Articles.

Atisha was born in the year 982 AD in East Bengal. Like Shakyamuni Buddha before him, he was born into a royal family and was given the name Chandragarbha,meaning “Moon Essence”. He was later given the name Atisha, meaning peace, by the Tibetan king Jangchub Oe. It is said that at the time of his birth there were many auspicious signs, and that from his very early childhood Prince Chandragarbha displayed an unusually peaceful and compassionate nature, and an aspiration to spiritual practice.At the age of only 18 months his parents took the young prince on a visit to a nearby temple. Thousands of people lined the streets of the city to catch a glimpse of the child. Atisha asked his parents: “Who are these people?” They replied; “They are your subjects.” The child looked on the crowds with compassion and said: “If only they could each have the same good fortune and wealth as I. May they all follow the Dharma!” Clearly this was no ordinary child. According to the Buddhist teachings,our actions and experience in previous lives carry over to influence our experience and personality in this life. In the case of the young prince Atisha, only the experience of very high spiritual realisations carried over from previous lives could explain this behaviour.The young prince also had a special connection with Tara, the female Buddha embodying all the Buddhas’ activities of great compassion. It is said that when he was a baby sitting in his mother’s lap, blue flowers would sometimes rain from the sky and the baby seemed to be smiling at an unseen presence. The great yogis of the kingdom interpreted this as a sign that Tara was appearing to the child. With their son’s obvious connection with spiritual matters, Atisha’s parents feared that he might leave his kingdom to become a monk. Therefore they surrounded him with luxury and, as he grew into a young adult, planned to arrange a marriage for him. Some of the most beautiful young women of noble birth in the kingdom were introduced to him in the hope that Atisha would take a bride. At this time Tara manifested to Atisha and counselled him not to be attached to his kingdom or worldly life in general. She advised the prince that he had a strong karmic potential to become a great spiritual teacher, as a result of meditation and practice in previous lives. Just as an elephant stuck in a swamp cannot free itself due to being weighed down by its own body, so, Tara said, Atisha would be trapped in worldly existence if he used his potential for mundane pursuits. Inspired by Tara’s words, Atisha formed the firm determination to practise Dharma and to attain enlightenment.

Atisha’s search for a master

The prince’s first step on the path to enlightenment was to find a spiritual master who would instruct him in meditation and the Buddhist teachings. However, his father had arranged for a guard of 130 cavalrymen to accompany his son at all times. However, Atisha managed to steal away secretly, pretending that he was travelling to the mountains. He then quickly sought out a number of renowned Indian masters of his day. The great teacher Jetari first gave him teachings on taking refuge in the Three Jewels of Buddha, Dharma and Sangha, and on bodhichitta, the mind aspiring to reach enlightenment for the benefit of all sentient beings. Jetari then advised him to travel to the great monastery of Nalanda to study with the spiritual guide Bodhibhadra. Bodhibhadra gave Atisha brief instructions on bodhichitta, and advised him that to further his practice, he should seek out the great meditator and teacher Vidyakokila, known to have attained the perfect realisation of the wisdom perceiving emptiness. Having instructed Atisha in the vast and profound paths, Vidyakokila then advised his student to study with the great vajrayana master, Avadhutipa. Avadhutipa said that he would give teachings to the prince, but that he should first seek out the famous Rahulagupta, known as the Black Mountain Yogi, for instruction and then return to him later for more detailed teachings on the vajrayana path. The prince travelled to the Black Mountain and found Rahulagupta, a great tantric practitioner, who first tested his new student’s resolve by hurling a lightning bolt at him as he approached! After Atisha had made requests for instruction for thirteen days, Rahulagupta agreed, and gave him the secret name Jhana-guhya-vajra, or Indestructible Wisdom, and the empowerment of the Hevajra lineage. However, he told Atisha that before practising further he should first obtain his parents’ consent to be released from his royal duties. He also arranged for an escort of eight naked yogis and yoginis to accompany Atisha home. Atisha returned to his parents’ palace. For the first three months, he behaved as if he had lost his mind, wandering aimlessly and speaking incoherently. All who saw him, accompanied by his entourage of eccentric yogis and yoginis, decided that Atisha had become a madman and was not fit to govern. One day his father, most distressed of all, could no longer contain his sadness. Approaching Atisha, together with the queen he said to him: “Alas my son! From the time of your birth I believed you would become a superior king and live in great happiness. What has the forest retreat done to your mind?” To his parents’ surprise the prince replied lucidly: “Royal father! If I became a king I would be with you only for this life! In future lives we would never meet, and this life, for all its luxury and wealth would have been for nothing. I wish for nothing more than to practise Dharma purely in this life to achieve liberation and enlightenment. In that way I can properly repay the kindness of you my dear parents and all living beings. Please release me from royal duties so that I may devote my life wholly to the Dharma.” Recalling the auspicious signs and dreams that had attended Atisha’s birth, his mother quickly consented. The king remained unhappy at the prospect of losing his son, and would not at first accept the request, but in time granted his son’s wish. The very next day after receiving his parents’ consent, Atisha returned to Avadhutipa to receive further instructions in the vajrayana tradition from the great master. After seven years’ strong practice of study and meditation, he developed great accomplishments, to the point where one day he began to experience a sense of pride. He felt to himself: “In all the world, there may be no one who understands these texts as well as I!” That night while he was sleeping Atisha dreamed that he was visited by dakinis who showed him countless vajrayana texts, even the names of which he had never heard. Atisha awoke to find that as a result of his dream his feelings of pride had been dispelled.

