the ten bhumis, the three kayas, and more.

  CHÖGYAM TRUNGPA (1940–1987)—meditation master, teacher, and artist—founded Naropa University in Boulder, Colorado, the first Buddhist-inspired university in North America; the Shambhala Training program; and an international association of meditation centers known as Shambhala International. He is the author of numerous books including Shambhala: Sacred Path of the Warrior, Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism, and The Myth of Freedom.

  JUDITH L. LIEF is an acharya, or senior teacher, in the Shambhala Buddhist lineage of Chögyam Trungpa.

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  THE PROFOUND TREASURY OF THE OCEAN OF DHARMA

  VOLUME ONE

  The Path of Individual Liberation

  VOLUME TWO

  The Bodhisattva Path of Wisdom and Compassion

  VOLUME THREE

  The Tantric Path of Indestructible Wakefulness

  Published in association with Vajradhatu Publications, a division of Shambhala Media. www.shambhalamedia.org.

  VOLUME TWO

  THE PROFOUND TREASURY OF THE OCEAN OF DHARMA

  The Bodhisattva Path of Wisdom and Compassion

  CHÖGYAM TRUNGPA

  COMPILED AND EDITED BY

  Judith L. Lief

  SHAMBHALA • BOSTON & LONDON • 2013

  Shambhala Publications, Inc.

  Horticultural Hall

  300 Massachusetts Avenue

  Boston, Massachusetts 02115

  www.shambhala.com

  © 2013 by Diana J. Mukpo

  Cover art: Maitreya. Japan, 14th century.

  Frontispiece: Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche at Lake Louise, Canada, in formal Zen robes, holding a ritual scepter or nyoi (Jpn.). Photograph © Ray Ellis. Used with permission.

  See Credits for further credits and permissions.

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the publisher.

  LIBRARY OF CONGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA

  Trungpa, Chögyam, 1939–1987.

  The profound treasury of the ocean of dharma / Chögyam Trungpa; compiled and edited by Judith L. Lief.—First Edition.

  pages cm

  Compilation of Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche’s Vajradhatu Seminary teachings in three volumes.

  Includes index.

  eISBN 978-0-8348-2859-9 (eBook: vol. 2)

  ISBN 978-1-59030-708-3 (hardcover: alk. paper; set)

  ISBN 978-1-59030-802-8 (hardcover: alk. paper; vol. 1)

  ISBN 978-1-59030-803-5 (hardcover: alk. paper; vol. 2)

  ISBN 978-1-59030-804-2 (hardcover: alk. paper; vol. 3)

