Saturday
Prime
Blessed One, come to my assistance
O’ Lord, make haste to help me
Glory be to the Blessed Buddha and to the Divine Dharma and to the Hallowed Sangha, both now and forever and ever. Swaha.
Hail, Holy Wisdom; hail, Blessed Dark-Womb of the Unborn, our Translucent Light, our Sweetness, and our Strength. To you do we make supplication, subdued children under Mara’s dominion. To you do we send up our lamentations and afflictions in this valley of dukkha. Turn then, most gracious Tara, your eyes of mercy towards us; and after this, our most lingering exile in samsara, show unto us the Immaculate Seed of your Most Beloved Bodhichild. O Temperate One, Most Loving, O Sweet Virgin Mother.
Om Tare, Tuttare, Ture Swaha.
Lauding the Infinite One: (Buddhist Psalms, by S. Yamabe and L. Adams Beck, [1921])
1. Since He who is Infinite attained unto the Wisdom Supreme, the long, long ages of ten Kalpas have rolled away.
The Light of His Dharma-Kaya is in this world eyes to the blind.
2. Seek refuge in the True Illumination! For the light of His Wisdom is infinite.
In all the worlds there is nothing upon which His light shines not.
3. Take refuge in the Light universal.
As the Light of His deliverance is boundless, he who is within it is freed from the lie of affirmation or denial.
4. Seek refuge in That which is beyond understanding,
For His glory is all-embracing as the air. It shineth and pierceth all things, and there is nothing hid from the light thereof.
5. Take refuge in the ultimate Strength, for His pure radiance is above all things. He who perceiveth this Light is set free from the fetters of Karma.
6. Seek refuge in the World-Honoured.
Since His glorious radiance is above all He is called the Buddha of Divine Light. And by Him is the darkness of the three worlds Enlightened.
7. Excellent is the Light of His Wisdom. Therefore is he called the Buddha of Clear Shining.
He who is within the Light, being washed from the soil of Karma, shall attain unto the final deliverance.
8. Take refuge in the Mighty Consoler. Wheresoever His mercy shineth throughout all the worlds, men rejoice in its gladdening light.
9. The darkness of ignorance perisheth before His light. Therefore is He hailed as the Buddha of Radiant Wisdom. All the Buddhas and the threefold choir of sages praise Him.
10. His glory shineth for ever and ever. Therefore is He called the Buddha of Everlasting Light.
Most excellent is the virtue of this light, for he who perceiveth it is born into Paradise without dissolution of being.
11. The glory of the Infinite is boundless, therefore is He known as the Buddha of Light Past Comprehension.
All the Buddhas glorify the majesty of His holiness that leadeth all the earth into His Kingdom.
12. His clear shining transcendeth all revelation, nor can human speech utter it. Therefore is He named the Buddha of Light Unspeakable.
All the Buddhas glorify the glory of the Infinite One who is Buddha through His promise of Light immeasurable. Swaha.
The Trisagion
Blessed Buddha, Mighty Lord, Unborn and Undying…Have mercy on us
Blessed Buddha, Mighty Lord, Unborn and Undying…Have mercy on us
Blessed Buddha, Mighty Lord, Unborn and Undying…Have mercy on us
Supplication
Mother Tara, Noble Queen of the Unborn,
In you we take refuge…
Immaculate Heart of Tara, Out of Your Infinite Compassion,
We consecrate ourselves to you…
Tara-Consoler of the afflicted, Dispense your Healing Mantle,
For we have recourse to you.
Glory be to the Blessed Buddha and to the Divine Dharma and to the Hallowed Sangha, both now and forever and ever. Swaha.
From Akṣhobhya’s Pure Land:
“Śāriputra, a venomous snake subjugated by a magic spell cannot hurt anyone, and insects or worms will not be worried or afraid upon seeing it. Yet, harmless as it is, it is still called a venomous snake because it has received the form of a snake as a result of its previous karmas. Śāriputra, the same is true with the celestial demon Pāpiyān. When Tathāgata Akṣhobhya was following the Bodhisattva practices in the past, he vowed to dedicate his good roots thus: ‘When I realize supreme enlightenment, I will subjugate all demons so that they will not cause hindrances or troubles. They will not hinder or trouble the Bodhisattvas, Śrāvakas, ordinary people, or others in the whole billion-world universe. [Subjugated as they are], the demons remain in demons’ forms because of their previous karmas. They regret this in the heaven where they are born, and blame themselves for being incarnated as beings called ‘demons’ owning to their previous karmas performed from beginningless time. In spite of the power they enjoy, they loathe their state. When that Tathagata expounds the Dharma, the demons and their retinues are often among the listeners. After hearing the Dharma, they become pure in mind and yearn to be Śrāvakas, thinking, ‘How can we, too, abide in tranquility, have few desires, and be content?’ Because those demons have a constant desire to leave the household life and have no intention of hindering others, the Śrāvakas, Bodhisattvas, and ordinary people in that land can all abide in peace and happiness. This is also due to the awesome power of that Buddha’s previous vigor and great vows. Śāriputra, this is also a superb adornment of Akṣhobhya Buddha’s land. . . .
