Because we are just ordinary beings, sometimes our attitude will be pure, and at other times it will be impure. There is nothing surprising about this. When we find that our attitude is pure we can rejoice and let it remain pure. When we find that our attitude is impure there’s no reason to become disheartened because we can change it. If we change it again and again then little by little our negative attitude will naturally become pure. To develop this disposition for enlightenment we should think that whatever we are doing we are doing to help all beings reach Buddhahood.

     The Need for Meditation

When we perform a physical action this action can have either a positive or a negative result, and when we say something it too can be either positive or negative. So with words and actions we can see tangible results, but with thoughts there is no concrete action expressed. The mind, though, determines all of our physical and verbal actions because whatever we do there is thought behind it. When the thought is positive the actions that follow are positive. When negative then the actions that follow are negative. The starting point for changing what we do is to change the way we think.

When we try to change a mental disposition we must modify our habits, and this we can do through meditation. By using our mind in a more concentrated, controlled way. What is troubling the mind can be removed with meditation so that our mind can exist in its natural purity. In this way we can change negative habits into positive habits. When we manage to change our mental habits we can change our physical actions and verbal behaviour, and once we have changed these we can reach the ultimate goal of our practice which is Buddhahood.

     Faith and Devotion

The one thing common to all meditation practice is having the right motivation: wanting to benefit all beings and not just ourselves. Besides this, we also need to have very strong devotion for our lama and all the lamas of the lineage. If we pray to them with sincere devotion we can receive their blessings, which lead to a very quick development of our meditation. It is said that the reason for the growth of the Kagyu lineage was the blessings created by meditators praying to their lamas with true devotion. They received the blessings and were able to develop their meditation and understanding quickly.

With the practice of meditation we can actually get the mind to rest on what we want it to rest on, and so the mind becomes clearer and more peaceful. The Vajrayana tradition has developed a practice that makes it possible to go through this process much more quickly than in other meditation practices. In this practice one prays to one’s lama and to all the lamas that have come before, and this develops a very strong devotion or openness to receive their blessings. If one prays to the lamas one receives the blessings, and through this blessing one’s meditation progresses rapidly and naturally.

How is it possible that blessings are not felt by some? It is not because the Buddhas or the lamas feel “He doesn’t pray to me so I’m not going to give him blessings.” They look upon all beings with the same kindness and love as a mother has for her only child. But only those who are open to these blessings can feel them. For example, if we have a hook and try to catch an egg we can’t do it, but if we try to catch a ring with a hook it is easy. In the same way, the compassion and the blessings of the Buddhas are there constantly, but there has to be something in beings that is open to receive the blessings. No matter how much compassion the Buddhas have, without devotion nothing will happen.

     The Lineage Prayer

To develop devotion, we imagine our guru in the form of Dorje Chang [Skt. Vajradhara], who is the embodiment of all the Buddhas. The prayer to Dorje Chang is of special value and was composed by the guru of the seventh Karmapa. For eighteen years he lived on a very small island in the middle of a lake and meditated. He spent all that time just meditating until he reached full realization of the Mahamudra, at which point he spontaneously composed the Dorje Chang prayer. So for that reason it is said that this prayer has a great deal of blessing connected with it. When we say this prayer we should be aware of the meaning of the words. We should concentrate on what we’re saying, and not let our mind wander to other things; remembering with sincere devotion the qualities of our guru.

When we begin meditation we should put our mind in the disposition of enlightenment so that the other conditions for true meditation will arise within us. In the Vajrayana teachings it is said that real meditation will arise naturally if we receive the blessing of our lama and the lamas of the lineage. This is why we say the Dorje Chang prayer. Dorje Chang is visualized in the space in front of us, surrounded by the lamas of the lineage. If we cannot manage to visualize that many objects we can just imagine the form of Dorje Chang, but think of him as the embodiment of all the qualities and essence of the lamas of the lineage.

The Dorje Chang prayer has four parts. The first part is to turn our mind away from samsara so that we can see its illusion: to develop disgust with samsara and make us want to practice the dharma. The second part is to cultivate devotion towards the lama and the dharma so that we will be able to receive the blessings of the lamas and develop true meditation. The third part is that we pray to achieve peace of mind and undistractedness so we will develop true meditation. The fourth part is trying to understand that the essence of our thoughts is the dharmakaya. When we have truly understood this we actually become Dorje Chang. After that we just remain in meditation. Whatever thought comes up we just rest within the essence of that thought.

When we imagine Dorje Chang we think of him as being blue in colour with one face and two arms. He sits in the vajra posture, holding a dorje and a bell. We can either think of him as being on top of our head or being in front of us in space. We usually visualize him in front of us, and if it is possible with all the gurus of the lineage around him. We imagine that the lamas are not in their ordinary form, with a solid body of flesh and blood, because if we did they would arouse ordinary thoughts in our mind. Having ordinary thoughts during this meditation is a sign that we do not have much devotion. So we visualize our guru in the form of Dorje Chang to develop a pure vision in us, and to see him not as ordinary flesh and blood but in a pure way. We know that it is our guru, but in the form of Dorje Chang. If we cannot visualize all of these lamas we simply imagine Dorje Chang, and think that he represents all the aspects of the three jewels. While reciting this prayer we try to remember all the good qualities of our lama and the lamas of the Kagyu lineage, and try to feel genuine devotion from the bottom of our heart. At the end of the prayer we imagine that our guru and all the other gurus melt into light which is then absorbed through the top of our head and goes into our heart. At that particular moment, we think that we have received all the blessings of the body, speech and mind of our guru and all the other gurus. All their qualities of complete freedom from obscurations, and their complete realisation, are now ours. It is as if they had imprinted a picture of their enlightened qualities on us: we have received the full blessing, and whatever realisation is in the mind of our guru is now in our mind.

© Copyright Namo Buddha Publications & Zhyisil Chokyi Ghatsal Publications 2002.