object:1.01 - Tara the Divine
book class:Tara - The Feminine Divine
subject class:Buddhism
author class:Bokar Rinpoche
class:chapter
1 - Tara the Divine
Buddhism, as it was introduced to Tibet, contains
many deities- Tara is one of them-tied to the tantric
tradition. Tibetans who, in their childhood, start to
evolve within this divine world seldom question its
nature. They are naturally drawn toward these
familiar faces and accomplish rituals and meditative
practices associated with them.
Westerners, however, find themselves in the
presence of a new universe which seemingly has no
equivalent in their culture. This leads them to ask
many questions. Before trying to define who Tara is,
it may be useful to first understand what the deities
are-both on the ultimate level of their essence and on
the relative level of their manifestation.
THE PLAy OF ULTIMATE AND RELATIVE
Deities, as we see them, are not essentially superior
individuals living in faraway worlds that sometimes
come to the rescue of human beings, even if their
manifestations may give that impression.
In truth, if we realize the true nature of our
minds/ the deities reveal themselves as being not
different from our own minds: As long as we do not
realize it and live in the duality I/other, the deities
enter the play of duality and a relationship is
established between these two poles of manifestation,
I and the deity.
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Let us suppose that in a dream we meet a deity.
We would be sure of the individual existence of that
deity. Also, we would be sure of the reality of the "I"
who, upon seeing the deity, would feel joy and
devotion. However, in truth, the person perceiving the
deity and the deity would both be manifestations from
the same inexpressible essence, the mind itself. In the
same way, for those who live on a relative level, the
deities appear on a relative level without being
separated from their essence, which is none other than
the essence of the mind.
To understand the true nature of deities, we must
always remind ourselves of the two levels of reality:
- Ultimate truth, beyond notions of subject and object,
I and other, beyond concepts and words, truth is
always present and always "true," but it is not
experienced by ordinary beings.
.
- Relative truth, "false" in essence but "true" for the
people who experience it, a truth founded on the
fallacious perception of subject and object, of an "I"
and another.
.
If, from our point of view, there is an "I" and the
"deity," from the point of view of the deity, there is
neither an I nor another, neither subject nor object.
This does not imply the absence of manifestation, but
that this manifestation is without duality. It lacks a
"center and circumference."
The true nature of the mind is the nature of the
mind as it is, free from any psychological elaboration
and free from all mistakes and illusion, subject and
object.
Why is the nature of the mind called "divine"?
This is because it is without suffering, pure of any
disturbances, and because it is superior bliss. This
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happiness is differ ent from the relative happi ness that
we experience in the ordin ary world . It is not a
transitory happi ness depen ding on objects or
depending on relatio nship s of an "I" and "anot her,"
but a happi ness inhere nt to the mind itself, beyon d all
duality. This happi ness canno t be altere d by any fear
or suffering. This genui ne and immu table happi ness is
itself the deity.
A MEANS AND A REALITY
Deities in a relative sense, as we have sketch ed above,
are the deities as they now appea r to us in variou s
forms and colors, adorn ed with divers e attrib utes and
ornaments.
Altho ugh these deities are not locate d on an
ultimate level, from the point of view of our mode of
perception, they are not separ ated from the ultimate.
In effect, their natur e is such that practi cing with
deities leads to the realiz ation of the ultima te deity,
that is, the mode of being of the mind. In this sense,
they constitute a means. Howe ver, this does not mean
that the deities are simpl y an artifice.
In reality, they are what is called the 2 "Body . of
Enjoyment of Awak ening " (Samb hogak aya ); in other
words, an extrem ely subtle level of manifestation. This
Body of Enjoy ment is not separa te from the Absol ute
Body (Dhar makay a), the awak ened mind beyon d
manifestation that does not differ from the ultima te
deity. The Body of Enjoy ment is an expre ssion of the
dynamics of the Absol ute Body, an expre ssion that is
never separ ated from its origin. Deities are linked to
the ultimate essence of the mind, not only as a mean s
of accessing it, but by their very nature .
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From the point of view of the path leading to
awakening, these deities appear as external to our
mind, as an expression of the buddhas to help us in
our progress, because of our dualistic thinking.
From the point of view of fruition-that is, once
we have fully realized the nature of the mind-deities
are no longer seen as external but as the
manifestation of the Absolute Body, beyond duality,
beyond any notion of "I" and "another," the Absolute
Body with which our mind has merged.
TOWARD THE BODY OF ENJOYMENT
Let us take Tara as an example. Now, when we
practice Tara meditation, we must make a mental
effort to imagine her as she is, green in color, hands
making certain mudras, legs in a definite position,
adorned with various attri butes, and so on. In a
certain way, Tara is then the creation of our psyche,
and we remain, at least partially, prisoners of the idea
that there is "me" on the one hand and Tara on the
other. This mental creation is not useless. As a
reflection of the Body of Enjoyment, this mental
creation is linked with it and allows us to approach it.
Once the ultimate realization is obtained, this same
Tara is no longer the fruit of any mental effort.
Without her form disappearing, she reveals herself as
a spontaneous expression of the Absolute Body, a
clarity of the mind in which there is no subject and no
object.
There is also a difference between the deity as we
imagine it, and as she exists in the reality of the
Awakened Mind.
It is also said that the Body of Enjoyment does not
serve to benefit a bud.dha but it benefits others. From
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our point of view, it is true. However, from the point
of view of a buddha, there is no I and no other. This
means that a buddha does not think he or she must
produce Bodies of Enjoyment or must help others. As
we have seen, the Body of Enjoyment is a spontaneous
expression of the Absolute Body. The activity that is
exerted is spontaneous, lacking will and effort, lacking
also the notion of a reality inherent to the
manifestation, and the idea of an "I" who helps and
"another" that is helped.