[Commentary from the series]
Demons are who they are due to past karmic consequences. Yet, when they come into contact with the Buddhadharma—just hearing it preached produces great waves of remorse for their evil deeds. They begin to loathe their present state and yearn to become Śrāvakas, since hearing (dhammasota) the Word of the Buddha produces an inner-revulsion, a great “turn-about” from their evil forms and actions. It is through Akṣhobhya’s own meritorious vows that the evil-effects of demons become nullified—like being “subjugated by a spell” as indicated at the top.
Arya Tara, Blessed Dharma Queen and gentle Mother of the Void, we abidingly trust in your fidelity to the Unborn Spirit and surrender ourselves to your divine protection. May we see the Lord’s nirvana as our final goal and so come to share in your glory.
From the Chuang-Tzu series (The Tao of Qi):
HOW DEEP IS TAO!
My Master said: Tao, how deep, how still its hiding place! Tao, how pure! Without this stillness, metal would not ring, stone when struck would give no answer. The power of sound is in the metal and Tao in all things. When they clash, they ring with Tao, and are silent again. Who is there, now, to tell all things their places? The king of life goes his way free, inactive, unknown. He would blush to be in business. He keeps his deep roots down in the origin, down in the spring. His knowledge is enfolded in Spirit and he grows great, great, opens a great heart, a world’s refuge. Without forethought he comes out, in majesty. Without plan he goes his way and all things follow him. This is the kingly man, who rides above life.
This one sees in the dark, hears where there is no sound. In the deep dark he alone sees light. In soundlessness he alone perceives music. He can go down into the lowest of low places and find people. He can stand in the highest of high places and see meaning. He is in contact with all beings. That which is not, goes his way. That which moves is what he stands on. Great is small for him, long is short for him, and all his distances are near. (Version by Thomas Merton)
[Commentary from the series]
There is no fixed-position in the Unborn. Its fluidity runs like a deep and hidden underground stream. Its pureness radiates the stillness of a Mountain Snow—yet without it no echo would resound from the white-capped towering peaks. The power of this sound is in deathless quietude as the Unborn is within all AS ALL. A man of the Unborn, without foreknowledge, wanders aimlessly about the marketplace in the noonday sun, for his gnosis is dark and carefree; this is a King indeed! He sees the Luminous Darkness and hears the Soundless-Sound. He deals with both high and low and thus dwells in the realm of no-distinctions. His movements are motionless and the Big appears as Small. The farthest distance is the closest-point in the face of the Midnight Sun. Can the Moon’s misshapen-solitude be far behind?
From Hui Hai (720-814):
Q: How is the fundamental Dharma to be practiced?
A: Only through meditation and dhyana contemplation in samadhi. The Dhyanaparamita Sutra says: “To seek the wisdom of Buddha, you need both dhyana and contemplation. Without dhyana and contemplation together, thought will be disordered and break the root of goodness.”
Q: What is dhyana and what is contemplation?
A: The non-arising of a single thought is dhyana. The original nature is your uncreate Mind. Contemplation in samadhi happens when opposites and external objects do not cause a single thought to arise. In contemplation (samadhi), the mind cannot be moved by the so-called eight winds: benefit and loss; fame and ignominy; praise and ridicule; suffering and happiness. If only one can abide in this kind of contemplation, then, even though he is a worldly person, he, nevertheless, can enter Buddhahood. The Sutra of Bodhisattva Discipline says: “All sentient beings who receive the discipline of the Buddha thus assume the position of all Buddhas.” Achieving this state is called “liberation”. It is also described as arriving on the other shore by leaping over the three realms of samsara … Such a one is a great, powerful Bodhisattva with immeasurable sway and influence as well as a conqueror of all obstacles.
