Secret of the Vajra World: The Tantirc Buddhism of Tibet

546 Pages·2001·38.42 MB·English

by  Reginald A. Ray

SECRET oF THE VAJRA WoRLD
MAHAKALA
The Tantric Buddhism of Tibet
THE WORLD OF TIBETAN BUDDHISM
Volume Two
REGINALD A. RAY
Foreword by Tulku Thondup
t
SHAMBHALA • BosTON & LoNDON • 2002
SH.\.MBHALA PuBLICATioNs, INc.
HoRTICULTURAL HALL
300 MASSACHUSETTS AvENUE
BosToN, MAsSACHUSETTs 02115
www.shambhala.com
©2001 by Reginald A. Ray
Excerpts from The Tibetan Book of Living and Dying, by Sogyal
Rinpoche and edited by Patrick Gaffney and Andrew Harvey,
copyright ©1993 by Rigpa Fellowship, are reprinted by permission
of HarperCollins Publishers, Inc.
Further copyright information appears in the Credits, page 509.
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.
9 8 7 6 5 4 3
Printed in the United States ofA merica
@ This edition is printed on acid-free paper that meets the American
National Standards Institute Z39.48 Standard.
Distributed in the United States by Random House, Inc.,
and in Canada by Random House of Canada Ltd
LIBRARY OF CoNGRESS CATALOGING-IN-PUBLICATION DATA
RAY, REGINALD A.
SEcRET oF THE VAJRA WORLD: THE TANTRIC BuDDHISM oF TIBET I
REGINALD A. RAY.-IST ED.
P. cM.-(THE WORLD OF TIBETAN BuDDHisM; v. 2)
INCLUDES BIBLIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCES AND INDEX.
ISBN I -57062-772-X (ALK. PAPER)
ISBN I-')7062-917-X (PBK.)
r. TANTRic Rui>DHISM-CHINA-TIBET 2. SPIRITUAL LIFE-TANTRic
BuDDHISM. I. TITLE.
BQ7604 .R39 2002 VOL. 2
[BQ8912.9]
1
294· 3 923 S-DC2 I
[294·3/92s/09)
2002007342
Contents
Foreword by Tulku Thondup vii
Preface xi
Acknowledgments xv
Introduction I
PART 0 N E. Foundations of Vajrayana 7
r. The Indian Prelude 9
2. How the Vajrayana Came to Tibet: The Early
Spreading of the Dharma 28
3· How the Vajrayana Came to Tibet: The Later
Spreading and Beyond 40
4· The Vajrayana in the Context of the Three-Yana
Journey 66
5· The View of Vajrayana 91
PART Two. Entering the Vajra World 109
6. Some Initial Vajrayana Perspectives III
7· The World Beyond Thought 126
8. The Vajra Master 153
9· Entering the Vajrayana Path 177
ro. Tantric Practice: Meditation on the Yidam 209
I 1. Subtleties of Practice: The Inner Yogas 230
PART THREE. Meeting the Essence of Mind 259
12. Mahamudra: The Great Symbol 261
I 3· Dzokchen: The Great Perfection 294
v
CoNTENTS
PART FouR. Tantric Applications 327
14. Lessons in Mortality: Death and Dying in Tantric
Practice 329
15. Bodhisattvas in the World: Tiilkus, Reincarnate
Lamas 360
16. Themes of a Tiilku's Life 385
17. The Practice of Retreat 426
I 8. The Passing of a Realized Master 462
Conclusion 481
Notes 489
Bibliography 503
Credits 509
Index 51 I
Vl
Foreword
Secret of the Vajra World is a comprehensive survey of the profound and
vast teachings of the Vajrayana, focusing especially on the Kagyti and
Nyingma lineages. Acharya Ray's mastery of the subject and devotion
to the tradition-an inspiring combination of gifts-permeate the entire
book. Streams of nectarlike quotations from the warm breath of many
great masters and an abundance of illuminating stories produce a book
that is meaningful, enchanting, and easy to understand. Taken together
with the author's earlier work, Indestructible Truth, it provides an in-
depth treatment of Tibetan Buddhism, including both its exoteric (Hi-
nayana and Mahayana) and esoteric (Vajrayana) vehicles, illuminating
its philosophical basis, meditation practices, goal of enlightenment, cul-
tural context, and historical background.
Buddhism offers multiple approaches to awaken the enlightened na-
ture of the mind. The true nature of the mind is enlightened, the ut-
most peace, openness, and omniscience. Conceptual notions of forms,
words, and feelings are mere designations created and felt by the dualis-
tic mind, all rooted in grasping at a "self," perceived as a truly existing
entity. Therefore, when the enlightened nature of the mind is awak-
ened, our grasping mentality dissolves and all the mental objects-the
whole universe-are awakened as the Buddhafield, the qualities of the
enlightened nature. Jetsun Milarepa said:
Don't you know that all the appearances are the nature of your
mind?
Don't you know that [the nature of] your mind is Buddha?
Don't you know that Buddha is the ultimate body (dharmakaya)?
Don't you know that ultimate body is the ultimate nature
(dharmata)?
vn
FoREWORil
11· you know them, then all the appearances are your own
mind.•
For us unawakened beings, the enlightened nature of our mind has
been obscured because of our own dualistic concepts and emotional af-
flictions rooted in grasping at "self." The mind's true nature has become
unknown to us, like a treasure buried under layers of earth. But when
the true nature is uncovered through the right Buddhist training that
suits us, we become the Fully Awakened One, the Buddha. Buddha
said:
Beings are Buddha in their nature.
But their nature has been obscured by adventitious defilements.
When the defilements are cleared,
They themselves are the very Buddhas.t
Buddhist trainings start with taming the mind, because the mind is
the source of all our mental events and physical actions. If our mind is
peaceful and kind, all our thoughts and efforts will benefit ourselves
and others. Buddhist trainings lead us directly to, or at least toward, the
goal-the realization of Buddhahood, the true nature of the mind and
the whole universe.
Buddhist trainings comprise a wide range of approaches, each
adapted to tlw particular needs of different kinds of trainees. Neverthe-
less, all can lw distilled into three major vehicles, or yanas.
Fundamt'ntal Buddhism (Hinayana): In this training, practitioners
avoid t·m·ountcring the sources of negative mentalities and emotions by,
for iustam·t', living in solitary places and observing celibacy. This ap-
proach is likt' walking around a poisonous tree to avoid its afflictions.
This is the· path of pratimoksha (individual liberation), which primarily
emphasizt·s adhering to a set of physical disciplines and refraining from
harming ot lwrs.
•rfe bTsun Ali /.a Ras Pa'i rNam Thar rGyas Par Phye Ba mGur'Bum (India: Chitra
Monastery), folio 57b/6.
tKyer rDo 1/r 'l.hts Bya Ba [brTags Pa gNyis Pa}. Kanjur, rGyud. Vol. Nga (Tibet:
Dege Editiou), li11io 22ah.
Vlll