Extracted from the website of Association Bouddhiste Vajrayana en France and translated (準 備) into English:
Be Prepared
Rinpoche first discoursed on 27th March, 1994
Rinpoche repeated it in the Vajrayana Association (France) in October, 1994
Senior Lai in France repeated it again on behalf of Rinpoche on 31st March, 2002 (after about eight years)
Uploaded to the Website on 8th September, 2014 (and then after about twelve years again)
| Introduction | ||
| Buddhist Yogi C. M. Chen, a Tantric predecessor in modern times, has ever made a saying which sounds excellent, “Spending impermanent money to buy the land of renunciation which should be walled with Vinaya-observance. After being sown the seed of Bodhicitta, it is irrigated with the water of compassion and richly manured by meditation. With the blooming of the wisdom flower, it is then followed by the ripening of the fruit of Buddhahood.” Hence, one can see that renunciation is of the first most importance in the practice of cultivation. | ||
| Content | ||
| 1. | － | Our parents, who have given birth to us, have enabled us to possess our physical bodies. The greatest as well as the best way to express our gratitude is ‘to be enlightened in the present life’. Nothing can be better than this. To ensure achievements with the present body, cultivating Tantric Buddhism is an essential. In addition, achievements in all aspects (of Tantric Buddhism) including ‘external doctrines, internal doctrines, Esoteric Dharma and Confidential Esoteric methods’ are also necessary. |
| － | If one merely requests to be born in the Pure Land of Ultimate Bliss in the future life, one can simply concentrate one’s attention on chanting the Holy name of the Buddha or reciting Tantric mantras wholeheartedly. Why bother cultivating the most excellent precious Tantric Doctrines? If one is destined to learn Tantric Buddhism but is unable to have any achievements with the present body (or to be enlightened in the present life), it is just like returning from a treasure mountain empty-handed (meaning: one is supposed to make great gains, but fail to). Just think of every single achiever who was enlightened in one’s present deed in the past dynasties since ancient times, all of them did abandon and cut off everything they had so as to practice cultivation in renunciation, didn’t they? Examples are our Founder, Buddha Sakyamuni, Padmasambhava Patriarch, Milarepa Thera, Tsong-kha-pa Thera etc. as well as the various outstanding and distinguished Gurus in modern times that have already had their future lives (deceased). All of them had ever arisen the most courageous and powerful renunciation mind to practise cultivation boldly. | |
| － | Rinpoche says, “If one wants to be enlightened in one’s present life, renunciation is a must. Here, it refers to the renunciation of mind in which one is free from the trap of fame and wealth (because one is self-trapped without one’s awareness) so that one can concentrate on cultivation practice single-mindedly.” | |
| － | If we are just satisfied with the practice of external doctrines solely (be engaged in this and handling that) in this life, it is basically very difficult for us to advance to the actual cultivation of internal doctrines. It is too pitiful like this. Of course, when one does not even do any external doctrines, then not to mention practicing cultivation. | |
| － | One should avoid misunderstanding the word ‘renunciation’. ‘Renunciation’ does not mean you are asked to run away from home or you drop and pay no attention to everything but leave your encumbrance behind for someone else to shoulder instead. Neither does renunciation refer to become a Buddhist monk or nun. Its real meaning is to let your mind depart from worldly matters and put down all relationships. The only target for surviving on Earth is to practise cultivation. | |
| 2. | Lots of people do not think that they are ‘pursuing for fame and gain’ because they are so involved in the chase that they are unconscious of it (e.g. high-ranking officials hope to be the President, mistresses hope to be first wives, the seconds hope to become big brothers). Some people do not aware that they are fond of ‘power and position’ just because they do not realize it. Someone thinks that he does not need a girlfriend whereas his behaviour shows that he really needs one. Yet, he does not recognize it himself. All in all, everything is caused by the pull of karma as well as the result of ignorance. Even though our Guru has earnestly and maternally tried in every possible way to convince us with the numerous discourses made until his tongue as well as lips are parched and his voice is hoarse from weariness, sentient beings are still found to be hindered by ignorance which inexplicably causes them fall into the hands of the devil! As a result, when one said that one has made up one’s mind to start cultivating for perfect Enlightenment but has not yet possessed the mind of renunciation, how can this be regarded as a genuine heart-giving initiation for practicing cultivation !? | |
