Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment by Lama Atisha

Commentary by Geshe Tenzin Zopa - 26 & 27 Nov 2010

Introduction

In order for us to get the blessing of realisations and continue to receive teachings on the Path, it requires the teacher who provides the commentary as well as the listener to have the altruistic motivation.

As stated in the Lines of Experience by Lama Tsongkhapa,
“Although there is much merit to be gained from reciting the text by Lama Atisha, which includes the essential points of all scriptures, you are certain to gain great waves of merit from studying the sacred Dharma which contains the profound Graduated Path to Enlightenment , therefore you should consider this point carefully”.

Whether this discourse will bring benefit and blessing or not, is dependent on one’s motivation. How does one set the altruistic motivation? It is establishing the state of mind, generating an expression of the thought which holds that

“May the study and receiving of these teachings and gaining realisations on the Path, just like Lama Atisha and ultimately attaining full enlightenment, be solely for the benefit of sentient beings. For this purpose, I must attain full enlightenment. To achieve this, I must gain the unmistaken understanding of the Path. Therefore I must listen attentively to the teaching and may I cultivate it to the point of my actualising it”.

In the tradition of the Buddha and the Nalanda tradition, for the full benefit to arise from this discourse requires 3 factors –

(1) ensuring that the teachings being given are pure
(2) ensuring that the teacher giving the teachings is pure
(3) ensuring the students receiving the teachings are pure.

Otherwise, although we may gain knowledge at an intellectual level, it may not become a blessing to one’s mind unless the 3 factors are present.

As for (1) ensuring that the teachings being given are pure, the Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment by Lama Atisha is derived from the lineage of Maitreya Buddha and his text titled “Ornament of Clear Realisations”, which is turn is based on the Prajnaparamita Sutra.

As for (2) The teacher – here, the teacher is Lama Atisha himself who came into this world in 982 AD after the Buddha’s passing and was born as a prince of a Bengali King, who from a young age had the inborn, great altruistic attitude and the clear wisdom understanding both the conventional and ultimate truths.

Later, even though he had the full opportunity to rule his kingdom but due to his past karmic imprints from the profound cultivation of Dharma, he was inspired to renounce at an early age and enter into Nalanda University.

He studied from great masters such as Dharmaraksita, Lama Serlingpa and his Gurus totalled 557 masters in all.

He obtained the entire, unbroken lineage of the Buddhadharma through his direct communication with Buddha Maitreya and Tara.

Bearing great hardship to receive and actualise the lineage of bodhicitta, including the Bodhisattva vows, from his master Lama Serlingpa, he accomplished this.

Lama Atisha was the crown jewel of Nalanda University and was the one chosen by Tibetan King Yeshe Oe, after thorough investigation, to be invited to Tibet to restore the Buddhadharma which had declined.

The rule of King Langdharma had destroyed the Dharma in Tibet. At that time in Tibet, there was the mistaken view that Sutrayana and Tantrayana were contradictory.

King Yeshe Oe wanted to personally invite Lama Atisha to Tibet but himself caught by a warlord, imprisoned and later executed. However, before this happened, King Yeshe Oe managed to instruct this nephew Jangchup Oe to journey to India with great offerings of gold to invite Lama Atisha to Tibet to teach the Dharma.

The gold offerings was the symbol of the preciousness of the Golden Dharma and Lama Atisha was invited to restore the Golden Buddhadharma in Tibet (not that the Lama required gold!).

Lama Atisha agreed and stayed in Tibet for 17 years. He travelled extensively, giving discourses on sutra and tantra.

At that time there was the wrong view that tantra was not part of the Mahayana teachings. Lama Atisha dispelled this view. Arising from this, Lama Atisha concluded that it would be highly beneficial to reveal the entire Buddhadharma in a discourse outlining the Path in graduated stages, thereby giving rise to the Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment (the first of the Lam Rim texts;

Lam Rim meaning “Graduated Path to Enlightenment”). So that is a short account of Lama Atisha, the teacher who is providing these instructions.

As for the discourse right this moment, the person conducting the talk is also required to be pure. We all know that I am not pure in realisations but despite my lack of wisdom and merit, through the blessings of having received these teachings from my Gurus HH Dalai Lama, Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche, the late Geshe Lama Konchog, Denma Lochoe Rinpoche – who are enlightened beings, whether I know how to explain or not, whether you hear fully or not, whether you feel bored or not, those masters attained realisations and I am the bridge for you to those great ones and their blessings.

As for (3) the listener of the teachings must be pure.

This means that the listener needs to be single-minded devotion to Buddha, Dharma and Sangha; be inspired to the Bodhisattva path and be free from damaged samayas through abiding by the advice of Gurus HH Dalai Lama and Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s advice.

