The Art Of Meditation 

By Master Sheng-yen Lu
Translated and published by Lei Zang Si Singapore

This was translated from Grandmaster Lu's 45th book, 坐禪通明法.

CHAPTER 2 - Removal of Karmic Hindrance and the Four Preliminaries

After I have got the Divine Eye, as soon as a visitor comes, 1 can immediately see what his previous life is like. Often, many of these visitors are interested in Buddhism. Impelled by my spiritual books, they suddenly hit upon the ideas that they want to practice Buddhism and go to the Western Paradise. This is no doubt a good condition. However, I can see that some visitors' karmic hindrances are indeed serious. Some are reborn from pigs, some from monkeys, some from bears, the worst are reborn from hungry ghosts or hell beings. Though these people carry with them bad karma from their previous lifetime, I still accept them as my students. Both intelligent and dull students are taken in, and treated as equals.

Teaching these students, I began with first removing the karmic hindrances and asking them to practise the four preliminaries. The four preliminaries are in fact the foundation for any school in Tantrayana. All ancestral gurus had their students start with these four preparatory practices, because without them, people with grave karmic hindrances will meet with Devils' hindrances and go astray. It is quite dangerous. The four preparations should not be overlooked since they are meant to remove karmic hindrances and to lay a foundation for later cultivations.

The four preparatory practices will be discussed one by one:

I. The Fourfold Refuge In your practice every day, first of all, visualize the look of your guru; also visualize the character "Om"appearing on your head and emitting white light shining upon it, the character "Ah"appearing at the throat and emitting red light shining upon the throat area, and the character "Hum" appearing at the heart region and emitting blue light upon it.

Then recite : "Namo the Holy Red Crown Vajra Guru Lian Sheng" three times, with palms held together. Recite the Fourfold Refuge mantra: "Namo Guru bei, Namo Buddha ye, Namo Dharma ye, Namo Sangha ye." You can recite this as many times as you like.

At the same time, visualize your guru or the Triple Jewels transmitting five-colored light shining upon your body, your own negative karma being expelled from your body as black smoke.

Recite the Bodhicitta mantra three times: "From this point on, your student takes refuge in the Guru and the Three Jewels, right up unto Enlightenment, never to return. All good deeds, large or small, shall be retributed to all sentient beings, so that we attain Buddhahood quickly." For reinforcement, recite Master Padmasambhava's mantra: "Om-ah-hum, be-dza gu-ru, peh-ma, sih-dee, hum seh." (a thousand times)

For reinforcement, recite Bodhisattva Kuan Yin's Heart mantra: "Om, ma-nee pad-mee hum." (a thousand times)

For reinforcement, also recite the Green Tara mantra:

"Om da-le, du-da-le du-le, so ha " (a thousand times)

Verse of Transference of Merit:

"Reinforced by Master Lien-Shen, with the Triple Jewels' illuminosity to expel my karmic hindrance, all sentient beings and I attain Buddhahood together and go to the Western Land of Great Bliss."

Then prostrate and retire.

II. The Great Mandala Offering

To remove your karmic hindrances, you need to make offerings to your Root Guru, to the Triple Jewels, and to the vajra protectors. This must be done because making offerings has the effect of reinforcing your achievement. The Great Mandala Offering, in particular, will please the Heaven above, the Earth below, the Four Continents of Sumeru, the Sun and the Moon. It is extremely effective.

What you offer are some grains of rice. Use five grains of rice to represent the Eastern, the Southern, the Western, the Northern and the Central Mount Sumeru. First, put the five grains in the center of your palm, and form the Offering Mudra. Interlace your fingers (with hands back to back) so that the palms face upwards. Hook the index finger of the left hand over the middle finger of the right. Hook the index finger of the right hand over the middle finger of the left. Hook the thumb of the right hand over the little finger of the left. Hook the thumb of the left hand over the little finger of the right. Place your ring fingers vertically, back to back

Chant the Offering Mantra:

"Om, sa-er-wa. da-ta-ga-da. ee-da-mook, gu-ru la-na, man-cha-la, kan, nee-lee-ye,da-ye-mee."

Raise the Mudra up to touch your forehead, and release the mudra. Put the rice grains in the right hand, and form the mudra again to touch your forehead. Toss the rice grains to complete the procedure.

III. The Great Homage

The Great Homage is the prostration ceremony to worship the Buddha. We should know that a pious prostration before the Buddha is enough to expel karmic hindrances; one thought of respect and reverence to the Buddha is a good act. When all this is done with solemn rites, it is the Great Homage all cultivators must know.

