The Path of The Buddha – Manjushri and The Bodhisattva Ideal
The Path of The Buddha
Manjushri and The Bodhisattva Ideal
A Lecture by Elizabeth Clare Prophet on July 3, 1993 (FREEDOM 1993: “Healing the Earth”).
LECTURE TRANSCRIPT
I feel most fortunate, indeed, to have with me on the altar, the high altar behind me, a statue of Manjushri. So I will show him to you now. Most precious. (11-second applause) He wields a sword and he is profoundly centered in the wisdom of God.
Now I would like to give you a Tibetan Prayer to Manjushri. We acknowledge Manjushri as a great Bodhisattva and in some histories he is a great Buddha. And so when we bow to him, we bow to the Light within him.
I bow down to you, O Manjushri,
With the brilliance of your wisdom,
O compassionate one,
Illuminate the darkness enclosing my mind.
Enlighten my intelligence and wisdom
so that I may gain insight
Into Buddha’s words and the texts that explain them.”
Today, for the first time, we are blessed with a dictation from Manjushri. And so I would like to tell you about him to acquaint you with an old friend. In Buddhist teachings, Manjushri is the Bodhisattva of Wisdom. The Ascended Masters teach that Wisdom is wise dominion. Wise dominion of yourself, of your aura, of your entire being. Wise dominion of all affairs that are entrusted to you and of all individuals who come under your care.
Wisdom is the most esteemed virtue in Buddhism. The virtue of wisdom has been called the “Mother of all Buddhas” because only wisdom can totally liberate one from suffering, can totally liberate one from suffering. Not withstanding the teachings of Sanat Kumara that we heard yesterday, this is in fact truth. But without love and without allegiance to the will of God, wisdom itself cannot lead us alone.
Buddhists see Manjushri, then, as a herald of emancipation a “herald of emancipation.” He is also revered as the patron of arts and sciences, the master of eloquence, and the principal guardian and patron of astrologers. Buddhist writers traditionally invoke Manjushri’s assistance, and they often begin their books with verses or prayers in his honor.
Though Manjushri is often, referred to as a Bodhisattva, he is believed to have the enlightenment of a Buddha. I believe that is true. Some traditions say he became a perfectly enlightened Buddha many aeons ago in another universe.
As you may know, bodhisattva is a Sanskrit word, which means literally “a being of bodhi,” or “a being of enlightenment.” It is sometimes translated as “hero of enlightenment.”
A bodhisattva seeks enlightenment not for himself but on behalf of a suffering humanity. He cannot help them until he himself is enlightened. That is true of each one of you. Out of compassion, he vows to forego the attainment of nirvana until all beings are liberated.
The term bodhisattva can refer to those at many levels. In the simplest sense of the word, bodhisattva refers to a disciple. The day that you decide to enter the Path‑-to stand, face and deal with your karma‑-you become a bodhisattva. In my writings, I give bodhisattva, meaning a disciple, a lowercase b and one of great attainment with an uppercased B. So Bodhisattva with a capital B refers to an advanced disciple or initiate‑-one who is in the upper stages of the Bodhisattva Path, close to the attainment of Buddhahood.
Buddhahood would be defined by Lord Gautama Buddha, whose presence is manifest in this wonderful statue that is at the altar, by the balanced threefold flame. Now not everyone who has a balanced threefold flame is a Buddha, but I can assure you he is a candidate for entering all of the disciplines and initiations and taking the vows of the blessed Kuan Yin, the ten vows of the Bodhisattva.
So think about the threefold flame every day. Think about magnifying the Lord. Sing the song with the blessed Mother of Jesus Christ, “my soul doth magnify the Lord.” She rejoices that her Lord is in her. When you magnify the Lord and the Lord already is the incarnation of the balanced threefold flame, you don’t have to worry about which plume is higher or lower because you are calling for that perfected threefold flame to be superimposed over your own.
In the book Wisdom and Compassion: the Sacred Art of Tibet, Marilyn Rhie and Robert Thurman give us the following description of a bodhisattva: “A Bodhisattva is a person who lives by the spirit of enlightenment life after life, dedicated to becoming a Buddha for the sake of all beings.”
We discover, then, that why one does something is very, very important. It is axiomatic in the path of Buddhism and in the path of personal Christhood that we attain to these goals because we realize that we are empty handed. Our cups are not full. We have nothing really substantial to offer someone who comes to us who is in need and who is burdened, who has been tossed and tumbled or who has taken upon himself unlawfully burdens of karma that now he cannot bear.
