04. Week 1 - Teaching 2
2025.07.27
This festival we are learning from our Kadampa lineage Guru, our SG, Venerable Geshe Kelsang Gyatso, how to become a Kadampa.
What is the real meaning of Kadampa? The Kadampa Way of Life. In Modern Buddhism, Geshe-la teaches us who are the Kadampas:
In this present age, it is Geshe-la who has renewed and re-established the Kadam Dharma of Je Tsongkhapa. And he founded the NKT-IKBU. To benefit the people of the modern world, in the most profound and practical ways. To give people actual refuge. And through his kindness people throughout the world now have the unsurpassed opportunity to practice modern Kadampa Buddhism, integrated into our modern life. People around the world, from different cultures, different languages, different jobs, everyone has the opportunity to practice modern Kadam Dharma, and therefore to become a real Kadampa. He accomplished this. This comes from him.
Kadampas sincerely rely upon Buddha Shakyamuni because Buddha is the source of Kadam Lamrim; they sincerely rely upon Avalokiteshvara, the Buddha of Compassion, and upon the Wisdom Dharma Protector, indicating that their main practice is compassion and wisdom; and they sincerely rely upon Arya Tara because she promised Atisha that she would take special care of Kadampa practitioners in the future. For this reason, these four enlightened holy beings are called the ‘Four Kadampa Guru Deities’.
The founder of the Kadampa tradition is the great Buddhist Master and scholar, Atisha. Atisha was born in AD 982 as a prince in East Bengal, India. His father’s name was Kalyanashri (Glorious Virtue) and his mother’s name was Prabhavarti Shrimati (Glorious Radiance). He was the second of three sons and when he was born he was given the name Chandragarbha (Moon Essence). The name Atisha, which means Peace, was given to him later by the Tibetan king Jangchub Ö because he was always calm and peaceful.` When he was still a child Chandragarbha’s parents took him to visit a temple. All along the way thousands of people gathered to see if they could catch a glimpse of the prince. When he saw them Chandragarbha asked ‘Who are these people?’ and his parents replied ‘They are all our subjects.’ Compassion arose spontaneously in the prince’s heart and he prayed ‘May all these people enjoy good fortune as great as my own.’ Whenever he met anyone the wish arose naturally in his mind, ‘May this person find happiness and be free from suffering.’
“Even as a small boy Chandragarbha received visions of Arya Tara, a female enlightened being. Sometimes, while he was on his mother’s lap, blue upali flowers would fall from the sky and he would begin to speak, as if to the flowers. Yogis later explained to his mother that the blue flowers she had seen were a sign that Tara was appearing to her son and speaking to him. When the prince was older his parents wanted to arrange a marriage for him, but Tara advised him ‘If you become attached to your kingdom you will be like an elephant when he sinks into mud and cannot lift himself out again because he is so huge and heavy. Do not become attached to this life. Study and practise Dharma. You have been a Spiritual Guide in many of your previous lives and in this life also you will become a Spiritual Guide.’ Inspired by these words Chandragarbha developed a very strong interest in studying and practising Dharma and he became determined to attain all the realisations of Buddha’s teachings. He knew that to accomplish his aim he would need to find a fully qualified Spiritual Guide.
Atisha studied with many qualified Spiritual Guides, e.g. Vidyakokila, Avadhutipa, Dharmarakshita etc. However it was Master Serlingpa that he regarded as his root guru, because it was through relying upon him that he was able to develop bodhichitta. Through relying upon his spiritual guides, he mastered all the teachings of the Hinayana and the Mahayana. And he accomplished all the realisations of Sutra and Tantra. He was regarded as a king of Indian Buddhists and as the second Buddha. At that time in Tibet there was no pure practice of the union of Sutra and Tantra. And there were many false teachers going to Tibet seeking to enrich themselves and were leading practitioners into wrong paths.
There was a kind and compassionate king called Yeshe Ö who happily sacrificed his own life to invite Atisha to Tibet so that pure Dharma could flourish in Tibet. Moved by Yeshe Ö’s sacrifice, Atisha agreed to go. Tara also predicted that if he went to Tibet he would benefit countless living beings. So with a compassionate motivation he left India and made the difficult journey to Tibet.