That the deity may first appear as external, then
reveal itself as inherent to the nature of the mind
without idea of external or internal, may seem difficult
to understand. The difficulty comes from a dualistic
conceptual approach. For us, there is an "I" or another,
external or internal, and if we cannot imagine that it
can be otherwise, we cannot really understand what
matters. Only the realization of the nature of mind
will give us direct experience of this reality.
Question: The Absolute Body of a buddha is emptiness in
essence and is not subject to interruption. Does the Body of
Enjoyment, that is, the expression of the clarity of pure
mind, manifest in a permanent or intermittent way?
Answer: Emptiness and clarity cannot be conceived as
two separate entities. They are undifferentiated. There
is no longer a moment when emptiness would be
associated with clarity than a moment when it would
not. Emptiness and clarity are only a way to describe
a unique reality. Therefore, it is not possible to say
that the manifestation of the Body of Enjoyment is
intermittent. It is why the Body of Enjoyment is
qualified as "permanent."
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Question: The Body of Enjoyment manifests in extremely
various aspects tlult we see represented in the form of
various deities. Is the diversity necessary?
Answer: On the one hand, this diversity derives from
the nature itself of things. The possibilities of
expression of a buddha or clarity of the nature of
mind are infinite. This is why the forms of the Body of
Enjoyment are infinite. Nothing can limit them. For
this reason, it is also called "Body of All Forms." All
forms are possible. All colors, all ornaments, and all
attri butes are possible. It is also said that limitations of
an ordinary body do not apply to the Body of
Enjoyment. The hand of a Body of Enjoyment cannot
only touch objects but it can also see, hear, experience
taste, think, and so on. This applies to any part of the
body.
From the point of view of practice, on the other
hand, the diversity that is proposed to us is a means
to fight our strong tendency to believe in the reality of
phenomena as we are able to perceive them. The
multiplicity of forms tends to show us that what they
really are is bigger than our understanding. If there
were only one deity, only one form of the Body of
Enjoyment, this would lead us, without any doubt, to
implicitly accord to the deity a level of reality similar
to ours. We conceive ourselves as an entity limited to
a body and we would probably conceive the deity as
an entity limited to a body. The diversity of forms and
the understanding that they all are the various
expressions of the unique nature of the mind, the
Absolute Body, help us not to fall into this flaw in
understanding.
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THE DIVINE COMING FROM THE HUMAN
We have explained that, to benefit beings, fully
awakened beings, such as the buddhas, spontaneously
assume, in a nonintentional way, various forms on the
level of pure manifestation normally inaccessible to
ordinary human beings. They are called the Body of
Enjoyment. These forms can be diversified: male,
female, peaceful, wrathful, and in several aspects.
These deities come directly from the compassionate
activity of the buddhas. If the deities have a feminine
appearance, they are called goddesses.
From a relative point of view, however, some
deities are considered the result of a human ascending
to the divine. There are men or women who have
embarked on the dharma path, rid themselves of all
imperfections of the ordinary state, and have seen the
qualities of the awakened state bloom within
themselves. They have reached a divine state and
become" gods" or "goddesses."
Tara may be seen as belonging-at least from the
point of view of pedagogical truth-to the latter
category. As we will see, she was first an ordinary
being, then she passed through all of the levels of the
path, and she finally attained the result and became a
goddess.
Question: Do masculine deities more represent the skillful .
means, that is, the compassionate activity, the dynamic pole
of awakening, and feminine deities the "knowledge," the
static pole?
Answer: At the level of representation, in some way,
yes. These representations conform, in fact, to our own
habits of perception. As we perceive the human
gender divided into men and women, deities are also
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presented in masculine or feminine forms to which we
attri bute certain characteristics. However, from the
point of view of the reality of the Enjoyment Body,
means and knowledge are always indiscriminately
uni ted to the essence of the deity.
Question: Deities are often called "yidams" 'in Tibetan.
What does it mean?
Answer: Yidam is a term referring to practice done
with a deity. This designates the deity corresponding
to our wish, to our aspiration, the one with whom we
have a connection.
Question: Does it mean that everyone must choose his or
her yidam or that the lama may give a particular yidam to
each individual?
Answer: In most cases, no. In reality, all yidams serve
the same function, and it is not certain that we have a
strong connection with any particular one. However,
we can say that our karmic predispositions made us
meet one of the great orders of Tibetan buddhism in
particular. The same predispositions make us situate
ourselves within a framework where we will be led to
practice this yidam rather than another. Kagyupas
practice three great yidams, Vajravahari (Dorje Pamo),
Chakrasamvara (Korlo Demchok) and Jinasagara
(Gyalwa Gyamtso). Gelukpas practice Guhyasamaja
(Sangwa Dupa) and Yamantaka, the Sakyapas Hevajra
(Kyepa Dorje), and so on.
However, it may happen that an individual feels a
particular aspiration to practice a certain yidam. In
this case, the person will practice this yidam
regardless of the school it is associated with. It can
also happen, although it is not frequent, that a lama,
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having discerned a special connection, gives a
particular yidam to a disciple to practice.
This was the case for Birwapa who first began
practicing Chakrasamvara. After some time, he had
such bad dreams that he preferred to give up all
practice. He was then requested to practice Hevajra, a
practice through which he quickly attained realization.
