Vast as the Heavens, Deep as the Sea: Verses in Praise of Bodhicitta

Vast as the Heavens Deep as the Sea

Vast as the Heavens Deep as the Sea

VERSES IN PRAISE OF BooHICITTA

Khunu Rinpoche

Foreword by His Holiness the Dalai Lama

Wisdom Publications • Boston

WisDoM PuBLICATIONs

199 Elm Street Somerville, Massachusetts 02144 USA www. wisdompubs.org

© Gareth Sparham 1999

All righiS reserved.

No pan of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means, elecuonic or

mechanical, including photography, recording. or by any information storage and

retrieval system or technologies now known or later developed, without permission in

writing from the publisher.

Library ofCongms Cataloging-in-Publication Data Bstan-' dzin-rgyal-miShan, Khu-nu.

[Byail chub sems kyi bstod pa rin chen sgron rna 7.es bya ba

btugs so. English & Tibetan]

Vast as the heavens, deep as the sea : verses in praise of

bodhicitta I Khunu Rinpoche.

P· em. Includes bibliographical references.

ISBN o-86171-146-7 (pbk. : alk. paper)

1. Bodhicina (Buddhism) I. Tide.

BQ4398.s.B7713 1999

2.94·3' 42.2.-dc2.1

ISBN o-86171-146-7

Desipul by: Jennie Malcolm

Covn- imagt: Khunu Rinpoche at Tso Padma (Rewalsar), India, 1976.

Photo by Christopher Fynn.

WISdom Publications' books are prinred on acid-free paper and meet the guidelines for

the permanence and durability of the Committee on Production Guidelines for Book

Longevity of the Council on Library Resources.

Prinred in Canada.

TABLE oF CoNTENTS

Publisher's Acknowledgment VI

Translator's Acknowledgments vu

Translator's Introduction 1

Foreword to the 1966 Edition by the Dalai Lama 20

(Tibetan and English)

The jewel Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta (Tibetan and English) 23

Translator's Dedication 146

Notes 147

TRANSLATOR'S ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

This small book has been in the ~aking for many years.

Wendy Finster first suggested that I translate the verses into

English in 1980. I would like to thank her for motivating me and keeping

me going with her enthusiasm without any thought of personal gain. I

would also like to thank Joyce Murdoch, that most admirable of women,

who typed the original manuscript, and Patricia Donnelly and Sarah

Thresher who were instrumental in originally causing the work to appear in

English. I would also like to thank Ngawang Wangmo for painting a beau

tiful picture of a wish-fulfilling bodhicitta tree that I had hoped might be

used as an illustration for the book. When I finished the translation in 1992,

Lochen Rinpoche very kindly gave me a photocopy of the mDzad rnam and

rNam thar thar pa'i them skas by Ngodup Gasha (Angrup Lahuli), which

provided most of the information for Khunu Rinpoche's biography. I

would like to thank Lochen Rinpoche for giving me the book and Ngodup

Gasha for allowing me to make use of his work.

The translation of the verses was thoroughly revised and corrected by

Sara McClintock in 1997 and 1998. She also edited the introduction and

supervised the writing of the essay on bodhicitta. Her effort goes far beyond

usual editorial assistance and would be more accurately described as collab

oration. That having been said, all remaining errors in the work are mine

alone. I owe a debt of gratitude to Nick Ribush for initially accepting this

work for publication and to Tim McNeill for patiently smoothing away

bumps on the way to completion. Finally I would like to thank the Dalai

Lama T enzin Gyatso for taking an interest in this work and encouraging its

publication, Lobsang Gyatso (before his untimely death) for explaining

impenetrable verses to me, and Nga-hua Yeo for supporting me as a monk.

Thubten Thardo (Gareth Sparham)

Acknow/~d}(mmts vii

TRANSLATOR's INTRODUCTION

TheAuthori Tenzin Gyaltsen was born the second of three sons to Kalan

pur and Norki in 1894 or early 1895 in the village of Shunam in the Rupa region ofKinnaur, or Khu nu (as the local people call it), on the

Indo-Tibetan border. His village lay in a relatively prosperous farming

region, 2,000 to 2,500 meters above sea level, surrounded by mountains as

high as 6,500 meters and drained by the upper reaches of the Sutlej River.

The valleys in this region are extremely beautiful, covered with thick forests

of mountain pine giving way at lower levels to orchards of apple and apri

cot trees fringing fields of mountain barley. Though not a rich area in the

modern sense, its economy easily supported a traditional way of life that

was based on the Tibetan Buddhism of south central Asia and strongly

influenced by the accommodating syncretism of the north Indian plains

people to the south.

Amongst his own people, Tenzin Gyaltsen is better known by the hon

orific names Khunu Rinpoche ("precious one from Kinnaur") and Negi

Lama. Negi is a clan or caste name used by almost all the people ofKinnaur

except metal workers and weavers, and is said to derive from a term of

respect given in earlier times to officials at the court at Rampur, an impor

tant town on the Sutlej River. In the case of Negi Lama Tenzin Gyaltsen,

Negi refers as well to his personal family name (Ne gi pang), which means

the guru from the Negi family, or the guru from the people of the Negi

caste. As a sign of respect, and foliowing the customs of his own people, I

refer to him as Khunu Rinpoche, or Rinpoche for short.

Khunu Rinpoche started his spiritual training at the age of seven under

the guidance of his maternal uncle Rasvir Das, who lived in an adjoining

village. Rasvir Das taught Khunu Rinpoche how to read and write Tibetan,

and then, following the custom in those parts of the border area of Tibet,

had him memorize the Diamond Cutter Sutra (Skt. Vajracchedikti Sutra)

Tntrndtutinn

and the Verse Summary of Perfect Wisdom (Skt. Ratna-gu1}a-sa1J'lcaya-giitha).

The Ne gi pang family were traditionally followers of the Drukpa Kagyu

sect of Tibetan Buddhism, so at the age of thirteen Rinpoche went to Lib

pa (an area north of Kinnaur where the southern school of Drukpa Kagyu

flourished) to receive instruction in the spiritual exercises preliminary to the

practice of the general precepts of Buddhism. He studied under Sonam

Gyaltsen, a personal student of a famous teacher from Kham (southeastern

Tibet) called T ogden Sakya-shri.

In 1913, at the age of nineteen, Khunu Rinpoche set out for Tibet to con

tinue his religious training. Although there are a number of passes leading

directly into western Tibet from Kinnaur, Rinpoche, who at that time

could not even afford a new pair of shoes, instead first went through the

Kullu Valley, where he collected some interest owing on loans made by his

older brother to Kinnauris settled in that region, and with that small

amount as his travel money he made his way to the Kagyu monastery

Rumtek in Sikkim. He stayed there for three years studying Tibetan gram

mar and poetry with Urgyen Tenzin. In 1916 or 1917, Khunu Rinpoche

finally traveled to Tibet, where he first made a base for himself at the seat

of the Panchen Lama at T ashi Lhunpo, the Gelugpa monastery in Shigatse.

Subsequently, he traveled to Lhasa where he studied, not the traditional

subjects of a monk in one of the large debating or tantric colleges, but

_rather advanced subjects in grammar, poetry, and composition. He made

an exhaustive study of these subjects, after which, as requested by the then

Panchen Lama Chokyi Nyima, he returned to Shigatse and began teaching

Tibetan aristocrats and other students from the Tsang region in a special

school for Tibetan grammar and poetry.

After some time Rinpoche resigned from his position and traveled to

Derge in Kham. Rinpoche studied in Derge for five years, during which

time he learned the thirteen volumes of the essential Buddhist scriptures.

Khunu Rinpoche himself said that while in Kham he mastered the Tibetan

tradition of Sanskrit grammar (the ·sarasvati, Candragomin, and Kalapa

systems), but as he was unable to make headway in the Pal).inian tradition

of Sanskrit grammar (which was pretty much absent from Tibet), he went

to Varanasi in India in order to find someone to teach it to him. There he

became a student of Pandit Dev Narayan Tripathi and studied with him

for five years. The presence of Khunu Rinpoche in Varanasi at this time is

2 VAST AS THE HEAVENS

corroborated by the flamboyant traveler from Amdo (northeastern Tibet),

Gendun Chophel.

Eventually, Khunu Rinpoche returned to Kham, probably in the mid-

1930s, where he again taught and studied for many years. It was during this

period, in the course of teaching grammar and poetry to the children of the

Derge royal family, amongst others, that he wrote his widely used com

mentary on the Tibetan lexicon of the translator Palkhang called The Lamp for Learned Speech (Tib. Ngag sgron).

Leaving Kham in the mid-1940s, Khunu Rinpoche returned to Lhasa

where, as requested by the Tibetan government, he began teaching at the

main Astrological and Medical Institute (the famed Mentsi Khang). He

taught there for three years, after which time he resigned in order to return

to India to continue his study of Sanskrit.

In all, Khunu Rinpoche spent thirty-four years traveling and studying in

various parts of Tibet and India. During that period his parents had passed

away, as had his first teacher and uncle, Rasvir Das. It was probably some

time shortly after India's independence from Britain in 1947 that Khunu

Rinpoche made the trip back to Kinnaur, where he intended to spend only

a short time before returning to Varanasi. In fact, strongly urged by his

remaining relatives and fellow Kinnauris to stay in his native place and teach,

he spent nearly eight years there, during which time he composed a num

ber of short works to help the mountain people learn the Tibetan alphabet.2

Mter teaching in Kinnaur, Khunu Rinpoche returned to Varanasi toward

the end of the 1950s where he remained based until near the end of his life.

By this time his learning had made him a well-known figure and he had a

position teaching at the Sanskrit University. Nevertheless he retained essen

tially a lifestyle of renunciation, declining the salary that ordinarily would

have come with the post and living in an unassuming part ofVaranasi with

an old friend from the 1930s, Jobo Ganga-gire. This dear Hindu friend of

Rinpoche had an old temple in Lakasa which he looked after. Rinpoche

built a room on the top of that temple and would always, after his journeys

to Bodh Gaya, or after spending the hot season away in Sik.kim where he

was a personal guru to the royal family, return to live there.

Khunu Rinpoche had a spontaneous kindness that extended to all equally,

regardless of their sect, religion, or nationality. He saw the great hardship

of Tibetan refugees arriving in north India in 1959. He saw that these

Introduction

Tibetans, who had admitted him to schools, taught him, and given him

work, were now dazed by the loss of their country and their way of life,

often nearly destitute, with little but the clothes on their backs. Khunu

Rinpoche felt for these refugees deeply. He taught many of them, among

them the Founeenth Dalai Lama. These students would, in later years, refer

back to that time and recall the kindness that Khunu Rinpoche embodied.

In addition to teaching the refugees through personal kindness and exam

ple, Khunu Rinpoche went to Mussoorie at the Dalai Lama's request to

instruct the Tibetan refugees in grammar and poetry, remaining there for

nearly a year. It was through this work in particular that Khunu Rinpoche

became well known to the Tibetan refugees in India.

Among the countless stories that illustrate Khunu Rinpoche's disinterest

ed yet active meditative kindness is one of an American woman, Tubten

Perno, who met Khunu Rinpoche some years before his death in the mid-

1970s in Kathmandu, Nepal. She and a number of other foreigners who had

gone to Nepal to study Buddhism asked Rinpoche if there was anything he

needed that they could supply. He said, "No. I have all I need because I

have bodhicitta," and the next day, he sent an offering of one rupee (the

equivalent of three or four cents) to each of the foreign students.

Khunu Rinpoche spent the last months of his life in Lahaul, stopping on

his way there at a monastery in Rewalsar, a place sacred to Padma

sambhava, near Mandi. He arrived in Lahaul in August 1976, where he

taught all-the gifted and the slow-by example, by personal advice, and

by teaching gatherings of the faithful in the traditional way. He taught from Gampopa's J~el Ornament of Liberation (Tib. Dwags po thar rgyan)

and other important texts of the Drukpa Kagyu tradition as well as from

his own composition.

Some time before his death Rinpoche moved to the T ashi Shuling

monastery (Shur Monastery in the local dialect) in a quiet pan of Lahaul.

He stayed there with his longtime female companion, the Drikung

Khandro. Each afternoon it was his custom to give a teaching for about two

hours from the J~el Ornament of Liberation. On February 20, 1977, while

in the middle of teaching the wisdom chapter of that book, Rinpoche sud

denly, and without any change in the kindly, peaceful expression on his

face, died. His ashes have been enshrined in a number of reliquaries in the

region straddling the Indo-Tibetan border in the state of Himachal Pradesh.


The Original Manuscript-the I959 Diary The full Tibetan title of the text translated here is Byang chub sems kyi bstod pa rin chen sgron ma or The jewel Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta. The idea

behind this title is that the verses are like a heap of jewels in a glass vase

each one emits a light that makes the subject clear. Khunu Rinpoche

penned each of these three hundred and fifty-six verses as a thought-for

the-day in a diary. Beneath each verse is a record of the events of that day.

He wrote all the verses in Tibetan, but some of the other entries in the diary

are in Hindi and Sanskrit.

Rinpoche had decided on the project some time previous to 1959, as a

method to familiarize himself with bodhicitta. There are only two direct

references to the project in the diary itself. On January 1, 1959, he writes,

"Kay Jig-gon asked me to do this, I decided to do so, I am now involved in

doing it"; and on January 17th he writes, "I have completed this far and

some of the verses are okay and others are not." It is fortuitous that he chose

the year 1959 to pen the verses because in the late spring of that year the

Dalai Lama fled Tibet and arrived in India with nearly 10o,ooo of his peo

ple. Interspersed amongst entries recording his day-to-day affairs-lists of

the names of his students and what he taught them; how much they gave

him (usually a donation of one or two rupees); and the books he was read

ing-Khunu Rinpoche also records the fall ofTibet, the anxiety he felt for

the safety of the refugees as they fled, and their arrival in India. The com

bination of the ordinary and the momentous inescapably reminds the

reader of Samuel Pepys, whose diaries of life in London at the end of the

seventeenth century record in passing the horrors of Cromwell and the

British civil war.

In 1998 I obtained the original diary from Thubten Kalden Negi Shastri,

a teacher in the Government Secondary School in Sarahan, Simla District,

India, and was able to make a photocopy of it. T.K. Negi joined the

Tibetan monastery in Bodh Gaya in 1970 as a student of the chant master,

and soon after enrolled as a student at the Tibetan Institute in V aranasi.

During the 1970s he spent his holidays and other periods in Bodh Gaya.