So we have said to ourselves, “Look at me, I am still in my filthy rags. I still have nothing to offer. I cannot do something of everlasting value for anyone whom I meet. So, woe is me, I am miserable. I am miserable until this fount in my being of the Buddha can spring forth and I can truly give a cup of that precious oil of enlightenment and that precious of compassion to all whom I meet.”
Until you can do that, you know how empty you feel. You know how helpless you feel when someone comes to you and you feel that there is nothing you can do and then you say, “Nothing else is worth it. I will let go of all these filthy rags and preopcupations “preopcupations” said. and I will enter in to that path where swiftly and day by day, if I have not the attainment, then my Lord Gautama, my Lord Manjushri, my Lord Maitreya, they shall act through me until my poor impoverished self may come into some sense of co-measurement with their ideal.”
So think about this and think to yourself, What is the greatest joy I can have in all of this world? It is to give something so precious of God to someone that they will be turned around and never be the same again and no longer mourn because they are the poor in spirit, for now they will have the riches of the Spirit because I decided what my life will be.
For the sake of all beings we go through pain. We don’t go through pain for ourselves. We go through pain because we know on the other side of it is that balance of love that is bliss and that’s what we want to have, a fresh rose in the hand to tender to the heart of one who comes to us.
“Sometimes even after reaching that goal, a Buddha will emanate incarnations into the world as Bodhisattvas in order to get nearer to sentient beings and help them more effectively.” You do this also. You dress down, you tone your aura down, you tone your chakras down when you want to be with people who would be offended or aggravated by that light, or perhaps by conversation that they are not interested in, but just your very presence, your listening ear, your love, your attentiveness. And so this is what the Buddhas do. They tone themselves down, they come into lesser incarnations so that they can move among the people and not be an offense to them.
“The celestial Bodhisattvas such as Avalokiteshvara, [Avalokiteshvara is th, another name for the beloved Kuan Yin] and [such as] Manjushri may be considered Buddhas acting as Bodhisattvas in order to help sentient beings.”
It is Gautama Buddha who bequeathed to us the Path of the Bodhisattva. After his enlightenment under the Bo tree, he traveled throughout India for forty-five years preaching his doctrine of the Four Noble Truths, the Eightfold Path and the Middle Way. This path is so akin to the path of the Lord Jesus Christ. In these two great figures of our history we see the divine incarnation and a path that all can follow if they will simply make the choice to do so.
He taught his disciples to also dedicate their lives to spreading the Doctrine so that others could be liberated. The Doctrine. When we say the Doctrine in Buddhism, we are talking about a matrix, a mandala, we are talking about a complex logical formula of life that when we internalize it and engage it and it becomes a part of the flame of our chakras we are locked in to the source of the Doctrine who is the Buddha himself, who is the Lord Christ himself.
Doctrine is not something that is man-made. It is handed down to us through the great avatars of the ages. It is the law of our inner being. Doctrine is rejoicing, because we have assurity of knowing that there is a law and we can meditate upon that law and then become its externalization. The psalmist said that he that meditates upon that law of God day and night, he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water and that he will bring forth fruit. He becomes the tree of the law, the tree of the doctrine.
And Dharmakaya in Buddhism is the name of the great Causal Body, the upper figure in the chart. Dharmakaya means “body of the law.” So when you contain the fullness of the law, you have become the law and the law is a synonym for the word the “logos” in the beginning with God. So this is why we study. This is why we are not content to be ignorant. This is why we have silence in our household and we go and we meditate upon the law as stated by these great teachers. And there is such a uniqueness to that statement, whether it be Hinduism or Buddhism or Christianity or Judaism. And the uniqueness of it gives us another slant, another aspect, another way of entering something that seems like this great sphere before us that is impregnable. We cannot enter into it unless we learn to pass through the wall. And we pass through the wall because we have become the embodiment of the law. So now, nothing can keep us from entering in.
Gautama Buddha taught his disciples, then, to dedicate their lives to spreading the Doctrine. And so Jesus Christ has called you to study that you might know his teachings step-by-step in this eight-week course this summer that you might not only repeat the teaching to others, but internalize it. Internalize it, become it, vibrate it. Let your aura be filled with it so that you may not even have to speak, yet someone comes along and feels that permeation of the fragrance of the law in your aura and immediately senses the Holy Spirit.
