The Origins of Chitananda Tantra

Chitananda Tantra is my own personal synthesis of various

tantric methods and philosophies drawing from multiple
sources including BonPo Shamanism, Tibetan Buddhism,
as well as various forms of yoga from ancient India and
Daoism (Taosim).
This path of self-liberation is a non-dogmatic and nonhierarchic system of self-inquiry into the nature of your
own Mind (i.e., Consciousness). There are no gurus within
this system. The sole focus of this tantra is the cultivation
of your own bodhicitta (Enlightened Mind) and your own
self-liberation by integration of the practices of this tantra
into your daily life.
The View, meaning the philosophical underpinnings, as
well as the meditations that comprise Chitananda Tantra,
are a result of my explorations into various forms of tantra
(meaning energy practices of the Mind). This personal
work has spanned the course of many years, and I was
greatly aided in this endeavor by the Tibetan tutelary
being, White Tara.
White Tara is sometimes referred to as The Goddess of
Compassion and also as The Swift Protectresssince she
protects tantric practitioners from the samsaric delusion of
duality. She is sattvic (meaning pure and nurturing), and
her emanations are highly auspicious, healing and
liberating.
White Tara is engaged as a protector and ally in this form
of tantra, because her benevolent emanations greatly
assist practitioners on the path to rapid self-liberation. She
is not, however, a deity to be worshipped. Indeed, within
this stream of tantra there are no beings to be
worshipped.
This workshop is the first time I have publicly presented
this form of tantra, and as such, it is the First Turning of
the Wheela term meaning when a teaching is first
presented.
The only acknowledged divine guru within Chitanada
Tantra is your own innate guru within. While you can
certainly receive valuable instructions and insights from
Rinpoches (teachers) and other practitioners, your task is
to purify your own perception and mental habits so that
you perceive your own inner guru with greater clarity.

An Overview of the Practices

Chitananda Tantra is, first and foremost, a method for
penetrating and residing within the inherent bliss of pure
consciousness.
The term is derived from two root Sanskrit wordschit,
meaning knowledge and ananda, meaning bliss.
This form of tantra imparts practical knowledge regarding
how you can make contact with your own inherent blissful
nature, integrate this into your daily life and use it as a
springboard to attain illumination and Enlightenment.
Chitananda Tantra progresses through an interaction of
five tantric meditations, or direct inquiries, into the nature
of your own Mind (i.e., Consciousness).
These meditations will be described later in this
document, but in terms of attaining the deepest insights of
Chitananda Tantra, the most important stage is a
meditation that conjoins emptiness and bliss.
The Double Dorje is sometimes used as a symbol (in
Tibetan Buddhism) to represent enlightenment through
the union of emptiness and bliss. The contemplation of
emptiness means to be directly aware that the nature of
all phenomena, including your body, is essentially empty.
This is sometimes referred to as the wisdom of emptiness,
or the Prajnaparmita (the Mother of All Buddhas).
Conjoining the wisdom of emptiness with the serenity of
bliss generates potent states of awareness and deep
insight.
The purpose for attaining these states of Enlightened Mind
is to transcend the samsaric delusion that you are limited
by the circumstances of your life and to free your
Bodhicitta (Buddha nature) from the entanglements of
samsaric perception.
Freeing your Bodhicitta from the entanglements of
samsaric (or dualistic) perception allows you to move
through the world as a benevolent influence with ever
increasing spiritual mastery.
Another benefit of freeing your Bodhicitta from dualistic
perception centers around your experience of death. For
those who have attained a high level of Enlightened Mind,
death becomes moksha or final liberation from dualistic
perception through the agency of Mahasamadhi (Great
Samadhi) whereby the practitioner remains conscious

