Tara
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The
twenty-one forms of Tara According to the Tradition of Lord Atisha (Explained by Ven. Kirti Tsenshab Rinpoche) Tara has 21 primary emanations
which perform different activities such as pacification, increase and so
forth. The different colors of these 21 Taras correspond to the 4
different types of enlightened activity: Tara is the female Buddha of
Enlightened Activity of which there are 4 types: pacifying, increasing,
overpowering and wrathful. Each of these is represented by a different
color: White represents the Enlightened
activity of pacifying, for example overcoming sickness, causes of untimely
death and obstacles to success in one’s life or one’s practice. Yellow represents the Enlightened
activity of increasing the positive qualities conducive to a long life,
peace happiness and success in ones Dharma practice. Red represents
the Enlightened activity of power, or overpowering external forces
that cannot be tamed through the first two activities, for example,
removing obstacles to sickness, untimely death, ect., And forcefully
accumulating conducive conditions for one’s Dharma practice. Black represents the Enlightened
activity of wrath, which involves using forceful methods for accomplishing
activities for Enlightened purposes that cannot be accomplished through
other means. All 21 Taras have one face and two hands: in there right hands, upon the palm of their girt-bestowing gestures, the hold the flasks that accomplish their various active functions, and with their left hands they hold a lotus flower. They are seated with their right feet extended and their left drawn up, on thrones of lotus and moon, adorned with silks and all precious ornaments, radiating forth measureless light, and surrounded on all sides by countless hosts of Buddhas, Bodhisattvas, high patron deities, dakinis and protectors of the Law.
Tara
Meditation Look at an image of Tara
and see it as really her, not as a mere representation. In the middle of a
calm and tranquil nectar ocean is a lotus, seated on which is Tara. She is
the omniscient mind, the great compassion, and the power of all Buddhas.
Through her power she liberates sentient beings from suffering and leads
them to the peerless happiness of enlightenment, manifested in the female
aspect of Buddha Tara. She has the appearance of a smiling sixteen year
old girl. Make the following request
to Tara: May
every living being who merely hears me, sees me, remembers me, touches me,
or talks to me, immediately be purified of all his or her problems and
their causes – the three poisonous minds rooted in the ignorance that
does not realize the nature of the self or of phenomena, and the ignorance
that does not understand the cause of happiness or of suffering. And may
they achieve temporal happiness as well as the ultimate happiness. May I
be able to lead them to the peerless happiness of enlightenment by showing
the various means that are suitable for them, just as you Mother Tara
guide the sentient beings." Breath in slowly and think
of all the obstacles: the three poisonous minds, the actions called karma
accumulated with disturbing thoughts that harm yourself and do not allow
you to have temporal happiness or especially the peerless happiness of
enlightenment, and which also harm others and interfere with their
experiencing temporal and ultimate happiness. Besides the true cause of
suffering, think of the remaining true suffering - every problem. All
this, in the form of filthy, foul-smelling pollution comes out through
your nostrils, from your heart, as you breath out slowly. Think that it
goes beyond this earth and ceases to exist. Do this several times. Feel
purified and empty of all the negativities within you. Recite the mantra: OM
TARE TUTTARE TURE SOHA and visualize that from Tara's heart white
nectar flows down through your crown and is absorbed through the pores of
your body, entering your body and mind. The
first contemplation Think that the essence of the nectar is Tara's omniscient mind, her great compassion for all sentient beings, and her power. While
continuously reciting the mantra, think that the essence of the nectar is
the wisdom, the fully knowing mind. Then think that you receive all of
Tara's wisdom. Your mind is completely in the nature of being able to
guide sentient beings. Concentrate on this. Your mind is the nature of
every single wisdom possessed by Tara. The
second contemplation Again, while still
reciting the mantra, nectar enters your heart from Tara and the essence is
the great power to perfectly guide sentient beings. Place your mind
single-pointedly on having the power to perfectly guide all sentient
beings. The
third contemplation Again visualize the nectar
entering your body and mind from Tara; this time its essence is her great
compassion. Single-pointedly concentrate on your mind being the nature of
great compassion for every suffering sentient being. Feel that their
suffering is unbearable and you want to liberate them from it this very
second. Concentrate single-pointedly on your mind being completely
transformed into the nature of Tara's great compassion. The
fourth contemplation Again, reciting the
mantra, the nectar enters your body, speech and mind altogether. Feel
incredible bliss, so great that if it materialized it could not be
contained in the sky. It completely fills your body and mind, and
especially feel it at your heart. Every atom of your body from your head
to your feet is filled with unceasing bliss. This has no comparison to
ordinary pleasures. Single-pointed concentrate on the sensation of bliss. Think: "My life is not to harm others. Just as I do not wish harm from others, all beings do not wish to receive harm from me. Just as I wish every sentient being to help me, to benefit me by giving temporal and ultimate happiness, all sentient beings wish me to benefit and give temporal and ultimate happiness to them. This is the purpose of my life. My responsibility is not only to not give harm, it is especially to give benefit; every capacity I have I give to others." Because
of this attitude to not harm and to benefit others, Buddha Mother Tara is
extremely pleased and happy. She dissolves into you and your body, speech
and mind become identical with Mother Tara's holy body, speech and mind.