According to Buddhist lore, Manjushri felt compassion for the people of China because they lived so far from India, where Lord Gautama had incarnated. He therefore took a vow to help the people of China and established his Pure Land in the Five-Mountain Paradise of northern China. A Pure Land is a spiritual realm or paradise presided over by a Buddha. There are legends and prophesies that say the Pure Land shall be in the West. And so I like to think of this Western Shamballa, the etheric retreat and the Heart of the Inner Retreat where we are gathered as symbolical and perhaps actual of that Pure Land. Pure Land is a place created by Buddhas for their disciples that is ideal for their discipleship.
Bodhisattvas, out of compassion for sentient beings, vow that after they attain supreme Buddhahood they will establish a Pure Land where conditions will be ideally suited to the attainment of enlightenment. We know that in the heaven world, the etheric octave congruent with our planet and yet in a much higher vibration, circumstances are ideal for us learning the path. This is why the Archangels and the Ascended Masters have told us that we can make the call before we retire to be taken to these retreats, these universities of the Spirit.
There are at least seven golden cities of light in the heaven world connected with this world and we live in these cities between lifetimes. And in these cities are the archives of all of the developments of all civilization of all time as well as in the Universities of the Spirit that are the retreats of the various Masters. And so we believe in golden ages because we exist in that golden age between lifetimes in the etheric octave and we become saturated with that golden light and that golden wisdom. And so we see why babies are so joyous and so full of light and so delighted to be here and so delighted to be with us again, because they are carrying in their hearts that very special record and memory that is not even yet left them of the Pure Land of the Buddhas and the Bodhisattvas.
Some texts say that Manjushri also has a Pure Land in another universe, where he manifests as the perfect Buddha he actually is. His earthly Pure Land is the Five-Mountain Paradise of northern China is a favorite site for pilgrims. Devotees of Manjushri travel there, hoping to catch a glimpse of him. It is said that only those who are truly purified can see him. But even then, it takes a certain mastery to recognize him because he often appears disguised as a poor man or offen, or orphan.
For those whose karma prevents them from seeing him physically, he sometimes appears in dreams. But then these are not dreams at all, these are out of the body experiences that we remember often very clearly just before we enter our bodies in the morning. This is why prayer for fifteen minutes or whatever length of time you can give before retiring is so important because you lock in to the higher vibrations and in the protection of the seven Archangels you can journey in highest realms of light and there you can be with a counsellor or a great teacher who will advise you on burdens and problems that you are facing in your life‑-such difficult situations with the economy as it is, with karma, with disease, with all kinds of divisions within households. And you come back and you have the solution upon awakening. This is a wonderful ritual you can gain a momentum on by practicing it daily. You can gi, get rid of worry and just commend the problem to God and awaken with the answer.
One Zen master says, “There are some student monks who look for Manjushri at Five-Mountain Paradise, but they have already taken the wrong road. There is no Manjushri at Five-Mountain Paradise. Do you wish to know where he is? There is something this very moment at work in you, showing no tendency to waver, betraying no disposition to doubt‑-this is your living Manjushri.”
In other words don’t look for him outside of yourself in the Five-Mountain Paradise, look for him working inside of you within the very walls of your being, showing you what? No tendency to waver. Speak to that emotional body and say, “Peace be still and know that I am God.” Still the water element within you and betray no disposition to doubt. That is what he is teaching you. Cast out doubt. Do not waver and you will accomplish the goal of your life.
In Tibetan iconography, we often see Manjushri depicted with Gautama Buddha and Maitreya. Gautama sits in the center, with Maitreya standing on his right and Manjushri on his left. Maitreya represents the compassion aspect of the Bodhisattva ideal. And Manjushri represents the wisdom aspect. The name Maitreya is taken from the Sanskrit word maitri, meaning kindness, love, benevolence, friendship, friendliness, goodwill.
As the Buddhas are positioned this day on the platform, Gautama Buddha is centrally located at the front of the stage, and I’m going to switch these two statues because usually I have them relative to a Buddha that is differently positioned. So I am going to switch them so that they will be properly positioned to the right and the left of Gautama. This is a statue of Maitreya, he is very sweet, very sweet expression.
Thus Maitreya has been referred to as the Loving One, Friendly One, the embodiment of all-encompassing love. Of course you realize that the attainment of these Buddhas are so far, is so far above our own that of course they have the balance of wisdom and love and the will of God, but they show certain qualities so you can go to them when those qualities are the very prescription for your healing.
