Tag Archives: vajrapada

As mentioned in the introduction to this series, the Ratnagotravibhāga principally covers seven vajrapadas (adamantine topics); vajrapada is Sanskrit for “Vajra-Base”. The seven [Three Jewels (Buddha, Dharma, and Saṃgha), the element (dhātu, which is equivalent to tathāgatagarbha), awakening (bodhi), the Buddha qualities (guṇa), and activity (kriyā–karma)] are comprised of an impenetrable Vajra Nature, each likened unto a “teaching-device” that acts like Indra’s weapon (Vajra) of old—the thunderbolt, strikingly hard and invincible like a diamond. The first three Vajra-points relate to the Three Jewels: Buddha, the Dharma, and the Sangha (Sanskrit: saṃgha). Vajra-point one is the Buddha, the awakened one who points the way to enlightenment. Vajra-point two is the Dharma—the supreme teachings (Buddhadharma) of the Tathagatas. Vajra-point three is the Sangha, the mystical community of the Illumined-Ones who safeguard and promulgate the Buddhadharma whilst at the same time [acting] like a buttressed fortress against the snares of samsara. Vajra-point four is the Dhātu, or the essence of the Buddha-Element—Tathagata-garbha. The actual “awareness” of this Buddha-Element is the fifth Vajra-point termed Bodhi, or the Awakened Mind-element Itself. Vajra-point six represents the subsequent good and enlightened qualities produced after one puts on the Bodhimind—Gūna. The final Vara-point, Karma or Kriyā, are the Right-Actions that are accrued after being baptized by that Supreme Dharma element: the Buddhadhatū. read more