| [From the first edition:]
It is at this point that the accomplished meditator chooses his or her rebirth, which can be in a human realm or in one of the pure lands. For example, if you wish to be born as a human in conditions conducive to the continuing practice of secret mantra, you would think, ‘As I shall have not completed my practice of secret mantra, I should take rebirth in the human realm. Which country, therefore, would be most conducive to such practice?’ Then, if you are an accomplished meditator, you will take rebirth in a country where secret mantra is taught by fully qualified masters. Unlike ordinary beings who from the intermediate state take rebirth in their mother’s womb without conscious control or choice, the fully accomplished meditator can determine where and when he or she will be reborn. • In [the First Panchen Lama’s] commentary on mahamudra practice he wrote:
• All of these mistakes come from misunderstanding the ultimate nature of the mind because you did not follow the instructions of qualified teachers or did not study such instructions completely. • This has been merely a brief discussion of emptiness meditation. For more detailed explanations you should consult those texts—such as the sixth chapter of Chandrakirti’s Guide to the Middle Way and the ninth chapter of Shantideva’s Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life—where the correct view of emptiness is elucidated. However, it is not enough merely to study such texts. You must depend upon the advice of experienced guides—fully qualified spiritual masters—and meditate according to their instructions. Only in this way will your doubts be removed and will it be possible to gain a deep insight into the ultimate nature of reality. (Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, Clear Light of Bliss: Mahamudra in Vajrayana Buddhism [1st ed.], pp. 122, 142, 143, & 180, © 1982) |
[From the second edition:]
It is at this point, that we choose our next rebirth, which can be in a human realm or in one of the Pure Lands. For example, if we wished to be born as a human in conditions conducive to continuing our practice of Secret Mantra, we would think:
Then, if we are an accomplished meditator, we will take rebirth in a country where Secret Mantra is taught by fully qualified Spiritual Guides. Unlike ordinary beings, who from the intermediate state take rebirth in their mother’s womb without conscious control or choice, fully accomplished meditators can determine where and when they will be reborn. • In [the first Panchen Lama’s] root text on the Mahamudra he wrote:
• All these mistakes come from misunderstanding the ultimate nature of the mind as a result of not following the instructions of qualified Teachers, or not studying such instructions well. • This has been only a brief discussion of emptiness. For more detailed explanations, we should consult Ocean of Nectar, which is a commentary to Chandrakirti’s Guide to the Middle Way, and Meaningful to Behold, which is a commentary to Shantideva’s Guide to the Bodhisattva’s Way of Life. It is not enough merely to study such texts; we must also rely upon a qualified Spiritual Guide and practise precisely according to his or her instructions. Only in this way will we be able to overcome our doubts and gain a deep insight into emptiness, the ultimate nature of all phenomena. (Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, Clear Light of Bliss: the Practice of Mahamudra in Vajrayana Buddhism [2nd ed.], pp. 132, 152, 153, & 190, © 2002) |