Concentrate on this for as long as you can. Think: "Due to all the merit that I have accumulated, may I achieve the enlightenment of Mother Tara and immediately lead every single being to her peerless happiness.
Tara
Prayer om
chom.den.day.ma phag.ma drol.ma chag.tsel.lo
Om I and all prostrate to the liberator, the transcendental bhagawati
chag.tsel drol.ma ta.re pel.mo You are the glorious mother who liberates with TARE tut.ta.ra.yi
jig.kun sel.ma You are the mother who eliminates all fears with TUTTARE tu.re
don.nam tham.che ter.me You are the mother who grants all success with TURE so.ha
yi.ker che.la rab.tu To the syllables SOHA and all we offer the greatest homage. Firstly to help you understand the meaning of the prayer, it could be glossed as follows: OM contains three sounds: AH, O and MM, and signifies the immeasurable qualities of the enlightened beings' holy body, speech and mind. According to the tantric teachings, the paths contained in the mantra OM TARE TUTTURE TURE SOHA lead to the omniscient state of mind. Through actualizing these paths in our mind we purify our impure body, speech and mind, transforming them into Arya Tara's vajra holy body, speech and mind. In this mantra, OM stands for the goal and TARE TUTTURE TURE the path. TARE (Tibetan: Drolma): the liberating female. Usually Tara connotes liberating or releasing us from the suffering of the three lower realms, the general sufferings of samsara and the bondage of nirvana, the blissful state of peace. If we gain freedom from samsara but simply attain arhantship and fall into the blissful state of peace for ourselves alone, it takes us an incredibly long time to escape from that and do extensive work for sentient beings. Compared with the motivation of achieving the omniscient state of mind in order to extensive work for the benefit of other sentient beings, the idea of attaining nirvana for oneself alone is extremely limited and mistaken because it represents concern for only our own peace. Thus Tara not only liberates us from the bondage of samsara, she also liberates us from the blissful state of peace, leading us to the omniscient state of mind. This is the usual meaning of the first TARA: it represents everything from which we should be liberated, the liberating path – the entire method – and the goal to which Tara leads us, the omniscient state of mind. However, the meaning of TARE here is explained as being liberation from samsara, indicating the first of the Four Noble Truths, the Truth of Suffering. TUTTURE : dispelling all fears. "Fears" is the translation of the Tibetan word used here – the main fear dispelled is that of the delusions; the suffering of attachment, which is like a great flood; the suffering of hatred, which is like fire; the suffering of ignorance, which is like an elephant; the suffering of jealousy, which is like a snake; the suffering of pride, which is like a lion; the suffering of miserliness, which is like a chain; the suffering of wrong views, which is like a thief; the suffering of doubt, which is like a spirit. Thus an example is given for each delusion. If we take refuge in Tara, recite her mantra and practise her method, she will release us from not only the internal suffering of the delusions but also from external dangers such as floods, fires and thieves. Hence TUTTURE means that Tara liberates us from the true cause of suffering – karma and the unsubdued mind from which the karma arises. By reciting this our fears are dispelled, which shows that Tara leads us to the true path of the three vehicles, according to our level of mind, and to the absolute Dharma – the real remedy for the cause of suffering. TURE: she who grants all success. Here success refers to the goals
of those of the three levels – lowest, intermediate and highest – of
capability: the bodies of the happy transmigrators, arhantship or nirvana,
and the great nirvana, the omniscient state of mind. Furthermore, as it is
taught here, all success also refers to success in all the pursuits of
this life – business, other worldly activities, finding perfect
conditions for our Dharma practice and accomplishing our Dharma goals. SOHA. Each word of the mantra – from OM to SOHA – performs the functions explained above; each brings incredible benefit. Thus to the letters SOHA and the rest we pay homage. SOHA:
"May the blessings of Tara, which are contained in the mantra OM
TARE TUTTURE take root in our hearts." If we want to harvest
fruit in our garden, that is where we should plant the roots of the tree.