through both the death process and the intervening

Bardos (or after-death states of existence).
In a very advanced stage of illumination and
Enlightenment the physical body is transformed into its
original nature as light at the moment of death. This
process is called the Rainbow Body in Tibetan Buddhism,
and it occurs when the Five Pure Lights that comprise the
physical body are liberated and return to their true
unobstructed naturethe Clear White Light.
The Five Pure Lights and the Three Realms of
Existence
The Five Pure Lights are central both to the Dzogchen
teachings of the BonPo (Tibetan Shamanism) and Tibetan
Buddhism. According to this view, the deluded believe the
world of matter to be intrinsically real, but this is due to
the fact that they do not perceive the Five Pure Lights
directly.
The Five Pure Lights are the underlying reality behind
matter, and they are related to the classical elements of
space, air, water, fire and air. When a being apprehends
the true nature of the Five Pure Lights, he or she enters
rigpa (the absence of delusion), and in the advanced
stages of this understanding he or she attains the Rainbow
Body.
Another way to view the Five Pure Lights is through the
lens of the three kayas (or realms).
The physical world is called the Nirmanakaya or the realm
of emanations. The world of matter is generated by
quantum fluctuations that create sub-atomic particles,
atoms, molecules, etc., all of which are emanations from
more subtle realms of existence.
At a subtler level than the Nirmanakaya is the
Sambhogakayathe realm of pure light and sound. It is
here where the Five Pure Lights reside. As consciousness
becomes more refined it can apprehend the more subtle
play of the Five Pure Lights at this level of existence.
As consciousness refines further, it reaches a point where
it apprehends itself as pure unobstructed awareness or the
Dhamakayathe realm of pure consciousness. This is the
realm of the Buddhas and pure consciousness itself. It is at
this level of subtlety that the Five Pure Lights return to
their original sourcethe Clear White Light.

The Unified View of Chitananda Tantra

Chitananda Tantra views all three realmsthe
Nirmanakaya, the Sambhogakaya and the Dharmakaya
as one continuum of consciousness.
In other words, your physical body is a temporary and
transitory display of emanations in the Nirmanakaya,
which has its roots in the realm of pure light and sound
(the Sambhogakaya). This realm of light and sound is, in
turn, rooted in the realm of pure consciousness (the
Dharmakaya). Your body and the world of matter are
expressions of the Five Pure Lights and the Five Pure
Lights are an expression of pure consciousness itself, also
known as the Clear White Light.
Human beings have the potential (through their own
innate Bodhicitta) to be aware of, and operate from, all
three realms simultaneously. From this perspective, the
five meditations that comprise Chitananda Tantra are a
means to attain this goal. Indeed, these five meditations
are designed to orchestrate awareness so that eventually
you will attain rigpa (absence of delusion) and recognize
your true nature as a triune force of Emptiness conjoined
with Bliss and Light (i.e., the Five Pure Lights).
Niyama
This tantra requires the practitioner to accept The Niyama
of Ethical Constraint. The purpose of this constraint is to
protect the practitioner from misusing the lesser and
greater siddhis (or powers of consciousness), which will
spontaneously arise if he or she continues to engage and
work with the tantra on a regular basis.
From the perspective of Buddhism, Chitananda Tantra is
fundamentally a Hinayana practicethe goal of which is
individual illumination and Enlightenment. From this view
each of us is responsible for our own evolution, and
everyone else is responsible for his or her own evolution.
In other words, you are not responsible for anyone elses
happiness, and no one else is responsible for yours.
The path of Hinayana (or the Lesser Vessel) is in contrast
to Mahayana (the Greater Vessel), which works for the
illumination and Enlightenment of all sentient beings. A
Mahayana practitioner engages all meditations and tantric
ceremonies for the benefit of others. While a Hinayana
practitioner can have Mahayana inclinations, he or she is