From India to Indonesia

At the age of twenty-nine, Atisha experienced a vision in which Rahulagupta appeared to him, walking through the wall of his room. The Black Mountain Yogi scolded him and told him that it would be most beneficial for his practice and for the Dharma if he were to take ordination as a monk. Atisha had several more dreams in which his teachers and deities appeared before him and gave him similar advice. Following this direction, Atisha received ordination from the great master Silarakshita shortly thereafter and was given the name Dipamkara Srijnana. Studying the three higher trainings and the tenets of the Great Exposition school under the renowned teacher Dharmarakshita, Atisha deepened his realisations of wisdom and compassion and was known for his pure ethical behaviour. Still, after many years of further study, he found himself more and more preoccupied. For all his progress in study and meditation he still yearned to find the method that would bring him quickly and directly to enlightenment. If there was any place where he might find an answer to this riddle, surely it was Bodhgaya, the holy place where Shakyamuni Buddha had himself manifested the attainment of enlightenment so many centuries before? Atisha accordingly journeyed there on a pilgrimage.Circumambulating Bodhgaya’s great stupa, Atisha experienced a clear vision in which two manifestations of Tara appeared in the space before him. One asked the other: “What is the most important practice for achieving enlightenment?”. The other replied: “The practice of bodhichitta, supported by loving kindness and great compassion is most important.” Convinced that he had now found the answer to his question, Atisha formed the single-minded aspiration to perfect his understanding and practice of the mind of enlightenment, or bodhichitta. After checking thoroughly with a number of scholars and yogis he learned that a high master called Suvarnadvipi (later known to Tibetans as Serlingpa) was reputed to have the most vast and profound realisations of bodhichitta. However, Suvarnadvipi lived on the distant island of Sumatra, in present day Indonesia. Atisha nonetheless quickly arranged to travel there, so intense was his wish to learn more about the methods that could quickly bring him closer to enlightenment.Atisha made the journey to Sumatra by boat with a group of traders. The voyage took more than 13 months and many difficulties arose along the way. At one point an extremely violent storm blew up, driving the boat back in the direction it had come from. It is said that Atisha was able to subdue the storm by the power of his meditative stabilisation. At another stage in the journey, a monstrous whale, said to be an emanation of a demon blocked the boat’s passage, and the voyagers were lucky to escape with their lives. Eventually however, the small boat reached its destination at the very edge of the known world.Having reached the end of his long journey, Atisha did not approach Suvarnadvipi immediately. Understanding the importance of selecting a spiritual master, and following the methods taught by his previous teachers, he first carefully investigated Suvarnadvipi’s qualities by closely questioning his friends and students. Having satisfied himself of the master’s wisdom and compassion, he then approached Suvarnadvipi to request teachings. Suvarnadvipi joyfully accepted Atisha’s request.Through his clairvoyant powers, he was aware that this very special student had been travelling over the sea to Sumatra to receive teachings from him and perceived Atisha’s great potential to develop realisations. Many great offering ceremonies were performed in subsequent days. Suvarnadvipi agreed to provide the transmission of all the bodhichitta teachings held by him, including the secret mind training techniques passed down through a direct oral lineage originating with Manjushri, the Buddha embodying all the Buddhas’ qualities of perfect wisdom. He explained that Atisha should remain in Sumatra and practise these methods for 12 years, prophesying that if he did so he would attain perfect realisation of bodhichitta. Atisha practised strongly for 12 years, fulfilling his teacher’s wishes. Then one day Suvarnadvipi suddenly advised his student to leave Sumatra, telling him: “Noble One, do not stay here. Go to the north. In the north is the Land of Snows!” A new phase was about to begin in Atisha’s life, a phase that would irrevocably change the course of Tibetan history and Tibetan Buddhism.

His return to India

Atisha returned initially to India. He quickly became famous for the brilliance of his teachings, and his unparalleled abilities in debate with other teachers and philosophers. As a result, he was appointed abbot of Nalanda Monastery, the greatest of all Buddhist monasteries in India, and the largest that has ever existed. While a golden age of Dharma reigned in India, in Tibet it was a very different story. The Buddhist teachings had been conveyed to Tibet two centuries earlier but had been suppressed by the evil king,Langdarma. Although the teachings had again been established in the Land of Snows, there was great confusion about correct practice, especially about the way to correctly combine the practices of sutra and tantra. Some people were also misled by teachers who gave instructions in black magic and harmful mantras under the guise of teaching Dharma.