The diary, which came into his possession in 1978, was amongst the per

sonal effects of Khunu Rinpoche left in his room at the Tibetan monastery

in Bodh Gaya when he died in Lahaul in 1977· After Rinpoche's death, the

chant master asked T.K Negi, who comes from a village in Kinnaur close

Introduction

to Rinpoche's birthplace, to deal with the belongings left in Rinpoche's

room. There were about ten to fifteen diaries-all the same size as the diary

for 1959-as well as a few clothes and a bank book. Most of the diaries had

only personal remarks. T.K. Negi says he kept the diary for 1959 because it

contained verses that he intended to study. The whereabouts of the remain

ing diaries is now unclear.

Most entries in the diary have to do with Khunu Rinpoche's daily affairs,

particularly financial matters and correspondence. They provide an authen

tic background to more momentous events and stand as a record of a reli

gious figure's daily life in the mid-twentieth century. It is unlikely that the

diary will ever be published in full or translated into English. The reader of

Vast as the Heavens, Deep as the Sea, however, may benefit from a general

knowledge of its contents, so the following excerpts are presented to con

vey some sense of what the original diary is like.

The first entries from the cold winter months record the visits of moun

tain people to the warmer pilgrimage sites of Varanasi and Bodh Gaya.

"Norkhel, Badari and Namgyel from Sungnam came. Fifteen rupees. Food

and tea to all three. Tsenam came but was not satisfied and left" Oanuary

3rd). There are references to his health: "I was sick to my stomach and went

to the toilet twice" (August 14th). Many references are to teaching: "I

explained the preliminary practices for Mahamudra to Sangye T enzin and

twenty-one others and explained Padmakarpo's work to them. I read aloud

to them my own summary of how a meditation session works and

explained some prayers" (February roth); "I read the Sakyamuni practice

out to visitors from Spiti and visitors from Ladakh and then explained

refuge to them. They offered me twenty rupees" (November 24th). Many

entries record the books that he was reading: "I finished a Hindi commen

tary on Patafijali's Yogasiitras today. I started on May 23rd so it took me ten

days" Oune rst); "I have been given a copy of Pataiijali's Yogasiitras and

Vyasa's Bh~a with the commentary Tattvavaifiiradi" Oune 6th); "I read

the Tarkabh~a and quite a bit of the Sanskrit-Hindi commentary by

Cidanandin" Quly 23rd). These entries are particularly interesting as a

record of a traditionally educated Tibetan lama reading non-Buddhist works.

Entries in the diary recording the fall of Tibet begin in March: "The

newspapers are saying that there has been fighting between the Khampas

and the Chinese. There are articles saying that His Holiness the Omniscient

One is well ... is in prison.~." (March 23rd). "I read a newspaper article that


said Sera and Drepung have been demolished and the Norbulingka dam

aged. I did the hair-cutting ceremony for Munshi Bhastra Singh and gave

him the name Guden Senge" (March 24th). "The newspapers are saying

that fighting has died down in Lhasa. The Chinese are saying that His

Holiness has fled. Some reports say he is probably making for Sikkim or

Assam. Others say Lhokha. It seems the fighting is going on all around

him" (March 27th). "The A} newspaper is saying that His Holiness is being

secretly brought out on horseback by the Khampas and has fallen sick on

the journey" (March 30th). "The newspapers says His Holiness has set foot

on Indian soil" (April3rd). "The Omniscient One, the King, the Guide of

Gods and Humans [the Dalai Lama] set foot in Sarnath, Varanasi today.

He revealed his face. He prayed at the stiipa. He addressed those gathered

there and then departed" (April 2oth).

On August 29th Khunu Rinpoche records a telegram from the Dalai

Lama asking him to visit, and notes that he sent the reply that he would do

so when his health permitted. Rinpoche left for Mussoorie to visit the Dalai

Lama nearly six weeks later: "I met the Dalai Lama today" (October 4th).

"The Sakya Lama arrived; I lent the Bodhicaryiivatlira and Suh.rllekha" (October 8th). "Together with Tsultrim I began translating the Lamrim Dudon (Tib. Lam rim bsdus don)" (October 9th). "I met with the Dalai

Lama and showed him the [Hindi] translation of the Lamrim Dudon" (October 14th). "Was honored to begin teaching the Senior Tutor Ling

Rinpoche the Sum cu pa grammar" (October 16th). "Earlier I got back the

Pramiitzaviirttika and Abhidharmakofa from His Holiness; today he

returned the Bodhicaryiivatlira and the AbhisamayiilaTflkiira" (October

27th). "I offered my translation of Lamrim Dudon and the Vinaya summa

ry to His Holiness today. He looked at them and gave me a present"

(December 2nd). "I took leave of His Holiness today. He was working with

Ling Rinpoche. I said goodbye to his mother" (December 5th). "I received

back books that I lent to the Dalai Lama: the Madhyamakiivatiira, Abhidharmakofa. He gave me a chinten (a blessed pill) as a gift with a spe

cial silk ceremonial scarf .. .I left Mussoorie" (December 6th).

The I966 Published Edition The Tibetan text presented in this book is a reproduction of the first printed

edition of the Tibetan text, published in Varanasi in 1966.3 This edition, as

the Dalai Lama mentions in his foreword, was sponsored by his sister,

lntrodur.tinn ..,

Tsering Dolma, and incorporates many changes and revisions to the version

preserved in the 1959 diary. These changes have not been made to the orig

inal manuscript-the 1959 diary-but were probably made to an early printer's proof which is no longer extant. The changes and revisions are

extensive, and many verses found in the 1959 diary are not even found in

the 1966 edition. The changes and revisions improve the diary version in

almost every instance and there is no reason to think that they were done

by someone other than the original author, who was living in Varanasi at

the time and was in close contact with the Dalai Lama and his family.

In the absence of the printer's proofs on which Khunu Rinpoche made

his changes and revisions, the 1966 printed edition becomes the document

closest to the author's original final version. It is therefore not practical to

use the 1959 diary to settle readings, although the diary remains very inter

esting as a document in its own right. The later editions mainly diverge

only in minor spelling differences. Khunu Rinpoche does not appear to

have been involved in the printing of his work after 1966. The only possi

ble exception is the reading rkang in place of rkyang in verse 181 in the

undated edition published by Hukam Sain Negi and Tsewang Norbu Vaid.

This may reflect a communication between them and the author. The

Tibetan edition of the text presented here has been carefully proofread to

bring it in line with the 1966 edition, and incorporates the information

given in the list of errata that accompanied that work. The translation is

based on the 1966 Varanasi edition. Interesting variant readings found in

the 1959 diary are given in the notes.

The Topic-Bodhicitta All three hundred and fifty-six verses in Khunu Rinpoche's The jewel Lamp are about bodhicitta, the spontaneous altruism, free from bias, that is dis

tinctive to Buddhism. What better introduction, then, to this finest of all

spiritual possessions than the verses themselves? Khunu Rinpoche writes

from the perspective of a person who knows what bodhicitta is-he is writ

ing from within the presence ofbodhicitta, so to speak, standing in the cen

ter of a region and describing it. Were a reader to persevere and recognize

in Khunu Rinpoche's verses their own path from the perspective of the

place it leads to, they would feel a confident understanding in the form of

a natural feeling oflove for others. Those unfamiliar with the idea ofbodhi-

8 VAST AS THI! HEAVENS

citta may, however, become confused by such a perspective, so this short

introduction to the topic is intended to provide the necessary background

for an informed understanding of the verses.

Bodhicitta is the thought to become enlightened for the sake of others.

Having in mind what one wants for others, Khunu Rinpoche says:

Supreme bodhicitta is the wish to remove

every flaw from every living being and to

bring about limitless good qualities in each of them.

This is outstanding even amongst the outstanding!

(The jewel Lamp, verse 21)

The basis of this wish is great renunciation-the strong desire to be free

from suffering. When focused on others, this becomes great compassion

the wish that others be free from suffering as well. From this stems bodhi

citta-the determination to become enlightened in order to free others

from suffering.

To understand what this wish is and how it develops, it is helpful to begin

with the story of Siddhartha, our historical Buddha, and his great renuncia

tion. It allows us to consider what Buddhists mean by r) thought (citta) and

2) enlightenment (bodhi}, these being the two key elements in the compound

Sanskrit word bodhicitta, the object of Khunu Rinpoche' s verses of praise.

Siddhiirtha s Great Renunciation

According to the story of the Buddha, Prince Siddhartha, who later became

Buddha, was born in Lumbini, north-central India, about 2,500 years ago.

When he was born, seers prophesied that he would either rule the universe

or become an enlightened being. Fearful that Siddhartha would renounce

the world, his parents gave him every luxury and ensured that all signs of

suffering were absent from the palaces in which he grew up. He married

and had a beautiful child. While his child was still young, Siddhartha went

with his charioteer for a journey outside the palace walls and saw suffering

in the form of old age, sickness, and death. Beholding suffering all about

him there arose in him the wish to be free from suffering. He left his fam

ily, rejected his political destiny, and went forth to homelessness.

Siddhartha's wish or thought to be free from suffering is called his "great

renunciation." It was that wish that made him the bodhisattva.4

Introduction 9

After going forth to homelessness Siddhartha spent many years amongst

ascetics and philosophers searching for the path to freedom. Finally, reject

ing asceticism without learning on the one hand, and mere scholarship

without spiritual practice on the other, he traveled south from his birth

place into the present-day state of Bihar. There he sat in the shade of a tree

on the banks of the Nirafijana River and found enlightenment. Afterwards,

he went to Varanasi, where he "turned the wheel of the Dharma," teaching

his distinctive doctrine of the four noble truths to his first followers, who

became the core of a Buddhist community that soon grew and flourished.

During the remaining years of his life, the Buddha continued to teach the

four noble truths-the truth of suffering, the truth of its cause, the truth of

the end of suffering, and the truth of the path to its attainment-and he

instructed his followers how to live as a community in harmony. When, at

age eighty, he died in Kl!Sanagar, a town not far from where he was born,

his work was finally done. He entered into final nirva':la, and his physical

remains-the last remnants of his suffering-were extinguished forever. He

left behind a body of teachings and a community of monks, nuns, and lay

followers who continued his work after his demise.

Thought (citta)

When a successful businessman says, "I decided I was not going to be like

my forebears. I worked and struggled to lift myself out of poverty," we

.know that earlier on in his life he decided to reach a goal defined relative to

what he saw as unbearable in the first place. Such a decision is what is

meant in this context by "a thought." The unbearableness of poverty initi

ated his struggle, and it produced a thought to escape a life of poverty. That

thought or determination (the word "wish" also conveys the same idea)

drove him when he was poor, was there as he made his millions, and still

affected him even after he became rich, stopping him from falling back into

the poverty he saw as so unbearable at the start. Even though such a

thought or determination in a person is not apparent to the senses, as is his

voice or bearing, it is a real element in his story. In the story of the Buddha,

Siddhartha's great renunciation when he came face to face with the suffer

ing of life is a thought, a determination, or a wish in the same sense. His

determination to be free from suffering might be characterized as the

thought: "I, Siddhartha, cannot bear this suffering, and I am not going to

rest until I am free and in the state of enlightenment."


There is a difference between a thinking process (traditionally called ana

lytic meditation) and a thought in the sense of a wish or determination (a

meditated state). The first step in the thinking process that led Siddhartha

to a great renunciation was thinking about suffering in depth. If one thinks,

as Siddhartha thought, that "though I am not sick, old, or dead right now,

still I am no different from those who are because I am caught within the

flow of life," one is engaging in a process of thinking that will eventually

lead to the meditated state that is a great renunciation. For as long as

Siddhartha had to think about suffering (in the sense of coming to a deci

sion about it), for as long as he was still not sure about it and was still inves

tigating whether the suffering he saw was his own problem or just the

problem of others, he was still involved in a thinking process. The more he

thought about it and the more certain he became that the suffering that

others faced was in fact his own problem-that his own state was one that

had those problems built in-the more he became determined to get out of

the problem he now clearly saw as his own. The thought to be free from

suffering that welled up inside him from thinking deeply about suffering was his great renunciation. It motivated him to find freedom from suffer

ing, as it will motivate others who think in the same way.

This great renunciation motivates future buddhas, but according to the

great vehicle or Mahayana scriptures, a buddha's enlightenment is not the

result of that thought alone. One must also account for the return to the

world after understanding the suffering of the beings in it. That return is

motivated by bodhicitta-the Mahayana thought of enlightenment. The

thinking process, an analytic meditation that leads beyond great renuncia

tion specifically to bodhicitta, is different. It entails looking at suffering

from a different perspective. Those who are to become bodhisattvas (and

such a designation is not restricted in the Mahayana scriptures to

Siddhartha alone, but applies to all who produce an authentic thought of

enlightenment) consider how, though they are not sick, old, or dead right

now, still they are no different from those who are because all are caught

within the suffering intrinsic to the flow of life. They contemplate the

sameness of themselves and others; becoming familiar with the idea that they share a problem with others, they recognize that the problems that oth

ers face are no different from their own.

Such contemplation produces a feeling of intimate friendship. That in

turn is heightened when these bodhisattvas-to-be go on to think about how

Introduction II

intimately connected they have been in the earliest stages of their lives with

their mothers, and then contemplate how they have been the beneficiary of

their mothers' ~odies. This way of thinking, extended to all, increases feel

ings of closeness and a sense of being the beneficiary of the help of count

less others. Thinking about how they are a beneficiary leads to the thought

that they owe something in return; reflecting on that again and again leads

to love. Thinking about the depth and extent of others' suffering initiates a

stream of empathy and an active, great compassion that cannot bear others'

suffering any longer. This compassion gives rise to the first thought of

enlightenment. Bringing to mind again and again their own suffering and

reflecting on the fact that others must equally bear such suffering too, they

produce a determination to free others from their suffering that is as strong

as the determination to be free from their own.

Moved by this great compassion, these bodhisattva5-to-be evaluate their

capacity to free others from suffering and realize that they are at present

incapable even of helping themselves, never mind others. They then ask

themselves whether they are capable of removing their shortcomings and

developing their talents sufficiently to allow them to help others and deliver

them from suffering. In general, some have confidence in themselves right

from the start, even though they do not see exactly how they are going to

get where they feel they have to go; and some ascertain that their destina

tion is reachable before they gain the confidence to set forth. Both have

confidence; the first starts more quickly, the latter finishes with a burst.

Amongst the bodhisattvas-to-be (the Mahayana scriptures discuss the spir

itual paths of both) the latter do not fully commit themselves to the goal of

enlightenment before t~ey ascertain for themselves that it is attainable.

They consider the many and various Buddhist doctrines that are taught to

a wide variety of living beings, and ponder whether a buddha's perfect wis

dom, which is the wellspring of those doctrines, could ever be produced in

an ordinary person. The ultimate nature-the emptiness--of all thoughts

convinces them that Mahayana enlightenment is attainable, and then the

thought of enlightenment, bodhicitta, arises within them. This is a true

meditated state of mind, a wish so ingrained by the earlier thought processes

that it now arises spontaneously.

