The Flowing Water of the Ganga
A Thorough Praise to the Thirty-Five Sugatas
Composed by Ngulchu Dharmabhadra
with additions by Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche
Homage to Guru Manjusghosha!
Endowed with a golden hue, with your hand in the earth pressing mudra,
You purify the misdeeds of ten trillion eons1, and
You are the splendor of this suffering world:
Supreme Guide, Pinnacle of the Shakyas, to you I prostrate!
Blue bodied, holding a vajra with both hands,
You purify the misdeeds of ten thousand eons, and
You are the splendor of buddhafield Essence of Space in the upper direction:
Thoroughly Destroying with Vajra Essence, to you, I prostrate!
White bodied, holding a vajra and a sun,
You purify the misdeeds of twenty-five thousand eons, and
You are the splendor of buddhafield Existent Jewel in the east:
Radiant Jewel Who Clears Away Darkness, to you I prostrate!
Blue bodied, holding a naga-tree and a snake,2
You purify the misdeeds of eight eons, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Filled with Nagas in the southeast:
Dharmadhatu King, Lord of the Nagas, to you I prostrate!
Yellow bodied, holding a scripture and a sword,
You purify all misdeeds of speech without exception, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Endowed with Courage in the south:
Army of Heroes who Destroys All Discordant Conditions, to you I prostrate!
Orange bodied, holding a sun and a lotus,
You purify all misdeeds of the mind without exception, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Endowed with Joy in the southwest:
Delights in the Magnificence of the Joy of Dharma, to you I prostrate!
Red bodied, holding a jewel and a fire mandala,
You purify all misdeeds of creating schisms in the sangha, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Endowed with Illumination in the west:
Blazing Jewel Fire, to you I prostrate!
White bodied, holding a jewel and a moon,
You purify the misdeeds of one eon, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Beautiful Light in the northwest:
Jewel Moonlight that Clears Away Darkness, to you I prostrate!
Green bodied, each hand brandishing an eye,3
You purify all misdeeds of slandering an arya being, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Sound of the Drum in the north:
Demonstrating the Dharma of Observing and Accomplishment, to you I prostrate!
White bodied, holding a jewel and a moon,
You purify the misdeed of immediate retribution of killing one’s mother,4 and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Possessed of Light Rays in the northeast:
Jewel Moon Radiating Coolness, to you I prostrate!
Smoke-color bodied, holding a mirror with both hands,
You purify the misdeed of immediate retribution of killing one’s father, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Pervaded by Dust in the lower direction:
Stainless Perception and Meditation, to you I prostrate!
White bodied, holding a wood-apple plant with both hands,
You purify the misdeed of killing an arhat, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Endowed with Glory in the upper direction:
Bestower of Glorious Exalted Wisdom without Obscuration, to you I prostrate!
Orange bodied, holding a lotus and a sun,
You purify the misdeed of drawing blood from a sugata, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Without Obscuration in the east:
Excellently Pure and Clean without Obscuration, to you I prostrate!
Yellow bodied, holding a moon and a sun,
You purify the misdeeds of ten thousand eons, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Without Sorrow in the southeast:
Bestower of Most Victorious Purity, to you I prostrate!
Blue bodied, atop a water mandala with hands in the mudra of teaching the dharma,
You purify all misdeeds of violating the integrity of a fully ordained female arhat,5 and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Without Stain in the south:
God of the Waters that Absolves the Stains of the Afflictive Emotions, to you I prostrate!
White bodied, holding a water mandala and a mirror,6
You purify all misdeeds of killing a bodhisattva, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Clarity in the southwest:
Deity of the Gods of the Waters that Absolve Stains, to you I prostrate!
Red bodied, holding a lotus and a tree,
You purify the misdeed of killing an arya master, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Possessed of Bliss in the west:
Glorious Goodness of the Completed Two Aims, to you I prostrate!
Orange bodied, holding sandalwood and a wood-apple plant,
You purify the misdeed of appropriating the property of the sangha, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Filled with Beautiful Scents in the northwest:
Glorious Sandalwood Dispelling Longing, to you I prostrate!
Red bodied, holding a sun in each hand,
You purify all misdeeds of destroying stupas,7 and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Endowed with Majesty in the north:
Inestimable Splendor Filling All Realms, to you I prostrate!