The story of Yeshe Oe and Jangchub Oe

The Tibetan king of that time, Lhalama Yeshe Oe, was a sincere Dharma practitioner.His strongest wish was to re-establish the pure lineage of teachings and rid Tibet of the great confusion that existed. Yeshe Oe therefore requested 21 of the brightest students in the country to travel to India, where there were so many great teachers and pandits. His hope was that some of those teachers could be persuaded to come to Tibet to teach pure Dharma. For the Tibetans, the journey from their high country beyond the Himalayas to the heat of the Indian plains was extremely difficult. All buttwo of them died. While the two who survived managed to significantly further their understanding of Dharma, and returned to Tibet with many new scriptures and teachings, they were unable to persuade any of India’s great teachers to return with them. During their time in India however, they had learned of the great Dipamkara Srijnana. On returning to Tibet they had an audience with their king. They said to Yeshe Oe: “In India there lives a monk of royal birth known as Dipamkara Srijnana. If you could persuade him to come to Tibet, it is certain that he would be of great benefit.” On merely hearing Dipamkara Srijnana’s name, Yeshe Oe was overcome by an unshakeable faith in him and his qualities. He resolved to do all in his power to bring the great teacher to Tibet. It was the custom at the time to offer gold to teachers of the Dharma, as a sign of the student’s respect and aspiration for the teachings. Yeshe Oe therefore set about amassing a great treasure of gold that he would offer to Atisha, to support his request for the master to come to Tibet. Yeshe Oe decided to travel himself with followers to the four corners of his country to search for gold. His journey took him to the border regions however, and the party was captured by the ruler of a neighbouring kingdom, the Garlog khan. Yeshe Oe himself was thrown into prison. Yeshe Oe’s nephew, Jangchub Oe learnt of his uncle’s capture and went to Yeshe Oe’s aid, pleading with the Garlog khan for his release. The khan offered Jangchub Oe ? two options: he would release Yeshe Oe firstly if he and Jangchub Oe abandoned their plan to bring the great pandit to Tibet and became his vassals, or alternatively if Jangchub Oe brought him the king’s weight in gold. Jangchub Oe immediately set out to search for more gold to pay the ransom. After a great deal of difficulty he managed to collect the weight of Yeshe Oe’s body in gold, excluding his head. He returned to the Garlog khan, hoping that he would accept this treasure. The khan flatly refused. The distraught Jangchub Oe managed however to find Yeshe Oe’s prison and speak to his uncle through the locked door. Jangchub Oe was distressed. He explained to his uncle that he did not wish to oppose the khan by making war against him, because so many innocent lives would be lost. Nor did he wish to accept the khan’s demand that they yield to him and give up Yeshe Oe’s plans to bring Atisha to Tibet. Therefore, Jangchub Oe said, he would leave again and search far and wide for more gold so that the full ransom could be paid. Yeshe Oe laughed, and said: “No, please do not give even a speck of gold to this evil khan! I am old now and there is nothing more beneficial that I could do with my life than offer it for the benefit of the Dharma and Tibet. Please take the gold you have already collected and offer it to Dipamkara Srijnana. Please tell him of Tibet’s need for his help. Tell him that our need is so great that I have given up my own life in the hope that he will come to Tibet and teach the pure Dharma! Nephew, please do not think of me. Think of Tibet and theDharma.” Jangchub Oe could not bear the thought of leaving his uncle in prison, but he also perceived clearly that Yeshe Oe’s deepest aspiration was that he try to bring Atisha to Tibet. Buoyed by his uncle’s courage, Jangchub Oe bade Yeshe Oe farewell and resolved to carry out his wishes to the letter.The Tibetans plead with Atisha to travel to Tibet Jangchub Oe, now king in his uncle’s place, quickly set about arranging for a party to journey to India with the golden offering for Atisha. Jangchub Oe himself travelled with the party, led by the translator Nagtso, for much of the way. After many months the weary Tibetans arrived at Nalanda monastery. They were recognised as Tibetans and taken to the house of a Tibetan lama, Gyatsoen Senge, who had lived in India for some years. Nagtso explained the purpose of their journey ? to persuade Atisha to travel with them back to Tibet. Gyatsoen Senge said immediately: “Speak about this to no one. If the Elder Ratnakarashanti learns what you intend to do he will neverm allow it! In order to succeed in your objective you will have to work very carefully and skilfully.” Gyatsoen Senge arranged for Nagtso and his followers to make offerings of gold tothe Elder Ratnakarashanti, which pleased him very much, without disclosing their true purpose. Gyatsoen Senge watched carefully over the following weeks for a chance for the Tibetans to meet Atisha in person without arousing suspicion. One day the opportunity arose and Gyatsoen Senge quickly told Nagtso to come with him to Atisha’s room. There they offered Atisha a world mandala one cubit high, richly decorated with gold. Gyatsoen Senge spoke of the confusion about Dharma in Tibet,of Yeshe Oe’s sacrifice and of the Bodhisattva Jangchub Oe’s heartfelt request that Atisha come to their aid.Atisha was deeply moved by the obvious courage and sincerity of the Tibetans who had travelled so far to make this request. He said: “The Tibetan king is a Bodhisattva.These people have made great sacrifices to benefit the pure Dharma. It would be wrong for me to disregard this request. Still I am now old and have many duties here at Nalanda. If I travel to Tibet I can never hope to return. I will consider this further.Please keep your gold for now.”The Tibetans then departed, while Atisha carefully considered whether it would bring greater benefit if he travelled to Tibet rather than remaining in India. He consulted with Tara, who told him that by accepting the request to go to Tibet, Atisha would produce the greatest benefit for the Dharma teachings and sentient beings. However, it would also shorten his own lifespan. If he were to remain in India he would live to ninety-one, but if he went to Tibet, he would live until seventy-three. Thinking of the benefits that would flow from travelling to the Land of Snows, Atisha decided that he would do so. However, perceiving that if he left too quickly people would speak of the Dharma in India going into decline, Atisha skilfully spoke of his intention to go on a great pilgrimage to various holy places. He then asked the Elder Ratnakarashanti if he could include the many holy sites in Nepal and Tibet in his pilgrimage. After some thought the Elder consented, but on condition that Atisha should come back to India in no more than 3 years. The Elder charged Nagtso with the responsibility for ensuring that Atisha returned within that time. With great joy, Atisha, Nagtso and the rest of their followers prepared for their journey to the Land of Snows.