If one practices the forbidden protector Shugden, that would damage one’s samaya and thus disenable one from receiving the blessings of these teachings. As most of you here are devoted to Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche, you are qualified to receive these teachings.

Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment – Jangchup Lam Gyi Dronme.

Jangchup = enlightenment.

Jang = Buddha’s qualities in having overcome all the obstructions, negativities and limitations;

chup = connotes Buddha’s perfect knowledge and wisdom.

These teachings are like a lamp which enables one to see the entire stages of the Path, requiring the 3 aspects (a) the student to have a clear understanding of the Path (b) the students should have the complete points and practices of the Path (c) the practitioner should engage in the practice in the correct sequence.
The Actual Text






Verse 1


I pay homage with great respect
To all the Victorious Ones of the three times
To their teaching and to those who aspire to virtue
Urge by the good disciple Jangchup Oe
I shall illimunate the lamp for the path to enlightenment

Homage to the Youthful Manjushri. Before Atisha composed the text, in order to clear obstacles to doing so, he pays homage to the Victorious Ones of the past present and future, the Triple Gem, his teachers from whom he received all the instructions and also to disciple Jangchup Oe, who sincerely requested the teachings.

In the verse, Lama Atisha promises to reveal the entire stages of the Path to Enlightenment.

This text is divided into 4 divisions, beginning with instructions for beings of different-capabilities by giving the method and wisdom teachings and concludes with the ultimate resultant aspect of the Path by introducing tantra.


In order to actualise the teachings on the stages of the Path, it requires a great deal of merit and purification, as well as the undertaking of the preparatory practices.


Verse 2


Understand there are three kinds of persons
Because of their small, middling and supreme capabilities
I shall write clearly distinguishing
Their individual characteristics

Understand that there are 3 kinds of persons of varying capability i.e. small capability, middle capability and great capability.

When we study this text of Lamp on the Path, it will be noticed that there is a difference between this and other Lam Rim texts.

Here, the teachings are expressed in a plain and direct way.

Lama Atisha here outlines what he intends to teach, namely the paths of the 3 capability beings i.e. the small, middle and courageous supreme mental-capability beings and he will set out their distinguishing characteristics.


Verse 3

Know that those who by whatever means
Seek for themselves no more
Than the pleasures of cyclic existence
Are persons of the least capability.

This verse covers the small capability being. Who is a small capability being? Someone who whilst acknowledging a future life, seeks samsaric happiness, is attached to contaminated happiness, attached to sensual pleasures and hoping that one’s next life will have such worldly happiness and wishes to avoid the lower realm.

Quite often, although outwardly one may claim to be a Mahayana practitioner and motivate towards liberation and enlightenment, our actual thinking and actions are those of the small capability being!

All 3 capability beings have their respective 3 principle aspects of the path.

For the small capability being, renunciation takes the form of renouncing rebirth in 3 lower realms and aspiring for higher rebirth; the path is that of Refuge, abstaining from negative actions and practising virtue in order to obtain higher rebirth or birth in wealthy family; the goal here is just to gain higher rebirth.

To determine what capability being we really are, we need to check motivation for practice and the manner of renunciation.


Verse 4

Those who seek peace for themselves alone,
Turning away from worldly pleasures
And avoiding destructive actions
Are said to be of middling capability

The definition of the middle capability being is someone who aspires for peace for himself alone.

Here one sees the intermediate renunciation i.e. renouncing the lower realms, renouncing higher rebirth (as that too has sufferings) i.e. renounce 6 realm/samsaric existence and to actualise the peace of nirvana for oneself only.

For such a person, the path is the 3 higher trainings of morality, concentration and wisdom and abiding by the teachings of the 4 Noble Truths and karma; the goal is to obtain liberation/nirvana.


Verse 5

Those who, through their personal suffering
Truly want to end completely
All the suffering of others
Are persons of supreme capacity.

The definition of the great capability being is someone who wants to end suffering of self and all beings.

When one has understood how karma operates and sees that all beings are the same by being completely dominated by delusion & karma and wishes all beings and oneself to be free from these, one is a Mahayanic practitioner.

The renunciation here is the great renunciation ie. renouncing samsaric existence and the causes for such an existence, in oneself and all beings; the path is bodhicitta and altruistic wisdom and the goal is full enlightenment.


Verse 6

For those excellent living beings
Who desire supreme enlightenment,
I shall explain the perfect methods
Taught by the spiritual teachers.

After introducing the 3 types of beings, Atisha states that he will explain the stages of practice for those who aspire to supreme enlightenment.


Verse 7

Facing paintings, statues and so forth
Of the completely enlightened one
Reliquaries and the excellent teaching
Offer flowers, incense – whatever you have

This verse explains the 6 preparatory practices –

(1) Cleaning the room where one is going to practice, as well as clean one’s mind i.e. rid oneself of deluded thoughts and unclear motivation in engaging in practice.