Buddhists revere him as the “Coming Buddha” who will reign over a future age of Enlightenment on earth. The Sanskrit name Manjushri means “gentle glory” or “sweet glory.” And we think of glory as a bright and shining light to bright to behold. That light is enlightenment. So we can call him gentle enlightenment, sweet enlightenment.
Buddhists appeal to Manjushri for intelligence, wisdom, mastery of the Teaching, the power of exposition, eloquence and memory. He is the patron of literature, who uses the Word with a capital w consciously as a tool of liberation‑‑as a sharp sword that cuts through ignorance.
Thus, we see that Maitreya and Manjushri represent two sides of the coin of the Bodhisattva Path. Professor Thurman writes,
There are different persons on different stages of the path at different times. Different teachings are elaborated for their benefit that emphasize wisdom or compassion. The team of Maitreya and Manjushri, heading the two main branches of the great tree of this philosophical tradition, assure [us] that the balance never goes too far in either direction….
Thinking of enlightenment as the goal of Buddhism, we tend to think of it as something mental, as a kind of higher understanding. But buddhahid, but Buddhahood is just as much a physical transformation, [a physical transformation].
You should be being tris, you should be being physically transformed each and every day of your life by light, by your change in diet, by your change in thinking, by your change in consciousness and attitude, getting rid of the negatives and the sad sack, down kind of vibration and getting into that lighter vibration. Transformation of your being, “I am changing all my garments, old ones for the bright new day.” Buddhahood is just as much a physical transformation because the physical body must reflect and outpicture what is the Inner Buddha. The Bodhisattva [may go] through a long physical evolution, developing his or her mind through wisdom and con, contemplation‑-and developing the body through compassion and deeds.
Adding to this path and this teaching, the Ascended Masters have brought to us the science of mantra, the violet flame, the method of dynamic decrees, the calling forth of the Light from our Causal Bodies. The techniques that we have received build on the foundations of all of the worlds major religions and they add to it that which is the teaching for the new age, the new age of Aquarius that is dawning. And that new age comes with a new dispensation and the new dispensation is the Holy Spirit and that is why we work with s, with the flames of God of the seven rays of God and, and today we are celebrating the violet flame for world transmutation because we know that healing will only come about by the healing, or transmutation of world karma and personal karma.
So what is so wonderful about the foundations of all the worlds major religions is that they, they give us an understanding of the commonality of the path and the goal that is achieved in slightly different ways and modes by peoples of different backgrounds, different evolutions, who have embodied together with a certain karma, a certain strength on the spiritual path and then the lesser development and therefore requiring different tools and a different way of looking at the very same goal which is purification of the soul and her union with God.
So I would like to tell you that the reason we study these religions is that we gain such profound insight as to our roots and we all have roots in all of these paths because we have lived in so many lifetimes in so many areas of the planet and times and centuries. And so we ourselves individually may feel a much greater affinity to the mantras of Hinduism than we feel for the prayers of Christianity or the Buddhists mantras and so on and on.
So discover all of these gems and jewels in the writings of the worlds major religions is a joy to me and I believe it’s a joy to your to your hearts also because it is so expansive and because you can speak to people who come out of these traditions instead of looking blank when they tell you they’re a Moslem or a Buddhist and then you simply stand there and say nothing because you don’t know a thing about what they believe. Isn’t that true? [“Yes.” (9-second applause)]
In Buddhist art, Manjushri is often portrayed as a handsome 16-year-old prince. His complexion is usually a golden yellow, you see the yellow flame has also colored the color of his skin, and he holds in his left hand the stem of a blue lotus blossom. On the blossom rests a book representing one of the Prajna-paramita scriptures. The Prajna-paramita scriptures deal with the realization of prajna, prajna, or wisdom.
You can go into a Japanese or Chinese restaurant and they will serve you your meal in a boat and they will tell you it’s a prajna boat, a wisdom boat to carry you over the sea of samsara or the astral plane.
With his right hand he wields a flaming sword of wisdom to vanquish all ignorance. This sword has been referred to as “a sword of quick detachment.” [laughter] I imagine he says, “If thy right arm offend thee, cut it off.”
I will read to you now a passage from a popular Buddhist sutra in which we see the subtle wisdom of Manjushri and learn something more about the role of a Bodhisattva. The sutra is called “The Holy Teaching of Vimalakirti.” The question Manjushri is faced with is: “Can a Bodhisattva be sick?” How many think a Bodhisattva can be sick? How many think a Bodhisattva cannot be sick? Good! Now you can listen [laughter] to the teachings on this subject.