This does not mean that Chakrasamvara was a bad
yidam, but that Birwapa in his past lives had a weak
connection with Chakrasamvara whereas he had
already acquired a great practice of Hevajra. This
made the result happen sooner. It was then necessary
for him to give up Chakrasamvara to practice Hevajra.
Generally, connections are not that obvious.
Question: Among the yidams mentioned, we do not find
Tara. What is her place?
Answer: Tara (Drolma), like Manjushri Gam pal yang)
and Avalokiteshvara (Chenrezig) are yidams common
in all orders and for all Tibetan buddhists.
Question: Are male yidams more appropriate for men and
female yidams for women?
Answer: Not particularly. A man may very well
practice a female yidam, a woman a male yidam, and
vice versa.
ABSOLUTE TARA
What we have said about deities in general also
applies to Tara. T~ra's identity, as with that of other
deities, may be envisioned from two different points
of view, that of "pedagogical truth" and "certain
truth." Pedagogical truth complies with our ordinary
mode of thinking and certain truth goes beyond that.
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This double identity of Tara is not a contradiction:
One does not negate the other.
From an absolute point of view, because of her
nature itself as an awakened deity, Tara could not be
other than the nature of our own mind.
Let us clarify what this nature of the mind is. It is
beyond any concept, beyond any mental elaboration,
and beyond notions such as:
- existence and nonexistence
- nothing and something
- material and immaterial, and so on.
Beyond concepts does not mean nothingness. The
nature of mind is the domain of awareness itself, of
the experience itself of pure awareness. No intellect,
no reasoning, no word can grasp it or express it.
However, it is present and cannot be negated.
This awareness, inherent in everyone beyond any
mental elaborations, also is Tara in the ultimate
domain.
Other names are used to designate the ultimate
Tara. She is notably called "perfection of knowledge"
(prajnaparamita).
The perfection of knowledge has no form, it is
emptiness of the Absolute Body (Dharmakaya). This
emptiness, however, as we previously explained, has
the capability to manifest itself purely as the Body of
Enjoyment (Sambhogakaya). It is on the level of the
Body of Enjoyment that feminine deities such as Tara,
Vajravarahi (Dorje Pamo), and many others appear ..
All of them are in essence the perfection of knowledge
or the nature itself of our mind.
It is also said that Tara is the "Mother of all
Buddhas," which refers also to her essence. The nature
of mind, perfection of knowledge, and emptiness are,
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in fact, equivalent terms. All past buddhas have
attained buddhahood by realizing emptiness (or
realizing the nature of the mind). It is the same for
present buddhas and it will be the same for future
buddhas. Thus, Tara- the Tara beyond time, space,
and all concepts-is the mother of all buddhas.
FROM WOMAN TO DEITY
Even if it seems disconcerting, the existence of Tara on
an ultimate level as we have described it, . does not
hinder or contradict her existence on a relative level,
also called the level of "pedagogkal truth."
According to stories of this pedagogical truth,
known through the work of Tananatha/ a 16thcentury lama of great realization and scholarship, Tara
was a woman before becoming a deity.
Her story began incalculable ages ago, in a world
called "Multicolored Light," where the Drum Sound
Buddha dwelled. One of the king's daughters at this
time, called Wisdom Moon, possessed great faith and
devotion to this buddha. For many years, she made
immense offerings to this buddha and his entourage
of monks.
One day, she decided to take the bodhisattva vow
in the presence of the Buddha Drum Sound, that is, to
promise to attain awakening to benefit beings in
infinite ways. The monks rejoiced greatly at her
decision, and considering that she would accumulate
great merit by this activity, advised her to pray in
order to obtain in a future life the body of a man. This
would allow her to benefit beings and the dharma
better than in a female existence.
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Wisdom Moon, distressed by their narrowness of
mind, answered them from the point of view of the
ultimate nature of all things:
Here, no man, no woman,
no I, no individual, no categories.
"Man" or "woman" are only denominations
created by confusion of perverse minds
in this world.
She added that there were many who followed the
path in a man's body, few in a woman's body. "As for
myself," she said, "as long as samsara is not emptied,
I will benefit beings appearing in a female body."
Such was her promise.
Her practice then allowed her to realize ultimate
truth. Having become a goddess, she has placed
millions of beings on the path of awakening each day.
Dwelling for some time in a particular state of
concentration called "concentration that frees beings
from samsara," she was known as "Savioress," or
"Tara" in Sanskrit. It is said that she liberated an
infinite number of beings in the morning and an
infinite number in the afternoon.
In another cosmic era, the kalpa of Perfect Victory,
when Buddha Amoghasiddhi lived, Tara entered
another state of concentration to protect beings from
danger, fears, and demons. This state is called the
"concentration that completely vanquishes demons."
Again, she benefited many beings, providing help as
soon as they called upon her. Because of the swiftness
of her activity, she was known as "Swift and '
Courageous."
Later, during the kalpa Without Beginning, there
lived a monk called Stainless who received the
empowerment of compassion of all the buddhas'
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mind. He became the deity Avalokiteshvara
(Chenrezig). The five Victors, the buddhas who reign
over the five families of awakening, gave him a special
empowerment. This caused Tara to arise from his
heart, coming through this mode of manifestation to
accomplish the buddhas' wishes and work at
benefiting beings during that kalpa. (In some versions,
Tara appears from Avalokiteshvara's tear drop.) For
this re~son, Tara also has the name of "Daughter of
the Worlds' Sovereign," that is, daughter of
Avalokiteshvara.