clear that the goal of his or her practice is personal

illumination and Enlightenment. For such a practitioner,
the Niyama of Ethical Constraint is an indispensable
ethical requirement.
The Niyama of Ethical Constraint is not a vow, rather it is
an intention. If and when you violate your stated intention
by harming yourself or another, you do not resort to
shame or guilt. Rather you enter into a state of personal
inquiryexactly why did you harm yourself or another
person? This form of inquiry is far more resourceful than
self-indulgence in shame, guilt and self-condemnation.
The Niyama can be engaged in several ways. The most
common is to state it silently to yourself after working with
one of the tantric meditations.
In its simplest form, the Niyama is stated asFor the sake
of my own elevation and the elevation of all life, I shall
strive to be harmless to myself and others.
If you are a Mahayana Buddhist, this Niyama still applies.
You may, however, wish to modify it as follows For the
sake of my own elevation and the elevation of all life, I
shall strive to be harmless to myself and others. May the
benefits of this meditation extend to all sentient beings.
The Five Meditations
Chitananda Tantra is comprised of five tantric meditations.
Each of these meditations is crucial to the success of this
tantra, because each meditation develops a different
capacity of your Mind (i.e., Consciousness). While the
meditations are numbered for ease of communicating, you
can combine the meditations in any order you wish. You
can also devote more time to those meditations you feel
drawn to, so long as you spend some time with each of
them.
The five mediations are
Entering Stillness
The Cultivation of Intrinsic Awareness
The Bodhi Diamond of Self-Purification
The Double Dorje of Conjoined Bliss and Emptiness
Nesting of the Three Realms
The First Meditation:Entering Stillness
Bodhicitta is self-revealing in states of mental quiescence.
This first meditation quiets the mind, even for those who
have very active talking minds. The meditation is a Daoist

(Taoist) technique called The Celestial or Heavenly Gate. It

is highly effective and has the added benefit of being a
superb stress reducer. Beginners may wish to start with
just five minutes and then slowly work up to longer
sessions. This single meditation will yield immense
benefits and is well worth the time and effort involved to
master.
The meditation is based on Dragon Points, which are areas
of convergence where one form of chi meets another.
There are several Dragon Points within the human body.
The Celestial Gate is just one of these, and it happens to
be a place where heavenly chi (a very subtle form of chi)
flows into the body and meets terrestrial (or earthly) chi.
This area is energetically charged and profoundly alters
awareness when it is focused upon.
To engage the meditation, sit comfortably and close your
eyes. You can lie down if you wish, but this makes some
people go to sleep. For a moment just notice your breath.
Dont change it in any way; just watch it. Notice the
rhythm and the depth of your breath. Then after a
moment become aware of a space about an inch (or 2cm)
behind the bridge of your nose. Imagine that this space is
also about an inch square. This is the Celestial Gate. All
you do is focus you attention in this area. Do not
concentrate. Just be aware of this area. If you are having
thoughts or fantasies, this is not a problem. Let them
continue on their merry way. Just let some part of your
attention be on the Gate. You can think about anything
you want, and as much as you want, so long as some part
of your attention is on the Gate.
As you continue to focus at the Gate, you will notice that
your thoughts eventually seem to slow down. After a while
there will be more space between your thoughts. And
eventually they will stop altogether, if only temporarily.
During these moments you might find that your breath
has stopped or has become very shallow. This is natural
and is, in fact, a sign that you are entering deeper states
of stillness. It is these deepest states of quiescence
where there is no breath and no thoughtthat clear
unobstructed contact with your Bodhicitta is often
revealed.
This is the foundation meditation for Chitananda Tantra.

The Second Meditation:Cultivation of Intrinsic

Awareness
Liberation through the cultivation of Intrinsic Awareness,
was described by the tantric master, Padmasambhava
(Guru Rinpoche), who introduced Buddhism to Tibet in the
seventh century.
Intrinsic Awareness is, quite simply, the awareness of
being aware. It is nothing more than ordinary everyday
self-awareness. However, this tiny non-descript form of
innate awareness can blossom into an extraordinary
attainmentif cultivated properly.
As your ability to be self-aware in multiple situations
grows, you will be able to remain conscious even in
difficult and obscure conditions such as emotional
conflicts, sleep states and, in its most developed form, you
will be able to remain conscious during death as well as
when you transit through the after-death states of
existence (i.e., the Bardos).
This is an active meditationmeaning that you practice it
in the midst of your everyday activities.
Every situation and every mental/emotional condition is an
opportunity to cultivate (i.e., increase) your Intrinsic
Awareness. This active meditation eventually generates a
mental state called Mindfulness, which leads to deeper
insights regarding the nature of your own mind and its
relationship to the phenomenal world.
To engage this meditation, you simply become aware that
you are aware while doing whatever it is you are doing. It
is that simple. But dont let its simplicity fool you. This is a
potent catalyst for the liberation of your innate Bodhicitta.
The more often you engage this meditation the greater
will be your progress.
The Third Meditation:The Bodhi Diamond of
Purification
This is the third Chitananda Tantra meditation, and its
purpose is to purify deep-seated negativity. It
accomplishes this task by engaging a tantric diamond
(called the Bodhi Diamond) created from your own
Bodhicitta.
The Bodhi Diamond is created in your mind during a High
Tantric Ritual with White Tara, who empowers the tantric
diamond with sattvic (i.e., healing and nurturing) white