When this thought of enlightenment arises it has not one, but two aims.

One aim of bodhicitta is the thinker's own enlightenment. The other aim


of bodhicitta is all others' freedom from suffering. This aim of freedom for

others is not the immediate concern of bodhicitta-it does not appear in

the forefront of the thought as what is needed-for that is only enlighten

ment. But, as an attainment, enlightenment for oneself only has value as a

means to the second and more basic aim, just as a cup only has value as a

means for quenching thirst. The basic thirst is for others to be in a state of

freedom, and that thirst explains why one seeks the cup of enlightenment.

The practice of the thought of enlightenment is familiarizing oneself with

a particular way of thinking for a long time in order to produce a strong

desire for others to be in a state of freedom. Why for a long time? Because

our way of thinking about the world in which we live at present (so

ingrained we take it to be natural) precludes even great renunciation-the

thought of freedom from our own suffering. Only after feeling great renun

ciation can we feel a strong desire for others to be in a state of freedom. And

only when that strong desire has arisen will the wish for the enlightenment

that is the means for fulfilling that strong desire arise.

To talk of the size of a thought is odd, perhaps, but to say that someone

is thinking big thoughts is not without meaning. "I want you all to come

to my birthday party" is a bigger thought than "I want only some of you to

come." Bodhicitta is theoretically the biggest thought anyone can think

because of the number of beings involved, what it wants them to have, ll:nd

the length of time it must last before its motivating power dies out. Since

the duration of a thought is a variable of the aim, in the sense that the

actions motivated by a thought cease when the aim is attained, one can con

ceive of thoughts that last longer and longer. Bodhicitta necessarily lasts

until the last living being reaches the state free of suffering, because it is only

then that the aim is finally achieved. This explains the prayer of

Samantabhadra at the end of the Ga1Jtfavyuha section of the Avatarrzsaka Sutra, which the Dalai Lama often invokes: "For as long as space endures

may I remain to work for the benefit of living beings."

Enlightenment (bodhi)

In Mahayana scriptures, the story of Buddha the man and the great renun

ciation that motivated Siddhartha's attainment are very important. Those

who praise bodhicitta necessarily praise the analytic meditation that leads to

great renunciation and the state of great renunciation as well and accord it

Introduction 13

a central place in spiritual life. But for Mahayana writers like Khunu

Rinpoche, the great diversity within the state of a buddha that is accessible

to others cannot be adequately accounted for by great renunciation alone;

it is explained by bodhicitta. As renunciation explains freedom from suffer

ing, as the thought to escape poverty explains wealth, bodhicitta explains

the Mahayana enlightenment.

According to the Mahayana scriptures, enlightenment consists of a body

of truths (Skt. dharmakaya) and a body of forms (Skt. riipakiiya). The body

of truths ("body" is used here in the sense of "body of knowledge") is a bud

dha's private knowledge and freedom. Since it consists of all the meditated

states, it is also called the "knowledge of all modes of meditation" (Skt.

sarviikarajfiiina). The body of forms is the non-private enlightenment acces

sible to others-primarily in the form of the Buddha's teachings. In a wider

sense, the body of forms includes all "pure appearances," (our earlier

"return to the world") which, when approached with a positive and healthy

attitude, serve to strengthen the inner capacity of living beings to bear

whatever situations they find themselves in, and beyond that to transform

all situations into a path of benefit to others. Explaining this process,

Khunu Rinpoche says:

The good that is bodhicitta does not give fruit just once.

Until the knowledge of all modes of meditation is reached

it does not finish, but gets ever greater.

When knowledge of all modes of meditation is reached,

the rain of precious Dharma from the form-body cloud

nourishes the shoots of the good that people do.

(The jewel Lamp, verse 13)

The principle that informs this Mahayana vision of enlightenment is com

passion for living beings, particularly in the form of bodhicitta.

The Mahayana scriptures not only understand enlightenment in a differ

ent way than is suggested by the Buddha's lifestory, they also understand

great renunciation differently, saying that the force of great renunciation

does not end in nirval)a, but rather begins there. Again, the consideration

behind this position is pure appearances (the body of forms) and how to

account for its connection with a buddha's private attainment of freedom

and knowledge.


In the story of Buddha the man, Siddhartha's thought not to rest until he

is free remains while he pursues the practices that lead to freedom, but stops

when he attains nirva9a on the banks of the Nirafi.jana River. Nirvar:ta is

enlightenment, according to this interpretation, and final nirvar:ta is

attained when even the physical remnants of the Buddha's body dissolve at

the end of his life. All thought-even great renunciation-ceases at

nirva9a. The freedom Siddhartha gains (the third noble truth of cessation)

is a stopping, not a coming into being; and in that state of freedom all

thoughts and feelings cease, too. Only the body-the physical aggregate

remains, and even that is finally extinguished in the great nirv:il)a in

Kusanagar when "the whole heap of suffering" is no more.

In the Mahayana scriptures, neither great renunciation nor bodhicitta

exhausts itself in nirva9a. Still, in nirva9a, according to the Mahayana scrip

tures, there exist no thoughts at all, neither needy or selfish thoughts nor

selfless aspirations to pure states. Since suffering in the deeper sense of being

born to die is fueled by action born of such thoughts, it is axiomatic in all

Buddhism that, though the fuel of thoughts is piled up ready, the state of

freedom prevents it from burning. Even great renunciation and bodhicitta

are not found in nirv:il)a in a manifest state. For Mahayana writers like

Khunu Rinpoche, however, great renunciation continues to inform nirv:il)a

in that it operates to block what remains of existence, just as tiredness left

by overexertion blocks a person from waking up again. And bodhicitta con

tinues to inform enlightenment in that it causes the teaching of doctrine

and other pure appearances to issue forth "from the form-body cloud" for

the benefit of others.

When Mahayana scriptures say that there is no thought at all in nirva9a,

they mean that the ultimate truth of all things is empty and beyond elabo

ration, not that nirvar:ta represents a total cessation at death. Similarly,

when Mahayana scriptures say that great renunciation and the thought of

enlightenment begin with nirvar:ta rather than end there, they mean that the

ultimate truth of all things is nirv:il)a, and that nirvar:ta is no other than

emptiness itself. This nirvar:ta is the utter absence of any truth or reality in

what appears to ordinary folk as real; in particular it is the absence of any

truth or reality in the facile projection of self-identity that ordinary people

settle on and cling to as real. The Mahayana scriptures equate this absence

or emptiness with nirviil).a because one contacts nirvar:ta-the sphere that is

Introduction r<

free from defilement-by not settling on the reality of any appearance.

When wisdom does not settle on any constructed appearance-even empti

ness itself-the searcher enters into a nirvai].a without any appearance or

thought remaining. This wisdom that beholds ultimate truth in a nondual

vision is nirvai].a without anything remaining, and it is from this sphere of

reality, which is motivated by the thought of enlightenment, that pure

appearances in all their variety come forth.

The difference between this Mahayana position informed by bodhicitta

and basic Buddhism with its story of Buddha the man needs to be thought

about. Even though according to basic Buddhism the body and speech of

the Buddha are like the body and speech of ordinary persons-equally in

the nature of suffering and not part of enlightenment itself-the Buddhist

doctrine or Dharma nonetheless remains to benefit those who learn it and

put it into practice. In basic Buddhism the doctrine remains like the work

of a philosopher who formulates an ingenious philosophy and carefully

writes it out in a book-it lasts so that others can learn it and lead better

lives, and the benefits of the philosophy self-replicate long after the death

of the philosopher. Or it lasts like the work of a philanthropist who sets up

a foundation and stipulates that the earnings on its capital be used to run

cancer clinics. In Mahayana scriptures, however, the benefit of enlighten

ment is even greater than this.

Mahayana writers-Khunu Rinpoche amongst them-say that not just

freedom from suffering, but perfect wisdom, a buddha's body, and a bud

dha's speech are all integral to enlightenment, and that the path to enlight

enment must therefore include their causes. Just as the cessation of mental

defilements is effected by a path consisting of meditation and wisdom, sim

ilarly, a buddha's body and speech-the body of forms-is effected by a

path consisting of authentic altruistic physical and verbal activity. Like the

two wings of a swan, the path of wisdom that brings knowledge of all

modes of meditation and the path of method that produces a buddha's

body and speech convey the bodhisattva through space to the true ground of buddhahood.

There is an intimate connection between emptiness (ultimate truth) and

the thought of enlightenment, just as there is between the body of truths

and the body of forms, and between the path of wisdom and the path of

method. To understand this connection is to understand the division of


bodhicitta into ultimate and conventional. The ultimate nature of bodhi

citta (nirvai_la or the emptiness of thought) is that nature from which the

thought of enlightenment originally arises; in fact, it is none other than the

thought itself. Because it is an awareness like a light, it illuminates what is

thought about. This light, which is not physical light but is similar to it, is

a facet of its ultimate nature. Referring to this connection between bodhi

citta and emptiness, the Prajl)aparamita literature, the most important of

the Mahayana scriptures, says:

When a Bodhisattva courses in perfect wisdom and develops it, he

should so train himself that he does not pride himself on that

Bodhicitta (thought of enlightenment) with which he has begun his

career. That thought is no thought, since in its essential original nature

thought is transparently luminous.5

In its full development, through the process of dependent origination,

the light of the mind becomes the unobscured knowledge of all modes of meditation-the body of truths-which gives rise to the Buddhist doc

trines in all their variety-the body of forms. Just as a burning lamp hid

den in a pot reveals its natural capacity to illuminate every corner of a dark

room when the pot is broken and thrown away, there is a natural sufficien

cy in the mind of a living being-called buddha nature-that shines forth

as the knowledge of all modes of meditation when the constricting bound

aries imposed by ignorance are punctured and removed through learning,

reflection, and meditation. The ultimate nature of bodhicitta is beyond

thought or creation, and the knowledge of all modes of meditation is a

return to what has always been from a land that never was. It is a return to

focus from the distorted imaginings of self-centeredness. In this sense, ulti

mate and conventional bodhicitta are not different, the two bodies of a

buddha are not different, and sarp.sara itself is but a skillful means to lead

us beyond it to the nirv~a that is its ultimate truth.

Explained conventionally, bodhicitta is both a prayer and a setting out. It

is a prayer because it is a clear and definite articulation of altruism expressed .

as what one wishes to become. This prayer is a vow because it is an inex

orable commitment to achieve enlightenment for the sake of others.

As a setting out, bodhicitta is a vow in a still deeper sense. It is the com

plex psychological makeup that restrains a person from transgressing the

Introduction 17

bodhisattva standard. A vow in this latter sense is similar to the complex

knowledge of the rules of a society within which one peacefully lives without

breaking the law. It is not just knowledge, however, but a more complex

restraint-thought that explains not only why one knows the law, but also

why one keeps within it. The law that governs the enacting of or setting out to enlightenment is

the law of benefiting others. This path-where wisdom and method function simultaneously-is understood through the analogy of an armor made up of the inseparability of the six perfections. The armor is pierced when the bodhisattva falls from the lofty standard of transforming all situations into a great vehicle (a Mahayana) that carries every living being, one by one, to enlightenment. While wearing this armor-the practice of giving, morality, patience, vigor, concentration, and wisdom-the bodhisattva sets out on the difficult pilgrimage amongst the world of the living, transforming situations that would defeat others not so armed into occasions for progress toward enlightenment. And it is enlightenment that constitutes the most that can be done for others.

The Dalai Lamas Commentary In January 1998, the Dalai.Lama visited Bodh Gaya at the invitation of the Foundation for the Preservation of the Mahayana Tradition to give an explanation of Khunu Rinpoche's praise of bodhicitta, The jewel Lamp. It is remarkable that, although he had been asked to explain The jewel Lamp ·and although a private printing of the English translation had been commissioned for free distribution in Bodh Gaya in order to facilitate his teaching, after briefly explaining the opening verse on taking refuge in the Buddha, he put the text aside and based his detailed teaching on the Stages of Meditation (Skt. Bhiivaniikrama) by Kamala5ila. He expatiated at length on the beginning of the Stages of Meditation where Kamala5ila says that "compassion is the root of the path." Over the remaining days he taught the basic Buddhist path to freedom using the systematic presentation in the Stages of Meditation. While explaining the four noble truths, he augmented his lectures with a short but profound explanation of emptiness based on the Praise of Dependent Origination by Tsong kha pa. In addition, throughout the course of his teaching, the Dalai Lama read aloud, with almost no direct explanation, blocks of verses from The jewel Lamp. Just as suddenly as he picked them up he would put them aside. When he finished reading the last block of verses aloud he said, "These are excellent verses.


Sometimes choose a few. Read them and contemplate what they say."

That the Dalai Lama greatly admires The jewel Lamp cannot be questioned. He wrote the short foreword for the first 1966 Varanasi edition of

the Tibetan text printed by his sister Tsering Dolma and has read the vers

es aloud many times to gatherings of Tibetans. This is noteworthy because, while it is not unusual for Tibetan teachers to teach old scriptures like Santideva' s Bodhicaryiivattira again and again, it is unusual for them to give

new books such importance. The Dalai Lama's commentary on the other texts in Bodh Gaya was a

commentary on The jewel Lamp as well, because there is no practice in

Buddhism that is not traceable, in the final analysis, to the thought of

enlightenment. Since everything that the Buddha taught was for the sake of

others, to lead persons of different talents and interests along the path to

freedom, every description of a practice should remind a listener of the

thought of enlightenment. In this sense, every careful description of a part

of the path is a praise of the compassion that motivated the Buddha to reveal it. Kamalasila had that in mind when he said, "compassion is the root of the path," as did the Dalai Lama when he said on a different occasion that there

is no absolute in Buddhism, but that if there were it would be compassion. The Dalai Lama's commentary suggests that the reader of these verses

should come to them not as something to be read and set aside, but rather

as a reminder of the importance of compassion. Any study of Buddhism or Buddhist practice can be supplemented with these verses just by remem

bering that they are there. The verses may simply represent the importance

of compassion and remind the reader, even one who hardly understands them, that without compassion there is no Buddhist path.

Rato Kyongla, an elderly Tibetan saint who lives in New York, had a cat,

Jack Benny, who just walked in through the window of his apartment in

New York one day unannounced. After Jack's death Rato Kyongla said to some of his friends and students in Asia that he was going to give a com

mentary on The jewel Lamp. "If you want to come to my talk," he said,

"you have to read the book through from beginning to end three times." When he finished teaching he dedicated all the good from teaching The jewel Lamp on that occasion to his cat, Jack Benny. This is how to approach

a book on bodhicitta. Do not read just to learn something for yourself, but

make your act of reading a benefit to others. Compassion is not something

separate from the particular situations in which we find ourselves. It is not

something to be practiced for tomorrow, but something to be lived today.

