JETSUN DAGPA GYALTSEN
HOMAGE TO THE HOLY GURU
I take refuge, from my heart , in the kind gurus and compassionate patron deities, asking them to bestow upon me a blessing. To act without religion is unnecessary. As to the practice of Dharma, I entreat you to hear this advice on parting from the four desires.
The author begins with an invocation and a promise to explain the meaning of the Zenpa Zidel.
you are not a religious person;
if you desire the round of existence,
you have not turned about with conviction;
if you desire for the sake of self,
you haven’t the enlightenment thought;
if grasping ensues,
You haven't the view.
Firstly, moral conduct, hearing and contemplation, and meditation are the three remedies for desiring this life. Put aside the accomplishments of non-religious persons, which are meant for this life.
Morality, if we begin by describing it, is a root cause of the achievement of higher worlds, a ladder to attaining liberation, and an antidote for removing sorrows.
Though resources are not lacking in morality, the moral conduct of one who desires this life is a root cause of achieving the eight dharmas - : with abuse towards the immoral, Jealousy towards the upright, and hypocrisy in his own moral observances, it is a seed for the attainment of evil states. Put aside this sham morality.
A person who practices hearing and contemplating is wealthy in the accomplishment of worth while subjects; he holds a light that dispels ignorance, he has knowledge of the path on which to lead beings, and possess the seed of the Dharmakaya.
Though means are not lacking in hearing and contemplation, their practice by one who desires this life is a wealth of acquired pride. With contempt for inferiors in hearing and contemplation.
And jealousy towards those who do hear and contemplate, he seeks for followers and affluence and gains a root cause of attaining the evil states. Put aside this hearing and contemplation of the eight worldly dharmas.
All persons who practice meditation have the antidote for removing the defilements; they possess the primary cause of achieving the path to deliverance, and the seed for attaining enlightenment.
Though meditation does not lack in means, the meditator who practices for this life is noisy even while remaining in seclusion, blinding intoning words of recitation.
He is slanderous towards those who hear and contemplate, jealous of others who meditate, and unsteady in his own concentration. Put aside this meditation of the eight worldly dharmas.
These lines are in accord with the Abhidharmakosa, where it is written, ’He who possess morality, hearing and contemplation is especially assiduous in meditation’ Thus far, the author has dealt with the distinction to be made between absolute and relative aims (i.e. The desire actually to win enlightenment and worldly ambition to gain advantages of one kind or another). A brief discourse upon the difficulty of obtaining humanity follows next, leading implicitly to the mediation upon death and impermanence.
To attain Nirvana, seek to abandon attachment to the three worlds. To cease desiring the three worlds, keep in mind the faults of Samsara.
Firstly, the suffering of suffering is the misery of the three evil states of existence. If that were well considered, our flesh even would tremble - for , if it befell us, there would be no way to bear it.
Without attaining the virtues of renunciation, people cultivate instead the lower worlds - evil hearted wherever they are.
On contemplating the suffering of change, this is seen to be the going from heavens to unhappy worlds. Sakra falls to a common rebirth, the sun and moon grow dark, and the universal emperor is reborn a servant.
Although this is credited by relying upon the precepts of sages, ordinary people cannot understand it. Observe, then, within your own sight, the transformation of human beings .
Wealthy men become beggars, the mighty grow weak, many persons are replaced by one, and so on beyond the mind’s ability to estimate.
On contemplating the suffering of aggregates, there is seen no end to actions. Suffering exists among the many or few, amidst the rich and the destitute.
All human life is exhausted in preparations for, in the process of arranging, everyone dies. In death also, there is no end to preparing, as the preliminaries of the next life are begun. They are evil-hearted who desire the heap of Samsara’s misery!
In giving an idea of the defects of worldly existence, these lines allude also those actions which should be taken up or abandoned in the light of karma and results.
By parting from desires, Nirvana is won; attaining Nirvana, bliss is attained; the song of experience is this Zenpa Zidel!
But there is no benefit in liberating myself alone, for the three worlds’ beings are my fathers and mothers. To leave my parent in the midst of distress, while desiring happiness for myself, would be evil-hearted.
"Let the sufferings of the three worlds ripen to me and my own merits be taken by sentient beings. By the blessings of this virtue, may all beings attain Buddhahood !"
While alluding to the cause for meditating love and compassion, these lines stress the subsequent exchange of self for others.
In whatever situation I may be , emancipation does not lie in grasping at reality’s nature. To explain this precisely: Clinging to ‘being’ would mean there is no emancipation, grasping at ‘non being’ would mean there are no higher worlds, grasping at ‘both’ is done in ignorance - better ascribe it to the state of non-duality.
In rejecting the extreme views of eternity and annihilation, the general method is shown of keeping in mind the inseparability of 'being' and 'non-being' i.e. their non duality.
All darmas are the mind’s sphere of activity. Without seeking for a creator in chance, Isvara, etc. nor in the four elements, ascribe (their origin) best to the nature of mind itself.
Thus far, the stages of the path which are common to both the vijnana Bodhisattva and the Mahayana Madyamika have been reviewed. Finally, the extraordinary path of the latter is explained.
Appearances are of the nature of illusion, and interdependent in origin. Not knowing how to describe their natural state, ascribe it to their inexpressible nature.
Although this verse contain an allusion to the method of training the mind in Samandhi, essentially it refers to the way in which the meditator - after having concluded in the insight wisdom (Vidarsana) born of systematic meditation that all phenomena are mind-made, illusorily wrought and without nature, interdependent in origin and indescribable - then enters into meditation on the (absolute) state of inactivity in which mind and reality unite.
By the merit of virtue arising from this explaination of the Zenpa Zidel, may the seven classes of beings all be established in Buddhahood.
The author concludes with a blessing which points to the ultimate results.
Eight worldly dharmas
GAIN,
LOSS,
FAME,
NOTORIETY,
PRAISE,
SLANDER,
HAPPINESS,
AND
MISERY.