light.
It is important to understand that the Bodhi Diamond is
drawn from your own Bodhicitta during the Tantric
Empowerment. And it is thus your own Bodhicitta
(Enlightened Mind) that is the root from which the Bodhi
Diamond is created. White Tara simply clears away
hindrances that might prevent the formation of the Bodhi
Diamond and empowers this unique tantric diamond with
gentle healing and nurturing energies.
This meditation has four phases, and you can choose any
phase you wish to work with. Generally speaking, you
would work with only one phase during a session due to its
potency, although if you are keenly motivated and are
prepared for the possibility of increased psycho-spiritual
detoxification you could go through all four phases in one
meditation. It is suggested that you keep your beginning
meditations in a range from five to ten minutes so that
you become accustomed to how the diamonds subtle
energies interact with you. Although you will, no doubt,
have a favorite phase, it is good to periodically work with
all four phases.
First Phase
The Bodhi Diamond resides in the center of your head
emanating a white light. After establishing the Diamond in
your head via your imagination, also become aware of
your heart chakra in the center of your chest.
Through the power of your intention, allow the Bodhi
Diamond to send its emanations of sattvic light down into
your heart chakra and allow this light to eventually expand
to include your physical heart as well. This phase purifies
suppressed sadness, grief and regrets that are held in the
heart region.
Second Phase
As in the first phase, you imagine the Bodhi Diamond in
the center of your head. After establishing the Diamond
via your imagination, also become aware of your liver,
which extends from your diaphragm down the right side
of your abdomen. Through the power of your intention,
allow the Bodhi Diamond to send its emanations of sattvic
light into your liver where it transforms and purifies
suppressed anger, hatred and resentment.
Third Phase

Just as with the two previous phases, you imagine the

Bodhi Diamond in the center of your head. After you have
a clear sense of the diamond, also become aware of your
kidneys, which are about the size of your fists and sit
tucked up behind the lower back ribs to the right and left
sides of your spine. Through the power of your intention,
allow the Bodhi Diamond to send its emanations of sattvic
light into your kidneys where it transforms and purifies
suppressed fear and anxiety.
Fourth Phase
After establishing the Bodhi Diamond in the center of your
head, you also become aware of your entire body. Hold the
realization that your physical body is a manifestation of
The Five Pure Lights. By allowing the Bodhi Diamond to
send its emanations of sattvic light throughout every cell
of your body, you transform and purify suppressed cellular
memory, and you nourish the Sambhogakaya (light
realms) of your being.
After you have established the sense that your body is an
expression of the Five Pure Lights, align the Diamond so
that its point is directed downward (if it isnt already
aligned this way). Allow the sattvic white light to stream
down into your Secret Channel, which runs down through
the center of your body to your perineum.
This final phase purifies your Secret Channel and its subtle
perceptual potentialsi.e., by affecting the subtle winds
(the loong/lung element).
This phase may also generate profound bliss due to the
flow of sattvic light through the channel. If bliss arises,
continue to allow the flow of sattvic light into the Secret
Channel for as long as you are comfortable. (Yes, most
people have a comfort range when it comes to bliss or
ecstasy!)
When you are complete with the arising of bliss, it would
be an ideal timeif you have the time to spareto shift
into The Double Dorje of Conjoined Bliss and Emptiness
(The Fourth Meditation). This is because the union of bliss
and the perception of Emptiness is the foundation
meditation for this tantra. Whenever bliss arises, wherever
and whenever it occurs, it is an ideal time for you to
conjoin it with an awareness of Emptiness.
Purification Cycles of the Meditation