Even if your altar is very clean, one should still go through the motions of cleaning reciting “dul pang, timapang “ (which means that whilst one is outwardly cleaning dirt, internally one is cleaning one’s delusions)

(2) Arrange the holy objects like the Buddha statue, the Dharma text and the stupa. Know about their significance and reason for the placements of the holy objects.

If we do not have the physical holy objects, one can visualise and arrange them in one’s heart and remind oneself of one’s pure Buddha nature that is temporarily obscured by the clouds of delusion and negative karma.

Similarly, arrange the offerings to the Triple Gem beautifully.

Understanding that all things are merely-labelled, one mentally offers vast offerings with such an understanding of emptiness and this will bring about an immense amount of merit.

(3) Sitting in the right meditation posture – there is no need to force your body. Sit in a manner which will minimise distraction to your meditation and your generation of the altruistic mind which is determined to achieve enlightenment in order to be able to enlighten all sentient beings.

(4) Visualise the merit field – if you have a picture of the merit field, view the picture and have the conviction that all those Buddhas and masters there are personally present with you. Alternatively, visualise in your heart the presence of the Buddha, Dharma and Sangha.

(5) Offering the practice of the 7-Limb prayer (see V8 of this text).

(6) Supplication to the Buddhas to remain with oneself until one achieves enlightenment in order to guide and to remind oneself of Dharma, to remind oneself of the right antidotes to apply when delusions arise.


Verse 8

With the seven part offering
From the [Prayer of] Noble Conduct
With the thought never to turn back
Till you gain ultimate enlightenment.

This refers to the 7 limb practice (which is the 5th of the preparatory practices).

The 7 limbs are –

(1) prostration - this is a great purification practice. Conventionally, it is very good for physical exercise too.

I did 3 month retreat on prostrations and became very thin despite eating a lot. Same thing with fat monks, they too lost weight at the end of 3 months.

(2) Making actual and mental offerings. This creates a vast amount of merits and yet we often forget to do this. We do not need to rely on physical possessions as offerings. If we see anything of beauty, we can mentally offer that as offerings to the Triple Gem;

if we see ordinary things, we can mentally transform them into wish-fulfilling jewels and offer those.

(3) Confession – even if we have completed 110,000 Vajrasattva mantras, that will still not be enough to purify all our accumulated negativities.

We need to continuously engage in confession and having done the confession, we have to have the conviction that we have completely purified negativities.

However, at the end of each session of confession, we need to generate this same conviction.

(4) Rejoice – if you see someone with a nice car or a big house or a great project, feel happy for them and not have a sour feeling in the heart.

Conventionally, that will create causes for us to have such good things too and ultimately, we accumulate great merit to gain enlightenment.

(5) Request the Gurus and Buddha to remain – this is an incredible method to accumulate merit. When you participate in Guru Puja and in Long Life Guru Puja and sincerely request the Buddhas and Gurus to remain, it has the effect of preserving one’s long life.

(6) Requesting to Turn the Wheel of Dharma – this will powerfully create the cause for each teaching of Dharma you encounter to strike at your ego and negativities.

Whether one meets one’s Guru often or not, one should make daily supplication for the Guru, Buddhas and Bodhisattva to turn the wheel of Dharma.

This will create the cause for one to have the enthusiasm to learn and practice Dharma. Right now, when we go to a party, we feel no body ache but when we come to class, our body aches (laughter).

(7) Dedication – whatever act of virtue – whether it a big or small act, remember to dedicate it towards the enlightenment of oneself and all living beings, so that our action will become a cause for enlightenment and not just to fulfil worldly aims.

By dedicating with bodhicitta, even worldly goals will be achieved easily.


Verse 9

And with strong faith in the Three Jewels,
Kneeling with one knee on the ground
And your hands pressed together,
First of all take refuge three times

This verse teaches one to take Refuge properly and in order to reinforce the protection of Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, one should repeatedly take Refuge.


Verse 10

Next, beginning with an attitude of love for all living creatures
Consider beings, excluding none
Suffering in the three bad rebirths
Suffering birth, death and so forth.

Generate an attitude of unconditional love towards all living beings as one has seen sufferings including that of birth, aging sickness.


Verse 11

Then, since you want to free these beings
From the suffering of pain,
From suffering and the causes of suffering
Arouse immutably the resolve to attain enlightenment

Having seen and understood the sufferings of sentient beings and the causes of sufferings (karma and delusions and how they arise), one should then cultivate compassion by wishing all beings to be free from suffering and causes of suffering and attain peerless happiness.