In this tongue-in-cheek sutra, the bodhisattva Manjushri is the only one of Gautama’s disciples who will face the formidable Vimalakirti. Vimalakirti is a bodhisattva from the realm of profound joy of the Dhyani Buddha Akshobhya. He has perfected himself in every virtue but he appears on earth in the guise of a wealthy householder in order to teach certain lessons to sentient beings. He pretends to be ill so that he can convey a lesson on spiritual sickness. Perhaps he truly is ill.
Most mortals are afraid to visit the “sick” Vimalakirti because they have been confounded by him so many times in the past. Even the Bodhisattvas are reluctant to visit him. Only Manjushri accepts the challenge. We begin the sutra at the place where Gautama asks his disciple Ananda to visit Vimalakirti:
The Buddha then said to the venerable Ananda, “Ananda, go to Vimalakirti to inquire about his illness.”
Ananda replies: “Lord, I am indeed reluctant to go to that good man to inquire about his illness. Why? Lord, I remember one day when [you] manifested some indisposition and required some milk; I took the bowl and went to the door of the mansion of a great Brahmin family. Vimalakirti came there, and, having saluted me, said, ‘Revered Ananda, what are you doing on the threshold of this house with your bowl in your hand so early in the morning?’ [laughter]
“I replied: ‘The body of the Lord manifests some indisposition, and he needs some milk. Therefore, I have come to fetch some.’
“Vimalakirti then said to me, ‘Reverend Ananda, do not say such a thing! Reverend Ananda, the body of the [Buddha] is tough as a diamond, having eliminated all the instinctual traces of evil and being endowed with all goodness. How could disease or discomfort affect such a body?
Reverend Ananda, go in silence, and do not belittle the Lord. Do not say such things to others. It would not be good for the powerful gods or for the bodhisattvas coming from the various buddha-fields to hear such words.
Reverend Ananda, a universal monarch, who is endowed only with a small root of virtue, is free of diseases. How then could the Lord, who has an infinite root of virtue, have any disease? It is impossible.
Reverend Ananda, do not bring shame upon us but go in silence lest the [Brahmins] should hear your words. They would say: “For shame! The teacher of these people cannot even cure his own sicknesses. How then can he cure the sicknesses of others?” Reverend Ananda, go then discreetly so that no one observes you.
Reverend Ananda, the [Buddhas] have the body of the Dharma‑-not a body that is sustained by material food. The [Buddhas] have a transcendental body that has transcended all mundane qualities. There is no injury to the body of a [Buddha], as it is rid of all defilements. The body of a [Buddha] is [transcendental] and free of all formative activity. Reverend Ananda, to believe there can be illness in such a body is irrational and unseemly!’
“When I had heard these words, I wondered if I had previously misheard and misunderstood the Buddha, and I was very much ashamed. Then I heard a voice from the sky say: ‘Ananda! The householder speaks to you truly. Nevertheless, since the Buddha has appeared during the time of the five corruptions, he disciplines living beings by acting lowly and humble. Therefore, Ananda, do not be ashamed, go and get the milk!’ [laughter]
“Lord, such was my conversation with Vimalakirti, and therefore I am reluctant to go to that good man to inquire about his illness.”
In the same way, the rest of the five hundred disciples were reluctant to go and each told the Buddha his own adventure, recounting all his conversations with Vimalakirti.”
Then, the Buddha said to the crown prince, Manjushri, “Manjushri, go to Vimalakirti to inquire about his illness.’
Manjushri replied: “Lord, it is difficult to attend upon Vimalakirti. He is gifted with marvelous eloquence concerning the law of the profound. He is extremely skilled in full expressions and in the reconciliation of dichotomies. His eloquence is inexorable, and no one can resist his imperturbable intellect. He accomplishes all the activities of the bodhisattvas. He penetrates all the secret mysteries of the bodhisattvas and the Buddhas. He is skilled in civilizing all the abodes of devils. He plays with the great superknowledges….He has attained the supreme excellence of the indivisible, nondual sphere of the ultimate realm. He is skilled in teaching the Dharma with its infinite modalities within the uniform ultimate….He has attained decisiveness with regard to all questions. Thus, although he cannot be withstood by someone of my feeble defenses, still, sustained by the grace of the Buddha, I will go to him and will converse with him as well as I can.”
Thereupon, in that assembly, the bodhisattvas, the great disciples,…the gods and goddesses, all had this thought: “Surely the conversations of the young prince Manjushri and that good man will result in a profound teaching of the Dharma.”