Introduction 19

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FOREWORD

The great being T enzin Gyaltsen Rinpoche, keeping to the hidden vowed

conduct of a bodhisattva, was born replete with the seven articles of wealth

of a noble person in the western part of India. In his youth he studied with

many Tibetan scholars of the Rime (nonsectarian) school and learned and

reflected deeply on all the shared and unshared branches of knowledge. In

particular, he worked on the Bodhicaryiivatiira of Samideva, learning it,

reflecting on it, and becoming habituated to it without deviating from its

core message. Thus he developed more and more within his heart the

thought of enlightenment (bodhicitta) that cherishes others more than

self-that central thoroughfare of the buddhas and their children-and in

order to keep his commitment to just that development ofbodhicitta he set

down every day a single verse in praise ofbodhicitta in this book called The

jewel Lamp.

May the roots of virtue which have been planted by the priming of this

book by the faithful one Phuntsog Tashi for the purpose of introducing my

sister Tsering Dolma to goodness grow, in general, into the flourishing of

the precious teaching of the Buddha-the cooling, ambrosial medicine for

such an unfortunate time as this with irs atomic weapons, infections, and

confusions. And in particular I dedicate those roots of virtue and make this

prayer: May those gross acts that lead to the ruin of ourselves and others

now and in the future-those terrible actions that embody the rage and

fury of this degenerate time: lying, deceiving, quarreling, harming, and vio

lence-may the thought to do them and the carrying out of them cease and

may precious love, compassion, and bodhicitta grow in my own mind

stream and in the mindstreams of others. And again, with folded hands I

pray that all monks, nuns, and lay folk studying, reflecting on, and medi

tating on this text, will take to heart the precious Buddhadharma without

motives perverted by a wish for personal happiness, gain, or fame, and will

look after it in just this difficult way that I have mentioned in my prayer;

Th~ J~w~/ Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 2.1

and that they will always, to the extent that they are capable, make sure that

they give importance to a philosophy and life, both within and outside, that

is pure and stands up to scrutiny.

Thus do I, the Buddhist monk Tenzin Gyatso, on the ninth day of the

eleventh month of the wood-monkey year Oanuary 1, 1966) pray, in the

Tibetan monastery Shedrup Dokyil, Sarnath, where the Buddha turned the

wheel of the doctrine of the four noble truths.

Composttd by His Holinttss thtt Dalai Lama for thtt 1966 spttcial Tibttsan ttdition ofThe Jewel Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta printttd in Varanasi and sponsorttd by TSI!ring Dolma, thtt Dalai Lamas sistt!r.


The Jewel Lamp A PRAISE OF BooHICITTA

•

Khunu Rinpoche T enzin Gyaltsen

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2.f VAST AS THE HEAVENS

I

Gazing with undivided faith

at the Buddhas, their Dharma

and their followers, the Sangha,

I seek refuge in and pray to them.

2

The Lord who seeks to help,

who originates from the full moon

[ofbodhicitta], is the guru of the world.

In sarpsara there really is no other to be found.

3 How could the trinkets of others'

apparently fine explanations

ever compete with the words of the one

whose meaning is like a wish-fulfilling gem?

4 Whoever has a wise and honest mind

sees that the Buddha's supreme doctrine

that withstands the threefold analysis!

is like a lotus pond, and goes there like a swan.

5 Who would not cleave to the refuge provided by

the Buddha, who has completed his own and others' [aims],

and who possesses the eight special attributes2 such as

not being known through [descriptions by] others and so on?

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6

For whom is the Dharma not a refuge,

characterized as it is by the two truths

and the eight special attributes3

such as being inconceivable, nondual, and so on?

7 For whom is the Noble Assembly not a refuge with its

eight special realization and freedom attributes,4 free as it is

from the obscurations of attachment, impediment, and a lesser [path],

and with the realizations of how things are, what there is, and the inner?

8

I think that even with Sarasvati in one's throatS it would be hard

to find an example of the great wish-fulfilling bodhicitta tree,

which so easily accomplishes peoples' desires,

flourishing in the ground of compassion and watered by love.

9 How could the wish to help

that a mother, father, sage, or even Brahma has

possibly extend to every living creature

like supreme bodhicitta?

10

Just like the lotus among flowers

is bodhicitta supreme among all virtuous thoughts.

Since having it brings immediate and final happiness,

one should make every effort to produce it.

II

Since even knowledge of all modes of meditation6

has its origin in just this supreme bodhicitta,

those who wish for freedom

should certainly make it their work.

Th~ J~wel Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 27

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28 VAST AS THB HBAVENS

12

If one investigates to find the supreme method

for accomplishing the aims of oneself and others,

it comes down to bodhicitta alone.

Being cenain of chis, develop it with joy.

13

The good that is bodhicitta does not give fruit just once.

Until the knowledge of all modes of meditation is reached

it does not finish, but gees ever greater.

When knowledge of all modes of meditation is reached,

the rain of precious Dharma from the form-body7 cloud

nourishes the shoots of the good that people do.

14

Inner knowledge amongst knowledges.

The wish-fulfilling gem amongst all jewels.

The stallion amongst the fleet-footed.

Bodhicitta amongst thoughts.

15 The sun, the moon, a lamp, a lightning flash-

they may illuminate, but they hardly clear away the inner murk.

This bodhicitta is extolled by the holy as completely

extirpating the darkness of living beings.

!6 Every benefit and joy originates

in this bodhicitta of the Victor's children. a

There is no way that a wish-fulfilling gem

can ever compete with it.

Th~ J~w~/ Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 29

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17 Once the plantain tree gives forth its fruit

it is incapable of bearing fruit again.

But even after bearing fruit, virtue influenced

by bodhicitta increases without end.

18 Having gone to the base of the parijataka tree,9

if you make a wish, your desired aim will be fulfilled.

So too bodhicitta has the power

to fulfill the aims of living beings.

19 A tree, its branches, and the fully ripened fruit

are all dependent on the earth drop.

Every fine thing in s:upsara and nirvii.t).a

is contingent on bodhicitta.

20

The holy ones explain that the sole Dharma to be embraced

from now until the knowledge of all modes of meditation is reached

is bodhicitta_, the ground from which come forth

a hundred thousand benefits and happinesses.

21

Supreme bodhicitta is the wish to remove

every flaw from every living being and to

bring about limitless good qualities in each of them.

This is outstanding even amongst the outstanding!

22

If one wants to benefit everyone, one needs bodhicitta.

If one wants to befriend everyone, one needs bodhicitta.

If one wants to gain the confidence of all, one needs bodhicitta.

If one wants to be everyone's spiritual friend, one needs bodhicitta.

Tht! Tt!wt!l LamtJ: A Praiu of Bodhir.itta u

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23

Those who wished to help living beings

considered, out of a feeling of love,

what would be of benefit to them,

and they saw it was just this supreme bodhicitta.

24

The moon with its cooling beams eliminates pain.

The sun, the jewel of the sky, dispels darkness.

They cannot be compared to the bodhicitta

that eradicates defilement.

25

Bodhicitta is the moon of the mind.

Bodhicitta is the sun of the mind.

Bodhicitta is the jewel of the mind.

Bodhicitta is the nectar of the mind.

26 If you want to help yourself, produce excellent bodhicitta.

If you want to help others, produce excellent bodhicitta.

If you want to serve the doctrine, produce bodhicitta.

If you want the path to bliss, produce bodhicitta.

27 Bodhicitta, which causes incomparable enlightenment to be obtained,

is water since it washes the stains of nonvirtue;

is a hand since it gathers virtue;

is a whip since it urges one to the holy Dharma.

Tht ]twtl Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 33

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28 The hundred light-rayed bodhicitta sun

does not cause the hundred-petaled [lotus] to open,

does not cause the white water lily to close, tO

does not cause the marsh to dry.

29 From now until the heart of enlightenment,

I pray to the Guru Triple Gem to have

such an aspiration as "may I not be separated from bodhicitta,"

and to be blessed [to make such a prayer].

30 A tired traveler sweltering from the heat

is happy to find the leafy green shade of a tree.

A wanderer, worn out traveling the paths ofexistence,

is happy when precious bodhicitta grows.

31 The precious gem of bodhicitta

does not discriminate between rich and poor,

does not differentiate between wise and foolish;

it benefits equally the high and the low.

32

Bodhicitta, the seed of a buddha,

causes one to engage in beneficial thought and practice

without discriminating the six kinds [of wandering beings],

place, time, or occasion.

33 For raising your spirits when you are down,

for removing arrogance when you are flush,

nothing in the world compares with the

non-deceiving friend that is bodhicitta.

The jewel Lamp: A Prai"st of Bodhicitta 35

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34

However many examples there are for its benefit,

though they may capture certain modes of meditation,

they cannot bear comparison with a portion

of amazing bodhicitta, even in a dream.

35 Like gold that does not fluctuate

relative to prosperity· and poverty,

the supreme taste of bodhicitta

puts even ambrosia to shame.

36 The supreme thing to know is bodhicitta.

The supreme thing to learn is bodhicitta.

The supreme thing to practice is bodhicitta.

The supreme thing to meditate on is bodhicitta.

37 As a river to the sea,

as the sea to clouds,

as clouds to the land,

so does bodhicitta beautify this world.

38 A jewel mine, a 'wish-fulfilling cow,

a bench to stop and rest for those who tread the path,

more excellent than the finest medicine,

Bodhicitta is proclaimed supreme.

39 If you wish to proceed easily to the level

of the knowledge of all modes of meditation,

what other method is there if you do not

rely upon the bodhicitta of the Victor's children?

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40 The waxing bodhicitta moon

that causes to swell the joyful ocean

of altruistic intentions and so on

puts even the cooling nighttime moon to shame.

41 This bodhicitta that serves as a sword

to cut the shoots of the affiictions

is the weapon for the protection

of all wandering beings.

42 Without arrogance when things go well,

not depressed when times are hard,

unharmable by anything-

this bodhicitta gold.

43 This tremendous conflagration of bodhicitta

that burns the seasoned firewood

of the three kinds of affiictions

does not act like ordinary fire.

44 If you ask what is the sweetest sound in the world,

even if many refined people were to investigate it,

I don't think you will hear anything

but the word "bodhicitta."

45 Those who have tasted the taste of bodhicitta

are hardly going to like other tastes

of sugar cane milk, the milk squeezed

from mango branches, or honey.

Th~ J~w~l Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta ~Q

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46 Those who wish for liberation should keep to this

through-road of bodhicitta that leads to the city

of non-abiding nirval).a,'' falling neither to the

extreme of the world nor to the extreme of peace.

47 Though there are many things like ketakai2

that clear away impurities from water,

it is hard to find anything other than bodhicitta

to clear away the impurities of the afflictions.

48

Bodhicitta comes from knowing that (all] have served as one's mother,

from recollecting and repaying their kindness, from love,

from compassion, and from surpassing intention;l3

it is the source of happiness and benefit for oneself and others.

49 A learned monk, a holder of settled accomplishments,

even in possession of an analytic intellect

yet without bodhicitta-

who would aspire to that?

50 Bodhicitta gets rid of nastiness.

Bodhicitta banishes suffering.

Bodhicitta frees one from fear.

Bodhicitta stops bad conduct.

51 What is as dependable as bodhicitta?

What is as courageous as bodhicitta?

What is as confident as bodhicitta?

What is as peaceful as bodhicitta?

Th( j(w(/ Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 41

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52 If one has bodhicitta as one's motivation,

whatever one does also becomes a great vastness of good.

From the medicinal root that cures diseases,

the medicinal shoots are born.

53" With bodhicitta one achieves high status;l4

with bodhicitta one achieves the highest good; IS

for this reason the story of bodhicitta

graces the lips of the holy ones.

54 Even an ordinary person gets called "bodhisattva"

when bodhicitta is produced,

and becomes an object of homage and devotion

for gods and humans.

55 It seems to be one of the dimensions of bodhicitta

that the hardships of heat and cold, hunger and thirst, and so fonh

that come when one does something to help others

do not get one down but rather give one's spirit a boost.

56 If one does not have bodhicitta,

one will not obtain non-abiding nirval).a;

if one does not obtain non-abiding nirval).a,

one will be impeded by the two chains.t6

57 A cakravartin emperor17 does not grace a ditty place.

Bodhicitta does not exist in a wicked mind. If you wish to produce

the supreme bodhicitta, give importance to the purification

of your own mindstream through the four opponent powers.l8

Tht ]twtl Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 43

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58 It is proper to set up the throne of a cakravartin emperor

in a place of vast prosperity.

The sprout of bodhicitta is produced as well

in a mind of vast goodness.

59 Bodhicitta gets rid of malice.

Through bodhicitta one obtains concentration.

Bodhicitta produces wisdom.

Things go well if you hold on to supreme bodhicitta.

6o Even in a dream, others are not there

for one's own [selfish] aims

when there is this amazing concern for others

that arises with bodhicitta.

61 · Bodhicitta serves as the foundation

for every bodhisattva deed,

just as the earth serves as the foundation

for the vast foliage of a leafy tree.

62 With bodhicitta self and others are equal.

With bodhicitta there is an exchange of self for others.

With bodhicitta others are cherished more than oneself.

With bodhicitta there is the plenty that fulfills both purposes.

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63

If you do not have bodhicitta, then even though

you have some other spiritual practice

you will not become enlightened. If you do not have

the life power, the other sense powers do not function.

64 With bodhicitta, one does not do things

for gain, devotion, or praise;

and even if one gets [those things],

like gold one does not change.

65 If even the Buddha does not take the full

measure of the goodness of bodhicitta, it goes without saying

that ordinary sravakas, praryekabuddhas,

and the finest aryas do not either.

66

The sun high up in the sky is the eye

for every wandering being down below.

Bodhicitta on high shows lowly wandering beings

what is to be done and what is to be avoided.

67 The nectar discharged from the lotus

is the supreme joy of every bumble bee;

the doctrine that is taught with bodhicitta

is the supreme joy of every living being.

68

Though they try, skilled poets cannot find

an example for bodhicitta.

It seems that bodhicitta defies description

even when a simile is employed.

Tht ]twtl Lamp: A Praist of Bodhicitta 47

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69 A bodhisattva who is like

the miracle of a tathagata

is said to be superior to a bodhisattva

w-ho is like a bullock cart, and so on.t9

70 A boat delivers one to the other bank.

A needle stitches up one's clothes.

A horse takes one where one wants to go.

Bodhicitta brings one to buddhahood.

71

Although antidotes such as ugliness and so on

do not utterly eradicate attachment and so on,

supreme bodhicitta, the antidote for all of them,

is victorious over all that is to be abandoned.

72 Bodhicitta pacifies one's own mindstream.

Bodhicitta pacifies the mindstreams of others.

With bodhicitta one respects everyone.

With bodhicitta one sees everyone as equal.

73 The sun clears away darkness.

The moon steals away one's cares.