Tara, the Swift and Courageous Daughter of the
Worlds' Sovereign, has been benefiting beings during
many kalpas by manifesting in various ways and
accomplishing various activities through particular
states of concentration.
Such is Tara's story in the domain of manifestation.
Question: Generally, a "pure land," a paradise, is attri buted
to the deities and they dwell in it. What is Tara's pure
land?
Answer: Tara dwells, as Avalokiteshvara, in the pure
land of Potala, manifested on Earth by a mountain in
Southern India. Nevertheless, a pure land is attri buted
to Tara. It is a particular domain, called "Harmony of
Turquoise Leaves.,,4
TARA'S HELP AGAINST FEAR
Having infinite compassion for suffering beings,
bodhisattvas make wishes that lead them to act in one
way rather than another to actualize their wishes.
Likewise, Tara's main activity is to brush away fear
and danger.
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What is fear? How does Tara help deal with it? It
is what we will try to understand now.
During our existences, we face two kinds of fear.
- The first fear is not obtaining what we wish.
- The second fear is not being able to eliminate
danger, threat, or circumstances painful for us.
Because of one or another of these reasons, we
often find ourselves afraid at various levels, from
worry to fright.
If we look closely, we see that the real cause of fear
is none other than the ego itself, or more exactly,
attachment to the ego, the "I." The greater this
attachment, the more numerous are the fearful states.
All that threatens "me" in one way or another
engenders fear. All that "I" risks to lose engenders
fear. Fear and a belief in the reality of "I," fear and
attachment to oneself are very closely related.
On this profound cause, various factors are grafted
such as circumstances of existence but also some
karmic predispositions. The karmic predispositions
sometimes engender fear apparently without reason,
or a state of almost permanent worry that no outer
event can justify.
The correlative to any feeling of fear is the desire
to find help and protection. However, the outside
world is often impotent to provide us any of the help
we want, to such an extent that fear leads to despair.
What the world cannot give us, the reality that
transcends this world, incarnated by the buddhas and
bodhisattvas, can give us. Particularly, the activity of
all the buddhas directed toward elimination of fear
and danger is found within the divine person of Tara.
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Tara has the powe r to help us. Howe ver, this
power is effective only if we trust it. For Tara to help,
we must pray to her and call upon her from the
bottom of our hearts witho ut reserve or doubt ing her
intervention. The deity's response depen ds on the
strength of our trust. If doubt inhabits our mind, there
is a small probability that Tara's blessing and
protection will come to us, where as a trust witho ut
reserve and a complete conviction, will insure that
they will certainly come.
In reality, all world ly appearances are a
manifestation of our mind. Fear, apprehension, and
danger are also a manifestation of our mind, just like
in a bad dream the mind creates both the threat and
the one who feels it.
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The creative faculty of our mind is very strong. It
is this strength that exerts itself in the fervent prayer
addressed to Tara. Together with Tara's immense will
to help beings, this strength makes possible the
protection. The help that we receive is the fruit of the
meeting of these two factors, the force of our devotion
and Tara's compassion.
We must understand that if phenomena had reality
in themselves, no change would be possible. By the
fact that they are empty in nature, they are only
expressions of the deep conditioning of our mind that
can be changed. This explains the efficiency of our
prayer and Tara's answer.
It is also why, when the nature of the mind is
realized, all fear disappears.
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THE EIGHf GREAT FEARS
Traditionally, it is said that Tara protects against the
eight great fears or eight great dangers such as
elephants, lions, snakes, fire, water, thieves, fetters
(imprisonment), and demons. These eight dangers
were certainly the greatest challenge one could meet
in ancient India. Nevertheless, the list is not
exhaustive. Tara protects against all dangers whatever
they are when we call upon her to help us and pray
to her with confidence.
There is another interpretation of the eight great
fears. Firstly, they may refer to physical dangers in
our life, secondly, they designate the afflicting
emotions in our mind, which are major dangers
because they may lead us to accomplish negative acts.
They are the causes, because of the karmic
consequences of these acts, of all our future suffering.
The following equivalences have been established:
= blindness
- elephants
= pride
- lions
- fire
= anger
= jealousy
- poisonous snakes
- thieves
= erroneous philosophies
- imprisonment
= greed
= desire and attachment
- water
= doubts
- demons
To protect us from inner fears, Tara dissipates the
afflicting emotion itself, which is the cause of, as well
as the suffering that is the result.
Many stories from ancient times report Tara's
intervention to save a person from a threatening
snake, another from the danger of fire, another from
the demons' attacks, and so on. However, for those
who pray to her, the helping activity of Tara remains
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today what it was in the past. Some contemporary
stories illustrate that.
TARA AND THE TOOTHACHE
When Kalu Rinpoche 5 was at Palpung retreat center in
Kham-he was probably 17 or 18 years old at the
time-he had a terrible toothache. Tara appearing to
him in a dream said, "You have no particular
devotion to me nor do you do my practice. However,
I will give you a mantra to recite 10,000 times, and
you will be healed." Kalu Rinpoche complied and the
next day was completely relieved of his toothache.
He thought that Tara's intervention was because of
a connection he had with her in a past life since he
had not placed any importance on her until then.
From that time on, he was much devoted to Tara.
TARA'S JUDICIAL SUCCESS
Travelers passing through Darjeeling may have seen
the Bellevue Hotel at the top of the city. The hotel
belongs to Mr. Lhawang, a Tibetan whose mother had
great devotion to Tara. Everyone called her Amala,"
"Mother."
