The Drumbeat of Golden Light | The Union of Teaching and Accomplishment Publishing Group

The Drumbeat of Golden Light
Revealed by Nyang Räl Nyima Özer

In the language of India: Suvarṇa Prabhāsa Bherī Nāda Nāma Dhāraṇi. ¹ In the language of Tibet: The Sacred Incantation called, “The Drumbeat of Golden Light.”

I prostrate to the Three Rare Sublime Ones.

One night, in my dream,
The entire trichiliocosm was filled with drumbeats.
All the drums were made of gold,
And their drumbeats roared everywhere.

While I was listening to those drumbeats from afar,
The variety of drums and melodies transformed and blazed.
The blazing light of the drums emerged like daytime,
And the trichiliocosm trembled with the great drumbeats.

All the heavens and earth trembled and shook,
All the great oceans were agitated and stirred up,
All the highest mountains were toppled and destroyed,
All the youthful nāgas became discontent,
And all of space shook terribly.

Since I heard the light of the drums in my ears, like that,
Then, just the greatly powerful can shake the fields,
Whose power is that if not yours, Lord of the World?

Because I had seen far into the realms of the ten directions,
I saw, that under each and every sāl tree²
In every one of those ten directions’ three realms
Resided a venerable buddha,
Each atop a tall, bejeweled dais.
Similarly, a venerable buddha resided
In each and every branch of the sāl trees.
Sitting at the feet of each and every buddha
Were bodhisattvas and their retinues.

Sky flowers fell like rain,
And the gods of the levels of sky and earth
Sang praises with many excellent and pleasant verses.

All those buddhas, simultaneously speaking out
As if in verse, propounded to them
These secret mantra drumbeats.

The sacred incantation of the Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light:

I prostrate to the buddha bhagavān Holy Golden Light.

[This section] dispels all humans, non-humans, gyälpo spirits, and others.

The sacred incantation:

I prostrate to the bhagavān King of the Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light.

The sacred incantation:

I prostrate to the buddhas.

The sacred incantation:

[This section] dispels all gyälpo spirits and interfering spirits.

It is taught that this is to be recited if there is intense harm.
If you recite this toward those who are non-harmers
Then the ripening result will mature on you, yourself.

This sacred incantation is to be recited.

[This section] splits apart the heads of all gyälpo spirits and harmful spirits.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes all sentient beings of the animal realm
To cast aside their oblivious, unwholesome minds;
May the sun of wisdom dawn on them.

By means of This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
May all sentient beings of the preta realm,
Pretas who produce various afflictions,
Obtain elixir.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes a sweet and cooling rain to fall
On all burning and boiling sentient beings;
All their afflictions having been pacified of their own accord,
May they have reached the unsurpassed abode.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes the sunlight of wisdom to emerge
For all desirous and craving sentient beings;
May all their afflictions be pacified.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Pacifies all cutting and chopping
For all cut and chopped sentient beings; ³
May they be offered elixir and healed.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes all sentient beings marked by black lines
To completely pacify their various afflictions;
May they enjoy unsurpassed, extensive happiness.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes the light of a wish-granting jewel to emerge
For all sentient beings that are resigned to darkness;
May they see the moral qualities of shortcomings and misdeeds.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Completely frees from all unhappiness
All sentient beings who climb the iron trees;
May they climb the tree of enlightenment.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes all sentient beings who are showered with a rainfall of weapons
To have been born in this country of Dharma;
May they be anointed with cool, sweet Dharma.

By means of This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
May all those that have moved beyond all types of saṃsāra
And beyond all worldly existence,
Be revered in the three realms.