Atisha in Tibet

With advance notice that Atisha was indeed coming to Tibet, Jangchub Oe rode to meet him with a guard of 300 horsemen. After the joyful celebrations had finished, Jangchub Oe made special requests of Atisha. He explained how the Dharma had declined in Tibet. Some people followed the sutra teachings only and never practised tantra. Others engaged only in tantric practices and neglected sutra. “Compassionate Atisha”, he said, “there is great confusion about correct practice in Tibet. If it pleases you, I request you not to teach on the most profound subjects. Rather please teach about karma, the law of cause and effect. Please teach us those practices that are most easy to follow, and that include the essential meaning of all the Buddha’s teachings of sutra and tantra.” Jangchub Oe also asked a number of questions about correct Dharma practice. Atisha was greatly pleased by Jangchub Oe’s sincerity and wisdom. In response he composed the Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment. Only three folios long, this text nonetheless answered all the questions that had been put by Jangchub Oe and, as requested, distilled all the Buddha’s eighty four thousand teachings of Dharma into a clear simple guide for practice.As a result of Atisha’s activities and his great reputation, the practice of pure Dharma in Tibet quickly flourished. At the end of three years Atisha prepared to return to India as he had promised. On the long road back to India, he was accompanied by Nagtso and his foremost Tibetan disciple, the layman Dromtoenpa. However, on reaching the border with Nepal the party found that their way was blocked as a result of a war that had broken out. Nagtso was very concerned because of his promise to the Elder Ratnakarashanti that Atisha would return. Atisha said that Nagtso should not worry ? he had done everything possible to fulfil his promise. However, Atisha did arrange for a message to be sent through to the Elder at Nalanda explaining that he had been unable to return but could do so once the war had ceased. However, he also wrote in his letter that in his opinion it would be most beneficial if he remained in Tibet. He requested permission to do so, pointing out that if this was possible, he would be able to compose texts similar to The Lamp for the Path. Atisha also enclosed a copy of the text, personally signed, and an offering of gold.When he received the message, the Elder Ratnakarashanti submitted the copy of The Lamp for the Path to his highest and most skilled pandits at Nalanda. They were astonished at how Atisha’s composition clearly and accurately condensed all the manifold teachings of sutra and tantra into a single short text. The great pandits recognised that Atisha would never have composed this work had he not travelled to Tibet. Ratnakarashanti therefore sent a message back to Atisha, consenting to his wish to remain in Tibet.Atisha stayed in Tibet for 17 years in total. His clear and pure teachings initiated a golden age of Dharma in the Land of Snows. Through his foremost disciple Dromtoenpa, Atisha gave the teachings of the stages to the path of enlightenment,known in Tibetan as lamrim. Through these instructions three great lineages of lam.rim teachings were passed down to subsequent generations, including the great Je Tsong Khapa. Tsong Khapa’s lam.rim texts, following the structure and content of Atisha’s tradition, remain the cornerstone of Tibetan Buddhist teachings to this day. In the new millennium, Atisha’s clear and practical methods are taught in places as diverse as India, Europe, the US and Australia.

A Postscript

A small postscript to the Atisha story: as mentioned, legend has it that Atisha was unusually handsome, even in his later years. One story from his time in Tibet tells of how he approached a small farmhouse to request an offering of food. An elderly woman lived in the house. At the time she was milking her cow. Suddenly there was a knock at the door. The cow took fright at the unexpected sound and kicked the full pot of milk over. The old lady, in a rage, picked up a clod of mud from the earthen floor of her house as she advanced to the door, meaning to teach the disruptive visitora lesson. Flinging the door open, and ready to take aim, she found herself face to face with an extremely attractive man. “Oh!” she gasped, letting the clod of mud slip quickly from her hand, “Please come in for some butter tea!”Atisha’s Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment Atisha composed the Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment to cut through the great confusion about the Buddhist teachings that existed in Tibet at the time.It is said that Shakyamuni Buddha taught eighty-four thousand Dharmas ? a huge variety of teachings, methods and meditations encompassing the five paths, the three vehicles and the methods of sutra and tantra. Why did Shakyamuni Buddha teach so many different methods? Every person’s situation is different ? their aspirations, environment, problems, outlook and expectations. So the most effective method for developing inner peace, wisdom, compassion and understanding also varies from person to person. In order to find the methods that are the most useful for us personally, we need to understand how the various teachings relate to one another and which methods are the best to use in each situation in which we find ourselves. If we don’t understand this, we can be as confused about spiritual practice as so many Tibetans were before Atisha travelled to the Land of Snows.From a Buddhist point of view the Dharma includes methods that can utterly transform the lives and experience of every sentient being. If we practise Dharma properly and sincerely we can find the solution to any problem or difficulty whatsoever that we or others might experience. But if we use these methods withoutproper understanding or skill, we may make ourselves more confused. For example, we might have all the ingredients in our kitchen cupboards that we need to prepare a delicious meal. If we try to prepare the meal by simply throwing thevarious ingredients together in a random order, the result will be a disaster rather than a delight! The same principle applies to spiritual practice.

Atisha’s Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment, and the lamrim tradition of teachings that has followed from it, present the various methods in a clear order and according to a progressive structure. It begins with the subjects that are easiest to understand,gradually leading students up to the most profound and subtle teachings of the true nature of phenomena.It is said that the teachings following Atisha’s Lamp for the Path tradition have fourgreat qualities:

1. They show that teachings and methods that might at face value

appearcontradictory, are in fact not. For example, we may be advised not to followcertain methods at the beginning of our practice, but those same methods may be useful at later stages as our understanding develops.

2. They show that all scriptures are instructions for practice. The lam.rim teachings are uniquely practical. Their main aim is not to increase our knowledge of philosophy or other intellectual knowledge. Rather they show us how we can change our perspective on every moment of our lives, transforming all our day to day experiences ? whether they are things that we enjoy or dislike - into opportunities for personal growth.

3.They enable us to understand how the eighty four thousand Dharmas taught by Shakyamuni Buddha fit in with one another, and which method will be most useful for us at any one time.

4. By enabling us to see that all these manifold methods are useful, we become free of sectarianism, imagining that the traditions or practices that we personally favour provide the only valid approach to spiritual practice.Lam.rim was the main method that Atisha taught to dispel confusion in Tibet and it has continued to form the heart of the Tibetan Buddhist tradition for more than 1000 years. Many Westerners find lam.rim especially suitable to the outlook of Western societies and cultures ? in that its teachings are clearly and logically structured, and because its emphasis is utterly practical. If we want to find out how to respond more constructively to that person who is really bugging us at work, or the crazy driver who cuts us off on the freeway, at the same time as developing profound meditative insight, lamrim is for us.