Similarly, if we want to attain the omniscient state of mind, we should
plant the root of the complete path, which is contained in the mantra OM TARE TUTTURE TURE SOHA, in our hearts. By praying to Tara and
reciting her mantra we receive her blessings; as SOHA implies, through the blessings of Tara entering our heart we
are able to generate the entire path to the omniscient state of mind. By
generating the path – method and wisdom – in our own minds, our impure
body, speech and mind are purified and transformed into Tara's vajra holy
body, speech and mind. The
Visualization When you recite this prayer, visualize that light beams with nectar running down them – like rain-drops running down a wire – emanate from the point where Tara's left thumb and ring finger touch each other. These reach you and all other sentient beings. Visualize in particular the people you dislike or who dislike you, in front of you. The rays and nectar flow constantly, purifying the hindrances to Dharma practice and the two obscurations of yourself and all other sentient beings. Remember, too, all those with specific problems for whom you are praying to Tara. The rays and nectar flow to all sentient beings: narak beings, pretas, animals, humans, asuras, devas, intermediate state beings, arhants and bodhisattvas. In the midst of whatever suffering they are experiencing – you can visualize, for example, humans fighting in wars, or full of anger, pride and jealousy – rays and nectar enter their bodies and minds and pacify completely all their true cause of suffering and the true sufferings themselves. All sentient beings become totally liberated. Recite the prayer with this meditation. You can also visualize the person for whom you are praying, yourself and all other sentient beings under Tara's right hand, which is in the mudra of granting refuge, completely covered and protected by it. Think repeatedly, with deep conviction, that Tara has accepted your request and answers your prayers. You can do one rosary of the prayer with the purifying meditation, and another where you and all sentient beings become one with Tara. With each prayer identical Taras emanate from the principal Tara you are visualizing and dissolve into you and all other sentient beings. You become one with Tara's holy body, speech and mind.
Praise to the 21 Taras & Benefits of Recitation 1.
Quick Heroine is red. Her right hand, in the mudra of granting
2. The Great Peaceful One is
white and holds a white vase which grants
3. Increasing One is yellow
and holds a vase bestowing the power of
4. Tara for Long Life holds a
vase that grants this action-
5. Tara with the Hung Voice is
orange. She holds a vase bestowing you
6. Victory Over the Three World is dark red, holding a vase that
7. Destroying Others’ Black Magic is black, slightly wrathful,
holding
8. Destroyer of the Mara is dark red. She holds a vase which grants
the
9. The Three Rare Sublimer is
white, holding a vase which carries the
10. Destroyer of the Mara is
red, holding a vase which grants the power
11. Eliminating Poverty is
orange, holding a vase which has the power
12. Making Everything
Auspicious is orange, holding a vase that bestows
13. The Blazing One is red, holding a vase that carries the power
to
14. Wrathful Wrinkled One is
black, holding a vase that grants the
15. Great Peaceful One is white, holding a vase that grants this
action -
16. Wisdom Liberating from Hung is red, holding a vase which grants
the
17. Shaking the Three Worlds is orange, holding a vase which
carries the
18. Eliminating the Poison is white, holding a vase which gives you
that
19. (Name) is white, holding a vase which bestows the power to
eliminate
20. Eliminating Epidemic
Diseases is orange, holding a vase which has
21. For All the Actions is
white, holding a vase which grants the power Dedication Due
to all the merits of the three times collected by me,
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