Every day, Amala recited the praise to the deity,
and each year made a large donation to monasteries
sponsoring recitation of 100,000 praises. She did not
know the dharma very well but her faith in Tara was
extraordinary.
She belonged to a family of Tibetans who had
settled in India a long time ago, and her husb and had
important responsibilities in the colonial British
administration. At the time of independence, most of
the British decided to leave India quickly so many of
her husband's British friends sold their houses in the
II
- 26 -
Darjeeling and Kalimpong areas to her at a cheap
price. The wealth of Amala's family was, and still is,
well-known in Darjeeling.
Later, the validity of the property rights was
contested, resulting in litigation. Amala was an
educated woman, a lawyer, who could speak and
write fluently in English even better than in Tibetan,
which she could write phonetically when needed.
However, during these trials, Amala relied more on
Tara's protection than on her skills as a business
woman. She gladly admitted that she prayed to Tara
before every court trial, and never lost a single one.
One of the trials, in particular, concerned a great
sum of money, 100,000 rupees held by a bank
(equaling at that time 10,000 US dollars, which was a
considerable amount in India). Amala spent several
months in Calcutta awaiting the trial. The day before
the judgment, a young woman appeared to her in a
dream and told her, "Do not worry, tomorrow
everything will be fine."
The next day, not only was the judgment favorable
but because of a procedure she was never able to
explain, she received not 100,000 rupees but 300,000!
For her, there was no doubt that the young woman
who came to comfort her in the dream was none other
than Tara, and that the multiplication of rupees was
also due to the deity's astuteness.
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I
~
{
Tara's torma
The .deities ' tormas (or tentor) are symbolic figures made of
dough or clay, adorned with circular ornaments chiseled in
colored butter, They represent the deity's presence on the shrine.
- 28 -
In Sonada, Kalu Rinpoche's monastery in India
near Darjeeling, Amala donated a great Tara statue
surrounded by smaller representations of twenty-one
Taras that can still be seen in the temple. Her devotion
to Tara was so exclusive that, Kalu Rinpoche, having
a Padmasambhava statue placed above them for a
while, was told by her that this was not acceptable.
For six years, Amala was the benefactor of the two
Sonada retreat centers, providing food and all that
was necessary for the twenty or thirty meditators
there. She herself stayed in retreat for three years in a
small house at the foot of the monastery. There, she
assiduously prayed to Tara. She would sit, not facing
the shrine, but perpendicularly to It. One day, she
came to see Khenp06 and myself requesting that we
quickly go to her retreat house. As she would talk a
lot about unnecessary things, we doubted the
importance of what she wanted to communicate.
However, we followed her. She ushered us inside,
asked us to close the door and said, "Look at my
shrine!" In fact, something extraordinary had
happened. Tara's torma, instead of remaining in its
normal position, had spontaneously turned very
slowly toward Amala.
Amala died at an old age while visiting her
daughter who was working at the Indian Embassy in
Madrid.
Amala's story is filled with teachings. Most of her
life, she was a woman attached to worldly wealth and
money, praying ceaselessly for Tara to conserve or
increase what she owned. Her motivation was neither
deep nor generous. She was not thoughtful of others
or her future destiny. However, by continu(;>us
devotion to Tara and by keeping the deity in her
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heart, she received Tara's blessing, and her mind
changed little by little. Toward the end of her life, she
met Kalu Rinpoche. She had no lama to guide her
until then: She detached herself from material
belongings, sincerely turned to the dharma, and
remained in retreat. Up to that time she was tied up
with her wealth, but then she made large offerings to
the Sonada monastery and retreat centers.
Such is Tara's blessing, that it turns her devotees
toward their own good beyond their limited wishes.
TARA REUNITES A FAMILY
At Rumtek Monastery in Sikkim, there lives 50-yearold Khenpo Gyurme Tsultrim who testifies to the
protection Tara gave to his family.
In 1960, Kham (the eastern province of Tibet) was
invaded by the Chinese. As a young boy, Khenpo had
to flee the area in company of his family and others.
It was a difficult and long trek.
One day, they found themselves facing a
contingent of Chinese troops in a narrow valley. They
could not avoid the troops and decided to press
forward, ready to die if necessary. They swallowed
sacred pills that they carried with them, checked that
. the sacred objects they had were secured, and
launched their horses. Rifles rang out. There were
people dead on both sides.
Of the hundred Khampas in the small caravan,
seventy made a successful escape and gathered on a
nearby mountain. Khenpo Kyurme Tsuitrim, his
father, and one of his sisters were among them. His
mother and another sister were missing. His father
and other men went to look for them but were
- 30-
unsuccessful. Were they killed? Were they made
prisoners by the Chinese? No one knew.
.
One year later, after much difficulty, Khenpo
Gyurme Tsultrim, his father, and his sister finally
arrived in India where they obtained refugee status.
For twenty years, they heard nothing of the mother
and sister who remained in Tibet. They believed them
to be dead.
Actually, they had been arrested by the Chinese
and led back to Kham. Without any protection, they
lived as best as they could working for almost nothing
for people who needed their services. The Chinese law
against religious practice at that time was extremely
severe. Anyone caught whispering prayers or reciting
mantras was immediately punished. Khenpo Gyurme
Tsultrim's mother, however, had great faith in Tara.
As often as she could, she secretly recited Tara's praise
and mantra. Notably, when she watched over sheep
and yaks, she arranged to give something to eat to the
children who went with her and asked them to watch
the animals grazing nearby. As soon as she was alone,
she recited prayers and humbly asked Tara to find her
lost husb and and children. At night, while others were
asleep, she prayed even more.