Each time you engage the Bodhi Diamond you will, most
likely, have a different experience from previous
meditations. This is because the Bodhi Diamond cycles
through various levels of negativity, hindrances and
obstacles. At times the meditation will result in bliss or
ecstasy, at other times you could experience painful
memories, emotions and/or unpleasant physical
sensations. If an experience becomes too intense for your
comfort zone, end the meditation and lie down if possible
to rest for a while.
In this work, you are the arbitrator of how fast or slow you
move through your own negativity.
It is important to understand that in Chitananda Tantra,
the purification of your own negativity is a necessary
tantric action. Without purification and transformation of
deep-seated negativity, you cannot sustain the higher
vibratory expressions of your own Enlightened Mind (i.e.,
Bodhicitta).
The Fourth Meditation:
The Double Dorje of Conjoined Bliss and Emptiness
The union of bliss with an awareness of emptiness
generates states of deep insight regarding the nature of
consciousness and matter. The repetition of this union
between bliss and emptiness will (over time) eventually
lead to Enlightenment itselfEnlightenment being defined
as a direct experience of yourself as pure consciousness
that is transcendent to perceived time, space and
circumstance.
There are two phases to this meditation1) the
generation of bliss and 2) the contemplation of Emptiness
while residing in blissful states of awareness.
The Generation of Bliss
Place your awareness in your heart chakra and/or physical
heart. While focusing your attention in this area, recall the
actual feeling (i.e., emotion) of appreciation. If you
continue holding the coherent emotion of appreciation
while focused in your heart area, you will eventually begin
to experience a spontaneous arising of bliss.
As you become more familiar with this method, you will be
able to generate blissful states quite rapidly, and you will
be able to amplify the intensity of this bliss by repeatedly
reinforcing the feeling of appreciation in your heart chakra

and/or physical heart once the blissful feelings start to

arise.
Once you have attained a continuous feeling of bliss, you
are ready to conjoin it with an awareness of Emptiness.
Entering Emptiness
You can enter this stage of the meditation sitting up or
lying down, but if you lie down you will need to avoid the
temptation to go to sleep since this stage produces a
profound altered state of awareness.
The first step is to enter into the feeling of Spaciousness.
To accomplish this, imagine yourself surrounded by a large
immense space. It is important to feel this sense of
imaginary space rather than just think about it. Feeling the
imagined space will activate the spatial intelligence of
your right cerebral hemisphere and will produce a more
profound altered state.
The next step, as you reside in this feeling of
Spaciousnsess, is to mentally realize that all matter is
comprised mostly of spaceincluding your body.
It has been estimated that your physical body is
comprised of approximately 99 percent space (+/-). In
fact, if you removed all the actual space from your body
and put the remaining physical matter in a pile (i.e., the
subatomic particles that comprise the matter of your
body) it would all fit on the tip of a pin!
Thus, in a very real sense, your body and the world are
comprised primarily of Emptiness.
While contemplating this fact, imagine that you can
actually sense the space between the subatomic particles
of your body as well as the space between the subatomic
particles of everything around you. As you enter this
imaginal state you will experience a subtle shift in
perception. The best way to describe this shift is a kind of
floaty feeling.
Next, you rest in the awareness that all is Emptiness while
residing in bliss. Hold the two togetherthe feelings of
bliss and the perception of Emptiness. If your mind
wanders bring it back to the union of the two.
Dont worry if the sense of bliss subsides. Just return your
focus to your heart chakra and/or physical heart while
holding the feeling of appreciation. When the feeling of
bliss returns, return to the perception of Emptiness and

hold the two togetherbliss conjoined with Emptiness.