By means of This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light,
May all sentient beings in all realms of the trichiliocosm,
And, thus, limitless sentient beings
Pacify the sorrows of the realm of the lord of death,
Pacify the sorrows of unfortunate transmigrations,
Pacify the sorrows of impoverished transmigrations, and
Pacify all worldly realms.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Provides refuge for fearful sentient beings;
As, due to the compassion of the enlightened buddha,
A cool and gentle rain fell
Upon the three realms’ sorrows and torments,
May all those afflictions transform to happiness.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light,
Caused interfering spirits to have pacified all their unwholesome minds
And then quickly to have achieved a buddha’s enlightenment;
May they achieve all the dharmas of the Protector.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Has caused all unfortunate beings born in border regions
To have been reborn in central lands;
May they meet the King of Dharma Practice.
May those wicked beings eventually have obtained compassion.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes all deaf, dumb, and stupid sentient beings,
Although they have those hindrances in whichever land they’re born,
To attain wisdom and bodhicitta;
May they abide in the authentic, unsurpassable state.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Establishes all sentient beings clouded by blindness since birth
On the newly illuminated dharma path;
May they meet the pure dharma eye.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes all those people with an eternalistic view
To have minds that don’t waver from a fixed meditation;
May they become close to the bodhisattva virtuous friend
And practice virtue for the purposes of all.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes all sentient beings born in a revered position of high status,
And those born prominent and revered,
To clear away all obscurations;
They have obtained the peace of unsurpassed Dharma.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Frees all from the prison of the three realms,
Severs all their continuums of saṃsāra’s sorrow,
And causes them to destroy and free themselves from all armies of demons;
May they abide in the authentic, unsurpassable state.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes all sentient beings who have heard it
To not waver from bodhicitta and compassion;
May they become parents to the world
With all-pervasive affection.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes all sentient beings who have heard it
To act in accordance with the guru’s advice;
May they shout forth the lion’s roar.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes all sentient beings who have heard it,
Because of hearing it one time,
To purify all their countless heavy negative deeds, and so on;
May they abide in the authentic, unsurpassable state.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes all sentient beings who practice the three poisons
To practice the excellent skillful means of enlightened conduct;
Through this the three realms are showered with compassion like rain.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes all sentient beings in the demi-god realms
To cast aside all minds of possessions, haughtiness, and wrath;
They, through subduing their pride with equanimity,
Unwaveringly practice the mixture of examination and concentration.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes all the powerful and wealthy in the realm of the human world
To cast aside minds of the five sense desires;
May they practice the dharma of the three vows
And evaporate the ocean of sorrow.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Causes sentient beings to eliminate afflictions
And cut the knot of suffering;
Since the three realms are like a prison
Therefore, you have the epithet, “Lord of the World.”

With This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
You pacify all realms of opposing demon armies and
You destroy the vessel of the five aggregates.
Therefore, you have the epithet “Bhagavān.” ⁴

There is nothing since the beginning of time
That is unknown or unseen by your mirror-like wisdom.
Therefore, you have the epithet “All-Knowing.”

By means of This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light,
There is not anyone at all who does not hear you;
All who hear it will attain merit.
Your dharma conquers all creative-causes.
Therefore, you have the epithet “Lion’s Son.”

You remained victoriously under a tree,
And since you tamed the four demons and their armies
You are one who goes forth as a hero.
Therefore, you are the conqueror.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
Has guided many sentient beings.

By means of This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light,
You cast aside all sentient beings’ afflictions;
Therefore, they praise you without break.

By means of This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light
They prostrate to you, whose imperceptible body
Pervades even the infinite by means of its
Shape, name and form, ⁵ and so on.

You have cast aside all five aggregates and body;
Most eternal, to you I prostrate.

Since the nature of dharma is realmless
Those that hear it have no explanation.

By means of This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light,
Since you are both indivisible and perpetually separate
Even those who are devoid of critical analysis
Prostrate to your non-conceptual body.

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light,
Because of compassion, has love for all
Those who have not planted the seed of Dharma,
And for those who have heard the Dharma once but in whom it hasn’t grown.
Therefore, you have the epithet “Lord of the World.”

This Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light,
Because of compassion, has love for all beings.
Although you have subdued the three realms,
May you become a refuge from all suffering. ⁶

Therefore, you who is known as father of sentient beings,
Please pacify the harms of interfering spirits.

Thus it was said.

Durtri Prama Bä Rāja Chhalpa Tiṣṭhatrau Cittarni Rājadura Nying La Bä| Duntir Memo Vāntaya| Shel Gyi Sog Tsa Maraya Bä| Ayamadu Rāja Śhanaśha Yama Jungpo Nän|

The sacred incantation called The Drumbeat of Holy Golden Light is complete. Supratiṣṭha Vajraye Svāhā|

Colophon: The master from Urgyän, Padmasambhava, wrote this in order to benefit all sentient beings during this degenerate time, and in order to overcome the eight types of harm-giving gods and demons, ⁷ especially the possession by gyälpo spirits, that has emerged during this degenerate age.