A wish-fulfilling gem gives what one desires.

Bodhicitta causes all aims to be obtained.

74 The elixir called the philosopher's stone

turns the element iron into gold.

Bodhicitta turns this unclean body

into the body of a buddha.

Tht ]twti Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 49

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75 The practice of good persons who are honest and

broad-minded, whose intellects have the sharpness

of a tip of kufa grass, and who are worthy

of worship, is bodhicitta alone.

76 Be it immediate or through a sequence of events

bodhicitta unites wandering beings

equal to the limits of space

with present and lasting happiness.

77 The speed of bodhicitta is the lightning flash.

The depth of bodhicitta is the ocean depth.

The limit of bodhicitta is the vault of space.

The firmness of bodhicitta is the axial mountain.

78

The sun makes its way along the path of the sky.

The elephant of the directions makes its way around the shores

of the ocean. The fame of the Sage makes its way to every ear.

This bodhicitta makes its way to the hearts of the good.

79 Some of the Mahayana is bodhicitta itself,

some its cause and some its fruit.2o

It is because of this, I think,

that bodhicitta is said to be the Mahayana.

8o Words uttered with bodhicitta become

the very essence of benefit to others,

a beautiful call of the cuckoo

that ennobles the [listener's] ear.


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81

The fact that the more terrible the conditions

become for the bodhisattva, the more

they serve as an aid to their goodness

is, I think, due to bodhicitta.

82 Bodhicitta is based on understanding that all have served as one's mother

and on recollecting their kindness;

bodhicitta is produced from repaying their kindness,

and from love and compassion;

and bodhicitta is produced from the surpassing intention;

hence it is extremely important to work at these.

83 Even if a diamond is broken,

it does not stop being called a diamond.

Similarly, even flashes of bodhicitta

do not stop being called bodhicitta.

84 Butchers are skilled in the secrets of life.

Carpenters are skilled in the secrets of wood.

Bodhisattvas who have the great surge of thought

are skilled in the secrets of bodhicitta.

85 If you possess the wealth of bodhicitta

it doesn't matter if you are attractive or not,

it doesn't matter if you lack fame and honor,

it doesn't matter if you have no other virtue.

Tht: ]t:wt:l Lamp: A Praist: of Bodhicitta 53

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86

[The Prajnaparamita sutras] say if you account for all [aspects]

of the three holy [knowledges] it will serve as a cause

for the knowledge of all modes of meditation. Since the first [aspect]

is bodhicitta, it would be wrong to ever forget it.

87 An intelligent person's disinterested activity

for the sake of all living beings

without discrimination in all places, times,

and in all situations is based on bodhicitta.

88

Amongst constellations, the moon.

Amongst mountains, Mount Meru.

Similarly whoever has bodhicitta is

resplendent amongst living beings.

89 Remember bodhicitta when you feel down.

Remember bodhicitta when you are scared.

Remember bodhicitta when you suffer.

Remember bodhicitta when you feel joy.

90 Remember bodhicitta when your courage begins to wane.

Remember bodhicitta when you slack off from doing things for others.

Remember bodhicitta when you become lazy.

Remember bodhicitta when you feel run down.

91

Who could measure the heavens with a ruler?

Who could measure out the ocean with a cup?

Who could analyze the workings of karma with their mind?

Who could give voice to the greatness of bodhicitta?

Th~ J~w~i Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 55

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92 What a joy when the gentle rain comes on time.

What a joy when the crops ripen in the fields.

What a joy if bodhicitta were to be produced

in the minds of living beings equal to space.

93 Like the moon amongst the constellations,

on account of Mahayana bodhicitta

the bodhisattvas surpass non-Buddhists

and the sravakas and pratyekabuddhas.

94 Within the lotus is the essential nectar of the flower.

Within the bodhisattva is bodhicitta.

The [former] is merely beneficial to some.

The [latter] is supremely beneficial to all.

95 Based on precious bodhicitta, the supreme noble ones

cause aspirations to be fulfilled,

bring disciples to maturity,

purify their paradise,2I and actualize [enlightenment].

96 Supreme bodhicitta is produced from the four spiritual grounds

[immeasurable love, compassion, joy, and equanimity].

That an effect is produced through the coming together

of causes and conditions is logically correct.

97 Relying on the shining orb of the sun

those with eyes look out on forms.

With bodhicitta the bodhisattvas look out

on living beings equal to space.


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98 If you start something, start it with bodhicitta.

If you think of something, let the thought be of bodhicitta.

If you analyze something, analyze it in the light of bodhicitta.

If you investigate something, investigate it in the light of bodhicitta.

99 Whoever is adorned with bodhicitta

can never have a vicious thought,

and even without being urged to do so, will naturally

work to stop the nastiness of others.

100

Given that for whoever possesses it

there is never an opportunityfor decline,

inestimable bodhicitta is supreme.

What intelligent person would not respect it?

101

Those who wish to follow the spiritual practice

of the bodhisattvas, the Victor's children,

at the very outset strive to produce

bodhicitta since it is the foundation of that practice.

102

Since a buddha is born from a bodhisattva

and a bodhisattva is born from bodhicitta,

intelligent persons understand

the greatness of supreme bodhicitta.

103

Wherever goes a [cakravartin emperor's] precious wheel,

there go the other precious things as well.22

Every goodness naturally follows

in the train of supreme bodhicitta.

Tht ]twtl Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 59

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104

Bodhicitta is the supreme essence that is obtained

[from churning] the milk ocean of the Guru Buddha's teachings.

So until one is enlightened,

one should make an effort to treat it as important.

105 It might be possible to lasso the wind.

It might be possible for sandalwood to have warmth.

It might be possible for light to turn to darkness.

It is impossible for bodhicitta ever to betray you.

106

It is true that it is extremely hard

to produce non-artificial bodhicitta.

But even if one must work at it for a thousand eons,

it is crucial that one have an irreversible confidence.

107

Since bodhicitta is born without discrimination

in the priest, warrior, merchant, and common castes,

all four should embrace it with

enthusiastic faith and reverence.

108

One whose mindstream is ornamented with bodhicitta

is free from obscuration, stops doing harm

to self and others, and is empowered to bring together

a great surge of good qualities.

109

The melodious call of the spring cuckoo

is a crowning joy for those who have ears to hear.

The bodhicitta of the Victor's children

is a crowning benefit for every living being.

Th~ j~w~l Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 61

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62. VAST AS THI! HEAVENS

110

Bodhicitta is the desire to obtain the state

of enlightenment for the sake of sentient beings

equal to. space. How could anyone else compare

with someone who is endowed with it?

lll

Bodhicitta invites all this universe,

with its gods, to be guests at the [feast of]

temporary worldly joys and the

ultimate complete enlightenment.

ll2

Even at the expense of wealth, body, and life

one should protect precious bodhicitta.

And why? With it one easily obtains

even the knowledge of all.

113 One should properly ascertain the basis

of Mahayana bodhicitta, its definitions and divisions,

and the examples and so forth

that give the measure of it.

114

The ambrosia of bodhicitta cures

all sick beings wracked

by the severe pains of the three sufferings23

in beginningless cyclic existence.

115

Application of the seven-limbed practice24

of offering and so forth produces and builds up bodhicitta,

just as the application of water, fenilizer, and so fonh

produces and builds up a seedling.


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u6 Abandoning the intention to do harm to anyone;

working directly or indirectly for the sake of others;

immovable regardless of the conditions one faces;

these, I think, are some of the dimensions of bodhicitta.

Il7 Giving, morality, patience, vigor,

and concentration, as well as

the wisdom that realizes the ultimate

bodhicitta makes them all perfect.

u8 Even if all of the wholesome thoughts of earthlings

were to be gathered together into one,

it would not compare with a fraction of bodhicitta,

just as [ordinary] trees [cannot compare with] the parijataka tree.

Il9 If the mindstream is moistened with bodhicitta,

one takes joy in abandoning wrongdoing,

one takes joy in doing vinue,

and one takes joy in removing fears.

120

When bodhicitta has been taken as a friend

it is as rdiable as the axial mountain,

and no matter how great a terror there may be,

like a lion it is ever free from fear.

121

If non-anificial, precious bodhicitta is produced

and does not degenerate but further increases,

it is absolutdy definite that the stage of

the knowledge of all modes of meditation will be obtained.

The jewel Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 65

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66 VAST AS THE H EAVE N S

122

Those who want the lotus of high status to bloom

and to taste the honey of the highest good25

rely upon the hundred light[-rayed sun] of bodhicitta,

the supreme origin of the buddhas and their children.

123

Just as the heavens are vast

so is this bodhicitta vast.

Just as the seas are deep,

so is this bodhicitta deep.

124 Bodhicitta unsettles even the great

vastness of the firm earth.

It is difficult indeed to comprehend the power

of it, similar as it is to a wish-fulfilling gem.

125

The philosophy connected with bodhicitta is supreme.

The meditation connected with bodhicitta is supreme.

The spiritual activity connected with bodhicitta is supreme.

The result connected with bodhicitta is supreme.

126

Power culminates in bodhicitta.

Helping others culminates in bodhicitta.

Abandoning flaws culminates in bodhicitta.

Fearlessness culminates in bodhicitta.

127

With lasting bodhicitta in the stream of mind,

it's fine if one is weak in applying on~self to other virtues.

Once one has found a wish-fulfilling gem,

it's fine if one does not seek other gems.


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128

In a crowd of scholars bodhicitta makes one attractive.

In a crowd of fools bodhicitta makes one attractive.

In a crowd of ordinary folk bodhicitta makes one attractive.

Bodhicitta produces joy for all.

129

Bodhicitta beautifies the whole appearance .of a face.

Bodhicitta lends beauty to the wideness of the eyes.

Bodhicitta gives beauty to the sound of a voice.

Bodhicitta makes behavior beautiful.

130

Whatever it may be, a far-reaching good deed

is hard to do without bodhicitta.

Without the cow from which one milks one's wishes,

it is hard to complete all one's aims.

131

The benefit of bodhicitta is supreme,

lasting as it does for as long as cyclic existence remains,

going forth without discrimination to every living being

equal to the limits of space.

132

Supreme bodhicitta is master

for it keeps one away from what should not be done;

it produces in full the surpassing intention,

and leads one to grasp the essential thing, altruism.

133 Having taken refuge, produced bodhicitta,

and amassed the two accumulations of merit

and wisdom, why shouldn't I obtain

completely unsurpassable enlightenment?

Tht ]twe/ Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 69

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134

Since bodhicitta is the supreme thing to be protected,

one should protect it by remembering bodhicitta;

one should protect it through introspection;

one should protect it by conscientiousness.

135 When the hundred-petaled bodhicitta lotus blooms,

honey bees naturally gather

even though one does not call out,

because their minds are intent on getting pollen

136

The supreme precious bodhicitta

causes activities of body to accord with Dharma,

causes activities of speech to accord with Dharma,

causes activities of mind to accord with Dharma.

137 By the power of a bodhisattva's bodhicitta,

even the enraged mind of a wild animal

right in front of you calms down;

mutual animosity is set aside and you become fast friendli.

138

To like the bodhicitta of the supreme vehicle

is to like being in possession of bodhicitta.

To like fragrant smells is to delight

in the supreme sandalwood tree.

139 At the beginning, in the middle,

and at the end, the bodhicitta

of the supreme vehicle is an indispensable

factor for obtaining non-abiding nirvii).a.

Th~ jewel Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 71

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140 What is the use of working to grow a shoot

if you are without a seed? What is the use

of working to obtain complete buddhahood

if you are without bodhicitta?

141 It is difficult for living beings

who are not holy to find a joy

like the great delight that

holy beings take in supreme bodhicitta.

142 Purifying the residual impressions

and awakening (bodhi) at once to every knowable thing

having thought about (citta) these, one sets out to achieve them.

From this comes the expression "bodhicitta."

143 Bodhicitta transforms

afflictive emotions, suffering and fear,

and sickness and death

into a path to enlightenment.

144

Based on different amounts of mental fortitude

there are three sorts of bodhicitta: like a king,

like a ferryman, and like a shepherd. They are known

as weak, middling, and superior, respectively.26

145 Through bodhicitta all the practices of giving,

morality, patience, vigor, concentration,

and wisdom become causes for attaining enlightenment,

and they get the name "perfection" (paramita) as well.


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146

How could the surpassing intention

of the ordinary person, the sravakas,

and the two types of pratyekabuddhas27

ever attain to the level of Mahayana bodhicitta?

147

On account of bodhicitta, the ennobled bodhisattva

views all enemies, friends, and strangers as equal

[in a way that is] far superior

to [the way that] others view them as equal.

148

With a ship one is delivered to the farther shore.

With a mount one reaches the place one wants to go.

With bodhicitta one is similarly conveyed

to the level of full buddhahood.

149

In his Ala7flktira,28 Ajita explained

the bodhicitta of the bodhisattvas,

starting with the one that is like the earth

up to the one that is like a cloud.

150

There are two Mahayana bodhicittas:

the conventional and the ultimate.

The conventional is the wishing and setting out bodhicittas.

The ultimate is the nonconceptual, free from elaboration.29

151

If bodhicitta of the supreme vehicle is produced,

it makes no difference whether one is high or low,

rich or poor, smart or stupid, brahmin or outcaste;

one becomes an object of worship of the world and gods.


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152

Based on philosophy, meditation, and behavior

that are informed by bodhicitta, just like an effect

that comes from all the causes being complete,

unsurpassable enlightenment is reached.

153 Amongst happinesses, the cessation of sarp.sara is [true] happiness.30

Amongst suffering, the Avi:ci hell is suffering.

Amongst what is tenable, the true nature of dharmas is tenable.

Amongst wholesome thoughts, bodhicitta is supreme.

154 If one lacks Mahayana bodhicitta, even though it is true

that one's practice of calm abiding and special insight

in unity will take one to the sravaka or pratyekabuddha level,

it is impossible for one to obtain complete buddhahood.

155 Bodhicitta is what one should study.

Bodhicitta is what one should think about.

Bodhicitta is what one should meditate on.

One should cherish it completely.

156

Even if physical virtues degenerate,

even if virtues of speech degenerate,

even if other mental virtues degenerate,

bodhicitta should never degenerate.

157 With bodhicitta one easily gets to the

supreme stage of knowledge of all modes of meditation.

In a fast jet, even though one covers

a great distance, how could one arrive?


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158 Bodhicitta causes the water lily of benefit

and happiness equal to space to unfold;

it completely protects from dangers and so on

and places one at the level of full enlightenment.

159 If you lack bodhicitta you will not become enlightened

even if you restrain from wickedness,

even if you gather together wholesome dharmas,

even if you meditate on the channels, winds, and drops} I

160 With bodhicitta one enjoys happiness.

With bodhicitta one enjoys even sorrow.

With bodhicitta one enjoys what is there.