In the learning phase of this meditation, it is suggested
that you limit your sessions to between five and ten
minutes. As you become more familiar with the experience
you can extend the time.
At the beginning, when you are learning how to conjoin
bliss and Emptiness, it can be spatially disorienting
especially if you hold the union of these two for long
periods. Thus, it is strongly suggested that you rest for a
bit before entering outer activities after this meditation.
The Fifth Meditation:Nesting of the Three Realms
This meditation unifies, within your own perception, the
three realmsthe Nirmanakaya, the realm of emanations
(i.e., your body and the world of matter) with the
Sambhogakaya, the realm of pure light and sound (i.e.,
the Five Pure Lights) and the Dharmakaya, the realm of
pure consciousness.
This unification of the three realms is central to
Chitananda Tanra. One cumulative effect of this
meditation is that separation between you, the Five Lights
and Pure Consciousness is diminished.
Sitting in a comfortable position, place your awareness in
the region of your crown lotus (the Sahasrara) at the top
of you head. Imagine a white lotus flower opened at the
top of your head with its stalk passing down the central
line of your body, through The Secret Channel, to your
perineum.
Imagine that your Sambhogakaya body is luminous white.
This body is the same size and shape as your physical
body but is comprised of pure light.
Once you have established a sense of this luminous body,
enter Spaciousness by recalling the feeling (not the
thought) of being surrounded by a large space. This
activation of kinesthetic memory through the recollection
of a spatial feeling will activate the spatial intelligence of
your right cerebral hemisphere.
When you have attained a strong sense of being
surrounded by, or even floating in space, spend a few
moments being aware of this spacious feeling and your
luminous body. Then become aware of your physical body
as you hold awareness of the other two realms.
The final stage of this meditation involves focusing part of

your mental attention on the white crown lotus at the top

of your head while simultaneously being aware of
Spaciousness along with your luminous body and your
physical bodyall at the same time.
As you hold these three perceptual realms together, you
silently repeat to yourself a statement of perception that
describes the experience of samsara from the perspective
of your liberated Bodhicitta.
The reason for repeating this phrase, while focused on the
white lotus at your crown chakra and joining the three
realms together in your mental awareness, is to impress
the idea into your mind, so that you recognize this shift
in perception more easily when it arises of its own accord
in the course of this tantra.
It is important to recognize that the statement of
perception describes a view that is attained only by your
Enlightened Mind when it has integrated the experience of
samsaric duality. This view appears dream-like in nature
and occurs when all phenomena of the Nirmanakaya are
experienced as essentially empty (Emptiness). From this
perspective the solid world of matter is seen as illusory in
nature and the true nature of consciousness is
experienced as both self-luminous and self-liberating.
All is Emptiness.
Emptiness is Form and Form is Emptiness.
Neither real nor unreal.
Both existing and non-existing.
By nature self-luminous and self-liberating.
The Mandala of Great CompassionPreliminaries
First of all, some basic concepts would be helpful before
proceeding.
Mandalas are painted geometric patterns that are related
to forces or aspects of consciousness. They are used
extensively in certain types of Buddhist and yogic
meditation. A typical mandala has a center and four
directions. Depending upon the type of mandalathe
central figure(s) may be separate from the outer spaces of
the mandala or may be emanating (sending energy) into
the outer spaces of the mandala.
In this practice, The Mandala refers to all of the
phenomena that are occurring in the universe at this
moment. You are at the center of the mandala that is your

