The Meaning of The Term Mahamudra
Mahamudra is a Sanskrit word rendered in Tibetan as chakgya chenpo. Maha (chenpo) means “great, beyond compare.” And what is beyond compare is the mudra (chakgya), here referring to buddha nature. It is the wisdom of emptiness inherent in every sentient being. In other words, Mahamudra expresses mind’s being empty in nature, pervading every phenomenon and encompassing both samsara and nirvana. It is boundless wisdom and compassion, inseparable from each other.
In Sanskrit, words, and even single syllables, often convey more than one meaning. “Buddha nature” is just one of several possible meanings of the word mudra. Another common usage of mudra is found in the context of religious rituals. There, it signifies ritual hand gestures that symbolize specific hidden meanings. In the present context, however, mudra does not pertain to a symbolic expression. As specified above, in the context of Mahamudra, the word mudra takes on the meaning of the inexhaustible manifestation of absolute reality, in the sense that every outer and inner phenomenon is the inseparability of appearance and emptiness.
The Mahamudra tradition is usually based on three perspectives: (1) ground mudra, (2) path mudra, and (3) resultant mudra. In certain sutras you find other enumerations, such as the fifteen or the twenty forms of mudra, and so on, but categorizing the teachings according to ground, path, and resultant mudras fully covers every aspect of the teachings.
Ground Mahamudra is the intrinsic nature of the mind and of every possible phenomenon conceived by the mind. In clarity and emptiness, the pure mind encompasses both samsara and nirvana, without discrimination. Ground Mahamudra is as inexpressible as it is unimaginable. Being nonconceptual, it cannot be defined, located, or identified.
Path Mahamudra is the course we follow to realize beyond any doubt that every phenomenon is intrinsically empty. A genuine understanding of emptiness cannot be attained through our habitual, confused way of thinking. In the initial stages of investigating the meaning of emptiness, you should keep an open mind and pay particular attention to the relevant teachings. Carefully reflect upon whatever knowledge you have acquired through the teachings. You should also steep yourself in reading, until a broad understanding of the subject is formed. Then, you can further extend your understanding by applying shamatha (Sanskrit, literally “calm-abiding”) and vipashyana (Skt., literally “insight”) meditations. It is only through direct personal experience in meditation that you can know beyond a doubt how emptiness is truly the intrinsic nature of everything. This entire process is called Path Mahamudra.
Resultant Mahamudra is none other than the realization of Ground Mahamudra, attained through the progressive stages of Path Mahamudra. When the morning haze lifts, the sky is perfectly clear. The clear sky is unchanging; and yet, as long as there is haze, you don’t see it. Likewise, the clarity of mind is unchanging; and, yet, as long as delusions persist, you don’t see it. Once delusions have been completely done away with, Ground Mahamudra is experienced as the unchanging clarity of the mind.
In this way, Ground Mahamudra is presently obscured. We are unable to see the true nature of mind and of every possible phenomenon conceived by the mind. In itself, however, Ground Mahamudra is timeless and unchanging. It is merely the perception of it that changes drastically through a gradually improved understanding, until we are finally fully enlightened. In the enlightened state, we will know beyond any doubt how Ground Mahamudra and Resultant Mahamudra are in fact undifferentiated. Path Mahamudra refers to the process of familiarizing ourselves with the nature of mind through shamatha and vipashyana meditations. Ground Mahamudra, Path Mahamudra, and Resultant Mahamudra are all based in the mind and inseparable from the mind. Therefore, Mahamudra is not something alien that needs to be brought home from some distant pure land—it is nothing other than the primordial purity of mind, a sentient being’s buddha nature. It is ignorance of Ground Mahamudra that makes for the confused state of an ordinary sentient being. A sentient being on the advanced stages of Path Mahamudra is known as a realized bodhisattva. A sentient being who has fully realized Ground Mahamudra is an enlightened buddha.
Gampopa’s Three Approaches To Mahamudra Practice
Gampopa presented the Mahamudra teachings from three perspectives, as described below: (1) as sutra teachings by way of conceptual understanding, (2) as a path of blessing in the context of tantric practices, and (3) as a path of direct experience.
- The first approach is based on the sutra teachings of the Mahayana. Through logical reflection you arrive at an intellectual understanding of Mahamudra. This is none other than what was presented in an earlier section of this book, the vipashyana practice as it is common to all Buddhist approaches. Even though the term Sutra Mahayana in general has a much wider implication, in the present context, it is synonymous with logical reasoning and sutra teachings. Gampopa called it the path of inference.
- The second path is the tantric Vajrayana. Gampopa called it the path of blessing. In this approach, you meditate on a mandala and identify yourself with a deity or a certain buddha aspect, recite mantras, and engage in yogic practices.
- The third is the path of direct perception, Mahamudra meditation itself. It is a practice without the support of intermediary means, resulting in a direct experience that can neither be verbally expressed nor conceptually imagined.
Another way of presenting Gampopa’s three-fold approach is to make the following distinctions: (1) the path of removal, (2) the path of transformation, and (3) the path of knowing the essence or fundamental nature.