" Om Mani Padme Hu"

1. Life means suffering.

2. The origin of suffering is attachment.

3. The cessation of suffering is attainable.

4. The path to the cessation of suffering.

1. Life means suffering.

To live means to suffer, because the human nature is not perfect and neither is the world we live in. During our lifetime, we inevitably have to endure physical suffering such as pain, sickness, injury, tiredness, old age, and eventually death; and we have to endure psychological suffering like sadness, fear, frustration, disappointment, and depression. Although there are different degrees of suffering and there are also positive experiences in life that we perceive as the opposite of suffering, such as ease, comfort and happiness, life in its totality is imperfect and incomplete, because our world is subject to impermanence. This means we are never able to keep permanently what we strive for, and just as happy moments pass by, we ourselves and our loved ones will pass away one day, too.

2. The origin of suffering is attachment.

The origin of suffering is attachment to transient things and the ignorance thereof. Transient things do not only include the physical objects that surround us, but also ideas, and -in a greater sense- all objects of our perception. Ignorance is the lack of understanding of how our mind is attached to impermanent things. The reasons for suffering are desire, passion, ardour, pursuit of wealth and prestige, striving for fame and popularity, or in short: craving and clinging. Because the objects of our attachment are transient, their loss is inevitable, thus suffering will necessarily follow. Objects of attachment also include the idea of a "self" which is a delusion, because there is no abiding self. What we call "self" is just an imagined entity, and we are merely a part of the ceaseless becoming of the universe.

3. The cessation of suffering is attainable.

The cessation of suffering can be attained through nirodha. Nirodha means the unmaking of sensual craving and conceptual attachment. The third noble truth expresses the idea that suffering can be ended by attaining dispassion. Nirodha extinguishes all forms of clinging and attachment. This means that suffering can be overcome through human activity, simply by removing the cause of suffering. Attaining and perfecting dispassion is a process of many levels that ultimately results in the state of Nirvana. Nirvana means freedom from all worries, troubles, complexes, fabrications and ideas. Nirvana is not comprehensible for those who have not attained it.

4. The path to the cessation of suffering.

There is a path to the end of suffering - a gradual path of self-improvement, which is described more detailed in the Eightfold Path. It is the middle way between the two extremes of excessive self-indulgence (hedonism) and excessive self-mortification (asceticism); and it leads to the end of the cycle of rebirth. The latter quality discerns it from other paths which are merely "wandering on the wheel of becoming", because these do not have a final object. The path to the end of suffering can extend over many lifetimes, throughout which every individual rebirth is subject to karmic conditioning. Craving, ignorance, delusions, and its effects will disappear gradually, as progress is made on the path.

The Noble Eightfold Path

1. Right View }Wisdom

2. Right Intention

3. Right Speech }Ethical Conduct

4. Right Action

5. Right Livelihood

6. Right Effort }Mental Development

7. Right Mindfulness

8. Right Concentration

The Noble Eightfold Path describes the way to the end of suffering, as it was laid out by Siddhartha Gautama. It is a practical guideline to ethical and mental development with the goal of freeing the individual from attachments and delusions; and it finally leads to understanding the truth about all things. Together with the Four Noble Truths it constitutes the gist of Buddhism. Great emphasis is put on the practical aspect, because it is only through practice that one can attain a higher level of existence and finally reach Nirvana. The eight aspects of the path are not to be understood as a sequence of single steps, instead they are highly interdependent principles that have to be seen in relationship with each other.

1. Right View

Right view is the beginning and the end of the path, it simply means to see and to understand things as they really are and to realise the Four Noble Truth. As such, right view is the cognitive aspect of wisdom. It means to see things through, to grasp the impermanent and imperfect nature of worldly objects and ideas, and to understand the law of karma and karmic conditioning. Right view is not necessarily an intellectual capacity, just as wisdom is not just a matter of intelligence. Instead, right view is attained, sustained, and enhanced through all capacities of mind. It begins with the intuitive insight that all beings are subject to suffering and it ends with complete understanding of the true nature of all things. Since our view of the world forms our thoughts and our actions, right view yields right thoughts and right actions.

2. Right Intention

While right view refers to the cognitive aspect of wisdom, right intention refers to the volitional aspect, i.e. the kind of mental energy that controls our actions. Right intention can be described best as commitment to ethical and mental self-improvement. Buddha distinguishes three types of right intentions: 1. the intention of renunciation, which means resistance to the pull of desire, 2. the intention of good will, meaning resistance to feelings of anger and aversion, and 3. the intention of harmlessness, meaning not to think or act cruelly, violently, or aggressively, and to develop compassion.

3. Right Speech

Right speech is the first principle of ethical conduct in the eightfold path. Ethical conduct is viewed as a guideline to moral discipline, which supports the other principles of the path. This aspect is not self-sufficient, however, essential, because mental purification can only be achieved through the cultivation of ethical conduct. The importance of speech in the context of Buddhist ethics is obvious: words can break or save lives, make enemies or friends, start war or create peace. Buddha explained right speech as follows: 1. to abstain from false speech, especially not to tell deliberate lies and not to speak deceitfully, 2. to abstain from slanderous speech and not to use words maliciously against others, 3. to abstain from harsh words that offend or hurt others, and 4. to abstain from idle chatter that lacks purpose or depth. Positively phrased, this means to tell the truth, to speak friendly, warm, and gently and to talk only when necessary.