With bodhicitta one enjoys even what is not there.

161 Since Mahayana bodhicitta surpasses

every virtuous state of mind of the non-buddhists,

the sravakas, and the pratyekabuddhas,

it is therefore praised by the guru buddhas.

162 How could someone in whom the bodhicitta

of the supreme vehicle exists ever turn

toward the poison of self-cherishing, even for a moment?

How could they give up the nectar of cherishing others?

163 The conflagration at the end of the eon

burns up the mountains, continents, and oceans.

It is certain that bodhicitta burns up every

great wickedness in a single moment.

Th~ j~wd Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 79

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So VAST As THE HEAVENS

164 In every action of body, speech, and mind,

directly or indirectly, bodhicitta

takes the aims of others as foremost,

ignoring selfish, insignificant aims.

165 Those who enjoy the way of the holy ones

should most assuredly get hold of this bodhicitta,

just as those who want to reach

the land of jewels rely on a ship.

166 Those who abandon the production of Mahayana bodhicitta

go to the [extreme of] peace, as they have abandoned the happinesses

of seeing the highest reality [endowed with] the intention to find

the altruistic thought and the method for that [altruistic aim].

167 What discriminating person would not delight in bodhicitta,

which eliminates the increase in afflictive emotions,

which stops any other faults from arising,

and which is the culmination of all that is proper?

168 The bodhicitta of bodhisattvas is like a spiritual friend

who naturally exhorts one to be ethical, to study,

to analyze, to meditate, and to work for the welfare of

wandering beings who reach as far as space.

169 Bodhicitta beholds the totality of living beings

like a mother does her only son. It is the nectar

that is of one taste with being of help to others,

hoping neither for reward or future result.

The Jewel Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 81

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170

Bodhicitta functions like a spiritual friend:

it demonstrates correctly and without mistake

the essentials of what is to be done

and what is to be avoided.

171

Bodhicitta fully protects one from viciousness,

what does not work, the view

of the perishable aggregates,32 bad rebirths,

and the deficient vehicle as well.

172

The teacher [Sakyamuni Buddha] first produced bodhicitta

then accumulated the collections and became

the lord of wandering beings; hence we too

should first of all cleave to this holy thing.

173

It is because of bodhicitta that one gives up

the pleasure of meditative concentration,

and in order to relieve others from their suffering

goes down to the deepest hell as if into a pleasure park.

174

Even though some people know how to give

a perfect explanation of the meaning of bodhicitta,

since the collection of causes that gives rise to it is incomplete,

bodhicitta is absent from their mindstreams.

175

Meditate upon bodhicitta when afflicted by disease.

Meditate upon bodhicitta when sad.

Meditate upon bodhicitta when suffering occurs.

Meditate upon bodhicitta when you get scared.

Tht ]twtf Lamp: A Praist of Bodhicitta 83

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176

One who does not delight in others' good fortune

does not have bodhicitta within,

just as one who is angry with another person

does not have love within.

177 One will understand the practice of bodhicitta from reading

the Mahayana siitras, the Sikftisamuccaya, the Bodhicaryiivattira,

the Mahayiinasutriila1Jlkiira, the Bodhicittavivararza, the Abhisamayiila1JZkiira, the Bodhisattvabhumi, and so on.

178

If one does not attain an extremely stable cenainry

concerning the presentation of bodhicitta,

even though one may try hard to practice and so on,

there will be no ground for the completion of one's desired aims.

179 If one does not have bodhicitta, one will not become enlightened

even if one has other spiritual practices.

If one is paned from the life power,

the other sense powers do not function.

180

Gaining supreme unsurpassable enlightenment

is contingent on this bodhicitta.

Thus nothing in either the world or the state of peace

can demonstrate its [inexpressible] goodness.

181

The medical treatises teach the ways

to cure living beings of diseases.

The Mahayana treatises teach the bodhicitta

that cures the afflictions.


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It is clear that holy texts call supreme bodhicitta

the thought with two aims

because it arises in dependence upon

living beings and the Buddha.

183 Bodhicitta and so on are supreme

amongst all worship; they are

the unsurpassable worship. So it is proper

to devote oneself to this source of good qualities.

184 If you want to produce in your mindstream

this bodhicitta that is so hard to find,

you should first make a great effort to meditate

on its causes: love, compassion, and so on.

185

What is the vinue in having bodhicitta?

And what is the fault, anyway, in being without it?

Having investigated this with a penetrating intellect,

let the logic of it sink in.

186

The precious supreme thought alone has the power

to be a ground for the continual production of benefit and happiness

for wandering beings, pervading space, who have been one's mother,

and for relieving all the suffering of each of them.

187

Just as a wish-fulfilling gem

is the be all and end all for the wealthy,

this bodhicitta is the be all and end all for every bodhisattva.

Th~ jew~/ Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 87

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188

I think that the holy beings believe

that repaying the harm that others do

with a heartfelt benefit

is one of the modes of meditation of bodhicitta.

189 Thinking "I am a bodhisattva,"

do not despise even a bug.

It is taught that the supreme ultimate bodhicitta

pervades every wandering being.

190

Just as butter is the heart of milk,

so bodhicitta is the heart of the Mahayana.

Just as honey is the heart of a flower,

so bodhicitta is the heart of the Mahayana.

191

One who wishes to be certain

about bodhicitta should always ascertain

its foundations, intent, and so on,

as is explained in the Mahtiytinasutrtila7flktira.

192

If bodhicitta degenerates

it is something that should be taken up again,

just as it is correct

to repair a golden vessel if it breaks.

193 Even if one's body is complete with every good qualiry,

still one would be unlucky if bereft of sight.

Even if one has every other good quality,

one would still be unlucky if bereft of bodhicitta.

Tht! ]t!wt!l Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 89

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194

Whatever you meet with,

never ever give up bodhicitta.

If one mentally gives up supreme bodhicitta,

there is no force for attaining buddhahood.

195

If you want to produce bodhicitta, you need faith.

If you want to produce bodhiciua; you need to want it.

If you want to produce bodhicitta, you need compassion.

If you want to produce bodhicitta, meditate on these.

196

Relying on Mahayana bodhicitta,

make virtues of the body pure,

make vinues of speech pure,

make virtues of mind pure.

197

Relying on the supreme vehicle bodhicitta,

accomplish virtues of the body,

accomplish vinues of speech,

accomplish virtues of mind.

198

Even if one generates the supreme bodhicitta,

if one does not ingrain it in one's personality, what is the use?

Even if one plants and tends a seed,

if a seedling does not grow, what is the use?

199

Even a buddha cannot act in such a way as to

cause pleasure for every sentient being.

But if non-artificial bodhicitta comes about,

there is indeed pleasure for most all of them.

Th( Jew(/ Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 91

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200

Every Mahayana level and path

is included within bodhicitta,

just as every composite thing

is included in the five skandhas.33

201

Remember bodhicitta if you are going somewhere.

Remember bodhicitta if you are sitting down.

Remember bodhicitta if you are lying down.

Remember bodhicitta if you are standing up.

202

By relying on remembrance and introspection,

give up doing things that are in opposition to bodhicitta.

If you do such a thing, immediately repair it

through making a confession and so on.

203

Just as someone who is famished takes joy in food,

just as someone who is parched takes joy in drink,

just as someone who is freezing takes joy in fire,

so do the holy ones take joy in bodhicitta.

204

As long as thoughts and actions

exclusively for selfish goals impinge,

it will be hard for one to produce

non-artificial bodhicitta in the mindstream.

205

In the morning when you get up, generate

a heartfelt intention to be in accord with bodhicitta.

In the evening when going to bed, investigate whether

what you did was in accord with or in opposition to bodhicitta.

Th( jew(/ Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 93

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206

If you do not yank out by the root

this noxious stem of self-interest,

how will the lordly wish-fulfllling tree of bodhicitta

that delights in altruism ever flourish?

207

It is because bodhicitta accomplishes both

temporary happiness and, finally, complete

buddhahood that one should strive to give voice

to bodhicitta's greatness in its totality.

208

The altruism of ordinary folk, of sravakas,

and of pratyekabuddhas cannot compete

with the altruism of a bodhisattva whose

mindstream has been moistened by bodhicitta.

209

Even if a non-Buddhist sets out the riches of the

trichiliocosm,34 the merit created

cannot compare with that created by offering

a single meal with bodhicitta.

210

Having obtained this precious life of freedom, so hard to obtain,

having met with the Buddha's teaching, which is so hard to meet,

yet not to hold bodhicitta in the palm of one's hand,

what greater misfortune than that could there be?

2II

From beginningless time until now I have been

tormented by great sufferings for no purpose.

If I do not enthusiastically accept bodhicitta,

again without end will be my experience of pain.

Thf jfwfi Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 95

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212

The daybreak bringer dispels the dark.

Moonlight dispels the pangs of pain.

Great wealth dispels poverty.

Bodhicitta dispels afflictions.

213

The infinite accumulation of merit

even from beholding with eyes of faith

another bodhisattva is because of

the power of bodhicitta.

214

The objective support of bodhicitta

is mother beings equal to space.

The objective support of bodhicitta

is completely perfect enlightenment.

215

When the buddhas and bodhisattvas thought,

"What is the means that lets one obtain easily the supreme stage

where the two extremes [of sa111sara and nirvat).a] have been abandoned?"

they saw that it was this precious bodhicitta.

216

With bodhicitta one's own purpose is accomplished.

With bodhicitta others' purposes are accomplished.

With bodhicitta one gets rid of what causes fear.

With bodhicitta an antidote clicks in.

217

Unless and until bodhicitta becomes

as rock-solid as Mount Meru,

who will taste the nectar of entrance

into the vast and profound stages [of the path]?


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218

Bodhicitta protects one from violence, bad rebinhs,

the view of the perishable [aggregates],

the deficient vehicle, and from deficient means.

It is clear, therefore, that it is the best refuge.

219

Bodhicitta, resplendent in good qualities,

is the finest of all things to be known.

Anyone who does not study it

must have a mind like a stone.

220

Cooling, producing joy in all,

residing on high yet descending low,

such is bodhicitta in a Victor's child,

a moon in the path of celestial beings.

221

Selfish benefit is the ground in which suffering originates;

helping others is the ground in which happiness originates;

this is why the supreme noble ones are so enthused about opening

the treasure mine of happiness and benefit for wandering living beings.

222

The statement that a tathagata's child

should not be afraid of wild beasts is [said]

on account of bodhicitta and not on account of

a plan or preparation to harm others.

223

In the face of harm done to the Buddha's

precious body, Dharma, or children, or to one's guru,

friends, or family, cleave to moderating bodhicitta

and buckle on the armor of patience.

Th~ jew~/ Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 99

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224

Although it is true that the spiritual activities of a bodhisattva who has

already generated the thought of supreme enlightenment are difficult,

still it is proper to take them up, because, like growing saffron,

when one achieves one's aim there is such abundance.

225

Rid of fear, having taken up bodhicitta,

without concern for possessions, body, or life,

the lion's roar of the three baskets35 of

the Buddhist doctrine is proclaimed for all to hear.

226 Having generated the thought of unsurpassed enlightenment

you should protect all of the trainings;

otherwise, your state will be akin

to having a draught coming in through a hole.

227

Whatever work one engages in, one should

do it after connecting it with bodhicitta.

Going from happiness to the culmination of happiness,

one reaches great bliss that never degenerates.

228

When the branches of the tree of bodhicitta, whose roots

are firmly planted

in the ground where thoughts of self-interest have been banished,

become heavy with the fruit of helping others, it is definite

that the hopes of wandering living beings will be fulfilled.

229

This should be one's practice:

the three surpassing trainings

in morality, concentration, and wisdom,

with bodhicitta as the foundation.


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102. VAS T AS T H E H B AVE N S

230 Is it not the case that the holy. beings accept

as an aspect of bodhicitta the thoughts:

"When will I be able to remove the suffering of others?" and

"When will I be able to fully develop the talents of others?"

231 When happy remember bodhicitta.

When sad remember bodhicitta. ·

When old remember bodhicitta.

When dying remember bodhicitta.

232 A faith that wants to attain it,

and compassion that extends to all living beings:

the supreme bodhicitta is not hard to generate when one's Mahayana nature is awakened.

233 Misers are pleased by gold and silver.

Lechers are pleased by young girls.

Bumble bees are pleased by honey.

The holy are pleased by bodhicitta.

234 Those who, on account ofbodhicitta, have set out

to shoulder the great load of working. for wandering living beings

equal to space, never for a single moment slacken

in applying themselves to advancing the aims of others.

235 To be parted from a beautiful or ugly color is all right.

To be parted from bodhicitta is not all right.

To be parted even from relatives, friends, body, and life is all right.

But to be parted from bodhicitta is not all right.


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104 VAST AS THI! HEAVENS

236 Having taken up supreme bodhicitta,

with remembrance, introspection,

and conscientiousness, follow the training,

practice the training, and keep to the training.

237 The five non-Buddhist schools of philosophy36

with their eternalistic or nihilistic views

definitely do not have bodhicitta.

If they do have it, you should ask them about it.

238 To know the essentials of bodhicitta,

rely on a Mahayana spiritual friend,

read the Mahayana sutras,

and befriend the bodhisattvas.

239 An enemy's nastiness, though small, is noticed;

a friend's kindness, though small, is noticed;

but the holy turn them both to benefit

without any distinction through bodhicitta.

240

The daybreak bringer is in the region on high,

but still the hundred-petaled lotus down below bursts into bloom.

Though supreme bodhicitta is in the region on high,

down below a wholesome attitude blossoms in the mind.

241

Just from hindering a bodhisattva's virtue

for a single moment, there comes about

the endless suffering of bad rebirths.

Know that is due [to the greatness] ofbodhicitta.


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242

To give up supreme bodhicitta in one's heart

is the heaviest amongst the downfalls.

If the life power peters out, all the other

sense powers stop functioning.

243 Strive to fully take up this bodhicitta,

the source of every happiness,

for wandering living beings

as long as existence endures.

244 If one wonders, "What is that thing in the world,

without which there is no way?"-

in which holy being does one find anything

other than supreme bodhicitta alone?

245 Due to bodhicitta, the children of the buddhas

look out without partiality at wande_ring living beings

like a mother [looks at] her only son, with a gaze of love

that comes from the very depth of her being.

246

A thousand deeds apparently beneficial to others

do not compare with the great surging deed

that is done for others' benefit

when one is in the grip of bodhicitta.

247 One who is of infinite benefit to wandering living beings,

who brings relief from suffering

and its causes through unsurpassed

bodhicitta, is a·seedling buddha.

Tht jewel Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 107

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248

While it is true that-should one incur a bodhicitta

downfall-it is correct to take up [bodhicitta] again,

since attaining the stages then takes longer,

be careful nonetheless not to be stained by a downfall.