Since it was customary in those days, as it is today, to greet an honoured guest in style, Jangchub Ö sent an entourage of three hundred horsemen with many eminent Tibetans to the border to welcome Atisha and offer him a horse to ease the difficult journey to Ngari. Atisha rode at the centre of the three hundred horsemen, and by means of his miracle powers he sat one cubit above his horse’s back. When they saw him, those who previously had no respect for him developed very strong faith, and everyone said that the second Buddha had arrived in Tibet.
When Atisha reached Ngari, Jangchub Ö requested him, ‘O Compassionate Atisha, please give instructions to help the Tibetan people. Please give advice that everyone can follow. Please give us special instructions so that we can practise all the paths of Sutra and Tantra together.’ To fulfil this wish Atisha composed and taught Lamp for the Path to Enlightenment, the first text written on the stages of the path, Lamrim. He gave these instructions first in Ngari and then in central Tibet. Many disciples who heard these teachings developed great wisdom.
THE PRECIOUSNESS OF KADAM LAMRIM
Atisha wrote the original Kadam Lamrim based on Ornament of Clear Realization by Buddha Maitreya, which is a commentary to the Perfection of Wisdom Sutras that Buddha Shakyamuni taught on Massed Vultures Mountain in Rajagriha, India.
In 1994 Geshe-la said:
Lamrim is the condensation of all Buddha’s teachings. Atisha created a very special presentation of Buddhadharma from his omniscient wisdom that no one had done before. Geshe-la said not even great scholars like Nagarjuna, Chandrakirti, Asanga, and even Buddha’s disciples like Bodhisattva Manjushri, Bodhisattva Maitreya - no one else had done this.
It’s unified with daily activities. We can practice the paths of Sutra and Tantra perfectly together.
Later, Je Tsongkhapa wrote his extensive, middling and condensed Kadam Lamrim texts as commentaries to Atisha’s Kadam Lamrim instructions, and through this the precious Buddhadharma of Kadam Lamrim flourished in many countries in the East and now in the West. The Kadam Lamrim instructions, the union of Buddha’s teachings and Atisha’s special instructions, are presented in three stages: the instructions on the stages of the path of a person of initial scope; the instructions on the stages of the path of a person of middling scope; and the instructions on the stages of the path of a person of great scope.
All Buddha’s teachings, both Sutra and Tantra, are included within these three sets of instructions.
We have met something that has value beyond our ability to understand.
Geshe-la said that when he was in retreat, he received Je Tsongkhapa’s blessings. When he was re-presenting Kadam Dharma for the modern world, it would come easily through JT’s blessings. It came from JT’s heart.
In JPGF - “We should understand the main function of Lamrim is to fulfil the needs and wishes of all living beings.”
Reading from the Introduction to The Kadampa Way Of Life booklet :
This essential practice of Kadam Lamrim, known as The Kadampa Way of Life, contains two texts: Advice from Atisha’s Heart and Je Tsongkhapa’s The Three Principal Aspects of the Path. The first encapsulates the way of life of the early Kadampa practitioners, whose example of purity and sincerity we should all try to emulate. The second is a profound guide to meditation on the stages of the path, Lamrim, which Je Tsongkhapa composed based on the instructions he received directly from the Wisdom Buddha Manjushri. If we try our best to put Atisha’s advice into practice, and to meditate on Lamrim according to Je Tsongkhapa’s instructions, we will develop a pure and happy mind and gradually progress towards the ultimate peace of full enlightenment. As Bodhisattva Shantideva says:
By depending upon this boat-like human form,
We can cross the great ocean of suffering.
Since such a vessel will be hard to find again,
This is no time to sleep, you fool!
Practising in this way is the very essence of the Kadampa way of life.
Geshe Kelsang Gyatso
1994
Geshe-la said that by following the instructions in the Kadampa Way of Life, we will become real Kadampas.
In this festival we are emphasising Advice from Atisha’s Heart.
In 2007 VGKG gave an introduction:
I think that in reality everyone from the highest king, or queen, or president, down to a beggar needs a simple practice like this advice. If they really want to have a good life, a happy life, or they want to have a good reputation and to be successful in their daily activities it is very important to put this advice into practice. This advice can fit everywhere and everyone. It doesn’t matter if they are Buddhist or non-Buddhist. It is like a golden mala or rosary. Normally a mala is only used by religious people for reciting mantras. But a golden mala, because it is gold it will be accepted by everyone, even those that deny religion. Whoever gives this, the other person says ’thank you’ and takes it.