Thus, eight thousand bodhisattvas, five hundred disciples… and many hundreds of thousands of gods and goddesses, all followed the crown prince Manjushri [laughter] to listen to the Dharma. And the crown prince Manjushri–surrounded and followed by these bodhisattvas, disciples,…gods, and goddesses, entered the great city….
Meanwhile, Vimalakirti thought to himself, “Manjushri, the crown prince, is coming here with numerous attendants. Now, may this house be transformed into emptiness!”
Then, [as if by magic], his house became empty. Even the doorkeeper disappeared. And, except for the invalid’s couch upon which Vimalakirti himself was lying, no bed or couch or seat could be seen anywhere.
Then Vimalakirti saw the crown prince Manjushri and addressed him thus: “Manjushri! Welcome, Manjushri! You are very welcome! There you are, without any coming. You appear, without any seeing. You are heard, without any hearing.”
Manjushri declared: “Householder, it is as you say….
“Good sir, is your condition tolerable? Is it livable? Are your physical elements not disturbed? Is your sickness diminishing? Is it not increasing? The Buddha asks about you‑-[he asks he asks] if you have slight trouble, slight discomfort, slight sickness, if your distress is light, if you are cared for, strong, at ease, without self-reproach, and if you are living in touch with the supreme happiness.
“Householder, whence came this sickness of yours? How long will it continue? How does it stand? How can it be alleviated?” [laughter]
Manjushri’s attack is not to let him get a word in edgewise. [laughter]
Vimalakirti replied: “Manjushri, my sickness comes from ignorance and the thirst for existence and it will last as long as do the sicknesses of all living beings. Were all living beings to be free from sickness, I also would not be sick. Why? Manjushri, for the bodhisattva, the world consists only of living beings, and sickness is inherent in living in the world. Were all living beings free of sickness, the bodhisattva also would be free of sickness. For example, Manjushri, when the only son of a merchant is sick, both his parents become sick on account of the sickness of their son. And the parents will suffer as long as that only son does not recover from his sickness. Just sho, just so, Manjushri, the bodhisattva loves all living beings as if each were his only child. He becomes sick when they are sick and is cured when they are cured. You ask me, Manjushri, whence comes my sickness; the sicknesses of the bodhisattvas arise from great compassion.”
In other words, they take into their bodies the sicknesses, the karmas of the people of the entire earth.
Manjushri [then said]: “Householder, of what sort is your sickness?”
Vimalakirti [replied]: “It is immaterial and invisible.”
Manjushri [asked]: “Is it physical or mental?”
Vimalakirti [said]: “It is not physical, since the body is insubstantial in itself. It is not mental, since the nature of the mind is like illusion.”
Manjushri [then asked]: “Householder, which of the four main elements is disturbed: earth, water, fire or air?”
Vimalakirti [said]: “Manjushri, I am sick only because the elements of living beings are disturbed by sicknesses.”
Manjushri [said]: “Householder, how should a bodhisattva console another bodhisattva who is sick?”
Very good question.
Vimalakirti [answered]: “He should tell him that the body is impermanent, but should not exhort him to renunciation or disgust. He should tell him that the body is miserable but should not encourage him to find solace in liberation. He should tell him that the body is selfless but that living beings should be developed; that the body is peaceful but not to seek any ultimate calm. He should urge him to confess his evil deeds but not for the sake of absolution. He should encourage his [compassion] for all living beings on account of his own sickness, his remembrance of suffering experienced from beginningless time, and his consciousness of working for the welfare of living beings. He should encourage him not to be distressed, but to manifest the roots of virtue, to maintain the primal purity and the lack of craving and thus to always strive [and] become the king of healers, who can cure all [diseases]. Thus should a bodhisattva console a sick bodhisattva, in such a way as to make him happy.”
“The sick bodhisattva should tell himself: ‘Just as my sickness is unreal and nonexistent, so the sicknesses of all living beings are unreal and nonexistent.’ Through such considerations, he arouses the great compassion toward all living beings without falling into any sentimental compassion. The great compassion that strives to eliminate the accidental passions does not conceive of any life in living beings. Why? Because great compassion that falls into sentimental… views only exhausts the bodhisattva in his reincarnations.”
What we are hearing here is a, a suplime, a sublime teaching on the path of the bodhisattva. He bears the diseases of the people of the earth in his body, yet he affirms that they are not real because the body is insubstantial. The mind is ephemeral. He does not try to get rid of these sicknesses for the comfort of himself but bears them for the comfort of others.