4. Right Action

The second ethical principle, right action, involves the body as natural means of expression, as it refers to deeds that involve bodily actions. Unwholesome actions lead to unsound states of mind, while wholesome actions lead to sound states of mind. Again, the principle is explained in terms of abstinence: right action means 1. to abstain from harming sentient beings, especially to abstain from taking life (including suicide) and doing harm intentionally or delinquently, 2. to abstain from taking what is not given, which includes stealing, robbery, fraud, deceitfulness, and dishonesty, and 3. to abstain from sexual misconduct. Positively formulated, right action means to act kindly and compassionately, to be honest, to respect the belongings of others, and to keep sexual relationships harmless to others. Further details regarding the concrete meaning of right action can be found in the Precepts.

5. Right Livelihood

Right livelihood means that one should earn one's living in a righteous way and that wealth should be gained legally and peacefully. The Buddha mentions four specific activities that harm other beings and that one should avoid for this reason: 1. dealing in weapons, 2. dealing in living beings (including raising animals for slaughter as well as slave trade and prostitution), 3. working in meat production and butchery, and 4. selling intoxicants and poisons, such as alcohol and drugs. Furthermore any other occupation that would violate the principles of right speech and right action should be avoided.

6. Right Effort

Right effort can be seen as a prerequisite for the other principles of the path. Without effort, which is in itself an act of will, nothing can be achieved, whereas misguided effort distracts the mind from its task, and confusion will be the consequence. Mental energy is the force behind right effort; it can occur in either wholesome or unwholesome states. The same type of energy that fuels desire, envy, aggression, and violence can on the other side fuel self-discipline, honesty, benevolence, and kindness. Right effort is detailed in four types of endeavours that rank in ascending order of perfection: 1. to prevent the arising of unarisen unwholesome states, 2. to abandon unwholesome states that have already arisen, 3. to arouse wholesome states that have not yet arisen, and 4. to maintain and perfect wholesome states already arisen.

7. Right Mindfulness

Right mindfulness is the controlled and perfected faculty of cognition. It is the mental ability to see things as they are, with clear consciousness. Usually, the cognitive process begins with an impression induced by perception, or by a thought, but then it does not stay with the mere impression. Instead, we almost always conceptualise sense impressions and thoughts immediately. We interpret them and set them in relation to other thoughts and experiences, which naturally go beyond the facticity of the original impression. The mind then posits concepts, joins concepts into constructs, and weaves those constructs into complex interpretative schemes. All this happens only half consciously, and as a result we often see things obscured. Right mindfulness is anchored in clear perception and it penetrates impressions without getting carried away. Right mindfulness enables us to be aware of the process of conceptualisation in a way that we actively observe and control the way our thoughts go. Buddha accounted for this as the four foundations of mindfulness: 1. contemplation of the body, 2. contemplation of feeling (repulsive, attractive, or neutral), 3. contemplation of the state of mind, and 4. contemplation of the phenomena.

8. Right Concentration

The eighth principle of the path, right concentration, refers to the development of a mental force that occurs in natural consciousness, although at a relatively low level of intensity, namely concentration. Concentration in this context is described as one-pointedness of mind, meaning a state where all mental faculties are unified and directed onto one particular object. Right concentration for the purpose of the eightfold path means wholesome concentration, i.e. concentration on wholesome thoughts and actions. The Buddhist method of choice to develop right concentration is through the practice of meditation. The meditating mind focuses on a selected object. It first directs itself onto it, then sustains concentration, and finally intensifies concentration step by step. Through this practice it becomes natural to apply elevated levels concentration also in everyday situations.

Tara (Sanskrit: तारा, tārā) or Ārya Tārā, also known as Jetsun Dolma (Tibetan language:rje btsun sgrol ma) in Tibetan Buddhism, is a female Bodhisattva in Mahayana Buddhism who appears as a female Buddha in Vajrayana Buddhism.. She is known as the "mother of liberation", and represents the virtues of success in work and achievements. In Japan she is known as Tarani Bosatsu but virtually unknown in China.Tara is a tantric meditation deity whose practice is used by practitioners of the Tibetan branch of Vajrayana Buddhism to develop certain inner qualities and understand outer, inner and secret teachings about compassion and emptiness. Tara is actually the generic name for a set of Buddhas or bodhisattvas of similar aspect. These may more properly be understood as different aspects of the same quality, as bodhisattvas are often considered metaphoric for Buddhist virtues.The most widely known forms of Tārā are:Green Tārā, known as the Buddha of enlightened activityWhite Tārā, also known for compassion, long life, healing and serenity; also known as The Wish-fulfilling Wheel, or CintachakraRed Tārā, of fierce aspect associated with magnetizing all good thingsBlack Tārā, associated with powerYellow Tārā, associated with wealth and prosperityBlue Tārā, associated with transmutation of angerCittamani Tārā, a form of Tārā widely practiced at the level of Highest Yoga Tantra in the Gelug School of Tibetan Buddhism, portrayed as green and often conflated with Green TārāKhadiravani Tārā (Tārā of the teak forest), who appeared to Nagarjuna in the Khadiravani forest of South India and who is sometimes referred to as the "22nd Tārā."There is also recognition in some schools of Buddhism of twenty-one Tārās. A practice text entitled "In Praise of the 21 Tārās", is recited during the morning in all four sects of Tibetan Buddhism.The main Tārā mantra is the same for Buddhists and Hindus alike: oṃ tāre tuttāre ture svāhā. It is pronounced by Tibetans and Buddhists who follow the Tibetan traditions as "oṃ tāre tu tāre ture soha".