This is very precious advice. He gave this advice in order that Dharma and other daily activities could be integrated together. While we are working, talking, meeting with people - put this advice into practice. How wonderful. Unfortunately the majority of the people of this world have no interest. But now we try offer this to others with a pure motivation, giving this kind of advice is our way of helping other people to solve their problems of anger, jealousy, attachment, and ignorance. To solve their human problems. We offer this to help others to improve their human nature, in order to improve their human qualities, and in order to experience a meaningful life. We organise Dharma centres and we teach with pure motivation - this is our generosity to the people.
Reading from Advice from Atisha’s Heart:
How wonderful!
Friends, since you already have great knowledge and clear understanding, whereas I am of no importance and have little wisdom, it is not suitable for you to request advice from me. However because you dear friends, whom I cherish from my heart, have requested me, I will give you this essential advice from my inferior and childish mind.
Please do not believe Atisha when he says “I am of no importance and have little wisdom”. In eastern countries such as India and Tibet it was customary for qualified scholars to say they knew nothing and so forth. They were not lying but indirectly telling their listeners to be humble and not to be proud or show themselves as being special. Kadampa lamas and JT’s followers in particular were very strict about this. If we are not careful and do not put whatever Dharma we understand into practice it is very possible that the more our understanding increases the more our pride will increase. This is because the subject is very profound and has deep meaning, and we will feel that we understand something that other people do not. We will begin to think that we are scholars in knowing things and that others do not know, and pride will naturally arise. Therefore when teachers say they have little wisdom they are indicating that we should always remain humble. We should do everything perfectly but we should always remain as an ordinary being and never show that we are special. This is why Atisha is saying here that he has little wisdom and that his mind is inferior and childish. If Atisha has very little wisdom then how can his Lamrim instructions be the kind of Buddhadharma, main body of Buddha’s teachings? Buddha’s Sutra teachings such as the Perfection of Wisdom Sutras and his Tantric teachings such as Heruka Tantra and Guhyasamaja Tantra are branches of Lamrim. The Lamrim itself is like the main body, and all Buddha’s teachings are like its branches. If Atisha has little wisdom, how could he create such an instruction? This would be impossible. Atisha has great omniscient wisdom and knows every object past, present, and future. For example at one time Atisha and his heart disciple Dromtonpa together with their other close disciples gathered in a retreat place called Tayepa near Lhasa - I have been there, it is a very beautiful retreat centre on top of a mountain - Atisha stayed there for a long time. One of their disciples wanted Atisha to tell them of Dromtonpa’s previous life stories and about the relationship between Atisha and his Tibetan disciples. At first Dromtonpa was against this because he didn’t want his qualifications to be revealed. But finally he accepted. Over many days Atisha explained about Dromtonpa’s many previous lives, explaining for example what kind of rebirth Dromtonpa had taken many millions of years ago, where he was born, his relatives, what he did, what had been his relationship with Atisha in that life. He also explained the relationship he had developed with his disciples over previous lives. His disciples took notes and later were published as books called Kadam Dharma of the Sons and Kadam Dharma of the Fathers. He explained how Dromtonpa would hold the Kadam doctrine in the future. Atisha gave Dromtonpa the responsibility to develop the Kadampa tradition and made many predictions about this. Atisha knew all these things through his omniscient wisdom. Normally Atisha never used his clairvoyance and would stop his disciples from using theirs. If they did he would tell them to leave the community. Explaining his previous life stories and those of his disciples was an exception and indicated that he had omniscient wisdom.
In reality Atisha is an emanation of Buddha Amitabha, and Dromtonpa is an emanation of Avalokiteshvara.
Dromtonpa came from Potala, one of the Pure Lands of Avalokiteshvara and Tara. From there he went to Tibet, entered a Tibetan mother’s womb, and showed the manner of being born as a Tibetan boy. Atisha came from another Pure Land., first to India and then to Tibet, and then they met. In the stories of their previous lives, in many lifetimes Atisha was the SG and Dromtonpa was his spiritual disciple. This is similar to Avalokiteshvara being the disciple of Amitabha. Even though Avalokiteshvara attained enlightenment, Amitabha is still on the crown of his head, indicating that he is Avalokiteshvara’s SG.
So we should never believe Atisha saying that he had little wisdom and so forth.