White bodied, holding a light mandala with both hands,
You purify all misdeeds that arise because of anger, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Endowed with Purpose in the northeast:
Completely Pure by Nature Glorious Light, to you I prostrate!
Pale blue bodied, brandishing an ashoka tree,
You purify all misdeeds that arise because of desire, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Devoid of Obscurations in the lower direction:
Glorious One Devoid of All Suffering and Sorrow, to you I prostrate!
Blue, holding Mount Meru and a lotus, with your hands in mudras,8
You purify the misdeeds of ten thousand eons, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Devoid of Craving in the upper direction:
Unrivalled Son of Non-Craving, to you I prostrate!
Yellow bodied, holding a flower and a wood-apple plant,
You purify the misdeeds of one hundred thousand eons, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Great and Expansive Flower in the east:
Glorious Charming Flower, to you I prostrate!
White bodied, holding a lotus and a mass of light,
You purify the misdeeds of one thousand eons, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Filled with Purity in the southeast:
Play of Pure Light Rays, to you I prostrate!
Red bodied, holding a lotus and a sun,
You purify the misdeeds of seven eons, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Endowed with Lotuses in the south:
Play of Lotus Light Rays, to you I prostrate!
Pink bodied, holding a jewel with both hands,
You purify all misdeeds that arise from past imprints, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Existent Jewel in the southwest:
Glorious Wealth Enriched with Faith and So Forth, to you I prostrate!
Yellow bodied, holding a scripture and a sword,
You purify all of the misdeeds of the body, without exception, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Endowed With Clarity in the west:
Glorious Mindfulness of Body, Feelings, Mind and Dharma, to you I prostrate!
Green bodied, raising both hands to the crown protrusion,
You purify the misdeed of not being pleased with the emergence of a buddha, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Without Characteristics in the northwest:
Glorious Name Widely Renowned, to you I prostrate!
Yellow, holding a jewel pinnacle and a victory banner,
You purify all misdeeds that arise because of envy, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Clear Sense Faculties in the north:
Victory Banner of the Pinnacle of the Sense Faculties, to you I prostrate!
White bodied, with the earth pressing mudra,
You purify all misdeeds which one caused another to perform, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Endowed with Sport in the northeast:
Glorious Perfect and Complete Subduer, to you I prostrate!
Black bodied, holding armor and a sword,
You purify all misdeeds that arise because of by pride, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Without Afflictive Emotions in the lower direction:
Perfectly and Utterly Victorious in Battle, to you I prostrate!
White bodied, with one hand in the earth pressing mudra and the other in the mudra of granting refuge,
You purify all misdeeds that arise from divisive speech, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Endowed with Glory in the east:
Glorious Completion through Total Subduing, to you I prostrate!
Yellow bodied, holding a sun and a jewel,
You purify all misdeeds of wrong rejoicing, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Manifest Illumination in the south:
Glorious Manifest Complete Illumination, to you I prostrate!
Red bodied, holding a jewel and a lotus,
You purify all misdeeds of renouncing the holy Dharma, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Endowed with Glory in the west:
Jewel Lotus Complete Subduer, to you I prostrate!
Sky blue colored, holding Mount Meru with both hands,
You purify all misdeeds of degenerated commitments, and
You are the splendor of the buddhafield Jewels in the north:
King of the Lord of Mountains Free of Illusions, to you I prostrate!
May the performance of remembering the supreme names, and
Offering prostrations to these thirty-five who went to bliss in the past,
Exhaust all of my karmic obscurations!
Please grant me the results of this prayer!
This marks the end of Ngulchu Dharmabhadra’s original prayer. Everything below are additions advised to be included by Lama Zopa Rinpoche.
To the tathagata, arhat, completely perfected buddha, Renowned Glorious King of Excellent Signs, I prostrate.
To the tathagata, arhat, completely perfected buddha, King of Melodious Sound, Brilliant Radiance of Skill, Adorned with Jewels, Moon, and Lotus, I prostrate.
To the tathagata, arhat, completely perfected buddha, Stainless Excellent Gold Illuminating Jewel Who Accomplishes All Conduct, I prostrate.
To the tathagata, arhat, completely perfected buddha, Glorious Supreme One Free from Sorrow, I prostrate.
