A Sadhana of Je Tsongkhapa
Arranged in Verse
Composed by Panchen Lobsang Chokyi Gyaltsen
Homage to Lama Mañjughoṣha!
Those fortunate beings who desire to achieve the common and supreme siddhis in dependence upon the guru yoga of Lord Guru [Je Tsongkhapa], having already gone for refuge, generated the awakening mind, and meditated on the four immeasurables, concentrating intently on the meaning, should express thusly:
In the space in front, on a jeweled throne blazing with light,
On top of sun and moon discs, atop a multi-colored lotus,
Resides the single father of the conquerors of the three times, Manjushri,
Assuming the saffron-robed form of Conqueror Tsongkhapa.
He has a radiant white body, a handsome, smiling face, and
His two hands, in the mudra of teaching the Dharma,
Grasp utpala flowers atop which a sword of wisdom and volume of perfection of wisdom scriptures are upheld.
Wearing a golden pandita’s hat
And outwardly clothed with the brilliant, saffron-colored three robes of a monk,
His radiant body blazing with the glory of the major marks and minor signs,
He sits with cross-legged posture, his three places marked with the three vajras,
In the center of a brilliant, five-colored rainbow pavilion,
Having the essence embodying all of the three refuges.
With light rays from the letter HŪṂ at his heart
He invites Glorious Lobsang Dragpa, buddha of the three times,
Completely surrounded by all three jewels of refuge, without exception
To abide as the supreme field of merit.
Vajradhara, crown ornament of the glorious hundreds of buddha families,
Pinnacle of the Shakyas, guide of this fortunate realm,
Tsongkhapa, lord of the conquerors of this degenerate age,
To you, indivisible with the supreme guru, I respectfully prostrate.
Offering clouds of all outer, inner and secret offerings of samsara and nirvana,
Actually arranged and imagined, filling the sky, and
My body and resources, together with all merit accumulated over the three times,
I offer to please the whole assembly of compassionate ones.
Whatever negative actions of my three doors that,
Under the power of the afflictions, I have done, caused others to do or rejoiced in the doing of,
With regret and remorse, in the presence of Lord Guru
I confess and henceforth will completely refrain from doing.
In the entirety of myself and others’ wholesome accumulations, and
Especially in all the faultless actions
Of beneficial activity and the holy body, speech and mind of
The Dharma King, Tsongkhapa, I rejoice!
You, who rouses me and all migrators from the torpor of ignorance, and
Who thoroughly clarifies the authentic, good path
In accordance with the dispositions of your various disciples,
I request you to turn the wheel of the profound and extensive Dharma.
Friend who brings about the efflorescence of the lotus field of the benefit and happiness of all –
I request that you, protector, and the sun of your excellent tradition,
Remain for countless eons
In order to clear away the darkness of all migrators in samsara.
I dedicate the merit expressed thus to become the cause of
being cared for by Lord Guru without separation, and,
Having completed the ocean of good qualities of scripture and realization,
To achieve excellent, unsurpassed enlightenment.
Then, recite the Migtsema prayer 100, 1,000 or however many times, along with the visualization.
The essence of all the three times’ sugatas,
Source of all 84,000 heaps of Dharma,
Supreme guide of the entire assembly of innumerable arya beings,
Venerable Lobsang Dragpa, to you I make requests.
By merely hearing your name all obstacles are cleared;
By remembering you, one is protected from the horrors of the lower rebirth;
If one properly relies upon you, you bestow the supreme of siddhis;
To your feet, Lord Guru, I make requests.
Condensing into one the entirety of good qualities and spiritual activities
Of all the countless conquerors’ three vajras,
You manifest through the dance of one wearing the yellow robes of a monk;
To your feet, Lord Guru, I make requests.
With the radiance of your compassion, Gentle Protector Guru,
Enlarge the anthers of the lotus of my mind, thus
Increasing the feast of honey,
The wisdoms, vast, clear, quick and profound.
Bestow upon me your sublime wisdom which, without depending on others,
Distinguishes well the meaning of every word of all sutra, tantra, and shastra,
As well as those wisdoms of listening, contemplating and meditating,
And those three of explanation, debate and composition.
From now, please grant the illumination of that wisdom that
Has crossed to the other side of our and others’ tenets,
Proficient in all topics of knowledge, however many there are,
That omniscient wisdom that destroys without remainder the thick darkness of the two obstructions.
Especially, when the appearance of this life ends,
Having taken rebirth in Tushita, may I uninterruptedly
Enjoy the nectar of the speech of the inconquerable Jampel Nyingpo,
And perfect the oceans of bodhisattva deeds!
Colophon: At the request of a few aspirants, this sadhana of Lord Guru, composed in verse form for ease of practice, was composed by the monk Lobsang Chökyi Gyaltsen, who had unshakeable faith in Lord Guru from the very moment of birth, in the Tushita Palace monastic residence of the great monastic seat of glorious Drepung.
Translators’ Colophon: This text was translated by the scatterbrained dullards Gelong Gyalten Lekden and Getsul Jampa Khedrub at Sera Je Monastery, Bylakuppe, in December 2016. May any merit from this meager translation be dedicated to the long and healthy lives of all of our dear gurus.