Why, then, do sentimental views exhaust the bodhisattva? Because sentimentality is something that reinforces the human condition, therefore tying the bodhisattva into the human condi, condition. And so there is a difference between the sentimental view and the accidental passions and great compassion.
“But the great compassion which is free of involvement with sentimental…views does not exhaust the bodhisattva in all his reincarnations.”
Thus our aim is to be continually compassionate, continually compassionate to everyone and toward everyone but not to dip in to the human sympathy; that will exhaust us. The person who is receiving sympathy will simply want more and more and more. And therefore suck the light, suck the energy of that Inner Christ and Inner Buddha and of that soul and of that body.
The bodhisattva
“does not reincarnate through involvement with such views but reincarnates with his mind free of involvement.”
Involvement is not a disdain for humanity, it is non, it is not a non-interaction but it is a refusal to lock gears with the karma of that person but rather to uplift by the power of the resurrection flame, to lift that person to a higher dimension of his being. If you are going to lift people up then you cannot tie into their lower parts, their lower angers, their lower passions. You cannot help them if you descend to their level. You must be at your level and pull them up with that great compassion.
“Hence, even [the] reincarnation [of the bodhisattva] is like a liberation. Being reincarnated as if being liberated, he has the power and ability to teach the Dharma which liberates living beings from their bondage.”
This word teaching is a little bit deceptive because teaching the Dharma is giving the Dharma as a blood transfusion, a transfer of the life of the living one into the one whose life or flame has gone out. Teaching the Dharma is truly transmitting the Body and Blood of the Lord.
“As the Lord declares: ‘It is not possible for one who is himself bound to deliver others from their bondage. But one who is himself liberated is able to liberate others from their bondage.’
Manjushri then asked further: “Noble sir, if a bodhisattva considers all living beings in such a way, how does he generate the great love toward them?’
Vimalakirti replied: “Manjushri, when a bodhisattva considers all living beings in this way, he thinks: ‘Just as I have realized the Dharma, so should I teach it to living beings.’ Thereby, he generates the love that is truly a refuge for all living beings; the love that is peaceful because it is free of grasping; the love that is not feverish because it is free of passions;…the love that is without conflict because it is free of the violence of the passions; the love that is nondual because it is involved neither with the external nor with the internal, the love that is imperturbable because totally ultimate.
“Thereby he generates the love that is firm,” [firm love,] “its high resolve is unbreakable, like a diamond. [It is] love that is pure, purified in its intrinsic nature;…the saint’s love that has eliminated its enemy; the bodhisattva’s love that continuously develops living beings; the [Buddha’s] love that understands reality; the Buddha’s love that causes living beings to awaken from their sleep; the love that is spontaneous because it is fully enlightened spontaneously;… the love that has no presumption because it has eliminated attachment and aversion;…the love that is giving because it bestows the gift of Dharma free of the tight fist of a bad teacher;…the love that is effort because it takes responsibility for all living beings;…the love that is wisdom because it causes attainment at the proper time;…the love that is high resolve because it is without passions; the love that is without deceit because it is not artificial; the love that is happiness because it introduces living beings to the happiness of the Buddha. Such, Manjushri, is the great love of a bodhisattva.”
This is the end of the quote from “The Holy Teaching of Vimalakirti.” [11-second applause]
I think this is one of these Buddhists teachings that can be read as scripture daily until it is fully absorbed, internalized and you see yourself actually living and being in this mode.
I would like to invite you to give mahn, Manjushri’s mantra for developing wisdom. D–h–i–h, pronounced dhee. DHIH is the bija or the seed syllable of Manjushri. Seed syllable is the syllable that corresponds to the wave-length, the vibration of that inner seed of that being. When you have the seed syllable of any being who is in God and of God and manifestation of God then you have access to his attainment, to his aura, to his momentum. So the essence of a Cosmic Being is concentrated in his bija.
Manjushri’s mantra can be given to help develop wisdom, memory and the understanding of the scriptures. We give it a 108 times or in multiples of nine and on the last repetition the final syllable DHIH is repeated as many times as possible. [Instructions to A.V. technicians.]
*[Song 640, Buddhist Mantra No. 7, OM AH RA PA TSA NA DHIH given 55 times.]
Let us say the DHIH now. DHIH. (20 seconds).