| 3. | － | Ordinary practitioners who have not yet discarded the worldly method, perhaps they should better be described as ‘cultivators’ who want to learn cultivation, or maybe they are modelling themselves on the manner and behaviour of a certain practitioner (for instance, there is someone who looks like a practitioner, I then imitate him; he drinks, so I drink; he practises cultivation once a day, I also practise cultivation once a day; he dates a girl and I do the same thing etc.) Most of such people have an impure perception in cultivation, so their resolution and determination are not large enough to make a bold, powerful, upright and outspoken decision in cultivation practice. They soon become slothful and indolent in practices or even stop doing so. They may also doubt if they have gone the wrong way which consequently makes them give up halfway. |
| － | Someone else has ever asked Rinpoche, “Guru, I hereby give you the Eight Characters (in four pairs, including the year, month, day and hour of a person’s birth) of my birth time. Can you please help me to arrange them in Tik Pan Sou (a kind of fortune-telling method) or Zi Wei Dou Sou (a kind of fortune-telling method)? Or would you please make an exception to tell my fortune by Miraculous Foresight (a kind of fortune-telling method) to see whether I’ve got the destiny of practising cultivation? If I really engage in cultivation, will I have any achievements?” Actually, it is a sea of complete nonsense to ask for all that. This is caused by not having right perception in cultivation. To practise cultivation, one has to have a heart-giving initiation, the Great Bodhicitta, a diligent mind, an impartial mind, a courageous and powerful mind… If the answer from Rinpoche is, “No.”, you can then use it as an excuse to say ‘unconcernedly’ that, “Rinpoche has said that I‘m neither destined to practise cultivation, nor fated to have any achievements. Hence, I don’t need to practise cultivation in this life.” If the answer from Rinpoche is, “Yes.”, you will then start practising cultivation and cultivate for perhaps a certain while. Maybe you can continue to practise for like three to five years which is already not bad! However, please do not forget that you start cultivation only by following Rinpoche’s instruction (it is certainly pretty good to follow the Guru’s words). As there is a lack of your own ‘heart-giving initiation’, the meritorious virtue you received will be limited. Moreover, it remains unknown whether you can keep on sustaining the practice for fifteen or twenty more years. Perhaps, you will return to ‘the road of retrogression’ by then or ‘getting cold feet’ by giving up yourself, abandoning or even betraying your Guru! In fact, Rinpoche hopes that you can awaken in this point by yourself (from the very beginning). |
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| － | Therefore, one has to arise with an unswerving mind of renunciation in the first place. The mind of renunciation that is produced occasionally due to factors like the emergence of a certain circumstance is not reliable. One has to do the practice over and over again and in case the mind of renunciation is arisen; one should fix it firmly so that there is no way to retreat. Secondly, one has to initiate heart-giving truly. It is only with these two foundations that one is considered to be on the threshold of Tantric Buddhism officially to start practising cultivation. | |
| 4. | － | When a practitioner is well-prepared, at the right timing and opportunity, his Guru will naturally manifest before him to start teaching him. ‘Well-prepared’ does not only refer to those who have already possessed the renunciation mind as well as a strong will to practise cultivation, but also people who can put down all self-centered concerns. If you are not yet ‘well-prepared’, you are in no position to complain that the Guru has not appeared to teach you or has not started to teach you yet. |
| － | Sometimes, a sufficiently well-prepared practitioner may have to travel far and wide to seek for a Master. Master can be found, it shows that your preparation has been abundant and thus enough good karma is accumulated to make it possible to meet the right Master. After having a Master, it still depends on one’s predestined fortune because the vessel (the retention of dharma) of each individual can be very different! | |