249

Taking bodhicitta as the underpinning, through

the practice of the unification of the vast and the profound,

the knowledge of all modes of meditation is obtained. This is because

it is cenain that cause and effect do not lie.

250 With the mercury that looks like gold

one transforms iron into gold.

With bodhicitta one transforms even afflictions

into a branch of enlightenment.

251 A bodhisattva blessed by bodhicitta

is like the lord of mountain ranges,

impervious to even the most terrible

situation that may arise.

252

Given that bodhicitta bestows the supreme

and unchanging happiness of [the path of] no more learning,37

who is going to regard any divine or human happiness

that comes along to be amazing?

253 Knowledge that reaches to the limits of the knowable,

love that extends to every living being,

and power that is like lightning:

these have their origin in bodhicitta.

Th~ Jew~/ Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 109

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110 vAsT As T H E H E A v EN s

254 From bodhicitta, the source of wealth, comes

the perfection of the various good qualities that spring to life.

The moon that is the foremost sage governs the blooming

of the water lily of universal benefit and happiness.

255 Bodhicitta, the supreme vehicle that conveys one

to the level of thoroughly non-abiding nirv~a.

is like a [magical] stallion [that knows the path

without being led] and has arrived where it wants to go.

256 When the splendor of bodhicitta has descended,

with remembrance and introspection as your aids investigate every action of body, speech, and mind

to see whether they are spiritual or not.

257 With bodhicitta one sees self-interest

as being like a virulent poison.

With bodhicitta one sees altruism

as being like ambrosia.

258 If there is no bodhicitta, there is no bodhisattva.

If there is attachment to this life, there is no human being, [only woe].

If there is no reversal of the attitude [of attachment],

there is no renunciation.

If there is an extreme, there is no [correct] view.

259 If one throws precious bodhicitta away,

even if one seems to do something for the sake of others,

it will only apparently be so. A tree that does not bear fruit

may look good, but it cannot assuage hunger.

Th~ J~w~l Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 111

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Ill VAST AS THE HEAVENS

260 Like a concatenation of everything in this world

that is naturally precious, hard to find,

unrivaled in its benefits is this bodhicitta

that is highly praised by the buddhas.

261 If one wishes to engage in the spiritual deeds

of Samantabhadra,38 one should look after the root of

bodhicitta. If one wishes a fine tree to have a wide

spread of branches, one conveys water to the root of the trunk.

262 With bodhicitta one sees self-interest

as being like a poison and stops it.

With bodhicitta one sees altruism

as being like ambrosia and engages in it.

263 Even if one cannot, by what one does, help a person

who is threatening or harming one's life,

one should still not give up the thought to benefit

[that person]; otherwise one will go against bodhicitta.

264 Thinking that bodhicitta informed by compassion

is the thought that produces benefit and happiness for

mother beings equal to space, the supreme

persons scatter flowers of praise as offerings [to it].

265 When Mahayana bodhicitta has arisen,

the muddy effluent of cherishing self-interest subsides;

the essential thing-the needs of others-is enthusiastically

embraced, and one becomes an anonymous friend.

Tht ]twt/ Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 113

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266 From the firm root of bodhicitta spread forth

the branches of well-produced spiritual activity.

The fruit, the activity of enlightenment, is amazing

in fulfilling the hopes of sentient beings.

267 Bodhicitta is the best means for getting nondual wisdom,

the best bringer of pleasure to all living beings,

the supreme amongst virtuous minds;

it is the ornament of the universe.

268 There is no other dharma to be studied

like bodhicitta. There is

no other dharma to be reflected upon

and meditated on like bodhicitta.

269 The sky of reality is obscured

by clouds of adventitious stains.

Gusts of bodhicitta wind clear them away,

like a lamp [clears away] the darkness.

270 Certain about the faults of existence

and understanding correctly the good qualities of enlightenment

in one who is in the Mahayana lineage,

the seedling of bodhicitta flourishes.

271 From now until the heart of enlightenment

the supreme loving friend is bodhicitta.

How could it be that holy beings

would not be devoted to it?


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u6 VAST As THE HEAVENS

272 People look after their eyes

even when there is considerable danger.

Similarly, no matter how dangerous it gets

the holy ones look after bodhicina.

273 A scholar who explains the holy doctrine,

refutes what is not true with correct lines of reasoning,

produces a taste of pleasure with his writing,

yet does not possess bodhicitta-who would aspire to becoming that?

274 Given that a person who has this bodhicitta,

which is praised by buddhas and bodhisattvas,

is respected even by enemies, what need

is there to mention that others do as well?

275 Bodhicitta is born without difficulty

in one whose root of faith is firm,

who is in the Mahayana lineage, and who

from the bean wants to take it up.

276 The buddhas and the bodhisattvas continually check,

as though heating, cutting, and rubbing gold,

the foremost wealth that is this bodhicitta,

the foundation of the wealth of the two purposes.

277

The thought to harm others

is the enemy of bodhicitta.

The thought from the bottom of one's heart to harm no one

is the friend of bodhicitta.

Th~ J~w~/ Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta II7

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278 If you want supreme bodhicitta to arise

mediate on the thought to be of benefit to all.

If you want supreme bodhicitta to arise

bring the knowledge of all modes of meditation continually to mind.

279 Those who wish to benefit enemy, friend,

and stranger equally should grasp

firmly the vast bodhicitta tree

and not let it go, even at the cost of their life.

280 One's mindstream burning in a continuous rage,

puffed up with pride and full of jealousy

when is the time that precious bodhicitta

will be obtained?

281 The person who meditates on the thought

"wandering living beings equal to space

are my mother," looks to be on the very verge

of having Mahayana bodhicitta arise.

282 With the ambrosia of bodhicitta, sickness is cured

and one's courage increases. Without hoping

for anything in return or for a [good karmic] result,

all are equally benefited as one.

283 Look and see whether you do or do not have bodhicitta,

root of the Mahayana. If you do not,

make a commitment to it in accord with the ritual39

and make sure it does not degenerate.

The jewel Lamp:·A Praise of Bodhicitta II9

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llO VAST AS THE HEAVENS

284 Enthusiastically embracing the needs of others

is a friend to precious bodhicitta.

Enthusiastically embracing self-interest

is an enemy to precious bodhicitta.

285 It is hard to obtain really firm faith.

It is hard to find a perfect human rebirth.

It is hard to find a holy person.

It is hard to find supreme bodhicitta.

286 By relying on the medicine of bodhicitta

all the diseases of defilement are cured.

So in all the world it is definite

that there is no other medicine like this.

287 Even if you are sorely pressed by an unbearable sickness,

try hard to meditate on bodhicitta,

just as those who are suffering from intense heat

go over ice-cold water in their minds.

288 If you want wandering living beings equal to space

to be happy, treat bodhicitta as important.

If you want to be of use to wandering living beings

equal to space, treat bodhicitta as important.

289 Except that they rely on bodhicitta,

no buddha ever was, is, or will be.

Therefore, those who want to attain

buddhahood obtain its bodhicitta seed.


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290 Bodhicitta is the sun that clears away

the great darkness of belief in a self.

Going from light to light,

in dependence on it they are totally good.

291 With bodhicitta one drives out feelings of pain.

With bodhicitta one overcomes nastiness.

With bodhicitta one cures unhappiness.

With bodhicitta one gets rid of fear.

292 Even for the supreme sage, it was difficult

to please every living being.

But if one comes to have bodhicitta,

almost everyone will come to be pleased.

293 If one really does have a mind to be

a Mahayanist, then one should produce

the bodhicitta that has not been produced

and never let what has been produced degenerate:

294 In general, a virtuous thought atises only with difficulty;

even more difficult than that is the beginning of the Buddhist path;40

yet more difficult is the arising of precious bodhicitta;

nevertheless, one generates it by making an effort.

295 Mahayana bodhicitta arises from long and

continued meditation on affection for whom one loves

and compassion and so on, just as a seedling

arises when all of its causes are brought together.

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296 If one is in possession of bodhicitta

it is fine if one is sick, fine if one is dying,

fine if one is studying, and fine if one is meditating;

one seems to be fine no matter what one is doing.

297 If one has become habituated to this bodhicitta,

what wrong would one not have abandoned?

What good would one not have done?

Enthusiastically strive to meditate upon it.

298 If one is without the vital juice of bodhicitta,

one cannot even enter the Mahayana.41

If such is the case, how will one get

to the supreme stage of buddhahood?

299 It is hard for bodhicitta to arise in a mindstrearn

ever disturbed by afflictive emotions, just as it is

[hard] for the hundred-petaled lotus to arise

in a place with no marshlands.

300

When a foundation of bodhicitta has been laid down

terrible wrongdoing is naturally stopped.

All wholesome activity comes into one's hands;

one is free from anxiety and panic and comes to be stable.

301

The life of a person who has not

taken up bodhicitta is without purpose,

like the hope of reaping a harvest without

having planted a seed in the ground.


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Il6 VAST AS THE HEAVENS

302 [The tiny bugs· that] go round in circles hover

over the delicious taste released by the lotus.

Those seeking liberation enthusiastically

enter the hundred-petaled lotus of bodhicitta.

303 The total wealth of expert poets

lies in their exceptional figures of speech.

Similarly, the total wealth of holy beings

lies in precious bodhicitta.

304 Amongst medicines, the victory medicine.

Amongst jewels, the wish-fulfilling gem.

Amongst flowers, the white lotus.

Amongst virtuous minds, bodhicitta.

305 With bodhicitta one functions as a spiritual master.

With bodhicitta one progresses along the levels and paths.

With bodhicitta one applies oneself to the needs [of self and others].

With bodhicitta one reaches the knowledge of all modes of meditation.

306 What merit is there not made,

what wisdom is there not produced

by one who makes every effort

to keep Mahayana bodhicitta?

307 The bodhicitta of the Victor's children,

which is the ground of my own and others' wealth,

puts to shame even the jewel

that is tied into a royal topknot.

Th~ jewel Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 127

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308

Wherever the great goodness of

the bodhicitta jewel pendant is found,

that place becomes more special [than other places],

like those places where our supreme teacher stayed.

309 Motivated by bodhicitta, whatever activity

one sets out to perform, it is all virtuous.

The branches, flowers, and fruit that come

from the seed of a medicinal [plant] are all good.

310

Authoritative scripture

and logical reasoning make clear

that the benefits of the precious

supreme bodhicitta jewel are infinite.

3II It is bad enough if one's morality degenerates,

but it is even worse if bodhicitta declines.

The result of the former is heaven,

but the result of the latter is enlightenment.

312

Those whose mindstreams

have been moistened by continually

caring deeply about bodhicitta-

who could prevent them from going from joy to joy?

313 Something material does not have

the capacity to give a buddha's enlightenment.

For that reason the wish-fulfilling gem

is not worthy of being an example of bodhicitta.


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314 It is true that a giant elephant attracts other elephants

and that wealth attracts wealth.

But bodhicitta attracts everything that is

glorious in the world and in the state of peace.

315 To be without bodhicitta and yet

to feel oneself a Mahayanist

is like getting rid of all one's wealth

and yet thinking oneself to be rich.

316

Who would not like the gaze that bodhicitta

makes one cast on every living being-

the finest, the lowest, and those in-between

like the gaze of a mother on her son?

317 Those who are proclaimed as the greatest

gods in existence-Brahma, Vi~I).U,

and Indra-do they have bodhicitta,

the source of all benefit and happiness?

318

At the sight of this supreme bodhicitta

that delights the buddhas and bodhisauvas,

the moon that revels in the thought that it brings pleasure to all must go scurrying across the sky.

319 Like the moon, camphor, and white sandalwood

when they have come together in a certain place,

this bodhicitta cools things down, since it

removes the pain of afflictive emotions.

Th~ j~w~/ Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 131

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320 The nectar of bodhicitta, when it trickles

down the throat of a living being,

produces joy in the mind

like that produced by divine ambrosia.

321 In terms of the division ofbodhicitta, there are four kinds [ofbodhisattvas]:

the faultless ones, the ones practicing activities,

the ones for whom only one life remains [before enlightenment],

and the ones in their last existence.

322 Those who are attached to the taste

of the pleasures of the five senses

have difficulty even to make a wish

for the supreme taste of bodhicitta.

323 What is the common moon in the sky

when compared to this bodhicitta moon,

this lovely, rounded orb of love

with pity written on its face?42

324 It makes sense for those who have

a firm intention to be liberated from all bonds

and to obtain immutable happiness

to hang on to bodhicitta.

325 If you want to be a scholar learn bodhicitta.

If you want to be a noble person learn bodhicitta.

If you want to be a decent person learn bodhicitta.

If you want to be of benefit to others learn bodhicitta.

Tht! ]t!wt!l Lamp: A PraiSI! of Bodhicitta 133

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326 If the protector [the enlightened one] did not fully describe

[all] the greatnesses of bodhicitta, how could

[they be expressed] by the likes of worldly beings,

sravakas, pratyekabuddhas, and the supreme aryas?

327 Bodhicitta benefits the low.

Bodhicitta benefits the mediocre.

Bodhicitta benefits the finest.

Is it not the case that bodhicitta is of benefit to all?

328 If one has gained the ability to live without any food except bodhicitta,

what need is there of the other abilities to live without food?43

Who, having seen the moon in the sky, would ever seize

on the [reflection of the] moon in water as having an essence?

329 The splendor of the bliss of bodhicitta eclipses,

as does the sun a firefly, the worldly happiness

of a cakravartin emperor, of lndra, or of Brahma

and so on, no matter how much it may be.

330 The bodhicitta pollen produced

in the hundred-petaled lotus of compassion

that is watered by the river of love

is inexorably compelling to the fortunate bumble bees.

331 Since there never has been, never will be,

and there is not now any enlightened being

independent of bodhicitta,

it is proper to always respectfully attend to it.

The jewel Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 135

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332 If one gets rid of the river, how would

fish ever get a chance at life?

If one gets rid of bodhicitta, how would one get

complete enlightenment, even if one wanted it?

333 Just as the ecstatic song of the

messenger of spring44 delights all those

with ears to hear, bodhicitta-moistened

speech brings joy to the ear.

334 A virtue connected with bodhicitta increases

right up until knowledge of all modes of meditation,

just as the phase of the waxing moon

keeps on increasing more and more.

335 What is a scholar if devoid of bodhicitta?

What is a noble person if devoid of bodhicitta?

What is a decent person if devoid of bodhicitta?

[Not much,] so cherish the possession ofbodhicitta.

336 Who would rate highly being graced by many good qualities

if deficient in bodhicitta? Who would rate highly

their body and face, though beautiful to look at,

if there was something wrong with their eyes?

337 The practices for the supreme conventional bodhicitta

are exchanging self for others and so on.

The practice for the supreme ultimate bodhicitta

is meditation on emptiness.

Tht ]twt! Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 137

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338 When you walk, walk with bodhicitta.