There is another mantra to Lord Manjushri. It’s the OM WAGI SHORI MUM, OM WAGI SHORI MUM, Hail to the Lord of Speech! That is one of Manjushri’s titles. He is the master of eloquence. He uses the word as tool of liberation to cut through ignorance.
How many times have we heard that phrasing during this week, Cut through ignorance? There’s no other way to deal with it than cut through it. Cut away the fat, just cut it off. It just has to basically amputated. The, the roots of ignorance, you can’t just sit and dilly and dally with them and entertain them. You have to get out of ignorance by an act of will. And the act of will is something we will be hearing more about from the Buddhas this day, the act of inimitable determination to simply up and decide this is what and who I will be.
You can use this mantra to help you communicate effectively and deliver the Word with Brahman. This is what we will be studying this summer, how to deliver the Word. It’s a very important mantra.
I mentioned yesterday that the voice of the Buddhist god Brahma Sanam-kumara had eight qualities. These are the eight qualities we ask for as we give this mantra, that the voice is distinct, intelligible, pleasant, attractive, compact, concise, deep and resonant. And I would add a ninth one to that, reverent. Reverence for all life, reverence for people, reverence for the God who lives within them. In that way you don’t come across condescending, you don’t talk down to people, you’re not sarcastic. OK, we will say this mantra.
*[Song 640, Buddhist Mantra 4, OM WAGI SHORI MUM given 60 times.]
I ask you to give these mantras a try for however many days, thirty-three days. I can tell you that they work profoundly. They are simply amazing. When you use the science of the spoken Word, you know the meaning of the mantra, you are acquainted with the Being, you pour tremendous love and you open the channels to receive tremendous love. The transformation will be astounding if you do all other things that converge in the heart of the bodhisattva, especially taking care of your physical body and diet.
The mantra GATE GATE PARAGATE PARASAMGATE BODHI SVAHA invokes the wisdom of the Prajna Paramita Scriptures. It’s translation is, “Gone, gone, gone beyond, gone wholly beyond‑-Enlightenment, hail! or Awakening fulfilled.” One commentator has interpreted this manta, this mantra as Avalokiteshvara’s exhortation to proceed, proceed, proceed beyond, proceed completely beyond, be founded in enlightenment. The beyond what? is all illusion and the illusory self. So it’s the mantra that propels us beyond the illusory self and all illusion into reality and the Real Self, beyond the realms of maya. This is also a mantra we give to Manjushri.
*[Song 640, Buddhist Mantra 3, GATE GATE PARAGATE PARASAMGATE BODHI SVAHA, given 24x.]
At this time we will return to our violet flame vigil and you are free to take a break to prepare for the three dictations.
Thank you very much. [23-second standing ovation]
END
Beloved Manjushri Dictation – Freedom 1993
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Who is Manjushri?
Manjushri is a great Buddha and a bodhisattva. In Buddhist teachings, Manjushri is the Bodhisattva of Wisdom. Wisdom is wise dominion—of yourself, your aura, your entire being. It is wise dominion of all affairs that are entrusted to you and of all individuals who come under your care.
Wisdom is the most esteemed virtue in Buddhism. The virtue of wisdom has been called the “Mother of all Buddhas,” because only wisdom can totally liberate one from suffering. Yet without love and allegiance to the will of God, wisdom itself is not sufficient.
Buddhists see Manjushri as a “herald of emancipation.” He is also revered as the patron of arts and sciences, the master of eloquence, and the principal guardian and patron of astrologers. Buddhist writers traditionally invoke Manjushri’s assistance, and they often begin their books with verses or prayers in his honor.
Buddhists appeal to Manjushri for intelligence, wisdom, mastery of the teaching, the power of exposition, eloquence and memory. He is the patron of literature who uses the Word consciously as a tool of liberation—as a sharp sword that cuts through ignorance. We can call to Manjushri for gentle or sweet enlightenment.
Though Manjushri is referred to as a bodhisattva, he is believed to have the enlightenment of a Buddha. Some traditions say he became a perfectly enlightened Buddha many aeons ago in another universe.
In Buddhist lore
According to Buddhist lore, Manjushri felt compassion for the people of China because they lived so far from India, where Lord Gautama had incarnated. He therefore took a vow to help the people of China and established his Pure Land in the Five-Mountain Paradise of northern China. A Pure Land is a spiritual realm or paradise presided over by a Buddha, a place created by Buddhas for their disciples that is ideal for their discipleship.
Resources
For additional information please visit the Summit Lighthouse website. Learn how to become a Keeper of the Flame.