  1. Buddhism—Doctrines. I. Lief, Judith L., editor of compilation. II. Title.

  BQ4165.T75 2013

  294.3’4—dc23

  2012022795

  CONTENTS

  Editor’s Introduction

  Pronunciation of Sanskrit and Tibetan

  PART ONE Awakening the Heart

  1. A Glimpse of Wakefulness

  2. Love, Vision, and Warriorship

  3. Doubt and Delight

  PART TWO Buddha Nature

  4. Enlightened Genes

  5. Basic Goodness

  PART THREE Preparing the Ground

  6. Cultivating Wholesomeness

  7. Expanding Your Practice

  8. Cutting Ego Fixation

  9. Awakening Your Enlightened Genes

  10. The Spiritual Friend

  PART FOUR Making a Commitment

  11. Indestructible Wakefulness

  12. Planting the Moon of Bodhi in Your Heart

  13. Cultivating a Mahayana Mentality

  14. The Seven Mahayana Exercises

  15. Taking the Bodhisattva Vow

  16. Becoming a Bodhisattva

  17. Joining Profundity and Vastness

  PART FIVE Emptiness and Compassion

  18. Emptiness

  19. Discovering a World beyond Ego

  20. Emptiness and the Middle Way

  21. Realizing the Emptiness of Ordinary Reality

  22. Experiencing Reality in Its Fullest Sense

  23. Contemplating Emptiness

  24. Awakening Unfabricated Perception

  PART SIX Bodhisattva Activity

  25. Paramitas: Techniques of Nongrasping

  26. Applying Emptiness to Everyday Life

  27. Generosity

  28. Discipline

  29. Patience

  30. Exertion

  31. Meditation

  32. Prajna

  PART SEVEN Mind Training and Slogan Practice

  33. Introduction to Mind Training

  34. Undermining Aggression

  35. Point One: The Preliminaries, Which Are a Basis for Dharma Practice

  36. Point Two: Resting in Ultimate Bodhichitta

  37. Point Two: Training in Relative Bodhichitta

  38. Point Three: Transformation of Bad Circumstances into the Path of Enlightenment

  39. Point Four: Showing the Utilization of Practice in One’s Whole Life

  40. Point Five: Evaluation of Mind Training

  41. Point Six: Disciplines of Mind Training

  42. Point Seven: Guidelines of Mind Training

  43. Additional Mind-Training Instructions

  PART EIGHT The Bodhisattva’s Journey

  44. The Paths and Bhumis

  45. Very Joyful: The First Bhumi

  46. The Second through Tenth Bhumis

  47. Complete Radiance: The Eleventh Bhumi

  Appendix 1: Never Forget the Hinayana

  Appendix 2: The Practice of Oryoki

  Appendix: 3: The Heart Sutra

  Appendix 4: Prajna Dialogues

  Appendix 5: Forty-Six Ways in
Which a Bodhisattva Fails

  Appendix 6: The Root Text of the Seven Points of Mind Training

  Appendix 7: Outline of Teachings

  Glossary

  Sources

  Resources

  About the Author

  Credits

  Index

  E-mail Sign-Up

  EDITOR’S INTRODUCTION

  THE FOUNDATION OF HINAYANA AND THE TRANSITION TO THE MAHAYANA

  The Bodhisattva Path of Wisdom and Compassion is the second of the three volumes of The Profound Treasury of the Ocean of Dharma. This volume focuses on the mahayana path. In the previous volume, Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche presents the hinayana path of individual liberation, and in the final volume he introduces the vajrayana, or the path of complete awakening. By presenting the dharmic path as a natural progression that begins with the hinayana, expands into the mahayana, and reaches its fruition in the vajrayana, Trungpa Rinpoche provides the reader with a complete map of the spiritual journey from confusion to enlightenment.1

  In teaching about the three stages of the path, Trungpa Rinpoche presented each stage as having its own integrity and power, and taught his students to see each stage as complete in its own right. He especially cautioned students not to denigrate the hinayana or skip the mahayana in favor of what they might consider the more powerful or exotic vajrayana, but to see the three stages, or yanas, as an interconnected whole, and as one continuous journey.

  Trungpa Rinpoche went so far as to rouse his students from their sleep for a spontaneous talk late at night during the 1986 Seminary in order to drive this point home. In this pithy and impassioned talk, he remarked, “[The hinayana] is to be understood as the life force that carries on whether you are going through the hinayana, mahayana, or vajrayana. . . . The hinayana should be regarded as life’s strength.”2

  Trungpa Rinpoche made it clear that hinayana teachings are not just introductory, but reverberate throughout the path; they are the foundation on which the entire path is built. The logic in beginning with the hinayana is that if you would like to help others, you must first be willing to work on yourself.

  At the same time, although working on yourself is essential, according to Trungpa Rinpoche it is not enough. Sooner or later you need to start thinking about others. The world is vast and it needs help. Therefore, it is important to take the further step of entering the mahayana path of inseparable wisdom and compassion, and to balance your own individual training with service to others.

  READING THE DHARMA

  According to Trungpa Rinpoche, “You should try to connect what you study to your personal experience. Each aspect of the dharma is based on personal experience, so you can relate the dharma to what you experience on the spot.”3 So in studying these teachings, you could deepen your understanding by balancing your intellectual study with meditative practice and personal reflection. Scholarship without practice is of limited value, as is practice without scholarship; but the combination of the two is both powerful and transformative.

  THE STRUCTURE OF VOLUME TWO: MAHAYANA

  1. Awakening the Heart

  The opening section of this volume is about the transition from hinayana to mahayana. There is an introduction to basic concepts of the mahayana, such as bodhichitta, the mind / heart of awakening; maitri, or loving-kindness; karuna, or the noble heart of compassion; and upaya, or skillful means. This section includes a discussion of the relationship between bodhichitta and tathagatagarbha, or buddha nature. Throughout this section, the reader is reminded of the essential importance of the hinayana, and particularly of shamatha and vipashyana (mindfulness and awareness practice) as preparation for entering the mahayana path.

  2. Buddha Nature

  This section focuses on the fundamental human qualities that make it possible for one to practice the mahayana. Trungpa Rinpoche refers to the innate tendency toward growth and awakening as “enlightened genes.” He also introduces the concept of “basic goodness,” the fundamental state of our consciousness before it is divided up into “I” and “other.” Although the potential for awakening may be hidden or stained, Trungpa Rinpoche points out that such stains are temporary and can be removed.