| － | Predestined relationship is of the first most importance in Buddhism while in Tantric Buddhism, genesis is even more important. A practitioner who is having ‘undivided renunciation’ may end up to be stranded in one’s meditation cell for one’s whole life since one has not yet accumulated enough meritorious conditions. If one meets such an obstacle in one’s cultivation, it must be something related to one’s karma and retribution in one’s previous existence. Examples (of this kind of practitioner) are frequently found in Buddhist Sutras. Hence, it is not surprising to find that Enlightenment can be something inaccessible for some practitioners. | |
| 5. | － | Someone has ever asked Rinpoche whether he could learn under Rinpoche and reach the state of ‘Anuttara (supreme)’ if he would like to practise cultivation. Rinpoche asked him some rhetorical questions in reply, “Have you completed The Four Initiation Practice? Have you fulfilled the requirements of ‘the first stage’? Is a foundation set for your Yidam Sadhana? Have you completed ‘the second stage’? Has there been any basis for your meditation ability? Have you accomplished your Yidam Sadhana?” If your answers to the series of questions are all “No.”, how can you expect that Rinpoche will enable you to have achievement in such case? You have not yet got yourself ‘ready’! |
| － | When you are really well-prepared with everything mentioned above and would like to cultivate ‘internal doctrines’, Rinpoche will, on the contrary, ask you the simplest question, “Is your ‘mind’ ready?” | |
| － | What is ‘mind’? It is something you have to realize, understand and experience yourself! If the Guru finds that you have already got everything above well-prepared, but only the ‘mind’ is not yet ready, he will then help you to get your mind ready by employing a variety of means/methods/doctrines/dharma to thoroughly temper it through severe training and hammering. | |
| Conclusion | ||
| － | In the ‘Root Verses’ of 《The Tibetan Book of the Dead: The Great Liberation in the Bardo》(the intermediate existence between death and reincarnation) written by Padmasambhava Patriarch, he says, “Clinging to the past laurels and work perfunctorily without thinking of the fact that death is approaching; Leading a void existence and die completely worthless by keeping on doing useless affairs that squander the precious time without scruple. In case if returned empty-handed eventually, it would be very pitiful! Seeing that the holy Dharma is something you really demand, why not devoting yourselves to it wholeheartedly?” He also says, “…following the coexistence and equality nature of Matter and Mind (or the material and immaterial) to manifest the Buddha nature so as to make sure that Trikaya (The Threefold Body of a Buddha: Dharma body, Retribution body, Response and transformation body) can be enlightened simultaneously. As long as a human body is obtained in this occasion, I do hope that I will no longer be dissipating any time.” | |
| － | If only a practitioner can realize that possessing a body human re-birth is rare, death is impermanent; meeting(engaging in) Buddha Dharma teachings is scarce whilst begging for Tantric Buddhism is even harder. Therefore, all these should be highly treasured especially the greatest Tantric Buddhism. Devotion into cultivation practice must never be enthusiasm of three-minute, three-year or thirteen-year… of which there is a certain limit nor should ‘cultivation practice’ be used as a gorgeous excuse to escape from fulfilling one’s responsibilities. In fact, one should be persistent as well as patient in practising cultivation so as to grasp the opportunity of attaining achievement in cultivation in this present life. | |
| － | Practitioners should ‘get everything ready’ as soon as possible because, “Esoteric Dharma is scarce to hear and now that one has heard; having a human body is scarce to obtain and now that one has obtained. One has already gone through thousands of kalpa and hundreds of rebirths (a very, very long time) to obtain the human body. If one has not yet determined to attain Enlightenment in this (precious) life, which future life can one still be relying on in order to be liberated?” Please always bear in mind that opportunity knocks but once! | |
| － | Rinpoche has been leading and guiding his disciples (us) tirelessly for more than thirty years with discourses that are both skillful in illustrating and apt in instructing. Condensing the very many doctrines into essence and key points, Rinpoche has put a lot of effort, time and energy to guide, instruct and teach us. However, how many of us can really know and learn the compassion with good intention of our Guru? At times, Rinpoche gives us discourses until his lips are broken and his voice becomes hoarse, just to let us understand the significance of ‘getting the body and mind well-prepared as well as starting the cultivation practice promptly’. | |