This was concealed as a treasure in the northern entry house of Khamsum Copper Temple, the pinnacle of Samye Monastery. Later, Lord Rälpachen of Nyang⁸ revealed it as a treasure and, for the benefit of all migrating beings, transmitted it to those oppressed by the eight types of gods and demons and gyälpo spirits. Since this is a fierce command, no spirit such as a gyälpo is able to see any opportunity there in any home that it is merely placed in, because of it being there.

It is said that if this is recited aloud more than three times then spirits such as the eight types of gods and demons, and especially gyälpo spirits, will have immeasurable suffering. This is a very fierce command and a rare dharma, indeed! Samaye Gya Gya!

Translator’s colophon: This text was translated by Ven. Gyalten Lekden at Sera Je Monastery in September 2020 at the request of Kyabje Lama Zopa Rinpoche. It was originally translated by Kendall Magnussen in February 2019, and at Rinpoche’s request to revise the translation I found it easier to retranslate it and compare the two. In transcribing the mantras I compared four different printings of the text to find what seems the most accurate representation of the Sanskrit (which was different in each version). Since mantras can contain a mix of proper Sanskrit vocabulary and grammar alongside mystical, secret vocabulary and grammar, it is impossible to be entirely confident regarding the mantras without consulting an expert in this practice. Some of the mantras also include Tibetan words, and these are indicated by italics. Special thanks to Ven. Tengyur Rinpoche and Ven. Jampa Khedrub for their editing assistance. I ask forgiveness for all errors and mistakes, which are completely my own. Any merit accumulated through this translation is dedicated to all the holy gurus’ continued display of long and healthy lives.

Notes
1. Among the various printings of this text that I could find, the Sanskrit title was transcribed differently, but the most common one was Suvarṇa Bhava Smṛtaṅge Nāma Dhāraṇi. As a general rule I don’t correct the Sanskrit in mantras since they do not need to follow the conventions of classical Sanskrit grammar, but I felt it useful to alter the title as bhava smṛtaṅge bears little to no relation to the words used in the Tibetan title. The Sanskrit terms I used are the most common translations of Tibetan as found in other titles within the Kangyur and Tengyur.
2. Shorea robusta
3. This and the next four verses describe the sufferings of beings born in specific hell realms.
4. The Sanskrit bhagavān literally translates to something akin to “one possessed of excellence,” but the Tibetan translation of the term, chomdände (Wylie: bcom ldan ‘das) literally translates to “conquering, possessing, passing beyond.” It is etymologized as “one who conquers the four demons, possesses the six excellent good qualities, and passes beyond the limits of both saṃsāra and nirvana.”
5. This line actually reads “Form and name and form and so on.” The five aggregates are described as the “aggregates of name and form,” wherein the aggregate of name includes the four mental aggregates and the aggregate of form makes for the fifth. Here the first “form” is indicating “body,” but as there is another word earlier in this verse for body (lus) I chose to translate it as “shape,” although that would more commonly be a translation of the term dbyibs, as shape is, in fact, a sub-division of the form sense-sphere, which, along with the sense-spheres of smelling, tasting, hearing, and tactility are the five divisions of form.
6. The reason the word “although” (Tib.: kyang) is included here is because the action of subduing, or conquering, the three realms and that of being a refuge for suffering seem contradictory, at least according to the conventional meanings of those terms. To subdue the three realms, however, means to rid them of afflictions and so on, so the two actions aren’t contradictory, and the “although” is a poetic way of recognizing the dissonance between the conventional meanings of those actions.
7. There are a number of different lists enumerating these eight, but one of the most common lists is yama, mātṛkā, rākṣasa, yakṣa, kiṃnara, landlord-spirit, tsän spirit, and māra.
8. Nyang Räl Nyima Özer (Wylie: myang ral nyi ma ‘od zer), b.1124/1136 – d. 1192/1203; (BDRC P364)

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