  3. Preparing the Ground

  In this section, having had a glimpse of the potential for awakening, one is given instructions on how to expand that glimpse and prepare oneself for making a formal commitment to the mahayana path. The reader is directed to draw upon and strengthen the hinayana training of mindfulness and awareness, and to develop sympathy and a deeper understanding of egolessness. In order to awaken one’s potential, or enlightened genes, four methods are explained: love, compassion, joy, and equanimity. At this point, it is essential to work with a mahayana teacher, known as a spiritual friend, or kalyanamitra.

  4. Making a Commitment

  Having prepared the ground, one is ready to make a formal commitment to the mahayana path, also referred to as the bodhisattva path. This section is about preparing for and taking this profound vow to liberate all beings. It introduces the concept of the bodhisattva, or awake being, as a compassionate warrior of awakening. There is a discussion of ultimate and relative bodhichitta, of the aspiration to become a bodhisattva, and the implications of following the mahayana path.

  5. Emptiness and Compassion

  This section is about the view of the mahayana, which is that of emptiness and compassion, or shunyata and karuna, which are said to be inseparable. It is about developing prajna, or transcendent knowledge. There is a detailed discussion of the egolessness of self and the egolessness of dharmas, or phenomena. In addition, the doctrine of the two truths, relative truth and ultimate truth, is introduced. There is an emphasis on contemplating emptiness as a way of awakening unfabricated perception, and therefore experiencing reality fully and completely, without fear or distortion.

  6. Bodhisattva Activity

  Once one has taken the bodhisattva vow and had a glimpse of emptiness, it is time to put one’s understanding into practice, and engage in bodhisattva activity. The way to do so is by means of six techniques of nongrasping, called paramitas, or transcendent virtues: generosity, discipline, patience, exertion, meditation, and prajna (knowledge). The six paramitas provide the bodhisattva with guidelines for both practice and daily life.

  7. Mind Training and Slogan Practice

  Here mind training, or lojong, is presented as a way to undermine aggression and awaken bodhichitta, both ultimate bodhichitta and relative bodhichitta. It includes a discussion of tonglen, or sending and taking, and the idea of exchanging oneself for others. In this section, Trungpa Rinpoche comments in detail on the fifty-nine slogans of mind training, which were compiled by Geshe Chekawa, and are attributed to the great Indian master Atisha.

  8. The Bodhisattva’s Journey

  This section gives a map of the bodhisattva’s journey from beginning to end. This is presented according to two related models: the five paths and the ten bhumis, or spiritual levels. The author concludes with a description of the eleventh bhumi, called “complete radiance,” the attainment of unsurpassable enlightenment.

  NOTES ON FOREIGN TERMS AND DEFINITIONS

  Tibetan, Sanskrit, and other foreign words and phrases are italicized on first appearance in these volumes. Tibetan terms are spelled phonetically in the body of the text. The glossary contains definitions of all terms, as well as transliterations of Tibetan terms. A special thank you to the Nalanda Translation Committee and to Ellen Kearney for preparing and editing the extensive glossary. Please see the Credits for a list of further acknowledgments.

  DEDICATION

  May the ever-expanding wisdom and compassion of the mahayana

  Draw us out of our complacent self-concern

  Into the liberating and challenging playground of the peaceful bodhisattva warrior.

  May the world enjoy peace, and may all beings be freed from ignorance and suffering.

  1. For a brief overview of the three yanas, see volume 1 of the Profound
Treasury, “Editor’s Introduction.”

  2. See appendix 1, “Never Forget the Hinayana.”

  3. “Egolessness and Compassion,” Vajradhatu Seminary, Lake Louise, Alberta, Canada, January–March 1980, talk 18.

  PRONUNCIATION OF SANSKRIT AND TIBETAN

  SANSKRIT

  Sanskrit words may seem intimidating at first sight because they are so long. However, once they are broken into syllables, they are easy to pronounce. Sanskrit follows very regular rules and contains no “silent letters” such as those in English.

  Vowels

  In general, vowels are pronounced as in Italian or Spanish. Sanskrit makes a distinction between long and short vowels in the case of a, i, and u. However, in this text they are not represented differently. Therefore, it is acceptable always to pronounce them as if they were long:

  a as in car.

  i as in feet.

  u as in loot.

  The following vowels are always considered long in Sanskrit:

  e as in day

  ai as in pie

  o as in go

  au as in how

  Consonants

  Most consonants are pronounced as in English. The aspirated consonants (kh, gh, ch, jh, th, dh, th, dh, ph, bh) are pronounced as the consonant plus a noticeable aspiration of breath. In particular, note that the consonants th and ph are not pronounced as in the words thing and photo, but as in pothole and shepherd. The letter g is always pronounced hard as in go, never as in gem. The letter h is pronounced as a breathing sound at the end of a word.

 

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