To the tathagata, arhat, completely perfected buddha, Melodious Ocean of Proclaimed Dharma, I prostrate.
To the tathagata, arhat, completely perfected buddha, Clearly Knowing by the Play of Supreme Wisdom of an Ocean of Dharma, I prostrate.
To the tathagata, arhat, completely perfected buddha, Medicine Buddha King of Lapis Lazuli Light, I prostrate.
All you thirty-five buddhas and others, as many tathagata, arhat, perfectly completed buddhas as there are existing, sustaining, and residing in all the world systems of the ten directions; all you buddha bhagavans, please pay attention to me!
In this life and in all the states of rebirth in which I have circled in samsara throughout beginningless lives, whatever misdeeds I have done, made others do, or rejoiced in the doing of; whatever offerings of stupas, offerings of the sangha, or offerings of the sangha of the ten directions that I have appropriated, made others appropriate, or rejoiced in the appropriation of; whichever among the five heinous actions I have done, caused to be done, or rejoiced in the doing of; whichever of the thoroughly adopted paths of the ten non-virtuous actions I have entered, caused others to enter, or rejoiced in the entering in; whatever of these I have created, being defiled by these obscurations causes me to return as a hell-being, or in the state of an animal, or in the realm of the pretas, to be born in an irreligious country, or as a barbarian, or among the long-life gods, or to be with imperfect faculties, or to hold wrong views, or to not being pleased with a buddha’s emergence. In the presence of the buddha-bhagavans, who are transcendental wisdom, who are eyes, who are witnesses, who are valid, and who see with omniscient consciousness, I am admit and confess all of these misdeeds, neither concealing nor hiding anything. Henceforth I will abstain and refrain from committing them again.
All buddha bhagavans, please pay attention to me! In this life and in the other states of rebirth in which I have circled in samsara throughout beginningless lives, whatever roots of virtue I have created by generosity, even as little as giving just one mouthful of food to a being born in the animal realm; whatever roots of virtue I have created by guarding morality; whatever roots of virtue I have created by following pure conduct; whatever roots of virtue I have created by fully ripening sentient beings; whatever roots of virtue I have created by generating bodhichitta; and whatever roots of virtue I have created by my unsurpassed transcendental wisdom: all these assembled and gathered, combined together, I fully dedicate to the unsurpassed, the unexcelled, that higher than the high, that superior to the superior. Thus, I completely dedicate to the highest, perfectly complete enlightenment.
Just as the previous buddha-bhagavans have fully dedicated, just as the future buddha-bhagavans will fully dedicate, and just as the presently abiding buddha-bhagavans are fully dedicating, like that I too dedicate fully. I confess all negativities individually. I rejoice in all the merits. I urge and implore all buddhas to grant my request: may I receive the highest, most sublime transcendental wisdom. To the conquerors, the most supreme of humans — those who are living in the present time, those who have lived in the past, and those who will likewise come — to all those, who have qualities as vast as an infinite ocean, with palms joined I approach for refuge.]
Ngulchu Dharmabhadra’s Colophon: All of the colors of the body, hand implements, and the names of the individual buddha fields as expressed in this Thorough Praise of the Thirty-Five Sugatas called ‘The Flowing Water of the Ganga,’ are taken from the great commentary composed by Nagarjuna, similar to the answers given by the Supreme Conqueror the Seventh Dalai Lama Kelzang Gyatso. The benefits are as explained by Gyältsab Darma Rinchen and similar to the commentary by Khedrub Sangyey eshe. The meanings of the names are from the commentary by Exalted Taranatha. This was compiled by the Bhikṣu Dharmabhadra during the waxing of the last summer month of the Male Water Dog year [August/September 1802] in the Ngulchu hermitage Zangpor Zhä at the top of Ganden Monastery
Lama Zopa Rinpoche’s Colophon: The benefits, hand implements and so forth of this confession practiced are arranged in accordance with what was explained by Ngulchu Dharmabhadra. Similar to the considerations of the Lam-Rim lineage lamas, I, the obscured one Thubten Zopa, have added in the very precious name mantras of the Seven Medicine Buddhas for the sake of purifying the severe negative karma accumulated since beginningless rebirths and for the sake of accomplishing one’s goals. Since it is said that the complete four remedial powers have the ability to purify even very strong negative actions, the power of reliance, the power of the remedy, and so forth, they should be connected to this practice.