Pay attention to how to hold your palms together. Use the Buddha Mudra for worshipping the Buddha. Join your palms together, fingers pointing up and brought together, but leaving a slight empty space between the palms.

In worshipping Bodhisattvas, use the Lotus Mudra---join your palms together with the fingers pointing up; then open the palms so that only the bases of the palms meet; the other fingers are spread out like an opened lotus.

In paying homage to the Vajra Protectors, use the Vajra Handclasp Mudra--Join your palms together, fingers pointing up. Spread out the fingers of each hand just enough to interlace the fingers, like a Vajra scepter.

So the palms are held in different ways in paying homage to different deities.

Visualization in paying homage to the Buddhas is also important. First, bring your palms to the crown of your head, visualizing white light entering your forehead. Then touch your throat chakra and visualize red light entering your throat. Touch your hear chakra, and visualize blue light entering your heart. Then, with some force, push your arms forward horizontally, and prostrate, touch the ground with your head and stand up. Form the mudras again and visualize as above, and then prostrate again. (editor's note: one prostation for each-Buddha, Bodhisattva, Vajra Protectors, using the respective mudras. End with Equanimity Mudra and a half bow) So much for the Great Homage.

IV. The Vajra-hearted Bodhisattva Method

This method has the most inconceivable power, which can expel the gravest negative karma since time immemorial and make your resolution to cultivate as strong as diamond. Success in following this method is tantamount to empowerment. Some masters specialized in the Vajra-hearted Bodhisattva Method, and attained fruition of Bodhisattva in a lifetime. This is the most important of the Four Preliminaries.

Join your palms together and recite:

"Namo Holy Red Crown Vajra Master Lian-shen." (three times)

Recite the Four-fold Refuge Mantra:

"Namo Guru bei, Namo Buddha ye, Namo Dharma ye, Namo Sangha ye."

Recite the verse for the Four Divine States of Mind (The Four Immeasurable Vows):

"May all sentient beings have full happiness and causes for happiness. My loving kindness for them is boundless. May all sentient beings leave their sufferings and causes of sufferings. My compassion for them is boundless. May all sentient beings enjoy eternal happiness without suffering. My sympathetic joy for them is boundless. May all sentient beings abandon love and hatred, and cherish equality. My equanimity for that is boundless.

Recite the mantra to develop the Bodhicitta: "Om, Bodhicitta, bie-dza, sa-ma-ya-, ah-hum."

Recite the Repentence Verse: "All the bad karma I have committed in the past are due to my greed, anger and ignorance. All that have been committed by my body, speech and mind, I now fully repent. Om, bie-dza, sa-ma-ya, su-dee-ya." Use the Great Compassion Mantra Water or the Vajra Nectar (Kundalini Mantra Water) to sprinkle all over the practice site.

Visualize the Dharma body of the Vajra-hearted Bodhisattva, dressed in white, with a five-Buddha crown, in layers of skirts, precious ornaments from head to toe, seated in a moon shaped eight-petal lotus blossom. The right hand, in the Fiery Mudra, holds a Vajra sceptre to the heart chakra, while the left, also in the Fiery Mudra, holds a vajra bell to the left leg. At the heart chakra, around the eight-petal lotus, the wheel of the hundred-syllable revolves. The mantra wheel radiates white light, entering the practitioner's whole body. His heart will then radiate strong white light, which disperses all negative karma and unwholesome thoughts.

Recite the Hundred-syllable Mantra: "Om, be-dza sah-do sa-ma-ya, ma-nu bah-la-ya, be-dza sah-do deh-lu-pah-deh-cha, zhe-jo mi bah-wa, soo-do ka-yu mi bah-wa, soo-poo-ka-yu mi bah-wa, an-nu-la-do mi bah-wa, sa-er-wa sid-di mi bu-la-ya-cha, sa-er-wa ka-er-ma soo-cha mi, ji-da-moo see-li-ren, gu-ru hum, ha ha ha ha hoh, bah-ga-wan, sa-er-wa da- ta-ga-ta, be-dze ma-mee mun-cha, be-ji ba-wa,ma-ha sa-ma-ya sah-do ah, hum, pei."

If you persist in practicing this method, the Vajra-hearted Bodhisattva will come and visit you, protect you and empower you to cleanse all your karmic hindrances, devils' hindrances and illnesses. Once free from negative karma, you feel fresh and relieved. The Bodhisattva enters you from your crown and merges with you. This is a sure path, leading to Buddhahood in this lifetime.

Source: http://www.padmakumara.org  

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