Within Tibetan Buddhism Tārā is regarded as a Boddhisattva of compassion and action. She is the female aspect of Avalokitesvara (Chenrezig) and in some origin stories she comes from his tears:Then at last Avalokiteshvara arrived at the summit of Marpori, the 'Red Hill', in Lhasa. Gazing out, he perceived that the lake on Otang, the 'Plain of Milk', resembled the Hell of Ceaseless Torment. Myriads of being were undergoing the agonies of boiling, burning, hunger, thirst, yet they never perished, but let forth hideous cries of anguish all the while. When Avalokiteshvara saw this, tears sprang to his eyes. A teardrop from his right eye fell to the plain and became the reverend Bhrikuti, who declared: 'Son of your race! As you are striving for the sake of sentient beings in the Land of Snows, intercede in their suffering, and I shall be your companion in this endeavour!' Bhrikuti was then reabsorbed into Avalokiteshvara's right eye, and was reborn in a later life as the Nepalese princess Tritsun. A teardrop from his left eye fell upon the plain and became the reverend Tara. She also declared, 'Son of your race! As you are striving for the sake of sentient beings in the Land of Snows, intercede in their suffering, and I shall be your companion in this endeavour!' Tara was also reabsorbed into Avalokiteshvara's left eye, and was reborn in a later life as the Chinese princess Kongjo (Princess Wencheng)."Tārā is also known as a saviouress, as a heavenly deity who hears the cries of beings experiencing misery in samsara.The Tārā figure originated not in Buddhism but in Hinduism, where she, Tārā, was one of a number of Mother Goddess figures alongside Sarasvati, Lakshmi, Parvati, and Shakti. In the 6th century C.E., during the era of the Pala Empire, Tārā was adopted into the Buddhist pantheon as an important bodhisattva figure just a few centuries after the Prajnaparamita Sutra had been introduced into what was becoming the Mahayana Buddhism of India. It would seem that the feminine principle makes its first appearance in Buddhism as the "Mother of Perfected Wisdom" and then later Tārā comes to be seen as an expression of the compassion of perfected wisdom. However, sometimes Tārā is also known as "the Mother of the Buddhas", which usually refers to the enlightened wisdom of the Buddhas, so in approaching Buddhist deities, one learns not to impose totally strict boundaries about what one deity covers, as opposed to another deity.They all can be seen as expressions of the play of the energies of manifested form dancing out of vast emptiness. Be that as it may, Tārā began to be associated with the motherly qualities of compassion and mercy. Undoubtedly for the common folk who were Buddhists in India of that time, Tārā was a more approachable deity. It is one thing to stare into the eyes of a deity who represents wisdom as void. It is perhaps easier to worship a goddess whose eyes look out with infinite compassion and who has a sweet smile.Tārā then became very popular as an object of worship and was becoming an object of Tantric worship and practice by the 7th century C.E. With the movement and cross-pollination of Indian Buddhism into Tibet, the worship and practices of Tārā became incorporated into Tibetan Buddhism. Independent of whether she is classified as a deity, a Buddha or a bodhisattva, Tārā remains very popular in Tibet and Mongolia. And as Ms. Getty notes, one other reason for her popularity was that Tārā became to be known as a Buddhist deity who could be appealed to directly by lay folk without the necessity or intervention of a lama or monk. Thus, as Tārā was accepted into the ranks of Buddhist bodhisattvas, she became popular to both common folk as one to appeal to in daily life, and for monastics, as an entry way into understanding compassion and mercy as part of one's evolving path within Buddhism. (See also Guan Yin, the female aspect of Avalokitesvara in Chinese Buddhism.)Today, Green Tara and White Tara are probably the most popular representations of Tara. Green Tara/Khadiravani is usually associated with protection from fear and the following eight obscurations: lions (= pride), wild elephants (= delusion/ignorance), fires (= hatred and anger), snakes (= jealousy), bandits and thieves (= wrong views, including fanatical views), bondage (= avarice and miserliness), floods (= desire and attachment), and evil spirits and demons (= deluded doubts). As one of the three deities of long life, White Tara/Sarasvati is associated with longevity. White Tara counteracts illness and thereby helps to bring about a long life. She embodies the motivation that is compassion and is said to be as white and radiant as the moon.

Tārā has many stories told which explain her origin as a bodhisattva. One in particular has a lot of resonance for women interested in Buddhism and quite likely for those delving into early 21st century feminism.In this tale there is a young princess who lives in a different world system, millions of years in the past. Her name is Yeshe Dawa, which means "Moon of Primordial Awareness". For quite a number of aeons she makes offerings to the Buddha of that world system, whose name was Tonyo Drupa. She receives special instruction from him concerning bodhicitta — the heart-mind of a bodhisattva. After doing this, some monks approach her and suggest that because of her level of attainment she should next pray to be reborn as a male to progress further. At this point she lets the monks know in no uncertain terms that from the point of view of Enlightenment it is only "weak minded worldlings" who see gender as a barrier to attaining enlightenment. She sadly notes there have been few who wish to work for the welfare of beings in a female form, though. Therefore she resolves to always be reborn as a female bodhisattva, until samsara is no more. She then stays in a palace in a state of meditation for some ten million years, and the power of this practice releases tens of millions of beings from suffering. As a result of this, Tonyo Drupa tells her she will henceforth manifest supreme bodhi as the Goddess Tārā in many world systems to come.With this story in mind, it is interesting to juxtapose this with a quotation from H.H the Dalai Lama about Tārā, spoken at a conference on Compassionate Action in Newport Beach, CA in 1989:There is a true feminist movement in Buddhism that relates to the goddess Tārā. Following her cultivation of bodhicitta, the bodhisattva's motivation, she looked upon the situation of those striving towards full awakening and she felt that there were too few people who attained Buddhahood as women. So she vowed, "I have developed bodhicitta as a woman. For all my lifetimes along the path I vow to be born as a woman, and in my final lifetime when I attain Buddhahood, then, too, I will be a woman."Tārā, then, embodies certain ideals which make her attractive to women practitioners, and her emergence as a Bodhisattva can be seen as a part of Mahayana Buddhism's reaching out to women, and becoming more inclusive even in 6th century C.E. India.