life, because it is from your personal perspective that you

experience the world. In turn, each person around us of us
is also at the center of his or her mandala. As a result
none of us experience the world in exactly the same way
because our centers (our personal sensory perception and
ways of being) are different.
Tantric yogis and yoginis (female yogis) view this in
somewhat different ways depending upon the lineage they
are working in, but essentially they would agree that our
experience of the external world is a result of subtle
energies within our nervous systems. In other words, the
world does indeed exist independently of us, and our
mental/emotional experience. But how we experience that
world is a result of how we personally internalize it
through our senses.
According to Buddhist tantra, at the moment of death
these subtle energies of consciousness, called lung (loong)
in the Tibetan language, or subtle wind element in English,
dissolve, and with them our experience of the world
disappears as well. Lung is not the same as breath, but
rather refers to the movement of life-energy through
minute energetic channels in our subtle bodies (called
nadis). Taoists call this type of subtle energy chi, while
yogis refer to it as prana.
The practice of The Mandala of Great Compassion is based
upon the understanding that in any given moment,
innumerable beings are suffering. Sufferingfrom the
perspective of Buddhist tantrais a result of attachment
to sensory experience. Thus, when someone feels a loss
as experienced through his or her senses, there is
suffering.
As humans, we can experience suffering around almost
anythingthe loss of a relationship, possessions, money,
health and so on. The list is virtually endless.
This practice is based upon the understanding that
suffering is inescapable. And so tantric practitioners do not
seek to end suffering, but to transform the roots of
suffering within their own consciousness (called Mind in
Buddhism).
If he or she can assist another being to avoid suffering, he
or she may undertake to do so. And certainly, in moments
of personal suffering he or she would do what could be

done to alleviate it. But whatever actions are taken for self
or others takes place within a specific contextthe
knowledge that all beings suffer as a result of being in
samsarathe illusion of relative existence in the physical
world. The task of a tantric practitioner, then, is to
transform his or her own negativities so that the bliss of
nirvana is realized in the midst of samsara.
There is, from my experience, a lot of confusion about the
terms nirvana and samsara. Part of this confusion arises,
no doubt, from what stream of Buddhism we are talking
about.
Some lineages focus upon leaving this sensory world in
order to experience the bliss of nirvana at death. Other
lineages say that one can experience the bliss of nirvana
in the midst of life, in the hot bed, if you will, of sensorybased samsara. They point out that nirvana is experienced
whenever one is at the center point of consciousness. In
fact, according to many yogic and tantric traditions, the
center point of awareness, or ones transcendent Self, is,
by nature, bliss (ananda, in Sanskrit).
Most people have to die in order to quell the sensory
circus of life so that the bliss of nirvana can be even
momentarily experienced. However, a tantric master can
experience glimpses of nirvana whenever he or she enters
deep meditation (Samadhi). But while experiencing bliss is
an important benchmark for tantric practitioners, it is not
the goal.
Buddhist tantra deals with the realities of being in
samsara. Its goal is nothing short of dissolving the illusions
of samsara while in the midst of samsara itself. This is a
Herculean achievement, and those who do so are called
Tantric Heroes or Heroines in Buddhist lore.
The Practice
In moments of personal suffering, of any kind, including
mental, emotional, spiritual or physical, it is an ideal time
to practice The Mandala of Great Compassion.
I say this because this practice imparts understanding as
to the nature of your suffering, and it builds spiritual merit
(or positive force). The beauty of this practice, then, is that
merit is generated in the midst of ones own suffering, and
may also assist to decrease the suffering of others.
I must digress here for a moment and talk about what I

consider to be great misunderstandings about the nature

of spiritual merit in spiritual communities in general and
Buddhist sanghas in particular.
True merit arises when we give spontaneously from the
heart, or take a beneficial action with no thought or desire
for personal reward. It is this spontaneous expression of
bodhicitta (your innate Buddha mind) that generates
merit. There is no Buddha in the heaven worlds with a
little book marking when you do good things or bad things.
Rather, positive actions strengthen ones innate
bodhicitta, and one of the results of this is that prajna or
transcendent wisdom increases. In other words, we move
closer to Enlightened Mind.
Doing something good in order to get merit does, in fact,
not build merit. It only perpetuates self-obsession, and in
my experience there is nothing quite as distasteful as
spiritual ego. Give me good old-fashioned ego, any day,
over someone who is infested with self-righteousness.
The practice does not require any particular type of
posture, incense, prayers or even quiet time. I have done
it while shopping for groceries and even while driving.
Ideally it is done in the very searing heat of ones own
sufferingin the moment that it is happening.
There are three parts to the practicefocus of attention,
mantra, and a union of the view and emanation.
Focus of Attention
Place your awareness in the center of your chest, behind
the sternum about midway between your chest and your
spine. This is the location of your heart chakra, and it is
from here that you generate the energies of Great
Compassion.
Mantra
The mantra for this practice is that of the Buddha of
Infinite Compassion, called Avalokiteshavara (in Sanskrit)
or Chenrazig (in Tibetan).
This Buddha has many forms, one of them having a
thousand arms and a thousand hands, and in each hand is
an eye that witnesses the suffering of beings in samsara.
It is vital to understand that this Buddha figure is nothing
less than your own highest spiritual nature. It is not
separate from you, but rather it is an archetypal being
that represents a quality inherent in your own being