After months and years of supplication, a young
woman appeared in her dream and told her, "Have no
fear, you will find your husb and and children."
Time passed. At the beginning of the eighties, the
Chinese loosened the shackles imposed on Tibet a
little. They opened the borders and allowed exiled
Tibetans who wished to visit their motherl and to
return. Khenpo Gyurme Tsultrim and his father
learned through other relatives that the mother and
sister were still alive and lived in a certain place.
- 31 -
As soon as they could, they went to Tibet and
returned to India with the two women who had been
lost for so long. Prayers had been heard and the
young woman's prophecy in the dream had been
realized.
Surrounded by their family, Khenpo Gyurme
Tsultrim's mother and father passed away seven or
eight years later.
TARA PROTECTS THE CARAVAN
In 1958, I had to go to Tsurphu, the Karmapa's seat in
the Lhasa area. It was there that I studied when I was
13 to 16 years old. The Karmapa7 asked me to come
back to accomplish the traditional three-year retreat on
my twentieth birthday. To go from Bokar monastery
isolated in the high Western plateaux to Tsurphu
would take two months for a caravan.
In the Lhasa area, brown sugar was rare and well
appreciated. For Western nomads, it was easy to
acquire some by exchanging wool and butter at the
Ladakh border. My previous incarnation used to offer
a block of this sugar to every monk when he went to
Tsurphu. This made the monks very happy.
Consequently, I told myself that we should follow this
custom, and we prepared a large quantity of sugar to
take with us.
Besides this precious treat, our caravan carried
many presents for the Karmapa, offerings for rituals,
and all that was necessary for my three-year stay. In
all, not counting horses, we had about thirty mules
and a hundred yaks loaded with two big bags each,
most of them containing fifteen blocks of sugar.
In 1958, the road to Lhasa was extremely
dangerous. We did not fear the Chinese but the
- 32-
Khampas troops who were fleeing with no other
means of subsistence than to take flocks, horses, and
food by force, when they were passing a nomad
encampment or caravan. Given all the animals in our
caravan, as well as food, clothes, and valuable objects
that we carried, we represented an ideal prey for the
Khampas, an encounter beyond their expectations!
To obey the Karmapa, it was indispensable that we
go to Tsurphu however dangerous it might be. Who
could protect us better than Tara? To be assured of
her help, I asked the monks of the monastery, the
nuns of the neighboring nunnery, and the lay people
to come together if they could and recite 100,000
praises. A hundred people showed up, and it took us
about ten days to accomplish the recitation.
.
Then, we left. On our way, on several occasions,
we could not avoid crossing the route used by
Khampas' troops. By changing our itinerary, we were
able to avoid them most of the time. Nomads that we
met were warned of their coming. They tried as much
as possible to save their belongings and herds by
hiding them farther away. Generally, it had no effect
because the Khampas violently forced them to reveal
their hiding places. Talking with the nomads, we also
knew that horsemen from the East would soon arrive.
Although we had been warned, it was impossible
for us to evade them. We went off the path to set up
our encampment but it was not sufficiently hidden to
avoid being seen. From where we were, we could see
clearly the Khampas coming, menacing, and
demanding ransom from the nomads who had given
us a warning. It should have been inevitable for them
to see us. Our white tents, impressive number of yaks,
mules, and horses could only attract attention. For
- 33 -
inexplicable reasons, however, they did not see us!
Certainly we were scared but we never ceased to pray
to Tara and recite her praise.
We took advantage of night to continue on our
way. We finally reached our destination without
further incident.
Even now, when I recall this road to Tsurphu, I am
convinced that our safe journey was due to Tara's
blessing and her kind protection.
TARA'S SNOW
Because of the troubles caused by the Chinese, I did
not stay in Tsurphu to accomplish the three-year
retreat as had been previously decided. I resigned
myself to return to my monastery and prepare to flee
Tibet. Before leaving, again I asked people to recite
100,000 Tara praises.
We took the path to Nepal. About sixty people,
monks and laypeople, accompanied me with horses,
mules, yaks, goats, sheep, and as much luggage as we
could carry.
After three days on the road, and having set up
camp for the night, some men from our caravan
informed me of the presence of Chinese troops ahead
of us. They had just been warned by fleeing Khampas
who had to turn back after an encounter with the
Chinese during which they lost many horses and yaks.
What were we to do? Were the Khampas telling the
truth? Would the Chinese remain in their position? An
alternative road was possible, but was it safer than the
original one?
We accomplished the ritual of Tara and of the
protectors. I then decided to proceed to a "divination
by the dough." In this method, the various
- 34 -
possibilities are written on small pieces of paper and
rolled into some dough balls of the same shape. Then,
a ritual is held during which one holds in one hand a
saucer upon which the balls are placed and makes the
balls turn until one falls on the ground. That ball gives
the answer. In this case, we had written two answers
referring to the route we should normally follow,
"danger" and "no danger." The ball containing
"danger" fell first.
Therefore, we had to take the other road, which
was longer, required going through a very high pass,
but was apparently less risky. When we reached the
pass, snow began to fall, causing us many great
difficulties. We had trouble moving forward and many
animals died. We lost several bags. In spite of this, we
were able to get over the pass and finally arrived at
Mustang, a small kingdom of Tibetan culture within
Nepal.
Later, I learned that the Chinese were really
pursuing us and we were close to being caught. Only
the snowstorm hindered them from overtaking us. For
us, the storm made everything difficult. Just after we
passed through, the route was impassable. If the snow
had not fallen or had fallen slightly earlier or slightly
later, we might have been caught.