The path of removal is based on the intellectual understanding that the mind, in its natural state, is pure and unchanging. This natural state of mind is simply temporarily covered by adventitious, or superficial, stains. These obscuring mental defilements are caused by afflictions that arise out of our deluded sense that everything truly exists. In order to remove these adventitious stains, remedies are required. In the initial stage, the object to be removed, the means of removal, and the act of removal are not understood as illusory. They are, therefore, not understood to be nonconceptual and nondual. The goal here is the removal of mental defilements, so that the pure mind may be seen in its natural state. A practice based on such an understanding is also called the path of the paramitas (literally “perfections”) or the path of detachment. The path consists of what is commonly known as Sutra Mahayana.
The path of transformation refers to the Vajrayana, where you no longer focus on removing mental defilements. Here, on a more advanced level of the teachings, you practice transformation. The intellectual understanding of the mind is the same as that presented in the context of the path of removal: in its natural state, the mind is pure and unchanging, and this natural state of mind is temporarily obscured by adventitious stains. Only the methods differ. The method here is a fundamental transformation of the mundane into the sublime. Thus, the body is transformed into the body of a deity. Speech is transformed into mantra. All afflictions and confusions are transformed into wisdom. Here, nothing is being removed. All things, mundane as they are, are transformed into the sublime and enlightened. This human body of solid flesh and blood is transformed into the translucent rainbow-like perfect body of a buddha aspect, and is experienced as a mirage or an illusion. Understanding that this extraordinary manifestation arises out of the mind, you experience it as insubstantial and unreal just like a dream, as appearance and emptiness inseparable from each other.
The path of knowing the essence, or fundamental nature, is the highest level, where the practice of meditation is accomplished without having to rely on any outer support or remedying means. Neither the practice of removal nor the practice of transformation is needed to accomplish this level of meditation. Knowing the fundamental nature refers to knowing the ground, the true nature of the mind. Here, on the highest of levels, a practitioner knows what the intrinsic nature of the mind truly is and what the intrinsic nature of every possible phenomenon conceived by the mind truly is. In this practice the pure mind is sustained in an awareness that is aware of itself by cognizing its own true nature in a calm and clear state. The mind is aware of its true nature in undistracted repose. This is Mahamudra meditation. But, in order to access this path of directly knowing the ground, you start with inquiry, with exploring the nature of mind. In this context, it is important to be aware that the intrinsic nature of mind is not different from the intrinsic nature of every phenomenon it conceives, that every phenomenon is an illusory experience arising out of the mind. In that sense, the mind and its experiences are undifferentiated in nature. In clarity and emptiness, the nature of mind is without identifiable attributes. The luminous mind manifests itself in inexhaustible illusory forms. Based on such an understanding of the mind and its manifestations, you experience everything in life with calm. You know that everything that happens, good or bad, equally reflects the pure mind. This is, in fact, how an enlightened mind remains unperturbed through the turbulence of life. This is the highest and the most profound form of meditation practice that you can ever hope to know. In his Songs of Realization, the great Mahamudra master Saraha said:
On this most exalted path of the essence, one uses the result as the method, because the beginning, the end, and what is in between are undifferentiated.
You, therefore, do not rely on other methods, such as contemplating the unattractiveness of things or analytical meditations, because the fundamental nature of mind is beyond any conceptualization used in such methods. Mahamudra is just the direct awareness of mind’s fundamental nature; this is the quintessence of all practices. And although there are different views, it is possible to practice this Mahamudra without engaging in Vajrayana meditation. These Mahamudra teachings come from Saraha and Maitripa. Both of them were highly realized meditation masters, or siddhas. Moreover, Maitripa counted among the great panditas, or scholars, of his day. Their Mahamudra teachings are known by various terms, such as mental nonengagement (Skt. amanasikara, Tib. yi la mi chepa), the direct path, the quintessential approach, mind’s luminosity, the practice of co-emergence (Skt. sahaja, Tib. lhen chig kyepa), and so on. The translator Marpa transmitted them to Tibet in the eleventh century, and these teachings have been solemnly transmitted from guru to disciple ever since. In the Mahamudra system, the sutra teachings are incorporated in the early stages as ordinary shamatha and ordinary vipashyana. With the foundation well laid, you can then enter into the supreme path of Mahamudra meditation. In ordinary shamatha meditation, you focus on a support to stabilize the mind. In ordinary vipashyana meditation, you deliberately use conceptual reasoning to draw logical conclusions. These are valuable methods that belong to the sutra teachings of the Mahayana. And yet, ultimately, we can only rely on the true nature of mind itself to attain full realization. We have to see that in every moment the true nature of mind actually reveals itself in absolute purity, in clarity and emptiness. To observe what the mind truly is, to let the mind watch itself moment by moment, is access to Mahamudra meditation right here and now. The result of the meditation does not come from anywhere else. The true nature of mind—mind itself—has always been the result. To realize the true nature of mind, through the mind, is the path. To know beyond a doubt that Ground Mahamudra, Path Mahamudra, and Resultant Mahamudra are undifferentiated is the ultimate realization. This is the quintessence of the highest and most profound of teachings. Teachings superior to this cannot be found.
These Mahamudra instructions are very advanced teachings. When you have an overall impression of the teachings, you can better apply them step-by-step in your own practice. It matters little if you are a beginner just starting shamatha practice. The teachings, once received, are imprinted in your mind. When Marpa gave Milarepa the teachings, he gave them in full with all the relevant instructions. Milarepa learned them well. While he was with Marpa, he had not yet practiced them. Later, he meditated alone in a cave without his teacher. As he had the full knowledge of the practical skills and the different levels of teachings, he proved that by practicing very consistently, it is possible to attain full realization without the physical presence of one’s own teacher.