compassion.
According to tantric understanding, mantras carry the
energy of the deity they correspond to, and the deity
resides within the vibratory fields of the mantra itself. But
deity in Buddhist tantra is different from the creator gods
of other religions. These tantric deities are manifestations
of powers or aspects of ones own consciousness. By
chanting the mantra silently, or out loud, you activate the
residing deity of that mantra. The mantra used in this
practice is Om Mani Peme Hum or Om Mani Padme Hum.
You can also use Om Mani Peme Hung. All of these mean
essentially the same thingHail To The Jewel In The Lotus.
The jewel is compassion and the lotus is the heart chakra.
The View and Emanation
In order to enter into the practice of The Mandala of Great
Compassion, you first realize that no matter how
miserable you are in this moment, there are other beings
suffering in similar ways as you.
After you have this clear mental concept in mind, sense
yourself at the center of a giant mandala that fills all of
space. There is no part or parcel of the universe that is
outside this three-dimensional mandala that has you at
the center. This is the View.
Then simply focus your attention in your heart chakra.
Breathe naturally and whenever you inhale, silently repeat
the mantra so that you feel its subtle vibratory energy in
the heart. As you exhale normally, you send the
emanations of compassion from your heart out to all other
sentient beings who, like you, are suffering in that
moment.
There is no need to do anything other than intend that the
emanations of the mantra and feelings of compassion be
sent out from your heart.
Depending upon your level of sensitivity to such things,
you may just experience this as an idea, or you may
actually feel the vibrational energies of compassion
radiating from your heart chakra to all suffering beings.
If you are aware of spiritual light, you may also see various
colored lights emanating from your heart for the benefit of
other suffering beings. If any phenomenon arises like
lights or sound or other non-ordinary sensory experiences,
just let them be. Dont focus on them. They are not why

you are doing this. They are a side-effect of the subtle

energies of consciousness.
The reason for doing this practice is that it increases selfawareness around your personal suffering and builds
spiritual merit by releasing a beneficent energy into the
world.
You do not need to be in suffering to do this practice. You
can do it whenever you wish to send beneficial energies to
sentient beings. But when you do find yourself in suffering,
it changes both the quality and understanding of your
suffering.
Sometimes our personal suffering may be so intense that
we cannot even muster the will to repeat the mantra. If
this is the case, then simply send feelings of compassion
out on your exhales into the Mandala of the Universe.
And what exactly is compassion?
In its root, it means to feel with. Thus when we feel
compassion for other beings, we feel along with them. This
is not the same as sympathy, which is feeling sorry for
someone.
Compassion recognizes that we all suffer, and when you
extend compassion to another, you are a witnessnothing
more and nothing less.
And yet through the power of being a loving or caring
witness for others, we somehow mysteriously help to
transform our own suffering.
When we feel compassion for another we might, or might
not, choose to extend loving kindness. Loving kindness is
a mindful action that extends caring to another being. This
might take the form of doing something to alleviate
suffering as in physical caring or extending ourselves
emotionally by simply being present for the person.
One way of looking at the relationship between
compassion and loving kindness is that pure compassion
is simply being an empathic witness to a situation, while
loving kindness extends that compassion into action.
Within this context, The Mandala of Great Compassion, is a
subtle form of loving kindness.