I could not help thinking that this timely
snowstorm could only be Tara's blessing; Tara, whose
help we did not cease to invoke.
Many Tibetans think that they owed their safety
only to Tara's protection when they were forced to flee
their country. The savioress' intervention in favor of
those who pray to her is not a rare incident
concerning isolated cases. Many people report the help
they have received from her.
- 35 -
Question: Tara IS activity is to protect. There are also
"protectors" like Mahakala and others whose function is
also by definition to protect. What is the difference between
them?
Answer: The protection that happens is slightly
different in the two cases. Mahakala and other
protectors have as a main activity to specifically brush
away obstacles to the practice and diffusion of the
dharma, whatever outer or inner circumstances that
would harm the dharma. Tara's protection is more
personal if we can say that. She watches over us in all
difficult circumstances in our lives.
THE SAffiB WITH A RAINBow BODY
Question: Sometimes, Westerners think that some cultural
differences prevent them from entering as easily as the
Tibetans themselves into the practice of Tibetan buddhism,
especially in regard to deities. They may believe, for
instance, that Tara IS protection is more accessible to a
Tibetan than to a Westerner. Is there really a barrier?
Answer: Kunu Lama Tenzin Gyatso, who passed away
at a very old age in the seventies, was a learned and
respected lama. Because he was born in the Kunu
area, between Kashmir and Ladakh, he was called
"Kunu Lama." Besides.the Tibetan language, he knew
Sanskrit and had perfectly studied the doctrines of all
the lineages of Tibetan buddhism as well as Hindu
doctrines. The Dalai Lama himself received many
teachings from him. At the same time, Kunu Lama led
a simple life. He had no monastery, not even a
servant, and discreetly dressed like the pundits of
Northern India where he spent the greatest part of his
life.
- 36 -
During a teaching Kunu Lama was glvmg in
Bodhgaya,s he told the following story. In the mid
forties, he was living in .Kham where he was in
retreat. His residence was a two-story house. He lived
on the first floor, and the second floor was occupied
by a Westerner who also practiced buddhism. At this
time, that was a very rare occurrence. Both were
receiving instructions from a Nyingmapa lama called
Khenpo Shenga. Kunu Lama and the local people
habitually called the foreigner "Sahib," using the
respectful term used by Indians for Westerners.
Who was this sahib? From where did he come? I
do not know if Kunu Lama ever precisely answered
this. Maybe he was someone who fled from India
during World War II, maybe he was a
missionary-there were a few of them in Kham-who
had entered Tibetan buddhism.
It happened that no one had seen the sahib for
several days. Finally, someone noticed rainbows
stemming from his window. Puzzled, Kunu Lama and
a few others went to the second floor, opened the
door, and sure enough, in the sahib's place, they saw
only rainbows. They shook his clothes from which
more small rainbows escaped falling like rain! Of the
sahib, only nails and hair were left.
It is what is called obtaining the "rainbow body,"
an extraordinary result of the practice that ends with
the dissolution of the body in rainbows at the time of
death.
If a sahib from the twentieth century was able to
obtain a rainbow body, then access to Tibetan
buddhism is not limited by cultural barriers. From the
very moment they practice diligently, Westerners can
certainly obtain results. Especially, they can pray to
- 37-
Tara being certain to be heard. Tara's blessings do not
know any borders.
WONDROUS REPRESENTATIONS
In Tibet, many stories relate of Tara's statues or
paintings that miraculously have spoken out.
One of the most famous stories is that of a fresco
representing White Tara painted on the wall of the
main temple of Tashi lhunpo, the residence of the
Panchen Lamas in the city of Shigatse.
Following the passing away of one of the Panchen
Lamas, monks were performing rituals in his honor.
Their throats choked with sadness, they had
difficulties uttering his name when it occurred in the
text of a praise concerning him. It is said that Tara's
fresco, taking over and encouraging them, uttered
very loudly the name of the Panchen Lama every time
it was required.
Another extraordinary phenomenon linked to Tara
is the appearance of "spontaneous sculptures," that is,
representations of the deity, which appear by
themselves on rock walls without intervention of a
human hand.
One of them is very recent. It is in Nepal, west of
Kathmandu, beneath Yanglesho cave (famous for
having sheltered Padmansambhava).
The first time I went on a pilgrimage to Yanglesho,
in 1972, Tara's appearance on the rock wall had not
yet begun. Now, after a slow unexplained process, the
form of the deity thirty centimeters high appears more
and more clearly, exiting out of the rock. A small
temple has been built to protect and honor it.
Why does this statue produce itself today? Maybe
it is a kind of response to the prayer that many
- 38 -
buddhists address to Tara requesting her protection in
these difficult times.
VARIOUS TARA AsPECTS
Tara's main aspect is that of Green Tara, peaceful, a
form with two arms, one face, and two legs. We have
seen that her main activity is to protect beings from
fear and danger.
There are indeed many other forms of Tara such as
the twenty-one Taras corresponding to the twenty-one
stanzas of the praise, the eight Taras each protecting
against one of the eight great fears, Tara Yogini, and
so on. These various forms are not, however, other
Taras, but various aspects taken on by the same deity
according to circumstances.
Although there are specific rituals for certain forms
of the deity, when we pray to Tara, we simply address
Green Tara thinking that she accomplishes all the
activities we are requesting.
Other deities as Bhrikuti (Thronyerchen), Kurukulla
(Kurukulle), Sitatapattra (Dukkar), Ushnishavijaya
(Namgyalma), Vishvamata (Natsok Yum, Kalachakra's
consort), Naraitma (Damema), and so on are also
sometimes seen as Tara's manifestations.