Translator’s Colophon: The primary text was translated by Shakya Gelong Gyalten Lekden in Singapore, March 2016, at the advice of Lama Zopa Rinpoche. The translation of the names was done in consultation with their names in Sanskrit as well as Nagarjuna’s commentary, and as such they are slightly different than found in other translations. The translations of the names of the Seven Medicine Buddhas as well as that of the confession prayer, both of which were appended to Ngulchu Dharmabhadra’s text by Lama Zopa Rinpoche, were taken from the 2011 FPMT translation.
Notes
1. In Ngulchu Dharmabhadra’s original text this was listed as ten thousand eons (bskal pa chig khri). After consulting the Kangyur, Lama Zopa Rinpoche has made this change to ten trillion. This is the only change Lama Zopa Rinpoche advised to the original text.
2. This verse lists him as holding a naga-tree (klu shing) and ltos ‘gro. This latter is not the more common word for snake in Tibetan, which is sbrul. This is, instead, a translation of the Sanskrit word uragaḥ, which is used for both snakes in general as well as nagas. However, Nagarjuna’s Commentary on the Confession of the Bodhisattva Downfalls (Tibetan: byang chub kyi ltung ba bshags pa’i grel pa) clearly says that this buddha is holding a klu shing and a sbrul sngon po, a blue snake. In most other texts this buddha, although having a blue body, is visualized with a white head, but neither Ngulchu Dharmabhadra nor Nagarjuna mention this.
3. Although in this verse Ngulchu Dharmabhadra says that each hand holds or brandishes an eye (spyan mig re re bsnams), Nagarjuna more clearly says that this buddha sangs rgyas kyi spyan bsnams pa, or brandishes the Buddha-Eye/the eye of awakening, and he goes on to say “Additionally, the word “observing” [in the buddha’s name] references his good qualities, because the eyes of wisdom and compassion are what make clear the nature of reality and the aim of sentient beings.”
4. This is the first of the five actions of immediate retribution. The next three buddhas purify the second, third, and fourth of those actions, respectively. The fifth action, causing a schism in the sangha, was purified three verses prior to this one, by the buddha Blazing Jewel Fire.
5. This is the first of the five actions of near immediate retribution, the remaining four to follow sequentially in the next four verses. The particular deed that constitutes this action is engaging in any sexual activity, including consensual, with a fully ordained nun who is also an arhat. This action is “near” to the action of killing one’s mother, and the remaining four actions of near immediate retribution are sequentially associated with the remaining four actions of immediate retribution in a similar fashion, which is to say that killing a bodhisattva (who has attained the level of certain abiding, Tibetan: nges pa la gnas pa), is near to killing one’s father; killing an arya master is near to killing an arhat; appropriating possessions of the sangha is near to drawing blood from a sugata; destroying stupas (or other holy objects, see note 7 below) is near to causing a schism in the sangha.
6. Nagarjuna’s text makes it clear that the water mandala that this deity is holding is, in fact, the same water mandala atop which the immediately preceding buddha is residing.
7. The Tibetan translation of the Sanskrit term stupa is mchod rten, which can be analyzed as a basis (rten) for praise/worship/offerings (mchod pa), or mchod pa’i rten pa, which is to say any holy object in dependence upon which sentient beings may accumulate merit. When discussing the five actions of near-immediate retribution this particular action is commonly understood as destroying a stupa, but Lama Zopa Rinpoche suggests, following a clarification by Choden Rinpoche, it may also be understood as destroying any objects that are supports for the Dharma. In that way he suggests that the benefit of reciting this buddha’s name purifies not only the misdeed of destroying stupas but those of destroying any base upon which sentient beings may collect merit. This note also holds true for the references to stupas in the common confession prayer that Lama Zopa Rinpoche has appended to Ngulchu Dharmabhadra’s text.
8. Ngulchu Dharmabhadra does not specify which mudras, but according to Nagarjuna they are the mudra of expounding the Dharma to the retinue (‘khor la chos ‘chad) and looking after all sentient beings (sems can rnams la ‘tsho skyongs).