For this, one should learn how to eliminate sufferings and the causes of suffering.


Verse 12

The qualities of developing
Such an aspiration are
Fully explained by
Maitreya in the Array of Trunks Sutra.

Lama Atisha introduces the following verses which express the qualities and benefits of developing bodhicitta .

Verse 13

Having learned about the infinite benefits
Of the intention to gain full enlightenment
By reading this sutra or listening to a teacher
Arouse it repeatedly to make it steadfast.

One should learn about Maitreya’s teachings in the Array of Trunks Sutra and reflect on your teachers’ instructions and teachings, as well as their life stories and those of the great pandits and Bodhisattvas, so that one’s bodhicitta mind will be steadfast.

Verse 14

The Sutra Requested by Virudatta
Fully explains the merit therein
At this point, in summary
I will cite just three verses.


The Sutra requested by Viradatta explains the merit of the altruistic intention/bodhicitta .

Verse 15

If it possessed physical form,
The merit of the altruistic intention
Would completely fill the whole of space
And exceed even that.

If the merit arising from bodhicitta were in solid form, it would exceed the space of the universe.


Verse 16

If someone were to fill with jewels
As many Buddha fields as there are grains
Of sand in the Ganges
To offer to the Protector of the World.

If someone were to fill the entire universe with jewels, that merit would not come close to the merit created by bodhicitta.


Verse 17

This would be surpassed by
The gift of folding one’s hands
And inclining one’s mind to enlightenment
For such is limitless.


The generation of bodhicitta is the greatest offering to the Buddhas and sentient beings and is an unsurpassed offering of limitless benefit.


Verse 18

Having developed the aspiration for enlightenment
Constantly enhance it thorugh concerted effort
To remember it in this and also in other lives
Keep the precepts properly as explained.


Verse 19
Without the vow of the engaged intention
Perfect aspiration will not grow
Make effort definitely to take it
Since you want the wish for enlightenment to grow.

These two verses speak of two types of bodhicitta = relative and absolute bodhicitta.

Within the category of relative bodhicitta, there is aspiring and engaging bodhicitta.

Aspiring bodhicitta means wishing to attain bodhicitta;

engaging bodhicitta is actually taking and implementing the Bodhisattva vows and 6 Perfection practices.

Without embarking upon engaging bodhicitta, one cannot attain bodhicitta (and finally enlightenment).

Re-setting the motivation for studying the Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment

Refresh one’s bodhicitta motivation and know with joy that one has accumulated merits in the past because without such merit, there would not be the karma nor opportunity to hear this golden Dharma teaching nor relate our lives to it;

there will not be any possibility for one to actualise realisation on the stages of the path to enlightenment and eliminate samsaric rebirth.


Therefore, there are hundreds of reasons to feel extremely happy and fortunate to have this opportunity to study this teach and not be interrupted by any inner, outer and secret obstacles to our placing this golden Dharma into one’s mindstream.

Think that due to oneself having the proper lineage and blessing of the complete path of this golden Dharma, from this day onwards, whatever virtue we practice, whether giving one grain of food to an animal or speaking a single word of Dharma to those struggling in darkness, may that be the complete cause of enlightenment.

May one live life in the most meaningful way.

We are so fortunate that not only are we Gelug practitioners but we should also rejoice that other Tibetan Buddhist traditions are also following the Nalanda tradition and Lama Atisha’s Lamp for the Path.

Whatever Lojong and Lam Rim teachings we receive, even if we have receive these from other Tibetan Buddhist traditions, it all flows from the kindness of Lama Atisha’s Lamp for the Path.

We should regard Lama Atisha as our root guru who is inseparable from the Gurus that one has received the precious Dharma from.

Whenever we meditate on the deities, make sure we remember Lama Atisha – this will make it possible for us to actualise the teachings & practices due to his blessings made from his great prayers and efforts to teach the entire Path.

In this way, even if death occurs at any moment, we would not have wasted our lives as we have put effort to study these teachings.

We should also meditate on the kindness and compassion of HH Dalai Lama, Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche, the late Geshe Lama Konchog and their gurus like Kyabje Trijang Rinpoche, Kyabje Ling Rinpoche, Dagri Dorje Chang.

There was a time where it was very difficult to obtain teachings from this tradition but through the efforts of HH Dalai Lama, the teachings from our lineage Gurus and yogis were not lost but preserved.

It has been a critical time as we almost lost this lineage of learning.

So there are numerous reasons for us to be inspired to learn this teaching well.

Although one may have studied many other texts and commentaries, this text by Lama Atisha “ Lamp for the Path “ carries a very special blessing.

This text is divided into 3 broad stages = preliminary, the main body/causal stage practice of bodhicitta and the resultant stage of the path (tantra).



To Be Continue..