Tārā also embodies many of the qualities of feminine principle. She is known as the Mother of Mercy and Compassion. She is the source, the female aspect of the universe, which gives birth to warmth, compassion and relief from bad karma as experienced by ordinary beings in cyclic existence. She engenders, nourishes, smiles at the vitality of creation, and has sympathy for all beings as a mother does for her children. As Green Tārā she offers succor and protection from all the unfortunate circumstances one can encounter within the samsaric world. As White Tārā she expresses maternal compassion and offers healing to beings who are hurt or wounded, either physically or psychically. As Red Tārā she teaches discriminating awareness about created phenomena, and how to turn raw desire into compassion and love. As Blue Tārā (Ekajati) she becomes a protector in the Nyingma lineage, who expresses a ferocious, wrathful, female energy whose invocation destroys all Dharmic obstacles and engenders good luck and swift spiritual awakening.Within Tibetan Buddhism, she has 21 major forms in all, each tied to a certain color and energy. And each offers some feminine attribute, of ultimate benefit to the spiritual aspirant who asks for her assistance.Another quality of feminine principle which she shares with the dakinis is playfulness. As John Blofeld expands upon in Bodhisattva of Compassion, Tārā is frequently depicted as a young sixteen year old girlish woman. She oftens manifests in the lives of dharma practitioners when they take themselves, or spiritual path too seriously. There are Tibetan tales in which she laughs at self-righteousness, or plays pranks on those who lack reverence for the feminine. In Magic Dance: The Display of the Self-Nature of the Five Wisdom Dakinis, Thinley Norbu explores this as "Playmind". Applied to Tārā one could say that her playful mind can relieve ordinary minds which become rigidly serious or tightly gripped by dualistic distinctions. She takes delight in an open mind and a receptive heart then. For in this openness and receptivity her blessings can naturally unfold and her energies can quicken the aspirants spiritual development.These qualities of feminine principle then, found an expression in Indian Mahayana Buddhism and the emerging Vajrayana of Tibet, as the many forms of Tārā, as dakinis, as Prajnaparamita, and as many other local and specialized feminine divinities. As the worship of Tārā developed, various prayers, chants and mantras became associated with her. These came out of a felt devotional need, and from her inspiration causing spiritual masters to compose and set down sadhanas, or tantric meditation practices. Two ways of approach to her began to emerge. In one common folk and lay practitioners would simply directly appeal to her to ease some of the travails of worldly life. In the second, she became a Tantric deity whose practice would be used by monks or tantric yogis in order to develop her qualities in themselves, ultimately leading through her to the source of her qualities, which are Enlightenment, Enlightened Compassion, and Enlightened Mind.

Sadhanas in which Tārā is the yidam (meditational deity) can be extensive or quite brief. Most all of them include some introductory praises or homages to invoke her presence and prayers of taking refuge. Then her mantra is recited, followed by a visualization of her, perhaps more mantra, then the visualization is dissolved, followed by a dedication of the merit from doing the practice. Additionally there may be extra prayers of aspirations, and a long life prayer for the Lama who originated the practice. Many of the Tārā sadhanas are seen as beginning practices within the world of Vajrayana Buddhism, however what is taking place during the visualization of the deity actually invokes some of the most sublime teachings of all Buddhism.In this case during the creation phase of Tārā as a yidam, she is seen as having as much reality as any other phenomena apprehended through the mind. By reciting her mantra and visualizing her form in front, or on the head of the adept, one is opening to her energies of compassion and wisdom. After a period of time the practitioner shares in some of these qualities, becomes imbued with her being and all it represents. At the same time all of this is seen as coming out of Emptiness and having a translucent quality like a rainbow. Then many times there is a visualization of oneself as Tārā. One simultaneously becomes inseparable from all her good qualities while at the same time realizing the emptiness of the visualization of oneself as the yidam and also the emptiness of one's ordinary self.This occurs in the completion stage of the practice. One dissolves the created deity form and at the same time also realizes how much of what we call the "self" is a creation of the mind, and has no long term substantial inherent existence. This part of the practice then is preparing the practitioner to be able to confront the dissolution of one's self at death and ultimately be able to approach through various stages of meditation upon emptiness, the realization of Ultimate Truth as a vast display of Emptiness and Luminosity. At the same time the recitation of the mantra has been invoking Tārā's energy through its Sanskrit seed syllables and this purifies and activates certain psychic centers of the body (chakras). This also untangles knots of psychic energy which have hindered the practitioner from developing a Vajra body, which is necessary to be able to progress to more advanced practices and deeper stages of realization.Therefore even in a simple Tārā sadhana a plethora of outer, inner, and secret events is taking place and there are now many works such as Deity Yoga, compiled by the present Dalai Lama, which explores all the ramifications of working with a yidam in Tantric practices.The end results of doing such Tārā practices are many. For one thing it reduces the forces of delusion in the forms of negative karma, sickness, afflictions of kleshas, and other obstacles and obscurations. The mantra helps generate Bodhicitta within the heart of the practitioner and purifies the psychic channels (nadis) within the body allowing a more natural expression of generosity and compassion to flow from the heart center. Through experiencing Tārā's perfected form one acknowledges one's own perfected form, that is one's intrinsic Buddha nature, which is usually covered over by obscurations and clinging to dualistic phenomena as being inherently real and permanent.The practice then weans one away from a coarse understanding of Reality, allowing one to get in touch with inner qualities similar to those of a bodhisattva, and prepares one's inner self to embrace finer spiritual energies, which can lead to more subtle and profound realizations of the Emptiness of phenomena and self.As Chagdud Tulku Rinpoche, in his "Introduction to the Red Tārā Sadhana", notes of his lineage: "Tārā is the flawless expression of the inseparability of emptiness, awareness and compassion. Just as you use a mirror to see your face, Tārā meditation is a means of seeing the true face of your mind, devoid of any trace of delusion".