When you sit, sit with bodhicitta.

When you stand, stand with bodhicitta.

When you sleep, sleep with bodhicitta.

339 When you look, look with bodhicitta.

When you eat, eat with bodhicitta.

When you speak, speak with bodhicitta.

When you think, think with bodhicitta.

340 If within one is bereft of bodhicitta, what is the use

even if one behaves beautifully?

If within one is bereft of bodhicitta, what is the use

even if one spouts scriptures and reasoning?

341 Just as an elephant scorched by the sun

descends into a lotus pond,

those with mental wealth naturally

immerse themselves in the bodhicitta sea.

342 Who could assen that there is a measurable extent

to the goodness of bodhicitta?

It would be like measuring space with a ruler

or weighing out the ocean with a cup.

343 For those holy beings

who possess complete bodhicitta,

be they happy or even sad,

they do not change.


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344 The best thing to hear about is bodhicitta.

The best thing to explain is bodhicitta.

The beSt thing to look into is bodhicitta.

The best thing to meditate on is bodhicitta.

345 What thing to be abandoned is not abandoned with bodhicitta?

What thing to be attained is not attained with bodhicitta?

What act of benefit to others is not done with bodhicitta?

What act of personal benefit is not done with bodhicitta?

346 Bodhicitta propels one to the

level of complete enlightenment,

just as virtuous karma propels certain

living beings to a high rebirth.

347 The buddhas and the bodhisattvas praise bodhicitta

again and again. Since this is the case, those who

want good for themselves should hold on to

bodhicitta. There is no doubt about it.

348 Having seen that I myself and all wandering beings equal to space

want happiness and do not want suffering,

with the awareness that self and other are equal

one should meditate on bodhicitta continually.

349 Ignoring the accomplishment of one's own selfish aims and

enthusiastically taking on the accomplishment of the aims of others,

make an effort to unite with your mindstream the bodhicitta

that cherishes others more than one's self.

Tht! ]t!wl!l Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta 141

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350 Thinking with bodhicitta that [living beings]

are like one's father or mother, relatives or friends,

wife or child, in every case become absorbed

in the notion of joyfully helping [them].

351 A fine being with complete bodhicitta-

how would such a person

even for a moment eagerly embrace

self-interest that is akin to poison?

352 Meditate on the supreme conventional bodhicitta

by means of exchanging self for others and so on.

Meditate on the supreme ultimate bodhicitta

by means of the wisdom free from extremes and so on.

353 However many good qualities have been

expressed by all those skilled in languages,

they can hardly find room to vie

with even a fraction of bodhicitta.

354 Since bodhicitta is what causes one to obtain

the unequaled stage that is situated neither

at the extreme of sarp.sara nor at the extreme of nirvat)a,

my friends, it would be good to value it highly.

355 I have explained this practice of bodhicitta

in order to familiarize my mind with it. If there is

any part that is in error with regard to it,

before the buddhas and bodhisattvas I confess it.

Tht ]twt/ Lamp: A Praist of Bodhicitta 143

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1.44 VAST AS THI! HEAVENS

356 Should there be any good from this litde composition

that has taken supreme bodhicitta as its point of departure,

I pray that bodhicitta will be born in the mindstreams

of my mother [living beings] who are equal to space.

This jewel Lamp: A Praise of Bodhicitta was composed by

Lama Tenzin Gyaltsen in Varana5i, India.

Tht ]ewtl Lamp: A Praiu of Bodhicitta 145

TRANSLATOR'S DEDICATION

That such a man as I, born in a place without this golden sun,

could find this path to happiness defies all thought.

That it might be is totally the work of Khunu Lama and my perfect friends.

May all the good that comes from this be loaded on a bodhicitta ship

to soon set sail across the world and dock in every creature's heart.

Translated by Thubten Thardo with Lozang Gyatso s explanation of difficult verses in Dharamsala, India, in I993 at the urging of Wendy Finster and Patricia Donelly. Revised, edited, and annotated in I997 with help from Sara McClintock, john Dunne, and Samten Chhosphel.


NoTEs

Nom from Introduction

1 The information in this brief life history of Khunu Rinpoche is mainly taken &om the excellent mDzad rnam and rNnam thar thar pa'i them skas by Ngodup Gasha (1989, no place, 1000 printed). The author, who combines the best of traditional and modern biographical techniques, also says (p.78) that he is called Ang Rup and that he has published a Hindi translation of The ]t!Wt!l Lamp, which I have not consulted. Ngodup Gasha lists the following as the sources for his biographies: 1) The transcript of a corrected tape-recorded account by Khunu Rinpoche of his life and work in answer to a request by an American teacher in Kathmandu (1972); 2) Notes taken by the author while questioning Rig2in Tenpa, a learned Khunu scholar three years older than Khunu Lama, about the latter in Bodh Gaya (1979); 3) The remembrances/ideas of an educated Khunu man, Bhagat Singh, in the form of a rough list, ofKhunu Rinpoche's life (no date}; 4) A "Remembrance" by Lahauli Tashi Paljor in Dad bstod os pa'i ne gi rin po che (Delhi, August 1978}; 5) Sohan La! Sharma, Ne gi rin po che'i ngo sprod mdor bsdus. In Vidya-bharati, Haryana government information office (1986); 6) Roshan La! (Khu nu ba)' s Byang chub sems dpa' bstan 'dzin rgyal mtshan lags kyi ngo sprod 'dus pa. Given at a scholars' conference in Kye long (July 1986); 7) Mention made by Khunu Rinpoche to Ngodup Gasha at breaks in teaching.

1 In the following excerpt from one of Khunu Rinpoche's alphabet teaching poems, the underlined words in the English translation correspond to the beginning of a new line in the Tibetan version, where the first letter of each word is a successive letter in the Tibetan alphabet. This section teaches from the ninth letter "ta" to the sixteenth letter "rna" of the Tibetan alphabet:

''Taking refuge from the bottom of ~y heart in the tathiigatas [out oflove for]living beings who, relative to ordinary appearance (tha mal snang), seem as my aged mother, [I make the decision that] from today on (da nas) girding on the armor of great compassion for them, which I will never take off, I will cause to arise that bodhicitta that will liberate them from the sicknesses (na), old age, death and so on that they will suffer-a bodhicitta that is just like the brilliantly white god/planet SJWa (pa ba sangs); and the limll!m (pha mtha) spiritual practices of the bodhisattvas I shall weave like a spider web (ba rgya), without concern for body or even life, I shall practice as a great vehicle (ma ha ya na) free from attachment. •

l Ngodup Gasha lisrs the following editions of The jewel Lamp: x) Published when raught by Khunu Rinpoche in Sarnath to a large group, no date; 2) Published by the Dalai Lama's

Notes 147

sisterTsering Dolma in 1966; 3) Published on behalf ofBhagti A. S. Ranga when he was very

young; 4) Published by A.S. Ranga pa Hu kum sen and Lid pa Tsewang Norbu, joint spon

sors of an edition dated 1985 (wood-ox female) on the occasion of a Kalacakra initiation in

Bodh Gaya; 5) Ngodup Gasha's Hindi translation, no date. I have not been able to locate

the first, undated edition in this list, or any edition published prior to 1966.

• The Sanskrit word bodhisattva has many meanings. Sometimes, the word specifically refers

to Siddhartha (the Buddha-to-be) after his great renunciation. In other cases, it refers to any

being (sattva} who is "intent on" the state of enlightenment (bodhi}. The word bodhi comes

from the Sanskrit root, budh, ("to wake up" and "to blossom"), which also gives us the word

buddha. An enlightened being is buddha ("awakened") because he has cut the continuum of

ignorance, like a being who has awakened from sleep. And an enlightened being is buddha

("opened") because perfect knowledge has destroyed the state of being tightly squeezed shut

and has opened awareness to what is to be known, like the petals of a fully blossomed lotus.

s P~rftct Wisdom in Eight Thousand Lin~s, trans. Edward Conze, (Devon: Buddhist

Publishing Group, 1983), p. 84.

Notes ftom VI!Tses

1 The "threefold analysis" is the analysis of a doctrine to make sure 1) that it is not contra

dicted through direct perception; 2) that it is not contradicted through inferential reason

ing; and 3) that it is internally consistent.

2 The eight special attributes of the Buddha according to the Ratnagotravibhiiga are 1) ful

fillment of one's own purpose by being 2) unmade, 3) totally spontaneous and non-moti

vated, and 4) in a state words and ideas are not equal to; and 5) fulfillment of others' pur

poses by having 6) wisdom, 7) compassion, and 8) ability.

3 The eight special attributes of the Dharma according to the Ratnagotravibhiiga are I)

being a true cessation and hence 2) inconceivable, 3) non-dual, and 4) without concep

tions; and 5) being a true path and hence 6) pure, 7) illuminating, and 8) an antidote.

4 The eight special realization and freedom attributes of the Sangha according to the

Ratnagotravibhiiga are r) having realization and hence 2) knowing how things are, 3)

knowing what there is, and 4) having inner knowledge; and 5) freedom from 6) defile

ments, 7) impediments to meditative absorption, and 8) a lesser path.

5 The goddess Sarasvati is said to reside in the throats of poers, like a Muse.

6 The "knowledge of all modes of meditation" (tib. rnam pa thams cad mkhyen pa; Skt

sarviikiirajfzattt} is the omniscience, or knowledge of the one hundred and sevenry-three

aspects of the path, of a fully awakened buddha mentioned in the Perftct Wisdom siitras.


7 The "form-body" is the body or collection of forms of a buddha that are accessible to liv

ing beings who have the good fortune to perceive them.

8 The "Vietor" is the Buddha; the "children" are bodhisattvas.

9 The parijataka tree is one of five heavenly, wish-fulfilling trees.

10 The white water lily (Skt. kumuda) is said to open only at night, by the light of the

moon. The sun's rays cause it to close.

11 The term "non-abiding nirva~a" indicates that a fully awakened buddha is utterly free

from S3J11Sira, yet due to compassion has nor entered into a more restricted form of

nitv~a that precludes continued activiry within the world.

12 Ketaka is a semi-precious stone said to keep Lake Baikal, in Buriatia, ever clear.

13 "Surpassing intention" refers to the feeling of personal responsibiliry to bring all living

beings ro the stage of buddhahood.

14 "High status" is birth as a god or human.

1' "The highest good" is liberation or buddhahood.

16 The "two chains" may refer either to karma and kkia, or alternatively to the two

obstructions, k/eitivara!lfl and jeytivara~

17 A "cakravartin emperor" rules the universe.

18 The "four opponent powers" are 1) a personal ethical standard; 2) regret due to having

slipped from that standard; 3) resolve ro keep the standard in the future; and 4) a religious

act ro specifically counteract the fall.

19 The translation of this verse remains conjecture; it may refer to the subdivision of

bodhisarrvas in terms of rhe ten bodhisattva levels. See also verse 321.

20 The present Dalai Lama explains that the production of the thought is bodhicitta itself,

while the six perfections, tantra, and the various meditative states are its result.

21 The term "paradise" here refers to a buddha-field, a pure land that a bodhisattva culti

vates and makes manifest through the power of his or her vows. This pure land then

becomes a place where other wandering living beings can take rebirth and practice, facili

tating their progress on their path to enlightenment.

22 A cakravartin emperor possesses seven precious items that must always accompany him

Notu 149

wherever he goes: a wheel, a jewel, a queen, a minister, an elephant, a horse, and a general.

23 The "three sufferings" are actual suffering, states that turn into suffering, and life as a

process of decay.

24 The "seven-limbed practice" consists of prostrations, offerings, confession, rejoicing in

good, requesting teachings, requesting the teacher not to die, and dedication of merit.

25 For the meaning of "high status" and "highest good" see notes 18 and 19.

26 A bodhisattva with king-like bodhicitta first attains enlightenment and then helps others

to do so. A bodhisattva with ferryman-like bodhicitta attains enlightenment at the same

time as others; and a bodhisattva with shepherd-like bodhicitta is the last to gain enlight

enment, after all other beings have got there ·first.

27 Some praryekabuddhas, called "group-worker" (Tib. tshog.r spyod; Skt. vargaciirin) accu

mulate merit until the path of seeing; others, called "rhinoceros" (Tib. s~ ru; Skt. khadga) accumulate merit until the path of preparation.

28 The Ornammt is the Abhisamayiila1f1kiira by Ajita Maitreya.

29 In the 1959 diary, the last line of this verse (recorded on June 3rd) is "The ultimate is

emptiness free from elaboration."

30 In the 1959 diary, the first line of this verse (recorded on June 6th) reads, "Amongst

happinesses, the end of craving is the [true] happiness."

31 The "channels, winds, and drops" are the components of the subtle body that one medi

tates on and learns to manipulate during tantric meditation practice.

32 The "view of the perishable aggregates" (Tib. Jig tshog.r Ia Ita ba; Skt. satkayad.T'!fl) is the

wrong view that sees a permanent, single self in what changes moment by moment and is

a collection.

33 The five skandhas or "heaps" are the one physical and four mental aggregates that define

the person as devoid of self.

34 The "trichiliocosm" (tib. stong g.rum; Skt. trisahasra) is comprised of a thousand times a

thousand times a thousand universes the size of our own.

35 The "three baskets" are the Siitra, Vinaya, and Abhidharma collections of texts in the

Buddhist canon.

36 The "five [non-Buddhist] schools of philosophy" are the Sarpkhya, Lokayatana,

150 VAST AS THJ! HEAVENS

Vaise~ika, Nyaya, and Jaina schools. Or, alternatively, they are the Sa111khya, Yoga, Nyaya,

Vais~ika, and Mima111sa schools.

37 The "path of no more learning" is the final stage on the path to enlightenment.

38 Samantabhadra is the bodhisattva whose aspirations are recorded at the end of the last

book of the Avatarruaka Siitra, called the Garztf.avyiiha Sutra.

39 The present Dalai Lama usually uses a ritual composed by Atisa based on the

Bodhisattvabhiimi.

40 Literally, "that which aids liberation" or "that which is in accord with liberation" (Tib.

thar pa cha mthun; Skt. mok,abhiigiya), this refers to the beginning of the Buddhist path,

the path of accumulation.

41 See previous note.

42 Literally, "with compassion in the shape of a deer as its marking." In Indian poetics, the

moon is often referred to as "marked with a deer," since poets felt that the moon's mark

ings had the shape of a deer.

43 The "ability to live without food" or, literally, "getting the essence" (Tib. bcud len; Skt.

rasiiyana), is a yogic practice whereby one abandons eating food and instead survives on a

small dosage of a special elixir, which is sometimes taken in the form of tiny pills.

44 The "messenger of spring" is the cuckoo.

Notes 151

Vast as the Heavens, Deep as the Sea: Verses in Praise of Bodhicitta

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