Truly, if forms vary, feminine deities are all of one
essence, all being the Prajnaparamita, perfection of
knowledge.
- 39 -
Bhrikuti.
Bhrikuti, "the One who frowns her eyebrows," appeared at the same
time as Tara from Avalokiteshvara's (Chenrezig) teardrop and is often
considered as an aspect of the deity.
- 40 -
WHITE TARA
Among various Taras, White Tara occupies a special
place beside Green Tara. She enjoys great popularity
because of her activity, which is to provide a long life.
That is the reason why her empowerment is sought
and her practice performed when one's health is
threatened. Also, a thangka or a statue of White Tara
is offered to a lama as a prayer for his or her long life.
White Tara is not a deity different from Tara. There
is no separate story recounting her origin, and her
activity is only a particular aspect of the protectioh
.
granted by the deity.
Her mantra is also the same as Green Tara's, OM
TARE TUTTARE TURE SOHA, even if we add to it an
ending particular to the request of long life, MAMA
AYU PUNYE JNANA PUTRIN KURU SOHA.
White Tara is also called Chintamattra Chakra, the
"Wheel Accomplishing All Wishes." This name comes
from the way the root mantra is placed in her heart.
The ten letters are effectively placed. vertically on the
ten spokes of a wheel placed horizontally, eight of
them going from the hub to the rim as the spokes of
an ordinary wheel, the other two exiting
perpendicularly on each side of the hub. On the
highest spoke, there is the syllable OM, under the
lowest spoke, the syllable HA, on the other spokes the
eight other mantra's syllables, TA RE TUT TA RE TU RE
SO.
WHITE TARA ORDERS STATUES
The following story illustrates the specific activity of
White Tara.
A Kadampa Geshe dreamed that he saw the sun
rise in the West and set in the East. He mentioned the
- 41 -
dream to a lama who told him that the dream was
unauspicious, that it was a sign of death. Worried, the
Geshe consulted a palm reader. Observing the lines of
his hands, the palm reader declared to the Geshe that
he had only three years to live.
Fearful of this prediction, the Geshe thought that
from now on he had no more time for studying or
engaging in other activities and that he must devote
himself exclusively to practice. He went to see a lama,
told him of his dream and the indications of the lines
of his hands, and explained that he wanted to devote
whatever time he had left to live to a practice that will
quickly bring him near awakening.
"Your worry is useless," answered the lama.
"There is a White Tara practice that prolongs life. Do
it, and everything will be fine."
The Geshe followed this advice so well that he
soon had a vision of the deity who declared that he
would live to be sixty years old.
As his sixtieth birthday approached, the Geshe
turned his mind to Tara. Tara again appeared to him
and said that if he was to make a statue of her, he
would add ten more years to his life. So he did. Ten
years later-at the age of seventy-the same process
was repeated. Requested to realize a new statue, he
obtained ten more years.
Finally, on his eightieth birthday, fifteen more
years were all that was left for him, so he lived to be
ninety-five years old before he died.
TARA'S SYMBOLISM
The deity's form, colors, and attri butes are associated
with a symbolism called the "pure sense."
- 42 -
Green Tara
- 43 -
The symbolism of Green Tara and White Tara are as
follows:
Green Tara
Her green color is that of the awakened activity, active
compassion (Tara is also the consort of Amoghasiddhi
who reigns over the activity family). Green indicates
that Tara acts for the benefit of those who pray to her
with the swiftness of wind.
The left bent leg represents renouncing conflicting
emotions. The right half bent leg shows that Tara is
ready to stand up to provide help to beings. The
symbolism of the legs tells us that Tara, although
totally free from the imperfections of samsara, remains
. in samsara to help all those who suffer.
With the right hand, she performs the giving
mudra, signifying that she bestows ordinary
accomplishments (supernormal powers) and sublime
accomplishments (realization of the nature of the
mind). Her left hand accomplishes the refuge mudra,
thumb and ring finger are joined to symbolize the
union of skillful means and knowledge. Her other
fingers are held up to represent the Three Jewels:
Buddha, Dharma, and Sangha.
The stems of the lotuses she holds with her hands
indicate that all the qualities of realization have fully
bloomed within her.
Her charm and beauty reveal that she is the
mother of all buddhas and her compassion for all
beings .is uninterrupted.
The ornaments (silks and jewels) she wears bear
witness of her masterful qualities and activity.
Her straight back shows that her meditation is
similar to the diamond that never falters.
- 44 -
The moon behind her symbolizes the fullness of
inexhaustible happiness.
White Tara
White Tara differs from Green Tara. Besides the
difference in color, she has seven eyes. Three are on
the face, two on her palms, .t wo on the soles of her
feet, and she sits in the vajra posture. The symbolism
of these particularities is as follows.
White color: absence of the two veils (conflicting
emotions and dualistic knowledge)
Seven eyes: She sees reality through the three doors
of liberation (emptiness, absence of characteristics,
absence of wishes) and generates compassion by
means of the four unlimited qualities of the
bodhisattvas (love, compassion, joy, and equanimity).
- 45 -
White Tara.
On the thangkas, White Tara is recognized at first glance by her color.
When we face a statue or a drawing, it is easy to distinguish White
Tara from Green Tara. Green Tara's legs are in the Bodhisattva Posture
(right leg in front) and she has only two eyes; White Tara sits in the
lotus posture and has seven eyes including one on her forehead.
- 46 -
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