Dear friends near and far,

As always, I hope this message finds you well, healthy and happy. On today’s Guru Rinpoche day, I wish to come back to the famous opening verse of the Omniscient Gampopa’s Jewel Ornament of Liberation (Dakpo Targyen):

The cause is Buddha-nature,
The support is the precious human body,
The condition is the spiritual guide,
And the method is their instruction.
The result is complete Buddhahood,
And unobstructed, spontaneous awakened activity.

The first line of this verse is a quintessential point, and the main topic of the entire treatise of The Supreme Continuum (Skt. Uttaratantra Shastra; Tib. Gyü Lama). This profound treatise is condensed within the following verse, which explains the cause of awakening, Buddha-nature:

Because the perfect form of the Buddha pervades all,
Because there are no distinctions within suchness,
And because all beings have a disposition,
All beings always possess the essence of awakening.

There are three key points to understand here. The first is that all phenomena—and this includes all beings’ body, speech, and mind—are pervaded by emptiness. Thus, emptiness is the nature of all phenomena. But emptiness is also the essence of the buddhas, their ‘perfect form,’ or dharmakaya. It is perfect because it possesses all good qualities, never lacking in any way. This perfect form, dharmakaya or emptiness, radiates and pervades throughout all phenomena, such that it is the nature of all beings. 

The second key point is that since emptiness pervades all beings equally, as well as all buddhas, there is no distinction whatsoever within the dharmakaya. Emptiness, or the dharmakaya, knows no distinctions, no differences, no good or bad. Thus, “there are no distinctions within suchness.” 

This signifies that all beings have buddha nature—their nature is identical to that of the perfect buddhas. This means that we can never be separated from Buddha-nature, nor be joined with it. Virtuous actions do not bring us closer to the true nature, nor do unvirtuous ones bring us further. Buddha-nature can neither be developed nor diminished, neither improved nor degraded. This is an essential point to keep in mind. 

The third and final point is that all beings have their own dispositions, which depend on the conditions with which they meet. Those who meet with negative conditions, do not know good from evil, cannot tell between compassion and anger, are shameless, lack mindfulness, and have strong emotions—for those it is difficult to find the path to awakening. Then there are those who are disposed to be listeners: they find spiritual guides who teach them the way to liberation from the three realms of cyclic existence. There are those disposed to be bodhisattvas, who meet with a spiritual teacher and develop bodhichitta in their mindstreams. There are those disposed to practice the Secret Mantra, who receive teachings that can lead to Buddhahood within a single lifetime. These dispositions all depend on one’s character, one’s habits, and the conditions that one meets with, all of which lead to their own results. These broad types have each been given a name, and every being belongs to one of these types of dispositions, depending on their capacity. 

Thus, though all beings have the cause of Buddhahood within their being, since they are pervaded by Buddha-nature, it is also important that they meet with the right conditions for this seed to bear fruits. Therefore, we should all create the right conditions for our path by cultivating compassion, gathering the accumulations, practicing generosity and so forth, and making dedications and aspirations. In the beginning, everything should be motivated by bodhichitta, or at least compassion. In the middle, we should strive to gather merit and wisdom and purify the obscurations. In the end, we should always make dedications and aspirations. In this way, we can create all the right conditions for our transformation.

In short, this Guru Rinpoche day, I wish to remind you all that the cause of awakening is present within each and every being. Therefore, it is entirely within our capacity to reach Buddhahood. We should never forget this, and grow confident in our ability to fully awaken. 

With all my love and prayers,

Sarva Mangalam.

Phakchok Rinpoche

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