From the Ariyapariyesanā Sutta (Two Kinds of Search):
“Bhikkhus, there are these two kinds of search: the noble search and the ignoble search. And what is the ignoble search? Here someone being himself subject to birth seeks what is also subject to birth; being himself subject to ageing, he seeks what is also subject to ageing; being himself subject to sickness, he seeks what is also subject to sickness; being himself subject to death, he seeks what is also subject to death; being himself subject to sorrow, he seeks what is also subject to sorrow; being himself subject to defilement, he seeks what is also subject to defilement.
“And what may be said to be subject to birth? Wife and children are subject to birth, men and women slaves, goats and sheep, fowl and pigs, elephants, cattle, horses, and mares, gold and silver are subject to birth. These acquisitions are subject to birth; and one who is tied to these things, infatuated with them, and utterly committed to them, being himself subject to birth, seeks what it also subject to birth.
“And what may be said to be subject to ageing? Wife and children are subject to ageing, men and women slaves, goats and sheep, fowl and pigs, elephants, cattle, horses, and mares, gold and silver are subject to ageing. These acquistions are subject to ageing; and one who is tied to these things, infatuated with them, and utterly committed to them, being himself subject to ageing, seeks what is also subject to ageing.
“And what may be said to be subject to sickness? Wife and children are subject to sickness, men and women slaves, goats and sheep, fowl and pigs, elephants, cattle, horses, and mares are subject to sickness. These acquisitions are subject to sickness; and one who is tied to these things, infatuated with them, and utterly committed to them, being himself subject to sickness, seeks what is also subject to sickness.
“And what may be said to be subject to death? Wife and children are subject to death, men and women slaves, goats and sheep, fowl and pigs, elephants, cattle, horses, and mares are subject to death. These acquisitions are subject to death; and one who is tied to these things, infatuated with them, and utterly committed to them, being himself subject to death, seeks what is also subject to death.
“And what may be said to be subject to sorrow? Wife and children are subject to sorrow, men and women slaves, goats and sheep, fowl and pigs, elephants, cattle, horses, and mares are subject to sorrow. These acquisitions are subject to sorrow; and one who is tied to these things, infatuated with them, and utterly committed to them, being himself subject to sorrow, seeks what is also subject to sorrow.
“And what may be said to be subject to defilement? Wife and children are subject to defilement, men and women slaves, goats and sheep, fowl and pigs, elephants, cattle, horses, and mares, gold and silver are subject to defilement. These acquisitions are subject to defilement; and one who is tied to these things, infatuated with them, and utterly committed to them, being himself subject to defilement, seeks what is also subject to defilement. This is the ignoble search.
“And what is the noble search? Here someone being himself subject to birth, having understood the danger in what is subject to birth, seeks the unborn supreme security from bondage, Nibbāna; being himself subject to ageing, having understood the danger in what is subject to ageing, he seeks the unageing supreme security from bondage, Nibbāna; being himself subject to sickness, having understood the danger in what is subject to sickness, he seeks the unailing supreme security from bondage, Nibbāna; being himself subject to death, having understood the danger in what is subject to death, he seeks the deathless supreme security from bondage, Nibbāna; being himself subject to sorrow, having understood the danger in what is subject to sorrow, he seeks the sorrowless supreme security from bondage, Nibbāna; being himself subject to defilement, having understood the danger in what is subject to defilement, he seeks the undefiled supreme security from bondage, Nibbāna. This is the noble search.”
Benedictus
Blessed be the Hallowed Lord of the Unborn;
because He has Revealed His Inmost-Self within his devotees:
And has raised-up a Salvific-Light unto us,
in the face of our enemies:
Once this Noble Self-Realization is reached,
nothing more need be done,
nor is there anything lost by doing nothing less than
basking in the divine Freedom of the Unborn.
Free to partake in His-Self without fear,
Thus filled with Right Devotion,
we unceasingly celebrate His Abiding Presence.
And You MY Child shall be called the Dharma-womb of the Most High:
for you shall go before the Unborn Lord to prepare His Way:
To bestow Buddha-gnosis upon those who live
in the darkness of ignorance.
In the tender compassion of our Dharma-Lord,
The dawn from on high shall break upon us,
To enlighten those who are in the bondage of Mara’s death,
And to guide all of us homeward bound in the Unborn.
Glory be to the Blessed Buddha and to the Divine Dharma and to the Hallowed Sangha, both now and forever and ever. Swaha.
May all the Buddhas and Dharma-Guardians bless us, protect us from all harm, and awaken us to the Light of Truth in the Unborn. Swaha
